Ahnentafel #541 - Sarah (--?--)

Sarah (--?--)

Born:
Died:  between 1675 and 1677 based on birth date of son Joseph and birth date of Israel Bradford, William's first child by his third wife.

Buried:

Married:
1) Francis Griswold?
2) William Bradford ca. 1674, based on birth date of son Joseph

For many years, the second wife of William Bradford was said to be a widow Wiswall / Wiswell, who later was identified as Mary (Fitch) Wiswall.  This theory has been destroyed and the newest theory is that William's second wife was Sarah (--?--) Griswold the widow of Francis Griswold.

This new theory comes from the wording of William Bradford's legacy to Joseph in his will:

To my Joseph Bradford a portion of Lands near Norwich aforesaid (which was his Mothers & part I Purchased) as may appear under hand & seal
also I give to him the history of the Netherlands, & a Rapier. 

William Bradford lived in Massachusetts on his father's estate which became his own. His half-brother John lived in Norwich and it is supposed that he introduced William to a widow from that town. The land belonging to Joseph's mother would either be land she inherited from her own family or land she had purchased for herself.   Any land that had belonged to her first husband would have reverted to his heirs upon her death.

Francis Griswold, b. ca. 1629, the son of Edward & Margaret (--?--) Griswold was a founder of Norwich.  He died in 1671.  The name of his widow was Sarah and her surname has not been found.  The couple had nine children, the youngest born in Norwich in 1671.

Francis, like William Bradford, held public office and it's possible that the two had dealings as leaders and peers in their prospective colonies.  Francis was Deputy for Norwich to the Connecticut General Court between 1664 and 1671.  He was Lieutenant of the Norwich Train Band.

Occasionally his name appears in the old records as Griswell, which . . . sounds an awful lot like Wiswell.  Two of Francis & Sarah's daughters end up in Plymouth Colony where they marry and again the name is recorded as Griswell. 

Until something better comes along, this is the theory I'm going with. You can read more about this theory in David Webber's Major William Bradford's Second Wife: Was She the Widow of Francis Griswold?

Children by Francis Griswold:
Sarah b. 1653, d. 1692 md. Robert Chapman

• Samuel b. 1672, d. 1717 md. Margaret Griswold, children: Margaret, Mary, Samuel, Martha, Temperance, Thomas, Jedediah, Elizabeth, Caleb, Lucy, Aaron
• Robert b. 1675, d. 1760 md. Mary Stevens, children: David, Jonathan, Caleb, Robert, Francis, Sarah
• Sarah b. 1677, d. 1677 1 month old
• Francis b. 1687, never married
• Dorcas b. 1680, d. 1680 1 month old
• Stephen b. 1681, d. 1686, 5 years old
• Unnamed son b. 1683, d. 1683, 4 days old
• Sarah b. 1686, d. 1689 3 years old
• Unnamed son b. 1689, d. 1689 3 days old

Joseph b. 1655, d. 1655
Mary b. 1656, d. 1711 md. Jonathan Tracy 1672

• Jonathan b. 1673, d. 1704 md. Anna Palmer 1700, children: Jonathan & Anna
• Hannah b. 1674 md. Thomas Davison
• Christopher b. 1680, d. 1725 md. Lydia Parish 1705, children: Christopher, Jonathan, Lidsey, Solomon, Lydia, Mary, Hannah, Bethia, Dorothy, Ester, Deborah, Jerusha
• Mary b. 1682 md. Benjamin Parish
• Maryann b. 1685 md. Isaac Clark
• David b. 1687, d. 1729 md. Sarah Parish 1709, children: David, Lemuel, Sarah, Mary, Zeruiah, Ziporah, Mary, Rachel, Irine
• Francis b. 1690, d. 1755, md. Elizabeth Parish, children: Isaac, Francis, Sheribiab, Elizabeth, Thankful, Miriam
• Sary b. 1692, d. 1693 
• Samuel b. 1697 md. Esther Richmond 1733, children: Samuel, Stephen, Richmond, Ester, Ester (2nd), Persilla, Elizabeth, Mariam, Lucretia

Hannah b. 1658, d. 1687 md. William Clark 1677/78 as his second wife

• Sarah b. 1678 md. Ephraim Little
• William b. 1682 md. Bethia Mayhew
• Nathaniel b. 1684
• Samuel b. 1687, d. 1763 md. Mary Finney, at least one child: Luraina

Deborah b. 1661, d. 1704 md. Lt. Jonathan Crane 1678

• Sarah b. 1680, d. 1725, md. Nathaniel Hibbard, children: Nathaniel, Samuel, Anne, Deborah, Zebulon
• Jonathan b. 1684, d. 1757 md. Mary Hibbard
• John b. 1687 md. 1) Sarah Spencer, 2) Prudence Belding, at least one son Hezekiah
• Mary b. 1689, d. 1776 md. Jacob Simons, at least one son Jacob
• Hannah b. 1692 md. Caleb Conant
• Isaac b. 1694, d. 1753 md. Ruth Waldo, at least one daughter Ruth
• Joseph b. 1696
• Elizabeth b. 1698, d. 1698
• Deborah b. 1698, d. 1698
• Abigail b. 1700 md. David Knight at least one daughter Sarah

Lydia b. 1663, d. 1664
Samuel b. 1665, d. 1740 md. 1) Susannah Huntington 1685, 2) Hannah (Backus) (Bingham) Tracy 1729

• Francis b. 1691, d. 1760 md. 1) Elizabeth Loomis 1714, 2) Abigail Bingham 1721, 3) Patience Seabury 1755, children: Francis, Mary, Daniel, Abigail, Abel, Elizabeth, Isaac, Francis, Adonijah
• Samuel b. 1693, d. 1740 md. Elizabeth Abell 1719, children: Samuel, Elisha, Ebenezer, Samuel, Simon, Elizabeth
• Lydia b. 1696, d. 1740 md. Caleb Huntington, children: Caleb, Lydia, Elisha (twin), Elijah (twin), Abner, James, Susanna, Ezekiel, Daniel
• Hannah b. 1699, d. 1761 md Ezekiel Ashley 1742, children: Ezekiel, Hannah, Jacob, Hannah, Grissell
• Sarah b. 1700/01, d. 1749 md. Ebenezer Waterman 1721, children: Susannah, Betty, Sarah, Ebenezer, Ezekiel, Flavius, Adonijah, Marian
• John b. 1703, d. 1730 md. Susannah Sanders 1729, child: John
• Joseph b. 1706, d. 1796 md. Sarah Durkee 1728 children: Joseph, Susannah, Andrew, John, Sarah, Hannah, Oliver, Jeremiah, Benjamin
• Daniel b. 1709, d. 1724

Margaret b. 1668, d. 1746 md. Thomas Buckingham 1691

• Thomas b. 1693 md. Mary Parker
• Samuel b. 1694, never married
• Jedediah b. 1696, d. 1720 md. Mary Haines
• Margaret b. 1699 md. (--?--) Johnson
• Mary b. 1702, d. 1703
• Mary (2nd) b. 1705, d. 1778 md. Solomon Huntington, children: Margaret, Zerviah, Rebecca, Solomon, Temperance, Mary, Lydia
• Joseph b. 1710 md. Sarah Tully
• Sarah b. 1710 md. (--?--) Crocker

Lydia b. 1671, d. 1752 md. 1) Joseph Bartlett 1692 & 2) Joseph Holmes Jr. 1704

• Joseph Bartlett b. 1693 md. Elizabeth Bartlett, children: Sylvanus, Lydia, Zacheus
• Samuel Bartlett b. 1696, d. 1759, md. Elizabeth Lothrop, children: Lothrop, Elizabeth, Margaret, Hannah, Margaret 2nd
• Lydia b. 1697 md. Lazarus LeBaron, children: Joseph, Lydia, Bartlett
• Benjamin b. 1699
• Sarah b. 1702/3 md. 1) Francis LeBaron, 2) Joseph Swift
• Seare / Sarah Holmes b. 1706
• Joseph b. 1714

Child by William Bradford:
Joseph