Land Ownership in Merthyr Tydfil – part 2

by Brian Jones

Throughout the Medieval period the number of local farms increased and these Manorial farms improved their productivity whilst the population waxed and waned. The antiquarian, David Merch, studied the 1558 “Morganiae Archaiographia” and identified 14 freehold farms. Manorial Rent Lists became important historical sources and John Griffiths used these records in his detailed work “Historical Farms of Merthyr Tudful” (2012) he identified 120 farms (see map below) twenty five of which were “Charter Land Farms” which were freehold in 1630 suggesting that the aristocracy divested a proportion of their freehold land in order to accrue capital or to curry favour with landed gentry. The freeholders of noble birth had been established for hundreds of year however these were not continuous blood lines. For example, the Earldom of Plymouth title has been established three times, firstly in 1675 by Charles II and by 1765 there had been another different family line as the original title holders did not have children or near relatives required in order to inherit.                                     

Five centuries after Gilbert de Clare claimed freehold ownership of all of the Merthyr land by force, a number of entrepreneurs came into the valley to begin the manufacture of iron. Business people such as Anthony Bacon, William Brownrigg, Isaac Wilkinson, John Guest, Richard Crawshay and the three Homfray brothers jostled to gain leases to build the ironworks: Dowlais (1759), Plymouth (1763), Cyfarthfa (1765) and Penydarren (1784). These works were financed by wealthy individuals and distant investors aware that resources were available to include coal, ironstone, limestone, clay, timber and particularly important, supplies of water.

The rich absentee freeholders owned tracts of local farmland and were anxious to lease their holdings in the knowledge they could increase their income by leasing land for the extraction of minerals to the newcomers rather than from their existing tenant farmer. Two of the largest freeholders were the Earl of Plymouth and Earl Talbot whose forebears had concentrated on rural economies but now they changed their attitude to manufacturing and this opened a new chapter on the ownership of land in their possession. There was a rapid decline in the number of farms and an attendant change from a rural to an urban economy; houses were required for the influx of people to man the ironworks, quarry the limestone and mine the iron ore and coal. People left the land for the minor village which now began to increase in size.

450 years after Gilbert de Clare,7th Earl of Gloucester took possession of the land, later known as Merthyr parish, it is remarkable that three dynasties owned the majority of the freehold of the parish. At the beginning there were no maps to record existing land holdings and therefore landscape features assumed particular importance and the River Taff served as a boundary. Much of the land to the west of the river was owned by Lord Talbot whilst that to the east of the river was owned by the Earl of Plymouth with a portion around the parish church owned by the successors of the Lewis family. The leases for all four ironworks are set out in an authoritative work completed by John Lloyd in his 1906 book “The Early History of the Old South Wales Ironworks 1760 -1840”. This work draws on the extensive collection of leases drawn up by a Brecon firm of solicitors, Messrs Walter and John Powell. The first Cyfarthfa lease of 7th October 1765 with Anthony Bacon and William Brownrigg was for 4000 acres of land below the junction of the Taff Fawr and Taff Fechan, southwards down the valley, to the centre line of Aberdare mountain. The ancestry of William Talbot can be traced back to a Norman family in France, then to Sir Gilbert Talbot (1276-1346) Lord Chamberlain to King Edward III who married into the Welsh line of Prince Rhys Mechyll. William Talbot was created Earl Talbot of Hensol in 1761 and his legacy had spanned centuries intertwining noble ancestry, legal expertise and political service. His estates were extensive and he had links to Llancaiach Fawr in Nelson and Dynevor (Dinefwr) in Carmarthenshire. The family name is still linked to the premier noble seat of the Earl of Shrewsbury where the present Earl is also titled as Baron Talbot of Hensol.

The Cyfarthfa lease of 29 August 1765 with William Talbot was also joined with Michael Richards of Cardiff. There is some uncertainty as to this latter freeholder although there appears to be a connection with the Llancaiach estate and Rhyd-y-Car farm. It is likely that some time between 1685 and 1729, Jane, one of the two daughters of Colonel Edward Pritchard, sold her half share of the Merthyr estate to a Michael Richards who in a later lease is identified as the freeholder of Rhyd-y-Car farm. The other daughter, Mary, married David Jenkins of Hensol and their daughter married Charles Talbot in 1713. It is likely that the Talbots and Richards were closely connected by the date of the Cyfarthfa lease of 1765 and by then Michael Richards was of some social standing and wealth, living in Cardiff.

The lease for the land to the east of the river was held by the other major freehold interest with the 4th Earl of Plymouth of the 2nd Creation, Other Lewis Windsor Hickman, styled as Lord Windsor, made the Lord Lieutenant of Glamorgan in 1754. This family had combined a few years earlier with a wealthy landed Glamorgan family with firm links to the history of Merthyr Tydfil (Tudful). In 1589 the Lewis family had occupied the Courthouse (Cwrt) at the site of the present Labour Club in the centre of the town, then the location of the small parish village with the church of “The Martyr”. “The Cwrt” was possibly the court of the Welsh prince, Ifor Bach and then passed through his descendants to the Lewis family who left Merthyr and moved to Caerphilly at the time of Elizabeth I where they built a manor house with extensive parkland at the Van. Lewis of the Van became the Sheriff of Glamorgan in 1548 and in time the Glamorgan estates were gifted to the last survivor of the family line, Elizabeth, who married into the Earl of Plymouth line with the 3rd Earl of Plymouth in 1730 and hence the combined wealth of both families came into play.

In summary the ownership of land in Merthyr Tydfil (Tudful) changed from a sole landowner in 1267 with a small number of tenanted farms to increase to  about 120 in 1630. Three quarters of the farms were rented and perhaps 14 to 25 freehold. Most of the freeholds were of relatively small acreage with substantial acreages in the hands of the few families who were descended from  Norman lines. The Llancaiach estates and those of the Earles Plymouth and Talbot, and Richards, figure large in the leases for mineral rights agreed with the 4 local ironwork companies. Then the number of farms reduced and 100 years later the coal era building boom ensued to meet the needs of the new colliery villages. By that time the village became the growing town of Merthyr Tydfil, churches and chapels increased in number and the older churches reinforced their medieval rights as Glebe lands. As the 19th turned into the 20th century the vast majority of properties were leasehold however the Leasehold Reform Act of 1967 enabled leaseholders to acquire freehold interests and that ownership is now the norm.

Land Ownership in Merthyr Tydfil – part 1

by Brian Jones

Land, ground or earth is almost entirely covered by a layer of rocks and soil and local limestone, coals and ironstone form the bedrock of the land in the Merthyr Tydfil area. Here thin soils mask the land and support pasture, trees and recreational spaces however the dominant human feature is the urban environment with roads, houses, commercial and agency properties. All buildings stand on land which is either leasehold or freehold whilst the former ownership is of temporary duration, usually for 99 years, whereas the freeholder owns land in perpetuity. Only the freeholder can consent to a lease for which he/she is paid rent.

The population within the Merthyr Tydfil Borough Council area is approximately 59,000 in settlements spread over 43 sq. miles with over 30,000 private, commercial and retail properties. The records of ownership of all of the land and property in England and Wales is maintained by HM Land Registry which was created in 1862.There was no central record keeping prior to that date although legal documents that prove an individual’s ownership of land have been prepared for centuries and documentation can include Wills, Leases, Mortgages, Conveyances and Contracts for sale. It is an immense task to describe the ownership of all of the properties and land and, in any event, ownership is constantly changing as numerous pieces are bought and sold. In order to simplify the description of land ownership it is easier to refer back to a period  when the population was smaller and ownership was concentrated in few hands. This article concentrates on the freehold ownership of land between two local historical events: the construction of Morlais Castle at the end of the 13th century and the building of Cyfarthfa Ironworks 450 years later. The intervening Medieval period was a time of significant changes in farming and towards the end of this interim period land ownership was changed by mining and quarrying. Then came the business men seeking their fortunes in the iron industry.

In the 13th century north of Abercynon, the River Taff with its two headwater tributaries was a wooded area with few people, a small number of farms and a minor village located around a church dedicated to a venerated person named Tudful. “Liber Landavensis” c1130 (National Library of Wales) makes reference to this church. Another ancient ecclesiastical document “The Valuation of Norwich” (1254) includes reference to the church at Merthyr Tudful. That century saw large scale political change and military conflicts throughout Wales. Major changes were taking place in the ownership of land claimed by the Welsh population and challenged by the Anglo-Norman Plantagenet forces of the English King Edward I. The first Plantagenet King, Henry II, and his immediate successors refrained from annexing the land in Wales from the numerous Welsh Princes. Later English monarchs took the least line of military resistance which was in South Wales and in 1267 Richard de Clare, 6th Earl of Gloucester began to wrest control of the ancient Merthyr parish of Uwch-Senghenyyd, from the local Welsh ruler, Gruffydd ap Rhys.

The acquisition of land by way of force was recognised as a lawful means of gaining sovereignty and the rights of freehold over newly annexed land were claimed. The subjugation of Wales was completed by King Edward I in his second foray into Wales in 1282-83 and he continued to support the powerful and wealthy English Lords of Glamorgan, known as Marcher Lordships with a seat at Cardiff Castle. On the death of the 6th Earl, Gilbert de Clare became the 7th Earl in 1262 and he ruled his lands and was able to declare war, raise taxes, establish courts, markets and build castles, without reference to the King. To possess land by force of arms needed to translate into the creation of a border and this brought the Earl into conflict with his neighbour to the north, another Marcher Lord, Humphrey de Bohun, the Earl of Hereford and Lord of Brecon. The 7th Earl, began the construction of Morlais Castle in 1288 on a limestone ridge at 1,250 feet in order to mark the boundary of the land which he now claimed by right of conquest. This was to be the border between Morgannwg and Brecheiniog although it is doubtful that the castle was ever completed.

Plan of Morlais Castle

Humphrey de Bohun protested to the King claiming the castle was built within his border and thus claimed ownership of the land. Edward I forbade the private war between the two Earls however Gilbert ignored this proclamation and conducted a series of raids into the lands of Brecon. The dispute was heard in 1291 and resolved a year later and Gilbert died in 1295. The Merthyr freehold passed to his heirs however the political situation continued to be fraught and there began a period of monarchical turbulence with freehold interest in the land changing. Subsequent monarchs gifted portions of the Merthyr freehold to other favourites and eventually the wealthy Earls of Plymouth and descendents of the Norman Talbot families featured in large part of the story of the leasing of land for the mineral and water rights required for the building of the four Merthyr Ironworks.

To be continued…..

The Dark Side of Convict Life – part 16

by Barrie Jones

Chapter XIV (there is no Chapter XIII). Henry recounts the system “searching” and his skill as a bone faker.

The Dark Side of Convict Life (Being the Account of the Career of Harry Williams, a Merthyr Man). Merthyr Express, 23rd April 1910, page 6.

Chapter XIV

Having been reported so many times, and seeing my remission rapidly decreasing, I thought it was just about time for me to try and “get a bit of my own back,” as the lags call it, so I thought I would try and turn my hand to something which would bring me in a little luxury; and if I happened to be caught, well then I should get punished for something which I did on more than one occasion, as my business was quite a puzzle to them. Nearly every day when I came in from the quarry, I would find my cell in a “topsy-turvy” condition, and every article, from my saltcellar to my shoelaces, turned over. Sometimes my cell was so artfully searched that I could hardly detect it, as all the things were so carefully arranged back into their proper places so as to deceive me and make me think that the searcher had not been there, but I was one too many for the searchers and warder, being equally as clever as they.

Many an old lag, double my experience, was in the habit of coming to me, and asking my advice as to which was the best place to plant this, or conceal that, but I never made it my business to tell them, for, one simple reason, should the searcher happen to draw his needle from a crack in the wall or behind the door with his magnet, then the lag in most cases would accuse me, and tell others that I “shopped” (informed) against him. But thank God, I never was called a “copper” (informer) during all my servitude. I always made it a habit to put a little black spot near the corner of my slate, with the edge just touching the spot, and should the slate be removed a little way or over the spot, then I would know at once that the searcher had been there. Another game the prison detective used to practise, but not a single convict did I ever know to tumble into it, but I found it out. The searchers, after searching the mattress, would sew the sides up with his own private stitching, then if a convict would undo the stitches in order to conceal anything in the mattress, even if he sewed it up again, he would tell the difference between his own stitches, and there would be a capture. I told the searcher this on one occasion, and he said, “Williams, how on earth did you tumble to it? Why, only the other day I captured an old lag in the very same way; but promise me, “he added, “that you won’t give the game away, and I will let you run loose.” I replied, “I shall tell no one.” At the same time, I warned several not to conceal anything in their mattresses.

My readers, no doubt, would like to know what the searcher was looking for every time he turned me and my cell over, and they will be surprised to learn that it was some toothpicks, and the tools I used in the manufacturing of them, that’s what they were after, for I was well known at Portland Prison as the “bone faker.” Instances of such could be seen in the stone quarry daily, when all sorts of conditions of bone would be offered me, even from the old tough chicken bone to the beautiful white mutton bone. The marrow bones I used in the manufacture of signet rings or tie clips, and thick mutton and beef bones for making ladies’ boots, with the imitation of the leg and two blades to be closed like a penknife. I also made the fancy pipe cleaners and scarf pins, the shape of hearts, anchors, Maltese crosses, etc. It was all these articles that the searchers were after, for I was known as the “bone faker” even from the common civil guard to the director. Although they were prohibited articles, they were highly interested in my bone carving, as the governor himself once told me, when reported for having one in my possession. “You are a clever man, Williams,” said he, “but I have told you before, it is against the rules, so therefore I must punish you.” “Alright, sir,” I replied, “it’s a fair cop; so many days No. 1, and so many marks, and I will start again after the punishment.”

My object in making these things was to exchange them for tobacco, which I would share equally with my fellow convicts, who ran the same risks in getting me the bones. How I managed to get the tobacco, of course, I shall not mention here, as it would be unfair to those who treated me with kindness. I will here give my readers one or two instances of how I cheated the searcher under his very eyes.

It was on a Saturday, in 1902, being a pudding day, that I was quite unexpectedly visited by the searcher already mentioned. It was after dinner, and I always made it my habit to save my pudding till suppertime, to eat with my cocoa, for I was particularly fond of “cold duff”; but this was not my sole object in saving it, for it served my purpose also as a toolbox. I know readers will laugh at the idea of a piece of “duff” serving as a toolbox, but my tools were not many, being only three in number, namely; an old piece of steel, a rusty barrow nail, and a piece of copper wire. With those prohibited articles on my table, I was busily at work, manufacturing a female’s boot, when I was suddenly given the tip, which meant the scratching of the iron partition of my next-door neighbour, whom I engaged in the observation line. Scarcely had I received the signal when the cell door was flung open, and in walked the searcher with his searching instruments, but it was too late, for my tools and unfinished article had disappeared as if by magic. I was ordered to strip naked; my clothes were searched; everything in my cell was turned over, but he found nothing, so he locked me up, and then departed. I then took up my “duff”, cut it in half, and out dropped my tools. I then finished my article. I exchanged it on the following Monday for an ounce of twist, and gave my pal his whack, who heartily thanked me with a “God bless you, Williams: I have not smelt a chew for over two years.” I made a friend of that little fellow, who was known as Brunney George Devereux, undergoing a term of six years. I never did regret it, for he was as true as gold, and not like some of them, who are for ever putting their fellow prisoners away, As I have already mentioned, in order to carry favour with an official.

In the next chapter, I will give you an account of how I cheated a screw at the impulse of the moment, and how I was transferred from Portland to Parkhurst Prison, Isle of Wight.

To be continued….

The Passing of Bethel – part 2

A CWMTAF CHAPEL TO DISAPPEAR AT YNYSFELIN

Transcribed from the Merthyr Express 30th May 1914

In 1795, a few members from Zion Baptist Church, Merthyr, went up to hold meetings in a farmhouse, close by the chapel, called Penpont, and these services were continued for some years on Sundays. They were held in the farmhouses. In 1798 twelve members were discharged from Zion in order to form a church at Ynysfelin. On January 25th of that year, Mr David Davies was ordained as the first minister of the church. He was also a farmer. In 1836 he was privileged to have a co-pastor, for in that year his son (also named David Davies) was ordained to the ministry. The roll of members during this time was about 60, but the number has been even more than that. Father and son seem to have been highly respected and their services much appreciated. They were reckoned very good preachers.

Among the ministers who have hailed from this little church was the Rev Jenkin Thomas who became famous as a preacher throughout England. He was one of the foremost preachers of the Baptist denomination in his day. His chief ministry seems to have been done in Cheltenham.

The two Davies’s were the grandfather and father of Mr Herbert Davies, now of the Hendre, Cwmtaf. Both Davies were judged to be of noble Christian character, and endowed with strong preaching powers. They lived, each of them, to be over 80 years of age, and their descendants still remain in the neighbourhood. David Davies junior occupied for many years Abernant Farm.

From the records he has left behind him he was a man of many parts, and was as efficient in sowing the corn in the fields as he was in sowing the word on Sundays from the pulpit. All branches of the farmer’s varied duties were by him thoroughly carried out. He could be at the carpenter’s bench, or at the shoemaker’s last. As butcher he would be called to neighbouring farms to kill and dress a pig, sheep or ox. And if a will was to be proved, David Davies was the counsellor sought to assist in the work. Farmers consulted him about the payment of taxes, rates and rents. His M.S.S. (both his diaries and sermons) show him to be man of keen intellect, and wide knowledge, and a shrews observer of events. The handwriting (in Welsh) indicates great care and attention to details. And he had acquired the art of taking pains, the handwriting being neat, straight and clean, and the language choice and scriptural. His steady hand indicates that he was either a total abstainer from intoxicants or a very temperate man indeed. A striking trait in his character was his gift of keeping records of daily events for the last 36 years of his life. There are four books (his diaries) in Welsh commencing on August 23rd 1834, and reaching to March 18th 1869. Not a single day during that long period seems to have escaped his notice. The entries contain details which are most interesting. Opposite every day he notes the weather, wet, dry etc, his own work or employment, and other interesting events that came within his knowledge or observation. Sunday’s records include texts for sermons he either preached himself or had listened to from others.

The following are a few examples:- 1834, Sunday, August 31, fine: morning Bethel, father preaching I Cor, 15.58; evening, self preaching I Cor, 18. 1837, December 20, rain, threshing corn in Abernant. 1847, June 16, rain, mending the children’s boots. September 9, fine, Brecon Fair; proving will, Watkin Morris. 1869, March 9, cold, Troedyrhiw, funeral of my sister Jane. The reader will have some idea of the interesting work to read over such a daily record for 36 years. He lived a strenuous life, clean and strong. He was a very prosperous farmer and a popular preacher. He travelled much to preach on Sundays, and wherever there was trouble David Davies was sought to comfort and solace.

Other ministers who, after him, have done faithful and most acceptable service to the church are Rev T Salathiel and Rev J D Hughes, Cefn, whose family still live at Cefn, Mr Hughes for many years walked on Sunday to preach to the little flock who were always looking forward with pleasure to his visits. He was beloved by all.

The new chapel erected by the Corporation stands on the side of the road, about two miles from Cefn, and is a modern, pretty and well built structure. The remains will be removed into the burial ground adjoining the new chapel. The families of Penpont, Celleia, Penrheol, Grawen and Danygraig Farms are among the faithful members of the church. Mr and Mrs Herbert Davies, the Hendre are also among the pillars of the cause. Mr Davies seems to have received the mantle of his father, in the sense of his unflagging interest and zeal for the welfare of the little church.

The farewell service was held on May 19th and a good congregation attended. In addition to the local friends, other descendants of the Davieses attended, including Miss Watkins and Mrs Edwards, Garth, Dowlais; Mrs Matthew Owen, Mrs Hughes, widow of the late Rev J D Hughes, and other friends from Cefn were also present. Rev Rowland Jones, B.A., Troedyrhiw, preached an appropriate sermon, and the Rev D L Jones, the present minister of the church, gave an account of the church from its origin. Mr Price, Penderyn, and Mr Matthew Owen also delivered addresses. Rev D L Jones is doing good work here, and we wish him and his flock the rich blessing of God upon their labours.

The new Bethel Chapel

The Passing of Bethel – part 1

A CWMTAF CHAPEL TO DISAPPEAR AT YNYSFELIN

Transcribed from the Merthyr Express 30th May 1914 – 110 years ago today.

Cwmtaf is undergoing a transformation, whereby a large number of the rural population are to be displaced by the assembling of many waters. Homesteads, which for generations have been abodes of farmers, will be lost forever, the fields and cornlands being submerged under the waters of the Cardiff Corporation Reservoir. This third and largest pond in the valley, will cover the low lying parts – the ploughshare and scythe will be used no longer, and the bleating of sheep and the lowing of kine will for ever be silenced. The shepherd’s shrill morning whistle, and the ploughman’s song, and the milkmaid’s merry tattle will be no more. Instead of the humble, yet happy life in and around the whitewashed farmhouses, silence deep and long will reign, broken only by the rippling of the waves on the water, and by the rattle of wheels and the echo of the motor’s horn. Instead of nature’s carpet of greensward, so pleasing to the eye, a sheet of water will appear, stretching far alongside the high road leading to Brecon from Merthyr. A Varied and beautiful landscape is to be changed for the monotonous sight of a tedious surface of water. The loss will be a very real one, not only in the disappearance of rich lands and fertile meadows, but in the vanishing of a panorama of “living pictures” presented annually by nature’s rolling seasons. The old order changeth. Many a dream of the past will disturb the slumbers of the evicted peasants, and many a sigh will rise in the heart of young and old who in their humble way passed through life in play and toil. The passionate heart of the poet and the contented mood of the swain will bewail the loss of their rare inheritance.

Although the lake is beautiful, yet it is not so beautiful as the sea. The two mighty things on earth are the great ocean, restless and mysterious, and nature in her various moods. The colourless, smooth area of a lake in not a worthy substitute for the glories of summer or the tints of autumn. The golden age of this spot is passing. We may aptly apply these words to the glories of the past:-

“How often have I paused on every charm,
The sheltered cot, the cultivated farm,
The never-failing brook, the busy mill,
The decent church that topped the neighbouring hill”

These were thy charms, but also these charms are fled.

Not only must the living depart, but even the shade of the dead must be changed. Their remains are to have a new resting place. Bethel, near Ynysfelin, the little shrine, where for over 125 years generations of worshippers have assembled, is to disappear, and a new Bethel has been erected lower down the valley.

On Tuesday, May 19th, a service was held to bid a last farewell to the place. It was a sad parting to most of the worshippers. The spot and edifice were hallowed to their hearts. Here for many a year their forefathers met to worship and to praise; there also lie the remains of their departed loved ones, in the adjoining graveyard. Sacred associations, too deep and too real to be expressed in words, arise from the past. The struggling pangs of conscious truth, and the experience of the peace and joy of the gospel of Jesus Christ were the portion of the humble folk who assembled within the unadorned walls of this little temple.

The chapel stands on the slopes of the hill overlooking the valley on the right bank of the Taf Fawr, and about three miles from Cefn Coed. In front of the chapel passes the road over the mountain to Penderyn. Near it are the ruins of an old corn mill (afterwards a woollen factory) worked by a huge water wheel. The usual convenient “inn” is also close by. This historic church in one f the oldest in the neighbouring districts: it was founded before any of the Nonconformist churches in Cefn, except the Unitarian Church. The first chapel (Bethel) was built in 1799, and was opened free of debt. This, however, was replaced some years later by the present structure.

Old Bethel Chapel, Cwmtaff

To be continued…..

Memories of Old Merthyr

We continue our serialisation of the memories of Merthyr in the 1830’s by an un-named correspondent to the Merthyr Express, courtesy of Michael Donovan.

That Russian contract was not all the Dowlais Company anticipated, and from a very small cause. The drawing and specification of the rail were precise and minute, but in the drawing of the section and its figured dimensions there was a slight difference (it was really 1-10th of an inch), and this being pointed out to Mr Thomas Evans, he only berated the draughtsman for so doing.

Some thousand or more tons were made and delivered on the banks of the Neva, when lo and behold, the section was found to be incorrect. Workmen were sent from Dowlais to Russia to remedy matters, and Thomas Evans himself had one, if not two, journeys to St Petersburg. It was one of these journeys that that caused his illness and death. He is buried in the Vaynor Churchyard, and at his funeral the tears chased each other down Sir John’s cheek. This is fact, for my own eyes witnessed it.

Such a host of memories crowd on me that I scarce know where to begin. Having mentioned the Evanses, they will be first; yes, dear reader, even before Mr G T Clark, for the influence of the Evans family drove Mr Clark from Dowlais at one time.

John Evans, c 1856, William Jones, Courtesy of Cyfarthfa Castle Museum & Art Gallery

Strange, but true, that the whirligig of time should bring back a nephew of these Evanses, as not only a director, but one of the very influential ones. It is none other than Mr E Windsor Richards. Mr John Evans was, I think, the oldest, and was afflicted with gout, and being at all times hot-tempered, he was not in the best of moods while an attack of gout was on. He was of fine physique, and woe betide anyone who gave him cause for punishment.

It is said, and I believe the truth, that being upset with some intelligence from the works while confined with an attack, that he smashed, yes literally smashed, with his stick a lot of articles on his own sideboard. His position was that of blast-furnace manager. Mrs Evans was, I believe, a Miss Henry. They had two daughters, one became Mrs Simons, the other Mrs Dyke. Leaving Dowlais, Mr John Evans resided near Cardiff and is, I think, buried in Sully Churchyard.

Mr Thomas Evans’ department was, more especially, the forges and mills, but neither brother was exclusively engaged with his own part. Thomas seemed to be the upper of the trio; he was (probably from having been brought into the mingling with others) more suave. John was brusque, but had a good human heart under his ruggedness. There was one other peculiarity that others noticed. If Sir John had Thomas about him in the works, extensions or improvements were expected, but reduction of wages and or other cropping going on if John was the companion.

To be continued at a later date…….