Owen Thomas and Mary Williams

• We knew from Ann Thomas' birth certificate that her father was Owen Thomas, a mariner, and that her mother was Mary Williams.
  
• We searched the two possible marriages of an Owen Thomas and a Mary Williams in the marriage indexes for Anglesey. Only one of them makes sense, and shows them marrying on 28 Sep 1847 in Amlwch. The details fit with what we already knew. It also gives Owen's father as Thomas Owen, and Mary's father as William Williams.
  
• Clearly, Thomas Owen and Owen Thomas were using the Welsh patronymic system. It seems reasonable to assume, then, that Thomas Owen's father was called Owen.
  
• We found census records from 1861, 1871 and 1881 for Mary Thomas and daughter Ann, which shows Mary's date of birth around 1825-28.
  
• We also found a census record for Owen Thomas of Amlwch on board the "Fury". This, if correct, gives Owen's date of birth as around 1818.
  

Edwin Jones and Harriet, then Catherine

• We knew from John Jones and Mary Griffiths' 1895 marriage certificate that John's father was Edwin.
  
• Morgan Maelor-Jones mentioned that Maggie Jones had said that John was born in Minera or Coedpoeth".
  
• We then found an 1891 census record showing Edwin Jones, 53, with his wife Catherine, 45 and son John Jones, 28. Both Edwin and John were blacksmiths. They are living in Coedpoeth, near Minera, and we think this is a match.
  
• Also in Minera, in the 1881 census we see Edwin Jones, 43, with wife Harriett, 43, and children Mary Elizabeth, 21, John, 18, Edwin, 16, Ambrose, 10 and Margaret Ruth (8).
  
• If these two census records are of the same Edwin, then we presume that Harriett died between 1881 and 1891 and that Edwin married Catherine.
  
• Another 1891 census record indicates that Ambrose Jones had moved out by 1891 and was boarding in Coedpoeth. And this census record shows that Edwin junior was living in Coedpoeth with his wife Margaret Ann (nee Williams) of Brymbo (a couple of miles from Minera) and his two daughters Harriet and Louise, and Margaret Ann's brother John Edward Williams. The whereabouts of Margaret Ruth Jones and Mary Elizabeth Jones are not known.
  
• The points which suggest this is the right Edwin and the two census records are linked are (1) a Margaret Ruth Jones [presumably John's sister] is one of the witnesses to John Jones and Mary Griffiths' marriage, (2) John's first daughter was called Mary Harriet, possibly in memory of his late mother, (3) the ages on the census records are consistent, and tie in reasonably well with the marriage certificate.
  
• This marriage certificate shows Edwin, a blacksmith from Minera, marrying Harriet Evans.
  
• Harriet Jones' death certificate shows she died on 30th December 1883, aged 45, of cancer. Edwin was present.
  
• Harriet is shown in the 1881 census as having been born in the township of Esclusham Above, near Wrexham. The 1851 census record for Esclusham Above shows a Harriet Evans with her parents John and Mary Evans and two siblings. (Harriet's marriage certificate listed her father as John.) It seems likely that this is the same person.
  
• The 1851 census record for Minera shows Edwin Jones with his parents John and Elizabeth Jones and eight siblings. Again, the father's name corresponds with Edwin's marriage certificate, and this looks like our Edwin.
  

Henry Griffith and Mary Griffith, and Henry's parents

• From Harry Maelor Jones' birth certificate we knew that his parents were John Jones and Mary Jones, formerly Griffith.
  
• We had the marriage certificate of John Jones, age 30 and Mary Griffiths aged 27. This showed John's father as Edwin and Mary's as Henry Griffiths.
  
• We had census records for 1871, 1881, 1891 and 1901 that placed Henry, Mary and their daughter Mary together, initially in Llanllyfni and by 1901 in Liverpool. We judge that these census records match because of the birthplaces (Henry: Llandwrog [Llanllyfni in 1901], Mary senior: Llangian [Llanllyfni in 1901] and Mary junior: Llanllyfni).
  
• These census records are also linked to John Jones because the 1901 record shows Henry Griffith, Mary Griffith, John Jones and Mary Jones all living at the same Liverpool address.
  
• We searched the marriage index at FRC and found only one instance of a Henry Griffith marrying a Mary in Caernarvon within a plausible timescale allowing for the birth of Mary junior. This marriage record shows Henry Griffith aged 21, a quarryman, residing at Neuadd-ddu, his father being William, also a quarryman. He is marrying Mary Griffith, 25, residing at Pen Pelyn, her father being John Griffith, a gardener.
  
• We then find census records in 1841 and 1851 showing a Henry Griffith, born in Llandwrog, son of William (a quarryman) and Margaret. Henry is of the right age.
  
• Finally, we find a census record in 1871 showing William and Margaret Griffith with another son Robert. The address is Neuadd Ddu, Llanllyfni, which provides the link to the Henry Griffith and Mary Griffith's marriage certificate.
  
• From all this we derive Henry's parents' names (William and Margaret), their ages, places of birth and William's occupation as quarryman. We also derive Mary's maiden name (Griffith) and her father's name (John Griffith) and his occupation.
  
• We located a birth certificate for Henry Griffith, showing his birth date as 29th October 1840. The details seem correct - his father is William Griffith, a quarryman and his mother Margaret Griffith (formerly Williams). Birthplace is Llandwrog, which corresponds with his various census records, as does his date of birth. This is the only Henry Griffith registered at Caernarvon between September 1837 and December 1841.
  
• This allowed us to find William and Margaret's marriage certificate, and the names of their fathers Robert Griffith and Griffith Williams. This marriage certificate is the only one registered in Caernarvon at the time which tallies with what we know.
  
• The 1881 census record for Llanllyfni shows William Griffith and his second wife Ann. Significantly they are residing at Neuadd Ddu, which links this William Griffith to the 1871 census record which showed William and Margaret, and to the marriage certificate of Henry Griffith and Mary Griffith.
  
• We have the death certificate of Margaret Griffith in 1879 at 56 years old, which gives the Neuadd Ddu address. We also have the marriage certificate of William and his second wife Ann in 1880, citing Neuadd Ddu again.