Holywell ( '','' cy, Treffynnon) is a

market town A market town is a settlement most common in Europe that obtained by custom or royal charter, in the Middle Ages, a market right, which allowed it to host a regular market; this distinguished it from a village or city. In Britain, small rural ...

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, t ...

Flintshire , settlement_type = County , image_skyline = , image_alt = , image_caption = , image_flag = , image_shield = Arms of Flint ...

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

. It lies to the west of the

estuary An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environm ...

of the River Dee. The community includes

Greenfield Greenfield or Greenfields may refer to: Engineering and Business * Greenfield agreement, an employment agreement for a new organisation * Greenfield investment, the investment in a structure in an area where no previous facilities exist * Greenf ...

Etymology

The name Holywell is literally ' + ' in reference to St Winefride's Well, which is situated in the town. Similarly, its Welsh name, ', is a compound of ' "town" + ' "well", meaning "town of hewell".

History

Hen Neuadd y Dref, Treffynnon - Former Town Hall, Holywell

The church of St James, Holywell (geograph 2262988)

The

of Holywell is known for St Winefride's Well, a

holy well A holy well or sacred spring is a well, spring or small pool of water revered either in a Christian or pagan context, sometimes both. The water of holy wells is often thought to have healing qualities, through the numinous presence of its guar ...

surrounded by a

chapel A chapel is a Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. Firstly, smaller spaces inside a church that have their own altar are often called chapels; the Lady chapel is a common type ...

, itself known since at least the

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 lett ...

period. It has been a site of Christian

pilgrimage A pilgrimage is a journey, often into an unknown or foreign place, where a person goes in search of new or expanded meaning about their self, others, nature, or a higher good, through the experience. It can lead to a personal transformation, aft ...

since about 660, dedicated to

Saint Winefride Saint Winifred (or Winefride; cy, Gwenffrewi; la, Wenefreda, Winifreda) was a Welsh virgin martyr of the 7th century. Her story was celebrated as early as the 8th century, but became popular in England in the 12th, when her hagiography was f ...

who, according to legend, was

behead Decapitation or beheading is the total separation of the head from the body. Such an injury is invariably fatal to humans and most other animals, since it deprives the brain of oxygenated blood, while all other organs are deprived of the i ...

ed there by Caradog who attempted to attack her. The well is one of the

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 ...

and the town bills itself as ''The

Lourdes Lourdes (, also , ; oc, Lorda ) is a market town situated in the Pyrenees. It is part of the Hautes-Pyrénées department in the Occitanie region in southwestern France. Prior to the mid-19th century, the town was best known for the Châ ...

of Wales''. Many pilgrims from all over the world continue to visit Holywell and the well. From the 18th century, the town grew around the

lead Lead is a chemical element with the symbol Pb (from the Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a heavy metal that is denser than most common materials. Lead is soft and malleable, and also has a relatively low melting point. When freshly cut, ...

mining Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the Earth, usually from an ore body, lode, vein, seam, reef, or placer deposit. The exploitation of these deposits for raw material is based on the econom ...

and

cotton mill A cotton mill is a building that houses spinning or weaving machinery for the production of yarn or cloth from cotton, an important product during the Industrial Revolution in the development of the factory system. Although some were driven b ...

ing industries. The water supply from the mountains above the town, which flows continually and at a constant temperature, supplies the well and powered many factories in the Greenfield Valley. In addition to lead and cotton, copper production was of great importance. Thomas Williams, a lawyer from Anglesey, built factories and smelteries for copper in Greenfield Valley, bringing the copper from Anglesey to St. Helens and then to Greenfield Valley where it was used to make items including manilas (copper bracelets), neptunes (large flat dishes to evaporate seawater to produce salt) and

copper sheathing Copper sheathing is the practice of protecting the under-water hull of a ship or boat from the corrosive effects of salt water and biofouling through the use of copper plates affixed to the outside of the hull. It was pioneered and developed b ...

. The copper sheathing was used to cover the hulls of the wooden ships trading in the warmer Caribbean waters, giving rise to the expression 'copper bottomed investment'. The sheathing was also applied to Royal Navy ships and was instrumental in Nelson's victories - two copper plates from HMS ''Victory'' are in Greenfield Valley Heritage Park museum. The wealth generated from these industries led to the development of the town.

Holywell Town Hall Holywell Town Hall ( cy, Neuadd y Dref Treffynnon) is a municipal structure in the High Street in Holywell, Wales. The façade of the town hall, which is the only surviving part of the original structure, is a Grade II listed building. History ...

was completed in 1896. St James' Parish Church is a grade II*

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 I ...

and Holy Trinity Church in Greenfield is grade II listed. The town is also served by the modern St Peter's Church on Rose Hill,

consecrated Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service. The word ''consecration'' literally means "association with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different gro ...

in 2008.

Railways

Holywell Junction railway station Holywell Junction railway station was a junction station located on the north-eastern edge of Holywell and Greenfield, in Flintshire, Wales, on the estuary of the River Dee. History The station was opened on 1 May 1848 as part of the Che ...

in Greenfield was on the

North Wales Coast Line The North Wales Coast Line ( cy, Llinell Arfordir Gogledd Cymru), also known as the North Wales Main Line ( cy, Prif Linell Gogledd Cymru or cy, label=none, Prif Linell y Gogledd), is a major railway line in the north of Wales and Cheshire, ...

. The station was closed in 1966, and trains now run fast through what remains of the station. The station building, by

Francis Thompson Francis Joseph Thompson (16 December 1859 – 13 November 1907) was an English poet and Catholic mystic. At the behest of his father, a doctor, he entered medical school at the age of 18, but at 26 left home to pursue his talent as a writer a ...

for the

Chester and Holyhead Railway The Chester and Holyhead Railway was an early railway company conceived to improve transmission of Government dispatches between London and Ireland, as well as ordinary railway objectives. Its construction was hugely expensive, chiefly due to ...

(1848), is listed Grade II*. There is a campaign to reopen the station. Holywell Town station, at the head of the steeply-climbing LNWR branch from Holywell Junction, opened in 1912 and finally closed in 1957.

Demography

In the 2011 census the population of the

, which includes the village of

, was recorded as 8,886. The census figure for the larger Holywell built-up area was 9,808. The community consists of four electoral wards of the Flintshire County Council local authority:

Geography

Holywell is split into four distinct areas: Pen-y-Maes, the Strand, the Holway and the town centre. The Holway, located on the west side of the town, is the largest of the residential areas of Holywell. The near-contiguous village of

is located to the north east of the town on the B5121 road. Villages within the Holywell catchment area include:

Bagillt Bagillt (; ) is a market town and community in Flintshire, Wales. The town overlooks the Dee Estuary and is between the towns of Holywell and Flint. At the 2001 Census the population was recorded as 3,918, increasing to 4,165 at the 2011 census ...

Brynford Brynford ( cy, Brynffordd) is a village and community in Flintshire, Wales. It is located to the south west of the town of Holywell and near the A55 road (North Wales Expressway). Brynford had a population of 1,059 at the 2011 census. St ...

, Carmel,

Gorsedd A gorsedd (, plural ''gorseddau'') is a community or meeting of modern-day bards. The word is of Welsh origin, meaning "throne". It is spelled gorsedh in Cornish and goursez in Breton. When the term is used without qualification, it usually ...

, Halkyn, Holway, Licswm,

Lloc Lloc is a small village in Flintshire, north Wales. It is located within the community of Whitford. It lies north of the Clwydian Range, just east of the border with Denbighshire Denbighshire ( ; cy, Sir Ddinbych; ) is a county in the nor ...

, Mostyn,

Pantasaph Pantasaph is a small village in Flintshire, north-east Wales, two miles south of Holywell in the community of Whitford. Its name translates into English as Asaph's Hollow. History Once abbey land belonging to nearby Basingwerk Abbey, Pantas ...

, Pentre Halkyn,

Rhes-y-Cae Rhes-y-cae is a small parish and village in Flintshire, Wales. Literally translated from Welsh, Rhes-y-cae is 'Row of fields'. It is situated between Pentre Halkyn and Rhosesmor and is part of the local government community of Halkyn Hal ...

, Trelawnyd, Whitford and

Ysceifiog Ysceifiog, also written Ysgeifiog, is a small village, community and parish in Flintshire, Wales. It lies on a back road just north of the A541 highway between Nannerch and Caerwys. The name translates roughly as "a place where elder trees grow" ...

. In addition there are other smaller scattered communities within this area. All of these are within a six-mile radius of Holywell. These villages are all connected to Holywell by a frequent bus service.

Community

The town centre contains many small businesses and national stores, serving not only the shopping needs of the people of the town itself, but also those of the surrounding villages within the town's natural catchment area. Part of the centre of the historic market town has been designated a

conservation area Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural, ecological or cultural values. There are several kinds of protected areas, which vary by level of protection depending on the ena ...

. The town contains a

secondary school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

with over 500 pupils and a

leisure centre A leisure centre in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia (also called aquatic centres), Singapore and Canada is a purpose-built building or site, usually owned and operated by the city, borough council or municipal district council, where people ...

, as well as four

primary school A primary school (in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and South Africa), junior school (in Australia), elementary school or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary e ...

s. Holywell has a local football team, Holywell Town who play 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 f ...

league. The old

cottage hospital A cottage hospital is a semi-obsolete type of small hospital, most commonly found in the United Kingdom. The original concept was a small rural building having several beds.The Cottage Hospitals 1859–1990, Dr. Meyrick Emrys-Roberts, Tern Publicati ...

was located in Pen-y-Maes until it closed. A new facility, known as the

Holywell Community Hospital Holywell Community Hospital ( cy, Ysbyty Cymuned Treffynnon) is a community hospital in Halkyn Road, Holywell, Flintshire, Wales. It is managed by the Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board. History The hospital was commissioned to replace both ...

, opened in March 2008. Although Holywell does not have a

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by st ...

team carrying the name of the town; a number of junior and senior cricketers from the area play for nearby village team Carmel & District Cricket Club whose ground is located a short distance from Holywell between the villages of Carmel and Lloc. In 2007, a group of locals proposed a circular walk way, the "St Beuno's Circular Walk", joining all of the historical and religious locations of the town.

Notable people

* Saint Winifred, a 7th century Welsh virgin martyr, inspired St Winefride's Well *

Thomas Pennant Thomas Pennant (14 June OS 172616 December 1798) was a Welsh naturalist, traveller, writer and antiquarian. He was born and lived his whole life at his family estate, Downing Hall near Whitford, Flintshire, in Wales. As a naturalist he had ...

(1726–1798) naturalist, traveller, writer and antiquarian; lived at

Downing Hall Downing Hall was built in 1627 by the Pennant family near Whitford, Flintshire. It was later the home of Thomas Pennant, the naturalist, traveller and writer. It was partially destroyed in a fire in the early 20th century and afterwards left dere ...

near Whitford. * Rear Admiral Thomas Totty (1746–1802) naval officer of the

Napoleonic Wars The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fre ...

. * Sarah Edith Wynne (1842–1897) operatic soprano and concert singer. *

Teresa Helena Higginson Teresa Helena Higginson (27 May 1844 – 15 February 1905) was a British Roman Catholic mystic. Life Higginson was born in Holywell, Flintshire, United Kingdom in 1844 where her parents were staying whilst on pilgrimage to the shrine of St. W ...

(1844–1905) Roman Catholic mystic. *

Charles Sidney Beauclerk Fr Charles Sidney de Vere Beauclerk SJ (1 January 1855 – 22 November 1934) was a Jesuit priest who attempted to turn the town of Holywell into the "Lourdes of Wales".Eric Rowan & Carolyn Stewart, ''An Elusive Tradition: Art and Society in ...

(1855–1934), Catholic priest, revived the town as a pilgrimage centre. *

Emlyn Williams George Emlyn Williams, CBE (26 November 1905 – 25 September 1987) was a Welsh writer, dramatist and actor. Early life Williams was born into a Welsh-speaking, working class family at 1 Jones Terrace, Pen-y-ffordd, Ffynnongroyw, Flints ...

(1905–1987) writer, dramatist and actor, attended Holywell Grammar School * Sir Ronald Waterhouse (1926–2011), High Court judge. *

Dorothy Miles Dorothy "Dot" Miles (19 August 1931 – 30 January 1993, née Squire) was a Welsh poet and activist in the deaf community. Throughout her life, she composed her poems in English, British Sign Language, and American Sign Language. Her work laid t ...

(1931–1993) poet and activist in the

deaf community Deafness has varying definitions in cultural and medical contexts. In medical contexts, the meaning of deafness is hearing loss that precludes a person from understanding spoken language, an audiological condition. In this context it is written ...

. * Jennifer Toye (1933–2022), operatic soprano with the

D'Oyly Carte Opera Company The D'Oyly Carte Opera Company is a professional British light opera company that, from the 1870s until 1982, staged Gilbert and Sullivan's Savoy operas nearly year-round in the UK and sometimes toured in Europe, North America and elsewhere. Th ...

Ann Clwyd Ann Clwyd Roberts (; born 21 March 1937) is a Welsh Labour Party politician who served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Cynon Valley for 35 years, from 1984 until 2019. Although she had intended to stand down in 2015, she was re-elected in th ...

(born 1937 in Pentre Halkyn) politician, MP for

Cynon Valley Cynon Valley () is a former coal mining valley in Wales. Cynon Valley lies between Rhondda and the Merthyr Valley and takes its name from the River Cynon. Aberdare is located in the north of the valley and Mountain Ash is in the south of th ...

for 35 years; went to

Ysgol Treffynnon Ysgol Treffynnon (formerly Holywell High School) is an 11–16 mixed, English-medium, community secondary school in Holywell, Flintshire , settlement_type = County , image_skyline = , image_alt ...

* Jonathan Pryce (born 1947), actor on film and TV, educated at Holywell Grammar School * Gareth Jones (born 1961), TV presenter, ''(Gaz Top)'' brought up in Holywell. * Richard and Adam (Johnson) (born ca.1980), classical singers.

Sport

Gerry Hitchens Gerald Archibald Hitchens (8 October 1934 – 13 April 1983) was an English footballer who played as a centre forward. Early career Hitchens was born in the village of Rawnsley, Staffordshire, near Cannock, and began his career as a coal miner. ...

(1934–1983), footballer with over 500 club caps, retired to Holywell from 1977 where he is buried. * Alan Fox (1936–2021) footballer with 441 club caps mainly for Wrexham A.F.C. * Mike England (born 1941), footballer and manager, with 622 club caps and 44 for

* Ron Davies (1942–2013), footballer with 644 club caps and 29 for

* Barry Horne (born 1962), footballer with 570 club caps and 59 for

Ian Buckett Ian Martin Buckett (born 23 December 1967 near Holywell in Flintshire) is a former international rugby union front row forward who played for Swansea and London Welsh and played county rugby for North Wales. He was a championship winning player ...

(born 1967), rugby player, born near here and attended school in Holywell. *

Gareth Jelleyman Gareth Jelleyman (born 14 November 1980) is a Welsh footballer who plays as a defender. He has previously played for Peterborough United, Boston United, Mansfield Town, Rushden & Diamonds and Barrow. Jelleyman is a left-sided player who usua ...

(born 1980) footballer with over 360 club caps

References

External links

Holywell websiteBBC Wales: HolywellPhotos of Holywell and surrounding area on geograph.org.uk
{{authority control Towns in Flintshire Christian pilgrimages Water wells in Wales