Bues am dro hefo fy nhaid i Gaernarfon yn ddiweddar a mi ddaru ni basio Northgate Street a mi droth fy nhaid ata i a d'eud y galwodd ei daid o'r stryd "Stryd Pedwar a Chwech." Mi ddaru mi ofyn pam i'm Taid ond to'dd o'm yn gwybod y rheswm.

Bues i'n gofyn i rhai o'm ffrindiau yng Nghaernarfon ond doedden nhw ddim yn gwybod yr oedd y stryd ag enw Cymraeg iddo fo a bu nhw'n galw'r stryf yn Northgate Street erioed.

'Dwi 'di trio ymcwhilio'n fwy am tarddiad yr enw ond heb lwc. A oes enw Cymraeg ar Northgate Street yntau jyst fy nheulu i sy'n ei galw fo'n hyn?

Annwyl Gyfaill,

Diolch am y cwestiynnau am yr enwau Northgate Street a Stryd Pedwar a Chwech. Northgate Street i ddechrau; mae hon fel y gwyddoch o fewn Waliau'r Dref a orffennwyd yn 1290 ac nid oedd mynedfa i fewn i'r stryd bryd hynny a rhywbryd tua 1820 y gwnaed mynedfa i'r stryd trwy dorri twll yn y wal. Yr enw ar y stryd oedd Stryd y Plas neu Palace Street gan ei bod, cyn creu mynedfa, yn rhan o Palace Street. Roedd Stryd y Plas/Palace Street on rhedeg o Bendeitsh i lawr hyd at y fynedfa, hynny yw un stryd ac nid dwy.

Cafodd Stryd Pedwar a Chwech yr enw Cymraeg am fod tafarn o'r enw Four Shillings and Six Pence yn bodoli yn Northgate Street ar un adeg ac roedd yn rhan o'r dafarn a elwir yn Black Boy heddiw. Dwy dafarn oedd yno ar un adeg sef rhif 7 a rhif 9 Northgate Street.

Yn fyr dyna'r esboniad er fod llawer mwy o hanes i'r Black Boy na hynny.

Cofion,

T Meirion Hughes

Hello from New Zealand, My Gt Grandparents managed the Palace Vaults Hotel in the late 1800s.I have a drinking glass that says J BENTLEY,Palace Vaults brought out to NZ in 1909 by my Gt Grandparents. I know you do not do family tracing,but wondered if you had a history on the hotel. I have a list of managers from 1880 up to about 1805 but none were of my Gt Grandparents. If you have a history of the hotel that would be great. I too am a historian,having had a book published on the village I live in. Cheers Ray

Dear Mr. King,

I have checked the Trade Directories that are available and have been successful in tracing JOHN BENTLEY as being the landlord of THE ANGEL, 22 HIGH ST.Caernarfon during the 3 years 1880, 1886 and 1889. Then in 1895 JANE BENTLEY was landlady of THE PALACE VAULTS, which could suggest that she had become a widow in the meantime. Also, the landlord of the PALACE VAULTS in 1899 was T.M. WILLIAMS.

The Trade Directories from 1901 - 1912 onwards only show the name of the Public House and no landord's name.

Hope this is some help to you.

Regards,

T Meirion Hughes

Hi Meirion,great news about the drinking glass. Has always been a family mystery. I wonder if you could check your directory to see if my Gt Grandfather is mentioned.John Charles Hayes,wife Maria.My grandmother remembered playing on the Castle Walls as a very young child. She was born in 1880. She could count in Welsh so may have started school there.I have another direct ancestor who was born in Wales,so I'm part Welsh.My Gt Grandparents did not make a go of the Hotel because they were English and did not speak Welsh. They also tried a pub in Liverpool.but as they were not Catholic,no support.I visited Wales and the Palace Vaults many years ago,but the photos I took are not that good. Will try to find some on the computer. OH you have no idea when the hotel was built etc. Thanking you so much for your help. Cheers Ray

There is no Hayes on the list of Publicans. The only non Welsh name amongst the H's is Harwood and he kept the Palace Vaults for many years

TMH

Hi Meirion, Thanks for all your help. I'm an historian as well and have had a local history book published. I wonder now if they only worked for the manager or perhapses they managed another pub in the town,but my grandmother told my mother they managed a hotel. One always wishes that one had been older enough to get more information from grandparents. I'm very proud of my Welsh ancestry and the family say that because my sister is dark skinned,they say it was the Welsh background. My mother they called Olive because of her complection.Sorry I do ramble on. Keep up the good work. Cheers Ray

An afterthought!

Dear Mr. King,

Further to you second query regarding your ancestor J.C.Hayes, I would suggest that you subscribe to Ancestry.com and try and trace him and his daughter, b.1880, on the 1881, 1891 and 1901 census. With a foreign (i.e. English name) like Hayes it should be fairly easy to locate in a town in which over 90% of the residents were of Welsh stock.

Hope this helps.

Regards,

T Medirion Hughes