Fact? Fancy? Legend?
There is a small silver cup which has been in our Larrance/Lawrence family since before 1800. The cup has 3 letters engraved on it: an L on top of an I/J and an S . I have been told that after the Civil War, Isaac Larrance/Lawrence, a son of Peter Larrance of Henry Co. IN, took a trip to NC to visit his relatives. He kept a journal and made a sketch of the cup in his book. I have not ever seen the journal, nor do I know if it still exists. However, Ellis Lawrence, a son of Isaac, corresponded with Lindley Lawrence, who possessed the cup at that time (both lived in Indiana). The history of the cup remains shrouded. I offer here some of the stories I have heard in regards to the cup.
The tale told to me when I began doing research back in 1969/70 was this: The founder of our branch of the Lawrence family in America was John O. Lawrence, a Protestant, born in England. He married Mary Towneley, an English Catholic. Since English laws of that time forbade such marriages, they took ship from England, and were married (by the ship captain?) off the coast of Italy. They emigrated thence to Virginia(?). Although Mary`s father, a silversmith, disapproved of the match, nevertheless he gave her a silver cup as a wedding gift. It was decreed (by whom?) that this cup was to be passed to the youngest son of the youngest son of each generation. Thus, from John Larrance (1725-1800), it went to his son Rev. Jesse Lawrence, his son Spinks Lawrence (had no children), his nephew Rev. Wm. Wesley Lawrence, his son Lindley Lawrence (he moved to Indiana with his family), and his son Wm. S. (Bill) Lawrence. Bill`s widow, Alyce Lawrence of Indiana, currently has the cup.
Cousins living in Calif. in 1979 (descendants of John Larrance through his son Richard and his son David) had this to say: During one of the crusades of the 12th century, tradition says this silver cup was awarded by Richard Couer de Leon to Richard Lawrence, because it was he who first planted the banner of the cross upon the walls of Jerusalem. About the middle of the 17th century it was brought to America by John O. Lawrence who lived and was buried on Long Island. Since that time it has descended from father to the youngest son of each successive generation. The inscription means ``Lawrence-In the Cross there is safety (or salvation).``
Searching for Your Ancestors, the How and Why of Genealogy by Gilbert H. Doane, Univ. of Minn. Press, 1937 (3rd edition 1960), states that ``although very old silver is uncommon, an occasional piece has survived and been preserved as an heirloom. An old spoon engraved thus: A and B on top of C, has its clue, for initials placed in this manner on really old silver generally mean that the piece belonged to a husband and wife jointly. (Here, say Abe and Betsy Cole.) Old tankards and silver mugs are frequently engraved in the same manner. It may have been a wedding gift.``
The Mystery Solved-Facts Relating to the `Lawrence-Townley` `Chase-Townley` Marriage & Estate Question by Frank Alden Hill, 1888, Rand Avery Co. states (pg 92) that the tradition of a marriage between Mary Townley to a Lawrence or Chase has found its way into a number of families in America, but discounts the validity of such a claim. An estate in England was up for grabs in the 19th century, and numerous Lawrence families in the US tried to prove their right to claim it. None appear to have been successful, but nonetheless the tale of a Lawrence/Townley marriage survives in many a Lawrence family, our own included.
Dennis Lawrence, who maintains a web site for information on any and all Lawrences at http://home.earthlink.net/~lawren05/, wrote the following to the Lawrence mailing list at ROOTSWEB: Another interesting book on this subject is "History of the LAWRENCE-TOWNLEY and CHASE TOWNLEY Estates in England", by James Usher (self published, NY, 1883) this book is available through NEG&HS circulating library.
John Larrance (1725-1800) was the son of Edward and Sarah Larrance of Northumberland, Prince William and Fauquier counties, Virginia. Edward died in 1786, and was probably born between 1690 and 1700. I believe he was the son of John and Susannah Lawrence (Larrance?) of Northumberland Co. VA. John died about 1711/12. There is no extant will, but a surviving inventory lists a lot of pewter, silver and the like. Could the cup have originated with this earlier John, and have been a momento of his wedding to Susannah? (Thus, the initials J, L and S standing for John & Susannah Lawrence.)
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Carol Lawrence Vidales, September 1997, updated October 1999