The SOLOMON ANDREWS INFLUENCE

Glyn-y-Weddw was purchased together with other land by Solomon & F. E. Andrews at the sale of parts of the Madryn Estate on 11th-12th August 1896.

The horse tramway, along the sandhills from Pwllheli, was then extended from Carreg-y-Defaid to terminate opposite the entrance to Glyn-y-Weddw.

The house was converted into an Art Gallery and the stable-yard roofed over to form a ballroom which was also used for afternoon teas. Trips by tram to Llanbedrog for the beach and to the house and grounds, and for the evening dances organised by F. E. Young, became a feature of a holiday at Pwllheli.

 

The Building of 'West End' Pwllheli

It was in the summer of 1893, when Solomon Andrews was on holiday at Llandudno, that he noticed an advertisement for a sale of land at Pwllheli, and decided to inspect the land. In those days the Railway Station was on the outskirts of the town, and when he alighted from the train, Solomon was not impressed with what he saw and enquired the time of the next train back. As this was not for two hours, he went into the town and walked across the Cob to Victoria Parade.

It must have been a beautiful day and he fell in love with the bay, a love which has permeated at least another four generations of his family. He purchased the land in partnership with his son Emile and together, they immediately began to develop it. Further land was purchased in the following few years including parts of the Madryn Estate at Llanbedrog.

Some of the Cardiff Building Staff were sent to supervise the development, the first arriving before Christmas 1893. The management was entrusted to Thomas Cunningham who had been in charge of Andrews' first large construction, that of Market Buildings in Cardiff. In 1902 he was appointed Borough Engineer and Sanitary Inspector at Pwllheli. Tom Hughes, a Pembrokeshire man who had worked for Andrews at Cardiff and at Manchester, was appointed Foreman, a post he held for nearly 50 years.

The trams ran until a long section of track was seriously damaged in a storm in 1927

The Management of the 'West End'

The management of the development of the West End was entrusted to Thomas Cunningham, who had worked for S. Andrews in Cardiff for some years, and who had been in charge of their first large construction, that of Market Buildings, St. Mary Street. In 1902 he left the employment of S. Andrews when he was appointed Borough Surveyor and Sanitary Inspector of Pwllheli. F.E. Young, who had been appointed Entertainments Manager in 1899, was then promoted to Estate Manager, a position he held for some 35 years. Other Cardiff staff known to have been sent to Pwllheli, were William James Badger, a Plumber, and James Ravenhill, a Painter.

Tramway

In order to provide the stone required to build the Promenade, roads and houses at West End, Pwllheli, Solomon Andrews leased a quarry at Carreg-y-Defaid from Mrs Jones Parry. A tramway was laid to carry the stone, which also had passenger - carrying Tramcars.

When Glyn-y-Weddw was purchased in 1896, the Tramway was extended to terminate opposite the gates to the Mansion. The trams ran until a long section of track was seriously damaged in a storm in 1927. The section from Pwllheli to West End ran until April 1928 when the roads were adopted by the Council and the track taken up.

Entertainment

The West End was built as a holiday resort and during the summer months various entertainments took place. Fred E. Young was engaged in 1899 as Entertainments Manager. When Thomas Cunningham left to become Borough Engineer of Pwllheli, Young was appointed Estate Manager, a post he held until his retirement in 1937.

Young organised events in the Recreation Ground, Pwllheli, including an annual tennis tournament which became an important fixture, only ending in 1940 after the commencement of war. In the early years concert parties and other entertainments were held in the Assembly Rooms at the rear of the West End Hotel, Pwllheli. From 1921 these were transferred to the Pavilion on the other side of the road.

S. Andrews & Son

Solomon Andrews was born in Trowbridge in 1835 and by 1851 was living in Cardiff

Solomon Andrews was born in Trowbridge in 1835 and by 1851 was living in Cardiff learning the trade of baker and confectioner. He married in 1855 and in the following year took a lease of a shop in James Street, where he set up in business as a baker and confectioner. His business venture was a success and in 1863 he was able to expand into transport when he obtained a license to operate a cab. This really marked the start of the rapid expansion of his business interests, for by 1865, he was operating nine vehicles. By 1873 the fleet had increased to 35, being about one third of the vehicles licenced by the Council. By December 1867 Solomon had entered the omnibus trade and in 1875 he was operating seven horse buses - about half of the buses licensed. In 1872 he acquired a large and well equipped coach building works where he was able to construct and repair vehicles of all types including buses.

The first Horse Trams commenced running in Cardiff in 1872. In 1879 the tramways system was lengthened and this triggered off a 'War' between the buses and the trams. Andrews extended the 'War' by running at Portsmouth and Plymouth where the trams were operated by the same company. The Tramway Company's profits were seriously affected and the company could not pay a dividend and was forced to negotiate with Andrews, who offered to buy the Company! In the end, terms were agreed whereby Andrews sold his bus interests in Cardiff, Portsmouth and Plymouth, but retained the routes to Penarth and Llandaff.

While the conflict was at its height, Andrews contracted to operate a new tramway between Splott and Grangetown. In connection with this operation, Solomon appears to have started to construct his own buildings and built the depot necessary for the route near its terminus at the southern end of Clive Street. Much building work followed and the early 1880s saw the commencement of a very considerable building programme including a number of large commercial buildings, the first of which was Market Buildings in 1884. This was not the Market itself, but the large building forming the St. Mary Street entrance to the Market. This building was destroyed in a fire and was rebuilt in 1885-6 having concrete floors and roof, in an effort at fire prevention, and was often known as Solomon's Temple.