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Descendants of John Bishop

Generation No. 1

1. JOHN⁹ BISHOP (WILLIAM⁸, WILLIAM⁷, JOHN⁶, THOMAS⁵, JOHN⁴, JOHN³ BYSSHOP , ESQ., JOHN², JOHN¹) was born May 03, 1610 in Cattistock, Dorset, England¹, and died November 16, 1694 in Stamford, Connecticut². He married (1) JOANNA BOYSE WFT Est. 1627-1660³. He married (2) REBECCA GOODYEAR WFT Est. 1637-1668 in Stamford⁴, daughter of STEPHEN GOODYEAR and MARY LEWEN (?).

Notes for JOHN BISHOP:
According to the Charles Reed Bishop genealogy, Reverend John Bishop was born in Taunton, Massachusetts and moved to Stamford, Connecticut in 1644. Thsi is not accurate. His grave is in the Episcopal lot at St. Andrew's Chapel in Stamford.

From World Family Tree Pedigree #475
John Bishop, born and baptized at Cattistock, May 3, 1610 (7th son of William and Alice) received his B. A. degree at age 20 from Balliol College, Oxford, and June 1632. His M.A. degree was received 15 April, 1635. As a young man, he decided to migrate to New England and settled in Taunton, Massachusetts where he was a schoolmaster and owned his own land, in 1640. He went to Stamford, Connecticut in 1644 to serve as minister of the First Church there, when a delegation from the Church persuaded him to go with them. They walked the long distance through the wilderness to Stamford. This seems unlikely as boats were often running between Boston and Stamford. It seems that he had completed his studies for the ministry before his calling there.
John Bishop, pastor of the church, married Rebecca Goodyear in Stamford, and had eight sons and two daughters. He served the First Congregational church for fifty years through many difficult and trying times in the Colonies. He died in 1694 at the age of 84, a much respected and beloved clergyman.
Four sons survived along with his two daughters. Their names were; Stephen, Joseph, Ebenezer, Benjamin, Mary and Rebecca. Stephen's grandson, Joseph, anlong with his family, decided to move south to St. Clair Bottom, Virginia in 1773. From this branch of the family have desended the majority of the contributors of this memorial brass plaque.

"The Families of old Fairfield"
Bishop, (Rev.) John. The first minister at Stamford. He. m. (1) Rebecca [Goodyear]; m. (2) Joanna, widow of Capt. Thomas Willet and previously of rev. Peter Prudden of Milford, and dau. of Rev. John Boyse of Halifax, co. York, Eng.
Will 16 Nov. 1694, proved 12 Mar. 1694/5; to be buried between his two wives rebecca and Joanna who [he says with comfortable assurance] are fallen asleep in Jesus and gone to Heaven before me; I feel the gospel is going from New England for the neglect and contempt it hath found here; sons Stephen, Joseph, Ebenezer, Benjamin; dau. Whiting.
Joseph Bishop, Exec'r of father's will, set out land, 18 Oct. 1695, to Mr. Joseph Whiting of Southampton, in consideration of legacy due him from will of my father Bishop.
Children by first wife:
       Stephen
       Rebecca, Daughter, m. Mr. Joseph Whiting, of southampton, L. I. He               was b. at        Lynn, 6 Apr. 1641; gradl Harvard 1661; minister at               Southampton from 1682 until his death, 7 Apr. 1723.
       Joseph
       Mary, d.        25 July 1658.
       Ebenezer, b. abt. 1666.
       Benjamin, b. abt. 1668.
None of his sons followed him into the ministry.

Estelle F. Feinstein, Stamford from Puritan To Patriot - The Shaping of a Connecticut Community 1641-1774 (1976), p. 38 states "One of our few sources of primary materials on Stamford, other than official documents, is a series of letters that the Rev. John Bishop wrote to the Reverend Increase Mather, the President of Harvard College, that were delivered in the vessels of a wealthy local merchant, Captain Jonathan Selleck and have been preserved in the Collections Of The Massachusetts Historical Society."

John Bishop to Increase Mather, Stamford, 5 m. 11 d. 1678.

"Reverend Sr. & Dear Brother, Yours of 3 mo. 28, '78, I received; and as touching reports you enquire of (though in great haste, by reason of the vessels hastening away) I canot but make a short returne. There have been, doubtles things of a prodigious nre. among vs, by which we should be awakened; but it is to (be)
bewailed, that the awful workes of God are so variously & vncertainly spoken of; as many times I find that we know not what to beleeve, nor how to be affected as we should with what we heave. .... As touching the Earthquake lately in these parts, I can speak to that as being sensible thereof, & many others in this Town, & other Townes also perceived the same; though more westward of vs it was more perceived, & more eastward, lesse. It was on an evening after the Sabbath viz. 12 m. 3. 77. Likewise on 4 m. 20, 78, a like noise was heard here by myself & many others, who took it to be an Earthquake, rather then thunder, considering
circumstances, though the terraemocon not so perceptible. On the last day, same month, here was a violent storme of hail in several plantacons, one west & others east of vs, that did much damage as its said, & I do verily beleeve, though I forbear to mencon the quantity of that hail & the effects of it, because I canot fully beleeve all thats said of it. At Stamford it was only a storme of wind & rain, & that but short. This 5 m. 6 & 7 dayes, it pleased the Lord, after a great & threatning drought, to send a plentifull, sober & soaking rain, that sweetly refreshed the earth & revived its dying product." John Bishop, p. 306.

       Children of JOHN BISHOP and REBECCA GOODYEAR are:

JOSEPH¹⁰ BISHOP, b. October 16, 1644.

ii.

MARY BISHOP, b. Abt. 1657, Stamford, Connecticut⁵; d. July 25, 1658, Stamford, Connecticut⁶.

iii.

REBECCA BISHOP, b. 1663, Stamford, Fairfield, Conn.⁷; d. April 26, 1726, Southampton, Long Island⁸; m. JOSEPH WHITING, WFT Est. 1679-1708⁹.

Notes for JOSEPH WHITING:
He was born at Lynn, 6 Apr. 1641; graduated Harvard 1661; minister at Southampton from 1682 until his death, 7 Apr. 1723.

iv.

STEPHEN BISHOP, b. October 16, 1664, Stamford, Connecticut; d. December 03, 1722, Stamford, Connecticut.

JOSEPH BISHOP, b. October 16, 1664, Stamford, Fairfield, Conn.¹⁰; d. WFT Est. 1681-1754¹¹; m. ELIZABETH KNOWLES, WFT Est. 1681-1714¹².

vi.

STEPHEN BISHOP, b. October 16, 1664, Stamford, Connecticut¹³; d. December 03, 1722, Stamford, Connecticut¹⁴; m. MERCY SLAWSON, 1680, Fairfield Co., CT¹⁵.

vii.

BENJAMIN BISHOP, b. 1668; m. SUSANNA PIERSON, June 06, 1696, Stamford, Connecticut¹⁶.

viii.

EBENEZER BISHOP, b. January 19, 1667/68, Stamford, Connecticut; d. March 10, 1709/10, Stamford, Connecticut.

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