Ystradgynlais History
Independent
Saron Chapel is an independent chapel on the main road through Crynant. It is still going strong in 2020, and the buildings and grounds are in a beautiful condition.
Saron Chapel was built by Godrerhos in 1904, and initially used as a school room. The first service was held there around 1907. It is now a bilingual church, and Bethania Baptist's congregation united with Saron upon the closure of the latter chapel.
Saron Chapel, Crynant's name stone says:-
Saron
Adeiladwyd gan eglwys annibynol GodreRhos 1904
and in English:-
Built by an independent church
GodreRhos
1904
Saron Chapel, Crynant at the corner of Main Road and School Road.
The information below is taken from an article on the history of Saron Chapel by David Enoch, originally written in Welsh in the 1950s.
At the beginning of this century, the number of children attending Godre'rhos was undoubtedly very numerous, and it was realized that having an additional building to cater for the children in the Sunday school would be a blessing. Saron was built for this purpose alone. The first Sunday School was held on the first Sunday in 1905, and the initiative was justified when, according to the first statistics published in Saron, the number of members of the school was 73. Since the school was established some months before, the official opening meeting was not held until the 7th and 8th of June in the year.
Seeing the success of the Sunday school at Saron, some of the Congregationalists wished to see greater use for the building, and initially requested the services of the pastor of the mother church of Godre'Rhos for three Sunday evenings ebvery month.
January 1908 saw the official establishment of the cause, under the leadership of Mr. David John Howells as secretary, and Mr. William Davies as treasurer while the minister of the mother church, the Rev. Tudwal Davies, also took charge of Saron Church.
Forty-five people initilly enrolled as members of Saron Church, and the Rev T. T. Davies continued as minister until his retirement in April 1911, after which the church was without a minister for over four years. During this this time Mr. D.N. Morgan, Maesygwenith, was was elected as the church secretary, a role he served in for twenty-five years.
In August, 1915, the Rev. Urias Phillips was ordained as pastor of the two churches, Godre'rhos and Saron. He ministered at Crynant until April 2nd, 1922, when he received a call to pastor Towyn church, New Quay. The area was shocked when he was suddenly struck by disease, and before he moved to New Quay, the Great Shepherd called him to eternal bliss on the 6th of April, 1922.
On November 20th, 1932, a call was made to the Rev. James Evans, B.A., Rhos, Denbigh. He consented and began as pastor of both churches in January, 1933. This well-known poet and writer served for about ten years. He died in March, 1943.
Saron was again without a pastor for a few years until a call was made in August 1946 to the Rev. Dennis Lloyd Jones of Ebenezer, Trehebert, and he accepted as pastor of both churches.
The church faced many difficulties from time to time, but perhaps the biggest shock was the period between 1938 and 1947 when some nine church deacons were lost.
The church did not escape the adverse consequences of the last great war, and showed its sympathy for Mr and Mrs Lewis' family, "Anwylfan" by placing a memorial tablet for her son Phillip, who fell in Salerno, Italy, in 1946.
The banner outside Saron Chapel, Crynant, in the Summer of 2019.
Saron has a Facebook page of its own at https://en-gb.facebook.com/pg/saronchapelcrynant/posts/. Services, Sunday School and other activities are advertised on noticeboards in front of the chapel, alongside the main road.
During the Pandemic of 2020, Saron Chapel broadcast regular services live on Facebook, available later to be viewed on catch-up there.
The Llais newspaper had always included a round-up of happenings at local churches and chapels, even when these were not part of any particular story. Sometimes they advertised forthcoming events, and at other times who was preaching, or had preached there recently.
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