1911 census.co.uk finds Tom Jones is English
It’s official: Sir Tom Jones, the world famous singer hailed as a Welsh icon, is actually three-quarters English.
The shocking news arrived with the launch of the Welsh 1911 census records earlier this week. The Times, The Mirror, the Daily Star, the Daily Express, The Sun, The Daily Telegraph and Hello! magazine were quick to publish the story, announcing three of Jones’s grandparents hail from the West Country, not Wales.
Sir Tom Jones's paternal grandparents
His paternal grandparents (shown on the image above) were James Woodward, an ironmonger’s haulier born in Gloucestershire, and Anne Woodward, born in Wiltshire. His maternal grandmother, Ada Jones, who originated from Pontypridd, had parents from Somerset and Wiltshire. Sir Tom’s only wholly Welsh grandparent was his maternal grandfather Albert Jones, a miner from Cardiff. Albert and Ada Jones are shown below:
- Sir Tom Jones’s maternal grandparents
Jones’s ancestral revelation came as a shock to his worldwide army of fans, but most have remained relaxed about the news. ‘It’s quite a shock to discover he has more English blood in his veins than Welsh. But we still love him,’ said lifelong fan Margaret Owen.
Sir Tom Jones is just one of a plethora of celebrities whose ancestries can be revealed using the 1911 census. If you discover any others please let us know via this blog.
June 10th, 2009 at 7:44 pm
Give me a break! This is all I have seen on-line since yesterday. Sir, and I stress, Sir Tom Jones was born in Wales. He represents Wales everywhere he goes with respect and honor. I would think that this representation would be well received and respected. In the US, which I know is not the same as the UK, nevertheless, when you are born here, you are an American, when you are born in an area such as the west you are reffered to as being from the west, south, north, east. Why make such a big deal out of who Sir Tom’s relatives are when the man was born and raised there in Wales, and I am sure he has brought much revenue to Wales also. Just a friendly observation from a bloody yank !!
June 10th, 2009 at 9:05 pm
I know we’re all family historians, and so our lineage is an inheritance we all treasure, but Tom was not only born in Wales - as were his parents - he was born Welsh.
There is a difference, because:
“To be born Welsh is to be born privileged.
Not with a silver spoon in your mouth,
But music in your heart and poetry in your soul.”
.. and Tom has both in abundance.
The article in the Times ends with a quote from one of his fans “”He may have English blood but it pumps through a Welsh heart.”
And two of the comments added on Times Online were that
1. “He’s clearly Welsh, because he can clearly sing”
2. “The man was born in Pontypridd. He can’t get much more b—-y Welsh without being half-dragon.”
But just to be even-handed, for the benefit of my English friends, another comment added was
3. “Look on the bright side - this means you can have 3 Welsh grandparents and still be English!!”
June 14th, 2009 at 10:14 am
Oh well I guess that means I am Scottish not English.