Princetown

At over 430 metres (around 1400 feet), Princetown is the highest populated location on Dartmoor and one of the highest towns in the UK. Situated almost centrally on the moor, it is a favourite meeting point for walkers and hikers and has campsites, bed & breakfast accommodation, shops and cafes, as well as several popular pubs. Princetown is easily located from miles around due to the 750-feet-tall television mast sited on top of North Hessary Tor, which overlooks the town. It is said that this mast has saved many a life, guiding to safety those lost in the mist that descends swiftly and unexpectedly on the moor.
The town was founded in the 18th century by Thomas Tyrwhitt, later to be knighted for his work in Princetown. Born in Essex in 1762, he was educated at Eton and Oxford and then became Secretary to the Prince of Wales who was later to become King George VI. As is the case today, the Prince of Wales owned the Duchy of Cornwall which included Dartmoor, and Sir Thomas used his connection to lease a large area near what was to become Two Bridges in 1785. Having become MP for Okehampton in 1796, he cultivated his moorland estate and built a farmhouse in 1798 which he named Tor Royal.
Keen to change the moor around his farm from a desolate wilderness into a thriving community, Tyrwhitt started to encourage others to move into the area. He decided to name the burgeoning settlement Princetown, after the Prince of Wales, and began work to allow the town to flourish.
Probably his most notable suggestion was to build a prison there to accommodate those captured during the Napoleonic Wars. HMP Dartmoor was built between 1806 and 1809 and housed approximately 5,000 prisoners-of-war until the end of the war with France in 1815. It then remained empty until around 1850 when it was reopened as a civilian prison.
During the First World War, Dartmoor prison was used as a detention centre for conscientious objectors, known as “Conchies”. At the end of the war it returned to its previous status and some of the most dangerous criminals were held there as it was considered one of the most difficult in England from which to escape, being surrounded by bleak and inhospitable moorland.
Today, Dartmoor prison is still the most notorious building in Princetown and accommodates Category C prisoners, i.e. non-violent and so-called “white-collar” offenders. There are 6 wings and prisoners have the opportunity to improve their education, from basic principles through vocational training to Open University courses, and to undertake part-time or full-time work in a variety of jobs. The prison and the land upon which it is built are still owned by the Duchy of Cornwall to which HMP Dartmoor pays an annual rent.
Tyrwhitt was also responsible for establishing communications with surrounding areas. He led the construction of several main roads across Dartmoor, including the one from Tavistock to Princetown. He also constructed the first large scale railway in Plymouth, the Plymouth and Dartmoor Railway, which was the highest in England. Tyrwhitt himself laid the first rail in August 1819 and the 25-mile-long line from Crabtree to Princetown opened in September 1823, having cost around £66,000 to build. The railway changed hands and was altered many times over the years and finally closed in 1961.
This was not the only railway line to be built across Dartmoor. The Princetown Railway was given approval in 1878 and opened in 1883, running for over 10 miles from Horrabridge to Princetown via Dousland. It too changed hands several times until its closure in 1956.
Aside from the prison, Princetown has a number of other buildings of note. Its oldest church, the Church of St Michael, was built by Napoleonic prisoners-of-war, many of whom were buried in its graveyard. The church is no longer used for worship but is maintained by the Redundant Churches Fund. The town’s museum houses exhibits relating to the prison and is located in what used to be dairy buildings.
The High Moorland Visitor Centre provides information on the history, culture and wildlife of Dartmoor but has an interesting story of its own. The original building dates back to 1810, when officers guarding prisoners-of-war were stationed here. Like the prison itself, the building fell into disuse until the mid 19th century when it was refurbished. For almost a hundred years it was a renowned hotel, visited by royalty on more than one occasion and occupied by Arthur Conan Doyle when he was researching and writing his famous novel ‘The Hound of the Baskervilles’. The Home Office took out a lease on it in 1941 and, for a period, it was once again used as lodgings for prison officers. In 1991, it was completely renovated and the current information centre was officially opened by the Prince of Wales in June 1993.
Princetown also boasts the highest brewery in England, which produces “top quality oak conditioned real ale” including the aptly-named Jail Ale, Dartmoor IPA, and Legend. The brewery, founded in 1994, once occupied a garage behind the Prince of Wales pub but moved to a new modern building on the site of the old Princetown Railway in 2005. A family-run business, it has won plenty of real ale awards and is available at a number of pubs on Dartmoor.
Despite a relatively small population, Princetown still manages to support three pubs, largely due to visitors hiking across the moors and desperate to quench their thirst. Aside from the aforementioned Prince of Wales pub, the town also hosts the Plume of Feathers and the Railway Inn. The Plume of Feathers is Princetown’s oldest pub, built in 1795 and originally called The Prince's Arms, and provides simple accommodation in the form of a campsite, a bunkhouse, and a few rooms for bed and breakfast. Next door, the Railway Inn, formerly known as The Devil’s Elbow, also has a campsite. All three pubs offer local beer and good food, including cream teas.