Prestatyn Roman Bath
The Prestatyn Roman Bath lies five miles north of the main Roman road that ran east to west across north Wales, starting at Chester. The baths were built as an adjunct to the Roman administrative complex that oversaw the region’s lead mining industry. It was also home to the 20th legion. A settlement had been located at Prestatyn before the arrival of the Romans, as evidenced by bronze working, round houses, and an infant burial dating to 30 BC. Roman attributes have been found from 70 AD, and the village continued to be occupied through the 4th century. Today, the baths are the only remains of the ancient settlement, the rest of the site having been covered over or destroyed by a housing development. The bathhouse was built around 120 AD and expanded in 150 AD with the addition of Read more…
The National Slate Museum of Wales
The National Slate Museum is located in Llanberis, in the mountains of Snowdonia at the foot of the Dinorwig mine, one of the largest slate mines in Wales. The museum is set up as if the workers walked away yesterday and will be returning tomorrow. I recommend a visit to anyone who spends any time in North Wales. The slate mines of Snowdonia, including the Dinorwig mine, in 2021 were named a World Heritage Site. People have been quarrying slate in Wales at least since Roman times. Just in Caernarfon, we know slate was used to build the Roman fort of Segontium and King Edward’s castle a thousand years later. With the industrial revolution and the growth of factories and towns, the demand for slate for roofing material–went through the roof. By 1870 the Dinorwig mine employed 3000 men. The Read more…
The Senghenydd Mine Disaster
Today marks the 100th anniversary of one of the worst mining disasters ever, and certainly the worst in Wales. “Britain’s worst ever mining disaster has been remembered a century after 439 miners and one rescuer lost their lives in an explosion at Senghenydd in South Wales. A new monument has been unveiled on the site of the old mine and a memorial garden opened to remember more than 5,000 miners killed in accidents across Wales since the 18th century.” http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-24516312 The explosion killed almost the entire male population of the town. “The demand for Welsh steam coal before World War I was enormous, driven by the Royal Navy and its huge fleet of steam battleships, dreadnoughts and cruisers, and by foreign Navies allied to Britain and the British Empire. Coal output from British mines peaked in 1914, and there were Read more…
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