CROWDS gathered at Teigngrace near Newton Abbot on Sunday to enjoy an open day staged by the Stover Canal Society.

The event, held a year later than planned owing to the Covid-19 pandemic, celebrated the bicentenary of the granite railroad that once brought stone from Haytor to Ventiford Basin.

It was built by businessman George Templer in 1820 and linked his Dartmoor quarrying business to the Stover Canal which his family had constructed 30 years earlier to aid the passage of ball clay to Teignmouth Docks.

Under sunny skies and in front of more than 100 people, Stover Canal Society Chairman John Pike unveiled a £20,000 replica crane which was part-funded by the Inland Waterways Association (IWA) to the tune of £11,500.

Stalls gave visitors a glimpse into the canal’s history with coffee, cakes and handmade souvenirs, crafted from the remains of barges which once plied the route, also on offer.

The society was founded in 1999 at a time when the canal was abandoned and almost forgotten.

It last carried freight in the 1930s and by 1951 the banks had burst.

During the past two decades volunteers have worked to restore the two-mile structure although fully re-watering is dependent on an improved extraction licence being granted.

Ventiford Basin, the northern end of the canal, provided the setting for Sunday’s celebration.

As the applause died down following the crane’s unveiling a delighted Mr Pike said: ‘It’s remarkable actually.

‘We’re blessed with the volunteers we have at the Stover Canal Trust, without whom we couldn’t have achieved anything, and we always welcome new volunteers too.

‘A few years ago Devon County Council provided this wonderful Stover Trail which brings a lot o people past here and they can now appreciate this important piece of the area’s heritage’

Dr Ruth Sewell, Heritage Officer with the IWA, said: ‘We are a nation of waterways, in canals alone we have more than 2,000 miles.‘The IWA is really pushing for heritage, we want people to understand the importance of this sort of project.’