LeTort Family
The Le Tort Family
The Le Tort Family of Lancaster County were French Huguenots (Protestants) who came to Pennsylvania in 1686, about 4 years after Pennsylvania was founded. As French Protestants they had their rights severely restricted by the revocation of the Edicts of Nantes in 1685 which required them to become Roman Catholic. Rather than convert they left France and settled in England where the father, Jacques came into contact with Daniel Cox (Physician to Charles II, King of England) and Sir Mathias Vincent. Plans were made to establish an Indian trading empire in Pennsylvania by Cox and Vincent (as well as others) and 30,000 acres were purchased in Pa. by Sir Mathias Vincent, when Vincent died Daniel Cox took over the property and paid for the land. This intended French colony was in what is now East and West Vincent Townships in Chester County but it never came to pass. Only Jacques Le Tort and his family were willing to move to the new settlement. Other French Protestants who came with Le Tort didn't want to leave Philadelphia. At that time only the Philadelphia area was settled. As with many of our ancestors, the Le Torts came to Pennsylvania seeking religious freedom as well as looking for economic opportunities.
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The Le Torts came to Vincent Township, living along the Schuylkill River at a stream still known as French Creek. In the family was Jacques, born about 1651, his wife Ann, probably born about the same time, his son James who was a young boy when they came to Pennsylvania and daughter Ann Margaret. The only reference we have to Ann Margaret Le Tort is an administration in Chester County Court, filed Nov. 1, 1715 that has James Le Tort named as Administrator. Some have suggested that Ann Margaret was James' wife but Letters of Administration would not have been needed if that were the case. In early Pennsylvania any property owned by the wife would have automatically become the property of her husband at marriage. There wouldn't have been any property of hers to distribute so it seems more likely she was a child of Jacques and Ann Le Tort. There may have been more children who have escaped detection.
Jacques Le Tort's was a successful trader; the same factor that blessed his efforts at Indian trading was also a curse to him and his family. Being French gave him an advantage because Pierre Basilion, an experienced Indian Trader lived in the area and he probably showed the newcomer the ropes. Bazillion was there because it was on a route used by the Susquehannock Indians to go from Philadelphia to Conestoga Manor. The route was, up the Schuylkill River to French Creek, down French Creek to a point of portage to the Conestoga and then down the Conestoga to the Susquehanna River. Being French was a big plus in Jacques Le Tort's business dealings but it was also a curse. His success in the Indian trade angered and frustrated non-French traders in the area in the fur trade and led to some false accusations about the Le Tort family�s loyalty to Pennsylvania.
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In 1692 accusations are made about the Le Torts, concerning their �connections� to the Indians. These accusations are made by local Indian traders who weren't French. There were concerns that the French in Canada and their Indians are going to come to Pennsylvania and murder the English, perhaps with the help of Pennsylvania's Indians. At this time Jacques Le Tort was in England on business so the Pennsylvania Council called Ann Le Tort to Philadelphia on December 29, 1692. When she arrived none of her accusers were present, so the hearings were not held. She returned home but not before telling the council that there is no one at her home and presumably she is concerned for the trade goods at her house. She asks that they call her back in better weather but they ignore her request. She receives a second summons from Council on February 6, 1693. It appears that Jacques Le Tort had returned from England at this point, according to the Colonial Records1. In this second instance Council decided there wasn't enough evidence to charge Ann. She condemns Council for bringing her from her home to Philadelphia in the middle of winter. She has a point; this was a long trip that probably took 12 or 14 hours by horse, quite a trip in the middle of winter. Jacques Le Tort had met in England with Daniel Cox and had brought the first load of furs from Pennsylvania. Cox, at this point had sold out to the London Company.
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Jacques Le Tort disappears from the records a few years after his return from England. It�s unclear if he returned to England and was lost at sea or if he died while on a trading trip with the Indians. We don't have a date of death for him. It would appear that Ann Le Tort continued at her home along the Schuylkill, trading with the Indians for a few years. In 1697 James Le Tort finished his apprenticeship with John King in Philadelphia and apparently didn't go into that business but rather worked for Pierre Basilion in the Indian Trading business before setting out on his own. At this point, about 1703 he acquires 500 acres in Conestoga Manor.
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James Le Tort seems to have had his own problems with the Pennsylvania Government. There has never been any evidence that the Le Torts had done anything detrimental to the government of Pennsylvania. The real problem was that they were French and some fear they might be Catholic. England had been at war with the French off and on during this period and there were still some lingering suspicions about Catholics, a holdover from the Reformation. James made a trip to Canada in 1701 with Peter Basilion which raised suspicions about him and when he returned, after two years, he was required to post a surety for his good behavior. After spending some time in jail James Le Tort was released and he returned to fur trading. He was arrested a second time in 1711 and then released. Later Le Tort was able to ingratiate himself with the Pennsylvania authorities by acting as interpreter on a number of Indian treaties. For a man of his time he was very well educated, he could read and write (probably taught by his mother), some of his written material are reproduced in the Pennsylvania Archives 2, and he spoke three languages, French, English and Delaware.
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One of the interesting, unresolved questions about Manor Twp. history is, Where did James Le Tort live ? The Pennsylvania Archives3 tells us that Le Tort sold his 500 in Conestoga Manor to James Logan on January 5th, 1719. He had left his land near Indiantown and moved further up the Susquehanna River to Conoy Twp., in an area that housed the Conoy Indians. Some have suggested that James Le Tort lived in the village of Letort, in Manor Twp. but there is no historical evidence to suggest as much. (See the Taylor Maps and accompanying document for more on this.)
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As mentioned, James Le Tort sold his property to James Logan, Secretary to William Penn. Because Le Tort had bought this land so early and apparently had it surveyed but may never had it warranted, Logan warranted it in 1733. Logan's trading post may have been next door on John Cartlidge's property. Cartlidge acquired his property in 17164, acted as Logan's agent and then sold it to Logan when he moved on. Le Tort�s property was located along the Conestoga River where the Little Conestoga enters the larger stream; Cartlidge�s property was to the west of Le Tort�s property.
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Ann Le Tort was an interesting character, as one might expect from someone who lived so far out in the wilderness and who had infrequent contact with Europeans. She never learned English, according to the Pa. Archives the Penn government had to provide a translator when she was required to speak to the Council5. She apparently had issues with the local Indians as well. They complained when she allowed her pigs to run wild and dine at the Indian King�s garden. They also complained about her being rude. Both of these complaints managed to make their way to the Penn government since they are reported in the Pa. Archives.
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Ann Le Tort died before November 19th, 1720 when papers of Administration were filed in Chester County. Her son James was named Administrator. A few years after his mother's death James Le Tort move to Le Tort Springs in Cumberland County. He later moved up the Susquehanna to near Shamokin and then to Indiana County and points west. We don't know when James Le Tort died. In 1742 Governor Thomas of Pa. mentions receiving a letter from Le Tort, then living along the Allegheny River in western Pa. In 1754 at the battle of Great Meadows (also known as Fort Necessity and with the Virginia militia led by George Washington) there was a James Le Tort in Capt. Hog's Company of troops. Our James Le Tort would have been about 70 years old at this point. Considering his rough lifestyle it would have required a lot of luck to have lived to this age. These troops were raised in Virginia, so it�s possible that this is one of the sons of Manor's James Le Tort. As such, some of his descendants may have settled in Virginia but as to their names and numbers, we have no record.
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For more on the Le Tort Family see the excellent article by Evelyn A. Benson, The Huguenot Letorts, First Christian Family on the Conestoga, Journal of the Lancaster County Historical Society; v. 65, #.2, pages 92-105.
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1. Colonial Records Vol. 1, page p. 436
2. Pa. Archives, 1st Series, Vol. 1 page 216
3. Pa. Archives, 2nd series, Vol. 19, page 186
4. Pa. Archives, 2nd Series, Vol. 19, page 644
5. Colonial Records, Vol. 1 page 435