DONHAM Family History: Chapter 23

	DONHAM Family History by Scott T.S. Trimble printed book © August 1995 /// online version © August 2000
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE JONATHAN SINGLETARY, alias JONATHAN DUNHAM
Jonathan DONHAM, father of Nathaniel DONHAM Sr., was born as Jonathan SINGLETARY, the son of Richard SINGLETARY and Susanna COOKE. He was not, as Isaac Watson DUNHAM's book suggested, the son of Thomas DUNHAM (son of Deacon John DUNHAM and Susanna KENNY) and Martha KNOTT. Actually,it appears that Thomas DUNHAM never married. It had been assumed that he married Martha KNOTT, only because George KNOTT, in his will, promised to leave a coat to Thomas if he would marry his daughter. Martha eventually married someone else and had a family. There is also too much evidence that Jonathan SINGLETARY and Jonathan DUNHAM were the same person. Jonathan was born 17 November 1639/1640 in Salisbury, Essex County, MA. In his twenties he was involved in a land dispute with a John GODFREY. They went to court where Jonathan accused John of being a witch. Jonathan also got into trouble with the Plymouth government as the following paragraph shows.136 After reaching manhood and previous to coming to Woodbridge, NJ, he was accused on the Plymouth Colony records of being a 'Ranter' and disseminating corrupt religious principles among his neighbors. 'Ranters' were regarded as an Antinomian sect characterized by extravagances of conduct and worship and so not tolerated by the Puritan courts.... Baptists and Quakers, though strictly orthodox according to scriptural interpretations at that time, were denounced by similar religious courts as 'offscouring of the earth' — 'formenters of evil' — 'abominable people.' What may have been Jonathan SINGLETARY's true character in early manhood among his New England ancestry, the writer will not further discuss. It is known that in New Jersey he was a respected and reputable citizen, as Jonathan DUNHAM, and commanded the esteem of his fellow townsmen. After his troubles Jonathan and his family moved to New Jersey, about 1665. One biography states Jonathan built the first grist mill in 1670 on Papiac Creek near Woodland, NJ. He owned 213 acres of land in Woodbridge, NJ. He was a representative to the New Jersey State Assembly. It also said that he rebelled against the Dutch Government and was arrested in 1673. In New Jersey he started using his new surname DUNHAM or DONHAM. But he never made any attempt to hide this name change. Records, such as one from 1702, had his name recorded as either "Jonathan Dunham, alias Singletary" or "Jonathan Singletary, alias Dunham". So it is unlikely he changed his name because of his disputes with GODFREY. The following SINGLETARY family legend might explain it.137 In the last quarter of the sixteenth century, there was living in England a family of title and large estates by the name of DUNHAM (so the tradition has it, but the Massachusetts records have it DONHAM). Of this family there were two branches. In case of the death of the last male of the elder branch, the title and estate would pass to the nearest male relative of younger branch. It so happened that every male of the elder branch died except one small boy. One morning it was discovered that he was missing--and that his nurse was missing also. Although a thorough search was made and bloodhounds were used in the search, neither he nor his nurse could be found. As the years passed, nothing further was heard of him. The heir of the younger branch of the family instituted a law suit to obtain the property; whether or not he obtained the property in the absence of the real heir is not clear. Many years after this happened, the child's nurse lay on her death bed and made an affidavit that she had been employed to destroy the child. She had found that she could not do this and had decided to seek a home in the new world. She had hidden herself and the child in a dense hazel thicket and had been terrified when she heard the dogs. Fortunately, the scent was cold, and the dogs were called off. For a day and a night she lay hidden; then she made her way to a ship, in which she embarked with the child to America. On reaching America, she deserted the child, leaving him in the care of the captain of the ship, who adopted him. Before she left, she gave the child the name of SINGLETARY because he was alone in the world and because he would remain (or tarry) in the new world. She shortly returned to England. The above written and sworn confession of the nurse was believed to be true; and detectives were sent to America to investigate the matter. A young man was found bearing the name SINGLETARY, whose age corresponded with that of the lost heir of the DUNHAM estates and who could give no account of his forebears. The captain of the ship on which the child was deserted had adopted him under the name that the nurse had given him, having no idea of his real name or lineage. And the captain was now dead. Indeed, such care had been taken to destroy all trace of his name or ancestry that no one could say positively that he was the person sought. While he was believed to be the heir, the evidence was not sufficient to satisfy the English court and put him in possession of the property. Such is the tradition that has been handed down through many generations of the SINGLETARY family; wherever the name is found all over the United States, the family member is familiar with the story. There appears to be some truth in the story--in a legal document that appears in the Archives of Massachusetts, recorded in 1702, the whole family is referred to as "Donham, alias Singletary." This record is quoted by Mr. David W. HOYT in his Old Families of Salisbury and Amesbury. Be the tradition true or false, it is plain that the SINLGETARY family belongs to the aristocracy of the old families of Amesbury, Massachusetts. Thus, if Jonathan SINGLETARY didn't change his name to DUNHAM / DONHAM to hide from John GODFREY, it is possible that he changed it to reclaim his ancestral surname. Jonathan and Mary had at least ten children. Jonathan died 6 September 1706 in Woodbridge, Middlesex County, NJ, and is buried at the Trinity Cemetery. Mary died sometime after 1702 in Woodbridge. CHILDREN OF JONATHAN SINGLETARY & MARY BLOOMFIELD ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1 NAME: Mary DONHAM BORN: 29 Dec 1661 PLACE: Haverhill,Essex,MA DIED: Bef 1664 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 2 NAME: Mary DONHAM BORN: 3 Feb 1663/1664 PLACE: Haverhill,Essex,MA DIED: Aft 1702 SPOUSE: William ELLISON MARR: PLACE: Woodbridge,Middlesex,NJ ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 3 NAME: Ruth DONHAM BORN: 1666 PLACE: Haverhill,Essex,MA ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 4 NAME: Eunice DONHAM BORN: 1667 DIED: 5 Dec 1684 PLACE: Woodbridge,Middlesex,NJ ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 5 NAME: Esther DONHAM BORN: 1669 DIED: 14 Aug 1690 SPOUSE: Samuel SMITH ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 6 NAME: Jonathan DONHAM BORN: 24 Sep 1672 PLACE: Woodbridge,Middlesex,NJ DIED: 6 Sep 1706 PLACE: Woodbridge,Middlesex,NJ SPOUSE: Esther ROLPH MARR: 5 Feb 1696 PLACE: ,,NJ ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 7 NAME: David DONHAM BORN: 10 Mar 1674 PLACE: Woodbridge,Middlesex,NJ DIED: 1753/1758 PLACE: Woodbridge,Middlesex,NJ SPOUSE: Mary ILSLEY MARR: 14 Aug 1699 PLACE: ,,NY ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 8 NAME: Nathaniel DONHAM BORN: 8 Feb 1677 PLACE: Woodbridge,Middlesex,NJ DIED: 14 May 1678 PLACE: Woodbridge,Middlesex,NJ ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 9 NAME: Nathaniel DONHAM Sr. BORN: 10 Apr 1679 PLACE: Woodbridge,Middlesex,NJ DIED: Aft 1726 PLACE: ,,NJ SPOUSE: Joannah THORNELL MARR: 20 Oct 1703 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 10 NAME: Benjamin DONHAM138 BORN: 22 Aug 1681 PLACE: Woodbridge,Middlesex,NJ DIED: 31 Dec 1715 PLACE: Woodbridge,Middlesex,NJ BUR.: PLACE: Trinity Cem,Middlesex,NJ SPOUSE: Mary ROLPH MARR: ------------------------------------------------------------------------ DESCENDENTS OF JONATHAN SINGLETARY & MARY BLOOMFIELD THREE GENERATIONS, EXCLUDING THE DESCENDENTS OF NATHANIEL DONHAM SR. & JOANNAH THORNELL 1 - Jonathan SINGLETARY, BORN: 17 Nov 1639/1640 Salisbury, Essex County, MA DIED: 6 Sep 1706 Woodbridge, Middlesex County, NJ BUR.: 1706 Trinity Cem, Middlesex County, MA sp- Mary BLOOMFIELD, BORN: 15 Jan 1642 Newburyport, Essex County, MA MARR: Abt 1660/1661 MA DIED: Aft 1702 Woodbridge, Middlesex County, NJ Dau of Thomas BLOOMFIELD /Colonel & Mary 2 - Mary DONHAM, BORN: 29 Dec 1661 Haverhill, Essex County, MA DIED: Bef 1664 2 - Mary DONHAM, BORN: 3 Feb 1663/1664 Haverhill, Essex County, MA DIED: Aft 1702 sp- William ELLISON MARR: Woodbridge, Middlesex County, NJ 2 - Ruth DONHAM, BORN: 1666 Haverhill, Essex County, MA 2 - Eunice DONHAM, BORN: 1667 DIED: 5 Dec 1684 Woodbridge, Middlesex County, NJ 2 - Esther DONHAM, BORN: 1669 DIED: 14 Aug 1690 sp- Samuel SMITH, BORN: 20 Oct 1644 Barnstable, Barnstable County, MA Son of John SMITH /Reverend 2 - Jonathan DONHAM, BORN: 24 Sep 1672 Woodbridge, Middlesex County, NJ DIED: 6 Sep 1706 Woodbridge, Middlesex County, NJ sp- Esther ROLPH, BORN: 1676 Woodbridge, Middlesex County, NJ MARR: 5 Feb 1696 NJ DIED: 11 Sep 1742 Woodbridge, Middlesex County, NJ Dau of John ROLFE & Mary SCULLARD 3 - Samuel DONHAM, BORN: 4 Oct 1697 Woodbridge, Middlesex Co., NJ DIED: 1726 3 - Eunice DONHAM, BORN: 9 Oct 1698 Woodbridge, Middlesex Co., NJ DIED: Bef 1702 3 - Eunice DONHAM, BORN: 12 May 1702 Woodbridge, Middlesex Co., NJ DIED: Woodbridge, Middlesex County, NJ sp- Joseph BLOOMFIELD, BORN: 21 Mar 1695 Woodbridge, Middlesex, NJ MARR: 5 Sep 1721 Woodbridge, Middlesex County, NJ sp- Ephraim MARTIN BORN: 25 Jan 1708/1709 Basking Ridge, Somerset County, NJ MARR: Abt 1730 DIED: 1771 Son of James MARTIN & Mrs. Hannah Dunham SMITH 3 - Mary DONHAM, BORN: 3 Mar 1704 Woodbridge, Middlesex County, NJ sp- James WILKINSON MARR: 16 Dec 1726 2 - David DONHAM, BORN: 10 Mar 1674 Woodbridge, Middlesex County, NJ DIED: 1753/1758 Woodbridge, Middlesex County, NJ sp- Mary ILSLEY MARR: 14 Aug 1699 NY Dau of John ILSLEY & Ann 3 - Joseph DONHAM, BORN: 7 Oct 1700 Woodbridge, Middlesex Co., NJ sp- Elizabeth DIED: 1771 3 - David DONHAM Jr., BORN: 1705 Woodbridge, Middlesex County, NJ DIED: 13 May 1758 BUR.: 1758 Presbyterian Ch, Middlesex County, NJ sp- Mary FREEMAN, BORN: 5 Jun 1702 DIED: 1784 Dau of Henry FREEMAN /Judge & Elizabeth BOWNE 3 - Daniel DONHAM, BORN: 1715 DIED: 1739 Elizabethtown, NJ 2 - Nathaniel DONHAM, BORN: 8 Feb 1677 Woodbridge, Middlesex County, NJ DIED: 14 May 1678 Woodbridge, Middlesex County, NJ 2 - Nathaniel DONHAM Sr., BORN: 10 Apr 1679 Woodbridge, Middlesex, NJ DIED: Aft 1726 NJ sp- Joannah THORNELL, BORN: Abt 1679 MARR: 20 Oct 1703 DIED: Aft 1726 Dau of Israel THORNELL & Hannah Hall GANNETT 2 - Benjamin DONHAM, BORN: 22 Aug 1681 Woodbridge, Middlesex County, NJ DIED: 31 Dec 1715 Woodbridge, Middlesex County, NJ BUR.: Trinity Cem, Middlesex County, NJ sp- Mary ROLPH, BORN: Abt 1681 Dau of John ROLFE & Mary SCULLARD 3 - Richard DONHAM, BORN: 28 May 1702 Woodbridge, Middlesex Co., NJ 3 - Katharine DONHAM, BORN: 12 May 1708 Woodbridge, Middlesex, NJ 3 - Jonathan DONHAM BORN: 7 Jan 1710/1711 Woodbridge, Middlesex County, NJ sp- Mary SMITH, BORN: 17 Dec 1717 3 - Benjamin DONHAM Jr., BORN: 4 Dec 1712 Woodbridge, Middlesex, NJ DIED: 1747/1748 Jonathan SINGLETARY's father was Richard SINGLETARY who was born in England and came to America. If there is any truth to the legend, Richard might have been born as a DUNHAM. Otherwise, he was probably the son of Francis and Agnes SINGLETARY. Richard SINGLETARY, a planter, was in Salem and Newbury in 1637. He received land in Salisbury in the first division in 1640. He was a commoner and was taxed in 1650 and later became a selectman that year. He went to Haverhill about 1653 and became a proprietor there. Richard SINGLETARY was probably born about 1599, according to most records, but his death record said that he died at 102 years old, which would place his birth about 1585. That would make him 71 years old, though, when his son Benjamin was born in 1681; thus, this is unlikely. He died 25 October 1687 in Haverhill, Essex County, MA. His wife Susanna had died 11 April 1682, also in Haverhill. According to a will, Richard's wife Susanna was the sister of Philip COOKE. The Mormon Ancestral File attributes her as a daughter of Johanis COOKE of England, but I haven't seen that documented anywhere else. Of the six children of Richard and Susanna, Jonathan, the oldest, was the only one to change his surname. Daughter Eunice SINGLETARY married Thomas EATON and became an ancestor of that prominent New England family. CHILDREN OF RICHARD SINGLETARY & SUSANNA COOKE ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 1 NAME: Jonathan SINGLETARY BORN: 17 Nov 1639/1640 PLACE: Salisbury,Essex,MA DIED: 6 Sep 1706 PLACE: Woodbridge,Middlesex,NJ BUR.: 1706 PLACE: Trinity Cem,Middlesex,MA SPOUSE: Mary BLOOMFIELD MARR: Abt 1660/1661 PLACE: ,,MA ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 2 NAME: Eunice SINGLETARY BORN: 7 Jan 1641 PLACE: Salisbury,Essex,MA DIED: 5 Oct 1715 PLACE: Haverhill,Essex,MA SPOUSE: Thomas EATON MARR: 6 Jan 1658 PLACE: Andover,,MA ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 3 NAME: Nathaniel SINGLETARY BORN: 28 Aug 1644 PLACE: Salisbury,Essex,MA DIED: 13 Aug 1689 PLACE: Haverhill,Essex,MA SPOUSE: Sarah BELKNAP MARR: 22 Dec 1673 PLACE: Haverhill,Essex,MA ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 4 NAME: Lydia SINGLETARY BORN: 30 Apr 1648 PLACE: Salisbury,Essex,MA DIED: PLACE: Haverhill,Essex,MA SPOUSE: Daniel LADD Jr. MARR: 24 Nov 1668 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 5 NAME: Amos SINGLETARY BORN: Apr 1651 PLACE: Salisbury,Essex,MA DIED: 1 Nov 1724 SPOUSE: Sarah CURRIER ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 6 NAME: Benjamin SINGLETARY BORN: 4 Apr 1656 PLACE: Haverhill,Essex,MA DIED: PLACE: ,,SC SPOUSE: Mary STOCKBRIDGE MARR: 4 Apr 1678 PLACE: Haverhill,Essex,MA ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Here is an account of Nathaniel SINGLETARY's death: "Nathaniel SINGLETARY was dismissed from training for lameness in 1662. On the 13th of August, 1689, he and his son John were working in the field; Indians ambushed them and shot Nathaniel dead. While they were scalping him, John escaped. Nathaniel's son Richard was killed by Indians in 1707 at Lancaster. Martha was born one week after her father Nathaniel died."139 Lydia SINGLETARY, daughter of Richard SINGLETARY and Susanna COOKE, married Daniel LADD Jr. Sons Amos SINGLETARY and Benjamin SINGLETARY fought in King Philip's War. Amos, a yeoman, fought in 1675 and gave his oath of allegiance in November 1677. Benjamin was a soldier under Lt. Benjamin SWETT in June 1676. His oath of allegiance was given November 1677 at Haverhill, Essex, MA. Amos' will was written 19 December 1722, probated 25 November 1724. It mentions his wife but no children.
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