This is a rough draft not a finished product. I find treasures as I gradually go through my mother's files. Written sometime after 1966 as we visited Wales and Bronfodag in August 1966 and EAB did research in the London archives in September and October of that year. She refers to the difficulty of finding records in the Rolls Office in London. By late 1970s early 1980s she was declining and did not do much writing or research. She died October 13, 1993. Cousin Susannah Benson Transcription of a rough draft written by Evelyn Abraham Benson. Transcribed by Susannah Benson, June 12, 2005 A biography of Dr. Thomas Wynne, Welsh Quaker, can be written today with confidence because information in Britain and Pa public records, Quaker records, the Penn papers and other historical manuscripts has been brought to light in the last hundred years by his descendants in Pa and by those concerned with William Penn's founding of Pa. An account of Wynne's ancestry, attempted several times by his descendants cannot be either precise or satisfactory because Welsh family records and property transfers are not as clear as English records for the same early period. Even after Edward I in 1284 made Wales subject to English law the Welsh retained their own ancient name system and the customs of gavelkind, i.e. equal division of land among all heirs of a descendent and little if any land transfer recorded in public record offices and acquired only by kinship. If a man had no children his property automatically went to his closest relatives and this relationship was not recorded. It was committed to memory by the Welsh bards or poet-singers and by the families themselves: Acquisition of property depended on ability to recite your ancestry correctly. A man had good reason to memorize his genealogy. It was his brief of title to land and home. As a result of this system people did not move from one area to another and we can be sure that everyone living in a specific area was related, that they had a common ancestor many generations earlier who had conquered this land or received it from a chieftain. Both archaeology and Roman accounts of the invasions of Britain establish that Roman legions were quartered in Flintshire once Roman roads traversed it. The manuscript of an ancient Welsh bard may be the clue to Thomas Wynne's blood line (and strong character). In a way this puts Welsh genealogy before the time of Henry VIII into the realm of myth and legend. Our faith in medieval genealogies may be shaken, too, by the genealogy of Queen Elizabeth II which takes her back to a son of Noah born on the ark. By the act of Henry VIII (date?) Land transfers (a chief genealogical source of information) were to be recorded. Many of these are in the Rolls Office in London, but not indexed and very difficult to locate. The chief difference in Welsh and English land inheritance lay in English primogenitor; i.e. the eldest son was heir to the estate, and Welsh gavelkind: All children of the deceased inherited equal amounts. The Welsh inheritance s ystem was based on an ancient tribal custom whereby all the land in a certain area belonged to a specific family. It could not be sold - it could be... "Rewrite" written in margin of the following paragraph: Even after legislation of Henry VIII the Welsh tended to stay in their ancient home areas though some property transfers exist if they could be located. Henry VIII law also aimed to establish surnames for the Welsh, but few of them complied. Even some families coming to Penna before and after 1700 used the ancient nomenclature. For instance; John ap Thomas and Cadwallader ap Thomas were brothers. Adopting the modern customer after settling here, the male descendants of John ap Thomas are all named Jones (son of John). His nephew John Cadwallar (last letters not clear) son of Cadwalled ap Thomas joined the family in Pa and all his male descendants bear the distinguished sounding surname Cadwallader. It was John ap Thomas who gave us in his will (1682) Thomas Wynne's address of Bronfadog near Caerwys in Flintshire Wales. Thomas Wynne, in (EAB wrote lightly here apparently intending to check dates "or 162...") Quaker pamphlet gave his address as Caerwys and said that he lived near where he was born. The register of the nearby Bofarin Parish Church indicates that unlike most of their neighbors his family had adopted a surname as recommended by Henry VIII. The baptismal entry below is believed to refer to our Thomas: translate Parish adjoins Bodfari I help busy people organize their pictures & tell their stories in safe, simple albums. "Our albums aren't expensive .... they're priceless." Susannah Benson, Unit Leader My 14 years of experience as a Creative Memories Consultant Can Help YOU Complete Albums and/or Build a Business! Contact me TODAY: swbenson@aol.com or 717-464-0963

Thanks, Susannah. Cuz Vi from MN Swbenson@aol.com wrote: >This is a rough draft not a finished product. I find treasures as I gradually >go through my mother's files. > >Written sometime after 1966 as we visited Wales and Bronfodag in August 1966 >and EAB did research in the London archives in September and October of that >year. She refers to the difficulty of finding records in the Rolls Office in >London. By late 1970s early 1980s she was declining and did not do much writing >or research. She died October 13, 1993. > >Cousin Susannah Benson > >Transcription of a rough draft written by Evelyn Abraham Benson. Transcribed >by Susannah Benson, June 12, 2005 > >A biography of Dr. Thomas Wynne, Welsh Quaker, can be written today with >confidence because information in Britain and Pa public records, Quaker >records, the Penn papers and other historical manuscripts has been brought to light >in the last hundred years by his descendants in Pa and by those concerned >with William Penn's founding of Pa. > >An account of Wynne's ancestry, attempted several times by his descendants >cannot be either precise or satisfactory because Welsh family records and >property transfers are not as clear as English records for the same early period. > >Even after Edward I in 1284 made Wales subject to English law the Welsh >retained their own ancient name system and the customs of gavelkind, i.e. equal >division of land among all heirs of a descendent and little if any land transfer >recorded in public record offices and acquired only by kinship. > >If a man had no children his property automatically went to his closest >relatives and this relationship was not recorded. It was committed to memory by the >Welsh bards or poet-singers and by the families themselves: Acquisition of >property depended on ability to recite your ancestry correctly. A man had good >reason to memorize his genealogy. It was his brief of title to land and home. > >As a result of this system people did not move from one area to another and >we can be sure that everyone living in a specific area was related, that they >had a common ancestor many generations earlier who had conquered this land or >received it from a chieftain. > >Both archaeology and Roman accounts of the invasions of Britain establish >that Roman legions were quartered in Flintshire once Roman roads traversed it. >The manuscript of an ancient Welsh bard may be the clue to Thomas Wynne's blood >line (and strong character). > >In a way this puts Welsh genealogy before the time of Henry VIII into the >realm of myth and legend. Our faith in medieval genealogies may be shaken, too, >by the genealogy of Queen Elizabeth II which takes her back to a son of Noah >born on the ark. > >By the act of Henry VIII (date?) Land transfers (a chief genealogical source >of information) were to be recorded. Many of these are in the Rolls Office in >London, but not indexed and very difficult to locate. > >The chief difference in Welsh and English land inheritance lay in English >primogenitor; i.e. the eldest son was heir to the estate, and Welsh gavelkind: >All children of the deceased inherited equal amounts. The Welsh inheritance s >ystem was based on an ancient tribal custom whereby all the land in a certain >area belonged to a specific family. It could not be sold - it could be... > >"Rewrite" written in margin of the following paragraph: > >Even after legislation of Henry VIII the Welsh tended to stay in their >ancient home areas though some property transfers exist if they could be located. > >Henry VIII law also aimed to establish surnames for the Welsh, but few of >them complied. Even some families coming to Penna before and after 1700 used the >ancient nomenclature. For instance; John ap Thomas and Cadwallader ap Thomas >were brothers. Adopting the modern customer after settling here, the male >descendants of John ap Thomas are all named Jones (son of John). His nephew John >Cadwallar (last letters not clear) son of Cadwalled ap Thomas joined the family >in Pa and all his male descendants bear the distinguished sounding surname >Cadwallader. > >It was John ap Thomas who gave us in his will (1682) Thomas Wynne's address >of Bronfadog near Caerwys in Flintshire Wales. Thomas Wynne, in (EAB wrote >lightly here apparently intending to check dates "or 162...") Quaker pamphlet gave >his address as Caerwys and said that he lived near where he was born. The >register of the nearby Bofarin Parish Church indicates that unlike most of their >neighbors his family had adopted a surname as recommended by Henry VIII. The >baptismal entry below is believed to refer to our Thomas: > >translate > >Parish adjoins Bodfari > > > > > I help busy people organize their pictures > & tell their stories in safe, simple albums. > > "Our albums aren't expensive .... they're priceless." > >Susannah Benson, Unit Leader > >My 14 years of experience as a Creative Memories Consultant >Can Help YOU Complete Albums and/or Build a Business! > >Contact me TODAY: swbenson@aol.com or 717-464-0963 > > >============================== >View and search Historical Newspapers. Read about your ancestors, find >marriage announcements and more. Learn more: >http://www.ancestry.com/s13969/rd.ashx > > > > >