It was common for bequests to include wearing apparel.
George Wheeler was born in 1605 in England. His father may have been Thomas Wheeler.
He married Catherine Pinn (Pyn).
William Wheeler (1631, married Hannah Buss),
Thomas Wheeler (1633, married Hannah Harrod),
Elizabeth Wheeler Fletcher (1635, married Francis Fletcher),
Sarah Wheeler Dudley (1638, married Francis Dudley),
Ruth Wheeler Hartwell (1641, married Samuel Hartwell),
John Wheeler (1643, married Sarah Larkin),
Mary Wheeler Fox (1645, married Eliphalet Fox), and
Hannah Wheeler Fletcher (1654, married Samuel Fletcher).
George brought his family to America about 1640.
He took the oath of freeman in Concord, Middlesex County, Massachusetts on June 2, 1641.
He was selectman in 1660.
His will was dated January 28, 1684/5 and presented for probate on June 2, 1687.
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.
Estate inventories give us a glance into the home life of Colonial Americans.
Concord, Middlesex County, Massachusetts was settled early by the English as a frontier outpost of the Massachusetts Bay Colony.
Sergeant Thomas Wheeler was born 1621 in England He was son of Thomas Wheeler (1591-1654) and Ann Halsey.
Thomas married Sarah Merriam. Sarah was born in England about 1626. She was the daughter of Joseph and Sarah (Goldstone) Merriam.
Sarah Wheeler (1649, married John Smedley),
Joseph Wheeler (1651),
Ann Wheeler (1653)
John Wheeler (1655, married Sarah Stearns his step-sister),
Mary Wheeler (1658),
Thomas Wheeler (1662),
Elizabeth Wheeler (1664, married Samuel Fletcher),
Timothy Wheeler (1667, married Lydia Wheeler)
Rebecca Wheeler (1670), and
Ruth Wheeler (1673, married Joseph Warren).
Sarah died in Concord on February 1, 1676.
On July 23, 1677 he married Sarah Beers Stearns. Sarah was born about 1641 the daughter of Richard Beers and Elizabeth Firmin) and the widow of Isaac Stearns.
Ephraim Powers (167, married Elizabeth Spaulding)
Thomas died on December 24, 1704.
His widow, Sarah, died on January 24, 1723/4.
Middlesex County, Massachusetts was created on May 10, 1643. The county originally included Charlestown, Cambridge, Watertown, Sudbury, Concord, Woburn, Medford, Wayland, and Reading.
William Wheeler was born in 1665 in Concord, Middlesex County, Massachusetts.
He married Sarah Fletcher on May 176, 1692. Sarah was born on February 24, 1668/9. She was the daughter of Francis and Elizabeth Fletcher.
Sarah and William's children included:
William Wheeler (1693/4, married Mercy Willard ),
Joseph Wheeler (1694/5, married Sarah),
Francis Wheeler (1697/8, married Mary Meriam and Sarah Blood),
Hezakiah Wheeler (1700, married Sarah Buss),
Nathaniel Wheeler (1702, married Abigail Conant),
Elizabeth Wheeler (1704),
Sarah Wheeler (1706/7, died young),
Jeremiah Wheeler (1709, married Mary Wheeler and Esther)
William died on May 29, 1752. Sarah died on September 5, 1744. They are buried under one gravestone in the Hill Burying Ground.
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.
From The Genealogical and Encyclopedic Gistory of the Wheeler family in America
George Wheeler
...His name appears on the Concord records the 1st year they were kept and every year thereafter till he died. The circumstantial evidence of his having been the brother of Timothy Wheeler and of Captain Thomas Wheeler is of the highest order. The English records make it quite clear that George Wheeler had a brother Thomas and Thomas is clearly proven to have been a brother of Timothy. With Timothy he owned considerable property jointly, and together they were in possession of most of the real estate left by the Rev. Peter Bulkeley.
Authorities agree that George Wheeler came to Concord about the year 1638 with his wife Katherine and several children....
His will... is dated January 28, 1684-5 and was admitted to probate June 2, 1687, thus establishing the approximate time of his death.
Concord, Middlesex County, Massachusetts was settled early by the English as a frontier outpost of the Massachusetts Bay Colony.
The Genealogical and Encyclopedic History of the Wheeler Family by Albert Gallatin Wheeler
Joseph Wheeler. Stated to be a brother of Thomas No. 1 and Timothy No. 1900. He was made freeman at Concord, Mass., May 13, 1640, where he is frequently referred to as Lieutenant. He was one of the men who
were foremost in the town's business, by virtue of their large estates as well as their integrity and good judgment,
and was a signer of almost every petition made in behalf of the town in its early days.
He was the owner of a large amount of property, his house lot containing 20 acres; and in 1668 an additional grant was made to him of 610 acres on the Chelmsford line
lying in the form of a triangle, the point towards the northwest and extending southwest. tp Nashoba, southeast of Nagog Pond.
He married (1) Elizabeth , who died May 19, 1642. Married (2) Sarah (Goldstone) Merriam, who died at Concord, March 12, 1670-1, dau. of John Goldstone, of Tonbridge, Kent, England, and widow of Joseph Merriam.
Children, 1st marriage: (born at Concord, Mass.)
Ephraim Wheeler, born April 14, 1640; d. July 10, 1642.
Joseph Wheeler, born Dec. 1, 1641; d. July 18, 1642.
Children, 2d marriage: (born at Concord, Mass.)
Mary Wheeler, born Sept. 20, 1643.
Rebecca Wheeler, born Sept. 6, 1645; m. April 16, 1667, Major Peter Bulkeley, b. Nov. 3, 1641; d. May 24, 1688. She m. (2) L. Jonathan Prescott, Dec.18, 1689.
Chelmsford, Middlesex County, Massachusetts was incorporated in May, 1655
The Genealogical and Encyclopedic History of the Wheeler Family in America by Albert Gallatin Wheeler, American College of Genealogy published by American College of Genealogy, 1914
Hezekiah [Wheeler], son of William (112) and Sarah (Fletcher) Wheeler. Born at Concord, Mass., June 13, 1700; died May 3, 1759. Married April 12, 1732, at Concord, Mass., to Sarah Buss, who was born Dec. 21, 1710.
Children: Peter Wheeler, born Feb. 4, 1732-3.
Elizabeth Wheeler, born July 23, 1734.
Samuel Wheeler, born 1744.
