This may be of interest to someone, some facts and a typical story.

1876 - John Hope jnr married Eliza Jones of Redbrook
Eliza Jones shown here with her family in 1871
Her family ran “The Bush Inn” in Redbrook for many years.

Address - The Bush Inn, Redbrook
Head - Phillip Jones age 55, Inn Keeper and Butcher.
Wife - Eliza Jones age 44
Son - John Jones age 18 printers apprentice.
Daughter - Eliza Jones age 15.
Son - Henry Jones age 12
Daughter - Sarah Jones age 10
Son - Edward Jones age 6

Eliza's husband John Hope died young, they had lived on Penalt Hill as cottage farmers, so Eliza ended up living in the Almshouses that were in Weirhead Street, now part of Monmouth Grammer School, with her young family(1891 census) In this same census her daughter Daughter Edith at the age of 11 has gone into service -
Address - Livingstone place, Maindee, Newport.
In the household of a Thomas Pritchard, a sewing machine and insurance agent, and his wife Annie.
Servant - Edith Hope age 11, nurse girl, born Redbrook
Edith is nanny to two children Annie 5, and Tom 2.(still a child herself)
It could be that these families knew each other, Thomas is from Broadwell, Coleford, and Annie from St Briavels, and could easily know Eliza’s father at The Bush Inn in Redbrook. Eliza died in 1912 aged 56 and was buried at Wyesham.

People always seem interested in stories about local pubs, and Jones's are still in Redbrook. I remember waiting with my dad in the pub for a train to hitch a lift down to Brigsweir to go elvering, elvers were about sixpence a pound. Dad worked on the railways, we got the key to the signal box, it hung on a hook under the steps, and went up and had a cup of tea while we waited for the tide to turn. The Bush was the unofficial waiting room. cheers Fred