Penrhyn Quarry Hospital, also known locally as Ysbyty Brynllwyd, was built in Bethesda village in the late 1840s by former quarry owner Colonel Pennant for the rapid treatment of quarrymen injured at work, as well as injured visitors to Snowdonia.
Facilities included three four-bed wards, a surgery, waiting room and nearby mortuary, as many of the quarry accidents were fatal. It was the site of the first successful operation under anaesthetic in north-west Wales – a mid-thigh amputation in 1847.
However, the much-loved hospital closed in the mid-20th Century and all that remains of the Scheduled Monument now are crumbling walls in woodland near the Lôn Las Ogwen cycle track which connects Port Penrhyn to local communities, the slate landscape and mountains beyond.
Welsh Slate, part of the Breedon Group who currently operate Penrhyn Quarry, have donated a significant number of slate products to aid the conservation work by Recclesia, a contractor experienced in historic building conservation, for Cyngor Gwynedd and Cadw, as part of the Llewyrch o’r Llechi Levelling Up scheme which is funded by the UK Government.
The project includes stabilising and consolidating the deteriorating condition of the standing walls, masonry and pointing mortar, introducing stone copings and flaunching to the wall heads to reduce water ingress, conserving the remaining architectural and historic details within, and managing vegetation growth.
The materials being donated by Welsh Slate were identified by conservation architects Donald Insall Associates during a programme of recording and emergency works involving vegetation clearance and masonry work carried out earlier this year.
The Welsh Slate products include 125m of 400mm x 750mm x 25-30mm wall copings from sharp, palfia or hard block cut to size and hand split to protect the exposed wall heads, and 50 2000mm x 200mm x 250mm lintels with natural jointing/riven faces from quarry pillars to support the openings.
Barry O’Connor, general manager, Welsh Slate, Special Aggregates, Circular Economy, at Breedon Group, added: “We are thrilled to be part of the work to conserve Penrhyn Quarry Hospital. We understand the fondness for the site locally and as landowners want to ensure it is maintained as sensitively as possible.
“As a proud partner in the project, we are delighted that our contribution of materials towards the work will enable funding to go further towards the sensitive conservation of the structure.”
The initial conservation work is expected to take around seven months, and open days will be arranged during that time to allow members of the public to see firsthand what is going on. HistoryPoints* QR codes beside the footpath enable people to read about the hospital on their smartphones.
Councillor Nia Jeffreys, Cyngor Gwynedd’s cabinet member for Economy and Community said: “This essential work will safeguard the monument for future generations, facilitating better opportunities for access and interpretation of this much-loved site. Cyngor Gwynedd is pleased to be a partner in this project and is looking forward to working with Welsh Slate and Cadw on the scheme.”
Elgan Jones of Donald Insall Associates said: “The removal of the vegetation highlighted the fragile condition of the building fabric and without this intervention would likely deteriorate at an accelerated rate, rendering the structure unsafe and eventually result in its collapse. We are thrilled to work alongside a passionate project team with a shared goal to safeguard the fabric and conserve the architectural and historical details, which tells us of its former use and role within the wider slate landscape.”
Lord Dafydd Wigley, chair of The Slate Landscape of Northwest Wales World Heritage Site Partnership Board, said: “The story of health and welfare within the slate valleys is a vital and fascinating part of its history. The quarrymen were trailblazers when it came to social care, and these hospitals led the way in many of the treatments and medication we rely so heavily upon in today’s health service.
“Safeguarding this structure is vital in telling the story of healthcare across the World Heritage Site, so to ensure that Penrhyn Quarry Hospital is able to relay the story of its location by securing the structure and including interpretation is a fantastic prospect.”
For more information on Penrhyn quarry hospital, go to Ruins of quarry hospital, Bethesda - History Points, and for a video on the restoration work, go to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gjRXXGjomZ4.
*HistoryPoints was established in 2012 to exploit mobile internet technology as a means of delivering historical information to the public as they visit featured locations in Wales. By 2018, it had created QR codes for display at more than 1,400 places of interest across the country.