Henry George and Mary Beven: Growing family

(A developing story)

Born in 1761 near Talgarth, Wales, most likely closest to Glasbury, Henry George was the son of William about which we don’t know much yet. The chances are that he was a religious man and that he was a farmer. In 1786, Henry married Mary Beven (born 1759 in the same community) in the year 1786. At age 25 he was likely working on local farms, although we know that he acquired stone mason skills and he may have been apprenticing.

Two years into his marriage, Henry and Mary decided to have their first child and Henry Jr. arrived in 1789. The records show that Henry Jr. was born in Talgarth which must have been the recording seat of government. His siblings followed: Mary, 1791, Richard, 1793, William, 1797, Enoch Edward, 1799. Enoch is said to have been born in Breconshire that is a larger universe than Talgarth. The seat of government was in a state of redefinition.

In 1802, Henry and Mary George decided to take their five children to America. For what reasons? At the time, the Welsh migration to America had begun in earnest that started in the 1790s, with a trickle before that. Now, there was a crop failure in Wales. There were pressures imposed on religious freedom. There was the idea of shear opportunity lying beyond a long and difficult journey. It would take a significant investment, sacrifice, and risk to make that trip with children whose ages ranged between  3 and 13 years. The eldest three were children were between 8 and 13 years and could surely help with the work of looking after the younger children and moving meager belongings.

Upon arrival, the oldest children would become immediate assets in helping their father to perform labor of any time needed to support their existence.

Historical documentation about the Welsh immigrants indicate that a support system existed among churches and communities of Welsh people as they were intent on creating new communities in the developing pioneer country. It is likely that Henry George had a vision and plan about his direction and destination or else he would not have undertaken such a dangerous initiative.

Danger came from making the trip and defeating disease. It came from overcoming the necessities in obtaining supplies to embark as pioneers with a family. It came under the threat from Native Americans who were still fighting to hold onto their land. The threat from wild animals against their small domestic stock was persistent, and the records show that the bears and wolves won that battle in the case of the George family.

Chester PA was the beachhead in America from which settlers obtained assistance, got organized and departed with a tail guide into the lesser known. In the instance of Henry George, he knew that Welshmen had made it to a destination in Pennsylvania where colonists had already established a small community. The place was what is now called Cambria County, Pennsylvania. It is geographically similar to Wales and included farmland as well as coal and iron ore that could be mined.

Mining coal and iron ore provided jobs for those who could perform the dangerous work to remove coal and iron ore. Many Welshmen possessed the skill and knowledge to do this as it was the same type of opportunity that they had at home in the Black Hills of Brecon, for instance.

Henry George had stone mason skills. It is possible that he applied those abilities with the help of his sons to build furnaces used to smelt iron ore. It is likely that he used those abilities to help construct foundations for buildings in the developing mining towns such as Beulah where he ended up after the trek from Chester. Being a minister, it is likely that he preached at the new church.

Addressing a worst case scenario by modern perspective, he and his sons would have avoided having to work in the mines. Yet, the surrounding evidence indicates that he and the children would have likely worked in the mines.

The first of Henry George’s children to have been born in the United States was Thomas George, born 1803 in Pennsylvania. That is the same year that Ohio became a state. Elias George was born a year later in 1804 and specifically in Beulah, PA. John E. George was born three years later in 1807 in Cambria City, PA that is now Johnstown. It was not until after John E. George’s birth that Henry and Mary decided to depart for Ohio country.