The Colonial Silversmith

Peter Oliver (1682-1712), the 9^th great-uncle of my sons, was a well-known colonial silversmith In Boston, Massachusetts. A silversmith is a person who crafts objects from silver and need to go through an apprenticeship to learn the craft.

Peter was one of six siblings – one of two boys, and his parents were Peter Oliver (1682-1712) and Susanna Sweet (16471684). In 1695, at the age of 13, Peter was apprenticed to John Coney, a master silversmith, to learn the silversmith trade. (An interesting side note is that Paul Revere’s father was also an apprentice of John Coney.)

Peter was married two times. His first wife, Jerusha Mather (1684-1710), was the daughter of the well-known Puritan minister Increase Mather. Peter and Jerusha were married on March 8, 1709, in Boson, and had one daughter who only lived for five months. After Jerusha’s death in 1710, Peter married Hopestill Winslow (1680-1754) on March 1, 1711, in Boston. Peter died the following year on April 27, 1712, at the young age of 30. Peter and Hopestill did not have any children.

At the time of Peter’s death, there were several epidemics spreading throughout New England: measles, smallpox, and “malignant distemper” (aka influenza).  So, Peter, his daughter, and his first wife, could have been victims of any of these illnesses. In fact, as part of his opening statement in his Last Will and Testament, Peter—anticipating his death—states that he was “sick and weak in Body but of sound and perfect memory and understanding, blessed be God, and not knowing how soon I may department this life make my Last Will and Testament. . . .” Peter died three days after the writing of his Will.

Peter was, and still is, known for his excellent silversmithing. So, let’s look at some of his most well-known pieces.

This first piece is a chocolate pot. It was made about 1705, is 10½ inches high, and weighs 26

ounces. It was made for Beulah Jacquette Coates, whose husband, Thomas Coates, was also a silversmith. Today, this chocolate pot is in a private collection.

Next, a porringer made about 1710. The porringer is engraved with the initials TBM for Thomas and Mary Barton who were married in 1710. Today, this piece is in Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts.

The third piece is a flagon. It was made in 1711, is 11-7/8 inches high, and weighs over 47 ounces. The flagon is engraved "Mrs. Elizabeth Wensley / To the Second Church / of Christ in / Boston / 1711." The flagon, made as a gift, was presented to the Second Church of Christ after the death Elizabeth Wensley, who died in 1711.  Mrs. Wensley was the mother of Peter’s second wife Hopestill Winslow. And, Hopestill’s step-father, was the minister of the Second Church of Church. Today, this piece is in the Winterthur Museum and Library in Delaware – a former du Pont family residence.

Below is Peter's silversmith mark he would have used on all the pieces he made.

It's too bad that Peter died at such a young age. Just think of the silver pieces that he could have completed.

 ______________

Sources used:

Caufield, Ernest. “The Pursuit of a Pestilence.” Proceedings of the Antiquarian Society, April 1950, pp. 21-52. Accessed 2-5-2020 at: http://www.americanantiquarian.org/proceedings/44807204.pdf

            Voss, William Erik. “Silversmiths & Related Craftsmen.” American Silversmiths, Rootsweb, 2014, freepages.rootsweb.com/~silversmiths/genealogy/makers/silversmiths/index.htm

A Trap Door Saved His House

I have previously written about King Philip’s War (1675-1678); and, since that time, I found other family members whose life was touched by that same war:  Samuel Morse (1639-1717) and Joseph Allen (1652-1704), my husband’s 8th great-uncle and 6^th great grandfather, respectively.

King Philip - Google Images

Metacom, the Wampanoag Indian Chief, was also known as “King Philip.” In the 1600s (and today), the Wampanoag Indians, lived on the East Coast—primarily in Massachusetts and Rhode Island. The Wampanoag Indians and the colonists had maintained a somewhat peaceful relationship. However, this “peaceful co-existence” did not continue once Metacom became the chief of the Wampanoag tribe. 

In its simplest form, King Philip’s War occurred because of violations—by both sides—of various peace treaties. These violations served to increase tension between the two parties. Additionally, a 1671 treaty required the Indians to surrender their firearms. Obviously, the Wampanoags would not want this provision. And, I can only imagine that Wampanoags did not turn in those firearms. Additionally, the tensions flared dramatically when three Indians were hanged for murder in the Plymouth Colony.  (I do wonder if they were rightly accused; and if they were, did they use those firearms which they were not to have.) The Indians retaliated by raiding villages, and the colonists in turn attacked and burned Indian villages:  This became a vicious cycle.  These activities lead up to February 21, 1676, in Medfield, Massachusetts. February 21, 1676, is considered to be the actual start of King Philip’s war. 

Location of Medfield, Mass. (green star)

 

The residents of Medfield, Massachusetts, had been hearing horror stories of towns in New England being burned to the ground and the residents of those towns being killed and scalped. So, the colonial residents would either spend their nights in local garrisons (also known as palisades) or sleeping with their firearms. However, the Medfield residents had become complacent as the Massachusetts Governor had stationed over 70 soldiers in the town and at least 75 of the men in town were armed. 

Setting fire to Colonist home - Google Images

Early in the morning of February 21, Samuel Morse went to his barn and discovered an Indian hiding under the hay. Morse fled with his family as the Indian set fire to Morse’s barn and home. This was the signal for the rest of the Indians, who were hiding under bushes and fences and behind barns, to torch Medfield. The Indians were well-armed with weapons, ammunition, and combustible materials. In the end, over 32 homes, two mills, multiple barns, and several miscellaneous buildings were destroyed; 17 settlers (including at least three children) and 3 soldiers were dead along with an unknown number of Native Americans, and at least one child was taken hostage; and horses and livestock were burned alive. So, how does Joseph Allen fit into all of this?

Joseph Allen’s home was the only house in the north end of town to survive the attack. When the Allen’s received word of the attack, the family fled to the town garrison, leaving behind – and unprotected – their homestead.

Colonial Cooper - Google Images

Joseph was a cooper. A cooper builds and repairs barrels and crates. In his workshop, Joseph had a lot of wood shavings. The Indians used these shavings by piling them up in the house and setting them on fire. However, they did not pay attention to where they were lighting the fire: on top of a trap door. As the trap door caught fire, it fell through into the dirt basement, and the fire went out. The homestead was saved because the fire was set in the wrong location. 

Though Joseph Allen is just a footnote in history; he has become famous because of the way his house was not destroyed.

Joseph Allen house as it looks today

Resources used:

--DeSorgher, Richard. Uniquely Medfield: “Once Upon a Town: Medfield Under Attack.” 28 Sept. 2012, https://patch.com/massachusetts/medfield/uniquely=medfield-once-upon-a-town-medfield-under-attack.

--DeSorgher, Richard. “While Hawaii Will Note Pearl Harbor and NYC Will Always Remember 9/11, Medfield Will Never Forget the Events of Feb. 21, 1676.” Neighbor News, 17 Feb. 2012, https://patch.com/massachusetts/medfield/desorgher-uniquely-medfield.

--“King Philip War.” Millis History. http://www.millishistory.org/king-phillip-trees.html.

--King Philip’s War: Burning of Medfield. https://www.arcgis.com/home.

A Revolutionary War Martyr

A cousin to my sons, Samuel Swift (1715-1775), was a member of the Sons of Liberty and called a “martyr for freedom’s cause” by his friend, Samuel Adams (1722-1803). Samuel Swift was married twice, but at the period of time we’re interested in, he was married to his second wife, Ann Foster (1729-1788), with whom he had six children.

Swift died under British house arrest in Boston, Massachusetts, having contracted an illness from which he did not recover. I suspect it may have been smallpox or diphtheria as these were two prevalent diseases during the Revolutionary War and decimated General Washington’s troops.

Let’s backtrack from Swift’s death to the events leading up to his house arrest. His good friend, Samuel Adams, was the founder of the Sons of Liberty. The Sons of Liberty, was founded in 1765 in Boston and dissolved in 1776. It was a secret organization organized in all thirteen colonies to advance the rights of the colonists and to fight taxation by the British government. It played a major role in battling the Stamp Act and applying pressure to merchants who did not comply with the non-importation associations (see prior blog). Wherever these groups existed, they were directed in secret by leading men – Samuel Swift was one of these men. 

Image from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 Additionally, Swift was part of Boston’s Committee of Correspondence. Each major city had one of these committees whose purpose was to maintain contact between colonial cities. The defined purpose of Boston’s Committee was to “Prepare a statement of the rights of colonists, and of this province in particular, as men, as Christians, and as subjects; Prepare a declaration of the infringement of those rights; and Prepare a letter to be sent to all towns in this province (Massachusetts) and to the world, giving the sense of this town.” In 1773, this Committee was charged with managing the “tea crisis” and was the driving force behind the Boston Tea Party. Samuel Swift – not an actual member of the Boston Tea Party - is alleged to have been one of the managers of the Boston Tea Party. 1 Though the Committees of Correspondence were primarily concerned with diplomacy, the Sons of Liberty were more about action. So, it was probably the Sons of Liberty members (who were also members of the Committees of Correspondence) who pulled off the Boston Tea Party. 

Google Image

 Samuel Swift was known for his zeal regarding the revolution, and Samuel Adams said that “Samuel Swift caused Bostonians to secrete their arms when the British Governor, Gage, offered the town freedom if arms were brought into the arsenal.”  Additionally, in 1775, Swift was the presiding officer at a Freemasons meeting where it was agreed to use the concealed arms and, if needed, pitchforks and axes, to attack the British soldiers stationed in Boston. About June 1775, Gov. Gage got wind of this scheme and imprisoned Samuel Swift. 2

Swift’s willingness to resort to violence is seen in a letter he wrote to Samuel Adams on October 24, 1774: “As for my part I am no Swordsman but with Gun or flail I fear no man more especially my Cause being Good as I think otherwise [sic] I would not engage.” 3 

Needless to say, Swift’s wife, Ann, was distraught about her husband’s house arrest. She and their children were forced to leave their home and went to live in Springfield, Massachusetts, about 90 miles west of Boston. Ann was an inveterate diary keeper.  She writes in her diary in June 1775: “Here I am in the woods, Boston being so surrounded by armies that we could not enjoy our home: no school for the children, and the town forsaken by the ministers—the pillars of the land.” At the same time, she wrote a letter to a British officer, Captain Handfield, asking that her husband be able to come to her:

“Capt. Handfield, Sir,

            Your kindness in undertaking to me a pass for me emboldens me to ask the like favor for my dear husband whom I hear is in a very weak state of health. The anxiety of my mind is great about him. A word from you would have more weight than all the arguments that he could make use of.

            Could I come to him, this favor I would not ask. I, Sir I trust in your goodness that you will do what you can to forward Mr. Swift to me and in doing so you will greatly oblige

            Your distressed friend                        ANN SWIFT

Should be glad if he would bring out two

trunks which there is clothing in that I

want very much for myself and children.” 4

Despite his wife’s plea, Samuel Swift was not released to go to Springfield. I presume that despite his illness, Governor Gage, deemed him a threat, sick or not.  Samuel Swift died on August 30, 1775. His wife wrote in her diary: “Departed this life, in the 61^st year of his age, my dear husband, Samuel Swift. He died in Boston, or in other words, murdered there. He was not allowed to come to see me and live with his wife and children in the country. There he gave up the ghost—his heart was broken; the cruel treatment he met with in being a friend to his country was more than he could bear. With six fatherless children (in the woods) and all my substance in Boston.” 5 

Both Ann Foster Swift and Samuel Adams were correct – Samuel Swift, a true Revolutionary, gave his life for his country, dying a martyr. 

 

Image from Find a Grave

Samuel Swift is my sons’ second cousin, nine times removed.

1 - "Committees of Correspondence: The Voice of the Patriots." Boston Tea Party Ships & Museum, 5 Mar 2019, www.bostonteapartyship.com/committees-of-correspondence.

2 - Ibid.

3 - "To John Adams from Samuel Swift, 20 October 1774," Founders Online, National Archives, last modified June 13, 2018, http://founders.archives.gov/documents/Adams/06-02-0059. [Original source: The Adams Papers, Papers of John Adams, vol. 2, December 1773-April 1775, ed. Robert J. Taylor. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1977, pp. 192-196.

4 - "North America, Family Histories, 1500-2000." Ancestry.com. Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2016. www.ancestry.com. Memoirs of Gen. Joseph Gardner Swift, LL D, USA : First graduate of the United States Military Academy.

5 - Ibid.