Penrhyn Quarry Railway
The railway's locomotive sheds at Port Penrhyn
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| Locale | Wales |
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| Dates of operation | 1798–1962 |
| Successor | Penrhyn Rail Ltd |
| Track gauge | 1 ft 10 3⁄4 in (578 mm) |
| Previous gauge | 2 ft 1⁄2 in (622 mm) (until 1879) |
| Headquarters | The Quarry Office, Port Penrhyn, Bangor |
The Penrhyn Quarry Railway first opened in 1798 as the Llandegai Tramway; it became the Penrhyn Railway in 1801 although on a different route. Constructed to transport slate from Lord Penrhyn's slate quarries at Bethesda to Port Penrhyn at Bangor, Wales, the railway was around six miles (9.7 km) long and used a gauge of 1 ft 10 3⁄4 in (578 mm). The line was one of the earliest narrow gauge railways in the world. It closed on 24 July 1962, being lifted in 1965 when the track was sold to the Ffestiniog Railway.
In 2012, a section of the railway southwards from Coed y Parc was restored by Penrhyn Quarries Ltd. and further sections are planned. Events were held each year on the restored section on the line, by Felin Fawr Cyf and PQR Engineering Ltd.
At the end of 2016 a new company was formed to operate the railway and Penrhyn Rail Ltd has operated regular services since February 2017.
The earliest predecessor to the Penrhyn Quarry Railway was the one mile (1.6 km) long 2 ft 1⁄2 in (622 mm) gauge Llandegai Tramway which was built in 1798. The tramway was connected to a local flint mill that ground clay and chert into flints. These were transported to Porth Penrhyn on the coast by the tramway, which was one of the earliest overground railways in Britain. It included two balanced gravity inclines one from the floor of the Cegin valley near Llandegai to the hills above Bangor, the other dropping from there to the mill. Both inclines used vertically mounted winding drums.
The success of the Llandegai Tramway encouraged the owners of the Penrhyn quarry to consider a similar tramway from their slate quarry to Porth Penrhyn. The plan subsumed the existing tramway into a longer railroad that connected Bethesda to the sea.
Construction started on 2 September 1800, relaying and extending the Llandegai Tramway, with the first slate train traveling on 25 June 1801. The new railway was also 2 ft 1⁄2 in (622 mm) gauge. The connection to the Llandegai flint mill continued to be used until 1831. The railroad was operated by horse power along with gravity and three balanced inclines – "Port" (sometimes called "Marchogion") near Llandegai, which was inherited from the Llandegai Tramway, "Dinas" north east of Tregarth and "Cilgeraint" a short distance north of Coed-y-Parc workshops in Bethesda. The longest extended for 220 yards. With hindsight this seems hard work, but the overall gain was remarkable, shown not least by the cost of transport falling from 4 shillings per ton to 1 shilling
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