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Facts and Events
References
- ↑ Bedford, Middlesex, Massachusetts, United States. Vital Records of Bedford, Massachusetts, to the Year 1850. (Boston, Massachusetts: New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1903)
19.
Davis, Josiah, s. Daniel and Mary, July 9, 1713.
- ↑ Concord, Middlesex, Massachusetts, United States. Births, Marriages, and Deaths, 1635-1850. (Boston: Beacon Press, 1891)
81.
Joseph [sic] Dauis ye son of Daniel Dauis and mary his wife was born July ye 9 day 1713.
- ↑ The births of many of Josiah's siblings are recorded in both Source:Vital records of Bedford, Massachusetts, to the year 1850 and Source:Concord, Massachusetts, births, marriages, and deaths, 1635-1850. The parents, Daniel Davis and Mary Hubbard, were married in Concord and their oldest children's births, through Mary b. 1719, were recorded there. These were all duplicated (with errors) in the Bedford records. The three youngest children (Ezra, Hannah, and Mercy) only appear in the Bedford records.
According to the Bedford records, "The town of Bedford, Middlesex County, was established September 23, 1729, from parts of Billerica and Concord." So most likely, the Bedford version is a copy made about 1720 from the original Concord records.
The problem is that the child born 9 Jul 1713 is called Josiah in the Bedford records, but is called Joseph in Concord records. One might speculate that the original in Concord was written "Jos.". When this record was copied to Bedford about 1720, it was written as Josiah. One might guess that the town clerk personally knew Daniel's son was named Josiah. On the other hand, when the Concord records were compiled for publication in the 1890s, having seen other records for a Joseph Davis (an unrelated individual), one might guess that the compiler (George Tolman, who has done invaluable work sorting out the Wheeler family) might have been predisposed to interpret "Jos." as Joseph. (On the other hand, he appears to have tried to transcribe the records literally, so Joseph may come from the original.)
However it came about, it has led to considerable confusion. The Edmund Rice Association identifies the child born on 9 Jul 1713 as Joseph Davis, following the Concord records. As a result of this, they show him marrying Hannah Brown of Concord, though they say this could be wrong since there was another Joseph Davis in Concord at the time.
At the time of the marriage of the Jos. Davis b. 9 Jul 1713, his home would probably have been in Bedford, since his parents were clearly in the bounds of Bedford at the time. The marriage of Josiah Davis and Elizabeth Raymond is found in the Bedford records. The marriage of Joseph Davis and Hannah Brown is not in Bedford, but in neighboring Concord. Given that there was another Joseph Davis in Concord to account for this marriage, it seems most probable that Josiah Davis and Elizabeth Raymond is the correct scenario. This is further supported by considering the difficulty of accounting for the Josiah Davis who did marry Elizabeth Raymond otherwise.
I believe that the correct name is Josiah, not Joseph, and that he married Elizabeth Raymond. The best evidence that this is correct seems to be the names of the children of Josiah and Elizabeth Davis as recorded in Bedford, which include Josiah and Elizabeth after themselves, Daniel and Mary after Josiah's parents, and Paul and Tabitha after Elizabeth's parents. (Joseph and Hannah (Brown) Davis had a daughter named Mary, but no child named Daniel. Their sons were named Elijah, Silas, Simeon, Abraham and Isaac, none of which even correspond to one of Josiah's siblings.)
--Jrich 00:58, 13 March 2009 (EDT)
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