Elizabeth Jane Chettis was born at Saint Andrews, New Brunswick, 6 Jun 1784, the daughter of John Chettis and (_____), d at Princeton, Maine, 15 Aug 1871, and buried there in the South Princeton Cemetery. [1] She is the adopted daughter of Abiel Sprague and Martha Bryant. She married at Sprague's Falls, 1801, Moses Bonney, [2] b at Roque Island [Machias], ME, 10 Oct 1778, the son of Joel Bonney and Elizabeth Sprague, d 4 Jul 1870 at Princeton and buried in the South Princeton Cemetery.
John Chettis, father of Elizabeth, was a carpenter and millwright who came with his family to the St. Andrews area in a sailing vessel for the purpose of procuring tall, straight trees for the masts of British naval ships. The Chettis family and members of the crew lived in shacks on shore near the wharves. One morning in 1785 the Chettis family awoke to find the crew and vessel gone! On this scene of desperation Elizabeth opened her pretty eyes to look trustingly into the eyes of a disheartened father and mother. Elizabeth is reputed to be the first white child born in St. Andrews. Such distinction was dearly paid for. The father, who had hoped to gain employment by building cabins and houses in the rapidly growing town, unfortunately soon sickened and died. Days dragged on and food gave out. The helpless mother, driven mad by the cries of her starving babes, was ready by violence to put an end to the tortures of slow death, when a kindly Indian happened that way and brought aid to them. A few months thereafter Mrs. Chettis returned to her native England, taking with her all the children except the baby Elizabeth, who was much too young to stand the severity of a long sea voyage. The babe was entrusted to the care of the original Baileys of Bailey Hill (Baileyville) and some years later was taken into the home of Abial Sprague, first settler of Sprague's Falls, now part of the Town of Baileyville. [3] [4]
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C > Chettis | B > Bonney > Elizabeth Jane (Chettis) Bonney
Categories: South Princeton Cemetery, Princeton, Maine | Baileyville, Maine | Saint Andrews Parish, New Brunswick | St. Andrews, New Brunswick