Since my Dad's family has been here in New England for nearly four centuries
now, you'd think more of our ancestors would have made their living from the
sea, but most of them were farmers or timber-men. The few who were sailors
or fishermen lived in the 17th century, and among them was William Pinson,
my 8x great grandfather. The second case I found in the Essex County Court
case files gave me a little insight into his life.
I don't quite understand some of what's going on in the court battle. I need to
do some research on the fishing industry in Puritan times. Also, this is a long
case so I'm posting it in two parts instead of summarizing it. I hope that by
doing so, some other genealogist will find the name of an ancestor among
those who testified:
November 25 1679
William Pinson v. Walter Munjoy. Verdict for defendant.*
*Writ: William Pinson v. Walter Munjoy; for withholding
an account of his part or share in a fishing voyage made in
1677, Gilbert Peeters being master, and defendant being a
shoreman and as shoreman weighed and delivered the fish;
dated 18 : 9 : 1679; signed by Hilliard Veren,t for the court
and town of Salem; and served by Peter Cheever,t constable
of Salem. Bond of Waltar (his mark) Mongy, with Edmond
Bridges t and Peter Miller t as sureties.
William Pinson's bill of cost. 1li. 2s.
William Penson's t receipt to Walter Mountjoy, dated
Salem, 12 mo. 1677, for five quintals and a half of refuse cod
fish at 10s. per quintal, on account of Gilbert Peters.
"Walter Munjoy Delever to Robt Kitchen fower quintal
of Reffuse fish, hake & pollock, for your freind William Pen-
son. t Novemb : 9 : 1677." Receipt, dated Nov. 9, 1677,
signed by Ro: Kitchen. t
Nathaniell Sharpe oif Salem, mariner, aged about thirty-
three years, deposed that he heard William Pinsent sell to
Gilbert Peeters, master of the ketch Leusy, that part of the
fishing voyage which belonged to him, either by his own labor
or by hired men, for 171i. 10s. in fish at price current. Sworn,
11:6: 1678, before Wm. Hathorne,t assistant. Owned in
court.
Richard Flandor, aged forty years, deposed that he had
been employed on fishing accounts in Salem for many years
and had been a shoreman. It has been a general custom for
the shoreman to take charge of what fish was committed to
him by the ketch's company to which he belongs, also to
weigh out and deliver to every man or his order his proper
part. Sworn in court.
Jno. Lee, aged about thirty-four years, deposed that speak-
ing with Gillbert Peeters concerning Wallter Munjoy's with-
holding fish from Pinson, Peeters said that Monjoy, as shore-
man, had done Peeters great wrong, and if he told what he
knew that Pinson would sue Monjoy. Sworn in court.
--RECORDS AND FILES OF THE QUARTERLY COURTS
OF ESSEX COUNTY MASSACHUSETTS VOLUME VII 1678-1680
SALEM,MASS. PUBLISHED BY THE ESSEX INSTITUTE 1919
pp305-306
A quintal is a unit of measurement that, according to the dictionary, equals about
100 kilograms or 220 pounds. So the "five quintals and a half" of cod would be
around 1200 pounds. Considering that the fishing ships back then were a lot
smaller than the modern versions, that's a lot of fish. I wonder how long they had
to stay out at sea to catch that amount?
To be continued.
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