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Hi Marian, Pauline,

Back at last!   I've recently visited Trefriw and have some interesting finds.
Firstly, I found the MI for Mary in the churchyard. I think someone must have been doing some tidying up recently - it was on top of a collapsed mausoleum-style memorial not far from the path on the lefhand side.  It is next to one of a similar style for William and Catherine Evans, and if my theories are correct, William is a brother of John (more of that later).  The inscription looks as if it was on the end rather than the top.

I've also looked out some family photos and have one of John Williams and Mary Evans which has scanned quite well from a glass plate. By the look of the pose it dates from their marriage (1857 if I remember right).
If you would like to let me know your email addresses at (*), I will send you some photos.

Regards

Martin

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Hi Flower,
I think you probably have a lot of info that would interest me, whereas I have relatively little - I started researching only about 2 months ago and it was only a couple of days ago I found out that Mary was an Evans. I went to visit my parents on Saturday and got Dad to open a case of old family papers - and out popped John and Mary's marriage certificate. The date was April 30th 1857 at St. David's Church, Liverpool. John's address was Darby St. and Mary's was Derby St. Their father's names  were Richard Wlliams, Quarry man and John Evans, Quarry man. John's occupation was miner.  Witnesses were Edward Evans and Margaret Evans. Maybe you can shed light on why they were in Liverpool; it looks to me as if Mary's sister Hannah married John Jones and lived  in Liverpool.

My Dad thinks his parents kept in touch slightly with a Liverpool branch of the family and I'm wondering if this is it.

I'm interested in what you say about Richard the joiner, because I didn't know anything about him, but wonder if he is the Uncle Richard that John Richard stayed with at first when he emigrated to Chicago in 1909. I'm rather lacking other candidates.

To fill you in on the lower level a bit, Mary Ellen married Joseph Loxton from South Wales. He was an electrician. It didn't work out and when he lost his job he disappeared back to South Wales. Mary Ellen continued to live in y Wern until her death somewhere around 1950. No children.
John Richard married Nora Bunce from the Bristol area. He came back to Europe with the U.S. forces in WW1. He worked in accounts for a/the Chicago gas company. He returned to Trefriw at least a couple of times. Dad remembers meeting him there in the '50s. He had a daughter Gwen who married three times but had no children.
Albert left Trefriw to join the army and after the war taught in Fulham. He married Ruby Alice Beard whose father was a grocer in Fulham, but originated from Longhope, Forest of Dean.  My father was an only child. Albert would have loved to have gone back to Trefriw in retirement, but Ruby wouldn't go. Instead he ended up selling the Wern to Ruby's sister Marjerie and husband Frank White. They lived there until about 1980 I guess.  We spent a family holiday with them there in 1965.

Going up to Richard Evans who married Mary Williams: he was the son of Richard Evans of Clawdd Gwyn, Llanrhychwyn, who in turn was the son of Richard Evans of Highgate, Melin y coed, Llanrwst, b1767 but found in the 1841 census.  Richard of Clawdd Gwyn married Ellinor Evans, daughter of (wait for it)  Richard Evans of Tai uchaf, Llanrhychwyn, b1760 but still around in the 1851 census.
Reminds me of the Monty Pyton sketch where everyone is called Bruce.
Also, Ellinor had a number of siblings and of the 4 where I know who they married, 3 married an Ann and 3 married a Jones.
I have found the Wills of Richard of Tai uchaf and his son Evan, but I'm struggling with the Welsh, -rather unfortunate as most of the other wills seem to be in English.
I have the marriage certificate of Richard and Ellinor.
Otherwise I have just been working from the censuses so far.
I have made contact via Ancestry.co.uk with a descendant of Ellinor's brother Pierce.  Pierce had a grandson Pierce Evans (butcher) who my grandfather Albert was good friends with.

My great grandfather Richard Evans ran a building business. He extended the Wern around the turn of the century and also owned the field opposite in the bottom corner of which he built a pair of cotages one of which was for a couple Dad knew as Uncle Edward and Aunt Jennie.  These are unusual names at that time so I think I have identified them as Williams.  Jennie was a Williams before marrying and links back to the Williams clan of Tai isaf, Llanrhychwyn, as John does.

I hope you have found some of this interesting.

Hi Flower

I think that John Evans is my 3x great grandfather too.  Are you able to confirm that his daughter Mary married John Williams?