Personal Page

My name is Gareth John Rhys Williams and I currently live in the Vale of Glamorgan, Wales.  However, I was born and brought up in the Rhondda Valleys.  As a child I lived in Treherbert, Gelli and Ton Pentre. I later lived above the Police Station in  Tonypandy.

I was educated in Gelli Primary School and Porth County Grammar School for Boys.  Unfortunately I did not cover myself in glory as a schoolboy, though I did manage to  pass the majority of my G.C.E. 'O' level examinations.  However, I did manage to represent the School at Rugby, Cross Country Running, Athletics and Badminton.

On leaving school I survived for a year a very junior Bank Clerk working for Barclays Bank in their Porth, Rhondda branch. I decided that this was not the career for me and so spent the next 2 years idling my time away as a student teacher at St. Paul's College, Cheltenham.

In 1973 I joined the South Wales Constabulary [as it was then] and my first posting was to Ton Pentre Police Station where I spent a number happy years policing the Upper Rhondda Fawr. In later years I was to serve in Tonypandy Police Station, prior to transferring to Cardiff Central Police station in 1983. Since that date I have served in a number of Cardiff Police Stations as well as Bridgend. My last posting was in the Barry Division as the Custody Administration Officer which means I deal with all the logistics of the Custody Unit as well as answering any outside queries in relation to persons who are, or who have been in Custody. I retired from the Force in October 2003. Since then have become self-employed and am mainly employed as a paralegal but I also teach a variety of computer related subjects.  Recently I was working as a contract trainer teaching Metropolitan Police Officers and personnel how to use new communications software.  Currently I am working on a bespoke software package that will be used by the Metropolitan Police and other Forces in their Custody Suite and Case Preperation.

For 8 years I studied with the Open University and in 1998 was extremely proud to be awarded a Bachelor of Science Degree with Honours in Computing and Information Technology. However, I have always had a fascination with all things historical and with the place of my birth in particular. This has become an even stronger feeling the longer I have lived away it.

The basic idea of this Web Site started life in about 1984 whilst I was 'walking the beat' as a uniform policeman in Cardiff City centre and I was approached by an American tourist. He asked me if I knew the location of the Gelli coal mine as his great-grandfather had worked there as he wanted to visit the site. He had approached the tour guide and the Welsh Tourist Board with no success. Luckily for him I knew exactly where this colliery had been and was able to give him and his wife directions. I then decided that this situation needed correcting and started to collect as many facts, figures and images that I could in my spare time. To date I have managed to amass some 2500-odd images of the Rhondda Valleys which were taken prior to 1950.

This Web Site, which is my first attempt at public expression in this medium, is dedicated to my maternal grandfather, Fred Haddrell, who was a collier of the old school and to my son Lee Scott Jenkins who, unfortunately, did not live to see its publication.

Those who have visited before will recognise that the Tribute has changed too many times to count.  It is usually the case after I learn a new technique!