53°08′31.75″N 3°50′51.82″W / 53.1421528°N 3.8477278°W
Klondyke Mill was an ore processing mill on the edge of the Gwydir Forest, near Trefriw, north Wales.
Constructed in 1900,[1] the mill was built to receive lead ore (and some zinc ore) from Pandora mine, some 2 miles away – with which its history is inextricably linked – this ore travelling along a tramway which followed the eastern shore of Llyn Geirionydd. The mill saw little usage; Pandora mine was never profitable after construction of the mill, and the mine ceased operation in 1905. Klondyke mill itself closed in 1911 after having a short succession of optimistic owners.
In the 1920s, the mill achieved notoriety as the scene of an elaborate money-making scam, when investors were sought for the Klondyke mine, which was allegedly rich in silver. It is this scam which gives the mill its current name; during its years of operation it was initially known as Geirionydd Mill, then as the New Pandora Lead Works.[1]
Today the mill lies in a ruined state, a tribute to the false optimism of the time, and is believed to be the largest upstanding building associated with lead mining in north Wales.[2] It is a registered ancient monument [3][4] and, despite its state of disrepair, is under the guardianship of Cadw, the only mine structure in the Gwydir Forest to be so designated.[1]
- ^ a b c J Bennett & R.W.Vernon (1995). Mines of the Gwydyr Forest, part 6. Gwydyr Mines Publications.
- ^ www.heneb.co.uk - Industrial Recording
- ^ www.coflein.gov.uk - Klondyke Lead Mine
- ^ www.ancientmonuments.info - Klondyke Lead Mill