The tramways in Plymouth were originally constructed as four independent networks operated by three different companies to serve the adjacent towns of Plymouth, Stonehouse and Devonport in Devon, England. The merger of the 'Three Towns' into the new borough of Plymouth in 1914 was the catalyst for the three companies to join up under the auspices of the new Plymouth Corporation. The network was closed in 1945, partly as a result of bomb damage during World War II.
The earliest of the three companies, the Plymouth, Stonehouse and Devonport Tramway, was the first tramway in the United Kingdom to be constructed under the provisions of the Tramways Act 1870 (33 & 34 Vict. c. 78). Initially a gauge horse-worked line, it was later converted to gauge and electric power. The second was the Plymouth, Devonport and District Tramway (later the Plymouth Tramways Company), which was built to 3 feet 6 inch gauge and used both steam and horse power before electrification. The final company was the Devonport and District Tramway which also adopted the 3 feet 6 inch gauge but was electrified from the outset.
History
Plymouth grew up around a natural harbour on the eastern side of the promontory now known as Plymouth Hoe, on the south Devon coast. Naval dockyards were established at Plymouth Dock (later known as Devonport), facing across the River Tamar to the north west of Plymouth; Stonehouse was sandwiched between the two and became the home for military barracks, hospitals and the Royal William Victualling Yard.
The South Devon Railway arrived at Plymouth in 1848 and a permanent station was established at Millbay the following year. This was on the western side of Plymouth Hoe and a new commercial dock was established on the shore opposite the station. Immediately north of the station the railway crossed Union Street on a viaduct. This was a road which had been built to link the centres of the Three Towns. The Cornwall Railway opened another line from Millbay through in 1859.
Plymouth, Devonport and Stonehouse
The Tramways Act 1870 (33 & 34 Vict. c. 78) was passed to enable the easier construction of street tramways, and the company promoting the line through Stonehouse was the first to take advantage of it. The tramway was opened on 18 March 1872. Starting from Derry's Clock by the Theatre Royal in Plymouth, it ran along Union Street and passed under the railway viaduct before entering Stonehouse. It then crossed over the "Halfpenny Bridge" (a toll bridge across a tidal creek) and entered Devonport. After climbing Devonport Hill it terminated at Cumberland Street. Two years later the line was extended beyond Cumberland Street along Chapel Street, Fore Street and Marlborough Street. This was a loop on which trams ran in an anti-clockwise direction.
The Stonehouse line was the only one in Plymouth to be built to the British standard gauge. Its trams were hauled by horses; two worked right through from Plymouth to Devonport but an additional pair were added to help across Stonehouse Bridge and one or two more were added to these for the journey up Devonport Hill. Once back on the level the extra horses were returned to Stonehouse to assist the next tram, but two more were added for the final hill along Chapel Street.
In 1901 the Stonehouse line was converted to electric traction. At the same time the line was narrowed to match the gauge of the Plymouth and Devonport lines. The electric trams ran around the loop at Devonport in a clockwise direction which removed a potential conflict between north and southbound trams at Cumberland Street. The tracks in Plymouth and Devonport were sold to the respective corporations and leased back to the tram company, but the section through Stonehouse remained in its ownership. The leases ran for 21 years, after which the Stonehouse company sold out to the Plymouth Corporation Tramways Department, which by then was operating all the other trams in the city.Langley and Small (1990) pp. 42–49 The Plymouth, Devonport and Stonehouse Tramway Company was a wholly owned subsidiary of the Provincial Tramways Company
Plymouth, Devonport and District
The Plymouth, Devonport and District Tramways Company was established by an act of Parliament, the (45 & 46 Vict. c. clix) to build a network in the Three Towns and as far east as Plympton. Of the seven routes authorised only two were built, one from West Hoe via Millbay to Hyde Park Corner at Mutley. This ran along Coburg Street and North Road to avoid the steep North Hill. The other route ran from the town centre to Southside Street in the Barbican. The tram cars (built by the Starbuck Car and Wagon Company) were kept in a depot at West Hoe and powered by 0-4-0 steam locomotives built by William Wilkinson of Wigan. The Board of Trade refused to allow the use of steam traction, nor trams to run along the track laid in Richmond Street and so trams from Mutley could not reach the town centre. The company pressed on, ignoring the Board of Trade ban on the use of steam, and inaugurated a regular service on 4 November.Langley and Small (1990) pp. 14–17
Devonport Corporation obtained an injunction from the Chancery Division of the High Court on 14 November to prevent the company opening or operating any services until the whole of the system was complete. The company lost an appeal in the Court of Appeal, and this was the end of steam tramways in Plymouth. The actions of the company and the Board of Trade resulted in the Derry v Peek ruling in the House of Lords.14 App Cas, 337, 376
The company failed to raise sufficient capital to complete their schemes and so sold out to a new Plymouth Tramways Company in 1886 by virtue of the (55 & 56 Vict. c. clxii). This company closed the line from the town centre to the Barbican and introduced horse power on the remaining routes. The steam engines were sold to the Swanscombe Colliery in Kent where they worked until 1922. The company operated the tramway until 1892 when it was sold to Plymouth Corporation for £12,500.Langley and Small (1990) pp. 18–20
Devonport and District
The last commercial tram operation to start up in Plymouth was the Devonport and District Tramways Company. Established in 1898 by the British Electric Traction Group (BET), it started to operate services in 1901. Trams started from two places in Devonport: Fore Street (close to the Stonehouse company's line) and Morice Town, which was closer to the main dockyards. From Fore Street one route ran eastwards along Paradise Road and Stuart Road to Pennycomequick, serving the LSWR station and terminating near North Road station in Plymouth. Another route ran north-eastwards to Milehouse where the main tram depot was established. From Morice Town one route ran eastwards to Milehouse, and another ran northwards to Camel's Head via Keyham. These routes totalled . Devonport Corporation provided the electricity from their power station at Stonehouse Creek near the Pennycomequick line.Langley and Small (1990) pp. 30–41
The company's proposed routes were not comprehensive enough to meet the corporation's aspirations, so they built two further lines. One was an extension from Milehouse to Peverell, the other was a line from Camel's Head to Saltash Passage. This was not initially connected to the line from Morice Town as the wooden bridge across Camel's Head Creek was not able to accommodate tram lines, so a small depot was provided at Camel's Head. The corporation leased its lines to the Devonport and District Tramways Company in 1903. The company opened a tea room at Little Ash near Saltash Passage and offered round-trip tickets, with the journey to the tea room being by tram in one direction and by boat in the other.
When the 'Three Towns' merged into one in October 1914, the company sold out to the Plymouth Corporation.
Plymouth Corporation Plymouth Corporation's first venture into tramway operation was when it took over the failing Plymouth Tramways Company in 1892. Its new Tramway Department continued to operate the routes to Mutley and West Hoe with horse trams, new cars being delivered in 1894 and 1895. The West Hoe line was lengthened a short distance to Pier Street on 11 March 1893. From Mutley the line was extended north from Hyde Park Corner to Compton Lane on 3 April 1893. Next came a connection from Richmond Street along Old Town Street to Market Avenue to give the Mutley line a more convenient town centre terminus. In 1895 a new line was opened from Mutley Plain straight down North Hill, joining up with the flatter route via North Road at a place later known as Spear's Corner in Tavistock Road. The following year saw street widening that allowed the opening of the short section which the Board of Trade had previously refused to approve. 10 December 1896 a completely new line was opened eastwards from the junction at the bottom of Tavistock Road (now known as Drake's Circus) to Prince Rock.
Work started to convert the corporation's lines to electric power in 1898. The first to be done was from the Market Avenue to Prince Rock which was operated by electric trams from 22 January 1899. Electricity was supplied from the corporation's own power station at Cattewater (near the eastern end of the line) and a new tram depot was built in Elliot Road. The electrification was soon extended from Market Avenue to the theatre. The first six electric cars were equipped to haul an old horse tram as a trailer, but this practice was discontinued after a derailment in Old Town Street. 4 April 1901 saw the route to Compton turned over to electric operation.Langley and Small (1990) pp. 21–29 A new electric route eastwards to Beaumont Road was opened on 2 April 1902. The horse trams to Peverell were replaced by electric on 13 January 1903, and those to Pennycomequick on 21 September 1905. This just left horse trams on the West Hoe route, which was converted on 22 June 1907.Langley and Small (1990) pp. 51–57
In October 1914 the 'Three Towns' were merged under the auspices of Plymouth Corporation. The lines owned by Devonport Corporation came under the control of Plymouth Corporation, and at the same time BET's Devonport and District Tramways Company was sold to the corporation. The following year saw connections made between the two networks at Pennycomequick and Peverell. After World War I the old Plymouth tram depots started to be run down while the old Devonport depot at Milehouse was expanded and new offices built there. The facilities provided were capable of undertaking complete rebuilding and rebodying of old tram cars.Langley and Small (1990) pp. 59–67 The Stonehouse line remained independent but the portions of the line in both Plymouth and Devonport had been sold to the respective corporations in 1901 and leased back for 21 years, so when this lease expired in 1922 the company sold out to the Plymouth Corporation. This finally bought all the routes under one ownership. New connections from the Stonehouse line were laid between Derry's Clock with the adjacent Theatre terminus used by most of the Plymouth routes, and at Fore Street with the old Devonport network.
Closure