Pontymoile (Welsh: ''Pont-y-moel'') is a

suburb A suburb (more broadly suburban area) is an area within a metropolitan area, which may include commercial and mixed-use, that is primarily a residential area. A suburb can exist either as part of a larger city/urban area or as a separate ...

Pontypool Pontypool ( cy, Pont-y-pŵl ) is a town and the administrative centre of the county borough of Torfaen, within the historic boundaries of Monmouthshire in South Wales. It has a population of 28,970. Location It is situated on the Afon Lwyd ri ...

in Torfaen,

South Wales South Wales ( cy, De Cymru) is a loosely defined region of Wales bordered by England to the east and mid Wales to the north. Generally considered to include the historic counties of Glamorgan and Monmouthshire, south Wales extends westwards ...

. It is all but merged with the nearby

s of

Cwmynyscoy Cwmynyscoy is a suburb of Pontypool in Torfaen, South Wales. Statistics *All figures quoted have been derived from the 2001 Census unless otherwise stated. Demographic Indicators Total population of 1283 (Torfaen 90,949) 48.6% Male, 51.4% F ...

and Upper Race. It is a community of Torfaen, and includes the

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 ...

s of Brynwern,

, and

of Torfaen County Borough Council. Pontymoile is directly south of Pontypool and is bordered by Griffithstown to the south and

New Inn New Inn - ( cy, Y Dafarn Newydd) - is a village and community directly south east of Pontypool, within the County Borough of Torfaen in Wales, within the historic boundaries of Monmouthshire. It had a population of 5,986 at the 2011 Census. L ...

to the east. It lies within the historic county of Monmouthshire and the preserved county of Gwent. Historically it was called ''Llanvihangel-Point-y-moile'' (Welsh: ''Llanfihangel-Pont-y-moel''). It contains a mixture of traditional

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...

terraced houses, early Edwardian townhouses and modern 1960s flats and local authority housing. Pontymoile is spread across a large area and so is home to much of Pontypool's facilities including West Monmouth School, Coleg Gwent's Pontypool campus, the

Pontymoile Basin Pontymoile Basin is a mooring point and canal junction on the Monmouthshire & Brecon Canal. Location The basin lies on the Pontypool stretch of the Monmouthshire & Brecon Canal in the Pontypool suburb of Pontymoile in the county borough of T ...

on the

Monmouthshire & Brecon Canal The Monmouthshire and Brecon Canal ( cy, Camlas Sir Fynwy a Brycheiniog) is a small network of canals in South Wales. For most of its currently (2018) navigable length it runs through the Brecon Beacons National Park, and its present rural ch ...

as well as St. Matthew's

Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...

Church and the nondenominational Pontymoile Christian Mission on Rockhill Road. Pontymoile had its own primary school. The area has a small selection of shops and public houses.

Pontymoile Gates

The Pontymoile entrance to Pontypool Park was the original entrance leading to the house owned by the Hanbury Family. Pontymoile Gates (Welsh: ''Giatiau Pont-y-moel'') are Grade II*,

Cadw (, a Welsh verbal noun meaning "keeping/preserving") is the historic environment service of the Welsh Government and part of the Tourism and Culture group. works to protect the historic buildings and structures, the landscapes and heritage s ...

-listed fine metal gates that are known locally as the ''Sally'' gates. Sally was the nickname for the Duchess of Marlborough who presented them to the Hanbury family in thanks for their assistance in the execution of her late husband's will. Pontymoile Gates Pontypool Park Gates

Research has determined that the columns and gates date from around the mid-19th century, but were later added to (the addition of dog bars) to allow larger carriages and motorized traffic to enter the park. A report taken from the Pontypool Free Press in 1933 states that the gate's specifications were designed by T. E. Deakin in July 1835. Of particular interest are the vines on the pillars and bunches of grapes that would originally have been gilded, as were some acanthus leaves and finials on the gates. It is thought the original colour of the gates may have been green, maroon or a blue colour popular at the time.

Redevelopment

Two distinct phases of road building have affected the Pontymoile area. During the early 1980s an extension to

A472 List of A roads in zone 4 in Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European isla ...

was built (diverting traffic away from Griffithstown and

). This ended opposite the Pontymoile Mission and the area quickly became a traffic bottle-neck as the dual-carriageway A472 filtered into a one way system. Further redevelopment took place in the late 1990s to eradicate this bottle-neck when a new flyover on the A472 road was constructed to allow traffic to easily pass either into or by Pontypool town centre. This resulted in many buildings being demolished (including the original Pontymoile Mission, the railway viaduct and closure of the Prince of Wales public house). The development also resulted in a new road system to West Monmouth School and Coleg Gwent's Pontypool campus.

References

External links

www.geograph.co.uk : photos of Pontymoile and surrounding area
{{Torfaen Suburbs of Pontypool Communities in Torfaen Electoral wards of Torfaen