William Towne migrated to New England during the Puritan Great Migration (1621-1640). (See The Directory, by R. C. Anderson, p. 340) Join: Puritan Great Migration Project Discuss: pgm
William Towne was probably the child who was baptised on 18 March 1598/9 in St. Nicholas Church in Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, England, the son of John & Elizabeth (Clark) Towne.[1]
William and Jone Blessing were married in St. Nicholas church on April 25, 1620.[2]
" William Towne, the emigrant ancestor of the Towne family of Topsfield, was married and had six children baptized in the parish church of St. Nicholas, Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, England. Towne's age was estimated in 1660 as 'three score years,' when he testified in a court proceeding, which would indicate the approximate date of his birth as 1600. There can be no reasonable doubt, therefore, that he was that William, son of John and Elizabeth Towne, who was baptized at St. Nicholas' on March 18, 1598/9."[3]
Their first six children were also baptised in St. Nicholas Church.[4] William died, probably in Topsfield, before 24 June 1673, the date his widow was granted administration on his estate.[5]
Baptism
Baptized: 18 Mar 1598/9, St. Nicholas, Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, England
Died: before 24 JUN 1673, Topsfield, Essex County, Massachusetts, (date of admin. granted to widow "Johan" on 24 July 1673)[16]
Probate
"On 24 June 1673[17] "Administration granted 24: 4: 1673 to Johana Towne on the estate of Wm. Towne, her late husband."
"On 17 Jan 1682, petition for settlement of a small estate left the undersigned by their father, who died ten years ago leaving no will, but left the estate in the hands of their mother who was appointed administratrix and the estate remained unsettled until her death, and now they desire that the following division be allowed: the land to be equally divided between his three sons, Edmond, Jacob and Joseph and the moveables equally divided between the three daughters, Rebecka, Mary, and Sarah."
"Signed by Mary Towne relict of Edmond, Jacob Towne, Josep Towne, Francis Nurs with the consent of Rebeka, Mary Esty formerly Towne, Sarah Bridges. Allowed by the court at Ipswich 10 April 1683."
Notes
Married in St. Nicholas Church in Great Yarmouth, England. Six of his children baptized there too.
Sailed either from Great Yarmouth or Bristol for America. Came to Salem in 1632 and moved to Topsfield, Massachusetts in 1652
First record in Salem, Massachusetts. Was granted "a little neck of land right over against his house on the other side of the river."
AN INTERESTING FACT recently discovered is the first deed of sale of land by William Towne. In it he states he is a "Gardner." This term was used by those who grew and sold flowers. These men belonged to a Guild in old England. This would qualify William Towne's descendants for the new Lineage Organization "The Guild of Colonial Artisans and Tradesmen 1607 - 1783." If there is anyone interested in joining this organization to honor Willam Towne, please contact the President General of this group. At present we have three active Towne members who have joined. If you would like to know more about The Guild or colonial occupations their web site was: (Archive.org via the Wayback Machine)
Research notes
Did not Die: 30 Apr 1685, Topsfield, Essex, Massachusetts Source: Edmund West. This date refers to the William Towne of Cambridge, and death date has been conflated with the death of William Towne of Salem and Topsfield, who died about 1672. see Great Migrations and NEHGR 1867 The Towne Family, page 15
Did not arrive 1637 Cambridge, Massachusetts.[15] This refers to a different William Towne, lived and died in Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1680 at age 80, see Great Migrations
The following children are not included in the work by William B. Towne, Notes and Memoranda Relating to Persons of the Name of Towne, NEHGR Vol. 21(1867):16:
↑ "Great Yarmouth, St Nicholas with St Peter, St John, St Andrew, St James, St Paul & St Luke, Norfolk, England," Find my Past image database online $ [1].
The Towne Family, William Towne and Joanna Blessing, Salem Massachusetts, 1635, Five Generations of Descendants, by Lois Payne Hoover, (2010, 3rd printing 2015), Towne Family Association by Otter Bay Books, Baltimore, Maryland, page 1, William Towne.
This Towne book was commissioned by the Towne Family Association. Towne Family won the 2011 Grand Prize from the Connecticut Society of Genealogists, and in the same year received the 2011 Award of Excellence for a Genealogy and Family History from the National Genealogical Society.
The New England Historical and Genealogical Register. Boston, MA: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1847-. (Online database: AmericanAncestors.org, New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2001-2013.) Vol. 21, page 12-22, Notes and Memoranda Relating to Persons of the Name of Towne, by William B. Towne.
The American Genealogist. New Haven, CT: D. L. Jacobus, 1937-. (Online database. AmericanAncestors.org. New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2009 - .) Vol. 33, page 199-206. The Four Blessing Sisters, by Walter Goodwin Davis, B.A., LL.B., Portland, Maine. (Identifies William as Joanna's spouse, short bio on children.)
William Towne Arrival Date: 1635 Arrival Place: Salem, Massachusetts: refers to William Towne who married Joanna Blessing, lived in Salem, and died Topsfield, Massachusetts about 1672.
William Towne Arrival Date: 1637 Arrival Place: Cambridge, Massachusetts: refers to William Towne who married Martha, died in Cambridge, Massachusetts at age 80 in 1685, see Great Migrations
Vital Records of Topsfield, MA, to the End of the Year 1849, Compiler: Topsfield Historical Society Publication: (Topsfield, Massachusetts, 1903)
The ancestry of Lieut. Amos Towne, 1737-1793, of Arundel (Kennebunkport, Maine [database on-line]. Ancestry.com. Provo, UT: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2005. Original data: Davis, Walter Goodwin,. The ancestry of Lieut. Amos Towne, 1737-1793, of Arundel (Kennebunkport), Maine. Portland, Me.: Southworth Press, 1927. Page 3. NOTE: Author Goodwin takes Williams baptism date (see image) and his court statement about his age, and find evidence that William Towne of Salem is the son of John and Elizabeth (Clarke) Towne.
Edmund West, comp. Family Data Collection - Deaths (Provo, UT, USA: The Generations Network, Inc., 2001) Death date: 30 April 1685 Death place: Topsfield, Essex, MA, USA. COMMENT: The death date of 1685 relates to William Towne of Cambridge. This entry demonstrates the issues with a derivative datase: William Towne of Topsfield died 24 June 1673. This source has conflated the two men, whose only similarity is their name.
Public Member Trees, Online publication - Provo, UT, USA: The Generations Network,Inc., 2006. Original data - Family trees submitted by Ancestry members. Ancestry Trees - William Towne of Topsfield (These trees currently [viewed 11 Mar 2017] all show parents as Richard & Ann of Braceby)
This link is to a record on FamilySearch that contains a Bible record for the Towne family. In case anyone needs this information. The record appears to have been compiled by the family of Edmund Towne.
HI PGM - William's daughters Rebecca Towne-64 and Mary-Towne-4 were previously PPP'd and managed by the Black Sheep Project, which is now defunct. Yesterday, I removed BSP as profile manager of Rebecca and Mary BUT I kept the PPP in place, thinking PGM might want to manage those profiles. If not, let me know and I will remove the PPP.
Generally speaking, whether PGM manages is determined by their migration date, 1620-1640. If not migrated before 1640, sometimes we PGM adjunct them. I’m not available to research presently, but will review when I return in the next day or two. Thanks Bobbie & Traci.
Towne-1029 and Towne-3 do not represent the same person because: This William Towne is a different person who doesn't appear to have emigrated to the colonies. The person who created this profile screwed it up terribly and abandoned it. I've been trying to clean it up and try to get back to it soon.
Is there a member of the Towne Family Association watching this profile Margaret? If so, is it possible to check their database to see if there is any additional proof of parentage?
Have added links/sources for William's baptism & marriage, as well as the same for his children in this bio. Added also his probate synopsis.
It appears to me that we have the wrong parents, as the marriage & baptisms of the children are all very clear in the St. Nicholas registers. The parents of Richard & Ann, 100 miles away, seems incongruous.
I would like to suggest you take a look at the records (click the source links for the FamilySearch sources) as they are truly a work of caligrafic art! I propose that we change the parents to those shown in the section "Alternate parents".
Does anyone have access to Gary Boyd Robert's Notable Kin (Vol. 1:213, 2:83-84, 186)? There may be more info there.
I agree with you that since the only 'evidence' for Gardner has been investigated now, and shows no mention of his existence, it is best to disconnect him from this family. Also good to leave his profile in the database with a note that such a person is not proved to have existed. Other such 'phantom' profiles have been added back until it was realized the solution is to keep phantoms in the DB, with a note to inform members of the lack of evidence.
This should not be an issue, since Gardner has no listed wife or descendants!
It would be nice if the other PMs would comment, but understand if they don't have time. Please proceed with disconnecting Gardner.
There is mention of his existence in a book actually 2 of them descendants of William
Williams son Joseph and Phoebe Perkins had a son Israel. Israel married grace Gardner they had a son named Gardner and a son named Israel that Israel married a Lydia Hopkins they also named their son Gardner not child but grand and great grand children.
Checked the manuscript "Descendants of William and Joanna (Blessing) Towne..." It is simply a handwritten descendant report, which contains NO sources. It does NOT include the following children: Susanna & Gardner. I would suggest disconnecting Gardner, as there is no evidence that he existed or was a child of William & Joanna.
I've added Gardner Towne as a *possible* son of William, as there does seem to be a source for the link. There is a genealogy manuscript, a copy held at the LDS FHC, which I will view in February. I will add my findings once I return. If the PMs disagree, you can disconnect him, but please show a link on Gardner to these potential parents in the meantime. --B.
Thank you Bobbie. I have not found Martha, Gardner or Uriah in any of the sources I've used for this William Towne.
Also none of them are children of the other William Towne, who lived in Cambridge and died in Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1680 at age 80, (source: Great Migration).
I've contacted the PMs for the profiles of unsupported children Martha, Gardner & Uriah asking for sources that link them to their parents. If none are provided, I would suggest removing the links to those children as I find no sources to support them.
Susanna and Martha were Williams son Josephs son Joseph children. Gardner was Josephs great grandson. Josephs son Joseph had Israel Israel married Grace Gardner . I wish I could post a photo of the book that info is in
Thank you, Brandie. The ones I questioned were supposed to have been born in the early 1600s, so not the great-grandchildren. The ones I asked about have been removed.
No problem. I was just making the point that they did exist just wing generation. Every one has them in Williams tree and I noticed researching each kid one by one no info but going to next generation and researching they were allowing popping up. Someone just didn't do a good tree and every one else copied bad tree
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-L9JS-PFX7?i=7&cat=210475
edited by Traci Thiessen
It appears to me that we have the wrong parents, as the marriage & baptisms of the children are all very clear in the St. Nicholas registers. The parents of Richard & Ann, 100 miles away, seems incongruous. I would like to suggest you take a look at the records (click the source links for the FamilySearch sources) as they are truly a work of caligrafic art! I propose that we change the parents to those shown in the section "Alternate parents".
Does anyone have access to Gary Boyd Robert's Notable Kin (Vol. 1:213, 2:83-84, 186)? There may be more info there.
I agree with you that since the only 'evidence' for Gardner has been investigated now, and shows no mention of his existence, it is best to disconnect him from this family. Also good to leave his profile in the database with a note that such a person is not proved to have existed. Other such 'phantom' profiles have been added back until it was realized the solution is to keep phantoms in the DB, with a note to inform members of the lack of evidence.
This should not be an issue, since Gardner has no listed wife or descendants!
It would be nice if the other PMs would comment, but understand if they don't have time. Please proceed with disconnecting Gardner.
Thank you Bobbie!
Williams son Joseph and Phoebe Perkins had a son Israel. Israel married grace Gardner they had a son named Gardner and a son named Israel that Israel married a Lydia Hopkins they also named their son Gardner not child but grand and great grand children.
Checked the manuscript "Descendants of William and Joanna (Blessing) Towne..." It is simply a handwritten descendant report, which contains NO sources. It does NOT include the following children: Susanna & Gardner. I would suggest disconnecting Gardner, as there is no evidence that he existed or was a child of William & Joanna.
Also none of them are children of the other William Towne, who lived in Cambridge and died in Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1680 at age 80, (source: Great Migration).
I agree with your proposed actions on them.
edited by Brandie Lewis