Dr. John Bridgham

https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Bridgham-106

John Bridgham (abt. 1645 - 1721)

Dr. John Bridgham

Born about Jul 1645 in Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts

Son of Henry Bridgham and Elizabeth (Harding) Bridgham

Brother of Joseph Bridgham, Jonathan Bridgham, Joseph Bridgham, Benjamin Bridgham, Hopestill Bridgham, Nathaniel Bridgham, Samuel Bridgham, Nathaniel Bridgham and James Bridgham

[spouse%28s%29 unknown]

[children unknown]

Died 2 May 1721 at about age 75 in Ipswich, Essex, Massachusetts

Profile last modified 28 Nov 2018 | Created 30 Oct 2013

Biography

There are conflicting dates for John Bridgham’s birth: July or September 10, 1645 in Boston.[1] He was Henry Bridgham's first born child, and therefore, the first Bridgham born on American soil. He was the oldest of ten children, but five of his siblings died young. It appears that John never married. His will mentioned his nephew Samuel, his brother Jonathan, and made his nephew, Joseph, his primary heir.

He graduated from Harvard College in 1669,[2] 33 years after it was founded. Harvard's original purpose was to train Puritan ministers, so the medical training he received there was really secondary. His other two surviving brothers went on to become tanners, like their father.

Sibley's Harvard Graduates has a short biography on Dr. John Bridgham,

John Bridgham, M.A. [class of 1669], of Ipswich, physician, born September, 1645, was the son of Captain or Deacon Henry Bridgham, a tanner, whose wife's name was Elizabeth, and who moved from Dorchester to Boston in 1644, and died in January, 1671, leaving a good estate on Milk Street. April 16, 1685, the freemen of Ipswich, Massachusetts, granted to John Bridgham 'about half an acre of land near Goodman Bridges, near the widow Clark's; provided he improve it for a garden, and to build on for his settlement here in this town.'
The Boston News-Letter, 1721, May 13, has a communication from Ipswich that 'On Tuesday, the 2d Currant Died here in the 76th year of his Age, Doctor John Bridgham, Eldest son of Mr. Henry Bridgham of Boston; . . . a Gentleman of great natural Modesty, ingenuity and Generosity of Temper and Spirit, Liberally educated at Harvard College in Cambridge (where he resided nearly 20 year) & became a considerable proficient in most of the parts of Learning; but eminently skilled in the art of Physick, and very successful in the practice of it, nearly 40 years.'
He was a Feoffee of the Ipswich grammar school from 1714 to his death.
'The Gift of Doctr John Bridgham, to the Church of Christ, 1721,' is inscribed on a silver cup belonging to the communion service of the First Church.
Probably he was not married, as his will mentions Samuel, son of his brother Johnathan deceased, and makes Joseph, son of his brother Joseph, his chief heir.

John Bridgham's Summons for the Salem Witch Trials
In 1692, John Bridgham (along with 8 others) received a summons to appear for the defense of Rachell Clenton at the Salem witch trials. Then text of the letter reads,

"To the Constable of Ipswich
"You are hereby required In their Majesties names to Sumons warne & Require to appeare at the Court to be holden at Ipswich on the morrow morning Viz't Mary Fuller sen'r & Mary fuller Junior & Allexsander Thomson jur & Richard fitts & Doct: John Bridgham & Thomas Maning & Nathaniel Burnam all of Ipswich & Thomas Knowlton jur & Mary Thorne To Give in their severall Evidences before the Court to Cleare up the Grounds of Suspition of Rachell Clenton Being a Witch & hereof faile not at Your perrill but make a true returne under Your hand as the Law Directs --"
His testimony can't be found, so it is not clear whether or not he actually testified. It appears that his reputation was such that his opinion, both medical and theological, was highly valued. That same year, 77-year-old Mary [Perkins] Bradbury was accused of witchcraft in Salem. Like the others, she was found guilty. She has the distinction of being the only convicted witch who was not executed. She escaped before sentence could be imposed.*[3]

Dr. John Bridgham died on May 2, 1721 in Ispwich, Essex, Massachusetts, and is buried in the Old Graveyard in Ipswich. It appears that John never married. Or if he did, he may have had no children. His will mentioned his nephew Samuel, his brother Jonathan, and made his nephew, Joseph, his primary heir.

Gravestone of John Bridgham
Allen Ludwig is a specialist in early American gravestones. He writes,

In addition to the use of 'ornimorphic' motifs in and around Ipswich, local carvers created a series of primitive stones ranging in date from 1689 until 1721 which substituted curly hair for the banded chain ornament which had heretofore framed the central soul effigies. The Mary Hart stone, 1689, Ipswich, Massachusetts (plate 215A), is an early example of this type while the John Bridgham stone, 1721, (plate 215C), Ipswich, Massachusetts, is one of the last.[4]
The referenced stone is probably that of our John Bridgham, and the "stone" is his gravestone.

Name

John Bridgham[5][2]
Birth

JUL 1645 Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts[6][7][8][9][10][11]
10 SEP 1645[12][13][5][2]
Baptism

14 DEC 1645[5]
Graduation

Harvard 1669[9][12][13][5][2]
Title

Dr.
Occupation

Physician[14][5][2]
Death

02 MAY 1721 Ipswich, Essex, Massachusetts[9][12][14][5][15]
JAN 1671[2]
Burial

old Graveyard, Ipswich, Massachusetts[5]
Notes

It may be that John never married. Or if he did, he may have had no children. His will mentioned his nephew Samuel, his brother Jonathan, and made his nephew, Joseph, his primary heir.

From "History of Ipswich, Essex, and Hamilton":

"1721, May 2d. Dr. John Bridgham d. in his seventy-sixth year. He graduated at Harvard College 1669. His will mentioned a nephew, Samuel, son of his brother Jonathan deceased, and made his nephew Joseph, son of his brother Joseph, his chief heir. He was a skilful physician. "
It is possible that John Bridgham had an involvement in the Salem Witch trials. The records show that a "Dr. Bridgham" was "summonsed to the court to testify to the innocence of Rachell Clenton," although there is no record of him actually having testified. John Bridgham is the only Bridgham known to be a physician in 1692. He is mentioned by name in a summons:

"To the Constable of Ipswich
"You are hereby required In their Majesties names to Sumons warne & Require to appeare at the Court to be holden at Ipswich on the morrow morning Viz't Mary Fuller sen'r & Mary fuller Junior & Allexsander Thomson jur & Richard fitts & Doct: John Bridgham & Thomas Maning & Nathaniel Burnam all of Ipswich & Thomas Knowlton jur & Mary Thorne To Give in their severall Evidences before the Court to Cleare up the Grounds of Suspition of Rachell Clenton Being a Witch & hereof faile not at Your perrill but make a true returne under Your hand as the Law Directs --"
From "The Family of Henry Bridgham of Thelnetham, Co. Suffolk, England, and Boston, Mass." from "The American Genealogist" (date unknown), p. 119, by John Insley Coddington, F.A.S.O,

"John, b. in Sept. 1645, bapt. 14 Dec. 1645; A.B. and A.M. Harvard College, 1669; became a physician and settled at Ipswich, Mass., where he d. 2 May 1721. His tombstone in the Old Graveyard at Ipswich reads: 'Here Lies / Doctr John / Bridgham Ye / Son of Mr / Henry & Elize / beth Bridgham / of Boston Di / ed May ye 2d / 1721 in ye / 76 Year of his Age' (Essex Antiquarian, 13 (1909);6; see also John Langdon Sebley, Graduates of Harvard University, 2 (1881):283-4)."
From "Sibley's Harvard Graduates, VIII, 1726-1730," pp. 283-284,

"John Bridgham, M.A. [class of 1669], of Ipswich, physician, born September, 1645, was the son of Captain or Deacon Henry Bridgham, a tanner, whose wife's name was Elizabeth, and who moved from Dorchester to Boston in 1644, and died in January, 1671, leaving a good estate on Milk Street.
"April 16, 1685, the freemen of Ipswich, Massachusetts, granted to John Bridgham 'about half an acre of land near Goodman Bridges, near the widow Clark's; provided he improve it for a garden, and to build on for his settlement here in this town.'
"The Boston News-Letter, 1721, May 13, has a communication from Ipswich that 'On Tuesday, the 2d Currant Died here in the 76th year of his Age, Doctor John Bridgham, Eldest son of Mr. Henry Bridgham of Boston; . . . a Gentleman of great natural Modesty, ingenuity and Generosity of Temper and Spirit, Liberally educated at Harvard College in Cambridge (where he resided nearly 20 year) & became a considerable proficient in most of the parts of Learning; but eminently skilled in the art of Physick, and very successful in the practice of it, nearly 40 years.'
"He was a Feoffee of the Ipswich grammar school from 1714 to his death.
"'The Gift of Doctr John Bridgham, to the Church of Christ, 1721,' is inscribed on a silver cup belonging to the communion service of the First Church.
"Probably he was not married, as his will mentions Samuel, son of his brother Johnathan deceased, and makes Joseph, son of his brother Joseph, his chief heir."
From "The Hammatt papers," p. 37,

"Bridgham, Doctor, died May 2, 1721, in the 76 year of his age. Grad. at H. C. 1669. He was son of Henry and Elizabeth Bridgham of Boston. Henry Bridgham took the freeman's oath in Boston, May 10, 1643. To the notice of the death of Doct. Bridgham in the town Records of Ipswich, is added the following remark: 'For many years past he proved himself a very skillfull and eminent Physician, his administrations being commonly attended with great success.' He was a feoffee of the grammar school from 1714 to the time of his decease. A silver cup belonging to the First Church has this inscription: "The gift of Doct'r John Bridgham to the Church of Christ in Ipswich, 1721.' He had a seat assigned to him in the meeting house, 1700.
"April 16, 1895. Granted to Doct. John Bridgham about half a acre of land near Goodman Bridges near the widow Clark's, provided he improve it for a Garden and to build on for his settlement here in this Town."
From "The New-England Historical and Genealogical Register," 1850, Volume IV, Boston, Samuel G. Drake, Publisher, p. 14,

"John Bridgham, son of Henry and Elizabeth Bridgham of Boston, was born about 1645. He was graduated at Harvard College in 1669, and settled as a physician in Ipswich, about 1685. On the sixteenth of April of that year, there was granted to him by the freemen of the town, 'about half an acre of land near Goodman Bridges, near the widow Clark's; provided he improve it for a garden, and to build on for his settlement here in this town.' He died May 2, 1721, in the seventy-sixth year of his age. To the record of his death, by the town clerk, is subjoined this remark, --'for many years past he proved himself a very skillful and eminent physician, his administrations being commonly attended with good success.' He was a feoffee of the grammar school from 1714 to the time of his decease. A silver cup belonging to the communion service of the first church, has this inscription. 'The Gift of Doctr. John Bridgham, to the Church of Christ in Ipswich, 1791.' "
From "Maine Historical and Genealogical Recorder, Vol. IX," p. 20,

"Extracts from address delivered on the two hundredth anniversary of foundation of grammar school in Ipswich, 1650:
"... Col. John Wainwright died in 1708, and Major Francis Wainwright in 1711. They were succeeded by Doctor John Bridgham and Mr. Jonathan Wade. Doctor Bridgham died in 1721; ..."
p. 147,
"In the assignment of pews in the meeting house then recently built in 1700, places are appointed to Dr. Bridgham, ..."
From "Records of the Governor and Company of the Massachusetts Bay in New England," p. 147,

"1677, 1 June
"In ans'r to the petition of John Bridgham, Jonathan Bridgham, & Joseph Bridgham, Henry Allin, Robert Sanderson, overseers to the two younger brothers [Samuel and James?], &c, the Court judgeth it meet to referr the consideration & determination of their petition to the County Court for Suffolke to make divission & setlement of what is petitioned for as they shall judge equall, according to law." [Is this in reference to the will of their father, Henry , who died in 1670?]
From Colonial Collegians, p. 625 (www.americanancestors.org),

"John Bridgham
"(Harvard, 1669)
"Born 1645, died 1721, aged 75.
"John Bridgham, M. A., of Ipswich, physician, born September, 1645, was the son of Captain or Deacon Henry Bridgham, a tanner, whose wife's name was Elizabeth, and who moved from Dorchester to Boston in 1644, and died in January, 1671, leaving a good estate in Milk Street.
"April 16, 1685, the freemen of Ipswich, Massachusetts, granted to John Bridgham 'about half an acre of land near Goodman Bridges, near the widow Clark's ; provided he improve it for a garden, and to build on for his setlement here in this town.'
"The Boston News-Letter, 1721, May 13, has a communication from Ipswich that 'On Tuesday, the 2d Currant Died here in the 76th year of his Age, Doctor John Bridgham, Eldest son of Mr. Henry Bridgham of Boston;...a Gentleman of great natural Modesty, ingenuity and Generosity of Temper and Spirit, Liberally educated at Harvard College in Cambridge (where he resided nearly 20 years) & became a considerable proficient in most of the parts of Learning; but eminently skilled in the art of Physick, and very successful in the practice of it, nearly 40 years.'
"He was a Feoffee of the Ipswich grammar school from 1714 to his death."
"Graven Images: New England Stonecarving and its Symbols, 1650-1815," by Allen Ludwig, p. 365, has an interesting reference,

"In addition to the use of 'ornimorphic' motifs in and around Ipswich, local carvers created a series of primitive stones ranging in date from 1689 until 1721 which substituted curly hair for the banded chain ornament which had heretofore framed the central soul effigies. The Mary Hart sone, 1689, Ipswich, Massachusetts (plate 215A), is an early example of this type while the John Bridgham stone, 1721, (plate 215C), Ipswich, Massachusetts, is one of the last."
[This is probably the same John Bridgham, and the "stone" is his gravestone. I have not been able to view the referenced picture.]
Sources

Hammatt, A. Physicians of Ipswich, The New England Historical & Genealogical Register, (New England Historic Genealogical Society, Boston, Mass., 1850) Vol. 4, Page 14
NEHGR: The New England Historical & Genealogical Register, (New England Historic Genealogical Society, Boston, Mass.) Vol. 8, 1854, p. 350.
Farmer, John. A Genealogical Register of the First Settlers of New England (Lancaster, Mass., Carter, Andrews & co., 1829)
Boston Record Commissioners. Boston Records Commissioners Reports (Rockwell and Churchill, Boston, 1875) Vol. 9. Boston Vital Statistics, 1630-1699
Little, George Thomas. Genealogical and Family History of the State of Maine (Lewis Historical Publishing Company 1909) Vol. 3, Page 1589
Savage, James. A Genealogical Dictionary of the First Settlers of New England (Boston, Little, Brown and Company, 1862) Vol. 1, Page 249-250
Whittemore, Henry. Genealogical Guide to the Early Settlers of America (Genealogical Publishing Co., 1898) Page 59
Felt, Joseph B. History of Ipswich, Essex, and Hamilton (The Clamshell Press, Massachusetts. 1966) Page 174
Cutter, William Richard. New England Families, Genealogical and Memorial (Baltimore, Maryland: Clearfield Company, 1913) Series 2
Sibley, John Langdon. Biographical Sketches of Graduates of Harvard University (Cambridge: Charles William Sever, 1873) VIII, 1726-1730, Page 283
Coddington, John Insley. The Family of Henry Bridgham of Thelnetham, Co. Suffolk, England, and Boston, Mass., "The American Genealogist" (Picton Press, Camden, Maine. 1989) Vols 33-35
Pope, Charles H. The Pioneers of Massachusetts (Charles H. Pope, Boston, MA, 221 Columbus Ave., 1900)
www.familysearch.org
Starkey, Marion L. The Devil in Massachusetts (Doubleday, New York, 1949) pp. 199-200, 216, 286.
Ludwig, Allen. Graven Images: New England Stonecarving and its Symbols, 1650-1815 p. 365
Bassett, Buell. One Bassett Family in America (F.A. Bassett Co., Springfield, Massachusetts, 1926) Page 118
Footnotes

↑ NEHGR
↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 Sibley: Page 283
↑ Starkey
↑ Ludwig
↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 Coddington: Page 119
↑ Boston Record Commissioners
↑ Farmer: p. 42
↑ Whittemore: Page 59
↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 Little: p. 1588
↑ Family Search: IGI Film# 458003
↑ Pope: Page: 21, 68
↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 Cutter: Page: 953
↑ 13.0 13.1 Savage: Vol. 1, Page 249
↑ 14.0 14.1 Savage: Vol. 1, Page 250
↑ Felt: Page 174