Pembrokeshire – Haverfordwest
Haverfordwest is the county town of Pembrokeshire and is the business, social and retail hub of the county with its thriving town centre, lovely Racecourse recreational area and shops big and small.
The Pembrokeshire County Council administers the county from its head offices in Haverfordwest and the town museum is situated at the castle in what was once the prison governor’s house. The castle, which remained unscathed for centuries after it was built in the early part of the 12th century but is now a ruin, is part of the town’s history, as are the two bridges built over the River Cleddau, which flows through the town centre.
The Old Bridge was a gift from Sir John Philipps, of Picton Castle, in 1726 and an architect named William Owen constructed the New Bridge in 1836. They provide links with the shops on either bank like the traders in the indoor market, Ocky White’s, Boots, The Moon and Sixpence, Wilkinson’s and Burton’s. There are bigger shops like Tesco’s, Argos, Wilkinson’s, Lidl, Woolworth’s and WH Smith alongside a variety of smaller shops, banks, pubs like the Bristol Trader and County Hotel, plus estate agents that include FBM.
Gifts can be bought at a variety of outlets like the Moon and Sixpence, Hole in the Wall, Fabio’s and Ocky White’s, whilst eating-places include Alexander’s, the Castle Hotel, the George’s and the Dragon and Pearl.
There are many churches as a focal point of the community at St Martin’s, the oldest in the town, St Mary’s, the Church of St Thomas a Beckett and St David’s Church, plus chapels like Albany Congregational, Bethesda Baptist and Tabernacle, with lots of social gatherings like the Civic Trust, the Arts Club, Women’s Institute and Male Voice Choir. The Palace Cinema in Upper Market Street provides up to the minute films and the Merlin Theatre is housed in the thriving Pembrokeshire College that is sited in Haverfordwest. The Western Telegraph, which is Wales’s largest-selling weekly newspaper, is also published in the county town.
On the sports front there is an excellent golf club on the outskirts of town, the only Welsh Premier League football club in Haverfordwest County, cricket, rugby, bowls, tennis and a number of other thriving sporting organisations, plus a sports centre in Prendergast.
Haverfordwest has its own aerodrome and really is a thriving town and new businesses are being attracted there because of its situation and vibrant community.
