HALSEY FAMILY

Reference: The following appears as part of the introduction to HALSEY GENEALOGY by Jacob Lafayette Halsey, Edmund Drake Halsey and Francis Whiting Halsey (1895)

  The Halseys of England

The earliest Englishman, who bore the name of Halsey, so far as the available records show, lived in the extreme  western end of Cornwall between Penzance and Land's End, a portion of England so old to civilized man that the ancient Phoenician navigators are believed to have visited it in order to obtain tin.

The home of these Cornish Halseys was the manor of Lanesley which lies in Gulval, a district bordering on Mount's Bay, near which rises the famous and picturesque promontory called St. Michaels's Mount. We are told that in the time of Richard I, who was crowned in 1189, and of King John his successor, this estate comprised "the lands of the family surnamed de Als, now Hals, so called from the Barton, and dismantled manor of Als, now Alse and Alesa, in Buryan, as tradition saith, or Bar Aleseton, Alston, in Devon in possession of Trevanin, and others, whereof they were Lords, and in particular William de Als in the beginning of the reign of King Henry III, that married Mary the daughter of Francis DeBray, was possessed thereof, father of Simon de Als who lives in Halsham in Yorkshire from him denominated. (Gilbert's HISTORY OF CORNWALL, based on the manuscript work of William Hals, who was born at Tresawen in Wales in 1655)

The Norman preposition seems to point to some Norman origin. The word itself is more likely a purely Saxon one, dating from the invasions of the Fifth Century, or Danish, and thus was brought over by the Vikings four centuries afterward. But as a surname, the word an hardly be older than the conquest (William the Conqueror, 1066) when surnames first came into use in England. In Holland the name still existed many centuries later, and Franz Hals, the painter, gave it renown. As a common noun and verb the word was used in very early times by the English, and signifies the neck of another. It occurs also in the Icelandic, Gothic, Dutch, Old Frisian, and Danish tongues, while the form hawse is Scot. Again we find the word halse as an obsolete form of hawse, meaning that part of a ship's bow through which cables pass out. (The Century Dictionary)

The historian of Corwall asserts that Simon de Als in 1266 gave the manor of Lanesley to the prior of St. German's, but in the time of Henry VIII it went again into private hands, and in 1620 its owner mortgaged it to Sir Nicholas Halse of Fentongollan, a lineal descendant of Simon de Als. In the time of Edward II Lanesley embraced 16,000-17,000 acres. Fentongollan lay also in Cornwall, but further east, and was originally the manor of a family of the same name. The mansion was older than the Conquest, and under the mortgage came into possession of Sir Nicholas Halse. Sir Nicolas was originally from Efford near Plymouth, in the adjoining county of Devon. In the time of Elizabeth, head acquired property in Cornwall and after he had been Captain of Pendennis Castle, James I honored him with knighthood. (Dictionary of National Biography)

James Halse, a son of his, fought at La Rochelle in 1628 and afterward went to the West Indies where he was Governor of Montserrat. In the Civil War he served under a Parliamentary leader. The second son of James was William, the historian. Another William was a son of Sir Nicholas, became a Captain in the Navy, and like his brother James took part in the siege of LaRochelle. The historian William was familiar with Fentongollan. His mother spent her old age there. He describes it as including a Church and Chantry with many large and commodious houses. It was afterward sold to a member of the Boscawen family.

From Cornwall members of the family emigrated back to Devon. In the time of Edward II, Richard Hals was living at Kenedon which lies near Kingsbridge, close to the Channel coast. In 1395, the estate of Kenedon by deed from John Govis "came to the gentile family of Halse antiently written de Alse for so a certain writer tells us that he saw it in a deed of King Edward III's age, de Alse." (John Prince's "Worthies of Devon") The purchaser was John Hals, a descendant of Simon de Als, and one of the Judges of the Court of Common Pleas. He made it the seat of his family "who flourished there many generations in worshipful degree, down to the latter end of the reign of Charles." ("Worthies of Devon") Judge Hals in 1423, the year in which Henry V died, yielding to the expansive spirit of the age, built a considerable mansion on the Kenedon estate. He was the father of Bishop Halse of Lichfield and Coventry, who added the "e" to the name. The Bishop filled his office for thirty-one years, and died in 1590, at the age of ninety years, being buried in the cathedral of Lichfield. he had taken part in the Wars of the Roses as the friend of Margaret of Anjou, whom he escorted from the field of Bloreheath after the defeat of her army. In the reign of Charles II, Kenedon passed out of the direct male line of descent through the will of Matthew Halse who, although male heirs were living, gave it to his sisters, one of whom had married into the Trelawney family of Cornwall. From these Kenedon Halses was descended Sir Nicholas of Fentongollan.

That the Halseys of Cornwall and Devon were related to those of the name living at the Great Gaddesden Parsonage in Hertfordshire in 1458 cannot be assumed. These were times of great unrest and ambition throughout England. It was the period of the Wars of the Roses and the men of Cornwall and Devon, like the Bishop of Coventry were among the followers of Margaret of Anjou. Our best conjecture is that some of the Halseys from these distant counties when the wars disrupted the Kingdom, took up a new home in Hertfordshire. Cussans recorded tht the family "has been settled at Great Gaddesden for many generations." (History of Hertfordshire. Three volumes elephant folio; Clutterbuck's History of Hertfordshire, 3 volumes, elephant folio) He says the earliest mention of them "is contained in a deed bearing date 10th July, 1458, when Richard Halsey was a party on behalf of the Parishioners to an agreement whereby the prior of King's Langley covenanted to pay the poor of Great Gaddesden the sum of ten shillings annually." In 1559, the year in which the Parish records begin, four families of the name were living at Great Gaddesden: Halsey of the of the Parsonage, Halsey of the Wood, Halsey of Northend, and Halsey of the Lane. Cussans adds that "on 20th March, 152-, Thomas Cooper, prior of King's Langley, leased to John Halsey and William Halsey, his son, the rectory of Great Gaddesden, for a term of twenty years, and by another indenture date December 24, 1529, Elizabeth, prioress of the Monastery of Our Lady and St. Margaret of Dartford, and Richard, prior of the Friar's preachers of King's Langley jointly leased the same to William Halsey for thirty-one years, John, his father, to have the benefit of the ten years unexpired of the former lease."

It was in the reign of Henry VIII that the more solid family foundations were laid. On the dissolution of the religious houses, the rectory coming to the Crown, the King on March 12, 1545, granted the Rectory to William Halsey, alias Chamber. Since that time the estate has continued in the family.

The earliest year in which John Halsey is known to have been living at the Parsonage, 1512, belongs to an interesting period in English history. Six years before that date Henry VIII, whose father had originally intended him for the Church, but for whom destiny had labors of a quite different sort, had ascended the English throne. In that year, Thomas Wolsey, already high in Henry's favor, arose by three successive steps to be Archbishop of York, Cardinal and Chancellor of England. The great age of the revival of learning had not yet passed away. More and Erasmus were still among the lights of the world, and mutterings had been heard of that convulsive storm which under Luther was to shake the foundations of Europe for more than one generation. Luther had already made himself heard, and in 1517 was to nail his famous document on the Wittenburg Church door, and three years later was publicly to burn the Papal bull.

The grant from Henry VIII to William Halsey was one of hundreds of similar grants made by that monarch after his suppression of the Monasteries. In all, these religious houses numbered about one thousand. Some four hundred of them, including all that had incomes of under two hundred pounds were seized in 1535, and in 1539, 645 others. The bulk of the land, embracing about one-fifth of all the lands of England, was granted away by Henry before his death, and thus was begun the material growth of scores of noble families now high int he peerage of England. Many of those to whom grants were made were courtiers; others were doubtless fortune hunters and adventurers, as we would use the terms; but the times of Henry VIII were different times. Unquestionably there was among the beneficiaries of royal bounty a large element of worthy and able men who thus were repaid for substantial services in promoting policies pursued by a man who was considered one of England's great kings.

At the time of the grant to William Halsey, Henry was at the height of his personal mastery of English institutions. Such was his recognized eminence that in Parliament when his name was spoken members were accustomed to rise, and bow to the vacant throne. He had then ruled for thirty-six years, but a life of uninterrupted conflict, crowned with great success was drawing rapidly to a close. More, Wolsey and Cromwell, all were dead, and Henry had just been married to the last of his six ill-starred wives, and two years later he passed away. William Halsey at the time the grant was made was described as "of the Parsonage." (Later called "The Golden parsonage") Descendants of William Halsey for 350 years have continued to live on this Hertfordshire estate. (1898)

  Thomas Halsey in England and Italy

In the direct line of Thomas Halsey, first American ancestor, the men that most concern us in this genealogy are the four who were his immediate ancestors. Concerning them we have the following information, beginning with John, whose life supplies us with the earliest authentic date in the direct chain of our history ... 1512.

  John Halsey of the Parsonage

Mentioned in 1512 as witness to a deed now belonging to Thomas Frederick Halsey. In a lease of the Rectory, dated March 20, 1520 he is named as the father of William Halsey. he is described as a descendant of William of Wyckham who was born in 1324 and beside being Bishop of Winchester became Lord Chancellor in the reign of Edward III. He was eminent as a founder and builder of historic edifices. At his instigation, Edward pulled down, and reerected Windsor Castle, giving to him the sole supervision of the work. he was the found of New College, Oxford, and of Winchester College, and the builder of the noblest part of Winchester's Cathedral. Lord Brougham in his "English Worthies" describes him as "one of the very few men who, having raised themselves by their ability and integrity to riches and honor, worked not sordidly for themselves to heap up treasure, but nobly employed their wealth in works of the highest public utility."

  William Halsey

Son of John of the Parsonage, executed his will on May 14, 1546. It was proved on July 2nd of the same year and mentions his wife Alice, whose will, dated August 28, 1557, was proved on December 2nd of that year.

  Robert Halsey

The third son of William and Anne Halsey married Dorothy, daughter of William Downes, of Linslade, Buckinghamshire. He was buried at Great Gaddesden on October 12, 1618. His will, dated October 5th, was proved on November 4th of the same year. His wife was buried on September 23, 1620, and her will was proved at St. Albans. Tramore Halsey, a brother of Robert, was buried in St. Margret's Church, Westminster, on September 16, 1630, where twelve years before had been buried Sir Walter Raleigh, and where also lies Caxton, England's first printer.

  Thomas Halsey

Thomas Halsey, our Puritan ancestor, was the fourth son of Robert and Dorothy (Downes) Halesey, whose children were fourteen in number. The eldest was William, who was baptized in 1590 and died in 1637, the year that Thomas is known to have been living at Lynn, Massachusetts. From William is descended the current occupants of the parsonage. The second brother was Duncomb, a mercer in London, who died before 1633. The third brother was James, a graduate of Clare College, Cambridge, who became rector of St. Alphage, London, in the chancel of which he was buried on March 12, 1641.

Thomas Halsey was born at the Parsonage and baptized in the church on January 2, 1591/2 so we may assume that his birth occurred at the end of 1591. This child came into a world stirred to its depths by events of far reaching significance. Elizabeth was 12 years old when her father, Henry VIII, made the grant to William Halsey, and now had been seated on the throne for thirty-two years. Not only had she successfully called back into life again the Church of England as a protestant faith, but the Tudor mastery set up by her father continued with force and splendor. Three years before Thomas Halsey's birth, Mary, Queen of Scots, had been executed. One year before it, Elizabeth had overthrown the Spanish Armada. This victory gave the seal to England's complete deliverance from Rome and from Rome's Spanish ally. England's rank as a great sea power was unsurpassed and the real activity in the affairs of the new world began. It was the age of Spenser, Shakespeare and Bacon. Bacon's home and birthplace was at St. Albans, only six miles from Great Gaddesden Parsonage.

Thomas Halsey's father died in 1618 and in his will made mention of Thomas, as did also Thomas's uncle, who died in 1633. Thomas in 1621 was living in Naples, Italy. (Cussans) Through what circumstances he went there we do not know. From his father's estate he had received some part of his inheritance, and the same spirit of adventure or enterprise which afterwards took him to the New World may account for his Italian sojourn. Italian travel at that time was very popular in England, as was Continental travel generally. A desire to know the world pervaded most intelligent minds, being part of that intellectual awakening and material expansion which preeminently characterized the period. How long Thomas Halsey remained in Italy we do not know, but before coming to America he had engaged in trade in London as a mercer and this appears to have been after the Italian visit rather than before it. A letter from Thomas to has brother survives:

To my brother, Mr. William Halsey, at his parsonage of Great Gaddesden:

Loving Brother:

I commend me to you with desire to hear of your health. You may hereby understand that I have given orders to my brother Duncomb Halsey to receive of you the ten pounds due to me the 29th September next A.D. 1621. And in regard that I cannot myself be with you to receive the same and that I am uncertain when it shall please God to call me for England, I have thought good to give my brother Duncomb Halsey a letter of attorney and by virtue thereof he may give you a general acquittance for all such money as I have received or that he shall receive of you for my use, and as you have made good payment to me of all such moneys as have due to me, so it is my desire that you should have a general charge to your own contentment. And I hope that the said acquittance given by my brother Ducomb Halsey will be of as good force and virtue as though it were my own handwriting.

I understand that there is some money due to me by you and given me by my mother. How much it is I know not, but what it is I desire you to pay it my brother D. Halsey and he shall give you discharge for the same. I am sorry that I cannot be with you to give you the discharge which I ought, but I think my letter of attorney, made to my brother Duncomb Halsey, will be of force for him to make you a full discharge. If not when it shall please God to send me for England I will be ready to give you an acquittance of what you shall think needful.

I have been in this place about 3 months and here do intend to remain for some time if God send me health, this place being very healthful to live in but the condition of the people very bad. Yet, if a man can avoid giving of offense he may live quiet. News I have not any worth writing; therefore I omit to enlarge, I entreating you to remember my best love to my sister. With my commending to all my brothers and sisters with you I commend you to the protection of the Almighty and rest.

Your Loving Brother,
Thomas Halsey

The power of attorney referred to in this letter is as follows: the original of it and of the letter itself were in the possession of Thomas Frederick Halsey (1898)

Know all men to whom this present writing shall come that I Thomas Halsey sonne of Robert Halsey of Great Gaddesden parsonage in the county of Herford lately deceased, do hereby ordain, institute and give full power to my brother Duncomb of London, merchant, to demand, recover and receive of my brother William Halsey all such sums of money or moneys as either are or shall be due to me by my brother, William Halsey, for legacies or deed of gifts given me by my father, Robert Halsey, or by any other and now in the hands of my brother, William Halsey, and I do hereby for me, my heirs and executors give full power and authority to my said brother Duncomb Halsey to give acquittance or general release to the said William Halsey for all such sum of money or moneys as formerly I have received or that he, the said Duncomb Halsey, shall receive of him for my use.

In witness wherof I have hereunto set my hand and seal.

       per me THOMAS HALSEY
               Napoli in Italy 18th Aug A.D. 1621, Stilo

The grant of arms from the Herald's College to the two brothers of Thomas made in 1633 is as follows:

Argent on a pile sa. three griffins heads erased of the first. Crest, a cubit arm, gules, cuff, ar. hand proper hold a griffin's leg erased, or; the motto, nescit vox missa reverti. This motto is a quotation from Horace's "De Arte Poetica," Thomas Frederick Halsey, in a letter says of the relations of Thomas to this grant:

As to the arms we bear the grant from the Herald's College gives them to William and to his brother James, D.D. Probably at this time Thomas had gone to America and his existence was not known and therefore he was not mentioned. I fancy there is no doubt that if he had been known to be alive at that time he would also have been recognized as entitled to bear the same arms as his brothers, and therefore I should fancy his descendants would be entitled to bear our arms.

  Thomas Halsey in America

Thomas Halsey's coming to America was connected with the colonization enterprises of which John Winthrop became the leader. The men who founded the Massachusetts Bay Colony, like the men of the older settlements at Plymouth, were Puritans, but they were of a milder and more worldly type. Winthrop's men sought not only a land where God might be worshipped after their own consciences, but one where towns could be planted, farms made productive and property could be acquired. While still in England, they had received full and authentic reports of the freedom which their countrymen enjoyed at Plymouth, and as the despotism of Charles I increased until in 1629 the power of Parliament ceased altogether, their desire to leave the mother land grew in force. Puritans as they were in spirit, their leader, Winthrop, had originally been a Church of England man and so had others who joined the company. Winthrop set sail in 1630 and many shiploads followed him to Boston Bay in succeeding years, so that from the town on Beacon Hill settlements spread rapidly inland hastening the growth of Salem and building up a town at Lynn.

Thomas Halsey came to Lynn as early as 1637. He may have reached Boston before 1633, the year of the grant of arms. In one of the records that survived a fire at Lynn, it is recorded that in 1638 he was allotted one hundred acres of land. Just what his relations were to the Winthrop movement we can only conjecture. He had undoubtedly been reared in the established Church, but there is room for conjecture that in the conflict between the King and Parliament his sympathies went with the latter, while other members of the family adhered to the fortunes of the King. The dominant spirit at Lynn was the spirit of a pure democracy and the men who founded the place were not men who could have meekly endured the growing tyranny of Charles, or the rapid widening of the evil potency of Laud. The men of Lynn believed they were calling into life a commonwealth, new in structure and wholly free. Their lands were held in common, and in frequent town meetings were decided all graver questions affecting individuals and the community at large.

The year 1637 was a critical date in the history of New England. Steadily for some years events had shown how the colony was drifting toward religious intolerance. The incident of Endicott and the Red Cross occurred in 1635, in the same year Roger Williams was banished to Rhode Island. In the Bay Colony, Sir Harry Vane, a leader of broad religious views, was superseded, by the voice of the people in 1637, as Governor by Winthrop. The first synod of Massachusetts me the same year and for 24 days was engaged in pursuit of heresy, with the result of finding eighty-two cases worthy to be called "blasphemous," and nine that were "unwholesome." In November 1637, Anne Hutchinson was banished, as was John Wheelwright. Graver punishments were meted out eventually to Quakers and the witches.

Thomas Halsey remained a citizen of Lynn during this stirring epoch. It is possible that the migration to Long Island in 1640, of which he formed a part, was connected with these religious matters. Winthrop in his "History" remarks that the Long Island company "finding themselves straightened, looked about for a new plantation," which need not mean they were in want of money, for it is quite clear that they were not. It is more probably that the reference was to religious straits. They made their departure peacefully with Winthrop's consent. On March 10, 1639 articles of agreement were signed at Lynn, Thomas Halsey being one of the signers, describing the conditions and terms under which the new settlement was to be founded. Captain Daniel Howe was engaged to transport the company and it was provided that his ship should be at Lynn three times during the year, in March, June and October, ready to convey goods and passengers to the new Long Island lands.

These lands were to be purchased and laid out, but were not to be divided. "Whatsoever we lay out for farms shall remain so," they said, and in case any person sold his property he was not to divide it, but was to sell "house, lot and plantings, or lots and meadows, entirely, and if he sell his farm he shall not divide it but sell it together." There was to be a limit of four acres to house lots and twelve to the planting lot, while the meadows and uplands might make thirty-four or fifty acres for each holder. Other lands were held in common. One of the clauses concerning religion indicates a desire for a union of church and state such as existed in the theocracy of the Bay Colony. It was agreed in part of Long Island, the amount to be paid for it to be fixed by Gov. Winthrop, who said that, inasmuch as the country was a wilderness, four bushels of corn, would be fair. The purchase was made from Lord Stirling through his agent, James Farrett. Originally the Long Island lands had belonged to the Plymouth Colony from who Stirling had obtained them.

Before winter set 8in a rude church had been erected in the new settlement. It remained Congregational for a time, but was soon changed to the Presbyterian denomination. Its pastor was the Rev. Abraham Pierson, who had come from Lynn. The form of town government establish did not radically differ from that of the Bay Colony. Church and town were practically one, and in the town meeting resided all power. There were no appeals except to the higher court at Hartford, Connecticut. Southampton offers an example of a pure democracy, with the town meeting voting taxes, sitting as a court and imposing fines. For these purposes it assembled once a month. Every freeholder was required to be present and was fined if he did not come. During the first five years, the danger from Indian attack was so great that the inhabitants were obliged to attend church armed. In 1645 a modification was made in this regulation and arms were not to be carried from November 1st until March 1st, the winter months. No one was allowed to sell strong liquors "except our neighbor John Cooper," and he to no Indian and not more than 100 gallons each year.

it is recorded of Thomas Halsey that he "remained many years in Southampton and was the richest man in the place," that he had much influence in town affairs, was active in establishing the Connecticut jurisdiction, and in 1669 was a representative. The first part of this statement is open to question. It is more probable that Edward Howell surpassed in wealth the other settlers. (See Howell Family history and pedigrees.)

From the town records it is plain that Thomas Halsey was not only an active citizen, but one possessed of independence of spirit and a strong will, and not always respectful to his fellow townsmen. He had been well educated, and in accordance with the distinctions of those times, was styled "gentleman" in the records. The first recorded instance of his independent spirit is dated March 15, 1643, when he was censured in town meeting "for some irreverent speech to  Daniel Howe in Court, being then a Magistrate, who acknowledged his offence and promised to make the like acknowledgement the next quarter court."

Thomas Halsey continued to be active in the affairs of Southampton until his death in 1679 at the age of eighty-eight. His will was proven in New York City where it still remains among the records in Book A. Governor Sir Edmund Andross certified the letters of testamenary attached. The will reads as follows:

  Will of Thomas Halsey

Southampton in Yorke Sheere the 28th day of June 1677.

The Last Willand Testament of Thomas Halsey Seneor being in a right mind and sound judgment is as followeth:

Inprimas I give and bequeath my Soule to god that gave it and my boody and bequeth to the earth devoutly to be buried and my woorly goodes as followeth: --

21y. I doe give unto my wife one woolan wheele and one linan wheele and my litel iron poot and a gelon keegg and one white duch blanket and foore bushels of wheat to be paid yearly as long as she liveth: the first to be payde within one moonth: and foore ewe sheepe:

31y. I doe give and bequeath unto my sonn Thoma my house and housing and home lott with all the aprtinences therof unto belonging: and the beech loot and the litel plaine cloease and the litel cloease on the south side of Mr. Rainers comanly caled troubesome and the close at the mill neck comanly knowne by the name of Peeters Cloase: and I doe give to my sonn Thomas the loot tht I had this las devision at Meetokes: and the table in the parlor and the fife joynt stooles and the bedstead and curtains in porch chamber.

41y. I doe give and bequeath unto my sonn Isaac my cloas at the head of the necke: and five aakers ajoyining these unto: and five eakers in the grea plaine in the tenn eaker lots: and three eakers lying at the towne pond: and tenn eakers in the ox paster. And I doe give unto my sonn Isaack the in loot with foore eakers and a halfe in the litle plaine and I doe give unto my sonn Issack of the next deivision twenty eakers and he is to have his soyse out of my three hundred in lue of the land at Sagaponack; and the remainderof alldeivisions whatsovever hereafter they are to deivide it equaly betwixt them all three and the rest of that deivision he is to have his equall part with Thomas and Danel and hoogenecck is to bee divided betwixt them equaly allsoe. And I doe give unto my sonne Isaack that loot of meedo that is in Seebonack on the south side: and one eaker in Halseyes neck and halfe the meedoe on the south beach and the other halfe to Danel.

61y. (there is not fifth clause) I do give and bequeath unto my sonne Danel one lot of meedoe lying on the north side of Seebonack and the home loot that I boot of Mr. smith. && my loot at Sagabonack and too eakers in the litel plaines that is the estermost too eakers that I haver there. & I doe give Danel one horse, one mare: & too oxen:

71y. I doe give and bequeath unto my dafter Elizabeth the wife of Richard Howell twenty pound to be paid in goodes and catell according as too men shall pries them.

81y. I doe order that my three sonnes shall deivide all Aquaganantuk & all the north side towardes Southold and all hoogneck betwixt them equaly.

I doe will and apoynt my soones Thomas & Isaack to be the exseketers of this my last will and testament to see that it be justly and truly performed and what shall remayne of the estt not heere menshoned in my will that they deivide it equally betwene them my too exseketors in witness where I have heere unto set my hand the daye and yeere before mentioned in the presence of

Ri Barret                           L.S.

John Else                             Thomas Halsey

Sir Admend Andress, &c.

Whereas Thomas Halsey Sener late of Southton in the east ryding of Yorkshire upon Long Island deceased did in his last will and testament nominate and appoint his sonns Thomas and Isaac to be his executors. And proofe having beene made of the will and testament at the Court of Sessions held at Southton in the month of March last for the east ryding where the said Thomas and Isaac were admitted executors and security taken by the said court: these presents may certify and declare that the said Thomas and Isaac are admitted and confirmed to all intents and purposes executors of the last will and testament of the sd Thomas Halsey their father deceased they having hereby full power and lawful authority to enter into or keep possession of the premises and to dispose thereof as in the sd. will is required and as executors according to law:

Given under my Hand and Seale
July 18 1679
                      e (Seele)
E.A.
past the office
M.N. Socx
M.N. The Aprixemt of the inventory amounts to 672 punds as returned from the Court of Sessions

(Thomas Halsey's personal estate would today be worth several millions of dollars) (1898)

  Thomas Halsey's Descendants

Thomas Halsey, as his will indicates, left four children surviving him, of whom three were sons, Thomas, Isaac and Daniel, and one daughter, Elizabeth, the wife of Richard Howell, son of Edward Howell. The sons had all been born before 1631, Thomas about 1627, Isaac about 1628 and Daniel about 1630. If the place of their birth were known, we could pinpoint more accurately when Thomas arrived in America. If they were born in England, Thomas made his venture with three very small children. This may seem hard to believe, still it is to be remembered that Thomas lived in stern and daring times and that "a stout heart beat beneath his doublet." To the Puritans of that age, the perils of the sea, even with children to take on the voyage, offered fewer terrors than the usurpations of the Stuarts.

When the father died, the three sons were men in middle life. Thomas was already a lad of about thirteen when the migration to Southampton took place. He is first mentioned in the town records of Southampton in 1644 when there was a division of citizens into wards, "for the prevention of disorder," arising from divisions of whales that might be cast up on the shore. The elder Thomas was then in the second ward and the younger in the first.

Before the death of the elder Thomas the three sons had already become land owners. On April 15, 1656, Richard Barrett "hat put of his allotment in Sagaponack division to Thomas Halsey Jr." In1663 John Woodruff sold to Thomas his "lot in Mill Neck over against the piece of land called Cobps Pound, also three roods of ground in flat Neck in the great plaine" in exchange for "five acres in the ten acre lot furlong in great plaine." In 1663, in a "proposal by the neighborhood where they desire to have their present division to lie," we find the younger Thomas with "fifty acres adjoining to the rear of his lot at Cobs Pound, eight acres at his land in mill Neck," with Isaac on the "north side of Robert Wooley at the west side North sea path," and Daniel with "one hundred and fifty between Mr. Rainer and Joseph against the little plaine." The three sons again are mentioned in 1657 when a half pound of powder was to be delivered "out of the Magazine to each of forty persons among whom were Thomas, Isaac and David (Daniel). (Southampton Town Records) In an "Estimate of the town of Southampton in the year 1683 Thomas was assessed at £411 and 2 poles." The sons all survived the father many years. Thomas died about 1789, Isaac about 1725 and Daniel about 1682.

The land at Southampton comprised a territory of some 6,000 acres. As the population increased, the restrictions imposed on the division of the territory made it necessary for younger generations to seek lands elsewhere. The earliest to go were grandchildren of the elder Thomas. Some of the migrations have left records of themselves in geographical names such as Halsey Valley in Tioga County, NY, Halseyville in Tompkins County, and the village of Halsey in Linn County, Oregon. Halsey Street in Brooklyn and also one in Newark, NJ There are records of early Halsey settlers in Connecticut, New Jersey, and South Carolina.

We have seen some of the events in English and Continental history in which members of the family had their share. As the Halseys of Cornwall and Devon participated in the Wars of the Roses and in the siege of La Rochelle, so those of Hertfordshire, as a reward for services in Henry's time obtained the Gaddesden grant, while descendants held county offices, served in Continental wars, or were punished under Cromwell for adhering to the cause of the King. Another of the Herfordshire line bearing the Christian name of William subscribed 25 pounds for the defense of England against Spain's Armada. (Cussans)

The life of Thomas likewise had close relations to stirring events in his time. Having sailed away from the old home to escape from the tyranny of the Stuarts , he became again a voluntary exile, in departing from the Bay colony which, through religious intolerance, had become another land where a free spirit such as his could not comfortably dwell. In the long warfare of the Colonist with the Indians, Thomas Halsey suffered the loss by violence of his wife, while in the conflict between the English and the Dutch for supremacy in New York, he took part as a valiant Southampton man.

Among the Colonial records of New York may be found the names of Long Island Halseys, who took part in the French and Indian war -- that conflict by which it was decided that an Anglo Saxon and not a Latin civilization should prevail in North America -- while in the Revolution, and notably at Fort Ticonderoga, others served. In the wars of 1812 and 1848 were representatives, and some went to California to find gold in 1849.

Numerous members of the family have never left the old home and many remain there to this day. The name is one of the commonest to be encountered by the summer resident at Southampton resort. Perhaps even those who were born and reared far from the place, may have inherited from the ancestral town some of those life forces which have carried them on to old age. If this be true, we have new and potent cause to reverence sincerely this last of the towns in which Thomas Halsey spent the years of his earthly pilgrimage.

FRANCIS W. HALSEY

August 15, 1894