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MMMooonnntttaaaggguuueee FFFaaammmiiilllyyy AAAssssssoooccciiiaaatttiiiooonnn
NNNeeewwwsssllleeetttttteeerrr The First Montague Family in America—
The Montagues of Boveney, England www.montaguefamilyassociation.com
PETER MONTAGUE “The Virginia Montague”
(1603-1659)
RICHARD MONTAGUE “The New England Montague”
(1614-1681)
HGPM WINS BIG AT NGS!
Robert V. Montague III, MFA Historian
History and Genealogy of Peter Montague of Jamestowne Virginia (1603-2003), Quadricentennial Edition.
-----------------------
Above is one of two national awards presented annually by the National Genealogical Society for Excellence in Writing. The awards were announced at the 2014 NGS Conference at Richmond, VA, on 10 May 2014. I had mostly put the submission out of my mind until the FedEx envelope arrived. When I saw the citation, I was hesitant to accept it at face value, thinking it was something along the lines of “thanks for participating”. I waited a couple of days until it was posted on the NGS website, before I acknowledged it on Facebook, MFA website, and HOM website.
If you are interested in owning a copy of this definitive work on the first Montague family of America, Peter Montague, contact the Historian at [email protected] or see the last page of this newsletter for more information.
IN THIS ISSUE
President’s Message 2 Treasurer’s Report 2 Letters from Peter 3 Ancestor Spotlight 3 Letters from Richard 4 What’s Going On! 6 HGPM QE Book Info 7 Charter Members 8
Published Semiannually (Jun-Dec) by the Montague Family Association
http://www.montaguefamilyassocation.com
Copyright 2014. All Rights Reserved.
BBOOAARRDD MMEEMMBBEERRSS
PPRREESSIIDDEENNTT Jo Anne St. Clair
VVIICCEE PPRREESSIIDDEENNTT Vacant
SSEECCRREETTAARRYY
Suzanne Hamilton [email protected]
TTRREEAASSUURREERR Curt Montague [email protected]
HHIISSTTOORRIIAANN Robert V. Montague
********** *********
RRoobbeerrtt VV.. MMoonnttaagguuee,, EEddiittoorr
Volume 3, Issue 1
June 2014 -
June 2014 Montague Family Association Newsletter 2
PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE
It is my pleasure to serve as President of the Montague Family Association and to be working with such a dedicated group of Board members: Vice-President, Suzanne Hamilton; Treasurer, Curt Montague; and Newsletter Editor and Historian Robert V. Montague.
We are excited to be planning our next 5 year reunion and hope that you will be able to participate. Additionally the input to the survey on our website was most helpful in this process. While some of the places suggested are great tourist destinations, we feel that as an association that is interested in learning as much as we can about our ancestors Peter and Richard, that we need to have our reunions in locations having connections to our immigrant ancestor. In true Montague fashion, there will also be lots of sightseeing opportunities and social activities.
The research that Robert V. Montague has published is an amazing chronicle of the descendants of our ancestor Peter Montague of Jamestowne for which Robert received the 2014 award from the National Genealogical Society for the best genealogy publication. That is quite an honor -- we are so proud of him and appreciate everyone who contributed information about their ancestors and current family members. Robert V. and Richard W. Montague, a descendant of Richard Montague of Massachusetts have been working collaboratively on the information contained in the Visitation of 1634, which may lead to additional information regarding our forbears in England.
We need your involvement and active membership in the Association in order for our momentum as an organization to continue to expand. Please encourage your family members to join the MFA and be a part of this important work. We have a vacancy on our Board to for a Vice-President and we need help to fill out our committee structure. If you would like to take a more active role in this association, please contact me or any of our Board members.
We look forward to hearing from you and especially meeting you at the 2015 reunion in Virginia.
Jo Anne St.Clair
TREASURER’S REPORT
At the outset of this report, I need to pass on my congratulations, and thanks, to Robert V. Montague on his award from National Genealogical Society for his book, History and Genealogy of Peter Montague of Jamestowne, Virginia (1603-2003). We are very proud of his thorough study of our family and the outstanding result.
We have been making progress on many fronts in our efforts at the MFA. I know JoAnne will make the announcement of our decision on the location of the 2015 Family reunion. I'm sure we'll have the best reunion we've ever had in 2015. While membership in the MFA is not necessary to attend the reunion, it would be a great help to have more paying members in the Association. Membership dues are used to cover expenses in the planning, and securing facilities for our family meeting, banquet, and other group activities. Dues also enable us to continue our newsletter mailings, and pay fees that libraries charge to copy documents necessary for our genealogy research.
We are very close to proving some important facts about our family history and we hope to make an announcement soon. Our research of Peter and Richard's ancestors is making headway in the U.K.
Our thanks go out to Richard W. Montague for his diligent research in the U.K. We are grateful for his donations to keep the MFA operating. In spite of independent donations from a few committed individuals, our finances rely on the $25 membership dues from our members. We need more people to become financially committed to the success of the MFA.
Please consider joining the Montague Family Association as a paying member. At $25 per year it will be judiciously used to promote the Association.
Membership information and dues can be
submitted online at: www.montaguefamilyassociation.com or paid by mail to:
Montague Family Association
P.O. Box 243 Hill City, KS USA
June 2014 Montague Family Association Newsletter 3
NOTE. This column is dedicated to Peter and his branch of the Montagues of Boveney. Members can expect to learn little known, but intriguing factoids about Peter and his descendants. Sources for these articles are documented in History and Genealogy of Peter Montague of Jamestowne Virginia (1603–2003), Quadricentennial Edition (QE).
PETER’S SONS—DISSENTERS AND SCOFFERS! By Robert V. Montague III,
11th Generation Descendant of Peter Montague _______________
The old saying, “like father—like son”, does not seem to describe the sons of Peter, our immigrant ancestor of the Virginia Montagues. The evidence indicates that his sons—Peter and William—were religious dissenters, scoffers, or more politely if you prefer, latitudinarians.
What is a dissenter? Dissenters were those pre-revolutionary war English settlers who tacitly, for the most part, challenged the official Anglican spiritual doctrine by simply staying away on Sundays or by actively working to establish separate churches. Presbyterian churches were popular with dissenters; but the first dissenters on the scene were the Quakers who came to Virginia in 1650. Initially, dissenters were repressed and hounded, but they eventually found tolerance at the edges of settlements, particularly in Nansemond, Isle of Wight, and Henrico counties.
Consider that our ancestor Peter Montague was prominent both in Nansemond and Middlesex and was by all accounts respected on both sides of the Rappahannock River—having been a member of the Burgess, a Justice, a Sheriff, and vestryman before his death in 1659. Clearly, Peter’s resume does not resemble, the profile of a dissenter. Yet the activities of his sons, Peter and William are scarcely noted
(cont’d on p. 5)
Letters for/about the Virginia
Montague
— Peter
ANCESTOR SPOTLIGHT - Robert V. Montague, MFA Historian
Elizabeth Montague, daughter of Peter III [12], (Part 1 of 2)
In the previous “Spotlight” (Vol 2, Issue 2, Dec 2013) Elizabeth Montague was first mentioned as a heretofore unidentified third child of Peter III and his wife Elizabeth.
The evidence for her Montague genealogy is a bit tedious so we will take extra time to work through it here. The evidence is sourced in History and Genealogy of Peter Montague of Jamestowne Virginia (1603-2003), Quadricentennial Edition (brackets indicate number).
Elizabeth was born circa 1699 and married (1), John Pace, 24 Oct 1717; and (2), John White, 15 Sep 1735. Both marriages took place in Middlesex Co., VA. Her older brothers Thomas and Peter were born, circa 1694 and 1696 respectively.
Christ Church Parish Register of Middlesex Co., records the marriage of "John Pace and Elizabeth Mountague", 24 Oct 1717. The only Elizabeth of record in this time period who could theoretically be a wife of John Pace is Elizabeth, daughter of Peter [5], son of the Jamestowne colonist. She was unmarried as of 1695.
Her birth date is not recorded, but as her father Peter II, died between Sep–Dec 1682, she could have been born as late as 1682, making her age 35 years when she married John Pace II in 1717. While it is possible she could have had 2 or 3 children at this relatively late child bearing age, it is not likely—and this is the youngest she could have been. It is more likely this Elizabeth was born between 1671 and 1675 making her even less likely to be the wife of John Pace. So, if not the daughter of Peter [5], then who?
In this document from Middlesex Co., Order Bk F, p. 47, Elizabeth Pace is petitioning for Administration of the estate of John Pace dec’d and making oath according to law certified granted her for obtaining letter of adm…Direct Thomas Montague and Robert Brown because her securable and bond and acknowledge the same in court and it was admitted to record. While this record does not expressly quote “Elizabeth’s brother, Thomas Montague”, it is almost certainly her brother Thomas [26].
In Part 2, we will close the evidence loop to show how she is the daughter of Peter [12] and his wife Elizabeth, and the sister of Thomas [26].
June 2014 Montague Family Association Newsletter 4
Letters for/about
the New England
Montague —
Richard
NOTE. This column is dedicated to Richard and his branch of the Montagues of Boveney. Over the coming years, this column will publicize everything we might discover or rediscover about Richard. Our submitter Richard W. Montague, is a seventh great grandson of the New England Montague—Richard.
LYDIA MONTAGUE 1786 COLONIAL SAMPLER By Richard W. Montague,
Ninth Generation Descendant of pioneer Montague settler in New England
_______________
The photograph reproduced above shows an impressive early artifact of the “Hadley” line of the American Montague Family. It is one of the earliest surviving textile records of the Montague Family in New England. Using genealogical data contained in the standard reference work on the American Montague Family, History and Genealogy of the Montague Family of America (HGMFA), originally published in 1886, we can now trace accurately the genealogy of Lydia Montague and determine precisely who were her “Hadley” Montague ancestors. The maker of this colonial sampler, Lydia Montague, was born December 16, 1774 (although her birthday may have actually been December 10), in Sunderland, Franklin County, Massachusetts. Sunderland, originally known as Swampfield, was officially incorporated in 1718, but the name was changed to Sunderland, probably to attract new English settlers from other Connecticut River settlements. The Hadley settlement played a major role in providing the initial residents for Sunderland.
Lydia was the daughter of Daniel Montague, born January 13, 1725 (died 1814) and his wife Lydia Smith (died 1805). The marriage of Daniel and Lydia produced eleven (!) children: Huldah, Ebenezer, Medad, Tryphena, William, Submit, Noahdiah, Stephan, Ebenezer, Daniel, and finally Lydia. Large families were very much en vogue in the early Colonial period! The choice of first names shows clear Biblical influence! Daniel, Lydia’s father, was a well respected individual in western Colonial Massachusetts before and after the American Revolution. He served as a soldier in the American Revolutionary War and was a member of the Massachusetts Provincial Congress during the Revolutionary War. Lydia’s father was one of the ten sons of Deacon Samuel Montague (1695-1779), the pioneer settler of Sunderland, Massachusetts. Deacon Samuel, in turn, was one of the seven sons John Montague (1655/56-1732) of Hadley, Massachusetts. This John Montague was the younger of the two sons born to the marriage of Richard Montague and Abigail Montague, the pioneer English settler family in New England. All “Hadley” Montagues trace their origins to
this John, as his elder brother, Peter (1651), though married three times, died sine prole at Hadley in 1725. Lydia Montague is hence a direct descendant of the original English settler Richard Montague. Richard and his wife Abigail Montague, the pioneer English settlers of this surname in New England, were Lydia’s great-great-grandparents!
(cont’d on p. 5)
June 2014 Montague Family Association Newsletter 5
(cont’d from p. 3) in county or parish vestry records. For example, neither brother reported the birth of any of their combined eight children in the Christ Church Parish Register (except the last child, John). Unlike their father, neither held an office or position at any time.
There are only nine innocuous or otherwise mundane entries for Peter II in Middlesex Co. Deed and Order books, while William is entered about 14 times, (William lived 20 years longer than his older brother Peter II). Furthermore, Peter II is not to be found at all in the records of The Vestry Book of Christ Church Parish, Middlesex County. And while there are four entries for William Montague, three are dated after his death. The fourth entry dated 18 Nov 1700—having to do with being fined—could be related to one of three other William Montagues living at the time: the brother of Peter II, the son of Peter II, or the son of William. The latter is ruled out because he was living in Essex Co. from 1699 until his death in 1733, and was also generally known as William, Jr., until 1713, to distinguish him from his father and cousin; and unfortunately, there seems to be no way to differentiate this entry from the remaining two. Finally, on 14 Dec 1685, this William (brother of Peter II) was fined 50 pounds of tobacco for contempt in not attending court as Jury Man.
An Act of the Assembly in 1661 compelled parish churches to keep a “Perfect Register” (i.e., dates/names of baptisms, births, marriages, deaths, burials) and that vestrymen should take the Charge of [enforce] these actions. The law required one parent of every freeborn child to report the event to the Parish minister within 20 days. Did the Montague brothers forget seven times to record their children’s births/baptisms? Did they forget to record their respective marriages? Were they ignorant of the law? Typically, heads of households were inclined to report births because it was in their interest to prove the age of their Tithables, but apparently such was not a priority in the minds of brothers, Peter II and William because none of these legal obligations were met until the first Montague
entry on 21 May 1682—the baptism of baby John (son of Peter II)—a period of 21 years.
Curiously, authorities were known to tolerate a certain level of dissent and this may have been the case for the brothers, simply out of respect for their “well-known” father. The key to living a hassle-free life of dissent was for dissenters to avoid stepping over the line by openly working against the established church. Dissenters were for the most part paying their Tithables, while ensuring their attendance met the minimum required to keep the peace.
Were Peter II and his brother William likely part of a small group of Anglican Church protestors known as dissenters? If so, they were in good company as the number of dissenters grew in the years leading to the Revolutionary War eventually to include such noted individual gentry as scoffer George Washington and dissenter James Gordon.
Lydia Montague 1786 Colonial Sampler
-- cont’d from p. 4
Lydia married Amos Daniels (1763-1851) in Sunderland in 1795 and became, through marriage, Lydia Montague Daniels. Both Daniel and Lydia died in April 1851 in Conway, Franklin Massachusetts within a few days of each other. Their marriage produced five children: Eliphalet (1797), Submit (1799), Dexter (1801), Dickson Montague (1804), and Obed (1807). It was the custom of young Colonial ladies in New England to fashion needlepoint samplers to demonstrate their sewing skills and talents. By modern standards, Lydia was probably not a first-class needlepoint worker, but her sampler has great charm and historic value in documenting the New England history of the “Hadley” Montague Family. Lydia was a very young woman when she fashioned this work: she was twelve years old!
2015 Montague Family Reunion Announcement
Place: __________
Date: _________
Agenda: ____________
-- To be announced by 1 Sep 2014--
June 2014 Montague Family Association Newsletter 6
What’s Going on in the Montague Family
(Announcements, Activities, Events)
HHH ooo uuu sss eee ooo fff MMM ooo nnn ttt aaa ggg uuu eee Montague Family
Association
The Montague Millennium
JJaammeessttoowwnnee SSoocciieettyy
27-30 Aug 14 (San Antonio) Federation of Genealogical Societies (FGS) 2014 Family History Conference
Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center at 200 East Market St. https://www.fgsconference.org/
FOR A STATE-BY-STATE LIST OF GENEALOGY EVENTS: http://genevents.genwebsite.org/events-by-state.html
GENEALOGY ADVICE AND USEFUL RESOURCES (This column is designed to assist our members in being productive in their research. Editor)
YOUR GENEALOGY TO--DO LIST
Join NGS and other genealogical societies http://www.ngsgenealogy.org/ Identify your immigrant ancestor and when they arrived (if you are a Montague, Done!) Sign up for one of the many Genealogy Courses available at NGS (using above NGS link) Start a genealogy reference library focusing on your areas of interest Visit the link above for genealogical events and start attending some
http://genevents.genwebsite.org Flesh out your own branch of ancestors by compiling stories into narratives Apply to the Board for Certified Genealogists and become a certified genealogist Join a lineage society using this link: http: //www.cyndislist.com/societies/lineage
o HGPM QE is your source document for Jamestown Society membership
___________________________________
Q: What is the biggest mistake made by people new to genealogy?
A: ”FAILURE TO DOCUMENT THEIR SOURCES!”
REMEMBER !
The first Commandment of Genealogy Research
“Thou shalt document thy sources!”
June 2014 Montague Family Association Newsletter 7
History and Genealogy of Peter Montague of Jamestowne Virginia
(1603-2003)
Quadricentennial Edition
To order:
or call:
850-936-0188
$150.00
June 2014 Montague Family Association Newsletter 8
MFA Charter Members
Here, in alphabetical order, are the first 26 dues paying members of the MFA. Becoming a charter member is only possible by joining in the first year of the MFA. Big or small, we are all about advancing the history and genealogy of the first Montagues in America, Peter and Richard of Boveney, England. There is strength in numbers, so we invite our members to pass the word.
- NOTE - Confirm your branch: Peter (PM) or Richard
(RM). If we have it wrong, let us know. Branch Member (State) Branch Member (State)
RM Blackburn, Pat (WA) PM Montague, Robert Latane, III (VA) PM De Coito, Janice (IN) PM Montague, Robert V., III (FL) PM Green, Dianne (VA) PM Montague, Frank, Jr. (MS) PM Hamilton, Suzanne (VA) PM Morrison, Estella Knight (MO) PM Hughes, Marianne (PA) PM Palmer, Ann (NC) PM Kinkade, Evelyn Morrison (MO) PM Ringer, Kathy (UT) PM Montague, Bill and Linda (UT) PM Robinson, Kevin (MO) PM Montague, Bob (VA) PM St. Clair, Jo Anne (OH) PM Montague, Curtis (KS) PM Turner, Linda and John (VA) RM Montague, Dick & Doris (CA) PM Wilson, Aubrey Lynn (TX) PM Montague, Joel (MA) PM Montague, Ken (UT) New Members: PM Montague, Linda (FL) PM Townsend, Jerrie PM Montague, Mike (UT) PM Montague, Thomas RM Montague, Richard W. (GE) PM Montague, William PM Montague, Rita (CA) PM Edgell, Carolyn
The membership list will be updated soon
Montague Family Association
