Denmark Farm – History
As far as we know – and unusually for this area – Denmark Farm has never had a Welsh name. The farm was founded sometime between 1799 and 1819 by John Jones, a local Welshman. Mr Jones lived in London at the time, on or near Denmark Hill (which still exists today).
We think that, having made his ‘fortune’ in England, Mr Jones returned to his beloved homeland to start a farm. Locals refer to it simply as ‘Denmark’.
Dai Jones (Cambrian Printers, Aberystwyth) recalled a little stanza about an incident which took place at Denmark Farm around 150 years ago. Here it is as Dai was told many years ago by his father. It was written by a poet from the Jenkins family in Tregaron, believed to be an uncle of the well known Swagman, Joseph Jenkins, Tyndomen, Tregaron.
Yn Denmarc Farm mae Spill yn byw
A’r gwaethaf dyn a greodd Duw,
Aeth un o’r da i gae yr yd
A thyngodd y diawl fod nhw yno i gyd.
It’s from the time before fences when they used to pay children and young people to keep the cattle away from the corn-field. The story goes
that this boy fell asleep and a person called Spill (from Denmark Farm) caught him. He must have had a heck of a row as he wrote this little
stanza saying that Spill was the worst person that God ever created. He continues by saying that one of the cattle went to the cornfield and the
Devil (Spill) swore that all the herd were in the field (they probably were). It’s a nice little verse that has remained for such a long time
in the memory of local people and to our knowledge is not written down anywhere.
We’re starting to piece together more history about Denmark Farm and have recently heard from Elunud Kemp who is the neice of Tom and Hilda Davies who lived and farmed here between 1933 and 1967. Elunud said “I can recall pigs, beef, dairy, and some sheep, a lot of free range hens, large veg patches, cabbage fields, great mushrooms in one field, and hazels on the lane, a pump for the well to get water, and what can best be described as a latrine, no indoor sanitation. Uncle Tom and Aunt Hilda both died childless within rapid succession of each other. I spent all my school holidays at Denmark Farm as a child and it is a huge part of who I am. I have such fond memories of it. I have it preserved in aspic in my mind.”
For a selection of old Photos of Denmark Farm click here
If you have any other information or photographs relating to Denmark Farm, we’d love to hear from you.