If you were around Machynlleth during the first weekend of June, you may have seen a woman dressed in Victorian garb presenting a statue with a birthday cake.

This wasn’t just any statue, however - this gesture was part of weekend-long celebrations for a woman who helped shape the town thanks to her generosity and sense of duty to public service.

Mother Londonderry is the affectionate name given by locals to Lady Mary Cornelia Vane-Tempest, a Machynlleth-born woman who married into the Vane-Tempest aristocracy at 20 years old in 1846.

She became a central figurehead of 19th-century life, helping to create the Vane Infant School, supporting the Minffordd Almshouses, St Peter’s Church, the Cottage Hospital and other charitable causes

Machynlleth Library organised the celebrations on 6 and 7 June to acknowledge the woman who became the first Welsh woman to be commemorated as a statue, the bust found on the Plas grounds.

The current Marquess and Marchioness of Londonderry sent their support, describing Mary as a “much-loved ancestor” whose life was deeply connected to the town.

They said that whilst she shunned public attention, known for her warmth, kindness and quiet generosity, it is fitting she is now celebrated.

The town did so with traditional lawn games and flower-themed activities in the Victorian Garden by Edible Mach and Gerddi Bro Ddyfi Gardens.

Local children also joined in the festivities by creating birthday cards for her ladyship.

Speakers included Shelagh Hourahane, who is leading the project at Yr Hen Stablau, Dr Adam Coward, Dr James January-McCann of the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Wales (RCAHMW), and local archivist Alison McCann.

Special thanks were also extended to Dyfi Delights for generously donating a selection of delicious cakes, including what many attendees described as the largest and finest Battenberg cake they had ever seen.