PART I -
PART II -
PART III -
PART IV -
PART V -
PART VII
From the Gettysburg Times Gettysburg, Pennsylvania of
Saturday, August 8, 1959
A Bit Of History About Early Settlers
By B. F. M. MacPHERSON
The Morrison -- Buchanan family
The historical and genealogical study of Black's graveyard (Upper Marsh
Creek Presbyterian), located in Cumberland Township, this County, just
off the Mummasburg Road, is continued at this time.
As stated before in this series on Black's graveyard, beginning after
the congregation moved to its first location in Gettysburg, many families
began removing their dead other burial grounds. This movement, gained
impetus when the Evergreen Cemetery was opened in 1854. Among these were
members of the Buchanan and Smith families, who are related to the
Morrison's, and were originally buried with them (tradition states that
were buried together) in Black's graveyard. Robert, the son of Walter
and Elizabeth (Buchanan) Smith, moved the bones and monument of his
ancestors from the old, neglected burial ground into the Evergreen
Cemetery (area A.). At one time this plot was enclosed by an old hand
wrought iron fence but in recent years this has disappeared. Three of the
stones, those marking the graves of the Buchanan's, are the large, flat,
black slate stones, covering an entire graves, with the Buchanan coat-of-arms
cut thereon.
Inscriptions on stones
The inscriptions from the Smith -- Buchanan's stones, moved from Black's
graveyard to the Evergreen Cemetery, are as follows:
1. (Coat-of-arms) "Here lys ye Body of Jean/Buchanan who Departed This Life
March ye 28, 1760, Aged 50 years / Here Lies The Body of John/Buchanan
who Departed This Life March The 3, 1773 Aged 68 Years."
2. (Coat-of-arms) "Here Lys The / body of Robert Buchanan/ Who departed This
Life / the 28th of Sept. In The / Year of Our Lord 1748 / Aged 51 Years:
Also Here Lys the body of James / Buchanan who Departed This Life the 21st
of Novr in the / Year of Our Lord 1751 Aged / 20 years."
3. (Coat-of-Arms) "Here Lys the Body of / Andrew Buchanan/ who Departed This
Life / January the 19th, 1759 / Aged 43 Years / In Memory of Walter
Buchanan / who Departed this Life in the / Year 1780 / And of Mary Roney,
wife of Walter Buchanan / Elizabeth Smith / Daughter of Walter and Mary
Roney Buchanan / Aged 74 years."
4. (Upright black slate stone) "in memory of/Robert Smith/who departed this
life/August 19, 1769 in the 64th year of his age/. Elizabeth, daughter of
Walter and Mary you can/wife of Robert Smith died/March 1812 aged 74
years/parents of Walter Smith."
5. "Walter Smith/departed this life/June 8, 1838/in the 75th year of his age./
Elizabeth/consort of Walter Smith/the part of this life/5 March 1837/in
the 68th year of her age."
Stone is broken
6. "Jane Robinson/daughter of Walter and Elizabeth Smith/born October 21, 1803/
died April 23, 1826/the stones originally at Jane's grave was broken by
rebel shot in the battle of Gettysburg/July 1863, in which the Union army
won / the great victory over the southern rebels."
7. "In memory/Walter Addison/son of Walter/and Elizabeth Smith/the departed
this life/April 29, 1850/aged 19 years."
8. "In memory of/Nancy Smith/daughter/Walter and Elizabeth Smith/who departed
this life/November 28, 1831/aged 25 years/and eight months."
9. "In/memory/Harriet Smith/daughter/Walter and Elizabeth Smith/the died 21st
of June 1836/in the 35th year of her age."
An old saying has been handed down among the descendents of the Buchanan --
Morrison -- Smith -- Dickson families which runs as follows:
"My mother's name was Morrison
Her mother's name was Buchanan
Her maiden name was Dickson
My great-grandmother Morrison's name was Holmes."
A more or less reliable guide to the genealogy of the families in question --
that is if the main lines can be traced accurately.
One Marker Remains
Returning to the burial of the Morrison family in Black's graveyard -- is to
be noted that only one grave marker remains to mark the site of what must
have been a fairly large family burial lot. This town, corrected to the memory
of John Morrison and Catherine, his wife, was described in last week's column.
The emigrant ancestor of the Morrison family in America was one Hans Morrison,
who died in the year 1783 in what is now Straban Township, Adams County (then
York County). In his will Hans Morrison mentions the following members of his
family:
1. Son -- Hugh Morrison intermarried with Margaret Buchanan.
2. Son -- James Morrison.
3. Son - Nathaniel Morrison.
4. Son -- Hans Morrison (the second of the name).
5. Son -- Abraham Morrison.
6. Daughter -- Elizabeth Morrison.
7. Son -- Ebenezer Morrison.
8. Son -- John A. Morrison.
Note: Hans Morrison, the emigrant, was first married to a Miss Holmes and,
after her death, was married for the second time to Elizabeth Andrews.
Had Eleven Children
Hugh Morrison, the son of Hans (first of the name) and his first wife, was married
to Margaret Buchanan. They were the parents of the following children: --
1. Samuel Morrison, born 1775.
2. Hans Morrison (third of the name), born 1776.
3. Mary Morrison, one 1778.
4. George Morrison, born 1780.
5. James Morrison, one 1781.
6. Ann Morrison, born 1785.
7. Jane Morrison, born 1787.
8. Joseph Morrison, born 1788.
9. Sibley Morrison, born 1791.
10. James Dickson Morrison, 1793.
11. Margaret Morrison, married James Marshall.
Will Show Relationship
The relationship of the Buchanan -- Dickson family is clearly pointed out in the
will of Samuel Dickson, the emigrant ancestor of that family. This document was
written in 1765 and entered to probate in 1767 space (York County, Pennsylvania,
Will book "B.," page 109).
1. "I bequeth to my wife Jane Dickson..."
2. Daughter, Mary Buchanan.
3. Daughter, Margaret Dickson.
4. Daughter, Isabelle Dickson.
5. Daughter, Jane Dickson.
6. Daughter, Elizabeth Dickson space (later married to the Rev. Joseph Henderson).
7. Son, Samuel Dickson.
"To each of my unmarried daughters of black chest."
"To my granddaughter Margaret Buchanan, the sum of 25 pounds when she becomes
age." (This is the only granddaughter Samuel Dickson mentions by name in his will,
designating that she is the oldest).
"To each of my grandsons now born 10 pounds and a Bible."
"To each of my granddaughters now born 5 pounds and a Bible."
Among the papers on file with the will of Samuel Dickson is the following receipt:
-- received from William and James Dickson the sum of 5 pounds and 10 shillings in
full for money left me on my grandfather, Samuel Dickson, and received per order
of James Dickson, Esquire. "Received in the year 1783 by me -- "signed,
Mary Buchanan."
Mary Dickson, the daughter of Samuel Dickson, the emigrant, was married to George
Buchanan. She died in the year 1791. Mary, the daughter of George and Mary
(Dickson) Buchanan, married you Morrison, the son of Hans Morrison, the emigrant.
In 1790 2Q and Mary Morrison sold their plantation in Strabane Township, York (now
Adams) County, and moved to Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania, where they lived for
the remainder of their lives.
The notes on the Buchanan -- Morrison family will be continued in
this column next week.
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Pennsylvania Marriage Announcements Collection
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