Miskin ( cy, Meisgyn) is a village approximately south of
Llantrisant in the
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, similar to the unitary authorities created since the 1990s. An equivalent ter ...
of
Rhondda Cynon Taf
Rhondda Cynon Taf (; RCT; also spelt as Rhondda Cynon Taff) is a county borough in the south-east of Wales. It consists of five valleys: the Rhondda Fawr, Rhondda Fach, Cynon, Taff (Welsh: ''Taf'') and Ely valleys, plus a number of towns and vil ...
, Wales.
The origin of the village was a small
hamlet
''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...
known as New Mill, which grew up around New Mill farm. Miskin is part of the
Pontyclun
Pontyclun (or Pont-y-clun) is a village and community located in the county borough of Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales. Like the surrounding towns, it has seen a sharp increase in its population in the last ten years as people migrate south from the So ...
electoral ward
A ward is a local authority area, typically used for electoral purposes. In some countries, wards are usually named after neighbourhoods, thoroughfares, parishes, landmarks, geographical features and in some cases historical figures connected to t ...
.
History
The 1841 census records the settlement (originally a small hamlet by the name of New Inn) as having a population of 31.
The opening of the Bute and Mwyndy
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 fo ...
mines in nearby
Talbot Green
Talbot Green ( cy, Tonysguboriau "lea of the barns") is a town (and electoral ward) just north of the M4 motorway, in the County Borough of Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales in the United Kingdom. The town is part of Llantrisant Community Council.
Geogr ...
, in 1852 and 1853 respectively, had a huge impact on the small hamlet of New Mill. The
census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses incl ...
of 1861 shows that New Mill had become a village, its population now 83 people in 17 households, and of these residents 17 were iron ore miners.
By the early 1870s New Mill had become the village of Miskin, with the village centre being based around the inn, which is now The Miskin Arms
pub
A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and was ...
.
The name change from New Mill to Miskin was brought about by Judge Gwilym Williams, and was taken from the medieval commote of
Miskin
Miskin ( cy, Meisgyn) is a village approximately south of Llantrisant in the county borough of Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales.
The origin of the village was a small hamlet (place), hamlet known as New Mill, which grew up around New Mill farm. Miski ...
.
Williams, a staunch Welsh patriot, lived at
Miskin Manor (built 1864), a Victorian L-plan mansion in a neo-Tudor style.
By the 1870s several ironstone mines are evident to the north of the village, and the village's population continued to grow, as skilled miners rather than heavy labourers were needed to extract the ore. The 1871 census records the village's population as 144, with more than half of the miners being immigrants from the depressed copper mining county of
Cornwall
Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...
.
Religion
![St Davids church, Miskin](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ef/St_Davids_church%2C_Miskin.JPG)
A church has stood on the site of the current St David's church since 1878.
[History of St David's Miskin from Parish of Llantrisant website](_blank)
/ref> Originally of corrugated iron
Corrugated galvanised iron or steel, colloquially corrugated iron (near universal), wriggly tin (taken from UK military slang), pailing (in Caribbean English), corrugated sheet metal (in North America) and occasionally abbreviated CGI is a bu ...
construction, it was replaced by the current stone church in 1906–07. The land on which the church was built was owned by the Williams family.
Funds for the building of the church were raised by public donations and events, notably the Grand Fete at Miskin Manor which raised over £1,000, with the majority of the funds coming from Emma Eleanor Williams, Gwilym Williams' widow. The church was licensed on 23 December 1907 and 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 grou ...
by Right Rev Timothy Rees
Timothy Rees (15 August 1874 – 29 April 1939) was a Bishop of Llandaff.
Timothy Rees was a Cardiganshire man, educated at St David's College School and then St David's College Lampeter where he was as a member of the 16' Club. He subseq ...
, Bishop of Llandaff, on Sunday 23 April 1933.
St David's Church was designed by local architect E. M. Bruce Vaughan and has been described as 'earnestly handsome'. The church has an over-buttressed square tower, and is faced with green Quarella stone outside and in. Of note are three stained glass windows by Jessie Bayes, to members of the Williams family.
There is also a large Roman Catholic
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 lette ...
church, All Hallows, on the outskirts of the village.
Miskin Mill
The Miskin Mill site has been the location of a water driven corn mill for most of the last 400 years. Since 1929 it has been used by the Scouting
Scouting, also known as the Scout Movement, is a worldwide youth movement employing the Scout method, a program of informal education with an emphasis on practical outdoor activities, including camping, woodcraft, aquatics, hiking, backpacking ...
movement for camping and training.
Transport
The nearest railway station is at Pontyclun
Pontyclun (or Pont-y-clun) is a village and community located in the county borough of Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales. Like the surrounding towns, it has seen a sharp increase in its population in the last ten years as people migrate south from the So ...
.
References
External links
*
www.geograph.co.uk: photos of Miskin and surrounding area
{{authority control
Villages in Rhondda Cynon Taf