20 News
THE HERALD FRIDAY FEBRUARY 10 2017
Follow us on Twitter @pembsherald
Fishguard and North Pembrokeshire Railway in 1960: Photo from John Mann collection
A CHANCE viewing of a poster
last year at a flower festival resulted in a weekend of major activities taking place at four North Pembrokeshire villages over the weekend of January 20-22. The poster concerned advertised
‘An effective and efficient service’: Dafydd Llywelyn and Chris Davies alongside fire service staff
THE ST DAVID’S
Neighbourhood Policing Team (NPT) has been welcomed into its new home at St David’s Fire Station. The NPT have been operating
from the new base since early January; however, on Thursday (Feb 2), Chief Fire Officer of Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service (MAWWFRS) Chris Davies officially welcomed the Policing Team to its new base. Policing lead for Pembrokeshire,
Superintendent Ian Jon said: “This move has been about ensuring the best use of public money. Our focus is now about spending time in the community working, with local people and advances in technology allow us to do this much more. We really don’t want to spend much time in our police stations, so sharing a facility with the Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service helps both services make the best use of valuable resources. “There is very little need for
Officers and PCSOs to return to a station throughout their shift. The switchboards, systems and paperwork once associated with policing are now available in the palms of our hands. This new base will give us the flexibility to have a base available to us for those times when we need it. It is important to us that the people of St David’s and surrounding community know how to engage with us.” Dyfed–Powys Police Crime
Commissioner Dafydd Llywelyn added: “It’s great news that the people of St David’s continue to have a police base at the heart of their community. I am committed to ensuring opportunities of working with other agencies to maintain services within local communities are maximised. This development is part of a wider Estates Programme helping me as the Commissioner to ensure an effective and efficient service is delivered for local residents. “I look forward to working with –
and listening to – the community over the next four years.” Chief Fire Officer of MAWWFRS
Chris Davies said: “Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service work closely with Dyfed Powys Police and other agencies to provide the best possible service to the public, therefore we are delighted to welcome St David’s Neighbourhood Policing Team to share our Fire Station at St David’s. “We work closely with Dyfed
Powys Police across a wide range of activities, and sharing a base at St David’s is another example of our excellent co-operation. “It is a pleasure to host the
Police and Crime Commissioner at the joint facility in St David’s and I look forward to continuing our close working relationship with the Police, and other partner agencies, in making the communities of Mid and West Wales safer places to live and work.”
the closure of a large section of the Fishguard and North Pembrokeshire Railway in January 1917, as the track was to be lifted to aid the war effort in France. It was decided that the centenary of the event should not be passed unnoticed, with the result that a small committee was formed to organise a programme of commemorative events at the villages affected by the closure of the railway: Little Newcastle, Maenclochog, Puncheston and Rosebush. The interest generated by the
prepared programme surpassed the widest expectations of the organisers and an estimated 550 people participated on what proved to be a beautiful winter’s weekend. The opening event on Friday
evening (Jan 20), was the showing of a 1995 film at Ysgol Casmael, Puncheston. Following the text of the late John Gale, the former pupils of the school faithfully traced the history of the line and there was a great deal of excitement amongst some of the large audience to see themselves as they were over 20 years ago! The screening was also featured
live on the S4C programme Heno and included a pre-filmed section,
outlining the history of the line and the Rosebush Quarry, featuring Alun Ifans and Geraint Harries. Interviewed at Puncheston on the evening was Alison Evans, who had noted the original poster, past pupils Eleri Bowen, with infant son Twm, and Michael Williams and Rev. Richard Davies. Events on Saturday morning (Jan
21) started at Maenclochog where a very big crowd had gathered at the Village Hall where Emyr Phillips gave a very comprehensive account on the history of the line. Many also took the opportunity to examine an exhibition prepared by Edward Perkins and Martin Roberts and amongst the exhibits was the spade used by the Hon. Margaret Owen when she had cut the first sod in 1879 for the extension of the original line to Fishguard. Around 150 people then set off on
a ‘walk and talk’ which partly followed the bed of the old track as far as the tunnel. The tunnel was the only such structure along the course of the entire line and it cleverly incorporated a gentle curve as it was hewn out of the rock.
Following a lunch at Tafarn Sinc,
situated near the platform of the old Rosebush Station and from where the ornamental lakes dug out at the command of Joseph Macauly and Sir John Owen in a bid to make Rosebush a tourist destination, could still be seen, the afternoon programme commenced. Around 80 assembled in the
afternoon and they had to be split into two groups which then exchanged guest
speakers.The first group gathered to listen to Dr. Peter Claughton, a quarry expert, explain how slate had come to be formed, before he led his audience into the quarry remains in order to be told the story of the slate extraction at this spot. The story had begun around 1825, but matters really took when Edward Cropper from Kent bought the quarry in 1869. The levels, pits, tunnels as well as the methods for waste and water removal were all examined. The second group was led by
Edward Perkins looked at the question of common land, agriculture and forestry. Proceedings terminated at Little
Newcastle on Sunday (Jan 22), where a 1662 Prayer Book bilingual sung Evensong took place at St. Peter’s Church which was conducted by the curate, Rev. Richard Davies and at which a large congregation was present. The Old Testament lesson was read in English by Sian Rees and the New Testament in Welsh by Geraint Harries. The organist was John Hughes and the collection was taken by Alison Evans and Roy Griffiths. The weekend activities were
brought to a successful conclusion with a 1917 style cottage tea at the Old School which was jointly hosted by the Little Newcastle Community Association and Cangen Barti Ddu of Merched y Wawr. An abundant supply of Welsh cakes, teisen lap, Swiss roll and pikelets as well as bread-and butter, jam and cheese washed, down by teapot fulls of tea resulted in dozens of satisfied customers. The organisers would like to thank
not only all those who made the events possible, but all who made the weekend of activities an unqualified success. It was not a profit-making venture, but the organisers acknowledge with gratitude the financial contributions made by Maenclochog Community Council, Puncheston Community Council and Little Newcastle Community Association which helped defray any costs. Any surplus funds will be donated to the Wales Air Ambulance.
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80
