your comments
Rhian Samuel Cowbridge
I am doing my family tree and trying to find a picture of my husbands great Grandfather can you help?Penry Samuel born 1859 Cwmprophit DisserthHe was a wheelright and moved to merthyr in 1895 ish.He was the son of William and Ann Samuel who married in Bettws Disserth.
Thu Nov 26 14:27:26 2009
Billy Lloyd, Rhayader
To G Thomas of Merthyr. I too knew your uncle Jim and aunty Betty of the elan village. Betty taught me in the elan village school, where a mrs Commo was headmistress. mrs Commos sons still live in the village. Your couson Chris Price also went to school there and also attended Builth Wells Comp School, he was the only son of Jim and Betty. I last heard of Chris Price as a retired librarian,living in Brecon.I also believed his daughter ran the Vulcan Arms,south of rhayader, before emegrating to New Zealand.
Fri Aug 7 14:59:37 2009
Andrew Nichols (Lichfield)
My late mother's cousin was Wing Commander Guy, Penrose, Gibson (Dambusters 617 Sqdn)
Mon Jul 6 13:19:23 2009
Clive Smith late of 8 Elan village
To G Thomas of MerthyrI knew your uncle jim your aunty betty was your mothers sister who i also knew and your dad tell them i am ernie and gwen smith son now living in swansea I am 74yrs now
Mon Jun 22 15:37:09 2009
G Thomas Merthyr
My uncle jim price (wife Betty) was a water bailiff in elan valley during the 50's and 60's if anyone has any info about him or his family I'd love to know
Thu Feb 5 10:20:02 2009
Royston Morgan Nottingham
I lived in Knighton Radnorshire in the early 1950s where my Father was Postmaster. I was at the opening of the new Claerwen Dam by the Queen in 1952 and as a 10 year old had a great interest in the new pipeline being laid which came through Knighton on its way to Birmingham where I was to live a few years later. The very large water pipes arrived by rail in Knighton and were carried by lorry one at a time to the trench for laying and connecting up. We terrified ourselves as lads by walking inside the pipeline and dared each other as to who would go the furthest in and the older Boys would tell us that the water would come down the pipe! I used to have nightmares as a Child after visiting the Elan Valley and seeing the amount of water that was held back by those Dams and thinking what would happen if they burst. Nevertheless I have many happy memories of the area and the fascination of that pipeline and of course I was able to visit the end of the line at Frankley as we then lived in Quinton Birmingham which was a short cycle ride for me as a teenager.
Mon Aug 18 09:46:35 2008
Frank Greatorex, Ludlow
My mother was born in the Elan valley and was named Elan. Her father (my maternal grandfather) was named Josiah Eva and I understand he was Superintendant Stone Mason on the first project. He was from Cornwall and eventually transferred from the Pen-twyn Reservoir Pontsticill dam projects (South of Brecon) to Bartley Green, Birmingham to supervise the masonery work on the receiving storage dams there. I hope this is of interest and my apologies for any mispellings.
Wed Aug 13 14:04:32 2008
Ted Smith, New Zealand
I was a boy of 13 when the Queen opened the Claerwen Dams in Mid Wales. Her car went past our house and she waved to me!
Mon Jun 2 11:54:52 2008
Joy Cole (Nee PIKE), Australia
I would like to find some photos of my family though I know this is about impossible, grandfather Charles Pike/Pyke worked on the dams from abt 1893-1911 before he emigrated to New Zealand.His children attended school there. Names Charles, Albert, George and Elizabeth PYKE. (George and Elizabeth were born in Elan Valley.) Any relevant photos of this time would be a bonus as well.
Sun Dec 9 13:24:28 2007
Nathan Jennings
Does any one know of the Jennings family living in the huts at the time and if you do, do you know their names as I'm trying to research my family tree?
Tue Oct 30 15:53:06 2007
Gladys Eyles (Davies ) Salford
I have been tracing my father's (Benjamin Davies born 1894) family. I knew of my grandfather Benjamin Lewis Davies born 1869(Tailor by trade), as I stayed with him for a few months during WW2. Mary Cadel, his wife had died in 1937. My great grandparents Benjamin Davies born 1820, also a tailor by trade, and his wife Elizabeth Lewis who all lived in Nant Gwyllt Valley before the dams. I have a photo taken in 1901 outside Chapel House Nant Gwyllt with my grandparents and father, age six.
Mon Apr 23 16:15:52 2007
Philip Eyles
My grandfather lived in Nant Gwyllt valley and i believe his dad use to play the organ in the church there. My grandfathers name was Benjamin Stanley Davies.
Thu Jan 4 09:59:29 2007
Laura Nanney Watson
My ancestors were Nannau of Nanau, do you have anything on them?
Fri Sep 8 17:56:04 2006
Carys Horler, Loughborough - born in Bridgend
These photos have helped a lot with my local study coursework I am doing at the moment for History. It just shows that how much damage you do to the environment, it will always recover and probably looks prettier than it ever did!
Sat Oct 8 19:53:09 2005
Alan Cartwright, Norwich, Norfolk - born at Leintw
Fascinating pictures of great interest to me. Both my paternal grandfather and my father worked on the dam being constructed in the 1929/1930 period - coal pit work being unavailable in Mountain Ash they cycled together very early on a Monday morning to Rhayader and worked and lodged there during the week. My grandfather laboured and my father worked as a mason. I well recall them telling stories of the people of many nationalities who were attracted by the work to the area - not least the Irish. Subsequently my grandfather worked as a walksman on a stretch of the Birmingham Waterworks pipelines between Knighton and Downton. To complete the family interest my brother worked for a time at the dams in the late 1940/early 1950 period.
Thu Jul 21 21:36:37 2005
Clive Denton, Tredegar, Wales
These are great photos of how the Dams and the valleys looked when they were first built back in the old days. The whole of the Elan Valley has recovered from the building of the dams and the flooding of the valleys and is now in my mind one of the most spectacular nature parks in the whole of the UK. I never knew that the Merlin was a bird of prey until I went to Elan Valley and saw one flying around the hillside...
Fri Jul 1 19:32:50 2005
Joe from Newtown
The original Bethania Chapel had to be demolished to make way for the dam and a new worship place built in its place. Graves were opened and the coffins re-buried in the new location.
Fri Jul 1 11:47:06 2005
Bernadette murphy from Kent
This is a very interesting picture
Fri Jul 1 11:44:57 2005
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