Thomas Durkee (1666 - bef. 1757)

Born 1666 in Ipswich, Essex, Massachusetts Bay Colony

Ancestors

Husband of Elizabeth (Ford) Durkee — married 5 Mar 1701 in Ipswich, Essex, Massachusetts Bay Colony

Husband of Rebecca (Tilton) Durkee — married 26 Jun 1728 in Windham, Connecticut

Descendants

Died before 11 Apr 1757 before age 91 in Woodbury, Litchfield, Connecticut Colony

Problems/Questions Profile managers: Jay Byrne [send private message] and April Mavros [send private message]

Summary

Thomas Durkee (or Durgy)

Birth: 1666 Ipswich, Essex, Massachusetts

Marriage 1: Elizabeth

1. daughter of Andrew and Elinor Ford (in dispute)
2. Elizabeth Ford or Lord; in dispute

Marriage 2: Rebecca (Rebekka) Lamb

1. Married 2 Jun 1728 in Windham, Windham, Connecticut.

Death: be. 11 April 1757 (date of probate), Woodbury, Litchfield, Connecticut

Burial: Possibly Woodury, no gravestones have been located

Biography

Note: sources of timeline documented in the narrative following the Biography.

1632: Birth of William Durgy, father of Thomas

William Durkee (Durgy) was born in Ireland about 1632 and may have been the first Irishman to settle in the Massachusetts Bay Colony. He arrived on Nov. 9, 1663 as the indentured servant of Thomas Bishop, having been in the Barbadoes, probably as a slave of Cromwells.^[1]

1666: Thomas Durgy born

Thomas ("Doctor") Durkee (Durge acc to Barbour)^[2]

1696: Thomas Durgy served in the militia of Yorke, Maine.

1701: - 5 March Age: 33 Marriage to Elizabeth Ford (Lord) in Ipswich, Essex, Massachusetts, United States

He was married 5 March 1700/01 in Ipswich, Essex, Massachusetts, to Elizabeth Ford.^[3] She died on 28 Jul 1727 in Windham, Windham Co., Conn. It is highly unlikely that Andrew Ford and Elinore Lovell are her parents. See discussion below. Children with Elizabeth: Nathaniel Capt Durkee, 1701 – 1760, Elizabeth Durkee (Durge acc to Barbour), 1705 – 1788, Joseph Durkee, 1707 – 1744, Robert Durkee, 1713 – 1771, Andrew Durkee, 1715 – 1761, Solomon Durkee, 1717 – , JAMES DURKEE, 1721 – 1809, Nathan Durkee, 1725 – 1759.

1712: Living in Ipswich

In 1712 Thomas signed a petition to the Ipswich congregation for a new church, stating they had been attending the church at Wenham, although its distance from them made it inconvenient.

1713: Purchased land in Windham, MA

In July of 1713 he purchased a parcel of land (100 acres) in Windham from Thomas Bingham. The land was described as a place known as Meeting House Hill, and consisted of 100 acres. The price was 19 pounds.

1713: Sold land in Ipswich, MA

In September 1713, Thomas and Elizabeth appeared at the court in Ipswich to sell a 3 ½ acre parcel of land to John and Jonathan Whipple.

1713 Purchased land in Woodbury, CT

Thomas' brothers John and William soon followed him to Connecticut.

"1728: Married Rebecca Tilton Lamb He was married to Rebecca Lamb (widow of John Lamb) on 2 Jun 1728 in Windham, Windham, Connecticut. Rebecca Lamb was born about 1668. [He had two children by Rebecca Lamb Durkee, Mary Durkee 1729 – 1813, Amy Durkee 1731 – 1800.

1731: Move to Pomfret, Connecticut

After the birth of his last child in 1731, he and Rebecca moved to Pomfret, Connecticut. He owned land in Norwich and may have lived there. In 1742 he moved to Woodbury.

'1742: Sold land in Woodbury, CT Thomas Durkee disposed of all his interests in Norwich in 1742.

1757: Thomas died in Woodbury, CT Thomas died in Woodbury in the spring of 1757 at the age of 91. He made his will 22 March 1754 (pro. 11 April 1757).^[4] His wife Rebecca was still living and Thomas specified that the distribution of his estate not take place until two years after both his and Rebecca's deaths. No gravestones have been found for Thomas or Rebecca, although they must have been buried in Woodbury.

Disputed Facts

1. Was Elizabeth, first wife of Thomas, born in Weymouth or Ipswich? There is a conflict with the Ford genealogy which says Elizabeth was born in Weymouth, 45 miles from Ipswich. Needs further investigation.

2. Was Elizabeth the daughter of Andrew and Elinor Ford? There is a popular feeling that Elizabeth, dau. of Andrew and Elinor, was the wife of Thomas Durkee. This has determined as highly unlikely based upon the location of birth, and the ages of the children; she would have bee 58 years old when Thomas' youngest child was born. There is also confusion over the surname "Ford" or "Lord". The prestigious New England Historical and Genealogical Society researched the problem and they were not able to arrive at any solution to the mystery either. Thus, the identity of Elizabeth remains unsolved. ^[1]

A survey of the inhabitants of Ipswich show many more Lord families than Fords. There were several whose names were Nathaniel, and as the eldest child of Thomas and Elizabeth was named Nathaniel, we felt that one of these Lord families must certainly be the one we sought. Your editor went to Essex County and read the wills of all Lords dying anywhere near this time period, as well as studying many of the land records. No mention of any Elizabeth was discovered and certainly not one who was married to Thomas Durkee. We also had the prestigious New England Historical and Genealogical Society research the problem and they were not able to arrive at any solution to the mystery either. Thus, the identity of Elizabeth remains unsolved.

3. Where are the birth records for the older children of Thomas and Elizabeth?

For reasons that are unclear, the birth records for the older children of Thomas and Elizabeth have never been located. This as caused much confusion among previous researchers of the Durkee family. The eldest son, Nathaniel, was placed in the family of his uncle John, although there was no room for him there and John's family was well documented. Thomas owned land in Ipswich and probably lived there for some time, but in 1712 his name appears among the list of inhabitants of The Hamlet who were petitioning the Ipswich congregation for a separate church. They indicate that they had been attending church in Wenham which was an inconvenient distance from them. A search of the records of Wenham as well as The Hamlet (now Hamilton), failed to find any entries of children born to Thomas and Elizabeth Durkee. Their 5th child, Benjamin, was recorded in the Ipswich records.

Thomas appears to have been the first of the family to investigate the new land opening up in Connecticut. In July of 1713 he purchased a parcel of land in Windham from Thomas Bingham. The land was described as a place known as Meeting House Hill, and consisted of 100 acres. The price was 19 pounds. In September 1713, Thomas and Elizabeth appeared at the court in Ipswich to sell a 3 ½ acre parcel of land to John and Jonathan Whipple. It was apparently not long after this that Thomas and his family removed to Windham. They were followed shortly after by Thomas's brothers, John and William and their families.

Marriage 2

Five more children were born to Thomas and Elizabeth in Windham, but alas, when the youngest was only 18 months of age, Elizabeth died. Thomas's only daughter, Elizabeth, was already married, so Thomas realized the necessity of finding another wife, and mother for his children. The woman he chose was Rebecca Lamb. She was the widow of John Lamb and had apparently previously lived in Rhode Island. Her parentage is not known and her birth and death dates have not been found. Two daughters were born to Thomas and Rebecca.

Shortly after the births of their daughters, Thomas and Rebecca moved to Pomfret, as usual being the first of the family to leave Windham. He owned land in Norwich and may have lived there for a time. In 1742 he removed to Woodbury where he lived until his death.

There is an interesting note which was found in the Connecticut Historical Society Library which states, "Thomas Durkee disposed of all his interests in Norwich in 1742. Another deed says, I, Rebecca Durkee, late widow of John Lamb, but now wife of Doct. Thomas Durkee of Providence...." This note raises many questions.

4. Did he live in Rhode Island? First, it supports the date of his removal to Woodbury. Secondly, it indicates that he may have lived in Providence, Rhode Island, or perhaps that Rebecca had previously lived there. (An inquiry was sent to Providence but was not answered. This will be pursued further.)

5. Was he a doctor? A deed made by his second wife refers to him as Dr. Thomas Durkee. This is the only evidence that he might have been a doctor. The note from the Connecticut Historical Society above raises the possibility that Thomas was a Doctor. Certainly this would refer to his being a medical doctor at this point in history. As a detailed inventory of his possessions has not been located, we do not know if he possessed medical instruments or not. We do hope to find out about this possibility.

6. Where is her buried? Thomas died in Woodbury in the spring of 1757 at the age of 91. His wife Rebecca was still living and Thomas specified that the distribution of his estate not take place until two years after both his and Rebecca's deaths.

This distribution, which would provide the approximate death date for Rebecca as not been found. Thomas's son, James, was appointed administrator of the estate. The entire text of the will can be found on page 38. No gravestones have been found for Thomas or Rebecca, although they must have been buried in Woodbury. Now, after nearly 230 years, we are still trying to solve the mysteries of this elusive son of William and Martha. ^[1]

Surname report submitted by Jane Peppler Email me or call (919-383-8952) if you have questions, corrections, additions, or just to say hi! Mailing address at bottom of this page.

This is not my original research, but this line of Durkees has been documented by The Society of Genealogy of Durkee, 4100 East Theresa Street, Long Beach, CA 90814-1758, 562 438-5582. They say:

"William Durkee (Durgy) was born in Ireland about 1632 and may have been the first Irishman to settle in the Massachusetts Bay Colony. He arrived on Nov. 9, 1663 as the indentured servant of Thomas Bishop, having been in the Barbadoes, probably as a slave of Cromwells." ^[1]

Descendants of William Durkee

Thomas Doctor Durkee was born about 1666 in Ipswich, Essex, Mass.. He died on 11 Sep 1739 in Woodbury, Litchfield, Connecticut.

He was married to Elizabeth Ford (daughter of Andrew Sr. Ford and Ellinore Ellyn Lovell) on 5 Mar 1700/1 in Ipswich, Essex Co., Mass.. Elizabeth Ford was born on 2 Nov 1667 in Ipswich, Essex, Mass.. She died on 28 Jul 1727 in Windham, Windham Co., Conn.

Thomas Doctor Durkee and Elizabeth Ford had the following children:[It is highly unlikely that Thomas married Elizabeth Ford, daughter of Andrew Sr. Ford and Ellinore Ellyn Lovelll born at Weymouth, MA, 2 Nov 1667 and died 28 Jul 1727 in Windham, Windham Co., Conn.^[1]

Spouse #1 Elizabeth Ford 1667 – 1727

Children of Thomas Durkee and Elizabeth Ford:

1. Nathaniel Capt Durkee, 1701 – 1760
2. Elizabeth Durkee (Durge acc to Barbour), 1705 – 1788
3. Joseph Durkee, 1707 – 1744
4. Robert Durkee, 1713 – 1771
5. Andrew Durkee, 1715 – 1761
6. Solomon Durkee, 14 Dec 1717 –
7. JAMES DURKEE, 1721 – 1809
8. Nathan Durkee, 1725 – 1759

He was married to Rebecca (Rebeckah) Lamb (widow of John Lamb) on 2 Jun 1728 in Windham, Windham, Connecticut. Rebecca Lamb was born about 1668. [Tilton was probably Rebecca's maiden name][He had two children by Rebecca Lamb Durkee, Thomas died in Woodbury in the spring of 1757 at the age of 91. His wife Rebecca was still living and Thomas specified that the distribution of his estate not take place until two years after both his and Rebecca's deaths.^[1]

Birth

Birth Date: 1 JUL 1666

Birth Place: Ipswich, Massachusetts^[5]

Death

Death Date: 1 JUL 1757

Death Place: Woodbury, Connecticut^[5]

Marriage

Husband: Thomas Durkee

Wife: Elizabeth Lord

Child: Nathaniel Durkee

Marriage:

Date: 5 MAR 1701

Place: Ipswich, Essex County, Massachusetts^[5]

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5} The Society of Genealogy of Durkee., You may contact the Society by writing to: Robin K. Durkee (President or) Bernice B. Gunderson (Editor & Family Researcher), 4100 East Theresa Street, Long Beach, CA 90814-1758, (562) 438-5582, Robin's e-mail:robin email address removed, Bernice's e-mail:berniceg email address removed
2. ↑ Entered by Jay Byrne, Jan 27, 2012
3. ↑ Ipswich, Massachusetts, Town Clerk. Town Records: 1600-1916. "Birth, Deaths, Marriage, Intentions 1663-1733". https://www.ipswichma.gov/773/Town-Records-1600---1916. Page 163 of 270.
4. ↑ "Probate records, 1719-1916". Catalog: Probate records, 1719-1916 Probate records v. 3-4 1749-1760. Film number: 007627180 > image 277 of 488. FamilySearch Image: 3QS7-892K-RKY (accessed 1 March 2024).
5. ↑ ^{5.0 5.1 5.2} Durkee Newsletter

• Durkee Newsletter
• Hammatt, Abraham,Early inhabitants of Ipswich, Mass. 1633-1700, published 1880. Reference page 84 Refers to his wife as Elizabeth Lord

Acknowledgements

• Profile Durkee-5 adopted by Tom Quick, Dec 13, 2013
• WikiTree profile Durkee-59 created through the import of EVERYBODY and EVERYTHING.ged on Oct 14, 2011 by April Mavros.
• WikiTree profile Durkee-91 created through the import of temp.ged on Jun 1, 2012 by Steve St. Martin. See the Changes page for the details of edits by Steve and others.