John Fairfield1 
b. circa 1610, d. 20 December 1646
7th great-grandfather of Ruth Minerva Fairfield.
9th great-grandfather of Laura Jane Munson.
- Family Background:
- Fairfield and Allied Families
- Appears on charts:
- Pedigree for Ruth Minerva Fairfield
John Fairfield was born circa 1610.1 He married Elizabeth. He died on 20 December 1646 in Wenham, Essex County, Massachusetts.1
Traditionally John Fairfield came from England to New England in 1635, but he doesn't appear in Massachusetts Bay records until 1638.2 He was of Charlestown, now part of Boston, in 1638, but soon removed to Salem where it is noted in the Court Record of 16 July 1639, that "John ffairefeild desires accommodation."2 He was admitted to First Church, Salem, 26 August 1639.2 On 23 December 1639 The town granted to John Fairfield eighty acres for a farm, of which ten acres was meadow.3,2 He later bought 18 acres from William Fisk, and had "house [and] ground" in co-partnership with Joseph Batchelder.2 He was made Freeman 13: 3: 1640 (13 May 1640) at Salem.4,2 His land was situated in the Enon area of Salem that was set off as the town of Wenham on 7 September 1643 when the general court "ordered that Enon shallbee called Wennam. Wennam is granted to bee a towne, & hath liberty to send a deputy."5 A portion of the original 80 acre town grant proved, by later survey, to be in that part of Ipswich known as Ipswich Hamlet, now Hamilton.2
Traditionally John Fairfield came from England to New England in 1635, but he doesn't appear in Massachusetts Bay records until 1638.2 He was of Charlestown, now part of Boston, in 1638, but soon removed to Salem where it is noted in the Court Record of 16 July 1639, that "John ffairefeild desires accommodation."2 He was admitted to First Church, Salem, 26 August 1639.2 On 23 December 1639 The town granted to John Fairfield eighty acres for a farm, of which ten acres was meadow.3,2 He later bought 18 acres from William Fisk, and had "house [and] ground" in co-partnership with Joseph Batchelder.2 He was made Freeman 13: 3: 1640 (13 May 1640) at Salem.4,2 His land was situated in the Enon area of Salem that was set off as the town of Wenham on 7 September 1643 when the general court "ordered that Enon shallbee called Wennam. Wennam is granted to bee a towne, & hath liberty to send a deputy."5 A portion of the original 80 acre town grant proved, by later survey, to be in that part of Ipswich known as Ipswich Hamlet, now Hamilton.2
Additional Data
John Fairfield was summoned to court by the constable of Salem in December 1643, and was "fined 30s. for attempting chastity of wife of Goodman Goldsmith."6
John Fairfield of Wenham made his will on 10 December 1646 in which he mentions his wife Elizabeth, sons Benjamin and Walter, and though he doesn't name his son John, he wills that his estate be equally divided between his wife and three children.7
John Fairfield of Wenham made his will on 10 December 1646 in which he mentions his wife Elizabeth, sons Benjamin and Walter, and though he doesn't name his son John, he wills that his estate be equally divided between his wife and three children.7
Children of John Fairfield and Elizabeth (—?—) (Fairfield-Palfrey)
- Ensign Walter Fairfield+8 b. s 1631, d. 20 Jul 1723
- John Fairfield II+ 1 b. 27 Jun 1641, d. b 20 Nov 1672
- Benjamin Fairfield9 b. 21 Jul 1646, d. 14 Jul 1664
Citations
- [S862] Essex Institute, The Probate Records of Essex County Massachusetts (Salem: Newcomb & Gauss, Printers, 1916-1917), 2 vols., 1: 73, 74.
- [S867] Wynn Cowan Fairfield, Descendants of John Fairfield of Wenham (New York: n.pub., 1953), 1.
- [S872] Sidney Perley, A History of Salem Massachusetts, 3 vols. (Salem, Massachusetts: Sidney Perley, 1924), 2: 76-77.
- [S872] Sidney Perley, History of Salem, 2: 402.
- [S872] Sidney Perley, History of Salem, 2: 152.
- [S855] George Francis Dow, ed., Records and Files of the Quarterly Courts of Essex County, 9 vols. (Salem: Essex Institute, 1911-1973). Transcribed and Abstracted from the Original Manuscript by Harriet S. Tapley, I: 56.
- [S862] Essex Probate (published), 1: 73-76.
- [S867] Wynn Cowan Fairfield, Descendants of Fairfield, 8.
- [S867] Wynn Cowan Fairfield, Descendants of Fairfield, 2.
