| 4. Mary Ann Murch (Mathew1) |
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| She
was born in Newcastle Co., St. Georges Hundred, DE on May
1, 1796. She married twice. She married first Rev. Richard Lyon on February 3, 1817 in NJ. Richard Lyon was born July 23, 1771. His parents were Henry Lyon and Ann Everett. Mary Ann was his second wife. He was a traveling Methodist minister. From a letter written by a ggranddaughter of Richard Lyon and Mary A. Murch. . "Grandfather Lyon's mother's maiden name was Murch. She was a native of Maryland and was a slave owner." Richard Lyon died December 31, 1821 in Woodbury, NJ "in his 51st year".. Mary Ann married second, Richard Pearson SR [#9 Pearson family] in DE, in February 1823. Her daughter-in-law, Julia Hunt Pearson wrote of Mary Ann: "...... Richard Pearson SR ...... fell in love with the widow of a Methodist minister that his father wanted to marry. This caused trouble and they were estranged, so I know little more of that family...... [her name was] Mary Ann Murch. Her mother was born in Ireland. She had 2 children when she married him. Their names were Edmond and Susan Lyons. They lived on an island in Chesapeake Bay called Bombakook*, which was close to Maryland." [*Bombay Hook island is actually in Delaware Bay] Mary Ann and Richard lived for a time in OH and then in 1833 Richard "took his family to a small town which is still located on the Mississippi River in ILL. He rented a house. [Mary Ann] told him to take most of his money and go find a home. She said she would find work and support the family although she was all most entirely deaf, having lost her hearing about four years before, when her youngest child was born. Richard returned to them in a year without finding any place to locate. People then were beginning to locate in Iowa on the Mississippi. So he went across near what is now Guttenburg [Jefferson twp., Clayton Co. IA] and got a large grant from the President in Washington for a home. There was no school nearer than Dubuque, but Mary Ann and the eldest child Susan, taught the boys at home. There were dense woods all around them with plenty of deer and wild turkey, and fish in the river. There were also all kinds of wild fruit such as plums, crab apples and berries. Also lots of nuts on the Hickory, Butternut and Walnut trees. They made all the maple sugar they could, and sold some when they went in their canoe up the Mississippi to Prairie du Chien or Ft. Crawford for supplies. They raised corn meal for all their food. They had a barrel of flour which was used only when the traveling preacher came through to hold meetings as he generally stayed with them. But the children seldom got anythig but cornmeal. The soon had butter and eggs to sell and use too."
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 E.B. Lyon Please contact me if you are researching this family - I will put you in contact with a descendant. |
Mary Ann Murch and Richard Pearson SR had 4 children: |
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