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Flint
Flint maps
Historic maps of Flint and the local area, hand-drawn by Ordnance Survey and Samuel Lewis. View all Flint maps
Flint area books
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Memories of Flint
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memories of Flint.
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My Home Town
I was born in Flint in 1946. Looking at the old photos in your memory archives of the 1950s, it brought back a lot of old happy memories to me. Looking at the Church Street photo with the Hawarden Castle pub on the right, the Red Lion to the left. The Grand Cinema to the left and at the top of the street the very posh Plaza Cinema. Also I see on the bottom of the street Pumphrey's old shop and garage on the corner of Holywell Street and Church Street called Pumphreys Corner.
I can smell the stench drifting up to Mount Pleasant up the Allt Goch, from Courtaulds factories of which there were three in total, putrid acid smell from the Castle Works spinning rooms.
And of course Flint Castle where so many happy hours were spent playing there by many kids from Flint.
I left Flint in 1982 to move with my job to a new area. I will never forget my home town, I am stil... Read more
Clwyd memories
Father Holcroft
I was born and brought up in Widnes but we used to go for holidays in Bagillt where we stayed with an old friend of my parents, Father Holcroft. He was the local Catholic priest and we stayed in his house which had a farm adjoining with chickens and a goat which sometimes strayed into the house. The Catholic chapel was very simple as I recall, basically a big hut with a corrugated iron roof and I served mass there every day. Holcroft was a Yorkshireman and a late vocation renowned for his fiery temper and outspoken nature. He swore a lot which made us laugh as we had never met a priest quite like him. He had a heart of gold and seemed to be well liked by the parishoners. My brother, Bill and sister, Oonagh and I had a wonderful time exploring the village and the nearby coastline. We fed (and chased) the chickens and teased the goat. It was a magical place, especially for kids like us... Read more
Jones Balers
Looking back from this photo is the site of the original Jones Balers factory. I have many fond memories of my early working life with a wonderful bunch of collegues at the factory. I often visited Herbie Ellis' shop which later was to be in one of the houses in this pond photo, also the Red Lion pub nearby.
David Jones (Young Dai)
Very Early Days
I was born in Rhosesmor Vicarage in 1948 - the first child to be born there. My father was the vicar and we lived there until February 1955. My handprints are in the concrete outside the kitchen window and I have returned only once in nearly 60 years. I loved living there and exploring the fields and "mountain"! I especially remember the sheep invading our garden and the freezing winter weather. I went into Mold to school by car and then by the local bus which was run by Mattie and her brother. Mrs Jackson helped in the vicarage and Sylvia Massey would sometimes baby-sit for us. She lived at the local school. Opposite us lived "Cariad"! and I remember the Roberts family at Caerfallwch as well as Mrs Evans and Jones Balers. My grandmother lived with us and there is a memorial to her in the church. A special person for me was Mrs Brown who lived near the church: she had a... Read more
Happy Memories of Rhes-Y-Cae
My mum's best friend's father owned a cottage - Bryn Siriol- near Rhes-Y-Cae in the 1950s and 60s and some of my happiest childhood memories are of our annual holidays there. I remember going down to the farm (Black Lion Farm) in the village to get milk and water (no running water in Bryn Siriol!) from Mrs Reece. She had 2 sons - Peter and Tom. I think Tom may still be living in Rhes-Y-Cae. I remember shopping in the village stores and walking over the mountain from Bryn Siriol to the post office at Halkyn. The big event of the week for me was getting the little Crosville bus to go to Mold! My maiden name then was Lyness and I grew up in Wallasey but live in Lancaster now. I have such fond memories of Rhes-Y-Cae but I expect it's changed a great deal over the years!
Notes From Our Files.
The police office is PC69 Kenneth Edwards of the old Flintshire Force who is talking to Mr Cummins, a local landowner and the year is 1959.
Dancing Days
I lived in Ysceifiog and used to travel by bike to the dances at the village hall in Brynford. I used to meet my friend Betty Davies and her sister Sheila, who lived in Brynford. They had two brothers Gerald and Leonard. At these dances we had a band and an MC. It was where I learnt the Gay Gordons and Quickstep and Waltz. In those days my name was Wyn Parrington. I met my first husband Frank Hansom from Holywell at the dances. We married in 1955 and went to live in Rhodesia (now Zambia) in 1957. I had a wonderful life out there with servants and a nanny. I learnt to swim and drive. I had three children and when I was expecting my fourth child Frank died in a car crash and I had to return to Wales and lived with my parents. Later I met Meirion Wynne and we married. I had to change my name to Margaret as I could not be "Wyn Wynne" It's... Read more
