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