Henry Adams

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Henry Adams (1583–1646)

Edith Squire (bp. 1587–1673)

English Ancestry of Henry Adams [3, 27–46]

Henry Adams was descended from husbandmen who lived in the small village of Barton David, Somersetshire. His great-grandfather was John Adams, who was probably born about 1500/5 and who had a wife named Alice. His grandfather Henry was born about 1531 and died before 12 August 1596 when his son John administered his estate. John—the father our Henry—was born about 1555 and was buried on 22 March 1603/4. He married about 1576 Agnes Unknown, possibly Agnes Stone. She was buried on 15 January 1615/6.

Henry Adams was born on 21 January 1583 in Barton, St. David, Somersetshire. [1] He died on 6 October 1646 in Braintree (now Quincy), Massachusetts. [1] He married Edith Squire on 19 October 1609 in Charlton Mackrell, Somersetshire. [1]

Edith Squire was baptized on 29 May 1587 in Charlton Mackrell, Somersetshire. [1] She died on 21 January 1672/3 in Medfield. She married second John Fussell in 1651. [1]

Henry made his will in 1646; it was proved on 8 (4) 1647. He mentioned his wife and children Peter, John, Ursual, Joseph, Edward, and Samuel. Inventory on his estate amounted to about 75 pounds. [2]

English Ancestry of Edith Squire

Edith's grandfather, Reverend William Squire, was born as early as 1520 and was rector of Charlton Mackrell as early as 1545. He probably died in 1567. He had children Willim, born about 1551, Andrew, born about 1555, Francis, born about 1559 and Henry, born about 1563. Edith's father Henry was a husbandman and blacksmith. He probably died in Kingweston. [3, 52–55] He had daughters:

Edith Squire
Sarah Squire was baptized on 6 April 1589. [3, 55] She married Robert Batt on 1 November 1613 in Charlton Mackrell. [3, 55]
Anne Squire was baptized on 30 November 1591. [3, 55] She died on 20 December 1662. She married Aquila Purchase on 28 July 1613/4 and went to New England with him in 1633. [3, 55] She married second Thomas Oliver. [3, 55]
Margaret Squire was baptized on 25 April 1596. She married John Shepard on 29 April 1630 in Kingweston. [RCA]
Frances Squire was born on 3 February 1598/9.

Children of Henry Adams and Edith Squire:

i. Lieutenant Henry Adams was born in 1610. [3, 72–73] He married Elizabeth Paine on 17 November 1643. [3, 72–73] Elizabeth, the daughter of Moses and Elizabeth Paine, was baptized on 23 July 1620 in Tenderton, County Kent. [3, 72–73] Both Henry and Elizabeth died in the Indian attack on Medfield during King Philip's War, Henry on 21 February 1675/6 and Elizabeth a day later. [3, 72–73]

ii. Lieutenant Thomas Adams was baptized on 25 March 1612 in Barton St. David. He died on 20 July 1688. He married Mary Unknown.

iii. Jonathan Adams was born about 1614 and he died on 28 July 16 [3, 75] 90 in Medfield. [3, 75] He married first Joane Close on 7 February 1638/9 in Baltonsborough, Somersetshire. [3, 75] He married second Elizabeth Holman about 1665 in New England. Elizabeth, the daughter of William and Winifred Holman, was born on 19 May 1644 in Cambridge. [3, 75]

Jonathan remained in England when the rest of his family emigrated. He later arrived in New Enbland, probably in 1651, and settled in Medfield. [3, 75]

iv. Captain Samuel Adams was born about 1616/7. [3, 76–77] He died on 24 January 1688/9. [3, 76–77] He married first Mary Englesfield about 1646. [3, 76–77] Mary, the daughter of Emmanuel and Susannah (Gray) Englesfield of London, died in 1650. [3, 76–77] Samuel married second Mary's cousin Rebecca Graves about 1651. [3, 76–77] Rebecca, the daughter of Captain Thomas and Katherine (Gray) Graves, was born about 1631 and died on 8 September 1664 in Chelmsford. [3, 76–77] Samuel married third Esther Sparhawk on 7 May 1668 in Chelmsford. [3, 76–77] Esther, the daughter of Deacon Nathaniel and Mary (Angier) Sparhawk of Cambridge was born in 1636 and died in 1692. [3, 76–77]

v. Ursula Adams was born about 1619. [3, 78] She married first Stephen Streeter of Charlestown about 1640. [3, 78] She married second Samuel Hosier of Watertown on 13 October 1657. [3, 78] She married third William Robinson of Dorchester about 1666. [3, 78] She married fourth Griffen Crafts of Roxbury. [3, 78]

Detailed records for Ursula Adams can be found in the Streeter Family Bible records. In the late 1920s Milford Streeter placed an advertisement offering to buy the bible mentioned in the inventory of Stephen Streeeter, taken in 1652. He related that John Haynes Goodwin responded to his ad, saying that he had found an old bible in a used bookstore, printed in Edinburgh in 1693, with Streeter records. While clearly not the bible in question, Mr. Streeter purchased a copy of the records from Mr. Goodwin. A later attempt to locate the bible in the bookstore was not succesful. Mr. Streeter published a transcription of the copy of the bible records in the New England Historical and Genealogical Register in 1931. Some of these records are known to be erroneous. At worst, the story is a fabrication or the bible was fraudulent and none of the records that do not exist elsewhere are true. At best, the records are a transcription of a copy of records that were copied into the bible long after the events occurred. The records (now copied once again here) say that Ursula Adams was born on 19 July 1619. She married first Stephen Streeter (born 9 January 1600) on 5 October 1640. She married second Samuel Hosier (born 1 January 1614) on 13 October 1657. She married third William Robinson (born 9 January 1615) on 21 August 1666. She married fourth Griffin Crafts (born 21 May 1600) on 15 July 1673. [4]

vi. Peter Adams was born in 1621 and died in 1690 in Medfield. [3, 79] He married Rachel Unknown abouat 1650. [3, 79]

vii. John Adams was baptized on 10 December 1622 in Kingweston, Somerset. [3, 51] He died in 1706 in Menotomy in Cambridge. [3, 88]

viii. Joseph Adams was born in 1626 in Kingweston. [3, 90–91] He died on 6 December 1694 in Braintree. [3, 90–91] He married Abigail Baxter on 2 November 1650. [3, 90–91] Abigail, the daughter of Gregory and Margaret (Paddy) Baxter, died odn 27 August 1692. [3, 90–91]

Joseph was the great-grandfather of President John Adams. [1][3, 94–102]

Joseph Adams
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Joseph Adams (1654–1737) and Hannah Bass (1667–1705), granddaughter of John Alden of the Mayflower
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Deacon John Adams (1691–1761) and Susanna Boylston (1709–1797)
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John Adams, President of the United States

ix. Edward Adams was baptized on 19 April 1629 in Kingweston, Somerset. [1] He died on 12 November 1716 in Medfield. [1] He married first Lydia Penniman about 1652. [1] Lydia, the daugher of James and Lydia (Eliot) Penniman, was born on 22 February 1634/5 in Boston and died on 3 March 1675/6 in Medfield. [1] Edward married second Abigail (Craft) (Ruggles) Day on 7 December 1678 in Dedham. [1] Abigail, the daughter of Griffin and Alice Crafts, was born on 28 March 1634 in Roxbury and died on 19 January 1706/7 in Medfield. [1] She married first John Ruggles and second Ralph Day. [1] Edward married third Sarah Taylor on 1709/10 in Medfield. [1]

Edward was the seven-times great-grandfather of Leka I, King (Claimant) of Albania: [1]

John Adams (1658–1751) → Daniel Adams (1686–1772) → Abigail Adams (1736–1810) → Seth Harding (1782–1825) → Edward Learned Harding (1822–1885) → Mary Virginia Ramsay Harding (1871–1962?) → Gladys Virginia Steuart (1891?–1947) → Geraldine, Countess Apponyi de Nagy-Appony (b. 1915) m. Zog I, King of Albania → Leka I.

Endnotes:

1. Wm Addams Reitwiesner, "A Hitherto Unnoted Descendant of Henry Adams of Braintree: Leka I, King (Claimant) of Albania," The American Genealogist, vol. 53 (1977), 18–20.

2. "Will of Henry Adams," New England Historical and Genealogical Register 7 (1835): 35.

3. J. Gardner Bartlett, Henry Adams of Somersetshire, England and Braintree, Mass. (New York: privately printed, 1927).

4. Milford B. Streeter, "Streeter-Adams Family Records From a Streeter Family Bible," New England Historical and Genealogical Register 85 (1931): 382–5.

Revised 08-Jun-2023