History of the Line

The Dinorwic Quarries and their Railways.

No one seems certain when slate was first dug on Elidir mountain, but it was probably many centuries ago. In the 1800's the industry was gradually getting on to a commercial footing; the large landowners of Wales were quick to exploit the demand, and more and more of Elidir was torn open to extract the mineral. At that time, of course, there were no railways in Wales - or indeed almost anywhere - and the only way to get slates to England was by small ships. A private port was established at Y Felinheli, on the Menai Straits between Bangor and Caernarfon, and this harbour became known as Port Dinorwic.

The problem still remained, however, of getting the slates from the quarry to the port - a distance of about nine miles. It was possible to use boats for the first two miles down Llyn Padarn, but as the main quarry was high on the mountain this was of little help. Output was therefore considerably restricted by the limited carrying capacity of the packhorses, crude carts and sledges used.

In 1824, a primitive railway was opened from Allt Ddu (near Deiniolen) to Port Dinorwic. Constructed by the quarry owners, it is recorded that by 1840 over 60 tons were carried daily down the line, in trains worked by a mixture of animal haulage and gravity. This tramway was, however, poorly engineered and an alternative route having a higher carrying capacity was constructed along a comparatively level route from Llanberis. This route later became the 4ft.0in. gauge 'Padarn Railway', on which steam locomotives hauled both slate trains and passenger trains for the quarrymen.

The Padarn Railway was closed in October 1961, the rails removed and the engines and rolling stock broken up for scrap. The route of the railway was abandoned to nature and rapidly became overgrown.

Inside the quarry itself, a similar transport revolution had taken place. The slate was cut from the mountain in a series of huge galleries, each one connected to the one below by a sloping path, down which the slates were slid on sledges. Gradually a railway system was established on the galleries, and incline railways replaced the sledge slopes. The rails in the quarry were put down two feet apart (measured centre to centre), and by 1870 the first steam locomotive was in use on these tracks. Gradually the use of steam locomotives expanded until there were over two dozen of them, mostly named after the best racehorses in the stables of the quarry owner. King of the Scarlets, Cackler, Lady Madcap, Rough Pup, and many more brightened the vast greyness with their shining paintwork and polished brass. After the Second World War, diesel locomotives rapidly took over a lot of the quarry work, and gradually the steam locomotives were sold to little railways and collectors, both in Britain and in Canada.

At the peak of its prosperity, the quarry employed over 3000 men, and up to the time of the Second World War there existed a remarkable example of Welsh native culture unequalled anywhere else in the world. The nature of the quarryman's work was such that it enabled him to talk about and discuss affair of the day. There was a system of Gallery Presidents (or Chairmen), a post of honour to which the younger members hoped one day to aspire. These Presidents imposed, by example and advice, a strict moral code and discipline, which served the community well. Lunchtime Eisteddfodau and other competitive functions were frequently held. Quarrymen were copious readers, both in Welsh and English; their knowledge of the Bible was an educational force which materially helped to preserve the Welsh language whilst at the same time widening their horizon. The quarry was more that a means of livelihood - it was a working-class university.

The end finally came in 1969, when the bankrupt quarry was forced to close down. Three steam locomotives and some diesels survived to be auctioned, along with the rest of the quarry property, in December of that year.

Thus the idea of a Lake Railway was able to come to fruition - the erstwhile Padarn Railway providing the route beside the lake; the defunct quarry providing the initial equipment and the men to build it.

Construction started in the autumn of 1970, when the dense growth of trees, gorse, heather and brambles was removed from the route, and the new track put down, using some rails salvaged from the quarry. The line was opened in July 1971, when visitors were able to travel to Cei Llydan; the route being extended further to Penllyn in 1972. In 2002, after many years of planning, the ambitious project to link the railway to Llanberis village got under way, including the laying of half a mile of track, two level crossings, the construction of a large river bridge and the building of a new terminal station. The new extension was opened to the public in June 2003.

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