Hi Keith, Alwyn and fellow listers,
Thanks for replying. I have been keeping my powder dry for the last couple of
days because I didn't wish to pre-empt any replies.
Many families have myths or legends or half-hints dropped by relatives about
their roots. My wife is Spanish. Forty years ago when we went to visit a
blind, eighty year old aunt of my father's She told us that there was Spanish
blood in the family. Her grandfather or great grandfather was a Spanish
sea-captain who had got shipwrecked off the coast of Wales, settled here and married a
Welsh girl. True or false? I don't know, but I keep it at the back of my mind
as I dig away at family history. This lady had been born in Ffestiniog and,
since my father's family were slate miners/quarriers toiling away in Tanygrisiau
and such places,
I thought that my mythical ship's captain would have something to do with the
slate exporting ports like Porthmadog.
My aunt and her sister ELLEN ROBERTS (my grandmother) were born in
Ffestiniog. Their father EVAN ROBERTS was born in Penmachno CAE. His father THOMAS was
born in the same area and married an ELINOR from Llanfachreth MER. She was the
daughter of ROBERT ROBERTS and ELINOR. Robert Roberts came from Friog which is
very near the Mawddach estuary. Spanish ship-captain territory? I searched
the ' Meirionydd Index to Marriages 1754-1812 ' for the parish of Llangelynnin
MER, where I assume Friog is, and came up with Ann ANGEL. Angel is a Spanish
christian name so this could be ap Angel.
I found other angels in the parish and in Tywyn. Rather intriguingly, an EVAN
ANGEL of Ffestiniog (where my father came from) married a CATHERINE ROBERTS
in Maentwrog (where Margaret Jones the wife of Evan Roberts came from) in
1780.
Angel may be of patronymic origin for there is an ANGEL DAVID on IGI, Iin
Llangelynnin parish.
So now you know. Over to you...
Regards,Phil.