Welsh
Welsh may refer to:
Related to Wales
* Welsh, referring or related to Wales
* Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales
* Welsh people
People
* Welsh (surname)
* Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peopl ...
: ; in
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ...
often ), formerly spelled Towyn, is a town,
community
A community is a social unit (a group of living things) with commonality such as place, norms, religion, values, customs, or identity. Communities may share a sense of place situated in a given geographical area (e.g. a country, village, t ...
, and
seaside resort
A seaside resort is a town, village, or hotel that serves as a vacation resort and is located on a coast. Sometimes the concept includes an aspect of official accreditation based on the satisfaction of certain requirements, such as in the Germa ...
Gwynedd
Gwynedd (; ) is a county and preserved county (latter with differing boundaries; includes the Isle of Anglesey) in the north-west of Wales. It shares borders with Powys, Conwy County Borough, Denbighshire, Anglesey over the Menai Strait, an ...
,
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...
. It was previously in the historic county of
Merionethshire
, HQ= Dolgellau
, Government= Merionethshire County Council (1889-1974)
, Origin=
, Status=
, Start= 1284
, End=
, Code= MER
, CodeName= ...
. It is famous as the location of the
Cadfan Stone
Inside St Cadfan's Church, Tywyn, Gwynedd is an inscribed stone cross called the Cadfan Stone (or the ''Tywyn Stone''). On it are the earliest known inscriptions in the Welsh language, specifically in Old Welsh.
Recent scholarship dates the ins ...
, a stone cross with the earliest known example of written
Welsh
Welsh may refer to:
Related to Wales
* Welsh, referring or related to Wales
* Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales
* Welsh people
People
* Welsh (surname)
* Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peopl ...
, and the home of the
Talyllyn Railway
The Talyllyn Railway ( cy, Rheilffordd Talyllyn) is a narrow gauge preserved railway in Wales running for from Tywyn on the Mid-Wales coast to Nant Gwernol near the village of Abergynolwyn. The line was opened in 1865Drummond 2015, page 17 ...
.
Toponymy
The name derives from the
Welsh
Welsh may refer to:
Related to Wales
* Welsh, referring or related to Wales
* Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales
* Welsh people
People
* Welsh (surname)
* Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peopl ...
dunes
A dune is a landform composed of wind- or water-driven sand. It typically takes the form of a mound, ridge, or hill. An area with dunes is called a dune system or a dune complex. A large dune complex is called a dune field, while broad, fl ...
lie to the north and south of the town.
In
Middle Welsh
Middle Welsh ( cy, Cymraeg Canol, wlm, Kymraec) is the label attached to the Welsh language of the 12th to 15th centuries, of which much more remains than for any earlier period. This form of Welsh developed directly from Old Welsh ( cy, Hen G ...
, the spelling was generally ''Tywyn''. In the Early Modern period, however, the spelling ''Towyn'' became common in Welsh in order to reflect a slight change in pronunciation at that time. That also came to be the usual spelling in English up to the latter part of the twentieth century. The modern spelling ''Tywyn'' better reflects the current pronunciation in modern Welsh as spoken in north Wales. With the standardisation of the
orthography
An orthography is a set of conventions for writing a language, including norms of spelling, hyphenation, capitalization, word breaks, emphasis, and punctuation.
Most transnational languages in the modern period have a writing system, and ...
of the Welsh language in the first part of the 20th century, the spelling ''Tywyn'' came to dominate. A referendum was held in 1968, with residents being asked to decide between Tywyn or Towyn. In the 1970s Tywyn was accepted as the official name of the town in both languages.
In Welsh, the town is sometimes referred to as ''Tywyn Meirionnydd''. In origin, this usage probably refers to the
cantref
A cantref ( ; ; plural cantrefi or cantrefs; also rendered as ''cantred'') was a medieval Welsh land division, particularly important in the administration of Welsh law.
Description
Land in medieval Wales was divided into ''cantrefi'', which wer ...
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ...
, during the late 19th century and until the middle of the 20th century, the town was sometimes called ''Towyn-on-Sea''. The place-name element ''tywyn'' is found in many other parts of Wales, most notably
Towyn
Towyn ( cy, Tywyn) is a seaside resort in the Conwy County Borough, Wales. It is also an electoral ward to the town and county councils.
Location
It is located between Rhyl, in Denbighshire, and Abergele in Conwy.
Demography
According to th ...
near
Abergele
Abergele (; ; ) is a market town and community, situated on the north coast of Wales between the holiday resorts of Colwyn Bay and Rhyl, in Conwy County Borough and in the historic county of Denbighshire. Its northern suburb of Pensarn lies on ...
. and Porth Tywyn (
Burry Port
Burry Port ( cy, Porth Tywyn) is a port town and community in Carmarthenshire, Wales, on the Loughor estuary (Moryd Llwchwr), to the west of Llanelli and south-east of Kidwelly. Its population was recorded at 5,680 in the 2001 census and 6,156 ...
).
History
Tywyn was the location of the first religious community administered by the Breton
saint Cadfan
Saint Cadfan ( la, Catamanus), sometimes Anglicized as Gideon, was the 6th century founder-abbot of Tywyn (whose church is dedicated to him) and Bardsey, both in Gwynedd, Wales. He was said to have received the island of Bardsey from Saint ...
upon his arrival in
Gwynedd
Gwynedd (; ) is a county and preserved county (latter with differing boundaries; includes the Isle of Anglesey) in the north-west of Wales. It shares borders with Powys, Conwy County Borough, Denbighshire, Anglesey over the Menai Strait, an ...
in the early 6th century, prior to his departure to found a
monastery
A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer whic ...
The town's historic centre lies about a kilometre from the beach, around St Cadfan's Church. In the second half of the 19th century the town expanded considerably, mainly towards the sea.
To the north of the town lie the reclaimed
salt marsh
A salt marsh or saltmarsh, also known as a coastal salt marsh or a tidal marsh, is a coastal ecosystem in the upper coastal intertidal zone between land and open saltwater or brackish water that is regularly flooded by the tides. It is domin ...
es of Morfa Tywyn and Morfa Gwyllt, beyond which lie the Broad Water lagoon and the mouth of the
Afon Dysynni
The River Dysynni ( cy, Afon Dysynni) is a river in mid Wales. Its source is the Tal-y-llyn Lake ( cy, Llyn Mwyngil) just south of the Cadair Idris massif and its mouth is in the Cardigan Bay area of the Irish Sea to the north of Tywyn. It meas ...
. To the north-east lie the rich farmland of Bro Dysynni and the village of
Bryncrug
Bryncrug (), sometimes spelt Bryn-crug, is a village and community in Gwynedd, Wales. Afon Fathew flows through the village and into the River Dysynni. The village is situated to the north east of the town of Tywyn, at the junction of the A49 ...
, and to the east the hills of Craig y Barcud and Craig Fach Goch. To the south towards
Aberdyfi
Aberdyfi (), also known as Aberdovey ( ), is a village and community in Gwynedd, Wales, located on the northern side of the estuary of the River Dyfi.
The population of the community was 878 at the 2011 census. The electoral ward had a larg ...
is the mouth of the Afon Dyffryn Gwyn and Morfa Penllyn.
The Tywyn coastal defence scheme, officially unveiled on 24 March 2011 by Jane Davidson (then
Welsh Assembly Government
Welsh may refer to:
Related to Wales
* Welsh, referring or related to Wales
* Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales
* Welsh people
People
* Welsh (surname)
* Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peopl ...
Minister for Environment, Sustainability and Housing), provides a rock
breakwater
Breakwater may refer to:
* Breakwater (structure), a structure for protecting a beach or harbour
Places
* Breakwater, Victoria, a suburb of Geelong, Victoria, Australia
* Breakwater Island, Antarctica
* Breakwater Islands, Nunavut, Canada
* Br ...
above the low-tide level, rock
groyne
A groyne (in the U.S. groin) is a rigid hydraulic structure built perpendicularly from an ocean shore (in coastal engineering) or a river bank, interrupting water flow and limiting the movement of sediment. It is usually made out of wood, concr ...
s, and rock
revetment
A revetment in stream restoration, river engineering or coastal engineering is a facing of impact-resistant material (such as stone, concrete, sandbags, or wooden piles) applied to a bank or wall in order to absorb the energy of incoming water a ...
to protect 80 sea-front properties. The costs of this
civil engineering
Civil engineering is a professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment, including public works such as roads, bridges, canals, dams, airports, sewa ...
project was £7.62M, shared between the Welsh Assembly Government (£4.135M) and the
European Union
The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are located primarily in Europe, Europe. The union has a total area of ...
At the time of the 2001 census, 40.5% of the population were recorded as Welsh speakers. By the 2011 census this had decreased to 37.5%. An Estyn inspection report in 2016 noted that about 22% of the children at the school came from Welsh-speaking homes.
The town's Welsh dialect has several notable features, with one Victorian observer stating that three languages were spoken there: English, Welsh and 'Tywynaeg'. During the 1860s, in the town's British School, a 'Welsh stick' (a version of the
Welsh Not
The Welsh Not was a token used by teachers at some schools in Wales in the 19th century to discourage children from speaking Welsh at school, by marking out those who were heard speaking the language. Accounts suggest that its form and the natu ...
) was used to punish children who were caught speaking Welsh in school. Yet Welsh was the dominant language in Tywyn until the middle of the 20th century. L T C Rolt in his book 'Railway Adventure' recounts walking up the track of the
Talyllyn Railway
The Talyllyn Railway ( cy, Rheilffordd Talyllyn) is a narrow gauge preserved railway in Wales running for from Tywyn on the Mid-Wales coast to Nant Gwernol near the village of Abergynolwyn. The line was opened in 1865Drummond 2015, page 17 ...
in 1950, and stopping to speak to railway workers only to discover they spoke no English. Tywyn is now a very
anglicised
Anglicisation is the process by which a place or person becomes influenced by English culture or British culture, or a process of cultural and/or linguistic change in which something non-English becomes English. It can also refer to the influen ...
town, with the majority of its population (52.8%) having been born in England according to the 2011 census. Likewise, slightly more respondents claimed an English-only identity (35.0%) than a Welsh-only identity (33.7%).
Transport and tourism
The church is of interest for two medieval effigies, and for a stone inscribed with what is believed to be the oldest known writing in the Welsh language, dating back to the 8th century AD, and rescued from a local gateway in the 18th century.Simon Jenkins, 2008, ''Wales: churches, houses, castles'', Allen Lane, London, p. 244
Improved
transport
Transport (in British English), or transportation (in American English), is the intentional movement of humans, animals, and goods from one location to another. Modes of transport include air, land ( rail and road), water, cable, pipelin ...
links during the 19th century increased Tywyn's appeal as a
tourist
Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tours. The World Tourism Organization defines tourism ...
destination. In the early decades of that century, a creek of the river Dysynni allowed ships to approach the town's northern fringes, where there was a shipbuilding yard. The draining of the salt marsh and the channelling of the river brought this industry to an end, but during the early part of that century the town was made more accessible by building new roads along the coast to Aberdyfi and
Llwyngwril
Llwyngwril () is a coastal village, in Llangelynnin community, two miles north of the village of Llangelynnin and eleven miles south-west of Dolgellau. It is in the county of Merionethshire, Wales, although currently administered as part of the u ...
Cambrian Railways
The Cambrian Railways owned of track over a large area of mid Wales. The system was an amalgamation of a number of railways that were incorporated in 1864, 1865 and 1904. The Cambrian connected with two larger railways with connections to the ...
), and had a significant effect on the town.
Tywyn railway station
Tywyn railway station serves the town of Tywyn in Gwynedd, Wales. The station is on the Cambrian Coast Line, with passenger services to Barmouth, Harlech, Porthmadog, Pwllheli, Aberdovey, Machynlleth and Shrewsbury.
History
The line was built ...
opened in 1863. The station is still open, and is served by the
Cambrian Line
The Cambrian Line ( cy, Llinell y Cambrian), also known as the Cambrian Main Line ( cy, Prif Linell y Cambrian) and Cambrian Coast Line ( cy, Llinell Arfordir y Cambrian), is a railway line that runs from Shrewsbury, England, westwards to Abe ...
.
Slate
Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. It is the finest grained foliated metamorphic rock. ...
-quarrying in the Abergynolwyn area led to the building in 1865 of the
Talyllyn Railway
The Talyllyn Railway ( cy, Rheilffordd Talyllyn) is a narrow gauge preserved railway in Wales running for from Tywyn on the Mid-Wales coast to Nant Gwernol near the village of Abergynolwyn. The line was opened in 1865Drummond 2015, page 17 ...
, a narrow-gauge line designed to carry slates to Tywyn. Two stations were opened in the town. Tywyn Wharf railway station was originally opened to enable slates to be unloaded onto a wharf adjacent to the main railway line. It is now the Talyllyn's western terminus and principal station. Pendre railway station was originally the passenger station, and now houses the locomotive and carriage sheds and works.
Notable visitors who stayed at Tywyn in the 19th century include:
*
Thomas Love Peacock
Thomas Love Peacock (18 October 1785 – 23 January 1866) was an English novelist, poet, and official of the East India Company. He was a close friend of Percy Bysshe Shelley and they influenced each other's work. Peacock wrote satirical novels, ...
Ignatius Spencer
Ignatius of St Paul (21 December 1799 – 1 October 1864), born as George Spencer, was a son of the 2nd Earl Spencer. He converted from Anglicanism to the Roman Catholic Church and entered the Passionist religious order in 1847 and spent his l ...
(1818)
*
Charles Darwin
Charles Robert Darwin ( ; 12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English naturalist, geologist, and biologist, widely known for his contributions to evolutionary biology. His proposition that all species of life have descended ...
(1819, at Plas Edwards)
*
William Morris
William Morris (24 March 1834 – 3 October 1896) was a British textile designer, poet, artist, novelist, architectural conservationist, printer, translator and socialist activist associated with the British Arts and Crafts Movement. He w ...
(1875)
* Elizabeth Blackwell (exact date uncertain, at Brynarfor)
The beach and its extensive
promenade
An esplanade or promenade is a long, open, level area, usually next to a river or large body of water, where people may walk. The historical definition of ''esplanade'' was a large, open, level area outside fortress or city walls to provide cl ...
have long been key attractions. In 1877, a
pier
Seaside pleasure pier in Brighton, England. The first seaside piers were built in England in the early 19th century.">England.html" ;"title="Brighton, England">Brighton, England. The first seaside piers were built in England in the early 19th ...
was built at Tywyn, but the structure only lasted a few months. The street called 'Pier Road', which leads from the town to the beach, offers a suggestion as to its location. The promenade was completed in 1889 at the cost of some £30,000, paid for by John Corbett (1817–1901) of
Ynysymaengwyn
Ynysymaengwyn was a gentry house in the parish of Tywyn, Gwynedd (formerly Merioneth), situated near the left bank of the River Dysynni. The name means 'the white stone island'.
Early history
It was in the commote of Ystumanner or Ystum Anne ...
.
There has been extensive bungalow and caravan development in the vicinity.
Other industries
Apart from tourism,
agriculture
Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people ...
has long been the most important industry in the area.
Lead
Lead is a chemical element with the symbol Pb (from the Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a heavy metal that is denser than most common materials. Lead is soft and malleable, and also has a relatively low melting point. When freshly cut, ...
and
copper
Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu (from la, cuprum) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pink ...
Marconi Company
The Marconi Company was a British telecommunications and engineering company that did business under that name from 1963 to 1987. Its roots were in the Wireless Telegraph & Signal Company founded by Italian inventor Guglielmo Marconi in 189 ...
built a Long Wave receiver station in Tywyn in 1914, working in duplex with the high-power transmitter station near Waunfawr. In 1921 the Tywyn and Waunfawr stations initiated a transatlantic wireless telegraph service with a similar
RCA
The RCA Corporation was a major American electronics company, which was founded as the Radio Corporation of America in 1919. It was initially a patent trust owned by General Electric (GE), Westinghouse, AT&T Corporation and United Fruit Comp ...
wireless transmitting station in
New Brunswick
New Brunswick (french: Nouveau-Brunswick, , locally ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. It is the only province with both English and ...
, New Jersey, USA and RCA's receiver station in
Belmar, New Jersey
Belmar is a borough in Monmouth County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, situated on the Jersey Shore. As of the 2010 United States census, the borough's population was 5,794,Clifden,
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel, the Irish Sea, and St George's Channel. Ireland is the s ...
following its 1922 destruction during the
Irish Civil War
The Irish Civil War ( ga, Cogadh Cathartha na hÉireann; 28 June 1922 – 24 May 1923) was a conflict that followed the Irish War of Independence and accompanied the establishment of the Irish Free State, an entity independent from the United ...
.
For most of the 20th century, the armed forces were a significant presence in Tywyn. The town was a major training ground for the
amphibious warfare
Amphibious warfare is a type of offensive military operation that today uses naval ships to project ground and air power onto a hostile or potentially hostile shore at a designated landing beach. Through history the operations were conducted ...
landings in the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...
and had a strategic war base. Abandoned pillboxes may still be seen on the coast to the south of the town. The links with the armed forces came to an end when the Joint Service Mountain Training Centre at Morfa Camp closed in 1999. Morfa camp is now in private ownership and many buildings are let as small storage units.
Facilities and notable features
Much of the town's infrastructure was put in place by an industrialist from the English Midlands, John Corbett, who in the 1870s decided to develop the town into a major tourist resort to rival Torquay. As well as constructing a row of boarding houses and a grand esplanade, he developed the water and sewerage system. He gave land and money for a new Market Hall, built to celebrate
Queen Victoria
Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 216 days was longer than that of any previ ...
's
Diamond Jubilee
A diamond jubilee celebrates the 60th anniversary of a significant event related to a person (e.g. accession to the throne or wedding, among others) or the 60th anniversary of an institution's founding. The term is also used for 75th anniver ...
in 1897. He paid for Brynarfor (formerly a private school originally called the Towyn Academy and then Brynarvor Hall School) to be opened as 'Towyn Intermediate School' in 1894. He refurbished the Corbet Arms Hotel (from then on spelled with two 't's), and also contributed to the Assembly Room (1893), now Tywyn Cinema. Plaques commemorating his generosity may still be seen on the north end of the promenade and on the Market Hall. Another commemorative plaque was on Brynarfor (now demolished), and his portrait was hung there when the school first opened. However, the anticipated grand watering-place never took off, and these additions to the town were never matched.
In 1912, a drill hall was built in the Pendre area of the town for the Territorial Army (the 7th Battalion the Royal Welsh Fusiliers). The hall, now known as Neuadd Pendre, has recently been renovated, mainly with money from the National LotteryBig Lottery Fund and the
Welsh Government
The Welsh Government ( cy, Llywodraeth Cymru) is the Welsh devolution, devolved government of Wales. The government consists of ministers and Minister (government), deputy ministers, and also of a Counsel General for Wales, counsel general. Minist ...
. The hall houses a 3-manual 9-rank
Wurlitzer Organ
The Rudolph Wurlitzer Company, usually referred to as simply Wurlitzer, is an American company started in Cincinnati in 1853 by German immigrant (Franz) Rudolph Wurlitzer. The company initially imported stringed, woodwind and brass instrument ...
which was originally installed in a cinema in
Woolwich
Woolwich () is a district in southeast London, England, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich.
The district's location on the River Thames led to its status as an important naval, military and industrial area; a role that was maintained thr ...
in 1937.
After the
First World War
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
money was raised to build both the Tywyn Cottage Hospital (opened in 1922) and the Tywyn Institute (opened by
David Lloyd George
David Lloyd George, 1st Earl Lloyd-George of Dwyfor, (17 January 1863 – 26 March 1945) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1916 to 1922. He was a Liberal Party (United Kingdom), Liberal Party politician from Wales, known for lea ...
in 1926). The hospital is still in operation, but the institute is now closed. It was the location of the town's
library
A library is a collection of materials, books or media that are accessible for use and not just for display purposes. A library provides physical (hard copies) or digital access (soft copies) materials, and may be a physical location or a vi ...
before a new library building was built next to it in the early 1970s.
The main schools in Tywyn are the
primary school
A primary school (in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and South Africa), junior school (in Australia), elementary school or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary e ...
, Ysgol Penybryn, and the
secondary school
A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...
Craig yr Aderyn
Craig yr Aderyn ( en, "Bird's Rock") is a hill rising to a height of above sea level on the south bank of the River Dysynni near Llanfihangel-y-Pennant in the county of Gwynedd, north-west Wales. Craig yr Aderyn has been designated as a Site of ...
For many centuries, St Cadfan's church was the only place of worship in the town, but since the 19th century there have been several.
Following the
Methodist Revival
Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's br ...
, the
Calvinistic Methodists
Calvinistic Methodists were born out of the 18th-century Welsh Methodist revival and survive as a body of Christians now forming the Presbyterian Church of Wales. Calvinistic Methodism became a major denomination in Wales, growing rapidly in the 1 ...
established a cause (i.e. a branch) in Tywyn at the end of the 18th century. Bethel Calvinistic Methodist Church (Welsh-speaking Presbyterian Church of Wales) was established in 1815. The current chapel was built in 1871 and altered in 1887. The chapel closed in early 2010 but services are still held in the
vestry
A vestry was a committee for the local secular and ecclesiastical government for a parish in England, Wales and some English colonies which originally met in the vestry or sacristy of the parish church, and consequently became known colloquiall ...
.
Bethany Calvinistic Methodist Chapel (English-speaking Presbyterian Church of Wales) was also built in 1871 as one of the 'Inglis Côs' ('English cause') chapels that were advocated by
Lewis Edwards
Lewis Edwards (27 October 1809 – 19 July 1887) was a Welsh educator and Nonconformist minister.
Life
He was born in Pen-llwyn, Ceredigion, Wales, the eldest son of Lewis and Margaret Edward. He was educated at Aberystwyth and at Llangeith ...
and fiercely criticised by Emrys ap Iwan. It was opened in part with a view to attracting the increasing numbers of visitors who were coming to Tywyn since the opening of the railway and who previously had been provided for only by the English services at St Cadfan's. The noted
pacifist
Pacifism is the opposition or resistance to war, militarism (including conscription and mandatory military service) or violence. Pacifists generally reject theories of Just War. The word ''pacifism'' was coined by the French peace campai ...
George Maitland Lloyd Davies was minister of Bethany and also of Maethlon Chapel in nearby Cwm Maethlon (Happy Valley) between 1926 and 1930. Bethany closed in 2016.
Ebeneser (Welsh-speaking
Wesleyan
Wesleyan theology, otherwise known as Wesleyan– Arminian theology, or Methodist theology, is a theological tradition in Protestant Christianity based upon the ministry of the 18th-century evangelical reformer brothers John Wesley and Charle ...
Methodist
Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's ...
Church in Wales) was first built between 1817 and 1820, with the current building dating from 1883.
John Cadvan Davies
John Cadvan Davies (1846–1923) was a Wesleyan Methodist Minister and a Welsh poet, who served as Archdruid. He is better known in Wales by his bardic name, Cadfan (sometimes Cadvan).
Life and career
Cadvan was born on a small farm, Yr Allt, i ...
(1846–1923), Archdruid of Wales in 1923, was minister of Ebeneser between 1889 and 1892.
Bethesda Independent Chapel (Welsh-speaking Congregationalist) was first built in 1820, enlarged in 1865 and rebuilt again in 1892. It closed in January 2010.
Tywyn Baptist Church (English-speaking) was opened in 1900 and re-built in its present form in 1991.
The Church of St David is the town's
Roman Catholic
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
* Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
* Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...
slate
Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. It is the finest grained foliated metamorphic rock. ...
In Samuel Lewis's ''A Topographical Dictionary of Wales'' (1833) it is reported that popular horse races were held on land to the north of the town every September. Between 1904 and 1947, Towyn Golf Club (originally the Towyn-on-Sea Golf Club) was also located on land to the north of the town.
The Towyn-on-Sea club opened with a 10-hole course in 1904, in 1906 a further eight holes were added. Attempts were made to re-establish the club following the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...
rugby union
Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In it ...
team, and it now shares a
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly ...
team with neighbouring Bryncrug ( Tywyn & Bryncrug F.C.), playing their home matches in the village of Bryncrug. It also has a
cricket club
Zee Marathi is an Indian general entertainment channel which carries programming in Marathi. It is owned by Zee Entertainment Enterprises. The channel was launched on 15 August 1999 and was known as Alpha TV Marathi until 28 March 2005, then ...
, Tywyn and District CC and a hockey team known as Dysynni Hockey Club. Also based in Tywyn is the Bro Dysynni Athletics Club.
House of Aberffraw
The Royal House of Aberffraw was a cadet branch of the Kingdom of Gwynedd originating from the sons of Rhodri the Great in the 9th century. Establishing the Royal court ( cy, Llys) of the Aberffraw Commote would begin a new location from which ...
* Arthur ap Huw (fl. 1555–1570), vicar of St Cadfan's 1555/1570, notable patron of Welsh poets, and translator of
counter-Reformation
The Counter-Reformation (), also called the Catholic Reformation () or the Catholic Revival, was the period of Catholic resurgence that was initiated in response to the Protestant Reformation. It began with the Council of Trent (1545–1563) a ...
literature into Welsh.
*
Martin J. Ball
Martin J. Ball is Honorary Professor in Linguistics at Bangor University in Wales. Until August 2017 he was Professor of Speech-Language Pathology (Clinical Linguistics and Phonetics) at Linköping University in Sweden. He holds dual UK-US citiz ...
(born 1951) professor in Linguistics at
Bangor University
, former_names = University College of North Wales (1884–1996) University of Wales, Bangor (1996–2007)
, image = File:Arms_of_Bangor_University.svg
, image_size = 250px
, caption = Arms
...
.
* Tom Bradshaw (born 1992), footballer with over 360 club caps and 3 for
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
flying ace
A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ace is varied, but is usually co ...
.
*
Robin Davies
Robert Richard "Robin" Davies (16 January 1954 – 22 February 2010) was a Welsh television and film actor.
(1954–2010), Welsh TV and film actor; starred in Catweazle playing the part of Carrot.
* Evan Evans (1731 at Cynhawdref – 1788), bardic name ''Ieuan Fardd'', poet and scholar,
curate
A curate () is a person who is invested with the ''care'' or ''cure'' (''cura'') ''of souls'' of a parish. In this sense, "curate" means a parish priest; but in English-speaking countries the term ''curate'' is commonly used to describe clergy ...
of St Cadfan's 1772/1777.
*
Edward Ernest Hughes
Edward Ernest Hughes (7 February 1877 – 23 December 1953) was the first professor of history at University College, Swansea.
Life
Hughes was born on 7 February 1877 in Tywyn, Merionethshire, Wales. As a result of a childhood accident, he w ...
(1877–1953), the first professor of history at
University College, Swansea
Swansea University ( cy, Prifysgol Abertawe) is a public university, public research university located in Swansea, Wales, United Kingdom. It was chartered as University College of Swansea in 1920, as the fourth college of the University of Wales. ...
, was born in Tywyn, the son of a local policeman.
*
Griffith Hughes
The Reverend Griffith Hughes (1707 – c.1758), FRS, was a Welsh naturalist, clergyman, and author. Hughes wrote ''The Natural History of Barbados,'' which included the first description of the grapefruit (also known as "The Forbidden Fruit"). ...
(1707 – ca.1758) clergyman from the parish of Tywyn, author of ''The Natural History of Barbados''.
* John Ceiriog Hughes (1832–1887), poet,
stationmaster
The station master (or stationmaster) is the person in charge of a railway station, particularly in the United Kingdom and many other countries outside North America. In the United Kingdom, where the term originated, it is now largely historical ...
at Tywyn for a short period from 1870.
*
Joseph David Jones
Joseph David Jones (1827 – 17 September 1870) was a Welsh composer and schoolmaster, commonly known as J. D. Jones. He was the father of the politician and industrialist Sir Henry Haydn Jones and the renowned Congregationalist minister, ...
(1827–1870), musician, schoolmaster at Tywyn British School from 1851 to 1855.
* Sir
Henry Haydn Jones
Sir Henry Haydn Jones (27 December 1863 – 2 July 1950) was a Welsh Liberal Party politician.
Upbringing
Henry (sometimes known as "Harry") Haydn Jones was born in Ruthin, Wales. He was the son of Joseph David Jones (1827–70), a sch ...
(1863–1950), MP for
Merioneth
, HQ= Dolgellau
, Government= Merionethshire County Council (1889-1974)
, Origin=
, Status=
, Start= 1284
, End=
, Code= MER
, CodeName= ...
, brought up and lived in Tywyn.
* John Daniel Jones (1865–1942), Congregationalist minister, brought up in Tywyn.
* Owen Wynne Jones (1828–1870), bardic name ''Glasynys'', Welsh cleric, antiquary, author and poet.
*
Dai Lloyd
David Rees "Dai" Lloyd (born 2 December 1956 in Tywyn, Gwynedd) is a retired Welsh politician and GP. He was the Plaid Cymru Member of the Senedd for South Wales West from 1999 to 2011 and again between 2016 and 2021.
Lloyd was latterly Plaid ...
(born 1956),
Plaid Cymru
Plaid Cymru ( ; ; officially Plaid Cymru – the Party of Wales, often referred to simply as Plaid) is a centre-left to left-wing, Welsh nationalist political party in Wales, committed to Welsh independence from the United Kingdom.
Plaid wa ...
englyn
(; plural ) is a traditional Welsh and Cornish short poem form. It uses quantitative metres, involving the counting of syllables, and rigid patterns of rhyme and half rhyme. Each line contains a repeating pattern of consonants and accent kn ...
to his mother Ann Dafydd (d. 1785) which is preserved on a brass plate in St Cadfan's Church.
* R. Bryn Williams (1902–1981), bardic name ''Bryn'', Welsh-language writer, poet, playwright and historian; lived in Patagonia as a child.