Saturday, October 6, 2012

Surname Saturday ~ Garfield of Watertown, Massachusetts


GARFIELD

Edward Garfield was born in Warwickshire, England and died in Watertown, Massachusetts.  He arrived with his wife and three children who had been born in England and baptized at the Holy Trinity Church in Coventry, Warwickshire.  It is thought that he arrived in Massachusetts on the “Arabella” with Governor John Winthrop in 1630 because Isaac Stearns mentions his name on a list of passengers.  

After he arrived in Massachusetts he married Rebecca Johnson and had four more children, and sent for his children in England to come live with him in Watertown.   Edward Garfield was made freeman on 6 May 1635 in Watertown.  In 1636 he was granted 30 acres of land, and in 1637 he received 12 more acres.   He purchased 100 more acres between 1651 and 1662.  He married his third wife in 1661.  When he died in 1672 he was about 89 years old, a very advanced age for his time period.

Edward Garfield is the ancestor of James Abram Garfield (1831 – 1881), the 20th president of the United States. 

The English origins of Edward Garfield were published in the NEHGS Register, Volume 156, pages 327 -332.  The ancestry of President James Garfield back to Edward Garfield is outlined in Ancestors of American Presidents by Gary Boyd Roberts, NEHGS, 1995. A complete sketch of Edward Garfield can be found in The Great Migration: Immigrants to New England 1634 – 1635 by Robert Charles Anderson, Volume III, pages 16 – 23. 

My Garfield Lineage:

Generation 1: Edward Garfield, son of Thomas Garfield and Agnes Unknown, born about 28 July 1583 in Hillmorton, Warwickshire, England, died 14 June 1672 in Watertown, Massachusetts; married first about 1611 to Unknown, three children; married second about 1624 to Rebecca Johnson, who died 16 April 1661 in Watertown, five children; married third on 1 September 1661 in Watertown to Joanna Unknown, widow of Thomas Buckmaster.

Generation 2:  Rebecca Garfield, daughter of Edward Garfield and Rebecca Johnson, born 10 March 1640/41 in Watertown, died 16 March 1682/3 in Watertown; married on 10 January 1661 in Watertown to Isaac Mixer, son of Isaac Mixer and Sarah Thurston, as his second of three wives.  He was born about 1630 in England and died 22 November 1716 in Sudbury, Massachusetts.

Generation 3:  Joseph Mixer m. Anna Jones
Generation 4. Joseph Mixer m. Mary Ball
Generation 5: Lucy Mixer m. Andrew Munroe
Generation 6: Andrew Munroe m. Ruth Simonds
Generation 7: Luther Simonds Munroe m. Olive Flint
Generation 8: Phebe Cross Munroe m. Robert Wilson Wilkinson
Generation 9: Albert Munroe Wilkinson m. Isabella Lyons Bill
Generation 10: Donald Munroe Wilkinson m. Bertha Louise Roberts (my paternal grandparents)

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Copyright 2012, Heather Wilkinson Rojo

3 comments:

  1. A glimpse of history -- he's sailing to Massachusetts with John Winthrop, and he's the ancestor of James Garfield. You always have amazing detail in your lineage descriptions. It must have taken you years and years to put all this together! I enjoy reading your posts and learning more about the area. (My nephew has family in New Hampshire . . . Durham.)

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  2. Hi, I'm a descendant of Lucy Mixer (1739-1824), daughter of Joseph Mixer and Mary Ball, all of Shrewsbury, Worchester, Mass. My research shows that Lucy married Jedediah Tucker Jr. I will try to find Andrew Munroe, was this a husband prior to Jedediah Tucker or subsequent? Thanks, Susan

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    1. Hi AmericanSusan, It was Lucy AKA Mary Mixer, born 21 November 1727 in Shrewsbury (daughter of Joseph Mixer and Mary Ball) who married three times. Her husbands were Daniel Simonds, Andrew Munroe, and Caleb Simonds. I have a blog post about my MIXER surname at this link: https://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2012/09/surname-saturday-mixer-of-watertown.html

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