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John Adams Family of Pymouth

In October of 1879, In volume 33, and on pages 410—413, of the New England Historical and Genealogical Register, there was a very interesting and informative Article published about the Family of John Adams of Plymouth, Massachuessetts. He is one of the Ancestors of Nelson Stoyle Hollingshead, the Utah Pioneer.

Since vol. 33 is not readily available, the Article is given below.

FAMILY OF JOHN ADAMS OF PLYMOUTH

JOHN¹ ADAMS arrived at Plymouth in the Fortune, Nov. 9, 1621. He died in 1633. His Widow Ellen, presented "an inventory of the goods and chattels of her late husband, John Adams, deceased, upon oath, Nov. 11, 1633, and whereas the said John died without a will, it was ordered that if in the case the said Ellen shall have an inclination to marry, she before her said marriage, estate the threee children of her former husband deceased, James, John and Susan, in £5 sterling apiece to be paid when they come to years of discretion according to the Statutes of England." [Plymouth Colonial Court Records, quoted by J. H. Hatch, Esq.] She is sometimes called Eleanor and Helen. She is supposed to have been Ellen Newton, to whom land was granted in 1623, among those who came in the Ann. [Savage's Genealogical Dictionary, vol. 1, p. 10; Baylie's New Plymouth, Pt. I, p. 260] In June 1634, she married Kenelm Winslow, of Marshfield, and died in that town. She was buried Dec. 5, 1681, "being 83 years old." [ Dr. Holton's Winslow Memorial, vol 1, p. 73, quoting record.]

Children of John Adams and Ellen Newton:
2. i. James Adams, married Frances, daughter of Mr. William Vassel, in Scituate, June 16, 1646.
3. ii. John Adams, married 1st, Jane James, 1654; married 2nd, Elizabeth — about 1663
iii. Susan Adams.

—2. JAMES² ADAMS (John¹), "resided on a farm on the Marshfield side of North River, nearly opposite Mr. Vassall's, the father of Mrs Adams. They worshipped with the second church in Scituate, and their children were carried there for baptism." [Memorials of Marshfield, by Marcia A. Thomas, pp. 36-37. Miss Thomas adds this quotation: "James Adams died at sea, on board the good ship James, 16 Jan. 1651; " but the year must be an error, perhaps, typographical, as he had a child born in March 1651. Savage(1, 10) gives the date "19 Jan 1653 "Qu. 1653-4?]

The Plymough ColonyRecords, under date of June 10, 1651, record that James Adams came before the goveror and acknowledged that he had received from Kenelm Winslow the £5 which was to be paid to him when he became of age, and "on the 26th of December 1651, it was ordered to bee entered upon the publicke record as payed and received." [Plymouth Colony Records (Boston, 1855), vol. ii. p.176]

James Adam's widow, Frances, had 150 acres of land laid out to her by the Massachusetts General Court, May 7, 1673, "About eight miles northward from Lancaster." [Massachusetts Colony Records (Boston, 1854), vol v. pp 524 and 539]

Children of James Adams and Frances Vassall:
i. William, born May 16, 1647; bapt. by Mr. Witherell, May 23, 1647.
ii. Anna, born April 18, 1649; bapt. May 20, 1649
iii. Richard, born April 19, 1651; bapt. April 27, 1651.
iv. Mary, born Jan 27, 1653; bapt. Feb 5, 1653.
v. Margaret, (no record of birth), bapt. March 18, 1654 [Letter of Charles E. Bailey, Esq. of South Scituate.]

—3. JOHN² ADAMS (John¹) settled first in Marshfield. "He dwelt near Mount Skirgo, an elevation of the Marshfield bounds of the forest which lies between this town and Pembroke."
[Miss Thomas's Memorials of Marshfield, p. 37] John was admitted a freeman of Plymouth Colony, June 1, 1658. He was a witness in a case of manslaughter, Jan 1654-5; a grand-juryman June, 1658; a member of a coroner's jury, July, 1658; and was appointed a constable of Marshfield, June 8, 1660. He subsequently removed to Flushing, Long Island, as is shown by a deed on record at Plymouth, Bk. iii. p. 127. The following is an abstact of an attested copy by William S. Danforth, register of deeds.

"Captain John Adams, of the towne of Flushinge, in Long Island in New England, America," sells Dec. 10, 1666, to "Nathaniel Warren of the Towne of Plymouth in the jurisdiction of Plymouth in New England, in America, " &c. "all that my share lot and portion of land att or neare a place commonly called and knowne by the name of Nama Nakett in the jurisdiction of Plymouth, aforesaid, which was granted unto mee the said JohnAdams as being one of the children of the old comers of the said Jurisdictin according to grant of the court for the jurisdiction of Plymouth aforesaid bearing date the third day of June An° Dom: one thousand six hundred and sixty and two [See list of grantees in Plymouth Colony Records (Boston, 1855), vol iv. p. 19.] being the twenty eighth part of the tract of land purchased by Captaine Thomas Southworth of the Indain Sachem named Josias Wampatuck in the behalf of said court." and also share of lands "purchased by Major winslow lying and being att Namassakeesett ponds." signed by John Adams and the mark of Elizabeth Adams, his wife.

After learning that John and Elizabeth Adams had removed to Flushing, I wrote to Henry Onderdonk Jr., Esq. , of Jamaica, L. I. , for any records he maght have of John Adams, of Flushing, and received in February ,1878, the following valuable memoranda, from his manuscript collections relative to Long Island history, which he has kindly permitted me to print: [recall that the Quakers did not use the pagan names of the months of the year, but used the number of the month, March being the first month. The order of dates is day, month, and year]

Children of John Adams and his first wife Joane:
Mary, born 3, 5, 1656.
Martha, born 4, 1, 1658.
Rebecca, born 13, 12 1661; married Henry Clifford, of Flushing, 29, 3, 1686.

Children of John Adams and his second wife Elizabeth:
John, born 17, 6 , 1664; died 4, 8, 1665.
Elizabeth, born 9, 1, 1665. [married 23, 1, 1692, William Hollingshead]
Sarah, born 28, 2, 1668.
James, born 4, 8, 1671.
Susanna, born 6, 9,1674.
Hannah, born 15, 12, 1675.
Deborah, born 7, 3, 1678.
John, born 10, 7, 1680; died 30, 10, 1688.
Abigail, born 2, 11, 1682.
Thomas, born 12, 11, 1684.
Marsey, born 13, 10, 1686.
Phebe, born 9, 12, 1690.

John and Elizabeth Adams were Friends or Quakers; and were both living in 1690; do not know where they died. In 1678 John gave a long narrative of his being a persecutor of Friends in New England when he was a constable; He was a sober young man, but full of vanity. He was a member of the Independent Congregational Church for many years; he had a wife and children there, but by God"s Providence he was brought to Flushing; having first taken from him his dear wife Joane. He went to sea at her decease for two years.

John Adams was converted to Quakerism by the preaching of John Burnyeat and John Stubbs, preachers in New England [which then included Long Island east of Oyster Bay.] John had meetings at his house. In 1667 he was a leading member of the Meeting at Flushing. In 1684 the meeting lent him some money to pay for a negro he had bought as a loborer on his farm. His name appears in Meeting records in 1667—1673. In 1691 he sold his farm at Bayside, Flushing, to John Rodman, of Block Island." [end of Onderdonk information]

In a subsequent letter Mr. Onderdonk says, in reply to the suggestion that Joane and Jane were identical names:
"Joane and Jane I think to be the same name. John and Elzabeth Adams exchanged their farm of 130 acres in Flushing, for house, 500 Acres of land and £190 cash, in West New Jersey, June 4, 1691. John's confession, in which he gives an account of his life, was made to the Meeting. He was charged with going over to the Ranters, a noisy faction of Friends. He retracts his error, and therein gives a long account of his opinions, and how God controlled his actions, &c. &c. It was a case of discipline, and of course not printed. I copied all of it that was not torn off years ago, because I thought it so interesting; and so with the births; and you are the first that has applied to me for that knowledge."

John² Adam's last child, Rebecca, by his first wife, Joane, was born Feb 13, 1661, probably 1661-62, and his first child, John, by his second wife, Elizabeth, was born Aug. 17, 1664. His wife Jane, or Joane, probably died soon after the birth of Rebecca, as he states in the document quoted by Mr. Onderdonk, that he went to sea for two years after the death of his first wife, before settling at Flushing.

NOTE —In compiling this article use has been made of extracts from records and other information furnished by Messrs. J. H. Haatch, of North Marsfield, and Charles E. Bailey, of South Scituate, whose manuscripts have been deposited by me in the library of the New England historic, Genalogical Society. The compiler also acknowledges her indebtedness to Mr. Onderdonk and to Miss Macia A. Thomas.

Cambridge, Mass. C. B. E. compiler.

This ends the Article from the New England Historical and Genalogical Register, 33: 410-413