According to legend Ffraid was an Irish Princess whose father was determined that she should marry a man of his choice, but Ffraid was equally determined that she would become a nun and devote her life to the service of God. Her father's punishment was that she should look after his cows. The cows gave milk three times a day instead of twice so that people could be fed.
Fraid's father tried to force her to marry the man he had chosen for her but Ffraid fled from Ireland.
She found herself at the edge of the sea about to be caught by her father's men she prayed to God for help. Suddenly the ground she was standing on separated from the land she was carried out to sea. Eventually Ffraid landed on the banks of the Conwy river where the piece of land attached itself to the shore line and formed a large rock to become known as "Y Twyrch Ffraid" (St Ffraid's Turf)
Ffraid discovered the village was in the grips of a great famin and that the people who lived on the shore of the Conwy were starving. Gathering an armful of rushes from the shore she strode out into the river and cast the rushes on hte water where they immediately turned into small silver fish "sparling" which in Welsh are called "brwyniaid" from the Welsh word brwyn maening rush. The people cast out their nets and caught a marvellous catch of sparlings and thus the famin ended.
Sarling are said to enter the river Conwy on February 1st and thus this day is known as Saint Ffraid's day.
Ffraid built a church on the rock and this church was still sranding in the 1700's.
The village became known as Llansanffraid Glan Conwy
Traditionally on St Ffraid's day the people asked for blessings for their cattle with rushes from the river hung around the cattle's stalls.
Ffair Ffraid a traditional village fair was held on February 1st
Sparlings are still found in the river Conwy to-day.

by  Ysgol Glan Conwy Students