Gorseinon and Penyrheol

A bit about the area …

The Gorseinon and Penyrheol ward consists of the communities of Gorseinon, Penyrheol, Grovesend & Waungron.

Much of the settlement of Penyrheol is housing with the northwest side being predominantly agricultural land. There are four farms, Llannant, Cwrt Y Carne, Gwynfaen and Pencefnarda running from the edge of the housing settlements down to the Loughor river.

The monks of Neath Abbey paid many visits to this locality back as far as the 12th century, and evidence of this were several mills built on the banks of local rivers. The monks at Melin Mynach produced high-quality wool at Cwrt Y Carnau that was transported out to Flanders, Italy.

The small village of Gorseinon grew dramatically during the late 19th and early 20th Centuries with the establishment of several steel and tinplate works and the expansion of coal mining in the area.

The expansion and population growth during the industrial revolution saw Gorseinon become a thriving village. In 1860 the London & North-western Railway extended the line from Gorseinon to Swansea and the railway station at Gorseinon became a vital part of transporting tinplate and coal to Swansea Docks.

Grovesend & Waungron is a rural community, a small settlement surrounded by several farms, Llwynadam, Castell Ddu, Tyr-Isha, Grove, Pengelli as well as several other smallholdings. St Teilos church built during the 13th century situated on the marsh at Castell ddu was the first church of its kind ever to be moved to and re-erected and now resides at the open-air museum in St Fagan’s. 

Grovesend itself has a long industrial heritage with Grovesend, Brynlliw and Tir Isaf Collieries.