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

Allen line: Matthew Bellamy about 1618?-1690

Matthew Bellamy seems to be one of our hidden ancestors, and yet, there is enough in the record to know that he was here, and that he was educated enough to be a school teacher for many years.  He deserves to be more thoroughly researched. 

Matthew apparently spent his entire life in various towns and villages in Connecticut.  He may have been an early immigrant, but so far I am unable to pinpoint his arrival.  His father is given as John Bellamy, supposedly born in London, England, but again, I have no proof and more work needs to be done.  We don't know his birth date but he is known to have signed the plantation covenant of New Haven, Ct in 1639.  He would have been at least 21 to have done so.  That puts his birthdate at 1618 or earlier.  He took the oath of fidelity in 1644 and taught school at various times at New Haven, Milford, Stamford, Guilford, Saybrook and Killingworth in Connecticut.  One wonders whether he was more or less chased from town to town (too stern?  too lenient? not completely in accord with church beliefs?) or whether he regarded it as his mission to start or continue schools in each of the new locations. 

He married Bethia Ford, daughter of Timothy Ford and possibly Eliza Gordy in 1671 in Stamford, Ct.  This was a late marriage and possibly second marriage for him, although no records have been found to indicate an earlier marriage.  He would have been at least 53 years old at this time.  Bethia, however, is believed to have been born in 1653, so she was a much younger woman.  Regardless of the difference in their ages, the couple had five children.  Matthew, Bethia and Elizabeth all died as infants.  What a sorrow this must have been to the couple!  They did, however, have two children who lived to adulthood, Mary and Matthew (a second time.  It wasn't unusual to name a younger child after an older deceased sibling, especially when that was the father's name.) 

The circumstances of his death are not known.  The dates are variously given as 1689-1692, and it is believed he may have been lost at sea.  Bethia died in 1692, but I haven't yet located wills or estate papers for either of them. 

The information for this blog post came from very limited sources, mostly an article printed in 1907 in the New England Historical and Genealogical Register.  It's time for another look at this man.  I'd like to know when and where he was born, how he acquired his education, and something about his early life.  Did he have a "first family"?  When did he actually arrive in New England, and where?  Did he come for economic or for religious reasons?  I think his story might be a fascinating one, if we only knew it!

The line of descent is:

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