CPAT Regional Sites & Monuments Record

PRN 105939 - Ffrith (multiple site)

1 Location

1.1 Ffrith occupies the valley floor where Nant y Ffrith converges on the River Cegidog. To the north-east the bulk of Hope Mountain rises sharply, but opposite the settlement the valley sides are more gentle.

1.2 Ffrith lies a short distance from Llanfynydd (q.v.) on the B5101 and 7km north-west of Wrexham.

2 History

2.1 Intensively used in the Roman period (see below section 3.1), and traversed by Offa's Dyke several centuries later, Ffrith otherwise seems to have emerged as a settlement only in the 19th century. The church is no earlier than 1842/3 and the Tithe Map of 1850 shows perhaps half a dozen houses, all on the south side of the River Cegidog and north of Valley Road. Later, an industrial element emerged on the north side of the Cegidog including a smithy and lime kilns.

2.2 Modern housing spreads over the valley floor, between Valley Road and Nant y Ffrith, but with little expansion on the south side of the stream.

3 Buildings and Archaeology

3.1 A substantial Roman site (PRN 100020) underlies the later village. The settlement, on the Roman road from Chester to Caer Gai, was first recorded by Camden in the late 16th century. It appears to have been a civilian community, although the number of tiles attributable to the XXth Legion implies a military connection. Details of the settlement and its archaeology are to be found in RCAHMW (1912) and Blockley (1989) amongst others. Individual find spots and excavations are not marked on the accompanying map.

3.2 Offa's Dyke (PRN 10000) is visible as an earthwork to the north of Ffrith. Within the village it has been levelled, and its course followed by the B5101.

3.3 A mid-18th century packhorse bridge (PRN 100035; Grade II listing where it is attributed to the late 17th century) spans the River Cegidog on the eastern perimeter of the settlement, with a paved ford just downstream.

3.4 There appear to be no buildings of any historic significance within the settlement.

record created 31/12/1995 CM95 - copyright CPAT , last updated 16/07/2004
The above data are supplied by CPAT in partnership with its Local Authorities and the partners of END, © CPAT SMR partnership, 2005 (and in part © Crown, 2005 - as indicated)

CM - 11/04/2005 ( 16:41:02 ) - HTML file produced from CPAT's Regional SMR
Clwyd Powys Archaeological Trust, Curatorial Section, 7a Church Street, Welshpool, Powys SY21 7DL.
tel (01938) 553670 , fax (01938) 552179, email trust@cpat.org.uk , website www.cpat.org.uk