The Kenfig Society

The Kenfig Society was established in the 1989 by a group of local people interested in the history of Kenfig. As part of their work they carried out a number of ‘digs’ in the vicinity of the lost town of Kenfig.

Much of the material came from a ‘midden’, or rubbish tip, dating from around the 13th Century when the town was still active, before it began to be buried by blown sand. They found a large number of animal bones, fragments of pottery, iron items and lumps of furnace slag , indicating that iron smelting was carried out in the town.  Oyster shells, winkles, dog whelks and limpets indicates that these were an important part of the townsfolk’s diet.

The Society is no longer active, but the material from these digs has been stored for the past 20 years in a WW2 building known as the Shelter, in the area known as Fernlea. As the Trust wishes to clear the building to make it available for other uses, the contents have been removed and have been catalogued and surveyed by a team from the National Museum of Wales, with a view to the Museum taking some of the material for their collections. A selection of items has been retained by the Trust and will form part of a display about the ancient borough. Mr Keith Edger has kindly donated £300 towards a Cabinet where the finds will be displayed.