2016 early events
There were almost 100 people present at our March meeting, many of them History Group members, but many were local residents of Deganwy, or at least people with memories of the village in the 1940-50’s. The evening was a nostalgic recollection and memories of the old swimming pool – The Lido – in Deganwy in this period. Vicky Macdonald had prepared a thorough and entertaining presentation about the development of the pool as an attraction, not only for the village but for the wider surrounding area of North Wales and beyond. She gave the history of its development and of the vision of Arthur Jones, the owner, to develop Deganwy as a centre for leisure of importance. The old pictures of the site, now Traeth Melyn, revealed that there was hardly any housing on the main road to Llandudno at the time.
The pool was opened in 1934 and the publicity anticiapted that 8,000 visitors would use the pool each day in the summer. There was much laughter and hilarity as the audience recalled their own memories of the swimming pool. Here is a picture of a group enjoying themselves by the pool with Councillor Betty Pattinson and a representative of the magazine ‘She’ in the floral shirt. If you have memories of the swimmingt pool or even old photographs, Vicky would be delighted to hear from you. At the end of the evening, Richard Hughes, our friend from Rowen, had prepared a very tasty mussels supper for everybody – thanks Richard.
In February, Meic Williams from Dorset came to talk to us and give an insight into the life and times of Owain Glyndŵr, tracing the history of Wales up until the period when he came to the fore as the last Welsh person to be called the Prince of Wales and about his efforts to unite the country independent of English sovereignty.
Our Open Day exhibition can still be viewed at Y Bont, Welsh Government Offices, Sarn Mynach, Llandudno Junction. Free admission.
Our next meeting on 21st April will be an inforrmal evening when the audience will be given an opportunity to test their knowledge on local History Points. Come along and join us to learn more about some of Deganwy’s best known people and buildings.
Our meetings are held at Peniel Chapel Schoolroom, Deganwy at 7pm and there is always a warm welcome for everybody to join us. More information about the Group’s activities can be found on our website www.deganwyhistory.co.uk or by contacting the Secretary on his new e-mail address ifor42@gmail.com. As you can see, we have a contrasting series of activities which are of a general ineterst to everybody. We are always delighted to welcome new members as well as visitors to the area. The annual subscription remains at £12 or £2.50 per meeting, including a cuppa. A bargain!
Ifor
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