Charles III
58-660: Trealaw is a long village, also a community and electoral ward in the Rhondda Valley , Rhondda Cynon Taf , Wales. It stretches over two miles (three kilometres) from the junction of Cemetery Road and Brithweunydd Road in the east, to the junction of Ynyscynon Road and Partridge Road to the northwest. Trealaw is a dormitory town of the more famous Tonypandy , its name translates from the Welsh language as 'the Town of Alaw', which derives from Alaw Goch or Alaw Coch (red melody),
116-576: A mound about 12 feet high by 100 feet in length remained, which over the centuries had acquired the name of Gibbet Hill , indicating perhaps, that in the area's medieval period, it was a place of execution. However, latterly, development of the mid-Rhondda by-pass road has removed all traces of the castle. Trealaw Cemetery Trealaw is the site of one of the Rhondda's largest cemeteries, located at Llethrddu ("black slope"). Opened in 1875, it also contains war graves of both world wars. The burials of
174-602: A parliamentary bill in the 1836 session. The Glamorganshire Canal Company opposed the bill, but it was passed and obtained royal assent on 21 June 1836 as the Taff Vale Railway Act 1836 ( 6 & 7 Will. 4 . c. lxxxii). The TVR Company was incorporated with capital of £300,000. The directors were Josiah Guest (who became its first chairman), Walter Coffin, Edward Lee, Thomas Guest, Thomas Guppy, Thomas Powell, Christopher James, Thomas Carlisle, Henry Rudhall, William Wait, William Watson, and Peter Maze. However, at
232-601: A personal friend, to estimate the cost of building a railway from Merthyr to Bute Docks in Cardiff. Brunel's estimate was £190,649. However, by the following year Brunel had revised his estimate upwards, to £286,031, to accommodate improved gradients, mineral branches and shipping staithes . In October 1835 a meeting of 'the Proprietors of Iron Works, Collieries, and others interested in the Minfral and other Property of
290-618: A scheme to build a trunk roadway from Merthyr Tydfil to Cardiff. He used mule -hauled trains. A solution to the difficulty of local transport around the area of the ironworks was the tramroad . Wooden railways had been extensively used elsewhere, but seem not to have been much used in South Wales. The local tramroads were almost all short-distance plateways (in which the rails are L-shaped plates, carrying wagons with plain wheels) and in many cases were simple extensions of plateways used underground in mines. Canals were built down some of
348-578: A stationary engine even though increasing volumes of output were putting a strain on the capacity of the system. At this stage the Pwllyrhebog branch served two collieries, Cwm Clydach and Blaenclydach, but in 1871 Thomas, Riches & Co sank an important new pit further up the Clydach Valley at Clydach Vale . In November 1871 the TVR agreed to extend the Pwllyrhebog branch to the new pit; in fact
406-562: A week. The line was single throughout with passing places at the stations. On double track sections and at crossing loops, right-hand running was employed for several years. A mineral branch from Pontypridd to Dinas Rhondda opened in June 1841. The Llancaiach Branch was authorised in the original Taff Vale Railway Act 1836 ( 6 & 7 Will. 4 . c. lxxxii). It opened on 25 November 1841 for mineral traffic only, from Stormstown south of Abercynon to three adjacent collieries at Llancaiach. There
464-664: Is a division of land in Wales that forms the lowest tier of local government in Wales . Welsh communities are analogous to civil parishes in England but, unlike English parishes, communities cover the whole of Wales. There are 878 communities in Wales. Until 1974 Wales was divided into civil parishes . These were abolished by section 20 (6) of the Local Government Act 1972 , and replaced by communities by section 27 of
522-583: The Cynon Valley . Judges Hall is a community venue used in its heyday for Variety performances, boxing tournaments and snooker . Today it is used for Bingo and youth activities. Although Trealaw is considered to date from the 1860/70s, it does have an earlier history. On the river bank, near the confluence of Nant Clydach with the Rhondda Fawr River, stood Ynys-y-Crug, a 12th-century timber motte-and-bailey castle . Until recent years,
580-504: The First World War are scattered in various parts of this large cemetery, and shortly after that war a Cross of Sacrifice was erected at the cemetery entrance. The cemetery contains the graves of Lord Tonypandy , Tommy Farr , Lewis Jones and James Kitchener Davies . William Evans (1864–1934), owner of Thomas & Evans Ltd which produced the soft drink Corona , is also buried here. The cemetery features many reminders of
638-624: The Labour Party and Plaid Cymru . At the May 2012 election and May 2017 election it was won by Labour's Joy Rosser. At the May 2022 election the seat was won by Labour's Wyn Hughes, whose son Gareth Hughes was councillor for neighbouring Tonypandy . Trealaw is served by two railway stations on the Transport for Wales train services from Cardiff : Dinas and Tonypandy . Dinas (then known as Pandy station, located 100 metres downline from
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#1732787050741696-664: The Local Government (Wales) Act 1994 and the Local Government (Wales) Measure 2011 . Taff Vale Railway (Wales hath been, and Wales shall be) The Taff Vale Railway ( TVR ) was a standard gauge railway in South Wales , built by the Taff Vale Railway Company to serve the iron and coal industries around Merthyr Tydfil and to connect them with docks in Cardiff . It
754-474: The Merthyr Tydfil area. A major difficulty was transport; conveying the finished product away to market was effected by coastal shipping, but the primitive road network made reaching the coast expensive and difficult; and the limestone, plentiful as it was, was located some distance north of the location of the ironworks. In 1767, Anthony Bacon of Cyfarthfa persuaded his fellow ironmasters to join in
812-567: The River Rhondda , and the second bridges the Taff valley between Goetre-coed and Quakers Yard. As well as the avoiding the use of broad gauge , Brunel adopted a different form of track for the line: "parallel rails" weighing 55 pounds per yard (27 kg/m), fixed in chairs with compressed wooden keys. The chairs were fixed to transverse sleepers by screws inserted prior to laying, "ensuring accuracy of gauge". A ceremonial opening of
870-547: The 1920s where everything from pottery to drama was taught. Today, there is a more limited range of activities, while the Dan Murphy Day Centre (named after a former councillor) on the site provides meals and a meeting place for the area's senior citizens. Originally, the village had seven pubs (The Bute Hotel, Dinas Arms, Royal Hotel, Miskin Hotel, Trealaw Hotel (known locally as Paddy's Goose), Colliers Arms and
928-479: The Crown . In Wales, all town councils are community councils. There are now three communities with city status: Bangor , St Asaph and St Davids . The chair of a town council or city council will usually have the title mayor (Welsh: maer ). However, not every community has a council. In communities with populations too small to sustain a full community council, community meetings may be established. The communities in
986-667: The Opposition Andrew RT Davies MS ( C ) Shadow Cabinet ( current ) Prime Minister Rt Hon Keir Starmer MP ( L ) Secretary of State for Wales Rt Hon Jo Stevens MP (L) Principal councils ( leader list ) Corporate Joint Committees Local twinning see also: Regional terms and Regional economy United Kingdom Parliament elections European Parliament elections (1979–2020) Local elections Police and crime commissioner elections Referendums A community ( Welsh : cymuned )
1044-1019: The Vallies [ sic ] of the Taff, Rhondda, Cynon, Bargoed, and other adjacent places, and the Trade of the Town of Merthyr Tydvil and Port of Cardiff' was held at the Castle Inn in Merthyr Tydfil, chaired by John Josiah Guest , the MP for Merthyr. The meeting resolved to form "The Taff Vale Railway Company" and a provisional committee was appointed, consisting of J. J. Guest, W. Thompson, T. R. Guest , Richard Hill, Anthony Hill, William Forman, Walter Coffin , E. I. Hutchins, Edward Morgan, Robert Beaumont, Thomas Powell , W. Thomas, D. W. James, David Evans, George Insole , W. Jones, Henry Charles, and David Davis . The promoters agreed to go forward with
1102-575: The Ynyscynon Hotel), but the Bute and the Dinas Arms did not survive beyond the 1960s. The Bute was located directly opposite the main entrance to Llethrddu Cemetery, and acquired the nickname of The Resurrection because, in the days of walking funerals, the mourners would repair to the Bute to 'resurrect' the deceased with tales and reminiscences over a pint or three. The Bute closed in 1964 and
1160-718: The bardic name of David (Dafydd) Williams (d. 1863) the father of Judge Gwilym Williams (1839–1906), who founded the village (along with that of Williamstown , a village to the south of Trealaw) during the 'coal-rush' of the 19th century. Judge Williams is also commemorated in Trealaw by Judges Hall (in full, the Judge Gwilym Williams Memorial Hall) and in Ynyscynon Road, named after the Williams' family seat at Ynyscynon, near Aberdare in
1218-489: The collieries called Dinas had been opened in 1841 which stimulated interest in mining in the valley. Spurred by the threat of a possible broad-gauge line from Ely , the TVR obtained authorisation on 26 August 1846 for the Rhondda Fawr Valley Extension, in time reaching what is now Treherbert , opening to there on 7 August 1856. Passenger services were not started until 7 January 1863. In 1849
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#17327870507411276-430: The colliery company built the line and transferred it when completed to the TVR. The company also undertook to send all their traffic out via the TVR. The new pit was at a much higher altitude even than the previous connections so a zigzag arrangement immediately above the Pwllyrhebog incline was necessary to gain further height. The Taff Vale Railway Act 1899 ( 62 & 63 Vict. c. cii) 13 July 1899 formalised
1334-695: The coming of modern railways. 200,000 tons of coal were brought down by the canal in 1839 to the dock that became Bute West Dock . In 1802 the Merthyr Tramroad was opened, connecting the Dowlais and other ironworks with the Glamorganshire Canal. Richard Trevithick was employed at Penydarren Ironworks , served by the tramroad, and he built a steam locomotive engine. In 1804 a demonstration run took place in which 10 tons of iron and 70 people were transported 9 miles (14 km). This
1392-772: The community boundaries within their area every fifteen years. The councils propose changes to the Local Democracy and Boundary Commission for Wales , which prepares a report and makes recommendations to the Welsh Government . If the Welsh Government accepts the recommendations, then it implements them using a statutory instrument . For example, in 2016 four new communities were created in the City and County of Cardiff . The legislation surrounding community councils in Wales has been amended significantly in
1450-525: The company offered a £500 premium for proving the existence of deep-seam coal in the Treherbert area. At the same time a 77-chain (1.5 km) extension from Porth to Ynyshir was opened for mineral traffic; that stub was extended to Ferndale in 1856 and later to Maerdy , which at 900 feet (270 m) above sea level was the most elevated location on the TVR system. In 1854 the Eirw Branch
1508-481: The company's first general meeting on 16 September 1836 the following were appointed as directors: J. J. Guest, Walter Coffin, T. R. Guest, Thomas Powell, T. Carlisle, E. H. Lee, Henry Rudhall, C. E. Bernard, Chris. James, W. K. Wait, Elijah Waring , and R. H. Webb. The act authorised a railway from Merthyr Tydfil to Cardiff , to be known as the Taff Vale Railway, with several branches: to connect with
1566-427: The first connection with the rest of the standard-gauge railway network; the TVR reviewed its policy of right-hand running and decided to change to left-hand running in preparation for the connection. The Newport, Abergavenny and Hereford Railway reached Quakers Yard on 11 January 1858, making a connection with the TVR there. This gave a route for minerals from the TVR network to reach much further afield, but reduced
1624-696: The haul length on the TVR system. The Taff Vale Extension Railway was later extended to Middle Duffryn , near Aberdare , opening in April 1864. The extension crossed the Llancaiach colliery sections of the TVR on the level and Llancaiach coal was transported via Quakers Yard on the TVER in preference to using the Llancaiach line inclined plane. The coalfield around Aberdare was proving to have abundant resources of high-quality coal. The Taff Vale Extension line
1682-466: The inclined section was 1 ⁄ 2 mile (800 m) in length with gradients of 1 in 19 and 1 in 22. Locomotives did not ascend the incline. There was a 1 in 13 gradient on the Pwllyrhebog branch, near Tonypandy ; it too was rope-worked with special locomotives. Inevitably there were some stiff gradients elsewhere. There were two stone viaducts on the route: the first, at Pontypridd , crosses
1740-531: The introduction of Comprehensive school education in the 1970s, and it burned down soon after. Children who live near the Tonypandy end of the village are more likely to attend Tonypandy Community College; and children who live near Porth are more likely to attend Porth County Community School . For recreation, the main venue is Maes-yr-Haf Education Centre, founded by the Society of Friends ( Quakers ) in
1798-654: The line between Cardiff and Navigation House, Abercynon , took place on 8 October 1840, when the directors and shareholders travelled on the line; the full public opening of that section was on 9 October 1840. On 20 April 1841 the line was inspected by Sir Frederick Smith for the Board of Trade , and on 21 April 1841 the main line was opened throughout to Merthyr. Passenger stations were at Cardiff , Llandaff , Pentyrch (later Radyr ), Taffs Well , Newbridge (later Pontypridd ), Navigation House , Troed-y-rhiw and Merthyr . There were two passenger trains each way daily, seven days
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1856-759: The lower end, there was Davies's soft drinks factory in Marjorie Street, while in Trealaw Road the Co-op and the Hopkin Morgan bakeries provided the main employment. All the former have ceased trading, the latter two now the site of modern housing developments. Between the railway and the river, near Trealaw Station, is Foundry Road, which has a number of industrial units. There are two primary schools , Alaw Primary School and Trealaw Junior School. The Secondary modern school for senior pupils closed with
1914-429: The mainstay of the network, but passenger trains still operate on most of the main line sections. Coal mining and iron smelting had been carried out on a small scale in South Wales down to the 18th century; it was encouraged by the plentiful availability of coal, at first at a shallow depth; timber (for pit props and for charcoal ); and limestone (for fluxing ). The coal was primarily used in iron production and it
1972-461: The nature of the ground render unavoidable would be unfit for a wider gauge… The construction of the line posed no great engineering challenges as its course followed the valley of the River Taff. The line was 24 + 1 ⁄ 4 miles (39 km) in length. At Quakers Yard there was a sudden steep change of ground level and Brunel used 50-horsepower (37 kW) stationary winding engines;
2030-474: The ordinary width of 4' 8 + 1 ⁄ 2 ″. The general gradients, the inclined planes , and still more the nature and the immediate extent of the peculiar class of traffic to which the line must always be devoted, not only render high speeds unnecessary, but must almost prevent their being attempted, while the same causes operate to diminish any advantage that may be gained in reducing friction by increased diameter of carriage wheels. The curves also which
2088-541: The present station) was the original terminus of the Rhondda Fawr branch, opened by the Taff Vale Railway , until it was extended to Treherbert in 1863. The village is served by Stagecoach bus route 120 between Blaenrhondda and Pontypridd / Caerphilly ; and Veolia Transport Route 175 between Clydach Vale / Tonypandy and Porth . Trealaw has never had very much by way of commerce and industry. At
2146-487: The same Act. The principal areas of Wales are divided entirely into communities. Unlike in England, where unparished areas exist, no part of Wales is outside a community, even in urban areas . Most, but not all, communities are administered by community councils , which are equivalent to English parish councils in terms of their powers and the way they operate. Welsh community councils may call themselves town councils unilaterally and may have city status granted by
2204-514: The sea and the proprietors of the TVR responded by sponsoring the Aberdare Railway, a nominally independent company. The Aberdare Railway was incorporated on 31 July 1845 to make a 7 + 1 ⁄ 2 -mile (12 km) branch from Navigation House to Aberdare . It was worked by the TVR from the outset and leased to it from 1 January 1847. It opened for passenger and goods and mineral traffic on 6 August 1846. Navigation House station
2262-554: The speed of the trains on the line to 12 mph (19 km/h), with stiff penalties for any speeding. (These two clauses were repealed by the Taff Vale Railway Act 1840 ( 3 & 4 Vict. c. cx)) Locomotive operation and the carriage of passengers were permitted by the act of 1836. The Merthyr terminus was to be on an open space south of the town, between the River Taff and Cardiff Road. The Cardiff terminal
2320-412: The trade. In the following decades further branch lines were built and the TVR used " motor cars " (steam railway passenger coaches) from 1903 to encourage local passenger travel. From 1922 the TVR was a constituent of the new Great Western Railway (GWR) at the grouping of the railways , imposing its own character on the larger organisation. The decline in the coal and iron industries took its toll on
2378-548: The tragic loss of life which was an everyday reality during the valley's coal mining era, including most of the thirty-one victims of the Rhondda's last mining disaster at the Cambrian Colliery in May 1965. The Trealaw electoral ward is coterminous with the borders of the Trealaw community and elects one county councillor to Rhondda Cynon Taf County Borough Council . Since 1995 representation has mainly flipped between
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2436-515: The tramroad to Dowlais and other ironworks nearby; to collieries at Llancaiach ; to the tramroad serving Dinas collieries (in the Rhondda ); and to Cogan Pill . Company profits were limited to 7%; this could be augmented to 9% if the tolls for use of the line were substantially reduced. Independent carriers as well as the Company itself were potentially able to use the line. The act also limited
2494-679: The turnpike road. Edge railways , evolved directly from earlier wooden railways, had continued in use in Northumberland and elsewhere in the country; the Stockton and Darlington Railway of 1825 and the Liverpool and Manchester Railway of 1830 demonstrated the capabilities of the current technology. Early in 1835, Anthony Hill , owner of the Plymouth Ironworks at Merthyr, asked the engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel ,
2552-551: The urban areas of the cities of Cardiff , Swansea and Newport do not have community councils. As of the 2001 United Kingdom census , there were 869 communities in Wales. 84 percent, or more than 730, have a council. They vary in size from Rhayader with an area of 13,945 hectares (34,460 acres) to Cefn Fforest with an area of 64 hectares (160 acres). They ranged in population from Barry with 45,053 recorded inhabitants to Baglan Bay with no permanent residents. The twenty-two principal area councils are required to review
2610-423: The valleys, to bring the iron down to the coast for shipping elsewhere. The Glamorganshire Canal was opened in 1794; it ran from Merthyr Tydfil to Cardiff , a distance of 25 miles (40 km). Local mine owners within 4 miles (6 km) of the canal were authorised to build tramroads to connect to the canal. About 350 miles (560 km) of tramroad were built in South Wales under this and similar arrangements before
2668-929: The working class with their extensive libraries of mostly left-wing literature. In the 19th and early-20th century, behind Dinas Arms was the Brithweunydd Hotel, a low-class lodging house for workers attracted to the area by the burgeoning coal mining industry. The Royal Hotel shut its doors in early 2010 due to increased rates and the down turn in the economy. Community (Wales) Heir Apparent William, Prince of Wales First Minister ( list ) Rt Hon Eluned Morgan MS ( L ) Deputy First Minister Huw Irranca-Davies MS ( L ) Counsel General-designate – Elisabeth Jones Chief Whip and Trefnydd – Jane Hutt MS (L) Permanent Secretary Sixth Senedd Llywydd (Presiding Officer) Elin Jones MS ( PC ) Leader of
2726-486: Was a self-acting rope-worked incline 600 yards (550 m) long on a 1 in 8 gradient. Use of the line was less than expected, traders finding that the charges on the canal were substantially lower. The TVR hesitated to build the authorised branch to the tramroad to Dowlais and the clause in the act enabled the Dowlais Iron Company to take over the construction and the branch, which they did. The line
2784-488: Was able to take the output direct to London (via Hereford —the South Wales Main Line was still broad gauge at this time) and to the ports at Birkenhead and Southampton , where bunkering of seafaring ships was an important market. The Rhondda valleys also began to be the source of excellent coal and that trade started to exceed that of Merthyr. The branch line from Pontypridd to the tramroad leading to
2842-480: Was authorised in 1857 to reach into Cwm Clydach from Tonypandy. Its actual construction was much delayed, a contract being let in December 1861; it was opened early in 1863. It climbed away from the Rhondda very steeply, on a 1 in 13 gradient for 3 ⁄ 4 mile (1.2 km) and then on to Blaenclydach . At first, the Pwllyrhebog incline was worked on the balanced load system but the TVR refused to install
2900-521: Was completed to Merthyr in 1862. The original purpose of the TVR had been deeply connected with the ironworks of Merthyr. In the years immediately following the railway's authorisation, the rich seams of high-quality coal in the Aberdare area came into prominence and began to outshine the Merthyr trade. Sixteen steam coalpits were sunk there between 1840 and 1853. Those collieries required transport to
2958-499: Was only gradually that surplus coal began to be used for power (in industrial stationary steam engines) and for domestic use. In time coke replaced charcoal in the smelting process. The availability of the raw materials at the heads of the South Wales valleys led to a number of ironworks being founded there between 1750 and 1800; these included the Cyfarthfa Ironworks , Plymouth Ironworks , and Dowlais Ironworks in
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#17327870507413016-456: Was open between Merthyr Tydfil and Cardiff, but almost immediately thought was given to improving the capacity of the main line and of serving the coal production of adjacent valleys. The line was originally single, except for the Quaker's Yard and Llancaiach inclines, which were double. Cardiff to Taffs Well was doubled in 1846 and through to Navigation House ( Abercynon ) in 1847. The doubling
3074-454: Was opened in stages in 1840 and 1841. In the railway's first years, the coal mining industries expanded considerably and branches were soon opened in the Rhondda valleys and the Cynon Valley . The conveyance of coal for export and for transport away from South Wales began to dominate and the docks in Cardiff and the approach railway became extremely congested. Alternatives were sought and competing railway companies were encouraged to enter
3132-548: Was opened; under 1 mile (1.6 km) long it left the Rhondda line at Trehafod to serve nearby collieries. In 1857 the TVR board authorised the doubling of the Rhondda Fawr as far as Porth; by February 1858 eight collieries were sending their coal down the extension of the Rhondda branch. In the subsidiary Rhondda valley, the Rhondda Fach, the line was opened from Porth to Ferndale in the summer of 1876 and to Maerdy in 1889. The Pwllyrhebog branch (as it became known)
3190-598: Was renamed Aberdare Junction on the opening of the branch. There was a 49-chain (3,200 ft; 990 m) branch off the Aberdare line from Cwmbach to Abernant colliery, also opened in 1846; it crossed the River Cynon to get access. In 1847 the Newport, Abergavenny and Hereford Railway obtained powers to build its Taff Vale Extension westwards from Pontypool to connect the TVR at Quakers Yard. This would be
3248-543: Was subsequently demolished to provide a car parking area for the Trealaw Workingmen's Club next door which has now acquired the 'Res' soubriquet. One of many such clubs in the South Wales Valleys , the club was paid for from contributions deducted from pit workers' wages to provide social and educational facilities for the employees. Many of these workingmen's clubs were known as the universities of
3306-461: Was the first use of a steam locomotive engine in the world. However many of the cast-iron tramplates were broken due to the weight of the engine. For the first decades of the nineteenth century, the transport situation for Merthyr and the surrounding area changed relatively little; the Glamorganshire Canal prospered, but became overwhelmed by the volume of trade. Tramways continued with horse haulage and plateway tracks. Mule trains carried iron down
3364-456: Was to be at or near the ship canal which the Marquis of Bute proposed to build. This became Bute West Dock; he had obtained powers to build it in 1830 but had held off from actually doing so. Brunel, as the engineer for the line, designed it as a standard gauge line. He told the directors, As regards the gauge or width of the rails, I see no reason in our case for deviating materially from
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