Up at dawn: the experimental erection of a squatter's cabin

THE BACKGROUND: Close examination of large-scale Ordnance Survey maps for many parts of Wales, and especially those areas bordering the poorer uplands or moorlands, will reveal small homesteads or cottages, often bearing names such as Plas y pare, Drws gobaith, or Parc y drain. Today, these dwellings are usually attractive little cottages, whitewashed or colourwashed, with generally about two or three acres of land attached. Until quite recently, most would have been home to farm labourers, quarrymen or estate workers who kept a pig or two, some chickens, and occasionally a cow on their few acres; nowadays, these are much sought after as holiday cottages and retirement homes, representing a whole new phase in their history.