Sutton, Massachusetts One Place Study

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Sutton is a rural town in Massachusetts, United States. In 2020 the population was 9357, spread out over an area of 33.9 square miles.

This profile is part of the Sutton, Massachusetts One Place Study.

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Name

Sutton, Massachusetts:

Sutton, officially the Town of Sutton, is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts. The population was 9,357 in the 2020 United States Census. Located in the Blackstone Valley, the town was designated as a Preserve America community in 2004.

Geography

Continent: North America

Country: United States

State/Province: Massachusetts

County: Worcester

GPS Coordinates: 42.15, -71.763333

Elevation: 706 ft (215 m)

History

The published history of the town (2v): History of the Town of Sutton, Massachusetts This book is a good place to start researching the places and people of Sutton, but it does contain some omissions, suppositions, and inaccuracies.

Sutton has an interesting history. The land was bequeathed to Edward Pratt, a victualler of St Paul, Shadwell, Middlesex, England, and John Blake of Plymouth in New England in the will of "John White, alias Wampers" in 1679.

John Wompas

Original Settlers

Following the settlement of the terms of John Wompas' will, the new proprietors of the town of Sutton were required to furnish it with settlers, to maintain their ownership of the 4000 acres.

By 1717, thirty families had taken up the offer of lots of forty acres each. The heads of these families were recorded in the proprietors records as such:

• William King (1669-bef.1743)
• Oliver Gosse
• Joseph Sibley Jr (1684-1754)
• William Stockwell Jr (abt.1685-abt.1730)
• Benjamin Marsh (abt.1687-1775)
• Thomas Gleson
• Samuel Gowing
• John Waite
• Benjamin Smith
• John Stockwell (1686-1778)
• Jonathan King (abt.1700-bef.1760)
• Samuel Bixby (bef.1689-bef.1741)
• Samuel Barton
• William Stockwell
• Freegrace Marble (1682-1775)
• Thomas Gowing
• Samuel Parker
• Samuel Stearns
• John Bates
• Jonathan Sibley (bef.1690-bef.1731)
• William Rutter
• Timothy Manning
• John Sibley (1687-1741)
• Samuel Daggett (1695-1756)
• Nathaniel Johnson
• William Larned
• Elisha Johnson
• Richard Gibson
• Ebenezer Cutler (1695-1775)
• WIlliam Heywood

Many of these names may still be found today in Sutton family, building and road names.

Note: The linked persons all lived in Sutton and were there at the time of the earliest settlement. However, the names of the settlers on this list may refer to fathers who never actually lived on the land they purchased.

Historical Document transcriptions and indexes

The will of John White, alias Wampers, 1679 This document directly led to the creation of Sutton. John White, a native American man sold or devised large areas of land in New England to both his friends and kinsmen. After several legal challenges, in 1704, the General Court granted Edward Pratt and others a tract of land "situated in the Nipmug Country between the towns of Mendon, Worcester, New Oxford, Sherburne and Marlborough, of eight miles square". This land became Sutton.

Account ledger from 1753- attributed to Edward Putnam (1711-1800) This account ledger is in the possession of Sutton Historical Society. It spans dates from 1753-1788, although not in chronological order, and with many gaps and crossings out. Many local names are mentioned, and the process of transcribing this document is ongoing.

Documents pertaining to the Severy family of Sutton, Massachusetts This page will detail a large number of documents which provide information about the Severy family of Sutton. This includes bills and deeds. Transcription is ongoing.

Population

Notables

• Benjamin Marsh (1711-1784), the head of one of the pioneer families, who settled Sutton in 1716.
• Eunice White Beecher , author, writing under the pen name "A Minister's Wife".
• Rufus Putnam (1738-1824), first Surveyor General of the United States.
• Asa H. Waters Jr. (1769-1841), gunsmith and industrialist. Founder of the Millbury Bank.

Sources

• Sutton,_Massachusetts