The Jeffreys family is an old and prolific Coelbren family: they figure as pivots around which many families, including our Jones and Morgan families revolve.
In 1861, the family of Howell (1813-79) and Elizabeth Jeffreys (1824-) is recorded at Corslwyndu Uchaf, a small farm to the south east of the existing village of Coelbren. At this time, there was no village, just a scattering of these quite remote little farmsteads. Elizabeth was originally a Benjamin, daughter of Howell Benjamin, also of Corslwyndu and seemingly a long-established local family. At this point the young Jeffreys family was thus living next door to Elizabeth’s parents. Interestingly, father Howell Jeffreys’ occupation is given as “Labourer at Ironworks” and maybe this was at the nearby, but short-lived and ill-fated Banwen ironworks.
Ten years later, in 1871, Howell and Elizabeth are shown quite nearby, but even more remote, up the Llech river at Blaenllech. This property has stayed in the Jeffreys family, through one of Howell and Elizabeth’s sons, Llewellyn.
Howell and Elizabeth Jeffreys had at least ten children and all appear to have grown up quite locally and started their own, also sometimes large, families. It is of no surprise then that the Jeffreys family became closely inter-twined with both the also indigenous Jones, and recently-arrived Morgan families under consideration here. Slightly confusingly, a relatively limited stock of forenames was used for naming Jeffreys boys: Brychan, Howell, Llewellyn and Rice figure prominently throughout the generations.
One of Howell Jeffreys’ sons, David, had firstly married Ann Jones in 1868 – these were to be known henceforth as the “Camnant” Jeffreys. Later, in 1884, David’s brother Rhys (1858-1932) married Margaret Morgan of Coelbren House This provides the first indirect link between our Jones and Morgan families. This branch of the family would be “Jeffreys, Penygraig”, after the farm just outside Coelbren, and this property remains today in the occupancy of the same Jeffreys family. Just to make things slightly more complex, in 1886, Rees Jeffreys’ sister, Harriet Jeffreys married Lewis Lewis of Coelbren Farm and while there are no direct Lewis/Morgan/Jones connections, at this point, there is nevertheless a complicated web of third-hand relationships through marriage.
Such inter-linking is again exemplified by another child of Howell and Elizabeth, Jane Jeffreys (1854-), who married a Richard Evans in 1876. One of their children, Richard John Evans (1878-) married Margaret Ann Evans, herself daughter of Daniel Evans (Price’s Arms) and Sarah Morgan (Coelbren House). This was the family known as “Temperance”.
The young Jeffreys family headed by Rhys and Margaret Jeffreys is shown at Penygraig in 1891: their children Howell (6), Richard (4), David (2) and the infant Elizabeth (2 months). Rhys’ occupation is given as a coal-miner, although this is probably only what he considered primary at the time. As was common in this area, men worked variously as colliers, farmers and small-holders according to their needs and inclinations
Above left: Rhys Jeffreys and Margaret Morgan, probably late 1920s, with one of their grandchildren, Mair Jeffreys (daughter of Llewellyn Jeffreys). With thanks to Alun Jeffreys for clarification.
Photo with kind permission of WT Davies.
Left: Gravestone in Nantyffin graveyard, Rees & Margaret Jeffreys. Photo by G. Jones 2014
