William Cheney (son of Lawrence Cheney and Julian Waldron)239 was born 31 July 1603 in Lambourne, Berkshire, England, and died 30 June 1667 in Roxbury, Suffolk, MA. He married Margaret Cule.
Notes for William Cheney: From: THE CHENEY GENEALOGY. COMPILED BYCHARLES HENRY POPE, MEMBER OF THE N. E. HISTORIC-GENEALOGICAL SOCIETY, COMPILER OF THE DORCHESTER POPE FAMILY, THE RECORDS OF THE FIRST CHURCH, DORCHESTER, ETC. BOSTON, MASS. PUBLISHED BY CHARLES H. POPE, 221 COLUMBUS AVE., 1897.
THE ORIGIN OF THE NAME AND THE SOURCE OF THE FAMILY are subjects of great interest. When we have traced back to the two pilgrims, William and John Cheney, what do we find? Not a single trace of their origin except this: they were Englishmen. "Brothers"? They do not say or act it. Scions of nobility? Neither of them left a word, describing his place in the social scale. Their neighbors, even when electing them to the highest offices in their towns, wrote them down plain William and John. This leaves the question open, whether they were rising men of plain degree or "gentlemen," braving hardships from noble motives. Kind reader, take your choice of these theories. But we must remember that no one knows what relation William1 and John1 were to each other, or from what English family.
The word Chne in French means an oak. A great many family names came from some peculiarity of the residence of the family. So, it seems to the writer probable that when a man lived near some conspicuous oak tree or in a grove of oaks (chenies), he was called William de Chne, i.e. William of the Oak. As this class of tree was common the name might be given to many unrelated persons. Certain it is that England had a score or more of families called by some name which is a modification of that word chne, at the period when New England was settled. Search has been made at great expense in the Record Office and Somerset House at London and in numerous other places, of the documents bearing on the history of those families. The following pages contain very brief portions of that which has been read and sifted. But no link has been found which connects William of Roxbury or John of Newbury with any English family. Nevertheless, let further search be made. Some day the lines may be found which will certify the connection, and open the way for the claiming of coats of arms or other tokens of ancestral position. Till then we may enjoy the reflection that they were true to their God and to themselves; that they helped to found the grandest nation earth ever saw; and we may profit by the lessons of their pilgrimage.
WILLIAM CHENEY was a very early resident of Roxbury, in the colony of Massachusetts Bay, in New England, (now included in the city of Boston.) The oldest records of that town which have been brought down to modern times are contained in a volume whose opening sentence says that the book was bought in 1639 for the purpose of recording various matters relating to the inhabitants. Its earliest entries are not dated. One of these is a list of the men who owned land and lived in the town, entitled "A note of the estates and persons of the Inhabitants of Rocksbury." Seventy men are enrolled; they range from "Edward Pason," possessor of 3 acres of ground, to "Mr Thomas Dudley" with his 356 acres. "Wm Cheiney" is the fortieth name, with 24 1/2 acres, showing that he was above the average in wealth. This list is on a page where the year 1640 is given as the date of a preceding entry; and 1642 is the date of the entry on the following page. A number of circumstances indicate that the list was written near the close of the year 1640. On other pages of the old record book there are deeds of land recorded, and in the bounds of two of these "the land of Cheney" and "the meadow of Cheyney" are mentioned; both were made in 1640. These records demonstrate the fact that William Cheney was a land-holder and resident in Roxbury before 1640; and they do no more.
The settlement at Roxbury was begun in 1630, a little later than those at Dorchester and Boston; but there was no church organization for a year, and no pastor till 1632. In the records of the Church of Roxbury, written by the first pastor, who was that remarkable "Apostle to the Indians," Rev. John Eliot, there is a very interesting list of the members, giving many personal sketches. They are arranged, in a general way, according to the dates of their joining the church, which was sometimes the order in which they came to New England. But a good many men and women did not unite with the churches at once upon their arrival; in certain instances they were unwilling to leave their allegiance to the English church; sometimes they were not considered by the ministers to be suitable persons to be admitted; in other cases they were modest about themselves, and feared they were not worthy. From some cause or other William Cheney himself did not join until he had been in Roxbury at least twenty four years; for it was "5th 1m 166 4/5" that he was "admitted to full communion." His wife joined much earlier. In view of her membership it was that "4 (4) 1643 Mehittabell Cheyny the daughter of Willia Cheyny" was baptized. But Mr Eliot does not give us the date when she joined. Her name is the 210th in his series; it follows a little way after some who are said to have arrived in 1636, 1638 and 1641, mingled with undated names; and the next member whose date of joining is given was "received the 21 of the 2d 1644."
In the Roxbury Land Records there is a detailed description of each settler's real estate, with the names of the owners of adjacent tracts.
William Cheney's homestead lay in a bend of the old highway which is still a well trodden thoroughfare -- Dudley street -- on the southeast side, near its junction with Warren st. The other tracts of land were widely scattered.
"WILLIAM CHEINEY his house barne Garden and land theirto about two accres and a halfe butting upon William Parkes south and east and upon the highway north and west; And sixteene accres in the greatlotts more or lesse betweene the lands of John Johnson towards the west, and the schoole lands towards the east. And ten accres of swampe neare the great lotts lying betweene Giles Pason, and Ralph Hemingway, and the heires of Samuell Hagborne. And six accres of salt marsh in Gravelly poynt. And six accres of fresh meadow in the great meade, upon John Stowe his heires east, and Richard Sutton west, with two rodds wide of upland at both ends and so upon the commons. And seaven accres more or lesse of errable land upon Richard Sutton north, John Gorton west, and upon John Turner south. And in the first and third allottment of the last devission being the fift lott lying betweene John Johnson and heires of George Alcocke threescore and sixteene accres and a halfe and ten rod. And foure and twenty accres and a halfe within the thousand accres neare Deddam. And twenty accres of land more or lesse lying in the great lotts bounded on the way to the fresh meadow on the east the land of the heires of John Levens on the south, the schoole land and Richard Peacockes north west and upon Giles Pason and the highway northerly. And three accres and a halfe of meadow lying in the fresh meades butting east upon my owne fresh meade and upon John Peirpoynt west. And an accre of land commonly called the wolf trapp bought of Humphrey Johnson lying on the north of the land of John Gorton, and west upon the highway. And halfe of sixteene accres of woodland lately the land of Richard Sutton, but bought by him of John Johnson."
The deed of this "Wolf Trapp" is not on record, though there are deeds recorded whereby lands adjoining this piece were conveyed and called "Wolf Trap," showing that the name applied to quite a large tract, perhaps a valley where many wolves had been taken. We find two deeds of William Cheney's, one of land he bought, the other of some he sold.
The annals of the town do not give the proceedings of town meetings in the earliest days, but there are a few movements of the citizens which are noted well. One of these is the founding in 1645 of the Roxbury Free School, supported by voluntary subscriptions but managed by town officers.
The original paper with its autograph signatures is extant. It shows William Cheney not only as a subscriber to the fund but as one of the few leading men who specially guaranteed to the town the payment of their yearly contributions.
His subscription to the school-fund was eight shillings a year,-- more than the average. It is disappointing to find that our ancestor made his "mark" upon these documents. Possibly his eyesight had failed; but as he was only forty-one years old the probability is that he had not learned to write, as was the case with a great majority of the people of England in that age. Yet he must have been considered by his neighbors a man of good general information and judgment, or he would not have had the honor of being chosen as a member of the board of directors, -- "feoffees,"-- of this Roxbury Latin School, who had the employing of the teacher and other administrative matters in charge.
To go back again in the history, we find that William Cheney was elected to the board of assessors of the infant borough at an early day.
Feb. 21, 1648 "It was voted that John Johnson [Edward] Deneson and John Gore wth Mr John Alcocke . . . William Cheney should be the men that shall . . ensuing year rate men according to theire estat . . . the defraying of ye fore sayd Charges of ye Ministry."
A few years afterward he was called upon to use that good judgment and fair-mindedness which he seems to have possessed in good amount in another matter.
"It was voted & agreed to by all the inhabitants Febru. 23. (52) that their should be raised for the maintenance of the ministry for this yeare insuing the sume of six score pounds to be borne by all the inhabitants in an equall proportion. for the proportioning of which sume the inhabitants of Roxsbury have chosen the two Deacons & John Johnson, William Cheiney Edward Denison John Ruggles sr. & Thomas Weld which sume of six score pounds is to be devided betweene Mr John Eliot & Mr Samuell Danfoorth in an equall proportion:"
One of the offices that called for promptness and energy and for good faculty of dealing with men was the position of constable. He was the policeman on disagreeable occasions; the messenger of the selectmen sometimes; but his chief care was collecting taxes. He had a "rate" committed to him, with a sum to be obtained from each adult male inhabitant; and he had authority to pay out sums of money on selectmen's orders. At the end of the year he made a detailed report. If he did not possess a good education he must have a sharp faculty of reckoning and a strong memory of names and numbers. William Cheney was one of the two constables in 1654/5 and his final account was approved Feb. 13, 1655/6.
But the citizens were not content to have him simply perform the toilsome work of a constable. Jan. 19, 1656/7 he was elected a member of the board of selectmen, associated with men of education and rank.
Jan. 18, 1663, he was made one of a committee to inspect Peter Gardner's "leanetoo" and "the fence that doth range from it" to see that they did "not intrench upon the high way."
We have already seen that he was chosen one of the feofees of the Free School in 1664; and on the town record we find him written down "as Feoffee" in an agreement touching some money belonging to the school fund, and affixing his W mark to the page along with half a dozen regular signatures, Jan. 25, 1666/7.
May 23, 1666, he was made a "freeman of the Colony," which made him eligible to colonial office and capable of voting on matters relating to the general government. But he did not live to make use of this franchise. He fell sick in the spring of 1666/7, as we learn from the opening phrases of his will; and after a few weeks he passed beyond the reach of care or pain. The town clerk made this entry in his list of persons deceased:
"William Cheney aged 63 yeares died June the 30 day, 1667"; and the hand of either Rev. John Eliot or Rev. Samuel Danforth wrote in the church book among the burials:
"1667. Moneth 5 day 2 Willian Cheany sen."
His will is in the hand of some expert penman, one of the pastors, it may be, or some tried friend and associate in public affairs; but though he could not pen it, he gave it marks of individuality, showing that he really composed it.
Its opening phrases are those we find in hundreds of wills of that period, but he certainly endorsed them; and the expressions of care for his wife, who had been a sad invalid for some years must be attributed to Mr. Cheney, in the depth of their tenderness and the sagacity and prudence of the plans made for her. One feels from this will that the man had a good mind and a good heart; was a loyal husband, a kind father, and a cordial believer in Our Lord.
THE WILL OF WILLIAM CHENEY, of Roxbury, Massachusetts, 1667.
"Being sick of body and of perfect understanding & memory according to my measure I doe make this my last will & Testament. I doe committ my soul into the Armes of the Everlasting mercy of God my saviour & deare & blessed Redeemer & my body unto my friends & relations to be decently interred by them in hope of a blessed Resurection. As for that Estate which it bath pleased the Lord to lend unto mee I doe dispose of as followeth: Imprs my will is that my deare & afflicted wife margaret Cheney bee Carefully & sufficiently provided for duringe the time of her naturall life to that end my will is that shee have & Enjoy all the rents & profits yearely & Every yeare duringe the aforesaide tearme . . . of all my Houses Lands & Orchards that I die possessed of Either in Roxbury Boston or Elsewhere. Except such part of my Lands or Estate which I shall hereafter in this my will dispose of to my children or otherwise. which Estate bequeathed by mee unto my said wife it is my will shee Enter upon & bee possessed of immediately after my decease (to wit) the present crop upon all the Land. & the use of all my Household stuffe & goods my debts & funerall Expences in the first place being with all Convenient speed fully discharged: & for my said wives more Comfortable being, my desire is that one of my Executors may live in my house in Roxbury with her to Enjoy the housing & Lands by the yeare, which I have as is aforesaid given unto my said wife, upon such Equall tearmes as my other Executors & overseers (all of them to bee named hereafter shall agree with him for. but in case both my Executors see Cause to refuse to accept of this motion in answere to my desire herein then my will is that it bee lett out by my Executors or Overseers to the best advantage for my said wives Comfortable supply & maintenance ffurther my will is that when all my debts & Legacies are discharged out of my stock & Husbandry utensils, as Carts plowes & such like what remains of my stock afterwards, my will is it bee lett out or disposed of for my said wives use by my Executors with the advice of my Overseers. And my will is that all my moveables bee for my wives use duringe her life Except what is before disposed. And in case what is above Expressed bee not sufficient for the Comfortable maintenance of my said wife then my will is that the house at Boston bee sold & imployed & improved for her further & better supply: --
Item I doe will & bequeath unto my son John Cheiney all that Land both arable & pasture lying on the East side of the Great Lotts, being twenty Acres more or less, being now in the possession of the said John. Also I give to my said sonn a parcell of meadow in the fresh meades being two Acres bee the same more or less as it/lyeth on the south of a ditch made to dreine the said meadow. Also I Give unto him one Acree of salt marsh, bee it more or less as it lyeth bounded with a Creek next the marsh of John Bowles, formerly Isaac Heathes Also give unto him Eight Acres of Land more or less lying neere house of William Hopkins all & Every of these parcells of Land my will is that my said sonn John bee possessed immediately after my decease:--Item I bequeath unto my sonn William Cheiney all that lying & being in medfeld, latly in the possession of my sai[d] [son] upon this condition or proviso [that] hee & his wife Debo[rah] bee Reconsiled & live together in meadfeild or Elsewh[ere], [to] the sattisfaction of John Wisewell of Boston & Deacon [Williams] of Roxbury, but not in Providence or that Jurisdiction [pro]vided also that what either my selfe or Deacon Williams have alrea[dy] or doe stand Engaged for to the Court ehalfe bee first repayd & fully discharged by h[im] or assignes, but otherwise if said sonn neglect [to] accept it with these provisoes then my will is that [there] bee paid to John Wisewall of Boston out of my Estate * * * [the re]sidue I dispose of as followeth
Item I will & bequeath to my sonn Joseph Cheiney sixty pounds (to witt) my Land lying in the thir . . * * being thirty seaven Acres more or less. & twenty paid to my said sonn Joseph out of my stoch:-- Item my will is that my three daughters (to witt) [Ellen], [Marga]ret [and] mehittable have Each of them Tenn pounds out of my stock After my said wives decease my will is, first that . . . . . & Lands in Roxbury ondisposed of before by this my [will be] give[n] unto two sonns of my Eldest sonn Thomas Cheiny his sonn Thomas & his sonn William, to bee improv[ed for their] bennefitt by their ffather untill they are twenty one then bee Enjoyed by them: --secondly what remaines of my Estate after my said wiv[e] [de] cease either in stock or otherwise in housing or Lands [or] other Estate in any kind undisposed of by this my will is that the one halfe of it bee given to my sonn Joseph Cheiney & for the other halfe thereof is that [it] divided into ffoure Equall parts. And soe disposed of [it to] sonn John Cheiney & to my Three aforesd daughter[s] [to each of] them an Equal Portion thereof Lastly I doe [make my] Loving sonns Thomas Cheiney & Thomas [Hastings] [executors] of this my will, requesting my deare & respected [friends] John Elliot, Deacon William Parke & Edward Bugbee Overseers, Aprill the last sixty seaven.
William W Cheiney his marke & a seale Witnesses John newell Samuell scarbarow." "30th of July 1667 John newell & Samuel scarbarow deposed," &c.
30 July, 1667 "Thomas Cheny & Thomas Hastings Executors to the last will & Testament of William cheny" presented the inventory of the estate, taken by James Everell and Joseph How.
It seems practically certain that the eldest son, Thomas, had previously received his portion of his father's property in land or money.
AN INVENTORY of the Goods & Estate of William Cheny, late of Roxbury, deceased, Taken by us whose names are heere, underwritten the 10th day of July: 1667.
I: in wearing Apparrell 010:13:4 ,, one dwelling house with other housing adjoyning with or-chards & yards in all about two Acres 230:00:= ,, 16 : Acres more or less pasture & Arable lying within the Great Lotts in Roxbury 060:00:= ,, 10: Acres pasture & wood land neere the Great Lotts 020:00:= ,, 5: Acres of meadow in the meadowes more or less 025:00:= ,, 8 Acres of Land in upper Calves pasture 032:00:= ,, 38 Acres of wood Land more or less in first division, being the first Lott in that Division 056:00:= ,, 8 Acres of salt marsh meadow lying at gravily point more or less 043:00:= : 5 Cowes. 21l. one horse, 6l. two oxen. 13l: 040:00:= ,, 2 heifers one steere one yeare, advantage 006:00:= ,, one mare with her fole, a horse coult two yeares 009:00:= ,, 3. Swine 002:10:=
534:03:4 In the Parlor:
,, one Bedstead one feather bed one feather boulster, one great flock boulster one feather pillow, one pa of sheets one red rugg 3 Curtaines two Curtaine rodds, one chaffe bed 011:00:= ,, a small trundle bedsted one old chaffe bed, 2 great flock boulsters one pr of sheets one Coverlide 002:00:= ,, 3: chayres one of them a great broad chayre 000:12:= ,, one great Cubberd 30s: 3 fine sheets 2li 003:10:= ,, in other linnen 1li: 13s. 2 yards of new woolen cloath 10s 002:03:= ,, one great Table: 1li: three white streked blanckets 2li: 003:00:= ,, 3 remnants of Kersey 8 yards or thereabouts at 8s p. yd. 003:00:= ,, one remnant of Cotton 7s. one small Carpet 000:12:= ,, one little Cubberd: 7s. two chests, 16s 001:03:= ,, 5 Quishions 25s, one feather pillow, one great flock pillow, & one pillowber 8s 001:13:=
562:17:4 In the Hall:
,, two Tables 000:10:0 ,, in pewter 4l: 1s: in brass 4li: 10s 008:11:= ,, one pr of Cob iron & tongs one old gridiron 000:08:= ,, 2 Trammells one iron drypin pann one spitt, a pr bellows & a chafin dish 000:18:= ,, one musquett 10s in iron tools 1li 6s 001:16:= ,, in pailes or wooden ware or lumber 000:10:=
In Hall Chamber:
,, : one bedsted one old bed & boulster 001:05:= ,, : one pr sheets 15s. 3 old blankets Coverlid 000:07,= ,, : The sheets before Expressed 000:15:= ,, : 2 blankets: 1l: 4s. 15 yards of new cloath 1l: 18s 003:02:= ,, : A house at Boston 080:00:=
In Parlor Chamber:
,, : one bed sted a bed one pr of sheets 2 blankets & curtaines & vallance 003:10:= ,, : one linen wheele 5s: & 10l of Cotton yarne: 15s 001:00:= ,, : 4l of Cotton 2s: 12l of Course linen yarne 8s 000:10:=
In Garret:
Indian Corne onthrashed by Estimation 24 bushells 003:12:= Indian Corne more 12 bushells 001:18:= ": 12 bushells of Rye 11: 8s: a pannell & pillion 15s 003:03:= ": in a Cart rope 8s: in blasted wheate 10s: 4 bushell of mault 18s 001:16:= ": one bushell & halfe of mault 000:06:9
In Cellar:
,,: old barrells & other old Lumber as hogsheads 000:10:= ,,: an old Cart wheels & part of a bed & other things as yoake clevice & other irons about the Cart 003:00:= ,,: one pr of iron traces & whipiles a clevice a plow share Cutter & Coller with 5 fforkes 001:02:= ,,: 2 bills due from John Parepoint 018:15:= ,,: in debts due from several men 012:14:9 ,,: in Cart nailes 001:11:6 ,,: in boards provided for shingling the barn lento 002:02:= ,,: in shingles 11000m at 16s 008:16:= ,,: in nailes & clapboard 003:00:= ,,: in money to be received for to releive his widow in case of necessity now in the hands of Thomas Cheny by advice to bee ready upon all demands 020:12:= ,,: 37 Acres of woodland given to Joseph Cheny by Will 040:00:= ,,: in Corne upon the Ground Indian & English 008:00:= ,,: in grass upon the Ground fresh & salt 003:00:= ,,: 8 Acres of wood Land Given to John Cheny 008:00:= ,,: 20 Acres in John Cheneys possession as by will 060:00:= ,,: in two parcells of meddow given by will unto John Cheney 016:00:= 886:11:4
William Parke: Thomas Weld: Edw: Dennison.
Children of William Cheney and Margaret Cule are:
+Joseph Cheney, b. 06 June 1647, Roxbury, Suffolk, MA, d. date unknown.
William Cheney (b. 31 July 1603, d. 30 June 1667)
Notes for William Cheney: