McMurray Family (Click for Family Tree)
We are still looking for the father of Mary (Proctor) McMurray, known only to us as “General Proctor.”
One of the ways to find a parent is to search in the area their children lived. Since the General and his daughter came to America together, they might have a very close relationship. Since there has been no mention of a wife/mother in the meager documents we have, perhaps Mary’s mother had passed away in England or was too ill to make the trip across the ocean? That might have made father and daughter even closer, and Mary would have been the one to care for her father. Also, as parents age, they tend to settle down with a family member- that was “social security” back then, and usually the parent(s) would stay with a daughter and her husband.
The earliest we know of Mary (Proctor) McMurray is that on 22 May 1819, she gave birth to her son Henderson McMurray in Northumberland County, Pennsylvania. We have a letter that states that Mary, “came to the states with her father, General Proctor, at the close of the war.” Which war was not specified. We know she was born in 1793 per her tombstone, so they would have come after the American Revolution. So possibly they came after the War of 1812? Or maybe it really was after the Revolution, with “close of the war” taking in a range of years.
Since Mary (Proctor) McMurray lived in Blair County, Pennsylvania, we decided to target our research there for anyone of the name “Proctor” in the correct time period. One of the books reviewed was the “150th Anniversary History of Blair County, Pennsylvania.” Following are the few pertinent mentions that might assist us in our research.
A “William Proctor” was listed in the 1772 Tax Assessment of Bedford Township, Bedford County, Pennsylvania. This assessment was written right after Bedford “was erected.” Blair was later formed from Bedford. (p. 53)
A Thomas Proctor is listed as a resident in the 21st Class, which was Frankstown Twp.,- most of Blair County today. This was transcribed form the “Duplicate of Delinquent Classes Frankstown Township 1782 Federal Tax.” Thomas was also listed as having appeared in the 1779 assessment but not 1775. (p.62)
1785- Thomas Proctor listed as a non-resident (p.64)
None of this information is definitive, but it may help us prove or maybe rule out, certain men as ‘our’ General Proctor.
Notes, Sources, and References:
- “150th Anniversary History of Blair County, Pennsylvania,” by Larry D. Smith, Classon Press, 1997. This is not available yet as an e-book or on a free site, but may be obtained via Interlibrary Loan (ILL).
Click to enlarge any image. Please contact us if you would like an image in higher resolution.
We would love to read your thoughts and comments about this post (see form below), and thank you for your time! All comments are moderated, however, due to the high intelligence and persistence of spammers/hackers who really should be putting their smarts to use for the public good instead of spamming our little blog.Original content copyright 2013-2018 by Heritage Ramblings Blog and pmm.
Family history is meant to be shared, but the original content of this site may NOT be used for any commercial purposes unless explicit written permission is received from both the blog owner and author. Blogs or websites with ads and/or any income-generating components are included under “commercial purposes,” as are the large genealogy database websites. Sites that republish original HeritageRamblings.net content as their own are in violation of copyright as well, and use of full content is not permitted. Descendants and researchers MAY download images and posts to share with their families, and use the information on their family trees or in family history books with a small number of reprints. Please make sure to credit and cite the information properly, i.e, reference this blog. Please contact us if you have any questions about copyright or use of our blog material.
