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Report - - Maenofferen Slate Quarry, Blaenau Ffestiniog, North Wales – May 2017 | Industrial Sites | 28DaysLater.co.uk

Report - Maenofferen Slate Quarry, Blaenau Ffestiniog, North Wales – May 2017

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Landie_Man

"Landie" or Harry
Regular User
Maenofferen Slate Quarry, Blaenau Ffestiniog, North Wales – May 2017

Still on Day Two of our North Wales Tour back in May; Mookster and myself arrived to the site of an enormous walk up to the remaining buildings at Maenofferen Slate Quarry. Oh my was it a walk… We followed the well trodden footpath up to the buildings; attempting to dodge the tour bus which goes around other parts of the quarry as part of a local museum.

It just kept going on and getting steeper and steeper, but we persisted and made it to the top. Which was a relief!

Lots of lovely decay; totally open to the elements here with a lot of cool stuff remaining inside the sheds and workhouses on site. We spent a good couple of hours here before heading down (which was a hard as going up!) as we had a lot more in Wales to see before a big drive home.

The quarry was first staffed by men from the nearby Diphwys quarry shortly after 1800. Come 1848 the slate was being shipped via the Ffestiniog Railway. This was short lived, and this service ceased in 1850. Traffic resumed in 1857 and apart from a gap in 1865; there remained a steady flow of slate dispatched via the railway.

In 1861 the Maenofferen Slate Quarry Co. Ltd. became incorporated, producing approximately 400 tons of slate in that year.

During the 1800s; the quarry flourished and expanded, extending its workings underground and further downhill towards Blaenau Ffestiniog.

By the year 1897 it employed 429 people with almost half of those men working underground.. Eventually, slate was sent via the Rhiwbach Tramway which ran through the quarry. This incurred extra shipping costs that rival quarries did not have to bear.

Llechwedd Quarry purchased Maenofferen in 1975 together with Bowydd. Underground production of slate ceased during November 1999 and signalled the end of large-scale underground working for slate in North Wales.

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Thanks for Looking guys :-)

More At:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/landie_man/sets/72157684249889963/

Oh and one more thing! One Heartbreaking find for Landie_Man :-( :

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elhomer12

Maglite size T-rex, It's time for urbex!
28DL Full Member
Maenofferen Slate Quarry, Blaenau Ffestiniog, North Wales – May 2017

Oh and one more thing! One Heartbreaking find for Landie_Man :-( :

There's the other wing lying about somewhere.... and the truck cab has made its way underground somehow :confused:
 

elhomer12

Maglite size T-rex, It's time for urbex!
28DL Full Member
Strange. Any idea where the engine and wings/front end are?

I'm not too sure where the rest of it has gone, but we didn't spend ages looking around the buildings.... we were there for one thing, and one thing only... the underground bits. The other wing was in a bit better condition than this though and enough to say pretty confidently its a series 2
 

wormster

28DL Full Member
28DL Full Member
I did go underground a few times in the "naugthies" don't know if its still a goer..

Its unfortunate to see the mill and other buildings getting worse over the years, one day I'll have a poke aboot up there!
 
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