Sarah Martyn Barnard, died 1770, Newbury, Massachusetts - Tombstone Tuesday

 This tombstone was photographed at the First Parish Burying Ground in Newbury, Massachusetts.

This Stone is erected to ye memory

of Madam SARAH BARNARD

Relict of the Revd.

JOHN BARNARD of Andover,

who through along course of years, by

eminency of devotion irreproachable

purity & Sanctity of manners and

an enlarged benevolence, exhibited the

christian character to great advantage

with an unshaken faith in ye Redeemer,

and longing after a better world, She

??? Novr. 23, 1770 AEtat. 72. 

Sarah Martin,  was born 16 August 1672, the daughter of Edward Martyn and Sarah White of Boston.  She married Reverend John Barnard on 20 October 1715.  The Reverend Barnard was buried 14 June 1757 at the Old North Parish Burying Ground in North Andover, Massachusetts.  Apparently the widow Sarah was living in Newbury with her daughter Sarah, wife of the Reverend Dr. Tucker, after the Reverend Barnard passed away.  The Parson Barnard House was built in Andover in 1715, and in 1950 it was donated to the North Andover Historical Society.

John Barnard was born 26 February 1689/90 in Andover, the son of the Reverend Thomas Barnard and Elizabeth Price. John Barnard Senior was the junior minister under the Reverend Francis Dane in Andover. He graduated from Harvard in 1709, and taught school in Andover. When his father died he was invited to be his successor in 1718. John Barnard and Sarah Martin had six children, including Thomas (minister of the Second Church of Newbury and the First Church of Salem); Edward; Sarah (mentioned above);  John who died at age 16 while a student at Harvard, and two daughters named Elisabeth who died young.  [see the Andover Vital Records]. 

The elder Reverend Barnard was present during the witch trials of 1692 that spilled out of Salem into Andover, Massachusetts.  Both ministers Barnard and Dane signed a petition in support of the accused. In 1697 Reverend Dane died and Reverend Barnard became the sole minister to Andover.  

For the truly curious:

The Parson Barnard House:   https://salemwitchmuseum.com/locations/parson-barnard-house/  

North Andover Historical Society:   https://www.northandoverhistoricalsociety.org/parson-barnard-house-barn  

Rev. John Barnard's memorial at Find A Grave:   https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/69213325/john-barnard    

"Early Records of the Barnard Family of Andover" compiled by Charlotte Helen Abbott at the Andover Public Library (see page 18)   https://mhl.org/sites/default/files/files/Abbott/Barnard%20Family.pdf     

An interesting manuscript about some silver donated to Rev. John Barnard's church by his mother-in-law, Sarah White  Martin. This silver tankard has disappeared from the church.   https://search.library.wisc.edu/digital/AUR6IVKS4RP2CT9C/pages/AF63VJEMJVH3O482?as=text   

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To cite/link to this blog post: Heather Wilkinson Rojo, "Sarah Martyn Barnard, died 1770, Newbury, Massachusetts - Tombstone Tuesday", Nutfield Genealogy, posted November 7, 2023, ( https://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2023/11/sarah-martyn-barnard-died-1770-newbury.html: accessed [access date]).