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- John Huntley was born Abt. 1624 possibly in Aberdeen, Scotland, and diedNovember 16, 1676 in Lyme Colony, Connecticut. His parentage is unknown.
John was in Boston by July 12, 1647, when he signed as witness for aPower-of-Attorney for Thomas Bayes. On May 1, 1648, he and John Peasewere associated in connection with a cargo of fish, shipped to Barbadosin the Welcome. John apparently had a brother or other close relative,perhaps William Huntley of St. Phillips Parish, Barbados, who owned acotton plantation there and owned two slaves. Barbados was an EnglishIsland from 1605 until the middle 1900s. John has not been connected withany Huntley family in England.
John Huntley was married at this time. The evidence is a deposition madeby John Pease at Boston on July 1, 1679, when Pease was 69 years old. "29or 30 years ago, Mr. Hanniford, Mariner, lived in Boston. . .and JohnHuntley... paid the said Hanniford rent for the same and said Huntley'swife died there of small-pox."
The only clue to that first wife's name seems to be a petition signed in1649 by "diverse women of Boston." One of the women who signed was a Sarah Huntley. John married second Jane, surname unknown, (sic: Curtis)about 1651. She died before June 30, 1669 when John Huntley married (3)Mary (Hand) Barnes, divorced wife of Charles Barnes, who had abandonedhis wife and returned to England, on June 3, 1669 in New London,Connecticut. Mary was the Daughter of John and Alice (Gransden) Hand ofLong Island. She died July 5, 1687. Commissioner Thomas Minor ofStonington noted in his diary "The fouerth moneth is June and hath 30day. Tuesday the first the day the Court (at New London) began, thatcourt married Huntley and Marie Barons."
John Huntley was one of the original settlers at Lyme. He was chosen oneof the surveyors at town meetings in 1671, 1672 and 1673. He was Townsmanat a town-meeting on February 9, 1674. He took part in the NewLondon-Lyme riot of March 12, 1671/2 when the two towns, forgetting their"Loving Parting" of February 13, 1665, fought over their boundaries withsticks.
It had cost John Huntley 100 Pounds to become a settler at Lyme. Duringhis lifetime, he received about 140 acres worth 127 Pounds, according tothe inventory of his estate made by William Mesuer and Joseph Peck.Additional land, about 130 acres, was granted his estate by the Town.
John Huntley made his will in Lyme on November 16, 1676 and may have diedthe same day. Aaron Huntley and John's "dear and beloved wife" wereexecutors. The widow received the dwelling and one third of the estateduring her life. At her death, Aaron received "all the lands and meadowof mine in the Town of Lyme (he) paying unto each of my children on hispossessing of the lands, Tenn pounds apeece. ." Each child, except Aaron,also received ten pounds from the estate and Aaron received five "towardthe building of his house." It seems that Aaron was to look after thewidow, his stepmother, and receive the bulk of the estate in return.
Moses Huntley, the oldest son, felt aggrieved, it seems, by his father'swill and gave Aaron considerable trouble. "This Court having heard thecomplaint of Aaron Huntley against his Brother, Moses Huntley and findshim guilty of challenging & Threatening his said Brother & threateninghis wife and also his sister, abusing them all with very abusive language& a great disturbance of the peace & render himself a very dangerous man& showed much profanes not having any fear of God, the Court doe seethemselves bound to beare witness against such enormities & that he dothdeserve a high & severe censure. . ." (New London County Court Records3196, September 18, 1677). Moses was fined fifty shillings and posted abond of ten pounds "for his keeping the peace and good behavior." It maynot have been entirely one-sided. Aaron also was fined and paid damagesat that court, And the trouble between the two was not over.
"I, Moses Huntley, doe declare that I am hartyly sory that I shoulddishonor God and wrong my Brother Aaron Huntley and my Kinsman AaronHuntley in reporting that his son Aaron stole an axe from Francis Smithand brought it to the said Huntley and that the said Smith had it of himagain with some trouble all of which I due acknowledge to be utterlyfalse and untrue and that I never knew any such thing by my said kinsmanand brother and therefore due hertyley bege their forgiveness as witnessmy hand this 18th February 1700." (Lyme 2:48)
(SOURCE: Effie Belle Randall of Bath, Ohio: Her Ancestors andDescendants"; by Theodore N. Woods; p. 35-6; published by T.N. Woods;Phoenix, Arizona; 1991)
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1625 - 1676 (51 years)