Traveller musicians

[chwiliwr]

While researching my own family background in the parish registers for St Cadfan's Chyrch, Tywyn (Towyn) Merionethshire I came across the following consecutive entries for baptisms in 1817:

April 16 Edward Woods son of Thos. Wood and Silvina Wood. Place of abode Parish of Dolbenmaen Father's occupation Fidler

April 16 Jeremiah Woods son of Jeremiah Wood and Anne Wood Place of abode Parish of Penmorfa Father's occupation Harper

All spelling is as it in the register including the disparities between surnames of sons and fathers. Interestingly, most of the other entries in this period record the mother's maiden name.

Dolbenmaen and Penmorfa are both located near to each other in Caernarfonshire.

The patriarch of the family, Abram Wood (named in the original post), is buried in the churchyard of Llangelynnin which is a few miles from Tywyn. He is known in Wales as the king of the gypsies. The Woods were such a large family that a common expression in Wales to describe a large family is that they are "fel teulu Abram Wood" (like Abram Wood's family).

Hope this is helpful.

[kdc650]

Hello to everyone who responded to my initial query all those years ago. Health and other matters forced me to temporarily abandon my research on Gypsy musicians, but I have just reactivated the project. And, now as then, I would be very grateful to learn of any known musicians active before 1900. My list of known musicians has now reached 319 players. Health and happiness to all.

[Andruchappelle]

Some of you know already that I'm working on a book for the RTFHS on Traveller musicians active before 1900. I've cast my net far and wide, and isolated 265 individuals so far, mainly fiddle players. The sources which are more of a problem are the certificates of birth, marriage and death, which are too costly to be speculative about. I was wondering if any of you have information from either this type of source, or family tradition, or any other less accessible source. I would be so pleased to learn anything further. And, of course, I will be happy to share my own research if you contact me offlist.

Many thanks in advance.

Keith


Here is a brief listing of those found so far :


BLACK   Amos alias BLACKMAN / Morris
BOSS   Charles / Newton aka Newcombe / Robert
BOSWELL   Aaron / Andrew / Bruce / Byron / Charles alias BOSS / Edward / Edward Mackenzie / Elias / Elias ('Lias') / Frampton / Frederick ('King of the Manx Gypsies') / George / Hezekiah / Hope / Isaiah / John / John / Joseph / Lawrence / Lawrence / Levi / Lewis / Mackenzie ('Kenza') alias James SMALL/ Major / Mordecai alias WAINWRIGHT / Moses alias BOSS / Moses / Nelson / O'Connor aka Fergus Occona / Oscar ('Womanly') / Peter / Plato aka William / Riley / Samuel / Seth / Silvester ('Wester', 'Westrous') / Theophilus / Thomas / Trafalgar / Uriah / Zachariah aka John
BOWERS   Henry
BUCKLAND Abraham / Absalom ('Stinker') / Edward ('Winggi') / Henry G. / Henry / Henry James / John Shipton / Moses / Nelson / Noah / Owen / Plato / Tenant / Thomas aka John / William / William / William Emanuel
BURCHALL James / James
CLEMENTS James
DAVIS   Albert alias Thomas DAVIES / Frederick / Mark Henry / Thomas alias DAVIES
DOE   Albert
DRAPER   Ambrose / Edward / Edward / Elias / Israel / James alias CLARK / Joseph / Samuel
EYRES   James
GAGE   Walter Joseph
GRAY   Adolphus / Alfred / Charles / Frederick / George / George / George / Henry / Israel / John Budd / John / Joshua / Louis / Obediah / Oseri / Oseri / Oseri aka Eckley / Piramus / Samuel / Sunny / Thomas aka William Joshua / Thomas alias Ambrose DRAPER alias Thomas SMITH / Yoben
GREEN   Frederick / George / Henry / Mackenzie ('Kenza') alias SMALLWOOD / Matthew / Samuel / William
HARRIS   William ('Billy')
HERNE   Evergreen / John / Nukes ('Crimea') / William      
HOLLOWAY John / Thomas / Thomas
JAMES   Ancian
JOHNS   William OR Solomon
LEE   Adam / Charles / Ethal aka John alias WOOD / Eugene Walter / Felix Alfred / Henry / John / Joseph / Major / Oliver Alfred alias WOOD / Silvester aka Wester / Thomas / Valentine V. / Walter / Zachariah / Zachariah / Zachariah
LEWIS   Louis / Siterus aka John / Thomas
LOCK   Bert / Enoch ('Winkles') / Ezekial / Ezekial / John / Herbert / Isaiah aka James ('Pollen') / Leonard Buzzi / Noah alias  BOSWELL / Noah aka Manoah alias  BOSWELL / Somerset Joseph / Vivian Delmore aka Charles / Zachariah alias Henry ('Harry') BOSWELL / Zebulon James
LOVELL   Arthur / Charles ('Wry-necked Charley') / Charles / Henry / Horatio Lamprey / John ('Concertina Johnny') / Walter Charles
LOVERIDGE Moses
MACE   James ('Jem')
MARTIN   Henry
McLEAN   Charles / James
MIDDLETON Alfred James / Edwin / James
PERRY   Peter
RAINBOW   John
REDMAN   Mitchel Robert
ROBINSON Elias ('Lias') / Eros / John
ROGERS   Thomas
SCARROTT Charles / James
SHAW   Aaron ('Funny Aaron Jeks') / Arthur / Arthur / Arthur ('Rinky') / Charles / James / James ('Big Jim') / James / John ('Little Jack') / John ('Ne'er do well') / Larry / Larry / Moses / Moses / Noah / Rodney aka William / Tiger ('Fiddling') / Tobias / Walter / William / William ('Willie')
SMITH   Abey / Abslolm / Albert Edward / Betsey / Cain / Charles / Charles / Charles Simpson / Cornelius alias SHAW / Elijah / Henry / Henry / Henry Robert / Hercules ('Old Arti') / Hercules aka Arkless / Isaac / Israel / James ('Jemmy') / James / James / James H. / Jasper / Job / Job / John / John / John / John / John / John Francis / Jonas / Josiah / Josiah aka John / Levi / Nelson / Neptune / Perrin / Riley / Sampson / Shandres / Stephen / Thomas ('Fiddling Tom') / Thomas / Thomas / Thomas / Tobias / Walter Herbert / William ('Black Willy') / William / William / Wisdom
TAYLOR   Obediah D. alias DIAPER
TOWNSEND Lawrence
WELCH   Moses / William
WILLIAMS    Henry/Thomas / William ('Fiddling Billy')
WOOD   Abraham aka Abram
YARDLEY   William
YOUNG   Esau / John aka Auther alias Oli HERNE

John Rainbow is my Great x4 Grandfather he married Eleanor Draper in Buckinghamshire.