THE PERRY FAMILY OF WOODROOFF & CORK

The first Perry to settle in Tipperary was RICHARD Perry who settled on land at Newcastle, near Clonmel around 1657.  Richard was a native of Exeter, Devon, England and the son in a merchant family involved with the import and export of goods from Spain and Portugal as well as the Americas and other British colonies.  He was an Ultra Puritan who had previously emigrated to New England in the late 1630s and participated in the founding of New Haven, Connecticut[1], a settlement ‘planted’ by a group of London Puritans, sponsored, among others, by Richard Malbon, Theophilus Eaton and Richard Perry Sr., the father of Richard.

Richard Perry married Mary Malbon , a daughter of the above mentioned Richard Malbon, ca. 1639, in England and they accompanied her father to New England where church records are found in New Haven recording the births of five of their children: Mary (1640), Micajah (1641), Samuel (1645), John (1647) and Grace (1649).[2]   Later a Peter and an Ebenezer would also be born, the latter likely to Richard’s 2^nd wife Grace.

In 1651 Richard and family returned to England to rejoin his father-in-law, Richard Malbon.  His wife, Mary, died sometime after and in 1655 he remarried the widow, Mrs. Grace Nichols .   In 1656 we find Richard as a customs collector in Glasgow and his eldest son and heir, Micajah, is serving an apprenticeship in London.  By 1657 Richard had moved to Ireland and settled near Clonmel in the County of Tipperary.  He was accompanied by all of his children with the exception of Micajah who remained in London to complete his apprenticeship.  Richard became a merchant and for a short time held a position in “Cromwell’s Corporation”.

“Richard the “first” of Ireland was one of the entrepreneurs or “Adventurers” who arrived to take up property from dispossessed Irish families.  In 1656 the Cromwellian settlers organized themselves into a corporation.  Richard Perry served as the mayor's sergeant.  He became very wealthy and was regarded as the founder of the well- known county (Tipperary) family ” [3].

"On October 1, 1660 Henry Waynewright was sworn in as one of the sergeants at mace for the corporation in the place of Richard Perry who desired to quit himself of the employment". [4]

Richard and his son John left the Established Church and joined the Presbyterian dissenting community in Fethard and Clonmel and later his grandchildren would worship at the Presbyterian Meeting House at Princes St. in Cork.

“Cromwell's former arch enemy in Ireland, the Protestant Royalist, the Earl of Ormonde, was a victor at the time of the Restoration.  He acquired not only wealth and honours from the Crown, but grants of most of the town of Clonmel for his loyalty. It is recorded that William Vaughan, Phineas Riale (Riall) and Richard Perry of Clonmel remained true to their Puritan faith as the Church of England in Ireland gained ascendancy once again.  These men established a dissenting congregation in the town.”[5]

This “dissenting congregation” was a very tight-knit community and the above Vaughan and Riall families became close friends and business partners.

Why Richard and his family settled near Clonmel in Tipperary and not closer to their relatives in Limerick may be due to their ties with the Hutchinson family or perhaps due to the Riall family which had also originated from Exeter and came to Tipperary via Limerick (where the Pery cousins lived) around the same time.

William Hutchinson of London had been a founder and early settler of Massachusetts and his brother Richard became the Treasurer of the Navy under Cromwell.[6]  As a reward for his services he received a ‘Cromwellian Grant’ of lands in Tipperary and Waterford and a house at Knocklofty.   Jacob M. Price, author of, “Perry of London, A Family and a Firm on the Seaborne Frontier 1615 – 1753”, believes the Hutchinson and Perry families were related through one of the grandmothers and refers to the will of Edward Hutchinson where John Perry (son of Richard) and his wife Elizabeth Riall are noted as “cousin and kinsman” and “kinswomen”.  I have since discovered that the Rialls were connected to the Hutchinson family through the Vaughan family.  Elizabeth Riall Perry’s brother, Phinehas Riall, married Elizabeth Vaughan and her uncle Francis Vaughan was married to the daughter of Richard Hutchinson.  Lastly a granddaughter of Richard Hutchinson married Micajah Perry’s business partner Thomas Lane so it appears that these families were connected in several ways.

In any case, Richard Perry settled on land adjacent to the Hutchinson estate in Tipperary and his son John would later become manager of the Hutchinson lands’ at Knocklofty.

After Richard resigned from the Corporation of Clonmel in 1660 he is listed as being a farmer in William P. Burkes publication, The History of Clonmel, published in 1907.  It is neither known when Richard died nor where he was buried.

Of Richard’s seven children it is not known what became of, Samuel, Grace and Ebenezer but there is some information regarding the other four.

1)  MARY, the eldest daughter of Richard was baptized in New Haven on October 4th 1640.[7]  Around 1666 she married Thomas Lowe and moved to Charles City, Virginia.  Of this union were at least 2 sons and 3 daughters.  The eldest son, John , remained or returned to Ireland and is mentioned in his uncle John’s will of 1709 inheriting monies and land in Tipperary.  2nd son, Micajah Lowe died 1703 in Carsharlton, Surrey, England but was “formerly” of Charles City, Virginia as mentioned in his will.[8]    The daughters were Susanna, Mary and Johanna with Johanna’s daughter, Elizabeth Jarrett, marrying John Chiles Tyler who is thought to be an ancestor of President Tyler of the United States.

2)  The eldest son MICAJAH (I) Perry was baptized in New Haven on October 31st 1641.[9]   He was serving an apprenticeship at the Michelmas in London when his family moved to Tipperary in 1658 and he remained behind to finish his studies.   In 1663 he married Ann Owens and they had two sons, Richard and Micajah (II).   Micajah Sr. founded the Perry, Lane & Co.  together with Thomas Lane and this company would become the largest tobacco importer from the Americas and Chesapeake Bay into London and Britain.  Micajah and his partner were heavily involved in the tobacco and slave trades and travelled extensively between England and the New England colonies.   After the early deaths of both of his sons, his grandson, Micajah (III) became his heir and inherited the vast estates that Micajah (I) still possessed in Tipperary and elsewhere.  Micajah (I) died 1721 in England and his grandson Micajah (III) would later become the Lord Mayor of London in 1728.

3)   PETER Perry also went to New England and was the Virginia representative for his brother Micajah and his firm Perry, Lane & Co.  Between 1682 and 1698 there is extensive documentation regarding Peter’s transactions in Charles City recorded in the book, "Charles City County, VA Court Orders 1687-1695 by Benjamin B. Weisiger III."  He is often referred to as Captain Peter Perry and these legal transactions involve lands, administrations, collections of debts, tobacco and slaves.  It many cases tobacco or land were means of payment for the transport of persons, slaves or of debts.  Peter is said to have left descendants in Charles City, VA but nothing about them is known.  When and where he died is not known.

4)   JOHN Perry remained in Tipperary and his descendants became the Perrys of Woodrooff and Cork and part of the “Landed Gentry”.

Newcastle House overlooking the river Suir

JOHN PERRY OF NEWCASTLE, KNOCKLOFY & WOODROOFF

JOHN, the third son of Richard Perry and Mary Malbon was christened 11 July 1647 in New Haven, Connecticut and was the only child known to have remained in Tipperary.  Having originally settled near the Hutchinsons at Knocklofty near Clonmel, John and his father began raising herds of cattle and accumulating landholdings.  It seems that John was on good terms with his elder brother Micajah (I) of London who had also invested in Tipperary lands from the dowry he had received from his marriage to Ann Owens.  In 1683, Micajah transfers a portion of this land, Cooleagh, to his brother John for £ 100.  John was also able to borrow money from Micajah in times of difficultly and it appears he sailed to New England on at least one occasion on one of Micajah’s ships.

John was hired by Edward Hutchinson to manage the lands of the Hutchinson estate at Knocklofty thus explaining why John is also referred to as John Perry of Knocklofty.  (He is later documented as John Perry of Woodrooff).  A document at the National Library of Ireland refers to a “lease by John Perry of Knocklofty to Edward Hutchinson of 26 ½ acres of Ballymorris, Co. Tipperary for 94 years @ £ 4 / annum. (with signature and seal of John Perry)”.  Edward Hutchinson fled Ireland and left his Tipperary land in the hands of his “cousin”  John Perry and when he died in 1700 he leaves bequests to John and his wife (to buy a ring for mourning) and directs that John continue to manage his estates.[10]

John married ELIZABETH RIALL  around 1683 and of this union there were 10 children who survived to maturity: Richard, John, Edward, Micajah, Samuel, Elizabeth, Anne, Grace, Rebecca Pyke and Sarah .  References regarding these children are found in various documents at the Registry of Deeds, Dublin and from the will of John Perry written in 1709 and proved in 1710. [11]

His wife, Elizabeth Riall,  was born February 10^th 1669 in Tipperary and was the youngest sister of Phinehas Riall, 10 years her elder.  The Riall family also had roots in Exeter, England and had originally settled in Limerick before coming to Tipperary in the mid to late 1660s. [12]  Although not confirmed it is highly likely that the Rialls and Perrys were acquaintances, if not friends, before they intermarried in Tipperary.  Elizabeth outlived her husband and died 20 July 1754 at 85 years of age.

In the 1690s John began investing in lands in Alloway, West Jersey (now New Jersey) together with John Pyke of Woodenstown and William Vaughan all of Co. Tipperary  It is doubtful that John ever lived in America but he did sail there at least once and is also have thought to have spent time in Chester, PA.  It is certain, however, that John Perry, John Pyke and Wm. Vaughan all died in Tipperary and their heirs remained in Ireland.  If John may have fathered some natural children while visiting the colonies is another question …

Patents and Deeds...of New Jersey 1664-1703" (edited in 1899 by William Nelson)

1 Oct 1696

John Hooke sold to John Pike, gentleman; William Vaughan, Merchant; and John Perry. gentleman -- all of Tipperary County, Ireland  -- five eighths of a share [of land ] in West Jersey.

22 Sep 1697

John Pike of Widdingstone, gent.; William Vaughan of Clonmell, merchant; and John Perry of Knocklofty, all in the County of Tipperary, Ireland, to Jeremiah Basse and Samuel Jenings, to take up and improve the land belonging to five eighths of a share of land in West Jersey bought of John Hooke.

30 Oct 1699

Joshua Barkstead, by warrant for John Pike, William Vaughan and John Perry, [bought] 6,250 acres on the DelawareRiver, above the Falls, part of Dr. Coxe's 20,000 acres, over against a small island along Coxe's line.

THE CHILDREN OF JOHN & ELIZABETH

1)  RICHARD was the eldest son of John Perry and Elizabeth Riall and was likely born around 1683.  He was admitted to the Middle Temple School on November 24th 1694 and was noted as, “son and heir of John Perry of Knockloftie, Tipperary, Ireland, Esq.”. [13] Richard was a lawyer and also an influential landowner in Tipperary being mentioned in many land transactions and as executor or witness of other deeds and wills between the late 1690s and 1720.  He does not become heir of his father's lands and according to an old family tree done by Richard Warren-Perry he had purchased lands with monies given to him by his father during his lifetime and was therfore paid off in advance.  In John Perry’s will of 1709, proven 1710, his second son John becomes heir and his other younger sons also receive land and money.

Richard married on February 2^nd 1709  and this union may or may not have been approved of by his father as his bride was no less than his aunt, ELIZABETH VAUGHAN , and relict of Phinehas Riall.  In other words, Richard married his uncle’s widow. The marriage of Richard and Elizabeth (Vaughan) Riall is entered in the Riall family Bible as are the births of two sons that didn’t survive.  A young Richard was born on July 10 1712 and was baptized the same day by the Presbyterian minister Mr. Nathaniel Card and died shortly thereafter on August 23, “early in the morning”.  The next entry is was written by Elizabeth Vaughan Perry herself – “I had another boye born the 3rd of May 1715 Still born but came to his full time”.  The couple appears not to have had other children but as Richard died intestate we may never know.

In Betham’s Extracts of Prerogative Admons Richard Perry has listings in 1720 and 1722.  The first extract names his brother John and his mother and the latter his mother and his widow.  Sadly, no further details are included and the original documents don’t exist anymore so we can assume he died around 1722.   His wife Elizabeth Vaughan Perry died shortly before Christmas in 1723. 

2)  JOHN (II) was the 2^nd son of John Perry and Elizabeth Riall and became heir and inherited much of his father’s lands, including Woodrooff and lands in Alloway, West Jersey (New Jersey) along with a 1000 £ sterling.  It is not known if John married and no wife or children are mentioned in the abstract of his will of 1759.  Again the original will no longer exists.   John names his nephew’s William and Richard of Cork as heirs and William would return to Tipperary and settle at Woodrooff.   There is, however, another John Perry living around Clonmel at the same time and referred to as “John the Younger”.  This terminology would suggest that he was the son of another John.  John the Younger might be the son of John of Woodrooff and was murdered in 1748.  This must still be confirmed but there certainly couldn't have been too many John Perrys with a son John living in the same area at the same time.

The Dublin Courant - Sat. September 3rd – Tues. Sept. 6th 1748 - Country News

We hear from Cashell that the Coroner's Inquest have fat upon the body of Mr. Perry and brought in their verdict - Wilful Murder against Mr. Shannahan and Mr. Long, his second. We also hear that while Mr. Perry's second went out to look for some friend in order to make up the quarrel, that unfortunate Gentleman was shot through the left side of the face.

The Dublin Courant - Sat. October 15th - Tuesday October 18th 1748

On Wednesday, the 12th Instant of October, Edward Nugent Shannahan and Thomas Long Esqs. were tried at Clonmell in the County of Tipperary, on the Indictment for the murder of John Perry, Esq..  The Tryal lasted about 19 Hours, and on the most solemn and impartial Enquiry it appeared to a jury of the Principle Gentlemen of the County, to be a fair Duel fought on a sudden quarrel by Mr. Shannahan and Mr. Perry.  In less than half an hour after they retired, they, by their verdict, acquitted Mr. Long of the charge against him and acquitted Mr. Shannahan  of the Murder but found him Guilty of Manslaughter.

Excerpt from a letter from Mathew Richard to Lord Pembroke, Dublin, October the 25th 1748 [14]

            “I am but a Short Time Returned from Munster.  That same Undertaking tooke up 17 days, and that the most uncomfortable Journey, I have as yet passed thro; When we Arrived Att Thurlesse and Annfielde where we Attended 3 whole days, not a Person att Leisures to do Buisnesses A Connisseur[?], for the Tryal of one Mr. Shanahan & one Mr. Longe, for the murder of Mr. Perry, hurried the Country, Scarse a Person, of anny Consequence but Returned on the Pannel and turned theire Faces, to Clonmelle the County Town, I was Obliged to Post it there being a full days Riding, there I mett In Vaine, the Persons I wanted, the same Madnesse and Hurry continued, nor can I say that I Completed  my Buisnesses to my Satisfaction;  The Thronge was so great that Bryan Fagan & I payd a Moidore for a Sorry Roome and Closset;  The Tryal was carried on by the Crown in a strict manner, Barron Mountney, Judged the Affaires, Behaved him selfe with great Temper and Impartiality, full 10 hours, so long continued the Tryal, they were both acquited of the Murder, by a Jury of Gentlemen of great Reputation In theire Country and Indeede the Barbarous Reports propagated to Inflame the World,  never Apeard in Evidence, but to the Contrary, that the Unhappy Perry, was the Compeller, and Agressor, I beg Pardon for Dwelling on this Subject, but that I know, yr Lordship when here, and all mankinde of ye least humanity, were Inflamed, by the horride Storey”.

3)  EDWARD was the 3^rd son of John and Elizabeth and was bequeathed lands, monies and the Newcastle House in his father’s will of 1710.  Edward married ANNE NEVILLE , daughter of John Neville of Newcastle, Co. Dublin and Elizabeth Riggs of Riggsdale, Co. Cork in 1720[15] and through this marriage received lands in County Dublin as well as lands in Kildare.  (Burke’s Landed Gentry incorrectly has his father married to Ann Neville)   He lived at the Newcastle House which overlooks the river Suir on the Tipperary / Waterford border. A deed from July 1723 indicates that Edward was deceased and his brother John and widow Ann sell a portion of his lands in the above-mentioned counties of Dublin and Kildare to a Hugh Johnston. [16]  This “settlement” was likely motivated due to the forthcoming second marriage of Ann, which was to take place later that year.  Edward and Ann had no children and on December 23rd 1723 Anne (Neville) Perry remarried the Rev. Thomas Somerville, rector of Rector of Moyross, Broad and Castlehaven, Co. Cork in Castlehaven.  She is listed as Anne Perry of Ballineboy, [17] and widow at the time of this marriage.

4)  MICAJAH was the next son of John and Elizabeth and is thought to have studied medicine.  He was alive at the time of his father’s death and also inherited land and money in 1710.  These lands of Garrantemple and Monks Grange later end up in the hands of his nephew Richard of Cork which suggest that Micajah had died without a male heir.  He likely died before 1723, as there are no references to him in any wills or deeds after this time.

5)  SAMUEL, born around 1702 was the youngest son and became a merchant in Cork.  In 1721 he married PHOEBE NORCOTT , daughter of William Norcott and Dorcas Lawton of Cork.[18]  Both the Norcott and Lawton families were among ‘Protestant Dissenters’ in the Cork area and worshipped at the Presbyterian Meeting House at Princes Street.   The Perry name shows up in the Vestry Minutes around 1715 and this may have been where young Samuel met his bride.

Samuel and Phoebe had 5 children; John, Dorcas, William, Richard and Elizabeth.  William inherited Woodrooff from his uncle John and Richard would become ancestor to the Cork line of the family. (More about Samuel's descendants - follow the link at the bottom of the page.)

6)  ELIZABETH was the first daughter mentioned in her father’s will (not knowing if they were actually listed in order of age) and she and her sisters were all unmarried and under 25 of age in 1710.  Elizabeth married BENJAMIN LAWTON of  Ballybeg and Castle Jane in Co. Cork in or before 1712 in which year she is noted as Elizabeth Lawton, sister of Samuel Perry, being admitted to Communion at the Prince’s St. Presbyterian Meeting House.[19]  The Lawtons had French Huguenot roots and were involved in the Bordeaux import into Cork.

Elizabeth and her husband had at least 6 children: Elizabeth, who married William Austen of Cork and Dublin who was one of the masters of H.M. High Court of Chancery in Ireland; John - mentioned in his brother-in-laws will;  William (b. 1717);  Abraham (b. 1723); Mary (b. 1724) and Richard (b. 1728). [20]

7)  ANNE Perry was the next daughter of John & Elizabeth.   Anne married the Rev. WILLIAM JACKSON who had been ordained in 1725 and was Moderator of the Presbytery of Munster.  He had been called to the Clonmel area to replace the Rev. Nathaniel Card.  William and Anne had a son, Micajah Jackson and a daughter Temperance.  Micajah married Catherine Hore around 1759 in Cork and was dead before 1791.  Temperance married Joseph Vize in 1757 and they had one son Dr. John Vize of Clonmel.  Temperance died New Year’s Eve 1799.  Her father the Rev. William Jackson died in 1734 and her mother Anne died in 1763.

Betham’s Will Extracts:

9 March 1733, proven 28 May 1734

Wm Jackson, clk, Clonmell: Wife - Ann Perry. Son - Michajagh. Dau. - Temperance. Brother in law - John Perry.

21 November 1763 - Jackson, Ann, Clonmel, widow.  To Temperance Vize of Dublin, widow, the daughter.         

8)  GRACE Perry, the 3^rd daughter listed in her father’s will, married WILLIAM CLEBURNE  of Ballycolliton Castle on Lough Derg near Nenagh sometime after 1710 and before 1717.  William was the son of Richard Cleburne of Bunnadubber and a grandson of “Wise William of Ciallmahr” who came originally from Cliburn, Westmoreland, England. William ‘The Wise’ had come to Ireland and actually purchased the lands at Ballycolliton, Bunnadubber and a part of Annagh which made him very popular, neutral and a mediator between classes and religions as he was neither a Cromwellian Adventurer nor had been granted confiscated lands. 

It was said “a Cleburne might ride in safety from one end of the county to the other.  William devoted much time to the study of "Philosophy and Physie." Known as "Wise William," he became arbitrator of disputes among his tenants and neighbors.[21]

Grace and William had 7 children: John; Thomas; Richard of Bunnadubber; Edward of Springmont and Derrinsalla; Catherine (who married William Carden of Dromineer and Killard); Rebecca and Ellen who is thought to have married a Perry of Woodrooff.  We have no idea which Perry this could be but there’s nothing like a good mystery!

9)  REBECCA PYKE was the 4^th daughter of John Perry and there has been some confusion regarding her name.  “Pyke” appears to be just a second name and not a married name as we originally thought.  If she was given the name out of respect to her fathers friend John Pyke or if the family were somehow related to the Pykes isn’t clear.  In the 1717 vestry minutes at Princes St. she is still referred to as Rebecca Perry and therefore unmarried.   She appears to have married ROBERT BROWNE  of Riverstown, Co. Kings & Dublin. There are several deeds between the Browne and Perry families and one dated 1747 involves John Perry of Woodrooff & Francis Browne Esq. Of Riverstown Co. Kings and Wm. Austen, nephew of John Perry regarding the lands at Grangemockler and Mockler, which are Perry-owned lands.  Two more deeds surface in 1757 and involve a John Perry Browne and Jeffrey Browne of Dublin – “John Perry Browne, eldest son of Robert Browne, deceased, Dublin”.[22]   It appears that John Perry Browne is the son of Robert Browne and Rebecca but this must still be investigated. 

10) SARAH was the last daughter of John & Elizabeth and married WILLIAM BAGWELL  of Dublin.  William was the brother of John Bagwell of Clonmel and Phineas Bagwell of Cork.  Both John and Phineas Bagwell and their descendants are well recorded but for some reason there is little known about William.  The Bagwells were another prominent family among the Presbyterian Dissenters and close friends of the Perrys, Rialls and Vaughans.   An entry from 8 July 1734 in the Vestry Minutes at Princes Street Presbyterian Meeting House in Cork states, “Mrs. Sarah Bagwell (wife of William) re-moving to Dublin ….”, and later we find a deed from 1749 concerning a, ‘Mortgage dated 1749 between William Bagwell of City of Dublin and Sarah his wife, 1st part; and the Riall Bank.’ [23]  It appears they remained in Dublin but if they had issue is unknown.

 

DESCENDANTS OF SAMUEL PERRY & PHOEBE NORCOTT  

 

[1] Perry of London, A Family and a Firm on the Seaborne Frontier 1615 – 1753, by Jacob M. Price; Harvard University Press 1992; pg. 12

[2] Baptismal Register of the First Church in New Haven

[3] The History of Clonmell, Rev. William P. Burke, Waterford, 1907

[4] Corporate Minute Book, quotation Commons Journal.

[5] The History of Clonmell, Rev. William P. Burke, Waterford, 1907

[6] Perry of London, A Family and a Firm on the Seaborne Frontier 1615 – 1753, by Jacob M. Price; Harvard University Press 1992; pg. 112

[7] Baptismal Register of the First Church in New Haven

[8] (PROB 11/469/53). (American Wills Proved in London 1611-1775 by Peter Wilson Coldham, 1992, pg 80)

[9] Baptismal Register of the First Church in New Haven

[10] The will of Edward Hutchinson, Trinity College Dublin, Donoughmore Papers.

[11] Registry of Deeds, Dublin – 7/60/1611 - certified copy

[12] Notes of Malcolm Riall and entries in the Bible of Phinehas Riall and his descendants.

[13] HAC Sturgess, "Registers of Admissions to the Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, 3 Vols.

[14] Pembroke Estate Papers, Special Collections at the National Archives of Ireland.

[15] Registry of Deeds, Dublin – Deeds 28/337/17814 and 28/342/17832 – Marriage settlement involving Edward Perry, Richard Perry and John & Francis Neville regarding 317 acres of lands at Newcastle, County Dublin 1720.

[16] Registry of Deeds, Dublin – Deed 41/230/25536 – Perry, Neville to Johnston dated July 23^rd & 24^th 1723.

[17] Ballinboy, Co. Cork

[18] Registry of Deeds, Dublin, 40/12/23868 – 8 Apr. 1721, Deed between Samuel Perry of Cork, Richard Perry, Clonmel and William Norcott & Hugh Lawton of Cork - Phoebe's marriage then intended.  Witnessed by William Riall.

[19] Cork City & County Archives – Princes Street Presbyterian Meeting House Vestry Minutes.

[20] Cork City & County Archives - Princes Street Presbyterian Meeting House, Baptisms

[21] Extract from: "Pat Cleburne Confederate General", (reprint) Purdue, Howell and Elizabeth: Hillsboro, Texas: Hill Jr. College Press, 1987.

[22] Registry of Deeds, Dublin, 189/40/124497 - 1757

[23] Notes of Malcolm Riall based on deeds at the Registry of Deeds, Dublin.