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Colwyn Bay

Coordinates: 53°17′N 3°42′W / 53.29°N 3.70°W / 53.29; -3.70
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Colwyn Bay
From the top, View over Colwyn Bay, Station Road, Penrhyn Road
Colwyn Bay is located in Conwy
Colwyn Bay
Colwyn Bay
Location within Conwy
Population10,576 (Community, 2021)[1]
29,275 (Built up area, 2021)[2]
OS grid referenceSH865785
Community
  • Colwyn Bay
Principal area
Preserved county
CountryWales
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townCOLWYN BAY
Postcode districtLL28, LL29
Dialling code01492
PoliceNorth Wales
FireNorth Wales
AmbulanceWelsh
UK Parliament
Senedd Cymru – Welsh Parliament
List of places
UK
Wales
Conwy

53°17′N 3°42′W / 53.29°N 3.70°W / 53.29; -3.70


Map of the community

Colwyn Bay (Welsh: Bae Colwyn) is a town, community and seaside resort in Conwy County Borough on the north coast of Wales overlooking the Irish Sea. It lies within the historic county boundaries of Denbighshire. At the 2021 census, the community had a population of 10,576, and the built up area had a population of 29,275.

History

[edit]

The western side of Colwyn Bay, Rhos-on-Sea, includes a number of historic sites associated with St Trillo and Ednyfed Fychan, the 13th century general and councillor to Llywelyn the Great.

The name 'Colwyn' may be named after Collwyn ap Tangno, an 11th century nobleman who was Lord of Eifionnydd, Ardudwy and part of the Llŷn peninsula,[3] or after the River Colwyn in Old Colwyn. (In Welsh the word Colwyn means "puppy" (with the 'w' being a vowel), but Collwyn (with an alveolar lateral fricative) is a more plausible toponym, meaning "hazel grove" (llwyn cyll).)

King Richard II (1367–1400) was ambushed in Old Colwyn in 1399 by supporters of Henry Bolingbroke as he returned to England from Ireland.[4]

"Pier and Pavilion, Colwyn Bay, Wales", ca. 1890 - 1900.

Colwyn Bay railway station opened in 1849 on the Chester and Holyhead Railway. The station was initially just called Colwyn, but was renamed Colwyn Bay in 1876.[5] As with nearby Llandudno and Rhyl, Colwyn Bay grew rapidly following the arrival of the railway, becoming a seaside holiday town, conveniently accessible for the large towns in north-west England.

During World War II the Colwyn Bay Hotel, Marine Road (now demolished) was the headquarters of the Ministry of Food. This also housed the Cocoa & Chocolate division and was the communications hub for the ministry. They continued to use the hotel until 1953.[6] Colwyn also supported the war effort by becoming a significant location for the diamond cutting and polishing industry, which was used to help fund the war effort.[7]

Government

[edit]
Colwyn Bay Town Hall

There are two tiers of local government covering Colwyn Bay, at community (town) and county borough level: Bay of Colwyn Town Council (Cyngor Tref Bae Colwyn) and Conwy County Borough Council (Cyngor Bwrdeistref Sirol Conwy). The town council is a grouped community council, covering the three communities of Colwyn Bay, Old Colwyn and Rhos-on-Sea, which had a combined population of 26,467 at the 2021 census.[8] The town council is based at Colwyn Bay Town Hall on Rhiw Road, which was built as a magistrates' court.[9][10] The county borough council also has its main offices in the town, at Coed Pella on Conway Road.[11]

Administrative history

[edit]

The Colwyn Bay area was historically part of the ancient parish of Llandrillo-yn-Rhôs, which straddled the boundary between Denbighshire and Caernarfonshire. The part of the parish in Caernarfonshire was known as the township of Eirias, which contained Old Colwyn. The Eirias township and the neighbouring parish of Llysfaen to the east together formed an exclave of Caernafonshire.[12] From the 17th century onwards, parishes were gradually given various civil functions under the poor laws, in addition to their original ecclesiastical functions. In some cases, the civil functions were exercised by subdivisions of the parish rather than the parish as a whole. In the case of Llandrillo-yn-Rhôs, the parish was split into two parts for administering the poor laws: the Caernarfonshire township of Eirias, and the rest of the parish in Denbighshire. In 1866, the legal definition of 'parish' was changed to be the areas used for administering the poor laws, and so Eirias and Llandrillo-yn-Rhôs became separate civil parishes.[13]

In 1887, a local government district called 'Colwyn Bay and Colwyn' was created, covering the combined area of the civil parishes of Llandrillo-yn-Rhôs and Eirias.[a] The district was then administered by an elected local board.[15] When elected county councils were established in 1889 under the Local Government Act 1888, districts such as Colwyn Bay and Colwyn were no longer allowed to straddle county boundaries; the county boundary was therefore adjusted to place the whole district in Denbighshire.[16] Such districts were reconstituted as urban districts under the Local Government Act 1894.

The Colwyn Bay and Colwyn Urban District was enlarged in 1923 to take in the neighbouring parish of Llysfaen, which was consequently also transferred from Caernarfonshire to Denbighshire.[17] The urban district was renamed from 'Colwyn Bay and Colwyn' to just 'Colwyn Bay' in 1926.[18] The three civil parishes within the urban district were then Llandrillo-yn-Rhôs, Eirias and Llysfaen; they were merged into a single parish called Llandrillo-yn-Rhôs matching the urban district in 1927.[19] The urban district was incorporated to become a municipal borough in 1934.[20]

The borough of Colwyn Bay was abolished in 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972. The area became part of the new borough of Colwyn in Clwyd.[21][22] The area of the pre-1974 borough of Colwyn Bay became a community. It was later subdivided into five smaller communities in 1983: Colwyn Bay, Llysfaen, Mochdre, Old Colwyn, and Rhos-on-Sea.[23][24][25]

Local government was reorganised again in 1996, when the modern county borough of Conwy was created. Alongside the 1996 reforms, a grouped community council was created covering the three communities of Colwyn Bay, Old Colwyn and Rhos-on-Sea, with its community council taking the name Bay of Colwyn Town Council.[26]

Geography

[edit]

The town is situated about halfway along the north coast of Wales, between the sea and the Pwllycrochan Woods on the towering hillside. Groes yn Eirias (Welsh:Cross in Torch) was once a separate hamlet centred on the Glyn farmhouse (c1640) but the area is now occupied by the Glyn estate and Eirias Park.

Climate

[edit]

Like the rest of the British Isles, Colwyn Bay experiences a maritime climate with cool summers and mild winters, and often high winds. The local climate is well known for the prevalence of Foehn winds: winds from the south which pass over the nearby mountains and warm and dry on their descent, leading to far higher temperatures than might otherwise be expected; the area held the Welsh high temperature record for February at 18.7 °C from 23 February 2012 to 24 February 2019.[27]

Climate data for Colwyn Bay 36m asl, 1981-2010
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 16.1
(61.0) 		18.7
(65.7) 		21.4
(70.5) 		24.8
(76.6) 		28.1
(82.6) 		30.3
(86.5) 		33.0
(91.4) 		32.4
(90.3) 		28.3
(82.9) 		27.2
(81.0) 		18.3
(64.9) 		16.4
(61.5) 		33.0
(91.4)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 8.5
(47.3) 		8.4
(47.1) 		10.3
(50.5) 		12.1
(53.8) 		15.2
(59.4) 		17.6
(63.7) 		19.6
(67.3) 		19.4
(66.9) 		17.4
(63.3) 		14.3
(57.7) 		11.1
(52.0) 		8.9
(48.0) 		13.6
(56.5)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) 2.8
(37.0) 		2.7
(36.9) 		4.1
(39.4) 		5.3
(41.5) 		7.7
(45.9) 		10.4
(50.7) 		12.5
(54.5) 		12.5
(54.5) 		10.7
(51.3) 		8.1
(46.6) 		5.7
(42.3) 		3.2
(37.8) 		7.2
(45.0)
Record low °C (°F) −9.9
(14.2) 		−7.2
(19.0) 		−9.3
(15.3) 		−4.2
(24.4) 		−1.7
(28.9) 		2.4
(36.3) 		5.7
(42.3) 		4.0
(39.2) 		0.6
(33.1) 		−3.8
(25.2) 		−7.3
(18.9) 		−10.4
(13.3) 		−10.4
(13.3)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 74.7
(2.94) 		53.0
(2.09) 		57.5
(2.26) 		50.7
(2.00) 		52.9
(2.08) 		56.1
(2.21) 		52.1
(2.05) 		64.6
(2.54) 		70.2
(2.76) 		96.8
(3.81) 		89.8
(3.54) 		90.2
(3.55) 		808.7
(31.84)
Mean monthly sunshine hours 56.2 81.8 115.0 162.8 209.0 185.6 189.6 174.7 135.2 108.2 59.9 44.1 1,522
Source: Met Office[28]

Demography

[edit]

Prior to local government reorganisation on 1 April 1974 Colwyn Bay was a municipal borough with a population of around 25,000, but in 1974 this designation disappeared leaving five separate parishes, known as communities in Wales, of which the one bearing the name Colwyn Bay encompassed just the central part of the overall town and in the 2001 Census contained just 9,742 people, with the others as follows: Mochdre (1,862), Rhos-on-Sea (7,110), Glan Conwy (2,290), Old Colwyn (7,626) and Llysfaen (2,652). This gives a total figure for the six communities of 31,382, generally referred to as the population of Colwyn Bay, making it the 16th largest urban area in Wales and the second largest settlement in North Wales. Bringing 2011 figures into account that figure is now 33,549. The area is sometimes referred to by the name Bay of Colwyn.

According to the 2011 Census, 17.9% of the population aged three and above noted that they could speak Welsh.[29] The Census also noted that 29.9% of the population who were born in Wales could speak Welsh.[30]

Economy

[edit]

The town is dominated by the tourist trade, because of its famous beaches. Colwyn Bay is a Fairtrade Town as certified by the Fairtrade Foundation as part of the Fairtrade Towns scheme.

Culture

[edit]

Colwyn Bay hosted the National Eisteddfod in 1910 and 1947. Also the Victoria Pier hosted many dances and shows during the 20th century and became popular with touring bands and artistes through the 1960s until the final gig there in August 2008.[31]

Community facilities

[edit]

The town has parks and gardens and a number of natural amenities such as Eirias Park. Colwyn Bay has received a gold award 8 times in the Wales in Bloom competition. In 2009 and 2010 the town has been invited to enter Britain in Bloom and has been awarded silver gilt in both years. The Welsh Mountain Zoo is nearby.

The Porth Eirias Watersports Centre offers tuition in sailing, windsurfing and power boating as well as kayak and canoe hire. In 2013 it was nominated for Building Design's Carbuncle Cup.[32]

Landmarks

[edit]
small building with white and red frontage and two small towers
Victoria pier
Colwyn Bay in the early 2000s.The buildings to the right have since been demolished.

The Victoria Pier was closed to the public in 2009, when a dispute between Conwy County Borough Council and the pier's owner led to him being declared bankrupt. The fate of the pier was initially uncertain; the council hoped it would be "substantially" demolished for "health and safety and visual reasons to be able to re-open that section of the beach”.[33] In January 2017, the lower end of the pier partially collapsed into the sea and Conwy Council subsequently announced plans to dismantle and store the pier, with a view of restoring it at a later date.[34][35] The pier was finally demolished in May 2018.[36]

Llety'r Dryw is a Grade II listed house in Abergele Road, built for the uncle of Anthony Eden and now used as the training centre for North Wales Police. Llys Euryn is a medieval manor house on Bryn Euryn, now in ruins. There are a number of buildings by notable local architect Sidney Colwyn Foulkes. These include Williams Deacon's Bank 1925 and Colwyn House 1933-7 originally occupied by the W.S.Wood department store.[37] Colwyn Bay Community Hospital was completed in 1925.[38]

Cotswold, on Brackley Avenue, is a notable town villa by Alfred Steinthal. Built for a Manchester businesswoman, the house was subsequently the home of Sidney Colwyn Foulkes. It is a Grade II listed building.[39] Its Japanese and Arts and Crafts style gardens are listed, also at Grade II on the Cadw/ICOMOS Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in Wales.[40] Another notable garden is The Flagstaff, overlooking the bay. It was designed by Thomas Hayton Mawson for a house that was not ultimately built, and is listed at Grade II on the Cadw/ICOMOS register.[41]

Transport

[edit]

The town is served by Colwyn Bay railway station located in the town centre on the North Wales Coast Line with trains run by Transport for Wales and Avanti West Coast. The A55 road passes through the town, running parallel to the North Wales Coast Line.

Tramline

[edit]

The Llandudno and Colwyn Bay Electric Railway operated an electric tramway service between Llandudno and Rhos-on-Sea from 1907 and extended to Colwyn Bay in 1908. The service closed in 1956.[42]

Education

[edit]

Colwyn Bay has three secondary schools - one private and two state. Eirias High School is in Eirias Park and Ysgol Bryn Elian is in Old Colwyn. Ysgol Bryn Elian mainly serves Old Colwyn and Eirias High School mainly serves Colwyn Bay, Rhos on Sea and Penrhyn Bay.

Rydal Penrhos School is a Methodist public school, which is on multiple sites in the town. Fees at this elite public school exceeded more than £34,000 per year for boarding in 2021 and boasts the only Eton Fives courts in Wales. Former alumni include Princess Maria of Romania, a cousin of Prince Charles.

The town's primary schools are Ysgol Nant y Groes, Ysgol Pen-y-Bryn, Ysgol T Gwynn Jones, Ysgol Hen Golwyn, and Saint Joseph's R.C. Primary and the Welsh-language Ysgol Bod Alaw.

Religious sites

[edit]

Churches in and around the town include the parish church St Paul's Church, St David's Welsh Church, St John the Baptist's Church, St Joseph's Roman Catholic Church and Christ Church, Bryn-y-Maen to the south of the town.

Sport

[edit]

The local football team is Colwyn Bay F.C. who play in the Cymru Premier, the top tier of Welsh football after securing promotion in the 2022–23 season. The local cricket team is Colwyn Bay Cricket Club who play at Penrhyn Avenue and the rugby union team is Colwyn Bay RFC. As of 2012, the RGC 1404 rugby team play at Eirias Stadium in Colwyn Bay as part of a development venture by the WRU.

Colwyn Bay Golf Club (now defunct) was founded in 1893. The club and course closed in 1959 and the land was used for a housing development.[43]

The Black Cat Cycling Club, founded in 2014, is based in Colwyn Bay[44] with members made up of cyclists from the town and the surrounding area.

Glamorgan County Cricket Club traditionally play one first-class game a year at Colwyn Bay.[45]

Notable people

[edit]
See Category:People from Colwyn Bay
Timothy Dalton, 1987

Sport

[edit]

See also

[edit]
  • Mochdre, a village to the west that was originally part of the Borough.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ With the exception of 18 acres of Eirias south-east of Old Colwyn that was almost detached from the rest of the township; that area was transferred to Llysfaen parish in 1896.[14]
  1. ^ "Colwyn Bay". City Population. Retrieved 13 March 2025.
  2. ^ "Towns and cities, characteristics of built-up areas, England and Wales: Census 2021". Census 2021. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 13 March 2025.
  3. ^ The history of the parishes of Whiteford, and Holywell. October 2009. Archived from the original on 12 May 2018. {{cite book}}: |website= ignored (help)
  4. ^ "History Points - Penmaen Head, Old Colwyn". historypoints.org. Retrieved 23 August 2021.
  5. ^ Butt, R.V.J. (1995). The Directory of Railway Stations. Yeovil: Patrick Stephens Ltd. p. 67. ISBN 1-85260-508-1. R508.
  6. ^ "History Points - Site of Colwyn Bay Hotel". historypoints.org. Retrieved 23 August 2021.
  7. ^ "History Points - Site of wartime diamond factory, Colwyn Bay". historypoints.org. Retrieved 23 August 2021.
  8. ^ "Conwy (with communities)". City Population. Retrieved 13 March 2025.
  9. ^ Cadw. "Police station and magistrates court (14707)". National Historic Assets of Wales. Retrieved 30 April 2021.
  10. ^ "Town Hall". Bay of Colwyn Town Council. Retrieved 13 March 2025.
  11. ^ "Flagship £58m Colwyn Bay Coed Pella base could be left partially empty". North Wales Pioneer. 3 July 2020. Retrieved 30 April 2021.
  12. ^ "Denbighshire Sheet III". National Library of Scotland. Ordnance Survey. 1879. Retrieved 13 March 2025.
  13. ^ Youngs, Frederic (1991). Guide to the Local Administrative Units of England: Volume II, Northern England. London: Royal Historical Society. p. xv. ISBN 0861931270.
  14. ^ Langston, Brett. "Conway Registration District". UK BMD. Retrieved 13 March 2025.
  15. ^ Annual Report of the Local Government Board. 1888. p. 370. Retrieved 13 March 2025.
  16. ^ Pulling, Alexander (1889). A Handbook for County Authorities. London: William Clowes and Sons. p. 21. Retrieved 12 March 2025.
  17. ^ "Ministry of Health Provisional Order Confirmation (No. 4) Act 1922". legislation.gov.uk. The National Archives. Retrieved 13 March 2025.
  18. ^ Census of England and Wales, 1931: Counties of Denbigh and Flint. 1933. p. 8. Retrieved 13 March 2025.
  19. ^ "Colwyn Bay Urban District Council Act 1926". legislation.gov.uk. The National Archives. Retrieved 13 March 2025., Section 125
  20. ^ "Colwyn Bay Urban District / Municipal Borough". A Vision of Britain through Time. GB Historical GIS / University of Portsmouth. Retrieved 13 March 2025.
  21. ^ "Local Government Act 1972", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, 1972 c. 70, retrieved 1 November 2022
  22. ^ "The Districts in Wales (Names) Order 1973", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 1973/34, retrieved 30 October 2022
  23. ^ Langston, Brett. "Colwyn Registration District". UK BMD. Retrieved 13 March 2025.
  24. ^ "Denbighshire and Flintshire: Diagram showing administrative boundaries". National Library of Scotland. Ordnance Survey. 1972. Retrieved 13 March 2025.
  25. ^ "Election Maps". Ordnance Survey. Retrieved 13 March 2025.
  26. ^ "Town Council". Bay of Colwyn Town Council. Retrieved 13 March 2025.
  27. ^ Office, Met. "UK climate". Metoffice.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 3 January 2018.
  28. ^ "Colwyn Bay 1981-2010 averages". Met Office. Archived from the original on 7 October 2012. Retrieved 24 August 2012.
  29. ^ "Comisiynydd y Gymraeg - 2011 Census results by Community". Comisiynyddygymraeg.cymru. Archived from the original on 14 September 2017. Retrieved 27 January 2018.
  30. ^ "LC2206WA (Welsh language skills by country of birth by age) - Nomis - Official Labour Market Statistics". Nomisweb.co.uk. Archived from the original on 27 October 2017. Retrieved 27 January 2018.
  31. ^ "Dixieland – Colwyn Bay Pier". Link2wales.co.uk. Retrieved 30 October 2021.
  32. ^ "Britain's ugliest new buildings named". Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 28 March 2014.
  33. ^ Powell, David (14 August 2016). "Ask Daily Post: What is going on with Colwyn Bay Pier?". dailypost.co.uk. Archived from the original on 1 November 2016.
  34. ^ "Engineers assess collapsed Colwyn Bay Victoria Pier damage". BBC News. 2 February 2017. Archived from the original on 4 February 2017. Retrieved 2 February 2017.
  35. ^ "Collapsed Colwyn Bay Pier to be dismantled for 'protection'". BBC News. 11 February 2017. Archived from the original on 11 February 2017. Retrieved 12 February 2017.
  36. ^ "End of the pier as demolition completed at Colwyn Bay". BBC News. Retrieved 16 May 2018.
  37. ^ "[:en]Town Centre Heritage Walk[:cy]Llwybr Treftadaeth Canol y Dref[:]". Colwyn Bay Heritage. Retrieved 23 August 2021.
  38. ^ "Sidney Colwyn Foulkes". Colwyn Bay Heritage. 15 August 2011. Retrieved 26 February 2019.
  39. ^ Cadw. "Cotswold (Grade II) (14669)". National Historic Assets of Wales. Retrieved 22 February 2023.
  40. ^ Cadw. "Cotswold, Brackley Avenue (PGW(Gd)60(CON))". National Historic Assets of Wales. Retrieved 6 February 2023.
  41. ^ Cadw. "The Flagstaff (PGW(Gd)61(CON))". National Historic Assets of Wales. Retrieved 6 February 2023.
  42. ^ The Golden Age of Tramways. Published by Taylor and Francis.
  43. ^ “Colwyn Bay Golf Club” Archived 27 March 2015 at the Wayback Machine, “Golf’s Missing Links”.
  44. ^ "The Black Cat Cycling Club Club profile". British Cycling. Archived from the original on 8 August 2016.
  45. ^ "Glamorgan Cricket". Glamorgan Cricket Tickets and Memberships. Retrieved 16 March 2022.
  46. ^ Davies, William (d. 1593) Archived 5 December 2009 at the Wayback Machine at National Library of Wales Dictionary of Welsh Biography
  47. ^ Squad Profiles: Wales Women Archived 11 October 2016 at the Wayback Machine at Welsh Rugby Union, 2012
[edit]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Colwyn Bay.
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