The most elaborate of all Welsh icehouses, is located in the base of Thomas Hopper's limestone icehouse tower of the 1820's. A 2.5m passage at ground level leads to the flat topped, brick lined chamber, 5m deep and 2.5m to its top, and 3m in diameter, narrowing to 1m at the base. Two thirds of the chamber is below ground level, the upper third being at the same height as the passage leading to the castle grounds.

Above the chamber, at the first level within the tower, is a hole in the floor for a bung. Above the hole is a wooden gantry, clearly used for lowering or and extracting the ice; the pulley wheel for the lowering or retrieving still survives. There is an iron grating at the base.

Although the icehouse as it stands is clearly an integral part of Hopper's design it is possible that the below ground portion may have belonged to Samuel Wyatt's house of the 1780s. However, no plans of the Wyatt period show an icehouse in this location. Ice was gathered from flooded meadows adjoining the river Ogwen and from estate owned lakes in the mountains. It is possible the room above the chamber was also used for food storage.

Source: Sylvia P. Beaman and Susan Roaf, The Ice Houses of Britain, p.535.
C.H. Nicholas, RCAHMW, 7th December 2006.

Part of: Penrhyn Castle (NPRN 16687)