Rhondda Heritage Park
Encyclopedia
Trehafod
Trehafod is a village in the Rhondda Valley between Porth and Pontypridd in the county borough of Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales, although in administrative terms is split between the electoral division of Cymmer to the West and Rhondda to the East...
, Rhondda
Rhondda
Rhondda , or the Rhondda Valley , is a former coal mining valley in Wales, formerly a local government district, consisting of 16 communities built around the River Rhondda. The valley is made up of two valleys, the larger Rhondda Fawr valley and the smaller Rhondda Fach valley...
, South Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
is a tourist attraction which offers an insight into the life of the coal mining
Coal mining
The goal of coal mining is to obtain coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy content, and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from iron ore and for cement production. In the United States,...
community that existed in the area until the 1980s.
Visitors can experience the life of the coal miners on a guided tour through one of the mine shafts of the Lewis Merthyr colliery. Tours are led by former colliery workers. Rhondda Heritage Park is an Anchor Point of ERIH, The European Route of Industrial Heritage
European Route of Industrial Heritage
The European Route of Industrial Heritage is a network of the most important industrial heritage sites in Europe. The aim of the project is to create interest for the common European Heritage of the Industrialisation and its remains...
.
Miner's Lamp Memorial
In May 2000, a 6 foot replica Miner's Lamp monument - see photo - was unveiled at the entrance of Rhondda Heritage Park. According to the plaque on the monument it was erected "as a memorial to all those who through accidentMining accident
A mining accident is an accident that occurs during the process of mining minerals.Thousands of miners die from mining accidents each year, especially in the processes of coal mining and hard rock mining...
, disaster
Disaster
A disaster is a natural or man-made hazard that has come to fruition, resulting in an event of substantial extent causing significant physical damage or destruction, loss of life, or drastic change to the environment...
or disease
Coalworker's pneumoconiosis
Coal workers' pneumoconiosis , colloquially referred to as black lung disease, is caused by long exposure to coal dust. It is a common affliction of coal miners and others who work with coal, similar to both silicosis from inhaling silica dust, and to the long-term effects of tobacco smoking...
, lost their lives or otherwise suffered as a result of the mining industry of the South Wales coalfield
South Wales Coalfield
The South Wales Coalfield is a large region of south Wales that is rich with coal deposits, especially the South Wales Valleys.-The coalfield area:...
". The memorial was unveiled by Rhondda-born actor Glyn Houston
Glyn Houston
Glyn Houston , is an actor best known for his television work. He is the brother of the late film actor Donald Houston.-Early life:...
.