Denbighshire

Contents

Abergele

"A market town and parish in the Union of St. Asaph, hundred of Isdulas, county of Denbigh; 12 miles (NW) from Denbigh, 20 miles (NW) from Ruthin, and 209 miles (NW) from London. ..... The town is delightfully situated in a pleasant valley, watered by the river Gele, and within half a mile of the Irish Sea, which forms the northern boundary of the parish. The coast, in some parts, is terminated by sandy cliffs, impending over the sea, which, according to tradition, has made considerable encroachment upon the land. ..... The environs abound with picturesque and strikingly bold scenery, and afford various pleasing and interesting excursions."   [ A Topographical Dictionary of Wales, 1833 & 1849, Samuel Lewis]

The ancient parish of Abergele was extensive, covering approximately 9000 acres. It comprised the townships of Abergele, (or Tre'r Dre), Towyn Uchaf, Towyn Isaf, Bodoryn, Bodtegwal, Hendregyda, Dolganed, Serior, Brynffanigl, Nant Dinhengroen, Garthgogo, Gwrych, and Penrhyn Dulas.

Bibliography

• A catalogue of published books, pamphlets and magazine articles relating to aspects of the history of Abergele.       Abergele Field Club and Historical Society Review. 9 (1990), p. 2-10.
• Abergele : 1971.     Abergele (The Publicity Officer, Town Hall, Abergele, Denbigh) : Abergele Urban District Council, [1971]
• Abergele in 1857.    Abergele Field Club and Historical Society Review. 4 (1985), p. 19-22
• Baker, Mark.  The rise and fall of Gwrych Castle, Abergele, North Wales   Colwyn Bay : Mark Baker, 1999. Also 2003
• Baker, Mark. Gwrych Castle     Colwyn Bay : Mark Baker, 2000.
• Davies, Dewi A.   From Parys Mountain to Abergele       Abergele Field Club and Historical Society Review. No 20 (2001), p. 4-8
• Davies, Dewi A.    A walk around Abergele in 1851        Abergele Field Club and Historical Society Review. 12 (1993), p. 2-11.
• Davies, Dewi A.   Roman finds at Abergele       Abergele Field Club and Historical Society Review. 11 (1992), p. 2-7
• Ellis, John R.   A history of Abergele & district    Mold : Clwyd County Council, Library & Museum Services, 1991.
• Emery, Gordon.    Abergele   Chester : Gordon Emery, c1992.
• Gardner, Willoughby.  The ancient hill-fortress on Pen-y-Corddyn, near Abergele   London : Printed at the Bedford Press, 1910.
• Gleanings of a tour in North Wales from the Great 'Orms Head, through Abergele, St. Asaph, Holywell, and Chester, to the Isle of Man, with topographical remarks  by M. L. L     Liverpool : printed by W. Bethell, 1824.
• Guidebook to Abergele & its neighbourhood       Abergele : printed by Robert Jones, [1859]
• Halliwell, J O.  [i.e. Halliwell-Phillipps]     Notes of family excursions in North Wales, taken chiefly from Rhyl, Abergele, Llandudno, and Bangor.     London : Printed for the author, 1860.
• Hughes, Jim.  The Abergele lifeboat, 1868-69     Abergele Field Club and Historical Society Review. 4 (1985), p. 6-7
• Hughes, Vernon.  The Royal Welsh Agricultural Shows in Abergele      Abergele Field Club and Historical Society Review. No. 19 (2000), p. 19-26
• Hughes, Vernon.  St. Michael's parish church, Abergele   Abergele Field Club and Historical Society Review. 6 (1987), p. 24-26
• John Heywood's illustrated guide to Rhyl, Abergele, and St. Asaph, with short excursions in their neighourhood.    Manchester : John Heywood, 1889.
• Jones, Bedwyr Lewis.   Enwau lleoedd Abergele a'r cylch    Abergele : Cymdeithas Emrys ap Iwan, 1992.
• Owen, Robert.   The history of Abergele Hospital        Denbigh : Gee & Sons, 1999.
• Roberts,  R. Fred .  Aspects of military history in Abergele, 1792-1945 /    Abergele Field Club and Historical Society Review. 6 (1987), p. 6-12
• Roberts, R. Fred.    A history of the Wesleyan Methodist Church at Abergele, 1800-1965         [Abergele : St. Paul's Welsh Methodist Church, 1965]
• Roberts, R Fred.    Ships and shipwrecks         Abergele Field Club and Historical Society Review. 11 (1992), p. 27-31
• Roberts, R. Fred.   The Parry family of St. George and Abergele, and the Mormon emigration       Abergele Field Club and Historical Society Review. 8 (1989), p. 10-17
• Roberts, R Fred.  A wealthy Abergele emigrant    Abergele Field Club and Historical Society Review. 13 (1994), p. 14-17
• Roberts,  John Alun.  The Methodist (Wesleyan) Chapel, Moelfre, 1835-1985       Abergele Field Club and Historical Society Review. 5 (1986), p. 15-19.
• Williams,  Ellis Wynne.   Hanes Eglwys Mynydd Seion, Abergele      Abergele (Denbighshire) : Eglwys Mynydd Seion (Pwyllgor Dathlu), 1968.
• Williams, E Wynne.    Abergele in old picture postcards    Zaltbommel, Netherlands : European Library, 1982.
• Williams,  E. Wynne.  Pentre Mawr, Abergele     Country Quest 26/11 (1986), p. 17-19
• Williams, E. Wynne.   Abergele and De Beckele's survey of 1334       Abergele Field Club and Historical Society Review. 11 (1992), p. 19-26
• Williams,  E. Wynne.  Of things medical, surgical and dental in nineteenth-century Abergele      Abergele Field Club and Historical Society Review. 13 (1994), p. 8-13
• Williams,  Peter Howell.    Eighteenth century sheeep dippers in Abergele    Abergele Field Club and Historical Society Review 16 (1997), p. 4-22
• Wynne-Woodhouse, Bill.   The saints in Abergele        Abergele Field Club and Historical Society Review. 6 (1987), p. 20-22

Church History

See Welsh Chapels and Churches for a photograph of St Michael's Abergele

Church and chapel data from The Religious census of 1851 : A Calendar of the returns relating to Wales, Vol 11, North Wales. Ed. by Ieuan Gwynedd Jones, UWP,   1981. The names given towards the end of each entry are those of the informants.

Abergele Parish; Statistics; Area (with St Georges) 4053 acres; Population 1397 males, 1458 females, total 2855

• Abergele Parish Church         Attendance - usual -  morning, 120 + 100 scholars,  afternoon 80 +100 scholars       Services - English in morning, Welsh in  afternoon           Informant; J Meredith
•  
• Bodlondeb or Capel Newydd, Wesleyan Methodist       Erected 1804       Attendance - morning 71 + 18 scholars, evening 230 + 24 scholars       John Edwards, Leader, Draper
• Independent Chapel, Independents        Erected 1842              Attendance - morning 38 scholars, afternoon 60, evening 70        Robert Jones, Secretary, Bee Hotel
• Mynydd Zion, Calvinistic Methodist          Erected 1792        Attendance - morning 201, afternoon 371, evening 329             John Jones, Deacon, Druggist, Market St
• Saints Chapel, Chapel St, Latter Day Saints                   Erected 1849          Attendance - morning 29, afternoon 45, evening 33              Edward Parry, Elder and President, St george
• Salem, Calvinistic Methodist      Erected 1814, re-erected 1838           Attendance - morning 90 scholars, afternoon 120, evening 128        Thomas Edwards,Elder, Ty Cwrt, Towyn, Abergele
• Ebenezer, Moelfre, Independents          Erected 1802           Attendance - afternoon 63, evening 48              Ellis The. Davies, Minister
• Pen y Bryn Chapel, Calvinistic Methodist            Erected 1826          Attendance - morning 80, afternoon 85 scholars, evening 78                     William Hughes, Elder, Pen y Frith

Ordnance Survey reference SH 945776.
The church, dedicated to St. Michael, was extensively restored in 1878, at a cost of £3000.

The Clwyd FHS website has a photograph of the church.

The Parish of Abergele site

Nonconformist Churches "Welsh Church Commission - County of Denbigh - The Statistics of the Nonconformist Churches for 1905"lists the following nonconformist places of worship in the Civilparish of "Abergele Urban" :

Welsh Church Commission - County of Denbigh - The Statistics of the Nonconformist Churches for 1905" lists the following nonconformist places of worship in the Civil parish of "Abergele Rural" :

Return to top of page

Church Records

Parish Registers

• The following Parish Registers have been deposited in the National Library of Wales, Aberystwyth.
  They may be viewed on microfilm at the Denbighshire and Flintshire Record Offices, and at the National Library of Wales, Aberystwyth.
  These microfilms are not available elsewhere.

• Clwyd FHS has published full transcriptions of the registers (complete with indexes) for the following years :

Bishop's Transcripts

• Bishop's Transcripts for the years shown below have been deposited in the National Library of Wales, Aberystwyth.
  Around the year 1951, most of the Bishop's Transcripts which had been deposited at that time were microfilmed by the LDS; and the films are available on request at Family History Centres of the LDS.
  The films may also be viewed at the Denbighshire and Flintshire Record Offices, and at the National Library of Wales.
  In general, the Bishop's Transcripts are less complete than the parish registers.

I.G.I.

• There are no official I.G.I. entries for St. Michael's, Abergele.

Return to top of page

Civil Registration

In the GRO indexes to civil registration, entries for Abergele are in the format :

• Years 1837 - 1851: St. Asaph XXVII. nnn
• Years 1851 - 1930: St. Asaph 11b. nnn

(GRO index references have no relevance at the local Superintendent Registrar's Office)

Description and Travel

Abergele - on wikipedia

Abergele Town Council site

Gwrych Castle Preservation Trust site

Return to top of page

Maps

On Clwyd FHS's site there is a diagram showing parish names/positions with links to pages for the parish church

Kain, R.J.P., Oliver, R.R., Historic Parishes of England and Wales: an Electronic Map of Boundaries before 1850 with a Gazetteer and Metadata [computer file]. Colchester, Essex: History Data Service, UK Data Archive [distributor], 17 May 2001. SN: 4348.   Here is a gazetteer/finding aid plus a set of overview maps to accurately identify the position of parishes within the county

Return to top of page

Population

• In 1831- the population was 2506.
• In 1901- the population was 2720.
  [ Royal Commission on the Welsh Church - October 1907]

Return to top of page

Statistics

• Archdeacon Thomas gives the area of the parish as approximately 9000 acres.
  [ The History of the Diocese of St. Asaph , 1908-1913, Ven. D.R. Thomas]

Return to top of page

Find help, report problems, and contribute information.

Last Updated  9 Jan 2013 - Gareth Hicks