175. Richard1 Borden;; Came to America mid-1630's;121,122 christened 22 Feb 1595/96 at Kent, England;121,122 married Joane Fowle 28 Sep 1625 at Headcorn, Kent, England;121,122 died 25 May 1671 at RI at age 75.121,122
He "Richard Borden, of county Kent, England, came to Boston in the ship "Elizabeth and Ann," in 1635, with wife, Joan, and two children; in 1638 he settled at Portsmouth, Rhode Island. He held town offices and was a Quaker. His wife died July 18, 1688; he died June 25, 1671. Children: Thomas; Francis Mathew; John, mentioned below; Joseph; Sarah; Samuel; Benjamin; Amy."69 He "It has been said that Richard did not come over to New England with John, but waited until he received a letter from him, and came the year following, 1636. If it was so, this circumstance serves, in some good degree, to explain why his name is not found on the list of passengers in 1635. The commissioners found all their labours to prevent the emigration of obnoxious persons had been a complete failure, and, becoming satisfied by the experience of 1635, that they could not attain their object, they gradually relaxed in their efforts, and at last ceased to enforce the law, and suffered emigration to flow to New England unnoticed. On this account we have no list of passengers, or rather a very meagre one, to guide us in the case of Richard in fixing the year of his arrival in this country. He may, however, have come in the same ship with John by an arrangement with the captain, as was done in multitudes of other cases. In 1635 the ship Abigail, of London, is known to have landed in this country ninety persons more than were entered upon her passenger list in London, and a large portion of them were dissenting ministers and their families. and if it was so easy for the most obnoxious persons in England to avoid the surveillance of the government, I see no reason why Richard Borden might not have done the same, and thus have arrived in Boston in the Elizabeth and Ann with John and his family.
Of Richard's early history no more need be said. When the proposition of forming a settlement on Rhode Island was made to him, he entered into it with all his heart, and to it he devoted all his energies. All the necessary arrangements having been completed, the pioneers moved forward like the advance guard of an army to select the route and prepare the way for those who were to follow them, by removing obstructions, building temporary bridges across the rivulets that impeded their way or provide rafts on which to cross the larger streams, and also, charged with the duty of erecting suitable cabins for the reception of their wives and children upon the island. All this required stout hands and willing hearts, and, in this case, as in most others of a similar character, the labour fell upon a different class of men than the leaders of the Hutchinson party, or of its rank and file, most of whom never came to Rhode Island at all.
The place first selected for the settlement was about half a mile southeast from Bristol Ferry, at the south end of a pond that opened into Mt. Hope Bay, which the settlers dignified by the name of Portsmouth Harbor. The pond still retains the name of the town pond, and ebbs and flows as it did then. The town spring has not ceased to send forth its crystal stream, as in days of yore, to gladden the hearts of men, notwithstanding the crowd of settlers have turned their backs upon it, and left it alone in its glory. To the northeast of the spring a neck of land extends about two miles, which was nearly separated by creeks, marshes and the town pond from the rest of the island. This strip of land, called by the natives Pocasset Neck, was set off by the settlers as a common by running a fence from the south end of the pond to a cove on the east side of the island. This common was called the fenced common, to distinguish it from the lands outside to the south and west of it, which were all common; and the north point then received the name of common fence point, which it still bears, though the reason for its name ceased soon after it was given, and it is now a matter of wonder with many how this name could have originated. These different objects enumerated point out the location of the first settlement upon Rhode Island and the birthplace of Matthew, the third son of Richard Borden, who was born May, 1638, and shows very nearly the time when the first families arrived there. His birth, and those of Richard's other children, born on the island, have been handed down to our times by the records of the Friends' Monthly Meeting at Newport, which further tell us that Matthew Borden, son of Richard, was the first child born of English parents upon Rhode Island. It will here be noted that the birth of Matthew occurred so early in 1638 that it must have been at the place of their first settlemnt and not at Newtown, nor yet on the homestead of Richard, since known as the MacCorrie Farm.
In 1639 the settlers concluded to change their location for another about one and one-half miles farther south, on the east side of the island which they called Newtown. There they laid out house lots for a numerous settlement, but the speedy division of the island into farms soon absorbed all the population then in Portsmouth, and the settlement at Newport this year attracted a large portion of the emigrants to that locality. So that Newtown has remained, as the lawyers sometimes say: "In statu quo," until recently it is beginning to put on the appearance of a neat, quiet, prosperous little country village. It has a Methodist and an Episcopal Church, a post office, and bids fair to become all that its original founders anticipated--only they were about two and a half centuries ahead of the times in their anticipations. This town was not laid out on the narrow, contracted, miserly plan of modern speculators. To every citizen was meted out a lot of five acres on which to place his cottage, cabbage and turnip yard, etc. I see by the record that this was the size of the lot granted to Richard Borden June 10, 1638, at the first station, and I think his lot at Newtown was the same. It was afterward built upon by his son, John, and is still held by his descendant, William Borden.
Richard was one of the men who were appointed to survey the town lots ,and subsequently, 2nd day of the 11th month, 1638, he was appointed on a committee to lay out all the farming lands in Portsmouth. He had previously signed the civil compact October 1, 1638.
The Freeman's oath, which he signed at that time being as follows: "I, Richard Borden, being in God's providence an inhabitant within the jurisdiction of this commonwealth, do freely acknowledge myself to be subject to the government thereof. And therefore do here swear by the great and dreadful name of the Everlasting God that I will be true and faithful to the same with my person and estate, as in equity I am bound, and will also truly endeavor to maintain and preserve all the liberties and privileges thereof, submitting myself to the same. And further, that I will not plot or practice any evil against it, or consent to any that shall do so, but will timely discover and reveal the same to lawful authority now here established for the speedy prevention thereof. Moreover I do solemnly bind myself in the sight of God, that when I shall be called to give my voice touching any such matter of this state in which freemen are to deal, I will give my vote and suffrage as I shall judge in mine own conscience may best conduce and tend to the Publike weal of the Body, so help me God in the Lord, Jesus Christ."
During Richard's life the town and state records show him to have been a prominent man among his contemporaries in the town and colony. He was frequently called upon to fill important stations. He was a commissioner for Portsmouth for the years 1654, 1655, 1656, 1657--the last year with William Almy, another emigrant from Benenden. He was chosen assistant, or Senator, 1653 and 1654, and September 12, 1654, he was chosen General Treasurer of the Colony, to fill a vacancy. And if we include in our estimate of him the time and labour spent in surveying the town lands and in the performance of the various other duties assigned him by his townsmen, we must regard him as an active, intelligent business man, who would be honored and respected in any community at that time, or at the present day. Indeed, he seems to have entered heartily into all the plans for the improvement of the town and colony with a just appreciation of the responsibility of those who are legislating for posterity and not for partisans of the day; and by a strictly conscientious discharge of his duty toward all, he secured the entire confidence of his fellow citizens.
It is not known at what time he became connected with the Society of Friends; but as all his children were brought up in this connection it must have been at a very early day. But it is certain that he was one of the founders of that society in Portsmouth, and by his activity and pious zeal did much to extend its influence and promote its prosperity.
He was also an advocate for peaceful and gentle intercourse among neighbors, and did all in his power to reconcile the differences between the settlers on Rhode Island and those of the plantations at Providence, wishing to bring both parties under the same general government. At first Portsmouth and Newport acted together; and Providence and Warwick had done the same, each party having a separate government. But finally commissioners were chosen by each party, Richard being appointed for Portsmouth, and in a short time a union was effected under the name of "The Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations," according to the designation contained in a charter obtained by Governor Coddington from Charles I. This old charter has been the basis on which that government has rested from the time this union was formed, until the present constitution was adopted.
But the attention of Richard was not confined to what was passing in the town and colony in which he lived. Great changes were constantly occurring in various sections of the country; new settlements were forming every day, and new grants of large tracts of land designed to form new colonies were made by the King of England, furnishing new openings for settlements or speculation, which kept the people in a feverish state of excitement. Richard was fully informed of these transactions by his son Francis, who had established himself at Shrewsbury in East Jersey, and was induced by him to purchase two shares in a land company in that territory for the purchase of the township of Shrewsbury. The Friends generally throughout New England took a lively interest in this colony on account of the liberal constitution adopted by Sir George Carteret, the owner, and Philip Carteret, the Governor of the new colony, which secured to them and all other persons the free exercise of the rights of conscince, and they hoped to make it a place of refuge to all who were persecuted in the other colonies. This purchase was made near the close of Richard's life, as the grant from the Duke of York to Sir George Carteret bears date June 23, 1664, and Richard died May 23, 1671.
Richard seems to have passed away suddenly at a time when he had not arranged for the disposal of his widely-extended property. When it was announced to him that he had but a short time to live, he requested some of his neighbors to be called in as witnesses, and on their arrival he proceeded to make a "nuncupative will" by declaring what disposition he wished to be made of his property. These declarations were noted down in the presence of the witnesses, and though never revised by the testator, were approved by the Council at Portsmouth July 11, 1671, and established as his lawful will. If the case had not been so urgent, due reflection would have led him to make a more equitable distribution of his property among his children. As it was, the four older sons got nearly the whole and the three younger only forty pounds each, and the three daughters were left almost unprovided for, as also was
his widow. But we may charitably hope that these omissions were duly attended to by his son Matthew, the executor, and that the wants of all were abundantly supplied.
The following obituary notice of Richard Borden is copied from the Record of the Friends Monthly Meeting at Newport:
"Richard Borden of Portsmouth, R. I., being one of the first planters of Rhode Island, lived about seventy years and then died at his own house, belonging to Portsmouth. He was buried on the burial ground given by Robert Dennis to the Friends, which is in Portsmouth, and lieth on the left hand of the way that goeth from Portsmouth to Newport, upon the 25th day of the 3rd month, 1671," old style; June 5, 1671, new style. Joan, the widow of Richard, survived him eighteen years and died July 16, 1688 two years after the death of John Alden, who is supposed to have been the last of the Mavflower's company. She lived long enough to see all her children fully confirmed in what she believed to be the truth and in dying she must have had a happy consciousness that they would do honor to their parental training and cordially unite with their friends in all their plans for the support of religious institutions and the promotion of sound morals among the people at large. She died at the age of 84 years, 6 months. Reckoning back from the dates given us by the Friend's record, Richard was born about 1601, and Joan February 15, 1604.
I have endeavored to place Richard prominently before the minds of his descendants as their ancestor, whose wisdom has placed them in a country abounding in all the blessings of God's providence which can make life desirable and where they and their associates can make their influence felt in the government of the nation. If their liberty is ever trampled upon by the feet of tyrants, it will be because they have become unfaithful to the trust committed to their charge and despised the noblest birthright ever committed to mortals." S.
From the records at Portsmouth, Rhode Island, we find that Richard Borden was in the year 1638 admitted an inhabitant of the Island of Aquidneck, having submitted himself to the government that is, or shall be established, 1638, May 20--He was allotted five acres.
1639, January 2--He and three others were appointed to survey all
lands near about, and to bring in a map or plot of said lands.
1640--He was appointed with four others to lay out lands in Portsmouth.
1641, March 16--Freeman.
1653, May 18--He and seven others were appointed a committee for
ripening matters that concern Long Island, and in the case concerning
the Dutch.
1653-54--Assistant Treasurer.
1654-55--General Treasurer.
1654-56-57--Commissioner.
1661, September 6.--He bought of Shadrack of Providence, land in
Providence near Newtokonkonut Hill, containing about 60 acres.
1667--He was one of the original purchasers of lands in New Jersey
from certain Indians.
1667-70--Deputy.
1671, May 31--Will made by Town Council of Portsmouth on testimony
concerning the wishes of deceased. Ex. son Matthew. To
widow Joan the old house and fire room, with leanto and buttery
adjoining, and the little chamber in new house, and porch chamber
joining to it; half the use of great hall, porch room below, cellaring
and garret of new house for life. To her also firewood yearly,
use of thirty fruit trees in orchard that she may choose, liberty
to keep fowls about the house not exceeding forty, and all
household goods at her disposal. She was to have thirty ewe sheep
kept for her, with their profit and increase; fifty other sheep kept
to halves, three cows kept and their profit, and to have paid her
yearly a good well fed beef, three well fed swine,
ten bushels of wheat, twenty bushels of Indian corn, six
bushels of barley malt and four barrels of cider. To son Thomas
all estate in Providence, lands, goods and chattels (except horse
kind, he paying his mother Joan yearly a barrel of pork and
firkin of butter. To son Francis, lands in New Jersey. To son John
all land about new dwelling house of said John Borden, etc. To
son Joseph, oe40, within two years after the death of his mother. To
son Samuel oe40, half in six months after death of father and half in
six months after death of mother. To son Benjamin oe40 within four
years after death of mother. To daughter Mary Cook, oe5. To
daughter Sarah Holmes, oe40, within six months after death of
mother. To daughter Amy Borden, oe100 at age of twenty-one. To
granddaughter, Amy Cook, oe10 at age of eighteen. To son Matthew,
whole estate after payment of debts and legacies, and if he die
without issue said estate not to remain to any brother older. Inventory,
oe1572, 8s. 9d., viz: 200 sheep, 100 lambs, 4 oxen, 9 cows, 4
three-years, 5 two-years, 7 yearlings, 5 calves; horseflesh in Providence,
oe60. Four mares on the island, oe20, horse oe7, 10s; 6 colts,
and other horseflesh at New London, oe8. Thirty swine, 11 pigs, negro
man and woman, oe50; 3 negro children, oe25; turkeys, geese, fowls,
Indian corn, rye, wheat, oats, barley, pease, 2 cheese presses, 6
guns, pewter, 2 swords, 2 feather beds, 2 flock beds, hat case, silver
bowl, oe3; cider, oe2; money, oe11; goods, oe16; tables, form, settle,
chairs, warming pan, books, oe10."123 He Children:
THOMAS, b, 16--, d, Nov. 25, 1676.
FRANCIS, born in England, 16--died 1703
MATTHEW, born May 16, 1638; died July 5, 1708.
JOHN, born September, 1640; died June 4, 1716.
JOSEPH, born July 3, 1643; died 16--
BENJAMIN, born May, 1649; died 1718, in Burlington county, New Jersey
AMEY, born Feb. 1654; died February 5, 1684. She married William
Richardson of Flushing, Long Island.
MARY, born April, 1606; died 1691. She married John Cook, son of
Thomas Cook of Providence.
Children of Richard1 Borden and Joane Fowle were as follows:
176. Mary2 Borden (Richard1);121 christened 13 Jan 1632/33 at Kent, England;121 married John Cooke circa 1650;121 died 23 Dec 1690 at RI at age 57.121
Children of Mary2 Borden and John Cooke were:
177. John2 Borden (Richard1) operated a ferry from Rhode Island to Bristol;121,124,125 born 5 Sep 1640 at Portsmouth, RI;121,124,125 married Mary Earle, daughter of William Earle and Mary Walker, 25 Dec 1670 at prob. Portsmouth, RI;121 died 4 Jun 1716 at Portsmouth, RI, at age 75.121,124,125
He Children:
36. RICHARD, born October 25, 1671.
"Richard was born in Portsmouth October 25, 1671, four months after the death of his grandfather, and bears his name. The record of his marriage I have not found. It probably occurred about 1692, as his eldest child was born in 1694. The name of his wife was Innocent Wardell. The names of Richard and Innocent I have met with very often as witnesses to marriage certificates of their acquaintances and relatives,
37. JOHN, born 1675.
38. AMEY, born 1678, May 30; date of her death unknown. She married Benjamin Chase of Tiverton.
39. JOSEPH, born December 3, 1680; died 1715. Expanded further under Joseph Borden
40. THOMAS, born Dec. 3, 1682, died 1745.
41. MARY, born 1684, died April 2, 1741. She married Thomas Potts, 1698.
42. HOPE, born 1685, March 3, date of death not known. She married William Almy, Jr., of Tiverton.
43. WILLIAM, born in Portsmouth, R. I., Aug 15, 1689, died 1748 in North Carolina.
44. BENJAMIN, born 1692, died Nov., 1743."123 He "John Borden was born in Portsmouth, September, 1640, and married Mary Earl, the daughter of William, of the same place, December 25, 1670, less than a year prior to the death of his father. John Borden was frequently associated with his brother, Matthew, in the performance of various duties assigned by the town and religious community, of which they constituted two of the main pillars. Some of which have already been noticed in the account concerning Matthew, and I feel happy in saying that they uniformly conducted themselves and their business affairs in such a manner as to secure the entire confidence and respect of their neighbors and Friends at home, and gained for themselves among the Friends throughout every state in the union a good reputation. In fact, the name of John Borden of Quaker Hill, on Rhode Island, has been so universally spread over the country as to completely cast into the shade those of his father and brothers; so that for many years even their names had passed out of the recollection of the Borden descendants on Rhode Island; and John was supposed to have been the original emigrant from England, and the father of all that now bear this name in the country. So generally received and firmly established was this conviction that twenty-five years ago, when the Rev. Orrin Fowler published his lectures on the history of Fall River, he appended a genealogical chart of the Borden and Durfee families, in which he places John Borden at the head of the Borden family, as the original emigrant; and in a note he says: "John Borden, the first of the name in this region, and, as is believed, the father of all of the name in the United States, lived and died in Portsmouth." Nor was this impression peculiar to Mr. Fowler or the people of this vicinity. Go wherever you might, whenever you met a person of the name of Borden or inquired about the origin of his ancestors, he was sure to refer to John Borden of Rhode Island as the original emigrant. And they will invariably say "our family has been long separated from the parent stock, but we are sure we are not mistaken, for we have never heard of any other person named as our ancestor but this John Borden."
This impression has originated from the fact that for the last century his descendants have greatly outnumbered those of all his brothers. Theirs have been diminishing, while his have been increasing, until they may be found in almost every state of the union. This fact must excite the surprise of all concerned. But to account for this anomaly is beyond the power of man. Neither Thomas Borden, who settled in Providence, nor Matthew, who settled in Portsmouth, near his brother John, have now any living person bearing the Borden name to represent them here. But descendants they both have through their granddaughters, who are highly respectable and do honor to the memories of their ancestors.
The descendants of John, finding themselves thus alone in the race of life, had very naturally concluded that they had never had any competitors or companions of the Borden name, and that they had all derived their existence from John Borden. And this was in effect true, but their conclusion was too broad as this investigation has shown. John settled two of his sons near the Fall River stream; Richard and Joseph. This was the nucleus around which their descendants have rallied until Fall River has become the great Borden center in this section of the country, and no other place is known in the United States which contains so large a number. And yet, previous to the establishment of cotton factories here it was very fashionable for the young people to remove westward to seek their fortunes among the fertile lands of New York, and subsequently of the far, far west. But time has wrought great changes in society and in the pursuits and employments of men. The introduction of manufactures in the present century has given a new impulse and a new direction to human energy. The people have concentrated, forming factory villages, towns and cities, and the country towns have been depleted of their redundant population. Even Portsmouth, the center of the early Bordens, cannot show more than four or five families of the name, but in Fall River they are very numerous, as the directory will testify, and are on the increase.
John Borden was left my his father with a good substantial estate, which gave him a fair start in the world. In addition to this he possessed, by nature, a shrewd business tact and an excellent judgment, which, with his activity of mind and untiring energy of character, insured success in whatever scheme he engaged. Accordingly, in a few years he became the owner of large tracts of land in the colonies of Rhode Island, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Delaware, near Cape Henlopen, Lewees, and it was said by the old people that he was so eager to acquire landed property that he publicly proclaimed: "If any man has land to sell at a fair price I am ready to buy, and have the money ready at my house to pay for it." He also bought Hog Island and lands at Bristol Ferry, Swansea, Tiverton and Freetown. He was associated with John Tripp, and after his death, with his son, Bikill Tripp, in leasing and managing Bristol Ferry. He first commenced this connection with the ferry in 1660, when he was but twenty years of age. At that time the ferry was in the hands of Portsmouth, which established it in 1640, and the Pocasset Ferry, was established the same year, and placed in care of Thomas Gorton. Just previous to the Indian war, the general court of Plymouth, knowing that there was an intimate acquaintance existing between King Philip and John Borden, for they had several times requested John Borden to use his influence with Philip to restrain and quiet him; so now that an Indian war was imminent and the fears of the people were highly excited on account of it, they sent to him again to ask his intercession. To this request he gave heed at once, for he saw clearly that a dark cloud hung over the white settlement, still in their infancy, and poorly prepared to withstand the horrors of an Indian war. He also felt that the danger and distress which such a war would entail upon the Indians themselves would be disastrous in the extreme, and wishing to save the lives of both races, he hastened to Philip and faithfully portrayed to him the horrors and vicissitudes of such a bloody and exterminating war, the final termination of which could not be estimated or foreseen; and contrasting these with the blessings which would certainly flow from continued peace. This coming from one in whom he had implicit confidence, must have made a deep impression on the mind of Philip; he had said that John Borden was the only honest white man he had ever seen; he could not, even now, doubt the honesty of his intentions, nor the truth which he had spoken. But the memory of his wrongs stung him to the soul, and steeled his heart and nerved his arm for the dreadful strife; and thus he answered one whom he knew and recognized as the best friend he had on earth: "The English who first came to this country were but a handful of people, forlorn, poor and distressed. My father was then Sachem. He received them and relieved their distress in the most kind and hospitable manner. He gave them land to build and plant upon. He did all in his power to serve them. Others of their companions came and joined them. Their numbers rapidly increased. My father's counsellors became uneasy and alarmed lest, as they were provided with firearms, which was not the case with the Indians, they should finally undertake to give law to the Indian and take from them their country. They therefore advised him to destroy them before they became too strong and it would be too late. My father was also the father of the English. He represented to his counsellors and warriors that the English knew many things which the Indians did not; that they improved and cultivated the land and raised cattle and fruits, and that there was sufficient room in the country for the English and the Indians. His advice prevailed. It was concluded to give victuals to the English. They flourished and increased. Experience has taught that the advice of my father's counsellors was right. By various means they got possession of a great part of his territory. But he still remained their friend until he died. My older brother became Sachem. They pretended to suspect him of evil designs against them. He was seized and confined and thrown into sickness and died. Soon after I became Sachem, they disarmed my people. They tried my people by their own laws, assessed damages against them which they could not pay. Their land was taken. At length a line of division was agreed upon between the English and my people, and I myself was to be responsible. Sometimes the cattle of the English would come into the cornfields of my people, for they did not make fences like the English. I must then be seized and confined till I sold another tract of my country for satisfaction of all damages and costs. Thus tract after tract has gone. But a small part of the domain of my ancestors remains. I am determined I will not live till I have no country." (Arnold's History of Rhode Island, p. 394, vol. 1).
Such was the answer of Philip to the urgent appeal of his friend, John Borden, for the preservation of peace. It is a plain statement of historic facts as they had occurred from the first landing of the English at Plymouth. His sentiments were expressed with much coolness and deliberation; the deep anguish of his soul on account of the wrongs inflicted upon him and his people by those whom they had received as friends, sheltered and nourished when in a desperate and forlorn condition, nay, almost starving--shines forth in every sentence which he uttered, and he concludes by announcing to his friend the fixed determination of his mind that he would sooner perish than survive the loss of his country. How could he longer listen to proposals of peace from those whose sole object was to rob him of his country and drive him and his people far back into the wilderness to procure a precarious living among wild beasts and under their more savage Indian enemies? This he would not do, but he would die in the defence of his country. Philip was an untutored Indian, but he seems to rise to the full stature of a true patriot when he exclaimed: "I am determined not to live till I have no country." He possessed indeed strong powers of mind and a high moral sense which raised him far above the level of his treacherous neighbors and persecutors, whose miserable pettyfogging schemes to filch from him under the shadow of law, every foot of his territory, deserves universal execration.
There can be no doubt that John Borden did all in his power to dissuade Philip from engaging in a war with the English at this time. At an earlier period the chances of success would have been entirely on the side of the Indians, but now, the English had become too strong for them, and the inevitable result would be great destruction of life and property to the English, and the utter ruin of Philip and his people. And such it proved to be, and detailed accounts of this horrid tragedy had very little influence over the provincial government. Here self-manner as to exculpate the guilty party and charge the blame to those who were comparatively innocent. There was some genuine piety among the first settlers at Plymouth without doubt, but it seems to have have very little influence over the provincial government. Here self-interests and the baser passions seems to have predominated. Philip being disposed of, his Indians scattered to the four winds of heaven, the Plymouth government next attacked John Borden. It would have been supposed that this man who had hitherto been regarded by them as "the peacemaker" between them and Philip, and had served them faithfully in this capacity on several important occasions, would have been at least secure from any disturbance from them. But it seems that gratitude for any service he could render could not be reasonably expected from such men. But a few years after the conclusion of the Indian war, Mr. Borden was arrested in Bristol, in the matter of Hog Island, which the Plymouth government claimed as a part of their territory, although it had been always considered as a part of Portsmouth, and paid taxes as such. The island belonged to John Borden, who refused to pay any tax to Bristol or Plymouth. After his treacherous arrest at Bristol, Mr. Borden entered a complaint to the Legislature of Rhode Island, in 1684. In this complaint he states, as the cause of his arrest "his maintaining the true right of His Majesty's colony of Rhode Island against the intrusions of the Plymouth government."
This difficulty arose from an attempt to extend the jurisdiction of the Plymouth government over all the islands of Narragansett Bay. It does not appear whether they made their claim as a part of King Philip's territory or not; but no doubt that insatiable thirst for more land which they had manifested from an early day, had much to do with it. They arrested Mr. Borden's tenant first for the same purpose; but to arrest him they had to resort to strategy to get him within their jurisdiction. He was invited to come over to Bristol to receive compensation for the many services he had rendered the Plymouth government, and the ruse succeeded. The equity of their courts in such cases may be duly estimated by that of King Philip some years before. The Englishmen's cattle destroyed the Indian's cornfields, and complaint being entered, Philip was forced to sell more land to pay the damages and costs of court to the Plymouth government.
But Mr. Borden did not appear before the Plymouth court--his case took a different direction. His complaint was received by the general assembly of the colony, and his cause was adopted as their own. They immediately addressed the following communication to the Plymouth government, which states the case more circumstantially:
*
So far as the documents presented for our inspection testify concerning John Borden, he was in no way concerned in raising this difficulty unless it was a sin in him to own Hog Island, which Nat Byfield wished to wrest from him for his own purposes and benefit. He was basely decoyed and betrayed within the Plymouth lines, ostensibly for state purposes, if we can credit tradition, by the meanest man that could have been found in Bristol, where he lived. In so far as he was the agent of the Plymouth government in this affair, it shows that they had sunk so low that they were no longer capable of performing the duties
of civil magistrates, and fully justifies the decision of William and Mary to place a guardian over them. No descendant of John Borden will find in this or any other act of his life anything to lessen the respect and esteem in which his memory has always been held. For his character was always above reproach; his standing in society fully equal to that of the most elevated of his associates, and his influence over those who knew him best, was paramount to that of all others. Mr. Borden was much before the public, though not strictly speaking a public man; that is, he did not depend on the public for business nor for salary, which are now the necessary attendants upon public life. Early in life he appears as a ferryman at Bristol Ferry. From 1680 to 1708 he frequently represented the town in the general assembly. In 1706 he was associated with seven other persons in the erection of two meeting houses for the Friends, one each for the towns of Newport and Portsmouth, and often times he was engaged in minor affairs assigned him by the town or religious society to which he belonged.
Mr. Borden became very extensively known throughout the country as a Friend. To account for this we must suppose that there was something peculiarly attractive in his manner or conversation which arrested the attention of those that came in contact with him, and fixed him and his sayings in their memories. For we hear more of the sayings and doings of John Borden than of all the family of his father beside." S.
1716. February 24, will probated. Exx. wife Mary. Overseers, son Richard and Friend William Anthony. To eldest son, Richard, land in Tiverton. To son John, farm at Touisset Neck, Swanzey, half at my decease and half at death or marriage of wife, he paying my daughters Hope and Mary Borden oe50 each, and to children of daughter Amey Chase deceased (late wife to Benjamin Chase of Tiverton) oe15. To grandson Stephen Borden, eldest son of Joseph, my son, deceased, land in Freetown, where son Joseph built a sawmill; said Stephen paying his three brothers, William, George and Joseph, oe100 each as they come of age. To grandson Joseph Borden, a half share at head of Freetown in Tiverton. To son Thomas Borden all housings and land in Portsmouth, he keeping for his mother a horse and two cows, giving her two fat swine yearly, allowing her sufficient houseroom while widow, and the keep of half a doz. fowls. To son Thomas also, rights at Hog Island. To son William ,one-half of 1000 acres of land in Pennsylvania. To son Benjamin, the other half. To daughters Hope and Mary Borden all lands in Shrewsbury, N. J., and certain lands in Pennsylvania. To wife, Mary, all movables and wearing apparel, spectacles, feather bed, 2 Bibles and several other books, silver, pewter, five spinning wheels, three and a quarter years service of Indian girl, oe130, cider oe1, four cows, 2 two-years, 2 yearlings, calf, 40 sheep, 20 lambs, 3 swine, some pigs, etc.
1721. August, his widow Mary, declared herself to be aged sixty-six, having been married at sixteen years of age. "123
Children of John2 Borden and Mary Earle were as follows:
178. Hannah3 Cooke (Mary2Borden, Richard1);121 born circa 1660 at RI;121 married Daniel Willcox circa 1682;121 died 1736.121
Children of Hannah3 Cooke and Daniel Willcox were:
179. Richard3 Borden (John2, Richard1);121 born 25 Oct 1671 at RI;121 married Innocent Cornell circa 1692;121 died circa 1732 at RI.121
Children of Richard3 Borden and Innocent Cornell were as follows:
180. Joseph3 Borden (John2, Richard1);121,126,127 born 3 Dec 1680 at Porstmouth, RI;121,126,127 married Sarah Brownell, daughter of George Brownell and Susannah Pearce, 24 Feb 1703 at Little Compton, MA;121 died 1715 at Freetown, Bristol, MA.121,126,127
He "Joseph was born in Portsmouth December 3, 1680, and was married to Sarah Brownell, daughter of George Brownell, and Susannah Pearce. She was born in Portsmouth June 14, 1681, and married Joseph Borden February 24, 1703. Her grandfather, Joseph Brownell, and John Cook were appointed water bailiffs by the government of Rhode Island May 20, 1647, when the laws of Oleron were adopted for the regulation of marine affairs in Rhode Island. Her grandmother's name was Ann. After the death of her husband she married John Read, October 31, 1719, for many years town clerk of Freetown.
Joseph Borden settled in Freetown, and in that part now called Fall River on the north side of the stream, and on the west side of the county road. The Richardson house now covers the spot where his house formerly stood. In 1714 the same year that the purchase of the mill lot and the stream was made from Col. Benjamin Church, Joseph Borden erected a new saw mill near where the Pocasset upper factory now stands. It was afterwards moved farther down stream, to increase the head of water near to the head of the Great Falls. His possessions extended on the north side of the stream from the county road westward to the salt water, with the privilege of joining dam or dams with his brother Richard, who owned on the south side of the stream. Together with all of John Borden's half share of the first lot in the Freeman's purchase, lying next to the Fall River on the north side. But this last tract was not included in the will of Joseph, and should be considered as a free gift made by John Borden to his grandson Stephen, in response to a suggestion of his dying son, who, in closing his will, said: "As said lands have not been conveyed to myself by deed, but remain in the hands of my father, John Borden, of Portsmouth, my request and desire is that my said father will be pleased to confirm the same in the tenour above expressed, with what more he pleaseth." John Borden, his father, being present at the time did "fully and freely declare and approve of the devises in said will, promising to give such further confirmation of said lands as may be proper, agreeably to the testator's request in said will. And this agreement was endorsed upon the will of Joseph Borden. Date of will July 15, 1715; date of codicil, July 18; will approved August 1, 1715. The codicil provided for his wife and fixed the time when Stephen should take possession of the estate.
Joseph Borden disappeared so early that he has left but little to record. He seems to have commenced the improvement of his property with considerable energy and promised fair to become an active and energetic business man, but Providence ordered otherwise, and he passed away "as a dream when one awaketh." No tradition of him unfavorable to his character has come down to us." S.
His family consisted of four sons, Stephen, William, George and Joseph These all lived to have families in and around Fall River for many years. Stephen died August 1, 1738, Joseph moved to the east side of the North Watuppa Pond, 1750, which is the date of a power of attorney to his brother George. George himself removed to Tiverton, 1755, and erected a saw-mill on the Crandall road which has been owned successively by his son John and grandson Benjah Borden, who added a grist mill to the premises in 1812. But William and his descendants have always remained in and around the place of their nativity. His youngest son was the Rev. Job Borden ,the blind Bapitst preacher, who is favorably remembered at the present day; so that although the married life of Joseph Borden was so very short, about 12 1/2 years, his descendants are more numerous in this region than those of any of his brothers.
Children:
145. STEPHEN, born August 10, 1705; died August 30, 1738; he married Penlope Read February 3, 1726.
146. WILLIAM, born 1707. The date of his death and his wife's name is unknown. He lived in the vicinity of Fall River, and raised a numerous family.
147. GEORGE, born 1709; died 1767. He married Priscilla Wilcox, and lived in the villages of Tiverton and Fall River, Mass. He was appointed October 21, 1740, guardian of Mary, Stephen, Hannah, Meribah, George and Susannah, his brother Stephen's children, being minors under the age of 14 years; and on February 11, 1741, John Bowen, who married the widow of Stephen, was appointed guardian of Hannah, she being over 14 years of age.
148. JOSEPH, born 1712; died in Tiverton, 1800. He married Susannah Read January 26, 1736. Joseph Borden was a shoemaker, and lived in Fall River, until 1750, when he gave to his brother George a power of attorney to collect his outstanding deeds and attend to his affairs generally. He then removed to an estate given him by his grandfather, John Borden, of Portsmouth, R. I., which was on the east side of the North Watuppa Pond, near to the Indian reservation, it being then in the town of Tiverton. The births here given were taken from the Freetown records, but probably do not include all his children. There was a John Borden of Tiverton, whose wife was named Lydia, who, I think, belonged to this family. His family register I found on the records of Tiverton, and also the marriages of three of his children, viz: Keziah, Lemuel and --. This family disappeared from the records of Tiverton about 1800." S. "123
Children of Joseph3 Borden and Sarah Brownell were:
181. Daniel4 Willcox (Hannah3Cooke, Mary2Borden, Richard1);121 born circa 1685 at MA;121 married Sarah Unknown circa 1704;121 died before 1730.121
Children of Daniel4 Willcox and Sarah Unknown were:
182. Thomas4 Borden (Richard3, John2, Richard1);121 born 8 Dec 1697;121 married Mary Gifford 14 Aug 1721;121 died Apr 1740 at Tiverton, RI, at age 42.121
Children of Thomas4 Borden and Mary Gifford were:
183. Samuel4 Borden (Richard3, John2, Richard1);121 born 25 Oct 1705;121 married Peace Mumford circa 1735;121 died Nov 1778 at Nova Scotia at age 73.121
Children of Samuel4 Borden and Peace Mumford were:
184. William4 Borden (Joseph3, John2, Richard1);121 born 1707 at Fall River, MA;121 died 1767 at Fall River, MA.121
He " 268. SARAH, born 1732; married John Francis, Feb. 17, 1751.
269. JOSEPH, born August 12, 1733; died 1809. He married Peace Borden, daughter of Joseph, February 19, 1758. He was a farmer at Tiverton.
270. WILLIAM, born February 26, 1736. He was a mariner of Fall River. Married Ruhama Jennings July 5, 1761. He was lost overboard off Point Judith from a vessel in which he was sailing, during a violent storm.
271. BENJAMIN, born 1738, at Tiverton, Rhode Island. He married Patience Cobb.
272. RUTH, born 1740, married Nathan Durfee January 30, 1762.
273. STEPHEN, born --. He married Mary Church, daughter of Joseph Church of Fall River, November 3, 1763.
274. ANNE, married William Jameson February 1, 1764.
275. PARKER, married Susannah Jennings February 19, 1769. He lived in Fall River.
276. THOMAS, born 1751; died 1845, in Nova Scotia. He married there (1) Susanna Cox ,born 1761, died June 27, 1826. (2) Louis Lanford, born July 2, 1805, died 1876. Thomas Borden, alone of all his family, sympathized with the mother country and joined the British army before their raid on Fall River in 1777. He continued in the service of the King as corporal in the British army and assisted in gaining possession of Canada for the English. The very property that Thomas Borden drew from the government for his services is at Grand Prie, and still in possession of his descendants. The family name seems to have been spelled Bardain in Nova Scotia, but in our mind there can be no mistake in taking this Thomas Bardain to be the Thomas Borden who, as history tells us, joined the British army and was not again heard from by his American relatives.
277. GEORGE, born at Fall River, Mass., married Susannah Church there.
278. GIDEON, married (1) Joanna Barlow, September 24, 1774, no children. (2) Mary Pettice, December 24, 1779.
279. JOB, born 1756, died December 31, 1832. He was a Congregational minister, commenced preaching in 1792 and was pastor of his church for forty years. He married Lois Tilton; had no children. "123
Children of William4 Borden and an unknown spouse were:
185. William5 Willcox (Daniel4, Hannah3Cooke, Mary2Borden, Richard1);121 born 22 Nov 1711 at MA;121 married Dorothy Allen 8 Feb 1732/33;121 died circa 1742 at MA.121
Children of William5 Willcox and Dorothy Allen were:
186. Richard5 Borden (Thomas4, Richard3, John2, Richard1);121 born 1722;121 married Hope Cook 12 Mar 1747;121 died 4 Jul 1795.121
Children of Richard5 Borden and Hope Cook were:
187. Perry5 Borden (Samuel4, Richard3, John2, Richard1);121 died at Nova Scotia;121 born 9 Nov 1739 at RI;121 married Mary Ellis 22 Oct 1767.121
Children of Perry5 Borden and Mary Ellis were:
188. William5 Borden (William4, Joseph3, John2, Richard1);121 born 26 Feb 1736;121 married Ruhama Jennings, daughter of John Jennings and Ann Holway, 15 Jul 1761.121
He "WILLIAM, born February 26, 1736. He was a mariner of Fall River. Married Ruhama Jennings July 5, 1761. He was lost overboard off Point Judith from a vessel in which he was sailing, during a violent storm."
Children:
" 478. AVIS, born March 25, 1736; married Shubael Hutchins of Killingly, Conn.
479. ANNA, born December 4, 1764; married Ashaiel Fisher November 1, 1789.
480. RHUHAMA, born March 4, 1767; married Samuel Sprague.
481. RUTH, born March 17, 1771; married Nathan Durfee.
482. SUSANNAH, born February 3, 1769; married Rev. James Boomer October 12, 1792
483. ROSANNAH, born May 26, 1773; married Dyer Ames of Sterling, Conn.
484. ROBY. "123
Children of William5 Borden and Ruhama Jennings were:
189. William6 Willcox (William5, Daniel4, Hannah3Cooke, Mary2Borden, Richard1);121 born 8 Aug 1739 at MA;121 married Sarah Smith 2 Jan 1762 at MA;121 died after 1782.121
Children of William6 Willcox and Sarah Smith were:
190. Richard6 Borden (Richard5, Thomas4, Richard3, John2, Richard1);121 married Martha (Patty) Bowen circa 1796;121 died after 1816.121
Children of Richard6 Borden and Martha (Patty) Bowen were:
191. Perry6 Borden (Perry5, Samuel4, Richard3, John2, Richard1);121 born 17 Feb 1773;121 married Lavina Fuller 1809 at Nova Scotia;121 died 1862.121
Children of Perry6 Borden and Lavina Fuller were:
192. Avis6 Borden (William5, William4, Joseph3, John2, Richard1); born 25 Mar 1763 at Fall River, MA;121 married Shubael Hutchins, son of Ezra Hutchins and Abigail Leavens, circa 1781.85
She The Bordens of Fall River, MA are descended from John Borden, b. 1606, who left for Mass. in May 1635. This family includes the infamous Lizzie Borden, which would make her a distant cousin of ours.
Children of Avis6 Borden and Shubael Hutchins were as follows:
193. David7 Willcox (William6, William5, Daniel4, Hannah3Cooke, Mary2Borden, Richard1);121 born 10 Jan 1763 at Old Dartmouth, MA;121 married Anna Baker circa 1787;121 died 23 Aug 1828 at NY at age 65.121
Children of David7 Willcox and Anna Baker were:
194. Abraham Bowen7 Borden (Richard6, Richard5, Thomas4, Richard3, John2, Richard1);121 married Phoebe Davenport;121 born 8 Jul 1798.121
Children of Abraham Bowen7 Borden and Phoebe Davenport were:
195. Andrew7 Borden (Perry6, Perry5, Samuel4, Richard3, John2, Richard1);121 born 14 Feb 1816 at Nova Scotia;121 married Eunice Laird Oct 1850.121
Children of Andrew7 Borden and Eunice Laird were:
196. Clarissa8 Willcox (David7, William6, William5, Daniel4, Hannah3Cooke, Mary2Borden, Richard1);121 born 10 Sep 1796 at NY;121 married Ambrose Hall 24 Dec 1817 at NY;121 died Jul 1827 at NY at age 30.121
Children of Clarissa8 Willcox and Ambrose Hall were:
197. Andrew Jackson8 Borden (Abraham7, Richard6, Richard5, Thomas4, Richard3, John2, Richard1);121 born 13 Sep 1822 at Fall River, MA;121 married Sarah J. Morse 26 Dec 1845;121 married Abby Durfee Gray 16 Jan 1865;121 died 4 Aug 1892 at Fall River, MA, at age 69.121
Children of Andrew Jackson8 Borden and Sarah J. Morse were:
She Acquited of the axe murder of her father and step-mother in 1893.
There were no children of Andrew Jackson8 Borden and Abby Durfee Gray.
198. Clarissa (Clara)9 Hall (Clarissa8Willcox, David7, William6, William5, Daniel4, Hannah3Cooke, Mary2Borden, Richard1);121 married Leonard Walter Jerome;121 born 16 Jul 1825 at NY;121 died 2 Apr 1895 at Tunbridge Wells, England, at age 69.121
Children of Clarissa (Clara)9 Hall and Leonard Walter Jerome were:
199. Jeanette10 Jerome (Clarissa9Hall, Clarissa8Willcox, David7, William6, William5, Daniel4, Hannah3Cooke, Mary2Borden, Richard1);121 married Lord Randolph Henry Spencer Churchill;121 born 1854 at Brooklyn, NY;121 died 1921.121
Children of Jeanette10 Jerome and Lord Randolph Henry Spencer Churchill were: