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Briton Ferry
Briton Ferry photos
Displaying the first of 13 old photos of Briton Ferry. View all Briton Ferry photos
Briton Ferry maps
Historic maps of Briton Ferry and the local area, hand-drawn by Ordnance Survey and Samuel Lewis. View all Briton Ferry maps
Briton Ferry area books
Displaying 1 of 1 books about Briton Ferry and the local area. View all books for this area
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Memories of Briton Ferry
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West Glamorgan memories
National Oil Refinery
I started work at the laboratory in the Llandarcy Oil Refinery in 1942 for the great weekly wage of one pound, one shilling and ninepence, when I was 16.
Mostly women worked in the lab but once the war was over the company only employed men. They did keep the women already employed there.
The village of Llandarcy was just up the road from the refinery and there was a building known as the Institute where dances were held two nights a week. I really enjoyed those!
I often cycled from Pantycelyn Road, Townhill to Llandarcy going along the canal path just past St Thomas, coming out where there is a restaurant now - there used to be a tower with a telescope on the top.
I worked at the refinery until 1949. The company allowed us time off to attend courses at the Neath Technical College where I obtained my National Certificate in Chemistry, and City and Guilds in Petroleum Technology. They didn't increase my pay... Read more
A Village Boy
I was born and raised in Llandarcy, where as for all the people whom lived there was a safe and friendly environment. I now live and work in Thailand as a teacher, but I still have found memories of my beloved Llandarcy. School holidays: When we used to camp-out on the mountains. Winter: When sometimes the snow was over two metres high. Bonfire night: When we used to spend weeks preparing the bonfire and where we used to have run-in-battles with the locals from Jersey Marine. The fondest memories are of the people and my friends.
Cheers, Llandarcy. For making me the man I am today
My Father
My father worked for BP Llandarcy from the 1960s. I was born in 1971 and some of my earliest memories are the smell of my dad coming home from Llandarcy. He worked on a machine called the catreformer. He rescued my first cat Sooty from the firey furnace at Llandarcy. One bad winter, when I was about 8 or 9, the refinery sent Landrovers out to pick up the workers from Dunvant where we lived, because the snow was so deep we hadn't been able to get out of the house. Sadly my dad was made redundant in 1986 and our family changed forever. We moved to Hampshire where my dad worked on an inshore oil well until he retired. I remember Lllandarcy used to take all the workers' children to the theatre to see the pantomime. In 2003 I set up a rugby club for children in Leeds and made sure that all the children went to the pantomme for free as we had. We didn't have much money... Read more
Police Station Coed-Ffranc Road
My grandfather Ernest Andrews was the Police Sergent at Llandarcy Police Station during the 1920s which was situated in Coed-Ffranc Road. My Uncle Bob (Robert) was born there in 1921 but sadly died in early 1940 after being shot down in his aeroplane. My mother was born in 1929 in the police station. Sadly my grandfather died in October 1930. I would be interested in anyone who might have known my Uncle Bob or has photographs of the police station in the 1920s/30s and whether it is still there.
Coffee And Doughnuts
A friend from work, and I took courses at the Neath Technical Institute. I left Swansea about 7:30am, and had to run down Mount Pleasant to the bus station in order to get to the Institute. For lunch we walked up town to a little Italian cafe and had a doughnut and coffee for lunch. After afternoon classes we went back to the cafe and had - another doughnut and coffee. We didn't have much money at that time. After evening classes I caught the 10:00pm bus home to Swansea and walked back up Mount Pleasant. This was a really steep hill and at one point the bus going up would change gear and I was enveloped in a cloud of black smoke - I can still smell it. I look back and wonder how we managed all this running and climbing on a really poor diet but I guess it didn't do us any harm.
Neath - William Phillips Family
I live in Newcastle, NSW, Australia. My relative, William Phillips was born in Neath and lived at 14 Company Street, Llantwit Fardre. He was a collier. He married 6/1875 Rachel Thomas (b.18/7/1852 Pontypridd Llaneth Verdre).In 1886 he and his family emigrated to Australia and settled in Stockton, NSW, a suburb of Newcastle. They had 9 children. He was a co-founder of the Stockton Congregational Church in 1887 along with Hopkin Bevan. He worked as a collier at the Stockton Colliery and was one of the last of the rescue party to emerge from mine after the disaster in 1896. He died in Stockton in aged 58 in 1910. His wife Rachel died aged 81 in 1934. William's parents were David and Margaret Phillips. Rachel's parents were Enoch Thomas and Mary Lewis. I am hoping that someone reading this may be a member of the family still in Wales or know of people who may be. I have come to a standstill in the research of this part of my family,... Read more
Looking For Relatives
I'm looking for Margaret d.o.b Nov 1949 [could be known as Gaynor] Jones and Patricia L Davies d.o.b Nov 1949, both born in Neath and lived in God rer Graig. Patricia's married name could either be Jones or Thomas and she married in 1967 in Neath. My name is Carol Angus [nee Swales] and I have traced a very strong family connection and would be very grateful for any information. I can be contacted by email: carol@carolangus.com or carol_angus@hotmail.com Kind Regards Carol
