Allen line: Deacon John Hitchcock 1642-1712

 It's either feast or famine in the genealogy world.  Many times I struggle to find enough information to even write five paragraphs about an ancestor.  Other times, there is more information that I can use, even if I write a longer post.  John Hitchcock, Deacon and Lieutenant, belongs in the second group of people.  That makes me happy.  

John was born on September 27, 1642 in what was then the colony of New Haven but now is New Haven, Connecticut.  He was the son of Luke and Elizabeth Gibbons Hitchcock, and was their first child.  He had two or possibly four siblings, but at any rate, this was a relatively small family for the time.  This was of economic benefit to him as his father was not a poor man, and John not only inherited part of his estate, but he also learned to read and write, and, based on what his later life shows, he also learned many practical skills.  I like to think his father had something to do with that, too.  

I don't know how it happened, but John ended up in Springfield, Massachusetts, home to so many of our Allen ancestral families.  There he married Hannah Chapin, who was the daughter of Deacon Samuel and Cicely Penny Chapin on September 27, 1666.  John and Hannah had at least nine children together, but at least one didn't survive infancy. 

John had a rather low profile for a few years.  He apparently was friends with several other young men who were high spirited, because three years after his marriage, he was accused of and fined for "fast riding" (the equivalent of speeding) through town.  The only time that was permitted was when the cavalry was out on a training run, and this apparently was not one of those times.  This is one of the few things I found about John that didn't reflect well on him, and I imagine Deacon Samuel may have had a word or two with him about that.  At about the same time as this incident, he was paid a bounty for having killed a wolf, so we can guess that he spent some time farming and helping to tame the wilderness.

We know that in 1678 he and Japeht Chapin and Nathaniel Foot were granted to use town lumber (from trees the town owned, likely on the commons) to build a sawmill, as long as it was located beyond the boundary the town gave them, and as long as they held the cost of lumber milled there to a certain price.  It would be interesting to know whether this was a profitable business for the men.  

John apparently began his public service in 1672, when he was chosen constable for the town.  He had some position of authority for most of the rest of his life, either as a selectman (12 years), as a deputy to the General Court (five terms) a hayward, a surveyor, a "commissioner for public assessment", or a clerk of the market.  

We don't know when he was selected church deacon, but he was called such when he died, and he had been involved in various negotiations with the church pastors, and with the building of the meeting house, down through the years.

Many times I have to speculate about what someone was doing or where they were during King Philip's War.  With John, we at least know that he was injured at the fight at Turner's Falls.  Mostly untrained militia attacked a native American encampment and were then ambushed.  Indian raids had been a constant threat so a battle like this was probably inevitable.  Most of the people of Springfield were either in garrisons or had left the area until the situation stabilized, but there were quite a few men from Springfield who were involved in this battle.  One source says that one arm was shot through and the other one broken, so John probably had to return home to recover.  Ensign John was promoted to lieutenant because of his gallantry on the field.  Because of his participation in this battle, his son John was awarded land in what became Bernardstown in 1736, along with surviving soldiers or their descendants.  

So we can say that John was relatively well off, because those were the people who were chosen selectmen.  We know he was active in the church because he was a deacon.  We know he got along with people and was respected, or he would not have been chosen for so many positions requiring tact and skill.  He was educated, because he was on committees to set and collect rates (taxes).  He was hard working, and he had frontier skills that allowed him to protect his family and guard his town.  

John left a will and an inventory when he died on February 9, 1712.  His estate was valued at over 700 pounds.  He left houses or/and land to each of his sons, provided for his wife, gave smaller bequests to his daughters, and gave his weapons to his grandsons.  Later, the court approved a request to give more to his widow, until her death.  

His inventory, besides about nine different parcels of land, includes several weapons (mentioned above), a great Bible and small books, and household items and farm implements and animals.  Among his other attributes, he was a financial success, if not a wealthy man.  

The line of descent is:

John Hitchcock-Hannah Chapin

John Hitchcock-Mary Ball

Samuel Hitchcock-Ruth Stebbins

Margaret Hitchcock-Richard Falley

Samuel Falley-Ruth Root

Clarissa Falley-John H Starr

Harriet Starr-John Wilson Knott

Edith Knott-Edward Allen

Richard Allen-Gladys Holbrook

Their descendants