I was fascinated by the references I'd found about my Wyman ancestors being in
some sort of dispute over a horse with someone named John Seers(Sears). It took me
a little while to track it down on Google but I finally did, and discovered more information
as well:
The lieutenant (Oakes) of Prentice's troop, who held office at the beginning of the war, having been assigned to another command, John Wyman, the cornet, was promoted to his place. In N. E. Hist. Gen Reg., xxxvii. 281, reference is made to a petition of Lieutenant John Wyman, asking for the release oi his son, who was lately married, stating that he himself had been in both the Mount Hope and the Narragansett campaigns, and in the latter had received a wound in his face; that his eldest son was killed in that campaign, and that his servant had been in the country's service all the past winter. The servant was Robert Simpson. Again, a well known character—John Seers, constable of Woburn—made complaint to the authorities that Lieutenant John Wyman and daughter, named Bathshcba, had together resisted him in the impressment of one of the horses of the said Wyman for the country's use, and for this offence they were both charged two pounds each as a fine. The date of Seers' petition was May 10, 1676, and the time of the trouble was April, 1676. Captain John Cutler, of Charlestown, marching through Woburn with several soldiers on the way to Billerica to attack the Indians, who had caused a stir at that place, having a warrant from the late Major Willard to the constable at Woburn and the constable at Billerica, to impress horses or anything desired for the service, found horses were very scarce, because on account of the stir at Billerica about twenty of the best of Woburn men and horses had already gone up to help them. Seers recites the hard words and action of resistance of Wyman, and prays for such legislation "as will prevent such abuse." "That so," he says, "I and other constables may not go in fear of our lives when we are upon the execution of our office."
A warrant had been issued to the constable for six carriage horses and three men from Woburn. Bathsheba Wyman, named above, married Nathaniel Tay, of Billerica,'May 30, 1677. Cf. N. E. Hist. Gen. Reg. xxxviii. 44; Hazen's Billerica, 120.
The troop of which John Wyman, of Woburn, was lieutenant was attached to the Massachusetts regiment, which was organized for the Narragansett campaign, and was present with the army in the memorable Fort Fight of December 19, 1675, being the only cavalry organization of the English there. A letter of Joseph Dudley at the time mentions a slight wound by an arrow in Lieutenant Wyman's face, which he received during a scout about four days before the occurrence of the famous Fort Fight. During this scout a number of Indians were killed or taken prisoners in nn attack on their wigwams, which were burned, the slight wound of Wyman being the only casualty received on the part of the English in that skirmish. Cf. N. E. Hiit. Gen. Reg., xl. 80, 88; xliii. 156.
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History of Middlesex County, Massachusetts: With Biographical Sketches of Many of Its Pioneers and Prominent Men, Volume 1 (Google eBook) Duane Hamilton Hurd, ed.
J. W. Lewis & Company, Philadelphia, Pa. 1890
Now I'd learned a bit more about John Wyman's military service. And the "late Major Willard"
mentioned was another of my ancestors, 9x great grandfather Simon Willard.
Next, I decided to try and find the petitions John Wyman had made, as well as that of John Seers.
To be continued...
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