Denbigh
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- For the former town of the same name in Virginia, see Denbigh, Virginia. For the American Civil War blockage runner, see Denbigh (ship).
Denbigh (Welsh: Dinbych) was county town of the traditional county of Denbighshire, Wales before 1888. The town lies on the River Clwyd and grew around the glove-making industry. Its population at the 2001 UK Census was 8,783.
At one time the majority of the population sought employment at the North Wales Hospital, which cared for mentally ill people. The institution was locally known as 'Denbigh Mental', or the more degrogatory 'Denbigh Nuthouse'. The hospital closed in the 1990s.
Notable buildings in Denbigh include Denbigh Castle, the town walls begun in 1282 including the Burgess Gate, and Leicester's Church, an unfinished church begun in 1579, which was going to be a cathedral with the title of city to be transferred from neighbouring St Asaph. The project ran out of money and the grounds now lie derelict. Other attractions in the town include a library / museum.
Denbigh was once served by a railway station on the former London and North Western Railway, later part of the LMS. The "Vale of Clwyd" line leading north to St. Asaph and Rhyl closed in 1955, leaving Denbigh on a lengthy branch running from Chester via Mold and Denbigh to Ruthin, which closed in 1962. A southern continuation beyond Ruthin linking up with the Great Western Railway at Corwen had closed in 1952. The platform of Denbigh station can still be seen beside the road leading to the Kwik Save store.
Famous people associated with Denbigh include:
- Rhoda Broughton, poet
- Humphrey Lloyd, cartographer - see external links
- Sir Hugh Myddleton, Royal Jeweller, goldsmith and entrepreneur
- Twm o'r Nant, playwright
- Kate Roberts, writer - see external links
- Henry Morton Stanley, journalist and explorer - see external links
- Several members of the Salusbury Family, who represented Denbigh in its various forms for multiple years.
Denbigh hosted the National Eisteddfod in 1882, 1939 and 2001.
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