The Lost Cottages - (possibly) Cae Ithel Isaf, Llanbedr y Cennin

This little structure is very ruined and has no name on the 1888-1913 map. Neither can I see it there among the few marked on the 1816 Robert Dawson map, although the names on there are scant and don't align with names on the later map. (Ffynnon Bedr seems to be called Dafaid, possibly Pennant is called Nant yr Felin, a building where Cae'r Llin is now situated seems to be called Cerrig Mawr, and Onen Ebryd is called Onnen y Bryn.)

This obscure building sits at Ordnance Survey Grid Reference SH 7596 6882, on the edge of an old right of way leading from Llanbedr y Cennin towards and along Afon Dulyn.  It's possible it isn't a house at all, but just an old outbuilding, perhaps for the nearby Pennant. It's also possible that this is the old Pennant, and the current Pennant is a newer build, although both buildings are built of fairly rough stone, with Pennant having some quite rough looking parts, and this unnamed building having a fair few stones that seem to have been faced. This doesn't necessarily mean they weren't consecutive dwellings, though. They could only be separated by a few decades in time. The building doesn't seem to be mentioned separately on the census, although without a name it's very hard to tell.

Another possibility is that this was Cae Ithel Isa (spelled variously 'Ithel/Ithal' and 'Isaf/Isa'). The property is directly down the hill from Cae Ithel, at the bottom of a large field separating them - 'cae' means 'field.' 'Isaf' means 'lower' and 'uchaf' means higher. The two properties appear as separate in the census until 1871. From 1881 onwards only 'Cae Ithel' is mentioned. Thus it may be that this is Cae Ithel Isa and it was abandoned at some point after 1871.

The photos in this post were taken at two different times, in the autumn of 2020 and in February 2021.

See a short video of the place here.

The squarish building sits on the slope just above an old right of way. If it is Cae Ithel Isa, in 1851 it was inhabited by 69 year old Ann Owens, a farmer of nine acres, her daughter Elinor, 38, and a lodger, 92 year old pauper Gwen Mauries (Morris?). These may be the same inhabitants as in 1841 (the two Cae Ithels are only mentioned by that name, with no 'isa' or 'ucha'), who are Anne Williams, 50, and Elin, 25. Ages are often inaccurate in censuses and the surname may change according to whether the inhabitants are going by the name of their father or husband. The other Cae Ithel in 1841 is inhabited by John Roberts, 45, and Elin Roberts, 13, who still inhabit the house in 1851, when the properties are distinguished as Cae Ithel and Cae Ithel Isa. It seems likely that the surnames are simply muddled, as in 1861 the house is lived in by Ann Owens, 79, still a farmer, and daughter Ellin Williams, 49. They still have a boarder, Jane Williams, 30. In 1871, Ellen Williams, 55, lives with Ann Owen, a servant of 16. Is it a coincidence that she has the same name as Ellen's mother, or could she be a relation? By 1881 and in subsequent censuses the house isn't mentioned, and must have fallen out of use.

This old track begins as a tarmacked road leading south from above the Bull Inn, branching towards the farms of Tyddyn y Coed and Cae Asaph. Then the tarmac turns to mud and stone and the track carries on towards the Afon Dulyn. Not far short of the river, the little house or outbuilding stands near the track, behind the stone wall to the right. 

A rather lovely high stone wall hides the structure from the east side. The gap at the left is drainage for water coming down the hill.

 

Hidden behind the high wall are the low ruins of the structure, a very small and very tumbled building. The place is quite ruined at the left, western, end, which is probably where the fireplace was situated if it were a house. There seems to be a single main room. These stones on the right are either ruined walls of an outside enclosure, or just fallen stone from the main walls.

A low wall extends from the south west corner of the building towards the track that leads to Pennant.

This rather lovely piece of broken bottle was found lying on the moss outside.

The south facing wall is mostly ruined to the left of what seems to be the doorway. The right side of the doorway is to the right of the photo. Did the doorway extend to the squared off light coloured stone to the left of the tree? If so, it was quite wide, making it seem less like a dwelling and more like an outbuilding.

There's a suggestion of a small window, later blocked up, just to the right of the doorway. This seems like another point for the place being a dwelling, although outbuildings do sometimes have windows.

Inside the single room, in the western wall, there's a dividing bit of wall with a wide nook to the right. I suspect this wall could be the right side of a deep fireplace. There's certainly no evidence of a fireplace anywhere else in the ruin. Sadly, the house is so tumbled to the left of this wall that it's very hard to tell if it were a fireplace.

A wide angle shot shows the nook on the right and the possible collapsed fireplace to the left. 

 

There is a lot of  rubble spilt down to the left of the dividing wall. Stones from a chimney, or just remains of the wall? Chimney walls do seem to collapse more easily than normal walls once the beam over the fire has gone.

 

 

 Some large, long stones lie fallen in the space of the possible fireplace.

It could be possible that these stones were used to help support the bottom of the chimney across the wide gap over the fire. This is supposition, but if this was their function it makes it more likely there was a fireplace in this structure, and the presence of a fireplace makes it much more likely it was a dwelling rather than an outbuilding.

It seems this has been a popular place for coming to drink in the past, for whisky drinkers and milk drinkers alike. There is also what looks like an instant coffee jar on the ground nearby. The place is also now scattered with modern beer cans.

The full selection of bottles found lying on the ground in the ruin.

Looking towards the corner where the east wall (left) meets the south wall (right), which seems to hold the front door.

What looked like a small window on the outside looks curiously like a large blocked up doorway on the inside. It's hard to reconcile the appearance on one side with the appearance on the other. 

Looking in obliquely through the doorway, from outside.

Looking towards the house from the back south corner. The possible fireplace is roughly where these trees have grown up. 

The north wall of the cottage, opposite the doorway, is very overrun with brambles. The little internal wall, or side of the fireplace, can be seen through the lower part of the north wall.

Looking a little further to the left, the corner of the house is lost in the brambles. 

The back, west, wall of the house, behind the possible fireplace.

The east wall faces the wall siding the track, with another low wall joining the building to the track wall, and what appears to be a gateway by the building's corner.

Standing on the north side of the house, a long, narrow pasture stretches along the side of the track.

 

The 1888-1913 map shows Pennant and an outbuilding (at centre) with the unnamed building just above and to the right, on the corner of the track. On the map the unnamed building looks larger than Pennant, which is quite a small cottage. The little enclosures around the unnamed building could be suggestive of a dwelling, but you do see small enclosures around outbuildings, too. Without proper archaeological investigation or inspection by someone more knowledgable, it might be impossible to tell if this place were ever lived in.