Christened: 09 DEC 1610 Northbourne, Kent, England (1)
William Harris was apprenticed through the Drapers’ Company in London and lived as a needle maker in Eastcheap, London. (9)
William was born in Northbourne but was apprenticed in London to Thomas Wilson for 7 years beginning 22 October 1628. William was 18 at the time he began this apprenticeship (12 years after the death of his father). William’s 7 years contract ended in October of 1635, but he did not take up the Freedom of the Company on completing his apprenticeship and no other information relating to him appears in the Company’s archive. (Freedom of the Company means freedom to practice his qualified trade within the rules of the Draper's company. These type of companies controlled the practice of many trades. No-one could operate outside their jurisdiction in the areas they controlled.)
Wilson was a needle maker in Eastcheap, London living with Thomas Wilson. (10) It would certainly seem probable that William met Susannah because of the Drapers’ Company and his work for Thomas Wilson. William married Susannah Hyde (of London - bap. Mar. 20, 1609/0, St Mary Aldermanbury, London). Their marriage record is not yet found but most likely took place in 1635 (2) Soon after William and Susannah migrated to New England and settled in Providence, Rhode Island by spring of 1636. (3) No specific information is found on their migration as many as half the ships passenger lists arriving 1630s are lost.
Susannah Hyde's father John Hyde became a Freeman on 30 July 1595, as a taylor in Aldermanbury having been bound as apprentice to Henry Richardson.
John HYDE - bur. Oct. 21 1617, St Mary Aldermanbury, London. Son of Thoms Hyde. As a citizen and draper of London, John's will was dated Nov.. 26, 1616 and proved Nov. 6, 1617. Married first Feb. 9, 1576/7, St Mary Le Bowe, London to Fortune TYER, and married second May 9, St Mary Bothaw, London to Mary BONFOY (bap. Apr. 18, 1585, St Ann Blackfriars, England, daughter of Sebastion BONFOY and Alice AUDLEY. Mary married second William HUBBERD at St Margaret, Westminster by Jul. 7, 1619 London license.
Map Location of St Mary Aldermanbury Parish Church (destroyed in WWII)
Migrated to New England by 1635.
Reference as inhabitant of Salem may not be this same Harris. (4)
William Harris was among six who accompanied Roger Williams into Providence, an area secured by verbal transfer from the Narragansett Indians in the year 1636. (5)
He later founded Cranston, R.I. There were problems about these settlements and William had to make several trips to London. In 1680 Harris was kidnapped and held for ransom by Algerian pirates.
There is an abundance of records available for William and his dealings in New England and several trips he made to London. William's will was dated Dec. 4, 1678 and proved Feb. 15, 1681/2 in Providence, Rhode Island. William died in London after being released from capture and held for ransom by Algerian pirates. After the ransom was paid he traveled to London and died at this address: John Stoke’s place at ‘the sign of the peele’ (Baker) in Wentworth Street near Spittle fields in London.
Death: Before 3 DEC 1681 London, London, England (7)
Will Proved by Providence Council: 20 FEB 1682 (8)
At age 28 Parnell (William’s older sister), together with her step brother James Sayer (23) boarded the ship Hercules in the Port of Sandwich a few miles away from Northbourne in the early spring of 1635 for New England. Parnell is listed on the record as from Bow, London clearly showing she had resided there for a period of time prior to returning to Sandwich to board the ship. During the same period she resided in London her younger brother William married Susannah Hyde. Also, research shows a direct connection with Reverend John Lathrop and many who boarded the ship Hercules.
Parnell's origin is mistakenly claimed as St. Mary Le Bow, London in Robert Charles Anderson's second series of The Great Migration studies (immigrants in 1634-1635. This is due to the claim on the ship Hercules Passenger List that Parnell is from Bow, London. This however was the location of her last residence and not her origins in Northbourne. St. Mary Le Bow is located very near The Draper's Hall and Eastcheap where William worked.
Map location of St Mary Le Bow Parish Church
When William was held for ransom, he wrote to his wife, telling her, concerning some papers “I prey they may be sent to ‘the signe of the peele’ in wentworth street neere spittle fields in London to John Stokes, living there, to remain there for me.” The Sign of the Peele refers to the wooden tool used by baker’s to remove goods from the oven. John Stokes, who was also a baker, wrote a letter to Howlong Harris, daughter of William, telling her of her father's capture.
After his release Harris returned to John Stokes' house, he died there a few days later. Harris was in North America before John Stokes was born but there was some link between William Harris and John Stokes, a Quaker living in London, perhaps with John's father Henry, a baker (6)
Map of Wentworth Street near Spittle fields in London
Also see information on Stokes Family History including John Stokes, baker: http://home.comcast.net/~jameslstokes/henry.htm
Wentworth street was the home and bakery business for the Stokes family.
1. The Northbourne registers at Canterbury Cathedral, Kent, England. Parish registers (ref U3/74) start 1586 (have poor legibility) Bishops’ Transcripts (ref Dcb/ BT1/173) start 1603 (has some gaps) Archdeacons’ Transcripts (ref Dca/BT/136) start 1563 (have gaps as follows: 1565/6, 1567/8, 1579/80, 1581/2, 1594/5, 1606/7, 1629/30, 1640/41 to 1660/61 inclusive)
2. Hydes of England: Ancestors of Thomas Olcott of Connecticut, Samuel Hardy of Massachusetts, and Susan Hyde, Wife of William Harris of Rhode Island," by Frederick J. Nicholson, in The Genealogist, Vol. 20 (2006), No. 2, pages 131-83. Also see the following link: http://kinnexions.com/smlawson/olcott.htm
3. No ships record is found for William or his brother Thomas. Many early published accounts made false assumptions, i.e. Staples, Annals of Providence, p. 587 incorrectly assumes "Thomas Alias William Harris" listed on the Ship Lyon from Bristol, Eng. 1 Feb 1631 is this William Harris. Actually this Thomas Harris settled near Boston and ran the first ferry.
4. Savage, Geneal. Dict., ii: 365
5. Providence in Colonial Times, pg. 22
6. http://home.comcast.net/~jameslstokes/henry.htm
7. Collection of the Rhode Island Historical Society Vol. X, No. 114 Copy of letter by Warton informing Mrs. Harris of her husband's death three days after his arrival in Lodon.
8. Prov. Rec., vi: 34, 48-58
9: Drapers’ Company of London Archives,Boyd’s Roll A Register of Apprentices and Freemen, Drapers’ Hall, Throgmorton Avenue, London EC2N 2DQ tel 020 7448 1308, The apprenticeship bindings book shows that William, the son of Andrew of Northborne, Kent, wheelwright deceased, was apprenticed to Thomas Wilson for 7 years on 22 October 1628. He did not take up the Freedom of the Company on completing his apprenticeship and no other information relating to him appears in the Company’s archive.
http://www.thedrapers.co.uk/index.html
Also see:
http://www.aim25.ac.uk/cgi-bin/vcdf/detail?coll_id=7255&inst_id=97&nv1=search&nv2=
10: Ibid. Thomas Wilson's father and grandfather before him had been Freemen. He became a Freeman on 7 March 1609/10.
Map Location for Drapers’ Hall