My last blog post was about Thomas Noble, an ancestor on our Allen side. In it, I mentioned that his widow, Hannah Warriner, had married Medad Pomeroy. I recognized that name so looked for the blog post I must have written about him, but there was nothing to be found. So, here it is. Medad Pomeroy is an ancestor on our Holbrook side. He was first married to Experience Woodward, from whom we descend. He was later married to Abigail Strong, who would be a sibling of our ancestor Thomas Strong, also on the Holbrook side. And finally, he was married to Hannah Warriner Noble, the Allen connection. We have quite a connection to this man, and it's time that I wrote about him.
Medad Pomeroy was born August 19, 1638 in Windsor, Hartford Connecticut, to Eltweed and Mary Rockett/Rockwood Pomeroy. The elder Pomeroys were with the very first settlers in 1633, when the settlement was first called Dorchester. Eltweed had some prominence in the town, and is noted to be the founding father of the Pomeroy family in America. Medad was one of at least eight children born to the couple. Eltweed was a fuller, but perhaps he provided his children with an apprenticeship, for Medad was a blacksmith and a gunsmith. It's unclear why Medad left Windsor to go to Northampton, Massachusetts (north of Springfield), but once there, he may have been taught by John Webb, who was the first blacksmith in Northampton but not necessarily a businessman. (One source says he arrived in Northampton in 1659 and was welcomed because of his blacksmithing skills. I've used a history of Northampton for most of the information in this post.) Medad eventually took over Webb's shop location, perhaps with Webb's approval. Medad also must have been given a decent education for the time. Although he didn't attend college, the positions he held in the town would have required reading, writing, and arithmetic skills.
As mentioned, Medad married three times. He married Experience Woodward, daughter of Henry and Elizabeth Mather Woodward, on March 21, 1661 in Northampton, not long after his arrival in Northampton. (Henry was one of the first settlers of the town.) Medad and Experience had 11 children together, before she died, possibly in childbirth, at the age of 43. Medad next married Abigail Strong, and they had one son together. When Abigail died in 1704, he waited just a few months before marrying Hannah Warriner Noble. By this time, he was about 67 years old and Hannah was also in her 60's, so there were no children from this marriage.
Medad had one of the longest periods of public service to his town of any ancestor I've yet found. He was chosen selectman of the town 28 times, deputy to the general court seven times, treasurer from 1698 onward, and some years held as many as six elected offices at the same time. It was a small town, but he was still one of the prominent men in town. He was also clerk, responsible for keeping town records, for most of the period from 1665 until shortly before his death.
As if that was not enough honor, and work, he was also a deacon in the church, and a member of the militia who was involved in the Falls Fight, serving under Captain Turner. This fight involved the massacre of a native American village so is not necessarily something to be proud of, but it was part of his life and he would have lived with that knowledge for another 40 plus years. I wonder if he ever had nightmares, or whether he felt it was his duty to participate? His son Ebenezer was granted land in 1736 in reward for his father's service during this battle.
Medad wrote his will in 1708 but lived until December 30, 1716. There must have been some kind of prenuptial agreement because he left Hannah her choice of a cow, everything she had brought with her, and instructions that she was to draw from the estate anything that she needed. He left his sons and daughters anywhere from 20 to 80 pounds apiece, except that by the time he died, the estate was not worth nearly as much as he had expected. Perhaps in the interim, he had sold assets and given the proceeds to the children, but it's hard to know. His estate was valued at just 41 pounds, unless there were more pages to the inventory that didn't get filmed.
There is more to be told about Medad than I've included in this brief sketch. He was involved in at least one town controversy, and there were a couple of business ventures that don't seem to have gotten off the ground. But Medad seems to have been well-respected, an extremely hard worker, and an important part of the town he served so well. While recognizing that he had shortcomings, we can still respect this man, part of our past and part of our family.
The line of descent is:
Medad Pomeroy-Hannah Warriner
Joseph Pomeroy-Hannah Seymour
Medad Pomeroy-Hannah Trumbull
Medad Pomeroy-Eunice Southwell
Eunice Pomeroy-Libbeus Stannard
Libbeus Stanard-Luceba Fay
Hiram Stanard-Susan Eddy
Louis Stanard-Mary Alice Hetrick
Etta Stanard-Loren Holbrook
Gladys Holbrook-Richard Allen
Their descendants
Showing posts with label Warriner. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Warriner. Show all posts
Friday, June 12, 2020
Tuesday, June 9, 2020
Allen line: Thomas Noble 1632ish-1703/04
Earlier, I wrote about Thomas's supposed parents. I wasn't sure at the time that I had the right people and I am still not sure. So I will just say Thomas's parents may or may not have been Thomas and Rachel Gardiner Noble. His father also may or may not have been John Noble. The Thomas and Rachel may or may not have come to New England, and they may or may not have both died during the year of Thomas's birth. End of speculation for now.
The first that i really known of Thomas Noble is that he was "admitted" to Boston on January 5, 1653. "Admission" generally means that he had no family there but that he had a trade or other means to provide for himself. Boston did not wish to have people in its community who could not be trusted to contribute to its growth, and who might, for whatever reason, become a burden to the town. (This was common for single men in most early Massachusetts towns and villages). Thomas, then, had permission to stay, but he didn't stay for long.
Later in the year he is found in Springfield, Massachusetts, a town which was founded in 1653. He was still a single man so would have been required to have stayed in someone else's home. (The First Century of the History of Springfield gives his arrival date as 1656. I think that is in error, because in 1657 Thomas had already gained enough approval from Mr. Pynchon to be advanced money for a trip to and from England. We can only speculate whether the trip was trade-related, or family related, or on some kind of errand for Mr. Pynchon.)
Thomas Noble did have a trade, or at least a part time trade. He was a tailor when he wasn't farming. Again, it is hard to trace who he lived with and how he could practice a trade when he had no place to call his own. He married Hannah Warriner, daughter of William and Joanna Scant (probably) Warriner of Springfield on January 11, 1660, in Springfield. It's possible that he had stayed in the home of his in-laws until and even after the marriage, but as far as I know there is no documentation of that. We can see that after his marriage he acquired a bit more status than he had as a bachelor. In 1659, he was assigned to the 9th row of men in the meeting house, and in 1662 he was already moved to the sixth row. Marriage made a man more respectable, in and of itself.
Thomas and Hannah stayed in Springfield for several years, eventually moving to the new town of Westfield, a little further to the west of the Springfield village. In 1664 he was one of four men who were given permission to set up a saw mill, and were also given 70 acres of land to use. The sawmill was to be in operation by April 1, 1666. The sawmill was on the west side of the Agawam river, which appears to be just where Westfield was created. Thomas Noble is noted as having been there in 1667, so probably the family moved during or after the construction of the sawmill.
Yes, Thomas and Hannah had a family, and there are probably tens of thousands of descendants from this family now. There were at least ten children born to the couple. The family didn't realize it at the time, but later learned that a native American called "Gray Locks" had often had some of the children in his sight, saying he could have killed several at one time, but that he wanted to capture them so they could be held for ransom. Thankfully, this goal was not accomplished. During King Philip's war, the same Gray Lock would open the door to the cabin, and let it swing shut before playing his game again. This encouraged the family to move from their farm to the relative safety of Westfield, at least for the duration of hostilities.
Thomas farmed, of course, and probably helped in the saw mill operation, and also did tailoring work until close to the end of his days. He was involved in another saw mill operation in 1684, but it's not clear whether he had already relinquished his partnership in the earlier saw mill, or whether this was a separate enterprise entirely. At various times he was a constable, an appraiser, and on committees to help set the boundaries between Springfield and Westfield.
Thomas joined the Westfield church on February 26, 1681 and was made a freeman in the fall of the year. He was on juries, including one conducting an inquest into the manner of death of one of their neighbors, concluding that Eliezer Weller had hanged himself. But Thomas also had his minor run-ins with the law, specifically, church law. He was fined 5 shillings in 1683 because he traveled on a day of court-ordered fasting and humiliation. Thomas stated that he was just trying to get home, but that didn't fold water with the court.
Thomas seems to have been often, if not always, in debt, especially to William or John Pynchon, despite acquiring more and more land during his lifetime. When he died on January 20, 1703/04, he left a will naming his ten children, although it appears that son James died at the same time that Thomas did. Hannah survived him and later married Medad Pomeroy, another of our ancestors. She lived until 1721.
Thomas's inventory was valued at 448 pounds, which was mostly land, farm animals, and farm implements. He had arms and ammunition, but I didn't see any mention of books in the inventory, nor did I see tailoring tools, although they could have been included with "other small things". There is much more information available about Thomas, but the big mystery is still the identification of his parents, and of how and when he arrived in Massachusetts.
Fun fact: I was fascinated to learn that Agatha Christie, the mystery writer, is his sixth great grand daughter. He is my 8th great granddaughter, so that makes us very distant cousins. Other famous grandchildren are Samuel Colt, Humphrey Bogart, Nancy Davis Reagan, and Ken Burns.
The line of descent is
Thomas Noble-Hannah Warriner
Thomas Noble-Elizabeth Dewey
Thomas Noble-Sarah Root
Stephen Noble=Ruth Church
Ruth Noble-Martin Root
Ruth Root-Samuel Falley
Clarissa Falley-John Havens Starr
Harriet Starr-John Wilson Knott
Edith Knott-Edward Allen
Richard Allen-Gladys Holbrook
Their descendants
The first that i really known of Thomas Noble is that he was "admitted" to Boston on January 5, 1653. "Admission" generally means that he had no family there but that he had a trade or other means to provide for himself. Boston did not wish to have people in its community who could not be trusted to contribute to its growth, and who might, for whatever reason, become a burden to the town. (This was common for single men in most early Massachusetts towns and villages). Thomas, then, had permission to stay, but he didn't stay for long.
Later in the year he is found in Springfield, Massachusetts, a town which was founded in 1653. He was still a single man so would have been required to have stayed in someone else's home. (The First Century of the History of Springfield gives his arrival date as 1656. I think that is in error, because in 1657 Thomas had already gained enough approval from Mr. Pynchon to be advanced money for a trip to and from England. We can only speculate whether the trip was trade-related, or family related, or on some kind of errand for Mr. Pynchon.)
Thomas Noble did have a trade, or at least a part time trade. He was a tailor when he wasn't farming. Again, it is hard to trace who he lived with and how he could practice a trade when he had no place to call his own. He married Hannah Warriner, daughter of William and Joanna Scant (probably) Warriner of Springfield on January 11, 1660, in Springfield. It's possible that he had stayed in the home of his in-laws until and even after the marriage, but as far as I know there is no documentation of that. We can see that after his marriage he acquired a bit more status than he had as a bachelor. In 1659, he was assigned to the 9th row of men in the meeting house, and in 1662 he was already moved to the sixth row. Marriage made a man more respectable, in and of itself.
Thomas and Hannah stayed in Springfield for several years, eventually moving to the new town of Westfield, a little further to the west of the Springfield village. In 1664 he was one of four men who were given permission to set up a saw mill, and were also given 70 acres of land to use. The sawmill was to be in operation by April 1, 1666. The sawmill was on the west side of the Agawam river, which appears to be just where Westfield was created. Thomas Noble is noted as having been there in 1667, so probably the family moved during or after the construction of the sawmill.
Yes, Thomas and Hannah had a family, and there are probably tens of thousands of descendants from this family now. There were at least ten children born to the couple. The family didn't realize it at the time, but later learned that a native American called "Gray Locks" had often had some of the children in his sight, saying he could have killed several at one time, but that he wanted to capture them so they could be held for ransom. Thankfully, this goal was not accomplished. During King Philip's war, the same Gray Lock would open the door to the cabin, and let it swing shut before playing his game again. This encouraged the family to move from their farm to the relative safety of Westfield, at least for the duration of hostilities.
Thomas farmed, of course, and probably helped in the saw mill operation, and also did tailoring work until close to the end of his days. He was involved in another saw mill operation in 1684, but it's not clear whether he had already relinquished his partnership in the earlier saw mill, or whether this was a separate enterprise entirely. At various times he was a constable, an appraiser, and on committees to help set the boundaries between Springfield and Westfield.
Thomas joined the Westfield church on February 26, 1681 and was made a freeman in the fall of the year. He was on juries, including one conducting an inquest into the manner of death of one of their neighbors, concluding that Eliezer Weller had hanged himself. But Thomas also had his minor run-ins with the law, specifically, church law. He was fined 5 shillings in 1683 because he traveled on a day of court-ordered fasting and humiliation. Thomas stated that he was just trying to get home, but that didn't fold water with the court.
Thomas seems to have been often, if not always, in debt, especially to William or John Pynchon, despite acquiring more and more land during his lifetime. When he died on January 20, 1703/04, he left a will naming his ten children, although it appears that son James died at the same time that Thomas did. Hannah survived him and later married Medad Pomeroy, another of our ancestors. She lived until 1721.
Thomas's inventory was valued at 448 pounds, which was mostly land, farm animals, and farm implements. He had arms and ammunition, but I didn't see any mention of books in the inventory, nor did I see tailoring tools, although they could have been included with "other small things". There is much more information available about Thomas, but the big mystery is still the identification of his parents, and of how and when he arrived in Massachusetts.
Fun fact: I was fascinated to learn that Agatha Christie, the mystery writer, is his sixth great grand daughter. He is my 8th great granddaughter, so that makes us very distant cousins. Other famous grandchildren are Samuel Colt, Humphrey Bogart, Nancy Davis Reagan, and Ken Burns.
The line of descent is
Thomas Noble-Hannah Warriner
Thomas Noble-Elizabeth Dewey
Thomas Noble-Sarah Root
Stephen Noble=Ruth Church
Ruth Noble-Martin Root
Ruth Root-Samuel Falley
Clarissa Falley-John Havens Starr
Harriet Starr-John Wilson Knott
Edith Knott-Edward Allen
Richard Allen-Gladys Holbrook
Their descendants
Tuesday, July 26, 2016
Allen line: Thomas Noble, 1606-1666, Immigrant or not?
I thought I'd found an immigrant to write about, but now I'm confused as to whether I should be writing about Thomas, or about another Thomas who was born about 1632.
According to very sketchy information I've found, the Thomas I intended to write about was born in 1606 in Aldingha, Kent, England. Except that he may be the Thomas who was born in 1606 in St Giles, Cripplegate, England. If the second theory is correct, his occupation may have been that of pinmaker, which was a working class job except that he seems to have been admitted to a guild.
Thomas may or may not have married Rachel Gardiner, and he may or may not have died in 1666 in Westfield, Hampden County, Massachusetts. Right now I am not finding sources or documentation for any of these statements. I am finding that Thomas Noble born 1632 is noted as "The Settler". He was admitted an inhabitant of Boston in 1651. The internet assumption is that this refers to Thomas born 1632, but I don't know that there's proof about that.
I'm also wondering about the death date and location for Thomas. There is at least some thought in the genealogy world that Thomas senior died in England about 1650, and that Thomas the settler went to England soon after at least partly to claim his inheritance. This would explain a lot of things, but absolute proof is lacking, since the will of Thomas in England leaves an inheritance to Thomas Jr but doesn't state the younger Thomas's whereabouts.
I'll write another blog post about Thomas the Settler, but I wanted to at least throw out the ideas that are floating around, about Thomas's father. He may have been from Aldingham, Kent, England or he may have been from London. He may have married Rachel Gardiner, or he may have married someone else. He may have died in London, or he may have died in Westfield, Massachusetts. And someday, we may have the answers to these questions, and more!
The line of descent may be:
Thomas Noble-Rachel Gardiner
Thomas Noble-Hannah Warriner
Elizabeth Noble-Richard Church
Jonathan Church-Ruth Hitchcock
Ruth Church-Stephen Noble
Ruth Noble-Martin Root Jr.
Ruth Root-Samuel Falley
Clarissa Falley-John Havens Starr
Harriet Starr-John Wilson Knott
Edith Knott-Edward Allen
Richard Allen-Gladys Allen
Their descendants
Their is another line that would go
Thomas Noble-Rachel Gardiner
Thomas Noble-Hannah Warriner
Thomas Noble Elizabeth Dewey
Thomas Noble-Sarah Root
Stephen Noble-Ruth Church and then duplicates
So Stephen Noble, Revolutionary War soldier, and Ruth Church were second cousins.
According to very sketchy information I've found, the Thomas I intended to write about was born in 1606 in Aldingha, Kent, England. Except that he may be the Thomas who was born in 1606 in St Giles, Cripplegate, England. If the second theory is correct, his occupation may have been that of pinmaker, which was a working class job except that he seems to have been admitted to a guild.
Thomas may or may not have married Rachel Gardiner, and he may or may not have died in 1666 in Westfield, Hampden County, Massachusetts. Right now I am not finding sources or documentation for any of these statements. I am finding that Thomas Noble born 1632 is noted as "The Settler". He was admitted an inhabitant of Boston in 1651. The internet assumption is that this refers to Thomas born 1632, but I don't know that there's proof about that.
I'm also wondering about the death date and location for Thomas. There is at least some thought in the genealogy world that Thomas senior died in England about 1650, and that Thomas the settler went to England soon after at least partly to claim his inheritance. This would explain a lot of things, but absolute proof is lacking, since the will of Thomas in England leaves an inheritance to Thomas Jr but doesn't state the younger Thomas's whereabouts.
I'll write another blog post about Thomas the Settler, but I wanted to at least throw out the ideas that are floating around, about Thomas's father. He may have been from Aldingham, Kent, England or he may have been from London. He may have married Rachel Gardiner, or he may have married someone else. He may have died in London, or he may have died in Westfield, Massachusetts. And someday, we may have the answers to these questions, and more!
The line of descent may be:
Thomas Noble-Rachel Gardiner
Thomas Noble-Hannah Warriner
Elizabeth Noble-Richard Church
Jonathan Church-Ruth Hitchcock
Ruth Church-Stephen Noble
Ruth Noble-Martin Root Jr.
Ruth Root-Samuel Falley
Clarissa Falley-John Havens Starr
Harriet Starr-John Wilson Knott
Edith Knott-Edward Allen
Richard Allen-Gladys Allen
Their descendants
Their is another line that would go
Thomas Noble-Rachel Gardiner
Thomas Noble-Hannah Warriner
Thomas Noble Elizabeth Dewey
Thomas Noble-Sarah Root
Stephen Noble-Ruth Church and then duplicates
So Stephen Noble, Revolutionary War soldier, and Ruth Church were second cousins.
Tuesday, November 25, 2014
Allen line: William Warriner, immigrant
Once again, records from the 1500's and the 1600's are hard to come by, difficult to read, and are interpreted differently by different genalogists and family historians. But because this one is fun, I'm going to include what may be a myth, but may just possibly have a grain of truth to it, in this narrative.
William Warriner is believed to have been born in Lincolnshire, England in 1582. It is possible that there is a generation missing between this man and his supposed children, but it is not impossible that the family I am going to present belongs to this man. Just keep in mind that there may be another Warriner who is actually the father of the children I'll mention.
Before we discuss William and his family, there is a family tradition that is too interesting to leave out. It is believed that another William, possibly the immigrant's father (or if there is a missing generation, grandfather) eloped with a Lady Alice Clifford and in their escape, members of the Warriner family (presumably on the side of the love-struck couple) escaped. If this is true, there may be a very interesting family history based on Alice Clifford, a member of the Howard or Howe family. However, all that is really known is that an Alice Warriner, wife of Mr. Warriner, died on January 19, 1619, with records at Canterbury Cathedral. Even if there is no interesting family history to Alice, and even if she was not Lady Alice at all, but there was still an elopement, it's fun.
It is even slightly possible that our William was the husband of this Alice, and that he waited another 20 years before he married again, and started another family.
So, let's go with what we think we know. William was born in Lincolnshire, England (or possibly elsewhere), and lived for 56 years before immigrating to the New World. He seems to have come from England in or before 1638, and a year later, married Joanna Searle or Scant. There are family historians who have looked at the same records and arrived at different conclusions as to her name, but there is a record of a man named Searle who referred to his brother in law, William Warriner, in his will, so I am leaning towards the name of Searle. I could be persuaded to change my mind if I see other documentation, however.
The marriage took place in Agawam, and was then considered part of the Connecticut Colony but soon became Springfield, Massachusetts, and this is where the Warriners made their home. William was already a freeman, meaning he had the power to vote, owned property, and met church approval. He was constable and selectman at different times in Springfield, so even though this would have started as a very small town, and was governed primarily by the Pynchons, he was respected. William and Joanna are known to have had three children and some lists show as many as eleven. Joanna died in 1660 and William married one year later to Elizabeth Gibbons, the widow of Luke Hitchcock. (I've blogged about Luke Hitchcock earlier.) William died on June 2, 1676.
No will was found for William Warriner, but there are records of his inventory, compiled September 26, 1676 as agreed to by Elizabeth his widow, and heirs James Warriner, Joseph Warriner, and Thomas Noble. The estate totaled a little over 160 pounds, including 6 different plots of land, an ox, two steers, three horses, and various household goods. "Cloathing and Bookes" were appraised at 56 pounds and 12 shillings, which was almost a third of the estate. Either our ancestor was a clothes horse (in Puritan Springfield?) or he had a substantial library. I prefer to think he had a lot of books, but that is speculation on my part.
William is recognized as an early settle of Springfield, and I'd love to hear his story in his own words. I'd like to know what he knows about the story regarding Lady Alice, and of his life in England, whatever it may have been. I'd like to know more about his religious beliefs, and when he became a Puritan. Since he died shortly before the outbreak of King Philip's War, I'd love to know what tensions he would have lived with, in his community, with the native Americans. There are always more questions than answers, I guess.
Our line of descent is:
William Warriner-Joanna Scant or Searle
Hannah Warriner-Thomas Noble
Elizabeth Noble-Richard Church
Jonathan Church-Ruth Hitchcock
Ruth Church-Thomas Noble
Stephen Noble-Ruth Church
Ruth Noble--Martin Root Jr.
Ruth Root-Samuel Falley
Clarissa Falley-John Havens Starr
Harriet Starr-John Wilson Knott
Edith Knott-Edward Allen
Richard Allen-Gladys Holbrook
Their descendents
Fun fact: The Noble and Hitchcock lines would repeat for several generations, as this was a small town and the early families stayed in close proximity for several generations.
William Warriner is believed to have been born in Lincolnshire, England in 1582. It is possible that there is a generation missing between this man and his supposed children, but it is not impossible that the family I am going to present belongs to this man. Just keep in mind that there may be another Warriner who is actually the father of the children I'll mention.
Before we discuss William and his family, there is a family tradition that is too interesting to leave out. It is believed that another William, possibly the immigrant's father (or if there is a missing generation, grandfather) eloped with a Lady Alice Clifford and in their escape, members of the Warriner family (presumably on the side of the love-struck couple) escaped. If this is true, there may be a very interesting family history based on Alice Clifford, a member of the Howard or Howe family. However, all that is really known is that an Alice Warriner, wife of Mr. Warriner, died on January 19, 1619, with records at Canterbury Cathedral. Even if there is no interesting family history to Alice, and even if she was not Lady Alice at all, but there was still an elopement, it's fun.
It is even slightly possible that our William was the husband of this Alice, and that he waited another 20 years before he married again, and started another family.
So, let's go with what we think we know. William was born in Lincolnshire, England (or possibly elsewhere), and lived for 56 years before immigrating to the New World. He seems to have come from England in or before 1638, and a year later, married Joanna Searle or Scant. There are family historians who have looked at the same records and arrived at different conclusions as to her name, but there is a record of a man named Searle who referred to his brother in law, William Warriner, in his will, so I am leaning towards the name of Searle. I could be persuaded to change my mind if I see other documentation, however.
The marriage took place in Agawam, and was then considered part of the Connecticut Colony but soon became Springfield, Massachusetts, and this is where the Warriners made their home. William was already a freeman, meaning he had the power to vote, owned property, and met church approval. He was constable and selectman at different times in Springfield, so even though this would have started as a very small town, and was governed primarily by the Pynchons, he was respected. William and Joanna are known to have had three children and some lists show as many as eleven. Joanna died in 1660 and William married one year later to Elizabeth Gibbons, the widow of Luke Hitchcock. (I've blogged about Luke Hitchcock earlier.) William died on June 2, 1676.
No will was found for William Warriner, but there are records of his inventory, compiled September 26, 1676 as agreed to by Elizabeth his widow, and heirs James Warriner, Joseph Warriner, and Thomas Noble. The estate totaled a little over 160 pounds, including 6 different plots of land, an ox, two steers, three horses, and various household goods. "Cloathing and Bookes" were appraised at 56 pounds and 12 shillings, which was almost a third of the estate. Either our ancestor was a clothes horse (in Puritan Springfield?) or he had a substantial library. I prefer to think he had a lot of books, but that is speculation on my part.
William is recognized as an early settle of Springfield, and I'd love to hear his story in his own words. I'd like to know what he knows about the story regarding Lady Alice, and of his life in England, whatever it may have been. I'd like to know more about his religious beliefs, and when he became a Puritan. Since he died shortly before the outbreak of King Philip's War, I'd love to know what tensions he would have lived with, in his community, with the native Americans. There are always more questions than answers, I guess.
Our line of descent is:
William Warriner-Joanna Scant or Searle
Hannah Warriner-Thomas Noble
Elizabeth Noble-Richard Church
Jonathan Church-Ruth Hitchcock
Ruth Church-Thomas Noble
Stephen Noble-Ruth Church
Ruth Noble--Martin Root Jr.
Ruth Root-Samuel Falley
Clarissa Falley-John Havens Starr
Harriet Starr-John Wilson Knott
Edith Knott-Edward Allen
Richard Allen-Gladys Holbrook
Their descendents
Fun fact: The Noble and Hitchcock lines would repeat for several generations, as this was a small town and the early families stayed in close proximity for several generations.
Friday, July 11, 2014
Holbrook line: Robert Bartlett 1612-1676
Sometimes it's hard to find anything at all about an ancestor. Other times, the ancestor has been thoroughly researched and it's hard to cut an interesting life down to something that will fit in a blog post. This post is one of those with much information available (yay!) and on top of that, he is an interesting person. Most of this post is taken from "The Great Migration and the Great Migration Begins", found on Ancestry.com.
Having said that much is known, I should hasten to add much is unknown, also. Such minor details as his place of origin, his parents, and his marriage date are still not known, or at least, not agreed upon by family origins. We know that he arrived in Massachusetts on board the Lyon, in September of 1632. We don't know whether he was already married, whether his wife and possibly first child came with him, or whether he came as a servant or as a free man. We're not even sure where he first lived in Massachusetts.
It is thought that he probably was or became a follower of Reverend Thomas Hooker, who first settled in Cambridge and then went to Hartford, Ct. We know Robert was in Hartford and is listed as a founder on the Founder's monument, but we don't know when he arrived in Connecticut. It is believed that he was married by this time to Ann Warriner or Warringer, and had at least two of his children, but that is so far not verified.
Before he left Massachusetts, he already had a brush with the law, as did many colonists. Puritan law was quite strict. He was "presented" (charged with cursing and swearing, and was censured to have his tongue put in a cleft stick. In Connecticut, he was charged on June 30, 1646,with slandering a woman, and was sentenced to stand on the pillory during the lecture, be whipped, fined five pounds, and serve a half year's imprisonment. Apparently he was still a prisoner in August, when he was again whipped for giving ill counsel to the prisoners. (If anyone in this family has trouble holding their tongue, perhaps we can point a finger back to this ancestor!)
In 1656, Robert had perhaps had enough of Hartford, and left with his wife and family (Abigail, Samuel, Nathaniel and Deborah) for Northampton. As in Hartford, Robert and his family were settling a frontier town, and life was difficult. Besides building homes and clearing land, there were Indians to deal with. As time went on, the native Americans became more and more upset with the number of English people and their spread into Indian land. As a result, the Indians decided it was time to act, and in 1676 Northampton became one of their many targets in what became known as King Philip's War. Robert Bartlett was the first man killed in that battle, in front of his own home. He was buried in the highway there, because the town was devastated and there was no time for a proper burial.
15 days after his death, on March 29, 1676, his widow Ann was in court presenting the inventory of Robert's estate. It was valued at 658 pounds, 18 shillings and 6 pence, which was quite a nice sum for those days. Most of the value was in his land he owned. His wife outlived him by only a few weeks, and her will was dated May 21, 1676. It is not known whether she suffered physical injuries from the Indian attack, or whether she died of natural causes, or whether it was a broken heart that killed her. The settlement included an additional amount for the care of Nathaniel Bartlett, a son who was apparently not capable of caring for himself, or at least not capable of managing money.
Despite his problems in holding his tongue, Robert appears to have been a successful Puritan. He was a selectman, a constable, and a chimney viewer, and was trusted to help establish two different towns. We can recognize his shortcomings and still honor the man and his life. We can remember that it was our ancestors who fought and sometimes gave their lives to protect their family and property, and we can be especially proud of Robert Bartlett.
The line of descent is:
Robert Bartlett-Ann Warriner
Abigail Bartlett-John Stebbins
Sarah Stebbins -William Southwell
Ebenezer Southwell-Elizabeth Judd
Eunice Southwell-Medad Pomeroy Jr.
Eunice Pomeroy-Libbeus Stanard
Libbeus Stanard-Luceba Fay
Hiram Stanard-Susan Eddy
Louis Stanard-Alice Hetrick
Etta Stanard-Loren Holbrook
Holbrook children, grand children, great grandchildren, and great great grandchildren
Having said that much is known, I should hasten to add much is unknown, also. Such minor details as his place of origin, his parents, and his marriage date are still not known, or at least, not agreed upon by family origins. We know that he arrived in Massachusetts on board the Lyon, in September of 1632. We don't know whether he was already married, whether his wife and possibly first child came with him, or whether he came as a servant or as a free man. We're not even sure where he first lived in Massachusetts.
It is thought that he probably was or became a follower of Reverend Thomas Hooker, who first settled in Cambridge and then went to Hartford, Ct. We know Robert was in Hartford and is listed as a founder on the Founder's monument, but we don't know when he arrived in Connecticut. It is believed that he was married by this time to Ann Warriner or Warringer, and had at least two of his children, but that is so far not verified.
Before he left Massachusetts, he already had a brush with the law, as did many colonists. Puritan law was quite strict. He was "presented" (charged with cursing and swearing, and was censured to have his tongue put in a cleft stick. In Connecticut, he was charged on June 30, 1646,with slandering a woman, and was sentenced to stand on the pillory during the lecture, be whipped, fined five pounds, and serve a half year's imprisonment. Apparently he was still a prisoner in August, when he was again whipped for giving ill counsel to the prisoners. (If anyone in this family has trouble holding their tongue, perhaps we can point a finger back to this ancestor!)
In 1656, Robert had perhaps had enough of Hartford, and left with his wife and family (Abigail, Samuel, Nathaniel and Deborah) for Northampton. As in Hartford, Robert and his family were settling a frontier town, and life was difficult. Besides building homes and clearing land, there were Indians to deal with. As time went on, the native Americans became more and more upset with the number of English people and their spread into Indian land. As a result, the Indians decided it was time to act, and in 1676 Northampton became one of their many targets in what became known as King Philip's War. Robert Bartlett was the first man killed in that battle, in front of his own home. He was buried in the highway there, because the town was devastated and there was no time for a proper burial.
15 days after his death, on March 29, 1676, his widow Ann was in court presenting the inventory of Robert's estate. It was valued at 658 pounds, 18 shillings and 6 pence, which was quite a nice sum for those days. Most of the value was in his land he owned. His wife outlived him by only a few weeks, and her will was dated May 21, 1676. It is not known whether she suffered physical injuries from the Indian attack, or whether she died of natural causes, or whether it was a broken heart that killed her. The settlement included an additional amount for the care of Nathaniel Bartlett, a son who was apparently not capable of caring for himself, or at least not capable of managing money.
Despite his problems in holding his tongue, Robert appears to have been a successful Puritan. He was a selectman, a constable, and a chimney viewer, and was trusted to help establish two different towns. We can recognize his shortcomings and still honor the man and his life. We can remember that it was our ancestors who fought and sometimes gave their lives to protect their family and property, and we can be especially proud of Robert Bartlett.
The line of descent is:
Robert Bartlett-Ann Warriner
Abigail Bartlett-John Stebbins
Sarah Stebbins -William Southwell
Ebenezer Southwell-Elizabeth Judd
Eunice Southwell-Medad Pomeroy Jr.
Eunice Pomeroy-Libbeus Stanard
Libbeus Stanard-Luceba Fay
Hiram Stanard-Susan Eddy
Louis Stanard-Alice Hetrick
Etta Stanard-Loren Holbrook
Holbrook children, grand children, great grandchildren, and great great grandchildren
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)