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Meiros Hill

Additional Notes

Meiros Hill          The meaning of Meiros        A little piece of history     

From Jennie & Sidney Davies, Birmingham

My great-grand father Ben Roberts lived at Meiros Hill and my great-great-grandfather Thomas Thomas at Llwynbrain and was the first burial at St John's in1900.

1870 

David & Sarah Roberts with son Ben lived at Tyllwd (Note: there are several farms called Tyllwyd in the area). David died 25 Oct 1870. The 1881 census shows Sarah remarried to Ben Evans at Meiros Hill with 12yr old Ben. Ben Evans died 23 April 1890 executers being Sarah, Ben, & John Williams of Cefn Meiros.

1891

Ben Roberts married Margaretta Thomas of Llwynbrain, daughter of Thomas (d 1900) and Margaret. Ben & Margaretta had at least 4 children David (Cwmbyr), Tom Penry (unknown), Ritchie (Meiros Hill till approx 1970) and Bertie (Llwynbrain). Ben died in 1953.

1896

Sarah Evans died 24 November. 

Ben’s son David (my grandfather) initially worked with his parents at Meiros Hill, then in his teens/early twenties for his uncle Dick at Llwynbrain, a farm nearby.

He married a young widow Jane Thomas (nee Evans) of Tyllwyd, Horeb. As a child she lived with her family at Maesygroes, Brechfa. She had a toddler Jack Thomas. Children of a 2nd marriage were Margaret (my mother) and Ken. Because my grandmother was ill after the birth of Ken my mother spent a large part of her childhood living with her grandparents and uncle Ritchie at Meiros Hill.

When Jack came of age or married my grandparents handed Tyllwyd over to him and moved to Cwmbyr around 1939.

Ben died in 1953 and on the same day of his death, David, his son, fell off a hayrick and broke his leg.

I was born in December 1946 in Carmarthen and moved to Yorkshire at the age of 4, and to Herefordshire at 12. There would be annual visits to see the relations between 1951-59.

I visited Meiros Hill as a child and remember Ben as a funny old man sitting beside the open fireplace (range) watching the kettle and food cooking telling me stories about Father Christmas being up the chimney! The house was quite dark (no electricity) with mature trees around the farmyard. In the garden there was a super privy - 3 holes!  Most had 1 and some had 2. There was a milk stand for churns quite close to the gate. (Note: by 1993 there were fewer trees and the Privy had disappeared. When renovations and re-alignment of the drive took place a couple of years later, the milk stand was removed for safety reasons.)

I had forgotten what the buildings looked like, but I think there may have been a Dutch barn off to the side of the two buildings where they meet (there was, but it was removed when one of the stone barns was converted into living accommodation ).

My great uncle Ritchie and his wife Gladys continued to live at Meiros Hill until they moved to Carmarthen sometime in the late 1960s or early 1970s.

Summer holidays were spent with my grandparents at Cwmbyr. I knew the ford at Felingwm Isaf well and remember the “new” bridge being built. Among the relations we visited would be my grandmothers’  relations at Llwyngwn and my grandfathers’ brother Bertie, his wife Nellie and children Richard, Neville and Margaret at Llwynbrain.

After 1960 visits were more irregular and by 1970 it was for special occasions only. By 1980 I had lost contact with my relations.

After looking at your Parish Records CD, which I enjoyed immensely, especially the Brunker and Jones collections, I was able to access the 1891 & 71 census and the Wills index which sent me back to the parish records looking for fresh names and addresses.

Surprisingly very few of my ancestors travelled to Llanegwad church for baptisms, weddings or funerals in the 1800s. After the building of St Johns my grandfather & grandmother (David Roberts & Jane Evans), her son from her 1st marriage “Jack” Thomas of Tyllwyd (Horeb) and her daughter (my mother) Margaret Roberts all chose to marry in Llanegwad church! (Entry nos. 5, 30 & 39 Marriage Register 1920 -53.)

With the help of the 1881 census I was able to sort out the Tyllwyds and confirmed it with the 1871 census. In that year Ben Roberts and his widowed mother were at Tyllwyd (Meiros) before moving to Meiros Hill and Thomas Thomas later of Llwynbrain (No 1 entry in St Johns burials) was at Tyllwyd (Ystrad) [Brechfa forest].

Ben Roberts’ father David a widower living at Clynmawr married Mary Rees nee Williams a widow of Tyllwyd in1861. Her 1st husband David had died in1858. Subsequently Mary died and David married his 3rd wife Sarah (Ben’s mother) and then died himself in 1870.

The three Tyllwyds my relations occupied were Tyllwyds, Wenallt (Abergwilli), Maesygoes (Brechfa), Clynmawr and Eskerhoeliw.