One of the most comprehensive accounts that has survived of Carmarthen life in the nineteenth century, is contained in the diaries of Laura Hirtzell Powell who came to the town in 1864 .

Laura was born in Devon in 1828, and kept a daily diary for sixty years. The diaries themselves are well written and articulate and provide the portrait of a family who lived their lives guided by the religious and moral values which were at the core of their existence. These writings give a detailed insight into the world of the educated, unmarried middle class woman. 

Laura assumed responsibility for the family following her sister’s death in 1866 and she sought to bring her literary, scientific and technical knowledge and interests into the lives of her family and her community. Carmarthen women looked to her for advice on such matters as the operation and purchasing of sewing machines and the installation of gas into their homes. 

Laura died in 1901.

Mae un o’r adroddiadau mwyaf cynhwysfawr sydd wedi goroesi o fywyd Caerfyrddin yn y bedwaredd ganrif ar bymtheg yn nyddiaduron Laura Hirtzell Powell a ddaeth i’r dref yn 1864.

Ganwyd Laura Hirtzell Powell yn Nyfnaint yn 1828, a bu’n cadw dyddiadur dyddiol am drigain mlynedd. Mae’r dyddiaduron eu hunain wedi’u hysgrifennu’n dda ac yn groyw  ac maen nhw’n portreadu teulu a fu’n byw eu bywydau yn unol â’r gwerthoedd crefyddol a moesol a oedd wrth wraidd eu bodolaeth. Mae’r ysgrifau hyn yn rhoi mewnwelediad manwl i fyd y fenyw ddosbarth canol addysgedig, ddibriod. 

Cymerodd Laura gyfrifoldeb am y teulu yn dilyn marwolaeth ei chwaer yn 1866 a cheisiodd ddod â’i gwybodaeth a’i diddordebau llenyddol, gwyddonol a thechnegol i fywydau ei theulu a’i chymuned. Ceisiai menywod Caerfyrddin ei chyngor ar faterion fel defnyddio a phrynu peiriannau gwnïo a gosod nwy yn eu cartrefi.

Bu farw Laura ym 1901.