Garnant
| Garnant | |
|---|---|
 | |
  Garnant Location within Carmarthenshire | |
| Population | 2,023 (2011)[1] |
| OS grid reference | SN687130 |
| Community | |
| Principal area | |
| Preserved county | |
| Country | Wales |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | AMMANFORD |
| Postcode district | SA18 |
| Dialling code | 01269 |
| Police | Dyfed-Powys |
| Fire | Mid and West Wales |
| Ambulance | Welsh |
| UK Parliament | |
| Senedd Cymru – Welsh Parliament | |
Garnant is a mining village in the valley of the River Amman in Carmarthenshire, Wales, north of Swansea. Like the neighbouring village of Glanamman it experienced a coal-mining boom in the 19th and early 20th centuries, but the last big colliery closed in 1936 and coal has been extracted fitfully since then. The village has the only Commissioners' church built in southwest Wales, traditionally a Methodist region.
History
The location of Garnant and Glanamman was known as Cwmamman ("Amman valley") before coal was discovered; until the 18th century it was a remote wilderness with just a few farms and rough mountain roads. Mining appears to have started at Brynlloi in Glanamman in 1757[2] and small coal workings proliferated in the first half of the 19th century. The lease to "Garnant Colliery" was offered in an advert of 1830, which was probably at the border of Garnant and Gwaun-cae-gurwen near the main road.[2]
The arrival of the Llanelly Railway in 1840 meant that coal could be exported on an industrial scale through Llanelli docks. The railway's decision to build two stations at Garnant (originally called Amman Valley) and Glanamman encouraged the two halves of Cwmamman to develop their own identity, as did the construction of Christchurch in Garnant at about the same time. Taking its name from the emblem of the Dynevor family, the "Raven" colliery in Garnant was operating by 1854 and opened a new shaft in 1907. By World War I, it was employing 450 men. However, the mines were very dependent on the railway for transporting the coal, and when in the early 1920s there was a rail strike this caused mass unemployment (at a time when no work meant no pay), as is recorded by Arthur Bullock who was recruited to work at the Labour Exchange.[3]
The Raven colliery eventually closed in 1936 after an industrial dispute.[2] The site is now the Raven Industrial Park. Coal mining has continued sporadically since then, most notably at an open-cast mine which extracted 2,000 tons per week between 1988 and 1992. The site is now the Garnant Park golf club.[2]
Government
Rhodri Glyn Thomas of
Geography
The village is about 12 miles north of Swansea on the edge of the Black Mountain, in the westernmost part of the Brecon Beacons National Park. It lies at the junction of three rivers, where the Rivers Garnant and Pedol meet the River Amman. Garnant lies in the western part of the South Wales Coalfield, where the coal is particularly high-quality anthracite.
Demography
The effect of the mining boom can be seen in the expansion of Cwmamman parish (including Glanamman and surrounding villages) from just over 3,000 in 1851 to over 11,000 in the early 20th century.[2] The population of Garnant ward was 1,965 people at the 2001 census,[1] increasing to 2,139 at the 2011 census.[4] Glanamman is a similar size.
Economy
Traditionally the economy was based on coal-mining with some dairy farming, but the mines have closed and farms have moved from milk production to beef-farming. Other industries sprang up in the valley during the 19th century, including the Amman Tinplate Works between 1883 and 1932 which was turned into Parc Golwg Yr Aman.
Culture and community
Since 1988 Cwmamman has been
Landmarks
The valley has been shaped by coal workings and their waste, but little remains above ground. Christchurch and the chapels (see below) are the main landmarks, along with the new school.
Transport
A turnpike road (now the
Education
Three local schools, Ysgol y Twyn, Ysgol Gynradd y Garnant and Ysgol Gynradd Glanaman, were merged to form Ysgol y Bedol (the Horseshoe School) at the confluence of the three rivers in Twyn. This
Religious sites
The Welsh valleys were a stronghold of Nonconformism. Old Bethel Chapel, also known as The Old Meeting House, was built in 1773 high on the north side of the valley between Glanamman and Garnant. Pevsner describes the pulpit on a wine-glass stem as an "exceptional rarity".[6] In 1875 it was superseded by the New Bethel Chapel on the main road at the west end of village.[6]
Christchurch, the only
Sport
Garnant Park (formerly Cwmamman Recreation Ground) was part of
It is across the river from the old Amman Tinplate Works. In 1996 Cwmamman Town Council bought the site of the works and turned it into Parc Golwg Yr Aman (Amman View Park), with a basketball area, rugby field, skateboard park and fishing platforms.[8] The opencast coalmine on the south side of the valley has been turned into Garnant Park golf club.[2]
Notable people
- Carmarthenfrom 1979 to 1987
- John Cale OBE (born 1942), musician, songwriter, record producer and founding member of rock band the Velvet Underground
- Hywel Bennett (1944–2017), Welsh film and TV actor
- Dafydd Hywel (born 1945), a Welsh TV and movies actor
- Gary Pickford-Hopkins (1948–2013), singer, composer and guitarist
Sport
- Guy Morgan (1907–1973), Wales international rugby player
- Claude Davey (1908–2001), Wales international rugby player
- Jim Lang (1909–1991), Wales international rugby player
- Ted Ward (1917–1988), a Welsh rugby union, and professional rugby league footballer where he scored over 1000 points
- NHL
See also
- Glanamman - neighbouring village which shares much of Garnant's history
References
- ^ a b "People statistics - Garnant ward" (PDF). Carmarthenshire County Council. Archived from the original (pdf) on 12 November 2011.
- ^ a b c d e f "Coal Mining at Cwmamman". Dave Michael.
- ISBN 978-0-7524-4793-3. (Page 128)
- ^ "Ward population 2011". Retrieved 14 April 2015.
- ^ "Prospectus - Ysgol y Bedol". Ysgol y Bedol. Archived from the original on 10 May 2013.
- ^ ISBN 9780300101799.
- ^ "The Religious Revival at Ammanford". Carmarthen Weekly Reporter. 23 December 1904. p. 3. Retrieved 25 June 2016.
- ^ a b "Parc Golwg yr Aman and Cwmamman Recreational Ground". Dave Michael.
- ^ "The Scarlets : Regional Club Directory". Scarlets. 2009. Archived from the original on 9 April 2012. Retrieved 8 January 2013.
External links
- Cwmamman History with photos of the area
- Rick O'Shea visits Shane Williams's home club – TV segment showing the area around the rugby ground
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