If you have any information, about all spellings of Hammonds,
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This name originated in England and is said to be traced to two kinsmen
of William, the Conqueror, who
crossed with his army from Normandy to England, in the year 1066.
These young warriors were descendants
of Rollo, while the Conqueror was the eldest son. The earliest
spelling of the name was Fitzhamer, which
sounds a long way from Hanmond. But when we consider that the Norman
method of designating the son from
father, "Fitz" was simply a prefix used to make this distinction;
Fitzhamer was simply the son of Hamer.
This family was first represented in England by Sir Robert Fitzhamer,
7th Count of Coneile in Normandy, and
one of the most illustrious of all the Knights in the train of the
conqueror. He became Lord Cardiff of Wales, Lord of Tewkesbury, Earl of
Gloucester, in England, and was made a free Prince of Wales, styled by
the King, E Robert The Great by the Grace of God, Prince of Glamorgan,
Earl of Coneile." He was also
Commanding General of the army against the French. This family became
prominently identified with the Church and served the cause as Abbots and
Bishops, and in many other capacities.
The Hammonds of St. Albans Court, Kent County, England, are perhaps
the oldest direct line in England, which can be traced to the reign of
Henry VIII when John Hammond was affiliated with the Convent of St. Albans.
Hammonds have held high offices in different periods of English
history. Dr.. Hammond was Lt. General in
Cromwell's Army. It was his grandson, Colonel Robert Hammond, Governor
of the Isle of' Wight, who gave
protection and shelter to King Charles I, when he was driven from
the throne. Major General John Hammond of Anne Arundel County, Maryland,
born 1643 on the Isle of Wight, was the first of the name in the Southern
Colony. He was one of the most distinguished of the early colonial officers,
filling the important position of Judge of the Vice Admiralty. He was also
a member of his Majesty's Council.
This family intermarried with most notable families and their descendants
are to be found in many states
today.
John Hammond ( ) During
the reigns of both Charles I and II the Hammonds were high in office in
England. John Hammond was Court Physician to King James I and his
son was Chaplain to Charles I; another son went to Virginia and became
a member of the House of Burgesses for Isle of Wight County, 1635-1652:
he then came into Maryland where he remained a few years and returned to
England and wrote a book called "Leah and Rachel" describing the colonies
of Maryland and Virginia. A third son was a Lieutenant General in
Cromwell's Army; his grandson Col. Robert Hammond, son of Thomas, was governor
of the Isle of Wight, England, to whom Charles I fled for protection.
The first of the family in Maryland was Major General John Hammond, buried
in St. Anne's Churchyard where his tomb is. He was one of the most distinguished
of the Colonial officals, filling the important offices of Judge of the
Vice Admiralty; Major General of the Western Shore; member of the House
of Burgesses; Justice of the Provincial Court and a member of their Majestie's
Council 1698-1707. He married Mary Howard.
John Hammond, The Fuller and cloth manufacturer of Melford, County
Suffolk, England, is the earliest known ancestor with whom it is possible
to connect Thomas Hammond, of Newtown, Massachusetts. John Hammonde, "The
Fuller", was probably a relative of John Hammonde, "The Elder," also of
Melford, although he is not mentioned in the latter's will. John Hammonde,
The Fuller married Johanna--------. Issue, John Hammonde, The Clothier,
of Lavenham, Suffolk, England, who was born in 1500; married Agnes-------.
Had 5 children. William Hammonde, who was settled in Melford, Suffolk,
England married Mary-------. Had 8 children. Thomas Hammond, first of his
line in the USA. (see Massachuetts) was one of the eight.
WILLIAM HAMMOND
ORIGIN: Lavenham, Suffolk MIGRATION: 1631
FIRST RESIDENCE: Watertown
OCCUPATION: Husbandman.
CHURCH MEMBERSHIP: Admission to Watertown church prior to 25 May 1636 implied by freemanship.
FREEMAN: 25 May 1636 [MBCR 1:371].
EDUCATION: His inventory included "one great Bible and 3 other books"
valued at 13s.
OFFICES: Watertown selectman, 8 November 1647 [WaTR 1:10]. With Isaac
Stearns, arbiter in
dispute between John Wincoil and Benjamin Crisp [WaTR 1:14]. "Old
Goodman Hammond" was appointed
to a committee to assign seats in the meetinghouse, 17 November
1656 [WaTR 1:47].
ESTATE: On 26 February 1629/30 William Hammond was declared a bankrupt
in England and "the 20th
of November after that date he departe[d] the land and fleeth into
New England [NEHGR 106:83,
citing a 1656 law suit against William Hammond]. (This would place
him on the Lyon which sailed
from Bristol on I December 1630 and arrived in New England the following
February [WP 2:317].)
In the "year 1645 Rose his mother dyeth ... but now in the year
1647 his son Thomas come from
New England to be admitted to the land" [NEHGR 106:83]. On 22 November
1647 "W[illia]m Hamond
granted a letter of attorney unto Thomas Hamond his son to ask &
demand of the lord of the manor
the possession of certain lands in Lavenham in Suffolk which were
the possession of Rose Steward
his mother" [Aspinwall 112].
On 25 July 1636 William Hammond was granted forty acres in the Great
Dividend [WaBOP 5]; granted
eight acres in the Remote Meadows, 26 June 1637 [WaBOP 8]; granted
a farm of one hundred fifty-
five acres, 10 May 1642 [WaBOP 12].
In the Watertown Inventory of Grants William Hammond held six parcels:
homestall of forty acres;
three acres of meadow; forty acres of upland being a Great Dividend;
eighteen acres of upland
beyond the Further Plain; eight acres of Remote Meadow; and four
acres of upland [WaBOP 108].
In the Inventory of Possessions he held three parcels: three acres
of upland; two acres of
meadow; and another two acres of meadow [WaBOP 146]. In the Composite
Inventory he held six
parcels: homestall of thirty-four acres; three acres of meadow;
forty acres of upland being a
Great Dividend; eighteen acres of upland beyond the Further Plain;
eight acres of Remote Meadow;
and a farm of one hundred fifty-six acres [WaBOP 61 ].
In his will, dated 1 July 1662 and proved 16 December 1662, "William
Hammond of Watertowne ...
now about ninety years of age" bequeathed to "my loving & dear
wife Elizabeth Hammond my whole
estate" for life, and after her death to "my son John Hammond all
my houses & lands"; to "Thomas
Hammond son of my son Thomas Hammond deceased" £40 when twenty-one,
but if he dies before that
then "the £40 to be equally divided between the children of
my daughter House & daughter Barnes
[i.e., Barron's] children"; to "daughter Barnes" £30; to "the
four children of my daughter
Elizabeth House deceased" £5 apiece; to "Adam Smith son of
my daughter Sarah ... one mare colt"
and to "my daughter Sarah Smith" £5 [MPR 2:88-90, Case #10262].
The inventory of the estate of William Hammond totalled £467
16s. 9d., including £318 in real
estate: "one dwelling house & an orchard," £24; "23 acres
of pasture land," £69; "11 acres of
broken-up land," £48; "15 acres of meadow," £90; "8
acres of meadow remote," £15; "18 acres of
land in lieu of township," £6; "1 Great Dividend, 40 acres,"
£40; "1 farm, 160 acres," £20; and
"a part of a barn," £6 [MPR 2:90-93, Case # 10262].
BIRTH: Baptized Lavenham, Suffolk, 30 October 1575, son of Thomas and Rose (Trippe) Hammond.
DEATH: Watertown 8 October 1662 "aged about ninety-four [sic]" [WaVR 25].
MARRIAGE: Lavenham, Suffolk, 9 June 1605 Elizabeth Paine, baptized
Lavenham 1 1 September 1586,
daughter of William and Agnes (Neves) Paine. Elizabeth arrived in
New England in 1634 on the
Francis with her three youngest children [Hotten 279]. She died
Watertown 27 September 1670
"aged about ninety years [sic]" [WaVR 33].
CHILDREN:
i WILLIAM, bp. Lavenham 20 September 1607; killed by Indians June
1636 [WP 3:270-71, 276,
284-85], apparently unmarried.
ii ANNE, bp. Lavenham 19 November 1609; d. there 7 June 1615.
iii JOHN, bp. Lavenham 5 December 1611; d. there 16 August 1620.
iv ANNE, bp. Lavenham 14 July 1616; m. (1) by 1637 Timothy Hawkins
(eldest child b.
Watertown 10 June 1637 [WaVR 4]); m. (2) Watertown 14 December 1653 Ellis
Barron [WaVR 6;
TAG 20:135-36].
v THOMAS, bp. Lavenham 17 September 1618; returned to England 1647/8
to reclaim his
grandmother's lands; m. by 1655 Hannah Cross of Ipswich [Bond 270]. (Their
only child, Thomas, was born at Watertown on 11 July 1656; Thomas Hammond,
the
father, had died on 10 December 1655 and Hannah, the mother, died on 24
March
1656[/7] [WaVR 18].)
vi ELIZABETH, b. about 1619 (aged fifteen on 30 April 1634 [Hotten
279]); m. about April
1636 Samuel House of Scituate (see COMMENTS below).
vii SARAH, bp. Lavenham 21 October 1623; m. by 1640 Richard Smith
of Long Island [NYGBR
121:19-22; WJ 4:23132].
viii JOHN, bp. Lavenham 2 July 1626; m. (1) by 1653 Abigail Salter
(eldest child b. Watertown
3 February 1653/4 [WaVR 17]; in her will of 1 December 1660 Abigail Salter
of
Dedham, Essex, made a bequest to "Abigail Hammond, my daughter, of New
England"
[NEHGR 55:107-08]); m. (2) Charlestown 2 March 166[3/]4 Sarah Nichols [ChVR
1:44;
Wyman 706]; m. (3) Rowley 7 November [1686?] Prudence (Wade) (Crosby) Cotton,
daughter of Jonathan Wade and widow of Anthony Crosby and Seaborn Cotton
[Rowley
Fam 90; NEHGR
ASSOCIATIONS: Elizabeth Paine, wife of William Hammond, was sister
of the following immigrants:
William Paine of Watertown and Ipswich; Dorothy (Paine) Eire, wife
of Simon Eire of Watertown
and Boston; and Phebe (Paine) Page, wife of JOHN PAGE of Watertown
[NEHGR 69:248-52; 79:82-84,
101:242-45].
On 10 November 1633 "Rose Steward of the County of Suffolk) widow"
made her will, but it was not
probated until 27 June 1649 [Archdeaconry of Sudbury Wills, 247
Ashton]. Among her many bequests
were the following: to "my wellbeloved daughter Elizabeth Livermore
in the county of Essex widow"
to "Matthie Livermore my beloved grandchild daughter of the said
Elizabeth"; to "William Hammond
the younger the son of William Hammond my son"; to "Elizabeth Hamond
daughter of the said William
Hamond my son my beloved grandchild"; to "Hanna Hammond another
daughter of my son William
Hamonde my beloved grandchild"; to "Thomas Hammond another child
of my son Hamond's"; to "Sarah
Hammond another daughter of my son Hammond's"; to "John Hammond
another of my son Hammond's
children"; to "Daniell Livermore my well beloved grandchild &
the son of my daughter Elizabeth";
to "John Livermore her son"; and to "Sara her daughter." She also
made a bequest to the poor of
Lavenham, and asked to be buried in Lavenham churchyard.
There is no apparent connection between the widow Hammond of Lynn
and the Hammonds of Watertown.
COMMENTS: The Hammond family came to New England in at least three
stages. In late 1630 or early
1631 John Winthrop Jr. noted receipt of £7 5s. from "Goody
Hammond to send her husband" [WP 3:6].
This supports the conclusion that William Hammond was a passenger
on the Lyon when it sailed
from Bristol in late 1631.
On 26 September 1633 Governor John Winthrop wrote to Sir Simonds
D'Ewes, informing him that
"Yours by young Hamond I received," indicating that William Hammond
Jr. probably sailed for New
England in one of the ships that arrived in the fall of 1633 [WP
3:139). His sister Anne and
brother Thomas may also have come at this time, for they are not
included a year later in the
passenger list of the Francis, which sailed from Ipswich in the
spring of 1634 with Elizabeth
Hammond (aged 47), Elizabeth Hammond (aged 15), Sarah Hammond (aged
10) and John Hammond (aged 7)
on board [Hotten 279].
On 6 November 1660 Watertown selectmen sent the constables to "Old
Hamond to let him know, that
contrary to order of town, he had entertained into his family such
a person as is likely to prove
chargeable, do therefore desire him to rid the town of such an encumbrance
or otherwise to bear
the burden thereof himself' [WaTR 1:66].
In his record of admissions to Scituate church Rev. John Lathrop
entered on 14 April 1636
"Elizabeth Hammon my sister having a dismission from the church
at Watertown" [NEHGR 9:280];
Lothrop's first wife, Hannah House, was sister of Samuel House,
since Lothrop refers to her by
maiden name but also calls her sister, the admission to Scituate
church may have taken place
after the contract of marriage, but before the marriage itself (note,
however, that the first
child of the couple was baptized on. 23 October 1636 [NEHGR 9:281])
[NEHGR 66:356-59]. Various
sources give John Lothrop of Scituate a second wife who was a Hammond;
this is based on a false
deduction from the entry discussed above.
If you have comments or suggestions, email me C. Richard Matthews