David Jones, Cwmcynwal, Llywel.

Llewellyn Jones' baptism is recorded at Llywel Parish Church on 30th April 1807 and reads "Lewelin (sic) and illegitimate son of Margaret Thomas at Sychnant by David Jones servant at Cwmcynwal, Trayanglas (sic)."

The first point of interest is that Cwmcynwal and Sychnant farms are adjoining each other just to the South of Trecastle so it doesn't require much imagination to understand how the couple met.

For some time this was the only record of interest until a relevant memorial was found at Llywel Parish Church (acknowledgements and thanks to Gareth Jones of Brewood who has spent many years cataloguing the M.I.' at graveyards in the area). It records the death of "John s/o Llewellyn and Ann Jones Meity Fechan of this parish (Llywel) died 17 Mar 1838 aged 2" on one half side and on the other it records, "Margaret wife of David Jones, Madog Fechan in the hamlet of Cray died 1^st Jan 1823 aged 37 (bca. 1785) and David Jones ? Nov (Aug) 1853 (2) aged 69." (MI 20.5)

The first thing to note is that this stone must have been erected some time after the death of Llewellyn's son John since the family did not live at Meity Fechan until sometime between the 1861 and the 1871 censuses and so some 40 odd years after the death of Margaret and some 25 - 30 years after the death of their son John." This may account for possible inaccuracies concerning the dates on the stone - particularly that of John and also David Jones, Cwmcynwal.

Margaret's burial is recorded in the Llywel PR as "Margaret Jones, Cray, 7^th Jan 1823 aged 37" which is in accordance with the memorial. inscription. Madog Fechan is indeed in the hamlet of Cray.

The date of son John's burial is confirmed by the Parish Records as "John Jones on 20 Mar 1838 aged 2." The baptismal records of Saron, Cwmwysg (Independent) record John's birth on the 1st May 1836 and his baptism on 29th May 1836 and confirm he was born at Blaencrai (in the parish of Crai or Cray). He was buried with his grandparents at Llywel Parish Church. However, the stone at Llywel on close examination actually dates his death as 18th March 1833! This is an enlargement of the date.

A further difficulty comes with David Jones' date. The MI is very difficult to read as can be seen from Gareth Jones' entry quoted above. A site visit proved the point. It appears to read Aug ?? 1853 aged 69. Both the Parish Records and the Bishop's Transcripts record David Jones Cwmcynwal buried 25th June 1852 aged 68.

As stated previously it is possible that the stone was not erected until between 1861 and 1871 when the family moved to Meity Fechan. However it could be that it was first erected as an MI to Margaret and the inscriptions for David and John added later. I think the former to be the more likely.


So is it possible to shed any light on David Jones' birth or baptism. If the data in the PR is correct he was born ca.1784 and a search of the extant Llywel Parish Records found a possible fit -

David Jones s/o Morgan John, Llywel Bishop's Transcripts bp 25 Apr 1784. This confirmed in Llywel Parish Record- David, s/o Morgan John Penyrallt, Trayan Mawr (sic), pauper (crossed out) by Gwenllian his wife bp 25 Apr 1784 (no other suitable candidates found within two years either side 1784). Penyrallt is in the close vicinity of Cwmcynwal and Sychnant.

 

Who was Margaret Thomas? The MI at Llywel is ambiguous but the most likely understanding is that at some point David Jones had married Margaret Thomas and at the time of her death they were living at a smallholding near Horeb Chapel in Cray called Madog Fechan.

 

The following is speculative. Based on her burial record Margaret was born 1785/6. The Llywel PR has a record of "Margaret d/o Thomas Tomas of Tir Ymryson (sic) labourer and pauper by Joan his wife 31 Mar 1785". Searching for a marriage we find "David Jones and Margaret Thomas at Defynock 22 Dec 1822 witnesses Thomas Thomas and David Davies." If this is our David and Margaret then they were married less than a month before Margaret died. Was this a case of David Jones doing "the right thing" by the mother of his child? Highly speculative but possible.

 

It is certain  at any rate that their illegitimate son Llewellyn was responsible for their memorial in later years - even if the dates for his father and son are a bit out? His error or the stone mason's?

 

For completeness, David Jones appears in the 1941 census at Tre Esgob (Bishopstown), Trecastle aged 55 together with John Jones aged 15, a tailor.

In 1851 he is a widower aged 70! working as a farm labourer at Cwmcynwal. It seems that for whatever reason his age is exaggerated. He would have been 66 or 67 in 1851.

 

Beginnings

This is the family history of my maternal grandfather David Jones who was brought up at Tyleglas in the beautiful Senny Valley in Breconshire and farmed there after his marriage to my grandmother Anne Price. My mother and all but one of her siblings were born there and spent their early years there.

I have to acknowledge that I had a good head start on some of the family history as considerable research had already been done by distant Canadian descendants of two of my grandfather's nieces who married two brothers who then emigrated to Canada.  I was grateful to be sent some of this information and was then able to confirm it and in some cases discover more. I also had a copy of my grandfather's obituary which helped to confirm some of the family connections that I was to make as I researched this history.

When I began, the earliest traceable member of the family was generally accepted to be Llewellyn Jones born in 1807 the illegitimate son of David Jones and Margaret Thomas. His baptism was recorded in the Llywel Parish Register. I began with him and worked my way forward in time.

However some time later I visited the Powys Record Office to look at the Llywel PR and to my delight this gave a little more information regarding Llewellyn's parents David Jones and Margaret Thomas. This set me to finding burial records for them and I found a memorial to them at Llywel - almost certainly erected by Llewellyn some years after his father's death - but more of this as I go on.

So I begin with David Jones, a farm labourer who worked much of his life at Cwmcynwal, Traianglas, Llywel, Breconshire.