Thomas James Thomas, Danygraig Cemetery

SV Afon Cefni

The SV Afon Cefni was a 4 masted barque with a main deck.  January 1894 the Afon Cefni left Swansea with 3,146 tons of anthracite coal her destination was San Francisco.

The Afon Cefni soon after her departure went missing with all hands.  A month after, February 1894, wreckage to be thought from the Afon Cefni was found at Penzance.

Thomas James Thomas, whose name is inscribed on his family’s headstone at Danygraig Cemetery.  Thomas James was the son of John Hughes Landeg and Harriet Thomas. Aged 21, Thomas drowned at San Francisco, March 1894.  Was he one of the crew members of the ill-fated Afan Cefni?

The 1881 Census, lists that Thomas aged 7 is scholar, is living at 90 Fleet Road, Swansea.

England and Wales Census
3rd April 1881
90 Fleet Road, Swansea

20th August 1894

Each seaworthy vessel has an entry in the Lloyds Register.  August 1894, the Afan Cefni was posted as ‘Missing’.

An article published in the Evening Express, lists the names of the crew.  In total 28 hands lost their lives.

19th October 1894

October 1894, a Broad of Trade Inquest was heard at Swansea.  The Cambrian published an article on the finding resulting from the Inquest