Thomas Topping
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Thomas Topping (bef. 1609 - 1687)

Captain Thomas Topping aka Toppyn
Born before in Totternhoe, Bedfordshire, Englandmap
Ancestors ancestors
Brother of [half] and
Husband of — married 16 Nov 1628 in Dunstable, Bedfordshire, Englandmap
Husband of — married after 20 Oct 1666 in Milford, New Haven, Connecticut Colonymap [uncertain]
Husband of — married before Jun 1678 in Branford, New Haven, Connecticutmap
Descendants descendants
Died after age 78 in Branford, New Haven, Connecticut Colonymap
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The Puritan Great Migration.
Thomas Topping migrated to New England during the Puritan Great Migration (1621-1640). (See The Directory, by R. C. Anderson, p. 339)
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Biography

Thomas "Toppyn" was baptized in Totternhoe, Bedfordshire, 19 March 1608[/9], the son of Johannis Toppyn.[1][2]

He married Emma Aldridge (1611–c1665) at Dunstable, Bedfordshire, England on 16 November 1628.[3]

They had seven children—i. Thomas Topping (1629–1681); ii. James Topping (1632–<1643); iii. Mary (Topping) Quinney (1634–>1685 [1704?]); iv. Hon. John Topping (1636–1686); v. Martha (Topping) Herrick (1638–1689); vi. Capt. Elnathan Topping (1640–1705); vii. James Topping (again) (1642/3–>1687 [1694?])—the first four or five born in England, the last two or three in Connecticut. Their eldest son, Thomas, was baptized at Totternhoe, Bedfordshire, on 25 October 1629.[4] Among his other children were:

  1. John b 1636 m Deborah ______and had sons Capt. Josiah b 1663.
  2. Capt. Elnathan b 1640 m Mary Ramsdale and had sons Elnathan b 20 August 1664 and Stephen b 24 Sep 1679.

A Wraysbury, Buckinghamshire, court roll entry dated 12 April 1636 indicates that Thomas Topping was one of two overseers of that parish who reported that all was well with the water courses. The family emigrated to Wethersfield, Connecticut, by 1639.

Thomas's first wife, Emma, died in Southampton, Suffolk, Long Island, New York, by 20 October 1666, when he entered into a nuptial agreement with his second wife, Mary (_____ [not Welles]) (Mapham) Baldwin, widow of John Mapham and Timothy Baldwin.*[citation needed]

  • Timothy Baldwin’s first wife, Mary (Welles), died in 1647. His second wife, also named Mary but whose maiden name is unknown, was the widow of John Mapham and went on to marry Thomas Topping as her third husband and his second wife (Barbara Jean Mathews, The Descendants of Governor Thomas Welles of Connecticut and His Wife, Alice Tomes, vol. 1, 2nd ed. [Wethersfield, Conn., 2013], 203–6).

Thomas's second wife, Mary, died 9 June 1668. By June 1678 he married Lydia, widow of John Wilford;[5] she died 3 Nov. 1694.

"Thomas Topping, the first of this name in Southampton, according to family tradition, was a refugee from religious persecution in England."[6]

"From the Southampton Records it is clear that the Thomas Topping mentioned by Savage resided several years in Southampton, then removed to Branford, and there remained till his death.[6]

"Capt. Thomas the first settler gave his son Capt. Thomas his homestead at the south end. The latter dies in 1682, and in 1683 Capt. Thomas of Branford confirms the gift of the same to Thomas, oldest son of Capt. Thomas."[6]

“In this town [Branford] died Thomas Topping, Esq., one of the company to whom King Charles granted his letters patent for the Colony of Connecticut. He deceased December 1687, having been many years a magistrate” (Collections of the Connecticut Historical Society [Hartford, 1895], 3:306).

"TOPPING, THOMAS, Milford 1639, but earlier was of Wethersfield and rep. 1639, join. the ch. of M. with his w. Emma in 1640, had Elnathan, bapt. 2 Aug. of that yr. and James, 12 Feb. 1643. In 1651, he was a capt. and chos. Assist. and in that rank by an. elect. most of the next twelve yrs. kept on acco. evid. of resid. at Southampton, on L. I. On 20 Oct. 1666 a contr. made at Milford for his m. with Mary, wid. of Timothy Baldwin is by her refer. to ten yrs. later, when she was dispos. of her prob. in conform. with said contr. to her childr. He had, bef. June 1678, made Lydia, the wid. of John Wilford, his w. and for the resid. of his days liv. at Branford, where 5 Oct. 1686 he gave by deed to his s. Elnathan and James at Southampton all his lds. at S. to d. Mary Quinny (or some such name) ten cows; to d. Martha Herrick £10 in add. to what she had rec. to be paid by the s. wh. when had the keep. of the cows also. His wid. in Oct. 1688, transact. with those s. and d. Nov. 1694."[7]

Research Notes

See also Page 64 Colonial Families of the USA, 1607-1775 for Topping Colonial Families of the United States of America, Volume VI Baker Family <https://www.ancestry.com/interactive/61175/colonialfamiliesvi-004112_64/12874/>

Sources

  1. "England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975." Database. FamilySearch. http://FamilySearch.org : 3 March 2017. Index based upon data collected by the Genealogical Society of Utah, Salt Lake City.
  2. Long Island Genealogy, accessed 14 Sep 2015.
  3. The Parish Register of Dunstable 1558-1812, transcribed and published 1951 by Bedfordshire County Record Office
  4. "England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975." Database. FamilySearch. http://FamilySearch.org : 3 March 2017. Index based upon data collected by the Genealogical Society of Utah, Salt Lake City.
  5. Long Island Genealogy, accessed 14 Sep 2015.
  6. 6.0 6.1 6.2 Howell, George Rogers. The Early History of Southampton, L I, NY, with Genealogies. Albany: Weed, Parsons and Company, 1887.
  7. Savage, James. A Genealogical Dictionary of the First Settlers of New England Showing Three Generations of Those Who Came Before May, 1692. Vol. I-IV. Boston, MA, USA: 1860-1862.

See also:





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Comments: 5

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Tappin-25 and Topping-121 appear to represent the same person because: Same spouse (pending merge also) and son, similar death info. Clear duplicates, please merge.
posted by Bobbie (Madison) Hall
Yes they are I agree I should have included them in the merge I asked for

Thanks Ann

posted by Ann Browning
The merger with Topping-289 has been approved by everyone. Who's brave enough to press the merge button and sort out the two biographies? I'll synchronise the wording on the English end but it needs someone who understands the US sources to turn the two bios into a nice neat whole. Anyone got half a day to spare? I've made a start and moved everything from 289 to 121. I think the result is that the actual merge is now simple but the bio still needs a bit more work.
posted by David Cooper (-2021)
If his parents really did marry on 5 July 1605 (later - they did. It's been verified at Bedfordshire Archives) then he is unlikely to have been born in 1604. I've amended the birth to before his baptism date, which is likely to have been his birth year given the baptism of Richardus in 1606 (albeit there's no father named)
posted by David Cooper (-2021)
Topping-289 and Topping-121 appear to represent the same person because: Topping-289 has the same birth and death places, and dates within a couple years, as Topping-121. Wives match.
posted by Martha Leinroth