John Cears Kear Family

A History of the Cears/Kear family

 Mary Margaret Kear

 Mary Margaret KEAR, daughter of Thomas  Reed  KEAR and Catharine FRYSINGER, was  born in  Champaign Co., Ohio on 30 December  1832 [  note 1] and died on 9 August 1916 in  Huntington, Allen Co., Indiana [note 2]. She  married Jackson PENCE on 6 March 1851 in  Champaign Co., Ohio. He was born on 6 March  1829 in Champaign Co., Ohio [note 3] to John  PENCE and Barbara LAUDENBACK [note 4], and  died 1 June 1892 in Van Wert County, Ohio [note 5].  They are buried in the Wren Cemetery, Wren, Van Wert County, Ohio [note 6].
Photo dated August 11, 1892 courtesy of John Feagans .

At the age of three years Mary Margaret was taken to Van Wert, Ohio, with her parents.  After her marriage to Jackson Pence they lived in Champaign county five years and then returned to Van Wert [note 7].

After Jackson's death, Mary Margaret remained in Van Wert until 1903 when she moved to Huntington with her youngest son, Charles, where she died.  Her funeral was held from the home of her daughter, Ethleen Young, and a short service was held at the Wren Cemetery [note 8]. 

Jackson was the seventh child, and his mother was John's second wife. John's first wife, Mary Frances HOFFMAN, died before 1824, and he married Barbara -?- on 7 July 1824 in Champaign Co., Ohio.  Barbara was born on 5 February 1800 in Virginia, and died on 9 September 1863 in Mad River Township, Champaign County.  Both are buried in Mount Zion Cemetery in Champaign County,Ohio [note 9]. 

John PENCE was born in Virginia around 1782, the fourth child of Frederick PENCE and Mary ---. Frederick was a gun smith and wagon maker.  A widower, he moved his family before 1819 to Champaign County, Ohio.  Mary was born in Shenandoah County, Virginia, and married Frederick before 1778 in Shenandoah County, Virginia [note 10]. Frederick PENCE was born before 1757 possibly in Pennsylvania, the first child of Jacob PENCE and Barbara ----. He died in 1835 in Mad River Township, Champaign Co., Ohio [note 11].

Jacob PENCE was born in Germany about 1711, and died in Shenandoah Co., Virginia, before 29 October 1778. He married Barbara --- around 1789, who died in 1818 [note 12].  Jacob arrived on 15 September 1749 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, from Rotterdam via Cowes, England, on the ship, Phoenix.  He arrived with two brothers, Johann Ludwig BENTZ and Heinrich BENTZ. the pronunciation of "B" in the Bavarian dialect sounded like "P" in English.  Through this and other errors, Jacob BENTZ became Jacob PENCE; Johann BENTZ became Lewis PENCE, and Heinrich BENTZ became Henry PENCE [note 13].

Mary Margaret and Jackson had six children [note 14]:

1. Lavina L. PENCE. 
2. Mahala PENCE, born in Van Wert Co., Ohio on 11 March 1854, and died in Whitley Co., Indiana. She married John PENCE, parents' names not known. 
3. Amanda PENCE, born 1856 in Van Wert Co., Ohio, died in Michigan City, Indiana; married John BROWN. 
4. Elmer Ellsworth PENCE was born 27 February 1862 in Van Wert Co., Ohio, died 24 March 1947 in Van Wert Co., Ohio. 
5. Ethleen E. PENCE was born in Van Wert Co., Ohio, and married Peter YOUNG. 
6. Charles C. PENCE was born in 1872 in Van Wert Co., Ohio, died in March 1920 in Huntington, Whitley Co., Indiana. He married Caroline COURTNEY. 

Link to Pence family photo.

1. Cemetery Inscriptions, (Van Wert County Chapter Ohio Genealogical Society: Vol. V, p. 140. [Return to text] 
2. City Health Office, Huntington, Allen Co., Indiana, CH6, p. 18.. [Return to text] 
3. Ibid. [Return to text] 
4. Marriage Records, Champaign County, Ohio, Vol. E, p. 109, No. 5353. [Return to text] 
5. Beatrice Carson, PENCE Family Genealogy, (Washington, D.C., 1962), pp. 68 and 72. [Return to text] 
6. Death Record, Probate Court, Van Wert County, Ohio, Vol. 1, p. 374. [Return to text] 
7. Obituary, Huntington Herald, Huntington, Indiana, Wednesday Evening, August 9, 1916. [Return to text] 
8. Ibid. [Return to text] 
9. Beatrice Carson, pp 68 and 72. [Return to text] 
10. Ibid, pp. 59 and 68. [Return to text] 
11. Ibid, p. 59. [Return to text] 
12. Ibid, p. 59. [Return to text]
13. Digging Our Roots, "The PENCE Family," (Baltimore: Gateway Press, Inc., 1977), p. 4. [Return to text] 
14. Telephone conversation between Mildred PENCE and Donald Kear on 13 December 1981. [Return to text]

Copyright

Information on this site related to the Kear family is from The John Cears Kear Family compiled, written and edited by Donald L. Kear, copyright © 1984.
Copyright © 2000 - 2006 by Donald L. Kear. All rights reserved. Portions of the pages on this site may be reproduced for nonprofit use only.  Credit shall be given to the source.

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