B. before 9 Nov 1605 near Mildenhall, Wiltshire, England
M. 1 May 1629, Southwark, England
Husband: Thomas Millet
D. 5 Jun 1682 in Gloucester, Massachusetts
The life of Mary Greenway typifies many of the women who found themselves part of the Great Migration to New England of the 1630s. She settled first with her husband and children in a town close to Boston, then moved to a community which was further away, all the while participating in various aspects of Puritan society. And near the end of her life, she experienced the dangers of living a remote settlement.
Mary was born in about 1605 near Mildenhall, Wiltshire, where she was baptized on November 9th. Her parents were John and Mary Greenway (also spelled Greenaway), and she was the third of six known children, all girls. (Because there is a gap in the ages of the sisters, it’s believed that John may have had two different wives named Mary, but this is uncertain.)
When Mary was in her early 20s, she moved to an area of London called Southwark, and this is where she married her husband Thomas Millet on May 1, 1629. Everyone in Mary’s life seemed to be Puritan followers, and in 1630, her parents and younger sisters migrated to the Massachusetts colony in America. This was the beginning of the Great Migration to New England, and after having two sons born in Southwark, Mary and Thomas moved as well. One of her boys had died, but she was pregnant with a third son on the trip, and he was born after they got settled in Dorchester, where Mary’s parents already lived.
Dorchester became Mary’s home for the next 20 years. She and Thomas were admitted as members of Dorchester’s Second Church on August 23, 1636; Mary’s parents were also admitted around the same time. Five more children were born in Dorchester, with the youngest in 1647. Mary’s husband took an active role in the church as an unordained preacher; he also served as the town clerk, and it was said that a fire at their house destroyed Dorchester’s some earliest records.
Mary was among 21 women who signed a remarkable petition in Dorchester in 1649. It was to support a midwife named Alice Tilly, who was accused of causing the deaths of several women and children in her care. Over 200 women signed six petitions in the Boston area. What makes this significant is that it’s the earliest example in America of women organizing around a cause without the involvement of any men; this is because issues of childbearing were strictly a female domain.
In 1655, Mary, Thomas and the children moved to Gloucester, which was in an area north of Boston. It’s likely that they were solicited because of John’s service as a preacher. During their time in Gloucester, Mary was known to have testified in court twice. The first time was in 1657 when she was witness to a conversation between two men that was pertinent to a dispute they had with each other. The other case happened in January 1668 involving a man accused of moving a boundary marker on Mary’s son’s property. She and John said in court that although they had no proof he did this, they were “vehemently suspicious” that the man did this.
During the 1670s, Mary and Thomas made one last move, this time to the remote village of Brookfield. By this time they were in their late 60s, but Thomas was still in demand as a preacher. It turned out to be a fateful decision because Brookfield was attacked during King Philip’s War, and much of the town was destroyed. Soon after the violence, Thomas died, perhaps of injuries received in the raid. Mary returned to Gloucester where her husband’s estate was settled on September 26, 1675. She lived out her final years in Gloucester, and passed away on June 5, 1682.
Children:
1. John Millett — B. before 6 May 1630, Southwark, England; D. before 13 Apr 1635, (probably) Southwark, England
2. Thomas Millett — B. before 16 Aug 1632, Southwark, England; M. (1) Mary Eveleth (~1633-1687), 21 May 1655, Gloucester, Massachusetts; (2) Abigail Colt (1657-1726), 20 Dec 1689, Gloucester, Massachusetts
3. John Millett — B. 8 Jul 1635, Dorchester, Massachusetts; D. 3 Nov 1678, Gloucester, Massachusetts; M. Sarah Leach (~1635-1725), 3 Jul 1663, Gloucester, Massachusetts
4. Jonathan Millett — B. 27 Jul 1638, Dorchester, Massachusetts; D. 15 Aug 1638, Dorchester, Massachusetts
5. Mary Millett — B. 26 Aug 1639, Dorchester, Massachusetts; D. 23 Jan 1695, Gloucester, Massachusetts; M. Thomas Riggs (1633-1722), 7 Jun 1658, Gloucester, Massachusetts
6. Mehitable Millett — B. 14 Mar 1642, Dorchester, Massachusetts; D. 28 Sep 1699, Gloucester, Massachusetts; M. Isaac Elwell (1643-1715), before 1666
7. Bethiah Millett — B. about 1646, (probably) Dorchester, Massachusetts; D. 15 Apr 1669, Dorchester, Massachusetts; M. Moses Ayers, before 10 Sep 1667, (probably) Dorchester, Massachusetts
8. Nathaniel Millett — B. 1 Dec 1647, Dorchester, Massachusetts; D. 9 Nov 1719, Kettle Cove, Massachusetts; M. Ann Lester (1650-1718), 3 May 1670, Gloucester, Massachusetts
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