Samuel Bennett (1665 - 1742)

Born 22 Jul 1665 in Lancaster, Middlesex, Massachusetts Bay Colony

Ancestors

Descendants

Died 6 Jul 1742 at age 76 in Lancaster, Worcester, Province of Massachusetts Bay

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Biography

Samuel married Mary Unknown in 1690, in Shrewsbury, Massachusetts Colony.^[1] Note: It's difficult to know for certain who Samuel's wife was. It's possible he married 2 women named Mary. The first is Mary Spofford, found at [1] The names of their children Abigail, John, and Elizabeth (this Mary's mother & 2 of her grandparents) would seem to go along with this. Another possibility is Mary Parmenter as found at [2].

Children: Mary (1695), Samuel (1690), John (1693), Elizabeth (1708), Joseph (1708), Josiah (1708), Jonathan (1708), Abigail (Oct 21 1711), Samuel (Dec 3 1716), Silas (May 6 1722), all in Lancaster MA.

On May 30 1708, four of Samuel Bennett's children were baptized all together: Josiah, Joseph, Jonathan and Elizabeth. We don't have the dates that any of these children would have been born. Normally infants were baptized the first Sunday after their birth at the meeting-house. But there were a number of Lancaster families where several children were baptized at once in 1708. John Prentice, the minister, wrote them up in 1730, making special note that "the time of the Baptism of some of them was not noted down, which was an omission in me."

[pg. 141 Early Records] Samuel was in the Indian Raid of 1704 . They killed 3 oxen & 2 cows of Sam's. [page 310] Samuel owned Richard Linton's lands in the middle of Lancaster. Samuel Bennett's sawmill was "up the north River", and is mentioned as early as 1717. [ Sam's Father was a Grandson of Richard Linton] pg. 144. Samuel was in Ensigne Peter Joslin's garrison during Queen Anne's War {1701-1713] pg. 173 Mr. Bennett had a Garrison 3 families 7 inhabitants 0 soldiers 34 Souls. pg.252 Will of Richard Linton Explained. pg315 the birth of Samuel Bennett 22 July 1665 Par: George & Lidia Benit

Page 306 - 307: SAMUEL BENNETS LAND Samuel Bennit's 30 acre Lott Granted him by the town now Sheafe. A discription of the thirty acre Lott Granted to Samuel Bennit and since Exchanged by him for the thirty acre Lott formerly Granted by the town to John Willard the said lott Granted to Samuel Bennit being now in the possession of William Sheaf of Charlstown Laid out one the west side of bare hill a Little distant from Joshua Atherlons meadow and Is bounded on all sides by common undiuided Land It being Eighty Rods Long and Sixty Rods wide : the discription whearof was Read before the town the fifth day of february : 1693/4 in order to be recorded .... Samuel Bennett was the son of George, who was the grandson of Richard Linton. George Bennett was slain in Monoco's raid. Aug. 21, 1675, and left widow Lydia and children — John, born 1659; Mary, 1661 ; Samuel, 1665; George, 1669: Lydia. 1674- Samuel owned Linton's lands in the centre of Lancaster. Samuel Bennett's saw-mill, "up the north river," is mentioned as early as 1717. He died 1742, aged seventy-seven years. Bennett sold his John Willard lot to Joseph Waters, and it was by him transferred to Isaac Hunt.

From Lancastriana:

THE NAMES OF THOSE THAT HAD 30 ACRE LOTTS GRANTED THEM BY THE TOWN AFTER THE SETTELMENT OF THE TOWN. Samuel Bennitt was one of 13.

Chesquonopog Pond, mentioned as early as 1660 in town records, is proved by a deed of Samuel Bennett to his son Joseph, May i, 1724 — conveying lands "near to a place called Chesquonapoage Hill " and "Asiatic" or "Assoatetick Hill" — to be probably what is known as White's Pond.

The original records of the proprietors of the "Additional Grant" are preserved with the archives of Leominster. The contract therein engrossed has slight verbal differences from the copy in the Lancaster records. The names of the signers, ninety-nine in number [include Samuel Bennitt Sen.]

TAHANTO'S LAND GRANT. 193. Sam' Bennet of Lancaster Testifies that he was with the Indian, vizt. John Aquiticus when he showed the bounds of the land sold to the Lancaster People by George Tahanto and other Indians, that the said Aquiticus then told them they might go to Mashapaug Pond, and that they should goe three miles wide at that end. Saml X Bennet's mark Lancaster, May 29th, 1720.

On June 25 1723 Finchas Richardson moved that Samuel Bennett may be admitted to live in Lunenburg since he had sold his lot in Turkey Hills to him. On Feb 21 1724 Samuel Bennett paid 12 shillings and spent 3 days to lay down divisions in the town.

Probate

The will of Samuel Bennett of Shrewsbury was dated 10 December 1733 and proved on 16 September 1742 in Worcester. He mentioned his wife Mary, and his children, Samuel Bennett (eldest son), John Bennett, Joseph Bennett, Josiah Bennett, Mary Phelps (eldest daughter), Elizabeth Houghton, Abigail How, and Jonathan Bennett (executor).^[2]

Sources

1. ↑ “New England Marriages Prior to 1700”, Baltimore, MD, USA: Genealogical Publishing Co., p.64.
2. ↑ "Probate records v. 2 1739-1748, 1790-1827" database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-C9YY-KFWS : 13 February 2024), Film# 007704427, Worcester, Massachusetts, image 112-113, Vol 2, Page 186-188.

• http://ma-vitalrecords.org/MA/Worcester/Lancaster/Images/Lancaster_010.shtml (Samuel's baptism record)
• Birth: "Massachusetts, Town Clerk, Vital and Town Records, 1626-2001," database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:FCMB-L9N : 10 November 2020), Samuel Bennitt, 28 May 1665; citing Birth, Middlesex, Massachusetts Bay Colony, British Colonial America, Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth, Boston; FHL microfilm 004198966.
• "Massachusetts Births and Christenings, 1639-1915", database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:FZKB-1VW : 15 January 2020), Samuel Bennett in entry for Joseph Bennett, 1708.
• Birth of son Jonathan: "Massachusetts Births and Christenings, 1639-1915", database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:FZK1-QQT : 15 January 2020), Samuel Bennett in entry for Jonathan Bennett, 1708.

• Mass baptism of 4 children: The birth, marriage, and death register, church records and epitaphs of Lancaster, Massachusetts. 1643-1850 as found at [3]

• The Early Records of Lancaster, Massachusetts, 1643 - 1725, edited by Henry S. Nourse 1884.

• Lancastriana: A supplement to the Early Records and Military Annals of Lancaster, Massachusetts by Henry S. Nourse 1900.

• The early records of the town of Lunenburg, Massachusetts, including that part which is now Fitchburg; 1719-1764. A complete transcript of the town meetings and selectmen's records contained in the first two books of the general records of the town; also a copy of all the vital statistics of the town previous to the year 1764 as found at [4]