no image
Privacy Level: Open (White)

William Presbury (1663 - bef. 1718)

William Presbury aka Presson, Preston
Born in Saco, York, Province of Mainemap [uncertain]
Ancestors ancestors
Son of and [uncertain]
Brother of , and
Husband of — married before 26 May 1685 in Saco, York, Province of Mainemap [uncertain]
Descendants descendants
Father of , , , , , , , , and
Died before before age 55 in Beverly, Essex, Province of Massachusetts Baymap
Problems/Questions Profile managers: GeneJ X private message [send private message] and Bill Smith private message [send private message]
Profile last modified | Created 11 Mar 2011
This page has been accessed 3,239 times.

Contents

Biography

The following information about William Presbury has been contributed. You may wish to edit it for readability. Please Add or edit what you can and encourage others to add more.

Birth

Date: 1663-1666; “about 1664”
Place: perhaps Saco (now Maine)
Sources: Genealogical Dictionary of Maine and New Hampshire; York Deeds; Torrey's New England Marriages; History of Martha's Vineyard
Text: William’s date of birth is inferred from the notice that he was “of age” in 1684, then of Saco. William was a minor at the time his father death; his guardian was Major Pendleton in 1679.* In 1684, William assumed administration of his father’s estate from Francis Hooke.
*In _The History of Martha’s Vineyard_,” Banks suggests guardianship of “the children” was granted to Francis Hooke about the same time Pendleton relinquished to him (Hooke) the administration on John Presbury’s estate.

Death

Date: before 31 March 1718
Place: perhaps Beverly, Massachusetts, United States
Source: Essex Probate, file 22728, William Preston, Beverly (husbandman); Beverly Town Records; : Records of the First Church in Beverly; Essex County Deeds; ?Beverly Vital Records.
Text: Administration of his estate was granted to the widow on 31 March 1718 (Essex Probate, file 22728).

There is a Presson entry in Vital Records of Beverly that may have mistakenly identified death of this William. See the entry, "[Presson] Nehemiah, bet. Nov. and Mar. 16, 1718. CR1." (Record cites "First Parish Unitarian Church," but correlating references in the published records of that church (1905) have yet to be located. Given the date of his probate record, 31 March 1718, this death date range would be more likely between Nov. 1717 and March 16, 1717/18.)

William left minor children; for one or more, a guardianship record was created, see Essex Probate, file 22719, 04 May 1719.

On 19 July 1719, "Priscilla Preston, widow," was christened at Beverly. (Three of their adult children, William, Nathan, and Ruth, were christened there the following January.)

On 7 December 1719, widow Priscilla sold “ye sd Homestead being a part of ye Real Estate of my sd late husband … “ (Essex County Deeds 36: 254-265).

A series of later dated Saco area land transactions leave little doubt the the man who died of Beverly was the same man earlier known at Maine. On 5 August 1730, William's son Stephen Presbury of Newbury, shipwight, sold to Nathan Whitney the "Fifty Acres of Upland .... formerly known & called by the name of Page"; Stephen warranted against the "lawful Claims & Demands of the Heirs of my Grandfather John Presbary Decd." There is no doubt this grantor is the same Stephen Presbury who, together with brother Edward Presbury, three years earlier acquired and sold "one hundred Acres of Land at Kenebunk River ... granted to ... Richard Rundal by the town of Cape Porpus Janry 23, 1681." The property was acquired from "Sarah West & Priscilla Presbery of Beverly ... Widows Children & only heirs of Mr. Richard Rundal late of Capte Porpus."

Marriage of William Presbury and Priscilla Randall

Date: before 26 May 1685
Place: probably Saco (now Maine)
Sources: New England Marriages prior to 1700; Province and Court Records of Maine; Genealogical Dictionary of Maine and New Hampshire; Vital Records of Beverly, Massachusetts; Beverly, Massachusetts, Town Records; Essex County, Massachusetts, Probate Files; Records of the First Church in Beverly; York Deeds; Essex County Deeds.
Text: On 26 May 1685, William Praesbury, Praecilla Presbury were present at court in Saco, by then man and wife (Province and Court Records of Maine).

According to _Genealogical Dictionary of Maine and New Hampshire_ and without further reference, “the war sent the fam[ily] to Beverly.” Some of the children born to the couple are found recorded in the Beverly records (Presson, Prison, Preston, etc.).

William died in the late 1710s, leaving widow Priscilla. She transacted deeds as his widow and administratrix; she was referred to as the widow Prisson, Presson, Preston and/or “Priscilla Presberry” in various later dated records. At the time of her death, she was called, "[Presson,] ----, wid. William."

Priscilla’s maiden name is known by deeds and court testimony (York Deeds Book 12, part 1, folio 177 [1727]; Book 12, part 2, folio 224 [1727]).

Children with Priscilla Randall

Date: ca1685-1710
Place: probably Saco (now Maine), Beverly, Massachusetts, United States
Source: Province and Court Records of Maine; Vital Records of Beverly, Massachusetts; Essex County, Massachusetts, Probate Files; Records of the First Church in Beverly; York Deeds; Essex County Deeds, Genealogical and Personal Memoirs Relating to the Families of Boston and Eastern Massachusetts.
Text: Several sources provide the basis by which some of the children of William Presbury and Priscilla Randall are known. Especially based on the timing of the Saco Court record (1685) and entries about the children born at Beverly (Massachusetts), it is also possible to surmise or know that not all their children have been identified.

In 1685, William and Priscilla, man and wife, were presented at the court of Saco on a charge of fornication. This means that, by then, a child had been born to the couple. Beginning in January 1691/2, eight more children's births were recorded at Beverly. At the time of William's death, the names of one or more of the younger children born Beverly were listed in a guardianship record. About the same time, "the widow Priscilla Prisson" and shortly, three children, "of ye widdow Prisson" were baptized at First Church in Beverly. Still later, widow Priscilla transacted estates and deeds at Saco. The latter records include a references Edward and/or Stephen Presbury, shipwrights of Newbury (Massachusetts). The kinship of one child, David, is learned from a deed by which he conveyed some Manchester, Massachusetts, property to "my brother Benjamin Presson" also of Manchester.

From these various historical records, the list that follows reports the known children of William and Priscilla (Randall) Presbury. The order of birth for the two eldest children is unknown.
  1. David Presson, born about 1688
  2. Edward Presbury, born before 1690
  3. Nehemiah Presson, born Beverly, 15 January 1691/2
  4. Mary Presson, born Beverly, 5 March 1694/5
  5. Stephen Presson, born Beverly, 3 May 1697
  6. Benjamin Presson, born Beverly, 1 January 1699/1700
  7. Randall Presson, born Beverly, 3 April 1702
  8. William Presson, born Beverly, 1 January 1705
  9. Nathan Presson, born Beverly, 18 May 1707
  10. Ruth Presson, born Beverly, 25 March 1710


Other Children

Date: before 26 May 1685
Place: probably Saco (now Maine)
Sources: Province and Court Records of Maine, Genealogical Dictionary of Maine and New Hampshire.
Text: Based on a Saco Court record (1685), we know that William Presbury fathered a child with Sarah Crocker. For a summary of this event, see the Genealogical Dictionary of Maine and New Hampshire, entries for Presbury; Crocker.

Records that might further identify this known child's name and gender have not yet been located.

Sources


  • Charles T. Libby, et al., _Genealogical Dictionary of Maine and New Hampshire_, (Portland, Maine: The Southward Press, 1928), 567-568 for Presbury entries. Note: Only some of the historical documents on which the authors relied for this sketch are included on this list. Many of the other records are still sought, especially (a) guardianship records about "the children" created shortly after the death of John Presbury, (b) recorded notice that William was "of age", and (c) records in which Priscilla is said to have “claimed for self and ch. the whole Page plaintation as Saco, calling her husb. William ‘only s. and heir.’”
  • _York Deeds_, 18 vols (1888-1910), 5 (1889): Pt 1, Fol. 35; digital images, _Hathi Trust_ (accessed 2013), for 3 November 1684, "A true Inventory of the Estate of John Praesbury deceased which left at the house of Pendleton Fletcher." Appraisal by Pendleton Fletcher and Phineas Hull; attested to by William Praesbury 27 March 1685, "If hee find any more hee will giue an Accopt of it." http://hdl.handle.net/2027/wu.89064422397?urlappend=%3Bseq=108
  • Charles Edward Banks, _The History of Martha's Vineyard, Dukes County, Massachusetts_ 3 vols. (1911-1925), 3 (1966 reprint):410-411; digital images, _FamilySearch_ (accessed 2014 via the FamilySearch Catalog), Presbury entries.
  • "Essex County, MA: Probate File Papers, 1638-1840," database and digital images, _AmericanAncestors.org_ (accessed 2013), entry for Randall Preston, file 22719; 4 May 1719, 3 pp. (aka Guardianship). File notes one or more documents missing; by observation, the key document in the file is faint/hard to read. https://www.americanancestors.org/DB515/rd/13790/22719-co1/245911072
  • _Vital Records of Beverly, Massachusetts, to the end of the year 1849_ (1906-1907), 2:533; digital images, _Hathi Trust_ (accessed 2013), for entry, "[Presson,] Nehemiah, bet. Nov. and Mar. 16, 1718,” citing record of “First Parish Unitarian Church,” for which no related entry/entries have been located in the 1905 published account. http://hdl.handle.net/2027/yale.39002005183927?urlappend=%3Bseq=539
  • William P. Upham, _Records of the First Church in Beverly, Massachusetts, 1667-1772_ (1905), 55 [note that the annotations therein by Augustus A. Galloupe have been shown otherwise to be often incorrect]; digital images, _InternetArchive_ (accessed 2013), entry “July 19. 1719” for "The widow Priscilla Prisson came into full communion & was ye baptized.” http://archive.org/stream/recordsoffirstch00beve#page/n115/mode/1up
  • William P. Upham, _Records of the First Church in Beverly, Massachusetts, 1667-1772_ (1905), 154 [note that the annotations therein by Augustus A. Galloupe have been shown otherwise to be often incorrect]; digital images, _InternetArchive_ (accessed 2013), for 1719 entry of "July 19" for "baptized, the widow Priscilla Prisson" (footnote to this entry reads, "Widow of William Preston.") http://archive.org/stream/recordsoffirstch00beve#page/n313/mode/2up
  • William P. Upham, _Records of the First Church in Beverly, Massachusetts, 1667-1772_ (1905), 155 [note that the annotations therein by Augustus A. Galloupe have been shown otherwise to be often incorrect]; digital images, _InternetArchive_ (accessed 2013), for entry of "Jan. 3, 17179/20," sans annotations as "baptized Wm Nathan & Ruth children of ye widdow Prisson." http://archive.org/stream/recordsoffirstch00beve#page/n315/mode/2up
  • "Massachusetts, Land Records, 1620-1986," images, _FamilySearch_ (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.3.1/TH-1942-36333-1936-5?cc=2106411&wc=M9QJ-NZN:1926104704 : accessed 12 Sep 2013), Essex > Deeds 1718-1721 vol 36-37 > image 277-378 of 601 for William Presson est. [Priscilla Preson, admr] to John Cleves, deed (1719) [Essex County Deeds 36: 254-265]. “... I Priscilla Presson adminr to ye Estate of my Late Husband William Presson late of Beverly in ye County of Essex …. Husbandman Deced for …. ye Just Sum of thirty pounds …. paid by John Cleves of ye Town County & Province aforesd Taylor … do sell … all ye Homestead of Land where I now Dwell in sd Beverly Containing about Twenty Acres … Butted & Bounded .. ye sd Homestead being a part of ye Real Estate of my sd late husband …. , seventh day of December Anno Domini 1719.”
  • _York Deeds_, multiple vols., 14 (1906):275-76; digital images, _Hathi Trust_ (accessed 2013), for Presbury to Whitney, deed dated 5 August 1730. William Presbury's name is not mentioned in the deed. Grantor is "Stephen Presbury of Nubarry ... Massachusetts"; conveyance refers to "Fifty Acres of Upland .... formerly known & called by the name of Page." Grantor warrants against the "lawful Claims & Demands of the Heirs of my Grandfather John Presbary Decd." http://hdl.handle.net/2027/wu.89064422561?urlappend=%3Bseq=279
  • _York Deeds_ Book 12, Part 1 (Bethel Maine: E. C. Bowler, 1903), folio 179; digital images, _Internet Archive_ (accessed 12 June 2013); Presburys [Edward and Stephen] to Durrills [Philip and Philip Jr], deed dated 29 September 1727; waiver of dower 27 July 1728 by "Cattren Presbury & Abegill Presbury." http://archive.org/stream/yorkdeeds121main#page/n553/mode/2up
  • "Torrey’s New England Marriages Prior to 1700"; database, _AmericanAncestors.org_ (http://www.americanancestors.org/ : accessed 2013), William Presbury and Priscilla [Randall] entry. Torrey estimates his birth as 1664; there is no date reference for marriage; location reference is Beverly; Torrey cites ""Martha's Vineyard 3:411; GDMNH 568, 576." [Note: Modern genealogists dispel some of the claims made by Banks in his treatment of the Presbury families in the Martha's Vineyard work.]
  • "Torrey’s New England Marriages Prior to 1700"; database, _AmericanAncestors.org_ (http://www.americanancestors.org/ : accessed 2013), William Presson and Priscilla _____ entry. Date reference for marriage as "by 169[5?]/[2?]"; Beverly is location reference; there are no further references for this entry.
  • _Province and Court Records of Maine_, multiple vols., 1: 1636-1668 (1928; reproduced by Maine Hist. Soc. 1991); see entry, "Court of Pleas, 29 May 1683 SACOE; May 26, 1685" for William Praesbury, Praecilla Presbury, and same date for William Praesbury and Saraih Crocker.
  • _Vital Records of Beverly, Massachusetts, to the end of the year 1849_ (1906-1907), 2:533; digital images, _Hathi Trust_ (accessed 2013), for entry, "[Presson,] ----, wid. William," reporting she died 23 Apr 1752, aged 86 yrs; cites "Record of deaths made by Col. Robert Hale, and formerly in possession of James Hill, town clerk." http://hdl.handle.net/2027/yale.39002005183927?urlappend=%3Bseq=539
  • _York Deeds_ Book 12, Part 2 (Bethel Maine: E. C. Bowler, 1904), folio 224; digital images, _Internet Archive_ (accessed 12 Feb 2013); "Priscilla Presburys test" (testimony of Priscilla Presberry of Beverly ad perpetuam Rei Memoriam in Salem, 6 Oct 1727). Note: Provides information about her age in 1727; her approximate age at marriage; father's name and location of her father's home. http://archive.org/stream/yorkdeeds12main#page/n117/mode/2up
  • "Massachusetts, Town Clerk, Vital and Town Records, 1626-2001," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q29L-8H9X : 10 February 2018), William Presson in entry for Nehemiah Presson, 15 Jan 1691; citing Birth, Beverly, Essex, Massachusetts, United States, , town clerk offices, Massachusetts; FHL microfilm 864,851.
  • "Massachusetts, Town Clerk, Vital and Town Records, 1626-2001," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q29L-8HS8 : 10 February 2018), William Presson in entry for Mary Presson, 05 Mar 1694; citing Birth, Beverly, Essex, Massachusetts, United States, , town clerk offices, Massachusetts; FHL microfilm 864,851.
  • "Massachusetts, Town Clerk, Vital and Town Records, 1626-2001," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q29L-PGWR : 25 September 2017), William Preston in entry for Mary Preston, 05 Mar 1695; citing Birth, Beverly, Essex, Massachusetts, United States, , town clerk offices, Massachusetts; FHL microfilm 760,604.
  • "Massachusetts, Town Clerk, Vital and Town Records, 1626-2001," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q29L-PGHW : 25 September 2017), William Preston in entry for Stephen Preston, 03 May 1697; citing Birth, Beverly, Essex, Massachusetts, United States, , town clerk offices, Massachusetts; FHL microfilm 760,604.
  • "Massachusetts, Town Clerk, Vital and Town Records, 1626-2001," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q29L-8HQ6 : 10 February 2018), William Presson in entry for Benjamin Presson, 01 Jan 1699; citing Birth, Beverly, Essex, Massachusetts, United States, , town clerk offices, Massachusetts; FHL microfilm 864,851.
  • "Massachusetts, Town Clerk, Vital and Town Records, 1626-2001," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q29L-PGHB : 25 September 2017), William Preston in entry for Benjamin Preston, 01 Jan 1700; citing Birth, Beverly, Essex, Massachusetts, United States, , town clerk offices, Massachusetts; FHL microfilm 760,604.
  • "Massachusetts, Town Clerk, Vital and Town Records, 1626-2001," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q29L-PGCY : 25 September 2017), William Preston in entry for Randal Preston, 03 Apr 1702; citing Birth, Beverly, Essex, Massachusetts, United States, , town clerk offices, Massachusetts; FHL microfilm 760,604.
  • "Massachusetts, Town Clerk, Vital and Town Records, 1626-2001," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q29L-8CMY : 10 February 2018), William Prison in entry for William Prison, 01 Jan 1704; citing Birth, Beverly, Essex, Massachusetts, United States, , town clerk offices, Massachusetts; FHL microfilm 864,851.
  • "Massachusetts, Town Clerk, Vital and Town Records, 1626-2001," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q29L-PGFM : 25 September 2017), William Preston in entry for Nathan Preston, 18 May 1707; citing Birth, Beverly, Essex, Massachusetts, United States, , town clerk offices, Massachusetts; FHL microfilm 760,604.
  • "Massachusetts, Town Clerk, Vital and Town Records, 1626-2001," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q29L-PGFL : 25 September 2017), William Preston in entry for Ruth Preston, 25 Mar 1710; citing Birth, Beverly, Essex, Massachusetts, United States, , town clerk offices, Massachusetts; FHL microfilm 760,604.
  • "Massachusetts, Town Clerk, Vital and Town Records, 1626-2001," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:FH5X-H2F : 25 September 2017), William Preston in entry for Randal Preston and Susanna Stone, 02 Jul 1723; citing Marriage, Beverly, Essex, Massachusetts, United States, , town clerk offices, Massachusetts; FHL microfilm 760,604.
  • "Massachusetts, Town Clerk, Vital and Town Records, 1626-2001," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:FHBT-JSQ : 25 September 2017), William Preston in entry for Randal Preston, 27 Mar 1744; citing Death, Beverly, Essex, Massachusetts, United States, , town clerk offices, Massachusetts; FHL microfilm 760,604.
  • Essex County, MA: Probate File Papers, 1638-1881.Online database. AmericanAncestors.org. New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2014. (From records supplied by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Archives.); case 22728


Acknowledgements

This person was created through the import of smithwilWTFTM_2011-03-10.ged on 11 March 2011 and liddell3.ged on 30 April 2011.





Is William your ancestor? Please don't go away!
 star icon Login to collaborate or comment, or
 star icon contact private message private message a profile manager, or
 star icon ask our community of genealogists a question.
Sponsored Search by Ancestry.com

DNA Connections
It may be possible to confirm family relationships with William by comparing test results with other carriers of his Y-chromosome or his mother's mitochondrial DNA. However, there are no known yDNA or mtDNA test-takers in his direct paternal or maternal line. It is likely that these autosomal DNA test-takers will share some percentage of DNA with William:

Have you taken a DNA test? If so, login to add it. If not, see our friends at Ancestry DNA.



Comments: 4

Leave a message for others who see this profile.
There are no comments yet.
Login to post a comment.
Smith-4940 Bill Smith Ph.D.
Detailed Biographical information and Sources provided by Profile Manager GeneJ X. Thank you! ;-)
posted by Bill Smith Ph.D.
Smith-4940 Bill Smith Ph.D.
I concur that we "back away from notions of the past." I would like to see only elements here that are supported by the best currently available research, as you suggest. Thank you! Bill
posted by Bill Smith Ph.D.
GeneJ X
Is it time to separate William Presbury as a son of Dorcas Bessey?

Current work doesn't support the link from William Presbury to Dorcas Bessey. Nor does the work support the link from John (d. Saco) to the earlier John of Sandwich.

Is it better to back away from notions of the past? Will this encourage others to look for and learn better information and approaches that might solve this ancestral dilemma?

posted by GeneJ X
GeneJ X
See Charles T. Libby, et. al., _Genealogical Dictionary of Maine and New Hampshire_ (Portland, Maine: The Southward Press, 1928), entry for [Presbury] 3 William who "came of age" in 1684 and was son of John [2] Presbury. William and wife Priscilla (Randall) Presbury appeared before Saco court in May 1685. " The war sent the fam. to Beverly."
posted by GeneJ X

Rejected matches › William Preston (1667-abt.1719)

Featured National Park champion connections: William is 10 degrees from Theodore Roosevelt, 19 degrees from Stephanus Johannes Paulus Kruger, 12 degrees from George Catlin, 13 degrees from Marjory Douglas, 22 degrees from Sueko Embrey, 13 degrees from George Grinnell, 24 degrees from Anton Kröller, 12 degrees from Stephen Mather, 20 degrees from Kara McKean, 14 degrees from John Muir, 15 degrees from Victoria Hanover and 24 degrees from Charles Young on our single family tree. Login to find your connection.

P  >  Presbury  >  William Presbury

Categories: Saco, Maine | Beverly, Massachusetts