Silas Brown

Other Events and Attributes:

• Baptism: 27 Oct 1754
• Residence: 1780, Temple, Hillsborough, New Hampshire, USA
• Residence: 1786, Dublin, Cheshire, New Hampshire, USA
• Residence: 1790, Dublin, Cheshire, New Hampshire, USA
• Residence: 1794, Sullivan, Cheshire, New Hampshire, USA
• Residence: 26 Sep 1796, Putney, Windham, Vermont, USA
• Residence: 1800, Wardsboro, Windham, Vermont, USA
• Residence: 1810, Putney, Windham, Vermont, USA

Notes:

I have come to the conclusion that the Revolutionary War service of Silas Brown, as claimed by his descendants, is non-existent.

The service in question is that detailed in "The Brown-Schutt Genealogy, 1948", and further represented in "Brown-Schutt Ancestral Lines, 1979". The data on Silas Brown's service was compiled by Maude Levering Lawrence and Geraldine Lawrence Hurd. The work of these 2 women shows up in several family genealogies.

Our Silas died in 1813. The Silas who is cited in the above mentioned books was alive in 1834, and living in Essex county New York, when he was awarded a pension on the cited revolutionary service.

Another Silas Brown was found on the Revolutionary Pension Rolls. This Silas was living in Townsend, Wyndham County, Vermont, which is close to Putney. This is also not our Silas since this pension was awarded to a living Silas Brown in 1818. He died in 1826 and is buried in Townsend. Following data from findagrave.com.
********************************
Birth: 1755, USA
Death: Nov. 12, 1826, Townshend, Windham County, Vermont, USA
Burial: Maple Grove Cemetery, Townshend, Windham County, Vermont, USA
Created by: Judith6355
Record added: Nov 12, 2012
Find A Grave Memorial# 100614501
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=100614501
********************************
It is still possible our Silas served in the Revolutionary War, but evidence has not been found. Silas Brown was a very common name at the time, making the identification of relevant records more difficult. Since there are no pension documents for Silas, which usually contain enlistment and service data at a minimum, it makes it nearly impossible to say which Silas Brown in the muster rolls is actually him.

The evidence does affirm, however, that our Silas is the one who married Mary Nims Larabee, and settled in Putney Vermont. Though his children were born prior to the family moving to Putney, a number of their marriage records are contained in the Putney Vital Records.

Silas married Mary Nims about 1776. Mary (daughter of Ebenezer Nims and Mercy Smead) was born on 23 May 1756 in Keene, Cheshire, New Hampshire, USA; died on 13 Nov 1819 in Putney, Windham, Vermont, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

1. Silas Brown was born on 8 Nov 1780 in Temple, Hillsborough, New Hampshire, USA; died on 10 Nov 1817 in Natchez, Adams, Mississippi, USA.
2. Stephen Brown was born on 23 Sep 1781 in Temple, Hillsborough, New Hampshire, USA; died on 13 Apr 1805 in Sullivan, Cheshire, New Hampshire, USA.
3. Aaron Brown was born on 29 May 1783 in Temple, Hillsborough, New Hampshire, USA; died in Sep 1818 in Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts, USA.
4. Mary Brown was born on 13 Jul 1785 in Dublin, Cheshire, New Hampshire, USA; died on 25 Aug 1857 in Kendallville, Noble, Indiana, USA.
5. Ephraim Brown was born on 19 Nov 1790 in Dublin, Cheshire, New Hampshire, USA; died on 22 Sep 1871 in Putney, Windham, Vermont, USA; was buried in Putney, Windham, Vermont, USA.
6. Asa Brown was born on 13 Jul 1793 in Dublin, Cheshire, New Hampshire, USA; died in 1876 in Lansing, Mower, Minnesota, USA; was buried in Lansing Cemetery, Lansing, Mower, Minnesota, USA.
7. William Brown was born on 13 Jul 1793 in Dublin, Cheshire, New Hampshire, USA; died on 21 Aug 1874 in Browns Lock, Greencastle, Warren, Kentucky, USA.
8. Jonas Bond Brown was born on 18 Oct 1795 in Sullivan, Cheshire, New Hampshire, USA; was christened on 5 Jun 1796 in Sullivan, Cheshire, New Hampshire, USA; died on 26 Oct 1838 in Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts, USA.

Notes:

Name:
aka: Oron Brown

Aaron married Rachel Reed on 3 Oct 1746 in Harvard, Worcester, Massachusetts, USA. Rachel (daughter of Daniel Reed (Read) and Elizabeth Ide) was born on 10 Jun 1728 in Westmoreland, Cheshire, New Hampshire, USA; died in 1758 in , , New Hampshire, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Residence: 24 Feb 1742, Stow, Middlesex, Massachusetts, USA
• Residence: 2 Nov 1750, Stow, Middlesex, Massachusetts, USA

Ephraim married Mary Fairbanks on 9 Feb 1719 in Lancaster, Worcester, Massachusetts, USA. Mary (daughter of Jonathan Fairbanks and Mary Hayward) was born on 12 Sep 1693 in Lancaster, Worcester, Massachusetts, USA; died on 12 Jun 1745 in Lancaster, Worcester, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

Capt. Daniel Read
Birth: Jan 20 1678 - Rehoboth, (Present Bristol County), Plymouth Colony (Present Massachusetts)
Death: Sep 13 1740 - Attleboro, Bristol County, Province of Massachusetts
Parents: Daniel Read, Sr. and Hannah Read (born Peck)
Siblings: Hannah Crafts, Bethiah, John, Sarah (Sarah), Noah and Abigail
Partners: Elizabeth Read (born Bosworth) and Elizabeth Whittaker (born Ide)
Children: Beriah, Ichabod, Hannah, Abigail, Esther, Daniel, Daniel, Noah Dacen, Elizabeth, Samuel, Abigail.

Daniel married Elizabeth Ide on 8 Dec 1715 in Rehoboth, Bristol, Massachusetts, USA. Elizabeth (daughter of Capt Timothy Ide and Elizabeth Cooper) was born on 16 Mar 1690 in Rehoboth, Bristol, Massachusetts, USA; died on 25 Aug 1755 in Rehoboth, Bristol, Massachusetts, USA; was buried in East Providence, Providence, Rhode Island, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Name: Elizabeth Whitaker

Other Events and Attributes:

• Residence: 1688, Stow, Middlesex, Massachusetts, USA
• Probate: 1711, , Middlesex, Massachusetts, USA

Boaz married Mary Richards on 30 Sep 1695 in Dedham, Norfolk, Massachusetts, USA. Mary (daughter of John Richards and Mary Colburn) was born on 23 Jun 1675 in Dedham, Norfolk, Massachusetts, USA; died on 25 Mar 1732 in Dedham, Norfolk, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

An Old Family Burial Site...
"A Tombstone, surrounded by wild strawberry plants, embedded in the soil of the country town of Lancaster, Massachusetts bears mute testimony of facts. The rough slate is boldly cut with the following inscription:
JONATHAN-FAIR BANKS-AND-HIS DAUGHTER-GRACE FAIRBANKS For two hundred and ninety-nine years this stone has weathered the elements to maintain the memory of a tragic event that cut short the lives of Jonathan and Grace. Two nearby stones, carved by the same hand, record the fateful September of 1697 when twenty-seven towns folk were massacred by Indians. Killed in that raid was the town's minister, the Rev. John Whiting. The Jonathan buried in Lancaster surely was not that earlier Jonathan (deceased 1668) whose Dedham home is preserved by the family Association. No, the identity of Jonathan of Lancaster is documented in the monumental book by Lorenzo Sales Fairbanks, Genealogy pp. 49-50. Lorenzo Sales explains that the Jonathan who met his untimely death in Lancaster was the son of Jonas, the third son of the original Jonathan of Dedham. Jonas had moved to western Massachusetts as one of the original settlers of Lancaster in 1657. He was a founding father of that town. Although a carpenter and a farmer, he had a sense of style and self-worth that exceeded his monetary position in society. Even before moving to the frontier of the seventeenth century he was, in 1652, fined a few shillings for violating the sumptuary laws (passed the year before) by wearing great boots before his estate amounted to more than 200 pounds. Jonas married Lydia Prescott of Watertown who bore him seven children. The fourth was Jonathan (b. 7/8/1666). Within ten years, Jonas was dead - having perished in an Indian attack on Lancaster on Feb. 10, 1676. That raid also took away the life of Jonathan's older brother Joshua, who was at the time fifteen years of age. It is not surprising therefore that when Jonathan matured he became a soldier, and was one of the first to venture on long expeditions into the wilderness. He shared in the ill-fated expedition against Quebec in 1690 with Sir William Phips. On Aug 24 1688 he married Mary Hayward of Concord. She gave him three children: Hannah, (d 1704), Grace (d 1697), and Mary (d 1745) Grace was about seven when she perished in the Indian raid of 1697 that killed so many inhabitants of Lancaster, including her father and his younger brother Jonas (b. 1673). Jonathan's wife was carried away with six other Lancastrians as captives, like Mary Rowlandson who had been taken in the l676 raid and wrote a famous account of her captivity and return. All captives from Lancaster but one were redeemed by government intervention and returned to their remaining family members a year later. During the raid of 1697, another brother of Jonathan s, Jabez, saved many Lancastrians in a garrison, or fortified house. He later became a notable soldier commissioned by Governor Dummer, employed as a Captain for long distance travel and scouting throughout the 1720's. "

Died:
Massacred with two children by indians.

Jonathan married Mary Hayward on 24 Aug 1688 in Concord, Middlesex, Massachusetts, USA. Mary (daughter of Joseph Hayward and Hannah Hosmer) was born on 21 Sep 1667 in Concord, Middlesex, Massachusetts, USA; died on 5 Jan 1734 in Lancaster, Worcester, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Fact 1: 11 Sep 1697; Taken captive by indians and later ransomed.

Daniel married Hannah Peck on 20 Aug 1677 in Rehoboth, Bristol, Massachusetts, USA. Hannah (daughter of Joseph Peck and Hannah Hudson) was born on 23 Mar 1653 in Rehoboth, Bristol, Massachusetts, USA; died on 20 Aug 1710 in Rehoboth, Bristol, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Capt married Elizabeth Cooper on 20 Oct 1687 in Rehoboth, Bristol, Massachusetts, USA. Elizabeth was born on 8 Aug 1662 in Rehoboth, Bristol, Massachusetts, USA; died on 8 Feb 1745 in Rehoboth, Bristol, Massachusetts, USA; was buried in East Providence, Providence, Rhode Island, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Fact 1: 1673, Concord, Middlesex, Massachusetts, USA; Freeman
• Fact 2: 11 Oct 1681, Stow, Middlesex, Massachusetts, USA; Selectman

Notes:

Boaz Brown was born 14 Feb 1641/2 in Concord Mass. He was admitted as Freeman in Concord 15 Oct 1673. Boaz was one of several men from Concord who were responsible for founding Stow in 1683 when they purchased the indian plantation Pompositticut. He was also chosen as one of the first selectmen for several terms thereafter.

Boaz was the first minister of the Stow Congregational Church. He moved to Dedham where he was called Ensign in the tax records of 1695. Sometime after 1715 he returned to Concord, where he died 9 Apr 1724, at the age of 83. He is buried in the South Burying Ground in Concord.

Excerpt from Boaz Brown's will.
"..unto my two grandsons Amos Brown and Boaz Brown ye children of my youngest son Edward Brown deceased I do will and bequeath all my housing and lands to me belonging within ye limits and bounds of ye aforesaid Town of Stow.". The will also mentions his "..three grandchildren, Deliverance Brown, Mercy Heald, and Ephraim Brown ye surviving children of my eldest son Boaz Brown deceased".



Thomas Brown was the emigrant ancestor of Josiah Brown, of Worcester, of the late Alzirus Brown, and many other Worcester families. He came from England and settled at Sudbury, where the general court granted him two hundred acres of land October 7, 1640, for the adventure of Mrs. Anne Harvyes. He was in Sudbury in 1640, but the records of his family are at Concord. After 1650 he removed to Cambridge, Massachusetts, and was admitted to the church there, May 18, 1666.

He married (first) Bridget, by whom he had his first five children at Concord. Before 1658 he had married Martha, widow of Thomas Oldham, by whom he had four or more children at Cambridge. He died in November or December, 1690.

His will was made November 23, 1690, and proved January, 1691. He bequeathed to his wife Martha, to his daughters Mehitabel and Martha, and to his sons, Ebenezer and Ichabod. The inventory shows house and land at Cambridge, and three hundred acres at Worcester.

Children of Thomas Brown were:

I. Boaz, born at Concord, February 14, 1641-2; died April 7, 1724; married November 8. 1664, Mary Winship, daughter of Edward and Jane Winship ; and had : Boaz, Jr., who settled in Stow ; Thomas, Mary, and Edward.
2. Thomas, born about 1644, died April 4, 1718; married November 12, 1677, Ruth (Vinton) Jones.
3. Mary, born at Concord, March 26, 1646; married June 21, 1669, William Woodward.
4. Eleazer, born at Concord July 6, 1649, married February 9, 1674-5. Dinah Spaulding.
5. Jabez, born at Concord: died 1692; married Deborah.
6. (see Pope's Pioneers) Mehitabel, baptized June 2. 1661. ?. ( ?)
7. Mary, born in Cambridge, baptized March 8, 1663.
8. Ebenezer, born in Cambridge, baptized July 23. 1665.
9. Ichabod. baptized at Cambridge, September 9. 1666.

Boaz married Mary Winship on 8 Nov 1664 in Concord, Middlesex, Massachusetts, USA. Mary (daughter of Edward Winship and Jane Wilkinson) was born on 2 Jul 1641 in Cambridge, Middlesex, Massachusetts, USA; died on 12 Sep 1715 in Dedham, Norfolk, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

John married Mary Colburn on 6 Aug 1672 in Dedham, Norfolk, Massachusetts, USA. Mary (daughter of Nathaniel Colburn and Priscilla Clarke) was born on 21 Jan 1650 in Dedham, Norfolk, Massachusetts, USA; died on 17 Dec 1685 in Dedham, Norfolk, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Fact 1: Slain with son in King Phillip's War by indians.

Notes:

FAIRBANK. Jonathan Fairbanks or Fairbank, immigrant ancestor, was born in England before 1600, and came to Boston with his family in 1633. He remained there about three years, then settled in Dedham, where he was pioneer, and a signer of the Dedham convenant. His house is still standing in Dedham, and is now owned by the family association, having been occupied to the present time by Jonathan and his lineal descendants. He was a town officer, and died December 5, 1668. He married Grace Lee, who died December 28, 1673. Children: 1. John. 2. George. 3. Mary. 4. Susan. 5. Jonas, mentioned below. 6. Jonathan.

(II) Jonas, son of Jonathan Fairbanks, was born in England and came to Dedham with his parents. He signed the covenant in 1657, and March 7, 1659, became one of the fathers of the town. He was a farmer and believed to be a carpenter also. In 16752 he was fined for wearing great boots, not being worth two hundred pounds, the amount of wealth prescribed by the laws of the colony, in 1651 to suffice for men who could lawfully wear great boots. He removed to Lancaster in 1657. There he met his death in the assault by King Philip and fifteen hundred warriors, February 10, 1675, 76. Some fifty persons were slain that day, including Joshua Fairbanks, son of Jonas. Jonas Fairbanks married, May 28, 1658, Lydia Prescott, born in Watertown, August 15, 1641, daughter of John Prescott, who came from Sowerby, Halifax, England, the English home of the Fairbanks family. she married (second) Ellis Barron, of Watertown, Groton and Lancaster. Children: 1. Marie. 2. Joshua. 3. Grace. 4. Jonathan. 5. Hazadiah. 6. Jabez, mentioned below. 7. Jonas.

(III) Captain Jabez, son of Jonas Fairbanks, was born at Lancaster, January 8, 1670-71, and settled there after the war. He died March 2, 1758. He was a very efficient soldier and officer in the Indian War, and was no doubt incited to heroic exploits by the massacre of his father and brother in 1676, and of his only surviving brother in 1697, during a raid on the town. At the time his brother Jonathan and one of his children were killed, Captain Jabez was the means of saving a garrison and perhaps many lives, including that of his little son Joseph. Twenty-one persons were killed this raid, two were wounded, and six carried off captives, of whom five were ransomed later, including the wife of Jonathan Fairbanks. In 1700 Jabez Fairbanks had land granted him on both sides of the brook above Thomas Sawyer's sawmill. This site was the homestead of Jabez and his descendants for a hundred years. He was deputy to the general court in 1714-21-22-23. He married (first) Mary wilder, who died February 21, 1718, in her forty-third years, daughter of Thomas and Mary (Houghton) Wilder. He married (second) March 25, 1719, Elizabeth Whitcomb, who died May 11, 1755, aged about eighty years. Children of first wife: 1. Joseph. 2. Jabez. 3. Elizabeth. 4. Jonas. 5. Thomas, mentioned below. 6. Abigail. 7. Jonathan. 8. Grace. 9. Joshua. 10. Anna.

(IV) Deacon Thomas, son of Captain Jabez Fairbanks, was baptized in Lancaster in 1708, died February 10, 1791. He was sentinel in Captain Josiah Willard's company in the Indian War, June 3, to November 10, 1725. He was also a soldier in Captain Ephraim Wilder's company, Colonel Sam-

Jonas married Lydia Prescott on 28 May 1658 in Lancaster, Worcester, Massachusetts, USA. Lydia (daughter of John Prescott, Sr and Mary Gawkroger) was born on 15 Aug 1641 in Watertown, Middlesex, Massachusetts, USA; died on 31 Dec 1723 in Lancaster, Worcester, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Name: Lydia Prescott Fairbanks

Joseph married Hannah Hosmer on 26 Oct 1665 in Concord, Middlesex, Massachusetts, USA. Hannah (daughter of James Hosmer and Alice Ellen Hosmer) was born on 16 Jun 1644 in Concord, Middlesex, Massachusetts, USA; died on 15 Dec 1675 in Concord, Middlesex, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

John married Sarah Lessie in 1640 in , , Massachusetts, USA. Sarah was born in 1614 in Blyborough, Lincolnshire, England; died on 23 Apr 1702 in Rehoboth, Bristol, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Probate: 1708, , Bristol, Massachusetts, USA; https://archive.org/details/genealogicalhist00peck/page/n73/mode/2up p30

Notes:

The last will and testament of JOSEPH PECK JR

In the name of God Amen, in the year of our Lord one thousand six hundred ninty & seven in the ninth year of his majiesties reigne the firth day of the seventh month called July I Joseph Peck of the town of Rehoboth of the county of Bristol within his Majties province of Massachusetts Bay in New England senr yeoman being now aged and weak of body & in expectation of my change yet through the mercy of God I am whole and sound in my memory and understanding and of a disposing mind do make this my last will & Testament for the disposing & settling the things of this world which the Lord has entrusted me to & among my children in manner & form as followeth

And imprimis I bequeth my soul into the hands of our most blessed savior and dear redeemer & my body to the dust untill the resurrection day which I die in the firm belief & expectation of

Item 1sly I give unto my daughter Patience wife of Richard Bowen & to her heirs forever twenty acres of land in the first division last agreed upon & twenty pounds.

Item 2dly I give unto my daughter Mary the wife of Benjamin Hunt & to her heirs forever half my lot in the north purchased lands belonging to Rehoboth purchasee & twenty pounds.

Item 3dly I give unto my daughter Elizabeth wife of Capt Mason & to her heirs forever the other half of my lot in the aforsaid north purchase & twenty pounds.

Item 4thly I give unto my daughter Hannah wife of Daniel Reed & to her heirs forever all my medow in the north purchase & twenty pounds.

And my mind & will is the abovesaid sums given to my daughters (each being named) be by my executor of this my last will & testament well & t ruly paid within the term of four years after my decease Furthermore my mind & will is that if all or any of my daughters shall happen to die before the time prefixed by me for my executors paying the several sums before the time prefixed by me for my executors paying the several sums before expressed unto them - them my mind & will is that each daughters legacy that shall happen to die shall be sold & truly paid to her children by an equal distribution.

Item 5thly I give unto my son Jathnall Peck as an addition to what I have before given unto him the lot upon which his dwelling house now stands containing twenty acres be it more or less which lot I had of William Carpenter of Rehoboth in exchange and also one parcel of land being a lot of twenty & six acres lying on the easterly side of Palmers River in Rehoboth near the oadk swamp be the same more or less. And also I give him my fresh meadow formerly purchase of William bucklin late of Rehoboth and also six acres of upland adjoining to the said meadow & also my upper meadow upon Palmers river and also the great peice of meadow that lieth in the meadow abutting upon the meadow of Joshua Smith on the ons side & the meadow of Preserved Abell on the other side and also that part of my salt march lying on the southerly side of the creek bounded from a pine tree unto a little creek upon a straight line & also half my commong rights in the town of Rehoboth and all my commong in the north purchased lands yet undivided - All and each of these lands I give upton my said on Jethniel Peck & to his heirs forever.

Item 6thly I give unto my son Samuel Peck & to his heirs forever my dewelling hous barn and out houses & all my lands wheresoever & whatsoever which by deeds & grants their quantity & places being & bounds will appear which in this my last will & testament are not before by me given, with the residue of my common rights.

Item 7thly My mind & will is that after my debts and funeral charges be paid our of my movabla estate, that then the whole & residue thereof be euqlly divided amongst my children or those of their children that survive if any of them be dead before that time shall come.

Item 8thly I do by this my last will & testament make null & void & of none effect all other & former wills by me made.

Finally I do nominate constitute appoint & ordain my son Samuel Peck my sole executor of this my last will & testament unto whom I commit all power for the execution & performance thereof & for the burrial of my body in decnet & christian manner & for all other things requisite unto him as by executor and in testimony this above written is my true & last will & testament. I the said Joseph Peck have hereunto set my hand & seal the day & year first above written.

JOSEPH PECK
Read, signed & sealed in the presence of JOHN PECK

https://archive.org/details/genealogicalhist00peck/page/n73/mode/2up

p30.

Joseph married Hannah Hudson in 1648 in Seekonk, Bristol, Massachusetts, USA. Hannah was born on 22 Jan 1622 in Hingham, Norfolk, England; died in 1684 in Seekonk, Bristol, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Nicholas married Martha Bliss on 16 May 1647 in Springfield, Hampden, Massachusetts, USA. Martha was born on 8 Dec 1622 in , Northamptonshire, England; died on 3 Nov 1676 in Rehoboth, Bristol, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Fact 1: 1637; Arrived from England and was an original proprietor of Sudbury, Massachusetts.
• Fact 2: 14 Mar 1639; Resettled in Concord where he was made Freeman on March 14.
• Fact 3: 12 Nov 1660; Surveyor of Highways in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
• Fact 4: 9 Nov 1663; Constable in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
• Fact 5: 8 Nov 1668; Surveyor again.
• Fact 6: 1678; Hog Reeve in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Notes:

Thomas Brown the immigrant ancestor was born in England in 1609 according to his deposition made in 1670 that his age was sixty one. He came to Concord in 1638 and was one of the original proprietors of Sudbury who were given authority by the general court to begin the plantation September 6 1638. He was admitted a freeman March 14 1639 and the general court October 7 1640 granted him two hundred acres of land for the twenty five pound adventure subscription of Mrs Anne Harvyes. He was a proprietor in Sudbury in 1640 but within a year was back in Concord. He bought land in Concord May 20 1655 in 1661 and in 1671 being called a resident of Concord in each deed. He removed to Cambridge however and was a town officer there in 1660 63 68 was admitted to the Cambridge church May 18 1666. He served on a committee to divide Concord property March 26 1676 and November 20 1680 in a deed of land to his son Thomas Brown Jr he calls himself late of Concord now of Cambridge. It has been proved anyhow that there was but one Thomas Brown to whom all the records refer. He married Bridget who died at Cambridge January 5 1681 he died November 3 1688. He filed May 11 1681 a list of the lands that he had given his son Boaz.

Children of Thomas and Bridget Brown born at Cambridge
1 Boaz born February 14 1642 married November 8 1664 Mary Winship second Abigail Wheat
2 Jabez born in 1644 resided in Concord and Sudbury until Stow was founded
3 Mary born March 26 1646 married first John Woodhead of Chelmsford second John Gove of Cambridge
4 Eleazer born July 6 1649 married February 9 1674 75 Dinah Spalding
5 Thomas born 1651

from: Historic Homes and Places and Genealogical and Personal Memoirs ..., Volume 1


Thomas Brown was the emigrant ancestor of Josiah Brown, of Worcester, of the late Alzirus Brown, and many other Worcester families. He came from England and settled at Sudbury, where the general court granted him two hundred acres of land October 7, 1640, for the adventure of Mrs. Anne Harvyes. He was in Sudbury in 1640, but the records of his family are at Concord. After 1650 he removed to Cambridge, Massachusetts, and was admitted to the church there, May 18, 1666.

He married (first) Bridget, by whom he had his first five children at Concord. Before 1658 he had married Martha, widow of Thomas Oldham, by whom he had four or more children at Cambridge. He died in November or December, 1690.

His will was made November 23, 1690, and proved January, 1691. He bequeathed to his wife Martha, to his daughters Mehitabel and Martha, and to his sons, Ebenezer and Ichabod. The inventory shows house and land at Cambridge, and three hundred acres at Worcester.

Children of Thomas Brown were:

I. Boaz, born at Concord, February 14, 1641-2; died April 7, 1724; married November 8. 1664, Mary Winship, daughter of Edward and Jane Winship ; and had : Boaz, Jr., who settled in Stow ; Thomas, Mary, and Edward.
2. Thomas, born about 1644, died April 4, 1718; married November 12, 1677, Ruth (Vinton) Jones.
3. Mary, born at Concord, March 26, 1646; married June 21, 1669, William Woodward.
4. Eleazer, born at Concord July 6, 1649, married February 9, 1674-5. Dinah Spaulding.
5. Jabez, born at Concord: died 1692; married Deborah.
6. (see Pope's Pioneers) Mehitabel, baptized June 2. 1661. ?. ( ?)
7. Mary, born in Cambridge, baptized March 8, 1663.
8. Ebenezer, born in Cambridge, baptized July 23. 1665.
9. Ichabod. baptized at Cambridge, September 9. 1666.

(II) Thomas Brown, son of Thomas Brown (i). born at Concord about 1644; died at Concord April 4, 1718, aged, Shattuck says, sixty-seven years. He settled in Concord where his seven children were bom. He was town clerk of Concord. He married Ruth (Vinton) Jones, November 12, 1677. Children were: i. Ruth, born at Concord, February 8. 1678-9; died March 22, 1764; married. November 10, 1698, Samuel Jones. 2. Mary, born at Concord November 18, 1681 : died July 14, 1750; married John Hunt, who died 1765. son of Nehemiah and Mary (Tool) Hunt. 3. Rebecca, born at Concord, March 5. 1683-4; married September 26. 1704, Jonathan Hubbard. 4. Thomas (see forward). 5. Ephraim. born at Concord, April 21, 1689; died February 6, 1749-50; married, August 28. 1719, Hannah Wilson (died 1768) daughter of William Wilson. 6. Elizabeth, born at Concord, March 8, 1691-2; died December 28. 1717; married, September 22, 1713, Jonathan Hartwell.

(III) Thomas Brown, son of Thomas Brown (2). born at Concord, Massachusetts, August 28, 1686; died at Concord. March 13, 1717-8, leaving a widow and four young children. He married Hannah Potter November 22. 1709. Their children were: I. Ephraim (see forward). 2. Timothy, born at Concord, August 17, 1712; married Rebecca Farrar. 3. Luke, born at Concord November 3, 1714. 4. Hannah, born at Concord December 6, 1716.

(IV) Deacon Ephraim Brown, son of Thomas and Hannah Brown (3), born at Concord, Massachusetts November 7, 1710, died at Concord, October 9, 1788, married Abigail Wheeler, of one of the old Concord families. June 20, 1732. He was deacon in the church at Concord, and a man of importance in his day. His children were: i. Abigail, born at Concord, April 9. 1733; married November 1, 1753, Thomas Hubbard. 2. Ephraim. born at Concord, April 7, 1735; died February 6, 1736-7. 3. Edward, born at Concord. February 15. 1736-7 died 1781; married (first), January 15, 1761, Mary Brown, born 1740: died 1778 and married (second), 1780. Beulah Hosmer. 4. Thankful, born at Concord, December 16, 1740; died September 9, 1776; married July 6, 1758, Edward Wright. 5. Ephraim 2d, born December 20, 1742; died January 18, 1812. 6. Hannah, born April i, 1745, died June 8, 1745. 7. Sarah, born September 25, 1746. 8. Samuel ^see forward).

(V) Lieutenant Samuel Brown, son of Deacon Ephraim Brown (4), born at Concord, February 18, 1752; died October 29, 1819; married Elizabeth Brown, a distant cousin. (See 3024 Potter's Concord Families). He was a lieutenant in the revolutionary army. He settled in Concord. His children were: i. Lucy, born at Concord, July 2, 1773; died February 18, 1786. 2. Thomas, born at Concord, March 9, 1775; died February n, 1834. 3. Samuel, born at Concord, March 7, 1777; died May 29, 1843: married June 5, 1800, Betty Turtle, daughter of Samuel and Elizabeth (Baker) Tuttle. 4. Elizabeth, born at Concord, February 29, 1779; died April 6. 1863: married June 7, 1798, Samuel Potter Prescott. 5. Hannah, born at Concord, June 2, 1781 : died October 16. 1845. 6. Abigail Wheeler, born March 29. 1783: died March 9, 1806. 7. Edward, born March 25. 1785, died March 11, 1813. 8. Joshua, born June 20. 1787; died December II, 1855; married (first). October II, 1807, Sally Potter; married (second), January 27, 1811, Rebecca Dery, who died 1816. 9. Ephraim, born January 10. 1792: died February 28. 1852; married (first), July 2, 1820, Clarissa Harmon; married (second), Olive S. Green. 11. Joel (see forward).

(VI) Joel Brown, son of Lieutenant Samuel Brown (5), born at Concord. Massachusetts, Feb- Tuary 20, 1793: died at Concord, September 22. 1851; married, December 28. 1818, Lucy Whitney, of Bolton. born in 1800: died in 1863; daughter of David and Betsey Whitney. All thcjr children were born at Concord", where they settled. They removed to Boylston, Massachusetts, where he conducted a farm at Boyls«--n Centre. They were at Bolton for a short time. Their children were: I. David Whitney (see forward). 2. Alzirus (see forward). ?. Lucy Alzura. born April 14, 1824; died April 10, 1831. "4. Sarah Ann Eliza (see forward). 5. Eunice Andrews, born April 25, 1828; died May 2, 1831. 6. Ezra Ripley. born February 5,, 1830; died April 29. 1845. 7. Mary Ann Celista (see forward). & Elizabeth E.. borii March 10, 1842; married. May 10, 1866. Paul Tibbetts: resides at 18 Charlton street, Worcester (1905). 9. Lucy (see forward).

(VII) David Whitney Brown, son of Joel Brown (6). born at Concord. Massachusetts, December 29. 1819: married Alay 30. 1844, Mary M. Stiles. (See sketch of Stiles Family herewith). He died December. 1893: she died March II. 1903. He came to Boylston, from Concord, with his parents where young and attended the Boylston schools. He learned the trnde of stationary engineer. He removed to Worcester and was the first janitor of the Classical high school, a position he held for twelve years. His home was at lop Mulberry street, where his daughter now lives. His wife was sister of John C. Stiles, of Worcester, who was one of the first three conductors on the Worcester & Nashua Railroad when it began business. Children: were: i. Lucy Maria, died young. 2. Emerson Whitney, died "iii infancy. 3. John Emerson, born June 22. 1853: married April 9, 1881, Nellie Whit- comb, stationary engineer in Worcester. 4. Josiah (see forward). 5. Charles Jerome, born December 16. 1858: graduated from Harvard College 1882: studied in divinity school, but broke down in health ; died in 1890. 6. Mary Eugenia, born July 9. 1861 teacher of music: unmarried (1905); resides at loo Mulberry street. Worcester. (Most of the above dates are a year of two different from those in the Stiles genealogy.)

(VII) Alzirus Brown, son of Joel Brown (6), born October 16, 1821 ; married, at Worcester, November 16, 1843, Harriet D. Proctor. They resided in Worcester. He was a manufacturer of mowing machines, and later established a large trucking business in Worcester. They had no children. His widow resides (1905) in their homestead at the corner of Main and Madison streets.

(VII) Sarah Ann Eliza Brown, daughter of Joel Brown (6), born at Concord, Massachusetts, April 18, 1826; married November 15, 1847, Asa J Hersey, at Boylston, Massachusetts, and settled in Maine. Their sons are: 1. Wilfred; resides on the homestead of his father at Waterford, Maine, has five or more children and grandchildren. 2. Ezra, resides at North Waterford, Maine, has one son, Charles A. 3. Francis, city missionary at New Bedford, Massachusetts, has two daughters.

(VII) Mary Ann Celista Brown, daughter of Joel Brown (6), born at Concord, Massachusetts; married (first) Edward H. Parker by whom she had four children. Edward Hanford Parker was born in Princeton, Massachusetts, December 28, 1825. He was the son of Ebenezer, Jr., and Hannah B. Parker. (See Parker Genealogy by Theodore Parker, of Worcester, son of Edward H. and Mary A. C. Parker). Edward H. Parker was a carpenter and builder in Worcester. The children of Edward H. and Mary A. C. Parker were: 1. Arthur, resides at Dunellen, New Jersey; married; has three children. 2. Clarence E. ; "married; resides at Yonkers, New York; is a contractor and fence manufacturer in New York city; married; has one child. 3. Edward, was overseer in the American Steel and Wire Mill, Worcester; married : has two children. 4. Theodore, clerk in Worcester post office, author of the Parker Genealogy ; married; no children. Mary Ann Celista (Brown) Parker married (second) John C. Landers, of Worcester, a carpenter and contractor, who has died since. The widow resides on Pleasant street, Worcester.

(VII) Lucy, daughter of Joel Brown (6), married George P. Slocum, a carpenter, and they settled at Marietta, Ohio. They have five children, grown to maturity.

(VIII) Josiah Brown, son of David W. Brown (7), born in Worcester, May 28, 1854. He was educated in the Worcester schools. He learned the machinist's and gear-cutting trade of John Williams, one of the first gear-cutters and mechanical tool-makers in the city. After working at his trade for a time he accepted a position on the railroad and worked as fireman and engineer for six years. Then he returned to the machine shop to run the business of John Williams for the widow. He conducted the Williams business for ten years, then started the Worcester Gear works on his own account, and for the past ten years has carried on this business successfully. The shop is located at 13 Cypress street. He manufactures machinery and makes a specialty of cutting gears. Mr. Brown is well known in Masonic circles. He is a member of Morning Star Lodge, Ancient Free and Accepted Masons, and Worcester Royal Arch Chapter, of Hiram Council. He married July 3, 1876, Alma Richardson. They have six children, born in Worcester. The children are : 1. Frank J., born May 4, 1877. 2. Walter I., born May i8, 1879. 3. Arthur G., born September 5, 1881. 4. Brenda A., born October 18, 1883. 5. Warren E., born October 27, 1887. 6. Evelyn M., born June 12, 1890. 7. Hellen R.. born January 26, 1895; died April 8, 1896.

Thomas married Bridget Bateman about 1636 in Cambridge, Middlesex, Massachusetts, USA. Bridget was born in 1609 in Hawkedon, Suffolk, England; died on 5 Mar 1681 in Concord, Middlesex, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Fact 1: 1635; Came to Boston on the "Defense", locating two days later in Cambridge.
• Fact 2: 1638; Member of the Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company.
• Fact 3: 1647; Commissioned Ensign in Cambridge Militia.
• Fact 4: 1660; Commissioned Lieutenant in Cambridge Militia.

Edward married Jane Wilkinson in 1637 in Cambridge, Middlesex, Massachusetts, USA. Jane (daughter of Isaac Wilkinson and Isabel Cutter) was born in 1618 in Newcastle Upon Tyne, Northumberland, England; died on 28 Feb 1651 in Cambridge, Middlesex, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Baptism: 17 Oct 1619, Newcastle upon Tyne, Northumberland, England

Other Events and Attributes:

• Fact 1: 1632; Arrived in New England onthe ship "Lyon".

Edward married Susan Hunting on 10 Sep 1638 in Dedham, Norfolk, Massachusetts, USA. Susan (daughter of John Hunting) was born on 9 Dec 1611 in Newton, Middlesex, Massachusetts, USA; died on 7 Sep 1684 in Dedham, Norfolk, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Residence: , , , USA
• Fact 1: 1630; Came to Dedham, Massachusetts from England in Governor Winthrop's fleet.
• Residence: 1670, Dedham, Norfolk, Massachusetts, USA
• Residence: 1672-1706, , Norfolk, Massachusetts, USA

Notes:

Nathaniel Colburn first appears 11 Aug 1637 at Dedham MA, where he was granted the lot formerly assigned to Philemon Dalton. Signer of the covenant founding the Dedham church. He married 25 Jul 1639 Priscilla Clarke, daughter of Rowland Clarke and Mary Hobart, with whom he had 11 children, each of whom lived to marry. 29 Jan 1640, "Nathaniell Colburne was received into ye church after long & much inquisition into his case." Admitted freeman 2 Jun 1641. He died at Dedham 14 May 1691.

See Hill's Dedham town records, in which he is frequently mentioned from 1637 on. A facsimile of his signature is found on p. 221.

Family
Priscilla Clarke b. s 1620, d. 12 Aug 1692 Children
Sarah Colburn b. 15 Apr 1640, d. 24 Aug 1716
Rebecca Colburn b. 17 Feb 1641/42
Nathaniel Colburn b. 3 Mar 1643/44, d. 18 Sep 1689
Priscilla Colburn b. 1 Apr 1646
John Colburn b. 29 Jul 1648
Mary Colburn b. Sep 1650, d. 17 Dec 1685
Hannah Colburn b. 20 Jan 1652, d. 3 Apr 1728
Samuel Colburn b. 25 Jan 1654, d. 18 May 1694
Deborah Colburn b. 28 Jan 1655/56, d. 30 Aug 1684
Benjamin Colburn b. 24 Sep 1659, d. 30 Sep 1714
Joseph Colburn b. 1 Dec 1662

Nathaniel married Priscilla Clarke on 25 Jul 1639 in Dedham, Norfolk, Massachusetts, USA. Priscilla (daughter of Rowland Clarke and Mary Hobart) was born in 1613 in West Dedham, Norfolk, England; died on 12 Aug 1692 in Dedham, Norfolk, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Arrival: 1633; Arrived in New England from West Riding, Yorkshire, England.

Notes:

FAIRBANK. Jonathan Fairbanks or Fairbank, immigrant ancestor, was born in England before 1600, and came to Boston with his family in 1633. He remained there about three years, then settled in Dedham, where he was pioneer, and a signer of the Dedham convenant. His house is still standing in Dedham, and is now owned by the family association, having been occupied to the present time by Jonathan and his lineal descendants. He was a town officer, and died December 5, 1668. He married Grace Lee, who died December 28, 1673. Children: 1. John. 2. George. 3. Mary. 4. Susan. 5. Jonas, mentioned below. 6. Jonathan.

(II) Jonas, son of Jonathan Fairbanks, was born in England and came to Dedham with his parents. He signed the covenant in 1657, and March 7, 1659, became one of the fathers of the town. He was a farmer and believed to be a carpenter also. In 1652 he was fined for wearing great boots, not being worth two hundred pounds, the amount of wealth prescribed by the laws of the colony, in 1651, to suffice for men who could lawfully wear great boots. He removed to Lancaster in 1657. There he met his death in the assault by King Philip and fifteen hundred warriors, February 10, 1675/76. Some fifty persons were slain that day, including Joshua Fairbanks, son of Jonas. Jonas Fairbanks married, May 28, 1658, Lydia Prescott, born in Watertown, August 15, 1641, daughter of John Prescott, who came from Sowerby, Halifax, England, the English home of the Fairbanks family. she married (second) Ellis Barron, of Watertown, Groton and Lancaster. Children: 1. Marie. 2. Joshua. 3. Grace. 4. Jonathan. 5. Hazadiah. 6. Jabez, mentioned below. 7. Jonas.

(III) Captain Jabez, son of Jonas Fairbanks, was born at Lancaster, January 8, 1670/71, and settled there after the war. He died March 2, 1758. He was a very efficient soldier and officer in the Indian War, and was no doubt incited to heroic exploits by the massacre of his father and brother in 1676, and of his only surviving brother in 1697, during a raid on the town. At the time his brother Jonathan and one of his children were killed, Captain Jabez was the means of saving a garrison and perhaps many lives, including that of his little son Joseph. Twenty-one persons were killed this raid, two were wounded, and six carried off captives, of whom five were ransomed later, including the wife of Jonathan Fairbanks. In 1700 Jabez Fairbanks had land granted him on both sides of the brook above Thomas Sawyer's sawmill. This site was the homestead of Jabez and his descendants for a hundred years. He was deputy to the general court in 1714-21-22-23. He married (first) Mary wilder, who died February 21, 1718, in her forty-third years, daughter of Thomas and Mary (Houghton) Wilder. He married (second) March 25, 1719, Elizabeth Whitcomb, who died May 11, 1755, aged about eighty years. Children of first wife: 1. Joseph. 2. Jabez. 3. Elizabeth. 4. Jonas. 5. Thomas, mentioned below. 6. Abigail. 7. Jonathan. 8. Grace. 9. Joshua. 10. Anna.

(IV) Deacon Thomas, son of Captain Jabez Fairbanks, was baptized in Lancaster in 1708, died February 10, 1791. He was sentinel in Captain Josiah Willard's company in the Indian War, June 3, to November 10, 1725. He was also a soldier in Captain Ephraim Wilder's company, Colonel Sam-

Jonathan married Grace Lee Smith on 20 May 1617 in Halifax, St John the Baptist, Yorkshire, England. Grace (daughter of Samuel Smith and Grace Platts Gawkroger) was born on 6 Jan 1597 in Sowerby, Yorkshire, England; died on 28 Dec 1673 in Dedham, Norfolk, Massachusetts, USA; was buried in Dedham, Norfolk, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Name: Grace Lee

Other Events and Attributes:

• Baptism: 1605, Standish, Lancashire, England
• Arrival: 1637, , , Massachusetts, USA

Notes:

John Prescott

Ref Genes of Abraham Parker: "After his marriage, he sold his lands in Shevington, moving to Sowerby, Halifax Parish, West Riding, Yorkshire, England. A blacksmith, he left England to avoid persecution for his religious convictions, going first to Barbados, owned lands there in 1638 when he was included in a list of 758 settlers. Several of his children were probably born there. He came about 1640 with four children and his wife to Massachusetts, settling first in Charlestown and Watertown, then removing in 1645 or 1646 to the foundation of the new settlement of Lancaster, of which he is one of the original settlers and called, in Lancaster records, its founder. In 1654 he built a corn mill and soon after a saw mill. He took the oath of allegiance in Middlesex county in 1652, was admitted a freeman in 1669. Shortly after the Indian massacre of February 10, 1675/76 which took more than thirty lives, Lancaster was totally abandoned for several years with no whites living between the towns on the Connecticut river and those of Concord. He moved his family to Charlestown (some also moving temporarily to the Concord area) and later in 1676 served with the militia in King Philip's war. He returned to Lancaster, which is said to have been named in his honor after his English birthplace, Lancashire (at the first request for the new township, the name Prescott was sought, but the General court objected on the ground that it appeared too much like man-worship). The noncupative will of John Prescott was proved in Lancaster December 20, 1681 with his age given as "about 77".

It has been stated that John had served under Cromwell. He brought with him from England a coat of mail, armor and complete habiliments which he donned whenever he had difficulties with the Indians, who supposed him to be a "supernatural being."

Fact 8: Genealogical Register of the First Settlers of New-England by John Farmer 1969

Re: John Prescott: "He was born in 1604, in the hamlet of Shevington, in the parish of Standish, Lancashire, England. He married Mary Platts, at Wigan in 1629. Prescott was a soldier under Oliver Cromwell and was a Roundhead (a member of the Puritan party in England during the civil war). To avoid persecution both Cromwell and Prescott planned to escape from England. Cromwell changed his mind in the harbor and became the hero of England. However, Prescott escaped and went as far as Barbados, an island in the West Indies. This was because Archbishop Loud, Prime Minister of the King, did not allow anyone to leave England for the United States at that time. However, after two years in Barbados, Prescott was permitted to come to the United States."

To reach the settlement one had to cross the Sudbury River. Prescott sold his estate in Watertown, packed his household goods on horses, and set out with his family on horseback through the woods by way of the long Indian trail to establish his new home in the Nashaway Plantation. Following Mr. Prescott was his wife with an infant in her arms, and on other horses were four girls aged six, eight, thirteen, fifteen, and a boy of ten." So, depending on the year that Mary Prescott joined John at the settlement in Lancaster would identify which of the above children were born in Massachusetts, in Barbados, in Holland or in England. (I am not sure whether they arrived in Lancaster in the years of 1643 to 1647; somewhere in there.)

The Prescott Memorial states that John was in Barbados from 1638 to 1640 when he came to Massachusetts

Lancaster, in common with other frontier towns, suffered greatly by Indian depredations whenever there was a war between the mother country and France. On the 22d of Aug., 1675, eight persons were killed at Lancaster. On the 10th of Feb., old style, 1676, early in the morning, a body of fifteen hundred Indians attacked the town in five distinct squadrons, completely investing it. There were at that time more than fifty families in town. Of this little band, fifty persons, if not more, were either killed or taken prisoners. One half at least were killed, and among them Richard Wheeler and Jonas Fairbanks, sons-in-law of Mr. Prescott, and Joshua Fairbanks and Ephrim Sawyer, his grand sons. The three former were killed at Wheeler's garrison, and the latter at Prescott's, which stood about thirty rods southeast of Messrs. Poignard and Plant's factory. The inhabitants, after destroying all the houses but two, left the place under the protection of Capt. Wadworth's company of soldiers. The alarm of the people was so great that the return of peace on the death of the Indian, King Philip, in August, 1676, did not restore their courage and confidence. For more than three years, Lancaster remained uninhabited. In 1679 some of the h'rst planters (among whom were the Prescott*, Houghtons, Sawyers, and Wilder*) returned, and the Carters came in soon after. Mr. Prescott lived to see the town rebuilt and in a fair way to a prosperous condition. He died in 1683. But subsequently to this the town suffered severely at sundry times from the incursion of hostile Indians.


p 38 from William Prescott's Prescott families in America 1870

from William Prescott's Genealogical Memoir of the Prescott Families in America. 1870


Mr. P. sold his lands in Shevington, parish of Standish, in Lancashire, to Richard Prescott of Wigan, and removed into Yorkshire, residing for some time in Sowerby, in the parish of Halifax, where several of his children were born. From conscientious motives, and to avoid per secution, he left his native land, his cherished home in Yorkshire, to seek an asylum in the wilderness of America. He first landed at Barbadoes in 1638, where he became an owner of lands. In 1640 he came to New England, landed at Boston, and immediately settled in Watertown, where he had large grants of lands allotted him. But in 1 643 he associated himself with Thomas King and others, for the purpose of purchasing of Sholan, the Indian Sachem of the Nashaway tribe of Indians, a tract of land for a township, which tract was to be ten miles in length and eight in breadth.


p. 35


A Brief History of the Negotiation and Purchase from Sholan, Chief of the Nashaway tribe of Indians, of the territory of which the town of Lancaster, Mass.. was afterward composed; together with its subsequent settlement, and ite suffering and final destruction by fire by the Indians. " Early in the seventeenth century, some eight years before the set tlement of Plymouth, many of the tribes of Massachusetts Indians had been swept over by a dreadful pestilence, reducing their numbers from many thousands to a few hundreds. In this severe affliction the Nashaway tribe suffered, though not equally with the others. The Nasbaways had also been greatly reduced by the wars and incursions of the Maquas or Mohawks, a powerful and warlike tribe on the Mohawk River, N. Y. This tribe had become the scourge and terror of all the New England Indians. These circumstances induced the peaceful Sholan, the Sachem of the Nasbaways, to seek the friendship and protection of the English. Sholan occasionally visited Watertown for the purpose of trading with Mr. Thomas King, who resided there. He recommended Nashawogg as a place well suited for a plantation. ' He told King of the choice intervales, the woods and waters abounding in supplies, — that the Great Spirit had been very bountiful to the place, and that his people would rejoice in the presence of that great people who had come from a distant world.1 "* Finally King decides to visit the place, perilous though the undertak ing might seem. He accordingly takes the journey through the wilderness, and becomes enamoured with the place and returns to Watertown. He makes such favorable report of the adaptation of the territory to agricultural and mechanical purposes, &c., that in 1643 he enters into an association and agreement with John Prescott of Watertown, Harmon Garrett of Charlestown, Thomas Skidmore of Cambridge, Stephen Day of Cambridge (the earliest printer in any of the colonies), a Mr. Simonds, and sundry others whose names have not been transmitted, for the pur pose of purchasing the tract (ten miles by eight, as above stated). According to Mr. Willard, in his elaborate address at the two-hundredth anniversary of the incorporation of Lancaster, the above purchase was made, and the territory of Nashaway first " opened upon the view of the white man while the good Sholan or Shaumaun exercised a peaceful rule in this, his little empire, over the tribe of the Nashaways. His principal place of residence was on a gentle eminence, between the two lakes of the Washacum in Chocksett (a corruption or contraction of Woonksechaucksett or Woonksechatixett), now Sterling." The purchasers entered into an agreement to appear and begin the plantation at a specified time. The deed of Sholan was sanctioned by the General Court, but there were many circumstances which combined to retard the growth of the plantation, all the associates except Mr. Prescott refusing or neglecting to fulfill their contracts, though choosing to retain their interest in the property purchased. It is stated by Sir. Willard that "one only of the associates, John Prescott the stalwart blacksmith, was ' faithful among the faithless.' He turned not back, but vigorously pursued the interests of the plantation till his exertions were crowned with success." Mr. Prescott having chosen this for his future home, he with others petitioned for a bridge over Sudbury River. But the subject being delayed by the General Court, Mr. Prescott, nothing daunted, attempts the perilous adventure of swimming his horse across Sudbury River in the autumn of 1646, but unfortunately he lost his horse and lading in the river, escaping with his own life only. About one week later, his wife and children being upon another horse, attempted to pass the river and came near being drowned. Upon this narrow escape Mr. Willard utters the following significant reflection : " One plunge more by that last horse, or a little deeper water, and American literature would not now be graced by the brilliant classic history of Ferdinand and Isabella, of the Conquest of Mexico, and the Conquest of Peru." To which may since be added, The Life of Charles the Fifth. The settlement at Nashaway was treated by the General Court with indifference and culpable neglect. They had repeatedly been denied those little helps and aids which are so essential to all new settlements. The inhabitants petitioned for an act of incorporation, and asked that it be known by the name of Prescott. The General Court objects, quibbles about a name, pretending that " it smacked too much of man- worship or man-service." The question was finally settled by a compromise, and it was on the 18th day of May, old style (28th of May, new style), 1653, incorporated into a township by the name of Lancaster. This was in honor of Mr. Prescott, it being the name of his native county in England. Mr. Prescott has the reputation of being the first settler in Nashaway, now Lancaster, although Mr. Willard remarks that Richard Linton, Lawrence Waters, his son-in-law, and John Ball, were the first inhabitants, and that they had tilled the soil and were ready to receive Mr. Prescott on his arrival. I do not see this stated by any other writer, and if correct they might be hired and sent there by Mr. Pres cott and others to prepare for their own accommodation when they should remove there. The phrase that " they had tilled the soil and were ready to receive Mr. Prescott on his arrival " is significant of this fact. At the time of the incorporation there were but nine families in the town. In one year, that is, by the spring of 1654, there were twenty families there. In answer to a petition of the inhabitants of the plantation, John Prescott, Thomas Sawyer (who married Mary, the eldest daughter of Mr. Prescott), Edward Breck, Nathaniel Hadlock, William Kerley and Ralph Houghton were appointed prudential managers of the town by the General Court. Mr. Prescott was a genuine and influential member of the original Puritan stock of New England. Like most of the early emigrants to New England, he left his native home to escape the relentless persecutions with which the Puritans and non-conformists were harassed. Like many of his contemporaries, he was a man of marked character, devoting his time to mechanical and agricultural pursuits, which were well calculated to fit and prepare him for the trials and hardships incident to, and inseparable from, the early settlers joined pioneers of the wilderness of America. He soon became distinguished among his compeers, and had not long to wait for an opportunity to develop his genius and bravery. At a very early day he became a leading spirit, and a prominent and influential man, as very many of his descendants have been in each and every subsequent generation, and to him more than to any other is to be attributed the successful issue of that laborious and hazardous enterprise of settling on the " Nashaway " and of subduing the wilderness and converting the soil into fruitful fields and productive meadows. Mr. Prescott was a man of strict integrity and of great energy and perseverance. Having also a commanding influence, he took an active part in all measures calculated to improve and enhance the interest and prosperity of the town. He took the oath of fidelity in 1652, and was admitted a freeman in 1669. By occupation, he was not only an agriculturist, but both a blacksmith and millwright. In Nov., 1658, he received a grant of land of the inhabitants, on condition that he would build a "corn mill". He built the mill in season to commence grinding '. on the 23d of the next May 1654. The erection of a saw mill soon followed. " The town voted that if he would erect one he should have the grant of certain privileges and a large tract of land lying near his mill, for him and his posterity forever, and to be more exactly record-d when exactly known. In consideration of these provisions ' Goodman Prescott,' forthwith erected his mill. Its location was on the spot where the Lancaster Manufacturing Company have extensive works. The people from all the neighboring towns came to Prescott's grist mill. The stone of this mill was brought from England, and now lies in fragments in the vicinity of the factory."

from William Prescott's Prescott Families in America1870


P 39 Mr. Prescott had in his possession, and which he brought with him from England, a coat of mail, armor and habiliments complete, such as were worn by warriors of that and preceding ages ; hence it is inferred that some of his ancestors had been warriors, and probably had received the order of knighthood. It has been stated and believed that John had himself served under Cromwell. Of this armor and its owner the following anecdotes are related: " Mr. Prescott, being a strong athletic man and of a stern counte nance, whenever he had any difficulty with the Indians, would clothe himself with his coat of mail, helmet, cuirass and gorget, which gave him a fierce and frightful appearance. The Indians at one time having stolen from him a horse, he put on his armor and pursued them, and in a short time overtook them. They were surprised that he should venture to pursue them alone, and a chief approached him with uplifted tomahawk. Mr. Prescott told him to strike, which he did, and finding the blow made no impression on his cap, was greatly astonished, and asked Mr. P. to let him put on, and then strike it while on his head, as he had done when on Mr. Prescott's head. The helmet being too small for the head of the chief, the stroke settled the helmet down to his ears, scraping off the skin on both sides of his head. They then gave him up his horse, supposing him to be something more than human." " At another time the Indians set fire to his barn. Old John put on his armor, rushed out, drove them off and let out his cattle and horses from the burning stable." " Again the Indians set fire to his saw mill. The old hero, armed cap-a-pie, as before, drove them off and extinguished the fire. At another time they attacked his house. He had several muskets but no one in the house, save his wife, to assist him. She loaded the guns and he discharged them with fatal effect. The contest continued for nearly half an hour, Mr. Prescott all the while giving orders as if to soldiers, so loud that the Indians could hear him, to load their muskets, though he had no soldiers but his wife. At length they withdrew carrying off several of their dead or wounded."* On another occasion, as is related of him, sundry Indians made their appearance at his old mill, and hoisted the water gate, when he, Pres cott, took his favorite gunfi which he brought with him from England,


P 40 heavily loaded, and started toward the mill, when the Indians retired to the hills near by. Having shut down the gate and fixed the mill, Mr. Prescott concluded it prudent to retire to his house or garrison, but did so backward, with his eye upon the foe until he reached his home, when the Indians gave a whoop, such as none but Indians can give ; when Mr. Prescott concluded to give them a specimen of his sharp- shooting, upon which (to use a new coined term) they skedadled. Upon afterward visiting the place, blood was plainly seen upon the ground.

John married Mary Gawkroger on 11 Apr 1629 in Halifax, St John the Baptist, Yorkshire, England. Mary (daughter of James Gawkroger and Martha Ainsworth) was born on 15 Mar 1607 in Sowerby, Yorkshire, England; died on 20 Oct 1688 in Lancaster, Worcester, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Name: Mary Gawkroger Platts

George married Martha Hayward. Martha was born on 1 Jan 1621 in Plympton, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA; died on 12 May 1693 in Bridgewater, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

James married Alice Ellen Hosmer. Alice was born in 1622 in Concord, Middlesex, Massachusetts, USA; died on 3 Mar 1665 in Concord, Middlesex, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Joseph married Rebecca Clark on 21 May 1617 in Hingham, Norfolk, England. Rebecca was born on 2 May 1585 in Hingham, Norfolk, England; died on 24 Oct 1637 in Hingham, Norfolk, England. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]