Moon

 

Legend gives us the origin of the name of Moon and tells us it was first bestowed as an honor. Here is the story:

"The Norsemen were great travelers and some of them went to France and settled in what is now Normandy and became a part of the Normans. They had a brotherhood called the "Order of the Crescent" the men of which were tall, with fair complexion and blue eyes, and with character above reproach. When William the conqueror, Duke of Normandy, invaded England in 1066 the Order of the Crescent went with him. One of the native strongholds proved to be very stuborn and the duke was unale to take it. He called for volunteers and the Order of the Crescent came forward. They successfully stormed the castle and William ordered that each member of the brotherhood be called "Moon", in honor of the event."

The members of the Moon colony in England prospered through the years, leading honorable lives, giving of their time to the religious life of the community. During the Reformation and latter during the times of rebellion against the Church of England the Moons were staunch Protestants and Puritans. Among the many who suffered persecutions for their religious beliefs we find a number of Moons. They were followers of George Fox, founder of the Society of Friends, members of which were called Quakers as a term on derision.

James Moon - Joan Burgess

On September 1, 1682 a band of about one hundred persons set sail from Deal, England on the "Welcome" with William Penn bound for his recently acquired province in the new land across the ocean, where they could worship in freedom. they reached Newcastle, on the Delaware river October 27, 1682, one-third fewer in number because of the ravages of smallpox on shipboard.

Among those who came to the new land were James and Joan Moon and their six children, Sarah, James, Jonas, Jasper, Mary and Roger. The family settled near Fallsington, in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, on a land grant given them by Penn. the original homesite is said to be a freight yard near Morrisville, Pennsylvania now.

James Moon was actively associated with the affairs of Bucks County, his name frequently appearing on the early records of the courts of that county after 1685, as a member of Grand and Petit Juries, and as serving in various capacities by appointment of the court, up to the time of his decease on September 1713.

Joan Burgess Moon, wife of James, received a legacy from her parents or other relatives in England in 1695 and obtained a certificate from the Bucks County Court on December 11, 1695 to enable her to receive it, the court entry of which is as follows: "A Certificate of Joan, the wife of James Moone, being alive signed in Court she being then there present."

She survived a quarter of century, dying December, 1739 in her ninetieth year, at the home of her son, Roger

James Moon Jr. - Mary Wilsford

James came to America from England with his parents in 1682. He married Mary Wilsford on February 7, 1697 in Bucks Co., Pennsylvania. They had three children: John, Simon and Thomas.

He married 2nd, 3 September 1714 in Bucks County, Pennsylvania to Agnes Priestly. They had one son John.

Simon Moon - Lowry Humphrey

Although Simon and Lowry were Quakers they were married in the Christ Church in Philadelphia, on September 27, 1721.

Early in the eighteenth century a large number of Friends went from Pennsylvania to Frederick Counties in Northern Virginia. They can be found in the records of the Hopewell Monthly Meeting in Frederick Co., Virginia.

They had eight children: Anna, Richard, James, Hannah, Margaret, Jacob, Rachel and Mary.

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©2002 by Joan Case
Last updated on Sunday, November 10, 2002

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