Martha Porter

Brief Life History of Martha

When Martha Porter was born on 11 May 1800, in Rutland, Vermont, United States, her father, Nathan Porter, was 37 and her mother, Avisa Salisbury, was 30. She married Jason Silsby on 1 January 1819. They were the parents of at least 4 sons and 5 daughters. She lived in Stockton, Chautauqua, New York, United States for about 25 years. She died on 8 December 1878, in Dewittville, Chautauqua, New York, United States, at the age of 78.

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Family Time Line

Jason Silsby
1793–1880
Martha Porter
1800–1878
Marriage: 1 January 1819
Lydia Silsby
1820–1893
John Porter
1820–
Holden Silsby
1822–1834
Silsby
1822–1822
Aaron P Silsby
1824–1892
Sarah Fidelia Silsby
1826–1873
Ruth Silsby
1832–1834
Martha Maria Silsby
1836–1908
Ruth Avis Silsby
1842–1923

Sources (5)

  • Maria Sillsby in household of Jason Sillsby, "United States Census, 1870"
  • Martha Silsby in household of Allen Waterman, "New York State Census, 1865"
  • Martha Silst? in household of Allen Watterman, "New York State Census, 1875"

Spouse and Children

World Events (7)

1803

France sells Louisiana territories to U.S.A.

1808

Historical Boundaries 1808: Chautauqua, New York, United States

1821 · Financial Relief for Public Land

A United States law to provide financial relief for the purchasers of Public Lands. It permitted the earlier buyers, that couldn't pay completely for the land, to return the land back to the government. This granted them a credit towards the debt they had on land. Congress, also, extended credit to buyer for eight more years. Still while being in economic panic and the shortage of currency made by citizens, the government hoped that with the time extension, the economy would improve.

Name Meaning

English and Scottish: occupational name for the gatekeeper of a walled town or city, or the doorkeeper of a great house, castle, or monastery, from Middle English and Older Scots porter(e), port(o)ur ‘doorkeeper, gatekeeper’ (Anglo-Norman French port(i)er, portur, Latin portarius). The office often came with accommodation, lands, and other privileges for the bearer, and in some cases was hereditary, especially in the case of a royal castle. The name has been established in Ireland since the 13th century. In North America, this surname has absorbed cognates and equivalents in other languages, for example German Pförtner (see Fortner ) and Poertner .

English: occupational name for a man who carried loads for a living, especially one who used his own muscle power rather than a beast of burden or a wheeled vehicle. This sense is from Middle English port(o)ur, porter ‘porter, carrier of burdens’ (Anglo-Norman French portur, porteo(u)r).

Dutch: variant, mostly Americanized, of Poorter, status name for a freeman (burgher) of a town, Middle Dutch portere, modern Dutch poorter. Compare De Porter .

Dictionary of American Family Names © Patrick Hanks 2003, 2006.

Possible Related Names

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