Cwmbach like most of the Cynon Valley was
a quiet isolated area before the coming of industry. Its
rural calm was first disturbed by the building of the Aberdare
canal , which opened in May 1812, with traffic passing
through the area now known as Cwmbach in order to reach
the canal head further to the north or join with the Glamorganshire
canal to the south. Originally opened for trade with the
iron industry of the Aberdare region, the canal found itself
ideally situated when in 1837 the first export steam coal
pit was sunk in Cwmbach.
The map above clearly shows the close connection between
the canal, railways and collieries
The following 'boom' in the steam coal trade
led to a rapid development of colliery workings in Cwmbach
and an increase in its importance to the canal as evidenced
by the existence of a small dock in Cwmbach. Indeed so great
was the volume of coal being produced in the valley that
the canal continued to operate until the early part of the
19th century despite intense competition from both the Taff
Vale (1848) and Great Western (1864) railways.
The opening up of Cwmbach as a thriving coal mining
area led to the development of the modern town we know
today. With houses being built to accommodate the large
numbers of people arriving to work in the collieries. By
1861 a number of streets had already been built, these
included Timothy Row, Scales Row, Ynyscynon Street and
Little Row. Commercial properties were also quickly established
in the village and amongst the usual grocers, shoemakers
and drapers was the first Co-operative store to open in
Wales. Public houses were opened, some of the earliest
being the Colliers Arms (1841), the Scales Arms (1845)
and the Crown Inn (1851).
Left: The Scales Arms
Religious buildings opened, with the Baptists opening
a chapel in 1841, the independents opening a small chapel
known as Capel Bricks in 1846 and the Calvinistic Methodists
opening a chapel at Tir Bach in 1852. The Established Church
did not immediately find a base within the village and
it was not until 1882 that St. Mary Magdalene's Church
was opened. Other notable buildings opened during this
period of growth include the Cwmbach Public Workmen's Hall
built in 1911 and Cwmbach Mixed School built around 1868.
Right: St Mary Magdalene's Church
Cwmbach Co-operative Society - The first in
Wales
The pioneers of the Co-operative movement
in Wales came from Cwmbach. They were John Rees, a collier
who became the first manager of the Society, and David Thomas,
a mechanic at the Lletty Shenkin colliery. Their interest
in the movement had been aroused by a series of letters printed
in the columns of Reynold's Newspaper dealing with the history
of the Rochdale Pioneers. These articles in connection with
the events surrounding the disastrous strike of 1857, during
which the colliery owners had closed the company provision
shops, encouraged them to consider establishing a Co-operative
Society in Cwmbach. They took the bold step of convening
a public meeting of the residents of Cwmbach to discuss the
question. The meeting was held on October 9th, 1859 at the
Mount Pleasant Inn, during which it was resolved to make
a start and fifty-six members joined that night.
The meeting was held on October 9th, 1859 at the Mount
Pleasant Inn, during which it was resolved to make a start
and fifty-six members joined that night. Suitable premises
close to the Aberdare
Canal were found at cottages known as Capel Bricks
and their first store was opened on the evening of March
8th, 1860. This was the first Co-operative store to be
opened in Wales, some fifteen years after those in England.
The Society at this time was known as Messrs. D. Thomas
and Co. Limited in honour of their founder member. Later
it was to adopt the more correct title of Cwmbach Industrial
Co-operative Society Limited. The original store was a
great success and by the end of the first year of trading,
membership had risen to 174. Other branches were later
opened at Aberaman in 1874, Cwmaman in 1883, and Mountain
Ash in 1892. In 1900 the original establishment was renovated
and enlarged in order to be equal in every respect to its
other branches.
Left: The Co-op in the early part of the
20th century
During the early part of the 20th century however the
society began to lose trade, due mainly to stiff competition
from the Aberdare Society, who regularly offered a higher
dividend than the Cwmbach Society, and the effects of industrial
action in the coal industry. In 1927 the Society entered
a new chapter in its history when it merged with the Aberdare
Co-operative Society to form the Aberdare and District
Co-operative Society Limited'. The original store continued
to sell goods for a number of years following this merger
but was demolished in March 1977 to make way for a new
housing venture.
Right: The Co-op in Bridge Street during
demolition
Cwmbach Male Voice Choir
The Cwmbach Male Choir was formed in 1921. Local history
being that they were formed at a local cricket match held
in June 1921. A number of the crowd watching the game became
uninterested in the play and began to sing hymns and part
songs. This led to the suggestion that a Male Voice Choir
be formed. From this a meeting was held at the Cwmbach Hall
and Institute and the Cwmbach Male Voice Choir became a reality.
The choir quickly established themselves and built up an
enviable record of success in competitions and concert performance.
Amongst their many notable successes are many first prizes
at local Eisteddfodau, a first prize at the National Eisteddfod
in Port Talbot (1966) and again at Barry (1968). In 1962
they became the first choir to achieve the unique double
of winning the first prize in the Chief and Second Male Voice
Competitions at the Miners Eisteddfod at Porthcawl.
Over the years the choir has become much travelled having
appeared at the Royal Festival Hall, The Royal Albert Hall,
The Barbican, St David's Hall and numerous other venues throughout
the country. Their first international trip was in 1961 when
they travelled to Hungry to perform at the Bela Bartok Festival,
becoming the first Welsh Choir to sing behind the 'Iron Curtain'.
Since then they have visited and performed in France, Belgium,
Holland, Germany, Ireland, Spain, Canada and South Africa.
From the late 1950,s onwards the Choir has been involved in a variety of broadcast
programs both on radio and television, and have produced a number of recordings
on record, tape and CD, the first being a record produced in 1960 called 'Male
Voice Favourites'. They were also the first choir to sing at the famous Arms
Park prior to an international rugby match.
The choir continues to thrive today and still upholds the high standards set
by their founder members over 80 years ago.
Cwmbach Coal Industry
Cwmbach can be said to hold a special place
in the history of the steam coal trade in the Cynon Valley
for it was here that the first deep pit was sunk for the
sale of coal. The pioneer of this trade was one Thomas Wayne,
the son of Mathew Wayne, ironmaster and coalmaster of Merthyr.
His interest in the coal trade was aroused by the success
of Lucy Thomas of Waun-Wyllt in Merthyr, who in 1830 made
an agreement with George Insole to sell coal in the London
area. The coal was soon selling so well that in a few months
Mrs. Thomas found that she could sell all her coal at the
mine-head for the fabulous price of 4s. 0d. a ton.
Thomas Wayne persuaded his father and elder brother
that an attempt should be made to reach the famous four-foot
seam of steam coal. They felt that this seam would be found
in Cwmbach and made an agreement with the owners of the
Abernant-y-Groes Estate to sink a pit and work any coal
found on the estate. Sinking of the Abernant-y-Groes colliery
(later known as Cwmbach Colliery) began in June 1837 and
by December of that year they had sunk the shaft 60 feet
and reached the steam coal they were seeking.
Left: Abernant-y-Groes Pit is shown on
this 1868 OS map marked as Cwmbach Pit by which name it
was then known.
The people involved with the venture immediately formed
the Wayne's Merthyr-Aberdare Steam Coal Company and by
the end of December coal from the colliery was being exhibited
in London. The partners in the company were Matthew Wayne,
Thomas Wayne, W.W. Wayne, William Thomas David, Gwladys
David and William Morgan. The company was to prove a huge
success and in 1840 sent over 40,000 tons of coal down
the Aberdare canal. The colliery was abandoned in 1896.
Right: Abernant No. 9 Colliery owned by
Richard Fothergill
Left: Lletty Shenkin Colliery which operated
until late in the Twentieth Century
The success of the Abernant-y-Groes colliery
and the vast profits made soon attracted other enterprising
industrialists into the area with Abernant-y-Groes colliery
soon being followed by a number of others including:
