Two hundred years ago, this was a remote district on the very northwestern edge of Glamorgan. The open common of Caegurwen was the haunt of shepherds and their flocks, with a handful of small farms along the banks of the Amman river. Drover’s fairs were occasionally held on the common. “Ffair y Gwter”, as it was known, carried on into the 20th century as a street market.
Small pits had worked rich seams of coal and ironstone since at least the 17th century. The mining technique of “hushing” was also used, washing away the topsoil and exposing the minerals beneath. This created a great gully, known as the Gwter Fawr, which became the name for the area.
The first underground colliery in the area was Lefel yr Offis, opened by John Jones of Brynbrain. In 1819 he built a new road over the Mynydd Du to Gwynfe, so that he could sell his coal to the farmers north of the mountain. In 1824, he extended the road southwards across the Caegurwen common to meet the Pontardawe to Llandeilo turnpike road.
These roads opened the way to the growth of industry in the Gwter Fawr area, which was further increased by the construction of the railways from Garnant (1847) and the Swansea Valley (1864). New collieries opened up, such as Pwll y Gwter (1855), as well as the Amman Iron Works (1847), whose furnaces lit up the night skies for miles around. The ironworks was partly converted into a tinplate works in 1872, by which time the name of Gwter Fawr had been dropped in favour of the new name – Lower Brynamman. A second tinplate works was built at Glynybeudy in 1890.
These industries drew people into the area and the village grew rapidly. The terraced streets included shops, pubs and fine nonconformist chapels. In 1896, the Banwen school was built (now Ysgol y Glyn) and by the early 20th century local people could take part in a wide range of cultural and sporting activities – from choral societies to rugby.
From the 1920s onwards, the industries in Lower Brynamman began to decline. Opencast mining has removed the evidence of many of the collieries, and the area is now a softer, greener landscape as the scars of industry heal. The heavy industries are only a memory today, but a walk through Lower Brynamman still brings you into contact with evidence of the former communities.
IMAGES
The 1831 OS map shows how little settlement existed in the area in the early 19th century.
The 1891 map shows the early village
Drawing of a hushing
George Borrow. In 1854 the famous English traveller George Borrow passed through the area and stayed at the Farmers Arms for a night. (Include a quote from Borrow as a piece of artwork)
Farmers Arms opened in 1823, is now the rugby club.
Amman Iron works built 1847
Colliers – close up
Pantycelyn Colliery 1888-1932
Local Chapels: Ebeneser Independent & Siloam Baptist
Wednesday 23 May 2007
Gwaun Cae Gurwen Panel
Gwaun Cae Gurwen takes its name from the ancient Manor of Caegurwen, which was a part of the medieval lordship of Gower. The “Waun” was an area of mountain common at the northern edge of the manor. This was a sparsely populated rural area before the industrial era, with only a few farms gathered around the edge of the common. One of the most important local farms was Neuadd Wen, which started as a medieval hunting lodge and used for meetings of the manorial court many centuries ago.
As early as the 17th century, surveys of Caegurwen mention coal mining on a small scale in the area. These were pits dug by local farmers to get coal for their own use. Industrial development could not occur before the 19th century, as there were no good roads leading out of the district. Heol Hir, which ran from Gwaun Cae Gurwen to Pontardawe, was the most important trackway until the first turnpike road was built from Pontardawe in 1805. This new road crossed the ‘Waun’ to Garnant and was the first step to opening the area up for industry. The Gate Shop Garage in the village takes its name from a tollgate that once stood on the turnpike road there.
Mining began in earnest in this district during the 1830s, but not in Gwaun Cae Gurwen itself. Collieries opened in surrounding areas and attracted more people and trade into the locality. As a result, Gwaun Cae Gurwen began to grow around the junction where the turnpike roads from Garnant and Brynamman met.
By the late 19th century, larger collieries, brickworks, ironworks and tinplate works had opened in neighbouring villages and the railway network expanded, with the GCG Branch of the Great Western Railway opening in 1908.
The population of the district boomed and Gwaun Cae Gurwen grew rapidly. A large number of businesses and tradesmen were established here. By the 1930s, Gwaun Cae Gurwen was large enough to have separate schools for its younger and older children.
Chapels, eisteddfodau and the Gwaun Cae Gurwen Silver Band have contributed to Gwaun Cae Gurwen’s rich cultural history. The Public Hall, built in the early 1900s was replaced in 1931 after a fire by the Welfare Hall. It was a theatre and cinema and an important centre of social and cultural life. In 1984 it became the home of Cwmgors RFC and was replaced by a new building in 1995.
As early as the 17th century, surveys of Caegurwen mention coal mining on a small scale in the area. These were pits dug by local farmers to get coal for their own use. Industrial development could not occur before the 19th century, as there were no good roads leading out of the district. Heol Hir, which ran from Gwaun Cae Gurwen to Pontardawe, was the most important trackway until the first turnpike road was built from Pontardawe in 1805. This new road crossed the ‘Waun’ to Garnant and was the first step to opening the area up for industry. The Gate Shop Garage in the village takes its name from a tollgate that once stood on the turnpike road there.
Mining began in earnest in this district during the 1830s, but not in Gwaun Cae Gurwen itself. Collieries opened in surrounding areas and attracted more people and trade into the locality. As a result, Gwaun Cae Gurwen began to grow around the junction where the turnpike roads from Garnant and Brynamman met.
By the late 19th century, larger collieries, brickworks, ironworks and tinplate works had opened in neighbouring villages and the railway network expanded, with the GCG Branch of the Great Western Railway opening in 1908.
The population of the district boomed and Gwaun Cae Gurwen grew rapidly. A large number of businesses and tradesmen were established here. By the 1930s, Gwaun Cae Gurwen was large enough to have separate schools for its younger and older children.
Chapels, eisteddfodau and the Gwaun Cae Gurwen Silver Band have contributed to Gwaun Cae Gurwen’s rich cultural history. The Public Hall, built in the early 1900s was replaced in 1931 after a fire by the Welfare Hall. It was a theatre and cinema and an important centre of social and cultural life. In 1984 it became the home of Cwmgors RFC and was replaced by a new building in 1995.
Cwmgors
CWMGORS PANEL
Bronze Age burial cairns on Penlle’rfedwen and Mynydd Uchaf are evidence that people were living and farming in the Cwmgors area over 4,000 years ago. Some 400 years ago, the area was a remote, rural corner of the Manor of Caegurwen. A survey of the manor made in 1610 names “Cors y Feisach”. This is the cors (bog) which is referred to in the farm name Cwm-y-gors, which later gave the village its name.
This quiet rural society was to be change dramatically in the 19th century, when the demand for top quality anthracite coal saw a big expansion in the mining industry locally. By the 1870s, several small collieries were being worked, with the larger Cwmgors Colliery opening in 1888. This pit grew to be one of the largest in the area and was employing over 400 men at the start of the First World War. The Duke Colliery, south of Cwmgors, became the site of the Abernant super-pit, which employed over 1000 men in the 1980s.
The arrival of hundreds of miners and their families towards the end of the 19th century saw the village of Cwmgors appear and begin to grow. St Mary’s Church was built in 1886, followed by Baptist, Independent and Wesleyan Methodist chapels – sure signs of a growing mining community.
Cwmgors was famous for its brickworks. Bricks stamped with the name “Cwmgorse” can be found in many buildings in the district and beyond. The village also once had its own brewery, built at the back of the Abernant Inn, or the “Brew” as it was known.
A school was built in 1912 and by the 1920s, a general store (the Rock Shop), a Post Office, tailors & drapers, sweet shops & tobacconists, a butchers, ironmongers and fruit shop had opened to serve what had become a bustling community. Cwmgors even had its own cinema, The Gaiety Cinema, and a Workingmen’s Hall.
As early as 1895, the Curwen Stars rugby team was playing at Parc Howard, Cwmgors. Cwmgors Colliery had its own team in the 1920s. In 1927, the two teams were disbanded and Cwmgors RFC was founded. It is still going strong today, although its clubhouse is now based in Gwaun Cae Gurwen. Cwmgors produced three Welsh international players during the 1930s, Claude Davey, Will Davies and Emrys Evans. Davey captained Wales to their historic victory over the New Zealand All Blacks in 1935.
IMAGES On Panel:
Area on 1831 OS map
1905 OS map showing village developing
Cwmgors RFC players – colour image
Claude Davey, Will Davies, Emrys Evans. Will Davies famously played for Wales in Swansea having come straight off his shift at the Cwmgors Colliery
Brewery workers
Cwmgorse Colliery
A Cwmgorse brick.
GCG Growler These trains used to run between Pontardawe and Gwauncaegurwen via
Abernant Inn
A colour postcard of the early village.
Bronze Age burial cairns on Penlle’rfedwen and Mynydd Uchaf are evidence that people were living and farming in the Cwmgors area over 4,000 years ago. Some 400 years ago, the area was a remote, rural corner of the Manor of Caegurwen. A survey of the manor made in 1610 names “Cors y Feisach”. This is the cors (bog) which is referred to in the farm name Cwm-y-gors, which later gave the village its name.
This quiet rural society was to be change dramatically in the 19th century, when the demand for top quality anthracite coal saw a big expansion in the mining industry locally. By the 1870s, several small collieries were being worked, with the larger Cwmgors Colliery opening in 1888. This pit grew to be one of the largest in the area and was employing over 400 men at the start of the First World War. The Duke Colliery, south of Cwmgors, became the site of the Abernant super-pit, which employed over 1000 men in the 1980s.
The arrival of hundreds of miners and their families towards the end of the 19th century saw the village of Cwmgors appear and begin to grow. St Mary’s Church was built in 1886, followed by Baptist, Independent and Wesleyan Methodist chapels – sure signs of a growing mining community.
Cwmgors was famous for its brickworks. Bricks stamped with the name “Cwmgorse” can be found in many buildings in the district and beyond. The village also once had its own brewery, built at the back of the Abernant Inn, or the “Brew” as it was known.
A school was built in 1912 and by the 1920s, a general store (the Rock Shop), a Post Office, tailors & drapers, sweet shops & tobacconists, a butchers, ironmongers and fruit shop had opened to serve what had become a bustling community. Cwmgors even had its own cinema, The Gaiety Cinema, and a Workingmen’s Hall.
As early as 1895, the Curwen Stars rugby team was playing at Parc Howard, Cwmgors. Cwmgors Colliery had its own team in the 1920s. In 1927, the two teams were disbanded and Cwmgors RFC was founded. It is still going strong today, although its clubhouse is now based in Gwaun Cae Gurwen. Cwmgors produced three Welsh international players during the 1930s, Claude Davey, Will Davies and Emrys Evans. Davey captained Wales to their historic victory over the New Zealand All Blacks in 1935.
IMAGES On Panel:
Area on 1831 OS map
1905 OS map showing village developing
Cwmgors RFC players – colour image
Claude Davey, Will Davies, Emrys Evans. Will Davies famously played for Wales in Swansea having come straight off his shift at the Cwmgors Colliery
Brewery workers
Cwmgorse Colliery
A Cwmgorse brick.
GCG Growler These trains used to run between Pontardawe and Gwauncaegurwen via
Abernant Inn
A colour postcard of the early village.
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