Crumlin () is a town, community, and an electoral ward in Caerphilly county borough in South Wales, situated in the Ebbw River valley, five miles west of Pontypool, within the historic boundaries of Monmouthshire. History Kelly's Directory of South Wales (1895), noted that Crumlin "was a secluded village, scarcely known to any beyond the few persons resident there". It was considered to be one of the most picturesque spots in the county, surrounded by natural features of "unsurpassed loveliness". The name is said to be derived from Cromlech (see Dolmen), "a designation given to Druidical monuments". The village sits in the South Wales Coalfield and in the neighbouring quarries are often found fine fossils of calamites and lepidodendron; and, in the shale outcrops, fossil ferns and other cryptogamic plants. Crumlin Viaduct Crumlin is famous for its former railway viaduct. Opened in June 1857 for the Taff Vale Extension to the Newport, Abergavenny and Hereford Railway and closed in 1964 under the Beeching Axe, at 200 feet high and 550 yards in length in two spans (355 yards and 195 yards) it remained the highest railway viaduct in Great Britain throughout its working life. Work by the designer and contractor Thomas W. Kennard commenced in autumn 1853. Nearby were the railway stations, both at high (viaduct) and valley levels. Plans for preservation were discussed, but the poor state of repair made this impossible, and the viaduct was dismantled in 1967. Even while demolition work was in progress, scenes for the film Arabesque which starred Sophia Loren and Gregory Peck were being shot on it. As of 2019 the abutments remain visible on the valley sides. Historic industry Crumlin was the northern terminus of the Crumlin Arm of the Monmouthshire canal. The canal was built from Crumlin southwards towards Newport, opening in 1794, but not completed at Fourteen Locks until 1799. Tramroads from the ironworks at Ebbw Vale and Nantyglo were built to the canal at Crumlin basin, where the iron was transhipped into canal boats. When the viaduct was built, the canal was shortened as one of the pillars needed to be located in its path. The canal is no longer in evidence as it was filled in the late 1960s for the construction of the A467 road. The Crumlin Viaduct Works Company Limited produced the ironwork for the Crumlin Viaduct, they also produced the ironwork for the first Blackfriars Railway