The History of Welsh Hill Lists

The History of Welsh Hill Lists – Part 6

The Early Years
1911-1940

1933 – Ted Moss

Corbett’s updated list ushered in the 1930’s.  These years saw the least amount of Welsh hill list publication in any decade from 1911 to the present day.  The only list concerning Wales to be published was another update to Corbett’s Twenty-Fives.  This was published in 1933 in the Rucksack Club Journal, and entitled Some New Twenty-Fives.

It comprised two pages, of which the first page is introductory as well as listing the latest updates; these consist of ten additional Twenty-Fives, of which six are in Wales.  Of particular note is the first ever listing of the southern top of Arennig Fawr which was listed as Arenig Fawr Far South top.  The remaining page gives brief details on the six new Welsh tops.  There were now 158 Twenty-Fives with sixty four of them in Wales.

The first page of the two page update to the Twenty-Fives

This now brought to a conclusion the updates to John Rooke Corbett’s original 1911 list, the author of this latest update we’ll meet later, in 1939/40, but first our story takes us into England, where between the years 1933-1939 three lists were produced, with the latter two paving the way for the first comprehensive published listing to the 2000 foot mountains of Wales.  The first of the three was compiled by the Rev. W. T. Elmslie, entitled ‘The Two Thousand Footers of England’, comprising 347 mountains and published in 1933 by the Journal of the Fell and Rock Climbing Club of the English Lake District.  Following this in 1937 was the Wayfarer’s Journal’s publication of F. H. F. Simpson’s ‘Concerning Contours’, comprising the 225 English Lake District 2000 foot tops.  Two years later the Rucksack Club Journal published ‘The Two Thousands of England (excluding the Lake District)’, this listed 152 tops and complemented Simpson’s 1937 list.  When combined the two lists produced a mammoth total of 377 English 2000 foot tops.  The author of the 1939 list and the Twenty-Fives update of 1933 was Edward (Ted) Moss.

Next installment due on the 30^th January 2015

For the Preface please click {here}

For Part 1 please click {here}

For Part 2 please click {here}

For Part 3 please click {here}

For Part 4 please click {here}

For Part 5 please click {here}