Nuts From the Family Tree: Surname Saturday: Back to Williams from Wales

We're back in the 3rd great grandmothers, having already covered the earlier grandmothers and a bunch of the grandfathers in previous posts using one of my favorite blogging prompts from GeneaBloggers called Surname Saturday! I like this one because I get to reacquaint myself with one part of the family tree and cover ground that's both familiar as well as unfamiliar. That's very useful. And last week I found another cousin! Yippee!

This week we turn our attention to another one of the families who had their roots deep in Wales, the Williams people, but possibly another line of this surname... or not.

This line might be related to the main branch of Williams ancestors because, as you'll see below, Jane James' mother was Elizabeth Williams before she married Daniel James. And her own Williams family lived right close to her husband, Thomas Williams' family in Cardiganshire, Wales. One can't help but connect the merry dots in ones head about that, even without proper documentation!

Let me say that we know what we do about the Williams family, and we're lucky to have that, only because Mom went to Wales years ago.
So in hopes of finding yet another cousin out there googling about the Williams and James lines, here's the line-up... and you'll notice that it looks remarkably similar to last weeks post because we're again talking about the Williams people, but this time without the Edwards family as a side dish:)

1. Diane Kelly Weintraub

2. Francis Patrick "Pat" Kelly (1916 - 2007)
3. Virginia Williams, living and loving it!

6. Cambria "Camey" Williams (1897 - 1960)
7. Emma Susan Whetstone (1897 - 1956)
They had 5 children in all:
3. Virginia, that's Mom
Dorothy Williams Conrad (1920 - 2007)
Evelyn Williams (1921 - 1924)
Margaret Williams (1926 - 1926)
Cambria Williams Jr. (1925 - 1997)

12. Daniel Williams (1852 - 1920)
13. Jane Price (1862 - 1939)
Daniel was born in Strata Florida, Cardigsnshire, Wales. He worked as a collier or coal miner, as his father had, in Wales, immigrated, then moved to the George's Creek Coal Mine Field in Western Maryland, one of the richest veins of coal at the time. Jane was born in Mount Savage, Allegany County, Maryland, just over the hill from where Daniel worked, but her family came from Wales as well. Daniel was a supervisor at the mines and well respected and elected to the school board.
They had 8 children:
James Henry Williams 1882 - 1936)
William Williams (1884 - 1964)
Benjamin Williams (1896 - 1896)
Thomas Williams (1890 - 1951)
Dianna Williams (1892 - 1893)
Joseph Williams (1895 - 1948)
6. Cambria Williams (1897 - 1960), that's Mom's Dad
Charles Williams (1899 - 1979), that's Aunt Betty's Dad

24. Thomas Williams (about 1815 - 1868?)
25. Jane James (about 1815 - ?)
Both Thomas and Jane were born in Strata Florida, Cardigsnshire, Wales. Thomas was a collier or coal miner as were a number of his sons. It is presumed that Thomas died about 1868, possibly in Lampiter, Cardiganshire, Wales. The death record is inconclusive as to confirming identity.
Jane is found in the 1870 Wales Census in Llangattock, Breckenshire, Wales. Interestingly, she's living next to a woman, a widow, by the name of Dianah James, a green grocer.
From there on her life is a mystery. It is presumed that she immigrated and lived, possibly with a daughter or son, in Upstate New York... because we have that photo of her.
They had 7 children:
Elizabeth Williams (24 Oct 1841-?)

David Williams (22 May 1844-?)

Jane Williams (4 Oct 1846-?)
Thomas Williams (25 Mar 1851-?)
12. Daniel Williams (1852 - 1920)
John Williams (Nov 1853-?)
William Williams (23 Jan 1865-?)

50. Daniel James (30 Dec 1792 - 14 Aug 1881)
51. Elizabeth Williams (1788 - Mar 1877)
Both members of this lovely couple were born and died in Cardiganshire, Wales, mostly in and around Strata Florida. They had these children:
25. Jane James (about 1815 - ?)
Elizabeth James ( 1819 - ?)
Ann James (1820 - ?)
David James (1827 - ?)
Mary James (1823 - ?)

There ya' go. End of the line. Tracks run out. That's too bad and now that I've got this all lined up I can see that the census returns could be examined for any trace of Daniel James in Wales from the 1841 time period on. I wonder if he too was a miner as were so very many of his descendants down to Mom's grandfather Williams.

This couple stayed put in Strata Florida, Cardiganshire, Wales throughout their lives and that's where I'd expect to find them in any local records too. I could also look in the Welsh BMD returns for their deaths and order up the death certificate. Yes, there's work to be done here!

Photos from Aunt Betty's Archive: