Blaengarw Secondary School - near Bridgend
A wonderful set of photographs from the camera of Keith Coles
who was the woodwork teacher at Blaengarw. Keith passed away some years
ago and it was thought his collection of photographs and negatives had
been subsequently lost for future generations, but I am delighted to have
tracked them down and found some little gems amongst them, like these
photographs from 1958/9. If anyone recognises anyone, please do get in
touch with me quoting the reference number under the photograh so we can
caption these correctly.
Thanks to
a great amount of detective work from Vici Lloyd of Nantymoel, we have
been able to update many of these photographs with the names of the pupils.
A game of conkers! Ref: KC07
There is so much detail in this photo that is evocative of a past era: secondary age boys in short trousers, short back and sides haircuts, jackets with holes on the elbows, down-at-heel shoes, pullovers with holes, trousers with tears, wellington boots in place of shoes, all indicative of a community that was not well-off financially. There was nothing unusual in any of this, that's just how it was during that period of hardship in the late 1950s. All of these lads could have looked forward to a period of National Service, followed by a career down the pit. Little did they know that, unlike their fathers and their grandfathers, work down the mines would not be a life time occupation.
Left
to right: Michael Richards with conker; David Davies; Haydn Hooper;
unknown; Reggie Hoof; Tony Jones (under arm); unknown (over arm); unknown
(over arm); David Rees with conker; unknown; Clive Griffiths; unknown.
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Ref: KC10 - Left to right: Unknown; Bleddyn Parry; Granville Davies; Eric Bayliss.
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Ref: KC19 - Back row, left to right: Mansel Dix; Douglas Archer; Roy Ellis; Ray Tippett; Jeff Thomas; Gordon Howe; Dai Pascoe; Dennis Roberts.
Front row, left to right: Gwyn Elsbury; Byron Davies; Mike Davies; Phill James (capt); Islwyn Samuels; David Smith; Gordon Kembrey.
Ref: KC20 - Back row L-R: Gordon Kembrey;Billy Morris; Mike Keene; Michael Tame; Tony Britton; ? Larcombe; Jeff Jenkins; Brian Roach.
Front row L-R: Granville Davies; Glyn Evans; Alan Jenkins; Mansel Dix (capt); Warren Elsbury; Brian Davies; Alwyn Furly.
Ref: KC21 - Back row, L-R: Sandra Taylor; Elaine Partridge; Carol Cox; Rose-Marie Evans; Kay Ellis; Lavinia Evans.
Front row L-R: Carol Harding; Catherine Watkins; Sandra Pantol.
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