Abercynon
Encyclopedia
Abercynon is a small village in the Cynon Valley in Mid Glamorgan, Wales. The unitary authority is now known as Rhondda Cynon Taff. It is composed of the village of Abercynon itself,Carnetown,Glancynon,Park View and Pontcynon. However, in recent years the sign to show motorists they are entering Abercynon has been moved south of Pontcynon thus making the area known as Abercynon smaller. Ynysboeth and Matthewstown are part of the political ward as was Ynysybwl many years ago. However, these areas are not part of Abercynon, but are villages in their own right. They are much closer to Penrhiwceiber than Abercynon. Abercynon is approximately sixteen miles north of Cardiff and approximately forty miles from Swansea. The rivers Taff and Cynon converge at Watersmeet near Martin's Terrace. Abercynon used to have many churches, chapels and pubs. There are now only four public houses left - The Thorn Hotel, The Royal Oak, The Navigation Hotel and the Carne Park Hotel. The only churches still left are St. Donat's Church in Wales, its daughter church, St. Gwynno's, St. Thomas' Roman Catholic Church and the Methodist church in Martin's Lane.
drove a steam locomotive
hauling both iron and passengers travelled from the Penydarren
ironworks in Merthyr Tydfil
to the basin of the Glamorganshire Canal
at Abercynon. There are memorials to Trevithick's journey at Penydarren and outside the fire station at Abercynon.
Abercynon Colliery
was sunk by the Dowlais Ironworks
in 1889 to supply a steel
works in Cardiff. Employing nearly 3000 men and part of the Powell Duffryn
empire pre-World War II
, it was in 1973 joined with the Lady Windsor Colliery
at Ynysybwl
. Known as the Abercynon Lady Windsor Colliery, it closed in 1988.
The village developed as a transport interchange being at the junction of the Merthyr and Aberdare branches of the Glamorganshire Canal and the Merthyr and Aberdare branches of the Taff Vale Railway
. For a time it was known as "Navigation" and the Navigation Hotel, which was originally the headquarters of the Glamorganshire Canal, still bears this name.
Unusually for a village, until early 2008, it had two railway stations. One was on the line from Cardiff to Aberdare
, namely Abercynon North
The other, Abercynon South, was on the Cardiff to Merthyr Tydfil
line. Following major work, the North station was closed and its services moved to the South station, now named simply Abercynon
. Trains are operated by Arriva Trains Wales
as part of the Merthyr Line
service.
side are called the Valley Cougars
and play in the Welsh Conference Premier
.
The local rugby union
team is Abercynon RFC
and during the 1970s the team won the Glamorgan County Silver Ball Trophy
on two occasions.
manor house
, lies nearby.
The village of Abercynon is also home to the Thorn Hotel, which was once used by the legendary Tom Jones
to practice his performances.
Abercynon Workingmen's Hall
was once the largest in the South Wales coalfield, but was demolished in 1995.
Historic transportation links
The village was the terminus of the world's first steam railway journey when on 21 February 1804 the inventor Richard TrevithickRichard Trevithick
Richard Trevithick was a British inventor and mining engineer from Cornwall. His most significant success was the high pressure steam engine and he also built the first full-scale working railway steam locomotive...
drove a steam locomotive
Steam locomotive
A steam locomotive is a railway locomotive that produces its power through a steam engine. These locomotives are fueled by burning some combustible material, usually coal, wood or oil, to produce steam in a boiler, which drives the steam engine...
hauling both iron and passengers travelled from the Penydarren
Penydarren
Penydarren Ironworks was the fourth of the great ironworks established at Merthyr Tydfil in South Wales.Built in 1784 by the brothers Samuel Homfray, Jeremiah Homfray, and Thomas Homfray, all sons of Francis Homfray of Stourbridge. Their father, Francis, for a time managed a nail warehouse there...
ironworks in Merthyr Tydfil
Merthyr Tydfil
Merthyr Tydfil is a town in Wales, with a population of about 30,000. Although once the largest town in Wales, it is now ranked as the 15th largest urban area in Wales. It also gives its name to a county borough, which has a population of around 55,000. It is located in the historic county of...
to the basin of the Glamorganshire Canal
Glamorganshire Canal
The Glamorganshire Canal was a canal in south Wales, UK, running from Merthyr Tydfil to Cardiff. Construction started in 1790, and the 25 miles of canal was fully opened by 1794. Its primary purpose was to enable the Merthyr iron industries to transport their goods, and it later served the coal...
at Abercynon. There are memorials to Trevithick's journey at Penydarren and outside the fire station at Abercynon.
Abercynon Colliery
Abercynon Colliery
Abercynon Colliery was a coal mine located in Abercynon, South Wales. Opened in 1889, it closed in 1988.-Development:The colliery was developed at a cost of £270,000 from 1889, by the Dowlais Iron Company, to feed a new steel works in Cardiff...
was sunk by the Dowlais Ironworks
Dowlais Ironworks
The Dowlais Ironworks was a major ironworks and steelworks located at Dowlais near Merthyr Tydfil, in Wales. Founded in the 18th century, it operated until the end of the 20th, at one time in the 19th century being the largest steel producer in the UK...
in 1889 to supply a steel
Steel
Steel is an alloy that consists mostly of iron and has a carbon content between 0.2% and 2.1% by weight, depending on the grade. Carbon is the most common alloying material for iron, but various other alloying elements are used, such as manganese, chromium, vanadium, and tungsten...
works in Cardiff. Employing nearly 3000 men and part of the Powell Duffryn
Powell Duffryn
PD Ports is a Middlesbrough-headquartered British ports operator.Formerly known as Powell Duffryn, it dug its first coal mine in South Wales in 1840, and later expanded into various sorts of manufacturing...
empire pre-World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, it was in 1973 joined with the Lady Windsor Colliery
Lady Windsor Colliery
Lady Windsor Colliery was a coal mine located in the village of Ynysybwl in South Wales. Opened in 1884, it closed in 1988, 104 years later.-Development:...
at Ynysybwl
Ynysybwl
Ynysybwl is a village in Cwm Clydach in Wales. It is situated in the county borough of Rhondda Cynon Taf, roughly north-north-east of Cardiff, north of Pontypridd and south of Merthyr Tydfil, and forms part of the community of Ynysybwl and Coed-y-cwm....
. Known as the Abercynon Lady Windsor Colliery, it closed in 1988.
The village developed as a transport interchange being at the junction of the Merthyr and Aberdare branches of the Glamorganshire Canal and the Merthyr and Aberdare branches of the Taff Vale Railway
Taff Vale Railway
The Taff Vale Railway is a railway in Glamorgan, South Wales, and is one of the oldest in Wales. It operated as an independent company from 1836 until 1922, when it became a constituent company of the Great Western Railway...
. For a time it was known as "Navigation" and the Navigation Hotel, which was originally the headquarters of the Glamorganshire Canal, still bears this name.
Unusually for a village, until early 2008, it had two railway stations. One was on the line from Cardiff to Aberdare
Aberdare
Aberdare is an industrial town in Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales, situated at the confluence of the Rivers Dare and Cynon. The population at the census was 31,705...
, namely Abercynon North
Abercynon North railway station
Abercynon North railway station was one of two railway stations - North and South - serving the village of Abercynon in the Cynon Valley, Wales. It was located on the Aberdare branch of the Merthyr Line 24 km north of Cardiff Central...
The other, Abercynon South, was on the Cardiff to Merthyr Tydfil
Merthyr Tydfil
Merthyr Tydfil is a town in Wales, with a population of about 30,000. Although once the largest town in Wales, it is now ranked as the 15th largest urban area in Wales. It also gives its name to a county borough, which has a population of around 55,000. It is located in the historic county of...
line. Following major work, the North station was closed and its services moved to the South station, now named simply Abercynon
Abercynon railway station
Abercynon railway station is the railway station serving the village of Abercynon in the Cynon Valley, Wales. It is located on the Merthyr Line, north of . Passenger services are provided by Arriva Trains Wales.- History :...
. Trains are operated by Arriva Trains Wales
Arriva Trains Wales
Arriva Trains Wales is a train operating company, owned by Arriva, that operates urban and inter urban passenger services in Wales and the Welsh Marches...
as part of the Merthyr Line
Merthyr Line
The Merthyr Line is a commuter railway line in South Wales from central Cardiff to Merthyr Tydfil and Aberdare. The line is part of the Cardiff urban rail network, known as the Valley Lines...
service.
Sport
Abercynon's rugby leagueRugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
side are called the Valley Cougars
Valley Cougars
Valley Cougars are a rugby league team based in Caerphilly. They play in the National Division of the Rugby League Conference-History:They were founded in 1975 and joined the Welsh Division of the Rugby League Conference in 2003. They led a nomadic existence for their first few years in the valleys...
and play in the Welsh Conference Premier
Rugby League Conference
The Rugby League Conference , was a series of regionally based divisions of amateur rugby league teams spread throughout England, Scotland and Wales.The RLC was founded as the 10-team Southern Conference League in 1997, with teams from the southern midlands and the...
.
The local rugby union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
team is Abercynon RFC
Abercynon RFC
Abercynon Rugby Football Club is a Welsh rugby union team based in Abercynon. Today, Abercynon RFC plays in the Welsh Rugby Union Division Two East league and are a feeder club for Cardiff Blues....
and during the 1970s the team won the Glamorgan County Silver Ball Trophy
Glamorgan County Silver Ball Trophy
The Glamorgan County Silver Ball Trophy , is a Welsh rugby union competition open to all non-premier Welsh Rugby Union clubs playing in the Glamorganshire area....
on two occasions.
Buildings and locations of note
Llancaiach Fawr Manor, a TudorTudor architecture
The Tudor architectural style is the final development of medieval architecture during the Tudor period and even beyond, for conservative college patrons...
manor house
Manor house
A manor house is a country house that historically formed the administrative centre of a manor, the lowest unit of territorial organisation in the feudal system in Europe. The term is applied to country houses that belonged to the gentry and other grand stately homes...
, lies nearby.
The village of Abercynon is also home to the Thorn Hotel, which was once used by the legendary Tom Jones
Tom Jones (singer)
Sir Thomas John Woodward, OBE , known by his stage name Tom Jones, is a Welsh singer.Since the mid 1960s, Jones has sung many styles of popular music – pop, rock, R&B, show tunes, country, dance, techno, soul and gospel – and sold over 100 million records...
to practice his performances.
Abercynon Workingmen's Hall
Miners' institute
Miners' institutes, sometimes known as Workingmen's institute, Mine Workers' institute, or Miners' Welfare Hall are large institutional buildings that were typically built during the height of the industrial period as a meeting and educational venue...
was once the largest in the South Wales coalfield, but was demolished in 1995.
Notable people
- See also :Category:People from Abercynon
- Vic CroweVic CroweVictor Herbert Crowe was a Wales international football player and later football manager.-Career:Crowe was born in Abercynon, South Wales but moved to Handsworth, Birmingham with his family when he was two years old...
, Welsh international footballer, who played for and later managed Aston VillaAston Villa F.C.Aston Villa Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Witton, Birmingham. The club was founded in 1874 and have played at their current home ground, Villa Park, since 1897. Aston Villa were founder members of The Football League in 1888. They were also founder...
was born in Abercynon. - Dai DowerDai DowerDavid William "Dai" Dower MBE , former British, Empire and European Flyweight boxing champion, is one of the most successful Welsh boxers of all time.-Amateur career:...
, ABA flyweight boxing champion. - Writer John Edwards of 'Talk Tidy' fame comes from Abercynon. He has written a number of books documenting his observations on 'Wenglish'Welsh EnglishWelsh English, Anglo-Welsh, or Wenglish refers to the dialects of English spoken in Wales by Welsh people. The dialects are significantly influenced by Welsh grammar and often include words derived from Welsh...
(a dialect of Welsh English). - George Ewart EvansGeorge Ewart EvansGeorge Ewart Evans was a Welsh-born schoolteacher, writer and folklorist who became a dedicated collector of oral history and oral tradition in the East Anglian countryside from the 1940s to 1970s, and produced eleven books of collections of these materials.-Life and career:Evans was born in a...
, folklorist and oral historian. - John Ewington, railway worker whose unfair treatment led to the Taff Vale Case which in turn was a central cause in the creation of the Labour PartyLabour Party (UK)The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
. - Howard RadfordHoward RadfordWilliam Howard Radford , known by his middle name Howard, is a former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper in The Football League for Bristol Rovers for eleven years between 1951 and 1962....
, a former goalkeeper for Bristol RoversBristol Rovers F.C.Bristol Rovers Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Bristol, that competes in Football League Two. The team plays its home matches at the Memorial Stadium, in the Horfield area of the city....
was born in Abercynon. - Stephen WilliamsStephen Williams (politician)Stephen Roy Williams is a British Liberal Democrat politician who was first elected as the Member of Parliament for Bristol West in the 2005 general election, being re-elected with an increased majority in May 2010...
, Liberal DemocratLiberal DemocratsThe Liberal Democrats are a social liberal political party in the United Kingdom which supports constitutional and electoral reform, progressive taxation, wealth taxation, human rights laws, cultural liberalism, banking reform and civil liberties .The party was formed in 1988 by a merger of the...
MP for Bristol West grew up in Abercynon. - David Thomas JonesDavid Thomas JonesDavid Thomas Jones was a British Labour Party politician.He was elected as Member of Parliament for The Hartlepools at the 1945 general election, and held the seat until his defeat by only 182 votes at the 1959 general election. Left school at 12 after passing Labour examination, started on the...
attended the Navigation school 1902 to 1909 and was Member of Parliament for the Hartlepools 1945 to 1959.