M. before 21 Dec 1687 in (probably) Massachusetts2
Wife: Sarah _______
D. 19 Mar 1693 in Haverhill, Massachusetts3
Many settlers in colonial America were victims of Indian raids — the random killing of civilians by indigenous warriors. Very often this happened in frontier settlements. Such was the case for Jonathan Franklin, who lived too near the edge of his colony, and too near territory that was under dispute with the French.
About Jonathan’s origins, nothing is known. Since there seems to be no record of his parentage in New England, it’s assumed he was born somewhere in England. Based on the age of his oldest known child, his birth year was before about 1666. There was also a record in Charlestown dated 1677 naming a man who was a glove maker,1 a profession that appears on a later document tied to Jonathan.4 If that was him, then the assumption is that he was at least age 20, and this pushes his birth year back before 1657.1
Jonathan married a woman named Sarah,1 and they had three sons born between 1687 and 1692. Jonathan moved to the town of Haverhill by June 15, 1689, as a deed shows he was living there.4 He bought 11 acres of land where he was residing from a Boston widow for £14. The deed also mentioned that he worked as a “skinner and glover,” occupations that involved making leather from animal skins.
Haverhill was on the northern border of Massachusetts, and was surrounded by raw wilderness. Jonathan’s home may have been close to the town’s boundaries and not within any sort of stockade. In Haverhill, it was said that “the Indians for some time past had been hovering over the town in such a manner as kept the inhabitants in continual alarm. Small parties were almost daily seen traversing the adjacent woods and slyly approaching the farm houses in search of plunder.”5
A family being watched. (AI-generated image)
The Indian raid that took Jonathan’s life happened on March 19, 1693,3 but the town records didn’t make note of any of the details. Typically in such an attack, a small group of warriors would choose a time when a man was unready to defend himself, like breaking into a house before daybreak. Another way they would strike at settlers was to find someone alone outside their house. It was said that Jonathan’s death was the only aggression that year at Haverhill, so it was an isolated incident.
A year later, Jonathan’s widow Sarah remarried,6 and she moved down to the Boston area with her new husband and sons. Sarah passed away in about 1708.7
Children:
1. John Franklin — B. 21 Dec 1687, Boston, Massachusetts;8 D. before 1729;9 M. Lydia Tower (1687-), 15 Mar 1712, Hingham, Massachusetts10
2. Jonathan Franklin — B. about 1690, (possibly) Hingham, Massachusetts;11 M. Esther Parmalee (~1698-1788), 3 Dec 1718, Killingsworth, Connecticut12
3. David Franklin — B. 4 May 1692, Haverhill, Massachusetts;13 D. before 11 Sep 1739, (probably) Massachusetts;14 M. Elizabeth Ayers (~1691-1752), 18 Jun 1713, Boston, Massachusetts15
Sources:
1 Notes and queries column about the Franklin family, Boston Evening Transcript, 1905
2 Marriage year based on birth date of his oldest son
3 Vital Records of Haverhill, Massachusetts, to the end of the year 1849, V. 2, p. 402
4 Deed of Sarah Leverett to Jonathan Franklin, 15 Jun 1689, Essex Deeds 1701-1705, FamilySearch.org
5 History of Haverhill, Massachusetts, George Wingate Chase, 1861
6 Marriage record of John Field and Sarah Franklin, Massachusetts, Town Clerk, Vital and town Records, 1626-2001, FamilySearch.org
7 Guardianship record of David Franklin, 8 Jun 1708
8 Birth record of John Franklin, M., T. C., V. & T. R.
9 Probate file of John Smith of Roxbury, Massachusetts, Suffolk County, Probate and Family Court Records, FamilySearch.org
10 Marriage record of John Franklin and Lydia Tower, Massachusetts, U.S., Town and Vital Records, 1620-1988, Ancestry.com
11 Estimated birth of Jonathan is based on it being a date between the recorded births of John and David.
12 Marriage record of Jonathan Franklin and Esther Parmalee, Connecticut, Vital Records Prior to 1850, FamilySearch.org
13 Birth record of David Franklin, Massachusetts, Births and Christenings, 1639-1915, FamilySearch.org
14 Sep 11, 1739, Suffolk County MA, letters of administration of the estate of David Francklyn to Elizabeth Francklyn, unindexed probate files of Massachusetts, FamilySearch.org
15 Marriage record of David Franklin and Elizabeth Ayers, M., T. C., V. & T. R.
