From Velton Peabody (PEABODY@LOCALNET.COM): FRANCIS2 (John1) whocame to America in the spring of 1635, was born inEngland, probably in St. Albans, Hertfordshire, about1614. Theapproximate birthdate is derived from several sources,including a passenger list for the ship Planter found in theRecord Office of the British government in London. Thisrecord, believed to have been written in the time of CharlesI, contains this heading and entry:"2 Aprilis 1635"Theis under written names are to be transported to NewEngland imbarqued in the Planter Nico: Trarice Mr boundthither the pties have brought certificates from the Ministerof St Albons in Hertfordshier & Attestacon from the Justices ofpeace according to the Lord's order."Husb: man Franc's Peboddy . . . . 21"In such documents, the age set down after a name often was amere approximation. The papers of Essex County Court inMassachusetts contain a deposition, dated "the 24th of the4th month 1662" (June 24, 1662) giving the "testimoni offfrancis Pabody aged fifti years." Another deposition, givenNov. 19, 1690, gives his age as "78 years." While the shiplist would place his birth at 1612 or 1614, the depositionswould set it at 1612. The Planter sailed from London about Apr.10, 1735, and arrived in Boston, Mass., June 7, 1635. FrancisPeabody, a farmer and miller, settled first at Ipswich, EssexCounty, Massachusetts, where he was living in 1636 near "Labourin Vaine" on a road that led to the beach. The first referenceto Francis in the Ipswich records appears in a description oflands owned by Samuel Hall:"Eight acres of planting ground, by an act of the Towne as inthe old book Anno 1636, lying near the highway going to Labourin vaine meadowe, butting to ye East upon ye planting groundof John Seaborn and on ye North planting ground of FrancisPebody."In 1638 or 1639, the settler joined with the Rev. StephenBachilor and 12 others in the original settlement of Hampton,New Hampshire. He became a freeman of Hampton May 18, 1642.In 1645, he held a share in the common lands of Hampton andwas also acting as a member of the committee that oversaw thefinishing of the meeting house. The Francis Peabody residence in Hampton was near those ofIsaac Perkins andWilliam Cole. Cole's wife, Eunice, apparently had difficultycontrolling hertongue and sometimes lashed out at her neighbors. An entry inthe records ofthe Ipswich Court, under date of Nov. 4, 1645, says "EuniceCole is tosit in the stocks at Hampton and to makeacknowledgement of herslanderous speeches concerning Susan Parkings & lidia pebodyeand to pay to the witnes Isaac Perkings 7d and the feas ofthe court." This Mrs. Cole subsequently was tried forwitchcraft.After spending about 12 years in Hampton, Francis Peabody onMarch 25, 1650, sold his Hampton property to Robert Drake andmoved to Topsfield, Mass., which had two years earlier been setoff from his former home of Ipswich. Here he spent the rest ofhis life. On moving to Topsfield, he bought 250 acres of landfrom Samuel Symonds. On Apr. 20, 1666, he purchased from hisnear neighbor, William Evans, an acre located beside PyeBrook, on which he established in 1672 the first grist mill inthe town. His house, situated on the bank of the brook,survived until 1846. He built a second, two story house alittle farther up the brook in 1692, and this stood until Oct.4, 1914. A deposition made by Francis Peabody in 1690, when hewas 78, provides some interesting detail:"The testimony of francis Pabody aged 78 years is that Ihaving bought on half of mr Simmonds farm: ye said ffeild mrSimmonds sent up goodman gage & goodman Brag to shew me thebounds of that farme, and they did shew me a stak in a medowwhich medow is now on the back sid of the dweling house ofIsaac Cumins senr & on the north sid of the brook severalrods: to be the bounds on the north east corner of the farm: &from thence to a tree on the end of pains hill near to a medowwhere Ipswich commity setled the bounds; afterward I got ensignhowlet to help me run the line on the south est side of thefarme between goodman every & me & he with others brought theline to the same place on the south est corner: to which placemy fence did then & now doth point."Swore november 19th 1690 before me Samll Appleton Asst."Little is known of Francis Peabody's first wife. She is clearlyidentified as Lydia in documents of the period, but her maidenname, ancestry and origin are unknown. She died before 1649and he married about 1650 Mary (Foster) Wood, daughter ofRenold and Judith (Wignol) Foster of Ipswich and the widow ofDaniel Wood of Ipswich, who died in 1648. Francis Peabody diedFeb. 19, 1697/8, in Topsfield. Mary survived about seven years,dying Apr. 9, 1705, in Topsfield. Francis' will, dated Jan. 20,1695/6, provided as follows:"The Last Will & Testament of Lieut: Francis Pebody ofTopsfield in ye county of Es[sex] [in] Newe England: IFrancis Pebody taking into consideration the uncertainty of mylife and ye certainty of my death being of perfect understanding& memory have seen good to m[ake] a disposall of thetemporall estate which God of his grace hath given me in thisw[orld] as followeth, "Impr. I committ my immortall soul intothe hands of God & my body to a decent buriall [when] Godshall take me out of this world "Secundo I give to my son JohnPebody & Joseph Pebody all that tract of Land which I boughtof marchant Joseph Juett of Rowly which Land lyeth in Boxford,I give to my son John two thirds of ye aforesaid tract ofLand & to my son Joseph ye other third which I give to them &to their Heirs for ever & moreover I do give to them both inc[ountry] pay (not mony) five pounds to each of them, yt isfive pounds apiece, besides what I have already given them"Item, I do give to my son William Pebody all that Land whichI bought of John Tod Senr [of] Rowly & of John Perley(excepting one hundred acres) which land I do give to him &his Heirs for ever, moreover I do give to him five poundsbesides what he hath [...] me already, which I do therather on consideration of his heing (by ye providenceof God) deprived of ye use of one of his arms, wch five poundsis to be paid as is above specified "Item I do give to my sonin Law Daniell Wood That hundred acres of Land which is aboveexcepted to my son William & is already in part possessed by myson in [law] Daniel Wood which said Land I do give to him &his Heirs for ever it be[ing] in consideration of what I wasoblidged to do for him when come of age & pro[vided] yt heshall be satisfyed therewith on yt account & give adischarge thereof to such [...] shall concern Which Land Ihave already promised & do purpose forthwith to [give] him adeed of in a way of firm conveyance in which deed I shallbound....Limit ye aforesaid hundred acres accordingly "Item Igo give to my son Isaac Pebody all the land yt I do now liveupon which I bou[ght] of Mr. Simons & my will is yt my sonIsaac shall have all ye said Land which lyeth on [ye] southside of ye brook running through the said farm, both uplandand meadow so bounded. I give to my son Isaac Pebody,together wth my dwelling house and housing, orchard, mill, andmill yard, wth all yt I bought of William Evens; and moreoverI give to my son Isaac from the bridge all ye meadow downwardon ye northeast side of ye brook wch runneth through Tho.Dorman's meadow; as also I do give to my son Isaac a rod andhalf of upland adjoining to ye aforesaid meadow all along forye bringing of his hay from time to time, wch aforesaid landI do give to my son Isaac and his heirs forever, togetherwth Twenty acres of land on ye south side of ye river, neer toye dwelling of Joseph Toun junr. Also I give to my son Isaacthat bed with the furniture thereunto belonging which he nowhath ye improvement of, and this I would have noted, that Ihave given the more to my son Isaac on consideration of yeprovidenceof God disinabling him by ye loss of one of hisleggs. "Item. I do give to mygrandchild Jacob Pebody (ye son of mysonJacob deceased) ye house which his father dwelt in, togetherwith all ye upland on yt south side of ye brook yt is on yenorth side of ye abovesaid brook, as also all the meadow on yesame side of ye brook from ye bridge and so upward; my will isyt in case my said grandchild Jacob Pebody do live to ye age oftwenty one years, yt then he shall have as is abovesaid toinjoy himself and his heirs forever. But in case ye said Jacoblive not to yt age, yt then any of my other sons shall haveliberty to have the land and house abovesaid, provided yt he orthey shall pay unto my grandchildren Kesia and Mercy Pebody, yechildren of my son Jacob deceased, an hundred and twenty poundsin common current money (not silver) notwithstanding what isabove said in case ye said Jacob should have issue before heshould arrive at ye aforesaid age, yt ye said land shall be atye dispose of ye said Jacob Pebody, together wth ye houseaforesaid. Also I do give to my grandchildren Kesia and MaryPebody, ye children of my son Jacob deceased, I do give toeach of them thirty acres of land apiece, provided they shallshall live to ye age of eighteen years; which three scoreacres of land lyeth on ye south side of ye river, in yesouthwest division beyond Mr. Endicott's farm, in ye placecalled the stickey meadow, which land abovesaid I bought partof deacon Tho. Perkins about thirty acres, and about thirtymore which I bought of Daniell Dorman; but in case yt neitherof ye children Kesia or Mercy shall live to the age ofeighteen, yt the ye abovesaid thirty acres apiece shallreturn to my next and immediate children to be equallydivided amongst themp; and in case one of the saidgrandchildren live to yt age and not ye other, that then yewhole threescore acres shall fall to ye survivor of them."Item. I give to my son Nathaniell Pebody together with myGrandchild Samson How a[ll] that four hundred acres which Ibought of mr Stephen Sewall Lying in Rowly village calledBoxford which land lyeth near Bradford & was formerly mrNelsons of Rowly. My will is yt my son Nathaniell shall havethree hundred acres & Samson How ye other hundred acres whichfor quantity and quality ye aforesaid Samson How shall have yesaid Hundred acres provided yt yt said Samson How shall beat my despose till ye age of twenty[one] years But in Casemy son Nathaniell shall dye without Lawfull Issue that then yeabove said three hundred acres shall fall to my other childrenby equal devision, his widdow notwithstanding injoying yebenefit thereof during life & as to his moveable estatewhich he is already in possession of I leave it all to be at hisyt is my son Nathaniells despose here is to be understoodyt what shall be left undesposed of by my son Nathaniell athis death of his three hundred acres shall be for ye use of hiswiddow during her life as abovesaid yt is ye life of herwiddowhood."I do reserve for Mary my wife ye South End of my house for herUse to live in as also ye New Cellar as also ye Use of twomilch Cows which she shall choose out of my milch kine, Alsomy will is yt my son Isaac shall pay to my wife Mary yearlytwenty bushells of Indian Corne, four bushells of wheat, fourof rye & six of malt, also yt my wife have liberty to keep twoor three swine, as also yearly half a dozen pounds of wool,also my will is yt my wife shal have pasture for her cowes withmy son Isaacs as also my son Isaac shall provide fodder forthem in ye winter. As also my wife shall have Liberty for anhorse to ride on as she shall have occasion. Also my will isyt in Case my wife shall marry again yt then all yeprivilidges abovesaid shall cease, but during her widowhood sheshal also have (as benefit by my orchard) yearly a barrell ofCidar as also som apples as her occasions either in the summeror winter shall require, Moreover my wife shall have ye use &despose of two beds together with needful firewood providedfor her for which end she shall have ye use of such of my oxenas shall be needful. Also I do order yt Samson How shalllive with my wife till he shall come to ye age of twenty oneyears & be at her Command to be helpfull to her on all accountsas she shall have occasion & in case Samson How shall be takenaway by his father before he shall have served as abovesaidyt then my wife shall have that hundred acres of land abovesaid(given Conditionally to ye said Samson) to provide for herselfsuch help as shall be necessary. & in Case my wife shall dybefore ye said Samson How shall arrive at yt aforesaid termof years yt then he shall be at my wives despose to whom sheshall see good & in case yt said Samson will comply with suchdespose yt then ye said hundred acres of land intended for himshall be at my wives despose "Item I give to my daughter LydiaPerley five pounds besides what she hath already had of me "Ido give to my daughter Mary Death five pounds besides whatshe hath had already "I do give to my daughter Sarah Howfive pounds besides what she hath had already "I do give to mydaughter Hephzibah Ray five pounds besides what she hath hadalready all which Legacies ordered to my Children I do appointto be paid in common currant pay as is before specified toothers of my children "Note yt what Legacies I do here give inmy will shall be paid by my executors out of my estate which Ido leave in my son Isaac hands & to my wives, as corn orCattell &c my debts & funerall expences being discharged. "Andfinaly. I do appoint, Constitute & ordain my wife Mary to be anexecutrix together with my son John Pebody & Isaac Pebody asexecutors of this my last will & testament & in Case afterLegacies paid there be any estate left to be devided yt itshall be desposed of in a way of devision as my executrixtogether with executors shall see good."That what is here above written is ye last will & Testamentof yeabovesaid Francis Pebody appears by his own hand & seal ye day& Date herementioned as also by ye testimony of ye witnesses hereuntosubscribed"It is to be noted yt notwithstanding what is abovesaidconcerning my sonNathaniells three hundred acres returning to his brethren inCase of hisdying wtout lawfull Issue, It is to be understood by ye threehundredacres what he shall not see Cause to despose of before hisdeath I herebynotwithstanding what hath been said giving him full power inCase he seegood to despose of it either in part or whole not knowing butdivineprovidence may necessitate him thereunto, otherwise what isabove writtento be of full force as is expressed.ffrancis Pabody"The above said premises were signed & sealed & declared tobe ye last will& Testament of ye said Francis Pebody ye twentieth day ofJanuary in yeyear of our Lord one thousand six hundred Ninety & five or six,in presence ofusJoseph CapenThomas BakerEphraim Dorman Senr"The will was proved Aug. 7, 1698. An inventory of his estatemade May 20, 1698, found the following:Two oxen, three cows and three young cattle, valued at 23pounds;Sheep, one mare and colt, 5 pounds, 10 shillings;Chains, axes, wedges, chisels and other iron tools, 2 pounds,4 shillings;Wearing clothes, 2 pounds, 4 shillings;Beds and bedding, napkins, table cloths, other linens, 17pounds, 9 shillings;Chests, tables, chairs, other lumber, 5 pounds, 15shillings, 6 pence;Pewter and brass ware, 5 pounds, 12 shillings;Iron ware, as pots, kettles, "tramells", etc., 2 pounds, 5shillings;New cloth home made, 2 pounds, 11 shillings;Ten bushells of malt, 8 bushells of Indian corn, 6 bushellsof barley, 4 pounds;Four swine, 2 pounds;Land given to his son John, 200 pounds;Land to Joseph Peabody, 100 pounds;Land to William Peabody, 100 pounds;Land to Nathaniel Peabody, 150 pounds;Land to Samson Howe, 50 pounds;Land to Keziah and Marcie Peabody, 50 pounds;Land and house to Jacob Peabody, 160 pounds;Homestead, upland, meadow, dwelling house, barn and mill toIsaac Peabody, 400 pounds;Silver money, 44 pounds, 15 shillings;Total: 1327 pounds, 5 shillings, 6 pence.Additional items inventoried Sept. 30, 1698:Two oxen, 9 pounds;Nine books, 13 shillings;Two cows, 5 pounds;Two oxen, 8 pounds;Two linen spinning wheels, 6 shillings;Two woolen spinning wheels, 6 shillings;Two beds with furniture given to widow, 19 pounds;Eight yards of wool cloth, 1 pound, 12 shillings;Six cushions, 6 shillings;Bed and bedding given to Isaac, 3 pounds, 10 shillings.Children by Lydia:i. Lydia,3 bapt. Aug. 30, 1640, in Hampton; m. (1) by 1663,Thomas Howlett, b. about 1638, son of Thomas and Alice (French)Howlett. He d. Dec. 22, 1667 (probably an error for 1666) inIpswich and she m. (2) July 8, 1667, in Rowley, Mass., ThomasPerley, b. 1641 in Ipswich, son of Allan and Susanna (Bokeson)Perley; ; he d. Sept. 24, 1709, in Boxford, Mass.; she d. Apr.30, 1715, in Boxford; children by Lydia: Mary Howlett, ThomasPerley, Jacob Perley, Lydia Perley, Mary Perley, HephzibahPerley, Sarah Perley.#4 ii. John, b. about 1642.#5 iii. Joseph, b. about 1644.#6 iv. William, b. March 3, 1646.#7 v. Isaac, b. about 1648.Children by Mary:vi. Sarah, b. about 1650; m. March 20 or 26, 1678, at Ipswich,Mass., AbrahamHowe, b. about 1649, in Ipswich, son of James and Elizabeth(Dane) Howe of Ipswich; settled in Ipswich; he d. Jan. 21,1717/8; she, Sept. 29, 1732; children: Love Howe, Increase Howe,Samson Howe, Abraham Howe, Abijah Howe, Israel Howe, Mark Howe.vii. Hepsibah, b. about 1652; m. Apr. 10, 1678, Daniel Rea ofSalem Village, son of Joshua and Sarah (Waters) Rea; he m. (2)Mary (Read) Tompkins, widow of John Tompkins.viii. Mary, b. about 1656; m. (1) about 1669, John Death ofFramingham,Mass., son of John and Abigail Death; it is not clear whetherMary m. (2)Samuel Eames or whether it was John's sister, Mary, who marriedhim; children:Oliver Death, Thomas Death, John Death, Hepzibah Death, LydiaDeath, Samuel Death, Ruth Death. Porter Pedigree says thisfamily changed name from Death to How.ix. Ruth, b. May 22, 1658; not mentioned in father's will.x. Damaris, b. Jan. 21 or June 21, 1660; d. Dec. 19, 1660, inTopsfield.xi. Samuel, b. June 4, 1662; d. Sept. 13, 1667.#8 xii. Jacob, b. July 28, 1664.xiii. Hannah, b. May 8, 1668; m. Daniel Andrew, b. Sept. 2,1677, in Salem, son of Daniel and Sarah (Porter) Andrew; livedSalem Village; she d. before Feb. 12, 1698, and he m. (2) Feb.12, 1701/2, Elizabeth Peabody [#4]; he d. Feb. 6, 1717/8;children born to Daniel and Elizabeth: Hannah Andrew, DanielAndrew, Mary Andrew, Thomas Andrew, Israel Andrew, IsraelAndrew, John Andrew, Samuel Andrew.#9 xiv. Nathaniel, b. July 20, 1669. Sources: Topsfield, Mass., v.r.; Records and Files of theQuarterly Courts of Essex County, [Mass.], I, 1911; JustinWinsor, History of the Town of Duxbury, Massachusetts, 1849;Leon Clark Hills, History and Genealogy of the MayflowerPlanters (Cape Cod Series), I, 1975 reprint of 1936 1941 ed.;John H. Towne, "Old Peabody Mills, Topsfield," EssexAntiquarian I:7 (July 1897), "Francis Peabody's Grist Mill,"Historical Collections of the Topsfield, Historical Society I(1895) and "The Peabody Batchelder Young House on North Street,Topsfield," Historical Collections of the Topsfield HistoricalSociety X (1905); Stanford J. Robison, Mormon Genealogies:The Smith, Pratt, Young, Richards and Allied Families, 1946;Charles Edward Banks, Planters of the Commonwealth, 1930;Essex Antiquarian I:6 (June 1898); "Plymouth Colony Wills andInventories," Mayflower Descendant XVII:1 (January 1915);William Richard Cutter and William Frederick Adams,Genealogical and Personal Memoirs Relating to the Families ofthe State of Massachusetts, II, 1910; Charles Henry Pope,Pioneers of Massachusetts, 1900; Peabody Genealogy, 1867;Peabody Genealogy, 1909; Walter Muir Whitehill, Captain JosephPeabody, 1962; John William Linzee, History of Peter Parker andSarah Ruggles, 1913; Melvin Gilbert Dodge, Ballard Genealogy,1942; Doris Palmer Buys, Walter Palmer of Charlestown andRehoboth, Massachusetts, and Stonington, Connecticut, 1986;Family History Library; H. Franklin Andrews, History of theAndrews Family, 1890; Nora E. Snow and Myrtle M. Jillson,Snow Estes Ancestry I, 1939; Juliet Porter, Porter Pedigree,1907;Clarence Winthrop Bowen, History of Woodstock, Connecticut VII,1943; M. V. B. Perley, History and Genealogy of the PerleyFamily, 1906, "James Howe of Ipswich and Some of HisDescendants," Historical Collections of the TopsfieldHistorical Society XXIII (1918); Edgar Francis Waterman andDonald Lines Jacobus, Granberry Family, 1945; Tracy ElliotHazen, Hazen Family in America, 1947; Daniel Wait Howe, HoweGenealogies, 1929; Joseph Dow, History of the Town of Hampton,New Hampshire, II, 1893; Sidney Perley, History of Salem,Massachusetts, I, 1924, III, 1928; Laurence Clyde Andrew,Thomas Andrew, Immigrant, 1972; "Descendants of Daniel Andrewof Salem," Essex Antiquarian III:9 (September 1899);George Brainard Blodgette, Early Settlers of Rowley,Massachusetts, 1933; H. Ruth Merritt Edwards, Robert Abell,Immigrant, 1971.