John Field (bef. 1616 - 1686)

Born before 1616 in St Albans, Hertfordshire, England [uncertain]

Husband of Ruth (Unknown) Field — married 1638 in Providence, Rhode Island

Descendants

Died Mar 1686 after age 70 in Providence, Providence, Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations

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John Field migrated to New England during the Puritan Great Migration (1621-1640). (See The Directory, by R. C. Anderson, p. 114) Join: Puritan Great Migration Project Discuss: pgm

Disputed Origins

Several early publications claimed that John Field was from Thurnscoe, South Yorkshire, England and the son of William Field and Jane Sotwell, and grandson of Sir John Field, noted astronomer. In a 22 November 1867 letter written from English genealogist, Osgood Field to the editor of The New England Historical & Genealogical Register (April 1868 [Volume XXII], 166-173:

“William Feild, executor of his mother’s [Jane Amyas] will. He (William) married Jane, dau. of John Sotwell, and widow of George Burdett of Carhead. Then described as ‘Thurnscoe.’ No evidence of issue…. As for the assertion... that William and John Field , the early settlers of Rhode Island, were the sons of William and grandsons of the astronomer, they are not entitled to the slightest credence, not being supported by a shadow of evidence.”

More recent discoveries have suggested that John was from St. Albans, Hertofordshire. NEHGR [The New England Historical and Genealogical Register] 51:359 (as cited by Anderson above):

“In carrying out the work of arranging and repairing the papers and documents of the town of Providence.. [a paper was discovered that stated:]

‘Whereas there was by James ffield [James Field] of St. Albans in Hartfordshire [sic], who is sometime since deceased, by a request made of one hundred poundes the [sic, that] which by his last will & testament he gave and bequeathed unto his brother John ffield [John Field], dwelling in Providence in New England [with ‘dwelling in Providence in New England’ subsequently crossed out], & if he were dead the ye sayd moneyes to be devided amongst his children…’

“It is in the handwriting of Thomas Olney, for many years the town clerk of Providence… It affords a most excellent clue to the origins of the Fields of Massachusetts and Rhode Island…”

Biography

John Field was one of the early settlers of Providence. He was one of thirteen men to sign the first compact of 1637. Assuming that he would have been at least 21 to sign such an agreement, John was born in England, sometime by 1616.

Marriage

There are no known records which give the name of John Field's wife. She is sometimes said to be Ruth [Tingley-Meyers], or Ruth Fairbank without any documentation. Most sources indicate that her name is unknown. [Austin, Pierce, Brownell]

Children

(From Austin, Genealogical Dictionary of Rhode Island)

1. Hannah d 1703+ m1 James Mathewson; m2 Henry Brown
2. John d 1698 m Elizabeth Eveden
3. Daniel d Aug 1676 (unmarried)
4. Zachariah d 12 Aug 1693 m Sarah Thornton
5. Ruth d 1727+ m John Angell

Death

Death: Mar., 1686 in Providence, Providence County, Rhode Island, USA

Burial

North Burial Ground, Providence, Providence County, Rhode Island, USA^[1][2]

AKA: Rhode Island Historical Cemetery Providence #1

Needs Research

Questionable Parents? Questionable Wife?

• Anderson - Great Migration Directory - Unknown origins, 1637 to Providence [PrTR1:1, 15:5; Austin 75-76; NEHGR 51:359 (clue); TAG 20:181 (clue)] Anderson Key
• Torrey _ New England Marriages to 1700 - FIELD, John (-1686) & [?Ruth] ____ (-1686+); in Eng, by 1640?; Providence {Tingley-Meyers 22; TAG 20:181; Field 1:102-3; Austin's Dict. 75; Palmer (,8) 399} Torrey Key

John Field appears in Providence RI as early as 1637. He was one of the 13 to sign an agreement in arranging for a settlement in RI. He subsequently signed the agreement for a form of government for the colony. In 1645 he purchased 25 acres and a share in meadows. He was a Freeman in 1665, and drew lot #5 in the division of lands in 1665. He was deputy to the General Court in 1676. His inventory was 34 Pounds, 19 Shillings, 6 Pence. He married Ruth Fairbank in 1638 in Providence.^{[citation needed]}

John Field, of Providence, signed the first compact of 1637, and the agreement of 1640; the latter document has also the signature of William Field. The Home Lot of John, on the Towne Street, adjoined that of William on the South. William's house stood nearly on the site of the Providence Bank, a building erected by Joseph Brown in 1774 and occupied by him as a residence. In the time of King Philip's war the William Field house was garrisoned, and escaped the conflagration of March, 1676, remaining until 1772, when it was purchased by Joseph Brown. John and William Field were large landowners in Rhode Island, and the latter gave his name to Field's Point, the homestead of later generations, where eight hundred acres were included in his possessions. William Field married Deborah-- and died in 1665 without issue. Thomas Field, his nephew, who may have been the son of John, became his heir.

John Field of Providence died in 1686, having four children: Hannah, the eldest married James Mattewson and had a daughter Isobel, wife of John Brown. Ruth, the youngest child married January 7, 1669, John Angell, son of Thomas. Their daughter, Mercy, born 1675, married Benjamin Smith. Thomas Field, nephew and heir of William, married Martha Harris, daughter of the first Thomas. She inherited by will the Home Lot of her father, which was separated from that of John Field, on the South, by the home lot of Joshua Winsor. Of their six children, the descendants of their son, William Field, were in two instances allied to the Browns by married. He was born June 8, 1682, died Nov. 1, 1729; married Mary--and had eight children, the eldest of whom, Martha Field, married Joseph Brown. Charles Field, the youngest, born February 6, 1614, married Wait Dexter. Their daughter, Wait Field, married John Brown, eldest son of Deputy Governor Elisha. The Field genealogy, a pamphlet of 65 pages, was printed in Providence in 1878, compiled by Mrs. Harriet A. Brownell.^[3]

Possible relationship to other Fields

[Draft]: Its believed that William Field who settled in Providence by 1640 may have been John's brother. The Home Lot of John, on the Towne Street, adjoined that of William on the South. Thomas Field, William's nephew, who may have been the son of John, became his heir.

Sources

1. ↑ Sterling, John E. North Burial Ground Providence, Rhode Island, Old Section 1700-1748, Special Publication No. 5, Rhode Island Genealogical, Society, Greenville, Rhode Island, 2000. p. 304
2. ↑ Find A Grave: Memorial #33291396
3. ↑ ‎Bulkley, Abby I. B, and Henry T. Beckwith. The Chad Browne Memorial: Consisting of Genealogical Memoirs of a Portion of the Descendants of Chad and Elizabeth Browne ; with an Appendix, Containing Sketches of Other Early Rhode Island Settlers, 1638-1888. Brooklyn, NY: Brooklyn Daily Eagle Book Printing Dept., 1888. Page 147, also www.whipple.org/brown1851.pdf.

• Pierce, Frederick Clifton. Field Genealogy. Being the Record of All the Field Family in America. (Hammond Press, W.B. Conkey Company, Chicago, 1901). Pages 101-104.
• Brownell, Harriet A. Genealogy of the Fields of Providence, Rhode Island: As Traced Mainly from Records and Papers in Rhode Island. Providence, R.I: J.A. & R.A. Reid, 1878. Pages 3-6. This book is on William Field, but the introduction discusses Field origin theories.
• Austin, John Osborne. The Genealogical Dictionary of Rhode Island (Genealogical Publishing Co., 1887). Pages 75-76
• Moriarty, G. Andrews. Additions and Corrections to Austin's Genealogical Dictionary of Rhode Island, The American Genealogist (The American Genealogist, Barrington, RI, 1943) Vol 20, Page 181. View with NEHGS Membership.
• The Early Records of the Town of Providence (1892-) Vol 1, Page 1, Vol 15 (1899), Page 5.
• Notes and Queries: The Family Field from Edward Field, Record Commissioner Providence, R.I. The New England Historical & Genealogical Register (NEHGS, Boston, Mass. 1897) Vol 51,Page 359.

Acknowledgments

• Created through the import of DR fam 9.ged on 14 September 2010.
• Created through the import of greenwald-millerGEDCOM.ged on 27 September 2010.
• Thanks to Tom Wilde for starting this profile.
• Entered by Tom Wilde, Jun 21, 2013