Othniel Taylor (1719 - 1788)

Born 16 Apr 1719 in Deerfield, Hampshire County, Massachussets Bay Colony

Ancestors

Husband of Martha (Arms) Taylor — married 27 Jun 1743 in Deerfield, Massachusetts

Descendants

Died 27 Dec 1788 at age 69 in Charlemont, Hampshire County, Massachussets, United States

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Biography

Othniel Taylor served during the French and Indian War.

Othniel Taylor performed Patriotic Service in Massachusetts in the American Revolution.

Othniel Taylor is a DAR Patriot Ancestor, A112794.

Othniel Taylor is an NSSAR Patriot Ancestor.
NSSAR Ancestor #: P-302438
Rank: Civil/Patriotic Service

Othniel was born 16 Apr 1719 in Deerfield, Hampshire (now Franklin) County, Province of Massachusetts, the son of Samuel Taylor and Mary Hitchcock. On 27 Jun 1743, in Deerfield, he married his mother's step-daughter, Martha Arms.^[1] Together they thirteen children, all of whom lived to adulthood.

1. Samuel Taylor (1744–1837)
2. Mary (Taylor) Hitchcock (1746–1824)
3. Lemuel Taylor (1748–1824)
4. Enos Taylor (1751–1831)
5. Othniel Taylor Jr. (1753–1819)
6. Lt. Tertius Taylor (1754–1822)
7. Martha (Taylor) Johnson (1756–1825)
8. William Taylor (1758–1826)
9. Lydia (Taylor) Taylor (1760–1844)
10. Rufus Taylor (1763–1834)
11. Lucinda (Taylor) Holly (1765–1846)
12. Tirzah (Taylor) Holbrook (1769–1853)
13. Dorothy (Taylor) Hastings (1772–1837)

On 3 Nov 1842, Othniel bought land west of Deerfield, in what was laid out as Township Number one, known at the time as "Checkley's Town, otherwise called Charlemont.".^[2] Probably in the summer of 1749, after King George's War had come to an end, reducing conflict in the region, Othniel and his brother Jonathan Taylor moved from Deerfield to their new land. Othniel's son Enos is believed to be the first child born in the settlement.^[3]

Othniel and his brother Jonathan built Fort Taylor, one of many garrisons in the Connecticut River Valley, to protect against Indian raids in the Last French and Indian War.

Othniel entertained soldiers at their property, qualifying him as pre-revolutionary inn keeper. [1]

Othniel died 28 Dec 1788 and is buried with his wife at Old Cemetery, Charlemont, Franklin County, Massachusetts.

Sources

1. ↑ Baldwin, 1920, p. 238. White (1855, p. 12) gives the date as 16 Jun 1743, but the 27 Jun date is confirmed by the original Deerfield records.
2. ↑ White, 1858, p. 4-5.
3. ↑ White, 1858, p. 12-13.

• Baldwin, Thomas W. Vital Records of Deerfield Massachusetts to the Year 1850. Boston, MA, New York 1920. p. 238.
• DAR Lineage Book, Vol. 24 (23001-24000). (Ed. Louise Pearsons Dolliver). Boston, MA: National Society of the DAR, 1898. p. 75-76 (Mrs. Ada Barnard Harsha).
• FamilySearch Person: L5ZK-DMJ: Othniel Taylor (719-1788).
• Find A Grave: Memorial #58684575 for Othniel Taylor (1719-1788).
• Geni, public profile of Capt. Othniel Taylor (1719-1788).
• Hatcher, Patricia Law. Abstract of Graves of Revolutionary Patriots. Dallas, TX: Pioneer Heritage Press, 1987. Vol. 4 (S-Z).
• Massachusetts State Vital Records, 1841-1925. (FamilySearch database with images.) Deerfield County Births, Marriages and Deaths, Vol. 1 (1675-1844), p. 247. Marriage of Othniel Taylor and Martha Arms, 27 Jun 1743.
• White, Joseph. Charlemont as a Plantation. An historical discourse at the centennial anniversary of the death of Moses Rice, the first settler of the town, delivered at Charlemont, Mass. June 11, 1855. Boston, MA: Press of T.R. Marvin & Son, 1858. p. 4-5, 12-13, 16-22, 26-29, 41, 44.