It’s a mystery to me. Scaffolding Conwyn Arms, Bryn Mawr, PA
I do know a Bronwyn… so I had to hit the google and see just what is the definition of Conwyn. Here’s what I found. _______________
Yep. Nothing. I couldn’t even get to the root of the word. So I looked up Bronwyn and this is what it said: English language feminine given name, which is an anglicized variant of the Welsh name Bronwen, meaning bron (“breast”) and gwen (“white, fair, blessed)”.
Left with really no answer as to what exactly Conwyn Arms meant, I turned Superior Scaffold’s resident nerd, estimator, history buff, and garbage collector, Pat, to see what he knew. And I’ll be danged if he didn’t have something. He said that that entire area was settled by the Welsh in the 1700’s and the “wyn” would certainly be of that ancestry.
He also pointed out that in Radnor, PA there are several monuments to their homeland erected off the Blue Route and E. Lancaster Ave; particularly a stone dragon and a stone hut. Wow. Now, we have something to go on. He was darn close. It wasn’t a dragon but a Griffin inspired by paintings in the British Isles, and the hut was a Cairn, inspired by shepherd’s cairns high in the rocky Welsh hills.
But what about Conwyn? We still have don’t have a definitive on that. Pat did find a Conwy Wall around a Welsh castle but again there isn’t an N at the end. So the mystery continues. We’ve got a call into the owners to see if they just made up the name or if there is some historical significance. We will keep you posted.
What we do know is that the Conwyn Arms is an apartment complex on the main line that was in need of masonry repair and restoration. Mara Restoration called Superior Scaffold to provide complete access to the façade so crews could repoint, repair, restore and clean the existing exterior.
We provided a five-story system scaffold with a ladder and decked it in at every level and then added a ramp or gangway from the parking lot to the work area. We also provided a material hoist in the form of a Patriot 1000 to get material up to the crew.
The job went off without a hitch and the building looks fantastic. I hope we can get to the bottom of the name mystery. Until then, keep your eyes peeled for these Welsh landmarks off the Blue Route and E. Lancaster Area. And look for the blue town seal elements on the bridge overpass as you’re heading East or West on Lancaster Ave.
And if you need scaffolding, scaffold or access call Pat at (215) 743-2200 and he’ll give you a history lesson or visit www.superiorscaffold.com for more information.
And for our musical selection we turn to that British band, Dire Straits, for the perfect song. Let it play. It’s a slow and awesome build. Enjoy!
Click here to see the google earth image of the Griffin and Cairn.
For more information on the Conwyn Arms and art installations:
Click here to learn more about the Radnor enhancement project.
Click here to learn about William Reiman, the artist behind the installations.
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