Adamsdown facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Adamsdown |
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 Admiral House |
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 Adamsdown
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| Population | 10,371 (2011) |
| OS grid reference | ST196769 |
| Community |
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| Principal area | |
| Ceremonial county | |
| Country | Wales |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | CARDIFF |
| Postcode district | CF24 |
| Dialling code | 029 |
| Police | South Wales |
| Fire | South Wales |
| Ambulance | Welsh |
| EU Parliament | Wales |
| UK Parliament |
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| Welsh Assembly |
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Adamsdown is a busy area and community in the south of Cardiff. Cardiff is the capital city of Wales. You can find Adamsdown between Newport Road to the north and the main railway line to the south.
This area is home to important places like Cardiff Prison and Cardiff Magistrates' Court. It also has the Cardiff Royal Infirmary hospital and a University of South Wales campus. Many streets here have homes where people live. Adamsdown also has two primary schools: Adamsdown Primary School and Tredegarville Primary School.
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History of Adamsdown
In the Middle Ages, Adamsdown was just outside the east walls of Cardiff. It was owned by the lords of Glamorgan. The name Adamsdown might come from Adam Kygnot. He was a porter at Cardiff Castle around the year 1330.
The Welsh name Waunadda means "Adam's heath" or "Adam's down." Another Welsh name, Y Sblot Uchaf, means "Upper Splott." This was the name of a farm that used to be where the Great Eastern Hotel stood.
An old map from 1824 shows that Adamsdown was mostly a large farm. A new prison opened in the area in 1832. A cemetery was also opened in 1848. The next year, a sickness called cholera spread in the area. When the cemetery became full, it was turned into a park.
In 1883, a hospital called the "South Wales and Monmouthshire Infirmary" opened. It cost £23,000 to build. In 1923, this hospital became known as the Cardiff Royal Infirmary.
The Newtown part of Adamsdown was one of the first areas to be built up. Many people from Ireland came to live there. The street names in Adamsdown are quite interesting. Some are named after things in space, like Star, Constellation, and Planet. Others are named after metals, such as Gold, Copper, and Tin. You can also find streets named after jewels, like Topaz, Pearl, and Sapphire.
The Church of St German of Auxerre on Star Street was built between 1881 and 1884. It is described as "tall, spacious and elegant." The church is a Grade I listed building, which means it is very important historically.
Cardiff's first public secondary school opened at Howard Gardens in 1884. It became a Grammar School in 1941. This school was destroyed during World War II by bombing. Today, a Cardiff Metropolitan University campus stands on that same spot.
Until the 1970s, there was a cattle market and slaughterhouse in Adamsdown. In the 20th century, Adamsdown saw many changes. Older Victorian buildings were taken down to make way for new tower blocks built in the 1960s and 70s. The tallest of these is Brunel House. It stands at the eastern entrance to Cardiff city centre.
The Vulcan Hotel
The Vulcan Hotel was a hotel and public house (a pub) in Adamsdown. It was built in 1853. The hotel was near Queen Street station, close to Newport Road. Even though other old buildings around it were taken down, the Vulcan Hotel stayed the same for a long time.
In 2012, the brewery that owned it decided to end their agreement. The building was then given to the St Fagans National History Museum. Starting in July 2012, the building was carefully taken apart, brick by brick. It was then moved to St Fagans Museum. There, it was rebuilt to show what a pub looked like between the 1920s and 1930s.
Adamsdown Today
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Today, Adamsdown is home to several important places. These include Cardiff Magistrates' Court and Cardiff Prison. You can also find the Cardiff Royal Infirmary hospital here. The Cardiff School of Creative and Cultural Industries, part of the University of South Wales, is also in Adamsdown.
The area has religious buildings too, such as Cardiff Reform Synagogue and several Sikh temples. A mosque is also being built.
Adamsdown is one of Cardiff's older areas where many working-class families live. It's only about a 10-minute walk from the main shopping area of Cardiff city centre. While it's mostly a place where people live, it also has the Rubicon Dance school.
The shopping area of Clifton Street in Adamsdown has been improved. Old stone buildings, like Roath Police station, have been cleaned and fixed up. Most of the shop fronts are new and modern. The sidewalks are wider, and a new one-way traffic system has been put in place. These changes were made to bring more shops and shoppers to the area.
Adamsdown Electoral Ward
Adamsdown is both an electoral ward and a community within the City of Cardiff. An electoral ward is like a local voting area. Adamsdown does not have its own community council.
The Adamsdown electoral ward is part of the parliamentary constituency called Cardiff Central. This is the area that elects a Member of Parliament to the UK Parliament.
Adamsdown is next to other wards like Penylan to the northeast and Splott to the southeast. To the south is Butetown, to the west is Cathays, and to the north is Plasnewydd. In the local elections held in 2016, Nigel Howells (from the Liberal Democrats) and Owen Llewellyn Jones (from the Labour Party) were elected as Councillors for Adamsdown.
Transport in Adamsdown
Cardiff Queen Street station is on the western edge of Adamsdown. This station is part of the Valley Lines urban rail network, which connects Cardiff to many towns in the valleys of South Wales.
The area also has bus services provided by Cardiff Bus. Buses that stop outside the Cardiff Royal Infirmary and go to the City Centre include:
- 11 (goes to Pengam Green, passing through Splott and Tremorfa)
- 30 (goes to Newport)
- 44/45 (goes to St. Mellons, passing through Rumney)
- 49/50 (goes to Llanrumney)
Bus route 11 goes right through Adamsdown. It connects the area with Tremorfa and Splott to the east and the City Centre to the west. The 1/2 Bay Circle bus route also serves some parts of Adamsdown.
The busy Newport Road runs through the northern part of Adamsdown. This road leads to the M4 motorway in the east and the city centre in the west. City Road also leads to other northern areas of Cardiff.
