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A Topographical Dictionary of Wales by Samuel Lewis 1833

"PENNARTH, or PENNARD (PEN-ARTH), a parish in the hundred of SWANSEA, county of GLAMORGAN, SOUTH WALES, 7 1/2 miles (W. S. W.) from Swansea, containing 357 inhabitants. The name of this parish, signifying " the bear's head," is supposed to be derived from the peculiar form which this part of the coast assumes in its projection into the Bristol channel.

Pennarth is thought to have been originally of more importance and of much greater extent than at present: the remains of an ancient castle, which appears to have been a structure of some magnificence ; and the ruins of the ancient church, and foundations of numerous buildings, now covered with sands, afford striking evidences in support of this opinion. By whom or at what time the castle was originally erected has not been satisfactorily ascertained : its foundation has by some writers been ascribed to the Earl of Warwick, who brought this territory under his dominion in the reign of Henry I.; and by others its erection is attributed to an earlier period.

A town is supposed to have existed where the sands now are : to the south of them is a small village, which still retains the name of Southgate, and to the north is a farm preserving the original name of Norton, or North-town.

The parish is situated in the south-western part of the county, and is separated from that of Penmaen by a small rivulet called Pennarth Pill : the coast is lined with rocks which extend from this place to Pwll du Point, forming the easteru side of Oxwich bay. The lands, with the exception of a very large portion which has been covered with sand and rendered incapable of tillage, are enclosed and cultivated. The surrounding scenery is of rugged and dreary character ; and the views, though combining some romantic features, derive their principal interest from the contiguity of the Bristol channel.

Kilvrough House, the seat of Thomas Penrice, Esq., is a handsome mansion : the grounds are now undergoing considerable improvement, and are being laid out with great taste and judgment, and, when the present alterations and improvements are completed, will form an interesting feature in the scenery of the place. Mr. Penrice has built a respectable and commodious house of entertainment, called the Gower Inn, for the accommodation of tourists, or persons on business, who, previonsly to its erection, were deterred from visiting this place, or the neighbouring country.

The parish abounds with limestone of excellent quality, and extensive quarries have been opened, much of the produce of which is shipped to the counties of Cornwall and Devon.

The living is a discharged vicarage, in the archdeaconry of Carmarthen, and diocese of St. David's, rated in the king's books at £3. 16. 8., endowed with £600 royal bounty, and in the patronage of the Warden and Fellows of All Souls' College, Oxford, with whom Mr. Penrice is now in treaty for an exchange, in the event of obtaining which it is the intention of that gentleman to erect a parsonage-house, and to appoint a resident incumbent. The present church, dedicated to St. Mary, was erected about two centuries ago ; it occupies a situation on the summit of a hill, about half a mile from that of the more ancient structure. There is a place of worship for Welsh Calvinistic Methodists, erected by the late Lady Barham.

A school-room has been built by Mr. Penrice, in which poor children of the parish are gratuitously instructed, principally at his expense. The remains of the ancient castle occupy a site a few hundred yards above the mouth of the Pennarth Pill, and consist principally of the gateway entrance, which is nearly perfect, and in a good style of architecture : they are surrounded with sand hills of considerable elevation, and present a very singular appearance.

In the limestone rocks along the southern boundary of the parish are two remarkable caverns, in which have been found bones of animals of various kinds : one of these, called Bacon's Hole, is inaccessible from the sea at any state of the tide, and is entered only by a steep narrow path from the summit of the cliff.

The average annual expenditure for the maintenance of the poor amounts to £ 70. 11." 

A Topographical Dictionary of The Dominion of Wales by Nicholas Carlisle, London, 1811.

 "PEN ARTH, in the Cwmwd of Gwyr, Cantref of Eginog (now called the Hundred of Swansea), County of GLAMORGAN, South Wales: a discharged Vicarage valued in the King's Books at £3..16..8: Patron, All Souls College, Oxford: Church dedicated to St. Mary. The Resident Population of this Parish, in 1801, was 314. The Money raised by the Parish Rates, in 1803, was £79..13..9, at 5s. 9d. in the pound. It is 8 1/2 m. S.W. from Swansea. This Parish contains about 1200 acres of inclosed and cultivated Land, and about 800 acres uncultivated and uninclosed. There are the vestiges of a Church, which formerly stood within one hundred yards of Pen Arth Castle, but about six or seven hundred acres adjacent are now covered with Sand, and the foundations of Houses are frequently dug up at the depth of several feet. The present Parish Church was built about half a mile to the Eastward of these ruins. A Town is supposed to have stood formerly where the Sands now are, as there is still a village to the South of them, called South Gate, and a Farm-house to the North of them, called Norton or North Town. It is conjectured to take its Name, from the jutting out of a part of the Parish into the Bristol Channel, something like the shape of a Bear's Head. Extensive remains of the Castle are still to be seen: it is situate a few hundred yards above the mouth of a small Rivulet, called Pen Arth Pill, which divides the Parishes of Pen Maen and Pen Arth: the Gateway, which is nearly in a perfect state, is a noble specimen  of ancient Architecture: it is now surrounded by large Sand hills, and the Sea flows within two hundred Yards of its base. A little below the Castle, on the sands, is a Rock, called The Three Cliffs, from its resemblance to three Sugar loaves placed in a line. In the centre of this Rock is a curiously formed Arch, sufficiently large to admit a man to pass through: and in stormy weather the wind and sea raging against it, occasion a tremendous noise somewhat like the blowing of immense Forge-bellows. The Rocks extend from this Place to Pwll ddu Point, which forms the Eastern side of Oxwich Bay. About a quarter of a mile further is a singular Cavern in the Cliff, called Bacon's Hole, nearly in the Centre between the summit of the Precipice and the Sea. It is inaccessible on the sea side at any state of the Tide: but there is a narrow and steep Path from the top of the Cliff, leading down to it, which is dangerous to those who are unaccustomed to such roads, as a false step would, doubtless, precipitate them into the Ocean: it is, however, frequently descended, and the Path becomes better, by being used. According to the Diocesan Report,  in 1809, the yearly value of this Benefice, arising from Augmentation, Tythes, Bounty, and Surplice fees, was £54."

[Last Updated : 31 Jan 2005 - Gareth Hicks]