The iron from Pentyrch was initially transported to Melingriffith tin plate works using pack horses then "Tub" boats were used on the river Taff passing onto the feeder through a lock at Radyr Weir, parts of this lock can be seen alongside the feeder sluice.  In 1815 the "Tub" boats were discontinued and a tramway constructed from Pentyrch along the West bank of the Taff to a new bridge at Gelynis Farm then it followed the East bank to the Melingriffith Works.  Horse drawn trams were used on it until 1871 when it was converted into a railway, and then used two saddle-tank locomotives until the works closed in October 1957. The Melingriffith works had two saddle-tank type steam locomotives.  The one used most often was called Emerald Isle with green paint and brass that was always shining.  The engine would bring loaded wagons of tin plate from the works to the mainline at Pentyrch sidings. The other engine was called Queen Charlotte. Another photo of the Emerald Isle.

The oldest building in Forest Farm is the farmhouse itself. During major building works in 1984, the remains of a major wooden "cruck" were found, suggesting the present structure dates from the 16th century AD. However, people have been working this land for at least a thousand years. The farmhouse walls are made from stones from the River Taff, 150 metres away. They're painted with white "lime wash", a traditional material.
From 1790 onwards, the farm was closely linked to the iron and tinplate industry locally. Most of the local woods had been cut down to produce charcoal for use in industry. Farmers then produced vegetables and some cereal crops, and sometimes kept pigs and cattle. Workers at the Melingriffith Tin Plate Works nearby lived alongside the farmers. At the end of the 19th century, there were ten houses on Forest Farm, but only the farmhouse itself survives today.
In the 1930s, the farm became a successful dairy, with a milk delivery round, and a shop in the nearby village of Whitchurch. The dairy may have been the first to use an electric vehicle to deliver milk in Wales. But by 1939, and the advent of war, vegetable production was more important. The river Taff flooded the farm fields regularly until the 1960s, producing good soil for this "market gardening".
Regular farming ended here in 1979. The last tenant farmers - the Thomas Family, who still live locally - were growing vegetables and keeping a dairy herd. From 1981 onwards, Cardiff Council and the conservation charity BTCV Cymru have been developing the site as a conservation centre at the heart of Forest Farm Country Park and Nature Reserve.

There was a boy around the corner at Heol Penlan who used to keep pigeons, I suppose for racing but I suspect because he enjoyed their company. I used to envy his many friends- always rushing home to see him. On the odd occasion Jeffrey, came out to play with the rest of us. He was not what you would call a regular. His parents were Anglo-Indian and he was brought up in a very proper household. They did not approve of the way that the rest of us were allowed to run around wild and unsupervised and his few associations with us did nothing to dispel their fears. This day he, I and maybe a few others went off to the rubbish tip on one of our regular salvage expeditions Now and again we would find something useful like old pram wheels, a bit of timber, nuts and bolts etc. The place really stank and it was necessity that drove us there as we could not get our materials elsewhere. We had so many things to make and so few materials. It was necessary to wear Wellington boots to the tip as it was generally covered in a thick layer of stinking rotting refuse, mud and water. I would imagine it was something like the Western Front, the mud was so thick that often we would get stuck in it and need to be helped out, just like in the trenches. The worst thing to happen was to fall in it and the second was for the water to overflow into your wellies- no matter how many times they were flushed out you could not get rid of the smell. The rubbish tip is now a playing field, walk trail and bike track at the end of Ty Mawr Road on the Taff side of the railway. In those days it was a derelict farm, an allotment and overgrown field. On this day we did not find any materials of note although I found a black Bakelite desk light, the type you would pay perhaps $200 for today in an antique shop. Anyway it was not the best of days so we went for a walk ending up having a rest on the grass verge by the Westbourne Road flats. I did not mention that Jeffrey Herbert was quite a bit bigger than me and at least a year older. Now Jeffrey decided that he wanted the desk light. I on the other hand was prepared to defend my right to ownership. A favourite expression of the time was “finders keepers” that generally led to few disputes. I was quite taken aback by this sudden claim so squared off and prepared my defence. Around and around we went, every time he made a grab I swung the light in his direction and made it quite clear that the light was mine and there was no way I was going to give it up. Suddenly he made a massive lunge and caught me by the shirt, at the same time I brought the light down with a sickening blow on his head. Apart from the top that I still held in my hand the rest of the light had shattered into hundreds of pieces. It left a large gash on the top of his head from which the blood started to flow in a torrent. At this stage I realised that his need was greater than mine. I told him that I did not realize that he wanted the light so much and if it would make him feel any better he could keep it. That night Mrs. Herbert came knocking on our door. She had hold of Jeffrey by the ear hole and it looked as if his head had been bandaged in a pillow. Luckily, my mother answered the door and was able to smooth things over so even though our relationship was strained for a while we still remained good friends and spent many memorable times together.

Citation London Gazette 28th Sept 1900 "On 26th June 1900 at Lindley, a piquet of the Yorkshire Light Infantry was surrounded on 3 sides by about 500 Boers at close quarters.  The two officers were wounded and all but six of the men killed or wounded.  Pt. Ward then volunteered to take a message asking for reinforcements to the signalling station about 150 yards in the rear of the post. His offer was at first refused owing to the practical certainty of him being shot, but on his insisting, he was allowed to go.  He got across untouched through a storm of shots from each flank and, having delivered his message, he voluntarily returned from a place of absolute safety and re crossed the fire swept ground to assure his C.O. that the message had been sent.  On this occasion he was severely wounded.  But for this gallant action the post would certainly have been captured."

Charles Burley Ward's grave, following his death in 1921, was originally marked by a wooden cross which had been remembered by David Clark, a member of the Glamorgan Family History Society, before it disappeared.  For some years there was no indication of the burial place. Eventually John O'Sullivan a South Wales Echo and BBC Journalist and a recent resident in the Parish, carried out extensive enquiries in tracing records of the VC and his history.  Charles Ward was decorated with the Victoria Cross by H.M. Queen Victoria at Windsor Castle 15th December 1900.  His was the last Victoria Cross to be presented by the Queen before her death the following January.

As a result of considerable effort by John O'Sullivan, the British Legion, Whitchurch and others, a series of events were arranged to mark the unveiling of a War Grave Commission style headstone to the memory of Sgt. Major Charles Burley Ward.  Following a processional hymn, National Anthem, citation, lesson, address and prayers, the headstone was unveiled by Major General P.E. de la C. de la Billiere, CBE, DSO, KC., General Officer Commanding Wales.  Also present were Mrs Susan Williams, Lord Lieutenant of South Glamorgan, Capt. Lloyd-Edwards, OSt.J, RD, DL, RKR(Rtd), former Lord Mayor of Cardiff, Councillor Y.P. Herbert, Deputy Lord Mayor, Rev. Canon F.G. Turner, Vicar, Mr Eddie Chapman, VC. Another VC of South Wales, Lord Justice Tasker Watkins was unable to be present due to another engagement.  About twenty members of Ward's family including a daughter Mrs Edith Chapman from Australia were present.  Mr Ward was a widower when he married a second time. At the time of his death he was living at Soberton Avenue, off Whitchurch Road, Cardiff.  After the ceremony in St Mary's churchyard, there was a march past led by the Light Infantry Burma Band, followed by Standard Bearers and Escorts when the salute was taken by General de la Billiere.   In the evening there was a reception and entertainment at the Royal British Legion Earl Haig Club, Whitchurch, when a portrait of Sgt. Major Ward VC by Llanrumney artist Ray Chick was unveiled.

I was born in October 1933 at No. 7, New Houses, Melingriffith. The houses were condemned about this time, and we all moved out in 1935, along with Sunny Bank.  I don't remember living there, but my mother told me stories about the houses. They were 'two up and two down', rents were four shillings and a ha'penny, and the fronts were called the Bailey; this made Melingriffith a bit unique, as it had three Baileys.  She liked the summer days; people passing, especially cricketers on a Saturday afternoon, would stop and have a chat.  Not long after my parents moved there we had a nasty fire; my mother had been ironing, and forgot the iron.  It was the cricketers who ran from the Sports field and helped put it out; some received money, as they had ruined their 'whites'!  She didn't like the nights there as my father worked nights a lot in the works; so my auntie, Lorna Pudge, came to live with us for company.  She hated the 'black pats', as she called them, who came out as soon as it got dusk, and covered the walls and ceiling.  She also told me of a huge spider that came out most evenings along the picture rail; she, or my Dad, could not kill it, but the day I was born it never came again! Who am I?  She also told me that the women fetched the water from the well more than the men, as they would hitch their skirts up; the men would get their trousers wet unless they wore wellies, as the water gushed out at that time. It was always really cold, even on the hottest days.  She told me it was a job getting to sleep, as you could hear the mice running around in the attic.  One night they could hear 'clink, clink, clink'.  Dad lit the lamp, and there was a mouse running around a mug with a spoon in it.  Dad was head boy of the 'cold rolls' at fourteen; he then became foreman, and after the death of Mr Ivor Mercy he was made foreman of the Tinplate works until it closed in 1957.  By the way, the well is still there.  I've tried several times to get it cleaned out and re-built, but to no avail - a lone voice; perhaps if we all got together, something could be done.  It's well worth saving, as it's from the 18th century, believed to have been built by the Harfords, along with Sunny Bank and New Houses.  Finally, a famous sportsman Jack Peterson, Heavy Weight champ of Wales who was friendly with my Dad would often break his run and pop in for a few minutes and juggle me about on his knees as you do with toddlers.

The house in which our family lived between 1938 and 1945 was known as 16 Heol-y-Gors.  It has since been re-numbered and I cannot remember the new number.  I spoke to the current owner, and major improvements have been made to the house over the intervening years.  For example, the wall between the 'front room' and the living room has been torn down which has dramatically changed the living area.  The whole house is in excellent shape after 65 years.  The school was Whitchurch Secondary School in those days.  I wish I had better memories of that place.  As I recall, most of the teachers at that time were bullies and not nice at all.  One day, walking into the geography room, a fellow student said to me that this was the only class he was not afraid to attend.  I agreed with him.  Most of those teachers had tongues like adders, and could cut a 14 year old child to pieces with their tongues.  I finished my schooling in Birmingham and got my matriculation there.  I don't think I would have passed my exams had I stayed at Whitchurch Secondary.  During my visit, I went to take a photo of the boys school, but it had gone.  Talking to a gentleman at the site he said that he used to go to that school as well, but he was a couple of years younger than me so we did not figure that we had met before.   We talked about 'Bertie Hill' and some of the other teachers. Apparently there was a bit of trouble about the demolition of the school.  The building should not have been torn down as it had something to do with a local church.  I remember that Ash Wednesday used to be a holiday for us.  A very sweet holiday, because all the other schools were still open and we had the day off.  The Rialto Cinema has also disappeared.  In its place are some new houses know as Rialto Court.  So the name lives on.  Saturday afternoon matinees at tuppence per person were hugely popular.  Films featured serials with Buck Rogers, Flash Gordon, etc, and various western cowboys.  At the intermission between films, a lucky ticket number was called out.  One week I won a jigsaw puzzle, one of the few prizes I have ever won in my whole life (so far!). So apart from the secondary school, Whitchurch was a great place to live.  Your photographs certainly brought back many memories.  They also made me realise how much one can forget. Somewhere on your page, a reference is made to the American tent camp on the Common just before D-Day.  It was not really a tent camp.  It was a military hospital, and all the tents were hospital wards and other facilities.  Most of the tents were lined with white cloth of some kind.  Much of the soldiers time was spent practicing the erection and taking down of the tents.  It was not unusual to see nothing on the Common on the way to school in the morning, have half the Common covered with tents at lunch time, and have them all packed away by 4 o'clock.  The soldiers were billeted with the local population.  We had two staying in our 'front room'.  One of them was the sergeant cook!  He came from Waverley, Missouri, and the other from St. Louis.  Both very fine people who luckily survived the war.

MEMORIES OF WHITCHURCH by Alan Welfoot

I have nearly 20 years' worth of memories of Whitchurch, having moved there with my parents from Lansdowne Avenue West, Canton in 1948 aged 4, until I got married in 1967 and moved to the Isle of Wight. We lived in or behind Manor Way on a 2-acre smallholding known as 100A Manor Way. Prior to our moving in, 100A had been known as “The Pavilion”, being the location of the Whitchurch Tennis Club, and our bungalow was the pavilion for the club. There were what appeared to have been several marked out tarmac tennis courts on one side of the land, and more on the other side. We had a large wooden cabin alongside the bungalow which apparently was put there by a former owner, a retired sea captain, and which had been removed from his ship, complete with leather-strop-operated windows, like the old train windows used to be. He had also installed two gigantic flag poles which we put to use to create a double clothes line. Access to our property was via a narrow footpath entrance from Manor Way between numbers 100 and 102, and a driveway exiting on to Keynsham Road. My father was Alf Welfoot who tried his hand at many trades, including poultry farming, egg production, market gardening for dahlias, tomatoes and general vegetable produce, and towards the end of his life he developed a love for fuchsias and was the Treasurer of the South Wales Fuchsia Society. During all this time he also held down full time jobs, firstly as a postman, and then at Guest Keen Iron and Steel (GKIS) as a carbometer operator. My sister Joan went to Howells School and later worked in the City Hall. Our bungalow was finally demolished to make way for three houses which now occupy the site, although I have never gone back to see what it looks like.
 

I started my schooling in 1948 at Glan-y-Nant infants’ school, which I assume is still there but now called Eglwys Newydd Primary School, in Glan-y-Nant Road. From there I went to Eglwys Newydd Junior School in Ty’ n-y-Pwll Road until 1956. In those days we took the 11-plus, and depending on our results we went on to either Whitchurch Grammar School if we passed with high enough marks, Penarth Grammar School if we had slightly lower marks but still passed, or if we 'did less well' in the 11-plus we were sent to Whitchurch Secondary Modern School. I didn’t gain sufficient marks for Whitchurch Grammar but passed with just enough to scrape into Penarth Grammar. So I was in the 1956 group who spent the next 5 to 7 years at Penarth. I enclose a photo of the Class 5A of 1955, led by Mr. Lewis Conybeare, which is almost identical to the photo, posted by Pat Roberts, of Class 5B of the same year led by Mr. Sunderland. You will notice the damp marks on the playground are identical, so the 2 photos must have been taken within minutes of each other! I have attempted to name some of the pupils in the photo, but I am now of a certain age and allowed to forget the odd name! Please forgive me if I have transposed any names, I am sure someone will correct any errors. So I would be very pleased to be contacted by anyone who could fill in some of the gaps, and indeed to be contacted by anyone who remembers me.

I understand that the old school was demolished in the 1980's to make way for a block of flats, and that there was some controversy over the action because it was a church school. Sadly much too late now. In our class of 5A in our final year our form master was Mr. Lewis Conybeare, and other teachers I remember were Messrs Kemp, Sunderland, and James. I also enclose photos of Mr. Conybeare, Mr. James and Mr. Thomas, the headmaster. These photos were taken on a school trip to the Elan Valley Dams, and I also have posted photos of 2 pupils who went on the same trip - Terry Jones and Raymond Durnell. I have photos of other Whitchurch school pals, but they were taken at Penarth Grammar School so I shall only post those if someone wants to see them - but they are mainly of Whitchurch people, some from Rhiwbina and others from Penarth.

There were no catering facilities at the school so dinner breaks entailed a daily "double file" excursion along the road to St Francis Road, where there was a canteen within some sort of Social Club, and I can remember seeing posters on the notice board for Whist Drives, so it may have been a W.I. hall or community centre. I cannot recall dreading going there each day, so the meals were probably acceptable to an 8 to 10-year-old!  A fantastic school with teachers who, at the time, seemed strict, but I think that was very much to our benefit and their teaching has survived in my attitudes to life to this day.

Some of the people I remember from those days include Robert Bennett from Plas-y-Llan, who moved to Gabalfa with his parents and now lives in Earl Shilton, Leicestershire, and with whom I am still in touch, but I have lost contact with everyone else. The names I remember are Terry Jones and Raymond Durnell, the latter sadly deceased at the age of 34 in 1978, Russell Davies from Westfield Road, Alan Hogg from Ash Grove, Terry Holland, David Lewis, Geoffrey Upsdell, Roy Priday, Ceri Lewis, Stewart Hadley, Melvyn and Mervyn Griffiths, Graham Usher, Michael Wedlake, Phillip Stilliard, Kenneth Humble, Peter Bailey, Rhodri Jones and a few who passed for Penarth Grammar the same year as myself - Ivor Gerrish, Greg Rogers, Raymond Singleton from Caedelyn Road, and Ricky Freer-Huish.

Other names I recall but not associated with Eglwys Newydd school were Richard Salman, Peter Powell of Keynsham Road, John Cox of Caegwyn Road, Keith Fuller of Westfield Road, John Coombs of Heol-y-Waun, now sadly deceased, Gillian and Jennifer Crosling of Pantbach Road, and Alan Spear who lived next to the shop in Manor Way. Also those that I remember from Whitchurch who also went to Penarth Grammar during the same years as myself were Douglas Corp, Gerald Jones, Colin Wigmore, Marjorie Perriam, Anne Stephens of Kelston Road, and Owen Saunders of Rhiwbina.

In my early days in Manor Way, I used to ride my Mobo mechanical horse at the age of 6 across Manor Way to visit the shop opposite! Try doing that today! Manor Way led into Ash Grove beyond the roundabout just past Whitchurch Secondary School, and Ash Grove ended at the point where the road went over the railway line at Whitchurch Station; it just ended in a stony unmade track and there was a stile which led to Whitchurch Golf Course. The no. 39 bus had its terminus there, by Caedelyn Road. Manor Way itself was incredibly quiet and the most exciting thing to happen there was new sodium street lighting which everyone complained about because it was too bright! Nobody thought it would ever be changed from a cul-de-sac to one of the busiest roads in Wales, the A470. Things got infinitely worse of course when the M4 junction came along, although some would say it brought London closer. It certainly made the traffic sound closer! I think all the properties along Manor Way were given an allowance to have double glazing fitted. Before all those changes Manor Way was a peaceful cul-de-sac, and I can remember Alan Penrose with his mobile grocery store. There was a shop almost opposite the entrance to our house, and our milkman Mr. Price had a dairy in Kyle Crescent. The Manor Way central reservations were grassed  and the gaps occurred at every junction with the side roads (see Photo 0804). There were no traffic lights of course, and certainly no parking restrictions.

We spent many happy Saturday mornings at the Monico and Rialto cinemas, and occasionally even ventured as far as the Tivoli on our bikes. We mainly hung about in the little footpaths that strung between the houses in Caegwyn Road and Kyle Crescent, and Manor Rise, probably making nuisances of ourselves but not noticing that at the time! The brook between the schools was also a favourite haunt as was the recreation ground behind the library and Caedelyn Fields was great for kite-flying!

Many thanks for a fantastic website - I appreciate how much hard work goes into designing and maintaining such a well-organised website as yours is.  If anyone remembers me and would like to renew old acquaintance, please email me at awelfoot@onwight.net and I would be very pleased to hear from any old school pal.

Alan Welfoot.

LLANDAFF NORTH HONOUR 50 CAPS 23 Mar 2004 15:46

Llandaff North R.F.C. honoured five of their under 16 girl players on Thursday 18th March by presenting them with Club Caps.  These were awarded for playing more than 50 games either in Llandaff North colours or playing representative rugby for District, Regional and even National level.  The Players were (L to R) Flanker Hayley Feehan, Scrum Half Jody Taylor, Outside Half & Captain Kirsty Lewis, Wing Colette Charles and their longest serving player Prop Roxy Lewis.  Also pictured is Club Chairman Paul Ford.  Paul went on to say,  “This is a great achievement for the girls and it shows the level of commitment they have to each other, the team and the club.”   The presentation was made after the game with Chinguscousy School, who are an U-19 side on tour from Canada. Llandaff North came out on top winning 34-0.    

THE TIMES 4 April 1788
Sunday, two young men at Whitchurch, near Cardiff, out of a frolic, one laid a
wager, that the other could not open, by the force of throwing his arm, a dart
knife; which he accepted, and succeeded; but unfortunately struck it in his
thigh, which cutting an artery, he bled to death in about four hours.