Title
Honoring the Montier Family of Philadelphia and Cheltenham and recognizing their historical significance and contributions to our region.
Body
WHEREAS, During the early colonial period, prior to the establishment of our nation, William Penn received a large land grant from King Charles II of England, as a repayment of a debt owed his father; and
WHEREAS, In the course of developing what would be known as Pennsylvania, Penn required prospective landowners to purchase parcels of land in the wilderness as a precondition to buying land in the City; and
WHEREAS, In 1682, a group of 15 Quakers pooled their resources to acquire land from William Penn, and the wilderness portion of their new land became Cheltenham Township, one of the nation's earliest suburbs; and
WHEREAS, One of these landowners was Humphrey Morrey, who controlled 250 acres in the western portion of Cheltenham, and who would be appointed by Penn as Philadelphia's first mayor in 1691; and
WHEREAS, In spite of their vital role in the formation of the white abolitionist movement, some Quakers, including Morrey, were slaveholders; and
WHEREAS, Upon his death, Humphrey Morrey bequeathed his human property to his children, and one enslaved woman, known as Cremona, or "Moonie," went to the home of his youngest son Richard; and
WHEREAS, Richard Morrey and Cremona fell in love, were married and had five children - a rare example from that time and place in history of a consensual relationship between a man of European descent and a woman of African descent; and
WHEREAS, After Richard died, Cremona, who was left 198 acres of land in his will, met and in 1766 married Jean Montier, a black man of French Caribbean descent, and they later had one son; and
WHEREAS, The Montiers, including the children of Richard and Cremona, built a homestead in Cheltenham where they lived and made boots and shoes, and established a shop in Philadelphia which went on to prosper and bring them cons...
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