Holbrook line: John Trumbull 1670-1751

This is another case of the glass being half full.  We have some information about John, but not enough to really let us think we know him, or even much about him.  Like many in his generation, he is more shadow than substance.  But still...there is this information.

John was born November 27, 1670 in Rowley, Massachusetts to Joseph and Hannah Smith Trumbull.  Joseph and Hannah soon moved to Suffield in what would finally be determined to be Connecticut, in time for Joseph to be considered a proprietor there.  John would have been only five years old when King Philip's War broke out, and the family is believed to have left Suffield for a time.  Joseph would have served at least in the militia, but I've not yet found record of it.  John would have been the "little man" of the family during this crisis.

I don't know whether John ever served in the military, except I do know training bands were required so he was at least theoretically able to serve in any of the military expeditions and native American scares of the late 1600's and early 1700's.  He married Elizabeth Winchell, daughter of David and Elizabeth Filley Winchell, in Suffield on September 3, 1696.  He was a little older than normal for a first marriage, but he likely had been helping care for his younger brothers and sisters.

John, whose name is spelled Trumble in the town records, was probably low on the social status scale.  Most of the town offices that he held were relatively low level-fence viewer, surveyor of highways (indicating at least a basic education), and on a committee to make sure all hogs were "yoak'd and ring'd".  He cast several dissenting votes in town meetings, some having to do with land grants and at least one having to do with paying a "rate" (tax) to pay a "writing scoller" in addition to the usual schoolmaster.  By 1722 he was appointed to a committee to see to it that the pews were made, and in 1725 was trusted with the office of constable.  This was a civic responsibility that many tried to avoid, as in involved collection of rates, and if he were unable for any reason to collect, that he could be held to account.  Sure enough, in 1728 there was discussion about his failure to collect rates from two men, one of whom was by then deceased.

We're not told the assignment of the pews in the meeting house, but later John was given permission to change pews with a man who had been assigned the second pew.  Usually these front pews were based on wealth, but sometimes exceptions were made for people who were elderly, or/and hard of hearing, and that may be the case here. 

Some of his land was appropriated for a highway, and typically he would have received land elsewhere in compensation, although I haven't found record of that.  His land was on Feather Street, which may have been land inherited from his father, and also noted (I'm not sure whether this was separate land, or a different description) as being the Allyn Land at the Ferry.  His son was a ferryman, so John may or may not have also held that occupation. 

Find a Grave states that this couple had eight children.  I am unable to verify that but it could well be true.  If his estate records could be located, that would be most helpful, both as to heirs and to the size of his estate, perhaps as to the land he owned and an occupation.  Was he an employee of the iron works, or was he a farmer?  We simply don't know at this point.  We do know that he died January 3, 1751/52, when he would have been in his early eighties.  So he was part of the "hardy pioneer stock" from whom we descend.

Oh, one other descendant is John Wayne, the actor.  He is John Trumbull's sixth great grandson, making him, I believe, a seventh cousin once removed to my generation. 

The line of descent is:

John Trumbull-Elizabeth Winchell
Hannah Trumbull-Medad Pomeroy
Medad Pomeroy-Eunice Southwell
Eunice Pomeroy-Libbeus Stannard
Libbeus Stanard-Luceba or Euzebia Fay
Hiram Stanard-Susan Eddy
Louis Stanard-Mary Alice Hetrick
Etta Stanard-Loren Holbrook
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen



 

Holbrook line: John Trumbull, Immigrant 1612-1657

John Trumbull seems to be more of a mystery than I had thought.  I have his birth information, and his parentage back for three generations.  Or so I thought.  Robert Charles Anderson, of "The Great Migration" series, seems to think that there were two John Trumble or Trumbulls, one in Cambridge-Charlestown, and one who went to Rowley.  Our target is the man who went to Rowley. 

So, we don't know who John's parents are, or where they were from, although the majority of the England births in the supposed time period for James that I could find were from either Yorkshire or Northumberland counties in England. The James Trumble who is frequent given as John's father was a kielsman, or someone who worked on freighters and lighters, small ships that worked around the docks.  It was a low status, low paying job, and it seems to some that he would not have had the means to send his son to school for several years. 

Our John Trumbull or Trumble surely had some education, for he was the first school teacher in Rowley, Massachusetts, where he was situated by 1639.  His wife was Ellen or Elinor Chandler, believed to be the daughter of John Chandler and Ann Swan, and they married July 7, 1635 at Newcastle upon Tyne, Northumberland, England. She emigrated with her husband John and their first son John, but we don't know exactly when.  

As indicated, John was a school teacher.  He was made a freeman May 13, 1640.  He was also town clerk from 1654-1656, (meaning, among other things, that his penmanship was decent) and a selectman from 1652 to 1654.  By trade he was a cooper.  He was also a deacon in the church.  

John and Elinor had six children together.  Elinor died before August of 1650, when John married Ann, the widow of Michael Hopkinson, and they had two more children, besides at least three of Ann's.  It would have been a bustling household!

John's estate is rather interesting. There seems to have not been a will, so the court decided how the money should be divided.   It shows that Ann's children, and Ann and John's children, mostly received more money than John and Elinor's children did.  For instance, Jonathan Hopkinson received 25 pounds, while John, the firstborn of John and Elinor, received 15 pounds.  The other children from that marriage received 8 pounds each.  55 pounds was allowed to the widow.  It would be interesting to understand the reasoning process in deciding who got what, for typically a wife would receive one third of the estate, particularly if she still had children to raise.  Ann got about one quarter of the estate's value.   

The estate was valued at almost 226 pounds, minus debts of about five pounds.  He had at least eight plots of land, including house, garden and orchards, several farm animals, over a pounds worth of books, a halberd, two swords, and a pair of bandoliers, a fowling piece, but just one bed with some additional bedding.  The weapons were likely a requirement of all able bodied men.  We don't know how able bodied John was toward the end of his life.  If he was born about 1612, then he died about 45 years old, on March 16, 1657.  I wonder what else he had hoped to accomplish with his life. 

So we have some idea of John's life in New England, but almost none of his life in England.  Perhaps someone is working right now to determine which John Trumbull is likely to be ours.  It would be nice to know!

Our line of descent is:

John Trumbull-Elinor Chandler
Joseph Trumbull-Hannah Smith
John Trumbull-Elizabeth Winchell
Hannah Trumbull-Medad Pomeroy
Medad Pomeroy-Eunice Southwell
Eunice Pomeroy-Libbeus Stanard
Libbeus Stanard-Luceba Fay
Hiram Stanard-Susan Eddy
Louis Stanard-Mary Alice Hetrick
Etta Stanard-Loren Holbrook
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
Their descendants