These paragraphs were translated from Welsh to
English by my brother Geoff, they were taken from a copy of �Cofiant, John
Jones, Talsarn� which was published in 1872 and was written by Owen Thomas. The biography is of special interest to us
because some of our own family are mentioned, in particular our 8 x Great
Grandmother Angharad James. It may also
be of interest to Welsh local historians and fellow genealogists � other names mentioned are John Jones,
Tany-y-Castell and Elinor his wife � John William Lloyd, Gorddinen � William
Pritchard and Angharad James his wife, Dolwyddelen � William Lloyd, Gorddinen �
Mr Morgans, Minister at Llanberis � Rev John Williams, Dolwyddelen and his
brother Robert � Mr Thomas Pugh, Dolgellau � Richard Owen (Bertheos) and his
wife Margaret and daughter Elinor � Edmund Prys , Archdeacon of Merionedd.
The Rev John Jones was born in a house called
Tan-y-Castell in the parish of Dolwyddelen, Caernarfonshire. There is a degree of doubt about his birth
date. According to notes in what is
thought to have been his father's bible, and perhaps in his father's
handwriting also, he was born on Tuesday, March 1, 1796, at four o'clock in the
afternoon. That is clear enough and by
itself would show their relationship.
But it appears from the register of baptisms in the Parish Church,
Dolwyddelen, that he was baptised there on March 19, 1797. Whether the entry in the bible was wrong in
the year, or for some reason there was a delay in his baptism for more than a
year after his birth is a matter on which it is impossible, at the present
time, to decide. It is thought that he
himself took the date in the bible to be his birth date. His parents were John Jones and Elinor his
wife, who were living at the time, and for some years before, in Tan-y-Castell,
and this was actually the place where his father was born and brought up. Considering the exceptional influence his
parents had on him we hope the reader will find it acceptable if we now make a
short mention of them in order to acknowledge the effect on their son in making
him so well known, able and useful when grown-up.
His
father, John Jones, was the youngest son of John William Lloyd, Tan-y-Castell,
who was himself the oldest son of William Lloyd, Gorddunant (Gorddinen), and
Dolwyddelen. His father's mother was
Catherine, youngest daughter of William Pritchard and Angharad James, Parlwr,
Penamnen, Dolwyddelen. His father was
born in 1759. (John Jones, Tan-y-Castell)
Physically he was tall and graceful, notably strong and energetic, and
unusually attractive in his face. His
natural abilities were far above the normal and these abilities were sharpened
by continual exercise with one thing or another, till there was an obvious
difference between him and all his neighbors.
He was, in particular, remarkably gifted in all sorts of work where he
used his hands, so much so that there was hardly a task in his reach where he
was not able to approach the mastery of a craftsman, like making agricultural
implements, stone masonry, wood work, everything necessary when building a
house, making furniture, even clothes for himself and the children. The liveliness of his mind was such that he
could never be an idler. After the
tasks of the day were done he would always find something to work on, or read a
book. After five minutes talking with
friends at his house he would be unable to resist taking up some task with his
hands, keeping up his lively talk at the same time. But when he began to warm to the talk of religion, because this
was always his favourite topic, he stood for a while as though swallowed up by
the subject, and forgetting his work.
Soon, however, he returned to his work, but continued to talk with great
liveliness and delight.
From
his youth he was serious minded and very correct in his behaviour and hardly or
never taking any interest in vain games and the foolish masterly competitions
which were so common in those days in his neighbourhood, as in most parts of
Wales. The entertainment of his youth
was in some kind of work, which prevented him, in the period before religion
took hold of him, from running to the kind of excess common in his
neighbours. He was married and starting
to bring up children before making a public profession of his faith. The few friends who were in the small circle
of members of the Methodist chapel, which was in its early days in the
neighbourhood, had waited a long time for him to come over and join them. In those days there was a conscientious and
godly minister named Mr. Morgans, serving in the parish of Llanberis. Many of the parishioners from the area, and
further away, used to go there on Sundays to listen to him. Amongst others, John Jones went for a long
time, going through the whole distance from Dolwyddelen, over wild and high
mountains, and often through the rains and storms of winter. He hadn't yet joined the chapel and thrown
in his lot with the people of The Lord.
But religious matters were rooting deeply into his mind at that time and
clearly influencing his conduct in general.
In the end he turned to the house of The Lord and the members were
overjoyed to see him amongst them. The
late Rev John Williams, Dolwyddelen, said this about about it: "At first I
was never more disappointed with anybody joining the church than I was with
John Jones. He was always a remarkably
moral and wise man and more knowledgeable than anybody in the parish and many
of us looked upon him almost as some self-righteous Pharisee. He did not associate much with anybody,
though he was remarkably easy-going and pleasant when you got to talk with him. He was notable in his understanding of the
bible and he would generally have something new to say about its verses and on
various points of religion. With all
that he was very exact in his behaviour and very careful about his words, even
more so than many of us religious people.
Often we would talk with one another, having waited a long while for him
to join in before he finally did so.
At the same time we were almost afraid to see him come because we did
not know how to talk to him and in case it would be hard to go along with what
he said. But one evening he came to us
and I never saw anybody more humble or who seemed easier to deal with; this was
to our great surprise. He sat on the
bench with his hand under his chin.
When he was asked something he raised his head and told his story freely
and deliberately, but with serious feeling, because the tears were running in a
flood down his cheeks. He told of his
experience so simply and effectively after our being so disappointed with him
before, that everybody in the place wept." This was his attitude when he joined the church, and, despite
years of professing his faith, the high regard he was held in by his friends,
his rising soon to office, he did not lose that humility he first showed on
joining the church. Within a few months
of him coming into the church he was chosen to be a deacon or elder. He threw himself earnestly into the tasks of
his office and continued faithfully in that role until the end of his days. He
had a natural and easy way of speaking his mind; but at the same time speaking
deliberately and powerfully as one who felt the solemn importance of the gospel
and taking great care over his choice of words. When he got up to speak in the church meeting everybody was eager
to listen attentively as if they were afraid of missing as much as one word he
said.
He
was, exceptionally, a great man in prayer.
He was always near to the throne of grace, like one with a message. The
aptness of his language, grace of his manner and voice, and especially the
extent and clarity of his views on the great truths of the gospel often had
great impact in prayer meetings.
He
wrote some essays on religious subjects, which were never printed as they would
be nowadays. They were lost (difancoll)
many years ago. His son John, subject
of the present volume, had read them and he considered them to have shown great
sense and seriousness of mind. He also
composed some verses. Once, at the
start of the year, he went with a few brothers to some man in the parish to
keep a prayer meeting. He waited a
while by himself before going into the house, and composed a verse which was
given out by him to sing in the meeting. Robert Williams, brother of the Rev
John Williams, was present at the time and learned the verse, which was as
follows:
"
Mawr eirolodd y Gwinllanydd
Am
flwyddyn newydd i mi'n wir;
Heb
adael i gyfiawnder daro,
A'm
tori am ddiffrwytho'r tir:
Gwaed
yr Oen yw'r unig achos
Fy
mod yn aros hyd yn awr;
Haeddiant
Iesu ar ben Calfaria
Sydd
eto'n fwy na 'meiau mawr."
(Greatly,
pleaded the vine keeper
for a new year to be true to me;
not
allowing the just strike,
To
break me and destroy the land:
Blood
of the Lamb is the only cause
I
am awaiting now;
Merit
of Jesus up on Calvary
is
still more than my great sins)
For
a while he was overseer at Dolwyddelen Mine (which was on his land), under the
tenancy of the late Mr Thomas Pugh, Dolgellau and others. Every day he used to read a chapter from the
Bible meal time and go and pray in the mine office with all the other workers. There was a quite remarkable occasion
concerning this service. Two of the
workers had been quarrelling and fighting with one another. They were strong and stubborn, very
dangerous to one another in their strife, and very difficult to subdue. Soon after the quarrel had taken place
between them it was time for daily prayers in the office and they came along
with their fellow workers. John Jones
was in an unusually serious mood that day.
He recognised God's goodness in safeguarding all their lives in a
dangerous occupation and showing them many mercies, all this despite their
great unworthiness and ingratitude to Him; and with godly shame he confessed
their sinfulness in forgetting God's goodness towards them, and humbly and
fervently asked God through his dear Son to forgive them all.
Then
he turned to the particular case of the two men who had been fighting; and with
solemnity and unusual feeling, fervently asked The Lord to forgive them and to
bring about a change of heart in them.
By now there was a strange sight in the office. Everybody was overcome by the strength of
their feelings. The two men having broken down in tears and sighs and having
risen from their knees to embrace each other; weeping they asked each other's
forgiveness. The whole scene was such
that those who witnessed it could never forget it.
At
one time he experienced some trouble which caused him some painful financial
damage, but not enough to disturb his living.
The parish priest, or vicar, (of the established church of England) used
a curate who performed various duties, including reading the service in the
church. This man led a remarkably bad
life, appearing drunk in public and indulging in all kinds of vice. The parishioners were concerned about this
and held a meeting where it was decided to prevent him going into the church
the following Sunday. John Jones was an
officer of the parish and because of this he was given the task of standing in
the door of the church to deny entry to the curate. According to their wishes he stood in the doorway, his back on
one door-post, his feet against the other, with his arms folded. There were a great number of parishioners
standing nearby, seeing and hearing everything that happened. When the curate arrived and saw this, after
some exchange of words, he turned back and went to see the vicar. These two conspired together, however, and
placed the matter in the hands of a lawyer.
The curate swore a solemn oath that John Jones had hit him and although
there were many witnesses to the fact that John Jones did not take his hands
from under his arms and that they never touched each other, still the curate
stuck to his oath. In those days it was
not easy for nonconformists to get fair-play, especially in a case of this
kind, when there would be only ministers of the established church and their
friends sitting in judgement and these would generally be only to ready to
believe anything against anybody who doubted what they believed were their
god-given rights. The parishioners
became too disheartened to place the case in a higher court, where there would
have been more chance of obtaining justice, because in those days the priestly
order was as feared as the King. In one
way it was good for John Jones that they were disheartened; because there was
the fear that if the case turned against him he would be in even greater
tribulation. The parishioners undertook
to pay the whole cost of the case, by means of a deed, sealed with their names;
but in the end he had to stand all the costs himself, without receiving a
halfpenny from anybody. He left the
deed alone, keeping it in his possession, and left it to his family, without so
much as asking for the money. This
showed unusual magnanimity in him, but showed something very different in his
fellow parishioners. It cost him some
twenties (sic) of pounds. This was some
tribulation to him with his large family, especially in those hard and pressing
times. But the Lord took care of him,
by blessing him with more than enough to meet all the costs of the injustice of
the law.
Although
he was healthy and strong, and would, through his whole way of life, expect to
live a long life, he was afflicted with a complaint which affected his knee
("anhwyldeb blin i ben ei lin"), and which after a long illness ended
in his death. In his last suffering the
visits of his religious friends would affect his mind greatly. He would, at times, feel so strongly that he
was unable to say hardly anything to them.
One time a number of his dearest friends came to him, with whom he would
normally be very open and he was unable to say even one word to them. After they went away he came to himself a
little and was able to speak. Clapping
his hands he said to his wife - "My dear brothers! my dear brothers! After
coming to see me I was unable to speak even one word to them! But I will get a tongue to speak with them
again, - I will, I will. The parable of
the ten virgins has been very hard for me for some hours. He has searched me through it. I was on the scales and was weighed,
fainting with fear. Truly it has been
the day of judgement for me. The
parable of the ten virgins was close to killing me. I was unable to say a single word. So I was unable to say a word to my dear brothers. But praise the Lord! I am cleansed. I, who have come through the parable of the ten virgins, - yes I
have come through it forever. I have
escaped for ever from my Judge. I will
never be condemned. Praise be to
God! I will have eternity to thank
Him. Oh, if my dear brothers were here
now I would speak to them." (Presumably nobody else understood what this
meant either!)
Shortly
before he died, with his wife at his bedside looking sad and disheartened, and
he knowing he was about to depart, leaving nine fairly small children, the
youngest not yet two years of age and the eldest not yet nine, he turned to her
and said "Try your best to keep your spirits up. The Lord will be able to support you and I know He will look take
care of you. I see you looking very
sad. You must be worried what will
happen to you and the children after losing me. But, my dear Elin, don't be concerned about my children. I have placed them in the hands of the Lord. They are now in his care. It was hard on my soul to present them to
Him, but am satisfied that He has listened to me on their behalf. The Lord is sure to give grace to my
children, and you will see it. He has
told me he will do this and I am quiet in my mind that I will leave you in the
care of the Lord. Praise be to God, who
has not rejected my prayers or failed to show me mercy. Take strength in the Lord." And so, in full confidence he fell asleep
with Jesus when he was only 48 years old.
He was buried in the parish cemetary, Dolyddelen, May 2nd 1807.
The
mother of Rev John Jones was Elinor, youngest daughter of Richard Owen,
Bertheos, Dolwyddelen and Margaret his wife.
We know nothing about her father, Richard Owen; but her mother,
Margaret, was a daughter of Richard Isaac of Llanfrothen, Meirionethshire, and
Gwen his wife. Gwen was the eldest
daughter of William Prichard and Angharad James, Parlwr, Penamnen,
Dolyddelen. It can be seen from this,
remembering what has already been mentioned, that Rev John Jones was descended
from William Prichard and Angharad James on both the side of his mother and his
father. His father was their grandson
through their youngest daughter and his mother was their great granddaughter
through their eldest daughter. We know
nothing about William Prichard except that he was sixty years old on the day of
his marriage to Angharad and she had her twentieth birthday on that day. She was the daughter of James Davies and
Angahrad Humphreys who were living in Gelli Ffrydau, in the parish of
Llandwrog, Caernarfonshire, about two hundred years ago. Angharad James was counted a noteable woman
in her day, unusually so; with a strong and talented mind, remarkably decisive
and highly educated. We do not know
where she received her education, but her parents were in a fairly high station
and possibly saw to her education.
However it came about, she was educated far above what would be normal
even in these days. She was completely
confident in Latin, very familiar with the laws of the country, and was
recognised as having very extensive general knowledge. Some of her Latin books were in the
possession of her descendants for a long time; perhaps they are still in
existence. She was also very fond of
poetry and used to compose many poems herself.
A large book of her poetry, in her own handwriting, was in existence
even within the last fifty years. It
was borrowed for a while by the late Mr. Griffith Williams, Braich Talog,
Llandegai [Gutyn Peris], who said she
was completely familiar with the work of the old bards, and who called the book
"The Red Book", on account of its being written in red ink. Angharad also had a harp which she was very
fond of playing. Before going to bed at
night the whole family, including servants and maids, would have to come
together to dance, while she played on the harp. This was an established custom, summer and winter, and a family
duty. When the cattle were far from the
house in the summer, towards Aberleinw, Angharad would call with her maids to
do the milking and on returning home the Mistress would play while her maids
danced. That was the practice, whatever
the weather. The custom had to be
followed and the appointed place was called "Glwt y Ddawns", as it is
even to this day. She was considered a
very moral woman, and, according to the ideas of her time, very religious. This, together with her education and
dominating personality, caused some dread in people when she was around.
We
tend to believe that she may have been a friend of Gwilym Cynwal who was a
famous poet who lived near her. It is
known that Gwilym was always arguing over about poetry with Edmund Prys, who was Archdeacon of Meirionedd and
translater of the Psalms into Welsh. It
is said that one of the poems (Cywyddau) of the Archdeacon so much affected
Gwilym's mind that it damaged his health and ended in his death.
There
have been great changes in Wales since Angharad's time, in the price of land,
as in many other things. Angharad held
the whole of Cwmpenamnen (presumably on a lease). At some time the rates on the
land were raised to two pounds a year, and she set out to Gwydir to give the
place up, believing it was too much to pay to keep the 60 milking cows on the
land; but she changed her mind and turned back.
We
may be excused for saying so much about Angharad because it is likely that her
descendants inherited many of her strong characteristics, to the benefit of
Wales to this day.
We
know nothing particular about Richard Owen, Bertheos, his grandfather on his
mother's side, except he was thought in the neighbourhood to be a very wise
man, remarkably genial and kind and correct in his behaviour. He was never overtly religious, but in his
later years he prayed by himself and left a deep impression on his children.
His
wife, Margaret, grandmother of the Rev John Jones was generally known as having
great good sense, more so than most of the folk of the parish and her whole
heart was dedicated to religion. Nobody
had a single doubt about her godliness.
She was not only godly but very godly.
She made great efforts to bring up her children religiously and her
efforts were rewarded to her own satisfaction.
The couple had nine children.
William, their only son, died young, but their eight daughters lived to
marry and it can be said without hesitation that they were all godly and died
rejoicing in Jesus. We believe the reader will not find it unacceptable if we
make the following mention of some of them.
Gwen,
their eldest daughter, married John Jones, Llan, Dolwyddelen. She was the mother of Elizabeth, who is
still living, widow of the late Rev David Roberts, Bangor, and so grandmother
to the Rev Samuel Roberts, Bangor and to David Roberts, minister with the
independents, Pendref, Caernarfon. She
(presumably Elizabeth, but the author does not make it clear) was also
grandmother to Mr. John Williams, Dolyddelen, a very popular preacher with the
Calvinists (Trefnyddion Calvinaidd), who died some years back, a fairly young
man.
Jane,
their daughter, was the mother of the late Rev Cadwaladr Owen, one whose name
is known and remembered fondly throughout Wales, and one, as a farmer of Lleyn
said of him, "A preacher of the best kind, of use to his country".
Margaret,
their daughter, was the wife of the wise and faithful old preacher, John
Williams, Dolwyddelen. We have no
information about family connections of the other daughters, apart from the
mother of the subject of this book; but they were all blessed with a host of
children and there is no doubt that they all inherited eternal life.
The
mother of Rev John Jones was born in 1762.
Her parents, (Margaret and Richard Owen, Bertheos) especially her
mother, were careful to bring up their children in the truths of the gospel and
free from the base and ungodly practices which were so general in almost every
part of the country at that time. (What were they? - probably to do with
religious practices objectionable to the non-conformists) Their efforts with her, as with the other
children, were not in vain. We do not
know how long after her marriage she made a public profession of faith, but it
was some time before her husband (the author is talking about Elin and her
husband, John Jones, Tan y Castell).
Soon after this she started family worship and after some time her
husband began to join in. After her
husband died and she was left with a large family she kept up the regular
worship morning and evening. Over the
next few years the youngest children began to help in every other service by
going through it with their mother; but she wholly failed to get her eldest son
(John Jones, Talsarn) to take part until he rejoined the church after breaking
from it for a while, as we will see later.
She was convinced she should have got him to join in when he was
younger, so she persuaded the younger boys to take part when they were very
young. At this time there were many
workers at the Dolwyddelen quarries and many of them were thoughtless young
men. Some of them were lodging at Tan y
Castell because it was closer to the work; but Elinor Jones kept up the family
worship in their presence without fail.
She had such an influence on the wilder young men that they neither said
or did anything unseemly in her presence.
She
was blessed with beauty, a shapely figure, strong and healthy, with innate
mental abilities far above the normal and noteably decisive whenever she took
something on. She had a great knowledge
of the scriptures and their meaning, almost like a preacher, and her talents in
prayer were remarkable. There are many
still living; not counting her children, to testify they seldom heard anybody
more impressive, serious and closer to the throne of grace than she. Her talents were no less in conversation,
especially in religious matters. Hardly
anything came up where she did not have an original thought and she was never
at a loss for the most suitable word, from her rich store, to convey her
meaning. Her religious beliefs did not
cause her to neglect the world around her; on the contrary she was very painstaking
and careful over this. It is hard to
overestimate her efforts, after being left a widow, to raise her children
comfortably and to implant in them the ways of the Lord. She could frequently be heard solemnly and
earnestly praying for them in her room, which left a deep and indelible impression
on them. God heard her prayers; they
were all to be seen in church and all her sons were church officials, three of
them fine ministers of the New Testament.
One
remarkable story was told by a woman named Margaret Jones, who was for years in
the service of the Rev. John Williams, Dolyddelen. Elinor Jones once went to Ty'n y Fron, the home of her sister
Margaret, who was the wife of the Rev. John Williams, when John Williams was
not at home. This was early in the
morning when the family were finishing breakfast. Her sister asked her to take charge of the family's morning
worship; but she refused, saying she had already been through the service with
her own family and that they should have done it well before this time. She had been unwell for some time, which at
times caused her to feel very dazed, dangerously so. She explained that her head was really so bad she was afraid that
if she kneeled she would be unable to get up again. But they said if she wanted they would help to get up, and after
a while she agreed. And it was a
remarkable occasion. The prayers had
such an effect the whole family fell to weeping and wailing and falling across
the chairs helplessly, so that they had no power to help her even if she needed
it. This occasion was always remembered
by those present.
She
ended her days peacefully, fully expecting salvation, and with joy in the
presence and grace of the Saviour.
Shortly before she died she said, "I have nothing belonging to the
world to leave you, my dear children; but the Lord gives me confidence to make
my last will on the treasures of the covenant of grace, leaving to all of you
the peace of God which passes all understanding". And so she died, victoriously, January 10th
1846, 83 years of age.
Although
the Rev. John Jones lost his father when still very young he remembered him
well and with fond memories. He wrote a
fairly extensive memoir about him.
This, if it were still available would, no doubt, tell us much about his
own early days. We tend to believe,
however, that like many other well-known persons, he owed more to his mother
than to his father, specially considering his rise to fame in Wales and the
strong and good influence she had on him.
She, as far as we can judge, had the stronger and more original mind,
and the abilities to influence him.
This is only our opinion, however; the recollections of his son Richard
(Rev. John Jones' brother) suggest we cannot be too confident of this.
John
Jones and Elinor had nine children, four sons and five daughters. The Rev. John Jones was the fourth child and
eldest son. His sisters were: Margaret,
the oldest, who emigrated with her family to America and died just after
arriving in Wisconsin; Catherine who also died in Wisconsin; Mary, still alive
and in Wisconsin; Gwen, who lived at Bryn-y-Pwll, Trefriw (in the Conwy valley)
and died there; and Jane his youngest sister, who was born between William and
David and is still alive, with the family in Wisconsin.
His
brothers were: Richard, who was for years an able and faithful deacon in
Dolyddelen, but went to America and died in Wisconsin; William, viz the Rev.
William Jones, formerly of Rhyd-ddu, Caernarfonshire, but now of Welsh Prairie,
Wisconsin; and David, the youngest, now the Rev. David Jones, Treborth,
Caernarfonshire, who is well known and popular throughout Wales, and we hope
will be with us for many more years.
We
know very little, and much less than we would like, about John Jones as a
child. It is hard not to believe there
was something unusual and different in him, compared with other children. Everybody who remembers him says he was
calm, quiet and shy, tending to be solitary, not talking much to strangers and
avoiding their company if possible. Mr.
William Owen, Penbrynmawr, Llanllyfni sent us the following report about him at
that age: "I was at Talsarn and remember his mother saying to me,
'
I'm sure I remember John, when he was a child, taking my hand after a prayer
meeting in Dolwyddelen. On the road he
said to me,'
'Mom,
I'm afraid I won't ever be able to pray properly.'
'What
makes you think that, my boy', I said.
'Well
I heard them say in the meeting tonight that prayer must have to do with the
mind of God and if that is prayer I am afraid I have never prayer properly.'
'I
was very surprised that, with him being so young, he noticed such detail in
what they were dealing with, especially considering how thoughtless I had been
(at that age)'.
That
is what his mother said to me.
I
remember him sometimes on church visits, to encourage parents to take their
children to particular church meetings, saying:
'
When I was a young boy I had gone to a prayer meeting with my father in
Dolyddelen. An old lady we called
Auntie Nanws came and sat on the bench and said, 'Praise be, yes, yes, the
Sacrifice was finally made. Much was it
foreseen; there were many things oppressing him; but on Calvary he sacrificed
himself faultlessly to God'. 'Yes
praise be', said my uncle John Williams and there were tears running down his
cheeks. This made such an impression on
me that I never forgot it' ".
Such
stories as these confirm there was something unusually serious about him when
he was very young. Everybody remembers
that he hardly tended to play like other boys of his age. His brother, the Rev. William Jones, said
that he and his brother Richard thought he was not worth playing with. Dolwyddelen is a fairly narrow and beautiful
valley, lying between high mountains and with a strong river running through
which has many tributaries, especially between Penmachno and Capel Curig,
eventually forming the river Conwy and meeting the sea at Aberconwy, some
thirty miles from its source. This
river runs through the farmstead of Tan y Castell, his birth place, and he
noticed it very often in his childhood.
Its waters turned wheels for machinery and gave drink for the cattle and
horses. He spent many hours on its
banks trying to devise novel machinery and would get great pleasure when
successful. He was very fond of Sunday
school and when quite young he was taught for a time by the Rev. Mr. Charles of
Bala (famous trainer of preachers). But
the thing he liked most was preaching.
At first his great obsession was imitating the Rev. John Williams, who
he thought was the best preacher on earth.
He tried to imitate his face, his voice, his shout, his cough -
everything. Once, after preaching, he
said "B'u't (sic) aren't I just like my uncle? I am more like him than he is himself".
************************************************************
Genealogical information from
'Cofiant John Jones, Talsarn' by Owen Thomas, pub 1872.
John
Jones, Talsarn (the famous preacher) was born 1796, parents John Jones and
Elinor of Tan-y-Castell. John Jones,
Tan-y-Castell was born in 1759 and was
the youngest son of John William Lloyd, Tan-y-Castell who was the eldest son of
William Lloyd, Gorddunant (Gorddinen), Dolwyddelan and Catherine, the youngest
daughter of William Pritchard and Angharad James, Parlwr, Penamnen, Dolyddelen.
Elinor
was born in 1762 and was the youngest daughter of Richard Owen, Bertheos,
Dolwyddelan and his wife Margaret.
Elinor died January 10th 1846, 83 years of age.
Richard Owen's wife, Margaret, was a daughter
of Richard Isaac of Llanfrothen, Meirionethshire, and Gwen his wife. Gwen was the eldest daughter of William
Prichard and Angharad James, Parlwr, Penamnen, Dolyddelen.
William
Prichard was sixty years old on the day of his marriage to Angharad James; she
had her twentieth birthday on that day.
She was the daughter of James Davies and Angharad Humphreys who were
living in Gelli Ffrydau, in the parish of Llandwrog, Caernarfonshire around
1680.
Children
of Richard Owen, Bertheos, Dolwyddelan and his wife Margaret (siblings of
Elinor):
Gwen,
was the eldest daughter, and married John Jones, Llan, Dolyddwelan. She was the mother of Elizabeth, widow of
the late Rev David Roberts, Bangor, and so grandmother (presumably Gwen)
to the Rev Samuel Roberts, Bangor and
to David Roberts, minister with the independents, Pendref, Caernarfon. She (presumably Gwen, but the author does
not make it clear) was also grandmother to Mr John Williams, Dolwyddelen, a
very popular preacher with the Calvinists (Trefnyddion Calvinaidd), who died a
fairly young man.
Jane,
who was the mother of the late Rev Cadwaladr Owen.
Margaret,
who was the wife of the preacher, Rev. John Williams, Dolwyddelan. They lived at Ty'n y Fron, at least for a
time. Rev John Williams had a brother,
Robert Williams.
John
Jones and Elinor had nine children, four sons and five daughters. The Rev. John Jones was the fourth child and
eldest son.
Rev
John Jones' sisters were: Margaret, the oldest, who emmigrated with her family
to America and died just after arriving in Wisconsin; Catherine who also died
in Wisconsin; Mary, still alive and in Wisconsin (in 1872);Gwen, who lived at
Bryn-y-Pwll, Trefriw (in the Conwy valley) and died there; and Jane his
youngest sister, who was born between William and David and is still alive
(1872), with the family in Wisconsin.
His
brothers were: Richard, who was for years an able and faithful deacon in
Dolwyddelen, but went to America and died in Wisconsin; William, viz the Rev.
William Jones, formerly of Rhyd-ddu, Caernarfonshire, but now of Welsh Prairie,
Wisconsin; and the Rev. David Jones, Treborth, Caernarfonshire, the youngest.
Info
from second chapter on:
In
1818 Rev John Jones' sister Mary had recently married and was living at a
farmhouse called Cammaes, Llangernyw, near Llanrwst. (page 57)
1818
- Cadwaladr Owen, (John Jones' cousin), had a brother called William Owen. (p
63)
1819/21
- One Owen Lloyd was at Gorddinen. (p 75)
1821
- Azariah Zadrach (p 94)
John
Jones married Frances Edwards 14 May 1823, parish church Llanllyfni. (p 104)