William PRESBREY

1690 -

• Name	William PRESBREY  [1]
  	"William Presbrey and His Descendants": According to his own statement as preserved by his sons and grandsons, William Presbrey was born in London, England, in 1690. We have no information concerning his ancestors, but the fact that he was placed on board of a British man-of-war when only ten years old may indicate that the family belonged to the great common class of English people of that time. Genealogists have found it difficult to trace the ancestry of immigrants who came from London, and the youthfulness of William Presbrey when he left home makes it unusually difficult to trace his ancestry. it is thought that the family lived in that part of London known as Balckfriars. Among the papers that came into the hands of the executor of the estate of Captain Seth Presbrey of Taunton, a great-grandson of William, was a paper bearing the following title: - "To the Generations of Presbreys in Coning Time, I Bequeathe This Genealogical Document." It is stated that the paper was first written in 1825, rewritten in 1839, and rewritten again in 1845. No copy of the edition of 1825 has been found. The copies written in 1839 and in 1845 are both preserved in the archives of the Old Colony Historical Society at Taunton. The two papers are substantially the same, differing only in the statement of some of the minor details of the story. We give here a brief statement of the story so as to include all the essential facts given in both papers. When only ten years old William Presbrey was impressed or bound out to serve on a British man-of-war until he should be of age. We are not informed as to the name of the ships or vessels on which he sailed, what waters he navigated, or what shores he visited. He served in the navy about eleven years, or until the summer of 1711, when his ship visited American waters and stopped a short time in Boston Harbor. Boston was then only a straggled colonial village. The country looked good to the young man, William Presbrey, and the spirit of freedom arose in his soul. Having permission to go ashore to "See Boston," and feeling that he had rendered enforced service on the man-of-war long enough, he quietly slipped away in the determination to try his fortunes in the new country. With buoyant spirits and a new sense of liberty, he passed out through what is now Roxbury, and took his course in a southerly direction. He kept to the forests and out of sight of human beings as much as possible, subsisting upon nuts and berries, perhaps gnawing the bark from black birch twigs, for about three days, when he arrived in Taunton. Knowing that by that time his ship had sailed and that he was free, he ventured to apply for food and employment. He first stopped at the hose of Nathaniel Crossman, who lived on what is now Cohannet Street, nearly opposite where the "Auditorium" now stands. Crossman's house was near where the Hazelton house now is, possibly a little nearer Mill River, where there was a mill. Mr. Crossman was farmer, miller and shoe-maker. William Presbrey hired out to Mr. Crossman as man of all work. We know not how long he worked for Mr. Crossman or what wages he received.... When William Presbrey built his house here the Plain Cemetery had not been started. Rev. Samuel Danforth, pastor of the First Congregational Church, is said to have been the first person buried here in 1727. The land was secured and the cemetery laid out in 1848. It is supposed that William Presbrey was buried in this cemetery, but his grave is not marked and is not now known. It is said that William Presbrey built one of the first properly rigged vessels to navigate the Taunton River. It was a sloop. He built it at Benjamin King's landing at Raynham, then a part of Taunton..... About 1725 William Presbrey married Hannah Smith, dau. of nathaniel and Experience Smith of Taunton. It is said that the ceremony was performed by the Rev. Samuel Danforth, who was at that time pastor of the First Church in Taunton, and who was buried two years later near the residence of William Presbrey in what is now the Plain Cemetery. It is supposed that William Presbrey and his wife are buried in this cemetery, but their graves can not now be located. Hannah Smith was born in Weymouth, March 29, 1687. Her parents moved from Weymouth to Taunton about 1690. Her father, Nathaniel Smith, was a son of James Smith and was born in Weymouth June 8, 1639. thus William Presbrey married into one of the oldest families of the Old Colony. Hannah (Smith) Presbrey died Sept. 20, 1763. At the time of their marriage they were of mature age, he being thirty-five and she thirty-eight. Three children were born to them, two sons and one daughter. The sons married and had families. The daughter died unmarried when about twenty years of age. [1]
  Birth	1690	London, England   [1]
  Gender	Male
  Death	Taunton, Bristol Co., Massachusetts
  Person ID	I70774	Main Tree
  Last Modified	21 Jan 2013

  
  

  Family	Hannah SMITH,   b. 29 Mar 1687, Weymouth, Massachusetts d. 20 Sep 1763, Taunton, Bristol Co., Massachusetts (Age 76 years)
  Marriage	Abt 1725  [1]
  Children	+ 1. Joseph PRESBREY,   b. 1727, Taunton, Bristol, Massachusetts, USA d. 1802, Taunton, Bristol Co., Massachusetts (Age 75 years)  [Birth]
  Family ID	F28614	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart
  Last Modified	21 Jan 2013

  
  

• Sources

  [S5273] Rev. Joseph Waite Presby, Ph.D., "William Presbrey of London, England and Taunton, Mass. and His Descendants" 1690-1918.