Joseph Boynton I (1644 - 1730)

Born 13 May 1644 in Rowley, Essex, Massachusetts Bay Colony

Ancestors

Husband of Sarah (Swan) Boynton — married 13 May 1669 (to 27 Feb 1717) in Rowley, Essex, Massachusetts Bay Colony

Descendants

Died 16 Dec 1730 at age 86 in Rowley, Essex, Province of Massachusetts Bay

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Biography

Joseph Boynton was the second generation of Boyntons in North America, but the first generation born in North America. ^{[1] [2]}. He was born in Rowley, Essex county, Massachusetts on May 13, 1644 or 1645, the oldest of seven children, with 3 brothers and 3 sisters, all of whom survived childhood and married. ^[2]

Apparently, Joseph was a respected civic leader in Rowley, serving as a Captain of the Military Company (militia) in Colonel Francis Wainwright's First Regiment (Red) in 1706 and 1707 of the Port Royal, Nova Scotia, Canada. Port Royal was a port on the western shore of what is now Nova Scotia. Many attacks on New Englanders during the French & Indian Wars began in Canada, but since the forests separating New England and Canadian towns were controlled by hostile Indians, the best avenue of attack open to the English was by sea. The Port Royal expedition of 1707, an attack based upon this theme, failed when the attacking forces were repulsed. However in 1710 another expedition was mounted & the French surrended in the face of overwhelming odds. The name of the town was later changed to Annapolis Royal.

The military activity in which Joseph was involved was part of the 2nd French and Indian Wars. On this side of the Atlantic it was called Queen Anne's War, named after the English monarch at the time. In Europe it was referred to as the War of the Spanish Succession & was fought over the Spanish Empire, which had been left without an uncontested heir in 1700, when the last Habsburg king, Charles II, died childless. Hoping to preserve the European balance of power, King Louis XIV of France & Britain's King William III had drawn up treaties in 1698 and 1700 to divide up the inheritance of the sickly Charles between the leading claimants, the French Bourbons & the Austrian Habsburgs. However, the dying king bequeathed all his territories to Phillipe, duc d'Anjou, grandson of Louis XIV. Louis accepted the inheritance for his grandson, who became Philip V of Spain, breaking the partition agreement. By subsequently coordinating the miltary, commercial, & political policies of Spain & France, Louis upset the European power balance. As a result, an anti-French alliance was formed. Ultimately France, Spain, & Bavaria faced a Grand Alliance of the Austrian Habsburgs, most German princes, the United Provinces, & Britain.

The war that began in Europe in 1701 finally spread to New England by 1703. Various settlements in Maine were attacked, & early in 1704 a party of French & Indians surprised Deerfield, Massachusetts, killing many of the inhabitants & taking others into captivity. Attacks the same year in Marlboro resulted in the death of Mary Goodenow, a lame girl who was not able to flee with the others to the safety of the garrison. About the same time the Rice boys were taken captive from a site near the present day Westborough High School. The war continued for many years. Finally France & Spain, much weakened by their exertions against Britain & her allies, was eager for peace in 1712. After lengthy negotiations, an international agreement was reached at Utrecht in the spring of 1713. Spain retained Florida, but France was forced to relinquish Acadia to the British, & it became the new British colony of Nova Scotia. During the uneasy peace that followed, both the British & French resumed their competitive expansion into the trans-Applachian West. Therefore it was just a matter of time before more trouble broke out between the 2.

Expedition; Rowley Town Clerk, and a representative to the Massachusetts Bay Colony General Court for "many years." ^[2]

Captain Joseph was also a "Pinder for the North-east-field" from 1670 to 1671 (Websters defines "pinder" as a "poundkeeper" and a "pound" as "an inclosure, maintained by a public authority, in which cattle or other animals are confined when taken in trespassing, or when going at large in violation of law.") He was made the constable in 1685, replacing Thomas Lambert, who had died.

On November 3, 1691, Joseph and his brother Caleb Boynton, administrators of the estate of Josiah Clarke of Ipswich, Essex county, Massachusetts, late husband of their sister Mercy Boynton Clarke, took inventory of Clarke's estate (Clerk of Courts, Salem, Essex county, Massachusetts). ^[2]

Joseph Boynton was also selected as a grand juror along with his brother Caleb Boynton. They served on the jury of Mary Watkins during the Salem Witch trials. Salem Village Church records of 1695 expressing support for the Rev. Samuel Parris was signed by Joseph Boynton representing the church in Rowley. (Parris was the minister of Salem Village and an active prosecutor in the witchcraft cases, in 1693 Parris's parish brought charges against him for his part in the trials.) ^[3]

The Boyntons -- Joseph and his wife, Sarah (Swan), his son Benoni and Benoni's wife, Ann (Migill), moved from Rowley to Groton, Middlesex county, Massachusetts. The Rowley church dismissed them to become members of the church in Groton on December 4, 1715. On February 27, 1718, Sarah died in Groton, Middlesex county, Massachusetts. ^[2]

Before 1720 Joseph returned to Rowley where he married Elizabeth Wood as his second wife on March 11, 1720 when he was 75 years old. Given his age, she was probably a widow and her maiden name unknown.

Joseph died on December 16, 1730 at "about 85 years" old, and was buried in the Rowley burial ground with several other Boyntons. ^[2]

Inscriptions from the Old Cemetery in Rowley, Massachusetts. Stone: No. 11, 17 Row, West 4  Name: Capt Joseph Boynton  Death Date: December 16, 1730  Age: "Aged about 85 years" Inscription: "Here lies ye body / of Capt Joseph Boynton who died / December 16, 1730 / aged about 85 years. / Make Christ Your Fri[e]nd / Before You Die That / You May Live Eternal". ^{[4] [5]}

Sources

1. ↑ The Boynton Family. A Genealogy of the Descendants of William and John Boynton, Who Emigrated from Yorkshire, England, in 1638, and Settled at Rowley, Essex County, Massachusetts. John Farnham Boynton, 1811 - 1890, and His Wife Caroline (Harriman) Boynton. 1899. Authorized Facsimile. University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan. 1982..
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5} Blodgette, George Brainard, Early Settlers of Rowley, Massachusetts Revised, Edited and Published by Jewett, Amos Everett. Newcomb & Gauss Co., Printers, Salem, Massachusetts, USA, 1933. Reprinted by the New England History Press, Somersworth, New Hampshire. 1981. Pg. 26
3. ↑ History and Genealogy of the Jewetts of America, pp 31-33.
4. ↑ Find A Grave. Memorial # 8402634. Record added February 19, 2004. Accessed by Michael Boynton on November 28, 2015 at 5:38 PM.
5. ↑ Inscriptions from the Old Cemetery in Rowley, Massachusetts. George B. Blodgette, Esq. Heritage Books, Westminster, Maryland, 1892, 1980. page 57. ISBN 978-0-7884-4899-7.

• ”Boynton. Capt. Joseph, 1645-1730. Prov. Forces of Mass. Bay. Deputy, 1697-1714, from Rowley,” “General Register of the Society of Colonial Wars, 1899-1902” New York. 1902, https://archive.org/details/generalregister00usgoog/page/n9. P. 573.
• History of Westmoreland (Great Meadow), New Hampshire 1741 - 1970 and Genealogical Data. Westmoreland Historical Committee. 1976, Second Printing August 2007. Page 345.
• "Find A Grave Index," database, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QVVQ-VZX9 : 7 August 2020), Joseph Boynton, ; Burial, Rowley, Essex, Massachusetts, United States of America, Rowley Burial Ground; citing record ID 8402634, Find a Grave, http://www.findagrave.com.
• "Massachusetts Marriages, 1695-1910, 1921-1924", database, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:FH12-P8D : 28 July 2021), Joseph Boynton, 1669.
• Blodgette, George B., Early Settlers of Rowley, Massachustts.