Archer's Dam

From Festipedia, hosted by the FR Heritage Group

Stations Locations	Harbour Station
Archer's Dam
Previous Station	Dduallt
Previous Location	Moelwyn Tunnel
Status	Location
Next Location	Llyn Ystradau
Next Station	Tanygrisiau


Deviation Locator
Towards Porthmadog	Tunnel South
Toward Blaenau Ffestiniog	Back to Deviation
Deviation	Dduallt

The Archer Dam not long after breaching showing temporary tramway to remove spoil from Tunnnel north cutting
*Date: April 1973. *Photo: Brian Taylor

The original idea for the FR was to have a continuous down gradient from Dinas to Portmadoc. For some reason, probably cost or maybe time, the Moelwyn tunnel could not be built and some alternative arrangement had to be made.

In the original 1836 route, prior to the opening of the first Old Moelwyn Tunnel, in 1842, the wagons were pulled up the inclines over the hill through which the tunnel as eventually driven.

This was powered by a water wheel which was driven by damming some of the rainfall. This dam only remained in use until construction of the tunnel, but it was not finally breached until over a hundred years later when the Deviation was being constructed, and the new line cut through it. This ceremonial breaching took place on 16th October 1971, i.e. soon after the agreement for the West Side route had been announced, and nearly 4 years before tunnelling on the new Moelwyn Tunnel started. All the stone removed from the dam went into constructing the new culvert and the adjacent embankment.