Ramoth, Hirwaun originally a Baptist chapel in Davies Row,

Hirwaun Hirwaun is a village and community at the north end of the Cynon Valley in the County Borough of Rhondda Cynon Taf, South Wales. It is NW of the town of Aberdare, and comes under the Aberdare post town. At the 2001 census, Hirwaun had a populati ...

Aberdare Aberdare ( ; cy, Aberdâr) is a town in the Cynon Valley area of Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales, at the confluence of the Rivers Dare (Dâr) and Cynon. Aberdare has a population of 39,550 (mid-2017 estimate). Aberdare is south-west of Merthyr Tyd ...

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 ...

. Services at Ramoth were held in the Welsh language. Following renovation in 1982, the building continues to be used for Christian worship as an

Assemblies of God The Assemblies of God (AG), officially the World Assemblies of God Fellowship, is a group of over 144 autonomous self-governing national groupings of churches that together form the world's largest Pentecostal denomination."Assemblies of God". ...

fellowship.

Foundation and early history

The history of
Ramoth
' starts in the early 19th century, when meetings were held in a house owned by George Overton of the Hirwaun Ironworks. However, the early years were difficult and meetings ceased to be held for a time following the closure of the ironworks. The cause revived in 1818. A chapel was opened in 1825 as a branch of

Calfaria, Aberdare Calfaria Baptist Chapel, Aberdare, was one of the largest baptist churches in the South Wales Valleys and the oldest in the Aberdare valley. The chapel had an ornate interior, including a boarded ceiling with a deeply undercut rose, while the ...

. There were around 50 members during this period and the opening services were held on 18 June 1826. The chapel was licensed in 1830 and Ramoth accepted to the East Glamorgan Baptist Association at

Aberfan Aberfan () is a former coal mining village in the Taff Valley south of the town of Merthyr Tydfil, Wales. On 21 October 1966, it became known for the Aberfan disaster, when a colliery spoil tip collapsed into homes and a school, killing 116 ch ...

in 1831. The first minister between 1832 and 1834 was William Lewis, who was also minister of

. In 1840, with membership at 76, it was decided to build a new chapel, which was opened in 1843. While the new chapel was being built, Benjamin Evans, a student from Pontypool College, was ordained as minister of Ramoth. He remained for fifteen years and during this time a branch of Ramoth was opened at Heolyfelin. By 1849, membership had increased to 178. In 1853, T.W. Rammell's report on public health in the parish of Aberdare stated that the burial ground at Ramoth was nearly full and, due to its proximity to housing, should be among a number of nonconformist burial grounds that should be closed. Thomas Joseph, a colliery proprietor, was a deacon at Ramoth. In the early 1850s he opened a new colliery at

Trecynon Trecynon is a village near Aberdare situated in the Cynon Valley, in Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales. It dates from the early nineteenth century and developed as a result of the opening of the Aberdare Ironworks at Llwydcoed in 1800. Etymology The se ...

and persuaded many Hirwaun colliers who were members at Ramoth to move with him. Joseph was the pivotal figure in the formation of the new church at Heolyfelin, and for a time the membership at Ramoth declined considerably and the cause struggled to remain in existence. The following ministered at Ramoth in the late nineteenth century: Benjamin Watkins (1857–58), D. Davies (1863–69), E. Colwyn Evans (1872–91) and David Collier (1892-97).

Twentieth century

J.S. Johns arrived as minister in 1899, but died two years later at a young age. Peak membership was reached in 1904, and in 1913 a new organ was installed following a gift from

Andrew Carnegie Andrew Carnegie (, ; November 25, 1835August 11, 1919) was a Scottish-American industrialist and philanthropist. Carnegie led the expansion of the American steel industry in the late 19th century and became one of the richest Americans i ...

. George Hague was minister from 1903 to 1910 and was followed by E. Cefni Jones (1911–20). E.J. Hughes was the longest serving minister from 1923 until 1958. There is a wax cylinder recording o
Rev. E. Roberts
made at Ramoth during the Welsh Revival of 1905. The chapel closed as a Baptist cause in 1982, but was renovated and re-opened as a place of Christian worship in the 1990s. '
Ramoth Christian Centre
'' celebrated 150 years at its present location in 2018, and the current building is in its third incarnation.

References

Sources

Books and Journals

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Online

External links

Coflein entry
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