Sunday, June 30, 2013

Sarah Shannon and Jeramiah Leavitt; From Chester, N.H to 12 Mile Grove, IL

Sarah Shannon Leavitt my Mormon Connection
The story of Jeremiah and Sarah Shannon Leavitt is pretty well spelled out on the internet. In fact there are National Organizations of Leavitt Families which have done a fantastic job of studying the Leavitt Family since the arrival in America of our ancestor John Leavitt.  I don't have anything new to add to it and I am working backwards from the marriage of Sally Leavitt and William Rowell from a previous post.  If this gets too confusing I might reverse and start from the begining, but for now here is what I know about Sally Leavitt Rowell's parents.

beginnings
Jeremiah Leavitt was born on 10 July 1760 in Exeter, New Hampshire.  His parents were Nathaniel Leavitt and Lydia Sanborn.  Sarah, his wife, was born in 1766 in Chester, NH and her parents were Thomas Shannon and Anne Rand.  The two families were probably well known to each other.  In the 1790 census, the Shannon family is listed just above the Leavitts. Towns were large in size but small in population.

Jeremiah and Sarah were mostly likely married in Chester, NH in the mid 1780's, she was born and raised in Chester and that is where both their families were living. They were not married in Hatley, Quebec as is frequently seen in ancestry.com trees.  By 1790 they had two children as shown in the  Chester census. In 1800 Jeremiah, his father and several of his brothers were residents of Grantham, New Hampshire.  He and Sarah had seven children. Including Sarah (Sally) who would one day marry William Rowell. William was then living in Plainfield, NH just a few miles away and it is not to big a stretch to say that the families might have known each other.

canada
In 1792 the Government of Canada opened up the Eastern Townships for settlement, Americans looking for new land crossed the border and began the back breaking work of clearing and farming virgin land. Jeremiah left New Hampshire and began farming in Hatley, Quebec, Canada sometime after 1800.  Hatley is only about 15 miles from the US border, so they were able to keep a close connection with America. Samuel Thornton, another ancestor, also left New Hampshire and settled in Hatley for a while.  His grandson would marry Jeremiah's great grand daughter in 1885.

Jeremiah and Sarah had three more children after their arrival in Canada, although one of them was born in Vermont.  He and his five growing sons farmed their land until his death at age 57 in 1817. Life continued as usual after Jeremiah's death.  His children married and started their own families.  Sarah probably lived with one of her son's on their land.

mormons
At some time in the mid 1830's the Leavitt family came in contact with the Book of Mormon.  Many of them became ardent converts, and about 1835 a large group of them left Canada and headed into the American West to join up with the "Saints".  According to Sarah the wife of Jeremiah Jr. about 23 of them left on 20 July, 1835, including her mother in law Sarah Shannon Leavitt, heading for Kirtland, Ohio.

The group stopped in Kirtland for a while before moving on to 12 Mile Grove in Illinois. That was the end of the line for 74 year Sarah, she died there in 1840.  Many of her children and grandchildren had died or would die the next few years as they made their way into Utah.

While I cannot say I understand the attraction to the Mormon beliefs that led many of these people to subject themselves and their children to that arduous journey which resulted in the early death of so many of them, I do admire their drive and determination. However, I am glad that my ancestor chose to stay in Vermont.

children of sarah and jeremiah
 1.  Weare  b. abt. 1785 Chester m. 1. Abigail Cowles 2. Phoebe Cowles d. 1839 age 51 Twelve Mile        Grove, Illinois
 2. Nathaniel b. abt 1790 Chester m. Deborah Delano d. 1838 age 48 White Pigeon, Michigan
 3. Josiah b. 1792 Chester/Grantham, never married,  d. 1838 Sturgess Prairie, Michigan
 4. Lydia b. 1794  Chester/Grantham m. Thomas Rowell d. 1846 New Hampshire
 5. Jeremiah b.  abt. 1796 poss. Grantham m. Sarah Sturdevant d. August 1846 Iowa
 6. Sarah (Sally) b. abt. 1797 Grantham,  m. William Rowell d. 1873 Albany, Vermont
 7. John b. 27 July 1798 Grantham, m. Lucy Rowell d. 1852 Cambria, Michigan
 8. Rebecca b. 27 Sept. 1802 Hatley, Quebec, m. Frank Chamerlain d. Feb 1892
 9. Betsy b. 1804 Hatley, Quebec, m. James Adams d. 1848 Council Bluffs, Iowa
10. Hannah b. 26 Dec 1805 Hatley, Quebec m. Horace Fish d. 1876 Utah

Tuesday, June 25, 2013

Enoch Converse and Viola Rowell of Albany, Vermont

Enoch C. Rowell
beginnings
Enoch and Viola were first cousins who married in 1865, he was 29 and she 27.  Viola's father, and most of his siblings, had left New Hampshire for open land in Vermont. Enoch's father had remained in Plainfield, NH where he died in 1850 when Enoch was 15.  Enoch left Plainfield to live with his Uncle William in Albany, VT.  William's only son had died the same year, so Enoch was probably seen as a blessing on a "sonless"  family.  
Enoch took over William's prosperous farm in East Albany.  In the 1870 census, William Rowell appears to be one of the wealthiest men in the area.  On the farm they grew wheat, corn, potatoes and sugar maples trees.  He also had sheep and cattle. By the time Enoch was running the farm business they had five employees.  
William, Jennie and Mary 

children
1.William Wallace b. 1865 Albany, m. Cora Grant d. 1940 Hardwick
2. Jennie Clover b. 1867 Albany, m. John C. Thornton, d. 1966 Brookline, MA
3. Mary Viola b. 1869 Albany, never married, d. 1963 Brookline, MA 

life
In the 1880 census, Enoch's son William, age 14, is working on the farm, his sisters are "at school". Presumably, William had completed his education. There are three hired farm workers and one female servant on the farm. The 1890 census has been destroyed so there is no further census info until 1900.  34 year old William is the head of household, Enoch, Viola and William's sister Mary Viola make up the household.  They continue to employ farm hands, and now have a 17 year old female servant, Cora Grant, the future wife of William.  Wonder what his parents thought of that. 
Viola Rowell

Enoch, like his uncles before him, participated in town and state politics and was also selected to the State House of Representatives.  He apparently was a member of the Masonic Lodge and held the rank of Captain in the Vermont Militia in 1866.

rip
Enoch died 12 days after the 1900 census was taken, he was only 64.  According to his death record he died of cirrhosis of the liver. Viola lived until 1914 at age 76.  Her death record says she died of "old age". Surprisingly, she died in Hardwick, VT some 18 miles to the south of Albany. It seems that William had given up or lost the farm and was by 1910 an Ice Dealer in Hardwick. Viola died at his home. 

Enoch and Viola were buried in the Rowell Cemetery in Albany.
taken by Barb Deschamp for Findagrave.com
My Rowell Family Ancestry with links:
Thomas Rowell of Mancetter, England
Valentine Rowell and Joanna Pinder
Phillip Rowell and Sarah Morrill        Phillip Rowell and Anne Carr
John Rowell and Elizabeth Colby
Enoch Rowell and Mirriam Converse
Enoch Rowell and Rachel Worthen
Samuel Duncan Rowell and Mary Moore
William Rowell and Sarah "Sally" Leavitt
Enoch Converse Rowell and Viola Rowell
Jennie Clover Rowell and John C. Thornton
Paul Rowell Thornton and Elizabeth Marjory Bowker


Saturday, June 22, 2013

William Rowell of Albany, Vermont

William Rowell and his brother Samuel Duncan Rowell were both my 3rd Great Grandfathers.  Their children, Viola and Enoch, married, and I am descended through their daughter Jennie Clover. It is illegal today for first cousins to marry, but apparently it was still acceptable in those days. 

origins
William was born on 23 January 1789 in Candia, New Hampshire, the sixth child of Enoch and Rachel Worthen Rowell.  By 1790 Enoch had moved the family to Grantham, NH and then on to Plainfield where Enoch and Rachel lived for the remainder of their lives. Most of their children would, however, leave for Vermont. 

vermont
In the 1810 census William's brother Enoch is shown living in Irasburg, he had married six years earlier and had started a family. But the census shows three adults over the age of 25.  I suspect that one of the adults might have been William. 

By 1811 William and his brother Enoch were in Albany, then known as Lutterloh.  Together they bought two lots of land on a farm previously owned by Silas Downer.  They apparently set up a still and made "potato whiskey" to pay for the land.  After distilling the specified number of barrels of whiskey, they shut down their still and took up farming. The main crops grown in and around Albany at that time were wheat, corn, hay and sugar maples.  There was also quite a bit of sheep raised for wool.

Almost all of William's siblings would end up in and around Albany. Page one of the 1830 Albany census starts with William, followed by Enoch.  Several names down from them is Converse. Eliphalet is on page three and their brother Daniel is on page 5. Their sister Sarah (Sally) and her husband Hiram Moore were married in Plainfield in 1830 but were in Albany, VT by 1832.  Their twin sisters Polly and Mirriam also came to Albany, Mirriam remained single but Mary married, still they were buried together.

marriage and children
On 6 March 1817 William married Sarah Sally Leavitt. Sally's parents were originally from New Hampshire but had move shortly after their marriage to Hatley, Quebec, Canada, where she was born. Albany is quite near the Canadian border and there were many cross border marriages.  William and Sally had five children, four girls and a boy.  By the time of the 1850 census only two girls were living, the rest having died. In fact his only son had died just prior to the census taking. 

Another death occurred in the family in 1850 which would have an impact of William's family.  His brother Samuel, who had remained in Plainfield, NH died in July.  His wife Polly had died  five years earlier, so their younger children were left orphans.  His fifteen year old nephew Enoch Converse Rowell came to live with him the following year, 1851.  On 24 January 1865 Enoch married William's youngest daughter Viola. 

1. Philena b. 27 April 1819  m. 1840 Martin Chamberlain d. 1848 Albany, Vermont
2. Mary b. 6 Oct 1820 d. 1825 age. 5
3. Wallace William b. 16 Oct 1825 d. 11 March 1850 age 25, unmarried
4. Sarah Jane b. 1835 m. David Simpson d. 8 March 1895 Craftsbury, VT
5. Viola b. 23 Sept. 1837   m. Enoch Converse Rowell d. 16 June 1614 Hardwick, VT

In the 1860 census William is the head of the household, living with him and Sally are Viola and Enoch, still single.the land is valued at $4,000. This is significantly more that most of the other local farmers, including his own brothers. In one gazette it said that William had enough cash on hand that he was able to make loans to his neighbors, the article didn't mention whether he charged interest, but I imagine he did. 
In 1870 Enoch was farming the land valued at $8,000 and he have five domestic servants in the household. By 1870 William was 81 years old.  He was probably very content to have his son in law take over the farming and with five servants he and Sally probably had a pretty nice retirement, but that's just my guess.

politics
William was a Selectman for the town of Albany for many years, as were his brothers. He was first elected Selectman in 1813. In 1817 he was on a committee that established the school districts of Albany. In 1850 William served as a State Representative for the town of Albany in the Vermont State Legislature, he had previously been appointed in 1820. 1821 and 1842.

mormons
In 1837 the majority of Sally Leavitt Rowell's family left Canada and headed west to join up with other converts to the Mormon religion.  This must have been difficult for Sally as she would never see any of these brothers and sisters again.  Her mother, Sarah Shannon Leavitt, also joined in this journey, by 1840 three of her brothers were dead as was her mother. 
We have no way of knowing what William and Sally thought of the new religion, if they were tempted to join in with the rest of Sally's family or not.  Sally became a member of the Congregational church in 1840 and her daughter and grandson were members of Congregational churches as well. 

rip
William died in 1781 at the ripe old age of 82, Sally passed away two years later in 1873 at age 76. They were survived by two daughters; Sarah Jane Simpson and Viola Rowell. 

from findagrave.com photo by Barb Deschamp


Related Posts:

Samuel Duncan Rowell
Enoch Rowell and Rachel Worthen
Enoch Rowell and Meriam Converse

Sources:
Abby Maria Hemenway, The Vermont Historical Gazeteer, Vol 3, 1877

Wednesday, June 19, 2013

Eliza, Ugly as Satan

While doing research on a Rowell family member who lived in Plainfield, NH, I came across an interesting entry in the Plainfield Town Record. The year of the entry was 1823 and it was a list of the town Paupers.  The clerk listed each pauper, age and reason for needing the town's support as well as how much each pauper would receive.

From the beginning of the Massachusetts Bay Colony until well into the 19 century the New England towns took responsibility for their poor adults and orphans.  Overseeing the care of the poor was the job of the town Selectmen. But the key to getting this support was to be an actual member of the town. Vagrants were run out of town as soon as the Selectmen got wind of them. The town constable was tasked to "warn out" any newcomers that were not able to demonstrate financial security  New families might have to be sponsored by their neighbors in order to stay and family members were held liable for their kin. 

 Each town had a it's own system for providing welfare.  Some towns would pay another town member to care for them in their home.  In 1668 John and Elizabeth Whitaker of Watertown were paid 10 pounds per year to feed "Old Thorpe" and in addition were allowed to farm his property.  Sometimes the pauper would be auctioned off for the lowest possible cost to another citizen. While Christian charity played some role in this system, I cannot help but believe that the "owner" of the pauper was doing it with the  expectation of labor by the pauper. 

The 1823 roster of paupers includes:

John Stevens, age 88, cause: infirmity  added note: spent his property by speculating and being dishonest

Philip Whitaker, 78, indolence and dishonesty

Reuben Pease, 53, Idiot

Sally Smith, 45 and her two children, her husband has been in jail for two years

But the one that really jumped out at me was the following:

Eliza Harrington age 35 and her child age two, cause: Ugly as Sata____
The town records were hand copied at a later date into a new record book.  The copiest indicated with dashes that they could not read some of the script or it was damaged or missing.  I think that the cause should read "ugly as Satan".  Wow, can you imagine writing that. How horrible for Eliza. I decided to look for Eliza in other records.

In a search on ancestry.com I found who I think is her in the 1850 census, Eliza was 55 and single and living with a family in Plainfield. I also found her death certificate.  Eliza died on 17 September 1875 in Plainfield aged 83 and single. A search on familysearch.org shows  both an 1860 and an 1870 census showing an Elizabeth Harrington, of the correct age, living with a Charles Harrington and his family in Plainfield, NH. This Charles was 41 in 1870 so was too young to have been the child in 1823, but he could have been another illegitimate child or maybe a nephew or cousin. I cannot find anything on her earlier child. 

Going a bit further back, a marriage is recorded on 26 July 1793 of Ezra Harrington and Mary Nash of Plainfield.  This would make them likely candidates for Eliza's parents.  Ezra shows up in the 1800 and 1810 census' for Plainfield, but I cannot find him after that.  

We will never know what Eliza's life was like, but it doesn't sound to good. I hope that Charles was her son and that he loved and respected her, even if she wasn't very attractive.








Saturday, June 15, 2013

Samuel Duncan Rowell and Mary Moore of Plainfield, NH

Samuel Duncan Rowell was born in 1793, ten years after the conclusion of the American Revolution. His birth date places him at a time where, at least for me, it is hardest to find solid information about his life.  It makes it difficult to fill in any details about him other than dates.  I expect, as I start this, that this post will be pretty short, but I'll see what I can come up with. 

origins
Samuel was born, as I said, on 10 July 1793, in Grantham, New Hampshire. His father, Enoch Rowell, had moved there from Candia following the Revolutionary War.  When looking at the town records for Grantham I noticed that one of the most prominent men in town was one Samuel Duncan. He died on 9 July 1793, a day before our Samuel's birth and I would bet a buck that our Samuel Duncan Rowell was named in honor of Lt. Samuel Duncan. 
By 1800 the census shows that the Rowell family had moved one town over to Plainfield, where Samuel would remain for the rest of his life. 

marriage and children
Samuel, like most of his ancestors before him, was a farmer. He married Mary (Polly) Moore on 2 March 1825 in Grantham.  Their first child was born seven months later. They had eight children in all. Of interest to me is that this is the first generation of Rowells that were given middle names, although I do not know what some of them were, just their initial. 

1. Henry Jackson. b. 25 October 1825 Plainfield, unable to trace
2. Judith b. 26 June 1828 Plainfield, m. 1852 James Monroe Gile, d. 1866 Dane, Wisconsin
3. Hiram Jennings b. 9 June 1830 Plainfield, m. Anna McKee, d. 1904 Fishing River, Missouri
4. Emmaline P. b. Feb. 1832 Plainfield, m. Daniel Bowman, d. 1903 Windsor Town, Wisconsin
5. Sarah Ann b. 3 Nov. 1833 Plainfield, m. 4 April 1854 John Gleason in Meridian, NH, d. 1882 Minnesota
6. Enoch Converse b. 1835 Plainfield, m. Viola Rowell his first cousin, d. 1900 Albany, Vt.
7. Julia Ellen. b. 1838 Plainfield, unable to trace.
8. Minerva Jane. b. 1840 Plainfield, unable to trace

rip
Mary, known as Polly, died on 9 August 1845 aged 44, her husband Samuel died five years later on 7 July 1850.  In the 1850 census, taken shortly before Samuel died, all the children lived at home. Their Aunt Rachel Rowell also lives with them. When he died their youngest child was 10, Enoch my ancestor was 15. The children's uncle Jacob Rowell was still living in Plainfield so I imagine he would have taken them in after their father's death.  
Enoch left Plainfield and was in Albany, Vt with his Uncle William by the 1860 census. Three of the girls, Judith, Emmaline and Sarah Ann left Plainfield and headed west with their families, Emmaline died in Dane County, Wisconsin.  Sarah Ann and her family lived there for a while before moving on to Minnesota where she died. 


Samuel Duncan Rowell


Mary (Polly) Moore Rowell

Related Posts:
William Rowell of Albany 
Enoch Rowell and Rachel Worthen
Enoch Rowell and Meriam Converse

Saturday, June 8, 2013

Enoch Rowell Jr. and Rachel Worthen of Candia, New Hampshire

When Enoch and Rachel were married in 1778, they could both look back almost 150 years to the arrival of their ancestors to the shores of North America. Quite a legacy to pass on to their children.  But Enoch himself was a participant in one of America's greatest adventures, the pursuit of an independent country. Both of their fathers, Enoch Rowell Sr. and Jacob Worthen, were soldiers in the American Revolution as was Enoch Jr. himself.  So here we are, 235 years after the marriage of Enoch and Rachel, looking back at the great legacy they left to their descendants. 

beginnings
Enoch was  born in Candia, New Hampshire on 3 July 1756.  The course of his life was seemingly predictable, help with his father's farm, get married, start his own family and farm his own land. But the events of 1775 would change his and the lives all residents of the American Colonies in drastic, unforeseen ways.

Enoch's father was a farmer of modest means who had already seen military service in the French and Indian Wars.  Enoch Jr. would no doubt have participated in militia drills and was probably comfortable with using guns in the procuring of food and possibly the killing of foxes and wolves.  

revolution


In April of 1775 the War of the American Revolution began with the skirmishes in Lexington and Concord. Word spread throughout the colonies like wildfire.  Men began pouring into the area around Boston. In late December of 1775 Enoch Rowell Jr. arrived at Sewall's Point and in January of 1776 he signed on for one years service in Captain Thomas Cogswell's Company and Lt. Col. Loammi Baldwin's Regiment. 

Enoch's company was encamped outside of Boston during the siege  which ended after Lt. Col Henry Knox brought the captured cannons from Ft. Ticonderoga and place them on the Dorchester Heights.  This action resulted in the evacuation of the British Army from Boston on 17 March 1776. The British Army removed to New York City as did the American Army including Lt. Col. Baldwin's Regiment. 

Enoch spent the remainder of his service time outside of New York.  He mustered out of service on 3 January 1777 at Peekskill on the North River and headed for home.  On his return he would have found that his father had died in November at Ft. Ticonderoga and that his mother had been made administer of his father's estate. I imagine that he would have helped her with the farm and his younger siblings.  

In September of 1777 he enlisted in Captain Moses Baker's Company of volunteers who marched from Candia, NH to join the Northern Continental Army at Saratoga, NY.  He served from 27 September until 3 November 1777. Rachel his wife wrote in later life that she remembered him saying that he was at the surrender of Col. Burgoyne. 

marriage and children
Finally in September of 1778 Enoch got down to serious business and married Miss Rachel Worthen, daughter of Jacob Worthen of Candia.  Their first son Enoch was born six months later, hum, I wonder if he was a premie? 
Soon after the conclusion of the war, Enoch and most of his siblings left Candia for new towns. His brothers Daniel and Eliphalet seem to have gone to Maine, his sister Mary and her husband left for New York, only Miriam remained in Candia. Their mother Meriam died there in 1813, she did not remarry after the death of their father in 1776. 

By 1790 Enoch and Rachel were living in New Grantham 66 miles to the northwest of Candia. In the 1800 Federal census they were in nearby Plainfield, where they remained for the rest of their lives.

children of Enoch and Rachel
Enoch b. 18 March 1799 Candia, m. Betsy Hodges, d. 9 September 1839 Albany,VT
Mary/Polly b. 11 Oct 1780 (twin) m. John Fairman  d.  July 1871 Albany, VT
Mirriam (twin)  b. 11 Oct 1780 d. 17 Dec. 1871 Albany Vermont
Judith b. 24 Feb. 1784 m. Horace Fisher d. June 1872
Daniel b. 23 June 1786 m. Mercy Johnson d. Oct 1848 Albany, VT
William b. 23 Jan. 1791 Plainfield, m. Sally Leavitt d. 1 August 1871 Albany, VT
Jacob b. 25 Jan. 1792 m. Polly Currier d. Sept. 1866 
Samuel Duncan b. 10 July 1793 m. Mary/Polly Moore d. 1850 Plainfield, NH
unnamed infant
Eliphalet b. 28 Feb 1796 m. Sally True, d. 11 May 1875 Albany, VT
Converse b. 20 May 1798 m. Orpha Chamberlin d. 25 March 1825 Albany, VT
Rachel b. 20 Jan 1801 m. William Codman d. Enfield, NH
Sarah b 17 Sept. 1803 m. Hiram Moore d. 1865 Albany, VT


Rachel's headstone
The majority of Enoch's children made their way to Albany, Vermont.  Enoch and Rachel remained in Plainfield.  They gave their land to their son Jacob so that Enoch could get a pension for his military service.  Enoch died aged 84 on 2 August 1840 and Rachel died four years later aged 86. 

I am a descendant of both William and Samuel Duncan Rowell.  William's daughter Viola would marry her first cousin Enoch, son of Samuel, and have three children, including my great grandmother Jennie Clover Rowell.

My Rowell Family Ancestry with links:
Thomas Rowell of Mancetter, England
Valentine Rowell and Joanna Pinder
Phillip Rowell and Sarah Morrill        Phillip Rowell and Anne Carr
John Rowell and Elizabeth Colby
Enoch Rowell and Mirriam Converse
Enoch Rowell and Rachel Worthen
Samuel Duncan Rowell and Mary Moore
William Rowell and Sarah "Sally" Leavitt
Enoch Converse Rowell and Viola Rowell
Jennie Clover Rowell and John C. Thornton
Paul Rowell Thornton and Elizabeth Marjory Bowker


Sources:
William Haslet Jones, The Rowell Family of New England and Their English Origins, 2011
handwritten notes from my Great Grandmother
fold3.com - military records for Enoch Rowell and his War Pension
Candia, New Hampshire Town Records

















Tuesday, June 4, 2013

Philip Rowell and Anne Carr of Amesbury, MA

Philip Rowell was born in Salisbury, MA on 8 March 1647/8.  His parents were Valentine and Joanna Pinder Rowell, they had both immigrated to the Puritan controlled Massachusetts Bay colony with their families.   They met and married in Salisbury.  Phillip was their third child. 

On 5 January 1670 at the age of 22 Philip married Sarah Morrill. He worked as a shipwright, mail carrier and Innkeeper.  He was first licensed to sell liquor in 1683.   In 1684 he was elected Constable.   David Hackett Fischer in Albion's Seed described the constable as:
The constable was an officer of the town, chosen by his neighbors.  His duties was to serve processes, execute warrants, deliver writs, make arrest and summon town meetings.He could also be called upon to collect taxes, organize elections, look after lost goods,  recover stray animals, keep a record of newcomers to the town and arrest "such strange persons as do walk abroad in the night...and sleep in the day; or which do haunt any house, where there is suspicion of bawdie". 
Phillip would have been a familiar figure in town and would attend all the court sessions. In 1685 he would find himself on the other side of the law, facing charges in court. But he was nowhere to be found, he had "fled the country".

Anne Cotton Carr was born in Hampton, NH in 1661. She was the daughter of the Rev. Seaborn Cotton and Dorothy Bradstreet.  Her grandfathers were Simon Bradstreet, onetime Governor of Massachusetts and the Rev. John Cotton, one of the most respected Puritan ministers of all time.  On 8 November 1677 Ann married George Carr Jr. of Amesbury. 

Phillip and Ann Carr would certainly have met each other shortly after her marriage, after all Amesbury was a small settlement at the time and the population would have been such that everyone would know everyone.  But, Phillip and Ann new each other really well.

At the September court 1685 Mr. Thomas Mudgett of Salisbury informed the court that Phillip Rowell, the constable of Amesbury, had left his wife with seven children and fled from authority contrary to bond given for appearance to answer a charge against him relating to the wife of George Carr of Amesbury.   Ann had also fled the country. This must have had tongues wagging all over town and beyond.  Not only had they had an affair and fled the country, but Ann was pregnant to boot. 

What a scandal for those high respectable Puritan families. This must have been especially painful for Anne's family, her father, grandfather and other family relatives so closely aligned with Puritan principles.  The pair either came back willingly or were brought back  by force to face the court.  I cannot find what Phillip's punishment was but Anne was sent to prison for her crime. The was apparently a girl, she was named after her mother Anne Carr.

Sarah Rowell was also in court, fighting for her livelihood   The court granted her the poser of administration of Philip's business', the power to collect debts and anything else that would aid her support and that of the children.  She was confirmed in his place as keeper of a house of public entertainment util the following March, when it was again confirmed.  

Philip and Anne eventually returned to their respective spouses.  Anne and George did not seem to ever have had any children.  Philip and Sarah had one more child.    Philip was killed in an Indian attack in 1690 at the age of 43.  Sarah remarried in 1695.  

sources:

William Haslett Jones, The Rowell Family of New England, Bowie, MD: Heritage Books, 2011.







Roles of Men, Women and Children in 17th Century Puritan Massachusetts

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