Barnstaple Barnstaple Barnstaple ( or ) is the main town of North Devon, England and possibly the oldest borough in the United Kingdom. It is a former river port, located at the lowest crossing point of the River Taw, flowing into the Bristol Channel. From the 14th century, it was licensed to export wool, since the merchants claimed that the town had been declared a free borough in Saxon times. This brought great wealth to Barnstaple, whose town centre still preserves a medieval layout and character. Later the town became an importer of Irish wool, but its harbour silted up, and
Lynton and Barnstaple Railway Company Limited Lynton and Barnstaple Railway Company Limited The Lynton and Barnstaple Railway Company Limited was a private company, limited by guarantee, with no share capital. It was incorporated on 11 August 1993 as The Lynton & Barnstaple Light Railway Company Limited (name changed on 8 February 2002), the company was registered at Companies House in Great Britain as company number 02844182. The company was dissolved in 2009. The company was formed by members of the Lynton and Barnstaple Railway Association (now a charitable trust) to rebuild and operate, using mainly volunteer labour, the Victorian narrow-gauge railway which ran across 20 miles