History - Lynton and Lynmouth

Experience the Victorian holiday towns of Lynton and Lynmouth and unique and  historic Exmoor National Park,  through experienceDevon’s tailor-made vacation planning. Explore off the beaten track to find an English heritage with charming towns, a beautiful coast and a National Park.

On Devon’s Exmoor coast lie the towns of Lynton and Lynmouth, two towns linked by a steep trail or the ingenious Cliff Railway, powered by water. The Victorians made holiday centres of these two towns, known as ‘England’s Little Switzerland’. This is due to their charm and scenic location, as described by the poet Robert Southey and the Shelleys who visited there and who were among the earliest visitors.

Lynmouth lies at the junction of the East and West Lyn Rivers, before they reach the sea. It was a small port until the late 18th century, importing coal and limestone and exporting oysters and farm produce. Before the 19th century, Lynmouth was an isolated settlement but tourism gradually developed communication inland with the Lynton to Barnstaple railway and then the car bringing more visitors. Lynmouth suffered a major flood in 1952, killing 34 people and devastating the area with 90 million tons of water. Lynton was originally a Celtic settlement. It was a small isolated community until the 18th century but in the latter half of the century the gradual transformation into a tourist area began, with improved roads and increased wealth and leisure.

A mile or so from Lynton is the Valley of the Rocks, a lovely hike with coastal views and home to the only colony of wild mountain goats to be found south of the border with Scotland. A natural gorge “covered with huge stones … the very bones and skeletons of the earth; rock reeling upon rock, stone piled upon stone, a huge terrific mass” (Robert Southey, 1800).