Throughout Britain, and for various reasons, many rural communities disappeared during the 20th Century. These included the mining village of Penybanc near Merthyr Tydfil, when in 1964, cracks in many cottage walls made the village uninhabitable, and the whole place was bulldozed to the ground. Then there was the little village of Capel Celyn, which was lost in 1965 when the valley of the River Tryweryn was flooded to create a reservoir in order to accommodate the growing need for water in places like Liverpool. Or the remote farming community on Mynydd Epynt, which was evicted at the start of World War II, enabling the army to use the area as a training ground for its troops. A best-selling social historian is now compiling a book about 'Britain's Lost Villages', from which a television series is also under consideration. All around Great Britain there are deserted and lost villages, which were abandoned for varied reasons, and the author would love to hear from anybody who has first-hand information about these. Some were farming communities, or mining or fishing villages. Others were torn apart by the building of motorways, or flooded by the building of reservoirs. Did you live in such a community? Are you descended from someone who lived in one? Do you know of anybody who came from such a community? Do you have any old photographs of what life was really like at places such as Penybanc, Capel Celyn, or any other since vanished community of which Wales is particularly well invested. If you think you can help in any way, please write to Henry Buckton, PO Box 2770, Glastonbury, Somerset, BA6 9XD, email [email protected]">[email protected]. uk, or look on his website at http://www.swanhosting.co.uk/">www.swanhosting.co.uk/ henrybuckton. • All original photographs will be copied and returned to their owners.
