Digging into our family's past has been an eye-opening experience, uncovering stories that shaped
who we are today. In this article, I'll share some interesting tidbits about a few notable ancestors,
using info from Ancestry.com,
Wikipedia,
Internet Archive (archive.org),
and others. Links below point to some of the research materials used to create this article.
Though not complete, the family tree
available for viewing on Ancestry.com traces our roots from the late Middle Ages to the present day. There is also a
GEDCOM file that can be uploaded to a number of
genealogy sites.
Thomas Chase, born sometime in the early 1400s, was our maternal 15th great-grandfather and is
the most distant ancestor found so far. I used his son Thomas's birth in 1440 to estimate Thomas
Senior's birth year. They lived in Chesham, England, as did his 4th great-grandson,
Aguia Chase
who migrated to America in 1640 during what has been called
The Great Migration.
Our most noteable relatives in this line were
Margret Chase Smith and
Salmon P Chase.
We relate to the Chases through the Cleaveland-Chandler line, which will be covered later.
Thomas Brockett is the most distant paternal ancestor I have found so far. He lived in the last half
of the 15th century. From him, John Brocket
acquired what became Brocket Manor on which today sits
Brocket Hall.
John's son, Sir John Brocket
was a captain of the guard for Queen Elizabeth. For us the family line turns to Reed in the late 1500's.
William Reede,
who was born in Brocket Hall, came to America on the ship Defence in July 1635. He was an early resident of Woburn, MA.
The Reed lineage became intertwined with the Bacons through the marriage of Sarah Reed to Oliver Bacon
in 1770. Nathaniel Bacon, Oliver's father built what is now known as
Bacon-Gleason-Homstead
located at 118 Wilson Road in Bedford, MA around the time of Oliver's birth in 1740. Oliver served as a drummer in the
Bedford Minutemen
and took part in the Lexington Alarm at the Battle of Concord on April 19, 1775. He rests in the
Old Burying Ground
in Bedford.
Woburn, Massachusetts,
was originally part of Charlestown. Incorporated in 1642, it included present-day Woburn, Winchester, Burlington, and parts
of Stoneham and Wilmington. This intersects with the Crandell family through Oliver Bacon.
Three of the seven men who founded Woburn were brothers: Ezekiel, Samuel, and
Thomas Richardson.
Thomas was Oliver Bacon's second great-grandfather. Thomas's widow Mary Baldwin later married Michael Bacon Sr.,
making her both Oliver’s second great-grandmother and his step-great-grandmother.
The Baldwin House,
built in 1661, is Woburn's oldest home.
It is interesting how interrelated the settlers were, but given the small number of colonists, they had limited choices.
Child mortality was high, childbirth was dangerous, and families often had more than ten children well into the 1800s.
John Crandall, our 10th great-grandfather and commonly referred to as Elder John Crandall,
was the first Crandall to settle in America and, by some accounts, the first Crandall altogether.
He was the first Baptist elder in America. He played a significant role in acquiring a piece of land
called Misquamicut from Sosoa, a captain of the Narragansett tribe. There was founded the town of
Westerly, Rhode Island, and John was its first resident.
The origins of the surname Crandall can be traced back to 1230 with one Thomas Crundel of Worcestershire,
England. Gifford traced variants of the name (Crundall, Crondall) in Worcestershire up to 1575.
The name first appeared in neighboring Gloucestershire with William Crendell in 1579.
Our first documented direct ancestor, Edward Crundall, was listed as a free tenant of Tewksbury, Gloucestershire
in 1539. Nicholas Crundall/Crondall, born in 1525, is presumed to be Edward's son. Nicholas's son,
Nicholas Crundall, was born in 1555 and likely died in 1608. His son, James Crendall
(also spelled Crandoll and Crendall), born around 1589, was Elder John's father. John Crandall,
James's first child by his first wife Eleanor, was baptized in Westerleigh, Gloucestershire,
on February 15, 1617/8.
John is believed to have arrived in America in 1635 and settled in Salem in the Massachusetts Bay Colony.
He was a minister at the Congregational Church in Salem, where he became close to Roger Williams, a strong
advocate for religious freedom, the separation of church and state, and fair dealings with Native Americans.
After being exiled from Plymouth by Governor Bradford (another of our ancestors who will be discussed later),
Williams founded Providence, Rhode Island Colony, a community dedicated to religious and political freedom.
Like many Baptists from Massachusetts, John moved with Roger Williams to the Rhode Island Colony, where he
became the first Elder of the Baptist Church in New England. Known as Elder John, he governed the new colony,
serving as a commissioner and tax collector in Newport. He was briefly imprisoned twice: the first time in
Boston for five days for illegally preaching in Lynn, and the second time in Connecticut over a land dispute
between that colony and Rhode Island.
Elder John had nine children: seven from his first wife Mary (last name unknown),
who died in 1669, and two from his second wife, Hannah Gaylord. Our family is descended from Samuel
Crandall, Elder John's sixth child. Elder John died on November 29, 1676, and is buried in a family
plot in Westerly, Rhode Island.
I have not uncovered any specific information about our direct ancestral line back to Elder John. It
should be noted that most historians and genealogists believe that all Crandalls/Crandells in the US
and Canada are descendants of Elder John. According to the Wikipedia article on
John Crandall,
he is "the ancestor of several prominent Americans," and lists a few of them.
Later in this article, we will revisit the Crandells when I will discuss the immediate ancestry, parents,
and grandparents on both sides of our family.
Over four centuries ago, 102 passengers
and 20 to 30 crew members set sail from Plymouth, England, bound for the Virginia Colony aboard the
Mayflower. The passengers were made up of 50
English Protestant separatists, who called themselves "saints" whom we now know as the Pilgrims; 34 passengers recruited by
the Merchant Adventurers, known as "strangers"
by the Pilgrims; and 18 servants, indentures, and apprentices. Due to delays and unfavorable weather, they ended
up at the tip of Cape Cod. While in what is now Provincetown Harbor, 41 men signed the
Mayflower Compact.
The compact aimed to "enact, constitute, and frame such just and equal Laws, Ordinances, Acts, Constitutions,
and Offices, from time to time, as shall be thought most meet and convenient for the general Good of the Colony.”
The passengers and crew settled in Plymouth Colony
in Massachusetts. However, estimates vary, between 45 to 50 perished within the first six months after their
arrival. It is believed that 25 to 30 surviving passengers left descendants who, after 12 to 13 generations,
now number over 32 million. We are descendants of four men from that group: Pilgrims William Bradford,
Richard Warren, and George Soule, all of whom were signers of the Mayflower Compact.
William Bradford
(1590-1657) is the most notable of our four ancestors. He was born in Yorkshire, England, and later became
a leading figure among the Pilgrims. In search of religious freedom, he moved to Leiden, Netherlands, with the
separatist (the Brownists) group before
eventually sailing to America. Bradford served as the governor of Plymouth Colony for over 30 years, between
1621 and 1657, guiding the colony through its formative years. His literary work, “Of Plim̃oth Plantation”,
is a detailed account of the Pilgrims' journey and settlement, providing valuable insights into early
colonial life from 1620-1646. Bradford's legacy is significant, as he was instrumental in shaping the
governance and community of Plymouth Colony. He left behind many
descendants
, some of whom have played major roles in American history.
Given the extensive and well-documented nature of William Bradford's life as Plymouth Colony's longtime governor,
chronicler, and central figure in early American history, a comprehensive treatment of his biographical details,
political contributions, and historical significance would exceed the scope of a single family genealogy page.
His role as both participant and historian of the Plymouth experience has generated such a substantial body of
primary and secondary source material that I have chosen to focus here on his direct genealogical connection
to our family line rather than attempt an inadequate summary of his remarkable historical legacy.
Richard Warren
was born around 1580 in England, though specific details about his early life are not well-documented,
He may have been born in Hertford, England. A London merchant, he joined the Pilgrims on their voyage
to the New World, seeking new opportunities. Though he did not flee to Leiden for religious freedom and
was considered one of the strangers he was a crucial member of the group.
Warren's family did not accompany him initially. His wife, Elizabeth Walker, and their five daughters
joined him in 1623 on the ship Anne. The couple had two more sons after reuniting in Plymouth:
Nathaniel and Joseph. Warren's children, all of whom survived into adulthood married giving Warren 57
grandchildren, resulting in numerous descendants, including many prominent figures in American history
. Some historians believe the Warren family has a claim of the largest number of Mayflower descendants
Warren signed the Mayflower Compact and was one of the nineteen signers who lived through
that first winter.Warren participated in the early
expedition to Cape Cod, helping to establish the foundation of what would become Plymouth Colony.
As one of the original settlers, Warren received his acres in
the Division of Land in 1623, and his family shared in the 1627 Division of Cattle.
This land distribution system was crucial to the colony's survival and growth, rewarding the original passengers with
property rights that would benefit their families for generations. Warren's strategic decision to bring his family
over separately proved wise, as they avoided the deadly first winter while he established their foothold in the New World.
Warren died in 1628, just eight years
after arriving and only five years after his family's reunion. The only record of his death appears in Nathaniel
Morton's 1669 book "New England's Memorial", and
he was buried at Burial Hill in Plymouth. His widow Elizabeth proved to be remarkably resilient and successful,
never remarrying and remaining a widow for 43 years, ultimately accumulating one of the largest land holdings in
the colony - 13 miles of coastline from what is now the town of Plymouth. She lived to be more than ninety years old,
dying on October 2, 1673.
The couple's seven children all survived into adulthood, married, and created large families, making Richard
Warren one of the most common ancestors among Mayflower passengers. More erroneous information
has been published about Richard Warren than any other Mayflower passenger, probably because he
has so many descendants. This genealogical abundance has made Warren one of the most researched yet challenging
Mayflower passengers to trace accurately.
George Soule
(c. 1595 (1601)-(1677) 1679), possible born
in Haarlem, Haarlem, Noord-Holland, DNA evidence has ruled out several proposed English Soule family connections.
He arrived at Plymouth Colony aboard the Mayflower in November 1620 as an
indentured servant to Edward Winslow, one of the future governors of Plymouth Colony. As a servant to
Edward Winslow, George was part of a household that included Winslow's wife Elizabeth and fellow servants
Elias Story and young Ellen More, though both Story and More perished during the first winter.
Despite his status as an indentured servant, George was significant enough to sign the Mayflower Compact,
suggesting he was over 21 years of age and considered a contributing member of the colony.
William Bradford noted in 1651 that while one of Winslow's servants had died, "his man, George Soule, is still
living, and hath eight children".
After completing his term of service, George became a freeman by 1632/33, though Plymouth tax records from
1633/34 show he was taxed at the lowest rate, indicating his estate was modest.
He married Mary (possibly Mary Buckett) around 1626 and established a substantial family line with nine children,
making him a founding patriarch whose descendants would spread throughout New England and beyond. His origins
remain somewhat mysterious, though recent scholarship suggests possible connections to Bedfordshire, England.
George Soule's nine children created one of the most extensive descendant lines among Mayflower passengers.
His descendants spread rapidly throughout New England during the colonial period, with many settling in Rhode Island,
Connecticut, and later moving westward as America expanded.
The descendants are so numerous and well-documented that they formed the
"Soule Kindred in America, Inc." in 1967.
My favorite Soule descendant is Dick Van Dyke.
Another descendant is Admiral Perry
the leader of the expedition to end Japan isolationism.
The Soule line represents one of the most researched Mayflower descendant families, though ironically this has
led to some complications. The 1980 genealogy published by the
General Society of Mayflower Descendants covering five generations of George Soule's descendants has
been noted by scholars as "seriously flawed," highlighting the challenges in
documenting such an extensive family line The Soule Family.
