Cardiff Castle of Crossed Destinies

David Davies, Ocean Davies, Top Sawyer

David Davies was born in 1818, the eldest of nine children. He began work as a sawyer, at a time when a two man saw was used; one man stood in a pit the other at ground level. Davies would never work the saw from the pit hence his nickname 'Top Sawyer'. He also worked with his father on the farm. In 1838 his father died of tubercolosis leaving him in charge of the family. At this time he was illiterate yet he took over Tynymaen Farm, which later became the home farm of the Plasdinam Estate and two years later Gwerneirin Farm. In 1851 he married Margaret Jones of Llanfair and a year later their only child Edward was born.

In 1852, he completed his first engineering project, building a bridge over the Severn at Llandinam. David Davies built most of the railway lines in mid-Wales: building the deepest cutting, at the time, at Talerddig, on the Newtown and Machynlleth Railway and later the impressive feat of crossing Tregarron Bog on the Manchester and Milford Railway (which reached neither destination). He also visited Sardinia with his chief engineer, Benjamin Piercy, to advise the company given the concession to build a railway on the island. The engineer remained behind becoming a friend of Garibaldi and tutoring his son Riccioti.

In the 1860s Davies became a colliery owner founding the Parc and Maendy collieries on land rented from Crawshay. He almost failed when he ran out of money and was unable to pay the workers wages, however they kept working out of loyalty to him and fortunately they made a big breakthrough at Cwmparc mine, Treorchy. His mine holdings grew and in the 1880s his mines were consolidated in the Ocean Coal Company a limited liability company. It was his need to export his coal and bypass the expensive bottleneck at Cardiff Docks that led him into conflict with Bute.

In 1872 Aberystwyth University opened, largely through his support. In 1874 he was elected to Parliament as the M.P. for Cardigan Boroughs. He was able to shepherd the bill to create Barry Docks through Parliament after it had failed at the first attempt in 1873 due to opposition from Bute's supporters. In 1875 he was elected the treasurer for University College Aberystwyth. In 1886 he split with Gladstone over Home Rules for Ireland and split the Liberal party in Cardiganshire standing for the Unionist Liberals. He was defeated by nine votes. He then put his energies into local government; he was elected to Montgomery County Council, he was a member and later chairman of the Llandinam School Board and was a Justice of the Peace for Montgomeryshire. 

In 1889 Barry Docks was opened. At their peak in 1913 the docks were the largest in the world exporting over 11.05 million tons in a year. In 1890 when David Davies died Ocean Coal Company Ltd was the largest and most profitable company in South Wales. When he died his son Edward took over the company, he died within 8 years mentally and physically exhausted.