18th and 19th Century
Step into Carmarthenshire during the 1700s and 1800s, a century of contrast where everyday life for ordinary people continued much as before, while wider changes slowly reshaped society.
This gallery explores a period marked by new ideas in education, religion and politics, alongside developments in travel, agriculture and industry that reached Carmarthenshire later than other parts of Britain.
At its heart is Carmarthen, which by 1700 was the largest town in Wales and a busy centre of trade, administration and law. Its prosperous port supported local workshops producing goods such as hats and furniture, while luxury items including lace, fine wines and spices were imported and sold to a growing wealthy class.
The gallery also reveals how wealth and power shaped life across the county. Expanding estates, often fuelled by the profits of colonialism, allowed aristocratic landowners to travel widely in England and Europe, bringing back new ideas and tastes. Many became absentee landlords, leaving agents to manage their estates and enforce rising rents, a change that was often deeply unpopular in rural communities.
Industry and agriculture remained central to Carmarthenshire’s economy, with woollen cloth, hat‑making, ironworking, coal mining and emerging metal industries laying the foundations for later industrial growth. Through these stories, the 18th Century Gallery offers a rich picture of a county on the cusp of profound social and economic change.