A Large Family and a Long Life — Phebe Boynton

B. 23 Nov 1750 in Coventry, Connecticut
M. about 1765 in (probably) Easthampton, Massachusetts
Husband: Benjamin Clapp
D. 30 Nov 1847 in Easthampton, Massachusetts

Phebe Boynton's life began in colonial New England and extended all the way into the mid-19th century. She was born on November 23, 1750 in Coventry, Connecticut to Joshua Boynton and Rachel Carpenter, the oldest of their two children. When Phebe was just two-years-old, her father died, and her mother married a second husband, Ebenezer French. The family moved to a newly settled region near Northampton, Massachusetts, living in a log cabin built by French. Nine half-siblings were born, and as the oldest girl in the family, Phebe was likely given the responsibility of looking after the younger children.

In about 1765, Phebe got married to Benjamin Clapp, the son of a tavern owner in Easthampton. If this marriage date is accurate, she was just 14 or 15-years-old (Benjamin would have been in his late 20s). Phebe's first child was born in 1768, and by 1794, she had a dozen more. Remarkably, all of her children lived to adulthood, giving her an abundance of grandchildren.

As with most who lived in New England during the second half of the 18th century, the American Revolution played a part in Phebe's life. When the war broke out in 1775, Benjamin went off to serve in the militia. After a short stint, though, he chose to come home in order to take care of his sick father, which must have been somewhat of a relief to Phebe.

Many civilians helped the American cause, and it was said that Phebe housed two British officers who had been taken prisoner at Saratoga. In late 1777, after the surrender of British general, John Burgoyne, the forces under his command were allowed safe return to England (about 2,400 men). The prisoners were moved to various locations throughout the colonies, with officers being kept in private homes, a process that ended up taking several years. Phebe had two of the enemy officers in her house, presumably for at least a couple of days, providing food and a place to sleep.

After the war was over, the people of Easthampton decided to form their own church, and Phebe became one of its first members. The church was organized in 1785 at the house of her brother-in-law, Captain Joseph Clapp. Everything was a community effort, and when the first minister was ordained in 1789, Phebe entertained some of the ordaining council at her home. Because she lived such a long life, she would eventually become the last survivor among the original church members.

The founders of the Easthampton Congregational Church in 1785.

Easthampton Congregational Church in 1841.

Sometime around 1800, Benjamin became "mentally impaired," which likely meant he developed dementia. It's easy to imagine that Phebe became his caretaker during those years. Sadly, he passed away on November 8, 1815, which began her long period of widowhood.

Phebe reportedly remained fairly healthy in her old age. She was said to have “a very genial disposition” and she “retained activity, both of mind and soul, till the last year of her life.” She probably took great pride in her children and grandchildren. In 1832, one granddaughter said goodbye to the family on her wedding day to become a missionary in Hawaii; Phebe may have been in attendance, although this is speculation.

On November 30, 1847, Phebe died in Easthampton at the age of 97. Many of her children had predeceased her; it is said that she had about 70 grandchildren and 70 great-grandchildren at the time of her death.

Children:
1. Rachel Clapp — B. 28 Feb 1768, Easthampton, Massachusetts; D. 11 Jul 1868; M. Nathaniel Edwards, Jan 1800

2. Ocran Clapp — B. 27 Feb 1770, Easthampton, Massachusetts; D. 16 Dec 1835; M. Sarah Lyman (1769-1829), 1791

3. Sophia Clapp — B. 9 Dec 1771, Easthampton, Massachusetts; D. 12 Sep 1840, Nelson, New Hampshire; M. Reverend Gad Newell (1764-1859)

4. Anne Clapp — B. 21 Nov 1773, Easthampton, Massachusetts; D. 13 Dec 1802, Charlotte, Vermont; M. Medad Lyman (1770-1813)

5. Clarissa Clapp — B. 22 Feb 1776, Easthampton, Massachusetts; D. after 1864; M. Jonathan Lyman

6. Benjamin Clapp — B. 14 Nov 1778; D. 1 Apr 1821, Easthampton, Massachusetts

7. Sally Clapp — B. 15 Nov 1780, Easthampton, Massachusetts; D. 9 Jan 1844, Easthampton, Massachusetts; M. Daniel Lyman, 31 Dec 1806

8. Solomon Clapp — B. 2 Sep 1782, Massachusetts; D. 25 Nov 1827, Easthampton, Massachusetts; M. Pauline Avery (1787-1864)

9. Spencer Clapp — B. 15 Aug 1784, (probably) Easthampton, Massachusetts; M. Diana Phelps, 1 Jan 1805

10. Phebe Clapp — B. 6 Sep 1786, (probably) Easthampton, Massachusetts; M. Levi Clapp (1784-1856)

11. Fanny Clapp — B. 24 Feb 1789, (probably) Easthampton, Massachusetts; D. after 1864; Jared Clark, 5 Jan 1809

12. Caroline Clapp — B. 15 Oct 1791, (probably) Easthampton, Massachusetts; D. after 1864; M. Milton Knight

13. George Clapp — B. 24 Apr 1794, (probably) Easthampton, Massachusetts; D. 15 Jul 1825

Sources:
Obituary of Phebe Clapp, Northampton Courier, 1847
The History of Easthampton: its settlement and growth, Payson W. Lyman, 1866
The Clapp Memorial: record of the Clapp family in America, Ebenezer Clapp, 1876
The American almanac and repository of useful knowledge, Charles Bowen, 1848
Tombstone inscriptions from Main Street Cemetery, Easthampton, Massachusetts
A History of Nelson, New Hampshire, Parke Hardy Struthers, 1968
The Lyman Family in America, Lyman Coleman, 1872

Living With a Fake Name — Thomas Michael Mitchell

B. 7 Oct 1893 in Oswego, Kansas
M. (1) 11 Nov 1912 in Tacoma, Washington
Wife: Tillie Nack
M. (2) 11 Feb 1921 in Los Angeles, California
Wife: Hazel Laura Elwood
M. (3) 1943 in (probably) Los Angeles, California
Wife: Lillian Johnson
D. 10 Mar 1980 in Monterey Park, California

People change their last names for a variety of reasons. In the case of Thomas Michael Mitchell, he took such an action at a critical point in his life, as he ran from authorities who were trying to find him.

Tom was born on October 7, 1893 in Oswego, Kansas to an unmarried 20-year-old woman named Laura Ross. His mother later told him that the man who made her pregnant was named Thomas Carey, and that he had refused to marry her after he was aware of her condition. In fact, his father wouldn’t even acknowledge Tom, and as a result, they never had any contact with each other.

For the first year and half of his life, Tom lived alone with his mother. Then in March of 1895, she married a man named Howard Sheridan. His step-father could be mean at times, but he accepted Tom as his own son, and gave him the name Sheridan. Tom would eventually have seven younger half-brothers and one half-sister (two of the boys died as a babies). In 1900, the family left Kansas for the state of Washington, moving to the remote town of Lake Kapowsin, near Mt. Rainier. Sheridan worked for the railroad, and the family lived in a small house next to tracks that ran through the woods. After 1905, the family moved to the Tacoma area, and this was where Tom spent the rest of his childhood.

Tom with his half-brothers Forrest and Howard in about 1901

In Tom’s family, higher education was a luxury, and he completed his education when he graduated from the sixth grade. Between the years 1907 and 1915, he worked at various jobs all over the Northwest. Tom traveled as far north as Alaska, and as far south as Portland. One time he got into trouble at a lumber mill, threatening his boss after he fired him. Later, when the boss turned up murdered, Tom was arrested for it. Luckily, a girlfriend he was living with came forward as an alibi and cleared his name. There was also a story that Tom had a very brief career as a prizefighter. These anecdotes suggest that Tom was somewhat of a rough character, at least at this point in his life.

Tom got married around this time, but records suggest he wasn’t ready for such responsibility. His bride was Tillie Nack, a young girl he dated in Tacoma, and their wedding took place before a judge on November 11, 1912. Tillie had a stillborn son the following year, and sometime after that, Tom deserted her. He was arrested in May 1914, and served three days in the county jail. He told a judge he would reunite with Tillie, but she died on August 15, 1915, and the death record used her maiden name, describing her as divorced. The cause of death was Bright’s disease; it was noted that the pregnancy two years earlier caused her illness. 

In about 1916, the entire Sheridan family moved to California, making their home in Los Angeles. Tom was in his early 20s, and decided he liked the area. He took a job working for an ice cream caterer, which gave him the opportunity to see how the other half lived. At one party in the Hollywood hills, he witnessed those in attendance skinny dipping in a pool. But this period of Tom’s life had a very sad event — in March 1917, his mother died in childbirth. This left a huge void in the Sheridan family.

That year also saw the U.S. pulled into World War I, which led to Tom being drafted into the Army in July 1918. He was due to be shipped to fight in the war in Europe, then he was delayed when he contracted the Spanish flu. Tom recovered, but the war ended, and instead of France, he was shipped to a location outside of Newport News, Virginia, where all the returning soldiers were arriving. This was where he spent the bulk of his service.

Tom in about 1918

One evening during the spring of 1919, Tom went with an army buddy named Tex Townsend to meet some girls in the restricted zone of town. On the way out, the two of them got into a fight with some MPs. The next day, Tom heard that one of the MPs had wound up dead, and they were going to be arrested for the crime. Tom knew he would wind up in prison, or even be executed, for something like that. So he got together with Tex, and they decided to go AWOL.

Tom and Tex traveled first to Richmond, then Tex said he knew a lawyer in Washington D.C. When they met with the lawyer, he said they should keep running and change their names. Tom chose the name “Mitchell” more or less at random. The lawyer offered another bit of advice: in order to not get caught, they needed to split up. So they went their separate ways, and Tom never heard from Tex again.

After Tom was on his own, he went to Philadelphia, where he took a job at a Woolworth's store, and on a whim stole $600. His goal was to get back to California, so he boarded a train to St. Louis, and worked there for a few months, trying to earn enough to go further west. By January 1920, Tom had made it to Denver, and next he went to Salt Lake City, where he almost bumped into one of his army officers at a dance. Finally he found himself in the desert town of Caliente, Nevada, working for the railroad. After a short time there, he made a deal with a co-worker for a ticket to Los Angeles.

Tom hoped to reunite with his family in Los Angeles, but he found that the Sheridans were no longer at the same address, and he had no way of finding them. So he took a job as a cook in a YMCA kitchen located downtown. There he met a spirited young woman, Hazel Elwood, who also worked as a cook. He began flirting with her, and after a brief courtship, they got married in Los Angeles on February 11, 1921. Not long after the wedding, Tom found one of his half-brothers while walking down a street, thus re-establishing contact with the family.

Tom holding son Tom in 1922

Tom’s second marriage was a rocky one. During the first couple of years, he and Hazel had two children, and they moved to the city of Oakland. It was there that Hazel took up with one of Tom’s half-brothers, who had come to stay at their house. This fling produced a third child in their household, but Tom somewhat forgave her and they continued as a couple. After a fire destroyed their house, the family moved back to L.A., and they eventually settled in Tujunga near Hazel’s mother. For a short time, Tom operated a restaurant in Hollywood, but he badly injured his knee in an auto accident, and was forced to close it. Hazel decided to move out on her own, and he stayed in Tujunga raising the kids.

During the 1930s, Tom had a hard time finding a way to make ends meet. He tried distilling brandy from grapes growing wild in the neighborhood, then offering it for purchase. He also made donuts which he had the kids sell door-to-door. In March 1934, Hazel had a fourth baby, and even though Tom wasn’t the biological father, he raised the child as his own. By the late 1930s, Tom and the kids moved to the San Gabriel Valley, where he would live for the rest of his life. He settled into a career of cabinet making, a trade he first learned in 1923. In the early 1940s, he bought a storefront property on Garvey Boulevard and opened up a cabinet making shop. Behind the shop, he had a house to live in, and a second house that became used by other family members.

In 1943, Tom finally got a divorce from Hazel and married his third wife, Lillian Johnson, whom he met at a dance. They had a daughter born in 1944, but she had a defective bile duct, and died at 6-months-old. Then in 1946, a son was born whom they named Dennis. He had physical problems that showed up later — dyslexia and epilepsy — and was more or less disabled his entire life.

Tom in his cabinet-making shop in 1953

Tom in his backyard in 1974

In spite of Tom’s lack of formal education, he was an avid reader throughout his life. He took a great interest in nutrition and health, taking vitamin supplements during the 1960s, way before it was common to do so. His taste in music was fairly traditional for his generation: he loved Liberace and Lawrence Welk. As for his religious beliefs, Tom was an affirmed atheist. Whenever he was asked about it, he declared, “I believe in reality.”

In about 1962, Tom moved one last time, to a house a few blocks from his shop. He continued to work until he was 80 years old, when blindness from glaucoma forced him to stop. Then in about 1979, he went into a decline. His wife Lillian moved him into a nursing hospital against his will, and he died there on March 10, 1980.

The name Mitchell was passed down in the family for three generations, but the identity of Tom’s real father was eventually solved. In 2017, DNA evidence proved that this man was Thomas Michael Carey (1864-1937), who for many years owned a fruit wholesaling business in Coffeyville, Kansas. A couple of years after Tom was born, his biological father got married, and had four more children. None of them was ever told about their older half-brother.

A postscript on the army desertion and name change
In October 2021, documents were found showing the timing of Tom’s desertion. An army roster for March 1919 gave the 27th as the date he went missing, and a roster for April named him as a deserter after 30 days had passed.

The army rosters also revealed that Tom’s buddy, Tex Townsend, returned to camp, and seems to have suffered no punishment. I learned that the man kept his name all they way to end of his life in 1975. In addition to this, a thorough search of Newport News newspapers during the week Tom disappeared showed no report of a fight between soldiers and MPs.

This information leads me to believe that no one died in the fight with the MPs. I think that when Tom was told authorities were looking for him, it was just a practical joke being played by others in his unit. It's also possible that the one playing a joke on Tom was Tex Townsend. Why did he go back to camp right after they split up in Washington? Was his lawyer friend in on it, too? Was he even a lawyer?

Assuming it's accurate that the MP didn't die, Tom lived his entire life thinking that he had killed a man in a fist fight, and this wasn’t true. It's interesting to think that if this prank hadn’t happened, my name wouldn't be Mitchell — and most likely, I would have never been born. 

Children by Hazel Laura Elwood:
1. Thomas Milton Mitchell – B. 1 Jul 1922, Los Angeles, California; D. 10 Nov 2007, Winnetka, California; M. Margaret Elizabeth Bolheres (1922-2016), 2 Jul 1949, Pasadena, California

2. Patsy Eleanor Mitchell – B. 23 Feb 1924, Los Angeles, California; D. 27 Apr 2002, Sitka, Alaska; M. James Lawrence Sarvela (1914-1995), 27 Dec 1947, Glendale, California

3. Forrest Leroy Mitchell – B. 21 Sep 1926, Oakland, California; D. 30 Jun 2016, Desert Hot Springs, California; M. Patricia Ann McKenzie (1930-2010), 21 May 1948

4. LIVING

Children by Lillian Myrtle Johnson:
1. Carolyn Lee Mitchell – B. 1 Jul 1944, Los Angeles, California; D. 11 Jan 1945, Los Angeles, California

2. Dennis Clark Mitchell – B. 4 Apr 1946, Los Angeles, California; D. 26 Mar 2005, Cheyenne, Wyoming; M. Judy A. Smith, 21 Jan 1973, Rosemead, California

Sources:
Family Bible of Laura Sheridan
Marriage certificate of Thomas Sheridan and Tillie Nack, Tacoma, Washington, 11 Nov 1912
Marriage certificate of Thomas Mitchell and Hazel Elwood, Los Angeles, California, 11 Feb 1921
Divorce record of Thomas Mitchell and Hazel Mitchell, Los Angeles, 7 Jan 1943
City directories of Tacoma and Los Angeles, 1915-1938
1900, 1910, 1920 and 1930 U.S. Censuses in Kansas, Washington, Colorado and California
Interviews of Thomas Michael Mitchell and Thomas Milton Mitchell, 1976-1997
California Birth Index, 1905-1995
Social Security Death Index
California, County Marriages, 1850-1952

Family Killed by Plague — Simon Jansen Van Arsdalen

B. before 27 Feb 1627 in Nukerke, East Flanders
M. (1) 26 Mar 1650 in Amsterdam, Netherlands
Wife: Marritje Baltus
M. (2) 1658 in (probably) Flatlands, New Netherland
Wife: Pieterje Claese Van Schouw
D. Oct 1710 in Flatlands, New York

Simon Van Arsdalen became the founder of a family in America because of a sad event — the unexpected death of his wife and young children. He was born in 1627 to Jan Pauwelsz Van Aersdaele and Geertje Phillipsdr Haelters in Nukerke, East Flanders (which is now Belgium), and was baptized there on February 27th. Simon was one of at least 5 children. The family left Nukerke around 1642, moving to Gouda in what is now the Netherlands; it's been said that they left because of religious persecution. 

When he came of age, Simon followed a different path than his parents and siblings. While the others stayed in Gouda in the Netherlands, he moved to Amsterdam, becoming a potter. There on March 26, 1650, he married Marritje Baltus. In 1653, he left his wife and two young children to go to the colony of New Netherlands; it was to be a venture involving his pottery business, and he intended to return home within a short time. But when he got word that a plague struck Amsterdam in November 1655, killing his wife and children, he decided to stay in America permanently.

1650 Marriage record of Simon and Marritje.

Simon settled in Flatlands (now a part of Brooklyn), where he made his home for the rest of his life. In 1658, he married a second wife, Pieterje Claese Van Schouw, the daughter of a Flatlands farmer, and between 1659 and 1678, they had at least six children. Simon was appointed magistrate in 1661, and in 1686 he became a church deacon. Like all men were required to do in the former Dutch colony, he took the oath of allegiance to England in 1687. Over the years, Simon owned a lot of property in what is now Brooklyn, and sold several lots in Gravesend to his son Cornelis in 1700.

During his life in America, Simon maintained contact with family members back in Holland. On September 9, 1698, he wrote a letter to his brother and sister in Gouda that somehow was saved in an archive, offering a rare personal document of a 17th century immigrant to America:

"My kindest regards be written to my so much beloved brother and sister. I let you know I received your letter from Aendries Wandelaer and that I understand the contents of it, I am pleased to say, however, that the accident your daughter has met with causes us sorrow, however, it is the work of God, that we ought to bear patiently. Farther I let you know, that I, your brother, and my wife and children are in good health yet thank God for His grace and we hope to learn from you the same in due time. I wonder you didn’t write about our niece. Farther I let you know all my children are married and each of them is living in a farmhouse that earns their livelihood. I sold my farm to my eldest son Cornelis, 33 years of age, has got five children, three sons, two daughters. My son Jan, 22 years of age, has got two sons. My daughter Geertje has got eight children. Janneken has got five children; Mettegen has got three children. They are comfortably off but they have to work which God commanded Adam. As for me, I stopped working since I am 71 years old now, my wife is 58 years of age and you, my brother, are, if I remember rightly, 60 years of age. God be pleased to give us a blessed end. I am in receipt of your son Jan’s drawing which pleases me very much. I gather from your letter your daughter’s [?] causes you sorrow and I can well believe it and if I knew you would be pleased I would come to your assistance. Please let me know. I do not know anything more to write. I will send this letter along with Pieter Berrij. He is our son Jan’s (nephew/cousin), who knows us very well. You can send your reply along with him. As for Dries Wandelaer, he is not acquainted with us and for this reason he cannot inform of us. God be with you and be saluted heartily by me, Sijmon Janson van Arsdalen, your brother"

Simon died in October 1710 and was buried in the churchyard of the Flatlands Reformed Dutch Church. It isn't known when his wife Pieterje passed away. His descendants include Georgia O'Keefe and James Spader.

Children by Marritje Baltus:
1. Sylyntje Van Arsdalen – B. Feb 1651, Amsterdam, Netherlands; D. about Nov 1655, Amsterdam, Netherlands

2. Jan Symonsz Van Arsdalen – B. Nov 1652, Amsterdam, Netherlands; D. Nov 1655, Amsterdam, Netherlands

Children by Pieterje Claese Van Schouw:
1.  Geertje Van Arsdalen – B. about 1659, Flatlands, New Netherland; D. about 1731, (probably) Flatlands, New Netherland; M. Cornelis Pieterse Wyckoff (~1660-~1730), 13 Oct 1678, New Utrecht, New York

2. Cornelis Van Arsdalen – B. 1665, Flatlands, New York; D. 19 Apr 1745, New Jersey; M. (1) Tjelltje Rynierse Wizzelpenning; (2) Aeltje Kouwenhoven (1665-1689), 16 Mar 1687, Flatbush, New York; (3) Marretje Dirkse, 2 May 1691, Flatbush, New York

3. Jannetje Van Arsdalen – B. about 1667, Flatlands, New York; D. Dec 1731; M. Gysbert Tunisen Bogaert (~1668-?), 16 Apr 1689, Flatbush, New York

4. Metje Van Arsdalen – B. about 1672, Flatlands, New York; M. (1) Evert Janse Van Wickelen, 27 Feb 1690, Flatbush, New York; (2) Philip Volkertsz (~1670-?)

5. Jan Van Arsdalen – B. 1676, Flatlands, New York; D. 1756, Jamaica, New York; M. Lammertje Probasco (~1675-aft 1736), 1695

6. Maritje Van Arsdalen – B. 1678, Flatbush, New York; D. (probably) young

Sources:
"Remembering Simon Jansze," Charles R. Vanorsdale, The Vanguard, Vol. VI, No. 1, July 2003
"Symon's Early New Netherland Days," Charles R. Vanorsdale, The Vanguard, Vol. I, No. 1, July 1998
"Sijmon's 1698 Letter," Charles R. Vanorsdale, The Vanguard, Vol. IV, No. 2, December 2001
Famous Kin (website)

First European Born in Canada — Hélène Desportes

B. about 1620 in Quebec City, New France
M. (1) 1 Oct 1634 in Quebec City, New France
Husband: Guillaume Hébert
M. (2) 9 Jan 1640 in Quebec City, New France
Husband: Noël Morin
D. 24 Jun 1675 in (probably) Quebec City, New France

In the same year that the Mayflower landed in Massachusetts, the French colony to the north saw its earliest birth. And that child was Hélène Desportes—thought to be the very first white child born in what is now Canada.

Hélène was born during the second half of 1620 to Pierre Desportes and Françoise Langlois, two of the settlers that Samuel de Champlain had recruited for his new settlement called Quebec. Hélène was named for Champlain’s wife, Hélène Boullé, who was her godmother. (When Champlain died in 1635, he left Hélène some money in his will, a bequest that she never received.) It's believed that Hélène had no siblings, at least none that survived. Life was rugged during her early childhood, with only a handful of people living in and around the Quebec compound. The colony hardly had a chance to grow when it was taken over by Englishman David Kirke in 1629, and Hélène moved to France with her parents.

Quebec at about the time Hélène was born there.

The Desportes family made their home in the French port city of Dieppe, but within five years, both of Hélène’s parents died. It’s believed she was taken in by her maternal aunt, Marguerite Langlois, who with her husband Abraham Martin had been part of the Quebec settlement. When the French reclaimed the colony in 1634, the Martin family returned there, bringing Hélène with them. Shortly after her arrival, she got married. Hélène's husband Guillaume was the son of Louis Hébert, who had remained in Canada during the English occupation. The wedding took place on October 1st, and at age 14, Hélène began her married life.

Hélène gave birth to a son in November 1636, later followed by two daughters. But tragedy struck when Guillaume suddenly died on September 23, 1639. The settling of his estate showed that their home was in poor condition, forcing Hélène to move into another cottage, which measured 24 by 18 feet "near the church of Notre-Dame." But as a practical matter, she needed a new husband, and on January 9, 1640, she married Noël Morin, a wheelwright, in Quebec City. She received a dowry of 200 livres from her new husband.

Hélène's signature on a 1639 document.

Hélène and Noël settled just outside of the Upper Town of Quebec City. Between 1641 and 1656, they had 12 children. Hélène became a midwife in the colony, likely in part because she had so much experience with her own childbirths. As a midwife, she was authorized to perform baptisms in cases where the infant was about to die, and she was cited in this role on many parish records. Several of Hélène’s daughters would later also become midwives, and it’s likely that she had some influence in this. Another of her daughters, Marie, chose a different path in life by becoming a nun. She spent many years serving at the hospital in Montreal.

Meanwhile in 1653, Hélène’s husband Nöel became a seigneur, a man able to collect rent from others who lived in his seigneury located south of the St. Lawrence River near Montmagny. It was years before he moved his family there, though, and he and Hélène continued living near Quebec City. During this time, they were granted a pew in the Notre-Dame church in Quebec City, a sign of status.

Hélène passed away on June 24, 1675 at age 55, an event that was for some reason not recorded in Quebec parish records. Noël died five years later in 1680. Famous descendants of Hélène include Céline Dion, Madonna, Bridget Fonda, Jim Carrey, Alex Trebek, Ricky Gervais, Cliff Arquette, Roseanna Arquette, Patricia Arquette, Emeril Lacasse, June Foray, Leo Durocher, Chloë Sevigny, and Pierre and Justin Trudeau.

A Personal Note

Hélène Desportes was the only North American-born ancestor of my both of my parents, Thomas Milton Mitchell (1922-2007), and Margaret Elizabeth Bolheres (1922-2016). Unfortunately, I didn't learn this until after both of them had died. They never knew they were blood relatives of each other.

Children by Guillaume Hébert:
1. Joseph Hébert – B. 3 Nov 1636, Quebec City, New France; D. 1661, New France; M. Marie-Charlotte Pothier (~1641-1718), 12 Oct 1660, New France

2. Marie-Françoise Hébert — B. about 23 Jan 1638, Quebec City, New France; D.16 Mar 1716, Montmagny, New France; M. Guillaume Fournier (~1623-1699), 20 Nov 1651, Quebec City, New France

3. Angélique Hébert — B. 2 Aug 1639, Quebec City, New France, D. young

Children by Noël Morin:
1. Agnes Morin — B. 21 Jan 1641, Quebec City, New France; D. 30 Aug 1687, Quebec City, New France; M. (1) Nicolas Gaudry dit Bourbonniere (~1620-1669), 17 Nov 1653, Quebec City, New France; (2) Ignace Bonhomme dit Beaupré (~1645-1711), 12 Jan 1671, Quebec City, New France

2. Germain Morin — B. 14 Jan 1642, Quebec City, New France; D. 20 Aug 1702, Quebec City, New France

3. Louise Morin — B. about 27 Apr 1643, Quebec City, New France; D. 28 Apr 1713, Château-Richer, New France; M. Charles Cloutier (1629-1709), 20 Apr 1659, New France

4. Nicolas Morin — B. 26 Apr 1644, Quebec City, New France; D. about 1667, (probably) Quebec City, New France

5. Jean-Baptiste Morin — B. 22 May 1645, Quebec City, New France; D. 11 Dec 1694, Quebec City, New France; M. Catherine de Belleau (~1639-?), 22 Nov 1667, Quebec City, New France

6. Marguerite Morin — B. 29 Sep 1646, Quebec City, New France; D. 17 Oct 1646, Quebec City, New France

7. Hélène Morin — B. 30 Sep 1647, Quebec City, New France; D. 9 May 1661, Quebec City, New France

8. Marie Morin — B. 19 Mar 1649, Quebec City, New France; D. 8 Apr 1730, Montreal, New France

9. Alphonse Morin — B. 12 Dec 1650, Quebec City, New France; D. 29 Aug 1711, Montmagny, New France; M. (1) Marie-Madeleine Normand (1646-1690), 10 Feb 1670, Quebec City, New France; (2) Angelique Destroismaisons (1670-1744), 24 Nov 1692, Cap-St-Ignace, New France

10. Noël Morin — B. 12 Oct 1652, Quebec City, New France; D. young

11. Charles Morin — B. 29 Aug 1654, Quebec City, New France; D. 4 Oct 1671, Quebec City, New France

12. Marie-Madeleine Morin — B. 28 Dec 1656, Quebec City, New France; D. 22 Jul 1720, Quebec City, New France; M. Gilles Rageot (1642-1692), 29 May 1673, Quebec City, New France

Sources:
Généalogie du Quebec et d’Amérique française (website)
Quebec Catholic Parish Registers, 1621-1979, FamilySearch.org
A Point in History (website)
One-hundred French-Canadian Family Histories, Philip J. Moore, 1994
Our French-Canadian Ancestors, Gerard Lebel (translated by Thomas J. Laforest), 1990
Hélène’s World: Hélène Desportes of Seventeenth Century Quebec, Susan McNelley, 2014
Famous Kin (website) 

Widow of a Minister — Sophia Newell Kittredge

B. 22 Nov 1824 in Nelson, New Hampshire
M. 7 Aug 1849 in Nelson, New Hampshire
Husband: James Riddle French
D. 22 Dec 1900 in Los Angeles, California

Sophia Newell Kittredge fell deeply in love with a traveling preacher, but her married life only lasted a brief time, and after he died, she spent over 40 years in widowhood.

Sophia was born November 22, 1824 in Nelson, New Hampshire to Abel Kittredge and Sophia Lyman, their first child. Her middle name was in honor of her great-aunt, Sophia Clapp, who married Gad Newell; they had raised Sophia's mother from the time she was 13. Sophia had three younger brothers, Edward, Samuel Farrington and Charles, but Charles died young, and her mother, who had difficulty with child bearing, died soon after. Abel remarried his wife's sister Anne and gave Sophia three half-brothers: Minot, Henry and another Charles, who also died young.

When Sophia came of age, she was courted by a minister from Maine named James Riddle French. He was an older man and a widower with a young son. His letters to Sophia have been passed down in the family, and many told of the love they had for each other. In June of 1849, he wrote, "Twin spirit of my being, thy heart shall be my resting place through time, & thy caress sheds o’er my soul a perfect blessedness. I would not have it otherwise, nor live without thee, to love & soothe & bless. My heart expanding doth thy love receive, more valued than the world, or all the world can give."

Daguerreotype of Sophia in about 1850

Sophia and James were married in Nelson on August 7, 1849. The first few years of marriage were spent apart as he worked as a traveling preacher throughout New England. It wasn't until 1852 that he secured a steady position at a Congregational church in Portland, Maine. There she gave birth to son James in 1852. It's likely Sophia took an active role in helping her husband with his work, especially as he became sick with a chronic illness that affected his stamina. In about 1856, they moved to his hometown of Prospect, Maine. Reverend James grew weaker and weaker, but continued to preach, even as Sophia encouraged him to rest. At the end of that year, Sophia had a baby girl named Nancy.

Sophia nursed her husband through his final illness, and after he died on March 23, 1857, she wrote about it to her father: “What we so much feared has come upon us. My dearest earthly friend is ‘not,’ for God has taken him. His body now lies in the cold grave, his ransomed spirit is I trust singing the praises of redeeming love.…None but those who have been there can fully sympathize with me in this time of trial.…O, my dear parents, I am all alone with my fatherless children. My health is very poor. I am very weak, feel afraid I shall have to give up and be sick.”

Sophia had this locket made containing real hair, probably her late husband's

Sophia stayed in Maine long enough to settle the affairs of her late husband in probate court, then took the children to her father in New Hampshire. Many women in her situation would look for another husband, but Sophia decided to support herself. Whether she felt too strongly about Reverend French to remarry, or was of an independent mind is not known. In about 1858, she moved to Dorchester, Massachusetts. There she attended school and afterwards found a job teaching in a boarding school. In 1861, Sophia kept a journal, writing about her life away from her children. "Thurs. eve. Stormy, snow and wind, right down-east snowstorm. Nothing special to-day; wrote a letter to Jamie [her son]. Have much to be thankful for, yet my rebellious heart is prone to look on the dark side of the scene, and long for 'forbidden fruit.' I yearn for my children, and the separation seems sometimes unbearable. O' for faith and patience."

A page from Sophia's journal

The journal covers a period of time when Sophia lost her job as teacher and tried to find other ways to earn a living. Most of her family had relocated to nearby Boston, including brothers Edward and Farrington, and her father and step-mother, who cared for James and Nancy. "Have taken a house in Dorchester, the rent is 300 dollars; have fitted it up for boarders. This is probably a risky experiment, but I feel that the providence of God has led me here. The subject has agitated for some time before. I made up my mind to take this step; several times I gave up the idea of going to housekeeping this season, then it would come up again, and after consulting with my brothers Edward and Farrington, I would come out and look at houses and hunt up the boarders. Finally it was thought best for me to make an attempt — to do something if I could." She struggled with the boarding house venture and could only find a handful of people to rent rooms. By the end of the year, she turned to her brothers and a widows' fund at her church in order to have money to buy shoes for the children, who were now living with her.

Sophia during the 1860s in Boston

During the mid-1860s, Sophia settled in Boston, working as a city missionary helping the needy. She continued to work for the city missions all through the years her children grew up. During the early 1870’s, James left home, traveling throughout the West. For a time, he cut off correspondence with his mother and sister, and fell into some trouble that caused him to change his name to Frank Emerson. Daughter Nancy stayed close to her mother, and in 1879, married a man named George Hewes, a carriage builder and part-time preacher. The young couple took Sophia into their home, and she retired from the missionary work. Soon there were grandchildren in the household.

In 1882, son-in-law George decided to take the family away from New England and move to the Midwest. Sophia, who was 56, went with them. They moved to the small farming community of Le Mars, Iowa. It was a very difficult climate; a tornado struck their house in June 1885, moving it five feet off the foundation and forcing the family to take refuge in the flooded basement. Sophia notified son Frank, who was living in Los Angeles, and he wrote back suggesting they join him in California, offering to pay their way out, if only he could. Four years later, the family had the money to make the move, and Frank gave advice on the best train fares, then arranged for their tickets through the Southern Pacific Railroad, where he worked.

In November 1889, Sophia, along with Nancy’s family, took a train to Los Angeles. She lived the rest of her life just south of downtown Los Angeles, a part of Nancy and George’s household. Once they got settled, George founded a church and settlement house to help the poor. It can only be speculated how much influence Sophia had on her son-in-law.

Throughout the 1890’s, Sophia continued to write letters, communicating with those relatives still on the east coast. In 1893, her brother Farrington wrote her from New England with news about the family. Farrington ended his letter with, “…my dear Sophia, don’t forget the loved ones in the old Bay State and remember we all think of you and love you just as much as we ever did if thousands of miles separate us from the vision of sight. Did we not all have the same dear father and mother, and how much our dear mother loved Minot and Henry’s mother, and did not our step-mother love us all? Yes my dear sister, think of us all here and pray that each one may so live that we can all meet with the loved ones who have gone before. As well as those to come after we have left this beautiful world for a better and brighter one…”

Sophia lived long enough to see the marriage of her oldest granddaughter, Eleanor, and the birth of her first two great-grandchildren, Mabel and George Elwood. She died of cancer on December 22, 1900 at the house she lived in with Nancy and George. She was buried in Rosedale Cemetery in Los Angeles.

Children:
1. James Riddle French, AKA Frank Emerson – B. 12 Oct 1852, Portland Maine; D. 13 Jun 1913, Los Angeles, California; M. Mrs. May Lynch (1850-?), 25 Aug 1878, San Bernardino, California

2. Nancy Sophia French – B. 21 Dec 1856, Stockton Springs, Maine; D. 12 Jul 1916, Berkeley, California; M. George Henry Hewes (1853-1923), 17 Jul 1879, Boston, Massachusetts

Sources:
A History of Nelson, New Hampshire, Parke Hardy Struthers, 1968
The Kittredge Family in America, Mabel T. Kittredge, 1936
Family Bible of James and Sophia French
Letters of James Riddle French to Sophia (Kittredge) French 1849-1852
Letter from Sophia French to Abel Kittredge, 31 Mar 1857
1860, 1870, 1880 and 1900 U.S. Censuses, Massachusetts and California
Journal of Sophia Newell French, 1861
"The Wind's Work," The Evening Sentinel, Le Mars, Iowa, 16 Jun 1885
City Directories of Boston, Massachusetts, and Los Angeles, California, 1866-1900
Letters written by Frank Emerson (nee James French) to Sophia French, Los Angeles, California, 1885-1889
Death certificate of Sophia Newell French, Los Angeles, California, 22 Dec 1900
Death certificate of Frank Emerson, 16 Jun 1913, Los Angeles, California
Death certificate of Nancy Hewes, July 1916, Berkeley, California
Marriage certificate of George Hewes and Nancy French, 21 Jul 1879, Boston, Massachusetts

Continuing a Migration to the West — Samuel Luckey

B. 7 Jan 1830 in (probably) St. Charles County, Missouri
M. 7 Apr 1853 in Jersey County, Illinois
Wife: Mary Jane Davis
D. 8 Mar 1884 in Labette County, Kansas

The Midwest of the 19th century was made up of men like Samuel Luckey. He raised crops, farm animals and a large family on a farm he proudly owned. And he followed in the pattern of his father by picking up and moving further west.

Samuel’s parents, Joseph Luckey and Esther Tucker, came from North Carolina, but there is no existing record of their marriage; it’s believed they lived in Tennessee before moving to Missouri around 1829. The family was listed as living in St. Charles County in the 1830 census, and Samuel was born there on January 7th of that year. By 1833, the family relocated back across the Mississippi to Greene County, Illinois (which became Jersey County in 1839). Joseph Luckey died in about 1842, and as his oldest son, Samuel likely played a large role in managing the family farm.

On April 7, 1853, Samuel set off on his own as he married Mary Jane Davis, a young woman whose parents were also from North Carolina. The Luckey and Davis families appeared to be closely related and may have migrated to Illinois together. Samuel acquired a farm in Jersey County, and he fathered a family of ten children, born between 1854 and 1874.

The 1870 census gives us a glimpse of Samuel’s farm. Of his 60 acres, 40 were cleared of trees. That year he harvested 300 bushels of winter wheat, 100 bushels of corn, and 150 bushels of oats, slightly above average from the farms around him. He owned five dairy cows along with two other heads of cattle, and also kept three horses, nine sheep and 40 swine. Samuel paid out $100 in wages to those who worked for him. The total value of his farm was $1,500, and he had $75 worth of farm equipment.

1872 plat map showing Samuel's Jersey County farm.

In 1879, Samuel decided he wanted to move to one of the western states, to newly cultivated territory. He bought a farm in Labette County, Kansas, and the entire family moved there, including a married daughter with her family. Unfortunately, his health began to fail. On the 1880 census, Samuel was listed as suffering from ague, a lung disease common on prairie farms. He died four years later on March 8, 1884. Mary Jane survived him by over 43 years, passing away in 1927.

Children:
1. Mary Edith Luckey — B. 18 Jun 1854, Jersey County, Illinois; D. 18 Jan 1899, Labette County, Kansas; M. (1) James Ross (1852-1884), 24 Jul 1872, Jersey County, Illinois; (2) Albert Leonartz (1849-?), 8 Aug 1887, Labette County, Kansas

2. Caroline Elizabeth Luckey — B. 29 Nov 1855, Jersey County, Illinois; D. 2 Aug 1887, Labette County, Kansas

3. Eliza Ann Luckey — B. 1858, Jersey County, Illinois; D. 24 May 1862, Jersey County, Illinois

4. Eleanora Luckey — B. 6 Aug 1859, Jersey County, Illinois; D. Jan 1865, Jersey County, Illinois

5. Laura Jane Luckey — B. 2 Apr 1861, Jersey County, Illinois; D. 18 Apr 1954, McMinnville, Oregon; M. John Walter Brown (1852-1919), 23 Oct 1879, Jersey County, Illinois

6. Joseph M. Luckey — B. 23 Feb 1863, Jersey County, Illinois; D. 4 Feb 1941, Parsons, Kansas; M. Rachel Matilda Minder (1864-1953), 2 May 1884, Osage, Kansas

7. Rosa Bell Luckey — B. 30 Sep 1866, Jersey County, Illinois; D. 31 May 1941, Los Angeles, California; M. George Willis Reed (1867-1944), 2 Jan 1889, Parsons, Kansas

8. Margaret Louisa Luckey — B. 24 Dec 1868, Jersey County, Illinois; D. 22 Feb 1952, Parsons, Kansas; M. Alexander Taylor (1857-1940), 25 Dec 1888, Parsons, Kansas

9. John F. Luckey — B. 16 Apr 1870, Jersey County, Illinois; D. 8 Mar 1884, Labette County, Kansas

10. William Anderson Luckey — B. 8 May 1874, Jersey County, Illinois; D. 7 Dec 1935, Sedalia, Missouri; M. Ella Lucinda Mashburn (1880-1959), 23 Dec 1896, Parsons, Kansas

Sources:
Handwritten records of Pefley Cemetery, Parsons, Kansas
1830, 1850, 1860, 1870 and 1880 U.S. Censuses, Missouri, Illinois and Kansas
Marriage record of Samuel Luckey and Mary Jane Davis, 7 Apr 1853, Jerseyville, Illinois
Family Bible of Mary E. Leonartz
Marriage certificate of James Ross and Mary E. Luckey, 23 Jul 1872, Jerseyville, Illinois
Records of Pefley Cemetery, Parsons, Kansas
Tombstone inscriptions of Keller Cemetery, Jersey County, Illinois
Jersey County, Illinois marriage index
Atlas Map of Jersey County, Illinois, 1872
Death record of John Walter Brown, 29 Mar 1919, Greene County, Illinois
Obituary of Rachel Luckey, Parsons Daily Sun, 1953, Parsons, Kansas
Kansas marriages, 1840-1935
California death records, 1940-1997

Two Brothers in 17th Century Java — Catharina Margetts

B. before 4 Feb 1625 in Amsterdam, Netherlands
M. 7 Mar 1649 in Amsterdam, Netherlands
Husband: Adrian Hegeman
D. before 16 Apr 1690 in Flatbush, New York

Catharina Margetts came from a family whose members weren't afraid to move to far flung places. Catharina was baptized in the New Church in Amsterdam on February 4, 1625. Her parents were Joseph Margetts, an Englishman, and Anna van Weedenburch, a Dutch woman, and she had six sisters and two brothers. As the daughter of a merchant-class man, Catharina received some education, at least enough to be able to sign her name.

Catharina's signature in 1649.

When Catharina was 10-years-old, her mother died, and she was listed with her seven siblings on a document dated May 2, 1635. This was the official business of the Orphan’s Chamber in Amsterdam, which came into play when a parent of minor children died, separating their inheritance in case the surviving parent remarried. The court ordered that the 8 children were to share 500 guilders between them, a significant amount of money, and it would be administered by their uncle. Catharina’s father did remarry that year, giving her two half-sisters.

On March 7, 1649, Catharina married Adrian Hegeman, a silk weaver. At the time of her marriage, she was living in Oudesyts Achterburgwal, which was a neighborhood in the east section of Amsterdam. They had two or three children born in Amsterdam, then in about 1652, the family boarded a ship to the Dutch colony in America. Adrian purchased a large tract of land in Flatbush, and they settled there. Catharina gave birth to the rest of her children on their farm, making for a total of eight, and the youngest was born in about 1665.

While Catharina settled in North America, her two brothers traveled to other parts of the globe. The older of the two, Joris, went to the Dutch colony at Recife, Brazil as a young man. By October 1648, he had ventured on to the East Indies where his name appeared on a petition in the outpost of Bativia (modern-day Jakarta) on the island of Java, but nothing more is known of him. Younger brother Joseph was known to have also spent time in Batavia, and another island, Timor, working for the Dutch East India Company. After he died in 1662, a portion of his estate was left to Catharina, which was noted in a record at New Netherland:

"To-day, the 28th of February 1664, appeared before me, Walewyn van der Veen, Notary Public …, the Worshipful Adriaen Heegeman, Schout of the Villages of Amesfort [Flatlands], Breukelen, Midewout [Flatbush] and Uytrecht on Long Island in this Province, who declared that as husband and guardian of Catharina Margits he constitutes and empowers … as his attorney the worthy Sieur Joseph Margits, his father-in-law, living at Amsterdam, Holland, to demand and receive … from the Lords Directors of the Honble East India Company, Department of Amsterdam, such moneys, as are due to his said wife from the estate of her deceased brother Joseph Margits, who died in East India, according to his testament and other vouchers…"

Batavia in the Dutch East Indies during the 17th century.

Catharina's husband Adrian passed away in 1672. In April 1688, Catharina moved from Flatbush to Manhattan, and joined the Reformed Dutch church there. She died in 1690 and was buried in the Flatbush Reformed Dutch Church cemetery on April 16th.

Children:
1. Hendricus Hegeman – B. about 1649, Amsterdam, Netherlands; D. about 1710; M. Ariaentje Bloodgood, 26 Apr 1685, Flatlands, New York

2. Joseph Hegeman – B. about 1651, Amsterdam, Netherlands; D. about 1725; Femmetje Van der Beeck (1657-?), 21 Oct 1677

3. Jacobus Hegeman – B. about 1652; D. about 1741; M. Jannetje Ariens, 14 Oct 1683

4. Isaac Hegeman – B. about 1656, New Netherland; M. Marytje Roelofse Schenck, 15 Feb 1687

5. Denys Hegeman – B. about 1658, Flatbush, New Netherland; D. about 1702, New York; M. Grace Dollen (1659-1732), about 1680, Maine

6. Benjamin Hegeman – B. about 1660, Flatbush, New Netherland

7. Abraham Hegeman – B. about 1662, Flatbush, New Netherland

8. Elizabeth Hegeman – B. about 1665, Flatbush, New York; M. Tobias Ten Eyck, 12 Apr 1684

Sources:
"The Amsterdam Years of Joseph Margetts, Father-in-law of Adriaen Hegeman of New Netherland," John Blythe Dobson, New York genealogical and biographical record, Vol. 131, 2000
Genealogy website of John Blythe Dobson, which cites many other sources
Batavia, Dutch East Indies (Wikipedia article)

Legendary Teacher and Headmaster — Ezekiel Cheever

B. 25 Jan 1614 in London, England
M. (1) before 1639 in (probably) New Haven, Connecticut
Wife: Mary (last name unknown)
M. (2) 18 Nov 1652 in Ipswich, Massachusetts
Wife: Ellen Lathrop
D. 21 Aug 1708 in Boston, Massachusetts

It has been said about Ezekiel Cheever that he was "perhaps the first true teacher in America." Whether or not this is an exaggeration, he did stand out among his contemporaries by the quality of his instruction, and his longevity at one of New England's earliest schools. 

Ezekiel was born in London on January 25, 1614, the son of a skinner named William Cheever and his wife Margaret Newman; he had two younger sisters. Ezekiel was educated at Christ's Hospital where he was admitted on April 23, 1626, and he later studied classics at the University of Cambridge. At some point, he became a follower of Puritanism, and like many, he left England for America. Ezekiel arrived in Boston in 1637, and soon after, he migrated to New Haven, Connecticut. There he married a woman named Mary and between 1639 and 1648, they had six children. Mary died in 1649.

Ezekiel began his long teaching career when he started a school in his New Haven home in 1639. He received £20 a year for his services, a decent salary for the time. One of his students was Michael Wigglesworth, who went on to become a noted poet. The fact that Ezekiel had a higher education in England likely led to his career choice — relatively few Connecticut settlers had that in their background. He specialized in Latin, and sometime before 1650, he wrote what is thought to be the first school book in America, Latin Accidence; A Short Introduction to the Latin Tongue. This text book was used for over a hundred years, and it was reprinted as late as 1838. 

Title page of Ezekiel's Latin text book still in use in 1838.

Ezekiel served as a representative to the General Court, but got into some trouble in 1649 for being too outspoken about church decisions, and was censured for it. In an attempt to defend himself, he said to the court, "I had rather suffer anything from men, than make a shipwreck of a good conscience, or go against my present light though erroneous, when it is not discovered." It is said that Ezekiel also occasionally preached. He wrote a book called Scripture Prophecies Explained, which contained three essays on his beliefs about resurrection and related topics.

In 1650, Ezekiel moved to Ipswich, Massachusetts to become the headmaster of their grammar school. There he married his second wife, Ellen Lathrop, on November 18, 1652. They would have six children born between 1653 and 1664; one son, Ezekiel, would become a prominent figure in the Salem witch trials. Ezekiel Sr. continued at Ipswich until 1661, when he moved to Charlestown to head their school.

On December 29, 1670, Boston Latin School made an offer to Ezekiel for him to become their headmaster. The salary was £60 a year and he accepted; he would continue there for the next 37 years. Ezekiel was probably chosen for this position based on his authorship of the Latin grammar textbook. In Massachusetts, larger towns and cities were required to offer schooling in Latin and Greek, and it's easy to imagine there were very few men qualified to teach it. 

The Boston Latin School is where Ezekiel's reputation as a teacher became almost legendary. One of his pupils later recalled, "Once in making a piece of Latin, my Master found fault with the syntax of one word which was not so used by me heedlessly, but designedly, and therefore I told him there was a plain grammar rule for it. He angrily replied there was no such rule. I took the grammar and showed the rule to him. Then he smiling said, 'Thou are a brave boy. I had forgot it.' And no wonder, for he was above eighty years old."

Boston Latin School during the time Ezekiel was headmaster.

There are no drawings or paintings of Ezekiel, but a description of his physical appearance survives from an acquaintance, Samuel Maxwell: "He wore a long white beard terminating in a point, that when he stroked his beard to the point, it was a sign for the boys to stand clear."

It seems as if Ezekiel lived on the grounds of Boston Latin School, but in 1702, orders were given to build him a house of his own. Ezekiel's second wife Ellen passed away in Boston on September 10, 1706, and Ezekiel died on August 21, 1708 at the age of 94. 

Ezekiel's teaching career spanned 70 years and it is said that wherever he taught, a large percentage of his students went on to Harvard. His most noted pupil was Cotton Mather, who eulogized Ezekiel at his funeral. “We generally concur in acknowledging that New England has never known a better teacher.” Boston Latin School is still operating today, the oldest school in America. There was also a school in New Haven named in Ezekiel's honor during the early 20th century.

Ezekiel was so reknown in the annals of New England, that he was immortalized by Nathaniel Hawthorne in his 1840 book, Grandfather's Chair. In the book, Hawthorne imagines a man telling his grandson of a single chair that was passed around to important figures in colonial history. An entire chapter was devoted to an imagined scene of Headmaster Cheever's classroom during his final years at Boston Latin School:

"Do you see the venerable schoolmaster, severe in aspect, with a black skullcap on his head, like an ancient Puritan, and the snow of his white beard drifting down to his very girdle? What boy would dare to play; or whisper, or even glance aside from his book while Master Cheever is on the lookout behind his spectacles? For such offenders, if any such there be, a rod of birch is hanging over the fireplace, and a heavy ferule lies on the master's desk."

Beginning of the chapter in Hawthorne's book written about Ezekiel.

Descendants of Ezekiel include Franklin D. Roosevelt, J.P. Morgan, and author Louis Auchincloss.

Children by Mary:
1. Samuel Cheever — B. 22 Sep 1639, New Haven, Connecticut; D. 29 May 1724, Marblehead, Massachusetts; M. Ruth Angier (1647-1742), 28 Jun 1671, Salem, Massachusetts

2. Mary Cheever — B. about 1640, New Haven, Connecticut; D. 10 Jan 1728, Farmington, Connecticut; M. (1) William Lewis (~1620-1690), 22 Nov 1671, Boston, Massachusetts; (2) Thomas Bull (1646-1708), 13 Jan 1692, Farmington, Connecticut

3. Ezekiel Cheever — B. before 12 Jun 1642, New Haven, Connecticut; D. 1 Jul 1655, New Haven, Connecticut

4. Elizabeth Cheever — B. before 6 Apr 1645, New Haven, Connecticut; M. Samuel Goldthwaite (1637-1718), 6 Sep 1666, Charlestown, Massachusetts

5. Sarah Cheever — B. before 21 Sep 1646, New Haven, Connecticut; D. (probably) young

6. Hannah Cheever — B. before 25 Jun 1648, New Haven, Connecticut; D. 1649

Children by Ellen Lathrop:
1. Abigail Cheever — B. 20 Oct 1653, Charlestown, Massachusetts; D. 24 Jan 1705, Boston, Massachusetts

2. Ezekiel Cheever — B. 1 Jul 1655, Ipswich, Massachusetts; D. 30 Oct 1731, Salem, Massachusetts; M. Abigail Leffingwell (1655-?), 17 Jun 1680, Salem, Massachusetts

3. Nathaniel Cheever — B. 23 Jun 1657, Ipswich, Massachusetts; D. 12 Jul 1657, Ipswich, Massachusetts

4. Thomas Cheever — B. 23 Aug 1658, Ipswich, Massachusetts; D. 27 Dec 1749, Chelsea, Massachusetts; M. (1) Sarah Bill (~1658-1705), Malden, Massachusetts; (2) Elizabeth Warren (?-1727), 30 Jul 1707, Boston, Massachusetts; (3) Abigail Jarvis (?-1753), 31 Aug 1727, Boston Massachusetts

5. Susanna Cheever — B. 10 Feb 1660, Ipswich, Massachusetts; D. 10 Nov 1744, Andover, Massachusetts; M. Joseph Russell

6. William Cheever — B. 23 Jan 1664, Charlestown, Massachusetts; D. 5 Feb 1664, Charlestown, Massachusetts

Resources:
Ezekiel Cheever (Wikipedia article)
Ezekiel Cheever Schoolmaster, Elizabeth Porter Gould, 1904
"Trial of Ezekiel Cheever Before New Haven Church, 1649," Collections of the Connecticut Historical Society, Vol. 1, 1860

Albion's Seed: Four British Folkways in America, David Hackett Fischer, 1989 

Grandfather's Chair: True Stories From New England History and Biography, Nathaniel Hawthorne, 1841
GeneaStar: Famous Family Tree and Genealogy (website)
Ezekiel Cheever and some of his descendants, John Tyler Hasam, Boston, Massachusetts, 1879
WikiTree

90 Years in Massachusetts Colony — Joshua Boynton

B. 10 Mar 1646 in Rowley, Massachusetts
M. (1) 9 Apr 1678 in Newbury, Massachusetts
Wife: Hannah Burnap
M. (2) 29 Nov 1725 in Rowley, Massachusetts
Wife: Mary Syles
M. (3) 30 Oct 1728 in Haverhill, Massachusetts
Wife: Mary Williams
D. 12 Nov 1736 in Haverhill, Massachusetts

Joshua Boynton had a life that spanned from early colonial times to almost the middle of the 18th century. He was born in Rowley, Massachusetts on March 10, 1646 to William Boynton and Elizabeth Jackson, the middle child of seven. Rowley was still in its earliest years, and Joshua's father served as one of the town's first teachers; it's likely that Joshua attended his school.

When Joshua was in his early 20s, he was a witness to an attack on the wife of one of his friends. The incident happened on May 21, 1669. Joshua and two brothers named Nathaniel and Jonathan Gage were in the upstairs of Jonathan's house when they heard a man named James Murfee harass, then attack Jonathan's wife Hester downstairs. Joshua testified to this in court, and Murfee was sentenced to be "severely whipped" as well as pay Jonathan £5.

During the 1670s, war broke out between the New England settlers and the local indigenous people, a conflict known as King Philip's War. Joshua served under Major Appleton, participating in action at Quaboag, Springfield, Narrangansett and Marlboro. He was present at the battle where Captain Brocklebank was "slain by the Indians in April 1676." Joshua filed a petition after the war to be paid for his service, also mentioning that he "lost a coat" while he was a soldier.

Joshua served as a soldier at the Great Swamp Fight of King Philip's War.

On April 9, 1678, Joshua married a young woman named Hannah Burnap in the town of Newbury. Between 1679 and about 1696, Joshua and Hannah had five children. His father had given him a 100-acre farm in Newbury a few years before he got married, and it was said that he maintained this land for 50 years. Along with farming, Joshua was also said to make a living as a carpenter.

Joshua's wife Hannah died on January 12, 1722, and he remarried to a widow named Mary Syles on November 29, 1725. She passed away on July 28, 1728, and Joshua took a third wife, Mary Boynton (whose maiden name was Williams), the widow of his cousin. Their wedding was on October 30, 1728 in Haverhill, Massachusetts, where he seems to have spent his final years.

Joshua died in Haverhill on November 12, 1736, having reached the age of 90. Not long after his death, land in the township of Narrangansett was awarded for those who had served in King Philip's War, and Joshua's lot went to his son William.

Children by Hannah Barnet (or Burnet or Burnap):
1. Joshua Boynton — B. 4 May 1679, Newbury, Massachusetts; D. 29 Oct 1770, Newbury, Massachusetts; M. Mary Dole (1681-1777), 20 Apr 1708, Newbury, Massachusetts

2. John Boynton — B. 15 Jul 1682, Newbury, Massachusetts; M. Jemima Worchester, Nov 1717

3. Zachariah Boynton — B. before 1690, Newbury, Massachusetts; D. 30 Dec 1750, Coventry, Connecticut; M. Sarah Wicom (1688-?), 15 Nov 1715, Newbury, Massachusetts

4. William Boynton — B. 26 May 1690, Newbury, Massachusetts; D. about 1 Jun 1771, East Kingston, New Hampshire; M. Joanna Stephens (1692-1765), 24 Aug 1713, Salisbury, Massachusetts

5. Hannah Boynton — B. about 1696; D. 28 Nov 1774, Rowley, Massachusetts; M. John Dresser (1696-1782), 2 Apr 1724, Newbury, Massachusetts

Sources:
The Boynton Family: a genealogy of the descendants of William and John Boynton, John Farnham Boynton and Caroline Harriman Boynton, 1897
"The Burnap-Burnett Genealogy," Henry Wyckoff Belknap, Essex Institute Historical Collections, Vol. 57, 1921
Records of the Quarterly Courts of Essex County, Massachusetts: 1667-1671, 1914
WikiTree

Letters to the Old Country — Jan Simonsz Van Arsdalen

B. 1676 in Flatlands, New York
M. 1695 in New Lots, New York
Wife: Lammertje Probasco
D. 1756 in Jamaica, New York

When 17th century people moved from Europe to America, most never made contact with the family they left behind, but that wasn’t the case for Jan Simonsz Van Arsdalen. Jan was a second generation colonist, born in 1676 in Flatlands, New York. His parents were Simon Jansen Van Arsdalen and Pieterje Claese Van Schouw, who both were from the Netherlands. Jan had four sisters, and an older brother named Cornelis.

In 1695, Jan married Lammertje Probasco, the daughter of a man who had been born in the Dutch colony in Brazil. Between 1696 and 1720, they had 11 children. On May 7, 1700, Jan bought a farm from his brother Cornelis in Gravesend (now part of Brooklyn), and he became a respected member of the community. He was named as an elder of the Gravesend Dutch Reformed church in 1714, and the following year, he was listed as a soldier in the militia. Sometime after this, Jan moved to Jamaica, in what is now Queens, New York, and he and his wife appeared on many church records there.

Dutch Reformed Church in Jamaica, Queens, built in 1716.

Although Jan spent his entire life in America, the family still had ties to relatives in the Netherlands. On September 22, 1731, Jan and his brother Cornelis wrote to a cousin in Gouda; the reason for their letter involved the will of another cousin who had left some money to their late father. Apparently, the news that Simon Van Arsdalen had died over 20 years earlier hadn’t reached across the Atlantic, so the matter had to be straightened out. Jan and Cornelis reported to their cousin that they and two of their sisters still survived, so each would be entitled to a share of the bequest.

A second letter was sent to the Netherlands two years later in 1733, after one of Jan’s sisters suffered a stroke and died. Along with that news, the brothers also told their cousin how large the American branch of the family had become:

“You were writing you were interested in knowing to what number our family-tree has expanded. We are over two hundred now. Cornelis Simonsz Van Arsdalen has got eleven children, eight of whom are married and has over forty descendants. Jan Simonsz Van Arsdalen has got eleven children, and Geertje, Jannetje and Jetje have got many children and grandchildren. You will understand it is just impossible to enumerate them. However, [we] can inform you they are all living on plantations of their own, breeding cattle and growing corn, maize, etc. We thank our Lord for leading our father to this country.”

Jan wrote his will in 1736 and named all of his children in it. He left instructions that if his estate was sold, sons Jurian and Nicholas would receive £150 each, son Simon would get £10, and the other money would be divided equally among the remaining children. Jan passed away at about 80-years-old in 1756; it isn’t known when his wife Lammertje died.

Children:
1. Christoffel Van Arsdalen — B. about 1696, Flatlands, New York; D. before 2 Nov 1772, (probably) Hillsborough, New Jersey; M. Magdalena Van Henglen (~1698-?), about 1717, (probably) New Brunswick, New Jersey

2. Simon Jans Van Arsdalen — B. about 1697, Flatbush, New York; D. 1770, Bucks County, Pennsylvania; M. Jannetje Romeyn, 30 Oct 1716

3. Cornelius Van Arsdalen — B. about 1698, (probably) Gravesend, New York; M. Tryntje ______

4. Ida Van Arsdalen — B. about 1700, (probably) Gravesend, New York

5. Peternella Van Arsdalen — B. before 1710, (probably) Gravesend, New York D. about 1737, (probably) Somerset County, New Jersey; M. (probably) Volkert Sebring

6. Jan Van Arsdalen — B. about 1705, (probably) Gravesend, New York; M. Magdelena Dorland (~1714-?)

7. Maria Van Arsdalen — B. about 1710, (probably) Gravesend, New York; M. Garret Snedeker (1708-?)

8. Heletje Van Arsdalen — B. about 1712, (probably) Gravesend, New York; D. about 1774, Skillman, New Jersey; M. Garret Dorland (~1707-1774), 13 Mar 1731

9. Nicholas Van Arsdalen — B. about 1716, Jamaica, New York; D. 1784, Jamaica, New York; M. (1) Geertje Lott (1720-?), about 1740; (2) Jane Brinkerhoff, 26 Nov 1761

10. Jurian Van Arsdalen — B. about 1720, (probably) Jamaica, New York; M. Altie

11. Sarah Van Arsdalen — B. about 1722, (probably) Jamaica, New York; D. about Feb 1788, Jamaica, New York; M. Isaac Ammerman (1709-1788)

Sources:
WikiTree
The Vanguard: The Newsletter of the Van Aersdalen Family Association, Vol. 1, No. 2, December 1998, and Vol. 3, No. 2, December 2000
Letter from Cornelis Simonsen van Aersdal, Jan Sijmonsen van Aersdalen and Mettie Sijmonsen van Aersdalen to Harmanus van Homberg of Gouda, Netherlands, 22 Mar 1733

A House to Help Protect His Town — Thomas Patten

B. October 1636 in Cambridge, Massachusetts
M. (1) 1 Apr 1662 in Dedham, Massachusetts
Wife: Rebecca Paine
M. (2) 20 May 1686 in Billerica, Massachusetts
Wife: Sarah Kendall
D. 14 Jan 1690 in Billerica, Massachusetts

When violence threatened his colonial community, Thomas Patten's house was designated as a safe place where people could gather. He was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts in October 1636 to William and Mary Patten, the third of their six children, and the first to be born in America. Thomas’ family seemed to have humble roots in England, and his father wasn’t among Cambridge’s prominent men.

In 1652, Thomas’ father acquired 80 acres in a new settlement called Shawshin, and he gave the land over to Thomas after he came of age two years later. Shawshin was soon renamed Billerica and laid out as a New England town. Thomas built his house on Long Street, described as being south of the common near the house of Francis Richardson. Over the years, he came to own considerable land in Billerica, and an interest in a sawmill in the nearby community of Pattenville.

Thomas got married on April 1, 1662 to Rebecca Paine, with the wedding taking place in her hometown of Dedham, Massachusetts. Between 1664 and 1680, they had seven children, but Rebecca passed away 11 days after giving birth to their youngest child. On May 20, 1686, Thomas took a second wife, Sarah Dunton, a widow from Reading whose maiden name was Kendall. They had two children, including a son named Kendall, a tribute to Sarah’s father who had no sons to pass along his name.

Thomas does not seem to have taken an active part in the public affairs of Billerica, with his name only appearing in records regarding military duty. In 1664, he was fined thirteen shillings for not showing up to do required militia drills. But during King Philip’s War in 1675, when Billerica was under the threat of attack, Thomas did comply with an order to make his home into a “garrison house.”

What did this mean exactly? In early colonial New England, towns that were on the frontier were vulnerable to raids by warring tribes. If a town hadn’t built a stockade to protect it, they were forced to assign certain houses as places for people to gather in case of attack. Thomas’ home was selected either because of its location or design (a more solid house was preferred as a garrison). The order named five militia men who were assigned to his house, and Thomas was made "overseer,” meaning that it was his duty to "regulate the work of the garrison and determine what should be done for fortifying it.” Luckily, the plan was never used because Billerica was spared from attack.

A typical garrison house in 1675 Massachusetts.

Not long after his youngest son was born, Thomas died in Billerica on January 14, 1690. He left a will written just hours before he died, and the inventory of his property showed a value of £308. It’s interesting that he mentioned that his wife Sarah had loaned him £3 when she married him, and he made sure to pay her back in the will. Sarah lived for many years as a widow, and passed away in 1734.

Children by Rebecca Paine:
1. Mary Patten – B. 21 Aug 1664, Billerica, Massachusetts; M. Benjamin Cromwell, 5 Mar 1703

2. Thomas Patten – B. 22 Mar 1666, Billerica, Massachusetts; D. 14 Sep 1752, Billerica, Massachusetts; M. Hannah Foster (1669-1742), 21 Dec 1699, Billerica, Massachusetts

3. Nathaniel Patten – B. 14 Sep 1668, Billerica, Massachusetts; D. 2 Apr 1718, Billerica, Massachusetts; M. Hannah Ross (1679-1756), 6 Dec 1695, Billerica, Massachusetts

4. William Patten – B. 12 May 1671, Billerica, Massachusetts; D. 5 Oct 1730, Cambridge, Massachusetts; M. (1) Mary _______ (~1668-1716); (2) Elizabeth ______, 1717, Billerica, Massachusetts 

5. Rebecca Patten – B. 29 Jan 1675, Billerica, Massachusetts; D. 13 Feb 1750, Cambridge, Massachusetts; M. Joseph Davis (1669-1747), 18 Jun 1691, Billerica, Massachusetts

6. Sarah Patten – B. 18 Jun 1677, Billerica, Massachusetts

7. Elizabeth Patten – B. 8 May 1680, Billerica, Massachusetts; M. James Wright (1677-1735), 7 May 1701, Cambridge, Massachusetts

Children by Sarah Kendall:
1. Mehitable Patten – B. 28 Feb 1687, Billerica, Massachusetts; D. 13 Jan 1743, Billerica, Massachusetts; M. William French (1687-1746), about 1712

2. Kendall Patten – B. 20 Apr 1689, Billerica, Massachusetts; D. 14 Dec 1770, Tewksbury, Massachusetts; M. (1) Abigail ______ (?-1718); (2) Abigail Kittredge (1700-?)

Sources:
Genealogical and personal memoirs relating to the families of the state of Massachusetts, Vol. 1, William Richard Cutter and William Frederick Adams, 1910
The history of Peter Parker and Sarah Ruggles of Roxbury, Massachusetts and their ancestors and descendants, John William Linzee, 1918
Patten Genealogy, Thomas Baldwin, 1908
WikiTree
King Philip’s War (Wikipedia article)