Ffestiniog Memorial Hospital, Gwynedd

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What is recorded here

Ffestiniog Memorial Hospital was built in 1923–25 with local gifts and quarrymen's sixpences to remember people lost in the First World War. Opened in 1927, it replaced limited quarry care; after closing in 2013, the building returned as a health centre in 2017.

Why it was built

Ffestiniog needed a general hospital beyond the older service for sick and injured quarrymen. The new building also became the town and district's memorial to local people who served and died in the First World War.

People and work

Sir Clough Williams-Ellis prepared the design without charging for his work, and Walker and Slater built it from 1923 to 1925. Local fundraising included small contributions from quarrymen, while Lord Newborough gave the land.

How it changed

Colonel David Davies formally opened the hospital on 11 June 1927 before veterans, serving soldiers, clergy and a large crowd. Voluntary gifts supported it for years. It later became a public community hospital, closed in 2013, and reopened as Canolfan Goffa Ffestiniog in 2017.

What survives

The main memorial hospital building and its ceremonial front survive within the renewed health centre. Film of the opening records the building, procession and temporary arch carrying the message that remembrance should be kept alive.

Why it mattered

This memorial did practical work: money gathered in memory of the dead created treatment for the living. Reuse for dementia care, end-of-life care, hearing services and support for people with learning disabilities continues that link between remembrance and community health.