M. (1) 4 May 1691 in Northampton, Massachusetts
Wife: Hannah Strong
M. (2) 26 Dec 1692 in Northampton, Massachusetts
Wife: Sarah King
D. 27 Jan 1754 in Northampton, Massachusetts
Ebenezer Pomeroy was called “a man of energy and ability” and this was reflected in the many roles he had during his life. He was born on May 30, 1669 in Northampton, Massachusetts to Medad Pomeroy and Experience Woodward, the fourth of their eleven children. The Pomeroys were one of the founding families of Northampton and Ebenezer’s father was one of the town leaders. Medad Pomeroy was a gunsmith, and Ebenezer no doubt learned this skill from him.
Ebenezer's birth record.
On May 4, 1691, Ebenezer married Hannah Strong, who sadly died before the year was out. Then on December 26, 1692, he wed Sarah King. They had a large family of nine children with the youngest born in 1711; only their first child died young.
By 1704, Ebenezer was involved in civic matters in Northampton. That year, he was appointed attorney in a dispute between Northampton and neighboring Hatfield over the location of their border. In colonial times, the title “attorney” was applied to men considered educated enough to make legal decisions for the community. There’s nothing to suggest Ebenezer had any formal training to serve as an attorney; he must have impressed others that he had the ability to prepare and present a legal argument, and was therefore chosen to represent the town.
Ebenezer was later involved in a case about rerouting the river to prevent flooding of some land. In 1710, he served on a committee to organize the project, but when the work was done in 1724, some land owners had benefited much more than others. A petition suggested that having everyone pay the same tax to fund the project was unfair, so Ebenezer presented the legal argument that men who profited from the project should pay more than those who didn’t.
Other positions Ebenezer held included high sheriff and church deacon. He was part of a committee to build a town jail in 1706, a structure that remained in use for almost 70 years. Also he was part of a three-man committee appointed in 1721 to administer loans, and he was appointed justice of the peace in 1735 and in 1743.
Ebenezer became one of the biggest landowners in Northampton. He acquired 9 acres in 1709 when his aging father deeded him some land. He later added to it, and his property became known as the “Pomeroy Homestead.” After 1706, he used his home as one of the town taverns when he was approved for a license to sell “strong drink." The house he built and lived in passed to descendants; it was known as “Old Red Tavern” and stood until 1827.
Along with everything else he did, Ebenezer was an officer in the militia, and he served in King William’s War and Queen Anne’s War. One action he took part in was an invasion of New France in 1711. The English sent a total of 5,000 men on 15 ships plus 40 other boats. Most of them were British Regulars, but the mission also included 900 colonial militia men. Ebenezer was said to have been captain of one of 18 companies from Massachusetts. The fleet left Boston on July 30th, and because they didn’t have expert pilots, it ended up being a disaster. When the ships entered the St. Lawrence River, bad storms drove many onshore, wrecking them. About 850 soldiers drowned, and the survivors had to retreat back to Nova Scotia.
The 1711 Quebec Expedition disaster.
Three of Ebenezer’s also sons served in the military, and they each died because of it. His son Simeon drowned in the Connecticut River while returning from a 1725 expedition against Indians, and his son Daniel was killed in a battle of the French and Indian War at Lake George in 1755.
Ebenezer's son Seth led part of a 1745 expedition to capture Fort Louisbourg in New France, and Ebenezer wrote him a letter just before the battle:
“…in this town the parents and some other relatives of those gone in the expedition, have constantly set apart some time every week to pray to God for success in this grand affair, and we have good reason to believe that it hath not been in vain, for God hath in a remarkable manner smiled upon the fleet and army.”
Seth survived that war, but at the outset of the American Revolution, he was appointed Brigadier General, and he was considered to be America’s first general of that rank. He tried to turn the post down because of his age, but was drafted into accepting it. Seth was right about being too old, because on a march to help Washington in New York, he collapsed and died.
Ebenezer’s second wife Sarah died in 1747, and on January 27, 1754, Ebenezer passed away at the age of 84.
Children (all by Sarah King):
1. Sarah Pomeroy — B. 22 Nov 1693; D. young
2. John Pomeroy — B. 1 Apr 1696, Northampton, Massachusetts; D. 4 Jun 1736, Northampton, Massachusetts; M. Rachel Sheldon, 19 May 1718, Northampton, Massachusetts
3. Ebenezer Pomeroy — B. 18 Sep 1697, Northampton, Massachusetts; D. 22 Apr 1774; M. Elizabeth Hunt (1701-1782)
4. Sarah Pomeroy — B. 5 Feb 1700, Northampton, Massachusetts; D. 3 Apr 1777, Northampton, Massachusetts; M. Noah Wright (1699-1775), 12 Dec 1721, Northampton, Massachusetts
5. Simeon Pomeroy — B. 21 Feb 1702; D. 24 Apr 1725, Connecticut River
6. Josiah Pomeroy — B. 29 Dec 1703, Northampton, Massachusetts; D. about 1790; M. Lydia Ashley (1710-1772), 9 Nov 1731, Northampton, Massachusetts
7. Seth Pomeroy — B. 20 May 1706, Northampton, Massachusetts; D. 19 Feb 1777, Peekskill, New York; M. Mary Hunt (1705-1777), 14 Dec 1732
8. Daniel Pomeroy — B. 27 Mar 1709, Northampton, Massachusetts; D. 8 Sep 1755, Lake George, New York; M. (1) Mary Clapp (1713-1734), 25 May 1733, Northampton, Massachusetts; (2) Rachel Moseley (1715-1797), 4 Nov 1636, Northampton, Massachusetts
9. Thankful Pomeroy — B. 12 Jul 1711, Northampton, Massachusetts; D. 12 Aug 1790, Goshen, Massachusetts; M. Gad Lyman (1713-1791), 22 Jun 1738, Northampton, Massachusetts
Sources:
History of Northampton, Massachusetts, From Its Settlement in 1654, Volume 1, James Russell Trumbull, Seth Pomeroy, 1898
Early Northampton, Massachusetts D.A.R., 1914
History and Genealogy of the Pomeroy Family, Albert Alonzo Pomeroy, 1912
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