The remains of Nant y Bar Farmstead lie in the Afan Argoed Country Park.
Nant-y-Bar Farm was an upland farmstead, built of stone, dating from the early 17th century, which has been excavated and conserved as a ruin. The house was once of long-house type, with existing semi-circular arch voussoir to original entrance, although much altered in the 18th century and ca 1810.
The building has retained evidence of its original hearth-passage entry plan with a cow-house at the south end, a central hall with large fireplace and a narrow parlour to the north. The east front wall of the hall and parlour was rebuilt ca 1810 with a central doorway. A date-stone probably once over the central front doorway is inscribed 1810 with the initials DR below, all within a border line. Similarly the north gable-end was rebuilt with a new stone stair. At this time, a large barn was added in-line, to the lower north gable-end. A wing at right angles was added and access to the hall provided for a kitchen to the west with a further cow-house beyond. In the angle to the north, a dairy was made with access from the kitchen. On the east of the original entrance against the bank, a lean-to bake-house was built, probably also of ca 1810.
The cow-house part of the long-house was partly rebuilt in the 18th century, at the same time a further detached stable with two doorways was built parallel to the west lateral wall . Both have pitched-stone floors with areas of slab-stone to cow-house entrance passages.
A stream flowing from south to north dissects the pitched-stone yard and flushes a ty-bach below to the north-west. The other ca 1810 buildings to the west of the stream include a lean-to pig-sty and yard and two adjoining buildings with single entrances probably for young cattle and calves one with a pitched-stone floor. A square walled structure to the north has no evidence of openings, or usage.
Geoff Ward, 16/10.2008