Gowers of Briton Ferry

[suzard]

There may be a sister Margaret as well, as there's a report of a servant being accused of steeling items of Alice's jewellery (not guilty)  and a jacket and stays belonging to Margaret Gower, sister of Alice and of the landlord (guilty)

There was servant called margaret (Phillips)  - haven't found a Margaret who would be Alice's sister - wonder if one of the boys married a Margaret and it should have said sister in law - or the newspaper has printed Margaret instead of Mary??

Suz

[suzard]

Two of Thomas' brothers owned or were the tenants of the Dock Hotel in Briton Ferry. I think that they were called James and Silas. I would be interested if anyone has any information about this family.

It looks like it was Silas and John (not James) who were at the Dock Hotel - I have posted Silas and his time there

Here is John

1841/51 with family
1861
Railway terrace Briton Ferry
Thomas Gower head M 32 Bricklayer Trevethin mon
Catherine wife M 23 Llangwrnwd Glam
John Gower Brother S 28 Bricklayer
RG9 4085 13 22

1871 John was at the Dock Hotel (as previously posted)
John was Executor of his brother Silas' will in 1873

1881
2 Villiers St Dock Hotel briton Ferry
John Gower head S 47 Licensed Victualler Abersychan mon
Mary Gower sister S 38 Housekeeper Abersychan mon
RG11 5339 21 1

1891
Regent St Briton Ferry
John Gower Lodger  S 58 Builder Contractor Abersychan Glam
in household of Henry Pearson & family
RG12 4460 54 8

1901
Regent St Briton Ferry
John Gower Lodger S 67 Building Contractor Abersychan
in household of Henry Pearson
RG13 5056 42 17

Probate
John Gower of 31 Regent St west Briton Ferry Glamorganshire died 29 Aug 1903 Probate London 5 Dec to William Saph broker
Effects £1137 3s 11d

I cannot find James after 1861 - there are criminal records for James - but whether it is "your" James I do not know

Suz

[suzard]

so it looks like John and Silas didn't marry
Possibly Mary didn't marry either

Is this her death reg??
FreeBMD
Mary Gower
Jun qtr 1881
age 43
Neath
11a 326

Suz

[Mabel Bagshawe]

Thomas moves on (or back) to Maesteg

1871

Thomas Gower        42 b Monmouthshire, bricklayer
Catherine Gower     32 b Llangynwyd
Catherine Gower      9 b Briton Ferry
Edward R Gower      7 b Briton Ferry
Alice M Gower          2 b Llangynwyd
Joan Jones         70 b Llangynwyd, mother in law
Mary Jenkins    17 - servant

RG10, 5412, 70, 13

1881 he is a mason boarding in Bedwellty, stating married, b Abersychan. Catherine, Alice and a 9 yr old Elizabeth are in Cwmdu with her mother. i lose them after that

[Ricardian]

Thank you both very much for all this information. I have some of the census information. The 1861 census for Thomas and Catherine. They then moved back to Maesteg where my gt grandmother was born and were owners or tenants of several pubs there. Apparently, according to family legend Thomas came to Maesteg to build the iron works so that is probably how he met Catherine. I have also seen a record in the National Archives of Edward Jnr , Silas and James working for the East India Company building iron works in India. It does look as if none of the boys were married or had families. Though I think that Edward Jnr did because years ago I found a family  on Ancestry who were descended from him. I had a friend many years ago who lived in Neath and he had a friend at school whose surname was Gower and he lived in Briton Ferry and we both assumed that he may have been descended from my Gower family but obviously not. I would be interested in the records of a James Gower having a criminal record, though I hope it is not my James. Thank you both again.

Ricardian

[suzard]

Elizabeth Gower'marriage reg FreeBMD
Mar qtr 1849
Pontypool
on same page
Elizabeth Gower
Henry Lewelyn
26 149

1851 as posted they are with Elizabeth's parents and have son Edward age 1
think Edward died young and they had another son named Edward henry (birth reg Dec qtr 1855 Bridgend 11a 331

1861
Villiers St (same st as Royal Dock Hotel - hotel keeper at that time was Cornelius Amesbury)
Briton Ferry
Henry Llewellyn Head M 37 Puddler Haverfordwest Pembrokeshire
Elizabeth wife M 37 Merthyr Glam
Edward H son 5 Aberkenfig
Ann Jane daughter 2 Aberkenfig
Silas James son 5mths Briton Ferry
RG9 4085 8 12

can't find them later

Suz

1861

[suzard]

Edward is on 1871/81/91 census with wife Mary and children - can't find him on 1861 census -wonder if they all went to India around that time -wonder if Henry Llewellyn went too?

This is Edward's probate
Edward Gowerof 8 Windsor Terrace Newport retired Hammerman died 28 Aug 1894 at Rothesay Villa Stanley Rd Newport Probate London 4 Oct to Thomas Silas Gower provisions merchant
Effects £490 3s 1d

Suz

[Ricardian]

Could Thomas Silas Gower have been his son? Interesting that you think that they could have been in India because they are not on the census. My Thomas is not on the 1851 census either and it did strike me that maybe he had gone to India too.

[suzard]

These are the criminal records for James Gower - there is another James Gower of similar age in Merthyr - it could be any James Gower from anywhere!!!

Glamorgan
James Gower
30 Jun 1863 larceny (before convicted of felony) 6mths imprisonment

20 Oct 1868 Maliciusly wounding 6mths

17 Oct 1871 Larceny -not guilty

22 mar 1872 Breconshire
James Gower Robbery with violence after conviction of felony Penal servitude 7 years police supervision 4 years

Suz