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Ebbw Vale

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Ebbw Vale
Population18,558 
OS grid referenceSO165095
Principal area
Preserved county
CountryWales
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townEBBW VALE
Postcode districtNP23
Dialling code01495
PoliceGwent
FireSouth Wales
AmbulanceWelsh
UK Parliament
List of places
UK
Wales
Blaenau Gwent
For the Ebbw Vale in Australia, see Ebbw Vale railway station, Brisbane.

Ebbw Vale (Welsh: Glynebwy) is a town at the head of the valley formed by the Ebbw Fawr river in South Wales. It is the largest town and the administrative centre of Blaenau Gwent county borough. The Ebbw Vale/Brynmawr conurbation has a population of roughly 33,000.

History

Ebbw Vale town centre.

Originally a rather insignificant spot with only about 140 inhabitants at the end of the 18th century, Ebbw Vale — and the whole valley — was transformed by the Industrial Revolution. The Ebbw Vale Iron Works (later the Ebbw Steelworks) opened in 1778, followed by the opening of a number of coal mines around 1790. At its height (1930s — 40s) the steel works in Ebbw Vale was the largest in Europe, attracting attention from German bombers during World War II. However the deep valley proved difficult to bomb and the plant survived. Ebbw Vale suffered from the decline of the steel and coal industries and there are now no steelworks or mines left in or around the town. In 2003 work began on demolishing the long-standing steelworks, and currently around one to two miles of the valley stands empty awaiting development. Plans have been made to re-introduce a railway service to the area, bringing a much-needed transport link.

Ebbw Vale hosted the National Eisteddfod in 1958 . The Welsh Language was dominant in the area until the last quarter of the 19th century and remnants of the language (Welsh hymns and pockets of Welsh in nearby Rhymney) persisted into the 1970s.

In 1992, the town hosted the Ebbw Vale Garden Festival, the last National Garden Festival.

Aneurin Bevan, the father of the National Health Service, stood for election into parliament as Labour Party candidate for Ebbw Vale in 1929, on his death in 1960 he was succeeded as MP by Michael Foot.

The Ebbw Vale conurbation today is a product of areas which grew up as a result of the iron industry or have developed as a result of distinct housing areas they include: Beaufort, Rassau, Garnlydan, Hill Top, Briery Hill, Glyncoed,Willowtown, Glanyrafon, Cwm, Newtown, Victoria, Tyllwyn, Waunlwyd and Ebbw Vale itself. In particular Beaufort and Victoria were the two original iron producing areas.

Education

Ebbw Vale currently is host to a selection of primary and infant schools, two secondary schools (Glyncoed Comprehensive School & Ebbw Vale Comprehensive School) both covering a large catchment area. Alongside this there is also the Ebbw Vale campus of Coleg Gwent, teaching a range of subjects from Mechanics, Media, Humanities to Hairdressing and Beauty. There is also an institute which provides a range of courses for mainly adult learners.

Sport and culture

Sport features as one of the prides of the Ebbw Vale area, including a top flight Welsh Premiership rugby union team, that participated in the Celtic League and various European competitions until the restructuring of Welsh Rugby Union that took effect from the 2003-04 season effectively removed any professional rugby representation from the area. The Ebbw Vale rugby team is nicknamed 'The Steelmen' named after the steel works in the town. These days Ebbw Vale RFC still compete at a semi-professional level in the WRU Principality Premiership along with the Welsh Cup. In 2007, the club finished 2nd in the Premiership in what was one of their most successful seasons ever.

Also in the town there is a keen interest in cricket (of which the town hosted several Glamorgan County Cricket fixtures until 1996), bowls, swimming, and a large host of football and rugby teams at varying degrees of skill. Eugene Cross Park is the home of both the town's rugby and cricket clubs. However, cricket predates rugby and Ebbw Vale's first recorded match was played against Blaina in 1852. During the 19th century the influx of people from the surrounding counties looking for work in the local iron works and coal mines gave cricket a boost and in June 1879 "a meeting was held at the Institute to form a cricket club in the town".

In addition to the above the town also has a leisure centre which hosts facilities ranging from a gym, sauna, weights room, 5-a-side, squash courts and a 33m long, 4m deep swimming pool with diving boards.

Ebbw Vale's theatre, the Beaufort Theatre, is the largest in Blaenau Gwent

Famous People

Interesting facts

The view from Ebbw Vale.
  • 44,000 red engineering bricks from Beaufort are said to support the Empire State Building
  • Southampton Docks stand on the crushed slag (cooled impurities from iron making) from Beaufort Ironworks.
  • The world's first steel rail was rolled at Ebbw Vale in 1857.
  • The rails for the Stockton and Darlington Railway were made at Ebbw Vale.
  • Ebbw Vale contains many secret underground tunnels that run through the Black Mountains. They were used during World War 2 to export iron, coal and other materials outside the area.
  • The Sydney Harbour Bridge was made from iron and steel from the Ebbw Vale steelworks. [This quote needs a citation]

51°46′40″N 3°12′42″W / 51.77791°N 3.21171°W / 51.77791; -3.21171

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