Elizabeth (—?—) (Batson)1 
d. before 8 March 1673/74
7th great-grandmother of Ruth Minerva Fairfield.
9th great-grandmother of Laura Jane Munson.
- Family Background:
- Fairfield and Allied Families
- Appears on charts:
- Pedigree for Ruth Minerva Fairfield
Elizabeth married Stephen Batson before 1637, probably in England. She probably died before 8 March 1673/74, when her husband made his will, as she is not mentioned.2
The first mention of Elizabeth is in court at Saco, York County, Maine, on 4 April 1637 when Stephen and Elizabeth Batson apprenticed their daughter Margery Batson to Captain Richard Bonython and Lucretia, his wife, till she should be 21 years of age.3,1 Fairly or unfairly, Elizabeth was judged harshly by the courts, and history hasn't treated her much better. She was convicted of slandering her husband, Stephen, and daughter, Mary Clay, and ordered by the court to "make acknowledgment of her offences before the court, before the town meeting at Wells, and before the town meeting in Cape Porpoise, and in case of refusal or neglect to do so she was to receive twenty stripes on her naked back."4 Although Bourne, in his History of Wells and Kennebunk, acknowledges that "the court in those days had but very little sympathy for the sex," his judgement is that Stephen "had the misfortune to be united to a woman who had a very imperfect appreciation of her obligations as a wife and mother. She grossly abused her husband and treated a part of her children very unkindly. He [Stephen] was compelled to resort to legal proceedings to curb her tongue and soften her unhallowed temper."4 The court proceedings and ultimate conviction grew from Elizabeth's claim that Stephen and Mary were having an incestuous relationship, and there isn't a hint anywhere, that the writer has found, that even considers there was any truth to her story. Following the conviction, her answer to the next court was, “Whereas I Elizabeth Batson before the last court was legally convicted for very scandalous and unnatural accusations in defaming my husband Stephen Batson and my daughter Mary Clay of charging Mary Clay to be my husbands hoore.”5 It is difficult to discern from printed sources if Elizabeth had a history of erratic behavior, or if this was an isolated incident. If the latter, she should at least receive the benefit of the doubt, especially considering daughter Mary's tawdry history as related in Sharon Cummins' article, "Sects and the Settlement."
The first mention of Elizabeth is in court at Saco, York County, Maine, on 4 April 1637 when Stephen and Elizabeth Batson apprenticed their daughter Margery Batson to Captain Richard Bonython and Lucretia, his wife, till she should be 21 years of age.3,1 Fairly or unfairly, Elizabeth was judged harshly by the courts, and history hasn't treated her much better. She was convicted of slandering her husband, Stephen, and daughter, Mary Clay, and ordered by the court to "make acknowledgment of her offences before the court, before the town meeting at Wells, and before the town meeting in Cape Porpoise, and in case of refusal or neglect to do so she was to receive twenty stripes on her naked back."4 Although Bourne, in his History of Wells and Kennebunk, acknowledges that "the court in those days had but very little sympathy for the sex," his judgement is that Stephen "had the misfortune to be united to a woman who had a very imperfect appreciation of her obligations as a wife and mother. She grossly abused her husband and treated a part of her children very unkindly. He [Stephen] was compelled to resort to legal proceedings to curb her tongue and soften her unhallowed temper."4 The court proceedings and ultimate conviction grew from Elizabeth's claim that Stephen and Mary were having an incestuous relationship, and there isn't a hint anywhere, that the writer has found, that even considers there was any truth to her story. Following the conviction, her answer to the next court was, “Whereas I Elizabeth Batson before the last court was legally convicted for very scandalous and unnatural accusations in defaming my husband Stephen Batson and my daughter Mary Clay of charging Mary Clay to be my husbands hoore.”5 It is difficult to discern from printed sources if Elizabeth had a history of erratic behavior, or if this was an isolated incident. If the latter, she should at least receive the benefit of the doubt, especially considering daughter Mary's tawdry history as related in Sharon Cummins' article, "Sects and the Settlement."
Additional Data
In March 1661, Goodwife Batson the Elder refuses to relinquish the two pigs that used to belong to James Harmon but were awarded to his wife and child when he threatened to flee the country. The following July Plaintiff Morgan Howell charges Stephen Batson for refusing to turn over the estate of James Harmon as the court ordered the previous year.5
Children of Elizabeth (—?—) (Batson) and Stephen Batson
- Elizabeth Batson+5 d. b 8 Mar 1673/74
- Margery Batson1
- Mary Batson+5 d. a 1670
- John Batson+ 1 d. 1685
- Elizabeth Batson1
Citations
- [S869] Charles Thornton Libby, Genealogical Dictionary of Maine and New Hampshire (Portland, Maine: The Southward Press, 1928), 82.
- [S875] William M. Sargent, comp. and ed., Maine Wills. 1640-1760 (Portland, Maine: Maine Historical Society, 1887; reprint Baltimore: Inc. Genealogical Publishing Company, 1996), 34-35, citing Court Records G, 46.
- [S876] Charles Henry Pope, The Pioneers of Maine and New Hampshire 1623-1660, A Descriptive List, Drawn from Records of the Colonies, Towns, Churches, Courts and other Contemporary Sources (Boston: n.pub., 1908; reprint Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1997), 14.
- [S873] Edward E. Bourne, The History of Wells and Kennebunk: from the earliest settlement to the year 1820, at which time Kennebunk was set off, and incorporated: with biographical sketches (Portland, Maine: B. Thurston & Co., 1875).
- [S874] Sharon Cummins, "Sects and the Settlement", The Log.
