Hidden away behind the houses in Gowerton is a ten-acre plot of woodland. On one side it backs on to Gorwydd Road; on the other its boundary is formed by the Swansea to Carmarthen railway line. Over the years it has acquired a covering of oak trees and willow scrub. In 1984, thanks to the efforts of a local resident, Mrs Margaret Morgan, a tree preservation order was placed on this patch of woodland by Lliw Valley Borough Council. In so doing the Council recognised that it would be valuable to preserve the site in its present state, both for environmental considerations and because of the natural history of the site. However, the owners of the land gave notice that they intended to appeal against the order and have in fact already cleared part of the land. At the time of writing (March 1985) the future of this little plot of woodland is still far from secure. Although it shows few signs of it now, this was in fact the site of the Gorwydd Colliery and its tips. The colliery ceased working in 1891, and so thoroughly has revegetation taken place thatit is only the piles of overgrown spoil, a few tumbledown buildings, and the poor drainage that reveal the history of the site. It shows how effectively nature can take over once human activity has ceased. The beginnings of the Gorwydd.
