A short history of Park Hall Country House

Park Hall has reached its centenary having been completed in 1912 as a ‘Gentleman’s Residence’ for a watchmaker from Aberaeron.  His shop, although long gone, was on the corner of Lekel Street and Alban Square; today it is the bakery. 

A great deal of the building material for the house was brought in by sea via Cwmtydu cove.  At the time this would have been the easiest, and probably the quickest, way of getting what was needed to the site.  The house was reputed to be the first in the valley to have its own running water and flushing toilet.  The water for which was piped down the hillside through lead pipes from a well above the walled garden.  Although we have not located the well we did come across some of the remains of the lead pipe work.

The house was a family home for many decades and had a productive walled garden including many fruit trees.  One or two of the locals remember coming and helping themselves to some of the apples and pears!

In the 50s and 60s the house moved away from being a family residence to more of a rented property similar to what it is today, but not with quite the same level of comfort.  It was mostly for holiday lets with guests having to collect the key from a lady in the next village.

We have been told about groups of families coming all together in ‘a charabanc’ from the valleys to stay in the house and help the local farmers with the haymaking and any other work that needed doing.  They were paid in kind from the farmers for their labours but would buy themselves kegs of ale and cider from the local public house. 

Tales have been related to us of in excess of 30 individuals staying in the house at one time, using mattresses laid on the floor for the children to sleep on.

An extensive amount of work took place in the 1980’s to restore the house to its former glory, putting back some of the fireplaces, the pine panelling and etched glass in the hallway door to name but a few.  It was also at this time that the en-suite bathrooms were added to the first floor bedrooms and the conservatory – as you see it today – to be used as the dining room for the hotel. 

An important visitor during this period, arrived during one springtime, and took up residence, if briefly, in the Scots Pine trees at the edge of the lawn furthest away from the house.  They were the Ospreys; a breeding pair that unusually came this far south.  It created quite a stir with reporters and photographers descending on Cwmtydu to see the new residents.  Today they can be seen in their more usual surroundings near Machynlleth.

Hopefully all of you who come and spend time in the ‘big house’ as we refer to it, will enjoy its atmosphere and tranquil surroundings and maybe come back again to see what other developments have taken place since you were last here.

Dear Guest, 

We are pleased to announce to have been awarded accreditation for our Green initiatives.

Groups of 1-12 can receive *20% discount on their rental costs. 

*Not available during peak season: Summer break, Christmas, New Year. Easter etc.

Park Hall

We are very excited to have received a Bronze accreditation from Greengage Solutions. With Greengage's support we will be tackling Energy and Water Conservation, Waste Management and Recycling, Rooms and Facilities and our Corporate responsibilities for a better eco-friendly Park Hall. 

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