52 ANCESTORS IN 52 WEEKS 2019 WEEK 7: JOHN HOWARD OF BRIDGEWATER, MA.. PT4

John Howard and his wife Martha (Hayward) Howard had seven children. It is with them that the
complicated  relationships with the Packard, Fobes and Keith familes start:

JOHN m. Sarah Latham. John Jr. owned land in an area of Bridgewater known as Joppa, which is now part of East Bridgewater. It is near Route 18 and there was a restaurant located there called the Joppa Grill. When I went to college in Bridgewater I went through that area every day and never knew it was connected to my family.

JAMES. m. Elizabeth Washburn. James died in 1690 during the New England colony's attack on Canada.

JONATHAN. m. Susannah Keith

ELIZABETH, m. Edward Fobes. Their daughter Elizabeth would marry Joseph Keith.

SARAH, m. Zacheus Packard. Their son James married Jemima Keith, daughter of Elizabeth Fobes  and Joseph Keith

BETHIAH, m. Henry Kingman

EPHRAIM, m. Mary Keith


I'll be discussing Martha (Hayward) Howard's father Thomas Hayward next.
 

52 ANCESTORS IN 52 WEEKS 2019 WEEK 7: JOHN HOWARD OF BRIDGEWATER, MA.. PT3

I'm descended from two  of John Howard's daughters: Sarah, who married Zacheus Packard, and Elizabeth, who married Edward Fobes. I'll be dicussing the Fobes line later. Both they and their husbands are mentioned in the division of John Howard's estate. Heman Howard's book has a transcription of the document:

A true copy of the division of the estate of Lieut, John Howard, late of Bridgewater, who died intestate, as it was mutually agreed and consented to by all the several heirs apparent to said estate, on the fifteenth day of Oct., Anno Dom. 1701, which division is made according to the appraisement in the inventory taken of the said estate:—

To the widow, one hundred and seven pounds out of the moveable estate, and her thirds in the improved lands and housing.

To John Howard, the eldest son, as followeth :—Ninety-one acres of land, lying part of it at John's bridge where he now lives and near thereunto, (£45, 0 s., 0 d.), and the rest at Satucket river and Black brook; more, the house and barn and the land between the river and the highway that goes directly toward the meeting house, and ten acres joining to the said highway, on the north side, lying the whole breadth of the said lands, (£60, 0 s., 0d.) ; more, ten acres toward West meadow, (£05, 0 s.,0d.); half a lot of meadow in Flag meadow, (L04 Os., 0d.); the land at Tetaquat, (£02, 0s., 0d.); more, a quarter part of the undivided lands, and a quarter part of his right in the Cedar swamp, (L1, 07 s., 06 d.); more, a quarter part of a purchase right in the North purchase, (£5, 0 s. 0 d.) ; more, two lots of meadow, one of them in Poor meadow and the other at Black brook, (£10, 0 s., 0 d.). His whole proportion being 146 pounds, he hath given out of it also.. —£5 to his brother Jonathan, and £5 to his brother Ephraim.

To Jonathan Howard, the second surviving son, the land where his house stands, 49 acres, (£30, 0 S., 0 d.); more, 35 acres in the neck of land beyond James Keith's, (£17, 0 s., 0 d. ); more, 35 acres at Lathrop's swamp, (£17, 0s., 0d.); more, 25 acres near the same place, (£12, 10 s., 0d.); more, a quarter part of undivided lands, and a quarter of his right in the Cedar swamp, (£01, 07 s., 06 d.); more, a quarter of a purchase right in North purchase, (£5, 0 s., 0 s.).

To Ephraim Howard, the youngest son, the land on which his house stands, (£60, 0 s.  0 d.); more, 35 acres in the neck (£17, 10 s., 0 d.); ten acres near Bimeleck's hill, (£05, 0 s., 00 d.); one lot of meadow in Flag meadow, (£08, 0 s., 0 d.) ; more, ten acres at Lathrop's swamp, (£05, 0s., d..); more, a quarter part of undivided land, and a quarter part in the Cedar swamp, (£01, 7 s. 0 d) ; more, a quarter part of a purchase right in North purchase, (£05, 0 s., 0 d. ); more, a share in the north lands, (£02, 0 s., 0 d.).

To James Howard, the only son of James Howard, deceased, to be divided, the one moiety to him and the other moiety to his two sisters. The land where his house stands, and the land adjoining thereunto, being 45 acres, (£45, 0 s., 0 d.) ; more, half a lot of meadow in Flag meadow, (£04, 0 s., 0 d.) ; more, 40 acres of land above the stone house, (£08, 0 s., 0 d.); more, in moveables as per inventory, or 
money, (£14, 12 s., 06 d.); more, a quarter part of undivided land in Cedar swamp, (£01, 07 s., 06 d.).

To Edward Fobes, his wife, in money and moveables, (£68, 0s, 0d.); to Zacheus Packard's wife, in money and moveables, (£68, 0 s., 0 d.); to Henry Kingman's wife, in money and moveables, (£68, 0 s ., 0 d.); the said three daughters to have their part as appraised and as set in the inventory; and for as much as the above-mentioned lands divided to Ephraim, amounts to one hundred and three pounds, seventeen and six pence, he is to return to the estate £18, 07 s., 0d 

This above written is the mutual agreement of the sons, sons-in-law, and daughters of the above-named Lieut. John Howard, late of Bridgewater, deceased, made and agreed on the sixteenth day of October, 1701. In testimony whereof they have hereunto sealed and subscribed.
Signed, sealed and declared by the subscribers to be their agreement, in the presence of  

Elisha Wadsworth.
Thomas (T. S.his mark) Snell

Martha^ Howard, [Seal.]
John Howard, [Seal.]
Jonathan Howard, [Seal.]
Ephraim Howard, [Seal.]
Edward Fobes,
E. mark of Elizabeth Fobes, [Seal.]
Zacheus Packard,
In behalf of himself and Sarah his wife, [Seal.]
Henry K1ngman,
In behalf of himself and Bethiah his wife, [Seal.]
 Edward Mitchell,
As guardian of the children of James Howard, deceased. [Seal.]
 
Memorandum, that on the sixteenth day of October, 1701, the abovenamed parties to this agreement, who have hereunto sealed and subscribed, all of them came personally before me, the subscriber, Judge of Probate for the County of Plymouth, and acknowledged the before written instrument to be their act and deed.

William Bradford. Recorded, October 24, 1701.
Per Samuel Sprague, Register. 

-p2


The Howard Genealogy: Descendants of John Howard of Bridgewater, Massachusetts, from 1643 to 1903 Standard printing Company, Brockton, Ma  1903

To be continued ...

52 ANCESTORS IN 52 WEEKS 2019 WEEK 7: JOHN HOWARD OF BRIDGEWATER, MA.. PT2

One of the cool things in Heman Howard's book about the family history is this letter and his transcription. It's from my 9x great grandmother to her son, my 8x great grandfather John Howard:

This letter is a photographic reproduction of the original, which is in the possession of a member of the Howard family. It is supposed to have been written to John Howard, the progenitor of this family, by his mother, who spelled her name Hayward, which was not an uncommon way of spelling the name. As it is very difficult to read the letter, the following is printed as an aid:

London, Aug. 16, 1652. Lov1ng Son :—
Having a fitt opportunity by a friend to send to you, I could not, out of my motherly care to you and your brother, do less than write these few lines to you to certify you that both I and your sister are in good health, praysed be God, and that I earnestly desire to hear from you both, how you do and how and in what condition you are both. Your sister desires to be remembered to you both, and she and I have sent you some small tokens of our love for you. I have sent George 3 bands and a handkerchief, and an handkerchief to yourself, and I have sent you a shilling to you to pay for writing of a letter, if by long silence you have forgott. I wonder, son, you should so forgott your mother, whose welfare she tended more than anything in the world. Your sister hath sent you a book of your father's to you and a bible to George. Did we conceive you were alive, we would have sent you better tokens. Child, with my blessing to you both, desiring to hear from you and whether you ever intend for England, and how your cousing Sarah doth, with my daily prayer to the Lord for you, I rest.
Your Loving Mother,

Mary Hayward. For her loving son, John Hayward,
this :— In case he be dead, to George Hayward in New England.

-pp xvi-xvii



The Howard Genealogy: Descendants of John Howard of Bridgewater, Massachusetts, from 1643 to 1903 Standard printing Company, Brockton, Ma  1903


Somethings are universal and timeless. A mother worrying about her sons is one of them.





To be continued...

52 ANCESTORS IN 52 WEEKS 2019 WEEK 7: JOHN HOWARD OF BRIDGEWATER, MA.. PT1

My 8x great grandfather John Howard was another of the founding fathers of Bridgewater and West Bridgewater. In 1903 a man named Heman Howard, another of John Howard's descendants, wrote a family history and began with this:

JOHN HOWARD, with his brother George, came from England, and settled in Duxbury. He was among those who were able to bear arms there in 1643. He was about fifteen years old when he came to Duxbury. He lived in the family of Capt. Miles Standish, who came from Shorely, Lancashire, England. He soon removed to Bridgewater, and was one of the original settlers and proprietors of that town. Judge Mitchell, in his history of Bridgewater, says that John Howard, the first Howard to settle in Bridgewater, was a man of much influence in the new plantation.

In 1645 his name appears as one of the fifty-four original proprietors of the grant of land afterward known as Bridgewater. In 1656 he was one of the two surveyors of highways for his town. In 1657 he had taken the Freeman's oath. He was one of the fourteen men whose allotment of land was in the easterly part of the grant. He was one of the first military officers, and was appointed Ensign, Sept. 27, 1664. In May, 1676, during King Philip's War, Ensign John Howard, with twenty others, fought with some Indians and took seventeen of them alive with much plunder, and all returned without serious injury. June 5, 1678, he was a deputy to the General Court of Massachusetts; also on the same date was appointed a selectman of his town. In 1683 he, with Thomas Hayward, was a representative to the General Court. Oct. 2, 1689, he was promoted, and received his commission as a lieutenant. Mr. Howard was a carpenter by trade. He spelled his name Haward, and so did his descendants until after 1700. He m. Martha, a dau. of Thomas Hayward, one of the original proprietors of Bridgewater, who came on the ship Hercules, in 1635, from Sandwich, County of Kent, England, with five children and three brothers.

Mr. Howard lived in a house which he built near the first meeting house. It stood directly north of the house where B. B. Howard now lives, on the corner of Howard and River streets. The accompanying picture shows the spot of ground as it now appears; the well curb seen in the picture is over the well that was used with Mr. Howard's house. This was the first public house in Bridgewater, as Mr. Howard was licensed to keep an ordinary or tavern, in 1670, at this place. It would probably be difficult to find, in the history of all the taverns that have existed in Massachusetts, another of which it can be said, as Judge Mitchell says of this original Howard House, that " He (John Howard), was licensed to keep an ordinary or tavern, as early as 1670, and it is remarkable that a public house has been kept there by his descendants ever since, till within a few years." This house was owned and managed by John Howard and his direct descendants for a period of 151 years. John Howard opened the tavern in 1670, and kept it 30 years, until his death in 1700. His oldest son, John, then became proprietor, conducting it 26 years, until 1726. His son, Maj. Edward, was proprietor from that date to 1771, for 45 years. His son, Col. Edward, owned and conducted the house for 38 years, from 1771 to 1809, when he d. Then his widow and son, Capt. Benjamin Beal Howard, kept the house open 12 years, until 1821. The house was taken down in 1838. A list of the distinguished guests of this tavern, could we know their names, would make exceeding interesting reading. Without doubt, one of the early distinguished visitors was Mary (Chilton) Winslow, (the first lady who came on shore from the Mayflower), who was grandmother of the wife of the second proprietor, John Howard. An occasional guest was John Reed, D. D., who was a member of congress during Washington's administration. Oakes Angier, a young lawyer, Hon. William Baylies and Judge Howard, were other prominent and frequent visitors. Lieut. Howard d. in 1700. His property was appraised in October, the next year. It consisted of about 450 acres of land, and his estate was valued at about 840 pounds. Following is a copy of the division of his estate and of that of his widow, who d. before 1703 pp2-3

The Howard Genealogy: Descendants of John Howard of Bridgewater, Massachusetts, from 1643 to 1903 Standard printing Company, Brockton, Ma  1903

To be continued.

MY PACKARD LINE

Starting next week in the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks series I'll be writing about  the family of my 4x great grandmother Cynthia (Packard)Dunham, wife of James Thomas Dunham. Cynthia is one of my ancestors who has relatives from both Plymouth and Essex Counties. On her father Reuben Packard's side she is descended from some of the founders of all three Bridgewater towns:Bridgewater, East Bridgewater, and West Bridgewater. These are towns only about ten miles away from where I live. In fact, I graduated from Bridgewater State College nearly fifty years ago.

On her mother Anne Perkins' side she is descended from prominent citizens of Ipswich, Beverley, and Salem.

Here's Cynthia's Packard line

The associated families are Edson, Fobes, Hayward, Howard,  and Keith who arrived in Massachusetts after the Great Migration so the line isn't as long as some of my other families.















I'll discuss the Perkins line in the next post.

BRIDGEWATER

I've mentioned the irony that before I began my genealogy
researching I didn't know that some of my ancestors lived in
nearby towns before they moved north to Oxford County,
Maine. I even attended college in one town, Bridgewater,
unaware that several ancestors were buried in a cemetery
not far away.


Bridgewater, Massachusetts was originally part of town of
Duxbury and at that time was known by the Indian name of
Nunkatateset. It broke off as Bridgewater in 1656. As is the
case with many of the original Massachusetts towns, over
the years various areas have broken away as new towns,
such as East Bridgewater, West Bridgewater, Abington,
Pembroke, Hanson, and Brockton(which was originally known
as North Bridgewater.) The main industry of the town
historically is brick making and it remains so today,
although the presence of Bridgewater State College,
Bridgewater Correctional Facility, and the Bridgewater
State Mental Hospital contribute greatly to the town
economy.


Of these the College is the most important. Founded by
Horace Mann in 1840 as the Bridgewater Normal School, it
was the first college established for the express purpose of
training teachers. Among its alumni are the founder of
Antioch College in Ohio and Edwin P. Seaver, ancestor of
Randy Seaver of Genea-Musings.


Bridgewater also is known for a number of strange and eerie
events which has resulted in the area known as the
Bridgewater Triangle. I've written a bit about that last
Halloween.


Bridgewater also boasts a few distinguished sons in sports:
Hall of FameDetroit Tiger catcher Mickey Cochrane and former
NFL linebackerJim Cheyunski.


My ties to the town and the other Bridgewaters, East and
West, are through my Edson, Keith, Packard, Howard and
Forbes lines.


Deacon Samuel Edson settled in Bridgewater circa 1646-1648
and built the first mill there. Earlier genealogies say he was
married to Susannah Orcutt but more recent researchers
dispute this and some say she was a Susannah Bickley. Both
are buried in the Old Graveyard in West Bridgewater.


Their daughter Susannah married the Rev. James Keith, the
minister of the church where Samuel Edson was deacon. His
parsonage was built in 1662 and is still standing, possibly the
oldest one in the United States. While researching this article
I found information that according to Wampanoag Indian
oral tradition, Rev. Keith pleaded for the lives of the son and
wife of the slain Indian leader King Philip when they were
captured. The Keiths are interred in the Old Graveyard as
well.


Their son Joseph married Elizabeth Forbes, daughter of
Edward Forbes and Elizabeth Howard.


Their daughter Jemima Keith married Deacon James
Packard. And their great granddaughter Cynthia Packard
married James Dunham in Hebron Maine(which is where I
connect with Chris Dunham!).

Finally, Cynthia and James' granddaughter married Philip
J. West.


I went to Bridgewater State College, and have driven through
East and West Bridgewater many times past places where
those ancestors lived and died. Now I'm planning to take my
camera and visit the cemeteries and the Keith Parsonage. I'll
be going to the other local towns that I have connections with
as well.

Who knows, maybe I'll find where my West ancestors lie
buried as well!