On Mon 28 Jun 99 (23:46:50), Bl Gwent MAIL LIST wrote:
I would like to trace any siblings, or their descendants and
relations
of Walter James and Maria (nee Morgan) Purnell who came to New Zealand
from Wales around about 1929 - 1930
Before emigrating they lived at 56 New Houses, Oakland Mynyddiolwyn
Wales
Anne Purnell
Hi Anne,
Are you sure they came from Oakland? I was born and brought up in the parish of
Mynyddislwyn (Monmouthshire) and I've never heard of such a place. I do know
about OAKDALE though, as that's where I was born.
In the 1920's and 30's it was a rapidly expanding village because of the
recently sunk coal mine. Families were moving there from all over the place,
(including my own parents,) most of them were miners and their wives.
To cope with the influx there was an enormous amount of house building going
on, which might account for "New Houses" in your ancestors' address. The
nearest small town is BLACKWOOD and the Ordnance Survey map reference for
Oakdale is ST 185 985
Please e-mail me if you'd like to know more.
Cheers,
Glyn Hale
--
HALE FAMILY HISTORY Website at
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