52 ANCESTORS in 52 WEEKS, #16: Henry OLIN

Following the challenge of writing 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks, issued by Amy Johnson Crow, here is my 16th installment, for Henry OLIN.  Henry is my ex-husband's 5th great-grandfather, on his mother's line (Rice).  

Henry OLIN was born approximately 1719, in East Greenwich, Rhode Island. East Greenwich is one of the oldest towns in Rhode Island, legally established in 1677. The first OLIN known to settle in the area was his father John OLIN.  There is an Olin Family Society, also on Facebook [closed group], and their society's 'webcards' genealogy with various OLIN family tree lines, which I have not investigated as thoroughly as I need to. And there are several books published about this very early settler, available through Internet Archive. 

Henry apparently had 4 wives (sequentially, of course), with a total of 16 children. The records are not clear as to which wife was the mother of which children, specifically the mother of our direct descendant, his son, Caleb, b. in 1753. 

One can see several breaks in the children's births which may indicate the death of a wife, and a subsequent marriage:  (a) after #2, John's birth;  (b) after #7, Henry's birth; (c) after #8, Sibil's birth. The birth years are not listed for daughters Susannah and Rebecca, who are listed in published works as born between son Pelig's birth and son Caleb's birth.  

Henry's children by his various wives : 

1. Justin,  b. 17 Jul 1739; d. 7 Jul 1821, Liecester, VT
2. John, (3rd), b. 17 Sep 1741; d. 24 Sep 1831, Shaftsbury, VT
3. Pelig Olin, b. 20 May 1746; d. Cambridge NY [son]
4. Susannah, b.?
5. Rebecca, b. ?
6. **Caleb [ancestor], b.8 Dec 1753, Old Warwick, RI; m. 15 Jan 1775 to Freelove Mitchell; 11 children
7. Henry, b. abt 1754, d. young
8. Sibil, b. abt 1758  [dau]
9. Paris, b. 1765, d. bef 1780  [son]
10. Hannah, b. 1767
11. Sarah, b. 1770
12. Ezra, b. 1772
13. Phoebe, b. 1774
14. Henry, b. 1776
15. Nancy, b. 1779
16. Joseph, b. 1781

We know more about Henry's father, than we do about Henry.  Henry's father, John OLIN, was originally from Wales, pressed on board a British war vessel, before 1678. Only 14 years of age, he apparently managed to leave the ship in Boston Harbor and settled in East Greenwich RI in about 1678. John married Susannah Spencer in East Greenwich on 4 Dec 1708; the Spencer family were also originally from Wales. They had at least four children: Joseph, John, Henry, and Eleanor.  John was known to be a farmer in RI.  Interestingly, John is described in one record as being of medium stature and with red hair. 

Henry lived to be over 100 years of age, with a death date of 7 July 1821 (102 years).  He is said to have died in Leicester, Vermont, where others of his family had also settled. 

I clearly have a great deal of research still to do on this line.  My mother-in-law had a brother whose middle name was OLIN, which I thought unusual and got me started researching the Olin line.  

If you have any information or questions about any of the above details, do contact me via calewis at telus dot com, or leave a comment below.