Abraham Parker and Rose Whitlock
Husband Abraham Parker
Born: Christened: 6 Feb 1619 - Great Burstead, Essex Died: 12 Aug 1685 - Chelmsford, Middlesex Co., Ma 1 Buried:
Father: John Parker (Abt 1588-After 1630) Mother: Ann ( - )
Marriage: 18 Nov 1644 - Woburn, Middlesex Co., Ma 2
Wife Rose Whitlock
Born: Christened: Died: 30 Nov 1691 - Chelmsford, Middlesex Co., Ma 1 Buried:
Children
1 F Hannah/Anna Parker
Born: 29 Oct 1645 - Woburn, Middlesex Co., Ma 2 Christened: 1 Feb 1657 - Chelmsford, Middlesex Co., Ma 1 Died: Buried:
2 M John Parker
Born: 30 Oct 1647 - Woburn, Middlesex Co., Ma 2 Christened: 1 Feb 1657 - Chelmsford, Middlesex Co., Ma 1 Died: 14 Apr 1699 - Chelmsford, Massachusetts 3 Buried:Spouse: Mary Danforth (1656- ) Marr: 4 Jun 1678 - Chelmsford, Massachusetts 4
3 M Abraham Parker
Born: 8 Mar 1650 - Woburn, Middlesex Co., Ma 2 Christened: Died: 20 Oct 1651 - Woburn, Middlesex Co., Ma 2 Buried:
4 M Abraham Parker
Born: Aug 1652 Christened: 1 Feb 1657 - Chelmsford, Middlesex Co., Ma 1 Died: 13 Oct 1732 - Bradford, Essex Co., Ma 5 6 Buried:Spouse: Martha Livermore ( - ) Marr: 15 Jul 1682 - Chelmsford, Massachusetts 7
5 F Mary Parker
Born: 20 Nov 1655 - Chelmsford, Middlesex Co., Ma 1 Christened: Died: 27 Jul 1694 - Groton, Middlesex Co., Ma Buried:Spouse: James Parker (1652-1694) Marr: 11 Dec 1678 - Chelmsford, Massachusetts 8
6 M Moses Parker
Born: Abt 1656 - Chelmsford, Middlesex Co., Ma 1 Christened: Died: 12 Oct 1732 - Chelmsford, Middlesex Co., Ma 1 Buried:Spouse: Abigail Hildreth ( - ) Marr: 19 Jun 1684 - Chelmsford, Middlesex Co., Ma 1
7 M Isaac Parker
Born: 13 Sep 1660 - Chelmsford, Middlesex Co., Ma 1 Christened: Died: 22 Feb 1689 - Chelmsford, Middlesex Co., Ma 1 Buried:Spouse: Esther Fletcher ( - ) Marr: 11 Apr 1681 - Chelmsford, Middlesex Co., Ma 1
8 F Elisabeth Parker
Born: 10 Apr 1663 - Chelmsford, Middlesex Co., Ma 1 Christened: Died: Buried:
9 F Lidiah Parker
Born: 17 Feb 1666 - Chelmsford, Middlesex Co., Ma 1 Christened: Died: Buried:
10 M Jacob Parker
Born: 24 Mar 1669 - Chelmsford, Middlesex Co., Ma 1 3 Christened: Died: Buried:
General Notes: Husband - Abraham Parker
The following is on page 91 of an article by Douglas Richardson in The New England Historical and Genealogical Register (Vol 153 (1999), pgs 81-96). The article is entitled "THE ENGLISH ORIGIN AND ANCESTRY OF THE PARKER BROTHERS OF MASSACHUSETTS and of their Probable Aunt, Sarah Parker, Wife of Edward Converse".
"ABRAHAM (or ABRAM) PARKER, immigrant to New England, bp. at Great Burstead, 6 Feb 1619, as "son of John and Anna Parker"; d. at Chelmsford, Mass., 12 Aug 1685. He m. at Woburn, Mass., 18 Nov 1644, Rose Whitlock, who d. at Chelmsford 30 Nov 1691.
"Abraham Parker kept an ordinary or public house at Chelmsford, and served the town as grand juryman, 1658/9; constable, 1673; and tithingman, 1679. Abraham Parker, "Senior," left a will dated Aug 1685, proved 6 Oct 1685, in which he named his wife, Rose; his sons, John, Abraham, Moses, and Isaac Parker; and daughters, Mary, wife of James Parker, Elizabeth Parker, and Lydia, wife of John Kidder."
PARKER in AMERICA:
An account of Abraham and his descendants is on pages 530-32 in Parker in America, which can be seen at http://jenningsweb.us/ParkerInAmerica.html. See below for more details. Abraham was one of five men with surname Parker who were early settlers in Massachusetts. The following begins on page 530:
Abraham Parker is first found in Woburn, where he married and where four of his children were born. As early as 1655, he removed to the new town of Chelmsford where he thenceforth lived and where he died, August 12, 1685. He married, November 18, 1644, Rose Whitlock. She died November 30 (or 13), 1691. Both left wills and from these clear information may be derived. Children:
Ann, b. Oct. 29, 1645; probably d. early.
John, b. Oct 30, 1647.
Abraham, b. Mch. 8, 1650; d. Oct. 20, 1651.
Abraham, b. Aug. ---, 1652.
Mary, b. Nov. 20, 1655; m. James(2) Parker [Cap. James(1)].
Moses, date of birth not found.
Isaac, b. Sept. 13, 1660.
Elizabeth, b. Apl. 10, 1663; m. James Pierce of Woburn.
Lydia, bap. Feb. 18, 1665-6; m. John Kidder of Chelmsford.
Jacob, b. Mch. 24, 1669; probably d. early.
FIVE BROTHERS:
Pages 529-547 in Parker in America are devoted to five brothers named Parker who were early settlers in Massachusetts and the next two generations of their progeny. The brothers are generation 1, and thus generations 1, 2, and 3 are described in detail, and the names and birthdates of the children in the 4th generation are listed. A number in parenthesis after a name indicates the generation, and a name in brackets indicates the father's name. The following introduction from page 529 indicates the provenance of the analysis, which appears to have been very carefully done.
In 1905 a writer over the initials of W. H. M. A. contributed a series of articles to the Boston Transcript relating to the genealogy of four of five brothers who were early in America, and whose descendants are now numerous. Through the kindness of Wm. A. Parker, then of Kansas City, Mo., now St. Joseph, Mo., the articles were sent to the compiler of this work, who gives them space because of the convenience it will be for descendants to obtain the genealogy of their remote ancestry:
In the early settlement of Chelmsford and Billerica, Mass., appeared five men of the name of Parker -- namely, Abraham, Jacob, James, Joseph, John. Most of them were brothers and it is believed all were thus related. At least two of their number had previously resided at Woburn.
John settled in Billerica with the first of its pioneers and until his death, June 14, 1667, was the leading man of the town. He left a widow, Mary, who had formerly been widow of John Poulter. She married, third, April 19, 1674, Thomas Chamberlain. John Parker left no children, but descendants of his brothers were numerous. The writer has often had occasion to investigate this family, and except for what is given of certain branches in Butler's "Groton" in concise form and with some erroneous connections the lack of information in print has necessitated recourse to original records. An effort is here made to account for the first three generations with some degree of system for the benefit of all who are interested. In doing this examination has been made of town and probate records, together with over 500 deeds. These efforts should lead to a considerable degree of accuracy, and nearly all members of that period are accounted for, but some things are lacking, and it is earnestly requested that those who can supply additions and corrections will send them to the Transcript.
The early Parkers were a fine, prominent and interesting family, and they deserve more attention than they have, heretofore, received. In this article the brothers and their descendants are divided into separate groups as follows: First, Abraham, second Jacob, third James, fourth Joseph.
INTERNET SOURCE:
The text of the article in the Boston Transcript, which is in Parker in America on pages 529-547 is accessible at http://jenningsweb.us/ParkerInAmerica.html. It is pointed out there that a block of lines in the original article was printed in the wrong place in Parker in America. That error has been corrected in the internet version.
BIRTH DATES:
The birth dates of the first 3 children and Abraham's death date are in Vital Records of Woburn compiled by Edward F. Johnson in 1890. He states in the preface that all dates are New Style. The dates in Parker in America are New Style and agree with Johnson. The birth records of Mary and all subsequent children are in Vital Records of Chelmsford published by the Essex Institute in 1914; they almost agree with those in Parker in America. It is not stated whether they are Old Style or New Style, but they appear to be Old Style. The vital records of many Massachusetts towns can be seen at http://ma-vitalrecords.org/.
The second child named Abraham may have been born in Billerica since his birth does not appear in the records of either Woburn or Chelmsford. Actually it does appear in the Chelmsford records, since on February 1, 1656 (OS), Abraham's oldest 3 surviving children were baptized in Chelmsford, and the baptismal records provide an indication, albeit a bit cryptic, of when the child was born. Specifically
Anna, d. Abraham, bp. 1: 12m: 1656, a. 11 y. in 8 m. 1656. PR1
John, s. Abraham, bp. 1: 12m: 1656, a. 9 y. in 8 m. 1656. PR1
Abraham, s. Abraham, bp. 1: 12m: 1656, a. 4 y. in 6 m. 1656. PR1
Mare, d. Abraham and Roas, Nov. 15, 1655. [Nov. 20. CTR]
Moses, s. Abraham and Roas-m [after 1655.]
Isake, s. Abraham and Roas, Sept. 13, 1660.
Elisabeth d., Abraham and Rose, Apr. 10, 1663.
Lidiah, d. Abraham and Rose, Feb. 17, 1665.
Jacob, s. Abraham and Rose, Mar. 24, 1669.
"PR1" refers to extracts from Rev. John Fiske's note-book now in possession of the Massachusetts Historical Society. "CTR" refers to records of the Middlesex Co. Quarterly Court. The dates are Old Style, and "1: 12m: 1656" is the first day of the 12th month in 1656, which is February 1, 1657 New Style. The 8th month of 1656 was October (March was the first month), so if Anna was 11 years old in the 8th month of 1656, she was born in October 1645. Similarly John was born in October 1647, and Abraham was born in August 1652.
MIGRATION of the BROTHERS:
The first mention of any of the brothers in official colonial records is in 1640, when the section previously known as Charlestown Village was in the formative stages of becoming a new town called Woburn. Town Commissioners held their first meeting on December 18 of that year to draft "Town Orders". Among the 32 who subscribed to these Orders, according to Samuel Sewall's 1868 History of Woburn, was "Jams Parker". Sewall also records that James Parker became a "freeman," or voting member of the community, in 1644, and his brother Abraham was made a freeman the following year. Both paid a levy to the new town in 1645.
So James came to Massachusetts in 1640 or in the late 1630's. He probably came with his younger brother Abraham. James and Abraham married in Woburn in May 1643 and in November 1644, respectively. Since their older brother John Parker married in Essex in June 1642, we know that he did not accompany them.
Why did they emigrate and why to Massachusetts? Probably because Edward Converse, the husband of their aunt Sarah, had come to Massachusetts in 1630 after the death of his wife. He initially settled in Charlestown where he operated a ferry between Charlestown and Boston. At some point he moved to Woburn where he died in 1663.
John had no children, but the other brothers procreated prolifically. Abraham's 3 oldest children were born in Woburn, the youngest in 1650; his fifth child was born in Chelmsford in 1655, and all the rest were born there as well. Abraham died in Chelmsford in 1685.
James's 4 oldest children were born in Woburn between 1645 and 1650. The youngest 3 were born in Chelmsford after 1658, and the middle 3 were probably born in Billerica. In 1652 James and two others purchased the great "Dudley Farm" in Billerica, and he resided there for several years until he moved onward to Chelmsford. Billerica is between Woburn and Chelmsford.
We have birth records for Woburn, Chelmsford and Billerica. There is no birth record for 3 of James's middle children and for one middle child of Abraham. I don't know how complete the birth records in those 3 towns are in the 1650's. I have conjectured that all the children without birth records were born in Billerica, James residing there longer than Abraham. James and Abraham probably left Woburn about 1651. Abraham was probably in Billerica in August 1652 when his son Abraham was born and was then in Chelmsford when the next child was born in 1655. James tarried in Billerica and was not in Chelmsford until 1657 or so.
At some time after the birth of his son Eleazer in November 1661, James moved to Groton, where he was long the town's foremost citizen -- a large landholder, captain, selectman in most years from 1662 to 1699. He died there in 1700.
Joseph married in Essex in April 1650, and his first child was born in Chelmsford in October 1651. He probably emigrated directly from Essex to Chelmsford, and he had 6 children there from 1651 to 1663. The first child of Jacob, the youngest brother, was born in Chelmsford about 1652, and he had 8 children there between 1652 and 1667. Maybe he married in Essex, maybe in Massachusetts. He and his brother Joseph probably emigrated together; Joseph, at least, was in Chelmsford by October 1651, which suggests that their brother Abraham was there by that date. This is contrary to the above suggestion that Abraham was in Billerica in August 1652. Billerica and Chelmsford are about 5 miles apart.
W. H. M. A. says that John immigrated to New England by 1649, settled first at Woburn, and by 1654 was in Billerica. He was the first town clerk of Billerica, the first collector of taxes, and he built the first meeting house there. He died there in 1667.
Jacob died in Billerica in 1669 but was a selectman in Chelmsford until the time of his death.
Joseph moved from Chelmsford to Groton between the birth of his next-to-last child in November 1663 and the birth of his last child in November 1666. More specifically he was dismissed to the church in Groton in May 1665. Later -- perhaps about 1673 -- he moved to Dunstable, where he was constable there from 1675 to 1682. As early as 1684 he was again in Chelmsford and perhaps resided there continuously until his death in 1690.
In summary, each of the 5 brothers, except for John, lived for many years in Chelmsford. John lived in Billerica not far away. The 3 older brothers had lived previously in Woburn. The 2 younger brothers immigrated directly to Chelmsford. Jacob lived all his life there; Joseph moved to Groton and then to Dunstable, but returned to Chelsmford. Abraham remained in Chelmsford and died there, and James moved to Groton where he died in 1700.
SAMUEL SEWALL:
The following is on page 628 of Samuel Sewall's History of Woburn (1868). See
http://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/moa/afj7759.0001.001?type=simple&rgn=full+text&q1=Jams+Parker&submit=Search
PARKER. Abraham; early settled in Woburn, being taxed there 8 Sept. 1645, the first tax for the Country on record. He married, 18 Nov. 1644, Rose Whitlock, by whom he had: (1) Hannah [Anna, County Records,] born 29 Oct. 1645. (2) John, b. 30 Oct. 1647. (3) Abraham, b. 8 March, 1650, died 20, 1651. (4) Abraham, again, b. Aug. 1652. About this time, he removed to Chelmsford, where he had other children born to him. He was made freeman 1645; and died 12 Aug. 1685. His widow died 13 Nov. 1691. [Woburn Records: Savage's Geneal. Diet.; Col. Records.]
PARKER. James: freeman 1644; a subscriber at Charlestown to the "Town Orders" for Woburn, 1640; and taxed in Woburn, 1645 and 1646. He married, 23 May, 1643, Elizabeth, daughter of Robert Long of Charlestown. By her he had: (1) Elizabeth, born 12 March, 1645. (2) Ann, b. 5 Jan. 1646-7. (3) John, b. 18 Jan. 1648-9. (4) Sarah, b. 29 Aug. 1650; died 15 Oct. 1651. (5) Joseph, b. 1651. (6) James, b. 15 Apr. 1652, and killed by the Indians, 27 July, 1694. About 1652, he removed from Woburn to Chelmsford, where he had other children born to him; and from Chelmsford to Groton. He died, 1701, in his 84th year. [Woburn Town Rec. and Records of Births, etc. Savage's Geneal. Reg.]
CHELMSFORD RECORDS:
"Massachusetts, U.S., Town and Vital Records, 1620-1988", Chelmsford > Town and Land Records, with Births, Marriages, and Deaths at ancestry.com, 230 images:
At a general town meeting of the freeholders of Chelmsford the second day of March Anno Domini 1741/42 a committee was appointed to transcribe the First Book of Records to preserve the said records for the future (pg 1, image 22/230). On page 22 (image 33/230) in a comment dated 28 Dec 1747 it is pointed out that the First Book of Records was in many places torn and defaced, that in other places the births and deaths were wholly lost, and that in some places the month or year was missing.
The following is from the 1740's copy:
pg 2
Mary Parker the Daughter of Abraham Parker and Roas his wife was Born November: 15: 1655.
pg 3
Isaac Parker the Son of Abraham Parker and Roas his wife was born September: 13: 1660.
pg 4
Elisabeth Parker the Daughter of Abraham Parker and Roas his wife was born April: 10: 1663.
pg 6
Lidya Parker the Daughter of Abraham and Rose his wife was Born February the: 17: 1665.
pg 7
Jacob Parker the Son of Abraham and Roase Parker was Born the: 24: March: 1669.
pg 12
Daniel Parker the Son of Abraham and Martha Parker was Born the: 15: of July: 1683.
1 "Vital Records of Chelmsford, Massachusetts," The Essex Institute, 1914, Repository: http://ma-vitalrecords.org/.
2 Edward F. Johnson, "Vital Records of Woburn, Massachusetts," 1890, Repository: http://ma-vitalrecords.org/.
3 Massachusetts, U.S., Town and Vital Records, 1620-1988, Chelmsford > Town and Land Records. Repository: http://www.ancestry.com.
4 Massachusetts, U.S., Compiled Marriages, 1633-1850, FHL Film # 0769338 & 0901881. Repository: http://www.ancestry.com.
5 "Vital Records of Bradford, Massachusetts to the end of 1849," Repository: http://ma-vitalrecords.org/.
6 "Find-a-Grave," Memorial # 18149463.
7 Massachusetts, U.S., Town and Vital Records, 1620-1988, Watertown > Births, Marriages and Death. Repository: http://www.ancestry.com.
8
Massachusetts, U.S., Compiled Marriages, 1633-1850, Groton. Repository: http://www.ancestry.com.
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