Hightown was the name given to the 19th century development bounded by Rivulet Road in the north, Bryn y Cabanau Road in the west Hightown Barracks in the south and east. A number of streets of terraced houses were built south of King’s Mills Road, alongside Bryn y Cabanau Lane (Road). Most of these houses were demolished in the late 1960s to make way for the blocks of flats at Gatefield and Napier Square. Bury Street, Albert Street, Stanley Street and Derby Road were laid out in the early 1890s. The block of flats have now themselves been demolished and replaced with proper housing.
Hightown Halt was a small railway station on the Wrexham – Ellesmere line opened in 1923, and was accessed by steps leading down from Whitegate Road. alongside Connor Crescent.
Building work on Hightown barracks to serve as the 23rd Brigade Depot was finished in 1877, the whole development having cost £30,000. The first soldiers, members of the 23rd Regiment of Foot (R.W.F.) moved in to the barracks on 17 August 1877. The Barracks were the focus of RWP life until the Headquarters was moved to Caernarfon Barracks in 1968. During both the First and Second World Wars, recruits reported to Hightown Barracks where basic training was carried out. During the Second World War the barracks were also used by a Commando unit. In recent years the barracks had served as the Depot for the RWF Territorials but now, like most such historic establishments, have succumbed to redevelopment for housing.
