Timeless Dartmouth

It must have been quite a change for the family of John Mory and Elizabeth Stone to move from the sleepy provincial Parish of Stoke Gabriel to the bustling and probably boisterous seaport town of Dartmouth. The move took place sometime between the birth of their son, Matthew, whose name was recorded at his Christening at  the Church of St. Mary and St. Gabriel in Stoke Gabriel as Matthew Moary, and their daughter, Jane, whose name at both her Christening and Burial was recorded as Jane Morey at the Church of St. Clements in Dartmouth, on October 29,1727. Though she died at birth, her mother survived, as she had another daughter, Elizabeth Morey, whose Christening was also recorded at St. Clements in 1729. Shortly thereafter, Elizabeth Stone did die and was taken back to buried at Stoke Gabriel Church Yard on June 12, 1729.

John married again to Elizabeth Matthews at St. Clements on February 5, 1731/32. The apparent uncertainty in the year of the marriage is related to the difference in the calendars used at the time (Gregorian versus Julian) and how that affected when New Years was celebrated.  Before 1752, the English government still observed March 25 as the first of the year, but most of the population observed January 1 as the first of the year. This lead to some datings of events in February giving the year as either in the previous or the new year. Suffice it to say that this marriage took place on February 5th following the Christmas of 1731. Elizabeth Matthews bore John two more daughters. In total he had 12, children though some did not survive child birth or early childhood. This was normal for the times. Both his daughters by his second wife were named Morey on their Christening record and it was from this point forward that this spelling became prevalent.

However, John's first born son was named John, as was the custom of the time, and was born in 1711, before that consensus in spelling was arrived at and apparently went through life known as John Mory, though all his children were Christened at St. Clements or later St. Saviours as Morey. All except one that is. His last born child was Matthew, our forebear, and his name was spelled variously including Mory, Morey and Morry. The latter spelling was not historic in the family but for some reason it seemed to stick. And thus we have been known ever since.

We really don't know much about the Morry's business affairs in these days except to speculate that it must have been associated with shipping and fishing from the very beginning.  For nearly 1000 years, sailors have set out all over the world from this ancient harbour. The Norman's used Dartmouth as a trading port with their homeland across the English Channel - and the Crusaders, led by Richard the Lionheart, set sail from Dartmouth. Both the second and Third crusades assembled and departed from Dartmouth's riverside quays and the Pilgrims in the Mayflower and the Speedwell stopped her briefly on their way to America in 1620. There would be little other reason to relocate to Dartmouth than to join in the marine economy.

Family of John Mory and Priscilla Harvey

Family of Matthew Morry and Mary Graham