All Blog Posts Tagged 'brookes' (7)

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They say that near Ferryside in Carmarthenshire there is the thirteenth century village of St. Ishmael, But it is rarely seen. That is because it is submerged in the bay. It isn’t clear why it disappeared. West Wales was a remote place and news didn’t often travel very far. Often the news never made the leap from Welsh into English. Often it was never written down. There is certainly no record of what happened. The local people say that it was swamped by an enormous tidal wave caused by a volcan… Continue

On Saturday I was out once again, meeting my public. This time it was Border’s in Cardiff, a shop in the old David Morgan building on The Hayes. It is a nice shop, large and busy and I was certainly very well looked after by the staff, especially Vicki. However, promotion remains hard work. My grandmother was a hard working and successful market trader in South Yorkshire but I am afraid I don’t seem to have inherited her gifts. People out and about on a Saturday don’t want to be harassed; they j… Continue

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The facts of the story are simple. Charles Jeffreys, a gentleman of independent means. Prosperous. Had a big house called Gwynfryn near Aberystwyth. A county magistrate. He was sued by Evan Williams, a farm worker. 23 years old. The crime? A violent assault on 4 May 1870. You see, Jeffreys thought that Williams was a burglar and you can understand why, but he wasn’t. I better explain. Evan Williams was courting Sarah Williams, a housemaid in Jeffreys’ house. She invited her beloved to come to th… Continue

I spend a lot of my time rooting around the damp undergrowth of the internet, like a pig looking for truffles. Sometimes you find them and sometimes you don’t. And sometimes you can pick up a faint scent. Often it is fascinating stuff but it doesn’t really lead anywhere. You know there is a story there,but you just haven't got enough material. Details have slipped through the fingers of history. A gravestone is the most important item. There is no point having a story but having no headstone. Th… Continue

We went to Anglesey to carry out vital research. Well actually it is more accurate to say that we went to enjoy ourselves. Graveyards can be an unattractive proposition when it is raining but in the pleasant weather we had, it was very nice to stroll around and read the messages our ancestors had left for us. It may have been February but it was dry and the countryside around us was pleasant, with a definite hint of spring. The roads were clear and the towns and villages slowly emerging after th… Continue