This page shows some Machynlleth entries from the 1858 edition of Slater's Directory for North Wales.
Although the directory lists butchers, bakers, banks and other businesses to be found in most towns today, it also has trades which don't appear very often in modern lists...

The wheelwrights and the saddlers were highly skilled craftsmen who were essential in the days when horses provided the main means of transport. Wheelwrights made the wooden wheels for horse-drawn carriages and carts, and although saddlers are still in business they had a lot more to do in Victorian times !
The wool carders had an important role in the flannel industry, the tanners in the leather industry, and slate from the quarries in the district was taken to the port at Derwenlas to be shipped to other areas.
Tallow chandlers made cheap candles and soap from animal fat in the days before gas and electric lighting came into use.

Back to Machynlleth earning a living menu