Rice Williams (aft. 1670 - 1750)

Husband of Elizabeth (Felton) Williams — married 2 Jul 1706 in Brantham, Suffolk, England

Descendants

Died 1750 before age 80 in East Bergholt, Suffolk, England

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Biography

Rice was born about 1670.

He married Elizabeth Felton, daughter of Timothy Felton and Hannah Hunt. ^[1]

He was a Congregational (non-conformist) minister at East Bergholt in Suffolk from about 1703 to 1750. ^[2]

Rice's daughter, Dorothy Williams was baptised in 1710 in East Bergholt, Suffolk. ^[3]

He passed away in 1750 and was buried on the 26th July 1750 at St Peter's Church in Boxted, Essex. ^{[4] [5]}

Research Notes

No birth or baptism has yet been traced for Rice but it is possible he came from a Welsh background. Rice may be an Anglicisation of Rhys and Williams is a common Welsh surname.

His wife's stepmother, Dorothy Felton, nee Maidstone (the Maidstones were a strongly Puritan family) was from Boxted, a village with strong Puritan sympathies. George Phillips, vicar of Boxted and his family sailed on the "Arabella" in 1630 for America, along with other Puritans. ^[6]

Sources

1. ↑ "England Marriages, 1538–1973 ", database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:NL9W-8XS : 12 March 2020), Rice Williams, 1706.
2. ↑ "History of East Bergholt Congregational church, 1689 -2004" East Bergholt Congregational Church. (http://congregational.chrisjowett.net/ : accessed 27 Mar 2021).
3. ↑ "England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975", database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:JWD6-NVL : 21 September 2020), Dorothy Williams, 1710.
4. ↑ Burial: "Essex, England, Church of England Baptisms, Marriages and Burials, 1538-1812"
   Essex Record Office; Chelmsford, Essex, England; Essex Church of England Parish Registers
   Ancestry au Record 61698 #622761 (accessed 30 January 2022)
   Mr Rice Williams burial (died in 1750) on 26 Jul 1750 in Essex, England.
5. ↑ "Original will of Rice Williams of East Bergholt". Suffolk Heritage Direct. Suffolk Record Office. (http://www.dswebhosting.info/Suffolk/SRODServe/dserve.exe?dsqIni=Dserve.ini&dsqApp=Site31&dsqCmd=Show.tcl&dsqDb=Catalog&dsqPos=0&dsqSearch=%28%28text%29%3D%27rice%20williams%27%29 : accessed 30 January 2022)
6. ↑ "Migration To America" Boxted Village Website. (https://boxted.org.uk/history/migration-to-america/ : accessed 4 November 2015).