The family of Stephen Paine 1629-1678

 We are going to be talking about or at least mentioning several men by the name of Stephen Paine in this series of posts about the Paine families.  I am not 100% convinced that the facts are necessarily attached to the correct Stephen Paine.  For instance, Stephen Paine was involved in King Philip's War.  Generally, I see that service attributed to the Stephen Paine born about 1600, the subject of my last blog post.  However, that Stephen would have been roughly 75 years old at the time.  Perhaps it is this Stephen that should be credited with that service.  He would have been 46 or 47, a much more likely age for service.  Or perhaps it was even the second Stephen's son Stephen, would was have been 21 years old or older.  So there are reasons to tread lightly when filling out the details of the lives of these men, but we do have records that at least give us the vital information for most of this particular family.  

Stephen was born in 1629 in Great Ellingham, England, and came to America with his parents, Stephen and Neele Adcocke Pain, in 1638.  He settled in Rehoboth, Massachusetts and married Anne or Ann Chickering, the daughter of Francis and Anne Fiske Chickering.  Stephen died in early 1678 in Rehoboth.  His father and an uncle died within months of that date, but I don't know whether this is coincidence or whether there was an epidemic going on.  I do know that the years 1678-1680 have been associated with a smallpox outbreak but I don't know whether it affected Rehoboth, so at this point, the cause of death(s) is undetermined.

Stephen and Anne had at least nine children.  Some of the children were married more than once, and several of the children also had what we would consider large families.  So there were a lot of Paines in the general area of Rehoboth by the time that Stephen and Anne's grandchildren became adults.  

Their first son was named Stephen, born in 1654 and died before April, 1710 in Rehoboth.  He married twice.  His first wife is Elizabeth Williams, the daughter of Samuel and Theoda Parke Williams.  There seem to have been no children born to this couple.  After Elizabeth's death, Stephen married Mary Brintnell, the daughter of Thomas and Esther (maiden name not yet found) Brintnell.  Stephen would have been at least 54 when his first son, another Stephen (!) was born, and older yet at the birth of Edward.  I can only imagine his joy at the birth of two sons.

Rebecca was born in 1656 and died in 1699 in Rehoboth.  She also married twice.  Her first husband is Peter Hunt, the son of Peter and Elizabeth Smith Hunt.  I find no record of children for them, and he died young.  Her second husband is Samuel Peck, the son of Joseph and (unknown) Peck.  Their children are Noah, Jael, and Rebecca.  

John was born in 1658 and died in 1718 in Providence, Rhode Island.  He married Elizabeth Belcher, the daughter of Josiah and Urania Rainsford Belcher.  (Urania leads back to royalty; her father is one of our gateway ancestors.)  Their children are John, Elizabeth, Stephen (!), Josiah, Joseph, Rebecca, Solomon, Benjamin, Nathaniel, Gideon, and Urania.  I'll follow this family in my next blog post.

Mary was born in 1660 and died in 1707 in Rehoboth.  She married Enoch Hunt, the son of Peter and Elizabeth Smith Hunt.  Their children are Enoch, Peter, Elizabeth, a second Elizabeth, Stephen, Ann, and Nathaniel.   

Samuel was born in 1662 and died in 1735 in Woodstock, which was then in Worcester County, Massachusetts but is now in Connecticut.  His first marriage is to Annie Peck, the daughter of Samuel and Sarah Hunt Peck.  Their children are Samuel, Anne, Seth, Sarah, Judith, Noah, and Stephen (!).  After Anne died, Samuel married Abigail Bartholomew, the daughter of William and Mary Johnson Bartholomew.  (Mary Johnson is our relative through another line.)   They had two children together, Rebecca and Ebenezer.  Abigail has a fascinating side story.  As a four year old, she was kidnapped (apparently with at least some others) by natives, and taken to Canada, where she was held until 200 pounds ransom was paid for her and other captives eight months later.  

Elizabeth was born in 1664 and died before August, 1714.  I'm not sure where she was living at the time of her death.  She married Jacob Pepper, the son of Robert and Elizabeth Johnson Pepper. (Elizabeth and Mary Johnson, mentioned above, are sisters.)  Their children are Jacob, Robert, another Robert, Elizabeth, Joseph, John, Stephen, Rebecca, Anna, Mary, Stephen, and Benjamin.  

Sarah was born in 1666 and died in 1711 in Dedham, Norfolk County, Massachusetts.  She married Daniel Aldis, the son of John and Sarah Eliot Aldis.  Their known children are Sarah, Daniel, Ann, and Sarah.

Nathaniel was born in 1667 and died in 1718 in Rehoboth, Massachusetts.  He married Dorothy Chaffee, the daughter of Nathaniel and Experience Bliss Chaffee. Their children are Dorothy, Abigail, Nathaniel, Jonathan, Rachel, and Elizabeth.  

Finally, Benjamin was born in 1670 and died in 1698.  I have been unable to locate much information about him.  He may have married Anne or Annie Aldrich, and possibly died soon after his marriage.  If someone has further information about Benjamin, I'd love to hear it.  

Stephen died in 1678 and Ann in 1679.  Perhaps the older children helped care for the younger ones, as at least the four youngest would have needed guardians.  Although the Paines did not live long enough to know many of their grandchildren, nevertheless, the family continued to grow, with deep roots in Rehoboth, Bristol County, Massachusetts.