William, David & Rees Phillips
The younger brothers of Greenmoor
Mary Richards was born in Llanedeyrn during 1825, it was a small village to the east of Cardiff. She came to St Brides in Wentloog when she married Phillip Phillips of Greenmoor Farm in 1852. Phillip was living with his family at Greenmoor and was preparing to succeed his elderly father as master farmer and owner.
Phillip and Mary Phillips had eight children, all born at Greenmoor Farm in St Brides. Philip was first in 1854, followed by Anne 1855, Thomas, 1858, John 1860, William 1861. David 1863, Mary 1865, and Rees 1867. In this story we are going to look at the lives of the three youngest brothers, our 2nd great-uncles.
William Phillips
William Richards Phillips was born at Greenmoor Farm in 1861 and appears on the census of that year. We next find William on the 1871 census when he was aged 10 and attending the local school. After finishing education he worked as a farm labourer at Greenmoor. William was missing from the 1881 census because he was being treated at the Glamorgan County Asylum after being admitted on the authority of his father.
Care of the mentally ill in the county was mainly provided at home, until the 1840’s, when the first county asylum opened. In November 1864 a larger facility known as The Glamorgan County Lunatic Asylum opened at Angelton, Bridgend. Although 30 miles from the farm, it would probably have been quicker to get to than the Monmouthshire facility in Abergavenny.
We don’t know the details of William’s illness but on his medical record, complied by WW Morgan, it marks his physical condition as feeble and the mental Illness as acute mania. William had been admitted to the asylum on the 25th July 1880 at the age of 20 and discharged 16 May 1881. On the 1891 census William is living at home but is marked as ‘dumb’ in the column for medical conditions.
This column was designed to classify members of the population suffering under grave infirmities, such as blindness, deaf-dumbness, idiocy, and lunacy. The person completing the return was compelled to complete it by law. Today we can see that it was a wholly inadequate way of recording a lifetime of physical impairment or mental anguish. Less than two years later on 22nd January 1893, William died aged just 31.
David Phillips
David Richards Phillips was born on 31st March 1863 at Greenmoor Farm in St Brides, the 6th child of Phillip and Mary Philips. He first appeared on the census in 1881 when he was attending St Brides Board School with his siblings. His parents believed in the importance of education, something which later benefited the children. We next find Davd in the 1881 census. he has left school and is working full time at Greenmoor. Whereas brothers John and Thomas are exploring alternative careers, David seemed destined to follow his eldest brother, father, and grandfather as a farmer.
In 1890 David married Sarah Ann Phillps from the 95 acre Sutton Farm on Beach Road in St Brides. Sarah was the daughter of John Phillips who had been born in Llanover before moving to St Brides with his family, according to our research David and Sarah were cousins. They married at the church in St Brides on 24th July 1890. Shortly after their wedding they left St Brides and settled at St Andrews Farm in Caerleon.
St Andrews was a substantial property at 155 acres, by coincidence the previous owners were a couple from our Skinner family line, William and Margaret Parry. We can see from a later voting record that David was able to purchase the freehold of the land. On the 1891 census David and Sarah are at the farm with two 19-year-old servants. They spent the next 18 years in Caerleon and raised a large family, with ten children John came first in 1892 followed by Winifred, Elsie, Rees, Evelyn, Trevor, Brenda, Clifford, Godfrey and finally Leslie in 1910.
They left St Andrews Farm in 1910 and returned home to St Brides. They moved to a property called Long House Farm and continued farming. On the 1911 census seven of the children were still at home, along with Sarah’s sister Maria and one servant. Whilst at Long House David was well regarded for the quality of his horse breeding and won prizes for Cart Horses and Hack Horses. They stayed in St Brides until 1925, when David aged 65 and Sarah 55 made their final move.
The Gout Farm in Peterstone was their next location, it was situated just two miles along the cost road from St Brides. With David getting older, youngest son Leslie took an increasingly prominent role on the farm. From surviving newspaper adverts we can see the farm had large flocks of sheep, cows, horses, and chickens and regularly advertised for staff, suggesting a busy operation. Leslie was even selling Alsatian puppies; this would not have pleased his uncle John Phillips who was campaigning against the breed.
Sarah died at The Gout Farm on 27th January 1939 and was buried at Marshfield Church. David remined at the farm with three of his children, Godfrey, Brenda And Leslie. Davd died 19th August 1949 and joined Sarah at Marshfield Church. His estate, worth around £2 million today, was left to benefit his children. The farming tradition was passed to most of his children. Phillip farmed at Walnut Tree Fam in St Brides, Clifford at Ty Mawr Farm in Peterstone, Elsie married a Dairy Farmer called W.G. Morgan and Leslie continued at Gout Farm. The farm was later redeveloped as Peterstone Golf Course.
Rees Phillips
Rees Richards Phillips was born on 3rd January 1866 at Greenmoor Farm in St Brides, the 8th and final child of Phillip and Mary Philips. He first appeared on the census in 1871 when he was five years old and about to join his siblings at St Brides school. Like all of his brothers he carried the middle name Richards, his mother’s maiden name. We next find Rees on the 1881 census, he has left school and is working part time at Greenmoor, learning the family business from his father and brothers.
Rees was only 18 when his father died in 1884, and he joined brothers Phillip and John to help their mother continue the farm. The 1890’s was a period of change at Greenmoor, Phillip married and became the third generation to run Greenmoor, whilst his brother William died, followed in 1899 by their mother Mary. Rees then struck out on his own moving to Tyn-Yn-Brwyn Farm in Coedkernew and marrying Winifred Brind of Newport.
The wedding took place at the parish church in Coedkernew on 9th October 1900. Winnie had been living on London Road in Maindee with her family, she was the daughter of Edwin, a haulier, and Allice Brind. The couple setup home at Tyn-Yn-Brwyn where they had three children: Mary Jane 1907, Hilda Kesia 1909, and Brind Richards 1912.
Whilst at Tyn-Yn-Brwyn, Rees built an excellent reputation for the quality of his horses and regularly entered competitions. At the Cardiff horse show in 1912 he competed against entrants ranging from Viscount Tredegar to his brother Phillip. In the Two-year old Hunter class Rees picked up a rosette with a horse called Pancake.
In the 1930’s both Rees and his eldest brother Phillip of Greenmoor Farm were nearing retirement, so a successor was needed for Greenmoor. Rees, Winnie, and their children Mary and Brind returned to Greenmoor to live with Phillip. In 1935 Phillip died and Brind Phillips became the 4th generation of Phillips to run the family farm.
By the 1939 Register, Brind is listed as a Dairy Farmer and head of household at Greenmoor alongside his wife Mary. Rees continued to live at Greenmoor with Winnie and his daughter Mary, he was listed as a retired farmer.
Rees died at Greenmoor in August 1945 and was buried on the 18th August at St Brides Church. Winnie followed in 1951 and was buried with her late husband. Brind continued to work at the farm until his own retirement and later moved to Newport. Mary was the last Phillips to live at Greenmoor, she continued to operate the farm dairy until ill health prevented her.
Following Mary’s death in 1983 the farm was purchased by new owners, thus ending more than 160 years of the Phillips family at Greenmoor. The new owners had known the Phillips family for many years and are still running the farm today and have diversified by opening Greenmoor Nurseries.
