Ahnentafel

Today we remember the death of Richard Maggsen, my 11G-grandfather. In researching Richard’s history, it seems that the only thing anyone knows for certain is that no one is certain of anything about him. So make of that what you will. It does seem that Richard was born in England, sometime around 1600-1605. His father was John Maxson (see, even the spelling of the surname is variable). About 1630 (or maybe 1637) he married a woman named Rebecca; there are disagreements about what her maiden name was, as well. They were (maybe?) married in Newport, Rhode Island. Sources differ as to the name of the ship on which Richard sailed to America. Some sources insist it was the Griffin, on which religious reformer Anne Hutchinson also sailed, but the Maxson Family Association website notes that this has yet to be proven.

A publication titled On the Trail of the Early Maxson, by Helen Morin Maxson, states that in 1634 Richard was a servant to a leatherdresser and shoemaker named James Everill as well as being a blacksmith. In 1638 Richard was one of 59 men admitted to Aquidneck Island (confusingly, this is also known as “Rhode Island” and is the island after which the state is named).

Richard and Rebecca had three children (maybe): Richard, Jr., Rebecca (Jr.?), and John. In 1643 the family moved to Throgg’s Neck, New Netherlands, which is now part of the Bronx. Also settled in this area at that time were John Throckmorton (hence the “Throgg’s”), an associate of Roger Williams, and the aforementioned Anne Hutchinson and her family. Interestingly, Throgg’s Neck was also called “Maxson’s Point” after our relatives who lived there.

That same year a series of skirmishes took place between the colonists and the native Americans, with much bloodshed on both sides. Among those killed were Anne Hutchinson and most of her family (one daughter survived and was later ransomed), as well as the two Richard Maggsen/Maxsons. Some sources state that the father and son (the younger Richard was about 13) had escaped the onslaught but returned by boat to try to help the Hutchinsons, only to be killed themselves. Also uncertain is the exact date when all this occurred – it was written up in a September 1643 journal entry by John Winthrop, governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, but it’s unclear how long it would have taken for news of the deaths to reach him. But still – we’re going with the 1 September date I’ve seen. Otherwise, what on earth would I write about today?

Of the two surviving children of Richard and Rebecca (now going with the “Maxson” spelling), Rebecca married Hugh Mosher, and John married Hugh’s sister Mary Mosher. John and Mary (my 10G-grandparents) would settle in Westerly, Rhode Island, part of the long line of Seventh Day Baptists in our family. John may or may not have been the first white male child born on “the island of Rhode Island.”