Kenneth A. Piper
East Aurora, New York
Send email to preparer: kapiper@usa.net
Ultimate Family Tree, ver 2.7
MASTER Project Version 74
April 26, 1998
I had heard from my grandmother many times about the French ancestry of the Pipers. When I asked her about it, she said that the Pipers were descended from the Bertiers, "who were kicked out of France because of wine, women and song." This is all she knew. As my grandfather had already passed away, there was not much more for me to learn within our family.
Over the years my searching the Pipers was with meager results and nothing on a French connection. I knew it was probably from the ancestry of Georgeanna Roy, but was not sure how.
In 1997 my aunt found and contacted some cousins in Montana that not only extended our knowledge of the Pipers, but glimpsed at the Bertier heritage. Their version of the Bertiers had the lineage deriving from Bertier and his father-in-law, Foulon, who were killed by mobs in Paris in July 1789. This would have been Louis Bertier de Sauvigny. This is a historical and exciting proposal for a line that has not held up to scrutiny. Additionally, the immigrant to Philadelphia was supposedly Mary Bertier, who stayed with the Bartram family. This was said to be the same Bartrams as of the father of American botany.
In January 1998 I was contacted by what turned out to be a third cousin. She had seen my web site on the Internet by searching for "Bertier". She had information on a Claude Antoine Bertier.. In addition, she had an old family Bible with family vital records for some Bartrams, but was unsure of the connection to the Bertiers.
It was by starting with this sparse combination of information that this line to date has been constructed. It should be noted that so far there is no evidence of of the Bertiers being "kicked" out of France. Neither is there an obvious connection to Louis Bertier, or Foulon. On the other hand, Mary Bertier, although born in Pennsylvania, appears to be the daughter of Sarah Bartram. Sarah appears to be the granddaughter of John Bartram, the father of American botany.
There is still much work to do on this line. I have endnoted where appropriate and have additional information not yet in the endnotes. This line is a reminder to me to never ignore any information, even if found not to be accurate. There are always elements of truth that can lead to more information.
Send email to preparer: kapiper@usa.net
This page hosted by 
Get your own Free Home Page