Port Talbot

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Port Talbot Aberafan/Porth Talbot

Coordinates: 51.59055° N 3.79859° W
Population	49,654
OS grid reference	SS755895
Principal area	Neath Port Talbot
Ceremonial county	West Glamorgan
Constituent country	Wales
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	PORT TALBOT
Postcode district	SA12, SA13
Dial code	01639
Police	South Wales
Fire	Mid and West Wales
Ambulance	Welsh
UK Parliament	Aberavon
European Parliament	Wales
List of places: UK • Wales • Neath Port Talbot

Port Talbot (Welsh: Aberafan or Porth Talbot) is an industrial town in the traditional county of Glamorgan, south Wales, with a population of approximately 50,000. Port Talbot is also the name of an electoral ward and a community in Neath Port Talbot county borough, which are closely related to the town.

Arms of Port Talbot

1 History
2 Future Of The Town
3 Sport
4 Education
5 Media
6 Geography
7 Transport
8 Notable Port Talbot people
9 See also
10 External links

[edit] History

The town grew out of the original small port and market town of Aberafan (English name Aberavon), which belonged to the medieval Lords of Afan. It built its wealth on the abundance of coal in the vicinity and on the abundant water available in the River Afan to power machinery and operate the docks.

The town got its new name from the Talbot family, who were related to the pioneer photographer, William Henry Fox Talbot. They were patrons of Margam Abbey, an ancient Cistercian foundation, and also built Margam Castle (1830-1839, architect: Thomas Hopper), a mock Gothic residence, now partially restored and open to the public along with the surrounding park.

Water vapour rises in front of the blast furnaces at Port Talbot Steelworks

Christopher Rice Mansel Talbot (1803-1890) was a wealthy landowner (and Liberal Member of Parliament for Glamorgan from 1830 until his death) who saw the potential of his property as a site for an extensive ironworks, which opened in early 1831. (This was just part of the industrialisation taking place across south Wales then; copper had been smelted at Neath since 1584, there were tinworks and ironworks at Pontardawe, and Swansea was developing into a world centre of metal-working.) CRM Talbot was also chairman and a major shareholder of the South Wales Railway.

His only son Theodore died in 1876 following a hunting accident. It was therefore his daughter Emily Charlotte Talbot (1840-1918) who inherited her father's fortune and became just as notable in the development of ports and railways. With assistance from engineers Charles Meik and Patrick Meik she set about creating a port and railway system to attract business away from Cardiff and Swansea. The Port Talbot Railway and Dock Company opened a dock at Port Talbot and the Llynfi Railway in 1897, followed by the Ogmore Valley Extension and the South Wales Mineral Junction Railway (almost all these lines were closed as part of the Beeching Axe cuts in the mid 1960s, but some bridges and viaducts remain). By 1900, the dock was exporting over 500,000 tons of coal; it reached a peak of over three million tons in 1923.

During the early twentieth century, the docks and Port Talbot Steelworks attracted considerable investment, and this was followed by the establishment of a chemical plant at Baglan Bay by British Petroleum in the 1960s.

In 1970 a new deep-water harbour was opened by Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh. It was capable of discharging vessels of 100,000 DWT[1] each, a tenfold improvement on the old dock. By the early 21st Century, due to further modification and dredging, the harbour was capable of harbouring vessels of over 130,000 DWT.

The town saw serious decline in the late seventies and early eighties caused by the withdrawal or cutting back of major employers, especially the steel works. The borough council has been absorbed into the larger unitary authority of Neath Port Talbot.

[edit] Future Of The Town

The town has a bright future ahead of it. It is rapidly expanding thanks to local council grants and a new dual-carriageway is under construction along the site of the now-defunct old part of the Corus steel works. The town centre itself has had numerous facelifts, as well as the promenade and beach front in Sandfields being totally renovated, with a new entertainment complex planned for 2007.

[edit] Sport

Sporting teams in town include Aberavon Rugby Club (founded in 1876)who play in the Rugby Union Welsh Premier Division and Aberavon Quins RFC, Aberavon Green Stars club who play in the Rugby League Conference, and footballing clubs Afan Lido F.C., Port Talbot Town F.C. who compete in the League of Wales, and also the Second Division Welsh Champions Goytre United F.C.

[edit] Education

There are five comprehensive schools situated within the Port Talbot area: Dyffryn, Glanafan, St Joseph's R.C., Cymmer Afan and Sandfields.

[edit] Media

In 2005 the area was granted its first dedicated radio station when Afan 107, a local group - [2] - were awarded a 5 year Community FM Radio licence to serve Port Talbot and its neighbouring town of Neath. It will broadcast a "music-based information service" targeting young people aged 11-25.

[edit] Geography

The town is built along the eastern rim of Swansea Bay with Swansea being located on the opposite side. The beach along the edge of the bay is known as Aberavon Sands which are protected from erosion by a groyne at the mouth of the River Afan. The north eastern edge of the town is marked by the River Neath. Arguably, the most famous landmark in the town is is the Port Talbot Steelworks.

[edit] Transport

Port Talbot is served by the South Wales Main Line at Port Talbot Parkway railway station where there are direct Inter-City trains to Swansea, Cardiff and London. Port Talbot bus station, located adjacent to the Aberafan Centre in the centre of the town is the main bus transport hub in the town. It is a National Express stop. Local bus services are provided by First Cymru. The bus station's layout is very distinctive for the fact that buses always have to perform a 270° clockwise turn to exit the station.

The M4 Motorway cuts through the town from south east to north west, crossing a central area on a concrete viaduct. Junctions 38 to 41 serve Port Talbot with junctions 40 and 41 being in the commercial heart of the town. This busy urban stretch of the M4, with tight bends, narrow lanes, short narrow slip roads and concrete walls on both sides has a speed limit of 50mph enforced with speed cameras in both directions.

[edit] Notable Port Talbot people

(in alphabetical order)

Actor and comedian Rob Brydon was brought up in Baglan, Port Talbot.
Richard Burton was born in nearby Pontrhydyfen as Richard Jenkins and had is early education in Port Talbot where he met his mentor Philip H. Burton.
Anthony Hopkins was born and raised in Margam, Port Talbot.
Politician Geoffrey Howe was born in Port Talbot in 1926 and spent his early years there. When he was made a life peer in 1992 he chose the title Baron Howe of Aberavon.
Michael Locke, aka 'Pancho' of TV series Dirty Sanchez, was born and raised in Baglan, Port Talbot.
Dic Penderyn was born as Richard Lewis in Aberavon in 1803, in the centre of what is now Port Talbot but before the town was named as such in 1840. He is buried at St.Mary's Church [3] in the centre of the town.He was convicted of assault on a army officer and executed.
Welsh actor Michael Sheen was born in Newport but he was brought up in Port Talbot.
George Thomas, 1st Viscount Tonypandy was born in Tydraw Street, Port Talbot.
Painter Andrew Vicari was born in Port Talbot.
Terry Allen - a Welsh-Scottish comedian resides in Port Talbot. His style is based on Billy Connolly