Butler familyThomas Pincerna was a servant of King John of England (1199-1216). The surname "Pincerna" is a late Latin word from the Greek and it means literally, "mixer of drinks," describing the office he performed for King John. Elizabeth's brother, Thomas Butler I, began as a haberdasher in London, and is the immigrant ancestor of many of the American Butlers. He married Jan. 16, 1625/26 in St. Magnus Martyr Church, London , a widow named Joan Mt. Stephen. When William Claiborn, who had married his sister, Elizabeth Butler, was granted land on Kent Island, Thomas Butler with his brother John joined Claiborn there. Thomas held 100 acres and paid a yearly rent of two barrels of corn and two capons . They soon found themselves in a hornet's nest. Kent Island was between the new colonies of Maryland and Viriginia, and both claimed it. The dispute was not only one of land, but of religion, since Maryland was a Catholic Colony and VA Protestant. John Butler was arrested by Cecil Calvert, Lord Baltimore, for treason and threatened with hanging in 1638. In 1644 Thomas Butler, along with many other Maryland Protestants, refused to pay taxes to the Catholic government and was declared an enemy of the state. |
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