Surname Saturday ~ LAWRENCE of Ipswich, Massachusetts

LAWRENCE

The Lawrence family has deep roots in England and has been researched and written about by many genealogists.  I am descended of two children of Thomas Lawrence (1589 – 1625) who never came to the New World, but his wife, Joan Antrobus, remarried to John Tuttle (1596 – 1656) and brought her six Lawrence children and Tuttle children (of whom I descend from one- Simon Tuttle (1637 – 1691) ), to Massachusetts.

And so, although Thomas Lawrence never came to the New World, his children were here and left Lawrence descendants.  He died intestate and on 21 March 1624/25, his widow, Joan, was made administratrix of his property.  Her accounting, in 1627, names his children, John, Thomas, William, Jane and Marye.  He was the son of John Lawrence (1561 – 1609) and Elizabeth Bull, and he was mentioned  in his father’s estate documents in St. Albans, Herfordshire, England.

Joan Antrobus (about 1592 – 1661) was the daughter of Walter Anterbus and Joan Arnold of St. Albans.  Joan was 65 years old when she immigrated with her daughter, Joan Antrobus Tuttle, in 1635 onboard the Planter with her son-in-law John Tuttle, and her Lawrence and Tuttle grandchildren.  I have deep admiration for these two Joans, who came aboard this ship to the New World and cared for all these children on the passage across the Atlantic Ocean.

The Planter, with this big extended family of Lawrences and Tuttles, arrived at Boston, Massachusetts on 7 June 1635.  They settled at Ipswich, Massachusetts.  John Tuttle returned to England and later died at Carrickfergus, Northern Ireland on 30 December 1656.  Joan (Antrobus) (Lawrence) Tuttle was in Northern Ireland in 1659 and is believed to have died there after 29 January 1661. 

For more information on this extended family of Lawrences, Antrobuses and Tuttles:

The American Genealogist, “John Tuttle of Ipswich, Massachusetts” by David L. Greene, Volume 54 (1978), pages 167 to 175.

The Great Migration: Immigrants to New England, 1634-1635 by Anderson, Sanborn and Sanborn, Volume 1 A-B, page 66 -69, “Joan Antrobus”

Also see Volume IV I-L, pages 254 - 258, “John Lawrence”

Also see Volume IV I-L, pages 258 - 259, “Mary Lawrence”

Also see Volume IV I-L, pages 259 - 263, “Thomas Lawrence”

Also see Volume IV I-L, pages 263 - 268, “William Lawrence”

For the Royal Descents of Thomas Lawrence see The Royal Descents of 600 Immigrants to the American Colonies of the United States, Who Were Themselves Notable or Left Descendants Notable in American History, by Gary Boyd Roberts, Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 2008, pages 562-564.

Not only am I descended of three of Joan’s children, but my two lineages from her two Lawrence children are quite complicated, with much intermarriage.  I hope you can follow along!

My LAWRENCE genealogy:

Generation 1: Thomas Lawrence, son of John Lawrence and Elizabeth Bull, was baptized at St. Albans, Herfordshire, England on 2 February 1589, and died there on 20 March 1625;  he married on 23 October 1609 in St. Albans to Joan Antrobus, daughter of Walter Anterbus and Joan Arnold.  She was born about 1592 and died after 29 January 1661 probably in Northern Ireland.   Joan married second to John Tuttle, in 1627 in St. Albans.  Six Lawrence children, and I descend from two of them (and one Tuttle child).

Lineage A:

Generation 2:  Jane Lawrence, born 18 December 1614 in St. Albans, died 2 March 1680 in Ipswich, Massachusetts; married on 20 February 1634 in St. Albans to George Giddings, son of John Giddings and Joan Purrier.  He was born 24 September 1609 in Clapham, Bedfordshire, and died 1 June 1676 in Ipswich, Massachusetts.  Eight children and I descend from two of them.

Lineage A1:

Generation 3: Thomas Giddings m. Mary Goodhue

Generation 4: William Giddings m. Sarah Hitchings

Generation 5: Thomas Giddings m. Martha Smith

Generation 6: Sarah Giddings m. Amos Burnham

Generation 7: Judith Burnham m. Joseph Allen

Generation 8: Joseph Allen m. Orpha Andrews

Generation 9: Joseph Gilman Allen m. Sarah Burnham Mears

Generation 10:  Joseph Elmer Allen m. Carrie Maude Batchelder

Generation 11: Stanley Elmer Allen m. Gertrude Matilda Hitchings (my grandparents)

Lineage A2:

Generation 3:  John Giddings m. Sarah Alcock

Generation 4: Elizabeth Giddings m. Mark Haskell

Generation 5: Mark Haskell m. Martha Tuthill

Generation 6: Lucy Haskell m. Jabez Treadwell

Generation 7: Nathaniel Treadwell m. Mary Hovey

Generation 8: Jabez Treadwell m. Betsey Jillings Homan

Generation 9: Eliza Ann Treadwell m. Abijah Hitchings

Generation 10: Abijah Franklin Hitchings m. Hannah Eliza Lewis

Generation 11: Arthur Treadwell Hitchings m. Florence Etta Hoogerzeil

Generation 12: Gertrude Matilda Hitchings m. Stanley Elmer Allen (my grandparents, see above)

Lineage B:

Generation 2: Mary Lawrence, baptized on 10 April 1625 in St. Albans, died 27 March 1715 in Ipswich; married about 1643 in Ipswich, Massachusetts to Thomas Burnham.  He was born about 1623 in Norwich, Norfolk, England and died 19 June 1694 in the Chebacco Parish of Ipswich.  Twelve children.

Generation 3:  John Burnham m. Elizabeth Wells.  I descend from three of their children.

Lineage B1:

Generation 4: John Burnham m. Sarah Choate

Generation 5: John Burnham m. Rachel Smith

Generation 6: Dorothy Burnham m. Abner Poland

Generation 7: Abner Poland m. Sarah Burnham

Generation 8: Sally Poland m. Henry Burnham

Generation 9: Sarah Ann Burnham m. Samuel Mears

Generation 10: Sarah Burnham Mears m. Joseph Gilman Allen (see above)

Lineage B2:

Generation 4: Thomas Burnham m. Susannah Boardman

Generation 5: Stephen Burnham m. Mary Andrews

Generation 6: Joshua Burnham m. Jemima Wyman

Generation 7: Jemima Burnham m. Romanus Emerson

Generation 8: George Emerson m. Mary Esther Younger

Generation 9: Mary Katharine Emerson m. George E. Batchelder

Generation 10: Carrie Maude Batchelder m. Joseph Elmer Allen (see above)

Lineage B3:

Generation 4: David Burnham m. Elizabeth Perkins

Lineage B3a:

Generation 5: David Burnham m. Elizabeth Marshall

Generation 6: Amos Burnham m. Sarah Giddings (see above)

Lineage B3b:

Generation 6: Westley Burnham m. Deborah Story

Lineage B3bi

Generation 7: Westley Burnham m. Molly Woodbury

Generation 8: Henry Burnham m. Sally Poland (see above)

Lineage B3bii:

Generation 7: Sarah Burnham m. Abner Poland (see above)

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Copyright 2014, Heather Wilkinson Rojo

Planning a Genealogy Photo Trip to Ipswich, Massachusetts

Last week we took a trip to Ipswich, Massachusetts.  I had four goals four this trip:

1. )      Visit the Historical Society to learn about their genealogy resources

2. )      Visit the Whipple House, built by an ancestor

3. )      Visit the 1640 Hart House restaurant, built by someone in my family tree

4. )      Photograph lots of ancestral gravestones at the Old North Burial Ground

This is what I learned…  It pays to use the internet before going on a little trip like this… Or to pick up the phone and ask questions.  Did I meet my four goals? 

1.)    Ipswich Historical Society has a museum you can learn more about at http://www.ipswichmuseum.org/ to find the hours and days it is open.  It operates tours of both the Whipple House and the Heard House.  Also, it is right next door to the Ipswich Visitor Center (bonus points for visitors). You can get a lot done here in one place, but they also have a staff genealogist who just happened to meet me at the door.  I didn’t have an appointment, this was just serendipity.  She prefers appointments for genealogy questions (this is stated on the website!), so you need to call ahead.  Or queries are answered for $20 per hour, one hour minimum.   Her best advice to me was to explore the historical records at the Ipswich Public Library.  I'll have to make a special research trip to Ipswich at some other date.

This is only a partial view of the map of Ipswich, Mass

with houses and early land grants marked by surnames.

It was a large map hanging just inside the entrance to the Ipswich Museum

Also, at the entrance to the museum was this great map of the original proprietors of Ipswich, Massachusetts.  You just might find your ancestor on this map.  The society does not have copies of this map on a poster or brochure.  Just inside the front foyer was the gift shop, where I bought this great book about Ipswich, too.

American Town: The History of Ipswich, Massachusetts

by Alan Pearsall,  Ipswich, Mass: Ebsco Publishing, 2009

2.)    So, we had a great tour of both houses, but the Whipple House was first.  It was a private tour since it was a Friday morning and we were the only patrons.  This was wonderful and I was able to ask lots of questions.  Photos were allowed without flash.  Perfect!

Above is the back of the Whipple House, and below is the front door 

Whipple House web page:

http://ipswichmuseum.drupalgardens.com/exhibitions-collections/whipple-house

Captain John Whipple (1595 – 1669) built the Whipple House.  He is my 10^th great grandfather.  His daughter Sarah Whipple (1641 – 1681) is my 9^th great grandmother, married to Joseph Goodhue.  As you can see, I don’t have a long line of Whipple ancestors in Ipswich!

If you are interested in photographing First Period Homes (before 1725) or your ancestor's home in Ipswich, you can pick up the following brochure at the Visitor Center or at the Historical Society. It was produced by the Ipswich Historical Commision:

3.)    After the Historical Society we found the 1640 Hart House restaurant.  http://1640harthouse.com/   It wasn't dinner time, so we didn't go inside.  This is something else to add to the agenda for trip number 2 to Ipswich.   I took some photos of the outside, and we’ll save the fancy dinner for the next time we are in town.  It was built by Thomas Hart, who was an indentured servant in Boston until 1637.  He came to Ipswich and built this home, which was passed down in the family for generations, and added onto over the years.   Some of the original Keeper’s Room was removed from the interior and installed as an exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City.   So does that make it a good excuse for Trip number 3?

Thomas Hart (1611 – 1674) had a son named Thomas Hart (about 1640 – 1717), and a grandson named George Hart (1669 – 1753) who married Martha Ward (1672 – 1723), my first cousin 9 generations removed.

4. )    The best information for Ipswich History and cemetery guides is at the website of the Ipswich Historical Commission (not the Historical Society) at https://historicipswich.wordpress.com/   

On this cemetery web page, there are links to each of the old cemeteries in Ipswich.  You can print them out (or download them).  I did both, so I could use my iPad mini or my paper copy in the cemetery.  Actually the paper copies worked out best because I could circle the spots on the map where my ancestors were buried, and I could write notes as to who was buried where.  There is also an eBook version.

For the Old North Burying Ground there is a database of graves I saved as a text document.  I used this to see who was buried here, and (thank goodness!) there is a list of epitaphs for those stones that are now almost illegible.   I printed out all the maps.  The cemetery is divided into eight sections, and all the graves are numbered according to the database of graves in the text document.

This was a very easy system.  I had TWELVE pages of graves to find and photograph.  I had highlighted all the direct ancestors, and we found all of the directs, and many, many of the other graves.  I will have to go back to find them all.  We spent about an hour and took over 150 photographs of WHIPPLE, TREADWELL, WARD, HASKELL, and other surnames.  Jackpot!

Above is my paper version of the Old North Burying Ground sections C and D map

and below is the downloaded version from the website onto my iPad Mini

Below I made a text document of the locations and epitaphs, 

cut and pasted from the version on the website.  

Direct ancestors were highlighted. 

I checked them off as we photographed each gravestone. 

I would recommend this system to anyone exploring the Old North Burying Ground.  Bring your hiking boots, since it is very large and built on a very steep hill. Hopefully your ancestors aren't buried at the top of the hill or you’ll have to climb a scary set of granite steps.  Don’t ask me how they carried coffins up there 250 years ago.  I don’t know the answer to that!

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To cite/link to this blog post: Heather Wilkinson Rojo, "Planning a Genealogy Photo Trip to Ipswich, Massachusetts", Nutfield Genealogy, posted September 6, 2013, ( https://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2013/09/planning-genealogy-photo-trip-to.html: accessed [access date]). 

Surname Saturday ~ Tuttle/Tootill/Tuthill

My ancestor Symon Tootill/Tuttle/Tuthill never lived in the New World.  His wife, Isabell Wells, came with her sons, William, John and Richard, on the Planter in 1635.  There is no further record of her in New England, so she probably did not live long after the voyage.  In genealogy we often laugh about the “myth of the three brothers who arrived in America”, but this is the third time I’ve written about three brothers arriving in the New World.  I descend from The brother John, and also from their sister, Dorothy, who married John Bill in England and also came to New England.

Symon Tootill was born about 1560 in Ringstead, Northamptonshire, England.  He was mentioned in his father’s and also in his father-in-law’s wills.  Simon’s will mentions his sons Richard, Thomas, John, Simon and William.  He was buried at Ringstead on 15 June 1630.  Simon’s will was dated 19 December 1627 and proved at Northampton:

In the Name of God Amen The nyneteeneth Day of December in the yeare of our Lord god one thousand six hundred twentie seaven I Symon Tuttell of Ringsted in the Countie of Northton yeoman strong in minde and of good and pfect memory thanks and praise be to allmighty god and weighing and considering the frailety of mans life and the uncertainty of this world doe make and ordayne this my psent Testamt contayning therein my last will in mann[er] and forme as followeth that ys to say ffirst I [c]om[m]end and com[m]itt my soule into the hands of Allmighty god Creator assuredly believing through the onely meritte of Jesus Christe my saviour to be made ptaker of Everlasting life And my body I comitt to the earth from whence it came to be buried [torn] Christon burialls at the discrecion of my Executrix hereafter named, hopeing assuredly to receive the same again at the gene[ral] resurreccion not a mortall but an immortall and glorious body.

And now as concerning those lands and goodes wch god of his goodness hath lent me I give and bequeath unto Isabell my wife All that moytie or prcell of land meadows and com[m]ons wth theire and each of theire appurtenances wch ys due to me out of the land formerly [?] conveyed to my Edlest sonne Richard and the house messuages or ten[emen]ts wherein I now dwell together with all the houses yards lands meadows pastures com[m]ons comodities and appurtenances whatsoever thereunto belonging or in any wise appurteyning and also All those landes meadows and comons wth thappurtances wch I lately had an purchased of Thomas Holding Edward Asin [?] al[ia]s James, and of Will[ia]m Sillyman and of each of them To ahve and to hold the same for and during the terme of her naturall life and after the naturall death of decease of y saide wyfe I give and bequeath all and singular the said mentioned lands and premisses wth their and each of their appurtenances unto Will[ia]m Tuttell my youngest sonne to have and to holde the same unto the saide Will[ia]m Tuttell and to the heirs of his Body Lawfully to be begotten, and for want of such yssue to the second sonne of my sonne Richard and to his heirs for ever

Itm I give and bequeath unto John Tuttle my second sonne all that dwelling house wherein Mr Wrothfall now dwelleth wth all the houses thereunto belonging and the yarde and orchard thereunto adjoyning, and sometyme in the tenure or occupason of John White to have and to hold the same unto the saide John Tuttell and to his heirs and assignes for ever Itm I give and bequeath unto Isabel my said wyfe the one halfe [torn] that meadow wch I lately purchased of Joane Bateman wydow to have And to hold the same for and during her naturall life, And I give and bequeath the other Mytie or half of the same meadowe to my sonne Will[ia]m to enter [there] upon ymmediately after my decease, and I likewise give and bequeath unto my said sonne Will[ia]m the other Moytie of the same meadow to enter thereuppon after the naturall decease of my said wyfe to have and to hold the same unto him the said Will[ia]m and to the heires of his bodye lawfully to be begotten, so as he my said sonne [re]linquishes the twentie poundes given to him by his grandfather John Welles in and by his last will and testamet and the fyve pounds wch fell to him by the death of his brother Thomas Tuttell and for want of such issue of the body of the said Will[ia]m I give and bequeath the same meadowe unto the eldest sonne of my said sonne Richard and to his heirs for ever and I doe gie to my sonne Richard [illegible] halfe [illegible] the lord mordant [?] on both sides of it.

Itm I give to my sone John and his heirs for ever one dole of meadow [of?] forty foote in same which I purchased of Eusache Morton Thomas Ekins [?]. Itm I give to my sunn John his Daugher Abigaill fiue pounds at the age of fifteene years: Itm I give and bequeath unto the poore of Ringsted aforesaid xxs. to be distributed amongst the poorest sorte at the discreson of the minister and churchwardens. Itm I give to my godchildren xxs. apeece. Itm I give to my sonne Will[ia]m my best bedsted wth the bedding and furniture thereunto belonging, or therewith usd, the table in the hall wth the frame, halfe a duzzen of framd stooles, the yron barres on the chimneys wth the hookes and hangings the bed whereon he lyeth my best brasse pan my best brasse pott, my mault mill as now yt standeth, my bolting [twine and yeelding?] fatt, the barr of yron and the package [?], and I will that all my sheepe be equally devided betweene my said wife and my said sonne Will[ia]m wth the increase thereof so long as he keepeth himselfe unmarried. Itm I give and bequeath unto my said sonne Richard and to his heirs for ever one acre of leyes wch I purchased of Mr Carier, and half a dusson sheep. Itm I forgive [missing] my said sonne John thirtie pounds. Itm I give more unto my said sonne Will[ia]m my great cubbord in the [missing] the greater chest, two of the biggest chaires, and the chest that standeth by the bedsted. Itm I give untomy grand [childre]n xxs. a peece Divided allwaies And I will that all the said Movable goods herein given to my sonne Will[ia]m carefully to apply and husband his mothers business to the best of his power in [missing] of the person herein bequeathed pformed and my funeral expenses discharged. I give & bequeath unto Isabel my said wife [missing] and to be executrix of this my psent testamt and for the better execuson thereof I order [missing] them supervisores thereof and [missing]s. apeece [missing] and seal the day and year above written.

There is an additional line written in different penmanship (Abigail was born in 1628)

"to my sunn John, his daughter Abigail, five pounds at the age of fifteene years."

The will was signed by Simon T.... (the paper of this will is described as fragile and broken)

Simon’s son John Tuttle came to America on board the Planter with his wife and her three children by a first marriage (two of the Lawrence daughters are my 9x great grandmothers), and his brothers William and Richard and their families.  He settled in the town of Ipswich, Massachusetts. In 1651 he returned to England and then to Carrickfergus in Northern Ireland.   On 6 April 1657 his wife, Joan, wrote that he had died there on 30 December 1656.  She probably died there, too. I descend from their son, Simon Tuthill, my 9x great grandmother, who settled in Ipswich and Lynn, Massachusetts.

My lineage from the Tuttles:

Lineage A:

Generation 1:  Symon Tootill, born about 1560 in Ringstead, Northampton, England, died before 15 June 1630; married about 1592 to Isabel Wells, daughter of John Wells.  She was born about 1565 and died about 1635 probably in New Haven, Connecticut. Six children.

Generation 2: Dorothy Tuttle, born about 1592 in England and died about December 1638 in Boston, Massachusetts; married about 1612 in England to John Bill, son of John Bill and Ann Mountford. Five children.

Generation 3: Philip Bill, born April 1629 in Ringstead, died 8 July 1689 in New London, Connecticut; married 8 July 1689 in Groton, Connecticut to Hannah Waite, daughter of Samuel Waite and Mary Ward.  She was born about 1625 probably in Finchingfield, Essex, England, and died about 1709 in Groton, Connecticut.  Eight children.

Generation 4: Samuel Bill m. Mercy Houghton

Generation 5: Ebenezer Bill m. Patience Ingraham

Generation 6: Asahel Bill m. Mary Rand

Generation 7: Reverend Ingraham Ebenezer Bill m. Isabella Lyons

Generation 8: Professor Caleb Rand Bill m. Ann Margaret Bollman

Generation 9: Isabella Lyons Bill m.  Albert Munroe Wilkinson

Generation 10: Donald Munroe Wilkinson m. Bertha Louise Roberts (my grandparents)

Lineage B:

Generation 2: Dorothy’s brother, John Tuttle married Joan Antrobus in 1627 in St. Albans, Hertfordshire, England.  She was the widow of Thomas Lawrence, who died on 20 March 1625.  Joan and Thomas Lawrence are my 10x great grandparents on my maternal side. John was born about 1656 and died on 30 December 1656 in Carrickfergus, Northern Ireland.  They had five children together.

Generation 3: Simon Tuthill, born 1637 in Ipswich, Massachusetts; died 11 January 1691 in Lynn, Massachusetts; married about 1663 to Sarah Cogswell, daughter of John Cogswell and Elizabeth Thompson. Twelve children.

Generation 4: John Tuthill, born 22 April 1666 in Ipswich, died 27 Feb 1715 in Ipswich; married on 3 December 1689 in Ipswich to Martha Ward, daughter of Samuel Ward and Abigail Maverick.  She was born 16 September 1672 in Salem, Massachusetts, and died 17 August 1723 in Ipswich. Seven children.

Generation 5: Martha Tuthill m. Mark Haskell

Generation 6: Lucy Haskell m. Jabez Treadwell

Generation 7: Nathaniel Treadwell m. Mary Hovey

Generation 8: Jabez Treadwell m. Betsey Jillings Homan

Generation 9: Eliza Ann Treadwell m. Abijah Hitchings

Generation 10: Abijah Franklin Hitchings m. Hannah Eliza Lewis

Generation 11: Arthur Treadwell Hitchings m. Florence Etta Hoogerzeil

Generation 12: Gertrude Matilda Hitchings m. Stanley Elmer Allen (my grandparents)

On 28 March 2013 the Fieldstone Common internet radio show featured an interview with Ava Chamberlain, the author of The Notorious Elizabeth Tuttle: Marriage Murder and Madness in the Family of Jonathan Edwards.  Elizabeth Tuttle was the daughter of William Tuttle, Symon and Isabel's son, and niece to Dorothy Tuttle, my 8th great grandmother.  You can find a link to the podcast (archived version) of this interview at the Fieldstone Common blog:

http://www.fieldstonecommon.com/show-notes-the-notorious-elizabeth-tuttle-with-ava-chamberlain/

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Copyright 2013, Heather Wilkinson Rojo

Surname Saturday ~ BILL of Boston, Connecticut, Nova Scotia and Salem, Massachusetts

BILL

The Billtown Baptist Church, 2007
We drove the little red convertible all the way to Nova Scota
to see if there really was a place called "Billtown" and we found it! 

This is sometimes a difficult line to research.  Whenever I Google “BILL” I usually get hits on first names, not surnames, and newspaper searches pull up legislation instead of people.  But I was lucky, several very good books have been compiled on the Bill family, and they helped me to form the skeleton of my research.  Using vital records, newspapers, and in the case of one minister in this line some college archives, filled in and confirmed my lineage.

The first Bill in America was John Bill (1598 – 1638), who lived in what is now Winthrop, Massachusetts.  It was across the harbor from Boston, and at that time was known as Pulling or Pulllen Point, and then known as Bills Farms.  The earliest Bills are buried in Boston at Copp’s Hill Burying Ground next to the Old North Church.  From Copp’s Hill you can look across the harbor and see Winthrop and to where the Bill family had settled.

Son John Bill, aged 13, arrived on the ship Hopewell , and his sister, Mary, age 11 with the Tuttle family, arrived on the ship Planter, both in 1635 as part of the Winthrop Fleet.   The earliest record of the father John Bill is in the records “Town of Boston”  where it reads “John Bill died 10 mo. 1638”   Another record on 21 January 1638/9 made Richard Tuttell responsible for “one Dorthie Bill, Widdowe, a sojourner in his house…for any thing about her”  [see Drake’s History of Boston, p. 245]   Richard Tuttle was her brother.

Phillip Bill (1629 – 1689), son of John Bill, left Pulling Point, Massachusetts, where his children were born,  and removed to a part of New London, Connecticut that is now the town of Groton.  He died the same day as his daughter, Margaret, of throat distemper (diphtheria) on 8 July 1689.  His widow married again to Samuel Bucknall or Buckland.

Phillip’s grandson, Ebenezer Bill (1695 – 1788), lived in Lebanon, Connecticut and eventually sold his home to his brother James.  He removed to Nova Scotia as a planter upon the removal of the “French Neutrals” ( The Acadian Huguenot Protestants).   He settled in Kings county, Nova Scotia.  His children came with him, and Asahel Bill (1748 – 1814), my 4^th great grandfather, settled on a large tract of land  which became known as “Billtown”.   

Reverend Ingraham Ebenezer Bill  (1805 – 1891), my 3^rd great grandfather, was the youngest of eleven children.  He was moved to become a Baptist at a very young age, and was called to the ministry.  He was one of the founders of Acadia College in Wolfeville, Nova Scotia, which was founded by several Baptist ministers.  He was the pastor of the Billtown Baptist Church for over twenty-three years, and then pastor of the Germain Street Baptist Church in St.  John, New Brunswick.  He preached in Prince Edward Island, Maine, England and all the states as far south as Alabama.   He was the editor of “The Christian Visitor” Baptist newspaper and wrote the book Fifty Years with the Baptist Ministers and Churches of the Maritime Provinces of Canada in 1880. 

Rev. Bill’s son, the music professor Caleb Rand Bill (1833 – 1902), removed with his family back to New England.  He lived and taught music in Houlton, Maine,  and in the towns of Watertown, Salem and Beverly, Massachusetts. 

Some sources for researching the Bill family:

History of the Bill Family, edited by Ledyard Bill, 1867

A supplement to the Bill Family book was privately published by Harry Bill of Billtown in the 1990s for members of his immediate family.  I don’t have a copy of this book, but I do have copies of pages pertinent to my lineage which Harry sent me before he passed away in 2010.  If you can find a copy of this book you will find all the family lines updated.  

There is much about the Billtown Bills in local history books of Kings County, Nova Scotia, and the archives at Wolfeville’s Acadia College have copies of the biographies and sermons of the many Bill Baptist ministers, including Reverend I. E. Bill, my 3^rd great grandfather.  

There was a senator Caleb Rand Bill, appointed to the Canadian Senate 23 October 1867 by Royal Proclamation from Queen Victoria. He represented Kings County from 1855 to 1859, and the northern region of Kings County from 1863 to 1867 in the Nova Scotia House of Assembly.  He was a brother of my ancestor Rev. I. E. Bill, and is buried at the Billtown Baptist Cemetery.  You can find his biography in any good Canadian encyclopedia or list of famous Canadians.

My Bill genealogy:

Generation 1:  John Bill, born about 1598, died 21 January 1638; married about 1612 in England to Dorothy Tuttle, daughter of Symon Tuttle and Isabel Wells.  She was born about 1592, and died about December 1638 in Boston, Massachusetts.  Five known children.

Generation 2: Phillip Bill, born April 1629 in England, died 8 July 1689 in New London, Connecticut; married about 8 July 1689 in Groton, Connecticut to Hannah Waite.  She was the daughter of Samuel Waite and Mary Ward, born about 1625, died 1709 in Groton.  Eight children.

Generation 3:  Samuel Bill, born about 1665 near Boston, died 27 January 1730 in Groton, Connecticut; married about 1685 in Groton to Mercy Houghton, daughter of Richard Haughton and Catherine Unknown.  Eleven children.

Generation 4:  Ebenezer Bill, born 14 December 1695 in Groton, died 23 May 1788 in Cornwallis, Nova Scotia; married first about 1719 to Elizabeth Unkown;  married second on 8 September 1726 in Lebanon, Connecticut to Patience Ingraham, daughter of William Ingraham and Elizabeth Chesebrough.  She was born 2 April 1706 in Stonington, Connecticut, and died October 177 in Groton.  Ten children. 

Generation 5: Asahel Bill, born 7 April 1748 in Lebanon, died 10 November 1814 in Billtown, Nova Scotia; married on 18 June 1778 in Cornwallis, Nova Scotia to Mary Rand, daughter of Caleb Rand and Mary Mayhew.  She was born about 1758 and died 19 February 1845 in Billtown.  Eleven children.

Generation 6:  Reverend Ingraham Ebenezer Bill, born 19 February 1805 in Billtown, died 4 August 1891 in St. Martin’s, New Brunswick; married first to Isabella Lyons, daughter of Thomas Ratchford Lyons and Ann Skinner.  She was born 28 January 1806 in Cornwallis, died April 1872 in Carleton, New Brunswick.  Rev. Bill married second on 14 May 1873 in Cambridge, Massachusetts to Susan L. Nichols, widow of George Dove.

Generation 7:  Professor Caleb Rand Bill, born 30 May 1833 in Nictaux, Cornwallis, Nova Scotia, died 30 December 1902 in Salem, Massachusetts; married on 7 June 1858 in Lunenburg, Nova Scotia to Ann Margaret Bollman, daughter of Bremner Frederick Bollman and Sarah Elizabeth Lennox.  She was born on 11 September 1835 in Lunenburg, and died 1923 in Salem, Massachusetts. Nine children.

Generation 8: Isabella Lyons Bill, born January 1863 in Machias, Maine, died 19 January 1935 in Beverly, Massachusetts; married on 18 October 1894 in Salem, Massachusetts to Albert Munroe Wilkinson, son of Robert Wilson Wilkinson and Phebe Cross Munroe.  He was born 7 November 1860 in Danvers, Massachusetts, died 12 May 1908 at the Corey Hill Hospital, Brookline, Massachusetts. Two children.

Generation 9: Donald Munroe Wilkinson m. Bertha Louise Roberts (my grandparents)

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Heather Wilkinson Rojo, "Surname Saturday ~ BILL of Boston, Connecticut, Nova Scotia and Salem, Massachusetts", Nutfield Genealogy, posted March 23, 2013, ( https://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2013/03/surname-saturday-bill-of-boston.html: accessed [access date]). 

Two Joan Antrobuses

Joan Antrobus was born about 1592 in St. Albans, England to Joan Arnold and Walter Antrobus. She was married twice, First to Thomas Lawrence (1589 – 1625) on 23 October 1609 and had six children, and she married second to John Tuttle on before 1629.  Joan is the mother of three of my 9x Great Grandparents!

The Tuttles immigrated onboard the Planter, which left London in April 1635 for Boston. There exists an actual transcription of the Planter passenger list which shows that they traveled with her widowed mother (the other Joan Antrobus), John’s widowed mother, four of Joan’s children from her first marriage, four more children from her second marriage, John’s brothers Richard and William with their families, and several servants. Most ships did not keep passenger lists in the 1600s, and if they did, few survived. [ see “The Founders of New England”, The New England Historical and Genealogical Register, Volume 14, page 304 for the passenger list]

Obviously, from this rare record, you can see that this family group was wealthier than the average immigrant family. According to Gary Boyd Roberts and in other books about Americans of royal descent, the Lawrence family descended from nobility including the English Plantagenets. They lived well off here, and prospered with lots and lots of descendents.

Even though she came from a privileged background, I can’t imagine coming to America with all those children in tow! Even with servants and two grandmothers, it must have been an interesting voyage. I’d like to know that Joan lived in Massachusetts long enough to see her grandchildren prosper, but it is thought she went to Northern Ireland, where her husband died on 30 December 1656 in Carrickfergus. She wrote from there about his death to the children in Ipswich on 6 April 1657, but there is no further record of her in Ireland or New England.

This is one of my only ancestors who actually passed through Northern Ireland. Many Scots setters lived there for several generations and eventually many found their way to the New World. During the Great Rebellion of 1641 Carrickfergus was a refuge for Protestants. It was taken by the Scots that year by a General Robert Munro, and remained a Scots city until the restoration of Charles II in 1660.

And what about her mother, Joan Arnold Antrobus? She was baptized on 3 June 1571 in St. Albans, Hertfordshire, England, and she married Walter Antrobus/Anterbus on 8 February 1587. When the planter sailed for Boston she was about 64 years old. There is no further record of her in Massachusetts. I don’t know if she decided to stay in England, died on board the ship on the way, or survived the journey and later died in Massachusetts. Either way, she was a brave woman to consider such a journey in 1635. John’s widowed mother, Isabel Wells Toothill/ Tuttle is thought to have died in 1635 in New Haven Connecticut.

Genealogy:

Generation 1:  Joan Arnold, daughter of John Arnold and Marie Unknown, born before 3 June 1571 in St. Albans, England, died probably in Massachusetts; married on 8 Feburary 1587 to Walter Anterbus, born about 1555, died 5 April 1614 in St. Albans.  Walter married also Barbara Lawrence. Two Children: Joan and William

Generation 2:  Joan Atrobus, born about 1592, died after 29 January 1661 probably in Northern Ireland; married first on 23 October 1609 in St. Albans to Thomas Lawrence (six children including my 9x Great Grandmother Jane Lawrence who married George Giddings on 20 Feb 1634 in St. Albans);  married second on 1627 in St. Albans to John Tuttle ( another six children including my 9x Great Grandfather Simon Tuthill who married Sarah Cogswell about 1663, and also my 9x Great Grandmother Mary Tuttle who married Thomas Burnham in June 1645).

For more information on Joan (Antrobus) (Lawrence) Tuttle see:

The Great Migration Biographical Sketches, by Robert Charles Anderson (available online at the NEHGS website http://www.newenglandancestros.org/ , previously available as a book)

"Focus on the Planter”, Great Migration Newsletter, Volume 15, number 4 – Volume 16. #1, by Robert Charles Anderson, online at http://www.greatmigration.org/

Migrations and the Origins of the English Atlantic World, by Alison Games, Harvard University Press, 2001

A passenger list of the Planter from the Winthrop Society http://www.winthropsociety.com/ships/planter.htm

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Copyright 2011, Heather Wilkinson Rojo

Jabez Treadwell's Will

In Memory

of

Mr Jabez Treadwell

who departed this Life

22d Day of Decr

1781

In the 67th year of his age.

"Bleƒƒed are the dead which die in

the Lord that they may reƒt

from their Labours; and their

works do follow them."

When I first applied for membership in the Mayflower Society, I had eleven different passengers to choose from for my lineage papers. The easiest route to membership was to choose Isaac Allerton, because he settled in Salem and Marblehead, and I was born in Beverly, Massachusetts. To fill out my paperwork I used one of the silver books, and then I visited the town clerks in Beverly, Salem, Danvers and Hamilton and I was finished in one afternoon.

I give all my apologies to those of you working for years and years on your Mayflower applications. I understand fully how hard it is to complete those lineage papers, because in five years I haven’t done any of my supplemental lines. To finish those I need a trip to Nova Scotia and several states, and I’ve been lazy!

The lineage from Isaac Allerton to me leads through the Treadwell family in Ipswich. My great grandfather even had the name Arthur Treadwell Hitchings, because he was named for his own grandmother, Eliza Ann Treadwell. The family is mentioned in the Ipswich history, and they seemed very typical of the farmers in the area. I didn’t think of them as remarkable in any way. I recorded their vital records, searched a bit for stories and didn’t find any particularly interesting. I posted them on my website, along with the rest of the family tree, and that was that. Or so I thought!

Whenever I post something on the internet, interesting things seem to happen. I don’t get responses right away, but that’s fine, I don’t mind getting responses years and years later. I had a mysterious email from someone in South Carolina. It seems that she had an original 1780 copy of Jabez Treadwell’s will! She wanted to give it to one of his living descendants. Wow! This stranger had a grandfather who attended Suffolk Law school in Boston, Massachusetts way back in the 1920’s, and acquired this will somehow.

And so I acquired the will for just the cost of postage and a few email “Thank yous!” It was in very good shape, except for where it had ripped where it had once been folded and someone had tried to repair it with cellophane tape. The tape had fallen off long ago and left a yucky yellow stripe. It is legible, completely readable and quite a family treasure.

Lessons learned:

1. Post family stories online, and you’ll always reap rewards. Sometimes just a nice note in the email, and sometimes more!

2. Never repair a 1780 will with cellophane tape!

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

The lineage from Isaac Allerton through the Treadwell family:

Gen. 1. Isaac Allerton (Mayflower Passenger) born about 1586 in England, died 12 February 1658/9 in New Haven, Connecticut; married 4 November 1611 in Leyden, Holland to Mary Norris, daughter of Edward Norris, born 1567 in Newbury, Berkshire, England, died 25 February 1620/1 in Plymouth, Massachusetts.

Gen. 2. Remember Allerton (Mayflower Passenger when she was about 5 or six years old), born about 1614 in Leyden, Holland; married to Moses Maverick, son of Reverend John Maverick and Mary Gye, born 3 November 1611 in Huish, Devonshire, England, died 28 January 1685/6 in Marblehead, Massachusetts.

Gen. 3. Abigail Maverick, born about 12 January 1644/5 in Salem, Massachusetts, died about January 1685/6; married about 1662 to Major Samuel Ward, son of Samuel Ward and Mary Hilliard, born about 18 November 1638 in Hingham, Massachusetts, died between 30 July 1689 and 12 Mar 1690 on the expedition to Canada (Siege of Quebec).

Gen. 4. Martha Ward, born 16 September 1673 in Salem, died 17 August 1723 in Ipswich; married 3 December 1689 in Ipswich to John Tuthill/Tuttle, son of Simon Tuthill and Sarah Cogswell, born on 22 April 1666 in Ipswich, died on 27 February 1714/5 in Ipswich.

Gen. 5. Martha Tuttle, born 21 November 1690 in Ipswich, died on 15 May 1763 in Ipswich; married about 14 Jan 1709 to Mark Haskell, son of Mark Haskell and Elizabeth Giddings, born 16 September 1687 in Gloucester, died 25 August 1775 in Ipswich.

Gen. 6. Lucy Haskell, born 21 May 1715 in Gloucester, died 21 September 1789 in Ipswich; married 20 November 1736 in Ipswich to Jabez Treadwell, son of Nathaniel Treadwell and Hannah Unknown, born 9 August 1713 in Ipswich, died 22 December 1780 in Ipswich.

Gen. 7. Nathaniel Treadwell, born about 28 October 1753 in Ipswich, died on 2 January 1822 in Ipswich; married on 17 July 1786 in Ipswich to Mary Hovey, born in Ipswich and died on 15 January 1832 in Ipswich.

Gen. 8. Jabez Treadwell, born 17 October 1788 in Ipswich, died on 4 November 1840 in Salem; married 17 November 1811 in Marblehead to Betsey Jillings Homan, daughter of Thomas Homan and Tabitha Glover, born about 1792 in Marblehead, died 1875 in Salem.

Gen. 9. Eliza Ann Treadwell, born 27 August 1812 in Salem, died on 31 January 1896 in Salem; married on 4 December 1836 in Salem to Abijah Hitchings, son of Abijah Hitchings and Mary Cloutman, born on 18 January 1809 in Salem, died 18 January 1864 in Salem.

Copyright 2009, Heather Wilkinson Rojo