St Gwawr's Church, Llangower, was first mentioned in documents of 1291. It is situated some 100m from Llyn Tegid;Bala Lake (NPRN 407940), with the Bala Lake railway also bordering it to the west. The churchyard is an irregular square shape, with rounded corners. There are entrances in the east and south boundaries, and traces of an earlier boundary in the southern section of the churchyard. The present churchyard overlies the greater part of an irregular banked enclosure (NPRN 401210), which extends further to the south. It is about 124m north-north-east to south-south-west by 84m overall. The present east facing churchyard entrance appears to overlie an out-turned entrance into the enclosure. There is a low mound on the south side of the churchyard, thought to possibly be a preaching mound. It measures 6m north-east to south-west by 4m, and is 0.6m high. The former Llangower Rectory is situated immediately south-east of the church, seperated from it by the B4403 road. a holy well, Ffynnon Gower (NPRN 32385), was sited some 650m south-west of the church.

The church is a Grade II listed building, constructed of rubble stone. It consists of a continuous nave and chancel with south porch and west bellcote. The lower courses of masonry are thought to be medieval. The circular font is thought to be medieval, with its octagonal stem thought to be late medieval. In 1729 the church was described as small, with the chancel taking up nearly half the church. Measurements were given as sixteen yards long and nearly six yards in width. It was described as having one door and five small windows, with a small ruinous gallery at its west end. Wallpaintings were also noted at this time. The date 1773 is recorded twice on the exterior of the building. The church was rebuilt between 1778 and 1782. It was again rebuilt in 1871. All windows are modern, as is the roof. The roof has been raised and blocked openings are visible in the east elevation and the west end of the north wall. The church is now redundant.

Sources include:
Beverley Smith, J, Beverley Smith, Ll, 2001, History of Merioneth II, p. 363
Gwynedd Archaeological Trust, 2000, Historic churches of Gwynedd: gazetteer, p. 391
Richard Suggett, Painted Temples: Wallpaintings and Rood-screens in Welsh Churches, 1200–1800, (RCAHMW 2021)

RCAHMW 2022