THE CURTIS CHRONICLES

THE GENEALOGICAL HISTORY

OF WILLIAM CURTIS, Richard Curtis, Thomas Curtis Son's  OF

THOMAS CURTIS

OF

ASH, KENT COUNTY, ENGLAND AND ONE LINE OF HIS DESCENDENTS

PREFACE

            Writing this historical account of my Curtis family has been an idea of mine for about a decade, but then again, you know what they say about good intentions.  But now that I am in retirement and the days grow shorter, I figured it was time to put pen to paper. 

            This book is for the current living members of my Curtis family as well as for future generations.  Every so many generations, someone in the family has to take up the staff and make the commitment to update the family records.  Over the last decade I have been helping others do this and now it’s time for me to tend to our own Curtis history.  I’ve learned much from the Curtis/s Family Society and now as its President, I’ve gained the confidence and knowledge to put this history in book form. 

            So this book is for my three sons, Howard, Michael and Bryan, who constitute the tenth generation of our Curtis line in America starting with William Curtis of Scituate, Massachusetts who arrived on these shores about November 1638.   It’s also for my grandchildren Caitlin and Dewey Curtis, and Elias Curtis, the eleventh generation and the future of this family. 

            I have relied heavily upon the prior work of genealogists without which we would have been in the dark about our ancestors.  The research conducted by Harold E. Curtis (of our family) from the 1940’s to the 1970’s and his manuscripts was paramount to this history.  John S. Berry’s “A Historical Sketch of the Town of Hanover, Mass with Family Genealogies” 1853 was the catalyst for my interest in our Curtis family history.  A portion of the family settled or bought land in Maine and their story was told by Dr. C. E. Banks.  But this story could not have been told without the encouragement of distant cousin William Gray Curtis (1926-2007) of the Scituate Historical Society.

George Curtis 

President of the Curtis/s Family Society.

INTRODUCTION

            This book would be meaningless without an introduction to the origin(s) of the Curtis surname.  From where did it originate and who was the first Curtis?  I wish I had the definitive answer but at least we can get an approximation of the origin of the name. 

            The surname Curtis originated from the Middle English word curteys or corteys (Old French – curteis) and was given as a nickname, meaning “the courteous one.”  Chaucer, in his Tales of Canterbury, writes of his Squire “Curteys he was, lowly, and servisable.” In Normandy, the name meant “one who is always polite.”  A reminder to live up to your name.

            It is perfectly natural that a soubriquet of this character should be retained and it became a popular surname from the 13th century onward.  The earliest forms can be found in the Roll of Hundreds  (Rotuli Hundredorum) containing lists of all the taxable persons of each county in England, taken by the order of King Edward I.  In a Hundreds Roll of the County of Cambridge taken in 1273, there is, for example, a William le Curteis, and in Northumberland County, a Richard Curtayse. 

            There were various spellings of the name, all origins of the more common present-day Curtis, Curtiss, Curtice.  These were – Corteis, Courtoise, Courteous, Curtys, Curtoeis, Corteys, and some fifty other spellings.  It is interesting to note that in the area of Tenterden, Kent County, England there still exists the use of Curteis, the Old French version.  This spelling was used by the descendents of the French Norman invaders of England in 1066 and the Tenterden families may be their descendents. 

            It is believed the old Kent County and Sussex County, England Curtis/Curteis families came with William the Conqueror and his French Norman invaders bearing the name William and Robert de Curtis.  In 1180, William Courtoise gave land to King Henry which had come to him from his ancestor, Robert, who founded the Gloucester Abbey.  The family always boasted of individualism as when Thomas Curtis of London refused to ne knighted by King Henry VIII and accepted the fine. 

            The Curtis Family Society has accounted for twenty-one Curtis/s families emigrating from England to the New World between 1621 and 1770.  They came ashore in Virginia, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New Jersey, Delaware, New York and Maine.  As of this writing, DNA testing of the majority of the twenty-one families shows only one blood relationship.   There are many references to an association between our Ash, Kent County Curtis family and that of Nazing, Essex County.  Rest assured, any reference is a grievous error as proven by DNA testing.

OUR ENGLISH ANCESTORS

1450-1638

            Our line of the Curtis family has been positively traced back to Thomas Curtis of Ash, Kent County, England at the beginning of the 1600’s.  Thomas and his family are listed in the records of Saint Nicholas Paris, Ash; records now stored on microfilm in the archives of the Canterbury Cathedral.   Records of ancestors before Thomas of Ash have not been found and may no longer exist but I believe a generation or two resided in the area of Ash.  There was a large Curtis family further south of Ash in the Appledore-Tenterden area.  This family is recorded back to Steven Curtis of Appledore about 1450.  A very loose assumption has been made over the years that our line is related to the Appledore-Tenterden family but no proof currently exists.  DNA testing would most likely provide evidence of any relationship between the two families. 

            Genealogists studying the lineage of the Curtis of Ash family made the assumption that there is a relationship with the Appledore-Tenterden family.  This is evident in their use of the Appledore-Tenterden coat-of-arms and crest.  No association between the Ash family and the Appledore-Tenterden family has yet to be found.

                        Arms:  Arg. A chev sa. betw three bulls heads, embossed, gu.

                        Crest:  A unicorn pass. or, betw four trees ppr.

The inscription beneath says:

                        Curtis, Corteis, etc, an ancient English Family, settled in the Counties of Kent and Sussex.  Stephen Curtis was of Appledore, Kent, ab 1380, and several of his descendents were Mayors of Tenderden, a town from which some of the first settlers of Scituate came.  The earlier descendents of this pedigree, are taken from the original pedigree, in possession of the family, under the hand and seal of office of Sir Wm Segar, Garter King-of-Arms, transcribed by John Philpot, Blanch Lion, and entitled, “This descent of the auntient familie of the Curteises, in the County of Kent, gents., faithfullie collected out of the office of Arms, the public records of the kingdom, private evidences of the familie, and other venerable monuments of antiquitue;” in which this pedigree, and also in several old MSS., in the Harleian Coll[ege]., in the Brit[ish] Mus[eum]., the arms of the family are given as annexed, without reference to any particular grant, but borne by them in virtue of ancient usage.

            “This descent of the auntient familie of the Curteises, in the County of Kent, gents., faithfullie collected out of the office of Arms, the public records of the kingdom, private evidences of the familie, and other venerable monuments of antiquitue.”

   This statement was penned in 1619.  Pedigree if the Curteis family of Tenterden and elsewhere in Kent, drawing descent from Stephen Curtis of Appledore, c1380 to 1612.  Information quoted in the escheator’s inquisition, wills at Canterbury, armorial glass in Romney church in 1612, an armorial roof-boss in the cloisters if Canterbury Cathedral, a pedigree of Cobham by Robert Glover, Somerset Herald (d1588) and armorial glass in a chapel in Childen church Subscribed: “This Coate of Armes doune to Norton Curteis Eldest Son of George Curteis of Maidstone, is a true Copie, taken out of the Originall now in the hands of Sir George Curteis of Otterdein in Kent which was Exemplified by the Authority of the office of Armes testified by the Scale and confirmed under the hand of William Segar Garter Principall Kinge of Armes Anno Domini 1619.”

                                       Saint Nicholas Church, Ash (located at yellow arrow below)

The Curtis family of this genealogy settled in Scituate, Massachusetts and in the 17th  century records of that town the forms Courtis, Courtisse, Courteous, Curtice, Curtise, Curtiss and Curtis are found.  However, by the mid-18th century, the last became the favored spelling and it is used throughout this publication, except where required by direct quotes.  It has been determined that the Scituate Curtises came from Ash, near Sandwich, in the County of Kent, England and by the unusual name of the immigrant mother, Richardene, the widow of Thomas Curtis and subsequently the wife of Thomas Chambers, the family was quite positively identified.  Thomas Curtis, the elder, Banks surmised, was a well-to-do yeoman, “living successively at Worth, Ewell, again at Worth, and finally at Ash.”  Banks goes on to further write:

            “Of the parentage of Thomas Curtis, the elder, nothing certain can be stated.   An ancient and well-known family of this name was resident of Appledore, Kent, as early as 1450, and several descendents were mayors of Tenterden, from whence came several emigrants to Scituate, but extensive search fails to find a place for this Thomas in it.  This Appledore-Tenterden Curtis family were armigerous and appear in the “Herald’s Visitations.”   With all the evidence available, it is the author’s opinion that he is probably identical with the Thomas, son of John Curtis of Folkstone, Kent, who was baptized in that parish November 28, 1574, having younger brothers William and John, which were the names given his own children.  Thomas Curtis of Ash was twice married, first to Bennett Lott (License, December 12, 1612) by whom he had issue:

1.  Nicholas, b ( 1613), died young (1640)
2. John, bapt. September 3, 1615; buried November 12, 1616 at Worth

Thomas’s wife Bennett died in childbirth and was buried September 8, 1615, and he remarried about 1617-1618 Richardene ______, by whom he had the following issue:

1.  Thomas, bapt. November 2, 1619, the emigrant to York [Maine]
2. Richard, b.(1621); emigrated to Scituate, 1638
3. Elizabeth, bapt. August 1624 [married Richard Bankes, emigrant to York]
4. William, b. (1626); buried September 16, 1630 at Worth [in error, this was prob. Steven]
5. William b. (1628) [emigrated to Scituate, 1638]
6. Stephen, bapt. December 5, 1629; buried September 10, 1630 (Ash)
7. John, bapt May 13, 1632; emigrated to Scituate, 1638; d.s.p. 1686”

            The marriage license for Thomas Curtis, the elder’s first marriage is on record at the Canterbury Archives:

            Thomas Curteyes of Ash and Bennett Lott, s.p. [of the same parish], v. [virgin]. At Ewell, Dec. 22, 1612.

In order to validate Banke’s version of Thomas Curtis, the elder, Harold E. Curtis obtained a copy of the Worth parish records.  The Curtis entries are as follows:

            Sept. 3  John Curtes sonne of Thomas [baptized] 1615

            Sept. 8  Thomas Curtes wife [buried] 1615

            Nov. 7  Thomas Curtes sonne of Thomas Curtis [baptized] 1619

            Aug. 1  Elsabeth Curtesse daughter of Thomas Curtes [baptized] 1624

            We know that Symon Lott was Bennett’s father as he was mentioned in the 1630 will of Thomas Curtis.  The will also stated that Symon was of Ash and recently deceased.  I could find no record of Symon in Ash but I did find 1605 Court records of a Simon and Katherine Lott residing in the village of Sholden, 2.7 miles south of Worth on the London Road.   The Lott’s were apparent victims of the 1605 food riots which occurred when a shortage of grain resulted in an increase in the price of bread, the staple of the population.  It is possible these were Bennett’s parents as Symon was not a common name at that time and they lived within an hour walking distance of Thomas and Bennett when they lived in Worth. 

[1]Kent Quarter Sessions 23 Aug 1605:  “John Austen of Northbourne, yeoman, John Farbrace of the same, labourer, William Browne of Elham, labourer, Arthur Payne of Northbourne, labourer, John Obourde of Northbourne, labourer, at Sholden, riotously broke into and entered a close of Simon Lott of Sholden, yeoman, called Hull Close and assaulted Simon Lott and his wife, Katherine and carried away a cartload of barley worth 20s. belonging to Simon Lott. “

Kent Quarter Sessions 23 Aug 1605:  “Simon Lott of Sholden, husbandman, Katherine his wife, "spinster", George Campion of London, blacksmith and many other unknown persons to the number of seven, at Sholden, riotously assembled together and broke into and entered the close of a certain John Austen in Sholden and assaulted John Austen, William Browne, John Obbard, John Farbruce and Arthur Paine. [Appeared at Epiphany Sessions [1605/6] and submitted to the will of the court]”

Kent Quarter Sessions 26 Aug 1605:  “Thomas Franckly of Sholden, yeoman, in £20, to appear and to keep the peace towards Simon Lott and his wife of Northbourne; sureties, John Austin of the same and George Veryer of Deal, yeomen.”  

Kent Quarter Sessions 26 Aug 1605:  Precept from five justices of the peace, Sir Thomas Palmer, Sir Thomas Peyton, Sir Thomas Engham, Sir Edward Boys and William Monings, to the sheriff to summon a jury to Eastry on 2 Sept. 1605 from the vicinity of Eastry to enquire into the riotous entry into the close called Hull in the occupation of Simon Lott of Sholden.  

 Subsequent research has uncovered that Joanne Lott, wife of Symon Lott, died in Ash in 1614. (St. Nicholas Church records) The Simon Lott of Sholden may not have been Bennett’s father. 

            The St. Nicholas parish records further record the events of the family of Thomas Curtis, the elder:

Baptisms

1627   April   William  Sonne of Thomas Curtis  - 29 [April 29, 1627]

1629   December   Steven  Sonne of Thomas Curtis – 5

1632   May   John  sonne of Thomas Curtis – 13

Burials

1630   September  William Curtis Sonne of Thomas Curtis – 16

1631   December  Thomas Curtis [the elder]  householder - 11

Marriages

1632   June   Thomas Chambers & Richardene Curtis  widdow   Mar: 25

            Harold E. Curtis made a comparison with Dr. Banks’ record which shows (1) a baptismal record for William, not given by Banks, and (2) no burial record for Steven.  Banks knew that a William Curtis came with the family to Scituate but since he saw what purported to be a burial record or a William of Ash in 1630, he made the assumption that there were two children of this name, both born before 1630.  Harold believed it was far more likely that the burial record for William on September 16, 1630 is a contemporary clerical error for his brother Steven.  This would account for the death of Steven as there was no further record of him after 1630. 

            I would be amiss if I did not add the small fact that the Ash parish Churchwardens Accounts for 1605-1617 list as paying towards the maintenance of the church “Rich. Curtyse and Barth. Kennett – 28 acres”.  This shows that there was a contemporary of Thomas Curtis with the same surname living in Ash which Thomas was in Worth.

            Confused?  No one said genealogy is an exact science.  Someone said to me just last month, “Oh, but the New England Curtis families are well researched and established.”  Thus, let me summarize where we stand up to July 1632.

            Thomas Curtis of Ash was probably born about 1587 but his date/place of birth and parentage has not been established.  Bank’s assertion that Thomas was identical to the recorded son of John Curtis of Folkstone has never been proven.  That there was a Richard Curtis in Ash 1605-1617 opens the thought of a father, uncle or brother living in the area.  I have spent a few evenings over a bottle of wine discussing why Thomas and Bennett, both of Ash parish, decided to marry and live in Worth, some 3 miles away?  And the distance to Ewell, if it was Temple Ewell, is about 20 miles. Did they elope or did Thomas go against his father’s wishes concerning the marriage?  Who knows?

            We know that Thomas the elder married Bennett Lott in 1612, she had two children who died young with she herself succumbing to the rigors of birth with her death in 1615.  Only Nicholas, born 1613, survived the first marriage of Thomas Curtis the elder. Nicholas was mentioned in his father’s 1630 will but no further information was found on him except for a St. Nicolas record of the burial of a Nicolas Curtis in Ash in 1640.

[2]           No known records exist of Thomas’ marriage to Richardene ____in 1617-1618.  However, the fact that Thomas Curtis the younger was baptized at Worth in 1619 seems to indicate the marriage took place in Worth probably in the 1617-1618 timeframe.  Thomas the elder probably stayed in Worth from 1615 to 1619.  He seemed to have continued to remain there as his daughter Elizabeth was baptized in Worth in 1624.

            Next we find Thomas the elder and his family in Ash with the baptism of William sonne of Thomas Curtis at St. Nicholas in Ash on April 29, 1627.  William was 11 years old when he arrived in Scituate, MA and is our oldest immigrant ancestor; that is, our line came from him.  Another son, Steven was baptized December 5, 1629 at St. Nicholas in Ash and died there in September 1630. 

            Tragedy struck the Curtis household with the death of Thomas the elder in December 1631 and his burial at St. Nicholas on December 11, 1631.  I estimate Thomas was about 42-43 years old at the time of his death.   Thomas made a will that was missing from the files at the Kent County Council Record Office at Maidstone, Kent; however, Nancy Purchase discovered a copy of the will during a visit to St. Nicholas church.  In addition, records of the proving of the will and granting administration to the executrix survived.  On December 30, 1631, an entry in the Act Book, Volume XVII, 1630-1634, Consistory Court, Diocese of Canterbury, England read [translated from Latin]:

“30th December 1630 before master Edward Aldey, clerk surrogate, and in presence of me, Peter Wynne, notary public.

Curtis:  The will of Thomas Curtis late of the parish of Ash of the diocese of Canterbury, deceased, was proved on the oath of Richardine Curtis, widow and relict of the aforesaid deceased and sole executrix named in the same will.  And it was approved etc.  And administration entrusted etc. to the aforesaid executrix, who had previously been sworn,

Under the heading of “Judicial” (Church Courts) for the Diocese of Canterbury from Scope and Content dated January 12, 1631:

            “Plaintiff: Richardena CURTIS rel exis; Documents: Alleg & will; Case: Test Thos CURTIS Ash.”

Ms. Elizabeth Hudson, Archivist of the St. Nicholas Church, translated the will of Thomas Curtis from the original Old English text to modern English.  It appears this is the will Richardene Curtis presented to the church court as it also contains the date of January 12, 1631.  The following is the actual text of the will as translated.

            “This 4 day of     1630.  I Thomas Curtiss of the pishe of Ashe being sike of bodye but [etc]…  Itam   I give unto Nicholas Curtis my eldest sunne the full sume of fforty pounds to be payd to hemat the age of on and twenty years of which forty pounds my ___ is five pounds is that legacy given him by his Grandfather Symon Lot of Ashe late desesed the other thirtyfive pounds is my own gift to him.  Itam  I give unto Thomas Curtis my second sunne the full some of twenty pounds[1] to be payd to him at the age of on and twenty years.  Itam  I give unto Richard Curtis my third sunne the full some of twenty pounds to bee payd to him at the age of on and twenty yeares.  Itam  I give to William Curtis my fourth sunne the some of twenty pounds to bee payd to hem at the age of on and twenty yeares.  Itam  I give unto Steven Curtis my fivth sunne the some of twenty pounds to bee payd to him at the age of on and twenty yeares.  Itam  I give unto Elisabeth Curtis my daughter the full some of twenty pounds to bee oayd to her at the age of eythteen yeares or at the day of her marage which shall com first.  Itam  All the rest of my goods and chattels not given nor ……. my dettes and ….. being discharged with the use and benefit of my childens …… till they acomplesh theyr serrell ages do I give unto Richarden Curttis my wife to bring up my sayd children till they be abell to get theyr on livings and he do rodayn my ull ex/eatrex of this my last will and testyment.  In wittnes hereof I have set my hand and seal the daye and yeare above menten.

Sealed in the presence of us                                                     Thomas Curtis his mark T

Willam Solly    John Bax”

The Will of Thomas Curtis of Ash, 1630

The record of the proving of the will and granting administration to the executrix, dated December 30, 1631 was entered in the Act Books of the Consistory Court of the Diocese of Canterbury filed at Mainstone.  The English translation from the original Latin versions state:

            “ 30th December 1631 before master Edward Aldey, clerk surrogate, and in the presence of me, Peter Wynne, notary public.

            Curtis  The will of Thomas Curtis late of the parish of Ash of the diocese of Canterbury,                             deceased, was proved on the oath of Richardene Curtis, widow and relict of the                              aforesaid deceased and sole executrix named in the same will.  And it was                                           approved etc.  And administration entrusted etc. to the aforesaid executrix, who                          had previously been sworn, etc. saving the right of anyone whatsoever.”

The legal defense of the will of Thomas Curtis dated 1632 was written in Latin and presented to the church court along with his will. 

Prior to the will being executed, an inventory of the possessions of Thomas Curtis was required.  That two-page inventory was completed on December 22, 1631 and a copy is provided at the end of this book.  The inventory was signed by Thomas Stafford, John Dix and Edward Chambers on December 30, 1631 and totaled £426, 16s (shillings).  No real estate was mentioned indicating Thomas was not a land owner.  It is interesting to note two items located in the hall of the house – a pike and an old coslet.  A pike is a spear-like weapon and a coslet is body armor.  I wonder if these once belonged to one of Thomas’ ancestors, a French Norman soldier perhaps?

            Noted British historian, Dr. Christopher Chalklin, in his study of the social and economic history of seventeenth century Kent quotes the results of a study of a sample of fifty-five yeomens’ inventories made between 1600 and 1620 which showed twenty-four possessed personal estates valued under £100, sixteen at between £100 and £200, and twelve over £200.  In a study of the average probate wealth for the general population (1640 value), esquires were £658, gentlemen £329 and yeomen were £195.  If Thomas Curtis’ income from Overland Farm was in proportion to the value of his property of £426 as given in the inventory of his estate, he must have been a very prosperous yeoman.[1] 

            It is believed that the Curtis family lived in a farmhouse on Overland.  The lay-out of the Curtis house can be reconstructed with fair accuracy from the rooms mentioned in the inventory.  The plan of a typical 18th century farmhouse, which is also representative of those of the preceding century is used as a example.

            Note that the above plan includes a ground floor that consists of a “parlor” and a “hall” with a fireplace separating them and off the hall are two utility rooms.  The parlour served as a bedroom and the hall as a kitchen and eating place.  Thomas Curtis’ house probably had roughly the same layout as that depicted above but probably had in addition a single-story lean-to off the hall serving as a wood shed and larder house.  The probable plan of this floor as well as that of the one above is shown below.  From the list of inventory items in the bed chamber, it may be inferred that this was the master and his wife’s room.  The inventory item “to owld bedstedles” [two old bedstedles] were in the kitchen loft where probably the younger children slept.  The kitchen, beer buttery and the milk house were probably adjacent to the hall, and directly above and next to the bed chamber were probably the kitchen loft, the wheat loft and the apple loft.  A projected plan of these two floors is shown below. 

Overland Farm

            Overland Farm still exists today, just about a mile north of Ash.  Plance, in his history of Ash, discusses Overland Manor of which the farm was a part, and traces its history to the reign of King Henry III (1216-1272).  Overland was granted by the King to Bertram de Criol, Warden of the Cinque Ports.  Over the years, the manor passed through various owners to William Lord Cowper in the early 18th century.  Thomas Chambers was, without question, simply a leassee of the farm on the manor as was probably Thomas Chambers afterwwards.  In the Ash Parish Collection is a book titled “Churchwarden Accounts 1633-1678.”  This book contains yearly lists of parish members with names and acreage of their farms and the annual tax assessments per acre and building.  Under the date of 1635/6 1st day of February is the entry

“Overland Tho Cambers 112 [acres] 18s 9d.”  A Thomas Chambars (sic) is listed on Overland Farm  in the 1635 5th day Oct entry.  His name was missing from the Dec 5th 1637 list but is present on the list dated Oct 23, 1638.  On the May 4, 1640 list, a William Kay is shown living at Overland.  In 1970, the Overland farm consisted of 80 acres, owned by the Kent County Counsil and under lease to a tenant farmer who had planted cabbages on the flat black land.  Nothing much had changed in 350 years since our ancestor Thomas Curtis tilled the same land. 

Thomas Chambers

            With the death of her husband Thomas, Richardene Curtis was now a widow with a 19 year old step-son Nicholas and four of her own children between the ages of four and thirteen.  And Richardene was not yet finished bearing children.  Surprise, surprise she was pregnant once more and bore another son, John, who was baptized at St. Nicholas in Ash on June 13, 1632.   As Thomas did not mention John in his will, we assume John was born after his death but before June 13th.  The next month, on July 25, 1632, Richardene married Thomas Chambers at St. Nicholas church.  Chambers probably became more of a father to Richardene’s children because of his appearance in their lives at their young ages.  Little is know of Nicholas Curtis but that he remained in Ash after his stepmother and half-siblings left for Plymouth Colony in 1638.  His burial was recorded in the St. Nicholas register “15 November 1640 Ash, Kent  Nicholas Curtis was buried.”

            It is not certain how Thomas Chambers came to Ash or from where.  There is one family of Chambers listed as buried in the cemetery of St. Nicholas church “Joan the wiffe of Abraham Chambars was buried the 16 day [June 1656].   Canterbury records show a “lease from Thos. Lukine to Abraham Chambers of Elmstone of lands in Ash” dated 1641.  Elmstone is close to Overland Farm.  An Edward Chambers bore witness to the inventory of the personal possessions of Thomas Curtis after his death.  And there was a William Chambers of Sandwich, three miles to the east, in 1636.  This all indicates the presence of Chambers families in the area of Ash-Sandwich in the 1630’s. 

            I cannot leave this part of the story without mention of Capel-le-Ferne, an old French-Norman village on the southeast coast of England just east of Dover.  Quarterly Court records of 1610 show the presence of a Thomas and Edward Chambers there.  I estimate that Thomas Chambers was born around 1595-1600, and was probably just a few years older than Richardene.  This is based on his death after 1658 and Richardene’s marriage to Thomas Curtis in 1618 and her death in 1673.  Thus 1610 would be to early for our Thomas Chambers to be agreeing to the court conditions on his brother’s good behavior.

“Edward Chambers of Capel-le-Ferne, husbandman, in £20, to appear and to be of good behaviour; sureties, Thomas Chambers and Ezechias Stace of the same, husbandmen.”   3 July 1610

There has been a lot of dicussion over the years as to why Thomas Chambers subjected his wife Richardene and the Curtis children to the rigors of the leaving their home and sailing to Scituate in the Plymouth Colony.

WHY LEAVE ENGLAND???

To gain an understanding of what it was like for my ancestor Thomas Curtis of Ash to live in England in the early 17th century, I had to start back in the 14th century.

            [1]The Black Plague of the 14th century altered the English social structure.  Prior to the outbreak of the plague in 1348, life was good in England – mild winters, record harvests, and a growing population of about 6 million.  Woodlands were being cleared and grazing land plowed under for new crops, and cattle herds compressed.  Yes, life was very good and here within lay the problem.  In the 1340’s the winters turned bitter and there were crop failures.  People started dying from eating meat from livestock infected with anthrax.  Coincident with this disease came the first major outbreak of the Black Plague that in 1348 killed off in successive waves 30-40% of the population over the years of 1348-1370.  That we are here today is testimony that our direct Curtis ancestors luckily survived these initial onslaughts.  By the beginning of the 15th century, England’s population was down by half to an estimated 3 million people.  Add to this misery the Hundred Year Wars with France.  Now, as there were fewer farmers, tillable land was cheaper for surviving peasant families to purchase or rent.  Thus the new class of yeoman and husbandman were created and grew.

            Under the Tutor reign in the 16th century, conditions did vary according to the area of England where one resided. For example, there was greater Catholic resistance to King Henry VIII’s creation of the Protestant Church of England in northern and southwestern England, and more acceptance of the new church in the southeast.  Interesting that Sandwich, three miles east of Ash, was a hotbed of Puritan activity. As explicit critics of what they viewed as corrupt worship and public immorality, the Puritans preached against the sins of church and state, a tone that did not set well with the monarchy and supporters of the new church. England’s economic expansion was at a minimum and the plague reappeared each summer in London.  During her 45-year reign, Queen Elizabeth I (1558-1603) and her court would take an annual summer “progress” to the countryside to escape the London plague outbreaks.  The economy improved significantly during the middle of Elizabeth’s reign with the population returning to near the pre-Plague level until the seven years of crop failures between 1592 and 1600.  This generated runaway inflation, higher prices for commodities, and a flat labor rate.  There was also famine with the poor dying on the streets of London.  Elizabeth’s successor in 1603, James I, with his spending sprees and European adventures, kept the economy in a downward spiral so that misery prevailed.   Upon James’ death in 1625, his son Charles I ascended to the throne.  He attempted to reduce the national deficit by instituting innovative taxes across the population.  He spread the pain of royal necessities to every level of English society.  This meant that my ancestor, Thomas Curtis, a yeoman with a wife and four children, had increased rent to pay to the local parish on his leased portion of the Overland Farm in Ash.  Under King Charles’ reign, he also had to pay increased tithe to the church, give a part of his harvest to the Crown, and had to pay a tax known as Ship’s Money for the construction of new warships to defend against pirates attacking maritime trade in English Channel.  Due to runaway inflation, rents may have increase 500% by 1640.  Atop these problems was the division in the Church of England between the liberals and radical Puritans aggravated by the Archbishop of Canterbury’s very heavy handed control of the Church; a church that was always the center of rural society.  Add to all of this the outbreak of small pox in England.

            Again, I do not know the particulars of why Chambers and the family left England but from what I read, things were going from bad to worse.  Civil strife, rebellion, increased land cost and talk of war were in the air.  Folks in a small village like Ash heard rumors rather than the real news – no CNN.  Both houses of Parliament were openly challenging the King’s prerogatives that he viewed as treasonous acts and so impeached standing members of both houses.  By 1637, the mistrust that the members of Parliament felt towards their king, their paranoia about Catholic plots against the Church of England and their delusions about Charles’ intentions were crucial components in the origins of the English Civil War.  Charles was steadfast in his conviction of royal prerogatives while Parliament was steadfast in their conviction of subjects’ rights and freedoms.

            Thomas Chambers, along with a number of other heads of households, must have seen the writing on the wall.  The social climate had deteriorated further so that after the early 1630’s the immediate future appeared bleak.  By probably mid-1638, it was quickly approaching time to make the ultimate decision to leave and their departure was most likely dependent on cost, comfort with other Kent families making the voyage and ships’ schedules.  By fall of 1638, they were on the high seas headed west to the New World.

Meanwhile, back in London, Charles could not control his Parliament by rule so he reverted to aggressive force.  He fled London and eventually raised an army, as did the Parliamentarians.   With this any sense of unity of the Three Kingdoms – England, Scotland and Ireland – unraveled.  By 1640, the Irish Catholics rebelled against their English Protestant masters and the Scottish Lords invaded the north of England to support the Parliamentarian army.   England was in a civil war.  Royalists fought for the traditions of religion and monarchy that their ancestors had preserved and passed on to them.  Parliamentarians fought for true religion and liberty.  They too defended the ancient inheritance – a Church purified of recent innovations and a government that respected the inviolability of property.  [2]These were somewhat common convictions on each side but under his rule King Charles I could not keep unity.

It is estimated that one in every eight Englishmen was involved in the fighting during the civil war and twice that many in sieges.  If Thomas Chambers had not left, I wonder if his stepsons, in their mid-teens to early twenties by the time of the civil war, would have survived?  Did Chambers and others foresee the impending bloodshed?  Was this the final straw after a decade or so of ever increasing taxes and a lifetime of disease and religious turmoil?   Was the vision of a new utopian world in the Colony worth the risk of the voyage?  With the turmoil in England in 1638, especially the threat to the established monarchy and the impending civil war, it appears to have been the better option for a new life for Thomas Chambers and his family.  How many Curtis lines would exist today if this family had not emigrated to the New World?  This gives us reason to pause, doesn’t it? 

Harold Curtis believed the main reason Thomas Chambers emigrated to Scituate was for land.  This could be especially true with the large increase in rents during the late 1630’s.  Inheritance in Kent, in contrast to the rest of England, was by gavelkind.  Thus a man dying intestate, his land was divided equally among the sons and frequently each received too little to support himself adequately.  In many cases the result was that he would lease his small holding to another and rent a larger farm more adequate to his needs.  Thus small holdings were a feature in Kent.  But Thomas Chambers could buy as much land as he needed in Massachusetts for around £3 an acre, with occasional distributions from the town’s common land.  And Chambers lived close to Sandwich, a principal port at this time for migrating to New England and where he certainly must have seen and talked to many travelers. 

EMIGRATING TO THE PLYMOUTH COLONY

It is reasonable to suppose that on their voyage across the Atlantic, Chambers and his family were accompanied by men of Kent such as Abraham Preble and John Twisden (1592-1660) of Frittenden and Richard Bankes of Alkham[3].  Twisden became a neighbor in Scituate and Bankes married Chamber’s step-daughter Elizabeth Curtis.

After a voyage of about six weeks during October-November 1638, Thomas Chambers, his wife Richardene and the five Curtis children finally reached the small but welcomed harbor of Scituate.  It has never been determine on what ship or which harbor the family left England. As they were accompanied by other families from Kent County, they probably departed from Sandwich, Deal, Dover or Folkestone.  (Recent information shows Thomas Chambers was in Sciutate in April 1638. ghc 2013)

The coastal Massachusetts town of Scituate lies halfway between Plymouth and Boston and is blessed with a natural harbor.  This harbor is probably what attracted the first settlers from Plymouth in about 1627, who were joined in 1634 by immigrants from the County of Kent in England. They were initially governed by the General Court at Plymouth, but in 1636 the town incorporated as a separate entity. The name Scituate is derived from "satuit," the Wampanoag term for cold brook. It refers to a brook that still today runs to the inner harbor of Scituate.  In 1634, a group of families, totaling 97 people, embarked at Sandwich for New England on the 'Good ship Hercules of Sandwich'.  The majority of the passengers were from Teneterden, Ashford, Sandwich and Maidstone in the County of Kent.  Several of the more prominent settlers were Nathanial Tilden, William Hatch, and Samuel Hinkley. “Of all such persons as embarked themselves in the good ship called the HERCULES, of Sandwich, of the burthen of 200 tons, John Witherley, master, and therein transported from Sandwich to the plantation called New England in America; with the certificates from the ministers where they last dwelt of their conversation, and conformity to the orders and discipline of the church, and that they had taken the oath of allegiance and supremacy.”

Replica of the Godspeed, a ship similar to the Hercules

The earliest mention of Thomas Chambers in Plymouth Colony was in the book of Court Orders 1633-1640 under an entry dated December 4, 1638 (earliest record now April 1638).  Thomas appeared before the court, along with John Stockbridge, Samuel Hinkley, Edward Fitzrandle, Thomas Rawlins, James Cushman, George Suttin and John Handmer, all of Scituate, for “receiuing strangers & forreiners into thiere houses & lands, wth out lycence of the Gour or Assistants, or acquainting the towne of Scittuate therewth.”  A marginal note of the record shows that they “were discharged 5th months of 1639 by the Court.”  [1]

On March 5, 1639, Thomas Chambers was on the list of “such as are supposed to take up their Freedom at the next Court” and was admitted freeman on December 3, 1639.  This was a formal status to which all adult householders might apply, and represented the ultimate unit of political participation.  Approval was based on general considerations of the character and unlike the Massachusetts Bay Colony, the Plymouth Colony did not set specific requirements for Church membership.

            From the body of freemen of each town, two were selected yearly as members of the General Court which enacted all necessary laws and ordinances, voted tax rates and supervised the distribution of land.  It was a tribute from his fellow townsmen that Thomas Chambers was appointed Deputy to the General Court at Plymouth during 1642, 1643 and 1648.

            Thomas’ stepsons, Richard and William Curtis, were not made freemen until June 1, 1658.  The other stepson, Thomas Curtis took the freeman’s oath at York, Maine on November 22, 1652 when that town acknowledged submission to the Massachusetts Bay Colony. [1]

            Under the date of August 1643 is a list of “The names of all the Males that are able to beare Armes from xvj. [16] Yeares old to 60 years, wthin the sevrall Towneships.”  Included on this list were Thomas Chambers, Richard Curtis and William Curtis.  John Curtis at eleven years old was too young to be included on the list and Thomas Curtis had probably already moved to York, Maine.  The activity was in response to the skirmishes with the Pequot Indians which showed that the settlers needed a better sense of military discipline. 

            The Plymouth records of the following years contain references to Chambers serving in various civic capacities such as surveyor of highways, member of town committees, and as a juror.  Also, in 1646, he was appointed, among others, by the Court “as a committee, [to] consider of a way for the defraying the charges of the magtrates table, by way of excise upon wine & other thinges.”

            The Plymouth Court records for May 3, 1641 contained the cryptic entry:

“Thom Chambers of Scittuate, [2]planter, acknowledgeth to owe the King ………….XIli [£11]

 John Twisten, of the same, planter, etc…………………………………………..…….XIli

The condition, that if the said Thomas Chambers doe personally appeare at the next Genrall Court of or sovaigne lord the King, to be holden to Plym, to answer to all such matters as shalbe objected against him on his sd mats behalf, and not debt the Court wthout lycence; that then, etc.”

            At the same Court, similar conditions were also imposed on John Twisden, George Willard and Dolor Davis, all planters of Scituate.  An entry for June 1 of the same year makes it clear that he three of them, at least, had objected to the fact that, among other things, the church did not practice infant baptism. [3] 

            “Georg Willerd, of Scittuate, planter, for his contemptuous wordes, proved upon oath, in saying that they were fooles, & knaves, and gulls that payd the rate, or words to that effect, and other pphane and ungodly speeches against the churches, likewide prooved by his oathes, -vizt, in saying that the churches here & in the Bay held forth a develish practice in that they did not baptise childrent, & other wordes to that effect; and also being demaunded his answere why he did so say, did very contemeliously aske the assistants, or some of them in pticuler, why they did not take the oath of supremacy before they entred upon their placs yesterday, - was therefore to be bound to his good behav. 

            Georg Willerd, of Scittuate, planter, oweth the King……………………XLli [£40]

            Thomas Chambers, of the same, plant,…………………………………....XXli [£20]

            John Twisden, of the same, plant……………………………………………XXli [£20]

            To be levyed of every one of their goods, cattells, etc. if he fayle in the condition followinge:”…..[i.e. to appear at the next term of the General Court].

            These amounts listed above were probably bonds “de bono gestu” to be returned and case dropped if peace were kept until the next quarter session of the Court, much like it was done in Kent in the early 1600’s.  Such was apparently the case as there is no record of any futher action against Willerd, Chambers and Twisden.[4] 

            Thomas Chambers is credited with being the source of a special body of immigrants who came to the area of Gordeana (York), Maine and settled “Scituate Row.”   When Chambers arrived in Gordeana is not known, but in 1642 he was owner of a ten acre lot.  Chambers either sold or gave his lot in equal parts to his stepson Thomas Curtis and to Richard Bankes who had married his only stepdaughter Elizabeth Curtis.

            Chambers was also one of the partners in the Conihasset Grant.  In July 1633, three months after the first registration of the lots laid out in Scituate to the south of Satuit Brook, the Court at Plymouth restricted the land distribution, ordering that the land to the north of town, later known as the Conihasset Grant, be left undistributed until word was received from the four London investors, James Shirley, John Beauchamp, Richard Andrews and Timothy Hatherly.  All four were merchant adventurers who had been important financial supporters of the Plymouth Colony from it inception.  The Great Deed of 1 December 1646 records Hatherly’s sale of twenty-seven thirtieths of three-quarters of the Conihasset Grant.  Hatherly did not actually sell the land but devised a method of investment to sell shares (on thirtieth part each) of the land, as yet undivided, he had acquired from his other three partners.  Hatherly retained three shares for himself, sold or gave two shares to his stepson Joseph Tilden, and sold one share each to the remaining twenty-five partners.  In 1650, it was decided to grant twenty-five acres for each share and a second division of two twenty-two acres per share was granted in 1662.  Hence, Thomas Chambers and eventually his stepsons became major landowners in the Scituate area.

On March 5, 1639, Thomas Chambers was on the list of “such as are supposed to take up their Freedom at the next Court” and was admitted freeman on December 3, 1639.  This was a formal status to which all adult householders might apply, and represented the ultimate unit of political participation.  Approval was based on general considerations of the character and unlike the Massachusetts Bay Colony, the Plymouth Colony did not set specific requirements for Church membership.

            From the body of freemen of each town, two were selected yearly as members of the General Court which enacted all necessary laws and ordinances, voted tax rates and supervised the distribution of land.  It was a tribute from his fellow townsmen that Thomas Chambers was appointed Deputy to the General Court at Plymouth during 1642, 1643 and 1648.

            Thomas’ stepsons, Richard and William Curtis, were not made freemen until June 1, 1658.  The other stepson, Thomas Curtis took the freeman’s oath at York, Maine on November 22, 1652 when that town acknowledged submission to the Massachusetts Bay Colony. [1]

            Under the date of August 1643 is a list of “The names of all the Males that are able to beare Armes from xvj. [16] Yeares old to 60 years, wthin the sevrall Towneships.”  Included on this list were Thomas Chambers, Richard Curtis and William Curtis.  John Curtis at eleven years old was too young to be included on the list and Thomas Curtis had probably already moved to York, Maine.  The activity was in response to the skirmishes with the Pequot Indians which showed that the settlers needed a better sense of military discipline. 

            The Plymouth records of the following years contain references to Chambers serving in various civic capacities such as surveyor of highways, member of town committees, and as a juror.  Also, in 1646, he was appointed, among others, by the Court “as a committee, [to] consider of a way for the defraying the charges of the magtrates table, by way of excise upon wine & other thinges.”

            The Plymouth Court records for May 3, 1641 contained the cryptic entry:

“Thom Chambers of Scittuate, [2]planter, acknowledgeth to owe the King ………….XIli [£11]

 John Twisten, of the same, planter, etc…………………………………………..…….XIli

The condition, that if the said Thomas Chambers doe personally appeare at the next Genrall Court of or sovaigne lord the King, to be holden to Plym, to answer to all such matters as shalbe objected against him on his sd mats behalf, and not debt the Court wthout lycence; that then, etc.”

            At the same Court, similar conditions were also imposed on John Twisden, George Willard and Dolor Davis, all planters of Scituate.  An entry for June 1 of the same year makes it clear that he three of them, at least, had objected to the fact that, among other things, the church did not practice infant baptism. [3] 

            “Georg Willerd, of Scittuate, planter, for his contemptuous wordes, proved upon oath, in saying that they were fooles, & knaves, and gulls that payd the rate, or words to that effect, and other pphane and ungodly speeches against the churches, likewide prooved by his oathes, -vizt, in saying that the churches here & in the Bay held forth a develish practice in that they did not baptise childrent, & other wordes to that effect; and also being demaunded his answere why he did so say, did very contemeliously aske the assistants, or some of them in pticuler, why they did not take the oath of supremacy before they entred upon their placs yesterday, - was therefore to be bound to his good behav. 

            Georg Willerd, of Scittuate, planter, oweth the King……………………XLli [£40]

            Thomas Chambers, of the same, plant,…………………………………....XXli [£20]

            John Twisden, of the same, plant……………………………………………XXli [£20]

            To be levyed of every one of their goods, cattells, etc. if he fayle in the condition followinge:”…..[i.e. to appear at the next term of the General Court].

            These amounts listed above were probably bonds “de bono gestu” to be returned and case dropped if peace were kept until the next quarter session of the Court, much like it was done in Kent in the early 1600’s.  Such was apparently the case as there is no record of any futher action against Willerd, Chambers and Twisden.[4] 

            Thomas Chambers is credited with being the source of a special body of immigrants who came to the area of Gordeana (York), Maine and settled “Scituate Row.”   When Chambers arrived in Gordeana is not known, but in 1642 he was owner of a ten acre lot.  Chambers either sold or gave his lot in equal parts to his stepson Thomas Curtis and to Richard Bankes who had married his only stepdaughter Elizabeth Curtis.

            Chambers was also one of the partners in the Conihasset Grant.  In July 1633, three months after the first registration of the lots laid out in Scituate to the south of Satuit Brook, the Court at Plymouth restricted the land distribution, ordering that the land to the north of town, later known as the Conihasset Grant, be left undistributed until word was received from the four London investors, James Shirley, John Beauchamp, Richard Andrews and Timothy Hatherly.  All four were merchant adventurers who had been important financial supporters of the Plymouth Colony from it inception.  The Great Deed of 1 December 1646 records Hatherly’s sale of twenty-seven thirtieths of three-quarters of the Conihasset Grant.  Hatherly did not actually sell the land but devised a method of investment to sell shares (on thirtieth part each) of the land, as yet undivided, he had acquired from his other three partners.  Hatherly retained three shares for himself, sold or gave two shares to his stepson Joseph Tilden, and sold one share each to the remaining twenty-five partners.  In 1650, it was decided to grant twenty-five acres for each share and a second division of two twenty-two acres per share was granted in 1662.  Hence, Thomas Chambers and eventually his stepsons became major landowners in the Scituate area.

The last mention of Thomas Chambers in Plymouth Colony records was on July 5, 1666 when his tax was rated.  This was a special Scituate tax for lands on the west end of town acquired from the Native Americans. There is no evidence in Plymouth Colony probate records that he had a will nor is there a record of his death.  His wife Richardene had her will drawn up on November 18, 1672 and in that, she listed herself as a “Widow of Scituate” indicating her husband died between 1666 and 1672. 

As mentioned above, Richardene Chambers left a will dated November 18, 1672 which was witnessed by Elisha Besley and Abraham Suttliff.  She bequeathed by her “late husband’s desire” her house and land to her son John Curtis, whom she named executor, leaving her wearing apparel to Abigail, wife of her son Thomas, and £10 to Elizabeth, daughter of Thomas.  The inventory, taken October 27, 1673 by Thomas King, Richard Curtis and Abraham Suttliff, included only the goods and chattels totaling £91 14s ($21,295 in 2007 USD).  The will of Richardene Chambers reads as follows:

“I Richarden Chambers of Scittuate in the Jurisdiction of New Plymouth in new Engand Widdow, being weak of Body, but in perfect mind and memory, for which I doe most humbly thank God Almighty; I doe make & declare this to be my last will and testament in manner as followth:  Imprimis I give and bequeath unto Abligail Curtise the wife of my son Thomas Curtise all my wearing Clothes; Item I give and bequeath unto Elizabeth Curtise daughter of my son Thomas Curtise aforesaid the full sum of ten pounds of money Goods or C[h]attle, and whereas my husband Thomas Chambers deceased, A day or two before he died, did manifest and declare before Leiften Torrey and Sarah his wife of Abraham Suttliff, and in my hearing that it was his will that his son in law John Curtise should have his house and land both upland and marsh land lying and being in Scituate and Marshfield Immediately after my death; And as it was my husbands will, soe I also heerby declare, that it is my will, that my son John Curtise shall have and Injoy the said house and land Imediatel after my decease to be Injoyed by him and his heirs forever, all the Rest of my estate, my debts and legacyes and charges for funarall being deducted, I give unto John Curtise my son aforesaid, who I doe hereby Constitute and appoint to be the sole executor of this my last Will and Testament whom I doe hereby appoint to pay my debts and legacyes, In witness whereof I have sett my hand and seal this eighteenth day of November one thousand six hundred seventy and two 1672.  Signed Sealed and Published in the presence of us Will and Inventory of Richardene Chambers.

Thomas Kinge, Elisha Besley, Abraham Suttliff      The mark of Richarden Chambers”

“Mr. Thomas Kinge made oath to this will June 1673 before me Josiah Winslow

            This above written will of Mistris Richarden Chambers Widdow of Scittuate aforesaid deceased was exhibited to the Court holden att Plymouth aforesaid the 29th of October 1673 on the testimonies above entered; and was by the order of the said Court ordered proved and heer ordered to be Recorded. “

            The inventory of Richarden’s person property as appraised on October 27, 1673 came to a total of just over £91 and was witnessed by Thomas Kinge, Richard Curtis and Abraham Suttliff.

No mention was made in the will of  two sons, Richard and William, but it is quite likely that provision had been made for them at an earlier date.  They are, however, referenced in connection with the distribution of the estate of their brother John. As mentioned, John was living at the Curtis homestead on Butternut Hill and his house and barn were among the buildings destroyed in King Phillip’s War during the raid of May 20, 1676.  These, incidentally, were valued at £40 in the official list of losses from the raid furnished to Governor Josiah Winslow.

Richardene’s youngest son John died unmarried and intestate sometime before 1680 and by a Court Order of June 1, 1680, his estate was divided into five parts “In reference unto the dispose of the estate of John Curtice, of Scittuate, late deceased, the Court hath ordered, that it shall be divided into five parts, whereof two parts thereof is disposed unto his eldest brother, Thomas Curtice, living at Yorke, in the Province of Maine, and the other three parts unto Richard Curtice, and William Curtice, and Elizabeth [his neice] the wife of Jacob Bumpas, only the said woman is to have her part out of the moveables of the said estate, and not to have any parts of the lands.”

Richardene’s oldest son, Thomas Curtis moved from Scituate to Gordeana, Province of Maine in 1642.  This town was renamed York in 1652 when it was annexed into the Massachusetts Colony.  Previous names had been Bristol in 1628, Agamanadicus in 1632 and finally York in 1652.  Three other Scituate (and formally Kent) men came with Thomas to settle York.  They were Abraham Preble, John Twisden and Thomas’ brother-in-law Richard Bankes.  “The History of York, Maine” states that these men, although they acquired land in Scituate Row of York, never lived on these properties.  In 1642 by charter of King Charles I, Gorgeana became the first incorporated town in America.  After the departure of Gorges, Deputy Governor of the province of Maine, Richard Vines, as Chancellor, on behalf of Gorges, granted 12 acres each to Preble, Bankes and Curtis but the principal transfer took place on July 18, 1643.  Note in the map below that these four settlers owned adjacent lots.

The First Through Fourth Generations in America

The first1 through fourth4 generations of Curtises in the Plymouth Colony and Maine helped setup the towns, purchased and worked the land, served in public positions, bore and raised children and died due to disease and murdered by rampaging Indians led by French-Canadians.  The fourth generation of Curtis men shouldered their muskets and marched with the militias to defend their country against the British during the Revolutionary War.  Their contributions and sacrifices established the order and stability of the colony.  The foundation which they laid helped launch the commercial ventures of the third and fourth generations.

Thomas1 Curtis was the oldest son of Thomas Curtis of Ash, County of Kent, England and his wife Richardene.  Thomas1 was born in Worth, on the south side of Sandwich, and baptized on November 9, 1619 according to the records of the Worth Parish.  Thomas1, at the age of 19, accompanied his mother, siblings and stepfather on their voyage to Scituate, Plymouth Colony in the fall of 1638.   Thomas1 bought land in Maine in 1645 but was in Scituate in 1649 as his daughter Elizabeth2 was born there and baptized in the Scituate Second Parish church in 1649.  Thomas1 returned to York in 1663 and was living there in 1684, at which date he gave a deed to his son Samuel2 (baptized in Scituate 1659) of the lands on Buttonwood Hill, Scituate, left to him by his brother John1.   Samuel2 built a house on Buttonwood Hill where he and several generations of his family lived.  Records show that Thomas1 married Elizabeth ___ of Scituate in 1648 and a daughter Elizabeth2 and son Joseph2 from that union.  Elizabeth died and I believe she is buried in the Second Parish Cemetery, Norwell, MA.  Thomas1 remarried Abigail____, of York and had son Samuel born about 1659.  Deane states that Thomas1 had a son Benjamin2 of Portsmouth [NH}.  Deane had seen a deed from Robert Tufton Mason to Benjamin Curtis, conveying a lot of land on Great Island [at Portsmouth] on the Piscataqua River, dated 1681.  Thomas1’s will was dated April 19, 1680 but not proved until after his son Joseph2’s death, but he was apparently a victim of the Candlemass Massacre during which York was destroyed in January 1692.  This occurred during King William’s War (1688-1697), the first of the French and Indian Wars.  About 150 Abenki Indians led by French-Canadian officers killed 100 English settlers in York and took 80 hostages who they marched to Canada.

The children of Thomas1 Curtis were:

                        Elizabeth2 Curtis, christened August 19, 1649 at the Second Church of Scituate,

                                    Married Thomas Wade and had 8 children in Bridgewater

Joseph2 Curtis, born in York circa 1651/52 and died about 1706[1]; m. Sarah

 Foxwell of Kittery in September 1678.  Their children, all born in

Kittery were Joseph3 (1679-1751), Sarah3 (1681-1703), Richard3 (1684-1686), Elizabeth3 b. 1686, Richard3 (1688-1688) and Thomas3 (1688-

1720),  Foxwell3 b. 1692, Lois3 b. 1695, Eunice3 (1698-1795).

Abigail2 Curtis, born 1653 and died 1706; married Benoni Hodson about 1675

 who was born December 5,1647 in Hingham, Plymouth Colony, and died

 May 15, 1718, Berwick, York County, Maine.

Job2 Curtis, born 1655 in York and married Bethiah Mastin in 1717.  Their

                        children, all born in York were Abigail3 b. 1718, Thomas3 b. 1720, Job3

b.  1729.

            Benjamin2 Curtis, born 1657 in York and died about 1718; a carpenter,

bought land in York and Newcastle; married Martha Farrow about 1681, when he moved to Wells and built on her land.  When the inhabitants of Wells withdrew in 1703 because of the Indian raids, he moved his family to Kittery.[2]  No known children from his marriage to Martha.

                        Samuel2 Curtis, born in York about 1659 and died in Scituate June 2, 1742[3];

                                    married 1687 Elizabeth Tilden (1665-1754), daughter of Joseph Tilden

 and  Elizabeth (nee: Twisden) Tilden.  Their children, all born in Scituate

 were Elizabeth3 (1694-1790 unmarried), Samuel3 (1695-1742), Benjamin3 (1699-1771)  married Rebecca House, Abigail3 b. 1704, married Joseph

Thomas of Tiverton, RI.  Samuel2 married Anna Barstow and had Martha3

Elizabeth2 Curtis, born 1661 and died in the Candlemass Massacre of 1692.

            Dodovah2 Curtis, born about 1663 in York and died about 1736 in Kittery;

                        married Elizabeth Withers.

                        Hannah2 Curtis, christened 1664 in Kittery; married Jabez Jenkins circa 1678-80. 

                        Lydia2 Curtis, born 1669 and died 1706; married John Cooke.

                        Rebecca2 Curtis, born 1667.

                        Sarah2 Curtis, born 1665 and married Samuel Tilden on July 25, 1694

                        Anna2 Curtis, born 1671 and married Alexander Thompson.

The Will of Thomas[1] Curtis

   The last Will & Testament of Thomas Curtis of Yorke in the Province of Mayn New England although very weak in body yet of a perfect Memory & of a disposing mind, do order and dispose of my outward Estate as followeth.

 After my Just Debts be paid, & funerall expences be discharged,

1.  I do in the first place give and bequeth Unto my Son Joseph Curtis living at Spruce Creek, halfe of yt Salt Marsh lying on the South West side of york River, betwene Richard Banks and my Selfe, equally to be divided, the quantity of Marsh being five acres, being bounded by Thomas Donnells marsh on the upper side and John Twisdens marsh on the lower side.
2.  I do not give any thing by this my will unto my two sons, Benjamin and Samuel Curtis because I gave them their portions before in a farm at Scituate.
3.  I give unto my Son Dodiuah Curtis Six acres of marsh called by the name of Thomas Curtis his marsh being a Cove of marsh lying betwene Major Davises & Georg Nortons marshes, I do further bequeath unto aforeSaid Son fifty Acres of Upland lying upon that marsh called by the name of Scituate marsh, & one quarter part of ye Said marsh.
4.  I do give and bequeath unto my several Daughters as followeth.

To my Daughter Abigail Curtis five pounds

To my Daughter Hannah Jynkins Six pounds.

To my Daughter Lydia Curtis five pounds.

To my Daughter Cooke Six pounds.

To my Daughter Sarah Curtis five pounds.

 To my Daughter Rebecka Curtis five pounds.

To my Daughter Anne Curtis five pounds.

  The whole thirty two pounds to be payed by my Executor to the persons aboue mentioned out of my Estate, out of my stock, giving my Executor six month time after my decease.

1.  I do give and bequeath unto my son Job Curtis my house and land, all my lands, with all my movables therein belonging to me, belonging to it as it runs back into the Woods which I now live upon and have this many years Improved, I do further ordaine and Constitute This my Loving Son Job Curtis to be the Sole Executr to this my last Will and Testament, for payment of all Just Debts & Legacies as above ordered by me, which being by him truly discharged, whatsoever goods shall appear more to be left. I give and bequeath to my said Son Job as his own propper Estate.

   I Testamony to the premisses aboue Written I haue hereunto Subscribed my hand and Seal this 19th day of aprill in 4th year of ye Reign of our Soueraign Ld James second of England, Scotland, France and Ireland King 1680

Thomas Curtis (Seal)
his marke

Signed Sealed & delivered
   in the presence of
   Samuel Moody
   Arthur X Came his marke

Sworn to, 1 Oct. 1706. Recorded, 15 Oct. 1706. Inventory returned at £106: 15: 0, by Joseph Banks and Sam: Johnson, appraisers 2 Oct. 1706.

Richard1 Curtis with the second son born to Thomas Curtis of Ash, County of Kent, England and his wife Richardene.  Richard1 was born in Worth, on the south side of Sandwich, and baptized 1621 according to the records of the Worth Parish.  Richard1, at the age of 17, accompanied his mother, siblings and stepfather on their voyage to Scituate, Plymouth Colony in the fall of 1638.  Some writers have confused this Richard with Richard Curtis of Dorchester and Milton, MA and the Richard Curtis of Salem and Marblehead, MA.  Richard1 of Scituate was on the list of Plymouth Colony men able to bear arms in 1643 and was a town officer in 1650.  His brother William1 was also on the list and together they took the oath of fidelity.  Richard1 was one of the ‘allowed and approved inhabitants’ to whom portions of the common lands were assigned by a joint committee of the General Court of Plymouth in 1673.  Richard[1] Curtis and Thomas Hyland were witnesses to the will of General James Cudsworth in 1682.  Richard1’s home was between that of Gowen White and the harbor below Millbrook.  Richard1’s first wife was Ann Hallett and must have married a second time as a Lydia is named as his wife in his 1692 will.  Richard1 died in Scituate in 1693.  His will, dated 1692, gives “to oldest son John two-thirds of my real estate, he providing for my wife Lydia during her life.  To my son Thomas one-third &c.  To daughters Hannah Curtis, Elizabeth Brooks, Mary Babcocke, and Martha Clark…”  The children, all born in Scituate, of Richard1 and Ann were:      

                        Anna2 Curtis, born May 12, 1649; christened July 4, 1652 at the

                                    Second Church of Scituate.

                        Elizabeth2 Curtis, born January 12, 1650/51; married Nathaniel

                                    Brooks December 24, 1678 in Scituate.

                        John2 Curtis, born December 9, 1653; married Miriam Brooks,

                                    April 4, 1678 in Scituate.

                        Mary2 Curtis, born January 9, 1654/55; married Jonathan Babcocke.

                        Martha2 Curtis, born March 15, 1656/57; married Thomas Clark Jan 11, 1676.

                        Thomas2 Curtis, born March 16, 1658/59; married Mary Cook mar 6, 1694/95.[1]

Deborah2 Curtis, born April 16, 1661 and christened May 18, 1662 at the

                                    Second Church of Scituate, married Gilbert Brooks.

                        Sarah2 Curtis, born July 20, 1663.

Elizabeth1 Curtis was the third child and only daughter of Thomas Curtis of Ash, County of Kent, England and his wife Richardene.  Elizabeth1 was born in Worth, on the south side of Sandwich, and baptized on August 1, 1624 according to the records of the Worth Parish.  Elizabeth1, at the age of 14, accompanied his mother, siblings and stepfather on their voyage to Scituate, Plymouth Colony in the fall of 1638.  In about 1644, she married Richard Bankes, friend and confident of her stepfather, Thomas Chambers.  Although the date of her death is not known, it is felt she died prior to 1655.  Bankes was born about 1607 and was of Alkham, County of Kent, England before sailing to Scituate.  He was sent out from Scituate to organize and layout townships in Maine.  He died on January 25, 1692 in York, murdered in the Candlemass Massacre.  In his research of this family, James McHugh states that “there is no mention of his sons Samuel and Job after that date so they may have likewise perished.” This is the only reference I have found two sons being born to Elizabeth and Richard Bankes.  They did have a daughter Elizabeth Bankes who married first William Blackmore on July 17, 1666 in Scituate.  Blackmore was killed by Indians on April 21, 1676 while defending his house near Scituate against an Indian attack while his family escaped to safety.  By Blackmore, Elizabeth had Peter b. 1667, John b. 1669, and Phebe b. 1672.  After Blackmore’s death, the widow Elizabeth Blackmore married Jacob Bumpas.  This was the Elizabeth Bumpas mentioned in her Uncle John1’s will. 

[2]William1 Curtis, from whom our line originated, was the fourth child and third son of Thomas Curtis of Ash, County of Kent, England and his wife Richardene.  William1 was born in Ash, a village some three miles east of Sandwich on the road to Canterbury, six miles to the west.  William1 was baptized on April 29, 1627 according to the records of St. Nicholas church.  The church records the burial of a William Curtis on September 16, 1630 but I believe that was a clerical error and Steven, the son of Thomas and Richardene, baptized December 5, 1629 at St. Nicholas, was the one actually buried.  Steven is mentioned in his father’s 1630, the last mention of Steven in any records.  William1, at the age of 11, accompanied his mother, siblings and stepfather on their voyage to Scituate, Plymouth Colony in the fall of 1638.  He appears first on a list of men of Scituate able to bears arms, dated 1643.  The Plymouth Colony records also show that he was made a freeman in 1658, on jury duty in 1658 and 1659, a constable in 1664 and signed as a witness to the Court in 1697.  William1 died about 1703.

Along the banks of the North River as in the rest of Scituate, the land was divided up into “Great Lottes” or “Plantations” of 60 to 80 acres each.  It is not known for sure when William1 was granted one of these lots but it must have been prior to 1658.  On June 10, 1658 there is an entry in the minutes of the Plymouth General Court authorizing Captain Cudworth and Timothy Hatherly to lay out the Cornet Stetson pathway (or cartway) through various properties along the river, one of them being that of William[1] Curtis.  Thus it is certain that he was established on his plantation/farm by 1658 and had most likely earlier built a house there.  Deane states William1 lived in Scituate on the North River, next south of the Wanton farm.  This is about ¼ mile upstream from where the Second Herring Brook empties into the North River and on the same side. 

The house that William1 Curtis originally built was added on to and then rebuilt by his youngest son Samuel2 in about 1735.  The 1735 house still stands today on 3.2 acres at 241 River Road, Norwell, MA and was lived in by Samuel2’s descendents until the death of Samuel Curtis Cudworth in 1891.  Lloyd Bergeson owned the house in 1993 and had placed it on the market for $595,000.  Mr. Bergeson was in the process of replacing the clapboard on the south façade exterior of the house in 1980 when he discovered the original shadow-moulded sheathing beneath.  Architectural experts have confirmed the authenticity of the sheathing and believe it was from the previous house built on the site by William1 Curtis in the mid-17th century.

The 1735 Curtis House  (1993 & 2007)

The identity of the woman William1 married and in what year has yet to be discovered.   Research by William Gray Curtis of the Scituate Historical Society has identified her as possibly Sarah Moore, born 1632, daughter of George Moore of Scituate.[1]  The records of the Second Church of Scituate include the baptisms of all of William1 and Sarah’s children except for John2, Miriam2, and Samuel2.  The children of William1 and Sarah were:

            Deborah2 Curtis, baptized May 18, 1662

            Joseph2, born/baptized March 24, 1664 and died in 1753, married Rebecca ___

                        and had children Joseph3 (1693-1753)[2] married Mary Palmer in 1727;

                        Josiah3 (1697-1777) married Sarah Collamore; Rebecca3 b. 1699;

Martha3 b. 1701 married Benjamin Mann in 1724; Richard3 (1702-1766)

unmarried, Elisha3 b. 1705 married Martha Damon in 1733 and Mary

Chittenden in 1741; Thankful3 b. 1708 and married Isaac Collamore in

1731; Jesse3 (1709-1759) married Sarah Mann in 1739; Peleg3 b. 1710.

            Benjamin2, born January 1666/67, married Mary Sylvester in 1689 and had

                        children Mary3 b. 1691 and married Melitiah Dillingham in 1723;

                        Benjamin3 (1692-1756) married Hannah Palmer in 1716; Ebenezer3

                        (1694-1753) married Elizabeth Ramsdell in 1749; Lydia3 b. 1695 and

                        married Joseph House, Jr in 1716; Sarah3 b. 1697 and married Samuel

                        Clapp, Jr.in 1725; Ruth3 b. 1700 and married Joseph Soper, Jr. in 1750;

                        Susanna3 (1702-1714); Deborah3 b. 1704; William3 (1706-1750) married

                        Martha daughter of Samuel2 and Anna (Barstow) Curtis (son of Thomas1

                        Curtis); David3 b. 1708 and married Bethia Sprague of Duxbury in 1732;

                        Peleg3 b. 1710 and married Experience Palmer in Hanover, MA in 1749.

            William2, (1663-1738)

            John2, baptized  February 1671 and married Experience Palmer in 1708 and had

                        children John3 b. 1709, Bezaleel3 b. 1711, Susanna3 b. 1714, Elizabeth3

                        b. 1721.

            Miriam2, born April 1673, died a spinster and her will, executed August 18, 1753,

                        was presented for probate February 6, 1755.  Bequests were made to her

                        “only surviving brother Stephen1 Curtis”; to Mehitable Brooks, daughter

 of  Taylor Brooks, husband of her niece Miriam [daughter of her brother

                        Samuel1]; to Sarah Brooks, daughter of Gilbert Brooks, husband of her

                        niece Deborah Curtis2 [ daughter of her brother Richard1]; to Samuel and

                        Amos, sons of her cousin Amos, and to other children of Gilbert

Brooks.  William Brooks was named sole executor.

                        Mehitable2, born December 1675 and baptized March 23, 1677.

                        Stephen2, born September 1677, baptized December 1, 1678, died

March 29, 1758 and buried in the First Parish Cemetery, Norwell, MA.

                        Sarah2 Curtis, born August 1679, baptized September 5, 1680, married

                                    William Cook on August 30, 1705

                        Samuel2 Curtis, born June 1681, baptized November 29, 1685, died December

                                    16, 1747 and buried at the First Parish Cemetery, Norwell, MA. 

                                    He married Anna Barstow  in Scituate and had children Samuel3

(1708-1794) who married Hannah Whiting; Anna 3 (1711-1787);

Martha3 b. 1713 and married William3 Curtis, son of Benjamin2 and

Mary (Sylvester) Curtis, in 1738; Miriam3 b. 1716; Deborah3 b. 1718;

Simeon3 b. 1720; Amos3 (1722-1748) and married Mary Faunce of

Kingston; Mehitable3 b. 1726.