William Spencer (1601 - 1640)

Born 11 Oct 1601 in Stotfold, Bedfordshire, England

Ancestors

Son of Gerard Spencer and Alice (Whitbred) Spencer

Husband of Agnes (Harris) Edwards — married after 1633 in Cambridge, Massachusetts [uncertain]

Descendants

Died May 1640 at age 38 in Hartford, Connecticut

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William Spencer migrated to New England during the Puritan Great Migration (1621-1640). (See Great Migration Begins, by R. C. Anderson, Vol. 3, p. 1721) Join: Puritan Great Migration Project Discuss: pgm

Biography

William Spencer, son of Gerard and Alice (Whitbread) Spencer was baptized 11 Oct 1601, at Stotfold, Bedfordshire, England.^[1]

He immigrated to New England about 1631, settled in Cambridge, Massachusetts, then removed to Hartford, Connecticut in 1639.^[2] His name can be found on the Hartford Founders Monument. He was brother to three other immigrants Thomas Spencer of Cambridge and Hartford, Michael Spencer and Gerard Spencer of Lynn.^[1]

William Spencer married Agnes Harris, daughter of Bartholomew Harris and Elizabeth (Collamore) Harris.^[3] After the death of William she married William Edwards.^[2]

William became a freeman of the Massachusetts Bay Colony 4 March 1632/3.^[4] This gave him the right to vote and to hold office. He was the Deputy from Cambridge to the General Court eight times between 9 May 1632 and 12 March 1637/8. In April 1637 he was listed as Lieut. Spencer.^[5] In addition to serving as Lt. of the Cambridge trainband, William was a Charter member of the Ancient and honorable Artillery Company.^[6] Governments can't run without committees. William served on several Colony committees^[7]

He was the town clerk at Cambridge 1632-1635, and town selectman 23 November 1635. A committee was appointed to "survey the town lands and enter [mutilated] a book appointed for that purpose" 3 Feb 1634/5, and on 27 Oct 1636 "Newe Towne presented a book of their records under the hands of Will Andrews, constable, John Beniamin, & Will Spencer." He and George Steele measured the undivided lands and alloted portions in 1635. ^[8]

The "Town Records of Cambridge" and the Cambridge Land Inventory show that William owned land and a house, garden, etc. in the years between 1633 and 1638 ^[9]

Click caption to see larger

In Hartford, William had a house, outhouses, yards and gardens, and about 98 acres in various parcels. He had lots 48 and 88 on the map.^[10]

William continued public service after his move to Hartford. He was Deputy for Hartford to the Connecticut General Court five sessions in a row starting 11 April 1639 and ending shortly before his death, 9 April 1640. In addition, he was the surveyor of armor and other military provisions for Hartford in 1639.^[11]

He died at Hartford between May 4 and May 22, 1640 (date of will, date of inventory.). Excerpt from the will:

"A noate of the mynd and Will of Williã Spenser for p^rsent the 4^th of May, 1640" ^[12]

Basically the will states that his wife Agnes should get one third, his son Samuel on third, and his daughters Sarah and Elizabeth one third. It refers to some property that his wife might receive and names overseers "Cosen Mathew Allen, my brother John Pratt and John Taylcoate. These last two items were keys to the identity of Agnes as Agnes Harris. His will and inventory (£67 moveables plus real estate, debts owed and debts due) are found in the Colony Records.^[12]

Children

1. Elizabeth b. c. 1633; m. (1) William Wellman, who died at Killingworth 9 Aug 1674; eight children; m. (2) May 23, 1672, Jacob Joy, four children.^[1]
2. Sarah b. c. 1636; d. Nov. 3, 1691, Simsbury, Connecticut; m. before 17 Aug 1656, John Case, who died 21 Feb 1703/4; ten children. He m. (2) Elizabeth (Moore) Loomis.^[1]
3. Samuel, b. about 1639; d. about 1716.^[1] m. Sarah prob. dau. of John Meakins. (John M. names dau. Sarah Spencer in his will, Nov. 22, 1702.^[1]

Note

Information on William Spencers. But, are they William the immigrant? There really is nothing to connect these odd bits. They are not mentioned by Anderson.

A William Spencer b. April 1601 was registered at the Merchant Taylor's School 1611/2^[13]

"According to some references, William Spencer was a graduate of Trinity College, Cambridge, England coming to New England with friends of John Winthrop in 1631; they settled in Cambridge. In 1633 he may have then returned to bring his wife and came with her in the ship "Mary and John" (according to page 203 Wm. R. Cutter's Genealogy and History of Connecticut (Vol. 3))"^[14]

DNA

• Paternal relationship is confirmed through Y-chromosome DNA testing. Frank Spencer and Chet Spencer, tenth cousins, match on 64 out of 67 markers (see YSearch IDs BVDU9 and 23V7R) thereby confirming their direct paternal lines back to their MRCA Gerard Spencer.

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5} Jacobus, Donald Lines M.A. "The Four Spencer Brothers - Their Ancestors and Descendants", The American Genealogist, 27:162 (April 1951) Article Begins 27:79
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1} Anderson, Robert Charles The Great Migration Begins: Immigrants to New England 1620-1633, Volumes 3, (New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1995).(Online database: AmericanAncestors.org, New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2010), link at AmericanAncestors
3. ↑ Richardson, Douglas. "The English Origin of Agnes Harris, of Hartford, Conn., Wife of William Spencer and William Edwards." The American Genealogist. 63:33 (1987)
4. ↑ Shurtleff, Nathaniel. Records of the Governor and Company of the Massachusetts Bay in New England (William White, Boston, 1853-) P. 367
5. ↑ Anderson: citing Mass Bay Colony Records 95, 135, 164, 178, 191, 194, 204, 220
6. ↑ Roberts, Oliver. History of the Military Company of the Massachusetts (Alfred Mudge & Son, Printers, Boston, 1895) Vol 1. 1637-1738 p. 40
7. ↑ Anderson: Citing Mass Bay Colony Records Vol I pp 139, 162, 166, 173, 179, 184, 188, 200, 210, 222
8. ↑ Anderson: Citing Records of the town of Cambridge pp. vi, 12, 13 and Massachusetts Bay Colony Records 1: 182
9. ↑ Anderson: Citing The Records of the Town of Cambridge (formerly Newtowne) Massachusetts, 1630-1703 pp. 5, 7, 10, 13, 18, and The Register Book of the Lands and Houses in the "New towne" and the town of Cambridge pp 5, 6, 38, 58.
10. ↑ Original Distribution of the Lands in Hartford Among the Settlers, 1639, Collections of the Connecticut Historical Society, Volume 14 (Hartford 1912; rpt. Bowie, Maryland, 1989) pp. 353, 353
11. ↑ The Public Records of the Colony of Connecticut (Hartford, Brown & Parsons, 1850) Vol 1. Deputy pp27, 29, 34, 41, 46; armor surv. p 30.
12. ↑ ^{12.0 12.1} The Public Records of the Colony of Connecticut (Hartford, Brown & Parsons, 1850) Vol. 1, Page 449
13. ↑ Robinson, Charles John. A Register of the Scholars Admitted Into Merchant Taylor's School, from A.D. 1562 to 1874, Volume 1. Printed and published for the editor by Farncombe, 1882 Google Books FamilySearch
14. ↑ AndersonFamilyTree Rootsweb.

See also:

• Society of the Descendants of the Founders of Hartford
• Barbour, Lucius Barnes. Families of Early Hartford, Connecticut. From which the founders article was derived.
• John Farmer's "Genealogical Register of First Settlers of N.E."
• "Catalogue of First Puritan Settlers of Conn." by R. R. Hinman:
• Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com : accessed 25 November 2020), memorial page for William Spencer (11 Oct 1601–May 1640), Find A Grave: Memorial #27422696, citing Ancient Burying Ground, Hartford, Hartford County, Connecticut, USA ; Maintained by Don Blauvelt (contributor 46932939) .