Friday, December 29, 2017

Wheel Maker in Early Massachusetts — Richard Kimball

B. 1595 in Rattlesden, England
M. (1) about 1613 in England
Wife: Ursula Scott
M. (2) 23 Oct 1661
Wife: Margaret Cole
D. 22 Jun 1675 in Ipswich, Massachusetts


When Richard Kimball arrived in the Massachusetts colony, he brought a large family and a valuable skill: the ability to construct wooden wheels for carts. This would be needed by many of his fellow settlers as they built communities out of raw wilderness.

Richard was born in Rattlesden, England in 1595. It’s likely that his parents were Richard and Elizabeth Kimball, but there is also speculation that they were Henry Kimball and Joann Eisely. Whoever his parents were, many in the Kimball Family around Rattlesden were craftsmen such as wheelwrights, and this is the trade that Richard chose to follow.

Richard married Ursula Scott in about 1613, probably in Rattlesden. Between 1615 and 1639, they had at least eleven children; some sources say there were two additional children who died young (Alexander, born in 1614, and Ursula, born in 1619). All but the youngest three children were born in England.

Rattlesden was located in Suffolk, England. This was a region known as East Anglia, which supplied many Puritans to Massachusetts. In April 1634, Richard and his family joined the migration by boarding the ship Elizabeth, which arrived in Boston a couple of months later. Also aboard the ship were his brother Henry Kimball, his brother-in-law, Thomas Scott and his mother-in-law, Martha Scott.

Richard and his family settled in Watertown, Massachusetts. His reputation as someone who knew how to make wheels must have spread to other towns, because a couple of years later, the leaders of Ipswich asked him to settle there. They needed a wheelwright, and they offered him a town lot with a house, plus 40 acres of land for a farm, so Richard moved his family to Ipswich and set up his shop. In order to have the materials to work with, the town gave him permission to cut down 20 white oak trees for that purpose. One of Richard’s sons, John, also became a wheelwright.

How wooden wheels for carts were made.

Richard’s name appeared in many town records in Ipswich, some involving disputes with his neighbors. It was also noted that in 1647, he was paid £2 for killing some foxes; New England towns often rewarded men for shooting animals who were predators on the community.

Sometime between 1655 and 1661, Richard’s wife Ursula died. On October 23, 1661, he took a second wife, Margaret Cole, who was the widow of a man named Henry Dow. Richard passed away on June 22, 1675 in Ipswich. He left a detailed will mentioning his living children, some of his grandchildren, and his second wife’s three living children. Margaret died on March 11th of the following year.

As a 17th century immigrant to America, Richard had many noteworthy descendants, including women’s right advocate Lucretia Mott, first lady Edith RooseveltRowland H. Macy (founder of Macy’s), and actors John Lithgow, Elisabeth Shue and Amy Poehler.  

Children (all by Ursula Scott):
1. (possibly) Alexander Kimball — B. Feb 1614, Hitcham, England; D. young

2. Henry Kimball — B. about Aug 1615, Rattlesden, England; D. 3 May 1676, Wenham, Massachusetts; M. (1) Mary Riddlesdale (1622-1672), 1640, Wenham, Massachusetts; (2) Elizabeth Black

3. Abigail Kimball — B. Nov 1617, Rattlesden, England; D. 17 Jun 1658, Salisbury, Massachusetts; M. John Severance (1615-1682), England

4. Elizabeth Kimball — B. about 1619, Rattlesden, England; D. after 5 Mar 1675

5. (possibly) Ursula Kimball – B. about 1621, Rattlesden, England; D. young

6. Richard Kimball — B. 1623, Rattlesden, England; D. 26 May 1676, Wenham, England; M. (1) Mary Cooley (?-1672); (2) Mary Gott, about 1673

7. Mary Kimball — B. 1625, Rattlesden, England; D. 12 Jul 1686, Ipswich, Massachusetts; M. Robert Dutch

8. Martha Kimball — B. Aug 1629, Rattlesden, England; D. 16 May 1677, Ipswich, Massachusetts; M. Joseph Fowler (1622-1676)

9. John Kimball — B. 1631, Rattlesden, England; D. 6 May 1698, Ipswich, Massachusetts; M. Mary Bradstreet (1633-1690)

10. Thomas Kimball — B. 1633, Rattlesden, England; D. 2 May 1676, Bradford, Massachusetts; M. Mary Smith (~1635-1688)

11. Sarah Kimball — B. 1635, Watertown, Massachusetts; D. 12 Jun 1690, Suffield, Connecticut; M. Edward Allen, 24 Nov 1658, Ipswich, Massachusetts

12. Benjamin Kimball — B. 1637, Massachusetts; D. 11 Jun 1696; M. Mercy Hazeltine (?-1707), 16 Apr 1661, Salisbury, Massachusetts

13. Caleb Kimball — B. 1639, Massachusetts; D. 23 Sep 1682; M. Anna Hazeltine (1640-1688), 7 Nov 1660, Ipswich, Massachusetts

Sources:
History of the Kimball Family in America From 1634 to 1897, Leonard Allison Morrison and Stephen Paschall Sharples, 1897
Genealogical and Family History of the State of New Hampshire, Volume 1, Ezra S. Stearns, William Frederick Whitcher and Edward Everrett Parker, 1908
Historic Homes and Places and Genealogical and Personal Memoirs Relating to the Families of Middlesex County, Massachusetts, Volume 4, William Richard Cutter, 1908
Mobility and Migration: East Anglian Founders of New England, 1629-1640, Roger Thompson, 1994
Find A Grave.com
WikiTree
Rattlesden (Wikipedia article)