Cwmgwrach/Blaengwrach Reflections ~ By Henry (Harry) Caswell.
The Caswell Family ~ A part of the fabric of the village for many years.
Part One ~ Early years
Our story begins with my father, Charles B. Caswell an Englishman from the Black Country of Wolverhampton, located in Staffordshire.
He was the second son of my grandparents, who I never met. Born on November 1st 1891 to join an older brother by the name of Harry who was about three years his senior. My grandparents, originally from Kidderminster, ran a small family candy business from their front room and his father worked as a sales representative for a candy distributor. Harry took an apprenticeship as an Electrician and my father became an apprentice aircraft mechanic for the then Short Brothers Aircraft Company, finally ending up as a foreman. Both brothers made the choice to seek a better, cleaner life in Wales. The older brother finding employment at the Mond Nickel Works in Clydach and becoming Chief Electrician for the Company. My father, a few years later also decided to move to Wales and settled in the Lamb and Flag village in the Vale of Neath, becoming the manager and auto mechanic at the Lamb and Flag Garage. Apparently lodging with the Evans family on Godfrey Street at that time
My mother, Ellenor Hughes from Resolven, who had previously been married and had two young daughters, Fay and Patricia Coope, who became part of the Caswell family when my parents married. With the closure of the garage, when the main Neath – Aberdare Road was straightened, by passing the Lamb and Flag and thus killing the customer traffic to the garage, my father was forced to find a position with the Empire Colliery in Cwmgwrach as a Screens Mechanic, plus becoming the companies 24 hour on call Ambulance Driver and maintenance mechanic. For acting in both capacities, he was given the company house at 2 High Street, Cwmgwrach, rent free.
The light blue Austin Motors built ambulance, was housed in an old stable belonging to the Ynis Las Home, which became a National Coal Board property that housed Offices. The entrance to the property was located off Church Crescent, where the Rickets’ family lived in the gate keeper’s home.
I would ask my father if I could ride with him when called out. If it was not a serious accident, I was allowed to ride in the passenger seat alongside him. With few vehicles on the roads in those days, 1940’s, I felt quite privileged. The ambulance area of the vehicle had dark, one way glass window’s, that until the light was turned on in the ambulance area itself, could not be seen through. As a young child, I was fascinated by the magic of it. Another feature which got my attention and curiosity was the turn signals. They were recessed into the frame of the doors and as my father turned right or left, the signal arms would pop out of their housings and display a bright yellow light arm. Last but not least, the ambulance had a brass bell located at the front and I would pester my father to ring it, which he couldn’t do under the laws, unless driving in an emergency situation, a great disappointment to me.
I was born in November 1936, the last and only boy of five children. Fay and Patricia were half sisters, Margaret and Marlene full sisters. When the 2nd World War began in 1939, I have little memory of that event or period. However, as I grew older, I remember many of the changes created in the village through the events of the war and started to understand how my parents and others were being severely impacted. Street lights were shut off, vehicle head lights dimmed and all buildings told to turn off external lighting and heavily shade all windows. Warden’s patrolling the village streets and enforcing the mandated war time rules. I also remember school children being issued Gas Masks in carrying cases that became a major part of the dress code. Younger children and babies were issued masks that featured Disney Character faces, which helped them accept the wearing of the masks if needed.
Across from my home at 2 High Street, stood a steel corrugated sheet building that housed the local village Home Guard unit. Many a time I would go visit with the men on duty and sit on the canvas cots that were provide for sleeping on and chat. Another more sinister structure had been built at the entrance of the village on the convergence of Church Crescent, Empire Ave and High Street. A concrete constructed 6 sided unit, with gun position slots and known as The Pill Box. This is where the Home Guard’s first line of defense was for the protection of the village. As far as I know, that structure still stands there as a reminder of that period, to this day.
The Empire Colliery Pithead Baths and Canteen, stood alongside the four company built miners homes, ours being the second home from the baths. Opposite side of the road stood Major Snook’s home, commanding a higher level position than our homes, since he was the Empire Colliery’s Surveyor. Alongside his home, stood another impressive larger home, which we knew as The William’s Family Home, that the colliery under manager’s lived in while employed by the company.
Childhood memories of the war in action. Coupon books for candies, foods and wearable items. Chickens and pigs being raised by families. Going to Howell George’s Store and Billiard Hall on the High Street and being able to buy one cigarette from him, illegally. Hearing the Siren go off and watching the search lights search the black pitch skies for enemy aircraft that could be heard but not seen. Small and large anti aircraft Barrage Balloons floating in the air, while tethered to the ground around important targeted facilities, such as ports, oil refineries etc.
Swansea and Llandarcy Oil Refinery being attacked and bombed, while I crouched in fear alongside the hot water tank in our very small bathroom while hearing the bombs explode and feeling the house shake from the blasts, 12 to 18 miles distant. Seeing the fir tree lined forest on the mountain behind our family home, on fire from a German Bomber being chased off his targets and dropping incendiary bombs on the forest to lighten his load and help him escape the British / American planes chasing him. Last major memory of the war came, when my father woke me up out of my sleep in the early hours of the morning and said to me. “ Son, you have to see this, because you’ll never see it again.”. We went out to our backyard and was met by the constant drone of hundred’s , if not thousands of planes, crossing the valley in total darkness. My father explaining, that the planes where heading towards Germany and possibly Berlin to drop their bombs. [Note: the memory of this event is also explained in the link attached ~ https://gwrachtimeline.co.uk/railway-memories-from-ww2]
When the war was officially announced to be over, the whole country celebrated and our village did their part in style. In preparation of the announcement of the ending of the war, Mr.Edmunds the chief electrician for the Empire Colliery, who lived on Empire Avenue. had mounted flood lights on the opposite side of High Street from the pithead baths and flat roof of the canteen. A piano had been lifted onto the roof of the canteen and a sound system with speakers mounted in the area.
The whole area became a dance and party area, with village people singing and dancing throughout the night. THE WAR HAD ENDED, MANY HAD GIVEN THEIR LIVES, OTHERS WERE CRIPPLED, MISSING LIMBS, OR MENTALLY IMPAIRED FROM SHELL SHOCK.
Britain with the leadership of the BRITISH BULLDOG, Winston Churchill, Prime Minister, Commonwealth Countries and the financial, arms supplies and eventual entry into the war itself of America, finally defeated the world domination Hitler was seeking.
One last happy event to close up my memories of my childhood in the village of Cwmgwrach. While walking through the wooded area above the Cwmgwrach Rugby Field during Springtime, I came upon a lamb which had been abandoned by it’s mother and was dying from starvation. I picked it up and carried it home and asked my mother if I could keep it and raise it. Her response was, “ Harry, our home and garden is too small to raise a lamb.” I pleaded with her, until she agrees I could. Fortunately Jeff Louis a friend of the family and owner of a small holding on the Parish Road just before getting to the Cellar Farm, stopped by and instructed me on how to start feeding it. He requested I give him a saucer with some tepid warm milk in it, which I did. He than started dipping his finger in it and placing it in the lambs mouth with the lamb beginning to suck on it.
He then instructed me to go to Tom the Chemists on High Street and purchase a baby bottle and teat to feed the lamb with. Soon the lamb recognized the bottle and had also begun to feed off the weeds in our garden. I would hold the bottle in my hand, call out his name and have him prance up the garden path, get down on his front knees and butt the bottle like he would his mother’s teat. I had named it Billy not knowing it’s sex, later it was determined it was a female.
Miners waiting for their buses to take them home after their shifts, would park outside our row of houses. Would be told by the drivers to get on, or they would leave without them. This was because the lamb would butt my head as I kneeled down to play with it or jump up and down if I did so.
I also had a cat at that time and if the cat was laying in front of the open fire in the kitchen, the lamb would butt it until it moved and the lamb took it’s place. My mother often sat by the fire knitting and one evening I smelt the smell of wool burning. I asked my mother if her ball of wool was scorching, and she replied no. We looked at the lamb and noticed his side nearest the fire had begun to scorch. Finally had to give him to Jeff Louis since he had the small holding where he could run. Never knew or wanted to know what finally happened to the lamb that had brought me such happiness after the war.
Part Two ~ War time memories
I have been siting here in my living room just reflecting on my life in general and how blessed I’ve been through these last 78 years.Born fifth in a family of five children, four elder sisters to our parents Charles and Ellenor Caswell of Cwmgwrach *, Vale of Neath, S. Wales ( * Valley of the Witch in English ) Being the youngest and only boy, I was totally spoilt and mischievous, but at the same time loved by all for just being a fun loving boy.
Born in 1936 and brought up during the 2nd World War in this coal mining village of 2500, where everyone knew your business before you did, I remember so much of the limited amount of the war being brought close to our village. Bombs being dropped on Swansea, a port city 18 miles from us, the flashes of the detonation and the blast shaking our house, as I crouched in a corner of our small bathroom.Fascinated by the tethered Barrage Balloons placed around the major towns,oil refineries and factories to deter dive bombing at low level.
Experiencing the severe rationing of everything from food to clothing and as a child, having to present a coupon book to receive 2oz of candies per week. Carrying my Mickey Mouse gas mask to school every day, just in case the enemy dropped nerve gases on us. Being woken up by my father at 3:00 am and being told I had to see this sight, as I would never experience it again in my life. Going outside with my father, hearing the drone of thousands of planes flying above our valley against the moonlit sky and being informed by my father, that they were all on their way to bomb Germany and especially Berlin as the war was coming to a close.
Experiencing the wondrous joy of everyone when it was announced that the war had ended and people began to celebrate in the street with dancing and singing outside our house, while a piano was being played on the flat roof of the coal mine canteen a few doors down from us.These are some of the thoughts running through my head this evening, knowing that I was indeed fortunate to have survived this period and now knowing what tremendously difficult times my parents had experienced trying to feed all seven of us on such limited rations, while constantly being worried that Hitler would soon decide to invade Britain and change our lives for ever.
As children we had no such concerns and enjoyed playing our made up war games with stick guns. Surrounding any American Soldiers that came to the village to use the shower facilities at the coal mine bathes and begging them to give us some “Gum Chum” or cigarettes or nylon stockings for the girls in the family.Now I am an American and appreciate the influence this great country has had on my life, but yet I am proud of my Welsh/English heritage and the strength to live that was taught us in those younger days.
Resources and References:
The above memories of Harry were written on 11th August 2020.