Newsletter Archives

Introduction: In this article, Melissa Davenport Berry continues her series on Mayflower descendants, again focusing on the Munroe and Church family lines, especially Philip Allen Munroe. Melissa is a genealogist who has a website, americana-archives.com, and a Facebook group, New England Family Genealogy and History.

Today I resume my series on “Mayflower Descendants: Who’s Who,” focusing on more Munroe lines that descend from Plymouth’s Pilgrims.

My subject for this article is Philip Allen Munroe (1821-1908), the second child born to Burden and Lydia (Baker) Munroe, who married and left descendants.

Mr. Munroe descends from Mayflower passenger Richard Warren through several lines.

In this photo, reenactors garbed in Pilgrim attire aboard the Mayflower in Provincetown Harbor assemble in the cabin to sign the Mayflower Compact: Courtney Allen Diorama at the Provincetown Museum, 350th Anniversary, 1970.

He is also a direct descendant of Peregrine White, a son born on the Mayflower to William and Susannah (Jackson) White, who married Sarah Bassett – whose family had arrived in Plymouth aboard the Fortune in 1621.

Munroe’s other Mayflower passengers include Francis and Hester (Mahieu) Cooke, whose son John Cooke married Sarah Warren, daughter of Richard and Elizabeth (Walker) Warren.

Here is a picture of the White family cradle, 1620, on display at Pilgrim Hall Museum in Plymouth, Massachusetts.

The sign accompanying this cradle reads:

White Cradle.

According to tradition, Susanna and William White brought this cradle from Holland in anticipation of the birth of their child. Their son Peregrine, meaning “traveler” or “Pilgrim,” was born on board the Mayflower in Provincetown Harbor in November of 1620. He was the first child born to the Pilgrims in America (Oceanus Hopkins was born during the Atlantic crossing).

The hooded wicker cradle is typical of those made in Holland. Similar cradles can be seen in period paintings by Dutch artists.

The cradle is a symbol of the Pilgrims’ commitment to staying in America and raising their families.

Here is an obituary for Peregrine White, who died 20 July 1704, published in a Boston paper.

This article reads:

Marshfield, July 22. Capt. Peregrine White of this town, aged eighty-three years and eight months, died the 20th instant. He was vigorous and of a comly aspect to the last. Was the son of Mr. William White and Susanna his wife; born on board the Mayflower, Capt. Jones commander, in Cape Cod Harbour, November, 1620. Was the first Englishman born in New-England. Altho’ he was in the former part of his life extravagant; yet was much reform’d in his last years, and died hopefully.

Lineage:

• Richard Warren and Elizabeth Walker
• Elizabeth Warren and Richard Church
• Benjamin Church and Alice Southworth
• Elizabeth Church and Joseph Rosbotham
• Hannah Rosbotham and John Munroe
• Stephen Munroe and Meribah (Gray) Shaw*, widow of Gideon Shaw and daughter of Thomas and Abigail (Brown) Gray
• Burden Munroe and Lydia Baker
• Philip Allen Munroe and Delana Pierce/Pearse

*Through her paternal side Meribah (Gray) Shaw Munroe was a descendant of Edward Gray, the wealthy Plymouth merchant; and through her maternal line she descends from Pilgrim passengers including Warren, White and Cooke.

Below are photos of a memorial tablet for John Cooke, courtesy of the Tell Me More Stories Genealogy Blog. Cooke died on 23 November 1695. In Fairhaven, Massachusetts, this large boulder with a bronze tablet, featuring a sketched replica of the Mayflower, honors him.

Philip A. Munroe married Delana Pierce (1823-1909), daughter of Isaac and Polly (Bowen) Pierce. Below is a news clip announcing their 60 years together.

This article reads:

Thursday was the 60th anniversary of the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Philip A. Munroe, who reside at the corner of Waterman Avenue and Brow Street, East Providence, and the couple were the recipients of many congratulations on having completed so many happy years together. Mr. and Mrs. Munroe had planned a fitting celebration for their anniversary, but owing to the illness of Mrs. Munroe, who has been in poor health for some time, the observance of the day was necessarily limited to receiving calls from members of the immediate family.

Mr. Munroe was born in Swansea, Mass., Nov. 27, 1821, and his wife, whose maiden name was Delana Pierce, was born in Rehoboth, Mass., July 13, 1823. They were married in Thompson, Conn., Dec. 29, 1844. The couple had nine children, of whom five, four sons and a daughter, are now living. There are 13 grandchildren and one great-grandchild.

Both Mr. and Mrs. Munroe come from distinguished ancestry, Mr. Munroe being a direct descendant of Richard Warren, who came in the Mayflower on her first voyage, while Mrs. Munroe is one of the few living original Daughters of the Revolution, her father, Isaac Pierce, having served in that war.

Mr. Munroe was one of the pioneer merchants of this city, having been located on Canal Street for more than 30 years in a wholesale and retail grocery business. He was at various times associated in business with Lyman Pierce, ex-Gov. John W. Davis, and later with his brother, Burden Munroe, with whom he conducted a large wholesale and retail grocery business. About 25 years ago Mr. Munroe retired from business and removed to East Providence, where he has a fine residence.

Here is another relic associated with Mayflower families from the Warren line.

Porringers were used for eating cereals and stews. Tin glaze stained with cobalt creates the blue background, while white tin glaze was spattered to create the pattern. According to “Catalogue of the Historical Collection and Pictures in Pilgrim Hall, Plymouth,” the relic was presented by Arthur Lord, a member of the Pilgrim Tercentenary Commission, and President of the Pilgrim Society of Plymouth in 1903.

To be continued…

Explore over 330 years of newspapers and historical records in GenealogyBank. Discover your family story! Start a 7-Day Free Trial

Note on the header image: “Mayflower in Plymouth Harbor,” by William Halsall, 1882. Credit: Wikimedia Commons.

Related Articles:

• Mayflower Descendants: Who’s Who, Part 40 (part 1)
• Mayflower Descendants: Who’s Who, Part 40 (part 2)