The Haworth Association of America
Alice Haworth Kenworthy
Previously "Unknown Sister: of George Haworth, the Emigrant
A paper by Don Hayworth
What George Haworth wrote about his voyage to America and the death of his
unnamed sister and her family!
On 26 October 1699 (ye 26th of ye 8th Mo. 1699), George
wrote to his family in England. An excerpt from that letter is repeated below:
“We
were about 14 weeks at Sea after we left Liverpool a long and tedious Journey we
had, for we being over many throng'd in the Ship, I believe hurt many, for we
had many distempers among us, as Fevers, Flux, and Jaundice, and many died at
Sea about 56 and at Shore there died about 20. Henry Mitchell died about midway,
his son John is dead also and one Ellis Scholfield and Robert Brewer is dead and
hath left his goods to be returned to his kinsfolks at Liverpool. My Brother
in law is dead and child died also about 3 days before my Sister, She was
indifferently well most of the way but about 100 Leagues of sight of land she
bore a child and it died and then she died and left her Household goods to my
Sister and one half of the clothes, and the other half she hath left me,
Thomas Musgrove is dead also at Sea and Henry Mitchells' wife died at shore.
What was the name of the ship George and his sister sailed on?
Although George Haworth did not name the ship on which he sailed, it has been determined that the ship was the “Britannia”; often referred to as “that sick ship from Liverpool”, due to the many deaths during the crossing and immediately after reaching land. The Britannia was chartered on behalf of the Lancaster Quaker Meetings and sailed out of Liverpool for Philadelphia. The Britannia was a large, sluggish, sailing ship with a capacity for 140 passengers. From George’s letter there may have been more than 140 passengers crowded on board for this crossing. The date of the Britannia’s arrival in America was 24 August 1699. The date of departure from Liverpool would have been sometime around mid-May 1699, since they
What was the name of George’s sister, husband and children, who died aboard the
Britannia?
We now know that George Haworth’s “unknown sister” was Alice Haworth, born about
1675 in Lancashire. About 1694, Alice married John Kenworthy “of Saddleworth on
the Lancashire/Yorkshire border”, who was born about 1670. On 25 August 1696, a
set of twins, a boy named James and a girl named Isabel, were born to John
Kenworthy and Alice Haworth. Isabel died about 1697 of unknown causes.
There is some controversy regarding the surname of Alice’s husband. Some records
show his name as Kennerly and some as Kenworthy.
According to George Redmonds in his book
“Christian Names in
Local and Family History”, Kennerly/Kennerley is a colloquial variant of
Kenworthy
“that appears to have no
obvious linguistic explanation”. This explains the controversy of whether
Alice’s husband was “John Kennerly” or “John Kenworthy”. He was both and both
names were often recorded in the old records for the same person, including the
birth of “John Kenerlley or Kenworthey” on 06 Apr 1673 in Saddleworth,
Yorkshire, England.
In addition to George’s letter there is another record of his sister’s death.
The term "Public Friend" refers to Friends who spoke in Meetings. Those
acceptable to the Meeting were recorded by the ministers and elders, and
formally named ministers. At a Yearly Meeting of English Friends held at London
in 1709, a manuscript was presented listing 87 Public Friends that had died in
Pennsylvania since the first settlement there. Three were stated to have died on
the Britannia.
THOMAS MUSGRAVE "of Warley near Halifax in
Yorkshire took ship at Liverpool and was bound for Philada. He died on shipboard
ye 14: 6mo[Aug]: 1699. ... ye vessel arrived ye same month 4th [sic] 6mo: 1699."
HENRY MITCHELL "belon[g]ed to Marston
[Marsden] Meeting in Lancashire. He died on board ye said ship ye 5mo[Jul]:
1699."
ALlCE, "wife of JNO. KENCERLY, came from
Wolldall [Wooldale] or near it in Yorkshire. Her maiden name was HEYWORTH
[HAWORTH] of Rosendall [Rossendal], Lancashire. She died also on board ye said
ship in ye 5th[Jul] or 6th[Aug] mo: 1699."
Note that both Musgrave and Mitchell are named in George’s letter. Alice, wife of
John Kencerly, is undoubtedly George Haworth's sister, who along with her
husband and baby, died at sea on the Britannia. Kencerly, however, is obviously an erroneous transcription of Kennerly
(also spelled Kennerley and Kenerlley).