The Story of One Pearl Family During the Time of the American Revolution

It was recently suggested to me that it would be interesting to know about our Pearl ancestors and their involvement in the American Revolution. I have been unable to discover any of our particular Pearl line who did serve in that war. (I would be very interested if any of our readers could provide information to the contrary.) Whether or not they fought in the Revolution, Pearl families were impacted by that war. I did find an interesting story illustrating this in Marian Arlene Pearl’s History which I will relate here. This story is about David Pearl who is the grandson of John the immigrant and the son of Timothy, both our direct ancestors.  He was a younger brother of James, our direct ancestor.

David Pearl was born 9 Feb. 1743 in Hampton to Timothy and Mary (Leach) Pearl.  He married on 20 March 1769 to Eunice Allen in Yarmouth, Nova Scotia.  She was born in April 1751 in Manchester, MA.  She and her parents had moved to Kelley’s Cove, Nova Scotia in 1766.  David arrived in 1764 from Saybrook, CT and he settled at the mouth of Broad Brook on 458 acres.  Other families were arriving from Connecticut at this time.  Eight children were born to David and Eunice in Yarmouth.

In about 1780 David returned to Windham, CT to settle some affairs relating to the will of his father (Timothy) who had died in 1773.  Since the Revolution had ended only a few years before, the colonies were somewhat sensitive to the comings and goings of its citizens living on British soil.  David had to petition the Boston General Assembly to return to Yarmouth.  In this petition (quoted below) he asks the court to grant his petition because he is going to return with his family to New England. The following is copied from ‘The Family Tree of John Pearl’, by Norton Lee Bretz:

“To the Council at Boston and General Assembly May 31, 1780, the petition of David Pearl of Yarmouth, in the Province of Nova Scotia, Humbly Sheweth,

“That your Petitioners late father Timothy Pearl of Windham, now deceased, by his last Will and testament left you Petitioner one hundred pounds of good and lawful money, hearing of which he left Nova Scotia to see about his affairs and arrived in Salem about 5 weeks ago:  from thence he went to Windham and settled with the executors of his said father’s late Will, of whom he received a small part and left the remainder in the hands of his executor, vizt, his brother Phillip Pearl.  And as your Petitioner intended to return from Nova Scotia with all his other effects and settle in New England as soon as he can settle his business there, which he supposes he will be able to do in the course of the ensuing summer, if he can obtain the leave of this Honorable Court

“Your Petitioner humbly prays you Honor would be pleased to grant him a permit to go to Yarmouth aforesaid and settle his private affairs there and that he may be allowed to carry with him one cask of rum, one cask of molasses, one cask of sugar, and sixteen of eighteen bushels of corn which he has lately purchased in Boston, and your Petitioner will engage to bring up 180 lbs of good Beaver which shall be devoted to the board of War; this your Petitioner is informed that the Officers of this State’s Line in Camp are in great want of hats, he flatters himself, this Honorable Court will indulge him the articles requested as that he may be enabled to get the furs which he assures you Honor is already engaged by him, and that the necessities petitioned for will about discharge the residue of the Debt which he has contracted for the Beaver and bear his other family expenses.  Your Petitioner being ready to give bond that the Board of War shall have the quality of fur (which by sundry Persons intimations they are very desirious of procuring) and any other articles of his property they may want.

“Your Petitioner would beg leave to further inform this Honorable Court, that his family consists of six persons and that the stores requested after paying his arreages for the fur will be but very little more than sufficient to supply them up  and himself down.

“And as in duty Bound shall Pray

David Pearl”

The following is quoted from Marian A. Pearl’s History of the Pearls:

“Boston June 1, 1780

“State of Massachusetts By, In the House of Representatives, June 7, 1780 ‘On the Petition of David Pearl, praying that he may have liberty to go to Yarmouth in Nova Scotia and carry certain effects with him, and return with his family into this State.

“Resolved, that the prayer and Petition be so granted that the said David Pearl have liberty to go to Yarmouth aforesaid, and to carry with him provisions necessary for his passage there and bring off his family and effects to this State.  And all armed vessels of this State are required and the armed vessels of the U.S. of American (sic) are requested not to molest said David Pearl in going to and returning from Yarmouth with aforesaid with his family and effects’

“Sent up for Concurrence in Council June 7, 1780.

Nath. Gorham, Spkr. Pro Tem.

“David Pearl of Yarmouth in Nova Scotia shewing to the Assembly that he is a native of the town of Windham in this State about 15 years removed where he resided without becoming subject to his Majesty Government and desired to return with his family and effects consisting of salt, codfish and bail goods, etc.

“Resolved by Assembly he be given permission to return from Nova Scotia to this State with his family and effects aforesaid residence in the State.”

According to Norton lee Bretz:  ”David’s request was granted in the State of Massachusetts House of Representatives June 1, 1780.  However, he was apparently in no hurry about returning to New England because he was listed in Yarmouth in 1785 and 1791.  There is no record of his returning to New England, nor is there a record of the War Board receiving the promised beaver.  This is probably the same David who shows up in 1796 in New York City as a shipwright at First St. Bowery in 1797-1800 at Division St. and in 1803 at Cherry St. where he remains until 1812 running a boarding house.  David died Jan 10, 1818 in NYC”.

……..D. Vander Meulen,  Family Historian

Published in: on December 2, 2011 at 4:30 pm  Leave a Comment  
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The 72nd Pearl Reunion Report, July 31, 2011

We held our 72nd Reunion and celebrated our family at the Hampton Community Center on the last Sunday of July. This was the second year we have met there and we were blessed with perfect weather. There were 40 of us ‘cousins’ attending, ranging in age from 92 years to twins aged 11 months. We came from Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, and Florida.

While the adults sat and visited in the shade of the big trees surrounding the Center, the children played on the grassy hill next to us, expending a lot of energy and having a lot of fun.

Our pot luck picnic was eagerly consumed and after topping it off with some fantastic desserts, we had our brief business meeting.One of the items discussed was the poor condition of the tombstones in the North and South Cemeteries. They need cleaning to remove moss and lichens. Our Reunion Moderator has been consulting with Quintana Memorials in Chaplin, CT. We are hoping we can get a group rate. If anyone is interested in having their family stones cleaned, let Neal know, or contact me and I will pass your information on to him.

The date for next year’s Reunion was discussed, but no definite date has been set as yet.

Dorothy Vander Meulen, Family Historian

Published in: on August 26, 2011 at 6:52 am  Leave a Comment  

The Honorable Philip Pearl, Jr. (Part 1 of 3)

This website focuses on the descendants of Austin Eugene Pearl, but there were many other Pearls in Hampton, all descendants of Timothy Pearl (1694-1773, who settled in Hampton in about 1717). These other branches, like our own, lived in Hampton and surrounding communities for many generations.  Although some of Philip Pearl Jr’s own children (including Patrick Henry Pearl) lived in Hampton up until the early 20th century, he is but a distant cousin to our line, as seen in the chart below…

Timothy Pearl (b. 1694, d. 1773)

….Timothy’s 7th child was James Pearl (b. 1739, d. 1831)

……..James 7th Child was Jerome Pearl (b. 1775, d.1825)

…………Jerome’s 6th child was John Porter Pearl (b. 1813, d. 1881)

…………….John’s 3rd child was Austin Eugene Pearl (b. 1851, d. 1927, this is our ancestral line)

….Timothy’s 12th child was Philip Pearl, Sr. (b. 1747, d. 1835)

……..Philip Sr’s 2nd Child was (the Honorable) Philip Pearl, Jr.  (b. 1783, d. 1850, the subject of this posting)

The Honorable Philip Pearl, Jr. was born 19 Aug. 1783 to Philip and Olive Wheeler Farnam Pearl in Hampton, CT and became a member of Hampton Congregational Church in 1804.  He was a wealthy farmer and landowner who lived in Hampton all his life.

Like many of his cousins and descendants, Philip was a prominent man in the public affairs of Windham County and the State of Connecticut.  He represented Hampton as a Senator in the State General Assemblies; and was named Captain of Hampton’s Company of Grenadiers (formed soon after the Revolution by the town’s many Veterans and sustained by the residents “with much enthusiasm” for many decades afterward).  He was also a Deputy Sheriff and a Justice of the Peace.

In the Presidential election in the fall of 1840; Philip Jr., a Whig, was one of eight presidential electors to cast the vote of the State for Wm. Henry Harrison for President, and John Tyler for Vice President.

The Prudence Crandall Museum in Canterbury, CT

During his tenure as a State Senator, his daughter, Hannah Pearl (b. 1815) was a student at the “Prudence Crandall Female Academy” in nearby Canterbury, CT  for the 1832-3 school year.  The school was established in 1831 with the support of the town to teach young ladies from wealthy families in advanced subjects.  The original school building is now a National Historic Landmark and museum roughly 10 miles South and East of Hampton Center.

Philip was killed 17 May 1850 at age 66 when a building that was being torn down fell on him.   He is buried in Hammond Cemetery (North Cemetery), Hampton.  He left most of his estate to his 7th child, Patrick Henry Pearl (1819-1900) on his death.

In the next article we’ll talk more about the Prudence Crandall Female Academy, the immense controversy that surrounded it, and Philip Pearl’s leading role in it.  We’ll end the series with an article about how this controversy led to his deep involvement with major personalities and formative events in the evolution of the Abolitionist Movement of the mid 1800′s.

We are still looking for additional information on Philip Pearl, Jr., such as: details of his history as a public servant; exactly where he resided in Hampton; more information on the lives of some of his children, especially Hannah Pearl (b. 1815); and photos or images of him and his family.  If you wish to help us research these questions, are a descendant of Philip Pearl, Jr., or already have some of this information, please let us know!

- Allen Vander Meulen III

Published in: on July 11, 2011 at 2:40 pm  Leave a Comment  
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Pearl-Brown Room at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts

We toured the Boston Museum of Fine Art’s new “Museum of the Americas” wing shortly after it opened this past fall.  While there, we made a point of visiting the “Brown Pearl Hall”, which is a gallery in the lower level of the new wing. Below is a photo of part of the gallery, which is furnished with examples of colonial craftsmanship from the late 1600′s and early 1700′s.

For more information on this room’s history and connection with the family, go to this earlier posting: The Brown-Pearl Hall on Display at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts.

Partial View of the "Pearl Brown Hall" at the Boston MFA

Published in: on March 4, 2011 at 10:51 am  Leave a Comment  

2010 in review

The stats helper monkeys at WordPress.com mulled over how this blog did in 2010, and here’s a high level summary of its overall blog health:

Healthy blog!

The Blog-Health-o-Meter™ reads This blog is doing awesome!.

Crunchy numbers

Featured image

A helper monkey made this abstract painting, inspired by your stats.

A Boeing 747-400 passenger jet can hold 416 passengers. This blog was viewed about 1,600 times in 2010. That’s about 4 full 747s.

 

In 2010, there were 4 new posts, growing the total archive of this blog to 22 posts. There were 2 pictures uploaded, taking up a total of 5mb.

The busiest day of the year was January 7th with 73 views. The most popular post that day was Ideas for Increasing Family Participation.

Where did they come from?

The top referring sites in 2010 were en.search.wordpress.com, en.wordpress.com, mail.yahoo.com, delicious.com, and webmail.frontier.com.

Some visitors came searching, mostly for pearlfamilyreunion, 1938 hurricane, toni pullman mfa, jean marsh, and mfa boston pearl house.

Attractions in 2010

These are the posts and pages that got the most views in 2010.

1

Ideas for Increasing Family Participation July 2009
6 comments

2

The Brown-Pearl Hall at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston October 2009
1 comment

3

Welcome to the Pearls of Hampton (Connecticut) Site May 2009

4

THE RESTLESS PEARLS September 2010
3 comments

5

Pearl Settlement in the West February 2010

Published in: on January 2, 2011 at 12:12 pm  Leave a Comment  

The Brown-Pearl Hall on Display at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts

In 1925 the Brown-Pearl House was acquired by the Boston Museum of Fine Arts and dismantled.  The living area was reconstructed as an exhibit hall – an example of colonial architecture and early domestic life.  It was taken down and stored 10 or 11 years ago when the museum began construction of the new Art of the Americas Wing.

On Nov. 20th, 2010, the new wing was opened to the public and the Brown–Pearl Hall is again on display as a gallery in the lowest level of the new wing.

A little bit of history as excerpted from Norton Lee Bretz’ “Family Tree of John Pearl” (with additional comments in italics):

“John’s son Richard (the youngest of John Pearl’s sons) purchased the house, barn, and land from Cornelius Brown in 1737.  (Our ancestor, Timothy Pearl, had left Boxford and moved to what is now Hampton, CT roughly 30 years earlier.)  Mention was made in the deed of 175 acres of this land previously purchased by Richard.  Mr. Brown was allowed to live in the house until May 20 of that year.  It was on a narrow winding road near West Boxford.  Near the time of its purchase, Richard built a grist mill in the rear of the house, the first in the parish.  Major additions were put on the house in 1725 and in 1843 when an abandoned parish church was patched onto the building.  In 1925, the house was bought by the MFA.  It had been abandoned as a dwelling for some years and was rapidly deteriorating.  The structure was made of massive hewn, red oak beams, 12 by 14 inches, hand-fit at the supports.  The fireplace was over seven feet wide with a lintel made of oak.  The architecture was typical of the seventeenth century and one of the best remaining examples of colonial craftsmanship.  The living room, which the family knew as the foreroom, is what is now on display at the museum.  The original room was 19×19 feet and has an 8 foot ceiling.”

We also have this information from the “History of the Pearl Family” by Marian Arlene Pearl:

“John and his wife Elizabeth Pearl undoubtedly spent the remainder of their life on the Pearl Homestead at Boxford as the youngest son, Richard, was said to have been brought there in a bread trough when an infant.  This house stood on a 200 (acre) tract of land laid out originally to John Sandys in 1667.  The acreage passed into the hands of Joseph Dowding a Boston merchant who sold it Sept. 10, 1703 to Cornelius Brown of Reading for seventy pounds.  Mr. Brown built the house of solid hewn oak timber and it stood true and plumb throughout the years.  Alice Heath Fairbank Dow in her Pearl history of Richard’s line states that ‘one of the timbers measures 18 inches and between the inside and outside finish are bricks, larger than modern bricks, solidly laid in mortar and there are two or three wooden latches with the latch string in the house and the one on the south door is very large’  There were no highways when this home was erected and it faced south fronting a field.,  The road when eventually constructed was laid out at the rear of the house.  The Browns lived there many years, the wife Susannah died in 1734 at age 74.  The Pearl family occupied one side of it, and during this period it was known as the Brown-Pearl house.”

The house was built around 1704 and in this room the home’s occupants cooked, ate and slept, illustrating New England domestic life in the first years of the 1700’s.  Furnishings in the room as now displayed in the Museum are from other early homes and illustrate the multipurpose nature of a 17th and early 18th century hall.

- Dorothy Vander Meulen, Pearl Family Historian (with additional material and comments by Allen Vander Meulen III)

Published in: on December 27, 2010 at 10:55 am  Comments (1)  
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THE RESTLESS PEARLS

We recently heard from a distant cousin, Robert Brand, who found our Pearl Website and has communicated with us by email. He is descended from Ebenezer Pearl, born ca. 1778. Ebenezer was the son of James Pearl (1739-1831). One of James Pearl’s other sons, and brother to Ebenezer, was Jerome Pearl born in 1775.  Jerome is our family’s direct ancestor.

The migration patterns of various lines of the Pearl family are fascinating., Some moved to Nova Scotia, at least one moved back to England, many moved west to New York State, Ohio, Michigan, Illinois and eventually on to the west coast before the 20th century dawned. Ebenezer Pearl migrated from Connecticut to New York State.

Below is a brief history and interesting story from Robert Brand’s family, which he shared with us.

“After moving from Connecticut to New York, Ebenezer Pearl married Lucy Cole, born 1786 in Sterling, CT.  She had come with her parents to NY when she was about 6 years old. Ebenezer married her in Fairfield, NY. They had 8 children, one of whom was Ebenezer A. Pearl born 1811 in NY. Ebenezer A. served in the Civil War and was pensioned out early in the war with $8.00 per month, Invalid Pension. In the 1860 and 1870 censuses he is listed as a peddler. He created and sold ‘Ebenezer A. Pearl’s Tincture of Life’*. He married Harriet M. ?? and had 8 children, one of whom was Aurilla Pearl, born 1852 in NY. Aurilla married William Brand, but unfortunately he died young after falling off a ladder, breaking his neck. He was only 29 years of age. He left Aurilla with 4 children (one of whom was Robert Brand’s grandfather) and an insurance policy. The insurance money attracted a scoundrel named Charles Wesley Delrymple who married Aurilla on Jan. 1, 1891. Unfortunately he already had three wives. Aurilla’s sisters filed charges against him to protect the children whom they said were being abused by him. Delrymple was arrested, tried and sent packing. Aurilla then married an English farmer named George Happs and found peace.”
…….Robert Brand, Sept. 2010.

*According to an article found on the web, from the ANTIQUE BOTTLE AND GLASS COLLECTOR MAGAZINE, Antique Medicine Bottles Dr. Cannon’s Medicine Chest: “Ebenezer A. Pearl’s Tincture of Life came in an aqua, rectangular, 7 3/4 inch tall bottle. The product was advertised for coughs, colds, sore throats, etc. in the Boonville Herald, NY Feb 16, 1888.” A fair number of these bottles have been found for sale on the web over the years.

Published in: on September 22, 2010 at 9:43 am  Comments (4)  
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71st Pearl Family Reunion

The Pearl Clan in front of the "Little River Grange" built by Austin Eugene Pearl and Arthur Eugene Pearl

This year the Pearl family held its reunion at site of the former Little River Grange Hall, now the Hampton Community Center in Hampton, CT. It was a day of celebration of family, and of remembering the two Pearl men who constructed this building over 100 years ago. Austin Eugene Pearl and his son, Arthur Eugene Pearl, built this hall which served the Little River Grange # 36 until recently, when dwindling membership forced its closing and the building was taken over and then renovated by the town of Hampton for a community center. As a Grange Hall and now as a community center, this building continues to serve its town well.

Some 55 ‘cousins’ attended this year. The ages of those present ranged from 5 1/2 months to 91 years. Some traveled from as far as Florida and Illinois to be here with us.

With plates full of good, filling and delicious food, most of our family enjoyed the pot luck lunch outside under the big trees surrounding the Hall while a few stayed inside to eat and visit in the quieter environs of the renovated dining room. There was much visiting and sharing of family news and enjoying each others company, renewing friendships and getting to know each other better. A brief business meeting followed the dinner. There it was voted to hold next year’s reunion in the same place.

Published in: on August 16, 2010 at 12:32 pm  Leave a Comment  
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Family Recipe

Feel free to share other Pearl family recipes by sending them to me for publication here. Dot Vander Meulen

The following recipe comes from Evelyn (Pearl) Estabrooks and was given to me many years ago. You will need to adapt it to modern measurement terms.

Cottage Pudding (this is a simple and delicious cake served with a sauce):

1 cup sugar
butter the size of a medium egg
1 egg thrown in
1 cup milk
2 cups sifted flour
1 heaping Tablespoon baking powder ( this measurement translates to 1 tsp. double acting baking powder)
dash vanilla (1 tsp.)
Mix, pour into a greased 9 inch square pan and bake in a 350 deg. oven for 40 to 45 minutes.
Serve warm with either whipped cream or lemon sauce (my recipe for lemon sauce follows.)

Lemon Sauce – (1 1/3 cup sauce… I usually double this recipe):

1/2 cup sugar
1 Tablespoon cornstarch
dash salt
dash nutmeg
1 cup water
2 Tablespoons margarine or butter
1 1/2 Tablespoons lemon juice

Mix the first 4 ingredients then gradually stir in the water. Cook over low heat stirring constantly until thick and clear. Add the margarine and lemon juice. Blend thoroughly.

Dot Vander Meulen

Published in: on May 31, 2010 at 1:19 pm  Leave a Comment  
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Pearl Settlement in the West

I am fortunate to have recently been loaned the Pearl genealogy/history written by Marian Arlene Pearl. It has been generously shared with me by Marion Emmons who is now in possession of this history of our family. In the process of copying this record I have come across many interesting tales, learned more about the history of our family from the time of John the immigrant,and I have been blessed with more insight into the lives and times of our ancestors. One of the insights I have come to appreciate is the story of the journey of Laura Shellenbarger’s family from Connecticut to the wilds of Ohio. This courageous act typifies the determination and toughness of those who choose to undertake such a dangerous journey.

Laura contacted me after discovering our blog. Her family is descended from Capt. Timothy Pearl, a son of Timothy from whom our Hampton Pearls are descended, and a half brother of James Pearl, our direct ancestor.

Linda Shellenbarger’s great-great-great grandpa, Oliver Pearl, born in Willington, CT in 1788, left Connecticut to pursue opportunities in the west. He had married Mary Sexton in 1811. Oliver was a farmer and he and Mary lived in Ellington, CT  for 8 years after their marriage before “trading his farm for 100 acres of heavily timbered land in what is now Berlin Township, Erie County, Ohio. He also acquired 40 acres at the mouth of the Cuyahoga River, now a part of Cleveland. With true pioneer courage, this family now consisting of a wife and 4 small children, piled their household furniture and farm equipment into wagons, leaving Connecticut in 1819 for weeks of hazardous traveling. When they reached the pioneer farm at Cuyahoga River, malarial conditions forced them to continue on to their tract of land in Berlin. This was through a wilderness so dense that Mr. Pearl had to cut a road through to enable the teams to haul the wagons. According to history they passed through a Huron Indian village, now the site of the city of Milan, some 8 miles from his homestead. Fortunately, the Indians were friendly at that time to white settlers. Mr. Pearl first erected a cabin of round logs, later replacing it with a more spacious home of hewn logs. This couple was known for their kindness and good works. They helped to organize a Methodist church and were regular in attendance. Ten children were born to this union.”

Some of the information that Marian Arlene Pearl found was in Hewson L. Peeke’s “A Standard History of Erie Co. in 2 vols published in 1916., and The Firelands Historical Soc. Norwalk, Ohio Vol. 111 pg 26 Fireland Pioneers. and Huron Co. D.A.R. records Vol. 2 1812-1939 and Pearl/ History from E. Eldridge, Pearl family Bible.

The Fire Lands resource interested me. In looking up what this referred to, I found the following.  The Firelands tract was located at the western end of the Connecticut Western Reserve in what is now the state of Ohio. This land was set aside for people who lived in those Connecticut towns who had lost their homes when the British had burned them during the Revolutionary War. The towns affected were Danbury, Fairfield, Greenwich, Groton, New London, New Haven, Norwalk and Ridgefield. Eventually about 30 towns were established in the Firelands on the southern shore area of Lake Erie. But, apparently not too many people from the above Connecticut towns took advantage of this opportunity, probably because of Indian hostilities around the War of 1812 and the thickly forested land, that was hard to clear for farming.  A number of members of Oliver Pearl’s family did move from northeastern Connecticut to this area of Ohio.

Dorothy Vander Meulen, Pearl Family Historian

Published in: on February 2, 2010 at 1:41 pm  Leave a Comment  
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