Alexander Pye was the son of John Pye and an unknown wife. He was born in
St. Stephen’s, Brannell, Cornwall, England, about 1535. Again, I will reiterate, there is not one speck of proof that Elizabeth Courtenay was married to John Pye or was the mother of Alexander. In fact, other records show that Elizabeth Courtenay was married to John Trethewey. Granted she could have been married more than once, but nowhere have I found one mention of John Pye being married to Elizabeth Courtenay. Whatever the case, Alexander was not the first born so the naming patterns of the time may not apply. I have found one curious tidbit that I hope to pursue to truth or fiction. The statement indicated that a John Pye had changed his name to Trethewey in order to inherit a certain amount of property. If that should prove true than we could have a Trethewey (Pye)/Courtenay marriage. Even if it is true, it does not mean they were the parents of Alexander. Research on these people has been slow and painful.
St. Stephen’s, Brannell, Cornwall, England, about 1535. Again, I will reiterate, there is not one speck of proof that Elizabeth Courtenay was married to John Pye or was the mother of Alexander. In fact, other records show that Elizabeth Courtenay was married to John Trethewey. Granted she could have been married more than once, but nowhere have I found one mention of John Pye being married to Elizabeth Courtenay. Whatever the case, Alexander was not the first born so the naming patterns of the time may not apply. I have found one curious tidbit that I hope to pursue to truth or fiction. The statement indicated that a John Pye had changed his name to Trethewey in order to inherit a certain amount of property. If that should prove true than we could have a Trethewey (Pye)/Courtenay marriage. Even if it is true, it does not mean they were the parents of Alexander. Research on these people has been slow and painful.
However, there have been some interesting finds. Boconnoc, Brannell, Boddinick and Bodmin are all geographically fairly close to each other. They are all near the River Fowey. Bodmin appears on maps to be nearly due north of the river mouth. Boddinick is on the east side of the river, near the mouth, and is known for being the residence of Daphne du Maurier, authoress. Brannell lies to the west in St. Stephen’s parish and Boconnoc lies to the north and east of the river. All four of these locations have been named in documents pertaining to the Pye family over the centuries. The River Fowey supported a large and thriving fishing and boat building community. One of the most interesting things I found was that one of the prominent families of Boddinick was Slade. They had many ships and transported local China clay or imported coal. One of the companies who processed and transported dried Cod from Battle Harbor, Newfoundland, to the Continent was the Slade Co. This was an unexpected find and supports the immigration of Pyes from Cornwall to Newfoundland. Be aware, I said ‘supports,’ I did not say “proves.’
Daphne de Maurier home, on the right. The Old Ferry Inn on the hill behind.
As mentioned in the last post, there was family history of the Pyes being connected to the Carminow’s. A correction is needed here as the lasted post stated incorrectly that the land was in St. Brannel. It should have said St. Stephen in Brannell. In searching geographical locations and their histories I did come upon this interesting statement in The History of Cornwall, by Fortescue Hitchings, Esq., Vo II, p. 612, 1824 …..
"The manor of Bodinneck, which belonged to the Carminows of Boconnoc, passed from this family to the Courtenays. Some considerable time afterwards it was in the family of Pye, by whom it was sold to John Tanner, Esq., M. P. for Grampound. This gentleman made Bodinneck his residence. This is now a farm house, the property of Lord Grenville."
This shows there was some history of the Pyes owning property that had once belonged to the Carminow’s and Courtenays. There are records to show that some members of the Pye family married Tanners. However, these connections do not contribute anything to the man known as Alexander Pye.
Alexander was apparently not a very noteworthy person in the area that he lived. There is not much mention of him in the history books neither of that location nor in the records and documents of that era. He married Marion Corne (Coryn), who was the daughter of Richard Corne and Elizabeth Vyvyan (Vivian). Richard’s parents were Michael Coryn and (?) Lovedon. Elizabeth’s father was John Vyvyan. Her mother is unknown.
Alexander and Marion had at least 4 children. Incorrecty, I see that I posted Alexander’s name when it should have been Anthony and Constance Pound’s children that were described. As many times as I read over these blogs before posting, I still find these goofy mistakes. Another error, a misspelling, is Margaret Pye married William Catcher (Not Cathcher).
The following children were Alexander’s and Marion’s:
Anthony (c 1559-1627) m. Constance Pound (c 1560-?) – 9 children (These children were discussed in the last blog.)
Male Child
Males Child
Anna (c 1560-?) m. Willmus Tremayne on Aug 13 1579 (The name Tremayne has taken on many spellings since the 1600's. One of them is Trueman.)
