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Gomer, Allen County, Ohio

Land purchase

In March 1833, three Welshmen traveled 140 miles from Paddy's Run to see what sort of land was for sale to pioneers at Sugar Creek Township. This was a flat, wooded area in the north-west of the county, where the Shawnee Indians had once lived. By the early thirties of the nineteenth century most of the Indians had left, and the land could be bought from the government for $1.25 acre. The three men must have found suitable land, because they returned - with their families - six months later.

The Welsh Pioneers

Thomas Watkins (on the left), James Nicholas and David Roberts were the first Welsh pioneers to settle in this part of the state of Ohio, later named Gomer.

Click here for further information about the pioneers and their families (English) >>

The three families arrived on 13 September 1833 but had to live in their wagons in the forest for the first month while the log cabins were being built.

Tragedy soon struck David and Anna Roberts. On 6 October 1833, less than three weeks after their arrival, Mary, their six-year old daughter, died, and then their two year old son, David, died six days later. Both children were buried in the forest, and the spot eventually became a cemetery for the inhabitants of the Pike Run and Gomer area.

"The First Funeral in Gomer, O" was published by the Rev. B. W. Chidlaw in The Cambrian in 1882. Click here to see the article (English) >>

Mary Nicholas, wife of James Nicholas, died in 1894. Particulars of her life, her family and her funeral were published in The Cambrian in the same year.

Click here to read the brief obituary (English) >>

In November 1834, more settlers, Evan Jones, John Watkins, John R. Jones and their families, moved from Paddy's Run to live in the area, and during the following two years David Morgans, Rowland Jones, Thomas G. Jones, Joseph Griffiths, John Stephen(s), Evan Morgan, Richard Richards, John Morgans, William and Thomas Roberts, John D. Jones and Cadwaladr Jones arrived. There are believed to have been about 15 Welsh families at Sugar Creek by 1836.

This was the beginning of the steady stream of Welsh settlers moving into the area. The inhabitants of Paddy's Run and other Welsh communities in America came to hear of the new community and reports about it were of course sent back home to Wales. In 1839, when Yr American was published, the Rev. B. W. Chidlaw estimated that there were between 40 and 50 Welsh families in the Putnam and Van Wert areas and that more were still moving in.

Click to read Chidlaw's description of the land and of the prices of homesteads in the area (available in Welsh only) >>

Leatherwood

Some of the Welsh settled in the Leatherwood area, about three miles west of Gomer. The first Welsh settlers are believed to have bought land there in 1834 and Daniel D. Jones and his wife Martha are thought to have arrived sometime before 15 January 1844, when their first child, Evan, was born. The recollections of some of the area's inhabitants were published in Gomer's First 150 Years.

Click here to read the account (English) >>

Hardship

The life of the early pioneers was full of difficulties and hardship. There were no roads or railroads or canals, only a forest covering the fruitful but wet land of Ohio's Great Black Swamp. Little by little this land was cleared, but a number of accidental deaths were recorded in the early days.

Turn to an article published in The Cambrian in 1883 for an account of some fatalities while tree-felling (English) >>

The living conditions of the new community were described by a writer born there in 1841, David D. Nicholas, son of James Nicholas. He recorded his recollections of the first cabins built, as well as a description of the work of the women, cooking, going to market and making clothes and soap.

Read his recollections (English) >>

A destination for settlers from Montgomeryshire

Sugar Creek Township was mainly a destination for Welsh settlers from Llanbryn-mair, Carno and the neighboring villages. Following the arrival in 1848 of William Jones (Tawelfan) and Richard Breese (Coed) and the Montgomeryshire Welsh settlers who accompanied them, the community and the church flourished.

When Iorthryn Gwynedd visited the area in 1851 a great number o people from Montgomeryshire had long settled there and he set about recording where the Welsh people lived, the cemetery, the schoolhouse and the chapel on a sketch of the area.

Turn to "Brâs-Ddarlun o'r Sefydliadau Cymreig yn Sugar Creek, Allen Co. O" and the list of addresses (Welsh) >>

The growth of the Welsh community at Gomer

James Nicholas and Samuel Ramsey are believed to have been the persons responsible for laying out or planning the village of Gomer in 1850. John W. Thomas asked whether he could choose a name for it and was given permission to name it 'Gomer'. In 1852 a grocery and dry goods store was opened in Gomer by William W. Williams and the Post Office was opened in the same year.

Click here for further information about businesses in the village (English) >>

A history of the area's education system, from its beginnings in 1833 can be found in Gomer's First 150 Years >>

The majority of the area's population were farmers, as indicated by the list below:

Name	Place of birth	Business	Date of arrival in Allen County
James Nicholas	Ohio	Dealer in farm implements	1833
R. E. Jones	North Wales	Doctor	1848
J. P. Williams	South Wales	Minister and farmer	1874
John Evans	South Wales	Farmer	1843
Josiah Jones	North Wales	Undertaker and farmer	1851
Israel Jones	North Wales	Farmer	1853
Joseph Thomas	South Wales	Farmer	1842
Ellis Francis	North Wales	Farmer	1862
David Jones	South Wales	Minister	1870
J. D. Edwards	Ohio	Dry goods dealer	1841
William Evans	South Wales	Livestock dealer and farmer	1868

The above information was taken from Historical Atlas of Allen County, Ohio, compiled by Charles H. Jones with the assistance of Theodore F. Hamilton. Published by H. H. Hardesty & Co. Publishers, Chicago, in 1875.

One of the most interesting items digitized as part of this project is NLW 14111D, a series of letters home to Llanbryn-mair from Edward Peat. The collection provides us with a glimpse of the nature of Welsh society in Gomer between 1868 and 1883.

Go to NLW 14111D: The Letters of Edward Peat (Features) or go directly to browsethe manuscript. (Welsh with some English translations) >>

House building

Soon after arriving in the United States, Edward, eldest son of Edward and Elizabeth Peat, succeeded in finding work as a bricklayer in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, and when the family moved to Gomer he was busy building houses in the area. There are a number of references in letters to his father to the "fine" houses being built in Gomer. In a letter dated 20 March 1869 for example, he describes some of the Welsh settlers' new homes.

Substantial houses began to be erected along Gomer's Main Street around 1874 and apparently David. D. Nicholas planted maples along the streets at the same period. According to Edward Peat, "11 fine houses" had been erected in the village by about 1876.

It was the excellent construction and quality of the Welsh homes in Allen and Putnam counties which were responsible for their being chosen for inclusion in the National Register of Historical Places in 1980.

Further information on the clay brick houses can be found in Gomer's First 150 Years (English) >>


The image on the left shows the farm of Zachariah Evans in Gomer. He was born in Llanbryn-mair on 11 August 1811 and emigrated to America in 1849. When this photograph was taken, the farm was occupied by Everett Evans, a third generation descendant of Zachariah Evans.

Worship

The Welsh settlers in the area began coming together for worship in 1835. The first meeting was held at the home of David Morgan and it was at that meeting that the decision was taken to hold a Prayer Meeting every Sunday morning at the home of Thomas Watkins and the Sunday School at the home of Rowland Jones every Sunday afternoon. This went on for about four years. Soon after this system had been established, an arrangement was made for Mr. John W. Thomas, a native of Llanidloes, to come from Lima to preach in Thomas Watkins's barn from time to time. The Rev. B. W. Chidlaw visited the area and he too preached in the same barn. The Gomer Congregational Church was also set up there in 1839. The early history of that Church has been published in Y Cenhadwr:Josiah Jones, 'Yr Eglwys Gynulleidfaol yn Gomer: Cychwyniad a Chynydd yr Eglwys Gyn. yn Gomer, Allen Co., O', Y Cenhadwr (April, 1867), pp.102-7.
The history of the area's Churches has also been recorded in:
Gomer's First 150 Years >>
United Church of Christ, Gomer, Ohio : 150th anniversary 1839 1989 >>

The letters of Edward Peat (NLW 14111D) include a number of references to the chapel at Gomer. Turn to some of his letters, for example:
Services in the area: letter dated 20 December 1973 (Welsh only) >>
The new Chapel and the minister: letter dated 7 December 1975 (Welsh only) >>
The cost of building the new Chapel at Gomer: letter dated 18 March 1976 (Welsh only) >>

Josiah Jones (Josiah Brynmair) - 1807 - 1887

Josiah Jones was born on 4 July 1807 at Braichodnant, Llanbryn-mair. He married Mary Hughes, of Bryncoch, Llanbryn-mair in 1833 and they had eight children. The family emigrated to the United States in 1850, settling in the Gomer area.

Josiah Jones was a farmer, but he also worked as an undertaker in the Gomer area. He was elected to the posts of deacon and Chapel secretary soon after his arrival, serving faithfully in both positions till his death.

Josiah was a learned and able man. Poetry and articles by 'Josiah Brynmair' were published in periodicals such as Y Cenhadwr, Y Drych, Y Cronicl and the Dysgedydd but he is chiefly remembered for his gift as a composer of hymns and carols.

Before his departure from Wales, he worked with S.R. (the Rev. Samuel Roberts) to prepare Casgliad o dros Ddwy Fil o Hymnau (1841). Sixteen of his hymns were included in the collection, numbers 46, 88, 356, 607, 791, 792, 879, 967, 970, 986, 1158, 1283, 1390, 1560 and 1562. He composed his best-known hymn - "O! am ysbryd i weddïo" - in Llanbryn-mair in 1825. This was the period, he said, "when the prayer meetings in the area were very animated". In an article entitled 'Josiah Bryn-mair - Emynydd Anfarwol', R. Gwylfa Roberts said:
"This was a hymn of whose lasting quality no one can be in any doubt . It has taken hold of the Welsh heart, and has become a part of the experience of the Christian in our land; a hymn to remember and to sing, to recite and to treasure; and had Josiah Bryn-mair written not one line more, his place is assured among the immortal hymn-writers of our nation."
The hymn was included in Y Llawlyfr Moliant Newydd (number 440).

Further reading:
Angela Bennett, 'Josiah Brynmair', Bwletin Cymdeithas Emynau Cymru 2 (1985/86), pp.248-9.
D. Densil Morgan, 'Y daith i fro Joseia', Barn 345 (1991), pp. 13-5.
R. Gwylfa Roberts, 'Josiah Brynmair - Emynydd Anfarwol', Y Dysgedydd, August 1914, pp. 363-73.
W. Meirion Davies, 'Josiah Brynmair a'i Emynyddiaeth', Y Cenhadwr Americanaidd, Vol. LVIII (1897), pp.77-80.
Josiah Brynmair, Dwy Garol Nadolig: ynghyd a byr-oes hanes (18--).
Josiah Jones, A History of the Gomer Welsh Church (1870).

The Gymanfa Ganu and the Eisteddfod

It was probably in 1846 that the first Gymanfa Ganu held in Gomer. We do not know how many were present that year but 7 ministers attended from the Churches in Gomer, Oak Hill, Cincinnati, Radnor, Paddy's Run, Newark and Granville to take part in the program.


School and community Eisteddfodau were held in Gomer for many years and there are references in the letters of Edward Peat (NLW 14111D) to the success of "Gomer Choir" in the Eisteddfod held at Columbus.

Occasional special events were recorded; a grand Gymanfa Ganu was held in Gomer in both 1860 and 1883 and the Eisteddfod in October 1895 attracted an audience of 3,000.

The traditional Eisteddfod is no longer held, but the popularity of the Gymanfa Ganu continues to this day. The annual Gomer Gymanfa, held on the first Sunday in October, attracts an enthusiastic congregation.

Click here for further information about Gomer choirs and singers (English)>>

The Present Day

Gomer's Welsh atmosphere has endured to the present day. An annual Gymanfa Ganu is held on the first Sunday in October, Saint David's Day is celebrated there and Gomer Welsh Community Museum has been set up in the village.

The Museum is open between 1:30 and 4:00 on the second and fourth Sundays of every month. The address and telephone number are:
Gomer Welsh Community Museum,
7365 Gomer Road,
Gomer, OH 45888
(419) 999-5820

Digitized Materials

Gomer's First 150 Years (Vol. I), The Allen County Reporter, Vol. No. XXIX, 1983, No.2

Gomer's First 150 Years (Vol. II), The Allen County Reporter, Vol. No. XXIX, 1983, No.3

United Church of Christ, Gomer, Ohio: 150th Anniversary 1839 -1989

NLW 14111D: Letters of Edward Peat and family

NLW 3265D: Letters to 'S.R'.
Letters to the Rev. Samuel Roberts ('S.R'.). Amongst them there are 10 letters by John Roberts Jones, Gomer, Ohio.

Gomer is also referred to in:

R. D. Thomas, Hanes Cymry America (A History of the Welsh in America) (Utica, 1872), pp. 109-110

General bibliography

Links

Allen County Museum