No matter whether one spells his surname Keel (consistent with German), Kale or Cale (English) or
Caille (French) -- we are talking about one person.
He is the original immigrant ancestor for many Cale and Cales families in
America.
His origins a mystery
This author has taken on the task of filling this important knowledge gap:
Where specifically was David born?
Who were his parents?
Did he have siblings?
Where were his parents born?
We are, for example, unable to perform Step 2 of the FamilySearch Research
Outline for
Germany: "First, select a specific German
relative or ancestor for
whom you know at least a name, the town or parish where he or she lived in
Germany, and an approximate date of birth or marriage.". We have a name
and approximate time of birth, but no town or parish where he might have lived
between 1716 and 1742.
We do not know where he began his journey, but we presume he traveled down
the Rhine River with other "New Worlders" and do know that he boarded a ship
named the "Loyal Judith" in the spring of 1742.
The ship stopped at Cowes, on the Isle of Wight, for permission to import foreigners to
the American colonies.
Recent evidence suggests his family may have been based more strongly in
Lorraine or Nord, presently regions of France. We suspect the Nord D�partemente
of Lorraine on the basis that births to families with the surname Caille were
most frequent there in the 1891-1915 period. More recent data (1966-1990) shows
Loire Atlantique as the second-most frequent. (We suspect immigration within
France accounts for this.)
Here is a collection of relevant historical
notes regarding a possible Palatine birth.
The Telephone Book?
Our guy died long before telephone (or city) directories became common.
However, an effective technique for possibly identifying the place of origin of
a surname is to search an online national directory (such as Germany's "das
telefonb�ch"). A cluster of listings may indicate
the ancestral home.
Extensive searches of modern Germany's "das
telefonb�ch"
by many spellings reveals that the surname is not common there today and
there are no clusters.
France's "pages
blanches", by contrast, reveals three listings for Caille in the small
village of Abscon, D�partemente
du Nord.
Missing records
There are records we wish we had access to. Many are no longer extant.
"Foreigners Imported Permissions" at Cowes -- Each ship transporting
other than British subjects to the colonies in North America was required to
stop at a British port for permission to do so. The lists were apparently
not kept for long.
Police permits in Rotterdam -- Those awaiting passages on ships were not
Dutch subjects; they needed permission from Rotterdam police to stay in the
city. These records seem to have been destroyed in World War II.
Manumission Permits -- German towns required official permission to
leave, though there is some evidence the requirement was only sporadically
enforced. Many of these records still exist; however, their are kept at the
town level, so one needs to know the town in order to find them.
His first (found) appearance in records
David Keel, or David Kell,
or Davit Sch�ll, entered America when he stepped off the "Loyal
Judith" in Philadelphia on 3 September 1742. His name was written one way
(David Keel) by the ship's crew (See Strassbuger-Hincke, #93A, for which
only the transcription has been found -- not an image of the handwriting.), another (David
Kell) by the clerk overseeing the "B" list of those taking
the loyalty oath (S-H, #93B), and yet another
way (Davit Sh�ll or Sch�ll) in the oath book (S-H,
#93C). The latter was presumably by a fellow passenger, who translated the final
"d" into "t" & "K" into "Sh" or
"Sch", common Germanic usages. Below are images
of his name & mark:
Graphic above is from Strassburger-Hincke, Volume II,
List 93B
Graphic above is from
S-H 93C.
Note three vertical bars, "| |
|", for his mark. (Later, this will become "D | |".)
His Mark
David's mark (3 vertical bars or "| | |" in 1742) was distinctive, helping us to identify him from among others who may have had the
same name. Though the samples above show shakiness in using a pen, he avoided
the more standard "X". By the time he made his will, he had learned
the first letter of his given name and his mark became "D | |".
Other Spellings?
Some have suggested other vowels or vowel combinations (such as
"�e"), but none of these would have produced a sound in German similar to the
English long a of "ale" or the short e of "tell".
The inconsistent spellings of English-speaking writers do not imply any
attempt on his part to hide his identity; he would not have recognized when his name was
being spelled differently.)
Did he have family aboard?
He may, or may not, have been accompanied by his wife and/or children; the passenger list does not
include any women or children among the 76 listed passengers. However, at least one other of the men
aboard -- Johannes Wolfskehl -- has been proven to have traveled
with wife & daughters.
David took the loyalty oaths Pennsylvania required and, apparently,
began indentured servitude in Burlington County, New Jersey almost immediately. He seems
not to have had family in America, nor to have been sponsored by a Lutheran or Reformed
congregation. A common practice of the time was for ship's captains to accept a contract
of indenture as payment for passage and then to sell the contract on the open market in
Philadelphia.
Next found in New Jersey
In 1754, he petitioned for and was granted naturalization
as a citizen. It was that petition's statement that he was born "in the
territories of the Elector
Palatine" that gives us the best clue of his origin. Supporting his petition was a
statement from Michael Houdin or Horedin, the pastor of St. Michael's Church in Trenton,
that David had attended Easter Communion, thus proving he was a Protestant. The
Court found that he had taken "the Oathe" and had been present in New Jersey for
at least seven years (more like 12) without being absent more than two months.
St. Michael's Church is still in existence. we presume that, among the papers stored in
its basement, are records relating to David -- possibly even the record of his marriage to Alberdina.
The naturalization may have been necessary to buy real estate, because he
shortly purchased land in Trenton and appears to have remained there for more than twenty
years.
Married
David married Aberdina Barthemia (or Parthenia)
[--Cale?--], his only known wife. This author believes the second name to be a
"middle" name and that her maiden surname is unknown. No record of any family with a
surname of Barthemia, Porthemia, or other spelling variant has been found in New Jersey
colonial records. However, Parthenia -- of which Barthemia is a Germanic
rendition and another name for the Greek goddess Athena -- was a common female
given name. We think "Alberdina" is a feminized version of "Albert",
Nor, has a record been found of a marriage, indicating they may have
been married in the Electoral Palatinate & she possibly accompanied David on the Loyal
Judith. At least one researcher believes that David & Barthemia were married in
Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania. (About 60 miles west of Burlington County, New Jersey,
across the Delaware River.)
As nearly as can be determined from scant records, the first of their
children were born in New Jersey.
To Virginia
In March 1770, David arranged a lease for 800 acres of land in
Fauquier County, Virginia for his five sons. By 1783, the family had settled in
Augusta County, Virginia, David claiming on 30 acres.
One looks for an explanation for this move without success. It appears to
span the Revolutionary War. (IN which, Trenton was an important American victory
on the day after Christmas, 1776.)
David died in Beverly Manor, Augusta County, Virginia between 25 April
1786 (when he made his will) & 17 July 1787 (when his will
was proved in court).
There is no evidence that David participated directly in the Revolutionary War; he was too old
for military service. But, he would have been touched by it and one of his sons
did soldier on the side of the Patriots.
