Part 4.1 The Ancestors of Henry DeGraw Family Connections and Lineages from Sarah Burr Derby
The
Ancestors of Henry DeGraw
Family
Connections and Lineages
Sarah
Burr Derby
Not many families would ever take
some time to think about how many people they may have as ancestors.
We often just look at those
people who have had an impact on our lives, without realising that they were
also surrounded by those who had an impact on theirs!
Times were tough, much more than
they are today, and people often do not appreciate the hardships, sacrifices
and difficulties that those ancestors faced and lived with on a daily basis.
We all have a standard pattern of
inheritance.
There are two people as parents
Four people as grandparents
Eight people as great
grandparents
Sixteen people as great great
grandparents
Thirty two people as great great
grandparents
Sixty four people as great great
great grandparents
One hundred and twenty eight
people as great great great great grandparents.
Or simply for every level, the number of
family members doubles.
By the time you go back 25
generations, the number is in excess of 1 million.
Not everyone can trace their
lineage that far, it all depended on their station in life.
Then added to those generations
are the uncles and aunts who more often than not were also grand parents.
Each of these lineages also
brings cousins. The chart below helps in
establishing those relationships.
Consider then that each
generation is based on around 25 years, the first settlers to America fall into
the category of 8th generations of Henry Irvin DeGraw.
Family
of Sarah Burr Derby
The Family
of Henry Brooke
The
Derby Family
The
Abbott Family
The
Makepeace Family
The
Bryant Family
The
Salisbury Family
The Meacham Family
Early
American Criminals: Jeremiah Meacham’s Tortured Soul
Browne
Family
The
Bradford Connections
The
Richardson Family
The
Poole Family
The
Abbott Lineage
Pole
(Poole) Family
Settlers
of the Taunton Area Massachusetts
The
Baker Family Mystery
Alexander
Baker in London
Alexander Baker to America
Background
Following from the extensive
DeGraw Lineages, and the first three lineages of Henry Irvin DeGraw, this next
Part relates to the family of Sarah Burr Derby who married George Emmet DeGraw.
Sarah's family lineage became a
huge lesson in how important it is to follow your own reasoning.
Unfortunately this became my
undoing when following her family, and sorting out all the connections, and
there are plenty, it came the time when the whole project was completed, but
just to make sure, the relationships were double checked.
It was then that it was found,
that Sarah's lineage had been incorrectly attributed to the incorrect father.
Her father was Chauncy Derby, her
brother was William Chauncy Derby, and mistakenly she has, in many occasions,
been attributed to her brother. The
problem stems from the name of her father.
Her father had three marriages,
and lots of children. The result is that
now there is extensive research also on William Chauncy Derby and his marriage
into the Karner family.
This research follows, but with
the intermarriage of so many of the families, the same family names will be
discovered in very many family lines.
But this mistake and the
subsequent correction, was only the beginning of the need to re-valuate
the Extended Family Lineages of the
American DeGraw Family.
Family of Sarah Burr
Derby
Sarah was born in 1841 and died
in 1926. She married George Emmet DeGraw
in 1869. Both she and George were 27
Sarah in
some records is Sarah Burr Derby. In her
marriage record she is Sarah Carell.
Sarah no doubt married a person
of the name of Carell, probably in Sodus, New York
Her parents were
2GG
Chauncy William Derby 1826 - 1861 and Sarah Burr 1824 - 1890.
Chauncey
Derby was the son of
3GG Jonathan
Martin Derby 1786 - 1864 and Clarissa Baker 1786 - 1861
Clarissa
was the daughter of
4GG Thomas Baker 1749 - 1816 and
Prudence Brooks 1750 - 1816
Following is her Brooks lineage.
Prudence
was the daughter of
5GG James Brooks 1723 - 1801 and
Elizabeth Bathrick 1724 - 1793
James
Brooks was the son of
6GG
James Brooks 1670 - 1746 and Rebecca Blodgett 1689 - 1768
James
was the son of
7GG
Joshua Brooks 1636 - 1698 and Hannah Mason 1636 - 1696
Joshua
was the son of
8GG
Henry Brooks 1592 - 1683 and married Grace Wheeler in England. They had four children, He also married
Susannah Bradford 1601 - 1681 She also
married Ezeheil Richardson
This is the contemporary position
of Henry Brooks
The Family of
Henry Brooke
The information relating to the
Brooks family is so diverse. He seems to have been born anywhere in the United
Kingdom, but he simply does not exist.
There are no searchable Birth
Death or Marriages in England which relate.
Based on having a son called Gersham, there is a probability that his
mother's maiden name is Gersham or Gresham.
Not one child was named Grace, and distinctive naming patterns were
followed.
There
is a likelhood that Hannah Gersham is quite possibly a name in her family. However there are records suggesting her name
is Grace Wheeler, but not one child was named Grace, or surname Cuncliffe. Had she been married prior to marrying Henry?
A
Hannah Gersham died in Lincolnshire in 1624.
Is it Brooke or Brooks or Brock?
Brock
is a surname derived from the nickname for the badger, and appears in the
hundred rolls of 1273 as "leBrok." The Brock family were
apparently yoeman tenants of the Davenports of Bramhall, Cheshire, England, but
must have been of importance in the village during the seventeenth century, for
there was only one other inhabitant who owned as many hearths. {note:
Taxation was based on the number of hearths in the home} In the records
of Bramhall this name is variously recorded Brock, Brook, & Brooke, but in
later years Brock seems to have been the form more generally used.[1]
Then
with a little luck, and the help of some kind researchers, who posted some DNA
information, it seems that this Henry, is in fact a cousin of Thomas Brooke,
who arrived in 1631 to
Waterton Massacutus. The DNA link confirms they are probably cousins.
But these
researchers have taken it a little further, and have identified, through
research, that the family came from Manchester.
Henry Brooke c 1592 was the son
of John Brooke 1565 - 1596. He was the
son of Richard Brooke, 1540 to 1607, who was a shoemaker, or cordwainer, in
Manchester, and his will proven in 1607 allowed for his children, who he
nominated. Henry was a clothier,
Manchester was the manufacturing centre, and his uncle also was a shoemaker. Like some of the other puritans, the names of
his children are quite Biblical.
Richard was married to Dorothy,
but it is unknown whether she was the mother of his children, or a second wife.
The children were
1.
Richard Brooke
1575 His son John b 1602
2.
Robert Brooke
1566 - 1617
His daughter Ann d c 1610 son Thomas b 1595
3.
William
Brooke 1567
4.
Nicholas
Brooke 1577 - 1607
5.
Mary
Brooke 1580 - 1618
6.
John
Brooke 1565 - 1596
From Previous
American Family Research
Authorities
differ as to who is the first member of the large family bearing the name of
BROOKS to come to America. Several writers state, with great positiveness, that
the progenitor of the Brooks family on this side of the Atlantic was one Thomas
Brooks who came in the ship "Susan and Ellen" in 1635 when about 18
years of age. Thomas Brooks is the ancestor of a very large family, among whom
are many that became very notable.
The
founder of the Brooks family in America arrived in August 1699) in the Delaware
(River)," says Frank Willing Leach. Mr. Leach goes on to state that this
immigrant, John Brooks with his wife and six children, Jonathan, Elizabeth,
George, Abigail, James and Matthew settled in Salem, N.J. John Brooks' lineage
was traced as far back as 1535 to Yorkshire, England. Shortly after the arrival
of this family, the father died and was buried in the old Friends' Burying
Ground at Salem. A few years after the death of John Brooks, the eldest sons,
James and Matthew went over to Pennsylvania and settled on land near the
Delaware River which their father had purchased from William Penn. There are
today a great many descendants of these two brothers in eastern Pennsylvania.
The
Brooks family is one of the oldest Massachusetts families. Many of the Brooks
family papers are now in the library of Woburn,
Massachusetts. As many as ten immigrants of this name came to America before
1650.
I-Henry Brooks-Born About 1600 in England Died-April 12,1683 at Woburn, Massachusetts.
Last Will and Testament Dated-July 18,1682
Carolyn Springer added this on 3 Mar 2010
I-Henry Brooks,"Yeoman"Settled first in Concord, Massachusetts. He was a clothier by trade. He was admitted a "Freeman" March 14,1639. He soon after moved to Woburn, Massachusetts. In this town he became a prominent citizen, serving as "selectman"in 1649-1669-1671-1672.
Gilbert (1621-1695) William
(1622-1688) John (1624-1691) Hannah (Anna) (1628-1658) Gersham (1632-1686) Sarah (1632-1686) Caleb
(1632-1696) Timothy (1634-1711) Martha (1634-1665) Joshua (1636-1698) Thomas
(1636-) Hugh (1638-) Samuel (1640-) Joseph (1641-1642) Isaac (1643-1688)
Henry Brooks first appears in Massachusetts Bay
Colony on 14 March 1639, when, of Concord, he was admitted freeman. He appears
as a property owner on the Woburn tax list between 1649 and 1657. On 20
December 1650 William Brackenbury of Charlestown conveyed to Henry Brooks six
parcels of land in Woburn (178 acres) at a place commonly called Horn Pond,
together with a house frame. Henry's homestead, described in Woburn records of
1678, was located on South Street (present lower Main Street), and as late as
1789 was owned by a direct descendant, Capt. Nathaniel Brooks.
Henry
married (2), before 27 March 1651, Susanna Bradford, widow of Ezekiel
Richardson of Woburn, with whom he had no children. Described by a contemporary
authority as "an ancient and skilful woman, living at Woburn," famous
for her attainments in medical science, she died at Woburn 15 September 1681.
He was
selectman of Woburn in 1667, 1671 and 1672. "Henry Brooks and wife Susanna
conveyed property to Theophilus Richardson, the son of Ezekiel, which stands as
a confirmation of this relationship."
He married (3), 12 July 1682, Annis Jordan, widow of Abraham Jacquith, and made his will six days later.
"In
his will, dated July 18, 1682 (six days after his last marriage), he names wife
Annes; son-in-law, John Mousall; sons John, Timothy and Isaac; and daughters,
Sarah and Lestor [Hannah2 (Brooks) Lester]; also grandchildren, Isaac and
Henry, sons of his son Isaac, and Miriam, their sister†. An abstract of the
will of Henry Brooks is published in the Hon. Edward F. Johnson's Abstracts of
Early Woburn Deeds, p. 31. He described himself in the will as a clothier, and
as 'stricken in years,' his age being then about 91 years.
"The will of Henry Brooks describes his
lands with some particularity; to his daughter, Lester, or Lestor, he gives and
bequeaths 5 shillings, and no more, because 'she hath received her portion
already'; to his 'Rev. pastors, Mr. Thomas Carter and Mr. Jabez Fox,' he gives
20 shillings apiece. Isaac, his son, was his sole executor, and his trusted
friend, Lieut. William Johnson, he desired should be overseer, and he gave him
20 shillings. He made his executor his residuary legatee, and desired that his
two grandchildren should not alienate any of the land he gave them during their
father's life.
"The
inventory discloses about 20 acres of upland on the east side of the highway; 7
acres of meadow, adjoining to said land; 8 acres of meadow in Forty Pound
Meadow, given to the children of Isaac Brooks; about 80 acres of upland on west
side of the highway on both sides of the river, given to the two sons of Isaac
Brooks; the great lot in Woburn Common [meaning not the present Woburn Common,
now a square in Woburn Centre, but lots in Woburn common lands or land], given
to Miriam, daughter of Isaac Brooks, 42 acres; 3 small lots in Woburn Common,
amounting to about 15 acres; for a division of woodland in Woburn Common land,
the half given to the two sons of Isaac Brooks; 6 acres of meadow land in Shred
Pine Meadow; for the town privilege in herbage, the half given to the two sons
of Isaac Brooks; 5¼ acres of swamp bottom; and 15 acres of land by Mount
Discovery. "These lands can be traced by deeds for three generations. (See
Early Woburn Deeds, by Hon. Edward F. Johnson.).
Free Ebook A
Catalogue of the Names of the First Puritan Settlers of the Colony of
Connecticut ...
By Royal Ralph Hinman 1846
The Derby Family
The
Derby and Abbott Family
The
only logical way of telling this was to begin with a great grandmother , in
this case Sarah Burr Derby, give her an identifying number and then work backwards
from her lineage.
Eventually
their history will begin in another country.
Their standing in society, deems just how far those stories can be
traced.
Sarah was born in 1841 and died
in 1926. She married George Emmet DeGraw
in 1869. Both she and George were 27
Sarah
in some records is Sarah Burr Derby. In
her marriage record she is Sarah Carell.
Sarah no doubt married a person
of the name of Carell, probably in Sodus, New York
Her parents were
Sarah was the daughter of Chauncy Derby and his
wife Sarah Burr. Sarah Burr Derby 1824 - 1890
.
He lived in Wayne County in
Huron. In the 1860 census he was listed as a carpenter, and Nina Roper was
living with them.
Chauncey Derby was the son of
3CC
David Derby 1775 - 1857 and Sarah Abbott 1781 1865
He was born in New Hampshire, but
married Sarah "Sally" Abbott in Sempronius, Cayuga, New York.
David Derby was the son of
4GG David Derby 1750 and Bethia
Clark 1747 - 1845 (no research ATM)
David was the son of
5GG
Samuel Derby 1710 - 1795 and Mary Salisbury 1728 - 1778
Samuel Derby was the son of
6GG Samuel Darby 1689 - 1740 and Mary
Bryant 1685 - 1752
Samuel Darby was the son of
7 GG
John Derby and Esther Makepeace 1634 - 1685
The Abbott Family
Sarah Abbott was the daughter of
4GG Captain John Abbott 1748 - 1835
and Susannah Meacham 1756 - 1853
John Abbott was the son of
5GG Col John Abbott 1724 - 1814 and
Sarah Baker 1721 - 1777
John Abbott was the son of
6GG
Capt John Abbott 1704 - 1793 and Elizabeth Phipps 1701 - 1782
John Abbott was the son of
7GG
John Abbott 1648 - 1720 and Sarah Barker 1647 - 1720
John Abbott was the son of'
8GG
George Abbott 1615 - 1681 and Sarah Farnham1638 - 1728
George Abbott was the son of
9GG
George Abbot 1586 - 1647 and Mary Windham 1605 - 1647
The Makepeace Family
Thomas Makepeace was born in
England about 1595. The exact place and time of his birth is not known with
certainty, but many researchers, after examining old church documents, seem to
agree that he belongs to the line of Makepeaces from Burton Dasset in
Warwickshire. Sometime before he came to America he probably moved to Bristol
in Somerset, England and met his wife and also Wyllys, Saltonstall, Whiting,
and Holyoke.
He arrived in the colonies between 1635 and 1637 and settled in Dorchester which was a Massachusetts Bay Colony village a few miles south of Boston. Our record says his first wife, Alice Brasier, died in England in 1638. So did he come without her? His eldest son inherited the home Thomas had in England and was living in it when Thomas died in 1667. Perhaps Alice was ill and stayed behind with her eldest son, while father and the other children came to America. Or, perhaps the 1638 date is wrong. Perhaps she died earlier and Thomas came after she died. Most of Thomas's children were with his first wife. Did he bring all his little children with him? We know that except for the eldest son, all the children ended up in America. In his will he leaves money to a kinswoman, Mary. Perhaps she came to America with him and helped him care for the children. Ester (sometimes written Hester and at least once Easter) was quite small, being born in 1634, and would have been a large amount of care for a man without a wife. The other children named in the will besides Thomas Jr., the one who inherited the English home, and Ester, are William, Hannah, Mary, and Waitawhile. All but Waitawhile are named in the will before Ester, and are undoubtedly children of Thomas and Alice. Waitawhile was possibly born from his second marriage. Or perhaps Alice did come to America with Thomas and Waitawhile was her daughter.
For some people there will be too much "perhaps" in this sketch. But I think what we don't know can be food for the imagination. It can also point to places where future research may shed light. In the meantime here are the things we do know about Thomas Makepeace:
All the following records are from the William Makepeace source unless otherwise indicated.
7 Sep 1637 - A meeting of Boston officials recorded, "It is agreed that Mr. Thomas Makepeace shall have a house plot and a garden plot."
25 Sep 1637 - The court says where the house and garden shall be located.
1638 - He became one of the original members of the Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company, a membership indicating he was a man of importance and wealth. Also, he had the title of "Mr." which indicates he was a man of some importance.
25 Mar 1639 in the Boston Record - "Mr. John Underhill hath surrendered unto Mr. Thomas Makepeace of Dorchester, his house in Boston, with an hundred acres of upland ground at Muddy River, and ten acres of meadow, or marsh ground there; and his share of woodlands in the islands, with a garden at the house, and another behind Mr. Parker's house, to the quantity of half an acre, and somewhat more; and, also, near half an acre upon the Fort Hill, for the sum of an hundred pounds."
He arrived in the colonies between 1635 and 1637 and settled in Dorchester which was a Massachusetts Bay Colony village a few miles south of Boston. Our record says his first wife, Alice Brasier, died in England in 1638. So did he come without her? His eldest son inherited the home Thomas had in England and was living in it when Thomas died in 1667. Perhaps Alice was ill and stayed behind with her eldest son, while father and the other children came to America. Or, perhaps the 1638 date is wrong. Perhaps she died earlier and Thomas came after she died. Most of Thomas's children were with his first wife. Did he bring all his little children with him? We know that except for the eldest son, all the children ended up in America. In his will he leaves money to a kinswoman, Mary. Perhaps she came to America with him and helped him care for the children. Ester (sometimes written Hester and at least once Easter) was quite small, being born in 1634, and would have been a large amount of care for a man without a wife. The other children named in the will besides Thomas Jr., the one who inherited the English home, and Ester, are William, Hannah, Mary, and Waitawhile. All but Waitawhile are named in the will before Ester, and are undoubtedly children of Thomas and Alice. Waitawhile was possibly born from his second marriage. Or perhaps Alice did come to America with Thomas and Waitawhile was her daughter.
For some people there will be too much "perhaps" in this sketch. But I think what we don't know can be food for the imagination. It can also point to places where future research may shed light. In the meantime here are the things we do know about Thomas Makepeace:
All the following records are from the William Makepeace source unless otherwise indicated.
7 Sep 1637 - A meeting of Boston officials recorded, "It is agreed that Mr. Thomas Makepeace shall have a house plot and a garden plot."
25 Sep 1637 - The court says where the house and garden shall be located.
1638 - He became one of the original members of the Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company, a membership indicating he was a man of importance and wealth. Also, he had the title of "Mr." which indicates he was a man of some importance.
25 Mar 1639 in the Boston Record - "Mr. John Underhill hath surrendered unto Mr. Thomas Makepeace of Dorchester, his house in Boston, with an hundred acres of upland ground at Muddy River, and ten acres of meadow, or marsh ground there; and his share of woodlands in the islands, with a garden at the house, and another behind Mr. Parker's house, to the quantity of half an acre, and somewhat more; and, also, near half an acre upon the Fort Hill, for the sum of an hundred pounds."
13 Jan 1640 - Thomas was informed by the court that, "Because of his novile disposition they were weary of him unless he should reform." (Pope) This record seems to indicate that Thomas was an independent minded man. 1640 was long before our Bill of Rights guaranteed us the freedom of speech. Free thinking was not encouraged by the Pilgrims in The Massachusetts Bay Colony.
2 Jun 1641- in the Massachusetts Record, "Mr. John Oliver, Mr. Edward Alleyn, William Parks, are appointed to view and settle Mr. Makepeace his farm of 200 acres."
25 Jul 1641 - "Mrs. Elizabeth Makepeace, lately called Mrs. Elizabeth Mellowes, but now ye wife of Mr. Makepeace, of Dorchester, was granted . . . (a transfer of membership to the church in Dorchester.)" We don't know the exact date of Thomas and Elizabeth's marriage. We do know that Elizabeth had at least three small children that she brought with her to the marriage. She had previously been married to Oliver Mellowes, who had a marriage prior to his marriage to Elizabeth.. Thomas had 5 or 6 (I'm not positive about Waitawhile's mother). And then there were four children under 20 from Oliver's first marriage to Mary James. Did they come along with their step-mother? We don't know. We know Thomas was interested in their welfare. (See 22 May 1651 below.) With or without them, it made for quite a large houseful of children. He could well use that 100 acres plus that he had purchased in Boston.
1641 - Thomas gave all the rents and profits of Thompson's Island to the town of Dorchester for the support of free schools. This record tells us how highly Thomas valued education. It also indicates that he valued the common man, else why need education be free? Free education was not the norm in the world of 1641.
14 Jun 1641- Thomas was one of 5 proprietors of the Dover, New Hampshire, and Swampscott patents. Other proprietors were: George Wyllys, Robert Saltonstall, William Whiting, Edward Holyoke. On this date the five partners petitioned the "general Court" to have both patents and the jurisdiction of the people dwelling within the limits of these patents, come under the government of Massachusetts Bay Colony. The petition was granted. The land is actually in what is now New Hampshire. All of the proprietors, according to the Makepeace family history, came from either Bristol or Shrewsbury. This is a good clue to where Thomas was from. This description of "patent" and "proprietor" as they applied to Thomas comes from our cousin, Wayne Olsen. "I think the patent means a formal grant from the King of England allowing settlement of acreage in the new world. I suspect that it implies that Thomas was a privileged person in the upper class of society, especially considering the names of the other 4 proprietors he collaborated with. I think it also implies that he had money and bankrolled the sailing ship and support of the specific settlement. Being a proprietor means pretty much the same thing, I think, designating him as one of the founders or leaders of the settlement."
13 Jan 1649 - a Suffolk deed transferring 7 acres of land in Dorchester from Thomas Makepeace to Roger Williams.
11 Jul 1649 - a deed transferring 9 acres of land in Dorchester from Thomas Makepeace to Augustine Clement.
22 May 1651 - Thomas petitioned the General Court for the right to sell a house and land in Braintree for the benefit of the six children of Oliver Mellowes and gave security with the eldest son John to pay the others portions, which was granted.
2 Jun 1653 - a court decision regarding Thomas's son William. William was an apprentice to Mr. Hutchingson, a cooper. Mr. Hutchingson had apparently tried to take some sort of legal action against William. Thomas petitioned the court in his son's behalf and the court found, ". . . the judgment of the Commissioners Court, and the lawe, title Masters and Servants, doe declare, that the proceedings of Mr. Hutchingson in reference to William Makepeace, the apprentice, to bee wthout, and against lawe."
1654 - Thomas received pay from the Massachusetts Bay treasury for service in the "Narragansett Expedition." The Narragansett Indians were a small tribe of Indians that mainly occupied the islands to the south of Massachusetts and Rhode Island. Look for Narragansett Bay on a map of Rhode Island. These Indians were supposed to be paying a tribute of Wampum to the Massachusetts Bay treasury. They didn't have enough wampum so in 1653 they stole it from the Montauk Indians who lived at the east end of Long Island. The colonists did not want war among the Indian tribes so they sent Thomas and some others down to try to settle the problem. They must have been successful because there was no major battles at that time. Perhaps Thomas was a friend of Roger Williams. You can see above in 1649 that Thomas had sold Roger land. Roger Williams started the colony of Rhode Island. He had respect for the Indians and so they had great respect for him.
12 Jun 1854 - Thomas witnessed a deed in London. (Pope)
21 Jul 1854 - He witnessed a deed in Boston. (Pope) Travel between these two places seems to be getting faster.
Jan 1655 - A deed was registered and recorded by Deputy Governor, R. Bellingham.
2 Apr 1662 - Thomas is referred to in the abstract of a court file as, "Thomas Makepeace of Boston, aged nere 70 (seventy) years."
30 Jun 1666 - Thomas's will is dated. Here follow a summary of who got what in the will:
Names eldest son, Thomas, to whom he has previously given house and land in England.
Names son William - the house in Boston after the death of Thos's daughter Mary who is currently living there with her family. Also, William will own a debt of 3 pounds owed by Thomas Terry of Block Island. (Find Block Island south of Rhode Island.)
Names eldest daughter, Hannah, wife of Stephen Hoppin, of Thompson's Island - 3 pounds
Names daughter Mary, wife of Lawrence Willis-use of the house in Boston during her life. Also a debt owed by John Willis, Sr, of Bridgewater, and another owed by his son, John Willis, Jr., of Bridgewater.
Names daughter Ester, wife of John Browne of Marlborough - 3 pounds plus all the debts owed by John Browne
Names daughter Waitawhile, wife of Josiah Cooper, of Boston - 3 pounds
Names nine children of daughter Hannah Hoppin: Deliverance, John, Stephen, Hannah, Sarah, Thomas, Opportunity, Joseph, Benjamin - 10 pounds each, except that Stephen shall not get his until he reforms from his "wild and wasteful course."
Names five children of Browne: Elizabeth, Joseph, Sarah, Mary, John - 10 pounds each
Names two children of Cooper: Elizabeth and the unborn child of Waitawhile - 10 pounds each
Names kinswoman, Mary, wife of John Pearce of Rhode Island - 3 pounds
Names wife's 3 daughters - Martha, wife of Joseph Walters, Mary, wife of Emanuel Springfield in England, and Mary, wife of James Dennis of Boston - 50 shillings each.
Names son-in-law Abel Langley - 50 shillings
Names wife, Elizabeth - 1/3 of the whole before the other legacies are paid.
The remainder of the estate is to be divided into 3 parts. One part to wife Elizabeth, one part to daughter, Waitawhile, and one part to Josiah Cooper, her husband.
Wife Elizabeth, daughter Waitawhile, and son-in-law Cooper executors.
His will, dated Boston, June 30, 1666, is on record in the probate office in Boston.
The inventory of Thomas's Estate was dated 2 Mar 1667. He left an estate worth 291 pounds and 7 shillings which included one dwelling house and grounds worth 180 pounds. Do you think all those people and grandchildren in his will were able to receive what he wanted to leave for them?
And so we assume Thomas Makepeace died in Boston, Jan or Feb 1667.
The Bryant Family
THE
BRYANT FAMILY OF
KENT CO.,
ENGLAND-PLYMOUTH,
MASS.- BRYANT HILL, ELLICOTTVILLE, NY
Researched by: Edna Bryant Cole of Erie, PA.
This story begins in 1630 in Kent County, England, with a widow named Anne
Bryant. Anne's husband had died, leaving her with three young boys: Thomas
Bryant (?), Stephen Bryant and John Bryant. Among the family
friends and neighbors was a lawyer, John Doane, a widower with a son
also named John. The elder John offered to give Anne's three
lads a chance in the New World if she would marry him and go there with him (?).
John was a capable man, highly regarded, and his influence would give
the three Bryant boys opportunities they otherwise would not find. So Anne
consented. The six of them boarded a little ship known as the Handmaid, on
August 10, 1630 and two months later, October 29, 1630, they landed in
Plymouth Colony.
John Doane rated
highly in the estimation of Governor William Bradford and Thomas
Prence. His name appears many times in the old records of the colony. He
held many offices and is mentioned frequently on various committees. He had
charge of settling many estates and handling the legal affairs of numerous
minor children who had been left orphans. For example, in 1633, a Peter Brown
died at Plymouth, leaving two daughters by his first wife and an estate of 100
pounds. The second wife refused the responsibility for the two girls; one of
them was bound to John Doane for nine years. Fifteen pounds were paid
from Brown's estate to help with the girl's expenses.
In Nov. 1636, John Doane was appointed a member of a committee to
assist the governor in revising the laws, orders and constitution of the
colony.
In Oct. 1641, Governor William Bradford bought a place bordering John
Doane's place to give to Bradford's son-in-law, Thomas Southworth.
The following April, 1642, Doane sold to Governor Bradford for
four goats a garden place in Plymouth adjacent to Doane's own garden,
and three acres of marsh meadow at Jones River. That same month, Doane,
as agent for the church at Plymouth, bought a house, buildings and garden plots
at Plymouth, and six acres of upland, for 120 pounds from Ralph Smyth,
for the Plymouth church. Jan. 7, 1645, John Doane was licensed by the
colony to sell wine, which would indicate he had a tavern or inn at Plymouth.
John Doane was not
always sympathetic with the governing powers, and, was especially against
certain ideas regarding intolerance often expressed by the Plymouth leaders.
When the agitation arose to move the entire settlement of Plymouth across the
bay to Nauset, John Doane was the chief leader and supporter of the
movement. When the town was assembled in meeting, the citizens voted against
the proposition. John was not to be deterred. Having bought property in Nauset
some years earlier, he sold all of his property in Plymouth, Feb. 1645,
including house, buildings, gardens, fruit trees and fences, to William
Hanbury for ten pounds, moved to Nauset and changed the name of that place
to Eastham, probably in honor of the town where he was born: Ham, East Parish,
in Essex County, England. He and his son John both were still on the Eastham
town list of freemen in June, 1689.
Following a practice common in those days, John and Anne
bound out two of the Bryant boys to good friends. Thomas Bryant was
bound out to Samuel Eddy, and Stephen Bryant to John Shaw.
Offering boys financial opportunities and connections independent of, and
supplementary to those, which their own parents could offer them as they grew
up. The third Bryant boy, John, being the youngest, stayed with his
mother and stepfather.
On January 2, 1632, the following entry as found in the Plymouth court records:
"Thomas Bryant, the servant of Samuel Eddy, was brought before the Governor, Mr. Will Bradford, Mr. John Doane, Steve Hopkins and Will Gilson, assistants, because the said Thomas had run away and absented himself five days from his master's service and being lost in the woods and found by an Indian was forced to return; and for his offense was privately whipped before the Governor and council as fore-mentioned."
Thomas disappears at this point from history's pages. His master, Samuel Eddy, had bought his house and garden plot in Plymouth for Experience Mitchell for 12 pounds, May 9, 1631. Samuel enjoyed excellent connections with the colony's governing powers until, finally becoming disgusted with the political situation, he moved his household to Swansea, where he lived to a ripe old age. When he finally died on Nov. 12, 1687, in his eighty-seventh year, the event was recorded on the Plymouth church records, indicating he always had mentioned his membership there. His brother, John Eddy, who had come to Plymouth Colony with him, also moved out of Plymouth to what is now know as Middleboro. Eddyville, a little hamlet in that town, still bears his name.
The Salisbury Family
5GG Mary Salisbury was the
daughter of
6GG Samuel Salisbury 1698 - 1779
and Patience Jones 1709 - 1796
Samuel Salisbury was the son of
7GG Samuel Salisbury 1666 -
1787 and Mary Brooks 1671 - 1698
Samuel Salisbury was the son of
8GG William Salisbury 1622 - 1678 and Susan
Cotton 1628 - 1684
The lineage of William Salisbury
consists of a great deal of differing opinions, with many relating his lineage
to Merionithshire, Wales, then back to the links with Royalty.
Perhaps he is the William
Salisbury who was born in 1622 the son of
William Salisbury and brother of Samuel Salisbury. This William married Johann Wills, daughter
of George Wills in 1642. In fact
William could belong to any number of established English families. The family in Wales, that others have linked
him to are the descendants of Sir Thomas Salusbury. No William's appear in the lineage, which is
linked back to our own.
Sir Thomas Salisbury (or Salusbury) (1564 – 20 September 1586) was one of the conspirators executed for his involvement in the Babington Plot.
18th century copy of a portrait
of Sir Thomas Salisbury
Quoted from 'Ancient and Modern Denbigh'.
After the execution of Thomas Salusbury of Lleweni in 1586 (see 'The Descent of Hughes'), Lleweni passed to his brother; Sir John Salusbury of Lleweni, Knight, (d. 1612), who married Ursula, natural daughter of Henry Stanley, 4th Earl of Derby.
On his death Lleweni passed to his son; Sir Henry Salusbury of Lleweni, 1st Bt. (d. 1632), then to his son; Sir Thomas Salusbury of Lleweni, 2nd baronet** (d. 1643), then to his son;
Sir Thomas Salusbury of Lleweni, 3rd Bt. (d. 1658) and then to the 3rd baronet's brother; Sir John Salusbury of Lleweni, 4th and last baronet, who died without issue in 1684. Lleweni then passed to his sister;
Hester Salusbury, wife of Sir Robert Cotton of Combermere and Lleweni, 1st baronet, who died in 1712. Lleweni then passed to his son; Sir Thomas Cotton of Combermere and Lleweni, 2nd Bt. (d. 1715) and then to; Sir Robert Salusbury Cotton, 3rd Bt. (d. 1748) and then to his brother; Sir Lynch-Salusbury Cotton, 4th Bt. (d. 1775) and then to his son; Sir Robert Salusbury Cotton, 5th Bt. (d. 1807) who sold Lleweni to the Hon. Thomas Fitzmaurice in about 1770-1780.
How did Susan
Cotton arrive in America?
Susan Cotton was born in
Haddenham in Surrey, daughter of Thomas Cotton and his wife Margerie Hill. She was baptised in December 1626.
Was she there is a marriage for a
Susan Cotton, to William Boadman in May 1640, in Darfield York. In that case
did she arrive in America with William Boardman.
There is a family of the name
Boardman in whose wife was Rebecca, and who had a son William Boardman. After his death Rebecca married Mr Day. He died in 1688 and she died in 1658.
Perhaps there were two William
Boardman's who arrived and who were cousins.
Or was William Boardman *2 the
son of Susan Cotton and William Boardman, born in England c 1641?
Did William Boardman die in
England, and then Susan married again?
Did Susan marry William Salisbury
in England and arrive with him in 1648?
However, given that the first
child was born 1656, there is a lot of scope for speculation about prior
marriages, as death was very common, and spouses married endlessly.
William Salisbury arrived in
America 1648. There does not appear to be any source document regarding a marriage.
They were not doubt married by
1656. Their son John was born in 1657.
There is another option for the
arrival of Susan Cotton in America.
Perhaps she arrived with one of her cousins, Rev John Cotton.
As his second wife, Rev Cotton
married Sarah Hawkred. She had been
married to William Story and had a daughter Elizabeth Story. Elizabeth married as per the notice about the
Boardman's above.
John Cotton (4 December 1585 – 23 December 1652) was a clergyman in England and the American colonies and, by most accounts, the preeminent minister and theologian of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. He studied for five years at Trinity College, Cambridge and another nine at Emmanuel College, Cambridge. He had already built a reputation as a scholar and outstanding preacher when he accepted the position of minister at Saint Botolph's Church in Boston, Lincolnshire in 1612.
As a Puritan, he wanted to do away with the ceremony and vestments associated with the established Anglican Church and preach in a simpler manner. He felt that the English church needed significant reforms, yet he was also adamant about not separating from it; his preference was to change it from within.
Many ministers were removed from their pulpits for their Puritan practices, but Cotton thrived at St. Botolph's for nearly 20 years because of supportive aldermen and lenient bishops, as well as his very conciliatory and gentle demeanor. By 1632, however, the Anglican church had greatly increased its pressure on the non-conforming clergy, and Cotton was forced to go into hiding. The following year, he and his wife boarded a ship for New England.
Rev John Cotton was the son of Rowland Cotton and his wife
Mary Hulibert. Rowland Cotton was the
son of William Cotton, a lineal descendant of the Cotton's of Combermere Abbey. His great aunt and uncle were Hester
Salisbury and Sir Robert Cotton. While
his parents were from London, the family were interlinked, and the generational
lineage goes back to King William.
As does Susan Cotton's
The Cotton family traced its descent from Sir Hugh de Coton of Coton in
Shropshire in the time of Henry III (1216-1272). Sir George Cotton, an esquire
of Henry VIII, was knighted by him and granted Combermere in 1541.
Our connection to the Cottons' is with the marriage of Catherine Cotton
to Thomas Molyneaux who were the grandparents of Mary Bond.
Perhaps William will go down in
American History as the person who was responsible for the King Phillips' War
in 1675.
My belief is that history is in
the past, it is a telling of stories that happened in the past, and it should
never be watered down or censured. But
it also is a window of opportunity to question those long held facts which can
cloud other's thinking.
William and Susan were living at
Swansea in 1675. Some previous
researchers have compiled family histories relating to events as happened in
1675. Poor Susan, as a mother her
priority would be to protect her young children. She died in 1684.
Some excerpts and their
references follow
King Phillips War
The first incursions into English settlements began at Swansea, which shared borders with Rehoboth and the Wampanoag peninsula of Sowams where Philip’s own village of Pokanoket was located.
“Swansea was a tempting target for attack,” writes Douglas Edward Leach in Flintlock and Tomahawk. “The town consisted of only a few dozen families at most, living in homes which were scattered rather than clustered. A small subsidiary settlement of about eighteen houses was located some distance to the south of the main settlement, actually within the narrow neck of land leading to Mount Hope. The few families living here were living almost under the very shadows of their enemies.”
On the June 23, an altercation between a party of Indian looters and two Swansea men proved fateful.
By this time, many of Swansea’s citizens were sheltered in the garrisons, having left their deserted homes and livestock vulnerable to looting and other Indian mischief.
The following is a passage from “Plymouth Colony, Its History & People 1620-1691,” describing the events of June 23 & 24, 1675:
“The Indians were looting various deserted houses when two white men, and old man (William Salisbury) and his son (John), appeared on the scene. Seeing three Indians run out of the house, the old man told his son to shoot, which he did. One Indian was hit, but got away.
Later some Indians came to the garrison and asked why they shot the Indian, letting them know that he had died. The son said it was no matter. Some of the others tried to let the Indians know that they did not feel so callous about the death, but the Indians went away in haste.”
There are several other versions of what happened at Swansea.
One widely told tale stated:
“On Sunday, 20 June 1675, while the Swansea settlers were at church, some Indians shot some of their cattle. The frightened people moved to the garrison house.
On the 23rd of June, William and his son John left the garrison house to try to salvage some of their geese. They found the geese dead and also found some Indians ransacking their home.
William ordered his son John, to shoot, and one of the Indians was wounded, possibly killed.
The next day, June 24th, the Indians went to Swansea and found William and his son, John, and killed them both and cut off their heads.”
Another story stated:
“On 23 June 1675, John Salisbury, the 20 year old son of William, fired the first shot of King Philip’s War when he mortally wounded an Indian who was pilfering his house.
The next day the Indians returned, shot and killed William Salisbury, ‘his wife not far off, heard the guns go off, went back: they took her, first defiled her, then skinned her head, as also the son, and dismist them both who immediately died.”
Susanna survived.
John Easton, deputy governor of Rhode Island, wrote a narrative in which he described events in the Swansea area of 23 June 1675:
“The Indians were looting various deserted houses when two white men, an old man and a boy, appeared on the scene.
Seeing three Indians run out of the house, the old man told the boy to shoot, which he did. One Indian was hit, but got away. Later, some Indians came to the garrison and asked why they shot the Indian, letting them know that he had died. The boy said it was no matter. Some of the others tried to let the Indians know that they did not feel so callous about the death, but the Indians went away in haste.
Easton wrote that the next day, 24 June, Indians returned and killed the boy who had shot the Indian, his father, and five other white men.”
A contemporary letter from an unidentified Boston merchant to a friend in London reported something similar, saying that a man at Swansea, his wife, and his son of about twenty were shot by Indians. The wife was defiled by the Indians, who also “skinned her head, as also the son.”
Benjamin Church later recalled that on a march, in June, past the burned out houses south of Swansea, the English troops witnessed this gruesome sight:
“And soon after, eight more at Mattapoiset, upon whose bodies they (the Indians) exercised more brutish barbarities, beheading, dismembering and mangling them and exposing them in a most inhuman manner.”
They marched until they came to the narrow neck, at a place called Keekkauit, where they took down the heads of eight Englishmen that were killed at the head of Metapoiset Neck and set upon poles.
Vital records sent to Plymouth by Nicholas Tanner, Swansea town clerk, showed that nine males were buried at Swansea on 24 June: Gershom Cobb, Joseph Lewis, John Salisbury, John Jones, John Fall, Nehemiah Allin, Robert Jones, William Cahoone and William Salisbury. A 10th, William Hammond, was ambushed and killed later. He was buried on June 29.
A memorial site for the men is located in Massachusetts very near the Massachusetts-Rhode Island border near the place in Massachusetts called North Swansea and the Rhode Island towns of Barrington and Warren.
To mark this historic site, the monument was erected by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in 1912. Inscription as follows: Myles Garrison House Site near this spot stood the John Myles Garrison House. The place of meetings of the troops of Massachusetts Bay and Plymouth colonies commanded by Majors Thomas Savage and James Cudworth, who marched to the relief of Swansea at the opening of King Phillips War A.D. 1675. There fell in Swansea, slain by the Indians: Nehemiah Allin, William Hammond, William Cahoone, John Jones, Gershom Cobb, Robert Jones, John Druce, Joseph Lewis, John Fall, John Salisbury and William Salisbury.
King Philip’s War came to an end on August 12, 1676 when one of Col. Benjamin Church’s Indian Rangers (John Alderman) killed King Phillip.
Upon inspection of Phillip’s body, Church is quoted as saying, “a doleful, great, naked, dirty beast” Phillip was shot, drawn and quartered and beheaded. His severed head was reportedly displayed at Plymouth for 20 years.
https://vandenheedemarkfamily.wordpress.com/gilman-family/salisbury-family/
I have this statement which gives
a reason for the start of King Phillip's War. Death Notes- First incidents of
King Phillip's War at Swansea in June 1675. On the 23rd of June, it is said
that, John Salisbury killed an Indian who "was pilfering his house".
Indians returned the next day and killed him and his father. When troops
arrived, from Boston and Plymouth, on the 28th of June, they found the heads of
the murdered Englishmen set on poles at a place called Keeamuit ( now Warren,
RI )
Accounts of these incidents vary but it is generally accepted that the
first victims of the war were "John Salisbury, William Salisbury, Gershom
Cobb, Joseph Lewis, John Ives, Robert Jones, and John Fall, Nathaniel and
William Lohun". -I found this statement at the local historical society
done by a local historian from the Mass. area. Bcody 02:05, 9 February 2007
By June 18 and 19th, the Wampanoag pushed back, symbolically setting Job Winslow’s house on fire, and looting barns, but not yet shedding English blood. Then, on June 20th and 23rd, Hugh Cole’s house south of Swansea and another home were looted and burned along the Kickemuit River—a strong statement that enough was enough. “Hear us! Let us live on our land in peace!” The conflict exploded on June 23rd, when some accounts say a small band of Wampanoag torched another house, (others say looted) this time in Swansea. My 8th great-grandfather, pilgrim William Salisbury, commanded his 20-year- old son, John, (both soldiers in the local militia) to fire his musket at three fleeing Native Americans as they ran away, striking one in the back as he fled. He died later that day.
A group of Wampanoag came to the Myles Garrison House and asked why the victim had been shot while fleeing, and John dismissively retorted, “It was of no matter”. Although others in the garrison “tried to let the Indians know that they did not feel so callous about the death”, the Indians were incensed at the senseless shooting and retaliated the next day, ambushing and killing William, John and 5 others—cutting off their heads and displaying them on poles at a place called Keekkauit, near the present Massachusetts-Rhode Island border.
6GG Samuel Salisbury m Patience Jones
Patience Jones was the daughter of
7GG Thomas Jones and Catherine
Caswell. They lived in Hingham in
Plymouth. Patience also married Daniel
Lazelle.
Samuel Salisbury was the son of
7GG Samuel Salisbury 1666 - 1757 and Mary Brooks 1671 - 1698
Mary Brooks was the daughter of
8GG
Timothy Brooks 1634 - 1711 and
Mary Russell 1639 - 1680. Timothy died
at Salem. Mary Russell had married Captain John Jacob Scitaute Military, in
Captain Hobert's Company. who died 1676.
Timothy Brooks was the son of
9GG
Henry Brooke 1592 - 1683 and Grace Wheeleer There has been a variety of names for Grace
Wheeler, she may have also married a few times.
There were around 30 families named Wheeler in Concord by
1635, and some members were George, Joseph and Obediah, and Thomas and Isaac in
other towns.
Henry Brooke also married Susan Bradford. Susannah through her marriage to Ezekeil
Richardson, crosses the DeGraw lineage.
The parents of Susan Bradford are not confirmed,
Mary Russell was the daughter of
9GG
George Russell 1595 - 1694 and Jane Davenport
Mary also married Captain John
Jacob.
Her
parents arrived aboard the Elizabeth on 4 April 1635. He purchased a mill in
Scituate in 1646
6GG Samuel Darby 1689 - 1740 and Mary
Bryant 1685 - 1752
Mary Bryant was the daughter of
7GG
John Bryant, of Tauton Bristol Massachusetts 1650 - 1697 and Hannah
John Bryant was the son of
8GG John Bryant 1598 - 1693 and Elizabeth Benson who it is purported to
be a member of the Moy Toy Tribe
Samuel Darby was the son of
7GG John Derby 1630 and Esther
Makepeace 1634 - 1685
Esther Makepeace was the daughter
of
8GG Thomas Makepeace 1595 -
1667 and Elizabeth Mellows 1605 - 1670
Thomas was a merchant, and was
known as Thomas Makepeas. He and Elizabeth were members of the Church and he
signed documents for the school at Dorchester.
He made provision in his will for Esther's children with John
Browne.
Makepeace 1634-1685, daughter of
Thomas and Alice Brasier, married to John Brown
From the Complete Book of Emigrants 1607-1660 by Peter Wilson
Coldham (1988) the following can be found (referenced source Public Record
Office PRO; E190/876/11 on Chancery Lane, London.
April
1637, Passengers on the [ -------- ], Mr. John Driver, bound from
Weymouth to New England: [Elizabeth Poole], two friends and 13 (servants);
Henry (Cogan), his wife, 7 men and two maids; Thomas Farwell and two servants;
William Longe and his brother; John Cornish, his wife, two brothers, one sister
& one man; Anthony Buxtone; William Harvey; Thomas Tayer, his wife and four
children; John Derby, his wife, brother and two servants; Walter Deane and six
servants; John Reade and six servants; John Gilbert, two men, one maid and two
boys; Richard Smith, two children and one servant; Henry Webb, his wife,
mother, child, five men & one maid; Edward Rawson, his wife, two children,
two maids & four men; Henry Smith, his wife, four children, four menservants
& four women (servants); Richard Babson, his mother and brother.
The Meacham
Family
The Meacham Family also intertwined with previous
DeGraw family of Esther Makepeace.
4GG Captain John Abbott married
Susannah Meacham
Susannah Meacham was the daughter
of
5GG Isaac Meacham 1716 -1816
and Lydia Blanchard 1726 - 1762
Isaac Meacham was the son of
6GG
Ichabold Meacham and Elizabeth Littlefield 1694 - 1773
Ichabold Meacham was the son of
7GG
Isaac Meacham 1642 - 1715 and Deborah Browning 1646 -1698
Isaac Meacham was the son of
8GG
Jerimiah Meacham 1614 - 1698 and Margaret Prisse 1613 - 1619
Among those who moved to the
United States of America was one person by the name of Jeremiah Meacham, who
settled in the city of Boston, Massachusetts in the year of 1636, making him
the first person who was recorded to bear the surname of Meacham within the
United States of America.
From
England to Boston 1636 with wife and brother, John. Went to Southold NY as a
weaver 1650; Easthampton NY 1653; in later years was a clothier at Salem, MA
and operated a fulling mill.
Jeremiah
was one of the Founding Fathers of Southold,NY. the town Patent says they
were"Freeholders and Inhabitants"
Pagans,Puritans,Patriots
of Yesterday's
Southold
- Warren Hall
Source: Book:
History of Salem, Mass. Vol. II pg. 391. (in text).
"Jeremiah
Meacham was a husbandman and weaver, and lived here as early as1650.
Footnote:
"Jeremiah Meacham married first Margaret_________; she died before 1694;
married 2nd
Alice_________;
in or before 1694; he died in the autumn of 1695; she survived him."
The
Immigrant Ancestor: JEREMIAH MEACHAM is believed to have been born in
Somersetshire, England in 1613 or 1614. The seemingly authentic tradition
exists that he left England between the years 1630 and 1642 with the great
fleet of Governors Wentworth and Dudley, and was among the first settlers who
went to Salem (called by the Indians Naumkeag) Massachusetts, with two
companions of the Hawkins family. Jeremiah was a weaver by trade throughout his
lifetime and may have been the "Weaver" who is listed among the
passengers of the fleet, particularly a s the said "Weaver" had no
subsequent record and is not mentioned in any of the published genealogies of
the Weaver families of Massachusetts or New York.
The
first official record of the Meacham family in America occurs in 1650 at which
time Jerem iah Meacham was living at Southhold, Long Island. In 1653 he settled
at East Hampton, Long Is land, "to do the town's weaving." Jeremiah
Meacham returned to Salem in 1666. His first wife' s name was Margaret; to this
union were born at least seven children. Margaret died in 1679 at Salem.
Jeremiah then married a widow, Alice Douch (Dane). Her father was Osman Douch,
and her first husband was Dr. John Dane. She died in May 1704 in Salem, Mass.
Jeremiah died Novemb er 11, 1696 in Salem.
The
will of Jeremiah Meacham I, dated Apr. 12, 1694, reads in part, "I
Jeremiah Meacham of the Towne of Salem, Clothier, being very Antient being
about Eighty one years of age...do make. ..this my Last will and
Testament."
Early American Criminals: Jeremiah Meacham’s Tortured Soul
According to the minister Nathaniel Clap, Meacham’s torment became so bad that the “Concerns of his Soul, mixed with some vexations about his Affairs in the World, brought him into a grievous hurry, which by degrees boil’d up into a sort of a raging fury.”
Growing Trouble
Even though Meacham had forsaken his religious duties, he continued to be a responsible citizen. He followed through on his promises and was responsible in his business dealings. He maintained a “Moral Honesty” with his neighbours, although they all wished that he did not speak so freely to them about his radical religious and philosophical beliefs.
But without a clear guide for his soul, Meacham appeared to be losing his way. As Nathaniel Clap put it, “his troubles of mind grew so intolerable, that he told some, that he was weary of his Life.” Following some advice that was given to him, Meacham tried to drink his troubles away with hard liquor, but the “troubles of his mind returned as the Spirits of the Drink removed.”
On the Roof
By midday, Meacham climbed down off the roof and into his chamber, where he stayed the rest of the afternoon. At sunset, he called his wife and her sister up to his room. The two tried to convince him to go downstairs with them to ensure that he would not harm himself. But in an instant, Meacham stabbed his wife in the neck with his penknife. He then grabbed an ax and struck both women with it several times until they were dead.
Meacham now turned away from the “miserably mangled Bodies” he left on the floor to stand guard at the doorway. Using the bloody axe, he knocked down and injured the head of Stephen Easson as he was coming up the stairs to find out what had happened. Others tried to get to him by breaking through the floor and through the roof of the chamber. When his pursuers used a candle to peer into the room, Meacham grabbed it from them and used it to set the room on fire. As the flames grew, the chamber became so hot that Meacham sprang headlong out the window. Once he hit the ground, he was immediately apprehended by the people who now had surrounded the burning house.
The neighbours noted that Meacham had tried to slit his throat with his penknife after lighting the fire. With his death not coming soon enough, and with the fire becoming too intolerable to withstand, he then tried to use the leap out the window to kill himself. But none of the wounds he incurred with these actions ended up being serious.
In Gibbets
Meacham was executed on April 12, 1715 in front of several thousand spectators, and his body was hung in gibbets or, as it was also known, in chains. Gibbet-irons encased the bodies of executed criminals, so that their rotting corpses could be held up for display and serve as a warning to those who gazed upon them. The use of gibbets in the colonies was rare but not entirely unusual, but they were more often reserved for pirates.
Even though the forty-some-year old Meacham did not show any sign of finding religion throughout most of the time when he was held in prison, the Boston News-Letter reported, “The Night before his Execution and that Day, he gave greater and better Evidence of his Sense of his Sinfulness and Repentance for Sin, with his Submission to the Will of God.”
Spare a thought
for your ancestor, she was his wife, and the one he murdered.
Deborah
Browne was the daughter of Esther Makepeace and John Browne.
Browne Family
John Browne Brown, of
Worcester, was associated with the Pilgrims at Plymouth. While he was traveling
in his youth he became acquainted with Rev. John Robinson, pastor of the
Pilgrims, and through him met many of his people in the same way that Governor
Winslow and Captain Miles Standish came to join the Pilgrims. He did not come
in the "Mayflower," however. It was not until March, 1629, that he
reached New England. He landed at Salem.Two years earlier, however, March 19, 1627, the council for New England approved a patent for trade soil and planting on which a Royal charter was obtained March 4, 1628, to certain patentees and their associates, among whom were John Browne, John Saltonstall, and others who became well known in the colonies. He was elected to Governor John Endicott's council, April 3, 1629, with Francis Higginson, Samuel Skelton, Francis Bright, Samuel Browne, Thomas Graves and Samuel Sharp.
He went from Salem to Plymouth and later to Taunton with his son, James. In 1643 John Brown and his sons, John and James, were residents of Taunton, but next year they settled at Rehoboth, Massachusetts. There John Browne, Sr., and John Brown, Jr., stayed and were among the first settlers, but James Browne being a Baptist was forced to leave town in 1663 and with others of his sect founded the town of Swansey, Massachusetts.
The designation Mr. given him in the records always shows that he was counted among the gentry. His sons and grandsons were leaders in civic, judicial and military affairs. John Brown was appointed one of the townsmen (an office) in Rehoboth, March 16, 1645, and again in 1650-51. He served the town on important commissions. He was on the prudential committee. He was for seventeen years from 1636 to 1653 0ne of the governor's assistants or magistrates.
In 1638 the following were the governor's assistants: William Bradford, Edward Winslow, Captain Miles Standish, John Alden, John Jenny and John Browne. He was one of the commissioners of the United Colonies of New England (which foreshadowed the later confederation) from 1644 to 1655. In the governor's court June 4, 1652, he won a notable suit for damages for defamation against Samuel Newman, the judgment being for one hundred pounds and costs. Mr. Browne waived the judgment, however, and let Newman off on payment of the costs.
Mr. Browne was a friend of Massasoit, and the proof of their friendship was shown when the life of his son James was spared by King Philip, son of Massasoit, when he came on a mission from the governor to the Indians. Colonel Church in his narrative says: "that the Indians would have killed Mr. Browne, who with Mr. Samuel Gorton and two other men bore the letter, but Philip prevented them, saying that his father had charged him to show kindness to Mr. Browne."
It is said in his honour that he was the first magistrate to raise his voice against the coercive support of the ministry, taking the stand that all church support should be voluntary and backed his precepts by liberal example. He was a man of abilities, intellect, piety and patriotism, and was buried with civic and military honours in 1662. His wife Dorothy died in 1674. His eldest son died the same year as he (1662)
His other son, James, was afterwards in the magistracy. His grandson, John Browne, became useful and eminent. In 1685 John Browne was one of the first associate justices of the court of common pleas in the county of Bristol. In 16gg, during the administration of Lord Bellamont, Vve was again appointed a justice. John Browne, Sr., was born in 1595 and died April 10, 1662. His wife died at Swansey, Massachusetts, January 27, 1673.
The children of John Browne (I) were: Ensign John, Jr., born in England, died last of March, 1662; (settled in Rehoboth and had these children: John, born last Friday in September, 1650; Lydia, August 5 or 6, 1656; Annah, January 29, 1657; Joseph, April 9, 1658; Nathaniel, June 9, 1661; Major James, of Swansey, born in England 1623, died 1710; Mary, born in England, married, July 6, 1636, Captain Thomas Willett, of Plymouth, the first English mayor of New York city, who was twice elected to that office. William, resided in Salem, not mentioned in will and not proved to be son of John Browne (I).
(II) Major James Brown, son of John Browne
(1) , born in England in 1623, was in Taunton in 1643 with his father, the assistant, and went with him to Swansea, Massachusetts. He was said to be a Baptist and preacher. He was chosen an assistant in 1665.
He married Lydia Howland, daughter of John Howland, who came over in the "Mayflower," and all his descendants are likewise descended from Mayflower ancestry. He died October 29, 1710, aged eighty-seven years.
Their children were:
James, born at Rehoboth,
Massachusetts, May 4,' 1655, died at Barrington, Rhode Island, 1725;
Dorothy born at Swansey, Massachusetts, August
29, 1666, married —;— Kent;
Jabez, born July 9, 1668,
at Swansey, Massachusetts.
 |
| Mayflower |
The Bradford Connections
William Bradford (c. 19 March 1590 – May 9,
1657) was an English Separatist originally from the West
Riding of Yorkshire.
He moved to Leiden in Holland in order to escape persecution
from King
James I of England,
and then emigrated to the Plymouth Colony on the Mayflower in 1620.
He was a signatory to the Mayflower Compact and went on to serve as Governor
of the Plymouth
Colony
intermittently for about 30 years between 1621 and 1657. His journal Of
Plymouth Plantation
covered the years from 1620 to 1657 in Plymouth.
William
Bradford was born to Alice and William Bradford in Austerfield, West
Riding of Yorkshire,
and was baptised on March 19, 1589/90. The family possessed a large farm and
were considered wealthy and influential in a time when most of their countrymen
were farmers of modest means.[6][7] Bradford's grandfather was
William Bradforthe who had at least four children, including Bradford's father,
and was probably of noble ancestry, according to researcher George J. Hill.
Bradford's childhood was marked
by numerous deaths in the family. He was just over a year old when his father
died. His mother remarried when he was four years old, and he was sent to live
with his grandfather. His grandfather died two years later, and he returned to
live with his mother and stepfather. His mother died a year later, in 1597, and
Bradford thus became an orphan at the age of seven and was sent to live with
two uncles.
His uncles wanted him to help on
the farm, and he later noted in his journal that he suffered at that time from
a "long sickness" and was unable to work. He instead turned to
reading and became familiar with the Bible and classic works of literature.
This is seen by some as a key factor in his intellectual curiosity and his
eventual attraction to the Separatist branch of Puritan theology.
Separatist congregation
When Bradford was 12 years old, a
friend invited him to hear the Rev. Richard Clyfton preach 10 miles away in All
Saints' Church that is located in Babworth. Clyfton believed that the Church of England ought to eliminate all vestiges
of Roman
Catholic
practices, and that this would result in a purer Christian church.
Bradford was inspired by his
preaching and continued to attend his sermons, even though he was forbidden by
his uncles. During one meeting, Bradford met
William
Brewster, a bailiff and postmaster who lived at Scrooby manor, four miles from
Austerfield. During frequent visits, Bradford borrowed books from him, and
Brewster regaled him with stories of the efforts toward church reform taking
place throughout England.
King
James I came to
the English throne in 1603, declaring that he would put an end to church reform
movements and deal harshly with radical critics of the Church of England.[
By 1607, secret meetings were being held at Scrooby Manor and about 50
reform-minded individuals began to worship together, led by Richard Clyfton and
the Rev John
Robinson. This
group decided that reform of the Church of England was hopeless and they would
sever all ties. Their weekly meetings eventually attracted the attention of the
Archbishop
of York, and
many members of the congregation were arrested in 1607. Brewster was found
guilty of being "disobedient in matters of religion" and was fined.
Some members were imprisoned and others were watched "night and day",
according to Bradford, by those loyal to the archbishop. Adding to their concerns, the Scrooby
congregation learned that other dissenters in London had been imprisoned and
left to starve.
The Scrooby congregation decided
in 1607 to leave England unlawfully for the Dutch Republic where religious freedom was
permitted, and Bradford determined to go with them. The group encountered
several major setbacks when trying to leave England, most notably their
betrayal by an English sea captain who had agreed to carry them to the
Netherlands, but instead turned them over to the authorities. Most of the congregation were imprisoned for
a short time after this failed attempt, including Bradford. By the summer of
1608, however, they managed to escape England in small groups and relocate to Leiden in the Dutch Republic. Bradford
was 18.
In Leiden
and London
Bradford arrived in Amsterdam in
August 1608. He had no family with him and was taken in by the Brewster
household. The Scrooby congregation had to work the lowest of jobs and live in
poor conditions, being foreigners and having spent most of their money in
attempts to get to the Dutch Republic. After nine months, the group chose to
relocate to the smaller city of Leiden.
Bradford continued to reside with
the Brewster family in a poor Leiden neighborhood known as Stink Alley.
Conditions changed dramatically for him when he turned 21 and was able to claim
his family inheritance in 1611. He bought his own house, set up a workshop as a
fustian weaver, and earned a reputable
standing.
In 1613, Bradford married Dorothy
May, the daughter of a well-off English couple living in Amsterdam. The couple
were married in a civil service, as they could find no example of a religious
service in the Scriptures. In 1617, the Bradfords had their first child John
Bradford.
In 1619, William Bradford sold
his house in Leiden and appears in March 1620 tax records in London being taxed
for personal property at the Duke’s Place, Aldgate. Aldgate was an area of London
known to be the residence of numerous Dutch merchants, as well as many
religious dissenters. Some familiar Mayflower names of families living
in the area included Allerton, Tilley, Sampson, and Hopkins.
One family in Aldgate played an
important part in Bradford's life in America. Edward and Alice (Carpenter)
Southworth and their two sons were residing at Heneage House, the Duke’s Place,
in Aldgate in 1620. Southworth was a highly respected leader of the Leiden
group, but he died in 1621/22. His widow Alice later emigrated to Plymouth
Colony after Bradford's wife died.
Founding Plymouth Colony
By 1617, the Scrooby congregation began to plan the
establishment of their own colony in the Americas. The Separatists could
practice religion as they pleased in the Dutch Republic, but they were troubled
by the fact that their children were being influenced by Dutch customs and
language, after nearly ten years in the Netherlands. Therefore, they commenced three
years of difficult negotiations in England seeking permission to settle in the
northern parts of the Colony
of Virginia
(which then extended north to the Hudson River). The colonists also struggled
to negotiate terms with a group of financial backers in London known as the
Merchant Adventurers. By July 1620, Robert Cushman and John
Carver had made
the necessary arrangements, and approximately fifty Separatists departed Delftshaven on board the Speedwell.
It was an emotional departure.
Many families were split, as some Separatists stayed behind in the Netherlands, planning to make the voyage to
the New World after the colony had been
established. William and Dorothy Bradford left their three-year-old son John
with Dorothy's parents in Amsterdam, possibly because he was too
frail to make the voyage.
According to the arrangements
made by Carver and Cushman, the Speedwell was to meet with the Mayflower off the coast of England and
both were destined for the northern part of the Colony
of Virginia. The
Speedwell, however, proved to be not structurally sound enough to make
the voyage, and some of the passengers were transferred aboard the Mayflower,
making crowded conditions. Joining the Scrooby congregation were about 50
colonists who had been recruited by the Merchant Adventurers for their
vocational skills, which would prove useful in establishing a colony. These
passengers of the Mayflower, both Separatist and non-Separatist, are
commonly referred to today as "Pilgrims." The term is derived from a
passage in Bradford's journal, written years later, describing their departure
from the Netherlands (itself an allusion to Hebrews 11:13 in the Bible):
...With
mutual embraces and many tears, they took their leaves of one another, which
proved to be the last leave to many of them...but they knew they were pilgrims
and looked not much on those things, but lifted their eyes to heaven, their
dearest country and quieted their spirits...
The Mayflower departed Plymouth, England on September 6/16, 1620. The
100-foot ship had 102 passengers and a crew of 30 - 40 in extremely cramped
conditions.
By the second month out, the ship
was being buffeted by westerly gales, causing the ship‘s timbers to be badly
shaken, with caulking failing to keep out sea water, and with passengers lying
wet and ill, even in their berths. There were two deaths on the trip, a crew
member and a passenger.
They spotted Cape Cod hook on November 9/19, 1620,
after about a month of delays in England and two months at sea. They spent
several days trying to get south to their planned destination of the Colony
of Virginia, but
strong winter seas forced them to return to the harbor at Cape Cod hook, now called Provincetown
Harbor, where they anchored on November 11/21, 1620. The Mayflower Compact was signed that day, Bradford
being one of the first to sign.
Up to this time, Bradford, age
30, had yet to assume any significant leadership role in the colony. The Mayflower anchored in present-day
Provincetown Harbor and, when the time came to search for a place for
settlement, Bradford volunteered to be a member of the exploration parties. In
November and December, these parties made three separate ventures from the Mayflower
on foot and by boat, finally locating what is now Plymouth Harbor in mid-December and selecting
that site for settlement.
During the first expedition on
foot, Bradford got caught in a deer trap made by Native Americans and hauled
nearly upside down. The third exploration departed from the Mayflower on
December 6, 1620, when a group of men (including Bradford) located present-day Plymouth Bay. A winter storm nearly sank
their boat as they approached the bay, but the explorers managed to
successfully land on Clark's Island, suffering from severe exposure
to the cold and waves.
During the ensuing days, they
explored the bay and found a suitable place for settlement, now the site of
downtown Plymouth, Massachusetts. The location featured a prominent hill (now
known as Burial
Hill) ideal for
a defensive fort. There were numerous brooks providing fresh water. Also, the
site had been the location of a Native
American village
known as Patuxet; therefore, much of the area had
already been cleared for planting crops. The Patuxet tribe had been wiped out
by plagues between 1616 and 1619 resulting from contact with English
fishermen—diseases to which the Patuxet had no immunity. Bradford later wrote
that bones of the dead were clearly evident in many places.
When the exploring party made
their way back on board, he learned of the death of his wife Dorothy. Dorothy
(May) Bradford from Wisbech, Cambridgeshire fell overboard off the deck of the Mayflower
during his absence and drowned. William Bradford recorded her death in his
journal.
The Mayflower arrived in Plymouth Bay on December 20, 1620. The
settlers began building the colony's first house on December 25 (Christmas).
Their efforts were slowed, however, when a widespread sickness struck the
settlers. The sickness had begun on the ship.
On January 11, 1621, Bradford was
helping to build houses when he was suddenly struck with great pain in his
hipbone and collapsed. He was taken to the "common house" (the only
finished house built then) and it was feared that he would not last the night.
Bradford recovered, but many of
the other settlers were not so fortunate. During the months of February and
March 1621, sometimes two or three people died a day. By the end of the winter,
half of the 100 settlers had died.
In an attempt to hide their weakness from
Native Americans who might be watching them, the settlers buried their dead in
unmarked graves on Cole's Hill, often at night, and made efforts to conceal the
burials.
During the epidemic, there were
only a small number of men who remained healthy and bore the responsibility of
caring for the sick. One of these was Captain Myles Standish, a soldier who had been hired by
the settlers to coordinate the defense of the colony. Standish cared for
Bradford during his illness and this was the beginning of a bond of friendship
between the two men. Bradford was elected governor soon after Carver's death
and, in that capacity, he worked closely with Standish. Bradford had no
military experience and therefore came to rely on and trust the advice of
Captain Myles Standish concerning military matters.
Relationship
with Massasoit
Governors of Plymouth Colony[41]
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Dates
|
Governor
|
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1620
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John
Carver
|
|
1621–1632
|
William Bradford
|
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1633
|
Edward Winslow
|
|
1634
|
Thomas Prence
|
|
1635
|
William Bradford
|
|
1636
|
Edward Winslow
|
|
1637
|
William Bradford
|
|
1638
|
Thomas Prence
|
|
1639–1643
|
William Bradford
|
|
1644
|
Edward Winslow
|
|
1645–1656
|
William Bradford
|
|
1657–1672
|
Thomas Prence
|
|
1673–1679
|
Josiah Winslow
|
|
1680–1692
|
Thomas Hinckley
|
|
On March 16, the settlers had
their first meeting with the American
Indians in the
region when Samoset walked into the village of
Plymouth as a representative of Massasoit, the sachem of the Pokanokets. This soon led
to a visit by Massasoit himself on March 22, during which he signed a treaty
with John
Carver, Governor
of Plymouth, which declared an alliance between the Pokanokets and Plymouth,
requiring them to aid one another militarily in times of need.
Bradford
recorded the language of the brief treaty in his journal. He soon became
governor and the clause of the treaty that occupied much of his attention as
governor pertained to mutual aid. It read, "If any did unjustly war
against [Massasoit], we would aid him; if any did war against us, Massasoit
should aid us." This agreement secured the colonists with a faithful ally
in New
England, though
it resulted in tensions between the colonists and Massasoit's rivals, such as
the Narragansetts and the Massachusetts.
In April 1621, Governor Carver
collapsed while working in the fields on a hot day. He died a few days later.
The settlers of Plymouth then chose Bradford as the new governor, a position
which he retained off-and-on for the rest of his life. The elected leadership
of Plymouth
Colony at first
consisted of a governor and an assistant governor. The assistant governor for
the first three years of the colony's history was Isaac Allerton. In 1624, the structure was
changed to a governor and five assistants who were referred to as the
"court of assistants," "magistrates," or the
"governor's council." These men advised the governor and had the
right to vote on important matters of governance, helping Bradford in guiding
the growth of the colony and its improvised government. Assistants during the
early years of the colony included Thomas Prence, Stephen
Hopkins, John Alden, and John Howland.
The
front page of the Bradford journal
William Bradford's most
well-known work by far is Of
Plymouth Plantation.
It is a detailed history in journal form about the founding of the Plymouth Colony and the lives of the colonists
from 1621 to 1646, a detailed account of his experiences and observations. The
first part of the work was written in 1630; toward the end of his life, he
updated it to provide "the account of the colony's struggles and
achievements through the year 1646." Bradford drew deep parallels between
everyday life and the events of the Bible.
As Philip
Gould writes,
"Bradford hoped to demonstrate the workings of divine providence for the
edification of future generations."
In 1888, Charles F. Richardson
referred to Bradford as a "forerunner of literature" and "a
story-teller of considerable power." Moses Coit Tyler called him "the father of
American history." Many American authors have cited his work in their
writings; for example, Cotton Mather referred to it in Magnalia
Christi Americana
and Thomas
Prince referred
to it in A Chronological History of New-England in the Form of Annals.
Even today it is considered a valuable piece of American literature, included
in anthologies and studied in literature and history classes. It has been
called an American classic and the preeminent work of art in
seventeenth-century New England."
The Of Plymouth Plantation
manuscript disappeared by 1780, "presumably stolen by a British soldier
during the British occupation of Boston"; it reappeared in Fulham, London, in the bishop of
London's library at Lambeth Palace.
A long debate ensued as to the rightful home for the manuscript. United
States Senator George
Frisbie Hoar and
others made multiple attempts to have it returned, and the British finally
relinquished it back to Massachusetts on May 26, 1897.
Bradford's journal also
contributed to the book Mourt's Relation, which was written in part by Edward Winslow and published in England in
1622. It was intended to inform Europeans about the conditions surrounding the
American colonists at the Plymouth Colony. Bradford's Dialogues are a
collection of fictional conversations between the old and new generations,
between "younge men" and "Ancient men".
William Bradford married:
Dorothy May in Amsterdam, Holland on December 10, 1613. Their
marriage record indicates that she was 16 years old and was from Wisbech in Cambridgeshire. The record also notes a Henry
May, who may have been her father. William and Dorothy had one son.
Her
death and memorial: On December 17, 1620, Dorothy fell from the deck of the Mayflower
into the icy waters of Cape Cod
Harbor, where
the ship was anchored, and drowned. Her husband was with others on an
expedition ashore and only learned of her death on his return to the Mayflower.
She
was one of four Mayflower passengers who died between December 4/14 and
8/18, 1620, including Edward Thomson, Jasper
More (age 7
years), and James
Chilton. William Butten was the first to die in
Provincetown Harbor, dying on November 16. They are all commemorated on two cenotaphs in Provincetown, one at Winthrop Street Cemetery
and one at the Mayflower Passengers Who Died At
Sea Memorial.
Their burial places ashore are unknown and may have been unmarked in those very
early days after the Mayflower landing.
The
death of these five persons was just a precursor of the deaths to come,
consuming about half the Mayflower company in that first bitter winter
of 1620–1621.
Alice
(Carpenter) Southworth, age about 32, in Plymouth on August 14, 1623. She had
arrived on the ship Anne some weeks earlier. Alice was the widow of
Edward Southworth. She was one of five daughters of Alexander and Priscilla
Carpenter of Wrington, co. Somerset in England, all being of Leiden about 1600.
Alice brought two sons to the marriage: Constant, born about 1612, and Thomas,
born about 1617. Alice and William had three children. She died in Plymouth on
March 26, 1670 and was buried on Burial Hill in Plymouth near her husband's
stone.
Child
of William and Dorothy Bradford:
John
was born in Leiden, Holland, about 1617. He married Martha Bourne by 1650 but
had no known children. He died in Norwich, Connecticut some time before September 21,
1676.
Children
of William and Alice Bradford:
William was born on June 17, 1624 in
Plymouth and died there on February 20, 1703/04. He was buried on Burial Hill
in Plymouth.
William
married:
1.
Alice Richard after April 23, 1650 and had ten children. She died in Plymouth
on December 12, 1671.
2.
Sarah (____) Griswold about 1674 and had one son.
3.
Mary (Atwood) Holmes about 1676 and had four children.
Mercy
was born before May 22, 1627 and may have been dead before her father's 1657
will, as she was not mentioned. She married Benjamin Vermayes on December 21,
1648 in Plymouth but had no known children.
Joseph
was born about 1630. He married Jael Hobart on May 25, 1664 in Hingham and had
three children. He died in Plymouth on July 10, 1715.
"Joseph
Bradford … m. Hingham 25 May 1664 Jael Hobart [NEHGR 121:116], daughter of
Reverend Peter Hobart and granddaughter of Edmund Hobart{1633, Charlestown}
[GMB 2:958-60]."
And
somewhere there is a daughter named Susan!
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