Birchgrove : Attractions of Swansea

Birchgrove is a large village situated roughly 6 miles from the centre of Swansea. it is situated roughly between the flood plain of the River Tawe and Drummau Mountain.

Early History

From an early date to the beginning of the 19th century, coal-mining played an important role in Birchgrove. it was mainly on coal-mining that the villages of the parish grew, and Birchgrove was no exception. Mining played a very important role in the industrial development of the lower Swansea Valley, which was becoming the metallurgical centre of the world. (See History of Swansea.) Coal was replacing wood in the smelting of ores; and it was because of the demand for coal that a pit was sunk in Birchgrove, known as Birchgrove Colliery Company, locally know as the ‘Old Pit’. it was situated just below the present (as of 2005) Birchgrove Post Office. it was sunk in 1845, to a depth of approximately 100 feet.

As a result of its prosperity, two further pits were sunk, namely Sisters Pit, and Brothers Pit near Glais. Approximately 200 worked at the Old Pit. This involved many new people coming into the area, to work in both mining and the copper industry. The only cultural recreation was a Reading Room, situated near the colliery. it was not used on Sundays, so the people of the village were given permission to use it for Sunday worship. Services were held there according to the Book of Common Prayer of the Church of England (the Church in Wales not being founded until 1920). The services held there were well supported. The Birchgrove Colliery was closed in 1931. There are still relics of Birchgrove’s industrial past in the area, The ruins of Scot’s pit pump house dominate the lower end of Birchgrove and evidence of mine workings can still be found.

Prehistory

The countryside surrounding Birchgrove is littered with prehistoric sites. There are numerous barrow mounds and evidence of prehistoric dwellings.

Carreg Bica is a large standing stone on Drummau Mountain. The stone is local sandstone and is around 13ft high and is believed to be a bica monument. The word “carreg” means “stone” in the Welsh language. The stone is also known by other names: Maen Bredwan or Maen Bradwen. it is also mentioned in a charter to King John to William de Breos in 1203 as “meynhirion", as a boundary stone marking the Gower.

Cistercian monks built the nearby Neath Abbey in the early 12th century. They wintered their flocks and herds in the few open spaces down in the valley, but during the other seasons they kept them in their specially constructed stone walled fields on Drummau mountain top, using the standing stone as a landmark. Many sections of the stone walls are still standing from Cistercian times.

Legends surrounding the stone

There is a legend of the stone moving and going to a local stream to drink or bathe. in this case the stone is said to bathe in the river Neath once a year on Easter morning. Children from Skewen were said to race to the stone on Easter morning.