The 1790s in Harford County started off just as badly as the 1780s had ended.
James and Elizabeth were insolvent, living on a rented farm in exchange for their labor.
William and Margaret were living in James’ household, with no means of support. They have a five-year-old and a newborn.
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Like much of the new nation, economic hardship worsened in Harford County in the years after the war.
The Jervis families didn’t fare well.
Continue readingBel Air, Belle Air, Belle Aire, Bell Air, and once, enchantingly, Belleaire, but never, never Belair.
Bel Air: The Town Through its Buildings
It had been Scott’s Old Fields, a played-out crop field. In 1780 there were four houses. James and Elizabeth Jervis and their children lived in one of them.
The British are coming!
On April 19, 1775, the first battles of the American Revolution took place at Lexington and Concord, Massachusetts. British troops were sent to capture military supplies at Concord. But the colonial militia had been warned and were waiting for the British.
The first shots were fired on Lexington green, and the war had begun.
During the 1760s, the Jervis families had moved to Maryland.
Whatever their reasons, they did as their two previous generations had done. They moved west. This time, southwest to Maryland.
Joseph Jervis died in 1752.
Esther and her younger children continued to live on their land in White Horse. Esther was age 54. Caleb, Joshua, Catherine, and James (6G) were in their teens.
Joseph Jr., John, and Solomon, and William were in their twenties, so were probably living on their own.
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Joseph Jervis died in 1752.
What an interesting life. Born in England. One of the first settlers of William Penn’s Pennsylvania. One of the first settlers to go west to Lancaster County. Farmer, miller, trader, entrepreneur, innkeeper, scoundrel.
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In 1740, James Jervis (6G) was born to Joseph and Esther. This completed their family; Joseph Jr., John, and Solomon, then William, Caleb, Joshua, Catherine, and James.
James Jervis is our 6th great-grandfather.
Continue readingJoseph and Esther and their growing family were well settled. The village of White Horse had grown up around them. Their farming and milling activities provided their sustenance.
The 1730s would prove prosperous for them.
I didn’t want to write this story. I knew the day would come, but I was dreading it.
Elizabeth died in September 1730.
I’ve really grown attached to Elizabeth. She’s been at the center of this quest for Jarvis/Jervis origins. Her life story is filled with drama, struggle, success, and hard work. I’ll miss her.
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Family Nibbles 