Product Code Database
Cwmbran ( ; , also in use as an alternative spelling in English) is a town in the county borough of Torfaen in South Wales.
Lying within the historic boundaries of Monmouthshire, Cwmbran was designated as a New Town in 1949 to provide new employment opportunities in the south eastern portion of the South Wales Coalfield.
Sitting as it does at the corner of the South Wales Coalfield, it has a hilly aspect to its western and northern edges, with the surrounding hills climbing to over . The Afon Llwyd forms the major river valley, although the most significant water course is probably the remains of the Monmouthshire & Brecon Canal. To the east of Cwmbran the land is less hilly, forming part of the River Usk.
Cwmbran was the name of one of several villages located in the valley, which had grown up around the tinplate works of the Cwmbran Iron Company. As the new town of Cwmbran was formed in 1949, the area of the old village became known as Old Cwmbran.
There is evidence that Neolithic and Bronze Age people used the area, with the Iron Age Silures tribe also occupying the region before being subdued by the based at nearby Usk and Caerleon.
Around 1179, Hywel, Lord of Caerleon gave a gift of money and land to found the Cistercian abbey at Llantarnam. At the dissolution of the monasteries by Henry VIII the abbey was closed and was bought by a succession of wealthy landowners. By the 18th century the abbey had passed into the ownership of the Blewitt family, who were to become key figures in the early industrialisation of Cwmbran. Brick making, , iron ore mining, quarrying and coal mining were established during this period, along with a canal to transport goods to the docks at Newport.
In 1833, the Ordnance Survey map of Monmouthshire shows Cwmbran as a farm situated in the area now known as Upper Cwmbran, in the valley named Cwm Brân. Cwmbran now covers about and has a population of around 50,000.
Following some investigation by local residents Richard Davies and Mike Price, the Ancient Cwmbran & The Cistercian project was designed and created by Richard Davies and Torfaens Heritage Officer Claire Dovey-Evans. A £48,000 grant has been provided by the Heritage Lottery Fund and Torfaen Borough Council to explore some previously unrecorded sites of interest in Fairwater, Greenmeadow and Thornhill areas of Cwmbran. In a national Heritage Lottery Fund publication the project was described as exemplified community project.
The Cistercian Way also passes through Llantarnam, Old Cwmbran, Greenmeadow and Thornhill before reaching the ancient chapel of Llanderfel on Mynydd Maen, and then onwards to Twmbarlwm.
In the 19th and 20th centuries, Cwmbran was the site of heavy industrial development. Coal and iron ore were extracted on Mynydd Maen, and moved by inclined planes and tramways into the Eastern Valley for use in factories such as the Patent Nut and Bolt Company (which became Guest Keen and Nettlefolds in 1900), various tin plate works and brickworks. This industry drove the creation of the Monmouthshire Canal, the Newport and Pontypool Railway and the Pontypool, Caerleon and Newport Railway. Very little of this industrial heritage remains today, though many of today's light industrial or retail estates were created on the sites.
Following the New Towns Act 1946, ministries and county councils were asked to nominate sites for housing. For Wales, the Ministry of Housing and Local Government proposed Church Village and Cwmbran. The Church Village proposal was vetoed by the Ministry of Power as new housing there would have interfered with plans for the expansion of coal mining in the area; however, Cwmbran was passed in 1949.
Cwmbran was a civil parish and, from 1974, a community in its own right, one of only five in the new district of Torfaen. In 1985, the Cwmbran community was abolished, replaced by Cwmbran Central, Fairwater, Llantarnam, Pontnewydd and Upper Cwmbran.
Safran Seats Great Britain (formerly Zodiac Aerospace) is the current owner of a factory in Cwmbran which employs 1000 people for manufacturing aircraft seats.
SME-businesses include the Cwmbran Brewery in Upper Cwmbran, which opened in 1996 as Cottage Spring Brewery.
‘Crownbridge Special School’ is located in Cwmbran. Age range - 2–19 years old.
Further education, vocational training and some higher education is provided at Torfaen Learning Zone of Coleg Gwent in Cwmbran centre.
Athletes who trained there regularly under Malcolm include former World 110m Hurdle Champion and World Record Holder, Colin Jackson; Commonwealth 110m Hurdle medallist, Paul Gray; and Nigel Walker who had two sporting careers, first as an Olympic hurdler and then later as a Welsh rugby union international player.
The 1999 World Indoor 400m Champion Jamie Baulch also used the stadium as a regular training track under a different coach. The stadium is also the home of Gwent Hockey Club (men's and ladies).
The town has three athletics clubs: Cwmbran Harriers, Cwmbranharriers.co.uk, Fairwater Runners and Griffithstown Harriers.
Although many more of the town's residents support the rugby teams of the older, adjacent town of Pontypool, the city of Newport and the Newport Gwent Dragons regional team.
A number of online and amateur radio stations operate in Cwmbran. Vitalize Radio operates as the community radio station for Torfaen, originally established in 2014 as Torfonix. There are also the Cwmbran and District Amateur Radio Society, and Able Radio, who support adults with autism and learning disabilities.
Until then, Cwmbran had had no train service for 24 years. Historically Cwmbran was served by two lines and several local stations. The first line was built by the Monmouthshire Railway and Canal Company and opened in 1852. Much of its route is now under Cwmbran Drive, the A4051. The line that is still in use was opened by the Pontypool, Caerleon and Newport Railway in 1874.
Newport Bus operate their 29 & 29A Services from Newport bus station at Friars Walk shopping centre to Cwmbran bus station via Caerleon, Ponthir, Llanfrecha and The Grange University Hospital, With a frequency of 1 bus per hour on both services which in turn has a 30 minute frequency between both services. Stagecoach South Wales operate the majority of services at Cwmbran, including routes from the valleys including Blaenavon, Abergavenny, Pontypool, Blackwood, Varteg, and Hereford, travelling through to the South to Cardiff and Newport.
In early 2019, Stagecoach updated their fleet when they introduced newer model Gold Optare Solo buses for routes 1, 2, 5b/c, 6, 7 and 24. The X24 route to Newport Friars Walk and Blaenavon was upgraded to Stagecoach Gold in 2014. However this has come to an end with the new 'Stagecoach Corporate' livery taking over as the standard livery for Stagecoach South Wales.
Stagecoach also operates routes 11 to Kemys Fawr & 21 to Blackwood (due to be extended to The Grange University Hospital)
Phil Anslow Coaches are a local coach company who also run services in the town. They operate the 63 service to Chepstow, the 24X route to Newport Friars Walk, the 6 service to Ty-Canol & Fairwater, the A3 service to Abergavenny via Pontypool, the 62 service to Coleg Gwent via Pontypool, and the 68 service to Usk College.
|
|
