Cornwall Minerals Railway

Joseph Treffry's tramways

Joseph Austen (1782 - 1850) of Fowey inherited considerable lands and mineral resources in central Cornwall. By 1838 he changed his name to Joseph Treffry, and he is better known by that name. The expense of transport of minerals to market was heavy, and Treffry set about improving the means of transport. He built Par Docks, and the Par Canal connecting them to Pontsmill, together with tramways on inclined planes that brought the important copper mine Fowey Consols and Par Consols into the network. China clay was extracted in the Hensbarrow area north-west of Luxulyan and the mineral was also brought to Pontsmill.

Treffry soon expanded his interests by building a horse-operated tramway up the Luxulyan Valley to Molinnis, near the present-day Bugle; this line opened in 1844. Later he built another tramway from Newquay to Hendra, and from Newquay to East Wheal Rose mine; he also developed Newquay Harbour: these lines opened in 1849, and collectively are conventionally known as the Treffry Tramways. Both were on the standard gauge. Treffry had made it clear that he wanted to connect these lines, forming a through route between Par and Newquay; in particular this would have enabled copper and tin ores to be exported from the north coast of Cornwall to South Wales, and coal to be imported that way, avoiding the difficult shipping route round Land's End. However Treffry suffered from ill health in the late 1840s and he never saw his dream brought into effect: he died in 1850. Nonetheless his initiative vastly enhanced transport and reduced costs, but he chose horse operation on the basis of lower costs of operation, and this led to its soon becoming obsolescent.

Other railways in the area

A railway connecting Cornwall with London and the industrial Midlands and North of England had long been desired, but the difficult topography made raising the necessary finance difficult. After a long struggle, the Cornwall Railway opened in 1859, connecting Truro and Plymouth, and by association with the Great Western Railway (GWR) and its allies, it formed a broad gauge route from Truro to London and Gloucester; there was a connecting line from Penzance, and the Cornwall Railway later extended to Falmouth.

In 1864 another line was promoted, the Newquay and Cornwall Junction Railway (N&CJR), to join the St Dennis terminal of Treffry's lines to Burngullow on the newly opened Cornwall Railway. The N&CJR built its line on the broad gauge to connect with the Cornwall Railway but Treffry's lines were standard gauge. The N&CJR had ambitious plans to extend and possibly take over and convert the Treffry lines, but in fact it ran out of money before completing its own line. It was built only from Burngullow to Nanpean and opened in 1869.

Another short line opened in 1869 at the same time as the N&CJR, this was the Lostwithiel and Fowey Railway. Its broad gauge line ran from a junction with the Cornwall Railway at Lostwithiel to jetties near Fowey. Fowey was then an important harbour and the railway's purpose was simply forming a connection for minerals and goods to the Cornwall Railway system.

A July 1878 public timetable shows two trains each way between Newquay and Fowey, calling at Halloon, Victoria, Bugle, Bridge, "Par St Blazey" and Fowey. There were two extra trips from Par St Blazey to Fowey. Par St Blazey was a single station, i.e. the later St Blazey.

The 1895 edition of Bradshaw's Guide shows three daily passenger trains between Lostwithiel and Fowey; eight from St Blazey to Fowey and nine returning; and four to and from Newquay.