Jenny, You got my attention! ;-) The only source I have to consult is the 1881 Census which shows no "Cross Hands" in Llanbyther. There is a 55-year-old widow named Eliza Davies who is a "grocer" at Shopfach. This is the only "shop" with a nearby inn -- in 1881 the nearest inn was the Black Lion and the next nearest appears to be the Wheat Sheaf. There are some people on the 1881 Census who've listed "Cross Hands, Carmarthenshire" as their birthplace (most in Glamorganshire). I wonder what "S.M." means. What was your great-aunt's name and how old was she in 1881 (any place-name on the letter for her)? Did she end up marrying this John Davies? There are a couple of John Davies who would be possibilities -- one in the village and another born there and a widower living elsewhere (Glamorganshire, as I recall). It would be nice if someone had the 1861 Census for Llanbyther -- you might consider also posting to the Dyfed list in case someone on that list has the '61. Regards, Julie Preston juliefpreston@sbcglobal.net ----- Original Message ----- From: "Jenny Anderton" <jenny@jenmike.freeserve.co.uk> To: <WLS-CARDIGANSHIRE-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Saturday, November 08, 2003 5:23 PM Subject: [WLS-CGN] Llanybyther > Hi all > I have a letter dated January 1861 - it is actually one of five - and I am > trying to make sense of the people mentioned. There would seem to be a > clandestine meeting being arranged and I believe it to be between John and > my grgr aunt! - Part of it is as follows, the village is Llanbyther, I would > be grateful for information if anyone recognises the places mentioned. It > was origianlly written in Welsh. > > P.S.Both of us will call at the house [shop] of David Davies, Grocer for > something from the Shop as an excuse for seeing if you are there and then we > will go across to the Cross Hands. So if we should not meet at D.Davies' you > could come brazenly[underlined] to Cross Hands and ask for us. I shall now > close this time hoping fervently that I shall see you this coming Saturday - > this briefly from your friend and sweetheart. > Best Wishes > John Davies (S.M.)" > > Many thanks > Jenny A > > > > ==== WLS-CARDIGANSHIRE Mailing List ==== > Genuki CGN > http://www.genuki.org.uk/big/wal/CGN/ >

Julie Preston <juliefpreston@sbcglobal.net> wrote: ...the 1881 Census shows no "Cross Hands" in Llanbyther. There are some people on the 1881 Census who've listed "Cross Hands, Carmarthenshire" as their birthplace (most in Glamorganshire). I wonder what "S.M." means. ==================== Dear Julie (and Jenny), The 1881 census shows a Cross Hands in the parish of Llanfihangel-ar-arth (CMN) which is only four miles south-west of Llanybydder (Llanybyther). Perhaps this is a possibility? Cross Hands is also a former mining village on the main A48 road between the towns of Swansea and Carmarthen, but this is nearly 20 miles south of Llanybydder. Jenny says the original letter was in Welsh, so maybe S.M. is an abbreviation of a Welsh language phrase? But regardless of the above, what a wonderful treasure Jenny's great-aunt's letters are. Kind regards, John ---------------------------- John Ball, Ystalyfera, South Wales, UK E-mail: wfha@clara.co.uk Homepage: http://home.clara.net/wfha/ Welsh Family History Archive: http://home.clara.net/wfha/wales/ ----- Original Message ----- From: "Julie Preston" <juliefpreston@sbcglobal.net> To: <WLS-CARDIGANSHIRE-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Sunday, November 09, 2003 12:43 AM Subject: Re: [WLS-CGN] Llanybyther Jenny, You got my attention! ;-) The only source I have to consult is the 1881 Census which shows no "Cross Hands" in Llanbyther. There is a 55-year-old widow named Eliza Davies who is a "grocer" at Shopfach. This is the only "shop" with a nearby inn -- in 1881 the nearest inn was the Black Lion and the next nearest appears to be the Wheat Sheaf. There are some people on the 1881 Census who've listed "Cross Hands, Carmarthenshire" as their birthplace (most in Glamorganshire). I wonder what "S.M." means. What was your great-aunt's name and how old was she in 1881 (any place-name on the letter for her)? Did she end up marrying this John Davies? There are a couple of John Davies who would be possibilities -- one in the village and another born there and a widower living elsewhere (Glamorganshire, as I recall). It would be nice if someone had the 1861 Census for Llanbyther -- you might consider also posting to the Dyfed list in case someone on that list has the '61. Regards, Julie Preston juliefpreston@sbcglobal.net --- Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 6.0.537 / Virus Database: 332 - Release Date: 06/11/2003