Aberdare
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Map of Mid Glamorgan
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Aberdare memories
Read and share memories of Aberdare and Mid Glamorgan inspired by Frith photos
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You can also read memories of nearby places in Mid Glamorgan below.
Mid Glamorgan memories
Aberaman
Having been born and reared in Aberaman, I spent many hours in the playing fields, even before it was named King George's field. Locally it is known as the hayfield, and even now is a source of pleasure for football and dog walkers. Sadly though, often the childrens playing area has been vandalised and it is no longer safe to 'camp' there overnight, as we once did, with a bottle of water and jam sandwiches!
In the picture given on the site, a car can be seen, driving down what was and still is, Tonllwydd. Walking up up this path is lovely, it takes you to ' the line' an old railway track, which once carried coal to and from the ...read more here
A memory of Aberaman contributed by Dorothy Charles
aberaman flower show
My Grandfather used to be a judge at the Aberaman flower show and others in the area. He also won many shows himself with vegatables and flowers. I have some photographs
A memory of Aberaman contributed by Jean Johnson
Haywards Graig Avenue
I was named after my uncle who was one of 2 boys, Arthur (my dad), and Maurice. My grandfather and grandmother had converted their front room to a shop which seemed to sell EVERYTHING.....We spent our annual holiday every year at number 5.. and I have many happy memories of visits to the Mumbles.. Porthcawl.. Barry and many more... and also of the many friends we met up with each year. Also... I have relatives, the Hedges family... still there in Abercwmboi?? I would love to get in touch if they are still in the area.
A memory of Abercwmboi contributed by MAURICE HAYWARD
My Young Years In Abercwmboi
The first time I saw the photo it brought back very old memorys, because when I got up from bed in the mornings and opened my curtains the first thing I saw was the smoke from the Phurnacite Plant, as we lived in Park View Terrace which was not more than a few hundred yards from the site. The pond in the picture was where we used to swim in the summer and also we did some fishing in the same pond. My memory of the men that worked at the plant was they had to put on this yellow cream on their faces so that the tar would not burn their faces. There were some men who worked on coke ...read more here
A memory of Abercwmboi contributed by david williams
Extracts From Aberdare & Mid Glamorgan books
We are looking down on
Aberdare, a town set amid
beautiful scenery at the
head of the Cynon Valley.
On the far right, the road
continues over the top to
Maerdy. In this area there
are a number of the many
valley roads built during
the depression of the
1920s and 1930s by the
unemployed under the
Public Works scheme.
An extract from from"Heads of the Valleys Photographic Memories".
The Aberdare memorial to the First World War has an unusual cenotaph design similar to the one in London. The premises
of Haydn W Morris, an optician, are on the left-hand side of the photograph. Leslie`s (right) was a popular store; it had a
special toy fair each October, and a Father Christmas from November onwards.
An extract from from"Heads of the Valleys Photographic Memories".
The area on the right,
opposite the lower entrance
to the park, was known as
`Commin Bach`. When the
school was opened in 1896
the original building did not
have a clock tower - this was
added later. The statue of W
T Lewis, Lord Merthyr (left),
is identical to a statue which
stood beside the General
Hospital in Merthyr Tydfil.
An extract from from"Heads of the Valleys Photographic Memories".
Aberdare was chosen as
the venue for one of the
Intermediate schools in
Glamorgan. The memorial
stone was laid on 10
August 1893 by Lord
Aberdare. The new school
opened in 1896 with room
for 100 boys and 80 girls,
with a catchment area
extending from Rhigos to
Mountain Ash.
An extract from from"Heads of the Valleys Photographic Memories".
The bronze statue shows Griffith Rhys Jones (Caradog) conducting the South Wales Choral Union to victory at Crystal
Palace in 1872 and 1873. This impressive work by Goscombe John cost £1,500, raised by public subscription, and it was
unveiled by Lord Aberdare on 10 July 1920. Here Caradog is in his original place; in 1962 he was moved to a position beside
the Black Lion Hotel.
An extract from from"Heads of the Valleys Photographic Memories".