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The town's centre is built around St. Cybi's church, which is built inside one of Europe's only three-walled Roman forts (the forth wall being the sea, which used to come up to the fort). The Romans also built a lighthouse on the top of Holyhead Mountain inside Mynydd y Twr, a prehistoric fortress. Settlements in the area date from prehistoric times, with circular huts, burial chambers and standing stones featuring in the highest concentration in Britain.
Holyhead is perhaps best known for its busy ferry port and freight harbour. Ferries sail to Dublin and Dún Laoghaire in IrelandThe island of Ireland ire in Irish, Airlann in Ulster Scots) is the third-largest island in Europe. It lies on the west side of the Irish Sea, close to the island of Great Britain. It is composed of the Republic of Ireland in the south and Northern Irelan and this forms the principal link for surface transportFor other article subjects named transport see transport (disambiguation). Transport or transportation in American English, is the movement of people and goods from one place to another. The term is derived from the Latin trans meaning across and portare from central and northern EnglandEngland is the largest, the most populous, and the most densely populated of the four " Home Nations" which make up the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (UK). Occupying the south-eastern portion of the island of Great Britain, England to IrelandThe island of Ireland ire in Irish, Airlann in Ulster Scots) is the third-largest island in Europe. It lies on the west side of the Irish Sea, close to the island of Great Britain. It is composed of the Republic of Ireland in the south and Northern Irelan. The post road built by Thomas Telford from London established Holyhead's port, from where the royal mail was dispatched to and from Dublin.
Holyhead's maritime importance was at its paramount in the nineteenth century when the two and a half-mile breakwater, widely acknowledged to be one of Britain's finest, was built, creating a safe harbour for vessels caught in stromy waters on their way to Liverpool and the industrial ports of Lancashire.
Today, Holyhead's main industry in aluminium-based, with Rio Tinto's Anglesey Aluminium subsidiary operating a massive aluminium smelter on the outskirts of the town. There is also a plant that refines bauxite near the site. A large jetty in the harbour receives ships from Jamaica and Australia, and their cargo of bauxite and aluminium ores are transported on a conveyor belt than runs underneath the town to the plants.