William Pye of Newfoundland (c. 1760-1810

Fall clean-up and preparing yard and home for the coming winter months has kept me busy for weeks, it seems. Adding more tulips and daffodils to the garden, gathering seeds for next year, trimming bushes a bit will, hopefully, make things much easier in the Spring. So, at last, I feel I have the time to return to my blog.

I left off with the Maryland Pyes and referencing William Pye, supposedly of Maryland and Barbados. Relatives living in Newfoundland back in the 1930’s/40’s told my cousin Pete that this is the William who came to Newfoundland on board the Junius Brutus, as a prisoner of the British. He was released there and sought out his Uncle Henry. This is all hearsay and handed down family legend. I still cannot find a William connected to any of the Pyes in MD. But I have always believed that where there is smoke, there is probably fire, so I refuse to throw this information out. One thing to consider is that William was his middle name and that he is recorded in MD using his first name, which would make it difficult to find his parents.

Moving on to Newfoundland, I have been unable to find an early Henry Pye who could have been his uncle. Granted, the fishermen were not allowed to reside at NFLD, being forced to return home at the end of the fishing season. This was enforced by the ships’ Captains, who were fined for every man not returning home without due cause. So perhaps Henry was one of those who returned to England each time and never became part of the records in NFLD. It wasn’t until 1790 that NFLD began to be more of a permanent settlement rather than a temporary fishing enterprise. With this in mind, it’s quite possible that William returned to England and, possibly, was married in England. Why wasn’t he returned to the Colonies after the war was over? As a Colonist, with connections to MD, one would think he would have returned there after the American Revolution ended. By staying in or returning to Newfoundland, it suggests he remained or became a British subject.

Early Newfoundland records are sketchy at best. Some historical treatises cover its connection to Poole, Dorset, England, Bristol, England and Cornwall. There were other ports as well, but these seemed to be prominent. Not only did the fisheries in Newfoundland do business with these ports but it appears that many inhabitants from those regions moved to and became residents of Newfoundland.

Without any specific names to work with, it can only be a theory that some of the Pyes moved between the various places and finally took up more permanent residency in Newfoundland, once the Crown allowed it. Using the customary naming patterns that many families employed during the 18^th and 19^th centuries, I have found an unusual similarity between some settlements in Newfoundland and those found in Devon and Dorset, more precisely in Bettiscombe and Broadwinsor, Dorset. There I found the names William, Elisha, Elijah, Henry, and Benjamin. In 1796, I found the marriage of Elijah Pye to Abigail Ash and then in 1805, I found the birth of a daughter Ann, to Elijah and Abigail Pye. Both were recorded in NL. There is nearly a 10 year gap between marriage and Ann’s birth. Most likely there were 3 – 4 children born in that time span but there seems to be no records of them. There are many named Benjamin born in Devon during the years 1780-1810. In, Newfoundland, there were also many men named John, James, Charles, Samuel, etc. It is one giant leap of faith, but so far, is the only one worth taking, when I theorize that most of the Newfoundland Pyes might find their roots in Devon and Dorset. That’s not to say they were born there. Just like today, when they needed to find work, they often traveled to where the work was located. It is most likely that many of them were young and unmarried, able to live a gypsy type life until they were ready to settle down. The hunt for a woman named Blanch, either in the UK or in NL has proved fruitless. My theory on this is that this is her middle name and she has been recorded under her formal first name, which is unknown.

William Pye, POW on the Junius Brutus arrived in NL by 1782 where he was held in a POW camp until 1785/86, the end of the American Revolution. We know only that he met and married Blanch Pye, a distant relative, but we don’t know where

or when. Based on NL records, the following could be their children:

1William and Blanch - children – William, Elijah and Samuel (quite possibly more)

2William m. Mary Pike – Children – Thomas, Ann, William Pike, Mary, John,           and Samuel

{For these first two generations, William and William Pike are the only two KNOWN individuals who have been handed down from earlier generations as family history. The others fit a timeline that make them possible, but not enough information is known about them.}

3William Pike m. Esther Ann Snow – Children – Abraham, Susanna, James,           Julia Ann, Edmund, Edward, *John Charles, William, Maria and Moses

Then there was Elijah Pye who married Abigail Ash, Dec. 1796, in Carbonear. Since it is believed that William didn’t marry Blanch until sometime after 1786, this Elijah would be too old to be William’s son. This would indicate that another Pye family existed in or near Carbonear and was contemporary with the William Pye family. Elijah had Ann, 1805, Jane, 1807, and Samuel, 1810, Mary, 1812.

*John Charles is my gt. grandfather.

If anyone has info to add or correct any of this, please send an email to: thePyePlate@gmail.com

http://ngb.chebucto.org/Articles/cor-colonial-1768-1821.shtml

Marriage record for Elijah and Abigail Pye

Birth records for children of Elijah and Abigail Pye

FamilySearch.org

http://ngb.chebucto.org/ : Directories, Historical articles, Parish Records, Colonial Office, Voter’s lists,