The River Clywedog is a river in

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 ...

. Its uses have been watering crops, powering industrial machinery but is now used as walking trails or geography trips. The river originates to the west of

Wrexham Wrexham ( ; cy, Wrecsam; ) is a city and the administrative centre of Wrexham County Borough in Wales. It is located between the Welsh mountains and the lower Dee Valley, near the border with Cheshire in England. Historically in the count ...

, and joins the River Dee some four miles south east of the city.

Course of the river

The river Clywedog rises in the hills west of the village of

Minera Minera ( cy, Mwynglawdd; ) is a village and community in Wrexham County Borough, Wales. It adjoins the village of Coedpoeth. The community, which in addition to Minera village includes a number of smaller hamlets such as Gwynfryn and New Brigh ...

. After flowing through Minera it turns south-east, past Coedpoeth,

Bersham Bersham ( cy, Y Bers) is a village in Wrexham County Borough, Wales, that lies next to the River Clywedog, and is in the community of Esclusham. Bersham was historically a major industrial centre of the area, but despite this the village sti ...

and

Rhostyllen Rhostyllen () is a village in Wrexham County Borough, Wales, south-west of the city of Wrexham. At the time of the 2001 census, area Wrexham 014A, which includes Rhostyllen itself, had a population of 1,383 in 599 households.

and through the Erddig Country Park, then east, passing slightly to the south of

. There is a path along the entire river bank from Minera to Wrexham. After passing the

Wrexham industrial estate Wrexham Industrial Estate ( Welsh: ) is a well defined industrial area in Wrexham. It is sited on the eastern outskirts of the city and 2.5 miles from the centre of Wrexham. Originally the site of a World War II munitions factory, the estate la ...

, the river joins the River Dee near the English/Welsh border.

History

During the 18th and early 19th centuries there were 17

watermill A watermill or water mill is a mill that uses hydropower. It is a structure that uses a water wheel or water turbine to drive a mechanical process such as milling (grinding), rolling, or hammering. Such processes are needed in the production of ...

s along the river:

fulling mill Fulling, also known as felting, tucking or walking ( Scots: ''waukin'', hence often spelled waulking in Scottish English), is a step in woollen clothmaking which involves the cleansing of woven or knitted cloth (particularly wool) to elimin ...

s for preparing cloth, mills for grinding corn and malt, and

paper mill A paper mill is a factory devoted to making paper from vegetable fibres such as wood pulp, old rags, and other ingredients. Prior to the invention and adoption of the Fourdrinier machine and other types of paper machine that use an endless belt, ...

s. Large waterwheels powered the bellows blasting air into the iron furnaces at

, and drove winding and pumping machinery in the lead mines. The population grew dramatically as the

industrial revolution The Industrial Revolution was the transition to new manufacturing processes in Great Britain, continental Europe, and the United States, that occurred during the period from around 1760 to about 1820–1840. This transition included going f ...

drew workers to the Wrexham area, serving the rapidly developing coal mines, lead mines, limestone quarries,

ironworks An ironworks or iron works is an industrial plant where iron is smelted and where heavy iron and steel products are made. The term is both singular and plural, i.e. the singular of ''ironworks'' is ''ironworks''. Ironworks succeeded bloomeri ...

and lead smelting works. The fertile Clywedog flood plain had always provided rich pasture and corn; but, to meet the increased demand for food for the expanding work force, new corn mills were built and additional areas of

woodland A woodland () is, in the broad sense, land covered with trees, or in a narrow sense, synonymous with wood (or in the U.S., the ''plurale tantum'' woods), a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunlight and limited shade (see ...

were cleared for growing crops. When steam power took over in the late 19th and 20th centuries, new industries no longer needed to be sited close to the river. New technology and cheap imports led to a gradual

industrial decline Deindustrialization is a process of social and economic change caused by the removal or reduction of industrial capacity or activity in a country or region, especially of heavy industry or manufacturing industry. There are different interpre ...

in the area. WXM-SDSC0053

Today the Clywedog has returned to nature and is a place for wildlife, relaxation and walking. Several of the old buildings and surrounding land are now museums, visitor centres and riverside country parks:

Minera Lead Mines The Minera Lead Mines were a mining operation and are now a country park and tourist centre in the village of Minera near Wrexham, in Wrexham County Borough, Wales. History The first written record of lead mining at Minera dates back to 1296 ...

, Nant Mill Visitor Centre and Picnic Area, Bersham Heritage Centre and Ironworks and Erddig. There is now a 7-mile (11 km) trail along the river through a number of the old industrial sites. Known as the

Clywedog Trail The Clywedog Trail is a footpath close to Wrexham in Wales. Starting at the Minera Lead Mines and running to King's Mills it follows the course of the River Clywedog. It is a haven for walking, relaxation and enjoying the peace of the wil ...

, its starts at the

and finishes at Kings Mills. Clywedog Tourist attractions in Wrexham County Borough 1Clywedog {{Wales-river-stub