Tafarn Sinc, Rosebush
This hostelry was opened in 1876 as the 11-bedroom Prescelly Hotel, with a view to developing a tourist trade on the newly built Maenclochog Railway. In 2017 it was bought by a community-based society to ensure it would continue to welcome visitors.
Rosebush developed as a slate quarrying settlement in the 19th century, particularly after the new railway connected several quarries to the main railway network at Clunderwen, as you can read on our page about the remains of Rosebush slate quarry. The quarry railway provided a passenger service.
The Prescelly Hotel was built using a timber frame, clad in galvanised corrugated iron – hence its popular name, used today, Tafarn Sinc (Zinc in English). At the same time, ornamental lakes (now within the Rosebush Holiday Park) were created as a tourist attraction. The old photo shows the hotel alongside the station building.
In 1991-92 the inn was purchased by local businessman Brian Llewelyn, who refurbished and extended it in the form you see today. His daughter Hafwen and son-in-law Brian ‘Bici’ Davies were the managers. When they looked to retire, the property’s sale was hampered by its form of construction and the inability to raise a mortgage.
As a result, Cymdeithas Tafarn Sinc was formed in 2017 to purchase the pub, raising the capital through the sale of shares. It soon had hundreds of shareholders, locally and across Wales, and some overseas with an interest in the area. The pub is run by a locally based board of directors and focuses on the use of local produce.
Inside you’ll find displays of local interest, including the spade used to cut the first sod for the railway in 1873.
With thanks to Peter Claughton
Postcode: SA66 7QU View Location Map