Inside Ruthin Gaol
Ruthin and District Civic Association
Contact: Derek Jones, Bryn Ffynnon, 4 Bryn Glas, Graigfechan, Ruthin LL15 2EX
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A weekend on the town |
Ruthin's Open Doors programme 2004: link
Ruthin once again made a date with history on 18 and 19 September when, for the second year running, many of the town's historic buildings were open for closer than normal inspection. Featuring key buildings in Ruthin's past – Nant Clwyd House, Tabernacle, Seven Eyes and Crown House, amongst others – here was an annual opportunity to see them, and, even better, to learn about them: when they were built, by whom, for what purpose, and how they have changed over the centuries.
Guiding visitors around the buildings that opened their doors were students from Brynhyfryd School and members of the Civic Association.
There were some restrictions to completely open access because buildings such as Nant Clwyd House and Sir John Trevor House can only hold limited numbers of people: booking was necessary via Ruthin Library. We placed reminders about this in local newspapers.
Derek Jones, chair of the Civic Association, says: "This annual weekend celebration of Ruthin's heritage of outstanding buildings is absolutely central to the whole purpose of the Association. RADCA exists to take care of these buildings and interest local people in conservation."
This year Ruthin's weekend was promoted as part of a larger celebration that included Denbigh and the rural Vale of Clwyd. All three events, staged on successive weekends, benefited from joint marketing and publicity. Reinforcing this partnership, the Association and Denbigh Civic Society held their first ever joint meeting on 16 September, a talk on "Clwydian Places" by Ken Brassil of the National Galleries of Wales.
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