THE DALTONS IN HAMPTON

...scituate neare the Sea-coast, not farre from the famous river of Merimeck, the great store of salt marsh did intice this people to set downe their habitations there, ~ Captain Edward Johnson

Hampton Beach

a distinguished family

In The English Home of Timothy Dalton, the Dalton Brothers are described as "a distinguished family group, consisting of the two brothers Timothy and Philemon with their respective wives and sons..."

Timothy Dalton (11U) was born in 1577 and his brother Philemon (10GGF) about 13 years later in 1590. The brothers were obviously intelligent, well-read men. Timothy graduated from Cambridge College in England in 1613 and when Philemon died, he had in his possession 27 books and a bible.

getting out while the getting is good

Timothy Dalton (11U), a recent Cambridge graduate, had landed a post as minister of the church in Woolverstone, Suffolk, England in 1614. He married, had children and preached the gospel. His troubles began with the persecution of the Puritans by the Church of England. Hoards of Puritans fled the country and Timothy Dalton was identified as one of the ministers who "is a great stickler for ye transporting of those people that should goe over unto Newe England..." and it was advised that he "...be inhibited from medling in ye afore-said business..."

Timothy's brother Philemon (10GGF) could obviously see the writing on the wall. With Timothy suspended from his position and under surveillance by the government, Philemon left England for Massachusetts Bay with his wife and young son in 1635.

Nothing whatever is known about Timothy's last years in England, other than his second marriage in 1636. Conjecture is that he was hidden away in a Puritan home until he could make a clandestine getaway. The next we hear of him is in the town of Dedham, MA in 1637, where his brother Philemon had settled.

Philemon

Philemon (10GGF), along with his wife Hanna (10GGM) and their son Samuel (9GGF), preceded Timothy (11U) to the New Word by at least a year, probably two. They left England for America on the ship Increase in April of 1635. The official record of their "examination" before leaving England is as follows:

Aprilis 1635

Theis pties (parties) hereafter expressed are to be transported to New-England imbarqued in ye Increase...having taking the Oathes of Allegeance & Supremacie: As also being conformable to the Governmt & discipline of the Church of England..."

Alynnen wev' (a linen weaver) Philomon Dalton 45 yeres Hanna Dalton 35 yeres Samuel Dalton 5½ yeres Wm. White 14 yeres"

Note: These "examinations" before embarkment were meant to quell the tide of Puritans fleeing the country. The obligatory oaths were utilized to ensure that the emigrants were faithful to the crown and the Anglican religion. The Crown was obviously unsuccessful in quelling the tide as thousands left England and created a staunch Puritan society in the colonies.

The ship Increase docked in Boston and Philemon moved first to Watertown with his little family. It is believed that the fourteen year old William White was a servant he brought with him. In 1636, Philemon became a citizen of the newly founded town of Dedham, 12 miles southeast of Boston, where he was made freeman that same year. His quick acceptance into freeman status shows he was a man of intelligence and culture. He is listed 4th on the Dedham Covenant signed on 16 Aug 1636. His brother Timothy Dalton (11U) is listed 13th. The brothers were not long in Dedham, however, before moving to the little settlement by the sea, Hampton, New Hampshire in 1639.

Blue = Watertown Red = Dedham Green = Hampton

Timothy

It is believed that the Reverend Timothy Dalton (11U) came to America in 1637 with his wife Ruth and his young son Timothy, Jr. (1C11x). It appears that the elder Timothy, though a Puritan, held unorthodox views that were considered dangerous to the powers that be in Massachusetts. He was admitted to the colony under quarantine, needing the approval of the magistrates to stay. Even Dedham, where his brother Philemon was a respected citizen, thought twice about allowing him residence.

Note: The Puritans left England seeking the freedom to practice their religious beliefs. It seems they were not aware of their fundamental hypocrisy in not granting the citizens of Massachusetts Bay the same opportunity.

Admit him Dedham finally did and Timothy, like his brother, became a fairly prosperous landowner. There is no evidence that he had a ministry in Dedham and his controversial past must have followed him to Hampton, as well. When he made the move to New Hampshire with his brother, Timothy was hired as only as "teacher" of the church, working under the already established pastor there.

Hampton

Hampton, at the time the Dalton brothers lived there, was still part of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, but the relationship between Massachusetts and the independent minded New Hampshirites was controversial and and continually complicated by land claims. In 1679, long after the deaths of Philemon and Timothy, King Charles II, aware of the strife create by Puritan rule, separated New Hampshire from Massachusetts.

Note: Many of the outlying colonies like New Hampshire, Maine and Rhode Island were attractive to members of the population who disagreed with strict Puritan ideology. These settlements became havens to the Anabaptists, Quakers and Antinomians of the day.

Below is a map of early Hampton. Both brothers lived on what is now Winnacunnet Road, their homes and properties marked with stars.

Red = Philemon's property Green = Timothy's property

Philemon and Hanna (or Anne as she was commonly known) raised their son, Samuel (9GGF) in Hampton. Anne died sometime before 1656. After Anne's death, Philemon married Dorothy (last name unknown). We know this because he referred to his surviving wife as Dorothy, not Anne. Philemon died in 1662. The circumstances of his death were recorded in The Great Migration 1620-1635 which recounts Philemon's son Samuel's dismissal from a court session when his father was seriously injured:"On 7 May, 1662 Mr. Samuel Dalton (8GGF), deputy for Hampton, having an aged father...dangerously, if not mortally, wounded by the fall of a tree, desiring the favor of this court, is dismissed his attendance at this session..." Philemon's death is recorded on 4 Jun 1662, almost a full month after the accident.

Among other possessions, Philemon bequeathed his books to his wife, his son, and his daughter-in-law, Mehitable Palmer (9GGM), Samuel's wife who was born in Haverhill, MA.

redemption

Timothy Dalton had connections and sympathies with the Reverend John Wheelwright who followed the doctrine of antinomianism, belief in the principle of salvation by faith and grace, not by moral law. Perhaps Timothy had learned something from his failure in England. In the New World, it appears, he was more discreet about his views. He was allowed to take part in civil affairs, even sent by the governor to Dover, NH to quell a religious disturbance. When the pastor of Hampton was pushed out in 1645, the townspeople wanted Timothy to replace him. He chose, however, to stay in his position as teacher and recommended, in his place, his friend and associate John Wheelwright.

Note: John Wheelwright came to Hampton from Wells, Maine where he had gone after being banished from the Massachusetts Colony. Following Rev. Wheelwright to Maine were our grandfathers Edmund (11GGF) and Francis Littlefield (10GGF) who remained there until their deaths.

Timothy Dalton died in Hampton in 1661, a well respected, prosperous man. He was 84 years of age.

In The English Home of Timothy Dalton, John Lauris Blake writes: "All his contemporaries except Mr. Bachiler (former pastor before Wheelwright), speak of the beauty of his private life in that humble country village. Captain [Edward] Johnson pictures him as 'the reverend, grave and gracious Mr. Doulton.'" May his free-thinking heart rest in peace.

a settlement with foresight

From Joseph Dow's History of Hampton:

"When nearly the whole territory of the township, except the salt marshes, was covered with a dense forest which had hitherto been undisturbed, it might, to some people, have appeared of little consequence what TREES should be taken from the public lands. But such was not the opinion of a majority of the freemen (of Hampton). Their course in this matter evinces a great deal of foresight and a careful regard to the welfare of succeeding generations, as well as to their own immediate interest. To prevent waste upon their timber lands by an indiscriminate destruction of trees, the town appointed Philemon Dalton (10GGF), William Easton and William Wakefield, a board of woodwards, to assign to individuals, what trees they might take form the common land."

the salt marshes of Hampton

Salt Marshes are basically meadows threaded with salt creeks. Colonists very early discovered these lands were great sources of hay to feed their cattle. But agriculture eventually claimed the water from Hampton marshes, much like the marsh area between Ipswich and Newbury. Today, Restoration projects have revitalized 6,200 of the original 10,000 acres to create the Hampton Salt Marsh Conservation Area.