England & Wales Hardwicke Marriage Index
Marriages 1754 - 1837
Cellan All Saints

The Parish

The parish of Cellan lies in the extreme southeast of Cradiganshire forming a stretch of the county's border with neighbouring Carmarthenshire. Cellan is located roughly 3 miles east of the university & market town of Lampeter and stands on the eastern banks of the Afon Teifi on the B4343 road which parallels that river from Lampeter to Tregaron. Cellan is a small crossroads village which is gathered where multiple lanes merge to meet the B4343, the parish church sits 3/4s of a mile northeast along that road from the village. Cellan is and was a simple farming parish in upland countryside, the valley bottom would have been intensively farmed with a mixture of pastures for cattle together with small field of hardy grains, the hills either side were the homes of hardy sheep grazing the poorer upland pastures. Cellan is drained southwestwards by the Afon Teifi which turns more westward after Lampeter eventually reaching the Irish Sea at Cardigan. Cellan village is sited at around 130 metres above the sea but land rises either side of the valley with that to the southeast proving higher and culminating at the top of Carreg Hirfaen at 373 metres. That summit is crowned by an Iron Age standing stone or menhir one of many such signs of early occupation in the parish. Like most upland parishes Cellan required a large acreage to support its population covering just over 3,600 acres it would have supported a population of around 450 parishioners. Like most of Wales Cellan is not mentioned in Domesday Book which did not cover this area.

The Church

As already mentioned All Saints' church sits 3/4s of a mile northeast of the village on the western side of the B4343 and almost on the banks of the Afon Teifi. The basic structure is described simply by Pevsner as "medieval", other sources place the initial construction of nave and chancel under a single roof of slate as probably 13th or 14th century. The large southern porch is a 17th century addition. A typical Victorian restoration was made in 1862 which largely repaired and refreshed the basic structure but the main interest of the church came from work in the early 20th century, The work of 1909 is in the style of the then newly fashionable "Arts & Crafts" movement,  the architect Herbert Luck North redesigned the internal aesthetic, adding a western bellcote, a northern vestry and distinct boarded ceilings painted white with vine and flower motifs, alongside a symbolic lamb on the chancel ceiling, all is described by Pevsner as the only significant work of this style in the county. The road is widened opposite the site and by a prominent footpath sign to allow safe parking for a vehicle or two, the churchyard is open and uncluttered with no obstacles whatsoever for the photographer.