The industrial legacy of David Davies 29 July 2007 David Davies (1818-1890) This image shows him in a rare moment of repose. Private collection (Lord Davies) The completed Talerddig cutting, the deepest in the world at that time. Private Collection (Lord Davies) No.1 dock in 1913, when Barry docks exported 11m tons of coal. What appears to be a solid level surface in the right foreground of this scene in is fact water — thick with coal dust. David Davies of Llandinam The gifts and bequests of Gwendoline and Margaret Davies completely transformed the range and quality of Wales's national art collection. The sisters were the granddaughters of David Davies of Llandinam, one of the great entrepreneurs of 19th–century Wales. Gwendoline and Margaret Davies were the granddaughters of David Davies of Llandinam, one of the great entrepreneurs of 19th–century Wales. David Davies started in life as a tenant farmer and sawyer. He made his fortune during the industrialisation of Victorian Wales. He built much of the railway system in mid-Wales, became a pioneer of the coal industry in the Rhondda valley and was the driving force behind the construction of Barry dock in south Wales. Railways Starting with the construction of the Newtown & Llanidloes Railway in 1859, he became involved in the construction of a number of railways in mid-Wales, the Vale of Clwyd and Pembrokeshire. His greatest achievement as a railway engineer was the great Talerddig cutting on the Newtown & Machynlleth Railway, completed in 1862 and the deepest in the world at that time. Not all the ventures in which Davies was involved succeeded — the grandly named Manchester & Milford Railway reached neither destination! Coal – 'Davies yr Ocean' 1864 marked a decisive turning point in David Davies's career when he took out a pioneering mineral lease in the south Wales valleys. It took two years before the first pits were in full production. Five more collieries were opened by 1886. In the following year they were vested in a new public limited company, the Ocean Coal Co. Ltd. At the time of Davies's death in 1890, it was the largest and most profitable coal company in south Wales. From pit to port The crowning achievement of David Davies's career was the construction of the dock at Barry, south Wales. Davies and a number of fellow Rhondda colliery owners came together to solve congestion both on the Taff Vale Railway and at Cardiff's Bute docks. They promoted the construction of a railway from the coalfield to a new dock facility at Barry, then a tiny hamlet. Despite fierce opposition from the Bute faction, the dock opened in 1889. The application of wealth David Davies was a passionate supporter of Calvinistic Methodism — a strict non-conformist faith unique to Wales and distinct from Wesleyan Methodism. Like all of Gwendoline and Margaret's family he was a life-long Sabbatarian and teetotaller. It instilled in him a profound sense of philanthropy and public service. He gave generously to religious and educational causes. Having received a very basic schooling himself, the provision of university education in Wales was a cause close to his heart. He was a staunch supporter of the first college at Aberystwyth, opened in 1872. He served as Liberal MP for Cardigan Boroughs during 1874-86 and was elected to the first Montgomeryshire County Council upon its creation in 1889. After David Davies David Davies died in 1890 and was succeeded by his son Edward, who found the stresses of running the business empire so overwhelming that he died just eight years later. He in turn was succeeded by Gwendoline and Margaret's brother David, later 1st Lord Davies, who had to contend with the depression of the inter-war years. The post-war nationalisation of the coal, dock and railway industries saw the family lose control of their vast undertaking. Today, all the Ocean pits have closed, as has much of the railway system created by David Davies, and Barry dock sees little activity.
A Journey through Wales in 1819 6 July 2007 A Grand Tour of Europe Cader Idris, a watercolour by John Varley in the Department of Art, Amgueddfa Cymru. The writer described Cadair Idris as 'rearing his dark majestic head above his gigantic brethren'. The Library at Amgueddfa Cymru contains a large number of historically important books, including a large number of accounts of tours of Wales published in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Many of these were originally collected for their illustrations. Equally important, however, is the actual text that accompanies them. In the 18th century, it was traditional for the aristocracy and the wealthy to go on a “Grand Tour of Europe” as the culmination of their classical education, visiting the cultural centres of Paris, Venice, Florence, and Rome. The Napoleonic Wars of 1790-1815 brought a temporary halt to this and instead they began to travel at home. The accounts of such travels through Wales contain information on a very wide range of topics. They reveal information on the state of the roads, inns and hotels, descriptions of great houses and their contents, agriculture, industry, local customs and Welsh society in general. Many observers also commented on the natural history of Wales, sometimes giving lists of the plants and animals encountered. A Grand Tour of Wales The Library at the Museum has in its collections three 19th-century diaries dated 1819, 1841 and 1844, which were written by Lynn Dewing (1773-1854) from Norfolk From Cardiff to Swansea Two pages from the first part of the 1819 diary, describing the St Clears area in Carmarthenshire The first tour commenced at Bristol on 29th May 1819, with a journey by ship to Cardiff, a town with well planted walks about the castle, along with the iron foundries whose products were brought down the Glamorgan Canal. The writer was one of the few visitors to Llandaff who had a kind word to say about John Wood's rebuilt cathedral, left incomplete in 1752. He seemed very impressed with Swansea with its 'well-built & respectable houses, & shops, and several good streets'. In the areas around Cardiff and Swansea he wrote that the 'houses of the poor' were far neater in appearance, with their well-kept whitewashed walls, than their counterparts in England, although no comment was made on the state of the interiors. Flowers in the Graveyards At Kidwelly, the writer made a comment that also appears in other accounts of journeys through Wales and was about the decorating of graves with flowers, something that is taken for granted today. 'I observed in several of the Church-yards the old Welsh custom still prevails of planting flowers upon the graves of their relatives.' It was not until later in the 19th century that placing flowers on graves in England became common. A lift to Aberystwyth The time taken for the 1819 tour suggests that the diarist walked most of the way. He did ride in a fish-cart in order to reach Aberystwyth, and had to hire a man to carry his luggage for some 23 miles. Aberystwyth is described as 'a very neat sea-port & bathing place. The views from the Parade are very beautiful, both land & sea.' A journey up Snowdon The traveller then headed north. He went on to climb Snowdon on one of the few days in his diary that he actually dates. 'Friday 16th July 1819' from the inn at Glyn Gwyllyn [to the west of Snowdon] on my ten toes at half past four o'clock to ascent SNOWDEN [sic]. It was my intention to start at 2 o'clock, in order to reach the top in time to see the sun rise, which I am told is a fine sight indeed from Snowdon, but I was so annoyed with the noise of 4 or 5 welsh miners for 3 hours after I was in bed, that I could not get a wink of sleep before one o'clock.' Near the summit he noted a recently opened copper mine which was being worked by six Cornish miners. The extracts above are but a small sample from the beginning of the second volume for 1819. The diaries serve to contribute further to our understanding of Wales in the early 19th century. Further reading Crossley Evans, M. J., ‘Lynn Dewing, an unknown Lakeland traveller, and his journals 1817-1847, part 1., in Transactions of the Cumberland and Westmorland Antiquarian and Archaeological Society, 3rd ser., vol. IX, 2009, pp. 187-216
A walk through south Wales in 1804 6 July 2007 Amgueddfa Cymru holds an extensive collection of superbly illustrated topographical books dating from the late 18th and early 19th centuries. 11th century cross-slabs near Margam, from Donovan's Excursions (1805) One such book, Descriptive Excursions through South Wales and Monmouthshire in the Year 1804, and the Four Preceding Summers, was written by the natural history writer Edward Donovan. A prolific author, his books cover various aspects of the animal kingdom including insects, shells and fish. They are characterized by a large number of coloured plates, many of a very high quality. Donovan also made a large collection of natural history specimens, and it was this collection that was opened to the public in 1807 as the London Museum and Institute of Natural History. Although Donovan was originally a wealthy man, he died virtually penniless, as booksellers seem to have had control of all his writing, which was valued at over £60,000 in the 1830s. Welsh parrots In the two-volume Descriptive Excursions through South Wales and Monmouthshire in the Year 1804, and the Four Preceding Summers, which he published in 1805, he describes travels from Bristol to Pembrokeshire. Donovan makes a large number of comments on the natural history and geology encountered on his tours, such as the puffins at Caldey Island, which were known to seamen as 'Welsh parrots'. Donovan's account covers the topography, local customs, architecture and antiquities of the places he visited. He acquired a Roman table-top from Caerleon depicting Venus, and included an illustration of this now lost piece of sculpture in his account of his tours. The first volume takes the tour up to the Ewenny area near Bridgend, while the second volume takes the reader from Margam to Tenby. One chapter of over eighty pages describes the state of the remains and antiquities of Caerleon, not only a useful archaeological account in itself, but one that is accompanied by several engravings of finds from the Roman fortress, for example, sculpture, pottery, coins and tiles. The Margam stone crosses Antiquities of a later period are described in the second volume, when Donovan visited the Margam area. A feature of this area, besides the remains of the Cistercian abbey of Margam, was a number of inscribed stone crosses generally known as Early Christian monuments. A pair of these lay near the farmhouse of Cwrt-y-Dafydd. The Cwrt-y-Dafydd crosses were then being used as a footbridge over a stream, depicted in one of the more charming plates used to illustrate the account of the tour, and Donovan describes them, making comparisons with similar monuments that he had seen at Llantwit Major. These cross-slabs now form part of the collection in Margam Abbey Museum, and are known from their inscriptions as the crosses of Ilquici and Ilci, and date to the 11th century. Donovan went on to visit Margam itself, admitted to the grounds by the gardener who was 'allowed to admit strangers of respectable appearance', and describes and illustrates two further Early Christian monuments in the surrounding area. These accounts offer a valuable insight of day-to-day life in Wales during the late 18th and early 19th century.
Inns and hostelries of 18th-century Wales 5 July 2007 'Nauseating ales' and 'filthy inns' A view of Llangollen from Pugh's Cambria Depicta, a town where the growth of the tourist industry led to improvements in inns such as The Hand. The accounts of tours of Wales undertaken by well-to-do Englishmen in the late 18th and early 19th centuries have always been a major source of information for studying early modern Wales. The descriptions of towns and antiquities, regional costumes, customs, industries and the state of communications can prove very helpful and informative. The nature of the inns and hostelries encountered on the travels is yet another aspect full of interesting detail. A warm Welsh welcome When J.T. Barber published details of his tour of south Wales in 1803, among the inns at which he and his friend stayed was the Green Dragon at Carmarthen. It was described as 'comfortable', as was the Bridgewater Arms at Pontypridd and the Red Lion at Llanrhystud, which was a 'tolerably decent alehouse'. However, not all the inns encountered by Barber and his companion provided pleasant memories. On reaching Carew, having got lost, the first inn he tried had no decent accommodation, nor stable for the horses. The second inn had even less, so the travellers returned to the first inn where at least a bed could be had. 'Nauseating ale' The interior was discoloured, the landlord and his wife looked care-worn, and the meal consisted of hard barley bread and salt butter with 'nauseating ale'. The bed consisted of a bag of straw in a recess in a room the travellers shared with two of the landlord's children. The sheets were very damp, and the exhausted travellers found they were also sharing the room with fleas and rats. Some of the inns on the main routes taken by the English tourist were excellent, particularly the one at Pile built by the Talbots of Margam. Barber's opinion of this inn was that it 'might be mistaken for a nobleman's seat', and that it catered well for all tourists. Henry Skrine's account of his tours in Wales, published in 1798, also mentions the inn at Pile, stating that it 'rather resembles a palace than an inn'. North Wales The Reverend W. Bingley's account of his 1798 tour of north Wales mentions the inn at Caernarfon built by the Earl of Uxbridge, stating that it had good views from its premises and excellent accommodation, and that few establishments in England could rival it. A guide to the area published in 1827 confirms that this inn, the Uxbridge Arms, was 'large, handsome, and commodious', meeting all the needs of travellers at a reasonable cost. Bingley also refers to the Eagles Inn at Llanrwst as being comfortable and the only place there where post horses were kept. The disadvantage of the inn was that it was too popular, summer tourists making the atmosphere crowded and unpleasant. It is apparent that the main hostelries on the tourist routes in Wales were, or had become out of necessity, suitable places to stay, notably those on the roads used by travellers heading for Ireland, such as The Hand in Llangollen, described by Bingley as tolerable, but too crowded and with an uncivil landlord. The Reverend G. J. Freeman who toured in the 1820s noticed the considerable changes The Hand had undergone since he had first visited Llangollen a year before Bingley. Exceptions, such as the inn at Carew, were usually those where the tourist would not be expected to stop; for instance, the town of Tenby would have had the necessary hotels for this area of south-west Wales. However, there were occasions when travellers visiting towns were disappointed in the accommodation that they found. Filthy Inns E. D. Clarke visited Haverfordwest in 1791 and commented that he had 'never felt more disposed to quit any place than Haverford', a feeling exacerbated by the filthy state of the inn. He compared his room to a sty. The sheets were damp, and as the bed had not been changed since the last visitors it was full of sand from people's feet! Worse was to follow, for in the morning Clarke found that his carriage had four horses attached to it, not the two he had requested. He had no alternative but to take all four — 'Any inconvenience was better than staying with Pharaoh and all his host'. Clarke was not alone in his experience of Haverfordwest, for Henry Penruddocke Wyndham tells a similar tale in his account of his travels made in the 1770s.
A Victorian fossil mystery 5 July 2007 The ichthyosaur specimen before conservation (1750 mm by 720 mm by 70 mm) Ichthyosaur after conservation showing head from separate individuals, and paddle bones set in plaster Press coverage of the story Routine conservation of the fossil collections at Amgueddfa Cymru, revealed a specimen that, on first examination, appeared to need a small amount of remedial work. What was to have been a small job turned into a major conservation project which attracted international media interest. The ichthyosaur The specimen in question is an ichthyosaur, a marine reptile that lived during the Mesozoic Era, 65-200 million years ago - the same time as the dinosaurs. They are similar to dolphins, with large eyes and distinctive long jaws with sharp teeth and limbs modified into paddles. The specimen was donated to the old Cardiff Museum in the 1880s and subsequently became part of the National Museum collections. It was originally mounted in plaster with a surrounding wooden frame and then both the plaster and the specimen were painted. The specimen was restored several times during the twentieth century, and this included new plaster and repainting. A label identified the species as Ichthyosaurus intermedius, collected from Street, Somerset, and described the skeleton as 'the greater part of a small individual preserved with but little disturbance of the bones' — a statement later found to be rather inaccurate. A detailed investigation of the specimen was undertaken and extensive damage was discovered, with cracks running through it. The plaster and wooden mount were in poor condition so the decision was made to remove all restoration and paint, and to get back to the original skeleton and rock. It was not a decision made lightly because we knew that the whole appearance of the specimen was going to be radically altered. Revealing the specimen Removal of the paint layers revealed that the missing ends of the ribs had been moulded in plaster and then painted to match the rest of the specimen, giving the false impression of actual bones. Study of X-rays taken of the specimen revealed an inconsistency in one section of the spine of the fossil; a dark shadow surrounded the bones. When the paint from this area was removed, it became clear that a channel had been carved in the rock and individual loose bones had been fixed into it with plaster. Beneath the paint it was discovered that the bones of the single preserved front paddle were also set in plaster. Holes in the surrounding rock suggest areas from which bones may have been removed before being relocated, but it is possible that some bones had been taken from other specimens. The biggest surprise came when the paint was removed from around the jaw; the rock was a totally different colour and type to the rest of the skeleton. Not only were there at least two individuals involved, but further study proved that the head and body were two entirely different species of icthyosaur! This was a specimen that had been considerably altered by the Victorian preparators. Re-displaying the conserved fossil Although the specimen was made up of two different species, it was decided that the head and the body should be kept together as originally intended. The plaster surrounding the paddle and a part of the ribs made from plaster were also left intact. A new light-weight support system was built. Instead of being displayed simply as a museum specimen, this ichthyosaur will be used to highlight the techniques used by some Victorian enthusiasts to 'restore', display and present fossil specimens and how painstaking conservation work today revealed the true nature of our specimen. Intense media interest was sparked when the Museum announced a public talk on the conservation of the specimen. This resulted in the story being covered in the national and international press in addition to television, radio and the internet, and included a live interview with ABC Radio in Australia!
