The family of Simon Moon 1700 ish to 1748 ish

 I had hoped by this point in time for this family that there would be few if any unsolved mysteries, and better documentation, than I am finding.  Some lines seem well-documented, but some seem to be highly questionable.  However, in researching this I did learn that there is a good likelihood that after Simon left Bucks County, Pennsylvania, he likely traveled south and spent time in the Orange County, North Carolina area in the 1730s before settling in Frederick County, Virginia (what is now Berkeley County, West Virginia).  Some of his family seems to have stayed, or returned, to North Carolina, some headed even farther south, to Georgia, and some went west, to Ohio.  

Simon the son of James and Mary (probably Wilsford) Moon was born about 1700 and died about November, 1748 in Frederick County, Va./Berkeley County, WV.  He married Lauretha (Louretha, Lowry, other spellings) Humphrey, the daughter of Hugh and Elizabeth Lowry Humphrey, in 1721 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and the couple maintained their Quaker religion throughout their marriage.  For the record, the area that they settled in, part of the Shenandoah Valley, was beautiful but was not supposed to be open to settlers.  Several indigenous tribes used the area, and King George III later tried to force all white settlers to the east side of the Appalachian mountains.  It didn't work.  

There are various lists for the children of Simon and Lauretha, with varying dates and locations.  Some were born in Bucks County, some in North Carolina, and, if we are to believe this is the same family, some in Chester County, Pennsylvania.  So, it is possible that some of the children I'm naming do not really belong to this couple, and it's also possible that I've missed some.  

Anna seems to have been the first child born, in 1722.  She married Henry Bowen, the son of Henry and Jane Carter Bowen, who are Beeks ancestors in another line.  Anna died in 1789 at "Apple Pie Ridge, Virginia", which seems to be near Winchester, Virginia.  Henry and Anna's children are Mary, Hannah, Priscilla, Rees, Margaret, Jean, Nancy, John, Henry, and Jacob.  

Richard may have been born next, about 1724.  He died in 1795 at Shoulderbone Creek, Greene County, Georgia, near where a treaty with the Creek indigenous people had been signed 9 years earlier.  He must had led an interesting life, after having been disowned by the Quakers in 1748.  (One could hope his parents did not know about this.)  He married Susanna Brown, the daughter of Thomas and Ruth Large Brown.  Their children are Simon, Richard, Mary, Lowry, Susannah, Hannah, Rachel, and Margaret.

James was probably born about 1726 and died in 1798 in Chatham County, North Carolina.  He married Anne Mendenhall, the daughter of John and Martha Wright Mendenhall.  Their children are Lurana, John, Charity, Jacob, Hannah, Rachel, Thomas, and James.  

Hannah was born in 1728 and died in 1789 in Frederick County, Virginia/Berkeley County, West Virginia.  She married William Brown, the son of Thomas and Ruth Large Brown, and thus he was Susanna's (see above) brother.  Their children are Thomas, Samuel, William, Rachel, Hannah, Richard, Sarah, Mary, Elizabeth, Ebenezer, Ann, Joseph, Joel, and Deborah.  

Margaret's birth date is given as "about 1728".  Either she was born late in the year, or the date is wrong.  Perhaps her birth occurred closer to 1730.  She married Thomas Brown, also the son of Thomas and Ruth Large Brown.  It is said that they had 13 children but I've located only 11 names as of now.  They are Joseph, Elizabeth, William, Thomas, Jacob, Samuel, Richard, Ruth, Moses, Rachel, and Jean.  Margaret died in 1799 in Orange County, North Carolina.  Some sites show that she died in 1838, but I think that's a case of mistaken identity.  I could be wrong about that.

I'm not sure when Jacob was born.  I've seen 1732 as a date but if that is accurate, he was just 16 years old when he married Jane Rees, the daughter of Thomas and Margaret Bowen Rees.  (Margaret is a descendant of Henry and Jane Carter Bowen, who are the parents of Henry who married Anna Moon). Their children are Jacob, James, Thomas, Simon, Nancy, Mary, and Margaret.  Jacob died in 1804 near Arden in what is now Berkeley County, West Virginia.  I will follow this family in my next blog post.  

Rachel was born January 10, 1732/33 in Deep River, Guilford County, North Carolina.  She married Henry Thornburgh, son of Walter and Margaret Beeson Thornburgh.  and died in 1804 in Lost Creek, Tennessee.  Their children are Margaret, Hannah, Walter, Mary, Richard, Jane, Ann, Henry, Louretha, Charity, Sophia, Richard, a second Hannah, Jessie, and Jonathan.  

Mary was born in 1733 in North Carolina and is believed to have died in 1750, although I have seen a death date as late as 1804.  I've found no documentation for either of these dates.  

Malachi was mentioned in his father's will> He was born about 1738 in Deep River, Guilford County, North Carolina and is seen in a census in 1782.  That is as much as I know about him.  

Then there are two mysteries.  Simon may have had a son John or Jonathan.  However, he was supposedly born in 1717, 4 years before the marriage of Simon and Lauretha.   Simon would have been only about 17 at the time, so if there is a son John, I am not convinced it was the 1717 one.  I have also seen a Susanna mentioned as Simon's child, but find nothing to support that.  I am mentioning these two names in the hopes that someone has additional information that will prove or disprove them as children of Simon and Lauretha.  

I would love to have the time to research the many (over 70, if this listing is correct and complete) grandchildren of Simon and Lauretha.  They lived in interesting times.  Some of them likely served in the French and Indian War, the Revolutionary War, and the later wars against the Creeks and the Cherokees that continued after the Revolutionary War had ended.  It would be interesting to know how many of these families stayed in the Quaker faith, and how they responded to the call to war. 

 

 

The family of James Moon 1668-1755

 James Moon, the son of James and Joan Burgess Moon, was born in 1669 in England, exact location not verified.  He was a teenager when he and his family emigrated to Pennsylvania, and settled in Bucks County.  He was a Quaker who married twice.  His first wife is Mary, commonly believed to be Mary Wilsford, the daughter of John and Alice Towle Wilsford.  I have found no documentation for this and the older Wilsfords lived in Burlington County, New Jersey, which would have been quite a distance away.  If this is his first wife, how did they meet?  His second wife is Agnes Priestly, the daughter of John and Agnes Carne Priestly.  James died in 1755 in Falls Township, Bucks County.

James and Mary had several children but the exact number is still up for discussion.  There was at least one other Moon family in Bucks County and it is possible that some of the children have been assigned to the wrong family.  And as I'm finding so often, information is lacking on some of them.

Their first child was John born in 1698 and died in 1700, mourned by his parents and paternal grandparents.

Simon was born next, in 1700.  He married Louretha Humphrey, the daughter of Hugh and Elizabeth Lowry Humphrey.  Their children are Anna, Richard, Jacob, John, Mary, Margaret, Hannah, Malachi, James, and Rachel.  Simon died in 1748 in what is now Franklin County, Virginia, although it was Lunenburg County at the time, and Brunswick County when he likely arrived there.  I will write more of this family in my next blog post.

Thomas was born in 1701 and may have died as early as 1731.  He is said to have married Elizabeth in 1714, although clearly a thirteen year old boy would not have married that early.  He married Mary H Cowan about 1725.  Thomas had at least three children, possibly all of them with Mary, but perhaps the son Thomas was born to Elizabeth.  His birthdate is shown on some trees as 1720, and Thomas didn't marry Mary until 1725.  The children he had with Mary are John and Mary.  I'd like to find records showing Thomas married Elizabeth, either before or after his marriage to Mary!

I have seen Jacob and James assigned to this family, each with a death date of 1717.  I do not know whether there is any kind of record to indicate that these are James's children, nor do I know where the death date comes from.  Consider them only as possibilities.

Lastly, there is Sarah, born in 1709,  I have seen a death date of 1755 for her but I haven't been able to pin that down.  The only supposed husband I've seen wasn't born until 1775 so clearly that is not the right man.  Was there an earlier Daniel Burgess that she married, and was he in any way related to Sarah's grandmother Joan Burgess?  Maybe there is someone out there with the answer to these questions.  

Mary probably died sometime between 1709 and 1717.  James had married Agnes Priestly, and they had one known son, John, born in 1717.  He married Mary Farmer, the daughter of Henry and Sarah Ward Farmer. Their children are Thomas, Joseph, John, James, Elizabeth, Jemmy (was he the same as James?), Johnney, (identified as a female, and Rachel.   

Undoubtedly there are stories here waiting to be found and told, dramas that we no nothing about, and tragedies, too.  I hope there are also some good tales of joyful survival and good times with family members.  We are grateful for this Moon family, glad to know this little bit about them, and hoping for more information.

Beeks line: The family of James Moon 1639-1713

 I am bravely and foolishly starting here to collect the somewhat limited information we have about the Moon family, which I will be writing about for several weeks.  We know a little about James and his wife Joan, who came to Pennsylvania in the 1680s and settled in Bucks County.  Many believe that James's parents are Edmund and Catherine King Burgess, and that Joan is the daughter of Samuel and Eleanor Peers (various spellings).  Others assign different parents to James, and others yet believe that Samuel Burgess is more likely a brother than a father to Joan.  As far as I can tell, there is not a good paper trail to prove or disprove any of these ideas.  

James and Joan are thought to have married in about 1665, but I don't know if they were of the Quaker belief at the point, or not.  They seem to have been a member of the Society of Friends in Bucks County, where they settled, and some, probably most, of their children remained Quakers in good standing.  Once again, the same names were used over and over in the family and it is not easy to determine which "James" or "John" or "Simon" or "Mary", for instance, we are talking about.  So with the caution that some of these families may be confused, or intermingled, or otherwise identified wrongly, here's what seems to be the outline of their children.

There may have been a daughter, Sarah, born in 1667, or in 1673.  She is reported to have died in Bucks County in 1725, but I've found no record of the birth or the death.  I do not know whether she married and had children.  Most trees don't mention her so this may be a case of mistaken identity.

James was born in 1668 and died in 1755 in Falls Township, Bucks County, Pennsylvania.  He married Mary Wilsford, thought but not proven to be the daughter of John and Alice Towle Wilsford.  Their children are John, Simon, and Thomas, and possibly Sarah.  After Mary died, he married Agnes Priestly, the daughter of John and Agnes (maiden name unknown) Priestly.  They had a son, John.  Other lists include the names of James, Jacob, Joseph, Martha, Roger, Sarah, and Thomas.  I am not convinced but am mentioning this possibility in case someone has information to verify this and is willing to share it.  I'll follow this family in my next blog post.

Jonas was born in 1671 and died in December 1732 in Bucks County.  He married Alice "Chissum" or Chisom, the daughter of Robert and Margaret Scott Chisom. They had at least two children, Sarah and Alice.  

Jasper was born about 1675 and died in 1728 in (take your pick) Burlington, New Jersey; Bucks County, Pennsylvania, or Randolph County, North Carolina.  I can't tie any of the death locations given to this Jasper with any degree of certainty.  His wife's name may have been Susannah, and his children are Jasper, Simon, and Joseph.

Mary is a mystery.  She was born about 1676, and married a man by the name of Curtis, possibly Joseph Curtis.  She had at least one daughter, Sarah.  That is all that I've been able to locate for her.  

The last known child is Roger.  He was born about 1680 and died in 1759 in Bucks County, Pennsylvania.  He was married twice.  His first wife was Ann Nutt, the daughter of Jonathan and Ann Waite Nutt.  Their children are Elizabeth, James, John, Elizabeth again, Roger, Isaac, William, and Ann.  After Ann died, he married Elizabeth Price, the daughter of Reese and Mary (maiden name unknown) Price.  They also had a large family, including, John, Mary, Sarah, Timothy, Samuel, Hannah, and Jasper.  

I would of course like to know more about this family, particularly the year of their immigration, and whether they had friends or relatives who had gone ahead of them.  I'd like to know the missing information for the children, and whether Sarah belongs to this family, and whether we've missed some of James's grandchildren.  But it is interesting to think of this Quaker family, settling down in very early Pennsylvania days, and raising a family in what would have been a strange land.  I'm glad they arrived!

The family of Lambert Lane 1737-1804

Lambert Lane was born about 1737, in either Baltimore County, Maryland, or in England.  Family tradition says his parents, Samuel and Jane Corbin Lane, were in England when he was born, but it seems no one has located documents for this birth in England, or for that matter, in Maryland.  He married Nancy Ann Anderson, the daughter of James and Ann Downing Anderson, about 1762, in either Maryland or Pennsylvania.  From Pennsylvania (Bedford County), he lived in Virginia and in Tennessee before finally settling in Shelby County, Kentucky, where he died in 1804.  He was a Revolutionary War veteran, being part of the group that fought against members of the Cherokee tribe (they were fighting under the instigation of the British, but it's very complicated).  After his death, Ann married Henry Johns, and died in 1826 in Boone County, Indiana.  

Lambert and Nancy (sometimes referred to as Ann) had at least a dozen children, and the family multiplied.  Some of the same family names were used over and over, and some first names are new to the family. (It seems a little odd, but none of the grandchildren were named Lambert, despite naming patterns that had included the father's name for generations before him.)  Several of the men fought in the War of 1812.  They died anywhere from Baltimore County, Maryland, to Alabama to Texas to Indiana, so the children picked up some of Lambert's onward-moving ways.  They are an interesting, if frustrating, family to investigate.

Thomas was the first born son, in 1763.  He died in Harrison County, Indiana, where several of his siblings also died, in 1832.  He married Anna Ellis, the daughter of Isaac and Nancy Ann Downing Ellis.  (I have not yet determined what family relationship there is between Ann Downing Anderson and this Nancy Downing Ellis, but I consider it likely that there was one.)  Their children are Nancy, Isaac, Sarah, Craven, Malinda, William, Eleanor, Fielding, Elizabeth, Ellis, John, Pleasant, Anna, Davis, and Nelson.  I have also seen a Thomas listed as their son, which would make sense, but I am not sure that he belongs to this family.

John was next, born about 1765.  He also died in Harrison County, Indiana, in 1842.  He married Elizabeth Maddox, the daughter of John and Elizabeth Compton Maddox.  Their children are John, Jesse, Edward, and Samuel.  After Elizabeth's death, he married Charity Standage, but I've not found any children noted as theirs.

James would be one of these Lanes that I could term "frustrating".  He was born about 1768, and he seems to have had children named Samuel, Anne, and James.  I have been unable to identify a wife, and there may or may not be more children.  I don't know where or when he died, either.  

Sarah, known as Sally, was born in 1772 and died in 1863 in Harrison County, Indiana.  She married John Ross, the son of John and Mary Duer Ross.  Their children are Nancy, William, Ezekiel, Jesse, and probably John.  

Elijah has been a challenge because if I listed all his supposed wives, they would number at least 5.  His records seem to have been confused with those of other Elijah Lanes, and I hope I have picked my way through this minefield of information and mis-information.  His first wife was Nancy Hawkins, the daughter of John and Elizabeth Barker Hawkins.  Their children are Elizabeth, Mary, John, and Nancy.  After Nancy's death, he married Susannah Hawkins, a sister to Nancy.  Their children are Susan and Lawson.  Other names mentioned as wives include Hannah Dewhurst and Elizabeth Wells.  I don't discount those entirely because the Elijah who married Nancy and Susannah was not born until 1791, when his supposed mother would have been nearly 50 years old.  That's not impossible, but I'm not sure that this Elijah belongs to this family.  The  birth date I've found for Elijah would be closer to 1775.  I am still working on this and I'd be delighted to know that someone else has figured it out!  This Elijah of 1791 died in 1863 in Missouri and is buried in Petersburg, Pike County, Indiana with Nancy.  

Mary, or Mary Martha, was born in 1775 and died in 1849 in Panola County, Texas.  That alone makes her a fascinating woman, as Texas became a state in 1845, so this was still an unsettled area early in the state's history.  She had lived in Alabama prior to that, as the wife of Hugh Gentry, the son of John and Mary Green Gentry.  Their children are Sally, Mary, John, William, Nancy, Elizabeth, Margaret, Ruth, Barbara, Hugh, Lydia, Joseph, Samuel, and Camden.  

Rebecca was born in 1780 and died after 1860 in Lawrence County, Alabama, so she also led a different life than most of our family.  I believe she is the first of our collateral relatives to have lived in the South during the run up to the Civil War, and possibly during and even after that sad event.  She married William Gregory, the son of Richard and Mary Ward Gregory.  Their children are William, Susanna, Nancy, William, Jonathan, Sarah, John, Jesse, Carroll, Merrison, Carrie, James, Edward, and Basil.  

William was born in 1781 and died in 1863 in Meade County, Kentucky.  He married Nancy Ann Prewitt, the daughter of James and Elizabeth Street Prewitt.  Their children are Burton, Craven, Elizabeth, America, Charlotte, Harriet, Nancy, and William.  There is a possibility that he later married Rebecca Marvin, but I am not sure about that.

Nancy was born in 1784 and married James McCoy, of the "preaching McCoys" family.  He is the son of William and Elizabeth Royse McCoy.  Their children are Sarah, Elizabeth, Priscilla, Lewis, Vincent, Rebecca, Milton, another Priscilla, Isaac, John, and Thomas.  Nancy and James, and at least one of their children, died in the cholera epidemic of 1833 in Salem, Washington County, Indiana.  

Jesse was born in 1785 and died in 1832 in Boone County, Indiana.  He married Elizabeth Johns, the daughter of Henry and Nancy Duncan Johns.  (I have not traced Henry to determine whether he is related to the Henry Johns that Nancy Anderson Lane married, but there is at least the possibility there.)  Their children are Nancy Ann, Sarah, William, Anna, Elizabeth, Jesse, and Rebecca.  

Elizabeth, known as Betsey, was born about 1786 and I could find very little information about her.  She married Jacob Roberts, parents unknown, and had at least one child, Mary.  She died in 1812, probably in Kentucky.  That is the extent of my knowledge, and it is not based upon satisfactory documents.  Again, I'd like help with her if someone knows more.

Samuel may be the last son, if the Elijah born in 1791 doesn't belong here.  He was born in 1787 and died in 1842 in or near Whitestown, Boone County, Indiana.  He married Margaret McCarty, the daughter of Cornelius and Susanna Hardwick McCarty.  Their children are Susan, Nancy, Cornelia, Eleanor, Margaret, Thomas, Mary, Martha, Samuel, James, and Maria.   

The Lanes are a large family, coming from large families.  Their blessings were in their children, rather than in material wealth, and in their values, which included defending their country during the various wars we endured.  From England to the Caribbean to Maryland, and then on through Pennsylvania and Tennessee to Kentucky and all the different places noted in this post, they were part of the wonderful story of American growth, and part of some of the things we wish would not have happened. 

 

 

The family of Samuel Lane 1700-1779, approximately

 We have no firm, documented birth or death dates for Samuel Lane, the son of Dutton and Pretotia Tydings Lane.  Nor do we have specific dates for his children, which, depending on what record or tree you look at, are all over the calendar.  Sometimes even the decades are "fluid".  Yet, there is much that is known or thought to be accurate about the family of Samuel and Jane Corbin (daughter of Edward and Jane Wilkinson Corbin).  And there are a totally ridiculous number of Samuels, and Duttons, and even Richards, who carry the last name.  I've tried here to winnow out the obvious errors and I hope I haven't allowed any new ones to creep in.  I'd be delighted to receive any additional information that is available, but once again, here is a not necessarily correct post which I hope will at least contain clues to help us get this family straight.

Samuel was born about 1700 in Anne Arundel County, Maryland, and died sometime after his will was written in 1779, in Bedford County, Pennsylvania.  He married Jane Corbin about 1735, and didn't go to Pennsylvania until after her death.  It's thought that he lived with one of his sons there.  We should note that by order of King George, there were to be no settlers west of the Appalachians, but that was ignored by more than one early family of settlers.  Tension between the native Americans allied to Britain during the Revolutionary War, and the settlers who needed more land, were tight, and this may not have been the best part of Samuel's life.

Samuel and Jane had at least eleven children together.  Tracking down their grandchildren has been hit or miss, but it seems that they had many, who ended up scattered over Maryland, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Tennessee, and Kentucky, and perhaps Virginia and North Carolina.   Please keep in mind that the birth years given here may not be correct, but I do believe these were all Samuel and Jane's children, regardless of the birth order.

Samuel seems to be the first born, in February of 1735/36.  He married first Mary Corbin, who fits into the Corbin family somewhere,  and their children are Richard, Mary, Ruth, Elizabeth, Abraham, Pretosia, Jane, Dutton, and Samuel.  He then married Keziah Sias, the daughter of John and Mary Chambers Sias, and they are the parents of James, Elilah, Caleb, Joshua, John, Jacob, George, Pheobe, Sarah, Eleanor, and Abner.  Samuel was the first of several Lane sons to serve in the Revolutionary War.  He was in the militia, and it seems more than possible that he would have spent at least part of his time at Fort Pitt.  

Samuel and Jane seem to have gone to England for a few years after young Samuel was born, because the next two children are said to have been born in England.  It's a strong family tradition, but again, proof has not been found.  Lambert was born about 1737 and died in 1804 in Shelby County, Kentucky.  He was a Revolutionary War veteran, having participated in battles that we might wish he hadn't, against the Cherokee tribe.  (At the time, he lived in Greene County, Tennessee.) He married Nancy or Ann Anderson, the daughter of James and Ann Downing Anderson.  Their children are Mary, Thomas, John, James, Elijah, Rebecca, Wilkinson, William, Nancy Ann, Elizabeth, Jesse, and Sarah or Sally.  I will write more of this family in my next post.  

Charity was probably the first daughter, born about 1738 and died after 1798, likely in Baltimore County, Maryland..  She married Greenberry Baxter, the son of John and Mary Brown Baxter.  Their children are Samuel, Sarah, Mary, Elizabeth, Delia, Charlotte, and possibly Jesse.  

Richard was born in November of 1740 and died in Muskingum County, Ohio in 1813.  This would have made him an early settler there.  He married Catherine Groom, the daughter of John and Mary Gristwood Groom.  Their children are Richard, Dutton, Samuel, Elizabeth, Charity, Nancy, Jemima, and Catherine.  

Wilkinson was born in 1743 and died in 1814 in Fairfield County, Ohio.  He married Jane Plowman, the daughter of John and Sarah Chambers Plowman.  Their children are John, Elizabeth, Rebecca, Mary, and Rachel.  It is possible that they are also the parents of Wilkinson, Jacob, Richard, Jane, Dutton, and Mary Jane, but not everyone is in agreement on that.  Like Samuel, Dutton, and Richard, there was more than one Wilkinson Lane and it's possible that not all of these children belonged to the Fairfield County Wilkinson.

Dutton was born about 1745 and died after 1828 in Greene County, Tennessee.  He is said to have had two wives, Mary and Keziah.  However, see the paragraph about Samuel, noted above.  Would two sons in the same family have married two women, in the same order, with the same first names?  Perhaps Mary Corbin and Keziah Sias should be listed as Dutton's wives, but I've found nothing that convinces me at this point.  Regardless, Dutton did have children.  Joseph, Samuel, Nancy, Dutton, Benjamin, John, Abraham, Kezia, Catherine, and Mary appear to be his, and there is a possibility that there was also a Soloman.  I'm not convinced about the Soloman, either, but am showing him here as a possibility.

Sarah was born in November of 1746 and died after 1800 in Greene County, Tennessee.  She married Joseph Hays, who may be the son of Samuel and Jane Corbin Hays.  (I don't know who the Jane Corbin belongs to but she is likely related to Edward Corbin in some manner.) Their children are May, Ann, Sarah, Joseph, John, Ruth, William, and Samuel.

Corbin was born about 1747 and died after December 8, 1816 in Scott County, Virginia.  He married Frances Prock (various spellings such as Brock and Frock), the daughter of Paul and Margaret DeHart Prock, who were German immigrants.  Their children are Mary, Catherine, William, Rachel, Samuel, Abraham, Thomas, Benjamin, Rebecca, Ruth, Temperance and Frances.   

Ruth was born about 1750 and died after 1840 in Bedford County, Pennsylvania.  She married Vincent Stevens, the son of Giles Stephens and his unidentified first wife.  I show only four children for this couple, but given the number of children that the other siblings have, I may be missing some.  The known children are Vincent, Benjamin, David and Vianna.

Abraham was born about 1754 and died probably in 1810 in Baltimore County, Maryland.  Other death dates show March 1847.  There was more than one Abraham Lane so likely the later date belongs to one of the later generation, but I am leaving the date in this post in case it helps someone figure this out.  Abraham married Rachel Mannon, the son of Samuel and Elizabeth Mannon.  I show only three children for this couple-Rachel, John, and Jane.  There may be more.

Lastly, there is John,  born perhaps as late as 1757 or possibly in 1748.  It is also possible that there was a son born in 1748 and who did not survive, and his name was used again in 1757.  There is a good deal of controversy regarding his wife.  She was named Rebecca, and I tend to think it was Rebecca Dorsey, the daughter of John and Frances Watkins Dorsey.  They married in 1768, which would mean the 1748 date for John would be the correct one.  The other possibility is that his wife was Rebecca Loveall, the daughter of Zebulon and Mary Margaret West Loveall.  Perhaps he was married to both women, in which case the Loveall marriage would be the second one.  John's children are William, Thomas, Rebecca, and Mary, and possibly more.

I mentioned John "lastly", but there is one other possibility.  There may or may not have been a daughter, Achseh, born about 1753.  There is no proof of her existence, nor of her death.  It is of course possible that she was stillborn, or lived for just a few hours or days, but still was named.

Once again, we are left with questions, but also with admiration for this family.  They experienced tough times, and survived, and left a legacy of children, and of service to our country.  If all the granchildren I've mentioned are correct, and none are missing (both of which are distinct possibilities), then this Lane family had just short of 100 grandchildren, a significant contribution to the growth of America.  

I would of course love to hear from anyone who can give us more information about the family of Samuel Lane.

 

 

The family of Dutton Lane (1670ish to after 1716)

 Other than the "minor" fact that we don't have facts specifying the dates of his birth and his death, there is more information about Dutton than there is about many of our ancestors.  One question I still have is "Where did his name come from?"  As of now, I can't trace it back through his father's family, and his potential mother's families are not yet well explored.  His father's name is Samuel Lane, and his mother's name may be Margaret Mauldin.  Margaret's family is not documented well, and perhaps there is a "Dutton" in that line.  I would like to know! 

Dutton was born sometime about 1670, in Anne Arundel County because his father was there by 1663.  He was either a Quaker or a friend of the Quakers located there.  He married Pretitia (many various spellings) Tydings, the daughter of Richard and Charity Sparrow Tydings, about 1693.  There are five children mentioned in his will, and two others who were apparently born after the will was written.  We don't know when Dutton died, whether it was shortly after the 1716 will was written, or closer to the 1725 date it was executed.  However, we do know this about his children"

The first born was Samuel, born about 1693.  He married Mary Jane Corbin, the daughter of Edward and Jane Wilkinson Corbin.  Their children are Samuel, Lambert, Charity, Richard, Wilkinson, Dutton, Sarah, John, Corbin, Ruth, Abraham, and Achsah, an even dozen.  I will follow this line in my next post, when I hope to figure out when Samuel died,

Dutton was born next, about 1695.  He died in 1783 in Baltimore County, Maryland.  His wife is Dinah Boring, the daughter of John and Mary Kemp Boring.  Their known children are Dutton, Daniel, Mary, and Dinah.   

Richard was born in 1702 and died in 1770 in what is now Halifax County, Virginia.  He married Sarah Fuller, the daughter of John and Sarah Nicholls Fuller.  Their children are Tidence, John, Silence, Dutton, Samuel, Jemima, and Richard.  

Margaret was born in possibly 1703, or perhaps a year or two later, and died sometime after May 5, 1750.  She married William Merryman (Merriman), the son of Charles and Jane Long Merryman (Charles was a "Junior", and he can be traced back to the Charles Merryman who was a grandfather of the Martha Merryman who married Alexis Lemmon.  I believe William and Martha were first cousins, but I haven't verified that yet.)  Margaret's children are Jemima, Margaret, William, George, Joanna, and Chloe.

Sarah is the last of the children to be mentioned in the will.  She may have been born as late as 1710, and died in 1778 in Wilkes County, North Carolina.  She married Robert Sweeting, the son of Edward and Mary Pearl Sweeting.  Their children are Edward, Dutton, Elizabeth, Sarah and Nancy.  

John was not mentioned in the will, so he was born sometime after 1716.  He died in 1769 in Baltimore County, Maryland.  His wife is Avarilla Bosley, the daughter of William and Elizabeth Dimmett Bosley.  Their children are William, Elizabeth, Dinah, and John.

Lastly, it's been proposed that John had a twin sister, Charity.  Those who think she existed usually say that she died within a year, but what the basis is for her birth or her death I do not know.  It's a possibility.

This makes 38 grandchildren for Dutton and Pretitia.  They were rich in family, even though they had financial stressors that forced Dutton to live in North Carolina for a time.  He did return to Maryland and was able to leave land to some of his children. Some of this land is now included in the Hampton National Historic Site, a legacy for all of us.

 

The family of Samuel Lane 1628-1681

 In just a few years, it will be the 400th anniversary of this ancestor's birth, and in ensuing years, much of his history has been lost.  Court records were burned, church records apparently are gone, and even in London, his records have not been located, or at least not made easily available.  This post will merely lay out possibilities for the mother (possibly plural) of his children, and speculation about one of the children.  We are on fairly solid ground for two of the children, anyway.  

Samuel was born about 1628 in England, possibly London, and went with his family to Providence Island in the Bahamas until sometime later.  He was a Puritan and returned to England, possibly under the Cromwell rule, and became a pastor there.  His first marriage was to Barbara Roddam, the daughter of Edmund Roddam, who was also a pastor.  Then things get murky.  Samuel was in Anne Arundel County, Maryland by 1663, when there are a few records available.  The Maryland records show that his wife was Margaret, the daughter of Frances and Katherine (possibly Dudley) Mauldin.  But the dates are all over the place.  Barbara died in 1664, or 1671, or some other date.  He married Margaret in either 1669 or 1679.  So it is theoretically possible that he was a bigamist, although given that this was a man of some social standing, that seems unlikely to me.  It's possible that the children's birth dates (all in the 1670s) are incorrect, and that they were born earlier, to Barbara.  It's possible that there was a second wife between Barbara and Margaret, who is yet unknown.  Or it's possible that the date of 1669 for his marriage to Margaret is correct, and that the children are hers.  Samuel died in 1681, probably in Lord Baltimore's War,  It has been suggested that he died in a skirmish with members of the Seneca tribe, but I've not been able to verify that.

At any rate, there are three children listed in Samuel's will.  

Dutton was probably the first born son, born about 1670..  I have been unable to find an earlier "Dutton" in the family of Lane, Roddam, or Mauldin, so I am uncertain where this name came from.  He married Pretitia (various spellings; I chose the easiest one) Tydings, the daughter of Richard and Charity Sparrow Tydings.  Their children are Samuel, Dutton, Richard, Margaret, and Sarah.  Dutton died in 1726 in Anne Arundel County, Maryland, and I will follow this family further in my next post.  

Samuel was born about 1672.  He married Sarah Harrison, the daughter of Richard and Elizabeth Smith Harrison.  Their children are Richard, Joseph, Nathan, Samuel, Benjamin, Thomas, Elizabeth, Harrison, and Sarah.  He died in 1719 in Anne Arundel County.

There was also a daughter, Sarah, mentioned in her father's will.  I am not sure what happened to her.  Some say she married a Thomas Hooker in New Jersey, but I am not convinced this is the same Sarah.  Her story still needs to be found and told.

I should mention that some trees also show him as a father to Elizabeth and Grace.  I think it's more likely that these were step-children, so I've not attempted to learn more of their stories.

I mentioned that Samuel was a man of some social standing.  He apparently did not have a congregation in Maryland; perhaps his first wife's death had something to do with that.  He was referred to as a gentleman, chirurgeon (surgeon, but not trained to our understanding of the word), doctor, doctor of physics, justice of the peace, gentleman of the quorum, and a military major, as well as a planter.  I just wish we knew more about his wives and children, however many there were.