William Buckley was a
shoemaker. He lived in Ipswich,
Massachusetts between 1657 and 1674, and in Salem Village from 1681 to 1702. They were prosperous at first, but their
property was seized when they lost a lawsuit brought against them by the governor,
Simon Bradstreet. One of his sons was
involved in another suit, and as payment William Buckley lost his table, chest
and possibly his cobbler’s tools in the seizure.
In 1681 the Buckley family sold
their plot of land and became homeless.
They wandered and begged in the streets.
In 1692 Sarah and her widowed daughter, Mary Withridge, were arrested
for witchcraft. William Buckley convinced
two pastors to speak in favor of his wife when she was arrested for witchcraft
in 1692. The Rev. William Hubbard
stated "I have known the wife of William Buckley of Salem Village... ever
since she was brought out of England, which is above fifty years ago... She was
bred by Christian parents.... admitted as a member into the Church at Ipswich
(of which he was the pastor) above forty years since. I never heard from others, or observed by
myself, anything of her which was inconsistent with her profession, or
unsuitable to Christianity." Sarah
Buckley was still sent to prison.
After the trials were ended, those
who had been arrested were released from jail as long as they could pay the
room and boarding fees. The very poor
languished in prison, even though they had been declared innocent. William Buckley spent his last shilling
paying £10 to release his wife and daughter from jail after the Salem witch
trials. They had spent eight months in
jail.
He survived another ten years
after the witch trials, in obvious poverty.
His pastor, Rev. Joseph Green made the following entry in his diary:
"January 2, 1702. Old William
Buckley dyed this evening. He was at meeting the last Sabbath, and dyed with
the cold, I fear for want of comforts and good tending. Lord forgive! He was
about eighty years old. I visited him
and prayed with him on Monday and also ye evening before he dyed. He was very
poor but I hope had not his portion in this life."
Mary Buckley, William’s daughter, was my
7x great grandmother. In 1694, two years
after the witch trials, she married Benjamin Proctor. Interestingly, he was the son of John Proctor,
and the stepson of Elizabeth (Bassett) Proctor, who were both arrested for
witch craft and sentenced to be hung when found guilty. John Proctor was hanged,
and Elizabeth escaped execution because she was pregnant. It seems that these families of the Salem accused
and executed all had a close bond after the witch trials ended, and this bond
seemed to last for a generation or two with many intermarriages.
William Buckley and his wife, Sarah Smith, were my 8th great grandparents. John Proctor, who was also hanged as a witch in 1692, is also my 8th great grandfather.
William Buckley and his wife, Sarah Smith, were my 8th great grandparents. John Proctor, who was also hanged as a witch in 1692, is also my 8th great grandfather.
My BUCKLEY lineage:
Generation 1: William Buckley, probably born in England,
died 2 January 1702 in Salem Village, Massachusetts; married Sarah
Unknown. Eight children.
Generation 2: Mary Buckley, born about
1664, died on 5 November 1748 in Danvers; married on 10 December 1694 in Lynn
to Benjamin Proctor, son of John Proctor, executed as an accused witch, and
Martha Unknown. He was born on 10 June
1659 in Ipswich, and died in 1717. Four
children.
Generation
3: John Proctor married Lydia Waters
Generation
4: Lydia Proctor married Jonathan Flint
Generation
5: John Flint married Phebe Flint
Generation
6: Olive Flint married Luther Simonds Munroe
Generation
7: Phebe Cross Munroe married Robert Wilson Wilkinson
Generation
8: Albert Munroe Wilkinson married Isabella Lyons Bill
Generation
9: Donald Munroe Wilkinson married Bertha Louise Roberts (my grandparents)
For more information on the Buckleys:
The Salem Witch Trials Transcription
Project at http://salem.lib.virginia.edu/home.html or use this link to search for specific names
http://salem.lib.virginia.edu/texts/salemSearch.htm The image above was from this website.
“Sarah Buckley wife of Richard Ingersoll
and Joseph Proctor of Essex Co, MA 1650 – 1705”, The American Genealogist, Volume 79, Issue 4, pages 274-7
My blog post on the PROCTOR family:
https://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2012/05/surname-saturday-proctor-of-salem.html
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Heather Wilkinson Rojo, "Surname Saturday ~ Buckley of Salem, Massachusetts", Nutfield Genealogy, posted May 19, 2019, (
Absolutely amazing! How ignorant we were (are). I can't believe the number of people killed as a result. It is no surprise that the families involved stayed close. As I read this post, I wondered how the descendants could even find mates due to the hysteria of the time.
ReplyDeleteSarah and William are my ancetors also. I am descended from their daughter Priscilla. I have studied their lives in depth. Thanks for the post.
ReplyDeleteNot sure if you'll get this 7 years on... but please reply if you do. I think I may be a relation to you. I'm a Buckley in England. Aimiebuckley@hotmail.co.uk
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