RootsChat.Com

I was born in Maesteg and went to school there. The Grammar School was known as Llwyni or Yr Llwyni  when I attended it and when they changed from being a Grammar School to a Comprehensive I believe the Comprehensive was known as Llwyni.

The school was on the top a hill overlooking the town and actually halfway up a mountain. There was an estate of houses called the Park Estate nearby. Could that have been called Llwyni before the school was built? It was built in around 1912. I must admit I have never heard of the town being called Llwyni.  It was in the Llynfi Valley and in the Parish of Llangynwyd

Mary

I think the reason that Kidwelly was part of the Duchy of Lancaster was because at one time I believe it was owned by John of Gaunt, son of King Edward III, who was the Duke of Lancaster by right of his wife Blanche.

That is quite a coincidence too Doublecourt because my Hilliers were from Wiltshire too. They were clothiers and dyers.

Mary

Hi Doublecourt

Thank you for replying. Have you seen the reply from Hanes Teulu about my gt gt grandfathers death in 1867. I wonder if Pontnewynydd Forge  and Pontnewynydd Ironworks are the same place?

It is funny that your family went on to inn keeping as that is what my gt grandfather Thomas did after being employed at Pontnewynydd then he went on to build furnaces at ironworks eventually ending up in Maesteg where he met my gt grandmother. Edward was his father. Then in later years they had several public houses in Maesteg. When Edward Gower died in 1867 he was living at the Royal Dock hotel in Briton Ferry with two of his sons Silas and John who owned it. His oldest son Edward, who is mentioned in the newspaper article, went out to India to work in /build ironworks there as did his brother James.

Edward Senior started working in Trevethin as a labourer so must have worked his way up to Forge manager. 

You never know because of the dates that both families were working there they may have known one another.
Mary

Something else to think about. One of my ancestors was named Rees Jones and I also had his parents names in a family Bible but couldn't find anything on them. Then someone suggested that they could have changed their name from John to Jones. This is what had happened and incidentally they lived near Bettws too. I don't think it is the same family.