Martha Montgomery (not same person as Martha Finley)

Capt. John Hugh Montgomery, Sr. who married Martha Montgomery - are the JMMF group. John Montgomery, Sr. (not same person as Capt. John Hugh Montgomery) and Martha Montgomery (not same person as Martha Finley) - are the JMMM group.

The children of John Montgomery and Martha Montgomery (JMMM) most recently of North Carolina are as follows:

These children (except Agnes Nancy who was already well-provided by her husband in PA) are listed in the will of their father John Montgomery who died in 1778 in Mecklenburg, NC.

1. James Montgomery (b. 1745 PA). He and his wife died about 1793 in Mecklenburg as fairly young adults, leaving minor children.There are court records showing how his brothers handled his estate (they died intestate) and provided for the care of their children.
2. Joseph Montgomery (b. 1736, PA). Some time after collecting his share of his father’s estate in NC in 1778, he headed west to Kentucky as an Indian fighter. Nothing further is known of him. He is often confused with his more famous counterpart Joseph Montgomery ( JMMF).
3. John Montgomery (b. 1737 PA). Owned land in Charlotte and south towards Lancaster, SC. His later years are not known, but his children were born in Lancaster, SC. It is believed that after he sold his NC land in 1806 he headed west to Blount, TN. His children are believed to have gone from TN to Alabama and then to Texas.
4. Martha Montgomery (b. abt 1740 PA) married Robert Robison of Mecklenburg, NC. Their children inter-married with a number of well-established Mecklenburg families.
5. Robert Montgomery.(b. abt 1740 PA). Also owned land in the Charlotte and south-of-Charlotte areas.
6. Rebecca Montgomery (b. abt 1742 PA). Married William Orr of Mecklenburg, NC., and then, Samuel Harris.
7. Elizabeth Montgomery (b. abt 1744 PA). Married William Houston. They moved west to Kentucky, nothing further is known. This is described in one of Martha’s 1797 letters, which distinguishes her from Elizabeth Montgomery ( JMMF).
8. Agnes Nancy Montgomery (b. abt 1750 PA). Married Robert Montgomery from the JMMF group and remained in PA with him.
9. David Thomas Montgomery (b. abt 1754 PA). Served in the Revolutionary war from NC. Bought land in Burke, NC, and settled there.

Based on the ages of the two groups of children, it is reasonable to believe the John and Martha Montgomery (JMMM) were probably about ten years younger than their Pennsylvania counter-parts John and Martha Finley Montgomery (JMMF).

Following genealogy history of the 18th century can be quite difficult. Families of Ulster-Scots heritage, for example, tended to travel and live in small inter-connected groups and communities. To make it more difficult for researchers of the 21st century, they also stayed within small boundaries and duplicated names for their children. In addition, in today’s technology, it is quite easy to pull up names and records of people on the internet and inadvertently mix or cross them.This has happened frequently.

This is the case regarding two parallel families: that of John Montgomery and Martha Finley of Pennsylvania (referred to in this note as the JMMF group) and John Montgomery and Martha Montgomery (referred to in this note as the JMMM group) who lived their later years in North Carolina.They are two distinct, but related, family groups; but since their histories are quite similar, have often either been mixed up or mistakenly combined as one family group.This note will attempt to help identify the differences, and clarify which ones are which.

The easiest way to understand these two parallel families is by reviewing their respective children and the subsequent lives of those children. While both families chose to name their children with similar patterns, it is fairly clear that each group of children lived different lives.

• John Montgomery and Martha Finley (JMMF), after arriving from Northern Ireland, lived out their lives in Pennsylvania.The majority of information regarding their lives (and their children’s lives) comes from Pennsylvania.
• John and Martha Montgomery (JMMM), it is believed, lived in Pennsylvania (but the complete dates not fully determined) from about 1735 until about 1770. At that time they and all their children’s families (except for one daughter) moved south to Mecklenburg, NC. They settled near Charlotte, bought land and lived out the remainder of their lives in that area.The majority of what is known about the JMMM group (and their children’s lives) comes from North Carolina.
• The daughter of the JMMM Montgomerys, Agnes Nancy Montgomery, stayed in Pennsylvania when the rest of her family moved south. She married Robert Montgomery (about 1771), son of the JMMF Montgomery's, and lived out her years with him in Pennsylvania.
• Thus the JMMFs and the JMMMs became in-law families to each other about the same time as the move to NC was put together.
• The other biggest piece of evidence regarding these separate in-law families comes from a set of 4 letters written by Martha (JMMM) Montgomery and three of her children in 1797 and 1799 from NC. Martha (JMMM) Montgomery’s grandson Robert was traveling from Mecklenburg to Harrisburg, and the southern relatives took advantage of his trip(s) to send those letters to their northern relatives. Grandson Robert’s journeys are also described in a sketch written by him about 1832. These letters help demonstrate that there were two independent family groups communicating with each other, and transcription copies are in the hands of many of their descendants. In all of this story, it seems to me that the one statement by young Robert Woods Montgomery, “I went up the River to an Uncle Robert Montgomery who had maried a cousen of his own - a sister of my Fathers” (and the addressing of the 1797 letters to "Mr. Robert Montgomery in Pennsylvania State, Laycomon County on Susquehannah River five miles above the mouth of Pine Creek.) is the irrefutable proof of all of this.

Current Y-DNA analysis of tested particpant male descendants of both of these groups seem to indicate it is quite possible that John Montgomery (JMMF) and John Montgomery (JMMM) are related to each other in some way, perhaps even as close at 1st or 2nd cousins. However at this point in time, historical evidence of what that relationship is or who the related ancestors might be has not come to light. It is not yet known who the fathers or grandfathers of each of these John Montgomerys might be. It is also believed in family tradition that Martha Montgomery (JMMM) is also a Montgomery daughter of her own maiden surname, and thus she may be a Montgomery cousin to her husband or to the JMMF John Montgomery as well. No knowledge has been currently found to determine who Martha Montgomery’s parents might have been, so it remains unclear exactly how and if her ancestors are related to the Montgomery family.

Source

• John Montgomery and Martha Finley Montgomery or John and Martha Montgomery, By Keith R Montgomery, January 31, 2012, Genealogy.com, http://www.genealogy.com/forum/surnames/topics/montgomery/6778/
• https://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=159943604 May not have correct family links