CATHERINE, WIFE OF FRANCIS WALKER

Jack Day's

Worlds -- -- -- Browningsville Connections

Catherine, Wife of Francis Walker

Is there a Catherine Ball, and is she the same as Catherine, wife of Francis Walker?

There are three major sources of information on Francis and Catherine Walker:

First, the "family legend" circulating among descendants of their great-grandson Professor G. W. Walker, which states that Francis and Catherine Walker, he a Protestant and she a Catholic, were refugees from religious persecution in England, coming to Maryland via Holland. Among their children is George Walker, born 17 October 1759.

Second, the parish records of St. John's Church, Piscataway, in Prince George County, Maryland, for a Francis and Catherine Walker, documenting a family of 11 children with precise birthdates (although some may be baptismal dates). Two of these children are named John, the second of which is born on 17 October 1759, the same date as George Walker, above. Another child is Ellender, born 3 March 1755.

Third, material from the Ball family suggests that Richard Ball had a daughter Catherine, who married Francis Walker. The will of Richard Ball names a granddaughter, Elenour Walker. (See note 1, below).

When these three streams come together and one discounts the immigration legend of Francis and Catherine, which resembles many other such legends, one has a genealogy of Francis Walker and Catherine Ball, with numerous descendants in Montgomery County, Maryland and across the continent, and tracing ancestry back through several generations of Balls and perhaps even the Causine family.

Regrettably, there seem to be too many difficulties at this point to assert the above as the true record. Primarily, there is no record of Richard Ball ever having had a daughter Catherine.

1. There are Walkers among his children, but it is his daughter Eleanor who married a Henry Walker. The key on which the connection has been hung is the reference to a granddaughter Elenour Walker. If such a granddaughter is in fact the Ellender mentioned in the Piscataway records, then she has a mother Catherine who is a daughter of Richard. But there are no actual references to such a Catherine.

2. If one follows the order of children in the will, the will would make much more sense of the reference to a granddaughter Elenour Walker was actually to the daughter Elenour Ball, now Walker by marriage. At one other point there is a reference to an Elizabeth Walker, where apparently the person meant is the daughter Elenour. If there is one error in the will, why not two? If it is really daughter Elenour rather than granddaughter who is referred to, the Ellender Walker of Piscataway connection goes away. <

3. Henry Walker referred to in the will does business with a John Walker, a close associate, who might be a brother. But there are no references to a Francis in the same brotherly fashion.

The conclusion is that there seems to be no connection between the Ball family and the Francis Walker and Catherine family.

Extract of the Richard Ball will, appraisal, and settlement, is below:

1775 WILL (Jane Baldwin Cotton, Maryland Calendar of Wills, Volume 16, Family Line Publications, 1995, 80) "BALL, RICHARD, Prince George's Co. [27 Feb. 1775 -2 Oct 1776 (GS2:372) - 16 Oct. 1775 (T1:15.)
"To dau. Ann Barrett, Negro woman Hanner, during life of my dau.; then to be sold and money equally divided between 8 grandchildren, Arnold, Henry, Edward, Richard and Cassey Burgess, Josep[h] Lowden Barritt, Lissey Ann Barrett and Mary Elnour Barritt.
"To granddau. Elenour Walker, stock.
"To dau. Sarah Simpson, bed, stock.
"To son Hillery Ball, stock, bed.
"To 2 grandsons: Zacheriah Wheat and Jesse Wheat, 1 shilling each.
"To 2 grandsons: Richard and Daniel Readey, Ł10 each when 21 years of age.
"To 2 granddaus: Virlinder and Elizabeth Wheat, 1 shilling each.
"To son Henry Ball, 20 shillings.
"To son Richard Ball, ex., Negro men Sambor and Michell and a Negro woman Sook and a child Linn, and residue of estate.
"Wit: Robert Wade; Henry Walker; John Walker. [Liber] 40. [page] 458." Arliss Monk cites this will as Prince George's County, Will Book T-1:15, Maryland State Archives.

1776 Settlement. Richard Ball124.6 PG Ł277.14.7 Jan 20 1776 Oct 2 1776
Appraisers: Jonathon Burch, Francis Jenkins.
Creditors: Robert Davis. Francis Wheat.
Next of kin: Eleanor Walker, Anne Barnett.
Executor: Richard Ball.

Richard Ball 7.73 D PG Ł275,3.2 Oct 2 1776
Sureties: John Simpson.
Legatees; Ann Barret, Elisabeth Walker, Sarah Simpson, Hilliary Ball, Richard Ready, Daniel Ready, Henry Ball, Zachariah Wheat, Jesse Wheat, Virlinda Wheat, Elisabeth Wheat.
Residue to: Richard Ball (executor).
Executor: Mr. Richard Ball.

Note 1. Relationship suggested in Don Wilson, "Hillary Ball and his descendants: A Preliminary Study, via Norma W. Anderson, 12712 Crossdale Ave, Norwalk, CA 90650, Feb 1993. Other Ball information: Ball family info: http://users.mdonline.net/sailor/ball.html (2003); Resources: Mike Williamson (sailor@mdo.net), "Notes from "History of the Ball family in Colonial Maryland" ; Donald L. Wilson, "Hillary Ball and His Descendants," Prince George's County Genealogical Society Bulletin; Dan D. Wheat, Wheat Genealogy, 1983. p9.; Contact: Norma Lundgren ("My Bunch", Ancestry.com)

©1999-2006 Jackson H. Day on behalf of himself and other researchers. All Rights Reserved. Aggregation of the information on this page has represented a considerable investment in time and effort by many persons and is intended for publication by one or more of them in the future. Please feel free to use this material for your research, but please coordinate with the author if you intend to use this material in your own publication. This notice is not intended to try to 'claim' facts, or to take them out of circulation, but to promote the extension of professional courtesy.

Updated December 3, 2006