Hendy is on the very eastern border of the old county Carmarthenshire, as it is situated on the western bank of the river Loughor. On the other side of the river lies the town of Pontarddulais, in the old county of Glamorganshire. The two settlements are joined by the Loughor bridge (NPRN 43104).
Hendy is named after the farm that used to occupy the area, and the village itself did not emerge until the mid nineteenth century. According to Pontarddulais Town Council, the idyllic surroundings of Hendy farm changed dramatically 'with the arrival of the tinplate works (NPRN 40404). In 1866, Mr. Octavious Williams built the Hendy Iron and Tinplate Works for Messrs. Boughton & Smith of Birmingham, and this caused a massive influx of people from all parts of the country seeking employment in this new industry. Houses were being hurriedly built along the Hendy road to house the workmen and their families.'
The first edition of the 25inch OS maps, published in 1879, shows that Hendy was already a well established village with several amenities. These included Libanus Welsh Calvinistic Methodist chapel (NPRN 12691); St. David's church (NPRN 421344); a hotel; a school; a reading room and a public house called the Red Cow. Two new chapels had been built near Libanus chapel when the second edition of the 25inch OS maps were published in 1898. These were Capel Newydd Welsh Independent Chapel (NPRN 6403) and Calfaria Welsh Baptist chapel (NPRN 12690). Soar Independent Chapel (NPRN 6405), built a little further north up the Hendy Road, is labelled as a Sunday School. St. David's church had been rebuilt (NPRN 12693), and whereas the first edition of the map marked one school, the second edition noted 'schools' in the same location.
Today, the tinplate works have been replaced by an industrial estate. The new St. David's church was destroyed by fire, and so another St. David's (NPRN 12602) was built on the site of the original church. Soar chapel was converted to residential use by 1998, although it appears that the other three chapels remain open. Hendy still has a primary school, educating approximately 160 pupils aged three to eleven. Other amenities in twenty-first century Hendy include a cricket ground; rugby club; two small village shops with one including a post office; a pharmacy and the Black Horse Inn
Sources: modern and historic OS maps; www.pontarddulaistowncouncil.gov.uk; Coflein database and an Estyn report on Ysgol yr Hendy from December 2017.
M. Ryder, RCAHMW, 29th November 2018.