| Talacre | |
|---|---|
 The beach at Talacre | |
  Talacre Location withinFlintshire | |
| Population | 347 |
| OS grid reference | SJ122846 |
| Principal area | |
| Country | Wales |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | HOLYWELL |
| Postcode district | CH8 |
| Dialling code | 01745 |
| Police | North Wales |
| Fire | North Wales |
| Ambulance | Welsh |
| UK Parliament | |
| Senedd Cymru – Welsh Parliament | |
| |
Talacre is a village inFlintshire on the north coast ofWales in thecommunity ofLlanasa and the electoral ward ofFfynnongroyw, and is the northernmost mainland settlement in Wales. The village itself has a population of 347 as of the 2011 census.[1]
It is nearPoint of Ayr on the west side of theRiver Dee estuary and has a sandy beach withdunes and large holiday caravan parks adjacent. The hills of theClwydian Range behind the village form the eastern boundary of theVale of Clwyd. The name Talacre is a combination of the Welsh wordstal[tal] "end" andacrau[ˈakraɨ̯] "acres", which in the dialect of north-east Wales is pronouncedacre[ˈakrɛ]. This has led to the local English pronunciation/təˈlækrə/. Some sources claim the English version is properly pronounced/tæˈlækreɪ,-ri/.[2][3]
The village is probably most popular for thelighthouse on the nearby beach, the Talacre Beach Resort a short walk away from the Presthaven Sands holiday park and its multiple arcades. The lighthouse has been noted for numerousghostly sightings, people claiming to see a figure wearing old fashioned lighthouse keeper clothes and standing in front of the glass dome of the abandoned lighthouse.[4] The lighthouse was featured in popular British television dramaSkins, in the episode "Skins Pure".
Talacre was used by the armed forces during theSecond World War as an aircraft firing range. Fighters flew over the remote village every day, shooting at wooden targets in the dunes and atdrogues towed by aircraft. It was also used for testing new devices such as 'window,' the anti-radar foil that, on occasion, covered the whole village with silver.
The Talacre estate (Talacre Abbey) and Talacre Hall, built in 1829, were the home of theMostyn baronets of Talacre. The CarmeliteMargaret Mostyn grew up on the estate in the early 1600s. In 1919 the Mostyn family sold the estate by auction and in 1921 it was occupied by a community of Benedictine nuns, who moved out in 1988.[6] The main hall, a grade II* listed building, now functions as a private house again, but was renamed Westbury Castle.
The village was served byTalacre railway station on theNorth Wales Coast Line until it was closed in 1966.
A noble castellated stone built mansion, containing 40 rooms, with a handsome private chapel
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