Llangollen, Denbighshire, Wales Genealogy

Llangollen is a small town and ecclesiastical parish in Denbighshire, Wales, situated on the banks of the River Dee and on the edge of the Berwyn mountains.

History
Llangollen takes its name from St. Collen, a 7th century monk who founded a church besides the river here. St Collen is said to have arrived in Llangollen by coracle. It is thought that this St. Collen may also have connections in both St. Collen, in Cornwall and Langolen, in Brittany.

Standing high above the town to the north is Castell Dinas Brân, the former stronghold of the Princes of Powys.

Valle Crucis (Welsh: Glyn y Groes) Abbey was established in nearby Llangwestl in about 1201, under the patronage of Madog ap Gruffydd Maelor of Castell Dinas Brân.

The bridge across the River Dee in the centre of at Llangollen was built in about 1345 by John Trevor, of nearby Trevor Hall.

On the outskirts of the town is Plas Newydd, where The Honourable Sarah Ponsonby and Lady Eleanor Butler, the Ladies of Llangollen lived.

Llangollen was an important coaching stop for the mail coach on the old mail route along the A5 road from London to Holyhead.

The ancient parish of Llangollen was divided into three treanau ("trean" being the Welsh for "third"):


 * Llangollen Traean contained the townships of Bachau, Cysylltau, Llangollen Abad, Llangollen Fawr, Llangollen Fechan, Feifod, Pengwern and Rhisgog.
 * Trefor Traean contained the townships of Cilmediw, Dinbren, Eglwysegl, Trefor Isaf and Trefor Uchaf.
 * Glyn Traean contained the townships of Cilcochwyn, Crogeniddon, Crogenwladus, Erwallo, Hafodgynfor, Nantygwryd, Pennant and Talygarth.

Llangollen was predominantly a farming and agricultural area. Most of the farms in the hills around the town would have been involved in sheep farming and weaving was an important cottage industry in the area for centuries. Several factories were later built along the banks of the River Dee where both wool and cotton were processed. Today Llangollen relies heavily on the tourist industry.

The Ellesmere Canal was intended to connect the coal mines and ironworks at Ruabon and Wrexham to the canal network and then to the sea via the River Mersey and the River Severn. A feeder branch to Llangollen) was constructed from the canal at Trevor to tap water from the River Dee at Llantysilio (at the weir called "Horseshoe Falls"). This canal eventually became part of the Shropshire Union System. The Llangollen Canal today is a major tourist attraction.

The railway had been extended from Ruabon, via Acrefair and Trevor, to reach Llangollen by 1865. Eventually the completed Ruabon-Barmouth line later became part of the Great Western Railway but, one hundred year later, the line was closed in 1964. However, part of the line was later restored and now operates as the Llangollen Railway, another important local tourist attraction.

The town of Llangollen is world-famous for its annual International Eisteddfod, held in July. For more information on Llangollen see:Llangollen at GENUKI

Parish Chest
Vestry minutes (DATES) are at the [URL ARCHIVE].

Church warden accounts (DATES) are at the [URL ARCHIVE].

Tithe Records
The tithe agreement date for Llangollen was DATE.

Nonconformist Chapel Records
XXXX-XXXX denotes that the information has not been compiled yet.

Civil Registration
The Civil Registration District for Llangollen is DATES AND NAMES CIV REG.

Poor Law Unions
Visit the England and Wales Poor Law Records page for more information.

Maps and Gazetteers

 * Llangollen at Geograph
 * Llangollen at Vision of Britain

Websites

 * Llangollen Parish Church at Clwyd FHS
 * Llangollen Parish Church at CPAT
 * Llangollen War Memorial at Clwyd FHS
 * Llangollen International Eisteddfod
 * Llangollen Railway
 * Llangollen Museum