Mary WELLES

1650 - Aft 1671  (21 years)

• Name	Mary WELLES  [2, 3]
  	Mary, the only known wife of the early Guilford, Conn. settler Thomas Robinson. The date of her death is the recorded date Mary was buried at Guilford, presumably having died only a few days earlier. Extensive printed and electronic references claim that Mary's maiden name was Wells, dau. of Hugh Wells and Frances Belcher, purported early settlers of Wethersfield, Conn. Unfortunately, Hugh Wells and Frances Belcher were fictitious persons, whose supposed existence was grossly embellished by Stiles in the second volume of his "History of Ancient Wethersfield" (1902, 2:780.) While the four children shown by Stiles for this fictitious couple were actual persons (Thomas, Hugh, Mary and John), Thomas, Mary and John were the children of Thomas Welles and Frances Albright. Thomas Welles died testate at Evesham, England in 1638 with the widow Frances (Albright) Welles subsequently the 2nd wife of Thomas Coleman of Wethersfield, Conn. and Hadley, Mass. [see NEHGR 142(1992):28.] The fictitious Hugh and Frances Wells' purported son, Ens. Hugh Wells, was an actual person, but they were not his parents. He died testate at Wethersfield in 1678. His dau. Mary, b. of record at Wethersfield Oct. 14, 1650, married by 1668 an unidentified Thomas Robinson of New London, Conn. where they had at least four children, three baptized of record at the New London Cong. Church betw. Dec. 1674 and June 1679. In part: ? Mary Wells, b. 14 Oct. 1650; m. by 1668, Thomas Robinson. He was propounded to be an inhabitant of New London, 12 Jan. 1665/6. Calling himself mariner, he bought land 11 Sept. 1667, and which with wife Mary they sold in 1671 (New London Town Records, 1647-66, p. 151; Deeds, 5:18). On 19 Nov. 1668, Hugh Welles of Wethersfield entered caution against recording or sale of any house or land that hath or doth belong to Thomas Robinson in behalf of said Welles his daughter Mary Robinson the wife of the said Thomas Robinson (New London Deeds, 3:29). [Donald L. Jacobus, TAG 28(1952):234.] It should be quite obvious to the reader that Mary (Wells) Robinson, dau. of Ens Hugh Wells of Wethersfield, was alive in 1671 when she and her husband Thomas Robinson sold land in New London, Conn. whereas Mary, the wife of Thomas Robinson of Guilford, was buried in Guilford three years earlier. Thomas Robinson of Guilford never resided in New London, Conn. Thus, Mary Wells, dau. of Ens. Hugh Wells of Wethersfield, Conn., was NOT the wife of Thomas Robinson of Guilford, but of a different Thomas Robinson, of New London, Conn. Thomas Robinson, Jr., s. of Thomas of Guilford, also never resided in New London, the similarity of names being purely coincidental. For related details see John Latimer. Revised 10/11/2016 Inscription Barbour's Vital Records of Guilford include the record of Mary's cited burial date at Guilford. In 1818 all existing gravestones at the original Village Green cemetery (now a public park), but not the individual graves and remains, were moved to other town cemeteries. No extant relocated gravestone for Mary exists, if she had one to begin with. Posted on Find A Grave originally created by: L J Steuben but maintained by: Don Blauvelt [1]
  Birth	14 Oct 1650	Wethersfield, Fairfield Co., Connecticut   [3, 4]
  Gender	Female
  Death	Aft 1671	Connecticut   [1]
  Person ID	I60280	Main Tree
  Last Modified	28 Sep 2021

  
  

  Father	Hugh WELLES, Jr.,   b. Abt 1625, Essex Co., England d. 22 Dec 1677/8, Wethersfield, Fairfield Co., Connecticut (Age 53 years)
  Relationship	Birth
  Mother	Mary RUSCOE,   b. England
  Relationship	Birth
  Marriage	19 Aug 1647	Wethersfield, Connecticut   [3]
  Family ID	F10466	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family	Thomas ROBINSON
  Marriage	Bef 1668  [1]
  Family ID	F10467	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart
  Last Modified	28 Sep 2021

  
  

• Event Map

  Death - Aft 1671 - Connecticut  = Link to Google Earth

  
  

• Sources

  [S02329] Find A Grave Website. [S02433] History of the Town of Goshen, CT by Rev. A. G. Hibbard. [S02434] Albert Wells, History of the Welles Family in England and Normandy, (Name: Name: 1876;;). [S03431] The Barbour Collection of Connecticut Town Vital Records: Wethersfield.