Notes:
Thomas was a grandson of Pilgrim John Howland.
Notes:
James Cole came with his father to Plymouth in 1633. He moved to Scituate, and from there to York, Maine, and probably from there to Kennebuck, Maine, where he remained but a short time, as he was admitted as freeman of Plymouth in 1654. He was surveyor of highways in Plymouth in 1656; he held this office again in 1678 and 1685. He was the representative for Plymouth in 1690. He purchased property from his father in 1668, including the inn or public house, which business he kept for many years. Judge Sewell, in his diary under date of March 8, 1698, says: "I get to Plymouth about noon and stop at Coles. This house was built by Governor Winslow and is the oldest in Plymouth.
(From: E. B. Cole. Jame Cole of Plymouth. Grafton Press, Genealogical Publishers, New York; 1908. page 25.)
"It is recorded that on 31 Jun 1706 he joined the Plymouth church, just three years before his death."
Notes:
James Cole was the eighth great grandfather of Winfield Dyer Gallup. He arrived in Plymouth, Massachusetts from England in 1633, possibly aboard the ship "Anne", with his wife Mary and their four children. He is the ancestral head of the Cole family in America. The earliest record of him dates from 1616 when he lived in Highgate, a suburb of London, England, where the Cole family owned lands on the ridge of hills through that area.
The records of Plymouth, MA contain many references to the activities of James Cole; he was certainly well known by the town citizens of his time, and not always to his credit. One could cite pages of official entries concerning him written in the quaint english language of the period but such scholarly detail makes for rather tedious reading. I shall spare he reader and present instead a sketch of James Cole prepared by another Cole family researcher.OUR COLE ANCESTORS
by Rita JacobsI find our immigrant ancestor, James Cole to be one of the most colorful characters I have found in my family tree. In reading the second-hand accounts of his appearances in public records I would characterize James Cole of Plymouth, Massachusetts as intelligent, respected, prominent, business-oriented, politically astute, and notorious.
James Cole arrived in Plymouth, Massachusetts in 1633. Although some published accounts of his arrival in the colonies place him first in Saco, Maine, later published records show that a different James Cole most probably settled in Saco.
The most comprehensive information on the descendants of James Cole is found in an extensive genealogy, "The Descendants of James Cole of Plymouth 1633", by Ernest Byron Cole, published in 1908. Several later published articles have corrected and amplified Ernest Byron Cole's work. His work promoted the early "myth" about James Cole that he married the daughter of a famous botanist, Mathieu Lobel, but more recent published information cites records from Barnstaple, Devonshire, England that identify Mary Tibbes as the wife of James Cole. His first two children, James and Hugh, were baptized in Barnstaple, Devonshire, and James is identified as the father. James Cole had at least two more children for whom records can be found, John and Mary.
Of particular interest is James Cole's apparent lack of church membership among the scores of early prominent settlers whose places of prominence in the community were usually parallelled by leadership roles within the church. Not only did he appear to avoid church, but also operated a rather rowdy tavern - almost reminiscent of those which gave the old west a notorious flavor.
James Cole became a freeman in Plymouth about 1634. He obtained from the colony a license to operate a public house, and by 1637 his first violation of the liquor control laws was recorded in the court records. A later account describes the throwing of stools and general disturbance until early morning hours. By 1640 the court withdrew James Cole's license to sell liquor, after which he was fined for selling liquor without a license. His license was not restored until 1645.
James continued to operate an inn even without his liquor license. He was apparently financially successful and acted as surety on bonds at various times and loaned money. He was elected constable in 1641/2 and again in 1644. He was also appointed highway surveyor several times beginning in 1642. He undoubtedly had won the respect of the townspeople.
James Cole, as well as his wife, continued to experience problems in operating the tavern within legal boundaries after his license was restored. James and Mary were fined for allowing drunkenness in the tavern, selling liquor on Sunday, and selling liquor to Indians. In 1652 one of his tavern patrons was up all night drinking in Cole's house before he went out fishing and accidentally drowned.
James himself was cited three times by the court for being drunk, the last time in 1671. In defense of his third offense he claimed to have an infirmity which caused him to appear drunk, and was not fined. He was also charged with battery in 1650, but cleared of the offense.
Despite the rowdy reputation of Cole's tavern, the court in 1653 decided to pay James Cole for his expense of operating an "ordinary," and provided him with "necessaries" for entertaining strangers. In 1659 the court again paid Cole 10 pounds for improvements in his "ordinary." [ Operating an "ordinary", as James did, was considered something of a public service as it provided the Colony with a place for visitors to stay. Thus the Colony authorized money to keep the establishment in good repair.]
James also appeared numerous times in court records as either plaintiff or defendant in various actions involving business contracts and debt collections.
In 1670 the operation of the tavern succeeded to James, Jr., who was not charged the excise tax that year because he was beginning a new business. The operation of the tavern went smoothly after James, Jr. took it over, and there were no more fines for license and liquor violations, although in 1671 one of the patrons was charged with "drinking, gameing and uncivil revelling" when he brought a mare into Cole's parlor. Although James, Jr. was not held responsible he was cautioned to "keep good order in his house . . . " with "no revelling there."
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James was the first settler to live upon what is still known as "Cole's Hill", the first burial place of the Pilgrims. His property probably included the land upon which rests Plymouth Rock. James appears upon a list of volunteers to fight against the Pequot Indians in the war which was initiated by the murder of John Oldham and the pirating of his ship which was retaken by John Gallup. Jameses Public House or Inn was the first in Plymouth and most likely the first in New England. He sold the inn to his son, James Jr., in 1668 who subsequently sold it to William Shurtliffein in 1689. It continued to be open until 1698.
Notes:
Edmund was living in Plymouth, MA, in 1638.
Notes:
Thomas had twenty-two children from three marriages. In his will, written 5 Oct 1606 and proved 14 Jan 1607, he mention's his daughter Jane and spells her surname "Lowthrop".
Notes:
Thomas had twenty-two children from three marriages. In his will, written 5 Oct 1606 and proved 14 Jan 1607, he mention's his daughter Jane and spells her surname "Lowthrop".
Notes:
Mark's will was written 1659/1660 and probated 17 Apr 1660.
Notes:
Richard's will is dated 1660.
Notes:
Robert was a Yeoman of North Burton. At the age of 22 in 1535 he inherited his father's estates in Cherry Burton and elsewhere and added considerably to them. His will was dated 16 Jul 1558 and proved 20 Oct 1558.