Famous Amlwch people
Over the years Amlwch has had a number of residents who's influenece has streched far beyond the local communities. The history of just some of these people is recorded below.
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William Williams VC
In 1917 William Williams was awarded the Victoria Cross for his
role in the sinking of a German submarine.
On 21 July 1917 an Anglesey seaman, William Williams, received the
Victoria Cross, Britain's foremost gallantry award. The citation on
the award read 'selected by the ship's company of one of H.M. ships
to receive the Victoria Cross under Rule 13 of the Royal Warrant'.
This vague citation led this and other similar cases to become known
as the 'Mystery VCs'. What lay behind it?
U-boats and Q-ships
During World War I (1914-18), the German Navy attempted to blockade
Great Britain, using its submarine (U-boat) fleet to cut off food
and vital supplies. One tactic used by Britain to trick the German
submarines was to use armed ships disguised as merchant ships. These
were know as 'Q-ships'. These ships went to great lengths to ensure
that they were attacked, in the hope that the submarine would then
surface and expose itself to the hidden guns of the Q-ships.
Williams served on several Q-ships and already held the
Distinguished Service Medal for his part in the sinking of a German
submarine in February 1917.
H.M.S. Pargust
Williams was awarded the Victoria Cross for his involvement in the
sinking of the German submarine UC-29. The crew of the H.M.S.
Pargust were seen to abandon their disguised Q-ship - complete with
a stuffed parrot in a cage - but unknown to the Germans, a small
number of men remained hidden on board.
For over 30 minutes, Seaman Williams held in place the starboard gun
port, its releasing weights having been freed by the torpedo's
explosion. His actions prevented premature exposure of the gun until
the moment came to open fire when the German submarine eventually
surfaced nearby.
The achievement of sinking UC-29 was recognized by the award of the
Victoria Cross to H.M.S. Pargust, the first time a ship had been
honoured under the Rule for rewarding an act of collective
gallantry.
One officer (Lieutenant R.N. Stuart) and one rating were elected by
the crew to receive the award. Williams, whose quick thinking and
strenuous effort had saved the day, was the rating.
His distinguished career held one more twist: on 8 August 1917,
H.M.S. Dunraven (Pargust's successor and another Cardiff ship) was
sunk off the French coast after a five-hour battle with another
submarine. Williams received a bar (second award) to his DSM for his
gunnery work on this occasion: his third gallantry award in under
six months!
William Williams was discharged from the Royal Naval Reserve in
November 1918. He settled in Holyhead and was a founder member of
the local branch of the British Legion. He died on 23 October 1965.
William Williams' medals. Left to right: Victoria Cross, Distinguished Service Medal with second award bar, Great War service medals (1914-15 Star, War Medal, Victory Medal), Defence Medal 1939-45, Coronation Medals (1937 and 1953), France, Médaille Militaire.
http://www.museumwales.ac.uk/en/rhagor/article/?article_id=61
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William Thomas
William Thomas was an Amlwch ship builder.
In 1870 captain William Thomas extended his ship building interests
by developing a new ship building and repair yard at the port of
Millom in Cumbria. In the same year he made an application to built
a vessel off 100 feet keel at the upper end of Amlwch harbour. This
vessel was the 79 ton schooner Lewis & Mary. Her maiden voyage was
to take Ochre from Dyffyrn Adda to Runcorn and to return with
phosphate from Bristol to be used in the Hills fertilizer works.
In May 1872 Captain William Thomas brought the ship yard previously
belonging to Nicholas Treweek. In the same year William Thomas built
the 119 ton schooner Holy Wath. Which in 1874 was followed by the
Cumberland Lassie ( at 230 tons the largest to be built at Amlwch at
that time) and the Baron hill two years later. In 1875 Thomas built
a pilot boat called the Mersey for the Liverpool pilot service. She
was a 110 ton sail schooner.
It was not until 1883 that the first small screw steamer was built
at Amlwch. She was the 180 ton W S Caine, which cost £5000.
Over the next 15 years many more vessels where built and launched at
the yard.
In 1887 William Thomas relinquished the control of the Millom yards
but continued to repair and build at Amlwch. Captain Thomas's eldest
son William Thomas a trained navel architect also began to influence
the design of ships built at the yard.
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Roland Puw
Miner credited with making the great discovery of copper at Cerrig Y Bleddia ( Mona Mine) on 2nd March 1768. He lived rent free in his cottage until his death 14/8/1786. Buried at St Eleths,Amlwch.
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Jonathan Roose
Jonathan Roose was the mining supervisor who's men first rediscovered ore in large quantities on 2nd March 1768. He divided his men up into a number of crews and set each to work digging in an area close to a stream.
The miner who discovered the ore was called Rowland Pugh. His prize for discovering the rich seam was a bottle of brandy , an annual "Chairing" and the right to live in a rent free cottage for the rest of his life.
Jonathan Roose remained at the mine for many years and was to supervise much of the work under Thomas Williams when the workings in the Great opencast were at there zenith.
He died on 6th February 1815 and his tomb stone can still be seen in the Parish Church at Amlwch.
The tome stone bears the following inscription which describes the work of the man.
Among the throng of congregated dead
Of kindred men who's spirit hence was spent
Has lived one who's mind had long to bear
A toilsome task of industry and care
He first yon mountain wondrous riches found
First drew it's mineral blessing from the ground.
He heard the miners first exhaulting shout
Then toiled for over 50 years to guide it's treasures out
The curse of time will soon this stone decay
His name his memory will pass away
Yet shall be left some monument behind
The mighty products of his mastermind
Those laboured mines which he fought to drain.
The tearful waters to the vale below
And pillared caverns whence to draw the ore
will long his genius shine
When known his name no more
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Thomas Williams
Thomas Williams was born 31/5/1737 at Llansadwrn in Anglesey to a
minor land owning family. He became a lawyer and was first used by
Edward Hughes in 1774 to try and untangle the legal disputes about
the boundary of the Parys and Mona lands.
Thomas Williams legal work led to the formation of the Parys Mine
company in 1774. With Jonathan Roose as his technical expert. Over
the next few years his influence and skills grew. He also formed
alliances and eventually also gained control of the Mona mine.
Between 1787 and 1792 his influence grew until he had complete
control of the Anglesey and Cornwall copper mines.
In 1778 a new company was also formed to extract brimstone from the
ores on the mountainside. Thomas had copper warehouses in London ,
Birmingham and Liverpool. He erected smelting works in coal fields
on South Wales and Lancaster. This was important as Anglesey coal
was poor for smelting and each tonne of ore needed 3 tonnes of coal.
He campaigned vigorously for the reduction in duty on coal carried
by coast to try and improve the smelting and pumping costs at the
mine.
Copper works were built at Flint and Penclawdd to make copper and
brass products. Many of these materials were for use in the African
Slave trade. Thomas invested £70,000 in this trade and petitioned
parliament in 1788 when a bill was being discussed to prevent
British Ships carrying slaves. He also introduced the use of copper
bolts to fix the copper sheeting to Navel vessels and seem to have
sold then to all sides in the naval conflicts.
Thomas Williams also introduced the Parys Mountain Copper coinage
which was used to pay his workers.
At Mona mine the old 21 year lease to Roe and co had expired in 1785
and a new company was formed. This was know as the "old" Mona Mine
company and was still confined to the Cerrig y Bleddia area. Thomas
William's became a partner in this new company when Bayly sold his
share to a London Banker. Under the Roe and co lease only the best
parts of the mines had been worked. Towards the end of the lease the
whole area had lacked investment and had poor facilities.
Under Thomas Williams direction new buildings were built at Mona and
a new quay built at Amlwch Port. Between 1785 and 1788 over £61,000
was invested in the Mona mine. This investment was well repaid over
the next 10 year as new areas were opened and the Zenith of the
combined mines production was reached. During these years 1200
people were employed at the two mines.
Thomas William's died in 1802 and over the next 5 years the
production of copper at the mines dropped dramatically. By 1808 only
120 men were employed. The rapid drop in production was partially
due to the end of the workable areas of the Open cast and partially
because of a reduction in the market for copper.
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James Treweek
James Treweek became the new Mona mine Manager in 1811 and moved
with his family to Mona lodge in Amlwch. He had a lot of experience
of mining in Cornwall and brought Cornish men and methods with him.
He was in charge of the mine and transport to and from the port. He
was also in charge of hiring and firing at the mine. This gave him
great power and lead to complaints of nepotism. He was responsible
for the setting of the price to be paid for each area of the mine to
be worked. These "bargains" were publicly set every fortnight with a
" Dutch auction" method being used. The lowest bidder getting the
work.
By 1828 Treweek was also in charge of the precipitation pits at the
mine and his control was extended to the operation of the Parys
Mine. A few years later he was in control of all aspects of smelting
at the mine and at Amlwch port and was also responsible for all
movement of shipping for the mine in the port area. He reported to
Sanderson who was Lord Uxbridge's estate manager.
One of his other duties was ensuring that sufficient coal and timber
was brought into the port during the summer months to enable the
mine to last over winter. In 1830 he advised Lord Anglesey on the
application for a concession on the duty on candles and timber which
was already given to the Cornish miners. He also secured a rebate on
the coal duty for the transport of coal to Amlwch.
He was responsible for paying the smoke trespass to the Curate of
Amlwch for the nuisance caused at the curate's residence by the
fumes from the smelting works. He also paid the " English duty" to
allow an English service to be held in the church each Sunday.
When Treweek came to Amlwch the smelters were only seen as a means
of concentrating the ore. Treweek saw there potential in there own
right. He paid particular attention to their development and even
started to bring in ores from other parts of the country to smelt
with the local ores. By 1820 the Mona mine had 16 smelter furnaces
and the Parys works 9. The output of each group of smelters was
around 350 tpa. As the production from Mona and Parys mines dropped
additional material was brought in form other parts of Britain. The
two master smelters at this time Rees and Morgan also reported to
him.
Treweek's influence in the Amlwch area went beyond the mine. He was
the election agent for Plas Newydd. He arranged all the big
occasions in the town and played host to the important visitors to
the area. In 1831 he arranged a dinner for 1400 people on the
mountain to celebrate the Coronation.
Treweek held control of all these aspects of mine operation until
his death in 1851.
His family then took control and were also influential in the Amlwch
ship building industry which developed in the middle of the 19th
Century.
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Robert Beaver
Point Lynas lighthouse
In 1779 a group of merchants built a house near Point Lynas for the
guidance of ships by placing lights in the windows. The first keeper
or Governer of this light was Robert Beaver. He was born in 1748 at
Aberfraw the son of John Beaver a schoolmaster. He went to sea at an
early age. By the age of 28 he was in command of his own ship. His
ship partially loaded with linen and other manufactured goods set
out on a voyage to the coast of west Afica.
This being a period of great prosperity for the slave trade. After
unloading his cargo he filled his ship with slaves and after an
absence of two years made the return voyage with a cargo of sugar
and cotton from the west Indies.
In 1778 at the age of 30 he was in command of a privateer. An armed
ship called Juno of 24 guns in the war against the French and
Americans. He later became the commander of the 28 gun "Hero". In
October 1782 he retired from the sea having captured more than 50
vessels as prisoners in 4 years and settles in Maes Llwyn a property
owned by his wife.
His wife was a daughter of Hugh Rowland Hughes. This man had 23
children, had been married 4 times and died at the age of 114 years.
At his funeral in Amlwch church were 84 of his offspring.
Robert Beaver was honoured as a hero of the sea and took up the job
of light keeper at Point Lynas. He later sold Maes Llwyn to John
Paynter who demolished and rebuilt the house when he became a ship
builder at Amlwch.
Robert Beaver's third son built Bryn Garth in the Menai Straits
which later became know as the Bishops Palace. (WM/1594/43)
(Hugh Beaver, An anglesey sea captain TAAS 1928)
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Cadi Rondol
On Wednesday, February 20th, 1828: James Webster, the proprietor of
the Parys Mountain sulphuric acid works, stands in the window of his
home, Fudrol, observing the huge funeral procession as it makes its
way to St. Eleth's Church; he is full of memories. It is the funeral
of Cadi Rondol, or Catherine Randal as recorded by the Rev. William
Johnson in the Amlwch parish register.
The Randal family probably came to Amlwch with the first wave of
immigrants to work on Parys Mountain between 1761 and 1775. Jane
Randal, Catherine's mother lived in Parc Bach near Glanrafon and was
buried on the 2nd September, 1794. Cadi Randell had been born in
1743.
It appears that there were two daughters: one, Ellen, married Henry
Wilson on October 18th, 1775 in the old parish church, when her
sister Cadi, was thirty two years of age. It is interesting to note
that Ellen was able to write her own name, and it is likely that
Cadi, too, was literate.
Whatever became of Ellen Randall and her husband, Cadi soon began to
kick over the traces in the licentious town of Amlwch; she became a
notorious prostitute, whose coarse language became a byword in the
town - it became customary to refer to anyone who habitually used
coarse language as 'swearing like Cadi Rondol' '
She could be violent, too, as John Jones (1762-1822) a elder at
Capel Mawr, found to his cost. He tried to calm her down as she was
cursing everyone in the street. Cadi turned on him and threatened
him - the very pillar of respectability - with a knife!
However, some time after 1788 Cadi Rondal was converted in the 'Capel
Mwd' at Pengraigwen and became a faithful member of the 'society' at
Lletroed Chapel, and tramped the countryside from chapel to chapel
to listen to the gospel.
On one occasion she walked to Llanfwrog and in her ecstasy jumped up
on the pew and wrecked it. Another time she suddenly remembered that
she had left the dough to rise, she grew agitated and shouted that
Satan would not leave her alone!
After her conversion she earned a living handling and sorting out
feathers, and was made welcome by many a family. At Fudrol, she was
invited into the dining room where the table was already laid for a
sumptuous meal but she declined to eat, saying "You see, 1 have seen
the Lord's table prepared and shall, 1 hope, sit at it.... "
Around 1800-04 she was employed as a maid in the service of John
Elias (1774-1841) and his wife at their shop in Llanfechell. When
John Elias rebuked her for singing a lullaby to his son and
suggested that a hymn would be more suitable, she replied, "Do not
imagine that 1 would sing a hymn to him -1 will not sing the praises
of my Lord to your son or anyone else."
According to a Plas Newydd rent book 'Catherine Randol' rented a
small cottage at Dyffryn Coch' for which she paid a rent of two
shillings to the Marquees of Anglesey - the lowest rent on the
estate.
Owen Griffith recalled a story about John Elias leaving Lletroed
Chapel with John Hughes of Ty'n Caeau to visit an old woman on her
deathbed - an incident immortalised by Percy Hughes (1898-1962) in
his prize-winning ballad at the Anglesey Eisteddfod in 1954
"Sion Huws a'i 'Haleliwia, A John Elias fawr,
Yn danfon Cadi Rondol Drwy berth y dwyfol wawr"
(John Hughes and his 'Hallelujah' with the great John Elias
Ushering Cadi Rondol through to the heavenly dawn.)
Her funeral was paid for by James Webster, but no gravestone was
erected to mark her final resting place. But with or without a
stone, the name of Cadi Rondol has not passed into oblivion.
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Alexander Fraser of
Lovat
The historical Scottish Alexander Fraser of Beaufort was of the
House of Lovat, the Fraser clan prominent around Loch Ness. He was
born around 1663 and was educated at Kings College, Aberdeen from
1678 to 1683. In 1689 he led a branch of the Fraser clan in the
Jocobite’s campaign against the King’s force.
In 1692, Alexander attended a ball where a bagpiper antagonised him
by playing the tune “ The biotag air Mac Thomas” which was
disparaging to the Fraser clan. In a fit of anger Alexander stabbed
and killed the piper. Because of this incident and his position as a
Jocobite leader, Alexander decided to flee his homeland.
Some controversy exists over these dates as according to some
reports Alexander was killed at the Battle of Claverhouse in
November 1689 and was buried at Kirkall. Other reports suggest that
the burial record was a cover for his flee from Scotland after
killing the piper a few years later.
Alexander Fraser was said to have been given sanctuary and
employment by the Marquis of Powys. Over the following year’s Fraser
became knowledgeable in his Lordship’s mineral interests and became
a prospector in both north and south Wales.
The Welsh Alexander Fraser is first recorded as working in the mines
of Penrhyn Du in 1733 He married in south Wales in 1738. If this was
the same Alexander Fraser as that born around 1663 he would have
been 75 years old.
In 1761 the Welsh Fraser persuaded Sir Nicholas Bayly to start to
prospect for copper at Parys Mountain. In 1762 with the assistance
of Jonathon Roose and Roland Puw a large quantity of ore was found
near Cerrig y bleddia This eventually lead to the development of the
Mona and Parys mines. At this time Fraser was said to be almost
illiterate and it is difficult to reconcile this with the years that
the Scottish Fraser is known to have spent at Aberdeen University.
Fraser was employed at the mines until his death in 1776. (Aged 113
?!) His sons continued to work at the mines.
The advanced age of marriage and death suggest the possibility that
two different Alexander Fraser were somehow involved in this tale.
From the time that copper was discovered until his death Fraser
remained in hiding in Anglesey. He did not pursue any claim to his
father’s estates, as he was still wanted for murder in Scotland.
Although it is said that local people new of his background and
often referred to him as Lord Lovat or Lord Fraser.
In 1761 a letter from William Morris and another from Robert
Griffiths in 1800 referred to him as Lord Lovat. It was recorded by
the Reverend Owen Jones that he first visited Amlwch in 1830 and was
told of “ a strange old gentleman working in the mines that everyone
said was a nobleman in disguise and a fugitive from justice. There
was something superior in his behaviour and he would never enter a
miner’s hut without taking off his hat”
Elizabeth Roberts was born in 1788 and in 1884 she recalled seeing
John Fraser as a superintendent in the iron pools. She always knew
him as Lord Lovat.
Even the Managers of the mine gave due regard to the Welsh Fraser.
Thomas Williams the mine manager is said to have shown respect when
some buildings in which Fraser was living were not destroyed during
mine development. It was also recorded that John Sanderson the
Marquis accountant and general manager agent used the title “My Lord
Fraser” and showed the man due respect. As did the chief mine
captain James Treweek. This respect was based on the attitude of the
marquis’s family itself. From the first records in 1733 to the court
case in the House of Lord in 1885 they supported the Welsh Fraser’s
claims.
The Welsh Fraser had four sons. His eldest, called John went to
Inverness in 1812 to try and progress his claim. The same claim was
pursued by successive generations until in 1885 John Fraser (IV) had
his case turned down in the House of Lords.
The House of Lord found it is difficult to reconcile the dates of
birth and deaths with the same man. One likely possibility is the
Welsh Fraser’s may have been descended from a, possible illegitimate
son, of the original Alexander Fraser of Lovat.
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Others associated with copper mining and ship building
| Name | Information |
| Bayley, Sir Nicholas | Landowner from Plas Newydd who owned the Mona Mine area and held part of the Parys mine in moiety with William Lewis. |
| Beer ,Thomas | Sanderson's successor as Chief Agent at Plas Newydd in 1851. |
| Bingley,Edward | Visitor to the mines in 1798 who left a good description of mine operation. |
| Boulton , Mathew | Entrepreneur from the Midlands who had a great influence on the industrial revolution. |
| Burke , Edward | Listed as Vitriol works manager in 1851 census. Born in Ireland. |
| Buzza ,William & George | Two brothers who were shown the best bargains in the mine by Trewen in 1863. This lead to a miners strike and the eventual resignation of Trewren. |
| Cartwright John | Bayley's mineral agent who on 13
Sept 1762 was paid £225/9/11 for 2 years and 11 months work in "reopening
the old works at parys mountain" (MMS 2242) He had arrived at the mines in 1760 from the Penrhyn Du mines in Caernarfonshire to view "old workings" which had been discovered by a John Owen. Cartwright was shown around by Alexander Frazier. Other English agents at this time were William Ledgey, William Elliot & William Carey. |
| Cockshutt ,Edwin | Local historian in the early part of the 20th Century. |
| Collins and Westward | Held patent for the production of copper bolts for copper sheathing of ships. |
| Champion , John | His company recovered Brimstone from the Parys mine ores on the mountain starting in 1778. He introduce vertical kilns to the mountain and later to the port. |
| Davies , Oliver | His excavations in 1937 on Surface mounds demonstrated the possibility of ancient mining activity on the mountain. |
| Davey , Capt.William | Together with James Treweek took over the day to day operation of the mines in 1811.Both were shareholders in the mine. |
| Dawes, John | With the end of the mining lease to Roe and Co in 1778, the Bayley family sold out their share of Mona Mine to John Dawes a London banker. He in turn became a partner with Thomas Williams who hence had control of both the Mona and Parys mines. |
| Dyer , Capt Charles Bunt (1803-31/3/1879) | Manager of the East Parys mining company which took over operation of the mine on 14/4/1858. He resided in Parys Lodge. Between 1857 and 1870 the Parys mountain Mining Company made a profit of £400,000 under Dyers management. Buried at Amlwch. Listed in 1851 census |
| Dyer , Charles L | Listed as mine agent in 1851 census |
| Edmund , Robert | Miner killed at Parys Mountain. Inquest report July 1776. Witnessess, Hugh Owen Coroner, William Griffith, Richard Jones, William Lewis, Evan Williams, John Morris, Andrew Paynter, Samual Elliot, Ben Hadsfield, Thomas Paynter, Morris Hughes. |
| Edwards Capt | Under Captain at Mona Mine during 1831. |
| Ellis , Griffiths (b 1768) | Held a minor administrative post in MM but was appointed as underground agent at PM in 1820. Listed as Retired mine agent aged 83 in 1851 census. |
| Elliot , William | Agent for Roe and Co in 1775 till 1778 |
| Evans ,C.H. | Lord Anglesey's local land agent around 1851. |
| Evans , Evan b1817. | Chief clerk at the Mona mine for around 30 years. He was paid £60 pa in 1828. He was refused the post of Mona Mine agent in 1850 In 1857 he exposed the corruption of James Henry Treweek. His son was T F Evans who eventually become mine owner. |
| Evans ,Thomas Fanning (1839-1891) (Mona lodge) |
Evans was the first Inspector of Metal Mines for North Wales. He resigned from this position on 10/7/1880. On 20/6/1866 he leased the Mona mine for a period of 31 years. In 1892 Mr Fanning Evans owned the Parys mine and employed 31 miners under ground,126 on the surface and 34 with ochre production. By 1921 this had dropped to He was also a share holder in the Mona mines. |
| Evans , Williams (b1793) | Listed as Mine Agent n 1851 census |
| Francis , Absalom |
A mining engineer prepared a report on Mona Mine. He recorded that in an area "300 fathoms to the east of the present workings shafts and workings dating from the 17th century , though reworked 40 years ago , are still to be seen. Further to the east again, and reaching almost to the road there where traces of ancient mining" (Mining Journal 1880 p 134) |
| Francis Captain | Under Captain at Mona Mine during 1831. |
| Fraser, Alexander | A Scot who first persuaded Nicholas Bayley to look for Copper at Cerrig y bleddia farm on Parys Mounatin in 1762 after he and a John Owen had discovered "old workings" He died 29/8/1809 and is buried at St Eleths. Amlwch. |
| Gaynor ,Thomas | Underground sub agent at Mona Mine who was made Tally man in 1820 due to disability. |
| Greathead , Samual | Shop keeper accused of running a Mona Mine "Truck" shop with Treweek in 1852. the lived at "The Mount" |
| Griffiths, Bill | Sample supervisor who described the work of the mine in the 1950s. |
| Griffiths , Owen (1851-97) | Miner and author of " Mynydd Parys" 1897 |
| Harrison , Thomas (d 1788) |
Plas Newydd agent reported in 1783 " all vegetation is utterly destroyed... were the smoke from the burning of ore reaches" |
| Hills , Charles Henry | Came to Amlwch (Bryntirion) in 1840 to establish a chemical works to produce artificial fertilizers from waste sulphur. Appointed Lewis Hughes as manager. In 1860 he was calcining Mona mine ores to recover sulphuric acid. |
|
Hughes , Rev Edward |
Owner of Parys farm after William Lewis death in 1761 It was he who hired Thomas Williams in his legal battle with Sir Nicholas Bayley. |
| Hughes, Lewis (1852-1935) |
Manager of Hills Guano works. Lived Aber Eilian. |
| Hughes , Dr Thomas | Parys mine Doctor in 1863. |
| Hughes, William (1770-1840) |
Of Madyn Dysw held the carting Monopoly for Mona Mine for 20 years from 1811. |
| Hughes William | Superintendent of weighing machine who was paid 14d per day in 1799. (WDAAK 6) |
| Job, Capt James (1780-1852) |
Cornish mine captain brought to
the mine by Treweek. Petitioned Sanderson in 1823 to increase his wages to
the same level as other agents around £9/3/- per month. Listed in 1851 census as being born in Perran. |
| Jones. Joseph | Parys mine agent In 1819 he
reported to Sanderson "some miners only earned 12 1/2d per day and had to
repay loans from this money". He took over the control of smelting operations at both the Mona and Parys smelters in March 1828. His methods were a failure and he was replaced by Treweek in Dec 1828. In 1829 he organized a petition against Treweek and brought false charges against Lemin which helped to create bad feeling between the Cornish and Jones native Welshmen. |
| Jones ,William | A Grave stone at Llanelian church is in memory of William Jones late of Penmaen and Agent of parys mines who died 11/9/1847 aged 44 |
| Legg | Succeeded Beer as chief accountant at Mona mine in1860. |
| Lemin , William Alfred (1772-1844) |
Mine Capt brought to the area in 1817 by Treweek. Faraday' guide on his visit to the mines in 1819.Petitioned Sanderson in 1823 to increase his wages to the same level as other agents. Died 16/10/1844 buried at St Eleths. |
| Lentin , Dr Augustine | A German scientist who visited and described the process in the mine and smelters in 1800. |
| Lewis ,William | Lived at Llys Dulas and owned half of Parys Farm until he died in 1761. |
| Llwyfo , Llew | A poet and miner.As a youngster he was required to take an assay sample of ores for analysis. On two ocasions atte,pts wre made to adulterate the ore which Llwyfo resisted. |
| Manning W | Exploration manager for Anglesey mining exploration in the 1950s.Explored the mainly bluestone area of the mountain.. |
| Medley | Carried out experiments on Mynydd parys waters in 1579 to precipitate copper and alum. |
| Morgan,Captain Thomas (1830-1916) |
Manger of "iard ochre draw" after the death of Cox Paynter. lived at Bryn llwyd. |
| Morgan , William | Moved from a smelter at Ravenhead to take over the Mona and Parys mine smelter at Amlwch Port in 1817. In 1822 Morgan wrote to Sanderson to try and smelt all of the mines ores at the smelter.16 furnaces at Mona works and 20 at Parys. By 1825 it was felt that Morgan was being too harsh and was losing control of the Smelters. An additional refiner William Rees was appointed in 1826. |
| Morris , Lewis | |
| Michael, Capt Thomas | A new company called the Parys Copper Corporation run by Captain Thomas Mitchell from Cornwall took over the operation of the Parys mine on 24 march 1879 |
| Napier , James (b1810) | Trained himself as a chemist in
Glasgow after experimenting with dyes fort he cotton industry. He was
employed by Messers Elkington & Mason at their London Electro-plating works
in 1842. Some time afterwards he visited Parys Mines and began working on an
idea for extracting copper by electrolysis. This was pick up by his employer
who sent him to Swansea and then Holywell in Flint to develop the process on
a large scale. ( Information supplied by decendent David Napier,Australia.) |
| Oldbrey , Robert | Principle share holder of the Parys Mona and Morfu du mines in 1877. Morfu du Mine also had J.Watson, Henry Dean and Charles Parry as shareholders. |
| Owens , Sion | Cut a hole 6 yards deep in the mountain in 1761 and found copper ore which was sent to Warrington for smelting. |
| Paget ,Henry | Nicolas Bayley's son who was Earl of Uxbridge and then The Marquis of Anglesey. Developed Mona Mine at the end of the Roe lease in 1785. He entered a partnership with the Vivian in 1811 which lead to the arrival of Cornish deep mining techniques to MP. |
| Parr , Dr Joshua | A chemist who in 1803 together with partners set up the Mona Vitriol Company to extract chemicals from the waters on the mountain. |
| Parry , John | Owner or windmill at paint works in 1866.(Hugh Hughes) |
| Parry , Dr Richard Lewis (b1816) | Mona Mine Doctor in 1863. Also mentioned in 1835 diary and listed in 1851 census |
| Parys , Robert | King's debt collector who was given "Parys" Mountain |
| Paynter , John Wynne (1815-1882) Maes llwyn |
On 20/6/1866 he leased the Mona mine for a period of 31 years with Fanning Evans.He built Mona mill above the busy harbour inn1816. The mill had 7 floors and 4 sets of grinding wheels. |
| Paynter , William Cox (1817-1883) |
Manager of "Iard ochre draw" Died 5/12/1883 Buried at St Eleths, Amlwch. |
| Petters, Robert | A Director of Parys mountain mines. he lived at parys lodge and later Tyn Rheol where he died in 1851. A port of Mona street was once known as Petter's street |
| Price, Hugh | A receiver appointed by the courts to try and settle financial disputes between the Mona and Parys mines in 1775 (MMS3544) |
| Price, John | Mine agent who showed Rev Bingley around the Parys mine in 1789.He was replaced by Treweek in 1811. |
| Pritchard ,Cornelius | Methodist deacon who assisted the sick and disabled workers to petition Lord Anglesey. in 1832 Sanderson accused him of writing many falsehoods on behalf of the injured miners and of stirring up unrest. |
| Puw ,Roland | Miner credited with making the great discovery of copper at Cerrig Y Bleddia ( Mona Mine) on 2nd March 1768. he lived rent free in his cottage until his death 14/8/1786. Buried at St Eleths,Amlwch.. |
| Randol , Cadi (1743-1828) | A "good time girl" in the mid 1700s! She rented a cottage on the mountain from the Marquis for 2/- per year. In 1788 she was converted to Christianity by the great preacher John Elias. |
| Rees ,Edward | William Rees son, Edward Rees was appointed as smelter assistant in 1826 and smelter in 1846.Listed as Refining Agent in 1851 census |
| Rees , William | Appointed a refiner in 1826 and worked with William Morgan. He was experienced and had worked at the Penclawdd smelter in South Wales. His salary was £150 pa. However he had difficulties working with Morgan and the Amlwch ores. Both men were replaced in March 1828 by Joseph Jones and then Treweek later in the same year. His son Edward Rees was appointed as his assistant in 1826 and succeeded him in 1846. William died 7/9/1845 aged 69 and is buried at St Eleths, Amlwch. |
| Richard ,Evan | Formally of Swansea gave many years service as one of the Agents at Mona and Parys Mines.He died aged 65 on 29/6/1811 and is buried at St Eleths Amlwch. |
| Roberts , Hugh | Clerk at the mine office
appointed to the assay office in November 1826.Listed as assay master in
1851 census On 17/1/1860 he petitioned for a pension. He had been at PM for over 45 years. PM had now adopted a method of work which makes the office of assayer dispensable and so he was sacked. |
| Roberts , Owen | Miners leader who lead the strike in April 1863 against appointment of two Cornish brothers to a the tributers gang. Sacked by Trewen . Roberts was eventually reinstated and Trewen had to leave the mine. |
| Robyns , John | Son of a former Mine agent at MM who left to work at a farm in september 1830 due to the low wages being paid. |
| Roe , Charles | Born in Macclesfeild he developed a mine exploration company which aqquired a 21 year lease on Mona mine from Bayley in 1764. |
| Roose , Jonathan (1731-1813) |
Mining engineer who rediscovered the copper at Mynydd Parys |
| Roose ,Stephen (1799-1854) Glandon |
Magistrate and mine agent. |
| Rowlands , Owen
(b1774) |
Responsible for the weighing
machine between the Port and the Mines. He was appointed 14/10/1805, when
the mines were slack, at 14/- per week plus 20 lbs of candles and three tons
of coal. By 1820 the mines were busy and he had to attend his weighing
machine for longer periods of time. In 16/11/1820 he successfully petitioned
Lord Anglesey to increase his wages by 7/- per week and to employ his son as
an assistant at a further 7/- per week as the "dry dust from the road
damaged his health" (MMS 319) He was still listed as a weigher aged 77 in the 1851 census. Richard Rowlands (b1828) was also listed as a weigher. |
| Rutty, Dr John | Author on report on "medical" uses of mine water in 1760 |
| Sanderson , John | Lord Uxbridge's estate manager who looked after Uxbridge's interests at the mine. It was to Sanderson that James Treweek reported. |
| Staples , Henry | A receiver appointed by the courts to try and settle financial disputes between the Mona and Parys mines in 1775. |
| Stephans , William (b1808) | Listed as mine agent from Bristol in 1851 census |
| Thomas Williams | Ship building resurrected under Hughes and Thomas in 1855. William Thomas became the sole owner in 1871 and 37 ships were launched before 1914 from the Iard newydd. |
| Taylor , John | Mining consultant and principle share holding in Parys Mines company Ltd in 1860. |
| Trevethick | Captain Trevethick left to go to Canada as a mining captain in 1870 due to poor conditions at PM.. |
| Treweek , James (1779-6/12/1851) | Manager of the mines and smelting operations in the mid 19th century. He revitalized the mines after the death of Thomas Williams.Buried at Amlwch He escorted Faraday around mines in 1819 (Called Mr irweek by Faraday) |
| Treeweek, John Henry (1817-18/2/1876) | James Treweek's son who became Manager in 1847. Ship owner Buried at Amlwch Church. |
| Treweek Nicholas (1804-1877) Francis ( 1811-1832) |
James Treweek's sons who developed ship building at Amlwch Port. |
| Treweek William George (1804-1877) |
James Treweek's son who became chief assayer at the Mona Mine. He was sacked in 1853 as a drunkard. |
| Trewen , George (b1833 1876) |
Replaced Tiddy as Captain at
Mona Mine in 1860. He showed favors to two brothers called Buzza. In 1863 he
was accused of accepting their price for a bargain after the settling had
been closed. The miners went on strike and would not let the Buzza brothers
into the mine. Trewren sacked
the miners leader Owen Roberts However peace was only restored to the mine
when Roberts was restored to his position and Trewen was forced to leave. He is buried at St Eleths Amlwch. |
| Tiddy , Thomas (b1803) | Local mining official who worked
for Treweek from 1825. He was related to Treweek and was appointed Chief
Agent at Mona Mine in 1950 above a popular local man.( Evan Evans) and
earned £175 pa. In 1860 Tiddy attempted change miners wage system to make them pay off there debts which resulted in a strike. Tiddy hide in the Cerrig y doll engine house the boiler of which blew up while he was there. Tiddy resigned on 8/6/1860 and was replaced by another Cornish Capt called Trewen. |
| Uxbridge , Lord | Nicolas Bayley's son Henry Pagent who was Earl of Uxbridge and then The Marquis of Anglesey. Developed Mona Mine at the end of the Roe lease in 1785. He entered a partnership with the Vivian in 1811 which lead to the arrival of Cornish deep mining techniques to MP. |
| Vivian, John | Swansea copper baron who took over Parys Mountain in 1811. His right hand men where Capt Treweek and Davey. |
| Watkins , James Roose (b 1844,d 6/5/1878) |
Mona mine agent " for many years" who died aged 34 years and is buried at Burwen cemetery. Listed in 1851 census.. |
| Webster ,James & Henry | Proprietors of the Parys mountain sulphuric acid works in 1828 James was buried at Amlwch 1/11/1840 aged 34 years. |
| Webster , Peter (1770-3/1/1856) | From Northop in Flint.Mona Mine assayer for over 40 years.His son James Webster become chief assistant in 1832 and succeeded his father who died in 29/12/1855 aged 75.Buried at St Eleths Amlwch. |
| Williams,Hugh | Parys miner killed underground in May 1776. Inquest witnesses. Hugh Owen Coroner, Stephan Roose, Robert Price, Robert Evans, Stephan Millward, Robert William, William Jones, Joseph Dudson, Richard Hughes. |
| Williams , James | Mona mine assayer in 1857 who earned £108 pa. AJames Williams left with Captain Trevithick in 1870 to start work in Canada. |
| Thomas Williams (1737-1802) | Twm chwarae teg the lawyer and great mine entrepreneur in the late 18 th century.Also called The Copper King. |
| William , Williams (b1820) | Listed as Smelter superintendent in 1881 census |