Holbrook line: Joseph Thomson 1698-1755

There are certain towns in Massachusetts that should be "destinations" for family travelers.  One such area is Springfield-Westfield, in the Connecticut River valley, where many of our Allen names lived for generations.  Another is the Mendon-Wrentham-Franklin-Bellingham area, which was home to many of our Holbrook families for generations.  Sometimes our ancestors were big people in these little places, and sometimes they didn't leave much of a trace. 

Joseph Thomson (or Tomson, or Thompson) is one of our Mendon-Bellingham ancestors, who didn't make much of an impact on the town, as far as we can tell.  He lived, married, had children, and died.  Even though there is a lot we don't know about him, we do know that he lived in interesting times, and we know that his estate papers will tell us a little about his life. 

First, what we do know.  Joseph was born in Medfield, Massachusetts Bay Colony, on October 19, 1698, to John and Hannah Wight Thomson.  Medfield at the time would have felt like a new town.  It was originally founded in 1649 but was burned during King Philips War, so none of the hoes were more than 20 or so years old.  And memories were long.  Joseph had at least seven brothers and sisters, so his parents had plenty to do.  One thing they likely did was send the boys to school.  Another Holbrook ancestor, Ralph Wheelock, had founded the school there and it was important that boys learn to read and write.

Joseph married Mary Holbrook, daughter of Peter and Alice Godfrey Holbrook, on March 28, 1725, in Bellingham, Massachusetts Bay Colony.  The town had been officially formed in 1719, but people had been living in the area for some time.  Joseph's parents died in Bellingham, so it seems likely that his parents had initiated the move prior to Joseph's reaching the age of 21, but we don't know for sure when the move was made.  Joseph and Mary had 11 children together, so again, this was a busy family, with busy parents. 

Some of the Thomsons and most of the Holbrooks were Baptists, but the church didn't form until mid-century so Joseph, even if a member, would not have had a lot of influence there.  He doesn't show up on the earliest membership rolls, so perhaps he stayed in the Puritan church.  He does show up as one of only 50 qualified voters in the town, in 1739. 

I don't know if he ever served in the military.  We was of the right age to be in Queen Anne's war and might have been in King George's War, but I've not yet found his name on any such listing.  His inventory does include "Armour, gun, sword and accoutrements" so he was or had been ready to serve, at one time. 

Joseph died January 2, 1755, without having a will.  His appraisers were Ebenezer Thayer, (ancestor), Samuel Hayward, and John Metcalf.  Besides the military items listed above, he had several parcels of land, bedding for four beds, feathers, household goods, husbandry and carpenter tools, farm animals, and a lot of flax, It's hard to tell whether there was a loom or spinning wheel because several lines list an object and then say "and sundry items" so similar words.  He did have a few books.
There is a careful documentation in the file of who was to get which part of which parcel of land and other belongings.  Mary was entitled to her one third of the estate and the rest was divided up among the children.  Mary died March 4, 1781.  I haven't located a burial location for them but it was probably what is known as the North Cemetery, where many of the town's founders are buied.

So that's the little we know about Joseph Thomson.  He was a decent man, or there would be stories of any shenanigans in court records.  He may or may not have been a religious man, whether Puritan or Baptist.  He may or may not have served in one of more of the conflicts that were an ongoing part of colonial life.   But he was our ancestor, anchored in time and location, and for that, I am grateful.

The line of descent is:

Joseph Thomson-Mary Holbrook
Alice Thomson-Joseph Rockwood
Levi Rockwood-Deborah Lazell
Susannah Rockwood-Nahum Holbrook
Joseph Holbrook=Mary Elizabeth Whittemore
Fremont Holbrook-Phoebe Brown
Loren Holbrook-Etta Stanard
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
Their descendants