Ontonah (Powhatan) Meese (abt. 1625 - 1700)

Born about 1625 in Potomac River, Allegany, Maryland

Died 1700 at about age 75 in Stafford, Colony of Virginia

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Biography

Otonah Mary was born in 1624. She passed away in 1675.^[1]

Others say she was born circa 1645 in Potomac, Allegany, Maryland, hundreds of miles from the Powhatan territory, the granddaughter of Ka Okee, a disputed early daughter of Pocahontas. Let’s say Ka Okee, said to be born 1611, was fifteen when she married. Her daughter, Unknown Powhatan, could have been born as early as 1626 if she was the first child. Now say she, Unknown daughter of Ka Okee, married at age eighteen in 1644. If Otonah "Mary" Powhatan was the first born child of Unknown Powhatan she could have been born no earlier than 1645. Taking this one step further, if Otonah Powhatan married at age fifteen, at the earliest, her oldest child could have been born no earlier than 1661.

She is said to have married Henry Meese in 1658, at age 13, in Maryland.

Henry Meese was a rich London Merchant who first came to Maryland in about 1654.^[2] He formed a partnership and close friendship with Philip Calvert, one time Governor of Maryland (1660-1661) and youngest son of Lord Baltimore, proprietor of Maryland.^[3] Henry began acquiring land in Virginia in 1665.^[4] He left the Colony in 1669-1670, returning to live in England. In 1675 he married Anne Pert, who came with a healthy dowry. Together they lived in London.^[5] Henry imported tobacco from Virginia and exported items of daily living to Virginia. Anne and Henry had four children: Henry, John, Anne and Frances. Henry died in London in 1682. He bequeathed his land in Virginia to his children. ^[6]

Henry's daughter, Ann Meese lived in London, unmarried, until her death in 1719. She requested to be buried next to her mother at Mountnessing and made bequest to her mother's sisters; Dorothy Pert, Mary Pert, Elizabeth Pert and Alice Pert. ^[7]

According to this profile, Otonah gave birth to a daughter in 1651. She would have been six years old at the time if she was born in 1645. She cannot possibly be the mother of Anne Meese Bryant.

Ontonoh's death is said to have been in 1700 in Colony, Laurel County, Kentucky, a non-existent location.

There is no evidence to support claims for this woman’s existence. See Jeanie Roberts’ blog “Colonel Henry Meese and his wife Otonah” Indian Reservations March 2016 for an analysis that concludes that Henry Meese would not have married a daughter of an enemy tribe of the English. Refer to the profile for Henry to see the details of his life in America.

Nor is there sufficient evidence for the existence of her supposed mother, Ka-Okee.

Sources

1. ↑ A source for this information is needed.
2. ↑ Louis Dow Scissco, "Notes on Augustine Herman's Map," Maryland Historical Magazine, Vol. 33, No. 1 (March 1938) 348, digital image, MSA (http://msa.maryland.gov : accessed 16 March 2016).
3. ↑ Philip Calvert, A Letter to Henry Meese, Merchant of London, 29 December 1681, digital image, Early English Books (http://quod.lib.umich.edu/e/eebogroup/ : accessed 15 March 2016)
4. ↑ Land Office Patents No. 5, 1661-1666 (v.1 & v.2 p. 1-369) p.513, database with images, Online Catalog University of Virginia (http://www.image.lva.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/GetLONN.pl?first=513&last=&g p=P5&collection=LO patent : accessed 13 March 2016) entry for Henry Meese.
5. ↑ Gloucestershire County Council, "Pert Settlements and Wills, 1646-1671," digital images Gloucestershire Archives Online Catalog (ww3.gloucestershire.gov.uk : accessed 15 March 2016) reference D678/2/F8/1-4, Marriage Settlement of Henry Pert and Francis Herrys and Will and Probate of Henry Pert.
6. ↑ Ancestry.com. England & Wales, Prerogative Court of Canterbury Wills, 1384-1858 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2013. Will and Probate of Henry Meese 1682.
7. ↑ The National Archives; Kew, England; Prerogative Court of Canterbury and Related Probate Jurisdictions: Will Registers; Class: PROB 11; Piece: 571