You’re Related to Who? - The Curious Lives of the Ingersolls of Salem

When I started giving names to the Beckett Coven characters I thought it would be interesting to interlace my own Salem ancestors’ surnames into the story. I had a wide variety to choose from: Purchase, Cook, Williams, Archer, Collins, Buxton, and Ingersoll.

Most importantly I wanted my main character to be a descendant of both a Salem Witch Trials accuser and one of their victims.

Nathaniel Ingersoll had a peculiar position in the trials as a lieutenant in the Salem militia, first deacon of the Salem Village Church, and owner of the Ingersoll Ordinary where some of the original questioning took place. He was both a witness and an accuser during the proceedings.

The trial transcripts confirm that from March through April all the warrants for arrest commanded the constables to bring the prisoners to Deacon Lt. Ingersoll’s tavern. Every day after the accused were questioned, Nathaniel testified about what he witnessed, which was then officially submitted to the court in writing. It didn’t take him long to start making accusations of his own, especially against those who questioned the proceedings. By the time the trials concluded in 1693 Nathaniel Ingersoll accused twenty people, eight of whom were hanged between July and August in 1692.

Bridget Bishop stood out in a crowd of more than two hundred Witch Trials victims and 1692 wasn’t the first time she had been accused of witchcraft. Ten years previously she was suspected of murdering her very abusive second husband, Thomas Oliver, by means of witchery. Thomas's adult children were unhappy she inherited his house and an apple orchard in town. (Apples were a hot commodity in the 17^th century since drinking water was purified by making cider.) She was "quarrelsome" and opinionated. That strong personality didn’t endear her to neighbors, either.

Nathanial Ingersoll testified at Bridget's trial and signed all five of her indictments, ensuring she was the first person in the Witch Trials to be convicted and the only one of the accused to be hanged alone.

The Elizabeth Ingersoll in my Beckett Coven book series is named after Elizabeth Ingersoll Burrows Hinche, who I am a direct descendant of through my great-grandmother, Vinnie. Deacon Lt. Nathaniel Ingersoll was Elizabeth's great granduncle. I’m actually related to Nathaniel twice, also through my great-grandmother, Bessie. Through her line I am the 10^th great-granddaughter of Margery Collins Williams, who’s buried at St. Peter’s Church in Salem with her husband, Isaac. Her sister was Hannah Collins Ingersoll, Nathaniel’s wife. During the trials Margery was one of nine women called upon by the court to look for a witch’s mark on the accused women, Bridget Bishop, Sarah Good, Rebecca Nurse, Elizabeth Proctor, and Susannah Martin. It was a horrifically invasive examination that ended up sealing the fate of Bridget Bishop. She was hanged eight days later.

Connections between early Salemites intertwine like a vine and get extremely confusing very quickly, especially as they were prone to name children after parents and grandparents. It doesn’t take much to see how interwoven all of these families became in just a few decades, which helped fuel land disputes, alliances, and scapegoats, creating the perfect fuel for the Salem Witch Trials to explode in the 1690s.

So, let’s go back to Elizabeth Ingersoll Burrows Hinche, because her ancestral tree is fascinating. It became key to developing some of my characters’ family histories and plot details.

Richard Ingersoll arrived in Salem in 1629 with his wife Agnes (Ann) and several children who were born in England. He quickly made a name for himself by building wood roads and established a ferry across the North River in the early 1630s. In 1636 he was granted 2 acres in Salem, Lot 61. These 2 acre lots were right on the edge of the South River whereas other lots on the North River only consisted of 1 acre. Just a couple of years later he was granted another 30 acres in the “Great Meadow”. Upon his death in 1644, Richard gifted one parcel to his youngest son, Nathaniel Ingersoll, where he built a house in Salem Village. In 1688 Nathaniel was given permission to convert the house into an ordinary (tavern) as a means for feeding the men building the new Salem Village Puritan Meeting House.

Richard’s eldest son, George, was doing quite well on his own. By the time of Richard’s death, George was in Gloucester, running an ordinary, a type of tavern where patrons could get food, drink, and lodging. Later he moved to Falmouth, Maine and joined the militia, taking part in the battles against the Native American tribes.

Some of the worst skirmishes took place right before the Witch Trials. The Maine tribes had heard about the massacres of Native peoples down south and weren’t about to let the encroaching colonists do the same to them. They dealt their own equally brutal blows upon the white settlers, killing many of the adults and leaving children homeless. Several orphaned girls from the dead Maine colonists ended up back in Salem with extended family members. In 1692 some of these girls became “afflicted” with strange behaviors and mysterious illnesses (most likely PTSD induced), resulting in accusations against their neighbors of witchcraft.

With George off doing his own thing, Richard’s estate in Salem passed on to his second eldest son, John Sr. (1620-1683). John Sr. married Judith Felton and settled onto Ingersoll property in town. That 17^th century plot now encompasses Daniels Street to the East, Essex Street to the North, and the eastern edge of the grassy park of the Salem Maritime National Historic Site, according to a 1700 map of Salem housed in the library at the University of Virginia. John Sr. built a house on the property and raised his family there. His son John Jr. was born in 1644, the year that their patriarch, Richard Ingersoll, passed away.

John Jr. married Mary Coombs sometime around 1670 before their eldest daughter was born on 10 September 1671. They had three surviving children: Mary Jr. (later Cox), Ruth (later Fowles), and one son, Samuel, who was born around 1676. John Jr. died in 1694 when Samuel was about eighteen years old. The lot Samuel inherited from his father, or what remained of it after portions had been sold over the years, was called the Estate of Samuel Ingersoll on the map produced in 1700. Per land documents in 1715, the road that is now Daniels St. was referred to as Ingersolls Lane. Years later death records would list Samuel’s profession as a cooper, or barrel maker, which would have been very profitable at the time. During my recent trip to Salem, I discovered Samuel’s neighbors, Thomas and Richard Downing, owned a warehouse and barrel shop built in 1701. The building still stands on Kosciusko Street. Was that how Samuel Ingersoll learned his barrel making craft?

In 1700, when Samuel was about 24 years old, he married Elizabeth Wakefield of Boston who was born on 2 March 1675. They had one daughter, Elizabeth Jr., who was born on 22 Jan 1702. She was the only Ingersoll baby named “Elizabeth” born in Salem for several decades before and after the year 1700, according to birth records. Unfortunately, whatever joy Samuel may have felt upon the arrival of his new daughter was certainly overshadowed by the death of his wife in childbirth.

Just a few months later in 1702 Samuel remarried to Sarah Haskett. (Sarah may have been the widow of Samuel’s namesake uncle who passed away in 1696.) The new couple had at least two children in the first few years of their marriage, but both died young. Perhaps this spurred superstition in the household, because in 1707 Samuel Wakefield adopted his granddaughter Elizabeth from Samuel Ingersoll with her father’s blessing. Did Sarah Haskett Ingersoll believe her husband’s former wife had cursed them, or did the double loss of Samuel Wakefield’s wife and daughter in just a few short years make him want to raise his tiny granddaughter?

At some point around this time, Deacon Lt. Nathaniel Ingersoll, who was childless with Hannah Collins Ingersoll, started gifting parts of his property to the Puritan church and the Salem militia. But, according to Richard’s 1644 will, the land was to be divided up between son John Sr. and his sister Bathsheba’s descendants. This spurred a whole bunch of litigation between the family. Nathaniel and Hannah died when a boat capsized off the coast of Lynn, MA in 1719. He never repented or apologized for his actions during the Witch Trials, even though one of the young accusers, Ann Putnam Jr, asked for forgiveness in 1706 and monetary compensation had been made to twenty-two of those convicted by 1711.

After removing first daughter Elizabeth from his household, Samuel Ingersoll and new wife Sarah Haskett Ingersoll went on to have at least two children, Captain Nathaniel Ingersoll and John Ingersoll. Put a pin in that. We’ll get back to them in a bit.

Elizabeth Ingersoll’s name doesn’t appear again until 1728, and this is when the drama in her life ramps up. Salem records show she gave birth to a son, William Jr., by a William Burroughs (or Burrows - the spelling of the Burroughs/Burrows surname switched back and forth repeatedly over the years depending on who was recording the document, which wasn’t uncommon at the time) on 13 Jan 1728. Three months later, on 15 April, there is a record of marriage in Newbury, just north of Salem, for Eliza Ingersoll and William Burroughs. If her child was born out of wedlock, perhaps they had to find another town where they could get married?

A month later in May, Elizabeth’s grandfather, Samuel Wakefield of Salem, dies, according to a Boston newspaper. His profession is listed as a starcher. In Oct 1728, his estate is probated, according to Salem property records.

Elizabeth’s next son, John, is born on 27 Aug 1730, according to Salem birth records. Everything seems to be going well for the new family until the end of 1731 when Elizabeth’s husband dies at sea on the Liberia/West Indies route. (This was part of the infamous slave trade triangle. Rum from Massachusetts was loaded onto ships headed for the west African coast. Once there the rum was traded for kidnapped Africans who were then brought to the West Indies. If they survived the voyage, they were sold into slavery. Then the ships would return home to Massachusetts with sugar cane for the making of molasses, which was used to make rum, and the process would start all over again. Perhaps William’s death was justified punishment for participating in such a monstrously evil economic chain.)

In 1734, Elizabeth remarries to John William Hinche (also spelled Hinchey). They have a daughter, Elizabeth, but John disappears at sea shortly afterward in 1735. A son, Samuel Hinche, is born in 1736. There’s no other record of her marrying ever again. Elizabeth’s father, Samuel Ingersoll, dies in 1739. At some point after probate Samuel’s lot and a house passes on to Elizabeth Hinche, William Burroughs, and John Burroughs.

On 6 Nov 1751 the family sells the largest portion of the remaining Ingersoll property to Jonathan Very for 34 pounds, 13 shillings, and 4 pence. The deed lists Elizabeth Hinche and William Burroughs living in Boston with his profession noted as a frame maker. John Burroughs is listed as living in Killingsly, CT, and he is working as a joiner. Elizabeth's aunts, Mary Cox and Ruth Fowles, are also noted as still living on remnants of the original two acres left to the family by their great-grandfather, Richard Ingersoll.

Elizabeth Hinche’s date of death is not entirely clear. Her will is dated August 5, 1769. At the time she is living in Concord, MA most likely with her daughter, Elizabeth Hinche Wright. The will states her profession as a muff and tippolt maker. She bequeaths two trunks and a small Bible to her daughter and trinkets to her grandchildren. Her son John Burrows gets her copper pitcher and a feather muff goes to his wife. John's daughter, Elizabeth, is given her grandmother's white Holland gown and a necklace. To William Burrows, Elizabeth gives him a book called English Physician. His daughter Mary gets a riding hood and five shillings. Son Samuel Hinche receives her warming pan and one sheep for his son. Her daughters-in-law get her handkerchiefs. All her other grandchildren are given books with their names inscribed in them. Elizabeth does not die alone. The last paragraph of her will states that Joseph Holmer of Concord, "of whom I likewife", shall be her executor.

Elizabeth Ingersoll Burrows Hinche's signature on her will from August 5, 1769.

William Burroughs took the money from the Ingersoll property sale and moved to Delaware. According to a Burroughs/Burrows family Bible, he married Sarah Darling and they welcomed a son, James Burrows (my 6th great-grandfather), in 1752. (The Beckett Coven character, Sheriff Moira Burrows, is named after William Burroughs and his son James Burrows.)

So now let’s get back to Samuel’s other children, Nathaniel and John.

John Ingersoll was the youngest of Samuel Ingersoll and Sarah Haskett Ingersoll’s children. He married Elizabeth Bray Ingersoll, and their most notable child was Captain Samuel Ingersoll (1744-1804). Captain Samuel married Susannah Hathorne (1749-1811), a descendant of Judge John Hathorne who presided over the Salem Witch Trials. They had five children but only one survived past early adulthood, Susannah Ingersoll (1785-1858).

Three years before Susannah was born, Captain Samuel purchased an estate from formerly wealthy John Turner. The large house on the property boasted seven gables before Captain Samuel took it down to three. It would later be called the Turner-Ingersoll Mansion. Susannah Ingersoll’s second cousin, Nathaniel Hawthorne, was intrigued by her family’s stories and used the house as inspiration for his book, The House of the Seven Gables. The house still stands in Salem today with less than seven gables and I highly recommend taking a tour of it.

Part of me can’t help but wonder if the story of Susannah’s great-aunt, Elizabeth Ingersoll Burrows Hinche, might have played some inspiration for Hawthorne’s most notable character, Hester Pryne. Elizabeth’s predicament of having an out of wedlock son in a deeply religious community, subsequently enduring the biblical punishment of two husbands lost at sea, and living "likewife" with her last partner are the perfect tragic and disreputable details for any good Victorian book.

John Ingersoll’s brother, Captain Nathaniel Ingersoll, was born in 1710. He married Bethiah Gardner. They had several children but the most notable for the Beckett Coven series are Elizabeth Ingersoll Beckett (1746-1790) and Captain Jonathan Ingersoll (1751-1840). This generation of Ingersolls lived through the tempestuous birth of a new nation. Captain Jonathan was a second lieutenant at one of Salem’s forts during the Revolutionary War and later commanded the Grand Turk sailing ship. His parents, Captain Nathaniel and Bethiah are both buried at St. Peter’s Church in Salem along with their daughter-in-law, Mary Hodges Ingersoll but Jonathan is not buried with them. Of course, there’s a tragic story behind it.

Mary Hodges married Captain Jonathan Ingersoll in 1775. By all accounts they were deeply in love and had half a dozen children over the course of their marriage. In 1790, Jonathan started building a house at the corner of what is now Derby and Hodges Streets, but the family never moved into it. Mary died suddenly in January 1791.

During the spring of that year, Jonathan left for the West Indies on his usual route. Upon returning home by early summer, he desperately wanted to see his wife. In the middle of the night, Captain Jonathan brought several of his men to St. Peter’s cemetery and dug up Mary’s grave. When they opened the coffin, Jonathan was even more distraught after seeing the horribly decayed condition of his wife’s body. Morbidly the men quickly had to abandon Mary there, open coffin and all, because neighbors woke and thought the grave was being robbed.

No charges were handed down to Captain Jonathan Ingersoll for the cemetery incident. Apparently his out of character behavior was excused by grief. Once his children were grown, he moved to Vermont and is buried there far from the ghosts of Salem.

Another interesting descendant of Captain Nathaniel Ingersoll is his daughter, Elizabeth Ingersoll Beckett, who he apparently named after his beloved half-sister, Elizabeth Ingersoll Burrows Hinche. Elizabeth Ingersoll Beckett married Captain John Beckett. He was the descendent of a storied Salem family of ship builders and just happened to be the great-great grandson of Bridget Playfer Wesselby Oliver Bishop. Yes, that Bridget Bishop! Captain John’s grandfather married Susannah Mason who was the daughter of Chrestian Oliver, the only daughter of Bridget Bishop and her tempestuous and abusive union with Thomas Oliver.

The grave of Elizabeth Ingersoll Beckett sits quiet and unassuming along the metal fence of the Charter Street Cemetery just on the other side of the Nathaniel Hawthorne nick-named Grimshaw House. Her headstone is broken but covered with life from a bright green vine laced over it. Within only four generations after the Salem Witch Trials, one of the Ingersolls had married a descendent of Bridget Bishop. Uniting the two families decades later mirrors the ancestral collision of my main character, Kylie Beckett, with all their complications and entanglements.

Whew! Thank you for getting this far through my family tree. This is the genealogical web that helped fuel the historical background of the Beckett Coven series. My European-American ancestors with all of their faults, sins, and triumphs have been with me on this journey the whole time. Sometimes their history clashed brutally against the history of my Native American ancestors and that’s a past I try to illuminate in the book series, as well. The details of their lives are woven into the Beckett Coven backdrop with an unflinching look at their past, whether it be good or ugly.

Should some secrets just stay buried? I’ll let you be the judge.