| Whitebrook | |
| Welsh: Gwenffrwd | |
Whitebrook valley and the River Wye |
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Whitebrook
Whitebrook shown within Monmouthshire |
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| OS grid reference | SO533065 |
|---|---|
| Principal area | Monmouthshire |
| Ceremonial county | Gwent |
| Country | Wales |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | MONMOUTH |
| Postcode district | NP25 |
| Dialling code | 01600 |
| Police | Gwent |
| Fire | South Wales |
| Ambulance | Welsh |
| EU Parliament | Wales |
| List of places: UK • Wales • Monmouthshire | |
Whitebrook (Welsh: Gwenffrwd) is a small village in Monmouthshire, south-east Wales, United Kingdom. It is located four miles south east of Monmouth in the Wye Valley.
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Between the 17th and 19th centuries, the Whitebrook valley - like the Angiddy valley at Tintern a few miles to the south - was a centre of intensive water-powered industry. A branch of Tintern wireworks was established here in 1606, and wire working continued to be the main industry of the valley until about 1720. By about 1760, paper mills had taken over, and much of the housing in the valley was built for millworkers around that time. Some of the paper was made from imported esparto grass, brought in via the quay at nearby Llandogo[1]. Although the industry had ceased by 1880, the valley retains the remains of several old mills, warehouses, dams and leats[2]. Many of these have now been transformed into desirable residential properties. The village is designated as a Conservation Area[3].
Whitebrook today is known for its Michelin-starred restaurant, The Crown at Whitebrook, with Head Chef James Sommerin. The River Wye AONB surrounds the village. Across the river are the hills of west Gloucestershire and the Forest of Dean through which Offa's Dyke Path passes.
Novelists Julia Gregson and M.R. Hall live in the village, which was also the home for some years of Gwydion Thomas, son of poet R.S. Thomas. The poet Paul Groves (1947- ) spent his childhood a mile to the south at The Narth.