Benjamin Almy (1724 - 1818)

Born 16 Dec 1724 in Newport, Rhode Island

Ancestors

Husband of Sarah (Coggeshall) Almy — married 22 May 1751 in Newport, Rhode Island

Husband of Mary (Gould) Almy — married 22 Oct 1762 in Newport, Rhode Island

Descendants

Died 20 Feb 1818 at age 93 in Newport, Rhode Island, United States

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Ann Carmel [send private message]

Biography

Benjamin Almy was born in Newport, Rhode Island 16 December 1724 to John Almy and Anstiss Ellery.

He married twice: first, in 1751, to Sarah Coggeshall, daughter of Thomas and Sarah Coggeshall; and second, in 1762, to Mary Gould, daughter of James Gould and Mary Rathbun, at Trinity Church, Newport, Rhode Island.

Commander of Privateer General Johnston of Newport in 1756 and 1760.

Lieutenant Benjamin Almy served with Rhode Island during the American Revolution.

Benjamin Almy is an NSSAR Patriot Ancestor.
NSSAR Ancestor #: P-103027
Rank: Lieutenant (Navy)

During the Revolution, Benjamin Almy volunteered in to fight under the command of General John Sullivan and was away from home during the Battle of Rhode Island (1778). [See Mrs. Mary Almy's account of the cannonading of the French Fleet in Newport.]

His wife - a staunch Tory - wrote a series of letters to her husband detailing the siege of Newport throughout August 1778.

The Sloop Adventure belonged to Benjamin Almy & Co., and it made voyages to the West Indies - one of them noted in 1788.

Captain Benjamin Almy died in February 1818/1819 and was buried in the Old Common Cemetery, Newport, Rhode Island.

Research

Benjamin appears as head of household in the 1774 census of Rhode Island^[1]. The distribution of the household and inferred attributions are

• one man over 16: Benjamin
• four boys under 16: sons Benjamin, Samuel, Walter, and James
• two women over 16: Mary and her step-daughter Sarah
• two girls under 16: two of the daughters Susannah, Anstice, or Katherine
• two Blacks: unknown

It is strange that only two young girls appear since, according to "William Almy and his Descendants in America", all three of Mary's daughters lived into adulthood.

Sources

1. ↑ 1774 Census

• WILLIAM ALMY and His Descendants in America By Merwin F. Almy (Genealogy) And Thomas A. Almy (Computer Technology)July 2001 Almy Descendant No. 1239-2 http://almy.us/news/book/index.html

• "Rhode Island Births and Christenings, 1600-1914", database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:F835-Y8B : 17 December 2019), Benjamin Almy, 1724.

• Newport Town Records, RI Historical Magazine, Vol 1, page 50, 53, 54.

• Vital Records of Rhode Island, Arnold, Volume 10, page 450. At Trinity Church.

• "Rhode Island Marriages, 1724-1916", database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:F8KV-J2N : 22 January 2020), Benjamin Almy, 1751.

• Rhode Island Colonial War Servicemen, 1740-62.

• Guide to Mrs. Mary Almy's account of the cannonading of the French Fleet in Newport 1778, 1878 , RLC.Ms.032 Redwood Library and Athenaeum, Newport, Rhode Island.

• Abstract of Graves of Revolutionary Patriots.

• Old Common Cemetery. Abstract of Graves of Revolutionary Patriots, Vol.1, p. Serial: 10094; Volume: 5.

• Capt Benjamin Almy on Find A Grave: Memorial #122570925 Retrieved 13:34, 18 November 2017 (EST).

• 1774 Rhode Island Census. (http://www.newhorizonsgenealogicalservices.com/1774-ri-colonial-census-newport.htm).

Acknowledgments

Thanks to Ann Carmel for starting this profile. Click the Changes tab for the details of contributions by Ann and others.