Wenham, Essex County, Massachusetts was settled in 1636. The first settlers called it Enon or Salem Village. It was officially set off from the Town of Salem on May 10, 1643.
John Kilham was born in England. His parents were Austin and Alice Kilham. He came to New England with his parents and settled in Wenham, Essex County, Massachusetts.
According to Preston, he married Alice Pickworth who was the daughter of John and Ann Pickworth of Salem. The New England Historical and Genealogical Register says he married Hannah Pickworth.
John's children included:
Hannah Kilham (April, 29 1660),
Samuel Kilham (August 1, 1662, married Deborah Dorn),
Abigail Kilham Masters (1666, married Abraham Masters).
Anne Kilham Masters (April, 1673, married Samuel Masters), and
Benjamin Kilham (February 3, 1674).
Ann and Abigail married their cousins; sons of Nathaniel Masters and Ruth Pickworth.
Various spellings of Kilham: Callum, Killam, Killiam, Killom, Killum
Children of
Austin Kilham
and Alice Gorball
Old Style Calendar
Before 1752 the year began on Lady Day, March 25th,. Dates between January 1st and March 24th were at the end of the year. Old Style (O.S.) and New Style (N.S.) are used to indicate whether the year has been adjusted. Often both dates are used.
Early European settlers in the American colonies were mostly farmers and craftsmen. They had to work hard to provide daily neccesities for themselves.
It was common for bequests to include wearing apparel.
History of Captain Roswell Preston of Hampton, Connecticut, His Ancestry and Descendant by Edward M. Preston published by Edward M. Preston, 1899
John [Kilham] second son of Austin and Alice Killam, born in England, m. Alice Pickworth, lived at Wenham, Mass., where the birth of his children is recorded as follows:
Hannah, daughter of John Kellnm, borne 29 April, 1660.
Samuel, sonn of John Killim, borne 1 August, 1662.
Anne, daughter of John Killam, borne the 4(1) mo. 1673.
Benjamin, son of John Killim, borne 3 February, 1674.
Essex County, Massachusetts was created on May 10, 1643 by the General Court of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, when it ordered "that the whole plantation within this jurisdiction be divided into four sheires."
The New England Historical and Genealogical Register by Henry Fitz-Gilbert Waters, New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1902
John Kilham(Austin2 Henry1) married Hannah Pickworth, daughter of John and Ann Pickworth of Salem, Beverly and Manchester.
There were probably other children than those here named. Excepting Abigail, they are here given in the order as recorded at Wenham.
Children:
i. Harriet,b. April 29, 1660.
ii. Samuel, b. Aug. 1, 1662; m. Deborah
iii. Abigail. This dau. is not on record, but circumstances show that her birth occurred between 1662 and 1673. She m. Abram Masters, at Manchester, May 18, 1691. They lived at Wenham several years, as shown by the baptismal record of a number of their children.
iv. Ann, b. Mar. 4, 1673; m. Samuel Masters, at Manchester, Dec. 25, 1698. Ann and Abigail m. the Masters brothers (sons of Nathaniel and Ruth (Pickworth) Masters), their cousins. Ann and Samuel Masters also resided at Wenham.
v. Benjamin, b. Feb. 3, 1674.
Colonial legislatures granted land to a group of settlers (proprietors) who chose how to divide the land. They had some rights of governance.
The Descendants of Moses and Sarah Kilham Porter by John S. Lawerence
John Pickworth. The date of his birth is unknown. He was at Salem, Mass. in 1637. He went to Plymouth Colony temporarily in 1631, and married there. The similarity of family names is presumptive evidence that his wife was Ann, daughter of Edmund Chandler.
His will is on record and was probated in November, 1663. He lived at Salem and Beverley, Mass., and was one of the proprietors of Jeffreys Creek, now Manchester, Mass.
