Maesteg
Rising dramatically from the coastal plain, are the mountains and valleys of the Heritage Hills and at their heart, dominated by its spectacular Town Hall, is the ancient market town of Maesteg standing at the head of the Llynfi valley. The historic Town Hall has been re-furbished and now hosts a wide variety of live performances.
Maesteg’s origins can be traced back to the establishment of iron making in the late 1820’s. Concurrently with the building of the Maesteg Ironworks, the Duffryn Llynfi and Porthcawl horse drawn railway was constructed between the town and the docks at Porthcawl. Remnants of the track can still be seen on the harbour side at Porthcawl. Some ten years later the Cambrian Iron and Spelter Company set up a second ironworks at Maesteg, which after changes of ownership, became known as Llynfi Works. The necessary coal and iron-stone were obtained mainly from levels in the hills surrounding the town.
The most important benefactor to the town was Dr. John Bowring (1792-1872) who was well known nationally for his skills as a linguist and for his radical political views. He was elected to Parliament as MP for Bolton in 1841 and became associated with the iron industry in Maesteg in 1843.
As a measure of the influence of the MP, part of the Maesteg district was known as Bowrington for a number of years in the middle of the nineteenth century. The name has been revived today in the Bowrington Arcade at the corner of Neath Road and Llynfi Road. In 1844 Bowring invested heavily in the Cambrian iron and Spelter Works, which he renamed the Llynfi Iron Works. Despite fluctuating prosperity and periods of inactivity, iron remained the staple local industry for fifty years.
By 1847, Bowring and the company were in financial difficulty. The works made a loss on the years accounts, and wages were cut by 10% which in turn led to a strike, and closure of the forges. By 1848, Bowring’s five-year adventure in the iron trade led to a financial disaster.
Fortunately Bowring was offered the consulship at Canton, China, by the Foreign Secretary, Lord Palmeston and by January 1849 he sailed for China. He was knighted in 1854 and went on to become Governor of Hong Kong (1854 – 1859)
During his period as Governor, he enlarged the colony and established important commercial links with the Kingdom of Siam. Bowring left behind a larger iron works, a larger settlement and a collection of street and place names in the Valley. Today only John Street in Nantyffyllon (named after Bowring) and Charles Row in Maesteg (named after his brother) remain to recall his days in the district. The name Bowrington had given way to Maesteg by the 1870’s. Bowrington Street became Commercial Street and Upper Bowrington became part of Nantyffyllon.
One of the former ironworks of Maesteg has been carefully transformed into a superb Modern Sports Centre, while renovation works are being carried out to other blast furnaces situated on the old corn stores and elsewhere to retain the valley’s heritage.
The long years of depression after 1875, and other factors, brought about the demise of the iron making at Maesteg, the last furnace being blown out in 1886. Iron eventually gave way to ‘Black Gold’ and the Llynfi Valley has a justly proud heritage of supplying quality coal to industries that helped create and expand the vast British Empire.
By virtue of its geographical situation and the enterprise of its trade people, Maesteg has developed into one of the most important shopping centres in the county. As can be seen, this is no mushroom growth, for the town was a comparable attraction well back into the last century.
Today, using the amenities provided by modern transport, thousands of people from surrounding valleys and towns regularly buy their wares from the many modern and attractive shops that are the town’s proud boast, thus forging a link with the domestic habits of their ancestors. Maesteg serves a shopping public many times greater than its own population in the urban area.
Despite industrialisation the visitor’s first impression of Maesteg is a pleasant one. It possesses a small but attractive public park, which boasts a fine bowling green, tennis courts and playing fields. Quality playing facilities have been provided at the children’s play area of Welfare Park while the motorist is welcomed by a large and well-surfaced free car park.
Maesteg has much to offer the lover of mountain scenery and antiquities. One of the changing features of the Llynfi Valley is the growth of forestation due to the work undertaken by the Forestry Commission. This is prominent at two of the main entrances to the valley. Extensive planting in the area has transformed once barren stretches of mountain into great areas of forest providing pleasurable walking with magnificent views from every direction. Today, Maesteg is a bustling shopping experience with a daily indoor & outdoor market and a regular rail connection through beautiful scenery to the Great Western main line at Bridgend. Little imagination is required to realise why this place was named Maesteg. (The fair field)
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