| Notes |
- Possible parents of this Thomas Beeson:
Thomas BESSON was born in England about 1611 to 1616. In a depostion on
10 Mar. 1674 in Anne Arundel County, Maryland he gave his age as 58 .1 He is
probably the Thomas BESON, age 24, who was on the Ship Assurance in 1635 f rom
London.2 It is interesting to note that on that same ship was John GATER
[GAITHER] who was also an early settler in Anne Arundel County.
Thomas BESSON immigrated to Anne Arundel Co., MD where he demanded 600 ac res
"for transporting himself and family" in 1649 into the province and since
that time 3 servants Thomas JONES, Robert SAWLY, Alecia CROWDER.3 He rece ived
a patent on the 450 acre tract Bessenden that was stated as transportation
of "himself, Ann his wife Thomas and Ann his Children and Edwd COX his Ser vant."4
That his daughter Ann was born before 1649 would dispute Harry Wright Newm an's
belief that Ann was not born before 1658, or the mother of her husband Nic holas
GASSAWAY's eldest children born about 1668 and 1670.10 Newman apparently
believed that Hester, was the only wife of Thomas BESSON, and since they w ere not
married before 1658, concluded that BESSON's daughter Ann was not born bef ore
then. If that were true, she would have been too young to have been the mo ther of
Nicholas GASSAWAY's eldest children. Newman had apparently not seen the p atent
for Bessenten, which in combination with his demand for that land, showed
that Thomas BESSON had a first wife Ann, and his daughter Ann was bo rn by 1649
when he transported her into MD.
J. D. Warfield stated that as shown by Thomas BESSON's will, that Nicholas
GASSAWAY married his daughter Hester.11 While BESSON's will did show th at a
daughter married Nicholas GASSAWAY, her first name was not given in the wi ll.
While Thomas BESSON's second wife was named Hester, there is no eviden ce of his
having a daughter of that name.
Thomas BESSON secondly married after 1658 to Hester, widow of Henry CAPLIN .12
That a widow did not normally wait too long to remarry, and it was stat ed that
the lands of CAPLIN were in the occupation of BESSON until CAPLIN's daught er
Elizabeth married Thomas WATKINS, the marriage of Thomas BESSON to Hester
was probably about 1658.
Thomas BESSON died in Anne Arundel County between 15 Oct. 1677 and
29 Apr. 1679.5 After his death, his widow Hester married to Thomas SUTTON .7
Thomas BESSON and first wife Ann had children:
1. Thomas BESSON4 (the elder)5 b. say 1646;13 m. Margaret SAUGHIER
5 Mar.8 [year blank, ca. 1677]
2. Ann BESSON4 b. say 1648;13 m. Nicholas GASSAWAY5,6; d. before 16929
Thomas BESSON and second wife Hester5 had children:
3. John BESSON5
4. Martha BESSON5 b. say 1662;14 m.1 Nicholas15 ALDRIDGE7 by 1680;7
m.2 John ROBERTS 5 Nov. 1709;15 bur. 21 Apr. 1722 All Hallow's
Parish, Anne Arundel Co., MD15
5. William BESSON5
6. Thomas BESSON (the younger)5
SOURCE: http://home.netcom.com/~fzsaund/besson.html
Website Owner & Researcher:
[email protected]
Fredric Z. Saunders
1234 Waterside Cove #21
Midvale, UT 84047-4293
-----
For research only because of name and location (Quaker):
Upper Chichester Township. (Delaware/PA)
In the early days of the province the term Chichester generally was us ed to indicate that section of the county now comprising Upper and Lower C hichester. We know that previous to 1686 Chichester had been surveyed, th at some difficulty was had respecting the survey, and at the October cou rt of that year the justices "Ordered that the township of Chichester exte nd its bounds as formerly laid out by Charles Ashcom, until further order ." The peculiar western line which separates the upper township from Beth el was run to conform to the lines of the tracts surveyed to the early set tlers, and doubtless the authority which adjusted the boundary of the seve ral municipal districts at that time permitted freedom of choice among t he land-owners as to the township in which their real estate should be loc ated. Certain it is, a more irregular line than the western boundary of Up per Chichester it would be difficult to lay out.
Among the earliest settlers of the township was Walter Martin, the found er of St. Martin's Church, the tract of five hundred acres surveyed to h im being at this time parts of the farms of John B. McCay, George Broomal l, and Samuel Vernon. Adjoining Martin's land to the east were two hundr ed and fifty acres surveyed to Jeremiah Collett, June 16, 1682, being lan ds sold in England by Penn to Joan May, in September, 1681, which rig ht to locate that number of acres in the province May transferred to Colle tt. The latter was an earnest churchman, and by will devised a certain s um of money to be applied to the support of the rector of St. Martin's Chu rch, and providing for services according to the Episcopal ritual to be he ld in that church on certain days in each year thereafter. Andrew Osbor n, David Boyd, John Stevenson, P. Birnbaum, and Thomas Beeson's farms a re located on the Collett tract. Above Walter Martin's, or rather pa rt of his plantation, on the road from Concord to Chichester, was a pl ot of sixty acres, which, on Oct. 6, 1684, became the property of James Br own. This James Brown came from Bedfordshire, England, and settled on t he tract mentioned, located on the east branch of Naaman's Creek, and ga ve the name of "Middleton" to his new home, possibly from the locati on of the land near the centre of the township, although previous to th at date he had received a patent for one hundred and fifteen acres kno wn as "Podington," lying north of Jeremiah Collett's tract, and bound ed on the east by Chichester Creek. In December, 1685, he purchased one hu ndred acres lying between the two divisions of the east branch of Naaman 's Creek from Thomas Garrett, to whom the land was laid out in April of th at year. The plantation known as "Middleton" is now part of the farm of Jo hn B. Okie. "Podington" is now the property of Andrew Armstrong, while t he one hundred acres lying between the dividing streams of the j east bran ch of Naaman's Creek, above mentioned, is now part of the farms of Jo hn B. McCay, Mrs. It. M. Halsey, and John B. Okie. It is stated by Geor ge Churchman, in his "Reminiscences of Nottingham," written in 1822,1 th at James Brown and William Brown were brothers, that the former came to Pe nnsylvania in 1693, and the latter in 1696, a statement which partak es of the two-brother theory so frequently presented in family history, wh ereby, as a rule, the second generation is confused with the firs
1 Published in Oxford (Chester County) Press, July 16, 1876.
William Brown subsequently became the owner of the Podington estate, b ut it was not until June 21, 1705, at which date no person named James Bro wn owned land in Upper Chichester. It is probable that William Brown and J ames Brown, who subsequent to 1696 purchased nine hundred acres in Notting ham, were sons of James Brown, the immigrant. On the east side of Chichest er Creek, at the line dividing Upper and Lower Chichester, and extendi ng to Chester township, was a tract of five hundred acres, which was purch ased by William Withers, and on Jan. 22, 1682, was conveyed to Thomas With ers. On this tract was included the real estate of Jeremiah L. Brown, Dani el N. Larkin, Matthew Boyd, Robert McClintock, E. and T. Worrilow, Susan H arvey, John H. Williams, W. F. Patterson, John G. Smeet, Mary and Susan Ma gin, Edward Johnson, Donaldson, and part of T. Roberts and the Norris esta tes. Above Withers' land was a plot of one hundred acres surveyed to Thom as Clifton, June 24,1684. This estate passed to James Brown in 1685, a nd it was on this purchase that he gave the ground on which Chichester Fri ends' meeting-house was built. The tract bought from Clifton extended fr om the Chichester Creek to Chester township, and on it parts of the fa rm of Jeremiah C. Brown, T. Roberts, and j the Norris estates are locate d. Above this last mentioned tract to the north, on Sept. 4, 1682, four hu ndred acres were surveyed to Henry Hastings and Richard Buffington, whi ch includes the upper part of the farm of Jeremiah Brown and T. Roberts, a ll of that belonging to Joseph R. Johnson, that of Charles Posotta, the mo st of James M. Craig's, as well as those of W. Henry Dutton and Thomas Dut ton. Above this four-hundred-acre tract was a plot of three hundred and fi fty acres, which, on Nov. 16, 1683, was surveyed to John Kingsman. This tr act began at a point where Baldwin's Run crosses the line between Chest er and Upper Chichester townships, extending directly westward to the junc tion of Greer's and Bezer's Runs, when the course of the latter (continu ed on website)
SOURCE: http://www.delcohistory.org/ashmead/ashmead_pg448.htm
Could the following Benson really be Beeson? Is this Thomas Beeson will h ave any ties to this family?
THE LAST WILL AND TESTAMENT OF THOMAS BENSON
of Anne Arundel County, dated: 5 May 1789; proved 6 March 1795
In the name of God Amen, I Thomas Benson of Anne Arundel County consideri ng the uncertainty of this mortal life and being of sound and perfect mi nd and memory blessed be Almighty God for the same do make this my last Wi ll and Testament in manner and form following, that is to say.
First I give and bequeath unto my oldest son Richard Benson, the sum of fi ve shillings.
I also bequeath unto my second son Thomas Benson, my gun to him and his he irs forever.
I also give and bequeath unto my third son, John Benson the sum of five sh illings.
I also give and bequeath to my fourth son William Benson one half of my Es tate to him and his heirs forever.
I also give unto my oldest daughter Elizabeth Cheney the sum of five shill ings.
I also give and bequeath unto my second daughter Sarah Danielson, the s um of five shillings.
I also give and bequeath unto my son in law John Miller formerly husba nd to my third daughter Comfort the sum of five shillings.
I also give and bequeath unto my fourth daughter Rachel Cheney the other h alf of my Estate to her and her heirs forever and it is my Will and desi re that she and her husband John Cheney shall take care of William my four th son, that is they shall have in their hands his Estate to for his maint enance and if the aforesaid shall marry then he shall have his Estate to h imself and if he shall do without lawfull heir of his body then his ha lf of my Estate to my daughter Rachel aforesaid and her heirs forever.
I also give and bequeath unto my fifth Daughter Ann Warfield the sum of fi ve shillings and I do hereby appoint John Cheney my son in law sole execut or of this my last Will and Testament hereby revoking all former Wil ls by me made. In Witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand seal this tw enty fifth day of May one thousand seven hundred and eighty nine.
Signed, Sealed published and declared by
The above named Thomas Benson to be Thomas
His last Will and Testament in the presents his mark
of us who have hereunto subscribed our names Benson
As Witnesses in the presents of the tesator
Richard Jones
Rich'd Waters
Richard Jones Jun'r
On the back of this aforegoing Will are the following Probated Viz
The 6th day of March 1795
Then came John Cheney the Executor appointed in the written Will…….and ma de oath on the holy Evangels of Almighty God that this instrument of Writi ng is the true whole and last Will and Testament of Thomas Benson la te of Anne Arundel County deceased that came to his hands and possession a nd that doth not know of any others…………..
Sworn before Jn'o Gassaway, Reg Wills AACty
Anne Arundel County
This 19th day of March 1795
Then came Richard Waters one of the subscribing witnesses to the written l ast Will and Testament of Thomas Benson late of Anne Arundel County deceas ed and made oath on the holy Evangels of Almighty God that he did see t he Testator therein named sign and seal this Will and that he heard him pu blish, pronounce and declare the same to be his last
Will and Testament that at the time of his so doing he was to the be st of his apprehension of a sound and disposing mind, memory and understan ding and that he together with Richard Jones and Richard Jones, Jun'r resp ectively subscribed their names as Witnesses to the Will in the presence a nd at the request of the Testator and all in the presence of each other……… ……………
Sworn before Jn'o Gassaway, Reg Wills AACty
Anne Arundel County
This 21st day of March 1795
Then came Richard Jones one of the subscribing Witnesses to the written la st Will and Testament of Thomas Benson late of Anne Arundel County deceas ed and made oath on the holy Evangels of Almighty God that he did see t he Testator therein named sign and seal this Will and that he heard him pu blish, pronounce and declare the same to be his last Will and Testament th at at the time of his so doing he was to the best of his apprehensi on of a sound and disposing mind, memory and understanding and that he tog ether with Richard Waters and Richard Jones Jun'r respectively subscrib ed their names as Witnesses to the Will in the presence and at the reque st of the Testator and all in the presence of each other……………..
Richard Jones
Rich Waters
Richard Jones Jun'r
---------------------------------------------------------------------- ---- -----
Transcribed from the original will on September 18, 2000 by Janice M. Park er
SOURCE: http://www.rootsweb.com/~mdbaltim/wills/will197.htm
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Abt 1630 - Yes, date unknown
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