My paternal grandfather, who came from Somerset, lived at 4 Chapel Row, Penybanc and two of his sons, Vernon and Ralph also lived in the hamlet.

My Uncle Vernon had two sons, Gordon and John, and one daughter Betty and my Uncle Ralph also had two sons Garry and Paul and one daughter Pearl. My grandfather owned the houses that they lived in.

John and Garry were about my age and I used to spend a lot of time at weekends and during the school holidays with them and other friends, these being the Pullen brothers, Howard and Ken and William Morgan who’s father owned Penybanc Farm and a coal level on the eastern side of the valley opposite Fochriw.

My grandparent’s house was the best appointed in the hamlet and comprised a kitchen, sitting room and pantry and three upstairs bedrooms which were accessed via a stairs with a polished wooden banister and a proper landing. However, the toilet was located at the bottom of the garden and was shared with next door.

The ground floor level was about 8 feet below the road and the kitchen was accessed from the road by the back door down a flight of stone steps and a very narrow passageway. The black leaded fireplace was a mass of brass in that it comprised a large brass fender and fireguard, brass companions set and firedogs, brass airing rail and brass candles.

From the ceiling hung hooks from which were suspended home cured legs of ham and sides of bacon.

The front room housed a piano and a number of cases of stuffed birds.

My grandfather used to work at Ogilvie colliery and had an ‘underground road’ named after him this being Coggan’s Heading.