Mary Mills was born _____ to John & Sarah (____) Mills{1630, Boston}. She married John Hawkins by about 1636. "Mary Hawkins aged 75 years died the 12 of March 1692."
They had ten children: Mary Kneeland, Ruth Marshall Fairfield, Damaris Threeneedle, Susan, Peleg, Elizabeth Mercer, James, James again, Sarah Jenkins, & Elihu.
A number of items relating to the birth and baptismal records of this family invite discussion. First, the grant of land at Mount Wollaston [Braintree] on 19 February 1637/8 suggests that the household at this date consisted of the parents and two children, which conforms well with the estimated dates of birth for the daughters Mary and Ruth.
Second, inasmuch as this family appears to have resided in Boston only, the absence of any recorded births prior to 1645 is puzzling. As with so many of the Massachusetts Bay towns, our only surviving source for the earliest births is the "county copy" of these records which was compiled in 1644. An economical explanation for the absence of these three or four birth records (Mary, Ruth, Damaris and perhaps Elizabeth) would be that the town clerk simply missed the whole family at the time of the 1644 compilation. (The clerk certainly did not miss the family of Thomas Hawkins, brother of James.)
Third, the baptism of what were apparently the three youngest children (James, Elizabeth and Sarah) on 29 April 1666 provides additional useful information [BChR 343]. On that date James was about twelve years old and Sarah was about ten. And clearly Susan, Peleg and Elihu were dead by the time of this group baptism. But how old was Elizabeth?
From all the other information available, the daughters are entered in birth order in the deed of 18 May 1692. On this basis, Elizabeth is younger than Damaris and older than Sarah, an interval of about sixteen years. There are two likely slots where she might be placed, about 1642 or 1643, between Damaris and Susan, or about 1650, between Peleg and the first James. The latter of these two approximate dates seems the more likely, based on three considerations. First, if she had been born about 1642, she would be about twenty-four years old in 1666, and would have been baptized as an adult in her own right, and not as a child with her two younger siblings. Second, if she were born about 1650, then she would have been about twenty-one at the time of her estimated marriage. Third, the Boston birth records were poorly kept in 1650, so the lack of a surviving birth record in this year should not be surprising. By placing Elizabeth in this 1650 slot, there is a gap of about five years between Damaris and Susan, but, with the evidence presented here, there must be a gap of about that size somewhere in the sequence of children, and this seems the better arrangement.
They had ten children: Mary Kneeland, Ruth Marshall Fairfield, Damaris Threeneedle, Susan, Peleg, Elizabeth Mercer, James, James again, Sarah Jenkins, & Elihu.
A number of items relating to the birth and baptismal records of this family invite discussion. First, the grant of land at Mount Wollaston [Braintree] on 19 February 1637/8 suggests that the household at this date consisted of the parents and two children, which conforms well with the estimated dates of birth for the daughters Mary and Ruth.
Second, inasmuch as this family appears to have resided in Boston only, the absence of any recorded births prior to 1645 is puzzling. As with so many of the Massachusetts Bay towns, our only surviving source for the earliest births is the "county copy" of these records which was compiled in 1644. An economical explanation for the absence of these three or four birth records (Mary, Ruth, Damaris and perhaps Elizabeth) would be that the town clerk simply missed the whole family at the time of the 1644 compilation. (The clerk certainly did not miss the family of Thomas Hawkins, brother of James.)
Third, the baptism of what were apparently the three youngest children (James, Elizabeth and Sarah) on 29 April 1666 provides additional useful information [BChR 343]. On that date James was about twelve years old and Sarah was about ten. And clearly Susan, Peleg and Elihu were dead by the time of this group baptism. But how old was Elizabeth?
From all the other information available, the daughters are entered in birth order in the deed of 18 May 1692. On this basis, Elizabeth is younger than Damaris and older than Sarah, an interval of about sixteen years. There are two likely slots where she might be placed, about 1642 or 1643, between Damaris and Susan, or about 1650, between Peleg and the first James. The latter of these two approximate dates seems the more likely, based on three considerations. First, if she had been born about 1642, she would be about twenty-four years old in 1666, and would have been baptized as an adult in her own right, and not as a child with her two younger siblings. Second, if she were born about 1650, then she would have been about twenty-one at the time of her estimated marriage. Third, the Boston birth records were poorly kept in 1650, so the lack of a surviving birth record in this year should not be surprising. By placing Elizabeth in this 1650 slot, there is a gap of about five years between Damaris and Susan, but, with the evidence presented here, there must be a gap of about that size somewhere in the sequence of children, and this seems the better arrangement.
Mary Mills was born _____ to John & Sarah (____) Mills{1630, Boston}. She married John Hawkins by about 1636. "Mary Hawkins aged 75 years died the 12 of March 1692."
They had ten children: Mary Kneeland, Ruth Marshall Fairfield, Damaris Threeneedle, Susan, Peleg, Elizabeth Mercer, James, James again, Sarah Jenkins, & Elihu.
A number of items relating to the birth and baptismal records of this family invite discussion. First, the grant of land at Mount Wollaston [Braintree] on 19 February 1637/8 suggests that the household at this date consisted of the parents and two children, which conforms well with the estimated dates of birth for the daughters Mary and Ruth.
Second, inasmuch as this family appears to have resided in Boston only, the absence of any recorded births prior to 1645 is puzzling. As with so many of the Massachusetts Bay towns, our only surviving source for the earliest births is the "county copy" of these records which was compiled in 1644. An economical explanation for the absence of these three or four birth records (Mary, Ruth, Damaris and perhaps Elizabeth) would be that the town clerk simply missed the whole family at the time of the 1644 compilation. (The clerk certainly did not miss the family of Thomas Hawkins, brother of James.)
Third, the baptism of what were apparently the three youngest children (James, Elizabeth and Sarah) on 29 April 1666 provides additional useful information [BChR 343]. On that date James was about twelve years old and Sarah was about ten. And clearly Susan, Peleg and Elihu were dead by the time of this group baptism. But how old was Elizabeth?
From all the other information available, the daughters are entered in birth order in the deed of 18 May 1692. On this basis, Elizabeth is younger than Damaris and older than Sarah, an interval of about sixteen years. There are two likely slots where she might be placed, about 1642 or 1643, between Damaris and Susan, or about 1650, between Peleg and the first James. The latter of these two approximate dates seems the more likely, based on three considerations. First, if she had been born about 1642, she would be about twenty-four years old in 1666, and would have been baptized as an adult in her own right, and not as a child with her two younger siblings. Second, if she were born about 1650, then she would have been about twenty-one at the time of her estimated marriage. Third, the Boston birth records were poorly kept in 1650, so the lack of a surviving birth record in this year should not be surprising. By placing Elizabeth in this 1650 slot, there is a gap of about five years between Damaris and Susan, but, with the evidence presented here, there must be a gap of about that size somewhere in the sequence of children, and this seems the better arrangement.
They had ten children: Mary Kneeland, Ruth Marshall Fairfield, Damaris Threeneedle, Susan, Peleg, Elizabeth Mercer, James, James again, Sarah Jenkins, & Elihu.
A number of items relating to the birth and baptismal records of this family invite discussion. First, the grant of land at Mount Wollaston [Braintree] on 19 February 1637/8 suggests that the household at this date consisted of the parents and two children, which conforms well with the estimated dates of birth for the daughters Mary and Ruth.
Second, inasmuch as this family appears to have resided in Boston only, the absence of any recorded births prior to 1645 is puzzling. As with so many of the Massachusetts Bay towns, our only surviving source for the earliest births is the "county copy" of these records which was compiled in 1644. An economical explanation for the absence of these three or four birth records (Mary, Ruth, Damaris and perhaps Elizabeth) would be that the town clerk simply missed the whole family at the time of the 1644 compilation. (The clerk certainly did not miss the family of Thomas Hawkins, brother of James.)
Third, the baptism of what were apparently the three youngest children (James, Elizabeth and Sarah) on 29 April 1666 provides additional useful information [BChR 343]. On that date James was about twelve years old and Sarah was about ten. And clearly Susan, Peleg and Elihu were dead by the time of this group baptism. But how old was Elizabeth?
From all the other information available, the daughters are entered in birth order in the deed of 18 May 1692. On this basis, Elizabeth is younger than Damaris and older than Sarah, an interval of about sixteen years. There are two likely slots where she might be placed, about 1642 or 1643, between Damaris and Susan, or about 1650, between Peleg and the first James. The latter of these two approximate dates seems the more likely, based on three considerations. First, if she had been born about 1642, she would be about twenty-four years old in 1666, and would have been baptized as an adult in her own right, and not as a child with her two younger siblings. Second, if she were born about 1650, then she would have been about twenty-one at the time of her estimated marriage. Third, the Boston birth records were poorly kept in 1650, so the lack of a surviving birth record in this year should not be surprising. By placing Elizabeth in this 1650 slot, there is a gap of about five years between Damaris and Susan, but, with the evidence presented here, there must be a gap of about that size somewhere in the sequence of children, and this seems the better arrangement.
Bio by: Linda Mac
Gravesite Details
Parents: John Mills & Susan Pope Husbands: Daniel Abbott, James Hawkins
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