Jenkins from Pontypridd

Jenkins family a1920 Pontypridd Wales

Today I started delving into the Jenkins family history.  I had been in touch with a cousin about two years ago. 

She had comprehensively been recording information about my maternal grandfather's family since she was a child. 

So Rebecca had sent me some information and promised more but with the birth of her child never got around to it.

So I decided to follow it up with her again today by sending her and my other cousin Charlie a reminder email and to make a possible time to learn more about the family. 

She gave me some more notes on the family on the condition that if I publish information the source is cited.

Charlie's mother was my grandfather's sister to my grandfather and my mum's first cousin. He knows quite a lot about the Jenkins family being of age to know Kathleen and John Jenkins his grandparents my great grandparents.

So the reason why I don't know much about the family is my grandfather Tom Jenkins died of cancer when I was three years old.  It has been a real loss to the family.  I have virtually known nothing about his side of the family and only a few times met Charlie King who likes to keep in contact with us which is great.  I mainly saw my maternal grandmother's family but not my grandfather's.  We were a little disjointed that way, and Nanna was so close to her sisters so thats all she seemed to keep in contact with throughout the years.

It was a lovely surprise for Charlie to phone me tonight.   We had a nice chat and he told me an old story about the family.  We made a time to meet on the 11th April to talk about the family history and have lunch.  Something to look forward to.

He managed to tell me a story about the family.

The family lived on Maritime Street in Pontypridd Wales in the Rhondda Cynon Taff (link to google map) around 1910+. The street was named after one of the mines in the area.  These places were built for the mines employees.  John Jenkins worked in the mines.  He was a miner.  There are no mines opened these days and one stays open for tours. 

John Jenkins had quite a knowledge of mining law, and he fought for a year, and at the end a satisfactory result of striking due to his effort.  The family were starving because of this.  John had a cousin living in the mountains so he walked there to see if his cousin could give him food like cheese and bread.  They had a family of four-five children to feed. 

There are other relatives living in Brigend South of Cardiff and the sea but it very hard to track them because there are a lot of Jenkins in the phone book. 

John Jenkins father was a builder. 

Gran Jenkins came from County Cork in Southern Island with her brother.  Their parents died, so they were sent to an orphanage in Wales.  If you were poor Irish you were dependant on the charity of the church.  Life was tough.

It is amazing to hear this story about the family's hardship. Life was tough. Working in the mines and your family starving. Being a child orphan too would have been very difficult. They were lucky to survive this, and even more lucky to find a good life in Australia.

What a great start for learning more about the Jenkins family. I am eager to learn more about my maternal grandfather's family.


Websites of interest

Pontipridd History - http://webapps.rhondda-cynon-taff.gov.uk/heritagetrail/big_anthem_fawr/ponty_history.htm

http://www.pontytown.co.uk/history.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhondda

County Cork - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/County_Cork