Llanidloes
Llanidloes is a
town in
Powys,
traditional county of
Montgomeryshire,
mid Wales. It is the first town on the
River Severn. It was given a charter to hold a market in 1289 but existed at least 400 years before that.
The town is close to the large
dam and
reservoir Llyn Clywedog. There is a scenic mountain road connecting
Machynlleth and Llanidloes. With a population of 2314 there are 17 licensed drinking establishments in a town where half the population are either too young or too old to drink and where the strong Methodist and Baptist tradition stops another large section from taking alcohol!
Llanidloes is popular with hikers who walk on the many scenic footpaths surrounding the town, including
Glyndwr's Way, which in conjunction with the
Offa's Dyke path forms a one hundred and sixty mile circuit around Mid Wales. The section of the route between Llanidloes and
Machynlleth, with its passage over the spine of the Cambrian Mountains, forms perhaps the highlight of the whole route.
The area around Llanidloes was once very important for the mining of lead and even silver, and the town had a thriving flannel industry. It was also notorious as a focus of industrial unrest during the 19th century
Chartist revolt in
1839, a campaign for democratic rights prompted by the collapse of the local textile industry.
The ancient half-timbered market hall stands at the crossroads of the four streets of the original medieval town. Built around 1600, it is the only surviving building of this type in Wales. Assize courts were held in the hall around 1605, and
John Wesley preached from a pulpit stone on the open ground floor in 1748.
There are many notable
timber framed buildings in the town and a
parish church with a
fifteenth century hammerbeam roof. Other attractions include a
museum containing a famous two-headed sheep, and the nearby
Hafren Forest, known for its
red kites.
The town, home to the famous
Llanidloes Fancy Dress festival, has strong connections with
Laura Ashley (the town is home to the second Laura Ashley store to be established in Wales). Headquarters of the
Quilt Association is at the Minerva Arts Centre; here they hold workshops and a very impressive annual exhibition of quilts. It has been known for many years as a place where old
hippies go to die. A very quirky town, even the police stationed in nearby
Newtown call it "Planet Idloes".
A great place to live, work and bring up children.
Llanidloes Town FC play in the Spar Mid Wales League[
1].
*
Llanidloes.com - Official town website
*
powys.gov.uk - Llanidloes Museum
*
quilt.org.uk - The Quilt Association
