[RIGENWEB-L] Sears family, Newport, 1700s
by Seth and/or BJ Hinshaw
Looking for more information on this family:
George Sears, b. about 1735, d. about 1801(widow granted letters
of admin 10 Dec 1801)
m. 2 Jan 1765 in Newport, RI (according to the _Sears
Genealogical Catalogue_)
Abigail Hall, b. about 1737, died 1821
Their children included:
1) a daughter who married a Rathbone
2) a daughter who died in Baltimore, MD
3) George Sears, b. 1765, Newport, RI, m. Lucretia Fry, d. 17 Sep
1800 Christiana, DE
4) Ruth Sears b. about 1770, m. Joseph Rogers
Samuel May's Sears genealogy includes my ancestor, john T. Sears,
as one of the children in this family. However, I haven't found
much in the way of proof yet (I've just recently started on the
Sears line).
What I do know:
John T. Sears: I don't have a birthplace for him. If he is part
of the George Sears family, he was probably born in Rhode Island.
On the 1880 census entry for his son, the space for father's
birthplace says 'unknown'.
He m. 16 March 1815 at Danvers, Essex, MA Betsey WILKINS,
daughter of Zadoc WILKINS and Abigail BERRY.
He died about 1819 or 1820, {according to old family notes, on
the brig Hannibal, in the West Indies, of yellow fever}.
Their children included:
1) John Augustus Sears, b. 26 Oct 1815 Marblehead, MA. He married
Henrietta Madeline Kent of Wenham, daughter of Henry S. Kent and
Louisa Restieaux.
John A. & Madeline's son Robert Kent Sears was my gggrandfather.
2) Mary Ann Sears, m. Daniel Gould, dsp
>From old typed notes my grandmother gave me:
"It is thought that Betsey {Wilkins, wife of John T.} knew John's
early history but she would not tell Robert Kent Sears (their
grandson) who questioned her."
Samuel P. May said:
"It is said that his family lived in the interior and that he was
at school in a seaport town, with his brother George and sister
Mary, when Capt. Chandler enticed him on board his vessel and
brought him away {to Marblehead}..... In tracing the parentage of
Mr. Sears I find but one family in which the name George occurs
prior to 1800, viz., that of George Sears of Newport....The
romantic story of John T. Sears is unknown to the descendants of
George Sears, Jr, but I place him here for the benefit of future
investigators, and give his story as it was told to me."
So, overall, I have a bit of a mystery. Does John T. belong in
the family that May put him in? If not, where does he fit? If he
does, where might I find records to support that placement?
Any ideas/clues/suggestions helpful.
BJ Hinshaw
hinshaw(a)cyberzane.net