Thomas Paine (abt. 1691 - bef. 1759)

Born about 1691 in Swansea, Bristol, Massachusetts Bay

Husband of Susanna (Haskell) Paine — married 21 Feb 1712 (to after 11 Oct 1723) in Taunton, Bristol, Province of Massachusetts Bay

Husband of Anabel (Canady) Paine — married 19 Aug 1731 in Freetown, Bristol County, Massachusetts

Descendants

Died before 6 Nov 1759 before about age 68 in Freetown, Bristol County, Massachusetts

Problems/Questions Profile managers: Marjorie Luce [send private message], Jo Gessford [send private message], and Kenneth Kinman [send private message]

Biography

This profile is part of the Payne Name Study.

Thomas was born about 1690, the son of Ralph Paine and Dorithea Unknown. ^[1] Thomas Paine, son of Ralph and Doritha Paine^[2]was probably born about 1691.

He married Susanna Haskell^[3] on 21 Feb. 1711/12.^[2]

He married Anabel Canady on 19 Aug 1731 at Freetown, Bristol County, Massachusetts.^[2][4]

Thomas died between 27 Oct 1752 the date of his will and 6 Nov 1759 the date of probate.

Children of Thomas and Susanna

1. Mercy b. 22 Sep. 1712 married Seth Farrow.
2. Elizabeth b. 15 June 1714 married Hezekiah Winslow.
3. Ralph b. 25 Nov. 1716 died 29 July 1791; married Elizabeth Harlow.
4. Thomas b. 22 May 1719; not in his father's will.
5. Patience b. 4 May 1720; married Jonathan Winslow.
6. Job b. 11 Oct. 1723; married Hannah Terry.
7. Charles dates unknown.

Children of Thomas and Anabel

1. Thankful married Joseph Briggs.
2. Peter b. 1741, died 11 March 1753. ^[5][2]

Extended Biography

Biography by Robert M. Gerrity: ^[6]
THOMAS PAIN (Ralph), was born perhaps in Swansea or in Freetown about 1689-1694. He died in Freetown between 23 April 1759, when he acknowledged a deed, and 1 November 1759, when his will was probated. He married first at Freetown 21 February 1712 SUSANNAH HASKELL of Freetown, daughter of John and Patience (Soule) Haskell, and granddaughter- of MAYFLOWER passenger George Soule, who died probably before 6 February 1728. He married second at Freetown 12 September 1731 ANNABLE CANADY of Middleborough who probably died before 14 January 1754. [MFGIII, 39^[7]; BCD 43:555-56.^[8]]

Like his brother John, Thomas served in only minor town posts and had no brushes with the county courts, living a quiet life.

Of his life with Susannah Haskell, we have only the following record: she and he quitclaimed to her brother John Haskell on 6 August 1712 all their rights in the estate of her father John Haskell. This was for the land given by George Soule to his daughter Patience and her husband, John Haskell, by deed of gift on 26 January 1668. One of Susannah 's sisters didn't issue a quitclaim and that later led to a lawsuit. (See Robert S. Wakefield and Ruth Wilder Sherman, "The Children of John and Patience (Soule) Haskell," The American Genealogist 57:77-80.^[9])

Susannah was probably dead by 6 February 1728. Thomas sold for 100£ "currant money" to John Marshall of Freetown, shipwright, 10 acres of salt marsh "the full width of half my half shear," "being part of the nineteenth Lott in freetown." Thomas had just inherited this land a month earlier. Because it was his outright from his father, Susannah now had dower rights which she should have waived, if she were alive. In all likelihood, she wasn't. [BCD 18:409-10, 410-411.^[8]]

Regarding Thomas' second wife Annable Canady, MFG III^[7] calls her the daughter of Alexander and Elisabeth (Lisnor) Canady of Plymouth and Middleborough. However, Morton's transcription of the Rev. Peter Thacher Jr's list of "Members of the First Church of Middleboro" records her joining the church on 7 August 1730 as "Anibal Canedy", the child of Hopstill and Sarah. (Transcription) ^[10] Morton also printed a notation under this record as "2d m bef 1739 to ___ Paine." Whether this was an original note, a later interlineation, or Morton's own is not at all clear. Simply, Annable's parentage is in question. [Morton, Middleboro, 655; VR Middleborough I.]

Also there is some confusion over her name. Middleborough VRs and EWP in his Register article on the Pains^[2] give it as Thankful, while MFG III^[7] has it as Annable. Thomas' will, and various deeds on which she waived her dower rights, establish conclusively that her name was the latter, and that "Annable" was its habitual spelling.

Thomas sold only small parcels of his "half shear", most for decent sums. The 1728 sale described above was preceded by one day by a purchase of a quarter acre of saltmarsh for £3; perhaps Thomas needed it to square off the ten acres he sold Marshall. Later, on 4 September 1735, Thomas sold Marshall another two parcels totaling 15 acres, the western boundary of one parcel being the Assonet River. Annable did not waive her dower rights. [BCD 18:409-410, 410-11, 25:217.^[8]]

Earlier that year, 1 March 1734/5, Thomas sold for £3 "currant" to David Evans of Freetown, yeoman, 12 rods of land "taken out of my home stead in ye North Corner of ye same," "besides the ye Beach & flatts adjoining to ye same.” This deed has the most extensive and detailed description of property lines of any deed involving Thomas, including reference to the "middle line run by Samuel Bowen the Surveyor the Dividing Line between sd Evins & pain...." The Evans' had been long time neighbors as owners of the northern half of the 19th lot. Eleven years later on 18 January 1745/6 Evans bought for £88 3 and 3/4 acres of land fronting the Assonet River from Thomas. Annable waived her dower only on the latter. (These two deeds were not recorded until 1750 when Evans recorded another deed for 130 acres in both the 19th and 20th lots.) [BCD 37:313-14, 314, 315.^[8]]

The only other non-family sale was on 12 May 1739 to Philip Hathaway of Freetown, mariner, of 1 acre of "Land Islands & Hamocks" for 16£, of which the eastern boundary was "a River or Cove Commonly known or Called Pains Cove" and the western and southern boundaries were Evans' land, Joseph Paine's land the middle line of the south half of the 19th lot. Unlike his father, Thomas sold his eldest son Ralph a homestead lot of 5 acres on 27 May 1740 for £60; the western boundary was land of the John Marshall of the 1728 sale. Annable waived her dower rights on both, signing with her mark both times. [BCD 30:381, 39:31-2.^[8]] As with John, Thomas held his inheritance together.

Thomas wrote his will on 27 October 1752 "being sick and weak in body but of perfect mind and memory." His first and principal act was to give his soul "into the hands of God that Gave it hoping through the ...death & passion of my Saviour Jesus Christ to have full and free paid on... all my sins and to inherit Everlasting Life...." He then addressed disposing of "such worldly Estate which with it is pleased God to gift me in this Life....":

1. the executor to pay all his just debts so that those persons "shall be well and truly Contented";
2. his four sons, Ralph, Job, Charles and Peter to have the homestead farm in Freetown and all its buildings, to be divided equally when the youngest sons reach the age of 21, provided they pay all his just debts if his personal estate cannot meet them. If "either of the aforesaid sons should die before they reach" 21, then their portion to be equally divided between "the surviving Brethren":
3. "well beloved wife annable" to have use for life of the left room in the house and proportionate use of the cellar and garret, and also life interest in the income from one third of his real estate as well as a third of "my Indoor moveable at her own disposal for ever."
4. Job Pain to be executor, and to have the income from one third of the real estate until the youngest sons come of age, this to "innable him to pay the Legacy hereafter mentioned";
5. his four daughters, "Marey" Farrow, Betty Winslow, Patience Winslow and Thankful Pain, to be paid 3£ 10s each by Job, one fourth each year until fully paid;
6. his daughters also to have one third of his indoor movables to be equally divided between them.

Witnesses were William Cannedy (probably Annable’s brother), George Winslow and Ambrose Barnaby. [BCP 16:422.^[11]]

As the widow's portion was not actually set aside by the probate judge, Annable had likely died by 6 November 1759. [BCP 16:346, 395, 420, 422, 435.^[11]] And she and her other son Charles were most likely deceased as early as 14 January 1754 as evidenced by the last three recorded deeds involving Thomas.

The older deed was the one of 5 March 1745/6 in which Thomas sold to his son Ralph Paine of Freetown, “shipwright," one acre in the 19th lot for 5£ old tenor. This probably gave Ralph a home lot as two of the boundaries forming a corner were the Country Road and Bryant's Neck Way. What is significant is that it was not recorded until 12 February 1754, the same date that Ralph recorded the deed of 14 January 1754 in which Thomas sold to Ralph for £66.13.4 "ye southerly half of my home stead." The northerly half Thomas deeded on the same date for the same price to Job. [BCD 41:93, 93-4; 43:555-6.^[8]]

Both deeds are without reservations. And as they contravened expressed items of his 1752 will, which Job turned into the probate court without hesitation and which was accepted, it can only mean that:

• Thomas could no longer work the farm but wanted to maintain his independence, hence the sale for cash and not as deed of gift,
  
• Annable was dead because no clause protecting her life interests was made in the deeds, nor did she waive her dower rights by signing by mark on either 1754 deed, and
  
• her son Charles was also dead because the two deeds divided the entire real estate, an equal division among the "surviving Brethren" actually being a clause in the will. Whose death precipitated these actions is not yet clear.

The BCP file papers under "Pain, Thomas. 1759, Freetown" contained only the originals of the above.^[11]

Children (PAINE) born Freetown, first six by Susannah Haskell and the last three by Annable Canady:

1. Marcy (Paine) Farrow (1712-aft.1754), b. 12 Sept. 1712.
2. Elizabeth (Paine) Winslow (1714-1794), b. 15 June 1714.
3. Ralph Paine (1716-1791), b. 25 Nov. 1716.
4. Thomas Paine (1719-1742), (b. 11 Oct. 1723 ?), d.y.
5. Patience (Paine) Winslow (1720-), b. 4 May 1720.
6. Job Paine (1723-bef.1801), b. 11 Oct. 1723.
7. Charles, died before 14 Jan. 1754.
8. Thankful.
9. Peter, b. 1741, died 11 March 1753.

Sources

1. ↑ Entered by Toby Rockwell, Apr 1, 2013
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4} Ebenezer W. Peirce. A brief Sketch of the Early Branch of the Pain Family, settled at Freetown, Bristol County, Massachusetts The New England historical and genealogical register New England Historic Genealogical Society Vol. XV 1861. Published 1874.
3. ↑ Mayflower Births and Deaths, Vol. 1 and 2 for Ralph Pain page 299.
4. ↑ "Massachusetts Town Records, ca. 1638-1961," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q29P-WKK3 : 20 April 2016), Thomas Paine and Anabel Canedy, 19 Aug 1731; citing Freetown, Bristol, Massachusetts, United States, Town clerks and local churches; FHL microfilm 1,993,524.
5. ↑ Children in Mayflower and Peirce.
6. ↑ Gerrity, Robert M., ‘’Ralph Pain and Descendants: Four Generations (A Work in Progress)’’ 1992. [Under revision by author, 2020-2022.] Personal copy in the files of DLG; and at the Old Colony Historical Society Library, Taunton MA.
7. ↑ ^{7.0 7.1 7.2} Soule, John E., Milton E. Terry, and Anne Borden Harding. 1980. ‘’Mayflower families through five generations. descendants of the pilgrims who landed at Plymouth, Mass. December 1620 Volume 3’’. Plymouth, MA: General Society of Mayflower Descendants. Library Search here
8. ↑ ^{8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 8.5} Bristol County, MA, Registry of Deeds. Bristol County Courthouse, Taunton MA.
9. ↑ The American Genealogist vol 57: 77-80, (Library Search)
10. ↑ First Congregational Church (Middleboro, Mass.). 1771. The confession of faith and church covenant: solemnly made and entered into by the Church of Middleborough, December 26, 1694. : Together with their acknowledgments expressing their obligations by that covenant. Boston: [s.n.].
11. ↑ ^{11.0 11.1 11.2} Bristol County, MA, Probate Court. Bristol County Courthouse, Taunton MA.

• Listed in Mayflower Records of Births and Deaths Vol. II

Acknowledgements

• Entry by Jo Gessford, Saturday, February 22, 2014.
• This person was created through the import of MASTER2011WIKITREE.GED on 27 January 2011.
• Thank you to Kay Martin for creating WikiTree profile Paine GG-1 through the import of Martin-Rowe Family Tree.ged on Oct 22, 2013.
• Thanks to Toby Rockwell for starting this profile.