Abercarn

Quality 0.50 · 0 views · Updated 2 months ago

title: "Abercarn" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["towns-in-caerphilly-county-borough", "local-government-districts-created-by-the-local-government-act-1858", "communities-in-caerphilly-county-borough"] topic_path: "general/towns-in-caerphilly-county-borough" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abercarn" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::data[format=table title="Infobox UK place"]

Field	Value
country	Wales
coordinates
official_name	Abercarn
community_wales	Abercarn
unitary_wales	Caerphilly
lieutenancy_wales	Gwent
constituency_westminster	Newport West and Islwyn
constituency_welsh_assembly	Islwyn
post_town	NEWPORT
postcode_district	NP11
postcode_area	NP
dial_code	01495
os_grid_reference	ST216947
population	5,352
population_ref	(2011 census)
module	[[File:2024 Wales Caerphilly Community Abercarn map.svg
Map of the community
::

Abercarn is a town and community in Caerphilly county borough, Wales. It is 10 miles (16 km) northwest of Newport on the A467 between Cwmcarn and Newbridge, within the historic boundaries of Monmouthshire.

History

An estate at Abercarn was owned by the ironmaster Richard Crawshay; in 1808, it passed to his son-in-law, the industrialist and politician Benjamin Hall.

The district was traditionally associated with the coal mining collieries, ironworks and tinplate works of the South Wales coalfield and South Wales Valleys, although all have now closed; the town, which lies in the middle portion of the Ebbw valley, being situated on the south-eastern flank of the once great mining region of Glamorgan and Monmouthshire.

On 11 September 1878, an underground explosion at the Prince of Wales Colliery killed 268 coal miners.

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/21/Abercarn,_High_Street.jpg" caption="Abercarn High Street"] ::

Church

St Luke's Church by John Coates Carter, a striking stone and concrete church, is now redundant. St Luke's is a Grade II* listed building, described as "one of the most strikingly original churches built in Britain between the World Wars."

Local government

The area was part of the ancient Monmouthshire parish of Mynyddislwyn until the late 19th century. In 1892 a local board of health and local government district of Abercarn was formed. This became Abercarn urban district in 1894, governed by an urban district council of twelve members. Under the Local Government Act 1972 the urban district was abolished in 1974, becoming part of the borough of Islwyn, Gwent. Further local government organisation in 1996 placed the area in the county borough of Caerphilly. The former urban district corresponds to the three communities of Abercarn, Crumlin and Newbridge.

Sport

Abercarn is home to Abercarn Rugby Club which is a member of the Welsh Rugby Union, and to Abercarn United Football Club which plays in the .

Transport

Bus

The town is served by Stagecoach South Wales services including:

X15 (from Newport to Brynmawr)
151 gold (from Newport to Blackwood Interchange)

Rail

The town is lies between Newbridge railway station and Crosskeys railway station, with the latter slightly the closer of the two. Both are approximately a four-minute drive or thirty minute walk away. The town was formerly served by Abercarn railway station, which closed to passengers in April 1962.

Military

Following the formation of the Territorial Force in 1908, the Abercarn Territorial Cadet Company was formed within the wider Army Cadet Force. Following its formation the company was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, Monmouthshire Regiment. In 1912 the company was affiliated with the new formed 1st Cadet Battalion, The Monmouthshire Regiment.

Notable people

The surgeon Sir Clement Price Thomas (1893–1973) was born in Abercarn. He was famous for his 1951 operation on King George VI.

Education

Abercarn Primary School
Ysgol Gymraeg Cwm Gwyddon (Welsh Medium Education School)

References

"Community population 2011".
The History of Parliament: HALL, Benjamin (1778–1817), of Hensol Castle, Glam. http://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1790-1820/member/hall-benjamin-1778-1817
[https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/199469 Post Office: Abercarn Royal Mail Sorting Office:: OS grid ST2194 :: Geograph British Isles - photograph every grid square!]
{{EB1911
[https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/423436 Jamesville, Abercarn:: OS grid ST2193 :: Geograph British Isles - photograph every grid square!]
"Abercarn Colliery". Welsh Coal Mines.
(2008). "The Welsh Academy Encyclopaedia of Wales". University of Wales Press.
{{National Historic Assets of Wales
Formed as Newbridge local board and local government district on 17 March 1892, renamed Abercarn on 4 July that year. County Census Report 1670, Monmouthshire
"Caerphilly - Bus timetables".
(2013). "The Rough Guide to Camping in Britain 2". Rough Guides UK.
Westlake, Ray.. (2011). "The Territorials : 1908-1914 : a guide for military and family historians". Pen & Sword Books Limited.
Cleland WP. (1974). "Sir Clement Price Thomas KCVO". Annals of the Royal College of Surgeons of England.

::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::