Railway Viaduct (partly in Llandygai community)

Cadw's description

Location

Carrying the Chester to Holyhead main line over the Afon Ogwen and then westwards over the former Tre-felin Saw Mill.

History

The Chester to Holyhead line was proposed to improve links with Ireland, the bill being passed in July 1844 with Robert Stephenson as engineer and Francis Thompson of Derby as architect. This viaduct is likely to be by Stephenson with assistance from Mr Foster, the resident engineer for this stretch of the line. Opened 1 May 1848 and taken over by the London & North-Western Railway in 1859. The Afon Ogwen here forms the boundary between the Llanllechid and Llandygai communities.

Exterior

14 semi-circular arches. Rock-faced and heavily tooled red sandstone masonry with rusticated voussoirs and quoins. Brick soffits to the arches and plinths and freestone impost bands to each pier; cornice and plain parapet. The end piers slightly project and those flanking the river have ramped brick bases.

Reason for designation

Included as a substantial and essentially unaltered early railway structure on the important Chester to Holyhead Railway, the viaduct is both architecturally distinctive and a fine example of railway engineering.