Matthew Fontaine Maury was born on Jan. 14, 1806 in Spotsylvania County, VA. His mother, Diana minor Maury, and his father, Richard Maury, had already had 6 children before the time of his birth. His siblings were Walker, Dick, Charles, John, Matilda, Betsy, Catharine Ann, and Mary Maury. Matthew grew up in the days of the War of 1812, the reign of Queen victoria in London, the crimean War, and , of course, the American Civil War. He and his family were strong Christians who were not very wealthy at the time, but they were ok compared to others. His education began in elementary school whe…
