Morton Family

The family of Restore Morton appears on the 1850 Census for Mullica Township in Atlantic County; by 1860 they were living in Washington Township. The family changed somewhat in it's composition in the interveneing years; most of the children that lived with the family in 1850 were gone, and three new ones seem to have been born to Restore and Maria (or Mariah, as her name appears in the 1850 census.)

The absence of most of the children is explainable by their ages: John, Hezekiah, Elijah, and Benjamin would all be over 20 years of age. Anna and Mary Jane would have been somewhat younger (17 and 15), making it a bit uncertain where exactly they went. Patience was still living with the family, and three new daughters had arrived: Sarah (now age 7); Hannah (age 4); and Rebecca (age 2).

The possibility that some of the others died cannot be discounted. In at least one case, however, that of Elijah Morton, we know he was still alive in 1860 but not living with the family, as he was mustered into Company G, 4th Reg. on Aug 17, 1861.

According to one visitor to this site, Maria or Mariah's surname was either Penniman or Perriman, but no one can verify it for us. She may have been from Delaware. Restore put the younger girls out to work very early. Rebecca and Sarah were brought to Pemberton in Burlington County where they worked as maids until they were married. They remained close, but lost most other contact with their siblings.