Tywyn has changed completely. In the 1870s it consisted of only Gwalia Road, Frankwell Street, Maengwyn Street, Red Lion Street, Church Street, Duck Street and College Green - the latter place housed a clerical college.

Gwalia Road
The Gwalia community was where the shipbuilders lived and many a seagoing vessel was built there. Sadly a great deal of the Gwalia was demolished - all in the name of progress. Even its public house, the Cadfan Arms closed.

Maengwyn Street
In this street there were a number of shops such as grocers, fruiters, drapers and milliners. One small grocer opened after the Second World War in a small shop, progressing today to be run by the same hard-working family, the Baldwins. It's now the local Spar.

Also situated here was the public house, The Merion Arms, now closed.

Corbet Square
The Raven, later the Corbet Arms and the White Hall were in the square, as was The Anchor public house and the town water pump and horse trough. Today this is the site of the cinema. Alongside where the Corbet Arms garden is today stood the town hall. Bran House was then built (now Geufron House), which was a general store.

Red Lion Street
This was a very busy commercial street. Again, there was a public house - the Red Lion - as well as the Somerset Hotel. There were also the printers, editor of the Tywyn News, and other local papers, and all the town's printing for posters etc were located here. There were also five shops and 10 cottages, which have all totally disappeared.

Brook Street
An interesting past here as this was the site of the first chapel, the Corbet Estate workshops, the first Catholic church and Wesleyan chapel. Running down the centre of this road was the stream from Ty Mawr. Later progress caused it to be re-routed and piped through to continue to the Gwalia.

Some of old Tywyn's cottages are still to be found at this location and here also was the site of the travelling bioscope that was projected on a wall - the forerunner of films in 1900.

Frankwell Street
This was where many of Tywyn's townspeople had lived for generations. Many of these houses were also bulldozed in the name of progress. When you see the transformation carried out in other Welsh towns one wonders how did they get away with this?

Amongst the houses demolished was an excellent Georgian three-storey house, Tan-y-Bryn.

This street was also home to the malthouse to brew beer, coachhouses, blacksmith's shop, The Goat public house - all demolished. Remaining is The Boot, now a private house, as well as two shops and the Pen-yr-Allt Vaults pub.

Leading off to Vicarage Lane were five more cottages and a tinsmith - how spectacular it would all have looked today.