Ann Marie Blackwell was the 2nd of 18 known surviving children (5 boys/13 girls) born to wealthy New York merchant and ship owner John Blackwell (1797-1869) and his North Carolinian wife, Ann Selby (1807-1882).
Some records indicate she and her siblings were born in New York; and if that is the case, it was most likely in Newtown, Long Island, her family's ancestral home; the Blackwell's being famous as owners of Blackwell's Island in New York; while other sources indicate they were born in New Bern, Craven Co, NC. It is known her father was in New Bern, NC as early as 1821 when he married Ann Selby of Hyde County. What seems to be lost to history is whether the family remained there or lived in New York for a while. ...
