William Leighton (1723 - 1793)

Born 17 Sep 1723 in Kittery, York, Massachusetts Bay Colony

Ancestors

Husband of Mary (Bane) Leighton — married 21 Jul 1750 in Maine

Descendants

Died 11 Jan 1793 at age 69 in Kittery, York, Massachusetts, United States

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Biography

This profile is part of the Nowell Name Study.

WILLIAM* {William\ John\ William\), born September 17, 1723; married November 19, 1747, Katharine, daughter of Rev. John Rogers,* of Eliot. She died March 17, 1750. Married 2d, August 6, 1750, Mary, daughter of Capt. Jonathan Bane, of York, Me.; she died January 11, 1795. William Leighton died January 11, 1793. He resided at Eliot (Kittery).

He was an intelligent and enterprising merchant, and was the owner of a large number of vessels, employed in trade chiefly with the West Indies, but occasionally to European ports. He was a man of large influence in Kittery and the surrounding country, and held many positions of trust. ... He was one of the selectmen of the town from 1770 to 1776, and was prominent in arousing the patriotic spirit of the people. He was one of the committee appointed Dec. 21, 1773, to whom was referred the letter from Boston, relative to the tea shipped by the East India company, and expected to arrive from Great Britain and made the report upon which it was " voted: That thanks of the Town be returned to the inhabitants of the Town of Boston for their early Intimation to us of a Quantity of Tea lately arrived there, subject to a duty; also for the said inhabitants con- duct in not suffering the said Tea to be landed in their Town, and the inhabitants of said town of Boston may be assured that the Inhabitants of this Town will at all times be ready to assist their brethren of Boston, and every other Town in the Province at the riske of their Lives and Fortunes in the defense of all our just rights and privileges." The said report being made, was accepted and " voted: That the Town clerk do forward as soon as may be, a fair copy of the above proceeding to the Town Clerk of Boston."

William Leighton performed Patriotic Service in Massachusetts in the American Revolution.

William Leighton is a DAR Patriot Ancestor, A069209.

He was subsequently a delegate to the Congress of the towns of York county held at Wells, Nov. 11, 1774, where he protested against English taxation, and recommended " the withdrawal of all commerce and dealings with those who have assented to the enslaving of a free people." He assisted in raising and equipping the 112 men, who, at the call of Warren, marched from Kittery under command of his cousin (Captain Samuel) to join the army at Cambridge in April, 1775. He was, as appears from the records in 1752, and again in 1758, one of the largest tax-payers. In 1778 which was a year of great dis- tress, he was chairman of a committee with Edward Cutt sand John Fernald to hire money on behalf of the town. He was sheriff of the county and justice of the peace ; was a strong Puritan in his religious views and was deacon of the church for twenty-eight years (1754-1786), He was a large landholder, and in addition to his business as a merchant was an extensive farmer.

By his first wife he had:

1. Child, b. October 6, 1748; d. October 17, 1748.

By his second wife he had nine children:

1. William, b. April 29, 1751; d. December 22, 1811.
2. Catherine b. August 29, 1752; d. May 25, 1810.
3. Sarah b. November 12, 1753.
4. Mary b. May 17, 1755.
5. Abigail b. April 8, 1757; d. Sept. 27, 1840.
6. Jonathan b. January 17, 1760; d. November 2, 1782
7. Eunice, b. August 13, 1761; d. 1842.
8. Elizabeth b. April 16, 1763; d. January 17, 1819.
9. John b. November 18, 1765; d. May 1, 1825.

Leighton Genealogy page 46 & 47

William Leighton died 11 Jan 1793 in Kittery, York, Maine.^[1]

Sources

1. ↑ "Maine Deaths and Burials, 1841-1910", database, FamilySearch, William Leighton, 1793.

• Leighton genealogy : an account of the descendants of Capt. William Leighton, of Kittery, Maine: with collateral notes relating to the Frost, Hill, Bane, Wentworth, Langdon, Bragdon, Parsons, Pepperrell, Fernald, Nason and other families of York County and its vicinity by Jordan, Tristram Frost, 1804-1890; Parsons, Usher, 1788-1868 https://archive.org/details/leightongenealog00jord/page/46/mode/2up

• Daughters of the American Revolution, DAR Genealogical Research Databases, database online, (http://www.dar.org/ : accessed 24 Jan 2024), "Record of William Leighton", Ancestor # A069209.Meehan-411

• Source: S-2009478707 Repository: #R-2009482618 Title: Ancestry Family Trees Publication: Online publication - Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry Family Trees http://trees.ancestry.com/pt/AMTCitationRedir.aspx?tid=23180050&pid=7279 Repository: R-2009482618

Acknowledgements

• WikiTree profile Leighton-251 created through the import of Ancestors of PBHowe.ged on Jun 6, 2011 by Buck Howe. See the Changes page for the details of edits by Buck and others.