Seion, Cwmaman is a Welsh
Baptist church, originally established in 1859. The chapel closed in 2013 but the church still meets at another location in the village.
Early history
The church dates from the early days of
Cwmaman
Cwmaman () is a former coal mining village near Aberdare, Wales. The name is Welsh for "Aman Valley" and the River Aman flows through the village. Cwmaman literally means: valley of the river Aman. It lies in the valley of several mountains. ...
as a mining community. The first prayer meetings are said to have been held at the house of a John Weeks in Fforchaman Road and were mainly attended by members of
Gwawr, Aberaman
Gwawr, Aberaman was a Baptist chapel in Regent Street, Aberaman, near Aberdare, South Wales, formed as a branch of Calfaria, Aberdare
Early history
Gwawr was formed in 1848 and the earliest meeting were held at the King William Inn, Cardiff Road, ...
.
The chapel was built in 1858–9, largely by the members themselves, and cost £300.
It was rebuilt in 1870 at a cost of £425 and again in 1891 at a cost of £1,787.
The first ministers were Ebenezer Morgan (1859–64) and T. T. Davies (1864–66).
The Pastorate of Thomas Humphreys
In 1868
Thomas Humphreys became the minister, and served until 1910. He baptised 1,700 members during his 42-year tenure and died in 1911. Humphreys was a founder member of
Aberdare Urban District Council
Aberdare Urban District Council was a local authority in Aberdare, Wales.
History
It was created in 1894 as a result of the 1894 Local Government of England and Wales Act and the 1894 Aberdare Urban District Council election saw the election of ...
and a trustee of
Cwmaman Public Hall.
The 1904-05 revival had a profound impact at Seion, with many attenders who had been present as listeners for decades becoming full members of the church.,
Humphreys was succeeded by W.R. Lewis, who remained until 1914 when he moved to Hill Park Chapel,
Haverfordwest
Haverfordwest (, ; cy, Hwlffordd ) is the county town of Pembrokeshire, Wales, and the most populous urban area in Pembrokeshire with a population of 14,596 in 2011. It is also a community, being the second most populous community in the county, ...
.
The Pastorate of S.J. Leeke
On 14 February 1916, S. J. Leeke was ordained minister of Seion.
Leeke was a native of Talybont, Cardiganshire and trained for the ministry at the
South Wales Baptist College, Cardiff.
He began his ministry at the Public Hall after the chapel was severely damaged by a storm in January of that year.
Later history
After S.J. Leeke departed for Brynamman in 1925, Seion was without a minister for four years. D. Myrddin Davies commenced his ministry in 1929 and remained for seven years before moving to Bethel,
Aberystwyth.
T. Jones-Evans was minister from 1927 until 1943, when he moved to Calfaria, Login, in
Carmarthenshire
Carmarthenshire ( cy, Sir Gaerfyrddin; or informally ') is a county in the south-west of Wales. The three largest towns are Llanelli, Carmarthen and Ammanford. Carmarthen is the county town and administrative centre. The county is known as ...
.
Harding G. Rees served from 1944 to 1955 and was succeeded by Garfield Eynon in 1956. During Eynon's ministry the church celebrated its centenary. Eynon moved to
Ebenezer, Ammanford in 1962.
John Lewis was minister during the 1970s but moved to Drefach (Carmarthenshire) in 1978.
The last minister at Seion was Gwilym Davies, who was inducted as minister of Seion together with Hengoed, Bryn Seion (Ystrad Mynach) and
Noddfa (Ynysybwl) in 1986.
Seion remained an active church until the early 21st century.
References
Bibliography
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External links
Entry at Coflein
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Chapels in Rhondda Cynon Taf