Miss Owen in Beddgelert until at least 1950s

[Keinnaf]

Slightly strange query this one but we are trying to track down some information about a lady who lived in Beddgelert certainly until the mid 1950s.  Her name was Miss Owen.

The background to this is that my Grandfather, who was from just outside Wrexham, ended up doing some training in Beddgelert during the war and he lodged with Miss Owen.  He and my grandmother went to stay with her for a few days for their honeymoon and my mum went there as a child more than once to visit (a long journey as by then they were hundreds of miles away so Miss Owen must have been important to him).  My mother says she had white hair in the 1950s when she remember seeing her which presumably gives an indication of her possible age at that time.  We know very little about her but my mother believes she had nephews and/or nieces in the area. She is currently looking for a photo she is sure she has with her in it.  She has a vague memory that she lived in a house near the bridge.

If anyone does by some chance have some connection to her we would be interested to hear from you.  We know she was obviously a lovely lady from what my grandparents said. We are currently investigating what my grandfather did during the war but his war records are very peculiar and very blank.

[Milliepede]

We are currently investigating what my grandfather did during the war but his war records are very peculiar and very blank.

What are the very peculiar bits?  Maybe he did something classified we aren't supposed to know about 

[mazi]

Part of the disused Welsh highland railway near Beddgelert was used during ww2 for artillery target practice, was he in the Royal artillery.

Mike

[Milliepede]

I'm guessing you don't know her first name but if she could be found in that area in 1939 it would give a date of birth for her and an address to look up 

[Spidermonkey]

I wonder if you could do it by getting a list of all the female Owen in Beddgelert from the 1911 census, and cross referencing them with a search of the 1939 register of single, female Owen from Gwyrfai Rural District (not had much luck with village searches in the 1939, which is why I suggest the rural district search).

A bit long winded, but you never know 

[Keinnaf]

I might have found an address thanks to someone on a Beddgelert facebook page. So I will investigate that with the census as you suggest. thank you.

the peculiar bits are the fact he apparently never did any training of any sort, did absolutely nothing for the vast majority of the war, had random hospital visits to very out of the way hospitals he apparently was nowhere near with no reasons noted on his records and he wasn't where he needed to be to have met my grandmother, didn't go on his own honeymoon according to his records, received random extra payments for who knows what and yet he said he had been in Norway early in the war, did training in Beddgelert and the Hebrides. oh and he never even qualified for the medals that everyone qualified for even if they never left the UK. It doesn't add up at all.

He was in the RWF so yes possibly was there doing target practice I suppose.

thank you

[Spidermonkey]

You might want to consider if someone on the military section of Rootschat can help fill in some of the blanks with your grandfather's war record - they are amazingly knowledgeable!

[Keinnaf]

oh - thank you, hadn't got as far as finding that bit! I have only found this page today. So far my searches for info about his records have been on the RWF or Commando forum websites. Will have a look now.

[EmyrBorth]

Hi
Have contacts in the area who might be able to help. Your information is a bit sparse. It might help if you can supply me with the possible address.
Emyr