Michael Bacon (bef. 1579 - 1648)

Born before 6 Dec 1579 in Winston, Suffolk, England

Ancestors

Husband of Alice (UNKNOWN) Bacon — married about 1608 in England

Descendants

Died 18 Apr 1648 after age 68 in Dedham, Suffolk, Massachusetts Bay Colony

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Michael Bacon migrated to New England during the Puritan Great Migration (1621-1640). Join: Puritan Great Migration Project Discuss: pgm

Biography

Michael Bacon was born in England.

Origins

Michael Bacon, born in Winston, Suffolk, England and baptized there on 6 December 1579, was the son of Michael Bacon^[1] and Elizabeth Wylie.^[2]

Michael was named in the will of his father, Michael Bacon of Winston, Suffolk, dated 24 October 1614 and proved by John Bacon in Ipswich, England on 20 April 1615. The will made bequests to his father's wife, Grace; his brothers Thomas, John, and William; and sisters Sarah (wife of Daniel Yorke) and Elizabeth.^[2] Besides lands and other items, Michael was given silver spoons and a silver pot, which he in turn bequeathed to his eldest son, Michael.^[3]

Michael may have once held the office of Captain of a company of yeomanry in County Suffolk.^[4] Very little is known about his life before he came to New England.

Marriage and Children

Michael married Alice _____^[2] about 1608 in England.^[1][5]

Michael and Alice Bacon had the following children, all born in England:

• Michael, born about 1608 or 1609, died 4 July 1688 in Woburn, Massachusetts, married first Mary _______, married second widow Mary (________) Richardson, and married third widow Mary (Haynes) Noyes^[2]
• Daniel, died 7 September 1691 in Newton, Massachusetts, married Mary Reed,^[1] Baldwin estimates his birth about 1615^[2]
• John, died 17 June 1683 in Dedham, Massachusetts, married Rebecca Hall and had children^[1][2]
• Alice, died 29 March 1648, married Thomas Bancroft of Dedham^[1][2]
• Sarah, died 1652 in Dedham, married Anthony Hubbard^[1][2]

Immigration and Life in America

It is thought by some that Michael removed from England to Ireland about 1633.^[4] At some point before mid-1636, he traveled from Ireland to New England, where his name appears as one of the signers of the Dedham, Massachusetts town covenant dated 15 August 1636.^[6] Before 27 March 1640, Michael was again living in England and was a subscriber in the ship money returns for County Suffolk, England.^[2]

Sometime in 1640, Michael immigrated to New England,^[7] as did his wife, children and grandchildren.^[2] The date(s) of their arrival and the ship(s) on which they arrived are unknown. Their arrival was anticipated, as records of a 26 May 1640 Dedham, Massachusetts town meeting show that it was "agreed upon that the Towne of Dedham shall entertain Mr. Samuel Cooke ..., Mr. Smith and Mr. Bacon all from Ireland and afford to them such accommodation of upland and meadow as their estates shall require."^[2] It is known that Michael's wife arrived in Massachusetts prior to her husband's arrival as, on 23 June 1640, a Dedham town vote was passed giving Mrs. Smith and Mrs. Bacon, "being lately arrived here from Ireland ...their husbands are not yet come, yet liberty is granted unto them to purchase in our town for an habitation."^[2][8] Michael's brother, William Bacon of Salem, Massachusetts, also came to New England from Ireland. Both men lived in Ireland and had sent their wives to America ahead of them at the time of the Irish Rebellion of 1640.^[3]

On 29 April 1641, "Mighill Bacon Sen." appeared in court at Boston, Massachusetts on a matter in which full satisfaction was given, the case was discharged, "it being declared to bee a mistake of ignorance."^[9]

"Ye wife of our naibour bakon" was admitted to the Dedham church on 17 September 1641 and his son, John, was admitted 7 June 1646.^[8] Michael was one of the signers of the church covenant in Dedham.^[4]

1643 Michael Bacon was granted 5 acres and 3 roodes more or less on the great plain, adjoining that of Thomas Wright and John Hunting (who was granted 15 acres at this same time) toward the west towards the highway. ^[10]

In 1644, Michael Bacon granted land to the town of Dedham to be used as a highway^[4] and agreed to build any necessary fencing between the highway and his planting fields. In return, the town voted to give him a considerable amount of land.^[2]

Death, Will and Probate

Michael Bacon died on 18 April 1648 in Dedham, Massachusetts just 16 days after the death of his wife, Alice, who died in Dedham on 2 April 1648. Michael's will dated 14 April 1648 named his sons Michael, Daniel, and John; daughter Sarah; and son-in-law Thomas Bancroft.^[1][2] His son John was to be the executor of his will and was the residuary beneficiary of his estate.^[2][8]

The inventory of Michael's estate was taken on 20 April 1649 and totaled £54 15s. 4d.^[4] On 26 April 1649 John Bacon deposed/proved his father's will.^[2][8]

Research Notes

Unsourced Son

Some online trees include a son John Bacon, born c.1617, and died c.1624 in Winston, Suffolk, but no evidence of his existence has been found. The profile has been detached pending proof of such a child.

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6} Gardner, J. Bartlett. "Notes: Bacon Family of Helmington and Winston, co. Suffolk, England, and of Dedham and Salem, Mass." in The New England Historical and Genealogical Register. Boston, MA: NEHGS, NEHGS, Vol. 90, Jul 1936, pp. 301-302. AmericanAncestors.org($). Note: this source gives son Michael an incorrect DOD of 1683
2. ↑ ^{2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 2.12 2.13 2.14 2.15} Baldwin, Thomas W. Bacon Genealogy: Michael Bacon of Dedham, 1640 and his Descendants. Cambridge, MA: Murray & Emery Co., 1915, pp. 17-24 (father's will), 24-28 (bio/will); pp. 8-9 (tree), 111- (son Daniel), 153-164 (son John). Google Books
3. ↑ ^{3.0 3.1} "Notes and Queries" in The New England Historical and Genealogical Register. Boston, MA: NEHGS, Vol. 57, July 1903, pp. 329-331. AmericanAncestors.org($).
4. ↑ ^{4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4} Bacon, Leon Brooks. "Michael Bacon and His Descendants" in The New England Historical and Genealogical Register. Boston, MA: NEHGS, vol. 56, Oct 1902, pp. 364-365. AmericanAncestors.org($).
5. ↑ "U.S., New England Marriages Prior to 1700". Baltimore, MD: Genealogical Publishing Co., 2004, Ancestry Sharing Link (free access) - Ancestry Record 3824 #38738 ($). "Bacon, Michael1 (?1579-1648) & Alice ? (-1647); in Eng, [b 1608] Dedham".
6. ↑ Wikipedia: List of Signers of the Dedham Covenant.
7. ↑ Anderson, Robert Charles. The Great Migration Directory: Immigrants to New England 1620-1640. Boston, MA: NEHGS, 2015. Not available online. "Bacon, Michael: Winston, Suffolk (by way of Ireland); 1640; Dedham [MBCR 1:316; DeChR 25; WoTR 2; WoVR; SPR Case #80; NEHGR 57:329-31; NEA 7:2:54-55; Stevens-Miller 1:192-200; Thomas W. Baldwin, Michael Bacon of Dedham, 1640, and His Descendants (Cambridge, MA, 1915)]."
8. ↑ ^{8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3} Holman, Mary Lovering. Ancestry of Colonel John Harrington Stevens and his wife Frances Helen Miller. Concord, NH: Rumford Press, 1948, pp. 192-200. HathiTrust.org.
9. ↑ Shurtleff, Nathaniel Bradstreet, ed. Records of the Governor and Company of the Massachusetts Bay in New England. Vol. 1. Boston, MA: The Press of William White, 1853, p. 316. Archive.org.
10. ↑ Dedham Land Grants https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/77926652:2495?tid=&pid=&queryId=6a321b8d-b764-4c68-a12d-cb26248df426&_phsrc=rnC5&_phstart=successSource

See also:

• Pope, Charles Henry. The Pioneers of Massachusetts, 1620-1650. Boston, MA: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1900, p. 26. Ancestry Sharing Link (free access) - Image ($).
• Cutter, William Richard. New England Families, Genealogical and Memorial: A Record of the Achievements of Her People in the Making of Commonwealths and the Founding of a Nation. New York: Lewis Historical Publishing Co., 1913, Vol. 3, p. 1385. Google Books: "Michael Bacon, the immigrant, is thought to have been closely related to the famous Nathaniel Bacon of Virginia".