Tryphena (Powers) Lawrence (1711 - 1752)

Born 22 May 1711 in Chelmsford, Middlesex, Massachusetts Bay

Ancestors

Wife of Jonathan Lawrence — married 1726 in Clemsford, Middlesex, Massachusetts Bay

Descendants

Died 25 Aug 1752 at age 41 in Littleton, Middlesex, Massachusetts Bay

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Biography

Tryphena (or Trypheuny) Powers was born 22 May 1711 in Watertown, Massachusetts. She was the fifth and last child of Isaac Powers and Mary Poulter. Mary had had 5 children by her first husband, Samuel Winship. It was the second marriage for both parents. It appears that Isaac also had four older children.

The name Tryphena was used by English Puritains on both side of the Atlantic until the 18th century. It was mentioned by Paul in Romans, and comes from the Greek, meaning delicate.

When she was sixteen, she married Jonathan Lawrence about 1727 in Groton, in northern Middlesex County, MA. He was born in 1703, so was nearly eight years older than his bride. The Lawrance/Lawrence family, in several variants of spelling, was numerous in the area. His grandfather Peleg has purchased land directly from the Nashoba Indians in Groton/Littleton.

Their 11 children were born over a period of 24 years, from the time Trypheuny was aged 17 to 41. The first 9 were listed in Groton records: In 1748 her 20-year-old son Jonathan enlisted as a soldier in the French and Indian War. In July of that year he was captured after a skirmish just across the Connecticut River from Fort Dummer VT. Eight were taken to Canada through Crown Point at a rate of 20 miles per day. The were released in October. Ephriam Powers of Littleton was also one of the eight prisoners who returned. He may have been a son of Tryphena's brother Ephriam. Jonathan married 31 October 1751 to Martha Leighton.

Just three weeks after the birth of her last child, Tryphena died on 25 August 1752 in her forty-second year. Her oldest child Jonathan was 24, and her daughter and namesake was 17, and would have been well able to care for the younger children, with help from her sisters.

Two years later Jonathan remarried to Lydia Fletcher. He lived to be 86 and is buried beside Tryphena in Littleton. </Campbell>

Sources

• https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/24564506/tryphena-lawrence
• Lawrence Family records, Broome County Historical Society
• Sara E. Campbell

http://rememberingancestors.blogspot.com/2009/12/notable-women-ancestors-trypheuny.html

Acknowledgments

• Thank you to Ian Miller for creating Powers-1766 on 25 Oct 13. Click the Changes tab for the details on contributions by Ian and others.