Friday, June 26, 2020

52 Ancestors - Week 336: #546 Zechariah Barber (1656-1705) of Medfield, Massachusetts

Zechariah Barber (1656-1705)  is number 546 on my Ahnentafel List, my 7th great-grandfather, who married #547 Abiel Ellis (1662-1716) in 1683 in Medfield, Norfolk County, Massachusetts.

I am descended through:

*  their daughter  #273 Ruth Barber (1696-1761) who married #272 Henry Smith (1680-1743) in 1730.
* their son #136 Moses Smith (1736-1806) who married #137 Patience Hamant (1735-1780) in 1762.
*  their son #68  Aaron Smith (1765-1841) who married #69 Mercy Plimpton (1772-1850) in 1795.
*  their son #34 Alpheus Smith (1802-1840)   who married  #35 Elizabeth Horton Dill (1791-1869) in 1826.
*  their daughter, #17 Lucretia Townsend Smith (1828-1884) who married #16 Isaac Seaver (1823-1901) in 1851.
*  their son #8 Frank Walton Seaver (1852-1922) who married #9 Hattie Louisa Hildreth (1857-1920) in 1874.
*  their son #4 Frederick Walton Seaver (1876-1942) who married #5 Alma Bessie Richmond (1882-1962) in 1900.
*  their son #2 Frederick Walton Seaver (1911-1983) who married #3 Betty Virginia Carringer (1919-2002)  in 1942.
*  their son #1 Randall Jeffrey Seaver (1943-living)

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1)  PERSON (with source citations as indicated in brackets):
 

*   Name:                         Zechariah Barber[1–3]    
*  Alternate Name:          Zacharia Barbur[4]    
*  Alternate Name:          Zacharie Barber[5]  

*  Sex:                              Male    

*  Father:                         George Barber (1617-1685)    
*  Mother:                        Elizabeth Clarke (1620-1683)  

2)  INDIVIDUAL EVENTS (with source citations as indicated in brackets):

*   Birth:                          29 September 1656, Medfield, Norfolk, Massachusetts, United States[1,4]    

*  Death:                         11 August 1705 (age 48), Medfield, Norfolk, Massachusetts, United States[2]

*  Administration:          28 May 1709, administration filed; Medfield, Norfolk, Massachusetts, United States[3]  

3)  SHARED EVENTS (with source citations as indicated in brackets):

*  Spouse 1:                    Abiel Ellis (1662-1716)    
*  Marriage 1:                 30 August 1683 (age 26) Medfield, Norfolk, Massachusetts, United States[5]    

*  Child 1:                      Benoni Barber (1684-1684)    
*  Child 2:                      Zechariah Barber (1685-1746)    
*  Child 3:                      Joseph Barber (1687-1770)    
*  Child 4:                      Abiel Barber (1691-1718)    
*  Child 5:                      John Barber (1693-1754)    
*  Child 6:                      Ruth Barber (1696-1761)    
*  Child 7:                      Thomas Barber (1698-1705)    
*  Child 8:                      Elizabeth Barber (1700-1722)    
*  Child 9:                      Mary Barber (1703-1756)  
            
4)  NOTES (with source citations as indicated in brackets):  

William S. Tilden edited the book History of the Town of Medfield, Massachusetts, 1650-1886. The family genealogy section of the book provides this summary for Zechariah Barber[1]:
"Zechariah Barber settled on Bridge Street, near the corner of the road leading to Dingle Dell.  He owned what is now the town farm, and appears to have built this house shortly after the Indian war.  He married in 1683 Abiel Ellis who died in 1716.  He died in 1705."
Zechariah Barber was born 29 September 1656 in Medfield, Massachusetts, the son of George and Elizabeth (Clarke) Barber[4].  

Zechariah married Abiel Ellis on 30 August 1683 in Medfield[5].  Abiel was the daughter of Thomas and Mary (Wight) Ellis.  The marriage record in the Medfield town vital record book says:
"ELLICE (see Elice, Ellis), Abiell and Zacharie Barber, Aug. 30, 1683" 
They had nine children, all born and recorded in Medfield town records:

*  Benoni Barber (1684-1684)
*  Zechariah Barber (1685-1746), married 1717 Deborah Partridge (1694-1723).
*  Joseph Barber (1687-1770), married 1726 Abigail Hawes (1697-1776).
*  Abiel Barber (1691-1718), married 1708 Elkanah Haven (1685-1765).
*  John Barber (1693-1754).
*  Ruth Barber (1696-1761), married 1730 Henry Smith (1680-1743).
*  Thomas Barber (1698-1705).
*  Elizabeth Barber (1700-1722), married 1722 Jonathan Battle (1693-1727)
*  Mary Barber (1703-1756), married 1721 Edward Cole (1694-1724).

Zechariah Barber's father, George Barber, died on 13 April 1685 in Medfield, leaving an estate totaling £368.  There were seven living children at the time, and it is likely that Zechariah received some real or personal property from his father's estate, but there is no distribution information.

Zechariah Barber died on 11 August 1705 in Medfield, Massachusetts at age 48, leaving a wife and seven children between the ages of 19 down to 2 years old[2].  There is no known burial location for Zachariah or Abiel Berber.

Zechariah Barber died intestate, and administration was filed on his estate on 28 May 1709 in Suffolk County Probate Court by his eldest son, Zechary Barbur[3].  A bond of £300 was posted by Zechary Barbur, Theophilus Clark and Samuel Smith.  An inventory was taken on 8 July 1709 by John Harding, Samuell Barbur and Jonathan Boyden.  The inventory totaled £190-6s-6d.  The real estate included:

*  home lot with a meadow and buildings (£42)
*  4 acres of meadow in broad meadow (£20)
*  2 acres of meadow by noon hill (£10)
*  10 acres of meadow and swamp by Boggastow brook (£18)
*  10 acres of upland by pine swamp near pine valley (£16)
*  2 acres of upland in bridge street plain (£6)
*  6 acres of upland old mill land (£6)
*  11 acres of land in black swamp (£2-15s)
*  5 acres of land in Ren???sion (£2-15s)
*  small parcel of land between the bridge and John Bowers meadow (£0-10s)

The inventory was accepted on 23 August 1709 by the Probate Court.

Zechariah Barbur filed an account on 19 May 1710, requesting approval of charges and fees of £6-5s-6d, leaving £184-1s-0d in the estate.  

Abiel (Ellis) Barber, the widow of Zechariah Barber, died on 14 August 1716.

An Inventory of the real estate was taken on 5 November 1717 by Samuell Barber, John Fisher, and Ebenezer Mason.  The real estate was apprised for £152-10s-0d.  A bond of £300 was filed by Zechariah Barber, Nathaniel Partridge and Samuel Ellice, on condition that the real estate be distributed by Administrator Zechariah Barber to his siblings (Joseph, Abiel, John, Ruth, Elizabeth and Mary).  A committee stated that the land holdings were not capable of a division among the children.  On 17 December 1717, the Probate Court ordered Zechariah Barber, the administrator and eldest son, to have the whole estate and pay his siblings, or their guardians,  £19-1s each.  

5)  SOURCES:

1. William S Tilden and John A S Monks, History of the town of Medfield, Massachusetts, 1650-1886 : with genealogies of the families that held real estate or made any considerable stay in the town during the first two centuries (Boston, Mass.: G.H. Ellis, 1887), page 314, Zechariah Barber family sketch.

2. Vital Records of Medfield, Massachusetts to the Year 1850 (Boston, Mass. :  New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1903), Deaths, page 194, Zechariah Barber death entry, 11 August 1705.

3. Suffolk County, Massachusetts, Probate case files, Estate File 3180 (20 images) Zechariah Barber of Medfield, 1709; "Suffolk County (Massachusetts) Probate Records, 1636-1899," digital images, American Ancestors (http://www.americanancestors.org: accessed 25 June 2020).

4. Vital Records of Medfield, Massachusetts to the Year 1850, Births, page 19, Zacharia Barbur birth entry, 29 September 1656.

5. Vital Records of Medfield, Massachusetts to the Year 1850, Marriages, page 136, Abiell Ellice and Zacharie Barber entry, 30 August 1683.

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NOTE:  In 2014, Amy Johnson Crow suggested a weekly blog theme of "52 Ancestors" in her blog post  52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks on the No Story Too Small blog.  I have extended this theme in 2020 for a seventh year to 364 Ancestors in 364 Weeks.  The list of 52 Ancestors biographies from my great-grandparents to the 7th great-grandparents (in work) is in   https://www.geneamusings.com/p/ancestor-biographies.html.

Copyright (c) 2020, Randall J. Seaver

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