William Lewis Parry (1861 - 1912)

Born 22 Oct 1861 in Cefn Coed y Cymmer, Vaynor, Breconshire, Wales

Ancestors

Husband of Margaret (Thomas) Parry — married 9 Jan 1886 (to 16 Jan 1899) in Register Office, Merthyr Tydfil, Glamorgan, Wales, United Kingdom

Husband of Mary Anna (Lewis) Shepherd — married 12 Apr 1901 in Provo, Utah, Utah, United States

Died 23 May 1912 at age 50 in Lake Shore, Utah, United States

Biography

William LEWIS' birth was recorded at the registration office of the sub-district of Merthyr Tydfil in the Counties of Glamorgan and Brecon on December 20, 1860, by his mother, Gwenllian LEWIS. The place of residence is listed as Upper Cefn, Vaynor parish, and the date of birth is recorded as "Nineteenth November 1860." William always reported his birth date to be October 22, 1860. (The discrepancy could be explained by the fact that a fine was assessed if a child's birth was not recorded within 30 days.) The document was signed with an "X" by Gwenllian, and no father's name is recorded.

Cefn Coed y Cymer (pronounced "kevvenn-koid-a-kum'mair") is a village located just north of Merthyr Tydfil. It is geographically within the borders of Breconshire and the eccliastical parish of Vaynor, but is most often listed as a civil sub-district of Merthyr Tydfil, Glamorgan. As are most Welsh place names, Cefn Coed y Cymer is descriptive: Cefn = ridge, Coed = woods/wooded, and Cymer = confluence; hence "the wooded ridge at the confluence of the rivers."

Prior to the 1840s Cefn Coed was a typical village of farmers, but things changed rapidly with the industrialization of Wales. It became a "boom town." In response to the coal mines and iron manufacturing in the area, people came from other villages to find work, including Gwenllian LEWIS' parents, David and Elizabeth. They were born in the neighboring county of Carmarthenshire, in the parishes of Myddfai (muth'-vey) and Cil-y-cwm (kil'-u-koom), where their ancestors can be traced for many generations. David LEWIS and Elizabeth DAVID were married in Carmarthenshire 1833 and had two children born to them there: William in 1834, and David in 1836 who died as an infant. Sometime between 1836 and 1841 they moved to Cefn Coed where three more children were born: Gwenllian in 1841, David in 1846, and John in 1854. David, the father, was an ironworker for the rest of his life, and the family lived in several different rented row houses which had been built especially for workers.

Sources

• [1] http://www.venitap.com/Genealogy/Histories/WLParry/wlparry.html
• Parry Family History
• Nightingale Family History