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Benjamin Putnam (1664 - 1715)

Capt. Benjamin Putnam
Born in Salem Village, Essex, Massachusetts Baymap
Ancestors ancestors
Son of and
Brother of , , , , and
Husband of — married before 1686 (to 21 Dec 1705) in Massachusetts Bay Colonymap [uncertain]
Husband of — married 1 Jul 1706 (to 25 Apr 1715) in Salem, Essex, Province of Massachusetts Baymap
Descendants descendants
Father of , , , , , , , and
Died at age 50 in Salem, Essex, Massachusetts Baymap
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Profile last modified | Created 30 Jul 2011
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Contents

Biography

Benjamin, "son of Nathanyell Putnam by Eliza: his wife," was born 24: 10mo: [December] 1664 in Salem Village.[1][2][3][4]

Benjamin was a prominent and involved citizen, holding various town offices including tythingman, surveyor of highways, and selectman in Salem Village, and deacon of the church.[3]

Marriages and Children

He married first, by about 1685, Sarah, whose birth name is not known;[5] she is recorded as the mother of all but one of his known children:[4][6][7][8]

  1. Nathaniel, b. 25 Aug 1686
  2. Josiah, bap. 2 Oct 1687 (naming only father Benjamin, not mother Sarah;[4] no further record)
  3. Tarrant, b. 12 Apr 1688
  4. Elizabeth, b. 8 Jan 1690
  5. Benjamin, b. 8 Jan 1692
  6. Stephen, b. 27 Oct 1694
  7. Daniell, b. 12 Nov 1696
  8. Israel, b. 22 Aug 1699
  9. Cornelius, b. 3 Sep 1702

Sarah died 21 December 1705,[7][8] and Benjamin married second, 1 July 1706, Sarah Holton,[7][8] believed to be widow of Benjamin Holton.[9]

Salem Witch Trials and Aftermath

During the Salem witchcraft trials in 1692, Benjamin and his wife Sarah Putnam joined a petition affirming their support for the accused Rebecca Nurse, stating "we never had Any: cause or grounds to suspect her of Any such thing as she is nowe Acused of."[10]

In later years, Benjamin took in Dorothy Good, who had been Salem's youngest accused witch: "a child of 4 or 5 years old was in prison 7 or 8 months and being chain'd in the dungeon was so hardly used and terrifyed that she hath ever since been very chargeable haveing little or no reason to govern herself."[11] Dorothy's mother Sarah Good was one of those executed in 1692, her infant sister was born and died in prison, and Dorothy suffered severe mental health symptoms the remainder of her life. In 1710, when victims of the trials were compensated for their suffering, Dorothy's father William Good requested that her restitution payments be directed to Benjamin Putnam[12] as payment for her maintenance. Other records indicate Benjamin had cared for Dorothy from at least 1708, and his son Nathaniel received a final payment in 1716 after Benjamin's death.[13]

Will

Benjamin wrote his will 28 October 1706, naming his wife Sarah and eight children: Nathaniel, Tarrant, Benja[min], Stephen, Israel, Daniell, Elizabeth, unmarried, and Cornelius, a minor. It was proved at Ipswich 25 April 1715.[3][14] Benjamin's death is not recorded.

Research Notes

Eben Putnam's History of the Putnam Family claims that Benjamin Putnam:

"married, according to Col. Perley Putnam, 25 Aug., 1686, Elizabeth, daughter of Thomas Putnam, but on the Salem records, the births of his children are recorded and it is there stated that they were 'by wife Hanna.' His first wife died 21 Dec, 1705..."[3]

Unfortunately, several things are wrong with this claim:

  • Elizabeth Putnam, the daughter of Thomas, didn't marry Benjamin; she married Joshua Bailey or Bayley, which Eben Putnam himself states accurately elsewhere in his own book.[15]
  • The 25 Aug 1686 marriage date given for Benjamin and "Elizabeth" is identical to son Nathaniel's recorded birth date, just a few lines below on the same page.[3]
  • Multiple copies of the Salem birth records for the Putnam family don't say "by wife Hanna," they say "by Sarah his wife."[6][7][8] Her accompanying 1705 death record names her as Sarah.[7][8]

Torrey (or one of his sources) hypothesizes that Sarah's birth name may have been Tarrant, on the basis that their son is the first appearance of the given name "Tarrant" in the Putnam family.[5]

Therefore it's clear that:

  • Benjamin had two wives, not three
  • he did not marry Elizabeth Putnam
  • his first wife, mother of all his children, was named Sarah, not Hannah

In addition:

  • his first wife's birth surname might have been Tarrant, but this isn't proven
  • his second wife was likely widow Holton, birth surname unknown

Sources

  1. ↑ "Massachusetts, Town Clerk, Vital and Town Records, 1626-2001," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-8979-W7HV : 13 July 2016), Essex > County wide > County court births, marriages, deaths 1654-1795 > image 255 of 610; citing Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth, Boston; entry for Benjamin Putnam son of Nathanyell Putnam by Eliza: his wife, 24 10mo [December] 1664.
  2. ↑ "Massachusetts, Town Clerk, Vital and Town Records, 1626-2001," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-997M-B3N5 : 29 November 2018), Essex > Salem > Birth, marriage, death 1644-1867 vol 1-2, B > image 57 of 327; citing Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth, Boston; entry for Benjamin Putnam son of Nathanyell Putnam by Eliza: his wife, 24: 10mo: [December] 1664.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 Putnam, Eben, A history of the Putnam family in England and America: recording the ancestry and descendants of John Putnam of Danvers, Mass., Jan Poutman of Albany, N.Y., Thomas Putnam of Hartford, Conn. (Salem, Mass.: The Salem Press, 1891), pp. 22, 58-62.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Vital records of Salem, Massachusetts, to the end of the year 1849, vol. 2 (Salem, Mass.: The Essex Institute, 1918), pp. 208, 209, 210, 212, 213, 215, 217, 218.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Torrey, Clarence Almon. Torrey’s New England Marriages Prior to 1700, vol. 2, (Boston, Mass.: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2015), p. 1240:
    PUTNAM, Benjamin (1664-1715) (see Benjamin Holter [sic]) & 1/wf Sarah (not Hannah) [TARRANT?] (-1705), had son Tarrant; 25 Aug 1686?, by 1686; Salem
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 "Massachusetts, Town Clerk, Vital and Town Records, 1626-2001," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-8979-WQRB : 18 February 2020), Essex > County wide > County court births, marriages, deaths 1654-1795 > FHL film #7,009,706, image 293 of 610; citing Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth, Boston; family of Benja[min] Putnam: children Nathaniel, Tarrant, Elizabeth, Benja[min], Stephen by Sarah his wife 1686-1694.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 "Massachusetts, Town Clerk, Vital and Town Records, 1626-2001," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QSQ-G97M-B3SG : 29 November 2018), Essex > Salem > Birth, marriage, death 1644-1867 vol 1-2, B > FHL film #7,011,200, image 243 of 327; citing Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth, Boston; entry for family of Benja[min] Putnam: children Nathaniel, Tarrant, Elizabeth, Benja[min], Stephen, Dan[ie]ll, Israel, Cornelius by Sarah his wife 1686-1702; death of wife Sarah, 1705; marriage with Sarah Holton, 1706.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 "Massachusetts, Town Clerk, Vital and Town Records, 1626-2001," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-997M-B3ZQ : 29 November 2018), Essex > Salem > Birth, marriage, death 1644-1867 vol 1-2, B > image 172 of 327; citing Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth, Boston; entry for family of Benjamin Putnam: children Nathaniel, Tarrant, Elizabeth, Benjamin, Stephen, Daniel, Israel, Cornelius by Sarah his wife 1686-1702; death of wife Sarah, 1705; marriage with Sarah Holton, 1706.
  9. ↑ Torrey, Clarence Almon. Torrey’s New England Marriages Prior to 1700, vol. 2, (Boston, Mass.: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2015), p. 783:
    HOLTON, Benjamin (-1689) & [Sarah] __, m/2 Benjamin PUTNAM 1706; by 1689; Salem
  10. ↑ Salem Witch Trials Documentary Archive and Transcription Project, Salem Witchcraft Papers, database online, "Petition for Rebecca Nurse," 1? May 1692, SWP No. 94.9 (https://salem.lib.virginia.edu/n94.html#n94.9 : 18 Apr 2024).
  11. ↑ Salem Witch Trials Documentary Archive and Transcription Project, Salem Witchcraft Papers, database online, "Petition of William Good for Restitution for Sarah Good and Dorcas [sic] Good," 13 Sep 1710, SWP No. 173.21 (https://salem.lib.virginia.edu/n173.html#n173.21 : 18 Apr 2024).
  12. ↑ Salem Witch Trials Documentary Archive and Transcription Project, Salem Witchcraft Papers, database online, "Order of William Good for Payment and Cases of Sarah and Dorothy Good," 21 Jan 1711/12, SWP No. 173.50 (https://salem.lib.virginia.edu/n173.html#n173.50 : 18 Apr 2024).
  13. ↑ Christ-Doane, Rachel, “The Untold Story of Dorothy Good, Salem’s Youngest Accused Witch,” American Ancestors vol. 24 no. 1 (Spring 2023); image copy The Salem Witch Museum (https://salemwitchmuseum.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/The-Untold-Story-of-Dorothy-Good.pdf : 18 April 2024), p. 22.
  14. ↑ "Essex County, MA: Probate File Papers, 1638-1881," probate case files, no. 22991, Putnam, Benjamin (Lt.) (1715), will of Benjamin Putnam, 28 October 1706; database with images, American Ancestors (https://www.americanancestors.org/DB515/i/13790/22991-co4 : 18 Apr 2024), images 4-5 of 10.
  15. ↑ Putnam 1891, pp. 7-8.

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Comments: 10

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Richard Flanagin Jr.
In https://books.googleusercontent.com/books/content?req=AKW5Qaf6mMHp9c5UwAN5NNj4HOuVkCgm-MDm6B1hiPvtSjJSFnx0O_L_G8mtf_2AKkxJu8qmHmNPyN_qvgOrCLWg_qmY4IMv6P5TixHYrnaRG2sTV2wM2j9jEfyGOFJBmneukVoqcdgLtAU7wzuJo0HA7CHGiCzWqqQrdtS34nIkjfdyvZE0z1Ztx-xyxuSBYzPbQi3LE3TtO_OeX4Sk4IOuVMpvU3_9GGMkZHoSC_3AxyL--2OCIPGIhi0ZiCI6gellW8_N7klEtLjEdTs85QQ0Ow07saXj-95H4-JSjzXUA_Gw1T4HULU New England Families, Genealogical and Memorial, William Richard Cutter, editor, 1913, page 26, it is stated that Benjamin "married August 25, 1686 to Elizabeth, daughter of Thomas Putnam (according to Colnel Perley Putnam), but on the Salem records the births are recorded as by wife Hannah. His first wife died December 21, 1705." Only the date is currently missing. He "married (second) July 1, 1706, Sarah Holton."
posted by Richard Flanagin Jr.
edited by Richard Flanagin Jr.
Childs-1516 Christopher Childs
Please see comments on Elizabeth Putnam's profile Putnam-45, and g2g discussion linked from that profile under "Questions". Elizabeth Putnam, daughter of Thomas & Ann Putnam, married Joshua Bailey; she should be detached as a spouse of Benjamin Putnam. Benjamin's wives were (1) Sarah [?Tarrant] and (2) Sarah Holten/Holter.
posted by Christopher Childs
Hammond-2140 Cheryl Hammond
You did some great work there and pointed me in the direction to make some hopefully positive changes - see G2G, overhauled bio, and new Research Notes. Hopefully we'll get someone from the Massachusetts project to help with changes needed for Benjamin's wives. Wouldn't have known what to do without you, so thanks very much!!
posted by Cheryl Hammond
Childs-1516 Christopher Childs
See sources I am adding below: it would certainly appear that Benjamin married (2) _Sarah_ Tarrant, not Hannah. (See my comment on the profile currently shown as "Hannah", Tarrant-76; came across the NEHGS listing yesterday and then completely forgot about it when I left the comment below.)
posted by Christopher Childs
Childs-1516 Christopher Childs
Eben Putnam's "History" claims that the children's birth records show the mother as "Hannah"; in fact, at least as transcribed on FS, she appears as "Sara" or "Sarah". As the births I have examined are dated 1686-1694, this adds another layer of complexity. Was there yet another wife??
posted by Christopher Childs
Smith-32867 Jillaine Smith
Project added; project attention needed please.
posted by Jillaine Smith
Wood-15631 Gregory Wood
Putnam-1810 and Putnam-288 appear to represent the same person because: A second effort to get this Capt. Benjamin Putnan consolidated into the one PPP file -WikiTree Putnam-288. The PUTNUM-4 file is also on it's way to PUTNAM-288 by way of a proposed merge ....this date. If you have a question please read new long note at Putnam-288 ...same date of birth 24 Dec 1664.

Thanks

posted by Gregory Wood
Mullings-18 Lisa Mullings
Putnum-4 and Putnam-1810 appear to represent the same person because: Both profiles have the same birthday and birth place, and share the same year of death.
posted by Lisa Mullings
[Living Geleick]
Putnam-528 and Putnam-288 do not represent the same person because: They appear to be brother, not sure if they both married Elizabeth Putnam
posted by [Living Geleick]
[Living Martindale]
duplicated marriage to Sarah Holton should be removed. Duplicated children should be removed, and duplicated siblings should be removed.
posted by [Living Martindale]

Rejected matches › Benjamin Putnam (1692-1744) › Benjamin Putnam (abt.1780-) › Samuel Putnam (abt.1653-bef.1676)

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