After William died in 1727, Susannah married Joseph Adams. Joseph’s brother, Henry, had married William’s sister, Sarah, in 1706. This is probably how Susannah met and married Joseph Adams.

William Adams

Born: 29 JAN 1689 in Sudbury, Middlesex County, Massachusetts, USA

Father: Richard Adams (1651 to 1728)
Mother: Rebecca Davis (1658 to Unknown)

Spouse: Susannah Woodward (1695 to 1790)

Married: 2 MAY 1723 in Preston, New London County, Connecticut, USA

Children:

William Adams (5 SEP 1724 to 16 JAN 1735) *
Phineas Adams (7 SEP 1726 to 7 JAN 1779)

(*) The death year came from another family tree. The burial record showed the date and month. It did not show the year.

Died: 1 AUG 1727 in Norwich, New London County, Connecticut, USA

Timeline: no documentation available

Occupation: Unknown

Records:

Massachusetts, Town and Vital Records, 1620-1988
Early Connecticut Marriages
Global, Find a Grave Index for Burials at Sea and other Select Burial Locations, 1300s-Current
Connecticut, Wills and Probate Records, 1609-1999

Variations of Surname: none

William was 38 years old when he died. He did not have a Last Will & Testament.

There is a probate record, dated 22 NOV 1727, that named Susannah as the administrator of his estate. The bondsmen were Joseph Adams and Stephen Frost. I will explain their relationship with Susannah later in this post.

William’s Wife:

Susannah Woodward:

Susannah was born on 23 DEC 1695 in Essex County, Massachusetts, USA. She died on 29 APR 1790 in Canterbury, Windham County, Connecticut, USA.

Susannah’s father was Daniel Woodward. He was born on 2 SEP 1653 in Watertown, Middlesex County, Massachusetts, USA. He died in 1713 in Preston, New London County, Connecticut, USA.

Susannah’s mother was Elizabeth Dana. She was born on 20 FEB 1662 in Cambridge, Middlesex County, Massachusetts, USA. I do not know when she died.

Susannah had eleven brothers and sisters. The seven older children were born in Medford, Massachusetts, USA. Jonathan and Joseph were born in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Benjamin and Eunice were born in Preston, Connecticut.

Elizabeth Woodward (1681)
Mary Woodward (1683)
Daniel Woodward (1684)
Abigail Woodward (1687)
Sarah Woodward (1689)
Hannah Woodward (1691)
Amos Woodward (1693)
Jonathan Woodward (1698)
Joseph Woodward (1701)
Benjamin Woodward (1704)
Eunice Woodward (1707)

After William died, Susannah married Joseph Adams in 1728 in Canterbury, Windham County, Connecticut, USA. Three known children were born during their marriage:

Susannah Adams (1729)
Elihu Adams (1731)
Thomas Adams (1734)

Joseph Adams was born in 1683 in Chelmsford, Middlesex County, Massachusetts, USA. He died on 3 MAR 1752 in Canterbury, Windham County, Connecticut, USA.

Joseph had previously married Eunice Spalding on 23 JUL 1708 in Canterbury, Windham County, Connecticut, USA. Six known children were born during their marriage:

Joseph Adams (1709 to 1709)
Samuel Adams (1710)
Eunice Adams (1713)
Joseph Adams (1715)
Mary Adams (1719)
Parker Adams (1722)

Eunice Spalding was born on 14 FEB 1685 in Chelmsford, Middlesex County, Massachusetts, USA. She died on 5 APR 1726 in Canterbury, Windham County, Connecticut, USA.

Who were Joseph Adams and Stephen Frost?

When I discovered that Susannah married a man named Joseph Adams, I knew he had to be the same person who signed the probate record.

Joseph shared the same surname as Susannah’s first husband. This seemed to indicate some familial connection.

The name Stephen Frost also sounded familiar to me. I found him in my family tree.

Here is the Joseph Adams and Stephen Frost connection:

Joseph had three brothers. One was named Henry Adams. He was born in 1684 in Chelmsford, Middlesex County, Massachusetts, USA. I do not know when Henry died.

Henry had two daughters. One was named Mary Adams. She was born on 9 SEP 1707 in Canterbury, Windham County, Connecticut, USA. She died on 15 MAY 1764 in Canterbury, Windham County, Connecticut, USA.

Mary Adams married Stephen Frost on 29 OCT 1724 in Canterbury, Windham County, Connecticut, USA.

Stephen Frost was born on 31 AUG 1702 in Billerica, Middlesex County, Massachusetts, USA. He died in 1787 in Canterbury, Windham County, Connecticut, USA.

This means that Stephen Frost was Joseph Adams’ nephew-in-law.

I then discovered how Joseph Adams was related to Susannah’s deceased husband, William Adams.

Joseph’s brother, Henry Adams, married William’s sister, Sarah Adams, on 19 DEC 1706 in Canterbury, Windham County, Connecticut, USA.

That means Joseph Adams was Sarah Adams’ brother-in-law.

Sarah and Henry were living in Canterbury as early as 1706 when they were married. Joseph and Eunice were living there in 1708. Sarah’s connection to Henry’s family was probably how Susannah met and married Joseph Adams.

Researching these close-knit families is very rewarding from a genealogical point of view. The population was still quite small in the early years of Colonial America. By 1700, we were only two or three generations from our ancestors who immigrated from England and Europe. That is why you will sometimes find that one of your ancestors married their first cousin or their deceased brother’s wife.

Research Notes:

I would like to mention that William Adams died on 1 AUG 1727.  Joseph’s father, Samuel Adams, died on 26 NOV 1727.  William’s father, Richard Adams, died a year later on 24 AUG 1728.

I discovered that an epidemic of unknown causes had occurred in 1726.  About 40 people died in Newent near Norwich, New London, Connecticut.  William and his father were living in Newent at the time.  Samuel was living in Canterbury which is 7.5 miles northeast of Newent.  Although the causes of death are not known, this may have been why William died at such a young age.

Notes:

John Adams (1595 to 1633) was the first person with that English surname to immigrate to North America from England. In 1621, John boarded the Fortune. This was the second ship, after the Mayflower, to bring puritans to North America. In late November of that year, the Fortune arrived at Plymouth Colony. John was the progenitor of all the Adams descendants listed in these posts.

Creating Your Family Tree

Interested in building a great family tree? Remember these important steps:

Look in your photo albums. You may have old pictures that your parents or grandparents gave you. Or, ask them for copies of photos that they have in their possession. Many people will write names and dates on the backs of photographs. Letters, diaries, and family bibles are also excellent sources for births, marriages, and deaths.

Talk to your older relatives to find out about your ancestry. They may relate stories about an ancestor that you can add to your family tree. Family history is usually not found in newspapers. It is more of a verbal memory that is passed down from generation to generation.

Find the right family tree builder that suits your needs. You can choose one that has a paid subscription like Ancestry.com. There are also free sites like FamilySearch.org.

When you start building your family tree, add documentation to your ancestor’s profile. The records can include birth, marriage, death, census, military, city, and county directory listings. Any information that you can find will help create a life story about your ancestor.

If you have a unique surname, like Wakenight, you may find databases on the internet that are useful in your search. I use SurnameDB.com for my English surnames. There are many others on the internet for other countries like Ireland, Italy, and Germany.

Genealogy is the study of a person’s “line of descent.” As you create your family tree, you would typically start with one individual and go “back into time.” You would add their parents, grandparents, and so on.  There are also family trees that go “forward into time.”  Many of these family trees start with a famous person, such as a president or royalty, and move forward into the present time.  The purpose of this type of pedigree is to establish a person’s bloodline with that famous person.

There is no limit on how big your family tree can grow. The blank canvas is there for you to use. Cherish your family history, and it will be there for generations to come!