Mid-Atlantic sojourn

My wife and I have recently returned from a visit to the mid-Atlantic states, where we both had ancestors prominent in their communities during the colonial era. Our travels combined more than one purpose. First, it has been thirty years since we were married, and this trip was something of a second honeymoon. Second, I was participating in the semiannual board meeting of the Center for Public Justice just outside of Washington, DC. And third, my wife, Dr. Nancy Calvert-Koyzis, undertook research in Baltimore and Annapolis, exploring the activities of her ancestors, the Barons of Baltimore, who founded Maryland in 1634. During our travels I discovered previously unknown history of my own ancestors, who, as it turned out, were closely associated with, and possibly opposed to, the Calverts during the late 17th century.

When I met my wife more than three decades ago, I quickly figured out the Calvert connection to her ancestors, and on our first date at that. At the time my knowledge of my own ancestry didn't extend further back than my great grandmother Lucy Jane's two reminiscences of her own pedigree. But shortly after the turn of the millennium, with increasing numbers of records being posted online and with the rise of genealogical websites, I discovered much more about my own forebears, potentially extending back more than a millennium to the royal and noble families of Europe. Among my discoveries I learned that one line on the maternal side included early settlers of Maryland, then a proprietary colony of the Lords Baltimore, my wife's ancestors. Up to then I had known only of my roots in Virginia and North Carolina.

Imagine my surprise to discover that our two sets of ancestors were in fact closely associated, with at least one serving in the colonial assembly for 14 years, according to one source. I have already posted information about Cornelius Howard, my 9th great grandfather, a possible descendant of the Dukes of Norfolk, and a captain in the local militia. During our travels I discovered another source with information about Howard and have come to conclude that his service in the colonial assembly, or more accurately Proprietary Assembly, may have lasted only from 1671 to 1674/75. This was during the time when Cecil Calvert, the 2nd Lord Baltimore was proprietor and Charles Calvert was governor.

During our visit to the Maryland Center for History and Culture in Baltimore and the Maryland State Archives in Annapolis, I found out that two more ancestors, both 9th great grandfathers, also had terms of service in the colonial assembly. These were Major General John Hammond (1643-1707) and Colonel Nicholas Gassaway (1634-1691/92), whose progeny intermarried with each other's and with Howard's. I mentioned a possible opposition to the Calverts' position as proprietors of Maryland. The Calverts were Roman Catholic and had been pioneers in the protection of religious freedom in their new colony, which included Protestants and Catholics alike. This stood in contrast to the other colonies along the Atlantic seaboard, which had established churches, such as Virginia's Anglican Church and Massachusetts' Puritan Congregationalism. Howard served in the Proprietary Assembly during this early period.

All of this changed, however, with the Glorious Revolution of 1688-89, when the Catholic Stuart King James II was deposed by his son-in-law and daughter, who became co-rulers William III and Mary II over the three kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland. (This was obviously in an era before the rise of family therapists!) Among the consequences of this revolution was a change in status of Maryland and the temporary end of the proprietorship of the Barons of Baltimore. During this transitional era, Gassaway represented Anne Arundel County in what was now called the Protestant Associators' Convention from 1689 until his death two years later. Hammond represented Anne Arundel County in what by then was called the Royal Assembly in 1692-93, 1694-97, and 1697/98-1700. The proprietorship would be restored to Charles Calvert, the 5th Lord Baltimore, in 1715 after his conversion to Protestantism and after the deaths of Hammond and Gassaway.

It was only in the middle of our stay in Annapolis that I learned that Hammond was buried in the churchyard of St. Anne's Church. So two days later I visited the churchyard and found him resting under an impressive monument worthy of a notable personage. Here is a photograph of the church:

 

Here are three photos of Hammond's grave monument. In the first photo Hammond's is in the middle. Much of the name and other information is eroded yet still visible with some effort.

Here in turn are closeups of the monument:

 

In the same churchyard is the grave monument of Sir Robert Eden (1741-1784), the last colonial governor of Maryland before the War for Independence. He was brother-in-law to Benedict Swingate Calvert (c 1728-1788), my wife's 4th great grandfather, and 2nd great grandfather to Anthony Eden (1897-1997), British Prime Minister during the Suez Crisis of 1956. Sir Robert's grave is shown below:

 

This is the first in a series about our discoveries during our recent travels to the mid-Atlantic states. I will shortly be posting photos of our visits to Baltimore and St. Mary's City, the latter of which served as Maryland's first colonial capital between 1634 and 1695.