Reisterstown Community Cemetery: Samuel & Elizabeth Harryman

October 17th marks 150 years since the death of Elizabeth (Wheeler) Harryman, and October 21st marks 163 years since the death of her husband, Samuel Harryman.

"An honest man the noblest work of God"

Samuel and Elizabeth were the parents of Priscilla Harryman Choate from the June 2014 blog post, and the grandparents of Amos Harryman from the December 2013 blog post.

Elizabeth Wheeler was born on April 16, 1781 in Maryland, and Samuel Harryman was born almost exactly five months later, on September 15th. It is uncertain who their parents were, but the two were married in Baltimore County on January 21, 1804.

On December 20, 1806, Samuel purchased a half-acre lot of land from Charles Bardle for £30. The lot had previously been part of the "Brotherly Love" land tract owned by John Reister. Samuel purchased an additional half-acre from Peter Trine (Reister's son-in-law) in 1810 for $100.

Despite the land purchases in what would become Reisterstown, Samuel and Elizabeth were counted in the 1810 census living in Soldiers Delight Hundred. In all, there were eight members in the household, including three girls under the age of ten: the Harrymans' young daughters Priscilla, Merab, and Lucretia.

Over the next decade, the Harrymans welcomed at least four sons into the family, but only George survived to be counted in the 1820 census. Sons Columbus, Owen, and Charles each lived a handful of months, and together share a headstone in the cemetery.

Samuel Harryman was serving as one of the six trustees of the Lutheran Church on January 12, 1821, when it was officially incorporated by the Maryland General Assembly.

In 1828, Samuel was appointed the town's Postmaster, a position he would hold until 1849. According to an article from the Weekly Argus, his replacement was politically motivated: "Not for want of integrity or capacity, but for the more heinous offence of being a Democrat." The Baltimore Sun even described Samuel as "a faithful and obliging officer."

In the 1850 census, Samuel was listed as a saddler, owning $3,000 worth of real estate. Two of the Harrymans' adult children were living with them, Lucretia, aged 39, and Amos, aged 29, who was listed as a merchant. Also living in the household were a granddaughter, Catharine Mackelfresh; a niece, Nancy Wheeler; and a boarder, Nicholas Gorgan.

Samuel Harryman passed away two years later, on October 21, 1852 at the age of 71.

In his will, Samuel named his wife Elizabeth and son Amos as his executors, though on November 3, 1852, Elizabeth renounced her rights as executor in favor of her son. Samuel granted $100 to his son George, and absolved him of the debts that George owed him. His daughter Priscilla was bequeathed $50, while daughter Merab, granddaughter Catharine, and niece Nancy each received $10. The rest of his estate he left to his wife, son Amos, and daughter Lucretia, to be equally divided among them.

Elizabeth, Amos, and Lucretia were still living in the same household in the 1860 census, though now with a servant, North Little, and two boarders, Margaret Riders and Alexander Allen. Even though the property was left to the trio equally, only Amos was listed as owning the real estate, valued at $8,000.

Elizabeth Harryman passed away on October 17, 1865 at the age of 84.

The Harrymans' House remains today, one of the town's oldest buildings. For many years, it has been a popular local restaurant.

Samuel and Elizabeth's children were:

Priscilla Harryman, 1804-1876, wife of Herod Choate
Merab Harryman, 1807-1870, wife of (1) Jacob M. Mackelfresh & (2) Henry Baker
Lucretia Harryman, 1809-1892, unmarried
George W. Harryman, c1811–18??, husband of Eliza L. Igo
Columbus R. Harryman, 1813-1815
Owen S. Harryman, 1815-1816
Charles D. Harryman, 1817-1818
Amos A. Harryman, 1821-1877, husband of Ann Howard Harding

Sources:
Ancestry.com (census records)

Year: 1810; Census Place: Soldiers Delight Hundred, Baltimore, Maryland; Roll: 13; Page: 569.
Year: 1820; Census Place: District 7, Baltimore, Maryland; Roll: M33_41; Page: 14.
Year: 1830; Census Place: District 7, Baltimore, Maryland; Roll: M19_55; Page: 210.
Year: 1840; Census Place: District 5, Baltimore, Maryland; Roll: 162; Page: 161.
Year: 1850; Census Place: District 1, Baltimore, Maryland; Roll: M432_280; Page: 220A.
Year: 1860; Census Place: District 4, Baltimore, Maryland; Roll: M653_468; Page: 42.