Trethomas

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Trethomas is a small-ish village approx 2.5 miles east of Caerphilly. It is now part of the Caerphilly County Borough having previously been part of Gwent, and Monmouthshire before that, It was mainly built by William James Thomas, with an original name of 'THOMASTOWN'. William James Thomas was a co-owner of The Bedwas Navigation Colliery Company, (also of mines in Aberdare in the Cynon Valley). Most of the earlier parts of Trethomas were built in and around 1900 - 1913, when the Mine was just starting up. The terraced streets of Trethomas were appropriately named. Some were named after members of William thomas' family, and others were named after places and events. ie William Street, James Street, Glyn Gwyn street, Thomas Street, Mary Street. The remainder were named Navigation Street (after the colliery), Coronation Street, after the crowning of the King George V in 1910. The oldest building in Trethomas, is the Tyn-y-pwl Inn, known locally as the 'Pike'.(Turn-Pike in english) The reason being that the building was originally an old Toll House where tolls were charged for the use of the road between Caerphilly and Newport. For many years, there was a tin plate works at Waterloo, close to Trethomas, which, amongst other items, made equipment for the aviation industry (there was an aircraft works at Machen, next to the foundry which was just above the Royal Oak area in Machen) and to support various other enterprises in the area. The tinplate works closed around 1943. Also sited at Waterloo was the Coates Brothers Paint works which was, together with the colliery, one of the biggest employers in the area. The company was later devolved to making inks etc, and closed in the late 90's - it is scheduled to become another housing estate. The railways that ran through Trethomas went East to Newport and West to Rhymney & Merthyr. All the lines ceased in 1961 and very little remains. What does remain of the old trackbed between Trethomas and Machen has been updated by SUSTRANS as a cycle-track/walkway. This starts at the site of the Level Crossing between upper & lower Graig-y-Rhacca and runs almost to where the old Machen Station stood. Nothing remains of the colliery, the Coke Ovens, and the British Benzol works that were at the top of upper Navigation street, next to Tynywern Terraces, aptly named 'The White City' mainly because the streets and houses were always dirty due to the coke ovens being so close and the coal dust stirred up by the emptying of the wagons into the hoppers. All of the Colliery and what was termed 'The Plant' disappeared in the late 1980's following the closure of the colliery after the Miners' Strike. The ground on which the colliery and 'plant' stood is yet to be re-developed. The ground has reportedly high concentrations of Benzines in the soil at present and therefore it would be dangerous to re-use in its present condition. Since the demise of the Collieries, the river Rymney, which passes through Trethomas, has gone from being a smelly, black monstrosity, to a clean, aromatic river, now teeming with wildlife & fish after many barren years. It's banks have been the source of inspiration for many local artists, and at the lower end of Trethomas, close to waterloo, the still standing multiple arch railway viaduct can still be seen where it used to carry the Caerphilly Branch line over the river. Over many years, Trethomas has continually expanded in all directions, not only in industry, but in housing as well, so much so, that it is now difficult to find where Bedwas ends and Trethomas starts. In years to come, the same will be said of Trethomas and Machen. Wyn Parkin