Born before in Caister-on-Sea, Norfolk, England
Daughter of John Blyssinge
[uncertain]
and [mother unknown]
Sister of
Julian (Blessing) Goose [half], Margaret (Blessing) Buffum [half], John Blessing [half] and Alice (Blessing) Firmage
Wife of
William Towne
— married
25 Apr 1620 in St. Nicholas Church, Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, England
Descendants 
Mother of
Rebecca (Towne) Nurse, John Towne, Susan Towne, Edmund Towne, Jacob Towne, Mary (Towne) Estey, Sarah (Towne) Cloyes and Joseph Towne
Died before
at about age 87
in Topsfield, Essex, Massachusetts Bay Colony
Profile managers:
Bobbie Hall 
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| Created 10 Jun 2010
This page has been accessed 11,081 times.
| Joanna (Blessing) Towne migrated to New England during the Puritan Great Migration (1621-1640). Join: Puritan Great Migration Project Discuss: pgm |
The main source of information about this family so far has been the 1957 article by Walter Goodwin Davis published in The American Genealogist Vol. 33.[1]
Records found since 1957 and an analysis of findings are shown in this Blessing Free Space Page. The name "Blessing" will be used in this profile for convenience but parish registers in England also spelled it as Blyssinge and Blyssynge.
Contents |
Uncertain Origins
Jone Blessing was, according to the Caister-next-Yarmouth parish register, the daughter of John and Jone Blessing, christened 22 June 1595.[2] The uncertainty lies in two areas:
- Was her father the same man who married Joan Preaste on 15 October 1569, 10 miles away at Somerleyton, Suffolk?[3]
- Who was her mother? It was almost certainly not Joan Preaste as that would require having children across a 24-year span with large gaps between some and a cluster of at least 3 in the last 5 years, a biologically remote possibility and would also require that a priest wrote the wrong mother's name (Margaret) on her two elder sibling's christening records 5 years apart. It may have been another Jane/Joann, or it may have been John Blessing's apparent second wife, Margaret Unknown (which then requires Joanna's mother's name to be written incorrectly), we simply don't have the records to be sure. But IF her mother was Margaret, then we have an explanation for the 9 Nov 1612 Margaret Blessing burial at Great Yarmouth, it was her mother.[4] If not, then we don't know who that Margaret was, and we don't know what happened to Joanna's mother Jane/Joanna.
Some internet trees and lineages show her father as William Ryssynge, a child christened at Somerleyton in 1575. Davis, in 1957 was assisted by the Somerleyton rector who unfortunately mis-read this parish register as "Blyssynge" and also did not notice that the mother's name was Eliz(abeth), not Joane. Davis never claimed that this (mistaken) son of John Blessing & Joane Preaste was then the father of Joanna Blessing Towne, but he did theorize (but did not claim to prove) that SOME son of John was her father i.e. the "grandfather" theory.
Was her father the John Blessing born about 1544, married 1569? He would have been 51 at Joanna's birth, very plausible but not proven. Was her father an undiscovered "John Jr" by the "grandfather" theory? Unlikely, because John Blessing had a daughter Julian christened 21 September 1571 at Somerleyton.[5] 17 years and 10 months later, John Blessing had daughter Margaret christened at Caister on Sea on 20 August 1590.[6] It would be very unlikely for a teen of that age to be married in the church and having a child christened all well before his 18th birthday (this was not a noble/landed arranged marriage of infants).
Again, Davis did not have these Caister registers available so he had no idea of the name of the father of the "Blessing sisters" nor of their exact age. We cannot state Joanna's exact lineage authoritatively, given records found to-date, we can only identify the more and less likely theories.
Biography
Birth & Christening
Joanna, recorded as "Jone," was christened at Caister-next-Yarmouth on 22 June 1595, the daughter of John and Jone Blessing.[2] As discussed above, it is possible that her mother was actually Margaret Unknown as that was the mother of two older Blessing children, Margaret and John, baptized at the Caister-next .
Marriage
Joanna, recorded as "Jone," married William Towne 25 March 1620 at St. Nicholas, Great Yarmouth, Norfolk about 5 miles from Caister on Sea and 5 from Somerleyton, Suffolk.[7] Her sisters Margaret and Julian also married in the same church, to Robert Buffam (1613) and Thomas Goose (1622) respectively. Their sister Alice's marriage record has not been found but her husband was Firmage or Vermaige (spellings vary).[1]
Children
Baptized at St. Nicholas Church, Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, England as children of William (through Mary, after that at Massachusetts)
- Rebecca: born 21 Feb. 1621, married Francis Nurse[8]
- John: 16 Feb. 1623[9] (a John Towne Senior, Pauper died there on 13 Sep 1627) This may have been the John Towne apprenticed as a 12 year old to Lionel Gibson, cooper of Yarmouth in 1635 (see below). In any case there is no appearance of William's son John in New England.
- Susan: 20 Oct. 1625[10] buried 29 Jul 1630 at St. Nicholas with the note "Puella" (girl or young woman)[11]
- Edmund: baptized 28 June 1628, married Mary Browning[12]
- Jacob: baptized 11 March 1632, married Catherine Symonds[13]
- Mary: 24 Aug. 1634, married Isaac Esty[14]
- Sarah: 3 Sep 1648 at Salem, Essex, Massachusets Bay Colony[15] married 1st, 11 Jan. 1660, Edward Bridges, 2nd Peter Cloyes
- Joseph: 3 Sep 1648 (Salem VR shows these as born, not christened the same day so presumably twins)[16] married Phebe Perkins
Immigration
Lois Payne Hoover in her "Towne Family" book of 2010 dates their departure from England at the later part of June 1635, arriving in New England by August. Ms. Hoover notes that a John Towne, 12-year old son of William Towne (gardener of Yarmouth) was apprenticed to Lionel Gibson (cooper of Yarmouth) on 25 Apr 1635 for a period of 8 years "from 24 June next". The obvious implication is that the apprenticeship was timed for the departure from England of the rest of the family. Normal sailing times would then have them arriving later that summer in New England.[17] Per Hoover, on 26 Sep 1635 William & Joanna Towne were cited for failing to appear for communion at St. Nicholas (Great Yarmouth) and were labeled "Separatists" (citing Norwich Consistory & Archdeaconry Visitation Records) and whle this does not prove they were gone from England by then, it is another indication of possible mid-1635 departure. The author also notes that the first appearance of William seems to be a Salem land grant of 11 Aug 1640 so he was certainly in New England by then (same assertion by Savage[18]). The family has not yet been found on a ship's passenger list.
Great Yarmouth was, at that time, a strongly Puritan town, and many families emigrated to New England, including Robert Buffam (widower, remarried to Thomasin Ward), Alice (Blessing) Firmage (as a widow) and her children, and Jone (Blessing) Towne and her husband William and their children. They and other neighbors from Great Yarmouth ended up settling in Salem, Massachusetts Bay Colony.[1]
Death
This profile orginally cited a death of 1682 at Topsfield, Essex, Massachusetts claiming support from Topsfield Vital Records; there is no such record. Her death (as shown below) was between 24 Jun 1673 and 17 Jan 1682/83. Her burial place is unknown; Hoover notes that the Pine Grove cemetery in Topsfield was next to the First Church to which they belonged and they may have been buried there, but they may have been buried on their farm.
Administration on the estate of William Towne of Topsfield was granted to Johana Towne on 24 June 1673, and she was to deliver an inventory to the next Ipswich court.[19]
She had passed away by 17 Jan 1682/3 based on:
...a petition for settlement of a small estate left to the children of William Towne, who died ten years ago leaving no will, but left his estate in the hands of their mother who was appointed administratrix and the estate remained unsettled until her death. They now desire that the following division may be allowed: the land to be divided equally to his three sons, Edmond, Jacob and Joseph and the moveables equally to the three daughters, Rebecka, Mary, and Sarah; also the three brothers to pay all debts now due and what charges shall after arise in settlement of the estate to be equally borne by all six.
Dated 17 Jan 1682[/3], signed by Mary Towne relict of Edmond, Jacob Towne, Josep Towne, Francis Nurs with the consent of Rebeka, Mary Esty formerly Mary Towne, Sarah Bridges. Allowed by the court at Ipswich Apr. 10, 1683.[20]
Research Notes
- Accused of witchcraft though never arrested or brought to trial.[17] (Hoover page 4)
- See Blessing Notes.
- See the Davis TAG 33 article[1] and the Blessing Free Space Page for in depth analysis of the sisters of Joanna Blessing Towne. In particular, it seems likely that the Julian Blessing who married Thomas Goose in 1622 was likely a sister of Joanna Towne, regardless of whether the John Blessing (born c. 1544) was their father, or whether he did have a son "John Jr". The open question regarding Julian is, was the one born in 1571 the same one who married in 1622?
Sources
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Walter Goodwin Davis, "The Four Blessing Sisters" in The American Genealogist, Vol 33(1957) p. 206 $subscription some of this article is extracted (without citation!) here.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Caister parish register, "Norfolk, England, Church of England Baptism, Marriages, and Burials, 1535-1812," Ancestry.com image database online $ [1].
- ↑ "England Marriages, 1538–1973 ", database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:NJLF-RX6 : 13 March 2020), Joane Preaste in entry for John Blyssynge, 1569.
- ↑ Norfolk : Great Yarmouth : St Nicholas : Parish Register : "Parish Register" database, FreeREG (https://www.freereg.org.uk/search_records/58188adee93790ec754c8d19 : viewed 16 Jan 2022) burial Margeret Blessing 09 November 1612
- ↑ Somerleyton Parish Register images 1571 christening of Julian Blyssynge
- ↑ "England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975", database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:CNSG-SJZM : 20 March 2020), Margret Blessing, 1590
- ↑ "England Marriages, 1538–1973 ", database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:NXBT-23J : 13 March 2020), Jone Blessing in entry for William Towne, 1620.
- ↑ Norfolk : Great Yarmouth : St Nicholas : : "Parish Register" database, FreeREG (https://www.freereg.org.uk/search_records/5818f6cee93790ec8b81a8b3 : viewed 19 Jan 2022) baptism Rebecka Towne 21 Feb 1620/21
- ↑ Norfolk : Great Yarmouth : St Nicholas : : "Parish Register" database, FreeREG (https://www.freereg.org.uk/search_records/5818f778e93790ec8b82c832 : viewed 19 Jan 2022) baptism John Towne 16 Feb 1622/23
- ↑ Norfolk : Great Yarmouth : St Nicholas : : "Parish Register" database, FreeREG (https://www.freereg.org.uk/search_records/5818f770e93790ec8b82bbf1 : viewed 19 Jan 2022) baptism Susan Towne 26 Oct 1625
- ↑ Norfolk : Great Yarmouth : St Nicholas : Parish Register : "Parish Register" database, FreeREG (https://www.freereg.org.uk/search_records/58188b47e93790ec754ceb60 : viewed 19 Jan 2022) burial Susan Towne 29 Jul 1630
- ↑ Norfolk : Great Yarmouth : St Nicholas : : "Parish Register" database, FreeREG (https://www.freereg.org.uk/search_records/5818f79be93790ec8b82fef7 : viewed 19 Jan 2022) baptism Edm Towne 22 Jun 1628
- ↑ Norfolk : Great Yarmouth : St Nicholas : : "Parish Register" database, FreeREG (https://www.freereg.org.uk/search_records/5818f7c1e93790ec8b833946 : viewed 19 Jan 2022) baptism Jacob Towne 11 Mar 1631/32
- ↑ Norfolk : Great Yarmouth : St Nicholas : Register of unspecified type : "Parish Register" database, FreeREG (https://www.freereg.org.uk/search_records/5818f7bbe93790ec8b832ff5 : viewed 19 Jan 2022) baptism Marie Towne 24 Aug 1634
- ↑ Vital records of Salem, Massachusetts, to the end of the year 1849 .. by Salem (Mass.) Publication date 1916 p. 356
- ↑ Vital records of Salem, Massachusetts, to the end of the year 1849 ..by Salem (Mass.) Publication date 1916 p. 355
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 Towne Family: William Towne and Joanna Blessing, Salem, Massachusetts, 1635 : Five Generations of Descendants by Lois Payne Hoover Otter Bay Books, 2010 worldcat.org page 2
- ↑ A genealogical dictionary of the first settlers of New England showing three generations of those who came before May, 1692, on the basis of Farmer's Register by Savage, James, 1784-1873; Making of America Project; Farmer, John, 1789-1838; Dexter, O. P. (Orrando Perry), 1854-1903 Publication date 1860-62 p. 317 entry for William Towne and children.
- ↑ Salem Quarterly Court Records, Vol. 5, p. 197
- ↑ Deeds, mortgages, wills v. 3-5 1666-1695 Ipswich, Massachusetts FHL film 873019 Ipswich Deeds, vol. 4, p. 515 original image and transcription.
See Also:
- The ancestry of Lieut. Amos Towne, 1737-1793 : of Arundel (Kennebunkport), Maine by Davis, Walter Goodwin, 1865- Publication date 1927 pp. 3-7
- Towne, William B. Notes and Memoranda Relating to Persons of the Name of Towne, The New England Historical & Genealogical Register, (New England Historic Genealogical Society, Boston, Mass.) Vol. 21, page 12-22
- Hubbard, Edwin. The Towne Family Memorial: Compiled from the New England Historical and Genealogical Register, Towne Manuscripts, Public and Family Records; for A.N. Towne Esq., San Francisco, Cal. (Chicago, Illinois. Fergus Printing Company. 1880) p. 14 $subscription asserting, without source, that William was the "supposed son of Richard Towne of Braceby, Eng." and mainly quoting from William B. Towne's work in NEHGR vol 20 and 21 noted above.
- Stearns, Ezra S. Genealogical and Family History of the State of New Hampshire (Lewis Publishing Company, 1908) Vol. 2, Page 588 addressing the family from the 1620 marriage onward.
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Connections to Kings: Joanna is 19 degrees from Martin King, 15 degrees from Barbara Ann King, 13 degrees from George King, 14 degrees from Philip King, 19 degrees from Truby King, 15 degrees from Louis XIV de France, 15 degrees from King Charles III Mountbatten-Windsor, 14 degrees from Amos Owens, 12 degrees from Gabrielle Roy, 17 degrees from Richard Seddon, 22 degrees from Pometacom Wampanoag and 28 degrees from Charlemagne Carolingian on our single family tree. Login to see how you relate to 33 million family members.
B > Blessing | T > Towne > Joanna (Blessing) Towne
Categories: Puritan Great Migration Spouse | Puritan Great Migration
I've seen the original parish register, which states that Joane was the daughter of John and Margaret Blessing (contrary to what was previously attested to). Could someone with the project connect Joane to her mother, Margaret? Unknown-588641. I will attach a copy of the baptism record for all to see. Thank you.
https://www.familysearch.org/photos/artifacts/172262244?p=52762069&returnLabel=Joanna%20Blessing%20(LZ2Y-D2J)&returnUrl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.familysearch.org%2Ftree%2Fperson%2Fmemories%2FLZ2Y-D2J
edited by David Pierce
Of the two page image, Joan's birth is shown on the right hand page, not the left hand page, and it does appear to show Joan, not Margaret.
edited by S (Hill) Willson
I would not add Margaret as an "uncertain" mother as it is giving credence to a theory which is certainly wrong.
flagged by David Pierce
Edited to add: Scratch that ... The supposed father of Jone (Blessing) Towne exists on WikiTree as Unknown Blyssinge (abt.1570-).
edited by GeneJ X
Margaret, aka Margaret Blessing (bef.1590-1634) and Alice, aka Alice (Blessing) Firmage (abt.1594-1656), are both attached as daughters to the generational filler profile, Unknown Blyssinge (abt.1570-) (PGM Adjunct).
Is there a reason this Jone (Blessing) Towne is not also attached as a daughter of Unknown Blyssinge (abt.1570-)? --Gene
edited by GeneJ X
I created a free space page here https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Space:Blessing%2C_Blyssynge%2C_Preaste_ancestors_of_New_England_immigrant_Joanna_Blessing_Towne to capture and describe all this stuff. I'm going to the Denver library tomorrow (Tuesday) since they have the Lois Payne Hoover book and after that I will start making edits and merge requests.
edited by Brad Stauf
The mother of 546 doesn't have any real sources right and merges will be necessary for Joan Priest-449 and Joan Preaste-2 as well as the fathers John Blessing-101 and John Blyssinge-1 if I'm seeing this correctly.
Thanks!
When I looked at this a day or so ago, it seemed important source details were missing in the reference notes. I may have overlooked something, but none of the reference notes seemed to include mention of the historical sources the authors had used to support the different claims.
If you are able to add some of that detail, others (who don't have access to the work or the family association) might be able to assist further--either by tracking down those historical records or identifying others.
Thank you for supporting WikiTree, Julie. --Gene
When I posted I had thought that Brad would be taking the lead in cleaning up the profile(s), and that I might be able to assist when requested. I am still familiarizing myself with the TFA website and with this profile. I'm not sure what "these sisters" refers to, as this profile currently has no siblings. I'd like to coordinate my efforts with whoever else is going to work actively on this profile.
Siblings presumably refers to Walter Goodwin Davis' "The Four Blessing Sisters," in The American Genealogist, 33 (1957):199-202; digital images by subscription, AmericanAncestors.
These siblings are otherwise this (1) Jone (Blessing) Towne, (2) Margaret Blessing (bef.1590-1634), )3_ Alice (Blessing) Firmage (abt.1594-1656) and (4) Julian (Blessing) Goose (bef.1571-).
Both Margaret and Alice are linked on WikiTree as the daughters of Unknown Blyssinge (abt.1570-); no mother is associated with these children.
Julian is linked as as the daughter of John Blyssynge (1549-1648) and Joane (Unknown) Blyssynge (1553-) (Unknown-186716) Note: This Julian, baptized 1571 seems unlikely a sister, perhaps some other relative?
From the narrative, citing Hoover p. 3 (which I have not accessed), "She and her siblings were baptized in Caister-on-Sea, three miles from Great Yarmouth ... "
Edited to add: FamilySearch has digitized the "Parish register extracts, 1565-1838" for a place, "Caistor-next-Yarmouth"; the FamilySearch catalog indicates access to the films may be viewed at a FHL. See the catalog entry, DGS 8041547.
FamilySearch has a separate catalog entry for "Parish register transcripts of ... [including] Caister-on-sea"; also digitized, but restricted to access via a FHL. See the catalog entry, DGS 4234647. Entry notes "Caistor-Next-Yarmouth is referred to as Caster-on-Sea in the record."
Yet another FamilySearch separate catalog entry for "Parish register transcripts, 1563-1837"--authors include "Parish Church of Caistor-next-Yarmouth (Norfolk). This material has been digitized and is not restricted. See the catalog entry. DGS 4143541. I will look at this now. (Note, register begins as item 18, at image 532 of 1052]. Based on the modern handwriting, these filmed images seem to have been transcripts made at a later date. The first page opens with "Caister: This booke was bought and made in the yere of our lord god 1598 and in the fortie yeare of the reighn of our .... quene Elizabeth that is now ... This booke conteyneth all such ... as have been married christened and buried since the 18 of Aprill .... 1563 untyll this yere ... 1598.
Baptism appears as image 558 of 1052 (or 27 of 273), "[1595] Jone blessing the daughter of John and Jane was baptized the xxii of June."
edited by GeneJ X
I created a free space page here https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Space:Blessing%2C_Blyssynge%2C_Preaste_ancestors_of_New_England_immigrant_Joanna_Blessing_Towne to capture and describe all this stuff. I'm going to the Denver library tomorrow (Tuesday) since they have the Lois Payne Hoover book and after that I will start making edits and merge requests.
Before I forget GeneJ, your link to the American Ancestors article in your comment above is much more efficient than the one provided in the profile's source no. 1! I am a subscriber but could not page back to the article's beginning using the link in the source.
It's taking me a while to begin getting up to speed on the sisters. Rather than comment further here, I'll send Brad a PM.
The Towne Family (2010) by Hoover shows her father was John Blessing, from the parish of Caister-by-Sea, a town 3 miles from Great Yarmouth. Jone and her siblings were baptized there. It appears John's first wife, Margaret died (mother of Joanna's elder sister Margaret), and the mother of Joanna and her siblings was Jone.
There are so many details I would like to document/change, and indulged myself with doing a few today, but must turn my time to my own tree which is not finished.
It would be a tremendously useful mini-project for several members to get access to Hoover's book and correct the profiles for William Towne and his family.
The Towne Family Association also has some information about the book; a third printing sold out... http://townefolk.com/testing/TFA_BOOKS.php
edited by [Living Kelts]
The most reliable source for William Towne & his family to date is the 2010 Towne Family: William Towne and Joanna Blessing, Salem Massachusetts, 1635, Five Generations of Descendants, by Lois Payne Hoover.
There is no daughter of William and Joanna Towne named Martha.