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Wales (Counties as in 1851-1901) => Wales => Glamorganshire => Topic started by: Silent Night on Tuesday 28 July 15 09:09 BST (UK)

Title: Wigley family and the Zoar Chapel, Marian Street, Clydach Vale
Post by: Silent Night on Tuesday 28 July 15 09:09 BST (UK)

Trying to discover more about the Wigley family who, around the 1850s onwards,  lived in Clydach Vale, Glamorgan and are said to have had strong links with the Zoar Chapel, Marian Street, Clydach Vale - lay preacher(s) there and one account of a Thomas Wigley perhaps being a founder of said Chapel.  Clearly, the Chapel records would be a great help but it is now closed. Despite this taking place in the relatively recent past,  I can't find where the records went - they are not at Glamorgan Archives.

The Wigleys...  Thomas (1825 - 1893) and his wife Sarah Morgan (1834 - 1897).  They married in Merthyr in 1862.  I have the 1861 through 1891 census information on them. He is variously listed as collier, gaffer, grocer and butcher.  They had five children that I know of... John (1857 - 1931), Sarah Ann (1866 - ??), Gwenllian (1869 - ??), Thomas (1870 - ??) and Joanna (1874 - 1942).
 
I'd welcome any information that will take me closer to discovering more about this family.

Title: Re: Wigley family and the Zoar Chapel, Marian Street, Clydach Vale
Post by: iolaus on Tuesday 28 July 15 18:37 BST (UK)

Pontypridd Museum do have a lot of the archives for Pontypridd and the Rhondda, they may be worth contacting http://wp.pontypriddmuseum.org.uk/contact-us/

Title: Re: Wigley family and the Zoar Chapel, Marian Street, Clydach Vale
Post by: MarMnkly on Tuesday 28 July 15 20:26 BST (UK)

Hi Silent Night
Welsh Newspapers Online (free to use) http://newspapers.library.wales/home have articles that relate to the Wigley family, e.g.
http://newspapers.library.wales/view/4613466/4613467/11/wigley%20AND%20clydach

Mar

Title: Re: Wigley family and the Zoar Chapel, Marian Street, Clydach Vale
Post by: Silent Night on Wednesday 29 July 15 19:22 BST (UK)

iolaus - I followed your advice and contacted Pontypridd. Although they didn't have the Zoar Chapel records, they couldn't have been more helpful and gave a number of suggestions as to where they might be found - currently following the leads they gave.

MarMnkly - your suggestion opened up a whole new area of research for me.  I hadn't a clue that this facility existed.  It's absolutely fascinating.  Already I've spent hours on there and discovered material about T. Wigley as well as a number of others in his immediate family for whom I had very little information.

I'm deeply grateful to you both - thank you for taking the trouble to reply to my post.

Title: Re: Wigley family and the Zoar Chapel, Marian Street, Clydach Vale
Post by: MarMnkly on Wednesday 29 July 15 21:16 BST (UK)

You are very welcome  ;D
Mar