Tre-felin Cottages

Cadw's description

Location

One of a series of 4 paired cottages following curve of road and thus forming a crescent to west of the former Tre-felin Sawmill; low rubblestone wall to roadside, while to south are long gardens terraced into rising ground towards railway.

History

The Tre-felin Saw Mill and the adjoining cottages were here by 1888 (OS 1:2500 map). The 4 pairs of cottages were built for the sawmill workers, at the expense of the Penrhyn Estate which owned the mill. It is said that the cottages have their backs to the road so that Lord Penrhyn could not see the washing hanging in their gardens, which are thus screened from public view by the cottages themselves.

Exterior

Belongs to a group of 8.

Nos 1 to 8 Tre-felin Cottages, Llandegai.

Four pairs of 2-storey, 3-window cottages. Roughly coursed rubblestone with buttered pointing; continuous hipped slate roof. Each cottage has three 2-light 12-paned casements with raised brick surrounds on first floor and two 2-light 16-paned casements to ground floor, one on either side of central hip-roofed porch with carved timberwork to front and sides; 3 ridge stacks across whole building, one close to each end and another larger stack to centre shared between the 2 cottages. Rear has single-storey lean-to shared between the 2 cottages with lower and set-back section at each end to each cottage.

Roughcast and painted to front, side and rear; end ridge stack truncated and the cottage's main lean-to on rear has been raised in height to eaves level of main building.

Interior

Interior not inspected at time of Survey.

Reason for designation

Included as one cottage in a well-preserved sequence of 4 paired cottages built by the Penrhyn Estate for workers in its sawmill, which was established in the shadow of the Chester to Holyhead railway in the second half of the C19; an important example of industrial workers' housing in an essentially rural context.