2 Ogwen Terrace

Cadw's description

Location

The second house in a curved terrace of 22 houses, in centre of Bethesda.

History

Terrace house of c1830, a pair with No 1 and highly unusual in having the front wall of coursed cut slate blocks. Nos 3-22 Ogwen Terrace are rendered, so it is not possible to determine whether Nos 1 and 2 are the only attempt to use Penrhyn quarry cut slate blocks as a facing stone. The curved terrace appears to have been built in connection with Telford's road to Holyhead, to an urban scale remarkable in what was primarily a slate-quarrying settlement. In poor condition 1996.

Exterior

Coursed squared slate in long blocks with sandstone dressings, slate roof and large corniced slate stack to left, smaller stack to right is roughcast, the stacks shared with adjoining houses. Three-storey, three-window range, 2 hornless 9-pane sashes to upper floor with sandstone slab lintels and slate sills, first floor Palladian arrangement of arched centre window with sandstone arch and keystone and narrow window each side under long sandstone slab lintels linked to centre arch. 2-pane glazing to side windows, centre has 2-pane casements with centre mullion and 2-pane fanlight. Slate sill band. Ground floor is wholly altered, rendered shopfront with door each side of shop-window. Old photograph shows a C19 shopfront with ornate lion-mask brackets similar to those on No 1 (q.v.).

Reason for designation

One of a pair of unusual slate slab faced houses in a fine late Georgian curved terrace of unusual scale.