Sarah (Horton) Conant (abt. 1598 - bef. 1667)

Born about 1598 in St Martin Vintry, London, England

Ancestors

Wife of Roger Conant — married 11 Nov 1618 in St Ann Blackfriars, London, England

Descendants

Died before 20 Sep 1667 before about age 69 in Beverly, Essex, Massachusetts Bay Colony

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Sarah (Horton) Conant migrated to New England during the Puritan Great Migration (1621-1640). Join: Puritan Great Migration Project Discuss: pgm

Biography

Sarah Horton was the daughter of Thomas Horton and his second wife, Catherine Satchfield. No birth record has been found for her, but it is likely that Sarah was born in London, where her father was recorded as living in the parish of St. Martin Vintry from 1584 until his death. Sarah's birth year is estimated at about 1598.^[1]

Sarah's relationship to her parents Thomas and Catherine is established through their wills. In Thomas' 1615 will she is mentioned as Sara Horton since she had not yet married. Catherine's 1627 will named her daughter Sarah Conant.^[1]

Sarah married Roger Conant at St. Ann Blackfriars, London,^[2] on 11 November 1618.^[3] Together they had at least nine children.^[4]

The date of Roger Conant's arrival in New England and the ship on which he traveled are unknown. It is assumed that Sarah Conant and their son Caleb traveled with him. It is Anderson's position that Roger Conant departed from London and arrived in New England sometime in 1624, as neither Roger or Sarah were named in the 1623 Plymouth land division.^[4] See Roger's profile for a discussion about their arrival in New England.

According to Anderson, the Conant family first resided in Plymouth Colony but removed to Nantasket soon after their arrival in 1624. In 1625, they removed to Cape Ann and, in 1626, they removed to Salem, where they were among the first settlers in that town. Sarah "Connant" is included in a list of Salem church members made in late 1636.^[4]

Sarah died between June and September 1667: she was listed in a June petition by church members but was not named in a petition of the same people dated 20 September 1667.^[5][6] Sarah was not named in her husband's will dated March 1677/8.^[4] Her burial place is not known.

Children

Roger and Sarah had the following children:

1. Sarah, baptized at St Lawrence Jewry, London, 19 September 1619; buried there 30 October 1620^[4]
2. Caleb, baptized at St Lawrence Jewry, London, 27 May 1622, died unmarried "beyond seas" before 11 November 1633;^[4] named in the 1627 will of his grandmother Catherine (Satchfield) Horton^[1]
3. Sarah, born in New England about 1623[/4], married John Leach, she is named with her children in Roger Conant’s 1678 will;^[4] she was also named in the 1627 will of her grandmother Catherine (Satchfield) Horton^[1]
4. Lot, born about 1624[/5], left a will dated 24 September 1674, married Elizabeth Walton^[4]
5. [possibly] Joanna, born about 1626, who was struck by Lydia Glutch February 1648/9^[4] (not listed in Anderson's Pilgrim Migration?)
6. Roger, born in Salem about 1628 "the first born child in Salem", married Elizabeth ______^[4]
7. Joshua, born in Salem about 1630, married Seeth Gardner^[4]
8. Mary, born in Salem about 1632, married (1) John Balch and (2) William Dodge^[4]
9. Elizabeth, born in Salem about 1635, living unmarried in 1678^[4]
10. Exercise, baptized at Salem 24 December 1637, married Sarah ____^[4]

Research Notes

Birth Date/Place

The data fields of this profile previously had an unsourced birth of 19 September 1598 in Budleigh Salterton, Devon, England. As noted above, no birth/baptism record has been found for Sarah and it is far more likely that Sarah was born in London, where her father was recorded as living in the parish of St. Martin Vintry.

The assumption that Sarah's family had roots in Devon is found in the History and Genealogy of the Conant Family, in which F. O. Conant states: "Her parentage has not been ascertained; there was an ancient Devonshire family of the name to which she may have belonged".^[7] It should be noted that the Conant book was written in 1887, before Sarah's parents were known. A 1993 article by Anderson indicates that her father may have had roots in Coole, Cheshire, but it also notes that more research is needed.^[1]

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4} Anderson, Robert Charles. "The Conant Connection: Part 1 Thomas Horton, London Merchant and Father in law of Roger Conant" in The New England Historical and Genealogical Register. Boston, MA: NEHGS, 1993, vol. 147, pp. 234-239. AmericanAncestors.org($).
2. ↑ "England, Boyd's Marriage Indexes, 1538-1850", database, FindMyPast Transcription($): Roger Conant, 1618, Sarah Horton, St Anne Blackfriars, London.
3. ↑ London Metropolitan Archives. Reference #: P69/ANN/A/002/MS04509/001. Image 17. Ancestry.com($).
4. ↑ ^{4.00 4.01 4.02 4.03 4.04 4.05 4.06 4.07 4.08 4.09 4.10 4.11 4.12 4.13} Anderson, Robert Charles. The Great Migration Begins: Immigrants to New England 1620-1633. Boston: NEHGS, 1995, vol. 1, pp. 451-459. AmericanAncestors.org($): Roger Conant
5. ↑ Records of the First Church in Beverly, Massachusetts, 1667-1772. Salem, MA: Essex Institute, 1905, pp. 2-7. Archive.org.
6. ↑ Ferris, Mary Walton. Dawes-Gates Ancestral Lines. 1931, vol. 2, p. 220-228. Archive.org.
7. ↑ Conant, Frederick Odell. A History and Genealogy of the Conant Family in England and America. Portland, ME: Privately Published, 1887, p. 127. Archive.org.

See also:

• Anderson, Robert Charles. "The Conant Connection: Part Two - Roger Conant, Two Culverwell Families and the Puritan Ministerial Network" in The New England Historical and Genealogical Register. Boston, MA: NEHGS, April 1994, vol. 148, pp. 107-129 (see pp. 124-129 for Roger Conant and his Puritan connections). AmericanAncestors.org($).