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Pontsticill
Pontsticill is a village within the County Borough of Merthyr Tydfil in South Wales. It lies within the valley of the Taf Fechan on the southern edge of the Brecon Beacons National Park. The village lies within the community of Vaynor in an area that was, until the local government re-organisation of 1974, within the historic county of Brecknockshire. Pontsticill is closely associated with the Brecon Mountain Railway, a tourist railway which runs along the former Brecon and Merthyr Railway line. Immediately to the north of the village is the Pontsticill Reservoir which was completed in 1927. The village name originates from the Welsh words ''pont'' and ''sticill'' and signifies a 'bridge near a stile'. Pontsticill Reservoir Pontsticill Reservoir, originally Taff Fechan Reservoir, was opened in 1927 to supply water to much of the South Wales Valleys. The 110 ft high embankment holds 15,400 megalitres of water. The reservoir is popular with sailors, anglers and picni ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Brecon Mountain Railway
The Brecon Mountain Railway (Welsh language, Welsh: ''Rheilffordd Fynydd y Bannau'') is a Narrow gauge railway, narrow gauge tourist railway on the south side of the Brecon Beacons in Wales. It climbs northwards from Pant railway station (Brecon Mountain Railway), Pant along the full length of the Pontsticill Reservoir (also called 'Taf Fechan' reservoir by Welsh Water) and continues past the adjoining Pentwyn Reservoir to Torpantau railway station. The railway's starting point at Pant is located north of the town centre of Merthyr Tydfil, Merthyr Tydfil County Borough, South-East Wales. Route description The line runs along part of the trackbed of the northern section of the former Brecon and Merthyr Railway from Pant, Merthyr Tydfil, Pant to a new station at Torpantau, via Pontsticill and Dolygaer, a total of about . This takes the BMR just short of the southern entrance to the 667 yd (610 m) long Torpantau tunnel, the highest railway tunnel in Great Britain, which carrie ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Taf Fechan
The River Taff () is a river in Wales. It rises in the Brecon Beacons as two rivers, the Taf Fechan ("little Taff") and the Taf Fawr ("great Taff") before becoming one just north of Merthyr Tydfil. At Cardiff, it empties into the Bristol Channel. The river supports several species of migratory fish, including salmon, sewins (sea trout), and eels. Course From its confluence at Cefn-coed-y-cymmer, the river flows south, passing several towns. It picks up a few tributaries, such as the River Cynon, River Rhondda, Bargoed Taf and Nant Clydach. It flows through Pontypridd and through to Taff's Well, the site of Wales' only thermal spring. It flows underneath the M4 Motorway, before turning southeastward and flowing past the Cardiff suburbs of Radyr, Whitchurch, Llandaff, Pontcanna, the city centre and Grangetown, before emptying into Cardiff Bay, near to the mouth of the River Ely. Taf Fawr The Taf Fawr rises below the peak of Corn Du, south-west of Pen y Fan and soo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Brecon And Merthyr Railway
The Brecon and Merthyr Tydfil Junction Railway (B&MR) was a railway company in Wales. It was originally intended to link the towns in its name. Finding its access to Merthyr difficult at first, it acquired the Rumney Railway, an old plateway, and this gave it access to Newport docks. This changed its emphasis from rural line to mineral artery. It opened at the Brecon end to a point near Dowlais in 1863, and in 1865 it opened a disconnected section from Rhymney to Newport. In due course the company connected the two sections and reached Dowlais and Merthyr, but had to concede sharing a route with the powerful London and North Western Railway. The was always short of money, and was notable for its prodigious gradients, but it survived until the grouping of 1923, when it became part of the Great Western Railway. Its network declined steeply after 1945, and passenger operation ceased in 1962. Goods and mineral operation also lost its market, and as of 2020, only a short stub to a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pontsticill Reservoir
Pontsticill Reservoir () or Taf Fechan Reservoir is a large reservoir on the Taf Fechan lying partly in the county of Powys and partly within the county borough of Merthyr Tydfil in south Wales. It lies within the Brecon Beacons National Park and Fforest Fawr Geopark. The 110 ft high embankment has, since its completion in 1927, been holding back 15,400 megalitres of water for supply to industry and population to the south. At maximum fill level, the modern reservoir is continuous with Pentwyn Reservoir (sometimes referred to as Dol-y-gaer Reservoir or Lake) which suffered major water losses after completion due to the presence of major fractures in the bedrock beneath its dam relating to the Neath Disturbance, a major geological fault which runs northeast to southwest through the area.‘Reservoir Builders of South Wales’ (Dam Builders in the Age of Steam series book six) Bowtell H.D. & Hill G. The reservoir is popular with sailors, anglers and picnickers. The Taf ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
County Borough Of Merthyr Tydfil
Merthyr Tydfil County Borough () is a county borough in the south-east of Wales. In , it had an estimated population of , making it the smallest local authority in Wales by population. It is located in the historic county of Glamorgan and takes its name from the town with the same name. The county borough consists of the northern part of the Taff Valley and the smaller neighbouring Taff Bargoed Valley. It borders the counties of Rhondda Cynon Taf to the west, Caerphilly County Borough to the east, and Powys to the north. The area was awarded county borough status in 1908 until the original county borough was abolished in 1974. In 1996, Merthyr Tydfil became a principal area and one that is styled as a "county borough" in recognition of its historical status. History Pre-industrial Merthyr What is now Merthyr Tydfil town centre was originally little more than a village. An ironworks existed in the parish in the Elizabethan period, but it did not survive beyond the early 164 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Brecon Beacons National Park
Brecon Beacons National Park, officially named Bannau Brycheiniog National Park (), is a National parks of the United Kingdom, national park in Wales. It is named after the Brecon Beacons (), the mountain range at its centre. The national park includes the highest mountain in South Wales, Pen y Fan, which has an elevation of . The national park has a total area of . The Brecon Beacons and Fforest Fawr uplands form the central section of the park. To the east are the Black Mountains, Wales, Black Mountains, which extend beyond the national park boundary into England, and to the west is the similarly named but distinct Black Mountain (range), Black Mountain range. These ranges share much of the same basic geology, the southerly dip of the rock strata leading to north-facing escarpments. The highest peak of the Black Mountains is Waun Fach (), and Fan Brycheiniog () is the highest of the Black Mountain. The park was founded in 1957 and is the third and most recently designated Nat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vaynor
Vaynor (, ) is a village and community (formerly a parish) in Merthyr Tydfil County Borough in Wales, United Kingdom. The population of the community at the 2011 census was 3,551. Location It is about four miles north of the town of Merthyr Tydfil and is within the borders of the Brecon Beacons National Park. The community includes the three villages of Cefn-coed-y-cymmer, Trefechan and Pontsticill as well as Pontsarn and Vaynor. To the west are Nant Glais Caves. It also includes the southern section of Pontsticill Reservoir and the eastern end of Llwyn-On Reservoir. History Until 1974, the village was a civil parish in the Vaynor and Penderyn Rural District of Brecknockshire. From 1974 to 1996, it was part of Merthyr Tydfil district in Mid Glamorgan. It is notable for its connections with the Ironmaster Robert Crawshay, owner of the world's first ironworks at Cyfarthfa, who is buried in Vaynor churchyard. Governance Between 1973 and 1996 Vaynor was an electora ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Brecknockshire
Brecknockshire ( or ), also known as the County of Brecknock, Breconshire, or the County of Brecon, was Historic counties of Wales, one of the thirteen counties of Wales that existed from 1536 until their abolishment in 1974. It was created in 1536 under the Laws in Wales Act 1535, and from 1889 it was an History of local government in Wales, administrative county with a county council; the administrative county was abolished in 1974. The county was named after the medieval Welsh territory of Brycheiniog, which was Anglicisation of names, anglicised to "Brecknock" and also gave its name to the county town of Brecon. The former county's area is mountainous and primarily rural. Geography Brecknockshire was bounded to the north by Radnorshire, to the east by Herefordshire and Monmouthshire (historic), Monmouthshire, to the south by Monmouthshire and Glamorgan, and to the west by Carmarthenshire and Ceredigion, Cardiganshire. The county is predominantly rural and mountainous. The B ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
South Wales
South Wales ( ) is a Regions of Wales, loosely defined region of Wales bordered by England to the east and mid Wales to the north. Generally considered to include the Historic counties of Wales, historic counties of Glamorgan and Monmouthshire (historic), Monmouthshire, south Wales extends westwards to include Carmarthenshire and Pembrokeshire. In the western extent, from Swansea westwards, local people would probably recognise that they lived in both south Wales and west Wales. The Brecon Beacons National Park covers about a third of south Wales, containing Pen y Fan, the highest British mountain south of Cadair Idris in Snowdonia. A point of some discussion is whether the first element of the name should be capitalised: 'south Wales' or 'South Wales'. As the name is a geographical expression rather than a specific area with well-defined borders, style guides such as those of the BBC and ''The Guardian'' use the form 'south Wales'. In a more authoritative style guide, the Wel ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Community (Wales)
A community () is a division of land 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, with more than 730 having community and town councils. History 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 the same Act. The Subdivisions of Wales#Principal areas, 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 England, parish councils in terms of their powers and the way they operate. Welsh community councils may call themselves town councils unilaterally ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Local Government Act 1972
The Local Government Act 1972 (c. 70) is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales on 1 April 1974. It was one of the most significant acts of Parliament to be passed by the Heath Government of 1970–74. The act took the total number of councils in England from 1,245 to 412 (excluding parish councils), and in Wales to 45. Its pattern of two-tier metropolitan and non-metropolitan county and district councils remains in use today in large parts of England, although the metropolitan county councils were abolished in 1986, and both county and district councils have been replaced with unitary authorities in many areas since the 1990s. In Wales, too, the Act established a similar pattern of counties and districts, but these have since been entirely replaced with a system of unitary authorities. Elections were held to the new authorities in 1973, and they acted as "shadow authorities" until the handover date. Elect ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Historic Counties Of Wales
The historic counties of Wales () were the thirteen Subdivisions of Wales, sub-divisions used in Wales from 1535 up to their abolition in 1974 when they were replaced by Preserved counties of Wales, eight larger administrative counties (which in turn were replaced with the current Principal areas of Wales, twenty-two). They were used for various functions for several hundred years,Bryne, T., ''Local Government in Britain'', (1994) with some dating to 1282, but for administrative purposes have been superseded by contemporary Principal areas of Wales, sub-national divisions,Her Majesty's Stationery Office, ''Aspects of Britain: Local Government'', (1996) some of which bear some limited similarity to the historic entities in name and extent. They are alternatively known as ''ancient counties''. The counties :1 The earldom of Pembroke and lordship of Glamorgan pre-date the Edwardian conquest. :2 These counties originate in 1282, following King Edward I of England, Edward ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
