NEW - 2009 - MOUREY-FUDGE MYHERITAGE WEBSITE!!

Mourey-Fudge MyHeritage Website

After many hours of research, after tracing our Mourey roots back to Peter and Betsey Saunders Mourey, the question remains: Where did Peter and Betsey come from? There are several theories on this matter. It appears certain now that Peter Mourey came from German heritage. But what about Betsey?

First, let me say that my Grandfather William Mourey told me that his people came from Holland. I have no documentation to support this, only word-of -mouth. But this word-of-mouth surely did not come out of nowhere; it must have been passed down from generations past. The only other thing my Grandfather told me was that his mother or grandmother told him of Indians coming to the cabin and asking for food, and she gave them cornbread.

Another theory is that the Mourey name is a derivation of Maurer¹, which is a German name and means 'builder of walls.' Ironically, one of my father's sisters, Georgia Mourey, married James Saunders. My father's other sister, Elizabeth, married Frank Maurer.I want to thank Frank Maurer Jr. of Davis, California for doing the preliminary work that gave me something to build on. I also want to take this opportunity to thank my wife Terese Marie Petty Mourey for giving me the inspiration to undertake this project. Terese began looking into her family history, especially her Native American heritage, and that got me going on the Mourey trail. As a result of Terese's research, she was able to find and contact a cousin that had been thought dead for thirty years!

I am happy to report that I have found and contacted cousins that I did not know I had! Going by a letter from the Schuyler County Clerk, I ascertained that an ancestor, Benjamin Mourey, had settled in the 'Apple Country' of upstate New York. I did a search on the Internet for Moureys in the upstate New York region, and sent out some letters. Lo and behold I came up with my cousins Nate and Walter 'Skip' Mourey in the Sodus, New York area. Nate is in favor of the third theory on the origin of the Moureys; that is that the name really was Mourey and originated in France. Hopefully someday we will have an answer, but for now I will put together what I have and hope you will contact me if you have anything to add.

April, 2001

(Update, March 2009: I have found information that states Peter Mourey, if not born in Germany, was certainly born of German parentage. The "French Connection" is still valid, however, in that the Gabriel family came from France and Peter Gabriel Sr.changed their name from D'Gabrielle, sometime after he settled in Milford, Connecticut, in 1756.) Special thanks to my brother John Plummer Mourey, especially for old photos and letters that he has contributed to this site.

Recently I have been working more on the Fudge family history (my mother was a Fudge). Special thanks to Don Fudge and Joyce Love Fudge for their contributions.

William Kent Mourey Jr.

Charlotte, North Carolina
Email: bill_mourey@yahoo.com

Much of the information on the Mourey family was found on the excellent web site of Joyce M. Tice (http://www.rootsweb.com/~srgp/jmtindex.htm). It is obvious a lot of research and effort went into the creation of her pages. Here I will provide what information I have mainly for my direct line of ancestors, beginning with Peter and Betsey Mourey. First I will try to establish the lineage.

The grave in Reading Center, NY shows William W. Mourey born 1844, died 1902. He and his wife Adeline are buried there along with my grandparents William and Abbie Mourey.

1870 Census Town of Starkey, Yates County, NY shows William W. Mourey age 23, so he would have been born 1847, birthplace PA.

1850 Census Farmington Township, Tioga County², PA shows William Mourey age 5, son of Jacob and (Esther) Jane McCollum Mourey, so he would have been born 1845.

JACOB S. MOUREY, another son of Peter and Betsey, was born in Montour³, in 1819, and in 1840 married Miss Esther, daughter of John and Sarah McCollum, of Farmington; he has eight children. He came to Farmington in 1830 with his parents, who were early settlers here. Source:

This traces William W. Mourey back to his grandfather Peter in Farmington.

BY ALBERT M. LOOP.

In 1828 a road was cut through from the river at Nelson up Thorn Bottom Creek, intersecting the State road six miles west, at a place known as House's school-house. Soon after this settlers began to move into the west end of the township. Among the earliest of those who made permanent settlements may be mentioned Chandler Chamberlain and brothers, Cromwell Pierce, Lemuel Cady, Orrin Russel, Walter Vandusen, Peter Mourey, Carlos House, Rockwell House, Robert Casbeer, John Weeks, David Stevens, Asel Wright, William Peck, Wait Johnson and J. B. Redfield, who as late as 1840 were found to be the owners and occupants of the several pieces of land upon which they had erected their buildings.

On the road west from Nelson in entering the township one finds the farms of William H. Baxter and brother, John H. Bozord, H.G. Bowdish, Julius and Warren Phelps, William Babcock, Frank R. Davenport, Jonathan Russell, Ira Mourey, Henry Mourey, Daniel Mourey, O.P. Rice, and ---- McIntyre, and strikes the State road at House's school-house, on the lands of J.B. Redfield.

Simultaneously with the advent of Bryant in the west David Cummings passed up a creek which has its source near the State road and after many meanderings flows into the Cowanesque River half a mile east of the village of Nelson. After ascending about four miles Cummings located his claim and built a log house, the ruins of which are still seen upon the farm of the late Frederick Cady. He was followed soon after by the Gee family, Jacob Lichenthaler, Job Herrick, Lockwood G. Hoyt, John McCallum, Freeman Place and John C. Robb, all of whom made permanent settlements.

Passing down the valley of Cummings Creek from George Hall's, on the summit of the hill, one has an opportunity to see the old Gee farm, owned by James and Robert Gee, and the farms of Edward Close, James Robb, Joseph McCallum, Joshua McCallum, John McCallum, Alwert D. Kempt, Euclid White, J.R. White, A. Wheeler, ---- Ellison, Frederick Cady, William Hoyt, William Pierce, James Preston, Hazard Young and G.W. Maynard, all of which are in a fine state of cultivation. E. Fish, Alanson Hoyt, Joseph Hoyt and Justus Leonard also own farms between the two roads, which run nearly parallel to each other to the Crooked Creek road, where they unite with the public road leading to Wellsboro.