Encyclopedia of Connecticut biography, genealogical-memorial ...

acteristic of his race and is causing them
to be felt in the advancement of the in-
terests vital to the vk^elfare and progress of
his home community.
(The Fontaine Line).
It seems clear that the name of the first
authentic ancestor of the American
branch of the Fontaine family was James,
that being the English equivalent of the
French Jacques, which is the name given
in history. The fact that his son, grandson,
and great-grandson all bore the name
of James seems to corroborate this theory.
Jacques (or James) de la Fontaine, whose
great-great-grandson, by the way, was
also named James, was born in 1500, in
the village of Chatelas, parish of St.
Pierre, de Royan, Saintonge, and was a
Huguenot pastor. In 1563 the religious
persecution which was then raging in
France found in him one of the martyrs of
the Reformed faith.
(II) James (2), son of Jacques de la
Fontaine.
(III) James (3), son of James (2) de
la Fontaine.
(IV) James (4), son of James (3) de
la Fontaine, was a minister of the Reformed
church.
(V) James (5), son of James (4) de
la Fontaine, was also a Protestant min-
ister.
(VI) Mary Ann, daughter of James
(5) de la Fontaine, married Matthew
Maury, of Virginia (see Maury line).
(Tlie Maury Line).
Matthew Maury, the first ancestor of
record, was of Huguenot descent and resided
in Virginia. He married Mary Ann
de la Fontaine (see Fontaine line).
(II) James, son of Matthew and Mary
Ann (de la Fontaine) Maury, was rector
of Fredericksville parish, Virginia.
(III) Matthew (2), the son of James
Maury, was born in 1744.
ENCYCLOPEDIA OF BIOGRAPHY
(IV) James (2), son of Matthew (2)
Maury, was appointed by President
Washington consul at Liverpool, Eng-
land, and until 1829, a period of forty
years, filled that office continuously.
(V) William, son of James (2) Maury,
was of Liverpool, England.
(VI) Sarah Fanny, daughter of William
Maury, became the wife of Joseph
Dunning Weed, as stated above.
The Maury family is very prominent in
453
the South and in England. One of
its representatives, Matthew Fontaine
Maury, was a distinguished hydrographer
and a commander in the United States
navy. Another Maury commanded the
privateer "Georgia" during the Revolu-
tion. Matthew Fontaine Maury charted
the ocean, his charts being in use at the
present day. In 1841 he was placed in
charge of the Department of Charts and
Instruments out of which grew the
United States Naval Observatorj- and the
Hydrographic Office.
WEED, James Albert,
Agricnltnrist.
Wide spaces give to the men of studious
tastes the untrammeled freedom
impossible to be found in centers of population,
where neighbor jostles neighbor
and strangers congregate in more or less
hilarious companies. In the peace and
quiet and unmarred beauty of the country
the occupation, the surroundings, and the
home itself may be of a man's own choos-
ing, and reflect his true character. It is
here that a man may revel in the real-
ities of life, which, after all, include those
things least tangible, and leave outside
—behind—the baubles for which too
many give the best of life, only to learn
their utter worthlessness. Richly endowed
with those mental qualities which make
a man himself, rather than the reflection