Ezekiel Richardson

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Ezekiel Richardson (1604–1647)

Susanna Unknown (d. 1681)

Ezekiel Richardson, the son of Thomas Richardson and Katherine Duxford, was born about 1604, probably in West Mill, Herfordshire. [1] He died on 21 October 1647 in Woburn. [1] He married Susanna Unknown by 1632.

Susanna married second Henry Brooks by 27 March 1651. [1] Susanna, the wife of Henry Brooks, died on 15 September 1681 in Woburn. [2]

Ezekiel Richardson and his wife came to New England in 1630 on the Arabella and settled in Charlestown. [2] He moved to Woburn in 1640. [1]

Ezekiel and his wife were admitted to the church in Boston in the winter of 1630/1 and were admitted to the church in Charlestown as founding members on 2 November 1633. [1]

Ezekiel was a deputy to the general court from Charlestown in 1635. He was a commissioner to for small causes on 10 May 1643 in Woburn. He was on a committee to lay out a highway between Cambridge and Woburn on 10 May 1643. He was a selectman and constable. He was on committees to regulate wages and stint the commons. [1]

On 15 November 1637 Ezekiel was one of eight Charlestown men who admitted their error in signing a petition in favor of Wheelwright and were permitted to remove their names. [1]

Ezekiel signed his will on 20 July 1647; it was proved on 1 June 1648. He mentioned his wife Susanna, his eldest son Theophilus, his underage sons Josias and James, his daughter Phebe and his brothers Samuel and Thomas Richardson. [1]

There is no baptismal record for Ezekiel. Perhaps he was baptized in Standon. He is not mentioned in his father's will. Perhaps he had received his portion and used it to finance his passage to New England.

Children of Ezekiel and Susanna Richardson:

i. Phebe Richardson was baptized on 3 June 1632 in Boston. [1] She died on 13 September 1716. [3] She married Henry Baldwin on 1 November 1649 in Woburn. [4, 3:1] He died on 14 February 1697/8. [3]

ii. Theophilus Richardson was baptized on 22 December 1633 in Charlestown. [1] He died on 28 December 1674. [3] He married Mary Champney on 2 May 1654 in Woburn. [4, 3:2] Mary died on 28 August 1704. [3] She married second John Brooks on 25 February 1683/4. [3]

iii. Josiah Richardson was baptized on 7 November 1635 in Charlestown. He died on 22 July 1695 in Chelmsford. He married Remembrance Underwood.

iv. John Richardson was baptized on 21 July 1638 in Charlestown. [1] He died on 7 January 1642 in Woburn. [4, 2:157]

v. Jonathan Richardson was baptized on 13 February 1639/40 in Charlestown. [1] There is no further record of him. [1]

vi. Lieutenant James Richardson was baptized on 11 July 1641 in Charlestown. [1] He was killed on 29 June 1677 in battle at Scarborough in King Philip's War. He married Bridget Hincksman on 28 November 1660 in Chelmsford. [5, 308] She married second William Chandler of Andover on 8 October 1679. [3]

vii. Ruth Richardson was born on 23 August 1643 in Woburn. [4, 1:210] She died on 7 September 1643 in Woburn. [4, 2:157]

viii. Ruth Richardson [2]

Endnotes:

1. "The Great Migration Begins: Immigrants to New England 1620–1633, Volumes I-III," digitized book, AmericanAncestors.org, originally published as: Robert Charles Anderson, The Great Migration Begins: Immigrants to New England 1620-1633, 3 volumes (Boston: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1995), 1580–3.

2. "A line of Dependants of Ezekiel and Susanna (Bradford) Richardson," New England Historical and Genealogical Register 98 (1890): 363–411.

3. Walter Goodwin Davis, Massachusetts and Maine Families in the Ancestry of Walter Goodwin Davis, vol. 3 (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1996), 216–8.

4. Edward Francis Johnson, Woburn Records of Births, Deaths, and Marriages, Part 1 (births), Part 2, (deaths) Part 3 (marriages) (Woburn: Andrew Cutlery & Co., 1890).

5. Vital Records of Chelmsford, Massachusetts: To the End of the Year 1849 (Salem: Essex Institute, 1914).

Revised 13-Nov-2023-->