Courtney Family History
The Tomlins family of Pontypool
I begin with a word of caution: researching the Tomlins family is complicated because through time their surname has been
mangled by the parish clerks and registrars who have written down, often erroneously, the surnames they have heard from folk
who couldn’t spell their name and therefore were not in a position to correct the entry. So, in the records we find the following:
Tomlin, Tomlins, Tomblin, Tomblins, Tomblings, Tumblin, Tumblins, Tamplin, Tomline, Tumlyn and even Fomblin - and
probably other versions that remain unspotted. The good news is that Tomlins was an uncommon name in Wales in the early
nineteenth century.
Having got that off my chest, this is an overview of what I believe took place in around 1818. Two relatives (I believe they were
brothers), William and George Tomlins, left their home at Newland, Gloucestershire in the Forest of Dean to work in the South
Wales coalfields. In 1822 and 1820 respectively, they took wives at Pontypool (which was in the parish of Trevethin). William
Tomlins was Susan’s greatx4 ancestor. From him a Tomlins dynasty was quickly established in the area. In 1908 it was reported
in the Pontypool Free Press that ‘his descendants in this district are a numerous body’. This is hardly surprising as William had
seven children before his premature death in 1845 and one son alone produced eleven children by two wives.
Establishing a link between William and George Tomlins
When trying to prove a link between William and George Tomlins the first exhibits are their marriage certificates from the
Trevethin parish register. Bear in mind that there was no Tomlins presence noted at Pontypool until these weddings.
Note that William Tomlins was a witness at George’s wedding.
Secondly, William named a son, George. The choice of Christian names
often reflects kinship as other earlier family members have that name.
The third exhibit is not so conclusive: both eschewed the Anglican
Church, preferring non-denomination chapels. George had two daughters
baptised at Varteg Hill Weslyan Chapel (right) and William not only had
children baptised at Ebenezer Chapel, Pontnewynydd, Pontypool but also
was himself a superintendent at the chapel.
The Varteg Chapel is now a Community Centre and a few years ago Susan
and I attended a social occasion there. This photograph was taken: I am
in the foreground chatting to Susan’s aunt, Vera Reader. To my left is
another aunt, Joyce Holmes. behind us is Robert Courtney. We were all
blissfully unaware of the relevance of this building to their family history.
The next step is to attempt to find George’s origins. He and his family were the only Tomlins noted in the Pontypool area
when the 1841 census was taken, living at Pentwyn. Beside his name is a note that he was 40 years old (which means he was
aged 40 - 44 because the ages were rounded down for this census) and a ‘N’ which indicates that he was not born in the county
of Monmouthshire.
This was only baptism of a George Tomlins in Gloucestershire (at Newland in the Forest of Dean) +/- five years of 1791:
I believe that this entry should be ‘son of George and Elizth’ because: 1) There is no marriage of John to Elizabeth in
Gloucestershire around this time. 2) There were no other baptisms to John and Elizabeth recorded. If true, George and William
were brothers. There were six baptisms of a William Tomlin + or - ten years of 1795 in Gloucestershire. They included two at
Newland. in 1795 and 1800 (written 10 January 2020). I believe one of these was Susan’s ancestor. His age when he died in
1845 will identify the correct William, and therefore his parents who were also Susan’s ancestors. (See important
postscript below)
Above, is the baptism record of George’s daughter, Maria. Note that it provides the date of her birth and baptism; her mother’s
parents, her father’s occupation and where the family was living - all useful details to have when tracing genealogy.
Grtx4 grandparents: William and Mary (nee Watkins) Tomlins
We know little of William’s life - other than that he was a collier, employed when he died at the Jack Pit Colliery which appears
to have been one of the British (a district near Talywain) Collieries, which were later known as the Abersychan Collieries.
He and Mary were living at Pentrepiod in 1833 and 1836. They had seven known children, most of whom were baptised at
Ebenezer Chapel, Pontnewynydd. Many of the entries show William’s abode, his occupation and his wife’s maiden name. I have
scoured the 1841 census for the Trevethin parish, but cannot find an note of this family.
Amazingly, there is an account in a newspaper of 1908 of how William died in 1854 - more than fifty years earlier. It is
included among the reminiscences of an old collier.
Of George Tomlins
Without going into too much detail of George’s life, I’ll mention his family and that according to the 1851 census, he was living at
Abersychan and had switched occupations - now he was working as a labourer in an iron works - likely the large, sprawling
British Works opposite Talywain Church.
In November 1839, there was the last large-scale armed rebellion against authority in Britain when the Chartists marched on
Newport in Monmouthshire. George was involved in this. At the trial (which resulted in the ring leaders being hung, drawn
and quartered), George was mentioned:
As a result of George’s actions, he was charged with ‘unlawfully and riotously assembling and conspiring together’ and found
guilty of ‘riotously assembling’. He was dealt with leniently, being placed ‘under recognizance for good behaviour for five years.
I have hunted for a report of this tragedy in the newspapers of 1845, but have not found a reference to it. However, William’s
death was registered in the June Quarter of 1845 - so his workmate was correct. And as we will see, his widow was described as
an annuitant in later censuses which suggests she received income as a result of her husband’s death - perhaps from a Friendly
or Benevolent Society into which William had paid a regular amount or a fund set up for her by the miners themselves or maybe
from the colliery owners.
The 1851 census notes Mary as still living at Pentrepiod with her daughters Gwenllian and Mary (see below). Unusually for a
working class widow, she was said to be a land proprietor - which indicated that she owned some land. She possibly acquired
this property using monies she received following her husband’s death.
Over the next thirty years, Mary remained at Pentrepiod - the 1861 census noted her as living on Pentrepiod Road - with
various family members as company. She is finally seen in the census of 1881:
Mary died at Pentrepiod on 21 March 1887. She had sufficient assets to justify making a will - although her estate was valued at
£12 13s 0d. Her executors were Edmund Jones (School Attendance Officer) and John Davies (Machine Man).
John and Susannah (nee Jenkins) Tomlins
John had two wives and eleven children - who included Susan’s direct ancestor, Martha
Tomlins (Susannah’s daughter, who married John Williams). He spoke both English
and Welsh.
The family settled at Cwmfrwddoer for a time but in 1881 they were at Pentrepiod; 1891
at 3 Sawtells Square, Pentrepiod (which was set back from the top of Chapel Road and
had two rooms) and 1901 at 2 Rose Terrace, Pontnewynydd (right) - which was part of
Chapel Road and just up the road from Ebenezer Chapel.
John was a coal miner most of his working life until 1901 when he was a parish road
man.
Their daughter Elizabeth was blind. She placed this advertisement in the local paper in
1895:
In 1853, John aged thirty-one, had an accident on the way to work. He
survived - but it may explain why he walked with a stick almost forty years
later in 1892 (see report, right).
PS Benjamin Higgs was a twenty-one-year-old coal miner from Union
Street, Abersychan..
In 1891, Sarah (pictured right) was brought before Pontypool magistrates:
Also in 1892, John showed a sense of humour - and that he wasn’t going to
be cowed by authority:
In 1908, the continued Tomlin association with Ebenezer Chapel was confirmed at their bazaar. Josiah and Alfred Tomlin were
on the executive committee; Mrs J Tomlin was caring for the sewing class; Elizabeth Tomlin helped with the refreshments and
Herbert Tomlin was in the parcel office.
Josiah Tomlin was living at Rose Terrace in 1905. An A (Alfred?), D and E Tomlin played rugby for Pontypool teams around
1907.
Josiah Tomlin (born 1877, and still working underground) was living with his wife at 2 Rose Terrace in 1939. Who knows how
many descendants from William and George are living in the area today!
The 1851 census of Abersychan provides more information (see below). George was born in Gloucestershire in 1791/92.
Valerie Addicott in her book Gwenllian - Her
Story mentions Sarah three times. She refers to
her as ‘Grandma Tomlins’ - but note that it was
John’s first wife, Susannah, who was Gwenllian
and Martha’s grandmother.
Sarah was present at Martha’s wedding to John
Williams and supplied a ‘big white tablecloth
used for weddings and funerals’ for the
wedding breakfast.
Then, in 1891/92, Valerie writes of Grandma
Tomlins’ visits to Martha Williams (nee
Tomlins) - the last time finding her with her
baby, Gwenllian, but ill.
Postscript: establishing William Tomlins date of birth to trace his parents
If one refers back to what was written earlier about the need to discover William’s year of birth in order to know his parents, I
have today (17/1/2020) received his death certificate. It was issued by a coroner and stated that William died on 22May 1845 at
Abersychan aged 49 years. The cause of death was, “Burns accidentally received by an explosion in a coal pit”.
If accurate, this means that he was born in 1795/96. If the theory expressed above about his being born at Newland,
Gloucestershire was correct, I expected that he was born in either 1795 or 1800 because William Tomlins were baptised there to
two different sets of parents. That this prediction was true is another exhibit in the case that William came from Newlands -
and now, as we know the identity of his parent’s (ie George and Elizabeth Tomlins), we can continue to trace Susan’s ancestors.
Of Newland, Gloucestershire
Newland was a large parish (8,797 acres) in the Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire, situated on the east side of the River Wye and
therefore the England/Wales border. It is three miles south-east of the county town of Monmouth and fifteen miles north-east
of Pontypool. It’s main town was Coleford. Villages within the parish include Newland itself, Clearwell (with its castle, where
our daughter married) and Redbrook. Berry Hill is a village a mile and a half north of Coleford - Berry Hill includes the
settlements of Five Acres to the east, Christchurch in the centre, Shortstanding to the north, and Joyford to the north-east.
Newland’s parish church was All Saints (shown above).
The photographs show the topography of Newland - rolling hills; some forestry and a patchwork of fields. But it was what lay
beneath the soil that shaped much of Newland’s history - iron ore and stone. So, in addition to farming, its main industries were
mining (in addition to mining iron, there were coal mines, such as those at Berry Hill, stone-quarrying and tanneries - while its
many mills supported iron and copper works; and later the manufacture of tinplate.
In 1710 there were about 2,200 people living in the parish, a third of whom were residing in Coleford. A century later and the
population was around 3,050. There was a Tomlins/Tomblins presence in Newland parish in the seventeenth century - the
earliest mention there was a baptism in 1562 and there are thirteen baptisms recorded in the Newland parish registers in the
late seventeenth century together with a handful of wills. The family became established there by the mid-eighteenth century.
Modern-day listings of burials at All Saints, Newlands include several Tomlins.
One interesting discovery is the place name Tomblins Ditch in the 1851 census in the Berry Hill district. It was part of the
enumeration district that comprised Joyford, Joyford Hill, The Lonk, Tomblins Ditch, The Mire, Speedwell Pit, Hawthornes
and Hawthornes Tump. It has been suggested that “The Tomlins that are turning up born around 1815 are involved in lime
burning using kilns. English Bicknor has a lime heritage and Joyford/Berry Hill are linked to this. Perhaps Tomblins Ditch (ie
bank ?) is a reflection of historic lime extraction and burning (?) by the Tomlins family.” William Tomlins, Susan’s ancestor’s
father, was living at Joyford when he died in 1832.
A frustrating aspect of this is that although we know the area in which the Tomlins family lived, their occupations are not
mentioned in the parish registers - although a visit to Gloucestershire Archives may reveal more information The only definite
information about their jobs is that both William and George (who moved from Berry Hill, Coleford to Pontypool) were
coalminers. British History mentions that, “Coal mining continued in the north and east parts of Coleford from the 17th
century. In the east a mine, known in 1735 as Gentlemen Colliers, included a working pit at Littledean, Lane End near
Broadwell in 1835. (William’s mother was living at Lane End when she died.) At that time there were also working coal mines in
the Poolway and Berry Hill areas.
That the two Tomlins brothers should move the fifteen miles (as the crow flies) to Pontypool from Coleford is not a great leap of
faith. There were known connections between the towns - which included the literal connection of the the Coleford, Monmouth,
Usk & Pontypool Railway. This was built in 1853 to help with the transportation of iron ore to Pontypool and Blaenavon.
British History also notes that there were lime kilns around Berry Hill which “supplied much lime to Monmouthshire in the
later 18th century”.
William and Maria Tomlins
Aside from their baptised children, little is known about William and Maria from the available records - except that they were
living at Coleford when they had their children. Their date of birth is estimated and there is no record of William’s baptism.
There are two Tomlins (of Newland) wills from around this time but there is nothing to tie them with ‘our’ William.
Henry and Anne (nee Wintle) Tomlins
There is a possible sighting of Henry in 1785 when a conveyance of a four-acre field at Newland (next to Grove; next to Hight
Beoys) was said to be ‘late in the tenure of Henry Tomlins’. He was living at Coleford when his children were born.
George and Elizabeth (nee Hinder) Tomlins
George’s first wife, Ruth, died less than a year after their marriage - possibly during the delivery of their first child. He
re-married less than four years later. The family lived at Berry Hll - a mile to the north of Coleford. When they died in the 1830s
George was said to be living specifically at Joyford and Anne, at Lane End. These were districts within Berry Hill (note the
earlier comment about the activities associated with Berry Hill). Both were buried at Holy Trinity, Christchurch, which was the
nearest church to their home.
Burial
