TAIBACH
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The "little houses" of Taibach sprang up at the beginning of the 19th century in the parish of Margam as homes for colliery and other incoming industrial workers, some way away from the historic village centre of Margam. The most important early row of houses there was called Constantinople Row, later abbreviated to Constant Row, and a road of this name can still be found in Taibach. With the expansion of industrial activity in the parish, and, in particular, the foundation of the new port at Port Talbot, the whole area became a single conurbation, as it remains, and Taibach was subsumed within it. The name Taibach is now something of a misnomer since most of the houses there are not smaller than average for Port Talbot. The stretch of the A48 road through the area is the main shopping street and is named Commercial Road in the area. Popular drinking venues in the area are the Surgery pub (which was actually a busy GP's medical surgery at one time) and The Somerset Arms (locally known as The Sker), which is one of the oldest pubs in the area with the greatest history. The pub also has a football team "The Sker United" which was founded by a group of regulars. The area benefits from a popular Carnegie library and is home to the Talbot Memorial Park, a popular urban park. In the grounds of the park lies St. Theodore's Church. The parish church was built in 1901 by Miss Emily Talbot in honour of Saint Theodore, and in remembrance of her late brother of the same name. The eastern border of the park is formed by the Ffrwdwyllt river. Ffrwdwyllt literally translates to 'wild torrent' in English. The river is popular among local anglers, especially in late Autumn. To the east of the area is the Eastern Primary School, this is the school that actor Richard Burton attended as a child under his real name - Richard Jenkins. The old Eastern Primary School is now the Taibach Community Education Centre, and was built the same year as Margam Castle in 1831. Taibach has its own popular Taibach Rugby Club.The Labour politician and life peer Lord Heycock of Taibach took his title from this area, which had been the home of the Heycock family since about 1800. |
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Talbot Memorial Park
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