Thomas Rice

Notes:

Thomas emigrated with his parents and lived in Sudbury where he was made a freeman in 1660. He moved to Marlborough in 1664 and was one of the original proprietors of the town. In 1675, when the Indians destroyed the town, Thomas moved back to Sudbury and remained there the rest of his life.

He was termed a yeoman and/or husbandman (both meaning farmer). He seemed to continue in his father's footsteps, making many real estate transactions all for the improvement of the family fortunes.

His wife Mary was named executrix of his will, which was dated 11 Nov 1681 and proved 4 Apr 1682. The initial inventory placed the value at 702 Pounds, but a secondary inventory dated 19 Dec 1681 added another 370.01.00 Pounds to the total. An item in the inventory that I found interestingly worded was, "Horse, bridle, saddle with all his trooping furniture at 10 Pounds.

Thomas Rice (1626-1681) of Sudbury, Middlesex County, Massachusetts, son of Edmund and Thomasine (Frost) Rice. Thomas Rice married Mary King (1630-1715), daughter of Thomas and Anne (--?--) King in about 1651, and they had thirteen children: Grace King (1653-1654); Thomas Rice (1654-????); Mary Rice (1656-1733); Peter Rice (1658-1753); Nathaniel Rice (1660-1726); Sarah Rice (1662-1742); Ephraim Rice (1665-1732); Gershom Rice (1667-1768); James Rice (1670-1730); Frances Rice (1671-1721); Jonas Rice (1673-1753); Grace Rice (1675-1768); and Elisha Rice (1679-1761).

Thomas Rice of Sudbury died 16 Nov 1681 with a fairly large estate. His will (transcribed from Middlesex County Probate Records, Probate Packet #18,810, FHL Microfilm 0,421,502, copy in Middlesex County Probate Records, volume 5, pages 394-395):

"The Last Will & Testament of Thomas Rice of Sudbury in the County of Midlesex of the Massachusets Colony in New England, made the eleventh day of November in the yeare of our Lord God one thousand six hundred eighty & one.

"Inasmuch as I Thomas Rice am now weak in body (though of sound understanding & memory) I do have reason to expect my great change, doe comitt my soul to God & my body after my decease to be buryed at discretion of my wife & friends to rest in the grave in hope of a blessed resurrection through ye merrits of my Dear Redeemer, & for my outward estate I doe hereby will & dispose ye same as followeth.

"Imprimus. I give & bequeath & confirme unto my Eldest Son Thomas, what I formerly promised (to will) one halfe pt of my houslott at Marlborough, yt is to say, the halfe pt next ye Pond & also my stirrup (?) meadow & nonsuch meadow at ... which shall be his own & at his dispose for ever.

"Item. I Give & bequeath unto my second son Peter, the other halfe pt of my houslott at Marlborough & my parcell of meadow ground in Marlborough, called three corner meadow which shall be his own & at his dispose forever.

"Item: I Give & bequeath unto my third son Nathaniel yt my houselott at Marlborough which I lately bought of John Brown, & the first division of meadow which I also bought of sd Brown wch shall be his own & at his dispose forever.

"Item: I give & bequeath unto my fourth son Ephraim, all yt my uplands yt lyes in Sudbury at or near to Hogg House Hill & also all yt my parcell of meadow ground lying near unto it wch I lately bought of my brother Benjamin Rice wch shall be his own as soon as he shall be one & twenty years of age & from thereon shall be at his own dispose for ever.

"Item: I Give & bequeath unto Mary my beloved wife all ye rest of my estate of housing, lands, cattell, beasts, mony, goods & moveables, debts due to me wherever they may be found during her natural life to be by her used & improved at her pleasure for the remainder of her life & also to be disposed of unto the rest of my younger children not abovenamed at her will & discretion both in her lifetime & at her death.

"My will also is yt all my debts which I really owe to any person shall be paid by just proportion out of my whole estate, & also my funerall expenses, excepting out of ye legacys abovegiven to my eldest son Thomas as abovesd.

"And I do hereby declare, will & constitute Mary my beloved wife the only Executrix of this my will & also I do desire & constitute my loveing friend Deacon John Haynes of Sudbury & my three brethren Henry Rice, Matthew Rice & Peter King to be overseers & to be assisting counselling & every way helpful to my deare wife and children in all things needfull. Dated yt day & yeare first above written, & in the three & thirtieth yeare of his Majesties reign.
........................................... Thomas Rice & seale
"Signed, sealed & owned by ye abovenamed Thos Rice to
be his last will in presence
of us John Green
John Haynes
John Haynes senr Peter King"

The will was proved on 4 April 1682, with John Haynes senior and Peter King making oath to the will.

On 19 December 1681, the lands and chattels of Thomas Rice senior, deceased, in Marlborough were appraised by Gamaliel Beaman, Samuel Rice and Abraham Williams. This inventory totaled 370 pounds. It included the following real property:

1) Homestall and housestall given him by the town of Marlborough being 35 acres of upland and the second and third divisions of upland and all his divisions of meadows and rights in the town (260 pounds).
2) A houselott and homestall purchased of Jno Brown, being a grant of the town containing 18 acres with second and third divisions of upland and all his divisions of meadows and rights in the town (60 pounds)

An inventory of the estate of Corporal Thomas Rice of Sudbury, deceased, was taken by Henry Rice, Peter King, Mathew Rice and John Haynes on 26 February 1682. This inventory totalled 702 pounds, including the following real estate:

1) Housing, homestall & uplands & meadows (400 pounds)
SudburySudbury with all town rights and privileges in commons (80 pounds)

In addition, they found 50 pounds in money to be paid out of the estate. On 4 April 1682, Mary Rice Executrix appeared in Court and made oath to the above inventory.

The will names only his four sons and his wife, Mary. There is no mention of the four youngest sons (Gershom, James, Jonas, and Elisha), and the four daughters that survived him (Mary, Sarah, Frances, and Grace).

Thomas married Mary King in 1651 in Sudbury, Middlesex, Massachusetts, USA. Mary was born on 12 Feb 1630 in Shaston, Dorset, England; died on 22 May 1714 in Sudbury, Middlesex, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Arrival: 1638, , , Massachusetts, USA
• Residence: 13 May 1639, , , Massachusetts, USA

Notes:

from Ancestry of Edward Wales Blake and Clarissa Matilda Glidden (p208-9)

EDMUND RICE was born in England about 1594, probably in Stanstead, Suffolk. He was either younger brother or son of Henry Rice who married Elizabeth Frost, sister of Thomasine, in 1605. The marriage of Edmund Rice and Thomasine Frost was recorded on the register of Saint Mary’s, Bury, Suffolk, on 10/15/1618. She was born in Stanstead, Suffolk, on 8/11/1600, the daughter of a wealthy clothier, Edward Frost….She died in Sudbury, MA, on 6/13/1654, and Edmund married again in Marlboro, MA, on 3/1/1655, Mercy (Hurd), the widow of Thomas Brigham of Cambridge, MA. She had three sons and two daughters by her first marriage. Edmund died on 5/3/1663 in Marlboro, but was buried in Sudbury….

The Rice family lived first in Stanstead, Suffolk, and later in Great Barkhamstead, Hartfordshire, England. They were settled in Sudbury, MA, by 1639, where Edmund was made Freeman in 1640. He was Selectman in 1639, 1644, and subsequently Deacon in 1640 and Representative in 1654.

He was one of the substantial men of the plantation, owning lands in and out of the town, some by the grant of the Court. He shared in all the divisions of uplands and commons. The total number of acres which he received as an original inhabitant was 247 acres. His first dwelling in Sudbury was on old North Street. This he sold in 1642 to John Moore…. He bought of the Widow Mary Axtell six acres of land with her dwelling house, in the south part of the town, and some years afterwards he bought of Philemon Whale…his house and nine acres adjacent to the Axtell place. These together formed the old Rice homestead in Sudbury, which remained in the family for many years. In 1647 he took a ten-year lease on the Oliver Glover farm, mostly in what is now Framingham. In 1657 he bought 200 more acres. In 1656 he was a petitioner for the new town of Marlborough, where he received grants of a house-lot and fifty acres, and other lands in proportion, and whither he removed in 1660.

His inventory amounted to £566, the house, etc., to £170.

Children of Edmund and Thomasine:

1. Mary: bap Stanstead 8/23/1619; d before family emigrated
2. Henry : bap “” 2/13/1621; d 2/10/1711
3. Edward: bap “” 10/26/1622; d 1712
4. Thomas: bap “” 1/26/1626; d Marlboro 1681
5. Lydia bap Barkhamstead 3/9/1628; m Hugh Drury c1645; d Boston, 4/5/1675
6. Matthew: bap “” 2/28/1630; d 1717
7. Daniel: bap “” 11/1/1632; d same year
8. Samuel: bap ““ 11/12/1634; d 1685
9. Joseph: bap “” 3/13/1638
10. Edmund?: perhaps b at sea 1638

Edmund married Thomasine Frost on 15 Oct 1618 in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, England. Thomasine was born on 11 Aug 1600 in Stanstead, Suffolk, England; died on 13 Jun 1654 in Sudbury, Middlesex, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Baptism: 11 Aug 1600, Stanstead, Suffolk, England

Henry married Margaret Baker. Margaret was born in 1558 in Sudbury, Suffolk, England; died in 1605 in Sudbury, Suffolk, England. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]