British Listed Buildings

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Summer House at Wern Manor

A Grade II Listed Building in Dolbenmaen, Gwynedd

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Coordinates

Latitude: 52.9361 / 52°56'9"N

Longitude: -4.1681 / 4°10'5"W

OS Eastings: 254387

OS Northings: 339834

OS Grid: SH543398

Mapcode National: GBR 5N.M1YZ

Mapcode Global: WH55K.YGCG

Plus Code: 9C4QWRPJ+CQ

Entry Name: Summer House at Wern Manor

Listing Date: 15 June 1993

Last Amended: 30 March 1999

Grade: II

Source: Cadw

Source ID: 4628

Building Class: Gardens, Parks and Urban Spaces

ID on this website: 300004628

Location: Wern Manor is a small country house approximately 2km W of Tremadoc. The gardens lies to the S and E of the house with the summer-house at the E end of the formal layout.

County: Gwynedd

Town: Dolbenmaen

Community: Dolbenmaen

Community: Dolbenmaen

Locality: Wern

Traditional County: Caernarfonshire

Tagged with: Summer house

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Tremadoc

History

In 1892 John Douglas, architect of Chester, completely remodelled an existing country house for the engineer R M Greaves who ran the family slate quarries at Blaenau Ffestiniog and was uncle to Sir Clough Williams Ellis, the architect and creator of Portmeirion. The grounds are an early example of the work of Thomas Mawson, the internationally known and most prolific garden designer of his day; here at Wern in 1891-2 he laid out an entirely new terraced garden, with the summer house as its terminal feature in 1903.

Exterior

Summer-house in Italianate style, built of stone and having a fine-grained brown sandstone ashlar front; hipped slate roof. Three semicircular arches to front with voussoirs together with stylised Doric columns with egg and dart echinus raised on the scroll-pierced balustrade; broad end pilaster strips and dentil cornice. The building stands on a raised platform and is approached by 3 semicircular-shaped steps.

Interior

Plastered, and ochre-washed, with a corniced ceiling. At each end is a Cararra marble semicircular table raised on tall Tuscan columns of the same material.
The floor is laid with thin slate set in a chequerboard pattern.

Reasons for Listing

Listed for group value with Wern Manor and for its special interest as a fine garden building surviving from an important scheme by Thomas Mawson.

External Links

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.

Recommended Books

Other nearby listed buildings

  • II Ornamental Garden Pool at Wern Manor
    Wern Manor lies S of Penmorfa village, and is accessed from the main Portmadoc to Cricieth road. The pool is at the E end of the formal garden at the S of the house.
  • II Front Terrace, Balustrade and Steps at Wern Manor
    The terrace is in front of the main SW elevation of Wern Manor.
  • II* Wern Manor
    The manor is set in its own grounds, some 2km W of Tremadoc and S of Penmorfa village, and can be reached by the private driveway from the main road.
  • II Courtyard Ranges to the W of Wern Manor, including Stables, Coachhouse and Tower
    Wern is a small country house set in its own grounds approximately 2km W of Tremadoc and 0.5km S of Penmorfa; reached from A 497 along a private drive. The stables and coach-house are immediately to
  • II Gates to Wern Manor
    The gates are adjacent to the lodge, on the S approach drive to Wern.
  • II Wern Lodge
    The lodge stands back from the road, N of the railway bridge on the S approach drive to Wern, and faces the main, south, drive at its gated entrance.
  • II Bryn-y-wern
    The house stands NW of Wern Manor, and approximately 200m S of the Church of St Beuno in the village of Penmorfa.
  • II Chest Tomb in churchyard of the Church of St Beuno
    The Church of St Bueno lies along a minor road running SW from Penmorfa. The chest tomb is close to the SE angle of the chancel.

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