Clogau mountain is traversed by 6 lodes, much the richest being the St David's lode, the origin of over half of the area's gold.
Clogau was originally a copper mine. Its workings include Old Clogau Mine (SH678198), a copper mine which finished in 1860. St David's or No. 1 Mine (SH676202), which was the location of the 1861-62 gold strike known as Parry's Bunch and which was the catalyst for the area's subsequent gold rush. Also Clogau or No. 2 Mine (SH673201), eventually the largest of the Clogau mines. Both of the latter mines worked the St David's lode and were later connected via Level Fawr or Ty'n y Cornel Adit, the Main Crosscut, with its mouth at SH672201.
A further mine, West Clogau Mine (SH668195) was opened on St David's lode in 1862 but was unproductive and was abandoned in 1865. This is the location of the Llechfraith Adit, a deep adit driven to below the Clogau Mine between 1899 - 1906. No useful ore was found in driving the adit.
Clogau Mine was much the richest and most extensive of all the Dolgellau gold-belt mines and was, on occasions, worked jointly with the nearby Vigra Mine. Although the main phase of mining ended in 1911, the mine has operated intermittently and on a much smaller scale to the present day. In recent times both the Clogau and Gwynfynydd mines have been exploited by companies taking advantage of the high premium payable for Welsh gold in the jewellery market. It last closed in 1998.
The officially recorded output between 1862 and 1911 was 165,031 tons of gold ore from which 78,507 ounces of gold was extracted.
refs:
Goldmining in Western Merioneth, T. A. Morrison (undated)
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UK OS Grid Reference: SH672201
Map Reference: 52°45'42"N , 3°58'5"W
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