Caemawr Farm, Hengoed, Llanelly , Carmarthenshire
The same family line were in occupation of Caemawr Fam all the way through from the 1841 census to the 1901 one. The spelling of names has varied a bit, and the writing on the censuses is often poor leading to transcription errors. There are several second marriages as well.
Prior to 1820 Ann (surname possibly Bonville) (born abt 1790) married a Mr Bonel (possibly William Bonel / William Bonnell). They had at least two children, William Bonel (born abt 1820) and David Bonel (b abt 1825).
Mr Bonel must have died between about 1824 and 1830 as Ann had married William Hugh by 1830. Ann and William had at least a son John Hugh (born abt 1830).
In 1841 Carmawr Farm is occupied by William Hugh and Ann together with her children William Bonel, David Bonel and John Hugh (albeit at least one one transcription of the 1841 census has their names as David Bond and William Bond).
William Hugh must have died between 1841 and 1851 for at the 1851 census the farm is occupied by Ann Hugh, now a widow, and her children David Bonnell and John Hugh. Note that the spelling of the surname has changed from Bonel to Bonnell.
By 1861 we see another mutation of a name - Hugh has become Hughes. At the 1861 census the occupiers are Ann Hughes and David Bonnell, now 36 and still single. Presumably Ann Hughes died between 1861 and 1871 as she does not appear in the 1871 census.
In 1863 David Bonnell married Anne Thomas (who was born in Llanelly about 1840). In 1871 the farm is occupied by David, his wife Ann(e) and their children Sarah A Bonnell (then aged 7), Thomas Bonnell (5) and William Bonnell (2). In the following years they would have three more children: Mary Bonnell (b 1872/3), David G Bonnell (b 1874/5) and Joseph P Bonnell (b 1878/9).
David Bonnell died in 1878.
In 1880 Ann Bonnell (then aged about 40) married Mark Bartlett (born Litton, Somerset in 1852). Mark was some 10 years her junior. Mark and Ann had no children of their own. In 1881 the farm is occupied by Mark Bartlett and Ann, and all six Bonnell children.
In 1891 the farm is occupied by Mark and Ann, and the youngest two Bonnell children, David (now 16) and Joseph (12).
In 1901 the farm is occupied by Mark & Ann, and Joseph Bonnel (another variation on the spelling).
One 'issue' in all this is that the 1871 census records Ann Bonnell's age as 48 - this gives a birth date of about 1822. This is at varience with every other piece of data which places her birth at about 1840. I think the most likely explanation is that the census entry is simply wrong and that the enumerator, when transferring his rough notes to the paper that gets submitted, made a mistake and wrote down the same age for both the husband (David) and wife (Ann).
By the 1911 census Caemawr Farm is occupied by another family and Ann is living with Joseph, her youngest son, in Llanelly. Joseph's trade is that of a butcher. Ann is recorded as 'married' as is Mark who is elsewhere in Llanelly alone in a house that recorded as a 3 up 3 down house but which the enumerator changed to 4 rooms. Mark has recorded himself as carter working on his own account. Whether they had split or whether Ann was just visiting her son is not known.
Mark died in 1923 and I have been told that Ann died six years later.
Clearly there is more to be found out about the occupants of Caemawr Farm, but I am as confident as I can be about the above as it is all built up from pretty reliable evidence.
Mark Bartlett was my great great uncle and I would like to find out more about his life and what happened to the family he "took on".
Willian Bonnell (born abt 1820) married Mary, probably Mary Phillip in Llanelly in 1845. Mary had been born in Llanelly abt 1825. They had several children: Ann Bonnell (b abt 1849 with birthplaces of both Llanelly and Pembrey being given in cenus records); David Bonnell (b 1850 in Llanelly); Margaret Bonnell (b abt 1852 in Llanelly); William (b abt 1857 in Llanelly - more about him later); Rebecca Bonnell (b abt 1859 in Llanelly); Mary Bonnell (b abt 1861 in Llanelly); Sarah Bonnell (b abt 1864 in Llanelly) and Elizabeth Bonnell (b abt 1867 in Llanelly).
William was a farmer and moved about a bit. In 1851 and 1861 he is in Hengoed, Llanelly, though possibly at different farms. In 1871 he is still in Llanelly but almost certainly a different hamlet. From 1881 to 1901 he is in Bolgoed Ganol, Llandeilo Talybont, Swansea. He died 1907 age 89 and is buried in Carmel Chapel Ponlliw with his wife who had died 1887 age 61.
Willian Bonnel Jnr (1858) married Sarah (probably Sarah Griffiths in Swansea district in 1891) and had at least Mary Bonnell b abt 1892. He died 1933 age 75 and is also buried in the Chapel with his wife who died 1953 age 90.
Caemawr Farm is located here. The use of the name Hengoed as a hamlet on the old records is interesting as there is nowhere on any maps, old or current, that reflects this name. The only use of the name Hengoed is that, about 3/4 mile north of Caemawr Farm are two farms called Hengoed Fach and Hengoed Fawr. One can only speculate that the census enumerator, given a space on the forms to fill in the name of a hamlet, assumed that with these farms names thus then the area must be called Hengoed.