Crynant
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Crynant () is a village 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 ...
in the Dulais Valley in
Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...
. It lies 7¾ miles north-east from the town of
Neath Neath (; ) is a market town and Community (Wales), community situated in the Neath Port Talbot, Neath Port Talbot County Borough, Wales. The town had a population of 50,658 in 2011. The community of the parish of Neath had a population of 19,2 ...
in
Neath Port Talbot Neath Port Talbot () is a Principal areas of Wales, county borough in the South West Wales, south-west of Wales. Its principal towns are Neath, Port Talbot, Briton Ferry and Pontardawe. The county borough borders Bridgend County Borough and Rhon ...
, situated between the mountains of Mynydd Marchywel to the west, Hirfynydd to the east and Mynydd y Drum to the north. Crynant is a long village, lying on the narrow valley floor and lower slopes of Hirfynydd. Originally there were separate villages (essentially separate farms), such as the region of Treforgan, but all have now merged into a single village. The River Dulais flows through the village.


Etymology

The Welsh name ''Y Creunant'' derives from ''creu'' (or ''nghreu'') meaning creation or beginning, and ''nant'' meaning stream or brook. A different interpretation of the prefix is ''crai'', implying a narrow place, therefore a brook that makes its way through a narrow place. Another explanation states that the place name is a contraction of ''Croyw-nant'', the clear brook. ''Creu'' also means a pound, as in an animal pound by the stream; a pound was known to have been sited on ground opposite the Red Lion pub at the town square.


History

In the
Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...
, there was a small monastic cell in Crynant where monks and other pilgrims would break their journeys. The village first appeared on maps as Capel Creunant ( Creunant Chapel), which may have referred to the monastic outpost. Crynant remained a rural agricultural community of scattered farms until the discovery of coal in the 19th century. The first colliery was Maes Mawr Colliery, opened in 1874. It can still be seen at the site of the old Blaenant Colliery at the top end of Brynawel Pen Pentre, a terrace of old cottages which was the first street to be built in the village. Men seeking work in the mines began arriving in Creunant, and the current village started taking shape, centred on the Square. Pen Pentre, the Square, Maes Mawr and Station Road all date from the 19th century. Station Road referred to the Neath and Brecon Railway, built in the mid-1860s, which ran through the village. Cefn Coed Colliery opened in 1928 and was claimed to be the deepest
anthracite Anthracite, also known as hard coal and black coal, is a hard, compact variety of coal that has a lustre (mineralogy)#Submetallic lustre, submetallic lustre. It has the highest carbon content, the fewest impurities, and the highest energy densit ...
mine in the world. It closed in 1968 and the site now houses the Cefn Coed Colliery Museum. None of the collieries are operational today, and all but one have largely been reclaimed by nature. The only colliery with some buildings remaining in good repair is Blaenant, which was the last colliery to close and was an extension of Cefn Coed. Until the late 1980s, there was another large colliery in the village, Treforgan Colliery, which has since been demolished. Part of the former site was used to establish Crynant Business Park. Scattered around the village are the remains of older collieries, such as Tynewydd and Top Jebbs. The end of
coal mining Coal mining is the process of resource extraction, extracting coal from the ground or from a mine. Coal is valued for its Energy value of coal, energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to Electricity generation, generate electr ...
changed the face of the village, the valley and the whole of the
South Wales Coalfield The South Wales Coalfield () extends across Pembrokeshire, Carmarthenshire, Swansea, Neath Port Talbot, Bridgend, Rhondda Cynon Taf, Merthyr Tydfil, Caerphilly, Blaenau Gwent and Torfaen. It is rich in coal deposits, especially in the South Wales ...
. The valley is beginning to develop from an economic depression brought with the end of industry, and services are limited.


Politics

Crynant is in the Senedd constituency and UK Parliamentary constituency of Neath. Following a 2020 boundary review by the
Local Democracy and Boundary Commission for Wales The Democracy and Boundary Commission Cymru () is a Welsh Government sponsored body, responsible for defining local government boundaries and Senedd constituency boundaries in Wales, also known as . The Commission was established originally as ...
, Crynant was joined by the neighbouring communities of Onllwyn and Seven Sisters to become the Crynant, Onllwyn and Seven Sisters
electoral ward A ward is a local authority area, typically used for electoral purposes. In some countries, wards are usually named after neighbourhoods, thoroughfares, parishes, landmarks, geographical features and in some cases historical figures connected t ...
, effective from the 2022 local elections. Two councillors are elected to
Neath Port Talbot County Borough Council Neath Port Talbot County Borough Council (or simply Neath Port Talbot Council) is the local authority for the county borough of Neath Port Talbot, one of the 22 Principal areas of Wales, principal areas of Wales. The council was controlled by the ...
. The former ward of Crynant consisted of some or all of the settlements of Crynant, Treforgan and Ynysfadog. In the 2017 local council elections, the results were: In the 2012 local council elections, the electorate turnout was 41.46%. The results were:


Employment

Farming is still important to the village, with sheep and beef cattle raised on the hillsides. The village has a few small shops, the most well known being Segadelli's (or Stella's) sweet shop on the Square. Crynant Business Park has been established on the Treforgan Colliery site, enabling smaller companies to generate some employment for the community. Crynant Plant, a building and demolition company, is still by far the largest industry in the area. However, most people commute to work to Neath,
Swansea Swansea ( ; ) is a coastal City status in the United Kingdom, city and the List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, second-largest city of Wales. It forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area, officially known as the City and County of ...
, or further afield.


Local environment

The coal tips to the south of the village have been removed, and those at Treforgan are now hidden under
silver birch ''Betula pendula'', commonly known as silver birch, warty birch, European white birch, or East Asian white birch, is a species of tree in the family Betulaceae, native to Europe and parts of Asia, though in southern Europe, it is only found ...
. Both sides of the village used to be covered by farmed
conifer Conifers () are a group of conifer cone, cone-bearing Spermatophyte, seed plants, a subset of gymnosperms. Scientifically, they make up the phylum, division Pinophyta (), also known as Coniferophyta () or Coniferae. The division contains a sin ...
forests, but these were removed by the
Forestry Commission The Forestry Commission is a non-ministerial government department responsible for the management of publicly owned forests and the regulation of both public and private forestry in England. The Forestry Commission was previously also respons ...
in order for native trees to grow. The River Dulais flows through the village. A
slaughterhouse In livestock agriculture and the meat industry, a slaughterhouse, also called an abattoir (), is a facility where livestock animals are slaughtered to provide food. Slaughterhouses supply meat, which then becomes the responsibility of a mea ...
stood on the banks of the river, at the end of Maes Mawr. The red lines at the top of the Crynant RFC emblem apparently represent the red river.


Locations and buildings of note

To the west of the village, on the old Neath road, lies Tyn-y-graig Mansion. It was built by the owner of the Vale of Neath Brewery, David Evans-Bevan, for his daughter. Saint Illtyd's Walk also passes through Crynant. Gelli Galed, a ruined farmhouse dating back to the 17th century, which is perched on a ridge of Marchywel mountain above the village, was used as a chapel during the 18th century. It may also have contained a secret chamber used for hiding fugitives during the
English Civil War The English Civil War or Great Rebellion was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Cavaliers, Royalists and Roundhead, Parliamentarians in the Kingdom of England from 1642 to 1651. Part of the wider 1639 to 1653 Wars of th ...
. Built in the mid 1800s, Crynant National School was the first organised school in the valley. It was once a thriving hub for the community before it was sold and fell into disrepair.


Chapels and churches

There are currently four active places of worship in the village: Godrerhos Independent Chapel (built in 1754), Saron Independent Chapel (built in 1904 during the Welsh revival and daughter chapel of Godrerhos), Bethel Wesleyan Methodist Chapel and St Margaret's
Church in Wales The Church in Wales () is an Anglican church in Wales, composed of six dioceses. The Archbishop of Wales does not have a fixed archiepiscopal see, but serves concurrently as one of the six diocesan bishops. The position is currently held b ...
. An ancient
chapel of ease A chapel of ease (or chapel-of-ease) is a church architecture, church building other than the parish church, built within the bounds of a parish for the attendance of those who cannot reach the parish church conveniently, generally due to trav ...
remains standing on the Square and is in good condition. It is of medieval origin. Salem
Calvinistic Reformed Christianity, also called Calvinism, is a major branch of Protestantism that began during the 16th-century Protestant Reformation. In the modern day, it is largely represented by the Continental Reformed Christian, Presbyterian, ...
Methodist chapel closed as a working chapel in 2017 and was taken over by a community group until 2023. The original chapel was situated at Pen-pentre, and is now a residential property as is Salem Chapel. Other previous places of worship included Zion English Methodist Chapel, Glasfryn and Bethania Welsh Baptist Chapel on Woodland Road. Worship services were also once held at Gelligaled farm when Nonconformity in the area was forbidden.


Sport and leisure

Crynant is home to Crynant RFC, a
rugby union Rugby union football, commonly known simply as rugby union in English-speaking countries and rugby 15/XV in non-English-speaking world, Anglophone Europe, or often just rugby, is a Contact sport#Terminology, close-contact team sport that orig ...
club founded in 1898. It is home to the village's only remaining social club. The Gradon, on the main road slightly north of Creunant Business park, is the last remaining pub in the village. Its unusual name was derived from the names Grant and Donna, the children of a previous owner. It was previously known as the
British Legion The Royal British Legion (RBL), formerly the British Legion, is a British Charitable organization, charity providing financial, social and emotional support to members and veterans of the British Armed Forces, their families and dependants. ...
. Former pubs include the Kingfisher and the Red Lion, which had been in business since 1850. The Welfare, a miners'
working men's club Working men's clubs are British private social clubs first created in the 19th century in industrial areas, particularly the North of England, Midlands, Scotland, Northern Ireland and South Wales Valleys, to provide recreation and education ...
, declined after the closure of the coal mines in the 1980s, and eventually closed. The village once hosted a carnival every year; this stopped with the demise of coal mining. During
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, Crynant it was famous for the pantomimes which it produced every year and which toured the surrounding villages.


Notable people

Notables who were born or lived in Crynant include: * Connor Roberts, professional footballer * Geraint F. Lewis, Professor of Astrophysics at the University of Sydney, Australia * Mike Smith, saxophonist for the 1960s band Amen Corner *
Daral Pugh Daral James Pugh (born 5 June 1961) is a Welsh former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. He is currently head of coaching for the Sheffield Wednesday academy. Playing career During his playing career, Pugh played for Doncaster R ...
, professional footballer * Verden Allen, organist with Mott the Hoople


Further reading

*''The village of Crynant: The place and its people'', by Stanley Cadogan Lodwig (published posthumously by Eileen and Deborah Lodwig in 2008) *''Now and Then: Upper Dulais and Swansea Valleys'' by W. T. Davies. *''Stars on a Saturday Afternoon'' (history of Crynant RFC) by David Alexander (1990) *''On a Summer Morning'' by W. V. Thomas and A. J. Thomas, prepared by I. W. and P. V. Thomas, 2007, this being an account of four Crynant soldiers who were killed in the battle for Mametz Wood in 1916. *''Facing The Threat'' by W. V. Thomas, prepared by I. W. Thomas and P. V. Thomas, 2008 and 2009, a tribute to the people of the village during the Second World War, 1939–1945.


References


External links


www.geograph.co.uk : photos of Crynant and surrounding areaCwmdulais Historical Society
{{authority control Villages in Neath Port Talbot Former wards of Neath Port Talbot Communities in Neath Port Talbot Dulais Valley