March 2025
We’ve ordered some new mugs sporting our brand new logo. You can buy one at our pop up shop which opens at our monthly talks.
February 2025
We’ve updated our logo and chosen a design which we feel embodies the different societies which contribute to the Forum.
December 2024
Work is progressing on the ‘Churches and Chapels’ book.
July 2025
- Steve Jones celebrations – Statue in front of Ebbw Vale Sports Centre and Mural in Town Centre.
- Several new murals are in place around Tredegar to celebrate it being the home of the NHS.
- 15th August – VJ Day – see What’s ON page.
- A new Digital Walking Trail which explores the history of the town has been launched in Ebbw Vale. Pupils from Pen-y-Cwm School were the first visitors to walk it.
June 2025
- Mosaic on Abertillery Institute removed for safe keeping.
- Repair of Roy Francis statue is now complete.
- Moose Lodge is 100 years old
February 2025
- Eifion Lloyd Davies Memorial For Eifion. Two Denbigh plum trees and an Abergwyngregan damson have been selected to be planted in memory of Eifion. They will be planted after half term.
- White Badge Guide training in Abertillery is completed and the graduation event will take place in the New Year.
- Blaenau Gwent Ambassadors is launched. It offers free online training; the first 3 modules are now available with more to follow shortly. 30 Bronze Ambassadors completed the course including 3 from the BGHF.
- Town Trails: Ebbw Vale and Abertillery are complete. Tredegar and Brynmawr 50% complete.
- Tai Calon: Wish to link to local heritage could anyone with any exhibitions or artefacts they could loan please let Alyson know.
- New visitor information racking in the Premiere Inn and Tai Calon
- Events 2025: Contributions required for TVTCTW, HOTNHS and Pride.
- Filming: Young Sherlock, part-filmed in Trefil, another film shot in Beaufort. Sunday’s ITV drama, ‘Out There’ shot in Trefil and locally.
December 2024
- The Blaenau Gwent Ambassadors scheme is now launched. The first 3 modules are available with more to follow early in 2025.
- The Wales Ambassador Scheme is a set of free online courses that introduce you to different areas and attractions in Wales. You can increase your knowledge of Wales and help others to get the most out of their visit.
December 2024
- An exhibition of photographs of ‘Pubs and Clubs of Tredegar’ is displayed in Bedwellty House
- 60 children from Newport visited the museum to learn about Aneurin Bevan
- The museum now has a display on the work of Walter Conway, the person involved with, and responsible, for the development for the Tredegar Medical Aid Society
December 2024
- The Family History help desks are closed until February 2025.
February 2025
- St Illtyd’s will be opening on Sundays in March and for the rest of the summer. This will be dependent on having enough volunteers and it may still not be open every Sunday.
- There is a lot of interest in the Flora and Fauna of the graveyard at the moment and it is hoped that a study of it will be undertaken.
December 2024
- The Christmas Service will take place on Friday 6th December
July 2025
- The Blaenau Gwent Planning Department has passed plans to demolish the old Pithead baths building. It will be be replaced by an area of green space containing signage to commemorate the baths and the place it held in the community.
December 2024
- There has been a celebration of the 120th anniversary of the laying of the foundation stone for Llanhilleth Institute, This impressive building cost £7,000 in 1904 to build.
February 2025
St Davids Day celebrations in Penuel Rhymney will take place at the coffee morning on Saturday 28th February when Elari Darkins will be playing the harp.
February 2025
- The postponed January Talk will now take place on March 21st and the subject will be on the 75th anniversary of the creation of Cwmbran New Town.
December 2024
- Gwent Archives have reintroduced sessions of “Introductions to the Archive” which include a conducted tour of the building followed by an optional visit to ‘Ebbw Vale Works Museum’.
- A drive is underway to invite different groups to the archive and to improve contact so that the archive can help and support them when they undertake local history projects.
- The Christmas lecture was cancelled because of the weather but it is hoped that it will be rescheduled for early 2025.
- The Archive is looking into the possibility of having online access to future Talks.
June 2025
- The mosaic is now finished and the QR codes have been installed.
February 2025
- Abertillery Mosaic:The roundels are being rebuilt and work should be completed by end of March.
December 2024
- Abertillery Mosaic: Loose and incomplete sections on the wingwalls are being removed and will be used to fix incomplete sections. The wingwalls will have the original watercolour design printed on to aluminium and fixed to the wall.
July 2025
Congratulations to Alfie Evans, from Tredegar, and a volunteer at the museum who won a prestigious JUDGES’ PICK prize in the recent ‘Young Railway Photographer of the Year’ competition.
June 2025
Upcoming 50th Anniversary of the closure of the last blast furnaces in Ebbw Vale – July 1975
Ebbw Vale Works Museum’s facebook post on 18th May 2025
50 Years Ago!
There is a significant anniversary this year – 50 years since Ebbw Vale Works last produced liquid Iron. The closure of the Blast Furnaces in July 1975 ended a role that had started in 1790.
During the RTB / BSC era, the works operated 3 Blast Furnaces. Numbers A & B were inherited from the old EVSIC Co, commissioned in 1920, closed in 1929, but revamped and reopened in 1938, when the new RT Works opened. Following the success of the new works, a brand new C Furnace was added during the war.
B Furnace was taken out of service in 1973, A Furnace in April 1975 and the final nail in the coffin was July 1975, when the last survivor, C Furnace was shut down, which as the headline in the company newspaper said “IT’S ALL OVER – 185 years of iron-making ends at Ebbw Vale”. They had produced nearly 17 million tons of iron since 1938.
The closure of the blast furnaces inevitably brought an end to another significant process, the Converter Shop, which relied on liquid iron for its Steelmaking process.
Steelmaking continued along for another 3 years with a very limited single Open Hearth Furnace Operation, relying on a feedstock of cold scrap.
February 2025
- Ron, ‘Ginger’ Parsons, the oldest miner alive, has just celebrated his 103rd birthday. From Cwm, near Ebbw Vale, he started in the pit just before his 14th birthday and spent 50 years working at the coal face.
December 2024
- The digitisation of the collection of the Steelworks Museum papers and documents is progressing.
- The museum is printing a newsletter which will include a form with the option for people to become “Friends of the Museum” and/or to help support the various projects undertaken by the museum volunteers.
July 2025
Cwm and Waunlwyd Archive has a new web controller, Chris Parfitt, who will be answering queries and working with a team of volunteers to add new material to the archive. The team will be based in Cwm Library where archiving sessions will take place.