Play@YSDC

jp1885 wrote: ↑Wed Feb 07, 2024 9:29 pm The pair of you positively ace the research!

Working at an efficiency and pace that would make the cleverest Oxford don weep, you soon uncover plenty of information on the history of the town - to wit:

The history of Cwmllyn:
There has been a settlement at the site since at least the Bronze Age. The town has served the local agricultural community for centuries, with hill farmers bringing their livestock to market before the advent of the railways allowed them to trade in larger cities further afield.
Apart from small-scale coal mining in the 18th-19th century, the town has seen little in the way of industry and suffered a decline in population between the world wars. This depression lasted until the late 20th century, although contemporary reports show that the town remained content and largely crime-free despite being moribund economically.
Cwmllyn is currently experiencing a significant change, thanks to the arrival of a major road artery, linking the town to larger cities in a way never seen before. This has led to a building boom, with many newcomers looking for a semi-rural base from which to commute.

The religious revival of 1904-5:
Wales was swept up by a religious revival, starting in 1904. Methodist preachers toured the country, holding prayer meetings, and filling churches to over-capacity. The effects were considerable: rough miners, for example, forswore alcohol and bad language, and took to prayer and hymn singing. The revival only lasted for a couple of years, but influenced other religious awakenings across the globe.
By the end of 1905, a minority of preachers had become disillusioned with how the movement was weakening and became more fundamentalist in their sermons.
A fellow called Preacher Jones operated exclusively in and around Cwmllyn. His sermons became increasingly fiery, leading up to the riot of 1905, which was quelled by the local militia.

A treatise on religious practices in Bronze Age Wales says the following:
Little is known about the subject. Archaeological evidence suggests that offerings of foodstuffs were left at certain sites. Archaeologists have found pottery shards, cooked animal bones and grains.
In addition, a number of folk tales have been recorded, in which spirits of sacred groves were honoured with gifts. Communities would ‘cleanse’ themselves, asking these spirits would seize the unworthy and send them to the underworld for punishment.

The exact location of the grove is unknown, but looking at old maps, Grove Road has always been the main thouroughfare through the town.

Looking through the (mainly national) newspaper archives, you find nothing on Councillor Short than you don't already know, but Cwmllyn does get the occasional mention:

1904: Religious revival spreads – Emlyn Jones is noted as holding his first sermon at Cwmllyn chapel.
The crowd was so large that Jones went outside and preached on the lane next to the school.

1905: Militia quells riot in Welsh town – Preacher Jones is blamed for inciting a lynching in Cwmllyn.
The local authorities dispatched the militia to keep the peace and shots were fired. Several people were killed or injured. A search for Jones was carried out, but he was never found.

1917: Trail for army deserter goes cold in Cwmllyn – A deserter from the Monmouthshire Regiment went missing from their depot in South Wales. He was last seen in Cwmllyn.

1952: Dead wife found in missing farm worker’s cottage – A farm worker was reported missing by his employer the day before. He was never found.

The only other mention of the town you can find is on an archived news website from 2003:


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