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179:. By 1841 the works was responsible for the employment of more than 1350 people though many of this number were associated with obtaining iron ore, limestone and coal further up the valley. These ironworks had a great influence on the industrial and social developments of the surrounding area. Due to this, building began on buildings for settling the workers at the end of the 18th century, increasing house production during the 2nd quarter of the 19th century. The works could be approached over a
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365:(690 ft) from Gilwern to Brynmawr. Its construction involved considerable cutting and embanking and some sections were built out over the gorge on concrete pillars. Work began in March 1960 and it was opened to traffic in 1962. It was a single-carriageway route with two west-bound lanes running up the gorge. Work to construct a dual carriageway through the gorge began in January 2015.
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established a furnace and forge here (OS grid ref SO 236140) in the sixteenth century though nothing now remains of them other than parts of the masonry dam of a pool connected with the water power used for the forge. Wrought iron was made at the furnace from cast iron using charcoal. A tinworks also
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network and in 1877 the line was doubled along its entire length. The routing of the line through the gorge was a considerable engineering challenge requiring the digging of several tunnels and the construction of an impressive curving viaduct across the ravine of the Nant Dyar. The line continued
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Engineered by Thomas
Dadford in 1793-4, this tramroad (also sometimes referred to as the Llam-march Railroad) to link the Clydach ironworks with the coal mines and iron ore deposits at Gellifelen and Llam-march. There is a single-arched stone bridge at SO 233137 and SO 255176, the latter being the
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with
Glangrwyne Forge on the banks of the River Usk. An important surviving feature of the railroad is the single-arched bridge of coarse rubble-stone near Maesygwartha which is impressively set above a waterfall (at OS grid ref SO 230138). A tramroad linked into the Clydach Ironworks from the
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through the gorge between 2013 and 2021. The previous alignment of this major trunk road through the gorge was constructed in the 1960s by John Morgan (Construction) Ltd of
Cardiff. Achieving a consistent gradient of 1 in 20 for a distance of 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) it climbs 210 metres
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These limeworks were the first established in the gorge, having started production in 1794/95. From
Blackrock, the quarry extends along the contours of the gorge above Clydach North (also referred to as Cheltenham). They continued to work until 1908 and the masonry limekilns remain today.
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designated in 1957 in order that its landscapes be protected and for the quiet enjoyment of them by the public. Subsequently, considerable parts of the gorge have also been protected for their wildlife and habitats, including the Cwm
Clydach
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The industrial town of
Brynmawr sits at the head of the gorge and the large village of Gilwern sits at its foot in the Usk valley. Although development along the gorge and its sides are semi-continuous, the linear settlements of Clydach (now
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The
Merthyr Tydfil to Govilon Turnpike was authorised by Act of Parliament and laid through the valley in 1812–13. This formed the main road through the gorge until the construction of a road on a new alignment in the 1960s.
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in 1821, this tramroad (sometimes also referred to as Bailey's
Tramroad) traverses the southeastern slopes of the gorge below and parallel to the Llam-march Tramroad. It connected the Bailey's ironworks at Nantyglo with the
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The limeworks at
Clydach (OS grid ref SO 233127) were built in 1877 to provide lime for the construction of the nearby Nant Dyar railway viaduct. Two pairs of limekilns remain against an impressive quarried backdrop.
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North) and
Maesygwartha can be distinguished along the roads between Brynmawr and Gilwern, mainly to the north of the river. The settlement of Llanelly Hill occupies the northwest hilltop of the gorge.
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decided to close it as being uneconomical to run. The last trains ran along it in June 1958. The larger part of the track-bed has now been converted to a cycleway, forming part of route 46 of the
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Llanelly Quarry supplied the Clydach Ironworks with limestone, and subsequently lime for farming and building mortars. It closed finally in 1962. Two pairs of limekilns remain alongside the
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included both the WHS and the Gorge within a wider area. The Project sought to conserve and restore the built features of an area which was key to the Industrial Revolution.
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and is a tourist destination in its own right, with facilities including a picnic site, waymarked footpaths, the National Cycle Network and car parking alongside the
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The railway was constructed in 1862 as a single line, following in part, the line of the earlier Govilon tramroad. Four years later it became a part of the
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from the 1790s and the base of a later furnace can still be seen together with other structures thanks to an excavation carried out in 1986.
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Llam-march Tramroad and Aqueduct Bridge of 1811 which also carried water from the Clydach to the Clydach Ironworks Rolling Mill via a leat.
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Clydach Railroad by means of a cast-iron bridge. Constructed by Smart in 1824, it is one of the earliest in the world.
187:(built in 1824). Production continued up until around 1860, where it was the main point of activity within the gorge.
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was the most significant ironworks developed in the Cwm Gorge. The Ironworks were constructed around 1793–95 after
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though it still retains its natural environment. It has long been an important transport corridor between
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in Monmouthshire. The Gorge was one of the first locations in the region to be
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and the Usk Bat Sites SAC, which also extends across much of the neighbouring
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Photograph of the ironworks : employing over 1,350 workers by 1841
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within the gorge, representing a history of human occupation from the
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and the lowlands of Monmouthshire and the northeastern quarter of the
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Photograph of the limeworks : extensive quarries and lime kilns
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Photograph of the ironworks : the 1824 date cast on the bridge
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Heads of the Valleys trunk road which runs between Abergavenny and
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Photograph of Clydach Gorge : Rhaeadr Isaf waterfall in spate
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This early railroad was constructed during 1793–4 by the engineer
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36:(also known as Cwm Clydach) is a steep-sided valley in south-east
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The works were associated with the Frere family (which included
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Photograph of the ironworks : the cast iron bridge of 1824
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It runs for 5.6 kilometres (3.5 mi) from the vicinity of
673:"A465 Section 2 | Gilwern to Brynmawr Project Website"
646:"Clydach Gorge Historical Processes, Themes and Background"
619:"Clydach Gorge Historical Processes, Themes and Background"
605:"Clydach Gorge Historical Processes, Themes and Background"
591:"Clydach Gorge Historical Processes, Themes and Background"
577:"Clydach Gorge Historical Processes, Themes and Background"
563:"Clydach Gorge Historical Processes, Themes and Background"
549:"Clydach Gorge Historical Processes, Themes and Background"
535:"Clydach Gorge Historical Processes, Themes and Background"
521:"Clydach Gorge Historical Processes, Themes and Background"
507:"Clydach Gorge Historical Processes, Themes and Background"
493:"Clydach Gorge Historical Processes, Themes and Background"
479:"Clydach Gorge Historical Processes, Themes and Background"
465:"Clydach Gorge Historical Processes, Themes and Background"
451:"Clydach Gorge Historical Processes, Themes and Background"
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The Waterfall on the Clydach Gorge c.1800 by William Payne
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main article on Merthyr, Tredegar and Abergavenny Railway
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Sustrans Routes2Ride: Cycling in the Clydach Gorge Area
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Canyons and gorges of the Brecon Beacons National Park
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and which serves the Heads of the Valleys sub-region.
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The Clydach Gorge: industrial archaeological trails
409:. Though the gorge is not included within it, the
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439:Brecon Beacons National Park: eastern area
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234:Merthyr, Tredegar and Abergavenny Railway
437:Ordnance Survey Explorer map sheet OL13
301:Merthyr Tredegar and Abergavenny Railway
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296:Railway tunnel at Clydach Gorge, 1973
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817:Canyons and gorges of Monmouthshire
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384:Cwm Clydach National Nature Reserve
159:operated at this site at one time.
131:South), Blackrock, Cheltenham (now
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194:, born in Clydach House in 1815).
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397:There are, in addition, numerous
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83:. It is now exploited by the
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118:. There are also limeworks.
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662:Blorenge Books 2008 pp55/6
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81:South Wales Coalfield
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181:cast iron
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