Person:John Minshall (1)

A John Minshall appears in Warrington-area records in the late 1650s and early 1660s for refusal to attend worship or take the oath. There were two Quaker John Minshalls in the same area of Cheshire, this one somewhat older than the other (who did not marry until 1676), so these records may apply to either, but it is likely that this John is the one summoned by the Bishop along with his "pretended wife" to appear before the Consistory Court for being "unlawfully maryed."

John first appears in Quaker vital records with the 1664 birth of his son John; his wife's name is given as Rachel. Various references online refer to her as Rachel Frances Lee and say they were married 26 Sep 1662, but no such primary records appear to have been indexed.

Their children were as follows:

• John Minshall, Jr. b. 9 Feb 1664, buried 3 Oct 1686 at Whitley.
• Ann Minshall b. 4 Jul 1669, died as a spinster 6 May 1716, buried at Whitley.
• Thomas (first) buried 31 - 12th month (sic) - 1670 at Whitley.
• Thomas (second) born about 1672, married Martha Tarbuck 1696 in a record noting his father as John, shoemaker, of Appleton.
• Samuel born 6 Jan 1674/5, buried 13 Aug 1675 at Whitley.
• Joshua b. 18 June 1676, m. Margaret Barrow of Great Sankey 1701, and buried 1702. His widow Margaret m. John Fawcett in 1710.
• Elizabeth b. 30 Jun 1679, m. Isaac Dunbabin 1705, died 1730 at Over Whitley.
• Rachel, b. 30 Jun 1679 (twin), immigrated to Pennsylvania in 1697.

John's wife Rachel died in 1681, leaving him with a teen son and four children under 10. He remarried in 1683 to Elizabeth Lambe. They are listed as witnesses at the weddings of both Thomas and Joshua.

A blog entry here states that John was baptized 29 Feb 1640, but no matching record appears to have been indexed. There were numerous Minshalls in the area, and he would have been born before the Quaker faith spread in the area, so in the absence of a will or other record, he can't be definitively placed among area families.

1. ↑ ^1.0 1.1 England. Quaker Birth, Marriage, and Death Registers, 1578-1837.

   John Minshall of Appleton died the 12th and was buried at Over Whitley Townsfield, the 14th - 7 - 1723, aged 84.