Peter Malott

c. 1727–1806

Born about 1727 in Frederick County, Maryland. Died 22 May 1806 in Washington County, Maryland.

Life events

Born	about 1727	Frederick County, Maryland
Residence	1754	Conococheague Manor, near Hagerstown, Maryland
Married	about 1750	to Sarah
Event	about 1780	Family captured by Indians on the Ohio River near Fish Creek; Peter escaped
Married	before 1795	to Rachel
Will	17 January 1804	Washington County, Maryland
Died	22 May 1806	Washington County, Maryland
Buried		near Hagerstown, Maryland

Dates and places from William P. Marlatt, Families of Peter Malott and Joseph Malott (2002), which compares what each source says.

Research note

The family tree records a wife named Rebecca for Peter Malott (b. ca 1727), with two sons, Benjamin and Joseph. This marriage is not confirmed. Peter’s wives in the records gathered by William Marlatt are Sarah (named in land records of 1754 and 1767) and, later, Rachel (named in a 1795 deed and in his 1804 will). Some family trees also name a Ruth. None of the sources mentions a Rebecca, and neither Benjamin nor this Joseph is named in Peter’s will. Peter did have a brother Benjamin and a brother Joseph, so these two may belong elsewhere in the family. See Peter’s data sheet.

History and lore

Peter leased 106 acres in the Conococheague Manor near Hagerstown, Maryland, in 1754. Around 1780 he set out down the Ohio River for Kentucky with his family; near Fish Creek, below Wheeling, the boat carrying his wife Sarah and several children was captured, and they were taken to Detroit. Peter escaped in the stock boat, returned to Maryland, and, believing his family dead, married Rachel. His will of 1804 names eleven children. He died on 22 May 1806 in Washington County, Maryland.

Read Bill Marlatt’s full study: Families of Peter Malott and Joseph Malott

Read the story: Captured on the Ohio: The Malott Family’s Ordeal of 1780