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Aberystruth was an ancient ecclesiastical parish in Wales, located at the northwest corner of the historic county of Monmouthshire across the border from Breconshire and between the parishes of Bedwelty and Trevethin. It extended from Beaufort in the north to beyond Abertillery in the south.
[edit] IndustryDevelopment of Aberystruth's coal and iron ore deposits in the early nineteenth century brought explosive growth to Abertillery and Nantyglo and its new suburb of Brynmawr. Aberystruth is now the eastern portion of the Blaenau Gwent County Borough (or "principal area"). [edit] BlainaThe parish church was located near the centre of the parish in the village of Blaina and dedicated to St Peter. It was first built about the year 1500 and that building lasted more than 320 years. Following a fire which destroyed the original St Peter's another church was built on the site circa 1857 and this was demolished in 1966. The present St Peter's Blaina dates from the late 1960s and today forms part of a larger ministry area served by clergy headed by the Rector of Ebbw Vale. Aberystruth remained the official ecclesiastical name of the parish into the 1980s, but co-ordinates for the parish were found under Blaina in Google Earth. Blaina (Welsh: Y Blaenau) is a small town, now situated deep within the South Wales Valleys between Brynmawr and Abertillery in the unitary authority of Blaenau Gwent, and in the ancient parish of Aberystruth, preserved county of Gwent and historic county of Monmouthshire. As of the UK census of 2011, the town had a population of 4,808. (Source: Wikipedia article on Blaina). Between 1894 and 1974 it was recognized in the name of the local Urban District: Nant y Glo and Blaina Urban District. [edit] Parish bounds and BrynmawrThe 19th century settlement of Brynmawr spanned the original boundary of Monmouthshire (parish of Aberystruth) and Breconshire (parishes of Llanelly and Llangattock). At the southern end of Boundary Street, Brynmawr, you may still find the Boundary Stone marking the point where the three parishes met. [edit] Research Tips
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