A launch page for projects I am involved with together with a little history.

Herbert Sauro

The above image is an 1889 map of the area where I grew up. The area has largely remained untouched since then.

As you can see it's a rural area, dotted with steep-sided valleys covered in forest, some arable land, and marsh in between. At the top left, you'll see a small village called Maenclochog where I went to elementary school. On the right edge, you'll see an even smaller village called Llangolman, and below that, you'll see a wooded area, also with the name Llangolman. This is the farm I grew up on, called LLangolman Farm.

Near the top of the map, you'll see a road running east-west from Llangolman to Maenclochog. This road is labeled 'Roman Road'. This is the so-called Via Julia that was proposed by a number of 18th- and 19th-century antiquaries and was based on a 1757 forged document by Charles Bertram called The Description of Britain. It turns out I didn't have a Roman road in my backyard, but it struck a chord with me as a boy as I imagined the Roman legions marching just to the north of our farm. I have been interested in history ever since. I might have followed a career as an archaeologist if science hadn't drawn me away.

However, in recent years, a Roman road emerging from Carmarthen and going due west has actually been discovered. Moreover, a number of Roman settlements (villas?) have been confirmed to the west that align with 'Via Julia,' so maybe there might be some truth to the old legend.

Just to the right of Maenclochog, you'll see a railway snaking its way south. This was the North Pembrokeshire Railway that went from Fishguard to a location just west of Clynderwen and then on to the Great Western Railway. It was opened in 1876 but was closed in 1937 and was never really a success. The rail is now disused, but I walked part of it at one time. One claim to fame is that the old railway tunnels near Maenclochog were used to test a land-based version of the famous bouncing bomb from the WWII Dambusters raid.

Sites you can access include (not in any particular order) :