Slate was king in the 19th century and North Wales quarry owners had grown rich through supplying roofing slate to the rapidly-growing urban communities in the UK and abroad at the height of the Industrial Revolution. Sadly, this was at the expense of the quarrymen who endured poor wages and appallingly dangerous working conditions. !n a situation where the quarry owners ruled absolutely, there was no provision for the workers to register their dissatisfaction over their working conditions. In the face of continued victimisation the only road open to workers was collective action. The impetus for founding a Union came not from Penrhyn, Bethesda, despite many disputes and an earlier attempt to form a union in 1865, but from Dinorwig, Llanberis.

In the early 1870′s 110 quarrymen from the Glyn Rhonwy quarry declared themselves to be union members and were promptly locked out by the quarry owner. He soon realised he was losing money and within three weeks the workers returned and were recognised as union members.

However, the owners of the other quarries were alarmed by this development and attempted to stop the spread of the trade unions by refusing permission for any meetings within the quarries or on any of the extensive lands belonging to the large connected with the quarries.

This is where the story takes a strange twist. Lord Newborough, owner of the Glynllifon estate west of Caernarfon owned some land near Llanberis on the shores of Llyn Padarn. He allowed the men to use a rocky outcrop (providing natural shelter) which became known as Craig Yr Undeb (Union Rock) to plan secretly the formation of a trade union. It’s fascinating to speculate his motives – perhaps he was in dispute with his aristocratic neighbours. Whatever his motives were, these secret meetings led to the creation of the North Wales Quarrymens Union which is commemorated on the memorial on the rock face.

The owners were unwilling to recognise the union. 2,200 quarrymen were locked out of Dinorwic Quarry in June of that year, after five weeks the managers agreed to allow the union. This was followed by a dispute at the Penrhyn Quarry, which resulted in a great victory for the workers and their new union.

One hundred years later, a plaque was erected to commemorate the centenary.

We’re used to the sight of closed Welsh chapels but are pleased to see the new lease of life they receive as homes. More depressing is the large numbers of pubs we see that have pulled their last pint and up for sale. Recently a much loved local pub, Y Fricsan in Cwm-y-Glo called time permanently. It was well known as a live music venue raising considerable sums for charity.

What is less known about the Fricsan is that almost exactly 142 years ago, an event took place a 150 metres or so away from the pub, under construction at the time, which had world-wide consequences.

On a very hot afternoon on 30 June 1869, two carts each containing a ton of nitro-glycerine set out from Caernarfon travelling the 8 miles to the Glynrhonwy slate quarry on the edge of Llanberis. Although the canisters containing the liquid explosive had been carefully packed into boxes containing sawdust and covered in straw when loaded onto the carts, nobody at the time knew how inherently unstable nitro-glycerine was!

Just before 6pm, just after the carts had passed the Cwm-y-Glo station goods shed, the cargo exploded with what was probably the loudest man-made explosion ever heard up to that time. Both carters died, plus a passing quarrymen from Glynrhonwy and two young boys aged 11 and 13, who were unlucky to be nearby. The inquest showed that the carters had spent some time at the Alexandria Inn in Cwm-y-Glo which meant the carts were cooking nicely in the sun.

No trace of the carters, horses or carts remained at the site and two deep craters approximately ten feet deep were left behind. Human and animal remains, as well as parts of the carts, were spread far and wide – with some of the debris being found in the neighbouring village of Brynrefail. The damage to Cwm-y-Glo’s buildings was extensive, many having roofs blown off and windows destroyed. Scarcely a house in the village escaped without damage. A wheel and harness from one of the carts landed a half-mile away and, to this day, the spot is marked by a large ‘X’ scratched on a stone wall which locals keep visible.

The far-reaching consequence of this event was the Nitro-glycerine Act 1869 prohibiting the manufacture, transport or sale of nitro-glycerine or any product containing it in the U.K.

A plaque commemorates the event which can be seen on the rock face opposite Y Fricsan.

Picture of Fricsan © Copyright Eric Jones and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence