Memory Lane

Cardiff remembered: History of city’s suburbs full of stories to fascinate

Author Brian Lee writes a weekly history and nostalgia column for the South Wales Echo

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InYourArea Community, Saffron Jenkins

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Cardiff remembered: History of city’s suburbs full of stories to fascinate

READY STEADY GO: A picture of the old Ely Racecourse, pictured in the background is Ely Hospital (Image: Media Wales)

Written by Brian Lee

My late friend, the great local historian Dennis Morgan, was the author of several books on his beloved Cardiff.

His The Illustrated History Of Cardiff’s Suburbs, published in 2003 was – and still is – a fascinating read.

With regard to the chapter on Heath we learn that: “In the 1760s, part of the Great Heath became a racecourse with its starting point in the vicinity of 45-51 Heath Park Avenue.

“The circuit was two miles in length and the earliest races were usually individual contests.

“On September 2, 1765, Captain Mathew from Llandaff won £40 when his horse outpaced that of Lewis Morgan from Whitchurch.

He added: “Within a few years the Corporation and the Marquess of Bute were contributing prize money for Cardiff Races.”

The race meetings are said to have finished in 1849 when the racecourse land was sold to Wyndham Lewis for £3,100.

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However, the Cardiff and Merthyr Guardian dated June 2, 1855, reveals: “The revival of Cardiff Races, after a slumber of several years, has been looked forward to by the cognoscenti of the local turf as an event of much interest, and the result has proved that their most sanguine anticipations have been fully realised.

“The first public move in the matter, it will be remembered, was an influential meeting held at the Angel Hotel, in the middle of the past winter, presided over by the honoured representative of the House of Tredegar, Sir Charles Morgan, at which large subscriptions were entered into which have since been considerably augmented.

“The committee, thus encouraged, were enabled to offer stakes of respectable value, which ensured for each tolerably large entries, and all the events of the first meeting came off on the new course at Ely, on Wednesday and Thursday last, under the stewardship of Sir George Tyler, one of our respected county members and Henry Lewis, Esq Greenmeadow, brother of the High Sheriff of Glamorgan.”

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For months before the race meeting, a large number of labourers had been employed on the new course which was said to have been a mile and 16 yards in length and apparently the racing could be seen from any point on the racecourse.

A stand, named the Cheltenham Grand Stand, was capable of holding 700 people and the under portion of the building “formed a very spacious refreshment room, besides store, betting and weighing rooms.”

Moving on to Dennis’ book and the chapter on the Cathays area, we discover that Maindy Barracks was opened in 1871 and that in 1899 troops of the Welch Regiment marched out from the barracks to fight the Boers. Then, in 1914,

“the barracks was inundated with a flood of volunteers, responding to Kitchener’s call to arms.”

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Fast foreword to the Second World War and we are informed that “American GIs were transferred to Maindy Barracks, pursued by prostitutes from Liverpool who commandeered an area near the former Maindy Pool.

“The footpath between Gelligaer Street and New Zealand Road soon became known as the ‘Burma Road’ (Be Undressed and Ready My Angel).

“Local residents were appalled at scenes of debauchery in ramshackle huts or on open ground but protests to the Chief Constable proved futile.”

Dennis’ book was first published by Breedon Books, and is now published in paperback by JMD Media at £14.99.

  • Please send your pictures and stories to Brian Lee, Cardiff Remember, South Wales Echo, Six Park Street, Cardiff, CF10 1XR
  • or email brianlee4@virginmedia.com
  • If sending a letter, please include your phone number.

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