![]() St Luke's church, originally on Gellihaf Road, was the forerunner of the present St David's church. This 'dormitory' village is within easy reach of the new corridor along the motorways and is, therefore, very convenient for work and leisure pursuits. Today, the immigrants still come because of the new roads. The collieries brought immigrants from the English border counties, descendants of whom still live in the village. Most of us survived to a ripe old age anyway! The local doctor who did his rounds on horseback had a runner in the Grand National named Brown Jack. The names of the owners made an interesting sentence - Tapper, Herd, Davies, Crow! The only chemist did not always have the required medication in stock so was known as 'Willie-something-similar'. Later, as more shops were built, there were four butcher's shops. Until 1878 High Street was a tramway with only the Trelyn Hotel (now demolished), a post office, and Salem chapel. Today, however, most people shop in Bargoed or Blackwood - the two nearest small towns - when not using the out-of-town supermarkets now available. This small colliery village, on the east bank of the Rhymney river about 7 miles north of Caerphilly, is bounded by the small hamlet of Gellihaf and also Pengam which were both dependent on Fleur-de-lis for their post office and some small shops. Locals still refer to it as 'The Flower'. They set up a spelter works and a brewery, thus bringing employment. The most popular one seems to be that, because of religious persecution, French Huguenots left their country and settled in this area. Several explanations are given of its origin. Why Fleur-de-lis - a French name - in a Welsh mining valley.
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