Matthew Morry l

In many ways, Matthew Morry I (1750-1836) can be considered to be the patriarch of the Morry family of Newfoundland. Not only was he the immigrant responsible for bringing the family to the New World in the first place, in the latter part of the 18th Century, but he was also the first person to ensure that the surname his children bore was consistently spelled "Morry" and not one of the half dozen other spellings that had been in use for the previous 7 generations, sometimes two or three spellings in the same generation.

Not that the "Morry" spelling was universally used once the family arrived in Newfoundland. Anglican Minister and Catholic priests In Newfoundland, as well as the clerks at the Church registry offices that bore responsibility for the recording of vital statistics in Newfoundland until well into the 20th Century, were no more concerned or cautious about the spelling of names in their record books than were their counterparts in England. Indeed, many of the names of the children of Thomas Graham Morry III, Matthews great-grandson, were incorrectly spelled "Morey" in their birth and Christening records.

However, it would seem that the level of literacy in the Morry family took a decided leap forward at about the time of Matthew I. Not only did he and his children sign their names on all manner of legal documents (prior to this time the "X" was the common form of signature in the family), but they were also writers and recipients of letters, business communications and even poetry.

It is strictly a matter of conjecture as to why the family chose to be known by the surname Morry and not, for example, the much more prevalent Morey of their native Devon. It may have been a matter of dissociating or distinguishing themselves from the Moreys that had already arrived in this part of Newfoundland before them. The Moreys were Irish, and worse still, Papists! The Morrys were loyal Britons and of course staunch Anglicans. There may also have been a little "airs and graces" element to the whole thing, just as their was for their close relations from Aquaforte, the Windsors, who had settled on that more prestigious sounding name instead of the name Winsor or Winser, by which they had been previously known.

It was believed by Dad Morry (Howard Leopold Morry) that Matthew was forced into bankruptcy by a partner, Prideaux,  in the firm of Morry, Prideaux and Le Messurier, a banking house based in Guernsey, who made off with the funds of the firm. The belief is that this was the cause for Matthew taking his family and moving to Newfoundland, where they could start anew in the fish business he had been developing there for some time. This is a matter in need of further research. It is known that the relationship with Prideaux was still extant in 1819, long after Matthew had emigrated. They were jointly sued in that year by the firm of Olive and Britten of London, who claimed they had an outstanding insurance owed to them by Morry and Prideaux in the amount of £ 976. Nimshi Crewe of the Newfoundland Archives researched this for Dad Morry in 1965 and concluded that the jury found in favour of the defendants (Morry and Prideaux). This lends credence to the belief that there had been financial difficulties in the background that may have prompted the move to Newfoundland but it also seems to imply that Prideaux may have been as much a victim of this downturn as Matthew.

Matthew and his sons seemed to spend a good deal of time in court once they arrived in Newfoundland, partly seeking compensation for debts or other injuries and partly because they functioned in a quasi-legal capacity or on juries, but also not uncommonly because others were suing them for presumed debts and injuries. Kevin Reddigan, on his excellent website on Calvert (http://ca.geocities.com/kreddigan/), covers the paper trail of the Morry's early days in Ferryland by means of their appearances in court and their various land transactions, first in Caplin Bay and later in Ferryland.