Richard Blood Jr. (abt. 1617 - 1683)

Born about 1617 in Ruddington, Nottinghamshire, England [uncertain]

Ancestors

Husband of Isabell (Wilkinson) Blood — married 15 Apr 1639 (to 7 Dec 1683) in Saint Saviour, Southwark, London, England

Descendants

Died 7 Dec 1683 at about age 66 in Groton, Middlesex, Massachusetts Bay Colony

Problems/Questions Profile manager: John Putnam [send private message]

Disputed Origins

A previous version of this profile claimed that this Richard was son of James Blood and Ellen Harrison; however, James would have been only 12 years of age when Richard was born. In addition, research published by Douglas Richardson and expanded upon by Ruddington Blood descendant Garry Michael Blood suggests that the Richard Blood in this profile was more likely to have been the son of a previously-unknown Richard Blood of Ruddington. For a discussion see TAG 70:144 and also the Research Notes below as well as those under Richard Blood.

Biography

Richard Blood Jr. was born in Nottinghamshire, England.

Existing evidence points to Richard Blood having been born in the village of Ruddington,^[1] Rushcliffe Hundred, County of Nottingham in 1617.^[2] He was most likely the son of Richard Blood and Unknown Lakin of Ruddington, and the elder brother of John and Robert Blood.

Richard Blood married Isabell Wilkinson on 15 Apr 1639 at Saint Saviour’s Church, Southwark, London (now Southwark Cathedral).^[3] See paper, “Did Richard Blood marry Isabell Wilkinson at St Saviour's Church Southwark in 1639?” in Images for this profile for an analysis of the evidence on which this conclusion is based. This event constitutes the first appearance of Richard in the official record.

Richard and Isabell's marriage location far from their Ruddington home indicates the couple married just prior to leaving for New England from the Pool of London, one of the main ports for English migration to the New World in the early 17th century. The fact that Richard’s probable father Richard, Senior disappears from the official record after 1637^[4] indicates he most likely died sometime between then and Richard’s arrival in London in 1639. Such a development might have prompted Richard to contemplate emigration to New England where prospects for young men were unarguably better than in England. In any event, Richard’s absence from the Protestation Return for Ruddington of 9 Mar 1642 shows that he had left Ruddington at least by that date.^[5]

The notion that Richard (and presumably wife Isabell and young brothers John and Robert) emigrated to New England in the spring of 1639 is given further credence by the historical record of the Puritan Great Migration. As historians have long noted, English emigration to New England (and especially the Massachusetts Bay Colony) tapered off severely after the end of the Eleven Years’ Tyranny with the seating of the Puritan-dominated “Long Parliament” in Nov 1640.^[6][7][8] The tiny trickle of emigration that continued past Nov 1640 ended completely with the outbreak of the English Civil War in Aug 1642. Therefore, it is no great stretch to say that almost everyone who was going to emigrate to the Massachusetts Bay Colony from England in the 17th century had already done so by Jan 1641 at the latest. This almost certainly included Richard and his immediate kin.

We know that Richard and Isabell were in New England not later than 25 Nov 1642 due to her mention in the will of Isabell’s relative Henry Wilkinson of Nottingham, drafted on this date.^[9] In it, Henry refers to "my cousin Isabell Blood in newe England," further proof that Richard and Isabel were married and in New England prior to this date. Given the state of trans-Atlantic personal communications at the time, it’s reasonable to infer that Henry knew of their marriage because it occurred in England, lending further credence to the idea that they were in fact the couple that married at St Saviour's Southwark in Apr 1639.

Given that March to June was the prime trans-Atlantic sailing season in the early 17th century, Richard’s presence near the Pool of London in Apr 1639 indicates a probable crossing in May of that year, given the normal time to arrange passage and for the ship to wait for a full load of passengers. The average Atlantic crossing at the time took 10.5 weeks, so Richard and company probably arrived in late July or early August. Lynn was one of the ports of the early Massachusetts Bay Colony, and as Richard, Robert, and John were resident in Lynn for at least the next decade, we can speculate this is where they arrived.^[10]

The number, timing, and even sequence of birth of Richard and Isabell’s children is unclear, but it appears that the first of them (possibly Joseph or James) was born in about 1644, probably in Lynn. Given that most women bore their first child within the first year of marriage in the early 17th century, the gap of five years between 1639 and 1644 indicates there may have been one or two children lost in childbirth or in their first year; not uncommon in that era. That men of the Ruddington Bloods invariably named their first son for themselves, we can further speculate that there was at least one son lost in this period. Records become more certain by 1648, when the birth of Richard’s daughter Sara is recorded in Lynn.

The first known record of Richard in the Massachusetts Bay Colony to have survived is the inventory of the “Widow Boutell,” deceased, of Reading (probably Alice Boutwell), conducted by Richard Blood and John Deakin in Nov 1651 on behalf of the court for purposes of probate.^[11] As her date of death was 26 Nov 1651 the inventory would have been carried out sometime in the next few days. Note: the transcriptionist, working from the original court records, noted that Richard signed the inventory by autograph instead of by mark. This was the first of many times Richard signed his own name and his several signatures reflect a steady, confident, and practiced hand. He had clearly attended either a grammar school or a petty school in his youth, which allows us to draw the conclusion that his father would have had the means to pay for his education; something impossible for most people of the era.

On 17 May 1654, a caveat was entered into the deed book for Essex County on behalf of Richard Blood and William Clarke, who bought Richard Johnson’s house in Lynn.^[12]

On 27 Jun 1654, Richard was appointed to the jury for the Essex County Court in Salem.^[13] Note that date of entry is 27:4:1654, but prior to 1753 June was the fourth month, not April.

Sometime before 25 May 1655, Richard and presumed brothers John and Robert, along with seven other colonists including probable first cousins William and John Lakin, submitted a petition to the General Court to establish a new town. This petition was granted on 25 May, and thus John, his two brothers, and their probable cousins became proprietors of the new town that would later be named Groton.^[14]Richard appears to have been the most important of the proprietors, as his original grant was 60 acres versus 20 acres for nearly everyone else.^[15]

On 8 May 1657 in Essex County, Richard Blood and John Fuller witnessed the acknowledgement by Edward Richards that he had received his bequest from the will of William Knight from Elizabeth Bread, executrix of Knight's will.^[16]

On 30 Jun 1657, Richard and Andres Mansfield were sworn in by the Essex Quarterly Court in Salem as constables for Lynn.^[17] Note that the date of the entry is 30:4:1657, but prior to 1753 the fourth month of the year was June, not April.

Richard was noted as “deputy to Samuel Archard, marshal” by the court on 23 Mar^[18] and 19 Nov 1658.^[19] The transcriptionist again notes that Richard signed his own name to court documents.

On 25 Nov 1658, “Oliver Purchase, Henry Lennord and Richard Blood” were discharged by the Essex County Court for charges stemming from a confrontation “in the forge at the Iron works” sometime prior to 29 Jun 1657 (the day they had originally been charged by the court).^[20] The court entry reads “Daniell Salmon, deputy to the marshal of Salem, while serving a writ, attaching [seizing] a parcel of iron, was violently resisted by Olliver Purchis, Henry Leoneard and Richard Blood, who took the iron from him…”^[21] Note: The only iron works in the colony at the time was the Saugus or Hammersmith Iron Works.^[22] Ironically, on 1 Apr 1658, the summons to draw trial jurors from Lynn and form a grand jury in the case was “Served by Richard Blood, constable.”^[23] Richard Blood served the summons to form a jury for his own trial! The transcriptionist again notes that Richard signed the related documents himself.

On 28 Jun 1658, Richard conveyed four acres in the “Reedy Meadow” in Lynn (but now within the town of Lynnfield) to Robert Rand.^[24] Richard was described as still being “of Lynn” in this deed.

On 23 Jan 1660, deeds between unrelated persons in Essex County referred to the property being sold as, a parcel of woodland in Nahant, as being “bounded northerly with the lott of Richard Blood."^[25] It is worth noting that Richard owned more than one property on the Nahant Peninsula, which was known at the time for being the source of gabbro, an igneous rock used as flux in the iron smelting process at the Saugus Iron Works.^[26]

On 27 Apr 1660, Richard deeded several parcels of land to Benjamin Brisco, including lots on the Nahant Peninsula.^[27] Richard was still “of Lynn” in these deeds, and was identified a yeoman, a socio-economic rank equivalent to the middle class and upper middle class of modern-day British society.

On 5 Oct 1660, Richard was sued by the selectmen of Lynn over a significant sum of missing money (£20, 6 shillings, and 10 pence) that he was supposed to have collected on 25 Jan 1659 as rates (taxes) on behalf of the town. William Bartrum, Constable of Lynn, placed a lien on Richard’s house and land.^[28] Note that the date of 25 Jan 1659 in the entry is the Gregorian equivalent of the Julian date of 25:11:1658 as listed in the original record. The transcriptionist again notes Richard signed the court documents by his own hand.

On 20 Jan 1662, Richard purchased five lots of land totalling 100 acres in Groton from one Richard Smith, “late of Grawton,” for £80.^[29] Richard, again identified as a yeoman, was described as “of Grawton” himself, indicating that sometime between Oct 1660 and Jan 1662 he had finally moved to the new town.

In his will of 22 Aug 1666, one Richard Johnson of Lynn bequeathed two acres of the parcel of land in the Rumney Marsh that he had bought from Richard Blood previously.^[30] This is a further clue to the extent of Richard’s landholdings in Lynn, and also an indication that he had been selling off that land, possibly in preparation for his eventual relocation to Groton.

On 11 Nov 1668, Richard was elected to a one-year term as the town clerk of Groton.^[31] We can probably accept this date as the latest point at which Richard took up permanent residence in Groton, although he continued to have interests and business in Lynn.

A 12 Jun 1668 letter by Matthew Farnsworth, Constable of Groton, records that “two days [ago] some Indians committed outrages in the town, robbed one house, killed and eaten two beeves and driven away four more and wounded four…” According to R.D. Harris in The Story of the Bloods, the letter carries the note that it is “About killing R. Blood’s cattle and robbing a house in Groton.” Subsequently, a writ was issued compelling Richard to appear in court for selling liquor to the Indians in defiance of colonial law banning such practice.^[32]

Also in 1668, Richard Blood and several other men were chosen as overseers of the highways [citation needed]. He sat on the Board of Selectmen in 1669 [citation needed].

On 20 May 1670, Richard Blood, yeoman, deeded ten acres of meadow and pasture in Lynn to one Samuel Bennet of Boston, gentleman.^[33] This property is noted as having been formerly granted to John Poole by the town of Lynn and sold by him to Richard beforehand. The bounds of the lands and neighbouring property owners are named, and we find that on the north it bounded by a plot owned by William Martin, the stepfather of William and John Lakin, probable first cousins of Richard.

On 13 Oct 1673, Nathaniel Kirtland sold a two-acre plot with house in the town of Lynn, which was part of a larger six-acre plot with “common liberties and privileges,” originally granted to Richard Blood.^[34] So, Richard owned more than one property in the town of Lynn itself, one of which was an original grant with associated privilege to use common town land. This is further circumstantial evidence that he had been in Lynn from early enough to have received an original grant, i.e., the late 1630s at the latest.

On 20 Jun 1675, an alliance of six Native American tribes, led by Metacom, Sachem of the Wampanoags, declared war on the English colonies, setting off a three-year conflict later known as “King Phillip’s War.” On 2 Mar 1676, Groton was attacked and besieged by Metacom’s forces, finally being abandoned by the surviving colonists on 12 Mar 1676. The Reverend Increase Mather, in his diary entry for 13 Mar 1676, relates about the siege that “This week one that was taken Captive at Groton made an escape out of the Enemy’s hands. His name is Blood, a troublesome man in that place!”^[35] Whether this was Richard or one of his sons is uncertain, but as he had already been in trouble twice for selling liquor to the native people,^[36][37] it makes sense that it's Richard. In any event, after the fall of Groton, Richard and his family, along with most of the rest of the survivors, fled to the safety of Concord.^[38] Being much better fortified and defended, that town was never attacked. Groton would sit abandoned until the end of the war in 1678, when Richard and the other inhabitants returned. During his time in Concord, Richard served in the Middlesex militia defending the town, as recorded in militia records of 24 Oct 1676.^[39][40]

From May to Dec 1678 Richard, now back in Groton, was taken to court by the town for allegedly helping daughter Hannah “escape justice” for having a child out of wedlock. Her mother Isabell and brother James were called to testify in the case.^[41] And, providing more evidence that he was Increase Mather's "troublesome man," on 8 Apr 1682 Richard was once again hauled before the Middlesex County Court for selling liquor to the local native people without license; his third such charge.^[42]

On 2 Apr 1683, probably in failing health and anticipating his death later that year, Richard drafted separate deeds of gift to his sons Joseph and James, deeding to them all his properties in Groton.^[43][44]

Richard died on 7 Dec 1683, in his 66th year, at Groton.^[45] On 1 Apr 1684, administration of his estate was granted to his widow, Isabell, and his three sons, James, Joseph, and Nathaniel.^[46]

Richard Blood and probable younger brother Robert are the ancestors of the vast majority of the Bloods in North America.

Research Notes

Paternity: James Blood was not Richard's father. Despite its persistence over the years this conjecture fails on a number of important points:

• Richard was born in 1617 based on his own testimony. James was born in either 1605 or 1606 based on his testimony. This means that James was at most 12 years old when Richard was born. That alone should have been enough to kill this conjecture.
• The parish christening records for the three early 17th century Nottingham parishes (St Peter's, St Nicholas', St Mary's) are complete for the decade from 1601 to 1620, yet there is no record of Richard's birth there. By contrast, James's proven son James Jr.'s christening is recorded, with James listed as his father.
• A tradition among the Ruddington and Nottingham Bloods was to name the first son after the father; this tradition is demonstrated in the generations both before and after that of James and Robert and both in Nottinghamshire and New England. Therefore, James' son James, Jr., born in 1632 (within a year of his proven marriage), is more likely to have been James' first son than Richard.
• Once in the Massachusetts Bay Colony James, wife, and young son moved swiftly to the new town of Concord while Richard and Isabell settled in Lynn. There is no evidence whatsoever that the two ever interacted with each other in any way for the rest of their lives, even though Richard and presumed brothers Robert and John appear to have had dealings among themselves. Why would Richard have excluded their father if that's what James was?

Was Richard Blood a co-owner of the Saugus Iron Works? There is some circumstantial evidence that Richard Blood was one of the owners of the Saugus Iron Works in Lynn, the oldest iron foundry in the New England colonies.

• 27 Sep 1653 – In the records of the Quarterly Court of Essex County, “Blood’s Lotts” were mentioned twice in the case of Gifford vs. Beax pertaining to the Saugus Iron Works.^[47]
• 14 Jan 1656 – According to the records of the Quarterly Court of Essex County, "Copy of lease, dated Jan. 14, 1656, given by Edward Hutchinson of Boston to Joseph Armitage of Lynn, 14 or 15 acres known by the name of Blood's lot, belonging to the owners of the Iron works, for seven years from May 1, 1654, for which he was to pay 50s. in corn per year; he was to build a stone wall from the upper end of the brook which divided Gillowayes lot and Blood's lot "all along the highway so farr, as the said Blood's lot runnes towards the Iron works, until it Come to the great River the wall to be a sufficient stone wall...""^[48]
• Jun 1657 - We have already seen that Richard, along with Oliver Purchis and others, confronted Deputy Marshal Daniel Salmon in the forge building, preventing him from seizing a consignment of iron bar there.
• Nov 1681 - "Oliver Purchis, aged sixty-four years, testified that he came to the Iron works in 1655, at which time Blood's lot was in the tenure of Joseph Armitage, deceased, who had it by lease from Capt. Edward Hutchinson, deceased, agent of the then owners of the Iron works at Lyn. Deponent had the lease in his possession and collected the rent, Armitage's lease being given for seven years from May, 1654. After that the deponent still kept the lease as clerk for the owners and let the land out to those who carted for the Iron works, as Isaack Ramsdall of Lyn for one...deponent talked with Richard Blood who told him that it was true that Mr. Bennett bought it of him, but it was for Mr. Leader, who paid for it..."^[49]

Therefore:

• Given its name, Blood's Lot or Lots was likely originally owned by Richard Blood, the only adult male Blood in Lynn until he moved away from the town in 1660.
• Blood’s Lot was later owned collectively by the owners of the iron works.
• Samuel Bennett bought Blood’s Lot from Richard Blood on behalf of Mr. Leader.
• Richard Blood was invested in/involved enough with the iron works that he risked arrest by interfering with an officer of the court who had a warrant to seize a consignment of iron bar located in the forge building. He was assisted in this by Oliver Purchis, clerk for the owners.

Conclusion: If Richard Blood had the power to sell Blood’s Lot, does that not mean he was one of the owners of the lot? If he was an owner of the lot, and the owners of the lot were the owners of the iron works, then it follows that Richard Blood was one of the owners of the iron works. This would certainly explain why he was willing to risk arrest to protect what he saw as the best interests of the business.

Note on Surname/Family Name: Given that documents of the era were usually drafted by clerks or scribes employed for the purpose, and the idea that there is only one way to spell a name or word is a relatively recent development, spelling of the Blood surname varied heavily, even within the same document and referring to the same person. Variants seen in documents from 16th and 17th centuries Nottinghamshire and the early 17th century Massachusetts Bay Colony include: Blod, Blood, Bloode, Bloud, Bloude, Bloudde, Blud, Blude, Bludd, and Bludde. This applies to the Bloods in general and not just to Richard Blood. Garry Michael Blood

Sources

1. ↑ 1. His probable brothers John and Robert Blood owned property in Ruddington; 2. He was closely associated with William and John Lakin of Lynn Village (Reading) in the Massachusetts Bay Colony, both of whom were from Ruddington; 3. His wife Isabell was from Ruddington; 4. Ruddington contained the main concentration of Bloods in Nottinghamshire in the 17th century.
2. ↑ Stated age as 43 in deposition in court case, Middlesex County Court Folio 25, 1660, from Ages from Court Records, 1636-1700
3. ↑ "Church of England Baptisms, Marriages and Burials, 1538-1812," database with images, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/1624/images/48220_263021009500_3388-00280?pId=160761849 : accessed 1 Feb 2022); Information from image: "St Saviour Southwark, Aprill 15 Richard Blood & Isabell Wilkinson [married] p[er] li[centiam]."
4. ↑ See profile of Richard Blood.
5. ↑ Protestation Return for Ruddington, 9 Mar 1642.
6. ↑ Anderson, Sanborn, and Sanborn, Great Migration: Immigrants to New England 1634-1635, Vol. 1, A-B, p.xvii.
7. ↑ Anderson, “A Note on the Changing Pace of the Great Migration,” p.407
8. ↑ Lewis and Newhall, The History of Lynn, Essex County, Massachusetts, 1629-1864, p.183.
9. ↑ Will of Henry Wilkinson of Nottingham, 25 Nov 1642.
10. ↑ Most ships’ manifests, logs, and other records from this period are long lost. For the port of London, the only year that is reasonably complete is 1635.
11. ↑ Dow & Tapley, Records and Files of the Quarterly Courts of Essex County, Vol I, p.245.
12. ↑ Massachusetts Land Records, 1620-1658, Essex County, Vol 1, p.23
13. ↑ Dow & Tapley, Records and Files of the Quarterly Courts of Essex County, Vol I, p.347. http://salem.lib.virginia.edu/Essex/vol1/images/essex347.html
14. ↑ Response by the General Court, 25 May 1655.
15. ↑ Massachusetts, U.S., Town and Vital Records, 1620-1988, Groton, Land Divisions and Proprietors, p.5, “List of the Original Proprietors of Groton.”
16. ↑ Massachusetts Land Records, 1620-1986, Essex County, Deeds, 1639-1658, Vol 2, entry 2:52, p.184.
17. ↑ Dow & Tapley, Records and Files of the Quarterly Courts of Essex County, Vol II, entry 30:4:1657, p.42. http://salem.lib.virginia.edu/Essex/vol2/images/essex042.html
18. ↑ Dow & Tapley, Records and Files of the Quarterly Courts of Essex County, Vol II, p.65. http://salem.lib.virginia.edu/Essex/vol2/images/essex065.html
19. ↑ Dow & Tapley, Records and Files of the Quarterly Courts of Essex County, Vol II, p.129. http://salem.lib.virginia.edu/Essex/vol2/images/essex129.html
20. ↑ Dow & Tapley, Records and Files of the Quarterly Courts of Essex County, Vol II, p.99. http://salem.lib.virginia.edu/Essex/vol2/images/essex099.html
21. ↑ Dow & Tapley, Records and Files of the Quarterly Courts of Essex County, Vol II, p.98. http://salem.lib.virginia.edu/Essex/vol2/images/essex098.html
22. ↑ Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site website, https://www.nationalparks.org/connect/explore-parks/saugus-iron-works-national-historic-site
23. ↑ Dow & Tapley, Records and Files of the Quarterly Courts of Essex County, Vol II, entry for 1:2:1658, p.109 http://salem.lib.virginia.edu/Essex/vol2/images/essex109.html
24. ↑ Massachusetts Land Records, 1620-1986, Essex County, Deeds, 1639-1658, Vol 1, entry 1:47, pp.117-118.
25. ↑ Massachusetts Land Records, 1620-1986, Essex County, Deeds, 1639-1658, Vol 2, entry 2:27, pp.79-81.
26. ↑ Wikipedia - Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saugus_Iron_Works_National_Historic_Site
27. ↑ Massachusetts Land Records, 1620-1986, Essex County, Deeds, 1639-1658, Vol 2, entry 2:41, pp.123-126.
28. ↑ Dow & Tapley, Records and Files of the Quarterly Courts of Essex County, Vol II, p.260. http://salem.lib.virginia.edu/Essex/vol2/images/essex260.html
29. ↑ Massachusetts Land Records, 1620-1986, Middlesex County, Deeds, 1670-1678, Vol 4, entry 4:367-370.
30. ↑ Dow & Tapley, Records and Files of the Quarterly Courts of Essex County, Vol III, p.380. http://salem.lib.virginia.edu/Essex/vol3/images/essex380.html
31. ↑ Green, An Historical Sketch of Groton, Massachusetts. 1655-1890, p.158.
32. ↑ Harris, The Story of the Bloods, p.8
33. ↑ An Historical Sketch of Groton, Massachusetts. 1655-1890, Vol VIII, p.64. https://salem.lib.virginia.edu/Essex/vol8/images/essex064.html
34. ↑ "New England, The Great Migration and The Great Migration Begins, 1620-1635," Ancestry.com.
35. ↑ Mather, Diary by Increase Mather, pp.45-46.
36. ↑ Case of Groton vs. Richard Blood, 9 Apr 1666.
37. ↑ Case of Groton vs. Richard Blood, 8 Jun 1668.
38. ↑ Harris, The Story of the Bloods, p.9.
39. ↑ Doreski, Massachusetts Officers and Soldiers in the Seventeenth Century Conflicts, p.25.
40. ↑ Harris, The Story of the Bloods, p.9.
41. ↑ Case of Groton vs. Richard Blood, 24 May to 18 Dec 1678.
42. ↑ Case of Groton vs. Richard Blood, 8 Apr 1682.
43. ↑ Massachusetts Land Records, 1620-1986, Essex County, Deeds, 1639-1658, Vol. 11, pp.181-182.
44. ↑ Massachusetts Land Records, 1620-1986, Essex County, Deeds, 1639-1658, Vol. 12, pp.35-36.
45. ↑ "Massachusetts, U.S., Compiled Birth, Marriage, and Death Records, 1700-1850," Ancestry.com.
46. ↑ "Middlesex County, Massachusetts Probate Index, 1648-1870," Ancestry.com.
47. ↑ Dow & Tapley, Records and Files of the Quarterly Court of Essex County, Vol I, p.291. http://salem.lib.virginia.edu/Essex/vol1/images/essex291.html
48. ↑ Dow & Tapley, Records and Files of the Quarterly Court of Essex County, Vol VIII, p.196 http://salem.lib.virginia.edu/Essex/vol8/images/essex196.html
49. ↑ Dow & Tapley, Records and Files of the Quarterly Court of Essex County, Vol VIII, p.197. http://salem.lib.virginia.edu/Essex/vol8/images/essex197.html

Original Sources:

• Case of Groton vs. Richard Blood, 9 Apr 1666 (digital images of original documents), Middlesex County Court Folio Collection, Folio 40, Section 3f, Image 578, Published by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts State Archives, Boston, Massachusetts, United States. Online at: https://www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/210946
• Case of Groton vs. Richard Blood, 8 Jun 1668 (digital images of original documents), Middlesex County Court Folio Collection, Folio 49, Section 2b, Images 870 to 875, Published by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts State Archives, Boston, Massachusetts, United States. Online at: https://www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/210946
• Case of Groton vs. Richard Blood, 24 May to 18 Dec 1678 (digital images of eight documents comprising the case file), Middlesex County Court Folio Collection, Folio 79, Section 3, Images 685 to 688, Published by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts State Archives, Boston, Massachusetts, United States. Online at: https://www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/210946
• Case of Groton vs. Richard Blood, 8 Apr 1682 (digital images of eight documents comprising the case file), Middlesex County Court Folio Collection, Folio 99, Section 3d, Images 581 and 582, Published by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts State Archives, Boston, Massachusetts, United States. Online at: https://www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/210946
• Protestation Return for Ruddington, 9 Mar 1642 (digital image of original document). Library of the House of Lords, Parliamentary Archives, Houses of Parliament, Palace of Westminster, London, United Kingdom, Document Reference No. HL/PO/JO/10/1/101/64. Official digital copy available at: https://digitalarchive.parliament.uk/HL/PO/JO/10/1/101/64
• Petition to the General Court for the Establishment of the Town of Groton, Undated but bef. 25 May 1655 (digital image of original document). Groton Historical Papers, Ms. N-1340, Box 1, Groton Town Papers, 1646-1849, Massachusetts Historical Society, Boston, Massachusetts, United States.
• Will of Henry Wilkinson of Nottingham, 25 Nov 1642 (digital image of original document). Prerogative Court of Canterbury, Wills. The Church of England, Ecclesiastical Province of Canterbury, Canterbury, Kent, United Kingdom. Original held by The National Archives, Kew, Richmond, United Kingdom. Online database entry for document at https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/D876181

Derivative Sources:

• "Ages from Court Records, 1636-1700," database with images, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/7488:49021?ssrc=pt&tid=32380612&pid=18245663855 : accessed 5 Mar 2021), image of page from Sanborn, entry for Richard Blood Middlesex County Court; database reflects information taken from Lutz, Melinde. Ages from Court Records, 1636-1700: Essex, Middlesex, and Suffolk counties, Massachusetts, Volume 1, Genealogical Publishing Company, Baltimore, Maryland, United States, p.27.
• Massachusetts Land Records, 1620-1986, Essex County, Deeds, 1639-1658, Vol. 1, Published by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Massachusetts State Archives, Boston, Massachusetts, United States.
• Massachusetts Land Records, 1620-1986, Essex County, Deeds, 1639-1658, Vol. 2, Published by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Massachusetts State Archives, Boston, Massachusetts, United States.
• Massachusetts Land Records, 1620-1986, Essex County, Deeds, 1639-1658, Vol. 4, Published by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Massachusetts State Archives, Boston, Massachusetts, United States.
• Massachusetts Land Records, 1620-1986, Essex County, Deeds, 1639-1658, Vol. 11, Published by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Massachusetts State Archives, Boston, Massachusetts, United States.
• Massachusetts Land Records, 1620-1986, Essex County, Deeds, 1639-1658, Vol. 12, Published by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Massachusetts State Archives, Boston, Massachusetts, United States.
• "Massachusetts, U.S., Compiled Birth, Marriage, and Death Records, 1700-1850," database with images, Ancestry.com (https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?indiv=1&dbid=61401&h=1407660&ssrc=pt&tid=32380612&pid=18245663855&usePUB=true : accessed 1 Feb 2022); Name: Richard Blood; Gender: Male; Event Type: Death; Death Place: Groton, Middlesex, Massachusetts, USA; Spouse: Issable; Date of Death (from image): 7:10:1683 (i.e., 7 Dec 1683 on the modern Gregorian calendar).
• "Massachusetts, U.S., Town and Vital Records, 1620-1988," Groton, Land Divisions and Proprietors, database with images, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/71453328:2495?ssrc=pt&tid=32380612&pid=18245663855 : accessed 1 Feb 2022); Information from image -- Title: List of the Original Proprietors of Groton; Original Proprietor Name: Richard Blood; Original Right: 60 (acres).
• "Middlesex County, Massachusetts Probate Index, 1648-1870," database, Ancestry.com (https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?indiv=1&dbid=4775&h=4827&ssrc=pt&tid=32380612&pid=18245663855&usePUB=true : accessed 5 Mar 2021); Given Name: Richard; Surname: Blood; Location: Groton; Date (of probate, not death): 1684. Source: Index to the Probate Records of the County of Middlesex, Massachusetts, Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States: 1912.
• "New England, The Great Migration and The Great Migration Begins, 1620-1635," Ancestry.com (https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?indiv=1&dbid=2496&h=13429&ssrc=pt&tid=32380612&pid=18245663855&usePUB=true : accessed 5 Mar 2021), database entry for Richard Blood; Database entry reflects information taken from Anderson, Robert Charles. The Great Migration Begins: Immigrants to New England, 1620-1633, Volumes 1-3; Boston: New England Historical and Genealogical Society, 1996-2011.
• "New England, The Great Migration and The Great Migration Begins, 1620-1635," Ancestry.com (https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?indiv=1&dbid=2496&h=35077&ssrc=pt&tid=32380612&pid=18245663855&usePUB=true : accessed 5 Mar 2021), database entry for Richard Blood; Database entry reflects information taken from Anderson, Robert Charles. The Great Migration: Immigrants to New England, 1634-1635, Volumes 1-6. Boston: New England Historical and Genealogical Society, 1996-2011.
• Anderson, Robert Charles, Sanborn, George Freeman, and Sanborn, Melinde Lutz. Great Migration: Immigrants to New England 1634-1635, Vol. 1, A-B, New England Historic Genealogical Society: 1999. Link to searchable database at The Great Migration Study Project, https://www.americanancestors.org/browse/publications/ongoing-study-projects/the-great-migration-study-project
• Doreski, Carole (editor). Massachusetts Officers and Soldiers in the Seventeenth Century Conflicts, (alternate title is Colonial Soldiers and Officers on New England, 1620-1775), The Society of Colonial Wars in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and the New England Historic Genealogical Society, Boston, Massachusetts, United States: 1982. https://www.americanancestors.org/databases/colonial-soldiers-and-officers-in-new-england-1620-1775/image (subscription)
• Dow, George Francis (editor) and Tapley, Harriet S. (transcriptionist). Records and Files of the Quarterly Court of Essex County, Volume I, The Essex Institute, Salem, Massachusetts, United States: 1911. University of Virginia Library, http://salem.lib.virginia.edu/Essex/vol1
• Dow, George Francis (editor) and Tapley, Harriet S. (transcriptionist). Records and Files of the Quarterly Court of Essex County, Volume II, The Essex Institute, Salem, Massachusetts, United States: 1911. University of Virginia Library, http://salem.lib.virginia.edu/Essex/vol2
• Dow, George Francis (editor) and Tapley, Harriet S. (transcriptionist). Records and Files of the Quarterly Court of Essex County, Volume III, The Essex Institute, Salem, Massachusetts, United States: 1912. University of Virginia Library, http://salem.lib.virginia.edu/Essex/vol3
• Dow, George Francis (editor) and Tapley, Harriet S. (transcriptionist). Records and Files of the Quarterly Court of Essex County, Volume VIII, The Essex Institute, Salem, Massachusetts, United States: 1921. University of Virginia Library, http://salem.lib.virginia.edu/Essex/vol8
• Dow, George Francis (editor) and Tapley, Harriet S. (transcriptionist). Records and Files of the Quarterly Court of Essex County, Volume IX, The Essex Institute, Salem, Massachusetts, United States: 1975. University of Virginia Library, http://salem.lib.virginia.edu/Essex/vol9
• Green, Samuel A. An Historical Sketch of Groton, Massachusetts. 1655-1890, Published at Groton, Massachusetts, United States: 1891. The Internet Archive, https://archive.org/details/historicalsketch1894gree
• Green, Samuel A. Groton During the Indian Wars 1655-1790, Reprinted by Cornell University Library, Ithaca, New York, United States: 2009. The Internet Archive, https://archive.org/details/grotonduringindi00greeiala
• Harris, Roger Deane. The Story of the Bloods: including an account of the early generations of the family in America in genealogical lines from Robert Blood of Concord and Richard Blood of Groton, G.K. Hall & Company, Sanbornville, New Hampshire, United States: 1960. The Internet Archive, https://archive.org/details/storyofbloodsinc00unse
• Lewis, Alonzo and Newhall, James. The History of Lynn, Essex County, Massachusetts, 1629-1864, Published by the Bookstore of George C. Herbert, Lynn, Massachusetts, United States: 1890.
• Mather, Increase (arranged by Green, Samuel A.). Diary by Increase Mather, March, 1675 -- December, 1676, Together With Extracts From Another Diary of Him, 1674-1687. Published by John Wilson and Son, Cambridge University Press: 1900. The Internet Archive, https://archive.org/details/diary00mathgoog/page/n52/mode/2up

Background/Contextual Sources:

• Anderson, Robert Charles. “A Note on the Changing Pace of the Great Migration,” The New England Quarterly, Vol. 59, No. 3 (Sep, 1986), pp.406-407. JSTOR, https://www.jstor.org/stable/365337
• Lewis, Alonzo and Newhall, James. The History of Lynn, Essex County, Massachusetts, 1629-1864, Published by the Bookstore of George C. Herbert, Lynn, Massachusetts, United States: 1890. The Internet Archive, https://archive.org/details/historyoflynness00inlewi