William Russell, our emigrating ancestor, was born around 1605 in Abbots Langley, Hertfordshire, England. When William was about six years old, the King James Bible (Authorized Version) was published and was accessible to the public. This caused no small stir with the Puritans who had come out strong in opposition to the Church of England. There were previous translations, but King James had it retranslated and changed the notes to fit the Church of England more. England became very divided with a lot of controversy over religious policies which were part of governing of England. The Puritans and other religious persons disagreed with the episcopal policies of the Church of England and opposed church practices that resembled Roman Catholic rituals. They demanded changes of policies with no success.  The Puritans had become more involved in politics and grew to be a majority which made a big sway in decisions. There were many controversies over finances in the government also. The King wanted to collect more taxes to fund his war, but those in Parliament opposed it. So great were the conflicts that Parliament was eventually closed down by King Charles in 1629.

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​The Cambridge Agreement (Massachusetts Bay Colony) “insisted that the company charter be transferred to the New World and that it serve as the new colony's constitution.” This was a very unusual demand since normally a board in England would govern chartered colonies. But the company’s general court passed the motion and they transferred the company and the charter to New England. When they did this, the Massachusetts Bay Company became the only English colonizing company without a governing board in England. All the stockholders who didn’t care to settle in America sold their shares to those who were willing to travel to America. By taking the charter to America, the Puritans shifted the focus of the company from trade to religion and politics rather than solely financial gain. They wanted to guarantee that the Crown would not compromise their religious freedom in America.

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​Because of the desire for religious freedom, many ministers encouraged their congregations to leave England. The period between 1628 and 1640, the “Great Migration” saw 80,000 people leave England with about 20,000 of large groups of people who sailed to New England. The Winthrop Fleet of 1630 included 11 ships, and it delivered about 700 passengers to the Massachusetts Bay Colony.

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​William Russell married Martha Davyes (Davies) on 26 May 1636 in St. Albans, Hertfordshire, England. Elijah Davyes was the one to give the bride in marriage. He could be her father, brother or a relative. There are some accounts that state Martha’s last name was Haddington. William and Martha’s first child, Joseph Russell, was born on 12 Nov 1636 in England.

 

  

Most of the people who arrived in New England during the 12 years of the Great Migration” emigrated from two regions of England. Many of the colonists came from the county of Lincolnshire and East Anglia, which was northeast of London, and a large group also came from Devon, Somerset, and Dorset in the southwest of England. William was born in Hertfordshire and Martha was born in Suffolk. Both cities are in East Anglia, England. William and Martha lived in the area where the majority of migrants came from.

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Records show that William and Martha’s second child, Phebe, died in 1642, in Massachusetts at two years old. There are two documents, one showing that she died in Cambridge and one in Boston. She possibly died in Boston, but buried in Cambridge. It is not clear if she was born in England or America, but it puts William and Martha and Joseph arriving in America between 1636 and 1642, which was during the “Great Migration”. So it could be assumed that if nothing else, they were at least influenced to make this move for the same reasons that others had at that time and place.

The rest of their children were born in Cambridge.

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​The colonists coming to New England were mostly families with education who were leading relatively prosperous lives in England. William was a millwright and carpenter, and in 1645, it was noted that he was also a proprietor of Cambridge (an owner of lands or businesses).

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​Settling in Menotomy (now Arlington), he was granted land bounded on the north by the Charlestown line in the division of that year. No record exists of where the bounds of his homestead were, but from the wording of his will, it may have been where his son Joseph later lived.

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On October 22, 1645, William bought land in the “Ale Wife Meadow”, Cambridge (5 acres) from Captain George Cook. He then acquired four more tracts of land in Cambridge and Charleston.

From records, it appears that William and Martha were well-to-do. In 1656, he purchased 100 acres from Richard Jackson for a “valuable sum of money”. These 100 hundred acres were seven miles from the center of Cambridge which were known as Cambridge Farms, later to become Lexington.  He also purchased a lot in the ‘stinted pasture’.  In 1659, he acquired 9 acres from R. Lowden and 3 ½ acres from Ann Frothingham.  Martha signed for her husband for the sales transaction for one of the properties. So with this in mind, it is possible that Martha was involved in the business side of the family as well.

 

William and Martha had ten children in total. Eight lived to adulthood. The last child, Joyce Russell, was born on March 31, 1660 in Cambridge, Middlesex, Massachusetts.

 

William, Martha and their children were members of the Cambridge Church, noting that her oldest son, Joseph, who was ten years old when joining, was baptized in England. Her other children were baptized in this church.

​A year after his last child was born, William evidently realized his life was coming to an end, so he made out a will. Twelve days later, William died at fifty-six years old on February 14, 1661 in Cambridge, Lexington, Middlesex County, Massachusetts, leaving everything to his wife to be at her disposal for bringing up their four small children.

He most likely assumed his oldest, Joseph, would be taking over the head of the house, taking care of his mother, so he also willed 13 acres of plowing fields, and 16 other acres with a young horse, and if he come to live there, another farm with all the wood for years.

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To Benjamin, one cow; and to Jonathan, one two year old horse; and to Martha, one heifer.                                    

For the four younger children, it will be to their mother’s discretion what they would receive when they get older.

​Even though Martha’s olde st child was twenty-five years old, she still had young children (five at the age of eleven years old and under), the youngest being one year old.

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Martha’s oldest sons, Joseph and Benjamin were already on their own, so she turned to John who was sixteen years old. She made a legal document with him that she would hire him with the ‘managering’ of the husbandry during her widowhood and helping with the occasions of the children, in return she would give him half of the farm which was known as the Jackson Farms, paying only 10 pounds to her for it.

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Martha was not inactive in business after her husband died. She acquired four acres in 1663, fifteen acres in 1664 and two lots in the cow common.

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Martha remarried four years later (1665) to Humphrey Bradshaw of Cambridge. Humphrey's wife, Patience, had just died. He had four children. His children were six, eight, ten and twelve years old. Martha’s younger children were close to the same age. Humphrey resided in Menotomy and held several minor town offices, and acted on important town committees. He built a seat in the meeting house in 1678.

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Even though Humphrey had some acreage, he was the one that proffered in the marriage to Martha. With Martha being married and therefore having a husband to assist her in the managing of her estate, this relinquished the responsibility of her son, John, in his duties to Martha. He then began courting to marry and built a house on the land that he had earned.

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Martha and Humphrey gave to her sons, William and Jason, permission to build housing for themselves and in 1683, twenty acres were divided and given to them.

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Humphrey died May 9, 1682. When he lay dying, he was asked what to do with his estate, and he said that he had “nothing to leave but love, but what he had, he freely gave to his wife, Martha Bradshaw”, and the estate was then returned to Martha. Thus, Martha did not lose control of her property by reason of her second marriage.

One year after Humphrey died, Martha married Thomas Hall. Martha was seventy-two years old.

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Thomas was a widower with two grown daughters.

In 1687, in a detailed document witnessed by Thomas, Martha gave her son, John sixty-two acres of land.

Martha continued to manage her affairs and to acquire more property.  In 1689, she got the ‘64th lot’, and a second division of lots of eight acres.

Thomas Hall died in 1691, leaving the estate to his wife, Martha. Martha lived for three more years.                                                          

after that and died in 1694 at eighty-five y ears old.                                                                                                                                                                                     

 Martha was quite a woman; she had undertaken a hazardous sea voyage to a new world, she bore ten children, had three husbands, handled the affairs of William’s estate and judiciously disposed of all his holdings, dividing them amongst her sons. She had numerous grandchildren. She was a godly woman which showed in her will as she started it with “My soul I leave in the arms and mercies of my eternal Redeemer.”

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She gave bequests of land to Joseph and Philip, and stated that John, William, Philip and Jason should forever possess and enjoy what she had given to them earlier. Her personal items and movable appurtenances were divided amongst her daughters and granddaughter. Her final estate was very little as she had given it all to her children as her husband, William, had wanted.

 

​Three of William and Martha’s sons settled in Menotomy: Joseph, William and Jason. A fourth, Philip, lived there for a short time, but at the end of the seventeenth century, he moved to Lexington.

​The war broke out after William died and all six of William’s sons served in the King’s Army; King Philip’s War, known also as “the first Indian War” between 1675 and 1676.

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​Joseph, William’s oldest son, followed his father’s occupation of being a carpenter.

 

​William & Martha’s son, Benjamin Russell, was an early settler in the part of Concord that later became Carlisle. He married Rebecca in 1664. In 1680, they came to Concord and bought some land in the northern part of the town where they built their house. As originally constructed, it was a two-story building with two rooms on each floor. The timbers were 12 inches square solid oak, paneling 2 to 3 feet wide, bricks were used between the walls as a defense against the Indians. The old homestead passed out of this family about the year 1800 after five generations of occupancy, and it was torn down in 1903. It was located at what is now known as Russell Street left of Concord Road and ended at the Old Russell homestead.

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​William and Martha’s fourth child, John Russell, came to be known in Cambridge as a wealthy and leading citizen of the city. He was an original member of the church noted in 1696 and the largest subscriber for the meeting house. He held many offices in town and the parish. John married Elizabeth Fiske in 1669. Elizabeth’s father was Lieutenant David Fiske, Esquire who came from England to Cambridge in 1647. He was not only one of the first settlers in Cambridge Farms (Lexington), but was ‘one of most prominent and useful men in the precinct.’ David was a surveyor of lands, a selectman and representative during the difficult period of 1689. He was also very involved in the building and organization of the local church and ministry.

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William’s sixth child, Phillip, married Joanna Cutler in 1680. Her father, James Cutler, was from England. He and his wife had been tantalized so severely for their Puritanism, that they were resolved to seek their fortunes in New England. They were one of the first to receive an inhabitant of Watertown and had a house assigned to them. A few years later, they moved to Cambridge in 1648 at the same time that William Russell was living there. This is where Philip and Joanna were married.

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William, Jr, William’s eighth child, was a ship carpenter. He married Abigail Winship, daughter of Edward Winship who was a man of wealth and had immigrated to Boston on 3 Oct 1635. He lived in Boston, then moved to Cambridge where he was deputy of the Court among other honors. Abigail was born in Cambridge. This is where William Jr and Abigail were married. Their oldest son, William III, became a doctor.  ​Jason Russell, the ninth child, became a licensed Inn holder.