Katherine Evelyn Montpesson

Katherine married Thomas Stoughton, Reverend in 1585 in Naughton, Suffolk, England. Thomas (son of Francis Stoughton and Agnes Tringall) was born on 3 Sep 1557 in Naughton, Suffolk, England; died on 6 Dec 1622 in Sandwich, Kent, England. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Baptism: 09 Dec 1593, Abbey, Saint Albans, Hertfordshire, England
• Residence: 1630, , , Massachusetts, USA

Notes:

THOMAS STOUGHTON
ORIGIN: Aller, Somersetshire
MIGRATION: 1630
FIRST RESIDENCE: Dorchester
REMOVES: Windsor 1635
CHURCH MEMBERSHIP: The lengthy theological discourses composed by Thomas Stoughton make it clear that he was a member of the Windsor church, and had probably been a member of the church when it was in Dorchester.
FREEMAN: Requested 19 October 1630 and admitted 18 May 1631 [ MBCR 1:79, 366].
EDUCATION: To Winthrop and Dudley, Thomas Stoughton wrote on 12 September 1646 "I being neither scholar nor logician, neither any way fitted for (nor attempting to meddle in) dispute until now upon this occasion," and then proceeded to write at great length on just such a range of topics [ WP 5:103-11]. Again on 26 July 1651 he wrote to Winthrop a lengthy theological treatise, signing himself as "Thomas Stoughton son and heir of Thomas Stoughton deceased suffering" [WP 6:113-30]. The reference here is to his father, Rev. Thomas Stoughton, a leading light of Elizabethan Puritanism who was silenced early in the reign of James I and spent the rest of his life producing theological pamphlets. Thomas Stoughton the immigrant may not have had a formal university education, but he must certainly have gone to grammar school, and benefited from the learning of his father and of his brother, Rev. John Stoughton.
OFFICES: Dorchester constable, 28 September 1630 [MBCR 1:76]. Fenceviewer for the East Field, 10 February 1634/5 [ DTR 10].
Connecticut assessor, 11 April 1640 [ CCCR 1:48]. Jury, 2 March 1642[/3], 1 June 1643 (as "Mr. Stoughton"), 30 June 1646 (as "Mr. Stoughton"), May 1657, 6 March 1661/2 [ RPCC 18, 20, 41, 176, 244]. Windsor constable, 4 March 1657 [RPCC 186].
ESTATE: At Dorchester in 1633 "Mr. Stoughton" was responsible for eighty feet of fencing for four cows (although this record may be for his brother Israel Stoughton, as both men were called "Mr." in the Dorchester records) [DTR 2]. On 17 April 1635 reference was made to "Mr. Thomas Stoughton's lot" [DTR 11].
On 11 January 1640[/1] Thomas Stoughton's holdings included the grant of a homelot with fifty-two acres of meadow, "his meadow twenty-four acres" in an exchange with Thomas Gunne; "towards Pyne Meadow sixty nine acres"; "two parcels of swamp and woodland" purchased from the four sons of Thomas Dewey, Thomas, Josiah, Israel and Jedidia; "one parcel is seventeen acres [and] one quarter more or less"; "another parcel thirteen acres" [ WiLR 37].
BIRTH: Baptized Naughton, Suffolk, England, 23 January 1592[/3], son of Rev. Thomas and Katherine (_____) Stoughton (evidently their second son of this name since "Thomas `Sloughe' the son of Thomas & Katherine his wife was bapt. 9 July 1588").
DEATH: Windsor 25 March 1661 [ Grant 82].
MARRIAGE: (1) Great Totham, Essex, 5 May 1612 Elizabeth Tompson. She was buried at Aller, Somersetshire, on 29 December 1627.
(2) About 1634 Margaret (Barrett) Huntington (in his letter of December 1634 to his stepfather Rev. John Stoughton, James Cudworth of Scituate reported that "my uncle Thomas is to be married shortly, to a widow that has good means and has five children" [ Letters of NE 142]). She had married (1) SIMON HUNTINGTON. She died after 14 March 1665/6, when John Winthrop Jr. treated "Mrs. Stoughton, Margaret, of Winsor" [ WMJ 634].
CHILDREN:
With first wife
i ELIZABETH, bp. Great Coggeshall 28 February 1612/3; d. soon.
ii ELIZABETH, bp. Great Coggeshall 20 March 1613/4; bur. there 15 July 1619.
iii ANNA, bp. Great Coggeshall 29 October 1615; no further record.
iv SARAH, bp. Great Coggeshall 10 January 1618/9; d. Windsor 1652 [Grant 82].
v KATHERINE, bp. Great Coggeshall 12 May 1622; m. Hartford 18 January 1649/50 John Wilcock [ HaVR 608].
iv THOMAS, bp. Aller, Somerset, 21 August 1625; m. Windsor 30 November 1655 Mary Wadsworth [ CTVR 42; Grant 65].
ASSOCIATIONS: Brother of ISRAEL STOUGHTON.

COMMENTS: On 1 March 1630/1 "Mr. Tho[mas] Stoughton, constable of Dorchester, is fined £5 for taking upon him to marry Clem[en]t Briggs & Joane Allen, & to be imprisoned till he had paid his fine"; this fine was remitted in the general amnesty of 6 September 1638 [MBCR 1:83, 243].
In 1953 Ralph M. Stoughton, in discussing Thomas Stoughton the son of the immigrant, suggested that "[t]he Sarah Stoughton whose burial in Windsor was recorded in May 1652 was probably his first wife" [ TAG 29:197]. This death more likely applies to Sarah Stoughton, sister of this Thomas, a person who would not have been known to Ralph Stoughton, leaving Thomas with only one known wife.The Great Migration Begins
Sketches
PRESERVED PURITAN

Thomas married Elizabeth Montpesan on 5 May 1612 in Great Totham, Essex, England. Elizabeth was born in 1594 in Great Totham, Essex, England; died on 29 Dec 1627 in Aller, Somerset, England. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Thomas married Margaret Barrett Huntington in 1635 in Windsor, Hartford, Connecticut, USA. Margaret was born on 29 Sep 1595 in Norwich, Norfolk, England; died on 25 Mar 1661 in Windsor, Hartford, Connecticut, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Arrival: 1630, Salem, Essex, Massachusetts, USA

Notes:

Judith’s first husband John Denman was born in 1591 in Retford, Nottinghamshire, England. His parents were Nicholas Denman and Lady Anne Hercy. John died 1624 in Retford, Surrey, England.

Judith’s second husband William Smead was born 1601 in England. William died 1636 in Essex, England.

Judith was one of the signers of the Dorchester Church Covenant in 1636, and at the time of her death in 1639 was a widow. The General Court confirmed Israel Stoughton as executor of the will of his sister, Judith Smead, and the disposal of her effects is on record, though no copy of her will has been preserved. Though not proved, it is possible that Judith was a widow before leaving England and that she journeyed to America in 1633 with Israel Stoughton and his wife, Elizabeth.

Judith’s young son was apprenticed rather than taken into the home of his Uncle Israel.

Judith Smead signed the covenant in 1636 with the church at Dorchester, Massachusetts, and in 1638 had a grant of twenty acres there just below the First Burying Ground. An inventory of her estate after her decease was taken on May 18, 1639. She was the mother of John Denman, Mary Denman (wife of Clement Maxfield), and William Smead.

Step-mother of Humphrey Denman, an Elder of the English Reformed Church at Amsterdam, North Holland.

William Smead was the son of William Smead (d.c1634) and Judith (Stoughton) Denman Smead (1599-1639). Judith was the widow of John Denman, with whom she had two children. William was only three or so when his father died. Judith sailed from Gravesend with her three children on September 3,1635 on the ship “Dorset”. They stopped in the Barbadoes, then continued to New England. She settled with her children in Dorchester. She signed the Dorchester Church covenant in 1636 and was granted 20 acres of land there in 1638.

About the time his mother died, William was apprenticed at age seven or so, to John Pope of Dorchester. Pope died in 1646 and made provision in his will for William, calling him “my Littell boy.” He left to William his looms and tacking if William was willing to live with Pope’s widow, learn the trade, and become a weaver.

He married Elizabeth Lawrence at Dorchester,MA on Dec 31,1658.

Children: William Smead III, Elizabeth Smead Janes, Judith Smead Hawks, Mehitable Hull Smead Nims, Samuel Smead, John Smead, John Smead, Ebenezer Smead, Thankful Smead Hawks, and Waitstill Smead Warner.

It has been suggested that he must be buried at Old Deerfield Cemetery since that was the only cemetery at the time. However, that is not always the case as many ancestors were buried on their homesteads at the time.

Judith married John Denman in 1620 in , , , England. John was born in 1591 in Retford, Nottinghamshire, England; died in 1622 in Retford, Nottinghamshire, England. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Judith married William Smead in 1623 in , , , England. William (son of Woodhull Richard Smith and Mary Boyle) was born in 1601 in Naughton, Suffolk, England; died in 1636 in , Essex, England. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Arrival: 1630, Dorchester, Suffolk, Massachusetts, USA
• Residence: 1632, Dorchester, Suffolk, Massachusetts, USA
• Probate: 17 Jul 1644, , Suffolk, Massachusetts, USA

Notes:

Baptized Great Coggeshall, Essex, England, 18 February 1602/3, son of Rev. Thomas and Katherine (_____) Stoughton. Came from Rotherhithe, Surrey to Massachusetts Bay in 1632. He settled in Dorchester, but returned to England in 1644 and died there. Died in Lincoln, England, 1644.

Married in Rotherhithe, Surrey, England, 27 March 1627, Elizabeth Knight. She died at Dorchester on 6 August 1681.

Israel was brother of THOMAS STOUGHTON of Dorchester and Windsor was an elder brother of Israel Stoughton, and = Rev. John Stoughton, who, although he did not come to New England, did marry the widow of the Rev. Ralph Cudworth of Great Coggeshall, Essex, and Aller, Somersetshire, thus making Thomas and Israel stepuncles of James Cudworth of Scituate.

Colonel Israel Stoughton's house was situated at the northeast corner of Savin Hill Avenue and Pleasant Street.
He had the distinction of building the first mill in New England to grind corn by water. It stood in the Neponset River at the Lower Mills. In the early years of the settlement, Massachusetts had to buy corn from Virginia and from the local Narragansetts. In 1631 Chief Chickatawbut donated a hogshead to the Governor. In 1634 food was still scarce, and Massachusetts bought 400 bushels of corn from the Narragansetts. Israel Stoughton set up a water mill at the Lower Mills to grind the grain.

Stoughton's mill is mentioned both in the town records and in those of the Massachusetts Bay colony. Said to be the first grist mill in the country, it was installed to grind corn purchased from native Americans due to the shortages in the colony.

Dorchester Town Records

Nov. 3, 1633 ... it is generally agreed that Mr. Israel Stoughton shall build a water mill, if he see cause.

Jan. 6, 1633/4 ...it is ordered that Mr. Israell Stoughton shall have the privaladge of a weare at Naponset adjoyning to his mill ...

Nov. 3, 1634 ... it also ordered that their shall be a sufficient cartway be made to the mill at Naponset ...

and from the 1859 History of the Town of Dorchester, p. 33:

The town granted leave to Mr. Israel Stoughton to build a water mill [in 1633], and in January following, the mill and a bridge over Neponset being completed ...

Stoughton gained his title from his command of the Massachusetts forces during the Pequot War. He served as representative in 1634 and was the Governor's Assistant for many years.

Sources:

Orcutt, William Dana. Good Old Dorchester: A Narrative History of the Town, 1630-1893. Cambridge: University Press, 1908.

History of the Town of Dorchester, Massachusetts. By a Committee of the Dorchester Antiquarian and Historical Society. 1859.

Israel Stoughton
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Israel Stoughton (1603?-1644) was an early English colonist in Massachusetts, and later a Parliamentarian officer in the First English Civil War.

Life
Born in England, a younger brother of John Stoughton, he emigrated to New England in 1632. He settled at Dorchester, of which he was admitted a freeman on 5 November 1633. He was chosen representative for Dorchester in the assemblies of 1634 and 1635.

When the colony was disturbed by the antinomian disputes, Stoughton wrote a book which attacked the constitution of the colony and offended the general court. The author somewhat strangely petitioned that the book might be ‘forthwith burnt, as being weak and offensive.’ In spite of Stoughton's subsequent submission, he was declared incapable of holding office for three years. This sentence, however, was remitted in 1636, and Stoughton was chosen assistant in 1637.

He was entrusted with the command of the Massachusetts force against the Pequot Indians, where he took brutal measures. Stoughton was annually chosen as assistant till 1643, and in 1639 he, together with John Endecott acted as a commissioner on behalf of Massachusetts to settle a boundary dispute with Plymouth Colony.

Stoughton visited England towards the end of 1643 or the beginning of 1644, returned to America, and crossed again towards the end of 1644. He was then appointed a lieutenant-colonel in the parliamentary army, and soon afterwards died at Lincoln. His children included William Stoughton, best known as the chief magistrate of the Salem witch trials.

References
Thompson, Roger, "Stoughton, Israel", on the website of the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (Subscription or UK public library membership required). The first edition of this text is available as an article on Wikisource: "Stoughton, Israel". Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co. 1885–1900.
Attribution

This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: "Stoughton, Israel". Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co. 1885–1900.

Israel married Elizabeth Knight on 27 Mar 1627 in Rotherhithe, Surrey, England. Elizabeth (daughter of William Knight and Elizabeth) was born in 1607 in Rotherhithe, London, England; died on 6 Aug 1681 in Dorchester, Suffolk, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Elizabeth married John Kingsley on 2 Dec 1632 in Dorchester, Suffolk, Massachusetts, USA. John (son of John Kingsley and Katherine Butler) was born on 7 Sep 1614 in Kingsley, Fredshamparish, Cheshire, England; died on 9 Jan 1678 in Rehoboth, Bristol, Massachusetts, USA; was buried in East Providence, Providence, Rhode Island, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Catherine married John Wilcox, Jr. on 18 Jan 1650 in Hartford, Hartford, Connecticut, USA. John (son of John Wilcox, Sr and Mary Wylsher) was born on 13 Jan 1622 in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, England; died on 24 May 1676 in Middletown, Middlesex, Connecticut, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Arrival: 1630, Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts, USA
• Residence: 1640, Windsor, Hartford, Connecticut, USA
• Married: 30 Nov 1655, Windsor, Hartford, Connecticut, USA
• Probate: 1684, , Hartford, Connecticut, USA

Thomas married Mary Wadsworth on 30 Nov 1655 in Windsor, Hartford, Connecticut, USA. Mary was born on 12 May 1632 in Hartford, Hartford, Connecticut, USA; died on 8 Feb 1712 in Windsor, Hartford, Connecticut, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Arrival: 1635, , Bermuda
• Residence: 1666, Newtown, Long Island, New York, USA
• Residence: 1670, Newtown, Long Island, New York, USA

John married Sarah Hollander in 1643 in Dorchester, Suffolk, Massachusetts, USA. Sarah was born in 1620 in Southampton, Suffolk, New York, USA; died in Long Island, Queens, New York, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Residence: , , , USA

Mary married Clement Maxfield in 1639 in Taunton, Bristol, Massachusetts, USA. Clement was born in 1620 in Taunton, Bristol, Massachusetts, USA; died on 3 Feb 1692 in Dorchester, Suffolk, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Arrival: 1630, Salem, Essex, Massachusetts, USA
• Baptism: 13 Nov 1635, Rye, Sussex, England
• Residence: 1680, , , Massachusetts, USA

Notes:

He served in King Philip's War and participated in the Falls Fight under Capt.Turner. His son William was killed at Bloody Brook with Capt.Lothrop.

William Smead was the son of William Smead (d.c1634) and Judith (Stoughton) Denman Smead (1599-1639). Judith was the widow of John Denman, with whom she had two children. William was only three or so when his father died. Judith sailed from Gravesend with her three children on September 3,1635 on the ship “Dorset”. They stopped in the Barbadoes, then continued to New England. She settled with her children in Dorchester. She signed the Dorchester Church covenant in 1636 and was granted 20 acres of land there in 1638.

About the time his mother died, William was apprenticed at age seven or so, to John Pope of Dorchester. Pope died in 1646 and made provision in his will for William, calling him “my Littell boy.” He left to William his looms and tacking if William was willing to live with Pope’s widow, learn the trade, and become a weaver.

He married Elizabeth Lawrence at Dorchester,MA on Dec 31,1658.

Children: William Smead III, Elizabeth Smead Janes, Judith Smead Hawks, Mehitable Hull Smead Nims, Samuel Smead, John Smead, John Smead, Ebenezer Smead, Thankful Smead Hawks, and Waitstill Smead Warner.

It has been suggested that he must be buried at Old Deerfield Cemetery since that was the only cemetery at the time. However, that is not always the case as many ancestors were buried on their homesteads at the time.


https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Smead-2

William married Elizabeth Lawrence on 31 Dec 1658 in Dorchester, Suffolk, Massachusetts, USA. Elizabeth (daughter of Thomas Lawrence and Elizabeth Bates) was born on 15 Sep 1635 in Dorchester, Suffolk, Massachusetts, USA; was christened on 6 Mar 1642; died in 29 Feb 1704 in Deerfield, Franklin, Massachusetts, USA; was buried in Deerfield, Franklin, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

William Stoughton was the Chief Justice presiding over the Salem Witch Trials.

The trial of 71 year old (good wife) Rebecca (Towne) Nurse began on June 30, 1692. By dint of her respectability, some testified on her behalf including her family members. However the young Ann Putnam and her siblings would break into fits and claim Nurse was tormenting them. In response to their outbursts Nurse stated, "I have got nobody to look to but God." Many of the other afflicted girls were hesitant to accuse Nurse.

In the end, the jury ruled Nurse not guilty. Due to public outcry and renewed fits and spasms by the girls, the Chief Justice Magistrate, William Stoughton, asked that the verdict be reconsidered. At issue was the statement of another prisoner "[she] was one of us" to which Nurse did not reply, probably because of her loss of hearing. The jury took this as a sign of guilt and changed their verdict, sentencing Nurse to death on July.

Life account

Stoughton graduated from Harvard College in 1650 with a degree in theology. He intended to become a religious minister and continued his studies in New College, Oxford, graduating with an M.A. in Theology in 1652. The Kingdom of England had by then been replaced by the Commonwealth of England.

Stoughton was a pious man who believed that the “Lord’s promises… have singled out New England… above any nation or people in the world.” [2]

Stoughton received a Master's degree in June 1653. The same year the Commonwealth was replaced by The Protectorate of Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell.
Stoughton served as a curate in Sussex during the English Restoration of 1660. He was a Puritan at a time when this denomination was strongly connected to the recently deceased Cromwell. They fell out of favor with the Restoration of Charles II of England to the throne. Stoughton would not hold his position for long.

Having lost his position as a curate and having little chance to gain another, Stoughton returned to Massachusetts in 1662. He served in various positions in the colonial government, including as Joseph Dudley's deputy in 1686. By the early 1690s he was colonial chief magistrate, the first Chief Justice of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court. In 1692 he acted as judge and prosecutor during the Salem Witch Trials, notoriously allowing spectral evidence and denying the accused defense counsel.

Stoughton was acting Governor of Massachusetts from 1694 to 1699, while still serving as Chief Justice, and again from 1700 to 1701. He was an adroit politician who managed the factions of the Colony's politics using the power of his governorship and judgeship and appointments to both his council and to lower courts

Honoraria
In 1726 the town of Stoughton, Massachusetts was named in his honor.

One of the Harvard College dormitories in Harvard Yard is named after Stoughton.


Sister
His sister, Rebecca Stoughton, was married to William Tailer. Their namesake son, William Tailer, would serve as acting Governor of Massachusetts from 1715 to 1716 and again in 1730. Their daughter Elizabeth married John Nelson (c. 1654 - 1734) who served as Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts.

William Stoughton was in charge of what have come to be known as the Salem Witch Trials, first as the Chief Justice of the Special Court of Oyer and Terminer in 1692, and then as the Chief Justice of the Superior Court of Judicature in 1693. Born in the Kingdom of England, Stoughton was the son of Israel Stoughton and Elizabeth Knight. Soon after the birth of William they moved to the Massachusetts Bay Colony where they had a large holding of land. His parents were among the founders of Dorchester, Massachusetts. His paternal grandparents were Thomas and Katherine Stoughton.

Stoughton graduated from Harvard College in 1650 with a degree in theology. He intended to become a religious minister and continued his studies in New College, Oxford, graduating with an Masters in Theology in June 1653, the same year the Commonwealth was replaced by the Protectorate of Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell. Stoughton was serving as a curate in Sussex at the time of the English Restoration in 1660. He was a Puritan at a time when this denomination was strongly connected to the recently deceased Cromwell. Puritans fell out of favor with the Restoration of Charles II of England to the throne. Stoughton would not hold his position for long. Having lost his position as a curate and with little chance to gain another, Stoughton returned to Massachusetts in 1662. He served in various positions in the colonial government, including as Joseph Dudley's deputy in 1686. By the early 1690s he was colonial chief magistrate, the first Chief Justice of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court. In 1692 he acted as both judge and prosecutor during the Salem Witch Trials, notoriously allowing spectral evidence and denying the accused defense counsel.

Stoughton was acting Governor of Massachusetts from 1694 to 1699, while still serving as Chief Justice, and again from 1700 to 1701. He was an adroit politician who managed the factions of the Colony's politics using the power of his governorship and judgeship and appointments both to his council and to lower courts.

In 1726 the town of Stoughton, Massachusetts was named in his honor.
One of the Harvard College dormitories in Harvard Yard is named after Stoughton.

His sister, Rebecca Stoughton, was married to William Tailer. Their son, also William Tailer, served as acting Governor of Massachusetts from 1715 to 1716 and again in 1730. Their daughter Elizabeth married John Nelson (1654- 1734) who served as Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts.

External links
Biography of William Stoughton (1631-1701) from the website about this history of the town named for him
A page noting his notable relations
official Massachusetts Governor biography
A narrative of the proceedings of sir Edmond Androsse and his complices by William Stoughton, et al. (1691)
"William Stoughton," pp. 194–208 of Biographical Sketches of Graduates of Harvard University, Vol. 1
The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFD

Family/Spouse: Hannah Minot. Hannah (daughter of George Minot and Martha Stooke) was born in Feb 1637 in Dorchester, Suffolk, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Hannah married James Minot on 9 Dec 1653 in Dorchester, Suffolk, Massachusetts, USA. James (son of George Minot and Martha Stooke) was born on 31 Dec 1628 in Saffron, Walden, Essex, England; died on 30 Mar 1676 in Dorchester, Suffolk, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Family/Spouse: William Tailer. William was born about 1730 in Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; died on 6 Sep 1813. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Residence: 1708, Northampton, Hampshire, Massachusetts, USA

Enos married Sarah Haynes on 15 Jun 1662 in Northampton, Hampshire, Massachusetts, USA. Sarah (daughter of Edmund Haynes and Hannah Lambe) was born in 1642 in Springfield, Hampden, Massachusetts, USA; died on 7 Dec 1691 in Northampton, Hampshire, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Enos married Hannah Dickinson on 30 Nov 1692 in , , , USA. Hannah (daughter of Nathaniel Dickinson and Anna Gull) was born in 1636 in Wethersfield, Hartford, Connecticut, USA; died on 16 Jul 1723 in Northampton, Hampshire, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

John married Mary (marie Madelaine Gayneau) Gano in 1690 in Long Island, Queens, New York, USA. Mary (daughter of Francis Gerneaux and Lydia Mestereau) was born in 1670 in Long Island, Queens, New York, USA; died on 13 Jan 1761 in Westfield, Essex, New Jersey, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Phillip married Hasadiah Slough in Apr 1677 in Derby, New Haven, Connecticut, USA. Hasadiah was born on 26 Nov 1648 in Milford, New Haven, Connecticut, USA; died in 1698 in Derby, New Haven, Connecticut, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Family/Spouse: Eleazer Hawks. Eleazer (son of John Hawkes and Elizabeth Browne) was born on 20 Dec 1655 in Hadley, Hampshire, Massachusetts, USA; died on 22 Mar 1727 in Deerfield, Franklin, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

Mehitable Smead was born in Northampton, Hampshire, Massachusetts on January 2, 1667 to William Smead and Elizabeth Laurence. The family moved to Pocumtuck, now known as Deerfield, Massachusetts. It was a dangerous place to live, being situated on the frontier of New England.

In 1675, King Philip's war began. On one side were the English colonists and thier Native American allies, while on the other were the Wampanoag, Anawon, Tuspaquin, Nipmuc, and Pocumtuc tribes, joined together under the leadership of Metacom, chief of the Wampanoags. (The war was named after Metacom, who was given the nickname "King Philip" by the English, who found his mannerisms haughty.)

On September 18, 1675, the natives attacked Pocumtuck, destroying homes and forcing many of the inhabitants to flee. Captain Thomas Lathrop was ordered to take his troops to Deerfield, and there, with the remaining townsmen, to retrieve any salvageable grain and bring it to the garrisons at Hadley, Northampton and Hatfield. Among the 80 - 100 men bringing back the grain was Mehitable's older brother, William Smead. He was driving one of the wagons.

Captain Mosely and his Pocumtuck garrison sent out scouts ahead of Lathrop, but Captain Lathrop did not send out any vanguard or flankers, even though the trail led through some dense forest, thinking it unlikely that such a large group of English would be attacked. About 5 miles outside of Deerfield, the convoy emerged from the forest into a narrow, swampy thicket. There they slowed down in preparation to cross Muddy Brook. The convoy ended up bunched all together before the brook. It was a particularly hot day. Realizing that it would take time to get everyone across, the soldiers tossed their rifles on top of the wheat and began to relax. Some soldiers began to gather the wild grapes that grew alongside the brook.

700 Native Americans lay in ambush. Metacom was there, leading the Wapanoags and the Nipmuck bands were there under Sagamore Same, Mantaup, One-eyed John, Matoonas, and Panquahow. At a given signal, the warriors sprang their trap. Chaos followed, as bullets and arrows flew at the bewildered English from every direction. Captain Lathrop fell immediately. Within minutes, over 70 of the English were killed, and the scalping began. The sluggish little brook ran red with blood, earning it the name 'Bloody Brook.' Among the dead was 15 year old William Smead. Period writer William Hubbard called it "the saddest day that ever befell New England."

Even though much of Pocumtuck was destroyed, the stubborn English settlers built a new town on the site. Shunning the old Native American name, they called it Deerfield. Mehitable remained there, and married another Deerfield resident, Jeremiah Hull, the son of Jeremiah Hull and Hannah Baldwin. They had two children together, Elizabeth and Jeremiah. Her husband died on December 11, 1691.

On June 27, 1692, Mehitable married a cordwainer named Godfrey Nims, the widower of Mary Margaret (Miller) Williams. Godfrey had several children from his first marriage, Rebecca, John, Henry, Thankful and Ebenezer Nims as well as two step-children, Mary and Zebediah Williams. The family lived in Deerfield, Massachusetts, where Godfrey bought the lot on which the second church, the town house and the Memorial Hall now stand, and they built a house.

On the night of January 4, 1693, tragedy struck. Godfrey's son Henry went upstairs into the bedroom where Mehitable's son Jeremiah and another child were sleeping. He brought a light with him, and accidentally set some flax or tow on fire. The flames quickly spread. Henry carried one of the sleeping children downstairs to safety, but when he came back up for little Jeremiah, it was too late to save him. The entire home burned to the ground that night.

Godfrey and Mehitable then purchased the adjoining lot to their old place, and built a new home. They had 5 children together: Thomas, Mehitable, the twins - Mercy and Mary, and Abigail. Sadly, Thomas died on November 6, 1693 at 3 years of age.

On September 16, 1696, a small party of Native Americans surprised Mehitable's brother John Smead, and John Gillet, on Green River. They captured Gillet, and pushed on to Deerfield, where most of the inhabitants were collected in the fort attending a lecture. Daniel Belding and his family were late and headed for the lecture when the Native Americans attacked them. Mrs. Belding and three of the children were killed, two others were wounded, while the remaining two children and Daniel Belding were taken captive. The Deerfield residents discovered what was happening and went to their aid. They managed to wound one of the attackers, but they could not rescue the Beldings. Mehitable's step-son Zebediah Williams was wounded in the fighting.

By 1703 were still no English settlements west of Deerfield for fifty miles, until the Hudson River and New York. Nor were there English towns north of Deerfield at all. To the east was forty miles of wilderness. It was a time of great anxiety, similar to the time of King Phillip's War. Queen Anne's War had begun, and the New York Govenernor Lord Cornbury had sent word in May that the French soldiers and their Native American allies were heading down from Canada towards Deerfield and the Connecticut Valley. In October, a small Native American force struck, capturing Mehitable's step-sons Zebediah Williams and John Nims. She never saw them again.

Deerfield strengthened its fortifications, and the Massachusetts General Court sent soldiers from Boston to help protect the town. All was quiet as winter descended, and Mehitable and her family must have felt some relief, as wars are not usually fought in the cold and snow of a New England winter. However, as a precaution, everyone, including the 20 Massachusetts soldiers, slept in the dozen houses that inside the pallisades of Deerfield, where the Nims home was located, leaving the other thirty or so houses empty. A watchman patrolled the town every night.

Two hours before dawn, on the leap-year morning of February 29, 1704, as Deerfield's residents slept, joint French and Native American forces under the command of Jean-Baptiste Hertel de Rouville gathered two miles north of town, just across the Deerfield River. De Rouville's forces consisted of 47 French and French-Canadian soldiers, including regular army men and coureur de bois, and 200 Native Americans, mostley Abenaki, Kanienkehaka and Wyandot, as well as a few Pocumtuck. They had made their way south on snoeshoes, walking atop the frozen waterways - up the Sorel River to Lake Champlain, up the Winooski River, and onto the upper Connectiut River. They had left a few of their party, plus the sleds and provisions, some twenty-five miles above Deerfield.

Silently, De Rouville's forces they crossed the river and made their way towards Deerfield. They were able to move quietly in the snow that dampens all sound. Heavy snowddrifts piled against the walls surrounding Deerfield - they were so high that the attackers easily scaled the ten to twelve-foot high walls.


When they were discovered by the watchman (who has been accused of being unfaithful in his duties that night) he discharged his musket and cried, "Arm! arm!" This was the signal for the assault. Doors and windows were broken down; men, women, and children dragged from their beds, murdered in cold blood, or bound as captives. De Rouville's forces had the advantage, despite the townspeoples efforts to fight back. The main body of the French stood to their arms, firing upon the houses and killing all who resisted, shooting the cattle and sheep, while detached parties were securing "provisions, drink, and cloathing," which were packed up and carried to their rendezvous, others collecting and guarding the prisoners and leading them to the same place. The Native forces attacked the Nims house, where they met with resistance. Godfrey and his family (like the Mattoon, Catlin and Frary families) had had the time to rouse and defend themselves, but not enough time to flee. Compared to theresidents of other homes that were attacked, the members of these four families suffered more members killed outright rather than taken captive, probably due to their resistance. The Natives set the Nims house on fire. Godfrey escaped on foot with Deacon Sheldon and a soldier and made it to Wells's Fort, the picketed house of Capt. Wells, who lived on the Fogg lot. De Rouville's forces soon turned their attention to Wells's Fort, which was fiercely assaulted, but successfully defended.

Just after 8:00 a.m., English reinforcementscharged up from Hadley and Hatfield. The French and Natives were driven from the fort. The siege being raised, the brave garrison, with men from Captain Wells, joined their rescuers. There were 57 men in all, and they pursued the retreating enemy across the meadows. De Rouville, noticing their small numbers, halted his front and formed an ambuscade. Into this the English, let on by Sergeant Wait, fell, in spite of a command to retreat by the cautious Captain Wells. Nine men were killed in this trap and the ensuing retreat. De Rouville's forces chased the English back into the stockades, then withdrew to Petty's Plain. Deerfield was destroyed. At the battles end, 22 men, 9 women and 25 children were dead, another 109 had been taken captive, and almost half of the houses were burned down.

Mehitable arguably suffered one of the greatest losses that morning. Her 7 year old daughter Mehitable and her five year old twin daughters Mercy and Mary had been hiding in the cellar of the family home when it was set on fire, and they smothered to death as the house burned above them. A similar tragedy unfolded In the home of her brother, Samuel Smead, were Mehitable's mother Elizabeth, Samuel's wife and his two young children hid in the cellar while he went to get help. Their house was also set on fire, and they all perished. Mehitable's her younger sister Thankful (Smead) Hawks, her brother-in-law John Hawks, her two little nieces Martha and Thankful Hawks, her nephew John Hawks, her step-son Henry, her step-daughter Rebecca (Nims) Mattoon, Rebecca's husband Phillip Mattoon and Rebecca Mattoon's newborn baby were all slain in the attack. Her brother John Smead was shot in the thigh, but survived. Mehitable herself, along with her 3 year old daughter Abigail, her daughter Elizabeth Hull, her step-son Ebenezer, her pregnant step-daughter Mary (Williams) Brooks, Mary's husband Nathaniel Brooks, her step-grand-children Mary and William Brooks, her pregnant sister Waitstill (Smead) Warner and her young nieces Sarah and Waitstill Warner were among the 109 captives.

They began a forced 300 mile march to Quebec. The winter conditions made the march extremely difficult, and as the captors feared pursuit, the pace was gruelling. As captive Stephen Williams later remembered it "they traveled (we thought) as if they Designed to kill us all." Those who were sick or injured and slowing the group down were sometimes slain by their captors. These tended to be adult women and children under 2 years old (who were vulnerable to the harsh weather and diet.) Older children were valued for adoption into the tribe, and were even carried or drawn on sleds by their captors. On the fourth day of the journey, Mehitable's sister Waitstill was killed. On the fifth day, four women were killed: Hepzibah Belding, Mary Frary, Hannah Carter, and Mehitable.

Godfrey, who was not captured in the massacre, died a few months later.

Despite a life marked by tragedy and loss, two of Mehitable's children survived. Through little Abigail Nims, a Deerfield captive who lived out her life in Quebec, Mehitable is the ancestor of many French Canadians, including Seguins, Sabourins, Castonguays and Cheniers, and through her daughter Elizabeth Hull, (redeemed from captivity in 1707) who married Mehitable's step-son John Nims after his escape from captivity, she is the ancestor of many Americans, including actresses Lillian and Dorothy Gish.



Died:
Died as a captive on march to Canada

Mehitable married Jeremiah Hull in 1688 in Deerfield, Franklin, Massachusetts, USA. Jeremiah (son of Jeremiah Hull and Hannah Baldwin) was born on 2 Jun 1663 in New Haven, New Haven, Connecticut, USA; died on 11 Dec 1691 in Deerfield, Franklin, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Mehitable married Godfrey Nims on 27 Jun 1692 in Deerfield, Franklin, Massachusetts, USA. Godfrey was born in 1650 in , , , England; died on 14 Mar 1704 in Deerfield, Franklin, Massachusetts, USA; was buried in Deerfield, Franklin, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Samuel married Mary Price on 17 Mar 1699 in Deerfield, Franklin, Massachusetts, USA. Mary was born on 21 Mar 1681 in Northampton, Hampshire, Massachusetts, USA; died on 29 Feb 1704 in Deerfield, Franklin, Massachusetts, USA; was buried in Deerfield, Franklin, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Samuel married Mary Weld on 18 Apr 1707 in Deerfield, Franklin, Massachusetts, USA. Mary (daughter of Daniel Weld and Mary Hinsdale) was born on 30 Mar 1667 in Deerfield, Franklin, Massachusetts, USA; died on 3 Jul 1751 in Deerfield, Franklin, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

John married Anna Weld on 22 Nov 1699. Anna (daughter of Daniel Weld and Mary Hinsdale) was born on 17 May 1672 in Deerfield, Franklin, Massachusetts, USA; died on 31 Oct 1712 in Wapping, Franklin, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Ebenezer married Esther Catlin about 1694. Esther (daughter of John Catlin and Mary Baldwin) was born on 9 May 1675 in Wethersfield, Hartford, Connecticut, USA; died on 12 Dec 1733 in Deerfield, Franklin, Massachusetts, USA; was buried in Deerfield, Franklin, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Thankful married John Hawks in 1695 in Deerfield, Franklin, Massachusetts, USA. John (son of John Hawks, Jr and Martha Baldwin) was born on 26 Jun 1671 in Hatfield, Hampshire, Massachusetts, USA; died on 29 Feb 1704 in Deerfield, Franklin, Massachusetts, USA; was buried in Deerfield, Franklin, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Family/Spouse: Ebenezer Warner. Ebenezer (son of Isaac Warner and Sarah Boltwood) was born on 25 Feb 1676 in Hadley, Hampshire, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

James married Rebecca Jones on 9 Feb 1688 in Concord, Middlesex, Massachusetts, USA. Rebecca was born on 8 Mar 1663 in Concord, Middlesex, Massachusetts, USA; died on 17 Jul 1712 in Concord, Middlesex, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Elizabeth married John Danforth on 21 Nov 1682 in Dorchester, Suffolk, Massachusetts, USA. John was born on 8 Nov 1660 in Roxbury, Suffolk, Massachusetts, USA; died on 26 May 1730. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Mehitable married Thomas Captain Cooper on 6 Mar 1683 in Dorchester, Suffolk, Massachusetts, USA. Thomas was born on 3 Dec 1657 in Candover, Hampshire, England; died on 6 Aug 1705 in Shoreditch, Middlesex, England. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Mehitable married Peter Sargent on 19 Dec 1706 in Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts, USA. Peter was born in 1665; died in 1715 in Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Mehitable married Simeon Stoddard on 12 May 1715 in Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts, USA. Simeon was born on 25 May 1647 in Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts, USA; died on 15 Oct 1730 in Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Elizabeth married John Nelson in 1685 in , , Massachusetts, USA. John was born in 1654 in London, London, England; died on 14 Nov 1734 in Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]