Born: Jan­u­a­ry 1849, Ty Du, Llanberis, North Wales.

Died: Ju­ly 26, 1919, Rhiwddolion, Caernarvonshire, Wales.

Buried: Nant Peris, Gwynedd, Wales.

Pseudonym: Gutyn Arfon.

Jones’ fa­ther was Pre­cent­or at Ca­pel Coch, Llan­beris, for 60 years. When John Roberts be­came pas­tor at the cha­pel, he re­cog­nized Grif­fith’s tal­ents and trained him. Jones lat­er be­came a stu­dent teach­er at Dol­ba­darn, then as­sist­ant mas­ter at the British School in Ab­er­ystwyth, and, in 1869, mas­ter at Rhiwddolion El­e­ment­a­ry School, where he served 50 years. He wrote both po­e­try and mu­sic, and was the first to in­tro­duce mu­sic­al in­stru­ments in the Meth­od­ist cha­pels of Caer­nar­von­shire. In 1918, he re­ceived a Na­tion­al Tes­ti­mon­i­al, val­ued at £65.

Music

1. Llef. Writ­ten in mem­o­ry of Grif­fith’s bro­ther, Rev. D. H. Jones (Dewi Arfon), and first sung at a Cymanfa in Dolwyddelen, a vill­age near his own, con­duct­ed by Jenk­ins.