Barnstaple in July. October is the wettest month with 103 mm (4.1 in) of rain. The record high is 34 C (94 F), and the record low is −9 C (16 F). Barnstaple gets 862 mm (33.9 in) of rain per year, with rain on 138 days. Barnstaple parish's population in the 1801 census was 3,748, in the 1901 census 9,698, and in the 2001 census, the population was 22,497. As of 2011, the racial make-up of the town was as follows: As a major town, Barnstaple is more ethnically diverse than the North Devon district (95.9% White British) and Devon
Barnstaple tanneries, sawmills and foundries, and shipbuilding was also carried on. The Bear Street drill hall was completed in the early 19th century. Barnstaple was one of the boroughs reformed by the Municipal Reform Act 1835. Between the 1930s and the 1950s the town swallowed the villages of Pilton, Newport, and Roundswell through ribbon development. The historic Borough of Barnstaple was long governed by the Mayor of Barnstaple and the Corporation. The seat of government was the Barnstaple Guildhall. The mayor served a term of one year and was elected annually on the Feast of the Assumption of the Virgin (15