John Drew, Sr.

Family

The Churchhill Family in America. Page 5. < Archive.Org >

Children of John and Hannah Churchill.

II. Hannah2 b. Nov. 12, 1649; m. John Drew, 1672.

He was the son of William Drew, and was born in England in 1642. His grandfather was Sir Edward Drew, who was knighted by Queen Elizabeth. He appeared in Plymouth first in 1660. They lived in Plymouth.

Children of John and Hannah (Churchill) Drew.

• 1. Elizabeth Drew, b. Feb. 5, 1673.
• 2. John Drew, b. Aug. 29, 1676; m. Sarah Delano.
• 3. Samuel Drew, b. Feb. 1, 1678; m. 1st, Lydia ( ); m. 2d, Ruth Delano.
• 4. Thomas Drew, b. May 1, 1681.
• 5. Nicholas Drew, b. Oct. 16, 1684; m. Rebecca Morton, April 19, 1716,
• 6. Lemuel Drew, b. Aug. 1, 1687; m. Hannah Barnes, Dec. 22, 1715.

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In 1891 a memorial stone was erected honoring John Drew of Plymouth as the progenitor of the Duxbury and Kingston branches of the family. You can see it today if you visit the Old Burying Ground in Kingston, Massachusetts. Unfortunately, sometimes the genealogical record is not as clear and firm as this beautiful memorial.

There are two John Drews that resemble one another, so one must use Caution:

This John is not the same as the John Drew (b, 1651) of Dover, New Hampshire. How to keep them straight? That other John and his family were tied up in the Oyster River Plantation Massacre and its aftermath, this John was lucky to reside in relative safety in Plymouth.

That John was in some legal trouble for having children with two women simultaneously. This John had the good sense to avoid such complication. While the two John's children's names resemble each other, their birth dates differ even when their names match.

Lots of family trees mix them up, but the Dover (Oyster River) John resided in a well documented family group with his brothers Thomas and Francis and his parents, William Drew and Elizabeth Mathews. Plymouth John's parents are thus far a matter of speculation, not the best situation for the progenitor of the Plymouth Drews.

Who is John of Plymouth's father?

https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Drew-39

John Drew was born about 9 May 1642 in Sharpham, Somerset, England [uncertain] [father unknown] and [mother unknown] [sibling%28s%29 unknown]. he married Hannah (Churchill) Drew in 672 in Plymouth, Plymouth, Massachusetts. He is the father of Elizabeth (Drew) Delano, John Drew, Samuel Drew, Thomas Drew, Nicholas Drew and Lemuel Drew. John died on 29 Jul 1721 in Plymouth, Plymouth, Massachusetts.

Profile last modified 17 Feb 2020 | Created 19 Oct 2010

Biography

John of Plymouth married Hannah Churchhill and "The Churchhill Family of America" identifies him as the son of William Drew ( sometimes seen as Drewe) of England, but this is not verifiable. John is listed as having been born in England in 1642. John's grandfather is suggested to be Sir Edward Drew who had been knighted by Queen Elizabeth, and John is noted as first appearing in Plymouth in 1660.

Justin Winsor in "The History of the Town of Duxbury" Tells a different story: that John was a Welshman and shipbuilder who arrived in Duxbury around 1660 with five sons, two of whom settled in Duxbury and three in Plymouth. His daughter Elizabeth is mentioned. A son Samuel, presumably a child, is mentioned who drowned after getting into some liquor on May 21 1678. (Was the next child born also named Samuel?)

William R Cutter in "Genealogical and Personal Memoirs Relating to the Families of Boston and Eastern Massachusetts, Vol 2" refers to Justin Winsor's work, but muddies the waters by saying this John was born in Hingham, Massachusetts in 1641 to Vincent Drew and that John, the ship builder arrived in Plymouth in 1660 with five sons. Cutter has mixed up portions of the record for Colonel John Druce, son of Vincent Druce of Hingham a founder of Newton Massachussets. John Druce resided in the Cambridge and Newton areas until his death and has no clear association with Plymouth.

We do know that John Drew who married Hannah Churchhill died at Plymouth and is buried at Burial Hill, Plymouth, Massachusetts, and his stone says:

Here lyes ye body of John Drew aged 79 years, died July The 27th 1721

Drew Family DNA Study

Results are starting to emerge from the Drew Family DNA study, though more participants are needed. It looks like the New Hampshire group of Drews is distinct from the Plymouth group, therefore the DNA results support the idea that this Plymouth John is not that Dover John and is really not the son of those Dover parents. But we can learn so much more if more people participate! Perhaps we could determine if he was Welsh or English? Or what area of Great Britain to look for records in.

Are you a direct male descendant in the Drew family with a yDNA test gathering dust? Please consider working with other Drews to unlock some questions we have about the early colonial Drews!

Learn about the study here: https://www.familytreedna.com/groups/drew/about

See emerging results of the study here: https://www.familytreedna.com/public/drew?iframe=ycolorized

A Note from one of the study's Drew researchers suggests where else in the Plymouth area to look for records on THIS John

"John lived in Halifax, was a shipwright, and also lived later in Middleborough, Mass. Several records on him in Plymouth Court Records. Also an article in The Mayflower Descendant Vol 7, No. 2. This line is different than the New Hampshire Drew lines - Haplogroup J1 for this Plymouth line. "

John was born in 1642. He passed away in 1721.

Sources

1. The History of the Town of Duxbury by Justin Winsor
2. The Churchhill Family of America. p.5 < Archive.Org >; (document attached)
3. William R Cutter in "Genealogical and Personal Memoirs Relating to the Families of Massachusetts, Vol 2"
4. Find A grave Memorial listing birth location
5. Link to John Drew's Will which you can blow up to read
6. User submitted tree from Family Search with some additional sources