Benjamin Weeks

Other Events and Attributes:

• Death: Abt 1787, North Carolina, USA
• Probate: 1787, Onslow, North Carolina, USA

Notes:

Theophilus Weeks
Son of Benjamin Weeks.
Theophilus Weeks Sr. was born in Falmouth, Barnstable Co. MA. Bay Colony in 1708. He removed to North Carolina with his family about 1730 and settled in Carteret County and then moved to Onslow Co. by 1735. Theophilus married Mrs. Grace Green the widow of Jonathan Green. Grace the widow was deceased by August 1792 as evidence by minutes of the August 1792 Court in Carteret Co. which concerned a lawsuit against the estate of Grace Weeks.

Theophilus laid out and established the Town of Swanboro, North Carolina., in 1770. He surveyed forty-eight lots which are still part of the town.

Theophilus was inspector for the port, which was called Weeks Landing, Week's Whard, The Whard, Weeks Pint, Bogue, New Town and Swansboro. His house was just up from the wharf so he could see the ships as they came in.

Grace had one son by Jonathan Green and four sons for Theophilus Weeks. If they had daughters they are unknown.

1. Jonathan Green Jr. born before 1735 and died 7 February, 1777
2. Benjamin Weeks
3. Silas Weeks, died 22 May, 1778 Rev. Soldier
4. Silvanneus Weeks, Rev. Soldier as swore in open Court by Edward Marey on July 10, 1792.
5. Archelus Weeks married Abigail Edwards, widow of Thomas Edwards.

A Sketch of the Life of Theophilus Weeks
Founder of the Town of Swansboro

Theophilus Weeks, son of Benjamin and Mary Chase Weeks, was born at Falmouth, Massachusetts, in 1708. Sometime in 1730 Benjamin Weeks moved his family from Falmouth to Carteret County, North Carolina, settling along Hadnot's Creek, a tributary of the White Oak River. Apparently about the same time, another Falmouth family-that of Jonathan Green, Sr.-moved to the White Oak River area and settled on the land where the town of Swansboro eventually began. Very little is known about Jonathan Green, Sr., except that he moved to his new home along with his wife Grace and his older brother, Isaac Green. Jonathan and Grace Green had a son named Jonathan, Jr., but it is not presently known whether Jonathan, Jr., was born in Massachusetts or in North Carolina. In 1730, the two brothers, Isaac and Jonathan Green, jointly bought their new plantation on the White Oak.

Meanwhile, Theophilus Weeks appears to have lived in his father's household until 1735. By that year, Jonathan Green, Sr., had died of some unknown cause at the early age of approximately 35 years old; and Theophilus Weeks had married the widow, Grace Green. Weeks moved to the Onslow County side of the river upon marrying the Widow Green, and they made their home in the house that had earlier been the home of Jonathan Green, Sr. In due time Weeks bought the half interest of Isaac Green, who thereafter returned to Massachusetts. Thus, by purchase from Isaac Green and by intermarriage with Jonathan Green's widow, Theophilus Weeks came into full possession and control of the plantation on the Onslow County side of the mouth of the White Oak River.

Plaque in Swansboro Public Park Honoring Theophilus
In addition to his stepson, Jonathan Green, Jr., Theophilus Weeks's family increased by four sons born to him and his wife Grace. Their four sons were Benjamin Weeks, Silas Weeks, Silvanus Weeks, and Archelaus Weeks, whose name sometimes appears incorrectly as Archibald Weeks. If Jonathan Green, Jr., should ever prove to have been born in Massachusetts before his parents moved to North Carolina, then Theophilus and Grace's son, Benjamin Weeks , would be the first child of European descent ever born on the site of what became the town of Swansboro. Not much is known about the occupation of Theophilus Weeks prior to 1751. In January of 1741 (New Style), Weeks recorded his stock mark, which indicated agricultural interests. In 1747 Weeks mortgaged to Col. John Starkey for slightly over 200 pounds the land he had bought of Isaac Green. There is no indication of the use Weeks made of the borrowed money, but he evidently paid it off by the end of 1748. In 1751 Weeks petitioned the Onslow Court for permission to operate an ordinary (18th century term for tavern or inn)and was licensed to "keep an ordinary at his now dwelling place," which suggests that port activity was thriving at the mouth of the White Oak and that Weeks' plantation was a favorite spot for the seafarers to visit.

PLAQUE COMMEMORATING THEOPHILUS WEEKS - FOUNDER OF SWANSBORO
Three years later in 1754, the Onslow Regiment of Militia was organized in response to the French and Indian War. The regiment was divided into four companies, and Theophilus Weeks was commissioned a sergeant in Capt. Stephen Lee's Company of the Onslow Regiment of Militia. His service as one of the original officers in the regiment indicates a more-than-usual capacity for leadership and public responsibility.
In 1757 Theophilus Weeks was appointed the first inspector of exports for Bogue Inlet. Though the record for some years is incomplete, there is every indication that Weeks held the office of inspector continuously from 1757 until his death in 1772, It is significant that there is no record of any complaint ever having been lodged against him with respect to the administration of his official duties. Nor was he ever involved in any lawsuit or uncomplimentary situation so far as the record reveals. From all indications, Theophilus Weeks was a prime example of the unassuming, hardworking, solid citizen upon whom our great democracy was built.
No record has come to light which reflects the religious affiliation of Theophilus Weeks. However, he is known to have had an eminent Puritan minister in his ancestry, and the fact that other members of the Weeks family in the Hadnot's Creek area were deeply involved in the early Baptist movement suggests the strong possibility that Theophilus was also numbered among them.

While there are additional references to his keeping an ordinary and serving as inspector, the most significant accomplishment of Weeks's life came just about a year before his death. It is not known exactly when Theophilus Weeks decided to start a town on his plantation called "The Wharf." He may have toyed with the idea for years, but it seems certain that he had finalized the plan of a town by sometime early in 1771 or possibly even in 1770. The earliest Swansboro lot for which there is a deed from Theophilus Weeks on record is lot number 6, which Theophilus and Grace Weeks sold to Edward Starkey on May 11, 1771. Strangely enough, that deed refers to an adjoining lot as belonging to a Mr. Lee, though no deed from Weeks to Lee is recorded. The deed from Weeks to Starkey, however, does prove that as early as May of 1771 a plan of the town existed and that the lots in the town had already been assigned their numbers. That the establishment of a town on his property was the idea of Theophilus Weeks is further supported by the deed to Mrs. Mary Pitts for lot number 11. Mrs. Pitts received the deed for what was called "lot number 11 in the plan of a town laid out by Theophilus Weeks.” It is, therefore, clear that the town that became Swansboro was the idea of Theophilus Weeks, who thereby earned the title of "Founder of the Town of Swansboro."

As laid out by Weeks, the new town contained a total of 48 lots and 6 streets. The lots were arranged in three tiers with 16 lots to the tier. Of the 6 streets, 3 streets ran basically north to south and 3 ran basically east to west. Those streets today are known as, Front, Water, Elm, Moore, Main, and Church streets, though 4 of the 6 streets have been greatly extended as the town has grown. All of the original lots measured 60 feet in width and 200 feet in length, except that those lots on the north side of Front Street were intended to extend across the street to the rivershore. Seven of the 48 lots were called "water lots" because in varying amounts a part of each of those 7 water lots lay beneath the water. The 7 water lots were known in the plan of the town as lots number 10 through 16. All of the streets in the town were laid out to be 30 feet wide, except for Front and Broad streets, which were 40 feet wide. The Broad Street shown on the early maps of Swansboro should not be confused with the present-day Broad Street. What Theophilus Weeks called Broad Street is today known as Main Street and was the end of the old county road which ran from Onslow Courthouse (as Jacksonville was formerly called) to Weeks's wharf where he inspected exports leaving the White Oak River area.

The sale of lots in the new town continued slowly, and only a few of the original 48 lots had been sold when Theophilus Weeks died. From the deed records, it is known that the Weeks home stood on the west side of Broad Street (now Main Street) somewhere between Front and Water streets. In the plat of the town, the lot on which Weeks's home sat received the number 7. Because Weeks had a wharf nearby where vessels tied up to have their cargoes inspected, one of the earliest names for the town was Weeks's Wharf. Some called the town Weeks's Point, and still others called it "New Town." In one petition, the town was called "New Town-upon-Bogue." During the Revolutionary War years, the most common name for the town was Bogue. In 1783, when the town was established by law, the General Assembly put an end to the confusion over names by bypassing all the earlier names and officially naming the town Swannsborough, which has since been shortened to Swansboro.

The precise date and cause of Theophilus Weeks's death is unknown, though it appears to have occurred in early January, 1772. On January 1, 1772, Theophilus and Grace Weeks signed a deed to Archibald Gillespie for half an acre of land. That was the last deed Theophilus ever signed. When the Onslow Court met just a few days later, one of the actions taken by the court was to appoint Archibald Gillespie inspector for Bogue Inlet "in the room of Theophilus Weeks, deceased."

While Theophilus Weeks lived and died a subject of the king of England, he was the father of patriots. Of his four sons, two - Silas and Silvanus - died as soldiers in the American Revolution. In his final years, Theophilus Weeks founded a new town and left behind him sons who would help to found a new nation. It is appropriate that the bill legally erecting the town which Weeks had founded was passed by the General Assembly in the same year that Great Britain officially recognized American independence. Tucker R. Littleton

[Note: This biography of Theophilus Weeks was extracted from a guide that was sold to tourists visiting Swansboro. The old buildings of downtown Swansboro have been converted to gift shops, boutiques, restaurants and other tourist-oriented establishments in order to attract the trade of visitors to the North Carolina outerbanks. The author of this guide, Tucker R. Littleton, was probably himself a descendant of Benjamin Weeks.]

Theophilus married Grace Green on 7 Oct 1735 in Swansboro, Onslow, North Carolina, USA. Grace was born in 1708 in Falmouth, Barnstable, Massachusetts, USA; died after 1775 in Onslow, North Carolina, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

[Robison.FTW]

[jer261.ged]

Widow of Jonathan.

Other Events and Attributes:

• Name: Bingman Weeks
• Residence: North Carolina, USA

Notes:

Benjamin Weeks
Son of William Weeks Jr.
Benjamin Weeks was born 4 April, 1685 in Falmouth, MA. He died 1744 in North Carolina. His will was probated in Carteret Co. North Carolina in 1745.

Benjamin married Mary Chase 14 January, 1704 in MA. She is the daughter of Isaac Chase and wife Mary Tilton Chase. According to Mary's will she died 11 August, 1788.

While Benjamin lived in MA. he owned a ferry that was given to him by his father-in-law, Isaac Chase as stated in the History of Martha's Vineyard, volume 1.

Benjamin moved southward and into Carteret Co. North Carolina about 1730. He lived in the area of White Oak River and died there in 1744. He is buried in the Weeks family Cemetery in the area.

Benjamin and Mary were the parents of ten (10) children:

1. Benjamin Weeks, Jr
2. Theophilus Weeks, born 1708
3. Lydia Weeks married Thomas Whitton 1 Sept. 1733
4. Archelaus Weeks
5. Mary Weeks married Weston Williams
6. Christian Weeks married Mathew Rowley
7. Thankful Weeks married Thomas Hicks
8. Isaac Weeks married Sarah ?
9. Jabez Weeks Mary Rhodes
10. Elizabeth Weeks

Ref. History of Martha's Vineyard, Volume I,II,III and Benjamin's Will probated 1745 book 6 page 62.

WEEKS/CHASE FAMILY REGISTRY
A LISTING OF THE DESCENDANTS OF BENJAMIN AND MARY CHASE WEEKS OF FALMOUTH, MA. AND CARTERET COUNTY, N.C.

TABLE OF LINKS
BENJAMIN WEEKS A Biography of Our Patriarch
THEOPHILUS & SWANSBORO The Founding of Swansboro, North Carolina
HATCH OR Robinson Who was Benjamin's Mother?
JONATHAN HATCH The Hatch Connection
CHASE HERITAGE The Ancestry of Mary Chase Weeks
THE GRAVES OF MARY & LT. CHASE A Quaker Life
THE PHILBRICK LINE More Ancestors
ALIAS FYLBRIGG A Philbrick Link
INDEX & SURNAMES 941 Surnames - 4400+ Individuals in Index
CONTRIBUTORS E-mail Our Contributors
WORLD WYKES WEB Weeks=Wykes?
ROWLEY FAMILY Sarah's Folks
GUEST BOOK Sign/Read Our Guest Book

VISIT WEEKS COUNTRY
PLYMOUTH BARNSTABLE FALMOUTH
CARTERET COUNTY ONSLOW COUNTY SWANSBORO

BENJAMIN WEEKS
HIS LIFE, HIS ANCESTORS & HIS DESCENDANTS
Benjamin Weeks was born on 4 April 1685 in Falmouth, Massachusetts. He married Mary Chase at Martha's Vineyard on 14 January 1704. Mary was born in Tisbury, Ma., on 17 January 1687. The ancestry of Benjamin and Mary is still open to question though it is certain that they count among their forebears the early Pilgrim and Puritan settlers of Massachusetts Bay Colony. As more settlers flocked to the Bay area good arable land grew scarcer, forcing the children and grandchildren of the original colonists to seek elsewhere for the means with which to support their families. The newly-established Carolinas answered this need with the promise of plentiful land and a gentler climate to those of an ambitious and pioneering spirit. Benjamin and Mary were among such a group of kinsmen and neighbors from the Falmouth region who migrated together to the White Oak River area of eastern North Carolina. Court records first indicate the presence of Benjamin and Mary in the area in 1741 though it is thought they had arrived as early as 1730. The Weeks family obtained land in Carteret County on Hadnots Creek at its confluence with White Oak River and set up housekeeping. Their grown children and other relatives and former Falmouth neighbors were soon established on lands of their own on both sides of the river. Benjamin died in 1744 and left the following will. All the children named in the will were born in Falmouth.
BENJAMIN WEEKS' WILL
In the Name of God Amen, ys. Ninth Day of November in the Year of our Lord, One thousand, seven hundred & Forty Four. I, Benjamin Weeks, of Cartwright County, in North Carolina, being of sick and weak Body, but of Perfect Mind & Memory, Thanks be given unto almighty God for it, & Knowing it is appointed for all Men Once to Die, do make & ordain this to be my last Will & Testament, that is to say; First of all I give my Sole into the Hands of God that gave it; & for my body, I recommend to the Earth to be buried in a Christian like manner at the Discretion of my Executors, Nothing Doubting but at the General Resurrection I shal receive the same again by the mighty Power of God that gave it; And as for Touching such Worldly Estate wherewith if has pleased God to bless me with, I give & Dispose of the same in the Manner & form following.

Item, I give and bequeath unto my two sons, Isaac Weeks & Jabas Weeks, the Tract of Land that I now dwell on with the March thereunto belonging, to be Equally divided between them and their Heirs & Assigns for Ever. That is to say, my son Jabas to have that Part of the Land that the Plantation & Houses is on, and Isaac to have the other Part with half the Marsh.

Item, I give to my Son, Theoflis Weaks, One Shilling, Sterling.

Item, I give to my Son, Archelas, One Shilling, Sterling.

Item, I give to my Son, Bingman, One Shilling, Sterling.

Item, I give to my Daughter, Lidde Witton, One Shilling, Sterling.

Item, I give to my Dafter, Mary Williams, One Shilling, Sterling.

Item, I give to my Dafter, Christian Weake, One Shilling, Sterling.

Item, I give to my Dafter, Thankful Hicks, One Shilling, Sterling.

Item, I give to my Dafter, Elizabeth Weake, One Shilling, Sterling.

Item, my Will & Desire is for my Wife to have the Plantation in her Lifetime.

Item, my Will and Desire is that my two Sons, Isaac & Jabas, do Each of them pay unto my Grand Son Edward Weaks, the Sum of Ten Pounds, current money of Carolina, & upon Failure thereof to be Dispossessed of the Land before given.

Item, I give unto my well beloved wife, Mary Weake, Two Beds & Furniture, Two Cows & Horses, and all other Household Goods & all the Remaining Part of my Estate that is not yet given During her Widowhood, She Paying all my Lawful Debts.

I also Depute and apoint my sd. Wife to be my whole & sole Executor of this my last Will and Testament, Ratifying and alowing this & no other to be my last Will & Testament, Disanulling all other Wills formarly by me made.

In Testimony hereunto I have Set my Hand & Seal the year and date written above.

His Mark

Signed: BENJAMIN (B) WEEKS

SWANSBORO, N.C. BOGUE INLET TO THE LEFT
Among the Falmouth neighbors who participated in the move to North Carolina were Jonathan and Grace Green who established a plantation on the Onslow County side of the White Oak River not far from Bogue Inlet. Jonathan Green died a premature death and Benjamin Weeks' son, Theophilus, then married Grace, gaining in the bargain ownership of the riverside plantation. His proximity to Bogue Inlet and, doubtless, his demonstrated ability and honesty, earned Theophilus the appointment as Customs Inspector, a responsibility that entailed inspecting the cargoes of ships entering and leaving the inlet. To perform these duties, Theophilus constructed a wharf at his plantation and later a tavern nearby to slake the thirst of the transient seamen. The bustle of activity surrounding the wharf inspired Theophilus to subdivide his plantation into town lots which he sold to those of his neighbors who preferred the urban life. First called Weeks Wharf, the community was eventually renamed Swansboro. A plaque in Swansboro park honors Theophilus for his roll in founding the town. In time Weeks descendants would own most of the land bordering the White Oak River.

The end of the French and Indian Wars in 1763 would have a profound effect on the lives and fortunes of the Weeks family. At the ensuing peace conference France ceded Canada and Florida to the victorious English who immediately took steps to populate and control the new territories. The Crown offered generous land grants to veterans of the recent war and to eastern seaboard residents who were willing to homestead in British West Florida as the recent acquisition was called. It comprised parts of Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana. On the White Oak River history repeated itself as Weeks family members and neighbors responded to the call by trekking off to East Florida and British West Florida to seek their fortunes, no doubt spurred on by the same population pressures that had influenced their Falmouth forebears. Those so far identified as homesteading in British West Florida were Christian Weeks and her husband Abel Goffigon, Theophilus Weeks (thought to be the son of Silas and Zillar Weeks) and his wife Ann Osteen and John Hewitt, a cousin of Christian. No doubt there were others. Theophilus would later move to East Florida. As a result of these migrations both Florida and Louisiana possess well-populated branches of the Weeks family. After the Revolutionary War the migration of Weeks descendants followed the pattern established by other southern Americans as they spread westward across the gulf states into Texas and beyond so that today descendants of Benjamin and Mary Chase Weeks reside from coast to coast.

THE REGISTRY
This registry is the product of the independent research efforts of a group of Weeks descendants who have agreed to pool and share their data. It contains more than 3,500 names in 1,100 family groups, the majority of whom are lineal descendants of Benjamin and Mary Chase Weeks and their children, Theophilus, Lydia Weeks Witton, Thankful Weeks Hicks, Isaac, Elizabeth, Jabez, Christian Weeks Goffigon, Mary Weeks Williams and Benjamin. We are providing this data base for the benefit of other Weeks researchers in the hope that those who avail themselves of the information will join us in expanding the Registry by contributing additional unrecorded branches of the family. We will happily supply a GEDCOM of any portion of this data base in exchange for a GEDCOM that expands the Registry. Contributors will also be listed on this site as contact persons if they wish. At the present time no sources are provided to support the accuracy of the data. Researchers are urged to consult with the listed contact persons or to independently confirm the authenticity of the information themselves. You will no doubt find some errors in the data base; please be gentle in calling them to our attention. We hope in time to add a greater degree of accuracy and uniformity to the data base as well as some other interesting features. In the meantime, please bear with us. And Good Luck! (Please note: Fnu = First Name Unknown)
INDEX
SURNAMES

CONTACT INFORMATION
NAME ADDRESS RESEARCH INTEREST
Judy Anderson Andersonjb@aol.com Thankful Weeks Hicks
Jim McLoughlin mclou@hal-pc.org Christian Weeks Goffigon
Eric Harvester flconfed@GTE.net Theophilus Weeks
Judy Roberts J2ROBERTS@aol.com Ada Weeks Osteen
Keith Rabb, Jr. Krabb@Prodigy.com Ada Weeks Osteen
Ann H. McWhirter annie_b@netwrench.com Jabez Weeks
Doug Hanke DHanke@prodigy.net Phoebe Weeks Osteen
Connie Owens ceo@flash.net Tamar Weeks Sanders
John Palmer Palmerjo@SONOMA.EDU Henry Lee Mangum
Alice Bruce Bruce1013@aol.com Rhodes Weeks

Thank you for dropping in. We would really appreciate your sharing your Weeks data with us. Please send us a GEDCOM, post an inquiry or just let us know what you think of our page.

This Website was created on 2-26-97. All rights reserved.
Jim Mc Loughlin last tinkered with this page on 4-21-01. E-mail to: mclou@hal-pc.org

BENJAMIN WEEKS

Benjamin Weeks was born 4 April of 1685, Falmouth, Barnstable County, Massachusetts.(68) The marriage date of he and Mary Chase, daughter of Isaac Chase and Mary Tilton, is somewhat in question. In the vital records of Tisbury, Massachusetts, under marriages, it lists Mary Chase and "Benjiman Weck" of Falmouth, 14 Jan. 1704 with as asterisk. The asterisk indicated that an intention had not been recorded. I assume that to mean that they announced their desire to marry at that time, but did not state a given time for that marriage to take place.(69) Going to the original vital records of Barnstable County, it lists
"Beniamin Wekes and Mary Chaces Intentions of marring published May the 27th 1704."(70) The actual marriage could have occurred after that date, so it would seem we can only say they may have married in 1704, after May 27th.(71) Mary was born 17 January 1687/88 in Tisbury, Middlesex, Massachusetts.(72)

Mary's father, Isaac, was supposedly a Quaker, although not ultra orthodox. It was Quaker custom to appear at two monthly meetings, in succession, when contemplating marriage. The publishing of their intentions had a span of several months between, however, so maybe one or the other got cold feet, then changed their mind.

The first reference I find concerning Benjamin after their marriage is when he purchased Weepecket, a small four-acre island on the north side of Naushon. It had been originally acquired by Thomas Mayhew, who sold it to Matthew Mayhew in 1682. Mathew then sold it to Benjamin Weeks, of Falmouth, in 1714.(73)

Benjamin's father-in-law, Isaac Chase, kept a tavern at Holmes/Home's Hole for many years. In concert with that, he operated a ferry to transport persons and their mounts from Martha's Vineyard to Falmouth.(74) In 1716, Benjamin Weeks is referred to as the ferryman, so it might be that Isaac turned the business over to him.(75)

By 1741 Benjamin and Mary Chase Weeks were in Carteret County, North Carolina. Where they were between 1716 and 1722 when their son, Isaac, was christened in Plymouth, and after 1729 when their son Jabez/Jabish was christened in Plymouth, I have not been able to discover at this point.

Benjamin and Mary Weeks first appear in the Carteret County records in 1741, when Benjamin made oath at the March term of Court for that year that he had in his family six white persons.(76) I assume that was in addition to himself. He and Mary were also to give evidence in a court case.(77) However, in 1732 there is mention of a Benjamin Weeks, Sr., in Court records and in 1730 there is an Onslow County land transaction involving Jonathan Weeks who is described as a "yeoman from Massachusetts Bay," indicating with a high degree of probability that Weeks family members were in North Carolina at least by this earlier date.

By March of 1744/45 we find that Mary is a widow when she requests a summons for Thomas Person to appear at the next court so that he can prove her husband's will. At that time she also requested that the boy, John Jones, be allowed to live with her family and be taught to read.(78) At the June term of Court in 1745, Mary, as widow of Benjamin Weeks, deceased, produced the last will and testament of the said Benjamin.(79) A transcribed copy of the original will was sent to me by Mr. James McLoughlin, who is a descendant of Christian Weeks. It can also be found in J. Bryant Grimes North Carolina Wills and Inventories, pg. 441-442.

WILL OF BINGMAN WEEKS(80)

In the Name of God Amen, ys. Ninth Day of November in the Year of our Lord, one thousand, Seven hundred & Forty Four.
I, Bingham Weeks, of Cartwright County, in North Carolina, being of sick and weak Body, but of Perfect Mind & Memory, Thanks be given unto almighty God for it, & Knowing it is appointed for all Men Once to Die, Do make & Ordain this to be my last Will & Testament, that is to say; First of all I give my Sold [sic] into the Hands of God that gave it; & for my Body, I recommend to the Earth to be buried in a Christian like manner at the Discretion of my Executors, Nothing Doubting but at the General Resurrection I shal receive the same again by the mighty Power of God that gave it; And as for Touching such Worldly Estate wherewith it has pleased God to bless me with, I give & Dispose of the same in the Manner & form following:

Item: I give and bequeath unto my two sons, Isaac Weeks & Jabas Weeks, the Tract of Land that I now dwell on with the Marsh thereunto belonging, to be Equally divided between them and their Heirs & Assigns for Ever. That is to say, my Son Jabas to have that Part of the Land that the Plantation & Houses is on, and Isaac to have the other Part with half the Marsh.

Item: I give to my Son, Theoflis Weaks, one Shilling, Sterling.

Item: I give to my Son, Archelas, One Shilling, Sterling.

Item: I give to my Son, Bingman, One Shilling, Sterling.

Item: I give to my Daughter, Lidde Witton, One Shilling, Sterling.

Item: I give to my Dafter, Mary Williams, One Shilling, Sterling.

Item: I give unto my Dafter, Christian Weake, One Shilling, Sterling.

Item: I give to my Dafter, Thankful Hicks, One Shilling, Sterling.

Item: my Will & Desire is for my Wife to have the Plantation in her Lifetime.

Item: I give to my Dafter, Elizabeth Weake, One Shilling.

Item: my Will and Desire is that my two Sons, Isaac & Jabas, do Each of them pay unto my Grand Son, Edward Weaks, the Sum of Ten Pounds, current money of Carolina, & upon Failure thereof to be Dispossessed of the Land before given.

Item: I give unto my well beloved wife, Mary Weake, Two Beds & Furniture, Two Cows & Horses, and all other Household Goods & all the Remaining Part of my Estate that is not yet given, During her Widowhood, She paying all my Lawful Debts. I also Depute and apoint my sd. Wife to be my whole & sole Executor of this my last Will & Testament, Ratifying and alowing this & no other to be my last Will & Testament, Disanulling all other Will formarly by me made.

In Testimony hereunto I have Set my Hand & Seal the year and date above written.

His Mark

Signed: Bingham (B) Weaks

Signed, Sealed in the Presence of us,

Jehosaphat Holland
Francis Burns
his
Thomas T. Person
mark
Carteret County, North Carolina. June Court, 1745.

These may certify that Thomas Person, one of the Evidences to the Within Will, in open Court made Oath that he Saw Benjamin Weeks, Decd., Sign & Seal the same: and that he also saw Jehosaphat Holland & Francis Burns, Evidence the same, And Mary Weekes, Widow, hath taken the Oath of an Executrix, and by the Court admitted to Record. Dated at the Court House the 6th Day of June, Anno Domini, 1745.

Teee. Geor. Read, Clk. Cur.

Recorded in Will Book 6, pg. 62.

Mary is still living in 1749, as she and her son, Isaac, are to give evidence for a suit against William Gray, who was accused of taking a hog.(81)

At the present time, a death date for Mary is not known.(82)

With the exception of Isaac, Elizabeth and Jabez, the dates for the children are estimates, and they could have been born before or after the years indicated. Benjamin and Mary Chase Weeks had the following children, most of whom were probably born in Tisbury or Falmouth, Massachusetts:

1) Mary Weeks, born abt. 1710, Massachusetts. Md. Weston Williams.(83)

2) Lida Weeks, born abt. 1712. Md. a Witton.(84)

3) Archelas Weeks, born abt. 1714.

4) Theophilus Weeks, born abt. 1716. D. 1772, Swansboro, North Carolina. Married Grace Green, a widow. She was born in Falmouth, Massachusetts, died in Onslow County, North Carolina.(85)

5) Christian Weeks, born abt. 1734. D. 21 Jan 1806, St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana. Md. Abel Goffigon. He was born 1747 in Northampton Co., Virginia; died before 1794 in St. Tammany Parish.(86)

6) Thankful Weeks, born abt. 1720, Massachusetts. Died abt. 1785, Craven County, North Carolina.(87) Md. Thomas Hicks, possibly a son of Thomas and Abigail Hicks of Swansea, Massachusetts.

7) Isaac Weeks, christened 21 July 1722, Plymouth, Massachusetts.(88) Md. Mary ? or Sarah. Living in Carteret County, North Carolina by 1741. Gave evidence in a suit of the King against Thomas Hicks in 1749.(89) Thomas, a planter, had acknowledged himself indebted to the King for the sum of ten pounds during the March term of court 1747.(90)

8) Elizabeth Weeks, christened 14 Feb. 1724/25, Plymouth, Massachusetts.(91)

9) Benjamin Weeks, born abt. 1726, Plymouth, Massachusetts.

10) Jabish [Jabez] Weeks, christened 4 Aug. 1729, Plymouth, Mass.(92) Md. Mary Rhodes abt. 1745. He is mentioned in the June term of court, 1751.(93)

SOURCES:

68 Vital Records of Falmouth Massachusetts, film # 0904590, pg. 155.

69 Vital Records of Tisbury, Massachusetts, New England Genealogical Society: Boston, Mass., 1910, pg. 119.

70 Film #0904590 - Barnstable County Registry Bldg., Falmouth Mass, Vital Record, pg. 155.

71 Vital Records of Tisbury, Massachusetts, New England Genealogical Society: Boston, Mass., 1910, pg. 26 -- under marriages it lists Mary & Benjiman Weck of Falmouth, 14 Jan. 1704, intention not recorded. They are then listed in the Vital Records of Falmouth, Massachusetts, microfilm of written recording, pg. 155, "Beniamin Wekes and Mary Chaces – intentions of marring published May the 27th 1704." I assume the first date recorded in Tisbury must have been equivalent of getting a license, and the second date, found in the Falmouth records, possibly the actual marriage date.

72 Vital Records of Tisbury, MA, pgs. 25 & 26 for Chase Family.

73 History of Martha's Vineyard, Vol. 2, "Annals of Gosnold", pg. 20.

74 History of Martha's Vineyard, Vol. I, pg. 452 -- the following action was taken in 1703: "Leift Isaac Chase is appoynted by this Courte to keepe a publike fery for the transporting of man and beast from Marthas Vineyard to Sickanesset alias falmouth and the fees allowed for said ferriage viz: -- six shillings for a man and a hors or three shillings for each person or horse forew'd to s'd Suckanesset: but if he doth cary but one hors over sd ferriage that he shall have the sume of five shillings."

75 History of Martha's Vineyard, Vol. I, pg. 452 -- Barnstable Deed, III, 148.

76 Sanders, Rebecca W. Early Carteret Court Minutes 1747-1764. Private Published, Beaufort, North Carolina, 2 Vols., Vol. 1, pg. 70.

77 Rebecca W. Sanders, Early Carteret Court Minutes 1723-1747. Privately Published: Beaufort, North Carolina 1991, pg. 71: By consent of John Starkey and Enock Ward, John Gillet, John Dugley, John
Roberts, Benjamin Weeks and Mary Weeks were to give evidences in the case of Williamson and Ward. They were to be sworn and affidavits taken.

78 Sanders, pg. 101.

79 Sanders, pg. 103.

80 Undoubtedly the given name of "Bingman" and the county of "Cartwright" were an error in transcription of the original will. Some of the old writing was very difficult to decipher.
Also, there is no Cartwright County in North Carolina.

81 Sanders, Vol. 2 - 1747-1764, pg. 22.

82 NOTE: I am still searching the court records for Carteret and may find something relating to her death.

83 P. W. Fisher, One Dozen Pre-Revolutionary Ward Families of Eastern North Carolina and some of Their Descendants, New Bern Historical Soc. Foundation, Inc.: New Bern, North Carolina, pg. 350.

84 Oliver B. Brown, Vital Records of Falmouth Massachusetts to the Year 1850. Society of Mayflower Descendants, 1976, pg. 216 - Marriages: There is a marriage between a Lydia Weeks and a Thomas Whitten of Plymtown, 1 June 1736. Since I don't pick up Benjamin Weeks until after that date in North Carolina, this may be the marriage of his daughter "Lida" to a "Witton."

85 Records of James McLoughlin, a descendant. Copies in my possession.

86 James McLoughlin, a descendant, via correspondence 1997, and via the Weeks Family Registry web page on the internet.

87 Will of Thankful Hicks. Found in Duplin County, North Carolina. See Hicks Family History.

88 Sherman, Ruth Wilder. Vital Records of Plymouth, Massachusetts to the Year 1850. Picton Press: Camden, Maine, 1993, pg. 70.

89 Sanders, Vol. 1, pg. 22.

90 Sanders, Vol. 1, pg. 3.

91 Sherman, Ruth Wilder. Vital Records of Plymouth, Massachusetts to the Year 1850. Picton Press: Camden, Maine, 1993, pg. 70.

92 Sherman, Ruth Wilder. Vital Records of Plymouth, Massachusetts to the Year 1850. Picton Press: Camden, Maine, 1993, pg. 70.

93 Sanders, Vol. 1, pg. 33.

Compiled by:
Judy B. Anderson
4485 S. 2025 W.
Roy, UT 84067

Bingman Weeks' Will.
In the Name of God Amen, ys. Ninth Day of November, in the Year of our Lord, One thousand, Seven hundred & Forty Four . I, Bingman Weeks , of Cartwright County , in North Carolina , being very sick & weak of Body, but of Perfect Mind & Memory, Thanks be given unto almighty God for it, & Knowing it is appointed for all Men Once to Die, Do make & Ordain this to be my last Will & Testament, that is to say; First of all I give my Sold into the Hands of God that gave it; & for my Body, I recommend to the Earth to be buried in a Christian like manner at the Discretion of my Executors, Nothing Doubting but at the General Resurrection I shal receive the same again by the mighty Power of God that gave it; And as for Touching such Worldly Estate wherewith it has pleased God to bless me with, I give & Dispose of the same in the Manner & form following.
North Carolina Wills and Inventories
Bingman Weeks' Will.
Item, I give & bequeath unto my two Sons, Isaac Weeks & Jabas Weeks , the Tract of Land that I now dwell on with the Marsh thereunto belonging, to be Equally divided between them and their Heirs & Assigns for Ever. That is to say, my Son Jabas to have that Part of the Land that the Plantation & Houses is on, and Isaac to have the other Part with half the Marsh.
North Carolina Wills and Inventories
Bingman Weeks' Will.
Item, I give to my Son, Theoflis Weaks , on Shilling, Sterling.
North Carolina Wills and Inventories
Bingman Weeks' Will.
Item, I give unto my Son, Archelas , One Shilling, Sterling.
North Carolina Wills and Inventories
Bingman Weeks' Will.
Item, I give to my Son, Bingmam , One Shilling Sterling.
North Carolina Wills and Inventories
Bingman Weeks' Will.
Item, I give to my Daughter, Lidde Witton , One Shilling Sterling.
North Carolina Wills and Inventories
Bingman Weeks' Will.
Item, I give to my Dafter, Mary Williams , One Shilling, Sterling.
North Carolina Wills and Inventories
Bingman Weeks' Will.
Item, I give to my Dafter, Christian Weake , One Shilling Sterling.
North Carolina Wills and Inventories
Bingman Weeks' Will.
Item, I give to my Dafter, Thankful Hicks , One Shilling Sterling.
North Carolina Wills and Inventories
Bingman Weeks' Will.
Item, my Will & Desire is for my Wife to have the Plantation in her Lifetime.
North Carolina Wills and Inventories
Bingman Weeks' Will.
I give to my Dafter, Elizabeth Weake , one Shilling Sterling.
North Carolina Wills and Inventories
Bingman Weeks' Will.
Item, my Will & Desire is that my two Sons, Isaac & Jabas, Do Each of them pay unto my Grand Son Edward Weaks , the Sum of Ten Pounds, current Money of Carolina, & upon Failure thereof to be Dispossessed of the Land before given.
North Carolina Wills and Inventories
Bingman Weeks' Will.
Item, I give unto my well beloved Wife, Mary Weake , Two Beds & Furniture, Two Cows & , and all other Houshold Goods & all the Remaining Part of my Estate that is not yet given During her Widowhood, She paying all my Lawful Debts. I also Depute and apoint my sd. Wife to be my whole & sole Executor of this my last Will & Testament, Ratifying and alowing this & no other to be my last Will and Testament. Disanulling all other Will formarly by me made.
North Carolina Wills and Inventories
Bingman Weeks' Will.
In Testimony hereunto I have Set my Hand & Seal the Day & Year above written.
North Carolina Wills and Inventories
Bingman Weeks' Will.
Bingman Weaks (Seal)
North Carolina Wills and Inventories
Bingman Weeks' Will.
Signed, Sealed in the Presence of us, Jehosaphat Holland . Francis Burns . Thos. Person .
North Carolina Wills and Inventories
Bingman Weeks' Will.
Carteret County, North Carolina . June Court, 1745 .
North Carolina Wills and Inventories
Bingman Weeks' Will.

Benjamin married Mary Chase on 14 Jan 1702 in Vineyard Haven, Dukes, Massachusetts, USA. Mary (daughter of Lieutenant Isaac Chase and Mary Tilton) was born on 17 Jan 1686 in Tisbury, Dukes, Massachusetts, USA; died on 11 Aug 1788 in Carteret, North Carolina, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

William Weeks Jr.
Son of William Weeks Sr.
William Jr. son of William Sr. was born 1645 in MA. He died in 1744. William married Mercy Robinson who was born 4 July, 1647 and was baptisized at Barnstable, MA. Mercy was remembered in the will of Miles Standish in 1655, who stated whom I have tenderly love for Marcy Robinson for her grandfather’s sake. Her grand father was the Rev. John Robinson, son of John and Ann Robinson and born 1575.

William was with his father on the vessel of Fifteen Toones in 1667 when it was making a trading trip from the Vineyard, it was laden with miscellaneous freight, mostly food and household items when the vessel was wrecked at Quick's Hole. The vessel was seized and looted by the Indians of Elizabeth Island.

WILLIAM WEEKS, JR.

In 1602 an English navigator, Bartholomew Gosnold, explored the south side of Cape Cod, and is believed to have landed at what is the present Wood's Hole. He sailed from the English port which was later Falmouth, England in 1660. In recognition of his landing on the Cape, the name of the area was changed from the Indian name of Suckanessett to Falmouth in 1694.

Wood's Hole was located on the most southern and western part of Cape Cod, and was one of the Falmouth villages people were attracted to before the town was incorporated. It was named for the water passage, or "hole" between Penzance Point and Nonamesset Island, as early as 1654.

In 1677 it had been divided into lots of 60 acres. Among the names of the new owners were Thomas Ewer, William Gifford, Joseph Hull, John Jenkins, Thomas Johnson and William Weeks, "who were Quakers."(39)

William Weeks Jr. was born about 1645 in Falmouth, Barnstable, Massachusetts. He married Mercy Robinson, daughter of Isaac
Robinson and Margaret Hanford, 16 March 1669 in Barnstable.(40) She was christened 4 July 1647 in Barnstable.(41) As far as known, they resided in Barnstable until about 1677/78, when William and his brother, John, were granted land in West Falmouth.(42)

It has been noted in a couple of references that William and John Weeks were Quakers. (43) This is the second mention of William Weeks being a Quaker.

Thus far, I have found nothing which would solidly indicate that the Weeks were of the Quaker persuasion. The only record which might indicate they were members of that faith was the statement William, Sr. made in conjunction with the seizing of his ship by Indians, which is dated "18 . 9 . 1667".

Quakers did not use the names for days of the weeks or months of the year as most of the names were derived from pagan gods. Instead, they would indicate dates by writing them as: "18th day 9th mo. 1667." William's method of dating his statement may just have been co-incidental, however.

In the History of Barnstable County, by Simeon L. Deyo, pg. 672, it states that nearly all of the early settlers in what became West Falmouth were Quakers. It is known that William Gifford, who was among the first settlers, was a Quaker. With him were William Gifford, Jr., William Weeks and John Weeks. Because they were grouped with some of the Quaker families who were moving into the area, it may have been assumed that John and William were of the same religion, whereas it might simply have been that they championed the cause of religious freedom and moved to an area more congenial with those views.

The land of Woods Hole was divided into lots of 60 acres upland to a share, with the lots commencing at the south end of Little Neck northwest to Great Harbor. Jonathan Hatch, Sr., William Weeks, and William Gifford, among others, received a share. Each also took 10 acres in Great Neck. (44)

In 1685 William's brother, John, took up land in East Falmouth, east of the Five-Mile River, now Dexter's River. In 1691, both he and William were granted lands on the plains. (45)

Mercy died some time after 1687. (46) and William married Mary Hatch, daughter of Jonathan Hatch and Sarah Rowley, about 1689.(47) She was born 14/16 July 1647/48 in Barnstable, Massachusetts.(48)

There is some question whether the Weeks children are from the first or second marriage. The information I have found thus far would seem to point out that they were from the first marriage, with the exception of the C. W. Swift revision of Genealogical Notes of Barnstable Families, page 467, in which it is indicated that because the children were christened with names common to the Hatch line rather than the Weeks line, he was confident that the mother of the children was Mary Hatch. The Robinson family genealogy attributes the children to the first marriage. The Hatch family genealogy attributes them to the second marriage.

I thought I had solved the problem when I checked Vital Records of Falmouth, Massachusetts to the Year 1850, by Oliver B. Brown, pg. 128. A list of births of the children assigned them to William and Mary Weeks. Then, I got to the "Marriages" part, and a marriage between William Weeks and "Mary" Robinson was recorded, which threw me right back in the middle of the stew. Apparently "Mary" is a diminutive form of "Mercy". To cover all bases, I went to the original microfilmed records, thinking someone may have misinterpreted handwriting. However, the old record is very legibly written, and there is no mistaking the entries. (49) A transcription of that record is found in the appendix.

Due to the fact that the Hatch, Weeks, and Chase families lived in the same general area, and that there was intermarriage among the families, I don't find it unusual that different names would surface in the family line. However, until additional information comes to light, the precise parentage of the children is in doubt. With that in mind, I will also do a history of the Hatch family in the event Mary Hatch was the parent of the children.

The exact date of William's death is unknown, but it would have been after 1716. He was a witness to the will of Jonathan Hatch in 1710/11, in which Jonathan mentions his daughter, Mary "Weaks."(50) It was signed in 1705 and witnessed by John and William Weeks. I would assume it was this document that pointed to Mary Hatch as William's second wife.

William, and either Mercy Robinson Weeks or Mary Hatch Weeks, had the following children:

1) Mary(51) Weeks, born 16 Jan. 1669/1670 Falmouth, Barnstable, Massachusetts.(52) Md. Aaron Rowley, son of Moses Rowley, 7 Jan. 1690 in Barnstable.(53) He was born 1 May 1666 in Barnstable; died in 1743.(54)

2) Mehitable Weeks, born 16 Oct. 1671 in Falmouth.(55)

3) Sarah Weeks, born 6 May 1674, Falmouth.(56) Md. Seth Stuart 14 June 1716 in Massachusetts.(57)

4) Experience Weeks, born 24 June 1677, Falmouth, Barnstable, Massachusetts.(58) Md. Timothy Robinson, son of John Robinson, 3 May 1699, Falmouth, Barnstable, Massachusetts.(59)

5) Mercy Weeks, born 24 Apr. 1679, Falmouth, Barnstable, Massachusetts.(60) Died 4 Feb. 1708/1709. Md. (1st) Ebenezer Meigs, son of John Meigs, 17 Oct. 1700, Guilford, New Haven, Connecticut. Md. (2nd) Jacob Burnipus, son of Jacob, 18 Apr. 1705. (TAG, Apr. 1967.)

6) Jonathan Weeks, born 1 May 1681, Falmouth, Barnstable, Massachusetts.(61) Md. Mercy Robinson, 26 Oct. 1704. (Sandwich VR & Weeks Gen.)(62)

7) *Benjamin Weeks (Beniamen), born 4 Apr. 1685, Barnstable, Massachusetts.(63) Died abt. 1744/45, Carteret County, North Carolina. Md. Mary Chase, daughter of Isaac Chase and Mary Tilton, 14 January 1704 - 27 May 1704 in Vinyard Haven, Dukes County, Massachusetts.(64) She was born about 1687.(65) (See below)

8) Lydia Weeks, born 30 June 1687, Falmouth, Barnstable, Massachusetts.(66) Md. William Swift, son of William & Elizabeth Swift, 9 Oct. 1707, Falmouth, Barnstable, Massachusetts.(67) He was of Yarmouth, Massachusetts.

SOURCES

1 Charles Edward Banks. The History of Martha's Vineyard, Dukes Co., Massachusetts, Vol. II,, Dukes Co. Historical Society: 1966, pg. 118-119.

2 Charles Edward Banks, pg. 119.

3 Ibid.

4 Banks, Charles Edward. The History of Martha's Vineyard. Dukes County Historical Soc.: Edgartown, 1966, pg. 26. The first known division of common land was made in 1653 and there were 20 proprietors to participate in the allotment, including William Weeks.

5 History of Martha's Vineyard, Vol. II, pg. 25.

6 History of Martha's Vineyard, Vol. II, pg. 26 -- Edgartown Records, Vol. I, pg. 172; pg. 28 -- Edgartown Records, I, 156; pg. 30 --Edgartown Records, I, 147.

7 Banks, pg. 120.

8 Edwards, pg. 3.

9 Martha's Vineyard, although Martin's Vineyard seems to be the earlier naming of the area.

10 Charles Edward Banks, The History of Martha's Vineyard, "The Annals of Oak Bluffs", Vol. I, pg. 12 -- Edgartown Record, I, 130.]

11 Edwards, pg. 19 -- footnote.

12 History of Martha's Vineyard, Vol. II, pg. 32.

13 Banks, History of Martha's Vineyard -- Annals of Edgartown -- Vol. II, pg. 32.

14 History of Martha's Vineyard, Vol., II, pg. 33.

15 William Hopple Edwards, Genealogical & Ancestral Notes, Vol. 2 of Series I & Series I-A, Meridian, Conn., 1957, pg. Appendix
E -- Excerpts from "Early History of Nashon Island" by Amelia Forbes Emerson -- pg. 202.

16 Banks, pg. 121.

17 Banks, The History of Martha's Vineyard - "Annals of Edgartown", pg. 121.

18 "Hole" refers to a small inlet of water which would shelter the boats. "Homes" originally meant an old man. Literal meaning of the term "Homes Hole" would be old man's hole. It was until many years later that the name was referred to as "Holmes Hole" after a family who had settled in the area around 1670 - Annals of Tisbury -- pgs. 3-18 off the internet.

19 Banks, pg. 121.

20 History of Martha's Vineyard, Vol. II, pg. 16 -- Deed of Dukes Co., Mass, Bk. III, pg. 314.

21 History of Martha's Vineyard, Vol. II, pg. 16 -- Deed of Dukes Co., Mass., Bk. I, pg. 78.

22 History of Martha's Vineyard, Vol. II, pg. 16 -- Deed of Dukes Co., Mass, Bk. I, pg. 73.

23 History of Martha's Vineyard, Vol. II, pg. 16.

24 Genealogical Notes of Barnstable Families. . F. B. & F. P. Goss Publishers & Printers: Barnstable, Mass., pg. 2, Vol. II -- Revised by C. F. Swift 1979.

25 Banks, pg. 122.

26 Banks, pg. 122.

27 The original vital records of Falmouth, MA, found in the Barnstable County Registry Bldg. [FHL Film #0904590] notes: "Mm. Weckes & Mary Robinson were mared the 18 day of March in the yere 1669." Notice his wife is listed as "Mary" rather than "Mercy."

28 Clarence Almon Torrey. New England Marriages Prior to 1700, pg. 792.

29 In the will of Mary's father, Jonathan Hatch, signed in 1705 and probated in 1710/11, he mentions his daughter Mary Weeks. Witnessing the will are John and William Weeks. It would appear that this notation is what has given rise to the assumption that William Weeks was married a second time to Mary Hatch. Barnstable County Probate Court -- FHL Film #0904596].

30 Brownson, Held & Norton, FHL Film #0889265 Genealogical Notes of Cape Cod Families,(no page numbers).

31 Edwards, Appendix B - Excerpts from The Robinsons & Their Kinfolk, pg. 5.

32 Brownson, Held & Norton.

33 Brownson, Held & Norton.

34 Year from Banks, History of Martha's Vineyard, pg. 496; month and day from LDS Ancestral File, Family History Library, SLC, UT.

35 Vital Records of Falmouth, Massachusetts, film #0904590, pg. 130.

36 Brownson, Held & Norton and Edwards, Series I, Bk. 2, pgs. 192-195.

37 Torrey, pg. 352.

38 FHL Film #0889265 - Brownson, Held & Norton.

39 Mary Lou Smith, ed. The Book of Falmouth, Falmouth Historical Commission: Falmouth, Mass., 1988, pg. 474.

40 FHL Film #0904590 - Barnstable County Registry Building at Falmouth Massachusetts Vital Records, pg. 127.

41 Roberts, pg. 598.

42 Deyo, pg. 672.

43 Theodore Geoffrey, Suckanesset: A History of Falmouth, Massachusetts, Falmouth Publishing Company, Inc., 1930, pg. 26.

44 Deyo, pg. 665.

45 Deyo, pg. 634.

46 Edwards - Genealogical and Ancestral Notes, Series I, pg. 189 - gives Mercy's death date as circa 1740.

47 Torrey, pg. 792.

48 Brownson, Lydia B., Held, Grace W. and Norton, Doris V. Genealogy of Cape Cod Families, film #0889261 and Film #1018892 -- Charles Edson Robinson, Robinson Genealogy,. Vol. One, pg. 36 -- (In the reference it is stated that Mercy died at 93 years of age. However, the marriage year is noted as 1662. If there was an error in one date, there may have been an error in another.)

49 Microfilm of the original records located at the Barnstable County Registry Building, Falmouth Massachusetts Vital Records, Film #0904590.

50 Probate Records of Barnstable, film #0904598, Vol. 1, pg. 194, case #7082 - Family History Library.

51 Noted in the vital records of Falmouth, Massachusetts as "Mrcy".

52 FHL Film #0904590 - Vital Records of Falmouth, MA, pg. 127. The way of reckoning the calendar was different at this time. Therefore, two different year dates are given on most births. The first year would be under the reckoning of the old calendar year -- February to February, and the second year according to our reckoning of time now. Although it may appear that the first child was born before William and Mercy were married, it was actually a good nine months later.

53 Falmouth, Massachusetts Vital Records, film #0904590, pg. 124. Same is original records, FHL Film #0904590, pg. 124.

54 Torrey, pg. 640.

55 Falmouth, Massachusetts Vital Records, film #0904590, pg. 127.

56 FHL Film #0904590, pg. 127.

57 Falmouth, Massachusetts Vital Records, film #0904590, pg. 127.

58 Falmouth, Massachusetts Vital Records, film #0904590, pg. 127.

59 Falmouth, Massachusetts Vital Records, film #0904590, pg. 128.

60 Falmouth, Massachusetts Vital Records, film #0904590, pg. 127.

61 Falmouth, Massachusetts Vital Records, film #0904590, pg. 128.

62 Oliver B. Brown. Vital Records of Falmouth Massachusetts to Year 1850, pg. 216.

63 Falmouth, Massachusetts Vital Records, film #0904590, pg. 128.

64 First date found in Vital Records of Tisbury, MA published by the New England Genealogical Society in 1910, pg. 119. Second date found in the Vital Records of Falmouth, Massauchsetts - original filming of records, FHL Film #0904590, pg. 155.

65 FHL Film # 0904590 - Falmouth Co., MA Vital Records, pg. 155. "Intentions of marring [sic] published."

66 FHL Film #0904590, pg. 128.

67 Falmouth, Barnstable County, Massachusetts Vital Records [microfilm of the book at the Registry Building], film #0904590, pg. 155; also Swift Gen. film #1004003.

Compiled by:
Judy B. Anderson
4485 S. 2025 W.
Roy, UT 84067

William married Mercy Robinson on 16 Mar 1669 in Falmouth, Barnstable, Massachusetts, USA. Mercy (daughter of Isaac Robinson and Margaret Hanford) was born on 4 Jul 1647 in Barnstable, Barnstable, Massachusetts, USA; died in 1740 in Falmouth, Barnstable, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

Gravestone in Crossways Cemetery:
Here lies the body
of Lt Isaac Chase
who died May ye 19
1727 aged about
80 years

Lt. Isaac Chase was a Tisbury blacksmith, and a Quaker. He married (1st) Mary Perkins, and (2nd) Mary Tilton. He was the son of Thomas Chase.

One of the original settlers of Tisbury, his estate comprised nearly the whole of the present village of Vineyard Haven.

ISAAC CHASE.
The progenitor of the Chase family of Martha's Vineyard, was born in Hampton, N. H., April 1, 1650, the third son of Thomas and Elizabeth (Philbrick) Chase. The family genealogies state that Thomas came from County Cornwall, England, to New England, and was the son of Aquila Chase of the Chesham, County Bucks family, whose pedigree extends back several generations. In what way Isaac Chase came to be interested in this distant island is not known, but the neighboring town of Salisbury, Mass., had already furnished many settlers for Nantucket, men of Quaker faith, and through this source it is probable that his knowledge of the Vineyard was acquired. At the age of 24 he came to Tisbury to settle (1674), but the townsmen refused the privilege to him for some reason at that time. Possibly it was because of his religious beliefs, which were of the Quaker doctrinal variety. 'The townsmen of Tysbury,' so reads the record, 'do not give unto Isack Chace of Hampton liberty to settle in the town.' [Tisbury Records, 8. We may surmise that they finally gave him permission to inhabit at Homes Hole, in the uttermost part of the town, many miles from the dwellings of any settlers. He was of Hampton in October 1673 (Norfolk Co. Deeds).] However he must have overcome this refusal before long, as we find him in less than two years making purchases of land in the town limits.

He must have been possessed of more than the average wealth at that time as he became, before 1700, one of the largest landholders on the Vineyard. He began his purchases of Homes Hole neck in 1676, as elsewhere related, and finally became its sole proprietor. His property in the Chickemmoo region was second in extent of acreage. His initial purchase in 1682 became a subject of dispute with the Sachem and the town, and was relinquished; but in 1692 he bought the entire eastern half of Chickemoo of Thomas Tupper, consisting of 1200 acres, and was continually adding to his domain in that region. [Deeds, I, 130, 187, 281, 391.] He rarely sold any portion of these acquisitions and all of it, practically, became the heritage of his heirs.

His occupation, as elsewhere detailed, was that of blacksmith, inn-holder, and ferryman, and these he followed until his death. Although by religion a Quaker, yet he does not seem to have been ultra orthodox in the faith, for he took military office as Lieutenant in the Company of Foot in Tisbury before 1692, and thus broke one of the principal tenets of that sect. In the political upheavals of that time Simon Atheam thus refers to him: 'Mr. Isaac Chase the Leueten't without oath he pleading for the quakers.' [Mass. Arch., CXII, 424. This is the only reference to the Quaker proclivities of Chase to be found in the record. The allusion to the oath relates to their objection to swearing, although willing to affirm to an act or statement.] During the remainder of his life he was generally called Lieutenant in the records of that period.

He died May 19, 1727, and his will, dated Feb. 12, 1721-2, was proven in July, 1727. By it he bequeathed what lands he had not given away in his lifetime to his widow and surviving children and grandchildren. The Chickemmoo property was mostly deeded to his several sons, 1706-1718, and the Homes Hole neck was to a large extent, 1705-1717, similarly disposed of to Thomas, Isaac and Abraham. In 1725 this remained undivided and Lieut. Isaac and his son Abraham entered suit against the heirs of Thomas and Ebenezer Rogers for a partition. This was done, and the division then made by the jury is the basis of all land titles in Vineyard Haven north of the creek in front of the hospital.

Isaac Chase was twice married; first to Mary, daughter of Isaac Perkins of Hampton, Feb. 20, 1673, by whom he had no issue; second to Mary Tilton, probably sister of Samuel of Hampton and Chilmark, Oct. 5, 1675, by Rev. John Mayhew. By his second marriage he had six sons and six daughters, who left a large progeny here and in Nantucket. He was a man of sterling worth and scrupulous honesty, and his life was singularly free from contentions and litigations with his neighbors.

[Chase.FTW]

[ThomasChaseAncestors.ged]

Isaac married Mary Tilton on 5 Oct 1675 in Vineyard Haven, Dukes, Massachusetts, USA. Mary was born about 1658 in Lynn, Essex, Massachusetts, USA; died on 14 Jun 1746 in Tisbury, Dukes, Massachusetts, USA; was buried in South End Cemetery, Vineyard Haven, Dukes, Massachusetts, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Name: Mary Chase