Abigail (Sewall) Phenix (1649 - aft. 1718)

Born 14 Mar 1649 in Springfield, Hampden, Massachusetts

Descendants

Died after 1718 after age 68 in Lafayette, North Kingstown, Kings, Rhode Island

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Biography

Abigail Sewill, daughter of Thomas Sewall (1625-aft.1698) was born 14 Mar 1649 at Springfield, Hampden, Massachusetts. ^[1] The family migrated to Kingstown, Rhode Island where she was married to Alexander Phenix and widowed, some time prior to 6 Sept 1687.

On 6 September 1687, she is cited on Gov. Andros' tax roll at Rochester (renamed later to Kingstown), Rhode Island as the "widow Phenix" owing a property tax of 2s 0.5d, this entry places her as an adult resident and property landholder in Kingstown, RI on this date, but notably she is not charged the 1s poll tax, which was levied on all adult males. ^[2] This tax roll identifies a sum total of 136 heads of house living in the roughly 22.5 square mile area associated with Kingstown, RI on this date in 1687; one consequence of this sparse population is that he would have been well acquainted with many, if not all, of the individuals identified on this list. Therefore, this tax list is a defacto definition of the people who were available to be his friends, neighbors, and allies; it would be essential to cultivate strong working relationships with these neighbors in order to survive on this frontier landscape. This cross reference tool provides hot links to peruse most of the 136 Wikitree families identified in this tax roll; families who were very frequently interconnected, or became interconnected, by marriage, over the course of their lives and throughout the ensuing generations, further binding a network of neighbors into extended families. ^[3] Also appearing on this tax roll is Beriah (Brown) Browne (1648-bef.1717), her son-in-law by marriage to her daughter Abigail (Phenix) Brown (abt.1668-1690).

She passed away after 1718.

Sources

1. ↑ Massachusetts, Town Clerk, Vital and Town Records, 1626-2001; FamilySearch (revision date: Thu Oct 26 02:15:50 UTC 2023), Entry for Abigall Sewill and Thomas Sewill, 14 Mar 1649.
2. ↑ Roberts, Gary Boyd; Genealogies of Rhode Island Families, Vol. II, Niles - Wilson; Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., Baltimore 1989. RI Taxes under Gov. Andros pages 592- 594.
3. ↑ Randolph Beebe; Cross Reference: Gov. Andros 1687 Rochester RI Tax Register to Wikitree profile; Wikitree Free Space Profiles, 2024.

Other Sources

The following section provides a listing of source material that is pertinent to the profile subject, but not presently cited in the narrative text of the profile.

• Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/118207039/abigail-phenix: accessed 28 January 2024), memorial page for Abigail Sewal Phenix (unknown–1717), Find a Grave Memorial ID 118207039, citing Phenix-Brown-Hendrick Lot, North Kingstown, Washington County, Rhode Island, USA; Maintained by: Find a Grave.

• New England Marriages to 1700, Vol II. (Online database. AmericanAncestors.org. New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2008.) Originally published as: New England Marriages Prior to 1700. Boston, Mass.: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2015.

• page 1185: Alexander Phoenix (--1679+, bef 1687) & 2/wf Abigail [SEWELL] (1650-1718+); near Warwick, RI/Wickford RI {Phoenix Chart; Austin GDRI 27, 151.}

• Austin, John Osborne, 1849-1918; The genealogical dictionary of Rhode Island : comprising three generations of settlers who came before 1690 : with many families carried to the fourth generation; J Munsell's Sons; Albany; 1887. page 27: Abigail Phenix dau of Alexander and Abigail Phenix married Beriah Brown. Kingstown, RI.; page 151: Alexander Phenix married Abigail Sewall, daughter of Thomas Sewall, Kingstown, RI.

Web based Genealogies

The following section provides a listing of web-published genealogies pertinent to the profile subject; these genealogies provide a valuable resource to compare an alternate genealogical perspective of the family links for the profile subject. However, these genealogies may or may not be correct and are not presently cited as source material in the narrative text of this profile.

• FamilySearch profile for Abigail Sewill.