5750

 

II  

Designated  

27/04/1989  

12/12/2000  

Old National School  

 

Isle of Anglesey  

Amlwch  

Amlwch  

Amlwch  

244040  

393017  

N  

Located on the N side of the A5025, on the lower side of the hillside leading down into Amlwch.  

Education  

 

The population of Amlwch town expanded hugely during the late C18, following the discovery of large, easily worked deposits of copper ore in 1768. By the 1801 census the population had grown to 5000. By 1818 the need for a public charity school in Amlwch had become a matter of some urgency, and a meeting was called in that year to consider the necessity of establishing a National School for the 'instruction of numerous poor childern' in the district. It was decided to build a school for 200 pupils, at a cost not exceeding £250. In 1819, with nothing yet done, a meeting was called in Beaumaris, between the Bishop of Bangor, Lord Bulkeley, and others. The Bishop disapproved of the proposed plan of the school, claiming that as well as being a 'very unsightly scheme', it was also potentially very expensive. Despite these misgivings, he petitioned the Marquess of Anglesey for land, and the owners of the Parys and Mona mines for financial aid, the latter two donating £100 as well as promising an annual subscription of £25. A revised estimate in May 1820 put the cost of the building at £450. However, due to the local mismangement of the already over-ambitious scheme, by the time the building was eventually completed in 1824, the total cost had escalated to £1,015 2s 8d(£1,015.14), leaving an enormous deficit of £465 2s 8d(£465.14). The school was opened in 1821, before completion of building work, with Thomas Jones as the schoolmaster. However, the school was essentially bankrupt, and after receiving no wages or other financial support the schoolmaster was forced to appropriate a penny per week from each of the 180 boys attending. The situation was eventually resolved by donations and subscriptions from business associated with Amlwch, such as coal suppliers from Llanelli, and copper merchants from Liverpool. The school building was complete in 1824. The school was by far the most extravagant and expensive school built on Anglesey in the first half of the C19, costing many times more than comparable schools of the same period (e.g. Llanbedrgoch (1818) £117, Trefdraeth (1829) £120, Llanallgo (1846) £145). The school building has been modernised in mid-late C20 and has been split into 3 workshop units let by the local council.  

Early C19 National School building, comprising a central storeyed block (which served as masters' quarters and offices), with arched entrance to front, flanked by advanced single storey classroom wings. Built of rubble masonry, most elevations rendered, with dressed limestone dressings. Modern, shallow hipped, slate roofs with advanced eaves and verges over stepped, dressed limestone, eaves courses; rectangular brick stacks with capping along lateral walls of central block. Doors and windows are modern hardwood replacements, the windows emulating the pattern of the original casements; all with dressed limestone surrounds and frames. A flight of stone steps leads up to the central entrance; a wide dressed limestone archway with shallow cambered head, hung with simple double, railed, gates. The open porch beyond the arch has doorways leading to each of the 3 blocks; doors are panelled with chamfered angles. The central doorway has flanking narrow 2-pane lights within a dressed limestone surround. The first floor of the central block is slightly advanced over the entrance, exposed rubble masonry with dressed limestone surround to paired windows over entrance; there is a centrally placed, inscribed name plaque over the central arch which reads: AMLWCH / NATIONAL SCHOOL. The advanced classroom wings have rendered elevations over dressed limestone plinths. There are 3 windows within a dressed limestone frame to each facing elevation, above the windows of the L (W) wing is an incised plaque which reads: BOYS' SCHOOL; GIRLS' SCHOOL is to the R. The R (E) return is a 4-window range, the L (W) return has a single window to the rear and a lean-to porch to the front with doorway offset to the R (S). The rear of the building has irregularly spaced modern windows and doorways; each wing has 2 doorways, the L (W) wing with double glazed doors to W, and the central block has ground floor windows and a 1st floor fire escape doorway.  

The interior, though modernised, appears to be true to the original ground plan, with internal access available between all 3 blocks; the L (W) wing is now subdivided as is the central block, though the central block may be following the original divisions of the masters' quarters. The classroom wings retain the original internal roof structure and have partially exposed roof beams showing the lower portion of king post roof construction, each side of the king post with angled braces. Each wing is of 4 roof bays, end bays with T-beams. The top part of the trusses are concealed by tongue and grooved ceilings.  

Listed (notwithstanding some loss of character on conversion) as a good early C19 National School; an ambitiously planned, purpose built school building, built to cater for the expanding population of the town and port of Amlwch. The innovative design incorporates practical and functional elements and the simple forms are accented by bold use of local materials.