USA > Maine > Genealogical and family history of the state of Maine, Volume III > Part 25
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charge was that of the Congregational church, at Milltown, New Brunswick, where he was ordained July 17, 1860. He remained in this place until 1866, having rendered in 1865 a term of service in the Christian Commission of the civil war. From 1866 to the early part of 1876 he was pastor of the Congregational church at Hallowell, Maine. Thence he was called to the pastorate of the church in Calais, and continued in it until his resignation in April, 1908, a service of thirty-two years. Having declined the request of the church to prolong the relation he was made pastor emer- itus. Mr. McCully has been the moderator of the general conference of the Congregational churches of Maine and on two occasions has given the annual sermon before that body. He was a state delegate to the International Congregational Council held in Boston, 1899, and again to that of Edinburgh, in 1908. He is one of the oldest trustees in years of service of the Bangor Theological Seminary and has served on important committees in the interest of the institution. He has endeared himself to the people of Calais beyond the circle of his own church, and has taken a conspicuous and influential part in all movements relating to the welfare of the community. During many years he has been president of the board of trustees of the Free Library and Reading- Room, and has given much time and labor to the oversight of it. The library is housed in a building which was erected in 1894 at a cost of ten thousand dollars, the joint gift of Frederick Augustus Pike (1817-1886), of Calais, and Freeman H. Todd, of St. Stephen. The library enjoys a liberal endowment pro- vided by James Shephard Pike, associate edi- tor of the New York Tribune, 1850-60, United States minister to the Netherlands 1861-66. A peculiar feature of the endowment is the interdiction by the testator of the purchase from the fund of any novel which has not been published more than ten years. Mr. McCully was married December 25, 1867, to Frances, daughter of George Marks and Mary Bridges (Topliff) Porter. Their children were : I. Emma Lawrence, born January 21, 1873. 2. Mary Porter, January 17, 1874, died March 17, 1899. Mrs. McCully is a descendant of John Porter, the immigrant in the following line.
PORTER John Porter, of Hingham and Salem (Danvers), a tanner by trade and occupation, was born in England in 1595. He came probably from Dorsetshire to the Massachusetts Bay Colony,
probably landed in Boston and going to Dorchester. He was among those who came from Dorchester to Hingham in 1635, and during his short stay in that town he owned land at "Otis Hill," "Over the Delaware," at "Lyford's Licking Meadows," "Crooked Meadows," "Plaine Neck," "Weir Neck," and at "Turkey Meadows." His residence was on East street, on lands granted to him in 1637, and now a part of the Hingham Agricultural and Horticultural Society grounds. He was constable in 1641 and a deputy in the gen- eral court of elections held in Boston, May 29, 1664, and in the same year hie removed from Hingham to that part of Salem after- wards known as Danvers, and May 5, 1644, Mary Porter (supposed to have been his wife) joined the Salem church, but his own name does not appear on the church records until 1649. He sold his house and lands in Hingham to Nathaniel Baker in 1648. He had already purchased a farm in Salem of the Rev. Samuel Sharp, May 10, 1643, for one hundred and ten pounds, and he paid the first installment of fifty pounds May 20, 1643, the second of thirty pounds May 1, 1644, the third of thirty pounds, May 1, 1645, he did not pay until January 20, 1652. On June 29, 1648, he bought of Simon Bradstreet, of Boston, one- third of a farm of one hundred and eighty acres and the same day bought of William and Richard Haynes, of Salem, the other two- thirds of Bishop's farm. In 1650 he bought five hundred acres of land of Emanuel Down- ing, of Salem, which farm he gave to his son Joseph (q. v.) as a marriage portion in 1663. At the time of his death he was the largest landholder in Salem Village, his lands being included in what became the townships of Danvers, Salem, Windham, Topsfield and Bev- erly. He was deputy from Salem to the gen- eral court of elections held in Boston, April 29, 1668. He died in Salem Village (now Danvers), September 6, 1676, and his widow Mary, who probably came with him from Eng- land, was said by Perley Derby, of Salem, eminent authority, to have been living in 1685. The children of John and Mary Porter, the immigrants, were: I. John, a mariner, un- married, who may have been born in Eng- land, and who died March 16, 1684. 2. Sam- uel, mariner, owned a large farm near Wind- ham, married Hannah, daughter of William and Elizabeth Dodge, of Beverly, and they had one child, John, born 1658. He died in 1660 and his widow married, December 2. 1661, Thomas Woodbury, of Beverly, and died January 2, 1689, aged forty-five years.
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She had by her second marriage ninc children. 3. Joseph (q. v.), baptized September 9, 1638. 4. Benjamin, baptized in Hingham, November, 1639; died unmarried January 7, 1722-23. 5. Israel, baptized in Hingham, February 12, 1643, married Elizabeth, daughter of William and Ann Hathorn, and died in November, 1706. 6. Mary, born in Salem Village, mar- ried Lieutenant Thomas Gardner, April 22, 1669. 7. Jonathan, baptized in Salem, March 12, 1647-48, died before 1676. 8. Sarah, bap- tized in Salem, June 3, 1649, married Daniel Andrews.
(II) Joseph, third son of John and Mary Porter, was baptized at Hingham, Massachu- setts, September 9, 1638, by Rev. Péter Ho- bart. He removed with his father and the others of the family to Salem Village in 1644, and on his marriage with Anne, daughter of Major William and Ann Hathorn, on Janu- ary 27, 1664, he received from his father as a marriage portion the five-hundred-acre farm of Emanuel Downing in Salem, and on Sep- tember 17, 1678, he bought of Hilliard Va- ren Jr. forty poles of land in Salem. On Oc- tober 24, 1686, he added to his estate by pur- chase twenty acres of land on the south side of the Ipswich river, in Topsfield, and adjoin- ing lands of his brother, Benjamin, which he purchased from Sarah, widow of Joseph Will- iams, and her son Daniel. He purchased, on June 5, 1704, from Ben Maraton, of Salem, one hundred rods of land on the road leading along North river. He died in Salem Village, December 12, 1714, having already buried his wife. The children of Joseph and Anne ( Ha- thorn) Porter, all born in Salem Village, were: I. Joseph, October 30, 1665, died be- fore maturity. 2. Anna, September 5, 1667, married Dr. Samuel Wallis. 3. Samuel, Au- gust 4, 1669, married Love Howe, had three children and died before 1750. 4. Nathaniel, March 8, 1670-71, married Eleanor Doman, who had nine children and died probably in 1756. 5. Mary, December 18, 1672, married William Dodge, of Beverly, and had two chil- dren. 6. William (q. v.), August 30, 1674. 7. Eliezer, May 23, 1676, died probably before 1714. 8. Abigail, twin of Eliezer, married Samuel Symonds, of Boxford, January 8, 1698. 9. Hepsibah, April 1I, 1678, married Joseph Andrews, June 7, 17II. IO. Joseph, April, 1681, married Mary - -; had three children and died in 1713. II. Ruth, baptized September, 1682, married Jesse Dorman. 12. Mehitable, baptized September, 1682, married Thomas Cummings, of Boxford, March 20, 1705.
(III) Dcacon William, fourth son and sixth child of Joseph and Anne ( Hathorn) Porter, was born in Topsfield, Massachusetts, August 30, 1674, removed from Topsfield to Norton between 1720 and 1730, and there purchascd land of Joseph Elliott, February 8, 1732. He married Phobe Dorman, December 25, 1706, according to the Topsfield records, and he died in Newton, May 7, 1732, and his widow Phobe died in Braintrec, June 21, 1736, agcd fifty-five years. The children of William and Phœbe (Dorman) Porter were born in Tops- field as follows: I. Ruth, August 28, 1707. 2. Judith, July 6, 1710, married a Mr. Hewins. 3. Benjamin, February 4, 1712, married, June I, 1738, Dorothy Curtis. 4. Seth, February 15, 1714, married, March 27, 1746, Abigail Herrick. 5. Annc, February 21, 1716, mar- ried Deacon Peter Thayer, of Braintree and Petersboro, New Hampshire, had twelve chil- dren, all born in Braintree. 6. Phœbe, June 18, 1718, died July 3, 1718. 7. Jonathan (q. v.), December II, 1720. 8. Jabez, February I, 1723.
(IV) Dr. Jonathan, seventh child and third son of Deacon William and Phoebe (Dorman) Porter, was born in Topsfield, December II, 1720, or according to Topsfield records July 17 of that year. He studied medicine and was a practicing physician and surgeon in Braintree and Malden. He was married Sep- tember 14, 1742, to Hannah, daughter of Jon- athan and Sarah (Copeland) Hayden, of Braintree. Hannah Hayden was born Decem- ber 4, 1724, died at Malden, January 20, 181I. Dr. Jonathan Porter died in Malden, January I, 1783. . Their twelve children, of whom eight were born in Braintree and the others in Mal- den, were: I. William, September 19, 1743, married - - Lamb and died in Boston, Sep- tember 28, 1813. 2. Jonathan, March 12, 1745, married in Medford, 1773, Phoebe Ab- bott, of Andover, and died in Medford, No- vember 4, 1817. 3. Hannah, April 4, 1748, died in Malden, August 17, 1785. 4. Sarah, February 4, 1750, died in Malden, September 31, 1775. 5. John, December 28, 1751, died in Malden, August 9, 1798. 6. Jabez, Sep- tember 26, 1753, died in South Carolina in 1796. 7. Phoebe, March 4, 1756, died in Malden. 8. Polly, April 17, 1758, died in Malden, July 12, 1762. 9. Samuel, Sep- tember 30, 1761, died in South Carolina. IO. Polly, September 27, 1762, died in Salem, February, 1838. II. Joseph (q. v.), Septem- ber 3, 1764. 12. Benjamin, March 16, 1767, died in South Carolina.
(V) Joseph, eleventh child and sixth son of
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Dr. Jonathan and Hannah (Hayden) Porter, was born in Malden, September 3, 1764, where he was brought up and educated. In 1786 he went to Robbinston, Maine, as private secre- tary to Edward H. Robbins, Esq., of Massa- chusetts, lieutenant and governor of the Com- monwealth, 1802-06. He removed to Calais, Maine, and engaged in trade at Ferry Point, establishing the first general store in the place. In 1785 he removed his business to St. Ste- phen, New Brunswick, where he continued to reside during the remainder of his life and where he died June 19, 1822. He was mar- ried September 18, 1793, to Betsey, daughter of Major Nehemiah Marks, of the British army, who had been granted lands at St. Stephen by the British government for military service. Betsey Marks was born in Derby, Connecticut, September 18, 1774, was one of a family of twelve children, and she died in St. Stephen, January 4, 1870, having by her marriage with Joseph Porter become the moth- er of ten children, nine born in St. Stephen, New Brunswick, as follows: I. William, born in Calais, Maine, February 2, 1795, died in St. Stephen, May 30, 1861. 2. Betsey Ann, May 17, 1796, married James P. Bixby, of New Hampshire. 3. Hannah Hayden, February 2, 1798, married Jonathan Williams, of Massa- chusetts, died January 17, 1828. 4. John, Au- gust 20, 1802, married (first) Louisa McAl- lister; (second) Ann Whitney; and died in Boston, in February, 1852. 5. George Marks (q. v.), June 24, 1804. 6. Mary, July 12, 1806, married Parker Bixby, of Litchfield, New Hampshire. 7. Eliza, twin of Mary, mar- ried Joseph Stuart and died in St. Stephen, March 4, 1828. 8. Joanna Brewer, Septem- ber 13, 1808, married David Upton, of St. Stephen. 9. Joseph Nehemiah, October 19, 18II, married Janette Grant, of St. Stephen. He died in New York, February 23, 1852. 10. James, March 18, 1816, married Anna Maria Christie, of St. Stephen. He died December 8, 1859.
(VI) George Marks, third son and fifth child of Joseph and Betsey ( Marks) Porter, was born in St. Stephen, New Brunswick, June 24, 1804. He was brought up in St. Stephen, where he attended school, worked in his father's store and became his successor. His father having been a citizen of the United States, he, as his son, had a right to transact business on the Maine side of the St. Croix river as well as on the New Brunswick side without interference from the revenue collec- tors, and he had storehouses at both St. Ste- phen, New Brunswick, and Calais, Maine,
from which points he carried on an extensive business in lumber. He sent ship-loads of "deals" to the ports of the British empire and to foreign ports of Europe. He also car- ried on ship yards at Calais, where he built crafts of all kinds and he was as well a dealer in general merchandise up to the time of his retirement some ten years before his death, which occurred in 1894. He was married March 19, 1829, to Mary Bridges Topliff, of Dorchester, Massachusetts. His wife was born in Dorchester, August 26, 1809, and died in St. Stephen, Maine, October 17, 1846. The children of George Marks and Mary Bridges (Topliff) Porter were born in St. Stephen as follows: I. Charlotte, married Dr. Amos Wilder ; she died October, 1906, aged seventy- seven years. 2. George Henry, October 6, 1831, died when an infant. 3. Anna Maria, August 23, 1833, died in 1903. 4. Mary Ellen, July 29, 1835, died in 1860. 5. Frances (q. v.), August 25, 1837. 6. Joseph N., July 5, 1839. 7. Charles Henry, June 14, 1841, died in 1889. 8. George Marks, December 26, 1844. After the death of the mother of these children in 1846, Mr. Porter married as his second wife Ellen Ann Housley.
(VII) Frances, daughter of George Marks and Mary Bridges (Topliff) Porter, was born in St. Stephen, New Brunswick, August 25, 1837, and was married December 25, 1867, to Rev. Charles Gardiner McCully, of New York City.
There were a number of early KNIGHT immigrants of this name who established themselves in vari- ous parts of New England, and the posterity of each is quite numerous. In common with all who bear the name on this side of the ocean, the Scarboro Knights, about to be re- ferred to, are of English origin, and their an- cestry in the mother country can be traced to a remote period. As pioneers they rendered a good account of themselves, and their de- scendants represent the highest type of Ameri- can citizenship.
(I) John Knight, a native of Scarboro, be- came an early settler in Westbrook, locating at what was afterward known as. Knight's Hill, and he not only cleared his farm from the wilderness, but devoted much time and energy to the improvement of his land, which he finally brought to a high state of fertility. He married Abigail Ford, of Westbrook, and both he and his wife lived to an advanced age. Their children were: Nathaniel, James, Hen- ry, Sarah, Jane, Eunice and Zebulon. 1
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(11) James, second child of John and Abi- gail (Ford) Knight, was born on Knight's Hill, August 28, 1812. In carly manhood he engaged in general farming on his own ac- count, acquiring possession of a good farm in Scarboro, and he tilled the soil industriously for the remainder of his life, realizing a com- fortable prosperity as the result of his labors. In politics he supported the Democratic party, and in his religious faith he was a Free Will Baptist. His death occurred May 7, 1883, at the age of seventy years. He married Mary E. Redlon, who was born in Buxton, Febru- ary 26, 1823, fifth daughter of Amos and Sally (Emery) Redlon (see separate article). She became the mother of twelve children : I. Jo- seph E. 2. Sarah A., who became the wife of Hiram Gustin and has four children. 3. Tur- ner H. 4. Zebulon. 5. Delia F., became Mrs. Floyd. 6. Frank A. 7. Eliza E., became Mrs. Merrill. 8. M. Etta, who also married a Mer- rill. 9. Nathaniel C. 10. Walter L. II. Will- iam. 12. George W.
(III) Frank Amos, sixth child of James and Mary E. (Redlon) Knight, was born in Scarboro, August 5, 1849. His education was acquired in the public schools of Scarboro and Saco. While still a lad he became a farm as- sistant, receiving for his labor the munificent sum of five dollars per month and his board. Possessing a robust constitution, together with the necessary physical strength, he began an apprenticeship at the blacksmith's trade at the age of fifteen with Leander B. Libby, remain- ing with the latter for some time, and he com- pleted his trade under the direction of A. J. Allen in North Berwick, where he went to re- side in 1867. In 1868 he became associated with Mr. Allen under the firm name of Allen & Knight, and some two years later he pur- chased his partner's interest. After carrying on a prosperous general blacksmithing business alone for several years he entered into part- nership with his brother, Nathaniel C., under the firm name of Knight Brothers, and that concern continued in existence until Frank A. Knight relinquished the trade for other pur- suits. He had previously engaged in farming as a side speculation, making a specialty of raising cattle, and for the past ten years has conducted jointly with Oliver Merrill Jr. the "Ontio" at Ogunquit. In politics Mr. Knight is a Republican, and has rendered able public services in various capacities. For three years he was a member of the board of selectmen, served as deputy sheriff for six years, was rep- resentative to the state legislature in 1878, be- ing with the exception of one the youngest
member of the lower house, and for the past ten years has served with marked ability as postmaster at North Berwick, to which office he was originally appointed by President Mc- Kinley. Hle was made a Master Mason in St. John's lodge at South Berwick in 1873, from which he was demitted to become a charter member of Yorkshire Lodge at North Ber- wick, and has occupied all of the important chairs in that body. He also affiliated with Eagle Lodge, No. 47, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, Columbian Encampment and Ray of Hope Lodge of Rebeccas, all of North Berwick.
On October 31, 1869, Mr. Knight married Clara I. Johnson, daughter of William W. and Achsah Johnson, of North Berwick. Mr. and Mrs. Knight have five children: I. Ber- tha E., born June 23, 1872, assistant to her father in the postoffice. 2. Frank Floyd, born October 29, 1875. 3. Grace A., born August 20, 1877, clerk in the postoffice. 4. Nathaniel Hobbs, born September 24, 1883. 5. Clara M., born November 28, 1889. Nathaniel H. is a graduate of Dartmouth College, class of 1907. Frank F., who was for three years con- nected with the North Berwick postoffice, is now in the railway mail service between Bos- ton and Portland.
G. T. Ridlon in his admirable REDLON "History of the Ancient Rye- dales," presents a catalogue of the different variations to which the original name has been subjected, the number being no, less than sixty. Prominent among these are : Riddell, Riddle, Ridley, Ridlon and Redlon. The original, Ryedale, means a valley planted with rye. The parent stock were among the Scandinavian conquerors of Normandy, and one of their descendants, Galfridus Ridel, who. appears in the Roll of Battle Abby as "Mon- sieur Ridel," received from William the Con- queror large landed estates in England as a reward for his services in the conquest.
(I) Magnus Redlon, founder in America of the York county Redlons, was born at Shet- land, on the north coast of Scotland, in 1698; emigrated to New England in 1717, settling in York, Maine, and there purchased twenty-two: acres of land. He subsequently resided in Biddeford, Scarboro and Saco, owning and occupying in the latter place a large tract of land containing a dwelling house, situated on Rendezvous Point, where he died in 1772. He was one of the original members of the First Church in Saco. He was a hunter, a fisher- man and a noted Indian fighter. Among his
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neighbors he was known as "the little Scotch- man," and the savages called him the "white scout with yellow hair." In 1720 he married Mrs. Susanna Austin (nee Young), presuma- bly born in Scotland, November 23, 1701, daughter of Matthew Young and widow of Ichabod Austin. She died in 1730 and he sub- sequently married for his second wife Massie, daughter of Abraham Townsend. The chil- dren of this first union were: Susanna, who died in infancy ; Ebenezer, John, Matthias and Daniel; those of his second marriage were : Abraham, Jeremiah and Jacob.
(II) Ebenezer, second child and eldest son of Magnus and Susanna ( Young-Austin) Redlon, was born in York, February 13, 1723. In 1751, or shortly afterward, he settled in Narraganset No. I, now Buxton. February 28, 1777, he enlisted in Captain Daniel Lane's company of Colonel Ichabod Alden's regi- ment for service in the revolutionary war and died from exhaustion while in the army May 5, of the same year. His burial place is un- known. August 8, 1751, he married his cous- in, Sarah Young, of either York or Pepper- ellborough (now Saco). She survived him many years. They were the parents of eight children : David, Ebenezer, Jonathan, Susan, Sarah, Jeremiah, Anna and Moses.
(III) Ebenezer (2), second child of Ebe- nezer (I) and Sarah (Young) Redlon, was born in Narraganset No. I, November 4, 1737. He was also a revolutionary soldier, first as a member of Captain John Lane's company and later in the Sixth Massachusetts Regi- ment under Colonel Thomas Nixon, serving at Boston, Cambridge, in Connecticut, on Long Island, at Ticonderoga and West Point under General Alexander McDougall. In the record of accounts of Captain Lane's com- pany he is called Ebenezer Ridley, and is charged with one "shirt." He resided in Bux- ton and was a shoemaker. Eccentric, out- spoken and honest, he took special delight in exposing hypocrisy whenever an opportunity presented itself, and on one occasion, when at a gathering of farmers in a country store, all mentioned some disease as an excuse for drinking grog, Ebenezer stepped up to the counter and said, "Nothing ails me, but I want a glass of grog because I love it." February 17, 1780, he married Sarah Hancock, daugh- ter of Isaac Hancock, of Buxton, and she sur- vived him, dying in that town December 26, 1856, aged one hundred years. She was the mother of eleven children: Isaac Hancock, Amos, Mary, Joanna, Mercy, Elizabeth, Sarah, Rebecca, Lucy, Rev. Ebenezer, Selecta, and
she had at the time of her death two hundred and seventy-three descendants.
(IV) Amos, second child of Ebenezer (2) and Sarah (Hancock) Redlon, was born in Buxton, December 10, 1783, died there March 25, 1860. He followed the shoemaker's trade in connection with farming and was highly respected for his various commendable quali- ties. He was first married October 28, 1802, to Sally Emery, daughter of Benjamin and Mercy (Moulton) Emery, of Buxton. She died February 24, 1823, and on November 17, 1825, he married for his second wife Eliza- beth Berry, also of Buxton. He was the fa- ther of fifteen children, eleven by his first union and four by his second, namely: Ben- jamin, Sally, Thomas Jefferson, Dr. Nathaniel, Jonathan, Mary, Miranda, Cyrus, Rev. Amos, Almira, Mary E., Apphia, Eliza, Nathaniel, Olive.
(V) Mary E., youngest child of Amos and Sally (Emery) Redlon, was born in Buxton, February 26, 1823. She became the wife of James Knight, of Scarboro (see Knight).
PARKER This name has borne no incon- spicuous part in the settlement and development of New Eng- land, and is now found in all parts of the country. Not all of its bearers have been traced to a common origin, but most are known to have descended from the Puritan Fathers of the New England colonies. The name has been honored in all generations, has been especially well known in military annals, and those who bear it in this region have held up its prestige. It has been associated with civil reforms, as well as active in military op- erations.
(I) Joseph Parker came from Rumsey, county Hants, England, and sailed from Southampton in the ship "Confidence," in 1638, age twenty-four, settling first at New- bury and then in Andover, Massachusetts. He was a tanner and owned a corn mill, and was one of the organizers of the church at Andover in 1645. The given name of his wife was Mary, who was hanged for witchcraft in Sa- lem in 1692. In the trial she was accused by Mercy Wardwell and William Barker of join- ing with them to afflict one Timothy Swan. It was alleged that several persons in the pres- ence of the court were restored by the touch of her hand. On such suppositional evidence she was convicted and hanged. By the means of this ancient and eminent delusion, sanc- tioned as it was by those high in authority and prominent for piety and learning, many inno-
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cent people were hurried out of existence by a species of religious fanaticism, for no offence or crime, by a series of foul, impetuous and inconsiderate judicial murders which equaled in enormity but not in extent the massacre of St. Bartholomew and the butcheries of the Duke of Alva in the Low Countries; the dam- nation of which has left a blot on the ermine and on the cloth and on the fair name of the noble old commonwealth, unmollified by the mellifluous influences of time. Her sons in a petition to the general court said : "Whereas our honoured mother was Imprisoned and up- on her Tryal was condemed for supposed witchcraft upon such evidence, as is now gen- erally thought to be insufficient and suffered the Pains of Death at Salem in the year 1692. We being well satisfied not only of her inno- cency of that crime that she was condemed for but of her piety, humbly desire that the attainder may be taken off so that her name that has suffered may be restored." The sons also show in their petition that after their mother's execution, an officer sent by the sher- iff came to Andover to seize her estate. The sons told him she left no estate. Whereupon he seized their cattle, corn and hay, and threat- ened that their whole belongings should be sold unless they could make a settlement with the sheriff. The sons were obliged to journey to Salem and expend money to save their own from confiscation. In their memorial to the general court they claim restitution for eight pounds. "Considering my great age and in- firmity," Joseph made his will November 4, 1678, and anticipated his death by one day. His property was appraised at five hundred and forty-six pounds, the dwelling at sixty- eight and the old corn mill on the Cochicho- wick twenty pounds, quite an estate for those times. He appointed "my loving brother Na- than, my loving friend Left John Abbott, my loving friend Henry Ingalls & my loving friend Ensyne Thomas Chandler" overseers of his estate. His children were: Joseph, Ste- phen, Samuel, Mary, Sarah, Ruth and John.
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