Ystrad iron mine Betws Garmon, Gwynedd Wales UK
The largest of the Gwynedd iron mines, all of which exploited sedimentary nodules within a cleaved mudstone, the Nant Ffrancon formation, that occurs widely across this area of north Wales. The workings, known as Ystrad Mine or Silurian Mine run in a series of 8 large chambers in long gash for about 700 yards up the hillside of Moel Eilio at Betws Garmon. Although instructions were first issued to sell leases for iron ore mining in 1891, the mine was not worked until 1909 and until about 1912 the workings were at surface before moving underground. Mining peaked in 1917 when 35 men were employed underground and 8 men above ground. The mine closed in 1919. Although easily worked because the mine had no water problems and did not require timbering, the ore, like all of the Gwynedd iron mines had a high silica content which made it unattractive to ironmasters and contributed to the mine's ultimate failure. The hillside is grazed by sheep.
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Photo credit: © John Worrall / Alamy / Afripics
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Keywords: 20th, bare, betws, century, chambers, diggings, elio, garmon, grazing, gwynedd, hill, hillside, iron, mining, moel, sheep, silica, silurian, sunny, wales, welsh, winter, ystrad
