Colonial Period
Until 1649 Catholics in Maryland practiced their religion freely, playing a dominant role in the government. But the religious wars that overtook England were mirrored again and again in Colonial America. By 1689 Catholics had lost all political influence, were excluded from public office and deprived of the vote by 1718.
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By 1700 the tribal groups of the bay had been decimated by disease and warfare, their lands cultivated by the English and slaves, their economies left in shambles, and their traditional beliefs strained and often shattered, as once independent peoples became tributary populations on the periphery of English settlements.
Background Photo: The first colonists to arrive in Maryland purchased bark-covered wigwams from local Piscataway tribes who deemed the structures no longer useful.
Our Ancestors
Basil Hayden, 1744-1804
Merchant, military supplier, pioneering distiller, visionary leader
Henrietta (Cole) Hayden, 1754-1836
Wife, mother, pioneer
Captain Richard James Rapier, 1744-1817
Tobacco planter, captain in the Maryland militia, leader
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1675 John Speed map of Maryland and Virginia.
Bust of Basil Hayden.
Map of original Hayden land in southern Maryland. Note its proximity to "Maynard's Comfort," Rapier land. Both born in 1744, Basil Hayden and Richard James Rapier must have known each other well.
17th and 18th century merchants who engaged in international trade began to develop a more outward looking mindset.
A pistol commonly supplied to American soldiers during the Revolution. This particular pistol was created in France.
Proclamation from the First Continental Congress directing merchants to stop all commerce with Great Britain.
Basil Hayden Sr., 1744-1804
Merchant, military supplier, pioneering distiller, visionary leader of a "League of Catholic Families"
Joseph Ferdinand Hayden's great, great grandfather
Basil Hayden Sr. was born in St. Mary’s City, Maryland in 1744. The Haydens owned land on the western side of the Chesapeake Bay having moved there in the 17th century for its promises of religious tolerance. Before the American Revolution his father, George Hayden, was a wealthy merchant supplying provisions to the English Colonial Army.
From the time of his birth several decades of crisis led up to the American Revolution which would turn Hayden's and all colonists worlds upside down. In 1740 Maryland and Virginia planters were offered easy credit by investors to enlarge their growing capacity for tobacco. But after over a century, tobacco had depleted the soil. When the time came to sell their crops, the indebted growers found themselves forced to accept low prices to stave off bankruptcy.
Meanwhile England was badly in debt from the French and Indian War. In 1764 Britain imposed taxes on sugar and tea to pay the cost of that war. In Maryland the flames of resistance were stoked. In 1765 (8 years before the Boston Tea Party) a British tax collector was nearly killed on an Annapolis dock by an angry crowd in what has been called the "first successful, forcible resistance in America to King George's authority.” In 1774 mimicking the Boston Tea Party a Maryland cargo vessel was burned by an angry mob to punish the ship's captain for violating their boycott of tea imports.
By the 1770s owing to naval
blockades and the colonists
refusal to pay taxes on rum
which required a lot of sugar,
the drink was no longer available.
But colonists knew from their
ancestors how to make strong
drink. Basil Hayden was one
of those pioneering distillers
making whiskey from corn.
While it was not called “bourbon”
yet, it was made with a high
rye content. It was a revolutionary
step that carved out a unique
segment within the bourbon
family and significantly
impacted the Haydens after their
move to Kentucky. During the
war, Maryland was noteworthy in supplying the Continental Army. Known as the “bread basket of the Revolution” they contributed livestock, wagons, hay, flour, corn, clothing, and blankets. As a merchant Basil Hayden served in this capacity skillfully.
The war was costly for Marylanders in other ways. The British blockaded Maryland ports and raided and burned homes and whole towns. They disrupted trade, worked to prevent the movement of troops, and destroyed valuable resources including coal, military supplies and iron works used to produce cannon for the Continental Army.
By the end of the war, farmland in older parts of Maryland, especially in the south where Catholics were concentrated, became increasingly scarce as the population multiplied and the soil was exhausted. The Continental Congress was broke and could not pay for what had been supplied or help the towns that were destroyed by the blockades.
The American Revolution, which ended religious persecution and opened fresh opportunities, coincided with an acute shortage of land. When cheap land became available in western Virginia, approximately 60 mostly St. Mary’s County Catholic families formed the "League of Catholic Families" to settle together in what has come to be called the "Kentucky Holy Lands" (what is now Nelson, Washington, and Marion counties) for mutual protection. The original concept for the "League" was Basil Hayden's and he led the first group of 25 families. Accompanying him was his wife, Henrietta Cole Hayden and their 9 children. They began their journey early in 1785.
(STORY TO BE CONTINUED UNDER "FRONTIER".)
Children of Basil and Henrietta Hayden:
Stanislaus Hayden, 1772-1839
Robert Hayden, 1773-1806
Basil Hayden Jr., 1774-1833
Ann Hayden, 1776-1865
John Baptist Hayden, 1779-1785
Joseph Hayden, 1781-1785
Eleanor Hayden, 1782-1803
Teresa Hayden, 1788-1785
John Hayden, 1784-1785
William Leo Hayden, 1785-1867
Theresa Hayden, 1788-
Hillary Hayden, 1792-1792
Edward Hayden, 1795-
Lewis Hayden, 1796-1849
Alexander Hayden, 1798-
Maryland was the "bread basket of the revolution." suppliers such as hayden provided livestock, wagons, hay, flour, corn, clothing, baskets, coal, military supplies and iron works to produce cannon.
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Tobacco farm in southern Maryland.
Colonial hearth.
The Compleat Housewife was a cookbook used throughout the 13 colonies.
Henrietta (Cole) Hayden Sr., 1754-1837
Wife, mother, pioneer
Joseph Ferdinand Hayden's great, great grandmother
As the wife of a successful merchant, Henrietta Cole Hayden’s life and social standing was more comfortable than many. At the outbreak of the American Revolution, she was 22 years old, the mother of three children, six months pregnant with a fourth, birthed another four by the time the war was over, and had another 1 year old in her arms as the family left for Kentucky in 1785. At least at this point, as the primary caregiver and educator she was atypical because so many colonial families lost children early and frequently.
Of course, there was no electricity, running water or indoor plumbing. Once married, Henrietta’s responsibilities for her growing brood included cooking and preparing food—shelling corn, grinding flour, baking bread from scratch, churning butter and making cheese. Food was cooked over a large fire, frequently in an out building. As the wife of a merchant, some things could have been purchased, but creating the many required goods included spinning, weaving cloth, candle and soap making. Gardening and tending livestock would also have been Henrietta's responsibility. It is, also, unclear as to whether or not the Hayden household had house servants or slaves. Before the war, the family appears to have been financially comfortable enough to have had some. Hayden does identify 24 slaves in his will at the time of his death which suggests they likely did and may have taken indentured servants or slaves with them to Kentucky.
The hardships and risks for a young family in
Colonial Maryland were considerable. Early
deaths were common with many couples
not living more than a decade after
marriage. Both men and women remarried
after the loss of a spouse to help raise
children, maintain the home, or to provide
financial stability for a widow. All women
faced various health risks. It was common in childbirth and other specific illnesses from the New World’s environment. In Maryland the dangers from war on the Chesapeake were considerable due to attacks and property loss from British raids. Women, no matter their socioeconomic standing, were at a constant threat of sexual exploitation and abuse. While Maryland’s legal system did offer some rights, it placed significant burden on the victims and could be difficult to navigate potentially discouraging women from seeking justice through legal channels.
In this environment the Basil Hayden family determined to lead the first group of 25 Catholic families to Kentucky.
(STORY TO BE CONTINUED UNDER "FRONTIER".)
Children of Basil and Henrietta Cole Hayden:
Stanislaus Hayden, 1772-1839
Robert Hayden, 1773-1806
Basil Hayden Jr., 1774-1833
Ann Hayden, 1776-1865
John Baptist Hayden, 1779-1785
Joseph Hayden, 1781-1785
Eleanor Hayden, 1782-1803
Teresa Hayden, 1788-1785
John Hayden, 1784-1785
William Leo Hayden, 1785-1867
Theresa Hayden, 1788-
Hillary Hayden, 1792-1792
Edward Hayden, 1795-
Lewis Hayden, 1796-1849
Alexander Hayden, 1798-
The hardships and risks for a young family in colonial maryland were considerable.
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The Rapier's were tobacco planters.
St. Francis Xavier Church chapel built in 1731. It is the oldest Catholic church still in use in the thirteen original colonies. Both Basil and Henrietta Hayden and Richard James Rapier would have considered this their home parish. At that time, parishioners would have often arrived by sail for services.
Map showing Maynard's Comfort, Richard James Rapier's inherited homeland. Note the proximity of Hayden land, Small Hopes. The two men most assuredly grew up together having both been born in 1744 and living in such close proximity..
Captain Richard James Rapier,
1744-1817
Tobacco planter, Captain in the Maryland Militia, led the 2nd "League of Catholic Families" group to Kentucky
Joseph Ferdinand Hayden's direct ancestor (5 generations)
Richard James Rapier was born in St. Mary’s County in 1744 on the property called “Maynard’s Comfort” originally established by Charles Maynard and his wife, Ann, and inherited through the marriage of his great grandparents, John Rapier (d1687/8) and Elizabeth Maynard. Often called James, he was seven years old when his father died. His mother, Teresia (Teresita) (Thompson) Rapier (1713-1771) soon married a neighbor Clement Stafford (d. 1764). It was not unusual for both men and women to remarry soon after a spouse’s death to maintain both economic and family stability. As Rapier neared adulthood, his stepfather died. His mother, having buried two husbands and four children died in 1771. Rapier married Margaret Thompson (1748-1830) in 1772/3. They were second cousins on the Thompson side. As tobacco planters, the Rapiers were slaveholders. Richard James and his siblings inherited slaves through each of their parents wills, as did their parents before them.
As the war for Independence approached, Maryland began building an independent militia. Maryland’s patriots were recruited, equipped, trained and disciplined in ways that set them apart from other units within the colonies—especially as they were supplied and trained with bayonets.
In 1777 the Maryland Assembly
requested the militia within each county
identify men “with undoubted courage,
zeal, and attachment to liberties and
the independence of America” be
recommended as commissioned
officers. Richard James Rapier was
recommended as a first lieutenant
and his brother,William, as a second
lieutenant. Five months later, Rapier
received a second promotion to Captain.
During the Revolutionary War Captains
were elected by their troops rather than
as a top down recogntion. This speaks
highly of Rapier’s leadership ability, likeability, and amiability.
After the war years and the havoc of British blockades of Maryland’s ports and attacks on Maryland’s towns and homes, the peaceful “quiet” of the Virginia wilderness might have been appealing. Maryland's land that had seen a century of tobacco production was depleted. It was with this point that the “League of Catholic Families” was formed. Basil Hayden led the first group of families in 1785. Captain Rapier agreed to lead the second group of families in 1786 towards the future.
(STORY TO BE CONTINUED UNDER "FRONTIER".)
Children of Captain Richard James Rapier and Margaret (Thompson) Rapier were:
Richard (ca 1773-1826)
William C. (1775-1838)
Mary (1777-1846)
Ann Nancy (1780-1846)
Margaret (ca 1782-1857)
Elizabeth (1783-1851)
Charles (1785-1858)
James (1785-1858)
During the revolutionary war, captains were elected by their troops which speaks of rapier's leadership and likeability.