Greenough Family

Thomas Greenough (1710-1785), son of John and Elizabeth Greenough, and brother of William and John, married Martha Clarke in 1734, daughter of William and Mary (Bronsdon) Clarke. The couple had the following children: Sarah (1735-1823, m. in 1757 Alexander Edwards), Martha (b. 1736, m. in 1767 Capt. John Stone), Thomas, Jr. (1738-1775), William (b. 1740), John (1742-1798), William (b. 1743), Elizabeth (1745-1825, m. in 1777 Eleazer Brooks), Mary (1746-1792, m. in 1767 John Savage), and Jerusha (1747-1782, m. in 1768 Andrew Lepear). After Martha's death in 1749, Thomas Greenough married (2nd) Sarah Stoddard in 1750, daughter of David and Elizabeth (Richardson) Shrimpton Stoddard. As husband of Sarah Stoddard, Thomas Greenough inherited part of the Antigua plantation and Noddles Island. Their children were: David Stoddard Greenough (David S. Greenough I, 1752-1826), William (1756-1831), Yeamans and Newman (twins, b. 1758), and Chauncey (1760-1778). Thomas was a maker of navigational and surveying instruments and became deacon of Boston's New Brick Church in 1755. He was also interested in real estate, owning and selling several properties. He was active in city affairs, serving as clerk of the markets, constable, and selectman. A member of the Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company, he became captain of the 4th Company, 2nd Massachusetts Regiment in the Cape Breton expedition, and was commissioned 9 Feb. 1744. In 1747, he became third sergeant. An active Boston patriot, he worked to relieve the hardships of those whose income was minimized due to the Revolution. He was also a member of the Revolutionary Committee of Correspondence, which met in the Joshua Loring house, a property which was seized from the commodore by the patriots and later became the possession of his son David Stoddard Greenough (David S. Greenough I).

John Greenough (1742-1781), son of Thomas and Martha (Clarke) Greenough, was an importer, justice of the peace, and representative to the General Court. He married Mehitable Dillingham (1747-1798) in 1766. Their son was David Greenough (1774-1836), a builder and real estate dealer in Boston.

David Stoddard Greenough (David S. Greenough I, 1752-1826), lawyer and merchant, was the son of Thomas and Sarah (Stoddard) Greenough. In 1784, he married Anne Doane (1744-1802), daughter of John and June (Collier) Doane, widow of Elisha Doane, and mother of John Doane. After the Revolution, they moved to the former Loring house in Jamaica Plain (Roxbury), Mass. Their only child was David Stoddard Greenough, Jr. (David S. Greenough II, 1787-1830). An ardent patriot, David S. Greenough I was a member of the "Sons of Liberty" and on the Committee of Public Safety under George Washington. He served the state of Massachusetts as a justice of the peace in both Norfolk and Suffolk counties. From his mother Sarah (Stoddard), he inherited one-sixth of Noddles Island. With his brother William, he exchanged a share of a Chelsea farm for another two-sixths of Noddles Island, thus increasing his share of the island to one-half.

David Stoddard Greenough, Jr. (David S. Greenough II) (1787-1830) was the son of David S. Greenough I and Anne (Doane). A member of the Harvard College class of 1805, he practiced law, served as a justice of the peace in Massachusetts, and was lieutenant colonel of the Boston Independent Cadets. In 1813, he married Maria Foster Doane (1793-1843), daughter of Elisha and Jane (Cutler) Doane of Wellfleet and Cohasset. They resided in Jamaica Plain (Roxbury) and had five children: David Stoddard (David S. Greenough III, 1814-1877), John (d. 1846), Anne, James, and Jane (d. 1847). David S. Greenough II was the heir of one-half of Noddles Island. Upon his death, the land was sold to William Hyslop Sumner, who later sold it to the East Boston Co.

David Stoddard Greenough III (1814-1877), a Boston lawyer and avid sportsman, was the son of David S. Greenough II and Maria Foster (Doane). He was graduated from Harvard College in 1833 and Harvard Law School in 1836. In 1843, he married Anna Parkman (1821-1906), daughter of John and Sarah (Rand) Parkman. Their son was David Stoddard Greenough IV (1844-1924), a businessman and real estate developer.

Erving Family

John Erving (1690-1787), a native of Scotland, arrived in Boston around 1706 and rose to be a wealthy merchant. In 1720, he married Abigail Phillips, member of a prominent Welsh family. Their children were: John, George, James, William, Elizabeth (m. James Bowdoin, governor of Massachusetts), Mary (m. Col. Scott), Anne (m. Duncan Stewart), and Sarah (m. Col. Waldo).

Colonel John Erving (1728-1816), Boston merchant, was the son of John and Abigail (Phillips) Erving. A 1747 graduate of Harvard College, he married in 1754 Maria Catherina Shirley, daughter of Gov. William and Frances (Baker) Shirley. Their sons were Shirley and John. For a while an active Whig, he served as a justice of the peace (1756) and in 1768 served with John Hancock on a committee to enforce the pre-Revolutionary embargo. Later, however, he and his brother George were appointed to the "Mandamus Council," a Boston council charged with upholding the authority of the British monarch. He moved to Halifax and later to England. With his brother George, he was proscribed by an act of 1778 and his property confiscated. He died in England.

George Erving (1738-1806), Boston merchant, was the second son of John and Abigail (Phillips) Erving. He was graduated from Harvard College in 1757, and in 1768 he married Lucy Winslow (d. 1770), daughter of Isaac and Lucy (Waldo) Winslow. Their only son was George William Erving (1769-1850), later a prominent American diplomat. After the death of his first wife Lucy, he married in 1775 Mary (Polly) McIntosh. Once an active Whig, he later broke with his party because he was opposed to the idea of secession from England. He moved to England, then back to Froyle, New Hampshire, and again returned to England, where he died.

Major William Erving (1734-1791), son of John and Abigail (Phillips) Erving, was graduated from Harvard College with the class of 1753. He was married for a short time to Catherine ----- and fathered a son named William, both of whom must have died very early. For many years, he was a major in the British Army, serving as a military engineer. He participated in the second siege of Louisburg, was an aide-de-camp to General Wolfe at the siege of Quebec, and was at the capture of Havana in 1762. In the years preceding the Revolution, he resigned from the army and repatriated himself. Much of his correspondence (particularly that addressed to his brother George) appears in this collection. David S. Greenough I was the executor of his will.

Shrimpton Family

Samuel Shrimpton (1643-1698) served as a lieutenant colonel in the militia and on the Governor's Council under Gov. Andros and King James II. He married Elizabeth (Roberts) Breedon (d. 1713), daughter of Capt. Nicholas and Elizabeth Roberts. Their son was Samuel Shrimpton, Jr. (1673-1703). Col. Shrimpton and his wife were in possession of several properties, including Noddles Island in Boston Harbor. Upon the death of Col. Shrimpton, his widow was married to widower Simeon Stoddard (1650-1730).

Samuel Shrimpton, Jr. (1673-1703), son of Col. Samuel and Elizabeth (Roberts) Breedon Shrimpton, was a Boston merchant who married in 1696 Elizabeth Richardson (1680-1757). Their only child was Elizabeth Shrimpton (1702-1721). She married in 1720 John Yeamans (d. 1743), London merchant and lieutenant-governor of Antigua. Upon the death of her grandmother Elizabeth R. B. S. Stoddard in 1713, she inherited Noddles Island in Boston Harbor. The couple's only son was Shute Shrimpton Yeamans (1721-1769).

Yeamans Family

John Yeamans (d. 1743), London merchant and lieutenant governor of Antigua, married in 1720 Elizabeth Shrimpton (1702-1721). Their only son was Shute Shrimpton Yeamans (1721-1769).

Shute Shrimpton Yeamans (1721-1769), London merchant, was the son of John and Elizabeth (Shrimpton) Yeamans. From his mother, he inherited Noddles Island in Boston Harbor, and from his father, he inherited the Antigua plantation. Upon his death, both of these inheritances were passed on to his step-aunts, Mary (Stoddard) Chauncy (wife of Charles Chauncy), Sarah (Stoddard) Greenough (wife of Thomas Greenough), and Mehitable (Stoddard) Hyslop (wife of William Hyslop).

Stoddard Family

David Stoddard (1685-1723), son of Mary (d. 1708) and Simeon Stoddard (1650-1730), was a London and Boston merchant and a Shrimpton family agent at Boston. He married Elizabeth (Richardson) Shrimpton (1680-1757) in 1713, and their children were Mary, Sarah, and Mehitable.

Anthony Stoddard (1678-1748), son of Mary (d. 1708) and Simeon Stoddard (1650-1730), married Martha Belcher in 1705. Their children were Simeon (1707-1776), Anthony (1728-1776), and Martha (1720-1785). Martha Stoddard married (1st) John Fitch; (2nd) Ebenezer Holmes, an executor of the estate of Anthony Stoddard; and (3rd) Boston merchant John Stevens (b. 1715). The Stevenses owned multiple properties, including one in Ashford, Conn.