From the South Wales Echo 130 years ago today….
A Prize-winning Soldier
Tag: South Wales Echo
Death of a Centenarian
From the South Wales Echo 130 years ago today…..
John Lloyd
by Laura Bray
Merthyr has produced many notable people over the years and John Lloyd is one of the more recent ones. Indeed, some of you may remember him. My mother certainly talks fondly about him – her childhood companion.
John was born in Cyfarthfa Row, Georgetown in 1930. He was an only son – and indeed brought up as an only child, as his sister sadly died in childhood.
John had a normal upbringing and after leaving school joined the Merthyr Express, moving from there to the South Wales Echo and Western Mail. He left Merthyr in his late 20s and went up to London to join the Daily Express as a sub-editor on the sports pages, where he remained for 40 years. But John was so much more than that – he had a flair for reporting and for making contacts so much so that he occasionally acted for as PR for the big Welsh names such as Dorothy Squires, who was a life-long friend, Shirley Bassey and Tom Jones. There are reports of his London flat being so packed with visitors during the Rugby Internationals that he slept in the bath or at the office.
By all accounts he was an incredibly generous man, and one who could get tickets for almost event – from theatre tickets to Wimbledon, rugby matches to FA Cup final. There was almost nobody in London John did not know – from sportsmen to show business to mostly anyone who was part of the London Welsh!
But the story that mostly is told about him is how he delayed the departure of the Intercity 125 train from Paddington for 6 minutes, log enough to enable the Cardiff City Players to catch up after a match against Leyton Orient. And did so, just by standing on the platform chatting to the driver! Only he would have had the nerve!
But John was not just a journalist – he was also the Secretary of the Dorothy Squires fan-club and owner of a newsagents in London’s Gray’s Inn Road. It was his local paper shop and he bought it because it was about to close down and it was so handy for colleagues and friends at The Times, and for where he lived in nearby Trinity Court.
John died in April 2016, aged 87, an ambassador for Wales and for Merthyr to the end.
Do you have any memories of John? Please share them in the comments box below.
Who was Lewis Cobden Thomas?
Lewis Cobden Thomas was born on 6 August 1865 in Merthyr Tydfil, the fourth son and fifth of eleven children of Thomas Thomas, an ironmonger, and his wife Gwladys, nee Jones. He was given the name of the radical liberal MP, Richard Cobden, who had fiercely opposed the Corn Laws, campaigned for their abolition and for an improved system of education.
He was educated at Merthyr College, Queen’s College Taunton, University College Aberystwyth and University College Cardiff where he obtained a 1st Division Certificate London Matriculation.
A natural sportsman, he played rugby as a forward for Cardiff in 12 matches and scored 7 tries in the 1883-84 and 1884-85 seasons. He was described in the South Wales Daily News in December 1884 as one of the best forwards in Wales. He won his two international caps against England and Scotland in the two matches played by Wales in the 1885 Championship. In the match against England at St Helen’s Swansea in front of a crowd of 5,000, in which the young Arthur Gould also won his 1st cap playing at full back, the first half was closely contested but the Wales team was well beaten in the second half by a strong English side who scored five tries to the two scored by Wales.
His second and final appearance for Wales was in the scoreless draw against Scotland a week later on 10 January 1885 at Hamilton Crescent, Glasgow in front of 3,000 spectators. The South Wales Echo wrote:
“The Welshmen were lighter than their opponents, but nevertheless held their own well in the scrums. L C Thomas played splendidly and was admirably supported by A F Hill and R Gould”
He played for the University College Cardiff rugby team against Neath on 24 October 1885 during the 1885-86 season, but the profile of the university club was far inferior to that of the Cardiff team he had played for in the previous two seasons so the chance of adding to his tally of Welsh caps was slight. The South Wales Daily News commented on 2 November 1886:
“By the way, what has become of the South Wales College team? They have lately dropped altogether into the background. Surely this is not creditable to a club which has possessed such sterling players as H M Jordan, L C Thomas and A C Davies.”
It is believed that a knee injury later in the 1885-86 season led to his premature retirement from the game as no further mention of him has been found in any of the Welsh papers in connection with his rugby career.
His rugby career was in effect only a distinguished interlude in a very full life. A strong swimmer he saved a man from drowning in the notoriously dangerous Blue Pool at Pontsarn in June 1887. This heroic act led to him being awarded The Royal Humane Society’s Certificate in Vellum for which the citation read:
“Lewis Cobden Thomas is justly entitled to this Honorary Testimonial of this Society inscribed in Vellum which is hereby awarded to him for having on the 19th day of June 1887 gone to the rescue of Cornelius Allen who was in imminent danger of Drowning in Pwll Glas, Pontsarn, and whose life he gallantly saved.”
He was articled as a solicitor to a firm in Merthyr and spent the last year of his articles in London with Schultz & Sons. Having qualified as a solicitor, he came to Neath in 1880 and joined in partnership with Samuel Thomas Evans practising in offices in St Thomas Chambers, Church Place. Evans left the partnership a year later to study for the bar and Lewis Thomas continued to practise on his own. He served on the Neath Borough Council from 1897 to 1903 and was Mayor of Neath in 1900-01, a memorable year in which he led the formal responses of the town to the death of Queen Victoria.
He assisted in the formation of a mining company, The Thomas Merthyr Colliery Co Ltd, in 1906 set up by two of his brothers. He remained a Director of the company until 1911 and the company survived the vicissitudes of the industrial climate between the wars before being nationalised with the Coal Industry in 1946.
Lewis Thomas devoted his main attention to his law firm for many years but his health was not good in the years after the war and he suffered from increasing deafness. He died in Neath on 14 April 1928 aged 63.
Article supplied courtesy of researcher Richard Steele and the World Rugby Museum, Twickenham.
Tom Thomas – the First Welterweight Champion of Wales – part 3
by Roy Smith
The Deri champion featured in 16 contests in 1927. More than once Tom had been booked to feature in three fights within a fortnight. The meeting of Tom Thomas and Billy Noble (Kenfig Hill) on 8 January in a scheduled 15-round contest at Tonypandy resulted in a mild sensation, for Thomas was disqualified after ninety-seconds of boxing in the first-round for a low punch. The Monday following in the chief contest at the Hanbury Assemble Rooms, Bargoed, he won a ten-round contest over Ginger Pullen (Cardiff), while a week later he tackled Roy Martin (Crumlin) at Newport, which ended in a shock defeat for Thomas. As the Echo pointed out in its report of the contest – a surprise verdict left many critics completely dumfounded. One critic, who went by his initials ‘G.J.M.’ said “I am not one to quibble about a decision when there is little to choose between the boxers, but when one carries the fight from start to finish and literally runs away with the contest, and is then adjudged the loser, I am bound to say it leaves me astounded.”
Tom had an even busier time in February with three fights in eight days. On Friday 4th, he boxed a disappointing draw over ten-rounds with Dixie Brown (Bristol) at Weston’s Pier Pavilion. On the Sunday, a contest with Frank Lane (Mexborough, York) at the Leeds National Sporting Club had a curious ending. Lane down for a count of eight in round 14 complained of a low blow; after being examined by a doctor, he was awarded the fight. The following Saturday, a return contest with Billy Noble over 15 rounds at Tonypandy ended in a draw.
On Tuesday 1 March, Thomas boxed a draw over 15-rounds against Moses Davies (Penygraig) at Tonypandy Pavilion. The following week he was in Manchester for a contest with Bill Softley (Poplar) over 15 rounds. Softley had a hard fight the previous night, and punters thought it unlikely that he would withstand the onslaught of a hard-hitter such as Thomas. According to the Western Mail 9 March, the Welshman adopted the wrong tactics. “Softley’s strength lies in his powerful short arm jabs, and it was obviously Thomas’ game to keep him at long range. Instead of this, he went in close at every opportunity, and although he seemed to get the better of a vigorous duel in the earlier rounds, he found the strain too great. Thomas ran into a hard right to the jaw in the fifth round and never recovered. He was hit through the ropes in the next round, was down for a count of seven in the seventh, and down for eight in the eighth. He got up, but then shook his head and retired.”
Next up was former Welsh and British amateur champion Ben Marshall (left) of Newport. In only his fourth professional fight, Marshall faced the Welsh champion at Stow Hill Pavilion on March 21. Marshal decked Thomas in the sixth, the punch also opening a cut beneath his right eye – a wound from his previous encounter with Bill Softley. The injury troubled Tom in a toe-to-toe seventh, when he was floored twice, but survived to the bell only for his corner men to throw in the towel, leaving Marshal collecting the title, £100 side stake and an ornate gold belt put up by Newport promoter Jake Channing.
Tom Thomas of Deri had a boxing career spanning 13 years; his record (from my research) shows he took part in 90 contests. He won 51 of his fights, lost 20, drew 13, three results unknown and he took part in at least three exhibition bouts.
In May 1935, Tom Thomas applied for a manager’s licence under the British Boxing Board of Control, but that is a story for another time.
Tom Thomas – the First Welterweight Champion of Wales – part 2
by Roy Smith
Taking a break from touring, Thomas returned home in July 1924 and under ex-Bombardier Harold Holmes, trainer Bargoed Boxing Club, went into serious training for his next important engagement at Liverpool. On 17 July, the Welshman was up against the European welterweight champion Billy Mack (Liverpool) at the city’s Pudsey Street Stadium. The Echo 18 July 1924 carried the report “The contest proved one of the fiercest short-lived affairs witnessed in Liverpool for some time, and Thomas was defeated in five rounds. It commenced in sensational fashion for in the first minute, the contestants’ heads clashed which resulted in Mack’s cheek bone being badly gashed. Mack tore in and after furious exchanges; Thomas received a cut over the left eye. It was evident in round two that both boxers were out to finish matters. Fierce exchanges ensued and little divided them. They strove for a knock-out in the third, both swinging for the jaw, but missed hearing the gong. The Merseysider caught the Welshman with a vicious upper-cut which put Thomas on the canvas and he stayed down for eight. Thomas was again sent to the canvas on three more occasions in the fourth and appeared beaten but refused to give in. He rallied wonderfully in the fifth and caught Mack to the jaw, but towards the end of the round, a right to the chin dropped him once more. He was groggy when he returned to his corner, when his seconds threw in the towel acknowledging defeat.” Although he lost to such an eminent opponent, numerous admirers felt “he certainly cannot have lost in prestige.”
Under the capable hands of Arthur Evans (Tirphil) the ex-lightweight champion of Wales, Thomas’s training sessions at the Hanbury Hotel, Bargoed, in preparation for his next test, a contest with Tom Whitehouse (Birmingham) the 10st champion of the Midlands, created considerable interest locally. Thomas and Whitehouse were heavy hitters and the full house at the Liverpool Stadium on 18 September 1924, anticipated a fine struggle. The contest proved very dramatic and was quickly over. Birmingham Daily Gazette 19 Sept 1924 gave a vivid account of the action “Almost the first blow in the contest landed on the Welshman’s jaw and he dropped on his knees. On rising, he used the ring judiciously, flashing home a trio of lefts to Whitehouse’s face. The latter, however, got home a right cross and the Celt again visited the boards. Quickly regaining his feet Thomas crashed home a right to Whitehouse’s chin that reeled him across the ring to end the session. Coming up for Round 2 Thomas dealt out a stinging upper-cut and he dashed in to press home his advantage but he was met with a left hook, which put him on the canvas once more. Both boxers scored with several punches to the head in their endeavours to end matters. Nearing the end of the round Whitehouse caught Thomas and sent him to the boards. It was obvious that the blow had finished him, and the referee intervened without counting, awarding the decision to the Midland boxer.”
Tom Thomas travelled with Alf Stewart’s booth in 1925/1926 and he notched up a second run of consecutive wins. At Newport, on 10 January, he defeated Martin Sampson (Caerphilly) on points over 20-rounds. Thomas was billed as the welter-weight champion of Wales; and although there was no “official championship,” the Deri lad certainly had very strong claims to such a title. At the same venue the following Saturday, he knocked out Charlie Berry (Newport) in the 8th of a 15-round contest. The result of a clash in February against Tom Phillips (Neath), holder of the Ring Belt Championship of Great Britain is unknown. Tom Thomas continued his winning account with appearances in the north of England against Jack Gallagher (Newcastle) at Newcastle, Len Oakley (London) at Durham and Napper Richardson (Durham). On his return to Wales he continued the run with victories over Howell Williams (Hirwain), Billy Wagstaff (Abercynon), Com McCarthy (Pontypridd), and Phil Thomas (Abercanaid).
Title Bout at Milford Haven: Tom Thomas won the Welsh welterweight title on 21 August 1926, after a hard battle against Billy Green (Taffs Well), at Stewart’s Empire Boxing Pavilion in Milford Haven. Four days later, the Welsh champion featured in a tournament at the New Hall, Bargoed, held in aid of the local Canteen fund. Although Thomas won a points decision over W. Delahay (Dowlais) he did not reveal his best form, probably because of the hard fight, which he fought and won on the Saturday. The fact he put in an appearance so as not to disappoint the audience speaks highly for the man.
Thomas retained the welterweight championship of Wales when, at Milford Haven on 17 September 1926, he was given a verdict on a foul against Billy Moore, the former light weight champion, who was disqualified in the fourth round. In the course of a vigorous exchange of blows, Thomas fell to his knees, and while in that position, Moore dealt the blow that disqualified him.
Notwithstanding the industrial depression, there was a full house at Cardiff’s Drill Hall, on Monday evening 25 October 1926 to see Tom Thomas the welter-weight champion of Wales, oppose Billy Mattick (Castleford) welter champion of the North, over 15-rounds. Thomas fought a gallant and fiery battle and proved himself a capable two-handed boxer. At the end of a hard battle, Mattick received the verdict.
Tom Thomas and Billy Mattick had a second fight on 7 November 1926 in Leeds National Sporting Club. According to the Leeds Mercury 8 November 1926, despite bleeding from a cut to the left eye in the sixth round, which bothered him a great deal, Thomas was leading the contest at the tenth. Just as the gong went at the end of the eleventh round Thomas was floored with a terrific left to the jaw; and he also took a count of eight in round twelve. Mattick held his advantage in the last two rounds and won on points.
Welsh Successes in Jersey: Eleven days after the contest with Mattick at Leeds, Tom Thomas faced Billy Bird (Chelsea) at St Helier Stadium on 11 November 1926, and came away with a victory. Bird disqualified for hitting Thomas when the Welshman had slipped to the canvas in the tenth round of fifteen.
To be continued…..
Tom Thomas – the First Welterweight Champion of Wales – part 1
by Roy Smith
Thomas James Thomas, known as Tom, was born in 1901 when his parents James Lloyd Thomas and Mabel (née Davies) lived in Dynevor Street, Merthyr Tydfil. They were residing at 7 Park Street, Merthyr by the time of the 1911 census and the family had grown with two additions, namely, son William (known as Billy) age 5 years and 2-year-old daughter Emily. Shortly after the family moved to the village of Deri, in the Darran Valley where James was employed as overman at Groesfaen Colliery.
Tom Thomas first laced on the gloves as a member of the Bargoed Boxing Club and he began building his reputation in that rough but wonderfully efficient school the travelling boxing booth. He toured South Wales and North of England with Bert Hughes’ boxing booth (June 1923-June 1924). “Those were the days. Thirty bob a week and all found, and fighting all day and all night, as long as opponents came forward,” as written by Tom Thomas in a letter to Boxing News.
Rhymney Valley Man In the Limelight – A Clever Deri Lad Making a Name is how the South Wales Echo headlined its report on 8 Sept 1923.“Tom Thomas (Deri) is making a name for himself, notably in England. This is really an extraordinary achievement for a young man of 21 years of age. A feature of his record is the large number of “K.O.’s. Since 1921, his victories include:- won on points over 15 rounds against Pat McAllister (Belfast). Knock-out Dai Morgan (Bargoed) in the fourth round; knock-out Wyndham Whale (Treharris) in the first round; knock-out Con Cushion (Rhymney) in the third round; knock-out Young Keepins, Cardiff, in the first round; knock-out Crad Jones (Treharris) in the first round. Draw with Billy Edmunds (Cardiff) over 10 rounds; knock-out Battling Bartlett (Dowlais) in the fourth round; knock-out Billy Wagstaff (Treharris) in the sixth round; won on points from Harvey Blanch (Hereford) in a 15 rounds contest; won on points from Will Dixon (Porth) in a 15 round contest; knock-out Digger Burns (Burnley) in the second round; knock-out Harry Jones (Hanley) in the third round; knock-out Griff Grifiths (Treharris) in the fifth round; and won on points from Bobby Parker, of Nuneaton, in a ten-round contest. According to South Wales Echo 3 September 1923, by knocking out Harry Jones (Wrexham) in the third round, he had established a record of 23 consecutive victories. On 13 November 1923 at the Free Trade Hall in Manchester he won a 15 round contest over Lawrence Ward (Belfast).
Tom Thomas, booked to face Chris Gorman (Chelsea) on 18 February 1924 at the National Sporting Club (NSC) Covent Garden, went into strict training at Anchorage Farm, Fleet, Hants under instructorship of Bert Hughes. On fight night, Thomas quickly ended his 10 rounds contest with Gorman and won a sensational victory knocking out his opponent in the first round with a right hook. His decisive victory more than pleased his many admirers in the Rhymney Valley. According to the Echo, 5 March in the course of a letter to Mr. Ted E. Lewis (Pontypridd) “Mr. Bettison, manager of the NSC expresses a very high opinion of the fighting qualities of Tom Thomas of Deri. He states that he considers Thomas to be one of the best welter-weights seen at the NSC for many years and that it would take a very good man to beat him.”
Thomas was matched with George Carney the Bermondsey welter-weight over 15 rounds in the chief contest at The Ring, Blackfriars Road, on March 20. The Echo, 21 March 1924 carried the following report “Although extremely plucky and forcing the fighting with great spirit throughout, Tom Thomas (Deri) proved no match for Carney. After being floored on three occasions in the seventh, the Welshman’s seconds did the proper thing in throwing in the towel. Thomas was loudly applauded on leaving the ring.”
Tommy Milligan (left) of Hamilton, Scotland, proved far too good for Tom Thomas in a ten-round contest at NSC Covent Garden on 17 April. This bout was the eliminating contest for the Championship of Great Britain. Tom, from Deri, was K.O.’d in 4½ minutes of actual fighting, but apparently this was a thriller while it lasted and the Boxing News (8 Sept 1967) report read as follows “This was short-lived, though there was more real hard fighting crammed into the two rounds than one will often see in a 20-rounds contest. Right from the gong, they went at it, slamming and pounding away with the utmost vigour. Thomas wanted to score a knock-out and was aiming mainly for the head, but Milligan, forcing his way in close, smashed furiously at the body, and obviously with the greater force. Neither man worried much about defence, all their energies being concentrated on attack, and one felt sure that the affair could not last long at this gait. Milligan appeared to be shaken by a right to the jaw, but came on more furiously than before, and with a succession of body blows, sent Thomas on his back to the boards. It looked all over, but Thomas rose at ‘eight’ and the slamming continued until another drive to the mark sent the Deri man once more to the boards. Up again at ‘eight’ he fought on to the gong, though ‘dropped’ twice more for ‘three’ each time. In the second round Milligan came from his corner with a rush, met Thomas near his own corner, drove a left to the mouth, crossed heavily with his right to the jaw, and driving the Welshman to the ropes simply pelted him with blows until Thomas, overwhelmed, went through the ropes and out of the ring to be counted out.” Milligan went on to become the British and British Empire Welterweight Champion 1924-25; European Middleweight Champion 1925; and British and British Empire Middleweight Champion 1926-28.
According to the South Wales Echo 9 April 1924, “Many boxing critics felt that great indiscretion had been displayed in fixing young Thomas with first-class opponents before giving him sufficient trials with lesser fights. To fix up a young boxer like Thomas at such an early stage of his career against the very best in the country was considered unfair to him, and defeats in such circumstances may tend to discourage him.”
To be continued…..
The Rhyd-y-car Flood
by Clive Thomas
40 years ago today Merthyr was shocked by the news that a culvert had burst in a mountain stream and the deluge had inundated Rhyd-y-car Cottages, killing two people and leaving countless others homeless.
December 1979 had been very wet and in the week after Christmas there was serious flooding in many parts of the Borough of Merthyr Tydfil. By Thursday 27th most of the usual areas had been affected, with some properties suffering severe damage. Initially, it was the southern end of the valley which seemed to bear the brunt of the flooding but to the north and near to the town at Rhyd-y-car however, a story of flooding was unfolding which was not only responsible for irreparable damage to property but would also cause the deaths of two people and bring an end to a small but long established community. Here, a breached culvert caused water to cascade from the hillside into a confined area of land occupied by two rows of cottages. The torrent, loaded with silt, stones and other debris surged into cottages, outhouses and along the gwlis and yards between, devastating the properties in its path. To compound the misfortune suffered here and despite heroic efforts by family and friends, recently widowed Mrs. Gladys Jones and lodger Mr. Danny Jones were to lose their lives in the tragedy. Other inhabitants who had been in imminent danger were fortunate to escape serious injury or worse.
The cottages at Rhyd-y-car had been built on the banks of Nant Cwm Glo in the first years of the nineteenth century to house ironstone miners and their families who were needed to work at one of the newly opened mines belonging to the Cyfarthfa Ironworks. Twenty-nine cottages were built in two rows, with each unit consisting of a living room/kitchen and a single bedroom. At the back, on the ground floor in an outshot covered by a catslide roof was an extra bedroom and larder. Water would have been carried from the stream and there was no sanitation. Despite these obvious limitations and representing what we would view as a very basic form of habitation they would generally have been superior to the living conditions experienced by those arriving in Merthyr Tydfil from the Welsh countryside.
Although we have only scant information on the people who lived in the cottages in the first four decades of their existence, there is some evidence that they came mainly from the counties of Pembrokeshire and Carmarthenshire. The majority would have been Welsh speaking and brought few material possessions to furnish their new homes. By 1841 Rhyd-y-car was already a well established community with 90 per cent of the working population engaged in producing ironstone and coal from the nearby pit. Ten years later the cottages reached their peak in terms of population with a total of 169 inhabitants, averaging almost 6 per cottage. For almost a further one hundred and thirty years of Merthyr Tydfil’s fluctuating industrial fortunes the cottages housed families who formed part of a close knit and caring community.
By the 1970’s, notwithstanding the many changes that had taken place in the immediate locality, most of the inhabitants remained loyal to Rhyd-y-car , treasured and tried to improve their homes and this in itself is a tribute to the strong and steadfast community that existed there. Following the events of December 27th 1979 however, and despite the fact that some residents continued to express the wish to remain, it became inevitable that the cottages would have to be abandoned.
Movements for the preservation of significant aspects of Merthyr’s heritage were very much in their infancy at this time but there had been some notable successes. Dowlais Stables, parts of which had been in a state of collapse, the spectacular engine house at Ynysfach and the birthplace of Joseph Parry at Chapel Row had all been saved. Many people locally however, continued to emphasise lost opportunities and mourn the demolition of significant areas of industrial housing.
The decision to demolish and remove some of the Rhyd-y-car cottages, all be it in a piecemeal fashion,was seen as of little consolation and another loss to Merthyr Tydfil. Their survival at the museum in St. Fagan’s, with the potential for a part of Merthyr’s heritage to be seen by hundreds on a daily basis was hardly recognised and not given proper significance.
Nevertheless, negotiations were undertaken between the National Museum and the Merthyr Tydfil Borough Council and necessary plans laid to undertake the removal of six of the twenty-nine cottages to St. Fagan’s. Before demolition of course, the cottages were measured and recorded in great detail but because of the nature of the cottages’ construction individual stones or timbers were not numbered and repositioned on rebuilding. Within a relatively short period of time, Rhyd-y-car Cottages were erected on a carefully selected site and began their new and very different existence.
On Monday, 27 July 1987 The South Wales Echo announced that on the previous Saturday a special event had been held at the Welsh Folk Museum, St. Fagan’s to celebrate the official opening of Rhyd-y-car Cottages. Curator Dr. Geraint Jenkins who introduced the proceedings said, “Up until this time the museum’s efforts had been aimed at saving buildings from rural Wales but today we have been breaking new ground with the opening of a row of terraced cottages from an industrial town”and added,” the project was unique in Europe, if not the world by reconstructing the interiors and fabric of the buildings in different periods”.
One of Merthyr Tydfil’s famous boxing sons was present at the event and contributed by releasing a number of racing pigeons. Although not born at Rhyd-y-car, Mr. Eddie Thomas’ grandfather had lived at No. 26 with many aunts and cousins living in other cottages. Dr. Jenkins concluded by saying that, “The day belonged to Merthyr in celebration of the town’s contribution to Welsh Heritage”.
Lord Buckland – 17 September 1877–23 May 1928 – part 1
BOWEN, BERRY, and BILBO BAGGINS
By Irene Janes
I love putting together my family tree and one day going through the microfilm of old newspapers in the central library, for something totally unconnected, the name John Moses Bowen jumped out at me – my grandfather, and it was concerning Henry Seymour Berry. I was on the first step to finding out more of the name on the statue near the bottom of the library steps I had just passed.
BOWEN
One Thursday, in June in 1897, at Merthyr Tydfil Police Court, stood an eight year old John Moses Bowen, a pupil at Abermorlais School. He was a witness for the prosecution with regards to an assault on Thomas (Tommy) Alfred Baverstock, also aged eight, which allegedly took place on Monday, 24 May, just a month before. Bowen told the court he saw the Pupil Teacher – one Henry Seymour Berry, hit Baverstock on the head with the frame of a slate. Bowen said on the Wednesday after the incident the teacher told the class to say if anyone was to ask, they were to say he (Berry) did not hit Baverstock.
Wyndham Marshall, aged nine, confirmed he saw Berry break the slate on William Joseph Foy’s head and like Bowen saw him strike Baverstock with its frame. He said a few days later, at school, Berry had asked him where was Baverstock, to which Marshall answered ‘he was home’, as Baverstock’s brother had hit him in the eye. Marshall explained to the hearing he had said this only because Berry had told him to say that the brother had caused the injury.
Elizabeth Baverstock said her son had made a complaint to her and she went to the school to show Berry her son’s eye. Berry had knelt down and asked her son “Did I do it Tommy?” The lad replied “Yes.” Berry then asked the mother to let him know every day how the boy was and once he sent down to ask.
William Joseph Foy, aged eleven, was called for the defence. He said it was not true that Berry had broken a slate on his head, like the one produced in court, or that Berry had struck Baverstock with the remnants of the slate. Alfred W Dean, aged eight, also denied seeing Berry assault Baverstock.
Mr W. N. North presiding said he was bound to state that he did not believe the evidence for the prosecution because they, Bowen and Marshall, had contradicted themselves in a very marked manner. He believed the evidence of the two boys, called by the defence, Foy and Dean, and dismissed the case.
(Information from The South Wales Echo, 18 June 1897)
BERRY
Born at 73, Lower Thomas Street, to John Mathias and Mary Ann Berry. Seymour first went to Abermorlais School as a pupil and was fortunate to befriend John Payne who helped him with his schoolwork. Several years later Berry, became the first Pupil Teacher in Abermorlais School. However, he decided a teaching career was not for him. Therefore, on 1 September 1897, two and half months after the alleged assault, (mentioned above) he left the profession and went to work with his father.
His parents had moved to Merthyr Tydfil from Pembrokeshire. To supplement his wages as a railway clerk John Mathias Berry sold packets of tea and then became a commercial traveller. Henry Seymour and his father must have proved to be a good team as seven years later they opened J.M. Berry and Son, Auctioneers & Estate Agents in Victoria Street.
In 1907 he married Gwladys Mary, Justice of the Peace, Mr Simon Sandbrook. They went on to have five daughters.
Berry’s father was the agent of David Alfred Thomas, Liberal M.P. for Merthyr Tydfil (1888-1910). Henry Seymour’s hard work, ambition, and keenness to seize an opportunity soon saw him become a protégé to this politician and industrialist. This set Berry on his way to becoming a very successful and rich man. Thomas became Viscount Rhondda in 1918.
Seymour Berry was now beginning to be regarded as a social climber.
In 1915 Berry suggested to Thomas, who was no longer an M.P., but a creator and controller of the largest combined collieries in Wales, he should go and work with him. Berry didn’t want a wage but a chance to show his capabilities.
The following year Thomas joined the government’s cabinet. He turned to Berry to look after his numerous industrial companies. When Thomas joined the government’s cabinet Berry took on more responsibly and 1918 was a director of over sixty companies.
To be continued…..
Trial by Landlady!
From the South Wales Echo, 130 years ago today (18 June 1888)…..
