Talyllyn included in bid for World Heritage status
THE Talyllyn Railway – which sparked off the railway preservation movement seven decades ago – will become a hub of a new World Heritage Site if Government plans bear fruit.
In February, Whitehall formally submitted its bid to UNESCO for the Welsh Slate Landscape to become a World Heritage Site.
If the bid is successful, Gwynedd’s slate landscape will join the Great Wall of China, the Taj Mahal, the Grand Canyon, the Great Barrier Reef and the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway in international recognition.
Speaking in support of the bid submission by UK Heritage Minister Helen Whately, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said it was “an area of remarkable uniqueness and breath-taking beauty.”
Blaenau Ffestiniog was the town that famously became known as ‘the town that roofed the world’ and became the geographical centre of some of the largest slate mines and quarries ever developed. Less well known but still of great significance was what is now the sixth component of the bid, which covers Bryneglwys Slate Quarry and the associated underground workings near the village of Abergynolwyn – and served by the Talyllyn.
Vital lifeline
The Talyllyn Railway was constructed to transport slate from the Bryneglwys quarries and very soon after opening in 1865, passenger services began, linking Abergynolwyn with Tywyn. The village had been developed to provide homes for the quarry workers and the railway served as a vital lifeline, even running an inclined plane down from the line with sidings constructed to serve many of the village cottages with supplies and services.
The railway has been a supporter of the Welsh Slate Landscape project since its earliest days, announcing its formal support for the scheme in July 2015.
Talyllyn Railway Heritage Group spokesman Ian Drummond said:
“It is included in the bid as an extant example of the transport infrastructure used to move slate from the quarries to customers around the world.
“The bid also acknowledges that the Talyllyn was not only the first narrow gauge railway in the world designed for steam operation from the outset but also that in 1951, it became the world’s first preserved railway.”
If the bid succeeds, the Welsh Slate Landscape will become the 33rd UNESCO World Heritage Site to be recognised in the UK and the Talyllyn will become the new site’s southern hub.
Talyllyn general manager Stuart
Williams said: “I have been working alongside the bid team for over two years, as it’s clear that this is a significant opportunity for the North Wales area to showcase its fascinating landscape. As one of the seven areas the bid focused on, the railway is delighted to be involved and are working on a number of projects to help tell the story of slate and its significance in the Fathew Valley.”
Other UK World Heritage Sites with a transport or industrial theme include the Forth railway bridge, Ironbridge Gorge and the Blaenavon Industrial Landscape.