Gwaelod-y-Garth
Village in Cardiff, Wales
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Gwaelod-y-Garth (Welsh for 'foot of the Garth'; Welsh pronunciation: [ˌɡwei̯lɔd ə ˈgarθ]) is a village in the community of Pentyrch, Cardiff in Wales.
| Gwaelod-y-garth | |
|---|---|
| |
  Gwaelod-y-garth Location within Cardiff | |
| OS grid reference | ST214824 |
| Principal area | |
| Preserved county | |
| Country | Wales |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | CARDIFF |
| Postcode district | CF15 |
| Dialling code | 029 |
| Police | South Wales |
| Fire | South Wales |
| Ambulance | Welsh |
| UK Parliament | |
| Senedd Cymru – Welsh Parliament | |
Location
Gwaelod-y-garth is located at the foot of Garth Hill and separated from the neighbouring village of Taffs Well by the River Taff, approximately six miles (10 km) north-west of central Cardiff and five miles (8 km) south-east of Pontypridd. The castle of Castell Coch is within reach of the village, by car or on foot.
History
In Elizabethan times, Gwaelod-y-Garth was noted for its iron-ore mines. The mines were opened between 1565 and 1625, and re-opened in the 19th century by the Blackmoor Booker company. In the early 1990s, a campaign was held to save the site.[1][self-published source]
The Pentyrch Iron Works was opened in Gwaelod-y-Garth in 1740 (Gwaelod-y-Garth was then in the parish of Pentyrch). It supplied iron to the Melingriffith Tin Plate Works in Whitchurch, about 3 miles (4.8 km) downriver.[2] In 1812 a tramway was constructed to the Mellingriffith Works; in 1871 this was upgraded to the standard-gauge Melingriffith and Pentyrch Railway.[3] An Ordnance Survey map revised in 1915 shows the works as 'disused'.[4] The forge from the ironworks was demolished in 1977[5] and the site is now used for housing.
Following the sound of a loud explosion from the nearby quarry, on 30 July 2026 the village was flooded by up to 5 feet of muddy water.[6] No explanation of the cause was initially forthcoming.
Amenities
Amenities include a Royal Mail collection point, Garth Tyres yard and a police car park, from where South Wales Police Roads Policing Unit is run. There is also a large playing field named Heol Berry, where local amateur football team Gwaelod Rangers plays. At the top end of the village is the village pub, the Gwaelod Y Garth Inn. Situated in the village is Gwaelod-y-Garth Primary School, a school that educates through both the medium of Welsh and English. The students are separated into two sections of the school (English and Welsh). The village has a Welsh medium chapel called Bethlehem built in 1832.
Notable residents
- Dr. Mary Gillham, naturalist, one of the first women to visit Antarctica, in 1959.