Chris & Julie Petersen's Genealogy

Hannah Dickinson

Female 1648 - Aft 1687  (> 40 years)


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  • Name Hannah Dickinson 
    Born 6 Dec 1648  Wethersfield, Hartford, Connecticut, United States Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Gender Female 
    Died Aft 1687  of Brookfield, Worcester, Massachusetts, United States Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Person ID I2232  Petersen-de Lanskoy
    Last Modified 27 May 2021 

    Family Samuel Gillett,   c. 22/22 Jan 1642/3, Windsor, Hartford, Connecticut, United States Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. 19 May 1676, Indian Battle at Turner's Falls near Hatfield, Hampshire, Massachusetts, United States Find all individuals with events at this location  (Age ~ 33 years) 
    Married 23 Sep 1668  Hadley or Hatfield, , Massachusetts, United States Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Last Modified 28 May 2021 
    Family ID F1321  Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  • Notes 
    • RESEARCH_NOTES;
      1. The Following is from Susan P. Canney's site at Rootsweb. His e-mail address is ; note reference to Samuel Gillet's children at the end of the will [Is this the father of Hannah Dickinson?]:
      "Little is known of Nathaniel's activities in England. He was no doubt educated, signing the Billingborough bishop's transcript of 1633/4 with a firm hand. He was accordingly appointed town clerk both in Wethersfield and Hadley. Nathaniel arrived in Wethersfield, CT between 26 June 1636, when his daughter was baptized at Billingborough, and July 1638, when his son was born at Wethersfield. It is difficult to say what influences led Nathaniel to emigrate. Perhaps he heard the Puritan doctrines from Rev. Simon Bradstreet, vicar of Horbling from 1696 to 1621. Rev. Bradstreet's son Simon went to Massachusetts in 1630 and rose to prominence in the government of the Bay Colony. Twelve miles to the east of Horbling and Billingborough, Rev. John Cotton expounded his Puritan views from the pulpit at Boston until he fled to New England in 1633. Nathaniel apparently spent little if any time in the Massachusetts Bay Colony, and he was not among the Watertown contingent that settled Wethersfield in 1635. Nathaniel held many positions of trust in the communities of Wethersfield and Hadley. He served on the jury of the Particular Court in 1642. After several years as de facto town clerk of Wethersfield, he was officially appointed to the office in 1645. He held this position until 1659, when he removed to Hadley, Massachusetts. Nathaniel Dickinson served as deputy to the Connecticut General Court from 1646 to 1659. He was elected selectman of Wethersfield in 1646. His homestall consisted of a house, barn, and three acres of land in March 1649. In May 1653 he was a member of the committee to direct a contemplated expedition against the Dutch, and in October 1654 Nathaniel was one of the commissioners appointed to consult with the constables of the various Connecticut towns about "pressing men for the expedition into the Ninigret country." He was also active in church affairs, being a deacon of the Wethersfield church. When dissension arose in the congregations at Wethersfield, Hartford and Windsor, Nathaniel Dickinson and his son John were active in the organization of a new settlement under the leadership of Rev. John Russell. Nathaniel was one of the 59 men who signed the agreement to settle Hadley, Massachusetts, on 18 April 1659. He was selected to survey the original 59 home lots of eight acres each. In Hadley Nathaniel was again chosen town clerk in 1660. He took the freeman's oath on 26 march 1661, and the same year was a member of the committee to erect a meeting house. Soon after the establishment of Hadley, settlers began taking up land on the west side of the Connecticut River. On 21 January 1660/1 Nathaniel was a member of the committee appointed to lay out home lots on the west bank. Twenty-eight lots were surveyed for the original proprietors, among whom were sons Nathaniel, Samuel, and Obadiah, and stepson William Gull. These four were also among the petitioners for a separate township in 1667. The town of Hatfield was established in 1669. In his later years, Nathaniel, Sr., settled briefly in Hatfield but returned to Hadley shortly before his death. Nathaniel was an original member of the Hampshire Troop, organized in March 1663/4 under Capt. John Pynchon. During King Philip's War, 1675-77, Nathaniel lost three sons - John, Joseph, and Azariah. Another son, Obadiah, was captured by the Indians and taken into Canada but escaped and returned in 1679. Nathaniel served as selectman, assessor, and school trustee at times and was a deacon in the Hadley church. Nathaniel died in Hadley on 16 June 1676. He wrote his will on 29 May 1676, ten days after his son John was killed in the Turner's Falls battle. The will was proved the following 26 September, and an inventory of his estate, totaling Đ502 2s 6d, was taken on 22 December 1676. "I Nathll Dickenson Senr late of hadfeyld now of Hadley in ye County of Hampshire upon Conecticutt do make & ordane this my Last will & testement as followeth. Impr making a full surrender of myself Soul & Body unto ye handes of God my Creator & Jesus Christ my alone Saviour & Redeemer relying on him for all yt I need & hope for in this world & yet which is to Come & leaving my body to decent Buriall in hope of a Blessed Resurrection I doe Bestow yt Portion of Outward estate which ye Lord in his fatherlie mercy hath Blessed me with in manner following my debts & funerall expences being first payd I doe give unto my son Nehemiah my house & Barn & homelott with all the preveledges & Appurtenances thereto belonging as alsoe one half of my meadow land in Hadley (except what is after accepted [excepted] with the preveledgs and Appurtenances thereto belonging to be to him & his heirs forever besides what was Thomas Websters. I give to my Daughter in Law Dorcus Widow to my son Azariah four acres & a half of meaddow Land Bounded by my son Thomas his Land East, Francis west, John Hubbard North & ye highway South to be to her & her heirs for Ever. Further I give or abte to her all yt was my due for ye Rent of the rent of my Land from her & Also Doe give to her yt money yt was due to me for my oxen, and also three Pounds yt was Due for a barrell (unpayd) of pork, all & every of ye premises I give to ye sd Dorcus as her own to be her & her heirs for Ever. The rest of my meaddow in Hadly I doe give to be equally Divided betweene all my sons (except Nehemiah) and my Daughters Francis Dickenson and Hannah Clary which my exutors shall either equally divide to all my aforesayd children or else pay to Each their proportion of ye sayd Landes as it shall be Prized on Country Pay within too yeares after my Decease to ym and their heirs for Ever. To my son Thomas I give my house & Lot I Bought of Mr Wattson he paying to Mr Wattson ye thirty pounds yt is yet Due for ye same or if like it not on those termes than it shall be Cast in among my Dvidable Estate to my children. I give to my son Samll my house & homelott in Hatfeild to be to him & his heirs for Ever together wth ye Preveleges & Appurtenances thereto belonging. To my son Obadiah I give all ye Rest of my land in Hatfeild wth ye preveleges & Appurtenance thereto belonging to be to him & his heirs for Ever. And my meaning & will is that these my two sons Samuel & Obadiah shall not come in for a share of my Land in Hadley But given them in Hatfeild shall be instead of it. To my son William Gull I give yt three poundes wch he oweth me for a barll of Pork. All ye Rest of my estate I give to be equally devided amongst all my sons my Daughters Francis Dickinson & Hannah Clary having herein equall shares with there Brethren. I do make & ordane my two sons Thomas & nehemiah Executors of this my last will & testament hereunto as my Last will & testement have subjoyned my hand & seal this present 29th May 1676. Nathaniel Dickenson. In the presence of Joseph Kellogg [and] John Russell, Jur. The Desire of ye testatoe is yt ye share given unto Francis Dickenson may of she see meete be given to Samll Gillits Children. [New England Historical and Genealogical Register Vol. 152]"

      2. From the family files at the Windsor, Connecticut, Historical Society is the following typescript:
      "An Early Bee Hunter's Adventures. A true story by Francis McGee Thompson.
      The first settlement made by the English upon the 'Long' river of the Indians, the 'Fresh' river of the Dutch, now called the Connecticut, was made by William Holmes of Plymouth, who sailed into the mouth in October, 1633, and unloaded from his vessel at a point just below the mouth of Windsor river, the already prepared frame of his house. When he returned to Plymouth he took with him some of the sachems of that region, whom the Pequots had driven out. The Dutch from Manhattan had traded on the 'Long' river with the natives since 1614 and intending to forestall the English, they had early in 1633 erected a small fort where Hartford now stands, which they named 'Good Hope.' The Dutch trained the two small guns in their fort on Holmes' ship and ordered him to stop, but he told them he had commission from the Governor of Plymouth to go up the river, 'and if they did shoote, they must obey their order and proceede.' So he proceeded to his destination. Within two years, churches at Dorchester, Watertown and New Town, with their pastors, had moved bodily to the Connecticut, and settled at Windsor, Wethersfield and Hartford. Among the earliest from Dorchester to Windsor, was Jonathan Gillet, or as more frequently spelled in early times, 'Gillit.' He subsequently removed to Simsbury, and raised a family of ten children.
      His third son, Joseph, (bapt. 25 Jul 1641) was one of the early settlers of Deerfield, later the frontier town of the Connecticut valley, and was killed by King Philip's Indians at the massacre of Lothrop and his men at Bloody Brook, 18 Sep 1675. Samuel, younger brother of Joseph, was slain on the retreat of Capt. William Turner after the fight at Turner Falls, 19 May 1676. The next year the widow of Samuel married Stephen Jennings of Hatfield, and that same year she with two of her children, were taken prisoners to Canada. While a prisoner she became the mother of a babe whom she named Captivity Jennings. These prisoners were rescued in 1678. Joseph Gillet was the father of seven children, and his son, John, born 10 Jun 1671 was the hero of this story. [Story continues in notes of Joseph Gillet.]"

      3. 20 Mar 2008 http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~bart/Gillet.htm:
      "Samuel Gillett baptized in Windsor 22 Jan. 1642/3, married Hannah Dickinson 23 Sept. 1668 in Hadley (Hatfield?), MA, killed 19 May 1676 at Turner's Falls. Samuel & Hannah settled on the frontier at Hatfield, MA. Hannah was born 6 Dec. 1648 in Wethersfield, died after 1687. She was a daughter of Sgt. John & Frances Dickinson. She married (2) Stephen Jennings in Hatfield 15 May 1677 and they removed to Brookfield, MA. Samuel and Hannah had 4 children. Samuel was with Capt. Turner at the Falls Fight at Peskeompsinson [Sheldon, George, "A History of Deerfield, Massachusetts" (1895), 2:173.] in which 37 English were lost including Samuel and Capt. Turner. [Williams, John, "The Redeemed Captive Returning to Zion" (1795/1966), 110.]
      Hannah had been remarried only a few months when on 19 Sept. 1677 she and her 5-year old daughter Mary and her 4-year old son Samuel were captured during an Indian attack on Hatfield. Hannah was pregnant at the time. When the authorities refused to pursue the Indians in fear of ambush, her husband and Benjamin Wait set out together to recover the captives who were headed for Canada. After a journey that lasted all winter they reached Canada in January and negotiated a ransom with the French. There Hannah had a daughter she named Captivity Jennings on 22 Jan. 1678. Hannah returned to home with her children in June 1678. [Spear, Burton W., "Search for the Passengers of the Mary & John, 1630," 5:59.] On 22 July 1710 Stephen Jennings while engaged in making hay was ambushed and killed by Indians at Brookfield. Captivity Jennings married Abigah Bartlett. He too was killed by Indians Oct. 1708. [Stiles, Henry R., "The History of Ancient Wethersfield, CT" (1904), 328.]
      Samuel Gillett, son of Samuel and Hannah, was born ca. 1673, married Hannah HASTINGS 9 Jan. 1697/8."

      4. Article from the Gillette family file at the Windsor Historical Society by Gary Boyd Roberts entitled "Genealogies of Conn. families from the New England Historical and Genealogical Register," vol. II, Baltimore, 1983, Gen. Pub. Co., Inc., pp. 43:
      "Samuel Gillett (son of Jonathan), of Windsor, Conn., and Hatfield, Mass., baptized in Windsor 22 Jan 1642/3, slain in the Turners Falls, Mass., fight 19 May 1676. He married in Hadley, Mass., fight 19 May 1676. He married in Hadley, Mass., 23 Sept 1668, Hannah Dickenson of Wethersfield, Conn., and Hadley, Mass., born in Wethersfield 6 Dec 1648, died after 1687, daughter of Sergt. John Dickenson. She married secondly, in Hatfield, 15 May 1677, Stephen Jennings of Hatfield.
      On 19 Sep 1677 Hannah (Dickinson) Gillett Jennings was captured with two of her Gillett children and fourteen others by Indians. She was taken to Canada, rescued by the heroic work of her husband and others and reached home again about June 1678 with their two Gillett children and her new born daughter of March 1678, Captivity Jennings.
      [Four children listed.]
      ('Genealogies of Hadley Families Embracing the Early Settlers of the Towns of Hatfield, South Hadley, Amherst and Granby,' by L.M. Boltwood, 1862. The 1863 Hadley History; 1910 Hatfield History.)"

      5. The publication "Search for the Passengers of the "Mary & John" 1630," by Burton W. Spear (Toledo, OH; The Mary & John Clearing House, 1989-2004), 1:32-33:
      "JONATHAN GILLETT - b.a. 1600, England, d. 29 Aug. 1677, Windsor, Conn. m. Mary Dolbiar, 29 Mar. 1634, St. Andrews Church, Colyton, Devon, England (1607-1685), dau. of Rawkey Dolbiar & Mary Michell of Cadhayne, near Colyton.
      Jonathan Gillett came on the "Mary & John" in 1630, either alone or with his younger brother, Nathan. He returned to England to marry and then sailed back to New England soon after. He was the son of Rev. William Gillett, Rector of Chaffcombe, Somerset in 1609, who d. 1641. He served in the Pequot War in 1637 and moved his family from Dorchester, Mass. to Windsor, Conn. in the summer of 1639. He was the Constable of Windsor in 1665 and in 1671 he was granted land in Simsbury, Conn. for his service in the Pequot War. Estate: 273 pounds.
      Ten children (1635-1650) (NER 100:275), 75 grandchildren, and 243 great-grandchildren identified.
      Children:
      1. Jonathan Gillett, Jr.-b.a. 1635, Dorchester, Mass., d. between 1694 & 1698. m. (1) Anna Kelsey, 23 Apr. 1661 (1634-1676), dau. of William Kelsey, the emigrant. m. (2) Miriam Dibble, 14 Dec. 1676, Windsor, dau. of Thomas Dibble. Estate: 360 pounds. Four children by first wife (1665-1673) (NER 100:275), and six by second (1678-1685), and 13 grandchildren.
      2. Cornelius Gillett-b.a. July 1636, Dorchester, Mass., d. 26 June 1711, Windsor, Conn. m. Priscilla Kelsey, who d. 1772, dau. of William Kelsey, the emigrant. Estate: 44 pounds. Nine children (1659-1678) (NER 100:277), and 28 grandchildren.
      3. Mary Gillett-b. 1638, Dorchester, Mass. m. Peter Brown, 15 July 1658, who d. 1691, called the son of Peter Brown of the Mayflower (1620) but this has been disputed. He bought land in Windsor in 1658 and moved to the Josias Ellsworth place in 1664. Estate: 408 pounds. Eleven children (Windsor-118) and 61 grandchildren. One of his descendants was John Brown, the Abolitionist.
      4. Anna Gillett-b. 29 Dec. 1639, Windsor, Conn., d. 4 Jan. 1711. m. Samuel Filley, 29 Oct. 1663, Windsor (1643-1712), s. of William Filley, the emigrant. He moved to Simsbury, Conn., 1669. Twelve children (1667-1683) (Windsor-250), and 26 grandchildren.
      5. Joseph Gillett-bpt. 25 July 1641, Windsor, Conn., d. 18 Sept. 1675, killed by Indians at Bloody Brook, near Deerfield, Mass. m. Elizabeth Hawkes (1646-1681), dau. of John & Elizabet Hawkes. Moved from Windsor to Deerfield, 1675. Seven children (1664-1675) (NER 101:46), and 19 grandchildren.
      6. Samuel Gillet-bpt. 22 Jan. 1642, Windsor, Conn., d. 19 May 1676, killed in the fight at Turner's Falls, Mass. m. Hannah Dickinson, 23 Sept. 1668, Hadley, Mass. (b. 1648), dau. of John Dickinson. She m. (2) Stephen Jennings, 1677. The year after Samuel's death, Hannah remarried, became pregnant and was captured by Indians in the attack on Hatfield, Mass., along with her daughter Mary (age 5) and son Samuel, Jr. (age 4). When the authorities refused to pursue the Indians, her husband, Stephen Jennings and Benjamin Waite, set out toward Canada to recover the captives. After traveling thru the winter they arrived in Canada in January, 1678 and negotiated a ransom with the French. There, Hannah had a daughter she named Captivity, and she returned to Deerfield, with her other two children and the captives in June. Four children (1669-1674) (NER 101:46), and 14 grandchildren.
      7. John Gillett-b. 5 Oct. 1644, Windsor, Conn., d. 1682. m. Mercy Barber, 8 July 1669, Windsor (1651-1725), dau. of Thomas Barber, the emigrant. She m. (2) Capt. George Norton, 1683. Seven children (1671-1682) (NER 101:46), and 29 grandchildren.
      8. Abigail Gillett-bpt. 28 June 1646, Windsor, d. 1648.
      9. Jeremiah Gillett-b. 12 Feb. 1647, Windsor, Conn., d. 1 Mar. 1692, Windsor. m. Deborah Bartlett, 15 Oct. 1685, Windsor (b. 1666), dau. of Benjamin Bartlett & Deborah Barnard. Four children (1686-1692) (Fyler-30).
      10. Josiah Gillett-bpt. 14 July 1650, Windsor, Conn., d. 29 Oct. 1736, Colchester, Conn. m. Joanna Taintor, 20 June 1676 (1657-1735), dau. of Michael Taintor of Branford, Conn. (See NER 4:169). Res: Windsor and Colchester, Conn. Eleven children (1678-1701) (NER Apr. 1893, p. 168), and 53 grandchildren.
      References:
      Gillett & Allied Families, by L. S. Gillett, 1930.
      Gillett Family in Conn., Vol. 1.
      Gillett Families, by B. B. Aldridge, 1955. TAG 42:160 (English Wills).
      TAG 56:129 (Nathan)
      NER 100:272 (Genealogy).
      NER 101:43, 153, 237, 283 (Genealogy).
      NER Apr. 1893, p. 168 (Genealogy).
      TAG Apr. 1971 (Dispute French Ancestry)."

      MARRIAGE:
      1. From the book "New England Marriages Prior to 1700," p. 304 for the Gillett family: "Gillet, Samuel (1642-1676), Hatfield & Hannah Dickinson (1648?, 1646-), m/2 Stephen Jennings 1677; 23 Sep 1668; Hadley."