Trelewis is a small village in the Taff Bargoed Valley of south-east Wales, currently located in the southern part of

Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Merthyr Tydfil County Borough ( cy, Bwrdeistref Sirol Merthyr Tudful) is a county borough (since 1908) in the south-east of Wales. In mid 2018, it had an estimated population of 60,183. It is located in the historic county of Glamorgan and ...

. It is a former mining village and together with nearby

Bedlinog Bedlinog is a small village (and larger community) located in The Taff Bargoed valley (Cwm Bargoed), north of Pontypridd, north west of Caerphilly and south east of Merthyr Tydfil in south-east Wales. It is currently in the south of Merthyr ...

was until 1974 part of the Gelligaer Urban District Council area of the county of

Glamorgan , HQ = Cardiff , Government = Glamorgan County Council (1889–1974) , Origin= , Code = GLA , CodeName = Chapman code , Replace = * West Glamorgan * Mid Glamorgan * South Glamorgan , Mot ...

. The villages name means 'Lewis Town' and was named after the Lewis family who owned a farm on the area where the village is now built. It is in the community of

Location

It is around north of Nelson, south of

, and around east of the Treharris, from which it is divided by the Taff Bargoed river. It lies north of the town of

Pontypridd () ( colloquially: Ponty) is a town and a community in Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales. Geography comprises the electoral wards of , Hawthorn, Pontypridd Town, 'Rhondda', Rhydyfelin Central/Ilan ( Rhydfelen), Trallwng ( Trallwn) and Treforest (). ...

, west of

Caerphilly Caerphilly (, ; cy, Caerffili, ) is a town and community in Wales. It is situated at the southern end of the Rhymney Valley. It is north of Cardiff and northwest of Newport. It is the largest town in Caerphilly County Borough, and lies wi ...

, and south of

Merthyr Tydfil Merthyr Tydfil (; cy, Merthyr Tudful ) is the main town in Merthyr Tydfil County Borough, Wales, administered by Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council. It is about north of Cardiff. Often called just Merthyr, it is said to be named after T ...

. The village is at an altitude of .

Government

Trelewis is in the Merthyr Tydfil County Borough, which covers the villages of Trelewis and Bedlinog, but is governed by a separate local authority, Bedlinog Community Council, which consists of nine elected members, and whose powers and responsibilities cover the two villages within its area. The Bedlinog & Trelewis Ward is the only electoral area within the Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council area with its own Council. The Council was created in 1974 by the former Gelligaer Urban District Council prior to its abolition and the subsequent transfer of Trelewis and Bedlinog into the Merthyr administrative area upon local government reorganisation in that year, to which most people in Bedlinog and Trelewis were opposed.

History and amenities

During the latter nineteenth century, a coal mine opened in the village which led to a large expansion of the village. In 1878 the Trelewis school opened, this was replaced in 1984 with a new modern school. There is a freight-only railway line, the Taff Bargoed branch of the former

Great Western Railway The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a British railway company that linked London with the southwest, west and West Midlands of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament on 31 August 1835 and ran ...

, running through the village and this line carries coal from

Ffos-y-fran The Ffos-y-fran Land Reclamation Scheme is a major opencast coaling operation to the north-east of Merthyr Tydfil in South Wales. The contracted excavator/reclaiming company is Merthyr (South Wales) Ltdprev Miller Argent, which is owned by Gwent I ...

opencast colliery. Bedlinog is to the north of Trelewis on this line, whilst Nelson is to the south. Trelewis Welfare, a former member of the

Welsh Football League The Welsh Football League (also known as the Nathaniel Car Sales Welsh Football League for sponsorship reasons) was a club football league in Wales. For its final season in 2019–20 season it operated at levels 3 and 4 of the Welsh football leag ...

, played in the village. Trelewis also has a park and an outdoor bowls club, Trelewis Welfare Outdoor Bowls which was founded in 1932.

Famous People

Trelewis born author Maggie Pryce Jones wrote in 1993, Kingfisher of Hope which was about author's life in Trelewis. Singer Songwriter Amy Goddard was brought up in Trelewis.

Location grid

References

External links

Old Merthyr Tydfil: Trelewis
- Historical Photographs of Trelewis.
www.geograph.co.uk : photos of Trelewis and surrounding area
Villages in Merthyr Tydfil County Borough {{Merthyr-geo-stub