Mary (Boyd) Bell (abt. 1758 - bef. 1816)

Born about 1758 in County Armagh, Ireland [uncertain]

Wife of Robert Bell I — married 17 Jan 1775 in Guilford, North Carolina

Descendants

Died before 1816 before about age 58 in Nashville, Davidson Co, Tennessee, USA

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Liz Shifflett [send private message]

Biography

Mary Boyd is said to have been born in Ireland, in County Armagh in Ireland, in 1758 to John and Rebecca Boyd.

Mary married Robert Bell:

Guilford County, North Carolina marriage bond dated January 17, 1775

bondsman Hugh Robertson (Robinson), witness Alex. McClaran^[1][2][3]

Robert Bell died in January 1816. She is not mentioned in records related to her husband's estate. So, it is assumed she died before him. Her last child Rebecca was born in about 1802.* So Mary's death likely occurred sometime between 1802** and 1816,

* from her husband's page:

I believe there is some misinformation about Mary Boyd Bell and her daughter Rebecca Bell who died in 1816. Rebecca Bell was probably not Mary Boyd Bell's last child, her last child most probably was Jane Bell born in 1795 when Mary was about 41. It has been suggested that Mary Boyd Bell died either in childbirth or shortly thereafter with Jane. I have done a fairly thorough search of the records here, but have not found anything revealing her death. Rebecca Bell was old enough when she died to have an estate settlement. She was not married but was presumably over the age of 21. I'm not sure why she was deemed to have owned the things in her estate. ~ Paula Snyder

** from her daughter Rebecca's page:

Based upon research done, the original year of birth 1802 [for Rebecca], imported into wikitree was wrong and a more reasonable date of birth of 1794 has been entered. Her possessions were sold when she died in 1816 indicating she was both single and at least 21 years old. ~ Vondrak-7 12:19, 5 June 2015 (EDT)

The information about Rebecca changes the timeframe for Mary's death from after 1802 to after 1795 (and before 1816).

Sources

1. ↑ Abstracts of the Marriage Bonds and Additional Data, Guilford County, North Carolina, Volume I, 1771-1840. Compiled by Ruth F. Thompson & Louise J. Hartgrove. 5th printing. Published by The Guilford County Genealogical Society, Greensboro, NC. 1995
2. ↑ FamilySearch:
   • North Carolina Marriages, 1759-1979
   • Name: Robert Bell
   • Bride's Name: Mary Boyd
   • Marriage Date: 17 Jan 1775
3. ↑ Guilford vitals, USGenWeb:
   • County: Guilford
   • Bondsman: Hugh Roberson
   • Witness: Alex McClaran

• Smith, 2004

Acknowledgements

• Research and information submitted by Paula N. Snyder; additional noted by Jim Vondrak.