Canton conundrum

[A Quiet Monkfish]

For those who know Canton well, there's something which has always puzzled me concerning Wyndham Road and Wyndham Crescent. I can only think it was some sort of error in allocating road names when they were built. The 'Crescent' is the main road from Pontcanna down to Cowbridge Rd East, and the 'Road' is in fact a crescent, off the main road, ie Wyndham Crescent. Surely they were meant to be the other way round ?

[Rjk]

Re: Canton conundrum

hmm interesting, I've got a bunch of old maps around somewhere, I'll see if they've changed at any point

[Tuerto]

Re: Canton conundrum

There's a few spelt incorrectly. 'Treorky St' Cathays, unless there actually is a place named Treorky.

[xsnaggle]

Re: Canton conundrum

They definitely haven't changed since 1954.
All that area used to be orchards. I'd suspect the crescent was built first and the when the road was built later on land purchased from the Marquis of Bute they had to use road or something because crescent had already been taken.
( all Kings Road behind Wyndham Road was orchards that's why even to this day there are a lot of swifts in the area. When he sold the land the Marquis would only allow each buyer a certain amount so that everyone had a chance to make some money. That's why if you look at the houses the design changes every 5 or 6 houses... different builders/ You'll see the same pattern of houses changing every 5 or 6 buildings on Cathedral road and round Plasturton Gdns)

[Claude Blue]

Re: Canton conundrum

For those who know Canton well, there's something which has always puzzled me concerning Wyndham Road and Wyndham Crescent. I can only think it was some sort of error in allocating road names when they were built. The 'Crescent' is the main road from Pontcanna down to Cowbridge Rd East, and the 'Road' is in fact a crescent, off the main road, ie Wyndham Crescent. Surely they were meant to be the other way round ?

My paternal grandparents lived on Wyndham Road from the 1920's until their deaths in 1975 and I've always been intrigued by this so would love to get a definitive answer

[Jordi Culé]

Re: Canton conundrum

There's a few spelt incorrectly. 'Treorky St' Cathays, unless there actually is a place named Treorky.

Treorchi is the Welsh name.

Treorky, Treorchy, Treorki were all anglicised versions I think?

[A Quiet Monkfish]

Re: Canton conundrum

Think I've cracked it - as others have suggested, the Crescent possibly was built 1st
....https://maps.nls.uk/view/102342622

If you zoom in you can see just the crescent, no 'Road'. The current 'Road' seems to form the edge of the field[s] , or orchards.

[splott parker]

Re: Canton conundrum

Where did the River Canna run? Pontcanna is ‘Bridge over the Canna’ I presume. A few years back knocking a house about in Kings Rd, it was interesting that the majority of stone used in the common work was akin to Cold Knap pebbles. It was if it was retrieved from an old riverside..........just Googled it, quite interesting, there were a few bridges over it, not much of a river apparently and filled in in the 1800s.

[Brian]

Re: Canton conundrum

Think I've cracked it - as others have suggested, the Crescent possibly was built 1st
....https://maps.nls.uk/view/102342622

If you zoom in you can see just the crescent, no 'Road'. The current 'Road' seems to form the edge of the field[s] , or orchards.

Great map, thanks for that, really interesting. Even my old house in Grangetown (or most of Grangetown) wasn't built by then.

Didn't realise the Howells School used to be a 'Female Orphanage'

[A Quiet Monkfish]

Re: Canton conundrum

Great map, thanks for that, really interesting. Even my old house in Grangetown (or most of Grangetown) wasn't built by then.

Didn't realise the Howells School used to be a 'Female Orphanage'

If you've nothing to do for the rest of the evening ! Founded in 1540 !

https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/lords/1897/jul/16/howells-charity

[A Quiet Monkfish]

Re: Canton conundrum

If you've nothing to do for the rest of the evening ! Founded in 1540 !

https://api.parliament.uk/historic-h...owells-charity

May be wrong..

https://www.howells-cardiff.gdst.net/news?id=138

[RichardM]

Re: Canton conundrum

Treorchi is the Welsh name.

Treorky, Treorchy, Treorki were all anglicised versions I think?

There are other examples e.g. Redlaver Street

[Brian]

Re: Canton conundrum

I actually did try and read it but failed. Looks like the charity was set up then but the building in the 1800s

[RichardM]

Re: Canton conundrum

If you use this one there is a slider that lets you change between the old map and a current one

https://maps.nls.uk/geo/explore/#zoom=14.6&lat=51.48702&lon=-3.19544&layers=257&b=10

[Tuerto]

Re: Canton conundrum

There are other examples e.g. Redlaver Street

Named after the Australian Tennis player?