James Harmon (abt. 1630 - aft. 1673)

Born about 1630 in England [uncertain]

Descendants

Died after 1673 after about age 43 in Saco, York, Massachusetts Bay [uncertain]

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Biography

James Harmon was born around 1630, probably in England. Some have said that he is the son of Francis Harmon and Sarah Martin but no evidence has been offered for this belief.^{[1][2][3][4][5]}

James first appears in Salem, Massachusetts Bay, arriving aboard the Happy Entrance whose master was Richard Margerum and Captain was Robert Harding. It appears that several Salem merchants had owned shares in the ship and that James and other crew had property rights in certain of her prize moneys from voyages Eastward for trade.^[5] He began his troublemaking even before disembarking as can be seen in early court records of Essex County.^[6]

October 1653 - James Harmon of the Happy Entrance fined for taking out of Mr. John Harvey's chest 101i., and for stealing a stuff coat worth 30s, and also for stealing from John Bartrum a round turned box of wood worth 2s., 6d., in which were ten pounds sterling in pieces of eight.

June 1654 - Capt. Robert Harding v. James Harman - Debt. Withdrawn.

James Harman v. Capt. Robert Harding - for withholding his part of 501i. share aboard the Happy Entrance, for concealing goods and his part of a watch.

November 1654 - Capt. Robert Harding v. James Harmon - for withholding the accounts of the ship.

After landing, he continued to appear before the court.

December 1654 - James Harmon - presented for quarreling and attempting the chastity of Damaris Laskins and Bathsuah Ramand was bound for good behavior with Mr. Elias Stileman surety. He broke his bond by fighting and was fined 10 shillings.

He moved on from Salem north to Saco, in the district of Maine, then a part of Massachusetts Bay. No Harmon's appeared on the list when Saco made a submission to the Massachusetts Bay government on July 5, 1653. James appeared in a rash of cases before the court in Saco.^[7]

June 30, 1656 - James Harmon v. John Snelling - Debt - verdict for the defendant.

Richard Hitchcock v. James Harmon - action on an engagement made by him on John Snellings behalf - verdict for the plaintiff.

James Harmon - presented on suspicion of incontinency with Mary Clay - an act of separation decreed with a forfeit of 10 pounds.

James Harmon - presented for swearing an oath and afterwards for swearing two more - fined 30 shillings.

James Harmon - presented for contempt of authority and for abusing the officers with unseemly speeches - fined 20 shillings.

James married Sarah Clark, daughter Edward and Barbara Clark on May 6, 1658, in Saco.^[8] That did little to stem the tide of court appearances (more complete list presented in the Davis text).

July 4, 1659 - Stephen Batson and Morgan Howell gave a bond that James Harmon shall appear before the next court to answer his charges from the June 30, 1656, court.

Richard Hitchcock and James Gibbons were allowed 12 shillings as witnesses against James Harmon and James was fined 2 pounds, ten shillings for his offences. James remitted 20 shillings "on hopes of his amendment."

July 3, 1660 - James Harmon - presented for stabbing and cutting his father-in-law, Edward Clark, with his knife and for often swearing and being drunk. He is to receive 20 lashes on the bare back for his "Incorageablenesse" to be administered by John Parker the gaoler and to give a bond for good behavior on which Lieut. John Davisse and Richard Whitte stand engaged.

Whereas the "suspitious words and carages" of James Harmon before the court seemed to "declare his Intentions to depart speedily out of the Countrey", part of his estate valued at 60 pounds was ordered to be held by Edward Clark for the benefit of Sarah Harmon and her child.

October 11, 1660 - The bond of James Harmon and Mary Clay, on the act of separation, was broken.

James appears to have fled, as suspected, but only so far as Essex County where he again appeared in court.

December 1661 - James Harmon fined in Salem for fighting with Peter Harvey.

He did not stay in Essex for long and he continued "a very intemperate and troublesome man" as referred to in the Bradbury text.

July 5, 1664 - On the complaint of James Harmon's wife he is bound in the sum of fifty pounds to be of good behavior toward all persons and especially toward his wife. She has liberty to given her to live with either with her mother or with James Gibbins, where her husband may go to her.

October 12, 1669 - James Harmon presented for abusing and beating his wife. To be whipped 10 stripes and to give a bond for twenty pounds.

July 5, 1670 - James Harmon convicted for being drunk.

Hames Harmon presented for swearing and multiplying oaths.

April 4, 1671 - James Harmon presenting for oppressing one of his children, Jayne Harmon, who is bound to James Gibbons for eight years.

July 1, 1673 - James Harmon presented for being overtaken in drink.

That is the last known record of James Harmon. His wife, Sarah, appears in Boston as a widow in 1680, so he must have died in the interim.

Children

The following are known to have been children of James and Sarah Harmon:

• Child 1, b. 1659 or 1660 - this child could actually be the same as Jane if the accounting was sloppy but they are known to have a child mentioned in the July 3, 1660, court case.
• Jayne, b. about 1661 - bound to James Gibbons for a term of eight years April 4, 1671, likely until her age of maturity.
• James - his mother, Sarah, administered his estate in 1693.
• Samuel - was a bondsmen for his mother 1693.
• Barbara, b. December 6, 1667, recorded in Saco records.

Child 1 may have simply been Jayne given the state of the record keeping around the other children. Child 1 could have been John Harmon, who married Sarah Roberts, and he seems to fit here and no other likely place. Child 1 was NOT John Harmon, who married Elizabeth Cummings and secondly Deborah Johnson as was stated without proof in the Harmon text as he was deposed to have been born about 1639.

Footnotes:

1. ↑ Folsom Pages 101, 109, 138, 183
2. ↑ Bradbury Pages 67, 84
3. ↑ Stackpole Page 320
4. ↑ Harmon Page 137-138
5. ↑ ^{5.0 5.1} Davis Page 6-9
6. ↑ Records and Files of the Quarterly Courts of Essex County, Massachusetts, 1636-1686 - Cited by many of the texts below including Anderson
7. ↑ Province and Court Records of Maine - Cited by many texts included below including Anderson. The Davis text includes a quite thorough listing.
8. ↑ The source document was torn so that the year could not be read but the relative position shows it must have been 1658 or 1659.

Sources

• Folsom, George. History of Saco and Biddeford: With Notices of Other Early Settlements, and of Proprietary Governments, in Maine, Including the Provinces of New Somersetshire and Lygonia, Alex Putnam, Saco, 1830. Archive.org
• Bradbury, Charles. History of Kennebunk Port, from its first discovery by Bartholomew Gosnold, May 14, 1602, to A. D. 1837, Kennebunk: James K Bemich, 1837. Archive.org
• Stackpole, Everett S. Old Kittery and Her Families, Lewiston Journal Company, Lewiston, ME, 1903. Archive.org
• Harmon, Artemas Canfield. The Harmon Genealogy, Comprising All Branches in New England, Gibson Bros., Inc., Washington, D.C., 1920 Archive.org
• Davis, Walter Goodwin. The Ancestry of Lydia Harmon, 1755-1836, Stanhope Press, Boston, 1924 Archive.org
• Anderson, Robert Charles. The Great Migration Begins: Immigrants to New England, New England Historic Genealogical Society, Boston, 1995.