Willington Worthenbury

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Willington Worthenbury (Welsh: Willington Wrddymbre) is a community in Wrexham county borough in north-east Wales. It has an area of 2146 hectares and a population of 730 (2001 census). It contains the villages of Worthenbury (Welsh: Wrddymbre) and Tallarn Green (Welsh: Talwrn Green). It is located on the eastern side of the River Dee in the Maelor Saesneg area adjacent to the English county of Cheshire. It has the lowest proportion of Welsh speakers of all the communities in Wrexham county borough with 88.81% having no knowledge of Welsh according to the 2001 census.

Settlement at Worthenbury may have began as early as the 10th century. There has been a church in the village since at least 1388. The current building was built in 1939; it is dedicated to Saint Deiniol and has many Georgian features. South of the village lay Emral Hall, home to the influential Puleston family until 1936 when it was demolished.

Tallarn Green also has a small church, completed in 1873 and dedicated to Mary Magdalene. The famous poet R. S. Thomas was curate here in the 1940s. The word "green" in the name of the village indicates an area of grassy common land.

[edit] References

• Clwyd-Powys Archaeological Trust. Maelor Saesneg: The Settlement Landscape. Accessed 5 June 2008.
• Davies, John; Jenkins, Nigel; Baines, Menna & Lynch, Peredur I. (2008) The Welsh Academy Encyclopaedia of Wales, University of Wales Press, Cardiff.
• Roberts, Vic (2004) Worthenbury, Genuki. Accessed 5 June 2008.
• Wrexham County Borough Council. St Mary Magdalene Church. Accessed 5 June 2008.