64-526: The Mold Railway was a railway company that built a line in north-east Wales. The line linked Mold to Chester and it opened on 14 August 1849. The company built a mineral branch line to Ffrith , opened in November 1849. Mold itself was an important regional centre, and contained considerable mineral resources. The London and North Western Railway took over the company in 1859. As the mineral industry developed, steelmaking at Brymbo became dominant, and
128-557: A Tesco Superstore. The original M&DJR station buildings at Rhydymwyn , Caerwys and Bodfari survive as private dwellings. The route climbed the Alyn Valley to Rhyd-y-mwyn. The summit of the line was on the Mold side of Star Crossing Halt, after the line passed through a narrow limestone gorge, crossing the main road twice on plate girder bridges at Hendre to reach the watershed. The line then descended towards Denbigh at 1 in 80 down
192-720: A derailment at Pontblyddyn . However, in 1939 there were still five daily goods trains between Mold Junction and Hope Junction for interchange with the London and North Eastern Railway (as successor to the WM&;CQR) there. The Mold to Brymbo passenger trains reduced to two per day after World War II , but the service was discontinued on 27 March 1950, and the line from Coed Talon to Ffrith closed completely on 1 May 1952. The passenger service between Chester and Mold ceased on 30 April 1962 and freight between Mold and Coed-Talon on 27/7/63. Ordinary goods services were progressively withdrawn in
256-562: A force of Romano-Britons led by Germanus of Auxerre against the invading Picts and Scots , which occurred shortly after Easter, AD 430. Mold developed around Mold Castle . The motte and bailey were built by the Norman Robert de Montalt in around 1140 in conjunction with the military invasion of Wales by Anglo-Norman forces. The castle was besieged numerous times by the Princes of Gwynedd as they fought to retake control of
320-478: A former Mayor of Chester. The Welsh captain then took Bryne back to his tower house near Mold and hanged him. In retaliation, up to 200 men-at-arms were sent from Chester to seize Reinalt. However, the Welshman used his military experience to turn the tables on his attackers. He hid in the woods while many of the men entered his home; once they were inside, he rushed from concealment, blocked the door, and set fire to
384-458: A good connection from there. There was a limited stop morning train to Chester and back in the evening. There is no reference to a Sunday service. There were three daily trains, with one additional on Saturday, from Mold to Coed Talon. Rear notes that in 1904 "Two goods trains each way were shown working over the Padeswood, Coppa and Coed Talon branches for the same period [July 1904], although
448-516: A new connection to the pits around Coed Talon; by Act of 16 July 1866 the LNWR was empowered to build from a new junction near Mold (Tryddyn Junction) to join the former line near Tryddyn, including adoption of part of the Nerquis line, though curves wee eased. The line opened as far as Oak Pits Colliery on 16 March 1869, and on to Coed Talon on 8 July 1870; there was a triangular junction there. In 1887
512-550: A unique golden cape dating from 1900 to 1600 BCE. It weighs 560 grams (20 oz) and was made from a single gold ingot about the size of a golf ball. It was broken when found and the fragments shared among the workmen, with the largest piece for Mr Langford, tenant of the field in which the mound stood. The find was recorded by the Vicar of Mold and came to the notice of the British Museum . In 1836 Langford sold his piece to
576-600: Is a town and community in Flintshire , Wales , on the River Alyn . It is the county town and administrative seat of Flintshire County Council , as it was of Clwyd from 1974 to 1996. According to the 2011 UK census , it had a population of 10,058. A 2019 estimate puts it at 10,123. The original Welsh-language place name, Yr Wyddgrug , was recorded as Gythe Gruc in a document of 1280–1281, and means "The Mound of
640-527: Is at Loggerheads , about three miles to the west. The highest temperature recorded was 31.7 °C (89.1 °F) in August 1990. However, the warmest day is typically around 26.4 °C (79.5 °F), one of around four days to reach a temperature of 25.1 °C (77.2 °F) or above. The lowest temperature recorded was −18.7 °C (−1.7 °F) in December 1981. On average the coldest night of
704-463: Is held on the first and third Saturdays of each month. The Mold Food and Drink Festival is held each September, with a main event area on the edge of the town centre and many central and nearby businesses contributing. 2012 saw Mold's first annual November Fest, a beer festival held at venues in and around Mold to promote real ale, cider and wine. Two secondary schools serve Mold and the surrounding villages. Alun School has about 1,800 pupils and
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#1732790259612768-542: Is the largest school in the county. It is adjoined by Ysgol Maes Garmon , Flintshire's only Welsh-medium secondary school. The town also has the largest primary school in the county, Ysgol Bryn Coch, with about 650 pupils and a second primary school Ysgol Bryn Gwalia. Ysgol Glanrafon is bilingual. Companies based in Mold include NWN Media, publisher of The Leader . Mold has a typical British maritime climate of cool summers and mild winters. The nearest Met Office weather station for which online records are available
832-681: The Britannia Bridge , consumed all of the C&;HR's available financial resources and more, and as many directors and shareholders were common between the C&HR and the Mold Railway, the latter was not well provided with funds. This led to a slowing down of construction progress in 1848, and deferment of the Ffrith branch beyond Coed Talon . The C&HR became impatient as it had been relying on this feeder to its system, and it acquired
896-466: The Campaign for Better Transport released a report identifying the line as a Priority 2 for reopening. Priority 2 is for those lines which require further development or a change in circumstances (such as housing developments). 53°8′21″N 3°1′28″W / 53.13917°N 3.02444°W / 53.13917; -3.02444 Mold, Flintshire Mold ( Welsh : Yr Wyddgrug )
960-466: The Chester to Holyhead line at Saltney Junction, a little west of Chester, and there were intermediate stations at Broughton , Hope and Llong. The line was 10 miles (16 km) long, of which the first 7 miles (11 km) was double track. A branch was constructed southwards from a trailing Ffrith Junction, near Padeswood, to Coed Talon, from where a private line extended to Nerquis, where there
1024-571: The Plantagenet nobility in 1245. The next few decades were a period of peace; Llywelyn ap Gruffudd built the Welsh native castle of Ewloe further to the east, establishing the House of Gwynedd 's military control over the area. Under Welsh rule, Mold Castle was deemed to be a "royal stronghold". It was recaptured by the forces of Edward I during the first months of the war of 1276–77. Mold Castle
1088-490: The Vale of Clwyd Railway towards Rhyl . The line opened in 1869. Serving a largely rural district, it never attracted much business, and the passenger service was withdrawn in 1962. Ordinary goods traffic ceased not long after, and the line closed completely in 1983. The Chester and Holyhead Railway was opened throughout in 1850, and it was absorbed by the London and North Western Railway in 1858. The Great Western Railway
1152-469: The 1960 and 70s. On 1 January 1968 the line was further reduced in operational length, consisting only of a stub at Mold to the Synthite works. Access to it was made from Wrexham over the former Wrexham, Mold and Connah's Quay Railway to Hope, and then by the connecting spur to the former Mold Railway there. The line from the Synthite works to Rhydymwyn was still in place, and was revived in 1974 for
1216-441: The 1960s, and after 1972 the line only carried a single specialised traffic. From 1950 there was a formaldehyde production factory just north of Mold, operated by Synthite Limited. In order to maintain rail connection to the company’s sidings, goods trains ran from Mold and over the WM&CQR connection at Pen-y-ffordd to Wrexham. That traffic came to an end so far as rail movements were concerned on 15 March 1983. In January 2019,
1280-689: The Company's own funds, in 1866 it had obtained powers to build a line paralleling the Mold Railway to join the Wrexham, Mold and Connah's Quay Railway ; powers for a 22 mile line to Llandudno were refused in that session. Despite the financial situation, in 1867 the M&;DJR obtained a further Act of Parliament for running powers over part of the Wrexham, Mold and Connah's Quay Railway, and also (belatedly) to Denbigh. Richard Samuel France now disappeared from
1344-525: The English manager of the nearby colliery in Leeswood , angered his workers by announcing a pay cut. He had previously strained relationships with them by banning the use of the Welsh language underground. Two days later, after a meeting at the pithead, miners attacked Young before frogmarching him to the police station. Seven men were arrested and ordered to stand trial on 2 June. All were found guilty, and
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#17327902596121408-524: The English remained. During the War of the Roses , Reinalt ab Grufydd ab Bleddyn, a Lancastrian captain who defended Harlech Castle for Henry VI against Yorkist forces , was constantly engaged in feuds with Chester. In 1465 a large number of armed men from Chester arrived at the Mold fair looking for trouble. A fight broke out which led to a pitched battle; eventually Reinalt triumphed and captured Robert Bryne,
1472-533: The LNWR arranged with the Great Western Railway to connect to that place. The passenger service closed in 1962, and in 1972 all rail activity ceased except for serving the Synthite factory just north of Mold; total closure followed in 1983. The Chester and Holyhead Railway opened its route in 1848 from Chester to Bangor , and to Holyhead in 1850. Its promoters saw the Irish Mail traffic as
1536-485: The LNWR did not encourage this incursion, and passenger traffic never used the line. Passengers were conveyed to and from Mold by horse omnibus. The North Wales Coalfield saw a south-eastward extension from the area, and the Great Western Railway dominated a network of branch lines in the Brymbo area served that part of the coalfield. The GWR had a route between Wrexham and Minera (where there were mineral resources), but
1600-547: The London and North Western Railway took steps to fend off this incursion, supporting a railway from its Mold terminus through the River Alyn and Wheeler valleys and joining the Vale of Clwyd Railway just north of Denbigh. The Great Western Railway lost interest and the threat abated. A local railway between Mold and Denbigh was still of value, and local interests promoted the Mold and Denbigh Junction Railway. The company
1664-479: The London and North Western Railway, which had been working it. The Mold Railway was a dependency of the C&HR, and the two companies were acquired by the LNWR. The LNWR (Additional Works) Act 1858 authorised the absorption, and it took effect on 1 January 1859. Further coal pits were opened at Coed Talon in 1861, and there was an oil production plant, the Coppa Oil Company, which opened in 1865. The oil
1728-548: The Mold Railway Company, by the action of a clause in the Mold Company's Act of Incorporation; this was effective on 30 March 1849. The contractor for the construction of the line agreed to take most of his payment in shares, in effect funding the line himself, and it was opened on 14 August 1849; in common with the main part of the C&HR it was worked by the London and North Western Railway. The line left
1792-529: The Tomb/Sepulchre". The name "Mold" originates from the Norman-French mont-hault ("high hill"). The name was originally applied to the site of Mold Castle in connection with its builder Robert de Montalt, an Anglo-Norman lord. It is recorded as Mohald in a document of 1254. A mile west of the town is Maes Garmon ("The Field of Germanus"), the traditional site of the "Alleluia Victory" by
1856-556: The Tryddyn line was closed, although it reopened in 1923. Four trains a day every weekday ran over the line from Mold to Coed Talon from 1 January 1892. They were extended to Brymbo over the Joint Line on 2 May 1898, four trains running each way daily. By 1895, Mold was the centre of a local network. The Mold to Chester service was nine trains weekdays, one additional Saturday train. Many of the trains came through from Denbigh or made
1920-589: The area. The government of Elizabeth I had established royal representatives ( Justices of the Peace , Sheriffs , and Lords Lieutenant ) in every county of Wales. Mold developed into the administrative centre for Flintshire . By the 1760s, the Quarter Sessions were based in the town; the county hall was established in 1833, and the county gaol in 1871. In 1833, workmen digging a Bronze Age mound at Bryn yr Ellyllon ( Fairies' or Goblins' Hill ) found
1984-423: The back and died two days later. A coroner 's inquest on the first three deaths was held on 5 June. The coroner, Peter Parry, was reportedly "exceedingly old and infirm", "so deaf as to be compelled to use a 'speaking' trumpet" and partially blind. He was assisted by the deputy coroner, his brother Robert Parry. The jury's verdict, after clear direction from the coroner and retiring for only five minutes to consider
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2048-630: The branch line and the LNWR worked it. Passenger services appear to have started as soon as the line opened, as the Chester railway timetable (published weekly in the Chester Chronicle) shows two trains each way between Chester and Mold as early as 17 August 1849. In mid-October 1849 this was increased to three trains each way. Bradshaw's Guide for 1850 shows the passenger train service: there were three trains each way to and from Chester on weekdays, and two on Sundays. The first class single fare
2112-408: The building, trapping those inside. Reinalt then attacked the remainder, driving them back towards Chester. By the late 15th century, the lordships around Mold had passed to the powerful Stanley family . In 1477 records mention that Thomas Stanley, 1st Earl of Derby had appointed numerous civic officials in Mold (including a mayor ), was operating several mills, and had established a courthouse in
2176-494: The bus station to Chester, Wrexham, Denbigh, Holywell, Ruthin and other places. Mold Library shares a building with the local tourist information office , which also provides a sales outlet for local arts and crafts. Mold is a cittaslow – the first town in Wales to achieve the distinction. It has a street market on Wednesday and Saturday for fresh produce and other goods. For speciality and fresh local food, Celyn Farmers' Market
2240-495: The connection, Daniel Owen , who lived in the town, featured some similar events in his first novel, Rhys Lewis , which was published in instalments in 1882–1884. Mold railway station closed to passengers in 1962. The nearest station is now Buckley , which has services to Wrexham and Bidston . Flint railway station , to which Mold has regular bus services, is not much further and has direct trains to Cardiff, London and Manchester. There are frequent daytime bus services from
2304-446: The convicted ringleaders, Ismael Jones and John Jones, were sentenced to a month's hard labour . A large crowd assembled to hear the verdict. The Chief Constable of Flintshire arranged for the presence of police from all over the county and soldiers from the 4th King's Own Regiment (Lancaster) , based temporarily at Chester. As the convicts were transferred to the railway station, a crowd of 1500–2000 grew restive and threw missiles at
2368-438: The dominant purpose of their line. However, Mold was an important regional centre with considerable mineral resources locally, and the Mold Railway was authorised by Parliament on 9 July 1847. The Company's capital was to be £180,000, and it would run from the junction at Saltney (west of Chester), to Mold, with a branch to Ffrith where there were large mineral deposits. The construction of the C&HR main line, and in particular
2432-591: The eastern cantrefi in the Perfeddwlad (English: Middle Country). In 1146, Owain Gwynedd captured the castle. By 1167, Henry II was in possession of the castle, although it was recaptured by the Welsh forces of Llywelyn the Great in 1201. Anglo-Norman authority over the area began again in 1241 when Dafydd ap Llywelyn yielded possession of the castle to the de Montalt family. However, he recaptured it from
2496-576: The final months were very low. The track from Dolfechlas Crossing to the junction with the Vale of Clwyd line just north of Denbigh was lifted in 1963. However, limestone powder traffic continued to originate at Ruby Limeworks and goods trains also served the Synthite chemical works (a factory producing formaldehyde ) just north of Mold. Jones Balers (latterly Aliss Chalmers) exported straw balers to Europe on ferry wagon flats from Mold for many years in
2560-546: The latter closed when Croes Newydd at Wrexham was opened, as did the station in 1962 in the Beeching cuts . However, the track survived until the mid-1980s to serve the Synthite chemical works. A Tesco supermarket was built on the station site in the 1990s. In summer 1869 there was a riot in the town which had considerable effect on the subsequent policing of public disturbances in Britain. On 17 May 1869, John Young,
2624-572: The line by a "motor train". In 1923 the main line railways of Great Britain were "grouped" under the Railways Act 1921 ; the LNWR was a constituent of the new London Midland and Scottish Railway . The Mold and Denbigh Junction Railway, of course only a financial shell, was schemed into the LMS. The LMS increased the passenger train service, with eleven trains each way between Chester and Denbigh, as well as three between Denbigh and Mold, with some of
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2688-475: The line in exchange for shares. He made good progress until the national financial crisis of 1866 , when he became financially embarrassed, and was unable to continue. At that time, of the £432,000 raised in share capital, only £1,360 was in the name of others than France himself. Many landowners were still owed money for the land acquired by the company, and there was much construction work still to be accomplished. Between Bodfari and Trefnant and Denbigh there
2752-510: The line, and it actually opened on 27 January 1872. By this time the W&;MR had been vested in the GWR. In a further change of plan, the joint section only reached from Brymbo to a boundary about halfway to Coed Talon; north-west of that point the new line was totally LNWR. The boundary was at Pantystain, immediately north-west of the level crossing on the present-day A5101 road. According to Boyd there
2816-440: The matter, was justifiable homicide. Later that afternoon, a second inquest on the death of Elizabeth Jones reached the same verdict. The following week several men – Isaac Jones, William Griffiths, Rowland Jones, Gomer Jones and William Hughes – were tried for involvement in the riot. They were found guilty of "felonious wounding" and Lord Chief Justice Bovill sentenced all to ten years' penal servitude. Although denying
2880-661: The museum, which has since acquired most of the pieces, though it is said that some wives of the workmen sported new jewellery after the find. The restored cape now belongs to the British Museum. Mold hosted the National Eisteddfod in 1923, 1991 and 2007. There was an unofficial National Eisteddfod event in 1873. Mold was linked to Chester by the Mold Railway , with a large British Rail station and adjacent marshalling yards and engine sheds; however,
2944-454: The officers, injuring many. Soldiers under their commanding officer, Captain Blake, opened fire on the crowd, killing four people. They included an innocent bystander, Margaret Younghusband, a 19-year-old domestic servant from Liverpool, who had been observing events from nearby high ground. The others killed were two colliers, Robert Hannaby and Edward Bellis, and Elizabeth Jones, who was shot in
3008-404: The route had two rope-worked inclines on it. The Wrexham and Minera Railway was a satellite of the GWR, created to provide a route with easier gradients, and it opened in 1862. In 1865 the W&MR got authorisation to build a line to Tryddyn, near Coed Talon; the objective was for the GWR to get access to the minerals around Mold. This line was called the Wrexham and Minera Extension Railway, but it
3072-455: The scene, and the only hope of completing the line lay with the LNWR, and that company funded the completion of the line. The line opened on 12 September 1869 and was worked by the LNWR, although the Mold and Denbigh Junction Railway company remained independent. Bradshaw's Guide shows the passenger train service in 1895: there were seven trains each way daily, all but one stopping at all stations. By 1919 there were two return journeys on
3136-476: The timings of the up trains varied between weekdays and Saturdays. On the Mold, Coed Talon & Brymbo branch there were four passenger trains each way daily, and an extra train each way on Wednesday and Saturday evenings". By 1919 the mineral trains had reduced to one daily. In 1866 the main line of the WM&CQR opened; it ran from Wrexham to a wharf on the River Dee at Connah's Quay . Its primary traffic
3200-474: The town. In the 1530s, the Tudor antiquarian John Leland noted the weekly market had been abandoned. By now Mold had two main streets, Streate Byle (Beili) and Streate Dadlede (Dadleu-dy), and about 40 houses making up the settlement. By the beginning of the 17th century, the population was rising with the development of the coal industry near the town. By the 1630s there were more than 120 houses and huts in
3264-473: The township which had been laid out around Mold Castle. Trade soon began between the Welsh community and English merchants in Chester and Whitchurch, Shropshire . During the medieval period, the town held two annual fairs and a weekly market, which brought in substantial revenues, as drovers brought their livestock to the English-Welsh border to be sold. Nevertheless, tensions between the Welsh and
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#17327902596123328-458: The transportation inwards of oil pipe sections for the Anglesey to Ellesmere Port pipe line, which uses part of the old Mold and Denbigh Junction Railway trackbed near Afonwen . When the Synthite works transferred from rail to road haulage on 15/3/1983 the railway activity in the area ceased completely. Mold station buildings survived until 1988, occupied by a builders' merchant and latterly
3392-462: The workings extended to and from Ruthin or Corwen. A motor train worked three round trips from Denbigh. Passenger trains on the line were withdrawn on 30 April 1962, but goods and parcels traffic to Mold from Chester continued. The closure had been planned, and announced, for September 1961 but the arrangements for alternative transport were not completed, and the closure was deferred. Many local residents made other arrangements anyway and carryings in
3456-473: The year is −9.7 °C (14.5 °F), with a total of 62.1 frosty nights. Annual rainfall averages 925 mm. Almost 152 days have at least 1 mm of precipitation. Mold and Denbigh Junction Railway The Mold and Denbigh Junction Railway was a railway company that built a 16-mile (26 km) railway line in North Wales. It formed a link between the Mold Railway (from Chester) and
3520-543: Was 2s 6d and the cheapest fare 1s 1d. In the spring of 1859 the timetable was increased to 4 trains a day each way (2 on Sundays). In the investigation into an accident that took place on the 9:25 Chester to Mold service in March 1868 it was reported that the John o' Gaunt locomotive (which suffered a boiler tube failure) was hauling 12 passenger coaches. The Chester and Holyhead Railway had become increasingly beholden to
3584-498: Was a boundary stone at the location. In 1923 the main line railways of Great Britain were grouped, under the Railways Act 1921 , into one or other of four new, larger companies. The LNWR was a constituent of the new London Midland and Scottish Railway . This then became the London Midland Region of British Railways . The original Ffrith branch (from Ffrith Junction to Coed Talon) closed on 29 July 1934, prompted by
3648-465: Was a coal pit. The steeply graded branch line opened on 14 September 1849; part of the Parliamentary authorisation was to continue to limestone quarries at Ffrith, but for the time being that was left in abeyance. The mine and quarry owner Edward Oakley worked the branch with his own engine, Diamond . A station was opened at Padeswood (on the Mold main line) in 1851. In 1852 the C&HR took over
3712-458: Was extracted from local coal. When the Mold and Denbigh Junction Railway opened in 1869, through traffic on the line was heavy, and the remaining single track at the Mold end of the main line was doubled to cope.The Ffrith line suffered from severe gradients, the ruling gradient being 1 in 40; no passenger train ever worked over the section from Ffrith Junction to Coed Talon. The LNWR decided to make
3776-403: Was incorporated on 6 August 1861 to build a 16-mile (26 km) link railway between the Mold Railway and the Vale of Clwyd Railway . The Mold Railway connected Chester and Mold, and the Vale of Clwyd Railway connected Rhyl and Denbigh. The new company was unable to raise the funds for construction of its line, until Richard Samuel France, a railway contractor and mineowner, offered to build
3840-418: Was never built under that name. The following year the LNWR and the GWR agreed to build the connecting line jointly, giving the LNWR access to Brymbo, an important steel-making town on the original W&MR. The line was retitled the Wrexham and Minera Joint Railway, although it did not approach close to either Wrexham or Minera. This change was authorised by Act of 11 June 1866. There was some delay in building
3904-617: Was still a substantial fortification at the outbreak of the rebellion by Madog ap Llywelyn in 1294. However, with the death of the last Lord Montalt in 1329, the castle's importance began to decline. The last mention of the fortification is in Patent Rolls from the early 15th century. With the end of the Welsh Wars, English common law was introduced by the Statute of Rhuddlan . This led to an increase in commercial enterprise in
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#17327902596123968-486: Was the principal competitor of the LNWR in the area, and the GWR had taken steps to reach Rhyl , an important regional centre. It hoped to do this by taking control of a series of local railways, northwards from the Vale of Llangollen Railway at Corwen, which itself branched from the GWR at Ruabon . The GWR attempted to take control of the Denbigh, Ruthin & Corwen Railway as well as the Vale of Clwyd line. In 1860,
4032-411: Was to be a triangular junction. The main line running towards Rhyl and joining the Vale of Clwyd at Trefnant and a cut off heading south west towards Denbigh, joining the Vale of Clwyd about a mile north of the town's station and running parallel. The northern leg of the triangle was abandoned and only partly constructed with a few hundred metres visible at the east end. Notwithstanding the shortage of
4096-422: Was to be minerals, but passenger accommodation was provided. The WM&CQR crossed the Mold Railway near Hope. An Exchange Platform was provided on each line, although the accommodation was primitive. At first there was no access to and from the stations, other than from a train on the other line. A connecting curve was provided at the intersection by the WM&CQR, enabling its trains to run towards Mold; however
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