#52Ancestors: Dr. Comfort STARR 1589-1659, England to Massachusetts

 Another post in the year-long challenge, #52Ancestors by genealogist Amy Johnson Crow. I am behind, but every post is another post! Today I am writing about Dr. Comfort STARR, in the RICE line of my ex-husband [and his brother], his 9th great-grandfather, our children's 10th, grandchildren's 11th great-grandfather. Online trees on various sites list several generations back plus additional children, aunts and uncles, but this is a fairly new-to-me ancestor and more research will be taken up later this year. His surname is spelled occasionally as STAR or STARRE. 

A major resource was the Ashford Parish Register, in Kent, England. Note the red ink Tudor rose under the green crown on the left side, with E and R on either side of the rose. A beautiful book with careful writing. A challenge still to read because of the way letters were formed back then, but at least they were tidy! A secondary source was the Tyler Indexes for Kent County, handwritten abstracts. Both found on FindMyPast.

Comfort STARR was baptized 6 July 1589, in Cranbrook, Kent, England of Thomas jr. and Susan STARR. Baptism shown above. The Thomas STARR family were Dissenters, strongly Separatist re their religious practices. See St Mary the Virgin church in Ashford, here. 

Siblings of Comfort [eldest child] were Moregifte [son], William [son], Suretrust [dau], Mercie [dau], Standwell/or Standfast [dau], Judit [dau], Truth-Shall-Prevail [dau], Joyfull [son], Constance [dau], and Beloved [son].  I believe there might be one or two more children whose baptisms I have yet to find, and several died young. 

Comfort became a chirurgeon [physician/surgeon], and on Oct 4th, 1614 he married Elizabeth MITCHELL, in Northiam, Sussex, England, a nearby town.  Elizabeth was the daughter of Thomas Hayward MITCHELL and Margaret.  Comfort and Elizabeth appeared to move to Ashford, Kent, shortly after their marriage; Ashford was a bustling town with particular success in textiles manufacturing. 

The family - Comfort, wife Elizabeth, and their children plus Comfort's sister, Truth-Shall-Prevail, travelled to Massachusetts from the port of Sandwich Kent, on the Hercules in 21 Mar 1634/35. This was a time called "the Great Migration" when many people left because of extreme unhappiness with the Church of England and its "popishness" and more. It is likely that others on the ship were well-known to Comfort and his family.

Children  (10) of Comfort and Elizabeth - all but 1 were baptized in Ashford, Kent in St. Mary the Virgin; not all details of all children have been researched as yet: 

    1.  Thomas, bap 31 Dec 1616, d 25 Dec 1658 Yarmouth MA; m. abt 1639
             to Rachel Harris in Massachusetts, 3 boys known
    2.  Judith, bap 11 Jan 1617/18, d. by 25 Aug 1622, Eng.

    3.  Mary, [ancestor], bap 16 Apr 1620, d. 22 Apr 1659 Sudbury
             Middlesex, MA; m. abt 1638 to Thomas AXTELL from Berkhamstead,
             Hertfordshire, Eng; 1 known, others not yet found

    4.  Elizabeth, bap 3 Jun 1622; m. 1642 to John Fernside

    5.  Comfort [jr], bap 11 Apr 1624

    6.  John, bap 25 Oct 1626

    7  Samuell, bap 2 Mar 1627/28, d. by 16 Apr 1633, Eng.

    8.  Hanna, bap 22 Jul 1632

    9.  Liddia, bap 22 Mar 1634 

  10.  Ruth, est bap 1637 in Cambridge MA

In 1638, Dr. Comfort STARR and family removed to Duxbury, Plymouth, MA, and they resided there until 1646. He was well regarded, and was a member of the General Court in 1642. At that point, they moved to Boston, Suffolk, MA, and remained there. In addition, he was a Charter Fellow of Harvard College in 1650, and his son was also active in the College. For more information and details, I am hoping to do more research on the NEHGS site, AmericanAncestors.com, within the coming year. 

 His wife, Elizabeth, died in Boston 25 Jun 1658; by this time all children were of adult age, and several were married, as can be seen in the list of children above. 

Dr. Comfort STARR wrote out his will 22 Apr 1659, and died within the year; probate is dated 2 Jan 1659/60.    

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If these are your ancestors, I am happy to share what little I have on these ancestors. And if there are errors, please do let me know, via calewis at telus dot net, or in the Comments below and I will get back to you either by email or in the Comments. I appreciate the opportunity to correct any issues in these family trees.

Blogger - or my computer - is still not letting me "reply" to your comments, for some unknown reason. If I don't reply to your Comment, please know that I'm totally thrilled you came to read my post and commented!  You truly make my day!!

52 ANCESTORS in 52 WEEKS, No. 49: Benjamin GRAVES, 1645-1724

Following the challenge from Amy Johnson Crow to write a post weekly, 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks, here is my 49th installment, my 7th Great-grandfather, Benjamin GRAVES, son of the immigrant, John GRAVES. 

John GRAVES is the #166 family line in the GRAVES FAMILY ASSOCIATION lineages.  DNA is being used to clarify the relationships between the various "Graves/Greaves" immigrants who came early to the New England colony in approximately 1635ish, settling in Concord, Massachusetts. We have no information about his wife, and can only assume she died at some point after the 3rd child. The FindAGrave memorial on John states his wife was Joan Anne (Joanne) Bird, but I have not found/seen proof of this statement. 

Benjamin GRAVES, b. 1645 in Concord, was the eldest of the three siblings: John b. 1647 - d.after 1692, Sarah b. 1650 - d.1694. All the children married and had children as well.

On 21 Oct 1668, in Concord, Benjamin married Mary HOAR(E); she was b. abt 1648 in Concord, 2nd daughter of John & Alice HOAR(E).  Record from New England Marriages Prior to 1700.

Benjamin & Mary had the following children, born in Concord except for the last child born in Saybrook, Connecticut:
  1.  Mary, b. 18 Jan 1669/70, d. 22 Oct 1736 Marlborough MA;  in Sudbury CT, m. 1 Apr 1691 Benjamin Rice, son of Edward Rice & Anne/Agnes Bent; 9 children.  Note - Mary & Benjamin Rice line links to my children's father's direct Rice line. 
  2.   Elizabeth/Mehitable, b. 25 Apr 1671, d. 4 Apr 1730 Lyme CT; in New London CT, m. 20 Dec 1706 Joseph Beebe, 10 children
  3.   Ruth, b. 25 Nov 1674, d. 12 Nov 1755; In Saybrook CT, m.(1) 25 Jan 1699/00 John Webb, 7 children; m. (2) William Merriam 7 Nov 1711, 4 children
  4.   Benjamin (jr), b. 2 Mar 1676/77, d. 30 Dec 1752 Colchester CT;  in 1698, m. (1) Ruth Sterling, 5 children; abt 1711 m. (2)  Mary Haynes, 8 children
  5.   Joseph [ancestor], b. 1 Sep 1679, d.after 2 Apr 1756 New Cambridge CT; m. abt 1718 to Sarah [unknown]. 3 known children
  6.   Joanna, b. 2 Feb 1680/81; no further information on Joanna.
  7.   John, b. 1683, d. 29 Dec 1766 Walpole NH; m. 30 May 1710 Killingworth CT to Hannah Farnum, 11 children
  8.    Rebecca, b. abt 1685 Saybrook CT; m. 12 Dec 1706 in New London CT to Jonathan Daniels

He provided service in the Indian Wars, fighting in Capt. Wheeler's Concord Company in 1675, and again did military service in 1676.  

Benjamin and his younger brother John, along with others, purchased in May 20, 1681 from Christopher Hall, "all the mines and minerals of one kind and another, found, or to be found, or that may be found, on his land in Groton Mass, at a place called Cold Spring, near William Longley's house, with liberty to dig, delve or use theland and to erect buildings."  No record apparently exists to show that Benjamin actually developed these mineral rights.  

He and his family moved to Saybrook MA about 1684, and bought lands in the north part of Saybrook (Pattaconke) in January 1703.  

On Mar 18 1715 he deeded half his farm lands to his second son Joseph, and on Sep or Nov 14, 1716 deeded other lands to his third son John.  It is not clear why he did not deed lands to his eldest son Benjamin, but he may have already provided land or goods to him at an earlier date. 

It is assumed he died shortly after Nov 1716, but although there are various individuals showing a 1715 or 1716 death, I have not found a record of his death.  Another date shown by several researchers suggests it was before 23 Mar 1723/24.  A date of 5 Jun 1697 is given for his wife's death, Mary Hoar(e), on a memorial page at  FindAGrave, for the Old Burying Ground, Concord, Massachusetts.  I have not found a record stating such.

Details from above may be found on the Graves Family Association, under John Graves of Concord #166; History of the Hoare Family in America;  Concord Register; New England Marriages Prior to 1700.  


If you have additional information or details, I would appreciate learning more about Benjamin GRAVES, b. 1645.  Corrections are very welcome and received gratefully.  And do contact me via calewis at telus dot net or through the Comments below.  Thank you for visiting.