Our ancestor is notorious, not because he did anything wrong, but because he has confused and confounded genealogists and family historians. His death date is often given far too early, 1676, when it was his son John Rockwood who died during an attack by the Nipmucks during King Philip's War. He is sometimes assigned to the wrong parents. Nicholas Rockwood and Margaret Holbrook are not correct, as they didn't marry until our John was a teenager. Having said that, here's what we do know about John Rockwood, whose name is sometimes spelled Rocket or Rockett, just to make it more fun to research him.
He was born November 1, 1641 probably at Braintree, Massachusetts (even though the vital records don't seem to list his birth there). His parents were Richard Rockwood and Agnes Lovell, sometimes seen as Agnes Bicknell. Actually, Robert Charles Anderson doesn't accept that her maiden name was Lovell. She was married to Zachary Bicknell and married Richard Rockwood as a widow. John had an older step brother and at least two sisters who apparently grew up in the same household.
He married Joanna Ford, daughter of someone named Ford, apparently. There seems to be no firm resolution as to this; I've seen Nicholas, Thomas, and William Ford each listed on a different website as her father. However, I can say that they married July 15, 1662 in Braintree. John and Joanna had at least ten children together. Some were born in Braintree, some in Mendon, and some in Medfield. The family moved to Mendon by 1667, when John was awarded land in the meadows, probably indicating he already had a houselot, although it wasn't surveyed until 1669. That same year, he was appointed to a committee to agree on the boundaries between Mendon and Dedham.
John would likely have been content to stay his whole life in Mendon, but King Philip's War, particularly the burning of the towa n and the death of his twelve year old son, sent him and the family to Medfield for at least a few years. It would have been a fearsome time, and difficult to rebuilt after losing everything. I don't find him listed as a soldier in the war but he would have been only 34 or 35 years old so it's likely that he at least did garrison duty or was otherwise engaged with the militia.
His will tells us that he was a husbandman, or farmer. Joanna had died at some point because his will refers to his wife Rebecca, identified elsewhere as Rebecca Crafts. He wrote his will in Mendon but there isn't a death record there, so he may have moved, either to be with his wife's family or with one of his children. Unfortunately, I've not found an inventory for him, yet, which may indicate he had already disposed of his land and had few personal possessions.
John Rockwood was one of those quiet men, it seems, who took care of his family, saw sorrow and joy, and helped build New England. I'd like to learn more about him.
The line of descent is:
John Rockwood-Joanna Ford
Joanna Rockwood-Nicholas Cook
Mary Cook-Joseph Holbrook
Jesse Holbrook-Abigail Thayer
Amariah Holbrook-Molly Wright
Nahum Holbrook-Susanna Rockwood
Joseph Holbrook-Mary Elizabeth Whittemore
Fremont Holbrook-Phoebe Brown
Loren Holbrook-Etta Stanard
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
Their descendants
Second line starts with John Rockwood and Joanna Ford
Joseph Rockwood-Mary Hayward
John Rockwood-Deborah Thayer
Joseph Rockwood-Alice Thompson
Levi Rockwood-Deborah Lazell
Susannah Rockwood-Nahum Holbrook
and on as above. So Susannah and Nahum were fourth cousins. I wonder if they knew that?
Showing posts with label Thompson. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Thompson. Show all posts
Tuesday, November 26, 2019
Tuesday, November 12, 2019
Holbrook line: Samuel Hayward 1641-1713
Samuel Hayward left us some traces in the records, and for that, in this month of November, I am profoundly grateful. He is one of those ancestors who seem to be little researched, perhaps because there were several Samuel Haywards in Massachusetts Bay Colony of about the same time period and year. Fortunately, if we limit our search to Braintree and then Mendon, Massachusetts, his story becomes if not clear, at least less murky.
Our Samuel was born in about 1641 to William and Margery Knight Hayward. I haven't found record of his birth but it was in the Boston or Braintree area, because that is where his parents settled early. (His parents were those I've written of before, who apparently went to Barbados for a short time before arriving in Massachusetts.)
Samuel was one of at least 8 children, so he had quite a full family life. As an adult, he was a "housewright", so he was likely apprenticed to or at least worked with a housewright as soon as he had finished whatever schooling he acquired. A housewright built wooden (as opposed to stone or brick) houses, but the job involved more than a carpenter's work. He cut the wood, sawed it into planks, and then built the house with the wood he had chosen and prepared. There was no middleman, and no one else to blame if something was not done correctly. I have much respect for housewrights after learning this!
Samuel married Mehitable Thompson, daughter of John and Sarah Trevore Thompson, on November 28, 1666 in Medfield, Massachusetts. They had at least twelve children together. Samuel is listed as a founding father of Mendon, which was officially formed from Braintree in 1667. He held several town positions. In 1668 he was a surveyor of highways, in 1692 and 1696 a selectman, and in 1696 also a tything man.
One of the most remembered events of his life was probably King Philip's War. Mendon was one of the towns that was attacked early in the war, with loss of life, and later the town was burned to the ground by the native Americans. Mendon had several villages of "praying Indians", converted by our grand uncle John Eliot, and it was not these groups who rebelled. They did, however, suffer consequences. Samuel and his family left Mendon, perhaps soon after the first attack, but Samuel was back in 1677 to rebuild his home, and doubtless those of others who returned also.
There were at least two Samuel Haywards who are listed as soldiers in King Philip's War, but I didn't find those reports also listing other Mendon men, so I think the ones who are listed in the records are not our Samuel. He may have gone to stay with friends or relatives in Braintree, expectantly waiting for the end of the war.
By 1680 Samuel's family was probably back in Mendon, and life was slowly returning to normal. Samuel was hired by the town to raise (build} the meeting house, which was to be 26 feet by 24 feet in size. He was to be paid 3 shillings a day, with part of that to be in kind, a cow and a calf. There was some unspecified dispute involved during or following construction, but it was resolved and the town and Samuel each went about their business.
Samuel's wife Mehitabel died in 1700 and the next year he married Elizabeth Sabin. Samuel died on July 29, 1713, without leaving a will. If there is an inventory, I haven't located it, either. However, I did locate papers, filed in Suffolk County, showing that the surviving children (or in the case of the several daughters who were married, their husbands) agreed to a settlement of the estate. Interestingly, there were few who could sign their name to this document; most used a mark. (Joseph Rockwood, our ancestor, did sign his name and it is quite legible.) A probate judge signed off on the "deal" and presumably everyone lived happily ever after. We do know that Samuel had a house and quite a bit of land. Housewright may not sound like a glamorous job, but in a time when everyone needed to have a house built, it paid the bills and then some.
I like Samuel. He took care of his family, he was a public servant, an honest and hard working man, and he served his church also. And I especially like that I was able to find a little bit of information about him!
The line of descent is:
Samuel Hayward-Mehitabel Thompson
Mary Hayward-Joseph Rockwood
John Rockwood-Deborah Thayer
Joseph Rockwood-Alice Thompson
Levi Rockwood-Deborah Lazell
Susanna Rockwood-Nahum Holbrook
Joseph Holbrook-Mary Elizabeth Whittemore
Fremont Holbrook-Phoebe Brown
Loren Holbrook-Etta Stanard
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
Their descendants
Our Samuel was born in about 1641 to William and Margery Knight Hayward. I haven't found record of his birth but it was in the Boston or Braintree area, because that is where his parents settled early. (His parents were those I've written of before, who apparently went to Barbados for a short time before arriving in Massachusetts.)
Samuel was one of at least 8 children, so he had quite a full family life. As an adult, he was a "housewright", so he was likely apprenticed to or at least worked with a housewright as soon as he had finished whatever schooling he acquired. A housewright built wooden (as opposed to stone or brick) houses, but the job involved more than a carpenter's work. He cut the wood, sawed it into planks, and then built the house with the wood he had chosen and prepared. There was no middleman, and no one else to blame if something was not done correctly. I have much respect for housewrights after learning this!
Samuel married Mehitable Thompson, daughter of John and Sarah Trevore Thompson, on November 28, 1666 in Medfield, Massachusetts. They had at least twelve children together. Samuel is listed as a founding father of Mendon, which was officially formed from Braintree in 1667. He held several town positions. In 1668 he was a surveyor of highways, in 1692 and 1696 a selectman, and in 1696 also a tything man.
One of the most remembered events of his life was probably King Philip's War. Mendon was one of the towns that was attacked early in the war, with loss of life, and later the town was burned to the ground by the native Americans. Mendon had several villages of "praying Indians", converted by our grand uncle John Eliot, and it was not these groups who rebelled. They did, however, suffer consequences. Samuel and his family left Mendon, perhaps soon after the first attack, but Samuel was back in 1677 to rebuild his home, and doubtless those of others who returned also.
There were at least two Samuel Haywards who are listed as soldiers in King Philip's War, but I didn't find those reports also listing other Mendon men, so I think the ones who are listed in the records are not our Samuel. He may have gone to stay with friends or relatives in Braintree, expectantly waiting for the end of the war.
By 1680 Samuel's family was probably back in Mendon, and life was slowly returning to normal. Samuel was hired by the town to raise (build} the meeting house, which was to be 26 feet by 24 feet in size. He was to be paid 3 shillings a day, with part of that to be in kind, a cow and a calf. There was some unspecified dispute involved during or following construction, but it was resolved and the town and Samuel each went about their business.
Samuel's wife Mehitabel died in 1700 and the next year he married Elizabeth Sabin. Samuel died on July 29, 1713, without leaving a will. If there is an inventory, I haven't located it, either. However, I did locate papers, filed in Suffolk County, showing that the surviving children (or in the case of the several daughters who were married, their husbands) agreed to a settlement of the estate. Interestingly, there were few who could sign their name to this document; most used a mark. (Joseph Rockwood, our ancestor, did sign his name and it is quite legible.) A probate judge signed off on the "deal" and presumably everyone lived happily ever after. We do know that Samuel had a house and quite a bit of land. Housewright may not sound like a glamorous job, but in a time when everyone needed to have a house built, it paid the bills and then some.
I like Samuel. He took care of his family, he was a public servant, an honest and hard working man, and he served his church also. And I especially like that I was able to find a little bit of information about him!
The line of descent is:
Samuel Hayward-Mehitabel Thompson
Mary Hayward-Joseph Rockwood
John Rockwood-Deborah Thayer
Joseph Rockwood-Alice Thompson
Levi Rockwood-Deborah Lazell
Susanna Rockwood-Nahum Holbrook
Joseph Holbrook-Mary Elizabeth Whittemore
Fremont Holbrook-Phoebe Brown
Loren Holbrook-Etta Stanard
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
Their descendants
Friday, September 20, 2019
Holbrook line: John Thompson 1667-1749
John Thompson was a second generation New Englander. His grandfather had come to America and his father was born here. So in many ways he's of an invisible generation. He was too late to be chronicled in the Great Migration materials and too busy making a living to leave much of a record behind him. Except, in this case, there is a book called "Annals of Mendon 1659-1760 that gives some brief mentions of him. This is a cause for rejoicing in the genealogy world.
John was born on Christmas Day in 1667 in Mendon, Massachusetts. Perhaps that gave the family a reason to celebrate the day, even though Christmas celebrations were either banned or greatly frowned on by the Puritans who ruled Massachusetts Bay Colony. John's parents were John and Thankful Woodland Thompson, and he was the first of 9 children born to the couple. As the first child and the first son, he may have been spoiled just a little as he grew up, but it seems that no child in New England was coddled for long.
Of course, for many years he was referred to as "John Jr" in town records. Before he showed up in town records, he had at least one life experience that would have made him mature quickly. Mendon was burned by the native Americans in King Philip's war. Before that happened, the natives had killed about six settlers in a surprise attack, and the town was abandoned. So it was a desolate settlement that was burned, but still, it was home. Town records seem to be silent about where people went or when they came back.
The first notice I found of John was in 1689, when he was about 22 years of age. He was taxed 13 shillings and 10 pence for the pastor's salary, and this probably happened every year. In 1695, the tax records show that he was taxed 5 shillings 5 pence in "country pay" (wood, hay, grain, whatever the family could spare) and 1 shilling three pence in actual cash money. John married Hannah Wight, daughter of Samuel and Hannah Albee Wight, but the year is missing from the records. Their nine children were born from December of 1689 to 1708, which indicates they were likely married in early 1689 or sooner.
John was active in the town and in protecting his family. In 1694 and 1695 he received bounties for killing wolves. He may have found them on his land, or he may have tracked or trapped them. Perhaps he would have interesting stories to tell us about these events. In 1710 he was given permission with John Corbet and others to build a sawmill on the town commons land that abutted the Charles River, so he likely had additional income from that investment. That same year, Sergeant John Thompson was chosen as a town selectman. By 1719 he was an ensign, basically a second lieutenant. There were still threats from native Americans in and around the area, and this was a responsible position.
The next reference I found to him was in 1727, when he was on a committee to "perambulate" the town limits between Bellingham and Mendon. He probably lived in north Bellingham, which was a daughter town of what had once been a much larger Mendon, although I've not found land records yet.
The final document I've found is John's will, It doesn't seem to be dated, but John died March 6, 1749. He provided for his widow and his six sons, with son John getting more than the others, and cash was to be given to the daughters after his widow's death. There is also an interesting admonition at the end saying in rather flowery language that he commends his children to God and that they need to behave as Christians toward each other. I've not seen that in a will before. Unfortunately, I didn't find an inventory. Hannah lived another ten years, so she was about 92 years old when she died in 1759.
The line of descent is
John Thompson-Hannah Wight
Joseph Thompson-Mary Holbrook
Alice Thompson-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
John was born on Christmas Day in 1667 in Mendon, Massachusetts. Perhaps that gave the family a reason to celebrate the day, even though Christmas celebrations were either banned or greatly frowned on by the Puritans who ruled Massachusetts Bay Colony. John's parents were John and Thankful Woodland Thompson, and he was the first of 9 children born to the couple. As the first child and the first son, he may have been spoiled just a little as he grew up, but it seems that no child in New England was coddled for long.
Of course, for many years he was referred to as "John Jr" in town records. Before he showed up in town records, he had at least one life experience that would have made him mature quickly. Mendon was burned by the native Americans in King Philip's war. Before that happened, the natives had killed about six settlers in a surprise attack, and the town was abandoned. So it was a desolate settlement that was burned, but still, it was home. Town records seem to be silent about where people went or when they came back.
The first notice I found of John was in 1689, when he was about 22 years of age. He was taxed 13 shillings and 10 pence for the pastor's salary, and this probably happened every year. In 1695, the tax records show that he was taxed 5 shillings 5 pence in "country pay" (wood, hay, grain, whatever the family could spare) and 1 shilling three pence in actual cash money. John married Hannah Wight, daughter of Samuel and Hannah Albee Wight, but the year is missing from the records. Their nine children were born from December of 1689 to 1708, which indicates they were likely married in early 1689 or sooner.
John was active in the town and in protecting his family. In 1694 and 1695 he received bounties for killing wolves. He may have found them on his land, or he may have tracked or trapped them. Perhaps he would have interesting stories to tell us about these events. In 1710 he was given permission with John Corbet and others to build a sawmill on the town commons land that abutted the Charles River, so he likely had additional income from that investment. That same year, Sergeant John Thompson was chosen as a town selectman. By 1719 he was an ensign, basically a second lieutenant. There were still threats from native Americans in and around the area, and this was a responsible position.
The next reference I found to him was in 1727, when he was on a committee to "perambulate" the town limits between Bellingham and Mendon. He probably lived in north Bellingham, which was a daughter town of what had once been a much larger Mendon, although I've not found land records yet.
The final document I've found is John's will, It doesn't seem to be dated, but John died March 6, 1749. He provided for his widow and his six sons, with son John getting more than the others, and cash was to be given to the daughters after his widow's death. There is also an interesting admonition at the end saying in rather flowery language that he commends his children to God and that they need to behave as Christians toward each other. I've not seen that in a will before. Unfortunately, I didn't find an inventory. Hannah lived another ten years, so she was about 92 years old when she died in 1759.
The line of descent is
John Thompson-Hannah Wight
Joseph Thompson-Mary Holbrook
Alice Thompson-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
Friday, September 13, 2019
Holbrook line: Thomas Holbrook 1625-1697 Immigrant
There's not as much readily available information about our ancestor Thomas Holbrook as I would like, so I'll continue to look. Because he is an ancestor at least twice, he's important to our family.
However, I do know this mucxh. Thomas, sometimes referred to as Thomas II, was born in 1624 and christened at St John the Baptist, Glastonbury, Somersetshire, England. His parents, Thomas and Jane Powy oe Powis Holbrook, were from Wales. Thomas may or may not have learned some of the stories about Glastonbury as a young boy, from Joseph of Arimathea's appearance there to the stories about King Arthur. There were Saxon ruins as well as those of the Normans, and a very old church, so Thomas had a lot of places to explore.
Thomas's parents came to Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1635 on the Marygould. along with Thomas and three of his siblings. The family settled in Weymouth and that is where his parents died in 1677.
Records are scarce or hiding, so we don't know when Thomas went to Braintree, although he was there by 1653.. Actually the two towns are very close together so it is possible that he didn't have to move at all, but that the change in address took place due to events around him. He married Joane Kingman, daughter of Henry and Joanna Drake Kingman, probably shortly before the move. Thomas Sr was a Puritan as was Henry Kingman, so that is likely the way these Holbrooks raised their children, too.
Braintree contributed men to foght in King Philip's War, although it appears that the town itself was not molested. One of those men was Thomas Holbrook. This was more likely to be Thomas's son, Thomas born 1653 than it was our Thomas, but the possibility exists. And if enough men left Braintree, our older Thomas would have acted as militia.
Thomas had a small inheritance when his father died in 1677, and Joane received twelve pounds from her father's estate, plus a chest. Thomas and Joane had at least five children together, four of whom lived to adulthood.
I haven't yet been able to learn much more about his life, except that he was likely a church member and then, his will. He had a Great Bible and other books, a gun and a sword, farm animals, what appears to be quite a lot of boots (if I'm reading this correctly, Was he also a shoemaker?) and quite a bit of land. His estate was valued at 687 pounds. Joane died in 1696 and Thomas in 1697.
For now, we will have to leave Thomas as just a shadow of a person, bare outlines telling his story. It would be nice to find more, to learn more about his life and how he impacted the Colony.
Oh, yes...The Presdients Bush, and President Taft, among others, descend from this couple.
The line of descent is
Thomas Holbrook-Joane Kingman
Peter Holbrook-Alice Godfrey
Mary Holbrook-Joseph Thompson
Alice Thompson-Joseph Rockwood
Levi Rockwood-Deborah Lazell
Susanna Rockwood-Nahum Holbrook
Joseph Holbrook-ary Elizabeth Whittemore
Fremont Holbrook-Phoebe Brown
Loren Holbrook-Etta Stanard
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
Their descendants
The second line is the same through Peter Holbrook and Alice Godfrey; then
Joseph Holbrook-Mary Cook
Jesse Holbrook-Abigail Thayer
Amariah Holbrook-Molly Wright
Nahum Holbrook-Susanna Rockwood
(the rest as above)
However, I do know this mucxh. Thomas, sometimes referred to as Thomas II, was born in 1624 and christened at St John the Baptist, Glastonbury, Somersetshire, England. His parents, Thomas and Jane Powy oe Powis Holbrook, were from Wales. Thomas may or may not have learned some of the stories about Glastonbury as a young boy, from Joseph of Arimathea's appearance there to the stories about King Arthur. There were Saxon ruins as well as those of the Normans, and a very old church, so Thomas had a lot of places to explore.
Thomas's parents came to Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1635 on the Marygould. along with Thomas and three of his siblings. The family settled in Weymouth and that is where his parents died in 1677.
Records are scarce or hiding, so we don't know when Thomas went to Braintree, although he was there by 1653.. Actually the two towns are very close together so it is possible that he didn't have to move at all, but that the change in address took place due to events around him. He married Joane Kingman, daughter of Henry and Joanna Drake Kingman, probably shortly before the move. Thomas Sr was a Puritan as was Henry Kingman, so that is likely the way these Holbrooks raised their children, too.
Braintree contributed men to foght in King Philip's War, although it appears that the town itself was not molested. One of those men was Thomas Holbrook. This was more likely to be Thomas's son, Thomas born 1653 than it was our Thomas, but the possibility exists. And if enough men left Braintree, our older Thomas would have acted as militia.
Thomas had a small inheritance when his father died in 1677, and Joane received twelve pounds from her father's estate, plus a chest. Thomas and Joane had at least five children together, four of whom lived to adulthood.
I haven't yet been able to learn much more about his life, except that he was likely a church member and then, his will. He had a Great Bible and other books, a gun and a sword, farm animals, what appears to be quite a lot of boots (if I'm reading this correctly, Was he also a shoemaker?) and quite a bit of land. His estate was valued at 687 pounds. Joane died in 1696 and Thomas in 1697.
For now, we will have to leave Thomas as just a shadow of a person, bare outlines telling his story. It would be nice to find more, to learn more about his life and how he impacted the Colony.
Oh, yes...The Presdients Bush, and President Taft, among others, descend from this couple.
The line of descent is
Thomas Holbrook-Joane Kingman
Peter Holbrook-Alice Godfrey
Mary Holbrook-Joseph Thompson
Alice Thompson-Joseph Rockwood
Levi Rockwood-Deborah Lazell
Susanna Rockwood-Nahum Holbrook
Joseph Holbrook-ary Elizabeth Whittemore
Fremont Holbrook-Phoebe Brown
Loren Holbrook-Etta Stanard
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
Their descendants
The second line is the same through Peter Holbrook and Alice Godfrey; then
Joseph Holbrook-Mary Cook
Jesse Holbrook-Abigail Thayer
Amariah Holbrook-Molly Wright
Nahum Holbrook-Susanna Rockwood
(the rest as above)
Tuesday, July 16, 2019
Holbrook line: Ebenezer Thayer 1672-1723
Oh my! This man has been difficult to place. He is not, as far as I know, Captain Ebenezer; that man lived later than our ancestor. The same goes for Reverend Ebenezer Thayer. He's not our ancestor either. It's been amazing to find so many Ebenezers, and so many Thayers, and so many Ebenezer Thayers, in Mendon, Massachusetts. I'm glad I've been able to unravel our ancestor from some of the other men, and I'm especially glad that I found first his will (on Ancestry) and then his estate papers (on americanancestors.org). Without those papers, we'd know a lot less about Ebenezer than we know now.
Ebenezer is the son of Ferdinando and Hulday Hayward Thayer. He was born in either 1672 or 1674, possiblly in Braintree, Massachusetts Bay Colony. He was one of at least six children. At some point, when Ebenezer was still a child or youth, the family moved to Mendon, Massachusetts, at a time that Mendon was considered to be on the frontier. If they had already moved by the time of King Philip's War, this would have been a very tense time for the family. It was probably still tense in 1690, when Huldah is though to have died in Mendon, for there had been some kind of a military call up just the year before, perhaps due to intelligence about native American attacks. Short and uneasy were the periods of truce between the whites and the natives.
We get a sense of how much this was frontier by noting tht Ebenezer Thayer killed a wolf in 1694, and that the constable cut off its ears in front of some of the selectmen. There was probably a bounty for the wolf head, as that is usual in frontier towns.
Regardless of the date that Ebenezer arrived in Mendon, he stayed there the rest of his life. He married Martha Thomson or Thompson there on June 13, 1695. She was the daughter of John and Thankful Woodland Thompson. Ebenezer describes himself in his will as a husbandman, meaning he farmed his own land. Ebenezer and Martha had eight or perhaps nine children, enough to keep the two of them busy. His name is on rate lists for 1694 and 1699, and he was given land in the town allotments in 1707 and 1713, if not sooner. He acquired quite a significant holding before his death.
Mendon eventually grew to the point that it needed to be divided into one or more town, and Ebenezer's name is on a 1719 petition requesting division of the lands. It was granted by the general court, and Ebenezer's land straddled the line between Mendon and Bellingham. He may not have moved at all, but his death is sometimes shown as having happened in Bellingham. Note: up to the point that "Ebenezer's land straddled the line..." the information for this post has come from "Annals of the Town of Mendon' by John G. Metcalf. I've not seen this source quoted in on line summaries of his life, but there is this much information in the book.
The next we find of Ebenezer is his death. It occurred in either 1722 or 1723. It was an illness of some kind that took him because he described himself, in the will, as "being very sick". He left 68 acres of land to his son Ebenezer, laid out in various parcels in various years. To Uriah, he left several pieces of land in Mendon, to be held by the executor until he came of age. Then he left more land in Bellingham to Ebenezer. His homestead in Bellingham, not previously disposed of, was to be divided between his three sons, but his wife was to live on it and have the improvements until his son Daniel was of age. His wife was to be provided for in her widowhood out of the gifts he had made to his sons. His daughters Martha and Hannah were to have 10 pounds each when they reached the age of twenty one, out of his "personal estate". More was to be given to each of his four daughters, who also included Deborah and Abigail, and his sons were to provide for his wife's care, in one end of the dwelling house, in equal shares. She was to have corn and firewood, a cow and a horse, to lead a "comfortable subsistence".
The inventory is categorized rather than itemized, so we don't know about the little things that would tell us more about Ebenezer. He had about 16 head of cattle, including two oxen, three horses, 34 sheep and lambs, and 7 swine,. He also had a sword, belt, and ammunition, but there is no specific mention of a gun or other weapon. Interestingly, he also had four spinning wheels, which perhaps means his daughters were already working in a cottage industry. The estate was valued at about 826 pounds, due mostly to the many parcels of land that he owned. Funeral and other expenses reduced the estate by 15 pounds. It seems that Ebenezer left his family in decent financial shape, much sooner than he had planned. Martha is believed to have married Joseph Wight in 1724, and to have lived until 1759.
There are still many questsions I'd like to have answered. What was his military experience? Was he a Baptist, or a Congregationalist? Was he literate? His will was signed with an "X" but since he was "very sick", that may not mean anything. We can at least conclude that he was a successful farmer, at a time and place when that was difficult. Thank you, Ebenezer, for being part of our family!
The line of descent is:
Ebenezer Thayer-Martha Thompson
Deborah Thayer-John Rockwood
Joseph Rockwood-Alice Thompson
Levi Rockwood-Deborah Lazell
Susanna Rockwood-Nahum Holbrook
Joseph Holbrook-Mary Elizabeth Whittemore
Fremont Holbrook-Phoebe Brown
Loren Holbrook-Etta Stanard
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
Their descendants
Ebenezer is the son of Ferdinando and Hulday Hayward Thayer. He was born in either 1672 or 1674, possiblly in Braintree, Massachusetts Bay Colony. He was one of at least six children. At some point, when Ebenezer was still a child or youth, the family moved to Mendon, Massachusetts, at a time that Mendon was considered to be on the frontier. If they had already moved by the time of King Philip's War, this would have been a very tense time for the family. It was probably still tense in 1690, when Huldah is though to have died in Mendon, for there had been some kind of a military call up just the year before, perhaps due to intelligence about native American attacks. Short and uneasy were the periods of truce between the whites and the natives.
We get a sense of how much this was frontier by noting tht Ebenezer Thayer killed a wolf in 1694, and that the constable cut off its ears in front of some of the selectmen. There was probably a bounty for the wolf head, as that is usual in frontier towns.
Regardless of the date that Ebenezer arrived in Mendon, he stayed there the rest of his life. He married Martha Thomson or Thompson there on June 13, 1695. She was the daughter of John and Thankful Woodland Thompson. Ebenezer describes himself in his will as a husbandman, meaning he farmed his own land. Ebenezer and Martha had eight or perhaps nine children, enough to keep the two of them busy. His name is on rate lists for 1694 and 1699, and he was given land in the town allotments in 1707 and 1713, if not sooner. He acquired quite a significant holding before his death.
Mendon eventually grew to the point that it needed to be divided into one or more town, and Ebenezer's name is on a 1719 petition requesting division of the lands. It was granted by the general court, and Ebenezer's land straddled the line between Mendon and Bellingham. He may not have moved at all, but his death is sometimes shown as having happened in Bellingham. Note: up to the point that "Ebenezer's land straddled the line..." the information for this post has come from "Annals of the Town of Mendon' by John G. Metcalf. I've not seen this source quoted in on line summaries of his life, but there is this much information in the book.
The next we find of Ebenezer is his death. It occurred in either 1722 or 1723. It was an illness of some kind that took him because he described himself, in the will, as "being very sick". He left 68 acres of land to his son Ebenezer, laid out in various parcels in various years. To Uriah, he left several pieces of land in Mendon, to be held by the executor until he came of age. Then he left more land in Bellingham to Ebenezer. His homestead in Bellingham, not previously disposed of, was to be divided between his three sons, but his wife was to live on it and have the improvements until his son Daniel was of age. His wife was to be provided for in her widowhood out of the gifts he had made to his sons. His daughters Martha and Hannah were to have 10 pounds each when they reached the age of twenty one, out of his "personal estate". More was to be given to each of his four daughters, who also included Deborah and Abigail, and his sons were to provide for his wife's care, in one end of the dwelling house, in equal shares. She was to have corn and firewood, a cow and a horse, to lead a "comfortable subsistence".
The inventory is categorized rather than itemized, so we don't know about the little things that would tell us more about Ebenezer. He had about 16 head of cattle, including two oxen, three horses, 34 sheep and lambs, and 7 swine,. He also had a sword, belt, and ammunition, but there is no specific mention of a gun or other weapon. Interestingly, he also had four spinning wheels, which perhaps means his daughters were already working in a cottage industry. The estate was valued at about 826 pounds, due mostly to the many parcels of land that he owned. Funeral and other expenses reduced the estate by 15 pounds. It seems that Ebenezer left his family in decent financial shape, much sooner than he had planned. Martha is believed to have married Joseph Wight in 1724, and to have lived until 1759.
There are still many questsions I'd like to have answered. What was his military experience? Was he a Baptist, or a Congregationalist? Was he literate? His will was signed with an "X" but since he was "very sick", that may not mean anything. We can at least conclude that he was a successful farmer, at a time and place when that was difficult. Thank you, Ebenezer, for being part of our family!
The line of descent is:
Ebenezer Thayer-Martha Thompson
Deborah Thayer-John Rockwood
Joseph Rockwood-Alice Thompson
Levi Rockwood-Deborah Lazell
Susanna Rockwood-Nahum Holbrook
Joseph Holbrook-Mary Elizabeth Whittemore
Fremont Holbrook-Phoebe Brown
Loren Holbrook-Etta Stanard
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
Their descendants
Friday, February 15, 2019
Holbrook line: William Hayward, Immigrant
It's February and the ice is thawing. I feel like I'm on very thin ice, here, writing about this particular ancestor. I hope I can stay away from all the cracks and holes in his story, and eventually get back to dry and solid land.
Actually, let's start with dry and solid land. It seems pretty well established that William Hayward died at Braintree, Suffolk County, Massachusetts on May 10, 1659. He was at his usual work as a ferryman, and drowned. Perhaps he had a heart attack or stroke that caused him to fall into the water, but the cause of death was apparently drowning. The inventory of his estate showed a value of 195 pounds, 5 shillings, and 6 pence. Power of administration was given to Margery, his late wife, on behalf of herself and the children. His estate included a dwelling house, garden, and orchards, as well as other lands, oxen, cattle and a meager amount of household furnishings including seven shillings worth of books.
Margery, his wife, is believed to be Margery Knight. There are marriage records for a couple by those names on October 10, 1633, Stepney, Middlesex, England, and they are believed to be the same people who later came to New England. Stepney appears to have been a separate village at the time but is now part of the city of London. Some show the couple as having arrived in 1635 but the earliest records are from 1637, when William was in Charlestown. He then went to Braintree ,where he was deputy to the general court in 1641.
By occupation, William was a mariner, boatman, and ferry man. He probably did whatever was necessary to support his family, which may have included as many as eight children, some of them still minors when he died.
That is pretty much what is known about William. I've been birth dates for him of everything from 1585 to 1617. The 1617 date is likely not correct because that would have made him only about 16 years old when he married Margery, which doesn't seem likely. More likely he was born between 1595 and 1610, but there were quite a few William Haywards born during that time period.
So we end with a mystery or two. Who was he, and who were his parents? What were his reasons for coming to America? Presumably he was made a freeman, since he held the office of deputy. When did that happen? Regardless, we once again come to the conclusion that he and Margery are people worthy of respect and honor, for crossing the ocean, for raising a family here, and for giving us those hardy pioneer genes that have served us well.
The lines of descent are:
William Hayward-Margery Knight
Huldah Hayward-Ferdinando Thayer
Ebenezeer Thayer-Martha Thompson
Ebenezer Thayer-Mary Wheelock
Abigail Thayer-Jesse Holbrook
Amariah Holbrook-Molly Wright
Nahum Holbrook-Susanna Rockwood
Joseph Holbrook-Mary Elizabeth Whittemore
Fremont Holbrook-Phoebe Brown
Loren Holbrook-Etta Stanard
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
Their descendants
and
William Hayward-Margery Knight
Samuel Hayward-Mehitable Thompson
Mary Hayward-Joseph Rockwood
John Rockwood-Deborah Thayer
Joseph Rockwood-Alice Thompson
Levi Rockwood-Deborah Lazell
Susanna Rockwood-Nahum Holbrook
per above
As you'll note, this is a rather tangled tree, with Thompson and Thayers showing up in several different ways. That may explain why we have several ancestors in common with William Howard Taft, former President of the United States.
Actually, let's start with dry and solid land. It seems pretty well established that William Hayward died at Braintree, Suffolk County, Massachusetts on May 10, 1659. He was at his usual work as a ferryman, and drowned. Perhaps he had a heart attack or stroke that caused him to fall into the water, but the cause of death was apparently drowning. The inventory of his estate showed a value of 195 pounds, 5 shillings, and 6 pence. Power of administration was given to Margery, his late wife, on behalf of herself and the children. His estate included a dwelling house, garden, and orchards, as well as other lands, oxen, cattle and a meager amount of household furnishings including seven shillings worth of books.
Margery, his wife, is believed to be Margery Knight. There are marriage records for a couple by those names on October 10, 1633, Stepney, Middlesex, England, and they are believed to be the same people who later came to New England. Stepney appears to have been a separate village at the time but is now part of the city of London. Some show the couple as having arrived in 1635 but the earliest records are from 1637, when William was in Charlestown. He then went to Braintree ,where he was deputy to the general court in 1641.
By occupation, William was a mariner, boatman, and ferry man. He probably did whatever was necessary to support his family, which may have included as many as eight children, some of them still minors when he died.
That is pretty much what is known about William. I've been birth dates for him of everything from 1585 to 1617. The 1617 date is likely not correct because that would have made him only about 16 years old when he married Margery, which doesn't seem likely. More likely he was born between 1595 and 1610, but there were quite a few William Haywards born during that time period.
So we end with a mystery or two. Who was he, and who were his parents? What were his reasons for coming to America? Presumably he was made a freeman, since he held the office of deputy. When did that happen? Regardless, we once again come to the conclusion that he and Margery are people worthy of respect and honor, for crossing the ocean, for raising a family here, and for giving us those hardy pioneer genes that have served us well.
The lines of descent are:
William Hayward-Margery Knight
Huldah Hayward-Ferdinando Thayer
Ebenezeer Thayer-Martha Thompson
Ebenezer Thayer-Mary Wheelock
Abigail Thayer-Jesse Holbrook
Amariah Holbrook-Molly Wright
Nahum Holbrook-Susanna Rockwood
Joseph Holbrook-Mary Elizabeth Whittemore
Fremont Holbrook-Phoebe Brown
Loren Holbrook-Etta Stanard
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
Their descendants
and
William Hayward-Margery Knight
Samuel Hayward-Mehitable Thompson
Mary Hayward-Joseph Rockwood
John Rockwood-Deborah Thayer
Joseph Rockwood-Alice Thompson
Levi Rockwood-Deborah Lazell
Susanna Rockwood-Nahum Holbrook
per above
As you'll note, this is a rather tangled tree, with Thompson and Thayers showing up in several different ways. That may explain why we have several ancestors in common with William Howard Taft, former President of the United States.
Friday, August 31, 2018
Holbrook line: John Thompson 1642-1715
OK, John Thompson is not quite an immigrant. However, I'm no longer sure of the identity of his parents. I had a whole blog post written and ready to post about Simon Thompson, whom I believed to be his father. I no longer believe that. I've found several sources that appear to be authoritative saying his parents were John and Sarah (possibly Trevore) Thompson and his paternal grandparents were David and Amyas Cole Thomson. These seem to be more likely for our John, and this is the way it is given in a published genealogy plus on line trees, so that's how we'll leave it for now. It's important that I get this right, because we have two lines of descent from this man.
I will say that John Thompson appears to have been born in 1642, although some sources say 1645, possibly in Dorchester. So his parents were already here, and John Thompson and Sarah possibly Trevore would appear to have been here, and in the correct location.
Before 1663, John is believed to have lived at Weymouth, Massachusetts. He married Thankful Woodland, daughter of John and Martha Woodland in about 1665, in Dorchester. Some sources say the marriage occurred in Mendon, but Mendon was not yet a settlement so that appears unlikely. The actual settlement of Mendon occurred in 1668, although there may have been a house or two before then. All 10 of their children were born in Mendon, and John and Thankful probably intended to live out their days there.
Life wasn't as peaceful as it sounds, however. The Thompsons left Mendon in late 1675 and went to Dorchester or one of the "safer" towns, due to the outbreak of King Philip's War. Mendon suffered the first casualties of the war in 1675, and the natives returned to burn the town to the ground in early 1676. The Thompsons were some of the earliest families to return to Mendon in 1677, and to start rebuilding their lives.
John was chosen surveyor for the town in 1680, the first such office to be filled since the burning of the town. He was also a town selectman, and is noted in some records as being an Ensign. If so, he probably was involved in military action during King Philip's War. He may have lived until 1715, but I have not been able to locate a death record or a will.
This is not much to define the life of a pioneer and a patriot. I wish I had more information. I wish I knew how he met his wife. I wish I knew what stories his father must have told, about his amazing grandfather. There is so much I'd life to know, but at least I can honor his name by writing this blog post.
The line of descent is:
John Thompson-Thankful Woodland
Martha Thompson-Ebenezer Thayer
Deborah Thayer-John Rockwood
Joseph Rockwood-Alice Thompson
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
The second line is:
John Thompson-Thankful Woodland
John Thompson-Hannah Wight
Joseph Thompson-Mary Holbrook
Alice Thompson-Joseph Rockwood (so they would be second cousins)
See above
I will say that John Thompson appears to have been born in 1642, although some sources say 1645, possibly in Dorchester. So his parents were already here, and John Thompson and Sarah possibly Trevore would appear to have been here, and in the correct location.
Before 1663, John is believed to have lived at Weymouth, Massachusetts. He married Thankful Woodland, daughter of John and Martha Woodland in about 1665, in Dorchester. Some sources say the marriage occurred in Mendon, but Mendon was not yet a settlement so that appears unlikely. The actual settlement of Mendon occurred in 1668, although there may have been a house or two before then. All 10 of their children were born in Mendon, and John and Thankful probably intended to live out their days there.
Life wasn't as peaceful as it sounds, however. The Thompsons left Mendon in late 1675 and went to Dorchester or one of the "safer" towns, due to the outbreak of King Philip's War. Mendon suffered the first casualties of the war in 1675, and the natives returned to burn the town to the ground in early 1676. The Thompsons were some of the earliest families to return to Mendon in 1677, and to start rebuilding their lives.
John was chosen surveyor for the town in 1680, the first such office to be filled since the burning of the town. He was also a town selectman, and is noted in some records as being an Ensign. If so, he probably was involved in military action during King Philip's War. He may have lived until 1715, but I have not been able to locate a death record or a will.
This is not much to define the life of a pioneer and a patriot. I wish I had more information. I wish I knew how he met his wife. I wish I knew what stories his father must have told, about his amazing grandfather. There is so much I'd life to know, but at least I can honor his name by writing this blog post.
The line of descent is:
John Thompson-Thankful Woodland
Martha Thompson-Ebenezer Thayer
Deborah Thayer-John Rockwood
Joseph Rockwood-Alice Thompson
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
The second line is:
John Thompson-Thankful Woodland
John Thompson-Hannah Wight
Joseph Thompson-Mary Holbrook
Alice Thompson-Joseph Rockwood (so they would be second cousins)
See above
Friday, July 27, 2018
Holbrook line: Thomas Thayer, Immigrant 1596-1665
Thomas Thayer has much available information, so that this will be more a summary of what others have found rather than my own research. One interesting item I found refers to him as part of the "Boston Brahmin community". This set me back on my heels a bit. I've always thought that these people were maybe a little bit snobbish and clannish (my prejudices showing, but let's not pussy foot around this), and now I've learned that we might be part of this group, many generations removed, of course. There is an article on Wikipedia called "Boston Brahmin", if you're not familiar with the term.
Thomas himself may not be considered to be a Brahmin, since he was a shoemaker. But let's start at the beginning. He was born in Thornbury, Gloucestershire, England, probably shortly before his christening date of August 16, 1596. (Point of reference here: Queen Elizabeth I was the ruler of the land,) His parents were Richard and Ursula Alice Dimery Thayer, and he was one of at least five children. Interestingly, a godfather was William Dimery, probably the same man who later became his father in law. Of the five Thayer siblings, three stayed in England but Thomas and his brother Richard came to America.
Thomas married Margery Wheeler, daughter of Abel or Abiel and Jane Shepherd Wheeler on April 13, 1618, in Thornbury. There were nine children born to them in Thornbury and at least one born after the family came to New England. It musts have been a sad life in those early years as most of the children died in England, some shortly after their birth. However, Thomas, his wife and their three surviving children sailed on the ship "Blessing" and arrived on the "Blessing" at Boston Harbor on April 8, 1637. His goods and supplies followed shortly after on the "Speedwell". It's possible that his oldest son, or perhaps his wife, came on this ship with the goods but there is no record of the passengers on that ship. It certainly would be interesting to know what "goods" he bought with him and whether they were sufficient to get the family started in the New World.
I haven't been able to locate much more than that about Thomas's life in America. We know he received 76 acres of land in Mt. Wollaston (later Braintree) and that is supposed to be for nine members of his family. This is hard to reconcile with the belief that most of his children died in England. (More research, when I get a chance!) Because he states it in his will, we know that he was a shoemaker and that he settled in Braintree, Suffolk County. We know his wife was still alive, for the lands he bequeathed to his three sons were not to be divided until after Margery's death. He had a dwelling house, orchard, barn, and enough land to give about 20 acres to Thomas, about the same to Ferdinando, and also to Sydrach. His personal goods he gave to his grandchildren, again apparently after the death of his wife. His three sons got together and rewrote part of the will, after his death, because they didn't think Sydrach had been given an amount equal to Thomas Jr and Ferdinando. Margery died February 11, 1673, so the boys waited a few years until the land was legally theirs.
An inventory was taken but sadly seems not to be available, or at least it is not on line. As you know by now, I dearly love inventories so its disappearance is a sad thing. And of course there are other mysteries. Was he a part of the church? Did he hold any town office? (I've looked at a History of Braintree and didn't find his name there at all). Could he read and write? Thomas and Margery are the progenitors of tens of thousands, if not more, descendants and we'd sure like to know more about them!
One line of descent is:
Thomas Thayer-Margery Wheeler
Ferdinando Thayer-Huldah Hayward
Ebenezer Thayer-Martha Thompson
Deborah Thayer-John Rockwood
Joseph Rockwood-Alice Thompson
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
Thomas himself may not be considered to be a Brahmin, since he was a shoemaker. But let's start at the beginning. He was born in Thornbury, Gloucestershire, England, probably shortly before his christening date of August 16, 1596. (Point of reference here: Queen Elizabeth I was the ruler of the land,) His parents were Richard and Ursula Alice Dimery Thayer, and he was one of at least five children. Interestingly, a godfather was William Dimery, probably the same man who later became his father in law. Of the five Thayer siblings, three stayed in England but Thomas and his brother Richard came to America.
Thomas married Margery Wheeler, daughter of Abel or Abiel and Jane Shepherd Wheeler on April 13, 1618, in Thornbury. There were nine children born to them in Thornbury and at least one born after the family came to New England. It musts have been a sad life in those early years as most of the children died in England, some shortly after their birth. However, Thomas, his wife and their three surviving children sailed on the ship "Blessing" and arrived on the "Blessing" at Boston Harbor on April 8, 1637. His goods and supplies followed shortly after on the "Speedwell". It's possible that his oldest son, or perhaps his wife, came on this ship with the goods but there is no record of the passengers on that ship. It certainly would be interesting to know what "goods" he bought with him and whether they were sufficient to get the family started in the New World.
I haven't been able to locate much more than that about Thomas's life in America. We know he received 76 acres of land in Mt. Wollaston (later Braintree) and that is supposed to be for nine members of his family. This is hard to reconcile with the belief that most of his children died in England. (More research, when I get a chance!) Because he states it in his will, we know that he was a shoemaker and that he settled in Braintree, Suffolk County. We know his wife was still alive, for the lands he bequeathed to his three sons were not to be divided until after Margery's death. He had a dwelling house, orchard, barn, and enough land to give about 20 acres to Thomas, about the same to Ferdinando, and also to Sydrach. His personal goods he gave to his grandchildren, again apparently after the death of his wife. His three sons got together and rewrote part of the will, after his death, because they didn't think Sydrach had been given an amount equal to Thomas Jr and Ferdinando. Margery died February 11, 1673, so the boys waited a few years until the land was legally theirs.
An inventory was taken but sadly seems not to be available, or at least it is not on line. As you know by now, I dearly love inventories so its disappearance is a sad thing. And of course there are other mysteries. Was he a part of the church? Did he hold any town office? (I've looked at a History of Braintree and didn't find his name there at all). Could he read and write? Thomas and Margery are the progenitors of tens of thousands, if not more, descendants and we'd sure like to know more about them!
One line of descent is:
Thomas Thayer-Margery Wheeler
Ferdinando Thayer-Huldah Hayward
Ebenezer Thayer-Martha Thompson
Deborah Thayer-John Rockwood
Joseph Rockwood-Alice Thompson
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
Friday, July 20, 2018
Holbrook line: Thomas Wight, Immigrant
It's a joy to write about Thomas Wight, even though as is often the case we don't really know who his parents are or where he was born. On my tree, I show Robert and Elizabeth Fulshaw Wight as his parents, but I don't have any documentation. In researching for this post I find another somewhat likely couple but I haven't done the work to see if it can be documented so I'm not about to muddy the waters now. Family tradition says that he was from the Isle of Wight but tradition is sometimes suspect, too.
So what we know is that Thomas arrived in about 1636, and is first found in Dedham, Massachusetts where he was listed as one of the first twelve inhabitants of that town. On the Dedham Compact, he is listed as number 37 to sign but it's quite possible that either there was a large group of men to sign the compact, or he may have been away from town for some reason when the compact was first signed.
We know that he had a family when he arrived in Dedham because he was given 12 acres for a house lot, which was the amount given married men at the time. His wife's name was Alice and is believed to be Alice Roundy, but again documentation for when and where has not been located. It appears that there were probably three children with them when they came to America, and the couple had three more children here.Some lists show two additional children but that seems unlikely. Thomas later received grants of planting ground, meadows, and marsh, and his land was on a brook so fishing was a likely source of food, also. It was probably a fun place to grow up, for the children, if Puritans were allowed to have fun.
Thomas, it appears, was wealthy, at least by the standards of the day. He was a selectman for six years in Dedham, meaning he helped govern the town, and generally selectmen were persons of wealth and influence. He was also a member of the church, accepted into membership in 1640.
In 1649, the town of Medfield was formed and Thomas was one of seven men chosen to take charge of the "erecting, disposeing, and government of the said village". Thomas moved to Medfield permanently in 1652 and for 20 years served as a selectman there. He is said to have had no formal education (the basis for that, I don't know) but the townspeople respected him greatly, it appears.
Thomas's wife Alice died in 1665 and that same year he married Lydia Eliot Penniman. She was the sister of John Eliot, known as "The Apostle", and she was Thomas's widow when he died March 17, 1673/74. I didn't find a copy of Thomas's will but I did find a copy of the inventory and it gives us a clear peek into his home as it was when he died. The inventory is separated into several rooms or buildings, listed as "The parlor", "The little bedroom", "the hall", "the buttery", "in the garrett". some other categories I can't decipher, and a long list of lands. His estate was valued at over 460 pounds, which, together with the number and quality of the items listed, indicate wealth. The very first item that was listed, in the parlor, was books, so perhaps he had an education, after all.
Much of the information in this post comes from a book I found on line, "The Wight Family: Memoir of Thomas Wight of Dedham, Massachusetts' written by Danforth Phipps Wight and published in 1840. (Another reason to love the internet!)
I would of course love to know more about Thomas, especially about his ancestral families and why he came to America. Since he married a sister to John Eliot, he must have been a godly Puritan, and I'd like to know more about his religious beliefs. I'd like to know what decisions he may have had a part in, in the two towns he was most closely associated with. And I'd like to give him my honor and respect.
The line of descent is:
Thomas Wight-Alice Roundy
Samuel Wight-Hannah Albee
Hannah Wight-John Thompson
Joseph Thompson-Mary Holbrook
Alice Thompson-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
So what we know is that Thomas arrived in about 1636, and is first found in Dedham, Massachusetts where he was listed as one of the first twelve inhabitants of that town. On the Dedham Compact, he is listed as number 37 to sign but it's quite possible that either there was a large group of men to sign the compact, or he may have been away from town for some reason when the compact was first signed.
We know that he had a family when he arrived in Dedham because he was given 12 acres for a house lot, which was the amount given married men at the time. His wife's name was Alice and is believed to be Alice Roundy, but again documentation for when and where has not been located. It appears that there were probably three children with them when they came to America, and the couple had three more children here.Some lists show two additional children but that seems unlikely. Thomas later received grants of planting ground, meadows, and marsh, and his land was on a brook so fishing was a likely source of food, also. It was probably a fun place to grow up, for the children, if Puritans were allowed to have fun.
Thomas, it appears, was wealthy, at least by the standards of the day. He was a selectman for six years in Dedham, meaning he helped govern the town, and generally selectmen were persons of wealth and influence. He was also a member of the church, accepted into membership in 1640.
In 1649, the town of Medfield was formed and Thomas was one of seven men chosen to take charge of the "erecting, disposeing, and government of the said village". Thomas moved to Medfield permanently in 1652 and for 20 years served as a selectman there. He is said to have had no formal education (the basis for that, I don't know) but the townspeople respected him greatly, it appears.
Thomas's wife Alice died in 1665 and that same year he married Lydia Eliot Penniman. She was the sister of John Eliot, known as "The Apostle", and she was Thomas's widow when he died March 17, 1673/74. I didn't find a copy of Thomas's will but I did find a copy of the inventory and it gives us a clear peek into his home as it was when he died. The inventory is separated into several rooms or buildings, listed as "The parlor", "The little bedroom", "the hall", "the buttery", "in the garrett". some other categories I can't decipher, and a long list of lands. His estate was valued at over 460 pounds, which, together with the number and quality of the items listed, indicate wealth. The very first item that was listed, in the parlor, was books, so perhaps he had an education, after all.
Much of the information in this post comes from a book I found on line, "The Wight Family: Memoir of Thomas Wight of Dedham, Massachusetts' written by Danforth Phipps Wight and published in 1840. (Another reason to love the internet!)
I would of course love to know more about Thomas, especially about his ancestral families and why he came to America. Since he married a sister to John Eliot, he must have been a godly Puritan, and I'd like to know more about his religious beliefs. I'd like to know what decisions he may have had a part in, in the two towns he was most closely associated with. And I'd like to give him my honor and respect.
The line of descent is:
Thomas Wight-Alice Roundy
Samuel Wight-Hannah Albee
Hannah Wight-John Thompson
Joseph Thompson-Mary Holbrook
Alice Thompson-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
Tuesday, July 17, 2018
Holbrook line: William Knight, Immigrant
It's hard to write a blog post when there is not a lot to go on as far as documentation. One must read between the lines, and perhaps draw incorrect conclusions. The good thing is that someday, someone will figure out a lot of these mysteries. I hope to be around to witness at least some of these new discoveries.
William Knight is a good example of this. We do have some information, but some of it is conflicting and much information is missing. We'll either look at this glass as half full or half empty, and I guess I'm voting for half full.
After all, we do know at least two and perhaps three of William's wives. We know when he arrived in Massachusetts Bay Colony, and we know what he left as an estate. That is more information than we have for some of our ancestors, anyway.
We don't know for sure where or when William was born. One suggesting is December 15, 1670 in London, Middlesex, England, with parents of John Knight and Margery Lascelles. I think this is probably not our William Knight, as it would leave him coming to America as a man of 65 and fathering children here. It's possible, but unlikely.
One of the challenges is that there are at least three proposed wives for William. One is Ann Ives, who probably died between 1612 and 1622, when there is a distance of ten years between the noted children. But his records in America indicate his wife may have been Emma Potter, whom he had married by 1635. How do we account for his children born in the 1620s? And finally, he had a second or third wife Elizabeth Lee Ballard, who was living when William died and whom he married in or soon after 1640. He seems to refer in his wife to having had four children with Elizabeth, in addition to those he had earlier.
He refers to sons John, Jacob, and Francis, and to daughters Ann and Hanna, as well as to two of Elizabeth's children by her first husband, and to the four children (unnamed) that he has with Elizabeth. I'm not sure why Margery, our connection, wasn't mentioned in the will but there could be any number of reasons, including that he may have given a marriage gift, either of land or money.
William died March 5, 1655/56, in Lynn, Essex County, Massachusetts Bay Colony. He had been in America about 20 years, having arrived at Salem in either 1635 or 1636. He owned land in Salem in 1636, so probably he arrived in 1635. There is a William Knight who was made a freeman in 1638 in Boston, but I don't know whether this is our William or not.
William's inventory is interesting. He owned a dwelling house, barn, and fifteen acres of plow land, six acres of meadow in Rumley marsh and five acers of meadow in the town marsh, plus oxen, cows, sheep and swine. He has a significant amount of household goods, more than many farmers had, which partl can be explained by the fact that he lived in seaside towns where goods were more readily available than on the frontier. For instance, he had "stolls, chears, and a table", which was more than was usual for the time. He had three spinning wheels, so the women of the house must have been kept busy with the wool from the sheep. I see no mention of books, not even a Bible. The total inventory including uncollected debts was about 163 pounds.
I wish I knew more about William, especially the niggling little question of whether he was really Margery's father, or whether there are more William Knights than have yet been discovered. I'd like to know his religion, and his occupation if he did more than farm. If I learn that this is not Margery's father, then I'll update this post but as of now, I think it's at least somewhat likely.
The line of descent would be:
William Knight-Ann Ives
Margery Knight-William Hayward
Huldah Hayward-Ferdinando Thayer
Jonathan Thayer-Elizabeth French
Hulday Thayer-Benjamin Wheelock
Mary Wheelock-Ebenezer Thayer
Abigail Thayer-Jesse Holbrook
Amariah Holbrook-Molly Wright
Nahum Holbrook-Susanna Rockwood
Joseph Holbrook-Mary Elizabeth Whittemore
Fremont Holbrook-Phoebe Brown
Loren Holbrook-Etta Stanard
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
Their descendants
There is also a second line:
Samuel Hayward (son of William Hayward and Margery Knight above)-Mehitable Thompson
Mary Hayward-Joseph Rockwood
John Rockwood-Deborah Thayer
Joseph Rockwood-Alice Thompson
Levi Rockwood-Deborah Lazell
Susanna Rockwood-Nahum Holbrook
and on as above
Once again, we are our own cousins.
William Knight is a good example of this. We do have some information, but some of it is conflicting and much information is missing. We'll either look at this glass as half full or half empty, and I guess I'm voting for half full.
After all, we do know at least two and perhaps three of William's wives. We know when he arrived in Massachusetts Bay Colony, and we know what he left as an estate. That is more information than we have for some of our ancestors, anyway.
We don't know for sure where or when William was born. One suggesting is December 15, 1670 in London, Middlesex, England, with parents of John Knight and Margery Lascelles. I think this is probably not our William Knight, as it would leave him coming to America as a man of 65 and fathering children here. It's possible, but unlikely.
One of the challenges is that there are at least three proposed wives for William. One is Ann Ives, who probably died between 1612 and 1622, when there is a distance of ten years between the noted children. But his records in America indicate his wife may have been Emma Potter, whom he had married by 1635. How do we account for his children born in the 1620s? And finally, he had a second or third wife Elizabeth Lee Ballard, who was living when William died and whom he married in or soon after 1640. He seems to refer in his wife to having had four children with Elizabeth, in addition to those he had earlier.
He refers to sons John, Jacob, and Francis, and to daughters Ann and Hanna, as well as to two of Elizabeth's children by her first husband, and to the four children (unnamed) that he has with Elizabeth. I'm not sure why Margery, our connection, wasn't mentioned in the will but there could be any number of reasons, including that he may have given a marriage gift, either of land or money.
William died March 5, 1655/56, in Lynn, Essex County, Massachusetts Bay Colony. He had been in America about 20 years, having arrived at Salem in either 1635 or 1636. He owned land in Salem in 1636, so probably he arrived in 1635. There is a William Knight who was made a freeman in 1638 in Boston, but I don't know whether this is our William or not.
William's inventory is interesting. He owned a dwelling house, barn, and fifteen acres of plow land, six acres of meadow in Rumley marsh and five acers of meadow in the town marsh, plus oxen, cows, sheep and swine. He has a significant amount of household goods, more than many farmers had, which partl can be explained by the fact that he lived in seaside towns where goods were more readily available than on the frontier. For instance, he had "stolls, chears, and a table", which was more than was usual for the time. He had three spinning wheels, so the women of the house must have been kept busy with the wool from the sheep. I see no mention of books, not even a Bible. The total inventory including uncollected debts was about 163 pounds.
I wish I knew more about William, especially the niggling little question of whether he was really Margery's father, or whether there are more William Knights than have yet been discovered. I'd like to know his religion, and his occupation if he did more than farm. If I learn that this is not Margery's father, then I'll update this post but as of now, I think it's at least somewhat likely.
The line of descent would be:
William Knight-Ann Ives
Margery Knight-William Hayward
Huldah Hayward-Ferdinando Thayer
Jonathan Thayer-Elizabeth French
Hulday Thayer-Benjamin Wheelock
Mary Wheelock-Ebenezer Thayer
Abigail Thayer-Jesse Holbrook
Amariah Holbrook-Molly Wright
Nahum Holbrook-Susanna Rockwood
Joseph Holbrook-Mary Elizabeth Whittemore
Fremont Holbrook-Phoebe Brown
Loren Holbrook-Etta Stanard
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
Their descendants
There is also a second line:
Samuel Hayward (son of William Hayward and Margery Knight above)-Mehitable Thompson
Mary Hayward-Joseph Rockwood
John Rockwood-Deborah Thayer
Joseph Rockwood-Alice Thompson
Levi Rockwood-Deborah Lazell
Susanna Rockwood-Nahum Holbrook
and on as above
Once again, we are our own cousins.
Tuesday, June 19, 2018
Holbrook line: John Woodland, Immigrant
John Woodland is apparently one of the less famed of our ancestors, as I am not able to find a lot of information about him, and some of what I have found, I can't verify. One source (Geni) gives his birth as February 21, 1621 at Husborne Crawley, Bedfordshire, England. His parents are listed as Johannis Woodland and Grace, whom I have seen noted as Grace Thomson.
The village of Husborne Crawley is very small although there is a church there that dates back to the 13th century. It's size may indicate the village, which now has a population of less than 250 people, may have been larger at one time. It was largely agricultural at the time, so we will assume until we find other information that John had a farming background of some kind.
John married Martha, whose last name is not known, probably about 1645 since their first known child was born in 1646. This is the same year that he is believed to have come to Massachusetts Bay Colony, where he settled in Dorchester and by 1651 was in Braintree. I have not been able to locate any thing that says he ever was granted freeman status, but his son John was apparently christened in the church in Braintree, in 1651, so the possibility exists. I've also seen that his daughters Thankful was born in Dorchester in 1646 and Martha about 1648, but again, where are the records? There may have been a second son John born in 1649, and after several years of no children, possibly a "surprise', Abigail in 1661. The ten year gap leave us wondering whether there were other pregnancies or other children born during that time period
In 1662, a group was formed to settle a new town which became known as Mendon. It was on the frontier, fifteen or more miles from the nearest town. There were seven original settlers and John Woodland was one of them. John and his wife and four children moved to Mendon by the end of July, 1663, as they were required to do under the terms of the contract allowing the new village.
I can find little about John's life in Mendon. He was appointed fence keeper in 1667 and surveyor of highways in 1668. He is listed on a petition of May 19, 1669, asking for a minister for their town. Although I did not find his name on lists when the house lots were distributed, in 1672 swamp lots of five acres were granted to those who had house lots of 30 acres, and John's name is on that list.
Mendon has the distinction of being the first town hit in Massachusetts, in 1675 at the start of King Philip's War. Five or six people were killed but the list is not complete. We have no indication that any of them were of John's family, but of course they would have been his neighbors. The Woodlands fled the town, as did many others, and returned to Braintree. It is good that they left, because later, in early 1676, the natives returned again, and burned the town to the ground.
I've found statements that the Woodlands returned to Mendon sometime after 1680, but there is nothing in the "Annals of the Town of Mendon, Massachusetts" to support this. They were living in Braintree in 1687, when John and Martha sold five acres of land "before Woodland's dwelling house that he now liveth in". John died between then and 1700, when the town of Braintree voted to pay for the widow Woodland's transportation back to Mendon, where her son in law, John Thompson, promised to care for her. Her date of death is also uncertain.
I haven't figured out how John supported himself and his family. Was he "only" a farmer or did he have another trade also? Was he a religious man? Our only clue is the signing of the petition to bring a minister to Mendon. Was he literate? Apparently he could sign his name but we don't know any more than that. What a mystery!
Our lines of descent are:
John Woodland-Martha
Thankful Woodland-John Thompson
Martha Thompson-Ebenezer Thayer
Deborah Thayer-John Rockwood
Joseph Rockwood-Alice Thompson
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
Another line goes from Thankful Woodland-John Thompson to
John Thompson-Hannah Wight
Joseph Thompson-Mary Holbrook
Alice Thompson-Joseph Rockwood (2nd cousins)
And yet another line goes from Martha Thompson and Ebenezer Thayer to
Ebenezer Thayer-Mary Wheelock
Abigail Thayer-Jesse Holbrook
Amariah Holbrook-Molly Wright
Nahum Holbrook-Susanna Rockwood (so they are third cousins)
Yes, we're cousins, and we're our own cousins!
The village of Husborne Crawley is very small although there is a church there that dates back to the 13th century. It's size may indicate the village, which now has a population of less than 250 people, may have been larger at one time. It was largely agricultural at the time, so we will assume until we find other information that John had a farming background of some kind.
John married Martha, whose last name is not known, probably about 1645 since their first known child was born in 1646. This is the same year that he is believed to have come to Massachusetts Bay Colony, where he settled in Dorchester and by 1651 was in Braintree. I have not been able to locate any thing that says he ever was granted freeman status, but his son John was apparently christened in the church in Braintree, in 1651, so the possibility exists. I've also seen that his daughters Thankful was born in Dorchester in 1646 and Martha about 1648, but again, where are the records? There may have been a second son John born in 1649, and after several years of no children, possibly a "surprise', Abigail in 1661. The ten year gap leave us wondering whether there were other pregnancies or other children born during that time period
In 1662, a group was formed to settle a new town which became known as Mendon. It was on the frontier, fifteen or more miles from the nearest town. There were seven original settlers and John Woodland was one of them. John and his wife and four children moved to Mendon by the end of July, 1663, as they were required to do under the terms of the contract allowing the new village.
I can find little about John's life in Mendon. He was appointed fence keeper in 1667 and surveyor of highways in 1668. He is listed on a petition of May 19, 1669, asking for a minister for their town. Although I did not find his name on lists when the house lots were distributed, in 1672 swamp lots of five acres were granted to those who had house lots of 30 acres, and John's name is on that list.
Mendon has the distinction of being the first town hit in Massachusetts, in 1675 at the start of King Philip's War. Five or six people were killed but the list is not complete. We have no indication that any of them were of John's family, but of course they would have been his neighbors. The Woodlands fled the town, as did many others, and returned to Braintree. It is good that they left, because later, in early 1676, the natives returned again, and burned the town to the ground.
I've found statements that the Woodlands returned to Mendon sometime after 1680, but there is nothing in the "Annals of the Town of Mendon, Massachusetts" to support this. They were living in Braintree in 1687, when John and Martha sold five acres of land "before Woodland's dwelling house that he now liveth in". John died between then and 1700, when the town of Braintree voted to pay for the widow Woodland's transportation back to Mendon, where her son in law, John Thompson, promised to care for her. Her date of death is also uncertain.
I haven't figured out how John supported himself and his family. Was he "only" a farmer or did he have another trade also? Was he a religious man? Our only clue is the signing of the petition to bring a minister to Mendon. Was he literate? Apparently he could sign his name but we don't know any more than that. What a mystery!
Our lines of descent are:
John Woodland-Martha
Thankful Woodland-John Thompson
Martha Thompson-Ebenezer Thayer
Deborah Thayer-John Rockwood
Joseph Rockwood-Alice Thompson
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
Another line goes from Thankful Woodland-John Thompson to
John Thompson-Hannah Wight
Joseph Thompson-Mary Holbrook
Alice Thompson-Joseph Rockwood (2nd cousins)
And yet another line goes from Martha Thompson and Ebenezer Thayer to
Ebenezer Thayer-Mary Wheelock
Abigail Thayer-Jesse Holbrook
Amariah Holbrook-Molly Wright
Nahum Holbrook-Susanna Rockwood (so they are third cousins)
Yes, we're cousins, and we're our own cousins!
Friday, May 11, 2018
Holbrook line: Benjamin Albee, Immigrant, carpenter, Baptist!
I think that other than our Rhode Island folks, Benjamin Albee is the earliest Baptist I've found. But I'm getting ahead of the story.
Like so many of our ancestors, we have no record of when Benjamin Albee came to Massachusetts Bay Colony. He must have been here by 1639, because he married Hannah Miller there on July 26, 1639, in Braintree. That is what is known of the first roughly 25 years of his life. We don't know where he was from, nor the names of his parents. It would be interesting to know who they were, and what they believed, and whether in any way they influenced Benjamin's religious beliefs. Apparently Hannah, whose background and origin are also not known, agreed with him enough to become his wife.
We know that he was in Braintree when ater he lived in Milfhe became a freeman in 1642. Working back, he may have been an indentured servant when he arrived in, say, 1638, since four years was the typical length of time to earn an indentured servant his freedom. If he was a servant, he would have needed his master's permission to marry. Also if he was a servant, this may have been where he learned his carpentry skills. (The only known facts in this paragraph are the date of his being made a freeman, and the fact that he was a carpenter. All else is speculation, mine.)
The Albees were to have at least six children. There were Hannah, who married Samuel Wight, Lydia, who married Alexander Lovell, Prudence, who married Thomas Barnes, John, who married Jane Holbrook, James, who married Hannah Cooke, and Sarah, who married John Medbury. Jane Holbrook's ancestors were ours, and Hannah Cooke's parents were our ancestors also. Another fun facte is that Benjamin was an ancestor to President William Howard Taft, so there's another presidential connection for us!
Another fact that causes speculation is that the Albees moved frequently. They were in Braintree, and then in 1649 in Medfield, and then in Milford, where he built the first water powered grain mill there. Later they lived in Swansea, where he helped establish the Baptist church, and then in Medfield and finally Mendon. Those facts are known. What isn't known is why he moved so frequently. Was it purely because of the work he did as a carpenter and a land surveyor, and he moved because that's where the work was? Or, was he a speck in the eyes of the Puritan church, and encouraged to leave because of his religious beliefs? It must have been difficult to have beliefs that isolated him from the society of Puritans, and therefore probably left him out of the equivalent of the "Old Boys Club".
An additional difficult part of Benjamin's life occurred during King Philip's War. In 1675, he and his family had to flee to Swansea. Both Mendon, where he was living at the time, and Swansea, the town he had lived in previously, were burned by the native Americans. Not only that, but Benjamin's son John died in battle in 1675. I can't imagine the pain of losing a home and presumably many of their household goods, but also a son at the same time. No, life was not easy for the Albee family.
Benjamin is believed to have died in 1686. I show Hannah with a death date of 1655, but that's not correct since the Swansea Baptist church wasn't founded until 1667 and their names are both in the church documents. We don't know anything about Benjamin's education but the fact that he could build a mill, do land surveying, and apparently build pretty much anything that was needed surely means that he was an intelligent man. It would be interesting to know the value of his estate. He'd only had about 10 years to build it back up after losing everything, so one would expect that it would be relatively low. It would be nice, however, to find answers to some ofe these questions, to confirm or disprove our speculations, and especially, to learn more about his origins.
The line of descent is:
Benjamin Albee-Hannah Miller
Hannah Albee-Samuel Wight
Hannah Wight-John Thompson
Joseph Thompson-Mary Holbrook
Alice Thompson-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
Like so many of our ancestors, we have no record of when Benjamin Albee came to Massachusetts Bay Colony. He must have been here by 1639, because he married Hannah Miller there on July 26, 1639, in Braintree. That is what is known of the first roughly 25 years of his life. We don't know where he was from, nor the names of his parents. It would be interesting to know who they were, and what they believed, and whether in any way they influenced Benjamin's religious beliefs. Apparently Hannah, whose background and origin are also not known, agreed with him enough to become his wife.
We know that he was in Braintree when ater he lived in Milfhe became a freeman in 1642. Working back, he may have been an indentured servant when he arrived in, say, 1638, since four years was the typical length of time to earn an indentured servant his freedom. If he was a servant, he would have needed his master's permission to marry. Also if he was a servant, this may have been where he learned his carpentry skills. (The only known facts in this paragraph are the date of his being made a freeman, and the fact that he was a carpenter. All else is speculation, mine.)
The Albees were to have at least six children. There were Hannah, who married Samuel Wight, Lydia, who married Alexander Lovell, Prudence, who married Thomas Barnes, John, who married Jane Holbrook, James, who married Hannah Cooke, and Sarah, who married John Medbury. Jane Holbrook's ancestors were ours, and Hannah Cooke's parents were our ancestors also. Another fun facte is that Benjamin was an ancestor to President William Howard Taft, so there's another presidential connection for us!
Another fact that causes speculation is that the Albees moved frequently. They were in Braintree, and then in 1649 in Medfield, and then in Milford, where he built the first water powered grain mill there. Later they lived in Swansea, where he helped establish the Baptist church, and then in Medfield and finally Mendon. Those facts are known. What isn't known is why he moved so frequently. Was it purely because of the work he did as a carpenter and a land surveyor, and he moved because that's where the work was? Or, was he a speck in the eyes of the Puritan church, and encouraged to leave because of his religious beliefs? It must have been difficult to have beliefs that isolated him from the society of Puritans, and therefore probably left him out of the equivalent of the "Old Boys Club".
An additional difficult part of Benjamin's life occurred during King Philip's War. In 1675, he and his family had to flee to Swansea. Both Mendon, where he was living at the time, and Swansea, the town he had lived in previously, were burned by the native Americans. Not only that, but Benjamin's son John died in battle in 1675. I can't imagine the pain of losing a home and presumably many of their household goods, but also a son at the same time. No, life was not easy for the Albee family.
Benjamin is believed to have died in 1686. I show Hannah with a death date of 1655, but that's not correct since the Swansea Baptist church wasn't founded until 1667 and their names are both in the church documents. We don't know anything about Benjamin's education but the fact that he could build a mill, do land surveying, and apparently build pretty much anything that was needed surely means that he was an intelligent man. It would be interesting to know the value of his estate. He'd only had about 10 years to build it back up after losing everything, so one would expect that it would be relatively low. It would be nice, however, to find answers to some ofe these questions, to confirm or disprove our speculations, and especially, to learn more about his origins.
The line of descent is:
Benjamin Albee-Hannah Miller
Hannah Albee-Samuel Wight
Hannah Wight-John Thompson
Joseph Thompson-Mary Holbrook
Alice Thompson-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
Friday, March 30, 2018
Holbrook line: Francis Godfrey, Immigrant
Francis Godfrey came to Plymouth Colony by 1637, with his family pretty well established. His wife's name was Elizabeth Hall, and they were married in St Micheal le Belfrey, York, Yorkshire, England. His parents are believed to be Richard and Isabel Ramadaile or Ramsdale Godfrey, but I haven't yet seen proof of this. Let's just think that Francis was probably from somewhere around York, since that's where he was married. The church at York was built, or rebuilt, in 1527 and is near the much more famous York Minster.
Once again not much is known about Francis prior to his 1637 arrival at Plymouth. He is listed as having several children, including Elizabeth, Peter, Richard and George, but has also been said to have had Jane and perhaps Moses. Since he arrived here in 1637 and the marriage was in 1622, most if not all of the children would have come with him. George wasn't born until 1640, so he was born here.
"Here" was by this time Duxburrow (Duxbury), where Francis and family went in 1638. This was the town founded by Myles Standish, and a list of the 1643 men of Duxburrow who were able to bear arms lists several familiar names-William and Jonathan Brewster, Comfort Starr, William Tubbs, Francis Sprague, Captain Standish, and others who are part of our Holbrook (and Allen) families.
Francis was a carpenter and apparently made a fairly good living, because he was able to purchase 25 acres of land in 1644 and another 100 acres in 1648. This second purchase was on the North River, but Francis sold it in 1651. He had also received land as a grant in 1638, as an early settler of Duxbury, and he may have received more through the years. He moved to Marshfield about 1650, and then to Bridgewater, which was more or less part of Duxbury, by 1657. He was made a freeman there in 1657. At some point, he also acquired land at "Providence Plantations" but is not believed to have lived there. He may have made the moves he made because he was following the jobs. As more people came to settle these new towns, they would have needed homes and basic furniture, and not every newcomer to America had the skills, or the tools, to provide for himself.
When Francis wrote his will on February 26, 1666/7 (proved October 29, 1669), he gave much of his estate, including a list of carpentry tools, to his wife Elizabeth. I don't know what he expected her to do with them; it would be interesting to know his thoughts. I wonder if his "servants" also worked with him and he wanted them to be able to continue to bring an income for Elizabeth?) He gave some of his land to his son in law and two cows, two canvas sheets, and his "Great Bible" to his daughter Elizabeth Cary. and tools and clothing to his grandson John Cary. He also left small bequests to two servants. His other children are not mentioned in the will, but they may have received cash earlier. His estate was valued at a little over 117 pounds, apparently including the land.
This is not a lot of information but it at least shows us a picture of a tradesperson in the early days of Plymouth Colony, a little bit different life than our "yeoman" ancestors had. I'd of course like to know more about him and his life. What happened to Elizabeth? Did she go to live with the Cary family or did she stay in the home Francis provided for her, and supervise the servants? There are always more questions than there are answers!
The line of descent is:
Francis Godfrey-Elizabeth Hall
Richard Godfrey-Jane Turner
Alice Godfrey-Peter Holbrook
Mary Holbrook-Joseph Thompson
Alice Thompson-Joseph Rockwood
Levi Rockwood-Deborah Lazell
Susanna Rockwood-Nahum Holbrook
Joseph Rockwood Holbrook-Mary Elizabeth Whittemore
Fremont Holbrook-Phoebe Brown
Loren Holbrook-Etta Stanard
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
Their descendants
And yes, Alice Godfrey and Peter Holbrook are also the ancestors of Nahum Holbrook, so he is his own cousin, I guess.
Once again not much is known about Francis prior to his 1637 arrival at Plymouth. He is listed as having several children, including Elizabeth, Peter, Richard and George, but has also been said to have had Jane and perhaps Moses. Since he arrived here in 1637 and the marriage was in 1622, most if not all of the children would have come with him. George wasn't born until 1640, so he was born here.
"Here" was by this time Duxburrow (Duxbury), where Francis and family went in 1638. This was the town founded by Myles Standish, and a list of the 1643 men of Duxburrow who were able to bear arms lists several familiar names-William and Jonathan Brewster, Comfort Starr, William Tubbs, Francis Sprague, Captain Standish, and others who are part of our Holbrook (and Allen) families.
Francis was a carpenter and apparently made a fairly good living, because he was able to purchase 25 acres of land in 1644 and another 100 acres in 1648. This second purchase was on the North River, but Francis sold it in 1651. He had also received land as a grant in 1638, as an early settler of Duxbury, and he may have received more through the years. He moved to Marshfield about 1650, and then to Bridgewater, which was more or less part of Duxbury, by 1657. He was made a freeman there in 1657. At some point, he also acquired land at "Providence Plantations" but is not believed to have lived there. He may have made the moves he made because he was following the jobs. As more people came to settle these new towns, they would have needed homes and basic furniture, and not every newcomer to America had the skills, or the tools, to provide for himself.
When Francis wrote his will on February 26, 1666/7 (proved October 29, 1669), he gave much of his estate, including a list of carpentry tools, to his wife Elizabeth. I don't know what he expected her to do with them; it would be interesting to know his thoughts. I wonder if his "servants" also worked with him and he wanted them to be able to continue to bring an income for Elizabeth?) He gave some of his land to his son in law and two cows, two canvas sheets, and his "Great Bible" to his daughter Elizabeth Cary. and tools and clothing to his grandson John Cary. He also left small bequests to two servants. His other children are not mentioned in the will, but they may have received cash earlier. His estate was valued at a little over 117 pounds, apparently including the land.
This is not a lot of information but it at least shows us a picture of a tradesperson in the early days of Plymouth Colony, a little bit different life than our "yeoman" ancestors had. I'd of course like to know more about him and his life. What happened to Elizabeth? Did she go to live with the Cary family or did she stay in the home Francis provided for her, and supervise the servants? There are always more questions than there are answers!
The line of descent is:
Francis Godfrey-Elizabeth Hall
Richard Godfrey-Jane Turner
Alice Godfrey-Peter Holbrook
Mary Holbrook-Joseph Thompson
Alice Thompson-Joseph Rockwood
Levi Rockwood-Deborah Lazell
Susanna Rockwood-Nahum Holbrook
Joseph Rockwood Holbrook-Mary Elizabeth Whittemore
Fremont Holbrook-Phoebe Brown
Loren Holbrook-Etta Stanard
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
Their descendants
And yes, Alice Godfrey and Peter Holbrook are also the ancestors of Nahum Holbrook, so he is his own cousin, I guess.
Tuesday, January 9, 2018
Holbrook line: Richard Godfrey, Immigrant
Richard Godfrey is one of our ancestors who followed a slightly different path to New England, or at least a later path. Many of the English ancestors I write about were here by the end of the Great Migration in 1635, but Richard didn't come until possibly 1650 or so. I'm getting the cart ahead of the horse here, I guess, so let's backtrack.
Unfortunately, if we start at the beginning we don't know where we are, because Richard's parentage is very much a matter of question. So is his birth location. He may be the son of a Richard Godfrey born in Wales about 1600, and he may be the Richard Godfrey born in Lancashire, England in 1631, but there is no real proof for either "may be". So we really know nothing of his life until he shows up in Taunton, Plymouth Colony, in 1652. We don't know whether he landed first at Boston, or landed at Plymouth, and we don't know what he did for a living in England.
One slightly unusual aspect of his arrival was the timing of it. He apparently arrived at the end of three Civil Wars in England (one right after another). Did he come to America to escape military service, or had he already been a soldier? Was it for purely economic reasons that he came? What were his religious beliefs? Plymouth was not generally a good place to live unless one could live in harmony with Separatists. There was one exception: If one had a skill that was needed at Plymouth, one would be welcome there. And there is a possibility that Richard had skills that were needed in the iron making industry. His wife was (unknown first name but many say Jane) Turner, daughter of John Turner and Jane, and they seem to have been married about 1650. The location of the marriage is unknown at this time, but if they married in England they may well have come to America to work in the iron works that John Turner co-owned. Richard's name hasn't been found in company records, but he did own land that was part of the forge
Richard and his wife had six children, but birth dates are lacking. They were born from "circa 1651" to "say 1660". Jane died before March of 1669/1670. Richard apparently stayed a bachelor for about 15 years, and then married Mary possibly Hoskins, widow of Mr. Palmer.
We see a few glimpses of Richard's life in that we know he was sentenced to spend two hours in the stocks on training day, for speaking "opprobriously" of some place in the town of Taunton, and 14 years later, was fined five pounds for actions unknown, but apparently they were to the detriment of William Wetherell, who was to receive the money. His name is found in the records of King Philip's War, as having served but it seems more likely that this was his son, also named Richard. He was still part of the military company in 1682, however, along with sons Richard Jr. and Robert.
Richard's will is dated October 4, 1691 and was proved on November 17 of the same year. His three daughters and son Robert were each given five pounds, and sons Richard and John were to pay the debts and share the remainder of the estate. His second wife, Mary, was given 20 bushels of corn, one hog and one good cow Perhaps he expected that she would go to live with one of her children, or his. His inventory has been lost so we don't know the weapons he owned, or whether he owned books, or whether there was evidence of a religious belief in his home. But we do know a few things about Richard Godfrey, and with luck, work, and money, perhaps more can be found.
The line of descent is
Richard Godfrey-(Jane?) Turner
Alice Godfrey-Peter Holbrook
Mary Holbrook-Joseph Thompson
Alice Thompson-Joseph Rockwood
Levi Rockwood-Deborah Lazell
Susannah Rockwood-Nahum Hollbrook
Joseph Holbrook-Mary Elizabeth Whittemore
Fremont Holbrook-Phoebe Brown
Loren Holbrook-Etta Stanard
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
Their descendants
There is also a second line:
Richard Godfrey-(Jane?) Turner
Alice Godfrey-Peter Holbrook
Joseph Holbrook-Mary Cook
Jesse Holbrook-Abigail Thayer
Amariah Holbrook-Molly Wright
Nahum Holbrook-Susannah Rockwood
etc.
So I think anyone from Nahum Holbrook on down is their own cousin, somehow!
Unfortunately, if we start at the beginning we don't know where we are, because Richard's parentage is very much a matter of question. So is his birth location. He may be the son of a Richard Godfrey born in Wales about 1600, and he may be the Richard Godfrey born in Lancashire, England in 1631, but there is no real proof for either "may be". So we really know nothing of his life until he shows up in Taunton, Plymouth Colony, in 1652. We don't know whether he landed first at Boston, or landed at Plymouth, and we don't know what he did for a living in England.
One slightly unusual aspect of his arrival was the timing of it. He apparently arrived at the end of three Civil Wars in England (one right after another). Did he come to America to escape military service, or had he already been a soldier? Was it for purely economic reasons that he came? What were his religious beliefs? Plymouth was not generally a good place to live unless one could live in harmony with Separatists. There was one exception: If one had a skill that was needed at Plymouth, one would be welcome there. And there is a possibility that Richard had skills that were needed in the iron making industry. His wife was (unknown first name but many say Jane) Turner, daughter of John Turner and Jane, and they seem to have been married about 1650. The location of the marriage is unknown at this time, but if they married in England they may well have come to America to work in the iron works that John Turner co-owned. Richard's name hasn't been found in company records, but he did own land that was part of the forge
Richard and his wife had six children, but birth dates are lacking. They were born from "circa 1651" to "say 1660". Jane died before March of 1669/1670. Richard apparently stayed a bachelor for about 15 years, and then married Mary possibly Hoskins, widow of Mr. Palmer.
We see a few glimpses of Richard's life in that we know he was sentenced to spend two hours in the stocks on training day, for speaking "opprobriously" of some place in the town of Taunton, and 14 years later, was fined five pounds for actions unknown, but apparently they were to the detriment of William Wetherell, who was to receive the money. His name is found in the records of King Philip's War, as having served but it seems more likely that this was his son, also named Richard. He was still part of the military company in 1682, however, along with sons Richard Jr. and Robert.
Richard's will is dated October 4, 1691 and was proved on November 17 of the same year. His three daughters and son Robert were each given five pounds, and sons Richard and John were to pay the debts and share the remainder of the estate. His second wife, Mary, was given 20 bushels of corn, one hog and one good cow Perhaps he expected that she would go to live with one of her children, or his. His inventory has been lost so we don't know the weapons he owned, or whether he owned books, or whether there was evidence of a religious belief in his home. But we do know a few things about Richard Godfrey, and with luck, work, and money, perhaps more can be found.
The line of descent is
Richard Godfrey-(Jane?) Turner
Alice Godfrey-Peter Holbrook
Mary Holbrook-Joseph Thompson
Alice Thompson-Joseph Rockwood
Levi Rockwood-Deborah Lazell
Susannah Rockwood-Nahum Hollbrook
Joseph Holbrook-Mary Elizabeth Whittemore
Fremont Holbrook-Phoebe Brown
Loren Holbrook-Etta Stanard
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
Their descendants
There is also a second line:
Richard Godfrey-(Jane?) Turner
Alice Godfrey-Peter Holbrook
Joseph Holbrook-Mary Cook
Jesse Holbrook-Abigail Thayer
Amariah Holbrook-Molly Wright
Nahum Holbrook-Susannah Rockwood
etc.
So I think anyone from Nahum Holbrook on down is their own cousin, somehow!
Friday, March 31, 2017
Holbrook Line: Richard Rockwood 1602-1660 Immigrant
Richard Rocket or Rockwood came to America in or before 1633, but Robert Charles Anderson has not included him as a featured immigrant in his Great Migration series. I don't know why he has been missed, but fortunately there are other sources that help tell his story. It's just that Anderson would have done a superb job, and he missed that opportunity.
Richard was born in 1602 in Weymouth, Dorset, England. His parents were Richard and Elizabeth (maiden name not known) Rockwood. Weymouth is a town on the south coast of England, and has always had a port since is was founded in the middle of the 13th century. So much of the townspeople would have either worked as merchants or in the maritime trade itself. Probably there were fishing fleets that sailed from here as well. Richard, therefore, would have lived in a town that was very different from the hometowns of some of our other ancestors, who either lived in a large city or in a small inland village.
It's believed that Richard sailed to Massachusetts in 1633, when he was given land in Dorchester. He first married an unknown wife in 1628, and then married Agnes Lovell, daughter of Robert and Elizabeth Dunckley Lovell in 1636/37. She died in 1643, after giving birth to John Rockwood and possibly one other child. Robert then married Ann as yet not identified, but they apparently had not children together.
By 1641 it appears that the Richard and Agnes and their children were living in Braintree, where they lived out their lives. Agnes died in 1643 in Braintree and Richard died July 6, 1660 in Dorchester, with third wife Ann surviving.
We don't know Richard's occupation, or his religion, and although there seems to be a will and an appraisal or inventory I have not yet located it. I do find notes that the estate was balued at slightly over 38 pounds, but I don't know whether or not that included his land, and I don't know how much land he owned when he died. At one time, he had 40 acres in Dorchester.
Richard is the ancestor of President James Garfield, so this President is also our distant cousin.
The line of descent is:
Richard Rockwood-Agnes Lovell
John Rockwood-Joanna Ford
Joseph Rockwood-Mary Hayward
John Rockwood-Deborah Thayer
Joseph Rockwood-Alice Thompson
Levi Rockwood-Deborah Lazell
Susanna Rockwood-Nahum Holbrook
Joseph Rockwood Holbrook-Mary Elizabeth Whittemore
Fremont Holbrook-Phoebe Brown
Loren Holbrook-Etta Stanard
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
Their descendants
Richard was born in 1602 in Weymouth, Dorset, England. His parents were Richard and Elizabeth (maiden name not known) Rockwood. Weymouth is a town on the south coast of England, and has always had a port since is was founded in the middle of the 13th century. So much of the townspeople would have either worked as merchants or in the maritime trade itself. Probably there were fishing fleets that sailed from here as well. Richard, therefore, would have lived in a town that was very different from the hometowns of some of our other ancestors, who either lived in a large city or in a small inland village.
It's believed that Richard sailed to Massachusetts in 1633, when he was given land in Dorchester. He first married an unknown wife in 1628, and then married Agnes Lovell, daughter of Robert and Elizabeth Dunckley Lovell in 1636/37. She died in 1643, after giving birth to John Rockwood and possibly one other child. Robert then married Ann as yet not identified, but they apparently had not children together.
By 1641 it appears that the Richard and Agnes and their children were living in Braintree, where they lived out their lives. Agnes died in 1643 in Braintree and Richard died July 6, 1660 in Dorchester, with third wife Ann surviving.
We don't know Richard's occupation, or his religion, and although there seems to be a will and an appraisal or inventory I have not yet located it. I do find notes that the estate was balued at slightly over 38 pounds, but I don't know whether or not that included his land, and I don't know how much land he owned when he died. At one time, he had 40 acres in Dorchester.
Richard is the ancestor of President James Garfield, so this President is also our distant cousin.
The line of descent is:
Richard Rockwood-Agnes Lovell
John Rockwood-Joanna Ford
Joseph Rockwood-Mary Hayward
John Rockwood-Deborah Thayer
Joseph Rockwood-Alice Thompson
Levi Rockwood-Deborah Lazell
Susanna Rockwood-Nahum Holbrook
Joseph Rockwood Holbrook-Mary Elizabeth Whittemore
Fremont Holbrook-Phoebe Brown
Loren Holbrook-Etta Stanard
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
Their descendants
Friday, September 23, 2016
Holbrook line: Edward Converse, Immigrant
I suspect this is on of the best documented of my previously unblogged Holbrook ancestors. In less than an hour, I've found a lot of information about him, including articles from "The Great Migration Begins" and an article by Douglas Richardson, and one by Robert J. Kurtz. The problem is, even with these fine sources, they don't always agree, and some of them omit information that others included. So it's possible that this summary won't quite be correct, as I pick and choose and try to at least get the basics written for my family.
Edward was most likely born January 30,1589/90 at Stanford Rivers, Essex, England, to Anthony Convers or Combers and Clemence Spady. They had been married three years when Edward was born. He had an older brother as well as a younger sister and three younger brothers. This area was mostly small cottages and farms, rural and probably poor. We don't know whether Edward could read and write, although we know he signed his name. Based on all the offices he held in later life, it would surprise me to learn that he was illiterate.
Anthony married Sarah Parker June 29, 1614, at Great Burstead, Essex, England. She was the daughter of John and Mary Ashels Parker. The new family stayed in England for just 16 years, long enough to have three of their four children. In 1630 the family sailed for New England with the Winthrop Fleet and either landed at or went directly to Boston. (This was very early, as the Massachusetts Bay Colony had just been established one year earlier.) Edward was listed as member number 66 when he joined the Boston church in the fall of 1630 and became a freeman in 1631. In the fall of 1632, Edward and Sarah were dismissed from the Boston church to found a church in Charlestown, where they are listed as founding members. Edward was a selectman in Charlestown from 1634 until almost the time he moved to Woburn.
Edward was granted a ferry license, with stated fees, and apparently operated or managed the ferry for most of the time he lived in Charlestown. He was also busy accumulating land. By 1638, he had been granted 13 different parcels of land there, most if not all as an original settler, grants from the town and not cash purchases. Edward and his family, which now included an additional son, moved to Woburn in 1640 and he is considered a founding father of that town. This was only about 10 miles from Charlestown, but it was "frontier" at the time, and once again all the land needed to be cleared, homes built, and a village set up. Edward was involved in all of that. He was a selectman there from the founding of the town to at least 1663, indicating that he was both a strong churchman, a strong leader, and able to get along with his neighbors. We are also told that he was a tithing-man, responsible for church attendance and discipline. He is listed as "yeoman" so he was not necessarily of a high social standing.
Edward wrote his will in 1659, when Sarah was still alive, but it wasn't proved until 1665, by which time Sarah had died and he had married Joanna Warren widow Sprague. He died on August 10, 1663, not long after his remarriage. I've not found a record of a conflict so perhaps Joanna was treated fairly by the executors, or they came to some sort of an agreement between Edward's death and the date the will was proved.
I'm sure there is more of Edward's story to be found, and I'm sure that a good story-teller could make much of what we know of him. The facts don't indicate the emotions and motives behind the moves. Why did they come to New England? Why did they leave Charlestown for Woburn? How did he feel about some of the events in England, including the events that led to England's Civil War? Were any of his extended family affected by the war? Was Edward himself in the militia or training band?
I admire this man. He lived his life walking in his faith, and he seems to have prospered. He is seldom mentioned in court records (only two incidents, each resolved peaceably) so he was somewhat unusual in that regard. If we had lived during that time period, he would have been a man to emulate.
The line of descent is
Edward Converse-Sarah Parker
Mary Converse-Simon Thompson
Jonathan Thompson-Thankful Woodland
Martha Thompson-Ebenezer Thayer
Ebenezer Thayer-Mary Wheelock
Abigail Thayer-Jesse Holbrook
Amariah Holbrook-my missing Molly Wright
Nahum Holbrook-Susanna Rockwood
Joseph Holbrook=Mary Elizabeth Whittemore
Fremont Holbrook-Phoebe Brown
Loren Holbrook-Etta Stanard
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
Their descendants
Edward was most likely born January 30,1589/90 at Stanford Rivers, Essex, England, to Anthony Convers or Combers and Clemence Spady. They had been married three years when Edward was born. He had an older brother as well as a younger sister and three younger brothers. This area was mostly small cottages and farms, rural and probably poor. We don't know whether Edward could read and write, although we know he signed his name. Based on all the offices he held in later life, it would surprise me to learn that he was illiterate.
Anthony married Sarah Parker June 29, 1614, at Great Burstead, Essex, England. She was the daughter of John and Mary Ashels Parker. The new family stayed in England for just 16 years, long enough to have three of their four children. In 1630 the family sailed for New England with the Winthrop Fleet and either landed at or went directly to Boston. (This was very early, as the Massachusetts Bay Colony had just been established one year earlier.) Edward was listed as member number 66 when he joined the Boston church in the fall of 1630 and became a freeman in 1631. In the fall of 1632, Edward and Sarah were dismissed from the Boston church to found a church in Charlestown, where they are listed as founding members. Edward was a selectman in Charlestown from 1634 until almost the time he moved to Woburn.
Edward was granted a ferry license, with stated fees, and apparently operated or managed the ferry for most of the time he lived in Charlestown. He was also busy accumulating land. By 1638, he had been granted 13 different parcels of land there, most if not all as an original settler, grants from the town and not cash purchases. Edward and his family, which now included an additional son, moved to Woburn in 1640 and he is considered a founding father of that town. This was only about 10 miles from Charlestown, but it was "frontier" at the time, and once again all the land needed to be cleared, homes built, and a village set up. Edward was involved in all of that. He was a selectman there from the founding of the town to at least 1663, indicating that he was both a strong churchman, a strong leader, and able to get along with his neighbors. We are also told that he was a tithing-man, responsible for church attendance and discipline. He is listed as "yeoman" so he was not necessarily of a high social standing.
Edward wrote his will in 1659, when Sarah was still alive, but it wasn't proved until 1665, by which time Sarah had died and he had married Joanna Warren widow Sprague. He died on August 10, 1663, not long after his remarriage. I've not found a record of a conflict so perhaps Joanna was treated fairly by the executors, or they came to some sort of an agreement between Edward's death and the date the will was proved.
I'm sure there is more of Edward's story to be found, and I'm sure that a good story-teller could make much of what we know of him. The facts don't indicate the emotions and motives behind the moves. Why did they come to New England? Why did they leave Charlestown for Woburn? How did he feel about some of the events in England, including the events that led to England's Civil War? Were any of his extended family affected by the war? Was Edward himself in the militia or training band?
I admire this man. He lived his life walking in his faith, and he seems to have prospered. He is seldom mentioned in court records (only two incidents, each resolved peaceably) so he was somewhat unusual in that regard. If we had lived during that time period, he would have been a man to emulate.
The line of descent is
Edward Converse-Sarah Parker
Mary Converse-Simon Thompson
Jonathan Thompson-Thankful Woodland
Martha Thompson-Ebenezer Thayer
Ebenezer Thayer-Mary Wheelock
Abigail Thayer-Jesse Holbrook
Amariah Holbrook-my missing Molly Wright
Nahum Holbrook-Susanna Rockwood
Joseph Holbrook=Mary Elizabeth Whittemore
Fremont Holbrook-Phoebe Brown
Loren Holbrook-Etta Stanard
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
Their descendants
Friday, May 1, 2015
Holbrook line: Thomas Holbrook 1599-1677, Immigrant
We have a lot of information about Thomas Holbrook, but one of the things we don't know is when he was born. He was christened on March 1, 1599 at St. John the Baptist Church, Glastonbury, Somersetshire, England. If you're thinking that "Glastonbury" sounds familiar, it has very old associations with Joseph of Arimathea, King Arthur, and the Holy Grail. Thomas may have grown up hearing some of these stories. He would most certainly have been familiar with the church where he was christened, which dates from the 15th century. So the church was old (by American standards) when he was young.
He was the fifth of at least seven children born to William Holbrook and Edith Coles Saunders. So far I have not been able to learn what his father did for a living, nor, for that matter, what Thomas did. Thomas grew up, however, and married Jane Powyes or Powis, daughter of William Powyes and Elizabeth, on September12, 1616 at Glastonbury. If the 1599 birth date for Thomas is correct (and some think he was born a few years before he was christened), he would have been only about 17 years old, which was young for marriage then.
Thomas and Jane and their family moved to Broadway, also in Somerset, in about 1633, where Rev. Joseph Hull was leading a Puritan congregation. Archbishop William Laud of Canterbury was busy expelling Puritan preachers from Church of England congregations, and Hull was expelled in 1635. On March 20, 1635, Rev. Hull and 105 other persons, mostly members or associates of his congregation, were on their way to New England on board the Marygould. Children John, Thomas, Ann, and Elizabeth were with them. William is not listed on the manifest and may not have come on the same ship. Daughter Jane was born in 1636, after arriving in New England.
The ship arrived in Boston on May 6, 1635, so the trip was relatively short. In another two months, Reverend Hull and about 100 other persons were given permission to settle at Wessaguscus, south east of Boston. The town was soon renamed Weymouth, and that is where the Holbrooks settled. They had apparently been granted land in Rehoboth, which they did not settle and therefore forfeited. Thomas was made a freeman in May of 1645, so by that time he had joined the church and was a property owner. He was respected in town, as he was a selectman in 1642,1645, 1646, 1651, 1652 and 1654, and also helped lay out a road from Weymouth to Dorchester in 1648.
We don't know what Thomas did to make a living in the New World, either, but he likely raised some crops and perhaps also had some connection with the sea, since the settlement is right on the coastline. He wrote his will in February of 1668/69 and added a codicil in 1673. The will was proved April 24, 1677. The inventory totaled 129 pounds, 1 shilling, of which forty pounds was real estate. His estate, after his wife had died, was to be equally divided between his six surviving children, with eldest son John to get a double portion. He left all of his grandchildren at least two shillings, with grandsons John to get his sword, Peter to get his gun, and William to get his musket. In the codicil, Peter was also given the dwelling house and about three acres of orchard and arable land. He states in the codicil that Peter had been as a servant to him and to wife Jane in their old age, and had cared for them for eight years at the time of the codicil. Wife Jane had died sometime between 1673 and the date the will was proved, for John was the executor of the will.
Have I mentioned before how much I love working on these posts? I always learn so much from writing them, but it always leaves me wanting more. We are fortunate with Thomas Holbrook in several ways. First, he has a lot of descendents, and some of them have been doing their own research and posting it on the web. Secondly, because he arrived in New England in 1635, there is a wonderful write up of him in The Great Migration series on the American Ancestors website, and probably in your local library. I am deeply indebted to them, and to Kathy and Larry McCurdy, who have compiled information on the website. I also recommend www.jtbullock.com/Tree, because gives not only information about Thomas, but also gives a lot of background information, and pictures of some of the areas associated with Thomas.
The line of descent is:
Thomas Holbrook-Jane Powyes
Thomas Holbrook-Joanna Kingman
Peter Holbrook-Alice Godfrey
Joseph Holbrook-Mary Cook
Jesse Holbrook-Abigail Thayer
Amariah Holbrook-Molly Wright
Nahum Holbrook-Susanna Rockwood
Joseph Holbrook-Mary Elizabeth Whittemore
Fremont Holbrook-Phoebe Brown
Loren Holbrook-Etta Stanard
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
Their descendents
There is also another line of descent. The first three lines are the same, and then it's:
Mary Holbrook-Joseph Thompson
Alie Thompson-Joseph Rockwood
Levi Rockwood-Deborah Lazell
Susanna Rockwood-Nahum Holbrook
and so on... Susanna and Hahum would have been fourth cousins, if I have this figured right.
Fun fact: Thomas and Jane are the ancestors of Presidents James Garfield, both Presidents Bush, and William Howard Taft. That makes us distant cousins to all of them, a couple of times!
He was the fifth of at least seven children born to William Holbrook and Edith Coles Saunders. So far I have not been able to learn what his father did for a living, nor, for that matter, what Thomas did. Thomas grew up, however, and married Jane Powyes or Powis, daughter of William Powyes and Elizabeth, on September12, 1616 at Glastonbury. If the 1599 birth date for Thomas is correct (and some think he was born a few years before he was christened), he would have been only about 17 years old, which was young for marriage then.
Thomas and Jane and their family moved to Broadway, also in Somerset, in about 1633, where Rev. Joseph Hull was leading a Puritan congregation. Archbishop William Laud of Canterbury was busy expelling Puritan preachers from Church of England congregations, and Hull was expelled in 1635. On March 20, 1635, Rev. Hull and 105 other persons, mostly members or associates of his congregation, were on their way to New England on board the Marygould. Children John, Thomas, Ann, and Elizabeth were with them. William is not listed on the manifest and may not have come on the same ship. Daughter Jane was born in 1636, after arriving in New England.
The ship arrived in Boston on May 6, 1635, so the trip was relatively short. In another two months, Reverend Hull and about 100 other persons were given permission to settle at Wessaguscus, south east of Boston. The town was soon renamed Weymouth, and that is where the Holbrooks settled. They had apparently been granted land in Rehoboth, which they did not settle and therefore forfeited. Thomas was made a freeman in May of 1645, so by that time he had joined the church and was a property owner. He was respected in town, as he was a selectman in 1642,1645, 1646, 1651, 1652 and 1654, and also helped lay out a road from Weymouth to Dorchester in 1648.
We don't know what Thomas did to make a living in the New World, either, but he likely raised some crops and perhaps also had some connection with the sea, since the settlement is right on the coastline. He wrote his will in February of 1668/69 and added a codicil in 1673. The will was proved April 24, 1677. The inventory totaled 129 pounds, 1 shilling, of which forty pounds was real estate. His estate, after his wife had died, was to be equally divided between his six surviving children, with eldest son John to get a double portion. He left all of his grandchildren at least two shillings, with grandsons John to get his sword, Peter to get his gun, and William to get his musket. In the codicil, Peter was also given the dwelling house and about three acres of orchard and arable land. He states in the codicil that Peter had been as a servant to him and to wife Jane in their old age, and had cared for them for eight years at the time of the codicil. Wife Jane had died sometime between 1673 and the date the will was proved, for John was the executor of the will.
Have I mentioned before how much I love working on these posts? I always learn so much from writing them, but it always leaves me wanting more. We are fortunate with Thomas Holbrook in several ways. First, he has a lot of descendents, and some of them have been doing their own research and posting it on the web. Secondly, because he arrived in New England in 1635, there is a wonderful write up of him in The Great Migration series on the American Ancestors website, and probably in your local library. I am deeply indebted to them, and to Kathy and Larry McCurdy, who have compiled information on the website. I also recommend www.jtbullock.com/Tree, because gives not only information about Thomas, but also gives a lot of background information, and pictures of some of the areas associated with Thomas.
The line of descent is:
Thomas Holbrook-Jane Powyes
Thomas Holbrook-Joanna Kingman
Peter Holbrook-Alice Godfrey
Joseph Holbrook-Mary Cook
Jesse Holbrook-Abigail Thayer
Amariah Holbrook-Molly Wright
Nahum Holbrook-Susanna Rockwood
Joseph Holbrook-Mary Elizabeth Whittemore
Fremont Holbrook-Phoebe Brown
Loren Holbrook-Etta Stanard
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
Their descendents
There is also another line of descent. The first three lines are the same, and then it's:
Mary Holbrook-Joseph Thompson
Alie Thompson-Joseph Rockwood
Levi Rockwood-Deborah Lazell
Susanna Rockwood-Nahum Holbrook
and so on... Susanna and Hahum would have been fourth cousins, if I have this figured right.
Fun fact: Thomas and Jane are the ancestors of Presidents James Garfield, both Presidents Bush, and William Howard Taft. That makes us distant cousins to all of them, a couple of times!
Friday, March 20, 2015
Holbrook line: Oops! Not Anthony Eames?
I thought I was going to write this post about Anthony Eames. There is a fine amount of information about him on line, and it was going to be a pretty good post. But a funny thing happened on the way to writing this...I stumbled upon facts, documented facts. And they don't support what it is in my file notes, as to the lines of descent. I thought I had two lines, one through daughter Hannah who married William Ford, and one through son Robert who married Elizabeth. Again, oops!
As it turns out, Hannah is not proven to be a daughter of Anthony, and Robert isn't even mentioned in the most authoritative sources I can find. Both of these "children" are supposed to have been born in the right place at the right time, but records can't be found and there should be records, unless they were truly baptized somewhere away from their home, which can't be ruled out. Sometimes parents took at least one of their children to be baptized in the home church of either their father or their mother.
However, with documentation so lacking and so much unsearched and maybe unsearchable, I am not going to write a post about Anthony Eames now. Instead, I'm going to look for records to see what can be proven. If someone out there has worked on the Eames family, I'd love to hear from you.
Here are the lines of SUPPOSED descent from Anthony. Please don't take these as proven, because as far as I know, they are not.
Anthony Eames-Margery Pierce
Robert Eames-Elizabeth
John Eames-Abigail Morgan
John Eames-Rachel Comstock
John Eames-Elizabeth Longbottom
Hannah Eames-James Lamphire
Susan Lamphire-Joseph Eddy
Susan Eddy-Hiram Stanard
Louis Stanard-Mary Alice Hetrick
Etta Stanard-Loren Holbrook
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
Their descendents
Second Line
Anthony Eames-Margery Peirce
Hannah Eames-William Ford
Joanna Ford-John Rockwood
Joseph Rockwood-Mary Hayward
John Rockwood-Deborah Thayer
Joseph Rockwood-Alice Thompson
Levi Rockwood-Deborah Lazell
Susanna Rockwood-Nahum Holbrook
Joseph Holbrook-Mary Elizabeth Whittemore
Fremont Holbrook-Phoebe Brown
Loren Holbrook-Etta Stanard
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
Their descendents
I sure would like to learn the parents of Hannah Eames who married William Ford and also the parents of Robert Eames who married Elizabeth, or to get documentation that they are the children of Anthony and Margery, so I can someday write the post I intended to write today!
As it turns out, Hannah is not proven to be a daughter of Anthony, and Robert isn't even mentioned in the most authoritative sources I can find. Both of these "children" are supposed to have been born in the right place at the right time, but records can't be found and there should be records, unless they were truly baptized somewhere away from their home, which can't be ruled out. Sometimes parents took at least one of their children to be baptized in the home church of either their father or their mother.
However, with documentation so lacking and so much unsearched and maybe unsearchable, I am not going to write a post about Anthony Eames now. Instead, I'm going to look for records to see what can be proven. If someone out there has worked on the Eames family, I'd love to hear from you.
Here are the lines of SUPPOSED descent from Anthony. Please don't take these as proven, because as far as I know, they are not.
Anthony Eames-Margery Pierce
Robert Eames-Elizabeth
John Eames-Abigail Morgan
John Eames-Rachel Comstock
John Eames-Elizabeth Longbottom
Hannah Eames-James Lamphire
Susan Lamphire-Joseph Eddy
Susan Eddy-Hiram Stanard
Louis Stanard-Mary Alice Hetrick
Etta Stanard-Loren Holbrook
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
Their descendents
Second Line
Anthony Eames-Margery Peirce
Hannah Eames-William Ford
Joanna Ford-John Rockwood
Joseph Rockwood-Mary Hayward
John Rockwood-Deborah Thayer
Joseph Rockwood-Alice Thompson
Levi Rockwood-Deborah Lazell
Susanna Rockwood-Nahum Holbrook
Joseph Holbrook-Mary Elizabeth Whittemore
Fremont Holbrook-Phoebe Brown
Loren Holbrook-Etta Stanard
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
Their descendents
I sure would like to learn the parents of Hannah Eames who married William Ford and also the parents of Robert Eames who married Elizabeth, or to get documentation that they are the children of Anthony and Margery, so I can someday write the post I intended to write today!
Tuesday, February 24, 2015
Beeks line: Morgan Abraham-not quite an immigrant
Oh, how cool! I've just seen the will for this man, actual digital images on line at the National Library of Wales. I am supposed to cite the record thus: http://handle.net/10107/934427. Fortunately, the will is in English so I can read some of it. Other parts are beyond my skill level, but here is a brief summary of what I can understand and of what was new to me.
He describes himself in his will as a yeoman, meaning (I believe) farmer with property. His inventory which was taken on July 7, 1712 gave a value of 120 pounds, 10 shillings. This included wearables, and various animals and crops, including six oxen, four cows, and something else that may be sheep or could be something else entirely. It also lists hard corn (that already harvested), and corn growing in the ground, and the implements of husbandry. Yes, Morgan Abraham was definitely a farmer.
What else do we know about him? There is at least one record that refers to him as a carpenter. We know he was planning to come to America when he died, and that his wife and at least some of his children made the trip as planned a year later. His wife's name was Sarah but that's all we know at this point. Although his will is found in the National Library of Wales, it seems that the area he lived in, Longtown, Parish Clodock, Herefordshire, is English, although at one time it had been Welsh and many place names, etc., were Welsh. Since Morgan Abraham is the first known person in this line, it's hard to know for sure whether he was of English or of Welsh roots.
He was born about 1660 and died June 28, 1712, having written his will on June 24 of that year. William, his oldest son, and Sarah were able to sell the land that had been left to Sarah and this allowed the family enough funds to migrate to what is probably Chester County, Pennsylvania. A lot of Welsh Quaker families lived there and they may have been among neighbors. I need to do more research to determine whether a Sarah Abraham indexed in the Ancestry Quaker records, noted as of "Delaware, Pennsylvania" could be our Sarah Abraham.
Morgan and Sarah are listed as having children James, Joseph, Noah, William, Mary, Enoch, Sarah, and Elizabeth. Sarah, widow of Morgan died in 1746 in "Wayne, Delaware, Pennsylvania" so she is the immigrant ancestor in this line.
I still can't believe how neat it was to actually see his will on line. Isn't the Internet great?
The line of descent is:
Morgan Abraham-Sarah
Elizabeth Abraham-Lewellen Bowen Martin
Joel Martin-Anna Thompson
Llewellen Martin-Elizabeth Painter
Joel Martin-Nancy Bane
Matilda Martin-David Wise
Elizabeth Wise-John Beeks
Wilbur Beeks-Cleo Aldridge
Mary Margaret Beeks-Cleveland Harshbarger
Their descendents
Update: 9/14/2015 I apologize for the error. Morgan Abraham, as fascinating as he is, doesn't belong to the Beeks line. The Matilda Martin who married David Wise is a different Matilda Martin. However, I'm choosing to leave this blog post up in case it can help someone else.
He describes himself in his will as a yeoman, meaning (I believe) farmer with property. His inventory which was taken on July 7, 1712 gave a value of 120 pounds, 10 shillings. This included wearables, and various animals and crops, including six oxen, four cows, and something else that may be sheep or could be something else entirely. It also lists hard corn (that already harvested), and corn growing in the ground, and the implements of husbandry. Yes, Morgan Abraham was definitely a farmer.
What else do we know about him? There is at least one record that refers to him as a carpenter. We know he was planning to come to America when he died, and that his wife and at least some of his children made the trip as planned a year later. His wife's name was Sarah but that's all we know at this point. Although his will is found in the National Library of Wales, it seems that the area he lived in, Longtown, Parish Clodock, Herefordshire, is English, although at one time it had been Welsh and many place names, etc., were Welsh. Since Morgan Abraham is the first known person in this line, it's hard to know for sure whether he was of English or of Welsh roots.
He was born about 1660 and died June 28, 1712, having written his will on June 24 of that year. William, his oldest son, and Sarah were able to sell the land that had been left to Sarah and this allowed the family enough funds to migrate to what is probably Chester County, Pennsylvania. A lot of Welsh Quaker families lived there and they may have been among neighbors. I need to do more research to determine whether a Sarah Abraham indexed in the Ancestry Quaker records, noted as of "Delaware, Pennsylvania" could be our Sarah Abraham.
Morgan and Sarah are listed as having children James, Joseph, Noah, William, Mary, Enoch, Sarah, and Elizabeth. Sarah, widow of Morgan died in 1746 in "Wayne, Delaware, Pennsylvania" so she is the immigrant ancestor in this line.
I still can't believe how neat it was to actually see his will on line. Isn't the Internet great?
The line of descent is:
Morgan Abraham-Sarah
Elizabeth Abraham-Lewellen Bowen Martin
Joel Martin-Anna Thompson
Llewellen Martin-Elizabeth Painter
Joel Martin-Nancy Bane
Matilda Martin-David Wise
Elizabeth Wise-John Beeks
Wilbur Beeks-Cleo Aldridge
Mary Margaret Beeks-Cleveland Harshbarger
Their descendents
Update: 9/14/2015 I apologize for the error. Morgan Abraham, as fascinating as he is, doesn't belong to the Beeks line. The Matilda Martin who married David Wise is a different Matilda Martin. However, I'm choosing to leave this blog post up in case it can help someone else.
Tuesday, November 4, 2014
Holbrook line: Ferdinando Thayer
I just have to write about Ferdinando. First, he has a wonderful name. Secondly, we seem to have at least three lines that trace back to him, in the Holbrook side of things. And lastly, he was an immigrant, although really the immigrant status belongs to his parents, Thomas Tayer (lots of spellings) and Margery Wheeler.
Since he is an immigrant, it will be no surprise that he was born in England, in Thornbury, Gloucester, to be exact. He was christened on April 18, 1625 so was born sometime before that (children were usually christened before their first birthday and some were christened as soon as the day after their birth). His father would have attended a lot of christenings, as it appears there may have been as many as 21 children born to this couple. I wonder how Thomas supported his family. When he died, he called himself a shoemaker, which seems to be a humble trade, but the amount of land he had indicates he was a person of substantial wealth.
So it seems to have been a good move for Thomas, Margery, and their children, including our current hero, Ferdinando, to have come to the New World. There seems to be some confusion about when the Thayer family arrived in America but they are not listed in the Great Migrations series, of families that arrived before 1636, so perhaps Thomas did come on the "Blessing" in 1637. If so, his wife and what remained of his family may have come in 1640, as it is reported that one of the children died in Thornbury in 1640. Ferdinando would have been 12 years old if he came with his father and 15 or 16 if he came with his mother in 1640-1641. At any rate, at least 7 of his siblings had died in England.
Ferdinando lived with his parents for much of his life. On January 14, 1652/53 he married Huldah Hayward, daughter of Thomas Hayward and Margery Knight, in Braintree, Mass. The young married couple continued to live with Thomas and Margery until Thomas's death in 1665. His father's will had been generous to him, and he ended up with so much property that he and his two brothers, Sydrach and Thomas, agreed to redistribute the land so that each had a more equal share.
Ferdinando then moved, as a founder, to Nipmug, later Mendon, Worcester County, Massachusetts. He prospered for when he died he had one of the largest farms in the area, and provided farms for each of his sons in his will. He did not have an easy time of it, though. The Thayers were forced to abandon their home during King Philip's War in 1675. The town and surrounding fields were all destroyed, and the area was not resettled until 1680. It was truly a case of starting over again. Ferdinando would have been 55 at this time, so the task may have seemed daunting to him.
Fortunately, he had a large family to assist him. Ferdinando and Huldah had twelve children, of whom two (each named David) died young. Deborah, Huldah, Jonathan, Naomi, Thomas, Samuel, Isaac, Josiah, Ebenezer, and Benjamin all lived to have children of their own, and the Thayer name is still evident in New England. For Ferdinando to have been able to leave farms to each of his 5 surviving sons, he must have acquired large areas of land, but I have not documented yet where the land was.
His wife Huldah had died in 1690. Ferdinando married for a second time, to Ann Freebury. With all due respect to any of her descendents, Ann was not a loving wife to her husband, and she made accusations against her husband and his sons, charging that they sold liquor to Indians (which was prohibited), that he had deserved to have his house burnt during King Philip's War and it would occur again if they did not stop trafficking with the Indians. She also charged that he had failed to provide for her, along with various other charges. Apparently Ann became disenchanted with her husband when she learned that he was giving his land to his sons, and she would get only the 1/3 of his remaining estate that was hers by law. I get the feeling that it's a good thing for family dignity that there was no television then, or we could have been watching a reality show or worse.
Ferdinando died on March 28, 1713 at the age of 86. He had seen good times and he had seen bad times, but his descendents would continue to build the New World. I would like to know more about his relationship with his second wife, the veracity of her charges, and most especially, where his first name originated. I'm not aware of any other Ferdinando in our tree.
One of our lines of descent is:
Ferdinando Thayer-Huldah Hayward
Ebenezer Thayer-Martha Thompson
Deborah Thayer-John Rockwood
Joseph Rockwood-Alice Thompson
Levi Rockwood-Deborah Lazell
Susannah Rockwood-Nahum Holbrook
Joseph Holbrook-Mary Elizabeth Whittemore
Fremont Holbrook-Phoebe Ann Brown
Loren Holbrook-Etta Stanard
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
Their descendents
Fun fact: Ferdinando and Huldah were ancestors of Barbara Bush and thus of the second President Bush. We're approximately 10th cousins to him.
Since he is an immigrant, it will be no surprise that he was born in England, in Thornbury, Gloucester, to be exact. He was christened on April 18, 1625 so was born sometime before that (children were usually christened before their first birthday and some were christened as soon as the day after their birth). His father would have attended a lot of christenings, as it appears there may have been as many as 21 children born to this couple. I wonder how Thomas supported his family. When he died, he called himself a shoemaker, which seems to be a humble trade, but the amount of land he had indicates he was a person of substantial wealth.
So it seems to have been a good move for Thomas, Margery, and their children, including our current hero, Ferdinando, to have come to the New World. There seems to be some confusion about when the Thayer family arrived in America but they are not listed in the Great Migrations series, of families that arrived before 1636, so perhaps Thomas did come on the "Blessing" in 1637. If so, his wife and what remained of his family may have come in 1640, as it is reported that one of the children died in Thornbury in 1640. Ferdinando would have been 12 years old if he came with his father and 15 or 16 if he came with his mother in 1640-1641. At any rate, at least 7 of his siblings had died in England.
Ferdinando lived with his parents for much of his life. On January 14, 1652/53 he married Huldah Hayward, daughter of Thomas Hayward and Margery Knight, in Braintree, Mass. The young married couple continued to live with Thomas and Margery until Thomas's death in 1665. His father's will had been generous to him, and he ended up with so much property that he and his two brothers, Sydrach and Thomas, agreed to redistribute the land so that each had a more equal share.
Ferdinando then moved, as a founder, to Nipmug, later Mendon, Worcester County, Massachusetts. He prospered for when he died he had one of the largest farms in the area, and provided farms for each of his sons in his will. He did not have an easy time of it, though. The Thayers were forced to abandon their home during King Philip's War in 1675. The town and surrounding fields were all destroyed, and the area was not resettled until 1680. It was truly a case of starting over again. Ferdinando would have been 55 at this time, so the task may have seemed daunting to him.
Fortunately, he had a large family to assist him. Ferdinando and Huldah had twelve children, of whom two (each named David) died young. Deborah, Huldah, Jonathan, Naomi, Thomas, Samuel, Isaac, Josiah, Ebenezer, and Benjamin all lived to have children of their own, and the Thayer name is still evident in New England. For Ferdinando to have been able to leave farms to each of his 5 surviving sons, he must have acquired large areas of land, but I have not documented yet where the land was.
His wife Huldah had died in 1690. Ferdinando married for a second time, to Ann Freebury. With all due respect to any of her descendents, Ann was not a loving wife to her husband, and she made accusations against her husband and his sons, charging that they sold liquor to Indians (which was prohibited), that he had deserved to have his house burnt during King Philip's War and it would occur again if they did not stop trafficking with the Indians. She also charged that he had failed to provide for her, along with various other charges. Apparently Ann became disenchanted with her husband when she learned that he was giving his land to his sons, and she would get only the 1/3 of his remaining estate that was hers by law. I get the feeling that it's a good thing for family dignity that there was no television then, or we could have been watching a reality show or worse.
Ferdinando died on March 28, 1713 at the age of 86. He had seen good times and he had seen bad times, but his descendents would continue to build the New World. I would like to know more about his relationship with his second wife, the veracity of her charges, and most especially, where his first name originated. I'm not aware of any other Ferdinando in our tree.
One of our lines of descent is:
Ferdinando Thayer-Huldah Hayward
Ebenezer Thayer-Martha Thompson
Deborah Thayer-John Rockwood
Joseph Rockwood-Alice Thompson
Levi Rockwood-Deborah Lazell
Susannah Rockwood-Nahum Holbrook
Joseph Holbrook-Mary Elizabeth Whittemore
Fremont Holbrook-Phoebe Ann Brown
Loren Holbrook-Etta Stanard
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
Their descendents
Fun fact: Ferdinando and Huldah were ancestors of Barbara Bush and thus of the second President Bush. We're approximately 10th cousins to him.
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