The Residential Home

Later the Hall became a Council run residential home for older people for several decades. We are again indebted to local people for sharing their memories with us.

Watched the Coronation there when old people’s home. Introduced to a survivor from the Titanic can’t remember her name. Mrs James was the matron?” Rob Edwards

When it was a residential home, I used to go up there to see my Auntie Gwen (she was my great aunt) and born in 1893. This is an older picture I have of her, she’s on the left (the other people in the picture are her sister-in-law, Maglona – my grandmother – and also her sister Phyllis). Gwen in later years lived at Braidsmead, Llanidloes. Dol-llys was imposing, I remember walking up the driveway and into the hallway. The residents were sat around the perimeter of the main room with a bay window, and you’d have to pull up a chair to interact with someone. I always wondered how they got some of the residents up the stairs, being pretty much the first thing you’d notice from the hallway. Gwen died in 1983.” Alison Bryan

My sisters Anwen Orrells, Blodwen Lewis and I used to be invited to sing there quite regularly when I was a teenager. On one occasion, I vividly remember singing a beautiful Christmas carol when one of the elderly residents, mid performance, stood up, walked out and stated clearly ‘I’ve had enough of this bloody racket’!” Elen Rhys

The lodge entrance up to the hall, don’t know when it was taken but a guess could be made looking at the type of clothing the men are wearing. The gate was still in use when I was small.” Avril O’Gorman

Dol-llys, a retirement home for older people, was situated a few miles outside Llanidloes. It was a Georgian house with extensive views and a charming matron to care for the residents. Some people found fault with its location, saying it should be situated in the town so that the residents could have easier access to shops and cafes, but I thought it was splendid….

Another incident associated with Dol-llys concerned a retired postman. He was an elderly man who had delivered mail to the farms and hamlets around Llanidloes for many years. He had no transport, not even a bicycle, and his work was done on foot. … Eventually he retired and soon afterwards developed temporal arteritis, a painful condition of the arteries which can cause sudden blindness. Treatment with prednisolone proved effective but he was becoming frail and asked to be admitted to Dol-llys. Matron telephoned me about his application to be admitted. She said a room was available but before admitting him she needed the consent of a member of the management committee and asked me to speak to Sir George Hamer, a local magnate and a member of the committee, to authorise the admission. I had not Sir George, but we knew one another by reputation, so I phoned him and explained the situation, and asked for his permission for matron to admit the postman. Sir George was courteous and helpful and said “Of course, Dr Rees, tell matron that she can take him in” which I did. …

“I learnt from Matron later that the postman had arrived with few possessions, but he did bring two large suitcases that he would not let her open. Eventually she managed to look inside and found them packed with bank notes. I believe the total value was about £10,000,…”