William Bullard

• Preferred Name: William Bullard^{[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12]}
  
• Gender: M
  
• FSID: LKST-ZX7
  
• Birth: ABT 1594 in Barnham, Suffolk, England at LATI: N2.3776 LONG: E0.7428 with note: No evidence for a 1601 birth, his parent's profiles, this connected source, and his own "life sketch" all provide a pretty convincing argument for birth documentation. Can argue that 1594 is not exact.
  
• Immigrated: 1635
  
• Burial: 24 DEC 1687 in Dedham, Massachusetts Bay Colony at LATI: N2.2458 LONG: E71.1833
  
• Death: 23 DEC 1686 in Dedham, Suffolk, Massachusetts Bay Colony, British Colonial America at LATI: N2.2458 LONG: E71.1833 with note: DEATH: Robert Brand Hanson, ed., Vital Records of Dedham, Mass., 3 vols. (Bowie, Md., 1989), 2:25 (FHL #974.47/D2 V2hr). Also see the will of William Bullard of Charlestown (removed to Dedham before death), 5 July 1679, proved 17 Mar 1686/7, codicil 22 May 1684, Suffolk Co. Probate, #1527, (o.s.) 11:58-59 (FHL #584130), inv 26 Feb 1686/7 (Ibid., 9:336 [FHL #584129]). The inv includes death date of "24" Dec 1686, rather than 23 Dec, as found in vital recs.
  
• Christening: 1601 in Barnham, Suffolk, England at LATI: N2.3776 LONG: E0.7428
  
• Notes:

  === Life Sketch ===
  Regarding William Bullard (1594–1686). He married first an unknown wife and second to widow Mary Grissell. With his first unknown wife he had only four children: Elizabeth, Mary, Isaac and Nathaniel (no son named Benjamin). Mary probably the eldest was baptized 21 FEB 1629 in Bradwell, Suffolk, England and married at Deadham 23 Apr 1649 to John Farrington. Isaac predeceased his father. In his will dated 5 Jul 1679 proved 17 March 1686/7 which you can read for yourself in Suffolk County Probate File 1527; 11:58-59 [FHL microfilm 584,130], he names his two daughters Elizabeth and "Mary Farrington" and leaves to his son Nathaniel and to children of his late son Isaac.
  
  There is no evidence he had any other children and was certainly not father to Benjamin. If you have an AmericanAncestors.org account and would like to verify the will you can find it here:
  
  https://www.americanancestors.org/databases/suffolk-county-ma-probate-file-papers/image?pageName=1527:5&volumeId=48697
  
  It should be available on FamilySearch.org as well. Also good articles published about him can be found in TAG 72:135-36; NEHGR 154:172-88; Kempton Ancestry 1:198-206. I can send you links to those if you would like.
  
  Mary also married (2) William Bullard. He was born about 1594. He came to New England about 1636, the son of William Bullard and Grace Bignett of Suffolk, England. In 1638 William was witness to proving a will. He settled first at Watertown, later at Dedham, and moved to Cambridge about 1638. His will dated 5 Jul 1679, gives his age as about 85 years. William died 23 Dec 1686. William and Mary were members of the church in Cambridge in 1658. ("The Griswold Family: 12 Generations in England")
  
  === While no record has been found to deter ===
  While no record has been found to determine the exact date of William's sailing, there is proof that William became a witness to the nuncupative will of James Harvie of Gamscoln, Essex, England, while on his voyage to New England. Mr. Harvie died shipboard, leaving property in trust for his brother at Wethersfield in England. Mr. Harvie desired that William Bullard "Take the whole business upon himself." Said will was undated, but provided that the avails of the property should be leaned for two years to poor Christians before it should be sent back to England. In 1638, the will was probated and sworn to by William Bullard (Suffolk Probate Vol. I-15), who no doubt fulfilled the terms of his trust before making oath to the will, thereby establishing a definite date of his arrival in New England. William settled first at Watertown, Massachusetts, uniting with the church from which he was later dismissed upon his removal to Dedham, Massachusetts. At Dedham, William was a proprietor, a Selectman, and signer of the Dedham Compact, June 18, 1636. In about 1653, William moved to Cambridge, Massachusetts, where he married his second wife and became a member of the Church of Cambridge there with her in 1658. His will, dated July 5, 1679, gives his age "about 85 years." It was codiciled May 22, 1684 and probated at Boston, Massachusetts on March 17. 1686/87. Bequeathments to his wife, Mary and daughters, Mary and Elizabeth; his house and land at Dedham went to son Nathaniel and grandson William (son of Isaac, deceased).
  
  === William eldest of four brothers, William ===
  William eldest of four brothers, William, John, Robert and George to come to America 1654-1655, William settled in Watertown 1641, removed to Dedham, record in Church 13 Dec 1639, removed to Cambridge abt 1653.
  
  === Alias: Bulleward May have sailed to Am ===
  Alias: Bulleward May have sailed to America aboard the Griffen (from Bristol, England) in 1633, or on the Arabella with John Winthrop. While no record has been found to determine the exact date of William's sailing, there is proof that William became a witness to the nuncupative will of James Harvie of Gamscoln, Essex, England, while on his voyage to New England. Mr. Harvie died shipboard, leaving property in trust for his brother at Wethersfield in England. Mr. Harvie desired that William Bullard "Take the whole business upon himself." Said will was undated, but provided that the avails of the property should be leaned for two years to poor Christians before it should be sent back to England. In 1638, the will was probated and sworn to by William Bullard (Suffolk Probate Vol. I-15), who no doubt fulfilled the terms of his trust before making oath to the will, thereby establishing a definite date of his arrival in New England. William settled first at Watertown, Massachusetts, uniting with the church from which he was later dismissed upon his removal to Dedham, Massachusetts. At Dedham, William was a proprietor, a Selectman, and signer of the Dedham Compact, June 18, 1636. In about 1653, William moved to Cambridge, Massachusetts, where he married his second wife and became a member of the Church of Cambridge there with her in 1658. Of William and John, the brothers who received grants of land in Dedham at its founding, Samuel F. Haven, in the "Dedham, Mass. "Historical Address" (1837)" said, "By counting the list of inhabitants in the order of the admission to Dedham at that period (1635) or a little beyong, we shall find it to incluce many of the names now most respected among us... William and John Bullard next appear... these men were Puritans... men of character and standing in their own countries." "Bullard, William. The former and latter generations of Bullard's in Dedham and some of the adjacent towns are no doubt descended and by family records capa ble of being traced from him. Town and county records fail to afford proof of such descent while they show the continuance of the patriarchal name and the respectability and prominent standing of the Bullard's." --Morse, "Genealogical Register of Sherborn and Holliston", p.44 His will, dated July 5, 1679, gives his age "about 85 years." It was codiciled May 22, 1684 and probated at Boston, Massachusetts on March 17. 1686/87. Bequeathments to his wife, Mary and daughters, Mary and Elizabeth; his house and land at Dedham went to son Nathaniel and grandson William (son of Isaac, deceased).
  
  === Arrived at Plymouth, MA, on the "Abigail ===
  Arrived at Plymouth, MA, on the "Abigail" in March/April 1634. 1. "The Bullards of NC," E. M. Bullard, 1957. 2. Ancestral File.
  
  === The Correct Wives of William Bullard per NEHGS Register (2000) ===
  NEHGS Register (2000), v. 154, pp. 172-188: "THE ENGLISH BULLARD FAMILY REVISITED AND THEIR BIGNETT CONNECTION," Clifford L. Stott, F.A.S.G. and Myrtle Stevens Hyde, F.A.S.G.:
  
  WILLIAM(1) BULLARD, b. ca. 1594 (aged 85 in 1679); (23) d. at Dedham, Mass., 23 Dec. 1686. (24) He m. (1) ---- ----, (25) and (2) at Cambridge, Mass., 4 Jan. 1653, (26) MARY (----) GRISSELL, who d. at Charlestown 17 May 1685, widow of Francis Grissell of Charlestown. (27) William apparently came to New England in 1638, and while aboard ship he witnessed the will of John Harvie of "Gamscoln," Essex." (28)
  
  === The surname Bullard is of Norman French ===
  The surname Bullard is of Norman French origin, tracing back to the 10th century when the Norman, De Boulardor De Bulwarde, was carried into England by the followers o f the Conquerer . The early records of the name in England and New England show many ramifications in spelling, and Bullwarde, Bullwer, and Bullard are found to indicate a single individual on the town or parish records.
  Among the earliest families of the name in England is General Bullwer o f Wood Dalling and Haydon Hall , Norfolk ,whose son, Sir Edward George Earl Lytton Bullwer, was a brilliant and gifted writer and diplomat, and the father of Bullwer Lytton, who assumed the ancestral name and estates of Lytton, becoming Baron Lytton, author of prose and poems, under the nom de plume of Owe n Meredith.
  Burke, in his Dictionary of Peerages and Baronage, gives the following description of th e Coat of Arms o f William Earl Bullwer, Esq., of Wood Dalling as quartered with the Arms of Lytton.
  Gules, on a chevron Argent, between three eagles, regardant, Or as many cinquefoils Sable Crest an heraldic Tigers head, erased Ermine, crined and armed.
  The identity of the first of the name of Bullard in America has been established beyond a reasonable doubt, through the research of the late J. Gardner Bartlett, an eminint genealogist , and an expert authority on the English ancestry of many early New England settlers.
  The names of these four sons of widow Grace Bullard disappear from the English records at the time they first appear in New England, which forms a most important link in the chain of connecting proof of their English home.
  That they came to America about 1635, when most of the planters of the towns of Dedham and Watertown, Massachusetts, arrived, has been definitely established by historia ns and genealogists, and while no record has been found to determine the date of their sailing, it has been shown that WILLIAM BULLARD, while on his voyage to N ew Eng land, became a witness to the nuncupative will of James Harvie of Gamscoln, Essex, England, who died on ship board, leaving property in trust for his brother at Wethersfield, in England, and desired William Bullard to take the whole business upon himself. This will was undated, but provided that the avails of the property should be loaned two years, to poor Christians, before it should be sent back to England.
  In1638 the will was probated and sworn to by William Bullard, Suffolk Probate Vol . I 15 who had no doubt fulfilled the terms of his trust before making oath to the will, thereby establishing a definite date of his arrival in New England.
  He settled first at Watertown, Massachusetts , uniting with the church from which he was later dismissed, upon his removal to Dedham, where he was a proprietor and signer of the compact June 18, 1636.
  About 1653 , he moved to Cambridge, Massachusetts , where he married as his second wife , Mary, widow of Francis Griswold , and with her became a member of the church there. His will dated July 5, 1679, gives his age abou t 85 years. He died December 23 , 1686.
  
  The surname Bullard is of Norman French origin, tracing back to the 10th century when the Norman, De Boulardor De Bulwarde, was carried into England by the followers o f the Conquerer . The early records of the name in England and New England show many ramifications in spelling, and Bullwarde, Bullwer, and Bullard are found to indicate a single individual on the town or parish records.
  Among the earliest families of the name in England is General Bullwer o f Wood Dalling and Haydon Hall , Norfolk ,whose son, Sir Edward George Earl Lytton Bullwer, was a brilliant and gifted writer and diplomat, and the father of Bullwer Lytton, who assumed the ancestral name and estates of Lytton, becoming Baron Lytton, author of prose and poems, under the nom de plume of Owe n Meredith.
  Burke, in his Dictionary of Peerages and Baronage, gives the following description of th e Coat of Arms o f William Earl Bullwer, Esq., of Wood Dalling as quartered with the Arms of Lytton.
  Gules, on a chevron Argent, between three eagles, regardant, Or as many cinquefoils Sable Crest an heraldic Tigers head, erased Ermine, crined and armed.
  The identity of the first of the name of Bullard in America has been established beyond a reasonable doubt, through the research of the late J. Gardner Bartlett, an eminint genealogist , and an expert authority on the English ancestry of many early New England settlers.
  The names of these four sons of widow Grace Bullard disappear from the English records at the time they first appear in New England, which forms a most important link in the chain of connecting proof of their English home.
  That they came to America about 1635, when most of the planters of the towns of Dedham and Watertown, Massachusetts, arrived, has been definitely established by historia ns and genealogists, and while no record has been found to determine the date of their sailing, it has been shown that WILLIAM BULLARD, while on his voyage to N ew Eng land, became a witness to the nuncupative will of James Harvie of Gamscoln, Essex, England, who died on ship board, leaving property in trust for his brother at Wethersfield, in England, and desired William Bullard to take the whole business upon himself. This will was undated, but provided that the avails of the property should be loaned two years, to poor Christians, before it should be sent back to England.
  In1638 the will was probated and sworn to by William Bullard, Suffolk Probate Vol . I 15 who had no doubt fulfilled the terms of his trust before making oath to the will, thereby establishing a definite date of his arrival in New England.
  He settled first at Watertown, Massachusetts , uniting with the church from which he was later dismissed, upon his removal to Dedham, where he was a proprietor and signer of the compact June 18, 1636.
  About 1653 , he moved to Cambridge, Massachusetts , where he married as his second wife , Mary, widow of Francis Griswold , and with her became a member of the church there. His will dated July 5, 1679, gives his age abou t 85 years. He died December 23 , 1686.
  
  === Miscellaneous Sources from a Past Patron ===
  - Bullard & Allied Fam. p.13;
  - Other Bullards (Edgar J. Bullard) p.13-14;
  - New England Marriages: Prior to 1700 (C. A. Torrey) p. 117;
  - The Greswold Family, 12 Generations in England.
  
  === Came to New England about 1635, was a p ===
  Came to New England about 1635, was a proprietor of Dedham , MA in 1635. Removed to Charlestown, MA in 1653.

• m. ABT 1628 in of Bradwell, Suffolk, England

1. Title: William in entry for Mary Bullard, Death, "Massachusetts, Town Clerk, Vital and Town Records, 1626-2001"
   Author: "Massachusetts, Town Clerk, Vital and Town Records, 1626-2001," database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:FH2W-6YZ : 20 May 2022), William in entry for Mary Bullard, 17 May 1685; citing Death, Charlestown, Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts, United States, Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth, Boston; FHL microfilm 007009468.
   Publication: Name: https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:FH2W-6YZ;
   
2. Title: William Bulward in entry for Henry Bulward, "England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975"
   Author: "England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975", database, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:JW27-66D : 5 February 2023), William Bulward in entry for Henry Bulward, 1629.
   Publication: Name: https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:JW27-66D;
   
3. Title: Wm. Bullard in entry for John Bullard, "England Deaths and Burials, 1538-1991"
   Author: "England Deaths and Burials, 1538-1991", database, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:JCQD-Q4Z : 14 April 2023), Wm. Bullard in entry for John Bullard, 1745.
   Publication: Name: https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:JCQD-Q4Z;
   
4. Title: Edward Griswold: Book: The Greswold Family: 12 Generations in England
   Author: Robert Lewis French & Esther Griswold French, compiled by Coralee. "Griswold The Griswold Family: 12 Generations in England", (Wethersfield, Connecticut: Griswold Family Association, 1999), 49. FHL book 929.242 G868f.
   Publication: Name: https://www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/oclc/865793427?availability=Family%20History%20Library;
   Note: EDWARD GRISWOLD IN RECORD EDWARD GRISWOLD, Christened 26 July 1607, at Wootton Wawen, Warwickshire, England, died 30 Aug 1691 P. 49. Mary (2nd wife of Francis Griswold in America, son of Clement Griswold) also married (2) William Bullard. He was born about 1594. He came to New England about 1636, the son of William Bullard and Grace Bignett of Suffolk, England. In 1638 William was witness to proving a will. He settled first at Watertown, later at Dedham, and moved to Cambridge about 1638. His will dated 5 Jul 1679, gives his age as about 85 years. William died 23 Dec 1686. William and Mary were members of the church in Cambridge in 1658. ("The Griswold Family: 12 Generations in England") #88. George Greswold, son of Roger, was christened 6 Nov 1574 in Wooton Wawen, Warwickshire, England. George died 1623. He marrid (1) Dousabel (Leigh?) about 1606. She was born about 1575. Dousabel was buried 28 Aug 1615 in Wooton Wawen, Warwickshire, England. They had one child:
   Page: P. 49. Mary also married (2) William Bullard. He was born about 1594. He came to New England about 1636, the son of William Bullard and Grace Bignett of Suffolk, England. In 1638 William was witness to proving a will. He settled first at Watertown, later at Dedham, and moved to Cambridge about 1638. His will dated 5 Jul 1679, gives his age as about 85 years. William died 23 Dec 1686. William and Mary were members of the church in Cambridge in 1658. ("The Griswold Family: 12 Generations in England")
   
5. Title: William Bullard in entry for Elizabeth Bullard, "England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975"
   Author: "England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975", database, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:NRWG-9PL : 5 February 2023), William Bullard in entry for Elizabeth Bullard, 1634.
   Publication: Name: https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:NRWG-9PL;
   Note: This extracted record was used to create this person in Family Tree.
   
6. Title: Willia. Bullard in entry for Ellene Bullard, "England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975"
   Author: "England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975", database, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:J3KN-ZXM : 5 February 2023), Willia. Bullard in entry for Ellene Bullard, 1627.
   Publication: Name: https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:J3KN-ZXM;
   Note: This extracted record was used to create this person in Family Tree.
   
7. Title: AmericanAncestors.org
   Author: "AmericanAncestors.org would like to hear from you!." AmericanAncestors.org would like to hear from you!. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 May. 2016. .
   Publication: Name: http://www.americanancestors.org/databases/massachusetts-vital-records-to-1850/transcript/?volumeId=13325&pageName=20;
   Note: death "William Bullard, deceased Decemb. 23. 1686"
   Page: proves death
   
8. Title: Book: Eaton Family of Dedham and the Power House Rock
   Author: John Eaton Alden, Eaton Family of Dedham and the Power House Rock (Dedham, Massachusetts: No publisher, 1900), 16.
   Publication: Name: https://archive.org/stream/eatonfamilydedh00eatogoog#page/n24/mode/2up;
   
9. Title: William Bullard in entry for Agnes Bullard, "England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975"
   Author: "England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975", database, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:J74D-JZF : 5 February 2023), William Bullard in entry for Agnes Bullard, 1624.
   Publication: Name: https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:J74D-JZF;
   Note: This extracted record was used to create this person in Family Tree.
   
10. Title: Savage, James (1784-1873), A GENEALOGICAL DICTIONARY OF THE FIRST SETTLERS OF NEW ENGLAND, Showing Three Generations of Those Who Came Before 1692, 1860-1864
    Publication: Name: http://www.usgennet.org/usa/topic/newengland/savage/;
    Page: Vol 1: pp 295-96 Bullard, William, Dedham 1636, freem. 13 May 1640, had ISAAC, NATHANIEL, ELIZABETH wh. m. Moses Collier of Woodbridge, N. J. and MARY, wh. m. 1650, John Farrington of D. Perhaps some of these were b. in Eng. and he may have had more. By sec. w. Mary, wid of Francis Griswold of Charlestown, where he resid. 1658-77, he had none; and he d. early in 1687, in D. at the ho. of his d. the wid. Farrington. In his will, of 5 July 1679, importing that he was then 85 yrs. old, he names the two ds. and two s. tho. the elder s. was d. Prob. he was elder br. of Benjamin or George, or Robert, perhaps of all.
    
11. Title: William Bullard, Death, "Massachusetts, Town Clerk, Vital and Town Records, 1626-2001"
    Author: "Massachusetts, Town Clerk, Vital and Town Records, 1626-2001," database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:FH8K-RZR : 20 May 2022), William Bullard, 23 Dec 1686; citing Death, Dedham, Suffolk, Massachusetts Bay Colony, British Colonial America, Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth, Boston; FHL microfilm 007009369.
    Publication: Name: https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:FH8K-RZR;
    
12. Title: Book: Bullard and Allied Families
    Author: Edgar J. Bullard, Bullard and Allied Families, The American Ancestors of George Newton Bullard and Mary Elizabeth Bullard (Detroit, Michigan: No publisher, 1930), 12-13.
    Publication: Name: https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=wu.89065996670;view=1up;seq=25;
    Note: Shows his parentage and information on his marriage, activities and death.
    Page: Migrated from user-supplied source citation: urn:familysearch:source:3244116815