Biography for Deborah Meacham (6th Great Grandmother)
Deborah was born April 8, 1681, in Salem, Essex, Massachusetts.[1] She died in 1761 in Enfield, Hartford, Connecticut at the age of 91.[2] Her burial location is unknown.
Her parents were Captain Isaac Meacham and Deborah Browning. Isaac was born about 1642 in Salem, Essex, Massachusetts. He died in Enfield, Hampshire, Massachusetts on April 29, 1715. His burial location is unknown. Deborah was born November 30, 1646, in Salem. She died about 1704 in Enfield. Her burial location is also unknown.
Deborah married first John Perkins on November 28, 1666. John was born in 1641 in Topsfield, Essex, Massachusetts and died on May 19, 1668, in Topsfield. They had one child:
- Thomas Perkins, born November 4, 1667 in Topsfield, Essex, Massachusetts and died October 31, 1709, in Enfield, Hampshire, Massachusetts.
Deborah married second Daniel Markham II on April 2, 1703 in Enfield (his last name is spelled Marcom in this entry).[3] He was born November 1, 1671, in Cambridge, Middlesex, Massachusetts and died May 6, 1761, in Enfield, Hartford, Connecticut.
Deborah and Daniel had the following ten children:
- Daniel Markham III, born November 13, 1704, Middletown, Middlesex Co.; married first Patience Miller, April 2, 1729, Middletown, Middlesex, Connecticut; married second Thankful Heath, November 14, 1745, Stafford, Tolland Co., CT; died March 16, 1786, Tyringham, Massachusetts.
- Deborah Markham, born March 2, 1705, Middletown, Middlesex, Connecticut; married Samuel Eaton, June 25, 1746, Middletown, Middlesex, Connecticut; died before 1795
- Israel Markham, born February 18, 1707, Middletown, Middlesex, Connecticut; married Anne Spencer, May 11, 1733, Windham, Connecticut; died 1763, Enfield, Hartford, Connecticut.
- Jeremiah Markham, born February 18, 1709/10, Middletown, Middlesex, Connecticut; married 1734, Enfield; died September 22, 1753, Middletown, Middlesex, Connecticut.
- Isaac Markham, born November 30, 1711, Middletown, Middlesex, Connecticut; married Jemima Pease, 1734, CT; married May 9, 1734, Enfield, Hartford, Connecticut; died 1759, Enfield, Hartford, Connecticut.
- Phebe Markham, born October 26, 1713, Middletown, Middlesex, Connecticut; married January 1, 1732; died July 1, 1803, Windham, Windham, Connecticut.
- Marjorie Markham, born November 13, 1715, Middletown, Middlesex, Connecticut; married Ebenezer Bacon, July 21, 1737, Canterbury, Windham, Connecticut; died March 24, 1798, Enfield, Hartford, Connecticut.
- Joseph Markham, born December 8, 1717, Middletown, Middlesex, Connecticut; married Abigail Booth, January 15, 1741, Enfield, Hartford County, Connecticut; died April 3, 1761, Enfield, Hartford, Connecticut.
- Sybil Taylor Markham, born February 19, 1719, Middletown, Middlesex, Connecticut; died March 11, 1791, Somers, Hartford Co, CT.
- Edith Markham, born May 14, 1722, Enfield, Hartford, Connecticut; married Benjamin Simons, April 18, 1751, Enfield, Hartford, Connecticut; died September 4, 1803, Hazardville, Hartford, Connecticut.
Narrative
Deborah was born in Salem, Essex, Massachusetts. She was the eighth of twelve children, and was named after her mother. Eleven years before she was born, her parents had their first child, named Deborah, who died young. So, she was also named after this first child.
Her father, Isaac, was a farmer and a clothier. He was born and lived in Salem for 30 years before moving to Enfield. He was one of the first three selectmen chosen for the newly formed town of Enfield. He had a saw mill and a fulling mill, in addition to quite a bit of land, over 100 acres. Isaac is often referred to as a Captain. It is not known how he acquired this title. He was likely a part of the local militia, which was required by the Colony of Massachusetts to be organized in each town. Perhaps he was a Captain in this group.
In 1703 Deborah married Daniel Markham in Enfield. At this time Enfield was in Massachusetts, in Hampshire County. Enfield was moved to Hartford County, Connecticut in 1749.[4] Deborah and Daniel lived in Middletown and their first nine children were born there.
Sometime between 1716 to 1719, Deborah and Daniel moved their family to Enfield. Deborah’s father, Captain Isaac Meacham, died in Enfield in 1715. Two of her brothers, Isaac (Jr.) and Israel, also died there that same year. From the History of Enfield is this, “Daniel (Markham II) who erected a house near where the Iron Works formerly stood”. There is not a specific year stated, but it appears to be around 1716-1719. On November 11, 1716 Daniel and Deborah sold land that she had inherited from her father in Enfield; Daniel II is shown as being from Middletown.[5] Three years later, on December 8, 1719, Daniel II purchased land in Enfield and is shown as being from Enfield.[6] So, they moved their family there sometime in this three-year period.
Their home in Enfield was next to the Iron Works, which was built by Israel Meacham, Deborah’s brother, who died in 1715. In his nuncupative (verbal) will, Israel gave all of his lands and the Iron Works to his siblings.[7] This included Deborah. So, Deborah and Daniel had 1/8 interest in this Iron Works. It’s probable that Daniel and possibly Deborah were somehow involved with that operation. They lived right next to it. There has been no record found of them selling their part in this Iron Works property, so they must have kept their part ownership.
In 1734 the town of Somers was set off from Enfield, Somers is just a few miles east. The church at Somers was the 2nd Ecclesiastical Society of Enfield, first organize in 1727.[8] On August 2, 1741, Daniel was admitted to full Communion in this church, and on September, 27 the same year, Deborah was also admitted to full Communion.[9]
Deborah’s husband was a yeoman, a farmer for most of his life. He had a grist mill for many years in Enfield. He was quite often involved in civic affairs, holding quite a few positions for the town of Enfield. No court records have been found to indicate he had any legal issues. Deborah would have raised their children, helped with the work on their farm, and possibly helped with the grist mill and Iron Works. In Middletown, they owned over 100 acres of land and then they owned over 100 acres and the grist mill in Enfield. No probate records have been found and her burial location is unknown. More research is needed to try to find any potential records.
Deborah lived in the following places:
1681 – She was born in Salem, Essex, Massachusetts.
1683 – The family moved to Enfield, Hampshire, Massachusetts.[10] Deborah was two years old.
1703 – Marriage to Daniel Markham in Enfield (her family lived in Enfield).
1704 – Daniel and Deborah are living in Middletown, where Daniel was from. Their first child, Daniel III, was born in 1704 in Middletown.
1719 – Their first 9 children were born in Middletown, with Sybil being the last.
1716-1719 – Daniel and Deborah moved the family to Enfield, shortly after her father and two brothers had died there.
1722 – Their 10th child, Edith, was born in Enfield.
1761 – Deborah dies in Enfield.
Suggested reading:
“The History of Middlesex County 1635-1885”, by Henry Whittemore, published by J. H. Beers & Co., New York, NY, 1884.
“Middletown 1650-1950”, by Willard M. Wallace, City of Middletown, Connecticut, 1950.
“Middletown: Streets, Commerce, and People 1650-1981”, by Peter D. Hall, Wesleyan University, Middletown, Connecticut, 1981.
“The Development of Local Public Services 1650-1860: Lessons from Middletown, Connecticut”, by Hannah J. McKinney, published by Greenwood Press, Portsmouth, N.H., 1995.
“The Challenge of Change – Three Centuries of Enfield, Connecticut History” by Ruth Bridge, published for the Enfield Historical Society by Phoenix Publishing, Canaan, New Hampshire, 1977.
“Historical Sketch of the Town of Enfield” by A. Johnson, George H. Booth and L. H. Pease, M.D., published in Hartford by The Case, Lockwood & Brainard Co., Printers, 1876.
“The History of Enfield Connecticut”, Three volumes, by Francis Olcott Allen, published by The Wickersham Printing Co., Lancaster, PA, 1900.
“Enfield Connecticut: Stories Carved in Stone” by Bob Clark, published by Dog Pond Press, West Springfield, Massachusetts, 2006.
Biography written by Kem & Becky Marcum; December, 2022.
[1] Massachusetts, U.S., Town and Vital Records, 1620-1988; Salem, Vital Record Transcripts; Salem Births, Page 69; accessed on ancestry.com.
[2] Descendants of Deacon Daniel Markham – Workbook 2008, by Curtis Hartwig and Nancy (Markham) Hartwig; Binghamton, New York; Page 2.
[3] The History of Enfield Connecticut, Volume 2, Page 1766, by Francis Olcott Allen, published by The Wickersham Printing Co., Lancaster, PA, 1900.
[4] Enfield Connecticut: Stories Carved in Stone by Bob Clark, Dog Pond Press, West Springfield, Massachusetts, 2006, Pages 14-15.
[5] Massachusetts Land Records, Hampden County, Volume F, Page 96; accessed at Familysearch.org.
[6] Massachusetts Land Records, Hampden County, Volume C, Page 603; accessed at Familysearch.org.
[7] Massachusetts Probate Records, Hampshire County, 1660-1916, Volume 2, Page 122; accessed at Familysearch.org.
[8] Ibid, The History of Enfield Connecticut, Volume 3, Page 2175.
[9] Ibid, The History of Enfield Connecticut, Volume 3, Page 2188.
[10] Ibid, The History of Enfield Connecticut, Volume 1, Page 13.