Up the Coast of Massachusetts — Margaret Norman

B. before 4 Feb 1614 in Charminster, Dorset, England¹
M. (1) about 1637 in (probably) Salem, Massachusetts²
Husband: Robert Morgan
M. (2) before 21 May 1690 in (probably) Salisbury, Massachusetts³
Husband: Samuel Fowler
D. after 20 Feb 1694 in (probably) Salisbury, Massachusetts⁴

Margaret Norman arrived in the Massachusetts colony two years before the Winthrop Fleet, then spent her long life in various towns up the coast above Boston.

There is a baptism for Margaret recorded in Charminster, Dorset, England on February 4, 1614.¹ Her parents were Richard and Florence Norman, and she was the third of their six children. Charminster was just north of Dorchester, which was seeing activity amongst those seeking to colonize New England. Margaret’s father became involved in the Dorchester Company, and sometime around 1628, the family boarded a ship bound for America.¹

Since the motivation for moving was a commercial one, it isn’t certain if the Norman family were Puritans. They settled on Cape Ann in what is now Massachusetts, and this was where Margaret came of age. In about 1637, she married a man named Robert Morgan in what is believed to be Salem.² They started a family with the birth of a son in 1638,³ and had eight known children by 1663.

Something happened to the family’s standing in the community in about 1669, and it involved Margaret’s 19-year-old son Benjamin trying to steal some horses.⁴ The young man reacted badly to authorities, and they pushed back by excommunicating him for being a “stupefied sinner.” After this, his father Robert disappeared from town records, which suggested that the family was looked down upon for raising such a son.

Robert passed away in 1672, probably in November or December,⁵ leaving Margaret with an uncertain future. She took a new husband named Samuel Fowler, but the date of their marriage is uncertain. We only know that it was before May 21, 1690, when their names appeared on a document together.³ Samuel lived in the town of Salisbury, and presumably this is where Margaret moved to. Salisbury was about as far north as you could go on the Massachusetts coast, and Samuel Fowler was described as a shipwright. The village was near the mouth of the Merrimack River, but while proximity to the water was important, it was mostly an agricultural community.

Margaret made her mark on the 1690 document.

A document dated February 20, 1694 established that Margaret was still alive.³ It was concerning Samuel having his son look after them in their old age. In it, he stated “Margaret, my now wife, after her return from Beverly, the place of her present sojourning, to my present habitation, or to other as may be provided by or for me for her entertainment, to settle and abide in the time of our old age, and other our present want of sight and decay of other members and faculties.” In return for his son’s promise, he was deeded his entire estate.

After that date, nothing more is known of Margaret, and her death was unrecorded. Samuel passed away in January 1711.⁶

Children (all by Robert Morgan):
1. Samuel Morgan – B. about 1638, Salem, Massachusetts;⁷ D. before 20 Nov 1698, Beverly, Massachusetts;⁸ M. (1) Elizabeth Dixey (1641-1690), 15 Oct 1658;⁷ (2) Mary Phippen (1644-?), about 1692, Massachusetts⁷

2. Luke Morgan – B. before 23 Jun 1650, (probably) Salem, Massachusetts;⁹ D. Apr 1732, Cape Sable, Nova Scotia⁴

3. Joseph Morgan – B. before 23 Jun 1650, (probably) Salem, Massachusetts;¹⁰ D. 23 Oct 1731, Beverly, Massachusetts;¹¹ M. Deborah Hart, 12 Jul 1669, Lynn, Massachusetts¹²

4. Benjamin Morgan – B. before 23 Jun 1650, (probably) Salem, Massachusetts;¹³ D. 1677, Cape Porpoise, Maine⁴

5. Robert Morgan – B. 15 Oct 1650, Salem, Massachusetts¹⁴

6. Bethiah Morgan – B. before 29 May 1653, Salem, Massachusetts;¹⁵ M. Samuel Weed (1652-?), about 12 Mar 1676, Massachusetts¹⁶

7. Moses Morgan – B. (probably) Salem Massachusetts;⁸ D. 1677, Cape Porpoise, Maine⁴

8. Aaron Morgan – B. 24 May 1663, Salem, Massachusetts¹⁶

Sources:
1    “The English Origins of Richard Norman of Salem Massachusetts,” Leslie Mahler, The American Genealogist, V. 77, 2002
2    WikiTree listing of Margaret (Norman) Morgan (read bio under heading “At Massachusetts Bay Colony”
3    The Fowler Family: a Genealogical Memoir of the Descendants of Philip and Mary Fowler, of Ipswich, Mass: Ten Generations: 1590-1882, Matthew Adams Stickney, 1883, pp. 24-25
4    “Whatever Happened to Brother Morgan?” Charles C. Wainwright, Historically Speaking: Stories from the Historical Archive of the First Parish Church in Beverly, Massachusetts
5    WikiTree listing of Samuel Morgan
6    Vital Records of Salisbury, Massachusetts to the End of the Year 1849, 1915
7    WikiTree listing of Samuel Morgan
8    Probate record of Samuel Morgan, Massachusetts, U.S. Wills and Probate Records, 1635-1991, Ancestry.com
9    Baptismal record of Luke Morgan, Massachusetts, Town Clerk, Vital and Town Records, 1626-2001, FamilySearch.org
10  Baptismal record of Joseph Morgan, M., T. C., V. & T. R.
11  WikiTree listing of Joseph Morgan
12  Marriage record of Joseph Morgan and Deborah Hart, M., T. C., V. & T. R.
13  Baptismal record of Benjamin Morgan, M., T. C., V. & T. R.
14  Baptismal record of Robert Morgan (younger), M., T. C., V. & T. R.
15  Baptismal record of Bethia Morgan, M., T. C., V. & T. R.
16  Birth record of Elizabeth Weed (Bethia’s oldest child), M., T. C., V. & T. R.
17  Baptismal record of Aaron Morgan, M., T. C., V. & T. R.

Greek Farmer Married 3 Times — Ioannis K. Bouloucheris

B. about 1836 in (probably) Apidia, Lakonia, Greece^1,2
M. (1) about 1856 in (probably) Lakonia, Greece^1,3
Wife: UNKNOWN
M. (2) 15 Feb 1864 in Geraki, Lakonia, Greece¹
Wife: Kyriakoula Maroudas
M. (3) before 1886 in (probably) Lakonia, Greece^4,5
Wife: Eleni _______
D. before 6 Jun 1914 in (probably) Apidia, Lakonia, Greece⁶

Piecing together the life of someone who lived in a place that hardly preserved records can be challenging. But for Ioannis K. Bouloucheris of Lakonia, Greece a few key documents help to tell his story.

Ioannis was born in about 1836, likely in the village of Apidia,⁷ where the Bouloucheris family seems to have originated from.¹ (The Greek spelling of Bouloucheris is Μπουλουχέρης.) His father was called Konstantinos, but his mother’s name is unknown. Based on Greek tradition, she may have been Athanasia since that was the name of Ioannis’ oldest known daughter. There is no evidence that Konstantinos had any children besides Ioannis.

Apidia is in the southernmost region of Greece, a mountainous area where for generations, people have made a living off the land. Ioannis was born at a time just after the Greek War of Independence, and the population was recovering from that. After he came of age, it’s likely that Ioannis made a living as either a goatherd or an olive grower. Life centered around family, the church and the village, which formed a tight-knit community, and we can assume Ioannis practiced all the customs of the Greek culture. 

Growing olives in Lakonia. (AI-generated image)

The farmers’ census of 1856 is the first place Ioannis is recorded.³ His father is shown as a married man living in Apidia with only two household members, and since those two would have to be Konstantinos and his wife, it suggests that Ioannis was already out on his own. And this is backed by the listing of what appears to be Ioannis right below his father. It shows that he was also a married man in a household of two people, so it seems that Ioannis had taken a wife when he was about 20.

The name of Ioannis’ first wife is unknown; most likely she was a young girl from the area. She was deceased by February 6, 1864 when Ioannis applied for a license to marry a second wife.⁸ Her name was Kyriakoula Maroudas, age 18, from the nearby village of Geraki, where the wedding took place on February 15th.¹ As with most Greek marriages, the union was probably arranged, perhaps by the bride and groom’s fathers. 

Marriage license record of Ioannis and Kyriakoula.

Ioannis and Kyriakoula seem to have had four children together, with the first born in about 1867;⁹ there may have been others who died young. Noticeably missing are sons honoring each of their fathers, which would follow a certain order in the naming tradition. A child named Konstantinos may have been born to Ioannis’ first wife, then died young. If that’s true, Ioannis’ first son with Kyriakoula would have been named Dimitrios after her father, but that boy must have also died. 

One other place where Ioannis was recorded was on lists of voters in his village. In Greece, when a priest needed to be replaced (often because they had died), that parish would have an election among its eligible citizens for a new one. On such occasions, a list was made of the men of that village, and for Apidia, this happened in 1868 and 1879.^10,2 Ioannis appears to be on both of these lists. The one from 1868 also shows his father Konstantinos, who is gone by 1879 (he probably passed away). Only the 1879 voters list has the ages of the men, and it suggests a birth year for Ioannis of about 1837 — a close match to the age given on the 1864 marriage record.

Although it hasn’t been firmly proven, Ioannis married a third wife only known as Eleni.⁵ They had a son born in 1886,⁴ so Kyriakoula must have died sometime before that date. While there has been no record of this third marriage, the weddings of two daughters of Ioannis are documented. The first was for his oldest surviving child Athanasia on July 14, 1884,⁸ and the second was for daughter Stamata. That marriage took place in Apidia on April 6, 1896,¹¹ and we know that Ioannis was in attendance. Interestingly, the groom’s parents were the great-grandparents of David and Amy Sedaris, and the descendants of this marriage were referenced in the show Finding Your Roots.¹²

The wedding of Stamata was the last known record of Ioannis, so he died some time after that date. When his daughter Eleni was listed on a ship arriving at Ellis Island on June 6, 1914,⁶ she identified her closest relative back in Greece as her sister Athanasia, so it can be assumed that Ioannis was deceased by then.

Child by unknown mother:
1. (supposed) Konstantinos Ioannou Bouloucheris — B. (probably) Apidia, Lakonia, Greece; D. young

Children by Kyriakoula Maroudas:
1. (supposed) Dimitrios Ioannou Bouloucheris — B. (probably) Apidia, Lakonia, Greece; D. young

2. Athanasia Ioannou Bouloucheris — B. about 1867, (probably) Apidia, Lakonia, Greece;⁹ D. after 6 Jun 1914, Greece;⁶ M. Peter A. Parthenios, after 14 Jul 1884, Myrtia, Lakonia, Greece⁹

3. Stamata Ioannou Bouloucheris — B. about 1873, (probably) Apidia, Lakonia, Greece;¹¹ M. Spyridon Illia Sideras (1870-?), 6 Apr 1896, Apida, Lakonia, Greece¹¹

4. George John Bollhan — B. 1876, Apidia, Lakonia, Greece;⁴ D. 11 Jan 1927, Birmingham, Alabama;¹³ M. Mildred Holotz (1886-1962), 19 Jan 1920, Chicago, Illinois¹⁴

5. Eleni Ioannou Bouloucheris — B. 1877, (probably) Apidia, Lakonia, Greece;⁶ D. after 1939, Greece;¹⁵ M. Andrew Hiotis (1867-1940), after 6 Jun 1914, (probably) St. Paul, Minnesota⁶

Children by Eleni _________:
1. James John Bolheres — B. 1886, Apidia, Lakonia, Greece;⁴ D. 11 Jul 1941, Minneapolis, Minnesota;⁵ M. Minnie Louise LaBrie (1893-1950), 17 Jun 1918, St. Paul, Minnesota¹⁶

Sources:
1    Marriage record of Ioannis K. Bouloucheris and Kyriakoula Maroudas, Greece, Peloponnese, Lakonia Vital Records, 1859-1950, MyHeritage.com
2    Voter List of Elous Municipality, 1878, Apidia, General State Archives of Lakonia
3    Greece, Farmers Census 1856, MyHeritage.com
4    Male town registers, 1844-1959, Apidia, Lakonia, Greece
5    Death record of James Bolheres, Minnesota, Death Records and Certificates, 1900-1955, FamilySearch.org
6    Listing of Eleni Boulouchery, New York, U.S., Arriving Passenger and Crew Lists, 1820-1957, Ancestry.com
7    Searching for the name Bouloucheris or Μπουλουχέρης almost always leads to the small village of Apidia. The surname simply isn’t found anywhere else in Greece.
8    Marriage license of Ioannis K. Poulos and Kyriakoula Maroudas, Greece, Sparta Marriages, 1835-1935, MyHeritage.com
9    Marriage license of Panagiotis A. Panou and Athanaso Bouloucheri, Metropolis of Monemvasia and Sparta, Licenses, Miscellaneous Collection, compiled by Gregory Kontos
10  Voter List of Elous Municipality, 1868, Apidia, General State Archives of Lakonia
11  Marriage license of Spiros Syderis and Stamata Bouloucheris, G., S. M.
12  “Ancient roots,” Finding Your Roots, Season 2, Episode 9, 18 Nov 2014
13  Death record of George Bolhan, Alabama, U.S., Deaths and Burials, 1881-1974, Ancestry.com
14  Marriage record of George Ballhan and Mildred Holotz, Cook County, Illinois, U.S., Marriages Index, 1871-1920, Ancestry.com
15  Estimated date from stories told by Margaret Bolheres to Laura Mitchell
16  Marriage certificate of James Bolheres and Minnie LaBrie