M. about 1624 in Amwell, Hertfordshire, England1
Wife: Anne Miller
D. 27 Sep 1689 in Reading, Massachusetts2
Robert Burnap came from an unknown English family to start fresh in Puritan Massachusetts, and became the patriarch of a large American family.
While we don’t know much about Robert’s origins, he was likely born in about 1595 in Hertfordshire because he later married and raised his family there.1 His wife was Anne Miller, and they were wed in about 1624 in the town of Amwell.1 While living in Hertfordshire, they had seven healthy children and another who may have been stillborn; most of the children were baptized at Hoddesdon. One record identified Robert’s profession as a chandler (candlemaker).3
A candlemaker. (AI-generated image)
The town of Hoddesdon is located on the eastern border of Hertfordshire, in close proximity with East Anglia and its population of religious dissenters. Robert became one of them, and in about 1638, he migrated to New England with his family.1 He settled in Roxbury, Massachusetts, before moving to the new town of Reading as one of its earliest settlers. Robert and Anne may have had more children there, but documentation is sketchy on this.
Robert served for many years as a Reading selectman, an indicator that he had a strong sense of civic duty. During the years 1654 to 1671, there were only two years (1657 and 1661) where he wasn’t one of the town’s selectmen.1 In May 1678, we find his signature on a petition to the General Court in Boston concerning Reading’s militia.4
There is a court case record from 1653 with the testimony of Robert (a bit hard to read): “saith the outside of the dry cask… goods came in, was chalky and one of the panes on it was broken and a hole into it about a foot long. On one side of the cask was rotten [clear] through, as if [chalk?] or some other thing like [chalk?] had gotten into it, which might very well be, for the cask was very bad. Further this deponent saith that he did help unpack all the goods.”5 It would seem that Robert had received delivery of something, perhaps from England, that arrived in poor condition.
In May 1684, Robert was involved in a land dispute along with son Thomas.4 In the ruling it was ordered that 121 acres be divided into three lots, with one part going to the people who sued him (William and Hannah Hawkins). By now, Robert was in his late 80s, and he passed away on September 27, 1689.2 Wife Ann preceded him in death in 1681.6 Robert and Ann were the ancestors of the first governor of Minnesota, Henry Hastings Sibley, Governor Endicott Peabody of Massachusetts, Kyra Sedgwick, Alan Shepard, and Michael Strahan.7
Children:
1. Thomas Burnap — B. about 1625, (probably) Hoddesdon, Hertfordshire, England;8 D. 10 Feb 1691, (probably) Reading, Massachusetts;8 M. Mary Pearson, 3 Dec 1663, Reading, Massachusetts8
2. Anne Burnap — B. before 30 Apr 1626, Hoddesdon, Hertfordshire, England;3 D. 20 Mar 1630, Hoddesdon, Hertfordshire, England3
3. Robert Burnap — B. before 28 Nov 1627, Hoddesdon, Hertfordshire, England;3 D. 18 Oct 1695, Reading, Massachusetts;3 M. (1) Ann _______ (~1631-~1661);9 (2) Sarah Brown (1650-1713), 28 May 1662, Reading, Massachusetts10
4. Isaac Burnap — B. before 20 Mar 1630, Hoddesdon, Hertfordshire, England;3 D. 18 Sep 1667, Reading, Massachusetts;3 M. Hannah Antrim (1638-?), 8 Sep 1658, Massachusetts11
5. Anne Burnap — B. before 15 Apr 1632, Great Amwell, Hertfordshire, England;3 D. 16 Mar 1692, Dorchester, Massachusetts;3 M. (1) John Wight (1633-1653), about 1652, (probably) Massachusetts;12 (2) Isaac Bullard (~1630-1676), 11 Apr 1655, Dedham, Massachusetts;13 (3) David Jones (~1628-1694), 18 Mar 1685, Dorchester, Massachusetts14
6. Baby Burnap — B. before 18 Oct 1634, Hoddesdon, Hertfordshire, England; D. before 18 Oct 1634, Hoddesdon, Hertfordshire, England
7. Edward Burnap — B. before 12 Feb 1636, Hoddesdon, Hertfordshire, England15
8. Sarah Burnap — B. before 12 Feb 1636, Hoddesdon, Hertfordshire, England;16 D. after 15 Nov 1688, (probably) Massachusetts;17 M. (1) John Southwick (1624-1672), 3 Feb 1669, Salem, Massachusetts;18 (2) Thomas Cooper (~1654-1712), 12 Jun 1674, Salem, Massachusetts;19 (3) Cornelius Browne (1632-1701), 20 Nov 1684, Salem, Massachusetts20
Sources:
1 The Burnett Genealogy, Edgar Albert Burnett, 1941, pp. 6-7
2 Death record of Robert Burnap, Massachusetts, Town Clerk, Vital and Town Records, 1626-2001, FamilySearch.org
3 The Burnap-Burnett Genealogy, Henry Wyckoff Belknap, 1925, p. 26
4 Our Colonial and Continental Ancestors: The Ancestors of Mr. and Mrs. Louis William Dommerich, Louis Effingham de Forest, 1930, pp. 62-63
5 Testimony of Robert Burnap, 26 Aug 1653, FamilySearch.org
6 Death record of Ann Burnap, M., T. C., V. & T. R.
7 FamousKin.com listing of Robert Burnap
8 WikiTree listing of Thomas Burnap
9 WikiTree listing of Robert Burnap
10 Marriage record of Robert Burnap and Sarah Brown, M., T. C., V. & T. R.
11 Marriage record of Isaac Burnap and Hannah Antrum, M., T. C., V. & T. R.
12 WikiTree listing of Ann (Burnap) Jones
13 Marriage record of Isaac Bullard and Ann Wight, M., T. C., V. & T. R.
14 Marriage record of David Jones and Ann Bullard, M., T. C., V. & T. R.
15 Christening record of Edward Burnap, England, Births and Christenings, 1538-1975, FamilySearch.org
16 Christening record of Sarah Burnap, E., B. & C.
17 WikiTree listing of Sarah (Burnap) Brown
18 Marriage record of John Southwick and Sarah Burnap, M., T. C., V. & T. R.
19 Marriage record of Thomas Cooper and Sarah Southwick, M., T. C., V. & T. R.
20 Marriage record of Cornelius Brown and Sarah Cooper, M., T. C., V. & T. R.