Tyddyn Engan

Cadw's description

Location

Situated in edge-of-moorland location directly adjacent to track leading to Tan Foel Bach; small rubblestone-walled enclosure and slate path to front.

History

Shown on the 1839 Tithe Map, this substantial moorland-edge smallholding, perhaps also sustained by its occupants working in the nearby Moel Tryfan Quarry, operating by 1800, is likely to have been established in the early C19. The section of the cottage to the right of the left ridge stack (which may originally have been an end stack and defines the extent of the main cottage) may, along with the attached cowhouse, be an addition and formerly have served as a kitchen or possibly as a separate unit of accommodation. The whole is abandoned and in poor condition at time of Survey.

Exterior

Cottage and attached cowhouse. Main cottage of single-storey 2-room plan, aligned north-south, with small catslide outshut to rear on right; further room and attached cowhouse under same roof line as main cottage to right; ruins of former outbuildings attached to south gable end. Regularly coursed rubblestone, rendered with plaster quoins and window surrounds to front wall of main cottage; slate roof. Main cottage has C20 casements (almost certainly replacing C19 sashes) in eared plaster surrounds with shell decoration to the top to either side of offset boarded door; rendered integral end stack to left and similar stack to right at junction with third room, which has recessed doorway to left and window opening to right, the 2 separated by a later rubblestone wall built at right-angles to the front wall. Narrow rendered brick ridge stack to right at junction with cowhouse, which has doorway to right. Rear, otherwise unbroken, has low blocked doorway to left of outshut, which itself has a small window in the back wall.

Interior

Interior not accessible at time of Survey.

Reason for designation

Included, notwithstanding its condition, as a good example of a typical early C19 substantial smallholding, built in the local vernacular tradition and sustained by the dual economy of subsistence agriculture and work in the local slate quarries, which created the distinctive landscape of settlement/encroachment on Cilgwyn Common.