John Hall born England ca 1611; died 1696 at Dennis, Mass.

John Hall was born about 1611. His English home town has been identified as Coventry, London and Warwickshire, but I haven’t found definitive proof of any of these places. He emigrated about 1630. He was first at Boston then at Charlestown, both in Suffolk County. He was then in Barnstable in 1640, eventually settling in Yarmouth by 1653 (in an area that became Dennis), both towns being in Barnstable County.  He is my 11^th great-grandfather on my Grandmother Milly Booth Rollins’ side of the family. There are two John Halls of about the same age during this time, which has caused some confusion and conflicting/incorrect information, including in the works by Savage and Pope.

John married Bethia, whose maiden name is unknown, by 1632. Published books (see those by Deyo and Thacher Reid under Sources) have his first wife’s name was Bethia Farmer and that he married second Elizabeth Larned/Learned, but without sources.

John and Bethiah “Haule” were admitted to the Charlestown church as founding members on 2 November 1632. They had 10 sons:

Samuel about 1636, m. Elizabeth Folland, died without issue

John, baptized Charlestown 13 May 1638, m. Priscilla _____ (possibly Bearse but no strong evidence)

Shebar, baptized Charlestown 9 January 1639/40, no further record

Joseph, baptized Barnstable 3 July 1642, m. Mary Joyce

Benjamin , baptized Barnstable 14 July 1644, buried 23 July 1644

Nathaniel, baptized Barnstable 8 Feb 1645/6, m. Ann Thornton

Gershom, baptized Barnstable 5 March 1647/8, m. 1^st Bethia Bangs; 2^nd Martha Bramhall

William, baptized Barnstable 8 June 1651, m. Esther _____

Benjamin, baptized Barnstable 29 May 1653, m. Mehitable Matthews

Elisha, b. about 1655, m. Lydia _____

I hope Bethia had some close female family and friends given all those men she in her house! The gap between their marriage and the birth of Samuel (whose baptism isn’t found in Charlestown records) is unusual.  I descend from John 2 Hall.

John appears to be literate as his estate inventory included books.  He served as Barnstable constable, Yarmouth surveyor of highways, on Plymouth grand jury, and on a coroner’s jury. He was in the Barnstable section of the 1643 Plymouth Colony list of men able to bear arms.

Amos Otis wrote that John Hall was eminently distinguished for his moral worth and religious character and it would be difficult to find a more honest and upright man. Not sure if there is truth to this claim, but I like it nonetheless!

He received Charlestown land grants in 1635, 1636, 1637, 1638, becoming a significant land owner. In 1672 bounds of land that John and his sons had acquired at Yarmouth/Dennis over 20 years were recorded. He owned a very large tract of land at Nobscusset (now Dennis) between the homesteads of Thomas Howes and John Crowe. Today it would be between Nobscusset Road and Elm Street.

Hall's home location shown at top of map near Hall Cemetery; source CCGS Bulletin, Spring 2001

John Hall died 23 July 1696 in Yarmouth. He is likely buried at the Hall Burying Ground in Dennis, but without a surviving headstone. He wrote a will on 15 July 1694, which was proved 25 Aug 1696. His will mentions land he already gave to his sons. He gave eldest son Samuel 20 acres, son John 20 acres, son Benjamin 15 acres, son Elisha 12 acres. He gave son John three more acres, son Elisha parcel of marsh or meadow land lying above the beach, sons William and Elisha parcel of meadow and broken marsh below the little beach. Elisha received his dwelling house, out housing, yards, orchard. Sons John, Joseph, William, Nathaniel, Gershom, Benjamin and Elisha to receive residue of moveable estate equally divided. Sons John and Elisha named executors. His inventory was sworn 6 Aug 1696 and was valued at over 66 pounds, not including any real estate.

Bethia Hall is said to have died 1 February 1683 (/4) (according to Ancestry of Thomas Chalmers Brainerd, edited by Donald Lines Jacobus, 1948 and The Hall Family of Yarmouth).

Sources:

Robert Charles Anderson, The Great Migration Begins, 1995

Nancy Thacher Reid, Dennis, Cape Cod: From Firstcomers to Newcomers 1639-1993, 1996

Amos Otis, Genealogical Notes of Barnstable Families, being a reprint of the Amos Otis Papers, originally published in the Barnstable Patriot, revised by CF Swift, Volume 1 and 2, 1888

Simeon Deyo, editor, History of Barnstable County, Massachusetts, 1890

CW Swift, Library of Cape Cod History and Genealogy, No. 67, The Hall Family of Yarmouth, 1913