Welsh Journals

of Ponthir, for Mr. J. Griffiths, a member of the then well-known firm of Men's Clothiers which existed in Swansea, Cardiff and Newport, built a house in Ponthir called 'The Hafod' and came to live here in 1903. He and his family were Baptists and served the Ponthir Baptist Church for over fifty years. Mr. Clifford Cory, later knighted, of Llantarnam Abbey, was also a good friend to the Church at this time. Fetes were held in the grounds of The Hafod and a new pipe organ was installed when a recital was given by Mr. Arthur Sims, a well-known Newport organist. The Rev. George James Jenkins came to the Church eighteen months after Rev. T. Reeves left. His was a short ministry, but during his pastorate students from the then Caerleon Training College attended the Church and later took full control of the morning services. Amongst these students was Mr. Tom Stephens, to whom I am indebted for so much of the early history of the Church. He married Miss Eva Morgan, daughter of one of the last supervisors at the Ponthir Tin Works. The Rev. Jenkins' ministry is remembered by the close relationship which existed between the Rev. J. R. Phillips of All Saints, Llanfrechfa, and himself. This resulted in closer co-operation between the congregations of both churches. Rev. Jenkins was an athlete and played rugby and cricket for the Ponthir teams. One of his last functions was a fete held at The Hafod, to obtain money for a wall memorial for those who died in the 1914-18 War. The heavy marble tablet commemorating these men was set in a beautifully carved oak frame placed over the door on the south side of the Church. The Rev. Jenkins resigned and moved to Oldham in Lancashire on February 23rd, 1925. Again a period of two years, served by lay pastors, elapsed before a new minister arrived. This was the Rev. D. J. Davies of Argoed who came in 1928. He was a very conscientious man and was liked by everyone in the village. He lived with his wife and daughter at The Manse and was devastated when his daughter, who appeared to be a strong healthy person, died in her twenties. He was one of the giants of the Baptist Church in the years following the war. The Rev. D. J. Davies stayed until 1943, when he resigned, but decided to stay in the area. The Church again looked around for a new minister and, to the surprise of the congregation, a woman Lay Pastor was invited to take charge of the Church. She was Mrs. Gregory, who came to Ponthir when her husband found work in the area. They lived at No. 1 Station Villas, at the home of the Misses Laura and Edith Francis, descendants of the Rev. James Michael, a former minister. They then moved to The Lodge at Roughton where her husband was employed. They had one son and Mrs Gregory served the Church until 1950. We know little of this period because of the untimely death of Mrs. Pat Taylor, who was the Secretary of the Church for many years. The records of the Church between 1934 and 1952 are missing, and so we have to rely on the memory of older inhabitants of Ponthir.