Iwan Morgan's Family of Old
SOME INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT THE FAMILIES OF CEFN TREFOR FAWR, TALSARNAU (later known as Y TŶ MAWR) AND FUCHES WEN FAWR (during the 18th century)
ROBERT LLOYD (yeoman), Cefn Trefor Fawr died in 1731 leaving a will. The names of MARY LLOYD (his wife) and his children ROBERT, LOWRY, EVAN, GWEN and JANE are mentioned in it. There is one other interesting fact in the will, which indicates that ROBERT left: ‘to my natural daughter, ELLIN LLOYD, a she yearling calf.'
ELLIN was baptized in Llanfihangel in December 1697. Her mother, JANE THOMAS, appears to have been a maid at Cefn Trefor. ELLIN married ABRAHAM EVAN, TALSARNAU (Y TY MAWR as it is known today).
It is noted in the Llanfihangel Register that LOWRY LLOYD - daughter of ROBERT and MARY above - married ROBERT ELLIS (son of ELLIS AP ROBERT JOHN, FUCHES WEN FAWR - (who was a church warden in 1702 and died in April 1729) - on the 4th of November, 1721.
In the Registers, I came across the names of some thirteen children born to ROBERT and LOWRY. Among these is 'CAPTAIN' ELLIS ROBERTS, FUCHES WEN (1732-1819).
It is clear that he and his descendants had something to do with the shipbuilding industry which was detailed in the valuable volumes of the late Dr Lewis Lloyd. A descendant of ELLIS ROBERTS was CAPTAIN DAVID EVANS, BERLIN, WISCONSIN (1817-95) - see the book 'LETTERS FROM AMERICA' (Lewis Lloyd and Bryn Parry) – GWASG GEE 1975.
Another son of ROBERT ELLIS and LOWRY LLOYD was ROBERT ROBERT(S) (1740-1817). This is the man who was responsible for bringing Methodism to the area. The old volumes 'HISTORY OF WESTERN MEIRIONNYDD METHODISM' and 'HISTORY OF WELSH METHODISM' indicate how the circumstances of ROBERT's life changed for the better after he turned to religion.
As a young lad, he was employed as a servant by ABRAHAM EVAN in TALYSARNAU (Y TY MAWR). He developed a relationship with MARY ABRAHAM - the eldest daughter of ABRAHAM EVAN and ELLIN LLOYD - who was approximately 12 years older than ROBERT ROBERT(S). In 1759, MARY was expecting his child and the two were married.
A daughter was born to them - ELEANOR (1759-1848) who married OWEN LLOYD (1748-1837) in due course - a shoemaker by trade and son of RICHARD LLOYD, LLIDIART GARW (a farmer who died in 1802) - and the family here again were associated with the shipbuilding industry on Ynys Gifftan.
There was a blood relationship between ROBERT ROBERT(S) and MARY ABRAHAM, of course, bearing in mind that old ROBERT LLOYD, CEFN TREFOR FAWR was the grandfather of both!
MARY ABRAHAM died aged 34 in January 1763 and her younger sister, LOWRY ABRAHAM a few days after her aged 29. ABRAHAM EVAN was also a widower when he died in 1766. TALYSARNAU was left to ROBERT ROBERT(S). This is possibly what John Hughes and Robert Owen have in their volumes 'HISTORY OF THE METHODISM OF WALES' and 'HISTORY OF THE WESTERN METHODISM OF MEIRIONNYDD' when they refer to the change of circumstances that came to ROBERT's life after he decided to become a devout Methodist.
Another of the sons of ROBERT ELLIS, FUCHES WEN FAWR and his wife LOWRY LLOYD was THOMAS ROBERT (1734-95). He married SARAH PREES (PRYCE) (1736-1818) at Llanenddwyn Church in January 1761. After a period in the vicinity of Dolgellau, they moved to LLWYN DOLITHEL, TALYLLYN around the beginning of the 1770s.
Their eldest daughter, LOWRY THOMAS (1762-1844) married one OWEN DAFYDD (1757-1827) in Talyllyn Church in 1790. They farmed DOLYDD Y CAE, at the southern foothills of Cader Idris. Five sons were born to them, namely THOMAS (1791), WILLIAM (my great, great grandfather in 1792), JOHN (1796), DAVID (1798) and ROBERT, the youngest - in 1806. ROBERT OWEN (who was killed in one of the Corris quarries in 1850) was the grandfather of the poet and hymnist HENRY LLOYD (AP HEFIN), Dolgellau and Aberdare (1870-1946) - author of the famous temperance hymn 'To all those who are faithful, under His banner' - which is heard so often in pubs everywhere!
LOWRY LLOYD appears to have died in July 1756 aged around 54. ROBERT ELLIS, FUCHES WEN FAWR was very old (about 90 years old) when he died in 1786.
Near the door of Llanfihangel Church lies a tombstone, one with several impressions on it. The elements of centuries have by now worn them out. A number of years ago, the late Morris R. Humphreys, Llangennech, Llanelli and I examined a number of the stones in the cemetery. [MRH was a descendant of ABRAHAM EVAN and ELLIN LLOYD].
ELLIS AP ROBERT JOHN, FUCHES WEN FAWR is believed to be the ER 1729. ROBERT ELLIS, FUCHES WEN - Age 90 - 1786 is a little clearer. There is ?E 1706 on it. We are guessing that this is possibly CATHERINE ELLIS - ELLIS AP ROBERT's mother. Then, we guess again that the AJ -1727 is A(G)NNES JONAS (JOHN) - (wife of ELLIS AP ROBERT and mother of ROBERT ELLIS). It is quite likely that the L Ll (1756) is LOWRY LLOYD. It can be assumed that the CE 1779 is CATHERINE ELLIS (the first wife of 'CAPTAIN' ELLIS ROBERTS - married in February 1759).
The grave of ROBERT ROBERTS, TALYSARNAU is closer to the middle window on the south side of the Church. He died on 13th December 1817 aged 77. Certainly, ROBERT LLOYD, CEFN TREFOR FAWR is the R Ll - 1731. Here also lie the remains of the two sisters MARY and LOWRY ABRAHAM (1763).
[There are a number of interesting wills available on the National Library website including some of the above]
If any of the readers know of a connection with these families, or if someone can help me trace the genealogy further, I would love to hear from them:
Iwan Morgan, Ty'n Ffridd, Cwm Cynfal, FFESTINIOG, Gwynedd LL41 4PU
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