John Henry Gregg (1668 - bef. 1738)

Born 1668 in Ardmore County, Waterford, Ireland

Ancestors

Husband of Elizabeth (Cooke) Gregg — married 11 Nov 1694 in Chester County, Pennsylvania

Descendants

Died before 6 Mar 1738 before age 70 in Christina Hundred, New Castle County, Delaware

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Biography

John was a Friend (Quaker)

John Henry Gregg called "John Gregg of Brandywine" in many Quaker meeting minutes^[1][2]

History and genealogy of the Harlan family Pg 8

US Quaker Meeting Records Marriage Kennett Monthly Meeting Chester County Pennsylvania

Origin

John Henry Gregg was born in 1668 at Ardmore, co. Waterford, Ireland.^[3] According to Herbert Standing, although the family hailed from Ireland, they seemed to have a Scottish background.^[4] John was the eldest son of immigrants William Gregg and his wife, Ann.^[3] He was also the brother of Ann, George, and Richard Gregg.^[5] The family lived in Ireland until John was fourteen (1682) when they emigrated to William Penn's new, Quaker-friendly, colony of Pennsylvania.^[3][6]

Associations

William Dixon married about 1690 to John's sister, Ann Gregg.^[4] The Dixons were Quaker immigrants from Northern Ireland.^[4] After William's death, Ann married John Houghton as her 2nd husband.^[7] John H. Gregg was one of the executors for the March 10, 1720 will of John Houhton in which he mentions his daughter, Ann Dixon; executors were John Gregg and wife Ann Houghton.^[8]

Immigration

John and his family immigrated in 1682 aboard the ship "Caledonia," and landed at Upland (now Chester, Pennsylvania) on the Delaware river. The family settled a bit south of there in the newly-opened "three lower counties" of Pennsylvania, which became the state of Delaware.^[5]

In 1735, John H. Gregg of Christiana Hundred, New Castle County, Delaware, yeoman, aged about 67 years, gave a deposition in which he stated "that he has dwelt in said County about 51 yrs."^[9] His testimony places the family's emigration to Pennsylvania at about 1682 and arrival in New Castle County, Delaware, about 1684.

The family settled in Christiana Hundred, New Castle County, Delaware, and by 1684, John's father had acquired his second grant for a total of 600 acres.^[5] He began building a cabin at "Strand Millas," possibly named after after a favorite place near his home in Ireland. There is an industrial town near Belfast by this name, but one author thinks it may have originally been "Stran Millis" which means "sweet, or pleasant stream."^[5] This area was fertile land lying between the Brandywine and Red Clay Creeks, and it is still farmland today.

John's father died September 1, 1687 when John was only nineteen.

Delaware Quakers

John and his family were members of the Society of Friends. When the creek was passable, they attended the Monthly Meeting at the Brandywine Hundred Meeting at Newark.^[5] In winter months, when the creek was high, they obtained permission to have Meetings nearer their home, and this eventually became the Centre Meeting.^[5]

Family

John was twenty-nine when he married in a Quaker marriage ceremony on November 11, 1694, at the Concord Monthly Meeting in Concord, Chester County, Pennsylvania (now Delaware) to Elizabeth Cooke (b 1672 of Darby, Delaware Co., Pennsylvania).^[7] Elizabeth was the sister of Grace Cooke, and the daughter of William and Grace Cooke.^[7]

John & Elizabeth (Cooke) Gregg had 7 children (3 girls & 4 boys):^[3][10][7]

1. William Gregg, eldest son b 1695, d 1747; mar Margery Kinkey
2. Amy "Emey" Gregg b August 25, 1698, d c. 1738; mar Joseph Hadley
3. Thomas Gregg b 1703, d September 1, 1748 Virginia; mar Dinah Harlan
4. Joseph Gregg August 5, 1710 in Kennett, d October 1, 1770 in Chester, PA; mar Hannah Beeson
5. Samuel Gregg b c. 1712 Kennett, d September 10, 1767 in New Castle, DE; mar Ann Robinson
6. Hannah Gregg b c. 1715 Kennett; mar George Robinson
7. Rebecca Gregg b c. 1718 Kennett; mar. Unknown Spragg

Beginning with the birth of Joseph, the children's births were reported as at Kennett Township, Chester County, Pennsylvania.^[10]

Note: Some sources include 2 additional children, but without hard evidence:

• Jacob Gregg
• John Gregg

Property

John inherited land from his father, and he and his wife Elizabeth purchased more land. For example, on 17 August 1702, they purchased land on the Brandywine and built a grist mill.^[1] This may have been the first land sold out of Letitia's Penns Manor.^[11] John acquired a great deal of property during his lifetime, some say between five and six thousand acres.^[5]

He built two mills, possibly a stone house and stone spring house (which are still standing), and innumerable barns, sheds and out buildings.^[5] He may have built the two beautiful stone houses on Rockland Road between present-day Montchanin and Rockland. Now listed with the National Register of Historic Places, they are located on property which belonged to John Gregg, and are of the right era (300+ years old).^[5] The larger is called Strand Millas, and the smaller, on the other side of the road, is "Rock Spring."^[5]

John purchased land in Christina Hundred and Mill Creek Hundred, New Castle, Delaware, as well as land in Pennsylvania. His holdings extended southward toward present-day Wilmington, Delaware.^[5]

Last Will & Testament

Abstract of will, written April 27, 1738:

In the name of God and on this twenty-second day of April in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and thirty-eight, I John Gregg of the County of New Castle on Delaware and Christiana Hundred, a yeoman being of perfect mind and memory thanks to God . . .

• Elizabeth, my Dearly Beloved wife
• William my Eldest Son
• son Thomas
• son Joseph
• son Samuel
• my three Daughters: Emey, Hannah and Rebecah^[12] John chose his sons William and Samuel as his executors.^[8] His will was written on April 27, 1738 and probated on March 6, 1738.^[8]

Death and Legacy

John Gregg died between April 27, 1738 and March 6, 1738,^[8] at the Christina Hundred, New Castle County, Delaware and was buried at the Friends Burial Ground, Centerville, New Castle County, Delaware.^[3][13]

The stone house known as "Strand Millas" was given to their son Samuel.^[5] One of the mills was conveyed to son William in 1730, before John's death.^[11]

Sources

^{[8] [12] [9] [7] [11] [1] [3] [4] [5] [10][14]}

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2} Brown, Emily A., Ancestors of Emily Brown. (pages 22-23) Dec 13, 2003
2. ↑ http://www.gregghistory.com/Master.htm?#TreeGregg
3. ↑ ^{3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5} Gregg, Layne "Descendants of John Gregg."
4. ↑ ^{4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3} Standing, Herbert, Quakers in Delaware in the Time of William Penn. accessed June 28, 2015
5. ↑ ^{5.00 5.01 5.02 5.03 5.04 5.05 5.06 5.07 5.08 5.09 5.10 5.11 5.12} Palmer, Scott, MCH History Blog On The Road: Strand Millas and Rock Spring. Mill Creek Hundred History Blog accessed June 28, 2015.
6. ↑ https://www.familysearch.org/tree/person/details/L6RK-BQW
7. ↑ ^{7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4} A.M.C., "Gregg-Dixon-Houghton, of Newcastle County, Delaware." The Era Magazine: An Illustrated Monthly. Volume 5, Issue 11, Page 331 (Page 172 in GoogleBooks) Henry T. Coates & Co., 1898, accessed April 15, 2015
8. ↑ ^{8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4} National Society of the Colonial Dames of America in the State of Delaware, A Calendar of Delaware Wills, New Castle County, 1682-1800. (Pages 23, 32) New York: F.H. Hitchcock, 1911, accessed June 28, 2015
9. ↑ ^{9.0 9.1} Hinshaw, WIlliam Wade, Encyclopedia of American Quaker Genealogy. (Vol 6, Page 495-97) Ann Arbor, MI: Edwards Brothers, inc., 1936- HathiTrust.org accessed June 28, 2015
10. ↑ ^{10.0 10.1 10.2} Kendall, Hazel May Middleton, "Quaker Greggs."
11. ↑ ^{11.0 11.1 11.2} Gregg Family Publication, The Gregg Family GeoCities.com
12. ↑ ^{12.0 12.1} usgenfiles for Christiana Hundred, New Castle County Genealogy, entered January 6, 2013, by Liz Shifflett
13. ↑ Find A Grave Memorial# 45352187 - John Henry Gregg
14. ↑ http://www.palmspringsbum.org/genealogy/getperson.php?personID=I74554&tree=Legends

See also:

• Marshall, Elma Gregg, A Short History of John Henry Gregg's Family and their Ancestors.
• 1687, list of Taxables on the north side of Christiana Creek.
• Myers, Albert Cook, Immigration of Irish Quakers.
• Earl Lee Jones & Shirley Jane Wilson, Earl Lee Jones & Shirley Jane Wilson Family Tree Note: Lelah Nina Fudge is the 6th cousin of Earl Lee Jones
• Lontz, Mary Belle, Our German, Pilgrim, and Quaker Ancestors. October, 1968, broken Heritage Pursuit
• Scharf, Thomas J., History of Delaware, 1609-1888.