Keeping Up with the Joneses

My dream job, whether it involves a paycheck or not, is to be a costumed interpreter at Colonial Williamsburg.

And until I get there, I’m practicing. When we lived in New Jersey, I was really involved (Jason will say too involved) with the Hackettstown Historical Society. For three years we hosted a fund raising Ghost Tour, parading about the town Victorian garb telling tales of the town’s history and mystery.  I dis the research, wrote the scripts, and made sure the participants were treated to the right balance of fact and theater. It was great fun – lots of walking – but there’s nothing better than the sparks of genuine interest and enthusiasm you from the people on your tour, especially when someone says they’ve learned something new. But the Victorian era is a whole different century – literally. 

One of the great things about living here in Massachusetts, the cradle of the Revolution, is the opportunity to get involved with groups and societies that help promote the history of the area and events that shaped our country. Lots more practice, as I see it, to help me prepare for the calling of the fife, drum and cannon in Virginia.

The Golden Ball Tavern, right here in Weston, was my first volunteer opportunity, and my first foray into the late 1770’s.

Josiah Jones founded the Town of Weston in 1713. The Jones family, including Josiah, his sons and grandsons, featured significantly in the town’s business and political affairs. The Golden Ball Tavern, now a living museum and beautifully proportioned example of Georgian architecture, is at the center the town and its history.  Built circa 1767 by Isaac Jones, grandson of the town’s founding father, the Golden Ball Tavern sits prominently on Boston Post Road, the town’s main thoroughfare.  From its rooms, the townspeople had a front row seat to significant events in the war for independence.

Golden Ball Tavern c. 1936
Image courtesy of the Library of Congress

Isaac Jones became one of the wealthiest men in town, but his loyalties and sympathies lay with the British. The tavern At the Sign of the Golden Ball, was widely known as a Tory tavern, something the British were to discover in 1775, and they continued to use the tavern as a stop on their routes into the Massachusetts countryside.  The tide was turning; the battles at Lexington, Concord and Bunker Hill, followed by the British evacuation of Boston left Jones isolated. From 1775 to 1777, few traces of him even exist.  By 1777, Isaac had changed sides, signing the Oath of Allegiance and accepting a contract to haul goods for the American army.  He was back in business – literally, and by 1778 had once again regained the respect of his neighbors.

Golden Ball Tavern  2013

The Golden Ball Tavern continued to operate after the war and Jones served in several public offices, retiring from business and politics in 1793 at the age of 65. The inn “At The Sign of the Golden Ball” ceased operations in 1793, but Isaac had begun to make significant structural changes to the house, and it would be home to the next six generations of his family. Isaac Jones died in 1813 and is buried in Weston Central Cemetery. Ralph Frost Jones, the last male descendant to live in the home, died in 1963 and left the home and estate to the Town Library Trustees.

The town has done a phenomenal job of preserving this historical treasure, with lots of help from the Jones family themselves. Seemed they never threw anything out. Unlike many living museums, the house is full of furniture, bedding, tableware, ledgers, paintings and more – all belonging to the Jones family,

With more than 300 years of history, I’m excited to learn more, but it’s going to take a lot to keep up with these Joneses.

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Martha. Martha. Martha.

Any child of the 70's should recognize the title of this blog as a play on the old Brady Bunch lament, "Marsha. Marsha. Marsha." when poor middle child, Jan, exasperated with her old sister, Marsha,  could do nothing but sigh her name in frustration.

Sometimes I feel that way with my research into the personal history of the early Brock ancestors, as it continues to fascinate, and to a degree, exasperate and frustrate me.

The ancestral Brock men, John, the fisherman (identified as such to differentiate him from his son, grandson and great-grandson, all of whom were also named John), and his son, John, left the amateur, albeit tenacious genealogist, (read: me) little in the way of personal documents to help paint a picture of their lives in 18^th century Gloucester, Massachusetts. Both, it seems, were men with little to no property, real or personal. Without the benefit of influence or prosperity, the personal history of these two men is limited to vital or Town records, and only when it was recorded or preserved. True, there's always the hope of finding the occasional mention in local history, but for these gentlemen, those references are as scarce as hen's teeth.

Much of what I’ve been able to gather about the first two John Brocks and their wives has been stitched together with a thread of assumptions, based on life in Gloucester during their lives and the scant few documents that acknowledged their existence.

Sadly, I’ve not fared much better with their wives.  Abigail Elwell, the wife of John the fisherman, was the daughter of Eleazer Elwell, a man of some means in early Gloucester. She is mentioned in a few more records than her daughter-in-law, Martha Tucker.  Martha Tucker was the daughter of John Tucker, Jr., another Gloucester resident of influence and means. In both cases, it doesn't surprise me that much more is known about the fathers than the daughters.

The only other Brock wife who is more of an enigma than Martha Tucker Brock is Susannah Crandall, the wife of the third John Brock. But that’s a blog for another day.

Martha Tucker, as mentioned, was the daughter of John Tucker, Jr. and his wife, Mary Lane. The Tucker, Lane and Riggs families were early, well-to-do residents of Gloucester.  Besides her pedigree, nothing much else is known about Martha.  Rev. Mr. Benjamin Bradstreet of Gloucester’s Fifth Parish baptized her on November 13, 1737. She and John were married in Gloucester. Their Purpose of Marriage was listed in the Town Records on November 5, 1763; the marriage, performed by Rev. Ebenezer Cleveland, was recorded on December 6 of the same year.

The Fifth Parish Church marriage, Baptism and Death records, page 538, lists the marriage of Patty Tucker and John Brock on December 6, 1763. Another entry, an index for the same marriage record, identifies Martha as Mrs. Patty Tucker. While Patty was a common nickname for Martha, this was the first time I’d seen Martha referred to as a married woman prior to her marriage to John. Was it a mistake in the records? Perhaps. It certainly wasn’t unusual.

Church records document the baptism of John and Martha’s children were baptized in the Fourth Parish. Records show dates for Martha on August 26, 1764, John, Jr. on August 31, 1766, William on March 20, 1769, and finally, Mary, child of the Widow Martha Brock, baptized on October 6, 1771. The assumption? John died before his fourth child was baptized, and perhaps even before she was born.

The acknowledgment that Martha Brock was a widow when Mary was baptized is the only record I’ve found which provides any insight into John’s death. He would have been approximately 31 years old.

Martha, aged 34, found herself a widow with 4 young children.  I don’t know how she supported herself or her children in the years after John’s death, but she remained in Gloucester until early 1777, when in March.  In March 1777, Martha, identified as “of Glocester”, along with other heirs of John Tucker, Jr., convey property to Edward Higgins.

John James Babson, in his book Notes and Additions to the History of Gloucester notes that Martha Brock and her children removed to New Gloucester in (1777). Perhaps Martha used the proceeds from the property sale to move her growing family.

Nothing more is known about daughter Mary, they youngest of Martha’s children. William, John Jr. and Martha all left New Gloucester as young adults and settled in the Buckfield, Maine.  Martha married Ebenezer Cary in 1793. William married a woman named Sarah, and John Jr. wed Susannah Crandall. 

Nothing more is known about Martha Tucker Brock. Did she remarry after she got to New Gloucester? It’s one assumption. She was still a relatively young woman in 1774, but to date, I haven’t found any records to substantiate that assumption.  

I guess, for now, she'll remain an enigma.

Oh, Martha. Martha. Martha.

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Kitchen Renovation Homestretch

Because Once in a Lifetime Isn’t Enough

We’re about 98% complete on our new kitchen renovation. It’s been a long road since we had our demolition party in February, but the hard work (mostly by others) and investment is paying off.

The cabinets are beautiful. The honed granite counter tops are awesome. The island, black with a teak counter is superb.  Jason did a great job with the bead board around the window (Getty's new favorite lookout perch) and in between the beams in the ceiling. 

It's a kitchen anyone would love to have.

Last weekend, we installed the baseboard molding and put in the baseboard heat. All that’s left is to hook it up, get the pot filler installed and call Mark to come back and finish painting.

There’s something to be said about standing back and saying, “Wow… we’re almost there.” It’s an equally scary statement. Despite best intentions, it’s August, dare I say the end of August, and we’re still not done.  Sure, there are only a few things left, and by and large, they are left for the contractors to finish, but knowing there are only a few things left instills fear into my heart.  Our old (literally – 1868) house in New Jersey always had “only a few things left” to do. In the seven years that we lived there, we restored it back to its original grandeur and it seemed like, well, we really were, always renovating. It was a labor of love, yes, but a labor nonetheless, and we were never able to get to a point where we could walk into a room and say with certainty, “It’s done.” All of those “few things left”, and a few additional things that weren’t even on the list, got done in something of a mad scramble when we put the house on the market and moved to Massachusetts.

It looked terrific when it was done. I wish I could have enjoyed it.

And now we’re here, in the throes of another renovation we swore we’d never do, down to the completion wire.  I really like this house, and actually think we’ll get it done this time.  I certainly hope so. We’ve got three bathrooms and a garage to do next!

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A Journey to New Lands

Like our ancestors before us, Jason and I are about to explore new lands. We're leaving the kitchen renovation in the capable hands of Warren King and heading south on our third annual Civil War Harley Tour.

We're packing the bike and riding to West Virginia, Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, Charleston, Savannah and then up to Virginia through the Smokey Mountains.  If you're interested, come with us by following the Civil War Harley blog.

Enjoy the ride. I know we will.  See you back in the Bay State in a few weeks.

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In Search of John Brock

Genealogy is a bit like detective work. You look for evidence; you follow the clues, and hopefully, find your man (or woman). Sometimes, the clues lead to interesting discoveries, and sometimes, sadly, they lead to a dead end. 

With so much information available on line, and more added every day, sites like Ancestry.com, Familysearch.org, Americanancestors.org and the occasional Google search, have made it easy and convenient to add leaves to the branches of a family tree. It’s been (relatively) easy to uncover information on Jason’s early ancestors from the comfort of my couch, with so many of his early ancestors hailing from the proudly historic and well-documented state of Massachusetts.

Recently, Ancestry.com added a new database – Massachusetts Town Vital Collections, 1620-1988, a virtual treasure trove of the original hand-written, town and clerk records – birth, marriage and death - from towns across the Bay State. Some states have more information available on line than others, but some information can only be viewed, or better, discovered, with a trip to the local archives or historical society.

To date, I have documented more than 8 grandfathers eight times removed or better for Jason, men who were the first of their name here in Massachusetts (and there are still others in Connecticut, Maine and one in Virginia), including Robert Elwell, Thomas Millett, John Eddy, Thomas Riggs, John Tucker, Nicholas Denning, the Puritan, Samuel Chapin and the Pilgrim, Richard Warren, but the person I was interested in learning more about was John Brock, the first of the Brock name.

John Brock is Jason’s sixth great-grandfather. The first documented mention I’ve been able to find of him is the 27 September 1735 marriage intention to Abigail Elwell, the daughter of Eleazer Elwell of Gloucester.  Reverend John White in Gloucester married them in Gloucester on 25 March 1736.

The next mentions are associated with the births of his children, Abigail born on 1 December 1736 and then John on 4 November 1740. The Essex Antiquarian, a quarterly periodical dedicated to the biographies, genealogies, history and antiquities of Essex County, Massachusetts, included a blurb about John Brock in Volume 12, (year), which read, “John Brock, fisherman, lived in Gloucester, 1737-1774; married Abigail Elwell of Gloucester in or before 1737; both living in Gloucester in 1774,” and cites Records as its source. But that’s it. No birth for John, Sr., no parents or siblings, no death records for he or Abigail, nothing.  It was a cold case, but a nagging one.  Given Abigail was born on 3 August 1714, I made an assumption that John was born sometime between 1710 and 1715, but the Brock name was not as uncommon at the time in Massachusetts as I’d thought. There are numerous Brocks in Nantucket and Marblehead, but none that I could connect to John. I found a birth record for a John Brock, born in 1711 in Boston to George Brock and Mary Favor, and while the dates generate excitement and possibility, I can’t find anything that documents, with certainty, he is the John.

One of the great things, genealogically speaking, about living in Massachusetts, is the proximity to the cradle of Jason’s ancestry, so I took my own advice and headed to Gloucester, a quick 45 minute drive north.

Gloucester is America’s original seaport. Despite several setbacks and difficulty with profitability, settlement continued and the General Court of Massachusetts incorporated the Town of Gloucester in 1642. Included among the town’s first prominent families and land owners were Robert Elwell and Thomas Riggs.

The early town records are housed in two places – the Town Hall and the Cape Ann Museum Library. The Town Hall is a magnificent old building, but the archives are in a small space in the basement, smaller than the living room in my house. Sarah, one of the volunteer archivists, was extremely generous with her time and knowledge, having done a little pre-research in answer to my email inquiry and in expectation of my arrival.

The Archives Room is packed with books and binders, two computers, a working table and a few chairs, but the real gems, the original documents, are hidden away in a bank-like vault down the hall, complete with combination lock. The most noted publication on Gloucester is John James Babson’s The History of the Town of Gloucester, Cape Ann: including the Town of Rockport, (1860; Proctor Brothers, Gloucester, MA) and is the first place anyone familiar with town’s history will point someone who’s inquiring. There, on page 259 in the chapter titled New Settlers is John Brock, listed among the list of settlers from 1701-1750, known to have been heads of families.

With Sarah’s help, we found some notes about John Brock in the varied indexes and abstracts lining the shelves of the room. She disappeared to the vault, returned with a gray archival box and carefully removed its tissue-papered contents. She gingerly unwrapped a wonderfully old and fragile ledger and placed it on the table in front of me. The title page, in a flourished hand and brown ink, identified the book as the Selectmen’s Records Third Book.  The subsequent pages were filled with handwritten records from 1756 to 1781, documenting the meetings and decisions of the town leaders. It was amazing to be that close to original documents that old. 

Sarah turned the pages delicately to page 116 and the first of John’s records – a notice of tax abatement of 10s Province tax and 6s Town tax on 3 November 1763. A tax abatement is a stay of paying a tax grated to a taxpayer by a taxing board. It could be granted for a short or long term, for a total or percentage of the tax. There was another abatement for 1762 and once again in 1766. John’s children were grown by then, in fact, his daughter Abigail passed away in 1764. His son, John would die 5 years later.

The next entry was in April 1774, “At a meeting of the Select Men of Glocester [Apr?] 15 An Order was Drawn on the Town Treasurer to Pay Docter Thomas Sargent or Order the Sum of Two Pounds five Shillings and six pence it Beaing for Mediences and Attendance on John Brocks wife as pr his Acct Render in 2..5..6  [spellings as written]. 

I inquired as to why the Selectmen would order a doctor bill paid on John’s behalf. Sarah told me that they (Selectmen) would support the town’s poor, and this entry was indicative of John’s financial status.

By 1774, both of John’s children had died, and judging from the doctor bill, his wife, Abigail, was not well. There were no additional records about Abigail, so I don’t know if recovered from her illness or if she died too.

John’s status in town did not improve, and there was another entry the next year. “The Poor were Lat out to the following Persons from March the 25/1775 to March 25/1776  viz......John Brock to be alow'd 2/5d pr weak till further Orders.”  The final entry found in the book came on page 491 in  1780,  “At a Meetting of the Selectmen Feb'ry 15th 1780 An Order was Drawn on ye Town Treas'r or Succes'r To Pay unto Deac Nathan'l Kinsman or Order Twenty Pound being in full for making a Coffin for John Brock one of ye Town Poor.”

John Brock died a pauper, and potentially alone, at approximately 70 years of age.  This was the first indication I’d found of his death, as it had not been noted in the Town’s vital records. The life of fishermen in early Gloucester was hard, and from all accounts, John had not been financially successful at his trade.  Sarah said that he would have been buried in a pauper’s grave in the First Parish cemetery, but most certainly, his final resting place would not have been marked.

I was taken aback by the somberness of it all, and the sad life of this first Brock ancestor. The Brock name, however, would persevere, in John’s son, John, who died in 1771, leaving his wife, Martha with three young children, the fourth born posthumously; to John III, born in 1766 and the last of this line in Gloucester. He would move to Maine, where he and his wife Susannah would raise 9 children. Their son, David, was married first to Judith Farrar, and secondly to Livonia Coburn. Their son, Alvan Dinsmore Brock, would go on to represent Maine in the Civil War, would marry twice, and lead a colorful, if not somewhat eccentric life until he was killed by an electric car in 1900. Alvan’s son, Fenelon was a patent attorney in Washington, DC, and with his wife, Lilian Burritt Brock, a woman of distinguished heritage herself, raised 5 children, including Walter Burritt Brock. Walter, a Presbyterian minister and sometimes inventor, like Alvan, was a bit different in his thinking, and perhaps a bit like John the first, was often down on his luck.  My late father-in-law, Richard Warren Brock followed, and now, the name rests with Jason and his three sons, Harry, Makenzie and Mitchell.

The chapter on the first John Brock isn’t closed just yet. Despite the absence of his life story, save a few sentences in town records, I know there’s more to learn about him. I’ll just keep looking. 

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