HAM, William

1597 - 1673  (76 years)

 Set As Default Person

• Name	HAM, William  [1, 2, 3]
  Birth	1597	Plymouth, Devon, England   [1, 4]
  Gender	Male
  Differentiator	Immigrant; The Great Migration; accused as a witch in 1656
  Great Migration	Arrived in 1635 on the Speedwell; no GM profile
  Web Address	https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Ham-293
  Death	26 Jan 1673	Portsmouth, Rockingham, New Hampshire, USA   [1]
  Person ID	I9835	My Genealogy
  Last Modified	4 Feb 2024

  
  

  Family	STEPHENS, Honor,   b. 4 Feb 1601, Plymouth, Devon, England d. 11 Nov 1667, Portsmouth, Rockingham, New Hampshire, USA (Age 66 years)
  Marriage	22 Nov 1622	Plymouth, Devon, England   [3]
  Children	+ 1. HAM, Matthew William,   b. 1623, Plymouth, Devon, England d. 1664, Portsmouth, Rockingham, New Hampshire, USA (Age 41 years)  [Father: natural]  [Mother: natural]   2. HAM, John,   b. 1 Jan 1623, Kilkhampton, Cornwall, England d. 24 May 1697, Cornwall, England (Age 74 years)  [Father: natural]  [Mother: natural]   3. HAM, Elizabeth,   b. 1628, Plymouth, Devon, England d. 1678 (Age 50 years)  [Father: natural]  [Mother: natural]   4. HAM, Alice,   b. 1630  [Father: natural]  [Mother: natural]   5. HAMME, Joane,   b. Apr 1625, Tiverton, Devon, England  [Father: natural]  [Mother: natural]
  Family ID	F7183	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart
  Last Modified	4 Feb 2024

  
  

• Event Map

  Birth - 1597 - Plymouth, Devon, England Marriage - 22 Nov 1622 - Plymouth, Devon, England Death - 26 Jan 1673 - Portsmouth, Rockingham, New Hampshire, USA  = Link to Google Earth

  
  

• Photos

  
  

  Histories		Ham Family genealogy
  		Historic homes and places and genealogical and personal memoirs relating to the families of Middlesex County, Massachusetts
  		Not related?

  
  

  External Links

  WikiTree: William Ham (1597-1673) William Ham was among those arriving on the Speedwell in 1635; no GM profile

  
  

  Albums		Founding Families of Exeter (2) Exeter, New Hampshire, has a rich history that dates back to its founding in 1638 by John Wheelwright. Wheelwright, a clergyman exiled from the Puritan Massachusetts Bay Colony, purchased the land from Wehanownowit, the sagamore of the area. He named the town after Exeter in Devon, England, and brought about 175 individuals to establish the settlement. Exeter was one of the four original townships in the province and initially included Newmarket, Newfields, Brentwood, Epping, and Fremont. The town's early economy was based on hunting, planting, fishing, raising cattle and swine, and producing shakes (shingles) and barrel staves. Thomas Wilson established the town's first grist mill on the eastern side of the island in the lower falls. The Gilman family, early settlers from Hingham, England, played a significant role in Exeter's development. They were involved in lumber, shipbuilding, and trading as far as the West Indies. Exeter was also notable for its political significance. In 1774, the rebellious Provincial Congress began to meet in the Exeter Town House after being banned from Portsmouth by colonial governor John Wentworth. Exeter became New Hampshire's capital for 14 years, and the provincial records were brought there from Portsmouth.
  		Founding Families of Portsmouth (0)
  		Great Migration (119) The "Great Migration," as defined by the New England Historic Genealogical Society (NEHGS), encompasses the English Puritan migration to New England from 1620 to 1640. This movement primarily involved English Puritans who relocated in family units, driven by a quest for religious freedom and the aspiration to establish a Puritan commonwealth. These migrants originated from various regions of England and settled in areas that now form Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Maine, including the Plymouth Colony and the Massachusetts Bay Colony. An individual's inclusion in the Great Migration Study Project requires evidence of migration to New England within the specified period of 1620 to 1640. The project's objective is to compile biographical and genealogical profiles of all immigrants who arrived in New England during these two decades. The NEHGS has produced extensive volumes and directories, providing details about the lives of these immigrants. This collection presents research on many ancestors who were part of this significant historical migration. You may be shocked by how many there are. Even I was at first. However, most of these Great Migration ancestors are my 9th and 10th great-grandparents, and in some cases 11th and 12th, and with the number of great-grandparents doubling with each generation, the possibilities quickly become immense. We have a total of 1024 sets of 9th great-grandparents and 2048 sets of 10th great-grandparents. This makes finding so many Great Migration ancestors more understandable.
  		Living (At least one living or private individual is linked to this item - Details withheld.)

  
  

• Notes

  William Ham ca. 1598-1673 of Portsmouth, New Hampshire I've seen in print that some people think this William Ham is the father of John Ham of Dover, but that is not true. These are two separate families. There are no records between these two men. It is just a coincidence that two men of the same surname lived so close to each other in early New Hampshire. 1. William Ham was born about 1598 and died June 1673 at Portsmouth, New Hampshire. He married at Plymouth, Devonshire, England on 22 November 1622, Honour Stephens, baptized there on 4 February 1601/2 and died after 1667, daughter of William and Mary (Woode) Stephens. William was a fisherman. William and Honour had two children: Elizabeth and Matthew. William Ham, an early settler in New England, embarked on a remarkable journey that began in Plymouth, England. According to family tradition, he was of Scottish ancestry, but his path to the New World started in June 1635, when he joined a company sent out by Robert Trelawny, a merchant from Plymouth. Trelawny, who had been granted extensive lands and rights in Maine by Gorges, was looking to establish a foothold in the New World. His grant included Richmond's Island and several thousand acres on the mainland, stretching from Sperwick River to Cape Elizabeth, just below Portland. The Trelawny family, with ancestral roots in Ham or Hame in Devonshire, had a long-standing reputation. There was speculation that the Ham family might have derived their name from this place, but no concrete evidence ever surfaced to support this theory. Trelawny's first group, led by John Winter in 1632, focused on hunting, fishing, and trading with the Native Americans. William Ham arrived three years later with Nares Hawkins and others, working under a system of shares and wages. However, the new settlers, including Ham, soon found themselves in a dispute, claiming they had been cheated by Winter and Hawkins. In June 1636, disillusioned, they left Falmouth and headed westward to Portsmouth. Winter's correspondence from June 28, 1636, lists those who departed, including William Ham, Oliver Clark, John Bellin, William Freythe, and John Simmons (Simonds). By 1646, Ham had settled in Exeter. A few years later, in 1652, he received a fifty-acre land grant in Portsmouth, where he likely spent most of his subsequent years. His homestead, known as Freeman's Point or Ham's Point until 1833, was located just above the Portsmouth Bridge, on the road to Kittery, Maine. This area, known for its beautiful scenery, became the site of Ham's house, which stood for many years. He also owned Noble's Island, once called Ham's Island. In Portsmouth, Ham played an active role in the community. He was part of the first squadron in the 1653 division of inhabitants into garrisons and contributed to the minister's maintenance fund from 1658 to 1666. William Ham passed away on January 26, 1672, at the age of seventy-two. His will, proved in Exeter, bequeathed his estate to his daughter, Elizabeth Cotton, and his grandsons, the children of his son Matthew. The relationship between William Ham of Portsmouth and John Ham of Dover remains a mystery, with no clear evidence to define whether John was William's nephew, brother, or cousin. William Ham's story, from his departure from Plymouth to his life in Portsmouth, paints a vivid picture of the challenges and triumphs of an early settler in New England.

  
  

• Sources

  [S1767] Ancestry.com, U.S., Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current, (Name: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc.; Location: Provo, UT, USA; Date: 2012;). [S1817] Nancy W. Grossman, The placenames of Portsmouth : being an anecdotal stroll through the centuries and neighborhoods of Portsmouth, New Hampshire, (Date: 2005;), Pg 77. Freeman's Point [S3410] Ancestry.com, England, Select Marriages, 1538-1973, (Name: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc.; Location: Lehi, UT, USA; Date: 2014;). [S1557] Ancestry.com, Global, Find A Grave Index for Burials at Sea and other Select Burial Locations, 1300s-Current, (Name: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc.; Location: Provo, UT, USA; Date: 2012;).