
The Well Head
'Holywell' () is the fifth largest
town in
Flintshire,
north Wales, lying to the west of the
estuary of the
River Dee.
The town is known for
St Winefride's Well, a
holy well surrounded by a
chapel. The well has been known since at least the
Roman period, and has been a site of
pilgrimage since about
660 when
Saint Winefride is said to have been beheaded there. The town bills itself as ''The
Lourdes of Wales''.
The well is one of the
Seven Wonders of Wales.
The town is split into four distinct areas - Pen-y-Maes, The Strand, The Holway and the town centre.
Pen-y-Maes is the richer of the areas in Holywell in the north east side of the town (based on land prices) . The old cottage hospital was located here until it closed. A new one will be built near the Football pitch of the
local team.
The Holway, located on the west side of the town, is the largest of the residential areas of Holywell.
The town centre contains a Sports Centre, many small businesses, a
Somerfield and a
Woolworths. A
Lidl has just opened its doors and a
Tesco will soon be built in Holywell, hoping to attract more people to Holywell.
A group of locals are planning to create a circular walk way joining all of the historical and religious locations of the town. It will be known as the "St Beuno's Circular Walk".
More recently, the town grew around the
lead mining and
cotton milling industries.
Holywell hosted an unofficial
National Eisteddfod event in
1869.
Dixie Dean the
Everton football legend once had a near fatal motorbike accident in Holywell in the late 1920s. This almost ended his professional career.
Holywell also has a local
football team,
Holywell Town who play in the
Welsh Alliance League.
Notable people
★ Actor
Jonathan Pryce was born in Holywell in 1947.
★ Former
Southampton and Wales footballer
Ron Davies was born in Holywell in 1942.
External links
★
Holywell webpage
★
Proposed St Bueno's Circular Walk
★
BBC Wales's Holywell website
★