Churches & Chapels

The Ebenezer Baptist Church – Abertillery. The organisation originated in a split at the King Street Baptist Church when on Sunday 3rd December 1876 the Rev Llewellyn Jones left his ministerial post at King Street and took eighty-two members with him, with the intention of founding a new cause. The Ebenezer Church Site. Their new church was to be situated …

St Michaels Church Abertillery. Abertillery in the 1830’s-40’s was practically non-existent, a few farms and one main small iron works owned by Mr Richard Walker of Trevethin, Pontypool, father-in-law to Mr William Webb, Brewster of Aberbeeg. Mr Walker’s Iron Works were situated where Tesco’s Supermarket is today. In the mid 1840’s Mr Walker went bankrupt and he sold the works. …

The Hebrew Synagogue – Abertillery. In the late 1880’s there was a temporary synagogue for the Hebrew congregation at Bailey Street, Brynmawr. Reports mentioned it was at Heathcock House? The president was Mr B. Isaacs and the vice-president was Mr I. Isaacs. The minister was Rev Rocowsky. In February 1891 a fight broke out at the synagogue during the Saturday …

Newall Street Methodist Chapel. On Monday 8th of May 1905, at a council meeting, plans were put forth for the erection of a Primitive Methodist Chapel at Newall Street, Abertillery. The chapel was to be built to ease the overcrowding at the Methodists Chapel on Somerset Street and was to be its sister chapel. In 1906 the building of the …

Blaenau Gwent Primitive Methodist Chapel. The Blaenau Gwent Primitive Methodist Chapel is situated at the top of Ty Bryn Road, behind the Blaenau Gwent Rows. It was reportedly built in 1883. There is a date stone on the front of the chapel though I cannot verify the exact original construction date as no records are available at this present time. …

Trinity English Calvinistic Methodist Chapel. The original Trinity English Calvinistic Methodist Chapel at Church Street, Abertillery, (as seen center on the 1879 land sales map) was built in 1877. I had previously stated it was built in 1875 as stated in the South Wales Gazette report dated November 1905, although I have now amended this date as seen below. New …

Brynteg English Congregational Church. The Brynteg English Congregational Church is located at the bottom of Oxford Street, Blaenau Gwent, on the junction with Alma Street, Blaenau Gwent. That area from Alma Street, Oxford Street, Glynmawr Street, Portland Road down to Oak Street and onto the Station Hill, taking in Gladstone Street and west of the Foundry Bridge was called Brynteg. …

The Tabernacle Congregational Church. In the mid 1850’s Abertillery was a relatively small village sparsely populated with only a few coal levels, two deep collieries and a tin works. Within a short while the various industries rapidly expanded and people from all over the South West of England and beyond migrated to the valley’s. The industrial development in the area …

The Welsh Calvinistic Methodist Chapel – Carmel Chapel. At the start of their religious activities at Abertillery the Calvanistic Movement held their meetings in a house in Mill Street, what is now known as Carmel Street, Abertillery. This meeting house was much later to become a Fish & Chip Shop.  In March 1874 the London Gazette issued a notice that …

The Six Bells Baptist Chapel – The Bethany. The Six Bells Baptist Church at Six Bells was formed in 1897 as an off shoot of the King Street Baptist Church, Abertillery. At the time, less than a dozen coal miners of the Baptist denomination held their Sabbath meetings in the room of a small cottage in the neighbourhood. Some of …