Allen line: Editha Stebbins Day Maynard Holyoke 17th century heroine

I had just realized that I wanted to write a blog post about Editha when I saw on one of my genealogy groups a post asking what I was doing to honor my female ancestors in March, which is National Women's History Month.  I wanted to not only honor a female ancestor, but also to allow her to teach us a little about how life could be, and was, in 17th century Massachusetts (and other parts of the colonies, too). 

First, the bare facts about her life.  Editha Stebbins was born in 1613 in probably Woodham, Essex, England although I have also seen other locations in Essex mentioned.  My genealogy skills for English research are negligible, so let's just say Essex, England in order to avoid dispute.  Her parents are frequently given as William and Mary Scott Stebbins.  Her father died in 1625 and it's thought that she came to New England with her brother, Edward Stebbins, in 1633.  They stayed at Newtown/Cambridge, Massachusetts before moving to Hartford, Connecticut with Reverend Thomas Hooker's group. 

Editha married Robert Day about this time, either in Newtown or Hartford.  Robert Day is among those listed as a founder of Hartford, and by rights, Editha should be there, too, as should the wives of the other listed founders.  Robert was a widower when they married but apparently had no surviving children by this first marriage.  Robert and Editha had four children, and started to build a life together in the wilderness.  Robert was a deacon in the church and life looked good, even if it wasn't easy. 

However, Robert died in 1648 and Editha was left with four young children.  She married Deacon John Maynard in October of 1648, and he helped raise her four children, leaving them gifts in his will and probably helping the boys get started in life.  John and Editha had no children together before he died in 1658.  By now, Editha had lived 22 years in Hartford, probably the longest she had lived in any one place in her life. 

She must have been wealthy, or at least well to do, and also physically attractive, even though she was now about 45 years old and probably past child bearing age.  But that same year, she married Captain Elizur Holyoke, who lived in Springfield, Massachusetts.  So Editha packed up her things and moved to her new home, possibly leaving a son behind in Hartford.  Within that first year of this marriage, her other three children married and left home.  Did Mary have time to become an empty nester? 

Not exactly, because her new husband had been widowed in 1657, and she was now the step mother to six children ranging in age from two to twelve years of age.  It was a whole new family to nurture, feed, clothe, and raise, but our ancestor gladly rose to the challenge.  Perhaps she had sadly missed not having children with her second husband.  It looks like life went well for this family, until King Philip's War.  Elizur died in 1676, although there is some dispute about whether or not it was a direct result of war injuries.  He was in charge of the defense of Springfield at the time of his death. 

The loss of her husband was not the only loss Editha suffered during that war.  Her daughter, Sarah, and grandson, Joseph were killed at Hatfield, and Editha also grieved as a step son, Samuel Holyoke, died during the war.  In addition, she may have lost her home.  The Indians attacked Springfield, burning 32 of the 45 homes in the settlement.  If her home was still standing, she would have taken in as many of the homeless villagers as possible, even though the town's crops and animals had also been destroyed. 

Editha lived as a widow for another 12 years, dying in 1688.  I admire her so much, for all she went through, for keeping her Puritan faith when it might have seemed that God had abandoned her, and for her quiet goodness.  But those are not the only reasons I wanted to write about Editha.

The other reason I wanted to tell her story was to mention how the marriages that these pioneer women made really entwined them in much of New England's history.  We don't know who Robert's first wife was, but either through her or through some other family connection there may have been a connection to the Talcott family.  John Maynard's first wife was a sister to John Pynchon, the richest man in Springfield and a government official.  Elizur Holyoke had connections to the Putnam family of Salem witch trial fame.  Editha's children married into the Cooper, Ely, and Gunn families.  One of her step sons married a Talcott and another married an Eliot.  This family was well connected to some of the major families in Massachusetts, and thus part of much of New England's early history. 

Editha's family and connections may be stronger and cast longer shadows than some others, but we should always remember to look for the whole story by thinking about who was sitting around the dinner table when, and what happened to them.  This helps fill in the dash in the story of our ancestors, both male and female.


The line of descent is

Robert Day-Editha Stebbins
Nary Day-Samuel Ely
Joseph Ely-Mary Riley
Mary Ely-Thomas Stebbins
Ruth Stebbins-Samuel Hitchcock
Margaret Hitchcock-Samuel Falley
Samuel Falley-Ruth Root
Clarissa Falley-John Havens Starr
Harriet Starr-John Wilson Knott
Edith Knott-Edward Allen
Richard Allen-Gladys Holbrook
Their descendants