Tag: Troedyrhiw

Evacuees in Merthyr

The article transcribed below appeared in the Merthyr Express 80 years ago today (8 June 1940).

Merthyr Welcomes Evacuees

Sixteen Hundred Arrivals

“You will get a square DEAL here, FOLK-stone”.  This clever slogan on a banner at the main entrance to Merthyr Railway Station greeted 1,600 children evacuated from Deal and Folkestone when they arrived at Merthyr on Sunday.

Several thousand people lined High Street and Church Street to welcome the evacuees, who were accompanied by their teachers.

The children were met by Merthyr’s Mayor (Mr. J.W Watkin J.P.) and the Mayoress.  Others present at the station were the Deputy Mayor (Mr. A.J. Brobyn), Ald. Wm Powell, Ald. Sam Jennings, Ald. David Jones J.P., Ald. John Williams, Ald. T. Edmund Rees, Councillors Andrew Wilson J.P., J. E. Jones J.P., B. J. Williams (chairman, education committee), Lewis Jones, F. J. Bateson J.P., T. J. Evans, John Harris, Mrs. Mary Thomas J.P., F. A. Phillips J.P., David Parry J.P, and D O’Driscoll; the Town Clerk (Mr. Edward Roberts) and Mrs. Roberts, Canon J. Richards Pugh (Rector of Merthyr), the Rev. Emlyn Davies (president, Merthyr Free Church Council), Mr W. T Owen M.A. (director of education), Dr. T. H. Stephens (medical officer of health), the chief constable (Mr. T A Goodwin), the Rev J. T. Rogers, the Rev H. Davies, Mrs Margaret Gardner M.B.E., Mr A. P. Thomas J.P., Mr T. E. Lewis (station-master), Mr J. Crossland (borough treasurer), Mr. G. A. Cook (public assistance officer), Dr. King (H.M. inspector of schools), Mr. T Longville Bowen (editor, Merthyr Express), Mr. David J. Owen (chief billeting officer), Mr. Israel Price, Mr. T. S. Evans (deputy food controller), Major T. R. Evans (A.R.P. officer) and others.

After the playing of “Hen Wlad fy Nhadau” by the Salvation Army Band at the Station approach, the children – many of the younger ones carrying dolls and toys, and all with their gas masks – were led by the Mayor and officials to the Miners’ Hall.

In extending a welcome on behalf of the townspeople, the Mayor expressed the hope that the children would be happy and well cared for at their new homes.

Coun. B. J. Williams and Mr. David Owen were in charge of the dispersal of the children from the Miners’ Hall.

After being allocated to the various wards, the children were taken to the St. David’s Hall, where they were medically examined by 14 local doctors.  When the examinations were completed, buses were waiting to take the evacuees to the dispersal centres in the various wards.  At these dispersal centres they were provided with a meal, and later they were conveyed to their new homes.

On Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday Merthyr’s schools were closed while arrangements were being completed for the education of the evacuees, who are drawn from secondary, technical, elementary and infants’ schools.  Throughout the borough the evacuees could be seen fraternising with the local children and “exploring” their new surroundings.

The slogan already referred to was thought out by Mr William Morgan, of Twynyrodyn, one of the ward billeting officers.

Troedyrhiw

Bridge Street, Troedyrhiw, was decorated with flags and bunting to greet Pentrebachthe children from Deal when they arrived at 9.30 pm, and crowds of people lined the streets to welcome them.  The children, numbering 96, and varying in ages from four to fourteen, marched to the Welfare Hall, where they were provided with a meal.

The Rev. J. C. Bowen, during the proceedings, introduced the Rev. T Rees (vicar), who spoke to the children and said they were now among people who were kindly disposed to them, and were united to make them happy.  On behalf of the people of Troedyrhiw, and also of the churches and chapels, he extended to them a warm welcome.  Great credit is due to the chief billeting officer, Mr. D Rowlands, and his staff of assistant billeting officers for the smooth working of the arrangements for billeting the children.  There was evidence of fine teamwork, which included the chairman, Coun. B. M. Davies; Mr. M.Morgans, secretary; and Mr. G. Bryn Jones J.P., treasurer.  Valuable services were also rendered by the police and special constables, under the direction of Sergt. Pugh; also by the ambulance division (Capt. David Jones); the Auxiliary Fire Service, with Mr. Harry Lucas, officer in-charge; and the committee of the Welfare and Boys’ Club (chairman, Mr J. J. Palmer); and Mr Fred Bristowe (Boys’ Club secretary).

The members of the committees were busy on Monday writing letters to the parents of each evacuee child.

Evacuees arriving in Merthyr

Abercanaid

Although the contingent of the evacuee children, numbering 65, for the Abercanaid and Pentrebach area, from Deal, arrived at a late hour on Sunday, the villagers crowded the streets to give them a welcome to the area.  The chief billeting officer (Mr. D. W. Davies) had the arrangements so admirably planned, that within an hour of their arrival the children were in their new homes.  The billeting and welfare committee were all out to attend to the provision of a meal at the Abercanaid schools, and parents of the children have been informed of their safe arrival, and with the assurance that they will be well cared for during their stay.  Splendid services were rendered by the special constables, under the direction of P.C.’s Caleb Evans and R. Davies.

Merthyr Vale

Children evacuated from Deal arrived at the Gordon-Lennox Hall, Merthyr Vale, close on 9 p.m.  Outside the hall hundreds of local residents gave them a rousing welcome.  About 210 children, with their teachers and a few adults, were handed over to a competent staff of workers, drawn chiefly from the teaching profession, and the difficult task of placing the children in their new homes began.  All the clergy and ministers of the village, together with local members of the St. John Ambulance Brigade and the local police (with Inspector Young in charge) worked as one, and many of the children brought letters of introduction from their clergy to those of their new home.  Praise must be accorded the women helpers who served the children with a meal.  All worked together, and tribute must be paid to Mr. W. J. Williams, headmaster of Pantglas Boys’ School, and Mr. A James, headmaster of Merthyr Vale Boys’ School, through whose energy the children were all placed in good homes.

Many thanks to Tracy Barnard for transcribing this article.

Charlie Jones

by John Simkin

Charles (Charlie) Jones was born in Troedyrhiw 120 years ago today, on 12 December 1899. He joined Cardiff City in 1920 but after playing in only one first-team game he moved to Stockport County. In his first season with the club he helped them win the Third Division North championship (1921-22).

In March 1923 Jones joined Oldham Athletic in the First Division. However, he failed to prevent them being relegated at the end of the 1922-23 season. Jones scored 5 goals in 56 games before joining Nottingham Forest in 1925.

Jones had developed into a skilful winger and was selected to play for Wales against England on 1st March 1926. Jones had a great game in his country’s 3-1 victory.

In May 1928 Herbert Chapman paid a four-figure sum for Jones. Soon afterwards Chapman signed David Jack, Cliff Bastin and Alex James. They joined a team that included Herbert Roberts, Eddie Hapgood, Tom Parker, Bob John, Alf Baker, Dan Lewis, George Male, Jimmy Brain, Joe Hulme and Jack Lambert.

Herbert Chapman gradually adapted the “WM” formation that he had introduced when he first came to the club. Herbert Roberts was the centre-half who stayed in the penalty area to break down opposing attacks. Chapman used his full-backs, Eddie Hapgood and Tom Parker, to mark the wingers. This job had previously been done by the wing-halves, who now concentrated on looking after the inside-forwards. Bob John and Alf Baker were the men he used in these positions. Dan Lewis was the goalkeeper in what became known as “defence-in-depth”. The young George Male was often used if any of the full-backs or wing-halves were injured.

Pulling the centre-half back left a gap in midfield and so Chapman needed a link man to pick up the ball from defence and to pass it on quickly to the attackers. This was the job of Alex James, who had the ability to make accurate long low passes to goalscoring forwards like Charlie Jones, David Jack, Jimmy Brain, Joe Hulme, Cliff Bastin and Jack Lambert. Chapman told the other forwards to go fast, like “flying columns” and if possible to make for goal direct.

Success was not immediate and Arsenal finished in 14th place in the 1929-30 season. Jones missed only three league games that season. They did much better in the FA Cup. Arsenal beat Birmingham City (1-0), Middlesbrough (2-0), West Ham United (3-0) and Hull City (1-0) to reach the final against Chapman’s old club, Huddersfield Town. Unfortunately, he was not selected for this game.

Herbert Chapman decided to move Jones to right-half for the 1930-31 season. Arsenal won their first five matches and did not lose until the tenth game. Aston Villa took a narrow lead but in November, 1930, Arsenal beat them 5-2 at Highbury with Cliff Bastin and David Jack scoring twice and Jack Lambert once. Sheffield Wednesday now went on a good run and for a while had a narrow lead over Arsenal. However, a 2-0 win over Wednesday in March took them to the top of the league. This was followed by victories over Grimsby Town (9-1) and Leicester City (7-2).

When Arsenal beat Liverpool 3-1 at Highbury they became the first southern club to win the First Division title. The Gunners won 28 games and lost only four and obtained 66 points, six more than the previous best total and seven more than their nearest rivals, Aston Villa.

Jones won a second First Division championship medal when playing in 16 games in the 1932-33 season. Jones was even more important in the 1933-34 season when he played in 29 league games to win his third championship medal.

Charlie Jones retired from football in the summer of 1934. He had scored seven goals in 71 league games for Arsenal. He was briefly manager of Notts County before becoming a successful businessman.

Charlie Jones died in April 1966.

To read more of John Simkin’s excellent essays, please visit:
http://spartacus-educational.com

A Full House – part 1

by Barrie Jones

My paternal grandparents lived in 12 Union Street, Thomastown, Merthyr Tydfil.  My grandfather Caradog JONES was born in Troedyrhiw in 1896 and was one of five brothers who were coal miners, as was their father, grandfather and great-grandfather before them.  Crad’s great-grandfather John Evan JONES was born in Abergwili, Carmarthenshire, in 1814, moving to Duffryn, Pentrebach, sometime in the 1840s to work in the local Plymouth Work’s mines.

By contrast, my grandmother Margaret Ann nee BAILEY was born in Merthyr Tydfil in 1898, her great-grandfather Abraham BAILEY, was born in Bristol, Gloucestershire, in 1804, arriving in Merthyr town with his extended family sometime in the 1850s.  Abraham was a street hawker of earthenware goods, and for a while in the late 1850s to 1860s, ran a china and earthenware shop in 6 Victoria Street, Merthyr Tydfil.  For the most part, he and his sons Abraham and Thomas, and his son-in-laws were street traders.  My grandmother must have inherited the Bailey entrepreneurial gene, as to augment the family income and help purchase number 12 Union Street; she took in boarders, mainly ‘travellers’ and ‘theatricals’.  My father once commented that coming home from school each day he was never sure where in the house he would be sleeping.

12 Union Street is one of 23 terraced properties in the northern portion of the long street that runs at right angles to the top of Church Street.  The southern portion of the street contains the imposing Courtland Terrace.  The dual terraces of Union Street leads off Church Street up to the boundary wall of the now derelict St Tydfil’s Hospital, formally the Merthyr Tydfil Union building, the ‘Workhouse’.  A terrace numbered 1 to 11 on the left hand side and a terrace numbered 12 to 23 on the right hand side.  All the houses were three bedroomed apart from numbers 1 and 23 which had extended frontages on Church Street and were much bigger properties.  Number 12 being an end of terrace property was flanked by the lane leading up to Thomastown Park and thence on to Queen’s Road.

Union Street – Coronation Party 1937

Union Street is in the Thomastown Conservation Area, the first area to be designated in Merthyr Tydfil.  Built from the 1850s onwards on a grid-iron pattern, Thomastown has the largest group of early Victorian buildings in Wales.  Built for the middle classes, the professional and commercial people of the town, its best examples are Church Street, Thomas Street, Union Street (Courtland Terrace) and Newcastle Street.  This area (Thomastown) striking toward the higher and open ground of the ‘Court Estate’ was the first exclusively residential area to be created by those in the top stratum of Merthyr’s population.  Thomastown was the forerunner of what was to occur at the end of the 19th century in the northern part of the town between the parklands of Cyfarthfa Castle and Penydarren House.  These later developments contained even larger and more prestigious properties.

The two terraces of Union Street must have been one of the later developments.  The 1876 Ordnance Survey Map shows only the single terrace of numbers 1 to 11.  The 1881 census records both terraces but 7 of the 23 properties are shown as uninhabited, (numbers 3, 6, 7, 15, 16, 17 and 18), indicating that the development of the street was barely finished in 1881.

The census returns for number 12 clearly shows that the occupiers in the early years were part of Merthyr’s ‘middle’ class:

3rd April 1881 – Margaret PRICE, retired publican

5th April 1891 – James JONES, decorator

31st March 1901 – Thomas GUNTER, boot and shoe dealer

2nd April 1911 – Thomas GUNTER, boot and shoe dealer

(Thomas GUNTER was the manager of the Leeds Boot Warehouse, no. 33 Victoria Street and was a leading figure in both the Merthyr Chamber of Trade and St. David’s Parish Church.)

To be continued…..

Pilgrimage to Cwm-y-Glo

Eighty years ago today, on 13 July 1939, a special service was held in the ruins of Cwm-y-Glo Chapel to mark the 300th anniversary of Non-conformity in Wales. The Merthyr Express, dated 15 July 1939, reported the service, and is transcribed below.

PILGRIMAGE TO CWM-Y-GLO

Welsh Independents’ Service in Chapel Ruins

Delegates from 55 churches attached to the North Glamorgan Association of Independents on Thursday made a pilgrimage to the ruins of Cwm-y-Glo Chapel, the secret worshipping place of Welsh Dissenters of the 17th Century.

The pilgrimage was part of the celebration of the 300th anniversary of Non-conformity in Wales, and the pilgrimage coincided with the quarterly meeting of the North Glamorgan Association at Ynysgau Congregational Church.

An impressive service was conducted around the ruins of the historic chapel and was attended by about 300 people.

Lying in a secluded spot on the mountainside overlooking the Borough, Cwm-y-Glo was built in 1669 by the Dissenters who had previously held their meetings at Blaencanaid Farm nearby. Blaencanaid became liable to raids by Government spies and soldiers, and for 20 years Cwm-y-Glo was used as a secret worshipping place until 1689 when the Toleration Act gave religious freedom to all Non-conformists.

Services were continued for many years afterwards until the members formed themselves into two groups – one going to Cefn Coed and the other to Ynysgau Chapel.

At the service at Cwm-y-Glo on Thursday an address was given by the Rev J T Rogers, pastor of Zoar Welsh Congregational Church, Merthyr, on “The Struggles of the Dissenters in the Merthyr area and the history of their worshipping places”. Mr Thomas Edwards of Edwardsville, president of the North Glamorgan Association, presided and prayer was offered by the Rev Watkin Jones.

Principal John Morgan Jones of the Bangor Independent College proposed a vote of thanks to the Rev J T Rogers and Mr W T Owen, Director of Education, seconded. The service concluded with the Benediction given by the Rev Cyril Bowen, Troedyrhiw.

ASSOCIATIONS CONFERENCE

A conference was held at Ynysgau Chapel in the morning, when Mr Thos. Edwards presided. Reports of the activities of the association during the past quarter were given by the Rev J T Rogers, secretary of the association.

The Rev H P Hughes, Cwmbach, was elected missionary secretary for the association and the Rev Glannant Jones, Aberdare, was appointed secretary of the Peace Committee.

Following the conference a service was held when the preacher was the Rev J R Salmon, Pontlottyn. Others who took part in the service were the Rev W Walters, Abernant; the Revs D C Jenkins, W Morse and W R Davies.

During the conference the Rev J T Rogers, who has been the association’s secretary for the past 12 years, was presented with a typewriter in recognition of his services. The presentation was made by Mr J Lewis, Aberdare, and Mr Rogers suitably responded.

A public meeting was held in the evening when the mayor, Mr Isaac Edwards, J.P. presided. The Rev T Glyndwr Jones, Dowlais, took the devotions, and addresses were given by Mr R Hopkin Morris, M.A., Director of the West Regional BBC Station, Cardiff, and Principal J Morgan Jones M.A.

A photograph of the service at the ruins of Cwm-y-Glo Chapel

Memories of Old Merthyr

We continue our serialisation of the memories of Merthyr in the 1830’s by an un-named correspondent to the Merthyr Express, courtesy of Michael Donovan.

To return to the coach journey, the Bridgewater Arms was then kept by Mr George Roach, who afterwards move to the Castle at Merthyr,and after the change of horses they came to Quakers’ Yard. Here a slight halt was made, it might have been put down to kindness towards the animals, but the hostelry also supplied refreshments for the inner man. Whatever may be the reason, a long and steep hill had then to be ascended. After passing Pantannas the ascent modified, and on arriving at Nantddu turnpike, the pace could be again increased.

The Nantddu Turnpike (or Tollbooth) in Edwardsville. Courtesy of the Alan George Archive

A run of about two miles after this brought us to a pleasant cottage on  the right hand side, owned and occupied by a Mr Stephens, and the Mount Pleasant Public House, kept by John Griffiths, who afterwards moved to the Star opposite the Old Church in High Street, was close by on the other side of the road.

The drive through the woods up to Troedyrhiw was a pleasant one. The road just before entering Troedyrhiw has been altered a little for the making of the Taff Vale Railway, and after passing Troedyrhiw for about 1½ miles the road was subsequently diverted by Mr Anthony Hill. After crossing the line of the railroad forming the connection at present between the Taff Vale Railway and the South Duffryn Coal Pits, it kept to the east of the present road, passing close in front of Duffryn Cottage, the east end of Taibach and Pentrebach Rows, through what was part of the Forge Yard, then past Pentrebach House (where I believe Mr Probert now resides), and came out at a little above Plymouth Lodge.

A drawing of the Plymouth Lodge in the 1820’s. Photo courtesy of the Alan George Archive

From here there has not been any deviation of route, but until the Britannia Public House on the right-hand side, there was not a single cottage on either side. There was a bridge over the road for the conveying of mine rubbish between the Dowlais Branch Bridge and the Britannia similar to one passed under at Pencaebach. About a hundred yards on towards the High Street, and on the other side of the road stood the Bell, and adjoining the Bell was the Plymouth Tollgate. On the opposite side of the road, but just before coming to the Bell there was an open space to the town road that was used as place where coal was delivered; which with some others will be alluded to to exemplify the arrangements at the time.

After coming through the Plymouth gate there were cottages on both sides until the Plymouth watercourse came so close to the road as to prevent their being built on the left hand. Where the Taff Station was at the opening of the railway and for years afterwards, there was nothing but rubbish tips, but they were not high, and the road with a ford through the river went from Plymouth Street across by Rhydycar. Perhaps this was the very Rhyd (a ford), but the place called Rhydycar was on the side of the canal bank, a house and mine pit with a winding engine. It was doubtless a parish road for Mr Bruce, the grandfather of the present Lord Aberdare, when Stipendiary of Merthyr, passed that way home to his residence in Mountain Ash.

A section of the remarkable 1836 map of Merthyr by John Wood showing the Plymouth Street area as mentioned in this article.

 

To be continued at a later date….