Person:Robert Tevis (3)

From Robert Tevis (Tivis), His Parents, His Siblings, and His Progeny by Nancy Pearrer Lesure

Undocumented and unproven claims that he was a Huguenot who came to America in 1702 stem from notes of a great-grandson, Carroll Tevis, who in the nineteenth century went to France to prove his ancestry, apparently without making the prerequisite backward links. He claimed that the name was a shortening of "De Taillivis".

Although the jury is still out on Carroll Tevis' claims, it seems closer to a verdict on the possible connection of our first Robert Tevis to a Robert Tivis who married Honer Smith 13 Oct 1682 in Halstead Parish, Essex, England. This couple could well be his parents, but no proof has yet been found.

Robert Tivis "of Annarundell Co." was a "Boatman" and he was poor. He and Susannah (formerly Davis) were defendants in two lawsuits in August 1714 and November 1716. By 4 Aug 1721 he was in debtor's prison, a "Languishing Prisoner" petitioning the Maryland Assembly to have him sold in order to pay his debts. An act of that body 28 Feb 1721/2 offered him relief.

Our last glimpse of the boatman is exactly two years later, 28 Feb 1723/4, when Robert Tivis and Elisabeth Curry were married. The date is too early for this to be the marriage of his son Robert, although it has been so interpreted.

The Second Generation: His Siblings We know that a son Nathaniel was born to Robert and Susannah Tevis 12 Jan 1710/1 and was baptized 21 March, also that a daughter Elisabeth was born 12 Dec 1715 to Robert and Susannah Tinis, quite possibly the same couple. Neither of these children has been traced to adulthood. Nathaniel has been confused with the well-documented third-generation Nathaniel Tevis, but most researchers now believe that the child born in 1710/1 died young.

Another daughter, Ruth Tevis, is said to have married Adam Shipley (of Richard of Adam) sometime around 1728-30 and to have been alive though unnamed in 1767 when her husband wrote his will. No documentation has been found to confirm this identification of Ruth Shipley, nor have we found any other record - birth, baptism, or anything else - of a Ruth Tevis in this generation.

ALIA The /Boatman/http://www.familysearch.org/Search/af/ancestral_file_frame.asp?recid=14207517 from Ralph Tevis notes 12/20/1994 was put in prison for bad debt. Susanna died when Robert was young. After prison term he married Elizabeth Curry 02/28/1723. From Robert W. Barnes in MD Gen. Soc. Bul. vol. 7 shows date of death http://sonyapl.homepage.com/lloyd/index.html by Lloyd Sorenson born 1682 in France ("from Mike Demarr Tevis GEDCOM file") http://genforum.genealogy.com/tevis/messages/116.html French name= De Taillevis e-mail from Derral Herbst dated 5/4/2001: My first information on the immigrant ancestor was a record that I found in the Hall of Records in Maryland - A Robert Tivis/Tevis (I forget how the name was spelled on that particular document, but I think it was Tivis) leased some land in Ann Arundel County in 1695. He must have been a cantankerous old miscreant as he was in and out of trouble on a regular basis always suing or being sued; he was in court for something like 26 times. The most interesting court record was published by William and Mary College in a series they did on early Maryland records: In 1721, he was thrown into debtor's prison in Maryland. He petitioned for leniency as his large family (and he did have a very large family, must have worn out several wives - two as I recall) depended upon him for its survival. He was given a date to appear on the courthouse stairs with all his belongings; he and his family could keep what they were wearing, but the rest would be sold to pay his debts. If he failed to appear at the proscribed time, he would be put into the stocks for a certain length of time, and one, or both, of his ears would be cut off. Bankruptcy is so easy today. In the various records, he listed himself as boatman (have you read James Michener's Chesapeake?), mariner, mariner and tavern owner, and boatman, as his fortunes waxed and waned. http://www.genealogy.com/cgi-bin/ifa_image.cgi?IN=001950&PN=98&SEC=Volume%20III&CD=200

In reference to Robert Tivis and Honor Smith: "Robert Tevis (Tivis), his parents, his siblings, and his progeny" by Nancy Pearre Lesure, Maryland Genealogical Socity Bulletin, Winter 1994. "This couple could well be his parents, but no proof has as yet been found."