Sarah (Divan) Hathorne (abt. 1625 - aft. 1683)

Born about 1625 in England [uncertain]

Wife of John Hathorne — married about 1643 in Salem, Essex, Massachusetts Bay Colony [uncertain]

Descendants

Died after Jun 1683 after about age 58 in Lynn, Essex, Massachusetts [uncertain]

Problems/Questions Profile managers: Robert Bailey [send private message] and Daivd Barnhardt [send private message]

Biography

Sarah, the wife of John Hathorn was born probably in England, about 1625 (based on deposition that she was aged about 58 in June 1683).^[1]

Sarah married John Hathorn by 1644 (based on the birth of a first child in Jun 1644). Sarah and John initially lived in Salem. John Hathorne was admitted to the First Church of Salem 1 October 1643 [1:8:1643], and Sarah Hathorne was admitted 5 May 1644 [5:3:1644]. ^[2] On the same day [5:3:1644], "John, the son of Brother Hathorne" was baptized.^[3] They removed to Malden where John was granted a license to run a tavern on May 23, 1651.^[4] By November the same year, they removed to Lynn where John would obtain another tavern license, which was at least twice rescinded once for forgery^[5] and once for selling alcohol to Indians.

John died December 12, 1676. ^[6] Sarah was named executrix in his will dated October 19, 1676 and proved June 27, 1677.^[7]

In June 1677, Mrs. Sara Hathorne had her late husband's ordinary license renewed to her. ^[8] Sarah was also a midwife. In June 1683 she testified in the Priscilla Willson/Samuel Appleton fornication case. Priscilla was an unmarried 16-year-old orphan. In such situations, midwives were expected to press unwed mothers to identify the baby's father while enduring labor pains.^[9] Sarah Hathorne having overseen the birth, testified that Priscilla had initially refused to answer but eventually named Samuel Appleton as the father.^[1][10]

Sarah's date of death is not known. Her court appearance is the last known record of her, so we know that she died sometime after June 1683.^[11]

Children

1. Sarah baptized at Salem June 2, 1644 ^[12]; died in November, 1676; married John Breed of Lynn December 28, 1663. ^{[6] [7]}
2. John baptized at Salem October 18, 1646 ^{[12] [7]}; died by June 24, 1673, while in the employ of Richard Cutts. (Vol. 2: p. 358)^{[13] [14]}
3. Priscilla, baptized Salem July 22, 1649 ^[12]; married Jonathan Shore of Lynn on January 25, 1688/9, at Charlestown. ^[7]
4. William, baptized at Lynn in November, 1651; died September 14, 1676.^{[6] [7]}
5. Mary, baptized at Lynn in July 1653; died December 31, 1676. ^{[6] [7]}
6. Ebenezer, born at Lynn in March 1656 ^[6] ; married Esther Witt on December 26, 1683. ^[7]
7. Nathaniel, born about 1650; married Mary Gott. ^[7]
8. ___ child born Lynn March 6, 1662/3; died March 17, 1662/3. ^{[6] [7]}
9. Phebe, born at Lynn March 22, 1664. ^{[6] [7]}

Research Notes

Unsourced Marriage Date: This profile previously reported a specific date of 28 Dec 1643 for her marriage in Salem. No such marriage could be found in the Salem records.

Disputed Parents: Sarah's last name at birth has appeared as Divan, this is based on the will of John Diven/Divan (d 1684) of Lynn which refers to "sister Hathorn."^[15][16] There are a couple of issues that keep this from being a solid identification. There are other possibilities for the interpretation of "sister." And there is some question whether there is a defect in the record. The Essex Institute publication of the Essex Court Records transcribes that section to say "Esther Hathorn" rather than "Sister."^[17] The surrounding material suggests that they were done from different documents. John Divan did have a recently married granddaughter Esther (Witt) Hathorn (1663-), the wife of Ebenezer Hathorn.

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1} Essex Quarterly Court Records and Files, Vol 9, p 65 Digital images: Univ of VA, Salem Witch Trials Documentary Archive and Transcription Project.
2. ↑ First Church (Salem Mass) and Richard D Pierce. The Records of the First Church in Salem Massachusetts 1629-1736. Essex Institute 1974. p 12. Internet Archive (borrow)
3. ↑ Records of the First Church in Salem, p 20. Internet Archive (borrow)
4. ↑ Corey, Deloraine Pendre, The History of Malden, Massachusetts, 1633-1785, The author, Malden, Massachusetts, 1899, p. 115. Internet Archive.
5. ↑ Lewis, Alonzo & James Robinson Newhall, History of Lynn, Essex County, Massachusetts: Including Lynnfield, Saugus, Swampscot, and Nahant, Volume 1, J.L. Shorey Publishers, Boston, Massachusetts 1865
6. ↑ ^{6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 6.6} Vital Records of Lynn, Massachusetts, to the End of the Year 1849, The Essex Institute, Salem, Massachusetts, 1906
7. ↑ ^{7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5 7.6 7.7 7.8 7.9} French, Elizabeth, Genealogical Research in England: Hathorne, in: The New England Historical and Genealogical Register, Volume 67, 1913, p. 250-260. HathiTrust.
8. ↑ Records and Files of the Quarterly Courts of Essex County, Massachusetts: Volume 6, 1675-1678, The Essex Institute, Salem, Massachusetts, 1917, p. 310-12. Internet Archive.
9. ↑ Berry, Melissa. "Confessions of a Colonial Midwife," GenealogyMagazine.com, 2015. Note: The article incorrectly calls Sarah "Elizabeth" and misattributes to her the quote of a neighbor who was present at the birth.
10. ↑ Hambleton, Else L. "The Regulation of Sex in Seventeenth-Century Massachusetts, The Quarterly Court of Essex County vs. Priscilla Willson and Mr. Samuel Appleton." in Sex and Sexuality in Early America. New York University Press, 1998. Page 91.Preview in Google Books
11. ↑ Alicia Crane Williams, Early New England Families, 1641–1700 (Boston: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2023), "John Putnam m 1612" pp. 3-4 ); web content (PDF) by subscription, AmericanAncestors.
12. ↑ ^{12.0 12.1 12.2} Vital Records of Salem Massachusetts to the End of the Year 1849, The Essex Institute, Salem, Massachusetts, 1916
13. ↑ Essex County, MA: Early Probate Records, 1635-1681.Online database. AmericanAncestors.org. New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2015, Volume 2: p. 358
14. ↑ Records and Files of the Quarterly Courts of Essex County, Massachusetts, Volume 5, 1672-1674, The Essex Institute, Salem, Massachusetts, 1916, p. 59-64; 198; 316; 423-4; 436
15. ↑ "Essex County, Massachusetts, probate records and indexes 1638-1916"
    Catalog: Essex County, Massachusetts, probate records and indexes 1638-1916 Old Series : Probate records, vols. 301-303, Book 1-3, 1671-1694.
    Film number: 007704242 > image 236 of 593
    Vol 302, pages 130-1 FamilySearch Image: 3Q9M-C9YY-KGTG (accessed 13 May 2023) .
16. ↑ Lindberg, Marcia Wiswall. "John Divan of Lynn." Essex Genealogist (Massachusetts) (Essex Society of Genealogists). v 8 (May 1998), pp 114-16. AmericanAncestors (with subscription)
17. ↑ Records and Files of the Quarterly Courts of Essex County, Massachusetts, 1636-1686 (The Essex Institute, 1975) Vol 9, pp 411-412 (see p 412 ) Digital images: Univ of VA, Salem Witch Trials Documentary Archive and Transcription Project.

See also:

• Torrey, Clarence Almon. Torrey’s New England Marriages Prior to 1700 (NEHGS, Boston, 2015) Vol. 2, Page 719: "HATHORNE, John (1621-1676) & Sarah ____, (-1676+); by 1644; Salem/Malden/Lynn {Salem 1:284; Reg. 67:259; Gen Mag. 2:11; Wildes Anc. 154}"
• Perley, Sidney. The History of Salem, Massachusetts (S. Perley, Salem, Mass., 1924-28) Vol 1, Page 284. HathiTrust.
• The Genealogical Quarterly Magazine (Eban Putnam, Salem, Mass., 1900-) Vol. 2 (1901) p 11: Jon Hathorn of Lynn, Age 38, deposition. HathiTrust.
• Davis, Walter Goodwin. The Ancestry of Dudley Wildes, 1759-1820, of Topsfield, Massachusetts (Anthoensen Press, Portland, Me., 1959) p. 154. Internet Archive (borrow)