Mertz Genealogy - Person Sheet
Mertz Genealogy - Person Sheet
Parent-Proof notes for 7G GF William Pearce
I do not know who his parents were. I note though that he was of Anne Arundel County and had a daughter named Sarah. There was an earlier William Pearce who died in Anne Arundel County in 1675 whose wife was Sarah. I don’t think it unreasonable to think that William might have been the father of William who died about 1705, but there is no real evidence of it. That, of course, would make six successive Williams in our line and I’m not sure I even want to go there.
Relocated notes for 7G GF William Pearce
IMMIGRANT. He was probably the immigrant of our Pearce line but I don’t know from where. Some people suggest England, some Wales.
Research notes for 7G GF William Pearce
I also found a 1720 will of a William Pearce of Kent County whose wife is named Isabella and a number of people named Hopkins are listed -- apparently because his daughter Sarah married first Mr. Hopkins. This is intriguing because our William Pearce was supposed to have married Isabel Hopkins -- but I think this will is irrelevant and simply a coincidence.
My Comments notes for 7G GF William Pearce
I believe we descend from at least five successive men named William Pearce. Keeping them straight and knowing which William any particular reference applies to is confusing at best. And to make matters worse, there were several other men of that name living in overlapping time periods and the same general places as our ancestors. One way to at least identify the ones who I think were our ancestors is that for the five Williams in our direct line, I know the year of death of each. So I, at times, will refer to them as William (1705), William (1719), William (1780), William (1806) and William (1835). Five successive Williams.
There is a compilation of many separate family histories, entitled Colonial Families of Maryland. I have no idea who wrote the Pearce section, but it gives a great overview of the problem of too many men named William Pearce in that time and place to be able to know for certain which, if any of them, were father and son. Here are the six Williams identified in that book [and my comments as to how they might be related to each other and ultimately to us].
1. In 1655, a William Pearce was “transported” to America -- his passage paid for by someone to whom he then was obligated to serve a seven year indenture. The custom was that after that seven years, the person transported could then claim land as his right. So, the William Pearce who demanded 50 acres in 1662 was probably the transported William. He was associated with Robert Neave and so the William Pearce who later sold land with wife Isabel purchased from Robert Neave is probably also the same man. [Some sources say this was William Pearce who died in 1705, and that his wife was Isabel Hopkins. But I believe the immigrant of 1655 whose wife was Isabel died in Kent County in 1720 and I do not believe he was our ancestor.]
2. A William Pearce of Anne Arundel County died sometime before April 1675 when his will was administered by his widow Sarah. [This William may belong in our line as the father of William (1705), but other than observing that our earliest William was of Anne Arundel County and had a daughter named Sarah -- I have no way to connect these two Williams.]
3. A William Pearce who had something to do with “Pascall’s Chance” and with Jonathan Tipton and with a younger William Pearce and likely died by 1705. [I believe these are our earliest two Williams, father and son.]
4. A William Pearce of Anne Arundel County who died in 1719 with a wife named Elizabeth, sons named William and John and nephews Thomas and William Tipton. [Colonial Families of Maryland suggests this was in fact the son of William who died about 1705 and I agree. Further that his son William is our third earliest William, born about 1714.]
5. A William Pearce married Priscilla West, daughter of Stephen West. [Robert Barnes suggests he may have been the William baptized in 1714, but I think Barnes is wrong on this point.]
6. A William Pearce married Johanna French in 1768 in All Hallows Parish (Anne Arundel County). Their children were baptized at All Hallow’s and included a William born 1775. [I don’t think either of these Williams are in our lineage.]
In addition to Colonial Families of Maryland, I have found two other sources covering the Pearces, that I have used extensively:
• A book written on the Pearce line by Marvin J Pearce entitled Pearce Pioneers in Kentucky. The line of interest to Marvin branched off from ours and moved to Kentucky, but Marvin shares our ancestors from William baptized in 1714 back. To the extent that we have some early ancestors in common, his work has been very helpful. Marvin also discussed the problem of the many men named William Pearce and made a very extensive review of early Maryland land and tax records to infer connections from the facts he had.
• The Pearce Family Tree as published in a section of the Baltimore County Genweb Internet page called “First Families of Anne Arundel and Baltimore Counties”. “First Families” includes family genealogies submitted by various people to document the earliest families who were settled in those counties by 1735.
Most of the sources I have found are remarkably consistent though each varies only as it relates to how many of the Williams they say are definitely connected. But none go off tangentially to different ancestors than the ones I believe pertain. So having now identified our first three William Pearce ancestors, I can begin to trace the line starting with William who died in 1705. I do not know the name of his wife.
Tracking Five Successive Williams. As I now introduce the four succeeding Williams in our line, the challenge is to connect the next one to the previous -- when, in most cases, there is some geographic relocation involved. How can I prove that William who died in some new place was the same as the William born in a different place?
There is a compilation of many separate family histories, entitled Colonial Families of Maryland. I have no idea who wrote the Pearce section, but it gives a great overview of the problem of too many men named William Pearce in that time and place to be able to know for certain which, if any of them, were father and son. Here are the six Williams identified in that book [and my comments as to how they might be related to each other and ultimately to us].
1. In 1655, a William Pearce was “transported” to America -- his passage paid for by someone to whom he then was obligated to serve a seven year indenture. The custom was that after that seven years, the person transported could then claim land as his right. So, the William Pearce who demanded 50 acres in 1662 was probably the transported William. He was associated with Robert Neave and so the William Pearce who later sold land with wife Isabel purchased from Robert Neave is probably also the same man. [Some sources say this was William Pearce who died in 1705, and that his wife was Isabel Hopkins. But I believe the immigrant of 1655 whose wife was Isabel died in Kent County in 1720 and I do not believe he was our ancestor.]
2. A William Pearce of Anne Arundel County died sometime before April 1675 when his will was administered by his widow Sarah. [This William may belong in our line as the father of William (1705), but other than observing that our earliest William was of Anne Arundel County and had a daughter named Sarah -- I have no way to connect these two Williams.]
3. A William Pearce who had something to do with “Pascall’s Chance” and with Jonathan Tipton and with a younger William Pearce and likely died by 1705. [I believe these are our earliest two Williams, father and son.]
4. A William Pearce of Anne Arundel County who died in 1719 with a wife named Elizabeth, sons named William and John and nephews Thomas and William Tipton. [Colonial Families of Maryland suggests this was in fact the son of William who died about 1705 and I agree. Further that his son William is our third earliest William, born about 1714.]
5. A William Pearce married Priscilla West, daughter of Stephen West. [Robert Barnes suggests he may have been the William baptized in 1714, but I think Barnes is wrong on this point.]
6. A William Pearce married Johanna French in 1768 in All Hallows Parish (Anne Arundel County). Their children were baptized at All Hallow’s and included a William born 1775. [I don’t think either of these Williams are in our lineage.]
In addition to Colonial Families of Maryland, I have found two other sources covering the Pearces, that I have used extensively:
• A book written on the Pearce line by Marvin J Pearce entitled Pearce Pioneers in Kentucky. The line of interest to Marvin branched off from ours and moved to Kentucky, but Marvin shares our ancestors from William baptized in 1714 back. To the extent that we have some early ancestors in common, his work has been very helpful. Marvin also discussed the problem of the many men named William Pearce and made a very extensive review of early Maryland land and tax records to infer connections from the facts he had.
• The Pearce Family Tree as published in a section of the Baltimore County Genweb Internet page called “First Families of Anne Arundel and Baltimore Counties”. “First Families” includes family genealogies submitted by various people to document the earliest families who were settled in those counties by 1735.
Most of the sources I have found are remarkably consistent though each varies only as it relates to how many of the Williams they say are definitely connected. But none go off tangentially to different ancestors than the ones I believe pertain. So having now identified our first three William Pearce ancestors, I can begin to trace the line starting with William who died in 1705. I do not know the name of his wife.
Tracking Five Successive Williams. As I now introduce the four succeeding Williams in our line, the challenge is to connect the next one to the previous -- when, in most cases, there is some geographic relocation involved. How can I prove that William who died in some new place was the same as the William born in a different place?