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

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

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.