Family talk:John Bigelow and Rebecca Olmstead (1)

The right way to use Torrey [20 October 2016]

The original citation of Torrey was left as a courtesy to a previous poster. The new citation is redundant, and the original citation should have been deleted. But citing Torrey is not really a useful exercise. The problem is that Torrey is a NOT A SOURCE. It is raw data and carries no meaning unless the cited sources are pursued, as is done below. Many or most of Torrey's sources are worthless in regards to proving the marriage, proving the date, etc., and in fact, Torrey includes wrong sources, and does no vetting of the author, or any analysis of the reliability of the sources. This particular Torrey entry is not an unusual case, most of his work is similar in quality.

Notice how much more is known after reading the following than is discernible from the Torrey entry (e.g., the Winthrop journal allows one to estimate a very small window within which the marriage took place). Finding, reading, and weeding out the chaff from Torrey is how to provide value to WeRelate readers, not by citing Torrey which just leaves them a ton of work to do themselves. Note, for example, how many of Torrey's sources actually say John Bigelow's wife was somebody other than Rebecca Olmsted. Note also how many are secondary sources that say the same thing as other sources without any evidence, as if they, say, just copied or abstracted Bigelow, or Savage, or one of the other sources, and so are offering nothing of value. Most Torrey entries I have pursued, like this one, have 3 or 4 with incorrect page number references that require further investigation to even figure out what Torrey is talking about.

Only a small fraction of Torrey sources are post-1923 which means most should be readily available online so not that hard to pursue. So, for example, I think I have been able to provide online links to all but one or two of Torrey's sources. Hopefully I got the punctuation right, but I did not test the links.

Marlboro Hist., 326: Children of John Bigelow and Mary Warren: "John, b. Oct. 27, 1643. He settled in Hartford, Conn., where he m. Rebecca Butler.

Sv, 1:176: "JOHN, Hartford 1668, s. of the preced. m. Rebecca, d. as Bond says, of Jonathan Butler, but ano. friend had taught me, that it was George Butler, and d. without issue, 1722; giv. his est. to Jonathan, s. of Samuel Butler. By one rept. his w. was Mary."

BIGELOW, 223: [There is nothing, as can be seen, that pertains to this marriage. I believe, as frequently happens with Torrey that the wrong page is given, 22-3 being the intended page citation, especially p. 23.]: "On accaunt of the meagre records at that time we find no record of his marriage, but from other sources we learn that he married Rebecca Olmsted, daughter of Capt. Nicholas Olmsted and Sarah Loomis his wife. ... In his will he mentions daughters Sarah Gates, Mabel Butler and Rebecca Bigelow. ... In 1707 John Bigelow deeded a portion of his property to Jonathan Butler, a nephew of his wife, and he is supposed to have died about 1721, as letters of administration were granted Dec. 5, 1721, to Rebecca his wife ..."

Olmsted 12: [already cited on the page.]

Smith-Hale: published 1929, so unlike most Torrey sources, still under copyright protection. Available to borrow at openlibrary.org and archive.org, but currently checked out so unexamined. By all appearances, a standard secondary source by an author of no particular fame, and no obvious reason from the title why there might be any particular focus on this couple, likely only a peripheral mention of them?

Wells (#5), 28: [Again a bad page citation, believe p. 68 is intended]: "John, born OCtober 27, 1643; married Rebecca, daughter of Jonathan Butler.

Hartford Prob. 1:344, 2:357 [first reference already cited on page]: "Page 113. Bigelow, John, Hartford. Invt. £54-07-01. Taken 27 December, 1721, by Nathaniel Stanly and Thomas Hosmer. Court Record, Page 159-5 December, 1721: Adms. granted to Rebeckah, the widow."

TAG, 9:57 [link requires membership]: "Genealogical Items from the Medical Journal of John Winthrop", Abstracted by the late Col. Charles E. Banks: BIGGALO. p. 783. 1667/8. John - "see Jan. 3 1666 was then single he is now married to Rebec. Omsted."

Utah Gen. Mag. 20:57 [issue of Apr 1929, see [1], image 99 shows page 57]: Children of Capt. Nathaniel Olmsted and Sarah Loomis includes "Rebecca, b. 12 Mar. 1648, Hartford, Hartford, Conn.; md. John Bigelow".

Bullard Anc. 176: "John, b. Oct. 27, 1643; m. Rebecca Butler and settled in Hartford, Conn."

Dawes-Gates, 2:618 [no link known of? available online if you are in a Family History Center or at HeritageQuest.com where the cited page is image 1459]: Children of Nichols Olmsted and Sarah Loomis: "III. Rebecca³, b. March 12, 1647-8; d. after 1721; m. John² Bigelow (John¹)" [footnoted source: "Bigelow Family, G.B. Howe, 1890, pp. 22-3 [see Torrey entry above]; Error in Bond's Watertown, 1860, p. 29 [Bond is cited by Torrey below]."]

Ackley-Bosworth 362 [note: another bad page reference, book only has 325 pages including index. believe page that was intended is 262 which may be seen at image 297 here.]: "John, b. 27 Oct 1643, d. s.p. at Harford, Conn., (before 5 Dec.) 1721; m. Rebecca Olmsted, dau. of Capt. Nicholas and Sarah (Loomis) Olmstead." [Footnote cites Manwaring probates already noted by Torrey.]

Watertown, 25 [Apparently another bad page reference, p. 25 covers the Bemis family, believe the intended page is 29: "John, b. Oct. 27, 1643; a housewright; settled in Hartford, Conn., prior to 1669, in which year his land was taxed. He m. Rebecca, dr. of Jonathan Butler, of Hartford. His will, dated 1707, after providing for his wid. (he had no chil.), conveyed his estate to Jonathan Butler, and the farm has remained with the Butler family to this day. Some of Mr. Bigelow's relatives attempted ineffectually to brake this will."

--Jrich 16:29, 20 October 2016 (UTC)