George Wightman (1632 - 1722)

Born 4 Nov 1632 in Burton-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England

Ancestors

Husband of Elisabeth (op ten Dijck) Wightman — married 1663 in Kingston, Rhode Island

Descendants

Died 27 Jan 1722 at age 89 in Quidnessett, North Kingstown, Washington, Rhode Island

Problems/Questions Profile managers: Dave Robison [send private message], Theresa Carrier-Torrealba [send private message], Corey Dawkins [send private message], and Ken Lundgren [send private message]

Biography

This profile is part of the Wightman Name Study.

George Wightman migrated from England to Colonial America.

George Wightman was born on 4 November 1632 in England,^{[1][2][3][4][5]} and died on 27 Jan 1722 in Quidnessett, an area situated within that part of Kingstowne that is now North Kingstown.^[1][2][3] He was the youngest son of John Wightman and his unknown wife.^[5]

Family

George married Elizabeth Updike about 1663 in Kings Province (later called Kingstowne).^[1][2][3] They had eight children, five sons and three daughters, born between 26 July 1664 and 16 April 1681.^[5]

Kingstown

The first record of George Wightman in Rhode Island is in 1669.^[6] As a resident of Kingstown, George took the oath of allegiance on May 20, 1671, and was made freeman in 1673.^[6]

Will

George's will was dated 26 April 1716 at Kingston, Rhode Island.^{[1][2][3][7][8][9]} The will bequeathed his homestead in Quidnessett to his son Daniel including house, barn, and farm, along with some additional land. His son George is mentioned as having already received money to buy a farm. He bequeathed to his son Samuel four hundred acres in Rhode Island. To his son Valentine he bequeathed a large tract of land and a chest "brought out of England". To his son John he gave 20 pounds, but there is some indication John may have already received some land. He gave to his grandson George, son of Daniel, the chest "I brought out of England" and his "great bible" along with some other items. He also mentioned Daniel's children Daniel and Elizabeth Wightman. He bequeathed 20 pounds to his daughter Elizabeth Huling, 30 pounds to his daughter Alice Weight, and 20 pounds to his daughter Sarah Peterson.^{[1][2][3][7][8][9]}

George later added a codicil on 25 January 1721/2 at Kingston^{[1][2][3][7][8][9]} in which he acknowledged and confirmed the original will of 26 April 1716. In the codicil he adds land for his son Daniel to be eventually given to Daniel's sons George and Daniel, and a lot at Newton to Daniel's daughter Elizabeth Wightman. The codicil also adds 20 pounds for son George.^{[1][2][3][7][8][9]}

The inventory was appraised in Kingston on 1 February 1721/2 and recorded in Wickford (Probate Book VI, pp. 46-47).^[1][2][3][9]

A quotation from the Wightman Family International website:

George was born on June 4, 1632 (this date is recorded in his family Bible, which is still in existence, and owned by a descendant) and died January 7, 1721/2. . Nothing has been found about the early life of George Wightman. After his grandfather Edward was burned at the stake, it is thought that George's father, John and the rest of the family moved to London. John and his brothers and sisters, probably grew to maturity there, married, and had children of their own.

George was born during a turbulent time in English history. Besides religious persecution, there was a civil war that didn't end until about the time the family left for the New World. Oliver Cromwell and the parliament were supported by "middle sort of men", in which category the Wightmans were included. The nobility, gentry, and the "poorest of the people" backed Charles I, who was then the king. Charles I lost, and the surrender of his army in June 1646 ended the first phase of the Civil War.

The conquering army was determined to show that kings had to be responsible to their subjects. King Charles I was put on trial and found guilty, and was executed Jan 30, 1649 at Whitehall. It is not known whether it was for religious reasons or the unsettled political situation that caused the Wightman family to emigrate to the New World. Perhaps it was Roger Williams, the founder of Rhode Island, who invited them. Williams' sister, Katherine was married to a Ralph Wightman, citizen and merchant tailor of London.

George Wightman's older brother, Valentine Whitman (Wightman), had been in the colony long enough in 1648, to master the Indian language, because he is recorded as an interpreter at the Indian trading post of Richard Smith in Wickford, Narragansett country, Rhode Island (now North and South Kingston, RI). This could explain Valentine's father, John, and his brothers arrived in Newport and immediately went to the Wickford area of Rhode Island. It is thought George came more or less directly to Newport with his father and brothers, although no ship's list or record giving the port of his departure from England, or the place/date of arrival in America has been found. George was a tailor and his apprenticeship was probably served in England prior to departure to America. There is every indication that he arrived in 1654, at the age of 20.

No record of land transactions from this early period of colonial history have been found, but Narragansett Country on the mainland to the west across from Newport, offered many opportunities. This region, about twenty five miles in extent from north to south, comprised all of the country lying south of the present towns of Warwick and Coventry, and extended westward to Connecticut. The Narragansetts were a friendly tribe of 8,000 to 10,000 people (some estimate the number to be as high as 30,000), with 1,500 to 2,000 fighting men. The main road south from the settlements of Providence and Warwick passed through this Indian country, keeping a line not far inland by way of the Indian village of Cawcamsqussick (Cocumscussuc), southerly to the present town of Westerly, and so on into Connecticut. In the early records it is called "the country road" and the Pequid (Pequot) path. The first white men to settle permanently in this region were Roger Williams in 1636, and Richard Smith in 1640 or 1641.

He married Elizabeth Updike (daughter of Gilbert Op den Dyke) and they settled their farm near North Kingstown and reared a family of five sons and three daughters that were born between 26 July 1664 and 16 April 1681. They both died early in the year of 1721 or 2, after fifty-nine years of wedded life.

Even [George's] Bible gives no clue to his exact birthplace. In his will he bequeathed to his eldest grandson, George Wightman, "my chest also which I brought out of England and my great bible"; and he bequeathed to his son Valentine Wightman "my silver drinking cup and my chest which I brought out of England."^[5]

Timeline

1632 George is born in Burton-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England.

1654 George arrives in the Rhode Island Colony.

1687, Sep. 6: On 6 September 1687, he is cited on Gov. Andros' tax roll at Rochester (renamed later to Kingstown), Rhode Island owing a “pole” (poll) tax of 1s, and a property tax of 10s 0d, which places him as an adult resident and property landholder in Kingstown, RI on this date. ^[10] This tax roll identifies a sum total of 136 heads of house living in the roughly 22.5 square mile area associated with Kingstown, RI on this date in 1687; one consequence of this sparse population is that he would have been well acquainted with many, if not all, of the individuals identified on this list. Therefore, this tax list is a defacto definition of the people who were available to be his friends, neighbors, and allies; it would be essential to cultivate strong working relationships with these neighbors in order to survive on this frontier landscape. This cross reference tool provides hot links to peruse most of the 136 Wikitree families identified in this tax roll; families who were very frequently interconnected, or became interconnected, by marriage, over the course of their lives and throughout the ensuing generations, further binding a network of neighbors into extended families. ^[11] In the case of George Wightman, this interconnectedness is illustrated in this tax roll as his his brother, Daniel Wightman; his brother-in-law, Lodowick Updike, and uncle (by marriage), Richard Smith Jr., are also named on this tax roll.

1721 George passes away at the age of 89. He is buried in the John Wightman lot in North Kingstown, Washington County, Rhode Island, United States.

Property: ABC.

Research Notes

Baptisms in Lowick, Northamptonshire:
A baptism record has been found for a George Wightman son of "Joh." Wightman on 4 Nov 1632 in Lowick, Northamptonshire, England,^[12] which is the same date as that provided in the George Wightman bible for his birth. If this record is indeed for our George Wightman, the location is a bit surprising as we have expected his birth to be in Burton-upon-Trent, although no source has yet been found to support George’s birth in Burton-upon-Trent or elsewhere in Staffordshire. It is possible that this record may represent movement of George’s family from Burton-upon-Trent toward London. The abbreviation "Joh." is routinely used in this record for the name "Johannes" (Latin recording for John).
It is particularly of note that among the childen baptized to John Wightman at Lowick is a Valentine Wightman on 1 Feb 1623,^[13] very likely the same brother of George who migrated to Rhode Island before George and who was often recorded there as Valentine Whitman.
This Lowick should not to be confused with another Lowick in Northumberland.
The web links included in the source reference cited here are for the record on the Ancestry site because unable to find this record group on any free access sites.
See also Research Notes in profile of John Wightman containing information on children of John Wightman.

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7} Whitman, Mary Ross, George Wightman of Quidnessett, R.I., Edwards Brothers, Inc., Chicago, 1939, pp. 1-14. http://www.familysearch.org/library/books/idviewer/532437/10 (FamilySearch) https://archive.org/details/georgewightmanof00whit (Internet Archive)
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7} Wightman, Wade C., The Wightman Ancestry, Bookcrafters, Chelsea, Michigan, 1994, Volume 1, pp. 1-14. https://archive.org/details/wightmanancestry001wigh (Internet Archive)
3. ↑ ^{3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7} Wightman, Wade C. The Wightman Heritage, Gateway Press, Baltimore, MD, 1990, pp. 23-49. https://archive.org/details/wightmanheritage00wigh/page/n5/mode/2up
4. ↑ Wightman Family Bible printed in 1587 by John Wolfe, possibly in the possession of George Wightman XIII, Boston area, accessed March 1, 2015
5. ↑ ^{5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3} Wightman, Wade C., John Wightman (1598-1663) Wightman Family International, February 28, 2011, accessed March 1, 2015
6. ↑ ^{6.0 6.1} Stearns, Ezra S., editor et al., Genealogical and Family History of the State of New Hampshire: A ..., Volume 1 (Pages 17-18) New York: Lewis Publishing Company, 1908, Archive.org accessed March 1, 2015
7. ↑ ^{7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3} North Kingstown Probate and Town Council Records, Vols. 5-8, 1692-1756, Volume 6, pages 38-49 https://www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/134029?availability=Family%20History%20Library (FamilySearch) https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/9079/images/007650010_00371 (Ancestry)
8. ↑ ^{8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3} George Wightman will and codicil (PDF)
9. ↑ ^{9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4} George Wightman will and codicil transcribed (PDF)
10. ↑ Roberts, Gary Boyd; Genealogies of Rhode Island Families, Vol. II, Niles - Wilson; Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., Baltimore 1989. RI Taxes under Gov. Andros pages 592- 594.
11. ↑ Randolph Beebe; Cross Reference: Gov. Andros 1687 Rochester RI Tax Register to Wikitree profile; Wikitree Free Space Profiles, 2024.
12. ↑ Northamptonshire, England, Church of England Baptisms, Marriages and Burials, 1532-1812, Lowick Parish Registers 1542-1794 (image 24 of 109) https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/9068746:9198?ssrc=pt&tid=35595008&pid=18833590182 (Ancestry)
13. ↑ Northamptonshire, England, Church of England Baptisms, Marriages and Burials, 1532-1812, Lowick Parish Registers 1542-1794 (image 22 of 109) https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/9067951:9198?ssrc=pt&tid=35595008&pid=19963780474

See also:

• Wightman, Wade C., The Wightman Ancestry, Volume 2, Bookcrafters, Chelsea, Michigan, 1997, Volume 2. https://archive.org/details/wightmanancestry002wigh (Internet Archive)

• "New Jersey, County Marriages, 1682-1956," index and images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/VW5P-QX5 : accessed 08 Jun 2014), George Wightman in entry for William Collins and Sarah Wightman, 1697; citing p. , Gloucester, New Jersey; FHL microfilm 850324.

• "New Jersey, County Marriages, 1682-1956," index and images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/VW5P-QXY : accessed 08 Jun 2014), George Wightman in entry for George Wightman and Elizabeth Wood, 1698; citing p. , Gloucester, New Jersey; FHL microfilm 850324.

• https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/104139336

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Wightman

Acknowledgements

• Unsourced family tree handed down to Ken Lundgren.