Ninian Beall, born in Largo, Fifeshire, Scotland, in 1625. His will is
dated 15th Jan. 1717 and was probated 28th Feb. 1717. He held a
commission as cornet in the Scotch-English Army and was raised to resist
Cromwell. He fought in the battle of Dunbar, the 3rd day of Sept. 1650, against
Cromwell. He was made prisoner at that battle, and sentenced to five
years' servitude. He was sent with 150 other Scotchmen to Barbadoes,
West Indies.
About 1652 they appeared in the Province of Maryland.
Ninian Beall served his five years with Richard Hall, a planter of
Calvert Co.In Liber 5, folio 416, Maryland Land Office Records of 1658,
there is a record of Ninian Beall making a land transfer in Calvert
Co., Md.
It seems that these military prisoners were entitled to 50
acres of public land after completing service. In Liber 11, folio 195,
Maryland Land Office has the following 16th Jan. 1667: "Then came
Ninian Beall of Calvert County, Planter, and proved right to 50 acres
of land for his time service performed with Richard Hall of same
county."
By the inexperienced reader the servitude of Col. Ninian
Beall for five years under Richard Hall, on account of fighting against
Cromwell, may be rated as a disgrace. This humiliation of servitude
which came to him, not on account of crime, but through the fortunes of
war, was an honor.
The principle for which he fought finally
triumphed in the overthrow of Cromwell. His servitude was a halo of
martyrdom for a principle which was honorable. Although he had many
chances to escape from servitude after reaching Maryland, yet we find
the instincts of a gentleman and soldier prompted him to not only
honorably and gracefully submit to the fortunes of war, but at the same
time, by so doing, he gained the respect and confidence of the people
of Maryland to such a degree that they showered continuous honors upon
him to the day of his death.
Ninian Beall's military ability in the
Scotch-English Army seems to have been made good use of in the Province
of Maryland, as shown by the following notations:1668:
Records at Annapolis, dated 31st Oct. 1668, call him Lieut. Ninian Beall.1676: Commissioned Lieut. of Lord Baltimore's "Yacht of War, Loyal Charles of Maryland, John Goade Commander."1684: Deputy Surveyor of Charles Co.1688: Appointed Chief Military Officer of Calvert Co.1692: Appointed High Sheriff of Calvert Co.1694: Appointed Colonel of Militia by the Assembly 30th July, 1694.1697: Appointed on a Commission by the Assembly to treat with the Indians.1679-1701: Was a member of the General Assembly.1699:
The General Assembly passed an "Act of Gratitude" for "the
distinguished Indian services of Colonel Ninian Beall." (See Liber LL
No. 11, folio 228, Archives of Maryland.)
Col. Ninian Beall's signal
defeat and destruction of the great Susquehannah Tribe of Indians
caused him to be recognized as an Indian fighter of ability. Many
official papers written by Col. Ninian Beall and on file in the
Provincial Records show that he was a man of broad experience, great
mental capacity, undoubted integrity, perfect moral courage, and of good
education.
His signatures to official papers are bold and free. As
he signed his will by witnessed mark, that would indicate that he must
have been in a very feeble condition of body at the time, for he was 92
years old. He figures in many land transfers. It is estimated that
he owned about 4000 acres. There has been much speculation as to
whether Col. Ninian Beall's family name in Scotland was spelled BEALL
or BELL. Official papers in Maryland records are signed by him in a
variety of ways; namely, Ninian BALE, Ringing BELL, Ninian BEALE,
Ninion BEALE, Ninian BELL and Ninian BEALL. (Remember spelling was not standardized until abt. 1900)
After 1667 he signed
everything as Ninian BEALL. He seems to have identified himself with the
Presbyterian Church of Maryland before 1690. During that year 200
Presbyterian immigrants came over from Scotland under his supervision.
He located them along the Potomac River and called the settlement New
Scotland. These immigrants brought with them Rev. Nathaniel Taylor.
There is recorded at Upper Marlboro a deed of gift from Col. Ninian
Beall to Reverend Taylor, of land in Upper Marlboro upon which to build
a church. In 1707 Col. Ninian Beall presented the above church a
costly silver communion set, made in London. A portion of this silver
communion set is now in the Presbyterian Church at Hyattsville, Md.Col.
Ninian Beall had three brothers who settled in the Province of
Maryland; namely, Thomas, John and George. Their descendants are
numerous. He m. about 1670, Ruth Moore, dau. of Richard and Jane
Moore, Barrister of St. Mary's Co., Md. He d. in 1717. He was burried on
his Rock of Dumbarton Plantation, at a point now Gay Street,
Georgetown, D.C. When his body was removed, his skeleton was found to
be perfect, and measured six feet seven inches, and his hair had grown
long and retained its youthful color of red.
(paraphrased from story on Ancestry.com)
COPY OF THE LAST WILL AND TESTAMENT OF COL. NINIAN BEALL 1625-171
In the Name of God, Amen. I, Ninian Beall, of Prince George's County, in
the Province of Maryland, being indisposed in Body, but of sound and
perfect memory, God be praised for the same, and considering the
mortality of human nature and uncertainty of life, doe make, ordain,
constitute,and appoint this to be my last Will and Testament, in manner
and form following. Vist. Impris. I give and bequeath my soul into the
hands of Almighty God in hopes of free pardon for all my sins and as for
my body to be committed to the Earth from whence it came, to be
decently burried at the discretion of my trustees hereafter mentioned.
Item. I will and bequeath that all my debts and funeral charges be first
paid and satisfied and as for what portion of my worldly goods as shall
be then remaining, I bequeath and bestow in the manner following. Item.
I doe give and bequeath unto my son George , my plantation and Tract of
Land called the Rock of Dumbarton, lying and being at Rock Creek and
containing four hundred and eighty acres, with all the stock thereon,
both cattle and Hoggs, them and their increase unto my son George and
unto his heirs forever. Item. I doe give and bequeath unto my said
George Beall his choice of one of my feather beds, bolster and pillow
and other furniture thereunto belonging, with two cows and calves and
half my sheep from off this plantation I now live on unto him and his
heirs forever.Item. I doe give and bequeath unto my son in law Andrew Hambleton my negro woman Alie unto him and his heirs forever.
Item. I give and bequeath unto my granddaughter Mary Beall the daughter
of my son Ninian Beall, deceased, the one half part of all my moveables
or personal estate cattle and Hogs, Horses Household good after my
Legacyes before bequeathed are paid and satisfied, unto her the said
Mary and to their heirs forever. Item. I give and bequeath to my
Grandson Samuel Beall all the remainder part of Bacon Hall together with
the Plantation and Orchyard and tobacco houses hereunto belonging (with
this proviso) that when he comes to the age of one and twenty that he
make over by a firm conveyance all his right and title that he hath unto
a certain Tract of Land called Sames (or Sam's) beginning on the South
side of the road goeing to Mount Calvert unto the said Mary and unto her
heirs forever, but if my said Grandson should happen to dye before he
arrive to be of that age to make over the land soe as aforesaid then, I
doe give and bequeath unto my said Granddaughter Mary, the whole Tract
of Bacon Hall with the houses and Orchyard thereon unto her and her
heirs forever. Item. I give and bequeath unto my grandson Samuel Beall
my Water Mill lying on Collington Branch with the houses. Iron work
houses and all other matterealls thereunto belonging unto the said
Samuel and his heirs forever. Item. I give and bequeath unto my
son-in-law, Joseph Belt, part of tract of Land called Good Luck,
containing two hundred forty five acres, he allowing unto my heirs the
sum of four thousand pounds of tobacco according to our former
agreement, he deducting what I doe owe him on his books for several
wares and merchandizes to the said Joseph and unto his heirs forever.
page 2Item.
Whereas I owe several debts, I doe empower my trustees hereafter named
to enable them to pay the same to sell a certain Tract of Land called
Recovery lying and in the freshes of Patuxent River near the head of the
Western Branch to be sold, it containing four hundred acres, the
aforesaid tract of land bequeathed unto my son Belt is adjoining
thereunto. Item. I doe give and bequeath unto my son Charles Beall a
Book of Bishop Coopers work the Acts of the Church and the Chronicles of
King Charles the first and King Charles the second, and I doe request
and oblige my son Charles Beall and my son George to send for a dozen of
books entitled an advice to young and old middle age set forth by one
and Godsons. Item. I give and bequeath unto my son Charles a thousand
acres of land called Dunn Back lying on the South side of great Chaptank
in a creek called Wattses creek, unto him and his heirs forever, and
lastly I do make, ordain, declare and appoint my grandson Samuel Beall
to be my sole and whole executor of this my last will and test i ment
and I doe devise my loving son Charles Beall, Joseph Belt and George
Beall to do and perform my devise as above exprest and to set and doe
for my executors until he arrive to the age of one and twenty, hereby
revoking and annulling all former and other wills by me at any time
heretofore made and signed, and doe devise my said sons to use their
best care and endeavor that my two Grand children, the children of my
beloved son Ninian Beall deceased to be brought up and have that
education suitable to their estate, I doe also appoint my said sons
Trustees to this my last will to make their appearance every Easter
Tuesday or any other time as they shall think a more fitting time at my
dwelling plantation yearly to inspect into all affairs there of, and of a
yearly increase of all the creatures upon my plantation and at the mill
for and on behalf of my two Grandchildren who are to be joint sharers
therein, my Granddaughter to have her part at the day of her marriage.
In
testimony whereof I have to this my last will and testament set my hand
and seal this fifteenth day of January in the year of our Lord one
thousand seven hundred and seventeen.Ninian Beall (Seal)
Colonel Ninian Beall By Ruth Beall Gelders, 1976
Daughters of the American RevolutionJoseph Habersham Chapter, Atlanta, GA.
(This
document may be reproduced and distributed to anyone interested in
Beall family history, provided that it is distributed in its entirety
with credit given to the original author (Ruth Beall Gelders) and is not
altered in any way. -keb)
Ninian Beall had the distinguished
name of a Christian Saint and a Druid Priest, prophetic of his future
prodigious leadership and experience.
He was probably descended
from the Celts who came to Scotland about the 4th century BC. The Celts
were known in Europe from the second millennium BD. Armed with iron
weapons, they spread rapidly over Europe, introducing the newly
developed iron industries. Greek influences stimulated the use of the
chariot and later of writing, and art flourished in richly ornamented
styles.
By the 4th century BC, the Celts could no longer withstand
encroaching tribes, so they came across the sea to England, Ireland,
and Scotland. A division of the northern Celts called Picts or Cruithne
settled in Fife in Scotland. They had a hierarchical tribal organization
in which priests, nobles, craftsmen, and peasants were clearly defined.
They were agriculturists who reared cattle and owned domestic animals,
and were tall with long heads, light eyes, and dark or red hair.
The
Celts relied on the ministry of the Druids. For a long time, the powers
of the priests were kinglike but later the priests became less
political and were leaders in the Druid religion, the advancement of art
and writing, and teachers of children. The Druids were worshipers of
nature and considered the oak tree and the mistletoe which grew upon it
to be sacred. They believed in the immortal soul, and its departure at
death into another, not earthly, body.
The Druid priests became known by the name Beall, with its various spellings, Beal, Bell, Bel, or Beall. (Genealogical column in "The Warcry," Salvation Army paper 1936).
Christianity
was accepted by the Celts about the 5th century AD. It was brought to
Scotland by St. Ninian and his disciples. St. Ninian was the son of a
British chief in Galloway who was already Christian. Many churches were
dedicated in St. Ninian's name. He is buried at the cemetery on
Molindenar Burn. Ninian Beall was possibly one of many who were named
for St. Ninian.
Ninian Beall's father was Dr. James Beall of
Largo, Fifeshire, Scotland. Ninian was born in 1625 at Largo, in East
Scotland between the Firth of Forth and the Firth of Tay. He grew to be
seven feet tall and had red hair. In later years, he was quick to remind
people that his name was not pronounced as spelled, but was "ringing
bell".
Largo is in the lowlands, but is near the Lomond Hills
which rise to 1500 feet. Fishing villages of great antiquity dot the
eastern coast, indicating that fishing was one of the occupations of
Ninian's time. In addition to fishing, there was also agriculture,
mining, weaving, glass blowing and ship building. An adequate judicial
system has evolved, and children were required to attend school.
St.
Andrews, founded in 1411, seat of Scotland's oldest university, was the
ecclesiastical capital of Scotland until the Reformation, and is
located in Fife. Dunfermline, also located in Fife, was the royal seat,
occupied by the Stuarts. Charles I, second son of King James I and Anne
of Denmark, was born there. James I died in 1625, the year of Ninian
Beall's birth.
Barbadoes, West Indies.
About
1652, he was transferred, still a prisoner, to Oliver Cromwell, an active leader in the Puritan cause, had risen to power in England, and in 1648 he repelled the Scottish Royalist invasion at Preston. Scotland had become Presbyterian, principally through the work of John Knox, although the Stuarts favored the Episcopal Church. In 1649, Cromwell's political power was enhanced by the removal of Presbyterian leaders from Parliament. In 1650, he invaded Scotland and defeated the Royalist Scots at Dunbar. More than 3,000 Scotsmen were slaughtered on the field and 10,000 prisoners were taken. The wounded among these were released, but 5,000 were sent into virtual slavery in Northumbria, and the rest were shipped off to America and the West Indies. Among these was Ninian Beall who held a commission as a cornetist in the Scottish-English Army under Leslie raised to resist Cromwell, and fought and was made prisoner in the battle of Dunbar, September 3, 1650. He was sentenced to five years of servitude and, after a short stay in Ireland, was packed into the hold of a prison ship with 149 other Scotsmen and sent to the Province of Maryland
where he served five years with Richard Hall of Calvert County.
"Then
came Ninian Beall of Calvert County, planter, and proved his right to
50 acres of land for his time in service, as military prisoner,
performed with Richard Hall of said county. This servitude which came to
him through the fortunes of war was an Honor." (From Liber 2, Folio 195, Maryland Land Office, Jan. 16, 1957)
When
Ninian was captured and exiled, he was already a husband and father,
although his Scottish wife, Elizabeth Gordon, probably died even before
the battle of Dunbar. Thomas, one of the sons of this marriage,
eventually came to America (about 1667).
In those days,
Maryland extended from 40 degrees North to the Potomac River, King
Charles having granted a charter for this territory to George Calvert,
first Baron Baltimore, in 1632.
Catholics had come to Maryland to
avoid persecution. However, the ships Ark and Dove brought both
Catholics and Protestants and religious conflict was strong in ensuing
years. Soon the Puritans seized control and there was a brief civil war.
In 1657, the proprietorship was briefly restored to Lord Baltimore.
After England's Glorious Revolution of 1688, the government of the
colony passed to the Crown, and the Church of England was made the
established church. In 1699, as a member of the Assembly, Ninian Beall
signed the petition to King William III for the establishment of the
Church of England in Maryland, although Ninian was a Presbyterian Elder.
Maryland
became a royal province in 1691. The proprietorship was restored in
1715, but Maryland remained virtually the same as a royal province.
Ninian Beall was freed from his obligations as indentured servant during
the proprietorship of Lord Baltimore. But after the colony became a
royal province, he continued to rise and was appointed Chief Military
Officer of Calvert County. He rose from indentured servant to Member of
the House of Burgesses, and Commander in Chief of Provincial Forces of
Maryland. He was one of the most influential men in the settling of the
District of Columbia and its surrounding area, and the protection of the
colonists from the Indians.
As religion was the basis for the
wars that precipitated the exodus of the colonists to America, it was a
vital part of their lives while the country was being settled.
Before
1690, Col. Beall gave land in Upper Marlboro upon which a Presbyterian
church was erected. For a minister, he turned to the Rev. Nathaniel
Taylor, one of his 200 immigrants from Scotland. In 1707, Col. Beall
presented the church with a costly silver communion service set. In
1936, the church and the silver set had been moved to Hyattsville, MD,
and an Episcopal Church had risen on the old site at Upper Marlboro.
In 1699, Ninian Beall gave land on the Patuxtent River for "Ye erecting and building of a house for ye Service of Almighty God."
Records at Annapolis give the following memoranda of Ninian's Offices:
- 1688 - Lt. Ninian Beall
- 1676 - Lt. of Lord Baltimore's "Yacht of War, Royal Charles of Maryland, John Goade, Commander"
- 1678 - Captain of Militia of Calvert County, Maryland
- 1684 - Deputy Surveyor of Charles County
- 1688 - Appointed Chief Military Officer of Calvert County
- 1689 - Major of Calvert County Militia
- 1690 - One of the 25 Commissioners for regulating affairs in Maryland, until the next assembly
- 1692 - High Sheriff of Calvert County
- 1693 - Colonel, Commander in Chief of Maryland forces
- 1694 - Colonel of Militia
- 1697 - On a Commission to treaty with the Indians
- 1679 - 1701 - Member of General Assembly
- 1696 - 1699 - Representative of Prince Georges County in the House of Burgesses
Much
of Colonel Beall's time was spent in the saddle riding over Maryland.
His interest was centered in the land and the beauties of nature, and
the establishment of a foothold in this great new country which we know
to day as the United States of America.
The States of Maryland and
Virginia were most influential in establishing the Capital in it's
present location, as the land upon which it rests belonged mostly to
Maryland with a small portion belonging to Virginia. George Washington, a
native of Virginia, selected the site of the Nation's Capital and the
District of Columbia. Maryland and Virginia granted land on each tide of
the Potomac River.
The Indian name for this territory was
"Tohoga". The Indian tribes and the immigrants were probably drawn here
for some of the same reasons. The soil was rich, the climate was mild,
game was plentiful, there was a variety of trees and wild plants, and
there was easy access to the sea via the Chesapeake Bay and the wide
Potomac. The beautiful Falls and the Potomac Palisades complimented the
wide expanse of level land suitable for growing corn and tobacco.
As
he rode through the woods admiring the loveliness of this land, Col.
Ninian Beall must have been an impressive figure with his great height,
red beard and hair. Ninian was instrumental in the negotiation of a
treaty with the Piscataway people so that together this tribe and the
colonists were able to fight off incursions of the dreaded Susquehannas.
In 1699, the General Assembly passed an Act of Gratitude for the
distinguished Indian services of Colonel Ninian Beall:
"Whereas
Colonel Ninian Beall has been found very serviceable to this Province
upon all incursions and disturbances of neighboring Indians and though
now grown very aged and less able to perform well, continues, now beyond
his ability to do the like service at this juncture of affairs, it si
therefore thought fit in point of gratitude for such his good services
done and towards his support and relief now in his old age to make him
an allowance out of the public revenues of this province."
In
1636, Lord Baltimore stipulated the terms for allotment of land under
his official seal. Every adventurers in the first expedition, 1634, who
had transported five men between 15 and 50 years of age, was to receive
2,000 acres of land for a yearly rental of 400 acres for himself, a like
area for his wife (if he had one) and for each servant, and 50 acres
for every child under the age of sixteen. For this he was to pay a
yearly rental of 10 pounds of wheat for every 50 acres.
Those
who should arrive after 1655 were promised 1,000 acres for every five
men they transported to the colony, and the rent for it was fixed at 20
shillings a year, payable in the country's produce. Ships from the Old
World continued to arrive with settlers for the manors and plantations
of lower Maryland. In 1633 began the patents in the upper reaches of the
Potomac and near the Falls. Before 1700, the whole area now covered by
Washington was in the possession of its first land owners.
As
Ninian Beall was responsible for about 200 immigrants coming to the
country, when Prince Georges County was created out of Calvert County,
over 7,000 acres of his property were found to be in the new county. On
part of this acreage, the District of Columbia is now located, an on
another part the famed "Dumbarton Oaks." His first tract of land was
called "Rock of Dumbarton." This grant was received from Lord Baltimore
and was for seven hundred and ninety five acres.
The area in
Maryland now included in the District of Columbia, in those days before
1700 was called New Scotland Hundred, and was a part of Charles County.
This county was created by Lord Baltimore in 1658. It was the property
along the Potomac River from Wicomico "as high as the settlements
extend." New Scotland Hundred extended from Oxon Branch (opposite
Alexandria, Va.) to the falls of the Potomac. Charles Beall was the
pressmaster of this county. The area included:
- "The Nock" - grant of 500 acres first warranted to Ninian Beall.
- "Meurs" - 500 acres first granted to Ninian Beall, originally named "Chance"
- "Barbadoe" - first laid out or surveyed by Ninian Beall, 250 acres
- "Inclosure"
- patented on Oct. 2, 1687, 1503 acres surveyed for Ninian Beall and by
him taken up in 1687, and which was a tract now part of the National
Arboretum.
On the eastern side of the Anacostia River the land
belonged to Col. Beall above the land of the Addisons. "Fife Enlarged,"
1,050 acres, named for Fifeshire, Scotland, was deeded by Co. Beall so
his son Capt. Charles Beall, who died in 1740.
In the western
portion of the area later covered by the National Capital, early taken
up by various grants, there was no opportunity for ownership by Col.
Beall until the end of the 17th century. His interests had centered on
the area, however, probably through his early trips to the Garrison at
the Falls. Eventually, Col. Beall was successful in obtaining tracts on
both sides of Rock Creek, "Rock of Dumbarton" on the western side of
Rock Creek, and on the eastern side, nearly opposite "Rock of
Dumbarton," his earlier tract, "Beall's Levels," 225 acres between Mr.
Hutchison's land, and the tract called "Widow's Mite."
It is
recorded that George Beall, son of Ninian's son Ninian, was born in 1729
in the home built on Rock of Dumbarton. Another house was built at 1703
32nd Street, at the corner of R Street on "Rock of Dumbarton" by
William Dorsey. It is known as "Dumbarton Oaks." From August through
October 1944, the first conference of the United Nations was held at
Dumbarton Oaks. Dumbarton Oaks had several owners until it was acquired
by Robert Woods Bliss who gave it to Harvard University. A research
library has been collected containing about 10,000 volumes relating to
gardening, Byzantine and early Christian art. This is one of the finest
museums and libraries in the world on Byzantine and early Christian art.
The present mansion was built about 1800.
Through his may acts of
faithfulness and bravery, and because of the large number of immigrants
to his credit, Ninian Beall was given warrants for thousands of acres
of land. As Deputy Surveyor, he seated many families along the Eastern
Branch and the Potomac in Scotland Hundred, most of them through his own
land warrants.
Some interesting descriptions of Beall properties obtained from "Washington, City and Capitol, " American Guide to Service, 1937, U.S. Govt. Printing Office, Supt. of Documents, Washington, D.C., follow:
- "Beall's Pleasure"
- The house is up a narrow, private road on the left, 16.3 miles N.E.
along Bladenton Road from Old Toll Gate, or at Bladensburg. Rd. and H
Street, but is visible from the main road. This early colonial and brick
house was built in 1795 by Benjamin Stoddard, 1st Secretary of the
Navy, and confidential agent in securing rights for the Capital City.
This fine example of Georgian architecture was built of brick burned at
clay pits still visible on the grounds. The house was erected on
foundations of a still earlier house, probably one built by Ninian Beall
when he first patented the land and gave in the name in 1706.
- "Mackall Place"
- On R street between 28th and 29th in Georgetown. Soon after 1717,
George Beall came to live ion his inheritance called the Rock of
Dumbarton, and this small structure may have been his first home here.
It consists of a large room with a huge fireplace which was still
standing when this description was written. Later, when the Rock of
Dumbarton was sold to make part of the City of Georgetown, Beall built,
about 1750, the large brick mansion at what is now 3033 N Street,
northwest of the oldest brick houses now in the District. This is the
house to which Jaqueline Kennedy and her children moved and in which
they lived for a year when they left the White House after the death of
President Kennedy.
- "Ninian Beall's Pleasure Map"
- Land around the headwaters of the Anacostia had been patented in 1696
to Ninian Beall who sold it to Dr. John Gerrard. Charles Calvert,
descendant of the Lords Baltimore, acquired it through marriage to
Gerrard's daughter. Calvert's daughter Eugenia sold 60 acres in 1742 for
the town of Garrison's Landing.
- "Dumbarton - Washington House" 1647
30th Street at R Street. Built by Thomas Beall shortly after he
inherited the Rock of Dumbarton from his father George Sr. in 1784. At
that time he gave his elder brother, George Jr., the Beall mansion on N
Street. The new home "Dumbarton" went to Thomas' daughter Elizabeth
Ridley as a wedding present when she married George Corbin Washington,
great nephew of the President. It was inherited by their son, Lewis
Washington, who sold it to Elisha Riggs, co-founder with W. W. Corccoran
of Riggs National Bank.
- "Inspection House for Tobacco" -
Ninian Beall received the patent for the Rock of Dumbarton in 1703.
Some years later, George Gordon acquired some of the land and also
acquired "Knave's Disappointment' from James Smith. He renamed the land
"Rock Creek Plantation."
- "Rosedale," 3501 Newark, and "Woodley,"
3000 Cathedral Ave. - Both estates were part of a much larger tract,
1300 or 1400 acres west of Rock Creek and extending beyond the Cathedral
grounds, which George Beall acquired in 1720 and described as an
addition to the Rock of Dumbarton grant to his father.
- "Dumbarton House" Q
street in Georgetown - This red brick mansion was built by the Bealls
and occupied by them until 1796. "Dumbarton" later belonged to Joseph
Nourse, first Register of Treasury, and to Charles Carroll. It is now
the headquarters for the National Society of the colonial Dames of
America. Dolly Madison fled here when the British burned the White House
in 1814.
As mentioned before, Col. Beall's first wife,
Elizabeth Gordon , died in Scotland, and only one offspring of this
marriage is known to have come to America, their son Thomas.
Ninian's
second wife was Ruth Moore, daughter of Richard Moore, a Calvert County
lawyer. According to records, they were married in 1633 and were the
parents of twelve children. Col. Ninian Beall's children are listed as
follows:
Son of his first wife Elizabeth Gordon:
- Thomas Beall, 1647 - 1730, m. Elizabeth Bateman
Children of his second wife Ruth Moore:
- John Beall 1670 - 1711
- Capt. Charles Beall - 1672 - 1704
- Ninian Beall - 1674 - 1734, m. Elizabeth Magruder
- Sarah - 1669 - 1734 m. Col. Samuel Magruder
- Hester - m. 1707 to Col. Joseph Belt
- Jane - m. Col. Archibald Demonston
- Rachael
- Col. George Beall - 1695 - 1780 m. Elizabeth Brooke, daughter of Col. Thomas and Barbara Brooke.
- Mary - m. Andrew Hanbleton
- Thomas, died in 1708, unmarried
- Margery, m. (1st) Thomas Sprigg; (2nd) Col. Joseph Belt, her brother-in-law
- James
Sarah's
grandson, Joshua, married Millicent Bradley, daughter of Robert Bradley
and Ann Fendall, daughter of the first Governor of Maryland.
The
Bealls were of the Macmillian Clan, and the Magruders were of the
MacGregor Clan. There were marriages with the Magruders and several
marriages with the descendants of Gov. Robert Brooke of Maryland. Gov.
Robert Brook came across the Atlantic in his own vessel carrying his
wife, ten children, and forty servants in 1650.
Alexander Beall
came to this country late in the 17th century. His large land holdings
began at Sligo Creek in the edge of Silver Spring, Maryland, and reached
across what is now Montgomery County. There were marriages between his
descendants and Col. Ninian's.
The necessary research and the
space to list all of the members of Col. Ninian Beall's family in all
professions and types of employment who have been of service to the
country, outstanding and distinguished citizens, is for hands other than
mine to finish. However, in this Bi-Centennial year, let us remember
the men and women who spent their lives in the establishment of out
country, both at its beginning and those who have helped to develop it
into the great country which now exists.
A bronze plaque has been
installed on a large oval rock, symbolic of the "Rock of Dumbarton," in
front of St. John's Episcopal church in Georgetown, 3240 O Street N.W.,
with the following inscription:
"Colonel Ninian Beall,
born Scotland, 1625, died Maryland 1717, patentee of the Rock of
Dumbarton; Member of the House of Burgesses; Commander in Chief of the
Provincial Forces of Maryland. In grateful recognition of his services
"upon all Incursions and Disturbances of Neighboring Indians" the
Maryland Assembly of 1699 passed an "Act of Gratitude." This memorial
erected by the Society of Colonial Wars in the District of Columbia,
1910.
Colonel Ninian Beall died at the age of 92 at Fife's
Largo, named for the place of his birth in Scotland. This was the home
mentioned in his will (1717) and was in Prince Georges County near Upper
Marlboro. It is believed that he is buried at Bacon Hall, another of
his homes in Prince Georges County.
This is susposedly the image of one of Ninian Beall's sons.
