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Cross Hands

Village in Carmarthenshire, Wales

Field	Value
country	Wales
static_image_name	Cross Hands station site geograph-3361063-by-Ben-Brooksbank.jpg
static_image_caption	site of the former railway station
constituency_welsh_assembly	Llanelli
official_name	Cross Hands
coordinates
unitary_wales	Carmarthenshire
lieutenancy_wales	Dyfed
constituency_westminster	Llanelli
post_town	LLANELLI
postcode_district	SA14
postcode_area	SA
dial_code	01269
os_grid_reference	SN562127
community_wales	Llannon

Cross Hands is a village in Carmarthenshire, Wales, approximately 12 mi from Carmarthen.

Cross Hands is notable for its Public Hall, erected in 1920 and designed by an unknown Italian designer in the classic Art Deco Style. Fully restored, the Public Hall has a fully functioning stage and cinema screen and is protected as a Grade II* listed building. During the 1960s and 1970s the village was a useful halfway stop for motorists from South East Wales driving to/from Pembrokeshire with the local chip shop adjacent to the village crossroads being a very popular facility.

The continuous built up area which includes the villages of Cross Hands, Gorslas, Cefneithin and Pen-y-groes had a population of 5,717 in 2011.

Cross Hands is a growing residential and employment area and includes the established Cross Hands Food Park to the south west of the A48. A new business park, the Cross Hands Business Park, is being developed to the northeast of the A48 which the local authority hopes will create 1,000 jobs.

Gweunydd Glan-y-glasnant, a Site of Special Scientific Interest notable for its species-rich neutral grassland, is 3/4 mi southwest of Cross Hands.

Etymology

The village's name likely comes from the 'Cross Hands Inn' which was located on its cross roads (like many other villages at the time). An unlikely alternative theory comes from the idea that prisoners were transferred between Carmarthen and Swansea in the village.

History

The village played an important role in the local coal industry, helping to house the many anthracite miners working in the nearby mines such as in Tumble. Norton & Co opened the Cross Hands Colliery in 1869. There were 859 employees at its peak in 1923. By 1962 the village's collieries had closed.

Cross Hands is notable for its public hall and cinema. It was built in by an unknown Italian architect from Swansea. Its elegant art deco style architecture lead to it gaining a Grade II* listed building status in . After some renovations in the early 1990s, the hall still stands as a fully operational cinema run by a charity. The rear is now used as a hall for the elderly.

New link road

On 2 December 2012, Carmarthenshire County Council announced plans for a new road to enable traffic on the A476 to bypass the congested Cross Hands roundabout. At an estimated cost of £20 million, the route will start from Gorslas, northeast of the roundabout, and continue to the Cross Hands Food Park junction on the A48. It will reconnect with the existing A476 southwest of the Cross Hands roundabout.

Notable people

Eifion Evans (1931–2017), a Welsh pastor and church historian.
Ken Jones (1941–2022), a Welsh international rugby union player.

References

(2008). "The Welsh Academy Encyclopaedia of Wales". University of Wales Press.
Ammanford Built up area sub-division [http://www.nomisweb.co.uk/census/2011 ONS Census 2011 Key Statistics]
[https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-south-west-wales-11377473 BBC News – Housing plans for former tip site in Cross Hands]
"Cross Hands Food Park".
[https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-south-west-wales-15640542 BBC News – £13.5m to create 1,000 jobs park at Cross Hands]
"MAGIC Map Application – Gweunydd Glan-y-glasnant". [[Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.
"Site of Special Scientific Interest, Carmarthenshire, Gweunydd Glan-y-glasnant". Natural Resources Wales.
Davies, Geoffery. (2012). "Carmarthenshire Villages". Sigma Leisure.
(2008). "The Welsh Academy Encyclopaedia of Wales". University of Wales Press.
"Listed Buildings - Full Report - HeritageBill Cadw Assets - Reports".
[http://www.thisissouthwales.co.uk/pound-20m-road-scheme-booming-town/story-17446091-detail/story.html#axzz2bUo3R4Ze This is South Wales – £20m road scheme for 'booming' town]
[http://www.southwalesguardian.co.uk/news/10072808.__20m_plan_to_help_end_roads_misery/ South Wales Guardian – £20m plan to help end roads misery]

Info: Wikipedia Source

This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page.

villages-in-carmarthenshire swansea-bay-(region)

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