Llwyn-y-Mor by Wendy Cope

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LLWYN-Y-MOR, NEWTON

On Caswell Road between the Village Hall and the top of Caswell Hill stand the blocks of flats called Llwyn-y-Mor.  These flats are built on the site of a Victorian house, also called Llwyn-y-Mor. 

The house was probably built about1863 and was the largest house in the area.  In 1867 it was described as having ‘dining, drawing and breakfast rooms of large dimensions, seven bedrooms, two dressing rooms, housemaid’s room, water closet and suitable offices’ and it had a fine uninterrupted view of the Bristol Channel.  It stood in grounds of about 3½ acres which spread from Caswell Road through to Mary Twill Lane, containing a cottage, stable, coach-house, greenhouse, garden and a field, which was later described as two paddocks.  It was the home of Mr. and Mrs. James Strick and their family.  He was a shipping agent.  In June 1865 they hosted the Clydach Church Sunday Schools summer outing in the garden. 

In September 1874 the Strick’s second daughter, Jemima Mary, was married at Bishopston church.  The family had lived in Bishopston previously and in 1871 had sold Long Ash House there.  Following James death at the age of 62 at Llwyn-y-Mor in January 1875 the executors also sold Bishopston Farm.

Mrs Strick may have stayed at Llwyn-y-Mor for a while but in February 1880 the house was advertised as being to let, furnished or unfurnished, with immediate possession.  This advertisement mentioned that the house now had a billiard room, a large kitchen, servants’ hall, dairy and laundry.  It also had an excellent supply of soft and hard water.  Prospective tenants were told to contact Frank C. Strick.  The house was continually re-advertised until October but was eventually taken by Captain and Mrs. Holme.

This couple took an interest in Newton School.  In 1882 Mrs. Holme was one of the ladies who took part in the organising of a grand bazaar at Mrs. Crawshay’s house at Langland Bay to raise money to support the school which had lost its government grant.  Later, on New Year’s Day 1886, the Holmes family invited all the village children to a tea party in the schoolroom and provided them all with a present, an orange and some sweets.  A report of the party in The Cambrian calls him the ‘genial Captain Holmes’ and continues, ‘The sick and the poor of Newton have reason to bless the advent among them of true Christian gentlefolks.  The mantle of Miss Francis Ridley Havergal fell on the shoulders of Captain Holme and his family, who in a quiet, unostentatious manner, visit the sick, help the poor and needy and console those in sorrow.’  Sorrow was to hit the family early the following year with the death of Mrs Holme at the age of 67.

In April 1887 the house was once again to let with immediate possession but it was not let until the December when Frank Edwards moved in.  He agreed to take the house until September 1891 at £115 a year.  During his tenancy James Strick’s widow Emily died, aged eighty.  Her funeral took place just before Christmas 1889 and she was buried at Bishopston.  Ten members of the various branches of the Strick family in Swansea were among the mourners.  The execution of her will led to the house being put up for sale in January 1891 with a proviso that after September 1891 it had been let for a term of 14 years.  Two months later the contents of the house were sold, including a very valuable Indian carved drawing room suite in ebony and zebra wood.

At about the same time solicitor Richard White Beor offered for sale his house, Ty Newydd, in Newton Road.  He was the purchaser of Llwyn-y-Mor.

By July 1892, the new residents had established themselves in their new house.  The Cambrian informs us that ‘Mr. R. W. Beor of the firm of Beor, Fry & Plant, solicitors, has taken possession of Llwyn-y-Mor, the charming residence on the Caswell Road, lately occupied by Mr. Frank Edwards, the Liberal candidate for Radnorshire.  Mr Edwards was highly pleased with the magnificent view of the Bristol Channel and the hills of Devonshire to be obtained from Llwyn-y-Mor and I understand he was loath to leave the place.  Mr. Beor has gone to considerable expense in improving the house and the grounds.’  He installed a bathroom with hot and cold water and he set out a tennis court in the grounds.  A photograph of the house shows a two story building with three sash windows upstairs and a long verandah in front of the downstairs rooms.  There is a wing set back on one side with a single window on each floor.

In April 1892 Mrs. Beor gave birth to a daughter Clara, the last of her five children, and a month later was advertising in the Cardiff Evening Express for an ‘experienced nurse for three children, seven, four and one month.  Good needlewoman.  State wages and age.’  The first appointment was not successful as the advertisement appeared again in August with the children now aged eight, four and five months.  The Beor family continued to use the Cardiff paper in their quest for staff rather than a local one, there being a steady turnover of servants.  In July 1892 a house-parlourmaid and a young housemaid were needed, but the house-parlourmaid did not stay beyond April the following year.  The next one lasted until September 1895, when a good plain cook was also sought.  Just less than a year later a replacement cook was needed.  ‘No housework. Apply stating wages.’  In 1899 Mrs. Beor advertised for a young housemaid, making it clear that a parlour maid was also kept.  The 1901 census tells us that the housemaid then was Elizabeth Stilton born in Hereford, aged 25, not so young!  The parlourmaid was Alice Grey, 30, born inWestbury on Severn, and the cook was Ellen Sutton, 36, born in Warwickshire.  Ten years later all three had been replaced, but the youngest, Mary Elizabeth Perks, was a local girl.

Mr Beor needed a groom in October 1898 ‘Able to drive.’ but the man employed did not stay and the post was advertised again the following March.  ‘Wanted.  Groom-Coachman; must drive well, single or pair.’  Does that imply that the earlier man could not manage the horses?  Gardeners must have been easier to find as there is no mention of them in the advertisements except for one in 1882 hoping to get away and improve his prospects.  ‘Situation wanted as gardener; age 31; married; no Family; single handed or help given; eight years experience inside and out; good reference. William Berry, Llwyn-y-Mor, Caswell.’  In 1901 the gardener living in the Lodge was Henry Ainge, a relative newcomer, as his youngest child,

eleven months old when the census was taken, had been born in Monmouth.

For some reason Mr. Beor wanted to let the house in the winter of 1901, possibly for a short period, as he continued to live there for many more years.  This advertisement clarifies the size of the three large reception rooms mentioned in 1867.  The drawing room was 36ft. x 16ft. 6in., the dining room was 25ft. x 18ft. and the third room, now a library, was17ft. x 12ft. 6in., big enough later for classrooms.  There is also mention of the new road which gave access to the house avoiding the need to use the steep Newton Hill.  This was the road between Groves Avenue and Mary Twill Lane which had previously been just a track.

During his years at Llwyn-y-Mor Mr. Beor became more and more involved in local affairs.  In 1899 he was elected as a member of the Royal Institution of South Wales and the following year was appointed Churchwarden.  He was elected to the Oystermouth Local Board and was deputy steward to the Duke of Beaufort, becoming steward in 1897.  Later, after the death of Edward Strick, the long serving coroner, he was appointed deputy coroner.  He and his wife Catherine were much involved in the social life of Swansea at that time, balls, concerts and bazaars.

By 1908 poultry keeping had become a hobby at Llwyn-y-Mor.  In the autumn a number of cockerels of various breed were offered for sale and in the spring of 1909 eggs were for sale at 4 shillings a sitting from Ancones, Indian Game, While Leghorn, Buff and White Orpingtons, Barred Rocks and White Wyandottes, also eggs of Aylesbury and Indian Runner Ducks.  All could be had from Beor, Caswell.  That summer R. W. Beor won second prize in the novice class at Newton Flower, Poultry and Pigeon Show.  In May 1910 eggs were sold at 3s. 6d. a dozen with unfertile ones replaced once and in November five White Leghorn hens and Cock were offered for sale at 20s.

Neither of Richard Beor’s two eldest sons were at home for the 1901 or 1911 censuses.  Only Harold, the youngest son, who followed his father into the legal profession, and the two girls Hilda and Clare were with their parents.

In 1908, Bertram, the eldest son, became engaged to be married but the marriage did not take place until 29th August 1914 at Farnborough.  He was a Captain in the Royal Flying Corps and was promoted from Flight Commander to Squadron Commander in February 1915.  His younger brother Guy had volunteered in the Berkshire Yeomanry and together with another local lad, the son of F. Cory Yeo, they were finding life bleak in September 1914.  ‘We arrived last Wednesday and are billeted in a barn; the horses however have very good stabling.  Last night we killed two rats and I don’t know how many mice.’

At home, Hilda married Lieut. Geoffrey Whittington in April 1916 and chose St. Peter’s for her wedding.  The event was recorded in the local paper, the Mumbles Press, with descriptions of dresses worn by the bride and her bridesmaid, her sister Clare, the names of the three officiating clergy and of Mr Barlow, the organist, who ’played the usual wedding marches’.  The account finished by remarking that none of Hilda’s brothers were able to attend.  One was serving in France, another was at Gibraltar and Bertram, now a Major, was on duty with the Royal Flying Corps.

By 1920 the Beor family had left Llwyn-y-Mor and the house was the home of Frank and Isabel Gilbertson.  Frank was a member of the Gilbertson family who owned the Pontardawe  tin-plate works.  He was a J.P. and had served on the County Council. He died in the latter part of 1929, aged only 56.

In 1932, Llwyn-y-Mor became the home of the P.N.E.U. (Peoples National Educational Union) School run by Miss Jean Brooke-Gwynne.  It had been forced to move from its former home in a wooden building in Higher Lane in 1929 following a fire and since then had used temporary accommodation in St. Peter’s Hall and the Miss Golds’ house, Glyn-y-Coed.  The school catered for girls from six to eighteen and for boys up to eleven and took boarders as well as day pupils.  An advertisement in 1935 described the house as having central heating and electric light and the grounds included playing areas, two tennis courts and a badminton court.  The staff were all highly qualified.  For many years the assistant teacher was Mrs Amy Morris.  The school attracted many of the better off local families.  Among the many pupils were Jean and Chris Methuen Campbell, Peter and Heather Lloyd Jones, Marilyn Pressdee, Peter, Donald and Patti Pickwick and Sylvia Latchford, who lived opposite the school and whose father kept a diary throughout 1940 which mentions the school.  The Latchford family were asked by Miss Brooke Gwynne to house a pupil from Swansea during the week to save her travelling from Swansea each day because of the air raids.  Laurie Latchford, who was an Air Raid Warden, also persuaded Miss Brooke Gwynne to let him call a meeting of local residents in one of the schoolrooms.  On another occasion he called when looking for a bomb which had fallen in the night.  In 1946 Miss Brooke Gwynne decided to retire and the school was closed.  She moved from the big house and went to live in one of the lodges by Caswell Road together with Mrs Morris.

The main house was converted into four flats, A, B, C and D, by 1954.  In 1967 Miss Brooke Gwynne was still at the lodge but only two of the flats in the house, flats A and B are mentioned on the Electoral Register.  She was still there according to the register of 1974 but the 1976 register shows that Miss Brooke Gwynne had left the lodge.  Two years later the register listed 60 flats at Llwyn-y-Mor but the original house was still standing when the register was compiled, now with blocks of flats either side of it.  Arthur and Ena Dann were occupying Flat B.  Eventually the house was demolished and the last block of flats was built on its site.

The flats were built by Wales and West Housing Association but a survey in 1990 showed structural faults in some of the buildings.  Work went on through 1991 to remedy the faults which included the necessity of rebuilding some outer and interior walls and bringing complaints of noise and considerable discomfort from the residents.  Where residents had bought their flats under the Right to Buy scheme they were charged £11,000 following completion of the work, a bitter blow fo them.

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