Freelove Remington

Notes:

Freelove Thomas is buried in the Old Baptist Church Yard, 100 ft. north of Victory Highway, Exeter, RI. Clarke Lawton is also buried there.

Freelove married Clarke Lawton 19 Sep 1819, North Kingstown, RI. Clarke was born Abt 1781; died 6 Dec 1840; was buried , Old Baptist Church Yard, Cem. 39, Exeter, RI. [Group Sheet]

Freelove married Coggeshall Thomas Aft 1842. Coggeshall (son of George Thomas and Hannah Unknown) was born Abt 1783; died 24 Jul 1871; was buried , North Kingstown Cemetery 25, RI. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

Hezekiah Remington 16 - 50 A , Res. Po, is listed for Coventry, RI, in the 1777 RI Military Census. Also there is William Remington 16 - 50 A (residence Portsmouth), possibly his father; and a Thomas Remington 16 - 50 A.

Hezekiah Remington is on the list of Freemen of Exter, dated 20 Apr 1814.

James N. Arnold's "Family Notes" has his date of birth as 22 May 1757.

I have made an assumption that he was born on Prudence Island; this, in turn, is based on the assumption that his parents are William & Freelove (and Portsmouth land evidence showing this couple on Prudence Island). Hezekiah had two children, named William & Freelove. This is a strong clue. Hezekiah lived in Exeter and North Kingstown, and it is known that William & Freelove bought a house and land there in 1775.

Hezekiah married Anne Hill 16 Sep 1787. Anne (daughter of Caleb Hill and Mercy Stafford) was born 29 Jan 1761, North Kingstown, RI; died 20 Jan 1822. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

I have made an assumption that William was born on Prudence Island and that he died at North Kingstown, although this is only a guess based on available evidence about his life. Also, please note that I am not sure that he was a son of William Remington and Mary Manton, although it is known that they were living on Prudence Island during the 1700s.

Portsmouth land evidence shows that a William Remington was living on Prudence Island in the mid-1700s, and according to two deeds he had a wife named Freelove. It is certainly possible that William married an Allen, because most of the land sales involving his name have one or more Allens also involved.

Therefore, it is documented that William and his wife Freelove were of Prudence Island, and furthermore that he purchased a house and land in North Kingstown from Job Tibbetts in 1775. This was the year that residents of the island evacuated because of the British raids in which they burned the dwellings and fought the colonists. It is reasonable to assume that he relocated to North Kingstown, and eventually died there. However, it appears that he was in Coventry at the time of the Military Census of 1777

The dates for William are from James N. Arnold's "Family Notes" Volume R, an unpublished manuscript located at the Knight Library in Providence. However, some online genealogies have his date of death as 1 March 1764. To be sure, that is the date of death for a William Remington -- but which one? I have used that date for the William b. c1680, who may be the father of this William; but there was still another William who died in 1768 at Cranston.

Charles Gregory Maytum's Notes on the Remington family, at Newport Historical Society, give William's date of birth as 17 Aug 1729, and his date of death as 30 Aug 1812. This differs slightly from Arnold's data.

I have not been able to determine his ancestry for sure. Other Remingtons mentioned in Portsmouth land evidence are John Remington, who had moved from Warwick to Portsmouth; Thomas Remington, who had a wife named Amy; another William whose wife was Mary; Josiah; and Jonathan; as well as my ancestor Joseph. It is possible that there was more than one William, and that one was the father or uncle of the other. Research on these families is ongoing.

1777 Military Census, Coventry - listed are William Remington, res. Po; Hezekiah Remington, res. Po; & Thomas Remington

From Portsmouth land evidence:

WR of PI, boatman, bought land for 600 pounds from William Allen of PI, prob aft. 27 Apr 1757 (no date). The land was 80 rods by 12 rods and bounded as follows: N & E by Ebenezer Allin, W by land of me, sd William Allen, S by John Allen. Mary Allin wife of William Allin surrenders rights of dower and power of thirds. William Allin's signature witnessed by Samuel Lyndon Jr & Mary Lyndon; Mary Allin's signature witnessed by Nathaniel Allin & Joseph Bates. No wife of WR mentioned. Spelling of Allin/Allen is varied in copy of deed. (Po Land Ev Bk 5 p 579 & 580)

WR of PI, boatman, sold

William married Freelove Allen 20 Sep 1752. Freelove (daughter of William Allen, III and Freelove Unknown) was born 20 May 1722, Prudence Island, Portsmouth, Newport Co., RI; died 17 Mar 1817, North Kingstown, RI. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

Information concerning her surname came from "Family Notes," a group of unpublished manuscripts compiled by James N. Arnold, and located at the Knight Library in Providence. This gives her birthdate as 20 May 1722, while Maytum's notes at Newport Historical Society says 20 Jul 1722. Arnold gives her date of death as 17 Mar 1817, while Maytum gives it as 17 May 1817. Neither gives a source as documentation.

She is also mentioned as Freelove Allen, wife of William Remington, on the back of an old photo of George Wait Remington, as his great-grandmother.

Could she be a daughter of William & Freelove (Tillinghast) Allen? They had a daughter Patience who married William Maccoone on 2 April 1738. Freelove would definitely fit into this time frame for their family group. (needs more research)

She could easily be a daughter of one of the Allen families from Prudence Island, as the land evidence from Portsmouth mentions a William Remington of Prudence Island who had a wife named Freelove (Portsmouth land evidence dated 25 Dec 1764, Bk 6 p. 123 & 126).

Son Hezekiah had a grandson named Stephen Allen Remington, so the Allen name reoccurs in the family.

Notes:

Caleb was a private in Col. Elliott's regiment of volunteers in the Revolutionary War. Also, he served as Lt. of an alarm company, 1778/79, in North Kingstown.

He was Justice of the Peace in 1780.

Caleb Hill hired a farm on the southern end of Prudence Island, where he lived for about 7 years (March 1743-March 1750); then he returned to the Quidnessett area of NK where he lived and farmed with his father. He was Justice of the Peace, Overseer of the Poor, and was both a private and a lieutenant in the Revolution. Like his father, he also was active in the Six-Principle Baptist Church -- donating money, hosting meetings, and petitioning the RI General Assembly concerning repairs. (source: Hill manuscript at NK Library)

The will of Caleb Hill of North Kingstown, yeoman, was proved 14 May 1804. It mentions wife Mary; sons Stukly & Caleb; dtrs Anna Remington w/o Hezekiah, Elizabeth Champlin, Sarah Bowen w/o Benjamin, & Rebecca Bowen w/o Stephen.

Caleb married Mercy Stafford 23 Mar 1755, Warwick, RI. Mercy (daughter of Stukely Stafford and Elizabeth Waterman) was born Abt 1730; died 6 May 1807; was buried , Thomas Hill Lot, Forge Rd., North Kingstown, RI. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

This date of death is found in the Cranston Town Council meeting notes. It belongs to "William Remington of Cranston, schoolmaster." I am not sure that it belongs to this particular William, but at this point I merely am attempting to reconstruct a possible lineage for these individuals. Research is ongoing to determine the actual relationships among these Remington family members.

The will of William Remington, of Cranston, schoolmaster, is dated 2 Apr 1768 and was proved 1 June 1768. It mentions daughters Elizabeth Remington and Anne Vial, deceased; grandson John Vial son of dtr Ann deceased. Also mentioned is Waite Abbot dtr of Mary Abbot (no relationship specified). Executor was friend Dr. William Aldrich; witnesses were Benjamin Wescot Jr., William Burton, and Nils Higinbotham.

It is known that the William Remington who married Mary Manton was a schoolmaster on Jamestown, probably Prudence Island, and possibly elsewhere. Therefore it is a reasonable assumption to construct this family as I have done.

I have estimated the date of marriage based on the will of Mary's father, which implies that she was still single in 1723.

See notes for William (Sr). It has not been determined that this (Jr) is the William Remington who married Mary and had these three children, Elizabeth, Stephen, & Abigail, born in Little Compton but registered in Providence. He may or may not be the William Remington who married Mary Manton. Research is ongoing to sort out the data on the William Remingtons of RI.

The births of Elizabeth, Stephen, & Abigail, to parents identified as William & Mary (m.n. unknown), were recorded at Providence, but there is a notation that the first two were born at Little Compton and the third at Providence (source: microfilm at RI State Archives). See previous paragraphs -- I am not sure that these three children belong to this particular William.

From Portsmouth land evidence:

WR of Po bought and sold land from/to John Allin, s/o Wm, of P.I., 6 Jan 1738/9 and 3 Feb 1738/9; this WR was a schoolmaster; he also witnessed three other deeds on 6 Jan 1738/9, along with Caleb Hill & William Havens; also witnessed three other deeds on 3 Feb 1738/9, along with Caleb Hill, John Allin, William Havens, & Giles Slocum. It appears that he bought and sold the same 50 acres, land bordered on three sides by three Allens (by John Allin - my own land, William Allin my honoured father, and my son William Allin) and on the fourth by the sea. WR bought 50 acres and a house in Jan, pd 750 pounds, witnessed by Caleb Hill & John Ingraham; and sold 50 acres in Feb., witnessed by Caleb Hill & Wm Sanford. No wives mentioned.
(Po Land Ev Bk 4 p 142 & 195)

WR witnessed deed of land sale from Ebenezer Allen to John Remington, laborer,
3 or 30 June 1744. This was JR "late of Warwick, now of P.I." He paid 400 pounds for 20 acres. No wives mentioned. (Po Land Ev Bk 4 p 359)

From Portsmouth Town Council records:

8 Aug 1743: William Remington schoolmaster ordered to depart this town (Bk 3 p 292)

8 Oct 1744: William Remington school-master (and three others) ordered to depart town with their respective families (Bk 4 p 4)

12 Oct 1744: Caleb Bennett was "served with warrant to remove William Remington, keeper of the school in the Southermost School-house belonging to this town, out of this Town" (Bk 4 p 7)

8 Dec 1746: William Remington, school-master, given certificate for himself and family to reside in Providence (Bk 4 p 19)

13 Nov 1752: William Remington served with order to draw 5 pounds old Tenor out of Town Treasury towards his support and relief; also served with certificate to reside in Town of Coventry (Bk 4 p 72)

12 Mar 1753: William Remington and family served with certificate to reside in Town of Coventry (same as above, with added words to include family); the following year on 9 Sep 1754 another schoolmaster of PI named Celly was warned out of Po, so perhaps this suggests that the family of William Remington, schoolmaster, finally left for good. (Bk 4 p 74)

From Warwick Town Council Records (courtesy of Cherry Fletcher Bamberg):

10 April 1749: William Remington and his family presented a certificate from Portsmouth and were accepted as inhabitants.

7 February 1749/50: William Remington, who had come to town with his family from Portsmouth was to be notified to appear.

William married Mary Manton Abt 1726. Mary (daughter of Edward Manton and Elizabeth Thornton) was born Abt 1702; died Bef 2 Apr 1768. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

Please note that I am not sure which William Remington married Mary Manton, or when he was born, or when either of them was born. I have placed Mary here with this William as a reasonable guess. I am also not sure of all the children. Please read notes for her husband William.

William and his family appear in the town records of Portsmouth frequently, but the names of the children are not specified.

I have estimated the year of their marriage based on the 1723 will of Mary's father which mentions that she is single.

Notes:

According to a genealogy at Rootsweb's Worldconnect, this William Allen married Freelove Tillinghast. He is of the right age and location to have married her, but I have not yet found any documentation. Wayne G. Tillinghast in his book "The Tillinghasts in America" disputes that, offering evidence that William's wife could not have been Freelove Tillinghast -- at least not the daughter of Joseph Tillinghast.

I suspect that Freelove Allen who married William Remington is a daughter of William & Freelove Allen.

For the time being, I have placed Freelove Allen as a daughter in this family group, pending further research to confirm. These are assumptions only, based on incomplete evidence.

According to research of Wayne G. Tillinghast, William & Freelove Allen were admitted to membership in the Second Baptist Church of Newport on 4 March 1729 ("The Tillinghasts in America, The First Four Generations," RIGS 2006 p 150).

William married Freelove Unknown Abt 1714. Freelove was born Abt 1695; died 1767. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

It has been suggested that this Freelove may have been Freelove Tillinghast. However, Wayne G. Tillinghast in his book "The Tillinghasts in America" disputes that, offering evidence that William's wife could not have been Freelove Tillinghast -- at least not the daughter of Joseph Tillinghast. See page 150, where he notes that William & Freelove Allen were admitted to membership in the Second Baptist Church at Newport on 4 March 1729.

She also is identified as Freelove Tillinghast in the RI Genealogical Register Vol. 6 No. 4 p. 241, "Descendants of John Maccoone." The compiler of this article did not note his source, which may have been DeVere Allen's work on the Allens of Prudence Island.

Notes:

Thomas is called Deacon Thomas, dec'd, in the 1761 Warwick marriage record of his son Nathaniel. However, a Hill manuscript at NK Library says he died 20 Apr 1768. I think Nathaniel's marriage was recorded later, after his father had died.

Thomas was a member of the Six-Principle Baptist Church of East Greenwich, from 1743; he was a deacon and frequently hosted meetings at his home. He contributed money to repair the meetinghouse in 1763 (source: "Elder John Gorton and the Six-Principle Baptist Church of East Greenwich," ed. Cherry Fletcher Bamberg, pub 2001 by RI Genealogical Society, p 490 etc.)

Thomas Hill and Jabez Greene (1673-1741) of Potowomut built a dam to power a sawmill and gristmill. They also ran a forge, and I think that is where the name Forge Rd. came from.

The will of Thomas Hill of NK was recorded 9 April 1768, proved 9 May (year burned away). It mentions wife Ann; sons Thomas, Matthew, Nathaniel dec'd, and Caleb; three dtrs (names burned away); and grand-dtr Mary Hill d/o of my son Nathaniel dec'd.

Thomas married Elizabeth Allen 16 Dec 1716, North Kingstown, RI. Elizabeth (daughter of Thomas Allen and Anna Barnes) was born 29 Nov 1695; died 28 Feb 1726/27; was buried , Barrington, RI. [Group Sheet]

Notes:

I have estimated the ages of the four children based on the order of names in the will; Stukely Jr. is mentioned as under 21 and two of the daughters under 18. The Roger Williams Descendants book has Stukeley, Sr.'s year of birth as 1669, but that is too early, based on his mother's age.

Stukely married Elizabeth Waterman Abt 1714. Elizabeth (daughter of John WATERMAN and Anne OLNEY) was born 18 Apr 1692, Warwick, RI; died 14 Jun 1764, Warwick, RI. [Group Sheet]