William Richards (bef. 1619 - 1682)

Born before 1619 in England

Husband of Grace (Shaw) Richards — married about 1642 in Weymouth, Massachusetts Bay Colony [uncertain]

Descendants

Died 25 Jul 1682 after age 63 in Weymouth, Suffolk County, Massachusetts Bay Colony

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William Richards migrated to New England during the Puritan Great Migration (1621-1640). (See The Directory, by R. C. Anderson, p. 282) Join: Puritan Great Migration Project Discuss: pgm

Disputed Parents and Origins

William was previously attached as the son of John Richards and Grace Weightman, born 23 Jan 1619 in Plymouth, Devon, England. As there is no supporting evidence connecting William Richards of Weymouth, Massachusetts, the parents have been disconnected. Both Andersen in the Great Migration Directory and Chamberlain in the History of Weymouth give his origins as unknown.

Biography

William Richards was born in England by 1619 (based on land ownership in 1640).

William Richards, of Unknown origins, was in Weymouth by 1 September 1640 when a dispute between him and John Turner came before the General Court^[1][2]

William Richards married Grace ________ by 1649^[3] and had the following children:^[4]

1. John b c 1650 m Sarah _______
2. Joseph b c1653 m1 Susan _______ m2 Sarah________
3. William b c1656 m Mary Williams
4. James b. 1658 m Ruth Bicknell
5. Benjamin, b. 1 May 1660 d c May 1683 unmarried

William passed away in Weymouth, Massachusetts sometime 24 July 1682 when his will was proved in probate court. ^[4]

His five children were all named along with wife Grace, in his will of 18 June 1680, pro. 23 July 1682.^[3]

William's land in Weymouth see History of Weymouth, Vol 1^[5]

Research notes

History of Weymouth connects this William Richards with two earlier records, 25 Mar 1633 Plymouth Tax List, and residence in Scituate 6 Jan 1636/7. Anderson says that there is no evidence supporting these are the same person, or the same as William Richards of Weymouth, other than the similarity of names^[6]

History of Weymouth identifies his wife as Grace Shaw, daughter of Abraham Shaw of Dedham (confirmation needed)

perhaps brother of Thomas^[3]

Sources

1. ↑ Shurtleff, Nathaniel. Records of the Governor and Company of the Massachusetts Bay in New England (William White, Boston, 1853) 1, Page 300.
2. ↑ Anderson, Robert Charles. Great Migration Directory (The). Immigrants to New Englnad, 1620-1640. A Concise Compendium. (Boston: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2015.) p. 282
3. ↑ ^{3.0 3.1 3.2} Savage, James. A Genealogical Dictionary of the First Settlers of New England Showing Three Generations of Those Who Came Before May, 1692. Vol. I-IV. (Boston, MA, USA: 1860-1862). vol 3 p. 535
4. ↑ ^{4.0 4.1} Chamberlain, George Walter. The history and genealogies of Weymouth, Massachusetts, Boston: Wright & Potter Printing Co. for Weymouth Historical Society, 1923. Vol 4, page 589
5. ↑ Chamberlain, George Walter. The history and genealogies of Weymouth, Massachusetts, Boston: Wright & Potter Printing Co. for Weymouth Historical Society, 1923.vol 1. p 195
6. ↑ The Great Migration Begins: Immigrants to New England 1620-1633, Volumes I-III. (Online database: AmericanAncestors.org, New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2010), (Originally Published as: New England Historic Genealogical Society. Robert Charles Anderson, The Great Migration Begins: Immigrants to New England 1620-1633, Volumes I-III, 3 vols., 1995). NHGS Member link

Acknowledgements

• WikiTree profile Richards-1374 created through the import of My-Family-25-Sep-2011.ged on Sep 25, 2011 by A S.

• This person was created on 14 April 2010 through the import of Jamie 2010_2010-04-10.ged.

• WikiTree profile Richards-1142 created through the import of Scoullar Family Tree dec07.ged on Jul 10, 2011 by Rhonda Scoullar.

• WikiTree profile Richards-1086 created through the import of oldweymouth families072011.GED on Jul 5, 2011 by Alyson X.

• This biography was auto-generated by a GEDCOM import. Richards-5209 was created by David Sylvester through the import of Richards-Shaw.ged on Jan 14, 2015.