Dr. John Bishop

From The Genealogy of Samuel and John Bishop, page 6:

In 1694 that portion of Norwich lands descried as "lying between the crotch of the rivers Shetucket and Quinebaug," was by vote of the town sold to purchasers from Ipswich, Massachusetts, representing the Perkins and Bishop families, already established and wealthy at Ipswich, and each having also family connections of established wealth and character at Boston. The Bishops--Samuel and John--who afterward came to the new purchase with other first settlers, are described in Norwich history as "descendants of Thomas Bishop of Ipswich." The new settlement received the name of Newent, in family remembrance of traditions that refer to Newent parish, in Gloucestershire, England; it was also the third parish of Norwich. That it was not a religious colony would be indicated, by the record showing a vote of the town of Norwich threatening extreme measures if a church was not forthwith organized at Newent; and it was in compliance with such a vote that a parish organization was made effective in 1723, the name of John Bishop appearing in the seven selected (according to custom) to be of record as church founders.

Records show the marriage, in 1706, of Samuel Bishop and Sarah Forbes; the marriage, also, of John Bishop, in 1718 to Mary (born 1697), daughter of Thomas Bingham and granddaughter of Thomas Bingham, an original settler in Norwich in 1659. After the death of his wife, this John Bishop married, in 1727, Temperance (born 1704), daughter of Joseph Lathrop, of Norwich. John Bishop was born at Ipswich, in 1685, son of Samuel and Hester (Coggswell) Bishop, and died at Norwich in 1755.

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Ibid. Page 33:

John, born Sept. 30, 1685 ; died Nov. 14, 1755. Was a brother of gamuel, one of the earlier settlers of Norwich, now-Lisbon, Conn., since 1786, when Lisbon was chartered as a separate town. They were the oldest and youngest sons of Samuel, of Ipswich, Mass., who was a son of Thomas Bishop, one of the founders of Massachusetts Bay settlement, who lived and died in Ipswich.

John married Mary Bingham, of Windham, July 20, 1718. Mary Bingham was born Feb. 26, 1797; died Oct. 17, 1724. John and Mary had three children:

Mary, born June 25, 1719 ; married an Allen.

Deborah, born May 22, 1722, married a Cushman.

John, born Aug. 4, 1724; died 1724.

John Bishop married, second, Temperance Lathrop, who survived him and married, second, Capt. Grant, December 14, 1763, and married, third, a Mr. Hewitt, Sept. 16, 1773.

The children of John and Temperance were :

John, born Oct. 13, 1731 ; married Ruth Parker, born 1735. He died 1814.

Temperance, Jr., baptized Oct. 21, 1733; married Capt. Dr. David Holmes, Nov. 12, 1761, the father of Rev. Abiel Holmes, D.D., LL.D., who was the father of the poet Oliver Wendell Holmes, M.D., LL.D. Capt. Dr. David Holmes was usually addressed with this double title in consequence of his having been a military officer before he received his degree for the practice of medicine. He had been married first to Mehitable Mayo, by whom

he had eight children. He had eight more by this second marriage to Temperance Bishop.

Temperance Bishop and Capt. Dr. David Holmes' children will not be followed out in this paper, supposing their genealogical line is already on record and in print ; but will here state it was their second son, born Abiel Holmes, the clergyman, who was the father

of the poet Oliver Wendell Holmes.

Joseph, son of John, baptized Aug. 31, 1735, was the third child of John and Temperance Lathrop. Not able to give his history.

Benjamin, born June 11, 1738. Not able to give his history.

Samuel, born Nov. 21, 1745 ; married Mercy Johnson. (?)

Esther, born Aug. 25, 1740.

Zeriah, born May 22, 1742. Both mentioned in John Bishop's will, who died in 1755.