| Notes |
- A deposition made 7 November, 1666 gives the age of Thomas as 77 years. This would have place his year of birth at circa 1590. Another sourcehashim born in 1599.
THE HOLBROOK FAMILY
THOMAS HOLBROOK [#358 & #382], b. abt. 1589, d. Weymouth, MA beforeMarch10, 1677, m. Glastonbury, Somersetshire, England Sept. 12, 1616JANEPOWYS.
Thomas Holbrook was an early and respected resident of Weymouth. Heandhis family arrived there in 1635, and he was a Selectman there in1641,'45, '46, '52, and '54. He became a freeman in May, 1645. Thomaswas oneof the grantees of the town of Rehoboth in 1643 but forfeitedhis sharein 1645 because he did not settle there. In 1649 he wasappointed amember of a commission to lay out a highway from Weymouthto Dorchester.Ten acres were granted to him in the First Division andthirty acres inthe Second Division, Dec. 14, 1663.[1]
Thomas Holbrook, aged 77 years or thereabouts, deposed that he cametoNew England with Mr. Hull's company in 1635, and that they cameashore atDorchester June 7, 1635; that they went to Dorchester and theCompanywent to a place now called Weymouth; and that after remainingatDorchester about a fortnight, he went with his family to the nowWeymouthand built a house there (sworn to in court Nov. 2, 1666).[2]Asubsequently discovered record verifies this information. The recordis apassenger list dated "Waymouth ye 20th of 1635" and refers toWeymouth,England. Among the 106 passengers are Thomas Holbrook, 34, ofBroadway,Jane Holbrook, 34, his wife, and children John, 11, Thomas,10, Anne, 5,and Elizabeth, 1. These two documents certainly refer tothe same man,yet there is an age discrepancy between them. By oneaccount, Thomaswould have been born about 1589, while the other putshis birth around1600. While both could be inaccurate, the passengerlist is more likelyincorrect in regard to the ages. The son JohnHolbrook, listed as 11years old in 1635, was made a freeman in 1640,and the minimum age forfreemanship was 21. John's gravestone providesthe best proof of the ageerror, giving his death date and age - Nov.23, 1699, age 82. Thisinformation is also important, as we'll see, inlocating the Holbrook'sin England.
In Weymouth Thomas lived next door to his sister Rebecca and herhusbandClement Weaver. The Weaver's were in Weymouth by June 2, 1640whenClement was fined for drunkeness.[3/17:89] Thomas and Clement wereinpartnership in many land and other business dealings.[3/17:88]
The search for Thomas' place of origin has been helped with thepassengerlist reference to Broadway, which is in Somersetshire. NearbyBroadway isthe town of Glastonbury, where a Thomas Holbrook married onSept. 12,1616 to Jane Powys according to the records of the Church ofSt. John theBaptist. The baptism of the couple's son John is alsorecorded in thesame church on April 6, 1618. The names and date ofJohn's baptism matchup quite well with the data on the Weymouth, MAfamily, and it can bestated with a high degree of certainty that thisis the family of ourancestor. The surname of Powys is probably derivedfrom the town ofPowys.
Thomas made his will Dec. 31, 1668, in which were mentioned hiswifeJane, his sons John, William, and Thomas, and daughters, AnneReynolds,Elizabeth Hatch, and Jane Drake, and his grand children JohnHolbrook,Peter Holbrook, and William Holbrook. He stated that hisgrandson PeterHolbrook had served him and his wife in their old agefor about 8 years,for which he was to have his dwelling house inWeymouth with the orchardand arable land. This will he confirmed Dec.31, 1673, and it was provedApril 24, 1677. Inventory of the estate wastaken March 10, 1677.[1/268]
See the section on overseas ancestors for Thomas' family. Thomaswasfollowed to Weymouth by his sister Rebecca, born about 1575, andherhusband, Clement Weaver. John Holbrook, who is believed to havebeen inDorchester, MA before 1626, is thought to the the brotherofThomas.[3:17/85]
REF: [1] History of Weymouth - George Walter Chamberlain, 1923 [2] Suffolk Court Files, Microfilm reel #4, Vol. 8, file 815, page 38 [3] Passengers of the Mary and John 1630 - The Mary and John Society, numerous volumes
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1599 - 1677 (78 years)
