Person talk:Hannah Fiske (4)

Two Hannah Fisks [2 June 2018]

Bond has two Hannah Fisks that he shows marrying William Smith.

On p. 215, the daughter of Nathan Fiske and first wife Sarah Coolidge, b. 19 May 1719, m. 15 Feb 1743-4 William Smith Jr.

On p. 211, the daughter of Thomas Fiske and Mary Pierce, b. 29 May 1727, "Was it this Hannah, or the dr. of Dea. Nathan Niske who" m. 17 Feb 1743-4 William Smith Jr. of Waltham.

In other words he had no clue. Presumably he thought it most likely the older of the two married first.

On p. 403 he shows Nathan Perry, b. 2 May 1718, m. 1 May 1746 Hannah Fiske, identifying her as the daughter of Nathan Fiske with a question mark.

William Smith [2 June 2018]

William Smith was dismissed to Rutland in 1768, died there in 1772. The vital records show "Mrs. Hannah" Smith and Capt. Peter Davis marrying in 1774. Capt. Peter Davis, b. 1707, had a son Asa who married Mary, the daughter of William and Hannah Smith in 1769. So this 1774 marriage very well could be the widow of William Smith. No further sign of this couple has been located. Peter's son Peter d. Rutland in 1781 and his grandson Peter in 1786, but no death record is found for Peter Davis Sr. or a widow named Hannah Davis.

Nathan Perry

Nathan Perry died in 1806. According to his gravestone which lists his wife, son and daughter-in-law as well, his wife Hannah died Sept. 1813, age 94. This would make her birth 1719, making her the daughter of Nathan Fiske.

Sturbridge Death Record [2 June 2018]

• PERRY, Hannah, wid., [died] Mar. 19, 1808, a. 86 [a. 85, PR1]
• SMITH, Hanna Perry [Smith] [w. William] [ch. Nathan Fisk and Sarah], [died] --- [dup. Sept. 2], 1813 [dup. a. 94]. PR1

PR1=From Fiske Diary and Family Records, now [1906] in the possession of Wilson Fiske, of West Medford, MA

The records for 1808 do list widow Hannah Perry (or Pray?) on March 19 (probably, but also indexed as 17). No corresponding gravestone is found. The records for 1813, however, show no such death record. It is entirely the product of the Fiske Records (and suspect because of the combination of Perry and Smith in one Hannah). Did the records inform the gravestone or vice versa?

The Hannah Fiske who married William Smith is different than the Hannah Fiske that married Nathan Perry. The gravestone of Nathan Perry is incompatible with the records, but the records aren't all official or contemporary, so they are suspect too [i.e., the record combining the name Perry with Smith is problematical suggesting it is somebody's hypotheses, not a record of a fact, also the lack of a specific death date hinting the gravestone was not contemporary]. More research is needed. --Jrich 21:14, 2 June 2018 (UTC)

Partial Answer [2 June 2018]

Middlesex Deed Vol. 80, p. 47 15 Oct 1778: John Fisk of Partridgefield in County of Berkshire Blacksmith, John Lawrence and Sarah his wife in her right, Zachariah Weston and Mary his wife in her right, Amos Fisk and Abijah Fisk all of Watham, Lois Hagar of Waltham widow, Jonathan Fisk of Westin Gent. and Abigail his wife in her right, David Fisk of Lincoln Yeoman, Peter Davis of Rutland Gent. and Hannah his wife in her right, Jonathan Wellington of Templeton and Lydia his wife in her right, Daniel Mansfield of Killingsley in Connecticut Yeoman and Eunice his wife in her right for £760 to Jonathan Fisk of Waltham yeoman quitclaim all real and personal estate of our Hon'd Mr Thomas Fisk late of Waltham deceased.

Clearly William Smith married the daughter of Thomas, and his widow married Peter Davis. Nathan Perry presumably married the daughter of Nathan. Further work on the death date is needed. Either the 1813 record is a total fraud, or the 1808 record belongs to a different person. The second is suspected based on the ages at death. --Jrich 04:46, 3 June 2018 (UTC)

Conclusion [2 June 2018]

The Sturbridge death record in 1808 appears to be rewitten at the bottom of the page as well as the entry near the middle of the page. So it is more clear that it is Widow Hannah Perry d. 1808 age 86. This is a birth date of 1722. The death records in Sturbridge include that of Josiah Perry in 1783 or 1784, whose wife was Hannah. He m. Sherborn in 1740 Hannah Grant who was born to Joshua and Abigail Grant in Watertown in 1722. So this 1808 death is unrelated.

At this point, the gravestone appears to be the most authoritative source and gives the death of Nathan Perry's wife in 1813, age 94, making her the daughter of Nathan, and giving no indication that she married again. The identification of this woman as the wife of William Smith based on the Fisk records is most probably a research error by the keeper of those records, possibly based on Bond's confusion, or causing Bond's confusion. There is no evidence that Hannah Perry married a William Smith after Nathan Perry died in 1806 (no such record has been located) which is the only way the Sturbridge/Fisk record could be accurate. However, in any event, in the unlikely chance she did, it is a different William Smith than daughter of Thomas married since he died in 1772 and doesn't change the fact that William Smith's wife was the daughter of Thomas Fisk, and Nathan Perry's wife was the daughter of Nathan Fisk. --Jrich 05:15, 3 June 2018 (UTC)