Gwytherin Woollen Mill

This latest addition to our Wool History page comes thanks to Heulwen Roberts, who has researched the Woollen Mill at Gwytherin.

Her essay in Welsh essay has been translated into English for our non-Welsh speaking visitors - see further below for the trasnlation

GWYTHERIN WOOLLEN MILL

Ffatri Wlân Gwytherin, a’i gweithwyr.

Ar y cychwyn, ‘roedd y ffatri wlân o dan yr un to a’r felin ŷd ym mhen isa’r plwyf. Gelwid hon “Y Felin Isa” am ei bod ryw ddwy filltir i lawr yr afon Cledwen o bentref Gwytherin a’r Felin Ucha. Roedd adeilad y Felin Isa, gyda’r dyddiad 1640 wedi ei gerfio ar bren a oedd uwchben y drws, yn llawer fwy diweddar na’r Felin Ucha. Ym mhen ucha’r felin oedd gweithgareddau’r ffatri wlân yn cymeryd lle, tra roedd bwthyn bach ar gyfer y ffatrwr, fel y gelwid ar lafar, ynghlwm ym mhen isa’r adeilad. Credir bod pobl yn byw ynddo o’r 1600au hyd at y 1840au. Yn talu’r dreth ar y ffatri, y felin wlân a’r y tŷ bach cegin a siambar yma yn 1832 roedd Jacob Jones, a’r un fath yn1838 pryd roedd “Annual Value” o £3 ar y ty, £8 ar y felin a £3 ar y ffactori wlân, a’r dreth yn swllt yn y bunt. Dywed Map y Degwm o tua 1942: “Mill tenement owned by John and Jacob Jones, joint proprietors, occupier John Jones.” Roedd y tiroedd a oedd yn cydfynd a’r adeiladau yn dod i “7 acres, 1 rood, and 27 perches” ac roedd 14 swllt o ddegwm i dalu i’r rheithior.

 

Erbyn 1841 roedd Jacob ag Anne Jones yn byw yn Nhŷ’r Felin, tra roedd Morris ag Elizabeth Owen a’u plant yn Tŷ Isa’r Felin. Disgrifir Morris Owen fel gwneuthurwr gwlan, 30 oed. Roedd y plant Jane yn 7 oed, Thomas yn 5 a Sarah yn un oed. Dengys cyfrifon 1851 William Owen, 24 oed ac yn enedigol o Benmachno, yn wneuthurwr gwlân ac yn byw yn Nhŷ’r Ffatri. Gydag ef mae ei wraig Margaret a aned yn Llanrwst a’u merch fach Elizabeth, un oed. Mae cofnod ddiddorol yng nhofrestri’r eglwys ar 4-7-1849, sef priodas John Jervis, gwr gweddw o’r Ffatri a Jane Williams, Cornwal Bach. Nodir swyddau John Jervis a’i dad Richard Jervis ill dau fel “carder”. Eu gwaith felly oedd cribo gwlan er mwyn cael gwared o unryw beth nad oedd i fod ynddo, e.e. unryw dyfiant planhigol. Yn y dyddiau cynnar roedd y teclyn ar gyfer gwneud hyn yn cael ei wneud trwy osod gwifrau wedi eu plygu mewn darn o ledr tew, ac yna hoelio hwn i ddarn o bren hirsgwar gyda dolen arno. Yn ddiweddarach disodlwyd y cribau llaw gan beiriannau.

 

John Jones oedd y gwneuthurwr gwlan nesaf i fyw yma. Ganed ef tua 1845 yn y Bala. Mae hanes amdanno yn 1868, tra yn gweithio yn Ffatri Wlân Padog ger Ysbytty Ifan, yn tanysgrifio i’r llyfr “Murmuren” gan Gwilym Cowlyd. Roedd John Jones ei hun yn barddoni ac yn defnyddio yr enw barddonol, Tegonwy. Ganed ei wraig, Anne yn Betws Gwerfyl Goch, ei fab Edward E. Watkin yn Penmachno yn 1869, a gweddill y plant sef Jane Elin yn 1870, John Gruffudd yn 1874, a Maggie tua 1875, yng Nhwytherin. Yn byw ac yn gweithio hefo John Jones yn 1871 roedd Robert Roberts, hefyd o’r Bala ac yn wneuthurwr gwlân, David Owen o Gwmpenaner, David Williams o Fochdre a Jane Hughes y forwyn o Wytherin.

 

Above: Blancad o eiddo teulu Ty'n Bryn - Blanket the property of the Ty'n Bryn family.

Bu farw Edward Watkin yn 7 oed yn 1876 a’i fam Anne Jones yn 1877 yn 32 oed. Ail briododd John Jones a Mary a oedd yn enedigol o Lanefydd a cawsant fab, Thomas Gruffudd, yn 1880 ond bu farw John Jones yn fuan wedyn gan adael Mary i fagu ei mab a’r llysblant.

 

Blancad o eiddo teulu Bedwyn Isa, Llanfair T. H., gynt.

Blanket the property of the former family of Bedwyn Isa.

Dengys cyfrifon 1861 bod gŵr ifanc, 24 oed, o’r enw Hugh Hughes, yn “lodger” yn Nhŷ’n Caeau a oedd heb fod ymhell o’r ffatri lle roedd yn gweithio fel “Factory hand”.

Yn ddiweddarach, penderfynwyd codi ffatri wlân newydd. Dyfynaf o erthygl a ysgrifenwyd gan Mr. R. H. Williams, Cwm Bychan, Gwytherin: “Ar y 4ydd Ebrill 1877 roedd hanes yn Baner ac Amserau Cymru am agor ffatri wlân newydd ger y Felin Isa, Gwytherin, yn lle yr hen un a oedd yn y felin. Roedd yn adeilad hardd, dros ugain llath o hyd, gyda phedair o ffenestri mawr ar y llawr isa, pedair ffenest ar y lloft uwchben, a’r un fath yn y cefn. Roedd yr olwyn ddŵr yn haearn i gyd ar y talcen, a tho drosti. Roeddent yn dweud nad oedd eisiau ond ychydig o ddŵr i’w throi, o ffôs y felin uwchben. Tu mewn i’r ffatri, yr oedd yno werthyd yn cyrraedd ar hyd yr adeilad, a phwlis arno i droi’r peiriannau oedd ar y llawr a’r lloft. Roedd yna ystafell fechan ar y talcen, a llofft uwch ei phen a ddefnyddiwyd fel swyddfa. Yn y cwt yr oedd teclyn a oedd yn cael ei alw “Y cythraul”, a oedd yn troi ar gyflymdra mawr i chwalu y cnyfod gwlan o’i gilydd. Byddai Robert Roberts, y Ffatri, yn dweud fod rhaid cau drws y cwt yn ofalus, rhag ofn iddo ddianc allan!”

 

Above: Blancad o eiddo teulu Cae Coed gynt - former Cae Coed family's blanket.

Adeiladwyd tŷ newydd i’r ffatrwr yr un adeg a’r ffatri newydd a dau ddrws yn y ffrynt, y drws ar y dde yn mynd i’r siop lle gwerthwyd cynnyrch y ffatri, e.e. cwiltiau, cyfnasau, gwlanen i wneud dillad, ac edafedd i wau sannau. Byddai y merched, ac hefyd ambell i ddyn, yn brysur yn gweu sannau min nos yn ystod y cyfnod yma. Yn wir, adroddwyd stori ddiddorol gan y Parch. Richard Morris ‘nol yn 1916 am ei atgofion cynnar am Gapel Gwytherin. Dywed iddo gyrraedd y capel yn gynnar ryw ddydd Sul a gweld ryw hen ŵr yn eistedd heb fod ymhell o’r drws yn brysur yn gweu hosan tra’n disgwyl dyfodiad y pregthwr!

Dengys cyfrifon 1891 bod Robert Roberts, gwneuthurwr gwlan, yn hen lanc 55 oed ac yn dal i fyw yn Nhŷ’r Ffatri hefo’i fam Mary Hughes, 86 oed. Roedd Robert Roberts yn ŵr uchel ei barch ac yn flaenor yng Nhapel Cae’r Graig, cangen i Gapel Siloh, Gwytherin. Yno hefyd roedd hen lanc 23 oed o’r enw John Hughes yn gweithio fel gwehydd gwlân. Roedd y tri yma yn enedigol o’r Bala. Yn byw yno hefyd mae Thomas Roberts, nyddwr 17 oed, o Lanfair Talhaearn yn ogystal a’r forwyn Catherin Evans, 18 oed. Bu farw Mary Hughes, Ty’r Ffatri, yn 1894 a chladdwyd ym mynwent Capel Siloh, Gwytherin.

Ar gyfrifon 1901 gwelwn bod Robert Roberts, y pennaeth, dal yma ynghyd a John Hughes a Thomas Roberts a disgrifir nhw fel “Woolen Factory men”. Mae Martha Hughes o Fethesda yn cadw tŷ iddyn’ nhw. Dau arall a fu’n gwethio yn y ffatri wlan oedd John Owen Jones ac Evan Griffith Jones.

 

Daeth amser pan nad oedd cymaint o waith yn y ffatri wlân ac o’r herwydd fe symudodd Robert Roberts, a John a Martha Hughes, i ffatri wlân Tai Lon, Clynnog Fawr, a John Owen Jones i Tŷ Newydd, Mynytho. Evan Griffith Jones oedd yr olaf i symyd tua 1921-2. Aeth ef a’i wraig a’r mab, Emlyn, i Ddolgellau i gadw siop ddillad. Wed marwolaeth Robert Roberts yng Nhlynnog ym mis Hydref 1917 yn 80 oed, daeth ‘nol i Wytherin i’w gladdu gyda’i fam. Ar y bedd mae’r geiriau:

 

Er Serchog Gof am

Mary Hughes, Factory, Gwytherin.

Yr hon a fu farw Mawrth 1af, 1894

Yn 89 mlwydd oed.

Hefyd

Am ei mab, Robert Roberts,

Factory Clynnog Fawr,

Ac o Factory Gwytherin cyn hynny.

Diacon ffyddlawn, cymydog dyddan,

diwyd a da, a Christion cywir.

Claddwyd Tachwedd 2, 1917,

yn 80 mlwydd oed.

O’m dygwyd i’m hen gym’dogaeth-o Glynnog

I lonydd neullduaeth,

Dygir i’m waredigaeth………

O’r fain gell, lle’r wyf yn gaeth.

(Hywel Tudur)

Perchennog olaf y ffatri oedd John Jones, Eryl y Don, Abergele. Yn y 1930au fe werthwyd y coed a’r llechi, ac yna aeth y peiriannau a’r olwyn ddwr yn scrap.

Heulwen Ann Roberts

Gwytherin

Mehefin 2008

Gwytherin Woollen Mill

At the begining, the woollen factory was under the same roof as the corn mill at the lower end of the parish. This was called “The Lower Mill” because it was some two miles down the river Cledwen from Gwytherin village and the Upper Mill. The building of the Lower Mill, with the date 1640 carved on the timber above the door, was much later than the Upper Mill. The work at the wool factory took place at the upper end of the mill, while there was a little cottage for the “Ffatrwr”, as the factory worker was called locally, at the lower end of the building. It’s believed that people lived in it from the 1600s until the 1840s. Paying tax on the factory, the wool mill and the little cottage which consisted of just a kitchen and a bedchamber here in 1832 was Jacob Jones, and similarly in 1838 when the Annual Value was £3 for the house, £8 for the mill, and £3 for the wool factory, with the rates a shilling in the pound. The Tithe map of about 1942 says: “Mill tenement owned by John and Jacob Jones, joint proprietors, occupier John Jones.” The fields that came with the buildings came to “7 acres, 1 rood, and 27 perches” in size and tithes of 14 shillings were payable to the rector.

By 1841 Jacob and Anne Jones were living in Ty’r Felin (Mill House), while Morris and Elizabeth Owen and their children lived in Tŷ Isa’r Felin. (Lower Mill House). Morris Owen is described as a 30 year old wool manufacturer. The children were Jane who was 7, Thomas 5 and one year old Sarah. The census returns for 1851 show William Owen, 24, born in Penmachno, as a wool manufacturer living in Ty’r Ffatri (Factory House). With him are his wife Margaret, born in Llanrwst, and their little girl Elisabeth, aged one. There is an interesting entry in the church records on 4 July 1849, namely the marriage of John Jervis, widower from the Factory to Jane Williams, Cornwal Bach. Both John Jervis and his father, Richard Jervis, are noted as being “carders”. Their work consisted of combing the wool to get rid of any extraneous matter such as vegetable matter. In the early days carding was done by a comb made by pushing bent wires into a thick piece of leather and then nailing this to a rectangular piece of wood with a handle on it. Later these hand combs were replaced by machines.

John Jones was the next wool manufacturer to live here. He was born about 1845 in Bala. There is an account about him in 1868, while working at the Padog Woollen Mills near Ysbytty Ifan, subscribing to the book "Murmuren" by William Cowlyd. John Jones himself wrote poetry and used the bardic name, Tegonwy. His wife Anne was born in Betws Gwerfyl Goch, his son Edward E. Watkin in Penmachno in 1869, and the rest of the children, namely Jane Elin in 1870, John Griffith in 1874, and Maggie about 1875, in Gwytherin. Living and working with John Jones in 1871 was wool manufacturer Robert Roberts, also of Bala, David Owen of Cwmpenaner, David Williams of Mochdre and the maid Jane Hughes of Gwytherin.

Edward Watkin died in 1876 at the age of seven and his mother Anne Jones in 1877 aged 32. John Jones then married Mary, a native of Llanefydd, and they had a son, Thomas Griffith, in 1880. John Jones died soon after, however, leaving Mary to raise her son and stepchildren.

The 1861 census shows that a young man, aged 24, by the name of Hugh Hughes, was a "Lodger" at Ty'n y Caeau, not far from the factory where he worked as a "Factory hand".

Later, it was decided to build a new woollen factory. I quote from an article written by Mr. R.H. Williams, Cwm Bychan, Gwytherin:

"On the 4th April 1877 there was an account in the Banner and Times of Wales about the opening of a new wool factory near Felin Isa, Gwytherin, instead of the old one in the mill. It was a beautiful building, over twenty yards long, with four large windows on the lowest floor, four windows in the loft on the floor above, and the same in the back. The waterwheel on the gable end was made of iron, with a roof over it. It was said that only a little water was required from the mill race to turn the wheel. Inside the factory, there was an axle running the length of the building with pulleys running from it to turn the machines on both floors. There was a small room, or hut, at the gable end, with a loft above it that was used as an office. In the hut there was a gadget called "the devil", which turned at high speed to pull the fleeces apart. Robert Roberts of The Factory used to say that the door of the hut had to be closed carefully, in case it managed to escape!"

A new house was built for the wool manufacturer at about the same time as the building of the new factory. This new house had two doors at the front, the one on the right leading into a shop where the factory products were sold, e. g. bed covers, blankets, woollen material to make clothes with and wool to knit socks. During the evenings the women, as well as some men, used to sit and knit socks during this period in time. The Reverend Richard Morris recorded an interesting story back in 1916 when writing about his early memories of Gwytherin. He stated that he arrived early at the chapel one Sunday way back then to find an old man sitting not far from the door busily knitting a stocking whilst awaiting the arrival of the preacher!

The 1891 census shows that Robert Roberts, Wool Manufacturer, still lived at Ty’r Ffatri, and was by then 55 years old. With him was his mother Mary Hughes, by then 86. Robert Roberts was held in high esteem in the area and was an elder at Cae’r Graig chapel, which was a branch of Siloh Chapel, Gwytherin. Also living here in 1891 was 23 year old bachelor John Hughes who worked as a weaver. The three were natives of Bala. Also living with them was Thomas Roberts a 17 year old weaver from Llanfairtalhaiarn and the maid Catherine Evans aged 18. Mary Hughes died at Ty’r Ffatri in 1894 and was buried at Siloh chapel cemetery.

Ten years later Robert Roberts was still in charge of the factory and living with him in 1901 were John Hughes and Thomas Roberts, the three being described as “Woollen Factory men”. Also here by then was Martha Hughes who was born at Bethesda and had married John Hughes, and was keeping house for all of them. Two other factory workers were John Owen Jones and Evan Griffith Jones.

A time came when there was much less work for the woollen factory and because of this Robert Roberts, and John and Martha Hughes moved to the woollen factory at Tai Lôn, Clynnog Fawr. John Owen Jones went to Tŷ Newydd Mynytho. Evan Griffith Jones was the last to leave at around 1921-2. He and his wife and their son Emlyn moved to Dolgellau to keep a clothes shop. After Robert Roberts’ death on October 1917 at Clynnog he was brought back to Gwytherin to be buried with his mother . On the gravestone are the words:

In Loving Memory of

Mary Hughes, Factory, Gwytherin

Who died March 1st 1894

Aged 94

Also her son Robert Roberts

of Clynnog Fawr Factory,

And previously of Gwytherin Factory.

A faithful deacon, and good neighbour,

and a good Christian.

Buried 2 Nov. 1917

Age 80.

The inscription is followed by an “englyn” i.e. verse by Hywel Tudur, a poet from neighbouring Pandy Tudur.

The last owner of the factory was John Jones of Eryl y Don, Abergele. During the 1830s he sold the wood and the slates from the building, and then the machinery and the waterwheel as scrap.