Gamaliel Beaman, Jr
1623 - 1678 (~ 54 years)-
Name Gamaliel Beaman Suffix Jr Birth 04 Oct 1623 Worcester, Worcestershire, England 
Christening 14 Jun 1657 Dorchester, Suffolk, Province of Massachusetts Bay, British Colonial America Gender Male Death Dorchester, Suffolk, Province of Massachusetts Bay, British Colonial America Burial 26 Mar 1678 Dorchester North Burying Ground, Dorchester, Suffolk, Province of Massachusetts Bay, British Colonial America Person ID I312684222376 Oswald Genealogy Last Modified 15 Jun 2025
Family Sarah Elizabeth Clark, b. 05 Jul 1623, Fulbeck, Lincolnshire, England d. Suffolk, Massachusetts, United States Marriage Abt. 1643 Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts Bay Colony, British Colonial America Children 1. Joseph Beaman, b. Abt. 1651, Dorchester, Suffolk, Province of Massachusetts Bay, British Colonial America d. 1656, Dorchester, Suffolk, Province of Massachusetts Bay, British Colonial America (Age 5 years)2. Gamaliel Beaman, III, b. 1653, Dorchester, Suffolk, Massachusetts, USA d. 1707, Lancaster, Middlesex, Massachusetts Bay Colony, British Colonial America (Age 54 years) [Father: unknown] [Mother: unknown]3. Thomas Beeman, b. 1657, Dorchester, Suffolk, Massachusetts Bay, British Colonial America d. 21 Oct 1731, Marlborough, Middlesex, Massachusetts Bay Colony, British Colonial America (Age 74 years)4. Mary Beaman, b. 1657, Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts Bay, British Colonial America 5. John Clark Beaman, c. 15 Jun 1657, Dorchester, Suffolk, Massachusetts Bay, British Colonial America d. Lancaster, Worchester, Province of Massachusetts Bay, British Colonial America [Father: unknown] [Mother: unknown]6. Nathaniel Beaman, b. Abt. 1660, Dorchester, Suffolk, Province of Massachusetts Bay, British Colonial America 7. Noah Beaman, b. 03 Apr 1661, Lancaster, Worchester, Massachusetts, United States d. 29 May 1715, Dorchester, Suffolk, Province of Massachusetts Bay, British Colonial America (Age 54 years)8. Hannah Willson, b. 1665, Lancaster, Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States of America bur. 1743, Old Common Burial Ground, Lancaster, Worcester, Massachusetts, United States of America (Age ~ 78 years) [Father: unknown] [Mother: unknown]9. Hannah Beaman, b. 02 May 1665, Suffolk, Massachusetts Bay Colony, British Colonial America d. Lancaster, Worcester,Province of Massachusetts Bay [Father: unknown] [Mother: unknown]10. Mehitable Beaman, b. 28 May 1667, Lancaster, Worcester, Massachusetts Bay, British Colonial America d. 28 May 1667, Lancaster, Worcester, Massachusetts, United States (Age 0 years) [Father: unknown] [Mother: unknown]11. Thankfull Beaman, b. Lancaster, Worcester, Province of Massachusetts Bay, British Colonial America d. 01 Sep 1732, Charlestown, Middlesex, Massachusetts Bay Colony, British Colonial America 12. Judith Beaman, b. Marlborough, Middlesex, Massachusetts Bay Colony, British Colonial America d. Union, Tolland, Connecticut Colony, British Colonial America [Father: unknown] [Mother: unknown]13. Mrs Sarah Beaman, b. Dorchester, Suffolk, Province of Massachusetts Bay, British Colonial America d. 19 Oct 1681, Dorchester, Suffolk, Massachusetts Bay Colony, British Colonial America Family ID F2932 Group Sheet | Family Chart Last Modified 15 Jun 2025
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Notes - Detailed info about Gamaliel Beaman continued
and starvation; 1000 were sold as slaves, and 2000 fled the area never to return. That would be a 40% loss of the male population. With the women and children added, it is estimated that between 60 and 80% of the New England Indian populations died during the King Philip War. (As I write this, I continue thinking about our current war in Iraq which has been managed by the current [best and brightest] administration, and I find the same mistakes being made, both by the administration and the political military officers.)
About 1680 the Beaman family returned to Lancaster, with new houses being set up on Gamaliel's land, and the family helping to rebuild the town. (There are two sets of beliefs about this time. 1. Gamaliel Senior was alive and had returned to Lancaster; 2. Gamaliel Senior died at Dorchester and did not return to Lancaster.) John and Priscilla moved around the colony, but on returning to Lancaster, John was received into the Lancaster Church as Father Beaman from Taunton. John and Priscilla are both buried at the Old Burial Ground in Lancaster. A writer for the Worcester Magazine said of the Beaman family, "This family is numerous and respectable".
King James II succeeded Charles II as the English King. In 1688, Parliament was unhappy with King James II and secretly invited William III, of Holland and husband of Mary Stuart, to land military forces in England. King James II quickly found himself with out support and sailed for France. The throne was declared vacant and quickly offered to William and Mary. To keep the new rulers in check, Parilament passed the English Bill of Rights in 1689.
About 1701 another purchase of land was made of George Tahanto, the nephew and successor of Sholan, adding a large tract of land onto the western side of the town of Lancaster.
Today Lancaster is much different from Gamaliel's Lancaster not only by residents but also by size. Look at an AAA State road map for Massachusetts. The 17th century Lancaster would have been approximately the size, if not bigger, of the area within the boundary of Interstate 190 to the West, Interstate 495 to the East, Interstate 290 to the South, and State Route 2 to the North. Over a period of time in the early 18th century, Lancaster was divided into nine different towns. These towns are:
Berlin
Bolton
Boylston
Clinton
Harvard
Lancaster
Leominster
Sterling
West Boylston
The Beaman Public Library in West Boylston, Worcester County, Massachusetts is named for (0059) Major Ezra Beaman, a Great-grandson of Gamaliel and Sarah. Ezra is considered to be the "Father" of West Boylston.
Beaman Mountain at Digby, Nova Scotia, Canada is named for (0109) Ebenezer (White) Beaman.
From these humble beginning has came the Beaman Family. Adventurers, farmers, citizen soldiers, carpenters, teachers, doctors, lawyers, soldiers, sailors, army officers, naval officers, book binders, electricians, sheriffs, ranchers, engineers, artists, photographers, movie actresses, ministers and businessmen and women. From Massachusetts the Family has moved to Arizona; Arkansas; California; Colorado; Connecticut; Florida; Georgia; Hawaii; Idaho; Illinois; Indiana; Iowa; Kansas; Kentucky; Louisiana; Maine; Maryland; Michigan; Minnesota; Missouri; Montana; Nebraska; Nevada; New Hampshire; New Jersey; New Mexico; New York; North Carolina; Ohio; Oklahoma; Oregon; Pennsylvania; Rhode Island; South Carolina; South Dakota; Tennessee; Texas; Utah; Vermont; Virginia; Washington; Washington, D. C.; Wisconsin; Wyoming; Canada; China, Cuba; Germany; Honduras; India; Korea; Saudi Arabia; Vietnam and who knows where else.
From the Cartwright – Northrip and Allied Families, Compiled by Lloyd J. Cartwright in 1981, “Henry de Beaman, a French Hugenot, is said to have fled to England in the thirteenth century and one of his descendants, Gamaliel Beaman came to America in 1635 at the age of twelve. His ship, the “Elizabeth and Anne”, had no other passengers by the same name, so perhaps he came with relatives or an employer. He settled in Dorchester, Massachusetts and married Sarah <Clark> (some believe to be the daughter of William Clark and his wife Sarah). In 1659 he moved to Lancaster.
Info about Gamaliel Beaman
Gamaliel Beaman, m. Sarah <Clark> after he came to Dorchester MA and was of age to marry.. Gamaliel Beaman, (Gamaliell Beomont) b. 1623 probably in the villages of
Quatt or Biddulph, Shrops, England. He immigrated in May 1635, aboard the sailing ship “Elizabeth and Ann”, as a twelve year old boy. He settled in Dorchester, (founded in 1630 by John Winthrop) Massachusetts, which at that time was the first town on the Atlantic Coast South of Boston. There is no record of his first 8 years in Dorchester. He married Sarah <Clark> in 1643. Six years later, in May 1659, Gamaliel and Sarah moved to the village of Lancaster, Massachusetts. They arrived in Lancaster May 23, 1659 and Gamaliel signed the Covenant on May 31, 1659, as one of the fifty-five original proprietors of the town. Gamaliel had brought with him 210 pounds of money (a large sum for those days) and was assigned Lot 38 as laid down on the map. Later when the meadowlands were divided he received Lot 22 also. Gamaliel owned more than 266 acres of land. Remember the law of primogeniture and what little these brothers may have been able to bring with them to America from England. In 1671 Gamaliel was the Constable of Lancaster.
On Feb 20, 1676, during the King Philip's War, a party of about 400 Indians attacked the village of Lancaster, which contained about 60 families at that time. The people of Lancaster, having prior warning of the attack, had gathered in garrison homes, one being that of Reverend Joseph Rowlandson. The Indians burned every house in Lancaster, including the church; killing 13 people and kidnapping 24. The Reverend's wife, Mary Rowlandson, was one of the captured individuals and wrote a book about her ordeal after she was ransomed.
After the attack the Beaman family returned to Dorchester, and John Thornton Beaman was born a year later on Feb 21, 1677 in Dorchester. The Beaman poverty was so great that the taxes of Gamaliel, Sr., Gamaliel, Jr., John and Thomas were set down on the records of Dorchester as desperate debts during this period. (The Lancaster records record that Gamaliel Beaman, Sen(ior) died at Dorchester 23. 1 mo. 1678 (March 23, 1678 and the Dorchester records show that that Gamaliel Bea,am, Jun died Mar 23, 1678.) About 1680 the Beaman family returned to Lancaster, with new houses being set up on Gamaliel's land, and the family helping to rebuild the town. (I just found, on the American Silversmiths website, the names of Gamaliel, Senior and Gamaliel, Junior as Silversmiths. The site gives Gamaliel, Senior’s birth place as Lancaster, Worcester, MA and Dorchester as his place of death. In my research, I have never seen anything that suggests any of the early Beamans were Silversmiths.)
Children:
0002(0001)John¹ (Clark) Beaman, b. 1649 Baptized June 15, 1657 in Dorchester, d. Jan 15, 1739/40 Bolton,
MA.
0003(0001)Joseph¹ (Clark) Beaman, b. 1651
0004(0001)Gamaliel¹ (Clark) Beaman, b. 1653 Baptized June 15, 1657 in Dorchester
0005(0001)Thomas¹ (Clark) Beaman, b. 1654 Baptized June 15, 1657 in Dorchester, d. Oct 21, 1731
0006(0001)Mary¹ (Clark) Beaman, b. 1656 Baptized June 15 1657 in Dorchester, d. Oct 19, 1681
0007(0001)Sarah¹ (Clark) Beaman, b. Jan 17, 1657/58 Baptized Mar 20, 1658 in Dorchester, d. Oct 19, 1681
0008(0001)Noah¹ (Clark) Beaman, b. Apr 3, 1661 (Middlesex Register) d. May 29, 1715 Dorchester, Suffolk,
MA
0009(0001)Thankful¹ (Clark) Beaman, b. Apr 18, 1663 Middlesex Register
<0010(0001)Hannah¹ (Bement) (Clark) Beaman, b. 1665>
0010.1(0001)Mehettabell¹ (Clark) Beaman, b. May 26, 1667 Middlesex Register
!Family of 10 Children .Work completed.
!Family of 10 Children .Work completed. Archive Record # 1623. Children not all in computer. Direct Descendant Rin # 555 Hannah
Line in Record @I0768@ (RIN 1204) from G
Line in Record @I0768@ (RIN 1204) from GEDCOM file not recognized: PLAC ARIZO
Abigail Stevens Young (Abbie Stevens You
Abigail Stevens Young (Abbie Stevens Young) Pedigree Charts. Entered 2005.
Gamaliel Beaman one of the first people to live in Lancster
THE ESTATES OF THE FIRST INHABITANCE OF LANCASTER
Included in the list of the first inhabitants of Lancaster, was “Gamaliel Beman” who was granted land in the first division. “Jeremiah Willson” was granted a 30 acre lot after the settlement of the town.
[p. 259-260]
THE LANDS OF GAMALIEL BEMAN
“House Lott His house Lott being near unto Quosaponikin Brook bounded by Sum Common Land that sence was Laid out to himself for second devision on the north side of it and South it is bounded by a highway that Lyeth betwen the Lott of Roger Sumner and it buts easterdly upon a high way that Goes to quosaponikin hill the southeast corner of it and at the northeast Corner it buts upon Sum Land Laid out to nathaniel Joslin and Roger Sumner for second devision and it buts westwardly upon Sum Comon Land Laid out to himself for second devision Lying for twenty acors be it more or Less.”
“His entervail Lott. His entervaile Lott Lyeth at quosaponikin Intervail buting west upon the North River and east upon sum swampy brushey Ground that Lyeth between sum meadow of Stephen Gates and this Lott a highway Runing at the eand of it bounded Southardly by the Lot of Roger Sumner and north by the Lott of Jeremiah Rogers and Lyeth for twenty acres be it more or Less.”
“Gamaliel Beaman came from England in the Elizabeth and Ann, A.D. 1635, and settled in Dorchester. In 1659, being then thirty-six years old, he came to Lancaster, bringing a large family. At the time of the massacre he returned to Dorchester and there died March 23, 1678. An indication of their poverty at this date is the fact that the tax-rates of Gamaliel, Sen., Gamaliel Jr., John and Thomas Beaman are set down in the Dorchester Records as “Desperate Debts.” The Beamans were among the first to return to Lancaster upon its re-settlement. John and Gamaliel set up new houses on their father’s lands at Wataquadock. John Jr., lived upon the old homestead on the neck. The children of Gamaliel, Sen., and Sarah (Clark) Beaman were John, 1649; Joseph, 1651; Gamaliel, 1653; Thomas, 1654; Mary, 1656; Sarah, 1658– all born before the family came from Dorchester; and Noah, 1661; Thankful, 1663; Mehitabel, 1667, born in Lancaster. John Beaman’s headstone in the old burial ground records that he died 1740, aged ninety six years. His son Gamaliel, born in 1684, was the first settler in Woonksechocksett, now Sterling. Thankful married Nathaniel Wilson who, in 1694, sold to William Sheafe Gamaliel Beaman’s ‘house and lot in Lancaster.’
Detailed info about Gamaliel Beaman
Gamaliel
Gamaliel was born in England about 1623. He immigrated in May 1635 aboard the ship, “Elizabeth and Ann”. He settled in Dorchester, (founded in 1630 by John Winthrop) Massachusetts, which at that time was the first town on the Atlantic Coast South of Boston. There is no record of his first 8 years in Dorchester.
Oliver Cromwell and his Puritians ruled England, after deposing King Charles I, from 1642 until 1660. Gamiliel Beaman married Sarah <Clark> in 1643. King Charles I was beheaded in 1649.
The Ming dynasty, of China, which was the last dynasty to build parts of the Great Wall(s),came to an end in 1644.
It is reported that the town records of Dorchester, up to 1657, were accidentally burned in Thomas Millet's house. The first mention, that I found, of Gamaliel Beaman is in the Dorchester Church Records, where the following entry is found.
"June 14, 1657
The daye aforesaid Wer Baptized ffoure of Gamliel Beamond children presented by their mother who only is member in whose right they were Baptized. 3 of them beinge growen up (able to walk) were very backward (bashful), especially the Eldest. Mr. Mather came downe into the deacon seat. Their names as ffollows:
Thomas Beamond, 8 yeare old
John Beamond, 6 yeare old
Gamaliel Beamond, 4 yeare old
Mary Beamond,she sucked on the mother - not weaned."
The pastor was the Rev. Richard Mather. Later, some Beamans have concluded that there were hard feelings or a disagreement between Rev. Mather and Gamaliel, and that these ill feelings between the two were the reason why Gamaliel and Sarah moved to Lancaster in 1659.
In 1653 the settlement of Lancaster, Massachusetts was incorporated from the earlier trading post established in 1643. Lancaster is about 33 miles northwest of Boston, and was first called the Nashua or Nashaway Plantation, deriving its name from the Nashua River that flowed through the settlement. The Nashua River came from the northwest, but when it reached the center of town, it made a sharp turn and flowed to the north, entering southern New Hampshire where it emptied into the Merrimac River. At the sharp turn, the Nashua River received a branch from the south. Nashua was an Indian name meaning the land in the angle made by two rivers. The settlers called the northwest branch the North River; the southern branch the Nashua River; and the main river north of the angle, the Penecook River. The latter name was soon abandoned and the whole river from its source was called the Nashua River, and the branch, the South Nashua River. The acute angle between the two parts of the main river was called the Neck, and it was here that Lancaster was formed.
Six years later, in May 1659, Gamaliel and Sarah moved to the village of Lancaster, Massachusetts. They arrived in Lancaster May 23, 1659 and Gamaliel signed (made his mark) the Covenant on May 31, 1659, as one of the fifty-five original proprietors of the town. Gamaliel had brought with him 210 pounds of money (a large sum for those days) and was assigned Lot 38 as laid down on the map. Later when the meadowlands were divided he received Lot 22 also. Gamaliel owned more than 266 acres of land. Remember the law of primogeniture and what little these brothers may have been able to bring with them to America from England. However, all was not milk, honey and sweetness. For the next 100 years the lives of the settlers of Lancaster were one round of hardships, dangers, sickness, and Indians attacks. The French Catholic Priests, of Canada, were determined to exterminate the Protestants of New England, and to this end they constantly stirred up the Indians against the settlers of New England. Nearly all the Indian Wars of New England were caused by the French Catholics.
The farmers of Lancaster never knew, when sowing a crop, whether it would be gathered by themselves or by the French and Indian enemy. They were forced to spend much of their time, with their families, in garrisons (fortified homes). Because of this, they were unable to care for their crops, and the result was distressing poverty. This continued until the French and Indian War, 1754 to 1762.
Mr. Henry S. Nourse, the historian of Lancaster wrote, "The Jesuits of Canada conducted warfare against the hated heretics, their Puritan neighbors, in a mode the most cowardly and barbarous known to modern history. By various arts they had won to their interest all the more savage tribes. The savages' cupidity, and love of finery were stimulated by gaudy presents and the promise of bounties for service. Bands of painted warriors were regularly equipped and sent to the English frontier settlements, to murder, burn and plunder. These cunning, swift-footed marauders, skulking about some lone cabin, would surprise the owner at the plow or in the harvest field, tear off his scalp and drive before them through the pathless woods to Canada, his wife and children loaded with spoils from their home. In Montreal or Quebec the priests paid into the blood stained hands the promised bounty and ransom money. To protect the pioneers of new settlements it was necessary to keep parties of rangers in motions."
The son of King Charles I, returned to England from France at the invitation of Parliament, to be King Charles II in 1662.
“The wife of Gamaliel Beaman dismissed, 24th 3d mo., 1668, to the chh. at Lancaster.”
The King Philip's War was a war with the Wampanoag Indians, (during the war there were 600 dwelling/houses reduced to ashes) and named after the Indian leader that the English called King Philip. Historians have concluded that the Puritan leaders of the New England Colony instigated the conflict as a means of acquiring land from the Wampanoag Indians. The war was waged during the period 1675-1676, ending in when King Philip was killed in August of that year. The first settlement, Kirkemuit, Plymouth Colony, was attacked on Sunday June 20, 1675; followed by Middleborough and Dartmouth where every house was destroyed except for three garrisons. The attacks spread and Brookfield was attacked on August 2; an attack on Lancaster; South Deerfield; Northfield was evacuted on September 3; and Springfield was attacked on October 5. At the time of the war, leaders in Boston(as leaders, being Puritans, all knowing and experts at war as the Puritans had destroyed the army of King Charles I.), could not be troubled to provide protection for the people that would pay the price for the hostilities instigated in Plymouth Colony.
On February 20, 1676, during the King Philip's War, a party of about 400 Indians attacked the village of Lancaster, which contained about 60 families at that time. The people of Lancaster, having prior warning of the attack, had gathered in garrison homes, one being that of Reverend Joseph Rowlandson. The Indians burned every house in Lancaster, including the church; killing 13 people and kidnapping 24. The Reverend's wife, Mary Rowlandson, was one of the captured individuals and wrote a book about her ordeal after she was ransomed (see Mary Rowlandson’s Story toward the back of this History.). After the attack the Beaman family returned to Dorchester, and John Thornton Beaman was born a year later on Feb 21, 1677 in Dorchester. The Beaman poverty was so great that the taxes of Gamaliel, Sr., Gamaliel, Jr., John and Thomas were set down on the records of Dorchester as desperate debts during this period. (In the Early Vital records of Worcester County, Massachusetts, on page 19 of the Lancaster Records is the following, "Deaths of Sundry Early Proprietors and Residents of Lancaster, as Attested by Wills, Inventories, Diaries, Records of Other Towns, Et Cetra. On page 20, Lancaster Records, and the 4th line is the following, "Gamaliel Beaman, Sen., at Dorchester, 23. 1 mo. 1678 [which would be Mar 23, 1678 according to the old calendar].) I take this to mean that 0001 Gamaliel died at Dorchester during the period when the settlement of Lancaster was abandon, instead of the 1707 date used by others.
On February 22, 1676, Medfield, located 20 miles south of Boston had 50 houses burned. On March 26 the war came home to Plymouth Colony again, with an attack that left 55 military men dead and 9 captured and later put to death. On March 28, Rehoboth was attacked by an estimated 1500 Indians. On March 29, Providence, RI was burned. In April Sudbury was attacked.
Mary Rowlandson was ransomed in May using friendly Indians to arrange the release. The use of the friendly Indians was the turning point of the King Philip War. The combination of the friendly Indians and the Colonists that fought with the friendly Indians were to much for the Indians allied with King Philip.
Indians being sold into slavery had started as early as the fall of 1675, and by the summer of 1676 slavery of Indians being sold to sources in the Caribbean was a source of income used to pay for the war. Approximate 1000 Indians were sold into slavery during this time.
King Philip was killed in August 1676 by Indians commanded by Benjamin Church. Benjamin Church, of Plymouth Colony, was one of the first to use friendly Indians in his unit (The Colony of Connecticut had used friendly Indians from the start of hostilities.). Thus ended the King Philip War, but the hositilities did not end due to the treatment most Indians had received during the war. The French continued to stir up the Indians, and Benjamin Church was to lead 5 more expeditions against hostile Indians during the next 30 years.
During the King Philip War the New England Colonies suffered 7-8% losses of the male population. Compare that to the Civil War losses of 4-5%, and World War II of 1% losses. It is estimated that it took the Plymouth Colony 100 years to recover from the King Philip War, just in time for the Revolunary War. The Indians suffed even more, of the 20,000 estimated Indian males, it is estimated that 2000 were killed, 3000 died of sickness
Baptisms of Children
June 14, 1657
"The day aforesaid Wer Baptized ffloure of Gamliel Beamond children presented by their mother who only is member in whose right they were Baptized. 3 of them beinge growen up (able to walk) were very backward, especially the Eldest. Mr. Mather came downe into the deacon seat. Their names were as ffollows:
Thomas Beamond, 8 yeare old
John Beamond, 6 yeare old
Gamaliel Beamond, 4 yeare old
Mary Beamond, not weaned."
Sarah Beaman's baptismal record reads:
"Sarah Beaman, daughter of Gamaliel Beaman and Sarch Clark, ye daughter of Wm. Clark, baptized Mar. 20, 1658."
sources and history
Sources:
1) New England Families, compiled by William Richard Cutter. Landcaster, Massachusetts Register. (Film #547550)
2) Internet, "Ancestry of Joseph Beaman, by Todd A. Farmerie 2003
NAME VARIANTS: BEMAN, BEMON, BEAMAN
HISTORY: Gamaliel Beaman, the immigrant ancestor, was born in England, in 1623, and came to America when he was twelve years old, in the ship "Elizabeth and Ann" At first he lived with relatives in Dorchester, Massachusetts, and became a proprietor there in 1649. In 1658 he was one of the incorporators of Lancaster, Massachusetts and on May 23, 1659, settled there. On May 31, 1659, he signed the covenant there as one of the fifty-five original proprietors of the town. He owned more than two hundred sixty-six acres of land. In 1676 the settlers at Lancaster were obliged to leave their homes because of King Philip's War. The Indians burnt the town, including the church. The place was not built back up until 1680. Gamaliel Beaman returned to Dorchester. His losses had been so great that he was unable to pay even his taxes. His new house in Dorchester was situated on the east slope of Bolton Hills, near a place called Cold Spring. He died in Dorchester, March 23, 1678.
Note: Among those listed as the "fathers of the town" of Lancaster, Massachusetts are the names of Gamaliel Beaman and Thomas Wilder. These 53 pioneers helped lay out the foundation, and their children composed the main part of the population till the period of the massacre in the spring of 1676. Records prove Thomas Wilder (Wyellder) settled first in Charlestown in 1639, next to the farm of Jeramiah's father, Benjamin Wilson. Besides daughters he had four sons, Thomas, John, Nathaniel and Ebenezer, coming to Lancaster in July 1659. Thomas Wilder died at Lancaster Octoer 23, 1667.
BEMAN, BEMENT?
BEMAN, BEMENT?
!NEW ENGLAND FAMILIES BY CUTTER VOL. IV
!NEW ENGLAND FAMILIES BY CUTTER VOL. IV PAGE 1734
One of the first settlers of Lancaster M
One of the first settlers of Lancaster MA.
GAMALIEL BEAMAN JR (1623 - 1678) of Dorchestor and Lancaster
Parents: Unknown
Gamaliel Beaman was born about 1623. He died in Dorchester on 23 Mar 1678. [Ref][Ref] He married Sarah Clark. [Ref][Ref]
Gamaliel Beaman or Bewmont (ship manifest) sailed to New England at age 12 on May 8, 1635 on the Elizabeth and Ann. [Ref] He settled in Dorchester. [Ref]
Gamaliel was an early inhabitant of Lancaster, signing the town covenant with his mark on 31 May 1659. [Ref] He received the 22nd lot in the second division of meadow on 5 Feb 1659. [Ref] He was constable in 1671. [Ref] After the massacre in 1675, he went to Dorchester. [Ref] At the time of his death the Beamans were so impoverished that the tax rates of Gamaliel, Sr., Gamaliel, Jr., John and Thomas were listed in the Dorchester records as "desperate debts". [Ref]
Children of Gamaliel Beaman and Sarah Clark:
John Beaman was born in 1649 in Dorchester. [Ref] According to his headstone in the old Burying Ground in Lancaster, he died on 15 Jan 1739, age 90. [Ref, p. 406] He married Priscilla Unknown. She was born about 1656 and died on 6 Aug 1729. Her headstone in the Old Burying Ground says, 'Here Lies the Body of Mrs. Priscilla Beman, Wife to Mr. John Beman, Who Dec'd Aug'st 6th 1729, in ye 73d Year of Her Age.' [Ref]
John and his brother Gamaliel were among the first to return to Lancaster after the massacre. [Ref] In 1704 John and Gamaliel were in a garrison in Lancaster commanded by Capt. Joseph Wilder and John Houghton; also in the garrison was their brother son-in-law Jeremiah Wilson. [Ref]
some descendants of John Beaman
Joseph Beaman (possibly) was born in 1651 in Dorchester. [Ref] If he existed; he probably died young. [Ref]
Gamaliel Beaman was born in 1653 in Dorchester. [Ref] He died on 23 Mar 1678 in Dorchester. [Ref]
Thomas Beaman was born in 1654 in Dorchester. [Ref]
Mary Beaman was born in 1656 in Dorchester. [Ref]
Sarah Beaman was born on 19 (11) 1658 in Dorchestor. [Ref] She died, probably in childbirth, on 19 (10) 1681 in Dorchester. [Ref] She married Ebeneazer Williams on 28 Dec 1680 in Dorchester. [Ref]
Noah Beaman was born on 3 (2) 1661 in Lancaster. [Ref][Ref, p. 10, s. Gamaliel and Sarah]
Thankful Beaman was born on 18 Apr 1663 in Lancaster. [Ref][Ref, p. 12, d. Gamaliel and Sarah] She married Nathaniel Wilson in 1694. [Ref]
Hannah Beaman married Jeremiah Wilson. [?]
Mehitable Beaman was born on 26 May 1667 in Lancaster. [Ref][Ref, p. 12, d. Gamaliel and Sarah]
Second Generation
HANNAH BEAMAN
Parents: Gamaliel Beaman and Sarah Clark
Is is said that Hannah Beaman married Jeremiah Wilson.
Jeremiah Wilson of Lancaster had a wife Hannah. Although Gamaliel could have had a child between Thankful and Mehitable, there does not appear to be any record of a Hannah born to Gamaliel.
References:
Editors, "Marriages, Births and Deaths in Dorchester, Mass. 1648-83," New England Historical and Genealogical Register 16, 1862, 78-81, 152-158.
Nourse, Henry S., Early Records of Lancaster, Massachusetts, 1643-1725, Clinton, W. J. Coulter, 1884. Online: US Gen Web, Worcester County Archives, http://www.rootsweb.com/~maworces/wo-gen.htm.
Ward, Andrew, "Lancaster Records," New England Historical and Genealogical Register 16, 1862, 352-359; 17, 1863, 70-.
Wooden, Emily Beaman, The Beaman and Clark Genealogy : a history of the descendants of Gamaliel Beaman and Sarah Clark of Dorchester and Lancaster, Mass., 1635-1909,. Rochester, NY, unknown, 1983. Online: Ancestry.com.
Gamaliel
Gamaliel was born in England about 1623. He immigrated in May 1635 aboard the ship, “Elizabeth and Ann”. He settled in Dorchester, (founded in 1630 by John Winthrop) Massachusetts, which at that time was the first town on the Atlantic Coast South of Boston. There is no record of his first 8 years in Dorchester.
Oliver Cromwell and his Puritians ruled England, after deposing King Charles I, from 1642 until 1660. Gamiliel Beaman married Sarah <Clark> in 1643. King Charles I was beheaded in 1649.
The Ming dynasty, of China, which was the last dynasty to build parts of the Great Wall(s),came to an end in 1644.
It is reported that the town records of Dorchester, up to 1657, were accidentally burned in Thomas Millet's house. The first mention, that I found, of Gamaliel Beaman is in the Dorchester Church Records, where the following entry is found.
"June 14, 1657
The daye aforesaid Wer Baptized ffoure of Gamliel Beamond children presented by their mother who only is member in whose right they were Baptized. 3 of them beinge growen up (able to walk) were very backward (bashful), especially the Eldest. Mr. Mather came downe into the deacon seat. Their names as ffollows:
Thomas Beamond, 8 yeare old
John Beamond, 6 yeare old
Gamaliel Beamond, 4 yeare old
Mary Beamond,she sucked on the mother - not weaned."
The pastor was the Rev. Richard Mather. Later, some Beamans have concluded that there were hard feelings or a disagreement between Rev. Mather and Gamaliel, and that these ill feelings between the two were the reason why Gamaliel and Sarah moved to Lancaster in 1659.
In 1653 the settlement of Lancaster, Massachusetts was incorporated from the earlier trading post established in 1643. Lancaster is about 33 miles northwest of Boston, and was first called the Nashua or Nashaway Plantation, deriving its name from the Nashua River that flowed through the settlement. The Nashua River came from the northwest, but when it reached the center of town, it made a sharp turn and flowed to the north, entering southern New Hampshire where it emptied into the Merrimac River. At the sharp turn, the Nashua River received a branch from the south. Nashua was an Indian name meaning the land in the angle made by two rivers. The settlers called the northwest branch the North River; the southern branch the Nashua River; and the main river north of the angle, the Penecook River. The latter name was soon abandoned and the whole river from its source was called the Nashua River, and the branch, the South Nashua River. The acute angle between the two parts of the main river was called the Neck, and it was here that Lancaster was formed.
Six years later, in May 1659, Gamaliel and Sarah moved to the village of Lancaster, Massachusetts. They arrived in Lancaster May 23, 1659 and Gamaliel signed (made his mark) the Covenant on May 31, 1659, as one of the fifty-five original proprietors of the town. Gamaliel had brought with him 210 pounds of money (a large sum for those days) and was assigned Lot 38 as laid down on the map. Later when the meadowlands were divided he received Lot 22 also. Gamaliel owned more than 266 acres of land. Remember the law of primogeniture and what little these brothers may have been able to bring with them to America from England. However, all was not milk, honey and sweetness. For the next 100 years the lives of the settlers of Lancaster were one round of hardships, dangers, sickness, and Indians attacks. The French Catholic Priests, of Canada, were determined to exterminate the Protestants of New England, and to this end they constantly stirred up the Indians against the settlers of New England. Nearly all the Indian Wars of New England were caused by the French Catholics.
The farmers of Lancaster never knew, when sowing a crop, whether it would be gathered by themselves or by the French and Indian enemy. They were forced to spend much of their time, with their families, in garrisons (fortified homes). Because of this, they were unable to care for their crops, and the result was distressing poverty. This continued until the French and Indian War, 1754 to 1762.
Mr. Henry S. Nourse, the historian of Lancaster wrote, "The Jesuits of Canada conducted warfare against the hated heretics, their Puritan neighbors, in a mode the most cowardly and barbarous known to modern history. By various arts they had won to their interest all the more savage tribes. The savages' cupidity, and love of finery were stimulated by gaudy presents and the promise of bounties for service. Bands of painted warriors were regularly equipped and sent to the English frontier settlements, to murder, burn and plunder. These cunning, swift-footed marauders, skulking about some lone cabin, would surprise the owner at the plow or in the harvest field, tear off his scalp and drive before them through the pathless woods to Canada, his wife and children loaded with spoils from their home. In Montreal or Quebec the priests paid into the blood stained hands the promised bounty and ransom money. To protect the pioneers of new settlements it was necessary to keep parties of rangers in motions."
The son of King Charles I, returned to England from France at the invitation of Parliament, to be King Charles II in 1662.
“The wife of Gamaliel Beaman dismissed, 24th 3d mo., 1668, to the chh. at Lancaster.”
The King Philip's War was a war with the Wampanoag Indians, (during the war there were 600 dwelling/houses reduced to ashes) and named after the Indian leader that the English called King Philip. Historians have concluded that the Puritan leaders of the New England Colony instigated the conflict as a means of acquiring land from the Wampanoag Indians. The war was waged during the period 1675-1676, ending in when King Philip was killed in August of that year. The first settlement, Kirkemuit, Plymouth Colony, was attacked on Sunday June 20, 1675; followed by Middleborough and Dartmouth where every house was destroyed except for three garrisons. The attacks spread and Brookfield was attacked on August 2; an attack on Lancaster; South Deerfield; Northfield was evacuted on September 3; and Springfield was attacked on October 5. At the time of the war, leaders in Boston(as leaders, being Puritans, all knowing and experts at war as the Puritans had destroyed the army of
!Family of 10 Children .Work completed.
!Family of 10 Children .Work completed. Archive Record # 1623.
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