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Pontygwaith
Pontygwaith (Welsh,"Bridge to work" or "Bridge of the Ironworks") is a village in the Taff Valley, south of Merthyr Tydfil in Wales. A Sussex Ironmaster named Anthony Morley set up a small ironworks here in 1583. On 21 February 1804 Richard Trevithick ran the first ever steam locomotive along tracks, now known as the Merthyr Tramroad, carrying both iron ore and passengers, from Penydarren near Merthyr Tydfil, via Pontygwaith, south to Abercynon. There is little of the original village remaining today, which was inhabited and existed until approx 1977 as a terrace of ten houses and a farm. The site of the original village is accessible from the Taff Trail National cycle route 8. This leads down a heavily tree lined slope to the area that was the original village site. The bridge over the River Taff at Pontygwaith is a Grade II listed structure. and was featured in the ''Beauty and the Beast'' episode of the BBC's Merlin, where a girl has a picnic with a troll beneath the brid ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pontygwaith
Pontygwaith (Welsh,"Bridge to work" or "Bridge of the Ironworks") is a village in the Taff Valley, south of Merthyr Tydfil in Wales. A Sussex Ironmaster named Anthony Morley set up a small ironworks here in 1583. On 21 February 1804 Richard Trevithick ran the first ever steam locomotive along tracks, now known as the Merthyr Tramroad, carrying both iron ore and passengers, from Penydarren near Merthyr Tydfil, via Pontygwaith, south to Abercynon. There is little of the original village remaining today, which was inhabited and existed until approx 1977 as a terrace of ten houses and a farm. The site of the original village is accessible from the Taff Trail National cycle route 8. This leads down a heavily tree lined slope to the area that was the original village site. The bridge over the River Taff at Pontygwaith is a Grade II listed structure. and was featured in the ''Beauty and the Beast'' episode of the BBC's Merlin, where a girl has a picnic with a troll beneath the brid ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Taff Trail
The Taff Trail ( cy, Taith Taf) is a popular walking and cycle path that runs for between Cardiff Bay and Brecon in Wales. It is so named because it follows the course of the River Taff. Along much of its length, it follows the National Cycle Network Route 8 ( Lôn Las Cymru) that continues to Holyhead, and is substantially off-road. History The trail was launched in September 1988 by Sir Wyn Roberts, Minister of State for the Welsh Office. The project was initiated and co-ordinated by the Merthyr and Cynon Groundwork Trust, with the co-operation of the local councils through whose areas the trail passes. Financial and logistical support was given by the Welsh Development Agency and by Sustrans, a sustainable transport charity. Before the trail, there were several similar but disconnected routes in the area. Taff Ely borough council had created cycling routes within its boundaries, Cardiff city council had provided the Three Castles Cycle Route from Caerphilly into Cardiff, a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Iron Ore
Iron ores are rocks and minerals from which metallic iron can be economically extracted. The ores are usually rich in iron oxides and vary in color from dark grey, bright yellow, or deep purple to rusty red. The iron is usually found in the form of magnetite (, 72.4% Fe), hematite (, 69.9% Fe), goethite (, 62.9% Fe), limonite (, 55% Fe) or siderite (, 48.2% Fe). Ores containing very high quantities of hematite or magnetite (greater than about 60% iron) are known as "natural ore" or "direct shipping ore", meaning they can be fed directly into iron-making blast furnaces. Iron ore is the raw material used to make pig iron, which is one of the main raw materials to make steel—98% of the mined iron ore is used to make steel. In 2011 the ''Financial Times'' quoted Christopher LaFemina, mining analyst at Barclays Capital, saying that iron ore is "more integral to the global economy than any other commodity, except perhaps oil". Sources Metallic iron is virtually unknown on ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
National Cycle Route
The National Cycle Network (NCN) is the national cycling route network of the United Kingdom, which was established to encourage cycling and walking throughout Britain, as well as for the purposes of bicycle touring. It was created by the charity Sustrans who were aided by a £42.5 million National Lottery (United Kingdom), National Lottery grant. However Sustrans themselves only own around 2% of the paths on the network, these rest being made of existing public highways and rights of way, and permissive paths negotiated by Sustrans with private landowners, which Sustrans have then labelled as part of their network. In 2017, the Network was used for over 786 million cycling and walking trips, made by 4.4 million people. In 2020, around a quarter the NCN was scrapped on safety grounds, leaving of signed routes. These are made up of of traffic-free paths with the remaining on-road. It uses shared use paths, Rail trail, disused railways, minor roads, canal towpat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Merlin (TV Series)
''Merlin'' (also known as ''The Adventures of Merlin'') is a British fantasy-adventure drama television programme, loosely based on the Arthurian legends regarding the close relations of Merlin and King Arthur. Created by Julian Jones, Jake Michie, Johnny Capps and Julian Murphy for the BBC, it was broadcast for five series on BBC One between 20 September 2008 and 24 December 2012. The programme starred Colin Morgan, Bradley James, Katie McGrath, Angel Coulby, Richard Wilson, Anthony Head, and John Hurt. The programme is a reimagining of the legend, in which young warlock Merlin is sent to the kingdom of Camelot by his mother because of his "special gift". After saving Prince Arthur's life in the first episode, he becomes Arthur's manservant. Merlin soon learns that the reason for his gift is to protect Arthur, but Merlin must hide his powers because magic was banned in Camelot by Arthur's father, King Uther Pendragon, and those caught practising it are executed. Over the y ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Listed Building
In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Ireland Environment Agency in Northern Ireland. The term has also been used in the Republic of Ireland, where buildings are protected under the Planning and Development Act 2000. The statutory term in Ireland is " protected structure". A listed building may not be demolished, extended, or altered without special permission from the local planning authority, which typically consults the relevant central government agency, particularly for significant alterations to the more notable listed buildings. In England and Wales, a national amenity society must be notified of any work to a listed building which involves any element of demolition. Exemption from secular listed building control is provided for some buildings in current use for worship, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
River Taff
The River Taff ( cy, Afon Taf) is a river in Wales. It rises as two rivers in the Brecon Beacons; the Taf Fechan (''little Taff'') and the Taf Fawr (''great Taff'') before becoming one just north of Merthyr Tydfil. Its confluence with the River Severn estuary is in Cardiff. The river supports several species of migratory fish, including salmon, sewin (sea trout), and eel. Course From its confluence at Cefn-coed-y-cymmer, the river flows south, passing several towns. It picks up a few tributaries, such as the River Cynon, River Rhondda, Bargoed Taf and Nant Clydach. It flows through Pontypridd and through to Taff's Well, the site of Wales' only thermal spring. It flows underneath the M4 Motorway, before turning southeastward and flowing past the Cardiff suburbs of Radyr, Whitchurch, Llandaff, Pontcanna, the city centre and Grangetown, before emptying into Cardiff Bay, near to the mouth of the River Ely. Taf Fawr The Taf Fawr rises below the peak of Corn Du, south- ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Abercynon
Abercynon (), is both a village and a community (and electoral ward) in the Cynon Valley within the unitary authority of Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales. The community comprises the village and the districts of Carnetown and Grovers Field to the south, Navigation Park to the east, and Glancynon (or Aber-taf) to the north. The population of Abercynon was recorded as 6,428 in the 2001 Census,Davies (2008), p.4 decreasing to 6,390 at the 2011 Census, despite more than a hundred additional households built over this period (from 2,582 in 2011 to 2,694 by 2011). The electoral ward of Abercynon includes both the community of Abercynon, but also takes into account the nearby villages of Pontcynon, Ynysboeth and Tyntetown further north. Abercynon is approximately north of Cardiff and approximately from Swansea. The rivers Taff and Cynon converge at Watersmeet near Martin's Terrace. Abercynon used to have many churches, chapels and pubs. There are now only four public houses left - The Tho ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Merthyr Tramroad
The Merthyr Tramroad (sometimes referred to as the Penydarren Tramroad due to its use by Trevithick's locomotive built at that ironworks) was a long line that opened in 1802, connecting the private lines belonging to the Dowlais and Penydarren Ironworks with the Glamorganshire Canal at Abercynon, also serving the Plymouth Ironworks along the way. Famous as the line on which Richard Trevithick's experimental locomotive hauled the first train to carry a load (of 10 tons of iron). It was largely superseded when the Taff Vale Railway opened in 1841 and sections gradually went out of use over the two decades from about 1851. History The four principal ironworks at Merthyr Tydfil were Dowlais (built 1759), Plymouth (built 1763), Cyfarthfa (built 1765) and Penydarren (built 1784). Initially the output of these ironworks was carried by packhorse or on carts 25 miles to Cardiff. In 1794 Cyfarthfa works was linked to Cardiff by the Glamorganshire Canal, the other three ironworks were ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Welsh Language
Welsh ( or ) is a Celtic language family, Celtic language of the Brittonic languages, Brittonic subgroup that is native to the Welsh people. Welsh is spoken natively in Wales, by some in England, and in Y Wladfa (the Welsh colony in Chubut Province, Argentina). Historically, it has also been known in English as "British", "Cambrian", "Cambric" and "Cymric". The Welsh Language (Wales) Measure 2011 gave the Welsh language official status in Wales. Both the Welsh and English languages are ''de jure'' official languages of the Welsh Parliament, the Senedd. According to the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 census, the Welsh-speaking population of Wales aged three or older was 17.8% (538,300 people) and nearly three quarters of the population in Wales said they had no Welsh language skills. Other estimates suggest that 29.7% (899,500) of people aged three or older in Wales could speak Welsh in June 2022. Almost half of all Welsh speakers consider themselves fluent Welsh speakers ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Steam Locomotive
A steam locomotive is a locomotive that provides the force to move itself and other vehicles by means of the expansion of steam. It is fuelled by burning combustible material (usually coal, oil or, rarely, wood) to heat water in the locomotive's boiler to the point where it becomes gaseous and its volume increases 1,700 times. Functionally, it is a steam engine on wheels. In most locomotives, the steam is admitted alternately to each end of its cylinders, in which pistons are mechanically connected to the locomotive's main wheels. Fuel and water supplies are usually carried with the locomotive, either on the locomotive itself or in a tender coupled to it. Variations in this general design include electrically-powered boilers, turbines in place of pistons, and using steam generated externally. Steam locomotives were first developed in the United Kingdom during the early 19th century and used for railway transport until the middle of the 20th century. Richard Trevithick ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Richard Trevithick
Richard Trevithick (13 April 1771 – 22 April 1833) was a British inventor and mining engineer. The son of a mining captain, and born in the mining heartland of Cornwall, Trevithick was immersed in mining and engineering from an early age. He was an early pioneer of steam-powered road and rail transport, and his most significant contributions were the development of the first high-pressure steam engine and the first working railway steam locomotive. The world's first locomotive-hauled railway journey took place on 21 February 1804, when Trevithick's unnamed steam locomotive hauled a train along the tramway of the Penydarren Ironworks, in Merthyr Tydfil, Wales. Turning his interests abroad Trevithick also worked as a mining consultant in Peru and later explored parts of Costa Rica. Throughout his professional career he went through many ups and downs and at one point faced financial ruin, also suffering from the strong rivalry of many mining and steam engineers of the day. Durin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
