Pelham Genealogy - The Pelhams of Boston
When Peter Pelham died in 1751, his older sons from his first and second marriages were married, with families of their own. His youngest son, Henry, was 2 years old; and his stepson, John Singleton Copley, was 14 years old. Mary Copley Pelham, his widow, continued her business as a tobacconist in Boston, supporting the two children living with her.
Peter Pelham, the eldest son of Peter by his first wife, Martha, was the organist at Boston Trinity Church, and later moved to Virginia. Charles was a teacher who lived outside of Boston in Medford. Charles stayed close to his youngest brother, Henry, and his stepbrother, Copley. Charles married Mary Tyler, the niece of Sir William Pepperrell. William, born in 1729, died at the age of 32 in 1761. He lived in Boston, but no details have survived about his life there. Penelope died unmarried in Boothbay, Maine in 1756. Thomas, a son by Peter Pelham and Margaret Lowrey, married Hannah Gerrish, by whom he had several children. Thomas was by no means well off. Near his death, his half-brother Henry wrote to Charles on November 12, 1770: "Thos. Pelham is in deep Consumption. He was first taken ill about three weeks ago, has continued to grow weaker, and is now so dangerous that his Life is not expected from one hour to another. His Family is in the greatest Poverty and Misery." Following his death in 1770, Henry took in Thomas' son, Tommy, at age 15 but only if he was willing to be "binded" to a trade. Tommy was indentured as a cook and this was his life's trade. His sister, Elizabeth, went to live with her uncle Charles, much to his regret as she proved uncontrollable. She married a William Higgins. Another daughter, Penelope, would marry her first cousin, William Pelham, who was the son of Peter.
But by far the most famous Pelham in Boston was Henry. Henry was closest to his half-brother, John Singleton Copley, although he corresponded frequently with his brother Charles. Like Copley, he became an artist and cartographer. Unlike Copley, he never received the recognition or fame of his half-brother.
Despite this, their relationship was remarkably free from jealousy. When Copley left for Europe, he entrusted the care of his family and estate to his half-brother. In 1770 Pelham did the engraving of "The Boston Massacre," but was shocked to find that Paul Revere plagiarized his version (see September issue of newsletter). Despite his sympathy for the victims of the "murder" Henry Pelham was a Tory. In fact, all the Pelhams except for Peter (now in Virginia) had very little sympathy for the Revolution. Living in Boston during the siege, Henry made plans to join his half-brother Copley in Europe. Going to his mother's estate in Ireland, Henry married Catherine Butler of Castle Crine, County Clare. She died at the birth of twin sons, named Peter and William. These sons also died without issue, and Henry’s line died out. Henry was an agent for Lord Lansdowne's estates in Ireland and was drowned when his boat overturned in the River Kenmare in 1806. His mother, Mary Copley Pelham never saw her sons again after they left for Europe during the Revolution. She was immensely proud of the success of her son, Copley, and continued writing to Henry. She died, after a long illness, in Boston on April 29, 1789. She was buried by her stepson, Charles Pelham of Medford.
This article first appeared in Volume 1, No. 5 of The Cannoneer.
Sources:
Letters & Papers of John Singleton Copley and Henry Pelham, 1739-1776
(Massachusetts Historical Society, 1914).
Publications of The Colonial Society of Massachusetts, Vol. V, 1902,
pp. 193-211, “Henry Pelham, the Half-Brother of John Singleton Copley”
by Denison Rogers Slade.
Edward T. James (Ed.), Notable American Women, Vol. III, pp. 43-44.
