The GLEASON Family of Watertown, Cambridge, Sherborn and Sudbury in Massachusetts

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THOMAS GLEASON (d. 1686) of Watertown and Cambridge m.

Thomas Page of Hawstead
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Susanna Page (d. 1691)

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THOMAS GLEASON (d. 1705) of Sherborn m. Sarah Unknown (d. 1703)
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ANN GLEASON (abt 1667 - 1692) m. John Gibbs
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CORP. JOSEPH GLEASON (1642 - 1715) of Sudbury m. Martha Russell
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SUSANNA GLEASON (1676 - 1756) m. Samuel Willis


First Generation

THOMAS GLEASON (d. 1686) of Watertown and Cambridge

Parents:

Thomas Gleason died in 1686 in Cambridge. [Ref, p. 19] He married Susanna Page. [Ref][Ref, p. 19] She died on 24 Jan 1691 in Boston. [Ref, p. 19]

Thomas took the oath of fidelity in 1652 in Watertown and was a member of the trainband there. [Ref]

In a private communication Christopher Page says that Susanna (Page) Gleason is supposed to have had a brother William Page of Watertown and that this and the following will suggest that Susanna is the daughter of Thomas Page of Hawstead.

THOMAS PAGE of Hawstead, yeoman, 13 January 1636/37 Commends soul to God trusting through merits of my sweet saviour Christ Jesus to have commission of sins and consequently inherit the kingdom of heaven prepared for me and all the elect people of God. I give the poor people of Hawstead 20s to be distributed at discretion of my exor. Upon marriage with my new wife Elizabeth I entered into a bond to pay her L11 p.a. for life and another L4 p.a. out of certain lands in Finningham. In addition I now devise to her all the household stuff she brought with her at time of our marriage in lieu of all demands on my estate. I entreat her to be contented with this. I promised Thomas Lock L60 in consideration of marriage with my daughter Mary; I have already paid him L30 and I give him L30 more to be paid within a year of my decease. To son William L10 within a year; and to daughter Susan, wife of Thomas Gleason, L20 within 2 years. To son John the reversion of my two tenements of Finningham after my wife's decease; the possession of them is settled on her for life. To son Joseph, L40 when 21 and in the meantime he is to be brought up at charge of my exor and bound out as an apprentice at his charge. All the rest of my real and personal estate, my legacies and funeral charges being paid, I give to son Thomas and make him sole exec. Legatees have benefit of survivorship.
Wit. George Scarpe, Rebecca Page, Thomas Page. Pr. at Ixworth 11 July 1633 by John Syer to exor.

Further evidence is provided by William Page's will which mentions his kinsman Thomas Leason and his kinsman, William Leason, who was then living with him and not yet 22. Inventory was taken on William's estate on 18 Jan 1664/5.

Christopher Page also says that William's widow Anna married Nicholas Wood of Goggestow before 22 Jun 1669. She afterwards married Edward Winn, of Woburn.
The will of Winn's widow Anna, dated 9 Sep 1685 and proved 1 Nov 1686 mentions her kinsman, Thomas Gleason, the wife of Thomas Pratt, and her kinsmen, Joseph, John, Philip, Isaac, William, Mary, and Anne Gleason. Christopher Page says that Thomas Pratt was the spouse of Susanna (Page) Gleason's daughter Susanna.

Children of Thomas Gleason and Susanna Page:

  1. Thomas Gleason died on 25 Jul 1705 in Framingham. He married first Sarah Unknown. He married second Mary Unknown.
  2. Corp. Joseph Gleason was born in 1642 in Watertown. He died on 20 Nov 1715 in Sudbury. He married first Martha Russell. He married second Abigail Garfield.
  3. John Gleason was born in 1642 in Watertown. [Ref, p. 19] He died in 1689 in Sudbury. [Ref, p. 26] He married Mary Ross [Ref, p. 26] on 15 Jan 1678 in Sudbury. [Ref] Mary was the daughter of James and Mary (Goodnow) Ross. [Ref, p. 26] She was born on 25 Dec 1656 or 9 in Sudbury. [Ref, p. 26]
  4. Philip Gleason was born in 1649 - 51 in Watertown. [Ref, p. 19] He died in 1690 in Framingham. [Ref, p. 19] He was a soldier in Capt. Joseph Syll's company in King Philip's War in 1676. [Ref, p. 19]
  5. Nathaniel Gleason was born in 1651. [Ref, p. 19] He died on 21 Apr 1676 in the Sudbury Fight in King Philip's War. [Ref, p. 19]
  6. Isaac Gleason was born in 1654 in Watertown. [Ref, p. 19] He died on 14 May 1698 in Enfield, Connecticut. [Ref, p. 26] He married Hester Eggleston on 26 Jun 1684 in Windsor, Connecticut. [Ref, p. 26] Hester was the daughter of James and Hester (Williams) Eggleston. [Ref, p. 26] She was born on 1 Dec 1663 in Windsor. [Ref, p. 26]
    some descendants of Isaac Gleason
  7. William Gleason was born in 1655 in Cambridge. [Ref, p. 19] He died on 14 Jan 1690/1 in Cambridge. [Ref, p. 26] He married Abiah (Abiel) Bartlett. [Ref, p. 19]
  8. Mary Gleason was born on 31 Oct 1657 in Cambridge. [Ref][Ref, p. 19]
  9. Ann Gleason was born in 1659 in Charlestown. [Ref, p. 19]

Second Generation

THOMAS GLEASON (d. 1705) of Sherborn

Parents: Thomas Gleason and Susanna Page [Ref, p. 19]

Thomas Gleason died on 25 Jul 1705 in Framingham. [Ref, p. 21] He married first Sarah Unknown. [Ref, p. 19] She died on 8 Jul 1703 in Framingham. [Ref, p. 21] He married second Mary Unknown. [Ref, p. 19]

Thomas Gleason, husbandman of Sherborn, signed his will on 30 Apr 1705. [Ref, p. 21-23] He named his sons Thomas, Isaac and John Gleason; his daughters Patience and Mary Gleason; his son-in-law John Gibbs, who "married my daughter Ann Gleason"; his daughter Sarah Morse; his grandson John Gibbs. [Ref, p. 21-23] His will was proved on 10 Sep 1705. [Ref, p. 19] Inventory was taken on his estate on 7 Aug 1705; it amounted to £249. [Ref, p. 23] His will was unsuccessfully contested by his son-in-law Jeremiah Morse. [Ref, p. 21-23]

  1. Sarah Gleason was born on 6 Feb 1665 in Sudbury. [Ref][Ref][Ref, p. 23] She married Jeremiah Morse. [Ref, p. 31] Jeremiah was the son of Joseph Morse and Hannah Phillips. (Wilson says that Jeremiah was the son of Joseph and Hester (Pierce) Morse and that he was born in 1649 in Watertown. [Ref, p. 31])
  2. Ann Gleason was probably born about 1667 in Sherborn. She married John Gibbs.
  3. Thomas Gleason was born about 1669. [Ref, p. 23] He died on 11 Jan 1732 in Oxford. [Ref, p. 31] He married first Mary Mellen on 6 Dec 1695 in Framingham. [Ref, p. 31] Mary was the daughter of Simon and Mary Mellen. [Ref, p. 31] She was baptised on 5 Dec 1686 in Watertown. [Ref, p. 31] She died on 13 Mar 1727 in Oxford. [Ref, p. 31] Thomas married second Mercy Hovey on 10 Jun 1729 in Oxford. [Ref, p. 31] Mercy was the the daughter of Daniel and Mercy Hovey. [Ref, p. 31] She died in Dec 1767 in Oxford. [Ref, p. 31]
  4. Isaac Gleason was born about 1674. [Ref, p. 23] He died on 5 Dec 1737 [Ref, p. 1786] in Framingham. [Ref, p. 31] He married Deborah Leland on 11 Dec 1700 [Ref, p. 31, d. Ebenezer and Deborah][Ref, p. 1786] in Sherborn. [Ref]
    Isaac was the head of one of 17 families that were set off from Sherborn to Framingham in a boundary dispute settled in 1710. [Ref, p. 1786] He bought 80 acres from Jonathan Lamb on 18 Feb 1725. [Ref, p. 1786] He opened a tavern in 1726. [Ref, p. 1786]
  5. Patience Gleason was born about 1677. [Ref, p. 23]
  6. Mary Gleason was born on 19 Jun 1680 in Sherborn. [Ref][Ref, p. 23] She married Jacob Pepper in 1714 in Roxbury. [Ref, p. 35] Jacob was born in Jul 1661 in Roxbury. [Ref, p. 35] He died on 10 Apr 1739 in Framingham. [Ref, p. 35]
  7. John Gleason was born about 1682/3. [Ref, p. 23] He died between 10 Apr 1740, when he signed his will, and 2 Jun 1740, when it was proved. [Ref, p. 35-36] He married Abigail Learned in 1706/7 in Framingham. [Ref, p. 35] Abigail was the daughter of Isaac and Sarah (Bigelow). [Ref, p. 35] Her paternal grandparents were Isaac Learned and Mary Stearns; her maternal grandparents were John Bigelow and Mary Warren. She was born on 11 Mar 1684 in Framingham. [Ref, p. 35]
    some descendants of John Gleason

CORP. JOSEPH GLEASON (1642 - 1715) of Sudbury

Parents: Thomas Gleason and Susanna Page [Ref, p. 19]

Corp. Joseph Gleason was born in 1642 inWatertown. [Ref] He died on 20 Nov 1715 in Sudbury. [Ref, he is called Sgt. Joseph][Ref, p. 24] He married first Martha Russell in 1667 in Cambridge. [Ref, p. 24] Martha died on 2 Mar 1683/4 in Sudbury. [Ref][Ref][Ref] Joseph married second Abigail Garfield on 22 Dec 1688 in Sudbury. [Ref][Ref][Ref, p. 24] Abigail, the daughter of Joseph and Sarah (Gale) Garfield and granddaughter of Richard Gale, was born on 29 Jan 1646 in Sudbury. [Ref] The widow Abigail Gleason died on 28 Oct 1730 in Sudbury. [Ref]

On 18 Jan 1716/7 an agreement was signed between Isaac Gleason, the only surviving son of Joseph Gleason, Sr.; Samuel and Susannah (the eldest daughter of Joseph) Willis; Jacob and Joyce Newell; Noah and Abigail (the third daughter) Morse; Samuel and Mary (the fourth and youngest daughter) Morse. [Ref] The agreement also mentions the deceased eldest son Joseph and the "old and Crippled" mother Abigail. [Ref]

Children of Joseph Gleason and Martha Russell:

  1. Joseph Gleason was born on 8 Jun 1668 in Sudbury. [Ref][Ref, p. 25] He died on 30 Apr 1669 [Ref, p. 25] in Sudbury. [Ref][Ref]
  2. Sgt. Joseph Gleason was born on 18 Oct 1670 in Sudbury. [Ref][Ref, says 1671][Ref, p. 25, says 1671] He died on 15 Oct 1711 in Sudbury. [Ref][Ref, p. 36] He married Hannah Moore [Ref] on 17 Feb 1705 [Ref] in Sudbury. [Ref] Hannah Moore was the daughter of Jospeh and Lydia (Hayward) Moore. [Ref] She was born on 2 Jan 1673. [Ref] Wilson says that her mother was Lydia Maynard and that she was born on 2 Jan 1674 in Sudbury. [Ref, p. 37] She died on 28 Oct 1730. [Ref, p. 37]
  3. Martha Gleason was probably born about 1673. [Ref, p. 25] She died on 3 Oct 1685 [Ref, p. 25] in Sudbury. [Ref][Ref]
  4. Susanna Gleason was born on 24 Mar 1675/6 in Sudbury. She married Samuel Willis.
  5. Joyce Gleason was born on 21 Apr 1678 [Ref, p. 25] in Sudbury. [Ref][Ref] She died on 12 Sep 1724. [Ref, p. 38] She married Jacob Newell on 23 May 1700 [Ref, p. 38] in Roxbury. [Ref] Jacob was the son of Jacob and Martha (Gibson) Newell. [Ref][Ref, p. 38] He was the cousin of of Joyce's father-in-law's first wife Experience and he and Experience married on the same day. [Ref] He was born on 23 Oct 1658 in Roxbury. [Ref, p. 38] He died on 4 Feb 1718 in Attleborough. [Ref, p. 38]
  6. Abigail Gleason was born on 27 Jul 1680 [Ref, p. 25] in Sudbury. [Ref][Ref] She married Noah Morse in 1714. [Ref, p. 38] Noah was the son of Daniel and Lydia (Fisher) Morse. [Ref, p. 38] He may be the grandson of Samuel Morse.
  7. Mary Gleason was born on 6 Oct 1682 [Ref, p. 25] in Sudbury. [Ref][Ref] She died on 14 May 1752. [Ref] She married as his second wife Samuel Bigelow [Ref, p. 38] on 4 Dec 1716 in Sherborn. [Ref] Samuel was the son of Samuel Bigelow and Mary Flagg. [Ref][Ref, p. 38]
  8. Isaac Gleason was born in Feb 1684. [Ref, p. 25] He died about 1758. [Ref, p. 25] He married Martha Livermore in 1705 in Watertown Farms (now Weston). [Ref, p. 38] Martha was the daughter of John and Hannah Livermore. [Ref, p. 38] She was born on 11 Apr 1684 in Weston. [Ref, p. 38] She died on 12 Apr 1728 in Sudbury. [Ref, p. 38]

Children of Joseph Gleason and uncertain wife

  1. Thankful Gleason [Ref, p. 25]

Third Generation

ANN GLEASON (abt 1667 - 1692)

Parents: Thomas Gleason and Sarah Unknown [Ref, p. 23]

Ann Gleason was probably born about 1667 in Sherborn. [Ref, p. 23] She died in 1692. [Ref] Ann Gleason of Sherborn married John Gibbs on 27 Apr 1688 in Sudbury. [Ref][Ref]

Thomas Gleason left five shillings to his "son-in-law John Gibbs, who married [his] daughter Ann Gleason". [Ref]

SUSANNA GLEASON (1676 - 1756)

Parents: Corp. Joseph Gleason and Martha Russell [Ref][Ref, p. 25]

Susanna Gleason was born on 24 Mar 1675/6 [Ref, p. 25] in Sudbury. [Ref][Ref] She died on 12 May 1756 in Sudbury. [Ref] She married as his second wife Samuel Willis before Jul 1703. [Ref]

Susanna joined the church in Roxbury on Jul 1703. [Ref]

References

Bolton, Ethel Stanwood, "Some Descendants of John Moore of Sudbury, Mass.," New England Historical and Genealogical Register 57, 1903, 302.

Howe, Gilman Bigelow, Genealogy of the Bigelow family of America: From the marriage in 1642 of John Biglo and Mary Warren to the year 1890, unknown, unknown, 1890.

Massachusetts Vital Records to 1850. Online Database: NewEnglandAncestors.org, New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2001-2007.

McTeer, Frances and Frederick C. Warner, "The Willis Family of Sudbury, Mass.," New England Historical and Genealogical Register," 114, 1960, 22-43.

Stearns, Ezra S., Genealogical and Family History of the State of New Hampshire, Vol. IV, New York, Lewis Publishing Co., 1908.

Titus, Anson, "Watertown Train Band, 1652," New England Historical and Genealogical Register 66, 1912, 186-7.

Torry, Clarence A, New England Marriages Prior to 1700, Baltimore, Genealogical Publishing Co., 2004.

Ward, A. H., "Sudbury Records," New England Historical and Genealogical Register 17, 1863, 254-260, 311-315; 18, 1864, 45-48.

Wilson, Lillian May, Genealogy of the Descendants of Thomas Gleason of Watertown, Mass., 1607-1909, unknown, John Barber White, 1909.