Two Somerby Frauds, Or “Placing the Flesh on the Wrong Bones”

Paul C. Reed, “Two Somerby Frauds, Or ‘Placing the Flesh on the Wrong Bones,’” The American Genealogist 74[1999]. [LINK]

Notes: Bacon Family of Helmingham and Winston, co. Suffolk, England, and of Dedham and Salem, Mass.

William Lincoln Parker, “Notes: Bacon Family of Helmingham and Winston, co. Suffolk, England, and of Dedham and Salem, Mass.,” New England Historical and Genealogical Register 90[1936]. [LINK]

Notes: Chilton

Source: Henry A. Phillips, “Notes: Chilton,” New England Historical and Genealogical Register 63[1909]:201.

[page 201]

CHILTON – Because the books about Plymouth Colony tell nothing concerning James CHILTON before his appearance at Cape Cod in the Mayflower; because of the pretty tradition attached to the name of his daughter Mary; and because of the numerous descendants left by her and her husband John WINSLOW, it may be well to print in conjunction the following items as offering a clue later to a more satisfactory proof of the English home of James CHILTON, of his trade, and of the fact that he was apparently close upon, or over, sixty years of age when he took passage in the Mayflower.

From the Roll of Freemen of the City of Canterbury, p. 315:

Freeman by Gift: James CHYLTON, tailor, 1583.

From the Registers of St. Paul’s Church, Canterbury, pp. 6 and 8:

	1586, Jan. 15	Isabell, d. of James CHILTON	[Bapt.]
	1589, June 8	Jane, d. of James CHILTON	“
	1599, April 29	Ingle, d. of James CHILTON	“

From Dexter’s The Pilgrim Company in Leyden (2 Mass. Hist. Soc. Proc., vol. 17, p. 177):

	CHANDLER,	Roger	Rog. WILSON and Cath. CARVER wit. his bet. May 22, 1615.
	“	Isabella (CHILTON).	Wife of Rog. Mar. July 21, 1615.

BRADFORD says that a second daughter (married) of James CHILTON came over later than he and his daughter Mary. A Roger CHANDLER is found later in Plymouth Colony, at Duxbury in 1633.*

That there had long been a CHILTON family in Canterbury is proved by two entries in the Roll of Freemen quoted above, p. 258:

	Freemen by Redemption:	CHILTON, William, spicer, 1399.
		CHILTON, Nicholas, clerk, 1445.

120 Tremont Street, Boston, Mass.

HENRY A. PHILLIPS.

____________________

* Roger CHANDLER of Duxbury was taxed in 1632, a freeman in 1633, and sold land in 1644. His daughter was in the service of Kenelm WINSLOW before 5 May 1646. (Pope’s Pioneers of Mass., p. 93.) On 3 Oct. 1665 “One hundred and fifty acrees of land are graunted by this Court vnto the three sisters, the daughters of Roger CHANDELER, deceased, viz, to each of them fifty acrees, lying between the Bay line and the bounds of Taunton, according to the desire of John BUNDEY” (Plymouth Col. Recs., vol. 4, p. 111). Pope (op. cit., p. 132), in quoting the will of Dolor DAVIS, proved 2 July 1673, mentions a clause referring to DAVIS’s sons Symon and Samuel as residing at Concord, and his having gone thither at the charges of Roger CHANDELER. The Editor is indebted to William P. Greenlaw, Esq., for the above references, which are given in the hope that they may be of use in helping to identify Roger CHANDLER’s daughters.

Ancient Iron Works in Taunton

Source: J.W.D. Hall, “Ancient Iron Works in Taunton,” New England Historical and Genealogical Register 38[1884].

[page 265]

A history of the early iron enterprises in Massachusetts is not our purpose, as the subject has been exhausted in elaborate data and dissenting opinions, but rather to present a few interesting facts and incidents relative to the origin, progress and successful managemnt of the ancient Iron Works of Taunton, derived from antiquarian researches and reliable records.  Traditions, which do not bear the test of investigation, have crept into histories and census reports relative to the origin and management of these works; but let them pass.

It has been generally admitted that the first iron works enterprise in this state for the manufacture of bar iron from native ore was commenced on the banks of the Saugus River in Lynn, in 1643, by a company under the auspices and influence of John WINTHROP, Jr., son of Gov. WINTHROP, with an English capital form London of £1000, and skiled workmen imported for the purpose; that another iron enterprise was soon after started in “Brantry” by the same company, and that Boston donated 3000 acres of common land as an encouragement “to set up iron works on the Monanticut River” in that town, where ore had been discovered.  It is also alleged that an unexpected scarcity of ore and incompetent management in their infancy was followed by disaster to these enterprises, and that after spending a large amount, about £10,000, the company partially suspended operations in Lynn and Braintree, in the latter place in 1653 and in the former a few years later.

Iron ore had been discovered quite abundant in the flats bordering on Two Mile River and other localities in Taunton, and the enterprising Pilgrim settlers considered the field open for the establishment of a “bloomerie” on that river.  It was also learned that Henry and James LEONARD, skilled iron workers from Wales, who had been employed for several years at the works in Lynn and at Braintree by the Winthrop company, might be induced to come to Taunton and aid in the practical working of iron.  Accordingly in October, 1652, preliminary steps were taken to establish the first iron works in the Old Colony, in Taunton, and the following was the record, Oct. 21, 1652:

“It was at a town meeting conferred and agreed upon between the inhabitants of Taunton and Henry LEONARD of Braintree:

Imprimis  It was agreed and granted by the town to Henry and James LEONARD, his brother, and Ralph RUSSELL, free consent to come hither and join with certain of our inhabitants to set up a Bloomery Work on the Two Mile River.

“It was also agreed and granted by a free vote of the town, that such particular inhabitants as shall concur together with the said persons in this design, shall have free liberty from the town so to do, to build and set up this work, and that they shall have the woods on either side of the Two Mile River, wheresoever it is common on that side of the river, to cut for their cord wood to make coals, and also to dig and take moine or ore at Two Mile Meadow, or in any of the commons appertaining to the town, where it is not now in propriety.”*

In accordance with the above preliminary action, the leading citizens of Taunton interested in the enterprise, formed a stock company, inviting

* Baylie’s Historical Memoir of the Colony of New Plymouth, Part ii. p. 268.

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capitalists in other places to join them in carrying the project into effect without the aid of English capital – and they succeeded.  To obtain the shareholders required some length of time; but the precise date when they were obtained has not been fully ascertained, nor is it known when the brothers LEONARD and Mr. RUSSELL came from Braintree.  Probably it was soon after the suspension of the iron works there in 1653.  Nor is there any record that Henry LEONARD or Ralph RUSSELL were employed in these works.  They had land “set off to them” by the proprietors “as encouragement,” but they did not remain to occupy it.  RUSSELL went to Dartmouth and soon after was engaged in starting iron works at “RUSSELL’s Mills.”  Henry LEONARD was at Lynn in 1655, says Newhall the historian, and some years later was engaged with his sons by a wealthy company of Salem in an iron works at Rowley Village.  He afterwards went to New Jersey, and, it is said, successfully engaged with a company in the manufacture of bar iron.  He has left in that state numerous descendants, among whom are men of ability and of prominent standing in business and the professions.

A documentary relic of the early date above referred to, recently found among the ancient papers in the handwriting of Oliver PURCHIS, who was town clerk at the time, makes the following record preparatory to the organization of the Iron Works Company in 1653-4:

“The names of those who hath put in themselves to be proprietors in the Bloomerie, viz: – Hezekiah HOARE, Thomas GILBERT, Richard WILLIAMS, Walter DEAN, George HALL, Oliver PURCHIS, James WALKER, John TISDALL, Wm. PARKER, Mr. GILBERT senr: Peter PITTS, Richard STACEY, John COBB, William HODGES, Nath’l WOODWARD, Timothy HOLLOWAY, James BURT, Edward BOBETT, Jonah AUSTIN, sen’r, John PARKER, Samuel WILBORE, Miss E. POLE, Jane POLE.”

Additional records show the names of William POLE, Timothy LINDALL of Salem, his son-in-law, Nicholas WHITE, senr., Richard STEPHENS, John TURNER, Thomas LINCOLN, senr., Anthony SLOCUM, James LEONARD, Thos. ARMSBERY, Joseph WILBORE, Henry ANDREWS, John HALL, James PHILLIPS, Francis SMITH, Geo. WATSON, Gov. LEVERETT and Major Edward TYNG of Boston, Nath’l PAINE, senr., and Stephen PAINE, Jr., of Bristol, Benedict ARNOLD of Newport, Richard THAYER of Braintree – contributing from £20 to £5 each, for whole, half and quarter shares.

The building of a suitable dam across “Two Mile River,” where was previously a bridge; preparing the timber for the necessary buildings; obtaining from abroad the hammers and heavy iron machinery and tools required for operating the “bloomerie” for the manufacture of bar iron, occupied a long time before the practical working of the same.

The following confirmatory record in a ledger* of Capt. Thomas² LEONARD, son of James,¹ who was with his father a “bloomer,” and became the “clearke” and manager in 1683, indicates the time the works commenced, as follows:

* [Footnote] This ledger was found in the old mansion built in 1750 by Dea. Elijah³ LEONARD, grandson [sic] of Capt. Thomas,² who had carefully stored the books transmitted to him by his father and grandfather, when he built the house.  It was the birthplace of Capt. Edward LEONARD, who resided there seventy years, and of Rev. Elijah LEONARD, of Marshfield, who died in February, 1834, after a forty-five years’ pastorate, and the father of Rev. Geo. LEONARD, who died in July, 1881, after a pastorate of thirty years in the same Marshfield church, and who inherited the old place in Raynham from his uncle Capt. Edward.  It was sold a few years ago to Mr. John SPINNEY, who in preparing to remodel the old mansion discovered the books deposited there one hundred and thirty years before.  It was destroyed by fire shortly afterwards.

[page 267]

“An accompt of who hath been clarke of Taunton Iron Works ever sence George HALL was first Clearke, and some others joyned with him for a time, which begun Anno 1656.  Also, what product the works hath made from year to year.”

By this record, which has descended through two hundred years, and whose authority is undoubted, it is shown that the manufacture of iron was commenced “Anno 1656.”  On a page of this ledger are two columns of figures, indicating the years and the product of the works fifty-eight years, from that date, to the death of Capt. Thomas in 1713.  The first line reads thus: “1656 – George HALL clearke, John TURNER working y^e forge.”  Three years no iron was shared.  “1659, 400 shared.”  “1660, a ton of iron sould to buy goods, whi: were devided.”

At this time an arrangement was made by the shareholders by which the works were leased to George HALL and his associates, Hezekiah HOAR and Francis SMITH.  The lease of this transaction, recently discovered among the papers of Capt. Thomas LEONARD, thus sets forth in substance the agreement:

“This present writing, dated April the first, anno domini, one thousand six hundred and sixtie, witnesseth:  that whereas the Companie in partnership in the Iron works or bloomerie, erected and maintained in working use within the plantation of Taunton, in the Colony of New Plymouth, did by themselves and their attornies, generally consent and agree, that y^e said works should be let for a term of five years; to begin after y^e stock of coles is now being wrought out – yielding and paying to y^e whole companie aforesaid, (not one partner at all excluded) yearly during said term the full summe of four tunne of iron:” – “that said George HALL, Hezekiah HOAR and Francis SMITH having embraced, accepted, and received said tender, and rent of y^e works, according to y^e said propositions named,* themselves being partners” – and “to whom full libertie was then and there given, that they might take into this contract with themselves whom they liked of.”  They accordingly took into partnership:  William POLE, Walter DEANE, Joseph WILBORE, John DEANE, Anthony SLOCUM, Thos. LINKON, senr, Wm. PARKER, James LEONARD, Jonah AUSTIN sen’r, John PARKER, Peter PITTS, James PHILLIPS, Henry WITHINGTON, of Dorchester.  “The rest of said company in partnership, do by these presents ratify, confirm, establish, promise and make good and effectual to the s’d George HALL, Hezekiah HOAR, and Francis SMITH, the said contract, and do hereby give them full power and right to act, or cause to be acted or done in and about said iron works in every particular case during y^e said term without interruption, molestation or hindrance of y^e partners, provided that they truly and faithfully perform their engagements in the premises…. And the said partners, Wm. POLE, Walter DEANE and others, doe likewise covenant, promise and engage themselves, unto said George HALL, Hezekiah HOARE and Francis SMITH, to carrie out said contract as one man, with faithfulness, according to their wisdom and abilities; that they will endeavor to prevent all damages and support each other in all cases, whether in charges of payments or troubles of lawsuits and walk together in love and peace in the light of God, without superioritie one over another.”

“In witness whereof they herewith to one seal set their several hands the day and year above written:

GEORGE HALL,         HEZEKIAH HOARE,            FRANCIS SMITH,                    [Seal.]

Wm. POLE, Henry WITHINGTON, Jno. DEANE, Wm. PARKER, Walter DEANE, Peter PITTS, Joseph WILBORE, James PHILLIPS, John PARKER, Anthony SLOCUM, Thos. LINKON sen., Jonah AUSTIN.”

“In presence of

John HATHEWAY, Sam’l LINKON.

Resuming the old ledger records.  George HALL held the position of manager and clarke thirteen years (excepting James WALKER held the office a year) until his death in October, 1669, and “John HALL to y^e end of y^e year.”

*Drawn by James WALKER, Richard WILLIAMS and John TISDALL, of said company.

[page 268]

“1670, Henry ANDREWS clearke.”  “1671, John HALL, thence to 1675 when (says the record) the Indian [King Philip’s] War began and many coals burned in the woods.”  “1676 – the works garrisoned – great rates – many coals burned.”  (No iron shared three years.)  “1677, Israel DEAN clearke, y^e beginning, John HALL y^e end of y^e year.”  HALL continued until 1683, and was succeeded by Capt. Thomas LEONARD, during whose thirty years’ management occured most of the transactions and “orders” recorded below in connection with this brief history of the most important enterprise in the early days of the Old Colony.  He was an able, self-educated man; he held military commissions from Ensign to Major in the Bristol County regiment; was the leading magistrate; presiding justice of the County Court, 1685 to 1693; clerk of the Taunton North Purchase proprietors, over twenty years; filled various town offices; also performed the duties of physician.  He died in 1713, at the age of 70, leaving, besides a large estate, the Middleboro’ and Chartley Iron Works, a large quantity of official papers and miscellaneous relics, preserved with remarkable care during his eventful life.*

Dea. Samuel³ LEONARD, in Oct. 1713, succeeded his father Capt. Thomas after many years of successful management.  Another ancient ledger contains an instructive record of the transactions in the business during his charge; many pages are filled with items of the bar iron “circulating medium” and barter trades, similar to those appended.  On the division of Taunton in 1731, the iron works locality fell to the new town of Raynham, and that town owned half a share.  Dea. LEONARD died in 1745, after thirty-two years’ service, owning several shares.

Dea. Samuel LEONARD, Jr., was the successor of his father in the management of the iron works.  He had, during his four years’ management, purchased a large number of whole and fractional shares, securing nearly a majority of the stock.  He died in 1749, leaving a large incumbrance on the works and a declining stock.  He left 12 shares, valued in his inventory at £660 of the common currency.†

Dea. Elijah LEONARD, who had been at the “Chatley Works” in Norton, succeeded his brother in 1749, as clerk and manager.  He soon afterwards built, a short distance east of the forge, the mansion referred to.  He remained in charge of the business until 1777.  During the last twenty years the shares had been depreciating in value, owing to the increasing price of coal, and the declining production of good ore, in competition with the New Jersey ore which contained a much larger percentage of pure iron, and was worked by competing establishments.  With a depreciating currency and other obstacles, the iron business waned, the works hardly met expenses, the shareholders received trifling or no dividends, and the shares were relinquished at great sacrifice.  the incumbrence on the works finally resulted in the sale of a large portion of the shares to Dea. George LEONARD, brother of Dea. Elijah, who in 1770 disposed of them (7½ sixteenths) to

* The salary of Capt. Thomas was £8 the first year, and from 1684 to 1713 it was £11.  His successor received the same amount.  From 1742 to 1745, and thereafter, “ten hundred of iron was voted for salary.”  They also received a percentage on the iron manufactured.  The works made from 20 to 30 tons annually, which brought from £400 to £675, averaging about $100 a ton of our currency.

† In 1749 £1 sterling, or “old tenor,” was worth £11 of Massachusetts currency.  An oz. of silver, 6 shillings par value, stood at 66 shillings of that currency.  Thus rapidly approaching “flat money,” which was consummated by the United States national currency in paying off the soldiers of the revolution thirty years later, which became reduced to £1000 for £1 sterling, or about $1 per bushel.

[page 269]

Josiah DEAN for £90 – which shows a great reduction from the inventory value in 1749.  At subsequent sales in 1777, at low figures, of other shares, with a portion of the real estate, Mr. DEAN became the purchaser.  From the original shareholders the changes were numerous from year to year, and to attempt a record would require much time and space.  Many of the sons, and descendants of the third generation from the original owners, held shares during the hundred years and more of the progress of the old iron works, until they passed into the hands of the new owner.  The price of them varied from £22 to £20 the par value; thence to £10, and finally, before the close, to £5 per share, or any price takers would give.  Thus terminated the LEONARD management, which had been conducted from 1683 by Capt. Thomas and by his son and grandsons nearly one hundred years, a large portion of the time upon the agency system, inaugurated in 1656, as above described.

Having purchased a controlling interest in the “old iron works,” Hon. Josiah DEAN took possession in 1777; he converted the bar iron forge, or “bloomerie,” into a rolling mill and nail works, where also copper bolts were rolled and made for ship-building, &c.  It was the first copper bolt manufactory in this region.  After conducting the business about forty years he died in 1818.*  He was succeeded by his son Major Eliab B. DEAN, who in 1825 changed the nail works into an anchor forge, which was continued in that heavy line of iron manufacture by him and his son and successor, Theodore DEAN, about forty years, when the works were suspended.  About a year ago the old buildings were demolished, and the privilege, dam and foundation walls alone remain of the ancient Taunton Iron Works of two hundred and twenty-four years–the oldest successful iron manufactory in New England.

The pioneer settlers during a long period of the last and preceding century after the iron works were started, were seriously embarrassed in their increasing business transactions by the scarcity of money.  They had but a small amount of specie, chiefly brought by emigrants who came across the ocean here to make their homes.†  No banks had been established – no “Land bank” capital had evoked even “new tenor bills;”‡ no Bank of England or “old tenor” notes were in circulation, although the pioneers owed allegiance to “His Majesty James” the despot, and the edicts of his tyrannical subservient Sir Edmund ANDROS were borne until patience ceased to be a virtue.  Therefore a dernier resort to bar iron, manufactured at the Taunton Works, as a “circulating medium of exchange,” to supply the great deficiency.  Iron made from the native bog ore of the creeks and swails of Two Mile River, and “Scaddings moire” became more valuable than gold – an important factor in daily traffic.  It entered largely into the transactions of business, as is shown by the subjoined brief letters, orders and replies, couched in expressions of genuine old-time courtesy, from managers, shareholders and patrons of the ancient iron works.  These amusing and interesting scraps were found between the leaves of Capt. Thomas LEONARD’s ledger of two hundred years ago, the pages of which are filled with the records of which these scraps were vouchers:

* Hon. Josiah DEAN was a member of Congress in 1807-9, and town officer and magistrate for many years.

† During the year 1652 a mint for coining silver money was established in Boston by the colony, and the first pine-tree shillings made from silver imported from the West Indies.  This made but a small supply of specie.

‡ Paper money was first issued in Massachusetts in 1690, but in very small quantity for the demand.  The bank of England was established 1694.

[page 270]

The veterans Deacons Richard WILLIAMS and Walter DEAN, Hezekiah HOAR, Shadrach WILBORE the second town clerk, Increase ROBINSON, Joseph WILBORE, James WALKER, John RICHMOND, Peter PITTS, James PHILLIPS, Richard STEPHENS, John HALL, Peter WALKER, and the sons of many successors of ownership of shares in the iron works, appear in the collection, also Rev. George SHOVE and Rev. Samuel DANFORTH, third and fourth ministers of Taunton; John POLE, merchant of Boston, son of Capt. William and nephew of Elizabeth; Benedict ARNOLD, son of Gov. ARNOLD of Newport, R.I. (who married a Taunton woman, daughter of John TURNER); Nathaniel PAINE and John SAFFIN of Bristol, Judges of Probate; and John CARY, Register; Dea. Samuel TOPLIFF, Philip WITHINGTON and John BIRD, selectmen of Dorchester nearly two hundred years ago; the polite John BAKER, son of Richard; Richard THAYER, son of the first settler and Mistress Dorothy of “Brantry;” Peter NOYES of Sudbury, Capt. Thomas LEONARD and his son Major George of Chartley Works, not to be outdone in “loving phrase” by his father; and others.  Schools were scarce in those primitive days, and many wealthy business men made their “mark;” therefore errors in orthography, unique expressions and ancient idioms may be excused.  The first order is from one of the founders of Taunton and promoters of the iron works, who draws an order to pay a grocer’s bill:

“Ensigne Tho. LEONARD, please to pay to Bar: TIPPING nine shillings & three pence in iron, as money:

from yr friend,

RICHARD WILLIAMS.

Taunton 16: 1^st 1685-86.”

Deacon Walter DEAN’s order.

“Ensign Thomas LEONARD, Please to pay y^e bearer hearof one hundred of Iron y^t is due on Mr SHOVEs act. to my wife your friend.

Taunton y^e 16 of y^e 1st mo. 1685-6.         Your friend,

WALTER DEANE.”

“Thomas LEONARD, clarke of the Iron Works of Taunton:

S^r pray pay to Joseph CROSSMAN, on hundred of iron as money, & this shall be your discharg: this y^e 13th Janurae, 1683.

HEZEKIAH HOAR.

Tanton– 84.”

A letter from some friendly parishioner in 1683, addressed to the third minister of Taunton, and accompanying order, reads thus:

“For the Rev. Mr. George SHOVE, pastor of the church of Christ in Taunton: These:”

“Ensign LEONARD, pray deliver to John HODGES or his order one hundred and half of iron on account of yr friend

GEORGE SHOVE.

March 14, 83-4.”

John CARY of Bristol, Register of Probate, responds to a polite request to credit a hundred of iron:

“Loving ffriend, John CARY, these may inform you that if You please to Credit Richard BURT as much as comes to a hundred of Iron, I will be responsible to you, & Rest your Lo^g ffriend,

THOMAS LEONARD.

Taunton Dec. 30, 1683-4.”

“Insign LEONARD, be pleased to pay to this bearer, James TISDALL, the asseats of the above written bill, by which you will oblige Your friend,

JOHN CARY.

January 2, 1684.”

An order from an early settler to pay the schoolmaster’s rate:

“Ensine LEONARD, I pray you let M^r GREENE have four shillings more in iron, as money, and place it to my account.        June 20, 1684.

JAMES WALKER.”

“Capt. LEONARD, pray pay to John WETHEREL iron 9s. and 6d. and set it to my account.

SAMUEL WILBORE.”

“Ensigne LEONARD, pray deliver to Nath^l CODDINGTON as much iron as comes to 4^s 5^d at y^e rate of 18s. per O.

JOHN DEANE.

Taunton Sept. 4, 1685.”

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He was son of John DEANE, senior, and the first birth among the pioneer settlers of Taunton.

Increase ROBINSON, one of the early settlers on Dean Street, gives a credit order for iron to pay his minister, Rev. Mr. DANFORTH:

“Captain LEONARD: SIR, I would intreate you to pay James TISDALE y^e sum of 2-7-6 in iron at 22s. per hund. and make me Deptr for it on y^e acount of y^e Credit Mr DANFORD gave mie on your book.

Your ffr’d

INCREASE ROBBINSON.

Tanton y^e 23^d March 1688-9.”

Thomas² WILLIAMS (son of Richard¹) sold an ox to one Nathaniel SMITH, and the following orders ensued for payment:

“Nathaniel SMITH, this is to desier you to pay to my Mother WILLIAMS three hundred & half a qur. of iron which is part of y^e price of y^e ox which you bought of mee.

THOMAS WILLIAMS.

Taunton yⁿ y^e 16^th of Oct. 1693.”

On the opposite side of the above Mr. SMITH ordered the iron:

“Capt. LEONARD, I pray be pleased to pay to old mother WILLIAMS 3 hundreth & half a quarter of Iron.

NATHANIEL SMITH.”

Dorchester, May 15, 1696.

“Worh’ysfull Sir:

After my service to your Honour, these are only to desire you to Send the income of my interest in the works by L^t ROBINSON and these shall be the recept for the same.  And if I could know when you come to Boston, I should be willing to discourse w^th you in point of sale (it being at such a distance from me) if your self is inclined to buy.  I remain y^r humble servant,

JOHN BAKER.”

Deacon TOPLIFF orders iron for the half share due Dorchester:

“Captin LINARD – pray please to deliver to this bearer, Philip WITHINGTON, 200 and half of Iron, the which, by your information, is due to Dorchester:  In so doing you will much oblige us your asured friends:  Dated in Dorchester 2 Aug. 1699.

SAMUEL TOPLIFF.”

Capt. LEONARD delivers 200 and half on the order for 1797-’98 [sic].

Taunton April 1, 1700.

“Capt. LEONARD I desire you to give John KING credit upon works book for 20 shillings of iron as money.  Your friend to serve

JOHN HALL.”

An order from Rev. Samuel DANFORTH, the fourth minister of Taunton, to pay his “servant mayd.”:

“To Captain Thomas LEONARD,

S^r I would pray you to pay Elizabeth GILBERT (my late servant mayd) the sum of thirty shillings in iron at 18 sh. pr Cent: to her or her order – & place it to my account *** pr y^r friend and servant

SAM^ll DANFORTH.”

Dated Tanton, March 11, 1703-4.

Here is one of his business orders: Rev. Mr. DANFORTH wants iron to buy nails.

“To Capt. Thomas LEONARD in Tanton:

S^r I have got Thomas WILLIS to go to Bridgewater to fetch me some nails from Mr. MITCHELL’s this night: & pray to let him have 200 of iron to carry with him to pay for them: of which, 100 on acc^t of Edward RICHMOND; 5s. worth on acct. of Thomas LINKON, son of John LINKON, by virtue of his note herewith sent you: for the remainder I may by y^r leave be y^r debtor for a while till I have another note from some other to ballance against it: & remain yr obliged

SAM^l DANFORTH.”

26 8^mo. 1702.

“Capt. Thomas LEONARD:

S^r – Give credit to William BRIGGS (son of W^m BRIGGS grand-senior) & to Thomas BRIGGS his brother, for the sum of two shillings and four pence in iron at 18 pr Cent. & make me Debtor for the same in Y^r book: This 2^shis 4^d is to pay theyr iron part of theyr Rate to the Ware bridge.

Pr SAM^ll DANFORTH.”

Dated July 15, 1703.

“to be p^d to Increse ROBBINSON, Constable for the use afores^d.”

Order for iron “for the ministry of Dorchester.”

“Capt. Thomas LEONARD of Taunton :–

Sir: These lines may inform you y^t the Selectmen of Dorchester, would desier

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you to deliver unto Sargt. Philip WITHINGTON all that iron, wh is due from the Iron Works to the ministry of Dorchester, and in so doeing this shall be discharg.  Dorchester the 26 of March 1705.

SAMUEL CAPEN,

for the name and with the consent of the rest of the Selectmen.”

Mr. WITHINGTON receipts for the product of the half share, 700 of iron for 1699, 1700, ’1, 2, and 3.

The genuine autographs of many of the early settlers are among these unique scraps of iron history, and are now in the possession of the writer.

To illustrate the annual divisions of iron to shareholders, the following cases are cited from the old ledger records, from 1683 to 1713, and later in Dea. Samuel’s records.

The oldest original shareholder was Richard WILLIAMS, who received in 1683 for his one share £3 6s.; for 1684-5, £4 8s. each year; for 1686 and 87, £3 6s. each; for 1688, £4 8s.; for 1689-90-91, £2 4s. each year, mostly in bar iron, or barter thereof at the stores of Bartholomew TIPPING of Taunton, John POLE of Boston, Benedict ARNOLD of Newport, and other sources, butchers, shoemakers, weavers, &c., discounted at the iron works.  Mr. WILLIAMS died in 1693, and his widow continued to receive the product share, through her son, who succeeded to his father’s business, tanning, from 1691 to 1700 each year 2 C. to 4 cwt.; in 1701 2 C.; 1702, £3 2s.; in 1703, £1 10s.; in 1704, £0 8s.; 1705, 13s 2d., about the same for five years; in all 500 wt. of bar iron at 20s. per hundred; discounting meeting house, town, school master and county rates, and store pay, by the clerk of the iron works, and occasionally a few shillings in money.  Dea. WILLIAMS was annually credited “£2 10s. for a hide for the bellows.”

The town of Taunton held half a share, and to illustrate the amount others received, owning half shares, – in 1683 £1 13s. was shared, or, “1 C. 2 qrs. in iron, on Deacon Walter DEAN’s order for the school master, Mr. GREEN;” for 1684, “£2 4s. in iron, delivered on Dea. DEAN’s order for same rate;” for 1685, £2 4s.; 1686, “£1 13s. paid by Dea. DEAN for ammunition;” for 1687, £1 13s.; 1688, £2 4s. in iron; 1689, £1 7s. 6d.; and 1690, £1 2s. to Dea. DEAN’s order to pay the meeting house rate of £2 15s.  From that during the ten years to 1700, the average was £1 2s.; partially in money ordered by Dea. DEAN for school and other rates, or in iron bartered.  The amount of iron and money shared differed from the above in some cases, but iron was as much in demand as money, and as available in Boston and Dorchester as in Taunton.

The following illustrations from the ledger pages show the manner of conveyance of iron to shareholders in Boston, Dorchester and elsewhere.  “June, 1685, delivered to Nicholas WHITE, sen’r, to carry (through the wilderness) to Major E. TYNG, 7 C. of iron, also to Madam LEVERETT* of Boston 7 C. of iron; for Peter NOYES of Sudbury 5 C. 2 qrs. in bars, for John BAKER of Dorchester 3 C. 2 qrs. and for Samuel CAPEN 3 C. 2 qrs. for Dorchester church, as their due for 1683-84.”  “In November 1686, delivered to same to carry to Mrs. TYNG and Madam LEVERETT of Boston 4 C. and 12 lbs. each, for Mr NOYES of Sudbury 3 C. 2 qrs.; for Mr BAKER 205 lbs. and for Mr CAPEN’s order 205 lbs. as their share for 1685.”

Thus, without long repetition of other cases, for twenty years or more, the annual transportation of iron (occasionally a little money) to shareholders, varied from year to year as the product of the iron works varied.  The record, however, shows a gradual decline during the succeeding years.

* Widow of John LEVERETT, governor of Massachusetts 1673-79.

[page 273]

In 1700, delivered to Wm. THOMAS of Plymouth 5 C. of iron for Madam LEVERETT; same amount for Mrs. TYNG of Boston, as their shares for two years, “marked L, for John POOL of Boston.”  “To Philip WITHINGTON per order of Selectmen of Dorchester, just 7 C. of iron for the four years, 1699 to 1703.”  Also, “per order Dea. Sam’l TOPLIFF, for the Dorchester Church, 1 C. and half of iron for the years 1704, 5, 6 and 7, being £1 13s. each year.”  “in 1720 & ’21, £1 2s.; in 1722 & ’23, nothing; from 1724 to 1732, 11 shillings each year, for Dorchester.”  Other half shareholders same amount, or £1 2s. per share.  Here ends the old ledger accounts, transferred to later books, of which whole columns are filled with the details.

WHITTINGTON IRON WORKS.

James LEONARD, senior, purchased of William HAYLSTON in 1666 about ten acres of land on Mill River, with a water privilege, where he afterwards erected a forge or “bloomerie,” “with one hearth,” for the manufacture of charcoal iron, called the “Whittington Forge,”* which was in operation in 1678.  His three sons, Joseph, Uriah and Benjamin, having served in the Taunton Iron Works at the “refining and bloomerie” trade, worked the forge.  They also had a grist-mill at the same place.  This was the location of James LEONARD’s iron works.

James died in 1691, and the Probate record (Book I.) describes the division of his property by agreement of all the heirs.  Joseph² “to have one fourth of his father’s iron works,” with some adjacent land, and “to pay 20 shillings in money, and 400 of iron annually to his mother-in-law;” Uriah “to have the rest of the Whittington Iron Works, dwelling house and land,” and “pay 600 of iron per annum to his mother-in-law Margaret as long as she continued his father’s widow;” James² to have some tracts of land, “the old home lot,” and “his father’s half share in the Taunton Iron Works,” also £4 9s. more from the estate; Benjamin² to have certain parcels of land named, the shop tools, old iron, his father’s clothing and as much more from the estate as to make £26 9s.  Abigail² and John KINGSBURY, Rebecca² and Isaac CHAPMAN, and Hannah² and [photocopy illegible] DEAN (daughters and husbands) to have certain tracts of land and proceeds of sales from the estate, to make for each £26 9s.  Thomas to have the dwelling house near the iron works on Two Mile River, after the death of his mother-in-law, and to administer the estate, to pay all bequests to the heirs, and have the remainder.  One third of all the movables were assigned to Widow Margaret, she “to reside in the house where she lives as long as she remains a widow.”  To all of which she agreed.  She died in 1701.

Joseph² died in 1692, leaving widow Mary, executrix, and four children – his “brother Thomas and Deacon Henry HODGES to be overseers,” to assist in settling the estate.  A few years later James,³ son of Capt. James, succeeded as a partner and to the management of the Whittington Iron Works; and they were “to pay the widow Mary 600 of iron annually during her life, while the works stand.”  [...]

* “Whittington,” the original name, changed to Whittenton and legalized.  A record in 1669 says, “Whereas, James LEONARD, forgeman, hath an intent to set up a small Iron Works to go by water on Mill River, above the Saw Mill, and whereas the land on the opposite side belongeth to Lieut. George MACY, and may be overflowed by a dam;” said MACY “hereby grants to James LEONARD the right to build a dam and make use of the water to overflow any part of his land by paying so much annually as any indifferent rational man shall judge.”

Notes and Queries: Rossiter

Source: C.B. Eustis, “Notes and Queries: Rossiter,” New England Historical and Genealogical Register 33[1879]:242.

[page 242]

ROSSITER. – Can any one inform me what relationship there was between Edward and Hugh ROSSITER, early settlers of Dorchester?  Both had daughters Jane, and this name seems to have been continued to later generations in this family.  Edward’s daughter, then “widow Jane HART,” petitioned the government for aid in 1685, setting forth that she was the youngest surviving child of Edward ROSSITER, and her age was 70 years.  Hugh’s daughter Jane married, before 1643 (“one of the earliest marriages of Taunton”), Thomas GILBERT of Taunton.  This “Jane GILBERT, mother of Thomas GILBERT, Jr., died June 1, 1691, æ. 77 years.”

“Jane (ROSSITER) HART, youngest surviving child of Edward ROSSITER of Dorchester, died æ. 70.”  “It is ordered that John PHILLIPS shall have for Edward HART, Three quarters of an acre of medowe at Squantum necke” (Dorchester Town Records).  See REGISTER, vol. xxi, p. 335.  Was she wife or mother of this Edward HART?  Edward ROSSITER, a grandson of the assistant, in a letter dated March 28, 1682 (REGISTER, vol. xxii, p. 457), speaks of his grandfather as “a pious gentleman of good estate, who left England for the sake of religion.”  He (the grandfather) died Oct. 23, 1630, much lamented, leaving a son who afterwards lived in Combe, in Devonshire, and Dr. Brian ROSSITER who accompanied his father from England, and Mrs. Jane HART above named.  Dr. Bryan ROSSITER had a daughter Joanna (Jane), born 1642, who married at Weathersfield, Conn., Nov. 7, 1660, the Rev. John COTTON, of Plymouth, Mass.

In the history of Guilford, Conn., by Smith, p. 18, we read, “Dr. Brian ROSSITER of Guilford, Conn., is said to have come over originally with five or six brothers to Boston, on the 1st settlement of the country, he was early settler of Windsor – of Guilford and Killingworth – d. at Guilford Sep. 30, 1672–had wife Elizabeth.”

In the Dorchester town records, Feb. 1634 (see REGISTER, vol. xxi, p. 330), “it is graunted, vnto Hugh ROSCITER and Richard ROCKET, to have each of them, 8 acres of land on the west side of the brooke adjoyning to m^r. ROSCITE^RS ground,” &c.

In Baylie’s History of New Plymouth, vol. i., pt. 1, p. 286, mention is made of Hugh ROSSITER as one “of the first and ancient purchasers.”

“Hugh ROSSITER of Taunton 1637 sold out at Taunton before 1675, to Joseph WILLIS, and went to Connecticut.”  In what part of Connecticut did he settle, and had he a daughter Avis?

C.B. EUSTIS.

Cambridge, Mass.

Colonial Families of the United States of America

Source: George Newbury Mackenzie, Colonial Families of the United States of America, Volume 6 (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Company, 1966).

[page 40]

BACON

CHARLES FRANCIS BACON, deceased of Waterville, Maine [...]

Lineage

BACON is a Seigniory in Normandy according to the well authenticated genealogy of the great Suffolk family of BACON from which sprung many branches. The founder of the English family is said to have been Grumbaldus, a Norman gentleman related to William DE WARRENE, Earl of Surrey. He came into England at the time of the Conquest and had grants of land at Letheringsete near Holt, County of Norfolk. He had three sons.

I.  Rudueph.

II.  RANUEF, of whom later.

III.  Edmund.

RAN(D)ULF or Reynolds resided at Thorpe, County Norfolk, called Baconsthorpe by distinction, his son Roger had sons ROBERT and William.

ROBERT had JOHN and William.

JOHN I had JOHN II Time of Edward I.

JOHN II had JOHN III.

JOHN III had JOHN IV.

JOHN IV had

JOHN V who had

EDMUND who had

JOHN who had Robert John, THOMAS, Henry and William

THOMAS BAKON of Helmingham, will proved 27th February —-, m. Johan, surname not given, d. 1540.

ISSUE

I. JOHN, will proved 11th March, 1557, of whom later.

II.     Thomas.

III.    Anne, m. — DOW.

IV.     John.

V. Henry.

VI.     Mary.

VII.    Agnes.

VIII.   Elizabeth.

JOHN BACON, will proved 19th March, 1587; m. Margaret, surname not given.

[page 41]

ISSUE

I. William.

II.     Thomas.

III.    MICHAEL, bapt. 31st May, 1566, of whom later.

IV.     Richard.

V. Barbara.

VI.     Rose.

VII.    William (the younger).

MICHAEL BACON, Yeoman, of Winston, County Suffolk, England, bapt. 31st May, 1566, was buried 25th March, 1615, will dated 24th October, 1614, m. (firstly) 16th August, 1565. Elizabeth WYLIE, bapt. 30th May, 1566; m. (secondly) 20th September, 1607, the widow Grace BLOWERSES.

ISSUE BY FIRST MARRIAGE

I.    John, bapt. 31st May, 1566.

II.    William.

III.    Thomas.

IV.    MICHAEL, bapt. 6th December, 1579, of whom later.

V.    Sarah, m. Daniel YORKE.

VI.    Elizabeth, bapt. 3d September, 1584.

MICHAEL BACON, Yeoman, of Winston, Suffolk County, England, and Dedham, Massachusetts; b. 6th December, 1579, in Winston, Suffolk County, England; d. 18th April, 1648; m. Alice (surname not given), who d. 2d April, 1648.

ISSUE

II.     Daniel, b. probably 1615; d. 7th September, 1691, at Newton; came to New England, 1640; m. Mary READ, who d. 4th October 1691, dau. of Thomas READ.

ISSUE

1.     Daniel, b. probably 1641; d. 1720; m. 1st August, 1664, Susanna SPENCER, dau. of Michael SPENCER, of Salem.

2.     Thomas, b. 13th April, 1645, d. young.

3.     John, b. 8th September, 1647; found dead on Boston Marsh 31st August, 1723; m. Abigail, surname unknown.

4.     Isaac, b. 4th April, 1650; d. 8th January. 1684; m. Abigail, surname unknown.

5.     Rachel, b. 8th June, 1652; m. 24th March, 1680, Thomas PEIRCE, b. 21st June, 1645, d. 8th December, 1717, son of Thomas and Elizabeth (COLE) PEIRCE.

Burke’s American Families with British Ancestry

Source: Sir John Bernard Burke, Burke’s American Families with British Ancestry, offprint of pages 2529-3022 of the 16th edition of Burke’s Landed Gentry (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Company, 1975).

[page 2544]

BACON formerly OF HELMINGHAM

CLEVELAND FREDERICK BACON, of New York, [...]

Lineage. — JOHN BACON, m. Helena, dau. of Sir George TILLOT. and was father of

EDMUND BACON, of Drinkstone, Co. Suffolk, m. Elizabeth CROFTS, of the family of that name for long settled at Saxham, co. Suffolk, and was father of

JOHN BACON, who m. Elizabeth COCKFIELD, and had issue,

1. Robert, father of Sir Nicholas BACON, and grandfather of Francis BACON, Viscount St. Albans, Lord Keeper, and Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain.

2. THOMAS, of whom we treat

The younger son,

THOMAS BACON, of Helmingham, Norfolk, whose will was pr. 27 Feb. 1535, had a son,

JOHN BACON, (will pr. 11 Mar. 1557), who had issue by Margaret his wife, five sons and two daus.  The third son,

MICHAEL BACON, m. at Helrningham, 1565, Elizabeth WYLIE, and d. (will pr. 20 April, 1615), leaving issue, four sons and three daus. The youngest son,

MICHAEL BACON, of Winston, Suffolk, arrived at Dedham, Massachusetts in 1633, where he was one of the signatories of the Dedham  agreement. Returning to England he settled finally in Dedham in 1640, b. 1579; d. 1648, leaving issue, by Alice, his wife,

JOHN BACON, of Dedham, Mass., freeman 1647, Surveyor and Commissioner 1662, served in King Philip̓s War 1676, m. 1657, Rebecca HALL, and d. 1683. His son,

THOMAS BACON, representative of the Massachusetts General Court, b. 167[?]; m. Hannah FALES, and d. 1749. His son,

JOHN BACON, of Wrentham, b. 1710; d. 1806, having had by Mary, his wife,

DANIEL BACON [...]

[page 2866]

PIERCE formerly OF STEPNEY

Lineage. — THOMAS PIERCE, of Stepney, the Founder of this family in America, left England in 1634, and settled in Charlestown, Mass., b. 1583; m. Elizabeth, and d. 7 Oct 1666, leaving issue,

THOMAS PIERCE, of Woburn, Mass., b. 1608; m. 6 May, 1635, Elizabeth, dau. of Ryse COLE, and d. 6 Nov. 1683, leaving issue, a son,

JOHN PIERCE, of Woburn, b. 7 Mar. 1643; m. 5 July, 1663, Deborah, daughter of James CONVERS, of Woburn, and d. 1720, leaving a son,

JOSIAH PIERCE, of Woburn, b. 10 June, 1691; m. Hannah, dau. of Jonathan THOMPSON, of Woburn, and by her had issue,

JOSIAH PIERCE, of Woburn, b. 30 Mar. 1720; m. 15 Jan. 1756, Ruth SIMONDS, widow of Benjamin THOMPSON, and mother by her first husband of Sir Benjamin THOMPSON, Count Rumford, and d. 18 Aug. 1799, leaving issue,

JOSIAH PIERCE, of Baldwin, Maine, b. 27 Aug. 1756; m. in Mar. 1787, Phebe, dau. of Daniel THOMPSON, of Woburn, and d. 23 Jan. 1830 [...]

Search for the Passengers of the Mary and John 1630

Source: Burton W. Spear, Search for the Passengers of the Mary and John 1630, Volume 13 (Toledo, Ohio: Burton W. Spear, 1990).

[page 30]

Unanswered Questions on the English Ancestries and Birthplaces of the “Mary and John” Families of 1630.

EDWARD ROSSITER

According to NER Jan. 1984, p. 4-16, he was the son of Nicholas ROSSITER (d. 1 Apr. 1608) & Eliza _____ (bu. 28 Apr. 1608), of Comb St. Nicholas, Somerset, but no wills have been found.  His grandfather was Philip ROSSITER & (1) _____, of Combe St. Nicholas and his great-grandfather was Richard ROSSITER (1463-1529) & Elizabeth PERYE, dau. of William PERYE & _____, dau. of John FRYE.  No wills found.

Parish records of Combe St. Nicholas before 1678 are lost & Edward Rossiter left no will.

There is a Dr. CAMPBELL, a genealogist in Combe St. Nicholas who is claimed to have a great deal of information on the ROSSITERs, FRYEs & TORREY family, all of that village.  Ref: NER Jan. 1937, p. 145-151.  (See Vol. 3, p. 43)

[page 94]

THREE GENERATIONS OF DESCENDANTS OF WILLIAM BLAKE OF DORCHESTER, MASS.

William BLAKE – Bpt. 10 July 1594, Pitminster, Somerset.  He died, 25 Oct. 1663, Dorchester, Mass.  He married, Agnes BAND, 27 Sept. 1617, Pitminster, prob. widow of Richard BAND & dau. of Hugh THORN.  He was granted land in Dorchester on 14 May 1636 and he became a freeman and a member of the church on 14 Mar. 1639.  It is not known when he came to New England.  (Vol. 12, p. 79)

Children of William BLAKE & Agnes (THORN) BAND (Vol. 12, p. 79)

1. John BLAKE – Bpt. 30 Aug. 1618, Pitminster.  He died, 25 Jan. 1688/9, Boston.  He married, Mary (SOUTHER) SHAW, 16 Aug. 1654.  He was one of the executors of the will of Governor John WINTHROP in 1676.  No issue.

2. Anne BLAKE- Bpt. 30 Aug. 1618 (twin?), Pitminster.  She died, 12 July 1681, Boston.  She married, (1) Jacob LEAGER of Boston, who died, 24 Feb. 1662/3 & (2) _____ HALLOWELL.  Her tombstone is in the Boston Society.

Children of Anne BLAKE & Jacob LEAGER (Vol. 11, p. 79)

a. Bethia LEAGER- Bpt. 6 Oct. 1651, Dorchester, Mass.  She m. Fearnot SHAW, blacksmith, s. of Joseph SHAW of Weymouth, Mass.  She had two children: Jacob, b. 6 Nov. 1672.  (2) John, b. 30 Mar. 1678, who m. Mercy SMITH.

b. Hannah LEAGER- B. 14 Nov. 1655, Boston.  She d. 13 Oct. 1690.  She m. (1) John WALKER, brick burner, a. 1676, s. of Thomas & Ann WALKER of Boston.  The had one dau., Hannah WALKER, 25 Apr. 1677, who prob. never married.  Hannah LEAGER m. (2) Thomas PHILIPS of Boston, perhaps s. of Nicholas PHILIPS, by whom she had one child, Hannah PHILIPS, 7 Sept. 1690.

3. William BLAKE Jr.- Bpt. 6 Sept. 1620, Pitminster.  He died, 3 Sept. 1703, Milton, Mass.  He married, (10 [sic] Anna _____, whose name does not appear until 1665 & (2) Hannah TOLMAN, 22 Nov. 1693, Milton, who d. 4 Aug. 1729, dau. of Thomas TOLMAN (M&J passenger) & widow Sarah LYON.

Children of William BLAKE Jr. & (1) Anna (Vol. 12 p. 8)

a. Samuel BLAKE- B. 14 May 1650, Dorchester.  He d. 1719, Taunton.  He m. Sarah MACEY, dau. of George and Susanna MACEY of Taunton.  He had seven children: (1) Priscilla, who m. John SMITH, 1700, s. of Nathaniel SMITH.  (2) Samual Jr., b.a. 1680, who may have m. Sarah PITTS.  (3) Edward, b.a. 1689, m. Anna HANOVER.  (4) Susanna.  (5) Sarah, m. Joseph TOPLIFF.  (6) Hannah.  (7) Jerusha.

b. Anne BLAKE- Bpt. 7 Mar. 1651, Dorchester.  d.y.

c. Anne BLAKE- B. 6 Mar. 1652/3, Dorchester.  Died, 9 May 1722, Taunton.  She m. Thomas GILBERT, 18 Dec. 1676, Boston, s. of John & Jane GILBERT of Taunton.  Eight children: (1) Hannah, b. 28 Sept. 1677, m. William PHILLIPS.  (2) Sarah, b. 11 Aug. 1679, m. John WILLIS.  (3) Mary (twin), b. 11 Aug. 1679, m. Joseph WILLIAMS.  (4) Thomas, b. 11 July 1681. d.y.  (5) Nathaniel, b. 19 July 1683, m. Hannah BRADFORD.  (6) Mehitable, b. 5 May 1686.   (7) Susanna, b. 1687, m. William HODGES.  (8) Experience, b. 1689, m. John TOWNSEND.  (Ref: Gilberts of New England, pt. 1, p. 81)

d. Mary BLAKE- B. 20 Mar. 1654/5, Dorchester.  She m. (1) Joseph LEONARD, 1679 & (2) _____ WILLIS.  Seven children by first husband: (1) Mary, b. 2 Oct. 1680.  (2) Experience, b. 18 Mar. 1682.  (3) Joseph, b. 28 Jan. 1684.  (4) Mehitable, b. 22 Aug. 1685.  (5) Edward, b. 2 Nov. 1688.  (6) William, b. 26 Mar. 1690.  (7) Silence.  (Ref: Savage 3:80)

e. William BLAKE- B. 22 Feb. 1656/7, Dorchester.  Soldier in 1675 & 1690.  Died before 1699.

f. Nathaniel BLAKE- B. 4 July 1659, Dorchester.  Died, 5 Oct. 1720, Milton.  He m. Martha MORY, dau. of Walter MORY.  Seven children: (1) William, b. 21 July 1696, m. Hannah _____.  (2) Nathaniel Jr., b. 26 Feb. 1697/7, m. Elizabeth EVANS.  (3) Simon, b. 1 June 1700, m. Hannah BADCOCK.  (4) James, b. 18 Sept. 1702, m. Abigail TUCKER.  (5) Joseph, b. 27 July 1705.  (6) David, b. 12 July 1707.  (7) Jonathan, b. 12 July 1707.

[page 80]

g. Edward BLAKE- b. 13 Apr. 1662, Dorchester.  He died, 1737.  He m. Elizabeth MORY, 26 June 1696, sister of his brother’s (Nathaniel) wife.  Six children: (1) Anna, b. 7 Apr. 1697, m. _____ STEARNS.  (2) Edward Jr., b. 22 July 1697, m. Elizabeth FRENCH.  (3) Aaron, b. 23 Feb. 1699/1700.  (4) Mary, b. 13 Jan. 1701/2.  (5) Elizabeth, b. 5 Apr. 1704, m. _____ BELCHER.  (6) Moses, b. 6 Aug. 1706, m. Hannah HORTON.

h. Experience BLAKE- B. 17 June 1665, Dorchester.  He <sic> m. Eleazer CARVER, s. of John & Millicent CARVER.  Res: S. Bridgewater.

i. Agnes BLAKE- B. 29 Sept. 1667, Milton.

j. Susan BLAKE- B. 20 July 1670, Milton.  D. 4 May 1676.

k. Mehitable BLAKE- B. 2 Apr. 1673, Milton.  She m. William BRIGGS Jr., 16 June 1696, of Taunton.

4. James BLAKE- Bpt. 27 Apr. 1623, Pitminster.  Died, 28 June 1700, Dorchester.  He married (1) Elizabeth CLAPP, a. 1651, dau. of Dea. Edward CLAPP & Prudence CLAPP, who died, 16 Jan. 1693/4, age 61.  He m. (2) Elizabeth SMITH, 17 Sept. 1695, dau. of Henry 7 <sic> Judith SMITH & widow of Peter HUNT.
He built a house in 1650 in Dorchester that still stands today [...]

5. Edward BLAKE- His will: 31 Aug. 1692, inventory, 3 Nov. 1692.  He m. Patience POPE, dau. of John & Jane POPE of Dorchester [...]

[page 81]

References:

BLAKE Family, A Genealogical History, William BLAKE of Dorchester, by Samuel BLAKE, 1857.

A Record Of The BLAKES Of Somerset, by Horatio G. SOMERBY.

Increase BLAKE Of Boston, His Ancestors & Descendants, With A Full Account of William BLAKE Of Dorchester, by Francis E. BLAKE, 1898.

[page 121]

THE ROSSITER, TORREY, FRY & COMBE FAMILIES OF COMBE ST. NICHOLAS, SOMERSET.

The village and parish of Combe St. Nicholas, Somerset provided a number of families who came to New England between 1630 and 1640.  Edward ROSSITER came first, with his family on the “Mary & John” in 1630.  He was one of the Assistants of the Massachusetts Bay Company and one of the most prominent passengers on that ship.  He was followed in 1640 by the TORREYs and FRYs.  A great deal of credit for this article, and particularly the photos and map, is due Miss Patricia PEARCE, of Shepton Beauchamp, Somerset, who visited Combe St. Nicholas and searched the records in the Somerset Record Office, Taunton.

THE ROSSITERS

Edward ROSSITER may have come with his wife _____ COMBE, daughter of John COMBE and brother of Joesph [sic] COMBE, but she may have died in England because there is no record of her in New England.

Evidently, Rev. John WHITE of Dorchester, Dorset, loaned Edward ROSSITER considerable money to prepare for his journey to New England.  The total debt was 106 pounds, 9 shillings & 9 pence and it was partly paid by Edward’s son, Nicholas, before their departure.  But when Edward died on 23 Oct. 1630, there was still 15 pounds, 25 shillings due Rev. WHITE.  Among the charges was 47 pounds, 13 shillings & 4 pence, for the passage of 13 passengers (3 pounds, 13 shillings & 4 pence each).

Following is an attempt to identify these people.  The five unknown passengers may have included, Edward’s wife (if she was still living), grandchildren and servants.

1. Edward ROSSITER

2. Son, Nicholas ROSSITER, who later returned.

3. Wife of Nicholas ROSSITER, who later returned.

4. Edward ROSSITER, son of Nicholas, who later returned.

5. Son, Bray ROSSITER.

6. Wife of Bray ROSSITER.

7. Daughter, Jane ROSSITER.

8. Son, Hugh ROSSITER, who later returned.

Plus five unidentified passengers.

[page 124]

THE FRYS

George FRY, came with his brother-in-law, William TORREY.  He was possibly the son of the George FRY who witnessed the will of Joseph COMBE of Combe St. Nicholas, 21 Mar. 1619/20.  The FRYs were also related to the ROSSITER & COMBE families.

THE COMBES

Although no member of the COMBE family of Combe St. Nicholas has been found that came to New England, they married into the above families.

THE WADFORD FARM & MILL OF PHILIP ROSSITER

Edward ROSSITER’s great-grandfather, Richard ROSSITER, was the first proved land owner in Combe St. Nicholas.  When he died in 1529 he owned 4 messuages & 543 acres here.  At that time his son Philip (Edward’s grandfather) inherited 4 messuages, 31 acres of meadow, 312 acres of pasture & 200 acres of woodland.  In the 1583 Survey of the parish (SAS/SE86), “Philipus ROSSITER, gent. (farmer or husbandman) owned a dwelling and a new tucking mill.  He paid 17 pounds a year to the Lord of the Manor (Wells Deanery).  The other freemen of Combe were William BONNER, gent.- 15 pounds, William JEANES- 12 pounds, John BUETT- 2 pounds, John WALROD- 4 pounds, John DEWNELL- 20 pounds and _____ MALLETT- 12 pounds.

[photo]

Wadeford House (16th) of Philip ROSSITER

[page 125]

Philip ROSSITER’s house was called Wadeford and the fulling mill (woolen mill), which has been carefully restored, still stand today in a hamlet about 3/4 miles SE of Combe St. Nicholas.  This is one of seven mills within a few miles of each other on the River Isle, the others all being grist mills for corn.

[photo]

Fulling Mill At Wadeford, Once Owned By Philip ROSSITER

Court Roll – 27 July 1608 – To the court came Thomasin CLARKE, William ROSSITER (brother or cousin of Edward?) and John CLARKE and surrendered a tenement called a “ten acre tenement” in the tithing of XII sect. granted again to John and Jane MARDEN.  (The three named above were witnesses.  Ref: ADD/277.)

1641, Nicholas ROSSITER, gent., of Combe (son of Edward, after Nicholas returned to England), holds for 3 lives, his property on lease – Anne, Jane & Mary ROSSITER, all daughters of Nicholas.  Ref: ADD/302.

THE LOWER CLAYHANGER FARM OF THE FRY FAMILY

The FRY family held a lease in 1574 (and possibly earlier) on the Lower Clayhanger Farm, less than a mile NE of Wadeford, where Philip ROSSITER lived.

[photo]

Entrance To Farmyard Of Lower Clayhanger House Of FRY Family

[page 126]

The Lower Clayhanger house, which is still standing today, is in the “Listed Buildings”, p. 1-2, ADD/281, dated, 1608.  In the 1583 Survey of Combe St. Nicholas, rents were paid in Clayhanger tithing by: Robertus WARRYE- 13 pounds, John COGAN- 14 pounds, Symond KNIGHT- 2 pounds, Matthew GILLETT- 13 pounds, Thomas KNIGHT- 12 pounds and John GILLETT- 3 pounds.

NOTE:     Savage says there was a Matthew GILLET who came on the Mary & John in 1634, first settled in Dorchester and then in Windsor in 1636.  Banks says he came on the Mary & John in 1634 but settled in Salem.  Stiles’ History of Windsor does not list him.

Today the house is a private residence, with Hamstone mullioned windows, a kitchen with a bread oven and a mullioned window in the rear wall.  The roof was renewed in the early 19th century.  The walls are two feet thick.  The original date of the house cannot be placed because of work in 1940 destroyed much of the dating evidence.

Court Roll, 9 Oct. 1593 – To this court came John FRY and Agnes, his wife, and Isabella, wife of Richard SCREVEN.  John FRY holds by right of his wife, Agnes, one tenement called a “ten acre tenement”, with the apprutenances in the tithing of Betham, to remain now of the said Isabella, by the names of Agnes COMBE and Isabella COMBE (daughters of John COMBE, deceased), John FRY and Agnes and Richard and Isabella SCREVEN, surrendered each and all into the hands of the Lord and all estates and interest in the said premises, with the intent that John FRY might be able to receive them again.  Whereupon at this same court, the said John FRY, came and took from the Lord at the Steward’s hands, the said apputtenances, to have and to hold, for the lives of John FRY, Joseph COMBE and William COMBE, sons of the late John COMBE.  Ref: ADD/257.

27 Sept. 1597- George FRY came to Court of Combe and leased land called “Wagges”, for the lives of George and his brother, John FRY of Ewell and John FRY, son of Lawrence of Stolfird.  Ref: ADD/265.

15 Oct. 1608- To this Court came Dorothea (RICHARDS) FRY, wife of John FRY, the younger, gent., of Chehanger (Clayhanger), and took the reversion of one cottage, with curtilage, one acre of same, under Old Auster (A Celtic site for the farm, developed by the Saxons and always treated with great respect because of its great age as a site.), all held by John FRY, the younger, for the term of his life.  To have and to hold for the lives of Dorothea, William FRY, son of William of Plymouth, Devon, yeoman, John RICHARDS, son of John of Churchstation, Devon.  Ref: ADD/281.

[page 127]

HAM FARM, HOME OF THE COMBE FAMILY

In 1599 Thomas COMBE at Ham Farm held 20 acres.  This about one and one half miles N of Combe St. Nicholas.  This was by “old Austet”, and ancient Celtic site.  This farm is now occupied by Mr. HUTCHINGS.

[photo]

Mr. HUTCHINGS at Ham Farm with Shep & Sam

Search for the Passengers of the Mary and John 1630

Source: Burton W. Spear, Search for the Passengers of the Mary and John 1630, Volume 12 (Toledo, Ohio: Burton W. Spear, 1989). [WorldCat]

[page 72]

BLAKE ENGLISH ANCESTRY FROM CHART IN WILTSHIRE

The following BLAKE ancestry was taken from a 4 ft. by 12 ft. chart, on file at the Wiltshire Record Office, in Trowbridge, Wilts., England.  It lists many lines not noted below to about 1800.  The line below supposedly traces to Humphrey BLAKE of Over Stowey, Somerset, ancestor of Elizabeth SAUNDERS, wife of Henry WOLCOTT.  Following is the introductory inscription on the chart:

“The genealogy of the ancient and worthy family of BLAGUE, BLAAKE or BLAKE, of great antiquity in the county of Wilts, where they had large possessions in Quemberford, Calne and Ililcot with a fair manor house called PINHILLS, now the seat of the family, a younger branch, from where they transplanted themselves into Hampshire and settling at East Town, were owners of that and divers other manor from whence the BLAKEs of Middlesex, etc. are immediately descended faithfully collected out of the several visitation books of the said counties remaining in the College of Arms and deducted to the issue of Daniel BLAKE of London, Anno 1690″.

1. RICHARD BLAGUE of Blake (Not found).  He married Ann, daughter of William (COLE?).

2. HENRY BLAGUE of Blake.  Heir.  He married Elizabeth, daughter & co-heir of Edward DURANT.

3. WILLIAM BLAGUE of Blake.  Heir.  He married Elizabeth, daughter of Mr. William POWER.

4. HENRY BLAGUE of Blake.  Heir.  He married Margaret, daughter & heir of William BILLETT.

[page 73]

5. ROBERT BLAGUE, Esq. of Quemford (hamlet, one half mile S of Calne, Wilts, 18 miles E of Bath).  He married Avice, daughter of John WALLOP, Esq. of Farley, Southampton.

6. JOHN BLAGUE, Gent.  Second son.  He married Margaret DYNCHAN, DINHAM of Dentham.

7. DAVID BLAGUE.  Heir.  He married Joane MALLETT.  He had a son, John BLAGUE, Abbott of Cirenester, Gloucestershire.

[page 74]

8. WILLIAM BLAGUE of Lacock, Wilts (8 miles W of Calne).  He married Margaret, daughter of William BROWNE of Wablyn.

Children

a. Martin BLAGUE of Winchcomb, Gloucestershire.  He married Catherine, daughter of George VAUGHN of Herfordshire.

b. John BLAGUE- See below.

9. JOHN BLAGUE.    “From whom the BLAKEs of Somerset are descended of which family Major General Robert BLAKE the famous soldier and sea commander.”  No arms listed.  This line from generations 6 through 9 do not agree with the lines in SEARCH FOR THE PASSENGERS OF THE MARY & JOHN-1630, Volume 11, p. 62-66.

*****

The following line from the Wiltshire chart connects to some William BLAKEs of Eastontown, Southampton, that fits the genealogy in the above mentioned, Volume 11:

6. ROBERT BLAKE of Calne, Wilts.  He was the son of Robert BLAGUE & Avice WALLOP (See #5 above).  He married Margaret, daughter of Sir Thomas INGLEFIELD of Inglefield, Berkshire & Margery, daughter of Richard DANVERS, Esq. of Cadworth, Northamptonshire.

7. ROGER BLAAKE, Esq. of Caivne (Calne?), Wilts.  He died, 1556, age 57 (b. 1499).  He married Mary BAYNARD, daughter of Philip BAYNARD, Esq. of Lackham, Wilts.  Roger and his sister, married a brother and sister.

Children

a. Thomas BLAAKE, Esq. of Tynnells, Wilts.  He married Edith, daughter of Thomas IVY, Esq. of Westkein (sp?), Wilts.

b. Sibil BLAAKE.  She married Henry BULL of Wilts.

c. John BLAAKE.  He married Jane CLARKE of Shaw (sp?), Wilts.

d. Joane BLAAKE.  She married Anthony GODDARD of Hartham, Wilts.

e. William BLAAKE- See below.

f. Mary BLAAKE.  She married edward LANGRIDGE of Langride, Southampton.

g. Robert BLAAKE of borough of Carone (sp?).  He married Alice, daughter of Robert SMYTH of Lackock, Wilts.

[page 75]

8. WILLIAM BLAKE of Eastontown als Essington, Southampton. Fourth son.  Deceased, 1582.  He married Avice, daughter of Sir Gervace RIPLEY, knight of Ripley, Southampton.  Their figures appeared in a stained glass window in the church of Enham (sp?), Southampton, in the parish of Eastontown in 1622, seat of the branch of the family in Scituate (not found).

[photo]

Figures of William BLAKE, and his wife, Avice RIPLEY, in stained glass window, in Eastontown parish church in 1622.

9. WILLIAM BLAKE.  Second son.

Children

a. William BLAKE.  See below.

b. Peter BLAKE.  Second son.

c. Nicholas BLAKE.  Third son.

10. WILLIAM BLAKE of Eastontown (estate of Eastontown, Southampton?).  He married Anne, daughter of Thomas TUFT (sp?) of Chilbolton, Southampton.   (Chilbolton now appears to be in county, Hants, 3 miles south of Andover.).  No issue listed.

[page 76]

The last three William BLAKEs, numbers 8, 9 & 10, appear to connect to the BLAKE Genealogy printed in the SEARCH FOR THE PASSENGERS OF THE MARY & JOHN-1630, Volume 11, p. 62-63.  The following is copied from this source:

VII.  WILLIAM BLAKE – He lived in White parish, Wilts and died in 1471.  After his death his widow and two sons moved to Hampshire and settled in Andover, on the estate called, “Eastontown”, formerly part of the estate of her husband’s mother, Avice WALLOP.

Children

1. William BLAKE- See below.

2. Robert BLAKE- He lived in West Enham, Andover.  He married, _____ SNELL.

VIII.  WILLIAM BLAKE – He lived in Andover, White Parish, in Old Hall in Eastontown.  he also had lands in Knights Enham (occupied by his brother in 1504).  He married Mary, daughter of Humphrey COLES of Somerset.  His will probated, 20 June 1547.

Children

1. Nicholas BLAKE- Of Old Hall.  His will, 1547, names wife, Margaret and children, William, Edmund, Alice and Elizabeth.

2. Humphrey BLAKE- No doubt named after his grandfather.  See below.

3. Alice BLAKE- She married, _____ CABULL.

IX.  HUMPHREY BLAKE – In Somerset in early 1500′s and settled in Over Stowey.

X.  JOHN BLAKE, THE ELDER – Born, 1521.  Buried, 10 Dec. 1576, Over Stowey.  He married Joan or Jane _____.

XI.  ANNE BLAKE – Born about 1549, Over Stowey.  She married Thomas SAUNDERS.  They lived in Lydeard St. Lawrence, Somerset and were the parents of Elizabeth SAUNDERS, wife of Henry WOLCOTT.

****

[page 77]

BLAKE ANCESTRY FROM CHART IN UNITARIAN CHAPEL, CREWKERNE, SOMERSET, 1989

The following ancestry of the BLAKE family of Somerset, England was copied from a chart on exhibition in the Unitarian Chapel, crewkerne, Somerset, in June 1989.  It was prepared by Mrs. Eleanor DIXON, a BLAKE descendant, from Bridgewater, Somerset.

This ancestry contradicts the BLAKE ancestry in Volume 12, p. 62, which states the BLAKE line to Elizabeth SAUNDERS, wife of Henry WOLCOTT, comes through William BLAKE (d. 1471), son of Robert BLAKE & Avice WALLOP.  The ancestry below claims the correct line is through John BLAKE (d. 1504), son of Robert BLAKE & Avice WALLOP and brother of William BLAKE (d. 1471).

JOHN BLAKE of Nether Wallop, Hants.  Born, 1430.  Died, 1504.  He married, Margery _____.  His brother, Robert BLAKE of Calne, Wilts., was his heir and overseer of his will.

Child

1. Humphrey BLAKE of Over Stowey, Somerset.  Buried, 28 Dec. 1588.  Will, 19 Nov. 1558, proved, 11 May 1559, Taunton.  He married, Anne _____.  He bought Tuxwell, near Spaxton, Somerset in 1556.

Children

1.1 John BLAKE, the elder of Plainsfield (manor).  Born, 1521.  Buried, 10 Dec. 1576.  Will proved, 25 Jan. 1577.  He married, Joan _____.

Children

1.1.1 Humphrey BLAKE, the elder of Over Stowey.  Buried, 1619 (in Over Stowey church).  Will, 1618.  Clothier.  He married, (1) Agnes JAMES, 1578 & (2) Ann _____.

Children

1.1.1.1 Humphrey BLAKE, gent., of Plainsfield.  Bpt. 13 Nov. 1580.  He married, Elizabeth GILES of Wellington.

1.1.1.2 John BLAKE of Over Stowey.  Bpt. 25 Apr. 1583.

1.1.1.3 Richard BLAKE.  Bpt. 7 Sept. 1585.

1.1.1.4 Jone BLAKE.  Bpt. 23 Sept. 1587.

1.1.1.5 Robert BLAKE.  Bpt. 8 June 1589.

1.1.1.6 Arthur BLAKE.  Bpt. 27 June 1592.  Died, 25 June 1592.

1.1.2 William BLAKE.  Buried, 1642.  He married, Ann _____.  He bought Cattridge, 1586.

1.1.3 Richard BLAKE of Stogumber, Somerset.  Born, 1562/3.  He married, (1) _____ & (2) Grace NAPCOTT, 29 May 1589, Over Stowey.

1.1.4 Robert BLAKE.  Born, 1566.  Died, 1626.  He married, Eleanor BROWNE of Taunton.

1.1.5 Alice BLAKE.  Born, 1569.  She married James RICHARDS.  From this couple descended emigrants, William BLAKE, Thomas RICHARDS and the TORREY brothers.  (See volume 11, p. 109-110.)

1.1.6 Ann BLAKE.  She married Thomas SAUNDERS (They were the parents of Elizabeth SAUNDERS, wife of Henry WOLCOTT).

1.1.7 Isobel BLAKE.  She married Thomas SELLECK.  (They lived in Gaulden Manor.)

1.1.8 Mary BLAKE- Born, 1558.  Died 1560.

1.2 John BLAKE, the younger of Plainsfield (manor).  Buried, 21 Aug. 1572.  He married Christian JUGG, 18 Aug. 1558.

Children

1.2.1 Mary BLAKE.  Born, 1558.  Died, 1600.

1.2.2 Elizabeth BLAKE.  Born, 1561.

1.2.3 John BLAKE.  Died, 1563.

1.2.4 Anne BLAKE.  Born, 1567.

1.2.5 Richard BLAKE.  Born, 1570.

1.3 Agnes BLAKE.  She married, _____ MANNING.

1.4 Eleanor BLAKE.  She married, _____ LANGHAM.

[page 78]

1.5 Alice BLAKE.  She married, George SLOCOMBE.

1.6 Thomas BLAKE.  His will, 1580.  He married Isobel _____ of Wedmore.

1.7 Robert BLAKE of Bridgewater.  He died, Oct. 1592.  Will proved, 1592.  He married, Margaret SYMONDS of Taunton.  She buried, 1600.

Child

1.7.1 Humphrey BLAKE of Bridgewater.  Born, 1573.  Died, 1625.  His will, 1625.  He married Sarah WMS. (WILLIAMS) of Pawlett, Somerset.

Children

1.7.1.1 Humphrey BLAKE of St. Giles, Cripplesgate, London.  Born, 1600.  Died, 1679.  Will, 1679, at Somerset Record Office.

1.7.1.2 Admiral Robert BLAKE.  Born, 1598.  Died, 1657.  Unmarried.  His will, 1653.

[page 79]

WILLIAM BLAKE OF DORCHESTER, MASS.

William BLAKE (1594-1663) of Dorchester, Mass. shares his BLAKE ancestry with Elizabeth SAUNDERS (1584-1655), wife of Henry WOLCOTT of Windsor, Conn.  They were grandchildren of John BLAKE (1521-1576) of Over Stowey, Somerset.  See Volume 11, p. 64-66.  The parents of Elizabeth SAUNDERS were Thomas SAUNDERS (d. 1609) of Lydread St. Lawrence, Somerset and Anne BLAKE (b.a. 1549) of Over Stowey.  The parents of William BLAKE were William BLAKE (d. 1642) of Pitminster, Somerset and Ann.  Anne BLAKE and William BLAKE (the elder) were brother and sister, so Elizabeth SAUNDERS and William BLAKE (the emigrants) were first cousins.

William BLAKE was born in Pitminster and he was related to another emigrant from that village, Thomas RICHARDS.  Thomas RICHARDS, was no doubt, a grandson of James RICHARDS, who died in Pitminster in 1608, and Alice BLAKE, daughter of John BLAKE of Over Stowey and sister of Anne BLAKE (mother of Elizabeth SAUNDERS.

It has been claimed that William BLAKE of Dorchester, brought his family on the “Mary & John” in 1630, but no prooof has been found.  There is no early record of him in Dorchester and he being a prominent person, age 36, it would have been unlikely for him not to be mentioned if he had come in 1630.  There is supposedly a Cleveland Genealogy that claims he sold a house in Aisholt, Somerset (3 miles south of Over Stowey), in January 1630 and went to America, but no proof is given.  He was granted land in Dorchester, Mass. on 14 May 1636 and he became a freeman and a member of the church on 14 March 1639.

William BLAKE was baptised, 10 July 1594 in Pitminster, Somerset and he died, 25 Oct. 1663, Dorchester, Mass.  He married Agnes BAND, 27 Sept. 1617, Pitminster.  She was probably baptised, 12 June 1594, Pitminster, daughter of Hugh THORN and the widow of Richard BAND, whose will was written in 1616 and probated, 8 Jan. 1621.  Agnes died, 22 July 1678, Dorchester, Mass.  William BLAKE remained in Pitminster until 1624 but his whereabouts between 1624 and 1636 are not known.  He possibly moved to Aisholt, Somerset.

On 14 May 1636, William BLAKE, with William PYNCHON and six others signed articles to form a plantation at Agawam (Springfield) on the Connecticut River.  He remained in Dorchester and died there in 1663.  He and his wife were probably buried in the Old North Burying Ground on Upham’s Corner, in Dorchester, but their tombstones have not been found.

Children of William BLAKE & Agnes THORNE (BLAKE-1898-2)

1. John BLAKE- Bpt. 30 Aug. 1618, Pitminster, Somerset.  Died, 25 Jan. 1688/9, Boston.  He m. Mary SOUTHER, 16 Aug. 1654, Boston, dau. of Nathaniel & Alice SOUTHER & widow of Joseph SHAW of Weymouth, who d. 13 Dec. 1653, 12 days after his marriage.  Mary d. 7 Jan. 1693/4, Boston.  John was a Boston merchant and a man of high social standing.  He was one of the executors of the will of Gov. John WINTHROP in 1676.  He evidently died without issue (Savage).

2. Anne BLAKE- Bpt. 30 Aug. 1618 (Prob. a twin), Pitminster.  Died, 12 July 1681, Boston.  She m. (1) Jacob LEAGER of Boston (as his second wife).  He d. 24 Feb. 1662/3, Boston.  He was a tailor.  She supposedly m. (2) _____ HALLOWELL, but was widowed again.  She was buried at the Third Church of Boston and her tombstone is now in the Bostonian Society.  She had two children: (1) Bethia LEAGER (b. 1651) who m. Fearnot SHAW, a blacksmith, and they had 3 children & (2) Hannah LEAGER (b. 1655) who m. John WALKER, a “brick burner”.  One dau. who prob. did not marry.

3. William BLAKE- Bpt. 6 Sept. 1620, Pitminster.  He d. 3 Sept. 1703, Milton, Mass.  He m. (1) Anna _____ & (2) Hannah TOLMAN, 22 Nov. 1693, Milton, dau. of Thomas TOLMAN (Mary & John passenger) and Sarah & widow of George LYON.  (See TOLMAN, volume 9, page 27).  Hannah d. 4 Aug. 1729.  He had 8

[page 80]

children by his first wife: (1) Samuel BLAKE (b. 1650) who m. Sarah MACEY and they had 7 children, (2) Anne BLAKE (Bpt. 1651). d.y., (3) Anne BLAKE, (b. 1652) who m. Thomas GILBERT and they had 6 children, (4) Mary BLAKE (b. 1654) who m. (1) Joseph LEONARD by who she had 6 chilren.  She m. (2) _____ WILLIS, (5) William BLAKE (1656), soldier who may not have married, (6) Nathaniel BLAKE (b. 1659).  He m. Martha MORY and had 7 children, (7) Edward BLAKE (b. 1662).  He m. Elizabeth MORY and had 6 children, (8) Experience BLAKE (b. 1665.  She m. Eleazer CARVER, (9) Agnes BLAKE (b. 1667), (10) Susan BLAKE (b. 1670) & (11) Mehitable BLAKE who m. William BRIGGS.

4. James BLAKE- Bpt. 27 Apr. 1624, Pitminster.  He d. 28 June 1700, Dorchester.  He m. (1) Elizabeth CLAPP (b.a. 1651) dau. of Dea. Edward CLAP & Prudence CLAP.  She d. 16 Jan. 1693/4, age 61.  He m. (2) Elizabeth SMITH, 17 Sept. 1695, dau. of Henry & Judith SMITH and widow of Peter HUNT.  He built a very substantial houe off Cottage Street in Dorchester about 1650 which remained in the BLAKE family until 1825.

[photo]

HOUSE OF JAMES BLAKE IN DORCHESTER

In 1895, due to street widening, the Dorchester Historical Society moved this house to Richardson where it is now being maintained by the society.  James BLAKE had 6 children by his first wife: (1) James BLAKE (b. 1652).  He m. (1) Hannah MACEY & (2) Ruth BACHELLOR, (2) John BLAKE (b. 1656).  He m. Hannah _____ and had 7 children, (3) Elizabeth BLAKE (b. 1658).  She m. Jeremiah FULLER and had one son, (4) Jonathan BLAKE (b. 1660), d.y., (5) Sarah BLAKE (b. 1665), d.y., (6) Joseph BLAKE (b. 1667).  He m. Mehitable BIRD.  Eleven children.

References:

NER Jan. 1891, p. 35-38.

NER Vol. 89, p. 285-187.

Lineal Ancestors of Rhoda (AXTELL) CORY, 1937, Vol. II Pt. 1, p. 121.

BLAKE Family, by Samuel BLAKE, 1857.

BLAKEs of Somersetshire, from notes of Horatio G. SOMERBY, 1881.

Increase BLAKE of Boston, by Francis E. BLAKE, 1898.

*****

[page 101]

OVER STOWEY, HOME OF THE BLAKE FAMILY OF SOMERSET

Over Stowey Somerset was the home of the BLAKE family in the 16th and 17th centuries.  Here are buried the ancestors of Elizabeth SAUNDERS, wife of Henry WOLCOTT: her maternal grandfather, John BLAKE, the elder (d. 1578), and her great-grandfather, Humphrey BLAKE (d. 1558).  It is believed John BLAKE was buried in the church but his stone was removed and it may be the illegible memorial in the bell room.  There is a large stone in the aisle of the church for Humphrey BLAKE (d. 1619), brother of Anne BLAKE, mother of Elizabeth SAUNDERS.

Humphrey BLAKE purchased large estates in this area and he became lord of Plainsfield Manor and was patron of the churches of Over Stowey & Aisholt.  The Plainfield Manor was owned, in large part, by the BLAKE family for over 200 years.  This manor house, one mile south of Over Stowey is now in Spaxton, and its name has been changed to the Courthouse Farm House.  It is occupied by Mr. & Mrs. Ron DALLEY & Mrs. Beatrice May PITTY.  Up to 1921 there was a fireplace in this house that bore the BLAKE coat-of-arms but it was removed that year and taken to Yeovil, Somerset.

[page 102]

[photo]

OVER STOWEY CHURCH – 1989

[photo]

TOMBE OF HUMPHREY BLAKE – DIED 1619

[photo]

FORMER PLAINSFIELD MANOR HOUSE, MRS. PITTY (l.) & MRS. DALLEY (r.) 1989

[page 112]

CALNE, WILTSHIRE, HOME OF THE BLAKE FAMILY

The BLAKE family, from whom Anne BLAKE, mother of Elizabeth SAUNDERS, wife of Henry WOLCOTT descended, lived in Calne, Wiltshire for centuries.  They left the area in the 18th century.  The ancestral home of the BLAKE family was the manor house of Pinhills.  The BLAKEs acquired the manor of Pinhills in the 14th century.  They were not ennobled with exalted titles but they could boast of noble lineage, for their alliance with the families of FIENNES and DANVERS, they were descended from the worthy founder of New College, Oxford and Winchester College.  The BLAKE family became the most prominent in the borough and they sent members to Parliament as early as 1381.  By the begining of the 16th century the faily had spread into several distinct branches, but all living in the neighborhood of Pinhills.

The 12th century church of St. Mary The Virgin, in Calne, was built on the site of a previous Saxon church.  On 21 April 1628, the Norman tower collapsed and it was replaced by the present, magnificent 120 ft. tower.

The great-great-great grandparents of Anne BLAKE (b.a. 1549) were Robert BLAKE of Calne and Quenberford and his wife, Avice WALLOP (d. 1474) of Southampton, Hampshire.  Both are buried in the Calne church.  There used to be a stained glass window of the chancel, in which he appeared, with a surcoat charged with his Armorial bearings.  His wife appeared in a long robe with a scarf embroidered with arms of her family.  This window was destroyed when the steeple crashed to the ground in 1639.

In the British Museum (Harl. M.S. No. 1443, fol. 258) there is a drawing of two kneeling figures copied by John WITHIE, in the year 1616, from the chancel windows of Calne church.  The male is represented in a tabard, with arms of BLAKE, singly.  On the mantle worn by the female is Gules a bend argent with a cresent for difference.  A sketch of this window is included in this volume under the chapter titled, “BLAKE English Ancestry From Chart in Wiltshire.”

In the Civil War in the 1640′s the BLAKEs sided with the Parliamentary forces, against the Crown.  At the time, Henry BLAKE, and his wife, Abigail STRINGER, occupied the Pinhills manor house.  In 1643, he decided to fortify the house and he garrisoned it with musketeers.  He was aided by Colonel MASSEY, Governor of Gloucester, who surrounded it with a moat.  Then he constructed an additional outer ring of water, traces of which are still visible today.

[page 113]

[photo]

Present Pinhills Manor House, Built About 1650

When the Royalists in nearby Devizes learned of these fortifications under construction, they sent a raiding party that surrounded the house.  Believing their situation was futile, the defenders surrendered.  A few weeks later the Royalists demolished the house and drained the moat.

The present house which stands at Pinhills, just beyond the moat, was built from the ruins of the old manor house.  It was supposedly built by Ambrose BLAKE, son of Henry, and he was there the year after the Civil War.  The last BLAKE of Pinhills left the ancestral home and died, 10 July 1731, in Bristol.  His daughter, Frances, erected an impressive memorial to her father in the Gaunt or Mayor’s Chapel at Bristol.  He is called, “Henricus BLAAKE de Pinnells”, and his name appears with the arms of the family.

******

Further Observations on the Ancestry of Colonel Thomas Ligon of Henrico County

Source: Neil D. Thompson, “Further Observations on the Ancestry of Colonel Thomas Ligon of Henrico County,” Virginia Genealogist 38[1994].

[page 48]

Fifteen years ago there was published in this journal a useful correction to what had previously been published concerning the descent of the immigrant Thomas LIGON from the family of LYGON of Madresfield, co. Gloucester,¹ and thus from the Lords BERKELEY and other notable medieval English families.  The authors apparently did not notice that John SMYTH of Nibley had covered the ground before them² and omitted a number of important documents in their account.  Having been requested to review the proposed line by a descendant,³ and since the promised further account which had been planned never appeared, it seemed appropriate to review the line of descent from William LYGON of Madresfield to the immigrant with the additional information.

William LYGON of Madresfield, born in or about 1512,⁴ died at Madresfield 8 Sept. 1567 and was buried at Great Malvern “in the high chancel” 2 Oct. 1567.⁵ His will, dated 22 Aug. 1567 and proved 12 Aug. 1568,⁶ named his eldest son Richard as executor and entailed upon him the lion’s share of the family lands.  His second son Thomas was named in the remainder after Richard’s heirs male.  He did not mention his three younger sons, his three elder daughters (all married by then) or his wife, though she

──────────────────────────────

¹ Michael J. Wood and Gary Boyd Roberts, “Four Thomas LYGONs (LIGONs): An Abstract of New Findings,” The Virginia Genealogist, v. 22 (1978), pp. 353-55.  These notes do not concern themselves with the career and family of (Col.) Thomas LIGON in Virginia.

² John Smyth, of Nibley, The Lives of the BERKELEYs … (3 v.; Gloucester, 1883-85), v. 2, p. 178, 183-84.

³ Brice M. Clagett, Esq., of Washington, D.C., who has kindly granted permission to publish the findings separately in advance of the appearance of his book on the ancestry of his children, to be published next year.

⁴ Inquisition post mortem of (Sir) Richard LYGON, Public Record Office, Chancery Ser. 2, 109:74 (Gloucester), 110:172 (Worcester), which shows William LYGON age 44 in 1556.

⁵ Great Malvern, Worcestershire, Parish register, unpaged.

⁶ Prerogative Court of Canterbury, 15 Babington (1568).

[page 49]

did survive him.

As early as 1529 he contracted to marry Eleanor DENNIS,⁷ daughter of (Sir) William DENNIS of Dirham, co. Gloucester, by his wife Anne, daughter of Maurice, Lord BERKELEY.⁸ She was dead by 2 March 1585/6 when the administration of her intestate estate was granted to her three younger sons, Thomas, Hugh and Francis LYGON; the probate documents are lost but the act book preserves the date.⁹ She was probably residing on the LYGON dower lands in co. Gloucester.

As Richard LYGON, eldest son and heir, was age thirty years and more when his father’s inquisition post mortem was taken,¹⁰ thus born in or before 1537, and if three of Richard’s four sisters were married by 1567, so born by 1547, we pay [sic] place the birth of Thomas LYGON, second son, in about 1545.  He was buried at Elkstone, co. Gloucester, as “Thomas LIGON, Gent.,” on 14 Aug. 1603.¹¹ No probate record appears to exist for him but there seems to be no reason to doubt the list of his seven children given by Smyth, who would have known his eldest son Thomas, receiver for his cousin Henry, Lord BERKELEY, personally.¹²

Thomas LYGON married his cousin Frances DENNIS, daughter of Hugh and Katharine (TRYE) DENNIS of Puchlechurch, co. Gloucester.¹³ She survived her husband and died at Caludon, co. Warwick, and was buried 30 Jan. 1634/5 at Walsgrave-on-Sowe in the same county;¹⁴ her will, dated 17 Oct. 622 [sic] and proved 1 June 1625,¹⁵ mentions only two children, her sons Thomas, named executor, and Richard.

──────────────────────────────

⁷ William D. LIGON, The LIGON Family and Connections (2 v.; Hartford, Conn., 1947-57), v. 1, p. 45, dates the marriage contract to Autumn 1529, probably from the original in the Madresfield archives.

⁸ Smyth, op. cit., v. 2, p. 178.  For a family pedigree see also (Sir) John Maclean and W.C. Heane, ed., The Visitation of the County of Gloucester … (Harleian Society, Publications, Visitation ser., v. 21; London, 1885), pp. 50-51.

⁹ Consistory Court of Gloucester, Act Book, 1585.

¹⁰ Inquisition post mortem of William LYGON, Public Record Office, Chancery ser. 2, 148:1 (Worcester), 149:128 (Gloucester).

¹¹ Elkstone, Gloucestershire, Parish register.

¹² Smyth, op. cit., v. 2, p. 184.

¹³ Maclean and Heane, op. cit., p. 51.

¹⁴ Walsgrave-on-Sowe, Warwickshire, Parish register, unpaged.

¹⁵ Prerogative Court of Canterbury, 70 Clarke (1625), in which it is said that she is residing at Merson, co. Wilts.

[page 50]

The son Thomas LYGON, born in or about 1577 (aged 44 “or thereabouts” in 1621),¹⁶ was buried at Walsgrave-on-Sowe as “Mr. Thomas LIGON from Stoke” on 20 Dec. 1626.¹⁷ He married there 18 Aug. 1623¹⁸ Elizabeth PRATT (“Mr. Thomas LIGGINS and Elizabeth PRATT from Caludon”), baptized at Stoke-Biggin, co. Warwick, 10 Oct. 1602,¹⁹ buried at Walsgrave-on-Sowe as “Elizabeth LIGON” 19 Aug. 1631,²⁰ daughter of Dennis or Dionis PRATT and his wife.  The nuncupative will of Denis PRATT, undated but proved 21 July 1614,²¹ left everything to his wife Ann “to bring up the children”; the estate was a small one and it appears that Elizabeth PRATT was well below the social level of her husband, for she is not called “Mrs.” at marriage, at burial or in her estate proceedings.  John Smyth does not mention any prior wife for Thomas LYGON and, given the short period of time between marriage and the birth of the son Thomas (less than five months) it is likely that Elizabeth PRATT had been a housekeeper or maidservant for Thomas LYGON and was impregnated by him.

Administration of the estate of Thomas LYGON “of Stoke in the County [sic] of the City of Coventry” was granted to his widow Elizabeth 16 Feb. 1626/7.²² Stoke and Walsgrave-on-Sowe are suburban parishes to the City of Coventry while Caludon was part of the ancient parish of St. Michael’s, Coventry; since the early registers of St. Michael’s are destroyed, it is good that the LYGONs seem to have had their baptisms, marriages and burials at Walsgrave-on-Sowe (sometimes “Sowe,” a short form, is found).

Administration of the estate of Elizabeth PRATT alias LIGGON of Aldridge, co. Warwick [Aldridge is in fact in co. Stafford] was granted 30 Aug. 1631 to Richard LIGGON, paternal uncle of Thomas and Joan LIGGON, children of the said Elizabeth.²³ Thomas had been baptized 11 Jan. 1623/4 and Joan 3 April 1625 at Walsgrave-on-Sowe as “of Caludon.”²⁴ While John Smyth

──────────────────────────────

¹⁶ Chancery Depositions, Elizabeth I-Charles I, Group 3, Bundle E 20, Suit 23, one of several valuable discoveries made by Mr. Michael Wood for the previous summary.

¹⁷ Walsgrave-on-Sowe Parish register.

¹⁸ Ibid.

¹⁹ Stoke Parish register, unpaged.

²⁰ Walsgrave-on-Sowe Parish register, unpaged.

²¹ Consistory Court of Lichfield, Original wills, 1614.  The register entries for 1614 in the Stoke Parish register are virtually illegible.

²² Prerogative Court of Canterbury, Admon. Act. Book 1625-27, p. 133.

²³ Prerogative Court of Canterbury, Admon. Act Book 1631-33, p. 48.

²⁴ Walsgrave-on-Sowe Parish register, unpaged.

[page 51]

satisfies himself with saying that Thomas and Elizabeth “hath issue” and does not name or pursue the two orphans,²⁵ the fact that the young Thomas LIGON was a cousin both to the Lord BERKELEY and to Governor (Sir) William BERKELEY [Margery (LYGON) BERKELEY, the Governor's paternal grandmother, was the eldest daughter of William and Eleanor (DENNIS) LYGON]²⁶ would go far to explain the patronage which brought him to Virginia, and, given the lack of any other qualifying Thomas LIGON/LYGON of the proper age in England, and the names that the immigrant (Col.) Thomas LIGON gave to his children and the positions of responsibility and authority held by the latter at an early age in Virginia,²⁷ gives no reason to doubt the identification made by Messrs. Wood and Roberts as the correct parentage for the immigrant.

──────────────────────────────

²⁵ Smyth, op. cit., v. 2, p. 184.

²⁶ Ibid., v. 1, p. 261; v. 2, p. 184.

²⁷ The best summary of the life and career of (Col.) Thomas LIGON in Virginia is in John Frederick Dorman, ed., Adventurers of Purse and Person, Virginia, 1607-1624/5 (3rd ed.; Richmond, 1987), pp. 356-57.

Four Thomas Lygons (Ligons)

Source: Michael J. Wood and Gary Boyd Roberts, “Four Thomas Lygons (Ligons): An Abstract of New Findings,” Virginia Genealogist 22[1978].

[page 253]

The following abstract of new findings concerning the immigrant Col. Thomas LIGON of Henrico Co., Va., his father, grandfather and son, is a preliminary report on a major re-examination in both England and Virginia of the immigrant’s immediate family, of all traceable contemporary English LYGONs, and of the family’s numerous colonial connections and notable American progeny.  A much longer article is planned, but the following will add much to, and correct various mistakes in, the major treatments of this family in print — William Daniel LIGON, The LIGON Family and Connections (2 v.; Hartford, Conn., 1947-57), and articles by John Bennett Boddie in William and Mary College Quarterly Historical Magazine, 2nd series, v. 16 (1936), pp. 289-315, and Virginia Historical Genealogies (Redwood City, Calif., 1954), pp. 343-44.  Mr. LIGON confused his immigrant ancestor with the latter’s almost certain father, and both Mr. LIGON and Mr. Boddie confused Col. Thomas and his son.  Both authors too used the unusually rich muniments at Madresfield, the LYGON ancestral seat in Worcestershire, but apparently did not examine the various parish registers, chancery depositions, or even Prerogative Court of Canterbury administrations, covering the immigrant’s immediate family.  Thus the death in England of the Calouden farmer, his approximate age (badly guessed by Mr. LIGON), the given names of his wife and children, and the very existence, then, of a younger Thomas LYGON, hypothesized by Boddie, who is almost certainly the immigrant — all these facts are now being reported for the first time.  Recently published Virginia materials, the originals of which Mr. LIGON and Mr. Boddie variously misinterpreted, allow us rather easily to unravel the confusion between the immigrant and his son.  Col. Thomas LIGON of Henrico Co., Va., his almost certain father and grandfather, and his son, are thus as follows:

1. Thomas LYGON, second son of William LYGON and Eleanor DENNIS of Madresfield, Worcestershire, lived in Elkstone, Gloucestershire (not Elston, Wiltshire), married Frances DENNIS, a cousin, daughter of Hugh DENNIS and Katherine TRYE of Pucklechurch, Gloucestershire.  As “Francisca LIGON ux’ Thomas LIGON nuper de Elkeston,

[page 254]

gen.” she was fined 20 shillings for recusancy in 1592.¹ Frances, then a widow, was of Merson, Wiltshire, when she made her will on 17 Oct. 1622, but later lived with her son Thomas at Calouden and was buried in the adjacent parish of Sowe 30 Jan. 1624/5.  Her will was proved by him 1 June 1625.² Through a line that Mr. Roberts cannot confirm, and of one link of which he is dubious, John TRYE (1513-1579) of Hardwick, Gloucestershire, an uncle of Frances DENNIS, is charted by Gerald PAGET as an ancestor of H.M. Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother.³

2. Thomas LYGON, farmer, of Stoke-by-Coventry and Calouden, Warwickshire, born ca.1577,⁴ married (perhaps a second wife) 18 Aug. 1623 Elizabeth PRATT at Sowe.  She was baptized at nearby Stoke-Biggin 10  Oct. 1602, daughter of Dennis PRATT.  Thomas LYGON was buried at Sowe 20 Dec. 1626.  Administration on his estate was granted his relict Elizabeth 16 Feb. 1626/7.⁵ Elizabeth was buried at Sowe 19 Aug. 1631.

3. Thomas LYGON, baptized at Sowe, Warwickshire, 11 Jan. 1623/4, is almost certainly the immigrant Col. Thomas LIGON of Virginia, surveyor and burgess of Henrico County.⁶ He made his will 10 Jan. 1675 and administration was granted his widow and executrix, Mary, 16 March 1675/6.⁷ He married ca.1650 Mary HARRIS, born ca.1625,⁸ daughter of Thomas HARRIS (born 1587) and Adria, perhaps

──────────────────────────────

1  Catholic Record Society, Publications, v. 18 (n.p., 1916), p. 125.

2  William Daniel LIGON, The LIGON Family and Connections, v. 1 (Hartford, Conn., 1947), pp. 103-04.

3  Gerald Paget, The Lineage and Ancestry of H.R.H. Prince Charles, Prince of Wales (Baltimore Edinburgh & London, 1977), v. 2, pp. 274 et seq.

4  Chancery Depositions, Elizabeth I-Charles I, Group 3, Bundle E 20, Suit 23, which shows him as “aged 44 or thereabouts” in 1621.

5  J.H. Morrison, ed., Prerogative Court of Canterbury Letters of Administration, 1620-1630 … (London, 1935), p. 70.

6  For his career as burgess see H.R. McIlwaine, ed., Journals of the House of Burgesses of Virginia, 1619-1658/59 (Richmond, 1915), pp. xxii, 95, and for his various land patents see Nell M. Nugent, Cavaliers and Pioneers, v. 1 (Richmond, 1934), pp. 440, 516; v. 2 (Richmond, 1977), pp. 49, 51-52, 92, 116, 124 (he is referred to progressively in these grants as major, lieutenant colonel, colonel, and “Mr., Sr.”).

7  Henrico Co., Va., Deeds & Wills 1677-92, p. 35; Order Book 1678-93, p. 167.

8  Ibid., Deeds & Wills 1688-97, p. 107.

[page 255]

GURGANEY.⁹ Col. LIGON surveyed an area called “Mawburne” or Malvern Hills in Henrico County (in England Malvern Hills are very near Madresfield) and at least once acted as an agent for Sir William BERKELEY, governor of Virginia, his almost certain second cousin.¹⁰ His children were Thomas Jr., William, Joan, Richard, Mathew, Hugh and Mary, named undoubtedly after himself (Thomas Jr.), his wife (Mary), his sister (Joan), two of his father’s brothers (William and Richard¹¹), and his father’s maternal grandfather, Hugh DENNIS of Pucklechurch.  Nothing can be found to document a later English career for Thomas LYGON, born 1623/4, and no other Thomas is unaccounted for and of the right age to be the immigrant.

4. Thomas LIGON, Jr., born ca.1651,¹² who was dead by 20 Aug. 1678.¹³ The immigrant’s eldest son, he left no issue and probably died unmarried.¹⁴ A fifth Thomas LIGON (died 1705) was the eldest son of Thomas, Jr.’s, next brother, William LIGON and the heir-at-law of his immigrant grandfather.¹⁵

──────────────────────────────

9  Martha Woodroof Hiden and Annie Lash Jester, Adventurers of Purse and Person, Virginia, 1607-1625 (2nd ed.; n.p., 1964), pp. 202-05; Boddie, Virginia Historical Genealogies, pp. 198-200; Boddie, Southside Virginia Families, v. 2 (Redwood City, Calif., 1956), pp. 128-32; Boddie, Historical Southern Families, v. 4 (Redwood City, Calif., 1960), pp. 190-92, v. 8 (Kailua, Hawaii, 1964), pp. 10-11.

10  LIGON, op. cit., v. 1, pp. 307-08, 100.

11  William LYGON of Calouden, gent., buried at Sowe 16 Aug. 1616 (although possibly the immigrant named his second son after Sir William BERKELEY, a likely sponsor or protector, as well) and Richard LYGON, also called “LIGON” in various English depositions, almost certainly the historian of Barbadoes.

12  Nugent, op. cit., v. 2, pp. 116, 124.  His father is called “Sr.” 18 March 1672/3, but “Col.” 28 Sept. 1672.

13  Pauline P. Warner, ed., Orphans Court Book, 1677-1739, of Henrico County, Virginia (Tappahannock, Va., 1963), pp. 11-12, a transliteration of p. 3 of the original.

14  Waverly K. Winfree, comp., The Laws of Virginia, Being a Supplement to Hening’s The Statutes at Large, 1700-1750 (Richmond, 1971), pp. 344-47.

15  LIGON, op. cit., v. 1, pp. 360-63.

The Great Migration Begins: Edward Rossiter

Source: Robert Charles Anderson, The Great Migration Begins: Immigrants to New England 1620-1633, Volume 3, P-W (Boston: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1995).

[page 1600]

EDWARD ROSSITER

ORIGIN:  Combe St. Nicholas, Somersetshire

MIGRATION: 1630

FIRST RESIDENCE: Dorchester

CHURCH MEMBERSHIP: As one of the leaders of the migration to Dorchester in New England, ROSSITER was presumably a member of Dorchester church, but there is no record to confirm this.

OFFICES: Assistant, 20 October 1629, 7 September 1630 (fined for absence from court)[MBCR 1:60, 75].

ESTATE: Sometime in 1631 Reverend John WHITE of Dorchester, Dorsetshire, prepared an account of monies owed to him by various persons in New England, among which was “The account of Mr. Edward ROSSETER’s Executor’s,” which showed that ROSSITER owed WHITE £106 9s. 9d., of which he or his son Nicholas had paid £91 7s. 9d. by 1 April 1631; most of the debt was for “the passage of 13 persons at £3 13s. 4d. each person,” along with their baggage and other goods [John White 463-64, citing MHSP 47:346-47].

BIRTH: Combe St. Nicholas, Somersetshire, say 1575, son of Nicholas and Elizabeth (_____) ROSSITER [NEHGR 138:10-11].

DEATH: 23 October 1630 (“Mr. ROSSITER one of the Assistants died” [WP 2:268]).  “The Lord hath stripped us of some principal persons: Mr. JOHNSON and his Lady, Mr. ROSSITER, Mrs. PHILIPS and other unknown to thee, we conceive that this disease grew from ill diet at sea and proved infectious” [WP 2:320].

MARRIAGE: By about 1599 _____ COMBE (perhaps), daughter of John COMBE of Combe St. Nicholas.  Edward is referred to as “my brother” by Joseph COMBE [TAG 13:146].

CHILDREN:

[page 1601]

i     NICHOLAS, b. say 1599; m. Anne _____ [NEHGR 138:14, citing PCC 98 Pembroke].

ii    DOROTHY, b. say 1608; m. Combe St. Nicholas 12 February 1629/30 Martin GROUT [NEHGR 138:12].

iii   BRYAN, b. say 1610; m. Elizabeth ALSOP [Waters 426-27, citing PCC 139 Mico].

iv    JANE, b. say 1614; m. Taunton 23 March 1639/40 Thomas GILBERT [NEHGR 138:13].

v     HUGH, b. say 1615; m. by 1641 Dorothy (COMBE) NORRIS [NEHGR 138:13].

vi    JOANE, b. about 1616 (d. Plymouth 9 June 1691 “being 75 years of age” [PChR 1:271]); m. Nicholas HART.

COMMENTS: WINTHROP records that on Thursday, 17 June 1630, “We lay at Mr. MAVEROCKE’s, and returned home on Saturday, as we came home we came by Nataskett, and sent for Capt. SQUIB ashore (he had brought the west country people, viz. Mr. LUDLOWE, Mr. ROSSITER, Mr. MAVEROCK, etc. to the Bay who were sent down at Mattapan)” [WP 2:264].

Despite the prominence and wealth of Edward ROSSITER, the identities of his chilren and their spouses remain remarkably uncertain.  In 1937 Meredith B. Colket discussed in great detail several of these problems [TAG 13:146-48].  Geoffrey Gilbert has also carefully examined some of these problems [Gilberts of New England 32-49].

BIBLIOGRAPHIC NOTE: Both at the beginning and end of his career Meredith B. Colket, Jr., wrote definitive treatments of the ROSSITER family, first in 1937 and then in 1984 [TAG 13:145-151; NEHGR 138:4-16].

The Great Migration Begins: James Chilton

Source: Robert Charles Anderson, The Great Migration Begins: Immigrants to New England 1620-1633, Volume 1, A-F (Boston: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1995).

[page 353]

JAMES CHILTON

ORIGIN:  Leiden, Holland

MIGRATION: 1620 on Mayflower

FIRST RESIDENCE: Died before Mayflower reached Plymouth

OCCUPATION: Tailor.

ESTATE: In the 1623 Plymouth land division “Marie CHILTON” received an unknown number of acres as a passenger on the Mayflower [PCR 12:4].  In the 1627 Plymouth cattle division Mary, now the wife of John WINSLOW, is listed as the sixth person in the sixth company [PCR 12:11].

BIRTH: About 1556 (aged 63 in 1619 [Bangs 34]), probably at Canterbury, Kent, son of Lionel CHILTON by an unknown first wife [TAG 38:244].

DEATH: 8 December 1620 off Cape Cod [Prince 165].

MARRIAGE: By 1586 _____ _____; she d. Plymouth early in 1621 [Bradford 446].  (John G. Hunt has suggested, reasonably, but on limited evidence, that she was Susanne FURNER, James CHILTON’s stepsister [TAG 38:244-45].)

CHILDREN:

i     ISABELLA, bp St. Paul’s, Canterbury, Kent, 15 January 1586/7 [MF 2:5]; m. Leiden 21 July 1615 [NS] ROGER CHANDLER [M 11:129].

ii    JANE, bp. St. Paul’s, Canterbury, 8 June 1589 [MF 2:5]; no further record.

iii   JOEL, bur. St. Martin’s, Canterbury, 2 November 1593 [MF 2:5].

iv    MARY, bur. St. Martin’s, Canterbury, 23 November 1593 [MF 2:5].

v     ELIZABETH, bp. St. Martin’s, Canterbury, 14 July 1594 [MF 2:5]; no further record.

vi    JAMES, bp. St. Martin’s, Canterbury, 22 August 1596 [MF 2:5]; d. by 11 September 1603.

vii   INGLE, bp. St. Paul’s, Canterbury, 29 April 1599 [MF 2:5]; thought to be the “Engeltgen GILTEN” who m. Leiden 27 August 1622 [NS] Robert NELSON [Dexter 627]; no further record.

viii  CHRISTIAN (dau.), bp. St. Peter’s, Sandwich, Kent, 26 July 1601 [MF 2:5]; no further record.

ix    JAMES, bp. St. Peter’s, Sandwich, 11 September 1603 [MF 2:5]; no further record.

x     MARY, bp. St. Peter’s, Sandwich, 30 May 1607 [MF 2:5]; m. Plymouth by 22 May 1627 JOHN WINSLOW.

COMMENTS: Until recently there was no direct evidence that James CHILTON resided in Leiden, despite the marriage of one and perhaps two daughters there.  Recent research in Leiden has revealed a notarial record detailing an assault on James CHILTON, aged 63, and his daughter on 28 April 1619 [NS]; this assault has been interpreted as one of the reasons leading the Pilgrims to believe that they were becoming less welcome in Leiden, and therefore as a factor in the decision to leave for New England [Bangs 34; see also Stratton 262].

In his list of those on the Mayflower BRADFORD included “James CHILTON and his wife, and Mary their daughter, they had another daughter that was married, came afterward” [Bradford 442].  In his accounting of the family in 1651 BRADFORD reported that “James CHILTON and his wife also died in the first infection, but their daughter Mary is still living and hath nine children; and one daughter is married and hath a child.  So their increase is ten” [Bradford 446].

The Great Migration Begins: Roger Chandler

Source: Robert Charles Anderson, The Great Migration Begins: Immigrants to New England 1620-1633, Volume 1, A-F (Boston: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1995).

[page 330]

ROGER CHANDLER

ORIGIN: Leiden, Holland

MIGRATION: 1632

FIRST RESIDENCE: Plymouth

REMOVES: Duxbury

OCCUPATION: Sayworker (in Leiden).

FREEMAN: In “1633″ Plymouth list of freemen, in a section which includes men admitted on 1 January 1632/3 [PCR 1:4].  Also in list of [perhaps 7, photocopy illegible] March 1636/7, in Duxbury section of 1639 list, and possibly the man of this name in Duxbury section of list compiled about 1658 [PCR 1:55, 8:174, 198].

ESTATE: Assessed 9s. in the Plymouth tax lists of 25 March 1633 and [perhaps 27, photocopy illegible] March 1634 [PCR 1:10, 27].

[page 331]

On 2 November 1640 granted twenty-five acres “northwards from Duxburrow Mill, towards Greens Harbour” [PCR 1:165].  On “the last of February 1644 Roger CHAUNDLER of Duxborrow” sold to Francis GODFREY of Duxbury twenty-five acres “on the northern side of the freshet that runneth into Greene’s Harbour where the way to Sittuate crosseth the same being on the upper side the said path” [PCR 12:109].

On 3 October 1665 “one hundred and fifty acres are granted by the Court unto the three sisters, the daughters of Roger CHANDLER, deceased, viz, to each of them fifty acres, lying between the Bay line and the bounds of Taunton, according to the desire of John BUNDY” [PCR 4:110].

BIRTH: By about 1590 based on date of marriage, perhaps at Colchester, Essex.

DEATH: Between 5 May 1646 (dispute with Kenelm WINSLOW) and 3 October 1665 (grant of land to his daughters in his right), and probably closer to the earlier date.

MARRIAGE: Leiden, Holland, 21 July 1615 [NS] Isabel CHILTON [MD 11:129], daughter of JAMES CHILTON.

CHILDREN:

i     SAMUEL, b. before 15 October 1622; not seen after Leiden census of 1622.  (See discussion of Samuel CHANDLER, son of EDMUND CHANDLER.)

ii    SARAH, b. before 15 October 1622; m. about 1640 Solomon LEONARD(SON).

iii   MARTHA, b. probably late 1620s; m. by 1649 John BUNDY.

iv    MARY, b. probably late 1620s; m. by 1653 Edmund BRUFF.

ASSOCIATIONS: Probably related to EDMUND CHANDLER, as both were sayworkers in Leiden, both came to Plymouth about the same time, and both removed to Duxbury.  There may also have been some connection with the Nathaniel CHANDLER who appears in the Duxbury portion of the 1643 Plymouth list of men able to bear arms, and as a soldier from Duxbury in 1645 for an expedition against the Naragansetts [PCR 2:90, 8:190].

COMMENTS: The marital history of the three daughters has been set forth in two splendid articles, one by Frederick Warner and one by Florence Barclay [TAG 27:1-6, 37:212-17].  These articles provide lengthy abstracts of deeds and other documents proving these marriages; the most important evidence derives from the sale and transfer of the one-hundred-fifty acre parcel granted to the three [unnamed] daughters of Roger CHANDLER in 1665.  Further treatment of these three daughters and their descendants may be found in the Mayflower Society’s Five Generations Project volume which includes JAMES CHILTON [MF 2:10-12 et seq.].

[page 332]

On 5 May 1646 “Upon hearing of the cause betwixt Roger CHAUNDLER and Kenelme WINSLOW, for his daughter’s clothes, which the said Kenelme detaineth, upon pretense of some further service which he required of her, whereunto the said Roger utterly refused to consent, it is ordered by the Court, that the said Kenelme WINSLOW shal deliver the maid her clothes without any further delay” [PCR 2:90].  Given the date of this dispute, the daughter in question must have been one of the two younger daughters, Mary or Martha.

The record immediately above is the last that can with certainty be assigned to the immigrant Roger CHANDLER.  The Roger CHANDLER who appears in the Duxbury section of the 1658 list of freemen could be the Roger CHANDLER who later resided in Concord, consistent with the information given in the next paragraph.

Claims have been made that Roger CHANDLER of Concord was a son of this ROGER CHANDLER, mainly on the basis of the identity of names and on the statement by SHATTUCK that “Roger CHANDLER, and twenty others of Plymouth Colony, had a grant of four hundred acres of land in Concord in 1658″ [Shattuck 367].  The specificity of the grant of land to “the three sisters, the daughters of Roger CHANDLER, deceased,” in 1665 would seem to rule out the possibility that the immigrant was survived by any sons, but the Concord connection remains a tantalizing clue, as a number of other Plymouth residents removed to Concord about this time as well.  (See Charles H. Chandler, The Descendants of Roger CHANDLER of Concord, Mass., 1658 [Provo UT 1949].)

Ancestry of Edward Wales Blake and Clarissa Matilda Glidden

Source:  Edith Bartlett Sumner, Ancestry of Edward Wales Blake and Clarissa Matilda Glidden with Ninety Allied Families (Los Angeles: published by the author, 1948).  [WorldCat]

[page 1]

ARMS of the Wiltshire BLAKEs:

Argent, a chevron between three garbs sable.

CREST: On a chapeau gules, turned up ermine, a martlett, argent.

This coat of arms was borne by Admiral Robert BLAKE on his ships, as his personal arms.

The BLAKE family of Wiltshire, England, took its name from Blakeland, a parish in that county. Francis E. BLAKE in “Increase BLAKE and his Descendants” says: “For several year the writer has had a very pleasant correspondence with Edward J. BLAKE, Esq, of Crewkerne, Somerset, [a descendant of John BLAKE, a brother of our William BLAKE of Pitminster] who in his endeavors to trace his own ancestry has made extensive and apparently exhaustive research…. He believes with many others that there is sufficient substantial evidence to indicate that they were from Over-Stowey, not many miles distant from Pitminster.”

The first recorded mention of the family is in 1286:

ROBERT^I DE BLAKELAND was assessed on the Wiltshire Roll of Subsidies granted in 1286 to King EDWARD I. His son or grandson:

ROBERT^II DE BLAKELAND had a residence in Calne, Wiltshire. He was assessed on the Wiltshire Subsidy Rolls in

[page 2]

1347 for a large amount to meet the requirements of EDWARD III. By his wife Anne, daughter of William COLE, he had:

HENRY^III BLAKE, who dropped the “de” from his name, and the termination “land.” He married a daughter of Mr. Edward DURANT. They had a son:

WILLIAM^IV BLAKE, who married Elizabeth, the daughter and heiress of Mr. Thomas POWER.  Their son:

HENRY^V BLAKE, of Calne, married Margaret, daughter of “Mr” BILETT. (The title Mr. denoted gentry.) Son:

ROBERT^VI BLAKE, of Calne and Quemberford, married Avice, daughter and heiress of John WALLOP, Esq. of Southampton, Hampshire, and acquired by her large estates in that county. (“Esquire” indicated the next higher rank to “Mr.”) Avice died on 10-29-1474, and she and Robert are buried inside the church at Calne, where in stained glass windows he is represented as habited in armor, with a surcoat charged with his armorial bearings.  Avice appears in a long robe with a scarf embroidered with the arms of her family: Gules, on a chevron argent, two crescents. Chil.:

• 1 Gilbert^vii. D. unm.
• 2 Alexander, D. unm.
• 3 John, 1434-1504. Inherited the est. Bur. in church at Nether Wallop. Will of 2-24-1504 proved 4-24-1504.
• 4 Robert. Succeeded John to Wiltshire estates. D.1515. M. Margaret, dau. of Sir Thomas ENGLEFIELD.
• 5 William. See below.
• 6 Alice.
• 7 Joan.

WILLIAM^VII BLAKE lived in White Parish, Wiltshire, and died in 1471. After his death the widow and two sons removed to Hampshire and settled in Andover on the estate called Eastontown, formerly part of the estate of her husband’s mother Avice WALLOP.

• 1 William^viii, eldest son and heir. See below.
• 2 Robert, of West Enham in Andover. M. _______ SNELL.

WILLIAM^VIII BLAKE lived in Andover, White Parish, in Old Hall in Eastontown. He also had lands and tenements in Knights Enham (occupied by his brother Robert in 1504). He married Mary, a daughter of Humphrey COLES of Somerset. His will was probated on 6-20-1547. Children:

• 1 Nicholas^ix, of Old Hall. Will, 1547, names wife Margaret; sons William, Edmund; daus. Alice, Elizabeth.
• 2 Humphrey. See below.
• 3 Alice. M. _______ CABULL.

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HUMPHREY^ix BLAKE lived in Somersetshire in the early part of the sixteenth century. He purchased large estates in Over-Stowey, Somerset, where he became Lord of the Manor of Plainfield, and patron of the churches at Over-Stowey and Aisholt. Plainfield Manor was owned in a large part by the BLAKE family for over two hundred years. “Pleasantly situated on the east side of Quantock Hills, it consists of four hamlets in Marsh Hills: Adiscombe, Ely Green, and Plainfield. The manor house at Plainfield, a mile from the church, has the BLAKE arms over the fireplace in the great hall.” In 1910 it was occupied by a farmer tenant of the Earl of Egmont. In 1555 Humphrey BLAKE added the adjoining manor of Tuxwell, which he bought of George SYDENHAM. He was buried in Over-Stowey on 12-28-1558. His will, made on 11-19-1558, was probated on 5-11-1559. Among the bequests were twelve pence for each priest attending his funeral, and a sum for repairs to the church. Agnes BLAKE, his widow, was buried on 6-24-1585.

From the fact that there were two sons named John, it is thought that Humphrey may have had two wives.

Children of Humphrey [and Agnes?], order not known:

• 1 John^x, “the elder,” 1521. See below.
• 2 Robert. Of the Manor of Tuxwell. D.1592. M. Margaret SYMONDS (Her will proved 1600.)  Children:
  • 1 William^xi, of Tuxwell in 1600.
  • 2 Anstice. M. Robert BOCKINGE.
  • 3 Humphrey. Twice mayor of Bridgewater, Eng. D.1625. M. Sarah² (Humphrey¹) WILLIAMS.  Had 10 or 12 chil., among whom were: (S.C.Hist.& Gen.Mag.,39:103; 40:42)
    • 1 Robert^xii, 1599. D.1657, unmar. M.P. for Bridgewater, 1640-5. Famous admiral.  Bore coat of arms of Wiltshire BLAKEs on his ships as personal arms.
    • 2 Benjamin, 1614. D.c1689. Went to W.I. with Adm. Sir William PENN.  Commanded ship at Santa Cruz in 1657. Received large grants of land in South Carolina. Clerk of the Crown and Peace for South Carolina in 1687, etc.  Probably the only son:
      • 1 Joseph^xiii, b. Eng. D., S.C., 1700. Deputy Landgrave and twice Gov. of S.C.  “A man of property; devoted much of his fortune to the cause of immigration, and brought over to Charlestown, S.C., 1660, a company of men who ranked with the best in the land.” (Burke: Prominent Fams.of U.S.A., pp. 79-81.) M.1698, Elizabeth² (Daniel¹) AXTELL.
        • 1 Rebecca^xiv, 1699. D.,1719. M., 1717, George² (Gov. Thomas¹) SMITH.
        • 2 Joseph, 1700. D.,1751. M.,1720, Sarah² (Daniel¹) LINDREY; 5 chil.
• 3 Thomas. Inher. Tuxwell Manor. M.1569, Agnes CASTLEMAN.
• 4 John, “the younger.” M.1558, Christian JUGG.
• 5 Agnes. M. _______ MANNING.
• 6 Eleanor. M. _______ LANGHAM.
• 7 Alice. M. George SLOCOMBE. Had dau. Joane.

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JOHN^X BLAKE “the elder” was born in 1521 and died in 1576. The name of his wife was Jane, who died in 1595.

He succeeded to the manor of Plainfield and to other estates. He received by will the patronage of the church at Aisholt, County Somerset. In his will of 11-26-1576 he bequeathed to his son Richard the advowson of the Over-Stowey church. John was buried on 12-10-1576, and Jane, his widow, was buried on 6-17-1595, both in the chancel of the church at Over-Stowey.

Children of John and (presumably) Jane:

• 1 Humphrey^xi. M.1578, Agnes JAMES.
• 2 William. See below.
• 3 Alice. M.1569, James RICHARDS.
• 4 Anne. M.1573, Thomas SAUNDERS.
• 5 Elizabeth. M. 1571, Robert SELLICK, son of Vicar SELLICK of Over-Stowey.
• 6 Richard, bap. 1-1-1563. (M.1589, Grace NAPCOTT?) Son was Vicar of Over-Stowey in 1611. Bur. in chancel.
• 7 Robert, bap. 5-12-1566. No further record found.

WILLIAM^XI BLAKE received by his father’s will, Plainfield in Over-Stowey, Bishops Lydiard, and Padnoller in Spaxton Parish. No subsequent trace of him is found on the Over-Stowey parish registers. The Taunton, Somersetshire, manor rolls show that a William BLAKE bought lands in Pitminster, Somerset, in 1586, which would correspond, perhaps, with his marriage. The Pitminster parish registers begin in 1544 and are very well preserved, yet there is not a single BLAKE entry until 1588, when Grace BLAKE was baptized. The logical inference is that there were no BLAKEs in Pitminster before 1588, and that this William BLAKE who appears in Pitminster for the first time in that year is the same man whose name disappeared from the Overton-Stowey registers.

A William BLAKE was buried in Pitminster, 6-13-1642. A widow Anne BLAKE was buried there on 8-14-1644.

Children, as written in Pitminster parish registers:

• 1 Robert^xii BLAKE (perhaps a son). M., Pitminster, 1617, Sara WICHAM.
• 2 Grace, d. of Will^m BLAKE, bapt. 9 day of February 1588.
• 3 Eme, d. of William BLAKE, bapt. 3rd of December 1592.
• 4 William BLACK, son of William BLAKE, Bap. Xth Day of July, 1594. This is the immigrant WILLIAM¹ BLAKE.
• 5 John BLACK, son of William BLACKE, was Bap. the XIXth day of June, 1597. (D.1645. Grandfather of famous Rev. Malachi BLAKE who was in Monmouth’s Rebellion.)
• 6 Añe BLAAK, daughter of William BLAAK was baptized the sixteenth day of October 1600. (She m.1628, Thomas BIDGOOD.)
• 7 Richard BLAAK, son of William BLAAK, was baptized seventeenth day of Aprill, 1603.

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The account in the New England Historical and Genealogical Register, 1857, Vol.11:181, giving the parents of Mr. William BLAKE of Dorchester, Mass., as Giles and Dorothy [TWEEDY] BLAKE, of Little Baddow, Essex, England, was corrected in Vol. 45:35, but has unfortunately been accepted by many compilers of this line of BLAKEs.

WILLIAM¹ BLAKE, the immigrant to America, was the son of William and Anne BLAKE of Pitminster, County Somerset, England, born according to one writer on 6-5-1594. He was baptized in Pitminster, 7-10-1594.  The Pitminster register states: “William BLAKE was married to Agnis BAND, widow, the XXIJth day of September, 1617.”  She may have been a daughter of Hugh THORNE, and the widow of Richard BAND of Batherford. William BLAKE died 10-25-1663, and his widow, Agnes, died 7-22-1678, both in Dorchester, Massachusetts.

The years between 1624 and 1636 are unaccounted for. During that time his son Edward was born, but where is not at present known. Search of the records of the church at Aisholt, in which his grandfather John BLAKE had an interest, might reveal much. It might also be pointed out that his second cousin, the famous Admiral Robert BLAKE, was a contemporary of his – perhaps William sailed with him before deciding on New England as his future home.

It has been asserted that the BLAKE family came with the Winthrop Fleet, in the Mary and John, but they are not on the passenger list. The Cleveland Genealogy, without giving the authority, says William sold a house at Aisholt in January 1630, and then sailed for New England. At any rate, William BLAKE had the first allotment of land granted in Dorchester, Mass., on 5-14-1636. He joined Dorchester First Church before 3-14-1639, the date on which he was accepted a Freeman of Massachusetts Bay Colony. Only proprietors and church members could become Freemen, with the privilege of the franchise, and eligible to hold office.

Specimens of his writing and fac simile of his will may be found in “Increase BLAKE, His Ancestors and Descendants,” which says this about him: “There is no record in Pitminster, or evidence of his residence between the year 1624, when his son James was baptized, and 1636, when he was found in America. There is no foundation whatever for the assertion that he came in 1630 in the Mary and John… Considering the prominent position which he subsequently occupied in Dorchester, it does not seem plausible that he could have joined any settlement in this country without so making his worth known to his associates that his name would appear upon its records. In the absence of the positive evidence it is reasonable to suppose that he came to New England in the fall of 1635 or the early months of 1636, and remained at Dorchester or Roxbury, making the acquaintance of Mr. PYNCHON in May 1636, when they … drew up and

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signed the articles of association at Agawam, now Springfield, Mass., which agreement is still preserved…. There can be no doubt that he was a man of integrity, and above the average intelligence of his neighbors. He served the town in various capacities: Constable, 1641; on the committee to build the new meeting house, 1645; Selectman 1645 to 1647, also 1651; and he was one of five men who were given authority to make assignments of lots and manage affairs of the settlement in general.”

The Springfield agreement stipulated: “William BLAKE shall have sixteen polls in bredth for his home lott, and all the marsh in breadth abuttinge at the end of it to the next high land, and three acrs more in some other place.”

In Dorchester he served as Clerk of the Militia, and in 1646 was a member of the Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company of Massachusetts — unless this was his son William, of Milton, Mass., who was then twenty-six.  In 1656 he was chosen Dorchester’s first Recorder, for which he received twenty shillings per year, and was rate free.

His will was dated 9-3-1661, one of the bequests being: “Unto the Towne of Dorchester twenty shillings to be bestowed for repairing of the buring place, soe swine and other vermine may not añoy the graues of the saints, provided it be repaired within one yeare after my decease.” (In 1664 a committee of Selectmen was appointed “to gett the burying place well and sufficiently to be fenced in, and to demand of John BLAKE twenty shillings given by his father in his last will … to that end and vse.”) Half his estate was to go to his beloved wife; the other half to be divided equally among his five children — “not that I disrespect my eldest sonne, as he hath ben and is soe dutiful a child vnto me as any of my children, but because he hath least need of it, and he hath no charge.”  (See John-2.)

His great-grandson James-4 BLAKE wrote in his Annals of Dorchester: “This year died Mr. William BLAKE who had been clerk of the Writs for the County of Suffolk and Recorder for the Town in 1656, and continued in office about eight years. He was also Clerk of the Training Band. He died the 25th of the 8th mo.:
1663, in his 69th year…”

Soon after his death his widow, Agnes BLAKE, removed to Boston, probably to live with her son John, or perhaps with her only daughter Anne, already the widow of Jacob LEAGER. The Dorchester church record of 2-6-1670 states: “Sister Agnes BLAKE (the wife of William BLAKE, deceased), she having removed her dwelling to Boston, was dismissed to Joyne to the theird Church in Boston.”

Quotation from Symonds’ “History of South Boston” : “This family of BLAKEs in all their generations have been distinguished for their piety, for their great accuracy in matters of fact. Many of them have held important offices of honor and trust in the community, and no records of past events are more reliable than those kept by them. The Annals of Dorchester, written by James BLAKE, are historical documents of the first importance, and no surveys and plans are more complete and accurate than his.”

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Children of William and Agnes, as given in the Pitminster parish registers:

• 1 John². “1618: John BLAKE, sonne of William BLAKE, and Ane BLAKE daughter of William BLAKE was baptised xxxth of August.” D.,Boston, 1-25-1689. He left his houses and lands in Boston to John³ (James²) BLAKE. Joined Anc. & Hon. Artillery Co., Boston, 1642. Exec. of Gov. John WINTHROP’s will, 1676. M., Boston, 1654, “age 36,” Mary² (Nathaniel¹) SOUTHER, widow of Jospeh² (Abraham¹) SHAW; 1 dau., Hannah, 1757-1759. TORREY-BLAKE Gen. says: “Probably m. dau. of Edward BRECK of Dorchester, c1640; she d.1645, leaving chil.”
• 2 Anne. Bap., 1618, w. John, above. D.1681, “ae 63.” Her tombstone now in possession of the Bostonian Society, having been taken from the Granary Burying Ground. M. 1st, bef.1651 (as 3d wife), Jacob LEAGER of Boston (1603-1663). M.2nd, [William?] HALLOWELL.
  • 1 Bethiah LEAGER, 1651. B. in William BLAKE Sr.’s house in Dorchester. M. Fearnot SHAW; 3 chil.
  • 2 Hannah LEAGER, 1655. M.1st, John WALKER. M.2nd, Thomas PHILLIPS; 1 dau.
• 3 William, “sonne of William BLAKE was baptised 6th of September 1620.” D., Milton, Mass., 1703.  Kept an inn in Milton, Mass. (Joined Anc. & Hon. Artillery Co., 1646?) M.c1649, Anne —— (alive 1680); 11 chil. See Americana, Vol. 31, for descendants. M.2nd,1693, Hannah² (Thomas¹) TOLMAN (1640-1729), (the widow of George LYON); no chil. Overseer, James’ will, 1700.
• 4 James, “sonne of William BLAKE was baptised 27th April 1624.”
• 5 Edward, c1625. Prob. youngest, but baptism not found. John² BLAKE called him brother in will, 1689.  D.Milton, Mass., 1692. M.,c1653, Patience² (John¹) POPE, (d.1690); 6 chil. See Bangor, Me., Hist. Magazine, Vol. 2:1-18, and N.E. Register, Vol. 89:284, for descendants.

JAMES² BLAKE was baptized in Pitminster, County Somerset, England, 4-27-1624. He married in Dorchester, Mass., “about the first of January, 1652,” Elizabeth, daughter of Edward CLAPP of Dorchester. She was born in Dorchester, in 1634, and died there on 1-16-1695, “in her 61st year.” (See CLAPP.) James married again, on 9-17-1695, Mrs Elizabeth HUNT of Rehoboth, Mass. Mrs. HUNT was the daughter of Henry SMITH from Norfolk County, England, and had married Peter HUNT in 1646. James died on 6-28-1700 in Dorchester.  James came to America with his parents about 1636, but the first record found is his marriage in 1652.  The next year he was made Freeman. He is said to have built the first house in Dorchester Neck, in 1650, which was of such a substantial character that in 1669 the town voted to build for its minister “such a house as James BLAKE’s house, namely 38 foote in length and 20 foote wide and 16 foote between its joists….”

The Burlingame Family in the Pacific Northwest

Source: Gary L. Burlingame, The Burlingame Family in the Pacific Northwest (published by the author, 1986).

[page a]

Dear Readers:

This is primarily a history of the BURLINGAME family of Oregon and Washington. It lists most of the descendants of Henry S. BURLINGAME (1820-1890), who crossed the plains on the Oregon Trail in 1852 from Illinois. Henry settled in Clark County, Washington. Henry was married twice and had five children who lived to adulthood, married and had children of their own. Henry’s descendants are now living in more than 20 states and in several foreign countries. A large number of us still live in Oregon and Washington, however.

I began this project in 1967 when I was a college student working at the Oregon State Fair in Salem. One evening I walked into an exhibit hall and saw a display set up by a genealogist. She had traced her family back hundreds of years and seemed confident that anybody could do what she had done. She gave me the names of several people researching the BURLINGAME family. I wrote a few letters and quickly realized that I knew very little about my family. That’s when I began bugging many of you with letters about our family. It would be impossible to thank every person for the help he or she gave me these past 19 years. Yes… 19 years! I have a good excuse for it taking so long. You’ll find out why when you read about me on page 120.

Why did I bother to put all of this together? I did it for us — the BURLINGAME family. We all used to be very close to one another. At least that’s what my late father always said. The family he knew, however, seemed to end in the 1930′s when many of the older members passed on. As economic conditions worsened in the Northwest, many of us moved to greener pastures — California, in particular. This book is a last attempt to draw some of us together again.

I knew almost nothing about our family when I started, but can now share a lot with you. The BURLINGAMEs are an old family in this country, with roots going back to 1650 when Roger BURLINGHAM (1620-1718) arrived in Boston from Norfolk, England. Roger later moved to Cranston, Rhode Island where he raised ten children. Three of Roger’s sons became the ancestors for the 3,500 BURLINGAME families found in the 1970 U.S. census. There are probably 5,000 families with the name BURLINGAME in the USA now — not very many compared to the two million SMITH families.

Our surname is an American corruption of the English “BURLINGHAM.” During Roger’s lifetime, the spelling changed to BURLINGAME. This was probably due to pronunciation differences between the early colonists and Englishmen who remained behind. Colonists, who came from many parts of England began mispronouncing our family name. In Norfolk, England, the last syllable of BURLINGHAM is not pronounced ham, but um. For example, the famous palace is pronounced Bucking-um and not Bucking-ham. Roger BURLINGHAM probably got tired of hearing ham at the end of his name and changed the spelling in the hopes of getting the original um pronunciation. We all know it didn’t work. He got game instead of the original Burling-um. Early colonials were notoriously inconsistent in their spellings. In many of the old colonial records, our name was spelled: BURLLINGGAME. That’s how most of us pronounce the name today but we’ve dropped the extra “l” and “g”. The first section of the book tells you what the meaning of BURLINGHAM originally was.

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Our first ancestor in the Northwest, Henry S. BURLINGAME, was a seventh generation descendant of Roger BURLINGHAM. Thus, Henry’s five children were eighth generation descendants and his grandchildren, ninth, etc. In this book, the first seven generations are listed in order, starting with Roger and ending with Henry. Beginning with Henry, I have listed all of his descendants according to the order in which his children were born. Henry’s five children who lived to adulthood were: Martin, Charles, Amos, Harriet, and Mary. In this book, all of Martin’s descendants are listed before Charles’, and Charles before Amos’, etc. Each descendant is identified with a generation number. If you don’t know who you are descended from, all you have to do is to refer to the index at the back of the book. All women are listed by their maiden names.

Have I totally confused you? I hope not, for the one thing I really wanted out of this was a readable book that wasn’t confusing. Many of you have shared family tales and secrets with me that make this more than just a born – married – died list of dates. If I’ve mixed up my facts or have omitted a cousin or two, I apologize in advance.

I mentioned that we all go back to 1650 in this country. That is misleading, for the early LIPPITT, BRIGGS, PLIMPTON, HAWKS, POTTER and KNOWLES families who intermarried with our early ancestors, go back to the 1620′s. I hope that some of you will be inspired by this book to do research on these branches of our family.

…

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

		Pages
Origins of the BURLINGAME family in England		1 – 5
1st Generation:	Roger BURLINGAME (1620-1718) &
	Mary LIPPITT BARLINGSTONE (1643-1718)	6 – 14
2nd Generation:	John BURLINGAME (1664-1719) &
	Mary K. LIPPITT (1666-1708)	15 – 18
3rd Generation:	John BURLINGAME Jr. (1690-1755) &
	Sarah BRIGGS (1688-1763)	19 – 20
4th Generation:	John BURLINGAME III (1712-1786) &
	Elizabeth PLIMPTON (1722-1788)	21 – 24
5th Generation:	Daniel BURLINGAME (1745-1820) &
	Sarah (1750-c.1810)	25 – 26
6th Generation:	James R. BURLINGAME (1784-1852) &
	Martha HAWKS (1785-186?)	27 – 28
7th Generation:	The BURLINGAMEs come to the Northwest
	Henry S. BURLINGAME (1820-1890) &
	Harriet BEEBE BARTLETT (1814-1852)
	Drusilla SHORT (1834-1896)	29 – 39
…
Sources of Information:		158 – 163
Name Index:		164 – 173

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THE BURLINGAME FAMILY

Our family’s history began in England. The original inhabitants of what is now England were the Celts. Two thousand years ago, the Romans invaded England and pushed the Celts into present-day Scotland, Ireland and Wales. The Roman soldiers brought settlers with them from the continent. These settlers intermarried with Britons who stayed behind, and established a thriving colony which lasted relatively intact for 400 years.

The Celts and another tribe, the Picts, continued to attack the borders of Roman Britain, but they were usually repulsed by Roman troops garrisoned near the borders and towns. In the early 5th century A.D., however, attacks in other parts of the Roman Empire forced the Emperor to withdraw troops from Britain. With the Roman garrisons gone, the Scots and Picts became more aggressive.

The southern Britons, being increasingly unable to stop the invaders, asked for help from the Roman General Aetius. Aetius, however, was too involved fighting Atilla the Hun, who was threatening the city of Rome, to help the Britons. In desperation, the Britons sought the aid of the Saxons, a people living in what is now Holland and Germany near the mouth of the Elbe River.

According to Anglo-Saxon narratives, three ships containing 1600 men were dispatched to help the Britons under the command of the brothers, Hengest and Horsa. The Saxons were assigned the Isle of Thanet in present-day Kent for habitation, and from there marched against the Scots and Picts, gaining complete victory. The date assigned for these events is 449 A.D.

The narratives then state that the Saxons, finding their new home desirable, turned their arms against the Britons. Reinforced by new Saxon tribes, the Angles and Jutes, the invaders conquered Kent, the area between London and the Channel, and ultimately the greater part of what is now England. This conquest took approximately 150 years. The saga of King Arthur comes from this period. He is believed to have been one of the leaders of the Britons in their struggle with the Anglo-Saxons.

In 571-575 A.D., the Kingdom of the East Angles was founded by Uffa, an early Anglo-Saxon leader. King Uffa governed his people through many small chieftaincies, headed by chiefs. One of these chieftaincies was BYRLINGAHAME, which means “Byrl,” the cup bearer, “inga,” a Saxon suffix meaning son, and “hame,” the Angle suffix meaning home or clan. BYRLINGAHAME thus means the home or clan of the son of Byrl. The ancient BYRLINGAHAMEs lived in the area later called East Anglia–the present-day counties of Norfolk, Suffolk, and Cambridgeshire, until the beginning of the 9th century A.D., when new invaders from northern Europe arrived on the scene.

The new invaders were the Danes — another tribe of Germanic origin. Often called Vikings, they eventually conquered all of East Anglia. The BYRLINGAHAMEs fled with the other Anglo-Saxon chiefs to the southern Anglo-Saxon Kingdom of Wessex. By a treaty made at Wedmore in 878 A.D., the King of Wessex, Alfred the Great, recognized the Danish conquests. Alfred made a pact with the Danish leader Guthrum.

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This treaty required the Danes to be baptised. Records show that Guthrum and 30 of his followers were. Relative peace returned to Britain. The Kings of Wessex became the Kings of England. The BYRLINGAHAMEs returned to East Anglia and intermarried with the Viking settlers who had driven them from their lands earlier.

In the year 1066 A.D., the last great invasion of England occurred. Thousands of Normans from France followed the Duke of Normandy, William the Conqueror, to England in his successful bid to seize the English throne from his Anglo-Saxon cousin, King Harold. Most of the higher ranking Anglo-Saxons were dispossessed of their lands which were given by William to his Norman supporters. In time, however, the Normans also intermarried with the people they had conquered. The BYRLINGAHAME family survived.

The names BYRLINGAHAME and BYRLINGAHAMINGA appear frequently in the ancient Saxon Chronicles. The final suffix “inga” was dropped by the 11th century. The suffix “ing” still appears in many English names, and when coupled with the Angle suffix “hame” meaning home or clan, we have names such as BIRMINGHAM, BUCKINGHAM, CHELTINGHAM, CUNNINGHAM and DILLINGHAM, among others.

Our name was spelled many ways, some of which were: BYRLINGAHAM (Worcester Rolls 972 A.D.); BAELINGAM (Crawford Charters 998 A.D.); BERLINGEHAM, BIRLINGHAM, BERLINGAHAM, BURLINGHAM, BURLINGAME (Fleet of Fines, 1198 A.D.). After the 12th century, the name was generally spelled BURLINGHAM.

In the County of Norfolk, east of the cathederal city of Norwich on the Yare River, and halfway between Norwich and Yarmouth, near the town of Acle, are three parishes known as Burlingham St. Peter, Burlingham St. Andrew, and Burlingham St. Edmund. Mr. and Mrs. Melvin BURLINGAME of Minneapolis visited these parishes in 1960 and gathered much information on the early BURLINGHAMs of Norfolk.

The Burlingham St. Peter church, located in North Burlingham, was built about 1050 A.D., and is now in complete ruin and overgrown with brush. Burlingham St. Andrew, built about 1275 A.D. is no longer in use, although it is still standing. A monument to the Robert BURLINGHAM family is located in this church. Burlingham St. Edmund, located in South Burlingham, built about 1500 A.D., is still used occasionally.

About three-fourths of a mile from Burlingham St. Edmund stands Burlingham Hall, a manor house built about 1500 A.D. that was the home of some of the early BURLINGHAMs. While in England, the Melvin BURLINGAMEs met the man who a few years before had discovered a tunnel which ran from Burlingham Hall to Burlingham St. Edmund. When and for what purpose this tunnel was built is unknown. It had been sealed for many years at the time of its discovery.

Burlingham Hall is still used as a residence. It is owned by the Crown and is sometimes used to house important visitors to Britain. When Kaiser Wilhelm of Germany visited his grandmother, Queen Victoria, he and his party were housed at Burlingham Hall.

The early BURLINGHAMs do not appear to have suffered too much from the Norman invasion of 1066 A.D. Many of the early BURLINGHAMs served as knights and were granted a fee. A knight’s fee was the first, most

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common, and most esteemed form of holding land. As the owner of a fee, a knight was bound in feudal times to attend his Lord in war for 40 days for each fee held. A Lordship often grew out of these knight’s fees. The title of knight was not hereditary, but the right to use a coat-of-arms was permitted.

Many of the early Norfolk County records have been destroyed over the centuries, but there is a steady record of BURLINGHAM ancestors mentioned in the records still surviving:

Hugh DE BIRLINGHAM, knighted by William the Conqueror in 1075 A.D.

Walterus DE BURLINGHAM was a witness of a deed confirming a grant to the Abby of St. Benel of Holme, Norfolk Co., in 1163 A.D.

Elfide BIRLINGHAM was granted land in Birlingham, and said grant was witnessed by Nicholas DE BIRLINGHAM. No date given.

In the 4th year of the reign of King John (1203 A.D.), a fine was levied between Joceline DE BURLINGHAM and Matilda, his wife; William DE BURLINGHAM and Margaret, his wife; John DE DEPEHAM and Isabel, his wife, and Emme, their sister, to Edwin CARPENTER and Jeffrey DE AMBLIE for 3½ acres in Massingham, and a half of a knight’s fee in Beghton. No consideration was mentioned, but 20 marks of silver were mentioned for the fee. This was evidently the settlement of an estate.

John DE DEPEHAM and Isabel, his wife, leased to Joceline DE BIRLINGHAM and Matilda, his wife, 5 acres in Oxburg at 18 shillings sterling, and 12 acres in Birlingham, the regrant for the lives of Joceline and Matilda at 4 shillings per year, for which they paid 5 marks of silver.

Ailward DE BIRLINGHAM and Edwin, his son, leased Lingwode land to Gilbert DE LINGWODE and Richard, his son. (c. 1205 A.D.)

William, son of Brictric DE BIRLINGHAM, was granted lands in South Berlingham. No date given.

In the “Monasticon Anglicanum of Dugdale” is a charter of confirmation from King Henry III in the 19th year of his reign (1235 A.D.) listing donors for the founding and maintenance of a Benedictine Monastery at Bungay. Mentioned are “the gift of Roger, son of Rynuld DE BIRLINGHAM, of 30 denaratas of the rent of the lands of which Robert HOG of Lingwood holds of the same Roger.” Another entry reads: “of the gift of Roger, son of Rynuld DE BIRLINGHAM, one-half of all his white fish.” If Roger was able to contribute such a sum, it is probable that he held more than one knight’s fee.

George DE BIRLINGHAM held one fee in the 41st year of the reign of Henry III (1250 A.D.), but was not a knight.

Other mentions of BURLINGHAM family members were:

1288 A.D.–Matilda DE CATTON, widow of Alexander BIRLINGHAM sold St. Martin land to Robert DE MARTHAM.

1289 A.D.–Laurence DE BIRLINGHAM, tanner, purchased St. Peter de Parmentergate land from Robert DE NOVO, Castro Subterliman, cementarius, and Rosa, his wife.

1290 A.D.–Matilda De CATTON, relict of Allan (Alexander) DE BIRMINGHAM, deceased, sold St. Vedast land to Laurence De BIRLINGHAM and Letitia, his wife.

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1298 A.D.–Laurence DE BIRLINGHAM, tanner, and Emma, his wife, sold St. Stephen land to Hugo DE SWATHEFFIELD.

1298 A.D.–William DE BIRLINGHAM sold St. Gregory land to Thomas BRUMAN of Neuton next to Castleacre.

1310 A.D.–Laurence DE BIRLINGHAM purchased land in St. Cuthbert from Richard DE WALCOTE.

1312 A.D.–Alice, widow of Sir Roger DE HALES, Knight, and Roger, his son, rector of Norton, sold St. Vedast land to Roger DE BIRLINGHAM and Idania, his wife.

1312 A.D.–Roger DE BIRLINGHAM, tanner of Norwich, and Ida, hi wife, sold St. Vedast land to Agnes, daughter of Hugh DURRANT of Tacolston.

1320 A.D.–Roger, son of Laurence DE BIRLINGHAM, Chaplin, sold land in St. Bartholomew to Laurence DE BIRLINGHAM, tanner of Norwich and William, son of Robert ATTE CHIRCHE of Hakeford and Ethe, his wife.

1322 A.D.–Roger DE BIRLINGHAM, John TOLLE, butcher, and Geoffrey GERNEYSE, purchased St. Stephen land from Walter DE BERI and Margaret, his wife.

1322 A.D.–Otes DE BAERLINGHAM, Knight Bachelor, taken prisoner at Boroughbridge, March 16th, for fighting against the king.

1324 A.D.–Stephen DE BIRLINGHAM and Matilda, his wife, purchased land in St. George de Colgate from Walter COKEREL and Alice, his wife.

1329 A.D.–Stephen DE BIRLINGHAM and Matilda, sold land in St. George de Colgate to Alan DE GYSELINGHAM and Alice, his wife.

1333 A.D.–Stephen DE BIRLINGHAM and Matilda, his wife, sold St. George de Colgate land to Hugh GODESMAN and Beatrix, his wife.

1335 A.D.–John DE ALDERFORDE, Chaplin, and Geoffrey DE PASTON, smith, executors of John DE WYMEDHAN, deeded St. Olave land to Geoffrey DE BAUGURGE and Stephen DE BIRLINGHAM. Stephen and his wife Matilda deeded the same land back to Geoffrey DE PASTON on the same day.

1337 A.D.–Stephen DE BIRLINGHAM and Matilda, his wife, sold land in St. George de Colgate and St. Clement de Fibriggs to Edmund COSYIN.

1339 A.D.–Roger DE BIRLINGHAM, tanner, and Ida, his wife sold land in St. Vedast to William DE DONSTON.

The records from 1340 to 1500 A.D. have not been checked yet. A record has been found showing that a coat-of-arms was granted to a Sir Richard BURLINGAME, no date given. In 1351 A.D. several mentions are made of Sir Adam DE BIRLINGHAM. In this period, there was at least one Lord Mayor of London with the name BIRLINGHAM. The name is not a very common one on English records. It is assumed that most of the family continued to be based in the Norwich area of Norfolk County. Norfolk County is directly northeast of London approximately eighty miles. It is low lying swampy land used mostly for agriculture.

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The author, Gary BURLINGAME, visited Norfolk County in 1977. It is very much like Oregon’s Willamette Valley in appearance. The land is low, flat, and full of small streams and rivers. Norfolk is surrounded on the north and east by the North Sea, and you are always reminded that the sea is near by seagulls and foggy weather. Norfolk also has many windmills similar to those in Holland. The land is very marshy and constantly needs to be drained.

Norfolk peaked in the Middle Ages in population. Seven hundred years ago, Norwich, Norfolk’s largest city, rivaled London in importance. The city was badly damaged in the last World War, but its beautiful cathedral with one of the highest spires in Europe survived and still dominates the old city. Norwich has only 120,000 people now and serves as the administrative center for Norfolk County’s 600,000 people. The county is small in area, with most of its towns and villages within 25 miles of Norwich.

The late Nelson BURLINGAME traced the ancestors of the American BURLINGAME family back three generations in Norfolk. These ancestors used the name BURLINGHAM and were very likely descendants of the BURLINGHAMS of St. Stephens, St. Vedast, South Burlingham and Norwich mentioned earlier. Our known English ancestors were:

SIMON BURLINGHAM (c. 1490 – 1556). Married AGNES ______. Simon was Lord of the manor of Sharrington in Norfolk. Sharrington is approximately 25 miles NW of Norwich. Today, it is a tiny hamlet of perhaps ten houses. Simon is listed in 16th century records as having a coat-of-arms described as follows: “an argent on a bend gules cotised sable, three escallops d’or (gold).” In the 1500′s, there was more than one manor in the Sharrington area. The BURLINGHAM manor has not survived to the present. Simon’s will was dated March 28, 1555 and proved (which meant he had died) on September 25, 1556 at Norwich. His widow survived him. The will mentions sons: Peter, Nicholar, William, Giles and Thomas, and daughters: Amy and Ann.

PETER BURLINGHAM (c. 1530 – 1599) was the son of Simon and Agnes BURLINGHAM of Sharrington. Peter’s wife is unknown. Peter lived at Brenton, Norfolk, about three miles from Sharrington. Peter’s will was dated May 24, 1598 and proved on April 17, 1599. His will mentions sons: Christopher of Thornage, Thomas of Ketteringham, Roger of Norwich; daughters: Phillipa, wife of Philip HEYTHE of Stodey, and Margaret, wife of Robert MARX. The church at Thornage has a BURLINGHAM memorial inside edicated to a Christopher BURLINGHAM who died in 1717. He was probably a grandson of Peter.

THOMAS BURLINGHAM (c. 1580 – 1650′s?). Thomas was the son of Peter BURLINGHAM. He married ELIZABETH HOWARD. He lived at Ketteringham, a small village 5 miles south of Norwich. Thomas and Elizabeth are known to have had at least 2 children: Roger and Elizabeth. Thomas may have moved to Connecticut in the 1650′s with his son, Roger. His son, Roger, is considered the founder of the BURLINGAME family in America.

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FIRST GENERATION:

ROGER BURLINGAME (24 Jan 1620-1 Sep 1718) was the founder of the BURLINGAME family in America. He was born in Kent Co., England where his mother was visiting her sister. Various years: 1620, 1630 and 1638 are reported in old American records for his birth year, but the most recent research indicates that he was born in 1620. Roger was the son of Thomas and Elizabeth (HOWARD) BURLINGHAM who resided in the early 1600′s in Ketteringham, a small village five miles south of Norwich in Norfolk County, England.

The author of this history, Gary BURLINGAME, visited Ketteringham in 1977. It is a village of a few hundred people, rapidly being encroached upon by the suburbs of Norwich. There is an old church on the edge of the town with monuments inside dating back to the 1600′s. There is nothing inside the church dealing with the BURLINGHAM family. A large graveyard adjoins the church, but due to the weather from the nearby North Sea, stones more than a hundred years old are now illegible.

Nelson BURLINGAME states that Roger BURLINGAME at the age of 16 enlisted in the army, serving in his uncle Roger BURLINGHAM’s regiment. About 1646, he married JACOLYN HUNTINGDON (c. 1620′s-c. 1651). A son, Roger Jr., (1648-1678) was born to them in Coventry, England. Roger BURLINGAME moved up in the ranks and became a Captain. The 1640′s were a turbulent time in England. A civil war raged between the supporters of the King, Charles I, and Parliament, led by Oliver CROMWELL. East Anglia was a Parliamentary stronghold. It appears that the BURLINGAME family supported Parliament which triumphed in 1649.

Captain Roger BURLINGAME and his company were ordered to America. Roger and his troops landed at Boston, Massachusetts on May 10, 1650. He must have been tired of Army life. Soon after reaching Boston, Roger resigned his commission and headed to the Connecticut Colony for the purpose of purchasing a farm. He intended to bring his wife and young son to America, only to learn that his wife had died in England in the meantime. The young son eventually arrived in America, probably accompanying Roger’s brother-in-law and sister when they moved to Connecticut in the mid-1650′s.

Colonial records show that Roger BURLINGAME was a witness to a court held at Stonington, Connecticut in 1654. Next, we find that he and a Thomas GRIFFIAN purchased 100 acres of land at Pequoit (New London), Connecticut on Feb. 16, 1656. GRIFFIAN is reputed to be a brother-in-law of Roger BURLINGAME, the husband of his sister, Elizabeth. The text of the land deed is as follows:

“Know all men by these present that wee Roger BURLINGHAM and Thomas GRIFFIAN, both of Pequoit in the Colonje of Conecticut doe owe and stand Indebted unto Peter BLATCHFORD of the same towne forty pounds. It is for a parcell of land by us bought of the said Peter lying on the east side of the brook called misticke and It is to be paid as followeth, to witt: tenn pounds at or before the twenty-fifth of march one thousand sixe hundred and fifty nine in good merchantable wheate and pork in an equal proportion, and tenn pounds at or

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before the twenty fifth of march in the yeare one thousand sixe hundred and sixty in good merchantable wheat and porke in an equal proportion, all which payments are to be made or tendered at the landing place by sandy point and at the price currant, and for the true performance of all and singular these payments we doe hereby mortgage and make over unto said Peter BLATCHFORD all the tract of an hundred acres lying on the east side of the brooke called misticke, by us purchased of the said Peter, to him and his heirs for ever to his or their propper use provided always that if wee shall duelly pay those payments as above said that then this ingagement or mortgage to be voyd and of none effect other wayes to stand in full force and power. In witness where of wee have sett our hands and seale this sixteenth day of February 1656.”

Witness: his marke
Jonathan BREWSTER Roger “R” BURLINGHAM & a seale
John GALLUP Thomas “L” GRIFFIAN & a seale
(source: Suffolk Deeds Liber III., page 455)

Roger BURLINGAME sold his Connecticut Colony farm on March 1, 1659. On March 14, 1659, a Thomas BURLINGHAM was named as a defendant on the complaint of Will THOMPSON who charged him with gathering the crops on this farm. Who this Thomas BURLINGHAM was is unknown. He may have been the Thomas GRIFFIAN who was a partner in the farm, and the name mistakenly given as BURLINGHAM, or it could have been the father or a brother of Roger BURLINGAME. No further mention or reference to a Thomas BURLINGHAM has been found at this early date. In a similar complaint dated March 12, 1660, William THOMPSON brought action against Peter BLATCHFORD, based on allegations that the defendant had molested him in reference to a farm which the plaintiff had purchased from Roger BURLINGAME.

In 1660, Roger BURLINGAME left Connecticut Colony for Rhode Island. It was not a long move, but only a distance of some 40-45 miles. It appears that Roger went directly to a place in Rhode Island called Mashantatack, now a part of the present cities of Warwick and Cranston. Sidney S. RIDER in his “History of Rhode Island Lands,” states that the first English settlers of Mashantatack were John HARRUD, Roger BURLINGAME and Thomas RALPH. These men claimed to have a grant from the Cooweeseette Indians bearing the date of June 6, 1662 for 4,000 acres at Patuxet, a place called Mashantatack and called by some Paquabuck. (Providence Town Papers, #0120, Book I, pg. 53)

It was in Warwick, Rhode Island that Roger filed an affidavit concerning his former Connecticut farm:

“This mortgage was acknowledged before us by Roger BURLINGAME, the 2nd of the 5th month called July 1660. Signed by Will^m CHEESBROUGH, Thomas MINOT and George PEMISON. Also stood under writ: This mortgage asknowledged before me, this xxiith day of April 1661 by Roger BURLINGAME.” Signed: John SMITH, Deputy of Warwick, R.I. Entered and recorded at request of Peter BLATCHFORD, 25th of 2nd mo. 1661. Edw. RAWSON, Recorder.

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Roger BURLINGAME’s claim to the 4,000 acres at Mashantatack was not without its challengers too. W. FIELD and a Tollarton HARRIS also claimed the land as a grant from the King. Court records in Rhode Island have the following on file:

“Tollarton HARRIS, his testimony as to some Warwick men cutting ye grass of W.FIELD and W.HARRIS, age about 18 years, being engaged, doth testify: that on the twelfth day of July, last past, which was in the year 1662, he saw Samuel GORTON the younger, George GOFF, Roger BURLINGAME and Ebenezer MOONE, mow or cut, the grass of W.FIELD an W.HARRIS, both of Providence. The meadows that the aforesaid men were cutting, he said, was at or about a place called Toskeonke, on the north side of the Pawtuxet river. Dated at Providence, this 7th day of March 1663.”

Thos. OLNEY, Deputy. (Cushman Papers)

A similar testimony by an Andrew HARRIS is also found in the Cushman Papers for the same date. The court found Roger BURLINGAME and the others guilty, and ordered them to quit the land and to pay a fine of 10 shillings to HARRIS and FIELD. FIELD and HARRIS, however, were unable to get possession of the land. The town sergeant, whose duty it was to serve the execution of the writ, evaded his duty. He did so knowing that he had the sympathy of the community in doing so, and secondly, that if he attempted to evict the defendants, they would violently resist. This appears to have happened at least once. On May 1, 1670, Tollarton HARRIS testified:

“That upon the 21st day of April, in the present year of 1670, he going along with James ROGERS, general sergeant, into Mashantatack where John HARRUD dwelleth. The said sergeant going there to serve an execution against John HARRUD, but when he was about 10 rods from the house, the said John HARRUD called to them and bid them to stand. The said John HARRUD was standing by the house pointing a gun at them, and said if they would not stand, he would shoot. The sergeant then demanded of John HARRUD to deliver the possession of the house so that he could state Mr. HARRIS therein, but HARRUD smiting his hand upon his breast answered that he would not yield possession while he had life in his body. There being John WEEKS Sr., John WEEKS Jr., Edmund CALVERY, Roger BURLINGHAM, Benjamin BARTON and divers others, to the number of fifteen or thereabouts, and when John HARRUD declared himself, John WEEKS Sr., John WEEKS Jr., and Edmund CALVERY encouraged him not to yield, but with cudgels in their hands stood in resistance to the execution.” Taken before me. Thos: OLNEY.

John HARRUD and Roger BURLINGAME eventually won their land due to the death of Tollarton HARRIS, and because they had the sentiments of the people.

“And it is ordered that Thomas RALPH, Roger BURLINGHAM and John HARRUD, or any two of them, shall be the persons to make the rate and levy the assessments on the inhabitants of Mashantatack.” (Proceedings of the General Assembly of Sep. 25, 1671)

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In October 1671, Thomas RALPH, John HARRUD and Roger BURLINGAME were ordered by the General Assembly to levy a tax of 40 shillings on the inhabitants of Mashantatack. This was a proportional amount of the 200 pounds levied on the entire Rhode Island Colony.

Roger BURLINGAME lived in Mashantatack for the rest of his long life. By about 1690 the Mashantatack area was rapidly filling up with people. The northern part of Mashantatack was being encroached upon by the town of Cranston, and to the south, the town of Warwick was rapidly growing. Roger BURLINGAME seems to have claimed both towns as his residence. This provoked an election crisis in May 1690 when Roger was elected as a Deputy to the General Assembly from Warwick. The other Deputies felt differently:

“Mr. Roger BURLINGHAM being returned to the Assembly as a Deputy from the Town of Warwick, there being much debate as to the legality of the election, the assembly do order that he is not accepted as a Deputy.” (Proceedings of the General Assembly of May 16, 1690)

The 1690 crisis finally established Roger as a legal resident of Cranston, Rhode Island since most of his land had been incorporated into the boundaries of that town. Roger continued to have some property in the town of Warwick but as he grew older, he became more involved with the public affairs of Cranston. In the town elections of June 6, 1698, Roger BURLINGAME was elected a member of the Town Council.

“Roger BURLINGAME’s homesite is about 1½ miles northwest from the Oak Lawn Depot in present-day Cranston, R.I. After passing the Old Friends Meeting House (built in 1729), go up the hill to the second four corners. There turn right and go down to a point nearly opposite the Wilbur A. SEARLE place (so called) where the bridge crosses the brook to go up to the SEARLE place, go west from the Old Furnace Road and there on the east side of the road is the tumbled in cellar, the old chimney mound of brick, stone and mortar with ivy twined about, and a nearly filled in well. This marks the Mansion House (so called in early deeds) of our ancestor, Roger BURLINGAME.” (report written about 1910 by Henry A. BURLINGAME 1846-1926, an early family historian)

Roger BURLINGAME’s house was built about 1666 and survived intact until until approximately 1855 when it was torn down by Wilbur A. SEARLE and Henry ARNOLD. The chimney and other remains stood until approximately 1912. The original house was about 35 by 60 feet and was two and one-half stories with a common plain roof on each side and an “L”-shaped wing at the northeast corner of the house. The main house faced south. Close by was a gambrel roofed house, south of the main house, which fronted west towards the Old Furnace Road. The old well supplied both households.

Further along northerly and easterly towards higher ground on the south side of the Furnace Road was the home of John BURLINGAME, Roger’s eldest son. This house was likely built about 1682 as in that year, Abel POTTER deeded the site to Roger BURLINGAME, and he in turn deeded it the same day to hi son, John.

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A photo of Roger BURLINGAME’s homesite appears in Field’s “History of Rhode Island”, Volume III, page 586. The photo of the chimney remains are unfortunately incorrectly labeled as the remains of Othneil GORTON’s tavern. Historian Henry A. BURLINGAME wrote an article in the 1920′s proving that the remains were actually Roger BURLINGAME’s Mansion House. Part of the article is reprinted below. Othneil GORTON, incidently, married Roger BURLINGAME’s granddaughter.

The Othneil GORTON Tavern: An Error

“I have recently discovered an error in Field’s History of Rhode Island, Vol. III, page 586 where appears a picture of an old chimney remains which is described as the old Othneil GORTON Tavern, erected between 1710 and 1720. The fact is as follows:- Roger BURLINGAME purchased land of the Cooweeset Indians, June 23, 1662 and May 13, 1663, the land being the Mashantatack Purchase, now Cranston, R.I. (Providence Town Papers #0120). As he and two others were chosen to levy the taxes there in October 1671, it is likely that he located there about 1667.

On Sept. 6, 1684 he deeded his homestead to his son, Peter BURLINGAME, reserving a life lease and described it as follows, together with another tract of land, thus:- three parcels of land, with the Mansion House on one of them and one parcel lying easterly from the Mansion House, parcel only being divided by a highway, both parcels containing 33 acres, more or less; the other said parcel contains 17 acres and is situated at or near the place called the mines. (Providence Records Book I, page 266). Roger deeded again to his son Peter, on March 15, 1708, 15 acres adjoining a small piece of land on the westerly side of the highway “that lyeth to the west of my now dwelling house.” (Providence Deeds, Bk. 2, pg 187)

Roger in his deed of 1704 to his son Peter, aforesaid, bounded the land northerly against the land of Robert POTTER. Rachel POTTER, through heirship rights, sold to Othneil GORTON, July 4, 1715 the land that adjoined Roger BURLINGAME’s homestead on the north, as noted in deed from Roger to his son, Roger Jr. and dated Sept. 5, 1715 — “bounding north against the lands of Othneil GORTON”, and who never owned any of the BURLINGAME estate. (Providence Deeds, Bk. 2, pg. 425)

Roger BURLINGAME’s son Peter died in 1712 and his property rights went to his eldest brother John, who made a division with his brothers Thomas and Roger Jr.; John retaining the Mansion House, homestead part. John sold the homestead to Samuel GORTON, March 18, 1719. (Providence Deeds, Bk. 4, pg. 44)

Samuel GORTON died and the Town Council sold the same to Elisha BAKER, Feb. 21, 1725 (Bk. 13, pg. 470); Elisha BAKER sold to Israel GORTON, May 13, 1752 (Bk. 2, pg. 161); he in turn willed all of his estates to his sons: Pardon, Thomas and Cyrus, Jan. 12, 1805 (Bk. 1, pg. 246). These sons called for a division, which was made April 10, 1807 (Bk. 7, p. 315). Pardon had the southerly part with a wood lot northerly and half an acre of meadowland on the “easterly side of the road, about a rod west of the well, thence across the center of the well,” which is now nearly filled, the nearly tumbled in cellar ….still marks the homesite of the first Roger BURLINGAME….”

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Roger BURLINGAME and his family were of the Quaker faith. The Oak Lawn Baptist Church of Providence in its May Day souvenir of May 2, 1882 states that for many years, up until 1711, the “Friends” held their meetings in Roger BURLINGAME’s mansion house. Many of Roger’s descendants kept their Quaker faith, but by the third generation, most had become Baptists, the main religion of Rhode Island.

As mentioned earlier, Roger’s first wife, Jacolyn (HUNTINGDON) BURLINGAME, died in England shortly after Roger had been sent to Boston with his troops. A son from this marriage, Roger BURLINGAME Jr. (1648- 10 Feb 1678) lived to adulthood. He eventually came to America too. He is believed to have accompanied his aunt and uncle, Elizabeth and Thomas GRIFFIAN, when they came to Connecticut Colony from England in the mid-1650′s. It is possible that Thomas BURLINGHAM, Roger Sr.’s father may have also accompanied the GRIFFIANs.

Roger BURLINGAME Jr., eventually married a Mary Elizabeth __?__ (b.1651 Engl-8 July 1672) in Mashantatack. she died there shortly after the birth of a son who also died. Roger Jr. died six years later, evidently having not remarried. Roger Jr.’s death must not have been unexpected. The same year, his father and step-mother had another son, their seventh child, whom they named Roger. This Roger then became known as Roger Jr. He lived from 1678 to 1765 and had many descendants.

Roger BURLINGAME Sr. (1620-1718) remarried on October 3, 1663 in Warwick, R.I., to Mrs MARY (LIPPITT) BARLINGSTONE (3 Mar 1643-5 July 1718). Mary was the widow of William BARLINGSTONE, whom she had married March 23, 1661 in Warwick. William drowned while fishing in the bay about six weeks later.

Mary LIPPITT BARLINGSTONE was born in Providence. She was the daughter of John LIPPITT (1597-1669) and Martha __?__ . John LIPPITT was born in England. According to an entry in the Bible belonging to Christopher LIPPITT, Moses LIPPITT left Warwick Castle in England with his children Moses, Mary, Rebecca and John, and immigrated to America in 1632. The family settled near Providence, naming the settlement Warwick after their home city in England. John LIPPITT (1597-1669) then purchased one of the initial Providence town lots from Roger WILLIAMS.

Another LIPPITT family history has them coming from England in 1635 to Salem, Massachusetts, then going to Rhode Island in 1638. Whatever the history of the earliest years, it is known for certain that John LIPPITT’s name was sixth on a list of 52 persons who held lots in Providence in 1638. On July 27, 1640, he and 38 others signed an agreement for a form of government. On May 16, 1647, LIPPITT and nine other “well be trusted friends and neighbors” were chosen by the town of Providence as commissioners to meet with officials from the other three towns in Rhode Island at Portsmouth to form a government under the charter.

By 1648, John LIPPITT was listed as an inhabitant of Warwick. On April 27, 1652 he sold all of his lands and meadows in Providence with the exception of a 5 acre lot and 3 acre meadow to Arthur FENNER. On May 22, 1669, John LIPPITT deeded his house to his son Moses. He is believed to have died shortly afterwards.

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The LIPPITT family intermarried extensively with the BURLINGAMEs. John BURLINGAME, Roger’s eldest son, married his first cousin, Mary Knowles LIPPITT, daughter of Moses LIPPITT and granddaughter of John LIPPITT. With so many of our ancestors having the same first names, it is necessary to continually keep referring to the date of birth to avoid confusion.

Roger BURLINGAME and Mary LIPPITT BARLINGSTONE BURLINGAME had ten children. All of the children remained in Rhode Island. Nine of the children had descendants, including three sons, John, Thomas and Roger Jr., from whom all BURLINGAMEs in America are now descended.

Mary BURLINGAME preceeded her husband in death by two months in 1718 at the family farm in Cranston (Mashantatack) Rhode Island. Both Roger and Mary are buried on the farm. No traces of their graves now exist.

Before his death, Roger BURLINGAME made a will which was recorded in Cranston. The transcript of the last will and testament of Roger BURLINGAME (1620-1718) is as follows:

“The En Rolement of Ye Will of Roger BURLLINGGAME.” The last will and Testament of Roger BURLLINGGAME of Providence in the Colony of Rhoad Island and Providence Plantations in New England in the name of God Amen.

The twenty eighth day of November one thousand seaven hundred and fifteene, I Roger BURLLINGGAME Being of Parfect mind and memory thanks being given unto God therefore calling unto mind the Mortallity of my body and knowing that is is appoynted for all men once to dye, doe make and Ordaine this my Last Will and Testament that is to say prinsipalley and first of all I Give and Recommend my sole into the hands of God that Gave it and my body I recommend to the Earth to be buried in decent Christian burial att the descression of my Executrix: Nothing doubting but att the General Resurrection I shall receive the same againe by the mighty Power of God:

And as Touching such worldly estate where with it hath pleased God to bless mee in this life with I give, demise and dispose of the same in the following manner and forms as followeth:

Imprimis: I give and bequeath to Mary my dearly beloved wife all of my movable Estate: Viz: all my household goods, cattle & chattles to be wholly at her disposeing during her life and when it shall please God to take her from this Earthly Tabernacle what is left of this Estate shall be equally divided amongst all my Daughters and my three Grand daughters as namely: My son Roger’s daughter Freelove and my daughter Marcye’s daughter Francis and my daughter Alice’s daughter Deborah: to be Equal with the Rest of my daughters: And I give and bequeath to my Grand son John BURLLINGGAME fifty acres of land, it being parte of my home stead beginning att the land given my son Roger BURLLINGGAME and to rainge westward till it makes up fifty acres of land afore said: I give to my Grand

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son John BURLLINGGAME and his heirs for Ever fifty acres: and after my son Roger’s fifty acres is layed out and the fifty acres given to my Grand son John BURLLINGGAME is layed out: Then the remainder parte of the undevided land which was my son Peter’s, I give to my son Thomas BURLLINGGAME: If incase I Roger BURLLINGGAME and my wife Mary have not occasion to make use of the landes herein given and I doe give and bequeath to my three sons as Namely:

My son John and my son Thomas and my son Roger, Twenty shillings apiece: and I doe further ordaine and appoynt my Trusty and well beloved sons in Law Thomas ARNOLD and Amos STAFFORD and my son Roger BURLLINGGAME to be over seers to this my last Will and Testament: and I doe hereby utterly disalow revoake and disannul all and every other former Testament, wills, Legasies and bequeathes and Excurtrix by mee in anywise made will and bequeathed ratifieing and confirming: this and no other to be my Last Will and Testament: In witness where of I have here unto sett my hand and seale: This twenty-eighth day of November in the yeare of our Lord: 1715. Signed sealed published pronounced and declared by me Roger BURLLINGGAME.

The marke of
Roger “X” BURLLINGGAME, L.S.

as my Last Will and Testament in the presence of the subscribers:

John BURTON Mary BURTON Peter ROBARDS”

Roger’s will was proved at a meeting of the Town Council in Providence on September 13, 1718. Town Council records indicate that on:

“September Ye 10th: 1718. Mary, the Executrix of the Estate of Roger BURLLINGGAME having died, John the eldest son took administration and an inventory of the moveable Estate of Roger BURLLINGGAME was then taken:–

Totall: 199 Pounds, 13 shillings and 8 pence: viz:-Mare, 3 cows, 3 yearlings, calf, 2 sheep, 2 swine, old sword, wearing apparel, scales, cash, etc.”

Thus died the founder of the BURLINGAME family in America. He, in his long life, served as an anchor for our family in Rhode Island where many descendants continue to live to this very day …

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HUSBAND ROGER BURLINGAME
Born 24 Jan 1620	Place Kent Co. Engl. (mother visiting sister there)
Married 3 Oct 1663	Place Warwick R.I.
Occupation soldier, farmer	Resided at Mashantatack R.I. (now Cranston)
Church Affil. Quaker	War Serv. Headed company to fight Indians
Died 1 Sept 1718	Place Providence R.I.
Buried	Place On farm at Cranston R.I.
Other wives 1. c.1646 Jacolyn HUNTINGDON (d. abt 1650 Engl.)
Father Thomas BURLINGAME (BURLINGHAM)
Mother (maiden name) Elizabeth HOWARD
WIFE 2. MARY LIPPITT
Born 3 Mar 1643	Place Providence R.I.
Church Affil. Quaker	Occupation Housewife
Died 5 July 1718	Place Mashantatack (Cranston) RI
Buried	Place On farm at Cranston
Other husb. 1. 23 Mar 1661 William BARLINGSTONE (d. May 1661)
Father John LIPPITT (1597-1669)
Mother (maiden name) Martha

CHILDREN		BORN	DIED	MARRIED
		When Where	When Where	To whom When Where
*John	BURLINGAME	1 Aug 1664 Warwick RI	24 June 1719 Warwick RI	Mary Knowles LIPPITT 19 Nov 1688 Warwick RI
Thomas	BURLINGAME	6 Feb 1667 Mashantatack	9 July 1758 Warwick RI	Martha LIPPITT 5 Oct 1686 Warwick 2. Hannah WESCOTT
Mary	BURLINGAME	14 Jan 1668 Mashantatack	14 Oct 1769 Warwick RI	Amos STAFFORD 19 Dec 1689 Warwick RI
Jane	BURLINGAME	c. 1672 Mashantatack	after 1718 Warwick RI	1. John POTTER 2. Edward POTTER both Warwick RI
Alice	BURLINGAME	c. 1673 Mashantatack	before 1715	Oliver HAZZARD
Mercy	BURLINGAME	3 Aug 1675 Mashantatack	c. 1716 Warwick RI	Othneil GORTON c. 1692 Warwick RI
Roger	BURLINGAME	30 May 1678 Mashantatack	13 Dec 1765 Coventry RI	Eleanor SWEET 21 Dec 1699
Peter	BURLINGAME	7 Sept 1680 Mashantatack	23 Dec 1712 Mashantatack	Never Married
Elizabeth	BURLINGAME	9 Jan 1684 Mashantatack	5 May 1752 Providence RI	1. Thos. ARNOLD 2. Wm. SPENCER both Providence RI
Patience	BURLINGAME	8 May 1685 Mashantatack	8 Aug 1746 Providence RI	Thomas OLNEY 15 Jan 1710 Providence RI

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SECOND GENERATION:

JOHN BURLINGAME (1 Aug 1664 – 24 June 1719) was the eldest son of Roger BURLINGAME (1620-1718) and Mary LIPPITT BARLINGSTONE (1643-1718). John was born in Warwick, Rhode Island, where his mother’s family lived. His father owned property north of Warwick in what was then called Mashantatack and later called Cranton. John grew up on his father’s farm.

On November 19, 1688 in Warwick, John BURLINGAME married his first cousin, MARY KNOWLES LIPPITT (1666 – 13 Jan 1708). Mary was born in Warwick. Her father, Moses LIPPITT (1645 – 6 Jan 1703) was the son of John LIPPITT (1597-1669), and a brother of Mary LIPPITT BARLINGSTONE. Mary Knowles LIPPITT’s mother was Mary KNOWLES (1645 – 28 Dec 1719), also born in Warwick. Mary KNOWLES was the daughter of Henry KNOWLES (1609 – Jan 1670) and Elizabeth POTTER (c. 1590 – 1656) and his first wife, Isabel __?__ (c. 1590′s – Fall 1643). Mary KNOWLES LIPPITT’s ancestors are described below.

Moses LIPPITT, a tanner by trade, took an active role in the administration of Rhode Island. He became a Freeman of the Colony on April 30, 1672 which meant that he owned enough property to be entitled to vote. In 1681, 1684, 1690, 1698 and 1699, he served as a Deputy to the General Assembly from Warwick. In 1687, he was an Overseer of the poor in Rhode Island. Moses was an ancestor for many later Rhode Island governors, senators and generals — including the famous Benedict ARNOLD. He died in Warwick. His will, written Jan. 6, 1700 and proved in 1703, read as follows:

“Executrix: wife Mary. Overseers, brother-in-law John KNOWLES, and Randall HOLDEN. To wife, 20 acre lot at Warwick Great Neck and all housing and lands till son Moses is of age. His son Moses, at age, to have the house where Edward CARTER now dwelleth and land adjoining and certain other lands, a bed, three cows, half of tanning instruments and half profits of tanning trade, he being at half the charge. To grandson Moses BURLINGAME, all rights in Potowomet purchase. To wife, all lands and housing undisposed of for life and then to son Moses. To three daughters, Mary BURLINGAME, Martha BURLINGAME, and Rebecca LIPPITT, 20 shillings each, paid in plate. To wife Mary, all movable estate.”

At his death, Moses LIPPITT left an estate worth 456 pounds including the following: 15 pounds of silver money; 2 silver cups and 6 silver spoons worth 7 pounds and nineteen shillings; a gun, a sword; 4 feather beds, a flock bed, a warming pan, 4 spinning wheels, 3 tables, 15 chairs, 4 benches, 4 stools, 1 horse, 2 oxen, 7 cows, 5 two-year old cows, 2 yearling cows, a bull, 12 swine, and a stock of leather, green hides, and bark for his tanning business.

When Moses’ widow, Mary KNOWLES, died in 1719, she left an estate inventory totalling 452 pounds. Since her son-in-law and daughter, John and Mary K. LIPPITT BURLINGAME, had preceded her in death, they were not mentioned in her will. She did leave 20 pounds

[page 16]

to her grandson, David BURLINGAME, among others.

Henry KNOWLES, the grandfather of Mary Knowles LIPPITT, wife of John BURLINGAME, first appears in colonial records in Boston in 1635 when he arrived from England on the ship, “Susan & Ellen.” It appears that Henry was born in Hull, Yorkshire, England, according to KNOWLES family historians.

Henry first appears in Rhode Island records on May 27, 1644 when it was ordered in Warwick that he cut his lot shorter at the discretion of Lieutenant SANFORD, Goodman BORDEN and Goodman MOTT. On Jan. 21, 1654, Henry KNOWLES sold “my now dwelling house” along with 9 acres of land and fruit trees to Thomas LAWSON. In 1655, he was listed as one of the Freemen of Warwick. On March 23, 1664, Henry and three others received authorization from the town to keep ordinaries for the entertainment of strangers during the time the King’s Commissioners kept their court in Warwick. On March 3, 1666, Henry KNOWLES was on a jury which found the following verdict:

“We who are engaged to see this dead Indian, do find by diligent search that he was beaten, which was the cause of his death.”

Henry was apparently living in nearby Kingstown when he made his will, although it was proved in Warwick on Jan. 20, 1670. The will reads as follows:

“To wife, northeast half of the house that is in Warwick, well fitted for her use, and son John is to conveniently fit said house for his mother. To wife, the meadow in front of the house, and John to mow and make the grass annually and put it in a convenient place for foddering. To wife also, certain other land for life. To daughter Mary, (BURLINGAME), 15 pounds of which she is to receive 5 pounds from her brother John three years after testator’s death, and 5 pounds annually afterward. To daughter Martha, 20 pounds of which five pounds is to be paid by John in two years, and 5 pounds annually afterwards … To wife, two cows and a hog … the household goods to be divided as my wife shall see cause; the best bed in Warwick to be for my wife, and the other one for John …”

It was testified by witnesses that they heard the deceased say among other things that whoever of his heirs shall enjoy the Warwick estate “was to provide sufficient wood for their mother during her life.” Henry’s wife, Elizabeth POTTER, survived him by about nine years, dying in 1679 in Warwick.

Elizabeth’s parents, Robert and Isabel POTTER, arrived in America before 1630 when they first appear in the Lynn, Massachusetts records. They are believed to have both been born in England. Isabel’s maiden name is not known at this time. On Sept. 3, 1631, Robert POTTER was named a Freeman of Lynn. By 1634, he appears in the Roxbury, Massachusetts records. On May 3, 1637, he had his daughter Deliverance POTTER, baptised in Roxbury.

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In the late 1630′s, Robert POTTER became caught up in the religious turmoil that swept New England. Hundreds of colonists rebelled against the Puritan administration of Massachusetts. Some, like Roger WILLIAMS, the founder of Rhode Island, left immediately for more tolerant places. In Mar. 1638 POTTER was arrested but later released on 20 pounds bail. In 1638, he too left for Rhode Island where he was admitted as an inhabitant of the island of Aquidneck near Portsmouth.

On January 12, 1643, he and ten others bought of Chief Miantonomi a tract of land called Shawomett for 144 fathoms of wampum. The wampum beads were measured with a depth line from a ship. One fathom equalled six feet. Shawomett later became the city of Warwick. On Sept. 2, 1643, Robert POTTER and others from Warwick were ordered to appear at General Court in Boston to hear complaints of two Indians, Ponham and Socconocco regarding “some unjust and injurious dealing toward them by yourselves.”

The Warwick men refused the summons, saying that they were legal subjects of the King and not living within the legal boundaries of Massachusetts. Massachusetts authorities, hoping to crush the religious freedom of the Rhode Islanders, sent soldiers to capture Robert POTTER and the other men of Warwick. The settlers were beseiged in a house. They were eventually captured and charged with holding “blasphemous errors which they must repent of.” At the time of the siege, the wives and children of the Warwick men were forced to flee into the woods. There they suffered many hardships which resulted in the death of at least three women, including Isabel POTTER, the wife of Robert POTTER.

The Warwick men were taken to Boston and convicted of heresy and sedition. Robert POTTER was sent to the prison at Rowley. In March 1644, he was released but was banished by the court from both Massachusetts and Warwick. POTTER went to England where he was pardoned. He returned to Warwick about 1646. He later became an innkeeper in Warwick. In 1651 he was elected Commissioner of the town. He remarried to a woman named Sarah who survived him thirty years. POTTER died in late 1655 or early 1656 in Warwick leaving an estate of 42 pounds 10 shillings. POTTER’s land had to be sold to pay his outstanding debts.

This completes the known ancestors of Mary Knowles LIPPITT BURLINGAME. Her husband, John BURLINGAME, is periodically mentioned in early RI records. On Sept. 1, 1687 he was taxed 8 shillings as a resident of Warwick. On Dec. 23, 1712, John acquired the estate of his recently deceased bachelor brother, Peter BURLINGAME, and generously agreed to share it with his brothers. He added a proviso that his elderly parents could also have access to the estate if needed. On Jan. 1, 1713 John BURLINGAME deeded his original homestead to his son, John BURLINGAME Jr. Shortly before his death in 1719, John BURLINGAME sold his father’s (Roger BURLINGAME) house to Samuel GORTON, his cousin.

John and Mary BURLINGAME lived next door to Roger BURLINGAME in a house built about 1682 which John deeded to John Jr. in 1713. During his last years, John either lived with his parents or with his own son. He is believed buried next to his wife on the Roger BURLINGAME farm in Cranston. John and Mary had at least nine children. They are listed on the following chart.

[page 18]

HUSBAND JOHN BURLINGAME
Born 1 Aug 1664	Place Warwick RI
Married 19 Nov 1688	Place Warwick R.I.
Occupation Farmer	Resided at Warwick R.I.
Church Affil. Quaker	War Serv.
Died 24 June 1719	Place Warwick R.I.
Buried	Place On family farm
Other wives None
Father Roger BURLINGAME (1620-1718)
Mother (maiden name) Mary LIPPITT BARLINGSTONE (1643-1718)
WIFE MARY KNOWLES LIPPITT
Born 1666	Place Warwick R.I.
Church Affil. Quaker	Occupation Housewife
Died 13 Jan 1708	Place Cranston RI
Buried	Place On family farm
Other husb. None
Father Moses LIPPITT (1645-1703)
Mother (maiden name) Mary KNOWLES (1645-1719)

CHILDREN		BORN	DIED	MARRIED
		When Where	When Where	To whom When Where
* John	BURLINGAME Jr.	1690 Cranston RI	12 Feb 1755 Cranston RI	Sarah BRIGGS c. 1710
Roger	BURLINGAME	1692 Cranston RI	1 Apr 1763	Sarah BAKER
James	BURLINGAME	16 Sept 1694 Cranston RI	1 Jan 1768	Hannah BROWN 8 Jan 1734
Patience	BURLINGAME	Cranston RI	1695	Thomas RALPH
Mercy	BURLINGAME	Cranston RI		Othneil GORTON 1716
Barlingstone	BURLINGAME	25 June 1698 Cranston RI	12 Dec 1767 Cranston RI	Charity COLVIN c. 1726
Benjamin	BURLINGAME	1700 Cranston RI	12 May 1742 Surinam South America	Jerusha
Persis	BURLINGAME	14 Aug 1703 Cranston RI	22 June 1772 Cranston RI	William BURTON 8 Feb 1722
David	BURLINGAME	5 Dec 1706 Cranston RI	27 Jan 1755 Glocester RI	Mary BROWN 9 June 1728

[page 19]

THIRD GENERATION:

JOHN BURLINGAME JR. ( 1690 – 12 Feb 1755) was the eldest son of John BURLINGAME (1664-1719) and Mary Knowles LIPPITT (1666-1708). He was born in and died in Cranston RI where he was a farmer. On Jan. 13, 1713 John BURLINGAME Jr. was given his father’s original homestead which adjoined land belonging to his grandfather, Roger BURLINGAME. John Jr. kept this land until Feb. 13, 1739 when he sold it to his son Peter BURLINGAME Jr., who was called “Junior” to distinguish him from his uncle and cousin who had the same name.

About 1710, John BURLINGAME Jr. married SARAH BRIGGS (c. 1688 – 4 June 1763). Sarah has been listed in many records as being a daughter of Daniel and Lydia BRIGGS. Recent research into the BRIGGS family, however, does not list Sarah as a daughter of Daniel BRIGGS, who was a son of Thomas BRIGGS and grandson of Clement BRIGGS who arrived in Massachusetts in November 1621 on the ship “Fortune”. There were at least three unrelated BRIGGS families in Rhode Island and Massachusetts at this period, and while it is possible that Sarah is a descendant of Clement BRIGGS, it appears that she wasn’t related to Daniel and Lydia. Their wills are recorded in probate records and no mention is made of Sarah.

To further complicate matters, three of John and Sarah (BRIGGS) BURLINGAME’s children married into families named BRIGGS! It is likely that these BRIGGS were cousins of Sarah’s. An old record states that Sarah BURLINGAME was killed but does not give the details. She was buried on the Cranston farm.

John BURLINGAME’s will was written Feb. 8, 1755, four days before he died, and was proved April 15, 1755. Executors were his sons Daniel and Jeremiah BURLINGAME. The will mentions his wife Sarah, sons: John, Daniel, Jeremiah and Peter; daughters: Hannah ROBERTS, Sarah BRIGGS, and Naomi ROBERTS; grandsons: Elisha and Benjamin ROBERTS at age, and granddaughters Dorcas and Loranna ROBERTS.

Sarah BURLINGAME, in her will written January 10, 1763 and proved May 28, 1764 mentions all of the above named children. Her sons Daniel and Jeremiah were willed 15 acres, a part of the original homestead of the first Roger BURLINGAME. These lands included old iron ore beds which had been mined by earlier generations of the family.

Daniel and Jeremiah BURLINGAME made a division of the property they had inherited from their mother on March 30, 1767 reading:

“Beginning at a stake and a heap of stones, a small distance northward of the brook, called the Great Brook, above a place called the old mine, and then to extend up said brook about 8 rods to another stake and a heap of stones at the foot of the hill, a little distance from where our said father lies buried, thence a straight line to a stake and a heap of stones adjoining the highway that leads to Thomas SEARLE’s land and by said highway to a small piece of land belonging to Captain Israel GORTON until it comes to said brook, thence up the brook to the first mentioned mound.”

This is the first mention of the BURLINGAME family burial ground in any of the old records.

The following chart lists the seven children of John and Sarah BURLINGAME:

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HUSBAND JOHN BURLINGAME JR.
Born 1690	Place Cranston RI
Married c. 1710	Place
Occupation Farmer	Resided at Cranston RI
Church Affil. probably a Quaker	War Serv.
Died 12 Feb 1755	Place Cranston RI
Buried	Place On family farm
Other wives None
Father John BURLINGAME (1664-1719)
Mother (maiden name) Mary Knowles LIPPITT (1666-1708)
WIFE SARAH BRIGGS
Born c. 1688	Place
Church Affil.	Occupation Housewife
Died 4 June 1763	Place Cranston RI
Buried	Place On family farm
Other husb. None
Father reputed to be Daniel BRIGGS
Mother (maiden name) reputed to be Lydia BRIGGS

CHILDREN		BORN	DIED	MARRIED
		When Where	When Where	To whom When Where
* John	BURLINGAME III	6 June 1712 Cranston RI	5 July 1786 Cumberland RI	Eliz. PLIMPTON 28 Apr 1738 Providence RI
Hannah	BURLINGAME	1714 Cranston RI		David ROBERTS 25 Aug 1738 Providence RI
Daniel	BURLINGAME	1716 Cranston RI	6 Aug 1794 Coventry RI	Rose BRIGGS 25 Dec 1739 Providence RI
Peter	BURLINGAME Jr.	6 Feb 1718 Cranston RI	6 Apr 1789 Cranston RI	Zerviah ?
Sarah	BURLINGAME	1720 Cranston RI		John BRIGGS Jr. 13 June 1742 Providence RI
Jeremiah	BURLINGAME	1 May 1723 Cranston RI	1796 Smithfield RI	Damaris BRIGGS 29 Apr 1744
Naomi	BURLINGAME	1725 Cranston RI		Peter ROBERTS III 7 Sept 1744

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FOURTH GENERATION:

JOHN BURLINGAME III (6 June 1712 – 5 July 1786) was the eldest son of John BURLINGAME Jr. (1690-1755) and Sarah BRIGGS (1688-1763). He was born in Cranston, RI on the farm owned by his father, and first settled by his great grandfather, Roger BURLINGAME.

On April 28, 1738 in Providence, John was married by William BURTON, J.P., to ELIZABETH PLIMPTON (c. 1722 – 26 Oct 1788). Elizabeth was the daughter of Jeremiah PLIMPTON of Attleboro, Massachusetts. Attleboro is approximately ten miles from Providence. Elizabeth’s mother is not definitely known, but it is very likely that it was Elizabeth JOHNSON. The PLIMPTON/PLYMPTON surname was not common in New England at that time. An 1885 genealogy of the PLIMPTON family by Levi B. CHASE, indicated that all of the early PLIMPTONs were related. The name appears to be an American corruption of the English “PLUMPTON.”

According to Mr. CHASE, the PLIMPTONs arrived in Massachusetts in approximately 1640. The founder of the family was John PLIMPTON (1620-Oct 1678) who was born in Cambridgeshire or Lincolnshire, England and arrived in America at the age of 20 as an indentured servant of a Dr. George ALCOCKE. ALCOCKE is listed in a January 22, 1641 Roxbury, Massachusetts will as leaving five pounds to John PLIMPTON. By 1642, John was residing in Dedham MA. By May 10, 1643, he was a freeman of the colony, meaning that his servitude was over.

On March 13, 1644 in Dedham, John PLIMPTON married Jane DAMMANT (1626-168?). She arrived in MA in the spring of 1635 on the ship “Elizabeth & Ann”, together with her mother, Abigale ______ (1610- ? ). Abigale was the widow of a Mr. DAMMANT. By 1635, she had remarried to John EATON and had two additional children, Marie EATON, aged 4, and Thomas EATON, aged 1. John and Abigale EATON also settled in Dedham.

John PLIMPTON and Jane DAMMANT had 13 children, 6 of whom died in infancy. John PLIMPTON is often referred to as Sergeant John PLIMPTON in old family records because of his service in the brutal war again the Indian chief Philip in the 1670′s. Hundreds of colonists lost their lives before the Indians were finally expelled from New England. PLIMPTON, then residing in Medfield MA, was captured in an Indian attack on the town of Deerfield MA. He, along with several other Deerfield residents, was taken into nearby French Canada. In Oct. 1678, a few miles out of Montreal, at a place called Fort Chambly, John PLIMPTON was burnt at the stake by the Indians.

One of his sons was Joseph PLIMPTON (7 Oct 1653-22 June 1702), a weaver in Medfield. Joseph married Mary MORSE on Nov. 3, 1675 in Medfield. They had three sons, Joseph Jr., Jonathon, and Jeremiah. This Jeremiah is believed to be the father of Elizabeth PLIMPTON BURLINGAME. The 1885 CHASE history states that Jeremiah was born Nov. 6, 1683 and was married in 1704 to Elizabeth JOHNSON, then notes “lived about 15 years in Canterbury, Conn., unable to trace him farther.” CHASE lists two known daughters of Jeremiah and Elizabeth JOHNSON PLIMPTON: Sarah, born Oct. 17, 1709 and Sibillah, born Aug. 20, 1712. Elizabeth PLIMPTON BURLINGAME’s birthyear has been estimated as 1722, but it could be several years earlier. Because of the rarity of the PLIMPTON surname, it’s very likely that the above people are her family.

[page 22]

After their marriage, John BURLINGAME and Elizabeth PLIMPTON moved at an early date to Cumberland, Rhode Island. Cumberland is approximately ten miles north of Providence on the Massachusetts border, only a few miles from Attleboro. John and Elizabeth were the first in our BURLINGAME family to leave Cranston, and he was also the first non-Quaker in the family. John is listed in old records as being a Six-Principle Baptist. That he was a religious man is evident in his will which was written the year before he died and proved by the Cumberland Town Council on Tuesday, August 29, 1786:

“Present: Mr. John LAPHAM, Levi BALLOU, Esquire, Mr. Stephen WHIPPLE, Capt. Amos WHIPPLE and Mr. Joseph RAZE and Christopher WHIPPLE.

In the name of God Amen. I, John BURLINGAME of Cumberland, in the County of Providence, in the State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, Yeoman, being sick and weak in body but of sound disposing mind and memory (blessed by God therefore) do this twenty-third day of March in the ninth year of the Independence of the United States of America, Annoque Domini 1785, make and publish this my last will and testament in manner and form following: (that is to say).

Principally and first of all, I recommend my soul into the hands of Almighty God who gave it me and my body to the earth from whence it came. Trusting thro the merits of my Saviour, Jesus Christ, to receive the free pardon and forgiveness of all my sins and to inherit Eternal life, and as touching such worldling estate wherewith it hath pleased God to bless me, I give, demise and dispose of the same in the following manner and form (that is to say).

Impremis: First of all my mind and will is and I hereby order and direct that all my just debts and funeral charges be first paid and discharged out of my personal estate by my Executor and Executrix herein after named.

Item. I give Elizabeth BURLINGAME my loving wife, one cow and my horse to be her sole use and disposal.

Item. I give to my two well beloved daughters, Elizabeth BURLINGAME and Olive BURLINGAME my other cow equally between them with free liberty to keep said cow on my homestead during the natural life of their mother, the above named Elizabeth BURLINGAME.

Item. I give to my well beloved grandson, Johnson BURLINGAME, my small armour gun.

Item. I give to my well beloved grandson, Gideon BISHOP, my best beaver hat.

Item. I give to my well beloved son, Daniel BURLINGAME, all the rest and remainder of my wearing apparel.

Item. I give to my said loving wife all the remaining part of my household goods and out-door moveables and personal estate after my just debts, funeral charges, and the legacies herein after given to three of my sons and three of my daughters, that is to say, Joseph, Benedict, and John and Sibbel, Sarah and Hannah is paid and discharged out of the same, to be and remain to the sole use and disposal of my said loving wife. And my mind and will further is and I do hereby order and direct that my abovesaid loving wife, Elizabeth BURLINGAME, have the free use, improvement and in-

[page 23]

come from my homestead during the remaining part of her life in order to make her life as comfortable as her decrepit situation will admit of.

Item. I give to my three aforenamed sons, Joseph BURLINGAME, Benedict BURLINGAME and John BURLINGAME, five shillings lawful money each to be paid to them severally and respectively by my Executor and Executrix within one year after my decease.

And my mind and will further is and I do hereby direct that within one month after the death of my aforesaid loving wife all my real estate be sold at public sale to the highet bidder and the money arising from the sale thereof to be divided in the following manner after the charges for the sale thereof be deducted out of the same, that is to say: the two fifths parts I give to my beloved son Daniel BURLINGAME and the remaining three fifths parts I give tomy son John BURLINGAME, Elizabeth BURLINGAME and Olive BURLINGAME to be equally divided between them and to be and remain unto them my last mentioned two sons and two daughters according to their respective heirs and assigns forever.

And I do hereby constitute, make and ordain my aforesaid loving wife and my respected friend and son-in-law Christopher WHIPPLE of Cumberland, aforesaid gentleman, joint Executrix and Executor to this my last will and testament … “

The will was signed by Daniel MILLER, Daniel F. WHIPPLE and John DEXTER in addition to John BURLINGAME. John BURLINGAME III died the next year in Cumberland. He is presumed to have been buried on his farm, as was the custom at that time.

Elizabeth PLIMPTON BURLINGAME was probably in poor health her last years since the will mentions her “decrepit situation.” She died two years after her husband is also presumed buried at Cumberlan, RI.

It is not known whether any family members bid on the land which was divided up and sold at Elizabeth’s death. The period immediately after the War for Independence saw thousands of Rhode Islanders leave for New Hampshire and Vermont, and later for upstate New York. Some BURLINGAMEs remained in Rhode Island, but beginning with John BURLINGAME III’s children, most of our family began the long migration that would eventually lead to the Pacific Northwest.

The children of John and Elizabeth PLIMPTON BURLINGAME are listed on the following page.

[page 24]

HUSBAND JOHN BURLINGAME III
Born 6 June 1712	Place Cranston RI
Married 28 Apr 1738	Place Providence RI
Occupation Farmer	Resided at Cumberland RI
Church Affil. 6 Principle Baptist	War Serv.
Died 5 Jul 1786	Place Cumberland RI
Buried	Place
Other wives None
Father John BURLINGAME Jr. (1690-1755)
Mother (maiden name) Sarah BRIGGS (1688-1763)
WIFE ELIZABETH PLIMPTON
Born c. 1722	Place Attleboro Massachusetts
Church Affil. Baptist	Occupation Housewife
Died 26 Oct 1788	Place Cumberland RI
Buried	Place
Other husb. None
Father Jeremiah PLIMPTON
Mother (maiden name) probably Elizabeth JOHNSON

CHILDREN		BORN	DIED	MARRIED
		When Where	When Where	To whom When Where
Elizabeth	BURLINGAME	Cranston RI	1831 Ira, Vermont Rutland Co.	_____ BISHOP
* Daniel	BURLINGAME	c. 1745 Cranston RI	4 Sept 1820 Ira, Vermont Rutland Co.	Sarah (MARTIN?) c. 1772 RI
Sibbel	BURLINGAME	c. 1745/46 Cumberland RI		Ben BROWN 1767 John BATES 1775 Cumberland RI
Joseph	BURLINGAME	1748 Cumberland RI	c. 1777 RI (R.War wounds)	Mary JOHNSON 25 Oct 1770 Cumberland RI
Benedict	BURLINGAME
Sarah	BURLINGAME	1752 Cumberland RI	9 Dec 1845 Cumberland RI	C. WHIPPLE 26 Mar 1767 Cumberland RI
Olive	BURLINGAME	Cumberland RI
Hannah	BURLINGAME	1757 Cumberland RI		Elias BATES 1777 John COLE 1779
John	BURLINGAME IV	1760 Cumberland RI	24 Dec 1822 Ira, Vermont Rutland Co.	Esther HARMON 1783

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FIFTH GENERATION:

DANIEL BURLINGAME (about 1745-4 Sept 1820) was the eldest son of John BURLINGAME III (1712-1786) and Elizabeth PLIMPTON (1722-1788). He was born in Cranston, RI. A few years afterwards, his parents moved to Cumberland, RI, abot 15 miles north of Cranston.

While living at Cumberland in the early 1770′s, Daniel BURLINGAME married SARAH (MARTIN?) (about 1750 – after 1810). Sarah was also known as “Sally”. Nothing is known about her parents. Her maiden name may have been MARTIN or WHIPPLE. The 1774 Cumberland census listed Daniel and Sarah as having no children at that time.

The Revolutionary War began in 1775 and Rhode Island was a center of anti-British feelings. Daniel was one of the signers of the Oath of Fidelity at Coventry RI on Sept. 28, 1776:

“We, the subscribers do solemly and sincerely declare that we believe the war, resistance & opposition in which the United American States are now engaged — against the fleets and armies of Great Britain, is on the part of the said States, just and necessary and that we will not directly or indirectly, afford assistance of any sort or kind whatsoever to the said Fleets and Armies during the continuance of the present war, — but that we will heartily assist in the defence of the United States.”

On Jan. 21, 1776, Daniel BURLINGAME enlisted in Cumberland in Capt. DEXTER’s Company, Colonel LIPPITT’s Regiment of Rhode Island footmen. He remained in the colonial army for one year until he was discharged at Peekshill on Jan. 17, 1777. His rank was that of Private. Colonel LIPPITT was a distant cousin of Daniel BURLINGAME. Daniel’s brother, Joseph BURLINGAME, died as the result of wounds received in the war for independence.

Daniel and Sarah BURLINGAME were still living in Cumberland in 1782 when the town census listed them with six children — 4 sons and 2 daughters, all under the age of 16. In 1788 or 1789, following the death of his mother, and his inheritance of two-fifths of her estate, Daniel moved to New Hampshire. He and Sarah appear on a list of residents in Richmond, NH, in School District #13 in 1789. The 1790 federal census for Richmond lists them with 6 children.

Daniel also appears in the records of the nearby town of Winchester NH. Both towns are located in SW New Hampshire where the three states of Vermont, New Hampshire and Massachusetts join. This area had long been settled. Daniel probably purchased an existing farm.

In 1801/1802, Daniel and Sarah moved once again — this time to a farm near the small town of Ira, in Rutland Co. Vermont. Ira is on the western edge of Vermont, some ten miles from the New York border and not far from the southern tip of Lake George. Land records show that Daniel BURLINGAME bought 100 acres in Ira on Dec. 18, 1802 from George SHERMAN for $150. The SHERMAN land was sold by the town to cover taxes due.

Daniel had not moved to an unfamiliar area. His brother, John BURLINGAME IV (1760-1822), had moved to Ira by 1779, and had raised his seven children there. Daniel’s grown children seem to have followed their father. By 1807, Daniel’s sons, Joseph and James, were also landowners in Ira.

[page 26]

A history of Ira, VT, written by S.I. Peck in 1925 contains little genealogical material on the BURLINGAME family, but does mention other items of note. The town of Ira, approximately six miles square, peaked in population in 1810 with 519 inhabitants. The population was almost entirely Baptist. Most of the farmers kept large flocks of sheep in the early 1800′s. The dominant family in the town was that of Mr. Preserved FISH, whom the BURLINGAMEs married into.

The 1810 Federal Census for Ira shows Daniel and Sarah BURLINGAME with only one daughter, aged 16-26, still living at home. Sometime after 1810 and before 1818, Sarah BURLINGAME is believed to have died at Ira. In 1818, Daniel applied for a Revolutionary War Veterans Pension and did not mention a wife in his claim. His pension of $8 a month was eventually issued in 1820 with arrears of $181.83 paid up to March 4, 1820. By the time Daniel died on Sept. 4, 1820, he had collected a total of $229.83 for serving his country. Daniel died intestate. His brother, John BURLINGAME IV, served as the Executor of his estate.

Daniel and Sarah BURLINGAME had at least six children. The four known ones are listed below.

HUSBAND DANIEL BURLINGAME
Born c. 1745	Place Cranston RI
Married c. 1771-73	Place Probably at Cumberland RI
Occupation Farmer	Resided at Cumberland RI, Richmond NH, Ira VT
Church Affil. Baptist	War Serv. Revolutionary War (RI) 1776-1777
Died 4 Sept 1820	Place Ira, Rutland Co. VT
Buried	Place Ira, Rutland Co. VT
Other wives None known
Father John BURLINGAME III (1712-1786)
Mother (maiden name) Elizabeth PLIMPTON (1722-1788)
WIFE SARAH (perhaps MARTIN) also called “Sally”
Born c. 1750	Place
Church Affil.	Occupation Housewife
Died Between 1810-1818	Place Ira, Rutland Co. VT
Buried	Place Ira, Rutland Co. VT
Other husb. None known
Father MARTIN & WHIPPLE are possible surnames
Mother (maiden name)

CHILDREN		BORN	DIED	MARRIED
		When Where	When Where	To whom When Where
1 Joseph	BURLINGAME	c. 1775 Cumberland RI	22 Dec. 1842 Brattleboro VT	Amy WHIPPLE 14 Mar 1803 Ira, VT
2 Rosetta	BURLINGAME	c. 1778 Cumberland RI	before 1843	—– FISH
3 Sarah	BURLINGAME	c. 1780 Cumberland RI		William ARMSKEE
*4 James R	BURLINGAME	c. 1784 Cumberland RI	9 Aug 1852 York Twp. Carroll Co. IL	Martha HAWKS 15 Sept 1805 Ira VT

Edward Rossiter, His Family, and Notes on His English Connections

Source: Meredith B. Colket, Jr., “Edward Rossiter, His Family, and Notes on His English Connections,” American Genealogist 13[1937].

[page 145]

Edward ROSSITER, of Combe St. Nicholas, Somersetshire, gentleman, was one of the most distinguished members of the Massachusetts Bay Company. His name is first mentioned in connection with America in 1629 when he was elected one of eighteen magistrates (they were styled “Assistants”) to aid the newly elected Governor, WINTHROP, in ruling his large domain. ROSSITER is one of the few known stockholders of the Massachusetts Bay Company to have settled in America; he is one of two assistants to have come from the west-country. Yet despite the prominence of Edward ROSSITER and despite the fact that a large number of Americans are descended from him, very little has been written about this man and his family. This is owing partly to the fact that certain early records in the town which he settled have been burned, partly because the parish records of Combe St. Nicholas before 1678 are lost, and partly because he died the year he came over, and no record of a will or distribution of the large estate he reputedly died possessed of has turned up. The writer has assembled a few notes relative to his interesting career, to his family, and to his English connections, and it is hoped that this article may serve as a stimulus toward a more thorough search of the English records and toward a genealogy of his American descendants.

Herewith are a few abstracts of the English records relative to the ROSSITERS:

Will of Joseph COMBE of Combe St. Nicholas, co. Somerset. Dated 21 March 1619-20. Proved 28 April 1620. (Abstracted: Abstract of

[page 146]

Wills in the Prerogative Court of Canterbury. Register Soame, 1620, p. 115; and Brown, Abstracts of Somerset Wills, Second Series. p. 22)

Bur. in Ch. of Combe; dau. Agnis (und. 21) £100; dau. Joan £80 at 21; my child unborn; Extrx: wife Winefred; John BOWDAGE of Totworthe in psh of Chard; George FRYE of Combe; bro. Wm. COMBE of Combe; my bro. Edw. ROSSITER and my bro. Edm. COMBE. Wits: Joseph GREENEFIELD, clk., John FRYE, Edward ROSSITER, Edmunde COMBE.

Will of John FRYE the elder of Combe St. Nicholas, co. Somerset. Dated 13 Jan. 1618-19. Proved 31 Dec. 1620 by John FRYE,^a brother of deceased, Joseph COMBE being dead. (Abstract of Wills in the Prerogative Court of Canterbury. Register Soame, 1620, pp. 429-30)

Bur. in Ch. or chyd. of the sd. psh. Sister Maute MEERES, her daus. Margt. and Agnes MERES (both und. 21); Hughe, son of Edw. ROSCITER; cos. Eliz. BOURMAN.

Will of John FRY (Junior, brother of above) of Combe St. Nicholas, Somerset, gentleman. Dated 2 Jan. 1635. Proved 20 Nov. 1638. (Waters, Genealogical Gleanings, p. 765)

To be buried in the parish church of Combe St. Nicholas. My wife, Dorothy, Lands in Combe St. Nicholas lately purchased of Edward ROSSITER, gent., deceased.

Power of attorney of George BETTY of Combe St. Nicholas, Somerset. Given 2 Feb. 1664. (New England Register, Vol. 81 p. 122)

Power of attorney given Feb. 2, 1664 by George BETTY of Combe St. Nicholas in the county of Somerset, to Humphrey PINNY of Windsor in the Colony of Conn., over the estate of BETTY’s children John and Elinor. Signed, sealed, and delivered unto Hugh ROSSITER, for the use of Humphrey PINNEY… (Note: Humphrey PINNEY came to New England in the “Mary and John” with Edward ROSSITER. Bryan ROSSITER resided for a time at Windsor).

During the five years after Mr. ROSSITER’s decease, 1630-35, the names of three ROSSITERs appear in the Dorchester (Mass.) records. One Bryan ROSSITER became a freeman 18 May 1631, and he has been identified as a son. Secondly, there is constant reference to one “Mr. ROSSITER” who seems to have possessed a huge tract on the outskirts of Dorchester. It has been ingeniously supposed that he was an eldest son who inherited his father’s property but returned to England, and in the light of facts now available this is quite possible. Finally, one Hugh ROSSITER appears in the records, first in Dorchester, later in Taunton, but his name disappears from American records sometime before 1643. Savage, in his “Genealogical Dictionary,” cautiously asserted he was probably not son of Edward, and this statement has somehow prevented anyone from attempting to make any analysis of their relationship whatever. In fact, the identity of Hugh ROSSITER has been a puzzle to genealogists for over a century.

———–

(a) A study of the FRYE family may lead to further clues in determining the ROSSITER ancestry. According to the Visitations of Devon, a John FRYE married a ROSSITER. The above John FRYEs were brothers being styled John FRYE, the elder, and John FRYE, Junior, respectively.

[page 147]

Only once, in colonial New England, did ROSSITERs come to settle; indeed, all known ROSSITER comeovers appeared abouth the same time in the same town of Dorchester. Certainly it would be a most curious coincidence if these ROSSITERs were not closely related; interestingly enough, the first mention of Hugh in New England records shows him acquiring land adjoining a ROSSITER:

10 Feb. 1634-35. “It is granted unto Hugh ROSSITER and Richard ROCKET^b to have each of them 8 acres of land on the west side of the brooke adjoining to Mr. ROSCITERs ground, as farr forth as the Plantation hath any right to dispose of it.”

– New England Register, Vol. XXI, p. 330.

On the face of it there is strong presumptive evidence that Hugh was related to Bryan and Edward. It is more than of passing interest then when we find John FRYE, the elder, of Combe St. Nicholas, referring in his will dated 13 Jan. 1618-19 to “Hughe, son of Edw. ROSCITER.” There seems little doubt that Hugh, son of Edward, is identical with the Hugh who appeared in Dorchester records some sixteen years later.

Before discussing the apparent objections of Savage, I would like to consider a statement that has been made and repeated in publication after publication for generations until now it has been accepted by genealogists as undisputed fact, yet it is not based on the slightest thread of evidence, so far as this writer has been able to ascertain. I am referring to the assertion constantly repeated that Hugh was the father of Jane (ROSSITER) GILBERT. The earliest published statement to this effect appears in a footnote in Baylie’s History of New Plymouth,^c 1830. Farmer’s Genealogical Dictionary — excellent for its times — came out the preceding year, and though Edward and Bryan were both discussed, no mention was made of Hugh. Baylie seems to have based his assertion upon the single fact that both Hugh and Jane appeared in the Taunton records. Joane ROSSITER (daughter of Edward) who married Nicholas HART undoubtedly also lived at Taunton, as her husband made his residence there before he removed to Rhode Island. If Baylie had known this fact why wouldn’t he have made this Joane a daughter of Hugh? At this early period in genealogical research, many guesses were made about the early ROSSITERs that were not based on actual fact and have long since been disproved, e.g., that Edward was of Devonshire, that he had six or seven sons, that Hugh was the ancestor of the Connecticut ROSSITERs, and so forth. Genealogists have discarded most of these guesses, but the assertion that Jane was a daughter of Hugh has still been accepted. While there is

———-

(b) The ROCKETs and ROSSITERs of the west-country were closely identified. One John ROCKETT, of Thornecombe, Devon, refers in his will dated 1615 (P.C.C.) to one John ROSSITER of Somerset and mentions Combe St. Nicholas.

(c) Vol. II, Part II, p. 281.

[page 148]

still a possibility that it may be true, it has never been proved in a recognized genealogical journal, and the known facts certainly make the statement questionable.

It is known that Hugh received land in Dorchester in 1635, that he is mentioned in the Taunton records in 1637-38 when he became one of the original purchasers of the town, that he certainly was not in the town in 1643 when the military list was prepared and the name never appears in American records subsequent to about 1638. To have been the father of a girl born ca. 1614 (see below), Hugh must have been aged about 45-50 in 1638, while there is every indication both in English and American records that he would be a young man at this time. Savage apparently objected to a relationship with Edward (1) because Hugh seems to have been too old, as the father of Jane, to be the son of Edward, (2) because Hugh seems never to have been dignified with the title of “Mr.” as Edward had always been, and (3) because his comparatively minute land holding appear to place him in a much lower social status. Hugh may be the father of Jane, but in the light of known facts, it seems very doubtful. It is almost indisputable that Hugh and Edward are related, regardless of the relationship of Jane, and there is nothing to suggest they were brothers. In considering the second possible objection, we must remember that the title “Mr.” was given sparingly enough in the early colonial period, and as a younger son of Edward, he probably would not be thus referred to. Certainly Bryan’s name appears often in the earlier records simply as “Bray ROSSITER.” Thirdly, although Mrs. Joane HART received as much as 500 acres of land from the Mass. Government in the right of her father, Mr. Edward ROSSITER, we must not lose sight of the fact that one “Mr.” ROSSITER had a grant from the town of Dorchester^d of only 6 acres in 1631. This was probably Bryan who became a freeman of the town in the early part of that year.

If it is a matter of guessing the identity of Jane (ROSSITER) GILBERT it might be just as well assumed that Jane who married Thomas GILBERT in 1639 was the young widow of Hugh. Jane was born ca. 1614 and on 23 March 1639/40, was aged about 26, a rather late age for a girl of that period to enter her first matrimonial adventure, when marriages for women at this period seem to have been almost regularly at about 18 to 20. Yet even this proposed solution does not exhaust all possibilities. The point to be emphasized is that the parentage of Jane (ROSSITER) GILBERT has not been positively ascertained.

Bearing the above discussion in mind, let us try to reconstruct the early history of the ROSSITER family.

———-

(d) The few earliest pages of the Dorchester town records are now destroyed, but Blake in 1745 abstracted some of their contents. See New England Register, Vol. XXXII, p. 58, note.

[page 149]

The name ROSSITER, usually spelled ROSSETER, is most uncommon in west-country records. In the Visitation of Somerset,^e however, there is a short record of one John ROSSITER of Crewkerne who married Agnes, daughter of John FOSTER, and had a son John who was of “Old Cleve” in 1631. The arms of the family are given as: ARGENT ON A CHEVRON GULES THREE PHEONS OR. In Lincolnshire on the opposite coast of England the family seems to have sprung into one of considerable size. In Maddison’s “Lincolnshire Pedigrees” (p. 831) there is a detailed account of the family of ROSSETER of Aslackby and it is interesting to note that the pedigree is headed by one Richard ROSSETER of Coome, co. Somerset, who married dau. of HARTGILL, sister of HARTGILL murdered by Charles, 8th Lord STOURTON, 1555-56. The arms therein given are but slightly varied from the above, being ARGENT, ON A CHEVRON GULES THREE PHEONS OF THE FIELD.

The predecessors of our Edward of Combe St. Nicholas are still undeterminable, though it is not improbable that there is some connection of Edward and the Richard mentioned in Maddison as being of “Coombe, co. Somerset.”^f Edward’s^g birth can be tentatively set at ca. 1585 (this approximation fits in well with the known facts and is five years earlier than the baptism of his close associate Roger LUDLOW). The name of his wife is still unknown, though perhaps suggested by the above abstracts. His name first appears in English records in 1610-11 when he signs, along with others of Combe St. Nicholas, a petition in behalf of a poor and aged couple Richard and Ursula STOCKMAN.^h John FRYE, Junior, a close associate and friend, also signs the petition. From the various references to his name, it is apparent that he was a man of wealth and influence in his parish. He was deeply religious and took an enthusiastic part in the project of colonizing America. He sold his property at Combe (at least in part) to John FRYE, Junior, and became one of the original stockholders of the Massachusetts Bay Company. On 20 Oct. 1629 he was chosen an assistant for the Company. That year he seems to have been an influential leader among the small group of west-country folk who were gathered at Plymouth, preparatory for the long trip across the ocean. To defray the expenses both for food while at Plymouth and for the cost of transporting people, freight, and goods from Plymouth to America, ROSSITER borrowed heavily from the Rev. John WHITE, of Dorchester, Dorset, the leading spirit back of the migration. The total account was £106.09.09

———–

(e) The Visitation edited by Weaver. Exeter, 1885, p. 128.

(f) The name ROSSETER does not appear in the early records of the west-country and is almost absent in Collinson’s Somersetshire. There is every indication that the ROSSETER family of Combe St. Nicholas originated in Lincolnshire; and Maddison gives at least one pedigree of the family which dates to the 15th century.

(g) Edward, a grandson of the above Richard, was baptized at Aslackby, 24 Feb. 1560/1. was assessed for a subsidy in 1598, but subsequently disappears from the records.

(h) Somerset Record Society, Vol. 23, p. 73.

[page 150]

(a large sum for those days), which was repaid in part before his departure from Plymouth and in part after his departure through his son “Mr. Nich: ROSSITER by his order” on 4 Feb. 1630 and 1 April 1630.ⁱ A sum of £15.02.00 was “due by Mr. ROSSETER’s Executors” to the Rev. John WHITE after ROSSITER’s death. Among the charges against ROSSITER, we find an item of £47.13.04 for the “passage of 13 persons att 3^l 13^s 4^d each person.”

The group of Pilgrims left Plymouth in the Mary and John 20 March 1630 and arrived on the New England coast a fortnight before the WINTHROP fleet. Most of the passengers, ROSSITER and his family among them, settled at a place on the coast which a few months later received the name of Dorchester. ROSSITER has the distinction of being one of the nine present at the first meeting of the court in New England, 23 Aug. 1630. He attended two subsequent meetings of the court, but on 23 Oct. 1630 there appears the terse note in Governor WINTHROP’s “Journal”: “Mr. ROSSITER, one of the assistants died.”^j But Thomas DUDLEY, then Deputy-Governor, wrote rather feelingly to the Countess of Lincoln:^k “Within a month after,^l died Mr. ROSSITER, another of the assistants, a godly man and of good estate, which still weakened us more.”^m An English grandson of Edward ROSSITER refers to him years later as “a pious gentleman of good estate who left England for the sake of religion.”ⁿ Here is an example of a wealthy Englishman, of undoubted gentry extraction, who came to America for religious freedom but died before he could carry out his ideals.

The children of Mr. Edward ROSSITER, as far as known, with proof of parentage, are as follows:

I. NICHOLAS, b. prob. ca. 1608. Probably eldest son; as far as known did not come to America; mentioned as “Mr.” Nich: ROSSITER son of Edward in the accounts of the Rev. John WHITE of Dorchester, Dorset, in 1630. Edward (grandson of the first Edward) who was deacon of the dissenting church at Taunton, Somerset, in 1682^o may have been his son.

II. BRYAN (alias BRAY), b. prob. ca. 1610. He was admitted freeman at Dorchester, 18 May 1631. Parentage indicated when his son-in-law John COTTON in 1685 petitions the Mass. Court in behalf of Joane, dau. of Edward ROSSITER. Bryan, a noted Connecticut physician, d. at Guilford, Conn., 30 Sept. 1672. He m. Elizabeth dau. of the Rev. John ALSOP of Crewkerne, Somerset.^p She d. at Guilford, 29 Aug. 1669. Issue.

———-

(i) Rose-Troup. The Rev. John WHITE Founder of New England, has an interesting verbatim copy of the account.

(j) 1908 edit., Vol. 1, p. 53.

(k) She was a daughter of Lord SAY AND SELE, colonizer, in whose honor Saybrook, Conn., was named. See Cockayne, Complete Peerage, Vol. VII, p. 697.

(l) After 30 Sept. 1630.

(m) Collection of the Massachusetts Historical Society, 1802, Vol. VIII, p. 40.

(n) Hutchinson, History of Massachusetts Bay.

(o) Ibid.

(p) The finding of Waters, viz., that Elizabeth was the sister of the Rev. Josiah ALSOP of London, has been generally accepted. His birthplace, parentage, biography, and the biography of a brother, are given in Alumni Cantabrigienses, Part I, Vol. 1, p. 24.

[page 151]

III. HUGH, mentioned 1619 in the will of John FRYE of Combe St. Nicholas as son of Edward. Probably identical with the Hugh who obtained land at Dorchester, 1635, and who became an original purchaser of Taunton shortly thereafter. One of this name about to leave Combe St. Nicholas, Somerset, for Windsor, Conn., 1664.

IV. JOANE, b. ca. 1616. She m. Nicholas HART who was early of Taunton but who removed to Warwick, R.I. He is stated by Austin to have d. about 1654. Upon petition to the Mass. Court in 1675 she received 500 acres of land from the Government in 1685 and at that time was stated to be “youngest surviving child of the late Mr. Edward ROSSITER, one of the adventurers.”^q Mrs. Joane HART, widow, d. at Plymouth 9 June 1691, being 75 years of age. (Plymouth Church Records, Vol. 1, p. 271.) Issue.

(?) “JANE,” relationship with above not proved, b. ca. 1614, d. 1 June 1691 at Taunton, aged 77; m. at Taunton, 23 March 1639/40, Thomas GILBERT. Issue.

Haskell and Allied Families

Source: Herbert A. Hull, “Haskell and Allied Families,” Americana 21[1927].

[page 449]

(The ROSSITER Line).

Arms — Argent, an alligator vert.

Crest — An eagle displayed with two heads proper.

The ROSSITERS are an Anglo-Norman family which settled in Rathmacnee, County Wexford, at the invasion of 1172, and continued one of the chief gentry and landed proprietors in the baronies of Forth and Bargy, in the County, until deprived of their estates by Oliver CROMWELL. In 1280 Edward I, John DE ROUCESTER, was paid two pounds for services to the king; in 1345 Edward III, John ROUCESTER, was summoned, with many other gentry of Mexford, to attend the Lord Justices with horse and arms; and in 1364-65, Rover RAWCETER was summoned to attend with men-at-arms and hobellers at the Duffry; John ROSSITER, Esq., of Rathmacnie, died April 8,

[page 450]

1627, leaving three sons, Thomas, Philip, and Marcus, who were deprived of all their lands.

Lower in his “Patronymica Britannica” says that the name ROSSITER is a corrupted pronunciation of Wroxter, a parish in Shropshire, the ancient Roman station of Uriconium. Bardsley agrees with Lower in the above statement, but adds that in most cases it is probably of local origin meaning “of Rochester,” the change being to ROUCESTER and then to ROSSITER.

I. Edward ROSSITER.

II. Dr. Bryan (or Bray) ROSSITER, son of Edward ROSSITER, died at Guilford, Connecticut, September 30, 1672. He came to America with his father, Edward ROSSITER, in the “Mary and John,” in 1630. He was made freeman at Dorchester, Massachusetts, in 1631; in 1639 removed to Windsor, Connecticut, where he was town clerk; came to Guilford, buying Mr. Samuel DESBOROUGH’s estate, in 1651. It is said that he was the only physician in Connecticut Colony at the time of his removal to Guilford. His medical practice was very extensive, and he is supposed to have performed the first autopsy in Connecticut. Shortly after removing to Guilford, he fell out with Governor William LEETE and the majority of the townspeople, very probably because his own son-in-law was not chosen to the vacant pulpit. The difficulties increased, and at the time of the struggle over the union with Connecticut, he placed himself at the head of the party favoring immediate union. He was admitted as a freeman in Guilford, June 8, 1654, and though he left the town for a time, when KILLINGWORTH settled there, he returned and died there. Where he studied medicine is unknown. He was also a surveyor, and laid out the lands about the Hammonasset River, in 1656. While at Windsor he served as the first town clerk in 1639. Dr. ROSSITER married Elizabeth, surname unknown.

Children: 1. Samuel. 2. John. 3. Elizabeth. 4. Timothy. 5. Joanna, of whom further. 6. Peter. 7. Abigail. 8. Josiah, born in 1646. 9. Susannah, born November 22, 1652. 10. Sarah.

III. Joanna ROSSITER, daughter of Dr. Bryan and Elizabeth ROSSITER, was born in July, 1642, and died at Sandwich, Massachusetts, October 12, 1702. She married, November 7, 1660, John COTTON. (See COTTON II.)

New England Marriages Prior to 1700

Source: Clarence Almon Torrey, New England Marriages Prior to 1700 (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing
Company, 1987). [WorldCat]

[pages xiv-xv]

For each of the 37,000 couples herein covered, the husband’s full name (roughly alphabetical, with variant spellings grouped under the most common) is followed sometimes by a superscript to indicate generation (usually first or second), then by birth and death years, if known, in parenthese. “(1654-)” indicates a birth in 1654 and an unknown death year; “(-1700)” indicates an unknown birth year and a death in 1700. “Ca” for “circa” means “about” and “ae 35 in 1674″ indicates aged 35 in 1674, a fact recorded probably in a court deposition. After an ampersand, “&”, the wife’s full name is given, with any known birth or death years likewise in parenthesis. “1/wf” or “2/wf” indicates first or second wife, any surname in parenthesis is a maiden name (in general, if there are two surnames, one or both in parenthesis, the first is a maiden surname, the second that of a first husband; if there are three surnames, however the parentheses are placed, the last two are those of previous husbands in chronological order), a blank line (within or outside parenthesis) indicates that the wife’s maiden name is unknown, a surname in brackets is one not derived from a marriage record, “w Daniel” indicates “widow of Daniel,” whose last name is given earlier, and “m/2″ or “m/3″, followed by a man’s full name and often a year, indicates a second or third marriage. After the data on husband and wife is a semi-colon, then a date. If the date is exact — 25 Nov. 1674 — it is a marriage (or marriage intention) date; if it is a year only, preceded “b”, it is the birth date of a first child, not the birthdate of either partner, and the marriage can be assumed to have taken place a year or more earlier. Often these “first child” birthdates are approximate. Following this date is a list of residences, from marriage through usually the death of the husband, in chronological order. Question marks alongside any data indicate doubt, of course; “+” after a date means “following”, “-” means “Before”, and stray kinships that might provide clues to origins are sometimes noted as well. Since marriages of men with the same name are also roughly chronological, and each marriage is listed separately, data on a man’s second marriage (including residence only after it) often does not immediately follow the listing for his first.

[page 14]

ALLERTON, Isaac² [(1630-1702 Virginia)] & 2/wf Elizabeth [WILLOUGHBY]/COLCLOUGH; 1663

[page 15]

AMBROSS, William & Elizabeth MATTOCK; 6 Jan 1697; Boston

[page 39]

BANKS, John & Mehitable MATTOX m/2 Thomas WEBBER; 29 Aug 1694; Boston

[pages 72-73]

BISHOP, Nathaniel (-1687) & Alice ? (not Alice MATTOCKS)(-1674+) b 1634; Boston

BISHOP, Nathaniel & Alice [MATTOCKS?], m/2 John LEWIS 1659, m/3 Abraham HOWE by 1680, m/4 John HARRIS aft 1683; b 1634 (no)

[page 76]

BLAKE, William (1594-1663) & Agnes (?THORNE) BAND/BOND? (-1678), wid; Pitminster, Eng, 27 Sep, 23 Sep 1617; Dorchester

[page 108]

BROWN, Samuel & Mary MATTOCKE, m/2 Thomas BISHOP?; 9 Jul 1661; Boston

[pages 132-33]

CANFIELD, Samuel (1645-1690) & Sarah [WILLOUGHBY] (living 1677), left widow Elizabeth; ca 1668; Norwalk, CT

CANFIELD, Samuel & Elizabeth [MERWIN?/WILLOUGHBY?] (see above); ? ; Norwalk, CT

[page 257]

FAIRBANKS, Richard & Elizabeth (DAULTON); Boston, Eng, b 1636, b 1633, 17 Sep 1618; Boston, ?dau Lydia m/1 Edward BATES, m/2 William FLETCHER

[page 302]

GILBERT, John (-1657) & 3/wf 2/wf Winifred (ROSSITER) COMBE (-1663+); in Eng b 1619; Dorchester/Taunton

…

GILBERT, Thomas (-1676, 1677) & Jane (COMBE) ROSSITER (-1691), Taunton, ?w Hugh?; 23 Mar 1639, 1639/40 (no); Taunton

GILBERT, Thomas² (?1620-1662) & Catherine (CHAPIN) BLISS (1626-1712), w Nathaniel, m/3 Samuel MARSHFIELD 1664; 31 Jun 1655, 30 Jun 1655, ?31 Jul; Springfield

GILBERT, Thomas (1643-1725, ae 82y), ?Boston & Anna BLAKEY/BLACKE of Milton (1653-1722); 18 Dec 1676; Taunton

[page 339]

HAMMOND, Lawrence (-1699) & 3/wf Margaret WILLOUGHBY (-1683), w Francis; 8 Feb 1674/5; Charlestown

[page 348]

HART, Nicholas (-1645±) & Jane/Joan [ROSSITER] (1616, ?1615-1685±, 1691); b 1635?; Taunton/Warwick, RI/Portsmouth, RI/ Plymouth

[page 461]

LEONARD, Isaac (ca 1650-ca 1717) & Deliverance ? ; b 1680; Bridgewater

[page 462]

LEONARD, Solomon (?1610-1686) & Mary (CHANDLER) (-bef 1 May 1671); b 1640, b 1643?; Duxbury/Bridgewater

LEONARD, Solomon² & Mary ? ; b 1680; Bridgewater

[page 463]

LEWIS, John & Alice [MATTOCKS? no?] BISHOP, m/2 Abraham HOWE bef 1680, m/3 John HARRIS (1683+); 22 Nov 1659; Boston

[page 480]

LYNDE, Nathaniel (1659-1729) & 1/wf Susanna WILLOUGHBY (1664-1710); b 1683; Charlestown/ Saybrook, CT

[page 488]

MARCH, George & Mary FOULSOM/FOLSOM, m/2 Joseph HERRICK; 12 Jun 1672; Newbury

MARCH, Hugh¹ (-1693) & 1/wf Judith ? (-1675); b 1646; Newbury

MARCH, Hugh¹ (-1693) & 2/wf Dorcas (BOWMAN) BLACKLEACH (-1683), w Benjamin; 29 May 1676; Newbury/Watertown

MARCH, Hugh (1656-) & Sarah MOODY (1663-); 29 Mar 1683; Newbury

MARCH, Hugh¹ (-1693) & 3/wf Sarah (CUTTING)(BROWN) HEALY (-1699), w James, w William; 3 Dec 1685; Newbury

MARCH, Hugh (1673-1695) & Sarah [COKER], m/2 Archaleus ADAMS 1698; b 1694; Newbury

MARCH, James (-1721) & Mary [WALKER] (1699-), dau Shubael, m/2 John EMERY; b 1690; Newbury

MARCH, John¹ (-1666) & 1/wf Rebecca ? ; b 1638; Charlestown

MARCH, John (-1666) & Anna [?BICKNER]; b 1666; Charlestown

MARCH, John & Jemima TRUE; 1 Oct 1679; Newbury

MARCH, John & Mary ANGIER; 11 Dec 1700; Newbury/Reading

MARCH, Nicholas & Martha ? , m/2 William DADEY? 1670; b 1657; Charlestown

MARCH, Stephen & Anna WILBORN; 26 Jan 1691/2; Taunton

MARCH/MARSH, Theophilus (-1694) & Elizabeth HUNT; 10 Jan 1664/5, 3 Feb 1664/5, 3 Feb 1664; Cambridge/Charlestown

MARCH, ? & ? FIELD; b 1701?; Flushing, LI

[page 497]

MATTOCK, David (-1654) & Sarah ? , m/2 Thomas RAWLINS 1656; Braintree/Roxbury

MADOCKS, Edmund & Rebecca MUNINGS/MUNNINGS; 14 Jan 1651/2; Boston

MADDOCK, Henry & Mary WELLINGTON (1640-), m/2 John COOLIDGE 1679; 21 May 1662; Watertown

MATTOCK/MADDOCK, Henry & Rachel ? ; b. 1673; Saco, ME/Boston

MATTOX, Henry & Diana SOUTHER; 3 Mar 1698; Boston

MATTOCKS, James (-1667) & Mary [SPOORE?]; b 1637; Boston

MADDOCKS, John (-1703) & Ruth CHURCH, m/2 Joseph CHILD, m/3 Thomas INGERSOLL 1720; 23 Jun 1689; Watertown

MATTOCK, John (1669-) & Elizabeth ? ; b. 1701?; Boston

MATTOCKE, Richard & Grace TOD (1650-); 2 Mar 1668/9; New Haven

MATTOCKE, Samuel & Constance FAIRBANKS; 30 Mar 1653; Boston

MATTOCKS, Samuel (1659-) & Anna/Ann?/Anne MARCH; 12 Apr 1688; Charlestown/Boston

[page 503]

MERIAM, George¹ (ca 1603-1675) & Susan/Susanna RAVEN (-1675+); Tunbridge, Eng, 16 Oct 1627; Concord

[page 579]

PHILLIPS, William (-1705, ae 35?) & Hannah (GILBERT) (1677-1705); b 1699, b 1697?; Taunton

[pages 599-600]

PRATT, Ebenezer & Martha ? ; ca 1700; Weymouth

PRATT, Ephriam (1675±1748) & Phebe ? (-1736); b 1698, (ca 1695?); Weymouth

PRATT, Joseph (1639-1720) & Sarah JUDKINS (1645-1726); 7 May 1662; Weymouth

PRATT, Joseph (1665-1765) & Sarah (BENSON) (-bef 1721); b 1693, ca 1690?; Weymouth

PRATT, John (-1647?) & Mary? (WHITMAN?) dau John, m/2 William TURNER bef 1671; b 1630; Dorchester

PRATT, John (ca 1622-1716) & Elizabeth WHITMAN (-1716, ae 82); 22 Nov 1656, 9? Oct, 27 Nov, no ch; Weymouth

PRATT, John (1668-) & Mercy (NEWCOMB) (1665-1721); b 1690; Weymouth

PRATT, John (1663-1744) & 1/wf Mary (NEWCOMB?); b 1686; Weymouth

PRATT, Matthew (1628-) & Sarah HUNT (1640-1729); 1 Aug 1661; Weymouth

PRATT, Matthew & Susanna PORTER/Mary ? (1665-1761); b 1691; Weymouth/Abington

PRATT, Matthew (-1673?) & Elizabeth [BATES?] in Eng b 1628, b 1622, 1619?; Weymouth/Rehoboth

PRATT, Phineas/Phinehas? (1590/93-1680, ae 90?, ae 81 in 1674) & Mary (PRIEST) GOBERTSON/CUTHBERTSON (-1682+, 1689?); ca 1627/33; Plymouth/Charlestown

PRATT, Samuel (1670-1728) & Patience (CHARLES) (1675-1735); b 1695; Weymouth/Taunton

PRATT, Samuel (-1679) & Hannah RODGERS/ROGERS (-1721, ae 77), m/2 Thomas BAILEY b 1687; 19 Sep 1660, 19 Jul; Weymouth

PRATT, Samuel (1670-1745±) & (Hannah?)(MILLER); b 1697; Middleborough

PRATT, Thomas (ca 1626-1676) & 1/wf Mary ? ; b 1653, b 1659; Weymouth

PRATT, Thomas & Deborah LOVELL (1664/5-1727); ca 1690; Weymouth

PRATT, Thomas & Lydia (?BROWN), m/2 Josiah CHAPIN 1676; ca 1665, b 1676; Weymouth

PRATT, Thomas (-1676) & Lydia (BROWN?) (1658?-) of Ipswich, m/2 Josiah CHAPIN 1676; ca 1665; Weymouth

PRATT, Thomas (1646-) & ? (had Mary 19 Apr 1680, Thomas 9 Dec 1682, Hannah 19 Jul 1685); b 1680; Concord (see Thomas & Alice)

PRATT, Thomas (1646-1720) & Alice ? ; b 1669; Charlestown/Chelsea

PRATT, William & Hannah ? ; ca 1700; Weymouth

PRATT, William (1674-) & Hannah HOUGH; 8? Oct 1700; Saybrook, CT

PRATT, William (1659-1713) & Elizabeth (BAKER)/(SWIFT?) (1656-); 26 Oct 1680; Dorchester

PRATT, William (ca 1620-) & Experience (KING); b 1692; Weymouth/Dorchester

[page 612]

RAWLINS, Thomas¹ (-1660) & 3/wf Sarah MADOCKS/MATTOCKS (-1660+) w David; 2 May 1656; Boston

[page 638]

ROSSITER, Hugh & (?Jane) ? (1614-1691), m/2 Thomas GILBERT 1639; Dorchester

…

ROSSITER, Edward (?1585-1630) & ? ; b 1615; Dorchester

[page 824]

WILLOUGHBY, Francis (?1613-1671) & 1/wf Mary ? (-1640); in Eng, b 1639, b 1635; Charlestown

WILLOUGHBY, Francis (?1613-1671) & 2/wf Sarah [TAYLOR] (-1654); 1640?, in Eng; Charlestown

WILLOUGHBY, Francis (?1613-1671) & 3/wf Margaret (LOCKE) TAYLOR, w Daniel, m Lawrence HAMMOND 1675; ca 1658-9, in Eng; Charlestown

WILLOUGHBY, Jonathan (ca 1635-) & Griszel GOLDESBOROUGH; in Eng, – Dec 1661, lic 3 Dec 1661; Charlestown/Wethersfield, CT

WILLOUGHBY, Nehemiah (1644-1702) & Abigail BARTHOLOMEW (1650-1702); 2 Jan 1671/2, 2 Jan 1671; Charlestown/Salem

WILLOUGHBY, William (1588-1651, in Eng) & Elizabeth ? (-1662, Charlestown); in Eng, b 1613; Charlestown

WILLOUGHBY, William & Abigail ? ; Greenland, NH

The Pioneers of Massachusetts

Source: Charles Henry Pope, The Pioneers of Massachusetts: A Descriptive List, Drawn from Records of the Colonies, Towns and Churches, and Other Contemporaneous Documents (Boston: Charles H. Pope, 1900).

[page 51]

BISHOP, BISHOPP, BUSHOP, BYSHOP,

[...]

Nathaniel, currier, Ipswich, propr. 1636-1639; rem. to Boston. Sold Ips. land 25 May, 1643; adm. chh. 24 (12) 1643; frm. May, 1645. He deposed to the will of Mary Drury 28 Nov. 1682, ae. 75 years. Wife Alice: Ch. Sarah b. (rec. at Boston) 20 (1) 1634, (m. 18 (7) 1654 Samuel Bucknell,) Ruth b. 14 (2) 1639, (m. 15 (2) 1656, John Peirce,) Joseph b. 14 (5) 1642, Benjamin b. 31 (3) 1644, (bapt. at Bo.,) John b. 31 (11) 1646, Samuel d. 7 (1) 1646, Hannah b. 11 (12) 1648, John bapt. 26 (11) 1650, Rebecca b. 8 (2) 1652. The widow Alice m. 22 Nov. 1659, John Lewis.

He made will 10 June, 1681, prob. 4 June, 1687, before Andros. Dau. Ruth, (wife of William Fuller, of Boston, victualler,) and her children, Ruth, wife of Philip Catland, Hannah, wife of William Smith, and Rebecca Pierce; dau. Rebecca, wife of Adam Holland.

[page 73]

BROWN, BROWNE,

[...]

John, mariner, Salem, propr. and member. chh. 1637; frm. May 2, 1638. Chosen ruling elder 1660. Wrecked on return from Virginia; lost vessel and goods, but arrived at Sal. in 1661. Had new ship built by William Stephens. Ales (Alice) presumed to be his wife, memb. chh. in 1637. Ch. Jonathan, (d. 1667; est. adm. by his father;) John bapt. 16 (7) 1638, Jacob and Samuel bapt. 13 (1) 1641, John bapt. 1 (3) 1642, James bapt. 17 (5) 1642, Joanna bapt. 9 (2) 1643, Eliza bapt. 23 (10) 1643, Eliza bapt. 14 (2) 1644, Nathaniel bapt. 28 (5) 1644.

His will dated 2 Jan. 1683, prob. 24 Nov. 1684, beq. to gr. ch. John and Abiel B.; to 4 ch. of his dec. son
James B.; to son-in-law Samuel Gardner, Jr. and his wife.

[page 110]

COLE, COLES, COAL, COOLE, COOLE,

Rice, or Ryse, Charlestown, memb. Boston chh. 1630; frm.. April 1, 1633, propr. Char. 1634. Wife Arrold; ch. Robert, (d. about 1660,) John, James, Mary, (m. Richard LOWDEN,) Elizabeth (m. Thomas PIERCE).

He d. 15 (3) 1646.  Will dated (3) 1646, prob. April 1, 1662.  To wife, sons Robert, John and James, and 2 daus.  Richard LOWDEN and Thomas PIERCE of Woburn, who m. the daus. asked for a division of the estate, the eldest and youngest sons having d. without heirs, leaving only one son.  The widow, Arrold, wrote from Charlestown Aug. 28, 1655, to her son and dau. JENKS and dau. Ruth COLES, giving love of “your bro. John COLE and bros. and sisters PEIRCE and LOWDEN.”  She wrote 16 (10) 1661 to dau. Ruth MOOD, referring to Ruth̓s former husband.  Henry MUDD of Stepney, Eng., mariner, and Ruth his wife, gave power of attorney to John SMITH of Charlestown 16 (–) 1661.  [Mdx. Files.]  Her will dated 20 (10) prob. 26 (10) 1662, beq. to son John C., sons LOWDEN and PERCE and their ch.; bro. Solomon PHIPPS.

[page 128]

DADY, DADE,

William, butcher, Charlestown, 1630, adm. Boston chh. 1631-2, frm. April 1, 1633. Was one of the attorneys of Mrs. Palsgrave before March 17, 1656. Wife Dorothy, adm. chh. 31 (6) 1633; she d. March 8 1670-1. Ch. William, Benjamin bapt. 24 (1) 1635, Nathaniel bapt. 22 (11) 1636, Zachariah b. 16 (3) 1644, Abigail.

He d. April 10, 1682, ae. 77. [Gr. St.] Will dated 3 Feb. 1681, prob. June 20, 1682, beq. to wife Martha and to her ch. by former husband; to son William and dau. Abigail.

[page 160]

FAIRBANK, FAIRBANCK, FAIRBANKS, FAIRBANCKE,

Jonathan, Dedham, propr. 23 (1) 1636-7, adm. chh. 14 (6) 1646. Town officer. Wife Grace; ch. John, George, Jonas, Jonathan; Mary adm. chh. 11 (10) 1640, (m. 1, Michael Metcalf, 2, Christopher Smith,) Susan, (m. 12 (8) 1647, Ralph Day).

He d. 5 Dec. 1668; his will prob. Jan. 26, folg., mentions all the above-named and some of their children. The widow d. 28 (10) 1673. [Reg. XIX, 32.] See will of George Fairbanke of Sowerby in Halifax, Eng., dated May 28, 1650. [Reg. VII, 303.] Genealogy.

Richard, Boston, adm chh. (8) 1633, frm. May 14, 1634. He had leave to sell his shop to Saunders, a bookbinder, 7 (6) 1637. He was appointed by Gen. Court 5 (9) 1639, to have charge of all letters to and from Eng., voluntarily brought to his house. He made exchange of land 1 (2) 1652. Wife Elizabeth adm. chh. with him; ch. Constance bapt. 10 (11) 1635, (m. 30 (1) 1653, Samuel Mattocke,) Zaccheus bapt. 8 (10) 1639, d. 10 (9) 1653.

[page 186]

GILBERT,

John, Dorchester, a grave, honest gentleman; his son was arrested for drunkenness in 1636. [W.] He rem. to Taunton; frm. Plym. Col. 4 Dec. 1638. Propr., town officer.

Will dated May 31, 1654, prob. June 3, 1657; to wife Winifred, ch: Gyles, Joseph, Thomas, John, Mary Norcrosse, and her dau. Mary; to wife’s gr. ch. Elizabeth Peslee. [Reg. V, 338.]

[page 215]

HART, HEART, compare with HARDY,

[...]

Nicholas, Taunton, atba. 1643. [see ROSSITER.]

[page 285]

LEWIS, LEWES,

John, of Tenterden, Eng., with wife Sarah, came in the Hercules in March, 1634. Settled at Scituate. Frm. Plym. Col. 7 Feb. 1636-7. Butcher, rem. to Boston, 1652; ch. Sarah bapt. at Bo. 5 (11) 1650. Wife Sarah d. 12 (5) 1657; he m. 22 Nov. 1659 Alice, widow of Nathaniel Bishop, who joined him in a deed of land 24 Aug. 1659. Ch. Samuel b. Jan. 18, 1661, Joseph b. Feb. 4, 1662, Benoni b. 25 (11) 1664.

[page 297]

MADDOX, see MATTOCKS,

John, sawyer, cert. from Stepney parish, Eng., came in the Planter March 22, 1634. Settled at Salem.

He d. April 22, 1643. Will prob. 6 (5) 1644, referred to in Court files.

[page ?]

MARCH, see MARSH and MEECH,

[...]

John, Charlestown, adm. chh. 15 (3) 1642; frm. May 18, 1642. Town officer. [Wife?] Rebeckah adm. chh. 29 (3) 1642. His son Edward d. 4 (8) 1636; son John d. 2 (3) 1641. Will prob. 17 (11) 1665, beq. to wife Ann the est. she brought at marriage; dau. Frances Bucke and her ch.; son Theophilus M. and his son John; wife’s gr. ch. Sarah Bickner.

[pages 306-07]

MATTOCKS, MATTOCKE, MATTOX, see MADDOX,

David, Roxbury, frm. May 22, 1650.

He d. about (3) 1654. The magistrates gave the est. to his widow Sarah, a son and a decrepit dau. May 25, 1654 [Reg. VIII, 276.] The widow m. 2, Thomas Rawlin, Sen. His dau. Elizabeth b. and d. 1655.

James, cooper, Boston, had liberty to live with his bro. John Spoore or elsewhere 18 (4) 1638; adm. chh. 24 (12) 1638, frm. March 13, 1638-9. Dism. to chh. at Mt. Wollaston for ye winter season 24 (9) 1639. Bought a house lot of Anthony Stoddard 28 (10) 1644, and sold it to John Synderland Dec. 30, 1644. Bought house and land April 25, 1653, and gave it to his son Samuel who was about to marry Constance, dau. of Richard Fairbanks. Dau. Mary m. 9 July, 1661 Samuel Browne.

Will, dated Jan. 21, 1666, prob. Aug. 1, 1667. Wife Mary, son Samuel Mattock, daus. Alice, wife of John Lewes, and Mary, wife of Samuel Browne. [Reg. XV, 325.] The widow Mary, aged, made will 8 Jan. 1680, prob. 11 April, 1682; beq. to son Samuel, and his ch. James and Samuel; dau. Alice How; gr. ch. Samuel and Joseph Lewis; dau. Mary Bishop; gr. ch. James, Mary and Samuel Browne and Hannah Byshop.

John, Salem, worked with Robert Lewis on the ship Sara for Richard Hollingsworth, shipbuilder, who gave them an order for the money 19 Aug. 1641.

He d. April 22, 1643; inv. 6 (5) 1644.

Stephen, sent over by Mr. Peter and Mr. Weld in 1643, a servant, assigned to Elder How of Watertown, lived with Nathaniel Treadway of Wat. 5 (2) 1653. [Mdx. Files.]

[page 341]

PALGRAVE, PALSGRAVE,

Mr. Richard, physician, Charlestown, propr. 1630; with wife Anne adm. chh. 1631, frm. May 18, 1631. Ch. John, (who quit-claimed land in 1657,) Mary, (m. Roger Willington,) Sarah, (m. Dr. John Alcock; d. 29 (9) 1665, ae 44 years,) Rebecca b. 25 (5) 1631, John b. 6 (1) 1634, Lydia b. 15 (11) 1635, Bethiah b. and d. 1638, Elizabeth.

He d. about 1655. His widow, dwelling at Stepney, Eng., made a letter of attorney March 17, 1656. [Midx. De. II, 32.] She ret. to N. E. and d. at Roxbury 17 (11) 1669, ae. 75. Will prob. May 13, 1669. Beq. to eldest dau., Mary, wife of Roger Willington; to Anna and other children of her son and dau. Alcock; to John Heylet, eldest son of her dau. Lydia, he to be educated in physick; to Mary, wife of John Maddox; to grandchildren. A debt due to John Pattison in old England.

[page 361]

PIERCE, etc.,

Thomas, Charlestown; wife Elizabeth adm. chh. 10 (11) and he adm. chh. 21 (12) 1634.  Frm. May 6, 1635.  He rem. to Woburn; propr. 1643; town officer.  Signed a petition in 1663, ae. about 46 years old, [Mass. Arch. vol. 106.]  Wife Elizabeth was ae. 71 in 1667.  Ch. Abigail bapt. 17 (4) 1639, a son John b. at Wob. 7 (1) 1643, Thomas b. Jan. 21, 1644, Elizabeth b. Dec. 25, 1646, Joseph b. Aug. 14, 1649, Stephen b. July 16, 1651, Samuel b. 1654, d. 1655, Samuel b. April 7, 1656, William b. March 7, 1656-7, James b. May 7, 1659, Abigail b. Nov. 20, 1660.

He d. Oct. 7, 1666.  Will dated Nov. 7, 1665, ae. about 82 years; beq. to wife Elizabeth; gr. ch. Mary BRIDGE and Elizabeth JEFFS, now dwelling with me; to all gr. ch.; to Harvard College.  The widow deposed to the inv. March 22, 1666-7, ae. 71 years.

[page 392]

ROSSITER,

Bray, [Brian?] gent., physician. Dorchester, came in the Mary and John in 1629-30. Propr. Sold land to Wm. Hutchinson. [L.] Rem. to Windsor, Conn., where he witnessed a deed Sept. 12, 1647. [Suff. De. I, 98.] Rem. to Guilford, Conn. [Mass. Hist. Coll. 3-10.]

Mr. Edward, one of the Assistants, came to N. E. in 1630.

He d. before Nov. 29, 1630. [W.] His dau., widow Jane Hart, petitioned Gen. Court for aid in 1685, being 70 years old. [Reg. XXXIII, 242.]

Jane, Taunton, m. 23 March 1639-40, Thomas Gilbert.

[page 429]

SPUR, SPURR, SPOOER,

John, husbandman, late of Clapton in Somersetshire, with his bro. John Mattocke, cooper, had grant of land in Boston, 1638. Frm. May 22, 1638-9. Wife Elizabeth adm. chh. with him 14 (2) 1639; ch. Mary b. 20 (1) 1637, Mary bapt. 21 (2) 1639, Ebenezer b. 3 (3) 1642, Elizabeth bapt. 30 (1) 1645, ae. about 6 days, Martha b. and d.1648, John b. 16 (4) 1650.

[page 486]

WELLINGTON, WILLINGTON, see WALLINGTON,

Roger, planter, Watertown, 1636. Suit in court in 1651. He deposed Dec. 1673, ae. about 64 years. [Mdx. Files.] He m. Mary, dau. of Dr. Richard Palsgrave; ch. John b. 25 (5) 1638, Mary b. 10 (12) 1640, Joseph b. 9 (8) 1643, Benjamin, Oliver b. Nov. 23, 1648, Palsgrave.

He d. March 11, 1697-8. Will dated 17 Dec. 1697, prob. April 11, 1698; “feeble by reason of age;” beq. to sons John, Joseph, Benjamin, Oliver and Palsgrave; gr. ch. John Mattocks, Roger W., and Mary Livermore.

[page 503]

WILLOUGHBY,

Mr. Francis, merchant, Charlestown, adm. propr. 1638; adm. chh. with wife Mary 3(10)1639, frm. May 13, 1640. Gave bond in trade concerning tobacco in 1640. [L.] Deputy in 1642 and afterward. Town officer, 1646. Magistrate.

He rendered important service to the colonies as a member of Parliament from Portsmouth, Eng. in 1647, and again in 1657-8. He ret. to Charlestown from his second absence about 1662. The Court gave him 1000 acres of land in token of his services 15 Oct. 1669.

His wife Mary died, and he m. 2, in Eng. Mrs. Margaret Taylor, dau of William Locke and widow of Mr. Daniel Taylor; she was adm. chh. Char. 13(8)1667; ch. Sarah bapt. 13(4)1641, Hannah b. and d. 1643, Nehemiah b. 18(4)1644, Jeremiah b. 29(5)1647, Francis bapt. at St. Olaves in London 29 Feb. 1659-60, Susanna, dau. of the Worshipful Francis Willoughby bapt. at Char. 21(6)1664. The two last ch. had bequests from their mother’s sister Jane Locke, in 1669. [L., A., Reg. XXX, XXXV, and XL.]

His will dated 4 June, 1670, prob. April 10, 1671; refers to his mother’s payment of legacies from his father to his children; beq. to eldest son Jonathan and each of his children; to his wife the estate to which she shall testify to having brought at her marriage and a share of his other property; to sons Nehemiah, William and Francis, and dau. Susannah; to dau. Campfield, who had previously recd. her portion; to aunt Hammond if alive, and to cousin Laur. H.; to his pastor and teacher; to cousin March during her widowhood free use of the house where she dwells; to the school in Charleston 300 acres of land given him by the town but never laid out, lying beyond Woburn; to Laur. Dowse and Edward Wilson, and to his man, Richard Waldron.