Hi Rick
I live in Llanidloes.
When was the factory in Cwmbelan built?
No idea. Try asking the Llanidloes Museum:
http://www.llanidloes.com/llanidloes_museum/
When did it change from a flannel mill to a carpenter shop?
Sorry I can't answer this one either.
I presume that the flannel business in Cwmbelan was ruined by
competition
from the larger mills in England, which could make clothe more cheaply.
There was a major flannel mill in Llanidloes, Newtown etc. So you
don't need to go as far away as England for competition; in the first
instance.
These people might have more information (Newtown based):
http://www.powys.gov.uk/index.php?id=2116l but they're closed until
May. I think Llanidloes Museum has some stuff on the woollen
industries too, just I haven't been in there for a while.
Are woolen fabrics still a major industry in Powys, or have they
been
replaced by cotton and synthetics?
Sure we lag, but not quite that much! Yep we use textiles /
synthetics, but usually imported. The major industry for this area in
recent times was Laura Ashley .... first factory in Carno, also
factories in Llanidloes, Newtown, Machynlleth. Sadly, the company has
now moved out of the area (its cheaper to manufacture abroad).
I am unware of major woollen industries in this area, but how long is
a piece of string? Of course there's still farmers, there's the
tannery. There may be individual small scale woollen craftwork, but
nothing on the scale of times past.
Note: we export Welsh wool, and import our wool from New Zealand!
That's crazy, and to me a waste of oil (peak oil, will eventually
reverse this practice).
Are the hills still covered with sheep, or is that era over?
Sheep galore, don't think it'll ever change. The upland regions of
Wales aren't much good for a lot else. It rains a lot around here!
Alison