The Sutton Freelands

James Freeland, my 7X great-grandfather, was born in the late 17th century in Ireland. However, the Freeland family were Scottish Presbyterians who fled to Ireland to escape persecution. According to The Sutton Freelands: Legends and Letters by Roy Freeland Stone, in 1718, James Freeland and his family came to Massachusetts and settled in Lexington. His family included a wife, Mary, and four children. One son, Joseph, remained in Scotland. This information is new to me and I'm still trying to track down and verify the details. The History of the Town of Sutton, Massachusetts places James Freeland and his family in Sutton by 1725. The list of family members agrees with The Sutton Freelands. I have not yet confirmed the fact they lived in Lexington, but the History of Sutton traces the family from Lexington to Hopkinton to Sutton. The book Albion's Seed by David Hackett Fischer estimates that about 200,000 Scots-Irish came to America between 1715 and 1775.

Children of James & Mary Freeland: (order unknown except for the oldest and youngest)

1. Joseph was born in Dublin, Ireland and remained there when his parents and younger siblings came to Massachusetts. His occupation is listed as barrister. 
2. James was born in Dublin and came to Massachusetts with his parents. He married Sarah Watson on January 8, 1741 in Hopkinton. He lived in Blandford and Brookfield. He married a second time to Elizabeth Wiley, widow of John Thomas of Worcester. They lived in Oxford. he married for a third time, Martha Smith on November 20, 1770. He had children with all three of his wives. 
3. Anna (or Jane) was born in Dublin and came to Massachusetts with her parents. She married Robert Black and lived in Blandford, Massachusetts. 
4. Rachel was born in Dublin and came to Massachusetts with her parents. She married Jonathan Knox on September 28, 1741 in Hopkinton, Massaschusetts and lived in Blandford. 
5. Thomas was born about 1715 probably in Dublin and came to Massachusetts with his parents. He married Mary Nutt (or McNutt) of Hopkinton. 

My descent from Thomas:

Thomas & Mary (Nutt) Freeland

Dr. James & Mehitable "Hetty" (Mellen) Freeland

Frances (Freeland) Carter

Elias Mellen Carter

Augustus Mellen Carter

Edward Mellen Carter

T. Richard Carter - my grandfather

Happy St. Andrew's Day!

Celebrating my Scottish roots with a reposting of this story. 

On September 3, 1651, the Battle of Worcester became the final battle in the English Civil War. On that day the forces of Oliver Cromwell defeated the Royalist forces of Charles II. Most of those fighting for Charles II were Scottish. About 3,000 men were killed during the battle and as many as ten thousand taken prisoner. The actual number of prisoners varies from one source to another. Many of these prisoners, at least those who survived long enough, were deported to New England, Bermuda, and the West Indies. Upon arrival, they were sold as indentured servants to repay the cost of their transport. Many who arrived in Massachusetts worked in the Saugus Iron Works. Heather Rojo wrote a post about the passengers on the John & Sara recently and I thought it was a very interesting story. She does a good job explaining the names got spelled phonetically and in the case of my ancestor, John MacBean/Bean became John Beme. With the help of the Piscataqua Pioneers book that I bought recently, I was able to confirm that this prisoner was my ancestor. 

http://www.henley-in-arden.org/history.html

John Bean (Bane, Baine, MacBean) was sold to Nicholas Lissen and taken to New Hampshire to work at the saw mills co-owed by Lissen and some other New Hampshire businessmen. He married Hannah Lissen, his master's daughter and they had three children before she died in childbirth. Their oldest child, Mary was born June 18, 1655. She was only about four years old when her mother died in childbirth. John married a second time to a woman named Margaret (last name unknown). He had nine children with his second wife. 

In 2004, colonial historian, Diane Rapaport, wrote an article called Scots For Sale for New England Ancestors Magazine. She included the following description of how three daughters of Nicholas Lissen married Scotsmen. 

John Bean & Hannah Lissen
Mary Bean & Joel Judkins
Samuel Judkins & Abigail Harriman
Joel Judkins & Mehitable Elkins
Joseph Judkins & Rebecca Sanborn
Moses Judkins & Abigail (or Apphia) Perry
Betsy Judkins & Calvin Cole
Apphia Cole & Sydney Hayes
George Hayes & Anna Rowe
Eva Hayes & Estes Yates
Linona Alice Yates - my grandmother

Sources:
Battle of Worcester - Wikipedia
Scottish Emigration to Colonial America, 1607-1785
Passenger List of the John and Sara

So Close, Yet So Far Away - 52 Ancestors #9

David McClure was a Scottish immigrant who moved to New Hampshire after a brief time in Boston. He married another Scottish immigrant, Martha Glenn and together they braved the wilds of the colonial frontier. The book, History of Candia, paints a colorful picture of the challenges from wild animals, to Indian attack, to extreme weather. What follows is the account of the death of David McClure, the first settler in Candia. 

About the winter of 1770, while returning, an old man (David McClure), from a visit to his daughter, in Raymond, he became bewildered in a severe snow storm, and sunk exhausted but a few rods from the path he had lost. His voice, borne by the fitful gusts over the drifting hill sides, was heard at a mile's distance. Ere he was found, he had perished. A pine, at whose foot he fell, had its bark bruised off as far as an old man could reach, in the vain effort to keep off the chill which bound his aged limbs in death. 

Such was the melancholy fate of the first settler in Candia. So perish multitudes whose restless spirits send them, in advance of civilization, to encounter the dangers of the frontier, or plunge into the unexplored recesses of the wilderness. 

What seems the most tragic to me is that they could evidently hear his cries for help but couldn't get to him in time to save him! He was so close, yet so far away! 

I wrote about his wife, Martha Glenn, for the "One Tough Woman" prompt.

My Line
David McClure
Jane McClure

Elizabeth Simpson
David Philbrick
Oliver Smith Philbrick
Benjamin Perley Philbrick
Lizzie Philbrick
Ray Everett Cotton
Fern Lyndell Cotton - my grandmother

Martha Glenn - One Tough Woman - 52 Ancestors #3

Martha Glenn was married on June 11, 1730 to David McClure, an immigrant from Scotland, possibly Edinburgh. They married in Boston and then moved to the frontier of Candia, New Hampshire. The History of Candia, Once Known as Charmingfare, says that Martha came from a family of Scottish Covenanters who fled from Papal persecution. The same book gives a vivid description of Martha's bravery, although I can't help but wonder how the author came by the information about the comment of the Indian spy...

About the year 1740, Mr. McClure and his wife moved to Chester, N.H., at a time when fear of Indians compelled the inhabitants to seek the security of a garrison. It so happened, on a certain occasion, that the men were obliged to be absent, leaving the women and children alone. No one among them, but the courageous Martha Glenn, dared to act as sentry. With the confidence which inspired her, when she offered up her prayer to God, among the misty mountain caves of Scotland, she kept the dangerous watch with a loaded musket. It turned out that the place was actually being reconnoitered for an attack. The spy is said to have reported, "Me see nothing but de one white squaw." A superstitious fear, or the hand of Providence kept the Indians from their design.














Martha Glenn - 8th great-grandmother
Jane McClure - 7th great-grandmother
Elizabeth Simpson - 6th great-grandmother
David Philbrick - 5th great-grandfather
Oliver Smith Philbrick - 4th great-grandfather
Benjamin Philbrick - 3rd great-grandfather
Lizzie Philbrick - 2nd great-grandmother
Ray Everett Cotton - great-grandfather
Fern Lyndell Cotton - grandmothe

History of Candia, once known as Charmingfare, accessed on Archive.org
The McClure Family, accessed on Google Books
History of Candia, accessed on Archive.org
History of the Town of Antrim, New Hampshire, accessed on Google Books

Celebrating St. Andrew's Day

St. Andrew is the Patron Saint of Scotland. St and it is his flag that symbolizes Scotland. St. Andrew's Day is celebrated on November 30th. St. Andrew is also the patron saint of Romania, Greece, and Russia, probably because it is believed that he preached around the shores of the Black Sea. 

• Who was St. Andrew? He was a fisherman, one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus, and a brother of St. Peter (founder of the Church). Scottish people used this connection to appeal to the Pope for protection from the English kings who sought to conquer them. This Declaration of Arbroath was signed in 1320 and asserted Scotland's independence from England. 
• Why St. Andrew? Legend is that a Greek monk had a vision to safeguard some relics of St. Andrew and he took them as far away as he could, to the coast of Fife. This is where the town of St. Andrews is located. Also in 832 AD the Picts were battling the Angles of Northumbria and on the day of the battle a Saltire, an x-shaped cross, appeared in the sky above the battlefield and the Picts were victorious. 
• Where did the St. Andrew's Cross come from? It is believed that St. Andrew died on an X-shaped cross at Patras in Greece. 
• St. Andrew is the patron saint of fishmongers, old maids, women wishing to become mothers, spinsters, singers, sore throats, and gout. 

Some Scottish ancestors

John Bean or MacBean
William Yates
John Hayes

Pictures from my visit to the ruins of St. Andrew's Cathedral in St. Andrews, Scotland.

Resources
http://www.scotland.org/whats-on/st-andrews-day/
http://www.historic-scotland.gov.uk/inv-st-andrews-cathedral.pdf

52 Ancestors #14 - John Hayes of Dover

Tradition says that John Hayes came from Scotland about 1680. He is one of my Piscataqua Pioneers - He settled in Dover, New Hampshire. His estimated date of birth is 1660 and he died on October 25, 1708, "seized of a malignant fever four days after he was taken sick; began with a violent pain in his shoulder" (Richmond, 28). He married Mary Horne, probably the daughter of William & Elizabeth (Clough) Horne. William Horne was killed by Indians on June 28, 1689 and Elizabeth (Clough) Horne was killed by Indians on September 30, 1707. Ironically, just months before his father-in-law's death, John Hayes joined 370 other New Hampshire residents in petitioning the colonial government for more protection from the Indians. In March 1693/94, John Hayes was granted twenty-five acres of land near the Tole-End or Tolend and Barbados sections of Dover, New Hampshire, adjacent to John Ham, Jr. Family tradition says John Hayes, the immigrant, was buried on family land and his grave marked by stacked field stones. I found a picture of a memorial plaque placed by his descendants near where his farm was located on Findagrave with the inscription, "John Hayes, the Scotsman, came to Dover about 1680, married Mary Horne, and established a family on the surrounding acres. Their integrity and industry are held in memory by their descendants. 1934."

Signature from 1689 petition

 Children of John & Mary (Horne) Hayes: 

1. John born about 1687 and died July 3, 1759. He was buried in the Pine Hill Cemetery in Dover, New Hampshire. John married Tamsen (Wentworth) Chesley, widow of James Chesley. Her first husband was killed by Indians on September 17, 1707. She died December 30, 1753 and he married second, Mary (Roberts) Wingate, widow of Samuel Wingate. His profession is listed as housewright and carpenter in deeds. he was a deacon of the First Church of Dover from March 1731 to his death in 1759.
2. Peter born about 1688 and died 1757. He married Sarah Wingate. 
3. Robert 
4. Ichabod born March 18, 1691/92 and died June 1, 1734. He was killed by a mill log. His widow, Abigail (Evans) Hayes, married second, William Twombley. 
5. Samuel born March 16, 1694/95 and died 1770. He married Leah Dam. 
6. William born September 6, 1698 and married Hannah Sanborn on November 23, 1720. 
7. Benjamin born September 6, 1700 and died May 16, 1756. He married Jane (Snell) Heard, widow of Tristram Heard, Jr. 
8. Abigail married Nathaniel Fitts on May 10, 1720 and died on June 12, 1738. 
9. Mary married Henry Ambrose.
10. Elizabeth married John Ambrose. 

Used by permission of 1_might_b_1 at findagrave.com

Although the stone is sunken, the inscription is recorded in Richmond's book as follows: "Dea. John Hayes the 1st born of the pilgrim fathers of the N.E. Hayes family Died July 3rd 1759 aged 73 years."

From John, my line of descent is:
John Hayes & Tamsen Wentworth
Hezekiah Hayes & Margaret Cate
William Hayes & Olive ? 
Isaac Hayes & Alice Garland
Richard Hayes & Rebecca Greenwood
Sydney Hayes & Apphia Delphinia Cole
George Hayes & Anna Rowe
Eva Delphinia Hayes & Estes Gilbert Yates
Linona Alice Yates - my grandmother

Sources:
Piscataqua Pioneers: Selected Biographies of Early Settlers in Northern New England.Portsmouth, NH: Piscataqua Pioneers, 2000. Print.

Richmond, Katharine F. John Hayes, of Dover, New Hampshire; a Book of His Family... Vol. I. Tyngsboro, MA: n.p., 1936. PDF.

My DNA Profile

Ancestry.com started a new DNA testing program that is open by invitation only while it is in Beta testing. Because I've been a customer for quite awhile, I received an email invitation to take part in this program and they were offering a significant discount to those who accepted. Having seen the testing done on Finding Your Roots, the PBS show about celebrity genealogy, I was intrigued to find out what my DNA would say about my ancestors. My own research has shown that most of my ancestors from both my father's and my mother's families came from the British Isles to the American colonies in the early 1600s. While I figured I would have predominantly British ancestry, I was still surprised when the results came back as 100% British Isles.  No traces of intermingling genes with marauding Vikings or Barbarians, no evidence of dalliances with Frenchmen, Germans, or Italians...I seem to be about as white, Anglo-Saxon, Protestant as it is possible for one to be. A bit boring to some but it does make tracing ancestors a bit easier. 

It does seem to explain my love for the British Isles. And why it is that I felt so comfortable and at home whenever I've visited England or Scotland. So I'll continue to embrace my ancestors and the culture I love. I'll find diversity in friends to make up for the lack of diversity in my genes. I had a great time last year helping my students trace their family trees to Italy, Scandinavia, and Germany. 

A Tough Childhood

William Yates' life as a boy is only documented through oral tradition. Unfortunately, his children and grandchildren do not recall the exact same information.

His youngest son, Sylvester, said, "I have heard my father say his father bound him out to a farmer who lived near Portsmouth, NH. This man treated him so that finally father ran away. He was caught and brought back but told the farmer that the next time he ran away, they wouldn't catch him. Afterwards, he ran away again and that time they didn't catch him." Martha Yates Littlefield, William's youngest daughter, said " I have heard father tell of how he was bound out to an Irishman when he was very small and how the Irishman abused him so that he ran away."

Two of his grandsons, Judge Edward M. Yates and Gilbert W. Yates, agreed in saying that they never heard William speak of his parents at all, any more than as if he knew not who they were. Both did recall he worked for a NH farmer for wages rather than being bound out. They remember him saying he had to work very hard and got very little schooling compared to other boys. Judge Yates spent much of his childhood in the home of his grandparents and stated "I always had the impression that he was some sort of castaway, a homeless boy, who in some way drifted to this country and got work in Portsmouth."

William told the following story to Gilbert. "The farmer was slack about having firewood on hand for the kitchen fireplace. His wife stood it as long as she could and then one noon when they were called for dinner, they found on the table was raw meat, potatoes, and unbaked biscuit. The farmer put in the next few days getting up wood."

Regardless of where he came from or what he did as a young boy, William left Portsmouth when he was fifteen and went to work at a brickyard in Saccarappa, near Portland, Maine. He also drove a stagecoach somewhere in the Portland area. When he was 18 or 19, he moved to Minot, Maine.

William Yates & Martha Morgan
Moses Yates & Martha Whittle
Gilbert W. Yates & Laura Emmons
Estes Gilbert Yates & Eva Delphinia Hayes
Linona Alice Yates

Sources:
William B. Lapham & Silas P. Maxim (1884 & 1983), History of Paris, Oxford Co., Maine (New England History Press, Spmersworth, NH (1983).


Yates, Edgar Allan Poe, The Yates Book: William Yates and His Descendants; the History and Genealogy of William Yates (1772-1868) of Greenwood, Maine, and His Wife, Who was Martha Morgan, together with the line of Her Descent from Robert Morgan of Beverly (Old Orchard, Maine, 1906).

Gambling on research

Almost all my family lines trace back to immigrants who came to New England before 1650 so when I find an oddball, it's really fun. There are so many people researching and writing about early New England that it's not very difficult to find the records and even some stories for those ancestors. When I research the oddballs, I think I learn more about doing genealogy because I have more obstacles to overcome. 

Here are a few of my oddballs - because they came to the U.S. (relatively) recently.

2nd Great Grandfather George Gibbs who came from Prince Edward Island and married Nina K. Ellingwood in 1884. I have little information about his family or what town they came from on PEI. Their daughter Annie married Ray Everett Cotton, Fern Lyndell Cotton married T. Richard Carter

4th Great Grandparents John & Ann (McClure) Williamson who came from Manorhamilton, County Leitrim, Ireland in the 1820s with two children and settled in Bethel, Maine. Daughter, Rebecca married Elias Mellen Carter. Their son Augustus Mellen Carter had a son Edward Mellen Carter who was my great-grandfather. Williamson isn't a typical Irish surname but Ancestry.com says it can be Northern English, Scottish or Northern Irish. Manorhamilton is at the very top of Ireland just before the border of Northern Ireland. 

4th Great Grandfather Reverend Edward Millford Whittle who came from the South. He was born in Charleston, South Carolina in 1766 but there is evidence that he lived with his mother in Alexandria, Virginia before moving to New England and eventually to Maine. His parents are reported to be from Ireland but I have found no records to support that claim. Ancestry.com says most Whittles are from Lancashire, England. His daughter Martha married Moses Yates; their son Gilbert W. Yates was the father of my great grandfather, Estes Gilbert Yates. 

4th Great Grandfather William Yates who came to New Hampshire around the time of the Revolution but where he came from is subject to debate - even among his children and grandchildren. The History of Paris by Howard Lapham says he came from Portsmouth, England to Boston and then to Maine. He met his wife in New Gloucester, Maine and then he can be traced from Hebron to Norway to Greenwood, Maine. He was a farmer and a Methodist preacher. His children and grandchildren contradict one another on many points from where he was born (Scotland or England) and whether his parents migrated with him and whether he was "bound out" as a boy to work for another farmer. William married Martha Morgan and had Moses Yates, the husband of Martha Whittle above. 

These are my most recent immigrant ancestors. Researching outside my comfort zone of New England and researching outside the U.S. is challenging but it's like gambling (and about as addictive) where you know that most of the records you look at are not going to be "winners" but when you find a bit of information about your ancestor, no matter how small, it's like winning the lottery and it keeps you going. I feel like the more I find out, the more questions I have that I want to research...good luck everyone!

Thanks to Chris Dunham for posting these pictures of the gravestones of William and Martha Yates on the Maine Genealogy Network.