John Smith (1678 - aft. 1729)

Born 2 Mar 1678 in Cambridge, Middlesex, Massachusetts Bay Colony

Ancestors

Husband of Martha (Eames) Smith — married 14 Dec 1699 in Cambridge, Middlesex, Massachusetts Bay Colony

Descendants

Died after Dec 1729 after age 51 in Cambridge, Middlesex, Province of Massachusetts Bay [uncertain]

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Chase Ashley [send private message]

Biography

John Smith, the son of John Smith and Sarah (Prentice) Smith, was born on March 2, 1677/8 in Cambridge, Massachusetts.^[1]

John's father died in 1696.^[2] Under the terms of his father's will, if his mother remarried, John was to inherit his father's homestead and adjoining property when he was 21.^[3] His mother remarried on March 16, 1698/9,^[4] just a few weeks after John turned 21, so John would have inherited his father's homestead and adjoining land at the time, making him very marriagable.

John married Martha Eames on December 14, 1699 in Cambridge.^[5][6]

John and Martha had the following children:

1. Daniel, bpt. April 22, 1711 in Cambridge^[7]
2. Ebenezer, b. March 15, 1712 in Cambridge,^[8] bpt. March 29, 1713 in Cambridge^[9]
3. Elizabeth, b. May 4, 1716 in Cambridge, m. int. December 17, 1737 probably Timothy Dunton, d. probably after September 17, 1761 in Freetown Plantation (most likely on what is now Westport Island, Maine). (See discussion and sources in Elizabeth's profile.)

No explanation has been found for the gap between John and Martha's marriage and the birth of their first known child.

The last record that has been found of John is a deposition by him in December 1729. John therefore died sometime after that date. Since all records relating to John indicate that he was a resident of Cambridge, it is most likely that he died there.

Research Notes

• 1701. By deed dated April 1, 1701, John Smith of Cambridge, yeoman, with the consent of his wife Martha, for £72, sold to Daniel Dana of Cambridge 14 acres of land in Cambridge bordering the land of his brother Joseph Smith.^[10]
• 1716. By an indenture dated February 13, 1716, John Smith of Cambridge and his wife Martha, for £56, sold to Commissioners of the Province of Massachusetts the fifteen and sixteen lots of the first division of the place known as Cambridge Rocks, containing about 28 acres of land.^[11]
• 1729. John Smith, agd 52, gave a deposition on March 21, 1729, stating that he remembered that when Elisha Bull of Cambridge agreed to pay his son Elisha Bull, now deceased, the sum of £500 on the condition that he maintain his father and mother and also pay his brother and sister £10 a piece, but that said Elisha Bull Jr died a few months after and so never performed his obligations.^[12]

^{[12] [11] [10] [2] [4] [3] [1] [5] [9] [7] [6] [8]}

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1} Vital Records of Cambridge, Massachusetts to the Year 1850. Volume I - Births. New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1914. p. 651. Link to page at archive.org.
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1} See the profile of John's father, John Smith.
3. ↑ ^{3.0 3.1} Middlesex County Probate Records. File 20659. FHL Film #007553765, images 1044-1047. Link to images at familysearch.org.
4. ↑ ^{4.0 4.1} See the profile of John's mother, Sarah (Prentice) Smith.
5. ↑ ^{5.0 5.1} Records of the Church of Christ at Cambridge in New England 1632-1830. 1906. p. 70. Link to page at archive.org.
6. ↑ ^{6.0 6.1} Vital Records of Cambridge, Massachusetts to the Year 1850. Volume II - Marriages and Deaths. New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1914. p. 360. Link to page at archive.org.
7. ↑ ^{7.0 7.1} Records of the Church of Christ at Cambridge in New England 1632-1830. 1906. p. 61. Link to page at archive.org.
8. ↑ ^{8.0 8.1} Vital Records of Cambridge, Massachusetts to the Year 1850. Volume I - Births. New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1914. p. 648. Link to page at archive.org.
9. ↑ ^{9.0 9.1} Records of the Church of Christ at Cambridge in New England 1632-1830. 1906. p. 62. Link to page at archive.org.
10. ↑ ^{10.0 10.1} Middlesex County Deeds, Volume 13, pp. 153-155. FHL Film #007448441, images 491-492. Link to images at familysearch.org.
11. ↑ ^{11.0 11.1} Middlesex County Deeds, Volume 19, pp. 97-98. FHL Film #007448445, images 441-442. Link to images at familysearch.org.
12. ↑ ^{12.0 12.1} Middlesex County Deeds, Volume 27, p. 543. FHL Film #007448451, images 577. Link to images at familysearch.org.