Richard More Family Gravestones
Background
( MF5G II: 121)Pilgrim Richard More was bap. 13 November
1614 in Shipton Parish, Shropshire, England. His mother Catherine (More) More, was
of royal descent from Kings Malcolm III and David I of Scotland, and "in all
probability" from Edward I of England as well. She married her third cousin,
Samuel More, bearing him four children, Elinor, Jasper, Richard and
Mary. Ensuing divorce proceedings, however, cast doubt on their paternity. Samuel
ultimately became responsible to them and ultimately, under the care of John Carver
and others, made provisions to transport them to the new world. All but Richard perished
during the terrible first winter. "Far from being a poor waif," as
frequently presented, "Richard was the offspring of landed gentry with assured royal
ancestry."
Unfortunately the very common name makes tracing some of
this family difficult.
The following represent George Ernest Bowmans account of
the Gravestones discovered for several members of this early family.
Note: Investigations by George Ernest Bowman, Mayflower
Descendant, The Only Mayflower Gravestones., MD 3:4: 194+
Gravestones
"All these stones are remarkably well preserved, with the exception of the one
marking the graves of the two grandchildren, which is split into two slabs of nearly equal
thickness . . .
An examination of the lettering on the four stones of Christian More and her children and
grandchildren shows that these stones were all made by the same person, and it is probable
that they were erected by Capt. More. The stone of Jane More, with its cherub in place of
a Death's head, and its ornamental borders, is evidently the work of another man.
Richard More's stone is the smallest and plainest of the six. Its height is one foot,
three and five-eighths inches; its width, one foot and one-fourth of an inch; its
thickness, two inches . . . The stonecutter evidently began to cut the inscription
on what is now the back of the stone, but found he had started wrong, so turned the stone
over and began again. At the top he had cut CAPT, and below, RICH with part of the A.
The inscription on the face of the stone is as follows:
HERE
LYETH BURIED
ye BODY OF CAPT
RICHARD MORE
AGED 84 YEARS.
Christian (Hunt) More's gravestone is one foot, nine and one half inches in height; two
feet, one and one-fourth inches in width; two and seven-eighths inches in thickness. At
the top is a Death's head with wings on either side. Below is the following inscription:
HODIE MIHI CRAS TIBI
CHRISTIAN WIFE TO
RICHARD MORE
AGED 60 YEARS
DECD MARCH ye 18
1676
The stone marking the grave of Jane (Hollingsworth) More is the most elaborate one in the
group. At the top is a cherub's head with wings, and an ornamental border is cut on each
side of the inscription. The stone is one foot, four inches in height; one foot, four
inches wide at the base; one and fifteen sixteenths inches thick. It is five feet and four
inches from Christian More's stone. The inscription is as follows:
JANE . SECOND
WIFE . TO CAPT
RICHARD, MORE
SENR, AGED, 55
YEARS . DEPARTED
THIS . LIFE ye
8 OF, OCTOBER
1686
(GEB) "Jane was the daughter of Richard Hollingsworth, Senior, of Salem, but
I have found nothing to show whether she was unmarried or a widow when she became the
second wife of Richard More. The age on her stone is probably overstated, as she is not
mentioned in the list of Richard Hollingsworth's family when they came over in the
"Blessing" in 1635.* She evidently had no children by Richard More.
Caleb More appears to have been Unmarried, and there is no record of any settlement of his
estate. His gravestone is very plain, nearly square, and much thicker than the others, its
dimensions being: height, one foot, three and three-fourths inches; width, one foot, five
and one-half inches; thickness, three and seven-sixteenths inches. The inscription is as
follows:
CALEB MORE
AGED 34 YEARS
DECD JANUARY ye
4 1678/9
The double stone of the two grandchildren, Samuel More and Barbara Dutch, is one foot,
four and one-half inches from Caleb's stone, nine inches from Christian Conant's stone,
and three feet, seven inches from Christian More's stone. It is one foot, five and
three-fourths inches in height; one foot, five and five-eighths inches in width; one and
five-eighths inches in thickness. The stone, as already stated, is split into two slabs,
one being seven-eighths of an inch, and the other three-fourths of an inch itt thickness.
The inscriptions on this stone, in parallel columns, are as follows:
SAMUEL SON BARBARAH
TO RICHARD & DAUGHTER TO
SARAH MORE SAMUEL & SUSANA
AGED 9 DAYES DUTCH AGED 8
DECD NOVER Ye 24 MONETHS DECD
1673 APRYL Ye 10
1678
* Hotten's Lists, p. 108.
"Capt. Ricard More's daughter Susanna married first Samuel Dutch of Salem, a mariner,
as is shown by a conveyance from Richard to Samuel and Susanna, dated 10/20 June,
1684.† Samuel Dutch died befote 19/29 March, 1693/4, and his widow Susanna married,
before 3/13 December, 1694, Richard Hutton of Wenham, who had been one of the sureties on
her bond as administratrix.‡ On 3/13 February, 1695/6, Richard Hutton was appointed
guardian of his wife's daughter Susanna Dutch, aged about twelve years.§ This is the
latest reference to Susanna3 Dutch (Susanna2 More, Richard1) I have found, but Richard and
Susanna Hutton were still living at Wenham 20/30 May, 1707, Richard being then blind.||
The gravestone of Christian (More) Conant is one foot, ten
inches in height; one foot, nine inches in width; one and fifteen-sixteenths inches in
thickness. Beneath a Death's head with wings on each side is the following inscription:
CHRISTIAN WIFE
TO JOSHUA CONAN & DAUGHTER
TO RICHARD MORE AGED
28 YEARS DECD MAY
Ye 30 1680
The Conant Family [p. 163] states that Joshua3 Conant
Joshua2, Roger1) married first, Christian More, on 31 August, 1676, and second, Sarah
Newcomb, on 9 January, 1690/1; that he had by Christian one child Joshua, born 12 May,
1678; and that he removed to Truro, Mass., about 1700. I have not attempted to investigate
this line."
* Essex Co. Deeds, 9: 18.
† lbid., 6: 123.
‡ Essex Co. Probate Files, Case 8420.
§ Ibid., Probate Records, 305: 131.
|| Essex Co. Deeds, 20: 22.
