by ninian » Fri Feb 18, 2011 2:16 pm
Wow - many thanks to everyone who responded. There's lots for me to get my teeth into here. I've decided I must have a trip to Ferndale (my first trip to the Rhondda fach). Although I'm from 'gogland' I now live in the Vale so it's not too far up to Ferndale to take some photos and to try and find the graves and chapels.
Could I ask a few more questions?
Q1. It sounds as if Brown Street is still there. On the map Ferndale doesn't look too big. Should I be able to find the street quite easily?
Q2. Am I right in thinking the Eng Bapt chapel is still there? I have John's photo, so I should be able to find it, if it is. Was Salem Newydd the Welsh Bapt chapel and that used to be in Blaenllechau but has now gone?
Q3. Are there 3 cemeteries I should look at? Is the Ferndale Cemy that has the graves for Oliver Cromwell etc the cemy that is at the top end of Ferndale by Maendy? Then there is a further cemy at Blaenllechau? - that place looks small enough on the map, so I should be able to locate that cemy easily? Then there is Penrhys Cemy - where is that one? Cos of your comments I shall have my wellies, waterproofs and a machete with me.
Q4. At least some of graves Bob listed are definately my family (there couldn't be 2 families with an Oliver Cromwell Roberts). However, the cemy sounds quite large. Can anyone say what my chances would be of finding the graves (if the headstones are still there) in a hours or two of searching? If it would be an impossible task I perhaps ought to try and find out if there is a burial index anywhere which has a plan of where the graves are before I go. I shall try and find that out anyway, I think.
My last question is in the hope that someone might be able to suggest what might be happening with my family. I just can't sort it out.
Here's the problem: Bob's info about the graves is really useful: If I can find the graves of the 2 James Robertses what is written on the headstones should hopefully give me enough info to know if it's the right family; also the headstone of the baby Elizabeth Jane. So that's straightforward enough. It's the graves of the 2 boys that are getting me confused. The graves of John James and Oliver Cromwell must be James and Lizzie's children. HOWEVER, Bob's info from the graves says that John James Roberts died in 1909 aged 11 months and Oliver Cromwell died in 1910 aged 9 months. But on the 1911 census James and Lizzie have 2 children, John J and Oliver C Roberts. John was aged 12 months and Oliver c aged 10 months. Something odd about that, for a start! At first I thought that as they had had 2 further boys they must have named them after the 2 boys that had died. Then I looked at the other info on the 1911 census and it recorded that James and Lizzie had had 3 children born alive; 2 children had died and only 1 child was still living .... but then the census recorded that 2 children were still alive (John J and Oliver C) at the time of the census. All very confusing. I've been looking on the freebmd site and there is a birth in 1908 and a death in 1909 for a John J, which ties in exactly with Bob's info. But there is no birth for a second John J in 1910, which would have tied in with the info from the 1911 census. Also on the freebmd site there is a birth for Oliver C Roberts - in Quarter 2 1910, so that ties in with the census but there is no record of a birth or death of an Oliver C in 1909/10 to tie in with Bob's grave info. What on earth is going on?? I can't figure it out. Could anyone take a guess?