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Discover the history and heritage of the Abertillery area at Abertillery and District Museum - the museum has something for everyone, old and young. See the Bronze Age axe from the settlement at Llanerch Padarn high above Cwmtillery; Visit the authentic miner's kitchen; Find out how Abertillery developed as a coal-mining town. The museum is situated on the ground floor of the Metropole Theatre on Market Street. It is a vital part of any visit to Abertillery, and an invaluable resource for local people wishing to learn more and enjoy and understand the rich cultural and industrial heritage of the area.

The museum houses and holds a superb collection of local archive material including oral history, photographs, written material and objects. This ranges from prehistoric and Roman material to artefacts made and collected during the miners' strike of the 1984/85 and includes objects, geological specimens, photographs, drawings, models, paintings, and items of costume. More recent material covers the impact of the World wars on civilian life and the role of local people in the services and war-time industries, the Six Bells mining disaster of 1960, the miners' strike of 1984 and the final demise of the coal mining industry in the area with banners, photographs and printed ephemera of the trade unionism and radical politics in the area. The friendly, knowledgeable members who run the museum also deal with requests for information from the public.

In Abertillery town centre, an interesting trail will take you round some of the sights that offer an insight into its spectacular growth to become the second biggest town in Monmouthshire after Newport in the early 20th century

A good starting place is the mosaic (left) created by Kenneth Budd which gives an overview of the history of the area from farming through to tin-making, brewing through to the coal mining as well as the religious heritage. From here, a short walk past the last stages of the Afon (River) Tyleri before it meets the Ebbw Fach will take you up to the Victorian Church of St. Michael's, originally established in 1854 and rebuilt in 1890s.

To the western side of the church, a viewing platform (Canon's View), part of the recently established Green Walk, gives vistas over the wooded slopes leading down to the Afon Tyleri and across to the forested heights of Mynydd Arael (mountain).

In July 2008, highly-respected and well-renowned artist, John Selway, who lives and works in the town started a series of permanent works based on the Stations of the Cross at the church.

The second-oldest Victorian shopping Arcade in Wales, which houses the town's oldest established shop, S. M. Ash & Sons formed in 1900.

The town's main shopping streets, Church Street and Somerset Street with some fine imposing Victorian buildings are currently undergoing much-needed regeneration and the Foundry Bridge has recently been replaced with a new bridge.

Kenneth Budd History Mosaic