Francis Lyford and Elizabeth Smith were married about June 1671 in Boston, Mass.
Their children born in Boston, Mass:
Thomas Lyford born March 25, 1672.
Elizabeth Lyford born July 19, 1673.
Francis Lyford born May 31, 1677.
Francis Lyford and Rebecca Dudley were married on November 21, 1681 in Exeter, NH.
Their children born in Exeter:
Ann Lyford born about 1686.
Deborah Lyford born about 1687.
Rebecca Lyford born about 1689.
Sarah Lyford born about 1692.
Mary Lyford born about 1694.
Stephen Lyford born about 1696.
Thomas Lyford born about 1697.
FRANCIS LYFORD, BORN 1641-42, MOST LIKELY IN ENGLAND, DIED 04 SEPT 1724, IN EXETER, N.H.
1. According to Essex County Massachusetts Quarterly Court Records for the period 1636-86, Vol 8, page 59, Francis was 38 years old in 1680. That makes his date of birth 1641 or 42.
2. There are a number of good Lyford genealogy researchers in the U.S. and England. They’ve found two likely suspects as the parents of Francis. One such couple is John and Mary Lyford (or Liford), from Steventon, Berkshire, England. Their son Francis was christened 30 January 1641. The second Francis Lyford (or Lyfford), of Pangbourne, Berkshire, was the son of William and was christened 23 July, 1642. In 1997, Valerie Hannington, formerly a paid genealogy researcher in London and a Lyford relative, spoke with me on the phone. She said the following : “In the Public Record Office here in England there's a passenger list that shows a Francis Lyford leaving for America in 1667. This Francis may be the son of John and Mary Lyford, from Steventon, in Berkshire. I trace my line to 1290, through the Steventon Lyfords. Thomas Lyford begat Robert, born in 1536, in Stanford Dingley and married to Elizabeth in 1560, in Steventon. Their son, William, was born in 1561. William married Elizabeth Smallbone. Their son, John, was born in 1603. He married Mary Wells and they had Francis in 1641.”
3. As Valerie Hannington noted, one of the two Francis Lyfords left England for America in 1667. This coincides with when Francis is found in Boston. The Boston record is the first to mention a Francis Lyford in America, so far as is known as of 2016.
4. The Rev. John Lyford, often cited as the father of Francis, died several years before Francis was born. His widow remarried in 1639. This was not known until a researcher who specializes in the Lyford line – and has done so for more than 25 years - found the Essex County record that proves when Francis was born. Prior to this, in the middle 1990’s, it was common to see people listing Francis as the son of the Rev. John. I was one of them.
5. It is highly unlikely that Mordecai Lyford fathered Francis. Mordecai, the only living son of the Rev. John when Francis was born, is sometimes thought to his father. Mordecai was only 16 at the time, living at home under the guardianship of his step-father and mother; this is according to court records in Ireland and the U.S. Edmund Hubbard, the step-father, was still handling court papers regarding an inheritance of land for Mordecai in 1642. If Mordecai had fathered a child, there would be at least one clue of Francis being born in New England.
6. I have never found an American document or record created prior to 1667 that mentions a Francis Lyford, nor have I ever located anyone who has found one … and a bunch of serious Lyford researchers have been looking for decades. Various Ancestry.com unsourced genealogy hints claim that Francis was born in various New England locations, Boston, the United Kingdom and, if you look hard enough, maybe even on Mars (Ok, so I exaggerate about Mars). Ancestry is full of incorrect and conflicting data, so it pays to be careful about accepting what is found there.
7. There are numerous records concerning Francis, his marriages, purchases of land, use of his sloop, etc. William Welch’s book is the most frequently quoted source of Lyford information. Welch wrote that all but one American Lyford he’d researched was somehow related, but he never speculated that Francis was a direct relation of Rev. John or that Francis was born in America. Welch writes: “I have been unable to trace any connection between this John Lyford and Francis Lyford who first appears in Boston in 1667.” This book is available for free on line.
8. The Abridged Compendium by Frederick Virkus, usually a good source of early genealogy, says Francis was from England, while incorrectly listing his birth date as 1647. The Compendium of American Genealogy, also by Virkus, on page 866 says Francis was born in London in 1645, giving a second, though still incorrect, birthdate.
9. Savage, in The Genealogical Dictionary of New England Settlers, page 134, Volume 3, writes that Francis Lyford is “perpet. John, Plymouth 1624, came that year, prob. in the Charity with Edward Winslow…” Savage was guessing that Francis was a son of John, the Reverend who came to Plymouth in 1624, long before Francis was born. As noted, we now know John could not have been the father of Francis, because John died long before Francis was born. When Virkus and Savage were gathering information in the 19th century, they did not have the advantages we enjoy in the digital age. We are now able to access millions of original source documents it would have taken them a lifetime to discover.
Lyford Hale,
Washougal, Washington
I have been researching Francis Lyford for more than 25 years, as have other serious researchers. None of us have been able to confirm where Francis Lyford was born and to which parents. If you have original source documents that prove that he came from Pangbourne, I would dearly love to add them to my records.
Lyford Hale
March 30, 2018
Their children born in Boston, Mass:
Thomas Lyford born March 25, 1672.
Elizabeth Lyford born July 19, 1673.
Francis Lyford born May 31, 1677.
Francis Lyford and Rebecca Dudley were married on November 21, 1681 in Exeter, NH.
Their children born in Exeter:
Ann Lyford born about 1686.
Deborah Lyford born about 1687.
Rebecca Lyford born about 1689.
Sarah Lyford born about 1692.
Mary Lyford born about 1694.
Stephen Lyford born about 1696.
Thomas Lyford born about 1697.
FRANCIS LYFORD, BORN 1641-42, MOST LIKELY IN ENGLAND, DIED 04 SEPT 1724, IN EXETER, N.H.
1. According to Essex County Massachusetts Quarterly Court Records for the period 1636-86, Vol 8, page 59, Francis was 38 years old in 1680. That makes his date of birth 1641 or 42.
2. There are a number of good Lyford genealogy researchers in the U.S. and England. They’ve found two likely suspects as the parents of Francis. One such couple is John and Mary Lyford (or Liford), from Steventon, Berkshire, England. Their son Francis was christened 30 January 1641. The second Francis Lyford (or Lyfford), of Pangbourne, Berkshire, was the son of William and was christened 23 July, 1642. In 1997, Valerie Hannington, formerly a paid genealogy researcher in London and a Lyford relative, spoke with me on the phone. She said the following : “In the Public Record Office here in England there's a passenger list that shows a Francis Lyford leaving for America in 1667. This Francis may be the son of John and Mary Lyford, from Steventon, in Berkshire. I trace my line to 1290, through the Steventon Lyfords. Thomas Lyford begat Robert, born in 1536, in Stanford Dingley and married to Elizabeth in 1560, in Steventon. Their son, William, was born in 1561. William married Elizabeth Smallbone. Their son, John, was born in 1603. He married Mary Wells and they had Francis in 1641.”
3. As Valerie Hannington noted, one of the two Francis Lyfords left England for America in 1667. This coincides with when Francis is found in Boston. The Boston record is the first to mention a Francis Lyford in America, so far as is known as of 2016.
4. The Rev. John Lyford, often cited as the father of Francis, died several years before Francis was born. His widow remarried in 1639. This was not known until a researcher who specializes in the Lyford line – and has done so for more than 25 years - found the Essex County record that proves when Francis was born. Prior to this, in the middle 1990’s, it was common to see people listing Francis as the son of the Rev. John. I was one of them.
5. It is highly unlikely that Mordecai Lyford fathered Francis. Mordecai, the only living son of the Rev. John when Francis was born, is sometimes thought to his father. Mordecai was only 16 at the time, living at home under the guardianship of his step-father and mother; this is according to court records in Ireland and the U.S. Edmund Hubbard, the step-father, was still handling court papers regarding an inheritance of land for Mordecai in 1642. If Mordecai had fathered a child, there would be at least one clue of Francis being born in New England.
6. I have never found an American document or record created prior to 1667 that mentions a Francis Lyford, nor have I ever located anyone who has found one … and a bunch of serious Lyford researchers have been looking for decades. Various Ancestry.com unsourced genealogy hints claim that Francis was born in various New England locations, Boston, the United Kingdom and, if you look hard enough, maybe even on Mars (Ok, so I exaggerate about Mars). Ancestry is full of incorrect and conflicting data, so it pays to be careful about accepting what is found there.
7. There are numerous records concerning Francis, his marriages, purchases of land, use of his sloop, etc. William Welch’s book is the most frequently quoted source of Lyford information. Welch wrote that all but one American Lyford he’d researched was somehow related, but he never speculated that Francis was a direct relation of Rev. John or that Francis was born in America. Welch writes: “I have been unable to trace any connection between this John Lyford and Francis Lyford who first appears in Boston in 1667.” This book is available for free on line.
8. The Abridged Compendium by Frederick Virkus, usually a good source of early genealogy, says Francis was from England, while incorrectly listing his birth date as 1647. The Compendium of American Genealogy, also by Virkus, on page 866 says Francis was born in London in 1645, giving a second, though still incorrect, birthdate.
9. Savage, in The Genealogical Dictionary of New England Settlers, page 134, Volume 3, writes that Francis Lyford is “perpet. John, Plymouth 1624, came that year, prob. in the Charity with Edward Winslow…” Savage was guessing that Francis was a son of John, the Reverend who came to Plymouth in 1624, long before Francis was born. As noted, we now know John could not have been the father of Francis, because John died long before Francis was born. When Virkus and Savage were gathering information in the 19th century, they did not have the advantages we enjoy in the digital age. We are now able to access millions of original source documents it would have taken them a lifetime to discover.
Lyford Hale,
Washougal, Washington
I have been researching Francis Lyford for more than 25 years, as have other serious researchers. None of us have been able to confirm where Francis Lyford was born and to which parents. If you have original source documents that prove that he came from Pangbourne, I would dearly love to add them to my records.
Lyford Hale
March 30, 2018
Francis Lyford and Elizabeth Smith were married about June 1671 in Boston, Mass.
Their children born in Boston, Mass:
Thomas Lyford born March 25, 1672.
Elizabeth Lyford born July 19, 1673.
Francis Lyford born May 31, 1677.
Francis Lyford and Rebecca Dudley were married on November 21, 1681 in Exeter, NH.
Their children born in Exeter:
Ann Lyford born about 1686.
Deborah Lyford born about 1687.
Rebecca Lyford born about 1689.
Sarah Lyford born about 1692.
Mary Lyford born about 1694.
Stephen Lyford born about 1696.
Thomas Lyford born about 1697.
FRANCIS LYFORD, BORN 1641-42, MOST LIKELY IN ENGLAND, DIED 04 SEPT 1724, IN EXETER, N.H.
1. According to Essex County Massachusetts Quarterly Court Records for the period 1636-86, Vol 8, page 59, Francis was 38 years old in 1680. That makes his date of birth 1641 or 42.
2. There are a number of good Lyford genealogy researchers in the U.S. and England. They’ve found two likely suspects as the parents of Francis. One such couple is John and Mary Lyford (or Liford), from Steventon, Berkshire, England. Their son Francis was christened 30 January 1641. The second Francis Lyford (or Lyfford), of Pangbourne, Berkshire, was the son of William and was christened 23 July, 1642. In 1997, Valerie Hannington, formerly a paid genealogy researcher in London and a Lyford relative, spoke with me on the phone. She said the following : “In the Public Record Office here in England there's a passenger list that shows a Francis Lyford leaving for America in 1667. This Francis may be the son of John and Mary Lyford, from Steventon, in Berkshire. I trace my line to 1290, through the Steventon Lyfords. Thomas Lyford begat Robert, born in 1536, in Stanford Dingley and married to Elizabeth in 1560, in Steventon. Their son, William, was born in 1561. William married Elizabeth Smallbone. Their son, John, was born in 1603. He married Mary Wells and they had Francis in 1641.”
3. As Valerie Hannington noted, one of the two Francis Lyfords left England for America in 1667. This coincides with when Francis is found in Boston. The Boston record is the first to mention a Francis Lyford in America, so far as is known as of 2016.
4. The Rev. John Lyford, often cited as the father of Francis, died several years before Francis was born. His widow remarried in 1639. This was not known until a researcher who specializes in the Lyford line – and has done so for more than 25 years - found the Essex County record that proves when Francis was born. Prior to this, in the middle 1990’s, it was common to see people listing Francis as the son of the Rev. John. I was one of them.
5. It is highly unlikely that Mordecai Lyford fathered Francis. Mordecai, the only living son of the Rev. John when Francis was born, is sometimes thought to his father. Mordecai was only 16 at the time, living at home under the guardianship of his step-father and mother; this is according to court records in Ireland and the U.S. Edmund Hubbard, the step-father, was still handling court papers regarding an inheritance of land for Mordecai in 1642. If Mordecai had fathered a child, there would be at least one clue of Francis being born in New England.
6. I have never found an American document or record created prior to 1667 that mentions a Francis Lyford, nor have I ever located anyone who has found one … and a bunch of serious Lyford researchers have been looking for decades. Various Ancestry.com unsourced genealogy hints claim that Francis was born in various New England locations, Boston, the United Kingdom and, if you look hard enough, maybe even on Mars (Ok, so I exaggerate about Mars). Ancestry is full of incorrect and conflicting data, so it pays to be careful about accepting what is found there.
7. There are numerous records concerning Francis, his marriages, purchases of land, use of his sloop, etc. William Welch’s book is the most frequently quoted source of Lyford information. Welch wrote that all but one American Lyford he’d researched was somehow related, but he never speculated that Francis was a direct relation of Rev. John or that Francis was born in America. Welch writes: “I have been unable to trace any connection between this John Lyford and Francis Lyford who first appears in Boston in 1667.” This book is available for free on line.
8. The Abridged Compendium by Frederick Virkus, usually a good source of early genealogy, says Francis was from England, while incorrectly listing his birth date as 1647. The Compendium of American Genealogy, also by Virkus, on page 866 says Francis was born in London in 1645, giving a second, though still incorrect, birthdate.
9. Savage, in The Genealogical Dictionary of New England Settlers, page 134, Volume 3, writes that Francis Lyford is “perpet. John, Plymouth 1624, came that year, prob. in the Charity with Edward Winslow…” Savage was guessing that Francis was a son of John, the Reverend who came to Plymouth in 1624, long before Francis was born. As noted, we now know John could not have been the father of Francis, because John died long before Francis was born. When Virkus and Savage were gathering information in the 19th century, they did not have the advantages we enjoy in the digital age. We are now able to access millions of original source documents it would have taken them a lifetime to discover.
Lyford Hale,
Washougal, Washington
I have been researching Francis Lyford for more than 25 years, as have other serious researchers. None of us have been able to confirm where Francis Lyford was born and to which parents. If you have original source documents that prove that he came from Pangbourne, I would dearly love to add them to my records.
Lyford Hale
March 30, 2018
Their children born in Boston, Mass:
Thomas Lyford born March 25, 1672.
Elizabeth Lyford born July 19, 1673.
Francis Lyford born May 31, 1677.
Francis Lyford and Rebecca Dudley were married on November 21, 1681 in Exeter, NH.
Their children born in Exeter:
Ann Lyford born about 1686.
Deborah Lyford born about 1687.
Rebecca Lyford born about 1689.
Sarah Lyford born about 1692.
Mary Lyford born about 1694.
Stephen Lyford born about 1696.
Thomas Lyford born about 1697.
FRANCIS LYFORD, BORN 1641-42, MOST LIKELY IN ENGLAND, DIED 04 SEPT 1724, IN EXETER, N.H.
1. According to Essex County Massachusetts Quarterly Court Records for the period 1636-86, Vol 8, page 59, Francis was 38 years old in 1680. That makes his date of birth 1641 or 42.
2. There are a number of good Lyford genealogy researchers in the U.S. and England. They’ve found two likely suspects as the parents of Francis. One such couple is John and Mary Lyford (or Liford), from Steventon, Berkshire, England. Their son Francis was christened 30 January 1641. The second Francis Lyford (or Lyfford), of Pangbourne, Berkshire, was the son of William and was christened 23 July, 1642. In 1997, Valerie Hannington, formerly a paid genealogy researcher in London and a Lyford relative, spoke with me on the phone. She said the following : “In the Public Record Office here in England there's a passenger list that shows a Francis Lyford leaving for America in 1667. This Francis may be the son of John and Mary Lyford, from Steventon, in Berkshire. I trace my line to 1290, through the Steventon Lyfords. Thomas Lyford begat Robert, born in 1536, in Stanford Dingley and married to Elizabeth in 1560, in Steventon. Their son, William, was born in 1561. William married Elizabeth Smallbone. Their son, John, was born in 1603. He married Mary Wells and they had Francis in 1641.”
3. As Valerie Hannington noted, one of the two Francis Lyfords left England for America in 1667. This coincides with when Francis is found in Boston. The Boston record is the first to mention a Francis Lyford in America, so far as is known as of 2016.
4. The Rev. John Lyford, often cited as the father of Francis, died several years before Francis was born. His widow remarried in 1639. This was not known until a researcher who specializes in the Lyford line – and has done so for more than 25 years - found the Essex County record that proves when Francis was born. Prior to this, in the middle 1990’s, it was common to see people listing Francis as the son of the Rev. John. I was one of them.
5. It is highly unlikely that Mordecai Lyford fathered Francis. Mordecai, the only living son of the Rev. John when Francis was born, is sometimes thought to his father. Mordecai was only 16 at the time, living at home under the guardianship of his step-father and mother; this is according to court records in Ireland and the U.S. Edmund Hubbard, the step-father, was still handling court papers regarding an inheritance of land for Mordecai in 1642. If Mordecai had fathered a child, there would be at least one clue of Francis being born in New England.
6. I have never found an American document or record created prior to 1667 that mentions a Francis Lyford, nor have I ever located anyone who has found one … and a bunch of serious Lyford researchers have been looking for decades. Various Ancestry.com unsourced genealogy hints claim that Francis was born in various New England locations, Boston, the United Kingdom and, if you look hard enough, maybe even on Mars (Ok, so I exaggerate about Mars). Ancestry is full of incorrect and conflicting data, so it pays to be careful about accepting what is found there.
7. There are numerous records concerning Francis, his marriages, purchases of land, use of his sloop, etc. William Welch’s book is the most frequently quoted source of Lyford information. Welch wrote that all but one American Lyford he’d researched was somehow related, but he never speculated that Francis was a direct relation of Rev. John or that Francis was born in America. Welch writes: “I have been unable to trace any connection between this John Lyford and Francis Lyford who first appears in Boston in 1667.” This book is available for free on line.
8. The Abridged Compendium by Frederick Virkus, usually a good source of early genealogy, says Francis was from England, while incorrectly listing his birth date as 1647. The Compendium of American Genealogy, also by Virkus, on page 866 says Francis was born in London in 1645, giving a second, though still incorrect, birthdate.
9. Savage, in The Genealogical Dictionary of New England Settlers, page 134, Volume 3, writes that Francis Lyford is “perpet. John, Plymouth 1624, came that year, prob. in the Charity with Edward Winslow…” Savage was guessing that Francis was a son of John, the Reverend who came to Plymouth in 1624, long before Francis was born. As noted, we now know John could not have been the father of Francis, because John died long before Francis was born. When Virkus and Savage were gathering information in the 19th century, they did not have the advantages we enjoy in the digital age. We are now able to access millions of original source documents it would have taken them a lifetime to discover.
Lyford Hale,
Washougal, Washington
I have been researching Francis Lyford for more than 25 years, as have other serious researchers. None of us have been able to confirm where Francis Lyford was born and to which parents. If you have original source documents that prove that he came from Pangbourne, I would dearly love to add them to my records.
Lyford Hale
March 30, 2018
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