Elisabeth Bettis (1725 - aft. 1820)

Born 23 Apr 1725 in Pomfret, Windham, Connecticut

Ancestors

Descendants

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Biography

In Brief
In her 1875 letter Margaret (McNary) Spencer said that "Martin's mother was Betsy Bettis or Beattis of Colchester, and he was brought up among her people."^[1] The only plausible match for this said mother is one Elisabeth Bettis, daughter of Thomas Bettis and Mary Franklin, who was born at Pomfret, Windham County, Connecticut on 23 April 1725.^[2].

Martin's mother died after June 1820: Martin McNary (of Fishkill) mentioned his mother as part of his family in June 1820, clearly implying that she was living there then.^[3] It is said without evidence that she d. 19 June 1827 at Fishkill.

It has also been said, with no cited evidence, that Elizabeth Bettis m. Martin McNary 27 Sep 1748 at Middletown. However (and, as implied by the wording in the 1875 letter) they probably never married; there is no marriage remotely matching in Barbour, VR, or Church records.^[4] The elder Martin did acknowledge a first son Martin, age 25 in 1785,^[5] and so born too early to have been the child of his marriage to Mabel (Johnson) (Blake) McNary (1742-1827);

Residence History
She was living at Hebron, Tolland County, Connecticut in 1752.^[6]

She was a member of Martin McNary's household, thus living in Fishkill, in 1820.^[3] It unknown what name she was using at that time.

Family

Child of unknown father and Elisabeth Bettis:

1. Joseph Bettis, born at Hebron on 6 November 1752 (Son of Elizabeth. No further record has been found).^[6]

Child believed to be son of Martin McNary (1723-1809) and Elisabeth Bettis:

1. Simeon Martin Bettis, son of Elizabeth Bettis, baptized at Gilead, Hebron, Tolland County, Connecticut on 1 April 1761;^[7] believed to be the same person later known as Martin McNary.

Research Notes

The Thomas Bettis family can be traced in the land records from Pomfret to Hebron by 1751^[8] and to Colchester by 1762.^[9] There are no records showing that daughter Elizabeth died or married in the interim, and there are the two cited baptisms naming only the mother, Elizabeth Bettis, implying she was unmarried and living in Hebron in 1752 and in 1761.

Sources

1. ↑ Spencer, Margaret Mcnary. Letter to cousin George Bull McNary, Nov 12, 1875. "...Martin's mother was Betsy Bettis or Beattis of Colchester, and he was brought up among her people." Attached to "Margarette Spencer (born McNary), born Circa 1803" on My Heritage: [membership required]. Also at Internet Archive.
2. ↑ Ancestry.com, Connecticut Town Birth Records, pre-1870 (Barbour Collection): Pomfret Vital Records, Records for Elizabeth, Mary, and Simeon Bettis, children of Thomas and Mary. [Online (may require membership) at: link.]
3. ↑ ^{3.0 3.1} Ancestry.com, U.S., Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty-Land Warrant Application Files, 1800-1900: Record for Martin Mcnary. [Online (may require membership) at: link.]
4. ↑ Spencer, Margaret Mcnary. Letter to cousin George Bull McNary, Nov 12, 1875.
5. ↑ McKenery, M. Letter to his brother (said to be Morris), from America, Middletown, State of Ct., June 9, 1785, "1st [son] Martin a blacksmith aged 25 years." As transcribed in profile at Geni.com. link. Also on Internet Archive.
6. ↑ ^{6.0 6.1} Ancestry.com, Connecticut Town Birth Records, pre-1870 (Barbour Collection): Hebron Vital Records, Records for Joseph Bettis, Simeon Bettis, et al. [Online (may require membership) at: link.]
7. ↑ Ancestry.com, Connecticut, Church Record Abstracts, 1630-1920: Volume 54, Hebron, Page 3. Record for Simeon Martin Bettis, son of Elizabeth, baptized Apr 1, 1761. page image
8. ↑ Hebron, Tolland County, Connecticut Deeds 4:74 and 4:129
9. ↑ Colchester, New London County, Connecticut Deeds 8:459