USA > Massachusetts > Bristol County > Rehoboth > Early Rehoboth, documented historical studies of families and events in this Plymouth colony township, Volume III > Part 24
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28
"Witnessed: Jonathan Fuller Noah Mason Jonathan Wright and a Seal
"Acknowledged on June 28th 1684 by Jonathan Wright before Daniell Smith, Assistant.'
[Plymouth Colony Deeds (1686-1697), vol. V, pt. II, pp. 281, 282].
Capt. George Wright's deed of his Rehoboth lands to his son Jonathan is dated at Flushing, Long Island, on 2 Feb. 1683/4. On 25 June 1684 the deed is recorded at Providence by Town Clerk Thomas Olney. Two days later, probably at Rehoboth, Jonathan Wright deeds the property to John Doged, in the presence of two Rehoboth witnesses, Jonathan Fuller and Noah Mason. The fol- lowing day the instrument is acknowledged at Rehoboth by Daniel Smith, Assistant. The element of time was apparently important and seems to have been carefully worked out.
A study of these two deeds shows that Capt. George Wright was a much larger 1647 landowner in Rehoboth than the original Rehoboth records indicate. The 1647 land sale to John Doged included about thirty-three acres, less than half of Captain Wright's actual holdings. The surprising thing is that the Plymouth Colony magistrates didn't confiscate this remaining Rehoboth property.
This deed proves conclusively that the Jonathan Wright who was living 27 June 1684, in Flushing, Queen's County, Long Island, New York, was the eldest son of Capt. George Wright, formerly of
149
Captain George Wright
Rehoboth, and not the Jonathan,2 born possibly at Flushing, son of Jonathan1 Wright who was born in co. Essex, England, in 1620, and came to New England in the ship Safety in 1635, as stated by James E. Norton (1916) in The Norton-Lathrop-Tolles-Doty American Ancestry, etc.
23 Mar. 1685-The first patent granting the lands at Flushing, made by Gov. Wm. Kieft in 1645, was confirmed by Governor Nicol, by patent in February 1666, and was again confirmed by Governor Dongan, by patent dated 23 Mar. 1685. The freeholders named in the last of said patents were: "Elias Doughty, Thos. Willett, John Bowne, Matthias Harvey, Thos. Hicks, Richard Cornwell, John Hickman, Jonathan Wright, and Samuel Hoyt" [Patents, vol. I, p. 64; vol. V, pp. 222, 325, at the Secretary of State's Office, Albany, N. Y .; and Historical and Statistical Gazetteer of New York, p. 546].
20 Apr. 1687-In an old account book of John Bowne, one of the early found- ers of Flushing, started in 1656 and continued by his son, Samuel to 1702, is the following entry: "Jona Wright, for cart hire, 1 day reaping or mowing. For 6 pecks oats, in reaping satisfy me in reason; 3 days mowing for one pair worsted hose" [Hist. of Queen's County, N. Y. (1882), p. 80].
24 Feb. 1692-Confirmation of Governor Dongan addressed to Jonathan Wright and other Citizens of Flushing [Ibid., p. 75].
- Aug. 1698-In a "List of Inhabitants of Flushing, Long Island, in 1698", made by Constable Jonathan Wright, appear the following Wright names:"Jonathan Wright, Sen .; and Sarah his wife,-Samuel, Richard, Charles, Job, Mary, Hannah, and Sarah; Henry Wright, and Mary his wife,-Hannah, Sarah; Jonathan Wright, Jr., and Wine, his wife,- Jonathan, Elizabeth" [Hist. of Flushing, Long Island, Waller, p. 245].
5 Nov. 1698-"Jonathan Wright, senior", of Flushing, Queen's County Long Island, N. Y., made his will * which was admitted to probate at New York City the same year. He names his wife Sarah and children, -Jonathan, David, Samuel, Richard, Henry, George, John, Charles, Job, [Nianitye], Elizabeth, Sarah, Mary, and Hannah [New York County Surrogate's Court, Wills, liber V., pp. 274, 322, as cited by James E. Norton, The Norton-Lathrop-Tolles-Doty American Ancestry, etc. (1916), p. 123].
1712-Two depositions are sent to Governor Hunter against Jona. Wright, for not paying the "listing money for the late expedition and using Contemptuous language" [Queen's County in Olden Times (1865), by Henry Onderdonk, Jr., p. 17].
26 Feb. 1744-"Capt. Jonathan Wright of Flushing died" [Presbyterian Church Records, Newtoun (now Elmhurst), Long Island, N. Y., cited in N. Y. Gen. & Biog. Records, vol. LVI, p. 355].
From the foregoing records the following three-generation geneal- ogy is compiled. It is the basis for amplification by someone with a greater knowledge of the Long Island families.
1. CAPT. GEORGE1 WRIGHT, planter, of Salem and Braintree, Massachusetts; Rehoboth, Plymouth Colony; Providence and New- port, Rhode Island; and of Gravesend, Westchester, and Flushing, New York, living at Flushing in 1684.
Child, perhaps more:
* The original probate records, and the original copies of the same, of Queen's County, Long Island, New York, are missing according to the N. Y. Gen. & Biog. Record which has published the extant records. The estate of neither George nor Jonathan Wright is mentioned.
150
Early Rehoboth
2. i. JONATHAN2.
2. JONATHAN2 WRIGHT, SR. (Capt. George1), of Flushing,* Queens Co., N. Y., died in 1698. He married SARAH On 27 June 1684, "Jonathan Wright, of Flushing, Queens Co., Long Island, son and heir apparent of Capt. George Wright of said Flushing", sold to John Doget of Rehoboth all lands in Rehoboth received by him by deed of gift from his father, George Wright (formerly of Rehoboth), dated 2 Feb. 1683/4 [Plymouth Colony Deeds, vol. V, p. 281].
He made his will 5 Nov. 1698, admitted to probate at New York City the same year [N. Y. County Surrogates Court, Wills, liber V, pp. 274, 322].
Children named in will:
i. JONATHAN3.
ii. DAVID.
iii. SAMUEL.
iv. RICHARD.
v. HENRY.
vi. GEORGE.
vii. JOHN.
viii. CHARLES.
ix. JOB.
x. [?] NIANITYE.
xi. ELIZABETH.
xii. SARAH.
xiii. MARY.
xiv. HANNAH.
* In 1789 fire destroyed the town clerk's home in Flushing where the town records were kept. The Flushing Friends' Records have been printed twice; once in the New York Genealogical & Biographical Record, and once in Hinshaw's Encyclopedia of American Quaker Records, vol. III. The name of George Wright does not appear in the latter volume. Neither Jonathan Wright nor any of his children appear in the Long Island Quaker Records. The writer is indebted to Arthur Adams, Ph.D., F.S.A., Hartford, Conn., for his careful research in the Long Island Quaker records and in the Connecticut state records.
CHAPTER VII
REHOBOTH DEEDS
To the genealogist, the most important original sources are the pro- bate records found in the various offices of the Registry of Probate. With few exceptions, heads of families in the early generations made wills. Many a will is dated the day of death. The importance of wills lies in the fact that in the disposal of the testator's property, both real and personal, the surviving members of the family are named, thus recording wife, children, and other relatives.
Next in importance to the probates are the real estate deeds found in the various offices of the Registry of Deeds. It is not uncommon to find that some of these documents contain data which establish relationships for two and three generations, proof of which is found in no other record. Unlike wills, which are complete and final as to data when recorded, deeds are seldom complete, for subsequent deeds to the same land frequently carry the names of previous owners not mentioned in the original deed. This point is best illustrated by the experience of the writer who found a deed to a piece of land conveyed eighty years later by a grandson who had the land from his father, who in turn had it from his father in another colony. This information, which was not shown in the earlier deeds, was the only connecting link and proof that the family in one colony origi- nated in another.
Deeds often disclose occupations, the removal of persons from town to town, fix dates of deaths, establish relationships, and gen- erally contain much information not found in any other record.
The following pages contain excerpts, here printed for the first time, of Rehoboth deeds recorded in Plymouth Colony and in Bristol County, Massachusetts, from 1640 (three years before Rehoboth (Seekonk) was established in 1643) to 1705, a period of sixty-five years. While an assiduous effort has been made to extract all these deeds, it is possible, of course, that some have been overlooked. The principal difficulty encountered is in distinguishing between lands located in Swansea and Rehoboth. Many of the inhabitants owned land in both towns, the locations of which are not too defi- nitely stated. For instance, a Rehoboth man might sell land in Swansea and a Swansea man land in Rehoboth, without making the location of the land clear. However, the per centum of recorded deeds unintentionally omitted is probably very small.
Insofar as Rehoboth history is concerned, the most important deed shown in the following pages is that of Edward Cope of Provi- dence, Rhode Island, conveying to Mr. William Bradford of Ply- mouth a house and land in Seekonk purchased on 26 Nov. 1640 from Thomas Morris of New Haven. The importance of this deed is that it is proof positive of an earlier Seekonk settlement antedating by
151
152
Early Rehoboth
three years the Newman settlement of 1643. Although William Bradford held the sole title to all this Plymouth Colony land, we find him in the peculiar position of buying back his own property, which he had never sold, in order to extinguish the remnant of a previous settlement unauthorized by Plymouth Colony. On 7 Mar. 1645 he sold this Seekonk property to Mr. Edward Freeman for £27, and he in turn sold it on 13 Dec. 1649 to Stephen Payne of Rehoboth for £12.
This first Seekonk settlement is unknown to historians, conse- quently nothing has been written on the subject. Its discovery and development by patient research from a shadowy myth into a com- munity inhabited by actual, known people has been a fascinating study which will be printed in detail in the writer's forthcoming Documentary History of Rehoboth now in preparation.
In the Registry of Deeds for Plymouth County, at Plymouth, Massachusetts, are recorded the deeds of Plymouth Colony from the landing of the Mayflower in 1620 to the division of the Colony, on 2 June 1685, into the three counties of Barnstable, Plymouth, and Bristol. These records are found in six volumes as follows: vol. I (1627-1651), II (1651-1663), III (1664-1674), IV (1674-1681), V (1681-1697), and VI (1686-1699). Each volume is in two parts. Excerpts from these volumes follow :
1 26 May 1641-" Memorand: That whereas Thomas Morris* of New Hauen in America by his deede bearing date of 26 November 1640 hath freely and absolutely sold vnto Edward Copet of Providence all that his house 'and lands in Seacunck wth all other accomodations that either are or 'shalbe layed therevnto wth all his right and title of and into the same and hath also sold vnto the said Edward Cope one great Chest and a nest of boxes, and all his clapboard bolts and wood that is felled there as by the said deed or writing it doth more playnly appeare. Now
* It is not generally known that Thomas Morris was at Seekonk before he settled at New Haven, Conn. He was probably a brother of Robert Morris who was a planter in this same early Seekonk settlement and remained to be absorbed into the next Newman settlement. Robert Morris had a brother Adonijah Morris of Providence, R. I., who was executor of Robert's Rehoboth estate in 1647.
Thomas Morris d. at New Haven 21 July 1673. He m. Elizabeth - -- and had eight children, the first Hannah, b. 14 Mar. 1641. His fifth child, Eleazer, bapt. 29 Oct. 1648, m. Ann, dau. of Jeremiah and Mary Osborn. They had seven children, the last, b. 14 Dec. 1696, was named Adonijah [Jacobus' Families of Ancient New Haven, vol. IV, pp. 1210-11].
The name Adonijah is so unusual that it strongly indicates that the child was named after Adoni- jah Morris of Providence, R. I., probably its great-uncle. It is here suggested for the first time that Thomas and Robert Morris of Seekonk and Adonijah and William Morris of Providence were brothers.
¡ Mr. Edward Cope of Seekonk, Plymouth Colony, Providence, R. I., and Long Island, was a grandson of Sir Edward Cope, Kt., of Bury St. Edmunds, co. Suffolk, England. He was cousin to Katherine Scott of Providence; Ann Marbury Hutchinson, Boston; Christopher Helme, Warwick, R. I .; Theophilus Bailey, Lynn, Mass .; and was also related to John Throckmorton of Providence.
Edward Cope was probably early at Seekonk with Roger Williams. We know he was in Provi- dence in 1637 and that with Richard Scott, Miantunnomu, and a party of his Indians, he accompa- nied Roger Williams to Hartford in October 1638, for the purpose of effecting a peace between the Narragansett and Mohegan Indians, as told by Roger Williams in his letter to Gov. John Winthrop [Narr. Club Publications, vol. VI, pp. 120-125].
Apparently unmarried, Edward Cope sold his Providence property and moved to Long Island, where he purchased land from Mr. Pharratt, agent for Lord Starling, the patentee of the Island. On 28 Oct. 1645, Edward Cope was deceased and his cousin, Theophilus Bailey next of kin, whose father, John Bailey of the Isle of Eley, had married Edward Cope's father's sister, sold the Long Island property to John Winthrop, Jr. [Winthrop Papers, vol. V, pp. 46-7].
A study of Edward Cope's life in New England adds considerable to our meagre knowledge of Roger Williams' first settlement at Seekonk. This study will be the subject of a chapter in Early Rehoboth, vol. IV.
153
Rehoboth Deeds
the said Edward Cope by ffrancis Weeks* his Attorney & lre vnder his hand doth acknowledg that for & in consideration of eight melch goates to him in hand payd hath freely and absolutely bargained and sold vnto Mr. Willm Bradford the said house & lands wth all th apprteñces therevnto belonging and all his right title and interrest therein together wth the said Chest nest of boxes clapboard bolts and wood that is felled To haue and to hold the said house and lands and pľmisses with all & eury their appurtances vnto the said William Brad- ford his heirs and assignes forçu", etc. [Plymouth Colony Records, vol. XII, p. 76].
7 Mar. 1645-Mr. William Bradford, in consideration of £27 to him allowed upon the said account in payment to Mr. John Beauchamp, sold to Mr. Edmond Freeman his house situated in Rehoboth (als) Seacunck with six acres and seven acres of meadow with about forty acres of uplands with all such proportions as shall be added thereunto, etc. [Plymouth Colony Records, vol. XII, p. 129].
7 Mar. 1645-George Kenricke of Scituate deeded to William Randall of Marshfield 35 acres in Scituate. Witnesses: James Torrey and William Davffall [Plymouth Colony Deeds, vol. II, pt. 2, p. 52].
20 Dec. 1645-A record of land bought from the Town of Rehoboth with an agreement of what other lands are to be added for John Brown. It was stated at this meeting that if any one man would pay the purchase price of the land to the Indians he should receive twelve acres of land at Wathemoquet and other lands at Wanomoset (which was laid out by Richard Bowin, Robert Martin, and Stephen Paine). John Brown paid the price and received the land [Ibid., vol. I, p. 293]. For complete transcript of this deed cf. Early Rehoboth, vol. I, p. 28.
13 Dec. 1649-Memorandum: Mr. Edmond Freeman, residence not given, acknowledged on the eight of June at half past four that for the sum of £12 he had sold to Steven Payne of Rehoboth his house situate in Rehoboth with seven acres of meadow and about forty acres of upland with all additions "added thereto since the time that the said Mr. Edward Freeman purchased the said house and lands from Mr. William Bradford" f [Plymouth Colony Deeds, vol. I, p. 297].
1 Jan. 1650-John Woodcock of Rehoboth deeded to Joseph Carpenter 5 acres at Nirhigansett neare to the bridge called Bowins Bridge. Signed: John Woodcock and Sara Woodcock. Witnesses: William Carpenter and Wm. Sabin [Ibid., vol. III, pt. 1, p. 5].
* Francis Weeks (Wicks)-Salem in 1635-was one of the several young unmarried men with Roger Williams in his Providence settlement. The name Francis Wicks appears frequently in the early records of the Town of Providence. Also, see Felt's Ecclesiastical History, vol. I, p. 248.
t "Dated 17 Mar. 1645-Whereas divers differrences haue arisen vpon a partnership betweene James Sherley John Beauchamp and Richard Andrewes merchants and cittyzens of London on thone pte And Willm Bradford Edward Winslow Thomas Prence Miles Standish John Alden & John Howland &c on thother pte vpon a ptnership in the Beauer Trade in New England in America as also for and concerneing the accounts of two shipps viz the White Angell late of Bristoll and a voyage in the ffrendship of Barnestable as appeares vpon pticuler Accounts And whereas by the Agitation of John Atwood late of Plymouth in New England deceased Articles of agreement were made the [ ] day of [
] Anno Dñi [ ] The said John Beauchamp being then to receiue vpon the said agreement of the said Willm Bradford Thomas Prence Miles Standish and the rest of the ptners the sum of foure hundred pounds sterl ffor wch end the said John Beauchamp haueing made his brother in law Mr Edmond ffreeman of Sandwich in New England gent his Attorney to demaund receive and acquitt the said ptners wth speciall order to take it in lands or any thing he cann gett of them to the end that the said Edmond ffreeman his attorney may by sale thereof returne the same to his use And for that end hath sent vnto his said Attorney a generall Release for them sealed and to be delivered vpon such receipt and agreement Now know all men that whereas I the said Edmond ffreeman haue taken and received diuers pcells of lands for and consideracon of seuerall sums by the mutuall consent of me the said Edmond and the said Willm Bradford Edward Winslow Thomas Prence & the rest of the ptners as appeares vpon publicke record beareing date wth these pints weh estate and estates of lands are absolutely made oer to me the said Edmond ffreeman my heires and Assignes foreû do hereby acknowledg my self to be accountable to the said John Beauchamp his heires execut's & Administrts for so much as I shall receive for the said lands goods houses &c or any part thereof vpon the sale thereof and am and shalbe ready to giue him his heires execut's Administratrs or Assignes a faire account thereof" [Plymouth Colony Records, vol. XII, p. 132].
154
Early Rehoboth
29 Sept. 1650-Memorandum: Edward Gilman of Ipswich deeded to Joseph Peck the younger of Rehoboth all his houselands and meadowlands in Rehoboth to be paid for in installments and entered in installments, first payment to be made on above date. Witness, John Peck [Ibid., vol. III, pt. 1, p. 5]. [This memorandum is entered in the Rehoboth Town records.]
29 Mar. 1653-"To all People to whom these presents shall come, Osamequin and Wamsetto his eldest sone Sendeth greeting . . . that we the said Osamequin & Wamsetto for and in consideration of thirty five pounds Sterling to us the said Osamequin and Wamsetto in hand payd by Thomas Prince Gent: Thomas Willett Gent: Miles Standish Gent: Josiah Winslow Gent: for and in the behalfe of themselves and divers others of the Inhabitants of Plymouth Jurisdiction whose names are hereafter specified with which said summe we the said Osamequin and Wamsetto doo acknowledge ourselves fully satisfyed contented and payed Have freely and absolutely bargained and sold enfeoffed and confirmed ... unto Thomas Prince Thomas Willett Miles Standish, Josia Winslow Agents for themselves and William Bradford Senr Gent : Thomas Clark John Winslow Thomas Cushman, William White John Adams and Experience Mitchell to them and every of them . . . All those severall parcels and necks of upland Swamps and Meadows Lyeing and being on the South syde of Sinkhunch Els Rehoboth Bounds and is Bounded from a Little Brooke of water called by the Indians Mosskituash Westerly, and so ranging by a dead swamp Estward and so by markt trees as Osamequin and Wamsetto directed unto the great river with all the meadow in and about ye sydes of both the branches of the great river, with all the Creeks and Brookes that are in or upon any of the said meadows as also all the marsh meadows Lying and being wth out the Bounds before mentioned in or about the neck called by the Indians Chachacust
"Also all the meadows of any kind lyeing and being in or about Popasquash neck as also all the meadows lyeing from Kickomuet on both sides or any way joyning to it on the bay on each side To Have and to Hold all the aforesaid uplands swampe marshes, Creeks and Rivers with all their appurtenances unto the aforesaid Thomas Prince Thomas Willett Miles Standish Josia Winslow and the rest of the Partners aforesaid to them and every of them, their and every of their haiers executors and assignes forever And the said Osamequin and Wamsetto his sone covenant promise and grant, that whensoever the Indians shall remove from the neck that then and from thenceforth the aforesaid Thomas Prince Thomas Willett Miles Standish Josiah Winslow shall enter upon the same by the same agreement as their Proper Right And interest to them and their heirs forever
"To and for the true performance of all and every one of the aforesaid severall Perticulars wee the said Osamequin and Wamsetto Bind us and every of us our and every of our heirs, Executors Administrators and assignes firmely by these presents
"In Witness whereof wee have hereunto sett our hands and seales this twentieth day of March Anno Domini 1653
Signed sealed and delivered in
ye presence of us John Browne James Browne Richard Garrett
The mark of Osamequin & a seale Wamsetto M & seale"
[Original Sowams Records, pp. 8, 9; Plymouth Colony Deeds, vol. II, pt. 1, p. 78; Bristol County Deeds, vol. II, p. 25.]
28 June 1653-"Wee whose names are heare underwritten do further empower and authorize Richard Bowin Stephen Payne Thomas Cooper and William Sabin to conclude agree and compose all differences that may arise concerning the said meddow and upland or any thing arising in or about the same as amply as if we were there present in our owne persons
155
Rehoboth Deeds
with any person or persons with whom any question may arise in or about the premises to which formensioned business we bind ourselves truly and faithfully to observe; witness our hands this 28th of June 1653 Samuell Newman John Allen Daniell Smith
Joseph Peck, Senior
Joseph Peck, Junior
Robert Wheaton
Stephen Payne
Robert Fuller
Thomas Smith
Richard Bowine
John Sutton
Abnah Ordway
Walter Palmer
John Peren John Mathews
Thomas Cooper
George Kinwicke
John Woodcocke
John Reade
William Sabin
John Titus
Robert Martin
William Carpenter
John Butterworth
William Smith
Jonathan Bliss
Phillip Walker
Abraham Martine
Robert Abel
John Dogget
Robert Titus
Stephen Payne, Junior Richard Bullock
John Meller
Obadia Bowin
Nicholas Ide
Peter Hunt
Henry Smith
William Carpenter, Junior"
Richard Ingrame James Redaway
[Plymouth Colony Deeds, vol. II, pt. 1, p. 79.]
29 June 1653-"The Conclusion with the men of Rehoboth-Whereas the Towne of Rehoboth the 28th of June 1653 did dispute and authorize Stephen Payne Richard Bowin Thomas Cooper and William Sabin as theire delegates to treat and conclude with Capt. Myles Standish Capt. Thomas Willett and Josiah Winslow concerning such lands and all other matters as are in difference between the Towne of Rehoboth and the aforesaid Capt. Myles Standish Capt. Thomas Willett Josiah Winslow and the rest that are interested in the said lands It is con- cluded as followeth :
"1 That all such marsh or meddow lying on either side of the river running under the bridge commonly called Bowins Bridge to the com- mon fence and usally called the hundred acres which said meddows were alloted in several allotments at the first settling of the towne: All those meddows are to remayne unto the severall inhabitants of the town as their true proprieties.
"2 That all such lands as the Towne of Rehoboth formerly passed over unto Mr. John Browne by an agreement of such articles as now stand in the towne booke bearing date the 29th of the 10th month 1645 and also recorded in the court of Plymouth the summe of the said lands soe many acres at the said lands shall rise unto when it is measured shall be layd forth for the use of the said Capt. Myles Standish Capt. Thomas Willett Josiah Winslow and the rest on the north side of the line betwixt the towne and the marked tree near to Mr. Brownes fence from the salt water to the river called Bowins Bridge River.
"3 For all such mershes as lye on the west side of the river running downe towards the common fence and buttin on the East end of som house lots now layed forth if the said Capt. Standish Capt. Willett Josiah Winslow and the rest shall desire the same at any time hereafter they shall have them allowing the true valuation thereof out of such meddows as do lye on the west side of Sowamet River at the upper end of the same as [torn] vallued by two indifferent men.
"4 That if the towne of Rehoboth at any time within three years after the date hereof shall remove the common fence and in the meantime sufficiently require the same and when they doe remove the same they sett it upon theire owne land in this line betwixt the towne and the p'ties aforesaid from the salt water att tid water marke of Pawtucket river into the river running under Bowins Bridge and uphould it.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.