Charles Pye (1684- 1748) Charles Co., Maryland

Charles, the eldest child of Col. Edward and Anne (Sewall, Rozier) Pye. Inherited the estate of his father when Edward died in 1696. He was also heir to the Mynde in Herefordshire, England. In May 1703 Charles had land at Pyes Chance and Pyes Hardshift surveyed. Pyes Chance was 141 acres, leased to Isaac Gilpin and Pyes Hardshift was 323 acres, leased to Thomas Tuckings. Sometime after this he left for England, leaving his brother Walter in charge of the properties in Maryland.

It is uncertain just when Charles left for England. He may have made several trips back and forth but there is no record of this. He was heavily involved with the support of King James II who lived in exile in France. James II died in 1701, but the supporters continued to live on near Saint-Germain. Since the Catholics were still not welcome in England, it was easier to maintain their faith and culture in France. Charles was married to Mary Elizabeth Booth in St. Gervais, France. The Booths were another Catholic family from Herefordshire supporting the Stuarts who had chosen to remove to France. It appears that their children were all born in either England or France. Those known children are:

          1. Elizabeth

          *2. Charles

          3. Walter

          **4. John H.

          5. Ann, died young

          6. Henry

          7. Nicholas

The son *Charles came to Cornwallis Neck, lived there for some time then returned to England where he died before his mother, and leaving his estate to his brother **John H. Charles never married.

John H. resided many years upon Cornwallis Neck, where he died in 1772. This John married his 1^st cousin, Henrietta Maria Pye. Earlier research stated that John Pye had married Henrietta Maria Neale, daughter of William Neale. This information is incorrect, as shown by the deposition given by Henry Rozer in 1801.

In 1801, Henry Rozer (aka Rozier) deposed that in 1735, when he was 10 years old, he was sent to Cornwallis Neck, in Charles Co., to visit his uncle Charles Pye, before Henry was sent to England to further his education. {This Charles was the grandfather of the Charles who lived at Cornwallis Neck in 1801.} Henry stated that Charles had married Miss Mary Booth. They had two sons, Charles and John. Charles (Charles², Edward¹) was born in England, came to Maryland to live for some years and then returned to England, where he died unmarried. Charles’ brother John, married Henrietta Pye, daughter of Walter Pye (son of Col. Edward Pye). He lived for many years on the land at Cornwallis Neck. John died there in 1772 leaving six children, all minors:

         

          1 Charles

          2. Edward Joseph

          3. Mary

          4. Margaret

          5. Anne

          6. Elizabeth

After John’s death, the eldest child, Charles, was sent to England in 1772 into the care of his Grand Uncle James Booth, counselor, who undertook Charles’ education. Charles returned to Cornwallis Neck, in 1783, where he continued to live.

At this point it seems I must end this line of Pye research. The family history says that a William Pye, of Maryland and Barbados, was impressed ‘off the docks’ in Barbados, to sail on the Junius Brutus, an American privateer. The Junius Brutus engaged in several combat events, eventually being captured by the British during the American Revolution. I received a copy of the crew list for the Junius Brutus and there was a William Pye aboard. The family story says he was taken to Newfoundland where he was put ashore, hoping to find an Uncle Henry Pye. (Both his father Charles and his Uncle Walter had a brother named Henry, who seemed to disappear from MD records. This could be the Henry William was hoping to find. If so, then who was William’s father?) The ship did go to Newfoundland in October 1782, a British port. He was imprisoned there until the end of the war. After he was released, he married Blanch Pye, a distant cousin. Blanch’s father, was John Pye of Falmouth, England. William’s existence on the ship and in Newfoundland can be proven. What can’t be proven is his connection to the Maryland Pyes. There is no record of his being in Barbados or Maryland. As mentioned before, earlier research showed John Pye married Henrietta Maria Neale, daughter of William Neale and Mary Ann (Boarman) Brook. This has been proven false through research done by the Boarman/Brook family and new documents that proved John Pye married his 1^st cousin Henrietta Maria Pye, daughter of his Uncle Walter. Although the family history says William was of Maryland and Barbados, no records I’ve searched have mentioned any William Pye. Perhaps William is a middle name, in which case the formal name is unknown. It is also possible that William was from Devon, where many of the settlers came from. If so, that puts a whole new slant on William’s ancestry.

All of the land, the original 5000 acres of the Cornwallis estate purchased by Col. Edward Pye, remained in the Pye family until John H.’s death in 1772. After that it was divided amongst his survivors, who, over time, sold it off or married into other families where the land was absorbed into the spouse’s family. By 1890, there were no Pyes with any land holdings on Cornwallis Neck.

Most of the land formerly owned by the Pyes was sold to the U.S. Gov’t from the late 1800’s to 1920. It remains, today, in government ownership.

Bonnie B. Morgan, researcher

Wikipedia

Maryland Archives

A2A English Archives

Shirley Middleton Moller – researcher

Gary E. Young – researcher

Charles County Land Records

Maryland Genealogical Society Bulletin – summer 1984 Vol. 25, #3

Charles County History, Jan. 2003

The Record, April 1990, #48

Col. Edward Pye (1640-1697) Charles Co., Maryland

  

After a major melt down of my computer, which took a few days to straighten out and get it running smoothly again, I was finally able to return to my research. I feared that some of it might have been lost, but the geek gods were standing by me and all was well.

At this point in my journey through the Pye family, I should be discussing John Pye, son of Sir Walter (1571-1636) and Joan (Rudhall) Pye. Let me just say there are an unbelievable number of men by that name all living in the same time frame. I tried to determine where John and his wife Blanch (Lingen) Pye lived, but to no avail. The only info I have on them has been handed down and is in no way reliable. They supposedly had a large family and that one of their sons, Edward, went to Barbados sometime around 1680. It was at this time that his cousin, Robert, died, leaving his Barbados estate to Edward.

Edward shows up around 1682 in Charles Co., Maryland. Information in MD records says Edward was from Dymock and Boyce, in England and that his parents were John and Blanch. I could find no trace of an Edward Pye in Dymock or Boyce, so again, this may be inaccurate information.

In Maryland, Edward was on the Board of Deputy Governors from 1684-1688. He was also a member of the Upper House and the Governor’s Council and a Colonel in the Army. He married Anne (Sewall) Rozier, a widow of Benjamin Rozier. They had four children, Charles, Henry, Walter and Anne. When Edward died in 1697, his property was valued at £1200. The MD Bulldog mentions that Walter Pye, late of the West Indies, was Edward’s son. Since Edward’s children were all minors at the time of his death, this would not be possible. This same Walter died in 1699 and lists Edward’s children as nieces and nephews, showing that Walter was an uncle to the children and not a brother. Also, it was discovered that the term “late of” doesn’t indicate death, but instead shows the person is no longer in that place and has moved on to another area.

Edward’s wife, Anne, was the d/o Henry and Jane (Lowe) Sewall and the widow of Benjamin Rosier. By the time she married Edward, her father had died and her mother had remarried. Her mother’s 2^nd husband was Charles Calvert, Gov. of Maryland and 3^rd Baron Baltimore. Jane and Charles Calvert had four children, half siblings to Anne.  Anne and Benjamin Rozier had been married a fairly short time before Benjamin died.

At this point it’s good to remember that Edward Pye’s grandfather, Sir Walter Pye, had been a financial supporter of the original Lord Baltimore’s colony in Avalon, Newfoundland. This colony was meant to be a refuge for the persecuted Catholics in England. With a Royal Charter, it was a Palatinate, giving Baltimore absolute authority. When a series of crises arose, Lord Baltimore sought out a warmer, more suitable place to relocate. Not all of the settlers chose to go with this group and remained in Newfoundland. Lord Baltimore’s son, moved the colonists to the area of south Maryland, across the Potomac River from Virginia. The first ‘city’ was St. Mary’s City, now a reconstructed, state run historic area with tours and a museum complex.  

Edward raised tobacco on his estate located on Cornwallis Neck in Charles Co., MD. This was also called Mattawoman Neck. It had belonged to Thomas Cornwallis, who died in 1688. His wife Penelope conveyed the 5,000 acre property to Capt. {at that time} Edward Pye. When Edward (now called Col.) died in 1696, the laws of primogeniture prevailed and all 5,000 acres went to his oldest son Charles. It didn’t appear that Edward’s will provided for his wife Ann, suggesting that she predeceased him. No record for her death was found.

Their children were:

          1. Charles (c1682-1758) m. Mary Booth c 1720 in St. Gervais,                       France – 8 children

          2. Henry (c1683-1716)

          3. Walter (1685-1749) m. Mary Taunt (aka Tant) 1703                                      Prince George’s Co. – 9 children

          4. Ann (c1689-c1720) m. Robert Needham in 1714, England –                       3 children

Wikipedia

Maryland Bulldog

Charles Co. Court Land Records, Liber O and Q

Court and Land Record 1690-1692

Proceedings of the Maryland Court Provincial 1681-1683 Vol 70

The Record, Publication of the Historical Society of Charles Co., Inc. April 1990