Hirwaun
Encyclopedia
Hirwaun is the name of a village
at the northwest end of the Cynon Valley
in the County Borough
of Rhondda Cynon Taf, South Wales
. The village of Hirwaun is 4 miles (6.4 km) from the town of Aberdare
, and comes under Aberdare for postal reasons. According to the 2001 census
, Hirwaun has a population
of 4,851 people.
of Cyfarthfa, in whose family it remained until closure in 1859. The ironworks' blast furnace
s required coke, which spurred an increase in local coal mining
activities. Even after the ironworks closed, coal mining continued.
Following the miners' strike, however, the only deep coal mine left in Wales was Tower Colliery
, which closed down, was bought by its workers and reopened, It closed for a final time in early 2008.
The Brecon Beacons
National Park
lies just on the northern edge of the village.
Unlike most South Wales Coalfield
villages, Hirwaun consists of a vast array of different architectural housing styles, often cheek-by-jowl in small blocks. This is due to development to satisfy different needs at different times, with much gentrification
taking place in the last few decades. Currently the patch of green land known as Hirwaun Common is being built on, a development of modern family homes being built. Hirwaun hence has a discontinuous, hotch-potch feel to it that marks it out as unusual in the South Wales Valleys
.
detonation. Their demise marked the end of a major landmark in the Cynon Valley
.
The Cardiff Arms in Hirwaun was often used as a base for meetings, and during one such meeting a fire place located on the first floor of the property was smashed in a fit of anger, this was then replaced by a 'Hirwaun & Cyfathfa' fire place, with details of the steel works and the Crawshay family
, this fire place was removed in recent years by persons unknown.
With all the various public houses in Hirwaun the Cardiff Arms was the hotel that used by the Gentry, the Lamb and the Globe by Drovers.
To the left hand side of the Cardiff Arms is the centre of town, and the war memorial with the Hirwaun Rugby Club behind and then the Police Station to the left again.
Over the years Hirwaun has seen the closure of its railway station on the Vale of Neath Railway
along with numerous public houses.
Announced in November 2009 the Welsh Assembly Government has asked Network Rail to conduct a feasibility study on reopening the line to Hirwaun for passenger services. Network Rail is expected to clear the line of vegatation and assess the track bed before publishing its report in 2010, before any business cases to reopen the line is then developed.
It was announced in March 2011 that the Welsh Assembly Government’s 2011-12 capital programme would include the re-opening of the line to Hirwaun as part of the Cynon Valley Scheme. However, there is currently no information on when the work will commence and when the line will re-open.
Hirwaun's illustrious past has since passed, with the closure of the ironworks and now the coal mine.
is situated in the centre if the village and is part of the ecclesiastical Parish of Hirwaun. It was opened by the Bishop of Llandaff
in July 1858.
The sister church in the parish is dedicated to Saint Winefred
and is in Penywaun
.
Village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...
at the northwest end of the Cynon Valley
Cynon Valley
The Cynon Valley , is a famous former coal mining valley within the South Wales Valleys of Wales. The Cynon Valley lies between the other mining Valley of Rhondda and the iron industrial Valley of the Merthyr Valley. Its main towns are Aberdare located North of the Valley and Mountain Ash located...
in the County Borough
County borough
County borough is a term introduced in 1889 in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland , to refer to a borough or a city independent of county council control. They were abolished by the Local Government Act 1972 in England and Wales, but continue in use for lieutenancy and shrievalty in...
of Rhondda Cynon Taf, 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...
. The village of Hirwaun is 4 miles (6.4 km) from the town of Aberdare
Aberdare
Aberdare is an industrial town in Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales, situated at the confluence of the Rivers Dare and Cynon. The population at the census was 31,705...
, and comes under Aberdare for postal reasons. According to the 2001 census
United Kingdom Census 2001
A nationwide census, known as Census 2001, was conducted in the United Kingdom on Sunday, 29 April 2001. This was the 20th UK Census and recorded a resident population of 58,789,194....
, Hirwaun has a population
Population
A population is all the organisms that both belong to the same group or species and live in the same geographical area. The area that is used to define a sexual population is such that inter-breeding is possible between any pair within the area and more probable than cross-breeding with individuals...
of 4,851 people.
History and Background
Hirwaun has an industrial background centring on the Hirwaun Ironworks. The ironworks was in already existence during the late 18th century and passed through a succession of owners before being purchased in 1819 by William CrawshayWilliam Crawshay
William Crawshay may refer to:*William Crawshay I , South Wales industrialist*William Crawshay II , his son, owner of Cyfarthfa Ironworks in Merthyr Tydfil...
of Cyfarthfa, in whose family it remained until closure in 1859. The ironworks' blast furnace
Blast furnace
A blast furnace is a type of metallurgical furnace used for smelting to produce industrial metals, generally iron.In a blast furnace, fuel and ore and flux are continuously supplied through the top of the furnace, while air is blown into the bottom of the chamber, so that the chemical reactions...
s required coke, which spurred an increase in local 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,...
activities. Even after the ironworks closed, coal mining continued.
Following the miners' strike, however, the only deep coal mine left in Wales was Tower Colliery
Tower Colliery
Tower Colliery is the oldest continuously working deep-coal mine in the United Kingdom, and possibly the world, and the last mine of its kind to remain in the South Wales Valleys...
, which closed down, was bought by its workers and reopened, It closed for a final time in early 2008.
The Brecon Beacons
Brecon Beacons
The Brecon Beacons is a mountain range in South Wales. In a narrow sense, the name refers to the range of popular peaks south of Brecon, including South Wales' highest mountain, Pen y Fan, and which together form the central section of the Brecon Beacons National Park...
National Park
National park
A national park is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state declares or owns. Although individual nations designate their own national parks differently A national park is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state declares or...
lies just on the northern edge of the village.
Unlike most 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:...
villages, Hirwaun consists of a vast array of different architectural housing styles, often cheek-by-jowl in small blocks. This is due to development to satisfy different needs at different times, with much gentrification
Gentrification
Gentrification and urban gentrification refer to the changes that result when wealthier people acquire or rent property in low income and working class communities. Urban gentrification is associated with movement. Consequent to gentrification, the average income increases and average family size...
taking place in the last few decades. Currently the patch of green land known as Hirwaun Common is being built on, a development of modern family homes being built. Hirwaun hence has a discontinuous, hotch-potch feel to it that marks it out as unusual in the South Wales Valleys
South Wales Valleys
The South Wales Valleys are a number of industrialised valleys in South Wales, stretching from eastern Carmarthenshire in the west to western Monmouthshire in the east and from the Heads of the Valleys in the north to the lower-lying, pastoral country of the Vale of Glamorgan and the coastal plain...
.
The tower blocks
Hirwaun made local news in May 2004 when its two 1960s built tower blocks were demolished by dynamiteDynamite
Dynamite is an explosive material based on nitroglycerin, initially using diatomaceous earth , or another absorbent substance such as powdered shells, clay, sawdust, or wood pulp. Dynamites using organic materials such as sawdust are less stable and such use has been generally discontinued...
detonation. Their demise marked the end of a major landmark in the Cynon Valley
Cynon Valley
The Cynon Valley , is a famous former coal mining valley within the South Wales Valleys of Wales. The Cynon Valley lies between the other mining Valley of Rhondda and the iron industrial Valley of the Merthyr Valley. Its main towns are Aberdare located North of the Valley and Mountain Ash located...
.
The Crawshay Family and Landmarks
The Crawshay family were powerful, almost all powerful in the production of steel (the Hirwaun works had produced cannons used on the HMS Victory to name but one historical reference). The family owned a large portion of Hirwaun and even used their own money to pay employees 'Hirwaun Guinea'.The Cardiff Arms in Hirwaun was often used as a base for meetings, and during one such meeting a fire place located on the first floor of the property was smashed in a fit of anger, this was then replaced by a 'Hirwaun & Cyfathfa' fire place, with details of the steel works and the Crawshay family
Robert Thompson Crawshay
Robert Thompson Crawshay was a British ironmaster.-Life:Crawshay, youngest son of William Crawshay by his second wife, Bella Thompson, was born at Cyfarthfa Ironworks. He was educated at Dr. Prichard's school at Llandaff, and from a very early age manifested interest in his father's ironworks, and...
, this fire place was removed in recent years by persons unknown.
With all the various public houses in Hirwaun the Cardiff Arms was the hotel that used by the Gentry, the Lamb and the Globe by Drovers.
To the left hand side of the Cardiff Arms is the centre of town, and the war memorial with the Hirwaun Rugby Club behind and then the Police Station to the left again.
Over the years Hirwaun has seen the closure of its railway station on the Vale of Neath Railway
Vale of Neath Railway
The Vale of Neath Railway was a broad gauge railway line from Neath to Merthyr Tydfil, in Glamorgan, Wales, and also operated the Swansea and Neath Railway which gave it access to the docks at Swansea...
along with numerous public houses.
Announced in November 2009 the Welsh Assembly Government has asked Network Rail to conduct a feasibility study on reopening the line to Hirwaun for passenger services. Network Rail is expected to clear the line of vegatation and assess the track bed before publishing its report in 2010, before any business cases to reopen the line is then developed.
It was announced in March 2011 that the Welsh Assembly Government’s 2011-12 capital programme would include the re-opening of the line to Hirwaun as part of the Cynon Valley Scheme. However, there is currently no information on when the work will commence and when the line will re-open.
Hirwaun's illustrious past has since passed, with the closure of the ironworks and now the coal mine.
St Lleurwg's Church
Saint Lleurwg's parish churchParish church
A parish church , in Christianity, is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish, the basic administrative unit of episcopal churches....
is situated in the centre if the village and is part of the ecclesiastical Parish of Hirwaun. It was opened by the Bishop of Llandaff
Bishop of Llandaff
The Bishop of Llandaff is the Ordinary of the Church in Wales Diocese of Llandaff.-Area of authority:The diocese covers most of the County of Glamorgan. The Bishop's seat is located in the Cathedral Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul , in the village of Llandaff, just north-west of the City of...
in July 1858.
The sister church in the parish is dedicated to Saint Winefred
Winefride
thumb|right|300px|St Winifred's Well, [[Woolston, north Shropshire|Woolston]], ShropshireSaint Winefride was a legendary 7th-century Welsh noblewoman who was canonized after dying for the sake of her chastity...
and is in Penywaun
Penywaun
Penywaun is a village in the Cynon Valley situated between Aberdare and Hirwaun, in the county borough of Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales.-Background:The population of Penywaun is approximately 3,300....
.