In which I search for William Hall, who named his Swindon home Longford Villa after his Irish birthplace, and ended up in Jefferies Land. The inscription on an intricately carved Celtic cross in a prominent place in the Christ Church burial ground provided enough information to start my research. Examples of free standing Celtic crosses have been discovered in Ireland dating back to the 7th century, so it came as no surprise that this memorial was for an Irishman. William Hall was born on September 8, 1815. I found the first reference to him living in Swindon in the online UK Railway Employment Records 1833-1956 when he entered the employment of the Great Western Railway on January 1, 1846 as a clerk. By 1881 he has climbed the professional and social ladder. He describes himself as 'Accountant Loco Dept of GWRailway' and he now lives in an impressive property along The Sands (Bath Road) which he names Longford Villa after his birthplace. But as regular readers of thi...