Wm(1717)&Saml(1690)Hart+Clayton+McCreary
I am looking for the family of William Hart, b. ca 1717, d. April 10, 1799 in Bedford (now Fulton) Co, PA.(and Ann McCreary and Jane Clayton and Samuel Hart and ???)
If you like a mystery with lots of clues (but, no better than speculation at the end) please read on:
1) William Hart (1717-1799) had the following children:
- Margaret, b ca 1750
- Sarah, b March 5, 1751/2
- William, Jr., b 1755
- Jacob, b 1756
- John, b January, 1763
- Nathaniel, b February 7, 1765
- Benjamin, b 1769
2) A land warrant issued in 1767 states that William (1717-1799) began improving his farm in Bedford (now Fulton) Co., PA, in 1760. (Just a mile or so north of Hancock, MD). Where he was before that is uncertain.
3) An old Hart family Bible shows a) an unknown William Hart, b 1697 / d. 1779; b) an unknown Rebecca (no last name shown), b. March 30, 1723; and c) a statement that the family may have come originally from Connecticut.NOTE: the family Bible entry on William was made 30 years after William (1717) died and is off by 20 years on each end; I think it quite possible that William (1697) is just an error in the memory of the recorder and they were really trying to record William (1717).The precise data on Rebecca, however, suggests they had some memory cells in working order....
4) In 1789 William (1717) sold some land to one of his sons. In the sale, it is recorded that his wife Jane concurs with the sale. In 1791, William again sells some land but no mention is made of a wife. While Jane has apparently died in the interim, no tombstone or church records that I know of make mention of it (they belonged to the Tonoloway Primitive Baptist Church).Note: I know nothing of Jane beyond that she was William's wife in 1789.
5) In "Pennsylvania Marriages Prior to 1810" (ancestry.com) Married in Swede's Church, Philadelphia: William Hart and Jane Clayton, _(date)_ 1758. I've not found any other William Hart and Jane ____ marriages recorded in the rough time frame his children were born. If this IS the Jane referred to in the land bill of sale, it's impossible to tell without more information. Does anyone have anything here??? Also, if this is my William, it clearly indicates that he would have been previously married (for the first 4 children).
6) Might William have been married and living on the PA border (near what was Cumberland, then Bedford, now Fulton Co.) in the 1750 to 1760 time frame?If so, there were a great many whites killed in Indian attacks in that area between about 1755 and 1757. Given that William had 4 children between 1750 and 1756, then none until 1763, is it possible a first wife died in the Fulton Co area around 1756 or 57?
7) In "Pennsylvania Marriages to 1790" (ancestry.com) Pennsylvania Marriage Licenses, issued by Governor James Hamilton, 1748 - 1752:William Hart and Ann McCreary, July 1749. This and item 5 are the only two marriages I can find shown for a William Hart in the time frame his children were born. (I know that doesn't prove anything, but it does fit...)Could Ann McCreary have been William's first wife?(I haven't found any records to indicate what happened to Ann after she got married...where she moved or when she died)
8) In Will Abstracts, Book 2, Bucks Co, PA 1739-1759, we find (page 98):Joseph McCreary, of Plumstead Twp., Yeoman. August 31, 1747. Proved January 22, 1747/8. Wife Isabella.Daughters: Ann, Jennett, and Elizabeth McCreary. Executors: Samuel Hart, Wm. Means and John Gaddis.Witnesses: Wm. Hart, Joseph Porter, Luke Severns.Comment: I find it intriguing that Joseph McCreary of Philadelphia Co had a daughter Ann (unmarried in 1747) at the time of his will and William Hart as a witness.
9) In Will Abstracts (p.201): Samuel Hart, (b 1690 - d 1750) of Plumstead, Yeoman. March 28, 1750. Proved April 20, 1750. Wife: Elizabeth. Executors: John Gaddis and James Hart. Sons James (eldest), William, Joseph, John, Samuel.Daughters: Mary McGlaughin, Jane Mathers, Nellie and Elizabeth Hart. Witnesses: Charles Williams, William Logan.Comments: This appears to be the same Samuel Hart who was an executor for Joseph McCreary. John Gaddis was an executor for both wills/estates; and William Hart is also mentioned in both (I think it fairly safe to assume they are the same William).
10) In Will Abstracts (p.201): Elizabeth (dies), of Plumstead, Widow, Date April 3, 1750. Proved April 20, 1750.Sons: Joseph and Samuel. Daughters: Nellie and Elizabeth Hart. Grand Daughters: Elizabeth McGlaughlin, Elizabeth Hart, and Elizabeth Mathers. Witnesses: Charles Williams, Wm. Logan. Eldest son James renounces, Letters granted to son Joseph. (It is apparent that this Elizabeth is the wife of Samuel.)
11) In looking for published trees (on the internet) for Samuel Hart's family, the ones I found showed him with a son William a) being born in 1720 and dying 1759; and b) not having married Ann McCreary but, instead, someone else.
Every thing in items 1 to 10 above "fit" so neatly to be my William (1717-1799) then item 11 seems to throw it all out the window.So where does this take things???
We know that the Governor issued a marriage license for a William Hart and Ann McCreary in July, 1749, and can probably assume they got married.Further, the close ties between the above cited McCreary and Hart families is apparent. And that Joseph McCreary had an unmarried daughter Ann in 1747 and that Samuel Hart had a son William (of marrying age) is a given. That Joseph McCreary had Samuel Hart as executor and William Hart witness his will indicates a very close relationship as well.
All of this suggests to me that Samuel's son William is the one who married Ann McCreary... rather than marrying someone else as shown in some of the trees on the net. (Does it make sense that Samuel's son William would go find someone else to marry, even though he was obviously very close to the McCreary's, AND Ann went and found a different William Hart to marry???It doesn't sound logical to me.)
Anyway, if some of the basic data on Samuel's son William were wrong (such as whom he married), the rest of the data shown for him would have to be questioned as well, ....That Samuel had a son William is clear but the data being presented for the "real" William might represent some unrelated William altogether. NOTE: I am not saying the data in the trees on the net is wrong, just that circumstances suggest other possibilities.DOES ANYONE HAVE ANY HARD (or even firm) EVIDENCE ON THIS...ONE WAY OR THE OTHER?
As you can see, I'm suggesting my William (1717 - 1799) MIGHT in fact be the son of Samuel (1690 - 1750); that he married Ann McCreary, who died around 1757; then married Jane Clayton and moved on to the Hancock, MD/Fulton Co. PA. area around 1760.(Another possibility is that several years of bashing my head against the wall has made my head soft.)
Can anyone help me with my William Hart (1717 - 1799)?Who does he belong to & where did he come from?Is he the son of Samuel Hart (1690 - 1750) or am I just chasing a wild goose? Who is William (1697 - 1779) and who is Rebecca, b 1723?Does anyone know any more about either Ann McCreary or Jane Clayton?Is anyone working on the descendants of William (1717-1799)?Any help or ideas??? Thanks!
Mike Thorne([email protected])