The town of Llanelli is the largest town in the county of Carmarthenshire. The town sits on the Loughor estuary on the West Wales coast and is famous for its rugby tradition. Llanelli, formerly an industrial town now focuses on large residential, leisure and retail developments.

Historically a minor town, Llanelli grew significantly in the 18th century and 19th century with the mining of coal and later the tinplate industry and steelworks. Many of these industries were served by the Llanelly and Mynydd Mawr Railway which opened in 1803. Llanelli became such a significant regional producer of tin that it was referred to as "Tinopolis" by the latter half of the 19th century. The closure of coal mines and competition from overseas steel plants meant that Llanelli, like many other towns in southern Wales, saw significant and sustained economic decline from the late 1970s.

M. Lloyd Davies, RCAHMW, 05 January 2009.