Bwlchgwyn Home Page
| Bwlchgwyn | Christ Church | War Memorial | Public Houses |
| Gwenda's Book | Ffynnon-y-Cwrw | Chapels | School |
| This section of the website is
about Bwlchgwyn as it used to be, generally speaking, before 1960 or, more
accurately, before modern building of houses began in the village in any
great quantity.
The various pages recall a village of extended families, small businesses, decent houses and poor cottages; open vistas unblemished by overgrown hedgerows, long walks across the fields and into Nant-y-Ffrith; quarry workers, coal and lead miners, schools, pubs and beerhouses, and chapels and church on Sundays. |
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Christ Church, BwlchgwynA lovely little Church in the heart of the village
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The War MemorialWho were the men from the village who died in the two world wars? |
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Public Houses and Beer HousesOnly one of the old Inns is still open for business, but where did the miners and quarrymen quench their thirsts? |
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I Remember...My Life in Bwlchgwyn1939 - 1944, by Gwenda Lewis A young girl's memories of being evacuated from London to stay with her relatives in Bwlchgwyn Read Extracts from Gwenda's Book HereGwenda now has some more copies available, email me and I'll pass on all enquiries. |
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Ffynnon-y-CwrwOnce part of iron-mad Wilkinson's estate, this was once an almost self-contained collection of farm and lead miners'/colliers' cottages at the east of the village |
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The Old Chapels of BwlchgwynThere were four chapels in Bwlchgwyn: Nebo, Salem, Bethesda and Peniel. |
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SchoolAlthough there had been an earlier school, this was the village school for over a hundred years. |
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Bwlchgwyn is a small village approximately 6 miles west of Wrexham and 12
miles from Chester. Bwlchgwyn is the highest village in Wales and, for those
with a geological interest, has rich mineral deposits as evidenced by the number
of quarries in the village. Evidence of Roman occupation has been found in
Nant-Y-Ffrith valley and there have been reports of a ghostly army of Roman
soldiers marching through the valley late at night.
Bwlchgwyn is an important area, geologically, with rich deposits of silica and other minerals. Most of the men in the village used to be employed in quarrying, mining or iron and steel working, Brymbo steelworks was only a short distance away. Today there are no shops in the village, but at one time there were many. On the left is a picture of our shop, Brooklyn Stores, as it was probably some time in the early sixties. I remember the shop when we first moved there, in the fashion of the times it seemed very dark with lots of wood counter and much more fresh produce than you would find in a shop today. The shop was soon modernised to include a cold counter and a freezer, the dark, heavy fittings disappeared to be replaced with modern display shelves. Outside was the petrol pump - no self service in those days - and the oil cabinet, with the paraffin tank in the garage. The shop sold everything that you could think of, from Christmas cards, candles and corn flakes, sausages, scissors and soap, bread, bandages and light bulbs to Milk Tray, marmalade and milk filters (for the farmers). But I especially remember the Christmasses. Stock was bought in, the window was dressed with a display of toys, the glass counter held those boxes of chocolates, Milk Tray, Dairy Box, Black Magic, with the pretty lids; there were sacks of nuts and displays of fruit, it was cold outside, the nights were long and dark, the shop was warmed by a large black paraffin heater and it always snowed on Boxing Day and didn't thaw for weeks. To find out more about the village, click on the links above.
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Bwlchgwyn Weather
At least 1100 feet above sea level, this village often seems to have a climate all of its own. It is only 6 miles from Wrexham through Coedpoeth to Bwlchgwyn, but it is uphill all the way.
It was not unusual for Bwlchgwyn to be cut off by snow whilst Wrexham enjoyed a beautiful spring day. Another problem, particularly in winter, is fog - or low flying cloud - as the clouds just don't seem to make it over the top of the village and just go straight through it, instead.
18 June 2005 - the hottest day of the year so far and a chance to take some new photographs. From Fronheulog Hill and the War Memorial at the hairpin bend it was possible to see a good fifty miles but the distant hills were a little hazy with the heat.