((First posted in Nov.2011 ))
My ancestor Ralph Houghton was one the original settlers of Lancaster Ma.
But the town was abandoned after the destruction of the town in 1675/6 in
the colonial Indian Wars.Ralph and the other townsfolk retreated back to
the coast by Boston until it was once more safe to go back to Lancaster.
But while he and some of his children did return, Ralph himself eventually
ended his days on a farm in the safer location of Milton Ma.
Ralph's land sits near the Blue Hills and among it's features was a spring
fed pond that the local Indian's called the Hoosic-Whisck. While the
Indian name was still occasionally used as late as the early 1900's, over
time the pond became known simply as Houghton's Pond.. Today the
pond and the land Ralph Houghton once farmed are part of the Blue
Hills Reservation where among other things copperhead and timber
rattlesnakes roam in sight of the skyscrapers of Boston.
Milton is right next to the Dorchester and Mattapan sections of Boston
and when we were kids our parents occasionally took us to Houghton's
Pond for a swim during the summer(although not as often as we went to
Houghs Neck in Quincy). It amazed me when I started researching the
family tree to find out we had went swimming in a place named after
someone we were related to and we never had a clue!
Showing posts with label Houghton Ralph. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Houghton Ralph. Show all posts
Saturday, June 08, 2019
Thursday, June 06, 2019
52 ANCESTORS IN 52 WEEKS 2019 WEEK 23: RALPH HOUGHTON OF LANCASTER & MILTON, MA.
My 8x great grandfather Ratcliffe Ralph Houghton was an immigrant from England who was one of five founders of the town of Lancaster, Ma. Ellery Bicknell Crane wrote this about my ancestor:
II) Ralph Houghton, son of Sir Richard Houghton (t), born in England, in 1633; died April 15, 1705, in Lancaster. He is believed to have emigratedo New England in 1635. He was in Lancaster in 1647, and was one of the founders of that town with five others: Edward Breck, Nathaniel Hadlock, William Kerley, Thomas Sawyer. John Prescott. He was the first town clerk, and the writing of the early records in his hand show that he was not only a good penman but well educated. His home was on the Neck. He was town clerk for many years: was admitted a freeman in 1668, and was deputy to the general court in 1673-89. He was one of the leaders, and was identified with the organization of the town and its government until his death. He had to abandon his home with the others at the time of King Philip's war in 1675. In 1682 he settled in Milton. He returned to his Lancaster home in 1685, but was again in Milton in 1690, and built a homestead there in which seven generations of descendants have been born. He married Jane __ who was born 1626, in England, and died January 10, 1700-1. Their children were: 1. Mary, born January 4, 1654. 2. John, born April 28, 1655. 3. Joseph, born July 6, 1657: settled in Milton. 4. Experience, born October 1, 1659; married May 22, 1784, Ezra Clapp. of Dorchester. 5. James (see forward). 6. Sarah, born February 17, 1664. Ralph Houghton, of Dorchester (Milton later), was lost at Port Royal June 7, 1782, aged twenty-eight, in the earthquake.-pp263-264
Historic Homes and Institutions and Genealogical and Personal Memoirs of Worcester County, Massachusetts: With a History of Worcester Society of Antiquity, Volume 1 Lewis Publishing Company, New York, New York 1907
Two of the other five founders of Lancaster mentioned in that excerpt are also my ancestors John Prescott is my 9x great grandfather, Thomas Sawyer is my 8x grandfather. I am descended from Ralph Houghton's son James.
II) Ralph Houghton, son of Sir Richard Houghton (t), born in England, in 1633; died April 15, 1705, in Lancaster. He is believed to have emigratedo New England in 1635. He was in Lancaster in 1647, and was one of the founders of that town with five others: Edward Breck, Nathaniel Hadlock, William Kerley, Thomas Sawyer. John Prescott. He was the first town clerk, and the writing of the early records in his hand show that he was not only a good penman but well educated. His home was on the Neck. He was town clerk for many years: was admitted a freeman in 1668, and was deputy to the general court in 1673-89. He was one of the leaders, and was identified with the organization of the town and its government until his death. He had to abandon his home with the others at the time of King Philip's war in 1675. In 1682 he settled in Milton. He returned to his Lancaster home in 1685, but was again in Milton in 1690, and built a homestead there in which seven generations of descendants have been born. He married Jane __ who was born 1626, in England, and died January 10, 1700-1. Their children were: 1. Mary, born January 4, 1654. 2. John, born April 28, 1655. 3. Joseph, born July 6, 1657: settled in Milton. 4. Experience, born October 1, 1659; married May 22, 1784, Ezra Clapp. of Dorchester. 5. James (see forward). 6. Sarah, born February 17, 1664. Ralph Houghton, of Dorchester (Milton later), was lost at Port Royal June 7, 1782, aged twenty-eight, in the earthquake.-pp263-264
Historic Homes and Institutions and Genealogical and Personal Memoirs of Worcester County, Massachusetts: With a History of Worcester Society of Antiquity, Volume 1 Lewis Publishing Company, New York, New York 1907
Two of the other five founders of Lancaster mentioned in that excerpt are also my ancestors John Prescott is my 9x great grandfather, Thomas Sawyer is my 8x grandfather. I am descended from Ralph Houghton's son James.
Friday, November 25, 2011
WHOSIWHATSIS LIVED NEAR THE HOOSIC-WHISICK POND
I've written before about my ancestor Ralph Houghton who was one
the original settlers of Lancaster Ma. But the town was abandoned
after the destruction of the town in 1675/6 in the colonial Indian Wars.
Ralph and the other townsfolk retreated back to the coast by Boston
until it was once more safe to go back to Lancaster. But while some of
his children did return, Ralph himself ended his days on a farm in the
safer location of Milton Ma.
Ralph's land sits near the Blue Hills and among it's features was a spring
fed pond that the local Indian's called the Hoosic-Whisck. While the
Indian name was still occasionally used as late as the early 1900's, over
time the pond became known simply as Houghton's Pond.. Today the
pond and the land Ralph Houghton once farmed are part of the Blue
Hills Reservation where among other things copperhead and timber
rattlesnakes roam in sight of the skyscrapers of Boston.
Milton is right next to the Dorchester and Mattapan sections of Boston
and when we were kids our parents occasionally took us to Houghton's
Pond for a swim during the summer(although not as often as we went to
Houghs Neck in Quincy). It amazed me when I started researching the
family tree to find out we had went swimming in a place named after
someone we were related to and we never had a clue!
the original settlers of Lancaster Ma. But the town was abandoned
after the destruction of the town in 1675/6 in the colonial Indian Wars.
Ralph and the other townsfolk retreated back to the coast by Boston
until it was once more safe to go back to Lancaster. But while some of
his children did return, Ralph himself ended his days on a farm in the
safer location of Milton Ma.
Ralph's land sits near the Blue Hills and among it's features was a spring
fed pond that the local Indian's called the Hoosic-Whisck. While the
Indian name was still occasionally used as late as the early 1900's, over
time the pond became known simply as Houghton's Pond.. Today the
pond and the land Ralph Houghton once farmed are part of the Blue
Hills Reservation where among other things copperhead and timber
rattlesnakes roam in sight of the skyscrapers of Boston.
Milton is right next to the Dorchester and Mattapan sections of Boston
and when we were kids our parents occasionally took us to Houghton's
Pond for a swim during the summer(although not as often as we went to
Houghs Neck in Quincy). It amazed me when I started researching the
family tree to find out we had went swimming in a place named after
someone we were related to and we never had a clue!
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