| Llangurig | |
|---|---|
 Llangurig shop, church, Blue Bell pub and junction | |
  Llangurig Location withinPowys | |
| Population | 723 (2011)[1] |
| OS grid reference | SN909797 |
| Principal area | |
| Preserved county | |
| Country | Wales |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | Llanidloes |
| Postcode district | SY18 |
| Dialling code | 01686 |
| Police | Dyfed-Powys |
| Fire | Mid and West Wales |
| Ambulance | Welsh |
| UK Parliament | |
| Senedd Cymru – Welsh Parliament | |
| Website | Llangurig Community Council |
52°24′16″N3°36′18″W / 52.40440°N 3.60513°W /52.40440; -3.60513 Community map
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Llangurig is a village andcommunity inMontgomeryshire,Powys, Wales. The population was 723 in the2011 UK Census. The community includes the hamlet of Cwmbelan.
TheRiver Wye, theA470 and theA44trunk roads pass through Llangurig, as do theNational Cycle Route 8 and theWye Valley Walk.
The 15th centuryparish church located in the village is dedicated toSaint Curig, its reputed founder, and is a grade II* listed building. There are also two smallchapels.
The village has been home for many decades to a craft shop as well as twopublic houses, a number ofbed and breakfasts and a smallvillage shop andPost Office. Themanor house, Clochfaen Hall, was designed by architectWilliam Arthur Smith Benson, a designer of theArts and Crafts movement. He also designed thedrinking fountain between the road and thevillage green, the erection of which commemorates the completion of the village's pipedwater supply, a scheme begun by Colonel Gerald Hope Lloyd-Verney, to whom the fountain is also a memorial.[3]
Llangurig used to have a smallprimary school. In January 2003, the school had only 19 pupils.[4] In 2006, a successful campaign against closure by the local council was fought.[5] The school eventually closed at the end of the 2008 academic year.[6]
The village holds an annualagricultural show andsheepdog trials in August.
During theVictorian era, Llangurig nearly had a railway service. TheLlangurig branch is noted as being the shortest lived working branch line in the UK, receiving only one train.
Wales' rail network was built piecemeal by many small companies, and Parliament mistakenly granted acts for two lines through the same piece of terrain, linkingLlanidloes toAberystwyth: one for theManchester and Milford Railway; the other for theMid-Wales Railway. The M&MR intended to connect the two settlements with a route across Wales, to enable the industrialised Northwest to access the deep-water port inMilford Haven,West Wales.
The MWR was authorized to build its line by act of parliament in 1859.[7] The M&M was likewise authorized in 1860. The line was to head west from Llanidloes by way of Llangurig to Pant Mawr, through a tunnel, turning southwards forYsbyty Ystwyth andTregaron,finally connecting with theCarmarthen & Cardigan Railway atPencader.
After resolving difficulties of accessing Llanidloes through the creation of the jointLlanidloes and Newtown Railway, it would extend 1.5 miles (2.4 km) of double track southwards to Penpontbren, where the MWR and M&MR would diverge. The M&MR and MWR were to pay 5%per annum on construction costs and maintenance. Also the three companies were to pay equal shares of interest and running costs for the newstation at Llanidloes.These charges were eventually to prove crippling for the M&MR.
TheLlangurig branch was fully built, and a single goods train ran along its length, at which point the L&NR invoiced the M&MR for the cost of the joint station at Llanidloes. The branch service was immediately terminated, being wholly unprofitable without through traffic. The M&MR continued to pay for the cost of the joint station they could not reach.
By 1864 the M&MR had changed its plans for crossing thePumlumon range, and hence stopped all work west of Llangurig. 1866 was a difficult year, including the collapse of the London BankOverend, Gurney and Company, causing many industrial projects to encounter financial hardship. By 1876 MWR had still failed to build the new route, with an act of parliament permitting abandonment of the scheme. In 1882 the M&MHR started to dismantle the Llangurig branch, lifting 1.5 miles (2.4 km) of the essentially unused track for maintenance purposes elsewhere.
A large part of the route east of Llangurig is marked on current OS maps as 'dismantled railway', much of the course close to the A470 road through Nant Gwynwydd being clearly visible. Some earthworks and tunnel approach excavations survive from the original M&MR scheme west of Llangurig, as does Llangurig station site.[8]
