Allen line: John Lamb 1628-1690

Is it breaking the rules to call John Lamb an immigrant?  He was only two years old when he came to New England, so he had no say at all in whether to come.  Yet, not understanding the purpose of being uprooted and joining his parents on a small and dark ship, he shared the voyage and shared the wonder of arriving in a world totally unlike anything he knew in England.  From the eyes of a two year old, this would have been a big deal, and yes, I think we can call him an immigrant.  Besides, he's in the Allen line and I don't have many opportunities any more to write about this side of the family. 

It would be interesting to know how closely his parents, Thomas and Elizabeth Lamb, could follow the typical Puritan methods in raising children under the circumstances of sailing across the ocean.  Were they stern, were they relaxed?  Certainly they, especially Elizabeth, would have been watchful as there were many ways for little ones to get hurt, or worse, on a ship.  The other women on board would have helped, surely, but it wouldn't have been an easy job.  Actually, our ancestor John  had sibling Thomas with him, so at least there was someone to play with. 

John was born to Thomas and Elizabeth on or before August 1, 1628 at Barnardiston, Suffolk, England.  He would have been baptized in the local church, which had parts dating back to the twelfth century, so this was a very old village indeed.  Likely there was quite a bit of family in the area, as that is common for small villages, so again one wonders what the pioneer immigrants were thinking. 

John came with his parents to Roxbury, Massachusetts, where Thomas died in 1646.  Five years later, in 1651, John settled in Springfield, Massachusetts where he was made a freeman in 1654.  He was a wheelwright and perhaps an "East Indian trader".  That may mean he owned part of a ship that traveled to the East Indies, or it could have other meanings.  It gets a little dicey here because he is supposed to be living in Springfield and in Kittery, Maine at the same time.  I suspect there were two John Lambs, and they have been a bit intermingled in this part of the story. Perhaps the man in Kittery was the one who was engaged in trading.  More research needs to be done on this.  

In Springfield, he became an important part of the town.  He was a fence viewer, a surveyor of highways, a sealer of weights and measures, a sergeant of the Westfield Garrison during King Philip's War, and he  had the fifth seat in the church (seats were assigned according to wealth and piety as well as status in the town). 

John was married to Joanna Chapin, daughter of Samuel Chapin and Cicely Penny) about 1650, and they had eleven children, with the last being born in 1674.  Joanna died in 1683 and John died September 28,1690, just two or three years after he had married Lydia Wright Bliss Norton.  His estate was valued at a little over 421 pounds, which was respectable indeed.  He had more animals than many of his neighbors would have had, several good sized parcels of land, more tools and implements, and more household goods than would have been common.  John Lamb had done all right for himself. 

The line of descent is:

John Lamb-Joanna Chapin
Samuel Lamb-Rebecca Bird
Samuel Lamb-Martha Stebbins
Eunice Lamb-Martin Root
Martin Root-Ruth Noble
Ruth Root-Samuel Falley
Clarissa Falley-John Havens Starr
Harriet Starr-John Wilson Knott
Edith Knott-Edward Allen
Richard Allen-Gladys Holbrook
Their descendants

Allen line: Thomas Bird 1593-1662, Immigrant

The dates I've used in the title of this are not ones I necessarily put much credence in.  Most sources say Thomas was born about 1600 in England, and that he died in 1662 in Hartford, Connecticut.  I've been able to find a few bits and pieces of information about Thomas but not nearly as much as I'd like, and some of those bits and pieces don't necessarily belong to this man.  I've tried to weed out the obviously wrong ones. 

So, Thomas was born in England and died in Hartford, Connecticut.  There is a Thomas Bird who was baptized November 5, 1593 in St Andrew Parish, Enfield Borough, London, England. He was the child of Robert and (from a different, undocumented source) possibly Amy.  This may be our Thomas although 1593 is several years away from "about 1600".  The jury is still out, as far as I'm concerned, as other researchers feel strongly that he came from the area of Braintree, Essex. We don't have birth dates for the children (Hannah, James, Joseph, Mary) but based on their marriage dates, they were probably born in the 1620's, so Thomas's first marriage would have taken place there, too.  I've seen various names for this first wife put forth but they are all just speculation at this point.  We do know he married Mary Belden as a subsequent wife, about 1660, in Hartford, Ct.. 

Thomas and his family were in Hartford by 1639, when he was granted land there.  He also purchased land from Thomas Judd in 1644.  There is apparently no mention of him in church records, but it is likely he was a Puritan, one who possibly stayed out of trouble with both the church and the courts.  His name is notable more for the lack of records than for the records currently available. 

We don't know when his wife died, but Thomas remarried just about two years before his own death, which was probably in July of 1662.  His inventory was presented on August 10, 1662 and showed a total estate of 149 -05-10.  This was not a large estate but it wasn't poverty level.  I'm still looking to find more about the inventory.  Son Joseph was left the dwelling place and land, but I don't know if that was all of the land or just the land the dwelling was on.  I also don't know if there was more than one piece of land at the time of Thomas's death. 

As is often the case, there is much not known about this immigrant ancestor, who by most standards was not an "illustrious" man.  But he was here, he supported the culture of the area, he probably paid his taxes and tithes, and probably served in the military, and he supported his family.  Those were the things that the many "ordinary" men did, and we can be proud of each of his actions.  I'd certainly like to learn more about him!

The line of descent is:

Thomas Bird-unknown first wife
James Bird-Lydia Steele
Rebecca Bird-Samuel Lamb
Samuel Lamb-Martha Stebbins
Eunice Lamb-Martin Root
Martin Root Jr-Ruth Noble
Ruth Root-Samuel Falley
Clarissa Falley-John Havens Starr
Harriet Starr-John Wilson Knott
Edith Knott-Edward Allen
Richard Allen-Gladys Holbrook
Their descendants

Allen line: John Steele 1591-1665 Immigrant

Update 12/6/2020:  It appears that this is a post about a "former ancestor."  I believe it is accurate, until we get to the list of descendants.  Lydia Steele is not our ancestor and thus, neither is John.  But I'll leave the post up in case it is of interest to someone else.  

This immigrant ancestor is a little easier to trace than some.  John Steele was born to Richard Steele and an unknown wife on or about December 12, 1591 in Fairstead, Essex, England.  There is a later marriage of Richard Steele to Elizabeth Bredy in 1595 in the same location, so it may be that John's mother had died.  If this is the same Richard Steele, then John would have been raised by a step mother.  He had an older brother, George, but we don't know of any other siblings.

Fairstead is a very small village, and always has been, so this would have been a town where everyone knew everyone.  I've not located a church for the village but it is possible that there was one.  If not, the family would have had to travel four or five miles to a neighboring town such as Braintree, for church and probably for marketing needs.  Richard would have been a farmer, and possibly John also. 

The records, however, seem to indicate that one way or another John acquired an education, since some of the positions he held in Connecticut would have required more than just the basics.  He also seems to have been a man of good sense.

On October 10, 1622 in Fairsted, Essex, England, he married Rachel Talcott, the daughter of John Talcott and Anne Skinner.  The couple would go on to have 9 children together.  Four of them, John, Samuel, Daniel and Rachel, were born in England before the couple came to the new world.  "The Great Migration" states that John migrated in 1633, but it is only a guess that his family accompanied him at that time.  We do know that he became a freeman on May 14, 1634 at Cambridge, Massacushouetts, so he would have been a member of the church there before that.

(Note:  An 1862 Genealogical History of John and George Steele states that John with his wife Rachel and Samuel, John, and Hannah, came in 1630 and that he was first at Dorchester, before being one of the proprietors of Cambridge (Newtown) in 1632.  This may be based upon the above names being listed as on board the ship Lyon, and arriving in Salem in 1630. So we may be missing a few years of John Steele's history.)

At any rate, he was here early and was appointed the Massachusetts Bay commissioner for new settlements on the Connecticut River on Maarch 3,1635/6.  He is listed as one of the founders of Hartford, Ct. and the Steele genealogy referred to earlier states that he led the pioneer band of settlers there in 1635, arriving at the onset of winter, and that Rev. Hooker and the rest of the company came in 1636. John had acquired several plots of land in Cambridge and he sold them to Richard Bradish just before making the move to Hartford.

He was quite active in Hartford politics, being appointed the recorder in 1640 and for 20 years thereafter.  He was also the recorder for Farmington,  He was a representative to the colony court for 23 years and was present for at least 88 of its sessions.  He was also active in his church and as the head of his large family.

The Steele family moved to and helped found the town of Farmington, Ct in 1645.  There Rachel died on October 24, 1653.  A little over 2 years later, John Steele married again, to Mercy Ruscoe Seymour.  They had no children, but they did have a marriage that lasted 9 years and he called her his "dear and loving wife" in his will. 

John Steele died at Farmington February 27, 1664/65.  His will left his home and appurtenances to his wife for the rest of her life, and then land mostly to his sons and sons-in-law.  He made token bequests to his grandchildren, and a piece of gold to his two daughters.  He had a few books in his home when he died, and 2 Bibles, and two quires of writing paper. 

The line of descent is:

John Steele-Rachel Talcott
Lydia Steele-John Bird
Rebecca Bird-Samuel Lamb
Samuel Lamb-Martha Stebbins
Eunice Lamb-Martin Root
Martin Root Jr-Ruth Noble
Ruth Root-Samuel Falley
Clarissa Falley-John Havens Starr
Harriet Starr-John Wilson Knott
Edith Knott-Edward Allen
Richard Allen-Gladys Holbrook
Their descendents

I've loved writing this post.  I had very little about John Steele in my files, but there is a lot of information on-line, as it turns out.  I particularly recommend "The Great Migration Begins" by Robert Charles Anderson as a starting place.

Allen line: Thomas Lamb, another immigrant ancestor

Thomas Lamb (Lambe) is another of our immigrant ancestors.  Although much is known about him, there are still some questions, because what would family history be without unanswered questions?  (One answer might be "finished!", but we are not anything close to being there yet.)

Thomas Lamb was born in Barnardiston, Suffolk, England in 1596 to Thomas and Elizabeth Aylett Lamb. He had two brothers, Edward and Samuel.  The next time we hear of our Thomas, he and his wife Elizabeth (possibly the widow Smith who married a Thomas Lambe in Shropshire, England in 1621, but that is still unproven) and at least two sons are in the Winthrop Fleet coming to the New World.  Thomas was a merchant, and also a Puritan, since he came in that fleet.

Thomas Lamb was one of the founders of Roxbury, receiving 18 acres of land there, between the Meeting House and the Stony River. His neighbors included John Johnson and Isaac Heath.  He took the oath of the general court on May 18, 1631 and became a freeman on October 19, 1631.  He was also one of the founders of the first church at Roxbury.

Thomas and Elizabeth had several children after arriving in Roxbury.  John and Thomas had come with them, and Samuel was born about a month after their arrival in the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Their other children were Decline, Abiel, and Benjamin.  Elizabeth died during or just following the birth of Benjamin in 1639, and Thomas married Dorothy Harbittle soon after.  He needed a stepmother for all those children, and Dorothy appears to have been a good one. She also gave Thomas more children. 

It's unclear whether he acted as a merchant at Roxbury, but by 1633 he was opening the first quarry in New England, on the island of Squantom in Boston Harbor. There are additional reports about land acquisitions up until his death on March 28, 1646 of a "grate colde".  I would guess this was pneumonia.  His inventory at the time of his death was 112 pounds, 8 shillings, 8 pence, which didn't include the land he owned.  There was trouble with the estate, and it appears that there were still court proceedings in 1698, trying to prove who owned land that was contested between the Lamb descendents and those of Dorothy Harbittle's second husband, Thomas Hawley. 

I of course would like to know more about Thomas's life in England. How did he become a merchant, or was that designation given to him only in Massachusetts?  With his father dead when Thomas was just three years old, who cared for him and got him started in life?  Was it his mother's family, or a paternal uncle?  And when and how did he become a Puritan? 

Our line of descent is:

Thomas Lamb-Elizabeth
John Lamb-Joanna Chapin
Samuel Lamb-Rebecca Bird
Samuel Lamb-Martha Stebbins
Eunice Lamb-Martin Root
Martin Root Jr-Ruth Noble
Ruth Root-Samuel Falley
Clarissa Falley-John Havens Starr
Harriet Starr-John W Knott
Edith Knott-Edward Allen
Richard Allen-Gladys Holbrook
Their descendents