Holbrook line: John Turner, our own iron man

Usually when I write a blog post, I have a birth date and a death date, even if those dates are approximate, and my job is to fill in the dash between those dates, telling a story about who the person was and what they did.  For today's post, I have only the vaguest of ideas about dates, and I'm not sure whether I'm telling the story of one man, or of two.  I am going to treat this as two men, with the understanding that I am fully open to corrections and additional information. 

The first John Turner seems to have been born perhaps about 1600.  He came to America by 1643, when his name was on an early petition for Lynn, Massachusetts.  He was there in 1654, as an iron worker.  In 1648, he was charged with stabbing his daughter in law, Sarah Turner, and was sentenced to be severely whipped.  It is thought that this was the wife of his son Lawrence.  He is also thought to have had a son John.  There don't seem to be any further known records about John in Lynn.  Speculation is that he had been an iron worker in England, perhaps at Hammersmith, and had come to Massachusetts specifically to work at the first iron works set up in the colony. 

The next time we find John Turner, he is in Taunton, Massachusetts, in 1654.  This John Turner worked as a foreman at the forge in Taunton.  He is believed to be the son of the John Turner at Lynn, but it's possible that this was the same man.  If he was the son, then he followed in his father's trade, and likely moved up in the world, because by 1690 he was listed as the "clerke" at the iron works at Taunton, which was perhaps close to the role of manager, or maybe chief financial officer.  It was a position of respect, anyway.

John at Taunton was a married man, with at least three daughters, Jane, Mary, and Margaret.  It's thought that his wife's name was Jane, but records are lacking.  (Taunton's early records were destroyed by fire). 

The other things we know about John are that he was a surveyor in 1675 (the only town office he is known to have filled, although there were likely others), that he purchased a share or part of a share in the company, that he acquired some of the land purchased from the native Americans in 1672, and that he took an oath of fidelity, probably related to when William and Mary took the thrones in 1688.  He's not found on the list of freemen, which means he likely was not a member of the church.  He may have had a few animals but he wasn't a farmer in the traditional sense of the word.  It would be a great help to review his will, but it seems to have gone missing, whether in the destruction of other town records or for some other reason, I don't know. 

Taunton was only lightly affected by King Philip's war, with minor attacks on only two occasions.  A couple of houses were burned and one man was killed.  The town in general did not evacuate, so it seems likely that John would have served in one of the garrison houses, either as a ember of the militia or as a civilian pressed into duty. 

John was working in 1690 but I've not located any further records of him.  He was outside of the box for our family, not a pastor or a school teacher or a farmer.  The work of the iron works was truly essential to the success of the colony, as the only other source of iron was from England itself, a long and costly way to procure it.  So his work was important to the colony, and his life is important to us. 

The line of descent is

John TUrner-Jane
Jane Turner-Richard Godfrey
Alice Godfrey-Peter Holbrook
Joseph Holbrook-Mary Cook
Jesse Holbrook-Abigail Thayer
Amariah Holbrook-Molly Wright
Nahum Holbrook-Susanna Rockwood
Joseph Holbrook-Mary Eliabeth Whittemore
Fremont Holbrook-Phoebe Brown
Loren Holbrook-Etta Stanard
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
Their descendants

Holbrook line: Peter Holbrook 1656-1712

Peter Holbrook has been a favorite of mine, ever since several years ago, when I read the will of his grandfather, Thomas, who died in 1677.  Peter was just about 21 at the time.  Thomas's will states that because Peter took care of him and of his wife in their old age, he was leaving his dwelling house, orchard, and arable land in Weymouth to Peter.  I don't know many young men who would care for their grandparents for such a long time, so I am already favorably impressed with this ancestor.

But let's back up and start at the beginning.  Peter was the son of Thomas and Joanna Kingman Holbrook on September 6, 1656 by the dating method most sites are using.  Peter was of the first generation born in New England, in Braintree, Massachusetts Bay Colony.   His father was about ten years old when he came to America with his father, so Peter may or may not have heard many stories about life in the home country.  He was raised a Puritan, so he knew how to read and write, and he'd learned enough about how to run a farm to take care of his grandparents; land.  He was probably a bright and hard working young man.

We don't know what he looked like, but he had enough going for him to capture the heart of Alice Godfrey, daughter of Richard and Jane Turner Godfrey.  Peter and Alice were married about
1677, apparently in Mendon.  It's hard to know the exact timeline because Peter was caring for his grandparents until March (grandfather) or April (grandmother's date of death, of 1677.

His responsibilities in caring for his grandparents probably explains why I don't find his name listed as a soldier in King Philip's War.  He had more immediate duties.  The town the young couple went to, Mendon, was totally burned by the Indians during the War, so it's just as well that the couple wasn't there yet.  They apparently did move to town soon after the war, though  Peter's name starts showing up in town records at least by 1685, when he is charged a high "rate" of one pound and five shillings to support Mr. Rawson, the town pastor, for sixx months.  Only a handful of men had a rate higher than Peter's.

While Peter and Alice were raising a large family of at least eleven children, Peter was making his way in the world.  I'm not sure just when, but at some point he went from being "Peter Holbrook" to being "Deacon Peter Holbrook".  He was a commissioner in 1685 and was a selectman several times over the next 25 years.  He was appointed to a committee to "run the lines" between Mendon and Sherburn in 1699, which may have required some diplomatic skill.

In 1694, Peter received a 7 year lease to the "training field", with the stipulation that he was to clear the field of "bushes" and have it ready for pasture.  Apparently the men were no longer using the training field, although I can't think that they were no longer training.  There were small wars in progress and Mendon, while no longer quite as exposed as it had been, would still have been aware of such things.  Military organization did not often make it into the town history books, so we are left to wonder about the training and military service of the town's men.

Peter died May 3, 1712.  Alice had died earlier, in 1705, and Peter married Elizabeth Shaw two years later.  His will makes generous provisions for her care, gives a double share to eldest son John, and leaves bequests to his younger children who had not yet received their land.  The three older sons had received lands by deed prior to Peter's final illness.  His inventory was valued at over 278 pounds, including real estate.  He had a few farm animals, furniture, bookx, and hand tools but there was nothing in the inventory to make me think he was especially prosperous, or at least not much of a spender.  Most of his wealth was in his land, and in his family.

I'm proud of Peter.  He was a good grandson, a deacon in the church, a respected man in his community and a good father.  No wonder Elizabeth Shaw was willing to marry him!

Our line of descent is

Peter Holbrook-Alice Godfrey
Joseph Holbrook-Mary Cook
Jesse Holbrook=Abigail Thayer
Amariah Holbrook-Molly Wright
Nahum Holbrook-Susanna Rockwood
Joseph R Holbrook-Mary Elizabeth Whittemore
Fremont Holbrook-Phoebe Brown
Loren Holbrook-Etta Stanard
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
Their descendants

Fun fact:  Peter Holbrook was the ancestor of William Howard Taft, President of the US, Barbara Bush, and George W Bush, another President.  

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)

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. 

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!  

Holbrook line: Henry Kingman 1595-1667, Immigrant

What would we ever do without the "Great Migration" series that Robert Charles Anderson has devoted his life to preparing?  We certainly wouldn't know as much as we do, particularly about this ancestor, Henry Kingman.   With all due respect, however, there are still mysteries about this immigrant, including the minor details of when and where he was born, and who his parents were.  As I understand it, there is a researcher in England working on these questions now.  May he have great success, and may he share them with the many thousands of people who descent from Henry.

The first knowledge we have of the man, at present, is his migration to New England in 1635 on board the Marygould.  This ship sailed from Weymouth, England and almost all the passengers went to Weymouth, Massachusetts, a small village in the Massachusetts Bay Colony.  This was part of Rev. Hull's company.  (Rev. Hull was an interesting preacher for the time.  He was expelled from the Church of England early in 1635, then was pastor at Weymouth until he was dismissed for his "liberal views", and so on to Hingham and various other places until he returned to England for a decade, then back to the New World to preach in New Hampshire.  He was apparently too Puritan for the Church of England and too Church of England for the Puritans.)  When Henry came to America, he is listed as being 40 years old.  He came with his wife, Joane, and chidren, Edward, Joane, Ann, Thomas, John, and a servant, John or Jonathan Ford. 

Henry and his wife settled in Weymouth, a small village at the time, and stayed there the rest of their lives.  He was a freeman, a member of the church, and a ferryman and innkeeper by trade.  He was granted 42 acres at Weymouth in 1636, apparently in several different parcels, and also acquired land that was "first given to" various other settlers, who apparently moved on or died.  In 1648, he purchased a house and several acres of land belonging to William Richards, so the ferryman/innkeeper business must have been somewhat lucrative. 

He served as the deputy for Wemouth to the Massachusetts Bay General Court in May of 1638 and again in May of 1652, and was a memer of a Massachusetts Bay grand jury in 1637. 

Joan died at Weymouth on April 11, 1659 and Henry died there June 5, 1667.  They had six children, Edward, Joan, Anne, Thomas, Bridget, and John, all born in England. All of the children probably helped in the family business as they grew, so this would likely have been a close family.  Henry's inventory was not totaled, but the land he owned was valued at 288 pounds, and it is noted that his estate included a Bible and one other book. 

This is as much as we currently know about Henry and his wife, Joan or Joanna.  There is much speculation that Joan's maiden name was Drake.  If so, her genealogy may make her a cousin to Sir Francis Drake, but this is not proven.  It would be wonderful to find more answers to more questions!

The line of descent is

Henry Kingman-Joan possibly Drake
Joan or Joanna Kingman-Thomas Holbrook
Peter Holbrook-Alice Godfrey
Joseph Holbrook-Mary Cook
Jesse Holbrook-Abigail Thayer
Amariah Holbrook-Molly Wright (there she is again!)
Nahum Holbrook-Susanna Rockwood
Joseph Holbrook-Mary Elizabeth Whittemore
Fremont Holbrook-Phoebe Brown
Loren Holbrook-Etta Stanard
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
Their descendants

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!