The Mary Conant Balch Room

One of the upstairs bedrooms at The Balch House is identified as the Mary Conant Balch Room. She was born on Christmas Eve in 1631. When she was about twenty years old, she married John Balch, Jr., the second son of the immigrant John Balch. John and Mary had only one daughter, Mary, who died in infancy. Mary was widowed in 1662, when John Jr. drowned while crossing on the ferry between Salem and Beverly during a violent storm. Mary's father, Roger Conant, is considered the founder of Salem and there is a statue of him in Salem. Mary lived until 1688 and was survived by her second husband, William Dodge, Jr. (1640-1720). Mary Conant is my 9th great-grandaunt; John Balch is my 9th great-granduncle; William Dodge, Jr. is my first cousin, 11 times removed. 

Roger Conant - Lot Conant (brother of Mary Conant), Martha (Conant) Perkins, Mark Perkins, Ann (Perkins) Packard, Cynthia (Packard) Dunham, James Dunham, Jr. Florilla (Dunham) Ellingwood, Asa F. Ellingwood, Nina (Ellingwood) Gibbs, Annie (Gibbs) Cotton, Fern Lyndell Cotton - my grandmother

John Balch - Benjamin Balch (brother of John Balch, Jr.), Mary (Balch) Stone, Ruth (Stone) Morgan, Luke Morgan, Jr., Samuel Morgan, Martha (Morgan) Yates, Moses Yates, Gilbert W. Yates, Estes G. Yates, Linona Alice Yates - my grandmother

John Dodge - Richard Dodge (brother of William Dodge), Mary (Dodge) Herrick, Sarah (Herrick) Morgan, Luke Morgan, Luke Morgan, Jr. (same as line above). 

An Unhealthy Obsession

Sarah Whipple was fifteen years old when a man named John Hobbs developed an unhealthy obsession with her. Sarah was my 8th great grandaunt, the daughter of my 9th great-grandparents, John & Sarah (Kent) Whipple. Her mother died when she was an infant and her father remarried, Elizabeth Woodman. When this happened, she was living in Newbury with her uncle, Richard Kent and it was Richard who filed the complaint against John Hobbs of Newbury in the Ipswich courts. I believe this is the John Hobbs who was born in 1652 to Thomas & Martha Hobbs. That would make him twenty years old and five-six years older than Sarah. 

Initially, Hobbs was found guilty and sentenced, but he appealed and was released on bond. He failed to appear at his next court appearance on September 24, 1672. He continued to "abuse her by many scandalous defamations and threatened to have the blood of any person that shall come to her under any pretense of love." Her father, John Whipple, then urged the court to bring Hobbs to answer for his behavior.

Sarah's testimony in the matter says that Hobbs had stated to her uncle that he would not allow any man to court her or it "would be the death of him" that tried. Rebecca Long backed up Sarah's testimony. (Rebecca is my 9th great-grandmother.) Beriah Browne testified that Hobbs told him that "he would be the death of any man who sought Sary Whipple in marriage and God's blud I think you are the man." Henry Akers testified that Hobbs also threatened Richard Doell and Beriah Browne because he suspected they were interested in Sarah.

Six months after failing to show up for his appeal, the Court record of March 25, 1673, reads "John Hobbs, for profane swearing the threatening to kill, for railing and shamefully abusing Sarah Whipple, and for not prosecuting his appeal at the last Ipswich court, was bound to good behavior, especially to Richard Kent and Sarah Whipple, and not to come into her company."

John Hobbs does not appear in the court record on this matter again. Sarah Whipple married Henry Short, Jr. on March 30, 1674.  There is no record of what reaction John Hobbs had to this event. What is known is that John Hobbs was one of the men killed during the Bloody Brook massacre on September 18, 1675.

Monument to those killed at Bloody Brook

John & Sarah (Kent) Whipple
Matthew Whipple - brother of Sarah
Dorothy (Whipple) Perkins
Ann (Perkins) Packard
Cynthia (Packard) Dunham
James Dunham, Jr.
Florilla (Dunham) Ellingwood
Nina (Ellingwood) Gibbs
Annie (Gibbs) Cotton
Fern Lyndell Cotton - my grandmother

Pigs & Bacon - 52 Ancestors #38

One of my favorite stories about an ancestor because it is so funny to know that someone named Bacon got in trouble for stealing pigs. 

I bought a copy of Diane Rapaport's, New England Court Records, which is primarily a source book detailing repositories of early court records. Near the back of the book she recounts several interesting stories. One she originally wrote as a magazine article caught my eye. She calls this story "The Case of the Purloined Pigs." The story itself was interesting enough but even better to find my ancestor was the one doing the purloining (if that isn't a word, it should be). 

Michael Bacon, (you have to smile at the irony), showed up at the house of William Munro, of Cambridge Farms, after a late November snowstorm looking for his pigs. He was known for letting his pigs wander and this time they had traveled a considerable distance from his home in present-day Bedford. After separating Bacon's pigs from those of the Munro family, the Munros went about their business. Bacon's pigs did not seem to take kindly to being told where to go and soon returned to the Munro's. This time Michael did not take the time to sort them out. He just started herding them all away, toward his home. Martha Munro yelled for him to stop but he ignored her, prompting William to put on some snowshoes and go after him. 

Today this is about 4.5 miles on a nice road ~ 9 minutes by car, but it was over the meadow and through the woods in 1662.

William Munro was a tough Scotsman who had worked his way from Scottish prisoner of war to indentured servant to landowner. His livestock were valuable for food and income and he wasn't about to let even one of them be taken. Bacon's reputation left a lot to be desired. He showed up often in court records for multiple offenses: letting his livestock run free and causing damages to the crops of others, land disputes, slander, forgery, breaches of contract, and a paternity case. 

When Munro caught up with Michael Bacon, he found that one pregnant sow was missing and another was too "tired and spent that shee could not come back" so he had no choice but to leave her with Bacon. He gathered up the other pigs and returned home. The next day he want to the local constable's deputy and told him what happened. They went to Bacon's home and as in the past, Michael denied any of it had happened. When he couldn't convince them that nothing had happened, Bacon admitted that he had Munro's pigs with him the day before but said that he didn't have them anymore. "If Row [Munro] lost them, he must go look for them." Bacon did not offer to help. 


The next day Munro and two of his neighbors searched for his missing pigs and found one stuck in a drift but still alive. They brought her home but were still missing the other pregnant sow. Fed up, he took a trip to the nearest magistrate, Thomas Danforth's house, in Cambridge, and filed a claim against Michael Bacon. Because the amount was small, the matter did not need to go to court and Danforth issued a warrant ordering Michael Bacon to appear at Danforth's home to answer the complaint made by William Munro. Michael Bacon did not show up to answer the warrant but Munro appeared with several other witnesses to testify and Bacon lost the case. The penalty was for the constable's deputy to take a "branded steere" from Michael Bacon to make sure the damages were paid to William Munro. 

However, before Munro could collect on the judgment, his missing sow mysteriously appeared. She was delivered by a man claiming he "found" her and was asked by Bacon to bring her back. The sow was "lamed and went but upon three legs." William Munro was not impressed and demanded the judgment be paid. Michael Bacon asked for a rehearing and ended up owing, not only the original judgment but also the added costs of witness time and constable's fees. 

Still Bacon refused to pay and appealed to the Middlesex County Court. He hired a lawyer to draw up a petition with a number of technical arguments. The April 2, 1672, trial was held at the Blue Anchor Tavern. It appears that Munro also hired an attorney. The result was the same as before, Munro prevailed and more court charges were added to what Michael Bacon now owed. Rapaport says this is where the court records for this case end and based on that she concludes that Michael Bacon paid the judgment. So ends the case of Mr. Bacon and his purloined pigs. 

Illustration from - http://gurneyjourney.blogspot.com/2009/01/from-pig-to-alien.html
http://www.electricscotland.com/familytree/magazine/febmar2005/story35.htm

Michael Bacon - 11th great-grandfather
Mary Bacon - 10th great-grandmother
Mary Lakin - 9th great-grandmother
Joseph Willard - 8th great-grandfather
Sybel Willard - 7th great-grandmother
Samuel Haskell - 6th great-grandfather
Martha Haskell - 5th great-grandmother
Sally Houghton - 4th great-grandmother
Florilla Dunham - 3rd great-grandmother
Nina Ellingwood - 2nd great-grandmother
Annie Florilla Gibbs - great-grandmother
Fern Lyndell Carter - grandmother

A Horrible Crime

This was a difficult blog post to write. Many times the colonial court records are filled with offenses that amuse us today. However, an attack on a thirteen-year-old girl is not amusing in any time period.

The basis for this story comes from The Great Migration Begins sketch of Humphrey Wyeth based on the research of Robert Charles Anderson.

My connection to this story comes from Thomas & Abigail (Wyeth) (Jones) Chadwell. Thomas Chadwell, Jr. was the second husband of my 10th great-aunt, Abigail (Wyeth) Jones. In 1667, an accusation of rape was leveled by the couple on behalf of Abigail's niece, Sarah Bursley, age 13. Sarah was the daughter of John & Susanna (Wyeth) Bursley. John was "of Exeter" and is not the same as the John Bursley in The Great Migration Begins, Vol. 1.  The accused rapist was a man named John Simple of Charlestown. I have not been able to find more information on major characters in this case. I don't know the age of John Simple, his marital status, or what happened to him after he was convicted. Likewise, I don't know what happened to Sarah, why it seems she was living with her aunt and uncle, or if she wasn't living with them, how they happened to be the first to see her after the attack. Did she have a family of her own one day?

First Sarah told her story and her uncle put up a bond for her appearance in the General Court.

On 14 march 1666/7, upon the "complaint of [worn] Chadwell his wife,""the examination of John Simple aged [blank]" was conducted. On the same day, "Sarah Bursly aged about 13 years sayeth that on Wednesday night last about eight a clock, John Simple without speaking to her she having a candle in her hand he took her by the arms & threw her upon the ground upon her back & put up all her clothes & lay upon her unbuttoning his britches, and by violence thrust his member into her body... & she was & now remains sore & that he made blood to come from her which is apparent & evident to her aunt, she likewise sayeth he had several times told her he would lie with her but never did until last night & then he begged of her that she would not tell her aunt." "Tho[mas] Chadwell binds himself in the bond of twenty pounds for Sarah Bursly's appearance at the General Court or else at the next Court of Assistants." [SJC Case #814]

The indictment of John Simple came around September 1667. The charges were set and the jury found him guilty of rape.

In an undated document (probably on or just before 3 September 1667), "Jno Simple you are indicted by the name of John Simple of Charlestowne for not having the fear of God before your eyes & being instigated by the devil did on or about the 13th of March last past attempt & commit a rape upon the body of Sarah Bursly a girl of thirteen years of age as by the evidence may appear."  "James Everell in the name of the rest [of the grand jury]" stated that "we find this bill that John Simpull commited a rape on the body of Sarah Bursly." "Tho[mas] Deane in the name of the rest [of the petit jury] ... find him guilty of an attempt upon the body of Sarah Bursly and a rape committed." [SJC Case #814]

Abigail Chadwell recounts how she found Sarah crying, listened to her account of the rape, and examined her niece.

On 3 September 1667, "Abigaell Chadwell aged five and forty years," deposed that "having been from her house on 13th March last a little time [worn] quarters of an hour or thereabouts and when she came home [worn] [kins?] woman Sarah Bursley, crying and this deponent [worn] reason wherefore she wept she made answer [that] John Simple had almost killed her and almost split her whereupon I took her up into the chamber and searched her [worn] and according to my apprehension found that he had abused her body finding some blood upon her shift and she deposeth [and] testifies upon oath that there was no man besides himself in the [house?] with her nor any after as she [illegible] till such time as that my husband [and] the constable came in."

Later that day, poor Sarah was examined by five other women of the town. I can't imagine how traumatic this must have been for Sarah.

On the same day, "Mary Sprague aged about 70 years Alice Rand aged about 72 years Suretrust Rouse aged about 67 years Anne March aged about 70 years" and "Hester Kettel aged about 60 years" deposed that upon "searching Sarah Bursly they found that some man had entered her body."

Humphrey Wyeth - grandfather of Sarah Bursley
Mary (Wyeth) Perkins - sister of Abigail (Wyeth) (Jones) Chadwell & aunt of Sarah Bursley
Luke Perkins, Sr.
Luke Perkins, Jr.
Mark Perkins
Ann (Perkins) Packard
Cynthia (Packard) Dunham
James Dunham, Jr.
Florilla (Dunham) Ellingwood
Nina K. (Ellingwood) Gibbs
Annie F. (Gibbs) Cotton
Fern Lyndell Cotton - my grandmother

Historian Nathaniel Morton - 52 Ancestors #35

Nathaniel Morton is my 11th great-grandfather. He came to Plymouth 
Colony in 1623, on the Anne, with his parents, George & Juliana (Carpenter) Morton. His parents were married in Leiden, Holland in 1612 and it is most likely that he was born there. 

Nathaniel's father died when Nathaniel was only eleven. He was taken in by his uncle, Governor William Bradford. As a result, Nathaniel received an excellent education and became the Secretary of Plymouth Colony for forty years (1645-1685). He was also the secretary of the United Colonies of New England. 

The Guest Commentary portion of the Early Families of New England sketch on Nathaniel Morton includes this information that was very interesting for me. Nathaniel Morton wrote an account of the Plymouth Colony history that expands on and extends William Bradford's manuscript, Of Plymouth Plantation." Morton's work is called New-Englands Memoriall and was published in 1669. This is the only source of signers of the Mayflower Compact and "notes the eight Native Leaders who added their names to the treaty with Massasoit in September, 1621 - but makes no mention of the famous First Thanksgiving." James W. Baker, a Plymouth historian calls this work "the first historical work to be printed in the English North American colonies." (emphasis added)

How cool is that? One of my ancestors authored the first historical work printed in British North America! 

My Line:
Nathaniel Morton
Mercy Morton
Eleazer Dunham
Mercy Dunham
Mary Kempton
Rebecca Burbank 
Hannah Keene
Timothy Cox
Christiana Cox
Francis Llewellyn Cotton
Ray Everett Cotton
Fern Lyndell Cotton - my grandmother

Early Families of New England is a wonderful database available from the New England Historic Genealogical Society. It extends beyond the immigrants covered in the Great Migration series but with the same level of research and detail. 

The Travels of John Tuttle - 52 Ancestors #28

Ringstead, St. Albans, Ipswich, Southampton, Carrickfergus

John Tuttle came to Massachusetts in 1635 on the Planter and settled at Ipswich. The Planter set sail around April 10 and arrived in Boston on July 7. He made the journey as part of a large family group that included his wife and mother-in-law, both named Joan, five children (two from his wife’s first marriage).  John had two brothers who also came to Massachusetts in 1635; Richard Tuttle settled in Boston and William Tuttle settled in Charlestown. He was the step-father to the Lawrence immigrants who also came to Massachusetts in 1635; John Lawrence, Thomas Lawrence, William Lawrence, Mary Lawrence (m. Thomas Burnham), and Jane (Lawrence) Giddings.

John Tuttle was born about 1596, son of Simon & Isabel (Wells) Tuttle of Ringstead, Northamptonshire, England. He married the former Joan Antrobus, daughter of Walter and Joan (Arnold) Antrobus and widow of Thomas Lawrence. As with many on the Planter, John is said to be from St. Albans, Hertfordshire. 

John was a mercer (textile dealer) who was involved in the import and export business between England, Massachusetts, and Barbadoes. While in Massachusetts, he was active in town affairs. He served as Deputy for Ipswich to the Massachusetts Bay General Court and on a variety of committees to lay out highways and determine town boundaries.

About 1650, he was living in Boston and sailed for England. John left to straighten out some business dealings that had not gone well. On February 16, 1649/50, an agreement was signed between John Tuttle, William Stanley, and Peter LeGay. Stanley and Legay, merchants from Southampton, agreed to furnish John Tuttle with goods having a value of £1200. In return, John Tuttle would make payment with goods for which Stanley & LeGay had orders in Barbadoes. Unfortunately, John did not have the goods on hand. He also had received thirty pieces of broadcloth and couldn't meet his installment payment without mortgaging his Ipswich home and lands. 

By 1651, he did satisfy his creditors but he never returned to New England and lived out the rest of his life in Carrickfergus, Ireland. The letters of Joan Tuttle show she had considerable skill and took an active part in assisting her husband with his business affairs. His wife, Joan, who also left Massachusetts in 1654 and joined him in Ireland. 

After John's death, Joan would continue to write to those in Massachusetts who were supposed to be working on her behalf. The letters she wrote express a deep disappointment in the lack of communication and the failure to have her wishes followed regarding her husband's estate. She was especially disappointed by her son, Simon, who was dealing with the business in Barbadoes and appears to have been pocketing the proceeds rather than distributing them as his mother wished. 

John Tuttle

Simon Tuttle (yes, the one who was stealing his mother's money)

John Tuttle

Martha (Tuttle) Haskell

Martha (Haskell) Safford

Ruth (Safford) Haskell 

Martha (Haskell) Houghton

Mary "Sally" (Houghton) Dunham

Florilla (Dunham) Ellingwood

Nina (Ellingwood) Gibbs

Annie (Gibbs) Cotton

Fern Lyndell Cotton - my grandmother

An Independent Streak - 52 Ancestors #27

Memorial Stone for John Emery in the Newbury First Settlers Burying Ground

John and his brother, Anthony, came to America in 1635 on the James. He settled at Newbury, where he worked as a carpenter and an innkeeper. John was married twice. His first marriage was to Alice Grantham of West Dean, Wiltshire, England. There is no record of Alice in New England. In Newbury, on October 29, 1647, John married for a second time. His second wife was Mary (Shatswell) Webster, widow of John Webster. Mary had three siblings who had immigrated to Ipswich, Massachusetts - brothers John and Theophilus Shatswell and sister, Margaret (Shatswell) Curwen, wife of Matthias Curwen.

Despite the fact that he sometimes got in trouble (often for standing up for his beliefs), he also contributed his service to the local officials in a number of different offices. He was a member of quite a few petit juries and grand juries over the years. He was the Newbury constable in 1655 and clerk of the market in 1656. 

His independent streak is well documented through the court system. 

His first recorded brush with the law makes one question whether his first wife was still alive since he seems to have gotten a little fresh with a married woman. The part at the end makes me wonder if she was a willing participant in the interaction. On September 29, 1646, "John Emery, for miscarriage with the wife of Henry Travers, fined £3 or to be whipped, and pay witness fee to Christopher Bartlett. Bound to good behavior and not to frequent the company of the wife of Henry Travers. 

In 1654, John joined with other town leaders to sue John Merrill for selling the town's lands without order. Also in 1654, there was a controversy regarding a petition in support of Lt. Robert Pike of Salisbury. That is a story for another blog post. All of his dealings on behalf of his step-children will also be told later. 

In 1658, John, his son John Jr., his step-son John Webster, and Solomon Keyes were admonished by the court for disturbing the peace and acting disrespectully. They were told to "beware of the like sinful practices for time to come, which this Court will not bear; and that they pay the several charges of their neighbors the last Court & this, in coming for relief from such under courses."

On May 5, 1663, John Emery appeared before the court for entertaining Quakers. 

In another church controversy in 1669, John Emery was one of those opposing Rev. Mr. Parker. He appears on a 1671 list of Newbury church members presented as part of this discontent. 

In 1678, John submitted a bill to the local militia for "a new saddle & bridle" 28s.; a "sword & belt," 12s; 2 pounds powder & bullets," 4s.; and "saddle & cloth," 23s. 

John died on November 3, 1683 and was buried in the First Burying Ground in Newbury. 

For more on John Emery - 

John Emery - lists his children and some testimony about his entertaining Quakers. 

Connections to the TV show Downton Abbey - Maps the areas in England where the family lived near the town of Downton. 

John Emery

Eleanor (Emery) Bailey

Sarah (Bailey) Cheney - Sister of Rebecca Bailey (below)

Eleanor (Cheney) Safford

John Safford

Ruth (Safford) Haskell

Martha (Haskell) Houghton

Mary "Sally" (Houghton) Dunham

Florilla (Dunham) Ellingwood

Nina King (Ellingwood) Gibbs

Annie Florilla (Gibbs) Cotton

Fern Lyndell Cotton - my grandmother

Rebecca (Bailey) Brown

Ruth (Brown) Rogers

Isaac Rogers

Rebecca (Rogers) Blaisdell

Stephen Blaisdell

Susannah (Blaisdell) Rowe

Stephen Blaisdell Rowe

Charles H. N. Rowe

Anna J. (Rowe) Hayes

Eva Delphinia (Hayes) Yates

Linona Alice Yates - my grandmother

Live Long - 100 Years Old & Died Suddenly! - 52 Ancestors #16

John Beal is one of my long-lived ancestors. I have many ancestors who lived into their nineties, including a number I was fortunate to know during my lifetime. I had three great-grandparents for most of my life, as well as a number of great-aunts and great-uncles.

John was a Great Migration immigrant. His occupation is listed as shoemaker. He came to America with his large family (5 sons, 3 daughters) and two servants. He died April 1, 1688 at the age of 100. Below are various accounts of his death. The facts that he is said to have died "suddenly" and was found in his dooryard indicate to me that he was in pretty good health until he died. 

The Pioneers of Massachusetts

Samuel Sewall's Diary

History of the Town of Hingham

Massachusetts Town and Vital Records, 1620-1988

John & Nazareth (Hobart) Beal
Samuel & Martha (Beal) Dunham
Samuel & Mary (Harlow) Dunham
Ebenezer & Abigail (Smith) Dunham
John & Mary (Thomas) Dunham
James & Cynthia (Packard) Dunham
James & Mary "Sally" (Houghton) Dunham
Asa Freeman & Florilla (Dunham) Ellingwood
George Albert & Nina King (Ellingwood) Gibbs
Ray Everett & Annie Florilla (Gibbs) Cotton
Fern Lyndell Cotton - my grandmother

May I Have Your Child? - 52 Ancestors #12

William Harlow was born about 1624 and in Lynn, Massachusetts by 1637. He was a cooper by trade and was married three times before his death in 1691. His first wife was Rebecca Bartlett and they had four children before she died in 1658.

His second wife was Mary Faunce and this marriage added five more children between 1659 and 1664. Mary died just days after giving birth to her son, Nathaniel.

William's third wife was Mary Shelley and the family kept on growing, adding five more daughters in ten years.

On April 12, 1667, William entered into an agreement with Nathaniel and Lydia (Cooper) Morton. Nathaniel had lost his father when he was eleven and was raised by his uncle, Gov. William Bradford. Nathaniel and Lydia did not have any living sons and they had lost a married daughter and a young son within two days of each other two months before this deal was made. They asked William Harlow if they could foster his son, Nathaniel and William agreed to the deal. Nathaniel Harlow was raised to the age of twenty-one in the home of Nathaniel and Lydia Morton and received an inheritance when Nathaniel Morton died.

Now it seems odd that one would just give away a son but William Harlow may have seen this as a chance to give his son something he otherwise could not provide. He ended up with 13-15 children in all (conflicting sources). The Mortons were related to little Nathaniel through is mother - Mary (Faunce) Harlow was Nathaniel Morton's niece, the daughter of his sister, Patience (Morton) Faunce.  Or to put it another way, Nathaniel Harlow was the great-nephew of his foster father, Nathaniel Morton.

Still I have to wonder how the conversation got started and how it was explained to the other children. How did Nathaniel Harlow feel about the deal as he grew up? When did he know? Since he seems to have retained the name Harlow, he must have figured it out? Did he have contact with his birth father and siblings?

Family of Nathaniel & Lydia (Cooper) Morton

1. Remember born about 1637 and died July 24, 1707. Married Abraham Jackson.
2. Mercy was born about 1639 and died February 19, 1666/67. Married John Dunham. 
3. Lydia was born about 1641 and married George Elliston. 
4. Hannah was born about 1646 and died after November 25, 1696. Married Benjamin Bosworth and Isaac Cole. 
5. Eleazer - died January 16, 1649/50
6. Stillborn daughter November 23, 1650
7. Elizabeth was born May 3, 1652 and died April 6, 1673. Married Nathaniel Bosworth.
8. Johanna was born November 9, 1654 and married Joseph Prince.
9. Nathaniel - died February 17, 1666/67.
10. Nathaniel Harlow was born September 30, 1664. 

Family of William & Mary (Shelley) Harlow - with step-children from his previous marriages

1. William (with wife, Rebecca Bartlett) born and died in 1650
2. Samuel (with wife, Rebecca Bartlett) born January 27, 1652
3. Rebecca (with wife, Rebecca Bartlett) born June 12, 1655
4. William (with wife, Rebecca Bartlett) born June 2, 1657
5. Mary (with wife, Mary Faunce) born May 19, 1659
6. Repentance (with wife, Mary Faunce) born November 22, 1660
7. possibly John (with wife, Mary Faunce) born 1662
8. Benjamin (with wife, Mary Faunce) born October 19, 1662
9. Nathaniel (see above)
10. Hannah was born October 28, 1666
11. Bathsheba was born April 21, 1667
12. Johanna was born March 24, 1669
13. Mehitable was born October 4, 1672
14. Judith was born 1676

Harlow Line:
William Harlow - 9th great-grandfather
Mary Harlow
Ebenezer Dunham
John Dunham
James Dunham
James Dunham
Florilla Dunham
Nina King Ellingwood
Annie Florilla Gibbs
Fern Lyndell Cotton - my grandmother

Morton Line:
Nathaniel Morton
Mercy Morton
Eleazer Dunham
Mercy Dunham
Mary Kempton
Rebecca Burbank
Hannah Keene
Timothy Cox
Christiana Cox
Francis Llewellyn Cotton
Ray Everett Cotton
Fern Lyndell Cotton - my grandmother

Stormy Weather - 52 Ancestors #10

Surf at Pemaquid - 2014 

I've written before about the hurricane that struck in 1635 and destroyed the Angel Gabriel off the coast of Pemaquid, Maine. For this week's prompt regarding stormy weather, I thought I would highlight another family who was on the same ship and add a bit more information. 

Surf at Pemaquid 2014

An interesting tidbit is that the Angel Gabriel was commissioned by Sir Walter Raleigh in 1617 for a voyage to Guiana. Five ships set out from England. The three were headed to Newfoundland were smaller and faster and landed before the hurricane struck. The James and the Angel Gabriel traveled together were caught by the storm. The James weathered the storm off the Isle of Shoals on the Maine-New Hampshire border and the Angel Gabriel stopped to ride out the storm at Pemaquid. When the ship was dashed against the rocks and destroyed, it was fortunate that only a few people lost their lives. Most of the passengers and crew escaped with their lives although they lost their possessions.

Surf at Pemaquid - 2014

John Bailey was a weaver. He settled with his son, also named John, in Salisbury and had a fishing grant in the Powwow River. When he and John sailed for New England, they left behind the rest of the family assuming they would return and fetch them later. However, the violence of the storm scared him enough that he would never agree to make the ocean crossing again. His wife and other children were also too afraid to make the crossing to join him. 




Couples were not supposed to live apart in Puritan society and the court had ordered him to reunite with his wife. Finally in 1649, the court decided that he "having used sufficient means to procure his wife over from England, and she utterly refusing to come," should not be required to go back to England. However, he was expected to continue to try to persuade her to come live with him. 

When he died in 1651, he left money for his wife and children in England but they would only get the full amount if they came to New England. The executor was to pay for the passage of those who would come to New England. His legacy to his wife was 6 pounds per year, to his son, Robert, 15 pounds, to his daughters, 10 pounds each. However, if they stayed in England, they would only receive 5 shillings each. We only know the name of one of his daughters, Joanna, who married William Huntington, came to New England. 

Surviving A Hurricane

Pemaquid Museum

John Bailey - my 11th great-grandfather

John Bailey, Jr. 

Sarah Bailey

Eleanor Cheney

John Safford

Ruth Safford

Martha Haskell

Mary "Sally" Houghton

Florilla Dunham

Nina K. Ellingwood

Annie Florilla Gibbs

Fern Lyndell Cotton - my grandmother

Not Far Enough - 52 Ancestors #6

I'm going to stretch the meaning of the prompt again this week to tell the tale of a bad man who tried to outrun his past but it caught up with him anyway! 

The bad man in this case was the Rev. John Lyford and he wasn't my ancestor but connected to my ancestor's family (I'll explain later). 

On the surface, Rev. John Lyford appeared to be a Godly man who traveled to the Plymouth Colony to minister to the Pilgrims in that community. However, the colonial leaders soon discovered that he was allied with the Church of England and maligning the Separatists in his letters to England. Once Governor Bradford found out, Rev. Lyford apologized. A little while later, it became evident that he hadn't changed his ways and he was banished. 

But that was just the start of Lyford's secrets. His wife, Sarah, came forward to tell of his infidelity, even fathering a child out of wedlock with another woman before she married him. She couldn't keep any maids because of his sexual harassment and molestation of them. 




Eventually, the BIG secret was revealed. The reason Rev. John Lyford had to leave his previous ministry in Ireland and come to the colony was that he had raped a girl in the parish while she attended pre-marital counseling with him! The woman's husband "tooke some godly friends with him, to deale with Liford for this evill" (Bradford's Journal). He had to leave in fear of even greater punishment. 

After leaving Plymouth, Lyford bounced around from Nantasket (Hull, MA) and Cape Ann to Virginia, where he died in 1638. He was a truly evil and despicable man! He could run but he could not go far enough to outrun his bad behavior! 

So what's my connection to this scoundrel? His wife, Sarah, married as his second wife, my 11th great-grandfather, Edmund Hobart. 

Edmund Hobart & Margery Dewey (first wife)

Line 1:
Nazareth Hobart - daughter of Edmund & Margaret (Dewey) Hobart
Martha Beals
Samuel Dunham
Ebenezer Dunham
John Dunham
James Dunham
James Dunham 
Florilla Dunham
Nina King Ellingwood
Annie Florilla Gibbs
Fern Lyndell Cotton - my grandmother

Line 2:
Rev. Peter Hobart - son of Edmund & Margaret (Dewey) Hobart
Elizabeth Hobart
Joshua Ripley
Hezediah Ripley
Joshua Ripley
Joshua Ripley
Nancy Ripley
Galen Blake
Charles Galen Blake
Harriet May Blake
Clayton Leonard Blake - my grandfather

NEHGR 1848
Wikipedia
http://minerdescent.com/2012/01/19/17th-century-premarital-sex/

52 Ancestors #50 - Conflict Among Ancestors

William Longley is my mother's 10th great-grandfather. He seems to have problems with his neighbors, the related families of Haven and Newhall. Richard Haven and his wife, Susanna (Newhall) Haven are my father's 8th great-grandparents. Susanna's husband and brothers, Thomas, Jr., and John, share their stories about altercations with William Longley in the excerpts below from The Essex Genealogist, Vol. 15. 

First Richard Haven threatened William Longley with a cudgel and accused Longley of harming his hogs. After grabbing his beard and threatening to spill his blood, Haven mocked Longley's cries and said he was foaming at the mouth. 


"The Longley and Haven families lived next to each other and had frequent altercations. In February of 1662 William Longley sued Richard Haven for coming on his land...and abusing him in words and deeds. Mary Longley, aged about 19 years, deposed: "Last summer Richard Haven came to me and asked where my father was; and I perceived that he was angry by his countenance and by his carriage. I told him I would not tell him where he was, and said Haven said I will find him and went over the rails into our lot. I saw him break off a great cudgel and go at a great pace up the lot. Fearing he would do my father some mischief, I followed him, and then I met Daniel Mathews and requested him to go with me til we came near to my father sowing turnip seed in his own lot. Haven said to my father why dids't thou lame my hogs,' and I saw Haven take my father by the beard and said 'I could find in my heart to spill thy heart blood upon the ground thou rogue thou.' My father answered...'the Lord will avenge my wrongs one day,' and the said Haven said 'Hark how he cries aloud to his God, and foames at the mouth.'"

About a year later, William Longley accused Thomas Newhall, Jr. of striking Longley's wife. Thomas Newhall, Jr., was the brother-in-law of Richard Haven. There appears to be enough blame on both sides as Longley's daughters and wife attacked Newhall with stones and a broad axe. The jury appears to have believed Longley's account that Longley's wife was struck with the pole after a tussle between the Longley women and the Newhall men. 

"In March of 1663, William Longley sued Thomas Newhall, Jr. for striking his (Longley's) wife. Thomas had been asked to hold a pole in running the boundary line between the property of William Longley and John Newhall (Thomas's brother). Longley's two daughters were said to have thrown stones at him and one of the daughters struck him with a pole, while Longley's wife struck at him with a broad axe. If he had not slipped he would have been wounded if not killed. The adverse testimony set forth that Newhall was holding one end of a long pole, with Longley's wife and daughters the other end, "and the women were too hard for the man in pulling so much that the said Newhall called his brother John and they two together pulled the pole from the said women, and then Thomas Newhall struck Longley's wife with the pole. A verdict against Newhall was brought in."

William Longley - 11th great-grandfather
Hannah Longley
Thomas Tarbell
Elizabeth Tarbell
Sybil Willard
Samuel Haskell
Martha Haskell
Mary "Sally" Houghton
Florilla Dunham
Nina King Ellingwood
Annie Florilla Gibbs
Fern Lyndell Cotton - my grandmother - Dad's side

Richard Haven - 9th great-grandfather
Mary Haven
Nathaniel Tarbox
Benjamin Tarbox
Jedidiah Tarbox (female)
Patience Smith
Sarah Shepard
Laura E. Emmons
Estes Gilbert Yates
Linona Alice Yates - my grandmother - Mom's side

Thomas Newhall, Jr. - brother of my 9th great-grandmother, Susanna Newhall. Susanna Newhall was married to Richard Haven (above). 

52 Ancestors #21 - George Morton

I am related to the Great Migration immigrant, George Morton, through three of his five children. George came to Plymouth Colony on the Anne in 1623 and unfortunately died less than a year after that. He was a merchant in England.

The book, New England Memorial, written by Nathaniel Morton, son of George, describes the immigrant in very flattering terms. Of course he may have been a bit biased.

"Two of the principal passengers that came in this ship were Mr. Timothy Hatherly and Mr. George Morton... The latter of the two forenamed, namely Mr. George Morton, was a pious, gracious, servant of God, and very faithful in whatsoever public employment he was betrusted, withal, and an unfeigned well willer, and according to his sphere and condition, a suitable promoter of the common good and growth of the plantation of New Plimouth; laboring to still the discontents that sometimes would arise
amongst some spirits by reason of difficulties of these new beginnings but it pleased God to put a period to his days soon after his arrival in New England, not surviving a full year after his coming ashore. With much comfort and peace he fell asleep in the Lord, in the month of June, anno 1624."

George Morton - 11th great-grandfather
Patience Morton
Mary Faunce
Mary Harlow
Ebenezer Dunham
John Dunham
James Dunham
Florilla Dunham
Nina K. Ellingwood
Annie Florilla Gibbs
Fern Lyndell Cotton - my grandmother

George Morton - 11th great-grandfather
Sarah Morton
Ruth Bonum
George Barrows
Moses Barrows
Asa Alden Barrows
Nina K. Ellingwood - see above

George Morton - 11th great-grandfather
Sarah Morton
Patience Bonum
Ruhamah Willis
Experience Rogers
Deborah Totman
Asa Alden Barrows - see above

George Morton - 12th great-grandmother
Nathaniel Morton
Mary Morton
Eleazer Dunham
Mercy Dunham
Mary Kempton
Rebecca Burbank
Hannah Keene
Timothy Cox
Christiana Cox
Francis Llewellyn Cotton
Ray Everett Cotton
Fern Lyndell Cotton - my grandmother

52 Ancestors #15 - James Cole

John Sprague spent several hours in the stocks on at least one occasion for "highly misdemeaning himself in the house of James Cole of Plymouth near unto or on the evening before the Sabbath Day, in drinking, gaming and uncivil reveling, to the dishonor of God and the offense of the government, by his gaming and the bringing of his mare uncivily into the parlor of James Cole, aforesaid." 
(Saints and Strangers by George Willison)

James Cole is my 10th great-grandfather. He was a sailor and opened the first inn or public house in Plymouth and one of the earliest public houses in all of New England. His son, also named James, bought the public house in 1668 and James sold it to William Shurtleff in 1689. William Shurtleff is my 9th great-grandfather. Lucy Shurtleff is also my 4th cousin 7 times removed on my grandmother, Fern Lyndell Cotton's line. 

This raises a number of questions in my mind. What does it mean that he brought the mare uncivily into the parlor? Does that mean that he created a ruckus and if he had lead her in civilly it would have been okay? What happened that caused him to bring the mare into the parlor? 

What's the funniest story you've come across while researching your ancestors? 

James Cole & Mary 
James Cole & Mary Tilson
John Cole & Susanna Gray
Joseph Cole & Mary Stevens
Eleazer Cole & Lucy Shurtleff - great-granddaughter of William
Calvin Cole & Elizabeth Swan
Calvin Cole, Jr. & Betsy Judkins
Aphia Delphinia Cole & Sydney Hayes
George H. Hayes & Anna J. Rowe
Eva Delphinia Hayes & Estes Yates
Linona Alice Yates

Cotton connection to the Shurtleffs - 
John Dunham - common ancestor - Lucy's 3rd great-grandfather and my 9th great-grandfather. His descendant, Florilla Dunham, married Asa F. Ellingwood, Nina Ellingwood m. George Gibbs, Annie Gibbs m. Ray Cotton, Fern Lyndell Cotton - my grandmother

Sources:
Cole, Earnest Byron, The Descendants of James Cole of Plymouth, (New York, The Grafton Press: Genealogical Publishers, 1908.) pp. 21-22

52 Ancestors - #2 Isaac Allerton

Isaac Allerton is one of those ancestors where you just don't know where to start to tell his stories. He is my 12th great-grandfather through my great-grandmother, Annie Florilla (Gibbs) Cotton. He came on the Mayflower from Holland and was involved in so many things in the early days of the Plymouth colony. He has a wikipedia page and is well documented by a large number of sources. This post will cover the basics. 

In 1620, Isaac arrived in Plymouth but he would also live in Marblehead, Massachusetts, New Amsterdam (NY), and New Haven, Connecticut. As a merchant, he made frequent trips to England on both personal and colony business. Allerton was chosen as the assistant to Governor William Bradford and served for many years starting in January 1633/4. 

Based on his deposition in 1639, it is calculated that he was born about 1586 and he died in New Haven between the first and the twelfth of February 1658/9. He was in court on the first and his inventory was taken on the twelfth. 

The precarious health situation of those times is seen in Isaac's life story. He was married three times because his first two wives died fairly young and he lost two children in 1620. His first wife, Mary Norris died, along with many others, during the first winter in Plymouth. Isaac married Fear Brewster, daughter of Pilgrim William Brewster, but she died within a few years in 1634. His third wife was the widow, Joanna Swinnerton and they married by 1644. 

With his first wife, Isaac had five children but only three survived.
1. Bartholomew b. abt. 1613. He returned to England and became a minister. 
2. Remember b. abt 1615; married Moses Maverick, son of Rev. John Maverick. 
3. Mary b. abt 1617; married Thomas Cushman, son of Robert Cushman. Interesting to note that she was the last of the Mayflower passengers to die - November 28, 1699. 
4. Child, buried in Leiden, Holland, February 5, 1620.
5. Son, stillborn aboard the Mayflower, December 22, 1620 in Plymouth Harbor.

With his second wife, Isaac had two children, one of whom has no further record so was possibly another early death. 
6. Sarah, b. abt. 1626, nfr.
7. Isaac b. abt. 1630; married twice, 1st to Elizabeth, 2nd in Virginia to Elizabeth (Willoughby) (Overzee) Colclough, daughter of Thomas Willoughby and widow of Simon Overzee and George Colclough. 

Isaac's sister, Sarah Allerton was married three times; 1st to John Vincent, 2nd to Degory Priest (Pilgrim), and third to Godbert Godbertson. 

The Great Migration summary of Isaac Allerton by Robert Charles Anderson notes that he was "one of the busiest and most complicated men in early New England..." and "records for Allerton may be found in virtually every colony on the Atlantic seaboard, and in the Caribbean, including Newfoundland, New Netherland, New Sweden, Virginia, Barbadoes, and Curaçao. 

Isaac Allerton
Remember Allerton
Abigail Maverick
Martha Ward
Martha Tuthill (Tuttle)
Ruth Safford
Martha Haskell
Mary "Sally" Houghton
Florilla Dunham
Nina King Ellingwood
Annie Florilla Gibbs
Fern Lyndell Cotton - my grandmother


Great Migration 1634-1635, A-B. (Online database. AmericanAncestors.org. New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2008.) Originally published as: The Great Migration, Immigrants to New England, 1634-1635, Volume 1, A-B, by Robert Charles Anderson, George F. Sanborn, Jr., and Melinde Lutz Sanborn. Boston: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1999.

Surname Saturday - Ellingwood

What's in a name? Well, my Ellingwood immigrant ancestor is variously recorded as Ralph Elwood, Ellwood, Ellenwood and then his descendants have continued the variations with Ellinwoods and Ellingwoods. To continue the confusion his second wife is recorded as Ellen or Eleanor or even Helen...surname Lyn or Lynn. Ralph came to America in 1635 on the Truelove. His occupation is listed as planter. He was married twice - first to Elizabeth (last name unknown) - by whom he had at least one child, Josiah, who was baptized in Salem on May 26, 1644. No one has found a record of the death of his first wife or any further records for Josiah. The first child of Ralph and Eleanor (Lynn) was baptized on March 16, 1655/56 in Salem. Eleanor was almost thirty years younger than her husband. As you will see below, I have a double line of descent from this immigrant.

Line 1:

Ralph Ellingwood II was born on March 18, 1656/57 and married Martha Rowlandson. His first wife, Katherine, had their marriage annulled for "insufficiency." How embarrassing! Bill West wrote about Ralph's troubles - pointing out that Ralph and Martha had seven children so his problem was limited to his marriage with Katherine. 

Ebenezer Ellingwood married Sarah Tuck. He received an allotment of land because of his father's service in King Philip's War and the moved to Souhegan West, later called Amherst, New Hampshire. Three of his sons, James, Jedidiah, and Joseph, served in the Revolutionary War. 

Joseph Ellingwood married Sarah Herrick (Bill West has been documenting the estate settlement of Joseph in a series of blog posts that started here.)

John Ellingwood married Zerviah Abbott. They lived in Bethel, Maine, my hometown. (Bill West has been transcribing his estate in a series of posts that started here.) His occupation is listed as shoemaker. He is buried in the Riverside Cemetery in Bethel, Maine - Findagrave memorial.

John Ellingwood, Jr. married Rachel Barrows. (Rachel's ancestors also came on the Truelove) He is buried in the Riverside Cemetery in Bethel, Maine - Findagrave memorial.

Asa's Signature from Pension File

Florilla's Signature from Pension File

Asa Freeman Ellingwood married Florilla Dunham. Asa served in the Civil War and was injured in the First Battle of Bull Run. His pension file makes very interesting reading! After he was injured he enlisted in the Veterans Reserve Corp and served as a cook. Bill West did a great job transcribing the long pension file. They are buried in the Wayside Cemetery in West Paris, Maine - Findagrave memorial.

Signature from Asa's Pension File

Nina King Ellingwood - my 2nd Great-grandmother married George Albert Gibbs.

Grave of George & Nina (Ellingwood) Gibbs - photo used by permission of DJ Larson

Annie Florilla Gibbs married Ray Everett Cotton

Fern Lyndell Cotton - my grandmother 

Line 2

Mary Ellingwood was born on April 3, 1664 and married John Smith. 

Abigail Smith married Ebenezer Dunham

John Dunham married Mary Thomas

James Dunham married Cynthia Packard

James Dunham married Mary "Sally"Houghton

Florilla Dunham - see above

The descendants of Asa Freeman & Florilla (Dunham) Ellingwood have been holding family reunions since the early 1900s. I remember attending some of these as a child. Recently, I reconnected with the reunion organizers and hosts through a Facebook page. Although it is primarily focused on the descendants of Asa Freeman Ellingwood, anyone who is related to the Ellingwoods (and its various spellings) is welcome to join and participate in the discussions. The reunion is still held every year on the second Saturday in August - rain or shine. If you have Ellingwood connections, we hope you join the page and try to attend the reunion.