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Dewi Sant Church, Nebo
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A photograph of the dedication service of Dewi Sant Church carried out (appropriately) by the Bishop of St Davids on the 17th September 1913 and a picture taken in 2004.
In 1913 a mission church was opened in Nebo, presumably to cater for the needs of the rural Anglicans who would have been somewhat reluctant to walk the 2 miles each Sunday in order to attend the services at Llansantffraed Church.
The new building was constructed of a wooden frame covered in corrugated zinc sheets and although some of the outer covering has been replaced over the years it is a testimony to the ability of the local craftsmen and to the faithfulness of the congregation that even after nearly a century the present building other than a smaller bell tower is virtually identical to the original structure. The present vestry situated in the northwest corner of the building was apparently originally behind the pulpit in the northeast corner with its own external access.
There used to be a small plaque attached to base of the building facing the entrance gate which recorded that the land was donated as a gift by the Reverend David Rowland Morgan , Rector of Bryngwran ,Anglesey who was the eldest son of David Morgan of Alltwyd Farm, Llanrhystud who played a prominent part in the renovation of Llansantffraed Church in 1840 and reputedly paid to install the unusual gallery there in 1864. As the slate plaque came lose it is now kept in the vestry. The Reverend Morgan who was the incumbent at Bryngwran for 48 years and is buried there was the father of Rowland Morgan who some will remember as the chemist at Penlanfair Shop,Llanon around 1960.
There is a small burial ground attached to Dewi Sant where some 43 people have been interred (up to 2004) in 24 graves and it is interesting to note that the first burial did not take place until 1930 *,which seems to suggest that the ground was not consecrated in 1913. Details of the people buried there are recorded in the Llansantffraed Church burial book and can be identified in the computerized data base by searching the surname column for everyone with a letter Q.
The Cambrian News records on the 11th July 1913 that Nebo Church was opened last Sunday when Mr DJS Richards, Panteg assisted by a contingent from Llanon held service there. Prayer meeting were also held during the day. A further report in the Cambrian News dated 1st August 1913 records that the inaugural service was delivered last Sunday at Dewi Sant new church by the Reverend David Lewis vicar. So many people attended that the Church Sunday School was depleted in the afternoon. The official dedication of Dewi Sant Church was carried out by the Bishop of St Davids on Wednesday 17th September 1913 assisted by some 20 other clergy from the surrounding parishes, although the licence for the performance of Divine service and celebration of the Holy Sacrament signed by Bishop John and the two churchwardens, Daniel Richards and Evan Morgan is dated the 19th day of July 1913. Due to the smallness of the building all the opening meetings were held in the open air as were the catering arrangements which were provided by a company from Lampeter.
*The burial ground was consecrated on the 3rd December 1925
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Extract from the Report of the Centenary
of Dewi Sant (Sunday 15th September 2013)
by Gareth ap-Sion which appeared in the Parish Magazine October 2013
The wind and rain gusted coldly against the small tin church of Dewi Sant but was no match for the warmth and ardour of the 150 or so of the congregation who sang their hearts out in their celebratory Cymanfa. The dinly lit interior with its brightly coloured, beautiful floral arrangements further enhanced the theme of joy and thanks. A congregation made up of descendents of some five generations of the Joneses, Morgans, Evanses, Lloyds and Thomases; some of their great, great, great grandparents, uncles and aunts lie buried in the graveyard just outside their humble church and they would have been proud of the fervour and love demonstrated by their descendents.
Also exactly to this day in September one hundred years ago churchgoers assembled to celebrate the dedication of their second-hand church, Dewi Sant – it has been transported and reassembled from Talybont.
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