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Coordinates: 51°47′46″N 3°10′59″W / 51.796°N 3.183°W / 51.796; -3.183
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{{short description|Town in Wales, Britain}}
{{short description|Town in Blaenau Gwent, Wales}}
{{About|the Welsh town|other places with this name|Bryn Mawr (disambiguation)}}
{{About|the Welsh town|other places with this name|Bryn Mawr (disambiguation)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2021}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2021}}
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{{Infobox UK place
{{Infobox UK place
| country = Wales
| country = Wales
| constituency_welsh_assembly = [[Blaenau Gwent (Senedd Cymru constituency)|Blaenau Gwent]]
| constituency_welsh_assembly = [[Blaenau Gwent (Senedd constituency)|Blaenau Gwent]]
| official_name = Brynmawr
| official_name = Brynmawr
| coordinates = {{coord|51.796|-3.183|display=inline,title}}
| coordinates = {{coord|51.796|-3.183|display=inline,title}}
| unitary_wales = [[Blaenau Gwent]]
| unitary_wales = [[Blaenau Gwent]]
| lieutenancy_wales = [[Gwent (county)|Gwent]]
| lieutenancy_wales = [[Gwent (county)|Gwent]]
| constituency_westminster = [[Blaenau Gwent (UK Parliament constituency)|Blaenau Gwent]]
| constituency_westminster = [[Blaenau Gwent and Rhymney (UK Parliament constituency)|Blaenau Gwent and Rhymney]]
| post_town = EBBW VALE
| post_town = EBBW VALE
| postcode_district = NP23
| postcode_district = NP23
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| static_image_name = Brynmawr market square - geograph.org.uk - 688053.jpg
| static_image_name = Brynmawr market square - geograph.org.uk - 688053.jpg
| static_image_caption = Market Square and Market Hall Cinema
| static_image_caption = Market Square and Market Hall Cinema
| website = {{url|http://www.brynmawrtc.co.uk|brynmawrtc.co.uk}}
| module= [[File:2024 Wales Blaenau Gwent Community Brynmawr map.svg|240px]]<br />Map of the community
}}
}}
⚫
{{langnf|cy|'''Brynmawr'''|big hill|paren=left|italic=no}}; {{IPAc-en|b|r|ɪ|n|ˈ|m|aʊər}}; {{respell|brin|MOUR}}; {{IPA|cy|brɨnˈmaur|lang}}){{efn|The name is preferably spelt in Welsh with a hyphen {{lang|cy|Bryn-mawr}}.<ref>According to the recommendations in {{lang|cy|Rhestr o Enwau Lleoedd}} ("A Gazetteer of Welsh Place-Names") by Elwyn Davies, [[University of Wales Press]], 1967.</ref>}} is a [[market town]], [[community (Wales)|community]] and [[Wards and electoral divisions of the United Kingdom|electoral ward]] in [[Blaenau Gwent]], Wales. The town, sometimes cited as the highest town in Wales, is situated at {{convert|1250|to|1500|ft}} above sea level at the head of the [[South Wales Valleys]]. It grew with the development of the coal mining and iron industries in the early 19th century. Until the reorganisation of local authorities in 1974, Brynmawr was administered as part of the [[Historic counties of Wales|county]] of [[Brecknockshire]].
⚫
[[File:Brynmawr station, with local train from Newport geograph-2574136-by-Ben-Brooksbank.jpg|thumb|right|Until 1963 there was a [[Brynmawr railway station|railway station]] which had been opened a hundred years before by the [[London and North Western Railway]].]]


⚫
'''Brynmawr''' ({{IPAc-en|b|r|ɪ|n|ˈ|m|aʊər}}; {{IPA-cy|brɨnˈmaur|lang}}, {{etymology|cy||big hill}},<ref>Note: the name is preferably spelt in [[Welsh language|Welsh]] with a hyphen ''Bryn-mawr'', according to the recommendations in ''Rhestr o Enwau Lleoedd'' ("A Gazetteer of Welsh Place-Names") by Elwyn Davies, [[University of Wales Press]], 1967)</ref>) is a [[market town]], [[community (Wales)|community]] and [[Wards and electoral divisions of the United Kingdom|electoral ward]] in [[Blaenau Gwent]], Wales. The town, sometimes cited as the highest town in Wales, is situated at {{convert|1250|to|1500|ft}} above sea level at the head of the [[South Wales Valleys]]. It grew with the development of the coal mining and iron industries in the early 19th century. Until the reorganisation of local authorities in 1974, Brynmawr was administered as part of the [[Historic counties of Wales|county]] of [[Brecknockshire]].
==Welsh language==
==Welsh language==
According to the [[United Kingdom Census 2011|2011 Census]], 6.0% of the ward's 5,530 (332 residents) resident-population can speak, read, and write [[Welsh language|Welsh]].<ref>[https://statswales.gov.wales/Catalogue/Welsh-Language/Census-Welsh-Language/welshlanguageskills-by-ediv-2011census Welsh language skills by electoral division, 2011 Census] Retrieved 13/12/21</ref> This is above the [[Blaenau Gwent|county]]'s figure of 5.5% of 67,348 (3,705 residents) who can speak, read, and write [[Welsh language|Welsh]].<ref>[https://statswales.gov.wales/Catalogue/Welsh-Language/Census-Welsh-Language/welshlanguageskills-by-ediv-2011census Welsh language skills by electoral division, 2011 Census] Retrieved 13/12/21</ref> The town had the only Welsh-medium primary school, Ysgol Gymraeg Brynmawr, in Blaenau Gwent with 310 pupils ranging from nursery to year 6 until 2010, when the school re-located to a brand new, purpose-built building in [[Blaina]].
According to the [[United Kingdom Census 2011|2011 Census]], 6.0% of the ward's 5,530 (332 residents) resident-population can speak, read, and write [[Welsh language|Welsh]].<ref>[https://statswales.gov.wales/Catalogue/Welsh-Language/Census-Welsh-Language/welshlanguageskills-by-ediv-2011census Welsh language skills by electoral division, 2011 Census] Retrieved 13/12/21</ref> This is above the [[Blaenau Gwent|county]]'s figure of 5.5% of 67,348 (3,705 residents) who can speak, read, and write [[Welsh language|Welsh]].<ref>[https://statswales.gov.wales/Catalogue/Welsh-Language/Census-Welsh-Language/welshlanguageskills-by-ediv-2011census Welsh language skills by electoral division, 2011 Census] Retrieved 13/12/21</ref> The town had the only Welsh-medium primary school, Ysgol Gymraeg Brynmawr, in Blaenau Gwent with 310 pupils ranging from nursery to year 6 until 2010, when the school re-located to a brand new, purpose-built building in [[Blaina]].


==History==
==History==
Prior to the [[Industrial Revolution]] and the founding of Brynmawr, a settlement called Gwaun Helygen (''meaning ‘marsh of the willows’)'' sat on a small area of moorland on the border between the counties of [[Monmouthshire]] and [[Brecknockshire]]. The village consisted of only a few scattered farm houses, a slew of small tram roads that led to the surrounding coal deposits, a staging inn, and a turnpike road from [[Abergavenny]] to [[Merthyr Tydfil]] which crossed through the bleak upland plateau.
Prior to the [[Industrial Revolution]] and the founding of Brynmawr, a settlement called Gwaun Helygen (meaning 'marsh of the willows') sat on a small area of moorland on the border between the counties of [[Monmouthshire]] and [[Brecknockshire]]. The village consisted of only a few scattered farm houses, a slew of small tram roads that led to the surrounding coal deposits, a staging inn, and a turnpike road from [[Abergavenny]] to [[Merthyr Tydfil]] which crossed through the bleak upland plateau.


With the development of [[Nantyglo]] ironworks under [[Crawshay Bailey]] in the early 19th century, suitable housing was needed for the workers, and thus the area of upland home to Gwaun Helygen was chosen as an ideal area for a settlement. Houses began to spring up around the tram roads and the turnpike road, and the town began to rapidly grow. Although the settlement was not home to any heavy industry, and was for the most part a dormitory town, several above-ground ore deposits outside of town were worked on, and a few underground levels were eventually dug beneath Brynmawr.
With the development of [[Nantyglo]] ironworks under [[Crawshay Bailey]] in the early 19th century, suitable housing was needed for the workers, and thus the area of upland home to Gwaun Helygen was chosen as an ideal area for a settlement. Houses began to spring up around the tram roads and the turnpike road, and the town began to rapidly grow. Although the settlement was not home to any heavy industry, and was for the most part a dormitory town, several above-ground ore deposits outside of town were worked on, and a few underground levels were eventually dug beneath Brynmawr. However, by as early as the 1870s, many of the resources that were once considered abundant had been exhausted, and the local industry began to decline. As the town's residents practically solely relied on the surrounding industries, many of them left the town in search of employment, and Brynmawr witnessed a sharp drop in population.

However, by as early as the 1870s, many of the resources that were once considered abundant had been exhausted, and the local industry began to decline. As the town's residents practically solely relied on the surrounding industries, many of them left the town in search of employment, and Brynmawr witnessed a sharp drop in population.


⚫
[[File:Former Dunlop Semtex boiler house, Brynmawr - geograph.org.uk - 2258061.jpg|thumb|left|The Semtex Boiler House in 2011]]
The town's market hall, now the Market Hall Cinema was built in 1894, and replaced the older town hall built in 1844.
The town's market hall, now the Market Hall Cinema was built in 1894, and replaced the older town hall built in 1844.


By the time of the [[Great Depression in the United Kingdom|Great Depression]], most of the town's insured population were unemployed, which attracted the attention of a group of [[Quakers]], whose worked in the town to relieve unemployment culminated in the [[Brynmawr Experiment]].
By the time of the [[Great Depression in the United Kingdom|Great Depression]], most of the town's insured population were unemployed, which attracted the attention of a group of [[Quakers]], whose worked in the town to relieve unemployment culminated in the [[Brynmawr Experiment]].

⚫
[[File:Former Dunlop Semtex boiler house, Brynmawr - geograph.org.uk - 2258061.jpg|thumb|The Semtex Boiler House in 2011]]
In 1952, [[James Grimston, 5th Earl of Verulam|Jim Forrester]] of [[Enfield Cables|Enfield Cables Ltd]] opened a [[Brynmawr rubber factory|factory]] in the town, which was eventually acquired by the [[Dunlop Rubber|Dunlop Rubber Company]]. With the operating under the brand name of Dunlop Semtex Ltd, it produced flooring for the health and education sectors up until its closure in 1981. It was demolished in 2001, and now only the boiler house remains, albeit in a derelict state.
In 1952, [[James Grimston, 5th Earl of Verulam|Jim Forrester]] of [[Enfield Cables|Enfield Cables Ltd]] opened a [[Brynmawr rubber factory|factory]] in the town, which was eventually acquired by the [[Dunlop Rubber|Dunlop Rubber Company]]. Operating under the brand name of Dunlop Semtex Ltd, the factory produced flooring for the health and education sectors up until its closure in 1981. It was demolished in 2001, and now only the boiler house remains, albeit in a derelict state.

==Governance==
[[File:Brynmawr and District Museum - geograph.org.uk - 1820129.jpg|thumb|Brynmawr and District Museum (formerly the Carnegie Library) and Brynmawr Institute, Market Square]]
There are two tiers of local government covering Brynmawr, at [[Community (Wales)|community]] (town) and [[Principal areas of Wales|county borough]] level: Brynmawr Town Council and [[Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council]]. The town council has its offices at the Community Centre on Orchard Street and holds its meetings at Brynmawr Institute on Market Square.<ref>{{cite web |title=Contact us |url=http://www.brynmawrtc.co.uk/Contact_Us_30397.aspx |website=Brynmawr Town Council |access-date=16 November 2024}}</ref>

===Administrative history===
The area that is now Brynmawr historically straddled three parishes and two counties: the parishes of [[Llanelly]] and [[Llangattock]] in [[Brecknockshire]], and the parish of [[Aberystruth]] in [[Monmouthshire]]. A boundary stone at the corner of Boundary Street and Bailey Street marks the point where the three parishes met.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Lloyd Davies |first1=Eifion |title='King Crispin' and the Brynmawr Chartists |url=http://thechartists.org/m22-06.html |website=Chartism |date=August 2021}}</ref> A Byrnmawr [[Local board of health|local board district]] was established in 1851 covering parts of the two Brecknockshire parishes of Llanelly and Llangattock.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Johnson |first1=Cuthbert W. |title=The Acts for Promoting the Public Health, 1848 to 1851 |date=1852 |publisher=Charles Knight |location=London |page=226 |url=https://www.google.co.uk/books/edition/The_Acts_for_Promoting_the_Public_Health/P7gDAAAAQAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&pg=PA226&printsec=frontcover |access-date=16 November 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Brynmawr |url=https://www.findmypast.co.uk/search-newspapers |access-date=16 November 2024 |work=The Silurian |date=14 June 1851 |location=Brecon |page=3}}</ref> The district was enlarged in 1885 to also cover part of the parish of Aberystruth in Monmouthshire.<ref>{{cite web |title=Local Government Board's Provisional Orders Confirmation (No. 3) Act 1885 |url=https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukla/Vict/48-49/106/contents/enacted |website=legislation.gov.uk |publisher=The National Archives |access-date=16 November 2024}}</ref>

Elected county councils were established in 1889 under the [[Local Government Act 1888]], which also directed that local board districts that straddled county boundaries, as Byrnmawr did, should be placed entirely in the county which had the majority of the district's population. The Monmouthshire parts of the Brynmawr local board district were therefore transferred to Brecknockshire in 1889, such that the whole district was then in Brecknockshire. Local board districts were converted into [[Urban district (England and Wales)|urban districts]] under the [[Local Government Act 1894]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Brynmawr Urban District Council Records |url=https://archiveshub.jisc.ac.uk/search/archives/b183b647-f061-33fe-83b9-8f6e86f46ff9 |website=Jisc Archives Hub |publisher=Gwent Archives |access-date=16 November 2024}}</ref> A [[civil parish]] of Brynmawr covering the same area as the urban district was created in 1900.<ref>{{cite web |title=Bryn Mawr Urban District |url=https://visionofbritain.org.uk/unit/10177388#tab02 |website=A Vision of Britain through Time |publisher=GB Historical GIS / University of Porstmouth |access-date=16 November 2024}}</ref> Brynmawr Urban District Council bought Trafalgar House on Alma Street in 1913 to serve as its offices and meeting place, and remained based there until the council's abolition.<ref>{{cite news |title=Brynmawr |url=https://www.findmypast.co.uk/search-newspapers |access-date=16 November 2024 |work=South Wales Gazette |date=17 October 1913 |location=Abertillery |page=5}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Plan SO 1911NW, National Grid Plans 1:1250, 1972 |url=https://maps.nls.uk/view/210951755 |website=National Library of Scotland |publisher=Ordnance Survey |access-date=16 November 2024}}</ref>

Brynmawr Urban District was abolished in 1974 under the [[Local Government Act 1972]]. Its area instead became a community called Brynmawr within the new borough of [[Blaenau Gwent]] and county of [[Gwent (county)|Gwent]]. The former urban district council's functions therefore passed to Blaenau Gwent Borough Council, which in 1996 was reconstituted a county borough, taking over the functions of the abolished Gwent County Council.<ref>{{cite legislation UK|type=act|act=Local Government Act 1972|year=1972|chapter=70|accessdate=6 October 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite legislation UK|type=act|act=Local Government (Wales) Act 1994|year=1994|chapter=19|accessdate=9 October 2022}}</ref>
⚫
[[File:Brynmawr station, with local train from Newport geograph-2574136-by-Ben-Brooksbank.jpg|thumb|right|[[Brynmawr railway station]] operated between 1862 and 1963]]


==Population==
==Population==
Line 54: Line 66:
==Sport and leisure==
==Sport and leisure==
[[File:Heavy frost at the park - geograph.org.uk - 1124221.jpg|thumb|right|Heavy frost at the park, December 2008]]
[[File:Heavy frost at the park - geograph.org.uk - 1124221.jpg|thumb|right|Heavy frost at the park, December 2008]]
[[Brynmawr RFC]] is the local rugby union club which is affiliated to the [[Dragons (rugby union)|Newport Gwent Dragons]].
[[Brynmawr RFC]] is the local rugby union club which is affiliated to the [[Dragons RFC]] in [[Newport, Wales|Newport]].
Brynmawr has a 350-seat cinema (The Market Hall Cinema) which is the longest continually running cinema in Wales. The Market Hall opened in 1893 and has recently been renovated.
Brynmawr has a 350-seat cinema (The Market Hall Cinema) which is the longest continually running cinema in Wales. The Market Hall opened in 1893 and has recently been renovated. From November 2016 and throughout early 2017, the Market Hall Cinema had been closed after Blaenau Gwent Council conducted a series of asbestos tests in the building. The Market Hall was successfully reopened by Hollywood star [[Michael Sheen]] on 12 July 2017.{{cn|date=January 2024}}
As of 1 April 2017 the Market Hall Cinema has been closed since November 2016 after Blaenau Gwent Council conducted a series of asbestos tests in the building.
The Market Hall was successfully reopened by Hollywood star Michael Sheen on 12 July 2017.


Notable people include professional wrestlers [[Adrian Street]], "Flash" Morgan Webster, singer-songwriters Huw and Tony Williams and indie pop singer-songwriter [[Marina Diamandis]], known professionally as MARINA. [[Wales national rugby league team|Wales]] and [[Great Britain national rugby league team|Great Britain]] Rugby League international [[Roy Francis (rugby)|Roy Francis]], who scored 229 tries in 356 top-flight matches and went on to win three [[Rugby Football League Championship First Division|National League]] titles and the [[1967-68 Challenge Cup|1968 Challenge Cup]] as a coach of [[Hull F.C.|Hull FC]] and [[Leeds Rhinos|Leeds]], was born in the town and played for [[Brynmawr RFC]].<ref>Archived at [https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211205/FRX27awOb6g Ghostarchive]{{cbignore}} and the [https://web.archive.org/web/20200614211602/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FRX27awOb6g&gl=US&hl=en Wayback Machine]{{cbignore}}: {{cite web| url = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FRX27awOb6g| title = So who was Roy Francis? {{!}} A Squidge Rugby Deep Dive | website=[[YouTube]]}}{{cbignore}}</ref> T Rowley Jones, President Welsh Rugby Union, 1977/78.
Notable people include professional wrestlers [[Adrian Street]] and [[Flash Morgan Webster]], singer-songwriters Huw and Tony Williams and indie pop singer-songwriter [[Marina Diamandis]], known professionally as MARINA.,<ref>{{cite web |last=Wright |first=Jade |url=http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/marina-diamonds-liverpool-perfect-place-3335509 |title=Marina and the Diamonds on why Liverpool is the perfect place to play a gig |work=[[Liverpool Echo]] |publisher=[[Trinity Mirror]] |date=21 September 2012 |access-date=19 June 2014 |archive-date=21 April 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190421133658/https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/marina-diamonds-liverpool-perfect-place-3335509 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Citation |title=Marina and the Diamonds - Interview (Nation Radio 06/05/2012) (Audio) |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fZ2M6lTufxs |access-date=2023-12-01 |language=en}}</ref> T. Rowley Jones was President of Welsh Rugby Union, 1977/78.<ref>{{cite web |title=Wales: Past presidents of the Welsh Rugby Union |url=https://www.rugbyfootballhistory.com/wales.html#3 |website=Rugby Football History |access-date=1 January 2024}}</ref>

[[Wales national rugby league team|Wales]] and [[Great Britain national rugby league team|Great Britain]] Rugby League international [[Roy Francis (rugby)|Roy Francis]], who scored 229 tries in 356 top-flight matches and went on to win three [[Rugby Football League Championship First Division|National League]] titles and the [[1967-68 Challenge Cup|1968 Challenge Cup]] as a coach of [[Hull F.C.|Hull FC]] and [[Leeds Rhinos|Leeds]], was born in the town and played for [[Brynmawr RFC]].<ref>Archived at [https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211205/FRX27awOb6g Ghostarchive]{{cbignore}} and the [https://web.archive.org/web/20200614211602/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FRX27awOb6g&gl=US&hl=en Wayback Machine]{{cbignore}}: {{cite web| url = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FRX27awOb6g| title = So who was Roy Francis? {{!}} A Squidge Rugby Deep Dive | website=[[YouTube]]}}{{cbignore}}</ref> A memorial to Francis was inaugurated in the town in October 2023.<ref>{{cite web |title=Events |url=https://www.brynmawrmuseum.org.uk/events?lang=en |publisher=Brynmawr and District Museum |access-date=1 January 2024}}</ref>


==See also==
==See also==
Line 66: Line 78:
*{{annotated link|Brynmawr Experiment}}
*{{annotated link|Brynmawr Experiment}}
*{{annotated link|Brynmawr Foundation School}}
*{{annotated link|Brynmawr Foundation School}}

==Notes==
{{notelist}}


==References==
==References==
Line 74: Line 89:
{{Wikisource1911Enc|Brynmawr}}
{{Wikisource1911Enc|Brynmawr}}
* [http://www.brynmawrtc.co.uk Brynmawr Town Council website]
* [http://www.brynmawrtc.co.uk Brynmawr Town Council website]
⚫
* [http://thomasgenweb.com/brynmawr_history.html History of Brynmawr, Wales]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20081106133453/http://www.francisfrith.com/search/wales/gwent/brynmawr/photos/brynmawr_photos.htm Old photos of Brynmawr]
* [http://www.gtj.org.uk/en/item1/6466 Aerial photograph of Brynmawr]{{dead link|date=November 2016 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}
* [https://www.geograph.org.uk/search.php?i=6631275 Photos of Brynmawr and surrounding area on geograph.org.uk]
⚫
* [http://thomasgenweb.com/brynmawr_history.html History of Brynmawr, Wales] at thomasgenweb.com, with excerpts from ''Brynmawr: A Study of a Distressed Area'', by Hilda Jennings


<!--{{coord|51.79619|N|3.18320|W|region:GB_source:enwiki-osgb36(SO185115)|display=title}}--><!-- Note: WGS84 lat/long, converted from OSGB36 grid ref -->{{Blaenau Gwent}}
<!--{{coord|51.79619|N|3.18320|W|region:GB_source:enwiki-osgb36(SO185115)|display=title}}--><!-- Note: WGS84 lat/long, converted from OSGB36 grid ref -->{{Blaenau Gwent}}

Latest revision as of 09:33, 16 November 2024

This article is about the Welsh town. For other places with this name, see Bryn Mawr (disambiguation).

Brynmawr
Market Square and Market Hall Cinema
Brynmawr is located in Blaenau Gwent
Brynmawr
Brynmawr
Location within Blaenau Gwent
Population5,530 (2011)[1]
OS grid referenceSO185115
Principal area
Preserved county
CountryWales
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townEBBW VALE
Postcode districtNP23
Dialling code01495
PoliceGwent
FireSouth Wales
AmbulanceWelsh
UK Parliament
Senedd Cymru – Welsh Parliament
Websitebrynmawrtc.co.uk
List of places
UK
Wales
Blaenau Gwent

51°47′46″N 3°10′59″W / 51.796°N 3.183°W / 51.796; -3.183


Map of the community

Brynmawr (Welsh for 'big hill'; /brɪnˈmaʊər/; brin-MOUR; Welsh: [brɨnˈmaur])[a] is a market town, community and electoral ward in Blaenau Gwent, Wales. The town, sometimes cited as the highest town in Wales, is situated at 1,250 to 1,500 feet (380 to 460 m) above sea level at the head of the South Wales Valleys. It grew with the development of the coal mining and iron industries in the early 19th century. Until the reorganisation of local authorities in 1974, Brynmawr was administered as part of the county of Brecknockshire.

Welsh language

[edit]

According to the 2011 Census, 6.0% of the ward's 5,530 (332 residents) resident-population can speak, read, and write Welsh.[3] This is above the county's figure of 5.5% of 67,348 (3,705 residents) who can speak, read, and write Welsh.[4] The town had the only Welsh-medium primary school, Ysgol Gymraeg Brynmawr, in Blaenau Gwent with 310 pupils ranging from nursery to year 6 until 2010, when the school re-located to a brand new, purpose-built building in Blaina.

History

[edit]

Prior to the Industrial Revolution and the founding of Brynmawr, a settlement called Gwaun Helygen (meaning 'marsh of the willows') sat on a small area of moorland on the border between the counties of Monmouthshire and Brecknockshire. The village consisted of only a few scattered farm houses, a slew of small tram roads that led to the surrounding coal deposits, a staging inn, and a turnpike road from Abergavenny to Merthyr Tydfil which crossed through the bleak upland plateau.

With the development of Nantyglo ironworks under Crawshay Bailey in the early 19th century, suitable housing was needed for the workers, and thus the area of upland home to Gwaun Helygen was chosen as an ideal area for a settlement. Houses began to spring up around the tram roads and the turnpike road, and the town began to rapidly grow. Although the settlement was not home to any heavy industry, and was for the most part a dormitory town, several above-ground ore deposits outside of town were worked on, and a few underground levels were eventually dug beneath Brynmawr. However, by as early as the 1870s, many of the resources that were once considered abundant had been exhausted, and the local industry began to decline. As the town's residents practically solely relied on the surrounding industries, many of them left the town in search of employment, and Brynmawr witnessed a sharp drop in population.

The Semtex Boiler House in 2011

The town's market hall, now the Market Hall Cinema was built in 1894, and replaced the older town hall built in 1844.

By the time of the Great Depression, most of the town's insured population were unemployed, which attracted the attention of a group of Quakers, whose worked in the town to relieve unemployment culminated in the Brynmawr Experiment.

In 1952, Jim Forrester of Enfield Cables Ltd opened a factory in the town, which was eventually acquired by the Dunlop Rubber Company. Operating under the brand name of Dunlop Semtex Ltd, the factory produced flooring for the health and education sectors up until its closure in 1981. It was demolished in 2001, and now only the boiler house remains, albeit in a derelict state.

Governance

[edit]
Brynmawr and District Museum (formerly the Carnegie Library) and Brynmawr Institute, Market Square

There are two tiers of local government covering Brynmawr, at community (town) and county borough level: Brynmawr Town Council and Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council. The town council has its offices at the Community Centre on Orchard Street and holds its meetings at Brynmawr Institute on Market Square.[5]

Administrative history

[edit]

The area that is now Brynmawr historically straddled three parishes and two counties: the parishes of Llanelly and Llangattock in Brecknockshire, and the parish of Aberystruth in Monmouthshire. A boundary stone at the corner of Boundary Street and Bailey Street marks the point where the three parishes met.[6] A Byrnmawr local board district was established in 1851 covering parts of the two Brecknockshire parishes of Llanelly and Llangattock.[7][8] The district was enlarged in 1885 to also cover part of the parish of Aberystruth in Monmouthshire.[9]

Elected county councils were established in 1889 under the Local Government Act 1888, which also directed that local board districts that straddled county boundaries, as Byrnmawr did, should be placed entirely in the county which had the majority of the district's population. The Monmouthshire parts of the Brynmawr local board district were therefore transferred to Brecknockshire in 1889, such that the whole district was then in Brecknockshire. Local board districts were converted into urban districts under the Local Government Act 1894.[10] A civil parish of Brynmawr covering the same area as the urban district was created in 1900.[11] Brynmawr Urban District Council bought Trafalgar House on Alma Street in 1913 to serve as its offices and meeting place, and remained based there until the council's abolition.[12][13]

Brynmawr Urban District was abolished in 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972. Its area instead became a community called Brynmawr within the new borough of Blaenau Gwent and county of Gwent. The former urban district council's functions therefore passed to Blaenau Gwent Borough Council, which in 1996 was reconstituted a county borough, taking over the functions of the abolished Gwent County Council.[14][15]

Brynmawr railway station operated between 1862 and 1963

Population

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Brynmawr had an estimated population of 5,568 in 2020.[16] In 2011, 10% of the population were unemployed.

Commerce and local economy

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Beaufort Street, the town's main street

The town centre's primary shopping areas are contained within Beaufort Street and on Market Square which is also the focal point of the town where many events are hosted. The former Market Hall is now a cinema and theatre presenting films and productions from the local amateur operatic society. The business community offers many traditional, family-orientated and independently run shops, such as Tutta Bella, Durbans Shoe repairs, Perfectday Bridal, Pebbles and Welch Designs and many more. The Tabor Centre, situated in Davies Street, is a multi-purpose community venue with rooms available for hire. Brynmawr is also home to many artisan food producers, such as the award-winning Miss Daisy's Kitchen, specialist vegan and gluten-free food producers Daddies Little Pickle, and the Little Dragon Pizza Van, who organise the annual Brynmawr Street Food Festival.

Places of interest

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Parc Nant y Waun is a nature reserve incorporating 22 hectares (54 acres) of grassland, mires and reservoirs which was officially opened in 2007.[17] Home to many wildlife species, it includes a picnic area, an outdoor classroom, and an angling club.[18]

Sport and leisure

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Heavy frost at the park, December 2008

Brynmawr RFC is the local rugby union club which is affiliated to the Dragons RFC in Newport. Brynmawr has a 350-seat cinema (The Market Hall Cinema) which is the longest continually running cinema in Wales. The Market Hall opened in 1893 and has recently been renovated. From November 2016 and throughout early 2017, the Market Hall Cinema had been closed after Blaenau Gwent Council conducted a series of asbestos tests in the building. The Market Hall was successfully reopened by Hollywood star Michael Sheen on 12 July 2017.[citation needed]

Notable people include professional wrestlers Adrian Street and Flash Morgan Webster, singer-songwriters Huw and Tony Williams and indie pop singer-songwriter Marina Diamandis, known professionally as MARINA.,[19][20] T. Rowley Jones was President of Welsh Rugby Union, 1977/78.[21]

Wales and Great Britain Rugby League international Roy Francis, who scored 229 tries in 356 top-flight matches and went on to win three National League titles and the 1968 Challenge Cup as a coach of Hull FC and Leeds, was born in the town and played for Brynmawr RFC.[22] A memorial to Francis was inaugurated in the town in October 2023.[23]

See also

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  • Brynmawr Rubber Factory – factory in Monmouthshire
  • Brynmawr Furniture – Welsh furniture company (active 1930–1940)
  • Brynmawr Experiment – social relief project against unemployment in Brynmawr between 1928 and 1940
  • Brynmawr Foundation School – school in Blaenau Gwent, UK

Notes

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  1. ^ The name is preferably spelt in Welsh with a hyphen Bryn-mawr.[2]

References

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  1. ^ "Ward/Community population 2011". Retrieved 6 November 2015.
  2. ^ According to the recommendations in Rhestr o Enwau Lleoedd ("A Gazetteer of Welsh Place-Names") by Elwyn Davies, University of Wales Press, 1967.
  3. ^ Welsh language skills by electoral division, 2011 Census Retrieved 13/12/21
  4. ^ Welsh language skills by electoral division, 2011 Census Retrieved 13/12/21
  5. ^ "Contact us". Brynmawr Town Council. Retrieved 16 November 2024.
  6. ^ Lloyd Davies, Eifion (August 2021). "'King Crispin' and the Brynmawr Chartists". Chartism.
  7. ^ Johnson, Cuthbert W. (1852). The Acts for Promoting the Public Health, 1848 to 1851. London: Charles Knight. p. 226. Retrieved 16 November 2024.
  8. ^ "Brynmawr". The Silurian. Brecon. 14 June 1851. p. 3. Retrieved 16 November 2024.
  9. ^ "Local Government Board's Provisional Orders Confirmation (No. 3) Act 1885". legislation.gov.uk. The National Archives. Retrieved 16 November 2024.
  10. ^ "Brynmawr Urban District Council Records". Jisc Archives Hub. Gwent Archives. Retrieved 16 November 2024.
  11. ^ "Bryn Mawr Urban District". A Vision of Britain through Time. GB Historical GIS / University of Porstmouth. Retrieved 16 November 2024.
  12. ^ "Brynmawr". South Wales Gazette. Abertillery. 17 October 1913. p. 5. Retrieved 16 November 2024.
  13. ^ "Plan SO 1911NW, National Grid Plans 1:1250, 1972". National Library of Scotland. Ordnance Survey. Retrieved 16 November 2024.
  14. ^ "Local Government Act 1972", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, 1972 c. 70, retrieved 6 October 2022
  15. ^ "Local Government (Wales) Act 1994", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, 1994 c. 19, retrieved 9 October 2022
  16. ^ "Brynmawr (Community, United Kingdom) - Population Statistics, Charts, Map and Location". www.citypopulation.de. Retrieved 26 February 2022.
  17. ^ Opening of Parc Nant y Waun Archived 12 June 2011 at the Wayback Machine
  18. ^ Angling Club[permanent dead link‍]
  19. ^ Wright, Jade (21 September 2012). "Marina and the Diamonds on why Liverpool is the perfect place to play a gig". Liverpool Echo. Trinity Mirror. Archived from the original on 21 April 2019. Retrieved 19 June 2014.
  20. ^ Marina and the Diamonds - Interview (Nation Radio 06/05/2012) (Audio), retrieved 1 December 2023
  21. ^ "Wales: Past presidents of the Welsh Rugby Union". Rugby Football History. Retrieved 1 January 2024.
  22. ^ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: "So who was Roy Francis? | A Squidge Rugby Deep Dive". YouTube.
  23. ^ "Events". Brynmawr and District Museum. Retrieved 1 January 2024.
[edit]
Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Brynmawr.
Wikisource has the text of the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica article "Brynmawr".
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