William Nickerson (1604-1689) Chatham, Cape Cod, MA

William Nickerson was born Oct. 16 1604 in Norwich, England, the son of William and Alice (nee?) Nickerson. About 1627 he married Anne Busby, born Feb 7 1607 in Norwich, England. She was the daughter of Nicholas and Bridget Cocke, both of Norwich, England. William was a weaver by trade.

In 1637, due to the persecutions of Bishop Wren, (Bishop of Norwich), whose zealous efforts against non-conformists (Puritans) drove over 3000 small craftsmen out of the country, William decided to go to the colonies with his family, and their examination just before their departure from England reads thus: "The examination of William Nickerson of Norwich, in Norfolk, weaver, aged 33, and Anne, his wife, aged 28, with four children, Nicho, Robart, Elizabeth, Anne are desirous to go to Boston in New England there to inhabit. April 8, 1637."  (Hottens History of Immigrants).

They sailed from Yarmouth, England, April 15, 1637, on the Ship John and Dorothy, Capt. William Andrews, Master, accompanied by the consort Rose, commanded by the Captain's son. With them sailed his wife's parents, and all the Nickerson children. In the same party was 18 year old Samuel Lincoln, the ancestor of Abraham Lincoln, and also of Joseph Lincoln, the famous author of Cape Cod stories. They arrived in Salem, MA, in New England on Jun 20 1637. 

The Nickerson’s stayed in the Boston area and Yarmouth for the next 20 years adding another five children to their family: Samuel, John, Sarah, William, and Joseph.  In 1656, Nickerson pulled a cart down an ancient Indian path onto land occupied by Mattaquason, the Mononmoyick Sachem. They struck a deal and Nickerson acquired 4 square miles of land. For this he paid: a shallop, 10 coats, 6 kettles, 12 axes, 12 hoes, 12 knives, 40 shillings in wampum, a hat, and 12 shillings in coin.  However, all this took place without the approval of the authorities in the Plymouth Colony.  It would be 16 years until his disputed purchase was settled by the courts with Nickerson paying a 90 pound fine and obtaining deeds from Mattaquason and his son John.

Chatham was known as Monomoit until 1712, when Rev. Adams became a resident minister. Its status was changed from a constablewick to a town and it’s name became Chatham, taken from an English seaport.

William and Anne had 10 children, 7 of whom lived to receive allotments of land when William died in 1689.  Other families had begun to move into the area and, for the most part, they were farmers. But it was William Nickerson who was considered the founder of Monomoit.

1ST GENERATION

Their children were:

Nicholas (1628 Norwich, Eng - 1683 Yarmouth, MA, m. Mary Darby – 1 child

i. Elizabeth (1629 Norwich, Eng – 1706 Monomoit, MA m. Robert Eldredge – 9                       children 

Robert (1631 Norwich, Eng – 1710) m. Rebecca Cole

Thomas (1633-1633 Norwich, Eng)

Anne (1631 Norwich, Eng – 1681) m. Tristram Hedges

Samuel (1638 Yarmouth, MA – c. 1719 Harwich, MA) m. Mary Bell

John (1640 Yarmouth, MA – 1714) m. Sarah Williams

ii. Sarah (1644 Yarmouth, MA – c. 1716 Yarmouth MA m. Nathaniel Covel – 6                        children

iii. William (1646 Yarmouth, MA – 1719 Chatham, MA) m. Mercy Williams -7                         children

Joseph (1647- Yarmouth, MA – c. 1730 Harwich, MA) m. Ruhumah Jones – 2                         children

The original settler, William Nickerson is my 9^th great grandfather in three different ways. The first one is Elizabeth, who married Robert Eldred/Eldredge in 1649, Yarmouth MA. The other two lines to William Nickerson, Senior, will be dealt with separately.

2^ND GENERATION

i. Elizabeth Nickerson married Robert Eldredge, although this name appears as Eldred at first. They had:

ia. Nicholas (1650-1702) m. Elizabeth Unknown in 1679 - 3 children

          Smith, William Christopher. A history of Chatham, Massachusetts: formerly the constablewick or village of Monomoit : with maps and illustrations and numerous genealogical notes. (Hyannis, Mass.: F.B. & F.P. Goss, 1989), 148-9.  “On April 30, 1702, he [Jonathan Vickery] went out in an open boat with a party of villages, probably on a fishing or whaling trip. The boat in some way was overturned, it is supposed, and all in the parter (sic.) were drowned. The names of his companions are nowhere given, but it is certain that Lieut. Nicholas Eldredge, William Cahoon and Edward Small  perished with him." [The footnote says that probate records state that they each died on April 30.]

Mary (1651-?) m. John Smith

Robert (1654-1732)

Hannah (1656-aft. 1706)

William (1656-1749)

Martha (1658-aft 1706)

Joseph (1662-1735) m. Elizabeth Jones

Bridget (1664-aft. 1706) m. William Long

Samuel (1666-?) m. Elizabeth Hedges

3^RD GENERATION

ia. Nicholas and Elizabeth Eldredge had 3 children:

          (Also to be noted at about this time the name has another spelling change and is seen as Eldridge.)

iia. Martha (c 1700-1740) m. (in 1723) Benjamin Snow (1701-1748) Mayflower descendant of Stephen Hopkins. All descendants of this couple can claim Mayflower descendancy. She was mentioned in her father’s will of 1702.

Elizabeth (c. 1685-1735)  m. Samuel Harding (c. 1686-c. 1735). Samuel was a Mayflower descendant through his mother Bethia Cooke. Francis Cooke was a Separatist and arrived in the new world on the Mayflower.

James – no further info

4^TH GENERATION

iia.  Martha and Benjamin Snow had 4 children all born in Eastham, MA.

Kezia (1724-?) She and Ruth were likely twins.

Ruth (1724-?)

Martha (1726-beg. 1776) m. Simeon Higgins and is also a descendant of Mayflower passenger Stephen Hopkins, through his mother Elizabeth Ring.

iiia.  Nathan (1732-1814 Nova Scotia) m. (in 1758) Mary “Polly” Horn (?-1814)

Next is iiia. Nathan Snow who married Mary “Polly” Horn in 1758. In some places I have seen her listed as Mary Polly, Polly being the last name. There was a name ‘Polle’ at the time that could have been her name. However, Find a Grave has her listed as Mary Horn with Polly as a middle, or perhaps, nickname. It is also entirely possible that she was a widow when she married Nathan and her maiden name was Mary Polle (Polly) and she had been married to a man named Horn. Unless further information comes to light, it’s unlikely that we will ever know the true identity of Nathan Snow’s wife.  Nathan and Mary were married in Eastham and at some time after that, departed New England for Barrington, Nova Scotia.

5^TH GENERATION

iiia. Nathan and Mary Snow had 12 children:

iva. Susannah (c 1757-1814) m. (in 1776) John Spinney (1755-1842)                                     – 8 children

Nathan (1761-1821) m. Mercy Smith

Benjamin (1763-1814) m. Sarah Smith

James (1763-?)

William (1765-1843)

Stephen (1767-?) m. Elizabeth Smith

Seth (1769-?) m. Rebecca Smith

John (1771-1824) m. (in 1794) Hannah Smith -1 child

Elizabeth (1773-?) m. (in 1794) Jonathan Smith

Hezekiah (1774 – 1818) m. Lydia Covell

Josiah (1778-?) m. Nancy Hipson

Howes Stewart (1783-1868) m. (in 1802) Sophia Smith

In the next generation, iva. Susannah Snow married John Spinney. There is some question about his birth. He was born aboard ship but it isn’t known if his parents were coming from England to settle in New England or if they had settled in Canada and were returning to New England for some purpose. Whatever the case may be, John Spinney was born on a ship headed for Marblehead MA and that is where his birth seems to have been recorded. Susannah and John were married in Barrington, Nova Scotia and had 8 children:

6^TH GENERATION

iva. Susannah and John Spinney had 8 children:

Thomas (1776-?) m. (in 1803) Sarah Dexter

Sarah (1779-?) m1. (in 1805) John Lyle; m2. (in 1794) Isaac Huskins

John (1784-1879) m. Mercy Atwood  - 5 children

Mary (1786-?) m. (in 1807) Theophilus Crowell

Susannah (1787-?) m. (in 1807) Nathaniel Smith

va. Elizabeth (1789-1874) m. (in 1809) Stephen Smith - 9 children

Deborah (1793-?) m. Joseph Atwood – 6 children

William Doherty (1799-?) m. (in 1822) Mary Unknown

va. Elizabeth Spinney married Stephen Smith in 1809 and had 9 children. From this point on the descendancy has already been described in my blog on the Ralph Smith Family.

The rest of the descent from va. Elizabeth and Stephen is:

Rachel Smith m. Samuel Scarr

Mary Ellen Scarr m. Henry Gordon Carmichael

Nora Carmichael m. Jesse Pye  -  my grandparents

This is the descent from ia. Elizabeth Nickerson and Robert Eldered/Eldredge/Eldridge.

Mayflower Families #6 Hopkins, by John D. Austin

http://www.mychatham.com/

http://mccurdyfamilylineage.com/ancestry/p1651.htm

The de la Mares in England

Using the premise that Robert de la Mare, The Norman, held lands in England during the reign of Edward the Confessor, it is easy to see how the family took up residence there after the Battle of Hastings. There is nothing to support the claim that William and Hugh FitzNorman de la Mare, brothers, were with William the Conqueror on Oct 12 1066. There are lists that say they were, but those lists were produced centuries after the fact. That’s not to say they didn’t fight in that war, it’s just not something that we can prove. They were given lands for some sort of service to the King, but we’ll probably never know what that service was. It would stand to reason that the eldest son, possibly named Robert de la Mare after his father, remained in Normandy to assume the duties of the land holder there. Younger sons would have been more adventurous and would likely want lands of their own that would not be available to them if they stayed in Normandy.

So in the years following the Battle of Hastings, the de la Mare men established themselves in several different counties in the south west of England.  Around the year 1070, several notations in various records make mention of the family. They are referred to as de la Mare, de Mara, Delemere, de Kilpec and FitzNorman. William FitzNorman seemed be centered in Herefordshire, with additional holdings in Shropshire (which was then known as Salopshire) and Gloucestershire. Hugh FitzNorman was one of five knights who held prominence in Cheshire, under the Earl of Cheshire, Hugh d’Avranches, and is listed as a grantee in the Palatinate of Cheshire. He is listed as de Mara or FitzNorman by George Ormerod in The History of the County Palatine and City of Chester. By 1086, the year of the Domesday Book, Hugh FitzNorman, also styled de Kilpec, held lands of Hugh d’Avranches, Earl of Cheshire, also known as Hugh Lupus, the Wolf. This last name was meant to reflect how the Welsh thought of him because of the ferocity of his attacks upon them. Hugh FitzNorman became Lord of Leigh (Lea) and held a large estate in Cheshire. He had a son, William FitzHugh FitzNorman and a grandson, Simon FitzWilliam FitzHugh. His line ended with this grandson and all lands and titles reverted to the descendants of Hugh’s brother, Ralph FitzNorman and the Barons of Montalt. Ralph was the Dapifer or Seneschal of the Palatinate of Cheshire. There was another brother, Roger FitzNorman also mentioned in Ormerod’s book. If Roger had family, it wasn’t discussed in this book, as the full focus was put on the Barons of Montalt.  The family name gradually changed to ‘de Monte-Alto.’ The seats of this Barony were located at Hawarden and Mold, where little or nothing remains of the manors.

                                                        The Cheshire countryside

As I’ve pointed out, the FitzNomans had holdings in more than one county. So far I’ve been able to find for William FitzNorman, 8 holdings in Herefordshire and 3 in Gloucestershire. For Hugh FitzNorman I have found 8 holdings in Cheshire.  I still have several more counties to search.  I shall return with more information.

The History of the County Palatine and City of Chester, George Ormerod

Domesday Book, Thomas Hinde

Medieval Names and Family Connections

Anyone who decides to research their family names, reaching back to medieval times in England, needs to be aware of a few really important things concerning names and how they were used.  Surnames have not always been there. For royalty, they came into use when William the Conqueror came to England in 1066. However it took another 200-300 years for surnames to be commonly used among the general population. Many areas of England used patronymics such as in Wales where ap, ab or av was added in front of a name. Gruffyd ap Rhys became Price, Daffyd ab Owen became Bowen, Miles ap Harry became Parry or Perry. There was also a Norman tradition of adding Fitz to a given name, such as FitzGerald, son of Gerald, FitzOsbern, son of Osbern, and FitzAlan, son of Alan. The addition of ‘son’ after a name showed the Danish influence, Adamson, Godwinson, Haroldson, to name a few. Danish daughters, on the other hand, were not given the same treatment.  Harold’s daughter would have been Haroldsdottir, Adam’s daughter would have been Adamsdottir and so on. A girl in the FitzGerald family would often use the place of birth, such as Emma de Teesbury (this is a fictional example) since that is where the family was when she was born. Her brothers would all be FitzGeralds, but she would be de Teesbury. To complicate things further, the father of the family could have a specific name such as de Pitres, but his son became the Sheriff of Gloucester so his son’s names was Walter of Gloucester. His grandson also became Sherriff of Gloucester and was known as Miles of Gloucester. Miles’ daughters all seem to be de Pitres and his sons were all called FitzMiles (these are known people)

.

This is in no way meant to scare a researcher off. It is simply a ‘heads up’ because you need to be prepared for any combination of names and spellings. They used their family names, place of birth, current living location and any titles they may have concurrently. For instance, one person could be known by his family name, by his place of birth, by an inherited or bestowed title all in the same paragraph. Spelling did not become standardized until the late 1800’s, so spelling was variable. I have seen copies of letters written where people’s names were mentioned and within the same letter, the names were spelled in several different ways. Be prepared for every eventuality when it comes to medieval names and spelling. Don’t dismiss a link because it isn’t spelled the way it is spelled today or the way you think it has to be spelled.

The other caveat is a couple of sources people use and should not. The Battle Abbey Roll and the Falaise Rolls have been discredited as to having any reliability in genealogy research. They were written in the 19^th and 20^th centuries, some say to help promote tourism in France and England and/or to raise a families status by giving them a pedigree. I can’t attest to the motivation for writing them, but I can pass on the word that serious historical researchers do not accept them as resources. A further note on this is Debrett’s Peerage is not highly recommended either.

My own research has taken me deep into the heart of several counties where I found de la Mare families located. If you wonder why I would find an interest in this name, it’s because it is the ancient name of the Pye Family. It took several hundred years and several different forms before it became Pye. But it did start out as a Norman name and following all the twists and turns it has taken, at times, has been a nightmare. I nearly gave up many times but the challenge remained there, calling me. What I have found is by no means complete. I’m grateful that I was able to answer a few of the questions I had.

I found that Edward the Confessor, King of England, had an interest in Normandy as his mother, Emma, was a Norman. {William the Conqueror was Emma’s nephew.} Edward had encouraged Normans to come to England and quite a few did. There is some evidence that the family of de la Mare were already land holders in Herefordshire before the Battle of Hastings in 1066. They may not have lived there, but they owned the land. The Welsh had been troublesome for years, so when William the Conquer became King of England, he established strong families along the borders. These families built castles and were prepared to defend the lands given to them. For many of these families, these lands were awarded to them for service to the King, either at the Battle of Hastings or for other services. But William was a shrewd King. He awarded lands to his loyal supporters in such a way that they could not become too powerful. Consequently, a land holder’s name can and will show up in several or many counties. Earlier de la Mares, in the time of Edward the Confessor, would have kept their lands and William the Conqueror would have awarded more.

It is believed that Kilpec Castle was already there when the de la Mares were given those lands along the Welsh border. It was a motte and bailey type castle, mostly made of wood. At some time it was probably strengthened with rock and boulders, but only a small part of it still survives. The first of the family to occupy this castle was William FitzNorman de la Mare.  In the Domesday Survey of 1086, (Kilpeck is called Chipeete) it was given by the Conqueror to William FitzNorman.  It became the administrative center of Archenfield.   In a history of the Kilpeck Church it is stated that William FitzNorman was a kinsman of Wm. Conq.  Another source calls him a 'natural son.'  The Kilpeck history also claims that William FitzNorman was a kinsman of Earl Mortimer. Unfortunately, this is not backed up by any documentation so there is no way of knowing if there is any connection between FitzNorman and the Conqueror. Be that as it may, the de la Mare family became part of a military defense along the Welsh border called The Marcher Lords. It was their duty to protect England from any invasions by the hostile Welsh and in return they received considerable amounts of land. Kilpeck Castle was one of many castles built along the boundary between Wales and England, but was not considered one of the four major powers who became prominent as Marcher Lords.

I have read and heard objections to the use of the name FitzNorman. Others question the name since it was not common at the time. My argument is that it wasn’t a name but a sobriquet, a nickname. The progenitor of this family was probably called ‘the Norman’ much as an immigrant Irish man might be called ‘Irish’, regardless what his name was.  Some studies have been done that show the brothers William and Hugh de la Mare, were sons of Robert Normannus, The Marshal, who owned lands in England during the time of Edward the Confessor – or before the Battle of Hastings. If Robert had spent some time in England where the Norman population was small, it would have been easy to call him The Norman. His sons became known as William and Hugh FitzNorman de la Mare or in another way William and Hugh de Mara. The name Robert does repeat in several following generations so I believe there is some merit to this argument, even though it can’t be verified with documents. I do not believe that Norman was the first name to which it was customary to add Fitz. My theory is that The Norman was known in England before 1066 and his sons were called FitzNorman instead of FitzRobert.

Since I have worked my way to the beginnings of the family de la Mare, I’ll try to follow a time line to bring forth the next several generations. My hope is to explain how the de la Mares scattered, took on different names and how one branch became the Pye family.

The Norman People and their Existing Descendants, by Sir Matthew Hale

The Notices of the Ellises of England, Scotland and Ireland, by William Smith Ellis, Esq. P.17-18.

 A General Introduction to Domesday Book,by Sir Henry Ellis

The Reynolds Connection

First, I must apologize for the lack of credit on the Mulley’s Cove photo in my last post. I didn’t realize the credit wasn’t attached to the photo until AFTER I’d posted the blog. So to correct that, the photo was taken by Ron Thistle in 2002. There is a site for Thistle family members to check out if they wish.

http://familytreemaker.genealogy.com/users/t/h/i/Gary-H-Thistle-FL/

Cecil Reynolds wrote a series of letters in the 1990s, while he was in his 90’s, concerning the families of Mulley’s Cove and many of the marriages and intermarriages that took place. These letters are a wealth of information, much of it about the life and times of growing up in Newfoundland. He had researched the Reynolds (also recorded as Rennolls) family and what he wrote about astounded me. This is what I learned.

James Reynolds (1749-1834) was born in Rockbeare, Devon, the 2^nd son of the churchwarden. His older brother inherited the Devon lands and James was in need of an occupation. He became a bootmaker apprentice of the Lacey’s of Mulley’s Cove, in 1769. It is said that the Lacey’s made boots for the fishermen, boots similar to the type worn by the fishermen of the West Country, Dorset, Devon and Cornwall. James’ apprenticeship was to last for seven years and during this time he was to live with the family and had to remain unmarried. By the time his term was over, the American Revolution had begun.

Boats were hauled in and out of Mulley's Cove from this old wench. Photo provided by Jim and Glenda Thistle

Newfoundland did not have a sustainable agricultural economy. They depended on the colonies to supplies them with foods they couldn’t grow. With the War came the British blockades of the American ports, so very few supplies were reaching Newfoundland. James found that the Lacey’s were well supplied with items from Devon, so he signed on for another seven years. The fact that the Lacey’s were well connected in Devon and made boots similar to those of that region, suggests, but doesn’t prove that they may have originated in Devon.

So it was that James, finally a man on his own at the age of 33/34, was finally able to marry and settle down. Cecil Reynolds in his letters, says he found that James married a teenager named Elizabeth Kennedy and they had at least 4 children: Elizabeth who married John Slade; James Jr., who married an Elizabeth; Lot, who married a Hannah and John, no wife found yet.

James Jr. was the father of Esther Reynolds who married John Lacy/Lacey. This James, a fisherman, had 4 daughters and one son, but he doesn’t appear in records after his son was born. There seems to be no death record or grave, so it seems he might have been lost at sea. The children were Elizabeth, who married William King; Esther (above); Sarah Ann married James Thistle; Mary who may have died young; and James 3rd who married Jane King.

‘So now we have all these additional names to tackle: Kennedy, Slade, Thistle and King.  There’s Devon, Dorset and Cornwall to check out to see who might be connected to where. Then there’s always the interesting family tale that there were two branches of the Pye family who settled in Newfoundland – one from Herefordshire and the other from  - you guessed it – Devon and Cornwall.

And I thought my gt. grandmother was a brick wall. Well, knocking down that wall has opened up many more avenues that need to be pursued.  Have my pick, have my shovel – off I go!

http://ngb.chebucto.org/Articles/cjr-ltr-5.shtml

http://ngb.chebucto.org/Articles/cjr-ltr-6.shtml

One Brick Wall Down

A few months ago, I posted several names that were solid brick walls in my research. One of them was Elizabeth Rachel Lacy, my gt. grandmother. I had been unable to find any documentation for her for many years. I finally decided to go back to what my cousin, Pete, had originally said about her. My reasoning was that he had been the first born grandson of Jesse Pye, who was the son of my elusive Elizabeth. He had spent many years listening to Jesse talk about his relatives and life in Newfoundland and Labrador. Just because I couldn’t find anything to prove what he had written didn’t mean some or all of it was not true.

So, I started off at square one, as they say. Elizabeth, who went by her middle name, as seems to be the way in NFLD, which was Rachel. It was always a given that her name was Lacy and not Lacey. But for my search purposes, I looked at every, Elizabeth and/or Rachel who had a Lacy/Lacey last name. Now the next thing Pete had recorded was that her parents were known as John Lacy and his wife Esther Reynolds. Off I went to connect the dots or so I hoped.

To begin with, The Grand Banks site for NFLD has added quite a few more searchable records. This was an enormous help. I was able to extend my search to places I hadn’t been able to check on before. I was looking for a Murray Cove near Carbonear. But with more records, I stumbled upon Mulley’s Cove and hit the jackpot. Over the years, the location’s name had become corrupted in our family’s version of the story, so my searching was in the wrong place. As Dick Eastman suggested in a recent newsletter, family history can be lost in just three generations. In this case, thankfully, it wasn’t lost, but some definite distortions had occurred.  But here I found that John Lacey had married Esther Reynolds on Nov 13 1839. Then I went into the census and found my gt. grandmother, Elizabeth Rachel Lacey, b. Jul 27 1843 in Mulley’s Cove. Finally I had validation of who her parents were and that she had 10 siblings. I also discovered that her name was spelled Lacey in all the records, contrary to every thing our family tale reported. Long ago I had discovered that one needed to look for every variation of the spelling, so this didn’t surprise me much. The Lacy ‘tale’ was based on John Lacy having been born in Belfast and that he was of the Irish Lacy family.

Now I realized that earlier records were also on line and to my surprise and delight, I found John Lacey was actually born in St. John’s, NFLD on Nov 13 1812, not in Ireland. His father was Robert Lacey and his mother was Rachel Thistle (nee) who married at St. John’s Congregational Church, May 6 1809. In 1817 Robert was a shoemaker but in later documents he became a fisherman. Robert’s father was John Lacey, also a shoemaker. So far I’ve found four children for Robert and Rachel: Daniel, John, William and Mary Ann. But now a new mystery presents itself, where was John Lacy/Lacey born?

I have discovered that, my Newfoundland ancestors were the hardiest, toughest people. They had large families and many of the children died young. As Darwin suggested in his Origin of the Species, these folks were “better designed for an immediate, local environment.”

Interestingly, while following some history on the Reynolds family, I discovered that this Lacy/Lacey family may have come from Devon, England and not from Ireland at all. The Reynolds history also suggested that the Thistle family came from the Channel Islands.

I was very satisfied with this session of research. Not only did I find my gt. grandmother, but I found her parents and her grandparents as well.

Reminder to self – do not shelve family history stories until they can be proven wrong!!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Survival_of_the_fittest

http://ngb.chebucto.org/

Thanksgiving Thoughts

As Thanksgiving approaches, I am often drawn to memories of my childhood in New England. The colder, dreary month of November on the coast of Massachusetts was memorable in its own way. The air smelled heavily of salt water, the dampness was chilling even for youngsters and the early darkness of each day drove us all home, to the welcome and warm smells of supper cooking. To be among familiar objects and family gathered around the dining room table, was to find a secure barrier against the wicked elements that could blow in off the mighty North Atlantic. It was an insulation against the unknown, a safe haven from the boogey man and a cheery cocoon for young minds with over active imaginations. It was Fall in Winthrop. We had raked leaves into huge piles, jumped into them a gazillion times and, yes, burned them in the gutters. I still miss the smell of burning leaves. We had made sure the storm windows were in place. This was no easy task as they had to be taken off and put on from the outside, on ladders. They were separate from the window frames and had spent the summer stored in the cellar awaiting the first cold blasts of approaching winter.  It was time to get out the hats, mittens, scarves, boots, warm jackets and leggings. How I hated the leggings!! Nothing like today's warm, nearly water proof outdoor gear, these leggings would be wet soon after the first snow angel.  We spent November getting ready for winter. Sometimes, winter hit with huge Nor'eastahs, dumping snow up to my chin, long before we were truly ready. But most of the time, November was just cold and gray. There was much to look forward to in November with lots of days off from school. We always had election day off, then Veteran's Day and then the two days for Thanksgiving. My older sisters were very into high school football. I went to many of the games too, with kids my own age. We spent weeks, before Thanksgiving, cutting up newspapers into strips and then into small squares, our very own home grown confetti. It was extra special when we could add the Sunday comics to the mix. All this was for the Thanksgiving football game, the last of the season, with a rival high school team. I didn't care a bit about the game. I was there to cheer with the cheerleaders, yell at the top of my lungs and throw confetti. It was glorious! The game was in the morning so by the time we got home, there was the heaven sent aroma of a turkey roasting in the oven. Our dinner was probably very traditional.  I'm not sure I ever asked any of my friends what they had for their dinners. I guess I thought everyone had what we had. This was before the day of frozen turkeys so ours was fresh and needed to be dunked in a sink full of cold water to clean it all out. My father made the onion stuffing with stale bread. He always stuffed the turkey the night before and we never got sick once!!!!  My mother and grandmother had made pies and fresh cranberry orange relish. I never did acquire a taste for this relish but still love canned cranberry sauce. My grandmother insisted on having mince meat pies, another item my taste buds never quite got used to. There was mashed potato, sweet potato, boiled onions, Hubbard squash, stuffing, turkey and gravy. It was a feast fit for royalty. Sometimes we had relatives join us, swelling our ranks to 10 or more at the table. Warm pies, including pumpkin, would be served with real whipped cream. After clean up, the dining room table would be turned into a giant card table as we all gathered around to play Up The River. Out came the cards and the betting chips; let the games begin. I don't remember if I ever won or lost.  I just remember it being the most fun. The room was full of laughter and silliness. The only thing you could win was chips - no cash value. So we just played and laughed and enjoyed.  Each Thanksgiving I am so grateful for these memories. As I relive them, I am once again with my parents, grandmother, sisters and other family. I'm visiting my beloved childhood home and touching a time that was saner, safer and happier than what we have today.  

Anthony Henry Pye 1590-1656 Cornwall, England

Anthony Henry Pye 1590-1656

Anthony Henry Pye, the son of Anthony Pye and Constance Pound m. Elizabeth Trethewey, 1614, in St. Stephen’s, Brannell. Since Anthony Henry was supposed to have been born in 1590, the following information probably refers to his father:

An Anthony Pye is listed in A2A in Parishes of St. Austell, St. Ewe and St. Mewan under the Edgecombe family and concerned with MINING, dated May 17 1590.

It will be noted that later dates of 1632, still have this Pye family connected to the Edgecombe’s.

I have been able to find five children for this couple:

Henry (c.1616 - c.1655) – Unk. Wife – a son, Henry

William (c. 1617 - ?)

John (c. 1619 - ?)

Jane (c. 1621- ?)

Robert (Bapt. Mar. 21 1623 – burial Aug. 17 1700)

Trying to read the Registers for all the different areas in Cornwall has been most unsuccessful. The handwriting is so indecipherable that I, at first, thought it was written in Latin. Possibly some of it is. I was only able to distinguish a few given names such as Elizabeth, John (Johannes), Jone and Walter. I finally gave up on the surnames. I didn’t see anything even approaching a similarity with Pye/Pie/Opie/Apie, which are all spelling variations. The last two variants are the closest to ap Hugh, where in Wales the ‘u’ is pronounced ‘y’ or long ‘i’.

So I will continue with the information I have on this family and as time permits will try to decipher the handwriting in the Cornwall Registers.

Using the Archives on line, A2A, housed in London, this information was found but it is uncertain if this is the same Anthony (paraphrased):

Possibly the Anthony who paid 5 yrs rent to Sir Richard Edgcumbe for land in Hewas Francis, on Apr 23 1632.

A2A LEASES Manor of Bodrugan File ref. ME/1289 date 23 Apr 1632 Scope and Content: Receipt by Sir Richard Edgcumbe for 2s. 6d. for five years high rent due from Anthony Pye for land in Hewas Francis; signature

Since Anthony Henry’s father died in 1627, it’s likely this statement is about him and not his father. There are a couple more Anthony’s in Cornwall but they don’t fit the timeline for 1632. So unless another Anthony shows up, I believe this Anthony to be the one mentioned in the 1632 Scope and Content.

Anthony Henry’s son, William, is said to have been born in Bodinnick. Without proof, I can only say that he was born in Cornwall. There is no known wife for him, but he had three known children:

Elizabeth m. Roger Crewes

John m. Jone (Unknown) – 3 children

Anthony of Grampound m. Phillipa Andrew Sep 8 1684 – 1 child

There is little more information on this Pye line. Serious efforts have been made to connect this family line with the Pyes who eventually settled in Newfoundland. However, although repeating names suggest family connections, no records have been discovered to verify any of it. Perhaps in time more information will become available.

http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/records/

http://ukga.org/england/Cornwall/visitations/index.html

Carew’s Survey of Cornwall.pdf