NEATH PORT TALBOT

Historically, Neath was the crossing place of the River Neath and has existed as a settlement since at least Roman times, following the Roman invasion of what was to become the Roman province of Britannia Superior after the 1st century AD. The Antonine Itinerary (c. 2nd century) names only nine places in Roman Wales, one of them being Neath.
There is evidence of undated prehistoric settlements on the hills surrounding the town, which were probably Celtic. Human remains were discovered 25 miles (40 km) away at Paviland Cave on the Gower peninsula dated 24,000 BC proving that humans lived in the region during the last Ice Age. Once known as the "Red Lady of Paviland", the remains are those of a man. Neath was on the southern edge of the ice sheet with the Vale of Neath being a glaciated valley. Vegetation and animal life migrated to the area following the recession of the ice around 15,000 years ago.
The Romans used the name Celt (outsiders) for the unfederated European tribes outside of their empire and the inhabitants of the Neath area prior and during the Roman occupation were members of the Celtic Silures tribe. Nidum is the name of the Roman fort discovered close to a housing estate, known as Roman Way, on the west side of the River Neath whereas Neath town is on the east side of the river. The fort covered a large area which now lies under the playing fields of Dwr-y-Felin Comprehensive School.
Nidum is Latin for nest and the English corruption of the Welsh for nest nytha would produce Neath. In the late 1960s, there were reports in the local media of a massive Roman marching camp being found above Llantwit which would have accommodated many thousands of troops.
The Roman occupation of Britain ended in the 5th century AD and at that time Christianity was spreading from the east. St Illtyd, a prominent Celtic warrior and Celtic saint who became a Christian, was a major force in establishing Christianity within Wales having taught St David, the patron saint of Wales.
St Illtyd visited the Neath area and established a settlement in what is now known as Llantwit on the northern edge of the town. The church of St. Illtyd was built at this settlement and was enlarged in Norman times. The Norman and pre-Norman church structure remains intact and active today within the Church in Wales. The Welsh language name for Neath is Castell-nedd, referring to the Norman Neath Castle, which is close to the shopping centre.
Neath was a market town that expanded with the arrival of the Industrial Revolution in the 18th century with new manufacturing industries of iron, steel and tinplate. The Mackworth family, who owned the Gnoll Estate were prominent in the town's industrial development. Coal was mined extensively in the surrounding valleys and the construction of canals and railways made Neath a major transportation centre and the Evans & Bevan family were major in the local coal mining community as well as owning the Vale of Neath Brewery. Silica was mined in the Craig-y-Dinas area of Pontneddfechan, after Quaker entrepreneur William Weston Young invented the blast furnace silica firebrick, later moving brick production from the works at Pontwalby to The Green in Neath. The town continued as a market trading centre with a municipal cattle market run by W.B.Trick. Industrial development continued throughout the 20th century with the construction by British Petroleum of a new petroleum refinery at Llandarcy.
Admiral Lord Nelson stayed at the Castle Hotel en route to Milford Haven when the fleet was at anchor there. Lt. Lewis Roatley, the son of the landlord of the Castle Hotel, served as a Royal Marines officer with Lord Admiral Nelson aboard HMS Victory in the Battle of Trafalgar.
The River Neath is a navigable estuary and Neath was a river port until recent times. The heavy industries are no more, with the town being a commercial and tourism centre. Attractions for visitors are the ruins of the Cistercian Neath Abbey, the Gnoll Park and Neath Indoor Market.
Neath hosted the National Eisteddfod of Wales in 1918, 1934, and again in 1994.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neath

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Neath rugby club (founded 1871) is the oldest rugby club in Wales and even pre-dates the inaugural meeting of the Welsh Rugby Union (12th March 1881). See 'Links of interest to Neath', above.