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JOHN WOODEN (by 1625–1694/1721)
John Wooden (Woodin) was probably born by 1625. He was probably living in 1694, but probably died long before 1721 in South Carolina. He married first Mary Unknown. She probably died by 4 March 1649/50. John married second Mary Unknown by 6 March 1652/3. He married third Mary Unknown before 26 March 1692. She was born about 1642.
In a record of her death in 1690 in Newport, Lawrence Clinton's wife [Mary, the daughter of John] is called the "nephew" of John Johnson, suggesting that her mother was the sister of John Johnson of Rhode Island, the son of Edmund and Mary Johnson of Hampton. Edmund and Mary had children named Dorcas and Peter, as did John and Mary Wooden. Delaney argues that it is likely that John's second wife and the mother of all his children is Mary Johnson. (A less plausible explanation is that she was the daughter of Mary Johnson (Sr.) by a previous husband.) [1]
Delorey points out that one impediment to the view that Mary was the daughter of Edmund Johnson is that no Mary Wooden appears in the 1692 agreement about the settlement of his estate. However, Delorey argues that the she may have been dead by then. She says that on 29 March 1692, testimony was heard from Mary Woding, age about 50, and Hannah Wooding, age 22, who refers to her father John Wooding. This Mary was apparently born about 1642, and could not have been the mother of John's first child, born in 1653. Thus, John must have had a third wife Mary; his second wife having died before then.
Anderson objects to the theory that John Wooden's second wife was the daughter of Edmund Johnson, but in doing so he says John Wooden's first child was born on 6 March 1642/3, an apparent error, which if true would make Mary to old to be plausibly a child of Edmund Johnson. [2] Mary could have been born in 1635, had her first child at 18, her last at 40 and not been too old to have been a child of Edmund's.
The itinerant brickmaker John Woodin is a most confusing ancestor. Fortunately, Delorey makes sense of the many records pertaining to him. She cautions that he is not to be confused with John Woodham of Ipswich—a bricklayer who also had a wife named Mary—or John Wotton/Wooten of Strawberry Bank.
John signed a petition in Hampton, New Hampshire, on 7 March 1643, suggesting that he was at least 18 years old at the time and, thus, born by 1625. [1] He was probably living in Beverly in 1694 when his son John was referred to as John, Jr. [1] Administration on his estate was granted to Samuel Gaskell of Salem, who was married to Bethiah, the daughter of the deceased, on 30 June 1721. His probate file says that he was formerly of Haverhill and died in Carolina. His son Ithamar had a warrant for 500 acres in Berkeley County, South Carolina on 23 July 1697; hence, it was undoubtedly South Carolina. [1]
Mary Wooden was a witness for Reverend Stephen Batchelder on 12 February 1644/5. [3] Mr. Edward Hill was fined eight pounds and bound for good behavior "for great abuses offered to three several women" at the 4 (9) 1645 Essex County court. Witnesses were ___ Wilcox and his wife, Hester Biggs, and Mary Woodin. [4] Yet, John's wife Mary was having children in the 1670s. Delorey argues that John was married to more than one Mary. The first wife Mary does not appear in the 4 March 1649/50 seating arrangement of the Hampton meeting house and Delorey argues that she was probably dead by then.
As previously noted, John first appears in the records in 1643 in Hampton. He purchased 15 acres there from the widow Mary Hussey on 25 (2) 1648 for three pounds. She had the right to use ten acres during her lifetime (possibly suggesting a to-be-discovered familial connection). [5][6] John must have moved to Haverhill as early as 7 June 1652, when he was granted land there. [1][5] His daughter Mary was born there on 6 March 1652. He apparently moved back to Hampton as his daughter Martha's birth was recorded there on 12 February 1654. He sold sold the land he bought from Mary Hussey to Thomas Coleman on 27 July 1657. [6] He probably left Hampton for Salisbury about then, where his children Sarah and John were born.
John worked for John Cutts in 1660 in Portsmouth. [3] On 29 April 1660 John Wooden and Edward Belcher on behalf of John Cutts were given possession of a house and land at Oyster River (Dover), New Hampshire. [1] He was on a 7 (10) 1663 rating list at Dover. [1] John petitioned the General Court for land. In its 15 May 1667 response, the court said, "In answer to the peticon of John Wooddin, of Portsmouth ... having been an aucient planter, above thirty two years standing, & a large family of children, and never had one ffoot of land given him, but forced to remove from place to place ... judge it meete to grant him one hundred & fifty acres." [1] He was granted land in what is now Methuen. [1]
John's daughter Hannah was born in Newbury on 20 October 1669. He moved to Rowley by 1671. John Woodin, brick maker of Rowley, traded six acres of land in the north plain in Hampton for land in Hampton. This was acknowledged on 20 (2) 1671. [5] He appears to have briefly resided in Haverhill and then moved to Beverly. On 4 (1) 1679/80 he was admitted to the first church in Beverly upon dismissal from the church in Haverhill. Goody Wooden was admitted to full communion on 1 (5) 1683. [1] In 1679 John was one of the inhabitants of Beverly who objected to being forced to become a resident of Wenham. [4]
It is unknown when John went to South Carolina. If he was in Beverly in 1694, he may have been over 70 when he departed. He presumably went with his son Ithamar, or perhaps his possible son Thomas.
Administration on his estate was granted to the husband of his daughter Bethina in 1721. [3]
Children of John and Mary Wooden: The order of Samuel, Ithamar, Bethiah and Thomas is uncertain.
i. Mary Wooden was born on 6 March 1652/3 in Haverhill. [5] She died in 1690 in Newport. She entered a bigamous marriage (see below) with Lawrence Clinton on 9 February 1680/1 in Providence. [7] Lawrence Clinton of Ipswich was possibly born about 1643. [7] He died after 25 October 1704. [7] He married first Rachel Haffield in December 1665. [7] Rachel, the daughter of Richard and Martha Hatfield was about 13 years older than Lawrence. [7] She petitioned for divorce on 12 October 1681, which was granted. [7] Lawrence married third Margaret (Painter) Morris. [7] Margaret, the daughter of Shubael and Mercy (Lamberton) Painter was born about 1666. [7] She married third Jeremiah Mott. [7]
Lawrence Clinton and Mary Wooden were charged with fornication and sentenced to be whipped at the 25 September 1677 Essex county court. The court received fines from Lawrence Clinton, Mary Wooden and others during the September term 1677. [4]
Lawrence Clinton, a servant of Robert Cross, was in Ipswich in 1665 or a bit earlier. Lawrence, who was about 22, formed an attachment to an older woman, 36-year-old Rachel Haffield. Lawrence and Rachel married after Rachel bought out the remainder of Lawrence's time with Robert Cross. There were lengthy legal proceedings over whether or not the money used belonged to Rachel or to her mother and at one point Rachel—who appears to have been a rather disturbed individual—appeared to get cold feet about the marriage. Rachel fared badly in an inheritance battle and was left destitute. Lawrence was presented to the court in the summer of 1670 for attempting to abuse or ravish Mary Knowles and ordered to support and live with his wife. In 1671 Rachel complained of lack of support and Lawrence was ordered to support her or go to jail and Rachel was ordered to act as a wife to Lawrence. In September 1676 Mary Greeley, a maid servant, was convicted of fornication with Lawrence and subsequently gave birth to an illegitimate child. Lawrence was then accused of fornicating with Mary Wooden and both were sentenced to be severely whipped. In 1678 Mary and Lawrence had an illegitimate son Lawrence. Mary and Lawrence wed in Providence in February 1681—even though Lawrence was still married to Rachel. The court granted Rachel a divorce in October 1681 and Mary and Lawrence moved to Newport, where Mary had a daughter and died. Rachel was later accused of witchcraft and imprisoned for several months. Released in 1693 she supposedly lived out the rest of her life in a hut on Hog Island near Ipswich harbor. [7][8]
The records of the Rhode Islands Friends say, "___Clenton ye wife of Laurance Clenton: she Departed this Life, (aged about 35 yeares:) in newporte one Rhoad Island ye __: day 11 mo 1690, she was nephew to John Johnson." [7]
Lawrence last appears in the records in a suit brought to oust him from half a house and half a lot on 28 March 1704 in Newport. The judgment was for the plaintiff, but Lawrence appealed. The verdict was confirmed on 25 October 1704. [7]
ii. Martha Wooden was born on 12 February 1654 in Hampton. [5][6] She died after 14 June 1722. She married John Raymond. [1] John, the son of John and Rachel (Scruggs) died on 5 June 1725, age 76, in Middleborough. [1]
Martha was living on 14 June 1722 when she was described as the wife of John Raymond when some of her siblings conveyed land they held because of their father John Wooden. [1]
iii. Sarah Wooden was born on 31 (11) or the "last day Feb." 1656/[7?] in Salisbury. [9] She married first as his second wife John Edwards. [1] He was the John Edwards, Sr., mason of Wenham who was born about 1644, the son of Rice and Joan Edwards, and who died on 28 August 1697 in Wenham. [1] He married first Mary Solart. [1] Sarah married second as his second wife Joseph Doty on 5 March 1711/2 in Rochester*. [1]
iv. John Wooden was born on 7 (8) 1659 in Salisbury. [9] He died before 4 September 1733, when he was referred to as deceased. [1] He married as her second husband Katherine (Heard) Littlefield. [1] Katherine was the daughter of James and Shua (Starbuck) Heard and the widow of James Littlefield. [1] James was probably the son of Francis Littlefield. Her first husband was killed by Indians in May 1690. [1] As John was over 30 when he married Katherine, he may have had an earlier wife. [1]
A 19 November 1681 account by the administrators of the estate of Samuel Symonds shows a charge of 23 pounds and 10 shillings for the service of John Wooden as an apprentice. [4]
John Wooden "now resident in Salem," husbandman, acknowledged receipt of 12 pounds payment from the sale of an 80-acre parcel of land in Wells, York county, Maine on 3 April 1701. [10]
On 14 June 1725 John Wooden of Salem, yeoman, and Katherine Wooden his wife, daughter of James Heard, late of Kittery, quitclaimed their right to a share of his estate. [10]
v. Samuel Wooden was born say 1661. [1] He died before 9 November 1685. He married Martha Unknown.
Inventory on the estate of Samuel Wooden of Wenham was presented on 9 November 1685. It amounted to a mere 11 pounds and ten shillings. His widow Martha Wooden renounced administration and asked to court to appoint her brother-in-law John Edwards. [4]
vi. Ithamar Wooden was born say 1663. [1] He probably died in South Carolina after 11 April 1702. [1] He married Bethiah Unknown. [3]
vii. Bethiah Wooden was born say 1666. [1] She was a alive—probably at Salem—on 4 February 1725/6. [1] She married Samuel Gaskill, Jr. [11] Samuel the son of Samuel and Provided (Southwick) Gaskill, was born on 23 (11) 1663/4 in Salem and died, probably at Salem, between 1 September 1725, when he wrote his will, and 22 October 1725, when it was proved. [1]
viii. Thomas Wooden (possible son) [1]
ix. Hannah Wooden was born on 20 October 1669 in Newbury. [3] She died on 12 January 1747/9 in Medford. [1] She married James Tufts on 1 July 1696 in Wells, Maine. [1] James, the son of Jonathan and Rebecca (Waite), died by 16 April 1722. [1]
Hannah Wooden testified that she was about 17 in either 1685 or 1686. [4]
x. Dorcas Wooden was born on 10 February 1671/[2?] in Rowley. She may have died by 3 July 1729. She married Anthony Coombs.
xi. Peter Wooden was born on 13 March 1674 in Rowley. [3][4] He died on 17 May 1717 in Rochester. [3] He married Elizabeth Mallett on 15 October 1696 in Beverly. [3] Elizabeth, the daughter of Hosea and Grace Mallett, was born on 19 April 1678 in Boston. [1]
Peter was described as a mariner of Beverly on 1 December 1712. [1]
References:
1. Janet Ireland Delorey, "John Woodin, Brickmaker of New Hampshire, Massachusetts and South Carolina," The American Genealogist 64 (1989), 65–74, 150–6, 238–45.
2. "Great Migration, 1634–1635, I–L," digitized book, originally published as Robert Charles Anderson, The Great Migration to New England, 1634–1635, Volume IV, I–L (Boston: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2005), 64–65.
3. Charles Thornton Libby, Genealogical Dictionary of Maine and New Hampshire (Portland, ME: Southward Press, 1928), 769.
4. "Records and Files of the Quarterly Courts of Essex County," Salem Witch Trials: Documentary Archive and Transcription Project (http://salem.lib.virginia.edu/17docs.html), vol. 1: 89; vol. 5: 440–1; vol. 6: 338; vol. 7: 157; vol. 8: 18–19, 228, 307; vol. 9: 562–3, 604.
5. "Old Norfolk County Records," Essex Antiquarian, various issues, 1 (1897): 22, 116; 3 (1899): 139; 4 (1900): 141; 5(1901): 47; 8 (1904): 178–9.
6. Joseph Dow, History of the Town of Hampton, New Hampshire, vol. 2 (Salem, MA: Salem Press, 1893), 759, 1046.
7. Mrs. E.J. Clinton and Donald Lines Jacobus, "The Clinton Family of Connecticut," New England Historical and Genealogical Register 69 (1915): 60–63, specifically 50–53.
8. John Putnam Demos, Entertaining Satan: Witchcraft and the Culture of Early New England (New York: Oxford University Press, 1982).
9. Vital Records of Salisbury, Massachusetts: To the End of the Year 1849 (Topsfield: Topsfield Historical Society, 1915), 256, children of John and Mary.
10. "Maine: Early Wills and Deeds, 1640–1760," database with images, AmericanAncestors (2009), vol. 6:170–1; vol. 18: 204–5.
11. Nora Emma Snow, The Snow-Estes Ancestry (Hillburn, NY: Snow, 1939).
Last revised: 13-Jan-2024