II. BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES (part 2 of 2)
CAPTAIN MARTIN GAY.
John Gay emigrated to America about 1630. He settled first at Watertown and was a grantee in the great Dividends and in Beaver Brook plowlands, owning forty acres. He was Freeman May 6, 1635 and a Selectman in 1654. He died March 4, 1688, and his wife Joanna died August 14, 1691. He had eleven children.
Nathaniel, third child of John Gay was born January 11, 1643. Was Freeman May 23, 1677, and Selectman in 1704 and other years. He married Lydia Lusher. He died Feb. 20, 1712. His wife died August 6th, 1774, aged ninety-two. He had ten children.
Rev. Ebenezer Gay, D. D., Minister of Hingham was born in 1696 graduated at Harvard University in 1714, and was ordained in 1718. He was a devoted loyalist, and died 1787, at the age of ninety, and in the sixty-ninth year of his ministry. Rev. Doctor Chauncy "pronounces him to have been one of the greatest and most valuable men in the country." His son, MARTIN GAY, was Captain of the Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company. He was born at Hingham on the 29 December, 1726. He married first, 13 December, 1750, Mary Pinckney, by whom he had seven children. After her death he married Ruth Atkins, by her he had two children. He carried on the business of a brass founder, and copper smith, on Union Street, Boston. He was also deacon in the West Church in Lynde Street. On the thirtieth of April, 1775, shortly after the battle of Lexington, Deacon Gay, with Deacon Jones was requested to "take care of the plate, etc., belonging to this church, and Congregation." The church and congregation were at this time dispersed and the meeting house occupied as a barrack by the troops, and the pastor had gone to Nova Scotia. Mr. Gay was true to his trust, at the evacuation he took "the plate and linnen" to Nova Scotia and afterwards returned it, for long years after in 1793 the church voted him their thanks for "having taken care of the plate belonging to the church, while the town was in the hands of the British troops, and when it was evacuated." When the new church was built in 1805 he subscribed three hundred dollars towards it. From 1758 to 1774, he was yearly chosen one of the two Assay Masters, and for many years he was chosen one of the sixteen Firewards of the Town, in which office he had as associates John Hancock, Samuel Adams, and Adino Paddock, he was chosen one of the twelve Wardens of the Town in 1771, and occupied many other offices of importance, which shows the esteem in which he was held by his fellow townsmen. In June, 1774, he signed the Address to Governor Hutchinson, and from that time, he was not elected to any town office, owing to his public avowal of Loyalist sentiments.
Mr. W. Allan Gay of West Hingham, a grandson of Martin Gay, has three letters written by the Captain, they have been published in the Collection of the Colonial Society of Mass., Vol. 3. They are interesting as they bring us almost into personal contact with people who were living in Boston more than a hundred years ago, and one of whom saw the Battle of Bunker Hill. The first was written by Captain Martin Gay to his brother Jotham, seven years his elder. He had been an officer in the French war of 1755 and had taken part in the expedition against Nova Scotia under Gen. John Winslow. He afterwards settled in the province he had helped to conquer from the French and at the date of the letter had been for more than ten years a resident of Cumberland, Nova Scotia. Within but three weeks after the battle, it gives one of the first authentic accounts published. The writer's loyalty to his "King and Country" is very apparent, as well as his detestation of all Rebels, and especially the "famous Doctor Warren." The letter in part is as follows: "The victory obtained by about two thousand regular troops commanded by General Howe, over a large body of the County Rebels, ('tis said about six thousand,) on the heights of Charlestown, on the 17ult, was a remarkable Action. It proves that nothing the enemies to Great Britain can do, will daunt the courage of British troops. The Rebels had entrenched themselves on the top of a high hill, with two cannon mounted in the Redoubt, besides several field pieces, on the hill, which is about a quarter of a mile from Charles River in approaching which, the troops had to break through stone walls, and other difficulties, which gave the enemy every advantage they could wish for. However, after a most violent hot fire, the brave soldiers forced the entrenchments to the joy of all the spectators, (myself being one) and others on this side of the river, who are friends to King and Country. Immediately on the King's troops appearing on the top of the Redoubt, the Rebels ran off in great confusion leaving their cannon, entrenching tools and a large number of their dead and wounded. The loss was great on both sides, the action lasted about an hour and a quarter. We have reason to lament the loss of so many valuable brave officers and men, of the King's Army who were killed on the field of battle, and since dead of the wounds they received. I have not seen any account of the transaction of that day made public by authority, therefore will not pretend to say which suffered most in the loss of men. Will mention one on the Rebel side, the famous Doctor Warren, who has for some years been a stirrer up of Rebellion, was killed in the action. Had some others of his disposition which I could name been there, and meet the same fate with him, it would have made the victory of that day the more glorious, though the Rebels meet with a shameful defeat, they still continue in their opposition, in fortifying hills and others places near this town. I am not apprehensive of their ever being able to take or destroy this town, but 'tis a melancholy consideration to be in this situation, which must in time prove fatal to this town and province, if not soon prevented by that almighty being, whose providence preserves and governs the world in all things."
On the evacuation of Boston in March, 1776, by the British troops, he accompanied them to Halifax. There went with him his son Martin, and his daughter Mary, who afterwards married Rev. William Black of Halifax, and also "his man London." He remained in Nova Scotia during the whole period of the war. Mrs. Ruth Gay, second wife of Martin Gay, whose maiden name as already stated was Atkins, remained in Boston during the war, probably with her father's family. Her father, Thomas Atkins, was a bricklayer by trade, and a well-to-do citizen, his real estate having been appraised at his death in 1785 at L1,696. He, with his eldest son, joined the revolutionists, but his second son, Gibbs Atkins, was a loyalist. So were families divided in those days.
The second letter was from his wife in Boston and was sent to him at Halifax. It is interesting as showing some of the devices reported to by the loyalists, their families and friends to save at least a portion of their estates for the original owners. The letter is as follows:
Boston, 24 June, 1786.
My Dear Mr. Gay:
My last of the 8th instant containing the melancholy account of the death of my father, I make no doubt you have received. In that I also informed you that the house was to be sold the 15 of this month which was done accordingly. Mr. Whalley chose to bid it of and Brother Timothy bought it at L380. He paid 129 Dollars Earnest money, the rest is to be paid in 6 weeks. I wish you could settle your affairs so as to come home before the time is up. Mr. Whalley has sent you the account of the sale properly authentic, and has directed them to be left at Mr. Pike's at Halifax. Do come home as soon as you can. Our friends unite with me in love to you and children. Father Gay has got quite well. Fanny is with me and desires her duty to you. Love to her Brothers and Sisters. Believe me to be your tender, affectionate Wife,
R. GAY.
The sale mentioned by Mrs. Gay took place under the Confiscation Act of 1777-1780. These estates were treated by the Probate Court as those of deceased persons. As Martin Gay's wife was not an absentee she was entitled to her third or dower right in her husband's estate. The Commissioners appointed by the Probate Court assigned to Mrs. Gay as "her third" "the two middle tenements of the house on Union Street, Boston, with the cellars chambers and upper rooms. Also the shop fronting Union Street and the land under same with the liberty to go through the great entry into the said shop, with the use and improvements of the yard, Well, Pump, and Privy." This division was made at her request as a shrewd means of retaining for herself and eventually for her husband, the whole of the property, for it would be difficult to sell or to lease the two ends of the house so divided, with the middle taken out. The result was that the remainder of the house was unsaleable and as stated in the letter was bought in by her brother Timothy Atkins. As Mrs. Gay by her right of dower had only a life estate on the property, it was necessary that she should require what is known as the "remainder" which was still vested in the Commonwealth. This was conveyed to her by Act of the Legislature, Feb. 7th, 1807, for the consideration $1,680. In 1809, the widow, Ruth Gay, and her son Ebenezer Gay, sold this property for fifteen thousand dollars.
The third letter is dated at London, 7 July, 1788. In it he says "I cannot pretend to say when my affairs will admit of my return to America. By a late act of parliament a final settlement will (it is sayed) be made with the Loyalists within a few months. I must wait with patience this important event, then prepare to leave this both wonderful and delightful kingdom, and return to my family and friends in my native country, though an Alien when in it."
He remained two years in England and returned to Boston in 1792, when he resumed his business as a coppersmith at his old stand in Union Street, and soon after entered into business relations with Mr. James Davis, a brass founder, then but twenty-two years of age, who had learned the trade from a Hessian, who like many of his countrymen were obliged to remain in the country when Congress violated the terms of the Saratoga Convention.[215] Mr. Gay subsequently sold the business to Mr. Davis, who incorporated it in 1828 under the name of the Revere Copper Company, Mr. Joseph Warren Revere being one of the incorporators.
[215] See page 85 for further account of the Saratoga Convention.
Martin Gay died in 1809, and he was buried in the Granary Burial Ground. SAMUEL GAY was the eldest son of Martin Gay who graduated at Harvard in 1775. Owing to the disturbed state of the times, and the quarterings of the rebel troops in the College buildings, he did not take his degree at the College Commencement, which was not held this year. He became a permanent resident of New Brunswick, and was a member of the first House of Assembly organized in the Colony, and represented the County of Westmoreland several years. He was also a magistrate of that County, and Chief Justice of the Court of Common Pleas. He died at Fort Cumberland (where his father had a grant of land from the Crown) January 21, 1847 in the ninety-third year of his age.
EBENEZER GAY was the youngest son of Martin Gay, and can hardly be classed as a loyalist. He was a child when his father went to Halifax, and he remained in Boston with his mother during the war. He graduated at Harvard College in 1789, practiced law, and was a member of the State Senate, and resided at Hingham. Mr. Wickworth Allen Gay, the artist, is his son. Martin Gay the younger, was fifteen years of age when he accompanied his father to Halifax. Three years later he was accidentally shot by a friend while hunting near Windsor, Nova Scotia.
LIST OF CONFISCATED ESTATES BELONGING TO MARTIN GAY IN SUFFOLK COUNTY AND TO WHOM SOLD.
To John Davis. Jan. 7, 1783; Lib. 136, fol. 228; Land in Boston, Winter St. S.. Samuel Dashwood E. and N.; Dr. Sylvester Gardner, an absentee, W.
To Timothy Atkins. Dec. 13. 1787; Lib. 161, fol. 240; Land and buildings in Boston. Union St. E.; Philip Freeman S.; E.; E. and S.; heirs of Benjamin Andrews W; N. and W.; Dorothy Carnes N. and W.; Jeremiah Bumstead N.; reserving that part of the premises set off to Ruth Gay, wife of said Martin Gay.
DANIEL LEONARD.
The Leonard family was established in this country in 1652, by three sons of Thomas Leonard, who remained in England. The three sons were James, Henry, and Philip, all of whom have left many descendants. The Leonards were interested in the first iron works established in this country at Lynn, Braintree, Rowley Village, and Taunton, and at a later date at Canton, so that the observation "where you can find iron works there you will find a Leonard" has been almost literally verified. They were probably interested in most, if not all the iron works established in this country within the first century after its settlement, and it is a remarkable fact that the iron manufacture has continued successively, and generally very successfully, in the hand of the Leonards or their descendants, down to the present day.
James was the progenitor of the Leonards of Taunton, Raynham and Norton. He and his sons often traded with the Indians, and were on such terms of friendship with them, that when war broke out King Philip gave strict orders to his men never to hurt the Leonards. Philip resided in winter at Mount Hope, but his summer residence was at Raynham, about a mile from the forge. The family was noted throughout Plymouth County in Colonial times for its wealth, and the number of able men it produced in successive generations, who were entrusted by the public with offices of honor and importance. To this family belonged Daniel Leonard, the third Taunton lawyer, a man who was no unconspicuous actor in the affairs of his time. He was the only son of Ephraim Leonard, a judge of the Court of Common Pleas, a colonel in the militia, and the possessor of a large property, who resided on a homestead of five hundred acres connected with which were extensive iron works, situated in that part of the town of Norton now known as Mansfield. There, in a house on this estate the subject of this sketch was born May 29, 1740. His boyhood was passed tranquilly amid comforts which usually wait on an only child of wealthy and influential parents. Entering Harvard College at an early age, he graduated in 1760 in the class of John Lowell, the celebrated lawyer. He took up law as a profession, and had not been long at the bar before he was engaged in a fair practice, his generous disposition and affable manners having established his popularity, while his acquirements won for him reputation as an orator and a scholar. In 1770 he received from Yale College the degree of M. A.; in 1769 he was appointed as King's Attorney of Bristol County. Having become possessed of a fortune by a Boston heiress, he adopted what for that age and vicinity was considered great style, and display of dress, and mode of living. He set up a chariot, and pair of horses with which he travelled to Boston several times a week, something no lawyer in the Province had ever ventured to do before. In 1769 he began his political career by entering the Legislature where he represented Taunton during the year's of 1770-71-73 and 74. At first he made the most ardent speeches, which had been up to that time delivered in the House against Great Britain in favor of the colonists, but in the latter years of his service as a representative, he, like many more of his countrymen, became alarmed at the mob outrages, and the drifting of the country towards rebellion, he slowly changed his opinions and became a Loyalist and a supporter of the government that represented law, and authority. The revolutionists attributed this change to the influence of Governor Hutchinson and Attorney-General Sewall with whom he was on terms of intimacy, although this friendship formed some cause of distrust; the change in his views was not known publicly, or with certainty until the summer of 1774, as is evidenced by his being a member of the Committee of Nine on the state of the Province in the Legislature of that year, a committee made up of those only who were believed to be against the government. In June of that year he became an "addresser" to Governor Hutchinson. A few weeks later he was appointed Mandamus Councellor by the King. When it became known that he had taken the oath for qualifications for this office a mob of upward of two thousand men gathered on the "green" near his home, uttering oaths and angry threats and menacing him with personal indignities, which they would undoubtedly have proceeded to put into execution if they could have found him, but being informed by his father that he had gone to Boston and that he would use his influence to induce his son to resign his office, they were mollified for the time and refrained from pulling the house down, and gradually dispersed. They, however, assembled again the following evening, and seeing a light in the south chamber where Mrs. Leonard lay sick in bed, and thinking that Leonard was there, they fired through the window into the room; the bullets passed through the upper sash and shutter, and lodged in the partition of the next chamber.[216] Friends had acquainted Mr. Leonard of the mob's intention to attack his home. He therefore went to Boston where his family soon joined him, and was protected from further violence by the presence of the troops. This outrage upon his home greatly embittered him against the revolutionists and their cause, and was undoubtedly the cause of his writing his celebrated letters, which so ably championed those principles of civil liberty, for which the loyalists so nobly contended.
[216] Mrs. Leonard was confined to bed with childbirth. Charles, their only son, was born an idiot, due no doubt to this outrage. The mother of Curtis Guild, the present governor of Massachusetts, was born in this room, she being a descendant of the Leonard family.
Daniel Leonard was the author of the famous letters signed Massachusettensis, mis-attributed by the first President Adams to Jonathan Sewall. These letters that appeared in the Massachusetts Gazette "reviewed with much ingenuity with the purpose of showing that the course of the government was founded in law and reason; that the colonies had no substantial grievance; that they were a part of the British Empire and properly subject to its authority." From the great skill in which they were written they were attributed to Jonathan Sewall, a man of much talent. It was more than a generation before the authorship was assigned to Daniel Leonard. John Adams answered these papers as "Novanglus." "Massachusettensis" bears dates between December, 1774, and April, 1775, and was published three times in a single year: first, in the "Massachusetts Gazette and Post Boy," next in a pamphlet form; and last, by Rivington, in New York. Still another edition appeared in Boston in 1776. The replies were numerous. "Novanglus" bears dates between January and April, 1775. Both were printed in 1819, with a preface, by Mr. Adams, who remarks of "Massachusettensis," that "these papers were well written, abounded with wit, discovered good information, and were conducted with a subtlety of art and address wonderfully calculated to keep up the spirits of their party, to depress ours," etc., etc.
The following are a few brief extracts from these letters.
"The press when opened to all parties and influenced by none, is a salutary engine in a free state, to preserve the freedom of that state, but when a party has gained the ascendancy, so far as to become the licensers of the press, either by act of government, or by playing off the resentment of the populace against printers, and authors, the press itself becomes an engine of oppression or licentiousness, and is as pernicious to society as otherwise it would be beneficial. It is too true that ever since the origin of our controversy with Great Britain, the press of this town have been indulged in publishing what they pleased, while little has been published on the part of the government. The effect this must have had upon the minds of the people in general is obvious. In short, the changes have been so often rung upon oppression, tyranny, and slavery, that, whether sleeping or waking, they are continually vibrating in our ears, and it is now high time to ask ourselves whether we have not been deluded by sound only. Should you be told that acts of high treason are flagrant through the country, that a great part of the province is in actual rebellion, would you believe it true? Nay, you would spurn it with indignation. Be calm, my friends, it is necessary to know the worst of a disease, to enable us to provide an effectual remedy. Are not the bands of society cut asunder and the sanctions that hold man to man trampled upon? Can any of us recover a debt, or obtain compensation for an injury by law? Are not many persons, whom once we respected, and revered, driven from their homes, and families, and forced to fly to the army for protection, for no other reason but their having accepted commissions under our king? Is not civil government dissolved?
"Reader, apply to an honest lawyer (if such a one can be found) and inquire what kind of an offence it is for a number of armed men to assemble, and forcibly to obstruct the courts of justice, to pass governmental acts, to take the militia out of the hands of the king's representatives to form a new militia, to raise men and appoint officers for public purposes, without order or permission of the king or his representatives, or for a number of men to take to their arms, and march with a professed design of opposing the king's troops. Ask, reader, of such a lawyer, what is the crime, and what the punishment, and if, perchance, thou art one that has been active in these things, and art not insensibility itself, his answer will harrow up thy soul.
"The shaft is already sped, and the utmost exertion is necessary to prevent the blow. We already feel the effects of anarchy, mutual confidence, affection, and tranquility, those sweeteners of human life are succeeded by distrust, hatred, and wild uproar; the useful arts of agriculture and commerce are neglected for caballing, mobbing this or the other man, because he acts, speaks or is suspected of thinking different from the prevailing sentiment of the times, in purchasing arms, and forming a militia. O height of madness! Can you indulge the thought one moment that Great Britain will consent to this? For what has she protected and defended the colonies against the maritime powers of Europe, from their first British settlement to this day? For what did she purchase New York of the Dutch? For what was she so lavish of her best blood and treasure in the conquest of Canada, and other territories in America? Was it to raise up a rival state, or to enlarge her own empire? I mention these things, my friends, that you may know how people reason upon this subject in England, and to convince you that you are deceived, if you imagine, that Great Britain will accede to the claims of the colonies. And now, in God's name, what is it that has brought us to this brink of destruction? Has not the government of Great Britain been as mild and equitable in the colonies, as in any part of her extensive domains? Has she not been a nursing mother to us from the days of our infancy to this time. Has she not been indulgent almost to a fault?
"I have as yet said nothing of the difference in sentiment among ourselves. Upon a superficial view we might imagine that this province was nearly unanimous; but the case is far different. A very considerable body of men of property in this province are at this day firmly attached to the cause of government, bodies of men compelling persons to disavow their sentiments, to resign commissions or to subscribe leagues, and covenants, has wrought no change in their sentiments. It has only attached them more closely to government and pray more devoutly for its restoration.
"A new, and until lately unheard of mode of opposition, has been devised, said to be the invention of the fertile brain of one of our party agents, called a committee of correspondence. This is the foulest, subtlest, and most venomous serpent that ever issued from the eggs of sedition. These committees when once established, think themselves amenable to none, they assume a dictatorial style, and have an opportunity under the apparent sanction of their several towns, of clandestinely wreaking private revenge on individuals by traducing their characters, and holding them up as enemies of their country, wherever they go, also of misrepresenting facts and propagating sedition through the country. Thus a man of principle and property in travelling through the country would be insulted by persons whose faces he had never seen before. He would feel the smart without suspecting the hand that administered the blow. These committees, as they are not known in law, and can derive no authority from thence. They frequently erect themselves into a tribunal where the same persons are at once legislators, accusers, witnesses, judges, and jurors and the mob the executioners. The accused has no day in court, and the execution of the sentence is the first notice he receives. It is chiefly owning to these committees, that so many respectable persons have been abused and forced to sign recantations and resignation though so many persons, to avoid such reiterated insults, as are more to be deprecated by a man of sentiment than death itself, have been obliged to quit their houses, families and business, and fly to the army for protection. That husband has been separated from wife, father from son, brother from brother, and the unfortunate refugee forced to abandon all the comforts of domestic life. Have not these people that are thus insulted, as good a right to think and act for themselves in matters of the last importance. Why then, do you suffer them to be cruelly treated for differing in sentiment from you? Perhaps by this time some of you may inquire who it is, that suffers his pen to run so freely. I will tell you; it is a native of this province that knew it before many that are now basking in the rays of political sunshine, had a being. He was favored not by whigs, or tories, but the people. He is now repaying your favors, if he knows his own heart, from the purest gratitude. I saw the small seed of sedition when it was implanted; it was as a grain of mustard. I have watched the plant until it has become a great tree; the vilest reptiles that crawl upon the earth are concealed at the root, the foulest birds of the air rest upon its branches.
"At the conclusion of the late war Great Britain found that the national debt amounted to almost one hundred and fifty million, and heavy taxes and duties were laid. She knew that the colonies were as much benefited as any part of the empire, and indeed more so, she thought it reasonable that the colonies should bear a part of the national burden, as that they should share in the national benefit. For this purpose the stamp act was passed. At first we did not dream of denying the authority of parliament to tax us, much less legislate for us. We had paid for establishing a post office, duties imposed for regulating trade, and even for raising a revenue to the crown without questioning the right. Some resolves in Virginia denying the right of parliament made their appearance. We read them with wonder, they savoured of independence. It now became unpopular to suggest the contrary, his life would be in danger that asserted it. The newspapers were open to but one side of the question and the inflammatory pieces that issued weekly from the press, worked up the populace to a fit temper to commit the outrages that ensued. It has been said that several thousands were expended in England, to ferment the disturbance there. However that may be, opposition to the ministry was then gaining ground, from circumstances foreign to this. The ministry was changed and the stamp act repealed. When the statute was made imposing duties upon glass, paper, India teas, etc. imported into the colonies, it was said this was another instance of taxation. We obtained a partial repeal of this statute which took off the duties from all articles except teas. We could not complain of the three-penny duty on tea as burdensome, for a shilling which had been laid upon it for the purpose of regulating trade, and therefore was allowed to be constitutional, was taken off; so that we were, in fact, gainers nine pence on the pound by the new regulation. The people were told weekly that the ministry had formed a plan to enslave them that the duty upon tea was only a prelude to a window tax, hearth tax, land tax and poll tax, etc. What was it natural to expect from a people bred under a free constitution, jealous of their liberty, credulous, even to a proverb when told their privileges were in danger. I answer outrages, disgraceful to humanity itself. What mischief was not an artful man, who had obtained the confidence and guidance of such an enraged multitude, capable of doing? He had only to point out this or that man, as an enemy of his country, and no character or station, age or merit could protect the proscribed from their fury. Happy was it for him, if he could secrete his person, and subject his property only to their lawless rage. By such means acts of public violence has been committed as will blacken many a page in the history of our country. They have engrossed all the power of the province into their own hands. A democracy or republic it has been called, but it does not deserve the name of either. It was, however, a despotism cruelly carried into execution by mobs, and riots, and more incompatible with the rights of mankind than the enormous monarchies of the East. The government under the British Constitution consisting of kings, lords, and commons, is allowed both by Englishmen and foreigners to be the most perfect system that the wisdom of ages has produced. The distributions of power are so just, and the proportions so exact, as at once to support and control each other. An Englishman glories in being subject to and protected by such a government.
"Let us now suppose the colonies united and moulded into some form of government, in order to render government operative and salutary, subordination is necessary. This our patriots need not be told of, and when once they had mounted the steed and found themselves so well seated as to run no risk of being thrown from the saddle, the severity of their discipline to restore subordination would be in proportion to their former treachery in destroying it. We have already seen specimens of their tyranny, in the inhuman treatment of persons guilty of no crime except that of differing in sentiment. What then must we expect from such scourges of mankind when supported by imperial powers?
"I do not address myself to whigs or tories, but to the whole people. I know you well, you are loyal at heart, friends to good order, and do violence to yourselves in harboring one moment, disrespectful sentiments towards Great Britain, the land of our forefathers' nativity, and sacred repository of their bones, but you have been most insidiously induced to believe that Britain is rapacious, cruel and vindictive, and envies us the inheritance purchased by the sweat and blood of our ancestors. Could that thick mist be but once dispelled that you might see our Sovereign, the provident father of all his people, and Great Britain a nursing mother to the colonies, as they really are. Long live our gracious king, and happiness to Britain would resound from one end of the province to the other."[217]
[217] Extracts from Massachusettensis. Letter addressed to the Inhabitants of the Province of Massachusetts Bay, Dec. 12th, 1774.
In February, 1775, Daniel Leonard was appointed Solicitor General of the Commission of Customs with a salary of L200 sterling, a body exercising powers similar to those of a court of admiralty. Thirteen months after this time, March, 1776, he accompanied the British Army to Halifax with his family of eight persons and thence to London, where he practiced as a barrister in the Courts of Westminster.
In 1780, William Knox, Under Secretary of State for the American Department suggested the division of Maine, and a province of the territory between the Penobscot and St. Croix rivers, with Thomas Oliver for Governor, and Daniel Leonard for Chief Justice. The plan was approved by the King and Ministry, but was abandoned because Wederburne, the Attorney-General, gave the opinion that the whole of Maine was included in the charter of Massachusetts.
Mr. Leonard was in Massachusetts in 1799 and again in 1808. He was included in the Banishment Act of 1778 and the Conspiracy Act of 1779. He received the appointment of Chief Justice to Bermuda. After filling this office for many years, he again in his last days took up his residence in London, where he died June 27, 1829, aged 89. His death was the result of an accident while withdrawing the charge from a pistol, he accidentally discharging it so as to cause almost instant death.
The generous temper and affable manners of Mr. Leonard seemed to have fascinated those who were in his household. The nurse who was entrusted with the care of the infant daughter of his first wife, would never leave him. She went with his family in all their wanderings, first to Boston, then to Halifax, London, and Bermuda, then to the United States, back again to the West Indies, then to London, and died in their service. His Deputy Sheriff, who had been a Captain in the Provincial service, a person of great address, wit, and accomplishments, followed his fortunes and was killed in the battle of Germantown, then a Major in the British Army. A young gentleman educated at Harvard College, and in his office, went with him to London where he died.
Daniel Leonard married twice. His first wife was Anna, daughter of Hon. Samuel White of Taunton, his second Sarah Hammock of Boston, who died on the passage from Bermuda to Providence, R. I., aged 78. He left a daughter Anna, who married a Mr. Smith of Antigua, Harriet who died in London in 1849, Sarah who married John Stewart, a captain in British army and afterwards Collector of the Port of Bermuda. Sarah had four children. The eldest Duncan Stewart, on the death of an uncle who died childless, succeeded to an ancient Lairdship in Scotland. His brother, Leonard Stewart, was an eminent physician in London. His sister Emily married a Captain in the service of the East India Company, the other sister, Sarah, married a Mr. Winslow, descended from the ancient governor of Plymouth, and a relative of Lord Lyndhurst, (Copley) whose private Secretary he was during his Chancellorship.[218] Mr. Leonard had an only son Charles, who was born when the mob attacked his house, and was feeble-minded. He entered Harvard College in 1791, but did not graduate. He was subsequently under the guardianship of Judge Wheaton, and was found dead in the road in Barrowsville, near Taunton in 1831. Col. Ephraim Leonard, who lived till the close of the Revolution devised his large estate to his grandson Charles. It was understood, however, that the father and sisters of Charles were to participate in the enjoyment of the property. Had Daniel Leonard returned from banishment and taken the oath of naturalization and allegiance to the new government, he would have inherited this large estate, but this he would not do, nothing could swerve him from his loyalty to the old flag.
[218] Genealogical Memoir of the Leonard Family, by William R. Deane.
JUDGE GEORGE LEONARD.
Major George Leonard was the third in descent from James, the immigrant. He removed in 1690 to Norton, then a part of Taunton, where he became the proprietor of very large tracts of land, and was in fact the founder of that town. Here this family, as possessors of great wealth and of the largest landed estate probably of any in New England, have lived for over two hundred years. Major George was Judge of the Court of Common Pleas. His eldest son George, the subject of this sketch, was born March 4, 1698. He was in office from early manhood until old age. He served his town in nearly every capacity and was appointed a judge of the Court of Common Pleas, in 1725; a member of the Council in 1741; and Judge of Probate in 1747; while in the Militia he rose to rank of Colonel. In 1740 he was dismissed from the bench, in consequence of his connection with the famous Land Bank scheme, but was restored six years afterwards, and became Chief Justice. He was called a "neutral" by Clark the historian of Norton, and he remarks that though the most influential man in town he took no active part in public affairs during the war. A neutral in the Revolution was a Loyalist, the Revolutionists did not allow such a thing as a "neutral" to exist. The fact was that he was an old man, whom all classes respected, and on that account they did not molest him, and drive him out.
He died in 1778, in his eighty-first year. "Tradition," says Clark, "has universally given him a character above reproach, and of sterling worth." He married Rachel Clap, of Scituate, who bore him four children and who died in 1783, in her eighty-second year.
George Leonard, son of the former, was born in 1729, and graduated at Harvard University in 1748. He held several important offices under the Colonial government, and after the adoption of the Federal Constitution, was a member of Congress. It is said "he was a genuine specimen of an American country gentleman," that "he was a kind and considerate landlord, who never raised his rents, and who regarded his old tenants as his friends," that "he was tenaciously attached to old customs, and wore the short breeches and long stockings to the day of his death."
COLONEL GEORGE LEONARD.
Was the son of Rev. Nathaniel Leonard the brother of Judge Leonard and fifth in descent from James the immigrant. He was driven forth from his native land and settled in New Brunswick in 1783, and was much employed in public affairs. The year after his arrival, he was appointed one of the agents of government to locate lands granted to Loyalists, and was soon after made a member of the Council, and commissioned as a Colonel in the militia. He died at Sussex Vale in 1826, at an old age. His wife Sarah, died a year before aged eighty-one. He had several children. His daughter Caroline married R. M. Jarvis, Esq., in 1805, and his daughter Maria married Lieutenant Gustavus Rochfort of the Royal Navy in 1814. His son, Colonel Richard Leonard of the 104th Regiment of the British army and Sheriff of the District of Niagara, died at Lundy's Lane in 1833.
GEORGE LEONARD, JR., son of George Leonard, accompanied his father to New Brunswick in 1783. He was a grantee of the city of St. John. He was bred to the law, and devoted himself to his profession. He died at Sussex Vale in 1818.
HARRISON GRAY.
RECEIVER GENERAL OF MASSACHUSETTS.
Harrison Gray, was the son of Edward Gray and his wife Susanna. He was born in Boston, 24 February, 1711.
Edward Gray was from Lancashire, England, was an apprentice in Boston in 1686, and married Susanna Harrison in 1699, by whom he had several children.
Harrison Gray was bred a merchant. His patrimonial inheritance, aided by industry, enabled him to acquire a handsome fortune. In June 1753, he was chosen Treasurer of the province by the General Court and continued in that office till October, 1774. He was an ardent loyalist, and adhered to government from the beginning of the controversy, but the modification of his conduct, his superior fitness for the office and the confidence in his integrity secured him public favor through the stormy period which commenced soon after his first election, and continued until his appointment to, and acceptance of, the office of mandamus counsellor in 1774. But this was an unpardonable offence in the eyes of the "sons of despotism." It was however unsolicited, unexpected, and accepted with great reluctance, being strongly pressed upon him by the leaders of the loyalist party; and as most of those who had been appointed his colleagues living in the country were compelled by the mobs to decline the office, he was led to believe that residing in Boston then garrisoned by the troops, he had no such apology for shrinking from the service, and accordingly sacrificed inclination to a conscientious sense of duty. This brought upon him the ill will and malice of his political opponents, among these was John Adams, who said, "I went in to take a pipe with brother Cranch and there I found Zab Adams. He told me he heard that I had made two very powerful enemies in this town, and lost two very valuable clients--Treasurer Gray, and Ezekiel Goldthwaite; and that he had heard that Gray had been to me for my account, and paid it off, and determined to have nothing more to do with me. O the wretched, impotent malice! they show their teeth--they are eager to bite--but they have not strength. I despise their anger, their resentment, and their threats; but I can tell Mr. Treasurer that I have it in my power to tell the world a tale which will infallibly unhorse him, whether I am in the house or out. If this province knew that the public money had never been counted these twenty years, and that no bonds were given last year, nor for several years before, there would be so much uneasiness about it that Mr. Treasurer would lose his election another year." This was one of the meanest and most contemptible statements John Adams ever made. It was a reckless accusation, and insinuation, and was ably answered by his grandson, Harrison Gray Otis, who prepared a clear refutation of the unjust accusation in Russell's Centinel, June, 1830. It was also refuted by subsequent events. In October, 1774, the royal government was superseded by the revolutionary congress who resolved "that no more taxes be paid to him," and made choice of Henry Gardner for his successor. This authority he could not be expected to recognize. He therefore retained the books and files at his office till the evacuation of Boston, and then left them in exemplary order. They are still in the public archives of Massachusetts and show the model of a faithful state treasurer. He might have been justified in retaining a lien upon these as a security against loss and damage to his very valuable real, and personal estate, which he left, and which was soon confiscated, but his high sense of official duty forbade his recourse to any such precaution, and he withdrew from a country which he loved, not less than those who stayed at home, taking nothing which belonged to the public, but surrendered all his property into the keeping of the public that treated him so basely. He was also a creditor to many of the "sons of despotism," at the head of whom was John Hancock, who owed him a large sum for borrowed money, no part of which would he pay in his lifetime, and of which a small part was received from his executors.[219]
[219] This was the same as he did towards Harvard college, when treasurer of same. History of Harvard College by Josiah Quincy.
In the House of Representatives, August 8, 1775, "Ordered, that Mr. Hopkins be directed to inquire how the Committee of Supplies have disposed of the horse and chaise formerly Harrison Gray's which was used by the late Dr. Warren, and came to the hands of the said Committee after Dr. Warren's death." The next day, "Ordered, that Dr. William Eustis be, and hereby is directed, immediately to deliver to the Committee of Supplies the horse and chaise which were in the possession of the late Doctor Warren, and which formerly belonged to Harrison Gray."
When Boston was evacuated, Mr. Gray, urged by a sense of duty, with the male members of his family, tore himself away from his adored and only daughter, Mrs. S. A. Otis, which so preyed upon her peace of mind that it finally caused her death.
He went to Halifax with his family of four persons where he stayed a short time. "He was passenger in one of the six vessels that arrived at London from Halifax, prior to June 10, 1776, laden with Loyalists and their families."
In Mr. Gray's house in London about the year 1789, Arthur Savage gave the Rev. Mr. Montague a bullet taken from the body of General Warren the day after his death. Mr. Montague after his return to Boston, became rector of Christ Church. Harrison Gray, in a letter to him, dated London, August 1st, 1791, remarks to him in a spirit of loyalty to the crown of Britain as follows: "The melancholy state in which you represent religion to be in Boston and New England is confirmed by all who come from thence. Is this one of the blessings of your independence to obtain which you sacrificed so many lives? I am glad your federal constitution 'has had a very great and good effect', but very much question whether you will ever be so happy as you were under the mild and gentle government and protection of Great Britain; for, notwithstanding the freedom my countrymen boast of, if in order to obtain it they have sacrificed their religion, they have made a poor bargain. They cannot, in a religious sense, be a free people till the Son of God has made them free. It is very surprising, considering the establishment of the Roman Catholic religion at Quebec was one of the heavy grievances the American Congress complained of[220] that your governor and other great men in your town should attend the worship of God in a Roman Catholic church, to hear a Romish bishop on a Sunday; and that he should be one of the chaplains who officiated at a public dinner. I cannot at present account for their inconsistency any otherwise than by supposing the part they took in the late unhappy contests lays so heavy upon their consciences that they imagine no one can absolve them but a Romish priest."
[220] See Chapter III. in relation to this matter.
Mr. Gray lived in England upon a pension granted by the British government. In 1794 at the advanced age of eighty-four, this excellent and virtuous man sunk to rest. Perhaps no man among the many excellent persons who went into exile at this time was more beloved and regretted by his political enemies, for a more genuine model of nature's nobleman never lived.
JOHN GRAY, son of Harrison Gray and his wife Elizabeth, born in Boston, 18th of May, 1755. He went to Ireland soon after the battle of Lexington. Hearing that the difficulties would probably be adjusted, he embarked for Massachusetts, the vessel was taken off Newburyport. He was in Newbury Jail, February, 1776, when at the solicitation of his sister, the mother of Harrison Gray Otis, an order was passed to allow his removal to the Otis homestead in Barnstable on condition of his giving a bond with security in L1,000 not to pass without the limits of that town, or deal or correspond with the enemy. Mr. Gray was in London, January, 1781.
JOSEPH GRAY was descended from an old Boston family, his grandfather Joseph Gray, was married by Rev. Samuel Williard to Rebecca Sears, June 27, 1706. Their son Joseph Gray was born April 9, 1707, and married Rebecca, daughter of John West of Bradford, or Haverhill of Massachusetts. The old people were displeased with the match and cut Rebecca off with "one pine tree shilling." Their son Joseph, the subject of this sketch, was born July 19, 1729. He was a loyalist and settled at Halifax, Nova Scotia, and was a member of the firm of Proctor & Gray, merchants. His wife was Mary, daughter of Hon. Joseph Gerrish. His son, the Rev. Benjamin Gerrish Gray, D. D., was born in 1768, married Mary, daughter of Nathaniel Roy Thomas a Loyalist, and was many years rector of St. George's parish, Halifax, and afterwards of an Episcopal church in St. John, N. B. Died at the latter city in 1854. Another son of Joseph Gray was William, born in 1777. Was British Consul for Virginia for a long time and died in England in 1845.
Joseph Gray died at Windsor, N. S., in 1803 at the age of seventy-four, leaving a large number of descendants.
John Gray of Boston, another brother of Joseph Gray. He was bred to business in that town by Caleb Blanchard. About the year 1768 he went to England, but returned previous to hostilities, and was appointed Deputy Collector of Customs, in which office he was popular. In 1776 he embarked for Halifax with the Royal Army, and before the close of that year was at Charleston, S. C., and in prison. He was still in that city as late as 1780, when he was an Addresser of Sir Henry Clinton. Before the last mentioned date, however, he had engaged in business as a commission merchant, and had purchased a plantation on account of himself and of John Simpson, a fellow Loyalist of Boston. But involved politically beyond the hope of extrication he sold his interest in the plantation, and invested the proceeds in indigo and in a ship with the intention of sailing for London. The Revolutionists not only defeated this plan, but seized his vessel and his cargo, and the result was that of both he barely saved one hundred guineas. With this sum he fled to his brother Joseph at Halifax, who provided him a passage to England in a ship of war. Without any accession to his fortune yet, with letters to the agents of the East India Company, he soon embarked for India, and, on his arrival there, was well received. The family account is that he wrote a treatise on the Cultivation of Indigo, which the Governor and Council considered so valuable as to grant him L4,000 sterling, and jointly with a Mr. Powell, an extensive tract of land. These two grantees, assisted by the Company, established a factory, and began the culture of indigo, which was said to be the first attempt to cultivate this beautiful dye in India. Both died suddenly in 1782 on the same day. Gray was at the plantation, and Powell was two hundred miles away at the factory, and the supposition was that they had incurred the jealousy of the natives, who had caused their death by poison. Powell's brother told Joseph Gray, prior to 1799 that the estate of our Loyalist and his associate had become "the greatest indigo plantation in the known world."[221]
[221] Sabine, Vol. I., Pp. 490-1.
Samuel Gray was also a brother of Joseph Gray. He died at Boston in 1776 leaving issue, male and female. His wife was a daughter of Captain Henry Atkins of Boston.
Thomas Gray of Boston was a merchant, a Protester against the Revolutionists, and one of the Addressers of Hutchinson. He died at Boston in 1783.
LIST OF CONFISCATED ESTATES BELONGING TO HARRISON GRAY IN SUFFOLK COUNTY AND TO WHOM SOLD.
To John Stanton, David Devens, Jonathan Harris, Feb. 11, 1780; Lib. 131, fol. 51; Land and two brick dwelling-houses in Boston, Cornhill W.; land purchased by Samuel Allen Otis N.; E. and N.; Wilson's Lane E.; Nathaniel Appleton S.
To Samuel Allen Otis, April 4, 1780; Lib. 131, fol. 93; Land and brick dwelling-house in Boston, Cornhill W.; land purchased by John Stanton and others S.; W. and S.; Wilson's Lane E.; Samuel Vallentine N.
REV. WILLIAM WALTER.
RECTOR OF TRINITY CHURCH, BOSTON.
Thomas Walter, an Attorney at Law, came to America from Youghall, Ireland, about 1679, bringing a recommendatory letter to the churches in New England from a Congregational church in Youghall,--and by virtue thereof was admitted a member of the Second church, Boston, November 2, 1680. His family were originally of Lancashire, England, and were of gentle blood. He died before the year 1698.
REV. NEHEMIAH WALTER, son of the former, was born in Ireland, December, 1663, and came to America with his father. He early distinguished himself by proficiency in his studies at school, and by the age of thirteen was a master of the Latin tongue. It soon became evident that his genius pointed to a professional life, and he was sent to Harvard University where he graduated with honors in 1684. Shortly thereafter he removed to Nova Scotia where he resided some months for the purpose of acquiring the French language. He became a distinguished scholar and became noted among the literati of the day. After a careful and impartial examination and great deliberation, "he fell in the way of the Churches of New England, as thinking their constitution practice in general, with respect to worship, discipline and order, most comfortable to gospel institution and primitive practice." He was ordained a colleague of the Rev. John Eliot October 17, 1688 at the age of twenty-five. The first church at Roxbury had, at the earnest request of the venerable Apostle Eliot, been seeking a colleague to share the duties which increasing infirmity rendered irksome to him; and Nehemiah Walter was chosen. Mr. Eliot died soon after this after a life crowned with glory, honors, and labor, and it was a great consolation to him in his latter days to see his people so happily settled under Mr. Walter. For more than sixty years his successor faithfully discharged the duties of his office always to the acceptance of his people. He married Sarah, the daughter of Rev. Increase Mather by Maria, daughter of the distinguished Rev. John Cotton. Nehemiah Walter died September 17, 1750, and he was buried in the ministerial vault in the old burial ground, corner of Washington and Eustis Streets, Roxbury.
REV. THOMAS WALTER, second son of Nehemiah Walter, was born in Roxbury, December 13, 1696, and early gave evidence of most extraordinary genius. He graduated from Harvard University in 1713 and was ordained October 29th, 1718, and December 25th of the same year was married to Rebeckah, daughter of Rev. Joseph Belcher. He was a man who combined great wit and humor with infinite learning and excelled in the science of harmony. He published works on music, and one of his sermons upon the 2nd Samuel XXIII 1 "The Sweet psalmist of Israel" which was delivered at the Boston Lecture, has been pronounced "the most beautiful composition among the sermons which have been handed down to us by our fathers." Others of his sermons were also published. Thomas Walter was one of the most distinguished scholars and disputants of the day. "He had all his father's vivacity and richness of imagination with more vigor of intellect." For his genius and powers he was reckoned to be one of the ablest clergymen that New England up to that time had produced. His death occurred on Sunday, January 10, 1724-5, and he expressed his hope that he might die on that day, when lying prostrate with consumption. His tomb is in the old burying ground, Roxbury. His daughter Rebeckah, who was born in 1722, died unmarried January 11, 1780.
Rev. William Walter, the subject of this sketch, was a nephew of Thomas Walter. He was born in 1739, and graduated at Harvard College in 1756. Up to the time of the Revolution the preachers in the Episcopal church occupied the position of missionaries in the American colonies. They were sent here and were in the pay of the "Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts." The following extracts are from letters written to the Secretary of the Society, and they explain themselves.
"Copy of a letter written to the Reverend Mr. Hooper of Trinity church in Boston, by Mr. Barnard, an eminent dissenting clergyman, in answer to one from the former desiring the latter would be so good as to send him a just and honest character of Mr. William Walter, who was talked of as a fit person to be assistant Minister at said church."
"He came out of our College with the reputation of one of the best classical scholars of his class. He lived first in this town in the business of a Grammar Schoolmaster, which trust he executed for several years to universal acceptance, faithful, and careful. I have reason to believe, in forming the tender minds of his pupils to virtue and religion, as well as forwarding them in their scholastic exercise. When to the sorrow of the town, he quitted that employ, he became connected with the Custom House. This business naturally raised complaints against him among trading people. But all I have heard were of his not being so flexible in some matters as they wished, none of oppression, much less of mean fraudulent ways of filling his own pockets.
"His temper is innocently cheerful, open, and friendly. He has a tender and delicate sense of honor, a just idea of the truest honor. He is kind and compassionate, etc." This letter had the desired effect. It was written Oct. 15, 1763. He was ordained by the Bishop of London the following year and became an assistant to the Rev. Mr. Hooper, whom he succeeded as rector of Trinity church, the third Episcopal church in Boston, being opened in 1735. It stood on the corner of Summer and Hawley Streets. It was a plain wooden structure without steeple or tower.
In 1767 he joined with the Clergy of Massachusetts and Rhode Island in sending a letter to England requesting that a Bishop be sent to America. The letter says, "We are too remote and inconsiderable to approach the Throne, yet could His Majesty hear the voice of so distant a people the request for American Bishops would appear to be the crye of many of his most faithful subjects."
"We do, however, think ourselves happy in this, that the Society will omit no favorable opportunity of representing the advantage that may accrue to these Colonies, to religion and to the British Interests, by condescending to this one request."[222] The Episcopal form of worship was always disagreeable to the Congregationalists, and when they discovered that the ministry entertained the design of sending over a bishop to the colonies, a controversy for years ran high on the subject. So resolute was the opposition to this project that it was abandoned. This controversy John Adams says contributed as much as any other cause to arouse attention to the claims of Parliament. The spirit of the times is well represented in a cartoon in the Political Register of 1769 which is here reproduced.
[222] Papers relating to the church in Massachusetts, Pp. 506-7, 531-2.
The Rev. William Walter was a firm Loyalist. At the evacuation of Boston he was obliged to leave his house and accompanied by his family he went to Halifax. In 1776 he went to England, then returned and went to New York, and acted for some time as Chaplain of a British regiment. While in New York he sent a letter to the Secretary of the S. P. G. F. P., dated Dec. 8, 1781. It is interesting as it shows the trials and difficulties of the ministers of the Church of England during the Revolution. It is in part as follows: "I disbelieve that Mr. Bass ever preached a sermon for cloathing a rebel battalion, or ever read the Declarative Act for independence in his church, or has altered his sentiments since his dismission, but that he opens his church on the days appointed by Congress as Public days, is most certain, and if this is to be criminal, then every clergyman within the rebel lines is criminal, and among others, Dr. Inglis, of this city, who did the same when Mr. Washington's army was here, yet no clergyman stands higher in the esteem of the Society for his loyalty." The occasion of this letter was the stopping of Mr. Bass's salary by the Society, as it had been reported to it that Mr. Bass had gone over to the rebels.
At the peace, accompanied by his family of six persons and by three servants, he went from New York to Shelburne, N. S., where the Crown granted him one town and one water lot. His losses in consequence of his loyalty were estimated at L7,000. In 1791 he returned to Boston and the next year was chosen Rector of Christ church.
William Walter was a zealous supporter of the church and crown, and vindicated his sincerity by the sacrifices he made for them. His discourses are described as rational and judicious, "recommended by an eloquence, graceful and majestical." He was no knight errant, but while adhering to his own convictions with quiet persistency, he exercised a large charity towards all forms of faith and Christian worship. The degree of D. D. was conferred on him by Kings College, Aberdeen, in 1784. In 1796 he was invited to deliver the Dudleian lecture at Harvard College and in 1798 he pronounced the anniversary discourse before the Massachusetts Humane Society, which was published. Dr. Walter was a remarkably handsome man; tall and well proportioned. When in the street, he wore a long blue coat over his cassock and gown, wig dressed and powdered, a three-cornered hat, knee breeches of fine black cloth, and with silk hose, and square quartered sleeves with silver buckles. His countenance was always serene, his temper always cheerful; happy himself, he communicated happiness to all around him. In the desk he read the glorious service like one inspired; his voice was clear, musical and well modulated. In his family he was loved, reverenced and admired. His heart, his house, his purse, were ever open to the needy. He married Lydia, daughter of Benjamin Lynde, the younger, of Salem, and by her had seven children. Her death occurred in 1798.
Dr. Walter continued his rectorship at Christ church until his death in 1800, at the age of sixty-one. The Rev. Dr. Parker, who preached his funeral sermon, delineated his character as ornamental to religion and to the church, to literature and humanity. Dr. Walter's grandson, Lynde Minshall Walter, born in 1799, graduated at Harvard University in 1817. He established the Boston Evening Transcript in 1830, and was the first editor of the paper. His death occurred in 1842. Another grandson, William Bicker was born in Boston, April 19, 1796, and graduated at Bowdoin College in 1818. He studied divinity at Cambridge but did not preach. He became best known as an author, possessing an active fancy and a great faculty of versification. He contributed odes and sonnets and translations to the newspapers and in 1821 in Boston, he published "Poems" and "Sukey" a poem. In 1822 he went to the southern states to give lectures on poetry, but he died shortly after his arrival in Charleston, South Carolina, April 23, 1822.
This family so distinguished in ecclesiastical history of New England is believed now to be extinct. There were others of the name in Boston at an early period, who have perhaps left descendants, but they are not known to have any connection with this family.
LIST OF CONFISCATED ESTATES BELONGING TO REV. WILLIAM WALTER IN SUFFOLK COUNTY AND TO WHOM SOLD.
To Leonard Jarvis, Sept. 27, 1784; Lib. 145, fol. 32; Land and buildings in Boston, South St. W.; Samuel Quincy, an absentee, S.; Robert Robbins and heirs of Benjamin Clark, deceased, E; Samuel Connant N. and E.; Nathaniel Taylor, an absentee, N.
THOMAS AMORY.
Hugh Amory was living in the year 1605 at Wrington in Somersetshire, under the northern side of Mendip Hills, this town and Shepton Mallett was noted at this time for its broad cloth manufactures which, within fifty years had transformed England's industry and commerce in Somerset and Devon. Hugh and one of his sons was a merchant the other was a woolen-draper, the latter, Thomas Amory, was the ancestor of the American branch of the family, his career was the troubled one of a Bristol merchant in the middle of the seventeenth century, when the city was besieged and taken by both the Parliamentary and the King's army. His son Jonathan was born in the county of Somerset in the year 1654, his father owned the estate of St. Anne and other lands in the county which in the next century went to his descendants in this country, but too heavily encumbered to be of any value. Jonathan was brought up under the care of his elder brother Thomas, who married Elizabeth Fitzmaurice a daughter of the 19th Lord of Kerry, ancestor of the present Marquis of Landsdowne. In consequence of this connection he removed to Ireland, taking his younger brother Jonathan with him, who in time became a merchant at Dublin, where he is recorded in 1675 as the purchaser from the city of the north bank of the Liffy. Dublin, hitherto, had lain wholly on the south side of the river. As late as 1816, L2, 10s. annual rent for it from "Jonathan Armory" still formed an item of the city's income. It is now as other crowded city districts, which have wharves at one end and a railway station at the other, with streets of age-blackened tenements and workshops between.
Jonathan Amory married Rebecca Houston in 1677, he went to the West Indies with his brother Robert in 1682, and his wife died at Barbados in 1685. Jonathan Amory then went to South Carolina taking with him his infant son Thomas. He married again, and invested largely in lands and houses. He was elected speaker of the Colonial Legislature, and subsequently treasurer of the Province. He died in the fall of 1699 of yellow fever.
THOMAS AMORY, son of the former, was born in Limerick, Ireland, in 1682 and accompanied his father to South Carolina. In the year 1696 he was sent with his sister Anne to their relatives in England to be educated. He was placed under the care of his cousin, Counsellor Amory, and was sent to the Westminster school. After his father's death he entered the counting-house of Mr. Ozell, a French merchant in London who in the year 1709 sent him to the Azores as supercargo. Here he established himself as a merchant and was appointed Dutch and English consul, and making only an occasional visit to Europe. Here he remained many years. About 1719 he embarked for Boston, and spent the following winter with his sister in Carolina. Returning to Boston he met Rebecca Holmes, daughter of Frances Holmes, and married her in May, 1721.
Thomas Amory bought lands at the South end of Boston, built a house and wharves, hired a counting-house of his friend, Governor Belcher, on the Long wharf and engaged in commerce with England, the Azores and Carolinas. He died in 1728, but his widow long survived him, dying in Boston in 1770 at the age of seventy. He left three sons and two daughters.
THOMAS AMORY, son of the former, was born in Boston April 23, 1722, and entered the Latin school in 1735, and graduated at Harvard College in 1741. He studied Divinity, but never took orders. As eldest son he inherited a double share of his father's estate. He married Elizabeth, the daughter of William Coffin and by her had Rebecca, afterwards the wife of Dr. Aron Dexter. He purchased the house built by Governor Belcher at the corner of Harvard and Washington streets, the gardens of which extended to the water, and this was his principal residence for the rest of his life. Thomas Amory was one of the Addressers of Gage but he did not take an active part in controversies preceding the revolution. He is described in a deed in 1769 as "Thomas Amory gentleman" in 1772 as "Distiller" and at other times as merchant. It was said that as the Revolution drew near he and his brother John planned to withdraw to England, leaving in the care of their brother Jonathan, who was childless, their combined families, to the number of twenty-three. He was on terms of friendship with the British officers and when the troops garrisoned the town, his house was attacked by the mob. He was entertaining some of the officers at his home, when bricks were thrown at his windows. One of these missiles waked his little daughter, by smashing the pane and falling on her bed. He spoke to the mob from the porch and it dispersed, but he had first hastily sent his guests by the garden way, to his boat, by which they were enabled to get to their quarters. His wife's family, the Coffins, were all Loyalists, and Thomas Amory therefore was regarded with some suspicion, especially as he was an "Addresser" of Gen. Gage.
When General Washington entrenched Dorchester Heights, March 1776, in order to command Boston with his guns, the inhabitants saw danger from both sides. Washington's assault would do great damage and the British troops as they withdrew might fire the town. On March 8th Deacon Newhall, chairman of the selectmen, requested Thomas and Jonathan Amory, and their friend, Peter Johonnot, to carry to General Washington a paper prepared by four Selectmen, proposing that the British troops should be allowed to retire unmolested, on condition of doing no harm. The offer was really authorized by General Robertson, acting for General Howe, but this could not be put in writing, nor was the person named to whom the paper was addressed. The messengers, however, delivered it to General Washington, whereupon Colonel Learned on his behalf wrote them an answer to the effect that no notice could be taken of a letter neither addressed to himself, nor authenticated by General Howe. Nevertheless the agreement was kept, as if it had been formally made. Ministers were therefore able to deny to an angry opposition in Parliament that there had been any compromise, or stipulation between General Howe and the rebels, although the Duke of Manchester affirmed that he had private information of it.[223]
[223] The descendants of Hugh Amory, London. 1901. The Amory Family, Boston, 1856.
On the evacuation Thomas Amory withdrew to Watertown, where he lived some years. He died shortly after the peace in 1784. His widow survived until 1823. He left nine children, seven of whom were married and resided in Boston. It is interesting to consider how the blood of the loyal and the disloyal afterwards became mixed. At the battle of Bunker Hill June 17, 1776, Captain Linzee of the Kings ship-of-war Falcon cannonaded the works which Prescott the "rebel" defended, but the granddaughter of Linzee was the wife of Prescott the historian who was a grandson of the rebel, and this lady is a daughter of Thomas C. Amory, the eldest son of this notice. Jonathan, the second son of our Loyalist, married Hettie, daughter of James Sullivan, governor of Massachusetts, while the wife of John Amory, another son, was near of kin to Henry Gardner, the "rebel" who succeeded Harrison Gray, the last royal treasurer of the same state. Again Nathaniel, another son, married a niece of Commodore Preble, and her sister was the wife of Admiral Wormley of the Royal Navy. Once more, William, a fifth son, born in 1774, was an officer in the British navy and after the war entered the U. S. navy and distinguished himself in the war with Tripoli, being one of the party that burnt the Philadelphia. He also distinguished himself in an attack under Hull on a fort in South America during the French war. But "loyalty" as understood in olden time, is still represented in the family by the union of Mr. Amory's grandson Charles with Martha Greene and of his grandson, James Sullivan, with Mary Greene, nieces of the late Lord Lyndhurst. Mr. Amory's grandson, Thomas C., married Esther Sargent, and William of the same degree of consanguinity married Anna, daughter of David Sears of Boston. Of the sons here mentioned, Thomas C. Amory, was a successful merchant and died in 1812. Thomas C., Jr., also a descendant, is the author of the Life of Governor Sullivan, his grandfather on his mother's side.[224]
[224] Sabin's Loyalists of the American Revolution.
Jonathan Amory, brother to Thomas, was born in Boston December 19, 1726. He married Abigail Taylor, and resided on what is now the opening of Temple Place into Washington street. His garden is said to have extended two or three hundred feet in either direction, joining his brother John's home which formerly had been Rufus Greene's in Newbury street, at the corner of West street.
Jonathan Amory died in 1797, leaving a large estate to his brother John and John's children.
JOHN AMORY, another brother of Thomas, was born in Boston in 1728. He married Catherine, daughter of Rufus Greene. He was the father of nine children who grew up and settled in his native town. He built a house at the corner of Beacon and Tremont streets, opposite King's chapel, and lived there, and in Washington street on the site where Amory hall afterwards stood. He engaged in commerce with his younger brother. The letters of this business house from 1760 during the Stamp Act excitement and the Tea troubles give many interesting particulars of that period. Parts of this correspondence were published in English papers and to one letter a member of Parliament ascribed influence in the repeal of the Stamp act. In 1757 the store of Jonathan and John Amory was "the sign of the Horse at the head of Dock Square," they afterwards (before 1762) removed into King street "just below the town house." Their store was probably the last of the "old stores" in State street. The house, distill-house stores and wharf were Thomas Amory's share of his father's property. Amory's wharf was at the east end of Castle street, on which in 1777 he had a still-house.
In 1774 John Amory left with his family for England. It was necessary that one of the partners should go on business. At the beginning of hostilities his house owed their English creditors L23,000 sterling which they remitted without delay, while their countrymen who owed them, from inability, or taking advantage of the times paid, if at all, in a depreciated currency.
The illness of his wife, which terminated in her death in 1778, prevented his return to Boston. Shortly before the peace he embarked for America and landing at New York he took the oath of allegiance to the Crown. He was not permitted to live in Boston in consequence of the "Banishment Act." His name had been placed upon the list of the proscribed, and preliminary measures were taken to confiscate his property. His brother wrote him should this be done he would always share what he had with him. He resided in Providence till 1783, some of his family being with him then through the influence of his friends in Boston, and upon his petition to the Legislature, declaring his allegiance to the new government, he was allowed to return to Boston. He died in 1805, leaving six sons and four daughters. One of his daughters married John Lovell, widely known as a political writer, and another was the wife of John McLean, who liberally endowed the Massachusetts General hospital.
REV. HENRY CANER.
RECTOR OF KING'S CHAPEL.
Henry Caner, D. D., was graduated at Yale College in 1724, and was the "son of Mr. Caner who built the first college and rector's house" at New Haven, Connecticut. For three years after leaving college he lived under the theological teaching of Mr. Johnson of Stratford, who had the general supervision of the Episcopal students of divinity, and who had been his college tutor. Though too young to be ordained, he assisted Mr. Johnson as a catechist and schoolmaster at Fairfield. In 1727 he went to England for ordination. For some years, subsequently, his ministry was confined to Norwalk and Fairfield, Connecticut, and he became a great worker among the missions. His health became impaired by his severe labors and in 1736 he sought relief by a voyage to England, where on the recommendation of Archbishop Potter he had been created M. A. by a diploma at Oxford March 8, 1735. His father died in 1731 at the age of sixty. The name was long preserved in New Haven by "Caner's Pond." The name is also written sometimes Canner, or Conner.
In 1747 the successful missionary was inducted into office as rector of the First Episcopal church (King's Chapel) Boston. On being invited to King's Chapel he received a deserved promotion to the most conspicuous Episcopal pulpit in America; after a laborious ministry of twenty-two years in the mission at Fairfield, Connecticut. On his removal to Boston he left behind him two hundred and three communicants, a large number of those days, in a mission where he had found but twelve. Also a handsome church and a large convenient parsonage nearby.
The old chapel in Boston was built between 1687-1689. In 1710 it was rebuilt to twice its original size under Governor Shirley. After the lapse of nearly half a century King's Chapel was found to be in a ruinous condition and measures were taken to rebuild, which resulted in the well known King's Chapel now standing upon the spot. The erection of this building in 1749 is largely due to the efforts of Dr. Caner, who was then rector.
There is no trace of his printed discourses later than 1765, but the traditions of his preaching give him a high rank as a man of learning and fine intellectual endowments. The first Episcopal church in New England was, prior to the revolution, in a flourishing state. Later, while the British ships were in the harbor and the British troops in the town, many of their officers regularly worshipped at the chapel. When becoming quite infirm in his seventy-seventh year, his age and position placed Dr. Caner at the head of the Church of England clergy in this part of the country. Records show abundantly the pastoral labor which devolved upon him, especially in his military congregation. The last burial records by his trembling hand are those of three soldiers of his Majesty's 65th Regiment of Foot. The Register of burials also notes the funeral, on March 18, 1752, of Ann, "the Pious and Virtuous Consort of Rev. Henry Caner, aged forty-six."
He was a devoted Loyalist, and when it was evident he could no longer be useful in Boston, he went with the British troops to Halifax. In one of the record books of King's Chapel, Dr. Caner made the following entry: "An unnatural rebellion of the colonies against his Majesty's government obliged the loyal part of his subjects to evacuate their dwellings and substance and take refuge in Halifax, London and elsewhere; by which means the public worship at King's Chapel became suspended, and it is likely to remain so until it shall please God, in the course of his providence, to change the hearts of the rebels, or give success to his Majesty's arms for suppressing the rebellion. Two boxes of church plate and a silver christening basin were left in the hands of the Rev. Dr. Breynton at Halifax, to be delivered to me or my order, agreeable to his note receipt in my hands." After being a rector in Boston for twenty-eight years this aged clergyman was driven from his home and native land. Dr. Caner's escape from Boston is thus described by himself in a letter dated Halifax, May 10, 1776: "As to the clergy of Boston, indeed they have for eleven months past been exposed to difficulty and distress in every shape; and as to myself, having determined to maintain my post as long as possible, I continued to officiate to the small remains of my parishioners, though without support, till the 10th of March, when I suddenly and unexpectedly received notice that the King's troops would immediately evacuate the town. It is not easy to paint the distress and confusion of the inhabitants on the occasion. I had but six or seven hours allowed to prepare for this measure, being obliged to embark the same day for Halifax, where we arrived the first of April. This sudden movement prevented me from saving my books, furniture, or any part of my interest, except bedding, wearing apparel, and a little provision for my small family during the passage.
"I am now at Halifax with my daughter and servant, but with no means of support, except what I receive from the benevolence of the worthy Dr. Breynton."
No less than eighteen Episcopal clergymen from Boston and its neighborhood sailed away with the fleet that bore Dr. Caner, and the town of Boston would have been left without any Episcopal clergymen at all, only for Dr. Andrew Eliot, the pastor of the New North church, who called upon Rev. Samuel Parker, assistant to Rev. William Walter of Trinity church. Mr. Parker was packing up his library preparing to depart when called upon by Dr. Eliot, who with true Christian candor, represented to him the destitute situation in which the Episcopalians would be left who should remain in the country, with all their ministers gone, that although it might be prudent for the elder gentlemen to go, who had made known their sentiments, that he, a young man, who had done nothing to render himself obnoxious to the rebels, would be perfectly safe, that it was a duty he owed to that part of the community to stand by them, finally he prevailed upon him to stay, a circumstance that Bishop Parker always acknowledged with gratitude.
From Halifax Dr. Caner went to England. An extract from the diary of Thomas Hutchinson in 1776 says, "I went with Dr. Caner to Lambeth, to introduce him to the Archbishop who was very gracious to him, and gave him an order for One Hundred Pounds on the Treasurer of the moneys received for the clergy of America." He was proscribed and banished, under the statute of Massachusetts, in 1778, and his estate confiscated. A fellow Loyalist wrote in 1785: "By letters from London, I am informed that Dr. Caner had retired with his young wife to Cardiff, in Wales."
Dr. Caner died in England at the close of the year 1792 in his ninety-third year. One of his daughters married a Mr. Gove of Boston. The Boston Gazette (No. 2002) of February 11, 1793, contains the following: "At Long-Ashton, Somersetshire, England, aged ninety-three, the Rev. Dr. Henry Caner, a very respectable character, many years minister of the Chapel church in this town." Foote in his "Annals of King's Chapel" says, "I am informed by Mr. Henry O. B. O'Donoghue of Long-Ashton, near Bristol, that there is no tombstone in the churchyard with Dr. Caner's name, nor any trace to be found of such a person ever having lived in the Parish." It has been said, also, that Dr. Caner died in London in 1792.
Dr. Caner's house stood close to King's chapel on the north side of the old burying-ground, and was a rough wooden structure. This spot was afterwards occupied by the Boston Athenaeum, and later by a Savings Bank. It next was occupied by the Massachusetts Historical Society, who sold it to the city of Boston, and it is now used as an annex to City Hall.
On the evacuation of Boston the church vestments, plate, registers and records were taken from the church, a part of which last was recovered from Dr. Caner's heirs in 1805. King's Chapel and Christ church are now without doubt the only historical buildings remaining unchanged from before the revolution of all those in which Boston was once so rich.
The vestry of the chapel in 1784 applied to Rev. Dr. Caner to have restored to them the "Church Plate and Linnen which he carried away." This he refused to do as his estate was taken from him by the public. He however turned it over to the "Society for Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts," who afterwards disposed of it in the Provinces that remained loyal. In 1787 a silver flagon and covered cup which was presented to the chapel by Governor Hutchinson, having the name of King William and Queen Mary engraved on it, was claimed by Dr. Thomas Bulfinch, Warden, as the property of the King's Chapel, it then being in the hands of Rev. Dr. Parker of Trinity church for safe-keeping. It is now the property of the chapel.
LIST OF CONFISCATED ESTATES BELONGING TO REV. HENRY CANER IN SUFFOLK COUNTY AND TO WHOM SOLD.
To Samuel Henly, Sept. 30, 1793; Lib. 177, fol. 82; Land and dwelling-house in Boston. Tremont St. W.; Chapel Burying Ground and heirs of Middlecott Cook deceased S.; John Rowe E.; William Brattle, an absentee, N.
FREDERICK WILLIAM GEYER.
The Gayers or Geyers as it was variously spelled, first settled at Nantucket. Some of the family came very early to Boston. The name is first mentioned in Boston Town Records 1690, when William Gayer married Maria Guard. In her will recorded with Suffolk Probate Records, Vol. 17, p. 80, 1710, she described herself as the wife of William Gayer, Mariner of Nantucket. In 1692 Damaris Gayer, the daughter of William Gayer, married Nathaniel Coffin. Their son William Coffin removed to Boston and was the ancestor of the Boston family of Coffins.
The Geyers were prominent merchants in Boston. They did not interest themselves in political matters or held office. The records mention that in 1765 Mr. Henry Christian Geyer was paid L173. 4. 1. for repairs done on Faneuil Hall.
At the outbreak of the Revolution, Frederick William Geyer was one of the principal merchants of Boston. He was proscribed and banished in 1778, but not being an Addresser, or having taken any active part in politics, he was allowed to come back in 1789 and was restored to citizenship by Act of the Legislature. He was in business with his son at No. 13 Union street, Boston, in 1794. Died at Walpole, N. H., in 1803. A daughter who died near London in 1855 at the age of 81, married Mr. Joseph Maryatt, a West Indian merchant. She was the mother of Captain Maryatt of the British Navy, the well known author of sea tales.
Mr. Geyer's estate was on Summer street, formerly Seven Star Lane, and was one of the finest in Boston. In the inventory of his estate made by the commissioner after his departure, the mansion house is valued at L6,000. It was confiscated and sold to Nathan Frazer, whose daughter afterwards married Frederick W. Geyer, Jr., and the property was once more restored to the family.
The estate once belonged to Leonard Vassall, and contained one of the best gardens in Boston. It was planted as early or before 1642 by Gamaliel Wayte, for we find by the Book of Possessions that this land is described as Wayte's Garden. Judge Sewall in his diary states that he lived to the age of 87, and not long before his death was blessed with several new teeth, which shows that he not only had the ability to plant, but to eat his fruits. Mrs. Maryatt, whose gardens at Wimbleton were at one time the finest in England, and we may reasonably conjecture that the taste and skill that produced such marvels, were nurtured and fostered in her younger days among the flower beds of Summer street. This garden occupied the site of the store of C. F. Hovey & Co., and as late as 1870 there was an old pear tree in the yard in a thrifty condition.
Nancy Geyer married Rufus Amory, February 13th, 1794. He was the second son of John Amory the Loyalist, and a very successful lawyer. The wedding is described as "a very gay and brilliant affair." It gained an unexpected distinction in consequence of a heavy snowstorm by which Prince Edward, afterward Duke of Kent and father of Queen Victoria, travelling from Canada to take command of the troops at Halifax, was just then detained at Boston. He accepted Mr. Geyer's invitation to the wedding, and came with his aides. "His Royal Highness" it is recorded, was complaisant and affable in his deportment, and claimed the customary privilege of kissing the bride, and bridesmaids. His host's son who was married the year before to Rebecca Frazer, the daughter of Nathan Frazer, who bought the Geyer mansion when it was confiscated, was an ardent sympathizer with revolutionary France, who disapproved of titles. He put their marriage notice in this form in the Boston Gazette of Jan. 21, 1793. "By Citizen Thatcher, Citizen Frederick W. Geyer, Jr., to Citess Rebecca, daughter to Citizen Nathan Frazer."[225]
[225] The Descendants of Hugh Amory. Pp. 259, 260.
LIST OF CONFISCATED ESTATES BELONGING TO FREDERICK WILLIAM GEYER IN SUFFOLK COUNTY AND TO WHOM SOLD.
To Nathan Frazier, May 12, 1780; Lib. 131, fol. 143; Land and house in Boston, Summer St., formerly Seven Star Lane, in front; land of First Church S.W.; John Rowe S.W.; Benjamin Church, Thomas Thayerweather and heirs of Samuel Sewall N.W.----Green Lane S.W.; John Welsh S.W. and S.W.; John Gooch and others S.E.; James Gooch N.E. and N.W.; John Gooch S.W. and N.W.; James Gooch and others S.W.----Green Lane S.; John Welsh W.; John Gerrish N.; lane from Green Lane to the Mill Pond E.
THE APTHORP FAMILY OF BOSTON.
Charles Apthorp was born in England in 1698 and was educated at Eton. He was the son of John Apthorp and Susan his wife, whose maiden name was Ward, of the family of Lord Ward of Bexley.
After the death of his father Charles Apthorp came to New England, and became one of the most distinguished merchants of Boston. He was paymaster and commissary under the British Government of the land and naval forces quartered in Boston. On the 13th January, 1726, he married Grizzel, daughter of John Eastwicke. She was born August, 1708, at Jamaica and came to Boston in 1716. Her mother was Griselda Lloyd, daughter of Sir John Lloyd of Somersetshire, England, who assisted in conveying King Charles II to France after the battle of Worcester.
Charles Apthorp was one of the first Wardens of Trinity church, and one of the committee that waited on Peter Faneuil, and in the name of the town to render him their "most hearty thanks for so beautiful a gift." To King's Chapel he was a bountiful benefactor, having given L1,000 towards its rebuilding.
Charles Apthorp had eighteen children, of whom fifteen survived him and eleven married. He died in Boston suddenly in 1758 at the age of sixty. His funeral took place at King's Chapel twelve days later and his remains were therein deposited. He was reputed as the "greatest and most noble merchant on the continent." He was also characterized as "a truly valuable member of society," and that "he left few equals behind him." A marble monument with a Latin inscription was placed in King's Chapel to his memory by his sons, "which monument covers the tomb of the truly-noble-minded race of Apthorp."
He was very proficient in and a great admirer of the Fine Arts, especially in painting and architecture; talents which have been transmitted to his descendants as Charles Bulfinch, Esq., the architect of the State House and other edifices. The original mansion in Brighton, Massachusetts, formerly the Charles Apthorp place, still remains and is of great antiquity.
On the death of Charles Apthorp he possessed the whole of Long Island, the largest island in Boston Harbor. Calf island also was formerly known as Apthorp's Island. The Apthorp heirs subsequently sold their interest in Long Island to their sister Grizzell's husband, Barlow Trecothick, Lord Mayor of London. After the death of Trecothick the island passed on the 11th June, 1790, into the possession of his brother-in-law Charles Ward Apthorp of New York.
CHARLES WARD APTHORP, the eldest son of Charles Apthorp, married in New York Mary McEvers. He had three sons and three daughters. Of his daughters, Charlotte Augusta was the only one who left descendants. Her husband was John Cornelius Vanden Heuvel, a Dutch gentleman of fortune, who had been Governor of Demerara and afterwards settled in New York. Maria Eliza, their eldest daughter, married John C. Hamilton, a son of the celebrated Alexander Hamilton.
Charles Ward Apthorp was a member of the Council of New York in 1763 and served until 1783. He had lands in Maine and a large amount of property in Boston, Brookline, and Roxbury, all of which was confiscated. He died at his seat, Bloomingdale, in 1797.
JOHN APTHORP, the second son, went to England, and became connected in business with the house of Tomlinson & Trecothick. He married Alicia Mann of Windsor, sister of Sir Horace Mann, many years resident British minister at Florence. Mr. Apthorp embarked for Italy with his wife who was in a very hazardous state of health, and who died at Gibraltar, leaving two daughters under the care of their grandmother at Windsor. He pursued his travels in Italy, and afterwards returned to Boston, where he married Hannah Greenleaf, daughter of Stephen Greenleaf, the last Royal high sheriff of Suffolk County. He lived about four years at Brighton, when he embarked, with his wife, from New York for Charleston, S. C, to enjoy a warmer winter climate, and they were lost at sea. The children, one son and two daughters, were left under the care of their grandfather who attended most faithfully to their interests and education. One daughter married Charles Bulfinch his cousin, and the other Charles Vaughn, son of Samuel Vaughn, Esq., of London. The son, Col. John T. Apthorp, married Grace Foster, who lived only one year, leaving an infant. In another year he married her twin sister Mary by whom he had a numerous family.
REV. EAST APTHORP, D. D., was born in Boston in 1733 and was educated at Cambridge, England. He took orders and returned, and became the founder and rector of Christ church in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Here he published a pamphlet in defence of the conduct of the society for "Propagating the gospel" which was attacked by Dr. Mayhew, who was answered by the Archbishop of Canterbury. This controversy rendered his situation irksome and after only six years ministry in this country, he left for England. It was thought by many that the establishment of the Episcopal church at Cambridge was for the purpose of converting the students who were generally dissenters and with ulterior views, which excited the most acrimonious jealousy.
While General Burgoyne's army was detained at Cambridge, Lieutenant Brown, who was out on parole according to the terms of the Convention, was riding with two ladies in a chaise when he was killed in cold blood by a sentinel, a boy scarcely fourteen years old, who levelled his gun at him and shot him through the head. "His remains were interred in Christ's church. The people, during the time the service was being performed, seized the opportunity of the church being open, which had been shut since the commencement of hostilities, to plunder, ransack, and deface everything they could lay their hands on, destroying the pulpit, reading desk, and communion table, and ascending the organ loft they destroyed the bellows and broke all the pipes of a very handsome instrument."[226] Rev. East Apthorp was afterwards successively vicar of Croydon where Governor Hutchinson resided, and rector of Bow church, London, which he exchanged for the prebendary of Finsbury; he had many friends among the dignitaries of the church and was greatly beloved and respected. By his wife, the daughter of Foster Hutchinson, and niece of Thomas Hutchinson, he had several children. His only son became a clergyman, and his daughters married Dr. Cary and Dr. Butler, heads of colleges, and a third daughter married a son of Dr. Paley.
[226] Travels through the interior parts of America by Thomas Aubury. Vol. II, pp. 232, 234.
He published two volumes of Discoveries on the Prophecies, delivered at Warburton lecture, Lincoln's Inn, and a volume in answer to Gibbon. The last twenty-six years of his life were passed at Cambridge, England, with almost total loss of sight, and he died in April, 1816, at the age of eighty-three, closing a life of great usefulness.
THOMAS APTHORP, born 19 October, 1741, continued paymaster of the British forces after his father's death from 1758 to 1776, when he was proscribed, and banished. He went to England and lived several years at Ludlow, Wales. He visited Lisbon for health, where he married. He returned to Ludlow, where he died, leaving a widow and one son.
WILLIAM APTHORP, born Feb. 26, 1748, married Mary Thompson. He was a merchant, and was proscribed and banished in 1778. The year after, he came from New York to Boston. He was arrested, and occupied for awhile a private room in the deputy jailer's house, but letters were received to his disadvantage, and he was committed to a close prison by order of the Council, his countrymen would show him no mercy.
SUSAN APTHORP the second daughter of Charles Apthorp, married Thomas the son of Dr. Bulfinch. She had several children, three only that arrived at a marriageable age. Charles Bulfinch, the only son was born in August, 1763, and graduated at Harvard College in 1781, and after living abroad for some time returned to Boston in 1786. He inherited talents from his grandfather and became a great architect. He was chairman of the board of Selectmen for twenty-one years during which official service many of the great improvements in the town were executed, including the State House, City Hall, the General Hospital and the building of Franklin Street. After the capitol of the United States was burnt, in 1814, Mr. Bulfinch was appointed by President Munroe to superintend its re-erection. His wife died in 1841, and his death followed three years later on April 15, 1844.
LIST OF CONFISCATED ESTATES BELONGING TO CHARLES WARD APTHORP, IN SUFFOLK COUNTY AND TO WHOM SOLD.
To Joseph Hall, April 27, 1782; Lib. 134, fol. 187; Land and moiety of dwelling-house in Boston, Cole Lane S.W.; Joseph Hall E.; Samuel Barrett N.; Jonathan Williams W.
To Edward Smith, June 10, 1782; Lib. 135, fol. 12; Land and buildings in Boston. Wings Lane N., Brattle St. E.; land of Elizabeth Clark deceased, [formerly] Lillie W.; John Roulstone S.
To Ephraim Murdock, June 22, 1782; Lib. 135, fol. 47; Lands and part of house in Roxbury; 11 A. opposite dwelling-house of the late Rev. Mr. Walter, road S.; said Murdock W.; heirs of Gov. Dudley N.; said Murdock E.----8 A. near where the old meeting-house stood, road N.; John Davis E.; heirs of John Scott S.; Ezra Davis W.----2 A., said Murdock N.; John Morrey E., town way S.; William Dudley W.
To Daniel Dennison Rogers, July 4, 1782; Lib. 135, fol. 68; Land and buildings in Boston, Beacon St. in front, highway to Beacon Hill N.W.; John Spooner N. and E.
To John Wheelwright, July 19, 1782; Lib. 135, fol. 114; Land, flats, warehouses and wharf near the South Battery in Boston, Purchase St. N.W.; heirs of Alexander Hunt S., the sea E.; the highway N.
To John Wheelwright, July 19, 1782; Lib. 135, fol. 116; Land and dwelling-house in Boston, Atkinson St. E.; Burry St. S.; Proprietors of the Irish Meeting House W.; Onesephorus Tileston N.
To Grizzell Apthorp, widow, and Perez Morton, Sept. 24, 1782; Lib. 136, fol. 8; One moiety of land and two brick tenements in Boston, Fleet St. N.; Edward Langdon E.; William and Mercy Stoddard S.; W.; S; W.; S. and W.
To Andrew Symmes July 30, 1783; Lib. 139, fol. 117; Assignment of mortgage Lib. 100, fol. 97.
To Francis Johonnot, agent for creditors of Nathaniel Wheelwright, deceased, March 7, 1786; Lib. 155, fol. 225, Assignment of mortgage Lib. 97, fol. 200.
To Samuel Pitts, June 10, 1786; Lib. 157, fol. 222; Assignment of mortgage Lib. 103, fol. 89.
To Nathaniel Greene, April 5, 1787; Lib. 160, fol. 25; One half part of four parcels of land in Roxbury. 21/2 A.; 17 A. near the tide-mill; 131/2 A. woodland; and piece of salt marsh.
THE GOLDTHWAITE FAMILY OF BOSTON.
Thomas Goldthwaite, ancestor of all of this name in America, was born in England about 1610. The original home is supposed to be what is now Gowthwaite manor, three miles from Pateley Bridge, Yorkshire, West Riding.
He probably came with Governor Winthrop's fleet to America. His first appearance in the Boston records appeared June 14, 1631. Thomas Goldthwaite settled in Roxbury where his name appears as "Thomas Gouldthwaight" in Rev. John Eliot's list of his church members, Eliot having begun his pastorate there in 1632. Thomas was made a freeman in Massachusetts, May 14, 1634. In 1636 he appears in Salem where, as an inhabitant he was granted ten acres of land. His first house lot has been located by some of the best antiquarian authority, as on the southwest corner of Essex and Flint Streets in Salem. In 1636 he married his first wife. Her death occurred some time before 1671 and he then married Rachel Leach, of Salem. He was called "Constable Gouldthwaight" at a meeting of the selectmen, December 14, 1659. Thomas died in March, 1683, at about the age of seventy-three, his wife Rachel surviving him. He left three children, Samuel, Mehitable, and Elizabeth.
SAMUEL GOLDTHWAITE, (of the second generation) like his father, was a cooper, and lived in Salem. For many years during his lifetime and that of his immediate descendants, four family homesteads lay side by side on the original Goldthwaite farm, opposite the site where the Peabody church afterwards was built. He died about the year 1718, leaving ten children and perhaps more.
CAPTAIN JOHN GOLDTHWAITE (of the third generation), son of the former, was born in Salem in 1677. By trade he was a mason and early settled in Boston where he married, March 13, 1701, Sarah Hopkins. They were married by the Rev. Cotton Mather of whose church John Goldthwaite was a member. After the death of Cotton Mather he was one of three who took inventory July 22, 1728. His home was in Boston until 1725, and the birthplace of all his children was on the north side of Charter Street, near Copp's Hill burying-ground, on the property given to his wife and her sisters by their uncle, Major Thomas Henchman. He sold this place May 17, 1725, and removed to another estate he had purchased on the southeast side of Mill pond. Here he passed the remainder of his life. His son Ezekiel inherited the estate after his father's death, and sold it to Thomas Sherburn, his brother-in-law.
Sarah Goldthwaite died Oct. 31, 1715, at the age of thirty-five and is buried in Copp's Hill. John Goldthwaite married Mrs. Jane Halsey of Boston as his second wife. From 1708 to 1758 his name is often mentioned in Boston records. He is one of seventeen named as the founders of the New North church in 1714. His name appears in records of the Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company, and in the town records with the title of captain, in 1741. In his old age he had a barbecue for descendants on North Square. It was held under a tent because they were too numerous to assemble in a house. He died June 25, 1766, and is probably buried in the tomb of his son Ezekiel on Copp's Hill. He had nine children by his first wife and five by his second.
CAPTAIN JOSEPH GOLDTHWAITE (fourth generation) fourth child of John, was born November 11, 1706, in Boston. He married February 8, 1727, Martha Lewis, who was born in Boston and baptized in the second church, Feb. 29, 1707, the daughter of Martha (Burrell) and Philip Lewis. Joseph joined the Artillery Company in 1730 and in 1738 was First Sergeant. In 1745 he joined the Colonial army for the siege of Louisburg and according to records in the British war office, being commissioned adjutant in the first Massachusetts regiment, Honorable William Pepperell, colonel, March 12, 1744-(5) and captain (brevet) March 20, 1744-(5). After his return from the war he became a private citizen, and is seldom spoken of in records by his military title, being rather called esquire, or gentleman. In 1728 he appears as a goldsmith, and later as a merchant, licensed as a retailer at his store on Marlboro Street (part of Washington) in 1737 and again in 1742. He held several appointments and later became constable. His home in 1744 was on Fish, afterwards North Street. In 1773 he and his family retired to a farm purchased by him in western Massachusetts, July 10, 1773, ten acres and mansion house. Here Joseph Goldthwaite died March 1, 1780, aged seventy-two. His widow died October 26, 1783, aged seventy-five, and a double stone marks their graves in Weston. He had ten children.
EZEKIEL GOLDTHWAITE (fourth generation) son of John, born at Boston, July 9, 1710. Married Nov. 2, 1732, Elizabeth Lewis of Boston. For the greater part of his life he was Registrar of Deeds for the County of Suffolk. His first signature as registrar was Nov. 6, 1740. He was an Addresser of Hutchinson in 1774, and a protester against the Revolutionist the same year, although like many other loyalists he was one of the 58 Boston memorialists in 1760 who arrayed themselves against the Crown officials, and having sowed the seeds of sedition, afterwards became alarmed at its results, mob rule.
His last signature as registrar is said to have been written Jan. 17, 1776, two months before the evacuation of Boston. He died seven years later, Dec. 4th, 1782, in his 73rd year. His widow died Feb. 6, 1794, aged 80.
COLONEL THOMAS GOLDTHWAITE (fourth generation) son of John, born in Boston Jan. 15, 1717, married August 26, 1742, Esther Sargent. He became an influential citizen of Chelsea, acting as selectman, moderator of town meetings, and from May, 1757, till his removal from the town, seven years in succession, was its deputy to the House of Representatives, where he was active in introducing important legislation.
He was given many important positions under the Colonial government. In 1763 he was appointed to the command of Fort Pownal, removing his family there from Chelsea. This was an important frontier post, commanding the entrance to the Penobscot River, and offered the advantage, also of a rich trade with Indians, then numerous in those parts. Not long after succeeding to this command in company with Francis Bernard, son of the Governor he purchased a large tract of land, 2,700 acres in the neighborhood of the fort, on condition of their settling thereon thirty families, of building an Episcopal church, and employing a minister. The enterprise was interrupted by the Revolution, in which each side endeavored to get control of all the arms and ammunition possible, and to take into its possession, or render defenceless, such posts as could be held by the enemy. With such an object in view, in April, 1775, Capt. Mowatt, who afterwards burned Falmouth, now Portland, anchored before Fort Pownal, and a letter containing Governor Gage's orders having been delivered to Col. Goldthwaite he carried away the cannon belonging to the fort. The attitude taken by its commander in allowing the fort to be thus disarmed, was never forgiven by the Revolutionists, and he ever after was regarded as a Loyalist. His explanation of his conduct on that occasion is as follows:
"On the 27th of last month about 20 armed men arrived here from St. George's who came in the name, and as a committee from the people of St. George's, and others, who they say had assembled there to the amount of 250; and this party in their name demanded of me the reason of my delivering the cannon belonging to this fort to the King's forces. I went into the fort and got the Governor's letter to me, and it was read to them. I then informed them that this was the King's fort, and built at his expense, that the Governor was commander in-chief of it; that I could not refuse to obey his orders."
Little is known of Col. Goldthwaite between the surrender of Fort Pownal in the spring of 1775 and his arrival in England early in 1780. Gov. Hutchinson mentions in his diary that, "T. Goldthwaite arrived at Portsmouth Feb. 15, 1780." In an entry of the previous Dec. 4, the Governor mentions a call from "young Goldthwaite, son of J. Goldthwaite now at New York." It must have been quite soon after his arrival that Colonel Goldthwaite settled at Walthamstow, Essex, a few miles north of London. Samuel Curwen in his journal speaks of dining with him there July 29, 1782. His son Thomas married Mrs. Primatt, a lady of fortune, in the summer of 1780, and also lived in the town. The houses of both father and son are still there and easily identified, and are in excellent preservation. The Colonel's residence is of brick or stone covered with stucco, the main portion three stories high, and an entrance with Ionic pillars. The grounds are ample and handsomely laid out with well kept walks and planted with trees and shrubbery.
After a life of nearly twenty years spent in retirement in England, Col. Goldthwaite died Aug. 31, 1799, in his 82 year. Mrs. Catharine, his wife, died Dec. 16, 1796, aged 81. They lie buried in Walthamstow church yard.
MAJOR JOSEPH GOLDTHWAITE, (fifth generation), the eldest of Joseph's children, was born in Boston, October 5, 1730. He entered the Boston Latin school in 1738, and probably commenced his military career, which he afterwards followed near the commencement of the French and Indian war, when about twenty-five years old. He married October 5, 1730, Hannah Bridgham, said to have been of Barre, Massachusetts.
In 1759 he appears as Major in the regiment from Boston under the command of Col. John Phillips, January 1, 1760 to January 10, 1761, on the roll of field and staff officers in Colonel Bagley's regiment in service at Louisburg, in which he acted also as paymaster. He served during the campaign of 1762 as Lieut. Colonel of the regiment commanded by Colonel Richard Saltonstall, roll dated Boston, Feb. 19, 1763, in which he is called "of Roxbury." He was addressed at that time as colonel.
October 5, 1768, Joseph Goldthwaite was appointed as Commissary to the British troops who had been quartered in Boston on account of the resistance the inhabitants had shown to the custom officials. In Massachusetts Historical Society's collections, Vol. X, p. 121, is printed a list of the different nations of Indians that met Sir William Johnson at Niagara, July, 1764, to make peace in behalf of their tribes which was "inclosed in a letter from Colonel Joseph Goldthwaite of Boston, to Dr. Stiles, A. D. 1766."[227]
[227] Dr. Ezra Stiles, afterwards President of Yale College, and at this time a settled minister at Newport.
Among the Goldthwaites who remained loyal to the crown, Major Joseph was one of the strongest. He was an Addresser of Hutchinson in 1775, and during the siege he passed the winter in Boston. At the evacuation he accompanied the British army to Halifax, and thence to Quebec. Nine days before his departure from Boston he wrote a letter to his uncle Ezekiel Goldthwaite, Esq., of Boston, acquainting him with his property and the household goods he had left behind. "In short, I leave behind me at least three thousand pounds sterling. You give the enclosed to my wife, if you can meet her. When I shall see her God only knows. Don't let her want for anything."[228]
[228] Goldthwaite Genealogy compiled and published by Charlotte Goldthwaite.
Some experiences of Major Joseph's wife, Mrs. Hannah, while her husband was shut up in Boston with the British army, appear in the Journal of the Massachusetts House of Representatives.[229]
[229] See Forces American Archives. Vol. III, pp. 312, 314, 355.
August 4, 1775, Mrs. Goldthwaite with her sister-in-law and a Mrs. Chamberlain, left Boston with a horse and chaise and crossed the Winnisimmet Ferry. She was arrested and taken under guard to the general court at Watertown. It appeared on her examination that her health was impaired, and an order was passed to allow her to visit Stafford for the benefit of the waters there, but under the care of the Selectmen, and afterwards to retire to the house of her brother Joseph Bridgham at Rehoboth, and to be under the committee of correspondence. It was Colonel Loammi Baldwin who had them arrested and taken to Watertown and according to his account, it was an act on their part which must have required considerable courage "no such instance having happened before," the city being then closely besieged.
Mrs. Goldthwaite petitioned the court to allow her to use the waters in Newton instead of at Stafford, her health being very delicate, and the petition was accompanied by her physician's certificate. This was granted to her and she probably remained through the siege at Newton where the family of Mr. Benjamin Goldthwaite had also taken refuge. After the siege she returned to Boston where she died, probably never seeing her husband again.
Major Goldthwaite from Quebec, went to New York, and his death occurred there October 3, 1779. He had been proscribed and banished in 1778. It was at this time he drew up his will, which is at Somerset House, London, dated Feb. 11, 1778. As he died childless, he bequeathed his property to his brother's and sister's children "provided that none of them are Rebels, and have borne arms against their King, otherwise to go to the next eldest son of the same family who is loyal, and true to his King, and country." Of the several Goldthwaite Loyalists, Major Joseph was one of the most uncompromising in his devotion to his King and country.
CAPTAIN PHILIP GOLDTHWAITE, (fifth generation), brother to Major Joseph Goldthwaite, was born in Boston, March 27th, 1733. He was a member of the Boston Latin School in 1741. He married June 7, 1756, Mary Jordan of Biddeford. His title of captain seems to have come from his command of vessels, and it is interesting to note that in every generation of his descendants to the present day there have been more or less who have chosen the same occupation.
Captain Philip was an officer of the Customs at Winter Harbor, and remained loyal when the war broke out. Sabin says he was one of the two persons of Saco and Biddeford dealt with by the Revolutionists of that section for their loyal principles and that as soon as the war commenced he placed himself under British protection at Boston. An earlier record in regard to him says: "Captain Philip Goldthwaite was brought before the New Hampshire Committee of Safety at Portsmouth, Nov. 23, 1775, on suspicion of being unfriendly to the liberties of America. Upon examination nothing appearing against him, ordered that he be dismissed."
There can be no doubt however, as to Captain Philip's real sentiments. The atmosphere in which he was living must soon have become unendurable to one holding his opinions, and therefore we soon find him in England, where he appears as early as 1780, at that date taking out his brother's administration papers. He bought an annuity in the king's household and became one of the Gentlemen of the bed chamber. In October, 1786, it appears from the probate records at Boston, that he had died probably at sea, for Edward Daws of Boston, trader, is administrator of the estate of Philip Goldthwait, late of Boston, mariner. His inventory contained clothes, a quadrant, books and chest, and amounted to L7, 10 s. He left several sons and daughters, whose descendants are now quite numerous.
SAMUEL GOLDTHWAITE, (fifth generation), brother of the aforesaid Philip, was born in Boston, March 20th, 1735, and married Amy Borden of Newport, R. I., where he became a prominent merchant. He very early came under suspicion as having loyalist sentiments. After the death of his brother, Major Joseph, in New York, October, 1779, he petitioned the Rhode Island General Assembly representing that his brother had lately died in New York, leaving a large estate there in the hands of persons who were wasting it, also that he had been authorized to settle it if he could obtain permission to go to New York, asking to be allowed to do so, and to return with the effects when obtained, which petition the Council, after consideration, granted.
He did not, however, return, and in July 1780, an act was passed by the Rhode Island Assembly, proscribing persons that had left the state and joined the enemy, ordered if they returned they should be apprehended, and imprisoned or transported. "Samuel Goldthwaite, merchant, late of Newport," was included in the list. Orders were also given under the same date that such property as he left in Newport should be inventoried and taken into possession of the Sheriff. About this time Samuel had gone to England on business connected with the settlement of his father's and brother's estates, for in the same year he was administrator on them in London. One year later he had returned to his wife Amy, at that time preferring a petition to the Rhode Island Assembly, stating that her husband was then in New York, and had requested her, with her family, to come to him, and praying the Assembly to permit her with her family, furniture, and effects, to go to him there by the first opportunity. The petition was granted and she went in a cartel vessel under the direction of William Taggart. The family settled in Baltimore after the Revolution, and have left many descendants there.
DR. MICHAEL B. GOLDTHWAITE, (fifth generation), son of Joseph, of Boston, born there Jan. 5th, 1740, married Sarah Formon, March 8th, 1759. He was an eminent surgeon and attended the army at the taking of Louisburg. Like most physicians of that day, he kept an apothecary shop, which was in 1774 on Hanover Street. He was an Addresser of both Hutchinson and Gage. He died in 1776. He was an ardent sympathizer with the loyalists.
LIEUTENANT HENRY GOLDTHWAITE, (fifth generation) son of Colonel Thomas, of Walthamstow, England, born at Chelsea, March 29, 1759, married in England, Sarah Winch of Brampton, Oxon. Henry's name is found as one of the garrison of Fort Pownal Oct. 23, 1775. He afterwards entered the British Army remaining in America, in that service, for some years after most of his family had taken up their abode in England. The records of the British War Office show that he was ensign, Independent Co. Invalids, Nov. 13, 1793. Lieutenant Royal Garrison Battalion, Sept. 9, 1795, and lieutenant half pay Oct. 31, 1796. He died at sea, in the Mediterranean early in 1800. He left two sons, Charles, born 1796, and Henry Barnes, born 1797, whose descendants are living in England.
LIST OF CONFISCATED ESTATES BELONGING TO JOSEPH GOLDTHWAIT IN SUFFOLK COUNTY AND TO WHOM SOLD.
To Perez Morton, Sept. 24, 1782: Lib. 136, fol. 9: One undivided half of land, distill house and other buildings in Boston. Pecks Lane W.; John Osbourn N., N.W.; N.E. and N.; Francis Johonnot E.; the sea S.
JOHN HOWE.
Abraham Howe came to Dorchester in 1636; was admitted Freeman May 2, 1637, he came from Broad Oak, Essex County, England, and died at Dorchester, Nov. 20th, 1683. His son Isaac Howe, was baptized in Roxbury in 1655. Isaac had a son Isaac, born in Dorchester, July 7, 1675. He had a son Joseph, born in Dorchester, March 27, 1716, who was the father of John Howe, born in Boston, October 14, 1754. Joseph Howe was a reputable tradesman in Marshall's Lane. He apprenticed his son to learn the printing business.
Richard Draper, the publisher of the Massachusetts Gazette, and Boston News Letter died June 5, 1774. He left no children. His wife conducted the business for several months, and then formed a business connection with John Howe.
Howe had recently become of age, and was a sober, discreet young man. Mrs. Draper, therefore, was induced, a short time before the commencement of the war, to take him into partnership, but his name did not appear in the imprint of the Massachusetts Gazette till Boston was besieged by the Continental Army.
Howe remained with his partner until they were obliged to leave Boston in consequence of the evacuation of the town by the British troops, March 17, 1776, when they went to Halifax, from there he went to Newport, R. I., when the British took possession of the town December 8th.
John Howe was married at Newport by Rev. George Bisset, Rector of Trinity Church, to Miss Martha Minns. Mr. William Minns accompanied his daughter from Boston, and was present at the ceremony. William Minns was born at Great Yarmouth, England, December 16, 1728. In 1737 he accompanied his uncle, Robert Ball, and his widowed mother, and came to Boston. Miss Martha Minns was sixteen years of age when she married John Howe. She was noted for her beauty and her portrait is still in possession of her family. The issue of this marriage was three sons and three daughters.
Mr. Howe commenced the publication of a newspaper for the British at Newport; it was called The Newport Gazette, and the first paper was issued January 16, 1777.
The last number of a bound volume of this paper in possession of the Redwood Library at Newport, is dated January 15, 1778, but the publication of the paper probably continued till the evacuation of Newport by the British, October 25, 1779.
The paper was published in a house on the opposite side of the Parade, the Vaughn estate, now a market. A recent writer says:
"During the time the British were in possession of Newport, it was the office of the Newport 'Gazette,' the paper printed by the British on the press and type of the Newport 'Mercury.' Before that the 'Mercury' was printed by Solomon Southwick, in Queen Street, but when the island fell into the hands of the enemy, Southwick, as is well-known, buried his type in the rear of what was the old Kilburn House on Broad Street (now Broadway) and left the town. The loyalists recovered the type, and a printer named Howe began the printing of the 'Gazette.'"
A bound file of the newspaper published by Mr. Howe is in the possession of the Redwood Library. It runs, with a few numbers missing, from No. 1, to No. 52, January 15, 1778.
The first number was issued Jan. 16, 1777, with the following introduction.
"The Favours which the Subscriber has received from the Gentlemen of the Army and Navy, in Boston and elsewhere, joined with the Importunities of many of the Inhabitants of this Town, has induced him, as speedily as possible, to gratify them with a Newspaper. He can only say, that his best endeavors shall not be wanting to render it as entertaining as possible: And he has nothing to wish for, but the Exercise of that Candour he hath so often before been indebted to. Its size is at present contracted, owing to the Impossibility of procuring larger printing Paper; but if more Intelligence should at any Time arrive, than this can contain, the Deficiency will be supplied with a Supplement. No Subscriptions are received; but if any Gentlemen choose to have the Paper weekly the Boy shall leave it at their houses. Articles of intelligence will be thankfully received and every favor gratefully acknowledged, by their
Obedient humble servant, JOHN HOWE."
The British evacuated Newport, October 25, 1779, and Mr. and Mrs. Howe accompanied them to New York, and thence removed to Halifax and took up their permanent abode there, on the corner of Sackville and Barrington Streets. Here on Friday, January 5th, 1781, he published the first issue of the Halifax Journal, a paper that continued to be published regularly until 1870. It is said that Mr. Howe brought with him the printing press that had once belonged to Benjamin Franklin, and the first that the philosopher had ever possessed. It did the printing for the Howe family for years. Mr. Howe was for many years King's printer for the Province, which secured to him all the government printing, including the publishing of the official gazette. For some years previous to his death, he held the office of postmaster-general and justice of the peace, and was living at the time of his death, December 29, 1835, at his beautiful residence on the Northwestarm, in good circumstances, and had the respect of the whole community.
Mr. Howe was a Sandemanian, that is, a follower of Robert Sandeman, who came to Boston from Glasgow in 1764; they held their first meetings at the Green Dragon Tavern, and afterwards had a meeting-house in the rear of Middle or Hanover street. This society rejected the belief in the necessity of spiritual conversion, representing faith as an operation of the intellect, and speculative belief as quite sufficient to insure final justification. This sect continued till 1823, when the last light was extinguished in Boston. Many of the Sandemanians were Loyalists, and went to Halifax. They may have built on a sandy foundation, but judging from their fruits, we may charitably conclude that in the main they were correct. Probably they did not like a church and state religion; and that may have been all. The few who were in Halifax met every Lord's day in an upper room, in the building lately used by Baxter as a furniture warehouse on Prince Street. The members, male and female, sat together around a table and took the Lord's Supper. This was weekly. There was singing and prayers, and Mr. Howe would afterward stand up, read a chapter of the Bible, and give an address. No doubt it was very good and simple and delivered with a calm, quiet sort of eloquence. When the meeting was over the brothers and sisters in fellowship, (only the more elderly members) rose and kissed one another, and seemed to be remarkably happy. It is said that in the afternoon of every Sunday the old gentlemen members went down to the room below and dined together, and probably edified one another with religious conversation. Those now living who have ever been with these Sandemanians in that upper room will never forget the calm godly faces of such men as old Mr. Howe, Mr. Greenwood and Mr. Mansfield. Strange to say, none of the Howes, and very few, if any, of the other families have followed in the track of these good men and women as to creed. It is to be hoped that many have been influenced for good by what they may have recalled of such worthy ancestors. Old Mr. Greenwood fell dead in the room while reading, and Mr. Mansfield died the same day from some accidental cause.
In a speech delivered by his son JOSEPH HOWE, in Boston July 4, 1858, he spoke of his father as follows: "The loyalists who left these States were not, it must be confessed, as good republicans as you are, but they loved liberty under their old forms, and their descendants love it too. My father, though a true Briton to the day of his death, loved New England, and old Boston especially, with filial regard. He never lost an opportunity of serving a Boston man, if in his power. At the close of your railway banquet, one gentleman told me that my father had, during the last war, taken his father from the military prison at Melville Island, and sent him back to Boston. Another, on the same evening, showed me a gold watch, sent by an uncle, who died in the West Indies, to his family. It was pawned by a sailor in Halifax, but redeemed by my father, and sent to the dead man's relatives. And so it was all his life. He loved his sovereign, but he loved Boston too, and whenever he got sick in his latter days, we used to send him up here to recruit. A sight of the old scenes and a walk on Boston Common were sure to do him good, and he generally came back uncommonly well." Elsewhere the same son remarked: "For thirty years he was my instructor, my playfellow, almost my daily companion. To him I owe my fondness for reading, my familiarity with the Bible, my knowledge of old colonial and American incidents and characteristics. He left me nothing but his example, and the memory of his many virtues, for all that he ever earned was given to the poor. He was too good for this world. But the remembrance of his high principle, his cheerfulness, his childlike simplicity, and truly Christian character, is never absent from my mind."
Mrs. Martha Howe died Nov. 25, 1790, aged 30 years, and was buried in St. Paul's churchyard, Halifax.
A few years after the death of his first wife, Mr. Howe married Mrs. Austin, a widow with several children, wife of Captain Austin. By her he had two children, Sarah and Joseph. Mrs. Howe died in 1837. He had eight children, and at the present time there are eighty-five of his descendants, out of all these the survivors who bear the name of Howe only number sixteen. Many of his descendants were men of great prominence. His son William Howe, Assistant Commissary-General, who died at Halifax, January, 1843, aged fifty-seven. John Howe, Queen's Printer, and Deputy Postmaster-General, who died at the same place the same year, and David Howe, who published a paper at St. Andrew, N. B., Joseph, born December 13, 1804, became Hon. Joseph Howe, Governor of Nova Scotia in May, 1873.
SAMUEL QUINCY.
SOLICITOR-GENERAL.
Edmund Quincy, the first of the name in New England, landed at Boston on the 4th of September, 1633. He came from Achurch in Northamptonshire, where he owned some landed estate. That he was a man of substance may be inferred from his bringing six servants with him, and that he was a man of weight among the founders of the new commonwealth appears from his election as a representative of the town of Boston in the first General Court ever held in Massachusetts Bay. He was also the first named on the committee appointed by the town to assess and raise the sum necessary to extinguish the title of Mr. Blackstone to the peninsula on which the city stands. He bought of Chickatabut, Sachem of the Massachusetts tribe of Indians, a tract of land at Mount Wollaston, confirmed to him by the Town of Boston, 1636, a portion of which is yet in the family.
Edmund Quincy died the year after making this purchase, in 1637, at the age of 33. He left a son Edmund and a daughter Judith. The son lived, in the main, a private life on the estate in Braintree. He was a magistrate and a representative of his town in the General Court, and Lieutenant-Colonel of the Suffolk Regiment.
Point Judith was named after his daughter. She married John Hull, who, when Massachusetts Bay assumed the prerogative of coining money, was her mint-master, and made a large fortune in the office, before Charles II. put a stop to that infringement of the charter. There is a tradition that, when he married his daughter to Samuel Sewall, afterwards Chief Justice, he gave her for her dowry, her weight in pine-tree shillings. From this marriage has sprung the eminent family of the Sewalls, which has given three Chief Justices to Massachusetts and one to Canada, and has been distinguished in every generation by the talents and virtues of its members.
Lieutenant-Colonel Quincy, who was a child when brought to New England, died in 1698, aged seventy years, having had two sons, Daniel and Edmund.
Daniel died during his father's lifetime, leaving an only son John, who graduated at Cambridge in 1708, and was a prominent public man in the Colony for nearly half a century. He was a Councillor, and for many years Speaker of the Lower House.
He died in 1767, at the time of the birth of his great-grandson, John Quincy Adams, who therefore received the name which he has made illustrious. Edmund, the second son, graduated in 1690, and was also in the public service almost all his life, as a magistrate, a Councillor, and one of the Justices of the Supreme Court. He was also colonel of the Suffolk Regiment, at that time a very important command, since the county of Suffolk then, and long after, included what is now County of Norfolk, as well as the town of Boston. In 1737, the General Court selected him as their agent to lay the claims of the Colony before the home government, in the matter of the disputed boundary between Massachusetts Bay and New Hampshire.
He died, however, very soon after his arrival in London, February 23, 1737, of the smallpox, which he had taken by inoculation. He was buried in Bunhill Fields, where a monument was erected to him by the General Court, which also made a grant of land of a thousand acres in the town of Lennox to his family, in further recognition of his public services.
Judge Edmund Quincy had two sons, Edmund and Josiah.
The first named, who graduated at Cambridge in 1722, lived a private life at Braintree and in Boston.
One of his daughters married John Hancock, the first signer of the Declaration of Independence, and afterwards Governor of Massachusetts. Josiah was born in 1709, and took his first degree in 1728. He accompanied his father to London in 1737, and afterwards visited England and the Continent more than once.
For some years he was engaged in commerce and ship-building in Boston, and when about forty years of age he retired from business and removed to Braintree, where he lived for thirty years the life of a country gentleman, occupying himself with the duties of a county magistrate, and amusing himself with field sports. Game of all sorts abounded in those days in the woods and along the shore, and marvellous stories have come down, by tradition, of his feats with gun and rod. He was Colonel of the Suffolk Regiment, as his father had been before him; he was also Commissioner to Pennsylvania during the old French war to ask the help of that Colony in an attack which Massachusetts Bay had planned upon Crown Point. He succeeded in his mission by the help of Doctor Franklin.
Colonel Josiah Quincy, by his first marriage, had three sons, Edmund, Samuel, Josiah, and one daughter, Hannah. His first wife was Hannah Sturgis, daughter of John Sturgis, one of his Majesty's Council, of Yarmouth. His eldest son, Edmund, graduated in 1752, after which he became a merchant in Boston. He was in England in 1760 for the purpose of establishing mercantile correspondences. He died at sea in 1768, on his return from a voyage for his health to the West Indies.
The youngest son of Colonel Josiah Quincy bore his name, and was therefore known to his contemporaries, and takes his place in history, as Josiah Quincy, Junior, he having died before his father, he was born February 23, 1744, and graduated at Harvard College, 1763. He studied law with Oxenbridge Thacher, one of the principal lawyers of that day, and succeeded to his practice at his death, which took place about the time he himself was called to the bar. He took a high rank at once in his profession, although his attention to its demands was continually interrupted by the stormy agitation in men's minds and passions, which preceded and announced the Revolution, and which he actively promoted by his writings and public speeches. On the 5th of March, the day of the so called "Boston Massacre" he was selected, together with John Adams, by Captain Preston, who was accused of having given the word of command to the soldiers that fired on the mob, to conduct his defence and that of his men, they having been committed for trial for murder. At that moment of fierce excitement, it demanded personal and moral courage to perform this duty. His own father wrote him a letter of stern and strong remonstrance against his undertaking the defence of "those criminals charged with the murder of their fellow citizens," exclaiming, with passionate emphasis, "Good God! Is it possible? I will not believe it!"
Mr. Quincy in his reply, reminded his father of the obligations his professional oath laid him under, to give legal counsel and assistance to those accused of a crime, but not proved to be guilty of it; adding: "I dare affirm that you and this whole people will one day rejoice that I became an advocate for the aforesaid criminals, charged with the murder of our fellow citizens. To inquire my duty and to do it, is my aim." He did his duty and his prophecy soon came to pass.
There is no more honorable passage in the history of New England than the one which records the trial and acquittal of Captain Preston and his men, in the midst of the passionate excitements of that time, by a jury of the town maddened to a rage but a few months before by the blood of her citizens shed in her streets.
In 1774 he went to England, partly for his health, which had suffered much from his intense professional and political activities, and also as a confidential agent of the Revolutionary party to consult and advise with the friends of America there. His presence in London coming as he did at a most critical moment excited the notice of the ministerial party, as well as of the opposition. The Earl of Hillsborough denounced him, together with Dr. Franklin, in the House of Lords, "as men walking the streets of London who ought to be in Newgate or Tyburn." The precise results of his communications with the English Whigs can never be known. They were important enough, however, to make his English friends urgent for his immediate return to America, because he could give information which could not safely be committed to writing. His health had failed seriously during the latter months of his residence in England, and his physicians strongly advised against his taking a winter voyage.
His sense of public duty, however, overbore all personal considerations, and he set sail on the 16th of March, 1775, and died off Gloucester, Massachusetts, on the 26th of April.
The citizens of Gloucester buried him with all honor in their graveyard; after the siege of Boston, he was removed and placed in a vault in the burying ground in Braintree. Josiah Quincy was barely thirty-one years of age when he thus died.
His father, Colonel Quincy lived on at Braintree during the whole of the war. He died on March 3rd, 1784.
His passion for field sports remained in full force till the end, for his death was occasioned by exposure to the winter's cold, sitting upon a cake of ice, watching for wild ducks, when he was in his seventy-fifth year.
SAMUEL QUINCY, the subject of this memoir, was the second son of Colonel Josiah Quincy, and the brother of Josiah, Junior, and Edmund. He was born in that part of Braintree now Quincy, April 23, 1735. He graduated at Harvard College in 1754, and studied law with Benjamin Pratt.
Endowed with fine talents, Mr. Quincy became eminent in the profession of the law, and succeeded Jonathan Sewall as Solicitor-General of Massachusetts. He was the intimate friend of many of the most distinguished men of that period, among whom was John Adams. They were admitted to the bar on the same day, Nov. 6, 1758.
As Solicitor for the Crown, he was engaged with Robert Treat Paine in the memorable trial of Capt. Preston, and the soldiers in 1770; his brother was opposed to him on that occasion, and both reversed their party sympathies in their professional position. It was plain to all sagacious observers of the signs of the times, that the storm of civil war was gathering fast; and it was sure first to burst over Boston. It was a time of stern agitation, and profound anxieties. In their emotion Mr. Quincy and his wife shared deeply, and passionately. The shadows of public and private calamity were already beginning to steal over that once happy home. The evils of the present and the uncertainties of the future bore heavily on their prosperity. The fierce passions which were soon to break out into revolutionary violence and mob rule, had already begun to separate families, to divide friends, and to break up society. Samuel Quincy was a Loyalist and remained true to his oath of office, wherein he swore to support the government. His father and brother were revolutionists; as previously stated his brother died on shipboard off Gloucester, seven days after the hostilities had commenced at Lexington, and when his father saw from his house on Quincy Bay, the fleet drop down the harbor, after the evacuation of Boston on March 17, 1776, it must have been with feelings of sorrow that the stout-hearted old man saw the vessels bear away his only surviving son, never to return again. Such partings were common griefs then, as ever in civil wars, the bitterest perhaps that wait upon that cruelest of calamities.
Samuel Quincy was an addressor of Governor Hutchinson, and a staunch Loyalist. His wife, the sister of Henry Hill, Esq., of Boston, was not pleased with her husband's course in the politics of the times, and he became a Loyalist against her advice, and when he left Boston, a refugee, she preferred to remain with her brother, and never met her husband again. The following letter written to his brother by Mr. Quincy, during the siege of Boston, will explain his position at that time.[230]
[230] This letter and the following ones are extracts from original papers, copies of which were communicated by Miss Eliza S. Quincy, and published In Curwen's Journal and Letters.
To Henry Hill, Esq., Cambridge. Boston, May 13, 1775.
Dear Brother:
There never was a time when sincerity and affectionate unity of heart could be more necessary than at present. But in the midst of the confusions that darken our native land, we may still, by a rectitude of conduct, entertain a rational hope that the Almighty Governor of the universe will in his own time remember mercy.
I am going, my dear friend, to quit the habitation where I have been so long encircled with the dearest connections.
I am going to hazard the unstable element, and for a while to change the scene--whether it will be prosperous or adverse, is not for me to determine. I pray God to sustain my integrity and preserve me from temptation.
My political character with you may be suspicious; but be assured, if I cannot serve my country, which I shall endeavor to the utmost of my power, I will never betray it.
The kind care of my family you have so generously offered penetrates me with the deepest gratitude. If it should not be within my power to reward you, you will have the recompense greater than I can give you, the approbation of your own heart. Would to God we may again enjoy the harmonious intercourse I have been favored with since my union with your family. I will not despair of this great blessing in some future and not very distant period. God preserve you in health and every earthly enjoyment, until you again receive the salutation of
Your friend and brother, SAMUEL QUINCY.
Again on August 18th he writes to Mr. Hill and said, "You conjure me by the love of my country to use my best endeavors to bring about a reconciliation, suggesting that the Americans are still as determined as ever to die free, rather than live slaves; I have no reason to doubt the zeal of my fellow-countrymen in the cause of freedom, and their firmness in its defence, and were it in my power, my faithful endeavors should not be wanting (nay, I have a right to say they are not) to effect an accommodation. But, my good friend, I am unhappy to find that the opinion I formed in America, and which in a great measure governed my conduct, was but too justly founded. Every proposal of those who are friendly to the colonies, to alter the measures of government and redress the grievances of which they complain, is spurned at, unless attended with previous concessions on their part. This there is less reason every day to expect, and thus the prospect of an accommodation is thrown at a distance; nor is there yet the least reason to suppose that a formidable, if any opposition will be framed against administration in favor of America.
"These are facts, not of conjecture only, but visible and operative. Your reflection will perhaps be, we must then work out our own salvation by the strength of our own arm, trusting in the Lord. Really, my friend, if the colonies, according to their late declaration, have made a resistance by force their choice, the contest is in short reduced to that narrow compass. I view the dangerous and doubtful struggle with fear and trembling; I lament it with the most cordial affection for my native country, and feel sensibly for my friends. But I am aware it is my duty patiently to submit the event as it may be governed by the all-wise counsels of that Being 'who ruleth in the heavens, and is the God of armies.'"
In a letter to his wife, London, Jan. 1, 1777, he said: The continuance of our unhappy separation has something in it so unexpected, so unprecedented, so complicated with evil, and misfortune, it has become almost too burdensome for my spirits, nor have I words that can reach its description. I long much to see my father. It is now more than eighteen months since I parted with him in a manner I regret. Neither of you say anything of the family at Braintree. They ought not to think me regardless of them though I am silent; for, however lightly they may look upon me, I yet remember them with pleasure.
Again, on March 12, 1777, he said: You inquire whether I cannot bear contempt and reproach, rather than remain any longer separated from my family? As I always wished, and I think always endeavored, not to deserve the one, so will I ever be careful to avoid the other. You urge as an inducement to my return, that my countrymen will not deprive me of life. I have never once harbored such an idea. Sure I am I have never merited from them such a punishment. Difference of opinion I have never known to be a capital offence, and were the truth and motives of my conduct justly scrutinized, I am persuaded they would not regard me as an enemy plotting their ruin. That I might yet be able to recover in some respect the esteem of my friends, I will not doubt while I am conscious of the purity of my intentions. When I determined on a voyage to England, I resolved upon deliberation, and I still think, with judgment. I did not, indeed, expect so hurried a succession of events, though you must remember, I long had them in contemplation.
I am sorry you say nothing of my father, or the family at Braintree; I have not received a line nor heard from them since I left America. * * God bless you all; live happy, and think I am as much so as my long absence from you will permit.
March 20, 1777.
I am not surprised much that, to the less of property, I have already sustained, I am to suffer further depredations, and that those to whom I am under contract should avail themselves of this opportunity and endeavor to make what is left their own. All I ask is that my brother and my other friends (if I have any) would think of me as they ought, and to be assured, that as far as they interpose their assistance to save me from suffering, they will not hereafter find me deficient in return.
October 15, 1777.
If things should not wear a more promising aspect at the opening of the next year, by all means summon resolution to cross the ocean. But if there is an appearance of accommodating this truly unnatural contest, it would be advisable for you to bear farther promise; as I mean to return to my native country whenever I may be permitted, and there is a chance for my procuring a livelihood. But I do not say that I will not accept of an opening here, if any one should offer that I may think eligible.
London, April 18, 1778.
If there is an accommodation, I shall certainly turn my views to some part of the continent, unless something very promising should offer elsewhere. It would grieve me very much to think of never again seeing my father; God bless him, and many other worthy friends and relations in New England; but a return to my native country I cannot be reconciled to until I am convinced that I am as well thought of as I know I deserve to be. I shall ever rejoice in its prosperity, but am too proud to live despised where I was once respected--an object of insult instead of the child of favor.
You suggest, that had I remained, I might still have been with you in honor and employment. It may be so, but when I left America I had no expectation of being absent more than a few months, little thinking operations of such magnitude would have followed in so quick a succession; I left it from principle, and with a view of emolument. If I have been mistaken, it is my misfortune, not my fault. My first letters from my friends congratulated me on being out of the way; and I was pleased to find my undertaking met with their approbation as well as my own. The hearts of men were not within my reach, nor the fortuitous event of things within my control. "I am indeed a poor man;" but even a poor man has resources of comfort that cannot be torn from him, nor are any so miserable as to be always under the influence of inauspicious stars. I will therefore still endeavor to bear my calamities with firmness, and to feel for others.
Those who have befriended my family are entitled to my warmest gratitude, and I hope you will never fail to express it for me. Whether it ever will be in my power to recompense them I know not, but no endeavor of mine shall be wanting to effect it. * * * I conjecture, though you do not mention from what quarter, you have received unkindness. There are in this world many things we are obliged and enabled to encounter, which at a distance appear insupportable. You must have experienced this as well as I; and it ought to teach us that best doctrine of philosophy and religion--resignation. Bear up, therefore, with fortitude, and wait patiently in expectation of a calmer and brighter day.
London, May 31, 1778.
By the public prints we are made acquainted with an act of the state of Massachusetts Bay, that precludes those among others from returning, who left it since the 19th of April, 1775, and "joined the enemy." You do not mention this act, nor have I any information by which I am to construe what is meant by "joining the enemy." The love of one's country, and solicitude for its welfare, are natural and laudable affections; to lose its good opinion is at once unhappy, and attended with many ill consequences; how much more unfortunate to be forever excluded from it without offence! It is said also that there is a resolve of congress, "that no absentee shall be permitted to take up his residence in any other colony without having been first received and admitted as a citizen of his own." This may have some effect on a movement I had in contemplation of going southward, where I have a very advantageous offer of countenance and favor.
London, March 15, 1779.
You may remember in some of my former letters I hinted my wish to establish a residence in some other part of the continent, or in the West Indies, and particularly mentioned to you Antigua--where my kinsman, Mr. Wendell, my friend, Mr. David Greene, Dr. Russell and his family, Mr. Lavicourt, Mr. Vassall, and others of my acquaintance, will give the island less of the appearance of a strange place. By the passing of the act of proscription the door was shut against me in my own country, where I own it would have been my wish to have ended my days. This confirmed my resolution. I have since unremittedly pursued various objects, endeavoring to drive the nail that would go.
My first intention was that of transplanting myself somewhere to the southward. On this subject I thought long, and consulted others. I considered climate, friends, business, prospects in every view, and at last formed my opinion. The provinces in the south part of America in point of health were not more favorable than the island--in point of friends they might be preferable, but with respect to business or the means of acquiring it, uncertain; public commotion yet continued, violent prejudices are not easily removed. I had neither property nor natural connections in either of them. I could have no official influence to sustain me. What kind of government or laws would finally prevail it was difficult to tell. These and other reasons determined me against the attempt. But to stay longer in England, absent from my friends and family, with a bare subsistence, inactive, without prospects, and useless to myself and the world, was death to me! What was the alternative? As I saw no chance of procuring either appointment or employ here, the old object of the West Indies recurred, where in my younger days I wished to have remained; and by the influence of some particular gentlemen I have at last obtained the place of "Comptroller of the Customs at the Port of Parham in Antigua;" for which island I mean to embark with the next convoy. My view is to join the profits of business in the line of my profession to the emoluments of office. This I flatter myself will afford me a handsome maintenance. I grow old too fast to think of waiting longer for the moving of the waters, and have therefore cast my bread upon them, thus in hopes that at last, after many days, I may find it.
Transmit to my father every expression of duty and affection. If he retains the same friendship and parental fondness for me I have always experienced from him, he will patronize my children, and in doing this will do it unto me. It was my intention to have written to him, but the subjects on which I want to treat are too personally interesting for the casualties of the present day. He may rest assured it is my greatest unhappiness to be thus denied the pleasing task of lightening his misfortunes and soothing the evening of his days. Whatever may be the future events of his life, I shall always retain for him the warmest filial respect, and if it is my lot to survive him, shall ever think it a pleasure as well as my duty to promote to my utmost the welfare of his posterity. My mother will also accept of my duty and good wishes; the prosperity of the whole household lies near my heart, and they will do me an injustice if they think me otherwise than their affectionate friend. * * *
With respect to my property in America, my wish and desire is, if I have any control over it, that my friends there collectively, or some one singly under your direction, would take it into their hands, and consolidating the debts I owe into one sum, apply it to their discharge. I can think of no better way than this. If eventually I am deprived of it, I will endeavor to bear it with that fortitude which becomes a Christian and philosopher.
P. S. I could wish above all things to preserve my law books.
TO HENRY HILL, ESQ.
London, May 25, 1779.
I have obtained an appointment at Parham, in Antigua, as comptroller of the customs, and am to embark soon for St. Kitts. * * It is this day four years since I left Boston, and though I have been racked by my own misfortunes and my feelings for the distresses of my family and friends, I have still by a good Providence been blessed with health and comforted by the kindness of many friends. If I have not been in affluence, I have been above want, and happy in the esteem of numbers in this kingdom to whom I was altogether a stranger. * * The education of my children is uppermost in my heart. The giving my son the benefit of classical learning by a course of college studies, is a step I much approve. The sequestration of my books is more mortifying to me than any other stroke. If they are not yet out of your power save them for me at all events.
In a copy of a letter to a friend, apparently in the West Indies, but whose name does not appear, Mr. Quincy thus expresses himself:
Antigua, Feb. 1, 1782.
You ask of me an account of my coming to the West Indies, the manner of my existence and destination, &c. The story is long, and would require many anecdotes to give the true history, but you will excuse me if at present I say only, that in the year 1775, just after the battle of Lexington, I quitted America for London on motives of business, intending to return in a few months; but my absence was construed by our good patriots as the effect of my political principles, and improved first to my proscription, afterwards to the very flattering title of traitorous conspirator, and the confiscation of my estate. I remained in England several years, but, tired of waiting for the moving of the waters, and unwilling to waste the flower of my age in a state of indolence, neither profitable to myself nor my family, I resolved to seek my fortune in this part of the world, where I had been in my younger days,--obtained a berth in the customs, which, together with the emoluments of my profession, afford me a comfortable subsistence, and the prospect of something beyond.
Your friend, &c., SAMUEL QUINCEY.
Mr. Quincy's wife died November, 1782 in Massachusetts. He married again while at Antigua, Mrs. M. A. Chadwell, widow of Hon. Abraham Chadwell.
TO HIS SON, SAMUEL QUINCY, JR., CAMBRIDGE.
June 10, 1785.
How anxious soever I may feel to see my friends and relations once more, I cannot think of doing it at the expense of my liberty; nor will I ever visit that country where I first drew my breath, but upon such terms as I have always lived in it; and such as I have still a right to claim from those who possess it,--the character of a gentleman. * * * The proposal Judge Sumner has hinted to me of keeping his old berth for you at Roxbury, is a good one, at least better than Boston. Cultivate his good opinion, and deserve his patronage; he will bestow the latter for my sake, I trust, as well as his personal esteem for you. It will also stand you in stead at court, where I hope you will one day figure as a legislator as well as an advocate. All depends upon setting out right. You are at the edge of a precipice, or ought to consider yourself so; from whence, if you fall, the "revocare gradum," is a task indeed. Resolve, then, to think right, and act well; keeping up to that resolution will procure you daily the attention of all ranks, and command for you their respect. Keep alive the cause of truth, of reason, of virtue, and of liberty, if I may be permitted to use that name, who have by some injuriously been thought in a conspiracy against it. This is the path of duty, and will be the source of blessing.
July 24, 1789.
I am exceedingly sorry to hear of the distracted political situation of Massachusetts. * * * A constitution founded on mere republican principles has always appeared to me a many-headed monster, and, however applauded by a Franklin, a Price, and a Priestley, that in the end it must become a suicide. Mankind do not in experience appear formed for that finer system, which, in theory, by the nice adjustment of its parts promises permanency and repose. The passions, prejudice, and interests of some will always be in opposition to others, especially if they are in place. This, it may be said, is the case in all governments, but I think less so in a monarchy than under a republican code. The people at large feel an overbalance of power in their own favor; they will naturally endeavor to ease themselves of all expenses which are not lucrative to them, and retrench the gains of others, whether the reward of merit or genius, or the wages of a hireling.
Tortola, June 1, 1789. MY DEAR SON:
Your short letter of the 14th February gave me pleasure, as it informed me of your health and that of your family, and other friends in the neighborhood of Roxbury.
It would be my wish to make you a visit once more in my life, could it be ascertained I might walk free of insult, and unmolested in person. Two things must concur to satisfy me of this,--the repeal of the act passed 1779, against certain crown officers, as traitors, conspirators, &c.; and accommodation with those who have against me pecuniary demands. The first I have never yet learned to be repealed, either in whole or in part, and therefore I consider it as a stumbling-block at the threshold; the second, no steps I suppose have been taken to effect, although I think it might be done by inquiry and proposition--with some by a total release from demand, and with others by a reasonable compromise. If you ever wish your father to repose under your roof, you will take some pains to examine the list, and make the trial. I shall shortly, I hope, be in a situation to leave this country, if I choose it; but whether Europe, of the two objects I have in view, will take the preference, may depend on the answer I may receive from you, upon the hints I have now thrown out for your consideration and filial exertions. * * *
I have been, as I informed you in my last, a good deal indisposed for some time past. I find myself, however, better on the whole at present, though I feel the want of a bracing air. Adieu.
Your affectionate parent, SAMUEL QUINCY.
Soon after the date of this last letter, Mr. Quincy embarked for England, accompanied by his wife. The restoration of his health was the object of the voyage, but the effort was unsuccessful; he died at sea, within sight of the English coast. His remains were carried to England, and interred on Bristol hill. His widow immediately re-embarked for the West Indies, but her voyage was tempestuous. Grief for the loss of her husband, to whom she was strongly attached, and suffering from the storm her vessel encountered, terminated her life on her homeward passage.
It was a singular coincidence that two of Mr. Quincy's brothers died at sea, as he did on shipboard, Edmund, the eldest and Josiah, the youngest brother.
Samuel Quincy had two sons: Samuel, a graduate of Harvard College in 1782, who was an attorney-at-law in Lenox, Mass., where he died in January, 1816, leaving a son Samuel. His second son, Josiah, became an eminent counselor-at-law of Romney, N. H., and President of the Senate of that State.
Mr. Samuel Quincy was proscribed and banished and his property confiscated.
COLONEL JOHN MURRAY.
About 1750 there appeared in Boston society a very handsome man by the name of Murray, whose antecendents people seemed to be ignorant, when he came to this country he settled at Rutland, and was very poor, and at first "peddled about the country" and then became a merchant. He was a man of great influence in his vicinity, and in the town of Rutland, which he represented many years in the General Court. On election days his home was open to his friends and good cheer dispensed free to all from his store. His wealth, social position, and political influence, made him one of the Colonial noblemen who lived in a style that has passed away in New England. He was a Colonel in the militia, for many years a member of the General Court, and in 1774 was appointed a Mandamus Councillor, but was not sworn into office, because a mob of about five hundred, with the "Worcester Committee of Correspondence," repaired to Rutland, to compel Colonel Murray to resign his seat in the Council. On the way, they were joined by nearly one thousand persons, among whom were a portion of the company who had compelled Judge Timothy Paine to take the same course, marching directly to Rutland the same day.
A delegation went to his house, and reported that he was absent. A letter was accordingly sent to him, to the effect that; unless his resignation appeared in the Boston papers, he would be waited upon again. He abandoned his home on the night of the 25th of August of that year, and fled to Boston.
As previously stated, there was always a mystery surrounding John Murray, regarding who he was and where he came from, but his descendants had some reason for supposing that he was one of the "Athol Family" of Scotland, the surname of the Duke being Murray. Some years since one of Col. Murray's descendants went to "Blair Athol," the family seat of the Dukes of Athol, hoping to hear something about him, and there found an old retainer of the family who recalled the fact that many years ago a younger member of the family had disappeared, nothing being heard of him again, though it was supposed he had run away to America.
Miss Murray, after her father's death, went from St. John to Lancaster, Mass., to be with her relatives, the Chandler Family. She had with her some amount of silver plate, and on each piece was the arms of the "Ducal House of Athol." She had small means, and when in need of money used to sell this silver, one piece at a time. In the grant of the town of Athol by the General Court the first name is that of John Murray, who probably gave the name of his ancestral home to the new town.
In 1776, with a family of six persons, he accompanied the Royal Army to Halifax. Col. Murray left a very large estate when he fled from Boston, and in 1778 he was prosecuted and banished, and in 1779 lost his extensive property under the Confiscation Act.
After the Revolution, Colonel Murray became a resident of St. John, N. B. He built a house in Prince William street, with a large lot of land attached to it, which became very valuable.
A portrait by Copley is owned by his grandson, the Hon. R. L. Hazen of St. John, a member of the Executive Council of New Brunswick. He is represented as sitting in the full dress of a gentleman of the day, and his person is shown to the knees. There is a hole in the wig, which is said to have been done by one of the mob who sought the Colonel at his house after his flight, vexed because he had eluded them, vowed they would leave their mark behind them, accordingly pierced the canvas with a bayonet.
Colonel Murray married several times, his first wife was Elizabeth McLanathan, who was the mother of ten children. His second wife was Lucretia Chandler, the daughter of John and Hannah Gardner, of Worcester. His third wife was Deborah Brinley, the daughter of Francis Brinley, of Roxbury.
Colonel Murray was allowed a pension of L200 per annum by the British Government. His estate valued at L23,367, was confiscated except one farm for his son Alexander, who joined the Revolutionists. He died at St. John, 1794.
DANIEL MURRAY, of Brookfield, Mass., Son of Colonel John. He graduated at Harvard College in 1771. Mr. Murray entered the military service of the Crown, and was Major of the King's American Dragoons. In 1778 he was proscribed and banished. At the peace he retired, on half pay. In 1792 he was a member of the House of Assembly of N. B. In 1803 he left the Colony. In 1832 he died at Portland, Maine.
SAMUEL MURRAY, Son of Colonel John, graduated at Harvard College in 1772. He was with the British troops at Lexington in 1775, and was taken prisoner. In a General Order, dated at Cambridge, June 15, 1775, it was directed "That Samuel Murray be removed from the jail in Worcester to his father's homestead in Rutland, the limits of which he is not to pass until further orders." In 1778 he was proscribed and banished. He died previous to 1785.
Robert Murray, Son of Colonel John. In 1782 he was a Lieutenant of the King's American Dragoons. He settled in N. B., and died there of consumption in 1786.
John Murray, Son of Colonel John. In 1782 he was a Captain in the King's American Dragoons. After the Revolution he was an officer of the Fifty-fourth Regiment, British Army.
JUDGE JAMES PUTNAM.
ATTORNEY-GENERAL OF MASSACHUSETTS BAY.
John Putnam, the founder of the Salem family, was born in 1579, at Wingrave, Buckinghamshire, England. He is described in the records an husbandman. His farm was at Burstone in Wingrave. He emigrated to Salem with his three sons in 1640, where grants of land were made by the town of Salem to him and to his sons on their own account, in what was then known as Salem Village, now the town of Danvers.
His sons were Thomas, born 1614, died at Salem Village 1686; Nathaniel, born 1619, died at Salem Village 1700; John, born 1627, died at Salem Village, 1710.
In deeds, John Putnam is described as both husbandman and yeoman. He was a man of substance and of as much education as his contemporaries, but neither seeking or desiring public office. In 1653 he divided his lands between Thomas and Nathaniel, having evidently already granted his homestead to his younger son John. He died in 1662.
The subject of this memoir was a descendent of John Putnam, in the fifth generation, through his youngest son John, known as Captain John. It was in the military affairs and in the witchcraft delusion that his character is best shown. In 1672 he is styled Corporal, in 1678 he was commissioned Lieutenant of the troope of horse at the Village, and after 1687 he is styled "Captain." He served in the Naragansett fight, and retained his military manners throughout his life. In 1679 and later he was frequently chosen to present Salem at the General Court, to settle the various disputed town bounds. He was selectman in 1681. He was deputy to the General Court for many years previous to the new charter.
His residence was on the farm originally occupied by his father, now better known as Oak Knoll, the home of the poet Whittier.
The will of John Putnam is not on record. He seems to have disposed of his property by deed to his children. Rev. Joseph Green makes the following note in his diary: "April 7, 1710, Captain Putnam buried by ye soldiers."
LIEUTENANT JAMES, son of CAPTAIN JOHN, was born in Salem Village, 1661, and died there in 1727. He was a farmer, inheriting from his father the homestead at Oak Knoll. In 1720 he is styled on the records Lieut., which title was always scrupulously given him. Although never caring to hold office, he was evidently esteemed by the townspeople. He had been taught a trade, and he in his turn taught his son the same trade, that of bricklayer. This was a custom among many of the early Puritan families. It is to the credit of all concerned, that far-sighted and wealthy men of that day brought up their sons to know a useful trade, in case adversity should overtake them.
JAMES PUTNAM, of the fourth generation, son of the aforesaid Lieut. James, was born in Salem Village in 1689, and died there in 1763. He lived in the house just to the south-east of Oak Knoll on the same road; the house is still standing, in a fine state of preservation.
During his long life, James Putnam took considerable interest in town affairs. He was one of those who succeeded in obtaining the establishment of the district of Danvers. In 1730 he paid the largest tax in the village.
HONORABLE JAMES PUTNAM, of the fifth generation, son of the aforesaid James Putnam, was born in Salem Village, 1726, and died at St. John, N. B., 1789. He graduated from Harvard College in 1746. In his class was Dr. Edward H. Holyoke, whose father, Edward Holyoke, was then president of the College. He studied law, under Judge Trowbridge, who according to John Adams, controlled the whole practice of Worcester and Middlesex Counties, and settled in Worcester in 1749, taking up the practice of the law.
In 1750 he married Eleanor Sprague, by whom he had one daughter, Eleanor, who married Rufus Chandler, of Worcester.
James Putnam, in 1757, held the commission of Major, under Gen. Louden, and saw service. Between the years of 1755 and 1758, John Adams, afterwards President of the United States, taught school in Worcester, and studied law with Mr. Putnam. He also boarded in his family. Mr. Adams remarks that Mr. Putnam possessed great acuteness of mind, had a very extensive and successful practice, and was eminent in his profession. James Putnam was one of the twenty signers to the address from the barristers and attorneys of Massachusetts to Gov. Hutchinson, May 30, 1774. His brothers, Dr. Ebenezer and Archelaus, both addressed Gov. Gage on his arrival, June 11, 1774. In February, 1775, he, with others, was forced by the threatening attitude of the mob to leave Worcester and seek refuge in Boston, he having had his cattle stolen and a valuable grist mill burned, and threatened with bodily harm.
On Oct. 14, 1775, eighteen of those gentlemen who were driven from their habitations in the country to the town of Boston, addressed Gov. Gage on his departure. Among the signers were James Putnam and James Putnam, Jr.
In 1778 the Massachusetts Legislature passed an act confiscating the estate of 308 Loyalists and banishing them; if they returned a second time, to suffer death without the benefit of clergy. Among these was the Hon. James Putnam, who had in 1777 succeeded Jonathan Sewell as attorney general of Massachusetts, the last under the Crown.
During the siege of Boston on the 17th Nov. 1775, the following order was issued by the British Commander: "Many of his Majesty's Loyal American subjects having offered their services for the defence of the place" are to be formed into three companies under command of Hon. Brigadier General Ruggles, to be called the Loyal American Associates, to be designated by a white sash around the left arm. James Putnam was commissioned captain of the second company, and James Putnam, Jr. was commissioned second lieutenant of the second company. At the evacuation of Boston, both James Putnam and his sons, James and Ebenezer, accompanied the army to Halifax, and New York, where his sons engaged in business. He sailed for Plymouth, England, December, 1779, with Mrs. Putnam and his daughter Elizabeth.
While in England he wrote numerous letters to his brothers, from which we make the following quotations. Under date of Nov. 13th, 1783, he writes from London: "My countrymen have got their independence (as they call it) and with it in my opinion, have lost the true Substantial Civil liberty. They doubtless exult as much at the acquisition they have gained as they do at the loss the Tories, as they call them, have sustained."
"America, the thirteen states, at last separated from this country, never more to be connected. For you may believe me when I say I firmly believe, and on good grounds, that even the present administration would not now accept of the connection, if America would offer it on the old footing."
"You may be assured there is nothing I wish for more than to see my dear brother and other dear friends in America again."
"At the same time, I can tell you with truth, unpleasing as you may think the situation of the Loyalists to be, I would not change with my independent countrymen with all imaginary liberty, but real heavy taxes and burdens, destitute in a great measure, as I know they are, of order and good government."
"Having this view of things, you can't expect to see me in Massachusetts soon, even if I was permitted or invited to return with perhaps the offer of the restoration of my estate. For what would it be worth but to pay all away in taxes in a short time."
"I'm not yet determined whether to remain in this country or go abroad to Nova Scotia or elsewhere."
Again, under date of July 20, 1784, he writes: "Your country is so changed since I left it, and in my opinion for the worst, that the great pleasure I should have in seeing my dear friends would be lost in a great measure in the unhappy change of government."
His next letter was from Parr, on the river St. John, N. B., Nov. 18, 1784. He says: "Dear Brother. I have been at this place about ten days, am surprised to find a large flourishing town, regularly laid out, well built, consisting of about two thousand houses, many of them handsome and well finished--And at the opposite side of the river at Carlton, about five hundred more houses on a pleasant situation. A good harbor lies between the two towns, which never freezes, and where there are large ships and many vessels of all sizes. The country appears to me to be very good, and am satisfied will make a most flourishing Province."
He writes again the next year: "You may wonder perhaps at my saying I hope I'm settled in this Province for life, and that I can be contented or happy in the place formerly called Nova Scotia."
"I want to see you and my friends, if I have any, but I don't wish to live in your country or under your government. I think I have found a better. No thanks to the Devils who have robbed me of my property. I do not wish to live with or see such infernals."
"God bless you, your wife, your son, your daughter, my brother, etc., who I shall be glad to see again, but not in the American States."
In another letter, dated St. John, N. B., May 13, 1785, to his brother, he says: "As to seeing you any more, you have no reason to expect it in your State.
"You may be assured, I should be exceeding happy in seeing you both here. I can give you a comfortable lodging, and wholesome good fresh provisions, excellent fish and good spruce beer, the growth and manufacture of our own Province.
"Tho' we should be glad to see the few friends we have remaining there among you, we don't wish to give them the pain of seeing us in your State, which is evidently overflowing with freedom and liberty[231] without restraint.
[231] During 1785 Shay's rebellion occurred in Massachusetts and was put down by General Lincoln.
"The people of the States must needs now be very happy, when they can all and every one do just what they like best. No taxes to pay, no stamp act, more money than they know what to do with, trade and navigation as free as air."
Under date of Nov. 4, 1786, he writes: "The people of your State seem to be stirring up another revolution. What do they want now? Do they find at last, to be freed from the British Government, and becoming an independent State does not free them from the debts they owe one another, or exempt them from the charge of taxation. I wish they would pay me what they justly owe, they may then have what government they please, or none, if they like that best."
He was appointed in 1784 Judge of the Supreme Court of New Brunswick, and a member of the Council. It was said that he was the ablest lawyer in all America. Judge Putnam was the first of the council and bench of New Brunswick, who died from failing health; he had not attended council meetings for over a year. He died 23 Oct., 1789, in his 65th year. In character he was upright and generous; his health was never robust; and loss of country, friends and wealth must have been a severe blow. Sabine says: "I have often stood at his grave and mused upon the strange vicissitudes of human condition, by which the Master, one of the giants of the American Colonial Bar, became an outlaw, and an exile, broken in fortune and spirit, while his struggling and almost friendless pupil, elevated step by step by the very same course of events, was finally known the world over as the Chief Magistrate of a Nation." It is thus in all successful Revolutions, those that were at the head of affairs are hurled from power, and their fortunes wrecked, whilst young men like John Adams, of great abilities but poor, and little prospects for advancement, are elevated to the highest offices. Who would have ever heard of the "Little Corporal" had it not been for the French Revolution, then there would not have been any "Napoleon the maker of Kings."
Judge Putnam had two relatives who became famous in the Colonial wars, and the Revolution. Major-General Israel Putnam was of the fourth generation from John. He was born in Salem Village, 1717. He distinguished himself at Crown Point, Montreal and Cuba, and later at Bunker Hill. General Rufus Putnam was of the fifth generation. After serving in the Colonial wars under his cousin Israel Putnam, he took part in the siege of Boston, and constructed the works on Dorchester Heights, on the 4th of March, 1776, that forced the evacuation of Boston.
At no time during the youth of these two men would one have predicted that they would be two great soldiers. Their early education was very defective, partly because school advantages were then very meagre in the rural districts, in which they passed their youth, and partly no doubt, because their strong inclinations were for farming and active outdoor life, rather than for books and sedentary occupation. Robust and full of energy, they were as boys, given to feats of strength and daring.
In 1780 General Rufus Putnam "bought on easy terms" the confiscated property of Colonel Murray, who married Lucretia Chandler. This property was situated in Rutland, and consisted of a large farm and spacious mansion.
JAMES PUTNAM, JR., son Judge Putnam, graduated at Harvard College in 1774. He was one of the eighteen country gentlemen who addressed Gen. Gage, and were driven into Boston. He went to England and died there in 1838, having been a barrack master, a member of the household, and an executor of the Duke of Kent, the father of Queen Victoria.
JUDGE TIMOTHY PAINE.
Stephen Paine, from whom so many of the family in America are descended, came from Great Ellingham, near Hingham, Norfolk County, England. He was a miller, and came with a large party of immigrants from Hingham and vicinity, in the ship Diligent, of Ipswich, John Martin master, in the year 1638, bringing with him his wife Rose, two sons and four servants.
Mr. Paine first settled at Hingham, Mass., where he had land granted to him, was made a freeman in 1639 and elected Deputy in 1641. In 1642 he, with four others, settled at Seekonk, and became prominent in the affairs of the new settlement at Rehoboth.
Mr. Paine survived the eventful period of King Philip's war and died in 1679, outliving his two sons, Stephen having died at Rehoboth in 1677, and Nathaniel in 1678.
NATHANIEL PAINE, son of the aforesaid Nathaniel, of the third generation, was born at Rehoboth 1661, married Dorothy, daughter of Jonathan Rainsford, of Boston. He removed in early life to Bristol, Mass., now R. I., and was one of the original proprietors of that place. In 1710 he was appointed Judge of the Court of Common Pleas, and Judge of Probate. He was one of the Council of Mass. Bay from 1703 till his death in 1723, with the exception of the year 1708. Nathaniel Paine died at Bristol, R. I., in 1723, and his wife Dorothy Rainsford, in 1755.
NATHANIEL PAINE, of the fourth generation and fourth son of the preceding Nathaniel, was born at Bristol 1688. He was an active and influential citizen of Bristol, was for five years elected Representative. In 1723 he was a member of a Court of Admiralty for the trial of pirates. In 1724 was a Judge of the Court of Common Pleas.
Mr. Paine married Sarah, daughter of Timothy Clark of Boston. After his death in 1729, his widow married John Chandler and removed to Worcester.
TIMOTHY PAINE, son of the aforesaid Nathaniel and Sarah Clark, his wife. He was born in Boston in 1730 and married Sarah Chandler in 1749, the daughter of John Chandler, so these young people had probably been brought up under the same roof from early childhood. He graduated at Harvard College in 1748, and was a stout government man in the controversies which preceded the Revolution.
Soon after leaving college, Mr. Paine was engaged in public affairs, and the number and variety of offices which he held exhibit the estimation in which he stood. He was at different times Clerk of the Courts, Register of Deeds, Register of Probate, member of the executive council of the Province, in 1774 he was appointed one of his Majesty's Mandamus Councillors, Selectman and Town Clerk, and Representative many years in the General Court. In 1771 he was also Special Justice of the Supreme Court. Solid talents, practical sense, candor, sincerity, ability, and mildness, were the characteristics of his life.
When the appeal to arms approached, many of the inhabitants of Worcester, most distinguished for talents, influence, and honors, adhered with constancy to the Government. Educated with veneration for the sovereign to whom they had sworn fealty; indebted to the government for the bounty, honor and wealth which they possessed--loyalty and gratitude alike influenced them to resent acts that were treasonable, and rebellious. The sincerity of their motives were attested by the sacrifice of life, property, loss of power, and all the miseries of banishment, confiscation and exile.
The struggle between the revolutionist, and the loyalty of a minority of the people, powerful in numbers, as well as talents, wealth, and influence, arrived at its crisis in Worcester early in 1774, and terminated in the total defeat of the loyalists.
Among the many grievances of the revolutionists, was the vesting of the government in the dependents of the King, it aggravated the irritation, and urged the mobs to acts of violence.
Timothy Paine, Esq., had received a commission as one of the Mandamus Councillors. High as was the personal regard, and respect for the purity of private character of this gentleman, it was controlled by the political feelings of a period of excitement; and measures were taken to compel his resignation of a post which was unwelcome to himself, but which he dared not refuse, when declining would have been construed as contempt for the authority of the King, by whom it was conferred.
August 22, 1774, a mob of nearly 3000 persons collected from the surrounding towns, visited Worcester and entered the town before 7 o'clock in the morning. They chose a committee to wait upon Mr. Paine and demand his resignation as Councillor. They went to his house, and he agreed to resign from that office, and drew up an acknowledgement, mentioning his obligations to the country for favors done him, his sorrow for having taken the oath, and a promise that he never would act in that office contrary to the charter, and after that he came with the committee to the common, where the mob made a lane between them, through which he and the committee passed and read divers times as they passed along, the said acknowledgment. At first one of the committee read the resignation of Mr. Paine in his behalf. It was then insisted that he should read it with his hat off. He hesitated and demanded protection from the committee, which they were incapable of giving him. Finally, with threats of tar and feathers, and personal violence, in which his wig was knocked off, he complied, and was allowed to retire to his dwelling unharmed.
At the commencement of the Revolution some American soldiers quartered at his house repaid his perhaps too unwilling hospitality, and signified the intensity of their feelings towards him by cutting the throat of his full length portrait.
Madam Paine, in passing the guard house, which stood nearly where the old Nashua Hotel stood in Lincoln square, heard the soldiers say "Let us shoot the old Tory." She turned around facing them and said: "Shoot if you dare," and then she reported to General Knox the insult she had received, which was not repeated.
Mrs. Timothy Paine or Madam Paine, as she was styled from respect to her dignity and position, was a woman of uncommon energy and acuteness. She was noted in her day for her zeal in aiding as far as was in her power the followers of the crown, and in defeating the plans of the rebellious colonists. In her the King possessed a faithful ally. In her hands his dignity was safe, and no insult offered to it, in her presence, could go unavenged.
Her wit and loyalty never shone more conspicuously than on the following occasion: when President Adams was a young man, he was invited to dine with the court, and bar, at the home of Judge Paine, an eminent loyalist of Worcester. When the wine was circulating around the table, Judge Paine gave as a toast "The King." Some of the Whigs were about to refuse to drink it, but Mr. Adams whispered to them to comply, saying "we shall have an opportunity to return the compliment." At length, when he was desired to give a toast, he gave "The Devil." As the host was about to resent the indignity, his wife calmed him, and turned the laugh upon Mr. Adams, by immediately exclaiming "My dear! As the gentleman has been so kind as to drink to our King, let us by no means refuse in our turn to drink to his."
Timothy Paine and Sarah Chandler, his wife, not only feared God, but honored the King, so the old record goes. They belonged to families, often associated together in the remembrance of the present generation, as having adhered through the wavering fortunes and final success of the Revolution, devoted and consistent to the British Crown. Solid talents, practical sense, candor, sincerity, affability, and mildness, were the characteristics of his life. He died July 17, 1793, at the age of sixty-three. His widow died at Worcester, in 1811.
DR. WILLIAM PAINE.
William Paine, son of the aforesaid Timothy Paine, was born in Worcester, Mass., June 5, 1750. He graduated at Harvard College in 1768, his name standing second in a class of more than forty, when they were arranged in the catalogue according to the dignity of families.
He then began the study of medicine with a very distinguished physician, Dr. Edward A. Holyoke, of Salem, while here he made the acquaintance of the lady whom he married a few years later.
One of his earliest instructors was John Adams, who was then reading law in the office of Hon. James Putnam, at Worcester. He began the practice of medicine in Worcester in 1771. That year Mr. Adams revisited Worcester, after an absence of sixteen years, and notes the impression of his former pupils as follows: "Here I saw many young gentlemen who were my scholars and pupils. John Chandler, Esq., of Petersham, Rufus Chandler, the lawyer, and Dr. William Paine, who now studies physics with Dr. Holyoke of Salem, and others, most of whom began to learn Latin with me."
In 1771, after about three years of study, he returned to Worcester, with every prospect of becoming a leader in the medical profession. In 1773 he entered into partnership with two other physicians or "Traders in the Art, Mystery and Business of an Apothecary and the practice of Physick." This interest was confiscated in 1779.
In 1773 Dr. Paine was married to Miss Lois Orne of Salem, with a fortune of 3,000 pounds sterling. Six children were born from this union.
For the purpose of facilitating his business abroad and of perfecting his medical education, Dr. Paine in Sept. 1774, sailed for England, and the following winter was passed in the study of medicine. During his visit there he was presented to the King, and Queen Charlotte, wearing the court dress prescribed for medical men, which was a gray cloth coat with silver buttons, a white satin waistcoat, satin small clothes, silk hose and wearing a sword, and a fall of lace from cravat or collar, and lace in the sleeves. It is interesting to read some of his letters written as he was about leaving England. In one of them he writes "The Colonists had better lay down their arms at once, for we are coming over with an overwhelming force to destroy them." His wife and children seemed to have remained with his father and mother while he was in England, but finding their position in Worcester unpleasant on account of their unpopular political opinions, she left and went to Rhode Island.
Dr. Paine returned to America in 1775, shortly after hostilities commenced, and while there was apparently no legal impediment to his return to Worcester, it was doubtless a very prudent decision of Dr. Paine not to make the attempt. His feeling of personal loyalty to the government was too strong to allow him even to appear to yield to the Revolutionists, then dominating his native town, and he wisely returned to England. His study of medicine there must have been pursued with unusual zeal and success, for Nov. 1775, he received from Marischal College, Aberdeen, the degree of M. D.
Soon after obtaining this distinction, he received an appointment as Apothecary to the British forces in America, and served in Rhode Island and New York till 1781, when he returned to England, in company with his patient, Lord Winchelsea. While in England, in 1782, he is said to have been made Licentiate of the Royal College of Physicians of London.
October 23, 1782, he was commissioned Physician to His Majesty's Hospitals within the district of North America, commanded by Sir Guy Carleton, and he reported for duty at Halifax, N. S. Letters which have been preserved show that during this year at Halifax he had won the respect, friendship and confidence, not only of his immediate medical superior, Dr. Nooth, but also of Lord Wentworth, Governor of the Province.
In the summer of 1784, Dr. Paine took possession of La Tete, an island in Passamaquoddy Bay, granted him by the British Government, for his services in the war. He remained there less than one year, and then made his residence in St. John, N. B., where he took up the practice of his profession. The cause of the removal from the island was the protest of his wife that the children could not receive a proper education in that isolated spot.
He was elected member of the Assembly of New Brunswick from the county of Charlotte, and was appointed Clerk of the House. He was commissioned as a justice for the county of Sunbury. There is abundant evidence of the high estimate placed on his character and ability in the numerous offices which he held during his residence here.
July 29, 1786, he wrote to a friend: "I do a great deal of Business in my Profession, but I get very little for it. The truth is we are all very poor, and the most industrious and economical gets only a bare subsistence. However, it will soon be better as the Province is daily filling with stock of all kinds."
In 1787 Dr. Paine made application for leave to visit and reside in New England while remaining on half pay, and a permit to that effect was issued by the War Office.
In Salem he devoted himself to the practice of medicine in the town where he had been known as a student of the famous Dr. Holyoke, and where his wife had spent her early life.
In 1793 his father died, and he removed to Worcester, and for the remaining forty years of his life he resided in the paternal mansion. His father's property was large, and as he was not an absentee, it was not confiscated. By his will it was equally divided between his children, the farm and homestead covered 1230 acres. Dr. Paine bought the shares of his brothers, and sisters in same for 2,000 pounds sterling, but the deeds were given to Nathaniel Paine in trust for William, for the doctor was as yet, but an alien in his native state. The year 1812 was a critical one, bringing a most important question for him to decide, for war arose between Great Britain and the United States, and he was still a half-pay officer in His Majesty's service. He therefore resigned from the British service, and in 1812 petitioned the Legislature for its consent to his being a naturalized citizen of the United States.
William Paine was one of the founders of the American Antiquarian Society of Worcester. His name was omitted from the act of incorporation because he was an alien. The next year, 1813, he was elected Vice President of same.
He occupied the old paternal mansion on Lincoln street in a quiet, very dignified and almost luxurious manner as befitted a country gentleman. Here he died at the ripe age of 83, March 19, 1833.
SAMUEL PAINE, son of Timothy, was born at Worcester, Mass. Graduated at Harvard College in 1771. The Worcester County Convention, Sept. 7, 1774, voted to take notice of Mr. Samuel Paine, assistant clerk, for sending out venires. Voted, that Mr. Samuel Dennison go to Mr. Samuel Paine forewith, and desire his immediate attendance before this body, to answer for sending venires to constables commanding their compliance with the late Act of Parliament.
Mr. Paine appeared and stated that he felt bound by the duty of his office to comply with the Act, "Voted that Mr. Paine has not given satisfaction, and that he be allowed to consider till the adjournment of this meeting."
On September 21, he transmitted a paper to the Convention explanatory of his conduct; but that body voted that it "was not satisfactory, and that 'his letter be dismissed' and Mr. Paine himself 'be treated with all neglect.'"
In 1775 he was sent to the Committee of Worcester under guard, "to Watertown or Cambridge, to be dealt with as the honorable Congress or Commander-in-Chief shall, upon examination, think proper." His direct offenses consisted, apparently, in saying that the Hampshire troops had robbed the home of Mr. Bradish; that he had heard the Whig soldiers were deserting in great numbers, and that he was told "the men were so close stowed in the Colleges that they were lousy." This is the substance of the testimony of a neighbor, the only witness who appeared against him.
In 1776 Mr. Paine accompanied the British Army to Halifax when they evacuated Boston. During the war he wandered from place to place without regular employment. He returned to Worcester where he died in 1807. The British government allowed him an annual pension of L84.
JOHN CHANDLER.
The founder of this family, so large and so influential before the Revolution, came to these shores from England in 1637, when William Chandler and Annice, his wife, settled in Roxbury. Mr. Chandler died in 1641, "having lived a very religious and godly life," and "leaving a sweet memory and savor behind him." Annice Chandler must have been an attractive woman, for she was not only soon married to a second husband, but to a third, and her last one evidently expected her to enter into matrimony a fourth time, for in his will he provided that she shall have the use of his warming pan only so long as she remained his widow. Goodwife Parmenter, however, died in 1683, in full possession of the warming pan, the widow of the third husband.
JOHN CHANDLER, a son of William, emigrated to Woodstock, Conn., and became a farmer. He was selectman and deacon of the church, and died there in 1703, leaving a family and property valued at L512.
The second John Chandler, son of the first of that name, had before his father's death, moved to New London, Conn., where he married, and in 1698 had opened a "house of entertainment" there. He at a later date moved back to South Woodstock, and in 1711 was chosen representative to the General Court at Boston for several years. After the erection of Worcester County by Act of the Legislature of Massachusetts, April 2, 1731, the first Probate Court in Worcester was held by Col. Chandler as Judge in the meeting house, 13th of July, 1731, and the first Court of Common Pleas and General Sessions on August 10 following, by the Hon. John Chandler, commissioned June 30, 1731, Chief Justice. These offices he held until his death, as well as Colonel of Militia to which stations of civil, judicial and military honors, he rose by force of his strong mental powers, with but slight advantages of education. Judge John Chandler died August 10, 1743, in his 79th year, leaving in his will L8,699.
JOHN CHANDLER, the third of that name, son of the Hon. John Chandler, held nearly all the offices in the town of Worcester, Selectman, Sheriff, Probate Judge, Town Treasurer, Register of Probate, Register of Deeds, Chief Judge of County Courts, Judge of Common Pleas, Representative to the General Court, Colonel of Militia and a member of the Governor's Council. He died in 1762, wealthy and full of honors.
JUDGE CHANDLER, was married to Hannah Gardner, daughter of John Gardner of the Isle of Wight (known afterwards as Gardner's Island), in 1716. She died in Worcester in 1738, aged 39 years, leaving nine children, the first members of the Chandler family who were born and bred in Worcester.
JOHN CHANDLER, son of the aforesaid, the fourth to bear that name was born in New London, Connecticut, in 1720, was married twice and had sixteen children. His father removed to Worcester when he was eleven years of age. At his father's death he succeeded him to the principal county offices. He was Colonel in the militia, and was in service in the French war, and he was Sheriff, Judge of Probate and County Treasurer. Up to 1774 John Chandler's life had been one of almost unbroken prosperity, but when the rebellion broke out, his loyalist sentiments brought upon him the wrath of the mob, and he was compelled to leave home, and family and retire to Boston. When Boston was evacuated, he went to Halifax, and thence to London, and two years after he was proscribed and banished. He sacrificed his large possessions, L36,190 as appraised in this country by commissioners here, to a chivalrous sense of loyalty. In the schedule exhibited to the British Commissioners, appointed to adjust the compensation to the Americans who adhered to the government; the amount of real and personal property which was confiscated, is estimated at L11,067, and the losses from office, from destruction of business, and other causes, at nearly L6,000 more. So just and moderate was this compensation ascertained to be, at a time when extravagant claims were presented by others, that his claim was allowed in full; he was denominated in England "The Honest Refugee." Sabine says "I am assured that, while he was in Boston he was supported for a considerable time by the sale of silver plate sent him by his family; and that when he left home he had no idea of quitting the country. I am assured also, that when the Revolutionary Commissioners took an inventory of his household furniture, the females were plundered of their very clothing." His adherence to the government, and his departure for England, seems to have been his only offences, yet he was treated as harshly as though he had borne arms in the field.
He is spoken of as having a cheerful temperament, engaging in manner, hospitable as a citizen, friendly and kind as a neighbor, industrious and enterprising as a merchant, and successful as a man of business. He died in London in 1800, and was buried in Islington churchyard. In 1741 he married Dorothy, daughter of Colonel Nathaniel Paine. She died in 1745. His second wife was Mary, daughter of Colonel Church, of Bristol, R. I., a descendant of the warrior who fought King Philip. She died at Worcester in 1783. His portrait in oil is preserved in the rooms of the American Antiquarian Society, Worcester. George Bancroft, the distinguished historian, and the widow of Governor Davis of Massachusetts, are Colonel Chandler's grandchildren.
CLARK CHANDLER, son of Colonel John, was born at Worcester in 1743. At first a clerk in the office of the Register of Probate, he became joint Register with Hon. Timothy Paine, and held the appointment from 1766 to 1774. He was also Town Clerk of Worcester from 1768 to 1774. In 1774 he entered upon the town Records a remonstrance of the Loyalists to the great anger of the Revolutionists, who voted in town meeting that he should then and there "obliterate, erase, or otherwise deface, the said recorded protest, and the names thereto subscribed, so that it may become illegible and unintelligible." This he was obliged to do, in presence of the revolutionists, to blot out the obnoxious record by dipping his fingers in ink, and drawing them over the protest.
He left home in June, 1775, and went to Halifax, and thence to Canada. He returned in September of the same year, and was imprisoned in the common jail. Confinement impaired his health, and he was removed to his mother's home. Finally he was allowed to go to Lancaster, on giving security that he would not depart from that town. He returned to Worcester and kept store at the corner of Main and Front streets. His person was small, and he wore bright red small clothes; was odd and singular in appearance, which often provoked jeers and jokes of those around him, but apt at reply "he paid the jokers in their own coin." He was never married, and died in Worcester in 1804.
RUFUS CHANDLER, fifth child of Colonel John by Mary Church, his second wife. He was born in 1747, and graduated at Harvard College in 1776 in a class of forty, with the rank of the fourth in "dignity of family." He read law in the office of his uncle, Hon. James Putnam, in Worcester, where he afterwards practised his profession until the courts were closed by the mobs in 1774. He was one of the barristers and attornies who addressed Hutchinson in the last mentioned year. He inherited the loyalty of his family and left the country at the commencement of hostilities. He went to Halifax in 1776 and in 1778 was proscribed and banished. His mother used a part of his estate for the support of his daughter; but the remainder appraised at L820, was confiscated. He resided in England as a private gentleman, and died in London in 1823, at the age of 76, and his remains were laid with those of his fathers in Islington churchyard. His wife was Elizabeth Putnam, his only child, who bore her mother's name, married Solomon Vose, of Augusta, Maine.
GARDNER CHANDLER, son of Colonel John, of Hardwick, Mass., was born in 1749, and was a merchant in that town. His property was confiscated, and the proceeds paid into the treasury of the state. He left the colony and returned some time after to Hardwick. He made acknowledgments satisfactory to his townsmen, it was voted by the town "that as Gardner Chandler has now made acknowledgment, and says he is sorry for his past conduct, that they will treat him as a friend and neighbor, so long as he shall behave himself well." He removed to Brattleboro, Vermont, and again to Hinsdale, N. H. He died in the last named town. His wife was Elizabeth, daughter of Brigadier Timothy Ruggles.
NATHANIEL CHANDLER, son of Colonel John, was born in Worcester, 1750, graduated at Harvard College in 1768. He was a pupil of John Adams, and commenced the practice of law in Petersham. His brother-in-law, the Rev. Dr. Bancroft, wrote "that he possessed personal manliness and beauty," that "he was endowed with a good mind and a lively imagination" that "in disposition he was cheerful." He was one of the eighteen county gentlemen who addressed General Gage on his departure in 1775. In 1776 he went to Halifax. In 1778 he was proscribed and banished, and his estate confiscated. Entering the British service he commanded a corps of Volunteers and did good service. He returned to Petersham in 1784, and engaged in trade, but relinquished business on account of ill health, and returned to Worcester. Citizenship was restored in 1789, by Act of the Legislature of Mass. He was a very pleasant companion, and a favorite singer of songs in social parties. He never married. He died at Worcester in 1801.
WILLIAM CHANDLER, eighth child of Colonel John, was born at Worcester in 1752, and graduated at Harvard College in 1772. At that time students in that institution were ranked according to "dignity of family" and William was placed in the highest class. He was one of the eighteen county gentlemen who were driven from their homes to Boston, and who addressed General Gage on his departure in 1775. In 1776 he went to Halifax. He was proscribed and banished under the Act of 1778, but returned to Mass., after the close of the Revolution. Among the articles in the inventory of his estate when it was confiscated was seven pairs of silk hose, at fourteen shillings; plated shoe buckles, six shillings; and pair of velvet breeches.
Gardiner Chandler, brother of Colonel John. He was born in Woodstock in 1723. In the French war he was a major and was in service at the surrender of Fort William Henry. He was Treasurer of Worcester County eight years and succeeded his brother John, as sheriff, in 1762. He presented General Gage an Address in behalf of the Judges of the Court of Common Pleas in 1774; and was compelled by a Convention of the Committee of Correspondence to sign a "Recantation." In time, he regained the confidence of the community, and was suffered to live undisturbed. He died in Worcester, in 1782. His first wife was Hannah Greene, of Providence, R. I., his second, Ann Leonard, of Norton, Mass.
The Chandlers were in every respect the most eminent family in Worcester County, and furnished many men of distinction in its ante-revolutionary history. They were closely allied by blood, marriage or friendship with the aristocracy of the county and province, in which they had unbounded sway. They had large possessions, and shared with the Paine family (with whom they were allied), the entire local influence at Worcester, but did not, like that family, survive the shock of the Revolution, and retain a local habitation and a name. Their property was confiscated and they were declared traitors.
The family was broken up; some members of it went abroad and died there, others were scattered in this country, yet not a few of their descendants eminent in the most honorable pursuits, and in the highest positions in life under different names and in various localities, represent that ancient, honorable and once numerous race, wrecked by the Revolution.
John Adams says in his diary, "The Chandlers exercised great influence in the County of Worcester until they took the side of the government in the Revolution, and lost their position. They were well bred, agreeable people, and I visited them as often as my school, and my studies in the lawyer's office would admit."
JOHN GORE.
John Gore, of Roxbury, and his wife Rhoda, were both church members in 1635. He died June 2, 1657, and his widow married Lieut. John Remington. He had ten children, of whom John, Samuel, Abigail, Mary, Mylam, and Hannah, were mentioned in his will.
Samuel Gore, son of the former, lived in Roxbury, and was a carpenter. He married August 28, 1672, Elizabeth, daughter of John Weld. He died July, 1692. They had seven children.
Obadiah Gore, son of Samuel, was also a carpenter, and lived in Boston. He married, October 26, 1710, Sarah Kilby. He died October 8, 1721, and was survived by five children, all of whom were baptized at the Brattle Street church.
JOHN GORE, son of the former, lived in Boston, and was a painter and merchant. He married, May 5, 1743, Frances, daughter of John Pinkney. She was born September 20, 1726. They had fourteen or fifteen children, nine of whom lived to be married. The baptisms of nine of his children are given in the records of the Brattle Street Church. John Gore was an Addresser of Gage, and in 1776 went to Halifax and thence to England. He was proscribed and banished in 1778, and pardoned by the Legislature in 1787. He died in Boston in 1796, aged seventy-seven. His will is in the Suffolk Register, Lib. 94, F. 182. His son, CHRISTOPHER GORE, was born in Boston, Sept. 21st, 1758. He was educated in the public schools of Boston, and was prepared at the South Latin school under the tuition of Mr. Lovell, the most noted educator of his day. At the age of 13, Christopher entered Harvard College, and was among the youngest of his class. But he commenced his collegeate course in troubleous times, for in his junior year the Revolution broke out, which created confusion and disorder through society, and deranged the plans, and changed the pursuits of many in every grade and profession. The College at Cambridge was considered by the Revolutionists as "nest of tories" and during the siege of Boston the college buildings were taken possession of by the continental army stationed at Cambridge, and the students were dispersed for several months. Young Gore was determined to follow out his course of college training, however, and to this end went to Bradford, in Essex County, and studied under the direction and in the family of Rev. Mr. Williams, afterwards professor of mathematics and natural philosophy in Harvard College. When the college removed to Concord he, with most of the students, repaired thither, and resumed his studies. He graduated in 1776, the year that his father was driven from the land of his birth.
Christopher Gore soon commenced the study of law in the office and under the direction of Judge John Lowell, in whose family he resided while a student. He commenced the practice of law in Boston with every prospect of success. He had to depend on himself alone, for not only had he his own fortune to make, but after he left college, he had to contribute to the support of his mother and three unmarried sisters, who were left in Boston without means when his father went to Halifax.
By his own exertion and industry, he paid his college bills after he entered on his profession, in addition to his other responsible duties, devolving upon him with honor to himself. During 1809-10 Mr. Gore was Governor of Massachusetts. While Governor, he occupied the home corner of Park and Beacon streets, and it is said he drove through the streets of Boston in a carriage drawn by four horses. This was more than the plain republican people of Boston could stand, and they did not want him for Governor again, besides it is undeniable that Mr. Gore was a good deal of an aristocrat at heart, and consequently more or less a loyalist. But he made a fine administrator, and at the end of the term retired to private life, and did not resume the practice of his profession.
In 1791 Christopher Gore purchased in Waltham about 1000 acres of land which formerly belonged to an ancestor of President Garfield. Here Governor Gore erected a stately mansion upon a knoll or rise of the land not far distant from Gore street, where one of the drives, leading to it, runs under rows of stately trees, and through a finely kept lawn. In the rear of the house are the flower gardens, and conservatory, and behind that the kitchen garden; to the west of this is the deer park.
After the death of Governor Gore this stately structure was sold to General Theodore Lyman, who after living there seven years sold it to Singleton Copley Greene, the son of Gardner Green, who married a daughter of Copley the artist, the sister of Lord Lyndhurst: (see p. 216.) Christopher Gore married Rebecca Payne, 11 Nov. 1783. They had no children. Gov. Gore died 1 March 1827, his widow 22 Jan. 1833.
JOHN JEFFRIES.
David Jeffries was born at Rhoad, in Wiltshire, England, 1658, and arrived at Boston, May 9, 1677. He married Sept. 15, 1686, Elizabeth, daughter of John and Elizabeth Usher, by whom he had several children. Of his two sons, John, born Feb. 5, 1688, and David, born June 15, 1690, John became Town Treasurer, was a very prominent citizen. He married Sept. 24, 1713, Anne Clarke, and had issue, an only child Anne, who died young. He went to London in 1710, and returned in 1713. He resided in Tremont Street opposite the King's Chapel.
David Jeffries Jr., who continued the name, married in 1713, Katherine, daughter of John and Katherine Eyre, by whom he had an only child David, born 23 Oct. 1714. He was a merchant, and in 1715 he sailed for England, and was lost in the Amity, Sept. 13, 1716, on the sands near Dungeness. His son,
DAVID JEFFRIES, married his cousin, Sarah Jaffrey, 1741, by whom he had eight children, all of whom died young except John, born Feb. 4, 1744, alone preserved the name.
JOHN JEFFRIES, the only son of the former, graduated from Harvard College in 1763, having pursued his medical studies with Doctor Lloyd. He continued his study of medicine in London, and was honored with the degree of M. D. at Aberdeen in 1769. In 1771 he was appointed surgeon to the "Captain" a British Ship-of-the-line in Boston Harbor, by his friend, Admiral Montague. He held that position until 1774.
Dr. Jeffries practised in Boston until the Revolution. He landed with the forces at the battle of Bunker Hill, and assisted in dressing the wounded of the Royal Army, and, it is said, identified the body of Warren, in the presence of Sir William Howe. He accompanied the British troops at the evacuation in 1776 to Halifax, and was appointed Chief of the Surgical Staff of Nova Scotia. In 1779 he went to England; and on his return to America, held a high professional employment to the British forces at Charleston and New York. He resigned in 1780, and going to England again, commenced practice in London.
On the 17th of January, 1785, Dr. Jeffries crossed the English channel with Blanchard in a balloon, landing in the forest of Guines in France. This feat procured for him the attention of the most distinguished personages of the day and an introduction to all the learned and scientific societies of Paris.[232]
[232] A narrative of his two aerial voyages was published In London in 1786, exact and entertaining, with a portrait of the adventurer and a view of the monument erected by the French government, on the spot where he landed.
Dr. Jeffries' first wife was Sarah Rhoads, whom he married in 1770. By her he had three children, who died unmarried. He married again, Sept. 8, 1787, Hannah, the daughter of William and Hannah Hunt. In 1790 Dr. Jeffries returned to Boston in the ship Lucretia.
He resumed his practice, and delivered the first public lecture on anatomy, a branch of his profession of which he was very fond.[233] He was eminent as a surgeon, midwife and physician. He attended the poor as faithfully and cheerfully as the rich, and was never known to refuse a professional call. His death occurred in Boston, September 16th, 1819, aged 76 years, after a successful practice of fifty-three years.
[233] Curwen's Journal, P. 537.
Dr. Jeffries had by his second wife eleven children, all of whom died unmarried excepting John, Katherine who married G. C. Haven, Julia Ann, who married Thomas E. Eckley, and George J., who took the name of Jaffrey.[234]
[234] New Eng. Hist. & General Reg., Vol. 15, P. 16.
John Jeffries, son of the doctor, was born March 23, 1796, and became the only representative of the name in the city. He was a distinguished physician in Boston. He married, November 8, 1820, Anne Geyer, daughter of Rufus Greene and Ann (McLean) Amory. His children were Catherine, Anne, Sarah, Augustus, Edward P. and Henry N. Jeffries.
George Jaffrey, an elder son of Dr. John Jeffries the loyalist, was born December 21, 1789. George Jaffrey, his grand-uncle, who graduated from Harvard College in 1736, became a Counsellor and held various important positions in Portsmouth, N. H. He married Lucy, the daughter of Adam Winthrop, but had no issue. His loyalty to the crown involved him in trouble several times, but he died in 1802 leaving property, then a large amount to George Jaffrey Jeffries, on condition that "he should drop the name of Jeffries; become a permanent resident of Portsmouth, and never follow any profession except that of being a gentleman."
George Jaffrey made his home in Portsmouth and for many years was librarian of the Portsmouth Athenaeum. He died May 4, 1856, and a merited tribute was paid to his character and his labors by Mr. Brewster in the Portsmouth Journal of the 10th.[235]
[235] New Eng. Hist. & General Reg., Vol. 15, P. 17.
The Jeffries family have always ranked among the gentry of Boston, and have maintained that position from the date of the earliest settlement, to the present time.
THOMAS BRINLEY.
Thomas Brinley, Auditor general to Charles First and Second, had a son Francis who settled at Barbados, but the climate not being suited to his habits and constitution, came to New England and settled at Newport, R. I., in 1652. This was about fourteen years after the settlement of that place, and Francis Brinley held various offices; among them that of Judge. He occasionally resided in Boston, owning a large estate at the corner of Hanover and Elm streets. He died there in 1719, aged eighty-seven, and was buried in a grave in the King's Chapel burial-ground in Boston, on the spot where the family tomb now stands.
Thomas, son of the latter, was one of the founders of King's Chapel and resided in Boston. He married Mary Apthorp, and in 1684 went to England, where he died in 1693. His daughter Elizabeth married William Hutchinson, Esq., a graduate of Harvard College, in 1702. Mrs. Brinley, Francis and Elizabeth, returned to Newport, R. I.
Francis Brinley, the son of Thomas, was born in London in 1690, and was educated at Eton. He became a colonel and resided in Roxbury. His mansion was named Datchet from the house of that place in England. Colonel Brinley returned to London, where he died November 27, 1765. Francis Brinley's wife was Deborah, daughter of Edward and Catherine Lyde, and his marriage took place April 18, 1718. They had five sons and two daughters; one of whom married Colonel John Murray, and the other Godfrey Malbone.
Of the sons, THOMAS BRINLEY was a Mandamus Councillor, and lived on Harvard Street. He married his cousin Elizabeth, the daughter of George Cradock, but they left no children. He was a graduate of Harvard College in 1744, and became a Merchant in Boston.
His name appears among the one hundred and twenty-four merchants and others, who addressed Hutchinson in Boston in 1774; and among the ninety-seven gentlemen and principal inhabitants of that town, who addressed Gage in October of the following year. In 1776 he went to Halifax, and thence to England in the same year. In 1778 he was proscribed and banished. His death occurred in 1784, and Elizabeth, his widow, died in England in 1793.
EDWARD BRINLEY, brother of Thomas, married Sarah, daughter of Thomas Tyler and left many descendants.
NATHANIEL BRINLEY, another brother, also married his cousin, Catharine Cradock, was a resident in South Street and at one time lived in Framingham. About 1760 he leased the "Brinley Farm" of Oliver DeLancey, agent of the owner, Admiral Sir Peter Warren, of the Royal Navy, and as is said, employed fifteen or twenty negroes, in its cultivation. It is related that Daniel Shays, the leader of the insurrection in 1786, was in the service of Mr. Brinley on this farm. In 1775 he was an Addresser of Gage, and was ordered, in consequence, to confine himself to his own leasehold. He fled to the Royal Army in Boston, and after the evacuation of that town, he was sent to Framingham by sentence of a Court of Inquiry, ordered to give bond in L600, with two sureties, to remain there four months and to be of good behavior.
"In September 1776, Ebenezer Marshall, in behalf of the Committee of Correspondence, Inspection and Safety, represented that the 'people take him for a very villain,' as he had declared that 'Parliament had an undoubted right to make void the charter in part or in whole'; 'that ten thousand troops, with an artillery, would go through the continent, and subdue it at pleasure'; that he had conveyed 'his best furniture to Roxbury, and moved his family and goods into Boston,' and had himself remained there, 'as long as he could have the protection of the British troops;' that he approved of General Gage's conduct in the highest terms;' that 'his most intimate connections were some of our worst enemies and traitors;' and that, while he had been under their inspection, they had seen nothing 'either in his conduct or disposition, that discovers the least contrition, but otherwise.'"[236]
[236] Sabine's Loyalists, Vol. 1, P. 256.
To some of these allegations, Mrs. Brinley replied in two memorials to the General Court. She averred that, by the conditions of the recognizance, her husband was entitled to the freedom of the whole of the town of Framingham; that he was in custody on the sole charge of addressing Gage; and that instead of being a refuge in Boston, he was shut up in that town while accidentally there, etc. She stated that he at one time had been compelled to work on John Fisk's farm, without liberty to go more than twenty rods from the house unless in Fisk's presence; and that he was denied the free use of pen, ink and paper. She said that after Mr. Brinley had been transferred to the care of Benjamin Eaton, he was not allowed to go from the house, and was fearful that his departure from it would occasion the loss of his life; also that she or any other person was not allowed to converse with him, unless in the hearing of some member of Eaton's family. She urged that he might be removed to some other inland town, and be treated in accordance with his sentence. Mr. Brinley's defence of himself seems to have been the simple remark: "I am a gentleman and have done nothing to forfeit that character." He merely had a rational opinion, but that was enough.
On the 17th September, 1776, the General Court, by resolve, committed him to the care of his father, on security in L600 for his appearance; and, in October of the same year, the committee of Framingham reported to the council that they had disposed of his farm, stock, farm-utensils and household furniture. Nathaniel Brinley removed to Tyngsborough, where his son Robert, married Elizabeth, daughter of John Pitts. This staunch loyalist died at that place in 1814, at the age of eighty-one.
LIST OF CONFISCATED ESTATES BELONGING TO THOMAS BRINLEY IN SUFFOLK COUNTY AND TO WHOM SOLD.
To Gustavus Fellows, Sept. 28, 1782; Lib. 136, fol. 11; Land, dwelling-house, distill house and wharf in Boston, Hollis St. S.; heirs of Joshua Henshaw deceased W.; low water mark.
REV. JOHN WISWELL.
John and Thomas Wiswell were early residents of Dorchester. John's name is found in the records as early as 1634. His brother Thomas came to Dorchester about 1635. Noah, son of Thomas, born in 1640, was a military man, and was in command in the desperate battle with the Indians near Wheelwright's Pond, N. H., where he and his son John were killed, July 6th, 1690. Another son of Thomas, Inchabod, born in 1637, was minister of Duxbury. He had a son Peleg, born in 1683, who was schoolmaster at Charlestown in 1704. John Wiswell, son of Peleg, married Elizabeth, daughter of Dr. Samuel Rogers, graduated from Harvard College in 1705, was a master of a Boston Grammar School in 1719. He died in 1767, aged 84 and is buried in Copps Hill burying ground.
JOHN WISWELL, son of the aforesaid, was born in 1731, and graduated from Harvard College in 1749. In 1753 he was teaching school in Maine, but he pursued the study of divinity as a Congregationalist. Occasionally he preached, and in 1756 he was invited to become the pastor of the New Casco parish in Falmouth, now Portland, and was ordained November third of that year. In 1761 he married Mercy, the daughter of Judge John Minot, of Brunswick.
In 1764 John Wiswell suddenly changed his religious views and left his people. He embraced the Episcopal form of worship, and preached for several Sundays in the town-house. On September 4, 1764, the Parish of St. Paul's Church, Falmouth, was organized and Mr. Wiswell was invited to become their rector. For want of a bishop in the colonies, he was obliged to go to England to receive ordination. A writer at this time says, "There was a sad uproar about Wiswell, who has declared for the church and accepted of the call our churchmen have given him to be their minister." They voted him L100 a year and later he received L20 as a Missionary from the Missionary Society. After a year's elapse, he was able to report to the Society in London for the propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts, that his Congregation had increased to seventy families, and the admittance of twenty-one persons to the communion. In 1765 the parish addressed a letter to the Rev. Mr. Hooper of Boston, asking his good offices in enlisting the sympathy of the churchmen there, in behalf of their oppressed fellow-worshippers in Falmouth. John Wiswell was an ardent Loyalist, as were about twenty of the leading men of his church. He continued to preach until the revolution broke out. After the trouble came in the colonies, he was seized while out walking one day with Captain Mowatt, by Colonel Samuel Thompson of Brunswick, who had arrived with about fifty men unknown to the inhabitants. Colonel Thompson refused to release Mr. Wiswell, and Captain Mowatt, but finally seeing that the town was against him, he consented to release them if they would give their parole to deliver themselves up next day. After his capture, the clergyman was obliged to declare his abhorrence of the doctrine of passive obedience and non-resistance, and was then released. Mr. Wiswell now joined the British Forces, and after going on board a man-of-war addressed a letter to the wardens of his church, resigning his charge. After Captain Mowatt burned Falmouth, he sailed to Boston, and then to England. After leaving his parish he was for three years a chaplain on the British Naval Ship Boyne, and later for a short time was a curate in Suffolk. He and fifteen others from Falmouth had their estates confiscated, and were banished.
At the close of the war, Mr. Wiswell accepted the call of some of his former parishioners, and settled in Cornwallis, Nova Scotia, over a parish they had formed there, and in 1782 he was appointed a missionary of that place. Having lost his first wife, he married a widow Hutchinson from the Jerseys, as the Rev. Jacob Bailey, the frontier missionary writes, who married them. John Wiswell was afterwards a missionary at Aylesford, and after a very full and worthy life, died at Nova Scotia in 1812, at the age of eighty-one. He left two sons, born in Falmouth, who were Lieutenants in the Navy. Peleg, one of his sons, was appointed Judge of the Supreme Court, of Nova Scotia, in 1816 and died at Annapolis in 1836, at the age of seventy-three. When the Rev. John Wiswell lived in Falmouth, Maine, he occupied a house painted red, which stood on the corner of Middle and Exchange Streets, afterwards owned and occupied by James Deering, and which gave place to the brick block built by that gentleman.
HENRY BARNES.
John Barnes, and his wife Elizabeth (Perrie) came to Boston about 1710. He was a prominent merchant, and was in partnership with John Arbuthnot, who married Abigail Little, of Pembroke, in 1719, and whose daughter Christian married Henry, the son of John Barnes, Sept. 26, 1746. John Barnes was a prominent Episcopalian, was vestryman of King's Chapel from 1715 to 1724, warden from 1724 to 1728, was the first mentioned of the trustees concerned in the purchase of land for Christ Church, and afterwards of those who bought of Leonard Vassal, Esq., his estate on Summer street (see p. 286) for the building of Trinity Church. His home in Boston was on the north side of Beacon street, extending from Freeman Place to Bowdoin Street, a portion of which is now occupied by the Hotel Bellevue, he purchased this property in 1721, and died, seized of it. In 1756 it was conveyed by John Erving (see p. 298) to James Bowdoin.
John Barnes died early in 1739 at Clemente Bar, St. Mary Co., Maryland. His wife died in 1742 in Boston.
Among their children was Elizabeth, who married Nathaniel Coffin the Cashire (see p. 234). Among their distinguished children were General John Coffin and Admiral Sir Isaac Coffin, of the British Navy.
Catherine, another daughter, born in 1715, married Colonel Thomas Goldthwaite (see p. 356). She was his second wife, and died at Walthamstow, England, 1796, aged 81.
HENRY BARNES. The subject of this memoir was baptized Nov. 20, 1723. He was brought up in his father's business, and established himself as a merchant in Marlborough, Mass., in 1753, and was appointed magistrate. He was possessed of considerable property, and was one of the largest tax payers in the town, and was the owner of several slaves, one of whom "Daphne," he left in Marlborough, and she was supported out of his estate.
Henry Barnes was thoroughly loyal, and for that reason he was probably the best hated man in Marlborough. A late town history says Marlborough was cursed by a Loyalist named Henry Barnes.
Towards the close of February, 1775, General Gage ordered Captain Brown and Ensign D'Bernicre to go through the Counties of Suffolk and Worcester, and to sketch the roads as they went, for his information, as he expected to march troops through that country the ensuing spring. Their adventures after their departure for Marlborough, are related by one of them as follows:
"At two o'clock it ceased snowing a little, and we resolved to set off for Marlborough, which was about sixteen miles off. We found the roads very bad, every step up to our ancles; we passed through Sudbury, a large village near a mile long; the causeway lies over a great swamp, or overflowing of Sudbury river, and is commanded by a high ground on the opposite side. Nobody took the least notice of us, till we arrived within three miles of Marlborough, (it was snowing very hard all the while,) when a horseman overtook us, and asked us from whence we came--we said from Weston; he asked us if we lived there--we said no; he then asked where we resided, and, as we found there was no evading his questions, we told him we lived in Boston. He then asked us where we were going: we told him to Marlborough, to see a friend; (as we intended to go to Mr. Barnes's, a gentleman to whom we were recommended, and a friend to the Government;) he then asked us, if we were of the army; we said no, but were a good deal alarmed at his asking us that question; he asked several rather impertinent questions, and then rode on for Marlborough, as we suppose, to give them intelligence of our coming--for on our arrival the people came out of their houses (though it snowed and blew very hard) to look at us; in particular, a baker asked Capt. Brown, 'Where are you going, Master?' He answered, 'To see Mr. Barnes.'[237]
[237] The horseman that met them was Col. Timothy Bigelow, of the Committee of Safety.
"We proceeded to Barnes's, and on our beginning to make an apology for taking the liberty to make use of his house, and discovering to him that we were officers in disguise, he told us that we need not be at the pains of telling him, that he knew our situation, that we were very well known, he was afraid, by the town's people. We begged he would recommend some tavern where we should be safe; he told us we would be safe no where but in his house; that the town was very violent, and that we had been expected at Col. Williams's tavern, the night before, where there had gone a party of liberty people to meet us. While we were talking, the people were gathering in little groups in every part of the town (village).
"Mr. Barnes asked us who had spoken to us on our coming into town; we told him a baker; he seemed a little startled at that, told us that he was a very mischievous fellow, and that there was a deserter at his house. Capt. Brown asked the man's name; he said it was Sawin, and that he had been a drummer. Brown knew him too well, as he was a man of his own Company, and had not been gone above a month; so we found we were discovered. We asked Mr. Barnes, if they did get us into their hands what they would do with us; he did not seem to like to answer; we asked him again; he then said, he knew the people very well, that we might expect the worst treatment from them.
"Immediately after this, Mr. Barnes was called out; he returned a little after, and told us the Doctor of the town had come to tell him, he was come to sup with him, (now this fellow had not been within Mr. Barnes's doors for two years before, and came now for no other business than to see and betray us). Barnes told him he had company, and could not have the pleasure of attending him that night; at this the fellow staid about the house, and asked one of Mr. Barnes's children, who her father had got with him; the child innocently answered, that she had asked her papa, but he told her it was not her business; he then went, I suppose, to tell the rest of his crew.
"When we found we were in that situation, we resolved to lie down for two or three hours, and set off at twelve o'clock at night; so we got some supper on the table, and were just beginning to eat, when Mr. Barnes, who had been making inquiries of his servant, found the people intended to attack us; he then told us plainly, that he was very uneasy for us, that we could be no longer in safety in the town; upon which we resolved to set off immediately, and asked Mr. Barnes if there was no road round the town, so that we might not be seen. He took us out of his house by the stable, and directed us by a by-road which was to lead us a quarter of a mile from the town; it snowed and blew as much as I ever saw in my life. However, we walked pretty fast, fearing we should be pursued; at first we felt much fatigued, having not been more than twenty minutes at Barnes's to refresh ourselves, and the roads were worse, if possible, than when we came; but in a little time it wore off, and we got on without being pursued, as far as the hills which command the causeway at Sudbury, and went into a little wood, where we eat a bit of bread that we took from Barnes's, and eat a little snow to wash it down.
"A few days after our return, Mr. Barnes came to town from Marlborough, and told us that immediately after our quitting town, the Committee of Correspondence came to his house, and demanded us; he told them we were gone; they then searched his house from top to bottom, looking under the beds and in the cellar, and when they found we were gone, they told him, if they had caught us in his house, they would have pulled it down about his ears. They sent horsemen after us on every road, but we had the start of them, and the weather being so very bad, they did not overtake us, or missed us. Barnes told them we were not officers, but relatives of his wife's from Penobscot, and were going to Lancaster; that perhaps deceived them."
In the House of Representatives, November, 1775, the "Petition of Henry Knox[238] humbly showeth. That your petitioner having been obliged to leave all his goods and home furniture in Boston, which he has no prospect of ever getting possession of again, nor any equivalent for the same, therefore begs the Honorable Court, if in their wisdom see fit, to permit him to exchange house furniture, with Henry Barnes, late of Marlborough, which he now has in his power to do." The prayer was refused, but he was allowed to use the Loyalist's goods, on giving receipt to account for them to the proper authorities.
[238] Subsequently Chief of Artillery in the Revolutionary Army, and Secretary at War under Washington.
In December, 1775, Catherine Goldthwaite prayed the interposition of the General Court, stating in a petition that she was the niece and adopted heir of Barnes; that she had resided with him about seventeen years, that at his departure from town, she was left with a part of his family in possession, and that the committee of Marlborough had entered upon his estate, sold a part, and proposed to dispossess her entirely. No redress could be obtained.
Through the violence of the mob Henry Barnes was forced to seek shelter in Boston early in 1775. From there he went to England. In 1777 he was at Bristol with his wife and niece, and in September thirteen of his fellow Loyalists were his guests, and later still in the same year he dined with several of the Massachusetts exiles at Mr. Lechmere's, when the conversation was much about the political condition of their native land.
Mr. Barnes was proscribed and banished, and his estate confiscated. He died at London in 1808, at the age of eighty-four.
THOMAS FLUCKER.
Secretary of Massachusetts Bay.
The Fluckers were descended from a French Huguenot family who settled in England. Captain James Flucker, mariner, came to America and married Elizabeth Luist at Charlestown, Mass., May 30, 1717. He was taxed there from 1727 to 1756 and died 3 Nov. 1756. She died Sept. 1770. They had eight children.[239]
[239] See Life of Henry Knox by F. G. Drake, P. 125.
THOMAS FLUCKER, son of the aforesaid, was born at Charlestown, 9 Oct. 1719. He was a merchant in Boston and owned an estate on Summer street. He was commissioned a Justice of the Peace 14 Sept. 1756, was a member of the Council in 1761-68. A Selectman of Boston in 1766, succeeded Andrew Oliver as Secretary, 12 Nov. 1770, was made a Mandamus Councillor 9 Aug. 1774. He married 1st, 12 June 1744, Judith, daughter of Hon. James Bowdoin, a Boston Huguenot family, and as a testimony to the public spirit of this famous family, Bowdoin College remains. 2nd, 14 Jan. 1751, he married Hannah, daughter of General Samuel Waldo, proprietor of the Waldo Patent Main, to whose heirs the great domain descended. The portion belonging to Mrs. Flucker and her brother, were confiscated.
Thomas Flucker was a staunch Loyalist. He was banished and his estates confiscated. He left Boston at the evacuation, March 17, 1776, for Halifax. He afterwards went to London, where he was a member of the Brompton Row Association of Loyalists, who met weekly for conversation and a dinner. An extract from Hutchinson's Diary, July 13, 1776, says:
"Flucker dined with us; depends on the truth of the report of his family's being arrived in Ireland; has 300L allowed by treasury; last (?) of the Council 200L." Thomas Flucker died in England suddenly on Feb. 16, 1783. His wife remained in England, but survived him only three years.
THOMAS FLUCKER, of Massachusetts, son of the former, graduated at Harvard University in 1773. During the Revolution he was a Lieutenant in the 60th British regiment at St. Augustine, Fla., in 1777. By the University catalogue, it appears that he and his father died the same year, 1783.
LUCY FLUCKER, another child, born 2 August 1756, married General Henry Knox of the revolutionary army, and afterwards Secretary at War. The young rebel had at the time a flourishing bookstore opposite Williams Court in Cornhill, a fashionable morning resort at that time for the British officers and their ladies. Harrison Gray Otis says that Miss Lucy "was distinguished as a young lady of high intellectual endowments, very fond of books, especially of the books sold by Knox, at whose premises was kindled as the story went, 'the guiltless flame' which was destined to burn on the hymeneal altar." Henry Knox became Chief of Artillery in the Revolution, and in Washington's Administration, Secretary of War. He acquired on easy terms, a very large share of Mrs. Flucker's property, which had been confiscated, and settled on it at Thomaston, Maine, building a fine mansion in which he himself died in 1806, and his wife in 1824.
Sally Flucker, another daughter of Thomas Flucker, Jr., who performed in Burgoyne's "Maid of the Oaks" in private theatricals given by British officers in Boston, accompanied the family to England and married Mr. Jephson, a member of the Irish Parliament. Copley painted her portrait.
Hannah Flucker, daughter of Thomas, married 2 Nov. 1774, James Urquhart, captain in the 14th regiment, which was engaged in the battle of Bunker Hill.
MARGARET DRAPER.
Richard Draper and his brother William emigrated to the Colonies and settled at Boston about 1680. He was a merchant in that city. The Boston Records state that Richard Draper and John Wentworth furnished the lumber from which Faneuil Hall was built. In his will he says that he is the son of Edward and Ann Draper, of Branbury, in the County of Oxford, Great Britain, deceased, and only brother to William Draper Senr. of Boston. This will was probated Jan. 25th, 1728.
About the year 1700 the Postmaster of Boston was one John Campbell, a Scotchman, and son of Duncan Campbell, the organizer of the postal system of America. He was also a bookseller. In those early days the dissemination of news was in the hands of the postmasters of each town, and John Campbell on Monday, April 24, 1704, improved the present system by printing the news. He issued the first number of the Boston "News Letter," the first newspaper issued in America. The first sheet of the first number was taken damp from the press by Chief Justice Sewell, to show to President Willard, of Harvard College, as a wonderful curiosity. Bartholomew Green, eldest son of Thomas Green, printer to Cambridge University, was the printer. He obtained possession of the newspaper in 1721, shortly after Campbell was removed from the post-office in Boston. On his death in 1733, it passed into the hands of his son-in-law, John Draper, son of Richard Draper, who continued to publish it until his death in 1762, when he was succeeded by his son Richard Draper, who changed the title to the "Massachusetts Gazette and Boston News Letter." He was brought up a printer by his father, and continued with him after he became of age, and was for some years before his father's death a silent partner with him. He was early appointed printer to the Council and Government, which he retained during life. Under his successful editorship, the paper was devoted to the Government, and in the controversy with Great Britain, he strongly supported the Loyalists cause, and illustrated the head of his paper with the King's Arms. Many able advocates of the Government filled the columns of the "News-Letter" but the opposition papers were supported by writers at least equally powerful and numerous.
The Drapers were considered the most eminent and successful printers in America. A list of works containing their imprints would fill pages.
Richard Draper was a man of feeble health, and was remarkable for the delicacy of his mind and gentleness of his manner. No stain rests on his character. He was attentive to his affairs, and was esteemed as the best compiler of news of his day. Having been successful in his business and acquired a competency, he erected a handsome brick home on a convenient spot in front of the old printing home in Newbury, now Washington street, where he resided, and which was afterwards confiscated. He died June 6th, 1774, aged 47, without children, and was succeeded by his widow, Margaret, who was a granddaughter of Bartholomew Green.
A month before his death, he had taken John Boyle into partnership, but at the outbreak of hostilities, his sympathies being strong for the Revolutionary cause, he was not agreeable to Widow Margaret, and was succeeded in the partnership by John Howe, who was a devoted loyalist, and continued with her until the final suspension of the paper, which occurred on the evacuation of Boston, by the British troops, when Margaret departed with the soldiers, going first to Halifax and thence to England, where she enjoyed a pension from the British Government for the remainder of her life, in return for her loyalty and devotion to the Government.
Margaret Draper's paper was the only one published in Boston during the siege. It had been published without intermission for 72 years. She died in London in 1807, and was included in the confiscation and banishment Act.
LIST OF CONFISCATED ESTATES BELONGING TO MARGARET DRAPER IN SUFFOLK COUNTY AND TO WHOM SOLD.
To Richard Devens, Feb. 7, 1783; Lib. 137, fol. 48; Land and buildings in Boston, Newbury St. W.; heirs of Benjamin Church S. and E., Josiah Waters, Jr. N.
RICHARD CLARKE.
Richard Clarke was the son of Francis Clarke, merchant, a descendant of an old Boston family. Richard graduated at Harvard College in 1729. He and his sons were the consignees of a part of the tea destroyed in Boston by the celebrated "Tea Party" December 1773. In a letter from Messrs. Clarke & Sons to Mr. Abram Dupuis they say: "On the morning of the 2nd inst. about one o'clock, we were roused out of our sleep by a violent knocking at the door of our house, and on looking out of the window we saw (for the moon shone very bright) two men in the courtyard. One of them said he brought us a letter from the country. A servant took the letter from him at the door, the contents of which was as follows:
Boston, 1st Nov., 1773. Richard Clarke & Son:
The Freemen of this Province understand from good authority, that there is a quantity of tea consigned to your house by the East India Company, which is destructive to the happiness of every well wisher to the country. It is therefore expected that you personally appear at Liberty Tree, on Wednesday next, at twelve o'clock at noon day, to make a public resignation of your commission, agreeable to a notification of this day for that purpose.
Fail not upon your peril. O. C.
"In this you may observe a design to create a public belief that the factors had consented to resign their trust on Wednesday, the 3d inst., on which day we were summoned by the above-mentioned letter, to appear at Liberty Tree at 12 o'clock noon. All the bells of the meeting houses for public worship were set a-ringing at 11 o'clock, and continued ringing till twelve; the town cryer went thro' the town summoning the people to assemble at 'Liberty Tree.' By these methods, and some more secret ones, made use of by the authors of this design, a number of people supposed by some to be about 500, and by others more, were collected by the time and place mentioned in the printed notification.
"They consisted mostly of people of the lowest rank, very few reputable tradesmen, as we are informed, appeared amongst them. The gentlemen who are supposed the designed factors for the East India Company, viz: Mr. Thos. Hutchinson, Mr. Faneuil, Mr. Winslow and Messrs. Clarke, met in the forenoon of the 3rd inst., at the latter's warehouse, the lower end of King street. You may well judge that none of us entertained the least thought of obeying the summons sent us to attend at Liberty Tree. After a consultation amongst ourselves and friends, we judged it best to continue together, and to endeavour, with the assistance of a few friends, to oppose the designs of the mob, if they should come to offer us any insult or injury. And on this occasion we were so happy as to be supported by a number of gentlemen of the first rank. About one o'clock, a large body of people appeared at the head of King Street, and came down to the end, and halted opposite to our warehouse. Nine persons came from them up into our counting room, viz., Mr. Molineux, Mr. Wm. Dennie, Doctor Warren, Dr. Church, Major Barber, Mr. Henderson, Mr. Gabriel Johonnot, Mr. Proctor and Mr. Ezekiel Cheever. Mr. Molineux as speaker of the above Committee, addressed himself to us, and the other gentlemen present, and told us that we had committed an high insult on the people, in refusing to give them that most reasonable satisfaction which had been demanded in the summons which had been sent us, then read a paper proposed by him, to be subscribed by the factors importing, that they solemnly promise that they would not land or pay duty on any tea that should be sent by the East India Company, but they would send back the tea to England in the same bottom, which extravagent demand being firmly refused, and treated with proper contempt by all of us. Mr. Molineux then said that since we had refused their most reasonable demands, we must expect to feel, on our first appearance, the utmost weight of the people's resentment, upon which he and the rest of the committee left our counting room and warehouse, and went to, and mixed, with the multitude that continued before our warehouse. Soon after this the mob having made one or two reverse motions to some distance, we perceived them hastening their pace towards the store, on which we ordered our servant to shut the outward door; but this he could not effect, although assisted by some other persons amongst whom were Nathaniel Hatch, Esq., one of the Justices of the inferior Court for this country, and a Justice of the Peace for the county. This gentleman made all possible exertions to stem the current of the mob, not only by declaring repeatedly, and with a loud voice, that he was a magistrate, and commanded the people, by virtue of his office, and in his Majesty's name, to desist from all riotous proceedings, and to disperse, but also by assisting in person; but the people not only made him a return, of insulting and reproachful words, but prevented his endeavors by force and blows, to get our doors shut, upon which Mr. Hatch, with some other of our friends, retreated to our counting room. Soon after this, the outward doors of the store were taken off their hinges by the mob, and carried to some distance; immediately a number of the mob rushed into the warehouse, and endeavoured to force into the counting room, but as this was in another story, and the staircase leading to it narrow, we, with our friends,--about twenty in number--by some vigorous efforts, prevented their accomplishing their design. The mob appeared in a short time to be dispersed, and after a few more faint attacks, they contented themselves with blocking us up in the store for the space of about an hour and a half, at which time, perceiving that much the greatest part of them were drawn off, and those that remained not formidable, we, with our friends, left the warehouse, walked up the length of King Street together, and then went to our respective homes without any molestation, saving some insulting behavior from a few dispicable persons.
"The night following, a menacing letter was thrust under Mr. Faneuil's door, to be communicated to the other consignees, with a design to intimidate them from executing their trust, and other methods have since been made use of in the public papers and otherwise, for the same purpose."[240]
[240] "Tea Leaves," pp. 282, 3, 4, 5, 6.
On the morning of November 17, 1773, a little party of family friends had assembled at the home of Richard Clarke, Esq., near the King's Chapel on School Street, to welcome young Jonathan Clarke, who had just arrived from London. All at once the inmates of the dwelling were startled by a violent beating at the door, accompanied with shouts and the blowing of horns, creating considerable alarm. The ladies were hastily bestowed in places of safety, while the gentlemen secured the avenues of the lower story, as well as they were able. The yard and vicinity were soon filled with people. One of the inmates warned them from an upper window, to disperse, but getting no other reply, than a shower of stones, he discharged a pistol. Then came a shower of misseles, which broke in the lower windows and damaged some of the furniture. Some influential Revolutionists had by this time arrived, and put a stop to the proceedings of the mob, which then dispersed. The consignees then called upon the governor and council for protection.
The eventful Thursday, December 16, 1773, a day ever memorable in the annals of Boston, witnessed the largest mob yet assembled in Boston. Nearly seven thousand persons collected at the Old South Meeting House. The tea ships had not taken out clearance papers, the twenty days allowed by law terminated that night. Then the revenue officers could take possession, and under cover of the naval force, land the tea, and opposition to this would have caused bloody work. The Revolutionists desired to avoid this issue, so it was decided to destroy the tea. Rotch, the owner of the "Dartmouth," applied to Governor Hutchinson, at his residence in Milton, for a pass to proceed with his vessel to London, for the governor had ordered Colonel Leslie, commander of the castle, and Admiral Montagu, to guard the passages to the sea, and permit no unauthorized vessels to pass. The governor offered Rotch a letter to Admiral Montagu, commending ship and goods to his protection, if Rotch would agree to have his ship haul out into the stream, but he replied that none were willing to assist him in doing this, and the attempt would subject him to the ill will of the people. The governor then sternly refused a pass, as it would have been "a direct countenancing and encouraging the violation of the acts of trade."
Between six and seven o'clock in the evening three different mobs disguised as Indians proceeded from different parts of the town, arrived with axes and hatchets, and hurried to Griffin's (now Liverpool wharf), boarded the three tea ships, and, warning their crews and the custom house officers, to keep out of the way, in less than three hours time had broken and emptied into the dock three hundred and forty-two chests of tea, valued at L18,000. A Loyalist writer of the time says: "Now this crime of the Bostonians, was a compound of the grossest injury and insult. It was an act of the highest insolence towards government, such a mildness itself cannot overlook or forgive. The injustice of the deed was also most atrocious, as it was the destruction of property to a vast amount, when it was known that the nation was obliged in honor to protect it." This memorable occurrence was undoubtedly in the immediate sequence of the events which it produced, the proximate cause of the American Revolution.[241]
[241] See Page 48 for further particulars concerning the Tea Party Mob.
Richard Clarke was treated with much severity by the Revolutionists. His name is found with the Addressers of General Gage. He arrived in London December 24, 1775, after a passage of "only" twenty-one days from Boston. He was one of the original members of the Loyalist Club, for a weekly dinner, and discourses. He lived with his son-in-law, Copley the painter, Leicester Square. Lord Lyndhurst was his grandson. He died in England in 1795.
JONATHAN CLARKE, son of Richard Clarke, accompanied his father to England. He was his father's partner in business. He was a member in 1776 of the Loyalists Club, in London, and had lodgings in Brompton Row the next year. In 1778 he was proscribed and banished. After the Revolution he went to Canada.
ISAAC WINSLOW CLARKE, son of Richard Clarke, was born in Boston, 27 October, 1746. He was sent by his father to Plymouth to collect debts, but in the night was assaulted by a mob and obliged to flee from the town, to escape from personal injuries. He became Commissary-General of Lower Canada, and died in that Colony in 1822, after he had embarked for England. His daughter Susan married Charles Richard Ogden, Esq., Solicitor-General of Lower Canada, in 1829.
PETER JOHONNOT.
The Johonnots in America are of French Huguenot origin. Daniel Johonnot, who was born in France about 1668, was one of the first parties of thirty families that arrived in Boston in 1686. He was in company with his uncle Andrae Sigournie, Distiller, from Rochelle, and went with him to Oxford in New England, remaining there until the settlement was broken up by the incursion of Indians August 25, 1696. Jean Jeanson (John Johnson) and his three children were killed during the massacre. Mrs. Johnson was Andrew Sigourney's daughter, and tradition in the Johonnot family relates that she was rescued at that time from the Indians by her cousin, Daniel Johonnot, to whom she was subsequently married.[242]
[242] New England Hist. and Genealogical Register. Vol. 6. P. 357.
The first record we have of Daniel Johonnot in Boston was at the time of his marriage "on the 18th of April, by the Rev. Samuel Willard of the Old South Church, to Susan Johnson." This was in the year 1700. In 1714 it appears by the Suffolk Records he purchased for L300 "current money," of John Borland and Sarah his wife, an estate near the Mill Creek and bounded by Mill Pond, and the street leading to said pond (Union Street) etc. His last purchase of real estate was near the Old South Church and this land was afterwards occupied by one of the descendants of his daughter Mary, Mary Anne (Boyer), number 156 Washington street, opposite the Province House. At the time of Daniel Johonnot's death it was occupied by his grandson, and must have been Mr. Johonnot's last residence, as in an inventory it is described as being in the possession of Mr. Daniel Boyer. In Mr. Johonnot's French Bible, Amsterdam Edition of 1700, are recorded the births of his six children in French, all children of Daniel and Serzane Johonnot. This Bible later came into the possession of one of his descendants. Daniel Johonnot died in Boston in June, 1748 at the age of eighty years. His wife died some time after 1731, and before the death of her husband. He was remembered as being a friend to the poor, always industrious and frugal.
Zacherie (Zachariah) Johonnot, the eldest son of the preceding was born in Boston January 20, 1700-1. His first wife was Elizabeth Quincy, who died during the revolution, and he married again, April 24, 1777, Margaret Le Mercier, daughter of Andrew Le Mercier, Minister of the French Protestant church in Boston.
Like his father he was a Distiller and engaged in mercantile pursuits. His dwelling house and store was on Orange street at the South part of the town, and his distillery was on Harvard street directly opposite his dwelling. At the end of the same street was his wharf, and wooden distil-house, storehouses, etc. His house and store were burnt at the time of the great fire, April 20, 1787. The spacious gardens filled with rare fruit trees, beautiful flowers and shrubs from his father's land were mostly destroyed.
Mr. Johonnot died in Boston in 1784 at the age of eighty-three. To his son Peter (then in England) he bequeathed "his mansion house, store adjoining, yard and garden, as the same is now fenced in, etc." He had ten children, all by his first wife.
PETER JOHONNOT, the fourth child of the preceding, was born in Boston September 23, 1729. He was married January 10, 1750 to Katherine Dudley by the Rev. Mather Byles. She was the daughter of the Honorable William Dudley (son of Governor Joseph Dudley). Peter Johonnot was a Distiller, and lived in Boston. In 1775 he was an Addresser of Gage. The next year he was one of the committee with Thomas and Jonathan Amory, chosen by the citizens of Boston March 8, 1776, to communicate with General Howe and take measures to avert the impending destruction, threatened by him, in case his army should be molested while evacuating the town.
In 1776 Peter Johonnot went to Halifax and thence to England. In 1778 he was proscribed and banished, and in 1779 he was a loyal Addresser to the King. Mrs. Johonnot's death occurred in Boston in 1769. Mr. Johonnot died in London August 8, 1809, at the age of eighty, and left no issue.[243] The following occurs in the Diary of Dr. P. Oliver:--"1809, Aug.--Peter Johonnot died this month in London, aged 79."
[243] New England Hist. and Gen. Reg. Vol. 7. P. 142.
FRANCIS JOHONNOT, son of Daniel, was born November 30, 1709. He married Mary Johnson of Boston, widow, 1752. He was a distiller and engaged in mercantile pursuits. His distillery was near Essex street on the margin of the South Cove. His "Mansion house" was on Newbury, now Washington street, the same was owned and occupied for many years by his son-in-law Eben Oliver, Esq. He was a loyalist, and at the beginning of the revolution went to England. He died March 8, 1775. Mary, his widow, who died in Boston March 17, 1797, in her seventy-third year, administered upon his estate in Massachusetts. They had seven children.
MARY JOHONNOT, daughter of Andrew Johonnot, and cousin to Peter the Loyalist, was born in 1730. She married Thomas Edwards of Boston, June 13, 1758, the ceremony being performed by the Rev. Henry Caner of King's Chapel. Mr. Edwards for a while was engaged in mercantile business in Middletown, Connecticut, but later returned to Boston, and was employed by the government. He was a loyalist and went to Halifax in 1776 and thence to England. He died in London at an advanced age. Mary Johonnot, his wife, died in Boston, February 14, 1792. They had five children.
LIST OF CONFISCATED ESTATES BELONGING TO PETER JOHONNOT IN SUFFOLK COUNTY AND TO WHOM SOLD.
To Ebenezer Seaver, Sept. 4, 1782; Lib. 135, fol. 190; Land and buildings in Boston, Orange St. E.; Samuel Pope and Hopestill Foster S.; Joseph Lovell and heirs of William Ettridge W.; Zachariah Johonnot N.
JOHN JOY.
The name of Joy was probably derived from Jouy in Normandy and may have reached England in the form of "de Jouy." William Joy was a Vicar in England in 1395. The name was borne with distinction in England and Ireland for at least five centuries.
Thomas Joy, of Boston, Massachusetts, was born about 1610 in the county of Norfolk, England. The first time he appears in Boston records is "on the 20th of 12th Month, called February, 1636." By trade he was a builder and probably continued that occupation in Massachusetts. He married in 1637 Joan Gallop, the daughter of a well-known townsman, and she became mother of the American Joys. Her father's land included several of the harbor islands, one of which still bears his name.
Thomas Joy built in 1657-8, the house in the Market Place, which was at once the armory, court house, and town hall of Boston, and the first seat of government in Massachusetts. On account of political troubles, Thomas Joy exchanged part of his possessions in Boston for property in Hingham. In 1648 he removed to that town, but his Boston connections were still maintained. He had interests in mills at Hingham, and died in that town, October 21, 1678. His widow survived him more than twelve years, dying in Hingham, March 20, 1690-1. Both are buried in the hill, back of most ancient Protestant church in the United States, where they worshipped. They had ten children.
Joseph, the fourth child, was born in Boston, April 1, 1645. He lived on Bacheler (Main Street,) Hingham, nearly opposite the meeting house, of which he is thought to have been the builder. He married August 29, 1667, Mary, daughter of John and Margaret Prince, of Hingham, and by her had fifteen children. He died in that town, May 31, 1697.
Joseph Joy, his eldest son was born in Hingham July 30, 1688. He was constable in 1697-1711. He married May 22, 1690 Elizabeth, daughter of Captain Thomas Andrews. He died in Hingham, April 29, 1716. His gravestone with inscription still legible in the Hingham churchyard is the most ancient Joy grave mark in America.[244] He had nine children.
[244] Thomas Joy and His Descendants by James R. Joy.
John, the fourth child, was born in Hingham February 7, 1695-6. He lived on Main street at Hingham Centre. December 7, 1724, he married Lydia, daughter of Samuel Lincoln, and by her had seven children. His death is not recorded.
JOHN JOY, the second child of the preceding, was born in Hingham June 4, 1727. He lived in Boston, and by trade was merchant and housewright. He married Sarah, daughter of Michael and Sarah (Kneeland) Homer, of Boston. In 1767 and 1773 he was one of the "principal citizens" to visit the schools with the Governor. In 1774 Mr. Joy was an addresser of Hutchinson, and in 1775 of Gage. In 1776 he went to Halifax with his family and in 1778 he was proscribed and banished. In 1779 he was in England, where he remained, though several of his sons afterwards returned to America. Hutchinson in his diary, June 7, 1776, speaks of a number of Loyalists who had recently arrived at Dover. Mr. Joy's name was among those mentioned. The Loyalist died in London, December, 1804. His portrait by Copley, is an heirloom in the family of the late Charles Joy of Boston. Mrs. Joy died in England in 1805.
A letter of John Wendell (1806) mentions among his early friends in Boston, "Mr. John Joy, who served his time with our respected neighbor, Captain Benjamin Russell, and who afterwards married Mr. Homer's daughter." Mr. Joy had seven children.
DR. JOHN JOY, the eldest son, was an apothecary, and returned to America in 1783, and lived in Boston. His estate on Beacon Hill, once the "elm pasture" of Judge Samuel Sewell, the diarist, was bounded by Beacon, Walnut, Mt. Vernon and Joy street, and included about 100,000 sq. ft. of land. Bowditch says Dr. Joy was desirous of getting a house in the country, and selected this locality as "being country enough for him," "the barberry bushes were flourishing over this whole area." His land cost about $2000, and in 1833 his heirs sold this lot for $98,000. On the southeastern part of this estate he built a modest and graceful wooden building, which was eventually moved to South Boston Point. He married Abigail Green of Boston, and died in 1813.
MICHAEL JOY, another son, was born at Boston in 1754, went to England with his father and died at Hartham Park, England July 10, 1825. Graduated B. A., Harvard College, 1771, and admitted to the same degree at Princeton College, N. J., 1771. He married a lady named Hall in England. His son Henry Hall Joy, of Hartham Park, was a lawyer and Queen's Counsel, was buried in the Temple Church, London.
BENJAMIN JOY, the third son of the Loyalist, was born in Boston, Dec. 27th, 1757, and died at Boston, April 14, 1829. He returned to Boston, was a merchant and was the first Consul General of the United States at Calcutta, holding his commission from President Washington. In 1808 he bought of the trustees of the First Church their property on Cornhill Square, on which he erected Joy's Building, which for three-fourths of a century was a landmark of Boston, people came from miles around to view the stately edifice, and were greatly astonished at its magnificence. The Rogers Building, in front of Young's Hotel, now occupies its site. He was one of the Mt. Vernon proprietors that acquired the valuable lands of John Singleton Copley on Beacon Hill, and a spring in one of his houses on the east side of Charles street, is the famous spring of water which William Blackstone, the first white settler of Boston, mentioned as one of the chief attractions of the Shawmut peninsula.
RICHARD LECHMERE.
Hon. Thomas Lechmere was for many years Surveyor General of His Majesty's Customs for the Northern District of America. His brother was Lord Lechmere of Evesham, who married the daughter of the Earl of Carlisle.
Thomas Lechmere married Ann Winthrop, a descendant of Governor Winthrop, the ceremony was performed by Rev. Eben Pemberton, Nov. 17, 1709. He died at an advanced age, June 4th, 1765, having been born in June, 1683. His wife died in 1746.
RICHARD LECHMERE, son of the above, married Mary Phips, of Cambridge in 1753. She was the daughter of Spencer Phips, who was Lieut. Governor for many years; his farm was what is now known as East Cambridge, and the house stood near where the modern Court House, afterwards was built; General Gage landed his detachment here, which marched to Lexington. About one hundred yards from the West Boston Bridge, a fort was erected on December 11th, 1775, during its erection several soldiers of the revolutionary army were killed at this redoubt. It was considered the strongest battery erected during the siege of Boston, and was known as "Lechmere Point Redoubt," having acquired this property from his wife. It was known for many years as Lechmere's Point. The farm was confiscated, and during the siege of Boston was occupied by Washington's army.
Richard Lechmere was an Addresser of Hutchinson in 1774; was appointed Mandamus Councillor, but did not accept. In 1776 he went to Halifax, with his family of eleven persons, and thence to England. In 1778 he was proscribed and banished, and his estate confiscated; the next year he was included in the Conspiracy Act. His home was at Bristol in 1780. He died in England in 1814, aged eighty-seven.
Richard Lechmere left no male representatives, his daughters, are represented by Coores of Scrunten Hall, Yorkshire. Sir Edward Russell of Ashford Hall, Ludlow and Worralls, whose representatives now are Sir H. Lechmere Stuart, Bart., and Eyre Coote of West Park Eyre. In Colonel Lechmere Russell's possession is Ann Winthrop's bible, with, in her son Richard Lechmere's writing, the statement it was his mother's bible. A piece of land at Hanley, in Worcestershire, the residence of the Lechmere's, is called New England, and is planted with oaks, the seed of which were sent from America by Thomas Lechmere, the settler here.
Nicholas Lechmere, son of Thomas Lechmere, and brother of Richard, was born at Boston, July 29, 1772. He was appointed an Officer of the Customs of Newport, Rhode Island. In 1765, fearing the loss of life in the tumult of that year, he fled to the Cygnet, sloop-of-war, and refused to return to his duties without assurance of protection. From 1767 to the commencement of the Revolution, the disagreements between him and the revolutionists were frequent. In December, 1775, he refused to take the oath tendered by General Lee, and was conveyed under guard to Providence. He went to England, and in 1770, was with his brother at Bristol in 1780. He was banished and his estate confiscated.
LIST OF CONFISCATED ESTATES BELONGING TO RICHARD LECHMERE IN SUFFOLK COUNTY AND TO WHOM SOLD.
To Mungo Mackey, June 11, 1783; Lib. 139, fol. 14; Land and dwelling-house in Boston, Cambridge St. S.; Staniford St. W.; passageway N.; Timothy Newell E. and N.; Jeremiah Allen E.----One undivided half of land, brick distill house and other buildings, Cambridge St. N.; George St. E.; heirs of John Guttridge deceased S.; Belknap St. W.
EZEKIEL LEWIS.
William Lewis belonged to the Braintree Company, which in 1632 removed from Braintree to Cambridge, thence about 1636 to Hartford, about 1659 to Hadley, which town he represented in the General Court 1662, from thence to Farmington, where he died Aug., 1683. Captain William Lewis, son of the above, married May Cheever, daughter of the famous schoolmaster. He died 18 Aug., 1690. Ezekiel Lewis, son of Captain William, was born at Farmington, Conn., Nov. 7, 1674. Graduated at Harvard College in 1695. In 1699 it was decided that the town of Boston required an assistant in the Latin School for Mr. Ezekiel Cheever. It being committed to the Selectmen, Mr. Ezekiel Lewis, his grandson, was selected to fill the position, and to have a salary of not exceeding forty pounds a year. He entered upon his duties the following August. He afterwards became a great merchant in Boston, was Representative 1723 to 1727.
A document dated March 8th, 1707-8 contains the signatures of the Overseers of the Poor for the town of Boston at that period. Ezekiel Lewis' name appears among the seven mentioned. The men who held the position of Overseers were of high standing in the community, and were usually distinguished for their business talents, wealth and charities.[245]
[245] Memorial Hist. of Boston. Vol. IV. P. 646-647.
In 1742, when Faneuil Hall was opened, Ezekiel Lewis was among the Selectmen and representatives of the town of those who were "to wait upon Peter Faneuil, Esq., and in the name of the town to render him their most hearty thanks for so beautiful a gift," etc.
EZEKIEL LEWIS, the Loyalist, was born at Boston, 15 April, 1717, and graduated at Harvard College, 1735. Under the Act of 1777-8, by which the Judge of Probate was authorized to appoint agents for the estates of absentees in each county, the name of Ezekiel Lewis appears in Suffolk County Probate Records, 1779. Docket 16800.
BENJAMIN CLARK.
Dr. John Clark was the first of a prominent Boston family of that name. He was a gentleman of college education, and a leading physician of that day. He died in 1680, aged 85. Their only son, Hon. Dr. John Clark, of Boston, died in 1690, leaving three sons, John, born 1667, William 1670, Samuel 1677.
HON. WILLIAM CLARK, ESQ. became a wealthy merchant and member of the Governor's Council. His residence was situated in North Square, on the corner of Garden Court and Prince street. This mansion was a monument of human pride, in all colonial Boston there was not its peer, and it was without doubt built to outvie that of Hutchinson's, Clark's wealthy next-door neighbor, whose home was demolished by the mob. The principal feature which distinguished this house, was the rich, elaborate and peculiar decoration of the north parlor, on the right of the entrance hall, which was a rich example of the prevalent style, found in the mansions of wealthy citizens of the colonial period, in and around Boston.
The peculiar decoration consisted of a series of raised panels filling these compartments, reaching from the surbase to the frieze, eleven in all, each embellished with a romantic landscape painted in oil colors, the four panels opposite the windows being further enriched by the emblazoned escutcheons of the Clarks, the Saltonstalls, and other allied families. Beneath the surbase, the panels, as also those of the door, were covered with arabesques. The twelfth painting was a view of the house upon a horizontal panel over the mantel, from which this engraving was made, and beneath this panel inscribed in an oval, was the monogram of the builder, W. C. At the base of the gilded and fluted vault of the buffet was a painted dove. The floor was inlaid with divers woods in multiform patterns. In the center, surrounded by a border, emblazoned in proper colors, was the escutcheon of the Clarks, with its three white swans.
The mere enumeration of the details fails to give an idea of the impression made by this painted and gilded parlor, not an inch of whose surface but had been elaborated by painter, gilder, carver or artist, to which the blazoner had added heraldic emblems; so that, as you looked round these walls, the romantic ruins and castles seemed placed there to suggest, if not to portray, the old homes of a long line of ancestors, and the escutcheons above to confirm the suggestion, thereby enhancing the splendor of the present by the feudal dignity of an august past.
The house is supposed to have been built about 1712-1715, for the land was purchased of Ann Hobby, widow, and several other heirs, December 10, 1711, for L725 current money. If so, Councillor Clark lived many years to enjoy the sumptuousness of his new house and the envy of his neighbors. His death, in 1742, was attributed by some to the loss of forty sail of vessels in the French war. After his death the estate was conveyed to his son-in-law, Deacon Thomas Greenough, for L1,400, old tenor, and was by him sold to Sir Charles Henry Frankland, Bart., for L1,200 sterling. The mansion, afterwards was known as the Frankland House.
There were numerous places in Boston named after Clark. There was Clark's Wharf, afterwards changed to Hancock's, and now known as Lewis; Clark street from Hanover to Commercial, still named, in 1788; Clark Square, now North Square, where the Clark mansion was built, was named in 1708, "The Square living on ye Southly side of the North Meeting House including ye wayes on each side of ye watch-house"; Clark's Corner, 1708, corner of Middle, now Hanover street and Bennet street, Dr. Clark's Corner, 1732; corner of Fish, now North street, and Gallops alley, now Board alley and Clark's Shipyard.
AGNES, LADY FRANKLAND.
Sir Harry Frankland, as he was familiarly called here, was heir to an ample fortune, and what added to his interest in this puritanical colony was that he was a descendant in the fourth generation from Oliver Cromwell, he came here in 1741 as Collector of the Port of Boston, preferring that office to the Governorship of Massachusetts, the alternative offered him by George II. The story of his marriage is romantic enough. Upon an official visit to Marblehead, he was struck by the radiant beauty of a young girl of sixteen, maid-of-all-work at the village inn, bare-legged, scrubbing the floor; inquired her name, and, upon a subsequent visit, with the consent of her parents, conveyed her to Boston and placed her at the best school. The attachment he conceived for her appears to have been returned, though Sir Charles did not offer her marriage. The connection between this high official and his fair protege causing scandal, Frankland purchased some 500 acres of land in Hopkinton, which he laid out and cultivated with taste, built a stately country-house and extensive farm buildings, and there entertained all the gay companions he could collect with deer and fox hunts without, with music and feasting within doors, duly attending the church of his neighbor, the Rev. Roger Price, late of King's Chapel, Boston, of which Frankland had been, from his arrival, a member. Called to England by the death of his uncle, whose title he inherited as fourth baronet, he journeyed to Lisbon, and there, upon All Saints Day, 1755, on his way to high mass, he was engulfed by the earthquake, his horses killed, and he would have perished miserably but for his discovery and rescue by the devoted Agnes. Grateful and penitent, he led her to the altar, and poor Agnes Surriage, the barefooted maid-of-all-work of the inn at Marblehead, was translated into Agnes, Lady Frankland.
It was upon Sir Harry Frankland's return from Europe in 1756 that he became the owner of the Clark House, lived in it one short year, entertaining continually, with the assistance of his French cook, Thomas, as appears by frequent entries in his journal; was then transferred to Lisbon as Consul General, and so, with the exception of brief visits to this country in 1759 and 1763, disappearing from our horizon.
After his death at Bath, England, in 1768, his widow returned here with her son, but not until she had recorded her husband's virtues upon a monument "erected by his affectionate widow, Agnes, Lady Frankland,"--dividing her year between Boston and Hopkinton, exchanging civilities with those who had once rejected her, till the contest with England rendered all loyalists and officials unpopular.
At Hopkinton, May, 1775, she was alarmed at the movement of the revolutionists, her Ladyship asked leave to remove to Boston. The Committee of Safety gave her liberty to pass to the capital with her personal effects, and gave her a written permit, signed by Benjamin Church. Jr., chairman. Thus protected, she set out on her journey with her attendants; but was arrested by a party of armed men, who detained her person, and effects, until an order for the release of both was obtained. To prevent further annoyance, the Provincial Congress furnished her with an escort, and required all persons who had any of her property in their possession to place the same at her disposal. Defended by a guard of six soldiers, Lady Frankland entered Boston about the first of June, 1775; witnessed from her window in Garden Court street the battle of Bunker Hill, took her part in relieving the sufferings of the wounded officers, and then in her turn disappeared, leaving her estates in the hands of members of her family, thereby saving them from confiscation, which was the fate of her neighbor Hutchinson. Upon her death in England in 1782 the town mansion passed by her will to her family, and was sold by Isaac Surriage in 1811 for $8000 to Mr. Joshua Ellis, a retired North End merchant, who resided there till his death. Upon the widening of Bell Alley, in 1832, these two proud mansions, the Frankland and Hutchinson houses long since deserted by the families whose importance they were erected to illustrate and perpetuate, objects of interest to the poet, the artist, and the historian, alike for their associations with a seemingly remote past, their antique splendor, and for the series of strange romantic incidents in the lives of their successive occupants, were ruthlessly swept away.
COLONEL DAVID PHIPS.
The most picturesque and remarkable in character and personal fortune of all the royal governors, was the first of them, Sir William Phips. He was a characteristic product of the New England soil, times and ways. Hutchinson thus briefly and fitly designates him: "He was an honest man, but by a series of fortunate incidents, rather than by any uncommon talents, he rose from the lowest condition in life to be the first man in the country."
Cotton Mather informs us that William Phips was one of twenty-one sons and of twenty-six children, of the same mother, born to James Phips of Bristol, England, a blacksmith, and gunsmith, who was an early settler in the woods of Maine, at the mouth of the Kennebec River. But records and history are dumb as to facts about the most of these scions of a fruitful parentage, other than that of their having been born. William was born Feb. 2, 1651; was left in early childhood without a father. What the mother's task was, in poverty, with hard wilderness surroundings, of bears, wolves, and savages, we may well imagine. Her famous son, untaught and ignorant, tended sheep, till he was eighteen years of age. Then he helped to build coasters, and sailed in them. This was at that time, and afterwards a most thriving business, the foundation of fortunes to rugged and enterprising men, born in indigence.
He went to Boston in 1673, at the age of twenty-two, worked at his trade, he had early visions of success and greatness, for the first time he learned to read, and also to do something that passed for writing. He married the widow of John Hull, the mint master, they suffered straits together, but he used to comfort her with the assurance that they would yet have "a fair brick house in the Green Lane of North Boston." And so they did. That "Greene Lane" became Charter street, when in 1692, he came back as Sir William Phips, from the Court of London, bringing the Province Charter as the first Governor under it. The "fair brick house" long served as an Asylum for boys, at the corner of Salem and Charles streets.
But a strange wild daring, and romantic interval of adventure preceded his honors, and wealth. He wrought at intervals in Maine, and here, as a ship carpenter, sailed coasters, and engaged in expeditions against the Indians. In 1684 he went in a search in the waters of the Spanish Main for a treasure ship known to be sunk there. Going to London, the Admiralty, and James II. gave him the command of an eighteen-gun ship and ninety-five men. A two years' cruise in the West Indies, in which he showed a most signal intrepidity, heroism and ingenuity of resource, in suppressing a mutinous crew, was unsuccessful, except in acquainting him, through an old Spaniard, of the precise spot where a treasure-laden galleon had foundered fifty years before. He returned to England for a new outfit. The king favored him, but not with another war ship. The Duke of Albemarle and others, as associates, provided him with a vessel on shares. The hero had heroic success. Cotton Mather informs us that "Captain Phips arrived at Port de la Plata, made a stout canoo of a stately cotton-tree, employing his own hands and adse in constructing it, lying abroad in the woods many nights together. The piriaga, as they called it, discovered a reef of rising shoals called "The Boilers", here an Indian diver dove down and perceived a number of great-guns, and upon further diving the Indian fetched up a sow, or lump of silver, worth two or three hundred pounds. In all, thirty-two tons of silver, gold, pearls and jewels were recovered from the wreck. Besides which, one Adderly of Providence, one of the Bahama Islands, took up about six tons of silver, which he took to the Bermudas. Captain Phips returned to London in 1687 with more than a million and a half of dollars, in gold and silver, diamonds, precious stones, and other treasures. His own share in the proceeds was about a hundred thousand dollars. To this was added the honors of knighthood, and a gold cup for Lady Phips, of the value of five thousand dollars."
He returned home in the capacity of high-sheriff, under Andros, who did not want him, for he was utterly ignorant of law, and could not write legibly. He soon made another voyage to England, and returned to Boston, built the "fair brick house," of his vision, engaged in a successful military expedition against Acadia, in which he took and plundered Port Royal, and other French settlements. He then instigated and conducted as commander, a naval expedition against Quebec, which proved a failure. He again went to England, and returned as the first Governor under the new Charter, May 14, 1692. The appointment was made to conciliate the people of the province, and it was supposed would be gratifying to them, it was however a risky experiment, this attempt to initiate a new order of things, under the lead of an illiterate mechanic, utterly unskilled, in legal, and administrative affairs, a rough seaman, and a man of hot temper. Yet after he arose to these high offices, he showed no false pride, and often alluded to his lowly origin. He gave his fellow ship carpenters a dinner in Boston, and when borne down with public distraction, would wish himself back to his broad-axe again. He was pure in morals, upright in his dealings, and owed his success in life to his own energy and prowess. All incompetent as he was for the stern exigency, he had to meet the appalling outburst of the Witchcraft delusion with its spell of horrors. During the greater part of the proceedings of the courts, he was absent at the eastward, in an expedition against the Indians, and engaged in building a fort at Pemaquid. When he returned to Boston he found that even his own wife had been "cried out upon" as a witch, and he at once put a stay upon the fatuous proceedings. His weak and troubled administration lasted two and one-half years. He then went to England to answer to complaints made against his administration, when he died suddenly Feb. 18, 1695, aged forty-five years. He was buried in the church of St. Mary Woolnoth, London, where his widow caused a monument to be erected to his memory. He died childless.
Governor Phips' widow married the rich merchant, Peter Sergent, who built and occupied the stately mansion, afterwards purchased by the Province, as a residence for the Governor, and known as the Province House.
SPENCER PHIPS was a nephew of Governor Phips' wife. The governor having no children, adopted as his heir, Spencer Bennett, he was Lieu. Governor between 1733 and 1757, and married Elizabeth Hutchinson. He resided mainly at Cambridge. His farm consisted of that part of Cambridge afterwards known as Lechmere Point, now East Cambridge, his daughters married Andrew Boardman, John Vassall, Richard Lechmere and Joseph Lee. Lieu. Governor Phips died in March, 1757.
DAVID PHIPS, only son of Lieutenant Governor Spencer Phips, graduated at Harvard College in 1741. He was Colonel of a troop of guards in Boston, and Sheriff of Middlesex County. He was an Addresser on three occasions, as his name is found among the one hundred and twenty-four merchants, and others, of Boston, who addressed Governor Hutchinson in 1774, among the ninety-seven gentlemen and principal inhabitants of that town, and among the eighteen country gentlemen who were driven from their homes, and who addressed General Gage in October, 1775. He went to Halifax at the evacuation of Boston in 1776, and was proscribed and banished under the Act of 1778. His home at Cambridge was confiscated. He died at Bath, England in 1811, aged eighty-seven.
THE DUNBAR FAMILY OF HINGHAM.
Robert Dunbar, a Scotchman, became a resident of Hingham shortly after 1650, and probably was the ancestor of all the families who have borne this surname in Plymouth county. The Christian name of his wife was Rose. She survived him and died 10 Nov. 1700. Robert died, 19 Sept., 1693. He had eight sons and three daughters, and died possessed of considerable property. His grandson Joseph removed to Halifax, Plymouth County, in 1736.[246]
[246] Hist. of Hingham. Vol. 11. P. 195-7-9.
DANIEL DUNBAR, son of the aforesaid Joseph was born in Hingham, March 8, 1733. He was an ensign of Militia at Halifax, Mass., and in 1774 had his colors demanded of him by the mob, some of the selectmen being the chief actors. He refused and they broke into his house, took him out, forced him upon a rail, where for three hours, he was held, and tossed, up and down, until he was exhausted. He was then dragged and beaten, and gave up the standard to save his life. In 1776 he went to Halifax, Nova Scotia, with the Royal Army. In 1778 he was proscribed and banished.
JESSIE DUNBAR, of the fourth generation, was born in Hingham, June 26, 1744. He removed to Bridgewater, Plymouth County.[247]
[247] Dunbar Genealogy. P. 19.
He bought some fat cattle of Nathaniel Ray Thomas, a Mandamus Councillor, in 1774, and drove them to Plymouth for sale; one of the oxen being skinned and hung up, the "Sons of Liberty" came to him and finding where he bought it, commenced punishing him for the offence. His tormentors put the ox in a cart, and fixing Dunbar in his belly, carted him four miles and required him to pay one dollar for the ride. They then delivered him to a Kingston mob, which carted him four miles further, and forced from him another dollar, then delivered him to a Duxbury mob, who abused him by beating him in the face with the creature's tripe, and endeavored to cover his person with it, to the endangering his life. They then threw dirt at him, and after other abuses, carried him to Councillor Thomas's house, and made him pay another sum of money, and he, not taking the beef, they flung it in the road and quitted him. Jesse Dunbar died at Nobleboro, Maine, in 1806, leaving many descendants.
The outrageous and brutal treatment he received from the "Sons of Despotism" are among the worst on record.
EBENEZER RICHARDSON.
The Richardson family were the earliest settlers of Woburn, Massachusetts. Ezekiel, Samuel and Thomas Richardson, three brothers, with four other persons, laid the foundations of the town, in 1641. In 1642 it was incorporated under the name of Woburn, the name of a town in Herefordshire.
Samuel Richardson, the ancestor of Ebenezer Richardson, came to Charlestown, about 1636, as his name appears on the records of July 1 of that date as one of a committee to "lay out lots of land for hay." When the three brothers settled at Woburn, they lived near each other on the same street, which was laid out in 1647, as Richardson's Row, by which name it has ever since been known. It runs almost due north and south, in the N. E. part of the present town of Winchester.
Lieut. John Richardson, eldest son of Samuel, was born Nov. 12, 1639, was a yeoman, and soldier in King Philip's war, and passed his life in Woburn, and died there in 1696. John Richardson, son of Lieut. John was a carpenter, and lived in Woburn. He died March 18, 1715.
Timothy Richardson, son of John, was born in Woburn, 1687, was badly wounded in Lovewell's Indian fight at Pigwacket. The colony having offered one hundred pounds for Indian scalps, Captain Lovewell went with forty-six men on a scalp hunt into Maine. Captain Lovewell was the first one killed. The fight lasted ten hours, those who left the fatal battle ground, were twenty in number, of whom eleven were badly wounded, among whom was Timothy Richardson, who lived for ten years afterwards, but in great suffering he died in Woburn in 1735.
EBENEZER RICHARDSON, eldest son of Timothy, and Abigail Johnson, was born in Woburn, March 31, 1718, and married Rebecca (Fowle) Richardson, daughter of Captain John and Elizabeth (Prescott) Fowle, of Woburn, and widow of Phineas Richardson. His father's farm was bounded easterly by the Woburn and Stoneham line, it was here probably that Ebenezer was born.[248]
[248] Richardson Memorial by Vinton. P. 34, 199, 242.
Ebenezer Richardson was an officer of the Customs in Boston. On the 22 Feb., 1770, he was assailed by a mob who chased him to his home, bricks and stones were thrown at the windows. Richardson, provoked, fired at random into the mob, dangerously wounding one of them, Samuel Gore, and mortally wounding another, Christopher Snider, a poor German boy, who died the next morning.
The excitement was intense, the funeral of the boy was attended by the revolutionists, and the event taken advantage of to fire the passions of the people. On the 20th of April, Richardson was tried for his life and brought in guilty of murder. Chief Justice Hutchinson viewed the guilt of Richardson, as everybody would now, a clear case of justifiable homicide, and consequently refused to sign a warrant for his execution, and after lying in prison two years, was, on application to the King, pardoned and set at liberty.[249] To reward Richardson for what he had suffered, he was appointed in 1773 as an officer of the Customs of Philadelphia.
[249] For further particulars see pages 310, 311.
Historians have treated Richardson very unfairly, and caused his memory to be execrated. He was a Custom House officer, and the duties of his office caused him to seize smuggled goods, as any custom house officer would at the present time, previous to that he belonged to the secret service division for the detection of illicit traders, on this account he has always been contemptuously called an "informer". He was not any worse than hundreds of secret service agents employed at the present time by the United States Government, to detect law-breakers. They are of course detested by the criminal classes, and the mountaineer moonshiners of Kentucky consider it no crime to kill them, when the opportunity offers. After Richardson's release, he went to Philadelphia to reside, so as to escape mob violence; the malignity of the revolutionists, however, followed him, and a scurrilous effusion was published there entitled "The Life and Humble Confession of Richardson the Informer."
The broadside was embellished with a rude wood cut of Richardson firing into the mob, and the killing of the boy Snider. The same has been recently republished, and the author states "Whatever facts it may contain, are doubtless expanded beyond the limits of the actual truth."[250]
[250] William R. Cutter, Librarian of the Woburn Public Library.
COMMODORE JOSHUA LORING.[251]
Thomas Loring came from Axminster in Devonshire, England, to Dorchester with his wife, Jane, whose maiden name was Newton, in the year 1634, they removed to Hingham, and finally settled and died at Hull in 1661, leaving many descendants, who still reside in Hull, and Hingham.
[251] Ancestral Records of the Loring family. Type Written Copy in the New England Historic Genealogical Society. Pp. 129 to 182.
COMMODORE JOSHUA LORING was descended from Thomas Loring. He was born at Boston, Aug. 3, 1716. He was apprenticed to Mr. Mears, a tanner of Roxbury. When he was of age he went to sea. About 1740 he married Mary, daughter of Samuel Curtice, of Roxbury. In 1744 he was master of a Brigantine Privateer of Boston, and while cruising near Louisburg, was taken by two French Men of War.
He purchased an estate in 1752, on Jamaica Plain, Roxbury, of Joshua Cheever, on which he erected what has since been known as the Greenough mansion. It is said to have been framed in England and was one of the finest residences in Roxbury. It was situated opposite the intersection of Center and South streets, opposite the soldiers' monument.
On December 19, 1757, He was commissioned captain in the British Navy, was Commodore of the naval forces on Lakes Champlain and Ontario, and participated in the capture of Quebec under Wolfe, and in the conquest of Canada in the succeeding campaign of Amherst. He was severely wounded in the leg while in command on Lake Ontario, and at the close of the war he retired on half pay, at which time he settled down at Jamaica Plain, Roxbury. He was one of the five Commissioners of the revenue, and General Gage by writ of mandamus appointed him a member of his Council, and he was sworn in Aug. 17, 1774. This immediately subjected him to the strictest surveillance by the revolutionists, and the greatest pressure was brought to bear upon him to throw up the obnoxious office. A diarist, under date of Aug. 29, speaking of a Roxbury town meeting recently held says, "Late in the evening a member visited Commodore Loring, and in a friendly way advised him to follow the example of his townman Isaac Winslow, (who had already resigned). He desired time to consider it. They granted it, but acquainted him if he did not comply he must expect to be waited on by a large number, actuated by a different spirit. (Tarred and feathered and rode on a rail). On the morning of the Lexington battle, after passing most of the previous night in consultation with Deacon Joseph Brewer, his neighbor and intimate friend, upon the step he was about to take, he mounted his horse, left his home and everything belonging to it, never to return again, and pistol in hand, rode at full speed to Boston, stopping on the way only to answer an old friend, who asked 'Are you going, Commodore?' 'Yes,' he replied. 'I have always eaten the king's bread, and always intend to.'" The sacrifice must have been especially painful to him, for he was held in high esteem by his friends and neighbors, but he could not spurn the hand that had fed him, and rather than do a dishonorable act, he would sacrifice all he possessed, even the land of his birth. At the evacuation he went to England. He received a pension from the crown until his decease at Highgate, in October, 1781, at the age of sixty-five. Joshua Loring was proscribed, banished and his large estate confiscated. His mansion house was in May, 1775, headquarters of General Nathaniel Greene, and afterwards for a brief period, a hospital for American soldiers, many of whom were buried on the adjacent grounds. Later Captain Isaac Sears bought the property of the State, and lived there for several years.
Mary, his widow, was through the influence of Lord North, pensioned for life; she settled at Englesfield, Berkshire County, England, where she died in 1789 at the age of eighty.
JOSHUA LORING, JR. was a twin brother of Benjamin Loring, sons of Commodore Loring. He was born Nov., 1744. He was an Addresser of Governor Hutchinson in 1774, and of Gen. Gage in 1775. One of the last official acts of the latter in Boston was his proclamation of June 7, 1775, appointing Mr. Loring "sole vendue-master and auctioneer." He was High Sheriff and a member of the Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company in 1769. In 1776 he went to Halifax with the Royal Army, and, early the next year, he was appointed Commissary of Prisoners by Sir William Howe. He was severely criticized at the time by the Revolutionists, for cruelties to his unfortunate countrymen who were prisoners, but as Sabine truly says, "it is not easy to ascertain the truth or to determine his personal responsibility in the treatment of prisoners."[252] He was proscribed and banished, and died in England in 1789, aged forty-five. His wife was a Miss Lloyd, to whom he was married at the house of Colonel Hatch in Dorchester in 1769. His son,
SIR JOHN WENTWORTH LORING was born in Roxbury, Oct., 1773; was baptized in Trinity church by Rev. D. Walters, Nov. 29; was a midshipman in the British navy, and from 1819 to 1837 was Lieut. Governor of the Royal Naval College. In 1841 was advanced to the rank of Rear Admiral of the Red and in 1847 was promoted Vice Admiral of the White. His son, William, was Captain of the "Scout" in the Royal Navy.
[252] A similar case occurred during the Civil War, there was probably no man whose memory was more execrated, and who was regarded as a monster than Wirz, the Commander at Andersonville, who was hanged by the U. S. Government, and yet forty-five years afterwards the Daughters of the Confederacy have erected a beautiful monument to his memory at Andersonville.
DR. BENJAMIN LORING, twin brother of Joshua Loring, Jr., born in 1744, graduated at Harvard College in 1772. He was a Surgeon in a Regiment in the King's service in South Carolina. At the peace, accompanied by his family of five persons, and by one servant, he went from New York to Shelburne, Nova Scotia. His losses in consequences of his loyalty were estimated at $15,000. He was an absentee but not proscribed. He returned to Boston and died there in 1798, aged sixty-five.
COMMODORE JOHN LORING, son of Commodore Joshua, was a midshipman in the Royal Navy, at fourteen years of age. In 1776 he was one of four prisoners taken in the schooner Valent, and sent into Boston, as there was no place provided for prisoners he was sent to Concord Jail by the Council, who ordered "that Edward Marsh, and John Loring should not use pen or paper, nor any one allowed to speak to them, but in the presence of the jailor". His uncle Obediah Curtis being a very influential man, interceded for him so strenuously, he being but quite a youth, that he was released and sent to the care of Col. Buckminster of Framingham, his wife's father. His kind host was in danger of having his home demolished for harboring a "young Tory", on account of the young man calling his neighbors "rascally rebels." In 1776 he was exchanged and returned to England. He was early a Post Captain. In 1793 he had command of the British Squadron in the Camatic. In 1803 he had command of the Frigate Bellerophon (which in 1813 conveyed Napoleon to St. Helena) and captured the French Frigate Duquesne, 74 guns, and a national schooner. In the same year he was Commodore of the British Fleet off Cape Francoix, which blockaded and defeated the French squadron, and the troops under Rochambeau, Nov. 30, 1803. Commodore John Loring died at his seat in Farehan, Nov. 9, 1808, leaving a widow and children. The Naval service lost in him "one of its most brave, zealous and humane officers." He married Miss Macneal of Campleton Argyleshire, a lady of great beauty. His son Hector, became captain of the Howe, 120 guns, of the Royal Navy. He married Miss Charlotte Jessy, daughter of James Jamison of the Royal Bengal Medical Service. His eldest son John, a midshipman on board of the Eurylas, in 1820, died of the yellow fever at Bermuda.
JOSEPH ROYAL LORING, son of Commodore Joshua, probably never married. He was captain of the Brigantine "William," owned by Richard Clarke and Sons, of Boston, engaged in bringing tea from London to Boston. It was the fourth and last vessel on the East India Company's account to sail there. She was cast ashore at Provincetown on Cape Cod. The tea was saved and conveyed to the Castle in Boston Harbor. Very little is known afterwards of Captain Royal Loring.
LIST OF CONFISCATED ESTATES BELONGING TO JOSHUA LORING IN SUFFOLK COUNTY AND TO WHOM SOLD.
To John Keyes, Aug. 31, 1779; Lib. 130, fol. 191; Land 19 A., mansion house and barn in Roxbury, Joshua Loring N. and N.E.; Lemuel May E.; Ebenezer Weld S.; road leading to Dedham W.; then running S.; E. and N. on land of John Keyes.
To Isaac Sears, Oct. 28, 1779; Lib. 130, fol. 237; Farm, 54 A. 3 qr. 9 r., and mansion house in Roxbury, road leading by Jamaica meeting-house to Boston W.; heirs of Mr. Burroughs deceased N. and N.W.; lane N.E.; lane and Capt. May E.; land of Joshua Loring, absentee, now of John Keyes S.----5 1-2 A. salt marsh, creek W.; Mr. Bowdoin S.; heirs of Joseph Weld deceased E.; heirs of John Williams deceased N.
To James Swan, Feb. 1, 1782; Lib. 134, fol. 6; Wood or pasture land, 8 A. 31 r., in Brookline, road W.; Mr. Crafts N.W. and N.E.; Capt. Baker S.E.
To John Tufts, Apr. 28. 1783; Lib. 138, fol. 101; Land and dwelling-house in Boston, common or training-field N.W.; West St. N E.; David Colson S.E.; heirs or assigns of Dr. George Stewart S.W.
To Ellis Gray, Nov 23, 1795; Lib. 181, fol. 275; Wood and pasture land, 24 1-2 A. 7 r., in Roxbury, near Henry Williams; Caleb Williams and Mr. Morries S.E.; Ebenezer Chanies S.W.; Mr. Bourn N.W. and N.E.
ROBERT WINTHROP.
The most prominent name in Massachusetts History is that of Winthrop. Governor John Winthrop has been called the "Father of Boston." From the date of the first settlement of Massachusetts to the present time, the name of Winthrop has been prominent in each generation.
The family of Winthrops of Groton Manor, Suffolk County, England, took its name by tradition, from the village of Winthrope, near Newark, in Nottinghamshire. The earliest ancestor of whom anything is known with certainty is
I. Adam Winthrop, known to have been living at Lavenham, in Suffolk in 1498, who had, by his wife Jane Burton, a son--
II. Adam Winthrop second of that name, born in Lavenham, Oct. 9, 1498, died in Groton, Nov. 9, 1562, who became a wealthy London merchant, acquired the manor of Groton, near Lavenham, in 1544; was inscribed Armiger by Edward VI. in 1548, and in 1551 was Master of the influential Company of Clothworkers. He had thirteen children, several of whom became distinguished. His third son was--
III. Adam Winthrop, third of that name, who came into possession of Groton Manor. He was born in London, Aug. 10th, 1548, died at Groton March 28, 1623. He was a lawyer and county magistrate, and married Alice, sister of Dr. John Still, Bishop of Bath and Wells. His only son was--
IV. John Winthrop, born Jan. 12, and died in Boston, March 26, 1649. He was a lawyer and magistrate, and became a great Puritan leader, and led the greatest emigration that had ever gone forth from England up to this time. In February, 1630, preparations began to be made with vigor for the embarkation of a great colony, by the end of the month a fleet of fourteen vessels was ready with men, women and children, and all necessary men of handicrafts, and others of good condition, wealth, and quality, to make a firm plantation. In this fleet were congregated the forefathers of Massachusetts, with their wives and little ones, about to quit forever their native country, kindred, friends, and acquaintances. They were to leave the land of their fathers, perhaps forever, to break assunder those chords of affection, which so powerfully bind a good man to his native soil, and to dissolve those tender associations which constitute the bliss of civil society, and to seek in an unknown wilderness, a new home, which in time would become a great nation. On the 8th of June, 1630, the fleet sighted land, Mt. Desert, and regaled themselves with fish of their own catching. "So pleasant a scene here they had, as did much refresh them, and there came a smell off the shore, like the smell of a garden." On the 12th, they came to anchor in Salem harbor, and by 14th of July, thirteen out of the fourteen ships had arrived safely, the other vessel, the Mary & John, was the first to arrive, and had landed their passengers at Dorchester. Governor Winthrop, after his arrival at Salem, determined to remove to a point of land between two rivers flowing into Boston Harbor, and named the town Charlestown, in honor of Charles I. The next year the Governor caused the settlement to remove across the Charles river to another point of land called by the Indians "Shawmut," signifying the place of living waters, which caused the removal there. The Governor settled alongside of the "Great Spring" on the present site of the Old South church, next to Spring Lane, which runs into Water street, hence the name. The place was called Boston, named after Boston, Lincolnshire, England, from which place some of the settlers came, and the County was named Suffolk. Thus Boston was settled by the English Puritans under the leadership of Governor Winthrop.[253]
[253] For a detailed account of the career and writings of this illustrious man, see two volumes of his "Life And Letters," by his descendant, Hon. Robert C. Winthrop.
Governor Winthrop had five daughters and two sons, the elder resided chiefly in Connecticut and the younger in Massachusetts, generally known as, VI, Wait Still Winthrop or Wait Winthrop, born in Boston, Feb. 27, 1642, died Nov. 7, 1717. A soldier of the Indian wars, for more than thirty years Major General commanding the Provincial Forces of Mass., Judge of the Superior Court, Judge of Admiralty and some time Chief Justice of Mass. He married Mary, daughter of Hon. William Brown, of Salem, by whom he had one daughter, Ann, wife of Thomas Lechmere, brother of Lord Lechmere, and an only son, VII, John Winthrop, born in Boston, Aug. 26, 1681, died at Sydenham Aug. 1, 1742, graduated at Harvard College in 1700. Failing to receive the political preferment to which claim he conceived a sort of hereditary claim, he went to England to reside in 1727. He became an active member of Royal Society, of whose transactions one volume is dedicated to him, he resided there until his death. He had five daughters and two sons, the eldest, VIII, John Still Winthrop, born in Boston, Jan. 15, 1720, died June 6, 1776. Graduated at Yale College in 1737. In early life he resided with his father in England, and occasionally in Boston, but after his marriage, chiefly in New London, Conn., where he built a large house, still standing at the head of Winthrop's Cove, described in 1787 as the best house in the Province. He had fourteen children, five daughters and nine sons. Of his sons, two died in childhood. John and William died unmarried. Francis Bayard Winthrop went to New York, also Benjamin Winthrop. Joseph Winthrop went to Charleston, S. C.
THOMAS LINDALL WINTHROP. Born March 6, 1760, died in Boston, Feb. 21, 1841. Graduated at Harvard College 1780, was Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts from 1826 to 1833. He married in 1786, Elizabeth, daughter of Sir John Temple, Bart., and granddaughter of James Bowdoin of Boston, Governor of Massachusetts. Their son, the Hon. Robert C. Winthrop, was the most conspicuous member of the family in America for a long period. In his memoir of the Winthrop family he says "From the above five brothers descend the numerous branches of the Winthrop family, now widely scattered in different parts of the United States and Europe."[254] It does not appear that either of them joined the revolutionists or took any part in the war, except the youngest son, who was a staunch loyalist, and was of great service to his country.
[254] A Short Account of the Winthrop family by Robert C. Winthrop.
The youngest son of John Still Winthrop, was, IX, Robert Winthrop, the subject of this sketch, born in New London, Dec. 7, 1764, died at Dover, England, May 10, 1832. During the Revolution he was appointed a Midshipman in the Royal Navy. In 1790 he was a Lieutenant; and six years later a Post Captain. He attained the rank of Rear Admiral in 1809, and of Vice Admiral in 1830. He served on board of the flagship of Sir George B. Rodney in the memorable victory over the French April 12, 1782. The French Admiral, Count de Grasse, fresh from his victory at Yorktown, had refitted at Martinique's dock yards, and with the assistance of the Spaniards, who had fitted out a fleet at Havana, intended to capture Jamaica, and drive the English out of the West Indies. All the Lesser Antilles were his own, except St. Lucia. There alone the English flag still flew as Rodney lay in the harbor of Castries, and saw the French fleet becalmed under the high lands of Dominica. All day long the cannon roared, and one by one the French ships struck their flags or fought on till they sank. Rodney's flagship came alongside of the Ville de Paris, the pride of France and the largest ship in the world, on which De Grasse commanded in person. He fought after all hope had gone, with her masts shattered, her decks littered with mangled limbs and bodies. He gave up his sword to Rodney. The French fleet was destroyed, fourteen thousand were killed, besides the prisoners. On that memorable day the British Empire was saved and Yorktown was avenged. He was at the conquest of Martinique and St. Lucia in 1794, also captured a French corvette. He was wrecked in the frigate Undaunted. He was on duty in the North Sea. He superintended the landing of troops in the expedition against Ostend. Entrusted with a small squadron to cruise off Holland, his boats burned a store-ship, made prize of fifteen merchant vessels, a sloop-of-war, and an armed schooner. He assisted in the capture of the Helder. Stranded in the frigate Stag, he was compelled, after saving her stores, to burn her. Stationed on the coast of Spain, in the Ardent of sixty-four guns, he drove on shore a French frigate, which was set on fire and burned by her own crew. Such is the bare outline of the great services he rendered on the ocean.
In 1807 the Sea Fencibles of the Dover district was placed under his orders. He married Miss Farbrace. He died at Dover in 1832. Two sons and four daughters survived him.
NATHANIEL HATCH.
Colonel Estes Hatch was one of the most prominent and wealthy men of Dorchester. He owned many negro slaves who worked on his extensive estate, comprising sixty acres of land on the southerly side of Dudley street, lying part in Roxbury and a part in Dorchester. It included Little Woods, afterward known as Swan's woods.
Col. Hatch commanded the Troop of Horse, in Boston, led a company at the capture of Louisberg and died in 1759. He was prominent in town affairs, and held the principal military offices, and at the time of his death was Brigadier General of Horse. His wife was Mary, daughter of Rev. Benjamin Rolfe, her father and mother and their youngest child were killed by the Indians in their home at Haverhill in 1708. Col. Hatch and Mary Rolfe were married Nov. 9th, 1716.
NATHANIEL HATCH, son of Col. Hatch, graduated at Harvard College in 1742, and subsequently held the office of Clerk of the Courts. He was a firm loyalist, and at the evacuation of Boston in 1776, he went to Halifax with the British troops. In 1778 he was proscribed and banished, and in 1779 was included in the Conspiracy Act, by which his large and valuable estate was confiscated, it was bought afterwards by Captain James Swan, who paid L18,000 for it, and who soon afterwards offered it to Gov. Hancock for L45,000. Writing to Hancock, Swan say: "The mansion house can be refitted in as elegant a manner as it once was for about L4,000." During Swan's residence here he made the house a seat of hospitality, entertaining among others persons of distinction. The Marquis de Viomel, second in command of Rochambeau's army, Admiral d'Estaing, the Marquis de Lafayette and General Knox.[255]
[255] Town of Roxbury by F. S. Drake. P. 134, 135.
Nathaniel Hatch married July 7, 1755, Elizabeth Lloyd. They had several children. Paxton, born Oct. 9, 1758; Mary, born Jan. 14, 1760; Addington, born Sept. 22, 1761; Jane, born March 10, 1767; Susannah Paxton, born March 13, 1770. Nathaniel Hatch died in 1780.
LIST OF CONFISCATED ESTATES BELONGING TO NATHANIEL HATCH IN SUFFOLK COUNTY AND TO WHOM SOLD.
To Samuel Dunn, Jr., July 11, 1781; Lib. 132, fol. 263; Land, 60 A.; and mansion house in Dorchester, road to Dorchester meeting house N.; Jonas Humphrey, Thomas Wiswall and James Bird E. and S.; John Holbrook S.; John Williams, Samuel Humphrey and brook between Dorchester and Roxbury W. and N.
CHRISTOPHER HATCH.
Of Boston. When the Royal Army evacuated that town, March 17, 1776, cannon, shot, and shells were left on his wharf, and in the dock. In 1778 he was proscribed and banished. He accepted a commission under the crown, and was a Captain in the Loyal American regiment. He was wounded and commended for his gallantry. At the peace he retired on half pay, about L80 per annum. He was a grantee of the city of St. John, N. B., soon after going there established himself as a merchant near the frontier, and finally at St. Andrews. He was a magistrate, and colonel, in the militia. He died at St. Andrews, 1819, aged seventy. Elizabeth, his widow, died at the same place, 1830, at the age of seventy-five.
HARRIS HATCH, son of Christopher, was a gentleman of consideration in New Brunswick, where he held the office of Member of her Majesty's Council Commission of Bankruptcies, Surrogate, Registrar of Deeds, member of the Board of Education, Lieut. Colonel in the Militia, and Judge of the Court of Common Pleas.
HAWES HATCH, of Boston, brother of Christopher Hatch. He went to Halifax with the Royal Army in 1776. In 1778 he was proscribed and banished. He entered the service, and in 1782 was a captain in De Lancey's Second Battalion. He retired on half pay at the close of the war, and was a grantee of the city of St. John. For some years after the Revolution, he lived at and near Eastport, Maine, on the frontier. He died at Lebanon, N. H., in 1807.[256]
[256] Sabine's Loyalists.
WARD CHIPMAN.
John Chipman was born in Whitechurch, near Dorchester, England, about 1614, and died April 7, 1708. He sailed from Barnstable, Devon County in May, 1631, in the ship Friendship, arriving in Boston July 14th, 1631. John Chipman was the first and only one of the name to seek a home in America, and up to 1850 there was no Chipman in this country who was not descended from him. He was for many years a selectman, then in Plymouth County invested with the authority of a magistrate, and was often a "Deputy to Court" and he, with three assistants, was designated to frequent the early Quaker meetings and "endeavor to reduce them from the errors of their wayes". In 1646 he married Hope, second daughter of John and Elizabeth Howland, born in Plymouth, Mass., 1629, died 1683.
John Chipman had eleven children, and except a son and daughter who died in infancy, all survived him. His eldest son Samuel Chipman, was born in Barnstable, Mass., 1661, and died in 1723. He built on the paternal homestead near the Custom House the "Chipman Tavern," which continued in the line of his posterity until 1830. He was by record a yeoman, and an inn-holder. He too had eleven children.
Rev. John Chipman, of the third generation, was the third son of Samuel aforesaid, was born in Barnstable 1691, died March 23, 1775. He graduated from Harvard College in 1711, and was ordained 1715 as pastor of the first church in the precinct of Salem and Beverly, now North Beverly. He married, first, Rebecca Hale, and, second, Hannah, daughter of Joseph Warren, of Roxbury. He had fifteen children, all by the first marriage.
John Chipman of the fourth generation, eldest son of Rev. John Chipman, was born in Beverly 1722, died 1768. Graduated from Harvard College in 1738, admitted to the practice of law, which at the time of his death embraced only twenty-five barristers in Massachusetts, which also included then the district of Maine. He had abilities of a rare order, his services were appreciated and sought in distant localities. While arguing a case before the Superior Court at Falmouth (Portland), Maine, he was suddenly seized with apoplexy, from which he died. He had twelve children.
WARD CHIPMAN, the subject of this biography, was of the fifth generation, and the fourth son of the aforesaid John Chipman. He was born in Marblehead, Mass., July 30, 1754, and died at Fredericton, N. B., Feb. 9, 1824. He graduated from Harvard College in 1770. His graduation oration being the first delivered there in the vernacular language. He studied law in Boston under the direction of Hon. Daniel Leonard, and Hon. Jonathan Sewell, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Massachusetts. Ward Chipman and Daniel Leonard, with fifteen other names, appear upon "The Loyal Address" to Gov. Gage on his departure from Boston in 1775 as "of those gentlemen who were driven from their Habitations in the country to Boston."[257] He left Boston at the evacuation and went with the army to Halifax, "being obliged to abandon his native land." He then went to England, where he was allowed a pension in common with a long list of his suffering fellow-countrymen, but a state of inaction being ill-suited to his ardent mind, in less than a year he relinquished his pension and rejoined the King's troops at New York, where he was employed in the Military Department and in the practice of the Court of Admiralty. In 1782 he held the office of Deputy Mustermaster-General, of the Loyalist forces.
[257] Chipmans of America.
In 1783 he was one of the fifty-five who petitioned for extensive grants of lands in Nova Scotia, out of which was erected the province of New Brunswick, of which province he was appointed Solicitor-General and continually afterwards bore a conspicuous part, and attained the highest honors. He was a member of the House of Assembly and Advocate at the Bar, a Member of his Majesty's Council, a Judge of the Supreme Court, Agent for the settling of disputed points of boundary with the United States until he closed his mortal career while administering the Government of the Colony as President, and Commander in Chief, during a vacancy in the office of Lieut. Governor. His remains were conveyed from Fredericton to St. John where a tablet, adds to above quoted statement, the following: "Distinguished during the whole of his varied and active life, for his superior abilities and unweariable zeal, for genuine integrity and singular humanity and benevolence, his loss was universally deplored; and this frail tribute from his nearest connection affords but a feeble expression of the affectionate respect with which they cherished the memory of his virtues."
Hon. Ward Chipman married Elizabeth, daughter of Hon. William Hazen of Haverhill, Mass., and his wife, the only daughter of Dr. Joseph LeBaron of Plymouth, Mass. She died at St. John in 1852 in her eighty-sixth year. The wife of Hon. William Gray of Boston was his sister. Ward, his only child, was born July 21, 1787, graduated at Harvard College in 1805, where so many of his ancestors had before him. He held many places of honor and trust; was finally chief justice of New Brunswick, and died at St. John in 1851 in his sixty-fifth year. While the Prince of Wales, now King Edward VII., was in that city in August, 1860, he occupied the Chipman mansion.
GOVERNOR EDWARD WINSLOW.
Edward Winslow was born at Droitwich, Worcestershire, England, 19 October, 1595. He appears to have been a well educated and accomplished man. In the course of his travels on the continent of Europe he went to Leyden and there became acquainted with Mr. John Robinson, and the church under his pastoral charge, which he joined in 1617. He married the 16th of May, 1618, and settled in that city till the church removed to America in 1620. In his "Brief Narration" he says: And when the ship was ready to carry us away the bretheren that stayed feasted us that were to go at our pastor's home. After tears and singing of psalms they accompanied us to Delph's Haven, where we were to embark, and there feasted us again. But we, going aboard ship lying at the quay ready to sail, the wind fair, we gave them a volley of small shot and three pieces of ordnance, and so lifting up our hands to each other and our hearts to the Lord we departed, etc.
Winslow's name is third on the list of those who subscribed to the Covenant, or compact, before the disembarkation at Cape Cod. He was one of the first who came on shore to seek out the most eligible place for founding a settlement in this wild and unknown land. He was a gentleman of the best family of any of the Pilgrims, his father, Edward Winslow, Esq., being a person of importance in Droitwich. In all the initiatory labor for establishing this little colony, the nucleus of a great nation, he was ever active and influential in promoting the welfare of the Pilgrims, who on account of the respectability of his family, and the excellent qualities of his mind and heart appear to have regarded him with more than ordinary respect and confidence, which was never misplaced.
At the annual election in 1624 Mr. Winslow was elected Assistant and in 1644 Governor of Plymouth Colony.
In 1655 Oliver Cromwell appointed three commissioners, of which number Winslow was the chief, to go with an expedition against the Spaniards in the West Indies under Admiral Penn and General Venables. The three commissioners to direct their operations. After an unsuccessful attack on St. Domingo, the fleet sailed for Jamaica, which surrendered without any resistance. But Mr. Winslow, who partook of the chagrin of defeat, did not live to enjoy the pleasure of victory. In the passage between Hispaniola and Jamaica the heat of the climate threw him into a fever, which put an end to his life on May 8, 1655, in the sixty-first year of his age. His body was committed to the deep, with the honors of war, forty-two guns being fired by the fleet on that occasion.
After Bradford, Plymouth Colony owed to no man so much as to Edward Winslow. Always intelligent, generous, confident, and indefatigable, he was undoubtingly trusted for any service at home or abroad which the infant settlement required.
JOSIAH WINSLOW, the only surviving son of Governor Edward Winslow, was born at Plymouth in 1629 and died on the family estate, Careswell, Marshfield, Dec. 18, 1680, in the 52nd year of his age. He was buried at the expense of the colony "in testimony of the colony's endeared love and affection for him." He married Penelope, daughter of Herbert Pelham, Esq., who came to Boston in 1645.
He stood upon the uppermost heights of society, he reached every elevation that could be obtained, and there was nothing left for ambition to covet, because all had been gained. He was the first native-born general and the first native-born governor. The governor acquired the highest military rank and had engaged in active and successful warfare with the highest command in New England. He presided over the legislative, executive and judicial departments of the government. In addition to his military and civil distinction he acquired that of being the most delightful companion in the colony. He lived on his ample paternal domain and his hospitality was magnificent and the attractions of the festive board at Careswell were heightened by the charm of his beautiful wife. He was elected governor in 1673, which office he held until his death. He was succeeded by his only surviving son.
ISAAC WINSLOW, born in 1670 and died Dec. 6, 1738. This eminently distinguished man sustained the chief places of power and honor in the colony, and was a worthy successor to his father in being its chief military commander, a member of the Council for more than 20 years and for some time its president, and for several years Chief Justice of the Court of Common Pleas, and Judge of Probate; the last office he held at his death. His eldest son, Josiah, graduated at Harvard College in 1721, was killed in battle with the French and Indians at Georges Island, May 1st, 1724. His second son, great grandson of the first governor of Plymouth, was the celebrated
JOHN WINSLOW, born in Marshfield, May 27, 1702, and died in Hingham, 1774, in his 73rd year. No native of New England, probably, except Sir William Pepperell, was more distinguished as a military leader. In 1740-1 he was a captain in the unfortunate expedition to Cartagena under the command of Admiral Vernon, and subsequently endured much hard service in the several enterprises against Crown Point and Nova Scotia. He will be remembered in our annals principally in removing the Arcadians from Nova Scotia. The forces employed by the Colony at this period was composed almost entirely of Massachusetts troops, specially enlisted for the service to act as a distinct body. They formed into a regiment of two battalions, of which Governor Shirley was the Colonel, and of which Winslow, then a half-pay Captain in the British army and a Major-General in the Militia, was Lieutenant-Colonel. As Shirley could not leave his government to take command in person, Monckton, a Lieutenant-Colonel in the Army, was appointed to conduct the first battalion and Winslow the second. The plan for abducting the Arcadians was kept a profound secret, both by those who formed it and by those who were sent to execute, the home government knew nothing about it and it appears to have been done solely by the Colonial government; Colonel Winslow was but the instrument and acted under the Governor's written and positive instructions.
In 1756 Major-General Winslow took the field with eight thousand men raised in New England and New York to repel the French invasion and marched against Montcalm, who to save Crown Point and Ticonderoga made a movement from Oswego by the St. Lawrence River. As soon as the French General returned to Canada, Winslow and his army returned to Massachusetts.
In 1762 he was appointed with William Brattle and James Otis to act as Commissioner "to repair to the river St. Croix, determine where the easterly line of Maine is to begin and extend the said line as far as should be thought necessary." In compliment to General Winslow, "the fourth of a family more eminent for their talents, learning and honors than any other in New England," one of the towns on the Kennebec River in 1771 was called by his name. Of this town he was one of the original grantees. He died at Hingham in 1774, aged seventy-one, leaving two sons and a widow, who embarked with the Royal Army from Boston in 1776. She was in England in 1783, and enjoyed a pension from the government.
Pelham Winslow, eldest son of General John, was born June 8th, 1737, graduated at Harvard College in 1753, and entered the office of James Otis to fit himself for the bar, was a staunch loyalist. In 1774 he abandoned his home to escape mob violence and took refuge in Boston. At the evacuation in 1776 he accompanied the Royal Army to Halifax, and thence went to New York, where he entered the military service of the Crown, and was Major. In 1778 he was proscribed and banished. He died at Brooklyn, New York, in 1783, leaving a wife and an infant daughter.
Dr. Isaac Winslow, second son of General John, born April 7, 1739, graduated at Harvard College in 1762, died in 1819. He commenced the practice of physic, and though of the same principles as other members of his family, remained upon his estate during the war, and his life, thereby saving it from confiscation, for although he was a strong loyalist his medical services were of such great value to the revolutionists that they did not drive him forth and deprive him of his property. Sabine says: I find it said, and the authority good, that in 1778 he treated about three hundred patients inoculated with smallpox, and such was his remarkable success not one of them died. His son John, an eminent lawyer, deceased at Natchez in 1820. His widow, Frances, died at Hingham in 1846, aged eighty-four. The family tomb of the Winslows is at Marshfield, on the Careswell estate, of which Governor Winslow was the first owner. It was afterwards purchased by Daniel Webster, on which he resided until his death.
EDWARD WINSLOW, only brother of General John, born June 7, 1714, died at Halifax in 1784, aged seventy-two years. He graduated at Harvard College in 1765, resided at Plymouth, was Clerk of the Courts, Register of Probate, Collector of the Port. He was obliged to seek shelter in Boston from mob violence, at the evacuation in 1776 went with the Army to Halifax, Nova Scotia, where he died. The ceremonies at his funeral were of a style to confer the highest honors to himself, and his illustrious family. His estates in Massachusetts were confiscated, but every branch of his family was amply provided for by the generosity of the British Government.
EDWARD WINSLOW, JR., only son of the aforesaid Edward. He was born in 1745, died at Fredericton, N. B., 1815, aged seventy years, graduated at Harvard College in 1765. In 1774, the Plymouth County Convention "Resolved, That Edward Winslow, Jr., one of the two clerks of the Court of General Sessions of the Peace and Court of Common Pleas for this County, has, by refusing this body a copy of an Address made at the last term in this County, to Thomas Hutchinson, Esq., betrayed the trust reposed in him, by refusing his attendance when requested, treated the body of this county with insult and contempt, and by that means rendered himself unworthy to serve the county in said office."
In 1775 he joined the Royal Army at Boston, and entering the service became a Colonel. In 1778 he was proscribed and banished. In 1782 he was Muster-Master-General of the Loyalist forces employed under the Crown. After the war he settled in New Brunswick, and was a member of the first Council formed in that Colony, Surrogate-General, Judge of the Supreme Court, and finally Administrator of the Government. The Royal Arms which for many years were displayed in the Council Chamber in the Old State House in Boston, still exist, and are carefully preserved in Trinity church, St. John, N. B. The story of their exit from Boston, and by what means they came to find a permanent home at St. John, were not known till recently, when documents were found, which leave no question or room for doubt.
In the winter of 1785 Edward Winslow was at Halifax and Ward Chipman, a fellow refugee from Boston, had taken up his residence at St. John. In a letter of Mr. Winslow to Mr. Chipman on the 16th January, 1785, he says, "Give my old Custom House seal to Mr. Leonard, and tell him I'll forward the famous carv'd Coat of Arms by the first conveyance from Halifax." A subsequent letter to Mr. Chipman, refers more fully to the subject which is in part as follows:
Halifax, 25 March, 1785.
My Dear Fellow:
By the schooner Halifax I send a small assortment of stationery as per invoice.... In the box with your stationery is a venerable Coat of Arms, which I authorize you to present to the Council Chamber, or any other respectable public Room, which you shall think best entitled to it. They (Lyon & Unicorn) were constant members of the Council at Boston (by mandamus) ran away when the others did--have suffered--are of course Refugees and have a claim for residence at New Brunswick.
Cordially yours ED. WINSLOW.[258] Ward Chipman, Esq.
[258] See Royal Memorials by Rev. Edmund F. Shafter. Also cut of Coat of Arms on outside cover of this work.
Judge Winslow was one of the founders of the Old Colony Club, at Plymouth, and was one of its most active members. He delivered the first anniversary address of that association on the 22 of December or Forefathers' Day, in 1770.
ISAAC WINSLOW was a Boston merchant, son of Col. Edward Winslow, born May 2, 1709. He was the third in descent from John Winslow who came from Droitwich to Boston in 1655, and died in 1674. He was a brother of Governor Edward of the Plymouth Colony. He was a gentleman highly esteemed for his benevolence and other virtues. He graduated at Harvard College in 1727, then entered the counting room of James Bowdoin, and subsequently with his brother Joshua carried on an extensive and profitable business in Boston. They also became considerable ship owners, and had one ship constantly in the London trade. Joshua was one of the consignees of the tea destroyed by the mob. Isaac retired from business in 1753, and became a resident of Roxbury. He was the last occupant of the Dudley mansion, which was razed to the ground a few days after the battle of Bunker Hill, to make way for the works erected here by the Americans. The Universalist church was built upon its site. In making the necessary excavation for the church, the wine cellar of the mansion was unearthed and strange to say, as it may seem, the liquors were, after a lapse of forty-five years, found intact.[259]
[259] The Town of Roxbury. Francis S. Drake, pp. 355-6.
In June 1760 he received the thanks of the town for a gift of land near Meeting House Hill. His first wife, Lucy, daughter of Gen. Samuel Waldo, died in Roxbury in 1763, at the age of forty-three.
In 1774 he was an Addresser of Gov. Hutchinson, and 1775 of Gen. Gage. He was appointed Mandamus Councillor, and was qualified. This was an offence that could not be forgiven by the disunionists.
Though a loyalist, his moderation and his character made him less obnoxious to the revolutionists than his neighbors, Auchmuty, Hallowell, and Loring. His virtues, however, could not save him from the fury of the mob. Immediately after the Lexington affair, he took refuge in Boston.
In 1776, with his family of ten persons, he accompanied the Royal Army to Halifax, and in 1778 was proscribed and banished, and his estates confiscated. In his religious belief he was a Sandemanian. Jemima, his widow, died at London in 1790.
REV. EDWARD WINSLOW was an Episcopal minister of Braintree, now Quincy, Mass. He was born in Boston in 1722. Graduated at Harvard College in 1741. His father Joshua was a brother of the aforesaid Isaac Winslow, and son of Colonel Edward Winslow.
The North Precinct of Braintree, now Quincy, had the reputation of being a "nest of Tories," owing to the presence of the Church of England people, connected with Christ Church. The mother English society was most liberal in dealing with its offshoot and until the Revolution, it annually sent over sixty pounds sterling for the support of the minister. In all, it is said to have spent over thirteen thousand dollars in building up this church. Naturally the society was inclined to a friendly feeling toward the hand which fed it. To it the Apthorpe's, the Vassall's, the Borland's, the Cleverly's and the Millers, indeed all the gentry of the neighborhood with the exception of the Quincy's, belonged, the Adam's not being in this class at that time. It was here the same as elsewhere throughout the colonies, the ministers of the Established Church of England stood condemned in the eyes of revolutionists, neither seclusion, insignificance nor high character was able to save the clergy from the fury of the mobs.
In June, 1777, a town meeting was called for the purpose of agreeing upon a list of those persons who were "esteemed inimical" to the popular cause. This was in the nature of a formal indictment of the whole society, for among the names of those recorded as "inimical" were its rector, its wardens, and all its leading members.
The Rev. Edward Winslow, the rector of Christ Church, found his situation uncomfortable in the extreme, nor was it any longer safe for him to read the prayer for the King. Yet he seems to have struggled on vainly hoping for better days, until his salary was stopped, and many of his people had moved away. Then in 1777, taking very properly the ground that his ordination oath compelled him to conform literally to the Prayer Book he "with sad and silent musings" resigned his charge. Going to New York, which was then in British occupation, Mr. Winslow died there in 1780 before the close of the war. He lies buried under the altar of St. George's Church in that city. Jane Isabella, his widow, died at Fayetteville, North Carolina, in 1793, aged sixty-six.
Joseph Winslow of Boston was a merchant, he was born in 1724, and died in 1777, was the son of Kenelm, the great grandson of Kenelm of Droitwich, the brother of Governor Winslow, who died at Salem in 1672.
He was possibly the Joseph Winslow who took part at the Siege of Louisberg, and was amongst the number to volunteer under the command of Bacon to attack the island Battery, and was the Joseph Winslow referred to by the Committee of Newport, R. I., of which Jonathan Otis was chairman, who wrote to the Committee of Easthampton, New York, in June, 1775, that he was "an inveterate enemy of our country" and that "it was generally thought he had gone to a hospital to take the small pox for the purpose of spreading the disease in the Whig Camp at Cambridge." Sabine says the truth of this averment may be doubted.
LIST OF CONFISCATED ESTATES BELONGING TO ISAAC WINSLOW IN SUFFOLK COUNTY AND TO WHOM SOLD.
To Ebenezer Crosbey, June 15, 1782; Lib. 135, fol. 20; Assignment of mortgage Joseph Crosby to Isaac Winslow, dated Aug. 5, 1768.
SIR ROGER HALE SHEAFFE, BARONET.
WILLIAM S. SHEAFFE, of Charlestown, was born in 1649, and married in 1672 Ruth Woods. He was a mariner, and they had three sons and three daughters. His son William, born 1683, married Mary Longfellow, a widow, in 1704. He died in 1718, and his widow in 1720. They had five sons and two daughters. His eldest son William Sheaffe, Jr., was born 13 Jan., 1705. He graduated at Harvard College in 1723, and married Susanna Child, Oct. 1st, 1752.[260]
[260] There was a family of Sheaffe's in Boston much earlier than 1672, when William Sheaffe's name first appears on the records, but I do not find any connection between the two families, except that James Sheaffe of Portsmouth, N. H., of the Boston family, was a loyalist. He was allowed to remain, although much persecuted. (See Heraldic Journal, Vol. IX. p. 85, also Wyman's Genealogies and Estates of Charlestown, and History of Portsmouth, N. H.)
WILLIAM SHEAFFE was Deputy Collector of Customs of Boston. He frequently acted as Collector in the absence of Sir Henry Frankland, who held that office in 1759, and when the Baronet was removed for inattention to his duties, he was appointed to fill the vacant place, and issued the celebrated "Writs of Assistance," giving the Revenue officers the right to search for smuggled goods. Roger Hale succeeded as Collector in 1672, when Sheaffe was again Deputy. He continued in that office under Joseph Harrison, who was the last Royal Collector of the port. Mr. Sheaffe died in 1771, leaving a large family in poverty. There is ample evidence that Mrs. Sheaffe was an intelligent, excellent woman, and bore many trials with pious resignation, and that the Sheaffe's were a loving and happy family. Mrs. Sheaffe died in 1811.
SUSANNA, Mr. Sheaffe's eldest daughter, who died in 1834, married Captain Ponsonby Molesworth, a nephew of Lord Ponsonby. The family account is that on the day of the landing of the British troops in Boston, a regiment halted in Queen (Court) street, opposite Mr. Sheaffe's house, that, Susanna attracted by the music, accompanied by her younger sisters, went upon the balcony, that Captain Molesworth saw her, was struck with her great beauty, gazed upon her intently, and at last, said to a brother officer, who like himself was leaning against a fence, "That girl seals my fate." An introduction, and a visit followed, and the maiden's heart rapidly won, but then came sorrow, for Susanna was barely fifteen, and parental consent to her marriage was refused. Her governess, to whom she entrusted her grief, espoused her cause, and favored immediate union, and the result accordingly was, the flight of the three to Rhode Island, where the loving pair were married. Molesworth sold his commission in 1776, and in December of that year was in England with his wife. Their married life proved uncommonly happy; and they lived to see their children's children.
Another daughter, Helen, of remarkable beauty, married a revolutionist, James Lovell, who became Naval Officer of Boston. Their grandson, Mansfield Lovell, was a General in the Confederate service, and was in command at New Orleans, when it was captured by the Union forces. The General was true to the disunion instincts of his grandfather.
SIR ROGER HALE SHEAFFE, BARONET, the subject of this sketch, was son of William Sheaffe. Born in Boston in 1763. His mother, after the death of his father, removed to a wooden house which was standing till recently on the corner of Essex and Columbia (formerly Auchmuty street) which was owned by her father. Lord Percy, afterward, Duke of Northumberland hired quarters there, soon became attached to Roger, and assumed the care of him. It would seem that the original intention of his Lordship was to provide for the boy in the Navy, for Mrs. Sheaffe wrote, in December 1776, she was told "Earl Percy had taken my son Roger from the Admiral's ship, given him a commission in the Army (which I must not say that I am sorry for), and sent him to England to an academy for education under his patronage." In 1778 Roger was dangerously ill, and on becoming convalescent, passed two months in Devonshire, with his sister, Mrs. Molesworth. In a letter dated at the Academy, Little Chelsea, early in 1779, he said, Lord Percy is as good as ever. He has given me a commission in his own regiment, the Fifth, now in the West Indies. I shall not join it for a year.
My love to my dear sister and brother. Remember me kindly to all my friends in Boston. You may be sure that I shall follow your advice strictly, that I may be all that you wish, shall be the endeavor of your most dutiful and affectionate son.
In 1786 Captain Molesworth said in a letter to his mother-in-law, Mrs. Sheaffe, The Duke of Northumberland has lodged money to buy Roger a Company, which, when he is in possession of, he will have it in his power more fully to manifest his affection for so good a mother. Roger's sister, Mrs. Molesworth, at the same period wrote her mother, "He is as good a young man as ever lived. Lord Percy continues his kindness to him. He improves very much, and is a great favorite with all his masters." Again, "Roger behaves remarkably well, is much liked in the Regiment; he is tall, well made, and reckoned handsome, very lively, yet prudent and steady in matters of consequence. He wishes, as much as we do, to go to Boston."
In 1791 Lieutenant Sheaffe was at Detroit, which post was still held by England, on account of the non-fulfillment of some of the terms of the treaty of peace. In 1794, before the surrender of the "Western Posts" as they were called, Lieutenant Sheaffe delivered a letter to Capt. Williamson, which was unequivocally of a military and hostile nature.
"I am commanded to declare that during the inexecution of the treaty of peace between Great Britain and the United States, and until the existing differences respecting it, shall be mutually and finally adjusted, the taking possession of any part of the Indian territory, either for purposes of war or sovereignty, is held to be a direct violation of his Britannic Majesty's rights, as they unquestionably existed before the treaty, and has an immediate tendency to interrupt, and in its progress destroy, that good understanding which has hitherto subsisted between his Britannic Majesty and the United States of America. I, therefore require you to desist from any such aggression. R. H. Sheaffe, Lieut. 5th Reg't. and Qr. M'r. Gen. Dept. of his Britannic Majesty's service."
In 1801 he was in service in the attack on Copenhagen under Lord Nelson; and though poor, just one-half of his prize money was sent to his mother in Boston.
At the battle of Queenstown Heights, he was a Colonel in General Brocks army; that gallant officer was slain at 7 o'clock in the morning. At noon, Colonel Sheaffe moved up from Niagara, took command of the forces and drove the Americans over the rocky heights into the river. For this victory he was made a Major General, and created a Baronet. At this period General Scott (who was the conqueror of Mexico, and Commander in Chief of the United States forces at the outbreak of the Civil War,) was a Colonel, and was taken prisoner by General Sheaffe, who related to him some of the circumstances of his military career, in substance, that in 1775, he was living in Boston with his widowed mother with whom Earl Percy had his quarters, that his Lordship was very fond of him, and took him away with him in view of providing for him, which he did, by giving him a military education, and by purchasing a commission and promotion to as high rank as is allowed by the rules of the service, and that the war then existing found him stationed in Canada. He stated moreover, that, reluctant to serve gainst his own countrymen, he solicited to be employed elsewhere, but at that time his request had not been granted.
Major General Sheaffe, commanded the British Army in person, and after the battle of Queenstown Heights, he moved upon Little York, now Toronto, and captured it. During these operations he lost his baggage and papers, which General Dearborn informed the Secretary of War "were a valuable acquisition."
In April, 1813, within a week of the fall of Little York, in a letter from his wife's mother to her niece, Miss Child, dated at Quebec, she says, "It is possible that you may not have heard that your cousin, Sir Roger Sheaffe has had the title of Baronet of Great Britain conferred on him, by our Prince Regent, a handsome compliment, which I trust will be followed by something substantial to support it. Sir Roger is so pressed with public business as to allow him scarcely time to attend to his private concerns. My dear Margaret is still in Quebec, with her lovely little Julia, as Upper Canada is still the seat of war. Her elevation to rank, has not in the least deprived her of her native humility and meekness. The manner it was announced to her was rather singular. She was met by a gentleman in the street, as she was going to church, who accosted her by the title of 'Lady Sheaffe', and put a letter in her hand from the Duke of Northumberland, addressed to 'Lady Sheaffe' which she received with her usual equanimity."
In 1841 he writes to his cousin, Miss Susan Child of Boston, "The year 1834 was indeed a sad one, in it we lost the last of our children, and in the same year died my sister Molesworth, a brother of Lady Sheaffe, my late brother William's eldest son, named after me, a Captain in the Army, and also Lord Cragie, the brother of your cousin, Mrs. Cragie's husband. I retain a good share of activity, as well as of erect military carriage, my sight is good, my teeth in a state to create envy in a majority of American misses, my appetite never fails and I sleep well." In January, 1842, he spoke of William, eldest surviving son of his brother William thus: "He is my natural heir, and having adopted him when he was ten years of age; and it having pleased God to take all my children from me. I regard him as a son."
Sir Roger H. Sheaffe died at Edinburgh in 1851, aged eighty-eight. He visited Boston, his native town, four times, namely, in 1788, in 1792-3, in 1803 and in 1806. He was respected and loved by his kinsmen to a remarkable degree. He was of medium stature, his person was well formed, his face was fine, his eyes of the deepest blue, full and prominent; and his teeth were of the purest white, regular and even, and were retained to the close of his life. Lady Sheaffe was Margrate, daughter of John Coffin and a cousin of Lieutenant-General John and of Admiral Sir Isaac Coffin. She was the mother of four children, who, as we have seen, died before her husband. The remains of Sir Roger's father and mother, of his brother Thomas Child, of his sisters Helen, Salley, Nancy, and Margaret, and of others of his lineage, were deposited in the Child Tomb, Trinity Church, Summer street, Boston.[261]
[261] Most of the information contained in this article was obtained by L. Sabine, from Miss Isabella Child, Thomas Hale Child and Miss Mary P. Hale, relatives of Sir Roger H. Sheaffe.
Nathaniel Sheaffe, oldest brother of Sir Roger, was a clerk in the Custom House, but at the death of his father in 1771, he left, in order to better provide for his mother and sisters, of whom he had the care. At the outbreak of the Revolution, he went to Jamaica, "where he intended to stay till the times will permit him to come home." He died January 29, 1777, and was buried in the churchyard at Morant Bay, Jamaica.
THOMAS CHILD SHEAFFE, brother of Sir Roger, went to New York after the evacuation of Boston. He was engaged in trade with the West Indies and Souther Ports. He died in Boston previous to 1793.
JONATHAN SAYWARD.
The name Saward or Sayward is an ancient Teutonic personal name, sae, the sea and weard, a keeper--the Guardian of the Sea, and was applied to the high admiral in Saxon times.
Henry Sayward came over to this country from England in 1637. He resided a few years at Hampton and Portsmouth, and then came to York. He was by occupation a millwright and carpenter, a man much needed, as mills were the principal sources of income to the new settlers. The town of York granted him three hundred acres of upland on the west side of the York river, and the selectmen laid the same out to him June 20th, 1667. Here he settled, and built a saw mill, and carried on a large business. He also at this time built the meeting house at York. He was constable of York in 1664, Selectman in 1667, Grand Juryman in 1668-9. His wife's name was Mary, and it has been claimed she was the daughter of John Cousins, of Casco Bay. He died in 1679. There is no record of the birth of their children, as the records of the Town of York were destroyed by the Indians on Feb. 5, 1692, but there is a deposition and deeds, which prove they had three sons and three daughters.
JONATHAN SAYWARD, the second son of Henry and Mary Sayward, resided in York. Very little is known concerning him. In 1687 there was a grant of land made to him by the town, on Little River, near Wells. He died previous to 1699.
JOSEPH SAYWARD, son of the aforesaid, was born at York, March 17, 1702. He was constable in 1716. Moderator and Selectman in 1721. At this date the meeting voted "that Mr. Joseph Sayward shall have the full management to build a sufficient fortification about our Parsonage home, of ten foot high, and fifty foot square, with two good buskins, or flancers, of ten foot square, all to be built of square hard timber, of ten inches thick, to be built forthwith, and said Sayward to keep a just and full account of ye cost and charge thereof." In 1723 the Indians were troublesome. A company under Captain Bragdon was sent in pursuit of them, a journal of their proceedings was kept by Joseph Sayward, which is in the Mass. Archives.
He married Mary, daughter of Samuel and Deborah Webber, of York, and had five sons and four daughters.
JONATHAN SAYWARD, eldest son of the aforesaid Joseph, and of the fourth generation in this country, and the subject of this sketch, was born at York, November 9, 1713. He began to take an interest in public affairs early in life. He was chosen town clerk in 1736, and constable in 1741. He was commissioned by Governor Shirley to command the sloop "Sea Flower" in the expedition against Louisburg in 1744, in which he took an important part.
He was chosen Representative to the General Court of Massachusetts for the years 1766, 7, 8.
In 1772 he was appointed by Governor Hutchinson as Special Justice of the Court of Common Pleas, and Judge of Probate for York County.
He was for many years extensively engaged in shipping, and at one time owned about twenty vessels, which were employed in the Southern and West India trade. He was one of the most extensive land owners in York, and was one of the proprietors of the town of Shapleigh.
When the Revolution broke out he was living in affluence in the beautiful mansion which he had built on the York river, near the mill site granted to his ancestors. At this time he had several vessels with valuable cargoes in the West Indies, and large sums of money invested in personal securities, on the income of which he enjoyed a satisfactory and honorable independence, but all was swept away in the Revolution.
Judge Sayward was one of the seventeen "Rescinders." He was not only decided in his attachment to the Crown, but was of the opinion that the Revolution would cause the decline of national virtue and prosperity in America. He fared hard at the hands of the "Sons of Liberty," and by remaining was obliged to bear contempt and insult, and by his own account never went out without L100 in his pocket, so as to be ever ready to escape from his persecutors. But, however bad he was treated in the early days of the great struggle, he seems to have regained the confidence of his townsmen, for in 1780 he was elected Moderator of the town meeting, and auditor of selectmen accounts in 1782.
His mansion home previously referred to is among the most interesting of the many historic homes in the ancient town of York, and what makes it doubly so is the fact that it contains all the original furniture, books, painting, silver plate, and the "loote" he obtained at the capture of Louisburg and brought home with him, consisting of rare chinaware, two very large candlesticks, a pair of andirons, a warming pan and brass tongs, all of which are now in a good state of preservation. There is also a full length portrait of Judge Sayward and another of his wife, with costumes of their times, and one of his daughter Sarah, at the age of twenty-three, painted by Blackburn at Charleston in 1761, a pupil of Copley. As works of art these paintings are pronounced by connoisseurs as exceedingly fine. The family coat of arms of the Saywards, in color, occupies a conspicuous place over the mantel piece, on the back of which is the following memorandum, which proves conclusively that it was legally granted:
London, July 1st, 1762.
The arms of Jonathan Sayward, Esqr., of Old York, in the Province of the Massachusetts Bay, in New England, Merchant, Rec'd this 1st of July, 1762, from the College of Arms, Herald's Office. The painting, Vellum, Frame and Glass as it now stands cost 32-6 Sterling Rec'd by his most dutifull Humble Servt.
Nath. Barrell.
There is also a commission from Governor Shirley to Jonathan Sayward, to command the sloop "Sea Flower" in the Louisburg expedition. The mansion is full of articles worth the attention of those of historical, antiquarian taste. Judge Sayward died May 8, 1797, and is buried in the old burying ground in York Village.
He married in 1736 Sarah Mitchell, who died in 1775. They had only one child, Sarah, born 1738, who married Nathaniel Barrell of Portsmouth, merchant. They were married at the judge's mansion in 1758. She was a great belle in her time, and was the general favorite of the village. She died in 1808, and her husband in 1831, aged 99 years. They had eleven children.
The mansion was for many years owned and occupied by Elizabeth and Mary Barrell, daughters of Jonathan Sayward Barrell, granddaughters of the Judge. They took great pleasure in exhibiting the house and the many interesting relics and heirlooms of their grandfather, and it is largely due to them that the same was kept intact, and not distributed at their death, as many members of the family desired. Elizabeth died in the old mansion November 12, 1883, aged 84 years, and her sister Mary died at the same place, June 6, 1889, aged 85 years.[262]
[262] The Sayward Family, 1890.
DEBLOIS FAMILY.
ETIENNE DEBLOIS was born in France, and for a time lived in Belgium. He was a French Huguenot, and the family name was DeChatillon. He was descended from the last counts of Blois and was banished from France at the revocation of the Edict of Nantes. After living in the Low Countries, he removed to England and was present at the battle of the Boyne. His sister was burnt at the stake in Ireland by the Papists, and he died in England.
Stephen Deblois, son of Etienne, was born in Oxford, England, in 1699. He came to New York in the Frigate Sea Horse, commanded by Captain Dumaresq. In 1720 he removed to Boston. He married February 6, 1721, Ann Farley, of English parentage. His death occurred in Boston in 1785, and his large estate was settled in 1790. In his will he says: "My two sons has been obliged to leave and I do not expect to see them again."
GILBERT DEBLOIS, son of the latter was born in New York city, March 17, 1725. He became a prosperous Merchant in Boston. In 1749 he married Ann, daughter of William and Ann Holmes Coffin, and granddaughter of Nathaniel Coffin. In 1774 Gilbert Deblois was an Addresser of Hutchinson, and in 1775 an Addresser of Gage. In 1776 he went to Halifax with his younger brother Lewis, and then must have returned to New York before his departure for England, according to an account in Hutchinson's Diary.
Dec. 23, 1776--Gilbert Deblois arrived in one of the transports from New York.
While residing in Boston, Mr. Deblois planted some elms in front of the Granary, just opposite his house on Tremont Street. These famous trees afterwards became known as the Paddock elms. Mr. Deblois had asked Paddock to keep an eye to their safety, and Adino Paddock performed this duty faithfully.
In a letter written by James Murray to a friend in New York, dated September 30, 1769, he speaks of Mr. Deblois' assistance to him when he was attacked by a mob. "Mr. Deblois threw himself in my rear, and suffered not a little in my defence."
In 1778 Gilbert Deblois was proscribed and banished, and his estate confiscated. The year following he was in London and addressed the king. His death occurred in that city in 1792, aged sixty-seven.
LEWIS DEBLOIS, brother to Gilbert, married Elizabeth Jenkins of Boston, in 1748. He was a prominent merchant in Boston, was an Addresser of General Gage in 1775. He went to Halifax on the evacuation of Boston in 1776.
He was proscribed and banished. He died very suddenly in England, (after being out all day) in 1779, aged seventy-one.
George Deblois, son of the aforesaid was born in Boston in 1753. He was a merchant in Salem. He was an Addresser of General Gage in 1774. He went to England. In 1784, there was a George Deblois, a merchant at Halifax, N. S., probably his son. The widow of a George Deblois died in the same city in 1827, aged seventy-four.
LEWIS DEBLOIS, brother of the aforesaid, was born in Boston in 1762. He went to New Brunswick and was a prominent merchant in St. John, and in 1795 a member of the company of Loyal Artillery. He died in that city in 1802. His daughter Elizabeth Cranston married James White, Esq., Sheriff of the County of St. John.
LIST OF CONFISCATED ESTATES BELONGING TO GILBERT DEBLOIS IN SUFFOLK COUNTY AND TO WHOM SOLD.
To Gilbert Deblois, Jr., Feb. 3, 1783; Lib. 137 fol. 28; Two thirds of land and brick warehouse in Boston, Cornhlll W., Spring Lane N.; Stephen Minot E.; land of Old South Church S.
To Ann Deblois, wife of Gilbert Deblois, Oct. 17, 1783; Lib. 151 fol. 217; Two thirds of land and house in Boston, Common St. W.; Martha Symmes N.; E.; N. and E.; Moses Gill N.; William Dana E.; Rawsons Lane S.
LYDE FAMILY.
Edward Lyde married in 1660 Mary, daughter of Rev. John Wheelwright, and died before 1663. He had an only son Edward, who married Susanna Curwin, daughter of Captain George Curwin. His second wife was Deborah, daughter of Hon. Nathaniel Byfield, 1696. In 1685 Edward Lyde and William Williams witnessed a deed that the Indian Chief Wamatuck and his Counsellors signed by making their marks. It was concerning land in Boston Harbor. In 1702-3 he was a warden of Kings Chapel.
Byfield Lyde, eldest son of the preceding, was born in Boston in 1704. Graduated at Harvard College in 1723. He was an Addresser of Governor Hutchinson in 1774, and a Protester against the disunionists the same year, and in 1775 he was an Addresser of General Gage. His wife, Sarah, the only daughter of Governor Belcher, died in Boston, October 10, 1768, aged sixty-one. In 1776 he accompanied the Royal Army to Halifax and died there the same year.
EDWARD LYDE, second son of Edward Lyde, was born in Boston in 1725. He was a merchant, and was proscribed, banished, and his property confiscated. It was bought in by his brother Nathaniel (born in 1735) who was allowed to remain.
Hutchinson, in his diary May 3rd, 1770, says: "Landed at Halifax. Edward Lyde, Esq., invited me to his house, where I tarried till I embarqued for England. I was very happy in being at Mr. Lyde's as there was so great an addition to the inhabitants from the navy and army and Refugees from Boston which made the lodgings for them very scarce to be had, and many of them when procured, quite intolerable." Again in his diary June 7, 1776, Hutchinson says: "Ned Lyde had arrived with others at Dover."
Edward Lyde died in New York in 1812, aged eighty-seven.
GEORGE LYDE, of Boston, in 1770, was appointed Collector of the Port of Falmouth, (Portland) Maine, and continued there until the beginning of the Revolution. He was an Addresser of Governor Hutchinson in 1774, and in 1778 was proscribed and banished. He was in England in 1780.
LIST OF CONFISCATED ESTATES BELONGING TO EDWARD LYDE IN SUFFOLK COUNTY AND TO WHOM SOLD.
To Nathaniel Byfield Lyde, Feb. 21, 1785; Land and buildings in Boston, Summer St. S., Bishop's Alley W.; heirs of Andrew Cunningham deceased N.; land formerly of John Simpson deceased E.
JAMES BOUTINEAU.
STEPHEN BOUTINEAU was one of the French Protestants, or Huguenots who came to Falmouth (Portland), Maine, in 1687, in company with Peter Bowdoin, Philip LeBretton, Philip Barger and others. He married Mary, daughter of Peter and Elizabeth Bowdoin in 1708. He was in 1748 the only surviving elder of the French Church on School street, Boston, of which Andrew Le Mercier was minister.[263] His son James Boutineau was born 27 January, 1710, he was an Attorney-at-law. In 1774 he was appointed Mandamus-Counsellor, and was one of the ten who took the oath of office. His daughter Nancy was married on Oct. 5, 1769, to John Robinson, a commissioner of the customs, but previous to this marriage Robinson was accused of assault upon James Otis, the latter, one of the most formidable of the "Patriots" met Commissioner Robinson at the Coffee-house and trouble ensued. As usual in all such cases, the friends of each party made out a good case for their respective sides, the matter was carried into court, where it was kept for about four years and the jury finally brought in damages in favor of Otis. In the meantime Robinson and his wife had gone to England, and as Mr. Boutineau was a lawyer, he managed the case for his son-in-law, who apologized for injuring Otis. Mr. Otis refused the fine of 2,000 pounds sterling, and nothing was demanded of Robinson but the costs of court and the amount of Mr. Otis' surgeon's bill, altogether amounting to about 112 pounds, lawful money. The affair ended in the Courts about 1772.
[263] New Eng. His. Gen. Vol. 8, p. 247.
James Boutineau was included in the Conspiracy Act of 1779, and his estate was confiscated under its provisions. He went to England, and his death occurred in that country. Mrs. Boutineau was a sister of Peter Faneuil, and another sister married Edward Jones, a merchant in Boston. Mrs. Jones went to Halifax, Nova Scotia, and while there received a letter from the Boutineaus in England, in which she was informed that, "Mr. and Mrs. Faneuil, who lodge in the same house with us, make it agreeable;" and that "there are one or two other genteel gentlemen and ladies, so that during the winter we drank tea with each other four days in the week." Of other fellow Loyalists, Mrs. Boutineau writes, that "Lodgings have been taken for Mr. Sewell, of Cambridge, and family,--they are expected here this day. Colonel Murray's family are gone to Wales, as well as Judge Browne and Apthorp's. All the New England people here, are Barnes and family, Captain Fenton and daughter, besides those in the house." In a postscript, she adds: "I desire you to inform me (if you can) who lives in my house in Boston." In a letter to her sister, dated April 1, 1785, Mrs. Boutineau tells Mrs. Mary Ann Jones who was residing in Boston at that time that her health is "very indifferent," and that "Mr. Faneuil had a letter lately from Mr. Jones, who is going soon to be very well married," etc.
LIST OF CONFISCATED ESTATES BELONGING TO JAMES BOUTINEAU, ET AL., IN SUFFOLK COUNTY AND TO WHOM SOLD.
To Samuel Clark, Feb. 26, 1780; Lib. 131 fol. 58; Land and dwelling-house in Boston, School St. S.; the town's land W.; John Rowe N., Joseph Green E.--Garden land near the above, Cook's Alley W.; Leverett Saltonstall N., William Powell E,; S. and E.; Leverett Saltonstall S. [Description corrected in margin of record.]
To Samuel Broome, July 24, 1780; Lib. 131 fol. 327; Land and dwelling-house in Boston, Milk St. S.; land of old South Church W.; Stephen Minot N.; widow Jones E.; N. and E.--Pasture land, 1 A. 10 r. opposite said dwelling-house, Milk St. N.; Cole, Decoster et al. E.; heirs of Barnabas Binney et al. S.; heirs of John Greenleaf deceased W.
COLONEL WILLIAM BROWNE.
The Brownes of Salem, Mass., are descended from an old respected family of "Browne Hall," Lancashire, England. Simon Browne, Barrister, resided there in 1540, and removed to Brundish, Suffolk. His son Thomas died there in 1608, and his son Francis died there in 1626. His son Hon. William, born 1608, came to Salem in 1635, became a merchant in Salem, and was eminent for his exemplary life, and public charities. He died in 1687. Major William Browne, son of the preceding, was born in 1639. He was a Councillor and Judge of the Court of Common Pleas for Essex County. He was a successful merchant, and a man of great influence in the Colony. He married Hannah, daughter of Captain George Curwin. He died in 1716, at the age of seventy-eight.
COLONEL SAMUEL BROWNE, son of the aforesaid, was born in 1669. He was the first town Treasurer of Salem, was many years a Representative, Judge of the Court of Common Pleas for Essex County, was also Chief Justice of said Court, also Colonel and Councillor. He was said to be by far the greatest merchant in his day, in the County of Essex. He emulated the beneficence of his father, uncle, and grandfather, in bequeathing large sums to Harvard College, and to schools in Salem. He died in 1731, aged 62. His son Samuel graduated at Harvard College, 1727. He married a daughter of John Winthrop, F. R. S., of New London, Conn., and died in 1742, aged 34. He was concerned in mercantile affairs.
COLONEL WILLIAM BROWNE, son of the aforesaid Samuel, was born at Salem in 1737, was a grandson of Governor Burnet. He graduated at Harvard College in 1755, the third in his class. He married his cousin, a daughter of Governor Wanton of Rhode Island, and was doubly connected with the Winthrop family, the wives of the elder Browne and Governor Wanton being daughters of John Winthrop, F. R. S., great-grandson of the first governor of Massachusetts. William Browne was Colonel of the Essex regiment, a member of the General Court in 1768, was one of the seventeen Rescinders, Judge of the Supreme Court, one of the ten Mandamus Counsellors who was sworn in. Colonel Browne was esteemed among the most opulent and benevolent individuals of the province before the Revolution, and so great was his popularity that the gubernatorial chair was offered him by the "Committee of Safety" as an inducement for him to remain and join the "Sons of Liberty." But he felt it his duty to remain on the side of the government, which represented law and authority, even at the expense of his great landed estates, both in Massachusetts and Connecticut, in the latter there were fourteen valuable farms, all of which were afterwards confiscated. After the passage of the Boston Port Bill, he was waited upon by a committee of the Essex delegates, which consisted of Jeremiah Lee, Samuel Holton, and Elbridge Gerry. They informed him that "It was with grief that the country had viewed his exertions for carrying into execution certain acts of parliament, calculated to enslave, and ruin his native land, that while the country would continue the respect for several years paid him, it resolved to detach every future connection all such, as shall persist in supporting or in any countenancing the late arbitrary acts of Parliament; that the delegates in the name of the country, request him to excuse them from the painful necessity of considering, and treating him as an enemy to his country, unless he resigned his office as counsellor and judge." Colonel Browne replied as follows: "As a Judge, and in every other capacity, I intend to act with honor, and integrity, and to exert my best abilities, and be assured, that neither persuasion can allure me, nor menaces compel me, to do anything derogatory to the character of a Counsellor of his majesty's province of Massachusetts. I cannot consent to defeat his Majesty's intentions, and disappoint his expectations by abandoning a post to which he has been graciously pleased to appoint me."
He was an Addresser of General Gage, was included in the Banishment Act of 1778, and in the Conspiracy Act of the year following. He was in London as early as May 4, 1776, and gave his fellow exiles some particulars relative to the evacuation of Boston. His wife, who complained of her treatment at Salem, and Boston, after his departure, does not appear to have joined him in England until the spring of 1778. In 1781 he was appointed Governor of the Bermudas, and administered the affairs of these islands in a manner to secure the confidence of the people. Under his judicious management the colony flourished. He found the financial affairs of the islands in a confused and ruinous state, and left them flourishing. In 1788 he left for England, deeply and sincerely regretted by the people. He died in England, February, 1802, aged sixty-five.
William Browne, son of the aforesaid, born at Salem, was an officer in the British Army, and was at the siege of Gibraltar. He was in England in 1784.
Colonel Benjamin Pickman, writing in 1793, said of the Brownes: "I would observe that the family of the Brownes has been the most remarkable family that has ever lived in the Town of Salem, holding places of the highest trust in the Town, County, and State, and possessing great riches. Their donations to the schools have been considerable, and their mercantile engagements have very much contributed to the growth of the Town."
The Browne mansion, erected by William Browne in 1740, upon the summit of Browne's Hill. He named "Browne Hall" after a place in Lancashire, England, that belonged to his ancestors.
The building consisted of two wings, two stories high, connected by a spacious hall, the whole presenting 80 feet front. The dwelling was one of the most magnificent in the Colony, it was finished in a most thorough and costly manner, corresponding with the wealth of the owner. The house was confiscated and later came into the possession of Hon. William Gray, who resided there till 1800. Subsequently it was known as "Sun Tavern," and then taken down.[264]
[264] Essex Inst. His. Coll. Vol. xxxii., pp. 201-238. Curwen's Journal, pp. 500-1, Sabine's Loyalists, pp. 265-6.
ARCHIBALD CUNNINGHAM.
ARCHIBALD CUNNINGHAM, of Boston, Massachusetts, was a prosperous merchant and a member of the North church in that city. He was high in office among the Free Masons. In 1776 he went to New York and on account of his loyalty was proscribed and banished in 1778.
At the peace he went from New York to Shelburne, Nova Scotia, accompanied by his family of six persons and one servant. In Nova Scotia he was Clerk of the Peace, and Register of Probate. On account of adhering to the royal cause his losses were estimated at L1100. As he was a man of learning, a reader, and of an observant nature, he left many valuable papers. His death occurred in 1820.
CAPTAIN JOHN MALCOMB.
There is not much known of this person. I find that he lived at Brunswick, Maine, and that in 1760 he married Abigail Trundy, of Falmouth (Portland). He was commissioned Ensign by Governor Shirley, and served under Colonel Waldo, in the 2nd Massachusetts Regiment against Louisburg in 1745. He was also Captain of a vessel that took despatches from there to Boston in the same year.
It was not often that the same man was tarred and feathered mere than once, but this unhappy experience twice befell John Malcom. His offence appears to have been in the exercise of his duty as custom house officer, of seizing a vessel at Falmouth, now Portland, for want of a register, and freely speaking of the actions of the "Sons of Liberty." We are informed by the papers of that period[265] "That John Malcom was genteely Tarr'd and Feathered at Pownalborough" (now Dresden, Maine) "on November first, 1773, and on January 25th, 1774, a mob in Boston tore his cloaths off, and tarr'd his Head and Body, and feathered him, then they set him on a chair in a cart, and carried him through the main Street into King Street, from thence they proceeded to 'Liberty Tree,' and then to the Neck, as far as the Gallows, where they whipped, beat him with Sticks, and threatened to hang him."
[265] Boston Gazette, Nov. 15, 1773. Boston News Letter, Jan. 27, 1774. Feb 3, 1774. Massachusetts Spy, Jan. 27, 1774.
The "Sons of Despotism" detained him under the gallows for an hour. He was then conveyed to the north end of the town, and thence back to his house. He was kept stripped four hours, and was so bruised and benumbed by the cold that his life was despaired of. It was by such means that the disunionists made converts to their cause. His offence for this Boston outrage, was that he struck one of his tormentors, a tradesman who had frequently insulted him, when a warrant was issued against him, but as the constable had not been able to find him, a mob gathered about his house and broke his windows. Malcomb was in the house, and pushing his sword through a broken window, wounded one of his assailants. The mob then made a rush, broke in, and finding him in a chamber, lowered him by a rope into the cart, and treated him as before mentioned in the newspapers.
THE RUSSELL FAMILY OF CHARLESTOWN.
The Russell family was eminent in social station and distinguished in the many public offices held by them in Boston and Charlestown for nearly two centuries. The first of this family to come to this country was the Hon. Richard Russell, son of Paul, of Hereford, England, born 1611, was an apprentice at Bristol, 1628, arrived here in 1640 with his wife, both admitted to the church in 1641, was a prominent merchant, Representative, Councillor, Speaker, Treasurer, Assistant. He died in 1676, aged 63. His son James, born 1640, died 1709. He also was judge, Councillor and Treasurer, etc. He had an only son Daniel, born 1683, died 1763. He married Rebecca Chambers, and was also Councillor, Commissioner, Treasurer, etc.
CHAMBERS RUSSELL, son of the preceding, was born 1713. He was Judge, Councillor and a prominent lawyer, in whose office John Adams and Judge Sewall studied law. He graduated at Harvard College 1731, married Mary Wainwright, resided at Lincoln, which was incorporated in 1754, and named by him, after Lincoln in England, where some of his ancestors resided. His wife died in 1762, and he went to England, and died Nov. 24, 1767, at Guilford County, Surrey.
JAMES RUSSELL, brother of Chambers, married Catherine Greaves, 1738. He was Judge, Representative, and in 1774 was appointed Mandamus Councillor, but did not take the official oath. This saved him from the wrath of the revolutionists. He was not solicitous to shine, but was anxious to do good, and to be on friendly terms with his neighbors. He was incessant in his endeavors to promote the happiness and advance the prosperity of the community in which he lived. A bridge from Charlestown to Boston was among the enterprises which he projected. By his persevering efforts, the work was accomplished, and the Charlestown Bridge was the first structure of the kind ever build across a broad river in the United States. Through his great benevolence, and public spirit, he was not driven from his home as his sons were, the revolutionists allowed him to remain, and he died at Charlestown, Sept. 17th, 1798, aged 83 years.
JAMES RUSSELL, JR., son of the preceding, was obliged to leave and go to England. Was in London, February 1776, and at Exeter in 1779. A year later the fortunate captures made by a privateer gave him a fortune, and he was "bound in the matrimonial chain" to Mary, second daughter of Richard Lechmere, a Boston Loyalist. They were married in 1780 at St. Peter's Church, Bristol, where he resided as a merchant. Among their children was Lechmere-Coor-Graves, Charles James, who died in service of Royal Navy, Katherine-Sarah, who married Major Miller of Bombay Artillery, Lucy Margaret, married Rev. Robert Cope Wolf.
DR. CHARLES RUSSELL, brother of James, was also a staunch loyalist. Graduated at Harvard College 1757. Married Feb. 15, 1768, Elizabeth, only daughter of Colonel Henry Vassell of Cambridge. He succeeded to his uncle, Judge Chambers Russell's estate at Lincoln, was proscribed and banished, and his estate confiscated. He was a physician at Antigua, where his wife owned considerable property. He died there in 1780, and his wife died at Plymouth in 1802.[266]
[266] Wyman Genealogies and Estates in Charlestown.
EZEKIEL RUSSELL
Was a Printer and born in Boston, he served an apprenticeship with his brother Joseph. This family had no connection with the Charlestown Russells. In November, 1771, he commenced a political publication called "The Censor." It was printed in Marlboro Street, was a weekly publication, designed to defend the action of the government, and was supported by the loyalists. The articles were written with great ability by Lieut. Gov. Oliver, Dr. Benjamin Church, and other loyalists. The first number reprinted from the Massachusetts Spy, the then famous letter of Joseph Greenleaf attacking Governor Hutchinson, and answered it with vehemence and spirit. In succeeding numbers the controversy was prolonged with increasing bitterness, and at last became intensely personal. The issue of Feb. 8, 1772, contained a recipe to make a modern patriot for the Colonies, especially for Massachusetts, as follows:
"Take of impudence, virulence and groundless abuse =quantum sufficit=, atheism, deism and libitinism =ad libitum=; false reports, well adapted and plausable lies, with groundless alarms, =one hundred wt. avoirdupois=; a malignant abuse of magistracy, a pusilanimous and diabolical contempt of divine revelation and all its abbettors, =an equal quantity=; honor and integrity not quite =an atom=; fraud, imposition, and hypocrisy, any proportion that may seem expedient; infuse therein the credulity of the people =one thousand gallons=, as a =menstrum= stir in the =phrenzy= of the =times=, and at the end of a year or two this judicious composition will probably bring forth a A =***= and Y =***= an O =***= and a M =*****=."
"Probatum est I. N."
The Censor not proving a success, Mr. Russell attempted to establish a newspaper at Salem, but that also failed. He returned to Boston, where he obtained support principally by printing and selling ballads, and small pamphlets. His wife was an active and industrious woman, who not only assisted him in printing, but sometimes wrote ballads on recent tragical events, which were published, and had frequently a considerable run. Ezekiel Russell died September 1796, aged fifty-two years. Joseph Russell, brother of Ezekiel, son of Benjamin and Elizabeth Russell, was born at Boston, 8 September, 1734, and died at St. John, New Brunswick, in 1808, aged 74 years.
JONATHAN SEWALL.
ATTORNEY GENERAL OF MASSACHUSETTS.
The family of Sewall is traced to two brothers, Henry, and William Sewall, both Mayors of Coventry, England, Henry Sewall born about 1544, was a Linen Draper, Alderman of Coventry, Mayor in 1589 and 1606. Died 1628, aged 84. Buried in St. Michael's Church, Coventry. Married Margaret, eldest daughter of Avery Grazebrook.
Their son Henry Sewall, emigrated to New England in 1634. He came over "out of dislike to the English Hierarchy" and settled at Newbury. He died at Rowley in 1657, aged 81 years. Married Anne Hunt. They brought with them their son, Henry Sewall, born in Coventry, in 1614, died in 1700, aged 86. Married Jane Dummer in Newbury, 1646. He went back to England and resided for some years at Warwick. In 1659 he returned to New England, "his rents at Newbury coming to very little when remitted to England." His son Stephen was born at Badesly, England in 1657. He came to New England in 1661, settled at Salem and was a Major in the Indian wars. He died in 1725. Married Margaret, daughter of Rev. Jonathan Mitchell of Cambridge in 1682. They had an only son Jonathan, who was a merchant at Boston. He married Mary, sister of Edward Payne, of Boston. They had a son,
JUDGE JONATHAN SEWALL, the subject of this notice. He was born at Boston in 1728. Graduated at Harvard College in 1748, and was a teacher at Salem till 1756. He married Esther, daughter of Edmund Quincy, Esq., of Braintree, afterwards of Boston, and sister of Dorothy Quincy, wife of Governor Hancock, and of Elizabeth Quincy, wife of Samuel Sewall, of Boston, the father of Samuel Sewall, Chief Justice of Massachusetts. Jonathan Sewall studied law with Judge Chambers Russell, of Lincoln, commenced practice in his profession at Charlestown. He was an able and successful lawyer. He was Solicitor General, and his eloquence is represented as having been soft, smooth and insinuating, which gave him as much power over a jury as a lawyer ought ever to possess. At the death of Jeremy Gridley, he was appointed Attorney-General of Massachusetts, September, 1767. In 1768 he was appointed Judge of Admiralty for Nova Scotia. He went there twice in that capacity, and remained but a short period.
He was a gentleman and a scholar. He possessed a lively wit, a brilliant imagination, great subtlety of reasoning and an insinuating eloquence.
He was an intimate friend of John Adams, they studied together in Judge Russell's office, and afterwards, while attending court, they lived together, frequently slept in the same chamber, and often in the same bed, and besides the two young men were in constant correspondence.
He attempted to dissuade John Adams from attending the first Continental Congress, and it was in reply to his arguments, and as they walked on the Great Hill at Portland, that Adams used the memorable words, used so often afterwards in 1861 when the ordinance of secession was passed: "The die is now cast, I have now passed the Rubicon; sink or swim, live or die, survive or perish with my country, is my unalterable determination." They parted, and met no more until 1788. Adams, the Minister of the new republic at the Court of St. James, and the eloquent and gifted Sewall, true to the Empire, met in London. Adams laying aside all etiquette made a visit to his old friend and countryman, he said, "I ordered my servant to announce John Adams, I was instantly admitted, and both of us forgetting that we had ever been enemies, embraced each other as cordially as ever. I had two hours conversation with him in a most delightful freedom, upon a multitude of subjects." In the course of the interview, Mr. Sewall remarked that he had existed for the sake of his two children, that he had spared no pains or expense in their education and that he was going to Nova Scotia in hope of making some provision for them.
In 1774, he was an Addresser of Governor Hutchinson, and in September of that year his elegant home in Cambridge (which he rented from John Vassal, afterwards Washington's head-quarters, since occupied by the poet Longfellow) was attacked by the mob and much injured. He fled to Boston to escape from the fury of the disunionists. He had ably vindicated the characters of Governors Bernard, Hutchinson and Oliver, he was esteemed an able writer, and a staunch loyalist. He was proscribed in the Conspirators Act of 1779. He resided chiefly in Bristol till 1788, for the education of his children, then he removed to St. John's, N. B., having been appointed Judge of Admiralty for Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. He immediately entered upon the duties of his office, which he held till his death, which occurred September 26, 1796, at the age of sixty-eight. His widow survived him, and removed to Montreal, where she died January 21, 1810.
JONATHAN SEWALL, son of the aforesaid, was born at Cambridge, 1766, was educated at Bristol, England, and afterwards resided at Quebec, where he occupied the offices of Solicitor and Attorney General and Judge of the Vice Admiralty Court, until 1808, when he was appointed Chief Justice of Lower Canada, which he resigned in 1838. For many years he was President of the Executive Council, and Speaker of the Legislative Council.
In 1832 he received the degree of Doctor of Law from Harvard College. He died at Quebec in 1840, aged seventy-three. His brother Stephen was Solicitor General of the same Province in 1810 and resided in Montreal. He died there of Asiatic cholera in the summer of 1832.
SAMUEL SEWALL son of Henry Sewall and brother of Major Stephen Sewall, was the first chief justice of Massachusetts. This was the famous Sewall that sat in judgment upon the witches and afterwards repented it, who refused to sell an inch of his broad acres to the hated Episcopalians to build a church upon, who was one of the richest, most astute, sagacious, scholarly, bigoted and influential men of his day, who has left us in his Diary a transcript almost vivid in its conscientious faithfulness of that old time life, where he tells us of the courts he held, the drams he drank, the sermons he heard, the petty affairs of his own household and neighborhood, and where he advised with the governor touching matters of life and death. He married Hannah, the only child of John Hull, the mintmaster, who it is said gave her, on her marriage, a settlement in pine tree shillings equal to her weight. Hull owned a large farm of 350 acres in Longwood, Brookline, which descended to his son-in-law, and was known afterwards as Sewall's Farm.[267]
[267] Curwen Journal, pp. 463-5. 506. Sabine's Loyalists, pp, 265-8.
Samuel Sewall, son of the aforesaid, married Rebecca Dudley, a daughter of the governor. His son, Henry Sewall, born in 1719, died in 1771, was a gentleman much respected, and a lawyer of prominence. His son,
SAMUEL SEWALL, the subject of this article, was born at Brookline, December 31, 1745. Graduated at Harvard College in 1761. He studied law and settled in Boston. His name occurs among the barristers and attorneys who addressed Governor Hutchinson in 1774, and in the Banishment and Proscription Act in 1778, when his large estate which he had inherited from his ancestors, was confiscated. He went to England, and in 1776 was a member of the Loyalist Club, London. Two years later he was at Sidmouth, a "bathing town of mud walls and thatched roofs." In 1780 he was living in Bristol, and on the 19th of June amused himself loyally celebrating Clinton's success at Charleston in the discharge of a two-pounder in a private garden, and three days later was shot at by a highwayman and narrowly escaped with his life. Early in 1782 he was at Taunton, and at Sidmouth. He died at London, after one day's confinement to his room, May 6th, 1811, aged fifty-six years. He was unmarried.
LIST OF CONFISCATED ESTATES BELONGING TO SAMUEL SEWALL IN SUFFOLK COUNTY AND TO WHOM SOLD.
To Edward Kitchen, Wolcott, July 19, 1782; Lib. 135, fol. 113; Land 263 A. 1 qr., in Brookline, Thomas Aspinwall E.; marsh road to Charles River N E.; Charles River N.; Thomas Gardner and Moses Griggs S. and S.W.; Solomon Hill S. and S.E.----Land, 16 A. 3 qr., and half of house in Brookline on Sherburn Road and the marsh lane, bounded by Capt. Cook, Samuel Craft and Elisha Gardner.
To John Heath. Nov. 12. 1782; Lib. 136, fol. 102; Land and buildings in Brookline. 9 A. 33 r., Sherburn Road S.E.; a town way N.E.; Mr. Aker N.W.; a town way S.W.----32 A. 3 r., Daniel White and the pound S.W.; road and Joseph Williams S.E.; Joshua Boylston and William Hyslop N.E.; Sherburn Road N.W.----18 A. 2 qr. 5 r., Samuel White N.W.; John Dean S.W. and S.; a town way S.E., said Dean N.E.; S.E. and S.; said town way E.; road N.E.----59 A. 3 qr. 4 r., Benjamin White and Dr. Winchester N.E.; Sarah Sharp S.W.; Samuel White and heirs of Justice White S.E.; Benjamin White N.E.; S.E. and N.E.; Sherburn Road N.E.----23 A. 3 qr. 33 r., Ebenezer Crafts and Caleb Gardner N.W.; said Gardner and Benjamin White S.W.; Moses White S.E.; Benjamin White and Moses White N.E.; Moses White S.E.: a town way N.E.--- 3 A. 28 r, Ebenezer Craft S.W.; S.E. and N.E.; the County line N.W.----8 A. 1 qr., 31 r., Daniel White N.W.; the County line S.W.; David Cook S.E.; heirs of Ebenezer Davis N.E.----5 A. 2 qr. 38 r., said Craft N.W.; saw mill meadow W.; William Heath S. and S.E.; Benjamin White and William Hammon N.E.----7 A. 2 qr., 32 r., Edward K. Walcott S. and W.; Benjamin White S.; William Acker S.E.; John Child E.; Charles River N.; Joseph Adams and Daniel White W.----4 A. 26 r., Moses White W., Esquire White, Ebenezer Craft and a creek S.; Nehemiah Davis and heirs of Caleb Denny S.E.; the marsh road N.
To John Molineux, William Molineux, Aug. 11, 1783; Lib 139, fol. 153; Land and buildings in Boston, Newbury St. W.; Daniel Crosby, John Solely and heirs of Benjamin Church deceased S.; land late of Frederick William Geyer E.; Thomas Fairweather, Sampson Reed, John Homands and Edward Hollowday N.; said Sewall W.; N.; W. and N.
To John McLane, Dec. 18, 1783; Lib. 140. fol. 207; Land and buildings in Boston, Newbury St. W.; said Sewall S.; E.; S. and E.; Edward Hollowday N.
THOMAS ROBIE.
William and Elizabeth Robie were inhabitants of Boston as early as 1689, when their son Thomas was born on March 20th of that year. He graduated at Harvard College in 1708, and died in 1729. He was tutor, librarian, and Fellow of the college. He published an account of a remarkable eclipse of the sun on Nov. 27, 1772, also in the Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society, papers on the Alkaline Salts, and the Venom of Spiders (1720-24). The following extract from the diary of President Leverett shows the estimation in which he was held. "It ought to be remembered that Mr. Robie was no small honor to Harvard College by his mathematical performances, and by his correspondence thereupon with Mr. Durham and other learned persons in those studies abroad." In mathematics and natural philosophy he was said to have no equal in New England.
His mother was Elizabeth Taylor, daughter of James Taylor, long treasurer of the Province.[268] He went to Salem and established himself in the practice of physic, and married a daughter of Major Stephen Sewall.
[268] Memorial His., of Boston. Vol. iv. p. 492. Vol. ii. p. 549.
Thomas Robie, of Marblehead, was a son of the preceding Dr. Robie. He was a merchant, and married a daughter of the Rev. Simon Bradstreet, who was the great grandson of Gov. Bradstreet, called the Nestor of New England. Mr. Robie was a staunch loyalist, was an Addresser of Gov. Hutchinson, and thus brought upon himself and family the ire of the Revolutionists. They were obliged to leave the town and take refuge in Nova Scotia. Crowds of people collected on the wharf to witness their departure, and many irritating and insulting remarks were addressed to them concerning their Tory principles, and their conduct towards the Whigs. Provoked beyond endurance by these insulting taunts, Mrs. Robie retorted, as she seated herself in the boat that was to convey her to the ship: "I hope that I shall live to return, find this wicked rebellion crushed and see the streets of Marblehead run with rebel blood." The effect of this remark was electrical among the Revolutionists and only her sex prevented them from doing her person injury. But there were other loyalists in Marblehead who, if not so demonstrative, were not less sincere in this opinion. With fortitude and silence they bore the taunts and insults to which they were subjected, honestly believing that their friends and neighbors were engaged in a treasonable rebellion against their lawful sovereign.
Mr. Robie first went to Halifax, but afterwards to London, Feb. 5, 1776. He passed his time of exile mostly in Halifax, where one of his daughters married Jonathan Stearns, Esq., another refugee; another was married to Joseph Sewall, Esq., late treasurer of Massachusetts.
After the war was over some of the refugees attempted to return to their former homes. During the month of April, 1783, the town was thrown into a state of the greatest excitement by the return of Stephen Blaney, one of the loyalists. Rumors were prevalent that other refugees were also about to return, and on April 24 a town meeting was held, when it was voted that "All refugees who made their appearance in town were to be given six hours notice to leave, and any who remained beyond that time were to be taken into custody and shipped to the nearest port of Great Britain." Late one afternoon after this action of the town a vessel from the provinces arrived in the harbor. It was soon ascertained that the detested Robie family were on board, and, as the news spread through the town, the wharves were crowded with angry people, threatening vengeance upon them if they attempted to land. The dreadful wish uttered by Mrs. Robie at her departure still rankled in the minds of the people and they determined to give the Robies a significant reception. So great was the excitement that it was feared by many of the influential citizens that the unfortunate exiles might be injured and perhaps lose their lives at the hands of the infuriated populace. During the night, however, a party of gentlemen went on board of the schooner and removed them to a place of safety. They were landed in a distant part of the town and secreted for several days in a house belonging to one of the gentlemen. In the meantime urgent appeals were made to the magnanimity of the turbulent populace, and the excitement subsided.
Mr. Robie went into business again in a limited extent, and died at Salem about 1812, well esteemed and respected. The large brick mansion house of Thomas Robie is situated on Washington street, near the head of Darling street, Marblehead.
SAMUEL BRADSTREET ROBIE, son of the above, of Halifax, was appointed solicitor-general of Nova Scotia in 1815, speaker of the house of of assembly in 1817, 1819-20, member of the council in 1824, and master of the rolls in 1825, and died at that city January, 1858, in his eighty-eighth year.
BENJAMIN MARSTON.
The origin of the name Marston, is the English of Marsius (Lat.) Marson (Ger.) and signifies warrior, being derived from Mars, the god of war.
John Marston, the first of this name to come to America came from Ormsby, Norfolk, England, to Salem, in 1637, when he was 22 years of age. He married Alice, surname unknown, on Aug. 4, 1640, and on June 2, 1641 was admitted freeman. He had ten children between 1641 and 1661. His occupation was that of carpenter. He was diligent and prosperous in his business, and at his death bequeathed to his children "his house and land, and some money." His sons were influential in town matters, and three were chosen representatives to the general court.
He died Dec. 19, 1681, and was buried in the Old Salem Burying Ground.
BENJAMIN MARSTON, the first of this name and lineage, was the fourth son of the preceding John Marston, and was born in Salem, Jan. 9, 1651. He was an active and enterprising merchant and carried on for many years an extensive and profitable business with the West Indies, Spain, Nova Scotia, and Southern Colonies. He owned two warehouses, and the wharves on which they stood, several vessels, Brigantines, Ketches, Shallops and Sloops. In the year 1700 he built a large and handsome brick dwelling house, the first brick house in Salem. It was built by George Cabot, a mason from Boston. Its location was afterwards occupied by the Lee house on the corner of Essex and Crombie streets. Towards the close of his life, his estate suffered great losses, some of his vessels were lost at sea, some taken by the French and pirates, and others having lost all their crew by disease, or otherwise, "ye voiages were spiled." In June, 1719, he sailed with his son Benjamin, Jr., in "The good Briganteen Essex" from Salem to Ireland. His son wrote from Dublin, Nov. 6, 1719, to his mother announcing "the death of his father there, from the Small Pox, and that he was taken ill of the same distemper, the night he died, and that he had recovered and was not much marked."
BENJAMIN MARSTON, the second of this name, son of the preceding Benjamin Marston, was born in Salem, Feb. 24, 1697. He graduated from Harvard College in 1715. It appears after the death of his father he remained in Ireland, conducting all the business matters connected with the Essex, with a degree of energy and capacity not often found in a young man of 22 years of age. The voyage turned out to be much more profitable than was expected, and much of the property that had been sold or mortgaged by his father was redeemed.
He engaged in business at Salem as a merchant and gained a reputation among his fellow townsmen as a "man of honorable motives and strict integrity of character." He was chosen representative to the general court in 1727-28-29. Was High Sheriff of Essex till 1737, was Justice of General Session and Common Pleas Courts. In 1729 he married Elizabeth Winslow, daughter of Hon. Isaac Winslow of Marshfield. In 1740 he retired from business, and bought a large and valuable property at Manchester, known for many years as the Marston farm. Here he passed the remainder of his days, and died May 22, 1754, aged 57 years, leaving a large estate including the Great and Little Misery Islands, for which he had paid L516. 13.9. A part of the income of the island he left for the purpose of "Propagating the Gospel among the Indians."
BENJAMIN MARSTON, the third of this name, and family, and son of the preceding, was born in Salem, Sept. 30, 1730. He graduated at Harvard College in 1749. After leaving college he travelled in Europe and visited some other of the British colonies. He married Sarah Sweet, whose sister, Martha, married Col. Jeremiah Lee of Marblehead. After his marriage he "settled down" in Marblehead, where for many years he carried on a large and successful business as a merchant. He owned a store in King street, and other stores, and warehouses, and jointly with his partners, Jeremiah Lee and Robert Hooper, several large ships. He also owned a pleasant and commodious dwelling house, and much real estate, and other property in Marblehead and elsewhere. He was considered by his friends and neighbors as a man of pure life, and great integrity of character, active in business, energetic in public matters, hospitable and benevolent in private, a great reader and scholar, and fond of literary pursuits, always occupying one of the most respectable positions in society, and greatly esteemed by all who knew him. Here he continued to live for twenty years, actively engaged in business, and doing his duty towards his town. He was chosen selectman, and overseer of the poor, thirteen times in fifteen years, fireward twelve times in fourteen years, assessor in 1760, moderator of town meetings, fourteen times in eight years, and occupied many other important offices of trust. After 1768, however, when the troubles which preceded the Revolution began to increase the confidence of the people, that were influenced by the Revolutionists, appear to have been withheld. They still chose him moderator of all town meetings, but he was not again appointed on any important committees. He was known to be "an uncompromising adherent to the lawful government of the British Colonies," but as he had violated no agreements, and never attempted to counteract the plans of the conspirators, though frequently and openly expressing his disapprobation of their violent proceedings, he was for some time unmolested. At an early period, however, he discovered the storm brewing, and as if apprehensive of future difficulties he began "to sell off some of his property."
Benjamin Marston was one of the Addressers of Governor Hutchinson, and thus incurred the displeasure of the Revolutionists. After this he was harshly and brutally treated by the "Sons of Liberty." In the year 1775, his home was mobbed by a Marblehead Committee, who without any legal authority, entered his doors, broke open his desk, embezzled his money, and notes, and carried off his books and accounts. He made his escape from the town with difficulty, the turbulent "Sons of Despotism" would have probably tarred and feathered him if he had come within their reach. He remained concealed among his friends for some time, till he could reach Boston and place himself under the protection of the British. A letter from Hon. Wm. Brown, who also had sought shelter in Boston, to his friend Judge Curwen, a fellow Loyalist, said "About 2 months ago, Mr. Marston came here by night from Col. Fowle's farm. He knows nothing about Salem. His wife died last summer."
After the evacuation of Boston he went to St. John, N. B., and then to Windsor, N. S., finally settling down at Halifax, and there engaging in trade and venturing to sea, he was taken prisoner and carried into Plymouth, and remained in duress in Boston until he was exchanged, and then went to Halifax. He returned to Boston after the peace in 1787, in the spring of which year he visited his friends in Plymouth, for the last time, and soon after embarked for London. His after life is best described in a letter to his sister, Mrs. Elizabeth Watson, of Plymouth, wife of William Watson, Esq., under date of London, March 19, 1792. He says: "I now sit down and write to you with satisfaction, for I have at length fairly waded thro the Slough of Despond. I am now landed on the opposite side and shall go on my way rejoicing, having once more emerged into active life. In fact, I am engaged to go with a large Company, who are going to make a Settlement on the Island Bulama, on the coast of Africa, as their Land Surveyor General on a pretty good lay. No expedition could have hit my taste and humor more exactly than this one promises to do. It is so of the Robinson Crusoe kind, that I prefer it, vastly to any employment of equal emolument and of a more regular kind, that might have been offered to me in this country.
"You say you have mourned me as dead and buried. In truth, my dear Sister, I have been much worse off. I have for more than four years been buryed alive. As to gratifying your wish in making my native country the residence of the remainder of my days, it is not at present in my power to do, for want of means. There is not remaining in my mind the least resentment to the Country because the party whose side I took in the late great Revolution, did not succeed, for I am now fully convinced. It is better for the world that they have not. I don't mean by this to pay any complements to the first instigators of our American Revolution, although it has been of such advantage to mankind, I should as soon think of erecting monuments to Judas Iscariot, Pontius Pilate and the Jewish Sanhedrim for betraying and crucifying the Lord of Life, because that event was so importantly and universally beneficial."
The expedition to Africa resulted disastrously, and Benjamin Marston died on the Island of Bulama of the African fever, on the 10th of August, 1792.
From the scanty materials which have been here brought together, will be sufficient to convince the reader that it was no personal consideration, no expectation of honors and rewards, or desire of rank and distinction, but simply from a deep conviction of duty, a clear sense of loyalty to the British crown, that he gave up everything that was dear to him, his "pleasant and spacious dwelling" house, with its "fine old garden for morning exercise," his cherished library, his "much property," his well-earned reputation as a merchant, a magistrate and a citizen, his relatives, friends, and native country, and become a refugee and a wanderer on the face of the earth, "without a place that he could command to lay his head," and those that bore his name, were more proud of it than if he left rank and honor and large possessions to his representatives. There were very few of those who embraced the cause of the Mother Country, in those trying times, that were led by more honorable, or disinterested motives, or are more deserving of remembrance than Benjamin Marston of Marblehead.
HON. BENJAMIN LYNDE CHIEF JUSTICE OF MASSACHUSETTS.
It appears from the registry in the Church of St. John, the parish church of Hackney, near London, that Enoch Lynde was married on the 25th of October, 1614, to Elizabeth Digbie, a descendant of Sir John Digby. Enoch Lynde resided in London, was a merchant engaged in foreign trade, and was for some years connected with the postal service between England and Holland. He died the 23rd of April, 1636, aged fifty years.
SIMON LYNDE, the third son of Enoch Lynde, was born in London in 1624. He engaged in mercantile pursuits, and went to Holland. In 1650 he came to New England, and in the following year married Hannah, a daughter of Mr. John Newgate. During the thirty years of his life in the colony, he was a person of prominence, and acquired large landed possessions, in Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island. In 1687 he was appointed one of the Justices of the Superior Court. He died 22nd Nov. 1687, possessed of a large estate, and many children, who survived him.
BENJAMIN LYNDE, the sixth son of Simon, was born 22nd September, 1666. He records of himself that he was admitted to Harvard College on the 6th of September, 1682, by the Rev. Increase Mather, after having received his preparatory education under the famous grammar Master, Ezekiel Cheever, and received his first Degree in 1686. His father desired that he should complete his education in England. On 27th June, 1692, he sailed for England, and was admitted he says "for the study of Law, into the honorable Society of the Middle Temple, Oct. 18, 1692." "I was called to the Bar as Counsellor at Law in 1697, and received a commission under the great Seal, for King's Advocate, in the New Court of Admiralty, in New England, in the same year." He returned to America Dec. 24, 1697. On the 27 of April, 1699, he married Mary, daughter of Hon. William Browne of Salem. In 1712 he was appointed a Judge of the Superior Court, and in the following year a Councillor. On the resignation of Judge Sewall in 1728, he was made Chief Justice of the Province, which office he held at the time of his death, Jan. 28, 1745, in the 79th year of his age. The Boston Evening Post said of him, "Inflexible justice, unspotted integrity, affability, and humanity were ever conspicuous in him. He was a sincere friend, most affectionate in his relations, and the delight of all that were honored with his friendship and acquaintance." He left two sons, the younger, William, died unmarried, in 1752. His eldest son,
BENJAMIN LYNDE, JR. was born on the 5th of October, 1700. He graduated from Harvard College in 1718, and in 1721 he took his master's degree at Cambridge. He soon after received the appointment of Naval Officer for Salem. In 1734 he was appointed a special judge of the Court of Common Pleas, for Suffolk. In 1737 he was one of the agents in the settlement of the boundary line between New Hampshire and Massachusetts. Two years later he was made one of the Standing Judges of Common Pleas for Essex, and in 1745, the year of his father's death, he was raised to the Superior Bench of the Province. He was a member of the Council for many years, but declined a re-election in 1760, in consequence of the controversy that arose in that year between the House and Government as to the right of Judges to sit as Councillors. On the promotion of Chief Justice Hutchinson to the executive chair, in 1771, Judge Lynde was appointed to the place now vacant, and became Chief Justice of the Province. He resigned not many months after, pending the controversy respecting the payment of judges' salaries by the town. He had now reached the age of 72, and "not being inclined to ride the Circuit longer" he accepted the more humble and less laborious position of Judge of Probate for Essex, which office he held until the breaking out of the Revolution, not many years before his death, which was occasioned by the kick from a horse, from the effects of which he did not recover, and he died Oct. 5th, 1781, aged 81 years. It was a remarkable coincidence that both father and son should have been Chief Justices of the Supreme Court, and occupied a seat on that bench, between them for nearly sixty years. The most important trial that took place during his judicial term was that of the so-called "Boston Massacre," where the soldiers fired on the mob in King street. At this trial Judge Lynde presided. It was a time of great political excitement, and the occasion was one that required the utmost firmness, and skill on the part of the judge, to ensure a just and impartial decision. These trials lasted several days, and, as has been said, "proceeded with care and patience, on the part of the Bench, and counsel, and both judges and jury seemed to have acted with all the impartiality that is exhibited in the most enlightened tribunals." "The result," says Judge Washburn, "is a proud memorial of the purity of the administration of justice in Massachusetts." Judge Lynde was noted for his learning, his liberality, and his public spirit. He was a diligent student of our Colonial history, and his diary, published by one of his descendants, Dr. F. E. Oliver, recalls names and events, that belong to the earlier years of the province, and records the daily life of persons holding official positions during a period with which many are not now familiar. He left three daughters, of whom Mary, the eldest, married Hon. Andrew Oliver, Jr., one of the Judges of the Court of Common Pleas for Essex; Hannah, who died unmarried and Lydia who married Rev. William Walter, the rector of Trinity Church of Boston.[269] Both of his sons-in-law being staunch loyalists.
[269] Diaries of Benjamin Lynde and of Benjamin Lynde, Jr.
PAGAN FAMILY.
ROBERT PAGAN was a native of Glasgow, Scotland, was born in 1750 and came to Falmouth in 1769. From that time to the commencement of the war he carried on a large lumber business and ship building. The ships which were built were not generally employed in our trade, but with their cargoes sent to Europe and sold. Robert Pagan & Co. kept on the corner of King and Fore Streets, the largest stock of goods which was employed here before the war. He was a man of popular manners, and much beloved by the people. He early became involved in the controversies of the times, and abandoned his business and country soon after the burning of Falmouth by Mowatt. In his testimony before the Claim Commission he testified[270] "That he uniformly declared his sentiments in favor of Great Britain. Never submitted to join the rebels or to take no part with them." He early applied for leave to quit Casco Bay with the property belonging to himself and copartnery. This was refused him. In the month of February, 1776, he privately embarked his family on board a Brig he had in the harbor of Falmouth and sailed for Barbados. From that he went home. He afterwards carried on trade at New York and Penobscot, at the latter place he remained until the end of the war, when he removed to St. Andrews. Mr. Pagan was proscribed and banished. He settled at St. Andrews, N. B., in 1784, and became one of the principal men of Charlotte County. After serving the Crown as agent for lands in New Brunswick, and in superintending affairs connected with grants to Loyalists, he was in commission as a magistrate, as a Judge of a Court, and as Colonel in the militia, and, being a favorite among the freeholders of the county, was elected to the House of Assembly, and for several years was a leading member of that body. Judge Pagan died at St. Andrews, November 23, 1821 and Miriam, his widow, (a daughter of Jeremiah Pote), deceased at the same place January, 1828, aged 81. They were childless.
[270] Bureau of Archives, Ontario, 2nd Report, Vol. I. p. 340.
THOMAS PAGAN, brother to Robert Pagan. He was with his brother during the war, and at the peace went to St. John, New Brunswick; was one of the grantees of that city, and established himself there as a merchant. He removed to Halifax, and while absent in Scotland for the benefit of his health, died in 1804.
WILLIAM PAGAN, brother of Robert and Thomas, was with his brothers during the war, and at the peace settled in New Brunswick, and was a member of the House of Assembly and of the Council. His death occurred at Fredericton, March 12, 1819.
THE WYER FAMILY OF CHARLESTOWN.
Edward Wyer came from Scotland. He was a tailor, and in 1658 married Elizabeth Johnson. He died May 3rd, 1693, aged 71 years. His son William was a sea captain, and married Eleanor Jennes, Oct. 26, 1701. He died Feb., 1749, aged 69 years.
DAVID WYER, son of William, was born at Charlestown, Feb. 24th, 1711. He also was a sea captain. Married Rebecca Russell, Feb. 2, 1738. He removed to Falmouth (Portland) and was an officer of the Customs there. All the officers of the revenue of that port were loyal except one, Thomas Child, who joined the Revolutionists. They all became refugees, and abandoned their country. During the military possession of the town by Thompson (before the burning of it by Captain Mowatt) he was required to give his presence before the Board of War as being a Tory.
DAVID WYER, JR., son of the aforesaid David was born at Charlestown in 1741, and graduated at Harvard College in 1758. In 1762 he was admitted to the bar, and commenced the practice of law at Falmouth. On the testimony of other lawyers who practiced in Maine prior to the Revolution, it was said of Wyer, that "he was a high-minded stirling fellow of strong talents, an able and eloquent advocate, and extremely independent in his opinions and character." Without the regular appointment and commission of Attorney of the Crown, Mr. Wyer acted in that capacity when occasion required the services of such an officer in the Courts of Maine. He died in 1776 at Stroudwater, to which place he removed after the burning of Falmouth, at the age of thirty-five, of an epidemic which prevailed at that time, and which carried off many persons old and young. Mrs. Wyer, a niece of Hon. Thomas Russell and two children survived him. One of the latter married Captain Samuel Waite of Portland.
THOMAS WYER, brother of David Wyer, Jr., was born at Charlestown, June 15, 1744. Married Sarah Francis, March 8th, 1766 in Medford. He removed to Falmouth with his father, was also employed as an officer of the Customs. He lost L325 in real and personal estate by the burning of the town in 1775. He did all he could to support the government; he refused to serve in the rebel army, on which he was taken up and abused by the mob, and obliged to pay a fine. Was taken before the Provincial Congress at Watertown, and obliged to quit Falmouth in 1777 in an open boat with his father-in-law, Jeremiah Pote, in which they went to Nova Scotia. In 1778 he was proscribed and banished. In 1779 he was in New York and was commissioned as captain of an armed vessel, the brigantine "British Tar," 65 men. He was in command of this vessel for nine months, during which time he had two engagements with two rebel privateers at different times. He had a house and lot in Falmouth, which was confiscated, and a half interest in a cargo burned at Falmouth. In 1784, he went to St. Andrew, N. B., with other Loyalists, and continued there until his decease. He was an Agent of the British Government for settling and allotting lands to adherents of the Crown in the Revolution. The first Sheriff of Charlotte County, was a Judge of the Court of Common Pleas and Deputy Colonial Treasurer. In 1790 he went on a year's tour to Europe, and on his return became a merchant, and had extensive lumber interests. He died February 24th, 1824. He had a numerous family, was married three times, his first wife Sarah Francis of Medford, second Joanna Pote of Falmouth, third Mary Hunt, who died 25 October, 1801, aged 37. An only son survived him.
THOMAS WYER, JR., a member of her Majesty's Council, Justice of the Common Pleas, member of the Board of Education, Commissioner of Wrecks, and Lieutenant-Colonel in the militia. He married Sarah, daughter of Thomas Tompkins, of St. Andrews, 24 March, 1808, and died at St. Andrews, December, 1848, aged sixty-nine.
JEREMIAH POTE.
WILLIAM POTE was in Marblehead as early as 1688. He married Hannah Greenfield. His second wife was Ann Hooper, whom he married in 1689. His son William was born at Marblehead, 1690, who married, June 2, 1718, Dorothy Getchell.
JEREMIAH POTE, son of the aforesaid, was born at Marblehead, Jan. 18, 1724. His father removed to Falmouth, now Portland, and died there. Jeremiah Pote became one of the principal merchants of the town, he owned and occupied one of the two principal wharves in that town previous to the Revolution. He transacted a large business and filled offices of trust and honor. In his testimony before the Claim Commission[271] "Claimt says He is a native of America. Lived at Falmouth, Casco Bay, when trouble broke out. He did everything in his power against the measure of the Rebels. He happened to be one of the selectmen at Falmouth, whose business it was to give notice of Town Meetings. Claimt refused to notify the meetings desired by the Rebels. In consequence of this he was persecuted. Was imprisoned several times. Had his things taken from him by force, so that he was forced to quit home, got to Nova Scotia, went in open boat. Went from Halifax to New York in 1778. Was employed by Admiral Gambin to pilot a vessel to New Hampshire, which was going with Sir Henry Clinton, Manisfestoes. The vessel was seized and the whole crew made prisoners and kept in prison during the winter. Went to Penobscot in 1780 to St. Andrews in the beginning of 1784."
[271] Bureau of Archives, Ontario, 2nd Report, Vol. II, p. 904.
In 1774 a public meeting was called to consider the state of public affairs, which he attended, but he desired that his dissent might be entered against a resolution relative to the Ministry and East India Company, which was introduced and passed.
In 1775, during the trouble with Captain Mowatt, which resulted in the burning of the town, in which he lost L1,000, he brought upon himself the vengeance of the Revolutionists, who under Thompson, assumed the government, and organized themselves into a board of war, and required him to contribute money and provisions, and to give a bond of L2,000 to appear at the Provincial Congress of Massachusetts, and give an account of his conduct. In 1778 he was proscribed and banished. After the peace he settled at St. Andrews at the mouth of the St. Croix river, the boundary line between Maine and New Brunswick, where he died November 23, 1796, aged seventy-one years. His son Robert, deceased at the same place November 8, 1794, at the age of twenty-five, and his daughter, Joanna, married Thomas Wyer, Jr., his widow Elizabeth Berry of Kittery, died December 24, 1809, aged seventy-nine.
EBENEZER CUTLER.
JOHN 1 CUTLER came from Spranston, two miles from north of Norwich, and about eight miles south of Hingham, in the County of Norfolk, England. His name first appears among the persecuted adherents of Rev. Robert Peck, A. M., of Hingham, who "sold their possessions for half their value, and named the place of their settlement after their natal town." He embarked, it is believed, in the Rose of Yarmouth, William Andrews, Jr., Master, which sailed on or about April 18, 1637. He was at Hingham by or a little after June 10th following, when land was assigned him. He came attended by his wife Mary, seven children, and one servant. He died the following year, which must have subjected his widow and children to great hardships. His third son,
SAMUEL 2 CUTLER, was born in England in 1629, was of Marblehead in 1654, of Salem in 1655, of Topsfield and Hingham in 1671, and of Gloucester, March 17, 1693. In 1671 he as heir and attorney for his brothers and sisters, united with his mother in the sale of their patrimonial estate in Hingham. He was often called to settle and appraise estates. He died in 1700, 71 years of age. He had two sons and three daughters. His second eldest son,
EBENEZER 3 CUTLER, was born at Salem in 1664, where he married Mary, daughter of Zacheray and Mary March. Mr. Cutler died about 1729 at Salem and the widow in 1734, the sale of the homestead being effected soon after, and the family removed from Salem. He had six children, four sons and two daughters. The eldest son,
EBENEZER 4 CUTLER, was born in Salem, October 1, 1695. He was a farmer and brickmaker. He married May, daughter of William Stockwell, Oct. 16, 1732. He inherited the farm in Sutton, Mass., purchased of William Stockwell by his father, and on which he settled previous to 1728. It is said that three of his sons resided on this farm at one time, each occupying separate houses. He died in 1779, and had two daughters and five sons.
EBENEZER 5 CUTLER, son of the aforesaid,[272] settled in the town of Oxford, Mass., as an inn keeper and trader. He married Miriam Eager, sister of his brother Zackeus' wife, and daughter of James Eager of Westboro, Mass., Nov. 24, 1764. Mrs. Cutler was a sister of Colonel Eager, who was a Loyalist and settled in Victory, Nova Scotia.
[272] See Cutler Genealogy for descent of Ebenezer 4.
Before the commencement of hostilities he tried to be neutral, but when the tea troubles arose, he went quietly at night, and purchased a quantity of it, on the return with his supply a masked band interrupted him, took the tea from him and burnt it. That decided him, which side to take, and he became a staunch loyalist.
Ebenezer Cutler was a trader which caused him to travel considerably about the country, and being very independant and outspoken he soon had many enemies among the Revolutionists, and a price was set on his capture. He had many narrow escapes before they got him. Once he was hidden in a farmhouse between the chimney and outer wall, most suffocated by smoke.
The Committee on Correspondence made charges against him, and sent him with the evidence of his misconduct to General Ward at Cambridge, the charges were as follows:
Northboro, May 17th, 1775.
Sir:
We the Committee of Correspondence of the Town of Northboro having taken into our custody Mr. Ebenezer Cutler, late of Groton, but now of this town, which from his conduct appears to us to be an avowed enemy of his Country, he has set at naught and despises all the Resolutions of the Continental and Provincial Congress, and also utterly refuses to act in any defence of his now perishing country whatever, and as he has from his past conduct, ever since we have been struggling for the Liberties of our Country appeared in the eyes of the Public to be aiding and abetting, in defeating the plans of the good people of this Province, and has been riding from one part of this province to the other, and in our opinion for no good design, we think it highly necessary to send him to the Council of war, to know whether he may (as he desires) have a pass to go into Boston: we also inclose the substance of two evidences concerning said Cutler.
By order of the Committee of Correspondence, GILMAN BASS, Clerk.
N. B. General Ward, we apprehend is well acquainted with the character and conduct of said Cutler.[273]
[273] "Royalists" in Mass. Archives, Vol. 1, p. 6.
His case was submitted to Congress, when it appeared that he had spoken "many things disrespectful of the Continental and Provincial Congress" that he had "acted against their resolves," had said that "he would assist Gage," had called such as signed the town-covenant or non-consumption agreement "dammed fools" etc., etc. A resolve to commit him to prison was refused a passage, and a resolve that he be allowed to join the British troops at Boston was also lost. But subsequently he was allowed to go into that town "without his effects." On the evacuation of Boston he accompanied the British Army to Halifax. He settled at Annapolis Royal, and with the money which the British government paid him in compensation for his losses, he established himself in business there. After his home in Oxford was broken up, his wife Miriam, and children, went to her mother, Mrs. Eager, in Worcester. His wife died there. Mrs. Eager was a strong Loyalist, one day a party of Rebels visited her, and she sent them off by some ready quotations of scripture. She and her sons brought the family to Annapolis and then settled on a farm in Nisteaux.
After a few years Ebenezer Cutler went to England on a visit and there married Mary, daughter of Colonel Hicks, of the 70th Regiment. Two children were born in England and four in N. S. He was protonotary of the County of Annapolis, and was a zealous Episcopalian. He died there in 1831, quite aged. Mary, his widow, died at the same place in 1839. He was proscribed and banished in 1778, and his property was confiscated and inventoried April 5th, 1779. Aug. 3rd the judge appointed a commission to settle his estate. His first wife, Miriam, died at Northboro, Mass., and her estate was inventoried Sept. 10, 1784, amounting to L100. He had by her eight children.
EBENEZER 6 CUTLER, son of the aforesaid, was born at Oxford, Mass. Aug. 27th, 1765. He was a student at Harvard at the commencement of hostilities, when he was obliged to leave. Opposite his name in the College archives, is the name "Traitor," which means just the opposite, that he was a Loyalist. He went to Nova Scotia with his father. He was an expert accountant, and crown land surveyor. Here he resided several years, but settled finally at Moncton. One day in going up the street, passing Mr. Wilmot's, he saw a very beautiful girl leaning over the gate, a visitor of Mrs. Wilmot, Olivia Dickson. It was a case of love at first sight. He met a friend a few minutes after and told him that he had just seen his wife that was to be. In due time they were married. On one of his voyages as supercargo, the vessel was taken by a Spanish privateer, off Jamaica. The captain recognized him as a Free Mason, gave him liberty, set him ashore at Port Antonio, where he obtained a mule, and crossed the mountains to Kingston where he took a vessel for Nova Scotia. He died in 1839. He had ten children, six daughters and four sons, the tenth child born was
REBECCA 7 CUTLER, who married John Whitman of Annapolis whose ancestor came from Plymouth County, Mass., and settled in Nova Scotia previous to the Revolution. William Whitman of Boston and Clarence Whitman of New York are children of John Whitman and Rebecca Cutler.
Robert J. Dysart and Hugh Dysart, accountants of Boston, are descendants in the third generation from Ebenezer Cutler and Olivia Dickson.