Joe Gregory’s name crops up online from time to time, usually as a mention in the history of “the oldest record shop” Spillers Records in Cardiff. An album launch by big name rock band The Pixies at the shop got it (and Joe) page 3 attention in The Guardian (14th September print edition) {1}.
Continue reading More than a musical footnote Joe Gregory, popular accordionist and band leader
The second world war was a time of upheaval for many, and this was particularly true for Cutlock & Co’s family lines. It became obvious when going through a collection of old postcards and photographs that there was a story to be told visually. Mum and Dad’s notes help to stitch them together.
Continue reading Picturing the moving home front A London to and fro in WW2
A ‘new’ Welsh second cousin getting in touch through this website was a welcome prompt to go back to the pile of photos scanned during last year’s visit to Knighton and cousin Islwyn {1}. Some have got directly attached to individuals on the family tree on Ancestry, via Family Tree Maker. Others continue to need cracking of puzzles such as the date of the picture and the people featured. This piece is a start on a puzzle or two.
Continue reading More of a muddle than a match Holley and Watkins wedding snaps
The National Library of Wales has released the beta (not quite finished) version of its Welsh Newspapers Online resource. It is already a brilliant addition to the bookmarks.
I found that it was ‘live’ last night, and quickly mentioned the site on the Glamorgan FHS Facebook page. I think a few of the others signed up to that have spent quite some time since enjoying both browsing by newspaper/place and searching for their own family names. One quote “It is great just searching for the parish or town where your ancestor lived – lots of interesting articles, adverts etc.”. This can certainly give a sense of what was going on in town when your ancestors were around.
The time has come to add Merthyr Tydfil to the list of significant places in the family’s history. So far I have tended to treat it as a place that great great grandfather Levy Watkins arrived at in the 1850s, married his wife Phoebe Griffiths, worked for a while and then moved on to the Rhondda, where the Welsh side of the family developed.
One of the most interesting photographs in the collection held by cousin Islwyn is this one of the electrical shop in Llanelli. Known to Islwyn as Thomas Brothers, that doesn’t appear to be the business name in 1937 (19th January to be precise). The white-coated person is Bill Walters, husband of great aunt Miriam Watkins.
Continue reading The electrical connection Welsh bright sparks
