Notes:
There exist a few references to a John Gorham as being the husband of Agnes Bernington and father of Ralph Gorham. However, the great preponderance of researchers have settled on James and not John.
Notes:
He was elected "hogreave" in 1720 [= hogreeve - A town officer responsible for the impounding of stray hogs]; in 1724, surveyor of highways; in 1726, constable, but refused; in 1736 & 1737, surveyor again; in 1741 & 1743, fenceviewer, and in 1757, culler of staves. He kept the Crosby Tavern on Adams St.
Notes:
It is said that Thomas Gardner was from Scotland but Savage believes that he more probably was born somewhere in the area between Sherborne and Dorchester in Dorsetshire, England. The Gardner family had flourished in Dorchester for more than three centuries and the name is common throughout the West Country of England. Thomas and his wife emmigrated from England aboard the ship "Zori of Phoenix" (or "Zorich Phenix"), out of Weymouth in 1623, along with fourteen other passengers. ("The Planters of the Commonwealth" states that Thomas arrived with his wife and sons George, Richard and Joseph.) Their ship was a small vessel, fitted out by "The Western Adventurers", which landed in America in Spring 1624 at Cape Ann, MA (now Gloucester). He was to oversee the planting of the colony there and for that reason is sometimes called the first governor of Massachusetts. He was specifically the overseer of fishing in 1624. In 1626, those who remained in the colony removed to Nathum Kieke, afterwards called Salem. He was prominent in town affairs and had extensive grants of land in Salem and Danvers, referred to as "an eminent Merchant". His birth year is 1592 as calculated from a deposition by him on 10 10th mo. 1661 in which it is stated that his age was 69; however, 1591 is very often reported as his birth year.
From "A GENEALOGICAL DICTIONARY OF THE FIRST SETTLERS OF NEW ENGLAND, BEFORE 1692", Vol. 2, by James Savage we have his date of death as 29 Dec 1674 but from "Thomas Gardner 1591-1674 Governor of Cape Am Colony 1623 Deputy 1637", Daggett & Skiffe & Butler History of Martha's Vineyard Vol.3, we have his death as 29 Oct 1674. This latter reference states that he is buried in the Gardner burying ground, Salem MA, married (1) Demaris Shattuck, married (2) Margaret Frier, daughter of Francis Frier, and that "He and John Tilley were the chief rulers of the Cape Ann Colony during the time which preceded the appointment of Roger Conant as Governor."
From "Thomas Gardner Planter and Some of His Descendants", compiled and arranged by Frank A Gardner, MD, 1731, Essex Institute, Salem, Mass. we have the following:
Thomas Gardner married twice. We know this from the fact that in his will he mentions his wife as the mother-widow of his sons. The Margaret Gardner, who united with the first Church in 1639, is supposed to have been his wife. Various writers, including Rev. Joseph B. It, have stated that her maiden name was Fryer (or Frier), but the writer [Robert Shannon] has thus far failed to find the authority for this statement.
Rev. Charles Henry Pope, in his "Pioneers of Massachusetts" suggests that the Margaret who united with the Salem Church in 1639, may have been the wife of Edmund Gardner of Ipswich. While Edmund's wife may have been named Margaret [writes Shannon], it seems improbable that she was the one above mentioned as uniting with the Salem church, for the following reasons: Edmund is mentioned in the Ipswich Town Records as early as 1635, and very frequently thereafter. The Ipswich church was organized in 1634 and the wife of a man so prominent in local affairs would, in all probability, have united with the "home church."
His second wife was Damaris Shattuck, a widow, who was admitted to the church in Salem in 1641. She had several children by her first husband, one of whom, Sarah, married Richard Gardner son of Thomas. She, like most of her Shattuck relations, evidently favored the Friends, as she was called into court many times for being "present at a Quaker meeting," and for absence from her own church. In the 9th Mo. 1667,and the 4th Mo. in the year following, "Old Mrs. Gardner was fined 5 shillings for absence from public worship. She had no children by Thomas Gardner. The date of her death is given in the Salem Town Records, as 28, 9, 1674.
Thomas Gardner died the 29th 10th Mo. 1674, and was buried in the Gardiner [note spelling shift] burying ground, a hillock described as lot III.
Notes:
The dates and places of Margaret's birth and death used here are in question. While other compilers have used these dates as well, the origin of them comes from two entries in the Everton Publishers genealogical series, Sec II, Ch. 3, "Root Cellar 1". A Margaret Fryer is listed as having been born in Somersetshire in 1592 and a Margaret Frier is listed as having died in 1659 in Massachusetts. The dates and places are a logical fit for our Margaret and the two spellings of the surname are not of great significance since they are often used for the same family.