The Griffith family of Ynysllecheiren Bach Llanddeiniolen

I have managed to find the family in most of the census's but the 1861 Census has evaded me, but almost certainly if I was to look again I am sure they would be there somewhere. By 1871 the family are in the house called Ynysllecheiren where William and Hannah were to bring up their 9 children.
The cottage was a small one with one being 25' x 14' with one room on the ground floor and a large shelf covering half of the right side of the cottage where the family would sleep.

The house is still standing and I have visited it several times in recent years, now it is used as a garden shed and it hardly seems possible that it was once used to raise such a large family.

William had 4 sisters and 4 brothers

I have taken all of Williams brothers & sisters and given all the information that I currently have on these, where they lived, how far we have traced them, any relatives living today etc. Of the 9 children born in the Ynys y charien cottage in Llanddieniolen to William and Hannah, most of them were to leave the area to find work in other parts of the Country.

The children were as follows -:

Name / Born

Thomas W, William and Humphrey

Thomas W, William and Humphrey were always thought to have set up business in Liverpool as builders all of them having been trained as Stone Masons in the quarry at Llannberris.

In late1996 the Mormons published the 1881 Census for all of England by county this being the culmination of many years of work by Family History Societies throughout the country. It enables individuals to search for relatives in several different ways by name, county age and all this is cross related to the as Enumerated fiche which shows full family units living together.

Our local library obtained all of these microfiche in December 1996 and using these I have been able to find a number of family members living in Liverpool.

Thomas W, William's older brother (born 1851) I was able to find living in 2 Ludwig Road a suburb of Liverpool in an area called "Walton on the Hill" , he was living with his wife Sarah ( then aged 28 ) who was born in Ormskirk and his two children William & Edith. William was 2 years old and had been born in Birkdale, Edith then 2 months old had been born locally.

Living with them in the house were two other people. The first was Rees Rees described as a border aged 21 and a Joiner from Ormskirk, the second was William Evans described as a lodger, aged 22 and his occupation was given as a Carter from Caernarvon. I carnt help but think that maybe Rees Rees was a relation of Sarah's and that William Evans was also a friend of Williams who had come to help in the family firm.

We also find William and Janet living at 18 Oakfield Road "Walton on the Hill" with their two sons William Lewis and Ernest Benjamin, both of these having been born in Birkdale.

Living with them was William Hughes a loger who's occupation was a bricklayer, again it makes you wonder if he was involved in the family building business. The houses of William and Thomas are situated within a few yard of each other in the district now known as Anfield.

Lewis

Lewis (born 1855) also followed in the footsteps of his father by taking employment as a slate quarryman. He married Jane Jones in 18XX and set up his home at Cefn Gryddr in Sion a small village close to Llanddieniolen. Lewis and Jane had 4 children. Lewis was to die in an accident at the quarry during a snowstorm in 1924 and bearing in mind he was by then 69 you begin to realise just how difficult life was for this generation.

Jane

Jane b 1858 was to move to Birmingham and marry David Cadwalladr. We know that David was living in Birmingham in 1881 as we find him in the census living in Broad Street as a loger, he gave his employment as a stonemason and he was 24. We know that they had married by 1883 as Jane had a Son David on the 10th January 1883. Jane died in Wrexham in 1902 aged 44. We also find Jane in the 1891 census for Llanddieniolen living with her parents in the old family home with her son David.

There is no sign of her husband on this census.

Catherine

Catherine who was born in 1862 according to information passed down died in 1888 in Birkenhead but I do not know any additional information about her.

Humphrey

Humphrey b1863 left Llanddieniolen and is thought to have joined his brothers Thomas and William in Liverpool at their Building business. We find him in the 1881 census living at 16 East Street, Great Crosby as a lodger then aged 17, he gives his employment as a Stone Mason. Great Crosby is quite a distance from Walton On The Hill although there would have been good transport through Liverpool with the various train lines.

Hannah

Hannah born 1865 married Hugh Jones and is thought to have lived locally, they had 4 children many of who's descendants are still living today.

Harriet

Harriet Ann born 1868 is thought to have gone to South Wales and I have as yet been unable to find any trace of her.

Henry

Henry born 1872 married xxxxxxxxx and had two daughters Elizabeth and Ellen, their mother died whilst they were in infancy and they were bought up by Hannah and Hugh Jones.

This is only a thumb nail sketch of the information I know about William's brothers and sisters but there is still more work to do on various family members and maybe more will come to light.




If you have any information on Jenny Jones please e-mail me

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