news letter for family tree group

8/6/2019 News Letter for Family Tree Group

1/19

1

July News letter

We are nearly into the month of July and this year has just gone by so quick it does notseem to long since we was buying Christmas presents does it I know there have notbeen many newsletters but it does take time to set them all up .This month the news will be mixed I would like if I may try each month to concentrateon just one subject and so on this months newsletter we will do the area ofBirmingham and areasaround.We have had a few new members this week so we welcome them to the group andhope that we have some luck in finding lost ancestors for them sometimes we get luckyand times we get so frustrated when they dont pop up.

Hello everyone and hope you enjoy our latest Newsletter. Firstly, Vera

and I would like to welcome our latest new members:-

13 June Sandy from Sydney, Australia

18 June Gillie

18 June Helen


2/19

2

19 June Maureen in Birmingham

19 June Deborah in Jacksonville, Arkansas, USA

19 June IMcBurnie

21 June Pauline

We are very busy at the moment with helping everyone with their family

trees. The number of messages for June last year was 362 but this year,

the number was 645. We have had lots of success and have broken down

quite a few brick walls.

Thoughts are with Pat Wareing, who has spent quite a lot of time in

hospital - she went in at Easter and has only been home a week or so. So

pleased you are on the mend now Pat! We wish you all the best for a

speedy recovery.

We have a sister site called Lost Ancestors which is mainly used for links

to lots of interesting genealogy websites. Here is the link if you want to

join it: http://uk.groups.yahoo.com/group/LOSTANCESTORS/

Most popular links added recently that you may want to save to your

Favourites:-

Searchable online passenger lists -

www.angelfire.com/ks/windshipgenhelp/shiplist.html

www.deceasedonline.com

www.suffolkfhs.co.uk/links.htm - For Suffolk Research

www.olivetreegenealogy.com/ships/toausp01.shtml Passenger List Ships

http://valmayuk - British India Family History


3/19

3

Anyone doing Irish research go to message no. 13275 11 June 2011

Update on Members

----------------------

Melissa - She has been busy recently with her family but thinks she keeps

up to date with everything that is going on. However, she has recently

discovered a new Beedle family member from her husbands side. She was

due to meet up with some family members to compare notes but

unfortunately this was postponed, so Melissa, keep in touch with any news!

Marcia - Has been trying desperately to identify a possible familymember from an old photo she has, taken somewhere in Edinburgh.

Pat Wareing - Pat has been quite poorly recently with a chest problem and

has been in hospital since May. Good news though, Pat is now home and

recovering slowly.

Pat S. - Still researching her Mormon ancestors and has traced many of

them on their journeys from Gloucestershire/Wiltshire to Utah in the

USA. Pat has recently come across a Birthday Book belonging to her

mother and we have been helping her go through it and identify members

of her family who are listed there. We are still busy doing this.

Frances - Has been researching her family who came from the Gorton

area of Manchester, in the names of Smith and Wilson.

Frank H - A busy man but always makes a point of reading all our

messages with interest and gave us some interesting advice on naming

customs in Wales and Ireland.

Irene - Has been researching her Dawson family in Barrow-in-Furness.

Dianne - Has been busy researching her ancestor Barnabus Redfern and

family.


4/19

4

Grace - We have been helping Grace find a lot of her Abby ancestors

from London and have been able to help her ad d quite a lot of names to

her family tree.

Janice - Janice has recently retired after working many years for theRoyal Society for The Blind in Adelaide, Australia. She is now taking a

well-earned rest and is enjoying putting her family tree on Ancestry.

Janice has caught the genealogy bug and is on her computer most days

researching her English and Australian ancestors. She has recently sent

in some interesting biographies of her mother, grandmother, and great

grandmother etc. - all good reading. Please check them out, there are so

interesting.

Here is the letter she has sent explaining what work she has done fromstarting work .

As some of you may know, I have just retired from work. I have been in theworkforce for 45 years, only taking time off to have my children. When I first left

school at the age of 14, I worked in the city at a wholesale company, and then when Iwas 17 I went to work for my dad in his company. This was a building company and I

worked in the office until I had my daughter. When my son was 2 I went to work for aWholesale Butcher in the office and worked there for 12 years.

Over the last 15 years I have worked for the Royal Society for the Blind in theirfactory.

Now that I am retired I am able to get on with my Family Tree and getting that going,and I am also helping my sister, Joy, get her husbands Family Tree up to date. It is

really interesting and quite addictive as you would all know. I am going to craft every

Thursday which I thoroughly enjoy. There are about 20 ladies that go and we have a

lot of fun and sometimes not much craft gets done due to too much talking. I have

also joined an over 50's group where we have speakers on all different subjects which

is very interesting.

I am really enjoying my retirement and all that goes with it.

Janice.

We All wish you a happy retirement Janice and good luck with the tree I

remember starting your tree with some help from you and your sister

nearly going on 2 years now it was a pleasure to do and I enjoyed doing

for you .

Shirley - Has been researching her hubbys side of the family - James

Beaman/Beamond.


5/19

5

Maureen - Lovely to have you back Maureen! She had a short break from

the group but is back again trying to find out more on her ancestor,

Bridget Rhatigan, whom we think was an Irish convict who was deported

to Tasmania, met her husband there, had a family and moved to Australia.

We have been looking for Bridget for a few years now do you think we will

ever find this lady.

Gillie - Gillie has been busy researching her Woodman family from

Somerset.

Jenny - She has four James Brownes to sort out who is who.

Maureen (BHam) - She has been researching a very interesting branch of

her tree involving her Veale family members. They emigrated from

England to Canada and we have been helping her trying to find them, with

quite a bit of success.

Apologies for those who we have missed out - .

At the beginning of June we had some very interesting discussions about

where our fathers and mothers came from and also why did us start doing

our family tree. We had some very interesting answers.

So, briefly, May and June has been a very busy and interesting month and

it looks like July will be going the same way. Thanks again everyone for

keeping the group so active and sending in your requ ests for help. We

have had some great success and if you are stuck on a branch of your

tree that needs some shaking, just send in what you are stuck on and then

we can watch the new shoots grow.

Vera and Christine


6/19

6

Birmingham and areas

If people were blood and their body was Brum the heart would be the

Bullring the centre of our city and the life that as survived for

hundreds of years. The meeting place of countless thousands of

people who have trod the streets of the Bullring with their hard graf t

and selling prowess.

Stall holders shouting their wares and the hum of the buyers looking

for bargains, the place would be throbbing with excitement,

entertainers with magic and spiel, the evangelists with their gospels

berating from their soap boxes about the evils of society. All this

added to the hustle and bustle of a thriving and proud community.

It's hard to put into word what a visit to our Bullring what it was like.

All the different smells wafting across the market drifting among

congregation of visitors from far and wide not just brummies but from

all corners of this wide world of ours.

The Bullring as passed through many changes in its life time the

upheaval of modern man but it as never changed the spirit of the

coming together of we the Birmingham people, were ever we come

from in this city or other conurbations; the flow is always to the heart

and soul the Bullring.

The flower sellers with lucky lilac sprigs, the old lady selling handy

carriers. Holy Joe the fire-eater and mighty Samson trying to break

free from chains wrapped around his body .The peddlers getting ready

to do a bunk if a copper appeared so many evocative memories

shopping with Nan, Mom or some other relation.

A day with pals mooching and being amazed at some of the goings on

in this magical arena a cacophony of sounds, of mystery and delight

us young kids who scrounged the tram fare or walked just to join in

with the thronging crowds. No one can explain the magnetism and


7/19

7

sheer enjoyment that in our minds will last a life time where ever we

have trod life's path with thoughts always of our meeting place the

Bullring the heart of Brum.

Ansells Brewery

How They Started

It was in 1858 that Joseph Ansell established the malting's at Aston

Cross and when his sons were old enough William joined him in 1867

and Edward in 1876.

It was through Gladstone abolishing the malt tax that they decided that the

brewing industry would be better and in March 1882 Ansells Brewery Ltd atAston Cross was born. It was also an ideal place because of the artesian

wells on the premises, which the City Analyst Dr.Bostock Hill said in a letter

"The artesian wells that I have examined are some of the finest I have ever

seen".

Ansells Bottling Plant c1937

It became a Limited company in 1901 and in 1923 took Rushtons Brewery

over, 1928 they took over Lucas and Co. of Leamington and in 1934 Holt's

Brewery was taken over by them growing even bigger in 1934 when the

bought out Plant and Co.

HP Sauce was another company in that area

A "Bottled" History 1800 to 1924

Edwin Sampson Moore born 1851 Newcastle Staffordshire, wives name

Mary, she was born in Birmingham 1851, and they had seven children all

born in Birmingham. He started the Midland Vinegar Company in Tower

road Aston Manor in 1875 after persuad ing his cousin Edward Eastwood.

(Eastwood was a cousin of Thomas Telford) to invest in the Midland Vinegar

Company, after he asked him to be the godfather of his son Edwin Eastwood

Moore.

They lived at number 234 Tower roads Aston Manor till moving to York

Lodge, Edgbaston, and his wife was relieved to get away from the smell of

vinegar at last. The name HP sauce came about when Edwin Moore and his

son were on a business trip to Nottingham, they decided to call on a Mr F.G.


8/19

8

Garton a grocer who owed the company money, he also made his own

sauces which aroused the keen smell of Mr Moore.

Suddenly he spotted a small basket cart with a board attached saying

Garton's HP Sauce this was what he had been looking for. When asked for

an explanation of the letters HP, Mr Garton replied that he had heard arumour that a bottle of his sauce had been seen in a restaurant at the

Houses of Parliament. And that's how the name was born after he bought

the recipe and settled Mr Garton's arrears, and gave him 150. Sampson

Moore as he was now known as due to his son's name being Edwin Moore,

was delighted and full of excitement, what a name for his sauce.

The Houses of Parliament. Soon to be a worldwide product he sent his sales

men to the far corners of the empire to let the rest of the world taste his new

found HP Sauce. After many prosperous years Mr Edwin Samson Moore

retired in 1921. The business was sold to The British Shareholders Trust in

1924 and he later died in 1928 aged 77.

Manor Vinegar Tower Road

The employees of The Manor Vinegar at Tower Road were greatly saddened

by a tragedy that occurred to two of their fellow workers in 1886. James

Huddle stone and Thomas Wilkins had been lifelong friends and worked side

by side at the brewery. One day an accident occurred in which both men

drowned in a vat of vinegar.

Their joint headstone in a local graveyard (Aston Parish Church) bears thetouching inscription " In their death they were not divided ".

James Huddleston left a widow; Sarah huddle stone aged 42 and four

children. Edith aged 13 Frank aged 10 Arthur aged 8 Henry James aged 2.

Thomas Wilkins left a widow; Selina Wilkins aged 38 and three children,

John aged 19 William aged 16 Henry aged 3.

Jennings Basket Carriage Hire

Mr Jennings 34a Parliament Street Aston, manufacturer of lath carts and

basket carriage for hire to the general public and traders mainly market

traders. Most of the hiring for traders was on long term contracts; thissometimes incurred latepayments that had to be collected by Mr Jennings

himself. A visit to the traders to help them to pay their hire charges. Hire

tariff charges four pence and sixpence depending on which cart or carriage

you hired.


9/19

9

The yard in Parliament Street had been used in the past for selling coal and

the making and repair of lath carts and basket carriages. At the top of the

yard there was a building which housed a forge for the ironwork with very

large leather bellows. All along the back wall where benches for the

wheelwrights to carry out their work, huge vices to hold their work, this

building itself wise the full width of the yard. All the tools for their trade were

still there when as young lads we played in the building which had become

obsolete due to the advent of the motor vehicle.

Mr Jennings had amended his business to incorporate the new age of

wireless by carrying out the charging of the accumulators to power the new

invention of the wireless radio receiver's. This he did in a shed next door to

the house which to us at that time was mind boggling to see all those dials

and wiring the spitting and popping of the acrid smell of acid as the

accumulators where charged.

Many a moon light flit had been done using the lath cart to transport your

few chattels to another abode in the neighbourhood to escape the landlord

for non-payment of rent. We once hired a lath cart to fetch furniture from a

house in Witten to our house in Parliament Street, a distance of about five

miles. The furniture was very old my mom had bought or scrounged it fromsome friends whose relative had died.

When Mr Jennings died the business was taken over by relative Mr and Mrs

Cox the grand parents of my friend Kenny Cox, we went through school

together, and became friends and still are friends fifty five on. We both now

live in Aldridge.

Mr Jennings had a brother in Lower Tower Street who carried out the same

trade later to move over to the motor trade and turned his Carter's business

into a garage for the repair and servicing of the motor vehicle. From hiring of

his lath carts and basket carriages, to the new mechanical mode of

transport. The Jennings had a hucksters shop next door to their shop was a

woodyard which cut logs down to boards for their furniture businesses Mr

Jennings later bought the yard which he operated his hire trade from he also

bought another shop opposite and sold dairy products fresh milk and cream

from churns.


10/19

10

Birmingham and the button trade

Birmingham was long known as 'Toymaker of the World', 'toys' being things

of fashion such as buckles, buttons, snuff boxes, etc., and by 1759 about20,000 people were involved in the manufacture of 'toys', with 8,000 of them

working in the buckle trade. Then in the 1700's buckles began to go out of

fashion to be replaced by metal-buttons. For many years a man named John

Taylor made a fortune from gilding metal buttons at his factory, first in

Crooked Lane off Dale End, and then in Union Street, leaving a private

residence in Bordsely, extensive landed estates in Yardley, Sheldon and

Coleshill, and a fortune of about 200,000 in his Will when he died in 1775.

It is interesting to note that this same John Taylor teamed up with a

Sampson Lloyd II to form Birmingham's first Bank, Taylor's & Lloyds, now

trading as Lloyds T.S.B.

In 1749 another well-known man was taken into partnership in a flourish ing

Birmingham button making business. This man expanded the business to

include all sorts of plated goods, silver, and jewellery, and eventually set-up

the Soho Manufactory on Hockley Brook in Handsworth. When he died in

1809 he left 150,000 in his Will. His name was Matthew Boulton

Between 1770 and 1800, twenty-one patents were granted for improvements

in the fastening of clothes, nineteen of them originating in Birmingham.

During this time it was calculated that each operation was so simple that

one button would pass through fifty pairs of hands, and each pair of hands

would shift up to 1,000 buttons a day. Even children of 6 or 8 could do

many of the jobs and could earn from 10d. To 8/- a week.

Initially buttons were covered with a thin layer of gold leaf, or were plated in

a similar way with silver but towards the end of the century a method had

been found to dip the buttons which covered the buttons with a minimum

layer of precious metal and so was cheaper. However gilt metal buttons were

dependant on whims of fashion just as buckles had been before them, and

the fashions changed again at the beginning of the Victorian period. Some

metal button producers continued to manufacture their products for

uniforms and fancy wear, but others changed to the production of brass, jet,

ivory, tortoiseshell, pearl, bone, horn, and glass buttons, many of which

were then covered with cloth, silk, linen, and also buttons made from 'CorezoNuts' from Central America. These 'Nuts' were a beautiful white colour,

rather like ivory, and they could be easily turned on a lathe and then be

dyed in numerous shades.

The button trade Parliament had banned the import of pearl buttons at

around the end of the 18th century and Birmingham had become an ideal

place for pearl button manufacture. The material, which was generally

obtained from mother-of-pearl, Abalone, and good Mollusc shells, was very


11/19

11

fragile and so it had to be carefully worked by hand. For this reason the

more robust 'Yellow-lip' Oyster shell from the west coast of Australia was

greatly preferred whenever it was available. Because of the fragile disposition

of the material the pearl button industry was only to be found in small

workshops and these were manned by highly skilled workshop craftsmen

and were run by small masters.

Yet other materials started to be used for buttons. It was not unusual to find

yards at the back of button manufacturers full of hoof and horn imported

from overseas, the whole lot heaving with maggots and smelling vile, and

steam would exude from the doorways carrying the same foul smell. Button

manufacturers operating at this time included William Dowler & Sons Ltd

(1774) of 11-15 Brearley Street, Firmin & Sons (1677) of Newtown Row, and

W. Elliott & Son in Regent Street.

By 1865 machines were beginning to be introduced into the button trade

and so only about 6,000 people worked in the various branches of thebutton trade compared with about 17,000 in 1830, and many of these

people were women. Even with machines it still took about 14 girls and

women working with incredible rapidity to put together a single button.

These buttons were then attached to a piece of card, fourteen buttons on

each, and one girl was capable of sewing 3,600 buttons onto cards in one

day. Each card was sold at 1d or 11/2d each. Pearl buttons however,

because of their frailty, continued to be made entirely by highly skilled

craftsmen who made up one third of the 6,000 employed in the whole button

trade, and who could earn between 2 and 4 a week compared with the 7/-

to 9/- a week that the women were earning.

Then, because of increased competition from abroad a group of leading

button manufacturers got together in 1908 to form Buttons Ltd, in exactly

the same way and for the same reasons that gun manufacturers had formed

the B.S.A... Buttons Ltd. operated from two factories, one in Portland Street,

Aston, and a smaller one in Warstone Lane in the Jewellery Quarter of

Birmingham.

Employed many people, particularly in the factories where a division of

labour was necessary to cover the various processes. However, there was one

type of button which could not be produced in this way and that was the

pearl button.

A FEW OF THE BUTTON MANUFACTURERS IN BIRMINGHAM:-

FIRMIN & SONS, Newtown Row, Birmingham 6. (est.1677)

WILLIAM DOWLER & SONS Ltd., 11-15 Brearley Street, Birmingham 19.

(est.1774)


12/19

12

BUTTONS LTD., Portland Street, Aston (est.1908), and Warstone Lane,

Birmingham 18.

GEORGE HOOK & SONS, Villa Street, Lozells, Aston.

T.A.CARLYLE, Warstone Lane, Birmingham 18

MATTHEW BOULTON, Soho Manufactory, Handsworth, Aston.

JOHN TAYLOR, Crooked Lane (off Dale End)

W.ELLIOTT & SON

JULIUS HARDY

BUTTON MAKING

Buttons.The earliest record of button-making we have is dated 1689, but

Mr Baddeley (inventor of the oval chuck), who retired from business about1739, is the earliest local manufacturer we read of as doing largely in the

trade, though sixty or seventy years ago there were four or five times as

many in the business as at present, blue coats and gilt buttons being in

fashion. By an Act passed in the 4th of William and Mary foreign buttons

made of hair were forbidden to be imported. By another Act, in the 8th of

Queen Anne it was decreed that "any tailor or other person convicted of

making, covering, selling, using, or setting on to a garment any buttons

covered with cloth, or other stuff of which garments are made, shall forfeit

five pounds for every dozen of such buttons, or in proportion for any lesser

quantity;" by an Act of the seventh of George the First, "any wearer of such

unlawful buttons is liable to the penalty of forty shillings per dozen, and inproportion for any lesser quantity." Several cases are on record in which

tradesmen have been heavily fined under these; strange laws, and before

they were repealed it is related by Dr. Doran (in 1855) that one individual

not only got out of paying for a suit of clothes because of the illegality of the

tailor in using covered buttons, but actually sued the unfortunate "snip" for

the informer's share of the penalties, the funniest part of the tale being that

the judge who decided the case, the barrister who pleaded the statute, and

the client who gained the clothes he ought to have paid for, were all of them

buttoned contrary to law. These Acts were originally enforced to protect the

many thousands who at the time were employed in making buttons of silk,

thread, &c., by hand, and not, as is generally supposed, in favour of themetal button manufacturers, though on April 4, 1791, Thomas Gem, the

solicitor to the committee for the protection of the button trade, advertised a

reward for any information against the wearers of the unlawful covered

buttons. The "gilt button days" of Birmingham was a time of rare prosperity,

and dire was the distress when, like the old buckles, the fashion of wearing

the gilt on the blue went out. Deputations to royalty had no effect in staying

the change, and thousands were thrown on the parish. It was sought to


13/19

13

revive the old style in 1850, when a deputation of button makers solicited

Prince Albert to patronise the metallic buttons for gentlemen's coats, but

Fashion's fiat was not to be gainsaid. John Taylor, High Sheriff of

Warwickshire in 1756, is said to have sent out about 800 worth of buttons

per week. Papier mach buttons came in with Henry Clay's patent in 1778.

He also made buttons of slate. Boulton, of Soho, was the first to bring out

steel buttons with facets, and it is said that for some of superior design he

received as much as 140 guineas per gross. Horn buttons, though more

correctly speaking they should have been called "hoof" buttons, were a great

trade at one time, selling in 1801 as low as 5-1/2d. Per gross. "Maltese

buttons" (glass beads mounted in metal) were, in 1812, made here in large

quantities, as were also the "Bath metal drilled shank button" of which

20,000 gross per week were sent out, and a fancy cut white metal button, in

making which 40 to 50 firms were engaged, each employing 20 to 40 hands,

but the whole trade in these specialities was lost in consequence of a few

men being enticed to or imprisoned in France, and there establishing a rival

manufacture. Flexible shanks were patented in 1825 by B. Sanders. Fancy

silk buttons, with worked figured tops, were patented by Wm. Elliott, in

1837. Porcelain buttons, though not made here, were designed and patented

by a Birmingham man, R. Prosser, in 1841. The three-fold linen button was

the invention of Humphrey Jeffries, in 1841, and patented by John Aston. In

1864 so great was the demand for these articles that one firm is said to have

used up 63,000 yards of cloth and 34 tons of metal in making them.

Cadbury and Green's "very" button is an improvement on these. Vegetable

ivory, the product of a tree growing in Central America and known as the

Corezo palm, was brought into the button trade about 1857. The shells used

in the manufacture of pearl buttons are brought from many parts of the

world, the principal places being the East Indies, the Red Sea, the Persian

Gulf, the islands of the Pacific Ocean, Panama, and the coasts of Central

America, Australia, New Zealand, &c. The prices of "shell" vary very much,

some not being worth more than 20 per ton, while as high as 160 to 170

has been paid for some few choice samples brought from Macassar, a

seaport in India. The average import of shell is about 1,000 tons per year,

and the value about 30,000.There are 265 button manufacturers in

Birmingham, of whom 152 make pearl buttons, 26 glass, 8 horn and bone,

14 ivory, 12 gilt metal, 3 wood, and 5 linen, the other 45 being of a mixed or

general character, silver, brass, steel, wood, and Papier mach, being all,

more or less, used. Nearly 6,000 hands are employed in the trade, of whom

about 1,700 are in the pearl line, though that branch is not so prosperous

as it was a few years back.

Pearl Button Makers by John Houghton

The Mother-of-pearl which is cut into buttons is of various kinds, and some

of great value. The white-edged Macassar shells are fished almost entirely

from the seas round Macassar, in the East Indies. these shells, the


14/19

14

"mothers'' of the orient pearls so coveted by beauty, are the finest in size and

the purest in grain of any the world. The Value in this town varies from 140

to 160 per ton. The yellow-edged Manila shells are similar in size and

character, but have a yellow tinge on their border, which diminishes there.

Value, and, moreover, they are more brittle in turning. They are used chiefly

in the Sheffield trade for knife handles; their value is from 100 to 120 per

ton.

The Bombay and Alexandria shells, smaller in size and a less delicate in tint

and clearness, are found in the Black shell is from the Archipelago of the

Pacific ocean, this is a beautiful coloured shell and polishes to a very dark

shade, but giving out all the colours of the rainbow with exquisite blends.

The least valued pearl shells are the Panama variety been of a size akin to

oysters, these only allow a small percentage the shell to be used

commercially this was the main reason for their low tonnage price.

Most of the button trade was carried out in small family run concerns, which

was a cottage industry in the premises, were they lived. The outlay required

to carry out these tasks was a small nominal expense, labour was the main

criteria many hands working for small wages.

There were no idle hands everyone had a job to perform in dirty squalid

conditions, from sorting the shells, then the experienced man of the house

would work out the best cuts from the shells, for the blanks, these would be

collected for the driller to put the holes in the blanks, next the polishing and

sorting in to sizes and quality ready for the carders to sew the finished

buttons on to the cardboard ready for the sale. Usually this would be the

owner of a large button making business.

Mr John Bitthel manufacturer of pearl buttons a family concern that had

been going on for decades. They lived at No 15 Parliament street' he had a

small factory in the yard of court five, which consisted of two buildings for

making of pearl buttons. This had been a mystery to us for years. We had

moved in to 1/15 Parliament Street during the Second World War. At this

time the only remains of this pearl making trade was one lean to building

and the remains of the main building, this was mainly now at ground level

with numerous boxes shells and pearl button blanks. Which we used to dig

up for friends and the girls from Burlington Street School.

I came across this information about the Bitthel family during my family

history research when looking up the 1901 census and then covering the

1881 and 1851 censuses they had been in the pearl button trade over this

time span more research is required if I want any more information. Been in

the pearl button trade over this time span more research is required if I want

any more information.

Links for you to look at


15/19

15

http://www.worcestershire.gov.uk/cms/community

-and-living/records/search-our-records/online-

indexes.aspx

http://www.westmidlandsbmd.org.uk/

www.westmidlandsbmd.org.uk

http://www.genealogylinks.net/uk/england/worest

ershire/worcestershire_censuses.htm

http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~

blanchec/EMidBaps.htm

http://www.ellisisland.org/

This is the ship that one of our

members ancestors sailed on


16/19

16


17/19

17

CYFYNG COTTAGE

This lovely old cottage belongs to Christine's family and has been a

place that all the children during the last 25 years, have holidayed at.

'Cynfyng' is pronounced Cuffin. It was built circa 1720 and was

originally two shepherd's cottages. The cottage is perched high above

the Wymbrant Valley, about 3 miles from Betws -y-Coed in North Wales.

The nearest neighbour is about a mile away and the nearest main road

about 2 miles away. The building to the left of the cottage was the old

Presbyterian Church, built about 1875, funded by the people from the

local villages, so their children could have an education. During the

week, the chapel was used as a school for children from about ages 5until about 12 or 13. The pews had built in desks, which were folded

down when they were used for prayer on a Sunday. The chapel closed in

the 1960's. To the right of the cottage is the original log store. Further

to the left of the chapel is the boys and girls loo. The loo for the cottage

was a little way into the field opposite. Many, many children were born

and died in the cottages. I must say here that the cottage and chapel is

haunted. The cottage is haunted inside and out by children and an old

axe man. Over the years, many occurrences have taken place whe n the

children have been too young to know about ghosts. For example, if

they were playing out for too long, they would be asked, "What have

you been doing? "Oh, just playing with the little boy and girl outside

the chapel". Eeeeeekk. When asked what they were wearing, they

described clothes from the 17th century. Many objects have been

moved or hidden around the cottage and about 5 years ago when I was

staying there for a couple of days, whilst in bed, I could hear the

'family' talking and moving downstairs. I have many more tales if

anyone is interested. Now right in front of the cottage is an ancient

Roman drover's road. The custom has stopped now of course, but it was


18/19

18

not usual to see a herd of cows or a gaggle of geese walking past, on

their way to the Market towns near Chester. Also the Roman soldiers

used to hide their precious possessions near the road, with the

intention of retrieving them when they had finished their time in

Chester or Deva as it was then. I have always meant to take a metal

detector up with me, (note to one).

I suppose as the population increased, the cottages were knocked into

one, giving four bedrooms (one is now a shower room). When the school

was built, there was a resident vicar in the cottage, the last one having

6 children. Life must have been tough there, as when the cottage was

bought, it was in a terrible state, no running water or electricity. Water

was sourced from a very old underground well, situated amongst the

ferns near the log store. The water was fresh off the mountain. Lighting

was by candle and oil or paraffin lamps. The was the situation right up

until about 10 years ago. Now electric has been installed and running

water. A septic tank has also been dug. It cost thousands of pounds toget all these modern facilities. I am sure, though, it was a good

investment. I think the cottage and chapel was bought for about

10,000, it has now been valued at about 250,000. You have no idea

how bad the road is up to the cottage and only the most fearless 4 x 4

can attempt this nowadays. However, it is worth the journey up there

to just escape the rat race. My brother-in-law has no TV up there and

would never allow one but we take a DVD player up with us to watch a

film, what he does not know wont harm him!

This is going back to Yorkshire now Have you heard about Ben Shaws

pop or even drunk it I remember this company which was based in

Yorkshire and was famous for the drink

Here is a little bit of history about that company

1871

BACK IN THE DAY

1871 saw Ben Shaw leave his job in the textile industry in Huddersfield,

West Yorkshire and set up his own business bottling and selling naturalmineral water from the nearby Pennine Hills. The move proved

successful and he soon expanded his business introducing traditional softdrinks made with only the finest ingredients, in his purpose built factory.


19/19

19

In the Willow Lane Factory, every morning at 10.30am, the workers were

allowed to listen to a radio programme called Music While You Work at the

machines. It was a very happy place for everyone to work, with the bosses

and workers holding a mutual respect for one another. For a shilling an hour,

Ben Shaws grandchildren would watch the bottles coming off the productionline to make sure there were no specks of dirt on any of the m before they

were put into the boxes.

Technology soon advanced and Ben Shaw wasnt one for being left behind!

Many of us still remember the Ben Shaws pop van coming round once a

week and excitedly running out to buy our favourite soft drinks. The drinks

came in glass bottles which once returned also earned you some pocket

money!

We hope you have enjoyed this small news journal and would like you

if possible to send in to let us know what you think about it Please

Vera and Christine

news letter for family tree group

Documents