Category: Uncategorized
Valentine’s Day
DAVID DAVIES OF LLANDINAM 1818 – 1890
The man chiefly responsible for the development of the village of Barry into
the largest coal export port in the world.
In last month’s copy of ‘What’s On’ Stephen Jones mentioned the name of David Davies of Llandinam in his article, stating that he was one of the three main coal owners credited with the development which saw Barry grow from a small rural backwater which recorded a population of 500 in ‘the Barry area’ – 85 ‘in the village of Barry’ – in the 1881 Census to a thriving industrial town with a population of 33,760 in 1911. The reason for the extraordinary growth, of course, was the development of the Docks and the railway which carried the coal from the Rhondda Valley to be exported to all parts of the world. By 1913, Barry was the largest coal export port in the world.
As I mentioned, David Davies – together with other Coal Owners such as Archibald Hood, J. O. Riches, John Cory and others – was foremost in the development of the new docks at Barry. But who was David Davies? What do we know about this man who is known as ‘Wales’ first tycoon’?
He was born in the year 1818, in the village of Llandinam, between Llanidloes and Y Drenewydd (Newtown) in mid Wales, the eldest of nine children. He attended the village school at Llandinam, but was mostly self-taught, having left school at the age of 11 to work as a sawyer and farmer alongside his father. At the age of 20 he became the head of the family – responsible for his mother and eight younger siblings when his father died. He was successful from the beginning and in 1848, he took over a larger farm – and yet another one two years later.
During this time he became involved in creating the approaches to a new bridge over the river Hafren – Severn – at Llandinam – and this set him on the road to a career in contracting. In 1855 he built the first section of the Llanidloes and Newtown railway – and he subsequently built a number of other railways including The Vale of Clwyd, Oswestry and Newtown and Machynlleth, Pembroke and Tenby and others.
His railway building activities made David Davies a very wealthy man and in 1864 he took a lease of coal in the Upper Rhondda Valley and sank the Parc and Maendy pits. Later on new collieries were sunk – Dare, Western and Eastern, Garw, and Lady Windsor. In 1887 the output had so increased that he felt it was advisable to set up the Ocean Coal Company Ltd. The Taff Vale railway and the Bute docks at Cardiff were unable to cope with the Ocean traffic and this led Davies to promote a new dock at Barry with a railway connection from the Rhondda.
He was instrumental in the development of the coal mining industry in the Rhondda Valley.
In 1874 David Davies became a Liberal Member of Parliament representing the Cardigan district. He was returned in 1880 and again in 1885 – but in 1886 he fell out with Mr Gladstone over home rule for Ireland and in the following election, he lost his seat. He was also one of the first governors of the University College of Wales, Aberystwyth, which opened its doors in 1872. Attending the National Eisteddfod of Wales in 1865, he addressed the audience – in Welsh – criticising those people who reviled the language – but urged Welsh people to master English because that was the best medium for making money!!
A Calvanistic Methodist by upbringing, David Davies was a rigid Puritan – a teetotaller who adhered strictly to Sunday observance all his life. He became an influential figure in Calvinistic Methodism, which had over 13,000 members in Cardiganshire alone, and funded the building of numerous chapels. He also generously distributed much of his wealth to educational and other good causes – and to needy individuals – never forgetting his own lowly upbringing. He died at his home, Plas Dinam in Llandinam, in 1890 – a mere year after the opening of his great masterpiece, Barry Docks.
He and his wife, Margaret left one son, Edward, who in turn had a son and two daughters. Edward’s son, also called David, became the Liberal MP for Montgomeryshire and Personal Private Secretary to David Lloyd George. He was a fervent internationalist, known as the Father of the Temple of Peace and was elevated to the peerage in 1932. His sisters, Gwendoline and Margaret Davies moved from Plas Dinam to another property in the area – Gregynog Hall – saving the ancient building from falling into decay. They devoted their wealth to fostering the culture of their native Wales. They amassed one of the great art collections of the 20th Century – and in time donated the collection to the National Museum of Wales.
A bronze statue of David Davies, studying the original plans for the new dock development, stands outside the old Dock Offices in Barry. It was designed by sculptor Alfred Gilbert. And the north-south road, the A470, runs past a copy of the same statue which stands on the roadside in the centre his native village of Llandinam.
Ann M. Jones
Wenvoe Council Website
More Tornadoes Per Square Mile In Britain
THERE ARE MORE TORNADOES PER SQUARE MILE IN BRITAIN THAN IN THE USA !
While the stormy weather has been a major talking point in the village so far in 2023, we can at least be thankful that we have been spared the more devastating weather events witnessed in the past. A good example is the tornado which swept through South Wales in 1913.
In fact, although we might imagine them to be incredibly unusual weather events, tornadoes are more common in the UK than you might think. On average we can expect 33 every year. Thankfully they are usually nowhere near as destructive as those in the USA. We are also better prepared than we were in days gone by. The Vale has an official project plan aimed at preparation for the impact of climate change and the ever increasing risk of flooding in many of our communities. As a lead Local Flood Authority, the Vale has a statutory duty to investigate, log and report all instances of flooding. Fortunately for us, the Vale has also been proactive in dealing with the impact of the stormy weather, sending a team to deal with the recent flooding on the Old Port Road.
Such planning had not unfortunately taken place when one of the most devastating weather events hit South Wales on October 27th,1913. Just days after hundreds of miners were killed in Britain’s worst mining disaster at Senghenydd, a tornado struck large parts of South Wales, causing widespread devastation. The Met Office confirmed that the tornado was the same power and severity of those more regularly experienced across the Atlantic in the United States. The South Wales event was in fact a “moderately devastating tornado” (T6 on the TORRO scale) which means that the winds were, at its worse, in excess of 160 mph.
A tornado is defined as a violently-rotating column of air which spins around and upwards, similar to the action of a cork being pulled from a wine bottle. The 1913 tornado began over Devon in the mid-afternoon, as warm air from the Mediterranean struck a cold front blowing down from Iceland. As it progressed, it swept 11 miles through areas such as Trefforest, Pontypridd, Cilfynydd and Abercynon. The impact seems to have peaked at Edwardsville. There, the English Congregational Chapel was wrecked and the pews swept against the west wall. Nearby, a hayrick weighing several tons was carried for a mile and, near Pontypridd, half a ton of brick chimney was carried several hundred yards.
During the tornado six people lost their lives. One of those killed was Francis Woolford, of Edwardsville, captain of Ton Pentre football club, after being transferred from Swindon FC for £25. Woolford , and the trainer, Walter Breeze, were walking to the station on their way home and were a short distance ahead of the rest of the team. Woolford was dashed against a wall, fracturing his skull, while Breeze was lucky enough to get away with a broken rib. Another fatality, Thomas John Harries, a 52 year old miner from Cilfynydd was thrown 300 yards by the winds and was found the next morning in a nearby field. He left a wife and three children. As well as the lives lost and the scores injured there was extensive damage to property estimated to be equivalent to around £3million today. Worse still, a few days later the insurers refused to pay out, presumably because the tornado was considered an act of God.
Leisurely Stroll Over Barry Island
MAY CARERS WALK
On the same day that the world’s longest pedestrian bridge opened in Northern Portugal, the Valeways Carers group met once more for a leisurely stroll over Barry Island.
Welsh Government Covid restrictions were eased at the end of April, and meant organised groups could meet up outside once more. It had been nearly 5 months since the walkers had met together and although there was no pedestrian bridge to navigate, the stroll around the headland and along the promenade certainly blew cobwebs away and allowed people to catch up. If you would like to join an informal, friendly group for a walk and a chat, meet us at Barry Island train station, 10:30am, on the last Thursday of every month.
April Quiz Answers
Wedding Congratulations
Colourful Harvest Display
A Colourful Harvest Display
In 1866 a visitor to Wenvoe church and churchyard commented on the “churchyard being prettily planted with flowers”. If the same visitor had visited the churchyard over the weekend of our Harvest Celebration he would have seen the churchyard cross prettily decorated with straw bales and pumpkins and apples, to celebrate the limited way in which the church kept the Harvest in 2020. The cross was decorated by Mike and Glenys and Sandra, and we extend to them our thanks for such a colourful display. The COVID restrictions, now in force, meant that all our normal activities, of decorating the church and having the children of our “Pebbles” group, give us a presentation of what harvest means to them, were for this year put on hold. However Vicar Jon had decided that he would present a harvest service on Facebook, as part of our regular virtual worship. The children from Wenvoe C in W school were filmed singing and reading “harvesty” things and it was a joy to see and to hear. During the Saturday we invited offerings of tinned and dry goods for the Food Bank in Barry and we were amazed at the response, and it needed two car loads to take the items to the Food Bank, who were so grateful for the contribution the people of Wenvoe had made yet again, when the Food Bank are in so desperate need of food for those families who are finding it hard to cope at the moment.
Well done and thanks to all who made a contribution.
Jude took a photo of her car showing some of the many bags handed in during Saturday
REMEMBRANCE SUNDAY
No Memorial Service
This year because of the COVID resrictions, there will be NO ceremony at the Village War Memorial. Vicar Jon will be using his 10.30 service on Facebook as a virtual Remembrance Day service including the two minutes silence which all can join in at home. There has been much thought about this and in agreement with the Chairman of Wenvoe Community Council this is how Wenvoe will remember its sons who died in the two world wars and the many other wars since. The theme of this year’s commemoration by the Royal British Legion is to be “Coming Home” and their appeal is to help the wounded who returned home with their lives shattered in many cases. So please Support The Poppy Appeal as you have in previous years. All charities have reported a great loss of income in these difficult days, but the “Legion” has so many dependent on their help, so buy a poppy and wear it with pride.
1989 – Pre-Covid Reminiscence
Happy Photographs From The Summer Of 1989
For seventeen years I was fortunate to be a class teacher in Gwenfo Church in Wales Primary School and for many of those years I was the class teacher of Year Three , seven and eight year olds. These happy photographs were taken in the summer of 1989. For three or four years running I was able to take my class on a trip to New Wallace Farm in Wenvoe. John Thomas was the farmer and he was delighted with the idea of showing the children around his farm. It reminded him of when he was a pupil in the old village school and they would be taken on nature walks. Lesley Opie often helped out on these visits and she discovered these photos. For the first two visits we walked the class to the entrance of the Golf Club road where Colin Webb would meet us with a tractor and a large trailer with hay bales down the middle. There was great excitement as the children climbed up on the trailer. We went along past the entrance of the Golf Club and out to New Wallace Farm. John Thomas met us and climbed up on the tractor. We travelled around many of the fields while the children were told about the beef cattle and sheep. It was often a bumpy ride which made it more exciting. On our return to the farmyard the children were treated to orange squash and biscuits while they sat on hay bales in one of the barns. John Thomas’s wife Iris provided the refreshments which was very kind.
We were then taken back to the main road and then we walked back to school. The children wrote thank you letters to Mr. and Mrs. Thomas. One year Mr. Thomas had trouble with his tractor and so that the children would not be disappointed Mr. David Phillips of Vishwell Farm came all the way to school to pick up the children with his tractor and trailer and took us out to New Wallace. Happy days! Lesley Opie and I have put our heads together and come up with the names of some of the children in the photos. Theo Davies, Helen Anning, Ben Gillespie, Jane Hardwick, Katy Fundell, Alistair Matheson, Richard Griffiths, Torsten Patel, Joseph McCann, Nicola David, Sam Hooper, Bethan Rees, Christina Evans, Michael, Naomi Davies and Susan Chaplin. Also in the photo are Lesley Opie, John Thomas and me Sandra Jones
Wenvoe’s Commitment
WENVOE’S COMMITMENT TO THE HEALTH AND WELLBEING OF EVERYONE IN OUR COMMUNITY
By the time we are reading this edition of ‘What’s On’, we will all be aware of the speed with which our trustworthy community organisations are responding to the challenging times we face, so that everyone in the village remains connected and supported during the period of social distancing and self-isolation. This, together with social media schemes and the support which we will continue to share as individuals with our neighbours and friends, will ensure no-one is forgotten.
Key support will come from Wenvoe Neighbourhood Watch, the Community Council, Vicar Jon, Priest in Charge of Wenvoe with St Lythans, and local suppliers and there is useful information below and on pages 4-5.
Together we will be able to practise the individual and collective responsibility as outlined by the Government and by looking after each other, we can make a significant contribution to the health and wellbeing of everyone in our community.