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This
article describes the long-gone wool factories at Felingwm and was written in
the early 1950s.
Felingwm Isaf in 1887
From an original drawing in Felingwm's old school
The cottages were all thatched, including the factory and Cwmbyrbach. These have been rebuilt and the latter is known as Gwynfryn. Only one wall remains of the cottages opposite the factory. Their names were Penygraig, Tycornel, Tycanol, Penpompren.
Felingwm's wool factory in 1953
The building on the right is now called Dolau
The woollen industry was probably established on the banks of the River Cloidach towards the end of the 18th century. There are references to weavers in the Parish in 1799. In the Vestry Books under 1798, the following entry appears: “that John Harry overseer do purchase flannel and other things necessary to make a coracle for John Lot”.
The factory and Nantybaste supplied the Parishioners with blankets, flannel petticoats, plaids, and homespun cloths for suitings. Stockings were manufactured at the factory, and both factories supplied knitting wool for home use. Large quantities of yarn were also cold to local weavers who plied their trade in their dimly-lit cottages such as Blaenparsel in Felingwm and Ferenlas (opposite Nantgaredig School).
It was customary for the farmers to supply a sufficient quantity of wool for the making of cloth etc. and the weaver would stipulate the amount required. The cloth after being manufactured at the factory would be sent to the Pandy (fulling-mill) at Glandwr where It was shrunk by processing with soap and water. Cloth 54 inches wide would be shrunk to 36 ins, and cloth 36 ins. to 28 ins. Suits made of these cloths weighed 8lb to 9lb, whereas present‑day utility suits weigh 3˝ to 4lb Blankets weighed 12-15lb against the 51b article of today. Blankets and “carthenni” made over fifty years ago are still in use in the district. Doubtless the excellent lasting qualities of the products of these old craftsmen contributed largely to the decline of the industry, and the poverty of the weavers’ families.
The last thread was spun in Nantybaste in 1902 and the building is now an ugly ruin. a heap of overgrown rubble marks the site of the Pandy; but the fabric of the factory is much the same as it was in 1915, when it was closed due to the weaver being unable to accept war contracts because the machinery was old and worn.
These factories were small family concerns, (the father seven sons and four daughters worked at the factory but when trade dwindled. the sons sought work elsewhere, leaving the father to earn a meagre living at home. Then the machinery ceased to hum, and the last weaver in the Parish became a Council roadman, but the Cloidach still babbles its way to the Cothi, unmindful of the change and decay along its banks.
Drawing of wool winder as used at Felingwm factory
Old Llanfynyd Houses Old Llanegwad Houses Picture Gallery
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