Why visit Treorchy
Townapedia lists 3 museums and landmarks, 7 parks and trails, 9 places to eat and 6 attractions in and around town.
Highlights include Parc and Dare Hall, Royal Cinema and Valley Veterans Community Garden.
Weather in Treorchy
Forecast from MET Norway (CC BY 4.0). Full forecast
About Treorchy
Treorchy (Welsh: Treorci; ) is a town and community (and electoral ward) in Wales. Once a mining town, it retains such characteristics. It is situated in the county borough of Rhondda Cynon Taf in the Rhondda Fawr valley. Treorchy is also one of the 16 communities of the Rhondda.
From the Wikipedia article Treorchy (this version), under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Things to do6
Royal Cinema
Cinema and theater · 3.2 mi
Former cinema in Tonypandy, Wales
Museums and landmarks3
Parks, trails and playgrounds7
Restaurants and cafes9
Parc Hotel
Bar and pub · 0.9 mi
Park Road, Treorchy
Tu-Th 16:00-23:00; Fr-Sa 12:00-24:00; Su 12:00-22:30
M & M's Cafe & Fishbar
Fast food · Fish And Chips · 1.4 mi
6 Ceridwen Street, Maerdy
History
Before industrialisation, most of the land was owned by one of the great families of Glamorgan, with Treorchy coming under the domain of the Marquess of Bute Estate. The discovery of coal transformed the area. The period following 1851 saw Treorchy become an industrial town. The town grew around the coal mining industry during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, but by the end of the 20th century all the local pits had closed, creating an economic downturn in the community.
Treorchy was established when the Abergorki Colliery, situated in Cwm Orci to the north, was opened as a level in 1859 by a Mr Huxham, a former manager of the Bute Merthyr Colliery. This was sold to J. H. Insole of Cymmer in 1862. The first deep mine in Treorchy was sunk in the 1860s by David Davies of Llandinam, who would later own the Ocean Coal Company. The initial development of the town was linear, based on the main road through the valley, but by 1875 a grid pattern of streets was emerging.
From the History section of Treorchy on Wikipedia, under CC BY-SA 4.0.
More about Treorchy
Economy
After being a town whose employment relied almost entirely on coal mining in the Abergorki, Tylecoch, Parc and Dare collieries, by the end of the 1970s all of these collieries had closed. Treorchy became a commuter village, with the working population seeking employment in the larger towns and cities nearby, such as Cardiff and Bridgend. Employment in Treorchy is now mostly in retail.
In 2020, Treorchy was named by the Great British High Street Awards as the UK High Street of the Year, succeeding 2019 winner and fellow Welsh town Crickhowell. It was praised for the number of independent shops in the town, and for organising a number of events, from Christmas parades to arts festivals, as well as a gay pride gathering which was a first for the area. The Guardian reported that the town has grown its chamber of trade from 30 members to 120, and nearly 30 businesses have opened in recent years, producing an occupancy rate of 96%. The town has a number of cafes, pubs, and shops on its high street.
Arts and culture
Attractions in the town include the Parc and Dare Hall, home of the Treorchy Male Choir and the Parc and Dare Band. The hall also provides entertainment as a venue for cinema, theatre, and pantomime, as well as for school eisteddfodau and other performances.
Treorchy hosted the National Eisteddfod in 1928, the only time the event has been held in the Rhondda.
Education
Treorchy has two main schools: Treorchy Primary School and Treorchy Comprehensive. The primary school is not on the original site of the Treorchy Boys and Treorchy Girls schools, but is built 100 metres further along Glyncoli Road. It was constructed according to the original plans used for many of the older schools in the upper Rhondda.
Treorchy Comprehensive school was built on the old site of the Tylecoch colliery. Its western athletics track was named the 'Red Ash', being the remnants of the mine shaft. This was removed in 2006 to build an astroturf sports field. The school is officially 500 metres from the main gate to the rear gate, and runs from Chepstow Road, Cwmparc, to Tylecoch Bridge, Treorchy.
From the Wikipedia article Treorchy, under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Notable people from Treorchy
John DaviesWelsh historian and television and radio broadcaster (1938-2015)Photo: Fæ, CC BY-SA 3.0
Euros BowenPoet and clergyman (1904-1988)Photo: Geoff Charles, CC BY-SA 4.0
Tomos WilliamsWelsh rugby union playerPhoto: Stefano Delfrate, CC BY-SA 2.0
Ben Bowen Thomasadult educator and civil servant (1899–1977)Photo: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 3.0 igo
Janice GregoryWelsh politician (born 1955)Photo: National Assembly For Wales /..., CC BY 2.0- Donald DaviesBritish computer scientist (1924-2000)
- Peter GeorgeBritish novelist
- Noel KinseyWelsh footballer (1925-2017)
- Clive ThomasWelsh football referee (born 1936)
- Wayne JonesWelsh footballer (born 1948)
- Ray PowellBritish politician (1928-2001)
- Ceri MorganWelsh darts player (1947-2020)
Born in Treorchy, according to Wikidata (CC0). Each name links to its Wikipedia article.
Churches and places of worship16
Shopping4
Gas and EV charging2
Schools, colleges and libraries10
Healthcare3
Forest View Medical Centre
Clinic and pharmacy · 0.7 mi
Abergorki Industrial Estate, Treorchy
Map of Treorchy
60 places. The map loads OpenStreetMap tiles when you open it.
Getting there and nearby towns
Cardiff Airport (CWL) is the nearest airport with scheduled flights listed in OpenStreetMap, 19 miles away.
- Rhondda 2 mi east, about 4 min by car
- Tonypandy 3 mi southeast, about 5 min by car
- Aberdare 4 mi northeast, about 7 min by car
- Mountain Ash 6 mi east, about 9 min by car
- Tonyrefail 6 mi southeast, about 10 min by car
- Maesteg 7 mi southwest, about 12 min by car
- Merthyr Tydfil 8 mi northeast, about 13 min by car
- Pontypridd 8 mi southeast, about 13 min by car
- Treharris 9 mi east, about 14 min by car
- Coity 10 mi south, about 16 min by car
Drive times are estimates from straight-line distance, not routes.
Towns near Treorchy
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Sources and licences
- GeoNames (CC BY 4.0): population, coordinates, regions and time zone
- Mapillary (see each image): photos
- OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL 1.0): places, airports, map data
- Wikidata (CC0 1.0): elevation, founding date, time zone, website, landmarks and historic places
- Wikimedia Commons (see each image): photos
- Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0): overview and history text
Photo credits
- The Stag Treorchy, Sionk, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Treorchy Stores Treorchy, Sionk, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Post Office Treorchy, Sionk, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Prince Of Wales Treorchy, Sionk, CC BY-SA 4.0
- St Peters Church, Pentre, Rhondda, Unknown author, Public domain
- Gelli Park, Keironoshea, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, toho, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, toho, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, toho, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, toho, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, toho, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, toho, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, toho, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, toho, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, toho, CC BY-SA 4.0
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