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Brymbo

January 01, 1970

Brymbo is a village and community in Wrexham County Borough, Wales. It lies in the hilly country to the west of Wrexham city, largely surrounded by farmland.

Brymbo
Former Baptist chapel in Brymbo
Map of the community.
Brymbo
Location within Wrexham
Population4,836 (2011)[1]
OS grid referenceSJ297537
Community
  • Brymbo
Principal area
Preserved county
CountryWales
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townWREXHAM
Postcode districtLL11
Dialling code01978
PoliceNorth Wales
FireNorth Wales
AmbulanceWelsh
UK Parliament
Senedd Cymru – Welsh Parliament
List of places
UK
Wales
Wrexham
53°04′34″N 3°03′00″W / 53.076°N 3.050°W / 53.076; -3.050

At the 2001 Census, the population of the community area (including Brymbo village, along with the villages of Tanyfron and Bwlchgwyn and a number of rural hamlets) was 3,482,[2] increasing to 4,836 at the 2011 Census. Brymbo is also the name of an electoral ward of Wrexham County Borough, whose population (including Brymbo and Tanyfron only) was 2,653 at the 2001 census,[3] increasing to 3,981 at the 2011 Census.[4]

The area was formerly heavily dependent on coal mining and steelmaking, and the Brymbo Steelworks, which operated between 1794 and 1990, was a prominent feature of the village and much of the surrounding area. The area had a strong community spirit and at least three major railways (GWR, LNWR, LNER) were present.[5]

History edit

Brymbo, possibly from the Welsh Bryn baw ("mud hill" or "dirt hill") first appears in records in 1339,[6] although the area had clearly been occupied for centuries beforehand (see "Brymbo Man" below). At this stage Brymbo was a township covering a considerable area and containing a number of scattered settlements, farms, commons, and "wastes", or uncultivated areas. In 1410, the burgesses of the local settlement of Holt were granted the right to dig for coal in the wastes of "Harwd" and Coedpoeth; "Harwd", another early name for Brymbo, came from the English name "Harwood" ("Hare Wood") and referred to a common in one part of the township.

Sometime in the fifteenth century, landowner Edward ap Morgan ap Madoc, gentleman, built a dwelling in the township that was later to become Brymbo Hall, the home of his descendants the Griffith family.[7]

A survey of the Lordship of Bromfield and Yale, conducted in 1620 by John Norden and his son, described the boundaries of the township of Brymbo, in the manor of Esclusham, as follows:

To the ffirst article the said Jurie doe say that the towneshipp of Brymbo, beeing part of ye said mannor, is bounded from Mynera by a brooke called Gwenfro,[8] by a common there called Y Koed boeth by the south side; and from Flintshire by a brooke called Avon y Frith, running from a common called Nant y Frith to a rive' called Kegidog; and soe the said Kegidog running downeward a little beyond a bridge called Pont y Place Mayne vppon ye north side, and from Gwersilt by a little brooke called y Frwe,[9] and from Broughton by a little brook running from a common called Harwood to a place called y Groes faen on ye east side ; and vpon ye west, from ye said common called Nant y Frith to a place vpon ye said common called Maes Maylo' or thereabouts; but ye certaine boundes of ye said towneshipp vppon ye said mountayne or common, they cannott sett downe.[10]

 
The older parts of Brymbo Steelworks in the 1970s, showing its restricted hillside site, with the melting shop (centre) and blast furnace (top) next to the village (top right). The banks shown in the foreground had covered most of the former village of Lodge.

While there was mining of coal in the area on a small scale, the late eighteenth century saw an expansion in activity, particularly after the industrialist John "Iron-Mad" Wilkinson purchased Brymbo Hall and began developing its estate, mining coal and ironstone and building an ironworks which was later to become the Brymbo Steelworks. By 1821 there was a total of 41 coal pits on the Brymbo Hall estate alone.[11] In the nineteenth century, a number of larger deep mines were sunk around the area, and the majority of the village of Brymbo was developed as accommodation for the miners and ironworkers. The village itself was constructed on and around the steep sides of Brymbo Hill with views towards the Cheshire Plain, though the area's topography was later to cause problems when the steelworks expanded in 1956: the new parts had to be built on a vast artificial plateau of slag from the furnaces, filling the width of the valley and burying most of the village of Lodge, whose houses were purchased and demolished.[12]

Although the steelworks continued in production, many of the area's collieries ran into geological and financial problems by the time of the Great Depression, and the area's last deep mine (the Plas Power pit, near Southsea) closed in 1938,[13] though the Smelt drift mine, west of the village, closed in 1967 (many of the remaining coal deposits were extracted by open-cast mining immediately west of the steelworks during 1972–75). The steelworks itself, after several years of uncertainty, was finally to close in stages between 1990 and 1991, having a severe economic impact on the village.

Administrative history edit

In 1844, the old township of Brymbo, previously part of the ecclesiastical parish of Wrexham, became the new ecclesiastical parish of Brymbo.[14] The corresponding civil parish of Brymbo, also based on the old township boundaries, was (as a result of the Local Government Act 1972) replaced in 1974 by the Community of Brymbo, which includes the village itself, the smaller neighbouring village of Tanyfron, and Bwlchgwyn, in addition to the small settlements of Vron or Fron, Pen-Rhos, Four Crosses, Maes Maelor, Glascoed, and Ffrwd: these boundaries are still very similar to the township boundaries given in Norden's 1620 survey. The Community is divided into three electoral wards, Brymbo, Bwlchgwyn and Vron and is governed by Brymbo Community Council (Welsh: Cyngor Cymuned Brymbo).

Brymbo was within the county of Denbighshire until 1974, and the new county of Clwyd until 1996, when the latter was abolished. It is now within Wrexham County Borough.

Churches edit

 
St Mary's, built in 1872 on the outskirts of the village after its predecessor was demolished due to subsidence

The first church in Brymbo was St John's, consecrated in 1838; it was closed in 1869 after it was affected by subsidence due to construction work on the Wrexham and Minera Railway. A replacement, consecrated to St. Mary, was built nearby, but in 1892 a second Anglican church (St John's) was built on the original site for the use of Welsh speakers.[14] Predictably this church was also affected by subsidence and was demolished in the 1970s; its churchyard is now a small park including the village war memorial.

St Mary's church (built in 1872 to the designs of Thomas Henry Wyatt) and the "Tin Chapel" (Wesleyan or 'English' Methodist Church) remain in use. Brymbo had a large number of Nonconformist chapels, including Engedi (Calvinistic Methodist, 1820; closed 2003) Tabernacle (Welsh Baptist, 1864; closed 1987) and the Grade II listed Bryn Sion (Independent, 1861; closed 1968), all of which are now derelict or converted to other uses.

Archaeology edit

In August 1958, workmen digging a pipe trench at Cheshire View in Brymbo made an important archaeological find – a burial site containing the remains commonly referred to as Brymbo Man or Brymbo Beaker Man, dating back to the early Bronze Age, around 1600BC.[15] The remains were found in a burial chamber alongside a flint knife and earthenware beaker.[16] It is believed that he was 5 feet 8 inches (1.73 m) tall and aged between 35 and 40 years. Brymbo Man was taken to the National Museum in Cardiff until May 1998 when it was returned to Wrexham. In 2001 Manchester University produced a wax model reconstruction of the skull which can also be seen in the galleries of Wrexham Museum.

Another archaeological find was made in 2006 by workers redeveloping the site of the former steelworks – a fossilised forest of the petrified wood of over 20 trees, dating from the Carboniferous Period.[17]

The ancient earthwork Offa's Dyke passes close to the village; a long section was formerly visible close to Brymbo Hall. In 1892, Professor Thomas McKenny Hughes carried out the first scientific excavation of Offa's Dyke near Brymbo.[18] The cartographer Samuel Lewis, in his Topographical Dictionary of Wales (1833), recorded that a large quantity of horse bones along with horse shoes "of rude workmanship" were found beneath the dyke near Brymbo Hall, but gave no other details.[19]

Historic buildings edit

 
The Penrhos Engine House, built c.1794 by John Wilkinson

While there are few very old buildings in Brymbo, it contains several structures of interest in industrial archaeology, such as the original "No. 1" blast furnace commissioned by John Wilkinson, and associated buildings. Above the village stand the remains of Wilkinson's lead smelter, the "Bottle", next to a pond (locally known as the "Cold Pool") used to supply water to the Steelworks until 1990: in the nearby hamlet of Pen-Rhos is the Penrhos Engine House, also built by Wilkinson and now a Scheduled Ancient Monument.[20]

Notable births edit

 
There was a GWR station in Brymbo until 1950

Present day edit

The village itself has undergone restoration work to transform the site of the former Steelworks into a new development. The building firm, Taylor Wimpey built a new housing estate dubbed 'Mountain View' on the land in 2007.

In 2017, a road which directly connects the estate to the village was opened. The road was appropriately named Heritage Way.

In 2018 the Brymbo Heritage Trust received £1.1m to renovate the old steelworks building.[21]

References edit

  1. ^ "Community population 2011". Retrieved 18 November 2015.
  2. ^ "2001 Census: Brymbo (Parish)". Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 25 September 2008.
  3. ^ . Office for National Statistics. Archived from the original on 26 May 2011. Retrieved 25 September 2008.
  4. ^ "Ward population 2011". Retrieved 18 November 2015.
  5. ^ Charles, Geoff and Charles, Hugh, "The Golden Age of Brymbo Steam," 1997, Gwasg Carreg Gwalch. (ISBN 9780863814358).
  6. ^ Coedpoeth and Minera History 14 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine, accessed 08-03-10
  7. ^ Lowe, R. Lost Houses in Wrexham, Landmark Publishing, 2008, p.18
  8. ^ The River Gwenfro, a tributary of the River Clywedog.
  9. ^ The Ffrwd.
  10. ^ Norden's Survey, Ms. Harl. M8. 3696.
  11. ^ Dodd, A. H. The Industrial Revolution in North Wales, University of Wales Press, 1971, p.191
  12. ^ Brymbo Steelworks, wrexham.gov.uk
  13. ^ Brymbo Heritage Group, Industrial History 5 November 2009 at the Wayback Machine, accessed 08-03-09
  14. ^ a b Brymbo, St Mary's, GENUKI
  15. ^ "Brymbo Man Revealed". Wrexham County Borough Council. Retrieved 25 September 2008.
  16. ^ "'Brymbo Man' meets his public". BBC News. 18 June 2001. Retrieved 17 March 2009.
  17. ^ "Fossil forest found at steelworks". BBC News. 17 March 2006. Retrieved 15 December 2007.
  18. ^ Hill, D. and Worthington, M. Offa's Dyke: history and guide, Tempus, 2003, ISBN 978-0-7524-1958-9, p.82
  19. ^ Lewis, S. A topographical dictionary of Wales...Volume 1, Lewis & Co, 1833
  20. ^ Penrhos Engine House and Brymbo Bottle, Wrexham County Borough Council
  21. ^ "Brymbo steelworks site among five £5.4m lottery projects - BBC News".

External links edit

 
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Brymbo.
  • Alan Owens' Brymbo website
  • Wrexham County Borough Council: Brymbo Man Index
  • Geograph: photos of Brymbo and surrounding area

January 01, 1970
brymbo, village, community, wrexham, county, borough, wales, lies, hilly, country, west, wrexham, city, largely, surrounded, farmland, former, baptist, chapel, community, location, within, wrexhampopulation4, 2011, grid, referencesj297537communityprincipal, ar. Brymbo is a village and community in Wrexham County Borough Wales It lies in the hilly country to the west of Wrexham city largely surrounded by farmland BrymboFormer Baptist chapel in BrymboMap of the community BrymboLocation within WrexhamPopulation4 836 2011 1 OS grid referenceSJ297537CommunityBrymboPrincipal areaWrexhamPreserved countyClwydCountryWalesSovereign stateUnited KingdomPost townWREXHAMPostcode districtLL11Dialling code01978PoliceNorth WalesFireNorth WalesAmbulanceWelshUK ParliamentClwyd SouthSenedd Cymru Welsh ParliamentClwyd SouthList of places UK Wales Wrexham 53 04 34 N 3 03 00 W 53 076 N 3 050 W 53 076 3 050 At the 2001 Census the population of the community area including Brymbo village along with the villages of Tanyfron and Bwlchgwyn and a number of rural hamlets was 3 482 2 increasing to 4 836 at the 2011 Census Brymbo is also the name of an electoral ward of Wrexham County Borough whose population including Brymbo and Tanyfron only was 2 653 at the 2001 census 3 increasing to 3 981 at the 2011 Census 4 The area was formerly heavily dependent on coal mining and steelmaking and the Brymbo Steelworks which operated between 1794 and 1990 was a prominent feature of the village and much of the surrounding area The area had a strong community spirit and at least three major railways GWR LNWR LNER were present 5 Contents 1 History 2 Administrative history 3 Churches 4 Archaeology 5 Historic buildings 6 Notable births 7 Present day 8 References 9 External linksHistory editBrymbo possibly from the Welsh Bryn baw mud hill or dirt hill first appears in records in 1339 6 although the area had clearly been occupied for centuries beforehand see Brymbo Man below At this stage Brymbo was a township covering a considerable area and containing a number of scattered settlements farms commons and wastes or uncultivated areas In 1410 the burgesses of the local settlement of Holt were granted the right to dig for coal in the wastes of Harwd and Coedpoeth Harwd another early name for Brymbo came from the English name Harwood Hare Wood and referred to a common in one part of the township Sometime in the fifteenth century landowner Edward ap Morgan ap Madoc gentleman built a dwelling in the township that was later to become Brymbo Hall the home of his descendants the Griffith family 7 A survey of the Lordship of Bromfield and Yale conducted in 1620 by John Norden and his son described the boundaries of the township of Brymbo in the manor of Esclusham as follows To the ffirst article the said Jurie doe say that the towneshipp of Brymbo beeing part of ye said mannor is bounded from Mynera by a brooke called Gwenfro 8 by a common there called Y Koed boeth by the south side and from Flintshire by a brooke called Avon y Frith running from a common called Nant y Frith to a rive called Kegidog and soe the said Kegidog running downeward a little beyond a bridge called Pont y Place Mayne vppon ye north side and from Gwersilt by a little brooke called y Frwe 9 and from Broughton by a little brook running from a common called Harwood to a place called y Groes faen on ye east side and vpon ye west from ye said common called Nant y Frith to a place vpon ye said common called Maes Maylo or thereabouts but ye certaine boundes of ye said towneshipp vppon ye said mountayne or common they cannott sett downe 10 nbsp The older parts of Brymbo Steelworks in the 1970s showing its restricted hillside site with the melting shop centre and blast furnace top next to the village top right The banks shown in the foreground had covered most of the former village of Lodge While there was mining of coal in the area on a small scale the late eighteenth century saw an expansion in activity particularly after the industrialist John Iron Mad Wilkinson purchased Brymbo Hall and began developing its estate mining coal and ironstone and building an ironworks which was later to become the Brymbo Steelworks By 1821 there was a total of 41 coal pits on the Brymbo Hall estate alone 11 In the nineteenth century a number of larger deep mines were sunk around the area and the majority of the village of Brymbo was developed as accommodation for the miners and ironworkers The village itself was constructed on and around the steep sides of Brymbo Hill with views towards the Cheshire Plain though the area s topography was later to cause problems when the steelworks expanded in 1956 the new parts had to be built on a vast artificial plateau of slag from the furnaces filling the width of the valley and burying most of the village of Lodge whose houses were purchased and demolished 12 Although the steelworks continued in production many of the area s collieries ran into geological and financial problems by the time of the Great Depression and the area s last deep mine the Plas Power pit near Southsea closed in 1938 13 though the Smelt drift mine west of the village closed in 1967 many of the remaining coal deposits were extracted by open cast mining immediately west of the steelworks during 1972 75 The steelworks itself after several years of uncertainty was finally to close in stages between 1990 and 1991 having a severe economic impact on the village Administrative history editIn 1844 the old township of Brymbo previously part of the ecclesiastical parish of Wrexham became the new ecclesiastical parish of Brymbo 14 The corresponding civil parish of Brymbo also based on the old township boundaries was as a result of the Local Government Act 1972 replaced in 1974 by the Community of Brymbo which includes the village itself the smaller neighbouring village of Tanyfron and Bwlchgwyn in addition to the small settlements of Vron or Fron Pen Rhos Four Crosses Maes Maelor Glascoed and Ffrwd these boundaries are still very similar to the township boundaries given in Norden s 1620 survey The Community is divided into three electoral wards Brymbo Bwlchgwyn and Vron and is governed by Brymbo Community Council Welsh Cyngor Cymuned Brymbo Brymbo was within the county of Denbighshire until 1974 and the new county of Clwyd until 1996 when the latter was abolished It is now within Wrexham County Borough Churches edit nbsp St Mary s built in 1872 on the outskirts of the village after its predecessor was demolished due to subsidence The first church in Brymbo was St John s consecrated in 1838 it was closed in 1869 after it was affected by subsidence due to construction work on the Wrexham and Minera Railway A replacement consecrated to St Mary was built nearby but in 1892 a second Anglican church St John s was built on the original site for the use of Welsh speakers 14 Predictably this church was also affected by subsidence and was demolished in the 1970s its churchyard is now a small park including the village war memorial St Mary s church built in 1872 to the designs of Thomas Henry Wyatt and the Tin Chapel Wesleyan or English Methodist Church remain in use Brymbo had a large number of Nonconformist chapels including Engedi Calvinistic Methodist 1820 closed 2003 Tabernacle Welsh Baptist 1864 closed 1987 and the Grade II listed Bryn Sion Independent 1861 closed 1968 all of which are now derelict or converted to other uses Archaeology editIn August 1958 workmen digging a pipe trench at Cheshire View in Brymbo made an important archaeological find a burial site containing the remains commonly referred to as Brymbo Man or Brymbo Beaker Man dating back to the early Bronze Age around 1600BC 15 The remains were found in a burial chamber alongside a flint knife and earthenware beaker 16 It is believed that he was 5 feet 8 inches 1 73 m tall and aged between 35 and 40 years Brymbo Man was taken to the National Museum in Cardiff until May 1998 when it was returned to Wrexham In 2001 Manchester University produced a wax model reconstruction of the skull which can also be seen in the galleries of Wrexham Museum Another archaeological find was made in 2006 by workers redeveloping the site of the former steelworks a fossilised forest of the petrified wood of over 20 trees dating from the Carboniferous Period 17 The ancient earthwork Offa s Dyke passes close to the village a long section was formerly visible close to Brymbo Hall In 1892 Professor Thomas McKenny Hughes carried out the first scientific excavation of Offa s Dyke near Brymbo 18 The cartographer Samuel Lewis in his Topographical Dictionary of Wales 1833 recorded that a large quantity of horse bones along with horse shoes of rude workmanship were found beneath the dyke near Brymbo Hall but gave no other details 19 Historic buildings edit nbsp The Penrhos Engine House built c 1794 by John Wilkinson While there are few very old buildings in Brymbo it contains several structures of interest in industrial archaeology such as the original No 1 blast furnace commissioned by John Wilkinson and associated buildings Above the village stand the remains of Wilkinson s lead smelter the Bottle next to a pond locally known as the Cold Pool used to supply water to the Steelworks until 1990 in the nearby hamlet of Pen Rhos is the Penrhos Engine House also built by Wilkinson and now a Scheduled Ancient Monument 20 Notable births editGeoff Charles photojournalist Sandy Mewies Welsh Labour politician Thomas Price politician South Australian premier Christmas Price Williams MP Liberal nbsp There was a GWR station in Brymbo until 1950Present day editThe village itself has undergone restoration work to transform the site of the former Steelworks into a new development The building firm Taylor Wimpey built a new housing estate dubbed Mountain View on the land in 2007 In 2017 a road which directly connects the estate to the village was opened The road was appropriately named Heritage Way In 2018 the Brymbo Heritage Trust received 1 1m to renovate the old steelworks building 21 References edit Community population 2011 Retrieved 18 November 2015 2001 Census Brymbo Parish Office for National Statistics Retrieved 25 September 2008 2001 Census Brymbo Ward Office for National Statistics Archived from the original on 26 May 2011 Retrieved 25 September 2008 Ward population 2011 Retrieved 18 November 2015 Charles Geoff and Charles Hugh The Golden Age of Brymbo Steam 1997 Gwasg Carreg Gwalch ISBN 9780863814358 Coedpoeth and Minera History Archived 14 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine accessed 08 03 10 Lowe R Lost Houses in Wrexham Landmark Publishing 2008 p 18 The River Gwenfro a tributary of the River Clywedog The Ffrwd Norden s Survey Ms Harl M8 3696 Dodd A H The Industrial Revolution in North Wales University of Wales Press 1971 p 191 Brymbo Steelworks wrexham gov uk Brymbo Heritage Group Industrial History Archived 5 November 2009 at the Wayback Machine accessed 08 03 09 a b Brymbo St Mary s GENUKI Brymbo Man Revealed Wrexham County Borough Council Retrieved 25 September 2008 Brymbo Man meets his public BBC News 18 June 2001 Retrieved 17 March 2009 Fossil forest found at steelworks BBC News 17 March 2006 Retrieved 15 December 2007 Hill D and Worthington M Offa s Dyke history and guide Tempus 2003 ISBN 978 0 7524 1958 9 p 82 Lewis S A topographical dictionary of Wales Volume 1 Lewis amp Co 1833 Penrhos Engine House and Brymbo Bottle Wrexham County Borough Council Brymbo steelworks site among five 5 4m lottery projects BBC News External links edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Brymbo Alan Owens Brymbo website Wrexham County Borough Council Brymbo Man Index Geograph photos of Brymbo and surrounding area Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Brymbo amp oldid 1210108074 Archaeology, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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