Hi Cuz! :-)
That's neat to find a connection! The Gibby's seem to have been very
close to the Richards. We have a number of letters written in London,
England, from 1934 through the 1940's by Edith Gibby to Richard Richards
(James Richards' son). If you would like, we'd be more than happy to send
you copies of them. They are very interesting-- full of family news and
talking a lot about WWII, which was happening all around her. She also
mentions a sister in Seattle who had five kids, and some other relatives who
were in Wales. We also have some letters written by William Richards
(Uncle Billy), who was James Richards' son, to Richard Richards (also James
Richards' son, and the one I am descended from!), some letters from a man
named Gwyn in 1937, and he was obviously a cousin- any idea how he was
connected, or who he was?? If you'd like copies of those, let me know. :-)
So, if I have this right, your Grandmother was one of Jane (Richards) and
Thomas Evan's daughters, and she married a Gibby-- am I correct?? And that
was a double connection between the families, since Thomas' sister Martha
Evans married James Richards, right? Hmmmmm!! We have Jane Richards listed
as marrying John Evans- must have mixed the names! We have a picture of
James Richards and his wife Martha Evans Richards. They are really a cute
couple!! Do you know much about the family beyond James and Jane Richards? I
know their parents were Richard and Jane Richards, but we have almost no
information on that Jane- just that she was the Mother. Any idea what her
maiden name was?
My Mom lived in Washington when she was growing up, and says she
remembers visiting some Abbey cousins, and remembers that they had a moon
rock on their table, which fascinated her no end! Do you or any of your
family remember a Lloyd W. Richards?? He is my Grandfather, and was
stationed on Whidbey Island for awhile (he was in the Navy). His wife was
Joy Richards, and they had four kids, one of whom was my Mom, Holly.
That ring any bells? :-) We also have a copy of a picture of a George
Abbey, who was in charge of Flight Crew Operations (something like that--
I'm not much good at the technical names I'm afraid....), walking with one
of the members of the space shuttle. Any connection there?? And we have some
letters written by a Sam Abbey at the address: 505 N. 71st St. Seattle, WA
in 1940, and a letter written by a Brenta Abbey from Edmonds, WA, if you'd
like copies of those.
That is neat that you were able to find some cousins in Wales!!! I
thought we had some still there, but wasn't sure who or where they were. Do
you suppose any of them would be at all interested in corresponding with us?
And you get to go meet them in May? As my friend says, "I'm pink with
envy!!!" That sounds like a lot of fun! It may not be any help, as you
might already know it all, but FWIW we have a lot of place names, farm
names, school names, parish names, etc., if you would like those.
If you'd like to talk, my phone number is (541) 929-6450, or I can call
whenever it's conveniant for you. I was hesitant to try, since I wasn't sure
when you'd be likely to be home, or what hours you like to keep. Or if you
prefer to e-mail, that's fine with me too. :-) I'm in Philomath, which is
about a ten minute drive from Corvallis. We lived for about three or four
years on Vashon Island, and I can remember looking out my window at night
across the water to Seattle. I loved watching the city lights, because I
could make them look like fireworks (okay, I'm nearsighted-- could be why
they looked like that!!) Very small world indeed!!
Anyhow, I've got to get to bed, but I was really glad to hear from you!!
And I'd love to swap info. :-) LMK if you want those copies!
Hope you have a great day!
God bless,
Shyanne Sullivan
shyanne(a)clansullivan.com