Nicolas Dunn (abt. 1659 - 1694)

Born about Sep 1659 in London, England

Husband of Elizabeth (Roberts) Dunn — married about 1682 in Oyster River, Durham, Province of New Hampshire

Descendants

Died 18 Jul 1694 at about age 34 in Oyster River, Durham, Province of New Hampshire

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Biography

Birth
Nicholas was born about Sep 1659. He was baptized on 22 Sep 1659 at Saint Bride, Fleet Street, London, England.^[1] He was the son of John Dunn and [[Uknown-431|Annastia]. In that era, infants were typically baptized two to four weeks after birth. Descendants claim both Ireland and Scotland to be his birthplace.

Marriage Nicholas Dunn married Elizabeth Roberts about 1682 in Oyster River, Province of New Hampshire, New England.^[2]

In 1682, Nicholas Dunn was taxed at Oyster River.^[3]

He was a tailor and resided in Oyster River (Durham, New Hampshire). He was a member of the local militia and one of the signers of the 20 Feb 1689 petition to Massachusetts general court pleading for local self-government. At that time, Oyster River was part of the Dominion of New England. The Dominion encompassed the Massachusetts Bay Colony, the Plymouth Colony, the Province of New Hampshire, the Province of Maine, and Narraganset County.

Death Nicholas was likely killed on the July 18, 1694 Indian attack on Oyster River. 250 Indians led by a French officer conducted a series of attacks to English homes along the Oyster River. Of about 94 people reported killed or captured in the attack, only 69 have been accounted for. It is believed that he is one of the killed and unaccounted, and his daughter, Mary was one of those captured and taken by the attacking force.^[4][5]

Tradition says that his wife heard gunshots, and looking out she saw Indians running to scalp her husband. She took her children and escaped from the house and hid in a prostrate hollow tree. The savages, after plundering and firing at the house, passed directly over their hiding place without discovering them. Tradition sometimes interferes with facts, since they had 3 children and two survived the attack, and one was taken captive. Elizabeth later remarried to Thomas Allen of Durham, Province of New Hampshire.

Sources

1. ↑ England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975, citing index based upon data collected by the Genealogical Society of Utah, Salt Lake City; FHL microfilm 380,155. : 11 Baptism FamilySearch
2. ↑ New England Marriages Prior to 1700. Ancestry.com
3. ↑ History of the town of Durham, New Hampshire : (Oyster River Plantation) with genealogical notes by Stackpole, Everett Schermerhorn, 1850-1927; Thompson, Lucien, b. 1859; Meserve, Winthrop Smith, 1838-?. Published 1913, Durham, New Hampshire, USA. Oyster River Plantation History
4. ↑ Wikpedia
5. ↑ Dunn