I've spent the most part of the past week in the dark here in Cincinnati, OH, along
with millions of
others here in the area. Power went out about 1:45 pm last Sunday as the remnants of
Ike's outer
bands breezed through with gusts over 70 mph. The glorious lights were returned about 5:45
pm
Wednesday, but alas, my internet wasn't working. All is well now :-) Except for the
minor roof
damage, cleanup of yard debris & cleanout of my big freezer. Still, more than 85,000
in the area
remain without power.
Luckily I had ordered several books from
Amazon.com last week, all which had arrived by
Saturday.
One in particular had been mentioned on the Charles Co., MD list. I bought it because
there was
mention of several maps in the book which I was interested in seeing. "The Price of
Nationhood The
American Revolution in Charles County" by Jean B. Lee publ. 1994. The back cover
states that "Jean
B. Lee is professor of history at the University of Wisconsin at Madison. She is a
specialist in
early American social and political history."
I found myself anxious for daylight, sometimes resorting to flashlight to read. The book
begins with
"The Colonial Society" explaining some of the early history of Charles Co., and
of MD citing various
court and other records as Lee weaves her story. More than 70 pages in the back of the
book are
devoted to "Notes" and references. Part Two begins the section "Revolution
and War" beginning with
the 1760's, and Part Three "Post War Adjustments".
Although our Carrico's are not mentioned, I found many familiar names, mostly those of
the "gentry"
who were the Justices of the Peace, Sheriff's etc. found in many of the records we do
have of our
Carrico's. Often I wished I had access to my computer to check exact dates, such as
the probate date
of Peter Carrico's will. The Stamp Act was to take effect on November 1, 1765.
"That October, the
month before the act was to take effect, men and women hurried to the probate officer in
Port
Tobacco to file wills and take out letters testamentary. All of these actions legally
avoided stamp
duties."
Peter Carrico's will was admitted to probate on October 17, 1765, and his inventory on
October 31,
1765!
The Charles Co. court refused to hold it's November session which apparently continued
into 1766.
I don't know if Margaret was summoned to appear in court regarding the settlement of
Peter's estate
before June of 1767, or whether she continued to be summoned (but not appear) after March
of 1772,
but her name appears along with many other's. I hadn't before taken the time to
transcribe those
lists in full, but some of the names were familiar & may take the time to do that.
Understanding
what was happening might help to put what we do know into perspective.
There were many more times I wished I had easy access to my notes (computer vs. paper
copies) as I
was reading this book, and now with that access, I will probably read the book again and
attempt to
make notes & possibly some kind of a time line. Meanwhile, I hope there will be some
out there that
will find this book as fascinating as I.
To the several Carrico researchers who have written to me the past week, it will take me
some time
to go through my e-mail & catch up on everything. I'll try to reply as time
allows.
Linda Boorom