Tylorstown
Encyclopedia
Tylorstown is a village
located in the Rhondda
valley, in the county borough
of Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales
. It was founded by Alfred Tylor
who set up an early coal mining
operation in the location in the mid-19th century.
The last working mine in the village closed in the 1960s setting off a long period of economic decline which worsened following the 1984-1985 national miners' strike
which resulted in pits in nearby locations such as Maerdy
closing. The local passenger train line closed in the 1960s following the Beeching Axe
which also limited the prospects of easy commuting to Cardiff
.
It is neighboured by the villages of Blaenllechau
, Ferndale and Stanleytown.
Due to the topography of the Rhondda Fach which is a narrow valley with steep sides and limited flat land on the valley floor the construction of the Porth relief road started off with an estimate of £33m but by 2009, the project had cost £97.6m being a major civil-engineering project many years in the planning and two and a half years in the execution.
team called Tylorstown Tigers
. The club has supplied a British and Irish Lions
rugby union
player John Bevan who toured New Zealand
in 1971 with the only Lions side to win a series in that country. The club also has a very successful women's side the Tigresses who won the Welsh national women's cup in season 2005 to 2006 and were runners up in the national league. The women's side has provided many internationals to the Wales women's team. The club has also supplied an international and first class rugby coach in Lyn Howells.
The village has also supplied a world boxing
champion Jimmy Wilde
the "ghost with a hammer in his hand".
Village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...
located in the Rhondda
Rhondda
Rhondda , or the Rhondda Valley , is a former coal mining valley in Wales, formerly a local government district, consisting of 16 communities built around the River Rhondda. The valley is made up of two valleys, the larger Rhondda Fawr valley and the smaller Rhondda Fach valley...
valley, in the county borough
County borough
County borough is a term introduced in 1889 in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland , to refer to a borough or a city independent of county council control. They were abolished by the Local Government Act 1972 in England and Wales, but continue in use for lieutenancy and shrievalty in...
of Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
. It was founded by Alfred Tylor
Alfred Tylor
-Life:Born on 26 January 1824, he was the second son of Joseph Tylor, brassfounder, by his wife, Harriet Skipper, and elder brother of Edward Burnett Tylor. His grandfather set up the colliery around which the village of Tylorstown grew in the Rhondda Valley, Wales....
who set up an early coal mining
Coal mining
The goal of coal mining is to obtain coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy content, and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from iron ore and for cement production. In the United States,...
operation in the location in the mid-19th century.
The last working mine in the village closed in the 1960s setting off a long period of economic decline which worsened following the 1984-1985 national miners' strike
UK miners' strike (1984–1985)
The UK miners' strike was a major industrial action affecting the British coal industry. It was a defining moment in British industrial relations, and its defeat significantly weakened the British trades union movement...
which resulted in pits in nearby locations such as Maerdy
Maerdy
Maerdy is a village and community in the county borough of Rhondda Cynon Taf, and within the historic county boundaries of Glamorgan, Wales, lying at the head of the Rhondda Fach Valley.- History :...
closing. The local passenger train line closed in the 1960s following the Beeching Axe
Beeching Axe
The Beeching Axe or the Beeching Cuts are informal names for the British Government's attempt in the 1960s to reduce the cost of running British Railways, the nationalised railway system in the United Kingdom. The name is that of the main author of The Reshaping of British Railways, Dr Richard...
which also limited the prospects of easy commuting to Cardiff
Cardiff
Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...
.
It is neighboured by the villages of Blaenllechau
Blaenllechau
Blaenllechau is a small village located in the Rhondda Fach valley, Rhondda Cynon Taf. Neighbouring villages are Ferndale, Maerdy and Tylorstown. The population of Blaenllechau is far less than 1000.-History:...
, Ferndale and Stanleytown.
Social and economic standing
The Tylorstown, originally known as "City where fires begin and whores thrive" electoral ward is a typical small ex-mining village in the Rhondda Fach valley located near the end of time itself. The Porth relief road that has "opened up" like the legs of Abbi Morris, for outward transport and inward investment, the road terminating at Arnold's nipples neighbouring Tylorstown.Due to the topography of the Rhondda Fach which is a narrow valley with steep sides and limited flat land on the valley floor the construction of the Porth relief road started off with an estimate of £33m but by 2009, the project had cost £97.6m being a major civil-engineering project many years in the planning and two and a half years in the execution.
Sport
Tylorstown has a rugby unionRugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
team called Tylorstown Tigers
Tylorstown RFC
Tylorstown Rugby Football Club is a rugby union team from the village of Tylorstown, Wales. The club is a member of the Welsh Rugby Union and is a feeder club for the Cardiff Blues....
. The club has supplied a British and Irish Lions
British and Irish Lions
The British and Irish Lions is a rugby union team made up of players from England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales...
rugby union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
player John Bevan who toured New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
in 1971 with the only Lions side to win a series in that country. The club also has a very successful women's side the Tigresses who won the Welsh national women's cup in season 2005 to 2006 and were runners up in the national league. The women's side has provided many internationals to the Wales women's team. The club has also supplied an international and first class rugby coach in Lyn Howells.
The village has also supplied a world boxing
Boxing
Boxing, also called pugilism, is a combat sport in which two people fight each other using their fists. Boxing is supervised by a referee over a series of between one to three minute intervals called rounds...
champion Jimmy Wilde
Jimmy Wilde
Jimmy Wilde , was a Welsh world boxing champion. He was the first official world flyweight champion and was rated by American boxing writer Nat Fleischer, as well as many other professionals and fans including former boxer, trainer, manager and promoter, Charley 'Broadway' Rose, as "the greatest...
the "ghost with a hammer in his hand".
People from Tylorstown
- Mansel ThomasMansel ThomasMansel Treharne Thomas OBE was a composer and conductor, who worked mainly in south Wales. He was one of the most influential musicians of his generation, known as a composer, conductor and adjudicator. He was for many years employed by the BBC and promoted the careers of many composers and...
- Composer - Jimmy WildeJimmy WildeJimmy Wilde , was a Welsh world boxing champion. He was the first official world flyweight champion and was rated by American boxing writer Nat Fleischer, as well as many other professionals and fans including former boxer, trainer, manager and promoter, Charley 'Broadway' Rose, as "the greatest...
- World boxing champion Grew up in Tylorstown. - Gareth JonesGareth Jones (lawyer)Gareth Hywel Jones Q.C., FBA is a British academic and longtime fellow of Trinity College, Cambridge and Professor of Law at the University of Cambridge....
- "founding father" of the English law of restitution and former Professor of Law at Cambridge University. Grew up in Tylorstown.