Hello Loretta
I think you are going to have difficulties. I have just taken a look and
the Pembrokeshire 1871 shows many tinkers, no one with the name Rafferty
though. Although it does show some tinkers in Llanfyrnach on a farm, names
unknown, places of birth unknown. As you say either they were not very
forthcoming with details or maybe the enumerator did not want to cross the
fields.
Sylvia
.................................................................
Pembrokeshire Census, Memorials, Hearths
and Orielton CD's at
www.cenquest.co.uk
----- Original Message -----
From: <wales-gen-request(a)rootsweb.com>
To: <wales-gen(a)rootsweb.com>
Sent: Thursday, July 26, 2007 8:05 AM
Subject: WALES-GEN Digest, Vol 2, Issue 21
Today's Topics:
1. RAFTERY/RAFTREE - Irish gypsies or tinkers in Wales
(Thomas Family)
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Message: 1
Date: Wed, 25 Jul 2007 18:56:46 +1000
From: "Thomas Family" <lth55007(a)bigpond.net.au>
Subject: [WALES-GEN] RAFTERY/RAFTREE - Irish gypsies or tinkers in
Wales
To: <WALES-GEN(a)rootsweb.com>
Message-ID: <002d01c7ce99$bb6009e0$0100000a@home>
Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed; charset="iso-8859-1";
reply-type=original
Hi all,
I wonder if anyone knows anything about Irish Catholic tinsmiths (tinkers,
tinmen, gypsies) who moved to Wales? I've done Welsh research before for
my
husband's THOMAS/MORRIS families, but they were Welsh-born and I knew
specific locations - this is a different kettle of prawns altogether.
The family I'm looking for is RAFTERY; also spelled RAFTREE, RAFFTERREE,
RAFFERTY and various other versions. They seem to hail from counties
Roscommon, Mayo and Galway and are found in Welsh censuses as early as
1841,
right through to 1901. Living in tents and caravans (in houses in later
censuses), they are usually enumerated at the very end of a district -
when
they are enumerated at all. They must have had some pretty big hedges to
hide behind when Mr Census came along asking his personal questions...
Being travellers, they lived and had children all over Wales, although
Glamorgan seems to be one of the most recorded counties. I've read George
Borrow's "Wild Wales" which gives an insight into the times and
circumstances of some Irish migration to Wales, but I wondered if there
were
any records. Probably a bit hopeful on my part - they were Roman Catholics
according to a descendant, but their wandering lifestyle may not have been
conducive to registering births, deaths and marriages. As far as I can
gather from census records they kept to their small communities and stuck
close together. I've also looked at Romany and Traveller sites, but the
Irish gypsies are not connected to them in any way.
It's such a broad area and time frame that I don't know where to start,
and
hoped that maybe someone else had come across a similar problem and would
be
able to offer suggestions.
Many thanks,
Loretta
Melbourne, Australia
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