Clynderwen (; ) is a rural

linear village In mathematics, the term ''linear'' is used in two distinct senses for two different properties: * linearity of a '' function'' (or '' mapping''); * linearity of a ''polynomial''. An example of a linear function is the function defined by f(x)= ...

and

community A community is a social unit (a group of people) with a shared socially-significant characteristic, such as place, set of norms, culture, religion, values, customs, or identity. Communities may share a sense of place situated in a given g ...

Pembrokeshire Pembrokeshire ( ; ) is a Principal areas of Wales, county in the South West Wales, south-west of Wales. It is bordered by Carmarthenshire to the east, Ceredigion to the northeast, and otherwise by the sea. Haverfordwest is the largest town and ...

, Wales, which was

historically History is the systematic study of the past, focusing primarily on the human past. As an academic discipline, it analyses and interprets evidence to construct narratives about what happened and explain why it happened. Some theorists categ ...

part of the county of

Carmarthenshire Carmarthenshire (; or informally ') is a Principal areas of Wales, county in the South West Wales, south-west of Wales. The three largest towns are Llanelli, Carmarthen and Ammanford. Carmarthen is the county town and administrative centre. ...

. It lies on the A478

Tenby Tenby () is a seaside town and community (Wales), community in the county of Pembrokeshire, Wales. It lies within Carmarthen Bay. Notable features include of sandy beaches and the Pembrokeshire Coast Path, the 13th-century Tenby Town Walls, me ...

to Cardigan road south of the village of

Llandissilio Llandissilio () is a village and parish in the community of Llandissilio West in east Pembrokeshire, Wales on the A478 road between Efailwen to the north and Clunderwen to the south. A largely ribbon development along the main road, the vill ...

and north of the town of Narberth. The village has its own

community council A community council is a public representative body in Great Britain. In England they may be statutory parish councils by another name, under the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007, or they may be non-statutory bodies. ...

of 10 members.

Name

Clynderwen, translating into English as "oak thicket", is named after an estate of the same name. On 1 April 2003, the village was transferred from the administrative county of

to that of Pembrokeshire, following a boundary change between the counties. The name of the community council is officially spelt ''Clunderwen''.

History

The earliest known record of Clynderwen is in 1822: a mansion and farm of that name, the Clynderwen Estate, is to the east of the present village and may have dated back to the 17th century. Robert Frederick Gower, High Sheriff of Pembrokeshire in 1844, whose son

Erasmus Gower Admiral Sir Erasmus Gower (3 December 1742 – 21 June 1814) was a Royal Navy officer and colonial governor. Naval career Gower, aged 13, joined the Royal Navy in 1755 under the patronage of his uncle, Captain John Donkley. He was present at t ...

rose to the rank of admiral, owned Clyn Derwen (sic). Clynderwen was listed in The Welsh Church Year Book of 1929 as having a Chapel of Ease in the parish of ''Llanfallteg with Clynderwen with Castell Dwyran'' and had been listed in the parish of Castell Dwyran since before 1850. The village developed after the advent of the railway in 1854. The

Great Western Railway The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a History of rail transport in Great Britain, British railway company that linked London with the southwest, west and West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, ...

(

West Wales Line The West Wales lines () are a group of railway lines from Swansea through Carmarthenshire to Pembrokeshire, West Wales. The main part runs from Swansea to Carmarthen and Whitland, where it becomes three branches to Fishguard, Milford Haven and ...

) to

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

from the ports of

Milford Haven Milford Haven ( ) is a town and community (Wales), community in Pembrokeshire, Wales. It is on the north side of the Milford Haven Waterway, an estuary forming a natural harbour that has been used as a port since the Middle Ages. The town was ...

and

Fishguard Fishguard (, meaning "Mouth of the River Gwaun") is a coastal town in Pembrokeshire, Wales, with a population of 3,400 (rounded to the nearest 100) as of the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 census. Modern Fishguard consists of two parts, Lowe ...

passes through the village at

Clunderwen railway station Clunderwen railway station serves the village of Clynderwen () in Pembrokeshire, Wales. The station is unstaffed and is a request stop. History The South Wales Railway was extended from to on 2 January 1854, and among the original stations ...

. From 1876 a light railway, the

Narberth Road and Maenclochog Railway The Narberth Road and Maenclochog Railway was a Welsh light railway company in Pembrokeshire. Services started in January 1876. Route The line ran from Clynderwen (formerly Narberth Road) on the Great Western Railway via Maenclochog to Rosebu ...

ran from Clynderwen to Rosebush slate quarries via

Maenclochog Maenclochog () is a village, parish and Community (Wales), community in Pembrokeshire, south-west Wales. It is also the name of Maenclochog (electoral ward), an electoral ward comprising a wider area of four surrounding communities. Maenclochog C ...

. The line was closed to passengers in 1937 and to freight in 1949. The railway encouraged the development of the local economies and Clynderwen became a focus for agricultural produce and livestock shipment. Clynderwen and Cardiganshire Farmers cooperative opened its first branch in the village in 1904, the first of 22 covering much of Wales. The cooperative was a prime mover in a number of agricultural advances and projects beneficial to the farming community particularly during the depression in the 1920s and the technical revolutions after World War 2. The Clynderwen Agricultural Society was established in 1911 and held an annual show until 1963 and from 1979 to the present. The Clynderwen Young Farmers Club, established 1929, was the first in Wales. The village was notable for the efforts of the brothers Howard and Herbert James who in 1913 were the first men in Pembrokeshire to build and fly their own aircraft. There are 18 listed structures in the community.

Education

Clynderwen is home to Redhill High School, an independent co-educational secondary school, associated with Redhill Preparatory School at Haverfordwest. The school occupies the historic building of Clynderwen House, and opened in 2018, teaching up to year 13 with a maximum class size of 20.

References

External links

(NOTE: A search on Wikimedia Commons for Clunderwen provides more uncategorised images) {{authority control Villages in Pembrokeshire Communities in Pembrokeshire