“Remember, remember always, that all of us, and you and I especially, are descended from immigrants and revolutionists."
― Franklin D. Roosevelt
The settlement of New Meadows was incorporated as the Town of Topsfield in 1650. The church "gathered" on November 4, 1663. The third Meeting House was built in 1703 with Rev. Joseph Capen as pastor.
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."
Sergeant Edmund Towne was born in 1628. He was christened on June 28, 1628 in St. Nicholas Parish, Great Yarmouth, Norfolk County, England. His parents were William Towne and Joanna Blessing.
He married Mary Browning in 1652 in Great Yarmouth. Mary was born in 1629 and was the daughter of Thomas Browning.
Edmund and Mary's children were born in Topsfield, Essex County, Massachusetts.
Mary Towne, Thomas Towne (1655, married Sarah French)
Sarah Towne Pritchett (1657),
William Towne (1659),
Joseph Towne (1661, married Amy Smith)
Abigail Towne Peabody (1664),
Benjamin Towne (1666),
Rebecca Towne Knight (1668),
Elizabeth Towne Wilkins (1669) and
Samuel Towne (1673, married Elizabeth Knight).
In 1666, Edmund was made a corporal in the Topsfield militia.
In 1675 Edmund was part of Topsfield committee that presented a petition to the General Court asking for permission to form military companies to protect the inhabitants while they worked in the fields from raids.
He died in Topsfield, Essex County, Massachusetts before May 3, 1678 when his estate was inventoried.
Mary made her will on February 1, 1710 and it was proved December 16, 1717.
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.
Three daughters of William Towne and Joanna Blessing were wrongly accused of practicing witchcraft in Salem. Rebecca Towne Nurse, Mary Towne Estey, and Sarah Towne Bridges Cloyes were persecuted in 1692. The children of people in the line below are all descendants of Mary Estey.
Europeans who made the voyage to America faced a difficult journey of several months.
The New England Meetinghouse was the only municipal building in a town. Both worship and civil meetings were held there. It was customary for men and women to sit separately and the town chose a committee once a year to assign seats according to what was paid, age, and dignity.
