The house was built in 1913 for Captain George Vereker, a younger son of the 5th Viscount Gort. After Captain Vereker’s death, his widow sold the house to Otto Overbeck, a research chemist and avid collector who lived here until his death in 1937. It is a comfortable villa, with 2 projecting wings containing wide bay windows and linked by a conservatory. Inside there is a fine mahogany staircase and oak panelling. The 6-acre garden overlooks the sea and contains palms, olives, mimosa, pines, cypresses and a splendid Magnolia campbellii, planted when the gardens were laid out around an earlier house at the turn of the century.
Address:
Sharpitor,
Salcombe,
Devon,
England,
TQ8 8LW
Telephone: 01548 842893
www.nationaltrust.org.uk/overbecks
The collection on display largely consists of memorabilia relating to Otto Overbeck and his family; several examples of a 'rejuvenator' – an electric shock treatment device invented by Overbeck; a natural history collection relating to Overbeck's scientific interest in carp; and material related to his championship fishing activity.
