Thomas Tobey (1687-1753) and his Wife Mary Damon (b. 1680) of Sandwich, Scituate, and Hanover Massachusetts

Thomas Tobey was born February 1686/7 at Sandwich on Cape Cod, then part of Plymouth Colony. [Mayflower Descendant 29:74 (hereafter MD) citing Sandwich Vital Records] His parents were John Tobey and Jane whose maiden name is not recorded. Tobey is sometimes spelled Toby and Tobie. Thomas is my 8th great-grandfather on my grandfather Arthur Washburn Ellis Davis’ side of the family. 

“Thomas Tobie” and “Mary Damen” were married 12 July 1711 by Mr Nath. Pitcher at Scituate, Plymouth County, Massachusetts. [Scituate Vital Records in MD 2:170]

Mary Damon was born Scituate in March 1690, the daughter of Zachariah and Martha (Woodworth) Damon. [Scituate VR 1:125]

Mary and Thomas had eight children, seven baptized Scituate [Births of no. 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8 in Scituate Vital Records 1:361; no. 6 from Second Church of Scituate Records; marriages from Tobey]:

1. Deborah who married 4 June 1731 Isaac Borden also of Hanover 
2. Jane baptized 2 October 1720 Second Church Scituate; married Joseph Palmer at Scituate 30 June 1733 
3. Elisha baptized 2 October 1720 Second Church Scituate; married Abigail Tobey of Falmouth 1738 
4. Mary born about 1718; baptized 2 October 1720 Second Church Scituate; admitted to the church 14 December 1735 age “of about 17 years” daughter of Thomas Tobey [NEHGR 58:82]; married James Torrey 
5. Martha baptized 13 August 1721 at Second Church Scituate; married Caleb Prouty August 1740 at Scituate 
6. Thomas baptized “in private, being sicke” 23 March 1723/24 [Records of Second Church Scituate/NEHGR 58:388]
7. Luke baptized 2 July 1727 Second Church Scituate; married Anne Swift 30 August 1750 at Rochester, Plymouth County, Massachusetts [Rochester VR 2:306]; died before his inventory was taken 29 December 1775 at Rochester
8. Anna baptized 26 October 1729 by Reverend Mr. David Turner Pastor of Church in Rehoboth [Scituate Vital Records 1:361]

The vital record entries for No. 2 through 7 reference the baptisms from “Records of the Second Church of Scituate, now the First Unitarian Church of Norwell.”

I descend from Luke whom I wrote about here.

Thomas worked as a housewright, a skilled master builder/house carpenter. 

Thomas Toby and his wife Mary Toby were baptized 2 October 1720, along with their children Jane, Elisha and Mary. The same day Thomas Toby & Mary Toby his wife were admitted to Communion at the Lord’s table. [NEHGS Register 57:399]

Mary and Thomas resided in the area of Scituate that later was incorporated as Hanover, but seems they returned temporarily to Thomas’ hometown: “Thomas Tobey was dismissed from the church of Scituate to that of Sandwich January 18, 1741.” [Tobey] Thomas was again of Hanover in 1753.

Thomas Tobey of Scituate or Hanover was involved in six court cases from 1719 to 1738—four times as defendant and twice as the plaintiff. The details are not provided but they seem like mostly disagreements on money owed and judgments ranged from £4 to £10. He is called yeoman, laborer and housewright. [Plymouth Court Records 5:62 488, 491, 6:9, 29, 70]

“Thomas Toby of Scituate, husbandman, with wife Mary,” sold “one fifth of all the estate which our honoured father Zechariah Damon late of Scituate died seized of” to John Damon 17 February 1730. [Tobey]

I have not found his death record, but Thomas Tobey died at Hanover before 7 March 1753, probably fairly close to that date, when bond of administration was granted to Luke Tobey, husbandman of Rochester. Luke, Barzilla Hamond yeoman, Charles Stetson shipwright, all of Rochester, were bound to make or cause to be made an inventory of the estate by September 1754 but the file does not include an inventory. [Plymouth County Probate Case No. 20972]

Thomas was about age 65 at his death. Tobey writes that his property was small and given to his widow Mary, but there is nothing about dispersal of his estate in the probate file, so I’m unclear of a source for that statement. This does indicate Mary outlived her husband; I have not found her death record.  

Source:

Rufus Babcock Tobey and Charles Henry Pope, Tobey (Tobie, Toby) Genealogy: Thomas of Sandwich, James of Kittery, and Their Descendants, 1905