Sharon Massachusetts

October 1, 1897

The Esteys of Old Stoughton
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By S. Talbot
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No. 1

The first person in America bearing this name was Jeffery Estey, who owned 30 acres of land near Mackerel Cove, Marblehead, in 1651. In 1654 he sold this land, but the deed in Essex county records states that Jeffery being absent could not be called upon to acknowledge the title. The writer has no further information on Jeffery.

Upon the opening up of the land in the New Grant, The Esteys were among the first settlers. The were men of enterprise -- busy workers in spheres of labor. They bought large tracts of land for business purposes, cutting off the forests, turning the wood into lumber and the land into farms. In this way they had laid broad foundations for many generations to come and history will write their record, well done.

Benjamin and Joseph were probably brothers. Joseph owned land in Stoughton and probably lived in Canton near the Pleasant Street schoolhouse on land which he bought of the Indians. Benjamin was in Dorchester, as this tract was called, soon after 1700. He married Elizabeth, daughter of William Goodhue of Ipswich, April 9, 1702. William Goodhue was a prominent man in public affairs in Ipswich in 1636, where, with others, he opposed the scheme of Sir Edmond Andros of laying arbitrary taxes upon the people of that town. For this he was fined by the court, twenty pounds, prohibited from holding office, and placed under bonds of five hundred pounds to keep the peace.

The Esteys were both men of strong religious convictions and were among the foremost in the establishment of the church in the new village, now Canton, the Pastorate of the Rev. Joseph Morse. Here they worshiped in lowliness of heart, and their children were here consecrated to their father's God. Joseph continued his connection with the church as long as he lived, and the Rev. Samuel Dunbar in his private diary, under date of Oct. 25th, 1738 has this record, "Aged Joseph Estey died, Ch. Mem.," and "Feb. 8th, 1765 died Joseph Estey 78 years," perhaps son of the former. Benjamin Estey located and lived upon one of the farms now occupied by H. A. Lothrop and E. M. Hixon.

This location will explain the following incident. The late historian of Canton, Mr. D. T. V. Hantoon, in the Canton Journal of June 30, 1882, has this account of the Esteys. "Chief Justice Benjamin Lynde in 1730 left Billings' Tavern, crossing Billings' plain, he met Benjamin Estey who guided him thro' his land about a mile and a half to Deacon Stearns' on the 'Oeld Bay Road.' Then by a boy's direction, he went through the wood a mile and a half to Edward Estey's where he made arrangements to have shingles brought to Milton landing place and shipped to Salem in one of Col. Thaxter's sloops." Edward Estey lived on the lot south of Dry Pond cemetery. He lived to be nearly one hundred years old. Dea. Stearns lived near Horace Wells' place. There was no public highway from the center of Sharon to the Bay road, but there was a bridleway through Estey's land over Massapoag brook, just below Owls' Point that connected with Belcher street. On this street lived Edward Belcher. His daughter Martha married Ebenezer, son of Benjamin Estey, Mary married Eleazer, son of Obadiah Hawes, Jun., and Susanna married Benjamin Savels. Old Mr. Belcher died in the year 1844 aged 77 years.



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