DIRECfORY.] SOUTH !WALES. PONTYPRIDD. 60j Evans Re~. David Jenkyn {vicar), F_~RM:ER~. John William, Trywern Pontvane house Davies William & J ames, Jryrget Morris Sarah (Mrs.), Tyconol COMlIE:aCIAL. Harries Thomas, Nash Phillips William, Pontpridd ~Iorris Sarah (Mrs.), shopkpr.Tyconol John Henry, Brendergart • PON1'YPRIDD, I~CLUDI~G GLYN-TAFF, CILFYNYDD, COEDPENMAENf GRAIG. TREFORE::-lT, TREHAFOD, RHYDFELEN, GYFEILLON, HOPKINSTOWN, UPpER BOAT, NORTON BRIDGE AND PWLLGAUN. PO~TYPRIDD, formerly named Kewbridge, is a market ing 8 bells: there a·re 600 sittin~s. The register dates tQwn, head of a union and county oourt district and from the year 18841 'I'he living is a perpetual curacy, b-ankruptcy di'strict, on the river 'raff, at it,s junction yearly value £200, with reSlidence, in the gift of the with the Rhondda, formerly in the parishes of Eglwy- Bishop of Llandaff, and held since 1888 by Ithe ReV'. silan, Llanwonno, Llantwit Vardre, Llantrisant and Henry John Williams RA. of St. David's College, Lam­ Llanfahon, but in 1894 made into a civil parish petelr and surrogate. by the Cl Local Government Act. 1894," and is St. Catherine's parish room, built in 1891, at e cost in the Eastern division. of the county of Glam- f £ 00 organ, hundred I{)f Calerphilly, CaelI'phI'Uy L ower 0 1,5 . petty sessional diV'ision, Llandaff Upper rural deanery Sit. Mark, Pomy,pridd, built in .1891, at 8. cost of £810. (northern division), archdeaconry 'lmd diocese of Llan- The English Congregational church was built in 1887 daff, 1]2 milels from London, 12 from Cardiff, 12! from from plans by Me.s'srs. Sulman and Hennings, archit,ects, :.\Ierthyr, II! from Aberdare, 7 from Caerphilly snd 5 of Furnival'ts Inn, London. from Llantrissant: it is a stati'On on the Taff Vale rail- Oa·rmel English ;Daptist chapel, in Mill street, built way from iMerthyr to Cardiff, and a junction of the in 1883, ba·s 750 sittings. Temple Baptist chapel, in .Aberoare and Vale of Nooth railway, and of the P{mty- Llantris.mnt road, wns built in 1891. The Tabernacle pridd and Cowbridge line, which joins the Grest WeIsh Baptist chapel, in Bridge Sit,reet, was built in Westtern :system at Llan'triss'llnt; the Pontypridd, Caer- 1861; and there is a Welsh Baptist chapel at Hl()plcins­ philly and Newport (Mon.) liine and the Rhondda and rown. The Welsh Congregational chapel, in Zion street, Swansea Bay railway give tibie ,shortest route- to Swansea ~s built in 1870, and ,there is another in Gra.ig, and an from Newport, via Pon'tyopmdd: these, together with the English Omgrege.Honal chapel in Gelliwa.stad road, with Glamrorgall'shire Canal, oonvey the pTOduce of the tQwn 616 sittings. The Chri~tian Bre'tlhren have a chapel in and neighbourhood to Cardiff and els1ewhere. Zoar street, built in 1856. The Welsh Calvinistic l\Ietho- The town takes its name from the celebrated bridge, dist chapel in Taft street, was built in 1860, and that called p.ont-y-pridd, consisting of a single areh, span- in Rickard street, in 1850. The English Calvinistic Metho­ ning the Taff, erected A.D. 1750, by Willriam Edwaros, a dist chapel in Gelliwast!ld road, built in 1883, affords self-taught mason and a native of Glamorgan, who, after 80') .S'ittings. There i5 an English Wesleyan chapel in having twice failed in his projeot, .succeeded at length Gelhwastad road, built in 1848 and enlarged in 1863, in completing the existing structure: it is a perfect seats 4°0. ., segment of a circle, the chQrd o-f which is one hundired I .The cemetery, at Glyn Taff,. IS 12 acres m extent, and forty feet and the height alt low water thirty-six WIth one mortuary.chapel, and IS un~er' the control of feet: each abutment i,s pierced' W1irth three circular t?e. Glyn Taft BurIal Board, formed In 1871 and con- tunnels, which diminisne's the weight of that part of slStmg of 9 members. .. the bridge, and S'O' prevenbs the light crown ,from being The old .Town Hall, bmlt m 188S, at B cost of about sprung, a device to which he owed his ul:bimate success. £1,600, .wIlI seat 700 persons. The new Town Hall There is an extraordinary echo connected with the erected m 1890 over the market, at a cost of about bridge which repeats the sound no lesls than eight or £5,000, ~l .seat 1,700 :persons, exclus~ve of stage; it nine times. The steepnes,s of the bridge being ulti- h.a.s balcomes o~ .three S'ldes, three .mam entyances, be­ mately found v.ery inconvenient for carriage traffic, a SIdes three additional me~ns of. eXIt, well lighted and three-arched bridge was erected close to it by public fit~d throughout; the mam hall IS 66 by 53 feet, and the subscription in 1857. stage 53 by 28 feet, and there are two large ante-rooms The town wa,s f(}rmerly goveTned by a Local Board; for ladies, an~ one f(}r gentlemen, dressing roomS', band the district was constituted by 36 and 37 Vict. cap. room, lavatoI"les &c. cx!. and extended by 42 and 43 Viol:. C'<Ip. civ., so as to The Court House, a plain building of stone, was include parts of Llantrissanlt, Llanwonno, Llantwit Vardre erected at a cost of £4,000. and Eglwysihm. An Urban District Oouncil was formed The Public Free Library, Gelliwastad grove, built in under the "Local Government Act of 1894," and the 1890, at a cost of £2,000, consists of a spaciousl news town divided into six wards. room, magazine and reference rooms, and ladies' room; The t<lwn is supplied with water by the Pontypridd the lending library comprises about 4,000 volumes. The Water W(}rks Company, established in 1864; the supply upper portion of the building is set apart for a museum: is obtained at the source of the Rhondda F'<1ch river, the library is supported by a penny rate. above Mardy, about 12 miles from POll'typridd; there A cattle and general produce market is held on Wednes­ is a reservoir at l\ofurdy holding 25,000,000 gallons, and day, and is well attended. A general produce fair is a new res,ervQir is now (1895) in couJ'lse of constructrion. also held on Saturday, and is generally well attended. The Pontypridd Gas Lighlt and Coke Company was A pleasure fair is held on ~ster Ml()nday. incorporated and the wQrks erected in 1850; they fire The chief manufacturing- establishments in the neigh­ now under t~e <;OI1ItrQI ?f -the Urban District Oouncil.. bourhood are the Newbridge. works of Messrs. Brown, The eccleslasbcal pansh IQf Glyn Taff was formed m Lennox and Co. anchor chain and cable manufacturers; 1848 from the civil parishes of Eglwysilan, Llantwit Treforest Tinplate Wo;ks of Messrs, George R Ham­ yardre and UanW'Onn'O; the ch1!rch of .St: ~ary, erect~d mond and 00.; Melin Gorwg Iron, Brass and Engineer­ 111 1841, at 3 cost of £2,000, }S a bUlldmg of stone III ing Co. Limited, iron and brass founders; there are the Norman style, cons!i.s,ung of c'hancel, nave, two also several collieries in the neighbourhood, which give vestries and a western tower containing one bell: there employment to the greater number of the inhabitants. are sittings for 1,000 persons. The registter d'ates from The Fire Brigade was established in 1890 and has a the year 1834. The living is a r,eetory, net yearly V'alue station in Penure road, there is electric communicathn £300, with residence, in the gift of the Bishop of Llan- from the police station to the firemen's houses. daff, and held since 1878 by the Rev. Samuel RowLand- On an eminence near the town is the far-famed Logan, Jones, of Queen'lIl College, Birmingham, and surrogate. or rocking stone, which, although weighing about 9~ St. Catherine's, Pontyporidd, iog an ecclesiastiC'<lI parish, tons, can be easily rocked by pressure on the south formed from Glyn-Taff September 16, 1884; the church, !ide; it is surrounded by Druidical remains. The Qfi the western Slide of the town, erected 1867-8, on a Ffynon-Gelly-Dawel, or Eye Well, at a short distance site gQven by the Thomo·s' family, of Ystood-Myooch, from the town, on the Berw road, is said to possess at a cost of £7,000, ~s an edifice of native stQne with medicinal properties. Fairfield is the residence of Theo­ Bath stone dressings, in the Early Decomted style, philus Richards Hamlen-Williams J.P. and Duffrvn consisting of chancel, nave, aisles (the nrorth p.aving been Ffrwd of Evan IvoI' WilIiams esq. • lldded in 1885), south porch, ve&try, organ chamber The population of the ecclesiastical parish of St. and a tower with spire, 162 feet in height, end contain- Catherine in 18g1. was 12,)095~ and .of the 1'0ntypridd.