{"id":10916,"date":"2025-06-17T22:26:00","date_gmt":"2025-06-17T21:26:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.teignrail.co.uk\/scouting\/?p=10916"},"modified":"2025-09-07T15:55:27","modified_gmt":"2025-09-07T14:55:27","slug":"117-princetown-branch","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.teignrail.co.uk\/scouting\/117-princetown-branch\/","title":{"rendered":"117 Princetown Branch"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The few photographs of the line in the library at Christow were taken in May, 1992, the last time the scout had followed the moorland stretch. Signing out the utilicon for a route refresher was easily justified.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A camping guest accompanied the scout to Princetown and booked the arrival time: 1038. The scout set off down the hill and got to Yelverton at 1108, not quite reaching 40 m.p.h. The wind noise on an early part of the descent was deafening and the air was still cool. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yelverton<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In contemporary photographs of the Princetown platform at Yelverton, a neat laurel hedge can be seen beside the track. Being a coloniser, the untended laurel has suppressed almost all else, enabling many little finds, including footplate equipment and the prostrate concrete starting signal post. \u200bThe most remarkable discovery was a 24V carriage light bulb which had the G.W.R. roundel marked very faintly on the opal globe. It must have lain where it was since a man changed one and tossed the dud out through a window. The find was given to the Great Western Society.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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What might be the tentacles of an alien creature envelope the former Princetown platform at Yelverton.
This is what happens when you stop clipping a laurel hedge. Was it planted alongside the Princetown line to give some privacy to Elfordtown, the house in whose grounds the station was built and to which ownership returned upon closure? The accommodation bridge at the Horrabridge end of the station linked the severed estate.
Until Yelverton was built, Princetown trains started at Horrabridge. When the new station opened, the Princetown Branch had a double line junction with the Launceston Branch. This was later reduced to the single connection with the Up Main. The gap that was left by the loss of the other line was filled by a tapering platform extension made of timber. This was still there when the scout found himself clambering over the laurel tentacles.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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The former Princetown Branch platform curves away to the left, where the laurel can be seen starting its encroachment. The tapering wooden platform extension can just be seen to the left of the telegraph post.
The Launceston Branch carried passenger trains for another six years.
Copyright: Roger Joanes. Shared under Creative Commons.<\/em> +<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n
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The motor trolley stands on the turntable road behind the Princetown platform. Snow ploughs were turned here.
A gate in the iron fence just left of the trolley was the start of a footpath from the Up platform to Gratton Lane.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

The scout had roamed the old station, and taken away materials, with the permission of the owner, on several occasions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n