General Notes

Sources: http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~teschek/wallingford/i0000001.htm
     http://thebecketts.com/genealogy/wallingford/wallingford.html

NICHOLAS WALLINGTON/WALLINGFORD

NICHOLAS WALLINGFORD I was born in or near WALLINGFORD, ENGLAND in the year 1619. He migrated from the parish of NETHER WALLOP, HAMPSHIRE, ENGLAND and came to America in the ship "CONFIDENCE OF LONDON" in 1638. (Waters and Emmerton Genealogical Gleanings in England published in 1885) On this voyage the "CONFIDENCE OF LONDON, JOHN JOBSON, Master" sailed from SOUTH HAMPTON on April 24, 1638  and landed at BOSTON. The log of the ship names NICHOLAS  WALLINGTON, poor boy: (ie) WALLINGFORD aged 19 as one of the passengers.

Sometime after his landing at BOSTON, NICHOLAS WALLINGFORD joined the colonists at NEWBURY, MASSACHUSETTS. He became Master Mariner and for many years followed the shipping trade. He was taken captive at sea and never returned. Presumably, NICHOLAS WALLINGFORD was either held captive until his death or was murdered by pirates. He was last at home in 1681 and his estate was settled in 1684.

1. Nicholas1 Wallingford, son of Unknown Wallingford and Unknown Gore, was born possibly in Nether Wallop, Southampton, England probably between 1620 and 1635.(1)  Nicholas died in captivity overseas, before 22 September 1681, in "Argone". Certification of his death by Mr. Thomas Kellon, a merchant, was made to the court at Ipswich, Mass. on 27 September 1681, and an inventory of his estate had been made on the 22d.(2)  Nicholas had been captured at sea while on a voyage to England and died in captivity, so likely died long before the news reached home. Evidence for this fact is contained in his probate files in a 1683 petition from his wife where she states that he "being going for England was taken Captive and there ended his Days". Some secondary sources state that he was captured by Barbary pirates, but this is likely only supposition, although perfectly plausible. The inventory of his estate begins "An Inventory of ye Estate of Nicholaus Wallingford who Deceased in Argone."(3)  This would seem to indicate that the name of the place where he died is called "Argone". Three possible locations for this would be "Aragon", a part of Spain, "Argonne", a part of France, and "Arguin", a fortified trading station dominating a section of the West African coast, now in Mauritania. Arguin was under contention between the Dutch and the French about that time and was also being visited by some adventurous English traders.

He married Sarah Travers, 30 August 1654, in Newbury, Essex County, Massachusetts.(4) Sarah was born about 1636, in Newbury, Essex County, Massachusetts.(5) Sarah was the daughter of Henry Travers and Bridget Fitts?. Sarah died by 22 August 1709. Administration of her estate was granted to her son John on that date, when she was referred to as "Sarah Wallingford alias Mash", of Bradford, "Relict of Nicholas Wallingford of Bradford."(6) THE TRAVERS

Nicholas' last name was usually spelled Wallington in the early records, but by the second generation most of the family was using the spelling 'Wallingford'. It was spelled Wallingford in his uncle William Gore's will. This will, dated 22 January 1655/6 and proved 29 March 1656 has a clause giving "To Nicholas & Margaret, son and daughter of my late sister Wallingford, twenty pounds apiece in one year after my decease." William Gore was from the town of Nether Wallop in Southampton, England, and was probably the son of William and Joane Gore/Goore, also of Nether Wallop.

The actual will hasn't been checked yet, just Waters' abstract of it. At the end of this abstract it ads that "If my cousin Nicholas Wallingford shall have issue of his body or Margaret Wallingford have issue of her body then, &c."(17) Apparently this clause, which isn't fully spelled out by Waters, intends to give an inheritance to any children that Nicholas or Margaret may have. This evidently came to pass as we have from the N.H. Probate records the following: "Know all men by these pnts that whereas wee John Wallingford, James Wallingford and Joseph Poore in right of Mary my wife Children of Nicholas Wallingford late of Newbury decd have sold unto William Longfellow of the same Newbury the Sume of Forty pounds a peice given unto either of us a legacy from our late great Uncle William Goore of Hampshire in and by his last will and Testamt bearing date 22nd January 1655 and have by our letter of Attourny of even date with these pnts Impoured the said William Longffellow in our name to demand require and receive the same; which is to be to his own proper use: And wee do hereby each of us respectively for our Selves promise and engage, that if the said letter of Attourny should miscarry, or be found in any respect too short for the obteining and recovery of the sd Legacies, wee will at any time or times hereafter upon demand and at the cost & charges in the law of the sd William Longfellow or his heirs give unto him or them under oE hands and Seales (and the hand and Seale also of Mary Poore if thought needfull) such further and other letter or letters of Attourny containing all power strength and Authority that wee can be capable of giveing unto him or them in the law for recovery of the [promises?]. Witness our hands hereunto Set this Sixteenth day of November, Anno Dom 1686. Signed John Wallingford, James Wallingford, Joseph Poore. Signed and Delivd in the presence of us.-- Joseph Ba[ily?], Isa Addington. [Joseph Bailey and Isaac Addington acc. to NH State Papers abstract]

Nicholas Wallingford came from England in the ship Confidence from London in 1638, landing in Boston. Customs House records published in the NEHGR are prefaced with the following note: "The List of the Names of the Passengrs Intended for New England in the good shipp the Confidence of London of CC [200] tonnes, John Jobson, M[aste]r And thus by vertue of the Lord Treasrs warr[an]t of the xjth [11th] of Aprill, 1638. Southampton, 24 Aprill, 1638". Among the passengers were Stephen and Margery Kent, husband and wife aged 17 and 16 respectively, whose origins in England were not stated on the passenger list as were most of the other passengers. [One source states the Stephen was from Salisbury, England and his wife Margery (Norris) was from Wallopp, co. South.(18) ] With them were four young people aged 9 through 20 described as servants, as well as "Nicholas Wallington, a poore boy", whose age was not given.(19) The fact that he was listed among the servants yet not described as one probably means that he was not a servant. In any case from this we can guess that he was probably aged in the range of 5 to 15 years old at the time, give or take. A manuscript Wallingford genealogy by Charles Wallingford(20) states that the ship's log gives his age as 19, and one by Samuel Shackford(21) gives his age as 9, but no age appears in the published records in the New England Historical and Genealogical Register so this is suspect. Pope's "Pioneers of Massachusetts" also gives him a fictitious age of 9. If he was 19 at the time he would have been born about 1619, married at age 35 to a woman about 18 years his junior, had his last child at age 61, and disappeared at sea aged in his early 60s. It seems more likely that he was about nine years old and born closer to 1630 than to 1620.

Nicholas Wallington witnessed the will of John Cutting of Newbury 22 October 1659(22) . On 18 June 1662 he owned land in the town of Rowley, as shown by a lease of that date in which Phillip Nelson of Rowley let to Robert Savery and William Bolton of Newbury a farm in Rowley of 300 acres, bounded on the east by the Newbury town line, on the west by land of "Nicolas Walington", on the north by the Merrimack River, and on the south by Crane Meadow.(23)

Nicholas Wallington served as surveyor of Highways, fences and chimneys in Bradford in 1667 with John Hardy.(24)

In a Court held at Salem, Mass., 25 June 1667: "Copy of deed, dated Oct. 16, 1661, John (his mark) Willcot of Newbury and Mary, his wife, to Nicolas Wallington of Newbury, the half farm he purchased of Philip Nellson of Rowley, etc. Wit: Joseph Muzzey, Trustram Coffin, Robert Lange, John Pike, and Hugh Marsh. Acknowledged Mar. 25 1662, by John Wolcott. Copy made, June 24, 1667, by Robert Lord"(25) . At a later Court held in Ipswich on 24 September 1667, Nicholas sued John Wolcott for not making good on this parcel of land. The verdict was for the defendant.(26)

In February 1670 Nicholas "Wallinghton" was mentioned in court records as someone who "frequently communed with" members of Mr. Edward Woodman's church despite not being a member(27). He was a freeman in Newbury 11 October 1670.(28) In November 1672 he owed 3 pounds to the estate of Abraham Toppan of Newbury.(29) On 24 February 1672 town orders regarding fences, swine, cattle, and horses were signed by five people, including Nicolas Wallingford.(30) No town was stated in this record, but since Bradford came into existence in 1675 it was most likely Newbury. "Nicolas Walington" was a member of a grand jury in Ipswich, 25 September 1677.(31) By a deed acknowledged on 29 January 1677[/8?] he gave one acre of meadow in the Crane Meadow, bounded on Crane Brook, "to have an able & faithful ministry settle amongst the inhabitants of the s[ai]d Towne of Bradford" (Essex Deeds, 4 Ips.: 130)(32)

He settled in Newbury, Mass. and, judging by the birth records of his children, was apparently living in Bradford by 1672, which is when that town was first named. He may have lived a short time in Rowley, Mass., about 1662-3, as evidenced by the fact that he owned land there in 1662 and one of his childen's birth's was recorded in the Rowley town records (although also in the Newbury town records at the same time). Of course, Bradford was originally part of Rowley, known as "Merrimack" or "The Merrimac Lands"(33) , so these lands may have been in what later became Bradford.

At a court held in Ipswich on 27 September 1681, administration of the estate of Nicholas Wallingford was granted to Sarah Wallingford, relict of said Nicholas, and Caleb Hopkinson, and they were ordered to bring in an inventory to the next March court. This action was performed "upon a certificate received from Mr. Tho. Kellon, merchant, on the death of Nicholas Walingford".(34)

-------------------------------------------------- --------------

Nicholas' probate file(35) includes a number of papers, some of which are extracted or abstracted below:

An inventory that was taken on 22 September 1681 by Ezekiel Northen, [Shu?] Walker, and John Palmer was presented to the court on 28 March 1682: "An Inventory of ye Estate of Nicholaus Wallingford who Deceased in Argone.
in apparill --------------------------------------------- 05-05-0
to books --------------------------------------------- 01-10-0
to Amunition --------------------------------------------- 03-00-0
to beding -------------------------------------------- 14-00-0
to [Sak--?] ------------------------------------------- 01-01-0
to Lumber and fla[x?] ------------------------------- 04-10-0
to Linin ----------------------------------------- 01-00-0
to pewtter brass and Iron in ye house ----- 03-00-0
to stock in cattel horses and swine ------------ [55?]--17-0
to utencils for husbandry ----------------------- 04-06-0
to one hundred four----? and two acres of Land and Meadow with housing ------ 300-00-0

This Inventory taken ye 22: September 1681 by Ezek Northe and [Shu?] Walker and John Palmer

Debts Due from ye Estate John Wattson --------------------------------- 0-12-0
John Griffing ---------------------------------- 0-10-0
Anthony Somersby: Newbury: ----------- 1-12-9
Ensigne Greinleafe: Newbury: --------- 0-15-7
John Wicom: Rowley: --------------------- 3-10-0
Mr. H----? Wainwright ---------------------- 14-10-0
Mr. Jon Wainwright ------------ 1-01-0
Tristram Coffin: Newbury: --------------- 8-8-0
George Kilborne: Rowley ---------------- 0-8-0
Caleb Boynton ------------------------------- 0-4-9
Mistis Wi[ston?]: Bradford: ------------- 0-18-0
Rich Bartlet[?]: Newbury: --------------- 0-06-0
John [F---?]: Rowley ------------------------- 0-05-0
Mr Looke --------------------------------------- 2-0-0
David Merrill Newbury --------------------- 0-4-0
Abraham Merrill: Newbury ---------------- 0-5-0
Mr. {illeg.] and Mr. ----eth? in silver ---- 12-0-0
Caleb Hopkinson ----------------------------- 9-0-0
more to John Atkinson 10[s?] ------------------------
56-10-1

Debts due to ye estate Abraham Be[lnapper?] --------------------- 2-0-6
Rich Hall -------------------------------------- 0-4-0
Will Hardy -------------------------------------- 0-7-0
Joseph [C?]onnor --------------------------- 2-0-0
Mathew Petingell ---------------------------- 2-0-0
[Ni?]cho Wallingford ------------------------ 0-[17?]-0
David [Bevison?] ---------------------------- 0-09-0
7-19-6

This inventory of the estate of Nicholas Wallingford the Administrators upon oath delivered to be a true Inventory to the best of their knowledge & if more appears [illeg.] ye court [illeg.] at Ipswich the 28 of March 1682. Attest Robert Ford clerk for ordering of the estate the court orders the estate to be left in the widdows hand for the bringing up the young child and the lame child but the land to be responsable to be ordered by the court."

-------------------------------------------------- --------------

His widow petitioned the court:

"To the Honored Generall Court sitting at Boston the 16th of May 1683. The Humble petition of Sarah Wallingford to this Honored Court is as followeth. Whereas by Gods Providence my Late Deare husband being going for England was taken Captive and there ended his Days, hath left your poore handmaid with her children sivirall of whom Small & not Capable to doe anything towards a livily hood; the Court at Ipswich having Granted Administration to myself of the estate which is most of it is wilderness land; not above two acres of said land in Improvement. I [cannot tell?] which was to make any releise of it for our subsistance; the rest of the moveable estate being so little not sufficient to pay Debts which can be spared; and for our support I am still [illeg.] running into Debt: The Humble request of your petitioner is, that this Court would Impower your petitioner or some other [meet?] person to make sale of some part of the Land for releife of the family and to pay what Debts are yet unpaid; for it is [conceived?] that it will be more advantageous [yet land it?] sold to pay Debts than to have it taken away by the Creditors and that [land?] it be disposed of for releife then to be under-- [illeg.] all want the estate is vallued at a very high rate and some think it will not be valued at about half so much [as?] it is [appraised?] at, if it be taken by Execution; If some speedy Course be not taken, I know not which way to subsist, but must fall into the hands of others for releife, therefore in trust that God may [illeg.] to that wch may be best for our pro-- [illeg.] & future benefitt for which yor humble Petitioner shall pray. Sarah Wallingford

There [or then?] was my son in law named put into the letter of Administration but he will not undertake nor be engatged unless there be [illeg.] given, to sell some land to pay Debts & relieve us."

The court granted Caleb Hopkinson & Sarah Wallingford administrators "liberty to make sale of part of the Land belonging to sd estate to the valew of forty pounds according to Inventory already Given in."

On 28 March 1682 the probate court ordered that Nicholas' personal estate be left in the widow Sarah's hands "for the bringing up of the young child and the lame child". The young child is likely Abigail, who would have been less than two years old at the time. But the "lame" child is unidentified. If one assumes that a "lame" or handicapped child would not have married (perhaps a false assumption) that leaves either William or Joseph, who died unmarried, or Hannah, about whom it is not known whether or not she ever married.