1304. Documentation for Peter Folger (Between 1617 - 1618 to About 1690) father of Eleazer Folger (1648 to 19 December 1716)

Peter Folger was born 1618 in Norwich, Norfolk, .(1) He died in 1690 in , .(2) Peter Folger was the son of John Folger and Meribah Gibbs.(3) He married Mary Morril in 1644 at Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts.(4) Mary Morril was born about 1620 in Norwich, Norfolk County, England.(5) She died in 1704 in Nantucket, Massachusetts.(6) Peter Folger and Mary Morril were the maternal grandparents of .(7) On a map in the collection of the Nantucket Historical Association, Peter Folger lived just west of William Worth.(8) Their land was separated by Crooked Land. West Chester St. bordered the north side of William Worth’s land and ran west through the land of Peter Folger. Mary Morril is mentioned in Moby Dick, by Herman Melville. “True enough, but then whalemen themselves are poor devils; they have no good blood in their veins. No go blood in their veins? They have something better than royal blood there. The grandmother of Benjamin Franklin was Mary Morrel; afterwards, by marriage, Mary Folger, one of the old settlers of Nantucket, and the ancestress to a long line of Folgers and harpooners—all kith and kin to noble Benjamin—this day darting the barbed iron from one side of the world to the other.”(9)

Children of Peter Folger and Mary Morril:

i. Bethia Folger probably was born about 1644 in Martha's Vineyard, Dukes, Massachusetts.(10) She died 06 June 1669 in a boating accident with her husband and brother Eleazer Folger.(11) She married John Barnard 26 February 1666/67 in Nantucket.(12) He was born 02 January 1641/42 in Salisbury, Massachusetts.(13)

ii. Dorcas Folger probably was born about 1645.(14) She died in ????.(15) She married Joseph Pratt in 1675.(16) He was born about 1645.(17) Joseph Pratt died 24 December 1712 in Charleston, Massachusetts.(18)

iii. Joanna Folger was born in 1645 in Martha's Vineyard, Dukes, Massachusetts.(19) She died 18 July 1719 in Nantucket, Massachusetts.(20) She married John Coleman about 1666.(21) He was born about 1644.(22) He died 07 December 1715.(23)

iv. Eleazer Folger was born in 1648 in Edgartown, Dukes, Massachusetts.(24) He died 19 December 1716 in Nantucket, Massachusetts.(25) married Sarah Gardner about 1671 in Nantucket, Massachusetts.(26)

v. Bethsheba Folger was born in 1650 at Martha's Vineyard, Dukes, Massachusetts.(27) She died in 1726.(28) She married John or Joseph Pope 1676 in Salem Village, Essex, Massachusetts.(29)

vi. Patience Folger was born in 1652 in Martha's Vineyard, Dukes, Massachusetts.(30) She died in January 1716/17 in Nantucket, Massachusetts.(31) She married first Hephzibah Harker.(32) She married second Jas Gardner.(33)

vii. John Folger was born in 1659 in Nantucket, Massachusetts.(34) He died 23 August 1732 in Nantucket.(35) He married Mary Barnard 1688 in Nantucket.(36) She was born 24 February 1666/67 in Nantucket.(37) She died 06 October 1737.(38)

viii. was born 15 August 1667 in Nantucket, Massachusetts.(39) She died 18 May 1752 in , Massachusetts.(40) She married Josiah E. Franklin 25 November 1689 in Old South Church, Boston, Massachusetts.(41) He was born 23 December 1657 in Ecton, Northamptonshire, England.(42) He died about 1744 in Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts.(43) Josiah and Abiah (Folger) Franklin were the parents of Benjamin Franklin.(44)

ix. Experience Folger was born in 1668 in Martha's Vineyard, Dukes, Massachusetts.(45) She died 04 June 1739.(46) She married John Swain about 1687.(47) He was born 01 September 1664 in Nantucket, Massachusetts.(48) He died before 02 March 1738/39.(49)

Quoted from William Coleman Folger, The Folger Family, Historic Genealogical Society, NEHGS Register 1862, page 269: John Folger and his son Peter (the name was then frequently written Foulger), are said to have crossed the Atlantic in the same ship with Hugh Peters, in the year 1635. They came from Norwich, in the county of Norfolk, England. Peter was then about 18 years of age. At what time they settled at Watertown, Mass., is not known, but in 1642 John Folger was possessed of a homestead in that town, and owned six acres of land. It is probable that John and Peter Folger accompanied Thomas Mayhew, Jr., to Martha’s Vineyard in 1641 or 1642. John Owned a house, upland, commonage and meadow land at the Vineyard, as appears by the Vineyard records. John Folger died about 1660. Meribell Folger his widow, was living in 1664. Her surname is said to have been Gibbs. According to tradition, John was a widower when he came over; if this be correct, he must have married her after his arrival in America. Peter Folger, son of John, born in England, accompanied his father to America in 1635, and probably emigrated with him to the Vineyard in 1642. He married in 1644, Mary Morrill, who had been an inmate in the family of Hugh Peters, and according to tradition a fellow passenger with him from England. Whilst at the Vineyard he taught school and also practiced as a surveyor of land. He also assisted the younger Thomas Mayhew in his work of Christianizing the native Indians. Rev. Experience Mayhew, in a letter to John Gardner, Esq., dated 1694, state that when Thomas Mayhew, Jr., left for England in 1657, he left the care of his church or mission with Peter Folger. Peter became a Baptist in his sentiments, and after his removal to Nantucket is said to have baptized two persons in Waiptequage pond. At a meeting of the proprietors of the island of Nantucket, held in Salisbury in the latter part of 1660 or early part of 1661, five persons were chosen to measure and lay out the land, and in the order it is said, that what shall be done by them, or any three of them, Peter Folger being one, shall be accounted legal and valid. This vote shows the confidence they placed in his judgment and integrity. Whilst a resident at the Vineyard he acquired the Indian language, which was of great service to him in business affairs and in enabling him to communicate religious instruction to the natives. In the summer of 1659, he is said to have accompanied as an interpreter, Tristram Coffin and others who visited the island of Nantucket to view it about the time of the purchase from Mayhew. He was there in 1661 and 1662, surveying, and on the 4th of July, 1663, the proprietors of Nantucket granted him half a share of land on Nantucket, or half as much as one of the twenty purchasers, provided he would come to inhabit with his family on the aforesaid island within one year after the date, and attend the English in the way of an interpreter between the Indians and them upon all necessary occasions. He accepted the grant and moved there with his family within the specified time. On the 21st of July, 1673, he was chosen clerk of the courts, which office he held some years. In his poem-“A Looking Glass for the Times,” published April 23, 1676, he shows himself an advocate for religious liberty, and strongly condemns the persecuting spirit exhibited in New England in his day. Dr. Benjamin Franklin, his grandson, when in England, found no arms for the Folgers at the Herald’s office, and concluded that they were a Flemish family who came over in the time of Queen Elizabeth. There were others of the name in England besides John Folger and son, as in the latter part of last century a young man named Thomas Folger, Jr., son of Thomas and Mary (Rant) Folger of Norfolk, England, came over and married Abigail, dau. Of Daniel Folger, at Easton, N.Y. This Thomas Folger moved to Charlton, Saratoga county, N.Y., where he died May 22, 1838, aged 80 years. Peter Folger 1st, d. in 1690, and Mary his widow survived him, dying in the year 1704. The ch. of Peter and Mary Folger were as follows: (3) Joanna, m. John Coleman, son of Thomas. (4) Bethiah, m. Feb. 26, 1668, John Barnard, son of Robert. They were drowned between Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard, by the upsetting of a boat, June 6, 1669. (5) Dorcas, m. Feb. 12, 1675, Joseph Pratt of Charlestown. (6) Eleazer, b. 1648; m. Sarah Gardner, dau. Of Richard and Sarah. (7) Bathshua, m. Joseph Pope, son of Joseph of Salem. (8) Patience, m. 1st. ____ Harker; m. 2d, James Gardner, son of Richard. (9) John, b. 1659; m. Mary Barnard, dau. Of Nathaniel. (10) Experience, m. John Swain, Jr., son of John. (11) Abiah, b. Aug. 15, 1667; m. probably in 1690, .

Quoted from Edited Appletons Encyclopedia, Copyright © 2001 VirtualologyTM FOLGER, Peter, colonist, born in England in 1617; died in Nantucket, Massachusetts, in 1690. He left Norwich, England, in 1635, with his father, settled in Watertown, Massachusetts, and removed to Martha's Vineyard in 1641, where he taught, surveyed land, and assisted Thomas Mayhew, the missionary, in his labors among the Indians. He afterward became a Baptist minister, and in 1663 he removed to Nantucket, having been offered by the proprietors a half share of land if he would serve there as surveyor and interpreter. He was one of five commissioners to lay out land; it was voted that, "whatever shall be done by them, or any three of them, Peter Folger being one, shall be accounted legal and valid." He was also a clerk of the courts for a time. Cotton Mather, in his "Ecclesiastical History of the Province in New England," refers to Folder as pious and learned. He was familiar with the scriptures, taught them to the youths, and occasionally preached. Among other lesser pieces, he published a poem entitled "A Looking Glass for the Times; or, The Former Spirit of New England revived in this Generation" (1675; 2d ed., 1763). Of it Benjamin Franklin, in his autobiography, says: "The poem, in familiar verse, appeared to be written with a manly freedom and a pleasing simplicity, agreeably to the tastes of the times and the country. The author addresses himself to the governors of the colonies, speaks for liberty of conscience, and in favor of the toleration of sects, among them the Quakers and Anabaptists, who had suffered persecution. "His daughter, Abiah, born in Nantucket, 15 August 1667, married Josiah Franklin, and became the mother of Benjamin Franklin. His great-grandson, Peleg, sailor, born in Nantucket, Massachusetts, 13 October 1733; died there, 26 May 1789. His life was passed on a farm until he was twenty-one years old, when he changed from land to sea, and for several years was engaged in the cod and whale fisheries. He kept a journal of his voyages, which is written in a much more scholarly manner than could be expected from his limited education. Some of the verses that he introduced into his journal were quoted in Macy's "History of Nantucket," and seem to be those of a scholar rather than a sailor. On his retirement from the sea, his counsel was much sought by his neighbors. He was a member of the Society of Friends.

Peter Folger is mentioned in Quaker Nantucket by Robert J. Leach and Peter Gow. In a note at the bottom of page 9, "

Children (Folger): i. Bethia, born 1643 at Martha’s Vineyard, Dukes, Massachusetts ii. Dorcas, born 1645 at Martha’s Vineyard, Dukes, Massachusetts iii. Joanna, born 1645 at Martha’s Vineyard, Dukes, Massachusetts iv. Eleazer, born 1648 at Martha’s Vineyard, Dukes, Massachusetts v. Bethsheba, born 1650 at Martha’s Vineyard, Dukes, Massachusetts vi. Patience, born 1652 at Martha’s Vineyard, Dukes, Massachusetts vii. John, born 1659 at Nantucket, Massachusetts viii. Abiah, born 15 August 1667 at Nantucket, Massachusetts ix. Experience, born 1668 at Nantucket, Massachusetts

ORIGINAL SOURCE MATERIAL to support the RELATIONSHIP between ELEAZER FOLGER and his son PETER FOLGER 2nd 1) Nantucket Vital Records to 1850, Marriages, page 215, Morrell (Morrel, Morrill), Mary and Peter Folger, s. John (“came from the city of Norwich in England in 1638”), ____, 1644, “Came to Nant. In 1663,” Intention not recorded. P.R. 38. 2) NVR to 1850, Births, page 475, Folger, Eleazer, h. Sarah (d. Richard Gardner 1st and Sarah), s. Peter (q.v.) and Mary Morrell, _____, 1648, P.R. 38. 3) Nantucket Vital Records to 1850, Births, page 497, Folger, Peter, “Came to Nant. In 1663,” h. Mary Morrell, s. John “came from the city Norwich in England in 1638,” ______, 1618 [in England], P.R. 38. 4) NVR to 1850, Marriages, page 447, Folger, Eleazer, s. Peter and Mary Morrell, and Sarah Gardner, d. Richard 1st and Sarah (Shattuck), _____, 1671, Intention not recorded. P.R. 38. 5) NVR to 1850, Marriages, page 530, Gardner, Sarah, d. Richard 1st and Sarah (Shattuck), and Eleazer Folger, s. Peter and Mary Morrell, _____, 1671, Intention not recorded, P.R. 38. 6) Folger, William Coleman, The Folger Family, NEHGS Register 1862, page 269- 271. 7) Nantucket, Mass., Vital Records to 1850, 5 vols. Boston, 1925-28, Deaths, page 261, Folger, Eleazer, h. Sarah (d. Richard Gardner 1st and Sarah), s. Peter and Mary Morrell, _____, 1716, P.R. 38, [Eleazer 1st, a. 68 y. 6 m., P.R. 63.]. 8) NVR to 1850, Deaths, Folger, Mary Morrell, w. Peter (s. John of England), _____, 1704, P.R. 38. 9) NVR to 1850, Births, Folger, Abiah, d. Peter, Aug. 15, 1667. [w. Josias Franklin of Boston (“The parents of Dr. Franklin”), d. Peter [q. v.] and Mary Morrell, 5th, 8 mo., P.R. 38.].

REFERENCES

1. Nantucket Vital Records to 1850, Marriages, page 215, Morrell (Morrel, Morrill), Mary and Peter Folger, s. John (“came from the city of Norwich in England in 1638”), ____, 1644, “Came to Nant. In 1663,” Intention not recorded. P.R. 38; also see Folger, Peter under Nantucket Marriages, page 462; Nantucket Vital Records to 1850, Births, page 497, Folger, Peter, “Came to Nant. In 1663,” h. Mary Morrell, s. John “came from the city Norwich in England in 1638,” ______, 1618 [in England], P.R. 38; Folger, William Coleman, The Folger Family, NEHGS Register 1862, page 269.

2. Nantucket Vital Records to 1850, Deaths, page 273, Folger, Peter, “Came to Nant. in 1663,” h. Mary Morrell, s. John (“came from the city Norwich in England in 1638”), ______, 1690, P.R. 38.

3. Folger, William Coleman, The Folger Family, New England Historic Genealogical Society, NEHGS Register 1862, page 269.

4. Ibid.

5. Wikipedia, Morrill, Mary.

6. NVR to 1850, Deaths, Folger, Mary Morrell, w. Peter (s. John of England), _____, 1704, P.R. 38.

7. NVR to 1850, Births, Folger, Abiah, d. Peter, Aug. 15, 1667. [w. Josias Franklin of Boston (“The parents of Dr. Franklin”), d. Peter [q. v.] and Mary Morrell, 5th, 8 mo., P.R. 38.].

8. Nantucket Historical Association, Image Number MS1000-1-1-6, House-Lot Section 1665-1680, Location Approximate. – Scale indeterminable. 1 ms. plat; 24 x 27 cm. – Most likely copied from a book in the registry of deeds. – Copied [18--?]. Plat shows the locations of the early homesteads of Nantucket’s first settlers. Written to CD 473.

9. Melville, Herman, Moby Dick, Chapter 24, “True enough, but then whalemen themselves are poor devils; they have no good blood in their veins. No good blood in their veins? They have something better than royal blood there. The grandmother of Benjamin Franklin was Mary Morrel; afterwards, by marriage, Mary Folger, one of the old settlers of Nantucket, and the ancestress to a long line of Folgers and harpooners— all kith and kin to noble Benjamin—this day darting the barbed iron from one side of the world to the other.”

10. Nantucket Vital Records to 1850, Marriages, page 215, Morrell (Morrel, Morrill), Mary and Peter Folger, s. John (“came from the city of Norwich in England in 1638”), ____, 1644, “Came to Nant. In 1663,” Intention not recorded. P.R. 38; NVR to 1850, Marriages, page 65, Barnard, John and Bethiah Folger, Feb. 26, 1668. Intentions not recorded. [John, s. Robert 1st and Joanna Harvey, and Bethia Folger, d. Peter 1st and Mary Morrell, P.R. 38.].

11. NVR to 1850, Deaths, page 37, Barnard, Bethia, w. John, “drown’d . . . between Nantucket & ye Vineyard,” June 6, 1669. [Bethiah, w. John (s. Robert 1st and Joanna), d. Peter Folger 1st and Mary Morrell, 6th, 6 mo., P.R. 38. Bethiah, 6th, 6 mo., P.R. 63.].

12. NVR to 1850, Marriages, page 65, Barnard, John and Bethia Folger, Feb 26, 1668. Intentions not recorded. [John, s. Robert 1st and Joanna Harvey, and Bethia Folger, d. Peter 1st and Mary Morrell, P.R. 38.].

13. NVR to 1850, Births, Barnard, John, h. Bethia (d. Peter Folger 1st), s. Robert and Joanna Harvey, 2d, 1 mo. 1642, P.R. 38.

14. Folger, Harry P., “Pilgrim Contemporaries, The Nantucket Connection – Peter Folger”, The Mayflower Quarterly, September 2006, page 258.

15. Folger, Harry P., “Pilgrim Contemporaries, The Nantucket Connection – Peter Folger”, The Mayflower Quarterly, September 2006, page 258.

16. NVR to 1850, Marriages, page 446, Folger, Dorcas, d. Peter 1st and Mary, and Joseph Pratt, s. Phineas of Charlestown, _____, 1675. Intentions not recorded. P.R. 38; NVR to 1850, Marriages, page 299, Pratt, Joseph, s. Phineas of Charlestown, and Dorcas Folger, d. Peter 1st and Mary, _____, 1675, Intention not recorded. P.R. 38.

17. Folger, Harry P., “Pilgrim Contemporaries, The Nantucket Connection – Peter Folger”, The Mayflower Quarterly, September 2006, page 258.

18. Folger, Harry P., “Pilgrim Contemporaries, The Nantucket Connection – Peter Folger”, The Mayflower Quarterly, September 2006, page 258.

19. Folger, Harry P., “Pilgrim Contemporaries, The Nantucket Connection – Peter Folger”, The Mayflower Quarterly, September 2006, page 258.

20. NVR to 1850, Deaths, page 206, Coleman, Johanna, 18th, 5 mo. 1719. [Joanna, w. John (s. Thomas 1st), d. Peter Folger and Mary Morrell, P.R. 38. Joanna, P.R. 63.].

21. Folger, Harry P., “Pilgrim Contemporaries, The Nantucket Connection – Peter Folger”, The Mayflower Quarterly, September 2006, page 258.

22. NVR to 1850, Births, page 365, Coleman, John, h. Joanna (d. Peter Folger 1st and Mary), s. Thomas and Susanna (first w.), _____, 4 mo. 1644. P.R. 38.

23. NVR to 1850, Deaths, page 206, Coleman, John, h. Joanna (d. Peter Folger 1st and Mary), s. Thomas and Susanna (first w.), _____, 12 mo. 1715, P.R. 38.

24. NVR to 1850, Births, page 475, Folger, Eleazer, h. Sarah (d. Richard Gardner 1st and Sarah), s. Peter (q.v.) and Mary Morrell, _____, 1648, P.R. 38.

25. The New England Historical and Genealogical Register, 1862, Folger Family, page 271; Nantucket, Mass., Vital Records to 1850, 5 vols. Boston, 1925-28, Births, page 475, (Hereafter Nantucket VR), Folger, Eleazer, h. Sarah (d. Richard Gardner 1st and Sarah), s. Peter [q.v.] and Mary Morrell, _____, 1648, P.R.38.

26. NVR to 1850, Marriages, page 447, Folger, Eleazer, s. Peter and Mary Morrell, and Sarah Gardner, d. Richard 1st and Sarah (Shattuck), _____, 1671, Intention not recorded. P.R. 38; NVR to 1850, Marriages, page 530, Gardner, Sarah, d. Richard 1st and Sarah (Shattuck), and Eleazer Folger, s. Peter and Mary Morrell, _____, 1671, Intention not recorded, P.R. 38.

27. Folger, Harry P., “Pilgrim Contemporaries, The Nantucket Connection – Peter Folger”, The Mayflower Quarterly, September 2006, page 258.

28. Ibid.

29. Ibid.

30. Ibid.

31. Ibid.

32. Ibid.

33. Ibid.

34. NVR to 1850, Births, page 485, Folger, John, h. Mary (Barnard), s. Peter [q.v.] and Mary Morrell, _____, 1659, P.R. 38.

35. NVR to 1850, Deaths, page 266, Folger, John, h. Mary (d. Nathaniel Barnard and Mary), s. Peter and Mary Morrell, 23d, 8 mo. 1732, P.R. 38.

36. NVR to 1850, Births, page 77, Barnard, Mary, d. Nath[anie]ll, Feb. 24, 1667. (w. John Folger (s. Peter [q.v.] and Mary), d. Nathaniel and Mary (Barnard), 24th, 12 mo., P.R. 38.]; Folger, Harry P., “Pilgrim Contemporaries, The Nantucket Connection – Peter Folger”, The Mayflower Quarterly, September 2006, page 258.

37. NVR to 1850, Births, page 77, Barnard, Mary, d. Nath[anie]ll, Feb. 24, 1667. (w. John Folger (s. Peter [q.v.] and Mary), d. Nathaniel and Mary (Barnard), 24th, 12 mo., P.R. 38.].

38. NVR to 1850, Deaths, Folger, Mary, w. John (s. Peter and Mary), d. Nathaniel Barnard and Mary (Barnard), _____, 1736 [dup. _____, 8 mo. 1737], P.R. 38. [wid., _____, 8 mo. 1737, P.R. 63.].

39. NVR to 1850, Births, Folger, Abiah, d. Peter, Aug. 15, 1667. [w. Josias Franklin of Boston (“The parents of Dr. Franklin”), d. Peter [q.v.] and Mary Morrell, 5th, 8 mo., P.R. 38.].

40. Ibid; NVR to 1850, Marriages, page 439, Folger, Abiah, (second w.), d. Peter and Mary, and Josias Franklin of Boston, _____, 1690 [sic], Intention not recorded. P.R. 38.

41. NVR to 1850, Marriages, page 481, Franklin, Josias of Boston and Abiah Folger (second w.), d. Peter and Mary, _____, 1690 [sic], Intention not recorded. P.R. 38.

42. Wikipedia, Franklin, Josiah.

43. Ibid.

44. NVR to 1850, Births, Folger, Abiah, d. Peter, Aug. 15, 1667. [w. Josias Franklin of Boston (“The parents of Dr. Franklin”), d. Peter [q.v.] and Mary Morrell, 5th, 8 mo., P.R. 38.]; Franklin, Benjamin, Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin, Chapter One, “My mother, the second wife, was Abiah Folger, daughter of Peter Folger, one of the first settlers of New England, of whom honorable mention is made by Cotton Mather in his church history of that country, entitled Magnalia Christi Americana, as ‘a godly, learned Englishman,’ if I remember the words rightly. I have heard that he wrote sundry small occasional pieces, but only one of them was printed, which I saw now many years since. It was written in 1675, in the home-spun verse of that time and people, and addressed to those then concerned in the government there. It was in favor of liberty of conscience, and in behalf of the Baptists, Quakers, and other sectaries that had been under persecution, ascribing the Indian wars, and other distresses that had befallen the country, to that persecution, as so many judgments of God to punish so heinous an offense, and exhorting a repeal of those uncharitable laws. The whole appeared to me as written with a good deal of decent plainness and manly freedom. The six concluding lines I remember, though I have forgotten the two first of the stanza; but the purport of them was, that his censures proceeded from good-will, and, therefore, he would be known to be the author. “Because to be a libeler (says he) I hate it with my heart; From Sherburne town, where now I dwell My name I do put here; Without offense your real friend, It is Peter Folgier.”

45. Folger, Harry P., “Pilgrim Contemporaries, The Nantucket Connection – Peter Folger”, The Mayflower Quarterly, September 2006, page 258.

46. NVR to 1850, Deaths, page 564, Swain, Experience, w. John Jr. (s. John and Mary), d. Peter Folger and Mary Morrell, 23d, 8 mo. [dup. 4th, 6 mo.], 1739, P.R. 38. [4th, 6 mo., P.R. 63.].

47. Folger, Harry P., “Pilgrim Contemporaries, The Nantucket Connection – Peter Folger”, The Mayflower Quarterly, September 2006, page 258.

48. NVR to 1850, Births, page 548, Swain, John (Swaine), s. John, Sept. 1, 1664. (Swain Jr., “the 1st white male child born at Nant.,” h. Experience (d. Peter Folger and Mary), s. John and Mary (Wyer), 1st, 9 mo., P.R. 38.].

49. NVR to 1850, Deaths, page 568, Swain, John Jr., h. Experience (d. Peter Folger and Mary), s. John and Mary (Wyer), 29th, 11 mo. 1738, P.R. 38. [John 2d, a. 73, P.R. 63.].

HistoricNantucketSpringFinal:Layout 1 3/27/09 11:26 AM Page 10

Nantucket Real Estate: 1659 A Semiseptcentennial [350th] Edition

BY MARK AVERY

As the bow of their heavily laden boat hauled up named Daggett, who agreed to guide them across the treach- on the beach at Madaket, an overwhelming sense of relief erous shoals. Finally,they headed east to Nantucket Island, ar- must have embraced the travel-weary landing party.Safe de- riving sometime around the end of October. liverance from the sea and the comfort of arrival in a home Standing on Nantucket after that ordeal, the travelers port are universally understood sensations, and were no must have taken pause, to survey the mostly barren, mildly doubt experienced at this journey’send, but here in this dis- rolling landscape just beyond the curved ribbon of white tant haven, “home” was yet to be secured. sand beach. The crossing, according to tradition, was not entirely calm, The view was not much different from what we see today which, owing to the lateness of the fall season, seems plausi- in the area now known asWarren’sLanding—a few clusters of ble. (The journey and arrival were romanticized in John diminutive trees scattered about to the north; a large wet Greenleaf Whittier’s poem The Exiles.) Their vessel was most meadow just to the south; to the east, endless hummocks likely an open, utilitarian type of craft called a shallop. About covered in golden grasses and green underbrush. A necklace twenty to thirty feet in length, shallow-draft, and having of dark-blue ponds, running north to south, occupied many both a sail and oars, it was common transport in coastal of the low points in the undulating terrain. For their intended New England throughout the seventeenth and eighteenth purposes, Macy and Starbuck must have hoped this distant centuries. The shallop was designed primarily for use in pro- land would be perfect. They had come to settle, to build a tected inlets, bays, and rivers, not the famously rough At- new community, to farm, raise livestock, to fish, and make an lantic waters beyond. entirely new life for themselves and their families, a scene re- Stepping gratefully onto Nantucket sand that day,now 350 peated countless times throughout the seventeenth century years ago, were Thomas Macy (51 years of age); his wife Sarah all along the coasts of New England. As in most instances, the (47); their five children (ages 4 through 13); Thomas’spartner location chosen for this new settlement was not entirely un- in this endeavor, Edward Starbuck (55); Isaac Coleman (aged occupied, and when they arrived, Nantucket was already 12); and by some accounts, James Coffin (18), the son of Tris- peopled by more than a thousand native inhabitants. tram Coffin, as well. The voyage began at Salisbury on the Indeed, the English settlers and their families had been Merrimack River—then part of the northern reaches of the through a similar course before, some twenty-four years ear- Massachusetts Bay Colony—through Cape Cod Bay and lier, as part of the “Great Migration” to America. Departing in around the Cape over Nantucket Sound to Martha’sVineyard, 1635 from Chilmark, part ofWiltshire County in southwest where they were joined by another passenger, aVineyard man England, Thomas Macy became one of the first settlers of Newbury, in the Massachusetts Bay Colony, and a few years And yet that isle remaineth A refuge of the free, Free as the winds that winnow As when true-hearted Macy Her shrubless hills of sand, Beheld it from the sea. Free as the waves that batter Along her yielding land.  | Historic Nantucket HistoricNantucketSpringFinal:Layout 1 3/27/09 11:26 AM Page 11

later, one of the founders of Salisbury just to the north, across by them sold unto Mr.Thomas Mayhew of Martha’sVineyard these the Merrimack River. Starbuck originally came from Leices- after mentioned Did purchas of Mr.Thomas Mayhew these rights; tershire in theWest Midlands. He immigrated to America in namely the pattent Right belonging to the Gentleman aforesaid & the same year as Macy, settling about twenty miles farther also the piece of Land which Mr.Mayhew did purchass of the Indi- north, in Dover, on the true frontier of the colony.Dover is ans at the west End of the Island of Nantucket as by their grant or now part of southern New Hampshire, on a branch of the bill of Sale will largely appear with all the privileges and appurte- Piscataqua River. From early records, both men appear to nances thereof—the aforementioned Purchasers are Tristram Cof- have been successful and key members of their growing fin Senr., Thomas Macy, Richard Swain, Thomas Barnard, Peter communities. Coffin,Christopher Hussey,Stephen Greenleaf,John Swain,William By the end of 1658, however, it appears that both Macy and Pile [or Pike], had the whole and Sole Interest Disposal power,and Starbuck had come into some conflict with increasingly op- privilege of said Island and appurtenances thereof. pressive Puritan authorities; both had been summoned to ap- pear before the court for unrelated reasons, and both had been On the same date, the second of July 1659, a deed was fined for what were called“great misdemeanors.”Whether as a granted by Thomas Mayhew, in which the now famous pay- result of this friction with local power, a search for better eco- ment sum of “30 pounds sterling and two beaver hats” was nomic opportunities, or simply chafing at the swelling popula- agreed. Mayhew also reserved for himself “the neck of land tions of their towns,Thomas Macy,Edward Starbuck,Tristram called Masquetuck”(Quaise), “or the Neck of land called Coffin, John Swain, and several other friends and relations en- Nashayte”(Polpis), and a “twentieth part of all lands and privi- deavored to purchase the island of Nantucket fromThomas leges” in the affairs of the island. Mayhew.Mayhew had purchased the islands of Martha’sVine- On October 10, at just about the same time the Macy clan yard, Nantucket, and the Elizabeth Islands in 1641 from James was making its way to Nantucket, Thomas Mayhew deeded Forrett, agent toWilliam, Earl of Sterling, and had moved to the island of Tuckernuck, a small island just west of Nan- Martha’sVineyard shortly thereafter, founding the town of tucket, to Tristram Coffin Sr., Peter Coffin, Tristram Coffin Jr., Edgartown. (He also had to purchase it again from the gover- and James Coffin, for the sum of five pounds. nor of Maine, Sir Fernando Gorges, after he had made a claim At another meeting, held at Salisbury in February of 1660, it of ownership of the islands, and a third time from most of the was agreed that each of the ten owners should take a partner, local Indian sachems.) and that these ten partners should have all the rights and It is unclear how the island of Nantucket became the focus benefits of the original ten. At that meeting it was voted that: of interest for the Salisbury/Dover group. Thomas Macy was probably related to Mayhew, having described him in a letter Tristram Coffin Sr.partnered with Nathaniel Starbuck, a few years later as “my honoured cousin,” and may have Christopher Hussey partnered with Robert Pike, heard about his interest to sell. Although fifteen years older Thomas Barnard partnered with Robert Bernard, than Macy, Mayhew was born in the adjoiningWiltshire Stephen Greenleaf partnered with Tristram Coffin Jr., hamlet of Tisbury, and documents recently discovered show Peter Coffin partnered with James Coffin, that at age 27, Thomas Mayhew completed an apprentice- Richard Swain partnered with Thomas Coleman, ship for a man named Richard Macey, also of Chilmark, Eng- John Swain partnered with John Smith, land. Richard may have been Thomas Macy’sgreat uncle. William Pile [Pike] partnered with Thomas Look, In the spring of 1659, Tristram Coffin, Edward Starbuck, Thomas Mayhew Sr.partnered with Thomas Mayhew Jr., young Isaac Coleman, and others not named, set out to visit Thomas Macy partnered with Edward Starbuck. Nantucket and inquire about the possibility of purchase, sail- ing first to Martha’sVineyard to meet with Thomas Mayhew. Obviously, some of these men were not present at the Terms were negotiated, and the party then sailed to Nan- meeting; we know of course, that Thomas Macy, Edward tucket, bringing with them Peter Folger, to act as an inter- Starbuck, and James Coffin were on Nantucket that winter, preter and to negotiate an agreement with the local Indian and the Mayhews were presumably on Martha’sVineyard. population. Apparently, a survey of the island proved satis- This arrangement may have been made through discussions factory, and upon returning to Salisbury in the summer, they the prior summer, but not recorded until February. held a meeting that resulted in the following agreement: English title to Nantucket now assured, a separate deed was sought from the local Nantucket sachemsWanackmamack These people after mentioned did buy all right and Interest of the Is- and Nickanoose. Although negotiations had taken place the land of Nantucket that Did belong to Sir Ferdinando George previous summer, a deed was granted to Thomas Mayhew by [Gorges] and Mr.James Forrett Steward to Lord Sterling,which was God bless the sea-beat island! Than hers, at duty’s summons, And grant forevermore, No loftier spirit stirs, That charity and freedom dwell Nor falls o’er human suffering As now upon her shore! A readier tear then hers. From The Exiles, John Greenleaf Whittier, 1841 Spring 2009 |  HistoricNantucketSpringFinal:Layout 1 3/27/09 11:26 AM Page 12

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Spring 2009 |  HistoricNantucketSpringFinal:Layout 1 3/27/09 11:26 AM Page 14

nantucket real estate: 1659

the sachems, and a separate deed for the twenty proprietors Vineyard. It appears that Daggett had returned to Martha’s was obtained on May 10, 1660, at a meeting on Nantucket. In Vineyard by then, and James Coffin left for Dover shortly after it, the sachems agreed to sell to the English the portion of the his father and other family members had settled on the is- island described as follows: land, though he returned to Nantucket several years later. After that first winter, it became obvious that Madaket was All yeWest end of ye afores’d Island unto ye Pond commonly called not suitable for a permanent settlement, and the families Waquitttaquay,and from ye Head of that Pond to ye North Side of began to relocate at a more hospitable location on the north ye Island Manamoy; Bounded by a Path from ye Head of ye afore- shore at Capaum. said Pond to Manamoy: as also a Neck at ye East End of ye Island The growing need for homes and services was addressed by called Poquomock. the new group of proprietors, who engaged Peter Folger,Tris- tram Coffin Sr., Thomas Macy,and Edward Starbuck to meas- Today,this would be described as all land west of Hum- ure and lay out all of the land, and ordered that new owners mock Pond (Waquittaquay), and all land north of a line, from choose their house lots within the limits of the plantation, Head of Hummock Pond to Nantucket Harbor, at the Creeks other than those already chosen. Each of the lots was to be in Monomoy,and the Pocomo Neck, at the east end of Nan- sixty square rods in size (22.5 acres), and the areas that were tucket Harbor. Also included in the deed was the right to best left as common land were to be determined. Land held graze, hunt, and gather from the rest of the island in the non- in “common”ownership was popular in New England as a planting seasons. way of allowing all owners equal access to the land area, It is clear that at the time that document was written, many mainly for grazing animals but used in some cases for grow- more English were present on the island. The original group ing crops, cutting timber, access to ponds, etc. of arrivals from the previous fall had apparently fared well It was also decided that the proprietors would sell ”half- over the winter, due in part to the assistance and cooperation shares” in the interests of the island to needed tradespeople of local Indians. Shortly after landing, they set about con- and other laborers (or mechanics, as they were called) re- structing shelters for themselves, possibly making use of ex- quired by the community,such as carpenters, fishermen, isting dwellings built by the Indians or byVineyard men who millers, weavers, and so forth. The first of these was granted in had been sojourning on Nantucket intermittently for a num- 1662, toWilliamWorth, a sailor. Over the next few years an- ber of years to preach, trade, hunt, and graze livestock. other fourteen of the half-shares were granted, including Thomas Macy installed his family just to the south of their those to Peter Folger, Captain John Gardner, and his brother landing point, where he had found a good spring. Starbuck Richard Gardner.These men and their families were required located some distance away, perhaps sharing accommoda- to reside on Nantucket for three year as part of the contract. In tion with James Coffin and Daggett, who stayed the winter to due course, many fairness issues arose from this arrangement hunt game, which was plentiful. References were made in of power and financial sharing, and tensions did threaten the later town records to “the cellar built by Edward Starbuck,” harmony of the island, quite famously in the mid-1670s. which indicates that his early abode may have been a partial Early relations with the Indian population, however, were dugout with a peaked wooden or thatched roof above. This generally cordial and respectful. Some of the community’s type of dwelling was quite common in the early years of the leading individuals—Edward Starbuck, Thomas Macy,Tris- Massachusetts Colony, usually a temporary structure until tram Coffin Sr., John Gardner, and especially Peter Folger— lumber could be obtained and a proper English timber- were very well thought of by the sachems and their people. In framed house could be erected. (In Boston, at about the the early years of the English settlement, cooperation be- same time, and only thirty years after its founding, records tween the two groups is well documented. Over the next few suggest that the many abandoned early abodes and dugouts years, some of the original twenty purchasers passed on their dotting the town presented problems that needed urgent at- interests to relations or sold them on Nantucket, and some tention.) Just as the first settlements of New England bor- never relocated to the island.Within a decade, about a hun- rowed place-names from their hometowns, the houses the dred and fifty English called Nantucket home, and the new pioneers would build for themselves were based entirely on community was fairly well established and continued to grow. designs and construction methods that they brought with The new town, named Sherburne, was incorporated in 1671. them, slowly evolving variations in their techniques, adjust- It would remain part of NewYork until 1692, when at the re- ing to different materials and climatic conditions. Still, even quest of the proprietors it was formally made a part of Massa- in the mid-eighteenth century, a hundred years later, house chusetts by an act of Parliament. construction in the colonies had changed very little. Beginning around 1700, what had been an open harbor at Edward Starbuck left Nantucket in the spring of 1660, trav- Capaum Pond, began to silt up and the settlers set their eling back to Salisbury and Dover to report on conditions on course eastward for the shores of the Great Harbor, where the island, and returning to Nantucket with his family and at Nantucket Town would be founded, and so named in 1795. least ten other families, before the May 10 meeting with the sachems. mark avery is the NHA’s manager of historic properties. He has prac- Among others present were Tristram Coffin and family,with ticed architecture and preservation on Nantucket for over two decades, Thomas Mayhew and Peter Folger having come from the and served on the Historic District Commission for twelve years.

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