BLACK-L Archives

From: "Bill Black" <>
Subject: [BLACK-L] William Black and Mary Wiley
Date: Mon, 7 Jun 1999 20:51:11 -0400

In 1790, with Ireland on the brink of yet another disastrous rebellion, William Black (1761-1844), a stone mason, and Mary Wiley Black (1760-1856) and four of their 5 children sailed to find their place in the New World.

They came to America on a slow-sailing vessel, and were eleven weeks on the ocean. The drinking water ran short, and each family was allotted only a small portion. Mary Wiley Black said her family could have drunk up all of their share before breakfast, if she had permitted them to do so. In order to get water they hung up sheets when it rained then wrung them out into drinking vessels.

William and Mary landed at Philadelphia, and pushed on to Union Township, Mifflin County, Pennsylvania, near Reedsville. They were members of the Presbyterian Church, then called the East Kishacoquillas Congregation, now the Reedsville Presbyterian Church.

In 1811, William and Mary Black brought their large family from the rough hills of central Pennsylvania to the backcountry of Fairfield County, Ohio. Their youngest, James Patton Black (1802-1901) the first of my direct ancestors born in America came to Ohio with is parents, brothers and sisters, and, in 1852, was a ruling elder of the Bethel Presbyterian Church. James and wife Anstice Sherwood (1803-1849) were farmers and owned land in Jackson Township, Perry County, in section number 31. They had nine children. Later, James bought a part of the southwest quarter of section number 7, Rushcreek township, Fairfield County where he lived until his death. William, Mary, James, Anstice and many others of the family are buried in the Bethel Presbyterian Church Cemetery (Old Bethel) in Bremen, Ohio.

Church =
Cemetery (Old Bethel) in Bremen, Ohio.=20

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• [BLACK-L] William Black and Mary Wiley by "Bill Black" <>