Paul Sares

Notes:

From The Great Migration Begins, Paul's father, Richard Sares, lived in three locations: first residence, 1633, Plymouth; removes, Marblehead by 1637; removes Yarmouth by 1639.

Paul was the first to adopt the surname spelling "Sears".
Paul Sears took the oath of "Fidellyte" in 1657, held a commission as captain in the militia, and made claim for a horse lost in the Narragansett war. October 30, 1667, he was one of the grand jury, in an inquest held on the child of Nicholas Nickerson. He was one of the original proprietors of lands in Harwich, between Bound and Stony brooks, known as "Wing's Purchase" as appears by deed of John Wing et als., to Paul Seers et als., dated Apr. 16, 1677, recorded at Plymouth.
He left property valued at

(Research):Marblehead Long before the first European settlers arrived in what was to become known as Marblehead the area was inhabited by the Naumkeag Tribe, a group of Native Americans belonging to the Algonquin Nation. Led by the "Great Sachem" Nanepashemet, they named their settlement Massebequash. But epidemics in 1615-1619 and 1633, believed to be smallpox, devastated the tribe. It was first settled as a plantation of Salem in 1629 by English colonists led by John Peach Sr. On 6 May 1635 the General Court of Massachusetts Bay established the town of Marblehead. The move was meant to punish Salem for allowing Roger Williams to express his "dangerous opinions". Marblehead residents, who never saw eye-to-eye with their more devout neighbors, were delighted, but less than a year later, the General Court reversed themselves. Marblehead finally became independent of Salem and was incorporated in 1649. Heirs of Nanepashemet would sell their 3,700 acres on September 16, 1684. The deed is preserved today at the town hall.

Yarmouth On January 7, 1639.the court record refers to the land grant to the first settlers John Crow, Thomas Howes, and Anthony Thacher as "the lands of Mattacheeset, now called Yarmouth". This is considered the first usage of the name. To trace the origin of the name, it is necessary to trace the path of the Pilgrims. After all during that period it was Plimoth Colony that had jurisdiction over which Cape Cod settlements would be incorporated, and by what name those new townships would be known. Yarmouth, England, during the age of the Pilgrims, was an important seaport on the Yare River. Across the North Sea from Yarmouth , to the east is the Netherlands- the former home country of a portion of the Mayflower passengers. These Dutch passengers arrived in England via the port of Yarmouth, and therefore the naming of the new Cape township appears to be the tip of the cap to the English seaport. https://www.yarmouth.ma.us/833/History

Paul married Deborah Willard in by 1659 in Yarmouth, New Plymouth Colony. Deborah (daughter of George Willard and Deborah Dunster) was christened on 14 Sep 1645 in Scituate, New Plymouth Colony; died on 13 May 1721 in Yarmouth, Barnstable Co, Massachusetts. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

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Married:
From Mayflower Planters and First Comers: [Paul Sares] married Deborah Willard 1658 at Yarmouth, bapt. Scituate Sept 14 1645; daughter of George Willard; died Yarmouth May 13 1721.
From Great Migration Begins: "Paul Sares m. by 1659 Deborah, (eldest child aged 13 on 6 Jul 1672) [Vital Records of Yarmouth Mass to Year 1850] said to be daughter of George Willard". Marriage year estimated from eldest child's age.

Notes:

Migration: 1633
Born: England
First Residence: Plymouth.
Removes: Marblehead by 1637, Yarmouth by 1639.
He is found at Plymouth in 1633 but soon removed to Marblehead being taxed there 1637 and was granted four acres of land in 1638. Many of the settlers at Marblehead were from Guernsey and Jersey in England. He appears in Yarmouth 1643 where he served on the Grand Jury and as constable also was a deputy to the General Court at Plymouth in 1662. His occupation was farming.
Took the oath of fidelity at Yarmouth in 1639; propounded for freemanship 3 Jun 1652; admitted a freeman 7 Jun 1653; Appears on Yarmouth lists of freemen, 1658 and 1670.
Offices: Deputy from Yarmouth, 3 Jun 1662; Grand Jury, 7 Jun 1652; Tax Collector, 1 Mar 1658/9; Yarmouth constable 6 Jun 1660.

Assessed 9s in Plymouth tax list of 25 Mar 1633.
On 1 Jan 1637/8 Richard Seeres was included in a Salem rate list for the "inhabitants of Marblehead". On 14 Nov1638 Richard Sears was granted four acres at Marblehead "where he as planted formerly".
On 23 Nov 1664 Allis Bradford, w. of Wm Bradford sold to Richard Sares of Yarmouth two tracts of 20 acres each "at a place commonly called Sasuet" (now Dennis, Barnstable County, Massachusetts).

Richard Sares Will
Dated 10 May 1667
Codicil 3 Feb 1675/6
Proved 5 Mar 1675/6
Inventory taken 8 Oct 1676Presented to court 15 Nov 1676 by Dorethy Sares the relict of Richard Sares and Paul Sares his eldest son. Value:

(Research):The H.G. Somerby Controversy Looking at the genesis of the genealogies of this individual points up some interesting facts. The first genealogy work appears to be "Memoranda of the Sears, from Minutes collected by J. Hawes and William Colman to 1800,-- and continued by Richard Sears of Chatham to 1840." There are evidently some errors in this work. "About the year 1845, the late Mr. H. G. Somerby was employed to collect data regarding the Sears family in England, and a pamphlet was issued, entitled 'Notices of the Sears Family, from Sir Bernard Burke's Works, and Somersby's Collections in England, etc.' The manuscript of his collection is in the library of the Mass. Hist. So., Boston." "In 1852, Sir Bernard Burke published the first volume of 'Visitations of Seats and Arms,' which contains at p. 52 of Part II. an account of the family, claiming that by right of primogeniture the Chatham branch is the 'Head of the American Sears Family.' This was followed in 1863, in the 3rd series of 'Vicissitudes of Families,' by a sketch entitled 'A Pilgrim Father.' "Sir Bernard Burke now repudiates the articles, and [informed me (S P May) that they would be] left out of later editions. In 1884, he wrote me [S.P. May] that he received the material from Mr. Somerby, but had since made investigation, and found 'that the details were not only not proven, but also incapable of proof, if not altogether wrong, and opposed to fact.' "In 1857, Rev. E. H. Sears published 'Pictures of the Olden Time,' to which was added in a later edition for private distribution, a Genealogy of the family. [p. 20] In his preface he states that he derived his facts mainly from Burke's 'Visitation of Seats and Arms,' and from 'family papers,' etc. Jul 1886, Samuel P. May published "Some Doubts Concerning the Sears Pedigree" in the N.E. Hist. Gen. Soc Register. About 1889, Samuel P. May was commissioned by the family to update the genealogy of the Sears family. In 1890, Samuel P. May, published his book "The Descendants of Richard Sares (Sears) of Yarmouth, Mass 1638-1888 with an appendix containing some notices of other families by the name of Sears" which included an updated and expanded view of the mistakes made by H.G. Somerby. About 1913, Samuel P. May created a typescript of what I believe to be the precursor to a second edition of "The Descendants of Richard Sares

Richard married Dorothy Jones before 1637 in Yarmouth, New Plymouth Colony. Dorothy (daughter of Living and Living) was born about 1603 in Dinder, Somersetshire, England; was buried on 19 Mar 1678/79 in Yarmouth, New Plymouth Colony. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

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Mention of "my brother Thacher" in the will of Richard Sares has led to the erroneous conclusion that Richard Sears' wife was Dorothy Thacher, sister of Rev. Anthony Thacher
Richard Sears and Anthony Thacher married sisters, Dorothy and Elizabeth Jones, who were of Dinder, Somersetshire, England, Dorothy marrying Richard in 1632, Elizabeth marying Anthony, early in 1635. Their brother was Richard Jones who came to New England in 1635 and settled in Dorchester, Mass.
The Ancestry of Thomas C. Brainerd by Dwight Brainerd, 1948 (p. 219) says Dorothy was a sister of Richard Jones who came from Dinder, Somerset with Rev. Joseph Hull's group in 1635. She m. Richard Sears in England in 1632 and he was taxed in New Plymouth Colony the same year.

(Research):Somerset (archaically, Somersetshire) is a county in southwest England that borders Gloucestershire and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the southeast, and Devon to the southwest. It is bounded to the northwest by the Severn Estuary and the Bristol Channel, its coastline facing southeastern Wales. Its traditional border with Gloucestershire is the River Avon. Somerset's county town is Taunton. Dinder ("the house in the valley") is a small village 2

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Living married Living. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

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