Welcome! I really enjoy exchanging information with people and love that this blog helps with that. I consider much of my research as a work in progress, so please let me know if you have conflicting information. Some of the surnames I'm researching:

Many old Cape families including Kelley, Eldredge/idge, Howes, Baker, Mayo, Bangs, Snow, Chase, Ryder/Rider, Freeman, Cole, Sears, Wixon, Nickerson.
Many old Plymouth County families including Washburn, Bumpus, Lucas, Cobb, Benson.
Johnson (England to MA)
Corey (Correia?) (Azores to MA)
Booth, Jones, Taylor, Heatherington (N. Ireland to Quebec)
O'Connor (Ireland to MA)
My male Mayflower ancestors (only first two have been submitted/approved by the Mayflower Society):
Francis Cooke, William Brewster, George Soule, Isaac Allerton, John Billington, Richard Warren, Peter Browne, Francis Eaton, Samuel Fuller, James Chilton, John Tilley, Stephen Hopkins, and John Howland.
Female Mayflower ancestors: Mary Norris Allerton, Eleanor Billington, Mary Brewster, Mrs. James Chilton, Sarah Eaton, and Joan Hurst Tilley.
Child Mayflower ancestors: Giles Hopkins, (possibly) Constance Hopkins, Mary Allerton, Francis Billington, Love Brewster, Mary Chilton, Samuel Eaton, and Elizabeth Tilley.

Sunday, June 16, 2013

Barnabas Wixon b. ca 1660-died after June 1735 and Sarah Remick of Yarmouth (now Dennis), Mass.

Barnabas Wixon was born circa1660-1663, the son of Robert and Alice (maiden name unknown) Wixon. He is my eighth great-grandfather on my grandmother Milly (Booth) Rollins’ side. His last name is spelled in a variety of ways including Wixam, Wickson, Wixson, and Wixum.

Tradition says he moved from Eastham to Harwich to Yarmouth and resided on Crocker's Neck (now Dennis Port) where he was a large land holder.

Barnabas served in King Williams War (referred to as the second Indian War) from 22 August to 27 November 1722 in Master Roll of Col. John Wheelwright's Co. relative to Indian affairs in what is now Maine, he was a Sergeant from Yarmouth. Corporal Barnabas Wixum, still living, was one of 25 to petition for land for his service. He was in 1690 expedition to Quebec, Canada under Sir William Phipps and Capt. Jonathan Gorham. He wanted tract 6 mile square (in Maine). Signed 12 June 1735. (Mass State Archives, Vol 114, p116)
Map of the campaigns of King Williams War

On 6 Nov 1683, Samuel Mayo Jr., for striking of Barnabas Vixon on the Lord's Day, is fined 25 shillings. (Plymouth Colony Records, Vol VI)

Barnabas is named in his father Robert’s 1 October 1686 will, receiving 30 acres of land with his brother Titus.  

On 6 April 1706, Elisha Higgins was granted land by the town of Eastham, beginning at a white oak near the land of Barnabas Wixam running then to an oak, which is bound of Joseph Higgins (at Pochet).

On 26 May 1711 Joseph Higgins Jr. of Eastham granted land on the westerly side of his other land where he now lives near Benjamin Wixam (Little Skaket Neck).

In Jonathan Sparrow's 10 March 1706/7 will, he mentions marsh near the beach creek that he bought from Barnabas Wixum in Eastham.

Around 1692, Barnabas married Sarah Remick. She was born in Kittery (now in Maine but then part of Massachusetts) 16 July 1663, the daughter of Christian and Hannah Remick.

Sarah married, first, John Green, a mariner of Kittery, probably before 19 Jun 1687, when his father, dwelling on his fatherly affection, tender care and love for this beloved son, gave him land at the Cove nears Franks Fort, adjacent his own land. John died before 1693.

Barnabas Wixon of North Ham (now Dover, NH--thank you Janet Mackie for that information) was named administrator of Sarah’s first husband’s estate on 7 January 1695/6 and put in a bill for two years support of the deceased's wife and daughter (daughter not named). Barnabas signed the document with his mark.

Perhaps Barnabas was living in Kittery and was a friend to the Green family? If anyone knows more about this, I’d appreciate hearing from you.

The births of Barnabas and Sarah’s children are recorded in the Eastham-Orleans Vital Records:

Barnabas born 15 September 1693, died April 1694
Joshua born 14 March 1694/95
Lydia born 12 June 1697
Robert born 29 May 1698
Prince born 2 December 1700

I descend from Joshua who married Hannah Baker, whom I wrote about here. 

It seems likely Barnabas moved his family to Yarmouth (an area called Crooks’ or Crocker’s Neck, now Dennis Port) in the early 1700s. There were mostly Native Americans living in the area at the time. His home was at what is now 38 Smalls Ave. His land was bounded by the present day Lower County Road at the north, Nantucket Sound at the south, Sea Street to the west and Pound Pond to the east. Pound Pond is no more, but was on the west side of Division Street. The Wixons of a later time were called "down-alongers" because they lived down along the shore. The family was engaged in fishing for many generations, including Nathaniel H. Wixon of the ninth generation who kept a fishing shack, dock and fishing vessel in Herring River until the 1960s.
 
CCGS Bulletin, Spring 2001
In Vernon Nickerson’s From Pilgrims and Indians... he writes that Barnabas was called “Black Bart.” Many descendants believe that Barnabas’ father Robert married a Native American woman.

I have read that Sarah died in 1722 but I don’t know what the source is for this. Barnabas died sometime after June 1735 when he is mentioned in the land petition for his military service.


Sources Not Listed Above:

Calkins' manuscript at NEHGS, Robert Wixon of Eastham

Torrey's New England Marriages Prior to 1700

Justin H. Wixom, Wixom Family History, 1963

Nancy Thacher Reid.  Dennis, Cape Cod from Firstcomers to Newcomers, 1639 - 1993, 1996

Genealogical Dictionary of Maine and New Hampshire, 1928

34 comments:

  1. Chris,
    I also descend from Joshua Wixom. Joshua had a son that he named Barnabas also. Barnabas "Wickson" (1776-1846) received a land grant in Texas/Mexico in 1831 and moved his family. His daughter, Minerva (1819-1849) married Thomas Jefferson Nichols (1815-1849) in 1838 in Colorado County, Texas. One of their sons was James Cyrus Nichols. James (1849-1926) married Nancy Jane Tubbs (1854-1946). Their oldest of 12 children was my grandmother, Mary Pearl Nichols Doggett (1889-1990). Danny Jones, Mansfield, Texas

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    1. Thanks for your note, Danny. That's interesting Barnabas went to Texas. What an adventurous spirit! Great info to know, Chris

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    2. It appears I'm related in this ever growing list of descendants. I've only met a couple of cousins from Texas but I'm from the same line. My grandmother was born in Texas and descended from Johnathan Benjamin Nichols however my link in the web has been mostly cut by my grandmother and I haven't spoken to anyone on that side for over 20 years. I'd really like to link up again. Currently in Tucson, AZ area.

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  2. Thank-you Chris, you just firmed up what I had long suspected! I am descended from Sarah Remick's sister Hannah, who married Thomas Chase of Yarmouth (now Dennis). I wasn't entirely sure that Hannah was the daughter of Christian Remick. I will now check my mother's (Nancy Reid's) book as you list it as a reference! Thanks for your terrific work.

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  3. Elizabeth (Libby) FournierMarch 11, 2015 at 1:26 PM

    Hello cousins!!!!! :)

    I am a descendant of Barnabas Wixam b1663 who married Sarah Remick b1663. The line goes as follows:

    Barnabas born 1663
    Joshua born 1695
    Barnabas Hiram born 1740
    Jesse Fletcher born 1791
    John Fletcher born 1822
    Arista Dow born 1851
    Lorenzo Dow born 1879/1880
    Dorothy Lee born 1923
    Tommy Joe Reynolds 1946-2012 (my Dad)



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  4. BTW do any of you have the Wixom Family History Books? I was lucky enough to find them for sale on Amazon.

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  5. Hi Elizabeth, I don't have the books. Have you found them helpful? Chris

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  6. Robert Wixam is my 7th great-grandfather, followed by Barnabas / Joshua / Solomon / Joshua / Azor / to my great-grandmother Rachel. A MAJOR roadblock I'm running into is, was Robert married to Alice Titus of England, or Princess Alice Aspinet of the Nauset Indian tribe. Am finding both women gave birth to the same named children born on the same birthdates. Dianne, email: RadDecor@yahoo.com

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    1. Dianne, I've never found Alice's surname with any certainty. I know some descendants believe she was a Native American but I think the princess aspect isn't valid. Sorry I can't be of help, Chris

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    2. Dear Chris: How nice of you to get back to me so soon! Thank you. On FamilySearch.org / Robert Wixam (9N1Z-BBD) / Memories - there is an excellent two page document titled: Robert & Alice Titus Wixam (this Alice is from England). My Wixom Family History book also has an Alice w/ unknown surname from England. Yet there are dozens of Internet sights mentioning Robert Wixam as being married Chief Aspinet's daughter, Princess Alice. I'm going to title my search: The Case of the Two Alice's."

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  7. Robert Wixam, and "The Case of the Two Alices."

    Hello Chris:

    I emailed you a copy of the article about Alice Titus (English) being married to Robert Wixam. The nice person who posted the Titus information to FamilySearch.org replied to my email this morning. She said the Titus information came from her father, who died last year.

    Am just now discovering and appreciating your blog!

    Sincerely, Dianna

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    1. Dianna, The email didn't come through, unfortunately, but thanks for trying! Chris

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  8. Chris:

    You probably already have a copy of this hardback book on Wixom Family History, but if not - I just found it at: https://archive.org/details/wixomfamilyhisto00wixo - Published in 1963 by Justin Humbolt Wixom. This is a very user friendly site.

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    1. Above spacing unintentional. Dianna

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    2. That's awesome that book is online. Thanks for the link! Chris

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  9. While my DNA results don't solve the mystery of Robert Wixon's wife (was she or wasn't she Chief Aspinet's daughter); at least my results don't rule Alice Aspinet totally out of the question. I have trace amounts of Native American ancestry in my mostly British bloodline.

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    1. That's terrific your DNA results showed trace amounts of Native American ancestry. It does keep alive the possibility of Cape Englishmen marrying natives.Chris

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  10. The records I've seen all indicate that Alice was born in 1631. Robert Titus and his wife Hannah Carter arrived in the U.S. on the ship The Hopewell on April 1, 1635, with their 2 children: Jo age 8 and Edmund age 5. http://winthropsociety.com/ships/hopewell1.htm

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    1. Thanks for posting, Rebecca. Have see you seen a record that shows Alice as daughter of Robert Titus? Strange then she isn't listed as a Hopewell passenger. Thanks again, Chris

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  11. Searching for a digital copy of Wixom Family History to no avail. The above link is not opening for me. Does anyone have a copy they can send me?

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  12. The Wixom Family History book is out of copyright and available from printers in India. Go to Abe Books and order it if you like. Hardcover copies cost about $35 and are identical in size and quality to the original except that the Wixom Family Crest is a black and white image instead of color in the original. The original book has a dark tan cover but the new prints have a white hardcover with very colorful swirling stripes. Many other 19th century genealogy books are available from these printers as well.

    As for Alice, the only source document that has her name is Robert's will where her name is simply Alice. She is either English or Indian but there is no data to support either possibility. Family lore suggests that she was an Indian but there is no proof. One might speculate that Robert, as an indentured servant, might have married an Indian woman. The location of Barnabas in Dennisport, an Indian community at the time also supports the idea that he might have been of mixed ancestry. There is no doubt about the Indian ancestry of many of the descendants of Barnabas and Sarah down through Clarence Manter Wixon, Chief Red Blanket, and his children.

    My mother's autosomal DNA is 1.4% "Central American" by myheritage.com which would be in the ballpark of the correct percentage if her 6th great grandmother, Alice, was an American Indian. The initial results of my mother's DNA analysis placed this 1.4% as being from Oceania so it will be interesting to see how the ethnicity assignment changes as the database increases in numbers.

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    1. Thanks for sharing information on obtaining the book, Alice's identity and DNA. My DNA has not shown anything that could be interpreted as being of Native American descent, which would have been most welcome. Chris

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  13. Alice was an 8th GG. My DNA showed up with a trace of Native American, 0.5%. Since 75% of my ancestors weren't here until after the Civil War, this could be the possible source

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    1. Hi Bruce, That's interesting your DNA showed up with a trace of Native American ancestry. Thank you for sharing, Chris

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  14. Ancestry recently reevaluated my DNA and the Native American trace disappeared. Oh well, it may return in time as they continue adding data and reevaluating.

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  15. Although I have nothing to substantiate my gut feeling regarding the 2 Alice's...I believe the situation was not unlike the Thomas Jefferson Sally Hemmings relationship. It was likely that Indian Alice was a servant of Robert Wixon and it developed into a relationship perhaps with at the time children. Robert was a highly regarded citizen and it would have been in his best interest to shield their relationship. He may have or may have not have had a wife named Alice but the situation suggests that there was a bit of intentional masking of things. I feeling is that at least some of his kids were mothered by Indian Alice but given the impression they were bore by a white Alice as a convenience and for reasons to uphold his standing in the community. His will lists merely "Alice" as benefitting from his vast land holdings and wealth as well as certain children obtaining Indian holdings.

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    1. Hi Stephen, That's an interesting idea. It does seem strange that his will just names "Alice" rather than the usual "my wife, or loving wife, Alice." Hmmmm.

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    2. The will says she is his wife. I have the actual text of the will. She was not a servant.

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  16. I went back to the Wampanoag tribal headquarters and could get no definitive information on Alice. There were other Wixom descendants of Robert who did marry Into the the tribe with children (Clarence Mantra Wixsom i.e.) who became chief. I descend from Barnabas who they say was called black Bart and lived in the area generally populated by the Indians. My DNA shows no percent of Indian. I am uncertain as two of my fathers brothers have dark eyes and darker skin tones and general physical athleticism I would relate to East Coast tribes. I think it needs more study. There seems to be evidence, but also some reason to question after 350 + years of unknown. It is also interesting to know Robert Wixam's daughter married Govenor Prence's grandson. That line also needs to be pursued.

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    1. Hi Lowell, Thanks for sharing your findings. I truly hope descendants someday have a definitive answer!

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  17. Hey cousin! Thanks so much for putting this blog together and for all the comments by our relatives. It is such a joy to be able to connect with family.
    Julia

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  18. Alice Aspinet was a 8GG of mine. I am excited to learn more about her tribe and culture. Maybe someday visit the areas they lived. Thank you everyone for sharing all the information. My email if any relative want to correspond mariewatts95@gmail.com

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  19. I am a direct descendant of Robert Wixam. I would like to learn more about this family line as well.

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I'm now moderating comments on this blog. My apologies for any ensuing delays, but the large number of "spam" comments have made this necessary. ~Chris