1. The History
Votty & Bowydd Quarry
Also known as Lord quarry (the land was owned by Lord Newborough, Glynllyfon), Votty was a major slate quarry just to the North-East of Blaenau Ffestiniog, North Wales in the valley of Cenunant y Diphwys. Initially, it didn’t have any direct rail access, with the slate being brought out via Bowydd. In 1854 a direct connection from Bowydd quarry to the Ffestiniog Railway was made by an incline, though in 1863 this was replaced by the Rhiwbach No. 1 incline of the newly constructed Rhiwbach Tramway
Although Bowydd quarry was first worked on a small scale from around 1800s, it wasn’t until 1833 that it worked commercially. John Whitehead Greaves of Barford, Warwickshire initiated this and then later also founded the nearby Llechwedd quarry, in 1846. It was primarily an open-cast quarry
In 1870, the Votty and Bowydd quarries merged, under the ownership of the Percival family, who continued to own it until 1933. Votty quarry was effectively an underground mine and once the upper Votty chambers reached the lower workings of the Bowydd quarry, this prompted the merger with further working primarily underground. By 1882, the merged quarry was producing nearly 12,100 tons of slate per annum and employing nearly 350 men. However, in 1899, the quarry suffered a major setback when there was a large roof collapse on Floors A, B, and C, in the Old Vein and Back Vein workings beyond Chamber 6. Despite this, shortly afterwards in 1900, Votty & Bowydd became the first quarry in North Wales to undertake a significant electrification scheme, with the construction of a hydro-electric power station at Dolwen. Its output subsequently peaked the same year when 500 men managed to produce around 17,000 tons of finished slate.
The miners of Votty:
After the First World War, the slate industry went into what would be the start of a long term decline. The quarry was acquired in 1933 by the owners of the nearby Oakeley quarry and it continued to be worked up until October 1962. It was then closed down, the company liquidated two years later in 1964 and the workings sold to the owners of the adjacent Maenofferen quarry, which in turn was acquired by the Greaves family, owners of Llechwedd quarry. Since the mid-1980s, Llechwedd has been untopping the Votty & Bowydd underground chambers.
Old picture of Votty:
Diffwys Quarry
Also known as Diffwys Casson slate quarry, it is located immediately adjacent to Maenofferen and Votty & Bowydd on an east-west ridge between the Bowydd stream to the north and Afon Du-bach to the south. The quarry worked a series of slate veins from the Ordovician period and includes a combination of above ground and underground workings. It is referred locally to locally as “the mother quarry” of Blaenau as it was the first to produce slate for export, circa 1760, by Methusalem Jones of Cilgwyn quarry in Nantlle. In 1800, Diffwys was purchased by slate quarrymen and entrepreneurs William Turner and William Casson, and became the major producer in the area, regularly producing 5,000 tons per annum in the 1820s. William’s nephew, George Casson, recommended selling the quarry in 1862 for £120,000, a huge sum back then, reflecting the major investment that had been ploughed into steam-powered sawmills. By 1892, employing less than 200 men and with production declining, the company went bankrupt and was put on the market for a paltry £3,435. Extraction at the quarry continued, albeit on a much smaller scale, until 1925. Untopping work, where underground overburden is removal to expose the pillars, begun in the 1980s.
The quarry was sub-divided into four separate quarries: Hen Waith, Penffridd, Drum Boeth and Chwarel Newydd. They shared tips and working levels on the quarry’s southern side. The quarry included gwaliau for the hand-processing of slate and a series of integrated mills for producing roofing slate. The earliest mill that produced slabs was located off site at Pant yr Ynn and was powered by the Afon Du-bach. This was because Diffwys lacked its own water supply and subsequent mills that were located at the quarry from 1850 had to utilise steam power. The quarry also has the remains of its internal railways and inclined planes, including both counter-balanced and up-haulage.
Old O/S map of the area:
A - Fotty and Bowydd quarries
B - Diffwys quarry
C - Diphwys and Casson (upper) slate quarries
D - Maen-offeren slate quarries
2. The Explore
Still playing catch-up from my North Wales reports from last Summer. There’s loads to go at in Blaenau, so this part of the town’s rich mining history tends to get overlook. This was a sunny August circular walk inspired by @urbanchemist and his excellent report on this area (see HERE). Sadly, I didn’t get to as many underground parts as he did and now forearmed with better information, know there are some really interesting underground workings associated with the Votty area I will try to get to next time. Despite that, this was a lovely, relaxed and scenic wander, taking in some really very photogenic surface remains of the Welsh slate industry.
3. The Photographs:
Up the track through the waste tips we go to Fotty (marked as A on the above map):
Glorious views over Blaenau:
So much waste:
And a lot of slate walls and inclines:
Remains of a Fotty drum house with original wooden winding drum:
Wonder how much longer this will stand for?
Looking across to yet more slate waste tips:
And down to the floor level of Fotty:
And onward to Diffwys we go:
Looking across to the lower reaches of Diffwys (marked up as B on the map):
Loved the engraving on this stone. It says “The Brick and Tile Company. Buckley via Chester”:
Glorious sun on the winding house:
Votty & Bowydd Quarry
Also known as Lord quarry (the land was owned by Lord Newborough, Glynllyfon), Votty was a major slate quarry just to the North-East of Blaenau Ffestiniog, North Wales in the valley of Cenunant y Diphwys. Initially, it didn’t have any direct rail access, with the slate being brought out via Bowydd. In 1854 a direct connection from Bowydd quarry to the Ffestiniog Railway was made by an incline, though in 1863 this was replaced by the Rhiwbach No. 1 incline of the newly constructed Rhiwbach Tramway
Although Bowydd quarry was first worked on a small scale from around 1800s, it wasn’t until 1833 that it worked commercially. John Whitehead Greaves of Barford, Warwickshire initiated this and then later also founded the nearby Llechwedd quarry, in 1846. It was primarily an open-cast quarry
In 1870, the Votty and Bowydd quarries merged, under the ownership of the Percival family, who continued to own it until 1933. Votty quarry was effectively an underground mine and once the upper Votty chambers reached the lower workings of the Bowydd quarry, this prompted the merger with further working primarily underground. By 1882, the merged quarry was producing nearly 12,100 tons of slate per annum and employing nearly 350 men. However, in 1899, the quarry suffered a major setback when there was a large roof collapse on Floors A, B, and C, in the Old Vein and Back Vein workings beyond Chamber 6. Despite this, shortly afterwards in 1900, Votty & Bowydd became the first quarry in North Wales to undertake a significant electrification scheme, with the construction of a hydro-electric power station at Dolwen. Its output subsequently peaked the same year when 500 men managed to produce around 17,000 tons of finished slate.
The miners of Votty:
After the First World War, the slate industry went into what would be the start of a long term decline. The quarry was acquired in 1933 by the owners of the nearby Oakeley quarry and it continued to be worked up until October 1962. It was then closed down, the company liquidated two years later in 1964 and the workings sold to the owners of the adjacent Maenofferen quarry, which in turn was acquired by the Greaves family, owners of Llechwedd quarry. Since the mid-1980s, Llechwedd has been untopping the Votty & Bowydd underground chambers.
Old picture of Votty:
Diffwys Quarry
Also known as Diffwys Casson slate quarry, it is located immediately adjacent to Maenofferen and Votty & Bowydd on an east-west ridge between the Bowydd stream to the north and Afon Du-bach to the south. The quarry worked a series of slate veins from the Ordovician period and includes a combination of above ground and underground workings. It is referred locally to locally as “the mother quarry” of Blaenau as it was the first to produce slate for export, circa 1760, by Methusalem Jones of Cilgwyn quarry in Nantlle. In 1800, Diffwys was purchased by slate quarrymen and entrepreneurs William Turner and William Casson, and became the major producer in the area, regularly producing 5,000 tons per annum in the 1820s. William’s nephew, George Casson, recommended selling the quarry in 1862 for £120,000, a huge sum back then, reflecting the major investment that had been ploughed into steam-powered sawmills. By 1892, employing less than 200 men and with production declining, the company went bankrupt and was put on the market for a paltry £3,435. Extraction at the quarry continued, albeit on a much smaller scale, until 1925. Untopping work, where underground overburden is removal to expose the pillars, begun in the 1980s.
The quarry was sub-divided into four separate quarries: Hen Waith, Penffridd, Drum Boeth and Chwarel Newydd. They shared tips and working levels on the quarry’s southern side. The quarry included gwaliau for the hand-processing of slate and a series of integrated mills for producing roofing slate. The earliest mill that produced slabs was located off site at Pant yr Ynn and was powered by the Afon Du-bach. This was because Diffwys lacked its own water supply and subsequent mills that were located at the quarry from 1850 had to utilise steam power. The quarry also has the remains of its internal railways and inclined planes, including both counter-balanced and up-haulage.
Old O/S map of the area:
A - Fotty and Bowydd quarries
B - Diffwys quarry
C - Diphwys and Casson (upper) slate quarries
D - Maen-offeren slate quarries
2. The Explore
Still playing catch-up from my North Wales reports from last Summer. There’s loads to go at in Blaenau, so this part of the town’s rich mining history tends to get overlook. This was a sunny August circular walk inspired by @urbanchemist and his excellent report on this area (see HERE). Sadly, I didn’t get to as many underground parts as he did and now forearmed with better information, know there are some really interesting underground workings associated with the Votty area I will try to get to next time. Despite that, this was a lovely, relaxed and scenic wander, taking in some really very photogenic surface remains of the Welsh slate industry.
3. The Photographs:
Up the track through the waste tips we go to Fotty (marked as A on the above map):
Glorious views over Blaenau:
So much waste:
And a lot of slate walls and inclines:
Remains of a Fotty drum house with original wooden winding drum:
Wonder how much longer this will stand for?
Looking across to yet more slate waste tips:
And down to the floor level of Fotty:
And onward to Diffwys we go:
Looking across to the lower reaches of Diffwys (marked up as B on the map):
Loved the engraving on this stone. It says “The Brick and Tile Company. Buckley via Chester”:
Glorious sun on the winding house:
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