Three hundred colonial ancestors and war service, their part in making American history from 495 to 1934 online

ried . He was descended

from Sir Hubertus De la Field
and the head of the family
which settled in Lancester and
Kent counties, England. Re-
sided Sowerby, England.

Children :

1. Richard, b. abt. 1276; m. .

2, Thomas, b. abt. 1278; m. .

Thomas Del Field, son of
Roger, born Sowerby, England,

about 1278; married . He

was of Sowerby, a Juror in 1307.
Named in the Wakefield rolls in
1314, and also in 1322, when he
was at "Hahfax Court." Re-
sided Sowerby, England.

Children :

1. John, b. 1300; m. .

2. Adam, b. . He was of Sowerby. Named in the rolls in 1349, and then

called "son of Thomas de Feld." Mentioned again in 1393.

John Del Field, son of Thomas, born Sowerby, England, 1300;

married . He was named in the Wakefield Manor rolls in

1326, 1334 and in 1336, when he had land at Sowerby. Called "son
of Thomas del Feld." Resided Sowerby, England.

Children:
1. Thomas, Jr., b. 1330; m. Annabelle ;

Thomas Del Feld, son of John, born Sowerby, England, 1330;

married Annabelle . He was named in the rolls in 1364 and

was elected this year to supervise the "agistment and pannage."
Constable of Sowerby in 1365, and greave there in 1370. He hired
Sowerby mill in 1380, with Thomas de Helilee, and was a special
juror in 1384. In 1370, he took a piece of land of Thomas Wade,
in "Dedewyf erode," and I think later went to Bradford. The name
of Thomas del Feld occurs frequently in the Wakefield rolls between
1348 and 1391, without the addition of senior or junior, so that it is
impossible to say which one is referred to in these entries. Both
senior and junior are mentioned in 1384, after which date there is




100 , Three Hundred Colonial Ancestors and War Service

but one entry, in 1391, when the name is simply Thomas del Feld.
Probably both senior and junior died about this time. Others of
the family mentioned in the lifetime of the two Thomases who can-
not be placed with certainty, are Elena del Feld, in 1329 and in 1333,
and Margaret, who paid heriot in 1357 on a cottage and land in
Sowerby, "after the death of John Tomson, her uncle." She is
called daughter of Thomas del Feld, but of which I am unable to
state. He died about 1391. Resided Sowerby and Bradford, Eng.

Children :
1. Thomas, b. 1360; m. Isabel .

Thomas Del Felde, son of Thomas, born 1360; married Isabel

. On the 12th of March, 1429, "Thomas del Felde de Bolton"

made his will, leaving to his wife, Isabel, all his lands and tenants
"in villa and tertory de Bynglay" for life, remainder to his heirs.
After the death of "Anabelle my mother" his son Robert is to have
his lands "in villa and tertory of Bradford," and if Robert die without
issue, remainder to William, his brother. He died 1429. Resided
Brandford, Eng.

Children :

1. Robert, b. .

2. William, b. ; m. Katherine .

William Feld, son of Thomas and Isabel Felde, b. possibly
Bradford, England; married Katherine . Letters of adminis-
tration granted his widow April 21, 1480. She was administratrix
of the estate. He died April, 1480. Resided Parish of Bradford,
England.

Children :

1. William, b. ; m. .

2. John, b. ; m. .

William Feld, son of William and Katherine Feld, born Brad-
ford, England; married . Resided East Ardsley, England.

Children:

1. Richard, b. ; m. Elizabeth .

2. Thomas, b. ; Thomas Felde, supervisor of his brother Richard's will

in 1542, In 1545 he is assessed for lands in East Ardsley. His brother
Richard refers to him in his will, "Mr. Thomas Felde, my brother."

3. John, b. abt. 1519; m. .

Richard Felde, son of William, born probably East Ardsley,

England; married EHzabeth . Richard made his will Aug. 19,

1542, and it was proved Dec. 8, 1542. He describes himself as
"husbandman of the parish of Ardeslowe," and desires his wife,
EHzabeth, and John Felde, my son, have the take of the farmhold,
and makes them executors. He adds "also I will that my children
have their portion and that Mr. Thomas Felde, my brother and
Christopher Nowell be my supervisors." He died December, 1542.
Resided East Ardsley, England.



Three Hundred Colonial Ancestors and War Service 101



Children :

1. John, b. abt. 1525; m. Jane Amyas.
Other children.

John Field, son of Richard and EHzabeth Felde, born about
1525, East Ardsley, England; married 1560, Jane Amyas, daughter
of John, died Aug. 30, 1609. He died May 1587, Resided Ardislawe,
England. John Felde has been styled "the proto-Copernican of
England," inasmuch as he was the first to make known in that coun-
try by his writings the discoveries of this remarkable man, who
delayed for a long time the publication of his famous work "De
Orbium Coelestium Revolutionibus," which was completed in 1530,
but not printed till 1543, when its author was on his death-bed.
Works based on the new system, which revolutionized the science
of astronomy, had appeared in Germany a few years earlier, but
the "Ephemeris" of John Field for 1557, which was published in that
year, was the first opportunity afforded the people of England of
becoming acquainted with the true motions of the heavenly bodies.
In the following year, he issued a similar work, calculated for 1558,
1559, 1560. Probably these v/ere not his only publications, but no
others have come down to us, and only two copies of these are
known to exist, the British Museum and Bodleian Library, at
Oxford, each possessing both works.

By a patent, dated Sept. 4, 1558, the heralds formally recognized his right
to the family arms; Sable, a chevron between three garbs argent,_and at the same
time they granted to him the following crest: A dexter arm issuing out of clouds
fesseways proper, habited gules, holding in the hand, also proper, a sphere or.
This appropriate crest may be considered a recognition of his services to the cause
of astronomy.

We assume that it was about 1560 that he married Jane, daughter
of John Amyas, of Kent, as she is described in the Herald's visita-
tion of Yorkshire in 1584/85. The Herald's visitation of Yorkshire,
1585, records the names of himself, wife and children. His will,
dated Dec. 28, 1586, was probated May 3, 1587. Jane, daughter
of John Amyas, of Kent, executrix of her husband's will. Her own
is dated July 17, 1609. Buried at East Ardsley, Aug. 4, 1609.

Children :

1. Richard, b. 1563. Richard Field, aged 22, in 1585, disinherited by his

father. He had a daughter, Mary, in 1609; not then 21; mentioned in
the will of her grandmother, Jane.

2. John, b. 1568; m. .

3. Matthew, b. 1563; m. Margaret .

4. Christopher, b. 1585. Christopher Field and John Field, his brother, not

named in their mother's will; probably went awayfrom home.

5. Thomas, b. 1572; named in his mother's will; called third son,

6. William, b. 1570; m. Mrs. Jane (Sotwell) Burdette.

7. James, b. 1574; named in both his father's and mother's wills.

8. Martin, b. 1577; named in both his father's and mother's wills.

9. Anne, b. 1580; prob. d. young, but named in her mother's will.

John Field, son of John and Jane (Amyas) Field, born Ardsley,

England, about 1568; married , He was born in Ardsley,

but evidently moved away before reaching his majority, for he was



102 Three Hundred Colonial Ancestors and War Service

not mentioned in his father's will. Osgood Field is of the opinion
that he died young, as he was not mentioned in the wills of his
father or mother. Resided Ardsley, England.

Children :

1. John, b. abt. 1590; m. .

2. Zachabiah, b. abt. 1596; m. Mary .

3. Other children.

Reference: From Roger Del Field to here by Frederick Clifton Pierce
Chicago, 1901.

Among their Descendants are not only Judges, Senators, Congressmen, Clergy-
men, Lawyers, Physicians, but men of business and one, Marshall Field of
Chicago, the largest leading dry goods merchant in the world. (See "Field
Genealogy," Vol. I, pp. 70, 73, 76, 97-98.)

Zachariah Field, son of John and grandson of John Field, the
Astronomer, born at East Ardsley, in the West Riding of Yorkshire,
England, about 1596. He probably came to England through
Wales and sailed from Bristol and arrived in Boston and settled in
Dorchester, Mass. He settled in Hartford on Sentinel Hill. He
was one of the 42 men furnished by Hartford, to take part in the
Pequot War. The early Historians of Connecticut, speak of these
emigrants as among the earliest planters in the State, and were all
well to do persons. In 1658, after the death of Rev. Thomas Hooker,
the first Minister in the Church of Hartford, a serious controversy
arose in that and the neighboring Churches. He was one .of the
25 persons who engaged to settle what is now Hatfield. The Hart-
ford, Conn., land records show large conveyances granted to Zach-
ariah Field (1639-1662). Original Proprietor 1639; constable, 1652.

In "Compendium of American Genealogy," Vol. Ill, p. 661 —
Zachariah Field (1606-1665) from England 1629, later at Dorchester,
Mass., thence to Northampton, 1659, to Hatfield, 1666; settled
finally at Hartford, Conn., about 1641. He married Mary, daughter
of Christopher Stanley, of Boston. Zachariah Field served in the
Pequot War, 1637, under Capt. John Mason. (See "Badge's
Soldiers in King PhiHp's War," p. 466; "Year Book, Society of
Colonial Wars," 1897/8, p. 463.) Zachariah Field was buried at
Hatfield, June 30, 1666.

Children :

1. Mary, m. Oct. 2, 1663, Joshua Porter of Northampton.

2. Zechariah, m. Dec. 17, 1668, Sarah, dau. of John Webb, res. in North-

ampton and Deerfield, d. 1674.

3. John, b. abt. 1648; m. Mary Edwards.

4. Samuel, b. abt. 1651; m. Sarah Gilbert, m. (2) Mary Belding.

5. Joseph, b. abt. 1658; m. Joanna Watt.

Sergt. Samuel, son of Zachariah Field, m. Aug. 9, 1676, Sarah,
daughter of Thomas and Catherine (Chapin) Gilbert, of Springfield.
In First Book of Records, History of Hadley, pp. 23 and 44, Westside
River, 1688, Samuel Field No. 100; John Graves No. 50; Eleazer
Frary, No. 150; Isaach Graves No. 125; Zachariah Field and John
Field. Soc. Col. Wars, Vol. Ill, p. 418, Zachariah Field, Samuel



Three Hundred Colonial Ancestors and War Service 103

Field, John Graves, Isaac Graves, Wm. Gull and Samuel Dickinson,
amongst the settlers who were given house lots 1668, 1670 and 1672.
Samuel Field was a Sergeant in the Turners Falls Fight, May 19,
1673. Samuel Field removed to Hatfield, where he was slain by
Indians, in ambush, June 24, 1697.

Children :

1. Samuel, b. Sept. 27, 1678; m. Mrs. Hannah E. Hoyt.

2. Thomas, b. June 30, 1680; m. Abigail Dickinson.

3. Sarah, b. June 30, 1683; m. Nov. 18, 1702, Samuel Warner of Springfield.

4. Zechariah, b. Aug. 29, 1685; m. Sarah Mattoon.*

♦See Field Gen., Vol. I. pp. 144-150, by F. C. Pierce, for "One of Deerfield's
Romances, A True Love Story two Centuries Old."

5. Ebenezer, b. March 17, 1688; m. Elizabeth Arms.

6. Mary, b. July 23, 1690; m. June 26, 1712, Jonathan Hoj^t.

7. JosiAH, b. Nov. 5, 1692; rem. to Somers, Ct.; m. Elizabeth .

8. Joshua, b. April 9, 1695; rem. to Springfield; m. Elizabeth Cooley.

Ebenezer Field, 5th child of Samuel, was born at Hatfield, Mass.,
March 17, 1688. He married 1714, Ehzabeth Arms, daughter of
William and Joanna (Hawks) Arms, born 1695; died Oct. 1, 1772,
aged 77. Ebenezer Field, of Hatfield, Conn., was a soldier in the
French and Indian War, 1758. One of the forts built in 1721, was
on the lot of Ebenezer Field. At the first two meetings in .North-
field, in June, 1723, just fifty years after its first settlement, Ebenezer
Field was elected Constable and Fence Viewer; Selectman in the
town, 1722. He died Sept. 12, 1723.

Children :

1. Ebenezer, b. June 15, 1715; m. Sarah Mattoon and Mrs. Christian Field.

2. Joanna, b. AprU 6, 1717; m. 1737, Col. Phineas Wright.

3. Moses, b. Feb. 19, 1719; m. Ann Dickinson and Martha Root.

4. Aaron b. March 17, 1722; m. Eunice Frary.

5. Elizabeth, b. Jan. 3, 1723; m. Feb. 14, 1745, Capt. Ebenezer Wells of

Greenfield, son of Joshua, b. 1723. She d. May 17, 1784. ,

Dea. Aaron Field, 4th child of Ebenezer and Ehzabeth (Arms)
Field, born Northfield, Mass. (Some Genealogists say born Deerfield)
March 17, 1721; settled on Huckle Hill, Hatfield, about 1753,
just north of the present John B. Field place. The House has been
burned. He married Eunice, daughter of Nathaniel Frary, of
Deerfield, May 26, 1743. She was born Nov. 30, 1721; and died
Oct. 28, 1813. He died March 17, 1800. He was one of the Assessors
in 1780. From The Commonwealth of Massachusetts Office of the
Secretary, Record of service in Colonial wars:

Aaron Field appears on Muster Roll, dated at field of , a Company in

His Majesty's Service, xmder the command of Capt. Israel Williams; Quality,
Centmel; Entered Service July 8, 1755. Service to Nov. 19, 1755, 19 weeks 2
days, at Western Frontier. (Vol. 94, pg. 35). Aaron Field appears on Muster
Rolls of a Company in His Majesty's Service under the command of Capt.
Israel Wilhams. Entered Service July 10, 1756. Quality, Centinel. Service to
Nov. 30, 1757, 72 weeks, 5 days, with detachment at Falltown (Bernardston).
(Vol. 94, p. 575, Vol. 95, p. 185, Vol. 96, p. 73.) Aaron Field appears on Muster
Roll dated Deerfield, of a company in His Majesty's Service under the command
of Capt. John Burk. Quality, Centinal; entered service June 20, 1758. Service



104 Three Hundred Colonial Ancestors and War Service



to Nov. 30, 1758, 23 weeks, 3 days, at Burk's Garrison, Falltown. Company
commanded by Capt. John Catlin from April 20 to Sept. 24, 1758, and by Capt.
Bm-k from Sept. 25, to Nov. 30, 1758. (Vol. 96, p. 460.) Aaron Field appears on
Muster Roll sworn to in Hampshire Co. of a Company in His Majesty's Service
under the command of Capt. Samuel Wells. Quality, Private; length of Service,
5 weeks, 1 day; said Field reported omitted from last roU. (Vol. 97, p. 264.)
Aaron Field appears on Muster Roll of a Company in His Majesty's Service
under the command of Capt. Samuel Wells. Quality, Private; entered Service
Dec. 1, 1758; ser\dce to Sept. 24, 1759; 42 weeks, 4 days, at Falltown (Bernard-
ston). Company commanded by Capt. John Burk from Dec. 1, 1758, to Feb. 8,
1759 by Capt. John Hawks from Feb. 9 to April 30, 1759, and by Capt. Wells
from May 1, to October 8, 1759. (Vol. 97, p. 264.) Aaron Field was on committee
of correspondence, 1775, during the Revolution, to which office in 1776, was
added that of Inspection and Safety. He began his career as Town OflBcer in
1762, when he was Constable at Bernardston, Mass. He was Warden in 1763,
Fence Viewer in 1763-74; selectman in 1765-70-80-84; surveyor of highways in
1767-75-78; tithingman in 1768, and town treasurer 1776-81; assessor in 1780.
He d. March 17, 1800. Res. Deerfield and Bernardston, Mass.

Children :

1. Eunice, b. Dec. 29, 1743; m. abt. 1760, Joseph Wells, b. 1731. He settled

in Greenfield; d. Dec. 22, 1804. She d. Dec. 10, 1785.

2. Chloe, b. Dec. 29, 1743; m. Nov., 1764, Samuel Shattuck of Greenfield.

He was son of Samuel and was b. 1741 ; was a soldier in the French and
Indian wars; was at Bunker Hill; was a miller at Greenfield; went to
New York, and d. Sept. 1, 1827, aged 87. She d. April 10, 1781, aged
38. Children:

1. Samuel, b. Aug. 15, 1765; m. Prudence Healey of Vermont.

2. Chloe, b. Nov. 22, 1766; m. Ephraim Leach; res. Enosburg, Vt.

3. Consider, b. Feb. 7, 1768; m. Anne Atherton.

4. Seth, b. Jan. 24, 1770; m. Sylvia Chapin and Anna Smith.

5. Lydia, b. Oct. 8, 1771; d. Dec. 8, 1772.

6. Lydia, b. Feb. 15, 1774; m. Arad Root of Montague.

7. Jesse, b. May 16, 1775; d. Aug. 27, 1777.

8. Jesse, b. Sept. 21, 1777; m. Mary E. Sargent of Dummerston.

9. Robert, b. Dec. 17, 1780; name changed to Chester; m. Miriam W.

Stocker.

3. Irene, b. Sept. 11, 1745; m. in 1769, Lieut. Daniel Newcomb. He was b.

in Leyden, Mass., Nov. 18, 1741. When but three years of age his
parents were driven from their home by the Indians and compelled to
leave the county. They went to Lebanon, Conn. He d. in 1794. She
d. in Winhall, Vt., in 1816. He was Lieutenant in the Revolutionary
War; was on the committee of correspondence; chairman of the com-
noittee of safety.

4. Anna, b. in 1747; m. Aug., 1786, Ziba Allen, of Bernardston. He d. July 10,

1798, and she m. (2) Salmon Clapp, of Montague. Clapp was son of
Lieut.-Col. Amasa Clapp, of Northampton, who removed to Chester-
field. Amasa's line was as follows:

Seth.

Samuel.

Preserved.

Roger.

5. Jesse, b. March 15, 1749; m. Sarah Burke.

6. Rachel, b. in 1751; m. 1774, Dr. Polycarpus Cushman of Bernardston. She

d. Sept. 1, 1812.

7. Olive, b. ; m. Reuben Sheldon of Leyden. He was b. 1749. Revolu-

tionary soldier; was in Company of Capt. Agrippa Wells at siege of
Boston; served also under Capt. Thomas Alexander and marched to
Quebec, arriving there April 27, 1776; was in the Burgoyne campaign
under Capt. Lawrence Kemp, and removed from Deerfield to Leyden.

8. AzABA, b. in 1762; d. unm., Jan. 6, 1831.

9. Maria, b. .



Three Hundred Colonial Ancestors and War Service 105



m. Decima, b. ; m. Aug. 1, 1790, Shubal FuUer of Windhall, N. J. and

removed to Ohio.
11. Mehitable, b. abt. 1748; m. Deacon Jonathan Sheldon. She d. Jan. 16,

1797.

References: "Field Genealogy," Vol. I.
"History of Bernardston."
"Shattuck Memorials."
Records of Rebecca Dodd, Genealogist.
"History of Hadley," by Sylvester Judd, 1905.

Summary of Ancestry:

ENGLISH LINE

JoHN^**, JoHN^, Richard^, William', William^, Thomas^ Thomas^, John^,
Thomas^ Rogers.

AMERICAN LINE

11. Zechariah Field, b. England, 1596, bur. June 30, 1666; m. Mary Stanley,

b. , d. abt. 1670.

12. Serg. Samuel Field, b. , d. June 24, 1697; m. Aug. 9, 1676, Sarah

Gilbert.

13. Ebenezer Field, b. March 17, 1688, d. Sept. 12, 1723; m. 1714, Elizabeth

Arms, b. 1695, d. Oct. 1, 1772.

14. Dea. Aaron Field, b. March 17, 1721, d. March 17, 1800; m. May 26,

1743, Eunice Frary, b. Nov. 30, 1721, d. Oct. 28, 1813.

15. Chloe Field, b. Dec. 29, 1743, d. AprH 10^ 1781; m. Nov. 1764, Samuel

Shattuck, b. Sept. 18, 1741, d. Sept. 18, 1741.

16. Chloe Shattuck, b. Nov. 22, 1766, d. Jan. 22, 1845; m. Nov. 17, 1785

Ephraim Leach, b. Dec, 1761, d. Feb. 28, 1840.

17. Tertius Leach, b. Nov. 21, 1786, d. Feb. 4, 1864; m. Jan. 1, 1812, Sophia

Hawley, b. Aug. 17, 1795, d. Jan. 7, 1879.

18. Tertius Hawley Leach, b. March 19, 1813, d. Sept. 19, 1881; m. Feb. 28,

1835, Orissa Fanton, b. May 1, 1812, d. June 24, 1890.
From here same as Summary of Arms Ancestry, 8th to 10th Generations;
Colonial Daughters of the 17th Century, p. 146, No. 772; and Daughters of the
American Colonists, 1931, pp. 29-36, No. 2089; ancestry traced by the author of
this book.



FLINT ANCESTRY
"Descendants of Thomas Flint of Salem" by John Flint and
John H. Stone, 1860
We find there were four individuals by the name of Fhnt, who had
migrated to this country and settled in Massachusetts before 1650,
namely: Thomas and William, of Salem; Henry, of Braintree;
and Thomas, of Concord.

Flynt, Flint Ancestry, Rev. HenryS b. Matlock, Derbysh., Eng., Bost., 1635;
Braint., ord. Mar. 17, 1640; m. Margery Hoar^, Rev. Josiah^, b. Aug. 24, 1645,
H. C, 1664, Dorchester; m. Esther Wiilett=, b. July 10, 1648; Dorothy' Flynt
m. Edmund Quincy^. Mr. Quincy was b. Oct. 21, 1681, d. London, Feb. 23, 1738.

("Cleveland FamUy," E. J. and H. G. Cleveland, Vol. I, p. 493.)

Thomas and William, of Salem, were brothers and arrived here
probably before the year 1640. William is mentioned in the Salem
records in 1642, at which time there is some evidence to show that
he had a mother hving in this country. Hanson, in his History of
Danvers, says that William landed here about 1640. Flint Street,
in Salem, is said to be over land he once owned, and near to where



106 Three Hundred Colonial Ancestors and War Service

his dwelling-house stood. By a plan now extant it is shown that he
owned the land from the corner of Flint and Essex streets, running
through to Broad Street, and from thence easterly, nearly or quite,
to Pickering Street, and from thence to Essex Street. He also owned
land in the Southfields. The first deed to him on record is dated
July 23, 1652. He died February 2, 1673, aged 70 years. His widow
Alice Flint, died Oct. 5, 1700. The inventory of his estate amounted
to £911 15s.

He had six children, namely:

Edward, Thomas, Elizabeth, Margaret, Alice, and Hannah. They

were all married, and all lived in Salem, excepting Elizabeth, who married

Woodis, and resided in England. His daughter Alice was arraigned before the
Essex County Court, in 1652, for wearing a silk hood; but, proving she was
worth £200, was discharged. She subsequently married John Pickering, and
lived in a house in Broad Street, which is now standing, and owned by one of her
descendants.

1. Thomas Flint, the emigrant ancestor, came to America, as
tradition reports, from Wales, in Great Britain. The first mention
made of him in the town records of Salem is in 1650; but there is
reason to believe that he came to this country much earlier; and
there is also some evidence to show that he had a mother here as
early as 1642. He was among the first settlers of Salem Village, now
South Danvers. The spot in the wilderness which he selected for his
home is situated on the Salem and North Reading road, about six
miles from the present Court House in Salem, and five miles from
the town of North Reading, and near Phelps' mill and brook. He
acquired his land by purchase. The first deed to him on record,
"containing one hundred and fifty acres of meadow and pasture
land, and lying within the bounds of Salem," he bought Sept. 18,
1654, of John Pickering. The price paid for this land is not men-
tioned; but quite a good opinion can be formed of its value, from
the fact that John Pickering, three years before, gave Mr. John
Higginson thirteen pounds for the same land.

The second lot recorded, containing fifty acres, he purchased 1st
January 1662, of Robert Goodall, for which he paid twenty pounds
sterling. It is described as situated in Salem, and as being "near
upon a square," and bounded southerly by land of Henry Phelps,
westerly by Phelps' Brook, and northerly and easterly by land of
said Goodall.

The farm of the old patriarch has always remained in the posses-
sion of his descendants. It is now occupied by the heirs of Elijah
Fhnt (238), and may truly be called the old homestead, it halving
been in the family more than two hundred years. He died April 15,
1663. His wife's name was Ann.

They had six children:

1. Thomas.

2. Elizabeth, b. April 30, 1650.

3. George, b. Jan. 6, 1652.

4. John, b. Oct. 3, 1655.

5. Anna, b. Dec. 25, 1657, d. AprU, 1663.

6. Joseph, b. 1662.



Three Hundred Colonial Ancestors and War Service 107

Sergeant George Flint, 2nd son of Thomas (1), born Jan. 6,
1652. He went to Reading before the year 1682, and settled on
land he acquired by inheritance from his father and was the first
of the name in that town. He was a farmer and resided in the North
Precinct, in that part which now constitutes the village of North
Reading. His house stood on a gentle eminence, commanding a
fine prospect of the river and the adjacent meadows, which to the
early settlers was the chief attraction of the town. Tradition says
that his was the first framed house built in the precinct, and that
it was used as a garrison house while there were hostile Indians in
the colony and that upon the doors of which were seen marks, said
to have been made by the bullets of the Indians. Another circum-
stance connected with this family, and which was frequently related
by the older portion of it, is, that on a pleasant Sabbath all the
family were absent at church but two of the daughters of Sergeant
Fhnt, who were left at home in charge of the house. _ During the
absence, one of the daughters took a pistol, and, aiming it at the
other, said: ''Suppose you were an Indian, how easily I could shoot
you!" At that moment the pistol went off, and lodged its contents
in the shoulder of her sister, which crippled her for life. Her father
in his will mentions his "unfortunate daughter Mary," and makes
suitable provision for her proper maintenance. Her grandfather,
Nathaniel Putnam, gives her a double portion, "because she hath
a lame arm." The old garrison house was taken down several years
since, and one of modern construction erected in its place. He was
one of the Selectmen of the town for several successive years; was
a member of the Salem Village church, and was quite active in
rehgious matters, as appears by the interest he took in the organiza-
tion of the North Parish and church. He presided as Moderator of
the first meeting of the parish and ever after, as long as he lived, took