 1637 - 1618
-
| Name |
John Wells |
| Died |
Mar 1617/18 |
| Buried |
18 Mar 1617/18 [1] |
| Born |
1637 |
Ringstead, Northampton, Eng.  [2, 3, 4] |
| Gender |
Male |
| Person ID |
I4419 |
Paul's Tree |
| Last Modified |
2 Jul 2018 |
-
| Notes |
- From https://wc.rootsweb.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=tuttle35&id=I2918
We can place John Wells in Ringstead between 1605 and 1618 from entries recorded in The Montague Musters Book, Joan Wake, ed., Vol. VII Northants Record Society. John Wells and the heirs of Aspen were assessed in Higham Hundred, Ringstead, Northamptonshire, for money, arms (Calivers and Musketts), and horses, for the musters of 1605, 1608, 1613, 1614, 1615, 1616, 1617 & 1618. The heirs of John Wells were assessed in 1619.
The Ringstead Parish Registers show "John Wells was buried the 18th of March, 1617/18".
His will was written January 15, 1617/18, and probated the 25th of March, 1618.
No spouse was mentioned in his will.
He does mention "Thomas Wells, my brother, and Michael Wells, his son", as well as "Willm Wells and John Wells, my brother Thom's sons."
He mentions his grandchild, John Morton, and land he brought of William Morton, who may be the grandchild's father. He mentions grandchild, Richard Tootell, grandchild Etheldred Morton, daughter Morton, grandchild Elizabeth Morton, daughter Tootell, grandchild William Morton, Thomas Tootell, Simon Tootell and William Tootell, my grandchildren; Anna Morton, my grandchild; Simon Tootle & William Morton, my son's in law; Euseby Barwek, my grandchild; Lewys Barwek, my grandchild.
He mentions his son Tootels servants: William Eaton, Jane Low [?Love] and Isabell Porter, and his son Morton's servant: John Botcher & Robt. ?Finsen.
He mentions Etheldred Morton the younger [could this mean his daughter Morton was named Etheldred?], and William Morton's three daughters.
The will is signed by John Welles, and witnessed by Thomas Welles, John Botcher and Robt. Finsen.
There is a list of debts owed to John Welles by:
John Canard the elder, Simon Tootell, Thomas Tootell, Anthony Colson, Robert Leute, Anthony Goode, Thomas Liliman, Alexander Liliman, Thomas Marshall, Henry Newman and Thomas Robinson, John Canard Minor & Pettit, William Clark, William Lilliman, Robert Pettit & Bill, Mr. Coxe & Thomas Eaton, Robert Matly, Euseby Barwek.
The last debt mentioned is Simon Tootle other xx shillings that he tok up of Wm. Clark & x shillings delivered him to fit the furniture at muster wherof he laid out 17 shillings and paid 5 shillings again to me. This is interesting for several reasons. For now, I will just mention that the Ringstead Parish Registers show William Clarke and his wife Anne, and the baptisms of five children: Thomas, 1605; Lewis, 1607; Elizabeth, Feb 21,1609/10; John, 1614; & Anne, 1622. Perhaps additional research into this family would prove fruitful to the Tuttle story.
See entries for William Clarke, b. about 1575 and his family in the index for this database.
When John Wells bequeathed land to his grandson, Richard Tuttle in his will, he stipulated that 16 shillings be paid yearly for the poor of Ringstead, by Richard, his heirs or assigns. If it wasn't paid on time, the churchwardens could cut the hay to get the money. This 16s, called the "Ringstead Gift", was still being paid in the 19th century by William Dobson, who evidently owned the land at that time.
_______________________
From https://www.ringsteadheritage.com/
John Wells a yeoman farmer who in 1617 donated 16 shillings to the poor of Ringstead and began the Ringstead Gift.
Come January the 15th 2017 will be the 400th Anniversary of a Will and Testament of a John Wells,now John was born In Ringstead In 1537 and died 81 years old In 1618. Who was John Wells you may ask, John was a Yeoman land owner/ Farmer and his name lays in the most Incredible family tree’s I’ve come across which has a Prime minister In It’s family tree. One year “1617” before John died he made his “Will” which he passed on his small fortune and ownership of land and Meadows around the village of Ringstead but he also left money and land to the poor of the village.The sum of money which he left was 16 shillings “A lot then” and this was to be paid yearly and to the poor, the money would had came out of the proceeds of crops from the land he left to his family and this amount of money up to recent years still got paid to administer and this was called the Ringstead Gift.
|
-
| Sources |
- [S675] Ringstead Parish Registers.
- [S144] Hale, House and Related Families, Donald Lines Jacobus & Edgar Francis Waterman, 1952, 772.
- [S636] The History of the Tuttle Family.
- [S676] A Look into Ringstead History.
|
|
|
