Robert Pond, of Dorchester

Biography

Updated 10 February 2024

Robert Pond, (probably) the son of William Pond and Judith Gordon, was born 10 Sep 1592 in Edwardstone, Groton, Suffolk, England, and died before 10 May 1648 before age 55 in Dorchester, Suffolk, Massachusetts.

Robert married Mary married 18 Nov 1612 in Groton, Suffolk, England. Mary was born 1596 in Groton, Suffolk, England.

Immigration to Boston

Charles Banks concluded that "Robert Pond" had emigrated from Groton in Suffolk with his wife Mary as part of Winthrop's fleet of 11 ships in 1630, settling in Dorchester, Massachusetts.[1][2]

Also in this group (same citations) was John Pond, also of Groton in Suffolk, who settled in Boston.

Robert may have been the brother of John Pond.[3] In a letter from Governor John Winthrop in Massachusetts to his oldest son back in Groton, England, soon after their arrival in America, he directs his son to tell "old Pond" that both his sons are well and remember their duty. Another letter written soon after instructs his son to 'Commend me to all my good neighbors, Mr Jarrold, William Pond, and the rest.' [4] A 1631 letter to William Pond which was probably written by John Pond but not signed described his hardships in the new colony (see previous citation for a transcription of the letter). John is thought to have returned to England soon after.[citation to be provided]

Uncertain year of death

There is record for an inventory taken of the estate of Robert Pond of Dorchester, Suffolk County. Transcriptions of the record state that the inventory was dated 1637.[11] HOWEVER, Robert Charles Anderson noted that "Closer examination of this record raises additional questions, however. On 10 May 1648, the widow and one of the sons petitioned the court for an order to administer the estate, and the court ordered them to bring in an inventory. And the widow remarried in 1649 and 1650. Another look at the inventory reveals a description of land held by the decedent as '4 acres of meadow... he bought of Mrs. Burre.' The only available 'Mrs. Burre' in Dorchester was Frances Burr, the widow of Rev. Jonathan Burr, who had not arrived in New England until 1639 and who died in 1641. Robert Pond, therefore, must have been alive after 1641 to purchase land from Jonathan Burr's widow. The most parsimonious explanation is that the date on the inventory is wrong, and should be 27 December 1648."[12]

In 1649 or 1650, Robert's widow Mary married second Edward Shephard of Cambirdge[13] who conveyed, 24 Feb. 1650/51 to John Blackman, son-in-law to the late Robert Pond, one half the house and lands which W. P. had owned.

Children (updated list)

Robert Pond, of Dorchester and his wife Mary had the following children:

From “Ancestors of Sharon Lynn Ideman: The Pond Family.” < PDF >. Children of Robert Pond and Mary _____: (All but Mary are supposed children, probably born in England. They are listed alphabetically.)

1. Daniel, b. 1627;4 d. Feb. 4, 1697/8, Dedham; m. 1) Abigail Shepard; 2) Sep. 18, 1661, Ann Edwards, who died June 6, 1732, aged 92 year.5
2. Mary, listed as eleven years of age when her mother joined the church at Cambridge; m. John Blackman.
3. Robert, d. bef. mid-life; m. 1) Mary Ball who m. 2) Nicholas Allen and outlived him; m. 3) Daniel Henshaw.
4. William, d. Apr. 4, 1690; m. Mary Dye.

Mary married 2nd, about 1650 in Cambridge, to Captain Edward Shepard, II, of Cambridge as his 2nd wife; he was Violet Shepard
‘s widower. There were no children of that marriage.

Disputed children

10 February 2024

From https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Pond-141

Ponds sometimes attributed to the couple[10] but for whom sources have yet to be located include:

• Samuel of Windsor, CT (detached Samuel Pond, of Windsor)
• Jonathan, b 1623 (Jonathan Pond) [citation needed]
• Sarah, b 1630, [d. April 25, 1712, Little Compton, RI.?](Sarah Pond) [citation needed]
• Ephraim Pond, b. 1630-35, Dedham, Norfolk, MA (Ephraim Pond) [citation needed]

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Notes

The Ponds of Norfolk County, Massachusetts are British in origin and received their coat of arms from King Henry VIII in 1508.

Robert and Mary Pond came from Groton, Suffolk, England to Massachusetts in 1630 with the Winthrop fleet of 11 ships. In this group was:

• John Pond of Groton, Suffolk to Boston [returned to England]
• Robert Pond of Groton, Suffolk to Dorchester [carpenter, d 1637]
• Mrs. Mary Pond [wife of Robert; m 2nd John Blackman]

  ---

http://members.aol.com/dcurtin1/gene/winthrop.htm

John and Robert are probably brothers. In a letter from Governor John Winthrop in Massachusetts to his oldest son back in Groton, England, soon after their arrival in America, he directs his son to tell "old Pond" that both his sons are well and remember their duty.

For a picture of his house in Dorchester, MA, see:

• http://mjgen.com/metcalf/pond.html

OR he died Oct 27, 1637. His inventory is dated Dec 27, 1637.

Origins

Robert Pond , son of William Pond and Judith Gordon, was born 1592 in Groton, Suffolk, England and died d. bef 27 December 1648 (NOT 1637; see "Death" below) in Dorchester, Boston, Massachusetts. Birth: 10 SEP 1606 Groton, Suffolk, England?[1]

He married Mary ? on November 18, 1612 in Groton, Suffolk,

Notes

“A Genealogical Record of Daniel Pond, and His Descendants.” By Edward Doubleday Harris. Page 6. GoogleBooks

JOHN POND, and a brother whose name is not given, sons of one of Governor Winthrop's old neighbors, came to New England in the year 1630, with the Governor. After his arrival here, Governor Winthrop wrote home to bis eldest son in Groton, desiring him to tell “old Pond that both his sons are well and remember their duty." Records of Groton, examined at the instance of the writer, give no satisfaction to the patient searcher; the name of Pond does not occur in them. John and his brother were, doubtless, men of humble birth and small means, launched forth from the paternal roof by the old sire, to seek their fortunes in the new world. Of the former we hear nothing more. He may have returned to England, or pushed on to a more congenial climate. But one ROBERT, who it is surmised was the brother, sat down at Dorchester. He died in 1637, his inventory being dated December 27 of that year. His widow, Mary, married Edward Shepard of Cambridge. It is known that Robert and Mary Pond had a daughter Mary, who was eleven years old at the time that her mother joined the church at Cambridge, and who afterwards married John Blackman. There is evidence, too, that the widow carried with her to Cambridge two other children, Jonathan and Sarah, though it seems difficult to reconcile dates and facts with this hypothesis, unless the transcript of the court paper relating to Jonathan's estate, on page 338 of the N. E. Genealogical Register for 1853, errs in the age of Sarah.

There is but little doubt that Robert Pond of Milton, was also a son of Robert and Mary of Dorchester: He was made freeman in 1642, married Mary Ball, and died between 1660 and 1663. Their children were Mary, Martha, and probably the Sarah who married Desire Clap.

WILLIAM Pond of Dorchester, also supposed to have been a son of, the first Robert, married Mary, daughter of George Dyer, and had several children born in Dorchester, none of whom, except a daughter Thankful, who married Philip Whithington, can be traced. The name in Dorchester, and of this line, seems to have died out with that generation.

Children (original list)

From http://freepages.rootsweb.com/~hwbradley/genealogy/aqwg1118.htm#1961

• M i Samuel POND was born 1617 and died 14 Mar 1654. [Disputed]
• M ii Sergeant William POND was born 1620 and died 4 Apr 1690. m Mary Dyer, d. April 04, 1690, Dorchester, Norfolk, MA,
• M iii Jonathan POND 1 was born 1622 in Groton, Suffolk, England.
• F iv Mary POND was born 1624 and died Aug 1656. , m. John Blackman, d. April 28, 1675, Dorchester, Suffolk, MA
• M v Robert POND was born 1626 and died 1662. applied to be a Freemen 18 May 1642[8]; Groton, Suffolk, Eng; m Mary (Ball?); d 1663 Milton, Mass[9]
• M vi Daniel POND was born 1628 and died 4 Feb 1698. m Ann Edwards (his step-father's daughter)
• F vii Sarah POND 1 was born 1630 in Groton, Suffolk, England.

References

1. http://wc.rootsweb.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=merrygo&i...
2. http://minerdescent.com/2010/06/17/robert-pond/
3. WikiTree contributors, "Robert Pond Sr. (1592-bef.1648)," WikiTree: The Free Family Tree, (https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Pond-141 : accessed 10 February 2024). Citations include
   1. Robert Charles Anderson, "Documenting New England's Founders in The Great Migration Directory," in American Ancestors Magazine, 16.2:29, citing Suffolk County Probate Records, Case #6; Shurtleff, ed., Records of the Governor and Company of Massachusetts Bay in New England, 1628-1686 [note 4], 2:247; and Pope, Pioneers
4. “Ancestors of Sharon Lynn Ideman: The Pond Family.” < PDF >.
5. http://freepages.rootsweb.com/~hwbradley/genealogy/aqwg1118.htm#1961