Mold

Mold (in Welsh, Yr Wyddgrug), town in Flintshire, north Wales. Mold was until 1974 the county town of Flintshire when, following local government reorganization, it became the headquarters of the new county of Clwyd. In 1996 Clwyd was abolished, and Mold became once again the administrative headquarters of Flintshire—which does not have the same boundaries as the original Flintshire.

Mold lies in the fertile Alyn valley, and is 18 km (11 mi) south-west of Chester, England. It is an ancient market town. The high street is dominated by St Mary's Church, which in turn is dominated by the ruins of a castle originally built in the late 11th century. Castle and town were ravaged by 200 years of warfare. The economy of Mold has changed greatly over recent years. Until the mid-century it was the centre of a coal-mining area, and lead was also mined. Today the main industries include light engineering, quarrying, and mixed agriculture. Population (1991) 9,168.