Paull and Allied Families:Information about Elizabeth Browne
Elizabeth Browne (b. Abt. 1596, d. 09 Sep 1652)
Notes for Elizabeth Browne:
http://awtc.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=:425704&id=I41296
Elizabeth Browne
b.WFT Est. 1578-1604 in England
d.Death: 1647 in Rehoboth, MA
Elizabeth was a widow who came to America in 1645 - Married to James Walker
Elizabeth was Great Grand Daughter of Henry Gray Duke of Suffolk and great-granddaughter of Lord Guilford Dudley and second cousin of "Elizabeth" Daughter of King James the 1st of England.
Her husband "Sir James Walker" died about 1625, and she with her two sons James and Phillip and Daughter Sarah emigrated to America. Phillip seems to have come first, soon after the death of his father. Sarah and James came in 1635, and "Widow Walker" in 1645. This "Elizabeth" spoken of above is "Widow Walker," spoken of by John Walker in his book "Widow Walker,"
A History of Rheboth Massachusetts (Its History for 275 Years 1643-1918)
by Rev. George H. Tilton, A.M. Published 1918 - borrowed from NEHGS 3/23/93
Page 21 note -
Mtg. of Planters 1643 refers to settle division of land granted by Court of Plymouth --
List of planters 58 in total - "Widow Walker" listed #2 Estate of 50 pounds also
James Walker - estate of 50 pounds.
Page 23 note -
Town Meeting 31 June 1644 - Lots were drawn for division of woodland betwen plain and town. 58 shares -
Samuel Butterworth # 12;
James Walker # 24;
Widow Walker # 52
Town records of 1645 - Rehoboth residents submitted themselves to Jurisdiction of Plymouth Court.
Next lists name of land holders. Widow Walker - Samuel Butterworth among those listed.
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Was an early settler of Rehoboth (listed as far back as 1643). Emigrated with congregation of Rev. Samuel Newman, founder of Newman Congregational Church which still stands in Rehoboth (now Rumford, R.I.). Other Children: Sarah and James.
"WIDOW WALKER," of Rehboth, Massachusetts
She was one of the first purchasers and proprietors of the town Rehoboth or Seacunk, now Seekonk, and one of the company who first settled there. Her name is in the list of those who in 1643 gave in the value of their estates, for a pro rata division of the lands. Hers was Ð50. In the division made June 31, 1644, she had a share, and lots were assigned her in several divisions afterward, as in drawing for the Great Plain, and on the 18th of 12 mo.(Feb.) 1646, for the new Meadow.
Her name then disappears. When and from whence she came to New England, and where she died, are not known. There is no record to tell us her age or her character. No trace of her biography is found, save the already noticed facts of her being associated with an adventurous company, most of whom went out from Weymouth into the wilderness, - a company marked for its religious character, (being a majority of the church at W.,) the highly educated and scholarly Rev. Samuel Newman being in some respects the Leader of the enterprise. - Her christian name and that of her husband, are never given. In the early records of the town, she has invariably the touching, sorrowful title of Widow, suggesting the history of blighted hopes, and grief-stricken heart. Perhaps she had one to protect and cherish her when she left her native land, - and burying him in the sea came here alone, - or perhaps together, they had reached these shores, and were struggling in mutual and loyalty to bear the toils, trials and perils incident to the settlement of a new country, - when death snatched him from her fellowship. But the more probable supposition is, that becoming a widow in England, she emigrated, perhaps with her younger son Phillip, after the coming of James and Sarah. Bereft of counsellor and helper, she would naturally follow her children, and seek the sympathy and aid of her brother, or possibly only her brother-in-law, Mr. John Browne. That she did not come with them in 1635, and did not appear till 8 years afterward, favors this theory. James and Sarah, as favorites of their uncle Mr. Browne, and bereft of a father's counsel and support, may have been induced by his encouragements, to try their fortunes in the New World, leaving the mother behind with their younger brother, till they should learn how the experiment would issue. - Old enough to be of service, perhaps they were really indentured as "servants to Jo. Browne," and not merely, as a device to escape the pursuivants of the King in their attempt to get out of England. But these are conjectures merely. The interest of Mr. Browne in his nephew and niece, the two young emigrants of 1635, and the fact of their mother the "widow" being associated with Mr. B. in the settlement of Rehoboth, favors the belief that she was his sister, though he might have manifested the same regard, had she been only the sister of his wife. We may see among the group of pious and brave settlers, not only the godly man who is their religious teacher, but also the form of one, whose sable garments tell us, she is a "Widow." The vision passes quickly before us, and is lost to our sight, awakening sympathy and interest for the woman, who, bereft of the companion of her youth, because a pioneer in founding the church and colony at Rehoboth. She was buried no doubt, in the ancient place of graves in Seekonk, where many of the fathers repose, but no stone marks the spot.
...
If we may judge of her worth from the virtues of her sons, and infer that they inherited the spirit and piety of their Pilgrim mother, and that her fidelity entitled her to use the language of the Roman matron respecting the Gracchi, "These are my jewels," then was she a compeer worthy to be associated with the pious and distinguished Mr. Newman and the useful Mr. Browne, leaders in the Rehoboth settlement.
And as "the glory of the fathers is their children," her name is not unhonored, and her character and worth not without their monument.
It is upon this evidence, which, though fragmentary and circumstantial, is nevertheless conclusive, that "WIDOW WALKER" is placed at the head of the Taunton Family, and in respect to them, as well as the more numerous and widely scattered family of Rehoboth, must be honored as "THE MOTHER OF US ALL."
http://old.hanksplace.net/library/walker_index.html
More About Elizabeth Browne and James Walker:
Marriage: 06 Jun 1614, Radcliffe, Lancashire, England.
Children of Elizabeth Browne and James Walker are:
- +Sarah Walker, b. 1618, Weymouth, Dorset, England, d. 1676, Taunton, Bristol County, Massachusetts.
- +James Walker, b. 1619, St Andrews, Weymouth, Dorset, England, d. 15 Feb 1691/92, Taunton, Bristol, Massachusetts.