Built, Owned or Registered Ships
I use the name Gwynedd loosely. Anglesey and Conwy are now separate counties
Y
prîf porthladd cofrestrol î llongau cafodd eu adeiladu neu
yn perthyn yng Nghogledd Cymru oedd, i ddechra, Biwmaris. Wedyn
Caernarfon oedd y porthladd cofrestrol gyda îs porthladoedd ym
Mhorthmadog, Pwllheli, Nefyn, Portinllaen ac Amlwch. 'Roedd y Felin Heli
ty mewn ffiniau porth Caernarfon. Am
amser 'roedd Pwllheli porthladd anibynol hefo llyfr cofrestrol eu hynan.
Disgrifwyd llongau fel " ô Porthmadog" er i nhw wedi
cael cofrestri yng Nghaernarfon.The articles of agreements and other shipping records of local companies are kept by Gwynedd Archives. The Caernarvon ships at that office, Beaumaris ships at Llangefni and, presumably, Barmouth ships at Dolgellau. The records for the bigger square riggers and deep sea steam ships, often registered in Liverpool, are scattered but accessible.
The vast majority of these schooners, barquentines, brigs and ketches were wooden built; the exception being the iron and steel vessels built at Amlwch.
Pren 'roedd rhan mwyaf o llongau bach yma. Ond yn Amlwch adeiladwyd llongau haearn a wedyn ddûr.
Though
there was rivalry between the ports, there was also a great deal of
cooperation and each depended on the others. Nefyn built ships used
Pwllheli and Porthmadog as home ports and after the railway came to
Pwllheli, when traditional trades were dropping off, the local ships
joined wholeheartedly in the Porthmadog slate and Newfoundland saltcod
trade. Meddylwyd y porthladoedd eu hynan fel llefydd anibynol ond 'roedd bôb un yn ddibynu ar y lleill. Pan cyraeddodd y rheilffordd a diflanodd y fasnach arfereol ymunodd llongau Pwllheli a Nefyn a'r fasnach llechi a pysgod hallt ô Canada.
I have divided the section by port but this should not be taken as a clear cut. For example many vessels which considered Porthmadog as a home port were built in Pwllheli or Nefyn.
'Rwyf wedi rhanu yr adran yma mewn porthladoedd ond, fel dywedai uwch ben, er engraifft, 'roedd rhei llongau Pwllheli a Nefyn yn ddefnyddio Porthmadog fel porth cartrefol.
In
addition to these ports there were many harbours, creeks, coves and
jetties scattered around the coastline. The small sloops, smacks,
ketches, flats and schooners and also the steam and later motor coasters
would deliver and load cargoes anywhere, even open beaches. Small
vessels were built in these places also.Below are some links to external websites that contain descriptions of these nooks and crannies and some wonderfull photos of the ships.
Odditan y mae ddolenau i safonau ty allan sy'n cynnwys disgrifiadau y porthfeydd fychan yma a ffotograffiaid arddferchog. o'r llongau
Mawrth 2008 - Adran newydd sbon gyda fy storiau ddarluniadol
- WWW. Penllyn.com Loads of information about the Llyn penninsula in N.W.Wales including local and maritime history
- www.Rhiw.com
Site by local merchant seaman. Much on the history of the village of
Rhiw on the Llyn Penninsula, the harbours, creeks, coves, beaches
where the small coastall vessels worked into. The deep sea ships on
which local men served and local wreck and rescue. Many photos and
paintings.
- WWW.Cimwch.com Local Fisheries Officer
The larger, iron and steel square rigged sailing ships, that were localy owned and manned were too big to enter any North Wales port (apart for Holyhead).
Click here for some excellent photos of the Blaenau Ffestiniog quarries on Kevin Mclean's website.
