Thomas Drake (1635 - 1692)

Born 16 Apr 1635 in Colyton, Devon, England

Ancestors

Husband of Jane (Holbrook) Drake — married 1656 in Weymouth, Suffolk, Massachusetts Bay Colony

Husband of Millicent (Ford) Drake — married 9 Mar 1681 in Marshfield, Plymouth Colony

Descendants

Died 23 Sep 1692 at age 57 in Weymouth, Suffolk (now Norfolk) Co., Massachusetts

Problems/Questions Profile managers: Melinda Pitts [send private message], Loren Fay [send private message], and John Putnam [send private message]

Dispute Regarding about Thomas's Parents

The Drake Family Genealogy, Louis Stoughton Drake, Boston, 1896, at page 2. holds that William and Margaret (Westover) Drake were the parents of Thomas. So far, there is no evidence for this connection, although it have been generally accepted for over a century.

Added by Jimmy M. Sisson on 16 Oct 2015 Archiver > GEN-MEDIEVAL > 2001-12 > 1008242735 From: E1091@aol.com Subject: WILLIAM DRAKE'S WILL, CO. DEVON. Date: Thu, 13 Dec 2001 06:25:35 EST - In May of 1997, I wrote the following to the Gen-Medeival board. 'Highly desire proof of the following. Controversy abounds regarding this portion of the Drake's ancestry and perpetuates in the NEHGR as well as other publications, as it has for years. Can someone knowledgable with this family finally put the problem to rest once and for all times?

William Drake of Yardbury, Colyton Parish, bu. London, will probated 29 Feb 1639/40, m. Margaret Westofer/Westover. They had 8 children of which 3 ie: Joan, Elizabeth and Thomas, the youngest, left for the colonies after the death of their parents. Reference: The Drake Family in England and America, Louis Stroughton Drake, Boston, 1896. My sincere thanks for assistance in this area. Earl. e1091@aol.com.'

William Drake, of Yardbury, parish of Colyton, co. Devon, England, was buried in the Temple Church, London. His will was dated 2 Nov 1636, probated 29 Feb 1639/40. William married Margaret Westofer of Colyton, and she was buried in1635. William's will is found on P. C. C. Coventry 25.

Since then, nothing has surfaced since the original post or in emails to me, regarding the proof of Thomas Drake being a child of William Drake of Yardbury. Thomas was stated as 'possibly' Wm's son in the NEHGR article of the early 40's. Needed is a complete typed copy of the old English will, or a copy of the legible will. I have a LDS copy, but it was a poor photograph, somewhat dark on both left and right side, but fairly clear in the middle. It is impossible for me, or others, to completely deceipher the lettering of the will in that condition.

A partial translation of the will of William Drake has been done as follows: '--my _________ living younger sonne tho his portion of three hundred pounds to be payed into ._____ of Thom when he shall attain into his full age of one & twenty years And is that if any of the said children shall dye before his own that porsion shall be payd unto him or her that then the porsion of him or her whomsoever.shall combine & be equally divided amonst my said younger children And---.'

From the partial information transcribed, it appears the NEHGR article may have been published in error when it was stated that Thomas Drake of Weymouth, MA, may not have been a son of William Drake of county Devon. But until the will is completely translated, I'm withholding judgement.

Some legible names listed on the will of William Drake that may assist those looking for ancestors in the 1630's/40's in England.

Anthony Sande, William Poole, John Mills (or Millo), brother, Sir John Drake knight, my good friend (Sason ________ ?) knight, John Button, sons of John Jamis Esq, John ______of _______, John Drake my sonne & _____ _____, Gideon Walmond(?), Robert Grinnel, John ____ , ____ Budgall(?).

Any suggestions on how I could obtain a typed copy of the will would be most greatly appreciated, and may all enjoy the expanded information. Have a safe and Happy Holiday season. Earl C. e1091@aol.com

"Nathaniel Taylor" <ntaylor@post.harvard.edu> wrote in message news:ntaylor-1412012207360001@mid-tgn-ngj-vty38.as.wcom.net...

In article <23.161bfc48.294be0c0@aol.com>, E1091@aol.com wrote: Nathaniel Taylor writes in reply to my query: The NEHGR article does not err by expressing doubt. The burden is on those who would prove this parentage. From this passage it is clear that the will names an underage son Thomas, nothing more. Thanks Nat for your comments. At least from the partial translated will, I know that William had a son Thomas, as you wrote. Now onto the search for supporting data, if possible, stating Thomas of Weymouth, MA is definitely his child.

The way you state this presupposes that Thomas of Weymouth IS definitely his child; it's better to follow the agnostic position of the previous published work. Perhaps it would be better to say "now on to the search for any data which will establish the parentage of Thomas of Weymouth." Simply raking over the known documentation on this one alleged parent may not be as fruitful as you hope. Nat Taylor Posted from [162.39.202.40] via Mailgate.ORG Server - http://www.Mailgate.ORG Archiver > GEN-MEDIEVAL > 2001-12 > 1008434449 From: "David Greene" <amgen@alltel.net> Subject: Re: Thomas Drake parentage (was re: WILLIAM DRAKE'S WILL). Date: Sat, 15 Dec 2001 16:40:49 +0000 (UTC) References: <23.161bfc48.294be0c0@aol.com>, <ntaylor-1412012207360001@mid-tgn-ngj-vty38.as.wcom.net>

Up until now, no one seems to have quoted the NEHGR article from "the early 1940s." The article, by Edwin Howard Drake, appears in NEHGR 98 (July 1944): 280-81, under the heading "Notes," and it goes much further than simply indicating that this origin for Thomas Drake of Weymouth is unproven:

THE PARENTAGE OF THOMAS DRAKE OF WEYMOUTH, MASS.--The following comments deal with Louis Stoughton Drake's The Drake Family in England and America (1906), . . . questioning the parentage of Thomas Drake of Weymouth by the author of that book. Thomas Drake probably was not a son of William Drake of Yardbury, co., Devon, England (p. xvi, 1). No documentary proof was offered by Mr. Drake in support of the parentage ascribed to Thomas the emigrant. The Colyton, co. Devon, parish register records the baptism of Thomas, son of William Drake, Sept. 13, 1635. Yet the Suffolk Co., Mass. Court file no. 1689, dated Mar. 7, 1677/78, begins thus: "Thomas Drake aged 49 years". [I.e., ca. 1628/9.] Vivian's Visitations of the County of Devon, pp. 297-98, shows that William Drake and Margaret Westofer were married on, or soon after, Nov. 14, 1620. [The note goes on to show that Vivian includes baptisms of the children, including that for Thomas, above.] . . . it is more than likely that Thomas, son of William Drake of Yardbury, was baptised within a year after his birth [sic: 10 days or less is nearly certain--DLG]. He could hardly have been identical, then, with the Thomas Drake of Weymouth, Mass., who was born about 1628/29, if the deposition in the Suffolk County Court files (no. 1689) is correct as to his age. The supposed connection between Thomas Drake of Weymouth and the Yardbury, England, family, was based on baptismal records in Colyton, co. Devon, of a Thomas Drake with sisters Elizabeth and Joane, and the coincidence of "finding" three Drakes thus named in New England at a later date. [The author goes on to show that Thomas Drake of Weymouth did have a sister Elizabeth who married Ezekiel Hamlin of Boston, but he finds no documentary evidence for a sister Joan.]

Ultimately, it seems that the identification of Thomas of Weymouth with the son of Thomas, son of William Drake of Yardley, is based on coincidence, and that the identification is extremely unlikely for chronological reasons [this paragraph by DLG]. Nat is right that the focus now should be on all evidence on the Weymouth man, not on the Yardley family. DAVID L. GREENE, CG, FASG, Co-editor and publisher The American Genealogist [TAG]

Biography

THOMAS DRAKE first appears at Weymouth, 14 Dec. 1663. On that day the town granted him six acres in the First Division and eighteen acres in the Second Division. (Weymouth Land Grants, 283.) The author of Thomas Drake and Descendants, published in 1896, stated that he was the son of William and Margaret (Westover) Drake, born and baptized in the parish of Colyton, county of Devon, Eng, 13 Sept. 1635,, and that Elizabeth Drake, who married in Boston, 8 June, 1654, Ezekiel Hamlin, and Joane, the wife of Thomas Randall of Weymouth,-were his sisters. William Drake, a gentleman of Ash in the parish of Musbury, was licenced to marry Margaret Westover of the same place, 14 Nov. 1620. (Exeter Marriage Licences, p. 70.) Musbury and Colyton are adjoining parishes. The parish registers of Colyton call William Drake a gentleman of the hantlet of Yarbury in Colyton. They show the following baptisms:

1. John Drake, son of William of Yarbery, bp. 24 Mar. 1621-22.
2. Dorothy Drake, daughter of William of Yarbery, bp. 16 Mar.1623-24.
3. Eleanor Drake, daughter of William of Yarbery, bp. 15 Dec. 1625.
4. Joane Drake, daughter of William of Yarbery, bp. I I June, 1628.
5. William Drake, son of William of YaTbery, bp. 22 Dec. 1629.
6. Jane Drake, daughter of William of Yarbery, bp. 13 Feb. 1630-31.
7. Elizabeth Drake, daughter of William of Yarbery, bp. 9 Dec. 1632.
8. Endimian Drake, son of William of Yarbery, bp. 25 June, 1634.
9. Thomas Drake, son of William of Yarbery, bp. 13 Sept. 1635.
10. William Drake, the father, died 18 Nov. 1636, and was buried in the Temple Church in London. His daughter Eleanor married John Steward of Axmouth. His daughter Jane married at Axmouth, 5 May, 1651, Thomas Steward of Axmouth. His son William Drake married Letitia Bailie and resided in Colyton, and there had twelve Children baptized, 1654 to 1678.

Ezekiel Hamlin of Boston made li;q u~ll 9.1 Tiil,, 1600 T, 0-f he said: "My will is y' my brother Thomas Drake of Weymouth & My friend Mr. Thos. Walker and James Ingles be my over seers," proved 27 Nov. 1690. (Suffolk Probate, 8: 4.) Here we have the evidence that Thomas Drake of Weymouth and Elizabeth Drake, who married Ezekiel Hamlin, were brother and sister. This does not prove that they were children of William Drake of Colyton. Letters of administration were granted to Thomas and William Drake, sons of Thomas Drake, late of Weymouth, yeoman, deceased Z3 Sept. 1692. His inventory was apprized 30 Aug. 1692, at which date he was "lately deceased," by John Holbrook, Micajah Torrey and John Taylor (Suffolk Probate, 13: 54, 55); total, E337 2s. Thomas Drake was a soldier in King Philip's War.

Thomas Drake, "aged 49 yeares," deposed concerning the Indian woman, servant of Stephen French, 7 Mar. 1677-78. (Suffolk Court Files, 1689.) Thomas Drake, Sr., was chosen to serve on the grand jury by the freeholders of Weymouth, 20 July, 1692.(Ibid. 4096.)

Name

Thomas Drake

Birth

13 SEP 1635 Colyton, Devon, England. Emigrated 1653/4. Property owner at Weymouth MA by 1663.^[1][2]

Death

1691 Weymouth, Norfolk, Massachusetts ^[3]

23 SEP 1692 Weymouth, Norfolk County, Massachusetts

Marriages

1st: 1656 Weymouth, Norfolk County, Massachusetts

2nd: 9 MAR 1680/81 Weymouth, Norfolk, Massachusetts

Sources

1. ↑ http://trees.ancestry.com/pt/AMTCitationRedir.aspx?tid=2059258&pid=-1865998901
2. ↑ Colonial Families of the USA, 1607-1775 for William Drake Colonial Families of the United States of America, Volume I - Drake Family https://www.ancestry.com/interactive/61175/colonialfamiliesi-000356_137/2576
3. ↑ http://trees.ancestry.com/pt/AMTCitationRedir.aspx?tid=2059258&pid=-1865998901

• Genealogies of the Early Families of Weymouth, Norfolk, Massachusetts Author: George Walter Chamberlain, M.S. Publication: Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc. Baltimore: Reprint, 1984, Call Number: 84-80081 Media: Book
• OneWorldTree Author: Ancestry.com
• Online publication - Provo, UT, USA: The Generations Network,Inc.
• Public Member Trees Author: Ancestry.com
• WFT Vol. 1 Tree # 3162 dtd June 23, 1995

Ancestral File Number

Ancestral File Number: 3027-02 and Ancestral File Number: R6MQ-52

Acknowledgments

• This person was created through the import of Family.ged on 28 November 2010.
• This person was created through the import of grant2.ged on 07 February 2011.
• This person was created through the import of PittsPenn_2010-09-21.ged on 22 September 2010.
• This person was created through the import of Ancestors of Lois Greene.ged on 19 October 2010.
• WikiTree profile Drake-1860 created through the import of Putnam2-1_2010-01-02_2011-02-16_2011-10-11.ged on Oct 12, 2011 by John Putnam.
• Thank you to Loren Fay for creating Drake-2740 on 11 Aug 13. Click the Changes tab for the details on contributions by Loren and others.
• This person was created through the import of Ella Lamoreaux.ged on 28 April 2011.
• This person was created through the import of grant2.ged on 07 February 2011.
• WikiTree profile Drake-1422 created through the import of oldweymouth families072011.GED on Jul 5, 2011 by Alyson X.