St Clears and other Carmarthenshire Places

Seion (Zion) Chapel at St Clear, Carmarthenshire

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Last, on a vacation, I drove to the town of St. Clear where my great grandfather Stephen Picton lived on a farm before coming to America in about 1870. The pictures shown here for St Clear were taken in 2015. Stephen and Eliza Picton attended the Seion Chapel Church until they came to America. According to family word of mouth passed down in my family, they had two sons both named Jacob Picton buried in Wales. I found the Jacob and Jacob Picton grave marker and took a picture which is below.

I visited Seion Chapel and attended church. The Welsh name Seion is Zion in English. One takes one of the highways into St Clear, it is right after you come in. The two farms shown are called Gorsgandrill and Troedyrhiw farms which Stephen and Eliza Picton farmed (I think at different times and most likely where the children were born).

Looking back on the trip, I do not know how to explain how easy it was to find everything. I learned to always trust my gut feel for locations when driving to various Picton locations. I sometimes had difficulty if I tried to follow road signs and maps but not if I relied on gut feel.

Seion Chapel

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one stone - two graves at Seion Chapel - both had the name Jacob Picton

They are the sons of Stephen Picton who went to America in 1870

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Seion Chapel and cemetery

people are standing near the Jacob Picton graves.

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Seion Chapel

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Seion Chapel

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back of Seion Chapel

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back of Seion Chapel

David Picton sitting.

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Seion Chapel

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Seion Chapel

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offering plate at Seion Chapel

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Stephen Picton farmed the Gorsgandrill Farm and the Troedyrhiw Farm during the time he lived in the St Clear area. Below are the signs that appear on the road for the two farms.

Gorsgandrill Farm

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Gorsgandrill Farm

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Gorsgandrill Farm

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Troedyrhiw Farm

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Troedyrhiw Farm

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There is a gold mine that has been here for an estimated 3,000 years. First the native Welsh people mined gold, then the Romans came 2,000 years ago and mined gold for 500 years, and finally in the 1800's and early 1900's gold was mined. To travel to the old Roman gold mine, we took the highway from St. Clear to Carmarthen, then North to Plumsaint. The Dolaucothi Gold Mine is near the town of Plumsaint and has Roman Gold Mine Tours.

Dolaucothi Gold Mine

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Dolaucothi Gold Mine

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Dolaucothi Gold Mine

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Dolaucothi Gold Mine

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Paning gold at the Dolaucothi Gold Mine

David, Kathryn and Martha Picton

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Wearing hard hats in the Dolaucothi Gold Mine

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Dolaucothi Gold Mine

Kathryn and Martha Picton

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Dolaucothi Gold Mine

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Opening to a Roman Gold Mine

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Kathryn in a Roman Gold Mine

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Roman Gold Mine

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Stone head of a hammermill used by the Romans

Kathryn Picton

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Last Modified August 2015

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