| Holywell | |
| Welsh: Treffynnon | |
St Winefride's Well, Holywell. |
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Holywell
Holywell shown within Flintshire |
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| Population | 5,974 [1][2][3] (2001 Census) |
|---|---|
| OS grid reference | SJ185755 |
| Principal area | Flintshire |
| Ceremonial county | Clwyd |
| Country | Wales |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | HOLYWELL |
| Postcode district | CH8 |
| Dialling code | 01352 |
| Police | North Wales |
| Fire | North Wales |
| Ambulance | Welsh |
| EU Parliament | Wales |
| UK Parliament | Delyn |
| Welsh Assembly | Delyn |
| List of places: UK • Wales • Flintshire | |
Holywell (Welsh: Treffynnon) is the fifth largest town in Flintshire, North Wales, lying to the west of the estuary of the River Dee.
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The market town of Holywell takes its name from the St Winefride's Well, a holy well surrounded by a chapel.[4] The well has been known since at least the Roman period, and has been a site of pilgrimage since about 660 when Saint Winefride was beheaded there by Caradog who attempted to attack her.[5] The well is one of the Seven Wonders of Wales and the town bills itself as The Lourdes of Wales. Many pilgrims from all over the world continue to visit Holywell and the Well.
From the 18th century, the town grew around the lead mining and cotton milling industries. The water supply from the mountains above the town, which flows continually and at a constant temperature, supplies the well and powered many factories in the Greenfield Valley. In addition to lead and cotton, copper production was of great importance. Thomas Williams, a lawyer from Anglesey built factories and smelteries for copper in Greenfield Valley, bringing the copper from Anglesey to St. Helens and then to Greenfield Valley where it was used to make many items for the slave trade. These items included manilas (copper bracelets), neptunes (large flat dishes to evaporate seawater to produce salt) and copper sheathing. The copper sheathing was used to cover the hulls of the wooden ships trading in the warmer Caribbean waters, giving rise to the expression 'copper bottomed investment', the sheathing was also applied to Royal Navy ships and was instrumental in Nelson's victories (two of these copper plates from HMS Victory are in Greenfield Valley Heritage Park museum).
The wealth generated from these industries led to the development of the town and the High Street still has many Georgian buildings. The Greenfield Valley is well known for the abundance of birds and butterflies and many enthusiasts visits to see the array of species. The Valley also has a number of conserved mills and structures from bygone ages and is the only place in Wales to have seven scheduled ancient monuments.
Holywell hosted an unofficial National Eisteddfod event in 1869.
Administratively, Holywell town consists of three wards of the Flintshire County Council local authority. At the 2001 Census, the total population of the town was:
| Ward | Population |
|---|---|
| Holywell Central | 1,835 [1] |
| Holywell East | 1,828 [2] |
| Holywell West | 2,311 [3] |
| Holywell Total | 5,974 |
With the adjoining villages the population is over 15,000
Holywell is split into four distinct areas: Pen-y-Maes, the Strand, the Holway and the town centre. The Holway, located on the west side of the town, is the largest of the residential areas of Holywell. The near-contiguous village of Greenfield is located to the north east of the town on the B5121 road.
Villages within the Holywell catchment area include: Bagillt, Brynford, Carmel, Gorsedd, Halkyn, Lixwm, Lloc, Mostyn, Pantasaph, Pentre Halkyn, Rhes-y-Cae, Rhosesmor, Trelawnyd, Whitford and Ysceifiog. In addition there are other smaller scattered communities within this area. All of these are within a six mile radius of Holywell. These villages are all connected to Holywell by a frequent bus service.[6]
The town centre contains many small businesses and national stores, serving not only the shopping needs of the people of the town itself, but also those of the surrounding villages within the town's natural catchment area. Part of the centre of the historic market town has been designated a conservation area.[7]
The town contains a secondary school with over 500 pupils and a leisure centre, as well as four primary schools.
Holywell also has a local football team, Holywell Town who play in the Welsh Alliance League.
The old cottage hospital was located in Pen-y-Maes until it closed. A new hospital has been built near the football pitch of the local team.
Recently, larger stores, notably Tesco and Lidl have been built around the town centre.
Although Holywell does not have a cricket team carrying the name of the town a number of junior and senior cricketers from the area play for nearby village team Carmel & District Cricket Club whose ground is located a short distance from Holywell between the villages of Carmel and Lloc located just off the A55 expressway.
In 2007, a group of locals proposed a circular walk way, the "St Beuno's Circular Walk", joining all of the historical and religious locations of the town.[8]