Craig yr Hafod Tramroad

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Craig yr Hafod Tramroad
Overview
StatusDefunct
Termini
Service
TypeTramroad
Technical
Track gauge2.75 feet (0.84 m)

The Craig yr Hafod Tramroad was a 2.75 feet (0.84 m) gauge plateway for horse-drawn trams in Monmouthshire, Wales. It connected a limestone quarry at Craig-yr-hafod high on the eastern flanks of Mynydd y Garn-fawr with the (then) Brecknock and Abergavenny Canal between Llanellen and Llanover. From the quarry, it ran north and then east around the head of the Ochram Brook/Nant Llanellen valley before heading southeast towards the canal, descending about 900 feet (270 m) in total over the course of 2.75 miles. It was operated by the Cwm Llanellen Lime and Coal Company from about 1812 though it is not known when operations ceased.

Though it ran to the canal and was constructed under the Brecknock and Abergavenny Act of 1797 which allowed for tramroad development in association with this waterway, it does not appear to have been intended to connect with it but rather to have served limekilns which stand near to the canal, to the consternation of the Brecknock and Abergavenny Canal Company. The tramroad as a whole appears to have been lightly constructed and the lack of visible wear on extant blocks suggests its use was limited. The gauge appears to have been 2 ft 9ins with individual tramplates 3 ft 1.5ins long; a curved plate in Abergavenny Museum probably originates from this tramroad.[1]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Rattenbury, Gordon (1980). Tramroads of the Brecknock and Abergavenny Canal (First ed.). Oakham, Leics: Railway and Canal Historical Society. pp. 28–31. ISBN 0901461237.