Azariah Snow (1768 - 1856)

Born 24 Jun 1768 in Bridgewater, Plymouth Co., Massachusetts Bay, New England

Ancestors

Descendants

Died 24 Nov 1856 at age 88 in Lunenberg, Essex Co., Vermont, USA

Biography

Azariah Snow was born in 1768 in Bridgewater, Plymouth County, English province of Massachusetts Bay, New England. He was the 5th son (6 total) of Deacon Daniel Snow and his wife, Abigail (Fobes) Snow. "Azariah" was a masculine Biblical name that means "God Helped". Notably, Azariah was a High Priest in King Solomon's Temple in Jerusalem, as recorded in 1st Chronicles 5:35. Bible names were favored by this branch of the Snow family in colonial New England that descended from William Snow and Rebecca Browne, daughter of Mayflower passenger, Peter Browne.^[1]

When baby Azariah was just 18 months old, in January 1772, Deacon Daniel and Abigail Snow sold their 7-acre farm in Bridgewater to her brother Daniel Fobes and moved 110 miles north-west to Keene, Cheshire County, in the English province of New Hampshire. In June 1772 they bought 62 acres of land there from Ebenezer and Abigail Fisher of Wrentham, Massachusetts Bay province. In addition to being a Deacon in their Puritan Congregational Church, Daniel Snow was a blacksmith by trade. ^[2]

A pro-American patriot, Daniel Snow is noted in 1773 as being one of 45 "older or less-able-bodied" men from Keene who nonetheless had volunteered as part of its citizens' militia; these men were called the "alarm list," to be called to duty only if circumstances required. It's doubtful if he ever saw active service, being 50 years old by 1776. His oldest son, Daniel Snow Jr., however, did serve as a private in the Company of Captain Joseph Bert and Daniel Sr. signed the New Hampshire declaration opposing King George, supporting the "United American Colonies," in March 1776. Alas, Daniel Jr. was killed in action Sept. 28, 1777 at the Battle of Saratoga.^[3]

Azariah Snow was, of course, too young to be involved militarily in the American Revolution although he no doubt shared his family's pro-American sentiments. He helped care for the family farm during the conflict. On April 5, 1790, at 21 years old, Azariah Snow married almost-18 year old Thankful Balch, b: April 23, 1772 in Keene, New Hampshire. She was the daughter of Benjamin & Elizabeth (Blake) Balch.^[4] The couple had 7 children:

1. George Washington SNOW b: 16 Sep 1797 in Keene, Cheshire, NH
2. Diadamia SNOW b: 19 Sep 1800 in Keene, NH; d. as an infant
3. John L SNOW b: 16 Dec 1805 in Keene, NH
4. Daniel Fobes SNOW b: 26 Sep 1807 in Keene, NH
5. Abner SNOW b: 24 Aug 1809 in Keene, NH
6. Abigail SNOW b: 10 May 1811 in Keene, NH
7. Benjamin B SNOW b: ca. 1812 in Keene, Cheshire, NH, USA

Although all of their children were born in Keene, Cheshire County, New Hampshire, sometime before 1820, Azariah and Thankful Snow moved their family 140 miles north to Lunenburg, Essex County, Vermont. They joined Azariah's older brother, Barzillai Snow, who was already located in Lunenburg, Vermont, by the 1800 Census. By this time (1820), Azariah's oldest son, George W. Snow, was married; he lived next door as did another man, "Adin Snow". The family homesteaded Lunenburg; Azariah and Thankful Snow spent the rest of their lives there.

Azariah Snow died in Lunenburg on November 24, 1856. His wife, Thankful (Balch) Snow, survived him for another 10 years. She passed away on March 17, 1866 in Lunenburg, Vermont. They are buried next to each other in the Lunenburg Corner Cemetery, Lunenburg, Essex County, Vermont, USA. Their son, John L. Snow, who died in 1886, is buried nearby along with a few members of Barzillai Snow's family. ^[5]

Sources

1. ↑ Entered by Stanley Wood, Jan 9, 2012. Gender corrected & historical references added by Chet Snow May 7, 2016.
2. ↑ "On 2 Jan 1772 Daniel Snow of Bridgewater, blacksmith, and wife Abigail sold 7 acres being the North lot in the estate of Joshua Fobes, deceased, late of Bridgewater to Daniel Fobes. On 11 June 1772, Daniel Snow of Bridgewater bought 62 acres in Keene, NH from Ebenezer and Abigail Fisher of Wrentham, MA." Cited on Descendants of Nicholas Snow - Daniel Snow, Deacon
3. ↑ "A History of the Town of Keene NH," pp. 163, 205, 211, 230.
4. ↑ Race-Snow Genealogy - Azariah Snow and Descendants of Nicholas Snow - Thankful Balch
5. ↑ Find A Grave Memorial# 126729265 - Azariah Snow and also Find A Grave Memorial# 126729850 - Thankful Balch Snow.

See also:

• Ancestors of Alexandra Catlin Vaut, et al - Azariah Snow

• Genealogy Brick Walls - Azariah Snow - on HeatonBrown.com

Acknowledgements

• WikiTree profile Snow-1212 was created by Stanley Wood, from firsthand knowledge. Click the Changes tab for the details of edits by Stanley and others.

• Chet Snow researched this family and wrote the biographical sketch, adding sources, on May 7, 2016; and added another Source on Jan. 16, 2017.