Pontrhydyfen
Pontrhydyfen is a small village in the Afan Valley, in Neath Port Talbot county borough in Wales. The village sits at the confluence of the River Afan and the smaller Afon Pelenna, 1.8 miles north of the larger village of Cwmavon and not far from the towns of Port Talbot and Neath. The views from the village are dominated by the hills of Foel Fynyddau to the West, Moel y Fen to the South East and Mynydd Pen-rhys to the North. This former coal mining community is distinguished by two large 19th-century bridges that span the valley: a railway viaduct and a former aqueduct, known in the Welsh language as Y Bont Fawr.
Things to do / Amenities
- Afan Forest Park
- Mountain Biking. Home to the nearby Afan Forest Park , the Valley offers the best places for mountain biking in South Wales and is consistently ranked highly within the best in the UK.
- Walking
- *Penrhys Trail
- Pontrhydyfen Community Centre
- Pontrhydyfen RFC
History
- The Red Bridge / Viaduct. The nine arch Pontrhydyfen viaduct built in 1898 was the last railway bridge built in the valley.
- The Bont Fawr Aqueduct. Built by John Reynolds and completed in 1827, the four arch aqueduct is 153 yards long and over 75 feet high. A watercourse some two miles long carried water from the Afan, it supplied the water which powered the giant waterwheels of the Oakwood / Pontrhydyfen Ironworks. Its use in supplying the waterwheels was relatively short lived and there is no record it being used for this purpose following the acquisition of the site by Governor and Company of Copper Miners in 1841. The Bont Fawr Aqueduct is 'one of the few surviving structures relating to the use of water power in the iron industry in the region' and is a Grade II* listed building. It remains in use today as a bridge for pedestrians and cyclists, the canal which it once carried having been filled in.
- Mining. George Yates' Map of the County Glamorgan shows Coal Pits just south of Oakwood on the West slopes of Moel y Fen and Mynydd Bychan by 1799. By 1875 maps show a range of collieries including: Craig, Graiglyn & Wernavon on the South East slopes of Foel Fynddau each serviced by tramways, and Craig-y-fedw on the East slope of Mynydd Hawdref and then by 1914 maps show Oakwood Colliery just to the South East of Rhyslyn Carpark.
- Quarries. By 1897 maps show evidence of 3 quarries on Moel y Fen, 1 on Mynydd Hawdref, 2 on East slopes of Foel Fynyddau, 2 on the South slopes of Mynydd Pen-Rhys and 1 in the vicinity of Penhydd-fach.
Famous people
Pontrhydyfen was the birthplace of actor Richard Burton, Broadway theatre and musical star Ivor Emmanuel who was also in Zulu, international opera singer Rebecca Evans, Welsh singer and songwriter Geraint Griffiths, and actor Mark Frankel. The Richard Burton Appreciation Society is based in the village.Points of Interest
The hills surrounding the village are home to a number of Mobile Phone Masts that are prominent markers on the horizon:| Site | Grid | Operator Ref | Mast Height | Type | Band |
| Cwmavon UHF Tranmitter - Moel y Fen | SS 79810 93600 | WGL7010 | 30m | GSM | 1800 MHz |
| Airwave Site - Foel Fynyddau | SS 78157 93690 | SWA096 | 29.5m | TETRA | 400 MHz |
| SIMOCO Transmitting Station - Foel Fynyddau | SS 78240 93600 | WGL0028 | 41m | GSM | 1800 MHz |
| SIMOCO Transmitting Station - Foel Fynyddau | SS 78240 93600 | WGL0028 | 41m | UMTS | 2100 MHz |