John Sparks, of Boston & Ipswich

John Sparks

• Birth 1634 of Ipswich, Essex, Massachusetts, Colonial America
• Death 12 Mar 1706 in Ipswich, Essex, Massachusetts, Colonial America

court document exist to prove he was born in 1634 when he apprenticed at age 16 to his brother-in-law Obadiah Wood, of Ipswich 1625 – 1694 and that he would come of age (21) in 1655 years old. Parents unknown but he had 3 siblings: Margaret 1628 – 1667 (m Obadiah Wood), Samuel and probably Thomas.

He possibly married to Mary Sinnott on 26 Nov 1661 in Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts, although this can't be proven - that may have been the other John Sparks. But if so, she must have died soon after they married. They may have had one child (see below):

• Mary Sparks c 1662 – 1730 m John Harris 1671 – 1738. It's not 100% proven that these are Mary Sparks parents. See information under sources below.

He married second to Mary Roper

• 1663 — Age: 29
• Ipswich, Essex, Massachusetts, United States
• After 1662, but not later that 1664 to Mary Roper, daughter of Walter and Susan Roper of Ipswich. This has been conclusively proven and she is the mother of their children:

1. Elizabeth Sparks 1666 – 1692 m Jacob Perkin 1685 - 1770
2. Susannah Susan Sparks 1667 – 1730 m Robert Annable 1663 – 1717
3. Margaret Sparks 1670 – no further record
4. Rose Sparks 1673 – 1743 m Thomas Newman 1670 – 1715
5. Sarah Sparks 1675 – m John Newman - 1728. She was still living in 1711. It is unclear which John Newman she married.
6. John Sparks 1678 – he may have died young. There is the possibility, however, that he could have been the John Sparks of Rowley.

Death

• 1706 12 Mar — Age: 72
• Ipswich, Essex, Massachusetts, USA

See source below.

Sources

THE LIFE AND FAMILY OF 35. JOHN AND MARY (ROPER) SPARKS OF IPSWICH, MASSACHUSETTS By Russell E. Bidlack Pages 4192-4229 Whole Number 164 June 19, 2014 10:41 AM

http://www.sparksfamilyassn.org/pages/164-A.html

Regarding Mary Sparks c 1662 – 1730 m John Harris 1671 – 1738. It's not 100% proven that these are Mary Sparks parents:

" It is also probable that John and Mary (Sinnet) Sparks had a daughter named Mary born in the early 1660s. This is based on a statement contained in a publication entitled Genealogical Dictionary of Maine and New Hampshire by Sybil Noyes, Charles Thornton Libby, and Walter Goodwin Davis published between 1928 and 1939 in five parts in Portland, Maine, (page 650). These authors stated that a John Harris "fisherman, Isle of Shoals ... married Mary Sparks (daughter of John Sparks of Ipswich and Boston), marriage bond 24 June 1687, surety Jabesh Negus of Boston. Thereafter he [Harris] lived in Ipswich where his wife died 6 May 1730, he died 3 December 1738."

"In our earlier article on John Sparks of Ipswich, we assumed, as had others, that a Mary Sparks to whom a John Harris, fisherman of the Isles of Shoals off the shore of New Hampshire was married in 1687 (marriage bond dated June 24, 1687) had been a daughter of John Sparks of Ipswich. We have found no proof of this relationship, however, even though John and Mary (Sparks) Harris are said to have lived in Ipswich. The name Harris was very common among Puritan settlers in Massachusetts, but in an article on Harrises in Boston before 1700 appearing in Vol. 26 (1952) of the New England Historical and Genealogical Register (p. 26), it was suggested that a John Harris, a son of John and Joanna Harris, born September 17, 1671, "may have been the John Harris of the Isles of Shoals, fisherman, who for some reason (youth?) gave a marriage bond (Suffolk Co. Court File No. 129936) with Jabez Negus as surety upon his marriage with Mary Sparks of the Boston-Ipswich Sparkses." If the John Harris who was married to Mary Sparks in 1687 had been born 1671, he would not only have been under sixteen, but would have been much younger than his wife. Ipswich records, according to The Hammatt Papers, p. 125, reveal that John and Mary Harris had the following children: (1) John Harris, Jr., born November 19, 1690; Joanna Harris, born January 18, 1691 (this was probably intended for 1692); (3) Mary Harris, born July 19, 1694; (4) Thomas Harris, born October 10, 1696; and (5) Sarah Harris, born in 1698. According to the Genealogical Dictionary of Maine and New Hampshire (cited earlier), p. 312, Mary (Sparks) Harris died in Ipswich on May 6, 1730, and John Harris died there on December 3, 1738. No record of the settlement of his estate has been found in Essex County, however.

Since there does appear to be reliable evidence that the Mary Sparks who was married to John Harris in 1687 was a daughter of John Sparks of Ipswich, it follows that she must have been a daughter of Mary (Sinnet) Sparks, believed to have been the first wife of John Sparks. "

References

• Updated from MyHeritage Family Trees via wife Mary Sparks (born Roper) by SmartCopy: Sep 7 2015, 22:17:18 UTC
• https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Sparks-125 cites
• Antiquarian Papers, Volumes 1-4 edited by Augustine Caldwell
• THE LIFE AND FAMILY OF 35. JOHN AND MARY (ROPER) SPARKS OF IPSWICH, MASSACHUSETTS By Russell E. Bidlack Pages 4192-4229 Whole Number 164 June 19, 2014 10:41 AM

http://www.sparksfamilyassn.org/pages/164-A.html

• Probate and other court records of Essex County.
• American Marriages Before 1699 1 citation provides evidence for Name, Marriage
• England, Select Cheshire Bishop's Transcripts, 1598-1900 1 citation provides evidence for Name
• Massachusetts, Town and Vital Records, 1620-1988 3 citations provide evidence for Name, Marriage
• U.S., New England Marriages Prior to 1700 1 citation provides evidence for Name, Death, Marriage
• Marriage: "Massachusetts, Town Clerk, Vital and Town Records, 1626-2001"
• citing Marriage, Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts, United States, Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth, Boston; FHL microfilm 007011047.
• FamilySearch Record: QG12-Q1G8 (accessed 19 February 2023)
• FamilySearch Image: 3QS7-9979-W21B Image number 00110
• John Sparke marriage to Mary Sennett in 1661 in Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts, United States.
• Marriage: "Massachusetts State Vital Records, 1841-1920"
• citing FHL microfilm: 818093; Record number: 552;
• FamilySearch Record: FHQ7-4V7 (accessed 19 February 2023)
• John Sparke marriage to Mary Sennett on 26 Nov 1661 in Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts Bay.