Philip Key (1750-1820)
MSA SC 3520-765
Biography
Born: in 1750; probably in St. Mary's County.
Native: third generation.
Resided: at "Gravelly Hills," Chaptico
Hundred, St. Mary's County.
Died:
January 4, 1820, in St. Mary's County.
Family Background
Father: Dr. John Key (?-1755), son of
Philip Key (1696/97-1764).
Stepfather: Thomas
Bond (?-ca. 1797).
Guardian: his grandfather
Philip Key (1696/97-1764). When Key's grandfather died, his uncles Richard Ward Key (?-1765), Edmund Key (?-1766), and Thomas Key
(?-1772) became his guardians.
Mother: Cecelia
(1730/31-ca. 1797), daughter of Dr. Gustavus
Brown (1689-1762) of Charles County.
Aunts: Susannah Gardiner Key (1742-1811), who married in 1761 Normand Bruce (?-1811); Ann Brown
Clagett Horner (1732-ca. 1800), who married
third, ca. 1774, Samuel Hanson (1716-1794).
Half Brothers: Peregrine Bond; Thomas Bond; and
John Bond.
Sisters: Susannah Gardiner (1751- ?), who married Richard Bond, brother of Thomas
Bond (?-ca. 1797).
Half Sisters: Cecelia Bond;
Elizabeth Bond.
First Cousins: John Ross Key
(1754-1821); Gustavus Scott (1753-1800).
Married: first, on March 4, 1778, Rebecca Jowles,
daughter of Henry Greenfield Sothoron (ca. 1732-1793). Her brothers were John; Zachariah; Henry;
James; Thomas; and George Washington. Her
sisters were Mary; Eleanor; and Ann.
Married: second, Sophia (1765-1833), daughter of Aquila
Hall (1727-1779) and wife Sophia White (?-1780). Her brothers were Thomas (1750-1804); James
White (1754-1808); Aquila (1754-1754); William (1756-1818); John (1762-1804); Edward
(1763-?); and Benedict (1771-?). Her sisters were
Charlotte (1758-1838), who married Nathaniel
Ramsay (1741-1817); Mary (1760-?); Martha
(1768-?); and Elizabeth (1770-?). Her cousin
was Susannah Hall (1744- ca. 1770). who married first, in 1759, James Heath (?-1766), and
second, John Lee Webster (ca. 1735-1795).
Children
Sons: Philip (1781-?), who married Frances
Putnam; Robert Morris (1787-?); John (1789-
died a minor); Henry Greenfield Sothoron (1790-1872), who married first, Henrietta Tayloe, and
second, Maria Harris; Edward Hall (?-died a minor); Upton Scott; Thomas White (ca. 1802-1874),
who married Nancy E. Murphy (1834-1889); and
John Hall (1807-1884), who married Juliet Malinda Reedes.
Daughters: Mary (1782-?), who
married John Barnes; Cecilia Brown (1784-?),
who married in 1804 Henry Ashton; Rebecca Sothoron (1784-?), who married Charles H. W.
Wharton; Eliza Maynadier (1792-?), who married John Scott; Clarissa Bond (1794-died a minor); Sophia Hall (?-died a minor); Susanna Gardiner (?-died a minor); Anna Heath, who married
Richard Smith; and Mary Hall (1803-?), who
married in 1823 John Hanson Briscoe.
Private Career
Education: attended school in England;
studied law.
Religious Affiliation: Anglican,
King and Queen Parish, St. Mary's County.
Social Status and Activities: Gent., by 1771; Esq.,
by 1780.
Occupational Profile: planter; lawyer; merchant, by 1779-1787; in partnership with
Uriah Forrest (1746-1805) in 1779. Forrest and
Key owned a schooner.
Public Career
Legislative Service: House of Delegates, St. Mary's County,
1773-1774 (Claims 1, Cv), 1779-1780 (Manufactories 1; Tax Commissioners 1), 1780-1781
(Manufactories 1), 1782-1783 (Claims 2), 1783
(Grievances; Claims), 1784 (Grievances; Claims),
1785, 1787-1788 (discharged on May 20, 1788,
for "treating" at the election), 1790, 1795
(speaker), 1796 (speaker).
Local Office: Committee of Correspondence, St. Mary's County, in
office 1774.
Out of State Service: representative, U.S. Congress, 1791-1793.
Wealth During Lifetime
Personal Property: 3 slaves inherited
from father, 1755; 4 slaves and £155.0.0 inherited
from grandfather, 1764; 23 slaves, 1790; assessed
value £699.1.8, including 26 slaves and 50 oz.
plate, 1793; assessed value £720.0.0, including 22
slaves and 16 oz. plate, 1801; assessed value £566.5.0, including 16 slaves and 16 ounces plate, 1806.
Land at First Election: inherited 8 tracts
(acreage unknown) in St. Mary's County.
Significant Changes in Land Between First Election and Death: acquired by patent and purchase as much as 2,000 acres in St. Mary's and
Charles counties, 1776-1820, plus partial ownership of 2 mills in St. Mary's County, 3 lots in
Baltimore City, and 4 acres in Baltimore County;
probably sold by 1819 all Baltimore City and Baltimore County property.
Wealth at Death
Personal Property: total estate value $8,711.43 (including 16
slaves); final balance, $4,208.95.
Land: as much as 2,900
acres in St. Mary's and Charles counties.
Return to Philip Key's Introductory Page
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