Peter Roe

Lineage of Peter³ Roe, Hugh² Roe Jr., Hugh¹Roe, Sr.

Peter Roe, b. ca. 1662, Weymouth, MA; m. Sarah Remington according to Suffield Historical Society. He died on 4 Feb 1738/39 in Suffield, Hartford, CT. Peter Roe was the son of Hugh Roe & Abigail (surname unknown).

Peter Roe was brought to court for invoking the "evil sprit against ye minister of ye place" [John Younglove] and was found guilty of rebellion with a fine of five pounds.He was a selectman of Suffield, MA/CT in 1702, 13, 16, 18, 22, 25, 27, 29.

Children of Peter Roe and Sarah Remington:

1 Samuel Rowe, b. 25 Nov 1689, Northampton, MA; d. 29 Nov 1689, Northampton, MA.

2 Abigail Rowe, b. 23 Sep 1691, Northampton, MA; m. John Adams.

3 Samuel Rowe, b. 20 Jan 1693/94, Suffield, CT; m. Mary Hall.

4 Sarah Rowe, b. 17 Jul 1696, Suffield, CT; m. Samuel Hathaway.

5 Elizabeth Rowe, b. 4 Mar 1698/99, Suffield, CT; m. Abner Kent.

6 Mary Rowe, b. 7 May 1701, Suffield, CT; m. John Clemens.
7 John Rowe, b. 4 Feb 1703/04, Suffield, CT; m. (1) Joanna Burbank; m. (2) Lydia Hanchett. (my ancestor)

8 Mercy Rowe, b. 19 Jul 1706, Suffield, CT; m. Joshua Taylor.

9 Thomas Rowe, b. 28 Jul 1708, Suffield, CT; m. Elizabeth Purchase.

10 Hannah Rowe, b. 28 Jul 1711, Suffield, CT; m. Ephraim Fletcher.

GEDCOM Note

Peter Rowe (Row)

Peter Rowe (Roe) was the second son of Hugh Roe and Abigail Roe (Unknown). Peter was born circa 1662 in Weymouth, Massachusetts. Peter married Sarah Remington on 8 December 1689 in Rowley, Massachusetts. Sarah was the eldest daughter of Thomas Remington and Mehitable Remington (Walker).

Peter and Sarah are parents of ten children:
1. Samuel Rowe I
• Born 25 November 1689 in Northampton, Massachusetts and died a few days later on 29th November.
2. Abigail Rowe
• Born 23 September 1691 in Northampton, Massachusetts.
• Abigail married John Adams on 26 Jul 1772 in Suffield, Connecticut. John was born 18 June 1694 and is the son of Jacob Adams and Anna Adams (Allen).
3. Samuel Rowe II (b. 20 Jan 1693/94, Suffield, CT; m. Mary Hall.)
• Born 20 January 1693/4 in Suffield Connecticut.
• Samuel married Mary Hall on 29 November 1716 in Suffield, Connecticut. Mary was born 3 October 1692 and is the daughter of Samuel Hall and Elizabeth Hall (Bourne).
4. Sarah Rowe
• Born 17 July 1696 in Suffield Connecticut.
• Sarah married Samuel Hathaway on 28 May 1719 in Suffield, Connecticut. Samuel is the son of Abraham Hathaway and Rebecca Hathaway (Wilbore).
5. Elizabeth Rowe
• Born 4 March 1698/9 in Suffield Connecticut.
• Elizabeth married Abner Kent.
6. Mary Rowe
• Born 7 May 1701 in Suffield Connecticut.
• Mary married John Clemens on 15 July 1724.
7. John Rowe
• Born 4 February 1703/4 in Suffield Connecticut.
• John married Joanna Burbank on 15 June 1727 in Suffield, Connecticut. Joanna is the daughter of Mary Burbank (Granger).
• John married Lydia Hanchett on 13 May 1758 in Suffield, Connecticut. Lydia is the daughter of John Hanchett and Lydia Hanchett (Hayward).
8. Mercy Rowe
• Born 19 July 1706 in Suffield Connecticut.
• Mercy married Joshua Taylor on 2 November 1737 in Suffield, Connecticut.
9. Thomas Rowe
• Born 28 July 1708 in Suffield Connecticut.
• Thomas married Elizabeth Purchase.
10. Hannah Rowe
• Born 28 July 1711 in Suffield Connecticut.
• Sarah married Ephraim Fletcher.

Hugh Roe (born 1617) along with his two sons, Samuel (born 1656) and Peter (born circa 1662) each became Original Proprietors of Suffield Colony. Suffield was originally called Southfield and was settled as a township of the Massachusetts colony. There was surveying error and in 1749 was annex by Connecticut.

In 1675, Suffield was burned by native warriors in the early months of King Philip’s War. White settlers abandoned Suffield until the war’s end. At the time of the resettlement in 1678, Peter Roe was granted 40 acres on the east side of High Street. His lot ran along what is now North Main and was the third lot south from “the Road to Springfield” (now Mapleton Avenue).

Peter married Sarah Remington (the daughter of Thomas and Mehitable Remington) in 1689. Much changed the circumstances of this bright, ambitious entrepreneur in the following decades. His brother Samuel died in 1688; his father Hugh, in 1689. Peter inherited both their lands in Suffield. He and Sarah became the parents of ten children.

Peter became one of the leading figures of Suffield’s early development. Between 1689 and his death in 1740, he is mentioned 44 times in the Town Meeting records and held many offices, including Tithingman and numerous elections as Selectman.

Peter, like his father, was not averse to strongly voicing his opinions on controversial issues. He was a leader in the vote to oust Suffield’s first minister, the Reverend John Younglove. Admonished and fined by the Court for his criticism of Rev. Younglove, Peter continued to push for removal of this clergyman and ultimately prevailed.

According to Robert H. Alcorn’s The Biography of a Town, Peter was also a leader in the effort to expand the voting list to include people who were not proprietors of Suffield. In this battle, Peter and his cohorts were fined for disrupting the Town Meeting. But again Peter prevailed. The rules were changed to expand the voting list to include non-proprietors.

Peter was a partner in establishing an iron works in Suffield in 1721. He and his descendants became involved in iron works throughout Connecticut. As his family grew, many left Suffield to take advantage of the opportunities that their wealth and businesses afforded them. By 1790, the name for most family members was spelled “Rowe,” and it disappeared in both spellings from Suffield records after about 1870.

Peter’s grandson Moses Rowe II built his house on South Main in 1772 on the original grant of Hugh Roe. Although there are undoubtedly current residents who are descendants of Hugh and Peter Roe, this house is the only contemporary reminder of the Roe proprietors.

Peter died 4 February 1739 in Suffield, Connecticut. Sarah’s date of her death is unknown. It is not known were Peter and Sarah are buried.