THE GENEALOGY ROADSHOW DEBUTS

One of the common critiques of the Who Do You Think You Are? program has
been the use of celebrities. I've often seen comments and posts from people
wishing that WDYTYA would do shows centered around "everyday" people.
Then last Spring PBS announced a new program, The Genealogy Roadshow,
that would do just that. It premiered Monday night.

The format is very much like its sister program The  Antiques Roadshow: there
are several longer segments involving interesting stories interspersed with
shorter segments.  Those longer segments included a few minutes of background
information on the historical figures  to whom people thought they might
be related, such as Davy Crockett and Jesse James.  Just as on Antiques Roadshow,
some theories were disproved and some were confirmed. Two experienced
genealogists, Kenyatta Berry and Joshua Taylor, did a great job of presenting
the evidence and conclusions reached by the show's researchers. Overall, I thought
the show was well done and enjoyable.

Not everyone in the online genealogy community agreed. Some complained there
were too many people covered and thought two or three cases for the hour would
be better. Others wanted more emphasis on showing the research process. And
others just plain out didn't like the whole format. I certainly didn't expect everyone
to like the show, so I wasn't surprised at most of the criticism, but there were a very few
whose remarks were over the line into nitpicking territory.

The Genealogy Roadshow is a limited run series with three more episodes yet to air.
Whether it gets renewed or not for a second season depends on the ratings and the
reception by the general public.  So while some genealogists want less emphasis on
confirming famous relatives and more on research methods, it's important for us
to remember that the show's future depends on its appeal to that general audience.
They want to be entertained, not educated about every step in genealogical research.
 If the show does its job and entertains it will prompt some viewers to begin their own
research, and that's where the education will begin for them

I'm looking forward to the rest of the first season and hope there will be more to come
for The Genealogy Roadshow.

THE BOOK OF ME, WRITTEN BY YOU 4: SUMMER MEMORIES

I'm taking  part in a meme started by Julie Goucher of Anglers Rest. Using
prompts from "The Book of Me, Written By You" I'm leaving my memories
of my life for present and future relatives. This week's prompt is:
 Favourite Season (s)

Why?

A Happy Memory.

I live in New England. Weather can change in a few minutes, and sometimes we
feel like we are having two or three seasons in one day. As I've grown older I've started
paying more attention to the weather and appreciate the part it plays in my life. But
if I have to pick a favorite season it would have to be Summer and the memories
attached to it.

I don't have many from my early childhood; my Summer memories start about the
time I was 8 years old, after we'd moved from Malden to Dorchester: playing wiffleball
in the alley between two triple decker apartment buildings or "Three Flies Out" bouncing
a pinkie ball off the cement steps of one of those buildings. (Cement gave you a better
bounce than wood steps.) Other times we'd flip baseball cards, or if it was raining I'd
play the "All Star Baseball" box game with Barry Solomon.  We'd walk to the store and
buy baseball cards, comic books, and penny candy. Summer evenings we'd wait for
Westy the Ice Cream Man to come around. He'd have the kids guess the "magic number"
and if you were right, you won a free ice cream. I liked the "drumstick" cones.

And when all else failed, there were three branches of the Boston Public Library for me
to visit and take out books, and I used all three. I had a paper route and I used my
newspaper bag when I'd go so I could carry some of the books in it while I started
reading one of the books while I walked. I'd visit  the three libraries once a week and
check out thee to six books from each, then have them read and returned in a week so
I could check out more.

Summer also meant visits to our cousin's cottage at Houghs Neck and the occasional
picnic at some state park whose name I can't recall. When the nights were really hot
our parents would take us down to park along the seawall at Wollaston Beach where'd
we sleep in the car until dad drove us home after midnight. And there were the trips
"up home" to Maine and New Hampshire to vist Dad's family.

We left Boston for Abington, a town to the south of the city, before I entered my
sophomore year in high school. Wiffle ball was now played in Paul Conant's backyard
instead of in the street. There was only one small library back then and  I spent afternoons
mowing the small front lawn and large backyard. We still didn't have air conditioning but
now the beach we visited at night was in Marshfield or Plymouth.

When I was in college I spent three of my summers as a camp counselor in Brewster down
on Cape Cod.  I wasn't a dorm student at school, so Camp Mitton was where I did the things I wouldn't dare do at home: it was where I first drank enough beer to pass out, and where I tried smoking pot. I disappointed my fellow counselors because pot didn't really seem to have much effect on me. I twas the late 1960's-early 1970's and whenever I hear some of the songs from that era I remember those camp days.

As I grew older I did what everyone else does:I got a job and Summers were just like any
other time of the year:I worked and if I was lucky I got a vacation, depending on where I
was working and how long I was working there. Summer as an adult does not hold any
of the sort of memories I have from my younger years.

Now I'm a "senior citizen" and retired, so I'm able to enjoy the warm weather and longer
hours of sunshine again.

Who knows? Maybe now I'll make some more Summer memories, 

THE BOOK OF ME, WRITTEN BY YOU 3: THE SKIN I'M IN.

I'm taking  part in a meme started by Julie Goucher of Anglers Rest. Using
prompts from "The Book of Me, Written By You" I'm leaving my memories
of my life for present and future relatives. This week's prompt is:
 Describe your physical self.

Your size – clothes size

Scars

Eye colour

Draw your hands

Finger Prints
Well, I'm not very artistic, so I'll skip the last two, but as for the rest:

I was a big baby when I was born, but as I grew older I was a tall skinny kid who
bruised easily. My Mom used to give me a tablespoon a day of something that
was supposed to help me gain weight and deal with iron poor blood. She'd had
some condition when she was a child herself that involved an iron deficiency
and part of the treatment was to eat liver several times a week. I think she was
worried I'd develop the same thing she'd had, and I remember we'd have fried
liver at least once a week when I was younger. I'd smother it in ketchup because
I didn't like the taste, and I've never eaten it since I reached adulthood.

I did take after Mom's side of the family physically though.  I was tall, skinny,
fair haired and fair skinned.  Unlike my dad who always tanned(his left arm
was darker from hanging out the driver's side of the car) I burned. I once had
a sunblister across my back from running around all day with my shirt off. I had
long arms and legs, which made it easy for me to reach under parked cars to
retrieve the rubber balls that had rolled under them when we were playing
"Three Flies Out".

Whatever that concoction was my Mom had given me when I was younger,
it must have been a time release mixture because I reached my teens and
BOOM, I started putting on weight.  And I didn't stop. By the time I reached
61 four years ago I was over 300 + pounds. I was wearing 2 and 3XL shirts
and size 54 waist pants.

Of course, that wasn't a very healthy thing to be and it all caught up with me
four years ago and resulted in two stays in the hospital.

Afterwards, I lost weight and actually dropped below 200 pounds for awhile
and was wearing size 38 pants. Since then I've gained back a little of what I lost

So today, I'm a 65 year old, 6 ft tall guy with graying blond hair and blue eyes.
I wear size 42 pants and Xl shirts and I'm hoping to get back down to that size
38 waist again. But I'm definitely never going back to the size 54.

JONATHAN ABBOT(T) AND THE ACADIANS

((This was first posted back in May of 2007. It's notable because
it helps me remember that is when I first came into contact with
a geneabuddy, Lucie LeBlanc Consentino. It's also given me an idea
for my Poetry Challenge entry. One of these days I will take a ride
up to Andover to see that powder horn!)) 


I mentioned in a post awhile back that I’d found a website with
an account of Acadian exiles who were sent to Andover, Ma. after
their expulsion from their Canadian homes. Some of them ended
up living for a time in a house owned by Jonathan Abbott, one of
my ancestors.

Twenty-six Acadian men women and children were sent to
Andover in February 1756 and the families of Germaine Landry
and his two sons-in-law Jacques Hebert and Charles Hebert were
placed in a vacant house owned by Jonathan:

“It was, however, a great annoyance to the Puritan farmer to
have these tenants,-- foreigners and Roman Catholics, quartered
near his own residence. But, as his descendants relate, the
Acadians completely conquered the prejudices of this family and
of the community and gained the good-will of all acquaintances.
They were industrious and frugal. The women worked in the
fields pulling flax and harvesting. They practised the rites of their
religion in an inoffensive manner and commended it by their
good conduct.”-HISTORICAL SKETCHES OF ANDOVER. by
Sarah Loring Bailey, 1880

Going by the dates I believe this Jonathan was the one born in
Andover 1Sept 1687 and who was married to Zerviah Holt.
According to Ms. Bailey the Acadians and the Abbotts parted on
friendly terms. The Landry and Hebert families eventually were
able to move to Quebec but apparently still had good feelings for
Jonathan Abbott for they sent him a token of their esteem in 1770:


“Two of them sent a souvenir to Mr. Abbot, which the family still
keep, a beautifully carved and polished powder-horn, made by
their own hands. It is inscribed:

"JONATHAN ABBOT
His horn made in Alenstown
April Ye 5 1770
I powder with my brother ball
Most hero-like doth conquer all."

It is embellished with figures of animals,-- a turtle, a deer, a fox,
dolphins, etc., and also with representations of armies fighting,
soldiers in uniform with muskets, sabre bayonet, (all the soldiers
with hair tied in queues hanging down behind), also artillery
men and field pieces.” (ibid)
There is an ironic twist to the tale of the powder horn. Germaine
Landry passed away two weeks after the date of the inscription on
18 Apr 1770.

In trying to research more for this post I found a website on the
history of Andover which has selections from a historical series
run by the Andover Townsman newspaper. One entry, entitled
“Deserted Farms” notes that:

“(3) Jonathan died just a month before the date on the powder
horn sent by the French Arcadias who had known the old man
and his son (4) Jonathan to be real friends”- Andover Townsman
13 Nov 1896
It’s an interesting tale but I don’t think it was all that warm
and fuzzy as the later accounts would make it. The
people of Andover had lost men in the Canadian
campaign to wounds or illness. The Acadians are
referred to in the records as “Jacky Bear”, “Charles
Bear”, and “Germaine Laundry” which could be
simple ignorance of French pronunciation or nicknames
given the refugees and since there were probably no
priests available nearby to perform Roman Catholic
Mass there were ceremonies to arouse the old anger at
Papists among the townsfolk.


Still, it’s nice to know that those distant Abbott relatives
were able to see past their differences and deal humanely
with the Acadians.


I had never heard that there had been French Canadian
prisoners in Massachusetts, let alone that one of my
distant ancestors had a more than casual acquaintance
with some. Lucie LeBlanc Consentino whose website
is where I first read about Jonathan Abbott and the
Acadians tells me that there were 2,000 deportees to
Massachusetts and others were sent to other of the
English colonies along the Atlantic coastline. Outside of
the poem “Evangeline” by Longfellow, I was taught
nothing about this episode in American history and I’m
not certain that the poem is even read by today’s kids.

My thanks to Lucie LeBlanc Consentino for letting me
make use of her research from her website and my
apologies for the delay in getting this done. By the
way, she is a distant relative of Germaine Landry and
his wife Cecile Forest as well as of Charles Hebert.
If you haven’t visited her website Acadian & French-Canadian
Ancestral Home I highly recommend that you do so.


I’m a bit rusty on writing long pieces and I hope I’ve
cited everything correctly. It’s taken me longer than
I wanted to finally write this, actually.

ANCESTRY.COM'S NEW MASS. VITAL RECORDS INDEXES: FINDING THE DEATH DATE OF MY GREAT GRANDMOTHER

Earlier today Randy Seaver posted "20th Century Massachusetts Vital Record Indexes New on Ancestry.com" on his Genea-Musings blog. After reading it, I went over to Ancestry to give them a try. I had never found a record of the death my maternal great grandmother Pauline (Offlinger)White, so decided to try a search for that.

I went to the search box for "Massachusetts, Death Index, 1901-1980" and entered
Pauline White's name. I know she'd been alive in the 1950's so for a year I entered
1960 and set a search parameter of + or - 20 years. I wasn't sure what town she had
died in, so I left it blank. I entered her maiden name, Offinger, as a keyword. This
is what the screen looked like before I hit the "Search" button:

What came up were these search results:

Only the first five were women named Pauline White.I started with the first name,
with a death date of 1957 in the city of Brockton. I clicked  "View Record" and this was
what I saw:

So, this told me that this Pauline White's death record was on page 473 in volume 34
in the Mass.Vital Records Books. But, was it MY Pauline White?. I clicked on the image
of the record in the upper right hand corner and saw this:

And there it was! Pauline White, with (Offinger) beside her name! It wasn't the first
name on the search results, but the second, who'd died in Boston in 1959. Her death
record can be found in volume 30, page 130. My great grandmother had survived my
great grandfather for twenty years after his death in 1939.

This will be a great help in filling in some blanks on that side of my family!

SATURDAY NIGHT GENEALOGY FUN: WHERE WERE THEY 150 YEARS AGO?

I'm late(yet again) on last Saturday's "Saturday Night Genealogy Fun" prompt
from Randy Seaver  over at Genea-Musings.   I'll explain why below. But first,
here's this week's prompt:
 
"Your mission, should you decide to accept it (cue the Mission Impossible! music) is to:

1)  Determine where your ancestral families were on 1 September 1863 - 150 years ago.

2)  List your ancestors, their family members, their birth and death years, and their residence location (as close as possible).  Do you have a photograph of their residence from about that time, and does the residence still exist?

3)  Tell us all about it in your own blog post, in a comment to this post, or in a Facebook Status or Google+ Stream post."


Now for that explanation on why I'm late(again).The thing is that I have some
information gaps for the generations living in September 1863.

On my Mom's side of the family, most of my ancestors were still living in Ireland,
Scotland, or Germany, and I have no record of where they were or might have been
in 1863. I haven't found much yet on my 2x great grandparents who were in this country, Patrick J White (1848- 1902) & Mary (Powers) White (1848-?) and their parents.
Part of the problem is the commonality of the Irish family names in a period
when Massachusetts was seeing a great influx of Irish immigrants.

Even on my Dad's side with all his family living in Maine and New Hampshire
there are a few missing a date of death, so I don't know if they were even alive
in 1863. In those cases I've left their names off this post. On the other hand, I
may have found evidence on the 1860 Census that my 2x great grandmother
Louisa A Richardson was working in a textile mill in Massachusetts in the years
before she married the widowed Jonathan Phelps West in 1865.

Anyway, here's what information I was able to find on the paternal side of my
family:

My 3x great grandmother Arvilla (Ames)West (1810-1907) was  a widow of one year,
her husband John Cutter West having died in 1862. She was living on the farm in
Upton, Maine with her son, my 2x great grandfather Jonathan Phelps West (1834-1917) who was also mourning the death of a spouse, his first wife Orpha (Reynolds)West, who'd died in the diphtheria epidemic of 1862 after only a few months of marriage.

My 2x great grandmother Louisa A Richardson(1837-1925)  may have been working
in a mill in Lowell, Ma.

My 2x great grandparents Asa F Ellingwood (1828-1921) and Florilla (Dunham) Ellingwood  (1832-1917)were living on a farm in Dummer, Coos, NH.

My 3x great grandparents Nathaniel Barker(1794-1884) & Huldah (Hastings) Barker (1798-1884) were living  on a farm in Albany, Oxford, Me. My 2x great grandparents Nathaniel S. Barker(1830-1884) & Lucy (Coburn)Barker(1842-1904) were living with them. My 3x great grandparents Amos Hastings Barker (1828-1907) & Betsy J(Moore)Barker (1842-1924) were also living in Albany, Oxford, Me on another farm.

3x great grandmother Hannah (Upton)Moore Emery (1814-1896) was also living on a farm in Albany, Upton, Me with her second husband, Peter Emery.

THE BOOK OF ME WRITTEN BY YOU 2: MY BIRTH

Last week I decided to take part in a meme started by Julie Goucher of Anglers Rest.
Using prompts from "The Book of Me, Written By You" I'm leaving my memories of my
life for present and future relatives.
This week's prompt (which are answered in a different order).:
   Prompt 2: Your Birth
    Do you have any baby photos?
    Where were you born?
    Who was present at your birth?
    Dimensions?
    What day was it? Time?
    Did you have hair? Eye colours
  

I was born in Boston at the Massachussets Osteopath Hospital on 20Aug 1948. It was a Friday night, and I believe my mother told me it was nearly midnight when I was born. I don't know the exact measurements except that I was over 8 pounds at birth, and that I had blond hair and blue eyes. My Dad was at the hospital in the waiting room. One of the things my Mom saved were the telegrams that accompanied the flowers that were sent to her by my Dad and by her mother and brother:

I have a baby picture around here somewhere that I haven't scanned yet. But here's one
of me at about a year old, taken at Hough's Neck in Quincy, Ma.  One the left is our cousin
Margy(McCue)Boyd, on the right is my Mom(whose hair was red), and the chubby guy in the middle was me.

NAMING PATTERNS:THE J.P.'S & THE P.J.'S

Today is the 206th wedding anniversary of my 4x greart grandparents Jonathan Phelps
Ames and Polly Griffith. Besides the personal significance of that happy event(I would
not be here if they hadn't married), it's also significant for setting up a naming pattern
in my family.

Jonathan was the son of John Ames and Lydia Phelps.

Jonathan and Polly's daughter Arvilla Ames married my 3x great grandfather John
Cutter West.

They named their fourth child Jonathan Phelps West(my 2x great grandfather).

Jonathan Phelps West married Lousia Amata Richardson, daughter of Philip Richardson
and Esther Laughton. They named their second child Philip Jonathan West in honor of both their fathers. He was my great grandfather.

The name then skips two generations until my younger brother was born. He's named
Philip John West after our great grandfather.

And his oldest son is Philip J West, Jr!

Do you have a story about how names have been passed down in your family?

THE WEST BROTHERS

After that long series on the Newbury, Ma. church dispute I want to do some
writing on topics that might not demand so many posts. Luckily I have some
ideas. For one thing, I've had the probate files for my 2x great granduncles
Asa Atwood and Hiram Ferdinand West to transcribe. I was thinking about
when I realized I could also post a few pictures here of the West brothers.

My 2x great grandfather Jonathan Phelps West was the fourth of eleven
children born to John Cutter West and Arvilla (Ames) West. He was also
the third out of six sons. Unfortunately, I have no photos of three of them:

Oldest son Asa Atwood West, about whom I have some information;

Third child John C.West. The middle name might have been Cutter, in
which case he would have been John C West, Jr.  He died young, at age
eighteen. The only record I've been able to find of him online is his listing
with the rest of the family on the 1850 Census.

Sixth son and youngest of the eleven children David Pingree West. He and
his sisters Arvilla and Ruth died during a diphtheria outbreak in 1862.

The other three brothers that I have photos of:

My 2x great grandfather Jonathan Phelps West:

Fourth brother Hiram Ferdinand West:

Fifth son and ninth child Leonidas West, shown here with his wife Valora Abbott.
 He is the only West in our family to have taken his name seriously and move West,
first to Minnesota and then Washington state:

I think Hiram and Leonidas look quite dashing. I'd like to think that
underneath all those whiskers, 2x great grandfather Jonathan was equally
as dashing!

I'll be posting Hiram and Asa's probate files soon. 

SATURDAY NIGHT GENEALOGY FUN: THE BLOGGERS GENEAMEME

I'm a day late for this week's Saturday Night Genealogy Fun from
Randy Seaver over at Genea-Musings but I'm taking a shot at it
anyway.

Here's this week's Challenge:

1) Read Jill Ball's post The Bloggers GeneaMeme on her Geniaus blog.

2)  Copy the questions into your own blog post, or into a word processing document, and answer the questions.

3)  Write your own blog post with the questions and answers.  Be sure to share a link to your blog post with Jill and as a comment on this post

1.What are the titles and URLs of your genealogy blog/s?
    West in New England
    The Old Colony Graveyard Rabbit

2. Do you have a wonderful "Cousin Bait" blog story? A link to a previous blog post might answer this question.
Probably how my blog put me in touch with cousins from my maternal grandfather's
side of  my family. After my grandparents' divorce there had been no contact with them. 
I wrote about it in MEETING MY WHITE FAMILY COUSINS 

3. Why did you start blogging? Is there someone who inspired you to start blogging?
I started blogging after I'd discovered blogs by Christopher Dunham and Timothy
Abbott, who it turned out are my cousins. It dawned on me this might be a good way   to find more relatives and at the same time share the history of my family.  

4. How did you decide on your blog/s title/s?
Well, I had a last name that's a compass direction. West of New England was a
no-brainer. For the second blog, the area of Massachusetts is known as the Old Colony
so again, a no-brainer. 

5. Do you ever blog from mobile devices? What are they?
    No.

6. How do you let others know when you have published a new post?
    I post links on G+, Facebook, and Twitter.

7. How long have you been blogging?
    Since January of 2007.

8. What widgets or elements do you consider essential on a genealogy blog?
    Email moderation to cut down on spamming.

9. What is the purpose of your blog/s? Who is your intended audience?
    My purpose of West in New England is to tell the story of my ancestors
    and hopefully make contact with relatives.
     The Old colony Graveyard Rabbit blog's purpose is to showcase the cemeteries
   of Southeastern Massachusetts.

10. Which of your posts are you particularly proud of?
    Two from the first year. AGGIE, about my maternal grandmother and ORPHA,
    about my 2x great grandfather's first wife.

11. How do you keep up with your blog reading?
     The Old Reader

12. What platform do you use for publishing your blog/s?
     Blogger, with a mirror site at Wordpress.

13.What new features would you like to see in your blogging software?
     Can't think of any, but I'm not a techie.

14. Which of your posts has been the most popular with readers?
     A blogpost last year on the cancellation of "Who Do You Think You Are?"

15. Are you a sole blogger or do you contribute to a shared blog?
     I am The Lone Blogger.

16. How do you compose your blog posts?
     Verrrry slowly. Seriously, I write them first in Wordpad and then cut & paste
     them into Blogger.

17. Do you have any blogs that are not genealogy related? If you wish please share their titles and URLs.
     Yes, a blog about books, West of the Moon, but I haven't posted there much. 

18. Have you listed your blog/s at Geneabloggers?
     Yes.

19. Which resources have helped you with your blogging?
      GoogleBooks

20. What advice would you give to a new Geneablogger?
     Have fun with it, and keep at it. It's like riding a bike. The more you write,
     the easier it becomes to write.

THE BOOK OF ME 1: WHO AM I?

Julie Goucher of the Anglers Rest blog has started a weekly series of
writing prompts called The Book of Me, Written By You. Basically it's
a way for those of us who write about our ancestors to write about ourselves
and our  memories.

Week 1 is Who Am I?  I have to ask that question 20 times and come up
with at least 20 different answers. It's an exercise in how I see my self.
 I came up with 22.

So......
Who am I?
I am...

A rock & roll dinosaur.
A bird watcher
A photographer
A reader
A book lover
A science fiction & fantasy fan (in all formats)
A New Englander
A lifelong resident of Massachusetts.
A medieval & ancient history geek.
A fan of Celtic, folk, and medieval music.
A white-knuckled driver on highways.
A night owl.
A liberal Kennedy Democrat.
A bachelor
A former bookseller
A former garment worker
An  oldest child
A historian
A genealogist
A writer
Still learning.
Retired

TROUBLE IN PARADISE PT 11

Despite his many letters to neighboring churches looking for support, Edward
Woodman's campaign to dismiss Rev. Thomas Parker from the ministry of
the Newbury church never succeeded. It seems rather odd because his position
on church governance was solidly in line with the Congregational majority of
the Massachusetts colony and Rev. Parker was one of only two ministers that
had Presbyterian views. But there were some things that may have caused
Woodman's failure.

One might have been the man himself. His outbursts against Rev. Parker verged
on the personal and Rev. Parker was well regarded by his fellow clergymen even if
they didn't agree with him. Also, the maneuver to oust Parker that divided the
Newbury parishioners would probably not have been something the other ministers
in the colony would want to see repeated.  Finally, Rev. Parker had important
family connections. His nephew Rev. John Woodbridge was the son in law of the
late Gov. Thomas Dudley.

But Woodman did win one concession: upon the recommendation of another
council of churches, John Woodbridge resigned his position as his uncle's assistant
in 1672 and became town magistrate instead. By this time, both Parker and Woodman
were in their seventies. Parker was going blind and John Richardson was hired
to  assist him. When Rev. Parker died in 1677, Richardson became the next minister
of the Newbury church. Time had succeeded where Edward Woodman had failed.
Within two generations, families that had been on opposite sides of the split
in the church would see their grandchildren marry.

I am the descendant of several of those marriages

Most of what I've found online about the split in the Newbury Church seems to favor
Edward Woodman as a champion of Congregationalist principles. The website for
the First Parish Church of Newbury describes it as a victory for Congregationalism
democracy of a "clerical invasion". With all due respect to the church, it's somewhat
difficult for a minister to "invade" a church he had established in the first place. But as
I said in the start of this series of posts, I am not concerned with the theological
aspects of the dispute.

I'm grateful it happened, though, because I learned something of what my ancestors
believed about their religion.

TROUBLE IN PARADISE PT10

When April 1671 came around, it brought yet another go-round in Court between the
Parker and Woodman factions. In this case two of the Parker supporters, Richard
Kent and Daniel Pierce presented the case against Edward Woodman and several
others. They named Archelaus Woodman(Edward's half-brother), Caleb Moody,
William Titcomb, Richard Bartlett, Samuel Plumer, and Stephen Greenleaf as
being "...guilty of promoting the disturbance of the church".
-A Sketch of the History of Newbury, Newburyport, and West Newbury, from 1635 
to 1845,  by Joshua Coffin & Joseph Bartlett  (Sameul G Drake, Boston, 1845) p91

Parker faction members gave testimony about Woodman's disruptive behavior:

TESTIMONY of Abiel Somerby. 'December 19, 1670. In the school house Mr. Woodman expressing himself highly, Mr. Parker said, soft, sir, your ways are ungodly, you neglect publick worship and withdraw from the communion of the church. Mr. Woodman said Mr. P.'s ways were ungodly. After further discourse Mr. Woodman began to call for witness of what Mr. Parker said. I said, Mr. Woodman, vou said Mr P.'s ways were ungodly, and therefore it is but quid pro quo. Who is that that saith so, Biel? I answered, you, sir. He broke forth with a strange expression, the Lord help us, or the Lord have mercy on us. A man had need to have a care what he speaks before such men.

Sworn to March twenty-eighth, 1671. 'I Abiel Somerby was present when my father in law Richard Knight asked Mr. Woodman for the church book. Mr. Woodman said that he would not let it go till the church sends for it. My father Knight said that Mr. Parker and the church had voted that he should come to fetch it. Mr. Woodman answered I do utterly disown such a church. My father Knight said, is this your answer? Mr. Woodman said yes, that is my answer, only I think you do very sinfully to hold with such a church. Sworn to April eighteenth, 1671.
 
'Henry Jaques affirmeth that on January twenty-ninth, 1671 when Mr. Woodman desired the church to stay, that he stayed, but it was not to joyne with them, and speaking to Mr. Woodman he said he thought it unreasonable that Mr. Woodman should desire a church meeting to deal with Mr. Parker, when there was more need for him to be dealt withal for his offences. He also affirmeth that he heard Mr. Woodman publickly affirm that Mr. Parker had broken three covenants already, and that no covenant would stand before him.
Sworn to, April eighteenth, 1671.

'Deposition of Tristram Coffin and John Knight.
'On the sixth of February in a publick meeting in the meeting house Mr. Woodman affirmed that when he went to deal with Mr. Parker according to rale and two brethren with him, that Mr. Parker refused to hear him, and told him his ways were ungodly. Tristram Coffin said, sir, you delude the people for those words were spoken the nineteenth of December on another account and it was that day fortnight that Mr. Woodman with others went to deal with Mr. Parker. Swom March twenty-eighth 1671.'
-Ibid pp98-99.

Of course there were statements and counter-charges made by Woodman, but for the
first time, the Court took a firm position as to who was to blame for ther uproar in
Newbury and decided that the Woodman group was ".... guilty of very great misdemeanors, though in different degrees, deserving severe punishment....the said Mr. Woodman and party adhering to him to pay the several lines under written with the charge of the witnesses and fees of court, and that they all stand committed till the said fines, charges and fees be satisfied and paid." - Ibid pp99-100

This is the list of those fined. My ancestors and relatives are in red:
"'Mr. Edward Woodman, twenty nobles. Mr. Richard Dummer, Richard Thorlay, Stephen Greenleaf, Richard Bartlet and William Titcomb four nobles each. Francis Plumer, John Emery senior, John Emery junior, John Merrill and Thomas Browne a mark each.f Nicholas Batt, Anthony Morse senior, Abraham Toppan, William Sawyer, Edward Woodman junior, William Pilsbury. Caleb Moody, John Poor senior, John Poor junior, John Webster, John Bartlet senior, John Bartlet junior.Joseph Plumer, Edward Richardson, Thomas Hale junior, Edmund Moores, Benjamin Lowle, Job Pilsbury, John Wells, William Ilsley, James Ordway, Francis Thorla, Abraham Merrill, John Bailey, Benjamin Rolf, Steven Swett, and Samuel Plumer. a noble each.' Robert Coker and William Moody were not fined. The whole number is forty-one.'
-Ibid p100

A footnote on the page says that :
"A noble is six shillings and eight-pence,
 A mark is thirteen shillings and fourpence." 

So twenty nobles was a hefty fine.

This setback didn't deter Edward Woodman, who carried on his opposition to Rev.
Parker through a campaign of appeals to other churches for their support of his
faction. But thankfully, the dispute was nearing an end.

To be continued.

TROUBLE IN PARADISE PT9

Not surprisingly, the matter of the Rev, Thomas Parker's removal by the
Woodman faction eventually ended up in the colonial court.  It's a good thing
that this and the earlier chapters of the dispute were taken to court, because
otherwise the documents would have been completely lost. Many of the early
records of the Newbury Church were destroyed in a fire. So thanks to the court
we have the text of Rev.Parker's reply to those who were trying to dismiss him
from the church he had founded. He was not about to meekly give in:

"....Once more I earnestly desire you to consider yourselves, and not go on in
such irregular courses, which though you seem to justify yourselves in, yet assuredly
will prove evil in the end. Do not thinke it a light matter to break the unity and peace
of the church, hinder the edification of the church, cast contempt on the ministry, grieve
your pastor and brethren, give offence to other churches, and bring up an evil report
and cast reproach upon the government of the churches here, and once more I entreat
you to think of some way of reconciling our differences, which we think will only be by consenting with us to call a regular council, resolving to submit to their advice. If we
cannot prevail with you by this motion, we shall be forced to consider what courses
shall be taken to defend ourselves, and blame us not for using any lawful meanes
whereby we redress your sin and our distractions.
 
Thomas Parker"
-A Sketch of the History of Newbury, Newburyport, and West Newbury, from 1635 
to 1845,  by Joshua Coffin & Joseph Bartlett  (Sameul G Drake, Boston, 1845)
pp83-84

This was sent on March 16, 1670. Three days later, on March 19th, Rev. Parker held a
meeting with those in the congregation who supported him.  As a result, the following
decision was reached:

"...In consideration of which premises (to mention no more) we the pastor and brethren of the church of Newbury, in the name and fear of the Lord Jesus Christ in way of defence of his poor flock here that they may not be left as sheep without a shepherd, and in vindicating the honor of our Lord Jesus Christ and his ordinances, not knowing any other regular way left according to the rule of the scripture, than to withdraw from them, who walk inordinately and cause division; we do hereby declare that for the future we do renounce communion with all those brethren that have so deeply violated the communion of Christ's church, nor shall we accept them as regular members of the church of Christ among us till God shall give them a mind to see and heart to acknowledge and confess their great offences, which we earnestly desire of him to grant through Jesus Christ."
-ibid p.85

On another document is the following list of those supporting Rev. Parker.The
names in red are my ancestors:
 
Names of those, who adhered to Mr. Parker and did not act in Mr. Parker's
sentence:

Richard Dole.
John Kent.
Thomas Hale, senior.
John Knight, senior.
James Jackman.
Daniel Pierce, junior.
Nicholas Noyes.
Thomas Turvill.
Captain William Gerrish.
Tristram Coffin.
Nathaniel Clark.
Captain Paul White.
William Morse.
Jonathan Morse.
Abel Huse.
John Davis.
James Kent.
Richard Kent.
Richard Knight.
John Kelly.
Robert Long.
Henry Short, senior.
Samuel Moody.
Henry Jaques.
Robert Adams.
Joseph Muzzky.
William Chandler.
Mr. Richard Lowle.
Anthony Somerby.
Abiel Somerby.
Mr. Henry Sewall.
George Little.

Thirty-two regular members.

Mr. Joseph Hills.
Daniel Pierce, senior.
James Smith.
Mr. John Woodbridge.
Richard Pettingell.
John Smith.

Though no members"

-ibid p86


At this point it would seem the Newbury Church was irrevocably split. Amazingly,
it wasn't. A council of ministers and elders from nine neighboring towns tried once
more to bring the two sides together, and an agreement was reached.

It lasted for a year.

To be continued.

TROUBLE IN PARADISE: PT 8

As I noted in the previous post, the verdict of the Court held at Ispwich was
not unanimous; two of the judges, Samuel Symonds and William Hathorne
dissented and issued their own opinion. In part it said:

"That several words and passages in the writing or complaint presented to the court
and owned by himself or proved by others, especially taken merely in themselves
without his answer and the testimony of others then present, are highly offensive
and scandalous. But considering his answers and the testimony together with the
same, we find the matter to be much altered from what the naked words as they are expressed in the writing do hold forth. We perceive that a great part (if not a greater
part) of that church doe stand for the congregational way of church government and discipline to be exercised amongst them (which is the way the churches here doe
professe to the whole world to be the way and only way according to the gospel of
Christ,) and that it is and hath been for a long time a very great burthen and grievance
to them, that they have not freedom in that respect, (where there is occasion of actings)
as by the word of God they ought to have, and other churches have in this country, and
at the beginning their own church also quietly did enjoy for some space of time, and
that the alteration hath occasioned much differences and unquietudes amongst them."
-A Sketch of the History of Newbury, Newburyport, and West Newbury, from 1635 
to 1845,  by Joshua Coffin & Joseph Bartlett  (Sameul G Drake, Boston, 1845) p76


So the court, like the Newbury church was divided, and while Edward Woodman was chastised for his behavior, he and his followers could point to the dissenting opinion
that their position was correct.

Later that same year, in November 1669, a council of churches from the  nearby towns
was called to mediate between the two sides. The ruling of the council is in language
so convoluted I won't even attempt to explain it. Suffice it to say that it didn't resolve
the problem, and a few months later it surfaced again when a church member named
John Webster read a statement after a church service criticizing Rev. Parker. Again
the case was brought to Court but neither side was satisfied with the outcome.

Finally, two weeks later, Edward Woodman and his followers decided to take matters
into their own hands:

'The church having seriously considered of the complaint brought to us by Mr. Woodman against our reverend pastor, master Parker and do judge it clearly proved by sufficient evidences, and much of it known to our selves to be true, do judge that you have been instrumental of the divisions and troubles, that have a long time [been] and still are, continued in this church, partly by your change of opinion and practice and several times breaking promises and covenants or agreements with the church, and other things contained in the complaint, therefore we cannot but judge you worthy of blame, and do hereby blame you, and for the restoring of peace to the church we are enforced, though with great grief of heart, to suspend you from acting any thing that doth appertain to your office, in administring seals and sacraments, or matters of government as an officer, until you have given the church satisfaction therewith. We do desire and admonish you in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ speedily to endeavour that God may have his glory by it and the hearts of your grieved brethren in the church may be comforted and in the mean time as a gifted brother you may preach for the edification of the church if you please. Your loving but afflicted brethren of the church of Newbury. Signed by us in behalf of the church.

Richard Dummer.
Richard Thorla.
'March sixteenth, 1670.
 'This was brought to Mr. Parker by Archelaus Woodman, William Titcomb,
Richard Bartlet and Samuel Plumer, and Samuel Plumer read it.'

Witnesses.
Richard Knight. Anthony Somerby.
Nicholas Noyes, Samuel Lowle,

'After sunset William Titcomb, Stephen Titcomb, Stephen Greenleaf, Richard Bartlet and Caleb Moody came with a message to Mr. Parker and told him they were sent from the church to give him notice that the church had chosen two ruling elders, namely, Mr. Dummer and Mr. Woodman, and they were to send to the two neighbouring churches to join with them to ordain them upon this day sevennight. Witnesses to the message of the church, captain Gerrish. Richard Knight, Nicholas Noyes, John Knight, senior, Mr. Woodbridge and Anthony Somerby.'

'We whose names are here underwritten do consent to the writing, which do declare an act of the church laying Mr. Parker under blame, and suspending him from all official acts in the church. Dated sixteenth of March, 1670.

Me. Richard Dummer.    
Mr. Edward Woodman.
Archelaus Woodman.
William Moody.
William Ilsley.
Francis Plumer.
William Titcomb.
John Emery, senior.
John Emery, junior.
Richard Thorla.
John Merrill.
Francis Thorla.
Edmund Moores.
Stephen Greenleaf.
Thomas Browne.
Abraham Merrill.
Benjamin Lowle.
Richard Bartlet.
Samuel Plumer.
Josefh Plumer.
Thomas Hale, junior.

John Bailey                                                                
Job Pilsbury.
Steven Swett.
Benjamin Rolf.
John Wells.
Nicholas Batt.
Abraham Tot-van.
Anthony Mors, senior.
William Sawyer.
Edward WooDMAN.junior.
William Pilsbury.
Caleb Moody.
John Poore, senior.
John Poore, junior.
John Webster.
Robert Cokee.
John Bartlet, senior.
John Bartlet, junior.
Edward Richardson.
James Ordway.
41.'
- ibid. pp82-83

The names in red are my ancestors and relatives.

Forty one church members had decided to remove Reverend Parker. How would
he and his supporters respnd to this move?

To be continued.

TROUBLE IN PARADISE PT7

There other statements concerning Edward Woodman's outburst about
Reverend Thomas Parker and also the exchange of words with my ancestor
William Gerrish. Again, several of my ancestors were involved, and I've
used red on their names:

The following depositions were also taken and put on file:

'The deposition of James Ordway, Abraham Merrill, and John Bayley.'

'These deponents say that when Mr. Woodman saith that Mr. Parker was the occasion of these contentions by his apostacy and declension (he added) from the principles that you have preached and practised, and also proved by the word of God, that men's consciences were engaged in it that they cannot depart from it unto this day.'

'Sworn in court, the thirtieth of March, 1669.' 'Richard Bartlet, James Ordway, and John Emery.'

'We testify that Mr. Parker in a public meeting said that for the time to come I am resolved nothing shall be brought into the church, but it shall be brought first to me, and if I approve of it, it shall be brought in, if I do not approve it, it shall not be brought in.'

Sworn as above.

'The depositions of John Emery, senior, John Emery, junior, Abraham Merrill, and John Bayley.'

'These deponents say that as Mr. Woodman was speaking in the meeting-, March first, 1669, captain Gerrish stood up and interrupted him, mentioning his gray hairs. Mr. Woodman said, captain Gerrish, my gray hairs will stand in any place where your bald head will stand.'

Sworn as above.

'The deposition of William Titcomb, John Emery, Robert Coker and Thomas Browne.'

'These deponents say that upon the Lord's day, the twenty-first of March, 1669, after the exercise was ended, Mr. Parker put this to the members.That those that are for the discontinuance of my cousin Woodbridge in the way of preaching, as formerly he hath done until farther order be taken, let them speak.

'Afterwards Mr. Parker expressed thus, those that are for the continuance of my cousin Woodbridge in the way of preaching as formerly he hath done let them express themselves by their silence.'

Sworn, and so forth -
 A Sketch of the History of Newbury, Newburyport, and West Newbury, from 1635 
to 1845,  by Joshua Coffin & Joseph Bartlett  (Sameul G Drake, Boston, 1845) p74

I get a kick out of that "and so forth". Edward Woodman sent a statement to the court to refute the accusations but it didn't help his case.  

 'March 30th, 1669. Having heard the complaint presented to this court against Mr. Edward Woodman we do judge some passages relating to Mr. Parker and Mr. Woodman to be false and scandalous, and that concerning captain Gerrish reproachful and provoking, and the whole greatly offensive, and have therefore ordered that the said Mr. Woodman shall be seriously and solemnly admonished and enjoined to make a publique confession at the next publique town and church meeting at Newbury of his sinful expressions and just offence that he hath given, or else to pay five pounds costs and fees.

'I dissent from this sentence, Samuel Symonds.

'And I dissent, William Hathorne.-ibid pp74-75

At this point it would seem that the issue was settled, but those two dissenting votes would be the basis for the continued division of the Newbury church.

TROUBLE IN PARADISE PT6

When the church in Newbury, Ma, was first established, Rev, Parker was
assisted by another minister, the Rev, James Noyse, who shared Parker's
Presbyterianism viewpoint. However,  Noyes died in 1656 and was eventually
replaced in 1663 by John Woodbridge, Rev, Parker's nephew. This seemed to
fan the flames of discontent among  those who agreed with Edward Woodman
about how the church should be run, to say nothing about how it angered
Woodman himself. It all finally broke out into the open and ended up in court
in 1669:

'To the honored court now sitting at Ipswich, March thirtieth, 1669.'

'We whose names are underwritten, for ourselves and others the inhabitants
of Newbury, doe humbly present, though to our great grief, that Mr. Edward
Woodman spake in a town assembly before strangers publiquely on March first,
1669, that Mr. John Woodbridge was an intruder, brought in by craft and subtilty,
and so kept in, notwithstanding he was voated out twice, which we know to be
untrue, and look upon as scandalous. Also he said to Mr. Parker that he was an
apostate and backslider from the truth, that he would set up a prelacy, and have
more power than the pope, for the pope had his council of cardinals, that his
practice or actings did not tend to peace or salvation, that he was the cause of
all our contention and misery. That you are an apostate and backslider.'
A Sketch of the History of Newbury, Newburyport, and West Newbury, from 1635  to 1845,  by Joshua Coffin & Joseph Bartlett  (Sameul G Drake, Boston, 1845) p74

It was apparently at this point that my ancestor Captain William Gerrish spoke
out against Woodman. We don't have a record of what Gerrish said, but we do
have one of how Woodman replied:

'Also he said to captain Gerrish that he was no lover of the truth, that his 
gray hairs would stand where captain Gerrish his bald pate would, all which
we humbly conceive tends not only to the reproach of the parties concerned, 
but to the great disturbance of our peace both civil and ecclesiastical, and 
therefore leave it to the serious consideration of this honored court for some 
suitable redress as they shall think meet.
Richard Kent. 
Henry Short.
Anthony Somerby

Witnesses:
Nicholas Noyes. .
Ensign John Knight.
Tristram Coffin.
Thomas Hale, senior.
Joseph Muzzey.
Nathaniel Clarke.'
Ibid p74

So, thanks to the Newbury Church dispute nearly 350 years ago, I now know
that my 9x great grandfather William Gerrish was bald at the age of 52 in
the year 1669!

To be continued.

TROUBLE IN PARADISE PT5

It's taken me longer to get around to continuing to write about the church
conflict in Newbury than I thought it would. It's a complicated issue and as
I said in the first post in the series, my understanding of the Protestant
theological issues is woefully inadequate. My intention is to concentrate on
the part my ancestors played in the argument but I do feel the need to provide
a bit of background information.

At the head of the two factions in the Newbury church were two men: Reverend
Thomas Parker and merchant Edward Woodman. Reverend Parker had been
part of the original party of settlers who founded Newbury and his influence can
still be seen there today. The river that flows by the town is named the Parker
River in his honor, and it is believed the town itself is named after a town in
England where Rev. Parker had taught before coming to the colony. Edward
Woodman was likewise an early settler of the town and had done very well for
himself in business. The differences between the two men lay in their views
about how the church should be governed.

The Reverend Parker in the Presbyterian viewpoint, that a church was best
led most effectively by a council of church elders. This made the Newbury church
one of only two Presbyterian churches in the colony, the other being in  the town
of Hingham south of Boston. The rest of the sites practiced Congregationalism, in
which church problems and policies were dealt with by the votes of the entire
church, and Edward Woodman wanted the church to be run on this principle. The
disagreement between the two sides was so contentious that the churches of
neighboring towns as well as the colonial government tried to mediate it.

At its height, there were long-winded letters with charges and counter-charges
flying back and forth from both sides. I'm surprised that any work at all got
done on those occasions. To be honest, I don't understand a lot of the points
that were being made. So I'll stick with those instances that involve my ancestors.

I'll begin in the next post in the series about an incident involving (once again)
my ancestor William Gerrish, among others.

ANNOUNCING THE FIFTH ANNUAL GREAT GENEALOGY POETRY CHALLENGE!

It's time to start thinking about the Fifth Annual Great Genealogy Poetry
Challenge!

Wow, I can't believe it's been five years since the first one.

This year I'm really giving everyone a lot of lead time.  As in the past , I'll
be posting the links to the submissions on Thanksgiving Day, which this
year falls on Thursday, November 27th. Deadline for submissions will be
a week before, on Thursday, November 20th. That gives everyone three
months from today to find (or write) and share their poem or song. If you
find one long before that deadline, you can post it on your blog now if you
wish, just don't forget to send me the link to it before November 20th!
    
These are the Challenge rules:

1. Find a poem by a local poet, famous or obscure, from the region
one of your ancestors lived in. It can be about an historical event, a
legend, a person, or even about some place (like a river)or a local
animal. It can even be a poem you or one of your ancestors have written!
0r if you prefer, post the lyrics of a song or a link to a video of someone
performing the song.

2. Post the poem or song to your blog (remembering to cite the source
where you found it.)

3.Tell us how the subject of the poem or song relates to your ancestor's
home or life, or the area of the country where they lived.

4.Submit your post's link here to me by midnight Thursday, November 20th
and I'll publish all links to the entries on Thanksgiving Day, November 27th!

If  you submit a humorous poem or song that will be entered under the
"Willy Puckerbrush" division. Willy was the late geneablogger Terry
Thornton's alias for some humorous posts and comments.

There you have it, and with three months to work with, I'm hoping that gives
everyone plenty of time to take part this year!

FROM DEFERENCE TO DEFIANCE BY ROGER THOMPSON

I've been blessed with a lot of information on many of my New England
ancestors. Now, this is a very good thing but the problem with that is that
I haven't gotten much work done on those ancestors for whom I don't have
much information. And the further back in time I am researching, the harder
it is to find and  like the dog in the movie Up! I'm easily distracted by finding
the "shineys".  Some of the families I haven't done much work on  include
those that originally settled in Charlestown, Ma. before branching out to
the west and north of Boston.

Last Thursday I saw Marian Pierre-Louis' guest on that day on her  Fieldstone Common Blogtalk Radio show would be Roger Thompson, the author of
From Deference to Defiance Charlestown, Massachusetts  1629-1692 and
I hoped I might learn more about my Charlestown ancestors.  It was a
very interesting hour, and when Marian offered a copy of Roger's book to
the first caller,  I called in with a question and won the book. It arrived
here Tuesday, and when I opened it I found it was graciously autographed
by Roger.

But that wasn't the best part.

I had run a list on RootsMagic6 of my Charlestown ancestors to check against the
names in the index but before I got that far I found three  with chapters in the
Table of Contents. The first was Stephen Fosdick(whose name has always conjured
up the image of Fearless Fosdick in my mind). He was one of the first settlers of
Charlestown and he is my 11x great grandfather through his descendant Arvilla Ames
who married John Cutter West.

Another chapter concerns the family of  my 10x grandfather Robert Long and his
son Zachary. I had never heard of the Three Cranes Inn before nor of its connection
with the Long family.

A third chapter contains two letters written by Arrald (Dunnington)Cole. She and her
husband Rhys Cole are my 10x grandparents as well. Both my Long and Cole descents
are through through my 2x great grandmother Florilla Dunham.

I'll be blogging more about them and what else I learn from Roger's book in future
blogposts. But if you have ancestors from Charlestown, you should get a copy for
yourself! It's available in paperback for 27.95 from the New England Historical
Genealogical Society.  And if you want to hear the show with Marian and Roger,
you can download the podcast here at Fieldstone Common.