9041.William Ward. Born on 27 May 1680 in Marlboro, MA.287 William died in Southboro, MA, on 9 Jan 1767; he was 86.287
William “was a noted surveyor and was often employed by the proprietors of new townships to lay out their house-lots and subsequent divisions of common lancls, thereby becoming a proprietor in many of the new towns, and an extensive landholder. He was, further, awarded 1000 acres in Charlemont, Mass., for losses sustained in the Narragansett War by his wife's father. He was a magistrate in early life, and much employed in public business; representative from Marlborough to the General Court in 1721-1723; and a colonel of militia. He was one of the petitioners for the setting off of Southborough, and became one of its first selectmen and its representative in the legislature.”287
William first married Jane Cleveland, daughter of Samuel Cleveland (9 Jun 1657-12 Mar 1735/6) & Jane Keyes (25 Oct 1660-4 Nov 1681). Born ca Nov 1681 in Chelmsford, MA.287 Jane died in Southboro, MA on 12 Apr 1745.287
Jane, of Boston.
Children of William and Jane (Cleveland) Ward, born at Marlboro:
i. Hezekiah, b. 28 Jun 1703;
ii. Jonathan, b. 4 Apr 1705, d. 17 Feb 1730 at Southboro, unmarried;
iii. Bathsheba, b. 18 Oct 1706, m. 25 Aug 1725 Isaiah Wood (son of Thompson Wood);
iv. Hephzibah, b. 30 Dec 1708, m. John Taplin;
v. Elisha, b. 30 Jul 1712, d. 24 Jan 1756 at Southboro, m. there 20 Nov 1738 Ruth Rice (b. 1 Sep 1712, d. 1 Feb 1786, daughter of Joseph & Mercy (Kerley) Rice), no children;
vi. William, b. 16 Oct 1714, d. 12 Jan 1756 at Southboro, Dea., m. 26 Dec 1738 Martha Burnap of Hopkinton, MA (she m. 2nd James Draper of Spencer, MA);
vii. Hannah, b. 12 Mar 1717, m. as his second wife Ephraim Ward (b. 26 Jun 1705, son of Samuel & Mary Ward);
viii. Jane, b. 9 May 1719, d. 16 May 1719;
ix. Abigail, b. 17 Apr 1720, m. Lemuel Newton (son of Samuel Newton);
x. Charles, b. 27 Oct 1722; and
xi. Submit, b. 5 Jun 1726, d. 6 Jun 1726.287
On 18 Oct 1758 when William was 78, he second married Sarah Smith in Westboro, MA.287
Mrs. Sarah Smith, perhaps widow.
9042.Bethia Ward. Born ca 1683 in Marlboro, MA.287 Bethia died on 15 Apr 1765.287
Elnathan and Bethiah moved to Mansfield about 1718. Their children were born at Marlboro except the last, born at Mansfield:
i. Uriah, b. 30 Apr 1706, d. 9 Jul 1710 at Marlboro;
ii. Jerusha, m. 1729 Benjamin robinson of Windham, CT;
iii. Priscilla, b. 3 Apr 1709, m. 2 Jan 1726 Matthias Marsh of Coventry, CT;
iv. Levinah (or Dinah), b. 31 Aug 1711, d. 8 mar 1749 at Marlboro, m. 16 Dec 1729 as his second wife John Fay (b. 30 Nov 1669 at Marlboro, d. 5 Jan 1747 at Westboro, no children;
v. Prudence, b. 28 Jan 1715, d. 3 Feb 1715 at Marlboro;
vi. Elnathan, b. 7 Apr 1716, d. 2 Sep 1802 at Mansfield;
vii. Paul, bp. 7 Sep 1718, d. 3 May 1746 at Coventry, CT, m. 1 Jul 1741 Catherine Turner; and
viii. Uriah, b. ca. 1723 at Mansfield, d. 25 Jan 1777, m. 1st Lydia Ward (d. 14 Dec 1750, m. 2nd 28 May 1754 Ann Richardson of Coventry (daughter of Amos Richardson).287
On 17 Jun 1705 Bethia married Elnathan Brigham, son of Thomas Brigham (19 Sep 1641-25 Nov 1717) & Mary Rice (19 Sep 1646-bef 30 May 1695).287 Born on 7 Mar 1683.287 Elnathan died in Mansfield, CT, on 10 Apr 1758; he was 75.287
9043.Nahum Ward. Born 6 or 18 Dec 1684 in Marlboro, MA.287 Nahum died in Shrewsbury, MA on 7 May 1754.287
From the William Ward Genealogy,287 about Nahum Ward:
“His career was one of note and diversity. He was a sailor, a Boston merchant, a town founder and real estate operator, a militia officer, a lawyer and judge.
“The call of the sea came first, and while still in his twenties he was master of a vessel in the West-Indian service. ‘A spiritual change came over him and induced him,’ he said, ‘to relinquish that life and go into trade in Boston.’ There we find hum admitted by the selectmen as a ‘new inhabitant,’ May 6, 1714. Two years later he was again in Marlborough at the time that plans were being perfected for the division of a westward tract of 3200 acres, known as the ‘Haynes Farm,’ and he purchased the shares of two of its twenty-three owners. The division of the property was followed by a petition to the General Court for land contiguous to and surrounding both the Haynes and other privately owned tracts for the formation of a new township. This was granted and ‘Shrewsbury’ was established, with forty-four original proprietors—Nahum Ward being one of them.
“Ten years later the township was incorporated, and he was elected moderator (or ‘mayor’), chairman of its first board of selectmen, and assessor. The offce of moderator he held for twenty-two years; that of selectman twenty-three years. He was the town’s first representative in thc General Court and served eight years in the legislature. In addition were two years as town clerk, and four as town treasurer.
“ln 1731 he was admitted to the bar and became a practising lawyer, being in the same year commissioned as justice of the peace. In 1745 he was appointed judge of the Court of Common Pleas. His military titles show the same advance—from ensign in the town’s ‘foot company’ in 1722 to the command of his regiment in or before 1736.
“He dealt largely in the town lands, both buying and selling, and had interests also in Sturbridge, Tyringham, and other townships.
“About 1725 he moved into the large house he had built on a site nearly opposite that on which he erected the ‘Artemas Ward House’ a few years later, and there he resided until his death. Later it became well known as the Baldwin Tavern. Its site is now part of Dean Park.
“The original double headstone of Nahum and Martha Ward is embedded in the east face of the west pier of the General Ward memorial Entrance to the Shrewsbury Cemetery.”
Nahum married Martha Howe (23709) , daughter of Daniel Howe (9005) (ca 1658-23 Apr 1718) & Elizabeth Kerley (ca 1660-1735). Born on 13 Jul 1687 in Marlboro, MA.287 Martha died in Shrewsbury, MA, on 1 Jul 1755; she was 67.287
Children of Nahum and Martha (Howe) Ward:
i. Nahum Ward, b. 29 Mar 1713 at Boston;
ii. Benjamin Ward, b. 19 Apr 1716 at Marlboro, d. 22 Apr 1717 at Shrewsbury;
iii. Persis Ward, b. 15 Apr 1718 at Shrewsbury;
iv. Ithamar Ward, b. 28 Dec 1721 at Shrewsbury, d. on Governor’s Island, Boston Harbor, of samllpox, on his return form a trip at sea, unmarried;
v. Martha Ward, b. 19 Dec 1724 at Shrewsbury, d. 2 Jul 1794 at Northboro, unmarried;
vi. Artemas Ward, b. 26 Nov 1727 at Shrewsbury; and
vii. Elisha Ward, b. 30 Aug 1733 at Shrewsbury.287
9044.Elisha Ward. Born on 12 Jan 1687 in Marlboro, MA.25 Elisha died ca Aug 1709.287
Elisha was killed or taken captive by Indians near Worcester, MA, while riding ‘post’ from Marlboro to Hadley. His mother, by her will, dated 1714, gave legacies to her children and provided that ‘If Elisha shall ever come again’ he also should share. He did not return.287
9045.Bathsheba Ward. Born on 16 May 1689 in Marlboro, MA.25 Bathsheba died in Marlboro, MA, on 6 Oct 1693; she was 4.287
9046.Gershom Ward. Born on 3 Jan 1693 in Sudbury, MA.287 Gershom died in Marlboro, MA, on 24 Nov 1739; he was 46.287 Gershom died unmarried.
Gershom represented Marlboro at the General Court in 1738. HIs house was burned 1 Apr 1729. He probably resided near the center of the town as the minister’s house caught from from the cinders of his dwelling. His headstone is one of those preserved in Spring Hill Cemetery, Marlboro.287