William Mead (bef. 1592 - aft. 1657)

Born before 27 Dec 1592 in Watford, Hertfordshire, England

Ancestors

Husband of Philip (Unknown) Mead — married 1620 in Watford, Hertfordshire, England

Descendants

Died after 1657 after age 64 in Stamford, Fairfield County, Connecticut Colony [uncertain]

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William Mead migrated to New England during the Puritan Great Migration (1621-1640). (See The Directory, by R. C. Anderson, p. 224) Join: Puritan Great Migration Project Discuss: pgm

Biography

This profile is part of the Mead Name Study.

William Mead migrated from England to Connecticut Colony.

William Mead, also spelled Mayd, Meade, Meads and Mad

Corrected Origin

William was born in England. Until recently, it was unclear exactly who were William's ancestors. Early genealogical work by Spencer P. Mead contained errors and omissions which unfortunately persisted. Spencer P. Mead associated William with the Gabriel or Goodman Mead who immigrated about the same time and settled in Massachusetts.^[1] Mead went so far as to call them brothers. However there is no evidence of such a relationship. The only connection seems to be their name, Mead.

The story that they sailed from Lydd, co. Kent, England, in the Ship Elizabeth, with Captain Stagg, in April, 1635, is now disputed. William's name does not appear on the ship's list of passengers. The wife of Gabriel Mead had some connection with one of the Bate families, who were from Lydd, co. Kent, and sailed aboard the Elizabeth. This seems to be the sole basis for assigning William Mead's family to that particular voyage. Interestingly, neither are Gabriel's family members listed as passengers (there are no Meads at all listed).^[2]

In the past, Spencer P. Mead and others claimed that William's parents were William Meade and Elizabeth Colin of Lydd, co. Kent, England. Those profiles are no longer connected as parents, due to new research (see Origin).

Origin

Research at the parish of St Mary's finds a William Mead, baptized December 27,1592,^[2] born to Priscilla Mead and his wife, Dorothy (Grey), from Watford, Hertfordshire, England.^[3][2] William's birth date was ca 1592,^[3] some time before his baptism on December 27, 1592.^[2]

Wife's Name

Remington discusses William's wife's name at length in his article titled, "The English Origin of William 1 Mead ...," showing that the name, "Philip" is supported by evidence (see Philip (Unknown) profile for more information).^[2] Her death was recorded in the Vital Records of Stamford, Births, Marriages, and Deaths.

MEAD: Philip(?), w. Wil[l]ia[m], d.7th mo. 19,1657^[4]

Authors have used various spellings. Doherty reported her first name as "Phillipe," citing Remington's TAG article above (Remington reports the possible daughter born at Watford to "Philippe" and William Mead).^[3]Paul Prindle, in his "careful account of William Mead" in Ancestry of Elizabeth Barrett Gillespie, states William's wife was "Philippa." This version seems to originate with the patron submitted IGI.^[2]

When Donald Lines Jacobus transcribed the Stamford Town Records, he found her maiden name to be ["Kilvy?],"^[5] with a question mark and brackets, "indicating that he had trouble reading the original."^[2] In McArthur-Barnes Ancestral Lines, Jacobus states that "E. Champion Bacon in 1841 entered it in his notebook as Kilvy with an interrogation point, indicating that even then it was hard to read."^[6]

The names, Martha Davis, (Mary Barker, Martha Barker Davis), are prevalent on the internet. Eva Mead Firestone, in Mead-Clark Genealogy, reports her as "Martha," but without evidence or source.^[7] Possibly she follows Mr C. E. Parker. According to James S. Elston in Descent from seventy-nine early immigrant heads ... v. 2, "Mr. C. E. Parker who has done considerable research toward a new Mead genealogy thinks his wife was Martha Davis, daughter of Elijah Davis [now disproven]."^[8] According to Paul Prindle, "clearly, this tentative identification is without merit."^[2] Possibly these names just fill the void left by the 1901 book by Spencer P. Mead. The WikiTree profile for Martha Davis has been disconnected from this profile.

Associations

William was one of the first colonists of Wethersfield along with John Reynolds and John Miller. They were on the list of "pioneers pledged to build a plantation," according to Elizabeth Leach Rixford. John Reynolds also removed to Stamford in 1641.^[9]

Immigrated to the Colony of Connecticut

William immigrated with his wife and children in about 1635 and first settled in Wethersfield, Connecticut. He removed to Stamford where in 1641, he was one of the first land-owners.^[9] William was granted five acres with woodland on 7 December 1641.^[2]

Marriage

William and Philip (Unknown) were married around 1620 in England, possibly at or near to Watford, Hertfordshire.^[2] Exact date and place of the marriage are not known.

Children

There is record of three children, but probably were four or five. Remington lists five, including two who died in infancy in England.^[2] Spencer P. Mead includes an unnamed son who died in 1658.^[1]

The IGI (controlled extraction) includes records of the parish of St Mary's in Watford, Hertfordshire, England. Remington found several instances of a Philip or Philipa and William Mead in this parish.^[2] These parish records include a baptism on 17 March, 1621 of a daughter, Mary, born to William and Philippe Mead. There is no further record of a Mary among the children of William and Philip Mead, but possibly she died young.^[2] Also at Watford, a William Mead and _____ Mead had a son, Joseph, who was baptized 25 April, 1624.^[2] No record is found at Watford for the births of John and Martha, but Remington points out that it is "worth noting" the possible origin of their names; William's brother John was married to a Martha who was buried 3 January 1632/3.^[2]

Children:^[2][1]

1. (poss.) Mary Mead, born to William and Philippe Mead, baptized 17 March 1621, possibly died young.
2. Joseph Mead born 25 April 1624
3. Martha (Mead) Richardson Williams b 1632
4. John Mead b ca 1634
5. Child Mead b ca 1638, d 1658

Property and Other Records

William and family settled first at Wethersfield, but by 7 December 1641 they were living at Stamford^[10] when William "Mayd" received from the town of Stamford a homelot and five acres.^[1]

William's daughter, Martha, married to John Richardson, and on 27 March 1657, William petitioned the court on behalf of John Richardson, (son-in-law), that Richardson's fine of £10 be abated.^[10]

Death and Legacy

The last record we have was on 27 March 1657 (see above), when William petitioned the court on behalf of his son-in-law John Richardson.^[2] Remington points out that he was probably still living on 19 September 1657 when his wife, Philip, died, and her death record called her the wife of William Mead, and not the widow.^[2] According to Elizabeth Leach Rixford, William died ca 1663, although she does not tell us her source.^[9] Doherty places his date of death at 1657.^[3] Possibly we do not have further record of him in Stamford, as Jacobus suggests, because he moved, with the rest of the family, to Greenwich.^[2]

There is a Mead Family Monument at Tomac Burying Ground, Greenwich, Fairfield County, Connecticut, USA which includes William and three children, Joseph, Martha and John. However it does not include wife, Philip. Actual burials have not been found.^[11] William and his family are the ancestors of the Meads of Connecticut, Vermont, New York, Ohio and more.^[1]

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4} Mead, Spencer P. (1901) History and Genealogy of the Mead Family of Fairfield County, Connecticut ... New York: Knickerbocker, Archive.org (Pages 7, 10, 123).
2. ↑ ^{2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 2.12 2.13 2.14 2.15 2.16 2.17 2.18} Remington, Gordon L., (1998) "The English Origin of William 1 Mead of Stamford, Connecticut." The American Genealogist. NEHGS, AmericanAncestors.org (Vol 73, Pages 1-10).
3. ↑ ^{3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3} Doherty, Frank J., (1990–2003) Dutchess County, NY: The Settlers of the Beekman Patent, V.1-8. NEHGS, American Ancestors.org (Vol 8, Pages 697-738, The Mead Family)
4. ↑ Barbour, Lucius B., transc. Connecticut: Vital Records (The Barbour Collection), 1630-1870. NEHGS AmericanAncestors.org (Stamford, Page 133).
5. ↑ Jacobus, Donald L., (1933) The American Genealogist. New Haven, CT, AmericanAncestors.org NEHGS (Vol 10, Page 44).
6. ↑ McArthur, Selim Walker, (1964) McArthur-Barnes Ancestral Lines. Portland, ME: Anthoensen Press Archive.org (Page 130).
7. ↑ Firestone, Eva Mead. (1946) Mead-Clark Genealogy. [Ann Arbor, Mich., Lithoprinted by Edwards brothers, inc.] HathiTrust.org Sect 2 Mead, page 5.
8. ↑ Elston, James S., (1962) Descent from seventy-nine early immigrant heads ... v. 2. Burlington, VT: Chedwato Service, HathiTrust.org (Vol 2, Page 60).
9. ↑ ^{9.0 9.1 9.2} Leach Rixford, Elizabeth M. (1934) Three Hundred Colonial Ancestors and War Service and Their Part in Making American History from 495 to 1934. Rutland: Tuttle, Archive.org (Page 242).
10. ↑ ^{10.0 10.1} Leggett, Theodore A., (1913) Early settlers of West Farms, Westchester County, N.Y., ... New York: [s.n.] Archive.org (Page 97).
11. ↑ Find-A-Grave Virtual Cemetery memorial #21493471 in Tomac Burying Ground, Web accessed May 23, 2014

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