GENEALOGY OF THE BLISS FAMILY IN AMERICA, combiled by John Homer Bliss, Norwich Conn., Boston, Mass, Printed by the Author, 1881., page 32, 38.
He married Damaris, dau. of Stukeley Wescott.
THE WIGHTMAN HERITAGE, by Wade C. Wightman, Gateway Press, Baltimore, MD. 1990. page 471.
Beyond the year of his birth, 1592, nothing has been positively revealed of the youth of Stukely Westcott. It is believed that he was born in the shire or county of Somerset in EN.
Stuckely was married Oct. 5, 1619 when twenty-seven years of age to Juliana Marchant. This was sisteen years before he came to New England.
That this Stukely Westcott was he who came to America thirteen years after the birth of Samuel, seems to be fully substantiated by memoranda made in April, 1656, by Benedict Arnold and found among his old family papers. He wrote: "June 24, 1635, arrived in Massachusetts Bay. Sailed from Dartsmouth of Devon May 1, 1635, all but one of the Party (William Carpenter) coming from Ilchester in southern Somerset or within five miles of that place."
"My father (William Arnold) and his family Sett Sayle ffrom Dartmouth in Old England, the first of May, friday & Arrived in New England (Thursday) June 24, 1635. On borad was Stukely Westcott, 43, of Yeovil, and his wife with children Robert, Damaris, Samuel, 13, Amos, 4, Mercy and Jeremiah."
When Stukely Westcott reached America there were eight in his family: himself and his wife (probably) Rosanna, and their six children: Robert, Damaris, Samuel, Amos, Mercy and Jeremiah. They range in years from Robert, who was about seventeen, to Jeremiah, not more than two years old. Samuel probably died soon after reaching his new home, for there is no further record of him, but of the other five children, all grew to maturity, married and had many descendants.
They first settled in Salem, well out on the "Neck" of the peninsula among the some four hundred people who had preceded him to America.
At a town meeting of Salem, Dec. 25, 1637, one acre of land was granted to Stuky Wesket", and the old records show that at the time his family consisted of eight persons. Thus, evidently Samuel had not died up to that date.
His "house lot of one acre" is described in an old colonial deed of Oct. 8, 1643, as being bounded on one side by "the salt water," indicating that his place faced the shore of the peninsula. He was made freeman of Salem in 1636 and on Oct. 25, 1637, his "house lot" had been granted to him as "one of the inhabitants and freemen."
He obtained license from the General Court, March 12, 1638, to remove with his family out of the jurisdiction of the Massachusetts Bay Colony "& for that information hath bene given to the Court that yo (your) intent is onely to wdrawe (withdraw) yo selues for a season, thaat you may avoyde the Censure of the Court in some things w may be objected against yo."
Stukely and wife, Jan. 5, 1639, were "published" in the church at Dorchester, along with Williams and his wife, Throckmorton and wife, Thomas Olney and wife, Mary Halliman and "Widdow" Reeves.
On Aug. 8, 1638, nearly five months after Westcott had been ordered to leave Salem, Roger Williams "freely admitted twelve loving friends and neighbors" into equal ownership with himself of lands he had first purchased in 1636. On the list of stalwart men first appears Stukely Westcott, and second the name of William Arnold.
When the whole number of settlers, including the original thirteen had reached fifty-two, they made a first division between them of a portion of the lands upon which the city of Providence and its immediate suburbas, including Cranston, are located, allotting to each a "home lot," so called, and an outlying six-acre lot. The "home-lots" each contained about five acres.
In October 1638, Stukely contributed 2 pounds, 10 shillings, toward defraying the town expenses, and on the third day of that month, Roger Williams receipted to him for 18 pounds 11 shillings, 3 pence, in full covering the grant of land of the previous August.
The first Baptist church to be organized in America, the old First Baptist Church of Providence, was founded March, 1638-9, by Roger Williams, Stukely Westcott, Williams Arnold, Ezekiel Holliman, William Carpenter, Robert Cole, John Greene, William Harris, Thomas James, Thomas Olney, Richard Waterman and Francis Weston, all but John Throckmorton of "the thirteen proprietors," becoming members. This venerable church was for the first century and half of its existence of the Six-Principle Baptist sect. The six principles, or doctrines, held by the church, may be found in Hebrews, vi, 1.2.
On May 12, 1642, Stukely was a party to the agreement for the division of Pawtuxet from Providence. The Arnolds settled at Pawtuxet Falls.
On Oct 8, 1643, Stukely had not disposed of his old "house lot" at Salem. With fifty-five others, he agreed in writing, Nov. 19, 1644, to "yield active and passive obedience to the King and Parliament." To this agreement, he signs his name Stukley Westcott.
Stukely Westcott moved his family, from Providence to "Old Warwick" in the spring of 1647, he was still active at Warwick as early as spring of 1643. He was one of the nine persons taken to Boston, whom he call "the first settlers of Warwick." And as the soldiers "killed one of his sheep," he must have been in Warwick long enough in Sept. 1643 to acquire such a flock.
Warwick Neck had been selected for the permanent abode of the settlers because there they could better protect themselves from the Indians. To the home lots were added six acres of what became known as the "Four-Miles common" or "Four-mile Town." which extended to the West four miles to Apponaug.
On Dec. 17, 1640, Stuckely's eldest daughter Damaris, married Benedict Arnold, who on Nov. 1663 became the first Governor of the colony under the Royal Charter. His term expired in May, 1666, but was reelected in May, 1669, for three years more. He died June 20, 1678 while serving his third term.
"At Portsmouth on that island, on Jan. 12, 1677, at the home of his grandson, Caleb Arnold, he sickened and died. His remains, borne by his sons across the bay to its western shire near to which the last thirty years of his life had been passed, were laid at rest beside those of his wife, in the first public burial ground of Warwick, adjoining his home lot and former residence. This ancient burial ground was near to the West from the present White or old Baptist Church, but the ploughshare has long since obliterated all."
It appears that after the death of Rosanna, his wife, (about 1670), his son Amos with his family, went to live at the home of his father and took care of him until he was driven away by the Indians to Portsmouth.
This explains why Stukely by his unexecuted will, gave his homestead to Amos, Sr., for life and upon his death to Amos, Jr. in fee.
Amos, Sr., died prior to 1688, having Jan. 23, 1685-6, deeded all of his estate to his wife, Deborah (Stafford); and May 18, 1688, his son Amos, Jr., who seem not to have been very thrifty, borrows of his stepmother Deborah, 3 pounds for a term of three years, giving her for the use of it a life estate in the old homestead, and agrees further that if he did not pay the loan when due, she should have the estate in fee forever. Amos, Jr., died in 1692 without paying the loan, and Deborah remained in possession and claimed the estate.
Stukely and Rosanna (Hill) Westcott (Descendants of the first Stukely Westcott are eligible to membership in the Colonial Dames, he being one of the 13 proprietors of Providence Plantation, 1638. Com. Asst. Rec. of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantation in New England, Vol. I, page 20.) had six children when they reached Salem, MA on June 24, 1635. The Westcotts lived in Providence, RI in 1638 and in Old Warwick RI in 1643.
