M. 9 May 1647 in Dorchester, Massachusetts
Husband: John Minot
D. 25 Jan 1667 in Dorchester, Massachusetts
There wouldn’t be much of a story to tell of Lydia Butler, except for a piece of paper that has survived for centuries. It was a tribute printed by her loved ones after her death, and gives a little glimpse into the world where she lived.
Lydia was born on February 23, 1629 in Ashford, England, a village in Kent, to Nicholas Butler and Joyce Baker. She was only 8-years-old when her family migrated to the Massachusetts colony seeking a new life where they were free to practice their religion. The ship that brought them was the Hercules and sailed in June of 1637; on board were Lydia, her parents, three siblings, and five family servants.
The Butlers settled in Dorchester, where on May 19, 1647, Lydia married John Minot. The couple had five healthy children born between 1648 and 1665. Then with her sixth pregnancy, something went wrong, and on January 24, 1667, the baby died at birth. Lydia never recovered and she died the following day.
During the second half of the 17th century, Puritans began printing tributes to the deceased on sheets of paper called broadsides. This was a way to honor the dead and offer a lasting remembrance to mourners. Usually they were created for important men, but sometimes for beloved women, like Lydia. They became almost an art form, with poems written especially for the person who died, and wood-cut illustrations to decorate the page.
Source: Massachusetts Historical Society
Lydia’s elegy broadside was one of the finest examples from that time. The page had a bold headline, “Upon the DEATH of the Virtuous and Religious Mrs. Lydia Minot,” with an epitaph and three poems about her, each with a title that was an anagram of her name. The third poem also had the letters of her name beginning each line of the poem. Across the top was an illustration with various symbols of death: hourglass with wings, skull and crossbones, and pick and shovel. There was even a crudely drawn funeral procession. The illustration was a boilerplate image, not unique to Lydia’s elegy.
After Lydia’s death, her husband John remarried, but he died in August of 1669. In John’s will, their only daughter, Martha, was bequeathed Lydia’s clothes as a remembrance of her mother.
Children:
1. John Minot — B. 22 Jan 1648; D. 26 Jan 1690, Dorchester, Massachusetts; M. Elizabeth Breck (?-1691), 11 Mar 1670
2. James Minot — B. 14 Sep 1653, Dorchester, Massachusetts; D. 20 Sep 1735, Concord, Massachusetts; M. Rebecca Wheeler (~1666-1734), about 1684, Concord, Massachusetts
3. Martha Minot — B. 22 Sep 1657, Dorchester, Massachusetts; D. 23 Nov 1678
4. Stephen Minot — B. 10 Aug 1662, Dorchester, Massachusetts; D. Nov 1732, Boston, Massachusetts; M. Mercy Clark, 1 Dec 1686
5. Samuel Minot — B. 3 Jul 1665, Dorchester, Massachusetts; D. about 1707, Concord, Massachusetts; M. Hannah Jones
6. Baby Minot — B. 24 Jan 1667, Dorchester, Massachusetts; D. 24 Jan 1667, Dorchester, Massachusetts
Sources:
Genealogical and family history of the state of New Hampshire, Vol. 2, Lewis Publishing Company, 1908
Colonial Families of the United States of America, Nelson Osgood Roades, 1917
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