“…This is in contrast to 'open' settlements -like Rhos -where property holding was more dispersed, development less restricted, life less controlled and the social economy more dynamic, more diverse and expansive (Jackson 2012). The open/ closed distinction used by rural historians such as Mills (1973) has a bearing not only on how villages developed, but on the civil relations found therein. For example, it can be used to interpret patterns of religious adherence where in closed settlements, under supervision of the landowner, there would be greater attendance at Anglican places of worship and less dissent in the form of nonconformism.…”