Beeks line: Joseph Holley 1605-1647

It's been awhile since I had a Beeks ancestor to write about.  Sometimes I just somehow miss these people, and sometimes the first time I looked for information, I couldn't find enough to write about.  It's also possible that I've relaxed my definition of "enough".  When I started doing these brief sketches, I made it a goal to write 8-10 paragraphs about each ancestor.  Now, I'm willing to write even just a little bit, figuring that something is better than nothing.  With Joseph, I've found enough to give at least some outline of his life, although there are still big question marks, too.

Joseph was born about 1605 possibly in Crewkerne, Somerset, England, although his parents have not yet been identified. We know he was born about 1605 because in a court case in 1640, Joseph stated that he was 35 or thereabouts.  Crewkerne is a very old town, dating back to the time of Alfred the Great.  There is a 15th century church there, which Joseph would probably have attended.  There was also a school at the time that Joseph lived there, but we don't know whether he attended or not.

Joseph married Rose Allen, daughter of George and Katherine (maiden name not certain) Allen, in England.  We know that it was in England becae his son was "of age" when Joseph died in 1647, which means the son must have been at least 18.  That puts his birth date at 1629, so this Joseph likely married in or about 1628.  The couple had at least five children together, a son and then four daughters. 

We don't know for sure when Joseph came to New England but he was in Dorchester as early as 1633 and in Lynn in 1636.  By 1637 he was in Sandwich, in Plymouth Colony, where he is considered one of the 61 original signers and one of just 16 long term settlers.  The church of Sandwich seems to have not been as Puritan as was liked, and they went for ten years without a pastor.  There is some thought that the people of the town, or at least some of them, were early Quaker adherents.

We know Joseph was part of a military band, probably guarding against Indians but we don't know whether he actually fought in any battles.  We know he owned property as early as 1639.   By occupation, he was a millwright, which may explain why he went from place to place for a few years before settling in Sandwich.  He was a freeman in 1643/44constable in 1644, and either he or his son was a surveyor of highways in 1647. 

Sadly. that is the last we hear of Joseph, for he died in 1647 in Sandwich.  We have no information about his cause of death but he was only about 42 years old, so it was likely an illness of some sort.  Fevers and dysentery were relatively common at the time. 

His inventory was valued at about 205 pounds, but the estate wasn't settled for another 18 years, as the youngest of the children finally reached maturity.  Rose remarried after a few months as a widow, to William Newland, and she died in 1694. 

The line of descent is

Joseph Holley-Rose Allen
Mary Holley-Nathaniel FitzRandolph__
Samuel FitzRandolph-Mary Jones
Prudence Fitzrandolph-Shubael Smith
Mary Smith-Jonathan Dunham
Samuel Dunham-Hannah Ruble
Jacob Dunham-Catherine Goodnight
Samuel Dunham-Eliza Matilda Reese
Margaret Catherine Dunham=Harvey Aldridge
Cleo Aldridge-Wilbur Beeks
Mary Beeks-Cleveland Harshbarger
Their descendants