HISTORY
Red Dragon has aroused considerable interest on account of the full scale trials for gold in the 1850’s using an unusual form of amalgamating machine, and also because the site was lost until the late 20th century. It is about two miles south west of Dinas Mawddwy and in keeping with the mine’s one–time pretensions it is in an area of scenic grandeur at the end of a majestic hanging valley, and at the foot of the near vertical walls of Craig Maesglassau.
The mine was begun in 1852 as a silver-lead mine. By 1853 a waterwheel and blowing machine had been erected to ventilate an adit, and a carpenter's and blacksmith's shop had been erected. Other features that might belong to this initial phase of working are a trial working high up on the slopes of Bwlch Siglen and another lower down the valley. The discovery of black gossan changed the nature of the enterprise because it was discovered to be a gold-bearing mineral and henceforth the mine operated as a gold mine.
In 1854 a Perks Gold Reduction and Amalgamating Machine was purchased and erected in a new water-powered mill. It appears that it was the limitations of the Perks machinery, which was a very large investment for a small mine, caused the company to fail. Although trials for gold proved abortive, the mine is the only site in mid Wales where full scale machinery was erected to extract gold.
Work ceased there by 1856.
The Ordnance Survey map of 1901 shows the site as the Bwlch y Siglen Slate Quarry which suggests the metamorphosis of a silver-lead mine to a slate quarry via a gold mine. At some stage after life as a slate quarry, the adit was lost when it was completely covered by a hill slide that came down the mountain above it and covered it. This became evident when someone who had visited it before the hill slide wrote that they returned nearly 30 years later and could find no trace of it and that it had simply disappeared.
This remained the case until a Mr. Price of Aberangell opened, drained and explored the adit in 1983.
THE VISIT
Another one from a trip back to South Wales from the depths of North Wales and visited with a non-member.
PHOTOS
1. Wedge
2. Drive
3. Build-up
4. Working
5. Crosscut
6. Timbering
7. Death on a stick
8. Last working
9. Way back
10. Teeth
11. Bar
12. Sound of silence
Thanks for looking !
Red Dragon has aroused considerable interest on account of the full scale trials for gold in the 1850’s using an unusual form of amalgamating machine, and also because the site was lost until the late 20th century. It is about two miles south west of Dinas Mawddwy and in keeping with the mine’s one–time pretensions it is in an area of scenic grandeur at the end of a majestic hanging valley, and at the foot of the near vertical walls of Craig Maesglassau.
The mine was begun in 1852 as a silver-lead mine. By 1853 a waterwheel and blowing machine had been erected to ventilate an adit, and a carpenter's and blacksmith's shop had been erected. Other features that might belong to this initial phase of working are a trial working high up on the slopes of Bwlch Siglen and another lower down the valley. The discovery of black gossan changed the nature of the enterprise because it was discovered to be a gold-bearing mineral and henceforth the mine operated as a gold mine.
In 1854 a Perks Gold Reduction and Amalgamating Machine was purchased and erected in a new water-powered mill. It appears that it was the limitations of the Perks machinery, which was a very large investment for a small mine, caused the company to fail. Although trials for gold proved abortive, the mine is the only site in mid Wales where full scale machinery was erected to extract gold.
Work ceased there by 1856.
The Ordnance Survey map of 1901 shows the site as the Bwlch y Siglen Slate Quarry which suggests the metamorphosis of a silver-lead mine to a slate quarry via a gold mine. At some stage after life as a slate quarry, the adit was lost when it was completely covered by a hill slide that came down the mountain above it and covered it. This became evident when someone who had visited it before the hill slide wrote that they returned nearly 30 years later and could find no trace of it and that it had simply disappeared.
This remained the case until a Mr. Price of Aberangell opened, drained and explored the adit in 1983.
THE VISIT
Another one from a trip back to South Wales from the depths of North Wales and visited with a non-member.
PHOTOS
1. Wedge
2. Drive
3. Build-up
4. Working
5. Crosscut
6. Timbering
7. Death on a stick
8. Last working
9. Way back
10. Teeth
11. Bar
12. Sound of silence
Thanks for looking !
