Tredyffrin Easttown Historical Society
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Source: July 1982 Volume 20 Number 3, Pages 75–81

Tredyffrin and Easttown in 1790

from the U.S. Census

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Although there were virtually no settlers in either Tredyffrin or Easttown townships at the beginning of the eighteenth century, by 1790 and the first United States Census there were more than fourteen hundred persons living in the two townships, Tredyffrin had a population by that time of 986 persons, and the population of Easttown township was 428 persons.

The Census of 1790 was the first decennial population count, or "enumeration", as required by the United States Constitution adopted in 1789. In Section 2 of Article I of the Constitution it is provided that "an enumeration shall be made within three years after the first meeting of the Congress of the United States, and within every subsequent term often years, in such manner as they the Congress shall by law direct". The purpose of the census was primarily to determine the number of representatives to which each state was entitled in the House of Representatives,

In this first census a count was made not only of the total population, but also of the number of free white males, the number of free white females, the number of all other (non-white) free persons, and the number of slaves. For the free white males, information was also obtained on the number "of 16 years and upward", and the number "under 16 years" of age, (A more detailed breakdown by age for both free white males and free white females was made a part of the second census in 1800.)

The number of persons in each of these groups in Tredyffrin and Easttown townships in 1790 is shown in the chart (Table 1) on the next page.

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Table 1

The two slaves reported in Easttown township were both the property of Mary Wayne, while the three reported in Tredyffrin were owned by Dr. John Davis, Col. William Dewees, and Samuel Havard, respectively.

The population density in 1790 in Tredyffrin was already 44.3 persons per square mile; that in Easttown was even higher, at 51.6 persons per square mile.

According to the census, which was taken by federal marshals, there were 157 households in Tredyffrin and 75 households in Easttown.

In ten households, the head of the household was a female. Five of these were in Tredyffrin - those of Ann Brown, Sarah Bull, Nancy Glasgow, Mary Patterson, and Margaret Workhizer - and five were in Easttown - those of Margaret Blue, Margaret Griffith, Judith Reece, Elizabeth Still, and Mary Wayne.

There was apparently only one household in which the head of the household was not white, that of Cole Glasgow in Tredyffrin township.

The average size of the household in Tredyffrin was 6.29 persons. This was slightly larger than the average of 5.90 persons per household in Easttown township. The median size of the household in Tredyffrin was 5.4.0 persons, with that in Easttown 4.89 persons.

The largest household in either township was that of John Davis, a resident of Tredyffrin township, with 17 members (five free white males 16 years and upward, three free white males under 16, and nine freewhite females). The next largest was the household of William Potts, also of Tredyffrin, with a total of 15 persons (three free white males 16 years and upward, one free white male under 16, ten free white females, and one other free person). There were also five households with thirteen persons, not including slaves, in the two townships, two in Tredyffrin and three in Easttown township.

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The distribution of households by number of persons, excluding slaves, in each township is shown in Table 2.

Table 2

The most common surname in the two townships was Davis, there being altogether thirteen household heads with that name, five in Easttown and eight in Tredyffrin. In fact, in Tredyffrin there were three John Davises; to identify them they were listed as John Davis, Captain John Davis, and Doctor John Davis in the census report. Other Davises inTredyffrin included two Benjamin Davises (one of them further identified as a mason), David Davis, Nathan Davis, and William Davis, and in Easttown another John Davis, two Meshak Davises, Mordecai Davis and a Thomas Davis.

The next most frequent surname was Thomas, of which there were three in Easttown - Israel, Miles, and Thomas Thomas - and five in Tredyffrin - Able, Isaac, John, Nathan, and William.

Both these surnames reflect the Welsh origins of the earliest settlers of the two townships, which were originally a part of the Welsh Tractor Welsh Barony. Other Welsh surnames found in the Census of 1,790 include names like Bowen, Evans, Griffith, Howell, Jones, Morris, Rees, and Rowland, among others. But by 1790 the influx of peoples from other countries into Pennsylvania and into this area was also reflected in the surnames of the residents.

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In the 1790 census report for Tredyffrin and Easttown, for example, were also a number of names that were English, names like Pennington, Wayne and Will son.

Other names were Scotch-Irish in their origin, and reflected the immigration of these people into Pennsylvania during the mid-1700's. Examples of names in this group include Aitken (Aiken), Donaldson, Maxwell, McLeer, McVaugh, and McVey, among others.

By this time, in sections of Tredyffrin Township, there was also a considerable German population. This immigration is illustrated by names like Baugh, Beaver, Frederick, Kitzelman, Kugler, Thundertond, Van Leer,Workhizer, and Zook, to name some of them.

In addition, there were also names indicating an Irish ancestry, names like Kelly, Madden and Neely. Other families had come from Switzerland, with names such as Frick, Rickabaugh, and Tedwiler (Detwiler) an indication of their Swiss descent, and from France, of which the name Lauriner is an example.

Thus for both Tredyffrin and Easttown townships, the first Census of 1790 reflects not only the extensive settlement of this area during the eighteemth century that resulted in a population of more than 14.00 persons in the two townships, but also a diversity of population that characterized the settling of Pennsylvania and made it unique in this respect among the thirteen colonies.

An alphabetical listing of the households in Easttown and Tredyffrin, as reported in the first decennial census of 1790, is shown in Tables 3 and 4. on the following pages.

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