Wool And Wine

        Circumstances surrounding the family frequently influence the activities of the day. For over 100 years my Jones surname ancestors seem to keep their activities in one general area of the earth. [See posts of August 28, September 10, July 29 and, most recently 2nd September.]

       Having managed life on both sides of Offa's Dyke for many generations, wool and cattle, along with lead and salt, seemed some of the activities that kept the home fires burning. Llwyn-Ynn was the grazing side of the fence and, Llwyn-Onn was the get things ready for the world that would continue to need such items.

       Seward in his book states in the 1330s that England was, "...a poor little country whose wealth was its wool" (p.25). On page 31 he goes on to state, "The Flemish were the cloth-makers of Europe and depended on English wool".  At the same time, he notes that Bordeaux "...owed its prosperity to the English connection..." and that, "...wine flowed into England in such quantities as to make it cheap for all save the poorest..." (p. 23). It would certainly seem like a few pints might be a good idea after the Black Death! Wool for wine, who would have thought such a thing to keep folks going along the branches of the family tree? " Wool and Wine"... it was!    

       For Desmond Seward's book, see post August 3, 2023 and February 5, 2023.  A map on page 265 shows the geographic location of Bordeaux (France) and its relationship to England. It was considered an English possession in 1337.              

Neighbors In Time

        Circumstances that surround the family tree will blow from various angles. In many different ways, shapes, and forms, they will often strengthen or weaken the roots and its branches. One example has been the neighbors that have blown their wills against the foundations of my own Jones surname family tree.

        Many of these folks appeared during the days of Edward I. (1272-1307 A.D.) [see post starting December 1, 2023...then December 9th and December 13th]. New "Marcher Lordships" these neighborhoods came to be called and, some of these neighbors maintained their connections for the next several hundred years. These "connections" provided a means to clarify the genealogical relationships between the very difficult years now being discussed. It was the Vale of Clwyd and the Vale of Dee that brought many of those brick walls well known by all those genealogists out there!

       Reginald de Grey came to occupy Ruthin September 1277 and, received the cantref of Dyffryn Clwyd which contained my own Jones surname land of Llwyn-Ynn [see post April 29, 2024]. His family-maintained claims to these lands for many years to come causing all kinds of winds blowing among the branches!

         Likewise, the surname Fitzalan took claim to much of the land around Oswestry, Chirk, and Bromfield & Yale to my side of the family in the Vale of Dee. These folks took the title "Earl of Arundel" and had much to do with the family around the time of the "Black Death" of 1350s. Richard Fitzalan became Earl of Arundel 1353. 

        Anyway, these families can be discovered in the detailed and informative text by John E. Morris, mostly chart V and several other pages, p.33, p. 63, p. 144, p.178, p. 272 and p. 277, [presented post 3rd December, 2023]. Neighbors in time they certainly were.

Pieces Of The Puzzel

        Family trees contain many items to be discovered. Frequently, putting all the pieces together may seem a daunting task. The post of August 16th gave some examples of added information accruing during this period of my Jones surname family tree. Maternal surnames, geographic locations, identical first names being repeated were a few such items. The following scan places some of these past items in what could be called a "big picture".

         World's End divides the two major locations of my family's activities which are shown by the black arrows drawn on the map. Llanfair- Dyffryn Clwyd, just below Ruthin, and Wrexham located to the East, are connected by a road running north along the border of "World's End"! It certainly might have seemed so during this period of time. 

       A thin red line outlines the biggest, and longest, ditch ever build in the area staring from around 750 A.D. called Offa's Dyke. Extending northward from Old Oswestry it bends a little, rounding World's End on the western side, and then, bending a little more, it passes the old home front Llanfair-Dyffryn Clwyd! A fence between the family for all these generations.

       Now the maternal sides of the family were also from around the same geographic areas, hugging the eastern side of that World's End. These locations are just south of the road connecting all our families. Bersham (x2) and, Rauabon are marked in green, joining our separate kindreds' hands during this stormy time. Can you picture it? Sort of like a purse string drawing us together.  

       These items of my family's story helped bridge the branches which were heading all kinds of way.  Deciphering and straightening the twisting branches much later in my own tree climbing. For a reminder, the next scan shows Llwyn-Ynn Hall from an old map. This becomes the branch of my Jones surname family yet to be discovered. [At the very middle of the page bottom of the scan.] The relationship to Llanfair Dyffryn Clwyd can be identified.

      The next scan shown the location of Llwyn-Onn on the other side of the ditch (Offa's Dyke). This became a second branch of the same family tree. East and West divided along a fence and held together by the grandmothers' branches. [Lower right-hand side written Llwyn Onn Hall (Hotel).]

       Note the difference in spelling.  The western side is spelled "Ynn" (Welsh) and, the Eastern side. (English) "Onn". All items were pieces of the puzzle.

P.S. From my childhood day's memories see post 7 December 2010!