Maryland Family Mysteries
Much genealogical work has been done on the branches of this family from Maryland—or, at least, I have uncovered more finished work here in comparison to other areas. The records are extensive because most of these branches stayed in one general area, Maryland, for several centuries, generating a tight web of common ancestors and stable depositories of family records. Almost all lived in southern Maryland, especially in Anne Arundel, Prince George's, and Montgomery counties, though branches also reach into Calvert, Charles, Frederick, and Howard counties and beyond.
Despite the work that has been done, there are still knots to untie. Please feel free to submit more if you seem them on the tree.
Here is one that isn't part of any County in Maryland I know of, but is worth putting out there. There was an Isaac Lansdale born in Delaware in 1760 who was Revolutionary War veteran. He later moved to Fayette Co., Alabama, and died there, and his family after this is pretty well attested. But: does anyone know of his parents? There are many Lansdales near by in Prince George's County in Maryland, and many named Isaac: I can't imagine there's not some connection.
The Battee family deserves to have more attention paid to it than genealogists have; there are two decent sources (S6 and S134). The name seems to have died out, at least in Maryland. Here is one stumper: there are many Elizabeth Battees on the tree—are any the same person? (Query posted Summer, 2005).
A John H. Lansdale is recorded as having married Nancy Warfield on June 7, 1797. According to a note in Newman (1.354), she seems to be the daughter of Benjamin Warfield (d. 1753) and his second wife Anne White. But who is he related to? (Query posted Summer, 2005).
How might the family of Joshua Marriott (m. Anne Homewood) be related to the family of John Marriott (who married Sarah Acton)? The latter family seems to be well attested, and is described in J.D. Warfield's well-known Founders of Anne Arundel and Howard Counties, Maryland, but I can find no record of Joshua's relationship to John. Joshua's son James and his grandson Bushrod Marriott both married into the Waters family, and one descendant, Dr. Henry Marriott, was a Confederate surgeon who left many books and other possessions at Essex Farm. (Query posted February, 2007).
What is Samuel Moore's ancestry? He was apparently born in Charles Co. and died in Kentucky. Information about his wife Charity Courts could also be more secure: apparently Samuel was her third husband. (Query posted October, 2006).
How are John Lansdale, who married Mary Pumphrey, and their daughter Mary Ann Lansdale (who was born abt. 1812) related by blood to any other Lansdales on the family tree? See below for more on this family. . . . (Query posted June, 2006).
A "John W. Lansdale" was a member of the Maryland House of Delegates representing Montgomery County from 1824 to 1827: who was he? (Query posted March, 2007).
A "Benjamin F. Lansdale," born in "Washington" (I assume D.C.) in 1845, is listed in the Maryland Manual as a member of the House of Delegates representing Montgomery County (Damascus) in 1903 and 1904: who was he? (Query posted March, 2007).
A William Lansdale married Ann Warfield in the later 18th century in Maryland. That is all that is recorded in Welsh. Who is this William Lansdale? This query might even belong in another county. (Query posted June, 2006).
Aside from the unknown Lansdales above, there are in fact two different Lansdale trees on this site. The first is a core tree, the descendants of immigrant ancestor Isaac Lansdale and Margaret Lancaster. There is a second, however: the descendants of Charles Lansdale and Catherine Wheeler. This family concentrates historically in Prince George's County and descends to, among others, Gen. Edward Geary Lansdale.
So the mystery is, then: how are they related? They both appear on the site because they are rather distantly related by marriage. At the moment, it seems that they aren't related by blood on this side of the Atlantic, but there are at least four reasons why they might be. The first is, of course, that they lived very close to each other in Maryland.
A second bit of evidence cuts both for and against a relationship. General E.G. Lansdale records that his father told him that the USS Lansdale was named "for the son of a second cousin of his grandfather" (his narrative can be found on the Maryland Histories page). The legend may point to the fact that there was a common ancestor. But, unfortunately, it seems like it's not true. [Here's my logic: his father's (Lansdale) grandfather was John Lansdale, and his second cousin would in the story be Philip Lansdale the father of Philip Van Horne Lansdale. Second cousins have common great-grandfathers. But, John's great-grandfather was Charles Lansdale m. Catherine Wheeler, while Philip's great-grandfather was Isaac Lansdale m. Eleanor Crabb).]
Third, Lansdale family history records the story that there were two or three Lansdale brothers who immigrated together from England. Who were they? If this story is true, one for sure was Isaac Lansdale, since his birth is recorded as being in England. But the only siblings of his I know of are both ciphers—John and Sarah Valentine—of whom nothing is recorded.
A fourth factor allowing for a relationship is the mere fact of the unknown. Who are the John Lansdale and Mary Pumphrey mentioned above, for example? Mary Ann marries John Bucey, who was a grandson of Charles. Is this John Lansdale a grandson of Isaac? The dates would fit. If so, this is an awfully close connection, especially if they were from Montgomery County.
Right now, however, there are many problems with all of this. Charles' family seems to have been Catholic, and Isaac's family all seem to have been Anglican/Episcopalian. And if Charles's family did immigrate with Isaac's, there is a a generational gap to reckon with. Charles was born in 1742, and Isaac was born 6 decades earlier, abt. 1686 in England. Charles would either either be the descendant of a different immigrant ancestor, or would have to be the son of one of Isaac's sons—probably Isaac Jr., John, or Richard—and while one researcher hypothesized that he was John's son, he also clearly says that this was an arbitrary guess. (Query posted June, 2006).
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