Re: Origins of Nathan Levy b.1720
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In reply to:
Re: Origins of Nathan Levy b.1720
Clark Kidder 1/10/06
The first Nathan Levy in NS (1720-1787)
Can anyone add to this information or help with the speculations?
What we know;
Nathan Levy was in Nova Scotia in the early 1750’s – he bought land and there are deeds to confirm these purchases.
Nathan married Sarah Dunn (Widow of John Dunn) at St Paul’s Anglican Church in Halifax 27 June 1759. (Copy of marriage certificate coming to me from the church)
They had; Rachel baptized 24 Aug 1763 at St Paul’s Anglican
Probably Moses also buried the same date as Rachel.
And an Infant buried beside Sarah 3 Jun 1771 in Chester (tombstone in old Baptist Cemetery Chester)
Nathan married Susannah Tufts 3 Oct 1773 also at St Paul’s in Halifax (original license at St Paul’s and a copy coming to me from the church)
They had at least four children, three of whom grew up and married; Gersham, Nathan and Susannah (christenings and marriages are recorded and available)
Nathan Levy is the patriarch (through Gersham) of what became a large Levy family in Nova Scotia
Nathan Levy was the bondsman for John Wheeler when John married Rebecca Levy,26 Apr 1775 at St Paul’s in Halifax. (Marriage bond and marriage recorded)We have no other information on Rebecca Levy)
Nathan Levy died in Chester 18 May 1787 and is buried in Chester (Chester township book)
There was an Isaac Levy in Halifax who died in 1751 his will is on file at the NS Archives. (This would be of great interest to read to see if there is any connection) Isaac was a business partner of Nathan Nathans. He is not the son of Moses Levy because that Isaac died in Philadelphia in 1777.
Moses Raphael Levy came from London to New York in about 1685 and he had two brothers in England, (Simon? and Joseph?) Fran I know I have seen that information somewhere but I can’t lay my hands on it right now.
Moses had 11 children from two wives. His sons continued in the businesses.
The Levy family was a successful business family in New York and extended that to Philadelphia when Nathan (1704-1753) and Isaac, sons of Moses moved to Philadelphia in about 1737. The family was involved in many aspects of trade including slaves and chocolate and supplying American military supplies.
Nathan Levy (1704-1753) and Jacob Franks (Nathan’s brother in law) were partners in Levy and Franks, they owned several ships and had extensive dealings from Quebec to Georgia, including Nova Scotia.
What we suspect;
There is speculation as to the pedigree of the Nova Scotia Nathan Levy and where he came from. In “Search Out the Land” it says he, Isaac Levy and Nathan Nathanscame from Newport RI. In Ester Clark Wright’s book it says Nathan Levy probably came from London England and there is also speculation that he came from New York.
Speculation; There was a Benjamin Levy in Chester in 1765. (Ester Clark Wright’s Planters and Pioneers, Nova Scotia) We have no evidence and know nothing more about this Benjamin Levy but Moses did have a son Benjamin (1726-1802).Or there may be another family connection.
Speculation: There is some connection between the Nathan Levy in Nova Scotia in the 1750’s and the family of Moses Raphael Levy.It is postulated that the Nova Scotia Nathan came to Nova Scotia to carry on the business of Levy and Franks, again I have seen no evidence of this but it seems quite possible. If he was involved with the business of the family there is a good probability that he is in some way family connected.
Speculation; the Nova Scotia Nathan Levy is a grandson of Moses Raphael Levy. However, I have seen no evidence to make that connection. Moses’ oldest son Asher never married and the next oldest Nathan was about 15 when the NS Nathan was born and did not marry until he was about 30 yrs old which makes it unlikely that he was the father. There has been speculation about an illegitimate child of Asher or Nathan but that also seems unlikely because an illegitimate child would probably carry the name of the mother and not have the Levy family surname.
Speculation; the Isaac Levy who died in NS in 1751 is somehow connected to this family. Isaac was a frequently used name in the family and it is believed that Moses’ father was Isaac.