The Carrog trail page two
Beyond the end of the row of cottages on the right was the site of "Carchady Owain" (Owain Glyndwr's prison house) in which he reputedly imprisoned many of his opponents during his uprising. Nothing remains of the building today.
Continuing on our trail it is interesting to note that almost the entire village lay below the road, between it and the river, before about 1890.
We pass the rectory, below us to the left, and looking over the Berwyns we can see the Penarth Quarry. This quarry has been unworked since 1930 but in 1900 "199 men worked in Penarth and Moel Fferna"- another quarry further to the east.
Obviously working in the slate mines was one of the prime sources of employment of the local people. As we reach the fork in the road we can again see, on the left, a small lane running steeply down to the river. The renovated row of cottages we see were the `tai-bragdy`- a former malt house and its attached cottages.
Down this lane and beyond the house `Riverdale`, which stands at the foot- where the river bends sharply almost at a right angle-was the site of the original church. It was dedicated to Sant Ffraid (saint Bridget), an irish saint, by the celtic missionaries who first made their way to these parts in the 6th century A..D. It was completely swept away by a sudden great rising of the Dee in 1601.
The following extract from Archaeologia Cambrenis, 1893 refers to this:
INTERESTING ARCHAEOLOGY DISCOVERY AT CARROG.-A singularly interesting Archaeological discovery has just been made at Llansantffraid Glyndyfrdwy (Carrog) The water in the river Dee is at present very low, and on May 29 Mr. H. Jones of Penybont Farm was engaged with some workmen in taking stone from the bed of the river, at a point some 200 yards below the bridge, on the south side of the river. While engaged in this work Mr. Jones' attention was attracted by a piece of wood, and having exposed it he found it to be a beam of solid oak, apparently very slightly affected by the action of the water. On further examination similar beams were found running from this beam, and also crosswise, mortised, and fixed to it by solid pegs. The result is, that now six large beams (some of them 9 yards long, and more than 1ft. thick) have been dug out, and others appear undeneath these, unearthed. One beam, plainly discernible, is nearly 2 yards wide on the top.
It is highly probable that they belong to the old church of Llansantffraid, which Archdeacon Thomas, in his History of St. Asaph, mentions as being named after St. Ffraid, Bridge, or Bridget, whose festival fell on February 1; which church was completely swept away by a sudden rising of the river Dee in the early part of the seventeenth century. The site of this old church is supposed to have been about 500 yards higher up the river than the spot where the present interesting discovery has been made, and the tradition that the church was swept away by the river Dee is handed down in the lines quoted in the first volume of Bye-gones:
"Dyfrdwy fawr ei naid
Aeth ag Eglwys Llansanffraid,
Y Llyfran Bendigedig,
A'r Cwpan Arian hefyd."
----------------------------
" The Dee of the great leaps
Took Llansantffraid church,
The sacred books
and the Silver Chalice also."
If the remains are those of the old church, they must have been carried away before the present bridge which spans the river was built. The date on the bridge is 1661.
To the right of the
fork in the road we can see the church which was built to replace the old one in 1611.
Originally a small low rectangle with, inside, high box pews and a gallery at the west
end; in 1852 it was extensively altered.
The roof was raised, a chancel , belfry and vestry added to make it the picturesque parish church we see today.
Nave has arched collar-brace roof of local type. Font has plain round bowl probably late twelfth century.
In the churchyard are several gravestones with hollowed spaces for kneeling, similar to others at Corwen; there are also ancient yew trees.
