page_title: Adamsdown
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Adamsdown / History
caption_attribution_description: English: Church of St German of Auxerre, Adamsdown, Cardiff, designed by architects Bodley &amp; Garner and built 1881-4
context_page_description: Adamsdown is an inner city area and community in the south of Cardiff, the capital city of Wales. Adamsdown is generally located between Newport Road, to the north and the mainline railway to the south. The area includes Cardiff Prison, Cardiff Magistrates' Court, Cardiff Royal Infirmary, a University of South Wales campus, and many streets of residential housing.
context_section_description: In mediaeval times, Adamsdown lay just outside the east walls of Cardiff and was owned by the lords of Glamorgan. The area may be named after an Adam Kygnot, a porter at Cardiff Castle around 1330 AD. The Welsh name Waunadda derives from (g)waun (a heath or down) and the personal name Adda (Adam). This name appears to be a recent creation, and there is no evidence that Adam Kygnot was ever called 'Adda'. Y Sblot Uchaf is the Welsh name of Upper Splott, a farm that stood on the site of the later Great Eastern Hotel (demolished 2009) on the corner of Sun Street and Metal Street.
  According to an 1824 map, Adamsdown was largely a 270-acre (1.1 km²) farm. A replacement for a prison which was located on St Mary Street opened in the area in 1832, and a cemetery in 1848. In the following year, an outbreak of cholera affected the area. As the cemetery became full, it was converted into a park. In 1883 the "South Wales and Mounmouthsire Infirmary" was opened at a cost of £23,000. Many were refused from the hospital, such as those with infectious diseases and women in the advanced stages of pregnancy. In 1923, the hospital became the Cardiff Royal Infirmary.
  The Newtown area of Adamsdown was the first new area to be developed, where many Irish immigrants settled. Streets built in the period had their names drawn from astronomy (such as Star, Constellation, Planet and Eclipse Streets) or precious metals and stones (such as Gold, Copper, Topaz and Diamond Streets).
  The Church of St German of Auxerre, on Star Street, was designed by London architects Bodley & Garner and built 1881–84. It is described as "tall, spacious and elegant", also with a contemporary school house. The church is Grade I listed.
  Cardiff's first municipal secondary school was established at Howard Gardens in 1884, which became a Grammar School in 1941 and was destroyed by bombing in World War II, where a Cardiff Metropolitan University campus now stands.
  Until the 1970s, Roath Cattle Market and Slaughterhouse were located in Adamsdown where one could obtain meats off the ration during World War II. Regeneration of Adamsdown in the 20th century saw Victorian buildings demolished for 1960s and 70s tower blocks, the highest of which is Brunel House, at the eastern gateway to Cardiff city centre.
caption: St German's Church
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