David Pulsifer, (Which one died at bunker Hill?)

David Pulsifer, born in 1716 in Ipswich MA to Jonathan and Sarah Loude Pulsifer, married Hannah Brown Pulsifer around 1740. The family lived in Boston MA (I think), then they moved to Connecticut, where he served in the Militia in 1758. [see correction below]

Given Name	David
Surname	Pulsipher
Page #	58
Location	Connecticut
Regiment	Third
Regt.Command	Fitch, Eleazer Colonel & Captain
Company	Third
Co.Command	Putnam, Israel Major & Captain
Campaign Year	1758
Source List	Muster Roll

Source: Connecticut Soldiers, French and Indian War, 1755-62

This David Pulsifer (b. 1716) was my ancestor through his son, Ebenezer Pulsifer (b.1744)...on the Ada Swasey Rogers family tree.  David (b.1716) was my 6th great grandfather.

He had 3 children with Hannah Brown and she died between daughter Hannah's birth in 1745 and 1756 when David married another woman, Elizabeth Stowell, and had 2 more children. (*See below) For the first (?) time I have difficulty with some historic records, because the dates given of his marriage to Elizabeth Stowell are similar to those given for Hannah Brown, the same year, but in Pomfret CT, rather than Ipswich MA.  And Hannah was the mother of the first 3 children, all born in Ipswich MA.

It may be that another David Pulsifer was marrying in CT?  It may also be that another David Pulsifer died in the Battle of Bunker Hill in 1775.  At least 3 of them on the tree say they were the one. OH, I just realized the Connecticut David who married Elizabeth Stowell might have been the one whose record shows he fought for Connecticut in the French and Indian War [above.]

Since our David (b. 1716) had an Uncle David Pulsifer, his father's brother, born in 1685, it might be a mix up between them.  OR, there was also a son, David (b. 1708) born to this Uncle David (b. 1685) as well as my David Pulsifer's (b. 1716) own son David (b. 1740.)

I'd guess the most likely ones to fight would have been son 1740 or our 1716 David, and then maybe nephew David b. 1708.  The eldest, b. 1685 would have been very unlikely.
 
How can I figure it out?  I am not sure I can.  People in the DAR are confusing some of them on their family trees.  Another wife is also possible, Abigail Hodgkiss.

If I had more time...ah there's the rub.  These three related men all lived at the same time, in about the same area.  The records don't make clear which one was which....especially when listing a marriage.  Perhaps if I had the wills or probate records, I could find out better information.  But having the 3 of them dying at Bunker Hill, is pretty unbelievable!

And then another David Pulsifer wrote a book about the Battle of Bunker Hill in 1872.  He was a hisoric records clerk in Ipswich MA.  I have skimmed it, but it doesn't list a David Pulsifer's death...but rather the various skirmishes, and generals and lieutenants, especially those officers who died in battle.

It might take a few weeks, but I shall at least learn about the Battle for Bunker Hill, which the Colonials lost, but it changed the British attitude toward them, even before the Declaration of Independence. Remember Lexington had taken place in April of 1775.  And the Boston Tea Party way back in Dec of 73.  This slowly burning fuse eventually turned into a revolution. But the years leading up to it meant neighbors looking distrustfully at each other to see who would uphold the Crown, and who were more interested in the colonial attitudes of independence.

I'd almost bet that I had some ancestors who were Loyalists.  I wonder how I can find out which ones they were...not everyone would favor fighting for independence, after all. 

OK, the fortunate ancestry touch has happened again. One of these Davids (1708) was an ancestor of Joseph Smith, the founder of the Church of Latter Day Saints, (which also runs Ancestry DOT com)  and now I see he was Elizabeth Stowell's husband, not my David (1716). (I've crossed out the misinformation about that wedding above.)

It's time to do some changes on my ancestry tree, first.

But you can be reading the LDS info while I do that:

"David, the sixth child of Benedict, is the one we are especially concerned about, and his wife Susanna. Their children were all born in Boston, namely: David (ours), born May 7, 1708; Susanna, born November 19, 1710; Margaret, born July 6, 1712; Joseph, born December 27, 1713; Elizabeth, born February 11, 1717, and Abigail, born November 27, 1720.

This David was a sailor of Boston. His wife, Susanna, was licensed to sell strong drinks in Boston in 1727, according to the “Boston Selectmen’s Minutes, 1716 to 1736.” So, if this is our David, born 1708, and Susanna was his mother, he would only be 19 years old when his mother sold strong drinks.

Probably that accounts for his going into Connecticut. Records show that he was a resident of Pomfret Windham County, Connecticut. He married in Pomfret, October 2, 1740. Elizabeth Stoel (Stowell), daughter of David Stowell and Patience Herrington, born August 21, 1719, in Newton, Massachusetts.

Their children born in Pomfret were: (Information from Pro. Ct. Record 9): Mary Pulsipher, born June 29, 1744, married John Harwood and died in 1786; Ester Pulsipher, born March 13, 1747; John Pulsipher, born July 8, 1749, and married Elizabeth Dutton; David Pulsipher, born October 6, 1751, died November 6, 1754; Elizabeth Pulsipher, born June 12, 1754, married Captain John H. Fuller; David Pulsipher, born September 29, 1756, died January 14, 1835; Ebenezer Pulsipher, born in 1758, first wife Priscilla Russell, second wife, Unity Reed.

David and Elizabeth moved to Ware River, Massachusetts, then in 1766 to Rockingham, Windham County, Vermont. The history of Rockingham states that he came “with wife” Elizabeth and five children. He settled on the Meadows opposite South Charleson, New Hampshire, and later moved to Rockingham village.

He built the first log cabin “Inn” in the town, located on the site of the dwelling now standing next, west of the old church. Town meetings were held in his home, also church meetings previous to the building of the first meeting or “town” house.

When the first church was organized in October, 1773, David and Elizabeth Pulsipher were among the first nineteen members and later David joined with others in presenting the town with the land which, for a century and a third”, has been occupied by the old meeting house and the burying ground adjoining.

Directly after the battle of Lexington, tidings of the event were sent to Rockingham, as wall as all surrounding towns and David with his son John, joined a band of Patriots gathered on both sides of the Connecticut River, and the morning of April 21, 1775. they were assigned to Captain John Maroy’s Company in Colonel James Reed’s Regiment which took an active part in the battle of Bunker Hill. It was believed that David was killed at this battle as he never returned home and his fate was never known. He nay [sic] have died of disease in the war. His wife and family remained in the old log cabin several years keeping it as a Public Tavern.

After the first church, organized in 1773, was discontinued in 1839, the Record Book as well as the Communion Service, the table cloth and one napkin were preserved by members of the Pulsipher family to whom much credit is given for their faithful care."

----------------------

[Interesting note: the 1708 David was the grandson of Benedict Pulsifer the immigrant, not the direct son. So sayeth ancestry trees at least.]

So, going back to my own ancestor (uncle of this one of LDS fame above) my 6th great grandmother, Hannah Brown Pulsifer, may have died after her 3rd child, Hannah was born in 1745.  If there's no data to substantiate the second wife in 1756, then my 6th great grandmom Hannah Brown Pulsifer, didn't have to have died by then.  We now have an unknown death date for her. And until I see an official document about the other wife, I'm not even adding her onto the tree.  At least now I know Elizabeth Stowell wasn't on my tree, except as an Aunt by marriage.

Wasn't this fun? How many hours do you think it took me to come to this place?  Over 3 days, maybe 16 total.  I am glad the studio is closed for the holiday break, so I have time to spend doing this, not to mention my having bronchitis and being homebound more than usual.

Captain John Thomas Ayers/Eyre Sr. 1592- 1657

Captain John Thomas Ayers/Eyre Sr

1582–1657

BIRTH 2 SEP 1592 • Corsham, Salisbury, Wiltshire Co, England

DEATH 31 MAR 1657 • Haverhill, Essex, Mass.

Below- an old book illustration of his birthplace in England, and his birth date varies from 1582-96.  I'm going with the1592 for my ancestry tree at this time.

Wiltshire Architecture of the Sixteenth Century  "The hamlet of Hawkstreet, Brougham parish, where this farm manor house stands, the likely birthplace, in 1596, of John Ayer of Haverhill, Massachusetts.  Larger than his own two-story home would have been, the building shows clearly in this review the lofts and local style of architecture familiar to him."

Haverhill MA 1850 illustration

He lived most of his life in Haverhill MA

Located on the Merrimack River, it began as a farming community of Puritans, largely from Newbury Plantation. The land was officially purchased from the Pentuckets on November 15, 1642 (a year after incorporation) for three pounds, ten shillings.^[3] [4]Pentucket was renamed Haverhill (after the Ward family's hometown in England) and would evolve into an important industrial center, beginning with sawmills and gristmills run by water power. In the 18th and 19th century, Haverhill developed woolen mills, tanneries, shipping and shipbuilding. The town was for many decades home to a significant shoe-making industry. By the end of 1913, one tenth of the shoes produced in the United States were made in Haverhill, and because of this the town was known for a time as the "Queen Slipper City". The city was also known for the manufacture of hats. Wikipedia HERE.


-------------------------------- Quoted below to next --------- mark

The immigrant John Ayer was said to have come from England, arriving on The James in 1635 with his wife Hannah and their first 4 children - Thomas, Rebecca, Robert, and Peter. There is no documentation found for his journey, but in John's case he came with money, and perhaps was one of the people who were not allowed to leave without surrendering money and property to the Crown. Per Willis Brown's research, we place him on the James because of his later close association with other listed passengers on that ship, such as the Pike family, and his kinsman, John Evered alias Webb.

The James itself is a part of history, surviving the Great Hurricane of 1635. The James, out of Bristol, met the hurricane off the Isles of Shoals, there losing three anchors and being forced to put to sea, for no canvas or rope would hold. The storm winds drove her to within feet of the Pascataquack rocks. "At this moment," wrote Increase Mather (his father, mother, and four brothers being among the one hundred passengers), "their lives were given up for lost; but then, in an instant of time, God turned the wind about, which carried them from the rocks of death before their eyes." On Aug 13, 1635, The James manages to make it to Boston Harbor proper with "...her sails rent in sunder, and split in pieces, as if they had been rotten ragges..."

So were the parents of' a great American family delivered from death at the hands of the tempest. Of the one hundred plus aboard the James, none were lost. 

John and his family resided in Salisbury, MA from 1640 - 1646. Some people report that he lived in Ispwich for a time. We know this not to be true, as he was recorded as such in many family histories because he was made a Freeman in the Ipswich court. However, the court at that time traveled, and it was just a stroke of fate that it was in Ipswich when the issue of Freeman status for John and his son John was taken up by the court. The will of John also comes into the same category. He never lived in Hampton, but that is where the court was at the session that considered his estate.

John and family moved to Haverhill, MA in 1647, there John and Hannah had 5 more children - Mary, John Jr., Nathanial, Hannah, and Obadiah.
According to the New England Heritage John was made a freeman, and was a well respected member of Haverhill. A freeman in those days was not the opposite of a slave. A freeman was more of a citizen with benifits. The Church had to vote on who became a freeman, and the process and questions were excrutiating.

To the best of our knowledge, our John was married once, to Hannah, whose maiden name is lost to history. She survived her husband, and was the mother of all of his children, easily proven by the land deeds of MA. Below is a quote from Willis Brown in regards to Hannah and her maiden name:

"First and possibly foremost, John Ayer was not married to Hannah Evered. He was married to Hannah, who was not an Evered. A very early researcher, perhaps as early as 1860, identified her as Hannah Green(?) with the question mark next to it. He left us no notes, or lists of reference. I have found nothing that would indicate where he developed that theory. The earliest identification that I have found of the wife of John Ayer as Hannah Evered was a newspaper genealogy column known as "The Boston Transcript." According to that source Hannah was listed in the will of John Evered alias Webb, therefore she must be his sister. She was not listed in that will. In fact, Hannah was still alive when the will was offered for probate, she was not mentioned and did not inherit. John Evered alias Webb did mention his cousins as the children of John Ayer: and not as the children of his sister Hannah. I think John Evered alias Webb knew what he was doing and I do not try to second guess him. In some so-called family trees, Hannah has been added as a sibling of John Evered alias Webb, but that is not supported by English records." John passed away in Haverhill in 1657. his will was dated March 12, 1656, proved Hampton Ct. Jun 8 1657. His wife, Hannah, survived him, and died Oct. 8, 1688, having remained his widow. John Ayer devised his homestead to his son John Jr.

"This is the story, to the best of my knowledge, of John Ayer and his time in Haverhill MA. I want to thank people like Willis Brown, Robert Ayers, and Warren Ayer for sharing so much of their research and knowledge. Clearly their input has helped my research significantly and made this website possible."
The above information comes from Melinda Wilson, from Rootsweb, also quoted a Find A Grave site

-------------------------------------end quote------

I am also using 1598 as the date of his wife, Hannah's birth (one of several given).  When she lived to 1688, it would have been very difficult to have been born in 1582 as some records state, not to mention having her last few of the 10 children so late in her life.  They were my 9th great grandparents on Ada Swasey Rogers family tree.

Our ancestor was their daughter Rebecca Ayer Aslett 1623-1671 who married John Aslett.

And we also have Captain John and Hannah Ayers/Eyre as our 9th great grandparents through their son Captain John Ayers (1623-1675) descendants as well...through his son Nathaniel Ayers (blacksmith) 1664-1731, also on the Ada Swasey Rogers tree. 

A poem, moving away from my regular postings

I know this blog is for my ancestors...but I want to keep and share this poem, and it mentions ancestors!

My Ancestry DNA results came in.
Just as I suspected, my great great grandfather
was a monarch butterfly.
Much of who I am is still wriggling under a stone.
I am part larva, but part hummingbird too.
There is dinosaur tar in my bone marrow.
My golden hair sprang out of a meadow in Palestine.
Genghis Khan is my fourth cousin,
but I didn't get his dimples.
My loins are loaded with banyan seeds from Sri Lanka,
but I descended from Ravanna, not Ram.
My uncle is a mastodon.
There are traces of white people in my saliva.
3.7 billion years ago I swirled in golden dust,
dreaming of a planet overgrown with lingams and yonis.
More recently, say 60,000 B.C.
I walked on hairy paws across a land bridge
joining Sweden to Botswana.
I am the bastard of the sun and moon.
I can no longer hide my heritage of raindrops and cougar scat.
I am made of your grandmother's tears.
You conquered rival tribesmen of your own color,
chained them together, marched them naked to the coast,
and sold them to colonials from Savannah.
I was that brother you sold, I was the slave trader,
I was the chain.
Admit it, you have wings, vast and golden,
like mine, like mine.
You have sweat, black and salty,
like mine, like mine.
You have secrets silently singing in your blood,
like mine, like mine.
Don't pretend that earth is not one family.
Don't pretend we never hung from the same branch.
Don't pretend we don't ripen on each other's breath.
Don't pretend we didn't come here to forgive.

from Fred LaMotte

A personal note...may be away from computer while healing.  These ancestors have been waiting all this time, I think they will forgive me some time.

More Ipswich homes of ancestors, Robert Lord 1575-1641

"The First Period of colonial American architecture was approximately 1626 through 1725. There are more remaining first Period houses in Essex County, MA than anywhere else in the country, and Ipswich has 59 (depending on who’s counting), more surviving First Period homes than any other town.

"First Period houses have steeply pitched roofs, are asymmetrical due to having been built in phases, and feature large central chimneys. Exposed chamfered summer beams are almost always found, especially in the front rooms. First Period builders were often trained in English Medieval techniques. The fronts of these houses faced south to maximize heat from the sun’s rays, which explains why so many First Period homes line the north side of High Street in Ipswich.
From Historic Ipswich

Ipswich MA, 17 High St.

My 10th Great grandfather, Robert Lord was the first owner of this property, (but did not build the house)

17 High Street, the Thomas Lord house (1658)

The Thomas Lord house at 17 High Street in Ipswich features original champfored summer beams, unpainted feather edge paneling in the front rooms and hall, an original saltbox frame, center chimney and five cooking fireplaces with bake ovens and large hearths. The saltbox roof slopes down to one story in the rear. The front entry features the original stairway and paneling. Typical of many early homes, the windows are 6 panes over 9 (cottage style).

This First Period house stayed in the Lord family for generations. The lot was granted to Robert Lord who arrived as one of the first European settlers of Ipswich in 1634 and served as town clerk until his death in 1683. The property was transferred to Robert Roberts and then to Thomas Lord, a cordwainer (shoe maker) who built the early section of this house in 1658. This house remained in the Lord family until the 1860’s.

Thomas Lord House Ipswich

 “This lot was first granted to Robert Lord, but by 1658 Robert Roberts was in possession, as he sold the land with a house to Thomas Lord, a shoemaker (2:9). The main frame of the present house may correspond to that early dwelling. This oaken frame with simple chamfers encloses a two-room over-two-room house; the leanto is framed in pine, suggesting a later addition. A restoration of the house, beginning in 1949, has exposed the early frame and opened the fireplaces. The original fireplaces with carved backs, made of bricks laid up with mud and clamshells, were found and restored. In the west chamber, the fireplace had never been reduced in size.”

Robert Lord "...served in various town offices (as mentioned by Gordon,) including: deputy of general court (1637), committee to adjust town, county and farm boundary lines (1637), clerk of court at Ipswich (1648), court recorder (1649), sealer of weights and measures (1649), clerk of Salem court (1658), empowered to issue executions (1652), marshal/sheriff for Ipswich court (1648-60) [Cutter]. Thomas was a cordwainer.”

Front stairs at the Thomas Lord house

Post and beam framing is exposed in the attic as well and shows the scribe marks that the builder used to match the pre-cut tenons and mortises.

 

Massive summer beams are exposed throughout the house

Robert Lord 1575-1641, was married to  Katherine Bartholomew Thompson 1579-1650.  Their daughter Faith Lord 1628-1679 married first Edward Brown, 1627-1658 (See posted blog here) and they had Joseph Browne Sr. (see his blog HERE) and his siblings. Faith Lord Brown married Daniel Warner in 1660 following the death of her first husband in 1658. 

-

I don't have any records that show Thomas Lord was related to Robert Lord...perhaps a nephew.

52 Jeffreys Neck Road, Shatswell Planters Cottage (c 1646)

The Shatswell family is one of the earliest to arrive in Ipswich. A small building that was moved to the Collins-Lord property on Jeffreys Neck Road is believed to have been the original planters cottage of John Shatswell or his son Richard. It may have been built as early as 1646, in which case it would be the oldest structure in Ipswich. It was moved in the 1940’s to Strawberry Hill on Jeffreys Neck Road, and was placed beside another building that was moved and reassembled by Daniel Wendell from the Lord-Collins House and the Ross Tavern in Ipswich.

 No, I don't know of any ancestors of mine connected with the Shatswell cottage, I just like it.

Jonathan Pulcifer/Pulsifer

Jonathan Pulsifer (1687-1763)  was my 7th great grandfather on the Ada Swasey Rogers Family tree.

Here's his home where he lived with his wife, Sarah Loude Pulsifer (1688-1749) who he married in 1707.  Ancestry has had a hiccough for the last few days, in not giving me the 31 other trees about her life, and I'll have to call them to get it straightened out, and being the holidays there's a 45 minute wait to get through. For now I don't even know who her parents were.

I'm pretty sure they had 11 children, and David Pulsifer (1716-1783) would marry Hannah Brown (1718-1756), and I'll give you another post just about them!  David died in the Battle of Bunker Hill in the American Revolution,

Ipswich Historical Society says this:
"Jonathan Pulcifer (Pulsifer) built this house in 1718 on Summer Street, one of the “oldest ways” in Ipswich. He was probably the son of Benedict Pulsifer, an early settler of Ipswich who died in 1695. There was also a John Pulsifer who settled in Gloucester about the same time. The probably son of the builder of this house, Jonathan Pulcifer Jr. is listed as a sailor in the French and Indian War.
Thomas Franklin Waters mentioned this house in Ipswich in the Massachusetts Bay Colony (1915), referencing the recorded sales in the Salem book of deeds:

We observed that Jonathan Pulcifer purchased the next lot in 1718, when the Samuel Dutch property was divided into house lots, and another in 1724. He seems to have owned a continuous frontage to the corner now occupied by Miss Sarah P. Caldwell’s residence. His heirs apparently sold the house now owned by Theodore H. Howe to Richard Lakeman,
May 14, 1796 (176: 263). He sold to Daniel Lakeman (176: 263), and Daniel transferred to Jane Gould, wife of Elisha Gould, Oct. 23, 1811 (196: 44). The Goulds sold to Elizabeth Fuller, Nov. 23, 1827 (246: 194), and Reuben Daniels sold it to Chas. H. Howe, May 16, 1867 (726: 63).

"Original architectural features have been re-exposed by the owners, including beams & posts, summer beam, gunstock posts.

"I am told that few years ago as a realtor was getting ready to leave, he looked at the top of the stairs and saw the distinct ghostly form of an old woman looking back at him.

Thanks to Ipswich Historical Society for pictures and text about 15 Summer St.

And I have seen the hand written birth record for Jonathan Pulcifer so I know he was the son of immigrant Benedictus Pulsifer, (however you choose to spell it!) and Suzanna Waters Pulsifer, though the paper had been torn, leaving just "nathan" as his name as the remainder of "Jonathan."  See my blog post (HERE) about Benedictus Pulsifer.

The Pulsifer family descendents married the Grangers, who were just a couple of generations away from marrying the Swaseys of my grandmother's Ada Swasey Rogers' tree.

Don't you wonder who the ghost might have been that was checking out the realtor?

Edward Brown and 1650 house in Ipswich

Edward Brown

1627–1658

Birth 1627 • Hawkedon, Suffolk, England

Death 09 FEB 1658 • Ipswich, Essex, Mass

The good thing about Ipswich is its historic society, among other things.
My ancestor (9th great grandfather) Edward Brown built this house at 27 High Street, about 1650.

edward-brown-house-27-high-street

He was the father of Joseph Brown Sr, who was mentioned with his wife, Hannah Aslett Brown, Here, who were the parents of Benjamin Brown, the miller, who's early house was also mentioned HERE.  And Benjamin Brown's daughter, Hannah Brown, married David Pulsifer, with at least 4 more generations living in Essex County MA, my ancestors on the Ada P. Swasey Rogers family tree.
==========================

"Edward Brown came to Ipswich with the original settlers and married Faith Lord. Although he served as a Marshal of Ipswich, he and several other men were brought to court because their wives were seen wearing finery above their station. Puritan law required one to prove 200 pounds in savings to justify such extravagances. He made his will on 9 Feb, 1659 to his wife, Faith; sons Thomas, Joseph and John; and daughters, but no names mentioned, and his brother Bartholomew of whom he purchased the land on which this house sits.

We are fortunate that the house was photographed when it was once for sale, so we get to see some of the interior.  Just look at those boards in that floor!

"The Edward Brown House at 27 High Street is recorded as having been built in 1650, making it one of the oldest houses in New England. The asymmetrical arrangement of the windows and the location of the chimney suggest that the first modest section of the house was on the left, and that it has been greatly expanded and remodeled over the years.
 (Historic Society)

 Many boards must have been replaced in these stairs over 350 years!

Thomas Franklin Waters wrote about the Edward Brown house in his book, Ipswich in the Massachusetts Bay Colony Volume I, 1905

Edward Brown

IPSWICH IN THE MASSACHUSETTS BAY COLONY

“The Edward Brown lot of one acre (was) southeast from Bradstreet. He had a son John, who resided in Wapping, England, in 1683, when he sold land in the common fields left by his father Edward, (Ips. Deeds 4: 533). The widow Sarah Caldwell’s deed to Dillingham gives the eastern bound “land formerly Joseph Brown’s.” From the Probate Records, we learn that Joseph Brown died before 1694, and that his estate was divided to his sons, John and Benjamin (Pro. Rec. 313: 559, .560), in 1721.

"John Brown, Turner, granted in his will, proved in 1758, to Elizabeth, his wife, “all the household goods she brought to me, and all the linen she hath made since I married her to be at her Disposal;” to his son John, the improvement of the two lower rooms and the northeast chamber and some real estate; to his daughter Esther Adams, and the children of his daughter Mary Lord, the household goods; and all the residue of real estate to his son Daniel (Pro. Rec. 335: 229). The house, barn and land were valued at £60 (Pro. Rec. 336: 17).

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[NOTE: A Turner, as John Brown is above, is someone who makes things with a lathe, turning wood or metal into objects that are round]

I have re-read these documents quoted above about 5 times.  There was Edward Brown's son, John Brown in Wapping England in 1683.  He would have been brother to Joseph Browne who died before 1694, leaving his estate divided between his sons, John Brown and Benjamin in 1721.  The first John Brown I had (formerly) listed in Ancestry was born in Norfolk VA, where he died.  Not likely the right John Brown, since we know he was in Wapping England in 1683.  Yay for primary source documents!

Then there is John Brown, Turner, who designated various items in 1758 in his will, including the "the improvement of the two lower rooms and northeast chamber" which must pertain to this house!  I am also guessing that John Brown, Turner, is the same who received half the estate from Joseph in 1721.

Anyway, Benjamin built his house which later became part of the Caleb Warner house, as we already know.

Benjamin Brown 1681-1733 a miller

 Benjamin Brown (a miller)

1681–1733

Birth C. 1681 • Ipswich, Essex, Massachusetts

Death 16 FEB 1733 • Ipswich, Essex, MA

The beginning of this post comes from the Historical Society about the Caleb Warner House.

"Benjamin Brown was born in Ipswich in 1699 (sic) to Joseph Browne and Hannah Aslett/Aslebee. [NOTE: My records may have some wiggle room on birth dates, but he couldn't have that late a birth date, as his mother's children were born between 1672-85 or so.]

"He married Elizabeth Fossee (Elizabeth Forcy), with whom he had 7 children. It appears that Benjamin Brown was employed as miller by the wealthy Michael Farley Jr, and that this location was where the Brown family lived.

[NOTE: another source says he was part owner of the mill where he worked]
 

The Caleb Warner house faces the triple stone arch Warner Bridge which connects Mill Rd. in Ipswich to Highland St. in Hamilton. A (sic) ? was constructed in 1829, and in 1856, the present day bridge was reconstructed.

"Just before you cross the triple stone arch Warner’s Bridge that connects Mill Rd. in Ipswich to Asbury St. in Hamilton, you can see on your left the large house built by Caleb Warner in 1755. Within it is an earlier home assembled of two structures before 1734, the year that Caleb Warner came into possession of the property. No records exist that would indicate exact construction dates of the two older sections on the right side of the house. We know that tanners operated on both sides of the river as early as 1667. Conceivably, one or both of those structures may have been part of the 1697 fulling mill. It is possible that Benjamin Brown, who sold the property to Caleb Warner, may have constructed or lived in the small house as early as 1720.

Caleb Warner house, (photo early 20th C.) Part of original building within the right side of the main structure with smaller door as the original entrance, was probably the Brown house.

The enlarged house was constructed in 1755, and the dormers were added in the 19th Century. The right side of the house is older and has two smaller structures that were constructed before 1734, probably First Period. The smaller right entry door would have been the left side of the earlier “half house.”

"Post and beam construction in the two older sections on the far side of the Caleb Warner house. The two small structures were combined. 
 
"The living room is to the right after entering the left front door, and has fine hand-planed wall panels around the fireplace. Its large summer beam and corner posts are encased with bead-edge boards, suggesting a Georgian structure, built no earlier than 1734, the year when Caleb Warner purchased the property, but no later than 1755 when the full floor plan as we see it today was completed.

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Thomas Franklin Waters wrote the history of the dam, mill, bridge and this house in his book, Ipswich in the Massachusetts Bay Colony, Vol. 2:

“Between the hills, a bridge, probably of logs, was built by the tanners, whose land abutted on the river on both sides, about 1667.

"John Adams, Senior, his son John, Jim. and Michael Farley Junior petitioned the Town for permission to build a dam, and operate a grist mill and a fulling mill. After a little delay, they received the desired liberty, and built the dam, with a fulling mill on the north side and the grist mill on the south, in the year 1697.

"Miller Benjamin Brown died in February, 1733-4, and in March, his widow petitioned the Town for an allowance for “cost and charge which hath arisen in building a bridge over the river & for finishing the same for the benefit of passing to the mill.” It was a cheap structure of logs without doubt, so cheap that the Town heartlessly refused the petition of the widow, burdened with seven young children, but it answered its purpose for the convenience of the neighborhood.”

“Caleb Warner, clothier, bought Mr. Forley’s interest in 1734, married Elizabeth Brown, the sixteen year old daughter of Benjamin Brown, the deceased miller, who lived close by, in November, 1784, and prospered so well that in 1755, he had gained possession of a large farm by several purchases, and built the large and comfortable mansion that still stands by the river side.

"William Warner, 3rd., Capt William as he was known in later life, succeeded his father in the fulling business, and his son Stephen purchased the property from his brother William in 1829.”

"....It appears that Benjamin Brown was employed as miller by the wealthy Michael Farley Jr, and that this location was where the Brown family lived.

"Caleb Warner was born on March 23, 1709 to Daniel Warner and Dorcas Adams, early residents of Ipswich. He died in 1774, and his wife Elizabeth’s death date is 1787.

"[Mary] Elizabeth Brown Warner was the daughter of Benjamin Brown and Elizabeth Fossee.

"Benjamin Brown was the son of Joseph Brown, and the grandson of Edward Brown and Faith Lord, two of the first settlers of Ipswich. Their home on High St. still stands. [More on this later!]

"Elizabeth Fossee Brown was the wife of Benjamin Brown, and the daugher of Thomas Fossee, the Ipswich jail keeper, and his wife Elizabeth Raynor. Thomas and Elizabeth Fossie testified in the behalf of accused witch Mary Easty, that they “saw no evil carriage or deportment while confined in Ipswich jail, and that her demeanor was both sober and civil.” Mary Easty was hung with her fellow-prisoners, Martha Corey, Ann Pudeater, and five other accuesed witches in September, 1692.
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I had to learn more about A Fulling Mill.

And again from Wikipedia:
A Fulling Mill -
From the medieval period, the fulling of cloth often was undertaken in a water mill, known as a fulling mill, a walk mill, or a tuck mill, and in Wales, a pandy. In these, the cloth was beaten with wooden hammers, known as fulling stocks or fulling hammers. Fulling stocks were of two kinds, falling stocks (operating vertically) that were used only for scouring, and driving or hanging stocks. In both cases the machinery was operated by cams on the shaft of a waterwheel or on a tappet wheel, which lifted the hammer.
Driving stocks were pivoted so that the foot (the head of the hammer) struck the cloth almost horizontally. The stock had a tub holding the liquor and cloth. This was somewhat rounded on the side away from the hammer, so that the cloth gradually turned, ensuring that all parts of it were milled evenly. However, the cloth was taken out about every two hours to undo plaits and wrinkles. The 'foot' was approximately triangular in shape, with notches to assist the turning of the cloth.

A fulling mill

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Benjamin Brown was the son of Joseph Brown St. and Hannah Aslett Brown (who I shared about yesterday).
The Brown name is more numerous than that Smith or Jones, for just a bit of trivia about names.

Hannah Aslett Brown 1644–1721

Hannah Aslett Browne
1644–1721
Birth 21 DEC 1644 • Andover, Essex, Massachusetts, USA
Death 1721 • Ipswich, Essex, Mass

wife of Joseph Browne Sr. (1638-1694)

mother of Benjamin Brown

5th great grandmother of Ada P Swasey Rogers, thus my 7th great grandmother

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Contributed to Ancestry by "Oldsinger":

Settlement of estate of Joseph Brown "Our honored father Joseph Browne, being Dyed these many years since intestate we, all the children of said Joseph Brown, named Joseph, John, Thomas, Samuel, Benjamin, Hannah, Elizabeth, Sarah" etc. Date 1723. 

"Inventory of the estate of Joseph Brown, who died September 30, 1694. House and homestead L100, 18 acres of village and meadow L95, one horse and tackling L4-12, four head of cattle L9, 36 sheep and lambs L12-12, three guns and one sword L4-8, 10,000 of brick L4-10, sheep and wool, flax and bedding L15-10, books, table linen and one pillion, L2-10, pewter brass L4-10, total L275-5: debts due L20-13, debts due in money L52-3. Hannah Browne, administrator made oath to the above as a true and perfect inventory of the estate of her late husband Joseph Browne, deceased, January 2, 1695." (Essex County Record)

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So the children gathered in 1723 to acknowledge the inventory that Mrs. Hannah Browne had made back in Jan, 1685...following the Sept. 30, 1694 death of her husband.

At least that is what is given here, and I do like having names of the children.  It is however, not a primary source.

There are 3 sources of the marriage of Joseph to Hannah Aslett, though one said "Hannah/Anna? (called Abigail in 1684, error) Asselbie/Aslett?; 27 February 1671, Ipswich"

I quickly figured out the error of her death date which was given for the widow of "farmer John Browne" in a couple of trees.  

I won't even begin to count how many children were born to each of my relations in Ipswich, Massachusetts.  There are many listed, and records of marriages but people's names were spelled many ways. As were the parents' names.  It really can give one a headache!

But I did enjoy spending an afternoon learning a lot about one family, these Browns. 

Many of my ancestors lived in Ipswich MA.  Unfortunately the dates and names were written in beautiful and most of the time legible script.  But sometimes the transcriptions weren't that accurate, or legible.  And there were the problems of different cousins with similar names being married into the families of others with similar names.  Brown could easily be one of those names, but it turns out Aslett is more difficult, sometimes being considered Aslebee, and Ayer could have been Eyer, or Ayre, or Ayers. 

Hannah's parents were Rebecca Ayer and John Aslett. Both of them were born in England, but Hannah was a first generation daughter born in America.

There were no colonists in Ipswich until after 1635 or so. (See Wikepedia HERE.) That is why it's doubtful how many people on this ancestry tree are listed as having been born in Ipswich.  A 1600 birth just couldn't have been there, unless it was a Native American. And none of these ancestors who were Native Americans according to the records.  They were immigrants at one time or another.

So the fact that Hannah's father is said to have died in England, but her mother and Hannah herself died in Ipswich, makes me scratch my head.

But Hannah married a man who was also born in Ipswich, Joseph Browne, Sr. whose parents were immigrants from England. Their son Benjamin was to become my ancestor.

There were 8 children of Hannah and Joseph Browne mentioned in the will above.  In my Ancestry trees, Benjamin was listed as either born in 1669 or 1680 or 1681 or 1683.  I find that just because one source says one date, and another has another date, I can't use them all in my tree.  The poor little program can't list him as having been born unless I just choose one, and the others can remain in the background as alternate dates of birth.  So I chose 1681, because it is in the midst of the other children born between 1672 and 1684.  One child has no dates given at all.

Joseph Browne Sr. is listed as a Turner,( in Genealogical and personal Memoirs Relating to the Families of Boston and Eastern Massachusetts, Vol III,) which means someone who turns wood or metal on a lathe...in case you didn't know like me.


The children of Joseph and Hannah Aslet Brown were:
Joseph Brown, a cordwainer 1672-1742
John Brown, a yeoman and turner, 1673-1758
Hannah Brown Pinder 1674-1740
Thomas Brown 1678-1767
Elizabeth Brown Holland 1680-1739
Benjamin Brown, yeoman and miller, 1681-1733
Lt. Samuel Brown, house carpenter, 1684-1763
Sarah Brown Rindge, 1692 - ?

These are dates available on Ancestry, but often may be within 5-10 years of actual events.

Week in Review - the Clacks and Bollings and Beavers

These were early colonists in Virginia, and Tennessee; we started with Richard Kennon Jr. (1690-1736) and his mother, Elizabeth Anne Worsham Kennon (1656-1743).

The Brick House built by Richard Kennon Jr's father.

At about the same time Mary Sterling married James Clack...Here, in Gloucester County VA, though she was raised in Maryland, so I looked into the history of that colony also.

Capt. John Rolfe was the subject HERE, with 3 wives (in succession) Sarah Hacker Rolfe (1590-1610), Pocahontas Rebecca Rolfe (1595-1617), and Jane Pierce Rolfe (1595-1635). Their birthdate are approximate.

Ancestry often gives a ship photo to designate that he was an immigrant to America

Col. Robert Bolling (1646-1709) was our subject here.

We visited the life of Col John Clack (1721-1784)  HERE. (He had fought in the French and Indian war before the American Revolution.

And we ended with some glimpses of Lt. Spencer Clack (Here.)

1931 dedication of Spencer Clack memorial, Sevierville, TN...by
Daughters of the American Revolution, Spencer Clack Chapter.

And a look was given to Mary Beavers Clack, wife of Lt. Spencer Clack, and their children. HERE

Marker at cemetery Forks of Little Pigeon Church (sorry can't tell what it says)

All these posts are on the same branch of my father's, George Rogers Family Tree.

Mary Beavers Clack and her children

Mary Beavers Clack

1745–1840

BIRTH 12 JAN 1745 • Loudoun, Virginia

DEATH 14 AUG 1840 • Sevierville, Sevier, Tenn

There are always fewer documents about the early women ancestors.  It's just the way it was in a patriarchal society. Men made the documents which regarded legal doings, religious records, and even wars.

But it was always the women who gave birth to the next generations.  I've spoken of this before, so will just remind you now.

Marker at Forks of Little Pigeon cemetery, where Mary Beavers Clack was buried

Easy to miss park setting for Forks of Little Pigeon cemetery by the highway

Mrs. Clack's father came from a family which wasn't English or Scottish, and could have been French at one time, but was also probably from German areas as well.  They may have settled first in New Jersey, but some of them came to Virginia, the colony, and married some of the settlers there.  

They were calling themselves the Beavers family.  They may have been Biebers while in Germany, and deBeauviellers while in France.  But this seems a pretty shaky tree.

Her mother, Martha Cargill, was from a family from England however.

A few years ago I posted about Mary and her husband Spencer Clack HERE.

I mentioned yesterday that my Ancestry Tree has 14 children of Spencer and Mary Clack.  Someone (probably in the DAR) has said that there were definitely 7, and possibly 9 or 10.

So I've culled my list of aunts and uncles (great times 5) and kept them listed, but put parentheses around them with a "maybe son" or "maybe daughter" by their names.

How muddy the tree is (to mix metaphors a bit!) with added people that may not have even existed, or if there is any documentation, they've been shifted from their real family into another one.

Their oldest daughter, Martha "Patty" Clack Rogers, 1768–1867, married Josiah Rogers, 1766–1834.  Josiah Rogers was the brother of my 4th great grandfather, Rev. Elijah Rogers.

So she was my great aunt two directions...since Rev. Elijah married her sister, Catharine. (More in a minute, let's stay chronological with these children)

The next in order (who is confirmed as a Clack son) is Raleigh Robert "Rolly" Clack, 1772–1842. He married twice, having 12 children with his first wife, and 4 with his second (according to Ancestry)

Next is Sarah Clack Henderson, 1773-1859, who was mentioned in a land purchase, and this is the only reason we know she existed (but not who her parents were).  "1789, one Sarah Clack (b. c1773) married William Henderson in the "Forks of Little Pigeon," as shown by bounty land papers in the National Archives; they migrated to St. Louis County, Missouri, about 1840." 

Rhoda E. Clack Randles, 1776- 1850, was the next daughter born to the Clacks. She married James Randles.


Next is my 4th great grandmother, Catharine (Aunt Katy) Clack Rogers
1778–1850.  I have no idea who added all these extra names for her...probably descendent nephews and nieces! She married Rev. Elijah Rogers in 1794 in Sevierville, TN.

Micajah Clack is listed usually as having been born in 1780 and dying in 1781.  One tree says he was born in 1778. There's nothing to prove either way. "However, there is a well established tradition that there was a son, Micajah Clack, who was 'killed by lighting.'" 

Next comes Frances Clack Mynatt Gist, 1783–1855 who died in Knox County, TN. She married twice, and had children with her second husband.]

Next is Mary Sterling "Polly" Clack Miller, 1785-1860, who married William B. Miller (1781-?)

And youngest was Melvina/Levina Clack Beavers, 1788–1864 who married Major (his first name) Clack Beavers who was born on 24 JULY 1781 in Sevier County, Tennessee, and they both died in Talladega County, Ala.  I couldn't find the exact connection but her husband must have been in the same Beavers clan, probably a second cousin to his wife, Melvina Clack (who's mother was Mary Beavers Clack.)