Samuel Hartwell of Bridgewater (1693-1760), 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks 2025 Week 41 Theme: "Water"

With so many possibilities to write about water, the obvious choice would be the Atlantic Ocean crossed by my ancestors to get our family to North America from Europe. Certainly there were many ocean adventures that could be shared. Also dozens of rivers, streams and lakes feature in the lives of family members. I have chosen instead to write about a place with "water" as part of its name: Bridgewater, Massachusetts. 

Bridgewater, Massachusetts, is situated within a triangle formed by Boston, Providence and Plymouth.

Location of Bridgewater, MA
Google Earth image

Like so many other New England settlements, Bridgewater may have been named for the English ancestral home of some of its early residents -- in this case Bridgwater, Somerset. Although no record has been located to link the name of the town of Bridgewater to the significance of its bridges, it does not seem an inapt name for the new settlement. Nahum Mitchel's history of the town includes a listing of some of the local waterways: Nuncketest River (formerly Mill River, Town River), Cowesit and West Meadow Brook, South Brook, Salisbury River, Beaver Brook, Matfield River, Byram's Brook, Spring Brook, John's River, Poor Meadow River, Middle River, Great River, Satcuket River, Black Brook, Titicut River, Taunton Great River and Hullet's Brook. So much water to get across!

Perhaps not surprisingly, earliest records for the town of Bridgewater, Massachusetts (established in the middle of the seventeenth century) indicate the significance of bridges to deal with all that water in the construction of the original roads connecting local residents to each other and to the broader world beyond. 

Bridge construction and maintenance was included in the town records over the years. Sometimes the bridges were described as horse bridges. In 1680, John Washburn Jr. (my 8th great granduncle) was one of those tasked with maintaining a bridge and causey (presumably a short form of "causeway") toward Thomas Snell's house. The specification was that it be fit for cart, horse and foot traffic.

Included in the list of surnames of original and early settlers in Bridgewater are a whole slew of ancestors: Alden, Carver, Hartwell, Johnson, Latham, Mitchell, Perkins, Pratt, Simmons, Snow and Washburn. These families often intermarried over the years.

At the time of our genealogical journey to New England in 1999, we knew of just one Bridgewater family, that of my 7th great grandfather Samuel Hartwell. Samuel was born 12 November 1693 in Concord, MA to Samuel Hartwell Sr. and his wife Abigail Stearns.

He married Hannah Billings in about 1717 and had a family of 8 children with her before her death in 1736. The couple had moved about 45 miles from Concord to Bridgewater shortly after their marriage. 

Samuel outlived Hannah by many years before succumbing to smallpox in 1760. 

In May of 1999, we visited Samuel's gravesite at the Jerusalem Graveyard in West Bridgewater.  He is buried in plot 34 and his inscription (very difficult to see) reads: "Here lies buried Mr. Samuel Hartwell, who dec'd December y 25, 1760, in the 67th year of his age."  Buried with him were son and granddaughter: "Here lies buried Mr. Jonathan Hartwell, who died Feb. 8, 1761, in the 40th year of his age.  And Hannah, his daughter, dec'd Jan'y 30th, 1761 in y 3d year of her age."  In the book detailing the graveyards of Bridgewater found in the Bridgewater library, on page 48, it indicates parenthetically that these persons died with small-pox

Jerusalem Graveyard from Google Earth

Some Sources:

• Hartwell, John F., The Hartwells of America A Genealogy, Higginson Book Company 1956/58, based largely on Handbook of Hartwell Genealogy 1887 by Lyman Willard Densmore, Accessed 21 September 2024 on Internet Archive at https://archive.org/details/hartwellsofameri00dens/page/n7/mode/2up
• Mitchell, Nahum, 1769-1853. History of the Early Settlement of Bridgewater, In Plymouth County, Massachusetts: Including an Extensive Family Register. Facsimile ed. with a new name index. Bowie, Md.: Heritage Books, 1983.  Also accessed online at Internet Archive on 22 September 2025 at https://archive.org/details/historyofearlyset00mitcch/page/124/mode/2up?view=theater

Joseph Turner's Bad Language (52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks 2025 Week 14 theme: "Language")

Calling someone a "coocally raskall" landed my 7th great granduncle Joseph Turner (1636-1715) in hot water in early Plymouth Colony. 

Joseph Turner was two years younger than my 7th great grandmother Mary Turner (1634-1703). Their parents were Humphrey Turner and Lydia Gamer. Joseph and Mary were just two of the 8 children born into this family. Another of the sons, Nathaniel (1638-1715), also takes part in this story.

The well-ordered productive and pious life of their Puritan father Humphrey was the subject of another story and can be found through this link. Joseph appears to have been a rebellious youth and one would never describe him as "a chip off the old block". Joseph's language and behavior got him into trouble with his neighbors. One can only imagine what mischief he might have created had he lived in today's social media age!

The events of 1669 in Scituate, Plymouth Colony involved Joseph being sued for slander and defamation by neighbors Charles Stockbridge (bef. 1638-1683) and  his wife Abigail Stockbridge. Apparently Joseph had said that "Charles Stockbridge is a coocally rogue" and that Abigail, his wife is "a brasen faced whore" and "as very a strumpett as any in New England". Joseph said that Charles was "a coocally raskall and he would prove him soe." [note: spelling as in references 1 and 3 below; although there is no evidence for this, one might speculate that "coocally" is derived from "cuckold".]

Another case in the same year involved the same Charles Stockbridge having himself made slanderous comments. In this case Joseph Tilden (1657-1712) sued Charles Stockbridge of Scituate for 1000 pounds in an action of slander and defamation for saying that "Nathaniel Turner and Joseph Turner could kisse Elizabeth, the wife of the said Tilden, as ofte as they listed, and doe something else too, and that the said Nathaniel Turner knew her, the said Elizabeth Tilden, as well as her owne husband". [spelling as in reference 1 below]

Joseph and Nathaniel's mother Lydia died in 1669, the year of the bad language. Perhaps that had something to do with their behavior that year. Whether the Turner brothers were given some leeway for their family loss or not, the legal matters were eventually settled. One source says Joseph was fined 100 pounds and another says he was sentenced to 30 lashes. Continuing to live in the same community where all these people had known each other since childhood must have posed some ongoing embarrassment and ill will. 

In any event, Joseph Turner apparently had a reputation as a ladies' man, at least with respect to the married ladies of the town. Joseph was the only sibling who never married. Perhaps he had managed to offend or scare off any potential mates! 

It was said that he eventually redeemed himself through his service to his community as an Ensign at the time of King Phillip's War. These days one might find oneself in sympathy with the Native Americans who were simply trying to stop the takeover of their lands. Joseph was badly injured in action against the Narragansetts in 1673 after which the town voted to help him find a cure and support him at the town's expense for life. The cure worked and he again rejoined the troops under Governor Winslow. He was at the storming of the Narragansett Fort (aka the Great Swamp Massacre) on 19 December 1675. In 1681 the Colony records (reference 2 below, p. 121) report that "Joseph Turner having served in the Narragansett fight, is freed from military duty." After this, he seems to have lived quietly for the rest of his days.

Joseph died at the age of 48 on 1 November 1715. He is believed to be buried in Scituate, MA, but no stone bears his name.

Cemetery in Scituate, Massachusetts photo of author amid ancestral bones by Graham Barnard 1999

Some Resources:

1. The Material Culture of Plymouth Colony, Loan Exhibition May 8-October 23, 1994, Heritage Plantation of Sandwich, Brian Cullity, Chief Curator, p.9
2. Deane, Samuel, History of Scituate, Massachusetts; Boston: James Loring 1831; Bicentennial Edition Published by Scituate Historical Society 1975
3. Joslyn, Roger D., Family History: The Devoe, Josselyn, and Related Families, Descendants of John Stockbridge, website accessed at https://terpconnect.umd.edu/~hdevoe/FamHist/p58.htm

Margaret Chandler (1577-1645) 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks 2021 # 41: Religious Changes

My 10th great grandmother Margaret Chandler was born in 1577 in Bishop's Stortford, Hertfordshire, England to Tobias and Joan (Mumford) Chandler. Bishop's Stortford is a market town about half-way between London and Cambridge.

Google Earth image showing location of Bishop's Stortford

The second oldest in a family of  11 children, Margaret was baptized in St. Michael's Church there, no doubt with the use of this marble baptismal font that had been in the church since Norman times.

Wikimedia Commons Image by Colin Smith / St Michael's Font / CC BY-SA 2.0

Like the rest of England, Bishop's Stortford had undergone several abrupt religious changes during the 16th century. This link contains photographs of St. Michael's Church and  a more specific description of the impact of the changes on this parish. 

As a reminder: King Henry VIII had split from the Roman Catholic Church in a dispute between pope and king over Henry's wish to divorce his wife so as to be free to remarry and sire a male heir.  The result was the establishment in 1534 of the independent Church of England with the King as its final authority. Although much remained unchanged from the Catholic Church, many changes were made in accordance with the more wide-spread Protestant reformation that had been sweeping much of Europe at the time. As might be expected, not all Henry's subjects were happy with this change. Nevertheless, the country remained Protestant under his son Edward VI, but Edward's early death led to his Catholic half-sister Mary becoming Queen in 1553. Over the years, many people on both sides of the religious divide were martyred for their beliefs. When Protestant Queen Elizabeth I succeeded her half sister Mary to the throne in 1558, one might have thought that at least the Protestant faction might once again be happy with the change. Some were, but many felt the Protestant changes in England had not gone far enough away from Popish ways and wanted to further purify their religion; this group became known as the Puritans. 

It does not appear that Margaret's parents were among the dissident Puritan group. Although we can't know for certain, they seem to have come through the religious changes relatively unscathed and one might assume that Margaret's childhood during the reign of Queen Elizabeth was relatively stable. (Another of my ancestors, Thomas Morse,  was not so fortunate, ending up in a lot of hot water while trying to retain his career as a dissident parish priest throughout all these changes.)

When the plague struck the town in 1582-83, Margaret was just 5 or 6 years of age, but she and her family also appear to have survived that challenge unscathed.

At the age of about 23, on 02 April 1600 she married Henry Monke (or Monck) in Albury, a town about 5 miles west of Bishop's Stortford. The couple had one child, a son named George Monke, prior to Henry's untimely death; Henry was buried at Bishop's Stortford on 10 December 1602. 

On 7 November 1603, the young widow remarried. Her second husband was William Denison, a man some five or six years her senior. This appears to have been William's first marriage. The couple would go on to have seven children, their youngest being my 9th great grandfather George Denison born in 1620.

Like many other men of Bishop's Stortford, William was a maltster. The town was perfectly situated amid the farms of East Anglia and Hertfordshire, producers of the barley to be changed into malt for dark ales popular in nearby London. It is said that the aroma from the maltings filled the surrounding area for centuries.

At some point, probably in the late 1620's, William became a convert to the Puritan cause and in 1631 decided to move his family to New England where they would join like-minded families. (There is some thought that Margaret was a bit reluctant and did not join her family until the following year, but no actual record can be found of her departure from England or arrival in New England. The pervasive sexism of the times has many of the records completely ignoring women migrants.)

As William and Margaret's oldest son John Dennison (born 7 April 1605) was already well established in a position as vicar of Standon, Hertfordshire and had a family of his own, he remained in England. 

Second son William (born 1606) had gone to be a soldier in Holland; he took part in the Siege of Breda and was never heard from again. 

Their third son, George (born 1609), died at the age of five. Their only daughter, Sarah (born 1615), lived just one week.

Daniel (born 1612), Edward (born 1616) and George (born 1620) were the three sons who headed to America with their father (and perhaps their mother). Daniel had been studying at Cambridge but was removed by his father in order to make the move. Also mentioned as being with them on that voyage was Reverend John Eliot, suggested by some to have been the boys' tutor. The family settled in Roxbury (now a suburb of Boston), one of the first settlements in the Massachusetts Bay Colony. Reverend Eliot became the pastor of the First Church Roxbury, where William Dennison became member #3 of the congregation.

Not all was smooth sailing as William appeared to have another change of heart with respect to religion. He was one of five Roxbury men to be disarmed on 20 November 1637 for supporting Mr. Wheelwright and Mrs. Hutchinson. This was in regard to the Antinomian Controversy which raged in Puritan New England from 1636-1638. It pitted the majority of the Puritans against the adherents of a "covenant of grace" espoused by Cotton Mather and supported by Anne Hutchinson and her brother-in-law Reverend John Wheelwright. Apparently William Denison was a supporter. The Antinomians were generally regarded as heretics against the established religious laws. Concepts regarding gender and politics added to the disagreement. We don't know whether Margaret was one of the numerous women who followed Anne Hutchinson's teachings.

What we do know is that Margaret was a bit of a hold-out when it came to declaring her faith. Presumably she had been Anglican from birth, but it does not seem that she converted to Puritanism with her husband. When she was finally admitted to the Roxbury Church as member #33, the event was apparently deemed worthy of note:  “Margret Dennison, the wife of William Dennison, It pleased God to work upon her heart & change it in her ancient years, after she came to this land; & joined to the church in the year 1632”.  

The only other reference that has been found of Margaret is that  ”Old Mother Dennison” died Roxbury 3 February 1645/46. She is buried in the Eliot Burying Ground at Roxbury but no stone marks the place of her final rest.

Some Resources: 

• Anderson, Robert Charles, "The Great Migration Begins, Immigrants to New England, 1620-1633", Volume 1; Boston: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1995
• "Bishop's Stortford and Thorley: A History and Guide" located online at https://www.stortfordhistory.co.uk/
• A history of the Protestant Reformation in England and Scotland located online at https://www.britannica.com/topic/Protestantism/The-Reformation-in-England-and-Scotland

Kenelm Winslow (1599-1672) (52 Ancestors 2020 Week 43) Theme: "Quite the Character"

Does the name make the man? Call a  man John or Edward and he may grow into the upstanding conventional sort of man those names seem to evince. Call a man Kenelm and it's quite possible he will be just a wee bit eccentric. At least that's my theory about why he among his Winslow brothers is the one who grew up to be quite the character!

Kenelm (my 8X great grandfather), born 30 April 1599, was  the fourth child born to Edward Winslow and Malgdalene Ollyver of Droitwich, England.  The names of his seven siblings were: Edward, John, Eleanor, Gilbert, Elizabeth, Magdalene and Josiah. Kenelm was named for his paternal grandfather, though we don't know whether the grandfather also had proven to be a bit of a character.

The Winslow family was quite well-to-do with father Edward owning a salt production business. The family home called Kerswell is still a magnificent home. My husband had made prior arrangements with the owners who graciously allowed us to have a tour inside the home on our 2004 visit to England. 

The old Winslow family home - Kerswell, photo taken 1998

It felt like such a tangible connection to be able to touch the ancient exposed beams that would have been touched centuries ago by Kenelm and his family. 

Lovely old beams from the time Kenelm grew up here at Kerswell, photos 2004

Of the five Winslow brothers, oldest brother Edward is the best known. He and younger brother Gilbert were both passengers on the Mayflower that arrived in America 400 years ago. (Gilbert returned to England within a few years and little is known of him.) Edward apprenticed as a printer and joined the Separatist religious group in Leiden, Holland, where he was involved in the underground printing activities of the dissident congregation. Once in America, Edward was one of the first signers of the Mayflower Compact, was a well-respected leader in the colony and is renowned for his report about that well-known first Thanksgiving at Plymouth Colony. 

Brother John Winslow (my 10X great grandfather) followed on the ship Fortune in 1621. He was a ship owner and respected businessman and took an active role in civic affairs like his older brother Edward. 

Another brother, Josiah, also arrived in Plymouth Colony in its early years, but he is sadly remembered for making a total shambles of trying to straighten out the financial affairs of the Colony. 

And then there was Kenelm.

He would have been about 30 when he arrived, unmarried, in Plymouth Colony. Unlike older brother Edward, his was not primarily a move for religious reasons. In fact, he sometimes found himself at odds with the church in his new home community, as we shall see. 

In 1634, he married the widowed Ellen (Newton) Adams. At the time of this marriage, Kenelm Winslow put up security to pay James Adams, Ellen's son from her first marriage, 5 pounds when he came of age. Kenelm was a man of his word: this was done and recorded on 26 December 1651. He and Ellen would have four children of their own, the oldest of whom was another Kenelm Winslow, my 7X great grandfather. 

In many ways, Kenelm was, like his brothers, an upstanding man and a major contributor to his new community. Having completed his seven year apprenticeship to Abraham Worthington prior to leaving England, he had been admitted to the Joiners' Company of London, England in about 1624. As a joiner, he would have designed and built much of the furniture needed by the colonists.  Kenelm was also known as the colony's coffin-maker.

Langdon (pp. 28 and 32) describes the significance of joiners to the community:  

The early settlers also made chests for themselves. They had joiners or cabinetmakers as they called them rather than carpenters, who did any work with wood for them that required skill in the mortise and tenon construction from building a house to making a chest or stool.  John Alden and Kenelm Winslow were the "joyners" of Plymouth.  They made chests and chairs and other furniture no doubt for the Pilgrims. . . .  From Plymouth Colony mostly there has come a type of chair, or two similar types of chair which are indeed instinct with dignity and certain formality but not so repellent in their magnificence.  These are the Carver Chair and the Brewster Chair.  It seems reasonable to believe that  John Alden  and Kenelm Winslow made quite a number of these, especially for the older leaders of the Colony.  There are chairs of these types extant ascribed to the ownership of Governor Carver, Elder Brewster, Captain Miles Standish and Edward Winslow.

Examples of Plymouth Colony furniture of the period can be found at the Plymouth Hall Museum website. 

In addition to his contributions to making the necessary furniture and coffins for the colony, Kenelm also took an active role in civic life. In 1635 he was one of the men chosen to assist the governor and council to set rates on goods and wages. In 1638 John and Kenelm Winslow were witnesses against Stephen Hopkins for selling wine at excessive prices. One might assume that they were just doing their rate-setting jobs, but it may equally have presaged Kenelm's propensity to take matters to court.

He was elected the town's highway surveyor where we get an early glimpse of him marching to the beat of his own drum. On 1 December 1640, he was fined 10 shillings for neglecting those surveying duties.

The following year, the Winslow brothers moved their families to Marshfield where Kenelm was living in 1646 when he was jailed for four weeks for for  using "approbrious words" against the church of Marshfield, calling them all a bunch of liars.

Memorial to the Early Settlers of Marshfield
Kenelm Winslow and wife Ellen listed between brothers Edward and Josiah and their wives

While resident in Marshfield, Kenelm was Deputy to the General Court 1642 - 44 and 1649 - 53. On 1 June 1647 he was chosen constable for Marshfield.   He served on juries and committees, but one sometimes gets the sense that he might have been granted these respected positions based in large part on the success and reputation of his older brothers. 

Stratton describes the many instances of Kenelm's litigious nature (pp. 376-77):  

On 4 June 1645 a committee examined his complaint of injustice and found it to be untrue.  He had said that he could not be heard in a case between himself and John Maynard, but the committee found the judge and jury without fault and ordered Kenelm imprisoned and fined 10 pounds.  On his petition the same day in which he acknowledged his offence and sorrow for same, he was released from imprisonment, and his fine was suspended for one year, and then if he showed good behavior, it would be remitted.  

On 5 May 1646 Kenelm was sued by Roger Chandler for detaining his daughter's clothes on pretense that she owed him further service, and the court ordered Kenelm to return her clothes immediately.

On the same day the court ordered Kenelm to find sureties for his good behavior for uttering those approbrious words against the Marshfield Church, having called them all liars. When he refused to do so, he was sentenced to prison, where he remained until the next month's court. 

Perhaps his month in jail taught him a valuable lesson for he seems to have gone quiet for awhile after these episodes. Still, one can imagine him in his workshop laboring over the next piece of furniture while fuming over some perceived slight, but he held things in check, at least for awhile.

Old habits die hard. On 7 March  1653/54 Kenelm complained against John Soule for speaking falsely of his daughter Eleanor by scandalizing her in carrying reports of her and Josias Standish. John Soule's father George requested that the matter be referred to another court to be tried by a jury of twelve of his equals, but  there is no further mention of the matter so perhaps the complaint was simply dropped. And that seemed to mark the end of Kenelm's public complaints.

Kenelm may have been a character who got himself embroiled in controversy, but he was not alone. People then were much like people now, notwithstanding their Puritan reputation. Cullity (p.9) recounted a couple of lawsuits involving my 7X great granduncles Joseph and Nathaniel Turner in nearby Scituate (spelling in the following as in the original): 

Consider the language and behavior reported in the suit brought by Charles Stockbridge and his wife, Abigail against Joseph Turner of Scituate in 1669. The two charged Turner with slander and defamation for reportedly saying that "the said Charles Stockbridge is a coocally rogue, and that Abigail, his wife, is as very strumpet as an in New England, and that the said Abigaill is a brasen faced whore, and that her husband is a coocally raskall, and he would prove him soe." Turner was fined 100 pounds. Another case in the same year involved the same Charles Stockbridge, but on the other end of the stick: "Mr. Joseph Tilden (1657-1712) complained against Charles Stockbridge, of Scituate, in an action of slander and defamation, to the damage of 1000 pound, for saying and reporting that Nathaniel Turner and Joseph Turner could kisse Elizabeth, the wife of the said Tilden, as ofte as they listed, and doe something else too, and that the said Nathaniel Turner knew her, the said Elizabeth Tilden, as well as her owne husband knew her.

Yes, this is of more than prurient interest in connection to today's story. Kenelm's great granddaughter Sarah Winslow would in the course of time marry James Whitcomb, the granddaughter of Nathaniel and Joseph Turner's sister Mary Turner. 

In any event, Kenelm lived another couple of decades, apparently in greater harmony with those around him. His eldest brother Edward died in Jamaica in 1655 while on colony business. Brother John had moved his family to Boston by then. No longer having his more successful brothers in  Marshfield may have put an end to much of his community involvement. 

Kenelm signed his will dated 8 August 1672. He must have had a premonition of his impending death which occurred 12 September while he was visiting his daughter at Salem; he was buried there the following day. His wife Ellen was named sole executrix of his estate which included real estate, money, goods and movables including a Bible and 7 other books. 

Some Resources:

• Anderson, Robert C., The Great Migration Begins: Immigrants to New England 1620–1633, 3 Volumes (Boston: New England Genealogical Society, 1995–1996), Vol.3  pp. 2033-2036.
• Cullity, Brian (Chief Curator), A Cubberd, Four Joyne Stools & Other Smalle Thinges: the Material Culture of Plymouth Colony, Printed for the Loan Exhibition May 8 - October 23, 1994, Heritage Plantation of Sandwich.
• Follansbee, Peter, Connecting a London-Trained Joiner to 1630s Plymouth Colony article accessed online 15 October 2020 at https://www.incollect.com/articles/connecting-a-london-trained-joiner-to-1630s-plymouth-colony
• Langdon, William Chauncy, Everyday Things in American Life 1607-1776, MacMillan Publishing Co., 1981.
• Roberts Gary Boyd, Mayflower Source Records: Deaths and Burials from the Early Records of Marshfield, accessed 9 October 2020 on ancestry.com, Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 1986.
• Stratton,  Plymouth Colony: Its History and People 1620-1691, Ancestry Publishing 1986.
• Williston, George, Saints and Strangers, New York: Reynal and Hitchcock 1945.

Oldest Mayflower Passenger: James Chilton (1556-1620) (52 Ancestors 2020 Week 40) Theme: "Oldest"

400 years ago (at the time of this writing) James Chilton, my 11X great grandfather, was somewhere out on the Atlantic Ocean, probably enjoying pleasant September weather aboard the Mayflower while anticipating the adventure of a new life for his family in America. 

James was the oldest of the 102 passengers to make that epic 66 day journey to America. The average age of the 50 men aboard Mayflower was 34. James was almost double that at age 64.

Most likely born at Canterbury, Kent, England, to Lionel and Edith Chilton, James grew up to be a tailor by trade. At some point in his life he adopted a Protestant Separatist belief system, considered radical and definitely at odds in many respects with the state-mandated Church of England religion. 

The author enjoying the empty streets of Canterbury early morning 11 August 2016

Photos of Canterbury taken by Graham Barnard August 2016
Buildings that would have been familiar to the Chiltons

He married, probably about 1583, and started to have children baptized in Canterbury, but his wife's name remains unknown. Even when she got in trouble with the Archdeaconry Court for attending the secret burial of a child (because her religion was against "popish" burial ceremonies required by the Church of England), she was still denied a name and is referred to obliquely as "wife of James Chilton".

By the time their eighth child was baptized in July of 1601, the family had moved from Canterbury to Sandwich and were attending St. Peter's Parish Church. This was also where their 10th and final child, Mary (my 10X great grandmother), was baptized on 31 May 1607.

Google Earth Street View Image of St. Peter's Church, Sandwich

The Chiltons would have been joining a group of Huguenots and Flemish Protestant refugees from the Netherlands who had moved to Sandwich in 1560 and had made St. Peter's their church. There was probably a sympathetic connection between the English and continental European Protestant religious dissidents. Sometime after "the wife of James Chilton" was excommunicated on 12 July 1609, the Chiltons moved to Leiden, Holland to join a contingent of about 500 like-minded English religious dissidents living there. The Chiltons were living in Holland at the time of their daughter Isabella's marriage there to Roger Chandler on 15 July 1615 and continued to enjoy more religious freedom there than they would have had back in England. Even in Holland, however, storm clouds were gathering: there was fear that the Spanish would once again exert their influence and make life there untenable too.

It may have been an attack on James Chilton  by about 20 boys in April 1619  that provided the actual impetus for the move to America. James was hit in the head with a stone and required medical attention. One of his daughters had been with him at the time of the attack. With the English group no longer feeling quite so welcome in Leiden, plans were formulated to move a portion of the congregation to the perceived safety of America.

Hence we find 64 year-old James Chilton, his wife,  and their 13 year-old daughter, Mary, aboard the Mayflower when it departed from Plymouth Harbour in 1620. 

Area of old Plymouth associated with the Mayflower passengers preparing to embark for America

James Chilton, Tailor of Canterbury
About halfway down the list

Commemorative plaque in the area where the Pilgrims spent their final night in England

Plymouth Harbour, Devon, England 2016
Mayflower passengers would have had a similar view as they left from here in 1620

Mayflower II Replica ship docked in Plymouth, MA 1999

Problems encountered by intended sister ship Speedwell had caused the voyage to be delayed beyond the ideal sailing season. Although the weather had started off pleasantly enough, conditions  soon became very unpleasant with storms lashing Mayflower's leaky hull. Some 130 people were crammed into a ship that was only about 100 feet long. The passengers' living space was on the gun deck (approximately 50 feet by 25 feet and a ceiling just 5 feet high). There would have been no privacy whatever. Seasickness was common among the passengers, most of whom were not experienced sailors. There was the added worry about possible attack by pirates and privateers . Three of the women were pregnant and about one-quarter of the passengers were children, providing some extra challenges.

During one of the storms, another of my ancestors, John Howland, fell overboard and had to be rescued. 

It was very late in the year when they arrived at Cape Cod with no welcoming committee or accommodations to greet them. They had actually been aiming for the existing English settlement known as "Virginia" but conditions caused them to land north of there. James Chilton had survived the lengthy and arduous journey across the Atlantic Ocean to be one of the signatories of the Mayflower Compact on 11 November 1620. This was a document agreed by the men in the group (not women, children or indentured servants) about how the colony would be governed, given the lack of any other law that would apply in this new area.

Mayflower Compact Plaque in Plymouth, MA
James Chilton is third man listed on right side

James never actually got to live in the new Plymouth Colony. The newcomers had not had time to build any shelters by 8 December when James died aboard Mayflower in Provincetown Harbor. It might be speculated that it was his age that made him more vulnerable, but five other passengers also died that month. His unnamed wife died sometime that first winter too, along with nearly half the other newcomers. 

Daughter Mary was among the survivors. Four years later, at age 17, she married John Winslow and had a family of ten children with him, ensuring the survival of James Chilton's dreams of a new life for his family in America. 

Some Resources:

• Deetz, Patricia Scott and James F., The Plymouth Colony Archive Project, "Passengers on the Mayflower: Ages & Occupations, Origins and Connections", 2000 at the following website: http://www.histarch.illinois.edu/plymouth/Maysource.html
• Evans, James, BBC History Extra Podcast, 24 September 2020 which can be accessed at https://www.historyextra.com/period/stuart/the-mayflower/
• Johnson, Caleb H., The Mayflower and Her Passengers, Xlibris Corporation,2006 and Caleb Johnson's Mayflower website located at http://mayflowerhistory.com/
• Roser, Susan E., Mayflower Increasings 2nd Edition, Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 1989.

John Brown Family (52 Ancestors 2020 Week 32) Theme: "Small"

Not knowing of any ancestors of small stature or small family size, nor any with a surname like Small or Little, I have chosen to devote this week to my Brown family, several of whom were buried at a cemetery including "little" in its name: The Ancient Little Neck Cemetery in Rhode Island.

Google Earth image of Little Neck Cemetery

1. First Generation - John (c.1585-1662) and Dorothy Brown

John Brown (my 10X great grandfather) was a well-to-do English shipbuilder who had known the Mayflower Pilgrim group at Leyden, but didn't join them in America until a few years later. By then, he was married to Dorothy and had at least three children: daughter Mary (c1614-1669) and sons James (1623-1710) and John Jr. (1630-1662). 

In 1635 John became a citizen in Plymouth Colony and began a term of 18 years on the board of assistants. By 1643, he was involved in purchasing land for a new settlement, and a couple of years later, the family moved to Rehoboth.

John was often a mediator in settling disputes between the English and the local Native Americans, both having great confidence in him. He was a man of some power and influence and stood fast for Plymouth Colony in the Gorton Plantations dispute with the Massachusetts Bay Colony. It was said that Brown and Hatherly were so vigorous and fearless in pushing their claim that they neutralized the efforts of Massachusetts Bay such that Plymouth finally prevailed. 

However, bad blood was still in evidence when the 1652 joint session of congress was to be held at Plymouth. The first day, only five of the six representatives required for a quorum were in attendance. Late on the second day, the representative from New Haven in Massachusetts Bay arrived with the excuse that he had been hindered by bad roads. John Brown also came in late with the excuse that he had been plagued with a toothache. The Massachusetts representatives took great offence to Brown's excuse. It was decided that when no quorum was available on the first day, no session would be held that year even if a quorum arrived later. The members headed for home with ill feelings all around. When the General Court of Massachusetts meddled in the affair by formally insisting upon an apology from one of the Plymouth members, Plymouth interpreted this as meaning that Brown had to apologize before he could take his seat. (Plymouth had insistently re-elected Brown as one of its two representatives for the next session.) The Plymouth position was that if for any reason one of their representatives could not take part, neither would the other (leading to a lack of a quorum). This would essentially dissolve the congress. Massachusetts wisely dropped the matter without an apology from Brown.

John's independent spirit got him censured by his stern pastor Newman in 1652. Brown sued the pastor for slander and was given a verdict of £100 damages plus his costs. As soon as he won, Brown apparently arose in court and remitted the money. He had just wanted to prove his point as a matter of principle!

A couple of years later, while sitting in the court, some of the men at Rehoboth wanted all the people to be compelled to pay their share for public worship as in the other Colonies. The other commissioner favored this, but Brown was in opposition. Rather than force the population to support religion, he said those that favored the tax could pay their share and he would secure the balance by binding his estate to make good any shortfall for the next seven years. This led to several years of ongoing disputes as the proposers of the tax did not take kindly to being coerced into paying their share after all!

After reaching the age of 70, John retired from public service and spent his remaining days on his estate where he died in 1662 at the age of 78. His son John had died just a short while before him, but his wife Dorothy lived on into her 90th year. He was also survived by daughter Mary, the wife of Captain Thomas Willett, a very prominent citizen who became the first mayor of New York City. 

John Brown Memorial
 Little Neck Cemetery
Photo courtesy Julie Nathanson from Find a Grave website

2. Second Generation - James Brown (1623-1710) and Lydia Howland

John and Dorothy's other son, James Brown, my 9X great grandfather, married Lydia Howland in about 1654. She was the American-born daughter of Mayflower passengers John Howland and and Elizabeth Tilley. The first of their 9 children were born in Rehoboth.

Fenced burial location of Lydia's mother Elizabeth Tilley Howland
Little Neck Cemetery
photo courtesy Barbara Hanno from Find a Grave website

Like his father, James took a very active role in public service. When the Baptists were persecuted in Massachusetts, he was one of the instigators in the move to the new settlement of Swansea. The motivation was clearly religious liberty; the First Baptist Church in Massachusetts was established here. 

James was among those authorized to dispose of Swansea lands. In order to be admitted, potential inhabitants had to agree in writing to abide by these main principles: not to hold any damnable heresies inconsistent with the faith of the Gospel or denying the Trinity, that it was acceptable to hold different opinions on baptism, and that no one could be admitted who would be a charge on the place. One of the First Signers was James Brown.

Brown and the other four trustees used a very undemocratic method for determining how much land a man would get. Men were divided into three ranks according to the judgment of the trustees as to their standing. Men of the first rank would get 3 acres, second rank 2 acres and third rank 1 acre. The majority were deemed second rank but more were third rank than first. (One must assume that Brown and the other trustees all classed themselves as first rank!) This worked for a surprising number of years without complaint, but was finally abandoned when some of the men were purportedly attempting to confer their first rank status on their heirs and assigns forever!

James Brown served as Selectman and Deputy for many years. Town meetings were sometimes held in his home. During his tenure, schools were established in Swansea in 1673 for teaching grammar, rhetoric, arithmetic, Latin, Greek and Hebrew in addition to reading and writing English.

Just prior to the outbreak of King Philip's War, Lieutenant James Brown was convinced that war was impending and on 14 June 1675 described his concerns to Governor Winslow. Like his father, James Brown had been held in high regard by the Native Americans but things were taking a turn for the worse. On Sunday 20 June when most of the townfolk were in church, some of Philip's men raided Swansea. Just one man was at home and surprised the raiders; violence ensued, marking the start of King Philip's War. One of James Brown's sons bore this news to Plymouth. Over the next few days, several Swansea residents were killed and half the town was burned.

After his famous brother-in-law Thomas Willett died, James Brown took over as "Assistant" from 1665. Even though he was a leading Baptist, whose adherents were often stigmatized, he was consistently selected to sit on the bench for 13 years. He lived until 1710 and was also buried in Little Neck Cemetery.

3. Third Generation - James Brown (1655-1718) and Margaret Denison

My 8X great grandfather James Brown was the oldest child born to James and Lydia (Howland) Brown. Less has been found about his life than his illustrious father and grandfather, who would both have been hard acts to follow. In 1676, he married Margaret Denison, daughter of George Denison and Ann Boradell. They went on to have a large family of about a dozen children including daughter Dorothy, my 7X great grandmother. Like so many other family members, James was buried at Little Neck Cemetery when he died in 1718. 

Burial Stone for James Brown
Little Neck Cemetery
Photo courtesy Julie Nathanson from Find a Grave

Little Neck Cemetery was founded in 1655 when the area was still a part of Rehoboth, MA. It is one of the oldest colonial cemeteries in Rhode Island and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1980. Sixty-eight Browns are buried in this cemetery, although it is not certain how many of them are related to our John Brown family. 

Some Resources:

• History of Swansea MA 1667-1917 accessed 8 July 2020 on Internet Archive at https://archive.org/stream/historyofswansea00wrig/historyofswansea00wrig_djvu.txt
• Ancestry.com. History and genealogy of the Mayflower planters and first comers to ye olde colonie [database on-line]. Provo, UT: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2005.
  Original data: Hills, Leon Clark,. History and genealogy of the Mayflower planters and first comers to ye olde colonie. Washington, D.C.: Hills Pub. Co., c1936-c1941.
• Find a Grave website located online at https://www.findagrave.com/ and its listing for Little Neck Cemetery link at https://www.findagrave.com/cemetery/1808353/ancient-little-neck-cemetery

Abraham Perkins (c1610-1683) and Mary Wyeth (c1618-1706) (52 Ancestors 2020 Week 31)Theme: "Large"

My  9X great grandparents Abraham and Mary (Wyeth) Perkins produced a large family. Both were probably born in England. Although there are online trees with suggestions for where and when they were born and married, reliable sources have not yet been found.

We know for certain that Abraham was in North America by 1638 when he became one of the founders of Hampton, Rockingham, New Hampshire. His land is located where the arrow points in the old map below. 

Early New Hampshire Settlers geni.com, Hampton Historical Society at 
http://www.hamptonhistoricalsociety.org/index.htm

Abraham and Mary have had varying numbers of children attributed to them (anywhere from 10-14). Whatever the actual number, it was clearly a large family. I've decided to go with the following 13: 

1. Abraham (1639-1677)
2. Mary (1639-1670)
3. Luke (1640-1708/09)
4. Humphrey (1642-1643) - one of the first burials at Hampton
5. James (1644-1644)
6. Timothy (1646-1657)
7. James (1647-1731)
8. Jonathan (1650-1688)
9. David (my 8X great grandfather 1653-1736)
10. Timothy (1657-1659)
11. Sarah (1659-1683)
12. Humphrey (1661-1711)
13. Abigail (1665-1675)

Five of the children died in childhood and some of the names were recycled for subsequent children, a practice common at the time. It seems that the oldest two, Abraham and Mary, were twins born probably 2nd June 1639 in Hampton, certainly among the first English folk born in the new settlement. 

Baptisms of the first two children (Mary and Abraham) on the 15th day of the 10th month of 1639
Hampton Town Records, Volume 1

Sadly, one of the children, Humphrey (1642-1643), had the less happy distinction of being among the first buried here. The earliest burials are all thought to be in the Pine Grove Cemetery, Hampton, but any stones this old are long gone. 

Abraham was considered a well-educated man with fine penmanship often put to good use for the town. I wonder if he might have been responsible for writing any of the town records - even though I must say we might find this penmanship difficult to read. He was an active participant in town life. On 10 May 1648, he was granted the right to build a water mill on the nearby falls. 

Hampton Town Records, Volume 1, page 38/73

He appears often in the records for early Hampton, including as  a collector of fines imposed on those who failed to perform their share of labor for upkeep of roads and being named to the Grand Jury to serve for a year. Over the course of time, we start to see his adult sons also being named in the town records. Son David (my 8X great grandfather) married Elizabeth Brown about 1675 and settled in Bridgewater, Massachusetts where they raised their family. David and Elizabeth's family was not as large as his parents: just 4  (all sons) survived to adulthood.

Abraham died 31 August 1683 at the age of 70 and Mary on 29 May 1706 at the age of 88. Both are buried at the Pine Grove Cemetery near where they had raised their large family. 

Pine Grove Cemetery
Photo courtesy ParkerMoulton, Find a Grave website

Some Resources:

• Dow, Joseph, History of the Town of Hampton, New Hampshire: From its Settlement in 1638, to the autumn of 1892, Vol. 1; Salem Press Publishing and Printing Company: 1894, available online at Google Books: https://play.google.com/store/books/details?id=iZU3N3rAtlQC&rdid=book-iZU3N3rAtlQC&rdot=1
• Hampton, New Hampshire Lane Memorial Library website located at http://www.hampton.lib.nh.us/hampton/history/hazlett.htm
• Sawyer, Reverend Roland D., "The First Burials in Hampton" article, 1956, located at this website: http://www.hampton.lib.nh.us/hampton/graves/sawyer.htm
• Hampton Historical Society webpage located at: http://www.hamptonhistoricalsociety.org/index.htm

Moses Simonson (c.1604-c1690) (52 Ancestors 2020 Week 27) Theme: "Solo"

My ancestors usually migrated to America and lived in communities as part of an extended family group.  Finding someone who flew "solo" is a challenge. 

One solo flyer to early New England was my 10X great grandfather Moses Simonson (or Simmons). 

Born about 1604 in Leiden, Zuid-Holland, Netherlands, he was a French-speaking Dutchman (known as a Walloon) whose parents had joined the English Separatist church during their years in Leiden prior to emigrating to New England. When many of the Leiden congregation left for America aboard the Mayflower in 1620, teen-aged Moses remained behind with his family in Leiden. The following year, however, he was ready to strike out on his own when the next ship, the Fortune, sailed to America, Moses was one of about 35 passengers on board. He came to America as a single young man.

Replica ship Mayflower II in Plymouth Harbour 1999

He undertook this adventure with another teen-aged Walloon named Philip Delano. The Fortune landed at Plymouth Colony on 9 November 1621. You might think that these new arrivals would have been welcomed with open arms by the existing Plymouth community who had arrived a year earlier aboard the Mayflower. But that was not exactly the case. 

For one thing, the Colony had no idea these newcomers were planning to join them. Food was already in short supply and, with winter coming, they were concerned about having enough to see them through until spring. The Fortune passengers brought no provisions with them so the Colony's winter rations would need to be stretched even further. 

There was also some thought that the caliber of the newcomers was not of the highest standard. At least all arrived in healthy condition. However, Moses was one of just a handful of the Leiden congregation that were joining them. Most were so-called "Strangers" recruited by the merchant adventurers who were more interested in economic than religious matters. There were just a few women; according to William Bradford, most were "lusty young men, and many of them wild enough, who little considered whither or about what they went." One might hope that Moses and his friend Philip, as members of the predominant church congregation, were not included in this wild group.

Yet all were made welcome and remained in Plymouth when the Fortune loaded with cargo for the merchant adventurers (wood, beaver and otter pelts) departed 13 December for return to England.

By the spring of 1623, it was felt that rather than continuing to grow things communally, it would be advantageous for everyone to have their own plot of land for crops. Each household was granted a tract of land in accordance with its size (generally it was one acre per person). Moses and Philip Delano seem to have been dealt with together in that Division of Land in 1623. For those that came on the Fortune, 19 acres  were divided among 19 people, including 2 acres for Moses Simonson and Philip Delano.

Again, when it came time to divide up the cattle among the settlers in 1627, the two young single men Moses Simonson and Philip Delano, as a unit,  were included in Francis Cooke's group. This group was alloted the least of the 4 black heifers that had come in the ship Jacob and two she goats. 

As more and more ships arrived with a variety of family groups and young unattached immigrants, problems arose. It seemed that single young men had a tendency to get up to a lot of trouble, including serious offences such as assault and murder. More often, the offences committed by the young single  folk related to illicit sexual activity, drunkenness and singing lewd songs. It was felt that measures had to be taken to try to control their wilder natures. Laws were enacted to limit the amount of time one could spend in an "ordinary" (pub) and idleness was strictly forbidden. For a period of time, until young men were 21 years of age, they could not live on their own but had to be taken in by a family, whether related or not. Sometimes forced servitude for several years was seen as a way to control a young man. No flying solo for some!

There is no record of Moses ever getting himself in any sort of hot water for any of this sort of misbehavior.

Moses married a woman named Sarah and had 7 children with her between about 1637 and 1653. Their daughter Mary, my 9X great grandmother born about 1641, would grow up to marry Joseph Alden, son of John Alden and Priscilla Mullins who had arrived in Plymouth on the Mayflower. By 1639, Moses and Sarah settled in Duxbury, where he served as a surveyor. With all the development going on, surveyors were in constant demand; his friend Philip Delano also served as a surveyor. 

Moses appears in many of the records in early Plymouth Colony. He was listed as freeman of Plymouth after those admitted 1 January 1634/35.  He appears in the Duxbury lists of freemen in 1639, 1658, 29 May 1670 and early 1683/4. He was involved in many land transactions in several local towns over the years.  As for his education, it is noted that he signed a number of his deeds but by 1678 was making his mark.  He was on the petit jury 25 October 1669.  He was a highway surveyor in Duxbury 3 June 1657, 3 June 1662 and was a surveyor of highways in Scituate 1 June 1675.

The Old Burying Ground, Duxbury MA 1999
Not known if this is where Moses was buried, but it seems likely

Moses died in Plymouth Colony and his will was filed for probate on 15 September 1691 by his son John. His will mentions daughters Mary (wife of Joseph Alden), Elizabeth (wife of Richard Dwelly), Sarah (wife of James Nash) and  sons Aaron and John. Another son (Moses) had died about 15 years before his father. Interestingly, the old Delano friendship remains: one of the witnesses to the will was Thomas Delano, son of his old friend Philip. 

Moses may have flown solo to America, but it is obvious that he had close friendships and grew his own circle of loved ones to surround him in his new life in America.

Duxbury, MA

Some Resources:

• Archer, Richard, Fissures in the Rock: New England in the Seventeenth Century, University of New Hampshire, Published by University Press of New England, Hanover and London, 2001, pp. 98-110.
• Johnson, Caleb H., The Mayflower and Her Passengers, Xlibris Corporation, 2006, pp. 267-275.
• Willison, George F., Saints and Strangers, New York: Reynal & Hitchcock, 1945.

Robert Whitcomb (c1629-1704) and Mary Cudworth (c1637-1699) (52 Ancestors 2020 Week 23) Theme: "Wedding"

It isn't often that a wedding results in legal charges, yet that is exactly what happened to my 7X great grandparents Mary (Cudworth) and Robert Whitcomb!

Born to General James Cudworth and his wife Mary (Parker) in Scituate, Plymouth Colony in 1637, Mary Cudworth probably grew up in relatively comfortable circumstances. Her father was a well-respected citizen in early Plymouth Colony. Though not himself a Quaker, he was known for defending the unpopular Quakers in the area, a position that had resulted in some serious repercussions for him from time to time.

General James Cudworth Memorial
Scituate, MA photo 1999

Robert Whitcomb was born in Taunton, Somerset, England in about 1629. His parents John Whitcomb and Frances (Coggens) had been married in St. Mary Magdalene Church at Taunton 26 November 1623.

Interior of Church of St. Mary Magdalene, Taunton, Somerset, England photo 1998

As a young child, Robert immigrated to America with his family.  Like the Cudworths, the Whitcombs settled at Scituate in Plymouth Colony. When his parents moved the family to Lancaster in 1654, Robert was a young man ready to make his own life. He received lands from his father and remained behind at Scituate. It is possible that Robert remained as part of the Quaker congregation that included his older sister Catherine (Whitcomb) Ellmes. Perhaps Robert was already taking an interest in Mary Cudworth and wished to remain near her.

However it transpired, early in 1660, Robert and Mary were married by Henry Hobson, a Quaker preacher in Rhode Island. Hobson not being licenced under the laws of the colony, the marriage was pronounced unlawful. Robert and Mary were charged with "disorderly conduct coming together without consent of parents and lawful marriage" and were sentenced to pay 10 pounds fine and be imprisoned during the pleasure of the court.

The couple responded with an approved and fully-accredited wedding on 9 March 1660. Half the fine was thereby remitted; there is no record of the other half of the fine having ever been paid. Nor is there any record of actual imprisonment of the guilty parties.

Having now been married twice, Robert and Mary spent their lives in Scituate where they raised their family, the youngest of whom was my 6X great grandfather James Whitcomb. Their first wedding is the only record of any trouble-making on their part!

Resources:

• Records of the Cudworth Family: A History of the Ancestors and Descendants of James Cudworth of Scituate, Mass. collected and compiled by W. John Calder, Oakland California 1941, ed. and revised by Arthur G. Cudworth, Sr. in 1974. 
• Deane, Samuel, History of Scituate, Massachusetts from its First Settlement to 1831; Boston: James Loring, 1831, 381.
• Earle, Alice Morse, "Old-Time Marriage Customs in New England", The Journal of Amercan Folklore, Vol, 6, No. 21; 1893, pp.97-102 accessed online 13 May 2020 at https://www.jstor.org/stable/pdf/533294.pdf

Eleazor Carver (c1669-1744) and Experience Blake (1665-1746) (52 Ancestors 2020 Week 21) Theme: "Tombstone"

Last week's "Travel" theme had us visiting sites associated with Joseph and Sarah (Hartwell) Carver. While in New England in 1999, we were also able to find tombstones for Joseph's grandparents Deacon Eleazor Carver and Experience Blake, my 8X great grandparents who are the subjects of this week's story.

Deacon Eleazor Carver's Stone

Both are buried in Bridgewater, Massachusetts in the First Cemetery, also known as the Old Graveyard and the Summer Street Cemetery.

Eleazor's and Experiences's stones were typical of those common at the time in New England. The shape was perhaps suggestive of the headboard of a bed symbolizing rest. It was also symbolic of the arches and portals the soul would be required to pass through en route to eternity. The rounded central portion, called the tympanum, was above the carved details of the deceased person. Either side had another rounded shoulder, often fully decorated, as were the Carvers' stones.

Tympanum for Elezaor's Stone 

To me, the most interesting part of their stones, similar for both, is the tympanum with the interesting arches (depicting Heaven-bound wings) and the rather scary Martian-like faces. This is apparently a variation of the winged death's head. In earlier times, these were clearly skulls with wings, a symbol of mortality derived from the Puritans' strong and stern religious beliefs. By the time the Carvers passed away, the skull was evolving into a winged face or effigy, with sometimes rather strange results. The other decorative motifs carved into the stones were often symbolic in the society or for the individual whose resting place was being marked, although it appears the Carvers' were perhaps purely decorative.

Tombstone for Experience (Blake) Carver "relict too Deacon Eleazor Carver"
Bridgewater, MA

Records for the lives of Eleazor and Experience can be found at Marshfield, Taunton and Bridgewater in Plymouth Colony (Massachusetts).   Experience was previously married to a man named Samuel Sumner and had  four children with him prior to his death. She and Eleazor married 11 June 1695 and  had sons Eleazor and Joseph (my 7X great grandfather) and daughters Experience and Mehitabel. 

Eleazer was generally known as "Deacon Eleazer."  His first name, rather appropriately, means "To whom God is a help." He was clerk of the First Congregational Society of Bridgewater from 1716 to 1718 and Deacon until his retirement in 1741. Throughout his life, he was very active in the church, often taking the part of pastor though there is no evidence that he was actually an ordained minister.

The tombstones for Eleazor and Experience are side by side in the Old Graveyard at Bridgewater (near the Unitarian Church). His tombstone says: "In memory of Dea'cn Eleazor Carver, Who dece'd January y 25th, 1744, in y 75th year of his age." 

And hers says: "In memory of Mrs. Experience Carver, relict to Deac'n Eleaz'r Carver, who deceas'd Jan'y 16th, 1746, in y 82d year of her age." These days, widows would bristle at being called a "relict", but that is the term often used in those days to indicate that the wife had outlived her husband. Twice widowed, I suppose Experience was twice a relict!

In the mid 1700s, average life expectancy in New England was only to the mid 30s. Experience and Eleazor both lived to very ripe old ages for their times. Their stones have also been long-lived, surviving in quite good condition for some 275 years.

Some Resources:

• Jones, William, "Robert Carver of Marshfield and Some of His Descendants" from Genealogies of Mayflower Families, Vol. I; Selected and Compiled by Gary Boyd Roberts; Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 1985, p.432. Accessed online at Ancestry.com.
• Early American Gravestones.doc  accessed at website https://www.davidrumsey.com/farber/Early%20American%20Gravestones.pdf
• Mitchell, Nahum, Mitchell's History of Early Settlement of Bridgewater, Massachusetts; Bridgewater, MA., Printed by Henry T. Pratt, Published by Edward Alden, 1897 available at Google Books at this website:  https://books.google.ca/books?id=KIc-AAAAYAAJ&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false, pp. 130-131.