John Calef (1726 - 1812)

Born 30 Aug 1726 in Ipswich, Essex, Massachusetts Bay

Ancestors

Husband of Margaret (Rogers) Calef — married 7 Nov 1747 (to 27 Mar 1751) in Ipswich, Essex, Massachusetts Bay

Husband of Dorothy (Jewett) Calef — married 18 Jan 1753 in Ipswich, Essex, Province of Massachusetts Bay

Descendants

Died 23 Oct 1812 at age 86 in Saint Andrews, Charlotte, New Brunswick, Canada

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Biography

Dr. John Calef served with Loyalists during the American Revolution.

"Dr. Calef... was born in Ipswich, Mass, Aug. 30, 1726, the son of Robert and Margaret (Standiford) Calef.... In 1755, the Governor ordered Dr. Calef to Fort Halifax on the Kennebec River... to attend the sick. He ... remained about two months. He also went there again in 1772.... He served in the Massachusetts General Court before the Revolutionary War, but remained loyal to the King and became obnoxious to the Colonists. He was declared by them a traitor and a price was set upon his head. By the energy of his wife, he escaped capture and went to St. Andrew, N. B. (New Brunswick, Canada).... Dr. Calef was active in the Penobscot expedition and was a Commissary of the inhabitants in the County of Lincoln, Maine. He was surgeon at Fort George and acted as chaplain. In 1780, he went to England as an agent of the Penobscot Loyalists.... In 1784, Dr. Calef was one of the grantees of St. Andrews, N. B., and was the first physician to settle there.... After the war he was sugeon of the general hospital at St. John, N. B. and was attached to the garrison... After October, 1800, he returned to St. Andrews where he resided until his death... Oct. 23, 1812, at the age of 86 years.

Dr. Calef married, first, Margaret Rogers, daughter of Rev. Nathaniel and Mary (Leverett) Rogers of Ipswich, who died March 27, 1751; second, Jan. 18, 1753, Dorothy Jewett, daughter of Rev. Jedidiah and Elizabeth (Dummer) Jewett, both of Rowley, Mass."^[1]

Children of Dr. John Calef and Margaret Rogers:^[2]

1. Margaret, b. 15 Oct 1748, m. 14 Oct 1767 Dr. Daniel Scott of Boston
2. Mary, b. 24 Mar 1750, m. Capt. John Dutch of Ipswich

Children of Dr. John Calef and Dorothy Jewett:^[3]

1. John, b. 2 Nov 1753, d. 19 Feb 1782
2. Jedediah b. 22 Jun 1755, d. 10 Mar 1788
3. Elizabeth, b. 25/26 Oct 1757, d. 7 Sep 1771
4. a daughter, b. 1 May 1759, d. 1 May 1759
5. Robert, b. 16 Nov 1760, d. 1801
6. Dorothy, b. 16 Nov 1762
7. Sarah, b. 27 Jun 1764, d. 25 Mar 1854
8. Susanna, b. 7 Feb 1766
9. a son, b. Jan 1768
10. Mehitable, b. 13 Sep 1768, d. 1860, m. Capt. David Mowatt
11. Martha, b. 22 May 1770, d. 23 Sep 1771
12. Samuel, b. 20 Jul 1772
13. a daughter, b. 12 Apr 1775
14. a daughter, b. 22 Aug 1776
15. Jedediah Jewett, b. 22 Jun 1778

Sources

• Hammatt, A. Physicians of Ipswich, The New England Historical & Genealogical Register, (New England Historic Genealogical Society, Boston, Mass., 1850) Vol. 4, Page 16
• Birth Record: Ipswich Births; Early Vital Records of Massachusetts From 1600 to 1850; Digital Image; Massachusetts Vital Records Project
• Marriage Records (both!): Ipswich Marriages; Early Vital Records of Massachusetts From 1600 to 1850; Digital Image; Massachusetts Vital Records Project
• The Magazine of History with Notes and Queries (1910) Extra No. 11, Page 297
• Boston Evening Transcript (March 10, 1902) Page 12: Answers *3894
• Lunt, William. Robert Calef of Boston and Roxbury And Some of his Descendants (Hingham Historical Society, Inc., Hingham, Mass., 1928).

Footnotes

1. ↑ Magazine of History
2. ↑ Lunt: Page 13
3. ↑ Lunt: Page 13

• Dr. John Calef is mentioned in the Wikipedia article on the History of Maine [1]

• Clements Library, University of Michigan - John Calef memorials and petitions (1766-1782). Short Biography. [2]