Notes for: John FOSKETT
Benficiary of father's will in 1673
JOHN FOSKETT (1637- ?)
A possible candidate for John Foskett of Massachusetts who is found in Charlestown in that state in the USA in 1657/8.
John Foskett of Great Horwood was baptised in Great Horwood, Buckinghamshire, England on 4th March 1637 and could have been born at any time prior to the baptism, but likely to have been born in the few months prior to this date. He was the son of Henry Foskett, one of the six Lords of Manor of Singleborough in the parish of Great Horwood and Maria or Mary Ward, his wife, whom Henry had married on 27th July 1634. Maria died in September 1639 and was buried in Great Horwood on the 15th of that month. Henry subsequently remarried a Sarah, surname unknown, about 1641, and they had seven children:
Richard Henry baptised 20 Jan 1642 who subsequently died young although no burial found.
Thomas baptised 03 Aug 1645
Sara baptised 12 Jun 1647 who probably died as an infant
Sara baptised 14 Dec 1650
Dorothy baptised 14 Dec 1650
Elizabeth baptised 27 Jun 1653
Henry baptised 09 Mar 1659
Henry of Singleborough made his will on the 12th(?) day of March in 1672/3, died shortly afterwards and was buried in Great Horwood in the same month. His wife had predeceased him, though no burial record for her has been found.
In his will, Henry leaves John , Thomas, Sara, Dorothy and Elizabeth seven pounds a year apiece, the bulk of his estate going to his youngest son Henry, who is also made executor, and who became the next Lord of the Manor. What is interesting is that John was originally omitted from the will, his name being inserted after the writing thereof but before the will was signed. The witnesses William Bradbury and John Capp make note of this fact at the bottom of the will.
It seems strange that Henry, who describes himself at the beginning of the will as being "sick in body but of perfect memory", would forget to include his eldest son, unless perhaps that son had been absent from home and unheard of for many years. Could it be that Henry had a "twinge of conscience" when the will was read back to him and decided to include John, just in case he was still alive, before he sealed the document and made his mark. No burial for John has been found to date.
John Foskett of Massachusetts swore a testimony in 1682 staing that he was "about 46 years of age". The earliest record for him in that country is 1st March 1657/8 when, in the drawing of lots, his name was number 192 in the list of those who had no lots allowed them, but "upon due consideration, when the whole town mett, it was agreed that they should have as here unto sett down amongst themselves to draw their lots". John would have been about 21 years of age at this time.
Perhaps John of Horwood had to wait until he reached his age of majority before leaving home to seek his fortune. Perhaps he was not happy in his father's home under the auspices of a stepmother who might have wanted to see her own children treated more favourably than this lone survivor of a previous marriage. John may also have been involved in the activities of Cromwell's Roundheads - this part of Buckinghamshire was in the front line of many actions between the Royalists and the Parliamentarians. As Oliver Cromwell became sick and declining there were discussions about his successor long before his death in 1658; even talk about the possibility of restoring the monarchy. Could John have seen "the writing on the wall", knowing that should this happen, those who had served in the "Model Army" might be persecuted. Perhaps this was a factor in making the decision to seek his fortune in the colonies. Certainly John of Massachusetts was of a military bent, having taken part in King Philips War in 1675.
There are also examples of Oliver Cromwell banishing soldiers to the Americas for misdemeanors in the homeland. Could John have been one such malefactor?
And did John ever receive his annuity of £7 a year within two years of his father's decease, ie by 1675?
As previously mentioned John was taking part in King Philips War in 1675/6. A year after his return to Charlestown he started making a number of purchases of land in 1677 and 1678 to add to his other land holdings. Could this mean that he received his annuity and used the money to make those purchases? Unfortunately Bank of England extant records do not start until 20 years later.
Sometimes clues to parentage can be devined from the naming of children in subsequent families; the old traditions of naming male children after father, grandfather and brothers and females after mothers, grandmothers and sisters died hard. John's children in Massachusetts are known to be: John, Elizabeth, Thomas, Sarah, Joshua, Robert, Mary, Jonathan, Rebecca and Abigail. Whilst one can argue strongly that the first two children were named for their parents, the names of the second two children could be named for John's step-brother Thomas and step-sister Sarah, but these names are so common that no conclusion can be drawn with any certainty.
Finally, what other John Foskett's present themselves as possible candidates for John of Massachusetts? There are a number of other John Fosketts born in the period 1630 - 1640, but each one can be ruled out either through a burial recording in England or known to be married and having children in England after 1658 when John is in Charlestown.
Taking all the circumstantial evidence into account, I believe there is a strong possibility that this John Foskett is the predecessor of the hundreds of Fosketts, Foskets, Foskitts and Fosgates in the USA - unfortunately the final conclusive proof remains elusive.