The Abbey Tower
The tower
- the oldest standing building on the island -
is part of the remains of the thirteenth
century Augustinian Abbey of St. Mary’s.
The exact extent of the buildings associated
with the Abbey is unknown, but it is likely
that the
site supported a sizeable community of monks.
The
Chapel
Situated in the shelter of the mountain at
the north end of the island, not far from the
Abbey, the chapel was built in the 1870s at
the time
that the farmhouses were renovated. It is
said that
the inhabitants chose to have a chapel rather
than a new harbour when they were invited
to note their
preference by the landowner, Lord Newborough.
The
Limekiln
The Limekiln - now disused - is a squat
stone building standing at the side of the track
leading from
the main track to Ty Pellaf and Dyno Goch,
where there was also a small lime quarry.
It would
have had heavy use during the rebuilding
of the houses
in the 1870s and afterwards. Like many
of the buildings on Bardsey, it was restored
by
architect
Douglas
Hague to its present state of preservation
in 1986.
The
School
The school building, which was once the island
chapel, standing above the track near
Cristin, was built in the late eighteenth or
early
nineteenth century. It was regularly
used as a school
until the last employed teacher left
in 1953, and is
now used as a meeting place.
Y
Storws
Often referred to as the Boathouse, the
Storws is probably the first building
- apart from
the Lighthouse - that you see as you
land at Y Cafn.
A long, low stone building with its
spectacular lichen-covered roof, it was built
at
the end of the eighteenth century or the beginning
of the
nineteenth. The sheltered bench stretching
the length of the building is a favourite
place
to
sit and watch the comings and goings.
Pictures of Bardsey Island
click
here
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