Abraham Shepard was born on March 7, 1642/03 in Concord, Middlesex County, Massachusetts. He was the son of Ralph and Thankful Shepard.
He married Judith Sill on January 2, 1672/73 in Concord. She may have been the daughter of John and Sarah Sill.
Their children included:
Sarah Shepard Hartwell (1674, married John Hartwell),
Abraham Shepard (1677, married Abigail Lamson),
Judith Shepard Pettibone (1678, married Samuel Pettibone),
Hepzibah Shepard (1681),
Thanks Shepard (1683, married Daniel Adams and Joseph Pettibone),
Mary Shepard (1685/86),
Hannah Shepard Rugg (1689, married John Rugg).
In 1681 his father deeded part of his Cambridge land to him.
APuritan was a member of the religious group in the 16th and 17th centuries that advocated "purity" of worship and doctrine who believed in personal and group piety. Puritans were persecuted in England and came to America so they would be free to practice their religion.
Some Puritans gave their children hortatory names (from the Latin for “encourage”) like Thankful, hoping that the children would live up to them. The names were used for several generations.
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.
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.
Concord, Middlesex County, Massachusetts was settled early by the English as a frontier outpost of the Massachusetts Bay Colony.
