History of the town of Milford, Worcester county, Massachusetts, from its first settlement to 1881, Part 98

Author: Ballou, Adin, 1803-1890
Publication date: 1882
Publisher: Boston : Rand, Avery, & co.
Number of Pages: 1328

USA > Massachusetts > Worcester County > Milford > History of the town of Milford, Worcester county, Massachusetts, from its first settlement to 1881 > Part 98

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846

BIOGRAPHICO-GENEALOGICAL REGISTER.

GEORGE WILLIS N., b. March 2, 1849; d. Dec. 20, 1851.

SARAH ADELINE, b. Jan. 20, 1851; m. Ransom J. Clark, Mil., Jan. 27, 1869; 1 child.

NATHAN CLARK, b. Nov. 27, 1852; d. Sept. 2, 1854.

WILLARD J., b. July 4, 1855; d. June 14, 1864.

SYLVIA ETTA, b. Feb. 1, 1858.

Grandchn. - Cora E., Frank Webster, Eva F., Edward Everett; all chn. of Benjamin F. and Elvira J. Warfield, Blackstone. Lilla Josephine, dr. of Ran- som J. and Sarah A. Clark, Mil.

Honest, industrious, worthy people.

JOHNSON, CHARLES C.5 (Levi,4 Baxter,8 Stephen,2 John 1), b. Mendon, Aug. 18, 1820; mr.'s maiden name Martha Wilbur; foreman in boot-manufactory; m. Jemima W. Whitney, dr. of Moses and Susan (Hall) Whitney, b. Upton, Nov. 10, 1820; cer. Up., Sept. 22, 1842, by Rev. Benjamin Wood. Their chn. : -

WALTER E., b. March 8, 1844; m., name not given, Oct. 10, 1867; he d. April 6, 1877.

ARTHUR C., b. Nov. 13, 1849.

ALBERT L., b. Sept. 26, 1851; d. Dec. 10, same yr.

DELIA M., b. May 11, 1856.

NELLIE L., b. May 29, 1859.

WILLARD, b. Feb. 4, 1863; d. Nov. 4, same yr.

Grandchn., the chn. of Walter E. and wf .:-

Clara A., b. July 6, 1868.

Charles E., b. Jan. 20, 1871.

William H., b. July 11, 1873.

Albert A., b. Feb. 15, 1875.

Charles C. Johnson is an energetic and executive business man, an inde- pendent, reformatory thinker and actor on all subjects, an upright citizen, and the head of a worthy family.

JOHNSON, Col. LEWIS, b. in Bristol, Ct., March 29, 1799; youngest of seven bros. and srs., chn. of Chandler and Elizabeth (Lewis) Johnson, whose names were Raphael, Betsey, Chelsea, Laura, Phebe, Josiah, and Lewis. William Godfrey, always enterprising and public spirited, became acquainted with Mr. Johnson out South, a young tinsmith, took a liking to him, and persuaded him to try his fortune in Mil. He did so, commencing his busi- ness in one of Godfrey's shops, just north of Water St. corner. This was in May, 1820. There he was our first dealer in stoves, tin-ware, etc. He had fair success, but in 1825 removed to Woonsocket, R.I., and established his business- the first of his line -in that place. He prospered there, built the Social Hotel, on the site of the present Monument House, and at the end of two yrs. sold his interests to William J. Holder. He then returned to Mil., erected an ample establishment on the then open ground just below where the Alhambra now stands, and successfully pursued his calling down to the time of his sudden death, Feb. 13, 1849. He was a man of bland and courteous manners, commendable public spirit, npright morals, and goodly esteem among his fellow-citizens. He was fond of martial history, exploits, and display. When the Independent Light Infantry Co. of Mil. was organized, in 1826, he was elected its first capt., and thence rose, in rapid succession, to be col. of the regt. to which it belonged. He was m. to Miss Sally Godfrey Parkhurst, dr. of John and Lucy (Jones) Parkhurst,

847

JOHNSON FAMILIES.

Mil., Sept. 1, 1824, by Rev. D. Long, who also rendered the same service at the marriage of the bride's parents, and afterwards at that of her eldest dr. The col.'s wid. still survives, at this writing, in a green old age. Their chn. were, -

LUCY ELIZABETH, b. June 21, 1825; m. Samuel Walker, Mil.

NAPOLEON BONAPARTE, b. July 27, 1828; cashier Home Nl. Bank, Mil.

JOHN PARKHURST, b. July 12, 1831; d. young.

GEORGE HOLDER, b. Nov. 28, 1834; d. at the age of 19 mos.

SOPHIA PARSONS, b. May 19, 1838; d. July 1, 1864.

WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON, b. April 10, 1840; slain battle Gettysburg, July 2, 1863. See " War-Record."

ABBOTT LAWRENCE, b. Aug. 9, 1842; d. Aug. 9, 1843.

GEORGE ABBOTT, b. May 17, 1845; d. June 23, 1848.

JOHNSON, NAPOLEON B.3 (Col. Lewis,2 Chandler 1), cashier the Home Na- tional Bank, Mil. ; b., as above stated, July 27, 1828; m. Mary Tufts Stone, Athol, dr. of Nathan and Nancy (Willard) Stone. She was b. July 18, 1829; and their mge. was solemnized in Warwick, Oct. 20, 1853, by Edwin Stone, Esq. Their chn. :-

MARY ELEANOR, b. in Mil., Oct. 26, 1857; student Framingham Normal School.

SARAH LEE, b. in Mil., April 12, 1861; d. March 7, 1863.

LEWIS JEROME, b. in Mil., Sept. 24, 1867; student in high school, assists in bank.

BESSIE HELEN, b. in Mil., Sept. 11, 1872.

Excellent family, of high moral tone, and good standing in community.

JOHNSON, GEORGE WILLOUGHBY, is one of our present most enterprising boot and shoe manufacturers, and head of the firm Johnson, Rust, & Co. He is a gentleman of robust physique, energetic temperament, genial address, and generous public spirit. He facetiously credits his stately presence, and fondness for the leather business, to his ancestry, which, perhaps, no one will dispute after understanding the prominent facts. His gt. gt. gd. parents were Stephen and Jemima (Taft) Johnson of Mendon. His gt. gd. parents were Stephen and Hannah (Baxter) Johnson, also of Mendon. His gt. gd. mother became a wf. at the age of 15 yrs., and then weighed 256 lbs., being tall, and in all respects well proportioned. She bore fifteen chn., and still retained precisely the same weight as at mge. Her hus. carried on the tanning business in the Seth Davenport neighborhood, and was a large landholder in that frontier vicinity. He was a lieut. in the Revolutionary war, and won the reputation of having been a brave soldier. One generation farther back gives John and Sarah Johnson as the parents of the first Stephen; but we will start our tabulations with, -

JOHNSON, WILDER 4 (Stephen,3 Stephen,2 John 1), b. in Mendon, March 3, 1768-69; a tanner by trade, who honored leather; m. Thirza Benson, b. Mendon, 1773; cer. there, Nov. 26, 1792, by Benjamin Read, Esq. They set. in Upton, and their chn. were, -

DULCENA, b. April 22, 1793; in. William Rice, 1823. She d. April, 1863.

SYLVIA, b. Sept. 30, 1795; d. July, 1799.

HOLLIS, b. April 7, 1798; m. Eveline W. Cook. He d. Dec., 1871.

SYLVIA, again, b. Nov. 10, 1800; m. Elmer Cobb, Mil., 1820. She d. Aug., 1879.

LORING, b. March 28, 1803; m. Mary A. Wood, 1831; she survives. He d. Aug. 11, 1880.

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BIOGRAPHICO-GENEALOGICAL REGISTER.

AMANDA, b. March 5, 1806; m. Ebenezer Gore, Dec. 19, 1849.

RUFUS A., b. May 1, 1809; Unitarian clergyman. He d. Sept., 1860. ELMIRA, b. Feb. 14, 1811; d. young.

HENRY DEXTER, b. Jan. 14, 1817; an honored official in Upton, -3 yrs. rep. to Gen. Court, 15 yrs. assessor and school-committee man, dep. assessor and collector of int. rev., etc. He d. Dec., 1871. The mr., Mrs. Thirza, d. in Up., Oct., 1843; the fr., Dec., 1845.

JOHNSON, LORING 5 (Wilder, Stephen,& Stephen,2 John 1), b. March 28, 1803, in New Hampshire, where his parents res. for a short time; for 20 yrs. a boot and shoe merchant in Charleston, S.C., and since then a solid farmer in Upton; m. Mary Ann Wood, dr. of Jonathan and Sarah Wood, b. Sept. 17, 1810; cer. Sept. 6, 1831, by Rev. Benjamin Wood, long their Congl. pastor. I will note here the interesting fact, that hier mr., the venerable Mrs. Sarah Wood, still survives in remarkable vigor, at the age of over 91 yrs. Chn. of Loring and Mary A. (Wood) Johnson :-

GEORGE WILLOUGHBY, b. Oct. 6, 1832; our Mil. enterprising boot and shoe manufacturer.

SARAH THIRZA, b. Nov. 18, 1843; m. Willard S. Wood, Dec., 1862. Mr. Loring Johnson d. Ang. 11, 1880.

JOHNSON, GEORGE WILLOUGHBY 6 (Loring,5 Wilder,4 Stephen,8 Stephen,2 John1), b. in Up., Oct. 6, 1832; m. Charlotte Parkhurst of Mil. She was the dr. of Nelson and Hannah (Jayne) Parkhurst, b. May 18, 1837. They were m. Mil., Oct. 21, 1857; cer. by Rev. James R. Johnson. They have res. partly in Boston, but chiefly in Mil. Their chn. are, -

MAUDE LAURA, b. Boston, Nov. 25, 1866.

MARY JOSEPHINE, b. Boston, Jan. 28, 1878.

Mr. Johnson had the honor of being a delegate to the famous convention, held at Chicago in June, 1880, by the Republican party, for the nomination of a presidental candidate, and rejoiced in the success of his great favorite, Gen. Garfield. He now deeply laments his untimely death.

JONES. This name has been conspicuous on our records from the first settlements on our territory downward. Eld. John Jones, previously of Men- don town, became possessed of ten or twelve acres of the farm in the Dale as early as 1699 or 1700. There his own pious and stalwart hands felled the sturdy forest, and hewed him out a clearing, which gradually broadened into one of the noblest farms east of Neck Hill. I have already spoken biographically of this eminent pioneer, in Chap. III., and have materials for an interesting enlargement. But I will restrict myself to the more important genealogical facts of his family record.

I think Savage, and others, warrant me in stating, that his gd. fr., Thomas Jones, a tailor, was a native of Caversham, Oxfordshire, Eng .; that he came with his wf. Ann and oldest chn., on board ship "Confidence," to Hingham, in 1638; and that, later in life, he set. in Hull. The chn. of Thomas and Ann Jones were probably Joseph, Benjamin, Abraham, Robert, and others. Their son Abraham, by wf. Sarah, had Benjamin, Thomas, Abraham, Joseph, John, Ephraim, and a dr. not named. The fr. was made freeman in Hull, 1673, and elected rep. to Gen. Court, 1689. The date of his death not ascertained, but that of his will was Jan. 8, 1717.

Our Eld. John 8 was the fifth son, and, according to the inscription on his gravestone, must have been b. about 1669 or 1670. He m. a wf., Sarah, not far from 1693. Their cho. were, -

849

ELDER JOHN JONES.

SARAH, b. in Hull, 1694; m. Daniel Corbett, Dec. 4, 1717. BRIDGET, b. in Hull, 1696; m. James Wood, May 17, 1716. MERCY, b. in Hull, 1697; m. John Thwing, ahout 1718 or 1719. JOHN, Jun., b. in Hull, 1699; set. in Bellingham ; d. prob. Sandisfield. NATHANIEL, b. in Hull, March 31, 1702; set., lived, and d. here. LYDIA, b. in the Dale, Sept. 17, 1705; m. Jonathan Whitney, Jan. 26, 1726. ABRAHAM, b. in the Dale, July 2, 1708; res. here; became dea. and eld. JOSEPH, b. in the Dale, Dec. 27, 1709; res. always on the Jones homestead.

It appears, from Mendon records, that Eld. John paid a ministerial tax there as early as 1691, but none afterward till 1704. This renders it doubtful whether he removed his family from Hull to Mendon until after 1700, though he must have owned real estate there before 1691, and was probably a transient res., going back and forth to Hull. The following recorded votes show that Mendon citizens thought well of him, and were disposed to favor his interests. "March 1, 1703. At a general Town-meeting it passed by vote that John Jones of Hull might lay down and leave his home lot, and twelve acres of his Dubling lot joining together, which lays between the ministry's and Robert Taft's land, for the Town's use, and take it elsewhere if he see cause." Also: "Whereas at a general Town-meeting, the 4th of May, 1674, it was voted that all the land lying between Mill River and Muddy Brook should be for perpetual common, if John Jones of Hull shall see cause to take up 20 acres of the land, exchanged with said town, upon said neck of land near Seth Chapin's, so as not to in- commode the road, provided he improves it for his house lot, it is in like manner granted to him, the former vote notwithstanding." These votes suggest three prob. facts: 1, That Jones's home and family were yet in Hull. 2, That he himself was in Mendon much of his time preparing his new home in the Dale. 3, That Neck Hill, as it came to be called, derived its name from belonging to the tract of land between Muddy Brook and Mill River reserved in the vote of 1674 for perpetual common, and which, in the vote of 1703, was styled "said neck of land."

We may confidently conclude that Eld. Jones got possession of his first land in the Dale early in 1700, and commenced clearing a spot for a dwelling- house; that he then built himself a rude, strong barrack, and, later, a small framed house ; that meantime he obtained new grants of land adjacent to his first; and that some time during 1703 or 1704 he brought his family from Hull to their new home. Thenceforth he prospered greatly, both in temporal and spiritual affairs. All his chn., sooner or later, became ch. members. He was chosen ruling eld. of the First Church of Mendon in 1736, and, as I have else- where told, in 1741 to the same dignity in the Second, or Easterly Precinct Ch. He became a large land-holder, and otherwise rich; married off his drs. and sons influentially, and endowed them liberally with either lands or goods. He made gift deeds of land to John, jun., Nathaniel, Abraham, and Joseph, retain- ing the latter as his partner on the homestead. His will bears date Dec. 11, 1749. It specifies, with proper references and provisions, his wf. Sarah; sons John, jun., Nathaniel, Abraham, and Joseph ; his dr. Sarah, wf. of Eld. Daniel Corbett; dr. Mercy, wf. of John Thwing; dr. Lydia, wf. of Jonathan Whitney; and 8 gd. chn., the chn. of his deceased dr., Bridget Wood, viz., Sarah, Mary, Martha, Mercy, John, Asa, Nathan, and Bridget Wood. He gave his large Bible to John, jun., which, if I could have seen, would have saved me days of anxious research. It ordained his two sons-in-law, Corbett and Whitney, exr's. The witnesses were Rev. Amariah Frost, Simeon Littlefield, and Mary Jones,

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BIOGRAPHICO-GENEALOGICAL REGISTER.

the latter prob. his son Joseph's wf. It was proved April 24, 1753, before which time not only the testator, but his wf. Sarah, and son-in-law Corbett, had gone the way of all the earth. His wf. d. March 3, 1750, in her 83d yr. He d. March 28, 1753, in his 84th yr. So say their gravestones, from which it would appear that she was somewhat the oldest.

JONES, JOHN, Jun.4 (John,3 Abraham,2 Thomas from Eng.1), b. in Hnll, 1699;

m., 1st, Abigail Holbrook, July 1, 1723. She was a dr. of Cornelius and Experience Holbrook of Weymouth or Braintree, b. Aug. 19, 1697. Her oldest sister, Mehetabel, was the wf. of the first Dr. John Corbett of Bell. ; and it was prob. in Dr. Corbett's family that Jones became acquainted with her. Their chn. were, -

CORNELIUS, b. April 20, 1727; grad. H. U., 1752; clergyman; set. in now Sandisfield, 1756.

ABIGAIL, b. March 28, 1731; untraced.

DAVID, b. Feb. 19, 1734; m. Hannah Pratt, April 25, 1754; lived and d. in Bell.

HANNAH, b. Ang. 20, 1736; m. Joseph Pratt, Bell., Jan. 30, 1755.

Abigail, the mr., d., date not found. The fr. m., for 2d wf., Elizabeth -, date and particulars not found. She had one child, and d. Dec. 2, 1750. ELIZABETH, bap. Dec. 2, 1750.

The fr., if I understand the somewhat obscure and defective records, m. a 3d wf., and had by her, -

MARY, bap. May 6, 1753; m. John Robinson, March 1, 1773.

JOHN, bap. March 28, 1756.

The fr. did not own covenant and join the ch. till after the death of his 2d wf .; i.e. until Dec. 2, 1750, when he had her child Elizabeth bap. He must have m. his 3d wf. soon enough thereafter to have Mary bap. May 6, 1753; but Mr. Frost's record of baptisms strangely leaves blauk the name of this 3d wf. in both the last two cases. The next we learn of John Jones, jun., is, that he was dismissed and recommended, Oct. 8, 1758, to the ch. in No. 3, whereof Rev. Cornelius Jones was pastor. This No. 3, so called, was one of several townships laid out from the public lands by order of Gen. Ct. for sale and set- tlement. I think they were all designated at first by number, from No. 1 to No. 10. Afterwards, when sufficiently settled, their respective territories were either incorporated under a name, like the older townships, or variously divided and annexed, in convenient portions, to newly organized municipalities. This No. 3 became wholly or partly included in Sandisfield. The Rev. Cornelius Jones was the eldest son of John Jones, jun. He graduated at H. U. in 1752, studied for the ministry, and was ordained in a barn, 1756, first pastor of the infant ch. in No. 3. He had been a member of the Cong. ch. here, and, with a few other dismissed emigrants, assisted to form the young ch. in No. 3. It seems that his fr., for some reason, chose to spend his last yrs. with his son in that then new settlement. There he prob. died, and perhaps his youngest chn. I learn nothing more concerning him or them; but his other son, by the 1st wf., David Jones, lived and died in Bell. By his wf., Hannah Pratt, he had there, -

HANNAH, b. June 18, 1756; d. young.

DANIEL, b. April 2, 1759; lived and d. in Bell., wealthy.

MOLLY, b. March 28, 1761; not traced.

HANNAH, b. May 20, 1764; d. unm., Oct. 24, 1831; and I ministered at ber funeral.

851

JONES FAMILIES.

I understand that there are no male descendants of these Bell. Joneses left, or at least not in that town. John Jones, jun.'s, lineage no further traced. JONES, Dea. NATHANIEL 4 (John,8 Abraham,2 Thomas 1), b. in Hull, 1702; m.,

1st, Priscilla Corbett of Bell., date not found. She was a dr. of Dr. John and Mehetabel (Holbrook) Corbett, birth-date not found. Their cbn. :- NATHANIEL, Jun., b. July 19, 1723; set., lived, and d. in now Mil.

SARAH, b. date not found ; m. Azariah Newton, Feb. 20, 1745-46. PRISCILLA, b. July 21, 1738; m. Daniel Gage, Jan. 1, 1756.

SAMUEL, b. Oct. 3, 1744; who was one of our most distinguished and influential citizens.

SETH, bap. April 17, 1748; for yrs., if not always, a citizen here.

No record of other chn. has come to my knowledge. The fr. was a deacon of the First ch. in Mendon, but ultimately connected himself with the Second ch. here. He set. here soon after mge., acquiring considerable landed est., partly by donation from his father and wf.'s father, and partly by purchase, either from the town proprietors or their assigns. He resided mostly, if not always, in the North Purchase, on an estate the bulk of which was a gift from his fr., and which he transmitted to his son Samuel, Esq., who gave it to Capt. Heury Nelson. His wf. Priscilla d. prob. in 1747, soon after the birth of Seth, the date not yet found. He m., for his 2d wf., Elizabeth Gage, Jan. 4, 1748. By her he had one dr .: -

ELIZABETH, b. June 12, 1749; d. Sept. 19, 1767.

Dea. Nathaniel appears to have acquired a handsome property for his day, to have maintained an influential standing in community, and to have left to his descendants, not only a fair heritage of worldly substance, but a good name. He settled much of his est. on his chn. before his death. He d. March 13, 1784; and his wid., Elizabeth, d. Oct. 9, 1791.

JONES, Eld. ABRAHAM4 (John,8 Abraham,2 Thomas1), b. in the Dale, July 2, 1708; m. Keziah Whitney, date not precisely ascertained, but not far from 1730. She was a dr. of Jonathan and Susanna Whitney, b. Holl., July 31, 1706. Their chn. were, -

SUSANNA, b. Feb. 8, 1732; d. young, Nov. 1, 1736.

JONATHAN, b. Nov. 13, 1733; d. young, Nov. 6, 1736.

KEZIAH, b. Nov. 23, 1737; d. young, between Sept. 6 and 21, 1744.

SARAH, b. Dec. 16, 1739; d. young, between Sept. 6 and 21, 1744.

HANNAH, b. Nov. 8, 1741; d. young, between Sept. 6 and 21, 1744. JOHN, b. March 23, 1744; m. Abigail Cheney, Dec. 9, 1762.

ABRAHAM, Jun., b. May 3, 1746; m. Olive Bates, Oct. 30, 1765. SOLOMON, b. April 3, 1748; d. young.

The fr. was an original member of the Cong. ch. here; chosen deacon 1743, and elder 1754. He was undoubtedly a solid and influential man among his Christian brethren and fellow-citizens. He d., according to his gravestone, Feb. 25, 1792, in his 84th yr. His wf., Keziah, preceded him, June 29, 1791, in her 85th yr. Their homestead was long the Dea. Nathaniel Rawson place, latterly known as the Jared Rawson place.

JONES, JOSEPH4 (John,8 Abraham,2 Thomas 1), b. in the Dale, Dec. 27, 1709; m. Mary Whitney, date not precisely ascertained. She was a sister of his bro. Abraham's wf., and dr. of Jonathan and Susanna Whitney, b. Holl., May 28, 1710. Their chn., all b. in the Dale, were, - SUSANNA, b. Nov. 10, 1733.

HANNAH, b. July 3, 1736; d. young,

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BIOGRAPHICO-GENEALOGICAL REGISTER.

JOSEPH, Jun., b. Sept. 29, 1737; m. Ruth Nelson, dr. of Nehemiah, Dec. 28, 1763.

MARY, b. Oct. 16, 1740; m. James Sumner, Esq., July 7, 1784.

LYDIA, b. April 2, 1744; nntraced.

JONATHAN, b. Aug. 11, 1746; m. perhaps Mary Ball, dr. of Josiah, Sen., May 7, 1767.

DAVID, b. July 10, 1749; d. young.

TIMOTHY, b. April 25, 1751; m. Ann Scammell, Dec. 3, 1771.

Joseph Jones, being the youngest son of Eld. John, always res. with his fr. on the original homestead. I understand the records to show that his fr. gave him a part of the farm, and that they were, to a considerable extent, partners in the management of business from about the yr. 1730 downwards. As such, they reconstructed and greatly enlarged the Hopedale mansion, known in its latter days as the " Old House." Not long before the erection of that mansion, they put a crude dam across the river, near where the Hopedale Machine Shop dam now is, and set up a saw-mill on the west side, almost exactly where the Hopedale Community had theirs at one time. This must have been between 1730 and 1735, the last date being that at which their mansion was enlarged. How long afterward they continued to operate their saw-mill, I have not ascer- tained. Probably they allowed it to run down during the next 30 or 40 yrs. Joseph Jones must have been a large landholder in his time, and a man of prominent influence. He was one of the original members of the ch. organized in 1741, and an active upbuilder of the new Precinct, but not inclined to hold ch. offices. His wf., Mary, d. July 9, 1788, in her 78th yr. He d. April 3, 1796, in his 87th yr.

JONES, DEARING 4 (Abraham,8 Abraham,2 Thomas 1), b. in Hull, 1702; a nephew of our Eld. John; m., for his Ist wf., Rebecca Benson of Hull, Jan. 7, 1729-30. She was b. in 1709; and soon after mge. they removed to that part of Mendon now Mil., to within a mile of his uncle John's. He secured a farm of 60 acres or more on Magomiscock Hill, not far northerly and westerly of what we call the Scammell place. There is some confusion and contradiction in the records relating to this family, especially in those of Mendon. With the assistance of Mr. C. J. F. Binney, a valued Boston correspondent, who is well posted in the genealogy of Hull, I have been enabled to speak much more definitely of Dearing Jones than at one time seemed possible. Following my best light from him and our municipal records, I shall set down his chn. by the 1st wf. thus :-

REBECCA, b. 1730; no further traced.

SARAH BENSON, b. 1734; no further traced.

DEARING, Jun., b. 1738; no further traced.

Some little time after the birtli of Dearing, jun., the mr., Rebecca, must have d .; though I find no record of it. But I find one of a second mge., from which it appears that Dearing Jones and Lois Bruce were m. April 11, 1744; cer. by Rev. A. Frost. From this mge. there resulted the birth of at least 1 dr. :-

ABIGAIL, who was bap. by Mr. Frost, May 5, 1745. No further traced.

The fr. d. that yr., and his estate was settled at Worcester by his bro., Abraham Jones, of Hull, whereof I found the record full and explicit.

JONES, NATHANIEL, Jon.5 (Nathaniel, + John,8 Abraham,2 Thomas 1), b. Jnly 19, 1723; m. Rachel Chapin, May 20, 1747; cer. by Rev. A. Frost. She was a dr. of Seth Chapin, jun., and his 2d wf. Elizabeth, b. 1730. Their chn. were, -

Henny onelson

853

JONES FAMILIES.

SETH, b. March 21, 1748; removed to and set. in Charlton.

SARAH, b. Oct. 26, 1749; untraced.

SOLOMON, bap. May 3, 1751; removed to and set. in Charlton.

RACHEL, bap. July 21, 1754; untraced.

NATHANIEL, hap. Oct. 24, 1756; removed to and set. in Vershire, Vt.

The parents were both devoted ch. members. Their homestead consisted of 80 acres, with some 30 acres outside woodlands, situated in the westerly part of Mil., some of it extending from our present West St. to the river.

The fr. d. early in the yr. 1758, having made a considerate will, according to which his est. was duly settled. I noted among the smaller and peculiar legacies, provision that his drs. Sarah and Rachel should be furnished each with a "large Bible;" his son Solomon to have his "wearing apparel;" and Na- thaniel, his "great armed chair." His wid. m., for 2d hus., David Wheelock of Charlton, Nov. 5, 1760; cer. by Rev. A. Frost. Probably no descendants of the family now res. in Mil.

JONES, SAMUEL, Esq.5 (Nathaniel,4 John,8 Abraham,2 Thomas 1), b. Oct. 3,

1744; m. Mercy Parkhurst, March 27, 1766; cer. by Rev. A. Frost. She was a dr. of Isaac and Lydia (Bigelow) Parkhurst, b. March 13, 1746. They had no chn., except by adoption. As elsewhere related, Esq. Jones and wf. adopted Henry Nelson, and made him their principal heir. The family homestead was the one in No. Purchase on which Dea. Nathaniel Jones ended his days, known for the last half-century as the Capt. Harry Nelson place. There Esq. Jones and Mercy, his wid., lived and died.

Samuel Jones, Esq., left the memory of a man highly intelligent, upright, and estimable in all his relations, on whom his townsmen had conferred all their most responsible offices, and who had proved himself eminently worthy of their confidence and honors. He was commissioned as justice peace by Gov. Samuel Adams, March 2, 1797, when that office was held in much higher esteem than in our day, and held it reputably for 21 yrs ; i.e., till within a yr. or two of his decease. He d. Dec. 2, 1819. His wid. d. Jan. 25, 1835, a. 89 yrs.

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History of the town of Milford, Worcester county, Massachusetts, from its first settlement to 1881, Part 98

Author: Ballou, Adin, 1803-1890 Publication date: 1882 Publisher: Boston : Rand, Avery, & co. Number of Pages: 1328

Author: Ballou, Adin, 1803-1890
Publication date: 1882
Publisher: Boston : Rand, Avery, & co.
Number of Pages: 1328