James Taylor, Scots POW

Biography

James Taylor (b c 1630 - d 27 October 1703) from the Scottish Prisoners of War Society < link >

FIRST GENERATION IN THE NEW WORLD

1. JAMES¹ TAYLOR/TAILOR, was born in Scotland, possibly about 1630 and died on 27 Oct 1703. He married at Springfield, Massachusetts on 17 Jan 1667/8 (some records say 16666), MARY TAYLOR.7,8 Mary Taylor was born in 1649 and died on 18 Mar 1699/1700,9 the daughter of, Jonathan and Mary (_____) Taylor, of Springfield.

Biographical Notes:

James Taylor was one of the Scots on the 1653 Iron Works inventory, meaning he was definitely one of the men deported in November 1650 and sold as indentured servants and worked at the Saugus Iron Works in Lynn, Massachusetts. The list of names is not complete but for those whose names appear, it considered definite proof. (Follow the link above for the List of Dunbar prisoners further information.) As for how he came to relocate from Lynn to the next known location of Springfield, Hampden County, Massachusetts, which lies inland about 100 miles away, I wish to refer to Lost Lives New Voices. In chapter 7 there is an explanation for how the Iron Works was mismanaged, “…first by Leader then by Gifford, inevitably impacted on the daily lives of the Scots… a few were moved on to other employers…” The book goes on to explain how another of the Scottish Prisoners of War was relocated to Springfield by stating that “… John Steward departed for Springfield on the Connecticut River to work as a blacksmith.” John Steward was originally just a servant to Gifford but then trained at Hammersmith as a blacksmith, a valuable skill which lead to his being “…brought to Springfield by John Pynchon and given the blacksmith’s shop there in 1658.”10 Some similar circumstance could very well be what happened to James Taylor. He could have been relocated to the operation in Springfield by John Pynchon, due to his skill set, just like John Steward later was.

Children of JAMES¹ and MARY (TAYLOR) TAYLOR:

1. 2. i. REBECCA² TAYLOR (James¹), b. at Springfield on 18 Nov 1668;1617818 d. 5 Feb 1668.19
2. 2.ii. JAMES² TAYLOR/TAILOR, Jr (James¹), b. 26 Nov. 1669; “of Springfield,”2021818 m. 21 Feb 1703, DOROTHY/DOROTHEA ROGERS, b. 5 Sept 1679 “of Springfield, “int to marry 5 Feb 1703/4”22
3. 2.iii. MARY/MERCY² TAYLOR (James¹), b. 28 Dec 1671;2321818 d. ; m. (1) 13 Apr 1693, JOHN PETTY,24 m (2) 1697, THOMAS RICH, m. (3) in Springfield/Northampton 13 Apr 1693, JOSEPH JENNINGS.25
4. 2. iv. JOHN² TAYLOR (James¹), b. 14 Mar 1672;2326818 d. in Springfield 12 Nov 1673.27
5. 2.v. SAMUEL² TAYLOR (James¹), b. 26 Sept 1674.28818
6. 2. vi. ELIZABETH² TAYLOR (James¹), b. 5 Jan 1677/8;29818 d. 27 Nov 1710.30 nm.
7. 2. vii. JONATHAN² TAYLOR/TAILOR (James¹), b. 30 Oct 1679;31818 d. in Springfield 14 Oct 1749;32 m. in Springfield 6 Jan 1712, SARAH KNOWLTON.31818
8. 2. viii. EBENEZER² TAYLOR/TAILOR (James¹), b. 25 Aug 1681;33818 d. in Springfield 27 Jun 1689.34
9. 2. ix. THOMAS² TAYLOR (James¹), b. Suffield, CT 10 Jan 1683;35818 d. 17 June 1703.36
10. 2. x. SAMUEL² TAYLOR/TAILOR (James¹), b. 6 Apr 1686;37818 d. in West Springfield 18 Dec 1774; m. (1) in Springfield 28 Apr 1714, RUTH SMITH, b. in Westfield 8 Feb 1684;38 d. aft 11 Dec 1723, dau. of Benjamin and Ruth (Loomis) Smith; m. (2) in Springfield 26 Nov 1726, JOANNA SMITH.39
11. 2. xi. REBECCA² TAYLOR/TAILOR (James¹), b. Jul 1689.40818

Comments

https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Taylor-37081

Indian Attack on Springfield

The year 1675 was an extremely dangerous year for everyone living in the frontier settlements of New England. King Philip's War found settlement after settlement under Indian attack from tribes that considered this their last chance to rid the land of the English colonists. The people of Springfield were terrified and many wanted to abandon the town for someplace safer. The colonial government in Boston encouraged them to stay. By October of that year the nearby towns of Deerfield, Northfield and Hadley had been attacked. …

But what of James and his family? Very few people are mentioned in any of the historical accounts of the attack, but we can guess that James rode with the rest of the men to Hadley since all accounts say that very few men stayed behind in Springfield. The historical accounts also tell us that West Springfield, where James and his family lived, was not touched by the Indians. We can only guess that James might have taken Mary and their then three small children, James Jr., Mary and Samuel to stay with her parents in the town while he was gone to Hadley. Mary and the three children then were undoubtedly in one of the fortified houses during the terrifying attack.

Later Life

The date of James passing is not known with any certainty. The “Scottish Prisoner of War Society” gives it as October 27, 1703, with no supporting documentation, but James is likely still alive on February 21, 1704 when his son James marries and is described in all the records as “Jr”. Normally the designation of junior was dropped when the older person of the same name passed away. In addition, the date of October 27 is the same date that James son James passed away in 1720. It is entirely possible that a father and son die on the same month and day years apart, but more likely suggests some misinterpretation of the records or clerical error as the two men have the same name. Lastly, the Springfield records show a James Taylor passing away on October 27, 1720 but that record is for his son James. Until other records are discovered, the most reasonable statement as to his date of death would be to state that he passed away sometime after February 21, 1704, the date of his son's marriage.

General notes

https://jeannetreat.wordpress.com/2014/07/17/passenger-list-ship-un...

Following the Battle of Dunbar in 1650, over 4000 Scots had been captured and imprisoned. In fairly short order, 150 of the healthiest men were gathered, taken to London and then shipped on the Unity to New England, arriving in Massachusetts. These approximately 150 Scottish prisoners of war which arrived in Massachusetts Bay were a small remnant of the prisoners from the Battle of Dunbar which numbered in the thousands. Many perished in England or were banished to other countries to serve time.

References

• https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Taylor-37081 cites

1. ↑ Hampden, Massachusetts, "Vital Records of Springfield,", Bk. 1, p. 15, James Taylor and Mary Taylor, Jan. 17, 1666
2. ↑ Hampden, Massachusetts, "Vital Records of Springfield,", citing Bk. 1, pp. 21-32, & 48, 56 in the original
3. Scottish Prisoner of War Society, https://scottishprisonersofwar.com/james-taylor-32-on-the-scots-at-...
4. The Battle of Dunbar, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Dunbar_(1650)
5. Massachusetts, Springfield Vital Records, 1638-1887, the Marriage of James Taylor and Mary Taylor; https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XPJV-H5T
6. The First Century Of The History Of Springfield; The Official Records From 1636 To 1736 With An Historical Review And Biographical Mention Of The Founders, Volume 1,by Henry M. Burt, Published 1898, Pages 127, 128, 158, 299, 300, 304, 325, 341, 386, 416, 426. https://archive.org/details/firstcenturyofhi01spri/page/126/mode/2up
7. Springfield, 1636-1886, History of the Town and City, by Mason A. Green, Published 1888, Page 143. https://archive.org/details/springfield1888gree/page/142/mode/2up
8. Vital Records From The NEHGS Register, Volume 5, Page 84; Oath of Allegiance, Town of Springfield, Massachusetts Bay.
9. The Siege of Springfield; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siege_of_Springfield