B. 1638 in Salem, Massachusetts
M. (1) 15 Dec 1658 in Salem, Massachusetts
Wife: Elizabeth Dixey
M. (2) about 1692 in Salem, Massachusetts
Wife: Mary Phippen
D. Dec 1698 in Beverly, Massachusetts
Samuel Morgan led an active life in 17th century New England. He was born at Salem in 1638 to Robert Morgan and Margaret Norman, the oldest of their eight children; it was a house full of brothers with only one sister among them. The family lived in the eastern part of town in an area called the Bass River side, or the Cape Ann side.
At age 20, Samuel married Elizabeth Dixey on December 15, 1658 at Salem; it’s believed that they had ten children between 1663 and 1685, at least two of whom died young. In 1659, Samuel joined the men of his community to sign a petition forming a new church. Ten years later the town would be incorporated as Beverly, but by that time, Samuel seemed to have relocated to Marblehead. On December 2, 1664, he was on a committee to investigate the death of an Indian who was found lying in the road on the outskirts of Marblehead; the men decided that the man had gotten drunk, then froze to death. Samuel served as a selectmen in Marblehead in 1667 and 1668, and he was made constable in 1672, a position that had him doing such things as serving court summons.
By 1670, Samuel owned a large lot in Marblehead that was located on the harbor side of town. In addition, his father left him 12 acres of land when he died in 1672 located in Manchester-by-the-Sea and another 8 acres at a place called “long hill.” Later, Samuel acquired a one-eighth ownership of a windmill in Marblehead; unfortunately the man who constructed the mill did a poor job, and the mechanism never worked properly.
Fishing was a prominent part of life in Marblehead, and there was suggestion in records that Samuel was involved in that business. In June 1679 he was taken to court over non-payment to his cousin John Norman for helping build a boat. This included 4 days of labor plus materials such as planks, nails and rosin.
Samuel was also in the military, probably in a militia. At Salem court in June 1678, he was identified as being a sergeant who testified with four other town officials against some men who had refused to participate in required military duty. When Samuel and the others went to the men’s homes to collect fines, they refused that, too, and hurled insults at the officers. This happened not long after King Philip’s War, a conflict that took the lives of two of Samuel’s brothers, and he probably didn’t have much sympathy for such behavior. (Some sources say Samuel was wounded in the leg in the 1690 Quebec invasion, but this was likely his son by the same name.)
In 1682, Samuel sold his Marblehead property for £60, and the following year was serving as a selectman in Beverly. His wife passed away in 1689, and about three years later, he remarried to a widow, Mary Wallis. He lived in Beverly for the rest of his life and died in December of 1698. Samuel was an ancestor of First Lady Grace Coolidge.
Children:
1. Aaron Morgan — B. 24 Jun 1663, Beverly, Massachusetts; D. young
2. Samuel Morgan — B. 26 Sep 1666, Beverly, Massachusetts; D. 1770, Massachusetts; M. Sarah Herrick (1662-?), 22 Dec 1692, Beverly, Massachusetts
3. Joseph Morgan — B. 26 Sep 1666, Beverly, Massachusetts; D. young
4. Luke Morgan — B. 23 Jun 1671, (probably) Marblehead, Massachusetts; D. 17 Feb 1714, Beverly, Massachusetts; M. Susanna Pitts (1673-1772)
5. Robert Morgan — B. Jan 1670, (probably) Marblehead, Massachusetts; D. 16 Jul 1762, Beverly, Massachusetts; M. Anna Ober (1675-1702), 4 Jul 1692
6. John Morgan — B. 1673, (probably) Marblehead, Massachusetts
7. William Morgan — B. (probably) Marblehead, Massachusetts
8. Joseph Morgan — B. 2 Oct 1681, (probably) Marblehead, Massachusetts
9. Elizabeth Morgan — B. (probably) Marblehead, Massachusetts; M. William Wallis
10. Anna Morgan — B. Aug 1685, Beverly, Massachusetts; D. Mar 1774, Beverly, Massachusetts; M. Hezekiah Ober (1681-1739), 5 Nov 1705, Beverly, Massachusetts
Sources:
Massachusetts Town Clerk, Vital and Town Records, 1626-2001, FamilySearch.org
Records and Files of the Quarterly Courts of Essex County, Volumes I - IX, edited by George Francis Drew, 1912-1921, 1975
Marblehead in the Year 1700, Sidney Perley
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