Joseph Robert Montgomery

Immigration to America

We do not seem to have any direct statement of when Joseph Montgomery and his wife Jane Edgar immigrated to America. However, when we trace the known events of their and their childrens' lives, we do find hints of the range of dates for their arrival.

It is said that Joseph Robert Montgomery and Jane Edgar married on 13 Feb 1708 in Antrim. All five of their children were born in either Northern Ireland or in Scotland: the first four in Northern Ireland, and the fifth in Ayrshire, Scotland in 1722.

At least four of these children came to America, and perhaps the fifth also, but it appears from the events of their lives that they did not come together. Joseph's wife, Jane Edgar, is said to have died either in 1745 in Ireland, or in 1777 in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Joseph is said to have died in Franklin, Pennsylvania sometime after his will was made 14 Apr 1785.

(1) Their first child, Mary Montgomery, was born in 1707 in Donegal, Northern Ireland, and she died in 1777 in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. She married James Patterson in 1731 in Lancaster, Lancaster, Pennsylvania when she was 24 years old. Together they had 12 children.

(2) Their son Thomas Montgomery, Sr. was born in 1713 in Donegal, Ireland, and married Mary Elizabeth Ramsey in 1731 in Lancaster, Pennsylvania when he was about 18 years old. Together they had 7 children.

(3) Their son James Griffen Montgomery was born in 1714 in Carnmoney, Belfast, Antrim, Northern Ireland. He is listed as having three children who were born in 1732, 1734, and 1736, all in Antrim, Northern Ireland. No place of death is found for James. However, one of his sons, Andrew Griffin Montgomery born in 1734, married Hannah Jane Patterson who was born in Little Britain, Lancaster, Pennsylvania. The fact that James' sister Elizabeth was born in Scotland in 1722 when James was 8, and yet that James had three children all born in Antrim, shows that the family may well have gone back and forth between estates in Ireland and Scotland.

(4) Their daughter Ann Montgomery was born according to some family trees in 1720 in Northern Ireland. According to other family trees she was born in 1730. Some of these trees list her place of birth as being in Pennsylvania. That location is certainly wrong if she was born in 1720 because of the information about her sister Elizabeth's birth (see below). She was married in 1738 in Derry, Dauphin, Pennsylvania in 1738 to Peter Patterson when she was 18. This also suggests that the 1730 date for her birth is wrong. So, Ann must have immigrated to Pennsylvania before 1738, and coming before 1731 with her sister Mary and brother Thomas is equally possible, if not likely.

(5) Their daughter Elizabeth Montgomery was born 29 Mar 1722 in Craig House, near Gatehead, Ayrshire, Scotland. She married 2 Sep 1748 in Beith, Aryshire, Scotland when she was 26. She gave birth to two children in 1759 and 1760 in Renfrewshire, Scotland. But she and her husband and her children ended up coming to America, where they all eventually died. This information about Elizabeth (her place of birth, of marriage, and of the birth of her children) argue strongly that her parents, Joseph and Jane, did not immigrate until at least the late 1730s. For, her parents would surely not have left her while she was so young. Elizabeth would have had to have immigrated after 1760 with her husband and children.

If Joseph's wife Jane did die in 1745 in Ireland, then it would be clear than their son Thomas and daughters Mary and Ann came to Pennsylvania before Joseph did since they were all married in Pennsylvania before their mother died in Ireland (assuming the marriage stayed together and assuming she died in Ireland).

However, if Joseph's wife Jane died in 1777 in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, then they still probably came later than Mary, Thomas, and Ann. Both Mary and Thomas were married in 1731 when their sister Elizabeth was only 9 years old. Surely Joseph and Jane did not abandon their 9 year old daughter in Scotland and come to America with Mary, Thomas, and Ann.

Also, since Elizabeth was born in Aryshire, Scotland when Mary was just 15, Thomas was just 9, and Ann was just 2, it is most likely that all the family had moved back to Scotland (the Montgomery family was originally from Scotland, and Joseph's great grandfather Alexander Montgomerie was from Ayrshire).

Therefore, we may assume that Mary, Thomas, and Ann came to America before their parents came. Both Mary and Thomas had to have come before 1731, since they were each married that year in Pennsylvania. Ann could have come with her sister and brother (she would have been no older than 15 or 16), or she would have come later and joined them in Pennsylvania. Since Ann was married in 1738 in Pennsylvania at age 18, she had to have come before that date.

We do not know whence they emigrated, whether Ireland or Scotland. The move to Aryshire, Scotland for the birth of Elizabeth may have been a temporary move. Or, it could be that they freely moved back and forth between Scotland and Ireland, especially if there were estates in both places to look after.