Susannah (Saunders) Wells (abt. 1688 - abt. 1733)

Born about 1688 in Westerly,Washington,RI

Ancestors

Wife of Peter Barker — married about 1712 in Rhode Island

Descendants

Died about 1733 at about age 45 in Westerly,Washington,RI

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Biography

Research

From Charles Phelps Noyes, "Noyes-Gilman ancestry, being a series of sketches, with a chart of the ancestors of Charles Phelps Noyes and Emily H. (Gilman) Noyes, his wife", pub. 1907.

Note: May not be accurate

Reference to Peter Wells:

PETER WELLS, son of Peter and Wells, was born in Kingston, R. I., in 1681. He was made a freeman there in 1712. Before this time and probably about 1705, he married (i) Ann Watson, daughter of John and Dorcas (Gardiner) Watson, by whom he had eight children. She died before 1728, as appears from her father's will of that date, and soon after he married second Susanna (Peckham) Barker, widow of Peter Barker, and daughter of John and Eleanor Peckham by whom he had no children. Susanna must, however, have brought with her four of her own children under sixteen, and possibly several of her first husband's by his first wife.

The date of his widow Susanna's death is not known, but she gave a receipt "to son-in-law James Wells", on February i, 1733.

Reference to Peter's son James (by Peter's first wife Ann (Watson) Wells:

his father married second in 1729 or 1730, a well-to-do widow, Susanna (Peckham) Barker, of Westerly. Mrs. Barker brought with her to the Wells home her own children, and perhaps one or two of her first husband's. Mary, her eldest daughter, was under twenty, and she and James soon after followed their parents' example, and were married April 22, 1731.

Note: my reading of this is that Susanna's daughter Mary married her step-brother James.

Reference to Peter Barker:

His widow Susanna married second about 1729 or 1730, as his second wife, Peter Wells of South Kingston, R. I. Peter's first wife had been dead about two years, and he had eight children, the eldest about twenty-four, and the youngest two or three years old. Mary, Susanna's eldest daughter, married in 1731, James Wells, Peter Wells' eldest son. Susanna's second husband only lived a year or so after her marriage, dying in 1732. In the settlement of his estate, Susanna gave a receipt to her step-son, James Wells, dated February 1, 1733, for which he had paid as executor to her own daughter Sarah Barker. In this receipt she calls James her "son-in-law." From other receipts given by Susanna, we obtain the names of her other children by Peter Barker, as given below.

Sources

• Source: S00178 Title: Genealogy of RI Families, Vol 2, Saunders-Peckham NOTEGenealogy of Ri Families, Vol 2, Saunders-Peckham, Genealogy of Ri Families, Vol 2, Saunders-Peckham.

• Robinson, Caroline E. The Gardiners of Narragansett (Providence, Rhode Island, 1919). Page 217, Note #68.