Porthmadog, known locally as Port, is a small coastal town located in Gwynedd, in north-west Wales in the traditional county of Caernarfonshire. It has a population of 4,187 (2001 census). The town used to be called Portmadoc or Portmadock until 1974, when it was renamed to a Welsh equivalent spelling. It is named after William Maddocks, who built a long sea wall, called the Cob, to reclaim a large amount of land from the sea for agricultural use.
Located on the Irish Sea coast, Porthmadog has a small harbour where ships used to load with slate carried from the Ffestiniog Railway, of which Porthmadog is the southern terminus. Porthmadog is also the terminus of the Welsh Highland Railway.
Nearby Porthmadog is Portmeirion, where the 1960s television series The Prisoner was filmed.
Porthmadog hosted the National Eisteddfod in 1987.
External link
- http://www.porthmadog.com
Last updated: 08-04-2005 17:53:47
