__
__|
| |__
|
|--Elizabeth
|
| __
|__|
|__
_William BENJAMIN __+
_William BENJAMIN _|
| |_Sarah CHILD _______+
|
|--Cyrus BENJAMIN
|
| _Abijah CHILD ______+
|_Beulah CHILD _____|
|_Beulah HARRINGTON _+
[9] Sleepy Hollow Cemetery - (the burial grounds of the Concord authors - Emerson, Hawthorne, Alcott, etc.) The Benjamin plot is in the section nearest to the center of town about half-way up
_Thomas BRIGHT ___+
_Henry BRIGHT _|
| |_Margaret JERVIS _+
|
|--Henry BRIGHT
|
| __________________
|_Mary _____ ___|
|__________________
[244] From Early Settlers of Watertown, by Henry Bond. pp. 96 & 105
[245]
HENRY BRIGHT came to America as early as 1630 and probobly at the same time with Gov. Winthrop as they were from the same County (Suffolk), and their families were remotely related by marriage. His name is the 48th on the list of members of the first
church of Boston, that was originally organized in Charlestown, which allows that he must have been a member of it in 1630.
[246]
Deacon HENRY BRIGHT in early life a seargeant, was admitted freeman May 6, 1635; was many time a selectman between 1640 and 1667, and for a long time held the office of Deacon.
He was a juror in the Court of Assistants, July 22, 1684, at the age of 82. His farm was the land, now marked on the map as that of widow Hurd and widow Pratt, southeast of Mr. Cushing's farm, which was then owned by William Bond.
[247]
Extract from the diary of Judge Sewell, "Oct. 6, 1686, Mr. Bailey is ordained at Watertown. Oct. 7, Thursday, Deacon Bright, carrying home chairs, etc. used at Mr. Bailely's {ordination}, is hurt by his cart - none seeing, so that he dies, October 9,
Saturday." "Deacon Bright carrying home chairs, used at Mr. Bayly's {ordination}, is hurtby his cart noneseeing, so that he dies October 9, Saturday. It seems he was the only officer left in the church. Several of his ribs broken"
[248] WILL OF HENRY BRIGHT
[249] Will of Henry Bright, recorded in Suffolk. Mass. Probate Office, Vol. XI., pp.44 and 5.
[250]
The last Will of Henry Bright, of Watertowne, aged 78 years. I do give and bequeath unto my eldest son, John Bright, my dwelling houses, barns, outhouses, and land adjoining on both sides of the highway, lying in two parcels, containing the whole, by
estimation, forty acres, more or less; also one parcel of salt marsh land, about two acres and one rod more or less, neere to widdow Thacher's land; also two acres in Pigsgusset meadow nere unto John Hammond's lands; Also two acres of meadow land near
unto Corporal Bond's land; also two acres in Patch meadow neere unto the lands of Jno. Livermore, Sen'r; also two acres in rocky meadow neer unto Jno. Bisoce's land; also three acres of remote meadow purchased by me of Mr. Salton Storll; also thirty
acres of dividend land, being part of the fourth quadrant neer Cambridge line; also twenty acres called lands in leiw of township lying user to Lieutenant Sherman's land; also one hundred acres of farm lands granted to me by ye town, and is neer unto
Corporal Bond's land; to have and to hold all the above named houses and lands with all ye privileges and apertenances thereof, unto him ye Said Joseph Bright and the heirs of his body lawfully begotten, he paying such legacies out thereof as I shall
hereafter appoint him to do and perform, provided always if my son Jno. shall decease not leaving issue of his body lawfully begotten, surviving to twenty-one years of age, in such case all the above bequeathed houses and lands shall descend and come
unto his brother Nathaniel, and to the heirs of his body lawfully begotten. And in case my son Nathaniel and issue as above shall fail, I do will and bequeath the reversion of said Houses and lands to my five daughters, to be among them equally
divided. I do also give unto my son Jno. my Silver Tankard and in case of his decease as aforesaid not leaving issue of his body lawfully begotten, I do give and bequeath the use of the whole legacie above bequeathed to him unto his wife my daughter-
in-law Mary Bright during her widdowhood, she maintaining the houses and fences in good and tenentable repair and not suffering any strip or waste to be made of the wood and timber orchard, gardens, or meadows, &c.. and in case she change her condition
by marriage, she shall then quitt possession of the whole and she shall receive out of the yearly rents thereof seven pounds to be paid in corn and cattle at ye currant countrie price during the time of her natural life. To my son Nathaniell I have
already disbursed to his accommodation, and I do moreover give and bequeath unto him one parcel of Salt marsh containing two acres more or less and is bounded by Jno. Stratten's land. Also I give him 50 shillings in money to purchase him a piece of
plate. To my daughters Anna and Eliz., I give to each of them one silver spoon. And to my daughters Mary, Abigail, Beriah and to my daughter-in-law Mary Bright, to each of them ten shillings in money to buy silver spoons. Item. Unto my five daughters,
viz. Anna Ruggles, Elizabeth Hastings, Mary Coolidge, Abigail Audley, Beriah Fowle, I give twenty pounds apiece in corn and cattle at the current countrie prices to be payd by my son Jno. Bright out of the Houses and lands bequeathed to him, to be paid
at two payts in equall proportion, the first payt within two years after my decease and the second payt the third year after my decease. Also I give and bequeath to my daughters Anna Ruggles, Eliz. Hastings, Beriah Fowle ten pounds apiece to be payd in
money by my son Nathaniel out of the one hundred he owes me by bond and the remainder of the ad bond and debt I give unto my son Nathaniel. Item. The remainder of my estate not above given & bequethed, as well lands as moveables and debts, my just
debts and funeral expenses being payd, I give and bequeath unto my five daughters above named to be equally distributed among them, in case of the decease of any of them their children to have their Part. I do nominate and constitute my son Jno. Bright
sole Executor of this my last will and testament. Thus having according to what I judge meet and best settled my estate I do now commit my body to the earth to be decently interred at the discretion of my Xian friends, and my soul I do humbly &
believingly commit and leave in the arms and never failing mercyee of God father son & holy ghost, relying wholly upon the merits and satisfaction of my ever living redeemer for my eternal salvation, into ye arms of whose tender mercyes I do also
commit and leave my dear children relying on the covent which is in all things well ordered and sure for them and for their seed in their generations.
[251]
In Witoess hereof I do here unto put my hand and seal this 25 Jan., 1680. Moreover I do give to my son Jno. Bright the bed that he lies upon and all the furniture and appurtenances thereof and to my daughter Anna Ruggles I give the bed that myself do
lye upon and all the furniture and appurtenances thereof. Sealed and published in presence of
DANIEL CHEAVER
SAMUEL DANFORTH
[252] (Signed Henrie Bright)
[253]
Whereas, since the sealing of this my Will, I have disbursed for ye settlement of my son Nathaniel Bright more and otherwise than I did them appoinL I do now lIL.ret,y declare my Will that those my outlands which I had some time purposed for his
settlem't, viz. sixty acres of dividend land had to me from my father Goldstone situate in Watertown Stowers (? Stoney) Brook, twenty acres of upland by me had by Robert Jemmings [Jennison], five acres purchased by me of Henry Freeman, fifty acres had
of Mr. [Rev.] John Sherman deceased, being partly meadow and partly upland and was sometime belonging to Thomas Haymond deceased, two hundred acres more or less of farm land and was sometime my father Goldstones. All these several parcels of land I do
will and appoint shall be divided in manner following, viz. to my son Nathaniel Bright I do give fifty acres. being part of the two hundred acres of farmland, to be taken and set out of the Northerly side thereof, and the remainder of all those parcels
to be equally divided among my five daughtere, i. e. Abigall Audly, Mary Coolidge, Anna Ruggles, Eliza Hastings, and Beriah, and to their children in case of their decease, or of any one of them. In witness hereof I do here unto put my hand and seal
this 25th Oct. 1685.
[254] (Signed) HENRIE BRIGHT,
[255] Sealed and delivered in presence of
[256]
SARAH WHITING,
SARAH BEAMONT,
THOMAS DANFORTH, D. G.
[257] Proved in Boston, Nov.13, 1686.
_Thomas RICHARDSON _+
_Thomas RICHARDSON _|
| |_Katherine DUXFORD _+
|
|--Thomas RICHARDSON
|
| ____________________
|_Mary _____ ________|
|____________________
[332]
Thomas moved from Woburn to Billerica about 1667 and settled, it is believed,
on a large tract of land about 900 acres in the east part of town called the
Cambridge School Farm, a little west of the Shawshin River and north of the
present Boston Road. He was a soldier in the company of Capt. Samuel Gallup
in the land expedition to Canada by way of Albany in 1690, which utterly
failed. He was deputy from Billerica to the General Court of Massachusetts in
1703 and 1704. Deeded land to son Andrew, Oct. 14, 1705.