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About Sarah Bowden
Don’t confuse this Sarah with Sarah Bowden, who married Michael Bowden ll of Lynn and died in 1754. That’s her daughter in law. And she’s not the same as the Sarah Nurse who testified at Salem in 1692. That was Sarah Nurse, her sister in law, born 1664.
Sarah Nurse
- Born about 1649 in Essex County Massachusetts Bay (probably born in Salem; no vital record) [seen as February 03, 1651 at Marblehead without attribution]
- Died on an unknown date before 1740, probably at Marblehead, Essex, Massachusetts Bay (no vital record)
- Daughter of Francis Nurse and Rebecca Towne
- Sister of John Nurse, Rebecca (Nurse) Preston, Samuel Nurse, Mary (Nurse) Tarbell, Elizabeth (Nurse) Russell, Francis Nurse Jr., and Benjamin Nurse
- Wife of Michael Bowden — married 15 Dec 1669 in Topsfield, Essex, Massachusetts
Children
- Susannah was born in Topsfield on 10 June 1670;
- Michael(2), married Sarah Davis
- Samuel, married Mary Bubier
- Francis, married Mary Webber
Notes
One Sarah [later hand has added "[N]urse"] married Michael Bowden 15 December 1669 at Topsfield, Essex, Massachusetts.[1]
The date of death seen of Sept 1754 is incorrect. It is the date of death recorded for Sarah Davis Bowden, daughter-in-law of Sarah (Nurse) Bowden.
1678 - Michael Bowden sues Captain John Smith Boston, Massachusetts Bay Colony. From S.J. Walker's information on the Nurse family: http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~walkersj/Nurse.htm (dead link)
Michael Bowden, Nurse's son-in-law, lived on a farm in Marblehead which he rented from Capt. James Smith, and in 1678 he sued Smith for a debt which he claimed was owed him by Smith's wife, Mary who managed her husband's affairs when he was absent. Mary Smith testified that when Bowden came to Boston to settle, Francis Nurse was with him and said, "I Protest, Michell, the woman speaks nothing but reason and you must Recktify things," (Ibid. VII:119).
Michael Bowden (presumably on behalf of his wife, a Nurse daughter) was named his heir in the 1694 will of Francis Nurse. Francis Nurse equally divided his estate among his eight children: John, Samuel, Francis and Benjamin Nurse, Michael Bowden, Thomas Preston, John Tarbell and William Russell. [8] [9]
Additionally: "Michael Bowden, later of Marblehead. He, planter, conveyed to Samuel Nurse for 4 pounds his wife's share in the Francis Nurse house and her proportion, about 15 acres, in his estate on Dec. 5, 1695." From the book, Massachusetts and Maine Families, by Walter Goodwin Davis, Volume III, page 70.
Just for reference:
Most sources indicate Sarah, daughter of Francis and Rebecca Nurse married Michael Bowden. In Salem Witch Records, it is indicated that Sarah was 28 yrs. in 1692, testifying for her mother, so born about 1663/4. Other sources indicate that Sarah married Bowden at Topsfield in Dec. 1669, which would make her about 6 yrs old at that time. It appears that this is not the same couple, OR the Topsfield trial-related dates are incorrect: NURSE, Sarah, and Michaell Bauden, Dec. 15, 1669. see: Topsfield VR: Marriages p. 168]
Note: it was Francis Nurse Jr.’s wife, Sarah Nurse, who was born 1664, therefore age 28 in 1692, who testified, not Sarah (Nurse) Bowden.
(Also, their son Michael Bowden Jr., married Sarah Davis of Lynn.)
Family
<“Descendants of Samuel Bowden”>
Michael(1) Bowden was born, probably, in 1651 in Gloucester, Ma.; he testified in court in 1677 that he was twenty five years of age. He died on 26 June 1740 at Lynn, Ma. He married, at Topsfield, Ma on 15 Dec. 1669, Sarah Nurse who was born in 1649 at Salem Village (Danvers) , Ma. and died prior 1740 probably in Marblehead, Ma. The Nurse family were fairly large landowners and substantial farmers Their family house still stands today. Rebecca Towne Nurse, Sarah mother, is well known for the tragic trial and condemnation during the senseless witchcraft delusion. Based upon his location in Topsfield and his later activity in Marblehead, Michael (1) Bowden was a farmer. It is assumed that his father, Samuel, was likewise a farmer. We find in the Ipswich Quqrterly Court Records that on 18 Nov.1668 Michael’s country rate was two shilling eight pence. Michael (1) and Sarah Nurse Bowden’s first child and daughter, Susannah was born in Topsfield on 10 June 1670; their subsequent children are not recorded in Topsfield. Again from the court records we find in the probate of the will of John Davis, proved 25 March 1673, that Michael (1) of Topsfield was a debtor of John Davis along with others. It is very likely that Michael (1) with his family removed to Marblehead shortly after 1673 for on 04 Feb. 1674 we find Michael (1) as a tenant farmer of the large farm of Capt. James Smith. This farm had been a part of the very large Plaines farm of Colonel John Humphrey. Capt. John Smith, with his family, never lived on his farm indicating that it was probably an investment.
It seems likely that when Michael(1) Bowden and wife took over this farm that the area was mostly wilderness; under Michael’s management the woods were cleared and the ground gradually was cultivated. From references in the Quarterly Court Records, we know he cut timber and had teams there. “Court case re Mary Smith wife of Capt. James owing Michael Bowden money-Need page 120 of Salem Quarterly Court-Volume 7" In August of 1685, Mary LeGrow and Walter Williams, who were married in Marblehead, were referred to as “servants of Michael Bowden”. By 1695 , when Michael and his wife sold their share of the Nurse Farm, he is referred to as “Planter”. In 1697 Michael was a member of the committee “on the town fence” an obvious office as the Bowdens lived almost on the town boundary. Michael Bowden(1) is mentioned for the last time on 07 Sept 1704 relative to the farm section in Marblehead. On this farm, in addition to the daughter born in Topsfield, Susanna, there were born and grew up to maturity the three sons of Michael(1) and Sarah(Nurse) Bowden,i.e., Michael(2), Samuel, and Francis. Following 1704, little is known of Michael(1) Bowden and his wife Sarah whose death date is unknown; at some later, Michael without wife(presumed dead) returned to Lynn where he died 26 Jun 1740. From the place of his death it seems obvious that he spent his last years in the family of his son Michael(2) Bowden.
References:PH71:45-48;FH51:1-9;Lynn VRs:V2:50-51,430;Chart21.
Sarah Nurse was the daughter of the famous Rebecca Nurse, well known by many Americans, who was charged, in Salem, Massachussetts, for being a witch. She was tried twice for this offense. The first time, when the family was present, she was found innocent and freed.
It was a most unusual trial. At first many, if not all, of the Nurse family were inprisoned. Judge Hawthorne presided. Among the witnesses was the daughter of a Mr. Putnam who testified under oath that she was stuck and bleeding by an evil spell performed by Rebecca. Sarah Nurse testified under oath that she saw the Putnam girl take a pin out of her dress and stick herself with the pin. Many people in the village were behind Rebecca and knew she was innocent; She had been very sick in prison praying constantly for her accusers. She prayed daily and was considered one of the most godly people in the this entire village. The entire Nurse family, especially, helped win the case.
However, when the Nurse family were sure this horrible trial was done and that she was finally safe, they left the town. However, when they were away, their mother was quickly tried again for the same crime and hung. Many people were enraged. Of course the Nurse family were both enraged and grief-striken. The Putnams took part of the blame in the written history of this case for various reasons.
I'll just site one of the possible reasons cited in history that may have prompted them to be so quick to accuse Rebecca in these trials. First, the Putnams had taken a case twice to court involving some 300 acres of land that they argued was theirs rightfully and each time they won each case in the lower courts. This property had belonged to Frances Nurse, Rebecca's husband and Sarah's dad. Francis felt this land was legally his and thus took it to the higher court in Massachusetts, and he won the case. The Putnam's were, of course, enraged and very likely thought they had been cheated of their 300 acres. You might well guess that they also wanted it back. If this is why they charged Rebecca with witchcraft of not, in the end, they got back their 300 acres.
Sarah lost her mother, Rebecca (Towne) Nurse and two of her aunts, and both Towne sisters, and Sarah Towne, Sarah Nurse's only surviving Aunt was given just compensation by Massachussets of three gold sovereigns and, I am sure a letter of condolence as well.
There are two major productions dealing with the trial of Rebecca Nurse that I have heard of. The first was and HBO presentation called "Three Sovereign for Sarah".
The second is a play by Arthur Miller entitled "The Crucilble".
Torrey’s New England Marriages
(Receipts for Sums Paid in Restitution) [February 19, 1711]
https://salem.lib.virginia.edu/n173.html#n173.80
Rebeccah Nurse familyJohn Nurse Sarah Bowden Rebeccah Preston Samuel Nurse Mary Tarbel Francis Nurse Elizabeth Russel Benj Nurse of framingham
Received on the foregoing side £ s d *Samuel Nurs for him selfe & John Nurse & John Tarbell Rebeccah Preston William Russel Martha21-14- 0 Bowden & francis Nurs
References
- https://ma-vitalrecords.org/MA/Essex/Topsfield/aMarriagesN.shtml "(Nurse) Sarah, and Michaell Bauden, Dec. 15, 1669. CTR"
- "Massachusetts, Town Clerk, Vital and Town Records, 1626-2001," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-L979-W7F7?cc=2061550&w... : 13 July 2016), Essex > County wide > County court births, marriages, deaths 1654-1795 > image 103 of 610; citing Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth, Boston.
- The Essex Antiquarian: An Illustrated ... Magazine Devoted to the ..., Volume 11. edited by Sidney Perley. Page 46. <GoogleBooks>
- https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Nurse-99
- Salem Witch Trials Documentary Archive and Transcription Project: Salem Witchcraft Papers: SWP No. 012, The University of Virginia , http://salem.lib.virginia.edu/n12.html#n12.4
- The Essex Genealogist. (Online database. AmericanAncestors.org, New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2018.) https://www.americanancestors.org/DB396/i/12594/74/143267452
- New England Marriages to 1700. (Online database. AmericanAncestors.org. New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2008.) Originally published as: New England Marriages Prior to 1700. Boston, Mass.: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2015. https://www.americanancestors.org/DB1568/i/21174/179/426915319
- https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/60568244/sarah-bowden
- 164. Lois Payne Hoover, Towne Family: William Towne and Joanna Blessing, Salem Massachusetts 1635, Five Generations of Descendants, Otter Bay Books, LLC, Baltimore, Maryland, 2010, Mid-Continent Public Library, Midwest Genealogy Center, 3440 S. Lee”s Summit Road, Independence, Missouri 64055, 929.2 H7698 MOSGA, 10-30 January 2020. Page 13.
- Ames, John D. A Genealogy of the Nurse Family Through Five Generations in: Putnam, Eben, editor. The Genealogical Magazine, Volumes 3-5, Putnam's Monthly Magazine, Salem Press and Genealogical Record, 1893, p. 100-1. <GoogleBooks> Has her born 1663 and married 1700. Which makes no sense as her husband is her father’s heir in 1695
- Our colonial and continental ancestors : the ancestry of Mr. and Mrs. Louis William Dommerich / by Louis Effingham de Forest. by De Forest, Louis Effinghan, 1891- (Publication date 1930). “Francis Nurse.” Chart XLVll <Archive.Org> Gives her no birth or death dates but affirms the marriage date.
- Boyer, Paul S. and Stephen Nissenbaum. Salem-Village Witchcraft: A Documentary Record of Local Conflict in Colonial New England, UPNE, 1972 p. 33. “ Rebecca Preston, her sister Mary Tarbell, brother in law John Tarbell and brother Samuel Nurse testified on behalf of their mother Rebecca Towne Nurse during the Salem Witch Trials.” (Sarah (Nurse) Bowden is not mentioned).
- Case 19688: p. 1-10: Essex County, Massachusetts: Probate File Papers, 1638-1881. Online database. AmericanAncestors.org. New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2014. (From records supplied by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Archives.) Francis Nurse # 19688 Dec 23, 1695.<AmericanAncestors> Will of Francis Nurse. Also see document attached.
- https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Nurse-31 does not show her as daughter of Francis Nurse and Rebecca Towne.
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Sarah Bowden's Timeline
| 1651 |
February 3, 1651
|
Probably at, Salem, Essex County, Massachusetts Bay Colony, Colonial America
The exact date of birth of Sarah Nurse (future Sarah Bowden) to father Francis and mother Rebecca Nurse is unrecorded, as is the date of baptism. The infant has two older brothers (a young boy named John - age 6, and a toddler named Samuel - age 2) and an older sister (a young girl named Rebecca, age 4). |
|
| 1659 |
1659
|
Town of Salem, Essex County, Massachusetts Bay Colony
The exact date of birth of Mary Nurse (future Mary Tarbell) to father Francis and mother Rebecca Nurse is unrecorded, as is the date of baptism. The infant has two older brothers (an older boy named John - age 14, and a boy named Samuel - age 8), and two older sisters (a girl named Rebecca - age 12, and a young girl named Sarah - age 6). |
|
| 1661 |
February 3, 1661
|
Town of Salem, Essex County, Massachusetts Bay Colony
As with most people from this period, Francis' actual birth date is unrecorded. His actual birth to father Francis and mother Rebecca Nurse likely took place within one or two months of his recorded baptismal date of February 3. The infant had two older brothers (a young man named John - age 16, and a boy named Samuel - age 12) and three older sisters (an older girl named Rebecca - age 14, a girl named Sarah - age 10, and a toddler named Mary - age 2). (A note on English "double dates" - the old English calendar before 1752 used to change year on March 25. The first date indicated the English year, which differed between January 1 and March 24 from what the rest of the world followed. As what appeared to be some sort of compromise, English officials would double date their documents, and the rest of English society followed. Because the computer date system inflexibly changes years only on January 1, in order to maintain a proper chronology, the second date should be used.) |
|
| 1665 |
January 2, 1665
|
Town of Salem, Essex County, Massachusetts Bay Colony
As with most people from this period, Elizabeth's' actual date of birth to father Francis and mother Rebecca Nurse is unrecorded. Her actual birth likely took place within one or two months of her recorded baptismal date of January 9, 1664/1665. The infant had three older brothers (a young man named John - age 19, an older boy named Samuel, and a toddler named Francis - age 3), and three older sisters (a young woman named Rebecca - age 17, an older girl named Sarah - age 13, and a young girl named Mary - age 5). |
|
| 1666 |
1666
|
Town of Salem, Essex County, Massachusetts Bay Colony
As with most people from this period, Benjamin's actual date of birth to father Francis and mother Rebecca Nurse is unrecorded. His actual birth likely took place within one or two months of his recorded baptismal date of January 26, 1665/1666. The infant had three older brothers (a young man named John - age 20, a young man named Samuel - age 16, and a young boy named Francis - age 4) and four older sisters (a young woman named Rebecca - age 18, an older girl named Sarah - age 14, a young girl named Mary - age 6, and an infant named Elizabeth - age 13 months). |