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Richard Dodge (abt. 1602 - 1671)

Richard Dodge
Born about in Middle Chinnock, Somerset, Englandmap [uncertain]
Ancestors ancestors
Husband of — married 5 May 1628 in Stoke sub Hamdon, Somerset, Englandmap
Descendants descendants
Died at about age 68 in Beverly, Essex, Massachusetts Bay Colonymap
Profile last modified | Created 22 May 2011
This page has been accessed 57,925 times.
The Puritan Great Migration.
Richard Dodge migrated to New England during the Puritan Great Migration (1621-1640). (See The Directory, by R. C. Anderson, p. 95)
Join: Puritan Great Migration Project
Discuss: pgm

Contents

Biography

Cross of St George
Richard Dodge was born in England.
This profile is part of the Dodge Name Study.

Richard1 Dodge, born about 1602 (based on wife's age at death),[1] was the elder brother of William1 Dodge,[2] both sons of John Dodge and his wife, Margery _____ of Middle Chinnock, Somersetshire, England.[3]

Richard married Edith Brayne in Stoke-under-Ham, Somerset, on 5 May 1628.[4][5]

Edith was the daughter of of Edward and Elizabeth Brayne.[citation needed] She was baptized in Stoke-under-Ham, 5 May 1608.[6] Four children web born or baptized to Richard and Edith at England.

Immigration

Excerpt from: Genealogy of the Dodge Family of Essex County, Mass. 1629-1894 [7]

As immigrants were admitted to the colony only by applying to the town and obtaining leave, it is quite certain that Richard and his family came in 1638...

At Massachusetts Bay

They settled at Salem, Massachusetts Bay, joining Richard's brother, William Dodge, who had arrived in 1629.[8]

Richard, Edith, and their children lived "for a time" on land that belonged brother William.[9] In October 1638, William was "receaued Inhabitant and desireth accomadeacion," at Salem; he was shortly granted a ten acre lot.[10] There followed grants to both Richard and William of eighty acres to the east of the farms of Roger Conant, John Woodbury and John Balch.[11] Richard built a residence in the area that came to be known as "Dodge Row" in North Beverly, a short distance from Wenham Lake.[12]

Richard was received as a member of the Salem church, 5 May 1655; he and his wife were part of the "Bass River" group to establish the church at Beverly in 1667.[13]

Richard was granted yet additional acreage. In December 1641, he received forty acres.[14] He later purchased another forty acres from Richard Haskell, which had belonged to Haskell's father-in-law, John Hardy.[15]

Richard Dodge became a freeman.[16]

In 1653, he ranked first on the list of twenty-one subscribers to Harvard College, with "the next largest sum ... only one-forth as much as his."[17][18].

He gave a piece of his land for use as a cemetery. "Dodge Row Cemetery," is on Dodge family land of his lifetime, although his burial site is not here. A headstone tribute was placed for him in 1962.[19]

He was the owner of land at England through the time of his death, likely at East Coker. He rented the land to his brother, Michael Dodge for £4 per year.[20]

Richard died at Beverly, 15 June 1671,[21] leaving a will dated "the fourteene of the nine month 1670" [14 November 1670], proved 28: 4: 1671 [28 June 1671].[22] Richard was buried at Beverly.[23]

Edith survived as his widow. She died at Beverly, 27 June 1678.[24]

Will and Probate

Richard Dodge. By his will, Richard Dodge gave his wife personal property and "the sole and proper use of the parlor and chamber over it in my now dwelling house." He made provision for annual payments to be made her by their five sons. He gave his sons, Joseph and Edward, his farm, valued at £1000; and he gave his son, John, a farm valued at over £100, Richard Dodge's estate was valued at £1,764.2 [25]

Edith Dodge. Edith died intestate, having left an an unsigned will.[26] "The estate was divided according to the directions given by their mother, and al were well satisfied as witnesses."[27]

Family

Nine children were born to Richard and Edith. The first four were born or baptized at England; the rest, at Massachusetts.[28] A family tradition says Richard1's descenants had sandy hair and their "complexions were 'speckled.'"[29]

  1. Richard Dodge, baptized 1628, died young. [Unconfirmed. Please see profile: Richard Dodge jr. (abt.1628-)]
  2. Margery Dodge, baptized 7 September 1630; buried 2 February 1630/1.[30][30]
  3. John Dodge, baptized Somerset, 29 December 1631.[31] died Beverly, 11 October 1711; married perhaps 1658, Sarah _____.
  4. Mary Dodge, baptized Somerset, 19 April 1635, died 18 August 1710, aged about 78; married Zachary Herrick.
  5. Richard Dodge, born 1643; died 13 April 1705, age 63; lived at Wenham; married there 23 February 1667, Mary Eaton.
  6. Sarah Dodge, bapt. 1644; died 1726; m. Peter Woodbury, b. 1640 and died in 1704.
  7. Samuel Dodge, born 1645; died 4 December 1705, in 61st year; married Mary Parker, perhaps a daughter of Deacon Thomas of Reading.
  8. Edward Dodge, died Beverly, 13 February 1727; married there, 30 April 1673, Mary2 Haskell (William1).
  9. Joseph Dodge, born 1651; died Bevery 10 August 1716, aged about 65; married, at Reading, 21 February 1671, Sarah Eaton.

Research Notes

Baptismal Record Transcription Issues. An array of English records have been identified Richard and Edith's family. There are a few variances between the record information and that which was pubished by Ferris in 1931. Several records from Ancestry.com are cited in the narrative; at least two records are also available at FamilySearch, but one date variances appeared there too). See Margery Dodge; [https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:NT7S-78J John Dodge.

Cemetery markers list online 2009. Ancestry.com cemetery memorial marker photo by Karen Dankar, July 2010; Notice that Richard's headstone does not mark his grave, but memorializes him only, from Norman Dodge 11/2011.

Questionable son Richard? The birth of a first son Richard in 1628 is questionable. Please see Richard Dodge jr. (abt.1628-)

Questionable statement regarding immigration: Genealogy of the Dodge Family of Essex County, Mass. 1629-1894 [32] states that "as the King was at that time obstructing emigration, it is probable that he left England without royal permission." While there were probably some political barriers to immigration, we don't have enough information about Richard Dodge to know whether that was a factor. (See Comments) Emigrants were required to have a Certificate of Conformity attesting to the fact that they had taken the Oath of Allegiance and the Oath of Supremacy, but most of these have been lost, and the absence of that record is not unusual.

Sources

  1. Mary Walton Ferris, Dawes-Gates Ancestral Lines (Privately Printed, 1943, 1931), 2 (1931): 315-17 (Richard Dodge), in particular, 316; digital images, Hathi Trust.
  2. Richard named "my brother William Dodge Sr." as an overseer of his will, citing EQC 4:405, Robert Charles Anderson, The Great Migration Begins: Immigrants to New England 1620-1633, Volumes I-III, (1995), 563-568 (William Dodge), in particular, 566; digital images by subscription, AmericanAncestors.
  3. Citing "New England Register, XLIV, 297-8," Mary Walton Ferris, Dawes-Gates Ancestral Lines (Privately Printed, 1943, 1931), 2 (1931): 315-17 (Richard Dodge), in particular, 317; digital images, Hathi Trust.
  4. Dodge-Brayne 1628 marriage, St. Mary parish register, Stoke Sub Hamdon, Somerset; index, FreeReg
  5. Somerset, England, Church of England Baptisms, Marriages, and Burials, 1531-1812; database with images, $ Ancestry.com; index incorrectly says July.
  6. Elizabeth Brayne 1608 baptism, Somerset, England, Church of England Baptisms, Marriages, and Burials, 1531-1812; information by subscription, Ancestry.com
  7. (Dodge) P.16
  8. Robert Charles Anderson, The Great Migration Begins: Immigrants to New England 1620-1633, Volumes I-III, (1995), 563-568 (William Dodge); digital images by subscription, AmericanAncestors.
  9. Mary Walton Ferris, Dawes-Gates Ancestral Lines (Privately Printed, 1943, 1931), 2 (1931): 315-17 (Richard Dodge), in particular, 315; digital images, Hathi Trust.
  10. Citing "Town Records of Salem, Mass., 1868, 1, 73-7, 112," Mary Walton Ferris, Dawes-Gates Ancestral Lines (Privately Printed, 1943, 1931), 2 (1931): 315-17 (Richard Dodge), in particular, 315; digital images, Hathi Trust.
  11. Citing "Town Records of Salem, Mass., 1868, 1, 73-7, 112," Mary Walton Ferris, Dawes-Gates Ancestral Lines (Privately Printed, 1943, 1931), 2 (1931): 315-17 (Richard Dodge), in particular, 315; digital images, Hathi Trust.
  12. Mary Walton Ferris, Dawes-Gates Ancestral Lines (Privately Printed, 1943, 1931), 2 (1931): 315-17 (Richard Dodge), in particular, 315-16; digital images, Hathi Trust.
  13. Citing, "New England Register, XLVI, 383-91," and "Records of the First Church of Beverly, Mass., W. P. Upham, 1905, pp. 3, 7," Mary Walton Ferris, Dawes-Gates Ancestral Lines (Privately Printed, 1943, 1931), 2 (1931): 315-17 (Richard Dodge), in particular, 316; digital images, Hathi Trust.
  14. Mary Walton Ferris, Dawes-Gates Ancestral Lines (Privately Printed, 1943, 1931), 2 (1931): 315-17 (Richard Dodge), in particular, 316; digital images, Hathi Trust.
  15. Citing "Records and Files of the Quarterly Courts of Essex County, Mass., I, 96; IV, 2, 404-6, 452," Mary Walton Ferris, Dawes-Gates Ancestral Lines (Privately Printed, 1943, 1931), 2 (1931): 315-17 (Richard Dodge), in particular, 316; digital images, Hathi Trust.
  16. Mary Walton Ferris, Dawes-Gates Ancestral Lines (Privately Printed, 1943, 1931), 2 (1931): 315-17 (Richard Dodge), in particular, 316; digital images, Hathi Trust.
  17. Citing "Dodge Genealogy, J. T. Dodge, 1894, I, 6, 13-33, 419-22" and "New England Register, XLVI 383-91," Mary Walton Ferris, Dawes-Gates Ancestral Lines (Privately Printed, 1943, 1931), 2 (1931): 315-17 (Richard Dodge), in particular, 316; digital images, Hathi Trust.
  18. Joseph Thompson Dodge, Genealogy of the Dodge Family of Essex County, Mass. Vol. I 1629-1894 (Madison, Wisconsin Democrat Printing Company 1894) p. 16; digital images, InterentArchive.
  19. Citing "Dodge Genealogy, J. T. Dodge, 1894, I, 6, 13-33, 419-22" and "Essex Antiquarian, III, 105-8," Mary Walton Ferris, Dawes-Gates Ancestral Lines (Privately Printed, 1943, 1931), 2 (1931): 315-17 (Richard Dodge), in particular, 316; digital images, Hathi Trust.
  20. Noting, "Richard Dodge was 'duly admitted tenant, by entry-hold, of lands in Helgar Manor, East Coker,' in 1633," Mary Walton Ferris, Dawes-Gates Ancestral Lines (Privately Printed, 1943, 1931), 2 (1931): 315-17 (Richard Dodge), in particular, 316, 316n; digital images, Hathi Trust.
  21. Vital Records of Beverly, Massachusetts to the end of the Year 1849 (Topsfield, Mass., Topsfield Historical Society, 1906), 2 vols., 2:422; digital images, InternetArchive.
  22. Citing "Essex County Quarterly Court Files, vol. 17, leaves 100, 101," George Francis Dow, The Probate Records of Essex County, Massachusetts (Salem, Mass., Essex Institute, 1916-1920), 3 vols., 2:230-33 (Estate of Richard Dodge, Sr., of Beverly); digital images, Hathi Trust.
  23. Find A Grave Memorial #41654467, Richard Dodge.
  24. Mary Walton Ferris, Dawes-Gates Ancestral Lines (Privately Printed, 1943, 1931), 2 (1931): 315-17 (Richard Dodge), in particular, 316; digital images, Hathi Trust.
  25. Joseph Thompson Dodge, Genealogy of the Dodge Family of Essex County, Mass. Vol. I 1629-1894 (Madison, Wisconsin Democrat Printing Company 1894), 17 InternetArchive.
  26. Mary Walton Ferris, Dawes-Gates Ancestral Lines (Privately Printed, 1943, 1931), 2 (1931): 315-17 (Richard Dodge), in particular, 316; digital images, Hathi Trust.
  27. Quoted from, George Francis Dow, Probate Records of Essex County Massachusetts (Salem, Mass., Essex Institute, 1916-1920), 3 vols., 3:198-99 (Estate of Mrs. Edith Dodge of Beverly). Hathi Trust.
  28. Mary Walton Ferris, Dawes-Gates Ancestral Lines (Privately Printed, 1943, 1931), 2 (1931): 315-17 (Richard Dodge), in particular, 317; digital images, Hathi Trust.
  29. Citing "New England Register XV, 255," Mary Walton Ferris, Dawes-Gates Ancestral Lines (Privately Printed, 1943, 1931), 2 (1931): 315-17 (Richard Dodge), in particular, 316; digital images, Hathi Trust.
  30. 30.0 30.1 Alternative dates, Somerset, England, Church of England Baptisms, Marriages, and Burials, 1531-1812; by subscription, Ancestry
  31. Somerset, England, Church of England Baptisms, Marriages, and Burials, 1531-1812; by subscription, Ancestry
  32. (Dodge) P.16

See also:





Memories: 2
Enter a personal reminiscence or story.
Thanks first to M. Lechner for adding this wonderful vignette. And thank to Barb Dodge for writing it. Richard and Edith were two of my 10th great grandparents. There were so many intermarriages between these early families. My tree is a tangled mass of lines connecting them.
posted 20 Nov 2020 by Liane Smith   [thank Liane]
Richard Dodge

Years of rule by Charles I. No parliament! More taxes! Less religious liberty! War looming on the horizon. There were all kinds of signs that showed that things were not as they ought to be. Increasing anger against King Charles I. Unrest of the citizenry. Brother William was doing very well in the colonies. He had his own farm, and he had a good standing in the community. He could worship as he chose. He didn't need to worry about displeasing a King. He could do as he wished. He was FREE! Richard was married and had several children. He would need to give up his land tenancy. It would be no easy undertaking for him to transport his family to the colonies. He was leaving at least one little child in an English graveyard. Would his wife be willing to pull up roots, leave her family and travel to this strange foreign land? He would be leaving his father and brother, Michael, behind. How would he be able to leave England when King Charles was obstructing immigration. If he left, it would probably have to be without royal permission. There were many problems to work out before he could undertake such a voyage. I am sure that he gave much thought of all of these things. In the end, he decided it was worth it to try to leave his homeland. Richard and his family arrived in Salem in 1638. Immigrants were only admitted to the colony, by applying to the town and obtaining leave.He and his family moved on to the land of his brother, William until he could get established. After awhile he was able to settle with his family on "Dodge Row" in North Beverly, not far from Wenham Lake. He built a home and gave his attention to farming but he held in high esteem the value of education. In 1653, he was the biggest contributor to Harvard College. He gave a piece of his land for a burying ground which is now known as "the Cemetery on Dodges Row". He had 5 sons, and so he has more descendants than William who had 2 sons. by Barb Dodge

posted 30 Jan 2012 by M Lechner   [thank M]
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Comments: 23

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In the bio section: "the King was at that time obstructing emigration, it is probable that he left England without royal permission." I couldn't find anything to support this as such a generalizing statement, but specifically, that you had to get royal permission to leave England? If this is wrong, including here it is misleading. I don't doubt there were obstructions to emigration from England, some in political form, but we don't know enough about Richard's immigration to apply these sorts of things to him. John Thompson Dodge certainly lapses into historical fiction in other places when talking about England and the immigrant generation. I suggest the quote be removed unless someone can shed some validating light on the subject.
posted by Doug Sinclair
It's a strange statement. I wonder if it's an attempt to explain why there's no Certificate of Conformity? I'll move it to Research Notes.
posted by M Cole
I removed Mary's approximate birth years (1632-1633). Her death record says she was about 78 when she died on 18 August 1710 in Beverly. Using "about" for ages at death was common in the Beverly records at the time, but there are entries without it, so we have to assume whoever gave her age at death was guessing. I think it's unlikely Richard and Edith waited 2-3 years to baptize her in 1635. If so, it was extremely uncommon, at least in early 17th century England.
posted by Doug Sinclair
This post previously went on at some length about the problematic inclusion of a Richard, Jr., bap. 1628, among Richard and Edith's children. I removed that (which I wrote) and refer anyone interested my better and updated explanation at Richard, Jr.'s, profile.
posted by Doug Sinclair
edited by Doug Sinclair
Name: "Dawes-Gates Ancestral Lines" by Mary W. Ferris, pg 317, and from Mayflower posting
posted by Mike Walton Sr.
I don't know what "Mayflower posting" is, but "Dawes-Gates" repeats John Thompson Dodge (even lists him as a source) and doesn't shed any new light on the subject. If anyone sees an explanation for J. T. Dodge's odd claim about there being a 1628 baptism, and that the record has no date, please post.
posted by Doug Sinclair
Doug, thanks for the notes on the profile of the son Richard. I've added some notes to this profile to refer there for explanation.
posted by M Cole
May we either learn whether there is any historical record giving rise to the notion of his birth "about 22 Sep 1602" or change that birth to match the work in Ferris, as "Richard appears to have been born as early as 1602 ..." --Gene
posted by GeneJ X
Gene - I don't see any reference to the Middle Chinnock registers being available in any of the standard outlets for the very early 1600s. They exist as bishop's transcripts only - the familysearch.org catalogue refers to them and there's a link to non-public images of the register. So there's no obvious reason to discount the date or place, especially since he was living in Middle Chinnock when he married. It just needs to be confirmed. I may be able to do that in the not too distant future.
posted by Doug Sinclair
edited by Doug Sinclair
Might someone with access to the referenced English marriage record at Ancestry be able to provide more information about the entry? Is this an indexed entry (transcribed into a database), or are these images?

Date given in the narrative for the marriage is 5 May 1628, but FreeReg index has the date transcribed as 5 July 1628. This looks like it might be transcription variance about a month numbered "5."

https://www.freereg.org.uk/search_records/5bd8b5f1f493fd01b934fec0/edith-brayne-richard-dodge-marriage-somerset-stoke-sub-hamdon-1628-07-05?locale=en

Thank you in advance for any assistance you are able to provide.--Gene

posted by GeneJ X
edited by GeneJ X
Gene, the ancestry link is to an image of the page in the record book. It is the entry at the very top of the page, and the corner where the date appears is rather crumpled so it is difficult to read. It does look like the first letter of the month is an "M" (but that also looks as though it may have been partially erased), and there definitely seems to be an "l" before the final letter "y." Sorry this is not more helpful....I would not have believed until now that "May" and "July" could look so similar.
posted by Jen (Stevens) Hutton
Freereg.org.uk transcribes the date as "05 July 1628" -- see https://www.freereg.org.uk/search_queries/61535dd7791e3bf636912273?locale=en; click on "View 1" for further details -- and their transcribers are generally experienced and careful. I'd go with that, esp. given Jen's note that there appears to be an "l" before the "y" in the image of the original.
posted by Christopher Childs
Gene,

This caught my eye because I'm writing an article about Edith Brayne's family. Interesting that someone interpreted the month as July. It surely is May. I didn't want to post the image of the register here due to copyright restrictions, so I created a page that shows the area of the register that includes the marriage and the other entries that are in the same handwriting. I've also written an explanation about why I say it's May. There are some odd things in this person's handwriting, but there are enough consistencies when looking at other entries to show it's May. I don't see the confusion with July, but maybe that's because I've looked at a lot of "Old English" handwriting. I'm sure there's a more scholarly term for that! Here is a link to the page.

http://dougsinclairsarchives.com/dodge/dodgebraynemarriage.htm

posted by Doug Sinclair
If there are no objections, I plan to work on this profile a little bit. Specifically, I plan to update the biography so that Cutter is not the principal reference.

Likewise, I will work to address the profile comments in this process.

posted by GeneJ X
[deleted]
I am curious as pointed out in this Wiki that it states that Richard Dodge is not buried here where to the contrary in the establishing this land as a burying ground by Jonathan, Edward and Mark Dodge Grandchildren of Richard Dodge state that : Our Honoured Grandfather Richard Dodge late of said Beverly Deceased did in his lifetime, Set apart & appoint a certain piece of land lying in said Beverly for a Burying place for himself & posterity. in the Vital records prior to 1850 for Beverly it lists Richard Dodge June 15, 1671 with no graveyard listed for a burial place. I surmise that in the records it was not recorded at the time of his death of one of the four recognized burial grounds because it was a family plot at the time prior to it being established as an official burial ground. In my opinion Richard Dodge is buried in Dodges Row. I have started restoring the headstones in the cemetery and hope that within a couple of years we will have the ability to sled the whole area with a GPR and find the unknown burials as well as the headstones that were documented by Wellington Pool in 1882. I have already found a few missing stones that had been previously documented but lost with time. If anyone has any questions about the work being done you can email me at [email address removed]

Here is a link to one of the articles about what we are trying to accomplish that was published in the Salem News. https://www.salemnews.com/news/local_news/city-is-hoping-to-restore-secluded-dodge-burial-ground/article_65b8b99f-5a41-5464-ad29-587a16193f69.html

posted by [deleted]
I may have overlooked something, but don't see the reference to his will or estate. Was his estate also in Probate Records of Essex County?
posted by GeneJ X
I added back the Perley source to the sources section, so that it can be referenced by people.
posted by S (Hill) Willson
This message came to PGM in a private message, but should be shown here:

"The bio: on this person is all messed up. Richard was Brother to William and Michael. Michael never came to the Massachusetts Bay Colony. His son did, had children and disappeared. At least I can find no record of thiem"

posted by S (Hill) Willson
As part of PGM biography cleanup, I’m removing “cut and paste” from the Dodge Genealogy.
posted by Bob Keniston Jr.
FindAGrave gives a baptism records of 22 September 1602 Middle Chinnock, Somerset, England. On the surface this is a good fit. Can anyone check to see if such a record even exists?
posted by M Cole
FreeReg has no record for a Richard Dodge (soundex on) at Somerset between 1600 and 1605

Edited to add: "Middle Chinnock, Somerset Genealogy" at FamilySearch Wiki.

posted by GeneJ X
edited by GeneJ X
imlooking for a dora mea dodge circa late 1700s to 1800s who married woodbury smith
posted by Robert Bailey
imlooking for a dora mea dodge circa late 1700s to 1800s who married woodbury smith
posted by Robert Bailey

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