Melin Mynach, Gorseinon

Image: © Alan Richards Taken: 26 Jan 2012

Sefydlwyd melin yd ar y safle hon yn 1150 gan fynachod Sisteriaid Abaty Nedd. Er mwyn gweithio'r rhod bu raid adeiladu ffos filltir o hyd o Afon Lliw. O 1722 hyd at 1819 addaswyd Melin Mynach i fod yn felin bapur. Ar ol bod yn segur am rai blynyddoedd fe'i prynwyd yn 1852 gan William Lewis ac yn yn 1874 fe adeiladodd yn 1874 ffatri wlan newydd ar y safle. Daeth y fenter hon i ben yn 1913 ac yn araf deg fe ddirywiodd yr adeiladau. Wedyn amgylchynwyd y felin gan waith alcam a phwll glo ac fe ddaeth y safle yn dip sbwriel. Daeth adefeilion i'r golwg unwaith eto pan gloddiwyd y safle yn ystod y 1990au gan archaeolegwyr. Yn anffodus, mae'r safle bellach wedi cael ei hesgeuluso ac yn llawn o ganiau cwrw. A grist mill was established on this site by the Cisterscian monks of Neath Abbey in 1150. To power the water wheel a leat measuring a mile in length had to be constructed from the Lliw River. In 1722 the mill known as Melin Mynach (trans. Monks Mill) was adapted as a paper mill which continued up until 1819. After remaining idle for several years the mill was bought in 1852 by William Lewis who later built in 1874 a substantial woollen mill on the site. This ceased production in 1913. The buildings soon began to fall into disrepair particularly when the site was surrounded by a tinplate works and a coal mine. The mill then disappeared after it became an industrial waste dump. During the 1990's an archaeological dig uncovered what remains today. Sadly, the site has been allowed to become neglected and is littered with beer cans.

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