The railway was constructed in 1862 as a single line, following in part, the line of an earlier tramroad. Reminiscences of the Old Clydach Iron Works and Neighbourhood - By T. Jordan, Govilon. ", After the retirement of the Freres, Mr. Lancelot Powell, one of the owners, and manager of the works, took up his residence at Clydach House, and resided there as long as the works continued. The historic landscape area of Cwm Clydach, some 509 ha in area, is located at the eastern edge of the Blaenau or the upland region of Gwent. Smart’s Bridge was constructed in 1824 to link Clydach Iron Works with sites and routes on the river’s west bank. It was his regular custom every morning to ride up on his well-groomed bay horse to the works and his first halting place would generally be at the offices, whence he would cross to the furnaces, and from there round by the coke yard to the rolling mills, peering keenly into every place as he went along, and any of the workmen who might not be busily employed when he approached knew whether it were best to avoid him or not by the way in which he carried his walking stick whether across his shoulder or twirling it round in his hand.
Baileys Disgwylfa Tramroad ran from Nantyglo ironworks to his quarries at Disgwylfa on Llangattock Mountain. Clydach Gorge is an area with outstanding natural and industrial heritage, located within the Brecon Beacons National Park and on the edge of the Blaenavon World Heritage Site. The vicinity of Clydach House is very wooded and picturesque, with the brook with its quaint old bridge just below and nearby the place known as the Sale Yard. The Gorge was one of the first locations in the region to be industrialised though it still retains its natural environment. [6], The remains of two large masonry furnaces from the 1790s and the base of a later furnace can still be seen together with other structures thanks to an excavation carried out in 1986.
The majority of the people on the hills were then best known by nicknames, which were usually selected after a place where they or their forefathers had lived, or worked, or some circumstance connected with their previous history, and prefaced by Twm, Dai or Shoni, Bettws, Shan, or Peggy, and so on. On a square tablet over the main entrance at the front of the house is the date 1603, which, I presume, would be the date of its erection. Its nearest neighbours are the village of Gilwern and town of Abergavenny. (Abergavenny Chronicle, March 11, 1910). Restored to almost original condition, the bridge now carries pedestrians both to works and surrounding areas. The Clydach Gorge (also known as Cwm Clydach) is a steep-sided valley in south-east Wales down which the River Clydach flows to the River Usk.It runs for 5.6 km from the vicinity of Brynmawr in Blaenau Gwent eastwards and northeastwards to Gilwern in Monmouthshire. [1], The Hanbury family of Pontypool established a furnace and forge here (OS grid ref SO 236140) in the sixteenth century though nothing now remains of them other than parts of the masonry dam of a pool connected with the water power used for the forge.
Mr. Thomas, of Maes-y-Gwartha, for many years the confidential clerk and book-keeper and Mr. Wm. Due to this, building began on buildings for settling the workers at the end of the 18th century, increasing house production during the 2nd quarter of the 19th century. Clydach County primary school was closed in July 2006 by Monmouthshire County Council because of there were less than 30 pupils and none in years 5 and 6.
It runs for 5.6 km from the vicinity of Brynmawr in Blaenau Gwent eastwards and northeastwards to Gilwern in Monmouthshire. There are also limeworks. The last trains ran along it in June 1958. The Company's bags were opened at the offices every morning, and when letters for other people chanced to be among them they were sent to the Company's shop, where they remained until called for, and many days would frequently elapse before those to whom they were addressed would get them or even know that they were there. Reminiscences of the Old Clydach Iron Works and Neighbourhood - By T. Jordan, Govilon. Production continued up until around 1860, where it was the main point of activity within the gorge. Work began in March 1960 and it was opened to traffic in 1962. A tinworks also operated at this site at one time. Messrs. Frere and Cook, the then proprietors of Clydach works, leased this forge in 1800, and in the course of time Messrs. Powell, solicitors, of Brecon, became partners in the works, and Mr. Frere retired from the concern altogether in 1832. Most of them had been born and brought up in the place. They were, I presume, an organization similar to the Mollie Maguires that at one time terrorised some of the mining States of America. Then again, there was Mr. Robert Smith the mining engineer, though not a native of the place, he served the Company faithfully for many years. There is a single-arched stone bridge at SO 233137 and SO 255176, the latter being the Llam-march Tramroad and Aqueduct Bridge of 1811 which also carried water from the Clydach to the Clydach Ironworks Rolling Mill via a leat. The path is part of the Heads of … The officials under him were all old servants of the company, well tried and trusted. Four years later it became a part of the London and North Western Railway network and in 1877 the line was doubled along its entire length. I myself have seen the old weighing-machine which had been used for that purpose, as well as for weighing country produce brought in for the use of the works, such as hay, pit wood, &c. There are still traces of a cluster of old sheds and stables, and at one time the Abergavenny and Merthyr mail coach changed horses there, and there too, stood the little log hut where Molly Dobbs, the Company's post-woman, used to shelter while waiting with the letter-bags for the mail coach as it passed. The works were then carried on by the Messrs. Powell until they were closed in 1862. [17] Its construction involved considerable cutting and embanking and some sections are built out over the gorge on concrete pillars. The Merthyr Tydfil to Govilon Turnpike was authorised by Act of Parliament and laid through the valley in 1812–13. [18] There are plans to dual the entire route in the next few years. Mr. Lancelot Powell was a stern man, a true type of the ironmasters of the old school, and one who brooked but little opposition to his will. There were two separate and distinct divisions of' the population, the ironworkers in the valley, and the miners on the “Hill." The route is 8 miles long and links Llanfoist, just to the south of Abergavenny, to Brynmawr. The area around the village is popular for hillwalking with many routes tracing the beauty of the nearby Clydach Gorge [1] or Cwm Clydach, and the old trackbed of the Merthyr, Tredegar and Abergavenny Railway is a cycleway and walkway and the Monmouthshire and Brecon Canal can be walked or travelled by narrow boat. The Project seeks to conserve and restore the built features of an area which was key to the Industrial Revolution. It is split by the A465 road (the 'Heads of the Valleys') into North Clydach and South Clydach. Folklore has it that Shakespeare was inspired to write his “Midsummer-Night’s Dream” in a cave nearby, having heard the local legends/story of Pwca (Puck in English), Smart’s Bridge – Clydach Ironworks ( Near Clydach Ironworks).
Davies managed the Old Forge for many years, and Mr. John Reynallt and his brother Charles were at the head of the pattern-makers and carpenters. Sited in a beautiful location rich in industrial archaeology, tramroads and pathways, the nearby beech woodlands are some of the oldest in Wales. The Gorge was one of the first locations in the region to be industrialised though it still retains its natural environment. The ironworks were built during the late 18th century and are a Scheduled Ancient Monument. The children now attend schools in Gilwern and Brynmawr and the school buildings are unused. [15] This formed the main road through the gorge until the modern road was built.[16]. The industrial town of Brynmawr sits at the head of the gorge and the large village of Gilwern sits at its foot in the Usk valley. This was before the days of Sir Rowland Hill's penny- postage system, and letters then were seldom sent or received by the working people of Clydach.. Click here to add your own text and edit me. When an official in the mining department became unpopular with the workmen, he was in danger of a nocturnal visit from the dreaded “Scotch cattle," as they were called, a band of men with blackened faces, who would drag their victim from his bed, and after doing him grievous bodily harm, would proceed to demolish the furniture. The inhabitants of Clydach, at that time, were greatly prejudiced against strangers, especially English, and Mr. Smith's reception amongst them was by no means of a friendly nature. Part of the ruins was to be seen in my time and a little lower down again was the old charcoal forge. There are also limeworks. The routing of the line through the gorge was a considerable engineering challenge requiring the digging of several tunnels and the construction of an impressive curving viaduct across the ravine of the Nant Dyar. The Gorge is included within the Brecon Beacons National Park and is a tourist destination in its own right, with facilities including a picnic site, waymarked footpaths, the National Cycle Network and car parking alongside the River Clydach, easily reached from the Heads of the Valleys Road. [7], These limeworks were the first established in the gorge, having started production in 1794/95. There was nothing in common between them. It is now exploited by the A465 Heads of the Valleys trunk road which runs between Abergavenny and Swansea and which serves the Heads of the Valleys sub-region. An important surviving feature of the railroad is the single-arched bridge of coarse rubble-stone near Maesygwartha which is impressively set above a waterfall (at OS grid ref SO 230138). The Brecon and Abergavenny Canal Co had constructed the first route by 1795 and Clydach Ironworks constructed the second route in 1811. [8], The limeworks at Clydach (OS grid ref SO 233127) were built in 1877 to provide lime for the construction of the nearby Nant Dyar railway viaduct. The Clydach ironworks were situated in the parish of Llanelly, in Breconshire, and cosily nestled in a picturesque corner of the valley, under the shadow of the Gilwern Mountain, about five miles from Abergavenny and four miles from Crickhowell. [3] By 1841 the works was responsible for the employment of more than 1350 people though many of this number were associated with obtaining iron ore, limestone and coal further up the valley. The entire Clydach Gorge falls within the Brecon Beacons National Park designated in 1957 in order that its landscapes be protected and for the quiet enjoyment of them by the public.
Probably few people now know why it is so called. The route through Brynmawr can be followed along the roads and but the clearest length of the tramroad begins to the Southeast of Cairn Mound Reservoir and runs across the remote moorland above the Llangattock Tramroad.
Clydach Gorge, near Abergavenny . Wrought iron was made at the furnace from cast iron using charcoal.
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