Allen line: Matthew Bellamy 1677-possibly 1752

Once again there are mysteries and questions about an ancestor.  We know when he was born, and lots of people think they knew when he died, but since the only will I've located in that time period was for his son and not himself, I'm not quite convinced.

Matthew Bellamy, the second Matthew Bellamy of whom I've written, was born February , 1677-78 or possibly 1676, at Killingworth, Connecticut.  The reason I say possibly is that some sites give his birth date as 1676, and at Saybrook, under the idea that he and his sister Mary were twins.  I haven't proven or disproven that yet.  The date and location I've given first are those published in the New England Historical and Genealogical Register volume 61, page 339.  Regardless, it is accepted as established that his parents were Matthew and Bethiah Ford Bellamy.  Matthew the younger was one of at least five children in his family.

Matthew senior was an educated man, a schoolmaster, so we can only assume that our Matthew learned to read and write, but we know nothing further of his education.  He was living in Wallingford by 1696, and that is likely where he met his first wife. We have two marriages for Matthew.  His first wife, whom he married September 26, 1705 was Sarah Wood.  The couple had six children together, but Sarah died on March 8, 1721, about 6 weeks after the birth of her last child.  Matthew remarried quickly, on May 30, 1721 to Mary Johnson, daughter of Samuel Johnson.  They had five children together.

The article I mentioned above says that he owned an interest in the copper mines at Wallingford, and may have worked there.  I don't find anything to document that, but I did find a petition he presented to the General Assembly in 1721-1722, asking to be licensed for a house of entertainment, for the benefit of the miners who worked at the mine.  The article doesn't state whether or not this was approved, so more research needs to be done to verify that.  He was apparently looking for a way to better support his family, as his occupation up to this point had been that of a weaver. (On a tax list for 1701, he was charged at a value or "grand rate" of 22 pounds, which was less than most of the town, although of course he was still quite young at that time.)  I wonder how Mary thought she would be able to help him, with 6 young step-children and two of her own on the way (she would have twins in February of 1722).

Surprisingly, because most of our early ancestors have been Puritans, it appears that the Bellamy family was of the Church of England, as his name is on a petition to the Bishop of London asking for more pastors for the area.  

I've not yet located anything to make me think that Matthew was involved in any of the border wars during Queen Anne's or King William's wars of the late 1600 and early 1700s, but he would have been of the right age for the duty and we can't yet rule out the possibility.

I've not located a will for Matthew yet.  There is one for Matthew Bellamy from 1754, but this is his son Matthew, not ours.  The Bellamy family was prominent in Wallingford for some time, with some of Matthew's grandsons serving in the Revolutionary War, one a noted Episcopalian pastor, and others of honorable professions.  Even though our Matthew may not have died a wealthy person (which is my supposition, not a fact, since I haven't seen a will or inventory), he must have given his descendants a strong sense of character and duty.  Mary died before Matthew, on March 8, 1721, and Matthew's date of death is given as June 7, 1752.

The line of descent is

Matthew Bellamy-Mary Johnson
Hannah Bellamy-John Royse
Elizabeth Royse-William McCoy
James McCoy-Nancy Lane
Vincent McCoy-Eleanor Jackson
Nancy McCoy-George Allen
Edward Allen-Edith Knott
Richard Allen-Gladys Holbrook
Their descendants