From Newbury to Suffield... ...and back

Launcelot, a child of Satan, married a daughter of a Puritan of the strictest kind ~ James M. Granger

more on the Adams family

Note: You can find a refresher on the Adams family in our previous Newbury post

Our grandparents Robert (10GGF) and Eleanor Adams (10GGM) moved their family from Salem to Newbury in 1651. Their daughter, our grandmother Elizabeth (9GGM), marriedEdward Phelps (9GGF) and the two of them moved to Andover, which would become a veritable hotbed of witch furor. Edward and Elizabeth's daughter, our grandmother, another Elizabeth (8GGM), married Joseph Ballard (8GGF). Joseph and Elizabeth Ballard would play a major role in the Andover chaos. More on those two soon.

Robert and Eleanor had nine children. Eleanor died in 1677 and a year later Robert married Sarah Glover. In 1682, only four years after his second marriage, Robert died. He had made an agreement with his new wife before his death that most of his his property, including his house and goods would go to his children. Wife Sarah got "all the money I have" and leave "to enjoy the parlor wholly for one year..." Where she was to go after her year in the parlor, God only knows. Robert's will, like so many of the day, favored certain children over others.

To his oldest son, John (9U), Robert left £20. Isaac (9U) made out pretty well with £5 yearly "during life in English corn, pork, beef, and such like..." as well as sundry household items. Abraham (9U) received the rest of Robert's "effects." The girls all got cows. But the lion's share, the house and property, went to Robert's youngest son Jacob (9U).

Jacob Adams

Our uncle Jacob, born in 1654, was Robert and Eleanor's only child born in Newbury. Like most children born after 1647, he had the advantage of attending the free school which was established by colony law and voted in by the Newbury inhabitants in 1651. Jacob would use this education to good advantage. While his father Robert was a tailor, Jacob served as an apprentice to shoemaker Robert Bartlett and became a master shoemaker himself.

In 1673, when he was only nineteen, Jacob set himself up as a custom shoemaker. He married in 1677 and inherited his father's house and adjoining land in 1682. In 1686, Jacob left his inherited property behind. He and his sister, Joanna Adams Granger (8A), moved with their families 130 miles from Newbury to Suffield Connecticut.

Blue = Suffield, Connecticut Red = Newbury, Massachusetts

In Suffield, Jacob continued his shoemaking business and, by 1693, he had became one of the most prominent and influential citizens there. In the years 1711, 1714 and 1717, Jacob was sent to the General Court of Boston as Suffield's representative. On his last journey there in 1717, Jacob died suddenly at the age of sixty-three.

Jacob's account book

In 1673, from the earliest days of his shoemaking business, Jacob began a twenty year practice of carefully logging all his transactions in an account book. This book was handed down generation to generation until the 1930's when his 7th great-granddaughter, Christine Adams Jones, donated it to Harvard College where the book is now housed in the Baker Libarary Special Collections. According to historian and Cornell professor Blanch Evans Hazard, Jacob's account book "represented (by 95 years) the oldest first-hand records of shoemaking in New England which I had ever seen..."

Jacob's homemade account book was covered in rawhide and hand sewn with linen thread. In it he describes not only business transactions in shoemaking and farming but also his own family and household accounts. The book covers twenty years from 1673-1693. While Jacob started out as a custom shoemaker, accounts show that, in later years, he made shoes for either another master shoemaker or for a wholesaler. Hazard found herself "eager to delve into the early town and family records" to discover why Jacob gave up his custom practice to become what she called an "extra sale worker for some capitalist in the shoe industry..."

Most probably Jacob was one smart cookie and he followed the money.

Below is a page from Jacob's account book which was painstakingly deciphered and transcribed by his descendant Joanna Adams Jones.

the Old Deluder Satan Act

In Newbury, Jacob's education probably began when he was eight years old. The standard number of school years for colonial children in Massachusetts was also eight. Jacob was born at a time when he benefited from the passage of the Old Deluder Satan Act in 1647. The new Act, which mandated community schooling, replaced the 1642 law which had put the onus for children's education on the parents. Since only five years had elapsed between the two acts, it seems fairly obvious that having parents in charge of their children's education was hit and miss. And, it turns out, there was method in the the Puritans madness for mandating community schooling.

Literacy, the Puritans believed, was the key to keeping Luicfer at bay. They made no bones about the religious basis of the act. Their intention was to thwart "ye old deluder, Satan" who constantly endeavored "to keepe men from the knowldge of ye Scriptures." The new law required every town with 50 or more families to hire and maintain a teacher to instruct all children in reading and writing. They went even further in larger towns. In towns of 100 families or more, the grammar school was required to prepare every student for admission to Harvard College.

The act was important in establishing the basic principles of our public schools today. Arguments for the religous intent, however, carry over to the present time and many people still believe that religious instruction goes hand in hand with a child's basic education.

Joanna Adams and her husband Launcelot Granger

Jacob the shoemaker's older sister, Joanna Adams (9A), married Launcelot Granger in 1654.

A fanicful story about Launcelot, first told by his granddaughter, has been passed down from generation to generation until it's imposssible to know the true tale. The saga begins with Launcelot's kidnapping when he was but 12 years old. Forced on board a ship bound for Plymouth, MA, Launcelot served as a cabin boy on the voyage over. After living in Massachusetts for some years, he somehow heard of his mother's death in England. He sailed back to claim his inheritance. While walking to her house, he was acosted by two robbers who demanded his money. A fight ensued. They had swords, he only a quarter-staff. Still, Launcelot prevailed. He killed one and the other fled. He arrived at his mother's house only to find his younger brother in possession of the estate. His brother then hired assassins to take care of Launcelot. This time it was three men with swords Launcelot had to deal with. Again, he defended himself manfully against their swords with his quarterstaff. He killed two, the other fled. After his ordeal, Launcelot decided the inheritance wasn't worth it and sailed back to Massachusetts.

Perhaps it was the name Launcelot that inspired much of that incredible saga. His life in Massachusett's was more mundane though he did manage to get into a little bit of trouble.

It might seem surprising that Robert Adams, a staunch Puritan, would allow his daughter to marry someone like Launcelot Granger. Launcelot never joined the church and he never became a freeman. Our distant cousin James M. Granger (5C5X), author of Launcelot Granger of Newbury Mass and Suffield, Conn wrote of him: "Launcelot, a child of Satan, married a daughter of a Puritan of the strictest kind."

Kent Island

It doesn't appear that Launcelot ever owned property in Newbury. After his marriage in 1654, he and Joanna leased Richard Kent's farm on Kent Island. The farm was twenty acres and included cows, oxen and farming implements. The seven year lease had a yearly rental of forty-six pounds in butter and cheese. Launcelot got a good deal as Kent agreed to pay all tax rates and if any cattle died from "sickness or falling of a tree," Kent would replace them. Kent also agreed to bear the loss of any accident by winds, tempests or fire as long as the damage was not due to Granger's negligence. This agreement was witnessed by Joanna's father, Grandpa Robert Adams.

Only two years later, in 1656, something happened to cause Kent to change his mind about the lease. That year, an the result of an arbitration suit shows up in Court Records: "Richard Kent v. Laucelot Granger, On arbitration (Granger) to deliver his farm to Richard Kent; dated 23 Dec 1656."

It appears that Launcelot wasn't very compliant with the order. From a Court deposition, "Richard Kent sent over his servants to bring hay for the cattle. Mr. Granger refused to let them take away hay, saying that he would not abide by the award of the arbitrators."

That led to another court action on 31 Mar 1657: "Richard Kent v. Lancelott Granger: For not permitting him to take possession of his farm, cattle, etc. Houses farm and cattle to be delivered to the plaintiff within three days..."

"Puritanical bigotry and fanaticism"

Launcelot and Joanna remained in Newbury for another seventeen years after they were evicted from Richard Kent's farm. We can find no records that show where they lived. While there were 91 grants of land in Newbury before 1674, Lancelot's name isn't among them. It's possible he was barred from owning land because he shunned the church. According to James N. Granger "Newbury was a veritable hotbed of Puritanical bigotry and fanaticism; more so, perhaps, than any other town." The rigid rules in Newbury were due to the minister, Thomas Parker. The Wikipedia article on Parker says that "a bitter controversy on the subject of church government divided his parish." Evidently the Reverend Mr. Parker claimed that "he was the sole source of discipline and government, outside the church as well as within it," which divided the townspeople into either pro-Parker or anti-Parker.

James Granger writes that "bitterly the contest raged for years; it permeated all classes of society and tore the little community into factions." In many lawsuits filed, the Court generally sided with Mr. Parker. The town suffered through this chaos until Parker's death in 1677. Evidently Launcelot suffered along with the town until he decided enough was enough. In 1674 he moved with his brother-in-law Jacob Adams (9U) to the town of Suffield in Connecticut.

in Suffield

Launcelot preceded his family to Suffield, where he was immediately granted 60 acres. Success! Finally a land owner! His fortune was shortlived however. Launcelot had been in Suffield only a few months when King Philip's War interrupted the settleing of the town which, without proper fortification, was completley abandoned in the summer of 1675. Many of the residents, Launcelot included, moved the the safer town of Westfield, twelve miles north of Suffield. Safer is a relative term since Westfield was also a frontier town in the line of fire. Authorites ordered the town of Westfield abandoned, as well, but many stayed. Launcelot also decided to stay and was living there when the town was attacked by Native American warriors on 27 Oct 1675. Three men were killed and Launcelot was wounded in the leg. His injury caused him to be lame for the rest of his life.

It appears that Joanna and the children remained in Newbury for the duration of the war.

James Granger writes a fanciful account of Joanna's journey to Suffield with the children: "Over this rough trail, across the hills and vales, through the swamps and streams, and around the rocks, Joanna Granger and her ten children, with little Abraham (1C10X) hardly more than a babe in arms, pushed her way to join the husband and father in the tangled woods of Suffield and build up a new home on the banks of the great river."

However they got there, 1678 the family was reunited in Suffield and there Joanna and Launcelot lived for the rest of their lives.

Note: One of Joanna and Launcelot's grandsons, George Granger, is famous for having 3 wives and seven children with each of them. 21 in all!

two Stephen Greenleafs

Our first cousin Stephen Greenleaf, Sr. (1C10x) was born in England and came to Newbury with his parents, Edmund and Anna Moore Greenleaf (9A). He was most noted for his military service He joined the militia in 1670 and was soon made ensign, serving in King Philip's War. He was appointed lieutenant in 1685 and Captain in 1689. 

In 1690, during King William's War, Stephen was part of an expedition against the French at Cape Breton, Nova Scotia. At least thirty vessels carrying two thousand men were involved in the attack. Every attempt to take the town was repelled by the French. The weather turned bad and a decision was made to abandon the enterprise. On the way back to Boston, Cousin Stephen's ship was lost in the storm. It was assumed that all hands went down with the vessel.

Stephen, Sr.'s son, also named Stephen Greenleaf (2C9X), was born in Newbury in 1652. In addition to many civil positions held in Newbury, Stephen, Jr., like his father, was famed for his service in both King Philip's War in 1775 and King William's War in the 1690's. He served in King Philips War on the Connecticut River and was wounded in the battle of Hatfield, MA in October of 1675. For his service in King William's War, Stephen was mentioned in Cotton Mather's Magnalia as the commander of a company involved in the "celebrated battle" with the French and Indians at Wells, Maine in 1692.

Note: More on the battle at Wells in our Littlefields in Maine post coming up.

In another incident during King William's War, Stephen was injured a second time on 7 Oct 1695. He sent a petition for compensation to the the General Court in March of 1696:

"The petition of Capt. Greenleaf, of Newbury, Humbly Showeth: That upon the Seventh of October last, about three o'clock in the afternoon, a party of Indians suprised a family at Turkey Hill in said town, captured nine persons, women and children, rifled the house, carrying away bedding and dry goods. Only one person escaped, and gave notice to the next family, and they the town. Upon the alarm, your petitioner with a party of men pursued after the enemy, endeavoring to line the river Merrimac to prevent their passage, by which means the captives were recovered and brought back. The enemy lay in a gully hard by the roadway, and about nine at night made a shot at your petitioner, and shot him through the wrist, between the bones, and also made a large wound in his side, which would have been very painful and costly to your petitioner to cure them, and have in a great measure utterly taken away the use of his left hand, and wholly taken off from his employment this winter. Your petitioner therefore honorably prays this honorable court that they would make him such compensation as shall see fit; which he shall thankfully acknowlege, and doubts not but will be an encouragement to others, and possible to relieve their neighbors when assaulted by so barbarous an enemy. And your petitioner shall ever pray. (Signed) Stephen Greenleaf."

The Court voted that "there be paid out of the province treasury to the petitioner the sum of forty pounds."

Counted among the Greenleaf descendants are many semi-famous attorneys, judges, senators and ministers and two sheriffs of Boston from the Revolutionary period. Among the more famous are the poets, John Greenleaf Whittier (6C5X) and T.S. Eliot (9C2X).