JOHN WOODS, b. England abt. 1609-10, d. Marlborough, MA 10 Jul 1678, aged 68, m. MARY PARMENTER, b. England abt. 1610, d. Marlborough, MA 17 Aug 1690, aged 80.
John Woods, aged 26, "pin-maker", came to the Massachustts Bay Colony in the Hopewell from London to Boston in 1635. He first went to Salem but soon moved to Sudbury, where he settled in 1638 and where he was a proprietor in 1639. His home-lot was between those of John Bent and the widow Hunt and located on the mill road. He had grants of 3 acres in the first division, 7 acres in the second division, and 5 acres in the third division. Grants of land were laid out by order of the selectmen 4 Jan 1655. John Woods received lot 35 in the third squadron division. All of these lots were 130 acres each.
John was admitted freeman on 10 May 1642, and on 26 Nov 1643 he was on a committee of nine appointed to lay out the "cow common". In May 1656 he was one of the petitioners to the General Court for the laying out of a new town west of Sudbury. The petition was granted in 1660 and the town of Marlborough was formed. About 1661 John moved to Marlborough where on 26 Nov 1660 he had shared in the first division of land with a grant of thirty acres. He resided near the east village, on the road toward what later became Southborough. In May 1661 he was called "Sargent". On 29 Sep 1663 John sold his land in Sudbury, and on 4 April 1664 he deposed that he was aged about 54. The same year he was one of the petitioners to the General Court to appoint a committee to settle difficulties within the settlement. He was a Selectman in 1664 and 1665. On 1 October 1675 Sergeant John Woods helped to decide upon the location of garrison houses, one of which was at his house and was manned by two soldiers and six citizens. This precaution was taken due to the Indian troubles at the time of King Phillip's War. In 1677, after two years in which no town meetings were held because of the Indians, Constable John Woods petitioned the General Court to call a town meeting.
His
will, dated 26 November 1677 and proved 1 October 1678, names his wife
Mary, sons John, Isaac, and James, daughter Katherine, son-in-law John
Bellows, and grandchild Hannah Levins.[4/6:124] The inventory of his estate
was taken 19 July 1678 and totaled 303.03.07. In it was mentioned his son-in-law
Joseph
ISAAC WOODS, b. Sudbury, MA 14 Jul 1655, d. Marlborough, MA 18 Jul 1720, m(1) abt. 1682 MARY MAYNARD, b. Sudbury abt. 1659, d. Marlborough 3 Feb 1689, m(2) 8 May 1700 Mary Fairbanks of Sherborn, MA.
Isaac
Woods moved to Marlborough with his family when he was about six years
old. He married there about 1682 to Mary Maynard, daughter of his neighbor
John Maynard. She apparently died of complications from childbirth two
days after the birth of their fourth child. Isaac was taxed four shillings
in the Andros tax of 1688. In 1696-7 school was kept at Isaac Woods'
old house which was then unoccupied. In 1702 he opposed the settlement
of Mr. Emerson as minister for Marlborough. In 1711, during Queen
Anne's War (one of the French and Indian Wars), Isaac was assigned to Jonathan
Newton's garrison, the same one to which Roger Bruce was assigned.
This was in the part of town that soon after became Southboro.
His
will, dated 8 June and proved 17 Aug 1720, mentioned his wife Mary, eldest
sons Isaac and Joseph, youngest sons Charles and Solomon, daughter Dinah,
and daughters by a former wife Mary and Elizabeth. His wife was made the
executrix. The inventory of the estate was taken 2 Aug 1720 by Isaac Bellows,
David Fay, and Edward Goddard and totaled 515.18.06. It included housing
and lands valued at 337.10.00 and personal property valued at 178.08.06.
Back to List