Pillsbury William b. d. 19 JUN 1686

- 1686

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Gender Male

_UPD 18 AUG 2009 18:25:20 GMT-5

Died 19 Jun 1686 [1, 2]

Buried Newbury Graveyard near Upper Green [1]

Person ID I4853 Alan Donald Vibber

Last Modified 08 Dec 2009

Family Crosby Dorothy

Married 1641 [1, 2]

Children

1. Pillsbury Moses, b. 24 Aug 1648, Dorchester, Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts

, d. 03 Nov 1701, Newbury, Essex, Massachusetts, USA

Family ID F2009 Group Sheet

Notes	William Pillsbury, the immigrant ancestor of all the American families whose lineages have been traced, came from Hingham, England, to Boston in 1640 or 1641. On his arrival in Boston he let himself as a servant to pay the cost of his passage—not an unusual custom of the young Englishmen of the middle classes who wished to make a start in New England. He married, in the summer of 1641, Dorothy Crosby, and settled in Dorchester, where four of his children were born. In 1651 he bought a house and forty acres of land in Newbury, Massachusetts, and this homestead has remained in the family and descended from father to son, and though reduced in acreage by numerous sales is still held and occupied by members of the ninth generation. The original deed is in the possession of David B. Pillsbury,author of the family history, and owner of the homestead. The old house was partly destroyed by fire, but was restored with as little new material as possible to exactly its original dimensions and style. Mr. Pillsbury attended the First Church at Newbury; was admitted a freeman April 29, 1668. His will is dated April 22, 1686. He died June 19 following, and was buried in the Newbury graveyard near the LTpper Green. He was called wealthy in his day, owning many acres of land, and had money to lend. His inventory shows that he held slaves, and owned a suit of armor of some sort. Children: i. Deborah, born April 16, 1642; married Ewens. 2. Job, born October 16, 1643 ! died September 10, 1716; married April 5, 1677, Katherine Gavett. 3. Moses, born 1645 ; mentioned below. 4. Abel, died before 1697. 5. Caleb, born January 28, 1653 ; died July 4, 1680. 6. William, born July 27, 1656. 7. Experience, born April ??, 1658: died August 4, 1708. 8. In crease, born October 10, 1660; drowned off Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, in 1690, while serving in the expedition under Sir William Phipps. 9. Thankful, born April 22, 1662. 10. Joshua, born June 20, 1671 ; died June 20, 1674. The hamlet of Pilsbury, or Pilsbury Grange, is situated between thirty or forty miles southeast of Liverpool, Staffordshire, England. Pilsbury is the union of the two words "pile" or "peel" and "burgh" or "borough." Lower in his "Patronymica Britannica," states: "Burgh, a component syllable in many local surnames. It is the Anglo-Saxon 'burh,' 'btireh,' etc., a word common to most German dialects. Its meaning appears to be that which Richardson assigns, viz: 'A place of defence or security.' The word occurs very largely in local nomenclature as a prefix or termination, sometimes in the middleof a name, and in variously modified forms, as 'borough,' 'berry,' 'bury,' 'barrow,' etc." "Pile or peel, a fortified farmhouse built on the border for securing the inhabitants and their cattle in moss—trooping times." In the reign of Edward IV the inhabitants of Britain were ordered to take surnames, and from Peelsbury, Peelsborough, or Pillesburie, the first of the Pillsburys took his cognomen. (I) William Pillsbury, the settler, came to Boston from England, probably in 1640 or 1641. -Tradition has it that he left his native land to escape the consequence of a misdemeanor, and on his arrival in Boston let himself as a servant to pay the expense of his passage. In 1651 he bought forty acres of land in Newbury on which was a dwelling house, and appurtenant were meadow land, rights of commonage, etc. For this he paid one hundred pounds, fifteen in hand and the rest in securities which family tradition says consisted of real estate in Dorchester. The original homestead in Newbury has remained in the family and descended from father to son for nearly two hundred and fifty years, and though reduced in size is now held and occupied by members of the ninth generation. The original deed from Edward Rawson is still extant. William Pillsbury and his son Job were members of the First Church, who adhered to Mr. Woodman's party in the dis- sentions which rent the church in 1671 and were on the losing side. They were fined a noble, about $1.63, each. William Pillsbury was made freeman, April 29, 1668. He made his will April 22, 1686, and died June 19, next following. His inventory madeJuly 7, 1686, amounted to three hundred and six pounds, nineteen shillings, ten pence, and there were debts due the estate of twelve pounds. This statement shows that he was a man of more than ordinary wealth. Tradition says that he was a lender of money which he kept concealed under the eaves of his thatched barn. Like many others of his time he was a slaveholder, one of the items of his inventory being "a man servant," valued at twelve pounds, an Indian or negro, as there were no white slaves at that time. William Pillsbury and Dorothy Crosby were married between June and July 29, 1641. They had ten children, the first four of whom were born in Dorchester. Their children were : Deborah, Job, Moses, Abel, Caleb, William, Experience, Increase, Thankful and Joshua.

Sources

[S230] Historic homes and places and genealogical and personal memoirs relating to the families of Middlesex County, Massachusetts, William Richard Cutter, (Name: Lewis historical publishing company, 1908;), 430 (Reliability: 3).
[S152] Genealogical and Personal Memoirs Relating to the Families of the State of Massachusetts, William Richard Cutter, William Frederick Adams, (Name: Lewis historical publishing company, 1910;), 206 (Reliability: 3).