Two great sorrows were experienced when a feud between her sons resulted in John, a wayward fellow, killing Thomas, who was a great comfort to his mother and a leader among the Indians, and some years later John killed his other brother, Jesse.
This double grief was almost more than the venerable woman could endure and it was not assuaged when John was murdered in a drunken quarrel with two Indians.
She was naturalized April 19, 1817, by which she received a clear title to her reservation. In 1823 she disposed of the major portion of her real estate holdings, reserving a tract two miles long and one mile wide.
She died September 19, 1833, aged ninety-one years, and was buried with Christian service in the cemetery of Seneca Mission Church, Buffalo Creek Reservation. Her body was reinterred on March 7, 1874, in the Indian Council House Grounds at Letchworth Park, where an elegant bronze statue marks the grave of Mary Jemison, “The White Woman of the Genesee.”
Governor Penn Makes Trip Through State,
Starting April 6, 1788
Following the last great purchase from the Indians at Fort Stanwix, October 23, 1784, the State enjoyed a steady flow of immigration. There was an abundance of fertile and cheap lands, a desirable climate and low taxes. It was possible for a foreigner to buy and hold lands with relinquishment of their allegiance to the country of their birth. This right had been granted for three years from 1787, and was continued for a longer period after 1790.
About this time John Penn, son of Thomas Penn, and a grandson of William Penn, and twice governor of the Province, traveled through the State to look after some of the Proprietary estates, and during his trip from Philadelphia to Carlisle and return he made some notes that are replete with interest.
He set out from Philadelphia on the morning of April 6, 1788, on horse back. He passed through the Township of Roxborough, and on his way saw two meeting houses filled with people, another proof that the Friends were still faithful to their old traditions.