THERE was a distinct sense of history in the air beside Tavistock Canal last Friday, when the town mayor unveiled a stone commemorating the canal?s 200th birthday.
The granite stone celebrating the bicentenary stands next to the canal, between the Wharf and Meadowlands swimming pool.
Cllr Norma Woodcock said: ?Our fine town, with its dignified and imposing civic buildings, the boulevard of Plymouth Road, the schools and Bedford Cottages, are all here as a result of the booming mining industry of the 19th century, of which the canal was a vital artery.?
Cllr Woodcock congratulated those involved in the bicentenary celebrations for their hard work, scholarship and time and said it was a day to ?flaunt? Tavistock?s history.
?We have so much of which we are proud and we should rightly share our privileged heritage ? it is a great honour to unveil this stone,? she said.
John Taylor, chairman of Tavistock Forward, attended the opening ceremony resplendent in Victorian costume, in honour of the original John Taylor, whose engineering prowess brought the construction of Tavistock Canal to completion.
Mr Taylor said the idea of celebrating the canal?s 200th birthday was originally suggested by Jean Warns, a member of Tavistock Subscription Library. Tavistock Forward member Graham Kirkpatrick proposed the organisation to take the project on and was responsible for much of the background research and data collection.
Mr Taylor thanked everyone who had worked for ?hundreds of hours? on the bicentenary exhibition and accompanying celebrations, notably exhibition designer Steve Carreck and Brian Woods, who has provided a ?virtual walk? along the canal on CD-Rom.
?The exhibition is now being loaned to Morwellham and the future of the canal?s heritage looks bright,? said Mr Taylor.
Moira Andrews, chief librarian at Tavistock Library, has spearheaded an educational pack about the canal?s history, which will provide an invaluable resource for schools in the area.
Mrs Andrews said: ?We?re aiming to present the packs to schools in mid-September. It will include loose-leaf information which they can photocopy about the history of the canal and they will also get a copy of the virtual walk CD-Rom.?
Fifteen schools in the area will be receiving a canal bicentenary pack.
Simon O?Connor-Thompson, chairman of the canal bicentenary committee, said nearly 1,000 people had visited the exhibition in the Tavistock Guide Hall.
Divided into sections dealing with the canal?s effect on society, technology, the environment and ecology of the area, hundreds of fascinating facts are included within the exhibition?s hanging panels.
Mr O?Connor-Thompson hoped the exhibition, although now on loan to Morwellham Quay, will provide Tavistock with a permanent resource of the canal?s proud history and the part it played in the economic growth of West Devon ? an area to be included in the bid for World Heritage Status in 2004.
The bi-centenary of the canal also marks an increasing interest in the area for the future. Tamar Valley Services are hoping to erect two new interpretation boards along the canal, one likely to be in the Meadows and one in Crowndale Woods. Grants are also being sought to improve and highlight the mining heritage in the Devon Great Consols area.
The results of the Tavistock Canal Bicentenary Photographic Competition were also announced at the unveiling ceremony. The winner was Ashley Burridge, second was Ben Furneaux and the two runners-up were Susan Keast and Richard Gee.
They won £150, £50 and £25 respectively.
Funding for the Tavistock Canal bicentenary celebrations came from Awards for All, Tamar Valley Service and South West Water, with support from many other organisations including West Devon Borough Council, Tavistock Town Council and Tavistock Guides, who loaned their hall for the exhibition.