A minute’s silence; a very sad start to Tuesday’s meeting. It was of course in memory of Dr Helen Herbert, a strong supporter of Cymdeithas and our President from 2014 to 2020.    She died at the weekend having battled with cancer for several years, with such grace and dignity and always a smile.   Shortly before her death, Dr Helen provided us with medical artefacts for our display case in County Hall from her father, Dr Hugh Herbert, and from her own time; both as GPs in Tanyfron. We did not realise at the time that it was to become a memorial so soon after.    Her MBE medal and a photo of her receiving it from the King are in pride of place; a thoroughly well-deserved accolade for someone who dedicated herself to the care of the people of this town.   The display will remain there in her memory for some months. Her article,  ‘Memories of Aberaeron Hospital ,’ can be found in the heritage section of this site and we also have photos in the picture gallery from her childhood and her career. Please take time to look at them and remember her.    In the words of one of our trustees: ‘She was a beautiful person in every way.’    Our thoughts and sympathies go out to her husband, Geraint, and all of her family. Cysgu yn dawel/ Rest peacefully Dr Helen.

Friday 21st February is Eisteddfod day at Ysgol Gyfyn Aberaeron. Shouts of Portland, Tanyfron and Tyglyn will be deafening in the school hall and pupils will be bedecked in the school colours. But why and when were these three names chosen?  It is commonly believed that these were named after three of the large properties in the area. I am ashamed to admit that as a former vice-captain of Portland House myself, this is what I thought. It is not the case.  An article on the then County School’s prize day in The Cambrian News of March 1919 ( see extract below) reports that three school teams or houses had been established the previous year and gives us the actual origins of the names.   They are actually so named as these were the homes of the first three Chairmen of the school’s Board of Governors:  ·        Major Price Lewes of Tyglyn,  ·        Dr Davies of Tanyfron ·        Cllr JM Howell of Portland House who was Chairman at the time.

The brass plaque with the names of the fallen in the 2 world wars in the Memorial Hall is passed on a daily basis, however there are others in the town. There are two 1st World War memorials in the Library in Ysgol Gyfun Aberaeron, one a very large oak memorial ornately carved by the Belgium refugee Joseph Reubens. The other displays photographs of the fallen who attended ACS, young men from the town and countryside. The Memorial for the 2nd World War is a bronze plaque again naming former pupils of the school. Other memorials you will find will be plaques in the local chapels and churches, indeed the bells of Aberaeron Trinity church were installed in 1925 in memory of the 10 church members who died during the 1st World War. Poignantly many of the local men who fell during the two World Wars have no known graves and their names are recorded on large Memorials in Britain, France, Belgium, Daresaalam and Jerusalem. Elinor Ingham, 19/11/2024

Hapus (happy), we are most certainly not! As any one who has followed our blogs will know, Cymdeithas has strongly opposed the move of the library.   Even now we are appealing against the decision through the Older Person’s Commissioner for Wales.   It takes a lot to make Elinor or me speechless but we were at a loss for words to discover that at last week’s Cabinet meeting , the Leader of the Council stated that Cymdeithas were “hapus gyda’r peth”.   We could not let this total misrepresentation go unchallenged so I have written to the Leader , copied to all Cabinet members, asking for this statement to be withdrawn.   Here is the letter in full:

Now you have another reason to visit the library. Come and see the new exhibits in the Cymdeithas display cabinet. Thanks to Dr Helen Herbert for providing us with photos commemorating the success of Tanyfron surgery and even some tools of the trade. If you are interested in the history of the Aberaeron Cottage hospital we also have an article by Dr Helen on the heritage page sharing her memories from childhood to the time she was caring for patients there. And last but not least have a look at our Healthcare section on the photo archive for images of the hospital, the Tanyfron surgeries and the people who worked there.

As the UK and Welsh 'Sports Personality of the Year' reviews are about to be broadcast on BBC TV it's worth sparing a thought for local cycling hero Josh Tarling. Compared to his stellar 2023 season it’s been a somewhat cruel 2024 for the professional track & road time trial specialist from Ffos-y-ffin who continues to ride for the UK-based Ineos Grenadiers team. Josh started the 2024 season well … A team pursuit victory and a 3rd place in the Madison race at the UCI Track Cycling Nations Cup at Adelaide, Australia in early February. A road time trial stage victory at the O Gran Camino (The Great Way) staged through the Galicia region of Spain in late February. A 6th place at the Dwars door Vlaanderen one-day road race on the treacherous Belgian cobblestones in late March. Another victory in the elite time trial race at the UCI National Championships in June, repeating his previous win in 2023. Sadly, for this year’s ‘higher profile’ events, lady luck has not quite been on Josh’s side despite his continuing great form. He was ... Denied at least a bronze (or a probable silver) medal in the Olympic Road Time Trial after sustaining the only puncture of the race on the rain-soaked streets of Paris. He missed out on a medal by a mere 2 seconds. A soul-destroying result for Josh as well as his family and fans. Forced to abandon after a horrible high-speed crash on stage 9 of his ‘Grand Tour’ debut in La Vuelta (the Tour of Spain) in August, after a promising 6th place finish in the stage 1 time-trial. Edged out to 4th place at the UCI Road World Championships time trial in Zurich, Switzerland. More bad luck struck Josh when he suffered broken ribs after a crash in the Tour of Croatia in early October. To add insult to injury (no pun intended) his accident resulted in him having to withdraw from the UCI Track Cycling World Championships in Denmark. That said, it has to be recognised that, despite being a mere 20 years of age, Josh is regularly mixing it with arguably the top 2 time trialists in the world, in the shape of older riders Remco Evenepoel (Belgium) and Josh’s Ineos-Grenadiers team-mate Fillipo Ganna (Italy). Josh had already previously finished in 3rd place behind this pair in the 2023 UCI World Championships time trial after a stunning performance (aged 19) which finished spectacularly on the steep cobbled ramparts of Stirling Castle in Scotland. This performance really raised Josh's public profile as it was broadcast live on mainstream UK TV. To match that, on stage 4 of the renowned the 2024 Citerium du Dauphine race in France the 34km time trial from Saint-Germain-Laval to Neulise saw Josh lead the entire field of racers by 1 second at the second time check, only to be nudged into 2nd place by the renowned Remco Evenepoel at the finish. A great performance against an elite field of competitors, this further consolidated his place in the upper echelons of world time trialists. BBC TV interview after 4th place finish in the 2024 UCI time trial in Zurich Continuing in a positive vein, the challenges that he has faced in 2024 will surely be character-building in the long term. His disappointment after his string of narrow podium misses and crash-related abandonments was evident in his TV interviews, particularly after the 4th place in the UCI time trial in Zurich (see photo above). He is clearly a driven and self-critical young man despite his incredible achievements to date at a world level, let alone the UK. This bodes well for any athlete. His potential to hit new heights has been further rubber-stamped by a 3-year contract extension to 2027 by his team, Ineos-Grenadiers. Given that Josh already has 10 years of full-time competitive cycling under his lycra there’s no knowing where he’ll be when he reaches his mid-30s, which is when many of the greats were in their prime … including a certain Geraint Thomas ;) Here's hoping that Josh continues to grow as an athlete. He’s got great support team from his father Mike (a Welsh track and road cyclist), mother Dawn and younger brother Finlay (also a professional cyclist with Israel Premier Tech Academy). Of course, it goes without saying that the residents of the Aberaeron area are all 100% behind Josh and are wishing him ‘pob lwc’ through 2025! Paris Olympics send-off for Josh at Aberaeron bakers 'Y Popty'. Left to right: Pete 'Bach' Evans, Ray 'Penmaesglas', Sian Thomas, Mike & Dawn Tarling. For those wanting to follow Josh's stats & achievements, there’s plenty of information available online: Josh's Story: https://www.britishcycling.org.uk/article/20240726-My-Story--Josh-Tarling-0 Pro Cycling Statistics: Josh & Finlay https://www.procyclingstats.com/rider/joshua-tarling/start https://www.procyclingstats.com/rider/finlay-tarling

‘Y Wal’. Dyna oedd teitl sioe Ysgol Gynradd Aberaeron eleni! Ond pa wal? Wal fawr Tsiena? Wal Berlin? Neu Wal ‘Cofio Tryweryn’? Na! Ein wal ni ein hunain yma yn Harbwr Aberaeron. Dyna beth oedd sioe. Swynwyd y gynulleidfa ar ddwy noson wrth iddynt gael eu tywys trwy’r ddwy ganrif a mwy diwethaf o hanes yr harbwr. Dechreuwyd gyda’r enwog Alban Thomas Jones Gwynne yn cyhoeddi’r siarter a arweiniodd at adeiladu’r harbwr a datblygiad Aberaeron fel tref forwrol a masnachol. Clywyd am adeiladu’r llongau mawr ac atgoffwyd ni o enwau rhai o’r llongau hynny a deithiodd i bedwar ban byd gyda bechgyn lleol ar eu bwrdd. Mae enwau’r llongau yn fyw o hyd yn enwau tai Aberaeron heddiw! Gwelwyd y dyrfa wrth yr harbwr yn ffarwelio wrth i deuluoedd lleol ymfudo i Ohio yn 1818 oherwydd gorthrwm tirfeddianwyr. Wrth gwrs mae’r cysylltiadau rhwng Aberaeron ag Ohio yn parhau hyd heddiw. Cofiwyd hefyd am bysgotwyr lleol ac yn arbennig y teulu Jenkins. Mor braf oedd cael dau o’u disgynyddion o’r Ysgol yn adrodd eu hanes. Portreadwyd taith stormus nifer o’r pysgotwyr hynny yn llawn hiwmor. Mewn golyga hynod liwgar, atgoffwyd y gynulleidfa o’r hyn sy’n denu’r tyrfodd i harbwr Aberaeron bob blwyddyn. O’r ffair ym mis Tachwedd i dynnu gelyn ar draws yr harbwr yn yr haf, i’r carnifal unigryw a Gŵyl y Mecryll i gloi’r tymor gwyliau. Trwy gyfrwng ffilm gwelwyd disgyblion y Dosbarth Meithrin yn ‘crwydro’r’ safle adeiladu ac yn holi, “Pam fod angen y morglawdd newydd arnom?” I gloi’r perfformiad, talwyd gwrogaeth i gwmni BAM am eu gwaith a’u dyfalbarhad trwy ddawns fywiog. Dyma oedd perfformiad a fydd yn dal yn y cof am amser hir a pa well ffordd o drosglwyddo hanes ein tref i’r genhedlaeth nesaf. Llongyfarchiadau i bawb a fu ynghlwm â’r sioe. Mair Jones

Hunkered down at home in the storm? Thought it might be timely to give you some light reading in the form of our Christmas Newsletter. As the photo on the first page suggests, it is highly focused on the issue of the year- our library :

Braint oedd gwahodd Catrin Stevens i gyfarfod mis Hydref y Gymdeithas. Mae Catrin yn hanesydd nodedig ac yn arbenigo mewn hanes merched. Testun ei chyflwyniad oedd ‘Apêl Merched dros Heddwch 1923-24’. Mae hi a nifer o ferched blaengar yng Nghymru wedi bod yn rhan o grŵp ‘Heddwch Nain/Mam-gu’ a ddaeth at ei gilydd wedi darganfod deiseb o 1923-24. Cafwyd hanes anhygoel y ddeiseb wrth iddi gael ei darganfod mewn cist dderw yn Sefydliad y Smithsonian yn Washington, a’r ymgyrch i’w chael yn ôl I Gymru. Gwireddwyd eu breuddwyd yn Rhagfyr 2022 pan gyrhaeddodd y ddeiseb (7 milltir o hyd) y Llyfrgell Genedlaethol Aberystwyth. Mae arni 390,296 o lofnodion o bob rhan o Gymru ac mae’r gwaith o drawsgrifio'r holl enwau bron ar ben. Apêl yw’r ddeiseb oddi wrth ferched yng Nghymru ar i ferched America alw am ‘Gyfraith nid Rhyfel’ ac i America ymuno â Chynghrair y Cenhedloedd newydd. Disgrifiodd rôl degau o unigolion lleol a fu’n ddygn yn trefnu’r ddeiseb yn eu hardaloedd drwy gerdded o dŷ i dŷ. Bu'r rhain mor hanfodol i’r ymgyrch. Dangoswyd i ni enwau a llofnodion unigolion o Aberaeron a’r cyffiniau a fu’n trefnu a llofnodi'r ddeiseb. Creodd hyn gynwrf arbennig ymhlith y gynulleidfa. Gallwch ddarllen mwy am yr hanes diddorol hwn ar- https://www.wcia.org.uk/cy/treftadaeth-heddwch/deiseb-menywod Diolch, Mair Jones

Talk about Girl Power! In October our informative speaker, Catrin Stephens, told us all about the Women’s Peace Petition of 1923-24. Signed by 400,000 women across Wales, it aimed to persuade America to join the League of Nations to avoid another world war. Had it succeeded, history would have been very different. Just as mammoth a task is the current work of transcribing all the signatures, after which it will be digitised. One of the people contributing to this is our very own trustee, Mair Jones. Thanks to her work and that of all the other volunteers, we will, in due course, be able to look for the names of our own ancestors or our homes in these records. You can watch and read all about this fascinating piece of social history, the return of the Petition to Wales and the project to transcribe the signatures by following the link below: https://www.wcia.org.uk/peace-heritage/womens-peace-petition/

UPDATE: Application withdrawn. Original post: Love it or loathe it, now is the chance for you to have your say. Plans have been submitted to Ceredigion Council to build an optical illusion sculpture on Aberaeron's harbour to commemorate the emigration of locals to Ohio in the 1800s. Consultation is now open, and closes on 26th November. A link to the application is below:   https://ceredigion-online.tascomi.com/planning/index.html?fa=getApplication&id=62581   CAS trustees have already submitted our response.  Whilst we fully support commemorating the emigration to Ohio and indeed giving recognition to the ‘lost girl’ of the voyage, we have formally OBJECTED to the current design proposal: We endorse the strong public opposition that the structure will obscure the iconic harbour view out to sea and in particular our beautiful sunsets. The scale of the 5 metre structure seems totally inappropriate - it will completely overwhelm the Look-out tower on the harbour; and the struts will be visible from many of the town’s viewpoints, interrupting those views.  As the image of Mair will only be revealed at a specific point from a certain angle, it is therefore only the unsightly struts that will be visible from most places.   We are concerned that this structure will not age well, either in terms of style and more importantly that its physical condition will deteriorate. This is actually acknowledged in the application.  Furthermore, we feel that the planning application is premature. The graphics do not incorporate the harbour extension so it is difficult to see the design in context  CAS trustees were involved in early discussions about the form the commemoration would take. At that point the proposal was for a sculpture of a 19th century travelling trunk. We believe that something of that nature would be a far more appropriate memorial for our historic harbour town.

Close to the heart and hands on too! Our first talk of the season was from husband and wife team, Jonathon and Yvonne Holder of Welsh Vernacular Antiques. Their showroom in Cross Inn, Llanon, has an impressive stock of Welsh antiques and country furniture.    Their subject for the evening was Welsh love tokens. They shared with us and even allowed us to handle some of beautiful items from their personal collection - see Jonathan below. His brief article which follows is an excellent introduction to the history and also the value of these beautiful items. Welsh Love Spoons Antique Love spoons are amongst the most desirable and highly sought after objects depicting one persons love for another that exist. There are many books on the subject - detailing the meanings behind the symbolism displayed upon their surfaces and indeed the symbolism of the spoons themselves, but what is it that makes them so special and sought after by so many? For some it is their link to Wales and it’s distinct culture, quite different to that of much of mainland Britain.  Or a hark back to simpler times of a truly hard days work and chivalry towards women. For some it is the appreciation of the craft, the patient skill of the maker clear to see in the fine detail and fragility of the piece.  Following a tiresome day the young man knife in hand would set about carving from one single piece of sycamore a spoon, including within it as much of his talent, eye for proportion and beauty that he could apply in the hope that his would-be sweetheart may see in this offering the potential in the man behind it. Whilst a number of spoons were made by professional carvers indeed the majority are made by individuals and range widely in design and skill. One has to feel a little sorry for the fellow who’s talent does not lie within carving. This we know as many naive examples exist and whilst desirable to the collector for their unique features they may have not have been quite so well received by the young lady recipient (or indeed she may have felt that it is the thought that counts I like to think). Whilst condition is important, imperfections and damage are all acceptable given the rarity and delicate nature of these pieces. In terms of investment earlier examples, large in size and of complicated or more asthetic form are the the most desirable.  Any spoon over a hundred years old is significant and worthy to the collector. With prices starting from £300 upwards for genuine antique examples they are not cheap but well within the means of most people wishing to buy something truly special.  The very best examples turn up occasionally with specialist dealers and can fetch upwards of £4000.  Although this may be considered a large sum, Love spoons have been one of the few Welsh Antiques that have constantly risen in price during my quarter century of dealing and have never shown signs of dipping. This makes them secure investment pieces, something which both dealers and public have recognised enforced by the fact that some of the best collections are in the homes of dealers themselves. Who can blame them, the age, patina, symbolism and history behind each piece coupled with their tactility and decorative appeal and investment potential make them the perfect antique.  I certainly have a few that my home would not feel the same without.   Jonathon Holder of Welsh Vernacular Antiques And here is a link to their website https://www.antiques-atlas.com/welshvernacularfurniture/