John Bellows The Emigrant

John Bellows The Emigrant

Compiled by Geneva Plumb Wiltbank
Posted by Kathryn Burton Castleton

History taken from the Bellows family genealogy by Thomas Bellows Peck

John Bellows of Concord Massachusetts and Marlborough Massachusetts and his wife, Mary Wood were the progenitors of that branch of the Bellows family whose record is found in the Bellows Genealogy 1635-1898.  This record contains nearly all, if not quite all of the Bellows names in the United States.  We can trace their descent from some of their sons.

In the Massachusetts Historical Society Collections vol III, third series, p. 255, and in John Camden Hotten's "Original lists of Persons of Quality, Emigrants etc" p 49 is the list of passengers who embarked on the Hopewell of London.  William Burdock served as Master bound for New England on 6 April, 1635.  In the list we find the name of Jo Bellows, age 12.

Mr. James Savage, the author of Genealogical Dictionary of the First Settlers of new England, who discovered this list in New England believed this boy of twelve years to have been no other than John Bellows of Concord, and so stated in his Dictionary vol. 1 p162.

Although positive proof is wanting this positive view seems almost certainly correct, as otherwise no further trace is found of the boy who must have wholly disappeared if he was not identical with John, the progenitor.  One would gladly know who were his parents where was his home in England and what induced him at that early age, and perhaps without friends, to emigrate to the new World.

On these points nothing is known and thus for all attempts to answer these questions have failed.  The identity of name with that of John Bellows, the Quaker, printer, publisher and philanthropist, of Gloucester, England, points to a common ancestry.

The town of Concord, Mass. was settled in 1635 and as 1655 there was a small settlement of about fifty families.  John Bellows first appears as a resident there in 1645.  The next trace is found in the record of his marriage.  The records of Concord recently published show that "John Bellows and Mary Wood were married the 9th of May 1655."

Mary Wood is said by Dr. Bellows, an authority of previous writers, to have been the daughter of
John Woods, who died in Marlborough 10 July 1678 at age 68 and his wife, Mary Wood, who died in Marlborough 17 August 1690, aged 80.

They were probably of Concord and later Marlborough, which was settled in 1660.  The will of John Wood proved 8 March 1678, mentions his son-in-law, John Bellows.

John and Mary appear to have resided in Concord until after their third child, Abigail, which occurred in Concord 6 May 1661.  In 1660, the same spirit of enterprise which had brought him to this country and led him to settle in the frontier town of Concord, induced him to become one of the original proprietors of the new town of Marlborough.

Perhaps his wife remained in Concord for a time but if so, she soon followed him to Marlborough and the record of that town shows the birth of five children, Isaac born 13 September, 1663 to Nathaniel born April 15, 1676,  The birth of Nathaniel is also recorded in Concord April 3, 1676.

On Sunday, March 20, 1676, while the people were gathered in church, the town of Marlborough was attacked by Indians.  The inhabitants escaped in safety to the fort, but the meeting house and nearly all the dwellings were burned, cattle killed and everything of value was destroyed.

John Bellows and his wife doubtless witnessed these exciting events and shared in the general loss.  The settlement was deserted for a year and they returned to Concord, where their two youngest children, Nathaniel and Benjamin were born and their eighth child, Daniel, died at the age of three years.

The year 1680, found them once more in Marlborough where their remaining years were spent and where their three sons, John, Isaac and Eleazer were married and were blessed with numerous children.  John Bellows died in Marlborough 10 Jan. 1683 (according to Dr. Bellows). The death of his widow, Mary Bellows, is recorded there on 16 Sept. 1707.

There is clearly an error in the date of John Bellow's death, as his will, which is recorded in Middlesex Probate Records, Lib. vi, fol. 93, is dated 19 June, 1683 and was proved 2 Oct 1683.  The inventory of his estate was taken 6 and 8 of Aug. 1683.  He appointed mary his "loving wife" sole executrix and left her a maintenance from his estate so long as she remained his widow.  The inventory shows that he possessed a farm in Marlborough consisting of " The home-lot with all ye-out lands, both uplands and meadows and cedar swamp pertaining to the home-lot, together with the dwelling house and orchard thereon, valued at sixty pounds as well as horses, oxen and cows and a good assortment of farming and carpenter's tools.

The only reminder of the Indian war is the item of "one back-sword and two barrels of guns, ye sword 12s, the barrels 8s.  Dr Bellows supposes him to have united the callings of farmer and carpenter.  It is evident at least that he was one of those hardy pioneers who settled the frontier counties and reared large families of children to hold what they had won from the wilderness and the Indians.  Just like his progenitors, his (John's) grandson, Benjamin was working out the family destiny when in his turn he took his family of young children and settled on the extreme northern frontier, where the town
Whalepole was yet to be.

The list of the children of John and Mary Bellows so obtained by combining the published records of Concord and the manuscript records of marlborough of which copies have been secured for this purpose.  The date of the eighth child Daniel, is recorded neither in Concord nor Marlborough but is found in Savage's Genealogical Dictionary.  Their family group is listed on the Family Group sheet!