Lostwithiel to St Blazey and back A branch and main line ‘circular’
Having already considered the history of the two branch lines to Fowey – see Steam Days, October 2020 – and how between the Victorian era and summer 1968 they co-existed and formed a through route, this article is intended as a ‘circular’ trip from Lostwithiel via Fowey to St Blazey, with reversal there to return via the 1879 double-track spur to Par station and then former Cornwall Railway metals via the summit at Treverrin tunnel and then down to Lostwithiel. Such a journey was only available to the general public from 16 September 1895, when the Great Western Railway revived the former broad gauge Lostwithiel & Fowey Railway (L&FR) as a standard gauge route, and until the section of ex-Cornwall Minerals Railway (CMR) branch between Fowey and St Blazey lost its regular passenger service from Monday, 8 July 1929. The infrastructure described is that of the British Railways steam days, but with an eye on earlier times and, at times, the post-steam era.
Lostwithiel station
Opened on 4 May 1859 as a wayside station on the broad gauge Cornwall Railway, across the years Lostwithiel has been widely regarded as one of the most attractive stopping places on the West of England main line. Initially independent, by Act of 1861 the Cornwall Railway was operated under a joint committee and this arrangement continued through to July 1889, when the company was swallowed up by the GWR. A broad gauge junction existed to the south/west end of Lostwithiel station from opening of the Lostwithiel & Fowey Railway, a 5¼ mile long branch line, on 1 June 1869. In truth, that goods-only operation only ran as far as Carne Point, about ½ mile short of the town of Fowey, and it proved to be relatively short-lived, just 10½ years, as it failed when in competition with the CMR’s core route through St Blazey to Fowey. Thereafter, it saw no use from 1880 until resurrected by the GWR as a standard gauge route in 1895, complete with a new junction at Lostwithiel, the main line through Lostwithiel having itself been converted from broad to standard gauge in May 1892.
Situated beside the tranquil river Fowey and surrounded by beautiful woodland scenery, Lostwithiel station was of classic Great Western design, its timber-framed buildings being fully within the Brunelian tradition – they were built by Messrs Olver & Sons of Falmouth, a well-known Cornish building firm. Originally a two-platform station, the main booking office and waiting room facilities at Lostwithiel were situated on the up side of the line, with a smaller building on the down platform. In 1895, however, the down platform became an island, with an additional face for Fowey branch trains, and an enlarged station building. The up and down platforms were linked by a plate girder footbridge, the latter structure being roofed in typical Great Western fashion.
In architectural terms, Lostwithiel’s main up-side buildings conformed to a more or less standard Cornwall Railway ground plan, featuring a recessed central portion that formed a small loggia for waiting travellers. The building sported a low-pitched roof with tall chimneys and a projecting platform canopy, the general effect being vaguely Italianate. Similar buildings could be found at Saltash, St Germans, Penryn, and elsewhere, although most Cornwall Railway stations were stuccoed rather than timber buildings.
The down-side buildings incorporated extensive canopies to provide shelter for passengers waiting on both the main and branch platform, while the signal cabin was a brick and timber structure with small-paned windows and a gable roof. It was sited at the north end of the down platform, from which position the signalman oversaw the adjacent level crossing, which prior to the 1950s was for the main road east from Lostwithiel towards Liskeard and Plymouth. The station was equipped with water columns on each platform, and these were fed from a stilted tank behind the Fowey branch bay. At night, the platforms were illuminated by traditional gas lamps, although electric lights on concrete posts were erected during the BR era.
A pair of south-facing down side sidings existed behind the branch platform, along with two lengthy north-facing sidings
