Hannah Cutler vs Hannah King - Who’s Who Answered

Date: [unknown] [unknown]
Location: Colonial Massachusetts
Surname/tag: Cutler

Introduction

To paraphrase the closing lines of a late 1950’s TV show, there are eight million stories in the genealogical city, this is one of them.

In 1638, a girl named Hannah C. was born in Watertown, Middlesex, Massachusetts. In 1644, Hannah’s mother passed away. In 1645, Hannah’s father married a widow who had three children. One of those children was a girl named Hannah K.. No record of her birth has been found. Some say she and Hannah C. were three months apart in age. Some say she was born in late 1644, after her father died. Hard to identify someone with no records. Moving on, some say Hannah C. married John C., and Hannah K. married John W.. Again, we have no records. Fast forward. Hannah C.’s father passes away. His will, among others, names John C. but not Hannah C. because she is supposed to have predeceased her father. Unfortunately, he doesn’t say if John C. is the husband of his daughter or his stepdaughter. He does identify his living daughters as “my daughter the wife of” someone, or “my daughter” and their married names. He also states “I have already given to” two women he identifies by apparent married names.

This page is under construction. Please don’t judge it yet.

Anderson’s information provided by Stu Wilson

Robert Anderson’s sketch of James Cutler in The Great Migration 1634-1635 Vol. II, 1999 includes his daughter Hannah on page 270.

“HANNAH, b. Watertown 26 July 1638 [WaVR 1:5] m. by about 1659 John Coller.” Anderson goes on to explain his thought process in detail for arriving at the conclusion that Hannah married John Coller on pgs. 271-272. I post below excerpt of the sketch.

“We know that two of the heirs listed in the second half of James Cutler's 1684 will were the children of his second wife, Mary ( ) King, with her first husband. It is significant that James used two formats in his will, saying "my daughter the wife of John Parmenter," "my daughter Sarah Waight," "my daughter Johana Russell," and "my daughter Jeinima," but then saying "I have already given to Mary Johnson," and 'I have already given to Hannah Winter." In the case of Mary Johnson, we have both a birth record and a marriage record which calls her Mary King. In the case of Hannah Winter, there are no such records, unfortunately, but we still conclude that she was born King and not Cutler. Mary Walton Ferris concluded that Hannah Winter was the daughter of James Cutler and his first wife, Ann, but she neglected to find a wife for Richard Parks [Dawes-Gates 1:200]. She also assumed that the only other unclaimed Cutler daughter, Mary, must have married John Colter, who had appeared first in James's list of children already in receipt of part of their portions, this despite the fact that the only known wife of John Coller was Hannah, who was born about 1638. Hannah Cutler, daughter of James and Ann, was born in 1638 and was their oldest daughter, so it is not surprising that her husband was first in James Cutler's list. This combined with the fact that Richard Parks's only known wife was Mary, born about 1643 (aged 39 in 1682 [MA Arch 30:1211), makes it clear that the wife of John Coller was Hannah Cutler, the wife of Richard Parks was Mary Cutler, and the wife of John Winter was Hannah King, last and unrecorded child of THOMAS KING and his wife Mary. “ ^[1]

We also have “Great Migration Diary” in NEHGS NEXUS 15:202-203 (1998) by Melinde Lutz Sanborn FASG. Here Sanborn lays out much the same reasoning as Anderson but in even more detail. Both writings come to the conclusion based on the evidence at hand that Hannah Cutler, daughter of James Cutler married John Coller NOT John Winter.

Hannah had died by the time her father made his will in 1684 as he named her husband John Coller in the will and not Hannah. The only Hannah listed in James Cutler’s will is Hannah Winter.

Based on the research and evidence presented by these FASG’s I propose that:

1) John Winter be removed as husband of Hannah Cutler 2) John Coller be added as husband of Hannah Cutler 3) Hannah King (profile King-4715) be made wife of John Winter (Winter-461)

“I. ) JAMES CUTLER , of Wat . , m . ( 1st ) , ANNA She was buried Sept. 30 , 1644 , and he m . ( 20 ) , Mar. 9 , 1641-5 , MARY KING , wid . of Thomas King , of Wat . , who d . Dec. 7 , 1644. He m . ( 3d ) , PHEBE PAGE , dr . of John . [ 3. ] About 1648 he moved from Wat . to Camb . Farms ( Lex . ) , near Concord line . His Will , dated Nov. 24 , 1684 , then of Camb . Farms , aged 78 , presented by his sons John and Thomas , and proved Aug. 20 , 1694 , mentions the following chil . , viz .: James, Thomas, John, John Collar, Richard ' Park's wife, John Parmenter's wife, Sarah Waite, Mary Johnson, Hannah Winter, Joanna Russell ( wife of Philip ), Jemima, Samuel, and Phebe. This list includes “ two children of my wife , formerly wife of Thomas King , ” one of whom was Mary Johnson.” ^[2]

“ COLLER.JOHN COLLER , aged 25 , and wife HANNAH , aged 20 , were of Wat . , Ap . , 1657 , and wit . in Court . In 1652 , then aged 19 , he was a servant of Thomas Hammond . He was of Sud . , 1684. [ See Cutler , 4. ]” ^[3]

Sources

1. ↑ Great Migration 1634-1635, C-F. (Online database. AmericanAncestors.org.New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2008.) Originally published as: The Great Migration, Immigrants to New England, 1634-1635, Volume II, C-F,by Robert Charles Anderson, George F. Sanborn, Jr., and Melinde Lutz Sanborn. Boston: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2001. p. 271-272
2. ↑ Bond, Henry, M.D Genealogies of the Families and Descendants of the Early Settlers of Watertown, Massachusetts, Including Waltham and Weston (Boston: Little, Brown & Company 1855) (Free e-book) p. 189-190
3. ↑ Bond, Henry, M.D Genealogies of the Families and Descendants of the Early Settlers of Watertown, Massachusetts, Including Waltham and Weston (Boston: Little, Brown & Company 1855) (Free e-book) p. 163