The family of Levi Rockwood 1751-1806

This is the last of my posts on the Rockwood family.  It has been really interesting to me to look at them, as so many stayed in basically the same location for entire generations, and then in the early 1800s, mostly, moved on from Bellingham to western Massachusetts and then many to Erie County, New York.  It would be interesting to know whether those who went to Erie went with the hope of finding work on the canal, and how successful, or not, they were at that.  I'm sure there are a lot of stories hidden in the names shown below.  

Levi Rockwood was born in 1751 in Bellingham, Massachusetts, the son of Joseph and Alice Thomson Rockwood.  (Following up on my last blog post, this was yet another loss for Alice, for she outlived him by a few years.)  He married Deborah Lazell (Leazell, lots of other spellings), the daughter of Isaac and Deborah Marsh Lazell.  Levi served in the Revolutionary War for several brief periods of time, including responding to the Lexington-Concord "shots heard 'round the world".  He died in Bellingham in 1806.  

Levi and Deborah had 8 children together, and were more fortunate than Levi's mother had been.  One child lived only a few months, but the rest all had respectable life spans, and at least five children.  This family has several ties to Thomson and Holbrook names, so that it truly goes from being a tree to a tangled forest, as I try to sort these out.  

Their first child was Rachel, born in 1774 and died in 1852 in Lockport, New York.  She married Levi Thompson, the son of Nathan and Dorothy Coles Thompson.  (Nathan is the son of Joseph and Mary Holbrook Thomson, Mary being a descendant of Peter and Alice Godfrey Holbrook.  Joseph is believed to be a descendant of David and Amyas Colle Thomson, who are also our ancestors.) The children of Rachel and Levi include Rachel, Levi, Hiram, Demmon, Orrin, Lucy, Byron, Joseph, and Cephas.

Next came Susannah, in 1776.  She married Nahum Holbrook, the son of Amariah and Molly Wright Holbrook, and died in 1840 in Adamsville, Washington County, New York.  Nahum was a veteran of the war of 1812 in New York, so they had moved prior to that time.  And yes, Nahum is a descendant of Peter and Alice Godfrey Holbrook.  Susannah and Nahum's children are Lucinda, Amariah, Deborah, Nahum, Susan, Joseph (our line) and Mary.  

Hannah's brief life began in 1778 and ended just a few months later. She was the last daughter born to the couple. 

Joseph, the first son, was born in 1780 and died in 1854 in Bellingham.  He married Anne Chilson, the daughter of John and Abigail Draper Chilson.  Their children are Lucena, Preston, Artman/Artemas, Susan, Maria, Joseph, John, Emily and Abbie (possibly Abigail?).  

Levi was born in 1782 and died in 1837 in Boston, Erie County, New York.  He married Tryphena Holbrook, the daughter of Amariah and Molly Wright Holbrook.  And yes, Amariah is also a descendant of Peter and Alice Godfrey Holbrook. So Susannah and Levi each married children of Amariah and Molly Wright Holbrook, which isn't surprising given the population of the town at that time.  Levi's children are John, Amos, Levi, Orrin, and Lyman.  

Nathan was born in 1784 and died in 1879 in Hamburg, Erie County, New York.  He married Ann Ferguson, the daughter of Samuel and Jemima Abbe Ferguson.  Their children are William, Lovena, Sarah, Eliza, Helen, and Harriette.  He was also a veteran of the War of 1812.

Martin was born in 1787 and died in 1864 in Boston, Erie County, New York.  He married Abigail Bates, the daughter of Ezekiel and Abigail Legg Bates.  Their children are Horace, Caoline, Martin, Abigail, Sena, Elizabeth, Varnum, and Calvin.  After Abigail's death, he married Lois Hitchcock, a descendant of Luke and Elizabeth Hitchcock, who are our ancestors on the Allen side of the family. Martin and Lois had no known children.  

Finally, Reuben was born in 1790 and died in 1865 in Eden, Erie County, New York.  He married Polly Albee, the daughter of Alphaeus and Susannah Phillips Albee.  Their children are Valentine, Reuben, Asiel, Urial, and Mary.   

These male children would have grown up hearing stories from the Revolutionary War.  Several of them, perhaps more than I've noted here, served during the War of 1812.  And some lived to see the end of the Civil War.  There is a lot of history woven into the lives of this Rockwood family,