This Photograph was taken from the top of the Race where it joins Blaendare road. It was taken at the funeral of Henry Phillips who had been killed at Blaendare Colliery on October the 5th 1907. If you were to take another photograph from this same spot today, what you would see is a large turning circle for vehicles, while behind that, the ground has been bulldozed Little is left now only mother nature trying to hide the remnants of a mountain of industry.
Photograph courtesy of Councillor Neil Waite
Near the house coloured yellow, obscured from view by the trees was the site managers house which was built in 1810
From its elevated position the manager could over look the industrial site with ease.
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The house is remarkable in its appearance for its exterior is made solely of yellow bricks, just like the current house owner Mr Jordan is displaying. The bricks marked Blaendare were produced on site at the brick works located several hundred yards in front of the house. One is able to see how the bricks have stood the test of time with the house and its surrounding garden walls looking as majestic as it would have appeared when new almost two hundred years ago. At the rear of the house is a tram road that climbs up to where a disused quarry can still be found. From here it is said Capel Hanbury Leigh’s builders used the stone to build the Town Hall and other important buildings that adorn the town of Pontypool.
