Identity area
Reference code
Title
Date(s)
- 1816-1948 / (Creation)
Level of description
Fonds
Extent and medium
0.058 cubic metres (2 boxes)
Context area
Name of creator
Biographical history
The Rev. William Griffiths (1788-1861) was a Calvinistic Methodist minister. He was born at Blaenbrwynen, Clydau, Pembrokeshire, son of Thomas and Mary Griffiths. In 1807 he was forced to enlist in the militia and was influenced by the Methodists whom he later joined. In 1817, at the request of Diana, Lady Barham, he was sent as a missionary to the English-speaking community of Gower, Glamorgan. He was ordained at the Association meeting at Llangeitho, 1824, and later founded a number of churches. He was the father of Methodism in Gower, and is known as the 'Apostle of Gower'. He died at Burry Green, Gower, Glamorgan, in 1861. He had married Alicia Graciana Jones in 1826, and had a son, also called William Griffiths, who became a chemist in Aberaeron, Cardiganshire. Miss A. G. Jones (d. 1974) was the great grand-daughter of the Rev. William Griffiths.
Archival history
Immediate source of acquisition or transfer
Bequest by Miss A. Gower Jones (great-granddaughter of Rev. William Griffiths), Aberaeron, 1974.
Content and structure area
Scope and content
Rev. William Griffiths's journals, 1816-1855; printed diaries, 1837, 1843-1845, 1850-1851; a 'day book' or diary, 1854-1861, with additional entries at the end by his son; a notebook of autobiographical data upon which his book Gower memories of William Griffiths (Aberaeron, 1957) is based; personal letters, 1825-1849; miscellaneous letters, 1840-1860; printed copies of reports and notices of general meetings of the Glamorgan Banking Co., 1845-1858; sermon notes, 1817-1861; notebooks relating to subscriptions for Bethesda Church, Gower, 1838-1843; translation of Robert Jones, Drych yr Amseroedd; letters, 1851-1882, addressed mainly to William Griffiths [junior] at Aberaeron, and an account book, 1849-1855, relating to his business at Aberaeron; and correspondence of Miss A. G. Jones relating to the Rev. William Griffiths, 1948.
Appraisal, destruction and scheduling
Action: All records bequeathed to the National Library of Wales have been retained..
Accruals
Accruals are not expected.
System of arrangement
Arranged into the following: journals and diaries of the Rev. William Griffiths; autobiographical notebook; miscellaneous accounts; sermon notes, portraits of ministers of religion; correspondence; reports of the Glamorgan Banking Co.; miscellaneous letters to Mr W. Griffiths, Aberaeron; accounts of Mr W. Griffiths, Aberaeron; correspondence of Miss Alicia Graeciana Jones; and miscellaneous letters to Mr W. Griffiths, Aberaeron.
Conditions of access and use area
Conditions governing access
Readers consulting modern papers in the National Library of Wales are required to sign the 'Modern papers - data protection' form.
Conditions governing reproduction
Usual copyright regulations apply.
Language of material
Script of material
Language and script notes
English.
Physical characteristics and technical requirements
Finding aids
A hard copy of the catalogue is available at the National Library of Wales. The catalogue can be accessed online.
Allied materials area
Existence and location of originals
Existence and location of copies
Related units of description
Notes area
Note
Title supplied from contents of fonds.
Alternative identifier(s)
Virtua system control number
Project identifier
Access points
Place access points
Name access points
- Glamorgan Banking Company -- Records and correspondence (Subject)
- Glamorgan Banking Company. (Subject)
- Bethesda Chapel, Burry's Green (Llangennith, Wales) (Subject)
- Griffiths, William, 1788-1861 -- Archives (Subject)
- Jones, A. G. (Alicia Gower), d. 1974 (Subject)
- Griffiths, William, (of Aberaeron), fl. 1860 (Subject)
Genre access points
Description control area
Description identifier
Institution identifier
Rules and/or conventions used
Description follows ANW guidelines based on ISAD(G) 2nd ed.;AACR2; and LCSH
Status
Level of detail
Dates of creation revision deletion
February 2003
Language(s)
- English
Script(s)
Sources
Archivist's note
Compiled by Seri Crawley for the ANW Project. The following sources were used for the preparation of the description: National Library of Wales, Schedule of the Journals, Diaries and Correspondence of The Rev. William Griffiths; Dictionary of Welsh Biography down to 1940 (London, 1959)