Visit Colwinston Places

Welcome to Visit Colwinston Places
The Walkfo guide to things to do & explore in Colwinston

  

Colwinston Places Overview: History, Culture & Facts about Colwinston

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Colwinston history

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Archaeological and early historical evidence

Bronze Age axe heads discovered on land at Highfield Farm and Iron Age kilns suggest that the area was settled during prehistoric times. The impetus for the development of an agrarian village may have been the local geography. Steep slopes in the central part of the village make it unlike other Vale of Glamorgan villages in its topography.

Norman rule and new land ownership

Robert Fitzhamon led the Norman invasion of the area from Bristol, probably by sea. William de Londres was granted the lordship of Ogmore (which included Colwinston) and established Ewenny Priory in 1141.

Middle Ages and after

By 1340, Sir Roger de Bavant had become the owner of the remainder of the Manor. In 1344 (for reasons unknown) he gave his property to the then King of England, Edward III, who endowed the property upon the Dominican Nuns at Dartford Priory in Kent. In 1536, Sir Edward Carne was able to lease Ewenny Priory from the king, eventually purchasing it in 1545 for £727-6s-4d.

16th to 19th century

The Norman tradition of primogeniture had taken over in Glamorgan, in contrast with traditional Welsh law. In the 1670s, With no sons to inherit, the Carne family lands were divided between two surviving Carne daughters upon their marriages. Colwinston thus became the property of Sir Edward Mansel, 4th Baronet, of Margam when he married Martha Carne. In 1747 Bussy Mansel, 4th Baron Mansel, succeeded to the title. Having no male heirs, he sold the ‘Manor of Colwinston’ to David Thomas ‘of Bath’. Thomas had married into the family that owned Pwllywrach, where he built a new ‘Manor house’. Four generations later the Manor was again without a male heir after the death of Hubert be Burgh Thomas. His sister, Mary Anna Thomas, married Charles John Prichard some time after 1878, placing the land at Colwinston in trust for their son, Hubert Cecil Prichard. Small farms were often then sold on to other farmers and landowners in this period. The Golden Mile Common, an area of approximately 70 acres lying alongside the A48, was ‘enclosed’ by an Act of Parliament called the ‘Golden Mile Award’ in 1871. The village population in the 19th century thus became formed around the Pwllywrach House and Hilton Farm, a number of small farm units stretching west–east from Ty Maen to the Yew Tree and Chapel Farms, north to Claypit and Highfield Farms and south to Stembridge and Parcau Farms, some labourers’ cottages owned by the Pwllywrach estate and others, the Church and the Parsonage (and the then Vicarage) and three chapels. Some of the land on the northern side of village was owned by Jesus College, Oxford. Agriculture was supported by other trades including the Sycamore Tree Inn (recorded back to at least 1840, the building is post-medieval), a forge and blacksmith, baker, shoemaker, post office and horse breaker. However, there was a substantial turnover in the village population following the start of the Industrial Revolution. Census records show that of the 268 people living in the village in 1861, only 98 had been living in the village in 1851; 168 people who died or moved away during that decade were replaced by a high number of births and people moving in from West Wales and Ireland. The 1861 census also reveals the existence of a private school within the village. A “National” school, supported by the (then) Church of England, was established in 1871, in the building now known as Ty Colwyn, with 27 children on the original register. From 1875 the school was funded through a voluntary Parish rate. The present village school (Church in Wales) was built in 1970. In addition to the Anglican church, several Nonconformist chapels existed in the village, and were popular with Welsh-language speakers. Seion Calvinistic Methodist (Presbyterian) Chapel was built in 1830, surviving until 1996. Ebenezer Baptist Chapel was founded in 1843 and a building established in 1852, using part of Chapel Farm House. It continued in use until 1944, and a baptismal pool was created by blocking off a stream in the field below and to the rear of the chapel. In 1865, a village branch of the Philanthropic Order of True Ivorites was established, based at the Sycamore Tree Inn, conducting its business in Welsh. This provided a vehicle for villagers with independent incomes to save, and then possibly to buy, their own properties. It finally closed in 1960, and the order as a whole disbanded in the early 1970s. The 1811 A Topographical Dictionary of The Dominion of Wales by Nicholas Carlisle said of the village: COLWINSTON, or, TRE COLLWYN, in the Cwmwd of Maenor Glynn Ogwr, Cantref of Cron Nedd (now called the Hundred of Ogmore),County of GLAMORGAN, South Wales: a discharged Vicarage, valued in the King’s Books at £6 6s.8d.; Patron, David Thomas, Esq.: Church dedicated to St. Michael. The Resident Population of this Parish, in 1801, was 235. The Money raised by the Parish Rates, in 1803, was £101 6s.10d., at 1s. 6d. per acre. It is 4 m. W. N. W. from Cowbridge. This Parish contains between fourteen and fifteen hundred acres of inclosed Land, and 60 acres of common Pasture, called The Golden Mile. According to the Diocesan Report, in 1809, the yearly value of this Benefice, arising from Vicarial Tythes, and Augmentation, was £111 18s.0d.

20th century

The population of the village began to grow away from its agricultural origins, with some emigration to the South Wales coalfields by those seeking industrial employment. The need for intensive labour on farms was reduced by machinery and the village population declined. The remaining farm buildings between Church Farm and Colwinston House were gradually sold as residential houses.

21st century

The main fabric of the village was set until 2016 when developer Redrow plc built 64 new homes on land now known as Heol Cae Pwll (completed in 2018) Protests against the development by local residents were overruled by the Vale of Glamorgan Council.

Colwinston culture & places

The major social event of the year is the annual village fete. Other annual events include a pantomime and New Year’s Day sport of “collyball” A multi-use games area (MUGA) was constructed close to the village hall in 2013.

You can visit Colwinston places with Walkfo Colwinston to hear history at Colwinston’s places whilst walking around using the free digital tour app. Walkfo Colwinston has 33 places to visit in our interactive Colwinston map, with amazing history, culture & travel facts you can explore the same way you would at a museum or art gallery with information audio headset. With Walkfo, you can travel by foot, bike or bus throughout Colwinston, being in the moment, without digital distraction or limits to a specific walking route. Our historic audio walks, National Trust interactive audio experiences, digital tour guides for English Heritage locations are available at Colwinston places, with a AI tour guide to help you get the best from a visit to Colwinston & the surrounding areas.

“Curated content for millions of locations across the UK, with 33 audio facts unique to Colwinston places in an interactive Colwinston map you can explore.”

Walkfo: Visit Colwinston Places Map
33 tourist, history, culture & geography spots

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Colwinston historic spots	Colwinston tourist destinations	Colwinston plaques	Colwinston geographic features
Walkfo Colwinston tourism map key: places to see & visit like National Trust sites, Blue Plaques, English Heritage locations & top tourist destinations in Colwinston

  

Best Colwinston places to visit

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Colwinston has places to explore by foot, bike or bus. Below are a selection of the varied Colwinston’s destinations you can visit with additional content available at the Walkfo Colwinston’s information audio spots:

Ewenny Priory House Ewenny Priory House is a privately owned Georgian mansion. Originally built in 1545 it was rebuilt in the early 1800s. The house is Grade II* listed.

St Crallo’s Church St Crallo’s Church is a Grade I listed church in Coychurch Lower, Bridgend County Borough, southern Wales. It is often referred to historically as The Cathedral of the Vale of Glamorgan.

Visit Colwinston plaques