52 ANCESTORS, 52 THEMES, No. 50, Deacon Richard MILES II, 1597-1667

This year's challenge by Amy Crow is another weekly blog based on Themes, although it seems not always relevant for me to use!  "Naughty" is the weekly theme, but I'm not following it.  None of our ancestors seems to have run off with someone's wife, or stolen anything, or... Good solid people. So here's one more of my very early immigrant ancestors, Deacon Richard MILES II, from England to New Haven, Connecticut. He is my 10th great-grandfather in my mother's lines.

Richard MILES II was the son of Richard MILES I and Alice CHERRYE, of Hertfordshire England, likely in the Wormley or Great Munden region.  He was born approximately 1597, in Great Munden, Hertfordshire.  Both his parents died about 1628, and he seems to have married shortly afterwards, certainly by 1632. He and his wife, with their first three children, immigrated to New Haven region, first to Milford, and then later moved to New Haven where he owned property by 1643.

His first wife is unknown; their six children are the following, "Herts" = Hertsfordshire:

1. Martha MILES [ancestor], b. abt 1633 Herts Eng., d. bef Dec 1662, East Haven CT; m. 20 Oct 1650 to George PARDEE, New Haven CT; 5 children [Mary PARDEE ancestor]
2. Mary, b. abt 1635 Herts, d. 12 Sep 1730; m.1/ 12 Dec 1654 ti Jonathan Ince; children; m.2/  22 Oct 1661 in Norwalk CT  to Rev Thomas Hanford.
3. Richard III, b. abt 1637 Herts, d. Boston MA; m. Experience Callicott
4. Samuel, bap 22 Apr 1640, New Haven CT, d. 24 Dec 1678; m. 9 Apr 1667 to Hannah WILMOT, 5 children; Hannah's 2nd marr. to Miles MERWIN II, 3 children [Elizabeth MERWIN ancestor]
5. Anna/Hannah, b. abt 1642, New Haven CT, d. 19 Jul 1730 West Haven CT; m. 3 Nov 1664 to Samuel Street; 7 children
6. John, b. Oct 1644, New Haven CT.

Note that Martha MILES Pardee is my 9th great-grandmother; Hannah WILMOT Merwin is my 7th great-grandmother; the lines braid.

In 1646, Richard married a second time to a New Haven widow, Katherine Elithorpe Constable, originally from Yorkshire, England. She had no children from her first husband, nor any with Richard.  He apparently was appointed deputy to the general court in 1651.

Richard died Jan. 7th, 1666/67 in New Haven, CT, having written his will December 28th, 1666.

Although a will is known of, and was probated by June 13th, 1667, six months later, I have not yet seen/found a copy of it.  His second wife, Katherine, died almost 20 years later Jan. 8th, 1687/88, at the apparent age of 96 years, in Wallingford, CT, approximately 14 miles north of New Haven.

Several resources provide information on the MILES family: Families of Ancient New Haven, History of the Colony of New Haven, and Families of Early Milford, are three useful texts, along with Genealogical and Family History of the State of Connecticut, Vol.III,  which had potted histories as well. American Ancestors website databases are also helpful in shedding some additional light. 

If you know anything more about any of the above individuals, I would be so pleased for more details. And if you wish more information on them, I'm happy to share. Contact me at my address at the bottom of the page, or in the Comments section.

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