JOHN CARY (1610-1681)

John Cary was born in Bristol, England, about 1610 and he was the son of William Cary, who was Sheriff of Bristol in 1599.

A manuscript written by his grandson says that John Cary was sent by his father to France to perfect his education and that while absent his father died. On returning to Somersetshire he disagreed with his brothers about the settlement of his father’s estate and compromised by receiving one hundred pounds as his portion. He immediately sailed for America in 1634.

He taught the first class in Latin in the Colony. It is said that he taught Elder Brewster the Hebrew.

At the age of 25 he settled first in Duxbury, Massachusetts but he was one of the first to migrate to Bridgewater, the first interior settlement in the old colony. Of the 56 who had shares only a few ever settled upon them. John Cary did. - he was Clerk of the Plantation, which was a kind of land company and in 1650 it began to be settled. On 3 June 1656 the General Court incorporated Duxbury New Plantation as Bridgewater.

John was married in June of 1644 to ELIZABETH GODFREY, the daughter of Francis Godfrey of Duxbury & Bridgewater who was a carpenter, bridge builder. They had six sons and six daughters.
Their home was a quarter mile east of the meeting house in West Bridgewater. The first town clerk of Bridgewater, he served from 1656 to 1681, the year of his death.

John was intelligent, well educated and public spirited.

His grave cannot be located, but the marker erected on his homestead in West Bridgewater, just a few rods from the home where he lived, was placed proudly by his descendants in 1904 and is there to this day.

THE CARY FAMILY - pre 1086

A First Look at their Ancient History - (Leading to my husband’s grandmother, Mabelle (Cary) Sewell).

It’s an interesting branch with the Cary Family found living in Kari Castle in Domes Day Book - 1086. For centuries the castle has existed only in history, but the town where it was located is known today as Castle Cary. It is in Somersetshire and twelve miles southeast from Wells. Cari was the family seat of the baron, a fortified place in the time of the Saxons. During the reign of Stephen (1136-1154) the barons were divided into two parties, the Lord of Cari opposed to the king. He made so much trouble that Stephen turned his whole attention to Castle Cari and took it. In 1153 it was besieged again and nearly ruined. The place is marked by an entrenched area of about two acres, called the camp. Implements of war and other relics have been dug up there. The church of All Saints is of the time of Henry VI, is built upon a hillock and is quite unique. Oliver Cromwell hacked away at it. The manor house stands on the east side of the street - a stately edifice. During the wanderings of Charles II after the battle of Worcester, 3 Sep 1651, when his army was defeated by Cromwell, the disguised king slept at Castle Cari on the night of September 16th.


As we follow the names and dates of this line we arrive at John Cary who was knighted: b abt 1350 Holway, Devonshire, England. He owned Cockington & Clovelly which he bought in 1390. On 5 Nov 1357 he was made Judge & Chief Baron of the Exchequer by King Richard II. He opposed the proceedings for procurators, in regard to his oath, to take King Richard’s resignation. When Richard II was put to death by Henry IV, Sir John’s lands and goods were confiscated. He was banished to Waterford, Ireland, for four years where he died about 1404. His offspring had careers of interest - one, James was a Lord Bishop and -

Robert Cary, who earned rank and arms from King Henry IV.

“In the beginning of the reign of Henry V a certain knight-errant of Arragon, having passed through diverse countries, and performed many feats of arms, to his high commendation, arrived here in England where he challenged any man of his rank and quality to make tryal of his valor and skill in arms. This challenge Sir Robert Cary accepted; between whom a cruel encounter and a long and doubtful combat was waged, in Smithfield, London. But at length this noble champion vanquished the presumtuous Arragonois; for which King Henry V. restored unto him good part of his father’s lands, which for his loyalty to King Richard II, he had been deprived of by King Henry IV; and authorized him to bear the arms of the knight of Arragon.

[The descendants of Robert now wear the arms of the Knight of Aragon - a silver shield with 3 roses on a bend sable, and take the swan for a crest, thus combining the two. "Arms -Argentum. Three roses of the field on a Bend sable. Crest - a swan ppr. Motto - Virtute Excerptae.


One of his grandsons was William Cary: a knight who fell in the battle of Tewkesbury, 1471, War of the Roses fighting under the banner of Lancaster.

The Carys were always staunch Royalists, even at the cost of their liberty, fortunes and lives. The Cockington Church & the Old Tor Church contain many tombs of the family.

And five generations later we meet JOHN CARY, the first to reach New England shores.
[to be continued]

The Delorey Family - 1927 - Salem

William & Emilie (Jodoin) Delorey

There are a couple of these wonderful dated family groups. This was early spring in 1927 at their home in Salem Massachusetts, and all are identified!

Top row L to R: Romeo, Elizabeth, Lillian, Beatrice, Ida & Charles.

Center row: William L., Emilie; Marie, George, J. Frank & J Frank Perkins Jr.

Bottom Row: Dorothy, George, Donald, Millie & Charlotte; Arthur, Arthur,Jr. & Doris;
Laura, Ruth, Jeff, Norman, & Robert Belliveau; and Robert J, Robert, Paul, and Amelia A. Mooney

William & Emelie (Jodoin) Delorey

You saw William first in the 1892 family photograph of his father and mother - Joseph and Margaret (Grant) Delorey. He was second from the right in the back row. Like his father, he was a blacksmith, and had an interesting career. He inherited the gold coin that his fether “Joe the blackmith” was given by Gen. U.S. Grant and wore it proudly on his watch chain. In New England and in Nova Scotia William was affectionately known as Willie Joe.

His wife, and mother of their thirteen children was Emelie Jodoin. They married in Nashua New Hampshire on 29 October 1889 at St-Francis-Xavier.

Emelie was a cousin of the Ledoux family in New Hampshire and was sent to live with them. She used to take care of a young Henry Ledoux. When she was 14 she started apprenticing in dressmaking with her aunt. I am told that she used to get $700 for a dress, and they made expensive, up-scale clothing. She had beautiful hands, and used them expressively when she spoke.

William Lewis(WILLIE-JOE)Delorey: b 16 Apr 1869 Tracadie, Antigonish, Nova Scotia; d 9 Apr 1947 Lynn, Essex, Massachusetts
m. 29 Oct 1889 St-Francis-Xavier, Nashua, Hillsboro, New Hampshire
Emelie Jodoin: b 6 Oc 1964 Swanton, Franklin, Vermont, the daughter of Dionysius (Denis) and Aglae (Bernier) Jodoin.. She is buried in St Joseph’s Cemetery, Nashua, NH;
William Joseph
Edmund Louis
George Alphonse
* Arthur Henri
Marie Rose Delma: m. Frank Perkins
Margaret Laura: m. Jeffrey Belleveau
Marie Emeilia Anna: m. Robert Mooney
Guillaume Charles
Lillian Clara: m. Edward Saulnier
Edmond Romeo: m.1Elizabeth Theriault; m.2.Ruth Hingston
Elizabethh Cathrine (Betty):b 24 May 1905; d 22 Mar 2002; m. Earl Owen
Ida Leah (Del): b 30 Oct 1906; d 4 Nov 1991; m. John Thomas Doranle
Beatrice, Gratia (Bea): b 6 Jan 1910; d 21 Feb 1987m. 1. John Coughlin; m.2. Edward Therialt

Dr. Arthur Henri Delorey, Sr. (1894-1968)

My Husband’s (Athur Henri Delorey, Jr.) Branch:

His father, Arthur Henri Delorey was a very talented man, a Doctor of Optometry, by profession. He invented and patented some tools of his trade. He spoke several languages. The French he learned from his parents, William L. and Emelie (Jodoin) Delorey, included both Parisian and Canadian. He also spoke Greek and Hebrew, and a smattering of other languages.

Active in Masonic Circles he was a Past Worshipful Master of Loyalty Lodge in Jamaica Plain, Massachusetts. He was a WWI Veteran of the US Army, and an active member of the American Legion. Also I.O.O.F.

He married Doris Cary Sewell in 1925 and they resided in Brockton at 476 Warren Ave from 1927-1928. Arthur worked at 172 Main St 1927-1933. They moved to Holbrook 1930; later in Lowell, then Jamaica Plain.

We will revisit him in later blogs.

Arthur Henri Delorey, Sr: b 18 Jun 1894 Nashua, New Hampshire; d 20 Apr 1968; bur Melrose Cemetery, Brockton, Massachusetts
Doris Cary Sewell: b 9 Feb 1904, Avon, Massachusetts; d 23 Sep 1996 Melrose, Massachusetts
and had two children
*Arthur, Jr. was born in 1926 and married Barbara M. VanAmburg;
Johanne Beverly, born 1934 and never married.

A Very Large Unidentified Family

Or is it a special group of people? AMAZING!

We know the photographer - Branner of Cape Sable Island, Nova Scotia. We recognize his studio props, backdrops, furniture,and rugs because we see them in many of his photographs. It's one of those fascinating, frustrating pieces - but fun to examine.

What Do You Think?

Is This a Younger Joseph and Margaret?

It is always frustrating to see an interesting old photograph and not a clue as to who they might be. I asked my son if he could clear the spots and discoloration from this 140 year old print and he succeeded admirably.Thank you, Jon.

So here is a side-by side look. We know the couple on the right are Joseph and Margaret (Grant) Delorey. I'm more certain than ever that the other is a photograph of a younger Margaret and Joseph. What do you think?

Capt. James & Mae (Nickerson) VanAmburg

from several Nova Scotia newspapers

WEDDING BELLS
Jan. 1904
VanEmburg - Nickerson
The F. B. Church was filled to overflowing on Wednesday afternoon on the 27th, the occasion being the marriage of Miss May Estelle, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. J. L. Nickerson of this place to Capt. James F. VanEmburg of Central Argyle. The church was decorated with green and white.

The ceremony which was performed by Rev. A. H. McLeod took place beneath a floral bell suspended from the central arch of the church.

Promptly at five o’clock the bridal party entered the church to the strains of Mendelssohn’s wedding march played by Mrs. George Newell. The bride was given away by her father and was attended by her sister Miss Daisy and preceeded by her cousin little miss Abbie Nickerson as flower girl. The groom was supported by Mr. Robert A. Nickerson, brother of the bride. The bride’s dress was of white silk lansdowne with applique trimmings and veil. She carried a handsome bouquet of brideroses and English violets. The bridesmaid was attired in a dress of cream albatross trimmed with lace.
After the nuptial knot was securely tied a reception was given at her father’s residence to about 250 invited guests. An excellent collation was served and the evening passed very pleasantly.
The presents were numerous and valuable testifying to the popularity of the young couple. The choir, of which the bride has been the efficient organist for about eight years, accompanied their gift of a music rack with an address expressive of the esteem in which she is deservedly held by them. The Coast-Guard joins in congratulations to the young couple.

I RECALL:
You became acquainted with my grandfather, James F. VanAmburg, in my last 2 blogs - he was born 23 Oct 1876; d 27 Mar 1949 Clarks Harbor, Cape Sable Island, Nova Scotia.
There will be more about them both in future posts, and especially about my Nana Van - Mae Estelle (Nickerson)VanAmburg who was b 1877; d May 1965.They had one child - Robert A. VanAmburg, my father.

CAPT. JAMES F. VANAMBURG

CABLE OR CATCH?Capt. James F. VanAmburg and a seagoing post-script

Even with the advent of transatlantic wireless, the cable line from Cape Cod, across the Atlantic to Brest was of war-time importance.

From “Cape Cod Pilot” by Jeremiah Diggs, published in 1937 we find the following:
“Again, at a crucial stage in the Italo-Ethiopian War, it (the cable) was bringing in widely awaited bulletins, and at that time Captain James VanAmburg of the fish dragger Andover was working in Cape waters when his net and steel lines became snared in the cable. The only way he could recover his gear, which is no small item in a fisherman’s equipment would have been to cut the cable. And the reason he didn’t do that was that he knew the whole western world was waiting to hear of the fortunes of war in Africa. He sailed away minus several hundred dollars of dredging gear.”

I RECALL
This has always been a familiar family story, though as passed down by my father (son of James VanAmburg) the ending was a bit different.

It was said that the loss of both gear and catch would be a hardship to owner and crew alike. He ordered the cable cut, the men hesitated, and he took the axe and cut it himself.

So - - what REALLY happened? Perhaps a story retold changes somewhat over a long period or perhaps not. Myth or Fact?

JAMES FORMAN VAN AMBURG- 1876-1949

From Gloucester Daily Times: Wednesday, January 15, 1908
MADE A FINE PASSAGE: Sch. Clintonia Here This Morning with Frozen Herring

Capt. James Vanamberg is entitled to wear the medal as the hustler from Newfoundland. Generally he has been in sch. Henry M. Stanley, and in that remarkable craft has made passages which has made the eyes of the old stick out with wonder. This trip he went in sch. Clintonia, one of the finest ever built, and when he started for home last Thursday forenoon, he meant to come flying and he did, for last evening at 7 o’clock he tied his craft up at the wharf of Orlando Merchant, in this harbor.
When the Clintonia started, about 30 others hoisted their mainsails together and all started off at the same time. The long legged craft began to dig right in from the start and that Capt “Jimmie” lost no time is shown by the fact that he was here last night and as yet nothing has put in appearance.
Capt. Vanamberg reports that about 30 sail of vessels, American and Nova Scotian, left together on Thursday forenoon, sch. Arkona being the first to get underway, followed by sch. Saladin off Canso, N.S. and since then had seen none of the herring fleet.
Up on the corner, when the boys heard that sch. Clintonia was in, they simply remarked, “Well, Jimmie always could do it,” and that meant a lot. As for Skipper Vanamberg himself, he wears the same sized hat that he always did and outside of being pleased to get home, there’s nothing to it with him.

JAMES FORMAN VANAMBURG: b 23 Oct 1876; d 27 Mar 1949 Clarks Harbor, Cape Sable Island, Nova Scotia. He married at Clarks Harbor on 27 Jan 1904
MAE ESTELLE NICKERSON: b 1877; d May 1965.
He was a sea captain, commanding among others, the schooners Elizabeth Howard, Clintonia, Henry & Stanley, Esperantos, Gladys Thurber. He was known as the heaviest sail carrier out of Gloucester, it was said that his ship could be spotted by spars splintered, boom cracked, sails ragged. One of the few skippers to strike on Cape Sable and get off again. At one time he was washed overboard in a storm and the next wave put him back on the ship again. He never lost a ship. [dark hair, later snow white, blue eyes, 5’10”]

I RECALL

My beloved grandfather - I called him Pampa. A quiet, gentle man at home he was NOT when at sea. He and Nana Van were with us on Whitney Rd for a time, and he would come in from sea, open his bag, and put a very large live lobster on the kitchen floor in front of me. I would scream, jump, and run, laughing at the same time. He never learned to drive a car - my Dad once tried to teach him with questionable results - he ran up against a tree in the neighbors yard.

ARCHELAUS and ELIZABETH (NICKERSON) SMITH

ANOTHER BRANCH (with a Nickerson Connect)
Of the many descendants of Ralph Smith, Archelaus Smith was the first to take up habitation on Nova Scotian shores.

The family was the first of two to arrive on Cape Sable Island in Nova Scotia around 1760. Archelaus was a man of imposing stature and capability, fisherman, tanner, shoemaker, surveyor, magistrate, exhorter, he was called a good, quiet, easy man and ”his gifts were a boon to the settlement”. Elizabeth had a more energetic temper and is described as a tall, masculine woman. Archelaus officiated at religious meetings and burials when there was no preacher in the settlement.

Their arrival was a bit eventful, for Archelaus had sent for his family to come from Cape Cod to Barrington. Owing to evil reports about the Indians, he sent a message to his wife to the contrary. However, as fate woulfd have it, as he departed through West Passage his wife and four children came in East Passage in Capt Eldad Nickerson’s vessel.

Fishermen at the head helped Mrs Smith, they made a log cabin and left what provisions they could. Storms prevented Archelaus return that winter with food and his house frame. The Indians helped her at times - and she fought off bears with firebrands.


SMITH, ARCHELAUS:
bap 23 Apr 1737 Chatham, Massachusetts; d 23 Apr 1821
m. 16 Jul 1752 by Rev Stephen Emery, Chatham
NICKERSON, ELIZABETH: b 15 May 1735 Chatham, MA; d 2 Apr 1828. She was the daughter of William (Redstockings) and Sarah (Covell) Nickerson.
Susannah b 1755; d 24 Apr 1827 Cape Sable Island;m. 1767 Joseph Atwood
Hezekiah b 1754; d 16 Feb 1834;m. abigail Doane
Mercy b 1758; d 1845;m. John E Cunningham
Eunice b 1760;m. Henry Newell
*James b 6 Oct 1762
Stephen b 15 Dec 1764; d 23 May 1826;m.....1. Sarah Hinckley;m..2 Mary Larkin
Archelaus b 19 Aug 1766; d Feb 1836; b 19 Aug 1766;m. Prudence Hamilton
Hannah b 1 Mar 1758;m. 1. Daniel Vincent; m..2. ___ Coffin


[where you see * on the list of children this denotes a direct ancestor of my family]

FOUR GENERATIONS

This is an introduction of me and the three generations preceeding me (yes, I am the baby on my father’s knee in this 1930’s photograph). All will be seen in more detail from time to time.
.
Barbara Mae (VanAmburg) Delorey : more than you want to know is on my web page www.barbmvd.com
Robert Archibald VanAmburg: b. 6 Nov 1904 Clarks Harbor, Cape Sable Island, Shelburne County, Nova Scotia; d 22 Jul 1991, Yarmouth, Yarmouth, Nova Scotia
Ruth (Smith) Nickerson : b 2 Jun 1848 at West Head, Cape Sable Island; d 23 Oct 1939
James Lendall Nickerson: b 16 May 1847; d 5 Sep 1940 in Clarks Harbor

Ruth and James were affectionately known as Aunt Ruth and Uncle Lenny, a source of puzzlement for a very young great-granddaughter! Uncle Lenny owned the Sea View Hotel and was a longtime postmaster in Clarks Harbor, Cape Sable Island, Nova Scotia . . . much more to come about them and the Nickerson branch..

AND I RECALL:

Funny how memories are triggered - working on the computer to examine an enlarged photograph reminded me of a very young ME, helping Dad develop film and to print photographs in a cellar darkroom in our Whitney Rd, Medford home. Dad was an avid photographer, and the chemical process of developing and printing films was fascinating to me.The room was in the corner, next to the coal bin, long benches on each side with trays of chemicals, the big enlarger at one end. As the process began, the light in the room was changed to the one with the red bulb - it seemed like magic to watch. I can still see it!

DOROTHY (JAMES) NICKERSON

DOROTHY (JAMES) NICKERSON
b 1776 in Ballyshannon, Ireland; she d 5 Oct 1870 aged 94 years
[This story is from the writings of Converse Ennis Nickerson, (son of Thomas, grandson of John & Dorothy Nickerson and a cousin of my Nana VanAmburg):]

Several legends are told about Dorothy James, or “Grandmother Dolly” as she was lovingly called. Her father was said to be a colonel in the English army and was last heard of in the East Indies. Grandmother Dolly came over here at the time of the Loyalists with a young couple who took up their residence in Shelburne. She was acting as a servant girl for them, and met with much ill treatment at their hands. It was their custom to often fasten her with a chain to a huge log in the yard.
One day, while they were away, she induced a blacksmith to remove the chain and she set out a-foot towards Barrington. On reaching a place called Line’s Beach, just opposite Johns Island, she met John Nickerson. They were soon married, settling at Woods Harbor, and later they moved to Newellton.
Born in Ballyshannon, Ireland, Grandmother Dolly was a typical woman of her race and her wit and cheer beamed as the sunshine upon all who knew her. She smoked a white clay pipe and my father (Thomas Nickerson) has often told me of filling and lighting it for her. She slept between two feather beds, and was baptized down at the Kenny wharf in a dory that was filled with water, just about 10 days before she died. So she died a good old fashioned Baptist, and coming from the Northern part of Ireland she was born a Protestant.
I have inscribed a bit of verse to the romance of her marrriage:
GRANDMOTHER DOLLY
Fate the story surely planned
In Ballyshannon, emerald strand,---
For I’ve heard of her so bright
With her Irish cap so white,
Her smile, her wit, her pipe, and kindly hand.

Thus, Granny Dolly long ago
Came to Novie’s shores and so
Ireland’s maiden made her home,
Never from its shore to roam,
Her affections and her duties here to grow.

‘Twas a romance by the sea,
Sweet and handsome as could be, ---
For oh the courtin’ and the joy
And her love for Johnny Boy.---
Helped to grow the many branches on the Nickerson Tree!
C.E.N.

POST-SCRIPT - BEFORE? & AFTER

As I scanned and examined more photographs last evening a small unidentified one took on new meaning when magnified. Several factors - dating “costume” which includes clothing & accessories, hair lines including facial hair, and comparing body and facial proportions, led to my looking at known data. There is a very strong possibility, in my opinion, that this is Joseph and Margaret (Grant) Delorey who married in 1867 at age 22, and whose family portrait (yesterday) showed the couple at age 47. Do you see what I see?

And here is Joseph in later life. It was taken in the early 192s, a few years prior to his demise. The beard has been abandoned for a more stylish mustache, but the elderly blacksmith still has a vigorous stance.

TWIGS and BRANCHES

As I begin this new path of a random look at the twigs and branches on the family tree, the operative word is random. No chronological order as we skip from decade to decade (and branch, limb and twig). . . . and so we begin!

JOSEPH DELOREY (1845-1925)

A blacksmith, he wore a gold coin on his watch chain - given him by Gen. U.S. Grant for shoeing his horse in North Weymouth, at Palaces(?) blacksmith shop on North Street.
He was a blacksmith at Bradley’s Fertilizer Plant, Weymouth, Massachusetts; Boston & Maine RR 1908-11. In Nashua he resided at 36 Canal Street in 1911. Marie DeLorey recalls “Uncle Joe coming to 80 Norton Street in Weymouth every fourth of July holiday for many years - he was living in Brookline then with 2 nieces of his second wife, Kate Gorman... He died at St Elizabeths Hospital and was buried in New Hampshire.

JOSEPH DELOREY
Born 5 Jan 1845 Tracadie, Antigonish, Nova Scotia Died 1925 Boston, Massachusetts
married 21 May 1867 in Tracadie to Margaret Grant
MARGARET (GRANT) DELOREY
Born 17 March 1845 Tracadie, she died of consumption in Nashua, New Hampshire
She was the daughter of Donald & Catherine (McDonald) Grant who were married 23 Nov 1843 St Georges, Cape Breton.
Their children in this family portrait - 1892 :
William Lewis 16 Apr 1869 - 9 Apr 1947 m. Emelie Jodoin
John Grant 4 Jun 1870
Charles Ruben 19 Dec 1872 - 1946 m. Bertha Thompson
Nancy Laura 5 Apr 1874 m. Ernest Cooper Beaumont
Joseph Daniel 26 Jun 1875 m. Margaret Kingston
Mary Lena 3 Dec 1877 - Nov 1966 m. David C. Jarvis
Catherine Jane 19 Aug 1881 m. ? Sullivan
Joseph 19 Mar 1887

I'M BACK . . . . . and Going in another Direction

It has been much too long, and I have been much too busy going in 10 directions at the same time. To make a long story short, I have been organizing slides, photographs and genealogical information and in the process, coming across documents of all sorts, miscellaneous stuff, lots of miscellaneous stuff!
I am getting old, and there is so much that could disappear and so much that might be of interest to the offspring of those I am going to talk-a-bout from here on in.
The family names are far too numerous to list. The pictures, anecdotes and data you will find here pertain to my ancestry (VanAmburg & Blanchard) to start and to that of my late husband (Delorey & Sewell).
The method will be to talk about a family group, husband, wife, children, include a photograph if I have one.I will not include the current live generations though. Comments, additions and corrections (and photographs if you have them) will be welcomed - send by email to barbmvd@att.net
And look for this new direction . . . .TOMORROW!!