Francis Matthews (abt. 1598 - abt. 1648)

Born about 1598 in Devon, England

Husband of Thomasine (Channon) Matthews — married 22 Nov 1622 in Ottery St Mary, Devon, , England

Descendants

Died about 19 Dec 1648 at about age 50 in Oyster River, York, Maine

Problems/Questions Profile managers: Puritan Great Migration Project WikiTree [send private message], Jack Wise [send private message], and Paul Bennett [send private message]

Francis Matthews migrated to New England during the Puritan Great Migration (1621-1640). (See The Directory, by R. C. Anderson, p. 223) Join: Puritan Great Migration Project Discuss: pgm

Biography

Disputed Origins

A previous version of this profile claimed without source that the immigrant Francis Matthews was born in 1598 at Ottery St. Mary, Devon, England, a son of Tamsen Matthews and Frances Greville.

Another version of this profile claimed, also without source, that he was born in Devon in 1598, son of Samuel Mathews and Mary (Hilton) Matthews.

Until proof of his origins is found, all parents have been detached.

Marriage

Francis married 22 November 1622 at Ottery St. Mary, Devon to Thomasine "Tamsen" (Channon) (d. c.1690), daughter of Henry Channon (d. between 10 May and 19 Dec. 1648).^[1]

Children

Children of Francis and Thomasine:^[1][2]

1. Elizabeth Matthews, bpt. 27 Dec. 1623 Ottery St. Mary, Devon, buried on 12 February 1624/5
2. Frances, daughter, bpt. 20 Feb. 1625/6 Ottery St. Mary, Devon
3. Francis Matthews, Jr., m. 23 Feb. 1691/2 Ruth Bennet
4. Elizabeth (2nd) Matthews, b c. 1628; m.1. William Drew, 2. William Follett, alive in 1678
5. Walter Matthews, d 1678; m. MARY ______, d. 1678
6. Martha Matthews; m.1. ______ Snell, 2. ______ Brown
7. Benjamin Matthews, b. 1634, m. after 1670 Mrs. Dorothy (Hall) Kent, d.c.1701
8. Catherine (Katherine) Matthews, b. 1638, m.1. Thomas Footmas or Footman, 2. William Durgin

Immigration, Property and Positions

Francis is "doubtless" the man who immigrated with Capt. John Mason's colony in 1634 and helped to start the mills at Great Works (now South Berwick), Maine.^[3]

Durham Point, New Hampshire

Francis worked as a fish merchant at Durham Point, New Hampshire.^[1] On 1 Oct. 1637, he leased 100 acres from Richard Vines, Henry Jocelyn and Thomas Wannerton. This land was on the northwest side of the island called "Muskito Hall" at the mouth of the Oyster River.^[1]

He signed the Exeter Combination 5 June 1639 (his mark is the large M in the center column of signatures). He then bought land at Oyster River of William Hilton 7 July 1641. ^[4]

Godfrey Dearborn Image 1

Francis was a bondsman for Matthew Giles' wife Elizabeth and her son in 1644. He was on the Grand Jury in 1646. Then "Mr. Francis Matthews to hear and decide local cases" in 1647.

Death and Legacy

Francis died December 19, 1648 at Oyster River, York, Maine.^[4]

There was no record of an administrator to his estate until it was granted to his son Benjamin 10 July 1704. The inventory was £119, claims £356.

Francis' widow Thomasine sued John Heard of Sturgeon Creek in the Maine Court Oct. 1652 and the writings were ordered delivered to her. In 1653 she entered a caution about the land her husband bought from Heard on Great Isle. After her death Benjamin, who was the administrator of her estate, received some renumeration for having taken care of his mother for many years 6 Nov. 1705.^{[citation needed]}

Sidebar Notes

An interesting tradition in Ottery St. Mary (known as "Ottry") is the lighting of the tar barrels. Around Guy Fawkes Night barrels soaked in tar are set alight and carried overhead throughout the town. Only those born in town or who have lived there most of their lives may carry a barrel. The event started in the 17th century or earlier and was started as a means of warding off evil spirits. Check out the Tar Barrels web site here. Me thinks you must have a few pints before taking this on!

Along the same lines the Ottregians celebrate Pixie Day commemorating the pixies being banished from the town to local caves know as the Pixie's Parlour in 1454. The Pixies were evidently upset about a set of bells being brought to the church in Ottery as they knew that after the bells were installed it would be the death knell of their rule over the village. They cast a spell over the monks bringing the bells and redirected them to a road leading them to the edge of a cliff. Just as they were about to fall off the cliff one of the monks stubbed his toe on a rock and said: "God bless my soul" and the spell was broken. The bells were installed in the new church, however, the Pixies still come out one day in June and capture the bell ringers and imprison them in the Pixie's Parlour to be rescued by the Vicar of Ottry. Today’s Pixies are members of the local Scouts and the festival is a fund raiser for Scouting.

One must wonder if our ancestors took part in such festivities! ^[5]

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3} Martin, Jeff & Pam, Matthews: Francis accessed November 6, 2014 NOTE: Dead link as of June 25, 2022
2. ↑ Woodward, Doris J., (1998) "Comfort Drew of Hollis, Maine." The Maine Genealogist, Vol 20. Farmington, ME: The Maine Genealogical Society, 1977-. AmericanAncestors.org NEHGS (Vol 20: 1998, Page 52)
3. ↑ Stackpole, Everett Schermerhorn, (1913) History of the Town of Durham, New Hampshire (Oyster River Plantation) with Genealogical Notes, Vols 1 and 2. [Durham? N.H.] Pub. by vote of the town, Vol 1, Archive.org Vol 2, Archive.org (Vol 1, Page 38, Vol 2, Page 263).
4. ↑ ^{4.0 4.1} Stackpole, Everett S., (1903) Old Kittery and Her Families. Lewiston, ME: Lewiston, Archive.org (Pages 30-1)
5. ↑ Article on Ottery St. Mary (Wikipedia)

See also:

• Savage, James, (1860) A Genealogical Dictionary of the First Settlers of New England ... Vol 3. Boston: Little, Brown and Co., Archive.org (Vol 3, Page 176).
• Ancestry Family Trees, Ancestry Family Trees, Ancestry Family Trees Online publication - Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com. Original data: Family Tree files submitted by Ancestry members.;
• Find A Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/102321752/francis-matthews : accessed 13 April 2018), memorial page for Francis Matthews (1598–19 Dec 1648), Find A Grave Memorial no. 102321752, ; Maintained by Kevin Avery (contributor 47024642) Unknown.
• Francis Matthews and Thomasine Channon, on website “Diana, Goddess of the Hunt — for Ancestors!”, at: http://dgmweb.net/FGS/M/MatthewsFrancis-ThomasineChannon.html (accessed 9/1/2018).

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