Jabez Treadwell's Will

In Memory
of
Mr Jabez Treadwell
who departed this Life
22d Day of Decr
1781
In the 67th year of his age.
"Bleƒƒed are the dead which die in
the Lord that they may reƒt
from their Labours; and their
works do follow them."





When I first applied for membership in the Mayflower Society, I had eleven different passengers to choose from for my lineage papers. The easiest route to membership was to choose Isaac Allerton, because he settled in Salem and Marblehead, and I was born in Beverly, Massachusetts. To fill out my paperwork I used one of the silver books, and then I visited the town clerks in Beverly, Salem, Danvers and Hamilton and I was finished in one afternoon. I give all my apologies to those of you working for years and years on your Mayflower applications. I understand fully how hard it is to complete those lineage papers, because in five years I haven’t done any of my supplemental lines. To finish those I need a trip to Nova Scotia and several states, and I’ve been lazy!

The lineage from Isaac Allerton to me leads through the Treadwell family in Ipswich. My great grandfather even had the name Arthur Treadwell Hitchings, named for his own grandmother, Eliza Ann Treadwell. The family is mentioned in the Ipswich history, and they seemed very typical of the farmers in the area. I didn’t think of them as remarkable in any way. I recorded their vital records, searched a bit for stories and didn’t find any particularly interesting. I posted them on my website, along with the rest of the family tree, and that was that. Or so I thought!

Whenever I post something on the internet, interesting things seem to happen. I don’t get responses right away, but that’s fine, I don’t mind getting responses years and years later. I had a mysterious email from someone in South Carolina. It seems that she had an original 1780 copy of Jabez Treadwell’s will! She wanted to give it to one of his living descendants. Wow! This stranger had a grandfather who attended Suffolk Law school way back in the 1920’s, and acquired this will somehow.

And so I acquired the will for just the cost of postage and a few email “Thank yous!” It was in very good shape, except for where it had ripped where it had once been folded and someone had tried to repair it with cellophane tape. The tape had fallen off long ago and left a yucky yellow stripe. It is legible, completely readable and quite a family treasure.

Lessons learned:

1. Post family stories online, and you’ll always reap rewards. Sometimes just a nice note in the email, and sometimes more!

2. Never repair a 1780 will with cellophane tape!


The lineage from Isaac Allerton through the Treadwell family:

Gen. 1. Isaac Allerton (Mayflower Passenger) born about 1586 in England, died 12 February 1658/9 in New Haven, Connecticut; married 4 November 1611 in Leyden, Holland to Mary Norris, daughter of Edward Norris, born 1567 in Newbury, Berkshire, England, died 25 February 1620/1 in Plymouth, Massachusetts.

Gen. 2. Remember Allerton (Mayflower Passenger when she was about 5 or six years old), born about 1614 in Leyden, Holland; married to Moses Maverick, son of Reverend John Maverick and Mary Gye, born 3 November 1611 in Huish, Devonshire, England, died 28 January 1685/6 in Marblehead, Massachusetts.

Gen. 3. Abigail Maverick, born about 12 January 1644/5 in Salem, Massachusetts, died about January 1685/6; married about 1662 to Major Samuel Ward, son of Samuel Ward and Mary Hilliard, born about 18 November 1638 in Hingham, Massachusetts, died between 30 July 1689 and 12 Mar 1690 on the expedition to Canada (Siege of Quebec).

Gen. 4. Martha Ward, born 16 September 1673 in Salem, died 17 August 1723 in Ipswich; married 3 December 1689 in Ipswich to John Tuthill/Tuttle, son of Simon Tuthill and Sarah Cogswell, born on 22 April 1666 in Ipswich, died on 27 February 1714/5 in Ipswich.

Gen. 5. Martha Tuttle, born 21 November 1690 in Ipswich, died on 15 May 1763 in Ipswich; married about 14 Jan 1709 to Mark Haskell, son of Mark Haskell and Elizabeth Giddings, born 16 September 1687 in Gloucester, died 25 August 1775 in Ipswich.

Gen. 6. Lucy Haskell, born 21 May 1715 in Gloucester, died 21 September 1789 in Ipswich; married 20 November 1736 in Ipswich to Jabez Treadwell, son of Nathaniel Treadwell and Hannah Unknown, born 9 August 1713 in Ipswich, died 22 December 1780 in Ipswich.

Gen. 7. Nathaniel Treadwell, born about 28 October 1753 in Ipswich, died on 2 January 1822 in Ipswich; married on 17 July 1786 in Ipswich to Mary Hovey, born in Ipswich and died on 15 January 1832 in Ipswich.

Gen. 8. Jabez Treadwell, born 17 October 1788 in Ipswich, died on 4 November 1840 in Salem; married 17 November 1811 in Marblehead to Betsey Jillings Homan, daughter of Thomas Homan and Tabitha Glover, born about 1792 in Marblehead, died 1875 in Salem.

Gen. 9. Eliza Ann Treadwell, born 27 August 1812 in Salem, died on 31 January 1896 in Salem; married on 4 December 1836 in Salem to Abijah Hitchings, son of Abijah Hitchings and Mary Cloutman, born on 18 January 1809 in Salem, died 18 January 1864 in Salem.

Copyright 2009, Heather Wilkinson Rojo