Paul, The Rapaljes of Long Island, New York and New Jersey also went to Spanish Natchez (Mississippi) and New Orleans. I think they are part of same Rapalje family that is referred to in your Nevills' record and who lived very near your family in Canada. Peter Neville on our list knows much more about them than I because he has a Rapalje connection. The Natchez/New Orleans area was part of Spanish West Florida in the 1780s and 1790s, but was previously British West Florida. Some of the colonists who fought against the French in the French and Indian War were given land grants in the Mississippi area (ca. early 1770s) by the British when they took over control of the area from the French. I have not studied the Rapaljes enough to determine if they received grants from the British. The Natchez District under Spanish rule had an interesting mix of people in the 1780s and 1790s: the French, Spanish, and British, as well as those who came to the area for good land but brought their loyalty to the American colonies with them, former soldiers who fought on the side of the colonies, slaves and free mulattoes, those who had British sympathies and had fled from the rebelling colonies, those who wanted land but didn't want any part of the war and had no sympathy for the British or the colonists, those who fought on the side of the colonies but rebelled at the whiskey tax after the war, and some representatives of various Protestant denominations who came to minister to those in the District because the Spanish required that all who wanted to be citizens (own land) had to join the Roman Catholic Church. In many cases, the allegiance to the church was nominal, and unless a person made a big public deal about continuing to hold Protestant beliefs after joining the Catholic Church, the Spanish left them alone. The Spanish were remarkably tolerant of those who came to their colony in the Natchez Territory. (They had their own goals in mind for support in obtaining a larger territory.) The families of my Nevels great-great-grandfather and Nevill g-g-grandmother (both sometimes Nevel/Nevil/Nevills great in early records) met there in the late 1790s-early 1800s. The Philip Nevill family, whom I think was my gg-gm's family, was from the Maryland/Pennsylvania area and the other, James Nevels on my gg-gf's side, seems to be from the North/South Carolina area. Many references are made to George and Garrett Rapalje in the Natchez Court Records. Example of an early reference in Book A: 15 Sept. 1781. Petition of Alexander McIntosh, curator and guardian of minor heirs of Alston [my note - Jan: The Alstons in the record were from the Halifax/Orange Co., NC area.], perceiving loss from epidemic of a great number of cattle daily, asks for sale of all those belonging to said minors, payable in one year from day of adjudication, with good and sufficient security. // An advertisement shall be posted giving notice to the Public that a sale of cattle mentioned will take place on Saturday morning the 15th inst. [Signed] Grandpre. 12 Sept 1781. // p. 17 On Morning of 15 Sept. 1781, proceedings of the above mentioned sale in the presence of curator and guardian and others assisting. Buyers: Sieur St. Germain, surety Francois Farrell, Sieur _____ Cadet, surety Alexander McIntosh; Richard Swayze, surety Justus King; John Griffin, surety Justus King; Anthony Hutchins, surety Alexander McIntosh; Alexander McIntosh, surety GEORGE RAPALJE; Sieur Baker, surety David Mitchell; Elijah Swayze, surety Richard Swayze; Francis Spain, surety James Truly; wm. Brocus, surety Winsor Pipes; GEORGE RAPALJE, surety Anthony Hutchins; several to Alexander McIntosh for cash... [case continues] ------- The above Swayzes were part of a New Jersey Presbyterian group who came to the Natchez Territory. I have looked at some copies of the original church records but have not found Nevills/Nevels in them. However, they need more thorough checking. In a convoluted deal, the NJ Presbyterians were given a claim based on some older British proprietary claim in GA. One of the GA proprietors or proprietary companies had given land that stretched all the way from the Atlantic coast of GA to the Mississippi River. In fact, some Georgians called the Natchez District (now Mississippi) Bourbon Co, GA and did not recognize the Spanish claim. The above Anthony Hutchins seems to have been a British Loyalist. He had formerly lived in the far western area of the North Carolina-South Carolina border (same area where Shirley Wilcox's ancestor William Nevill lived; he was not a Loyalist.) In reading the history of the Mulkey family (some of whom went to Natchez and got in trouble with the Spanish for public Baptist preaching), I found accounts of those in the Carolina area where Hutchins lived who considered him and some of his friends to be Tories. However, many in that area of the Carolinas--actually the fringe of the colonies at that time--were isolated from the rest of the colonists and were very reluctant to break their ties with England and openly rebel. This lack of loyalty to the patriot cause caused some to have to leave the country during and right after the Revolution. I don't know if the Rapaljes had any ties with any of the above before they came to Natchez. I know that the family did maintain its ties with the NJ and NY family (based on the Natchez Court Records). If the Rapaljes split, with some going to Canada and some to the Natchez Territory during and after the war, others in the area where they lived in NJ and NY probably did the same. Jan