GRENVILLE MOTORS

Although the Grenville Motors company only dates from 1948 its antecedents have a much longer history (eg Berryman dating back to the horse drawn days of the 19th century). So four local businessmen came together to form the Grenville company and their initial purchases were these three long standing operators: Fred Berriman whose principal route ran from Troon to Camborne; Berryman's Motor Service running from Leedstown to Penzance; and Godolphin Motors (R C Williams) running from Camborne to Penzance.

These purchases gave the company a significant presence on the roads of Cornwall with a fleet of sixteen buses, which was further enhanced the following year by the purchase of the 'Peoples Service' of Carleen (Jimmy Jewell) with several market routes. In 1951 the ex-Jewell market service to Helston on Mondays from Praze was discontinued, and in May 1951 the trunk route from Camborne via Troon and Penryn to Falmouth was acquired from Pendennis Motors (Fred Howard). By the autumn of 1952 there was a network of a dozen routes, working primarily from operating bases at Troon and Leedstown, including a newly introduced circular route to the housing developments at Pengegon to the south-east of Camborne.

Don't confuse Berryman and Berriman. The name of the new company came from Fred Berriman, He had worked at the Grenville mine in earlier days. His first base in Troon was behind the Grenville Arms pub. In 1945 when he moved to a new depot on part of the the site of the old Grenville mine he adopted the trading name 'Grenville Service'. His nephew William Henry Berriman worked for the new company as manager, later becoming a director.

Grenville Motors routes: autumn 1952
Leedstown - Marazion - Penzance	Daily including Sundays	ex-Berryman
Camborne - St Erth - Penzance	Daily except Sundays	ex-Williams
Camborne - Troon	Daily including Sundays	ex-Berriman
Black Rock - Camborne	Wednesdays and Saturdays	ex-Berriman
Great Work Mine - Nancegollan - Camborne	Wednesdays and Saturdays	ex-Jewell
Nancegollan - Godolphin - Penzance	Thursdays	ex-Jewell
Carleen - Nine Maidens - Redruth	Fridays	ex-Jewell
Nancegollan - Praa Sands	summer Tuesdays	ex-Jewell
Troon - Peace - Redruth	Fridays	ex-Berriman
Troon - Bolenowe	Tuesdays and Fridays	Grenville
Camborne - Troon - Penryn - Falmouth	Daily including Sundays	ex-Howard
Camborne- Pengegon (Circular)	Daily except Sundays	Grenville

Operations were concentrated on Troon with the sale of the Leedstown depot site in 1958. Further expansion came in 1965 with the acquisition of Silver Queen Buses (Tom and Leonard Mundy) of Camborne with a daily service from Redruth to the beaches of the north coast at Portreath, as well as a Friday service from Porthtowan to Redruth (withdrawn in 1967) and a three days a week route from Portreath to Camborne running on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Saturdays. Seven vehicles were included in the sale, bringing the Grenville fleet up to twenty, of which two were double-deck. The route from Camborne to Falmouth passed through Penryn. A busy local route of long standing was operated between Falmouth and Penryn by a rota of four operators and in 1967 Grenville Motors bought the rota share and business of Pelere Motor Services (George) of Penryn. The other three operators followed: Oxford of Falmouth in 1967, Riviera Motors of Falmouth in 1970 and finally in May 1973 the Penryn & Falmouth Motor Company of Penryn. Grenville now had complete control of the service and used the former P&FMC depot at Quay Hill, Penryn as their local base..
		The picture shows two Grenville Motors double deckers waiting in Camborne at the Basset Arms terminus. Both buses are Leyland PD1s, ex-Plymouth, with Weymann 53-seater bodies. They were purchased in 1960 when 12 to 13 years old and CJY312 on the left (showing 'Camborne') was in service until 1964, with DDR424 on the right (showing 'Leedstown via Goldsithney') remaining until 1965. They were amongst a dozen or so deckers that came from municipally operated Plymouth City Transport to Grenville at different times over the years. (Picture from the Roger Grimley collection)

1968 saw the takeover of the business of Jim Pollard of Fraddam together with his route from St Erth Praze to Camborne on four days a week. But five years later this route passed to John Pollard of Trelawney Tours of Hayle, returning thus to the original family. The Camborne - Portreath route was withdrawn in 1970. With two exceptions all Sunday services were withdrawn by 1972, summer Sunday services continuing to run on Redruth - Portreath until 1980 and Falmouth - Penryn. Operation by Grenville of the Redruth to Portreath route ceased altogether in 1982.

Following the deregulation of bus services introduced by the Transport Act of 1985, the services in the table below were those in operation by Grenville Motors in the autumn of 1986. In September 1986 Grenville had expanded by taking over Harveys of Mousehole and their share of the jointly operated route (with Western National) from Penzance west to Newlyn and Mousehole - the trading name 'Blue Bus' was used for this.

But these were changing and challenging times and Grenville became a wholly owned subsidiary of competitor Western National in March 1988. The fleet comprised thirty three vehicles at the time (thirteen coaches and twenty buses, including two double-deckers for school contracts). In June 1988 Camborne services moved from their traditional town departure point to the Western National bus station. Full consolidation came in April 1989 with the services being integrated into - and operated under the name of - Western National, with the Grenville name disappearing from the sides of buses after forty-one years.

Grenville Motors routes: autumn 1986
Camborne - Leedstown - Marazion - Penzance	Daily except Sundays	4 - 5 journeys
Camborne - Mount Pleasant - Troon	Daily except Sundays	hourly
Camborne - Pengegon - Troon	Daily except Sundays	hourly
Camborne - Troon - Penryn - Falmouth	Daily except Sundays	3 journeys
Penryn - Falmouth	Daily except Sundays	every 20 minutes
Falmouth - Penryn - Mabe Burnthouse	Daily except Sundays	11 journeys
Camborne - Helston	Schooldays	2 journeys
Penzance - Newlyn - Mousehole	Daily except Sundays	every 30 minutes
Redruth - Nine Maidens - Helston	Daily except Sundays	3 journeys
Redruth - Carnkie - Camborne	Daily except Sundays	4 - 5 journeys