Book Talk: ‘Was it Parson’s Folly?’ by Paul Reynolds

Join Paul Reynolds for a talk on his recent book on the Glyncorrwg Mineral Railway, Was it Parson’s Folly?, at Aberdulais National Trust.

Event details:
Date and time: Friday 22^nd November 2024, 11am-12pm.
Location: Aberdulais National Trust site
Places can be booked for free via the National Trust website, subject to availability. Further information about the event can be found on the booking page.

Copies of the book will be available to buy and to be signed by the author at the event.

For those who are unable to attend the National Trust talk, copies of the book may also be purchased at SWWIAS meetings, or by post. Further information about purchasing a copy is at the end of this news post.

About the book:
The Glyncorrwg Mineral Railway was built between 1839 and 1841 to carry coal to the Neath Canal from newly developed mines in the hills of West Glamorgan.  But by 1852 the mines had all been closed and the railway abandoned and the track lifted.
Despite its short life the course of the railway can still be traced in a series of heavily engineered inclines, cuttings and embankments which stretch over a length of six miles.  Perhaps the most spectacular of all these features is a deep cutting through a rocky outcrop at the very summit of the line.  This feature soon acquired the name of ‘Parsons’ Folly’ deriving from the name of Robert Parsons, one of the promoters of the colliery and the railway.
But was Parsons’ scheme really a folly?  He and his partner, Charles Strange, sank a lot of money into the scheme and lost it all, but was that due to a defective business plan and their lack of experience, or were they the victims of external circumstances that were largely beyond their control?
This book describes the history of the railway and the colliery and suggests that their scheme was basically sound.  It puts forward solutions to questions that have long puzzled observers including the source of the funds and the reasons that led Parsons and Strange to build such a heavily engineered switchback of a railway in preference to a much easier route that would appear to have been the obvious solution.

Purchase information:
Copies of the book may be purchased in person at SWWIAS meetings, priced at £5.99 each.
To purchase a copy of the book by post, please contact Paul Reynolds by email at paulreynolds44@gmail.com or by phone on 01792 205888. Copies purchased by post are priced at £5.99 plus £2.10 postage and packaging.