Parc Ynysangharad
This area of parkland prevented the urbanisation of Pontypridd spreading across the valley east of the river Taff. It was still farmland at the start of the 19th century but became part of the estate of the Lenox family, which had established the Brown Lenox chain factory on the east side of the valley in 1818. The family had a mansion here.
In 1927 the park gained a lido, a set of buildings around an outdoor swimming pool. The architect was inspired by the form of baths in the Roman empire. The lido closed in 1991 and fell into dereliction, but reopened in 2015 after a £6.3m restoration.
The aerial photo, courtesy of the Royal Commission on the Ancient & Historical Monuments of Wales, shows the park in 1932, with an 18-hole golf course at the north end, the lido beyond and the Glamorganshire Canal in the bottom left. It is from the Aerofilms Collection of the National Monuments Record of Wales.
Near the centre of the park stands a memorial to father and son Evan and James James, who wrote Wales’ national anthem ‘Hen Wlad fy Nhadau’.
Elsewhere in the park is a sunken garden featuring a coal dram, the type of wagon used in collieries. This area commemorates the funds raised by miners for the park’s creation.
In 2011, two Roll of Honour walls were unveiled in the park. They list the people who died in the First and Second World Wars respectively.
Today the park is in the care of Rhondda Cynon Taf council. It hosts events such as Ponty’s Big Weekend, an annual music festival, and fireworks displays in November.
Parc Ynysangharad on Rhondda Cynon Taf website
Copies of the old aerial photo and other images are available from the RCAHMW. Contact: nmr.wales@rcahmw.gov.uk
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