USA > Massachusetts > Middlesex County > Shirley > Shirley uplands and intervales; annals of a border town of Middlesex, with some genealogical sketches > Part 19
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viii. Nancy, b. May 25, 1806; d. aged two years, seven months.
ix. - -, son, b. November 2, 1807.
x. Lucy, m. Major Daniel, of Boston.
xi. Nancy, m. Scripture Frost, January 27, 1824.
xii. Lucinda, m. - Faxon, of Boston. xiii. Fanny, died unmarried in Shirley.
III. WILLIAM, m. Mary Harper; int. October 2, 1753.
IV. MARY, m. September 7, 1757, William Cowdin, of Worcester.
HILDRETH
JOHN HILDRETH was born in Westford in 1738. He was the son of Ephraim and Mary Hildreth. Ephraim was the son of Joseph Hildreth of Westford, and Abigail Wilson of Woburn, and the grandson of Richard Hil- dreth, who with his wife Sarah came first to Cambridge about 1643. Richard and Sarah afterwards moved to Woburn and then to Chelmsford.
John Hildreth married, first, Abigail Parker and second, Betty Gates. Much later in life he married the widow Ruth Bicknell in Shirley on April 21, 1789, and through her came into possession of five ninths of the property of Lemuel Bicknell in Shirley.
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GENEALOGY
Children of John and Abigail:
I. JOHN, b. in Westford in 1763. He married Elizabeth Leighton and lived and died in Westford. He had ten children. (See History of Westford, p. 454.)
II. ABIGAIL, b. in Westford in 1765. She married Zachariah Rob- bins, Jr.
III. SARAH, b. in 1768 and d. in 1770 in Westford.
Children of John and Betty:
IV. SARAH, b. in Westford in 1773. She married Joash Minot.
V. SIMEON, b. in Westford in 1776. He married Ruth Bicknell of Shirley in 1798. There is but one Ruth Bicknell of Shirley and according to the records of Groton and Shirley she had been married to Phinchas Wait of Groton in 1796. Simeon is given in his father's will in 1810 as "of Shirley."
Children:
I. Simeon, b. 1799.
2. Maria, b. 1801; m. Abram Wright.
3. Asa, b. 1803.
4. Nancy, b. 1805; d. 1808.
5. Betsy, b. 1807; d. 1808.
6. Amos, b. 1809.
7. Nancy, b. 1811.
8. Betsy Ann, b. 1814.
VI. STEPHEN, b. in Westford, 1777. He married Cynthia Brown of Shirley, March, 1801, and lived in the house, now gone, on Green Lane. He is the hero of the long law suit over the wall in Green Lane which James Parker describes so graphically. Stephen had four children, two only born in Shirley. His widow died in Marietta, Ohio, August 29, 1823.
Children:
I. Calvin, b. in Shirley, April 1, 1803. He married S. Eliza Maxon, December 20, 1830, and lived in Marietta, Ohio. 2. Mary Brown, b. February 10, 1805, in Bath, Me. She married E. D. Buel of Athalia, Ohio.
3. Rebecca, b. August 29, 1808, at Charlestown, Mass. She married Isaac Maxon, of Marietta, Ohio.
4. Louisa, b. August 4, 1811, in Shirley. She married Lewis Andrews of Marietta, Ohio. (For further information see Chandler's Shirley, p. 361.)
VII. JESSE. Jesse Hildreth lived for many years in Shirley, and, it is probable, was also a son of John. He made and fulfilled con- tracts with James Parker in 1803 for "pine cole" to cure hops. His wife's name was Hannah. In 1814, he and his wife and other heirs sold land in Shirley to Elisha Gates, Jr., of Stow. It was the forty five acres which had belonged to Thomas Smith, deceased, and had a house upon it. It was the land afterward owned by Jepthah Lawton. No children are recorded in Shirley.
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SHIRLEY
GEORGE HILDRETH lived for some years in Shirley according to the Orthodox Church records. He and his wife Lucy W. were dismissed to the church in Lunenburg in 1849.
Children:
I. CHARLES HENRY, bapt. May 1, 1836.
II. LUCY ANN FRANCES, bapt. May 1, 1836.
III. JAMES, bapt. September 22, 1839.
IV. MARY BROWN, bapt. July 4, 1841.
V. MARTHA JANE, bapt. July 2, 1842.
JAMES HILDRETH. Dr. Benjamin Hartwell records the births of seven children of James Hildreth but unfortunately he never gave names.
Children:
I. -, son, b. March 6, 1830.
II. -, son, b. June 21, 1834 "in Carter house."
III. , daughter, b. November 4, 1835.
IV. , daughter, b. June 12, 1837.
V. , son, b. May 29, 1839.
VI. , daughter, b. January 30, 1841.
VII. -, daughter, b. October 24, 1842.
KENDALL
ENOCH KENDALL, of Shirley, was born in Wilmington, October 15, 1766. He was the son of Enoch Kendall and his second wife Patience. Enoch and Patience both lived to be very old; he died in 1815 in his eighty seventh year, and she in 1827, in her ninety third year.
Enoch Kendall, the younger, married Lydia Carter, February 19, 1795. They lived in the eastern part of Shirley all their lives. He died October 18, 1832, and his widow died July 18, 1842.
Children:
I. ENOCH, bapt. March 2, 1801; m. Fanny Shurtleff of Littleton, March 23, ,1820.
Children:
I. -, son, b. October 12, 1820,* in.Shirley.
2.
-, daughter, b. November II, 1821.
II. HEZEKIAH, bapt. March 2, 1801.
III. LYDIA, bapt. March 2, 1801.
IV. JAMES, bapt. March 2, 1801; Mr. Chandler says that he was born September, 1800; d. February 21, 1801, aged five months.
V. PHEBE, bapt. November 7, 1802.
*Dr. Hartwell's Records.
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GENEALOGY
VI. JAMES, son, b. May 13, 1803. (Dr. Hartwell.)
Child: I. -- , daughter, b. September 24, 1831, in Shirley. (Dr. Hartwell.)
VII. - -, daughter, b. July 19, 1804.
VIII. REBECCA, bapt. November 9, 1806.
IX. STEPHEN, b. February 15, 1807. x. , son
Devon, N. H.
XI. , son § b. December 14, 1807.
XII. -, daughter, b. October 19, 1810.
XIII. SALLY, b. August, 1812; d. October 14, 1818.
REUBEN KENDALL was also a citizen of Shirley, and served on the government side during Shays's Rebellion. He was drafted on January 16, 1787. He married and had children all born in Shirley.
Children:
I. REUBEN, bapt. July 29, 1764; m. Hannah Francis, in Lunenburg, March 5, 1788.
II. SUSANNA, bapt. March 6, 1768.
III. - , bapt. November, 1769.
IV. LUCY, bapt. April 14, 1771.
V. HANNAH, bapt. November 10, 1771.
VI. ELIZABETH, bapt. March 13, 1774.
VII. JONATHAN, bapt. March 17, 1776.
VIII. EBENEZER, bapt. June 28, 1778.
IX. EDMUND, bapt. February 17, 1782.
X. SALLY, bapt. January 15, 1785.
XI. NANCY (?), bapt. May, 1799.
KENT
ISAAC KENT was an early and transient citizen of Shirley. He was the son of Isaac and Anne (Barney) Kent, and was born April 17, 1730. His parents brought him to Groton in 1738. On May 4, 1749, he married Mary Mansfield in Bedford and came to Shirley, where he remained until 1757, when he was warned from Lunenburg, as a citizen of Shirley. His stay in Lunenburg must have been short as he left no record upon the town. The names of his children are taken from the Westford "warning" of 1759. Children :
I. MARY.
II. ELIZABETH.
III. ABIGAIL.
IV. ISAAC.
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SHIRLEY
KILLICUTT
THOMAS KILLICUTT, of Shirley, was born April 6, 1750, in Dun- stable, N. H., the son of Thomas and Mary Killicutt. They must have come in the Scotch-Irish emigration, since the name is found nowhere else. As the name is so uncommon and so little can be found, all that is so far known will be inserted here as an assistance to those who may wish to hunt further. The elder Thomas and Mary had one daughter and five sons. The eldest child, Submit, was born September 14, 1744, in Dunstable. The second child, Reuben, born August 14, 1746. He was in Captain Daniel Wilkins' Company in 1776 and received £5:2:6, for his services. Jona- than, the third child, was born January 18, 1747. He may have died early. Thomas of Shirley was the fourth child, and Charity, a son, born July 3, 1752, the fourth. Charity, like Reuben and Thomas had a long war record. Othniel, the youngest child was born May 6, 1764. He married Silence Harris of Dunstable, February 24, 1789. There are three other records of marriages of Killicutts recorded in Dunstable, Levina to Jacob Colburn, both of Litchfield, June 22, 1792; Molly to John Harris, June 9, 1796; and Dorcas to Jonas Wood, Jr., August, 1820.
Thomas Killicutt of Shirley, was paid on July 16, 1776, being a private in Captain William Burrows' Company, "a Journeying to Exeter." In November of that same year he is recorded as having "set off home." In 1777, he was in a company whose roll was dated at Littleton. On Jan- uary 17, 1778, he published his intentions of marriage with Sarah, daughter of James Hartwell. Killicutt is then called of Groton. He settled in Shirley, where at least three children were born. From Parker's Diary it would seem that he lived in the south part of the town near Scripture Frost, and that he and Frost were either partners or he was Frost's man. He was a shoemaker by trade and made shoes for James Parker in 1784. What became of the family later is a mystery.
Children:
I. SARAH, b. February 18, 1779.
II. THOMAS, b. January 29, 1781; d. January 19, 1782.
III. NAOMI, b. November 6, 1783.
KINGMAN
NATHAN KINGMAN was born in 1752, the son of Captain David5 Kingman (David,4 John,3 John,2 Henry1) of Bridgewater and his wife Abigail Hall. He married Lenity or Lanata Thomas of Marshfield, sis- ter of Japhet Allen's wife. He came very soon to Shirley and set up a blacksmith shop opposite the house now occupied by Mr. Crockett, and
345
GENEALOGY
lived in the house across the road. James Parker mentions him in September and October, 1774. October 18 "this day James Page came for some Boards for Nathan Kingman 653 new & old." He died in 1776, and David Kingman of Bridgewater administered his estate. His widow married Edward Hayford in 1779.
Children :
I. NABBY, b. November 4, 1774, in Shirley; m. Uriah Brett, 1790.
II. MARY, bapt. December 15, 1776, "father deceased."
III. NATHAN, b. between October 18, 1774 and December 30, 1776. J. P.
MCINTOSH
ARCHIBALD McINTOSH, of Shirley, was the son of Archibald and Rachel McIntosh of Raby, or Brookline, N. H. He and his twin sister Rachel were born March 23, 1758. Rachel afterwards became a Shaker in the Shirley family, where she died April 11, 1802. The elder Archibald was killed at the battle of Bunker Hill, and his name appears upon the tablets on the monument.
Archibald McIntosh, Junior, married Susanna Russell, in Hollis, on March 19, 1778. It does not now appear where his children were born, as the records of Brookline do not contain them, though the 1790 census gives him as still a citizen of Brookline. At the time of the census he had a son under sixteen, a wife and four daughters. In 1822, he bought an acre of land and a dwelling house in southern Shirley of Jonathan Farns- worth, which he sold or mortgaged to Benjamin Hastings in 1824. He died in Shirley, December 16, 1824. Parker writes of him "Old McIntosh lay dead," and records his burial on the 18th. David Kilburn of Lunenburg administered his estate, since neither James Bennett, Jr., nor Abigail McIntosh wished to do it.
Children:
I. RACHEL, b. May 15, 1778, in Brookline, N. H .; m. David Kilburn, of Lunenburg, November 30, 1797.
II. WILLIAM, b. 1779; m. Abigail Greenleaf, November 5, 1806, in Lunen- burg. William McIntosh came to live, June 13, 1807, in Shirley Centre, first in the small house on Whitney Road, whose cellar- hole can still be seen, while he was building his house on Brown Road 'in what is now the new part of the cemetery. The house, moved, is now owned by Mrs. Grace E. Winslow. Parker writes of him 1804, June 16, "McIntosh helped Hands at work on the belfrey." When his son William lay dead Parker writes of him as "McTush." He was chosen sergeant in 1808, and ensign in 1812, though he was always known as Captain. In 1810 he began the manufacture of cut nails. He died in Shirley, October 14, 1823,
346
SHIRLEY
at the age of forty four. His widow married, second, Levi Hough- ton, October 15, 1830, and died November 25, 1844, aged fifty five. His inventory included among other things: a bass viol, $7.00; a brass clock, $20.00; books, $2.50. Dr. Augustus G. Parker was appointed guardian of the minor children. The family Bible is owned by Mrs. Nathan A. Taylor of Littleton, Mass.
Children:
I. Lucy, b. October 16, 1807; m. William Henry Crossman, Octo- ber 16, 1833, and lived in Archibald McIntosh's house at the Village.
2. William, b. July 24, 1810; d. May 2, 1814. Buried at Shirley Centre.
3. Abigail, b. August 20, 1816; d. September 6, 1838, aged twenty two years. Buried at Shirley Centre.
4. Susanna, b. August 20, 1816; m. Rev. George Proctor of Sterling, February 15, 1843. Shed. January 11, 1870. Children:
i. Abigail Maria, b. July 8, 1844; m. P. Merrick Har- wood.
ii. Sarah Frances, b. March 2, 1856; m. Nathan A. Tay- lor.
III. - , daughter.
IV. LUCY, b. April 19, 1784.
V. - , daughter.
MCKENZEY
RODERICK McKENZEY, of Shirley, was a resident of the town for many years. He and his wife, Polly, came from Lancaster about 1785, and, having been warned from town, settled down to a life of usefulness. Mc- Kenzey was the town tailor, and he made all kinds of fine clothes and uni- forms for those who could afford them. James Parker's diary is full of references to him, but he mentions no children and none are recorded either in Lancaster or Shirley. He died on September 9, 1820, and was buried the next day. He lived longest in the house on the Horse Pond Road, formerly James Dickinson's Tavern. His wife died a pauper, August 17, 1838, aged eighty three years.
MCLEOD
DAVID McLEOD, of Shirley, was born in Boston, May 16, 1740. He was the son of David McLeod, who, with his wife Mary, came to Boston before 1740, and had seven children, of whom David, of Shirley, was the eldest. David McLeod was evidently a sea captain, for on September 13, 1768, the item, "David McLeod, Sloop Ann from Hispaniola," appears in the sea news printed by the Record Commission of Boston.
347
GENEALOGY
David McLeod, the younger, married Sarah Henry "who was born in Groton, February 21, 1748." She was the daughter of Robert and Eleanor Henry, who lived near the Little Turnpike, on land afterward bought by the town for the Rev. Phinehas Whitney. He was for many years the schoolmaster of Shirley, and died there, October 31, 1789. Children:
I. THOMAS, b. December 28, 1772, in Boston. He married, May 29, 1796, Alice Wilder, in Lancaster. On November 2, 1800, he and his wife were dismissed to the church in Sullivan, N. H.
Children:
I. David, b. September 21, 1796.
2. Patty Wilder, bapt. October 14, 1798.
II. WILLIAM SCOTT, b. March 5, 1776, in Marlborough.
III. BRUCEY, b. March 10, 1778. Her marriage intentions were pub- lished March 3, 1799, to Timothy Vinton of Reading. She had issue; m. second, Nathan Woodcock of Leominster, March 8, 1821. The ceremony was performed by Jacob Wood.
IV. MARY GILLESPIE, b. August 5, 1781. She married May 20, 1803, Joseph Bryant of South Reading.
MADDEN
JOHN MADDEN was a citizen of Shirley on Centre Road. He was born about 1718, and is said by the administration papers of his estate to have been a block maker of Boston. Later he is called of Lunenburg. He lived, however, on the land of Charles Perrin on Centre Road in Shirley, the land which is now Mr Frank J. Lawton's. The old cellar-hole, known as "Seth Walker's," still shows by the roadside just north of the driveway. In June, 1778, James Parker writes that he and others went over to raise a barn for "old Madding." He was of Irish extraction and according to his inventory was a man of substance. Madden died in Shirley, on Sep- tember 4, 1778, aged sixty years. Charles Perrin administered his estate which amounted to £470: 16: 0. His inventory is an interesting variety among the ordinary ones of the day, and included items like these:
"Six white jackets. £5
Thirty one check handkerchiefs. £4-13
One small remnant black callamanco .8/
6 leather bottom chairs £6-0
Sundrie books. 25/
7 yds. white shalloon at 10/ pr. yd.
2 diaper table cloths £5"
It is probable that he kept a store in his house.
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SHIRLEY
In the account with Charles Perrin are two items which refer to Madden's life in Shirley. Among the debts of Madden's estate appear:
"The affair with Mrs. Madden & myself at the time when I settled with hir £4-10-0
to the use of my House Place. £10-0-0."
Either the house commanded a high rent, or Madden had occupied it for a long time without paying his rent. Perrin was appointed guardian of the eldest son, William, who was seven years old at the time of his father's death, and Hannah, the widow, of the son John, four months old in October, 1778.
The younger child may have died for he was not mentioned on October 20, 1779, when Moses Ritter, one of the bondsmen of the estate, wrote to the Honorable Judge of Probate that "the widow Maddin so Called Apears to me, to be so Extravagant a Person that I Pray your Hon" to order some method to secure the Childs Estate." One of the other bondsmen called attention to the fact that Charles Perrin's administration was not of the best and demanded that his actions be looked into. Unfortunately the sequel is lost in both cases.
Children:
I. WILLIAM, b. in 1771. He was apprenticed to Jonas Minot of Concord when "a minor over fourteen years of age," on Novem- ber 14, 1782.
II. JOHN, b. June or July, 1778.
MOOR
HUGH MOOR, of Shirley, with John and Agnes Moor, who were either his father and his mother or his grandparents, settled on a farm in northeast Shirley, between Longley and Lawton Roads. His nearest neighbor was William Gordon, a Scotch-Irishman; and as Hugh Moor is certainly not related to any of the Moore families of the surrounding country, it is probable that he also was an immigrant. John Moor died May 8, 1758, aged ninety six, and was buried in the Centre Cemetery next his wife who had died July 23, 1757, aged eighty nine. Hugh Moor was born about 1714. He married Ruth Mitchell, of Scotch-Irish descent, in Lunen- burg, December 28, 1743. Hugh was killed by the falling of a tree, just a month after John's death, June 22, 1758. He saved the life of his little son, Hugh, at the expense of his own. The family stayed upon the farm for some time. The widow Ruth Moor may have married William Dunsmoor of Lancaster in 1766.
349
GENEALOGY
Children :
I. RUTH, b. December 22, 1744, in Lunenburg. She married Nathan Smith of Shirley. (q. v. Chandler's History.)
II. MARY, b. in Shirley. She married Thomas Goss, and returned for a time to her father's farm in Shirley. Her son William was baptized in Shirley in February, 1788.
III. AGNES, b. in Shirley. She married Captain Sylvanus Smith of Shirley. (q. v. Chandler's History.)
IV. HUGH, b. about 1753, in Shirley. He married, I, Sarah Holland of Shrewsbury, int. February 18, 1775, and 2, the widow Lucy Houghton, July 5, 1819. He died September 26, 1833, aged seventy nine. He lived in Boylston.
Children:
I. Sarah, b. September 19, 1775.
2. Dolly, b. March 17, 1777; m. Ephraim Gerry of Lancaster, January 28, 1800.
3. Lucy, b. January 21, 1779; m. Amaziah Ball, April 30, 1798.
4. Olive, b. April 22, 1781.
5. Sophia, b. June 21, 1783.
6. William Holland, b. July 5, 1785; m. I, Clara Pearson, Octo- ber 8, 1818; m. 2, Abigail M. Lamson, November 27, 1834. Issue. (See Vital Records of Boylston.)
7. Polly, b. November 4, 1789; m. John Hastings, November 16, 1813.
8. Hugh, b. December 12, 1791; m. Elsa Griffin, January 28, 1813.
NICHOLS
THOMAS NICHOLS, of Shirley, was published on August 27, 1774, to Elizabeth Boynton, of Lunenburg. Samuel Nichols was also of Shirley for he married the widow Elizabeth Bartlett-Patterson soon after 1759, and appears in the 1790 census of the town, though his family consisted of only himself and his wife. Thomas Nichols may or may not have been related to Samuel. The birth of his children is not entered on the records of the town, but Mr. Whitney records their baptism.
Children:
I. BETTY, bapt. March II, 1781, in Shirley.
II. LYDIA, bapt. March II, 1781.
III. THOMAS, bapt. March II, 1781.
PHIPPS
CHARLES PHIPPS, of Shirley, was born in Groton September 9, 1751, the son of Charles and Hannah (Pierce) Phipps, and grandson of Solomon Phipps, of Charlestown. Strangely he married Hannah Chase of Shirley (int. January 13, 1774) so that there were two Charleses and two
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SHIRLEY
Hannahs. Charles Phipps lived at the foot of Green Lane on the Great Road on a long strip of land which paralleled the Lane.
Children:
I. HANNAH, bapt. January 21, 1776.
II. LUCINDA, bapt. December 17, 1777.
III. JOHN PIERCE, bapt. November 18, 1781.
PORTER
WILLARD PORTER, of Shirley, was baptized in Ipswich, December 5, 1784, son of Samuel 3d of Wenham and Mrs. Anna Patch, of Ipswich. He married at Manchester, Mass., Lucy, daughter of Winthrop and Lucy Lee, published October 14, 1804. He came to Shirley in 1818, when he bought the farm on Town Meeting Road which had belonged to John Whitney and Francis Dwight. He was Selectman in 1825, 1826, and 1836. Mrs. Lucy Porter died in Clintonville, March 20, 1847. Mr. Porter married, second, Nancy, widow of Joseph Day, who had been Nancy Dike of Westminister. She died March 31, 1863, and is buried in the Shirley Centre ground beside her first husband. Willard Porter died in Shirley, October 3, 1860, aged seventy five. He is buried at the north end of the Shirley Centre Cemetery beside his first wife and children. Children :
I. - , d. January 8, 1805, at Manchester.
II. LUCY, b. June 22, 1806, at Manchester, d. e.
III. - , son, d. November 5, 1809.
IV. WILLARD, b. August 7, 1808, at Wenham.
V. SARAH ANN, b. August 10, 1810; d. February 5, 1821, in Shirley.
VI. ELBRIDGE, b. May 31, 1813 in Wenham; d. March 16, 1821 in Shirley.
VII. DAVID, b. September, 17, 1815; d. e.
VIII. -, daughter, b. in Shirley, d. January 31, 1821.
IX. -, daughter, b. February 24, 1821, in Shirley.
X. LUCY, b. January 4, 1824; m. Israel H. Spaulding of Townsend. The heroine of Abram Hartwell's "fire."
XI. JANE AUGUSTA, bapt. April 29, 1826; d. August 16, 1843.
XII. DAVID, bapt. July 4, 1830; m. Sylvia Adams. He was Selectman of Shirley eight times between 1855 and 1869, and Representative to the General Court in 1861. Child:
I. Lucy Lee, b. cir. March 1, 1847; d. August 7, 1847.
XIII. HARRIET ELIZABETH, bapt. July 4, 1830. Dismissed to the church in Harvard, April 9, 1848; m. probably William Emerson.
XIV. SARAH ANN, bapt. July 4, 1830; m. - Wyatt, of`Lunenburg.
XV. ELLEN MARIA, bapt. September 4, 1842.
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GENEALOGY
RANDALL
SAMUEL RANDALL was born March 1I, 1750, the son of Samuel and Priscilla Randall. Samuel Randall the elder was a citizen of Shirley territory, being a dweller in Stow Leg when the petition of 1747 was signed.
Samuel Randall, Jr., married Mary Wilder of Shirley, the intention being published on August 3, 1775. His twin sister, Priscilla, married Ward Safford, at one time a Shirley resident. Samuel Randall lived for a time on the farm which he bought in 1776 from Isaac Solendine, and which he sold in 1788 to Edward Dunn. It is now owned by Mrs. James P. Tolman. Children:
I. IVORY, b. August 13, 1776, in Shirley.
II. CYNTHIA, b. June 24, 1778. James Parker mentions her birth in his diary.
III. SAMUEL, b. April 16, 1780.
IV. EUNICE.
RICHARDS
CHARLES RICHARDS, of Shirley, married Jean Mitchell in Marble- head, February 23, 1729. He may have been the son of Elijah Richards who died there in 1697. Jean's brother Moses was "from Ireland" upon the records of Marblehead. Charles Richards came to Shirley about 1740, and bought a farm on the Lunenburg Line of about thirty acres. His farm later became the northern part of the farm owned by Jonas Parker, and in more modern times by the late John R. Holden whereon the "Pest House" stands. He sold this farm, in 1745, to James Gordon, and moved into a house on the Livermore farm on Benjamin Road. He lived on this farm until 1765 when he sold to Oliver Livermore of Watertown. He was twice Selectman of the town. Mr. Chandler says that both he and his wife died in Shirley, but there is no official recognition of the fact. He had a brother Edward Richards, yeoman, of Lunenburg, whose will was dated May 20, 1786. Edward's only heirs were his wife, Martha (Mitchell), whom he married September 7, 1782, and his brother, Charles, to whom he left two sheep. His inventory and accounts are interesting because they include "To a debt in England £60." He and Charles have always been considered to have belonged to the Scotch-Irish colony which took Lunenburg and Shirley by storm in the early eighteenth century; but they may have been merely English emigrants caught in the whirlpool of the Scotch-Irish. Worcester County Deeds give information concerning the migration of the Mitchell family.
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SHIRLEY
Children:
I. JOHN, b. January 13, 1730, in Marblehead; m. Elizabeth Mitchell of Lunenburg, October 17, 1757. He was still in Shirley or Lunen- burg in 1781, for Parker says Richards helped him three hours on August 4. No children are recorded in Shirley or Lunenburg. Perhaps m. 2, Margaret Conn in Harvard, October 20, 1773.
II. MARGARET, b. June 24, 1732, at Wenham; d. August 28, 1752, at Shirley.
III. CHARLES, b. April 27, 1735; at Wenham; m. Anna Children:
I. Charles, b. September 5, 1757, in Shirley.
2. Mary, b. August 20, 1759, in Shirley.
3. Daniel, b. August 23, 1761, in Shirley.
IV. MITCHELL, b. October 7, 1737, at Wenham; m. July 2, 1761, Esther Mitchell of Lunenburg, in Lancaster. Esther Mitchell was bur- ied in Shirley on September 4, 1793, and Mitchell on December 5 of the same year. They spent their married life in town on a farm just north of his father's first purchase, which Mitchell bought of William Little.
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