Number 491 on the 1841 Tithe Map
Tucked away in the parish of Goytrey, Haymeadow has a history stretching back more than two centuries. Though never a grand property, it was a place that witnessed the lives of generations of ordinary working people whose stories reflect the changing fortunes of rural Monmouthshire.
The earliest known reference to Haymeadow comes from the mid-eighteenth century. In 1765, Mary, believed to be the daughter of William Jenkins and Mary Williams of Haymeadow, was baptised at St Peter’s Church. After this brief glimpse, the historical record falls silent for several decades. [
Haymeadow reappears in 1807 when a lease was granted to Joshua Griffiths, an elderly blacksmith, for part of the dwelling. Another section of the property was occupied by labourer William Williams and his family, the lease is for the lives of his wife Cecilia 60 and their daughter Mary 24. Over the following years, the lease passed through several hands before eventually becoming associated with Colonel Henry Bird of Goytrey House, linking the humble holding to one of the area’s prominent landowners.
By 1821 Joshua Griffiths lease had been assigned to Thomas Prosser, on the 29th January 1823 it was further assigned to John Prosser. There is a mention of Thomas Prosser holding his lease (now dead) on the 1831 land valuation. The present holder of the lease, Col. Henry Bird of Goytrey House, holds a cottage and 2 acres, 3 roods numbered 189 on the tithe map.
Not all of Haymeadow’s residents enjoyed comfortable lives. In 1838, Mary Williams, daughter of William and Mary, was ordered to the Pontypool Workhouse. Records show that she later sought permission to leave temporarily, a request that was refused. Despite these hardships, she eventually returned to Haymeadow, where she was living with relatives at the time of the 1841 census. She died two years later and was buried at St Peter’s Church. Her story offers a poignant reminder of the difficulties faced by the rural poor during the nineteenth century.
By the census of 1841 Mary Williams had returned to Haymeadow and was living with her nephew William, a 35 year old farmer, Mary is now 75, living with them is an 8 year old labourer called John Blunt. Mary died in 1843 and was buried in St Peter’s churchyard.
The census of 1851 says 70 year old labourer William Jenkins has taken occupation along with his wife Ann, who is 52, their children John 31, Thomas 29, William 21, James 15, all were born in Goytrey, they all had the same occupation, woodcutters. Their 20 year old daughter Elizabeth is their housekeeper.
In 1852 William Jenkins of Haymeadow is mentioned in the Rev. Thomas Evans tithe accounts.
Local diarist Lewis Edmund recorded spending time at Haymeadow making gates, roofing the beast house and pig house, plastering walls and slating roofs. His diary entries provide a rare glimpse of the day-to-day maintenance required to keep a rural holding functioning.
The Jenkins family remained at Haymeadow for many years. By 1871, William was employed as a gardener, probably working for Colonel Bird, while his growing family occupied the cottage. Ann his wife is 45, their children are Mary Ann 18, Walter 15, William 14, John 12, Elizabeth 8 and twins Rachel and Philip 8.
Their lives, however, were marked by sorrow.
In 1874 their fourteen-year-old son John died and was buried at Saron Chapel. Twelve years later another son, William, died at the age of twenty-nine and was buried beside his brother.
The Jenkins family remained at Haymeadow, the census of 1881 says William is still a gardener, Ann is now 54, Williams is a 24 year old railway signalman, Philip is a labourer in the steelworks, Elizabeth and Rachel are both at home.
Another family death occurred in in December 1886, that of William Jenkins jnr, aged 29, he too was buried at Saron with his brother.
William, by the date of the 1891 census is still a gardener, Ann is now 64, Rachel 26, all the family were born in Goytrey.
Despite these losses, the family remained at Haymeadow into the 1890s. When William Jenkins died in 1892, he too was laid to rest at Saron Chapel. His widow Ann survived him for several years, eventually leaving Haymeadow to live with family elsewhere in the village.
At the start of the twentieth century, new occupants arrived. The 1901 census records James Green, a blacksmith from Hereford, living at Haymeadow with his wife Caroline and their daughter Ellen. A few years later, official records described the old cottages as having been restored. At that time, the owner was the Earl of Abergavenny, and Haymeadow was valued as a modest but productive rural property.
A document in 1910 says the old cottages are now restored, the owner is the Earl of Abergavenny, the gross value is £10 10s and the rateable value is £9 10s.
In 1920, the Earl sold Haymeadow as a smallholding of just under three acres. The property was purchased by Mr Purnell of Pontnewynydd, although the purchase price was not recorded. Around this time, Thomas Jones, Ruth Jones and Ernest James Jones were living there, remaining in residence until the mid-1920s.
Although Haymeadow was never a large estate or a grand country house, its history tells the story of the ordinary families who shaped rural Wales. Through baptisms, leases, hard work, family joys and personal tragedies, the little holding endured, adapting to changing times while remaining a familiar part of the Goytrey landscape.
The census of 1921 Says Thomas Jones is 76, a market gardener born in Llangrove, Herefordshire, his wife Ruth is 60, daughters Winnie 24, is an assistant foster mother at Coedygric Institution, Irene 21 is at home helping, as is 17 year old Sedley, their sons are Ernest 28, who is assisting his father and 39 year old John who has been an invalid from birth, all the children were born in Goytre.
A decade later, the Vimpany family made Haymeadow their home, moving from nearby Cefn Mynog. They remained there throughout the 1930s and 1940s. Tragedy struck in 1943 when Flossie May Vimpany died at Haymeadow at the age of just thirty-two.