THE BAYARDS AND OTHER FAMILIES 311 



in 1851 he became a Senator from that state, continuing 

 until 1869. He w as for a long time chairman of the com- 

 mittee on the judiciary, and was generally esteemed for 

 the high sense of public honour which he evinced on 

 numerous occasions. 



His son, Thomas Francis Bayard, was born in Wil- 

 mington in 1828. He was admitted to the bar in 1851 Last of a 



, , , , -, i -, 1 ■ Noble Family 



and practised law until he was elected to succeed his 

 father in the Senate in 1868. He served as Senator until 

 1885, when he became Secretary of State. In 1893 he 

 was appointed Ambassador to Great Britain. 



II 



The Duche family is descended from Jacques Duche, a The Duche 

 native of La Rochelle, who was naturalized in England ^^""''^ 

 in 1682 with his wife, Mary, and two sons, Arnold and 

 Anthony. Anthony came to Staten Island at an early 

 date and removed to Philadelphia a few years prior to 

 1700. His son Jacob, born in Philadelphia in 1708, was 

 the father of the Reverend Jacob Duche, a noted clergy- 

 man of his day. He was born at Philadelphia in 1737, 

 graduated from the University of Pennsylvania when he 

 was twenty years old, and then went to Cambridge, Eng- 

 land, to pursvie his studies further. In 1759 the Bishop 

 of London licensed him to preach in the Philadelphia 

 churches, and that same year he returned to this country. 

 He was a very popular preacher and by 1775 had become 

 rector of Christ Church, the leading Episcopal cougrega- Jacob 

 tion of Philadelphia at the time. He has come down to Patriot 

 us in history as the minister who delivered the prayer at 

 the opening of the first Continental Congress — a prayer so 

 patriotic and reverent withal that the assembled patriots 

 gave him a vote of thanks. In 1776 he was chosen chap- 

 lain of Congress. He died in 1798. 



Ill 

 The Du Pont family, long known as the great powder p^^lfy ^°"* 



