Report - Peblig Mill (Caernarfon, Wales, 2019)

[urbanchemist]

An also-ran mill from last year.

Nothing much to see except decay - probably why there are no reports on it.

Backgound. Built sometime before 1860 it’s shown as a water-powered flour mill on a 1888 map, but as a woollen mill by 1912.
Beyond that I haven’t been able to find out much, although it may still have been in use for wool trade up to the 50s.
I can’t remember now if there was paperwork with more recent dates.
The building is part of a run-down industrial estate just outside Caernarfon, which has units to let and a couple of derelict parts.
There were apparently plans to demolish the lot in 2011 but several businesses were still going when I visited, with people coming and going.

My interest in this one was to see if any water-powered machinery was left inside the mill (answer = no).

First a map of the site (1888) and the current satellite view.

Water came from a weir on the river (Afon Seiont), under the road bridge, under part of the mill then rejoined the river downstream.
The leat/mill race is still there north of the bridge, but dry.
Pictures of the weir and the remains of the main sluice.

South of the bridge there’s now an office block where the mill race was - derelict-looking but not too interesting.

The front of the mill - the water went in under the left wing.

Side view illustrating the head of water available.

Looking into the culvert under the building, now just service pipes.
The tunnel extends a bit beyond the wall at the end but no sign of anything water-powered.

Basement.

Ground floor.

Partial collapse of the left wing insides, right above were a waterwheel might have been.

Heading up the non-existent stairs to the first floor offices.

Top floor.

 

[Shaun]

Saw this on Google maps and never made a stop here, glad to know what's it like inside.

 

[tigger]

In my childhood (several weeks ago now) the place smelled of plastic. They made the imitation leather stuff for car seats there until the late 70s/early 80s. Bernard Wardle & Co. on the signs

 

[urbanchemist]

In my childhood (several weeks ago now) the place smelled of plastic. They made the imitation leather stuff for car seats there until the late 70s/early 80s. Bernard Wardle & Co. on the signs

Yes, there are pictures of Bernard Wardle/Everflex operating on this site, but I didn't notice this particular building featuring - it's so far gone its hard to tell though.

 

[2friars]

This is going to be demolished soon for new build units, which is probably overdue. Some interesting history though....

Peblig Mill Dimensions: the mill was an L-shaped building and was 42m long x 35m wide at its widest; the west wing was 11 m wide and the east wing 15m; Photographic Archive: G2756_070 to G2756_073, G2756_118 to G2756_120; and Plates: 113-116, 117-119. Peblig Mill was the oldest remaining building within the industrial estate and was originally established in the early-nineteenth century as a water powered mill flour mill, becoming a woollen mill in the later nineteenth century. A weir on the Afon Seiont diverted water to a 200m long mill race, and below the mill a tailrace of equal length returned it to the river. The building was damaged by fire in the early twentieth century and report GAT_1670 stated that little or nothing internal prior to the fire of 1910 is thought to survive. The mill served the woollen trade into the 1950s before finally closing but continued in use throughout the development and expansion of the industrial estate in the 1960s and early 1970s. The main east facing elevation included a boarded up main entrance, with a 1.95m high and 0.82m wide the doorway being. The porch was 2.56m high x 2.38m wide, with concrete and two brick steps and with brick and concrete walls, topped by a painted steel and flat concrete roof. The northwest extension consisted of two floors. The basement and first floor had large, rectangular framed single glazed windows and a corrugated iron roof. It was of a brick and concrete build with pebble dash render. During the assessment walkover survey (q.v. report GAT_1670), it was possible to view the interior of the ‘basement’ of the western extension from outside as the doorway and it was recorded as a poured concrete floor with steps leading to another room, and a reinforced concrete ceiling; the rough stone and mortar wall might be part of original core of the mill; there were also two doorways, one provided access to the 1 st floor via short flight of steps. Large window openings flanked the main porched entrance; these were boarded and measured 1.80m wide x 1.30m high. Three other windows openings were on the ground floor, and all were of the same size. The other windows were 1.54m wide x 1.32m high and 1.30m high x 1.02m wide. There was also a minor doorway, 1.92m high x 0.86m wide. The southeast wing had a pitched roof, exposed timbers and beams with slate and lead, which had been stripped. It was a three-storey wing (Ground, 1st and 2nd floors). The core of this part of the mill was rough stone and mortar with large subangular dressed quoin stones. There may have been slight extension, no longer extant but outline visible within SE face. The wall had a large central 1st floor doorway and 2nd floor window. There was also a steel shutter on the 1 st floor and the wall was covered in a concrete and pebble dash render. The 26 southwest wing, which was parallel to the river, appeared to be of four storeys (Ground, 1st , 2 nd, and 3rd floors). It had a pitched roof with exposed timber beams and rafters, but the slate and lead had been stripped off the roof. It appeared to be constructed of brick and concrete with a pebble dash render. There was a steel fire escape at the south gable end. Regular wood framed windows were present, with the glass smashed. Derelict and unsafe buildings (asbestos warning signs) were present in the area and the building was partially obscured by overgrowth. This limited access to parts of the site for the building recording. The interior of Peblig Mill was not accessible due to health and safety restrictions, but report GAT_1670 included a description of the interior using information sourced from an online urban explorer (urbex) website dated 2019. The images on the website show the derelict and unsafe condition of the mill building, but also suggested that whilst elements of the earlier building fabric are visible, the majority of interior was characterised by 20th century fixtures and fittings, including electrical fuse boxes and office equipment.