William Prendergast, the pioneer, and his wife, were the parents of seven sons and six daughters. All but one of these children arrived at maturity, and all but one settled in Chautauqua County, N. Y. The children just mentioned were:
1. Matthew, born Aug. 5, 1756; died July 24, 1838. 2. Thomas, born Sept, 11, 1757; died June 3, 1842. 3. Mary, born 1760; died July 11, 1845. 4. Elizabeth, born Aug. 30, 1762; died Aug. 31, 1824. 5. James, born March 9, 1764; died June 18, 1846. 6. Jedediah, born May 13, 1766; died March 1, 1848. 7. Martin, born April 22, 1769; died June 21, 1835. 8. John Jeffrey, born 1771; date of death unknown. 9. Susanna, born April 22, 1773; died Aug. 8, 1847. 10. Elinor, died in infancy. 11. Martha, born March 18, 1777; died Dec. 9, 1849. 12. William, born 1779; died Nov. 11, 1857. 13. Minerva, born Aug. 26, 1782; died March 30, 1858.
The foregoing data, relating to the births and deaths of the children, while possibly not exact in every instance, is approximately so, and is the best it is now possible to procure. Of the children here mentioned:
1. Matthew became associate judge of Niagara County, N. Y., from which Chautauqua County was taken. 2. Thomas became a successful farmer. 3. Mary married William Bemus. 4. Elizabeth died unmarried.
I can remember when I was a child of six or seven years of visiting Colonel Prendergast’s house on Christmas Day and seeing his wife roast the turkey in a tin oven before the fireplace, cooking the vegetables in kettles hung on a crane over the blaze and pounding coffee in a mortar. She also “dipped” her candles and cooked in a brick oven.
She had a red broadcloth cloak, trimmed with red satin, which I was allowed to wear if I would sit still, and at the end of the visit my great-great uncle always gave me a piece of gold or silver money. One yet in my possession bears the date 1776.
Alexander T. Prendergast was a son of James Prendergast, the founder of Jamestown, N. Y., and of his wife, whose maiden name was Agnes Thompson. This Alexander had one son, James, who was a lawyer by profession and served as a member of the State Assembly. His parents founded the James Prendergast Free Library at Jamestown, an Episcopal church there called the Prendergast Memorial, gave a public drinking fountain, a window in the Congregational church, scholarships in the Jamestown schools, and other benefactions. There are no living descendants of James, John, William, Minerva, Martha, Elizabeth, or Elinor—children of William Prendergast, the pioneer.
Descendants of others of the children achieved a good measure of success. One of them, Col. Henry A. Prendergast, served as a paymaster during the Civil War and died of sickness contracted in the service. He was also a member for many terms of the New York State Assembly.
My own grandfather, a son of Matthew Prendergast, participated in the battle of Black Rock during the War of 1812, and rendered able service as a surgeon. He served many terms as a supervisor and was a famous physician. The only members of this family, bearing the Prendergast name, now left in Chautauqua County are my two brothers—John H. and Dr. William Prendergast—and James Hunt Prendergast, son of John H. This James is a lawyer practising at Westfield, N. Y. To these must be added myself. My sister, Mrs. Whallon, has a grandchild named William Prendergast Whallon who is now eight years of age and is of the seventh generation.