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Princetown
Princetown is a villageDespite its name, Princetown is not classed as a town today – it is not included in the County Council's list of the 29 towns in Devon: located within Dartmoor national park in the English county of Devon. It is the principal settlement of the civil parish of Dartmoor Forest. At the 2021 census, the village had a population of 1,443. The village has its origins in 1785, when Sir Thomas Tyrwhitt, then secretary to the Prince of Wales, leased a large area of moorland from the Duchy of Cornwall estate, hoping to convert it into good farmland. He encouraged people to live in the area and suggested that a prison be built there. He called the settlement Princetown after the Prince of Wales. Princetown is the site of Dartmoor Prison. At around 1,430 feet (435 m) above sea level, it is the highest settlement on the moor, and one of the highest in the United Kingdom. It is also the largest settlement located on the high moor. The Princetown Rail ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Princetown Railway
The Princetown Railway was a 10¼ mile single track branch railway line in Devon, England, that ran from Yelverton on the Plymouth to Tavistock line, to via four intermediate stations, , , and . The line closed in 1956 and today forms part of a popular cycling and walking route. Origins In 1823 the Plymouth and Dartmoor Railway had opened its line connecting Princetown with a wharf on the River Plym near Plymouth. The original intention of encouraging agricultural development of the moor had been frustrated, but the line was carrying considerable traffic in granite from quarries a little below Princetown. It used horses for pulling the wagons and had a distinct track gauge of 4 ft 6in (1,372 mm). It did not convey passengers. In 1852 business interests were formulating the prospectus of the South Devon and Tavistock Railway Company (SD&TR), which was to connect Tavistock with the main line railway near Plymouth. They wrote that arrangements would also be made, if ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Church Of St Michael, Princetown
The Anglican Church of St Michael (sometimes known as St Michael and All Angels) in Princetown, Devon, England was built between 1810 and 1814. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II* listed building, and is a redundant church in the care of the Churches Conservation Trust. The granite church stands near the middle of Dartmoor, above sea level in an exposed location close to Dartmoor Prison. Permission for the construction of the church was given 1812 by the Lord Commissioners of the Admiralty. The church was designed by the architect Daniel Alexander and built by prisoners from the Napoleonic Wars and finished by those captured during the American war who were held in the prison, and is the only church in England to have been built by prisoners of war. The three stage west tower is surmounted by pinnacles. Prisoners of war were held in the prison until 1816 and then the church closed. It was reopened and reconsecrated in 1831. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Dartmoor (HM Prison)
HM Prison Dartmoor is a Category C men's prison, located in Princetown, high on Dartmoor in the English county of Devon. Its high granite walls dominate this area of the moor. The prison is owned by the Duchy of Cornwall, and is operated by His Majesty's Prison Service. The prison closed temporarily in 2024 for radon mitigation and investigation works. Dartmoor Prison was given Grade II heritage listing in 1987. History Prisoners of War In 1805, the United Kingdom was at war with Napoleonic France, a conflict during which thousands of prisoners were taken and confined in prison "hulks" or derelict ships. This was considered a security risk, partially due to the proximity of the Royal Naval dockyard at Devonport (then called Plymouth Dock) and living conditions were appalling in the extreme; consequently, a prisoner of war depot was planned in the remote isolation of Dartmoor. The prison was designed by Daniel Asher Alexander. Construction by local labour started in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Dartmoor
Dartmoor is an upland area in southern Devon, South West England. The moorland and surrounding land has been protected by National Park status since 1951. Dartmoor National Park covers . The granite that forms the uplands dates from the Carboniferous Period of geological history. The landscape consists of moorland capped with many exposed granite hilltops known as tors, providing habitats for wildlife. The highest point is High Willhays, above sea level. The entire area is rich in antiquities and archaeological artefacts. Dartmoor National Park is managed by the Dartmoor National Park Authority, whose 22 members are drawn from Devon County Council, local district councils and Government. The Dartmoor Commoners' Council exists to create and enforce regulations regarding commoners' rights. Parts of Dartmoor have been used as military firing ranges for over 200 years. The public is granted extensive land access rights on Dartmoor (including restricted access to the fi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Tor Royal
Tor Royal is a Grade II* listed building near Princetown, Dartmoor, in the English county of Devon. Built between 1785 and 1793 by Sir Thomas Tyrwhitt, it was added to in c.1815–20, and restored by A. E. Richardson in 1912. From the end of the 18th century there was much interest in enclosing and "improving" the open moorland on Dartmoor, and Tyrwhitt enthusiastically took part in this programme. In 1785 he bought over 2,000 acres near one of the newly constructed turnpike roads across the moor and had an access road built to his estate, where he experimented with growing various crops, the most successful of which was flax. According to the listing text at British Listed Buildings, the interest of this house lies "not only in the quality of its interior and its unaltered nature, but also in its historical importance to Princetown and its royal connections." Tyrwhitt instigated the building of both Dartmoor Prison (1809) and the Plymouth and Dartmoor Railway (1823) which led ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Whiteworks
Whiteworks (or White Works) is a former mining hamlet near the town of Princetown, within Dartmoor National Park, in the English county of Devon. Tin mining is central to the history of settlement at Whiteworks, which was once home to one of Dartmoor's largest tin mines. The original cottages and their inhabitants were related to this industry, until the area became used increasingly for farming in the 20th century. The site has now largely been abandoned, although Whiteworks is still on the route of many walks including Abbots Way Walk passes 500 m to the west. Geography Whiteworks is situated in an area of open moorland about south-east of Princetown, overlooking the notoriously dangerous Fox Tor Mires. A difficult path leads across the mires to Fox Tor itself, which lies about south-east of the hamlet. Vehicle access to Whiteworks is via a narrow dead-end road branching off from the B3212 at Princetown. This road is an extension of the one constructed by Sir Thomas Ty ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Dartmoor Forest
Dartmoor Forest is a civil parish in the West Devon district, in the county of Devon, England. It was formed on 1 April 1987 by the splitting of the parishes of Lydford and Walkhampton. It covers about entirely within Dartmoor, Dartmoor National Park, and is the largest parish in Devon. Despite its size its population in 2001 was only 1,619. Due to its large size it is surrounded by many other parishes: these are, clockwise from the north, Belstone, South Tawton, Throwleigh, Gidleigh, Chagford, North Bovey, Manaton, Widecombe in the Moor, Holne, West Buckfastleigh, Dean Prior, South Brent, Ugborough, Harford, Devon, Harford, Cornwood, Shaugh Prior, Sheepstor, Walkhampton, Whitchurch, Devon, Whitchurch, Peter Tavy, Lydford, land common to the parishes of Bridestowe and Sourton, and Okehampton Hamlets. The principal settlement in the parish is Princetown. Other settlements include Bellever, Hexworthy, Postbridge and Two Bridges, Devon, Two Bridges. References Civil parish ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
The Hound Of The Baskervilles
''The Hound of the Baskervilles'' is the third of the four Detective fiction, crime novels by British writer Arthur Conan Doyle featuring the detective Sherlock Holmes. Originally serial (literature), serialised in ''The Strand Magazine'' from August 1901 to April 1902, it is set largely in Dartmoor, Devon, in England's West Country and follows Holmes and Dr. Watson, Watson investigating the legend of a fearsome, Black dog (folklore), diabolical hound of supernatural origin. This was the first appearance of Holmes since his apparent death in "The Final Problem", and the success of ''The Hound of the Baskervilles'' led to the character's eventual revival. One of the most famous stories ever written, in 2003, the book was listed as number 128 of 200 on the BBC's The Big Read poll of the UK's "best-loved novel". In 1999, a poll of "Sherlockians" ranked it as the best of the four Holmes novels. Plot In London, 1889, Dr. James Mortimer asks for the aid of Sherlock Holmes, beginni ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Thomas Tyrwhitt (MP)
Sir Thomas Tyrwhitt (1762 – 24 February 1833) was an English politician. He was a Member of Parliament (MP) from 1796 to 1812. Career Educated at Eton College and Christ Church, Oxford, after serving as private secretary to the Prince of Wales, Tyrwhitt was elected Member of Parliament (MP) for Okehampton in 1796. Tyrwhitt was responsible for the construction of several roads across Dartmoor, a hamlet called Princetown named in honour of the Prince of Wales, a prison for prisoners of war captured during the Napoleonic Wars now known as HM Prison Dartmoor, as well as the Plymouth and Dartmoor Railway. He became Auditor of the Duchy of Cornwall in 1796 and Lord Warden of the Stannaries in 1803. He was elected Member of Parliament for Portarlington in 1802 and Plymouth Plymouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Devon, South West England. It is located on Devon's south coast between the rivers River Plym, Plym and River Tam ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Two Bridges, Devon
Two Bridges is an isolated location on the river West Dart in the heart of Dartmoor National Park in Devon, England. It is situated around northeast of Princetown at the intersection of the two roads that cross Dartmoor: one is the old turnpike road which was built across Dartmoor in the late 18th century (now known as the B3212); the other is the B3357. A map dated 1765 suggests the origin of the name, for in those days the road crossed both the West Dart and the River Cowsic, just upstream from the point where they meet, and required two separate bridges. By 1891, these had disappeared and there was just a single bridge, further downstream, over the West Dart. Today, however, there are again two bridges on the site, because a more modern structure has been added alongside its earlier predecessor. Visitors often mistakenly assume that these are the same two bridges that gave the name to the site. In the 18th century, Two Bridges was best known for its potato market. Some sm ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Yelverton, Devon
Yelverton is a large village on the south-western edge of Dartmoor, Devon, in England. It is in the civil parish of Buckland Monachorum. According to the 2021 census, it had a population of 1,858, which was slightly more than the 1,810 recorded at the 2011 census. When Yelverton railway station (on the Great Western Railway (GWR) line from Plymouth to Tavistock) opened in the 19th century, the village became a popular residence for Plymouth commuters. The railway is now closed, but the Plym Valley Railway has reopened a section of it. The Anglican parish church of St Paul was built in 1910-1912 and is a grade II listed building. Yelverton is one of six parishes which form the West Dartmoor Mission Community, within the Tavistock Deanery of the Diocese of Exeter. Holy Cross Catholic Church was built as a chapel in the early 1920s and upgraded to a church in 1928. It is in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Plymouth, and is built in a "simplified Gothic style". Rock Methodist Chu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
Arthur Conan Doyle
Sir Arthur Ignatius Conan Doyle (22 May 1859 – 7 July 1930) was a British writer and physician. He created the character Sherlock Holmes in 1887 for ''A Study in Scarlet'', the first of four novels and fifty-six short stories about Holmes and Dr. Watson. The Sherlock Holmes stories are milestones in the field of crime fiction. Doyle was a prolific writer. In addition to the Holmes stories, his works include fantasy and science fiction stories about Professor Challenger, and humorous stories about the Napoleonic soldier Brigadier Gerard, as well as plays, romances, poetry, non-fiction, and historical novels. One of Doyle's early short stories, "J. Habakuk Jephson's Statement" (1884), helped to popularise the mystery of the brigantine ''Mary Celeste'', found drifting at sea with no crew member aboard. Name Doyle is often referred to as "Sir Arthur Conan Doyle" or "Conan Doyle", implying that "Conan" is part of a Double-barrelled name, compound surname rather than a mid ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] [Amazon] |
