The blog covers every station on the Plymouth to Launceston branch line—a beautiful run from Devon into Cornwall and back. This post is about Whitchurch, which was on the outskirts of Tavistock. It was a very small stop, and sadly, I don’t have many images.
The line shows where the branch line ran through the heart of Tavistock. Whitchurch Down was just north of the previous station Horrabridge Station.
Whitchurch Down was very small and even difficult to see on a map, but the platform was just behind the houses on Whichurch Road.
The area of Whitchurch was separate from Tavistock, but as the town grew, it became a suburb.
Whitchurch Down Photos
The stop was a pretty little halt. For its size and importance, it was well constructed, far better than Clearbrook Halt (according to Anthony Kingdom, in his book The Plymouth Tavistock and Launceston Railway). It consisted of a long, straight platform capable of serving long excursion trains.
Looking north, towards Tavistock, you can see that it was brick-faced with slab edging and a tidy chipping surface. Taken circa 1950s. Image by Lens of Sutton.
At its centre, adjacent to its large cast-iron wooden nameboard, was its entrance leading in onto a paved section on which stood a square, corrugated waiting shelter. Taken circa 1950s. Image by Lens of Sutton.
The halt had no fewer than five lamp standards spaced along its length. The two on either side of the shelter were cast-iron and fitted with swan neck extensions carrying gas lamps. The other standards consisted of similar fittings mounted on wooden posts placed immediately in front of the timber-and-wire fence that bordered the rear.
The fence also bordered the back gardens of houses on Whitchurch Road, so residents adorned it with many fine rambling roses.
Movie Footage of the Halt
It’s not very long, but Dad and I found some wonderful movie footage of Whitchurch Down and transferred it from cine film to video. As I said, it’s not long, but it shows how quaint the halt was.
There is a lot more movie footage of the line from Plymouth to Launceston on a video I have just updated on my YouTube Channel.
Whitchurch Today
Today, there is very little to see of where Whitchurch Down was.
This is the front of the houses on Whitchurch Road. Just behind them, and backing onto the platform, would have been the halt.
Just off Whitchurch Road, down the end of School Road, this image is behind the houses. I cannot be sure, but it might be the old track bed, if not, it’s very close to where it would have been.
Next Up
Since Whitchurch Down was in the suburb of Tavistock, the next stop on the line was Tavistock South. Fortunately, I have a lot of images of that station, which was one of the busiest on the line.
I would like to thank Anthony Kingdom for the images and information from his book The Plymouth Tavistock and Launceston Railway. His books go into so much more detail about the entire line and stations. Also, thank you to Middleton Press for images from their books.
