John TISDALE

Male 1614 - 1675  (~ 60 years)


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  • Name John TISDALE  [1
    • Tradition has brought the first settler of the name in America from the town of Wales, in England, but no authentic record of the fact is know to exist. In 1854 an effort was made to ascertain the origin of the Tisdales in England, and for this purpose the aid of H.A. Somerby, an American gentleman long resident in Great Britain and a through-going antiquarian, was invoked. He found in Ripon, Yorkshire, a record of the baptism of John, son of Thomas and ruth Tisdale, November 7, 1614, and this John is thought to be progenitor of the American name.

      The precise date of John Tisdale's immigration to the Old Colony is not known, nor in what ship he arrived; but it is supposed to have been in 1636 or 1637. he first settled in Duxbury, or Marshfield, where he had a grant of ten acres at Green harbor path; he also owned land at Hound's ditch and Namasakeeset, the sale of which to William Brett, in 1657, is duly noted in the colonial records. He was one of the twenty-six original purchasers of Freetown, and received the twenty-third lot, upon which a part of Assonet Village is located, and also possessed considerable land in Taunton.

      In 1643 Plymouth, Duxbury and Marshfield combined in the organization of a military company, and John Tisdale's name appears in a "list of those able to beer arms in New Plymouth," under "Duxborrow, 1643."

      In 1645 he was elected constable of Duxbury and held the office for several years. In Emery's "History of Taunton" we read that "the office of constable was one of great responsibility and honor in colonial times as representing the civil government and being the chief exponent of law. the most respectable and trustworthy persons were chosen to fill this office."

      About 1650 John Tisdale removed to Taunton. Here he held some public office: May 11, 156, he was one of a coroner's jury of twelve men on a case reported in the old colonial records; a selectman in 1650(?) and 1658; constable in 1655-1659; Representative to Plymouth General Court in 1674-1675; and seems to have been a person of no little importance in the community.

      His home in Taunton was on the east side of Great River, some three and a half miles from "the Green," bordering upon what is now the northern boundary of the town of Berkeley, and overlooked Mount Hope, the home of King Philip. He incurred the the displeasure of the Indians by his hearty espousal of every course of the English to keep them in subjection. As early as 1671, four years before the "Great War," his house was a rendezvous for the English troops and was thus in constant peril, and when the war came, in 1675, his property was destroyed and himself murdered. This is substantiated by the old colonial records: "John Tisdale was killed by Indians June 27, 167."

      John Tisdale married Sarah Walker, who came from London in the barque 'Elizabeth'. She was the daughter of "Widow Walker," of Rehoboth. She was seventeen years of age when she reached American in 1635, and died in 1676. [1]
    Christening 7 Nov 1614  Ripon, Yorkshire Find all individuals with events at this location  [1
    Gender Male 
    Death 27 Jun 1675  Killed by the Indians Find all individuals with events at this location  [1
    Person ID I7348  Main Tree
    Last Modified 11 Nov 2020 

    Family Sarah WALKER,   b. Abt 1618, England Find all individuals with events at this locationd. 1676 (Age 58 years) 
    Children 
    +1. John TISDALE, Jr.,   b. Abt 1642, Duxbury, Plymouth County, Massachusetts Find all individuals with events at this locationd. Dec 1677 (Age 35 years)  [Birth]
    +2. Joshua TISDALE,   b. 1646, Taunton, Bristol Co., Massachusetts Find all individuals with events at this locationd. 1728 (Age 82 years)  [Birth]
    +3. Joseph TISDALE,   b. 1656, Taunton, Bristol Co., Massachusetts Find all individuals with events at this locationd. 1721 (Age 65 years)  [Birth]
    Family ID F156  Group Sheet  |  Family Chart
    Last Modified 11 Nov 2020 

  • Sources 
    1. [S12087] Edith Francena Tisdale, "Genealogy of Col. Israel Tisdale and His Descendants.