Gresford (; cy, Gresffordd ) is a village and

community A community is a social unit (a group of living things) with commonality such as place, norms, religion, values, customs, or identity. Communities may share a sense of place situated in a given geographical area (e.g. a country, village, tow ...

Wrexham County Borough Wrexham County Borough ( cy, Bwrdeistref Sirol Wrecsam) is a county borough, with city status, in the north-east of Wales. It borders England to the east and south-east, Powys to the south-west, Denbighshire to the west and Flintshire to the nort ...

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

. According to the 2001 Census, the population of the community, which also includes the village of

Marford Marford is a village in Wrexham County Borough, Wales, near the Wales-England border. Marford covers some , where the hills of north-east Wales meet the Cheshire Plain. Distant landmarks that can be seen clearly from Marford include Eaton Hall ...

, was 5,334, reducing to 5,010 at the 2011 census. The Grade I listed All Saints' Church, Gresford has been described as the finest parish church in Wales, and has the most surviving medieval stained glass of any Welsh church. Its bells are one of the traditional

Seven Wonders of Wales The Seven Wonders of Wales ( cy, Saith Rhyfeddod Cymru) is a traditional list of notable landmarks in north Wales, commemorated in an anonymously written rhyme: The rhyme is usually supposed to have been written sometime in the late 18th or ear ...

. The former

Gresford Colliery Gresford Colliery was a coal mine located a mile from the North Wales village of Gresford, near Wrexham. History Sinking The North Wales Coalfield, of which Gresford was part, runs from Point of Ayr, on the Flintshire coast to the Shropshire b ...

was the site of the

Gresford disaster The Gresford disaster occurred on 22 September 1934 at Gresford Colliery, near Wrexham, Denbighshire, when an explosion and underground fire killed 266 men. Gresford is one of Britain's worst coal mining disasters: a controversial inquiry into ...

, one of Britain's worst coal mining disasters, when 266 men died in an underground explosion on 22 September 1934.

History

Located close to the

England–Wales border The England–Wales border ( cy, Y ffin rhwng Cymru a Lloegr; shortened: Ffin Cymru a Lloegr), sometimes referred to as the Wales–England border or the Anglo-Welsh border, runs for from the Dee estuary, in the north, to the Severn estuary i ...

with

Cheshire Cheshire ( ) is a ceremonial and historic county in North West England, bordered by Wales to the west, Merseyside and Greater Manchester to the north, Derbyshire to the east, and Staffordshire and Shropshire to the south. Cheshire's county t ...

, the settlement existed at the time of the compilation of the

Domesday book Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manusc ...

, when it was recorded as "Gretford"Palmer, A. N. ''A History of Ancient Tenures of Land in North Wales and the Marches'', 1910, p.238 within the Cheshire Hundred of Duddestan; it had a church, though perhaps not on the present site. The name, derived probably from

Old English Old English (, ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the early Middle Ages. It was brought to Great Britain by Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain, Anglo ...

''græs'' and ''ford'' ("grassy ford"),Mills ,''A Dictionary of British Place-Names'', 2011, p.214 was later recorded as "Gresworth", "Cresford" and "Grefford", but documentary evidence shows that the place was clearly locally referred to as "Gresford" throughout its history, even under Welsh administration, and the other names merely represent alternative spellings.Palmer, p.239 The Welsh form "Gresffordd", supposedly believed to indicate an etymology from ''y groesffordd'' ("the crossroads"), seems to have been the imaginative creation of Welsh genealogists of the 15th century and later.Palmer, A. N. "Gresford, in the Counties of Denbigh and Flint", "Archaeologia Cambrensis'', 1904, p.291 This form has, however, seen media use as an alternative spelling since at least the 19th century, and although largely unused by the mainly non-Welsh speakers of the village itself, is today often used by the Welsh press, and Welsh-language media. In common with many of the towns and villages of the border lands, or

Marches In medieval Europe, a march or mark was, in broad terms, any kind of borderland, as opposed to a national "heartland". More specifically, a march was a border between realms or a neutral buffer zone under joint control of two states in which diff ...

, Gresford has gone through periods of both English and Welsh dominance. The whole area was resettled by Welsh aligned to

Owain Gwynedd Owain ap Gruffudd ( 23 or 28 November 1170) was King of Gwynedd, North Wales, from 1137 until his death in 1170, succeeding his father Gruffudd ap Cynan. He was called Owain the Great ( cy, Owain Fawr) and the first to be ...

in 1170–1203. At this time the

bishopric In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associate ...

was transferred from that of St. Werburgh's

Chester Chester is a cathedral city and the county town of Cheshire, England. It is located on the River Dee, close to the English–Welsh border. With a population of 79,645 in 2011,"2011 Census results: People and Population Profile: Chester Loca ...

St. Asaph St Asaph (; cy, Llanelwy "church on the Elwy") is a city and community on the River Elwy in Denbighshire, Wales. In the 2011 Census it had a population of 3,355, making it the second-smallest city in Britain in terms of population and urban ...

, and the vicars of the village were Welsh with

patronymic A patronymic, or patronym, is a component of a personal name based on the given name of one's father, grandfather (avonymic), or an earlier male ancestor. Patronymics are still in use, including mandatory use, in many countries worldwide, alt ...

names (for example, Morud ap Gwarius, who became vicar in 1284). It is possible, however, that settlement existed on the site from quite an early date, as a

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...

altar was found within the church in 1908. The altar is likely to depict

Nemesis In ancient Greek religion, Nemesis, also called Rhamnousia or Rhamnusia ( grc, Ῥαμνουσία, Rhamnousía, the goddess of Rhamnous), was the goddess who personifies retribution, a central concept in the Greek world view. Etymology The n ...

; this and the unearthing of a

Roman coin Roman currency for most of Roman history consisted of gold, silver, bronze, orichalcum and copper coinage. From its introduction to the Republic, during the third century BC, well into Imperial times, Roman currency saw many changes in form, denomi ...

hoard A hoard or "wealth deposit" is an archaeological term for a collection of valuable objects or artifacts, sometimes purposely buried in the ground, in which case it is sometimes also known as a cache. This would usually be with the intention of ...

nearby-dating 150–300, is possible evidence of a settlement. There is also a stand of

yew trees

Yew is a common name given ...

in the

churchyard In Christian countries a churchyard is a patch of land adjoining or surrounding a church, which is usually owned by the relevant church or local parish itself. In the Scots language and in both Scottish English and Ulster-Scots, this can also ...

, the oldest dating to A.D. 500 — long before

Anglo-Saxon The Anglo-Saxons were a Cultural identity, cultural group who inhabited England in the Early Middle Ages. They traced their origins to settlers who came to Britain from mainland Europe in the 5th century. However, the ethnogenesis of the Anglo- ...

settlement. Approaching Gresford from the Wrexham direction, on the left hand side of the road, there was a tree known as the 'Cross Tree', and alongside this there is the base of an ancient stone cross. This tree was removed after 1984, and has since been replaced with a young tree. Pant-yr-ochain Inn - geograph

Until the late 19th century, the

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...

boundary encompassed a large area, including the

township A township is a kind of human settlement or administrative subdivision, with its meaning varying in different countries. Although the term is occasionally associated with an urban area, that tends to be an exception to the rule. In Australia, Ca ...

s of Burton, Llay,

Rossett Rossett ( cy, Yr Orsedd ) is a village, community and electoral ward in Wrexham County Borough, Wales. Rossett is served by the A483 road. At the time of the 2001 census, Rossett community (including Rossett itself and the villages of Bur ...

and

Gwersyllt Gwersyllt () is an urban village and community in Wrexham County Borough, Wales. The densely populated village is one of Wrexham's largest and is situated in the north western suburbs of the city, bordering the nearby villages of Llay, Cefn-y ...

, as well as several townships later included in

Isycoed Isycoed ( cy, Is-y-coed) is a community in Wrexham County Borough, Wales. It lies around 5 miles to the east of Wrexham, close to the River Dee on the border with England. There is a primary school in Bowling Bank, and a late-Georgian church, ...

. The bells of the

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in community activities, ...

All Saints' Church All Saints Church, or All Saints' Church or variations on the name may refer to: Albania *All Saints' Church, Himarë Australia * All Saints Church, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory * All Saints Anglican Church, Henley Brook, Western Aust ...

are one of the traditional

. Gresford Church dates to 1492 and is a large building considering the size of what the population would have been in the present day boundaries of the parish. The base of the church tower has earlier remnants of a previous building and an earlier roofline of a former transept can be detected in the tower. The colour of the stone is quite distinctive, and is typical of the Wrexham area. It is a sandy brown Millstone Grit, locally referred to as "Cefn" stone. Pant Iocyn (later Pant-yr-Ochain) house was built in the 1550s alongside the road from Gresford to Wrexham by

Edward Almer Edward Almer or Aylmer (by 1516 – 1574 or later), of Denbigh and Gresford, Denbighshire, was a Welsh politician. He was a younger son of John Almer of Almer, Denbighshire, a sergeant-at-arms at the court of Henry VIII. He was a Justice of t ...

, MP and three times High Sheriff of the county. It was one of the chief houses in east Denbighshire and descended in the Almer family until it was bought and enlarged by

Sir Foster Cunliffe, 3rd Baronet Sir Foster Cunliffe, 3rd Baronet (1755–1834) was the founder of the Royal Society of British Bowmen. Biography Foster Cunliffe was the son of Sir Robert Cunliffe, 2nd Baronet and Mary Wright. He succeeded to his father’s baronetcy on the ...

in 1785. The 18th century addition now serves as a gastro pub.

Gresford Colliery

Henry Dennis and his son, Henry Dyke Dennis, began sinking a coal mine near Gresford in 1888, taking four years for the 3,280 ft deep shafts to be completed. The coalmine was located on the edge of the Alyn Valley, between the

Shrewsbury and Chester Railway The North Wales Mineral Railway was formed to carry coal and ironstone from the mineral-bearing area around Wrexham to the River Dee wharves. It was extended to run from Shrewsbury and formed part of a main line trunk route, under the title ...

(later the GWR Birkenhead-Paddington line) and the old main road between Wrexham and Chester. The first coal was produced from June 1911, with full production reached before the outbreak of the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. The coal was renowned in the area as being of very good quality and hot burning. Gresford Colliery was the site of one of Britain's worst coal mining disasters. The

Gresford Disaster The Gresford disaster occurred on 22 September 1934 at Gresford Colliery, near Wrexham, Denbighshire, when an explosion and underground fire killed 266 men. Gresford is one of Britain's worst coal mining disasters: a controversial inquiry into ...

occurred on 22 September 1934, when 266 men died following an underground explosion. The bodies of only 11 of the miners underground at the time of the explosion were recovered. The

headgear Headgear, headwear, or headdress is the name given to any element of clothing which is worn on one's head, including hats, helmets, turbans and many other types. Headgear is worn for many purposes, including protection against the elements, de ...

wheel is preserved and forms part of the Gresford Disaster Memorial, along with a plaque. The disaster is commemorated in the

hymn tune A hymn tune is the melody of a musical composition to which a hymn text is sung. Musically speaking, a hymn is generally understood to have four-part (or more) harmony, a fast harmonic rhythm (chords change frequently), with or without refrain ...

"Gresford", which is also known as "the Miners' Hymn", written by Robert Saint of

Hebburn Hebburn is a town in the metropolitan county of Tyne and Wear, England. It governed under the borough of South Tyneside; formerly governed under the county of Durham until 1974 with its own urban district from 1894 until 1974. It is on the south ...

, himself also a miner. This tune has been played regularly by many colliery brass bands over the years and is found on a number of recordings, and is also played at the annual Miners' Picnics around the

North of England Northern England, also known as the North of England, the North Country, or simply the North, is the northern area of England. It broadly corresponds to the former borders of Angle Northumbria, the Anglo-Scandinavian Kingdom of Jorvik, and the ...

, especially at the

Durham Miners' Gala The Durham Miners' Gala, founded by Pete Doherty, is a large annual gathering and labour festival held on the second Saturday in July in the city of Durham, England. It is associated with the coal mining heritage (and particularly that of miners ...

. The colliery lasted until 1973 when it was closed due to geological problems.

Transport

The stone-built Gresford (for Llay) Halt, on the

was midway up the notorious Gresford Bank. The bank was so steep that a

refuge siding A refuge siding is a single-ended, or dead-end, siding off a running line, which may be used to temporarily accommodate a train so that another one can pass it. For example, a refuge siding might be used by a slow goods train to allow a fast passen ...

was required at the station in the event of engines having to leave some of their load behind to get up the hill. Banking engines were also used on occasions. The station was demoted to halt status in 1956 and was closed altogether from 1964.

Education

All Saints' Voluntary Aided Church in Wales School is the village primary school. It still uses part of the school building constructed in 1874, in memory of Thomas Vowlier Short, a

Christ Church, Oxford Christ Church ( la, Ædes Christi, the temple or house, '' ædēs'', of Christ, and thus sometimes known as "The House") is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, the college is uniqu ...

University

theologian Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

, and former

Bishop of St Asaph The Bishop of St Asaph heads the Church in Wales diocese of St Asaph. The diocese covers the counties of Conwy and Flintshire, Wrexham county borough, the eastern part of Merioneth in Gwynedd and part of northern Powys. The Episcopal seat is loca ...

Sport

Gresford has a football team, Gresford Athletic F.C., which currently competes in the

Cymru North The Cymru North is a regional football league in Wales, covering the northern half of the country. It has clubs with semi-professional status and together with the Cymru South, it forms the second tier of the Welsh football league system. The fir ...

. The club was founded in 1946 and plays its home games at Clappers Lane. Gresford has a cricket club, Gresford Cricket Club, which also plays at Clappers Lane.

References

External links

Wrexham County Borough Council: Gresford Colliery Disaster

Gresford Athletic

www.geograph.co.uk: photos of Gresford and surrounding area

Welsh Coal Mines website: research the history of the local pit

Gresford Sailing Club
{{authority control Villages in Wrexham County Borough Communities in Wrexham County Borough Mining communities in Wales