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Nicholas Holt (abt. 1608 - 1685)

Nicholas Holt
Born about in Romsey, Hampshire, Englandmap [uncertain]
Son of [father unknown] and [mother unknown]
[sibling(s) unknown]
Husband of — married before 1636 [location unknown]
Husband of — married 12 Jun 1658 (to 20 Jun 1665) in Ipswich, Essex, Massachusetts Bay Colonymap
Husband of — married 21 May 1666 in Andover, Essex, Massachusetts Bay Colonymap
Descendants descendants
Father of , , , , , , , , and
Died at about age 77 in Andover, Essex, Massachusetts Bay Colonymap
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Profile last modified | Created 13 Sep 2010
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The Puritan Great Migration.
Nicholas Holt migrated to New England during the Puritan Great Migration (1621-1640). (See The Great Migration (Series 2), by R. C. Anderson, vol. 3, p. 397)
Join: Puritan Great Migration Project
Discuss: pgm

Contents

Biography

"There is no doubt but that the same motives that actuated the other early settlers of New England in leaving their pleasant homes in England and emigrating to this country had their due influence on him. That he was a religious man is made evident by the fact that he was one of the original members of the Andover church, and by his forsaking his native home in England to encounter the privations and difficulties of the wilderness in order that he might enjoy the privileges of worshipping God according to the convictions of his own mind and his understanding of God's word. While honestly and conscientiously discharging his duties in this regard he took an active part in public affairs of the town and his appointment on important committees in laying out roads and other improvements indicates that his services were valuable and appreciated."[1]

Birth

Nicholas Holt was deposed on 11 Feb 1671 and gave his age as 63 yrs. making his birth year about 1608. [2] [3] His death record says he was 104 when he died in 1685 (b. about 1582). [4] Savage's Genealogical Dictionary says "but Coffin, with more prob. says 83," which makes his birth year 1602. [5]

His immigration record says he was from Romsey, Hampshire, England.[6] However, there is no mention of him in the well-preserved records at Romsey. It would seem that he had not been a resident there very long and may only have had his certificate of conformity signed in Romsey.

Disputed Origins

He is sometimes said to have been born on 19 Oct 1602 in Romsey, Hampshire. This record has not been found.[7]

Alleged parents Thomas Holt and Annis Bowden have not been sourced or verified.

Immigration

Nicholas "Holte" immigrated to New England aboard the James which left Southampton on April 1635, under William Cooper, master, and arrived in the Massachusetts Bay Colony on 3 June 1635. On his Certificate of Conformity he is listed as a tanner from Romsey, Hampshire. With the men listed were "wives and Children of Dyvers of these."[6][3][8]

Occupation

The record of his immigration says Nicholas was a "tanner,"[6] a man who cured leather from animal hides. In later land exchanges he styles himself a "dishturner,"[9] a man who turns wooden dishes on a lathe. It has been speculated that "tanner" was perhaps an error for "turner."

Nicholas generally signed his deeds by mark.[3]

Newbury

Shortly after his arrival in Boston, Nicholas, and his family went to Newbury, as first settlers. An undated Newbury land inventory contains three parcels of land held by Nicholas Holt: a four acre houselot, a forty acre field, and another thirty-six acres of upland and meadow.[10]

Nicholas traveled about 40 miles to become a freeman of Massachusetts on 17 May 1637. On this day John Winthrop Senr. was elected Governor of the Colony, replacing the then unpopular Sir Henry Vane, who held the position the previous year. [11]

24 Feb 1637/8 Nicolas Holt and others were fined two shillings 6 pence each for being absent from the town meeting at 8:00 in the morning. He was fined for the same offense 21 April 1638.[12]

Being fined for being late did not prevent him from being chosen for service to the town on the same day, 24 February 1636/7, it was agreed that "William Moody, James Browne, Nic. Holt, Francis Plummer, Na Noyse, shall lay out all the general fences in the towne, that are to be made, as likewise tenn rod between man & man for garden plotts this is to be done by the 5th of March on the penalty of 5s apiece."[13]

He was chosen as town surveyor of Newbury on 19 April 1638. [14]

In June, 1638, all the able-bodied men of Newbury were enrolled and formed into four companies under the commands of John Pike, Nicholas Holt, John Baker and Edmund Greenleafe. They were required to "bring their arms compleat one Sabbath day in a month and the lecture day following," and "stand sentinell at the doors all the time of the publick meeting."[15]

Andover

The exact date of the settlement of Andover, then called "Chochichawicke," is unknown, but sometime between a letter written by John Woodbridge 22 Mar 1640/1 to John Winthrop, and Aug 1643, when a deed calls Richard Barker of Cochichawicke. Nicholas was reported as being the 6th settler. [16]

Before 1644, Nicholas Holt was one of the ten original settlers who removed their families from Newbury and accompanied their pastor, the Rev. John Woodbridge, to "Chochichawicke," now Andover. On a leaf in the town records containing the list of householders in order as they came to the town his name is sixth.[17]

From History of Andover: From Its Settlement to 1829:[18]

The first settlers were born in Great Britain, most of them in England. On a leaf in the town records, the following list is written in an ancient hand, without date, but probably when most of the first settlers were living, and may be considered as nearly correct. "The names of all the householders in order as they came to town—Mr. Bradstreet, John Osgood, Joseph Parker, Richard Barker, John Stevens, Nicholas Holt... Some of these brought families with them; others were young unmarried men. All of these, and probably others, were in Andover before 1644; many followed them in the course of a few years.

Nicholas Holt was one of the ten male members, including the newly ordained pastor, Mr. John Woodbridge, who composed the church of Andover at its founding, 24 October 1645.[19]

Holt Hill[20]

The highest point in Andover, 423' above sea level, is Holt's Hill, also called Prospect Hill. The land originally belonged to Nicholas, and he built a house there probably in the 1670s. The land remainded in the family until fairly recent times. The farmhouse that stands there now was built in 1714 by a grandson and is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.[21][19]

Nicholas Holt's land can still be walked today as Holt Hill is a part of Ward Reservation in Andover and North Andover, Massachusetts.

26 May 1647, he was appointed in connection with Sergeant Marshall to lay out the highway between Reading and Andover, and with Lieut. Sprague and Sergeant Marshall to view the river (Ipswich River) and make return to the next session of the court concerning the necessity and charge of a bridge.[22]

At a general court of Massachusetts, held 2 May 1652, he was appointed with Captain Johnson, of Woburn, and Thomas Danforth, of Cambridge, "to lay the bounds of Andover," and 18 May 1653, he was appointed with Captain Richard Walker and Lieutenant Thomas Marshall to lay out the highway betwixt Andover and Reading and 10 Sep 1653, the committee made their report. [23]

Despite all the laying of boundaries, by 20 May 1658, the town of Billerica was encroaching upon the land of Andover, and the inhabitants, including "Nikles Hoult" wrote a letter to the court at Boston, to confirm their rights.[24]

There was no probate for Nathaniel, but in his latter years, he disposed of his real estate to his children and their spouses.

  • 10 Mar 1679/80 "Nicholas Holt of Andover ... Senior" to "Robert Gray, now resident at Andover" 5 acres.[25]
  • 1 Sep 1680 "Nicholas Holt of Andover & also my wife for ... the natural love & affection I bear unto my daughter Sarah, not long since married to Roger Marks of the town & county aforesaid ... to Roger Marks abovesaid ..." 20 acres.[26]
  • 14 Feb 1680[/1?] "Nichoas Hoult Senior a dishturner of the town of Andover ... with the consent of his wife Martha Hoult" to his eldest son Samuel Hoult, several large parcels of land including the land that Samuel's house was on.[27]
  • 15 Dec 1681, "Nicholas Hoult Senior a dishturner of the town of Andover ... with the consent of his wife Martha Hould my third wife" deed to Henry Hoult of Andover, second son, the land Henry's house sat on and other parcels of land[28]
  • 16 Jun 1682, "Nicholas Hoult Senior, dishturner, of Andover ... with the consent of his wife Martha Hoult" acknowledged a deed of gift in return for maintenance, to "Nicholas Hoult my third son" One third part of the house he lived etc and "my dwelling house" (Nicholas') etc.[29]
  • 15 April 1681. "Nicholas Hoult Senior, dishturner, of Andover" deed to James Hoult, of Andover, fourth son. in return for maintenance, one-third part of his famr etc.[30]
  • 19 June 1685. "Nicholas Hoult Senior of the town of Andover, ... dishturner, deeded to "my loving son Jno. Hoult" several parcels of land.[31]

Marriages

Married: 1st - Elizabeth _____ by 1635 (date based on birth of first child in March 1636). She is sometimes said to be Elizabeth Short, a possible daughter of Henry Short. The evidence for this unknown and is not supported by Anderson.[3] She died on 9 November 1656 at Andover.[32]
Married: 2nd: Hannah (Bradstreet) Rolfe, ("Hanna Rofe")widow of Daniel Rolfe and daughter of Humphrey and Bridget Bradstreet, on 12 June 1658 in Ipswich, Essex County, Massachusetts. Another record says the marriage was on the 20th.[33] She died on 20 June 1665 at Andover. [34]
Married: 3rd - widow Martha (____) Preston on 21 May 1666 at Andover, Essex County, Massachusetts. [35] She died on 21 March 1702/3, aged about 80 years. [36]

Death

Nicholas Holt died on 30 January 1685[/6] at Andover, Essex County, Massachusetts. [4] [37] [38] The record of his death states he was aged 104 years, however this is clearly an exaggeration which does not correspond with the age he gave in depositions.

Children[3]

Children of Nicholas Holt and Elizabeth Unknown:[Anderson]
  1. Elizabeth Holt. Born on 30 March 1636 in Newbury, Essex County, Massachusetts. She married Ralph Farnum on 26 October 1658.
  2. Mary Holt. Born on 6 October 1638 in Newbury, Essex County, Massachusetts. She married Thomas Johnson on 5 JUL 1657 at Andover, Essex, Massachusetts.
  3. Samuel Holt. Born on 6 October 1641 in Newbury, Essex County, Massachusetts. He married Sarah Allen before 1670.
  4. Henry Holt.. Born about 1643 in Andover, Essex County, Massachusetts. He married Sarah Ballard on 24 February 1669 in Andover.
  5. Nicholas Holt. Born say 1645 in Andover, Essex County, Massachusetts. He married Mary RUSSELL on 8 January 1679.
  6. Hannah Holt. Born say 1648. [39] She married Robert Gray on 8 Mar 1668/9. NOte that the other genealogies list her as the eldest child.
  7. James Holt. Born say 1650 in Andover, Essex County, Massachusetts. He married Hannah Allen on 12 October 1675.
  8. Priscilla Holt. Born on 20 June 1653 in Andover, Essex County, Massachusetts. d.s.p 16 October 1653.
  9. Sarah Holt. Born about 1655 in Andover, Essex County, Massachusetts. She married Roger Marks by 1680.[40] According to Anderson the placement of Sarah is uncertain, some genealogists placing her birth in 1640. Her marriage is not known to be earlier than 1680, so she might be dtr of the second wife or even a step-daughter.[3]
Children of Nicholas Holt and Hannah Bradstreet:
10. Rebecca Holt. b. 14 Nov 1662 Andover, Essex Co., MA.
11. John Holt. b. 14 Jan 1663[/4] Andover, Essex Co., MA. He married Sarah Geary 3 July 1685 at Andover, Massachusetts.

Sources

  1. ↑ Durrie, Daniel S. A Genealogical History of the Holt Family in the United States: More Particularly the Descendants of Nicholas Holt of Newbury and Andover, Mass., 1634-1644, and of WIlliam Holt of New Haven, Conn. (Albany: J. Munsell, 78 State Street, 1864.) pp 9-12
  2. ↑ Records and Files of the Quarterly Courts of Essex County Massachusetts, Volume IV. p. 370
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 Anderson, Robert Charles. Great Migration, volume III: G–H. (2003): page 397-401.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Vital Records of Andover, vol. 2 (1912): page 468.
  5. ↑ Savage, James, A Genealogical Dictionary of the First Settlers..., volume 2. (Boston, 1860): page 455. :"NICHOLAS, Newbury, a tanner from Romsey in Hants, came in the James 1635, from Southampton, perhaps with w. arr. at Boston, 3 June, freem. 17 May 1637, had Elizabeth b. 30 Mar. 1636; Mary, 6 Oct. 1638; and Samuel, 6 Oct. 1641; rem. to Andover, where he was one of the found. of the ch. 1645; there had Henry; Nicholas; James; and John, wh. m. 3 July 1685, Sarah Geary, and d. 10 Mar. 1687; beside Priscilla wh. d. young, 16 Oct. 1653; he d. 30 Jan. 1685, aged 104 yrs. says the rec. but Coffin, with more prob. says 83. His first w. d. a. 1654, and he m. 12 June 1658, Hannah, wid of Daniel Rolfe, d. of Humphrey Bradstreet, wh. d. 20 June 1665; and he m. 21 May 1666, wid. Preston. His d. Elizabeth m. 26 Oct. 1658, Ralph Farnum; and Mary m. 5 July 1657, Thomas Johnson."
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Drake, Samuel Gardner. Result of Some Researches Among the British Archives, for Information Relative to the Founders of New England. (1860): page 56.
  7. ↑ Thomas, Arthur. The Family of Nicholas Holt That Isn't (2007). Extensive sourced essay published online. Online Link
  8. ↑ Anderson, Robert Charles, The Great Migration, Immigrants to New England 1634-1635, Volume III, G-H, Great Migration Study Project, New England Historic Genealogical Society, Boston 2003 Digital Image
  9. ↑ Essex Land Records, cited elsewhere.
  10. ↑ Anderson cited Newbury TR 1:19v
  11. ↑ Shurtleff, Nathaniel. Records of the Governor and Company of the Massachusetts Bay in New England (William White, Boston, 1853-) Vol. 1 1628-1641 freeman p. 373; p 195, Winthrop's election.
  12. ↑ History of Newbury pp 49, 50
  13. ↑ History of Newbury p. 53
  14. ↑ Currier, John J. History of Newbury, Mass., 1635-1902. (Boston : Damrell & Upham, 1902) [HofNewbury p. surveyor 48, 413, 99 (freeman)]
  15. ↑ History of Newbury p. 62
  16. ↑ Bailey, Sarah Loring. Historical sketches of Andover, (comprising the present towns of North Andover and Andover) (Boston: Houghton, 1880) pp, 5, 6, 11.
  17. ↑ History of Newbury pp 73-75, 84
  18. ↑ Abbot, Abiel, History of Andover: From Its Settlement to 1829 Digital Book
  19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 Tracy, Cyrus M., et al. Standard history of Essex county, Massachusetts, embracing a history of the county from its first settlement to the present time, with a history and description of its towns and cities. The Most historic county of America. (Boston: C. F. Jewett, 1878) church p. 57; house p. 65
  20. ↑ Photograph by SD on 16 Oct 2018. Copyright SD.
  21. ↑ Holt Farm (Andover, Massachusetts)
  22. ↑ Shurtleff, Nathaniel. Records of the Governor and Company of the Massachusetts Bay in New England (William White, Boston, 1853-) Vol. 2 1642-1649. p. 192
  23. ↑ Shurtleff, Nathaniel. Records of the Governor and Company of the Massachusetts Bay in New England (William White, Boston, 1853-) Vol. 3 1644-1657 p. 272; p. 302; p. 330.
  24. ↑ History of Andover [https://archive.org/details/historicalsketch00bail/page/62/mode/2up?q=Holt pp 61,62.
  25. ↑ Anderson cited Essex Land Record 6:116]
  26. ↑ Anderson cited Essex Land Record 8:81]
  27. ↑ Anderson cited Essex Land Record 32:130-31]
  28. ↑ Anderson cited Essex Land Record 34:255-56]
  29. ↑ Anderson cited Essex Land Record 6:129-30]
  30. ↑ Anderson cited Essex Land Record 7:53]
  31. ↑ Anderson cited Essex Land Record 9:12]
  32. ↑ Vital Records of Andover, vol. 2 (1912): page 465
  33. ↑ Vital Records of Andover, vol. 2 (1912): page 182.
  34. ↑ Vital Records of Andover, vol. 2 (1912): page 465.
  35. ↑ Vital Records of Andover, vol. 2 (1912): page 182.
  36. ↑ Vital Records of Andover, vol. 2 (1912): page 466.
  37. ↑ Town and City Clerks of Massachusetts. Massachusetts Vital and Town Records. Provo, UT: Holbrook Research Institute (Jay and Delene Holbrook). Digital Image
  38. ↑ A Genealogical History of the Holt Family in the United States: More Particularly the Descendants of Nicholas Holt of Newbury and Andover, Mass., 1634 - 1644 and of William Holt of New Haven, Conn. by Daniel S. Durrie, Albany: J. Munsell, 78 State Street, 1864. Digitized Book
  39. ↑ Estimated date used by Anderson based on marriage.
  40. ↑ Estimated date used by Anderson based on marriage.
  • Essex Land Records at Family Search. For future lookup
  • Holt Association of America. The first three generations of Holts in America. (Newburgh, NY: Holt Association of America, 1930). HathiTrust.org LINK
  • Bob Carter's Home Page. http://www.rootsweb.com/~bcarter/gendex/g0000011.html. QUOTES as sources: a) Ancestors of Amelia Carter Kennedy Carter, Ingalls, Butts, Spalding, and other early New England Families who have intermarried with them. b) World Family Tree Vol 2. c) Holt 1st 3 Generations. d) New England Historical and Genealogical Register. e) A Genealogical History of the Holt Family in America more particulary The Descendants of Nicholas Holt of Newbury & Andover 1634-1644 & of William Holt of New Haven, CT Refered to in Amelia Carter Kennedy's notes
  • Jacob Holt, 1858, 1874, 1877. By William Dowling. http://department.monm.edu/history/history_of_history_department/jacob_holt.htm.
  • Preston Genealogy. http://www.surnameguide.com/ruggles/preston_genealogy.htm
  • History of the town of Amherst, Hillsborough county, New Hampshire: (first ... By Daniel Franklin Secomb link
  • The Planters of the Commonwealth in Massachusetts, 1620-1640
  • George Brainard Blodgette and Amos Everett Jewett. Early Settlers of Rowley, Massachusetts. 1933. Reprinted by the New England History Press, Somersworth, New Hampshire. 1981. Page 34. Also available at: [1]
  • Torrey’s New England Marriages Prior to 1700. (Online database. AmericanAncestors.org. New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2008.) Originally published as: New England Marriages Prior to 1700. Boston, Mass.: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2015.[2]
  • Vital Records from The NEHGS Register. Online database. AmericanAncestors.org. New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2014. (Compiled from articles originally published in The New England Historical and Genealogical Register.)[3]
  • Boltwood, Lucius Manlius. Deaths in The Town of Andover, MS., from 1650 to 1700, The New England Historical & Genealogical Register (NEHGS, Boston, Mass., 1848) Vol. 2, Page 378. He d. 30 Jan 1685 "ag'd 104 yrs".
  • Holt Association of America, The first three generations of Holts in America ... (Newburgh, N.Y., Printed by the Moore Printing Co, 1930), 14 (The England of the time of Nicholas Hold); digital images, InternetArchive.




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Comments: 30

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Andrew Millard
His marriage date of 1624 seems very early, and contradicts his and his wife's biography which suggest shortly before or after his migration in 1635. With first child born 30 March 1636, before June 1635 would seem to be the best that can be suggested. The marriage place of Hampton Co., England is not a known location in England, and the biographies suggest that it is not known whether the marriage was in England or New England, so this place should be removed.
posted by Andrew Millard
B-404 Anne B
There are inadequately sourced parents attached. Anybody know anything about them? Objections to disconnecting?
posted by Anne B
Smith-32867 Jillaine Smith
Holt-9285 and Holt-89 appear to represent the same person because: Similar vitals. Same two children which also need merging.
posted by Jillaine Smith
Patricia Abbott
This is the same as Holt-89 and this profile should be merged
posted on Holt-9285 (merged) by Patricia Abbott
[Living D]
[Comment Deleted]
posted on Holt-9285 (merged) by [Living D]
edited by [Living D]
deleted by [Living D]
Smith-32867 Jillaine Smith
Why the unmerged match?


....................

posted on Holt-9285 (merged) by Jillaine Smith
[Living D]
[Comment Deleted]
posted on Holt-9285 (merged) by [Living D]
deleted by [Living D]
Smith-32867 Jillaine Smith
SD you may not have the "authority" to *complete* the merge (unless you are a profile manager on both profiles, or they're orphaned), but anyone who has signed the honor code can *propose* a merge; if you are one of the profile managers, or perhaps even on the trusted list of one of the profiles, you can also approve your "half" of the merge.
posted on Holt-9285 (merged) by Jillaine Smith
[Living D]
[Comment Deleted]
posted on Holt-9285 (merged) by [Living D]
deleted by [Living D]
Smith-32867 Jillaine Smith
Initiating a merge is the same as proposing a merge.
posted on Holt-9285 (merged) by Jillaine Smith
Smith-32867 Jillaine Smith
I've gone ahead and proposed the merge.
posted on Holt-9285 (merged) by Jillaine Smith
McRorie-37 Bartley McRorie
Holt-1520 and Holt-89 appear to represent the same person because: The only item in this profile is the birth before 1632. However, when exploring the changes history, it becomes evident that they were married to the same woman: Elizabeth Holt, (Unknown-435935). This profile has no other connections or data of any sort. I believe it should have been merged when the spouse was removed and attached to Holt-89.
posted by Bartley McRorie
Emens-67 Susan (Emens) Hughes
This source is listed on the profile, but you might want to add a link to this free space profile also:<span id='Durrie'></span>Durrie, Daniel. A Genealogical History of the Holt Family in the United States (J. Munsell, Albany, 1864)
posted by Susan (Emens) Hughes
GR Gordon
S10 is another broken link (old geocities site)

S11 is a transcription of Savage, for which there is already an independent citation directly to a digitized image of the page with the Holt entry on Internet Archive

posted by GR Gordon
GR Gordon
S3 looks like a broken link -- it appears to go to the right website, but the page is not found.

S4, S6 and S7 all lead to Rootsweb, which is currently down due to the security problem Ancestry identified a few weeks ago.

S8 is basically a biographical sketch of Jacob Holt, a Holt descendant, with only a few unsourced lines about Nicholas and Elizabeth Holt and 2 or 3 of their children before narrowing focus to the line of descent to Jacob.

S2 is tree page, citing multiple sources, among them Crozier's General Armory, mention of which needs to get the boot. The coat of arms it describes was erroneously believed to have been the arms of the Holt Family at large, but it does not belong to Nicholas Holt, to any of his individual descendants, or to the Holt Family at large

posted by GR Gordon
Smith-32867 Jillaine Smith
Thanks, Joe for your work on this.

The narrative and source lists could still use some cleanup and there is duplicative bio data at the bottom. I fear that the bulk of the initial text (with all the [S1], [S2], etc footnotes) is a copy paste from some other source.

Joe, are you willing to do your magic here? I’d work on it but I’m in final prep for a long biz trip.

posted by Jillaine Smith
GR Gordon
Agreed.
posted by GR Gordon
Cochoit-2 Joe Cochoit
Anderson's construction and dates for Hannah make much sense to me and we might as well use them. The born in England and marrying in her 30s looks like really bad guess work.
posted by Joe Cochoit
GR Gordon
Good enough. Thanks, Joe, and thanks for the link to the Holt Association book. which I really wanted to revisit. (It's much preferable to Durrie for a detailed look at the early Holts in Newbury and Andover.)

The author of the article on Nicholas refers to Hannah not marrying until she was in her 30s, and has her as the eldest child, b.England. The question is which came first: the idea that she was first in order of birth, or the idea that she came over from England with her parents, as this could be a case of two different researchers relying on each other's false conclusions, in a circular fashion, as the evidence for their own.

This profile does need Project Protection. On FamIlySearch.org it has been a magnet for duplicate profiles of the middle children, whose exact birth dates can only be estimated. The duplications aren't always immediately obvious because they wind up occupying a different place in the order of birth, or being listed under a different one of Nicholas's three wives. (I notice two Sarahs here already: [Holt-278] and [Holt-279] for whom proposed merger was rejected on the grounds that the difference in birth dates and a couple of other details, prove they are two different people.)

posted by GR Gordon
Cochoit-2 Joe Cochoit
Corrections made to children. Estimated dates to match Anderson's analysis.
posted by Joe Cochoit
GR Gordon
Thanks for responding so quickly to the comments concerning the likely misattributed parentage of Edith, wife of Richard Browne.

Side note regarding the other child not mentioned by Anderson (Hannah): The women and children who sailed on the "James" were not counted, and certainly not named on the passenger list, however it has long been believed that Nicholas was accompanied by his wife and at least one child. That child has traditionally been identified (at least since the time Durrie compiled his 1864 genealogy, if not earlier) as Hannah. Although clearly aware of Durrie's work, which is mentioned in the bibliography, Hannah has equally clearly been omitted from the "Great Migration" profile of Nicholas, but without any reason being given -- she just is not mentioned at all.

Was this intentional or merely an oversight resulting from the fact that, of all the children of Nicholas and Elizabeth, she alone was born in England? I tend to think it was an oversight, partly because Anderson has taken such pains to explain his reasons for resolving several other more minor discrepancies one way versus the other, making the total omission of a family member without any explanation at all odd. Mention is made in the discussion of Nicholas's estate (p.398) of a transfer of 5 acres of land made on 10 March 1679/80 to "Robert Gray now resident at Andover," who may possibly have been Hannah's husband. It is interesting to note that the date of the transfer appears to coincide with what would have been the 10th anniversary of the couple's wedding.

CORRECTION: Anderson *does* mention Hannah BUT has her in the middle of the pack "b. Say 1648," rather than the couple's first child b.in England by 1635, as per Durrie. Since both Durrie and Anderson state she married Robert Gray in Salem, they must be talking about the same person. Durrie mentions that some of the town and church records were destroyed and even Anderson appears uncertain about the dates for the middle children.

What do you suggest? Is this something that should be posted on G2G since it has the potential to spill over to the family tree of the Gray family?

posted by GR Gordon

Rejected matches › Thomas Holt (bef.1575-1657) › Nicholas Holt III (1683-1756) › Nicholas Holt Sr (1719-1787) › Nick N. Holt

Featured National Park champion connections: Nicholas is 11 degrees from Theodore Roosevelt, 18 degrees from Stephanus Johannes Paulus Kruger, 12 degrees from George Catlin, 14 degrees from Marjory Douglas, 22 degrees from Sueko Embrey, 9 degrees from George Grinnell, 24 degrees from Anton Kröller, 12 degrees from Stephen Mather, 16 degrees from Kara McKean, 12 degrees from John Muir, 15 degrees from Victoria Hanover and 24 degrees from Charles Young on our single family tree. Login to find your connection.

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Categories: Newbury, Massachusetts | First Settlers of Newbury | Andover, Massachusetts | Puritan Great Migration