Surname Saturday ~ PETERS of Salem, Massachusetts

My 9^th great grandfather Gilbert Peters is a mystery to me.  I have no idea who are his parents, his birthplace or date of birth.  His marriage to Elizabeth Hilliard is recorded in Salem, along with the birth records of three sons.  He is almost a complete unknown to me, except for one episode of his life which made the record books in New England.

On the 19^th of September 1689 the ketch Diligence, captained by Gilbert Peters, was captured off the coast of Salem and Marblehead, Massachusetts by the French.  It was transported to Port Royal, Acadia [Nova Scotia].  Several depositions were given by witnesses to Judge John Hathorne of Salem, and recorded in the court records and in a small book written in 1691 The Revolution in New England Justified, and the People There Vindicated. 

Gilbert Peters is also mentioned in several entries in the Records and Files of the Quarterly Courts of Essex County, Massachusetts, Volume 7, 1678-1680, Essex Institute, Salem, MA, 1919.  One record in 1678 mentions Gilbert “Peeters” as the master of a fishing voyage, and another in 1678 mentions Gilbert “Peeters” as master of the ketch Lucy, another fishing voyage.

I descend from Gilbert’s oldest son, Richard Peters, my 8^th great grandfather.  He married Bethiah, the widow of Joseph Allen, and had seven children born in Salem.  I descend from his youngest child, Mary, who married Joseph Cloutman in 1717. 

The Revolution in New England Justified, and the People There Vindicated, by John Palmer, 1691, page 38 [the testimony of John Langford names Gilbert Peters as the commander of the Diligence, captured by the French]




My PETERS genealogy:

1. Gilbert Peters, born about 1645 probably in England, died about 1691; married on 14 September 1669 in Salem, Massachusetts to Elizabeth Hilliard, daughter of Edward and Martha Hilliard.  She was born 14 October 1658 in Salem.  Three sons.

2.  Richard Peters, born 12 January 1671 in Salem; married to Bethiah Unknown.  Seven children.

3.  Mary Peters, baptized on 12 September 1697 in Salem; married on 14 November 1717 in Salem to Joseph Cloutman, son of Thomas Cloutman and Elizabeth Story.  He was born 19 September 1693 in Salem and died before 28 March 1743.  One son.

4.  Joseph Cloutman m. Mary Webb
5.  Joseph Cloutman m. Hannah Becket
6.  Mary Cloutman m. Abijah Hitchings
7. Abijah Hitchings m. Eliza Ann Treadwell
8. Abijah Franklin Hitchings m. Hannah Eliza Lewis
9.  Arthur Treadwell Hitchings m. Florence Etta Hoogerzeil
10. Gertrude Matilda Hitchings m. Stanley Elmer Allen (my grandparents)


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Heather Wilkinson Rojo, "Surname Saturday ~ PETERS of Salem, Massachusetts", Nutfield Genealogy, posted April 1, 2017, (http://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2017/04/surname-saturday-peters-of-salem.html: accessed [access date]).