Abigail (Unknown) Perkins (abt. 1680 - aft. 1739)

Born about 1680 in Strafford, New Hampshire

Wife of Nathaniel Perkins — married 15 Mar 1716 in Dover, Strafford, Province of New Hampshire

Descendants

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Stuart Bloom [send private message]

Biography

Birth

Abigail (____) (Wear) (Perkins) was probably born somewhere around 1680, assuming that her daughter was born in 1723 was her last child and that she was then at or near the end of her childbearing years,

Marriages

1. Abigail _____ married William Roberts.^[1] The date of the marriage is unknown.
2. Abigail (____) Roberts married _____ Wear. Her name was Wear at her third marriage.^[2]
3. Abigail (_____) (Roberts) (Wear) married Nathaniel Perkins at Dover, New Hampshire, on 15 Mar 1715/16.^[2]

Death

No record has been found of the death of Abigail (_____) (Roberts) (Wear) Perkins. She was living in 1739, and that is the last record of her.^[1]

Research Note

Abigail's birth name and her parents are not known. The Genealogical Dictionary of Maine and New Hampshire^[1] says (without citation to a source) that Abigail, the wife of Nathaniel Perkins, was the widow of William Roberts. That she had borne a child by a man named Roberts is confirmed by a deed made in 1736 by the spinster Mary Roberts in which Nathaniel and Abigail Perkins surrender their right of dower.^[3] She was named Abigail Wear at her marriage to Nathaniel,^[2] for her marriage to Nathaniel Perkins which shows that she was married to a man by that name between her marriages to William Roberts and to Nathaniel Perkins.

I have not removed the link to Abner Perkins as Nathaniel and Abigail's son, although I believe it is unlikely that he was. It is claimed, without any known evidence, that Nathaniel and Abigail were the parents of Abner. Abner's age at his death in 1803 was reported as 71, which would place his birth about 1732, and a secondary source says he was born in 1736 (see Abner's profile for sources). Abigail's daughter Mary Roberts was at least 21 in 1736, when she executed the deed cited above, and since she was a daughter of Abigail's first marriage, she was probably somewhat older. Abigail's last recorded child was born in 1723. Based on these dates, I think it is more likely that if Abigail was related at all to Abner that she was his grandmother, possibly through her son Lemuel Perkins, although that also would have some chronological problems.

Bloom-1124 15:50, 10 May 2019 (UTC)

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2} Genealogical Dictionary of Maine and New Hampshire, 542
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1 2.2} New Hampshire Marriage Records, 1637-1947, database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:FL62-4ZQ : 26 September 2017), Nathanil Perkins and Abigail Wear, 15 Mar 1715; citing , Bureau of Vital Records and Health Statistics, Concord; FHL microfilm 1,001,294
3. ↑ Maine: Early Wills and Deeds, 1640-1760, online database at AmericanAncestors.org, XVIII:267-268