USA > Massachusetts > Genealogical and personal memoirs relating to the families of the state of Massachusetts, Volume I > Part 48
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dor to Germany and to Russia, one of the most distinguished educators and diplomats of the country.
FORD Andrew Ford, immigrant ancestor, settled in that part of Weymouth, Massachusetts, which was set off
to Hingham. He was admitted a freeman in 1654 and purchased from the colony a part of the land which was afterwards known as Ford's Farms, in what is now Abington, and some of which has remained in the family to the present time. He married Eleanor Lovell, daughter of Robert Lovell. Her father came to New England from Weymouth, England, before March 20, 1635, and settled in Wey- mouth, Massachusetts, where he was a pro- prietor in 1643; in his will, dated April 3, 1652, proved June 25, 1672, he mentions Andrew Ford. The will of Andrew Ford was dated February 5, 1692, and mentions the following children: 1. Andrew, mentioned be- low. 2. Joseph, died 1690; settled in New Bristol. 3. Mary. 4. James. 5. Samuel, born May 30, 1656, died 1711 ; lived at Weymouth. 6. Nathaniel, March 15, 1658, died 1733 at Weymouth. 7. Ebenezer, March 18, 1660. 8. Silence, November 13, 1661. 9. Prudence, December 22, 1663, died 1695 ; married Joseph Lincoln, of Hingham. IO. Jacob, February 20, 1666. II. Elizabeth, November 2, 1667. 12. Israel, June 7, 1670, died 1736 at Wey- mouth. 13. Sarah, May 25, 1672.
(II) Andrew (2), son of Andrew ( I) Ford, was born about 1650 and died August 24, 1725. He was an original settler of the town of Ab- ington, occupying the land inherited from his father, going there in 1680. His farm was near that of Joseph Cleverly, and it is said that he was obliged at one time to go away on account of Indian attacks. He was one of the chief proprietors of the first meeting house in Abington. His will was dated April 8, 1725, and proved October 29, 1725. It mentions his children, and grandchildren Ruth, Jacob, son of Andrew, and Andrew, son of Thankful. His son Andrew was made executor. He mar- ried Abiah Whitman or Whitmarsh. Chil- dren: 1. Andrew, born 1682, mentioned be- low. 2. Hezekiah, April 28, 1687, married Mercy Whitmarsh. 3. Sarah, died 1734; mar- ried Joseph Joslin. 4. Thank ful, married Hersey. 5. Lydia, married Richard Whit- marsh. 6. Abiah.
(III) Ensign Andrew, son of Andrew (2) Ford, was born at Weymouth in 1682, died May 12, 1750, aged sixty-nine, at Bridgewater.
He lived in Abington on the homestead. He married, in 1706, Mercy Whitmarsh, who died at Abington, February, 1737-38. Children, born at Abington: I. Mercy, 1708. 2. Jacob, 17II, mentioned below. 3. Hester, 1714, mar- ried Jacob Porter. 4. Mary, 1719, married Jacob Reed. 5. Andrew, 1721, married, 1742, Sarah Shaw.
(IV) Jacob, son of Ensign Andrew Ford, was born at Abington in 1711, died there June 9, 1794. He married, in 1733, Sarah Poole, who died 1788, daughter of Samuel Poole. Children, born at Abington: 1. Jacob, 1738, married (first) 1761, Rachel Agur ; (second ) 1793, Annas Ellis. 2. Sarah, 1739, married Barnabas Packard. 3. Mark, 1741, married, 1764, Hannah Brett. 4. Luke, 1742, mar- ried, 1766, Hannah Reed. 5. John, 1744, married, 1767, Lydia Agur. 6. Noah, 1745, died in the French war. 7. Joseph, 1746, married, 1766, Freelove Beal. 8. Mary, 1748. 9. Benjamin, 1750, mentioned below.
(V) Benjamin, son of Jacob Ford, was born in Abington in 1750. He served in the revolu- tion in Captain William Reed's company, Col- onel John Bailey's regiment, and answered the Lexington alarm, April 19, 1775 ; also in Cap- tain' Edward Cobb's company, Colonel Ed- ward Mitchell's regiment, at Braintree Farms in 1776 .; and in the same company went to Bristol, Rhode Island, in 1776, and under Major Eliphalet Cary, marched in 1780 on the Rhode Island alarm. He moved in 1797 from Abington to Cummington or Windsor, Massa- chusetts, and built a saw mill there. He mar- ried Sarah Brett, of Bridgewater. Children : I. Sarah, born 1773. 2. Mehitable, 1775, mar- ried Samuel Noyes. 3. Benjamin, 1777. 4. Sarah, 1778. 5. Patty, 1779, married Hall. 6. Moses, 1781, mentioned below. 7. Peter, 1782, married Polly Reed. 8. Molly, 1783. 9. Mark, 1785. 10. Andrew, 1787. II. Silvia, 1788, married Whitman. 12. Ephraim, 1791. 13. Betsey, 1793.
(VI) Captain Moses, son of Benjamin Ford, was born at Abington, 1781, and moved with his parents to Cummington, where he was a shoemaker and farmer. He was a cap- tain in the state militia. He married Lydia Davis, of Thompson, Connecticut. Children : I. Albert, mentioned below. 2. Marcia. 3. Lydia. Another child, name unknown.
(VII) Albert, son of Moses Ford, was born December 10, 1824, died November 2, 1884. He was a farmer in Windsor, Massachusetts, all his life. He married Harriet Adeline Tir- rell, daughter of Shaw and Eunice Tirrell, of
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Plainfield, Massachusetts. Children : 1. Willis Albert, mentioned below. 2. Harry Arthur, born May 16, 1865.
(VIII) Willis Albert, son of Albert Ford, was born in Windsor, Massachusetts, Decem- ber II, 1854. He received his education in the public schools, assisted his father on the farm, and from 1876 to 1887 engaged in the produce business in his native town. He then engaged in the same line of business at Provi- dence, Rhode Island, but a year later removed to Springfield, Massachusetts, where he con- tinued to do a large and flourishing business until he retired in 1905. He made a specialty of trading eggs. In February, 1909, Mr. Ford became a member of the firm known as the Springfield Power Associates, with the posi- tion of treasurer and manager, with office at 33 Lyman street. This concern owns and rents buildings, stores, offices and rooms for manufacturing purposes ; they also erect build- ing to suit tenants. He was gifted with ex- ceptional business ability and possessed also the enterprise and industry essential to success. He is well known and highly respected among the merchants of New England. Mr. Ford has taken a prominent part in public life and has held various offices of trust and responsi- bility. He was on the board of assessors and the board of selectmen of the town of Cum- mington three years ; member of the board of aldermen of the city of Springfield from 1902 to 1907. He is at present a member of the public works commission and in 1905-06 served on the city property commission that built the Springfield Technical High School. He is a member of the Winthrop Club and of the Springfield Auto Club. He married, October 18, 1881, Lizzie Rebecca Morris, born Febru- ary 13, 1858, daughter of Rev. Ozias S. and Rebecca Chamberlain (French) Morris. (See Morris family). Mr. and Mrs. Ford have no children.
(The Morris Line).
The surname Morris is said to be derived from two sources ; one of native Welsh origin, the other from the continent of Europe. It is variously spelled : Morys, Morrys, Moris, Morris, Morice, Morrice, Moryce, Mawrice, Maurice etc. and is compounded with various initial expressions, as De Mont, Fitz, Clan, etc. When these latter occur, and when the name is spelled Maurice, it may be considered of continental origin. Several of the name accompanied William the Conqueror to Eng- land. The name means warlike or powerful, and was used to signify a chieftain. Waltham
Abbey, county Essex, England, was presided over by Nicholas Morris, who was abbot from 1371 to 1390. In 1377 John Morris gave the abbey forty acres of land. This place was the seat of the Morris family in England, from which the immigrant mentioned below is sup- posed to have sprung.
(I) Lieutenant Edward Morris, immigrant ancestor, was born in England and baptized August 8, 1630, in the Abbey Church, Waltham Holy Cross, by Rev. Joseph Hall, rector. He was son of Thomas and Grissie ( Hewsome) Morris, of Waltham Holy Cross, county Essex. It is probable that he was brought over to New England by his parents in his early child- hood, and that they settled in Roxbury, Massa- chusetts, but there is no record to prove this. The first record of him appears in 1652 in Roxbury, when he was granted land which, however, he forfeited. Later he had land in Roxbury where Armory and School streets are now. In 1661 he was on a committee to sur- vey the common land, of which in 1662 he was given charge. He was constable in 1664, and was often on important committees for run- ning boundary lines, etc. He bought in 1666 a farm in the west part of the town, where he removed and lived until 1686, when he re- moved to Woodstock, Connecticut. In 1674 he was chosen selectman of Roxbury, and served in that office as long as he remained in the town, with the possible exception of the year 1680. He served on the jury in 1674 and in 1676 was chosen one of the trustees for the high school. In 1678 he was deputy to the general court, and annually until 1686. In 1683 the town of Roxbury was given leave to make a settlement at Woodstock, and in 1686 his name heads the list of those who settled in the new plantation. His grant of land there was on the east side of Plaine hill. He was on the committee to hire the minister, to build the corn mill and to lay out highways. In 1689 he was selectman. He was lieutenant in the military company. He died September, 1690, probably the first person to die in Wood- stock. He married, November 20, 1655, Grace Betts, who died at Roxbury, June 6, 1705. Children, born in Roxbury and baptized by Rev. John Eliot, the Indian apostle: I. Isaac, born September 16, 1656. 2. Edward, bap- tized March 13, 1658-59. 3. Grace, born Feb- ruary 7, 1660-61, married, March 7, 1682-83, Benjamin Child. 4. Ebenezer, born April 14, 1664. 5. Elizabeth, baptized March 25, 1666, married, March 9, 1685, Joshua Child. 6. Margaret, born September 25, 1668, married
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John Johnson. 7. Samuel, born March 19, 1670-71, mentioned below. 8. Martha, born November 30, 1674, married Deacon William Lyon.
(II) Samuel, son of Edward Morris, was born March 19, 1670-71, died in Thompson, Connecticut, January 9, 1745. He removed with his father to Woodstock and at his father's death inherited land there. October 24, 1694, he bought of the heirs his father's estate in Roxbury and removed there. In 1706-07 he bought land in Marlborough, where he was living at that time. On December 18, 1714, he bought of Governor Joseph Dudley a large tract of land in Killingly, Connecticut, and gave his Roxbury property in exchange. His land was on the west side of the river, where the village of New Boston now is, and he built a house with fortifications. In 1718 he built the first bridge over the Quinnebaug river and kept it in repair for many years. He also built two other bridges over smaller streams, and for these services was exempted from taxes. His farm lay in what became the Thompson parish, and he had some trouble with the church authorities, as he did not wish to pay church taxes in two parishes. He mar- ried (first) Mehitable Mayo, born in Roxbury, January 6, 1669, died February 8, 1702-03, daughter of John and Hannah ( Graves) Mayo. He married (second) Dorothy , who died July 28, 1742. Children of first wife, born in Roxbury : I. Samuel, August 13, 1695, mentioned below. 2. Benjamin, October 18, 1696. 3. Mehitable, June 25, 1698, married Philip Newell. 4. Rebecca, September 15, 1699. 5. Hannah, November 9, 1700, married Clement Corbin. 6. Dorothy, February 7, 1701-02, married Samuel Perrin. 7. Prudence, January 31, 1702-03, married Moses Marcy. Child of second wife: 8. Abigail, February, 1704-05.
(III) Samuel (2), son of Samuel (1) Morris, was born in Roxbury, August 13, 1695. He succeeded his father at "Myanexit Farm" and established a business as a trader. His name appears often in suits at law to re- cover for money owed him and he also had litigation in regard to the settlement of his father's estate. In 1755 he sold a large part of the farm and removed to Smithfield, Rhode Island, where he died June 13, 1756. He married (intentions dated September 7, 1728) Abigail Bragg, of Bristol, Rhode Island. After his death the widow went back to Woodstock, where she died July 29, 1790. Children: ' I. Mehitable, born December 25, 1729, died Janu-
ary 7, 1730. 2. Samuel, March 18, 1730-31. 3. Mehitable, February 17, 1731-32, died May 17, 1750. 4. Henry, April 18, 1734, mentioned below. 5. John, September 5, 1735. 6. Lem- uel, July 29, 1737. 7. Anne, March 13, 1739, married J. Bugbee. 8. William, November 28, 1740. 9. Abigail, April 29, 1742, married E. Lillie. 10. Susanna, September 1, 1743. II. Edward, August 19, 1745. 12. Elizabeth, May 16, 1747 (town record). 13. Hannah, bap- tized May 31, 1747 (church record). 14. Lucretia, baptized June 4, 1749, died June, 1750.
(IV) Henry, son of Samuel (2) Morris, was born April 18, 1734, in Thompson. He served in the French and Indian war as cor- poral in Colonel John Payson's regiment, in the same company in which his brother Sam- uel was clerk. In 1758 he was a sutler at Lake George. He and one Cary contracted to supply the troops under Colonel Putnam, but in con- sequence of the exorbitant prices paid for food in New York they failed. On May 7, 1775, he enlisted in the revolution and was corporal in the Seventh Company, Third Regiment of Connecticut troops, and afterwards sergeant. He had other service in the Continental army. He was a great pedestrian and jumper. It is said of him that while in the army he was sent with a message from Crown Point to "No. 4" (Charlestown, New Hampshire), and accom- plished the feat in twenty-four hours, a dis- tance of sixty-five miles. At the age of seventy he could clear an ordinary fence at a bound without touching his hand. He removed about 1790 to Concord, now Lisbon, New Hamp- shire, where he died in 1808. He was a Con- gregationalist. He married Hannah Frizzell, of Woodstock, who died in 1828. Children : I. Lucretia, born September 2, 1762, died at the age of thirteen. 2. Lucinda, September 27, 1763, married David Young. 3. Henry, died a prisoner of war on the ship "Kersey." 4. Simeon P., a midshipman of the "Randolph." 5. Benjamin, disappeared in the war of 1812. 6. William, died young. 7. Adolphus, died young. 8. Samuel, born May 19, 1774. 9. Ebenezer, born April 19, 1778, mentioned below.
(V) Ebenezer, son of Sergeant Henry Morris, was born April 19, 1778, in Woodstock, died at Lisbon, New Hampshire, August 16, 1842. He was a farmer at Lisbon. He was a Methodist, noted for his humble character, purity of life and devoted piety. He married (first ) Hannah Moore: (second) December, 1816, Alice Swan. Children of first wife:
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I. Henry, born 1811. 2. Lucretia, 1813, mar- ried (first) Phineas Titus; (second) Pliny Bartlett. 3. Alice, 1814. 4. Hannah, married, 1841, C. C. Kimball. Children of second wife : 5. Clarissa (twin), April 21, 1821, married T. P. Frost. 6. Ozias S. (twin), born April 21, 1821, mentioned below. 7. Charles W., De- cember 7, 1824.
(VI) Rev. Ozias S., son of Ebenezer Morris, was born April 21, 1821, in Lisbon, New Hampshire, died at Willington, Connec- ticut, December, 1885. He received his edu- cation in the common schools, at Newbury, Vermont, Seminary, and the Biblical Insti- tute at Concord. He was admitted to trial at the Vermont Conference in 1844 and ordained deacon by Bishop Waugh at Springfield, Ver- mont, June 14, 1846, and elder by Bishop Hedding at Barre, Vermont, July 9, 1848. For ten years he preached in the Methodist church ; in Barton and Glover, Vermont, 1844-45; Craftsbury, Lamoilleville and South Hardwick, Vermont, 1846-47; while at South Hardwick he built the Betheny Methodist Episcopal Church; Randolph, 1848-49; Brattleboro, 1850; Newfane and Dover, 1851-52; Walpole, New Hampshire, 1853-55; Sunapee, New Hampshire, 1856-57; Newfane and Dover, Vermont, 1858-59. He then entered the Con- gregational ministry, supplying from 1863 to 1867, and preached in Tunbridge, Vermont, in 1868-71; Westminster, Vermont, 1872; West Cummington, Massachusetts, 1873-80; Ashford, Connecticut, 1883-85. He repre- sented Walpole in the New Hampshire legisla- ture in 1855. He engaged for some time in evangelistic work for the Connecticut Bible Society, but his health gave way under the toils and exposure incident to the service, and he was obliged to return to the pastorate. He married, November 8, 1847, Rebecca Chamber- lain French, daughter of Isaac and Rebecca ( Bush) French, of Hardwick, Vermont. Chil- dren : 1. O. Manly, born December, 1849. 2. Ella E., August, 1851. 3. Anna R., Septem- ber, 1853. 4. Clara, December, 1855, died 1857. 5. Lizzie Rebecca, February 13, 1858, married Willis Albert Ford (see Ford family). 6. Charles F., February, 1861.
FORD Among the landed gentry in Ire- land there are families whose inter- est in public affairs and local matters, and whose devotion to the professions and business which they followed, have en- abled them to be of signal service to the com- munities in which they lived. Characterized
by these traits, in their efforts to build up and better their community, the Ford family of Cork, Ireland, is well and favorably known. For several centuries that family has been identified with county Cork, and well known and prominent ever since they came there. The later generations have been no less prominent.
(I) Dennis Ford was born in Ballingcollig, county Cork, Ireland, about 1800-25. His an- cestors were of pure Irish stock of the better class, progressive and for the most part well educated. He was a landowner in the parish village of Banningcollig. He lived an indus- trious life, and brought up a large family, which became a credit to the town. He died there at an advanced age. He married Kate -, also of good Irish stock. She died aged about eighty years, being a little younger than her husband. The Fords were active supporters of the church and did much in a financial way to aid the cause of religion. Children : 1. Mary Ann, married - Car- roll, a business man of Ballingcollig, now de- ceased ; children : John (deceased ), Margaret, Elizabeth. 2. R. Timothy, came to New Eng- land and settled in Boston, Massachusetts, when a young man ; was the first of this family to come to America ; removed to Hyde Park, Massachusetts, where he now resides, with a large family. 3. Ellen, died unmarried in her native town. 4. Jerry, came as a young man to join his brother R. Timothy in America ; became a painter by trade and resides in Cam- bridge, Massachusetts ; married and has a large family, of whom one son, J. D. M. Ford, is instructor of languages in Harvard University, and another, Dennis, returned to Ireland and engaged in business with his uncle in Balling- collig. 5. Patrick W., mentioned below. 6. Daniel, resides in Ballingcollig and is asso- ciated with his brother in business; married and has four children. 7. Margaret, unmar- ried; resides in Ballingcollig, where she is housekeeper for her brother Dennis. 8. Dennis, resides in his native town where he conducts a large and prosperous business as a contractor ; lie is the owner of a large part of the village of Ballingcollig, and in that part of Ireland is known as a man of affairs ; lie is the wealth- iest land owner in that section, a foremost citizen, liberal to the many in his employ, and generous in his gifts to the community in gen- eral : unmarried.
(II) Patrick W., son of Dennis Ford, was born in Ballingcollig, county Cork, Ireland, about 1852. He received a college education, and when about twenty-one years of age came
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to the United States. In 1872 or 1873 he landed and settled in Worcester, Massachu- setts. Here he studied architecture in the office of Elbridge Boyden & Son (George E. Boyden), well-known architects of that city. He secured a thorough knowledge of his chosen profession, and then started in business on his own account, making school buildings, churches, and other public buildings his spec- ialty. From the very beginning he was suc- cessful, and having essentially broad ideas and a complete knowledge of the requirements of his calling, he became one of the leading archi- tects of New England. He drew the plans and supervised the erection of five large Cath- olic churches in Worcester, and a great many throughout New England. His work was pro- nounced of the highest order, and he soon had all the business it was possible for him to care for. He removed to Boston and opened an office on School street, where he remained for many years, later removing to more com- modious quarters in the Boylston building. At that time there was probably no architect in the city of Boston better known in his pro- fession than Mr. Ford. He accumulated a competency, and began to build beautiful pri- vate homes in Jamaica Plain. His residence at No. 48 Peter Parley road, of his own plan- ning and construction, is a perfect model of beauty and convenience. He also built fine houses at Nos. 42 and 44 Peter Parley road, and the nearby houses at 18 and 23 Armstead street, all models of good architecture. These are still owned by his widow. He died August II, 1900. He was always very active in church work, giving largely of his means and contri- buting in a most generous way to the poor. He was a prominent member of the Charitable Irish Association of Boston. He married, April 22, 1880, in Worcester, Elizabeth A. McKenna, born in Worcester in 1859, daugh- ter of Patrick and Kate (Tighe) McKenna. Her father and mother were born in Ireland and came to America when young people, set- tling in Worcester; her father was a promi- nent Irishman in Worcester, one of the organ- izers of St. John's Catholic Church in that city, to which he gave liberally. He died in 1870. Her mother died some years ago, leav- ing two daughters, Elizabeth A., mentioned above, and Mary J., who married Patrick Car- roll, and is living a widow in Worcester. Mrs. Ford was carefully reared and well educated, especially in music. Some years of her early womanhood were devoted to the teaching of music. She was a member of St. John's Cath-
olic Church in Worcester. Her interest in church work has never ceased, and she is yet a working member in local church societies. Patrick W. and Elizabeth A. Ford had one child, Mary Agnes, born 1883, graduated from the Shurtleff School in 1899 and entered the Notre Dame Academy at Boston, where she graduated in 1901 with distinctive honors in music. She received a gold medal for her high standing in piano music. She is devoted to music and to her mother, whose care and interests have been uppermost in her desires.
PILLSBURY The hamlet of Pilsbury, or Pilsbury Grange, is situated between thirty or forty miles southeast of Liverpool, Staffordshire, England. Pilsbury is the union of the two words "pile" or "peel" and "burgh" or "borough." Lower in his "Patronymica Brit- annica," states: "Burgh, a component syllable in many local surnames. It is the Anglo-Saxon 'burh,' 'bureh,' etc., a word common to most German dialects. Its meaning appears to be that which Richardson assigns, viz: 'A place of defence or security.' The word occurs very largely in local nomenclature as a prefix or ter- mination, sometimes in the middle of a name, and in variously modified forms, as 'borough,' 'berry,' 'bury,' 'barrow,' etc." "Pile or peel, a fortified farmhouse built on the border for securing the inhabitants and their cattle in moss-trooping times." In the reign of Ed- ward IV the inhabitants of Britain were order- ed to take surnames, and from Peelsbury, Peelsborough, or Pillesburie, the first of the Pillsburys took his cognomen.
(I) William Pillsbury, the settler, came to Boston from England, probably in 1640 or 1641. Tradition has it that he left his native land to escape the consequence of a misde- meanor, and on his arrival in Boston let him- self as a servant to pay the expense of his passage. In 1651 he bought forty acres of land in Newbury on which was a dwelling house, and appurtenant were meadow land, rights of commonage, etc. For this he paid one hundred pounds, fifteen in hand and the rest in securities which family tradition says consisted of real estate in Dorchester. The original homestead in Newbury has remained in the family and descended from father to son for nearly two hundred and fifty years, and though reduced in size is now held and occupied by members of the ninth generation. The original deed from Edward Rawson is still extant. William Pillsbury and his son
.
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Job were members of the First Church, who adhered to Mr. Woodman's party in the dis- sentions which rent the church in 1671 and were on the losing side. They were fined a noble, about $1.63, each. William Pillsbury was made freeman, April 29, 1668. He made his will April 22, 1686, and died June 19, next following. His inventory made July 7, 1686, amounted to three hundred and six pounds, nineteen shillings, ten pence, and there were debts due the estate of twelve pounds. This statement shows that he was a man of more than ordinary wealth. Tradition says that he was a lender of money which he kept con- cealed under the eaves of his thatched barn. Like many others of his time he was a slave- holder, one of the items of his inventory being "a man servant," valued at twelve pounds, an Indian or negro, as there were no white slaves at that time. William Pillsbury and Dorothy Crosby were married between June and July 29, 1641. They had ten children, the first four of whom were born in Dorchester. Their children were: Deborah, Job, Moses, Abel, Caleb, William, Experience, Increase, Thank- ful and Joshua.
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