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An American Family History

Elizabeth Brewer Lewis

Settlers from Salem purchased land in an area known as Saugus from the Indians. This land originally included the towns of Swampscott, Nahant, Saugus and Lynnfield. In 1630 the land was incorporated as the Town of Saugus. The settlers changed the name to Lynn in 1637 in honor of their first official minister, Samuel Whiting, from King’s Lynn, England.

Elizabeth Brewer Lewis was born on May 26, 1661. She was the daughter of Crispus and Mary Brewer.

She married Lieutenant John Lewis on April 18, 1683 in Lynn.  John was born in Lynn on March 30, 1660. His parents were John Lewis and Hannah Marshall.

Their children were Elizabeth Lewis Graves (April 7, 1684, married General Samuel Graves), Hannah Lewis Stocker (January 22, 1685), Sarah Lewis (April 5, 1688), John Lewis (September 23, 1690), Nathaniel Lewis (January 18, 1692), Edmund Lewis (December 8, 1695), Rebecca Lewis Pratt (June 18, 1699), Tabatha Lewis Ingalls (married Nathaniel Ingalls son of Nathaniel Ingalls and Ann Collins), and Thomas Lewis (May 10, 1708). 

John died in 1711.
Lady Day Before 1752 the year began on March 25th. Dates between January 1st and March 24th were at the end of the year, not the beginning.
Children of Mary and
Crispus Brewer, Sr.
  • Crispus Brewer, Jr.
  • Sarah Brewer Graves
  • Mary Brewer Richards
  • Elizabeth Brewer Lewis
  • Abigail Brewer Luscomb
    		•
     

    General Samuel Graves, son of Samuel Graves (2), was born in Lynn, Massachusetts, August 2, 1684. He married, February 8, 1708, Elizabeth Lewis, born April 7, 1684, daughter of John Lewis Jr. and Elizabeth his wife. Among their children was a son Samuel. (from Genealogical and Personal Memoirs, Volume 2 by William Richard Cutter)

    		  
     

    Essex Institute Historical Collections by Essex Institute, Peabody Essex Museum, 1907

    		 
    When the colonists arrived in America they continued to use British monetary units, namely the pound, shilling and pence for which £1 equalled 20s and 1s equalled 12d. The form lb is actually an abbreviation of the Latin word libra. li and £ were also used as abbreviations. In 1792 the dollar was established as the basic unit of currency.
    When the colonists arrived in America they continued to use British monetary units, namely the pound, shilling and pence for which £1 equalled 20s and 1s equalled 12d. The form lb is actually an abbreviation of the Latin word libra. li and £ were also used as abbreviations. In 1792 the dollar was established as the basic unit of currency.

    John Lewis, born in Lynn, Mar. 30, 1660, was a lieutenant, and was made a freeman Apr. 18,1691. In the division of his father's lands he had the south half next the sea. He died intestate about a year after his father, and his widow Elizabeth was appointed administratrix, June 27, 1711. The inventory of his estate, taken July 11, 1711, is as follows:

    To an house, barn, & land adjoining to about twenty acres or more, 160 00 00
    To 15 acres upland & meadow in same field, 60 00 00
    To 7 acres Salt Marsh, 42 00 00
    To Common Lotte, 42 00 00
    To Forty sheep & two swine, 10 00 00
    To Cow & Tools for husbandry, 4 07 00
    To Wareing Cloth & Gun, 11 11 00
    To Fodder, beds & bedding, £8, & house hold stuff, £4 05, 12 05 00
    To Cash, 4 10 00
    Real Estate £304, Personal, £67 13 0
    Debt due the estate, 12 0
    £68 5 0
    Dr to sundry creditors, 83 9 8
    Allowance for youngest son until 6 years of age, 24 0 0
    Total, £118 16 2

    John Lewis married Elizabeth Brewer, April 18, 1683, in Lynn.

    Children of John and Elizabeth, born in Lynn:
    34. Elizabeth, b. April 7, 1684; m. Feb. 8, 1708-9, Samuel Graves, Jr., b. Aug. 2, 1684, in Lynn, son of Samuel and Sarah (Brewer) Graves, and had the following children born in Lynn:
    (1) Samuel, b. Jan. 19, 1710;
    (2) Sarah, b. Feb. 1, 1713; m. (int. Nov. 16, 1735), Job Collins.
    35. Hannah, b. Jan. 22, 1685-6; m. Nov. 13, 1711, Lieut. Samuel Stocker, b. Nov. 29,1684, son of Ebenezer and Sarah (Marshall) Stocker of Lynn. She died Dec. 16, 1760. Children, born in Lynn:
    (1) John, b. Feb. 15,1711-12; m. 1st, Hannah Richards, m., 2nd, Ruth Breed;
    (2) Samuel, b. July 28,1717, (twin); m., 1st, Elizabeth , pub. Oct.21,1743;

    m., 2d, May 25,1757, Priscilla Rhodes;
    (3) Joseph, b. July 28,1717, (twin). Samuel Stocker's mother and his wife Hannah Lewis' grandmother, were sisters, both being daughters of Capt. Thomas Marshall.
    36. Sarah, b. April 5, 1688; d. young
    37. John, b. Sept . 23, 1690; d. young.
    38. Nathaniel, b. Jan. 18, 1692-3; d. young.
    39. Edmund, b. Dec. 8, 1695.
    40. Rebecca, b. June 18, 1699; m. Feb. 17, 1725-6, Grover Pratt, son of Richard and Rebecca Pratt of Malden. He died Jan. 14, 1790. Had:
    (1) Richard, b. Nov. 27, 1728, in Lynn; d. Apr. 25, 1816; m. his cousin, Rebecca, dau. of Nathaniel, Jr. and Tabitha (Lewis) Ingalls, born Dec. 20, 1732. His "Common Place Book " has been published.
    41. Tabatha, b. July 22, 1702; m. Jan. 1, 1722, at Lynn, Nathaniel Ingalls, Jr., b. Dec. 25, 1692, son of Nathaniel and Anne Ingalls. He d. Sept. 23, 1772.
    42. Thomas, b. May 10,1708.

    Any man entering a colony or becoming a a member the church, was not free. He was not forced to work, but his movements were carefully observed to see if they followed the Puritanical ideal. After this probationary period, he became a "freeman." Men then took the Oath of a Freeman where they vowed to defend the Commonwealth and not to overthrow the government.

     

         

    ©Roberta Tuller 2012
    tuller.roberta@gmail.com