| Ordnance Survey |
OS grid referenceThe British national grid reference system is a system of geographic grid references commonly used in Great Britain, different from using latitude and longitude....
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SJ303438 |
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CountryA constituent country is a country that is part of a larger entity, such as a sovereign state or supranational body.- Use by international bodies :...
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WalesWales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom, bordered by England to its east, and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It is also an elective region of the European Union...
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Principal areaFor local government purposes, Wales is divided into 22 unitary authority areas, which are responsible for the provision of all local government services, including education, social work, environment and roads services. Below these in some areas there are community councils, which cover specific...
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Wrexham County Borough |
Ceremonial countyThe Preserved counties of Wales are the current areas used in Wales for the ceremonial purposes of Lieutenancy and Shrievalty. They are based on the counties created by the Local Government Act 1972 and used for local government and other purposes between 1974 and 1996.-Usage:The Local Government ...
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ClwydClwyd is a preserved county of Wales, situated in the North East, bordering England and Cheshire to its East, Shropshire to the South-East, Gwynedd to its immediate West and Powys to the South. It additionally shares a border with the metropolitan county of Merseyside along the River Dee. Between...
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DenbighshireDenbighshire is a county in north-east Wales. It is named after the historic county of Denbighshire, but has substantially different borders. Denbighshire has the distinction of being the oldest inhabited part of Wales...
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| Post office and telephone |
| Post town A post town is a required part of all postal addresses in the United Kingdom, and a basic unit of the postal delivery system. Including the correct post town in the address increases the chances of a letter or parcel being delivered on time.-Organisation:...
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WREXHAM |
Postal districtThe postal codes used in the United Kingdom are known as postcodes. They are alphanumeric and were introduced by the Royal Mail over a 15-year period from October 1959 to 1974. A full postcode is known as a "postcode unit" and usually corresponds to a limited number of addresses or a single large...
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LL14 6xx |
| Dialling code The UK telephone numbering plan, also known as the National Telephone Numbering Plan, is the system used for assigning telephone numbers in the United Kingdom...
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01978 |
| Politics |
| UK Parliament: |
Clwyd SouthClwyd South is a constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom . The constituency was created in 1997, and it elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post method of election....
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National Assembly for WalesThe National Assembly for Wales is a devolved assembly with power to make legislation in Wales. The Assembly comprises 60 members, who are known as Assembly Members, or AMs...
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Clwyd SouthClwyd South is a constituency of the National Assembly for Wales. It elects one Assembly Member by the first past the post method of election...
& North WalesNorth Wales is an electoral region of the National Assembly for Wales, consisting of nine constituencies. The region elects thirteen members, nine directly elected constituency members and four additional members...
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| European Parliament The European Parliament is the directly elected parliamentary institution of the European Union . Together with the Council of the European Union , it forms the bicameral legislative branch of the Union's institutions and has been described as one of the most powerful legislatures in the world...
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Wales Wales is a constituency of the European Parliament. It currently elects 4 MEPs using the d'Hondt method of party-list proportional representation.- Boundaries :...
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Ruabon is a village and
communityA community is the lowest level of local government structure in Wales, corresponding to a civil parish in England.Until 1974, Wales was divided into civil parishes. These were abolished by section 20 of the Local Government Act 1972, and replaced by communities by section 27 of the same Act. The...
in the
county boroughCounty 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. The Local Government Act 1972 abolished them in England and Wales, but they are still used in the Republic of Ireland and Northern...
of
WrexhamWrexham is a county borough centred on the town of Wrexham in north-east Wales. The county borough has a population of 130,200 inhabitants. Just under half of the population live either within the town of Wrexham or its surrounding conurbation of urban villages. The remainder living to the south...
in
WalesWales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom, bordered by England to its east, and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It is also an elective region of the European Union...
with a population of 2,400 with more than 80% of the population having been born in Wales and 13.6% speak Welsh . It also has a thriving school called
Ysgol RhiwabonYsgol Rhiwabon is a comprehensive school in Ruabon, Wrexham, Wales for 11 - 18 year olds. The current headteacher is Angela Williams. In 2003 the Estyn Report concluded that, Ysgol Rhiwabon provides good opportunities for pupils...
.
Early history
There is evidence that a settlement existed in Ruabon in the
Bronze AgeThe Bronze Age of a culture is the period when the most advanced metalworking in that culture utilised bronze. This could either have been based on the local smelting of copper and tin from ores, or trading for bronze from production areas elsewhere...
. In 1898 building works in the centre of Ruabon exposed a
cistA cist or kist , from the , is a small stone-built coffin-like box or ossuary used to hold the bodies of the dead. Examples can be found all over the world....
or stone urn containing
crematedCremation is the process of reducing human remains to basic chemical compounds in the form of gases and bone fragments. This is accomplished through high temperatures and vaporization....
human remains dating from 2000 years BC. In 1917 the remains of a Bronze Age
round barrowRound barrows are one of the most common types of archaeological monuments. Although concentrated in Europe they are found in many parts of the world because of their simple construction and universal purpose....
was discovered on the playing fields of
Ruabon Grammar SchoolThe Ruabon Grammar School was situated in Ruabon, Denbighshire in north-east Wales. It provided a grammar school education to boys in the parishes of Ruabon and Erbistock....
which contained human remains, a
flint arrowheadAn arrowhead is point of an arrow, or a shape resembling such a point; as archaeological artifacts arrowheads are a subclass of projectile points....
and a bronze axe.
Overlooking Ruabon is
Y Gardden, an ancient
hill fortA hill fort is a type of fortified refuge or defended settlement, located to exploit a rise in elevation for defensive advantage. They are typically European and of the Bronze and Iron Ages...
surrounded by circular ditches, dating back to the
Iron AgeIn archaeology, the Iron Age is the prehistoric period in any area during which cutting tools and weapons were mainly made of iron or steel. The adoption of this material coincided with other changes in society, including differing agricultural practices, religious beliefs and artistic styles.The...
.
The old parish
The ancient
parishA parish is a territorial unit that was usually historically served by a local church. This administrative unit is typically found in Roman Catholic, Anglican Communion, the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Church of Sweden, United Methodist, and Presbyterian churches...
of Ruabon (derived from the
WelshWelsh is a member of the Brythonic branch of Celtic spoken natively in Wales, in England by some along the Welsh border and in the Welsh immigrant colony in the Chubut Valley in Argentine Patagonia....
Rhiw Fabon, hillside of
MabonMabon may relate to:*The Autumnal Equinox festival of the Neopagan Wheel of the Year*the god Maponos, the "British Apollo"** Mabon ap Modron*Saint Mabena*a Welsh given name** William "Mabon" Abraham , Welsh politician...
, a local Welsh saint), was made up of the townships of: Ruabon (which also included the hamlets of Belan, Bodylltyn,
HafodHafod is a district of the city of Swansea, South Wales and lies just outside the city centre in the north of the city. It falls within the Landore ward.The word hafod is Welsh for 'summer dwelling' or 'farm'....
and Rhuddallt); Cristionydd Cynrig (also known as
Y Dref Fawr or
Cristionydd Kenrick in
EnglishEnglish is a West Germanic language that developed in England during the Anglo-Saxon era. As a result of the military, economic, scientific, political, and cultural influence of the British Empire during the 18th, 19th, and early 20th centuries, and of the United States since the mid 20th century,...
); Coed Cristionydd; Cristionydd Fechan (also known as
Y Dref Fechan or
Dynhinlle Uchaf); Dinhinlle Isaf; Morton Anglicorum (the “English Morton” or Morton Below the dyke); and Morton Wallichorum (the “Welsh Morton” or Morton Above the dyke). An older English spelling, Rhuabon, can sometimes be seen.
In 1844, Coed Cristionydd and part of Cristionydd Cynrig became part of the new parish of
RhosymedreRhosymedre is a village near Ruabon in north east Wales. The village is within the county borough of Wrexham.The Anglican church is dedicated to St John the Evangelist, which was consecrated in 1837, and is part of the Diocese of St Asaph...
; and Cristionydd Fechan and Moreton Above became part of the new parish of Rhosllannerchrugog.
Later in 1879, Dynhinlle Uchaf and the remainder of Cristionydd Cynrig became the new parish of
PenycaePenycae is a village and community in the county borough of Wrexham in Wales.- History :The village was part of the ancient parish of Ruabon and the district was known as Dynhinlle Uchaf ....
.
Ruabon was in the historic county of
DenbighshireDenbighshire is a county in north-east Wales. It is named after the historic county of Denbighshire, but has substantially different borders. Denbighshire has the distinction of being the oldest inhabited part of Wales...
, and between 1889 and 1974 was administered by
Denbighshire County CouncilDenbighshire County Council is the governing body for the principal area of Denbighshire , one of the administrative subdivisions of Wales....
. From 1974 until 1996 it was administered as part of
ClwydClwyd is a preserved county of Wales, situated in the North East, bordering England and Cheshire to its East, Shropshire to the South-East, Gwynedd to its immediate West and Powys to the South. It additionally shares a border with the metropolitan county of Merseyside along the River Dee. Between...
. From 1996 it has been administered as part of the County Borough of Wrexham.
Wild Wales
In the 1850s the
EnglishThe English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity as a people is of early medieval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn....
writer
George BorrowGeorge Henry Borrow was an English author who wrote novels and travelogues based on his own experiences around Europe. Over the course of his wanderings, he developed a close affinity with the Romani people of Europe. They figure prominently in his work...
toured Wales and wrote an account of his journey in the book “
Wild WalesWild Wales is a travel book by the English Victorian gentleman writer George Borrow, , first published in 1862.- Background :The book, to give it its full title is 'Wild Wales : Its people, language and scenery'...
”:
- “Rhiwabon … a large village about half way between Wrexham
Wrexham is a town in Wales. It is the administrative centre of the wider Wrexham County Borough, and the largest town in North Wales, located to the east of the region. It is situated between the Welsh mountains and the lower Dee Valley close to the border with Cheshire, England...
and LlangollenLlangollen is a small town in Denbighshire, north-east Wales, situated on the River Dee and on the edge of the Berwyn mountains.- History :...
. I observed in this place nothing remarkable, but an ancient church. My way from hence lay nearly west. I ascended a hill, from the top of which I looked down into a smoky valley. I descended, passing by a great many collieries, in which I observed grimy men working amidst smoke and flame. At the bottom of the hill near a bridge I turned round. A ridge to the east particularly struck my attention; it was covered with dusky edificeEDIFICE is the European B2B interest group that represents the majority of the European Electronics Industry including companies with interests in computing, electronics, and telecommunications....
s, from which proceeded thundering sounds, and puffs of smoke. A woman passed me going towards Rhiwabon; I pointed to the ridge and asked its name; I spoke English. The woman shook her head and replied "Dim Saesneg" (English: "No English"). "This is as it should be", said I to myself; "I now feel I am in Wales."
The Wynns of Wynnstay
The Williams-Wynn family were major landowners in
NorthNorth Wales is the northernmost unofficial region of Wales, bordered to the south by Mid Wales and to the east by England.It comprises the island of Anglesey, the Llŷn peninsula and the Snowdonia mountain range, together with the catchments of the Rivers Conwy, Clwyd and Dee with the River Dyfi...
and
Mid WalesMid Wales is the name given to the area of Wales lying between North and South Wales. Like the other regions of Wales, it has no official status as a region and therefore has no precise boundaries. It borders England via the Welsh Marches to the east and the Irish Sea via Cardigan Bay to the west...
and also across the English border. For centuries they had a great influence on the political, cultural, social and literary life of Wales. Although the family owned several houses throughout Wales, the seat of the family was at
WynnstayWynnstay was a famous estate in Wales, the family seat of the Wynns. It is located at Ruabon, near Wrexham.During the 17th century, Sir John Wynn, 5th Baronet inherited the Watstay Estate through his marriage to Jane Evans , and renamed it the Wynnstay Estate...
in Ruabon. The fifth
baronetA baronet or the rare female equivalent, a baronetess , is the holder of a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown known as a baronetcy...
became so powerful that he was given the unofficial title of “
Prince of WalesPrince of Wales is a title traditionally granted to the Heir Apparent to the reigning monarch of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland...
”.
Wynnstay had passed into the possession of the Wynn family (as they were then known) through marriage. The estate, originally known simply as Rhiwabon
, was owned by the Eyton family who later changed its name to "Watstay". On inheriting the estate, Sir Watkin Williams-Wynn took on the additional surname of Wynn and commissioned the building of a new mansionA mansion is a very large dwelling house. U.S. realtors define a mansion as a dwelling of over . A traditional European mansion was defined as a house which contained a ballroom and tens of bedrooms...
, to be known as Wynnstay
, to replace the original building.
The arms of the Williams-Wynn family show an eagle with the Welsh motto "Eryr Eryrod Eryri" which translates into English as "The Eagle of Eagles of the Land of Eagles", the "Land of Eagles" being
SnowdoniaSnowdonia is a region in north Wales and a national park of in area. It was the first to be designated of the three National Parks in Wales, in 1951.-Name and extent:...
and reflecting the family's origins in that part of Wales.
One of Wales’ greatest harpists was under the
patronagePatronage is the support, encouragement, privilege, or financial aid that an organization or individual bestows to another. In the history of art, arts patronage refers to the support that kings or popes have provided to musicians, painters, and sculptors...
of the Williams-Wynn’s.
John ParryJohn Parry , known as Parry Ddall, Rhiwabon was born in the Llŷn Peninsula, Caernarfonshire in Wales, and was blind from birth....
(“John Parry Ddall, Rhiwabon”) was born in about 1710 on Pen Llyn and was blind from birth. He lived on the Wynnstay estate but spent much of his time at the family’s
London[]London is the capital of England and the United Kingdom. It has been a major settlement for two millennia, and the history of London goes back to its founding by the Romans, when it was named Londinium. London's core, the ancient City of London, the 'square mile', retains its medieval boundaries...
home where he performed on the Welsh
triple harpThe Welsh triple harp is a type of harp using three rows of strings instead of the common single row. The Welsh triple harp today is found mainly among players of traditional Welsh folk music.-History:...
for London's cultural elite.
Parts of the grounds were landscaped by
Capability BrownLancelot Brown , more commonly known as Capability Brown, was an English landscape architect. He is remembered as "the last of the great English eighteenth-century artists to be accorded his due", and "England's greatest gardener". He designed over 170 parks, many of which still endure...
and the park was regarded as one of the largest and most important in Wales, containing several important monuments; a column by
James WyattJames Wyatt RA , was an English architect, a rival of Robert Adam in the neoclassical style, who far outdid Adam in his work in the neo-Gothic style.-Early classical career:...
, erected in 1790 as a memorial to the fourth baronet; the Nant y Belan Tower and the
Waterloo TowerIn the Battle of Waterloo forces of the French Empire under Napoleon Bonaparte and Michel Ney were defeated by those of the Seventh Coalition, including an Anglo-Allied army under the command of the Duke of Wellington and a Prussian army under the command of Gebhard von Blücher...
.
In 1858 the ‘old’ Wynnstay was destroyed by fire, with many valuable manuscripts being lost. Sir Watkin built a new mansion on the same site. During the Second World War the hall and part of the park became the
headquartersHeadquarters denotes the location where most, if not all, of the important functions of an organization are coordinated. The corporate headquarters is the entity at the top of a corporation taking full responsibility managing all business activities...
for the
Royal Engineers SurveyThe Corps of Royal Engineers, usually just called the Royal Engineers , and commonly known as the Sappers, is one of the corps of the British Army. It provides combat engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces...
. A specialist branch of the RE responsible for providing training for
sapperA sapper or combat engineer is an individual soldier who performs a variety of combat engineering duties. Such tasks typically include bridge-building, laying or clearing minefields, demolitions, field defences, and building, road and airfield construction and repair...
s who staffed the mobile Map Production units which were part of all
British ArmyThe British Army is the land armed forces branch of the British Armed Forces. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdoms of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England and Scotland and...
operations. RE Survey moved out in 1946. There was also a fire in the stables adjoining the hall during the Second World War while the hall was used as
billetA billet is a term for living quarters to which a soldier is assigned to sleep. Historically, it referred to a private dwelling that was required to accept the soldier....
ing for officers.
Owing to heavy death duties, the Williams-Wynns moved from Wynnstay to nearby Plas Belan, a house in the estate grounds, and finally left Ruabon forever in 1948, severing a link with Ruabon of over two centuries. Lady 'Daisy' Williams Wynn continued to live at Belan for much longer than 1948. Much of the estate was put up for sale and the house became a
private schoolPrivate schools, also known as independent schools, are not administered by local, state or national governments; thus, they retain the right to select their students and are funded in whole or in part by charging their students tuition, rather than relying on public funds...
,
Lindisfarne CollegeLindisfarne College was a private school or independent school. It was founded in 1891 in Westcliff-on-Sea in Essex, England. In 1940 Lindisfarne College moved from Westcliff to nearby Creeksea Place, but during World War II the building was requisitioned by the military and the school transferred...
(which took its name from the island of
LindisfarneLindisfarne is a tidal island off the north-east coast of England also known as Holy Island, the name of the civil parish. The name Lindisfarne derives from Farne meaning "retreat" and Lindis, a small tidal river adjacent to the island. It has a population of 162...
in
NorthumberlandNorthumberland is a ceremonial county and unitary district in the North East of England. It borders Cumbria to the west, County Durham to the south and Tyne and Wear to the south east, as well as having a border with the Scottish Borders council area to the north, and nearly eighty miles of North...
although it had no connection with the island). The school itself closed in bankruptcy in 1994 and the house was converted into luxury flats.
The organ at Wynnstay was built by
John SnetzlerJohn Snetzler was an Organ Builder of Swiss Origin who worked mostly in England.He was born in Schaffhausen, in 1710 and died in Schaffhausen, 28 September 1785...
in 1774 for Sir Watkin Williams-Wynns London home in
St. James's SquareSt. James's Square is the only square in the exclusive St James's district of the City of Westminster. It has predominantly Georgian and neo-Georgian architecture and a private garden in the centre...
but was moved to Wynnstay in 1863. During the sale of Wynnstay and its contents, the organ, and many other treasures, were acquired for the nation and are now displayed at the
National MuseumNational Museum Cardiff is a museum and art gallery in Cardiff, Wales. It is part of the Edwardian civic complex of Cathays Park, which includes the City Hall, Law Courts, Cardiff University and Cathays Park Building, which is a Welsh Assembly building and the former Welsh Office building.The...
in
CardiffCardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for many national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for Wales. According to recent estimates, the...
.
The woodlands within the estate were taken over by the
Forestry CommissionThe Forestry Commission is a non-ministerial government department responsible for forestry in Great Britain. Its mission is to protect and expand Britain's forests and woodlands and increase their value to society and the environment....
and the trees were felled and replaced by conifers. Further destruction took place when parts of the estate grounds were built over during the construction of the Ruabon
bypassBypass may refer to:*Bypass , in computing, circumventing security features in hacking, or taking a different approach to an issue in troubleshooting...
.
Industry
The Ruabon area was once heavily industrialised with large deposits of
ironIron is a metallic chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. Iron is a group 8 and period 4 element and is therefore classified as a transition metal. Iron and iron alloys are by far the most common metals and the most common ferromagnetic materials in everyday use...
,
coalCoal is a readily combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock normally occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
and
clayClay is a naturally occurring material composed primarily of fine-grained minerals, which show plasticity through a variable range of water content, and which can be hardened when dried and/or fired...
. Iron was worked in Gyfelia and Cinders as far back as the
Middle AgesThe Middle Ages of European history is a period of European history covering roughly a millennium in the 5th century through 16th centuries. More specific starting and ending points are sometimes adopted by scholars to suit their respective specializations or current focus...
but heavy industry dominated the entire parish in the
18thThe 18th century lasted from 1701 to 1800 in the Gregorian calendar, in accordance with the Anno Domini/Common Era numbering system.However, Western historians sometimes specifically define the 18th century otherwise for the purposes of their work...
and
19thThe 19th century was a period in history marked by the collapse of the Spanish, Portuguese, Chinese, Ottoman, Holy Roman and Mughal empires...
centuries. Coal was extracted from
pitsCoal mining is the extraction or removal of coal from the earth by mining. When coal is used for fuel in power generation it is referred to as steaming or thermal coal. Coal that is used to create coke for steel manufacturing is referred to as coking or metallurgical coal...
at the Green, Plas Madoc, Plas Bennion,
Wynn HallWynn Hall is a 17th century house in the old hamlet of Bodylltyn in Ruabon, Wrexham, Wales standing at the junction of the Penycae Road and Plas Bennion Road. It was built in about 1649 by William Wynn. During the English Civil War he served on the Parliamentarian side and was imprisoned at Denbigh...
, Afon Eitha, Cristionydd, Groes, Plas Isaf, Plas Kynaston, Gardden, Brandie, Aberderfyn,
PonkeyPonciau is a village within the community of Rhosllannerchrugog in the county borough of Wrexham, Wales.Ponciau is located close to the villages of Legacy, Pentre Bychan and Johnstown and is overlooked by Ruabon Mountain.-History:...
and Rhos but many of these were hit by flooding in 1846 and ceased production. Later collieries were built at
WynnstayWynnstay was a famous estate in Wales, the family seat of the Wynns. It is located at Ruabon, near Wrexham.During the 17th century, Sir John Wynn, 5th Baronet inherited the Watstay Estate through his marriage to Jane Evans , and renamed it the Wynnstay Estate...
,
VauxhallVauxhall is an inner city area of South London in the London Borough of Lambeth.It has also given its name to the Vauxhall Parliamentary Constituency, which also includes parts of Brixton and Clapham....
and Hafod. Hafod Colliery, the last working colliery in the Ruabon coalfield, closed in 1968. The colliery’s coal tip has since been preserved as Parc Bonc yr Hafod. Hafod Colliery was not the last working colliery of the Ruabon coalfield, Bersham and Gresford were open for several years longer.
Iron was worked at Ruabon;
AcrefairAcrefair is a village in the county borough of Wrexham, Wales. It was formerly part of the ancient parish of Ruabon, and is located between the towns of Wrexham and Llangollen. It is close to the villages of Trefor, Cefn Mawr, Ruabon and Plas Madoc....
;
Cefn MawrCefn Mawr is a village in the community of Cefn within the County Borough of Wrexham, Wales. The community of Cefn comprises the villages of Cefn Mawr, Acrefair, Penybryn, Newbridge, Plasmadoc and Rhosymedre and is situated on the northern slopes of the Dee Valley.- History :Cefn Mawr was part of...
and Plas Madoc; and
zincZinc , also known as spelter, is a metallic chemical element; it has the symbol Zn and atomic number 30. It is the first element in group 12 of the periodic table. Zinc is, in some respects, chemically similar to magnesium, because its ion is of similar size and its only common oxidation state is +2...
at Wynn Hall. One of the main companies was the
British Iron CompanyThe British Iron Company was formed in 1824 to smelt and manufacture iron and to mine ironstone, coal, etc. It was re-formed as the New British Iron Company in 1843 and wound up in 1892.-British Iron Company :...
and their successors, the New British Iron Company, who operated ironworks and collieries at Acrefair from 1825 to 1887. In 1867 Robert Graesser, an industrial
chemistA chemist is a scientist trained in the science of chemistry. Chemists study the composition of matter and its properties such as density, acidity, size and shape. Chemists carefully describe the properties they study in terms of quantities, with detail on the level of molecules and their component...
from Obermosel in
SaxonyThe Free State of Saxony is a federal state of Germany, located in the southeastern part of present-day Germany. It is the tenth-largest German state in area and the sixth largest in population , of Germany's sixteen states.Long in the heart of German-speaking Europe, Saxony became one of the new...
,
GermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered to the north by the North Sea, Denmark, and the Baltic Sea; to the east by Poland and the Czech Republic; to the south by Austria and Switzerland; and to the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium,...
established a chemical works at Plas Kynaston in
Cefn MawrCefn Mawr is a village in the community of Cefn within the County Borough of Wrexham, Wales. The community of Cefn comprises the villages of Cefn Mawr, Acrefair, Penybryn, Newbridge, Plasmadoc and Rhosymedre and is situated on the northern slopes of the Dee Valley.- History :Cefn Mawr was part of...
to extract
paraffinIn chemistry, paraffin is the common name for the alkane hydrocarbons with the general formula CnH2n+2. Paraffin wax refers to the solids with 20 ≤ n ≤ 40 ....
oil and wax from the local
shaleShale is a fine-grained, clastic sedimentary rock composed of flakes of clay minerals and tiny fragments of other minerals, especially quartz and calcite. The ratio of clay to other minerals is variable...
. This was the start of the long association between the chemical industry and Cefn Mawr. Much of the mineral wealth of the area was exported by canal over the
Pontcysyllte AqueductThe Pontcysyllte Aqueduct is a navigable aqueduct that carries the Llangollen Canal over the valley of the River Dee, between the villages of Trevor and Froncysyllte, in Wrexham in north east Wales...
on the
Shropshire Union CanalThe Shropshire Union Canal is a navigable canal in England; the Llangollen and Montgomery canals are the modern names of branches of the SU system and lie partially in Wales....
, until the railway reached Ruabon in 1855. The site was later acquired by the American chemical company Monsanto, their first venture in Europe, but in 1995 it was sold and renamed Flexys, a specialist in chemicals and additives for the rubber industry. The site is now operated as Solutia .
At Afongoch there were three clay companies very close together:
- "Monk & Newell" was situated on the east side of the Ruabon-Wrexham road. It closed in the 1920s and the site was later used for housing ('Newell Drive') and the adjacent flooded claypit (Monk's Pool) is now used by a local angling club.
- The “Ruabon Brick & Terra Cotta Ltd." or "Jenks' Terracotta Works" (or "Gwaith Jinks") was situated on the west side of the Ruabon-Wrexham road (off Tatham Road) but with its original clay pit to the east of the Ruabon-Wrexham road, separated from the Monk & Newell clay pit by the Afon Goch. Founded by the Hague family of the Gardden in about 1883 and managed by Henry Jenks, it produced bricks, chimney pots, finial
The finial is an architectural device, typically carved in stone and employed to decoratively emphasize the apex of a gable, or any of various distinctive ornaments at the top, end, or corner of a building or structure. Smaller finials can be used as a decorative ornament on the ends of curtain...
s, corniceA cornice is horizontal molded projection that completes a building or wall; or the upper slanting part of an entablature located above the frieze...
s and encaustic tileEncaustic tiles are ceramic tiles in which the pattern or figure on the surface is not a product of the glaze but of different colors of clay. They are usually of two colors but a tile may be composed of as many as six. The pattern is inlaid into the body of the tile, so that the design remains as...
s. It was taken over by Dennis' in the 1960s but closed in the mid 1970s. The works site is now an industrial estate as is the original clay pit.
- The "Tatham Brick & Tile Works" or "Afongoch & Tatham Tileries" - at Afongoch, on the west side of the Ruabon-Wrexham road, off Tatham Road. Opened about 1860 by Henry Richard Bowers & Co. of Penbedw, Acrefair
Acrefair is a village in the county borough of Wrexham, Wales. It was formerly part of the ancient parish of Ruabon, and is located between the towns of Wrexham and Llangollen. It is close to the villages of Trefor, Cefn Mawr, Ruabon and Plas Madoc....
it produced bricks, pipes and chimney pots. It closed about 1910 when the clay pit was taken over by Jenks' Terracotta Works. The clay pitA clay pit is a quarry or mine for the extraction of clay, which is generally used for manufacturing pottery, bricks or Portland cement.The brick factory is often located alongside the clay pit to reduce the transport costs of the raw material. These days pottery producers are often not sited near...
is now used for landfillA landfill, also known as a dump , is a site for the disposal of waste materials by burial and is the oldest form of waste treatment...
.
At Hafod, the
CornishCornwall is a county of England in the United Kingdom, forming the tip of the south-western peninsula of Great Britain. It is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic Ocean, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Taken with the...
engineer Henry Dennis founded a clay works next to the Hafod Colliery. The Dennis company became world famous for its tiles and still operates today.
At Cinders, the "Wynnstay Brickworks" was to the right of the Ruabon-
Overton-People:* Constantine Overton* David M. Overton* Doug Overton* Edward Overton, Jr. , United States representative from Pennsylvania* Elli Overton* Ernest Overton German biophysist, 1899, discoverer of lipidic nature of cellular membranes...
road near Cinders Farm. It produced bricks, tiles and drainage pipes for the Wynnstay estate.
Other large brickworks existed at
Pant* Pants, an article of clothing* To breathe quickly, spasmodically, or in a labored manner** Panting is used by many furry animals as a means of thermoregulation* Pant , a North Indian and Nepalese surname...
, Rhos,
AcrefairAcrefair is a village in the county borough of Wrexham, Wales. It was formerly part of the ancient parish of Ruabon, and is located between the towns of Wrexham and Llangollen. It is close to the villages of Trefor, Cefn Mawr, Ruabon and Plas Madoc....
, Trefor and
Newbridge-Companies:*NewBridge Bank*Newbridge Capital, an Asian private equity investment firm formed by Texas Pacific Group, Blum Capital and ACON Investments*Newbridge Networks-Places in Ireland:...
.
Railways
Ruabon is connected to the
national railway networkThe railway system in Great Britain is the oldest in the world, with the world's first locomotive hauled public railway opening in 1825. As of 2006, it consists of of standard gauge lines , of which are electrified. These lines are single, double or quadruple track. In addition, a number of...
by the
Shrewsbury to Chester Line|}The Shrewsbury to Chester Line, also known as the Severn - Dee Line , was built in 1846 as the Shrewsbury and Chester Railway...
which was formerly part of the
Great Western RailwayThe Great Western Railway was a British railway company that linked London with the south west and west of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament in 1835, and ran its first trains three years later...
mainline from London Paddington to Birkenhead Woodside.
IntercityIntercity or Inter-city means "between cities". It can refer to inter-city transportation by rail, bus, truck or airline. There are many transport companies with Intercity or Inter-city as their brand.* Inter-city rail services...
services call at
Ruabon railway stationRuabon railway station serves the village of Ruabon in the county borough of Wrexham, Wales. It is on the Shrewsbury to Chester Line, which is part of the former Great Western Railway mainline route from London Paddington to Birkenhead Woodside....
en route to destinations including Cardiff,
BirminghamBirmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands county of England. Birmingham is the second-most populous British city, with a population of 1,006,500 ....
,
ChesterChester is a city in Cheshire, England. Lying on the River Dee, close to the border with Wales, it is home to 77,040 inhabitants, and is the largest and most populous settlement of the wider unitary authority area of Cheshire West and Chester, which had a population of 328,100 according to the...
and
HolyheadHolyhead is the largest town in the county of Anglesey in the north west of Wales.Although it is the largest town in the county, with a population of 11,237 , it is neither the county town nor actually on the island of Anglesey...
. The railway here was also the junction to the now closed
Ruabon to BarmouthThe Ruabon to Barmouth Line was a standard-gauge branch line of the Great Western Railway across the north of Wales which connected Ruabon, in the east, with Barmouth on the west coast.-Connections:...
line, along sections of which now run the
Llangollen RailwayThe Llangollen Railway is a volunteer-run preserved railway in Denbighshire, Wales, which runs from Llangollen to Carrog, at 7.5 mile long , it is easily the longest preserved Standard-Gauge line in Wales.Work is being carried out on an extension to Corwen, with the trackbed cleared to Bonwm Halt,...
,
Bala Lake RailwayThe Bala Lake Railway is a preserved railway at Bala Lake, in Gwynedd, north Wales, which runs for a distance of 4½ miles using gauge rolling stock....
and the
Mawddach TrailThe Mawddach Trail is a cycle path route, part of Lôn Las Cymru, which runs for some from Dolgellau to Morfa Mawddach railway station, by Barmouth bridge on the Cambrian coast. It is maintained by the Snowdonia National Park and is popular with walkers and cyclists alike...
, now a cycle track.
SS Ruabon
The British merchant ship Ruabon
, a steamer of was captured and sunk by German submarine U-20
on 2 May 1916. The ship was torpedoed about 160 miles/258 km W by S of the island from UshantUshant is an island in the English Channel which marks the north-westernmost point of European France. It belongs to Brittany and is in the traditional region of Bro-Leon. Administratively, Ushant is a commune in the Finistère department...
in BrittanyBrittany is a cultural and administrative region in the north-west of France. Brittany was previously a kingdom and then as a duchy it was a fief of the Kingdom of France. It was at one time called Less, Lesser or Little Britain...
on route from SevilleSeville is the artistic, cultural, and financial capital of southern Spain. It is the capital of Andalusia and of the province of Seville. It is situated on the plain of the River Guadalquivir, with an average elevation of above sea level. The inhabitants of the city are known as Sevillanos or...
, SpainSpain , officially the Kingdom of Spain , is a country located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula.
[The Spanish constitution does not establish any official denomination of the country, even though España , Estado español and Nación española are used interchangeably...]
to TroonTroon is a town in South Ayrshire, Scotland. It is situated on the west coast, about eight miles north of Ayr and three miles northwest of Glasgow Prestwick International Airport. Lying across the Firth of Clyde, the Isle of Arran can be seen. Troon is also a port with freight and ferry services —...
, ScotlandScotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. The ship was owned by John Cory & Sons of Cardiff.
Offa's Dyke
Substantial remains of Offa's DykeOffa's Dyke is a massive linear earthwork, roughly following some of the current border between England and Wales. In places, it is up to 65 feet wide and 8 feet high. In the 8th century it formed some kind of delineation between the Anglian kingdom of Mercia and the Welsh kingdom of Powys...
(Welsh: Clawdd Offa) can be seen on the western outskirts of Ruabon. This massive earthwork, stretching from
ChepstowChepstow is a town in Monmouthshire, Wales, adjoining the border with Gloucestershire, England. It is located on the River Wye, close to its confluence with the River Severn, and close to the western end of the Severn Bridge on the M48 motorway...
in the south to
PrestatynPrestatyn is a seaside resort in Denbighshire, North Wales. It is located on the Irish Sea coast, to the east of Rhyl. At the 2001 Census, Prestatyn had a population of 18,496.-Prehistory:...
in the north, was constructed in the late 8th century by
OffaOffa may refer to:Two kings of the Angles, which are often confused:*Offa of Angel , on the continent*Offa of Mercia , in Great BritainA king of Essex:*Offa of Essex A town in Nigeria:* Offa, Nigeria...
, king of
MerciaMercia was one of the kingdoms of the Anglo-Saxon Heptarchy. It was centred on the valley of the River Trent and its tributaries in the region now known as the English Midlands...
, as a boundary between
SaxonAnglo-Saxons is the term usually used to describe the invading Germanic tribes in the south and east of Great Britain from the early 5th century AD, and their creation of the English nation, to the Norman conquest of 1066...
MerciaMercia was one of the kingdoms of the Anglo-Saxon Heptarchy. It was centred on the valley of the River Trent and its tributaries in the region now known as the English Midlands...
and
CeltCelts is a modern term used to describe any of the European peoples who spoke, or speak, a Celtic language...
ic Wales.
Traces of an earlier dyke,
Wat's DykeWat's Dyke is a 40 mile earthwork running through the northern Welsh Marches from Basingwerk Abbey on the River Dee estuary, passing to the east of Oswestry and onto Maesbury in Shropshire, England...
, can be seen on the eastern side of the Ruabon. It would be several centuries before the lands to the east of Offa's Dyke would be returned to Wales.
Education
Ruabon's first school was the Endowed Grammar School, founded in the early
17th centuryThe 17th Century was that century which lasted from 1601 to 1700 in the Gregorian calendar.The 17th Century falls into the Early Modern period of Europe and was characterized by the Baroque cultural movement, the French Grand Siècle dominated by Louis XIV, and the beginning of modern science and...
close to the church. This school later became the
Ruabon Grammar SchoolThe Ruabon Grammar School was situated in Ruabon, Denbighshire in north-east Wales. It provided a grammar school education to boys in the parishes of Ruabon and Erbistock....
and eventually moved to the outskirts of Ruabon, near Mill Farm. The Ruabon Grammar School provided education for boys in the parishes of both Ruabon and
ErbistockErbistock is a village on the banks of the River Dee in the county borough of Wrexham in Wales.It was one of the ancient parishes of the pre-1974 county of Denbighshire but a small part lay in the detached part of the old county of Flintshire...
for several centuries.
In 1922 a girls'
grammar schoolA grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and some other English-speaking countries, originally schools teaching classical languages but more recently academically-oriented types of secondary school.The original purpose of...
was built, using temporary accommodation, on a site adjacent to the boys' school but they had to wait until 1962 before a permanent school was built nearby. In 1967 both the boys' and girls' grammar schools merged to form
Ysgol RhiwabonYsgol Rhiwabon is a comprehensive school in Ruabon, Wrexham, Wales for 11 - 18 year olds. The current headteacher is Angela Williams. In 2003 the Estyn Report concluded that, Ysgol Rhiwabon provides good opportunities for pupils...
comprehensive schoolA comprehensive school is a state school that does not select its intake on the basis of academic achievement or aptitude. The term is commonly used in relation to the United Kingdom, where comprehensive schools were introduced in the late 1940s to the early 1970s. It corresponds broadly to the...
.
The Ruabon
National SchoolA national school was a school founded in 19th century England and Wales by the National Society for Promoting Religious Education.These schools provided elementary education, in accordance with the teaching of the Church of England, to the children of the poor.Together with the less numerous...
, a
Church of EnglandThe Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England, the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the oldest among the communion's thirty-eight independent national and regional churches...
foundation, was built on Overton Road in the late 1840s. It later became St Mary's
Church in WalesThe Church in Wales is a member Church of the Anglican Communion, consisting of six dioceses in Wales. Like many Anglican churches, it recognizes the primacy of the Archbishop of Canterbury, who does not however have any formal authority in Wales The Church in Wales is a member Church of the...
School and was completely rebuilt on the same site in 1976.
To cope with an expanding population another school was provided by
DenbighshireDenbighshire is a county in north-east Wales. It is named after the historic county of Denbighshire, but has substantially different borders. Denbighshire has the distinction of being the oldest inhabited part of Wales...
Education Committee on Maes y Llan and opened in 1912. This later became Ysgol Maes y Llan.
Lindisfarne College, an independent school, moved from the South of England to Wynnstay in 1950. The school closed in 1994.
Famous former residents
- William Ellis Bailiff
William Ellis Bailiff was a footballer born in Ruabon in north-east Wales in 1882. A goalkeeper, he started his playing career with Ruabon before moving on to Druids , Northampton Town, Treharris Athletic, Bristol City and Llanelli...
(1882-1972): Welsh international footballer
- Edward Bowen: Welsh international footballer
- Henry Dennis (1825-1906): Industrialist
- John Downman
John Downman , English portrait painter, was the son of Francis Downman, attorney, of St Neots, by Charlotte Goodsend, eldest daughter of the private secretary to George I; his grandfather, Hugh Downman , having been the master of the House of Ordnance at Sheerness.He is believed to have been born...
(1750-1824): English artist born.
- Henry Dyke Dennis (1863-19??): Industrialist
- Meredith Edwards
Gwilym Meredith Edwards was a Welsh character actor and writer.He was born in Rhosllannerchrugog, Denbighshire, Wales, the son of a collier. He became an actor in 1938, first with the Welsh National Theatre Company, then the Liverpool Playhouse...
, actor
- Emrys Ellis: Welsh international footballer from Plas Bennion
- Reuben Haigh (1879-1951): Industrialist
- Isaac Daniel Hooson
Isaac Daniel Hooson , or I. D. Hooson as he was commonly known, solicitor and poet was born in Victoria House, Market St. in the village of Rhosllannerchrugog, Denbighshire, Wales....
, poet and novelist
- Edward Hughes
Ted Hughes Ted Hughes Ted Hughes (born 1876 in Ruabon, Denbighshire Wales was a professional footballer who played for clubs including Everton, Tottenham Hotspur, Clyde and represented Wales on 14 occasions.- Tottenham Hotspur career :...
: Welsh international footballer
- Robert Albert Jones: Welsh international footballer
- Llewelyn Kenrick
Llewelyn Kenrick was a solicitor and international footballer.He was born into the land-owning, industrialist Kenrick dynasty of Wynn Hall, Ruabon, Wrexham, Wales. After attending Ruabon Grammar School he trained as a solicitor and practiced at Ruabon but always remained a keen football player,...
(1847-1933): The 'father' of Welsh football born in Wynn HallWynn Hall is a 17th century house in the old hamlet of Bodylltyn in Ruabon, Wrexham, Wales standing at the junction of the Penycae Road and Plas Bennion Road. It was built in about 1649 by William Wynn. During the English Civil War he served on the Parliamentarian side and was imprisoned at Denbigh...
- Robert William Matthews
Robert William Matthews played football as centre-half for Liverpool Football Club in the early 1920s and earned three caps for Wales...
: Welsh international footballer from Plas Bennion
- John Parry Ddall
John Parry , known as Parry Ddall, Rhiwabon was born in the Llŷn Peninsula, Caernarfonshire in Wales, and was blind from birth....
(1710?-1782): Blind harpist of Wynnstay
- Alfred Ernest Payne (1849-1927): English cricketer who played for the MCC and England. Born in Pentre Ucha, Oswestry
Oswestry Oswestry Oswestry ' onMouseout='HidePop("45121")' href="http://www.absoluteastronomy.com/topics/Will_Roberts">Will Roberts
Will Roberts was a Modern painter from Wales.Roberts was born in Ruabon, Denbighshire, the son of a railwayman of the Great Western Railway. The family moved to Neath in Glamorgan in 1918 and he studied at Swansea School of Art. Roberts met the Polish artist Josef Herman in 1945...
(1907-2000): Welsh industrial artist.
- Mark Hughes
Leslie Mark Hughes , nicknamed Sparky, is a former Welsh international football player and currently manager of Manchester City...
: Former Manchester United and Welsh international footballer, currently managing Premier League club Manchester City F.C.Manchester City Football Club is an English professional football club based in the city of Manchester. The team is currently a member of the Premier League.The first known competitive fixture was played in November 1880, when the side was known as St...
Sources
- A. N. Palmer, The History of the Parish of Ruabon
- George Borrow, Wild Wales, 1862
- G. G. Lerry, Collieries of Denbighshire, 1968
- T. W. Pritchard, Remembering Ruabon - Cofio Rhiwabon, 2000
- National Museum of Wales
External links