Former Imperial Hotel

Former Imperial Hotel, Station Road, Colwyn Bay

colwyn_bay_imperial_hotelFor many years, in the late 19th century, this building and the Station Hotel (at the top of Station Road) were the only buildings on this side of Station Road; between them were fields where cattle grazed. The Imperial was built as an hotel during Colwyn Bay's heyday as a summer holiday destination. It has always been known locally as “The Imp”. In its early years it was a prestigious establishment, mainly due to its proximity to the railway station. 

The hotel is on the right in the picture, which shows Station Road in the 1890s. The hotel had recently been expanded to incorporate the shops which were originally along the ground floor. This was at the instigation of its new proprietor, Mrs Lowe, who also ran the Westminster Hotel in Rhyl. She organised a grand reopening ceremony in April 1888 where the vicar, the Rev Venables Williams, presided.

This might have oiled the wheels in 1895, when Mrs Lowe began to let one of the hotel rooms on Sunday mornings for Roman Catholic services. Local magistrates, including the Rev Venables Williams, had expressed their support for this.

In 1939 the Imperial, along with many other hotels in Colwyn Bay, was taken over by the Ministry of Food. The Merchant Navy Control Department had offices in the Imperial, from where the officials monitored the ships going into and out of Liverpool.

It was also here that Ministry officials attempted to assess the public’s dietary requirements, with a view to producing a ration book which would be acceptable to the British people.

After the war the hotel never returned to its former glory. The bedrooms remained empty and the bulk of the business was concentrated on the ground-floor bar.

With thanks to Graham Roberts, of Colwyn Bay Civic Society. His book ‘Colwyn Bay at War, from Old Photographs’, is published by Amberley Publishing.

Postcode: LL29 8BP    View Location Map

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