Richard SISSON seems to have been born about 1608 in England, judging from his age given in a deposition many years later [JnD think the deposition may have been quoted in Lucius R. Paige’s List of Freemen of Massachusetts 1630-1691. (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Company, 1978. page number?)] He died in Portsmouth, Rhode Island, and his will was probated on 26 February 1684.
Some sources have claimed that Richard's wife was a Mary “Freeman,” born in 1619. We have found no documentation for that idea. Joan and David Sisson, family historians, authors of The Descendants of Richard and Mary Sisson, have said that the name could have arisen from confusion over something like “Richard, a freeman,” i.e., a person eligible to vote in town meetings.
In 1998, David and Joan Sisson, the diligent Sisson-family historians, obtained an affidavit from the Vicar of Snaith, Yorkshire, citing the parish register of the Priory Church of Snaith. The affidavit states that the marriage of a Richard Sissons (note the final S) and a Mary Atkinson took place there on 14 February 1632. Mary was of nearby Hecke, Yorkshire, probably modern Great Heck or Little Heck.
The 2000 Sisson Gathering began an effort to fund research for Richard and/or Mary Sisson in British records. A genealogist, Ken Smallbone, was hired. He found two records for a Richard Sisson in Saxton-on-Elnet. The first showed that Richard had been christened there in 1615, and the second was a duplicate recording of the marriage of a Richard Sissons and Mary Atkinson. (Contributions toward that search may be sent to Dr. David S. Martin, 10 Colonial Farm Circle, Marstons Mills, MA 02648.)
Helen Whittle, a second genealogist hired to search British records, found a second record of Richard’s christening in 1615 in Saxton-on-Elnet, this time adding that he was a son of Ralph Sisson and Anne Burdsall who had married in April 1615.
Other records show that Ralph's father was John Sisson who died at some time after 1561. John’s parents, Ralph's grandparents, were Robert and Isabel Sisson. Isabel was originally from Shadwell, Yorkshire. Robert died before 1541 and Isabel between 1548 and 1553.
We cannot – unfortunately – be certain that this information applies to the Richard Sisson who came to New England. We hope someday to find confirmation in a record that ties Richard as known in New England with this (or another) Richard in England.
One clue to the identity of the English Richard and Mary with the American Richard and Mary has emerged: the seeming similarity of the names of their English and their American children. Rob Sisson posted a message on the Sisson email list:
“Another tip towards Richard and Mary of Snaith is that the names of their children match very closely those of Richard and Mary of Rhode Island. Researchers with whom I spoke at the Society of Genealogy in London surmise that the few names that don't match were possibly older children left in England or who died prior to emigration and that others were born in the colony.”
However Joan Sisson wrote in December 2007 that she and David “are a bit doubtful that Richard of Snaith is ‘our’ Richard, mostly because of the [names of the] children.” Joan took notes of the baptism and death dates of children born to Richard and Mary (Atkinson) Sissons of Snaith. The known children of “our” Richard and Mary of New England must be compared with that list.
For example, the English couple had a son George whose baptism is recorded in the Hecke parish register. He was born on 17 July 1636. If this is the George Sisson of Portsmouth, Rhode Island, there is some disparity since the American George seems to have been born in 1644. It is possible that the English George died young and that the American records indicate a second son of that name.
We can speculate on the basis of what we now know of the possible identity of Richard and Mary of Snaith with Richard and Mary of New England, though we cannot know definitively. We can probably agree that a Yorkshire origin is the most promising line of inquiry, but we cannot state it absolutely. Many researchers have tried to find Richard and Mary’s English origin, and are also tempted by older research that favored origins in other northern English counties, eastern or southern counties, and even southern Scottish counties. One theory even posits Welsh roots.
In the introduction to their "Descendants of Richard and Mary Sisson" (page x) David and Joan Sisson say that "records of a Richard Sisson in the town of Greystoke, Cumbria, England, were found in the early 17th century, among other Sissons in the Penrith area."
An interesting site on the Internet
www.genuki.org.uk/big/eng/YKS/WRY/Snaith/index.html
quotes a description of Snaith from the 1820s and links to sites about “Great Heck” and “Little Heck.” This is the 1820s description of Snaith:
"SNAITH, a market and parish-town, in the wapentake of Osgoldcross, liberty and bailiwick of Cowick and Snaith; … 23 [miles] from York, 175 from London. Market, Thursday. Fairs, last Thursday in April, for horned cattle, sheep, and woollen cloth, Aug. 10, for horned cattle, woollen cloth, line, cheese, and quills; and the last Thursday in Sept. which is chartered but not now attended. Principal Inns, Blue Bell, Black Lion, Bell and Crown, and Green Dragon. Pop. 834. The Church (see Churches for photograph), peculiar, is a perpetual curacy, dedicated to St. Mary, in the deanry of Pontefract. Patron, Henry Yarburgh, Esq. The town of Snaith is situated on a gently rising ground, about half a mile south of the river Aire, and within five miles of the junction of the Ouse with the rivers Derwent and Aire. In the Church, which is a neat Gothic structure, is the family vault of Lord Viscount Downe, in which his ancestors lay interred. At the west end of the town stands an old Hall, formerly the residence of the Yarburghs. The country round is extremely flat and uninteresting, but abundantly fertile. Flax is much cultivated in the neighbourhood." Modern atlases show Great Heck and Snaith about twenty miles south of the city of York and about four miles apart, Snaith east of Great Heck. Saxton-in-Elnet (not “on-Elnet” in Internet sites) is north-west of these villages, between the cities of York and Leeds, about twelve miles from each city but slightly south of the direct line between the cities. Any map site on the Internet, such as Mapquest or Google, can give maps of Great Heck, Snaith, and Saxton-in-Elnet.
A little review of English history might be in order: In the 1640's, England became embroiled in a civil war between King Charles I and his loyalist supporters on one hand and the Puritan-controlled Parliament and its army under Oliver Cromwell on the other. Neither the Established Church of England, of which Charles was Head, nor the Puritans tolerated Quakers. If indeed Richard and Mary were Quakers (a rather shaky theory since The Society of Friends was not formally organized until 1650), they might very well have wanted to flee England. Indeed, after the capture, trial, and execution of Charles in 1649, the persecution of Quakers increased under the new Commonwealth of England. Whether or not Richard and Mary were Quakers, they were certainly Protestants and Non-Conformists of some kind, and they probably did not agree with either the Church of England or its Puritan wing. It was not legal to be a Quaker in England. Quakers were hanged both in England and in Boston, Massachusetts. That probably explains why Richard and Mary came to Rhode Island where the Baptist church under Roger Williams, remembering its own persecution in Massachusetts, was prepared to welcome Quakers.
It has been reported that Richard and Mary came to Portsmouth, Rhode Island, in 1639, but it has never been confirmed, nor has evidence been found yet for the birth places of the first three children: George, Anne, and Elizabeth (unless George was indeed the child born in 1636 in Snaith, Yorkshire).
Richard and Mary may have brought three of their children with them from England when they immigrated.
In The Descendants of Richard and Mary Sisson (page 2) David and Joan Sisson say, "There are two schools of thought on the immigration of Richard to New England. The first is that he immigrated to Dartmouth, Massachusetts [then in Plymouth Colony] in 1639 and later to Rhode
Island. The second is that he immigrated directly to Rhode Island before 1653. In either case Richard was received as inhabitant of Portsmouth June 16, 1651, admitted as a freeman in Dartmouth May 17, 1653 ("age 45") and admitted as a freeman in Portsmouth, Rhode Island, in 1655. Whether he arrived in Portsmouth from Massachusetts or England is not stated in the record. … To the best of our knowledge, no records exist indicating Richard's presence in New England prior to 1651. This seems unusual in view of the many records that exist after 1653. If on the other hand, the family immigrated in 1651, his marriage and the birth of his first three children would have occurred in England."
In his Sisson Family in 4 Parts, John Locke Martin said, "At a town meeting held in Portsmouth June 16, 1651 'Richard Sisson is received inhabitant amongst us and hath given his engagement'. . . . He was enrolled a freeman on May 17th, 1653, and in the same year 'Goodman Sisson' was chosen Constable, an office in which he must have been efficient, since he was repeatedly re-elected."
Martin goes on to say that at a "Meeting of the Inhabitants of portsm:o [i.e., Portsmouth, Rhode Island] November 30th, 1657" it was ordered that the following ten men should be given planting land on Hog Island (in Mount Hope Bay between Portsmouth and Bristol) for seven years:
"Edward ffisher, Richard Sison [sic], John Tripp [whose son married Richard and Mary's daughter], John Anthony, ffrancis Brayton, Thomas Ginings, Ralph Earll junr:, John Archar [sic], Samuell [sic] Wilson, & John Baslie."
Further Portsmouth records show that in August 1653, Richard served as a juror. On July 6, 1658, he bought 1/300th of Quonaquett Island and 1/300th of Dutch Island. In 1660 he sold both plus an additional 1/300th to Peleg Sanford. John L. Martin says "About 1667 he moved to Dartmouth, Mass., as in that year [on June 5, 1667] he was chosen on the Grand Jury, and thereafter his name appears occasionally on the Dartmouth records, although he held no office.
Richard had a large farm on the west bank of the Coakset River [Dartmouth] at the “Head.” His house was probably near what is now the corner of the “road leading southerly from the Head of Westport to South Westport, and the “Rhode Island Way” leading westerly between Sandy Pond and Stafford Pond to the Sakonnet River. The location was known as “Sisson's,” and James Sisson, his son, kept a tavern in the old homestead, which was so used for nearly two centuries. . . . This part of Dartmouth became a part of the town of Westport in 1787. At a town meeting on June 5th, 1671, Richard Sisson was elected town surveyor of highways [for Portsmouth], and no further records of him are found, till his death in 1684."
Martin continued, "On May 27th, 1668, Richard Sisson being 60 or thereabouts, gave the following testimony: 'John Archer, being at my house did speak as followeth, and said the deed of gift made by Namumpan to John Sanford and himself was a cheat, and the intent thereof was to deceive Namumpan, squaw Sachem of her land: and they were to have both corn and peague to secure her land from Wamsutta or Peter Tallman, and was to resign up the deed at her demand.’ Mary also spoke: ‘And I, Mary Sisson, do testify that I heard the same words at the same time, and further, when my husband was gone out of the house, I heard them both say they were troubled in conscience they had concealed it so long, and did refuse to take part of the gratification.' The above was attested upon oath before John Cooke. On June 3rd, 1668 Richard Sisson was sworn to this testimony before John Alden. The event probably occurred in Portsmouth, before he moved from that place to Dartmouth. John Archer and John Sanford were both residents of Portsmouth."
“We have never found any indication of a formal occupation. Some have called Richard a surveyor, but he held that title as an appointee of the town of Dartmouth, and it is unlikely that he did much actual surveying as a profession.”
Richard and Mary's son George built a house in Portsmouth, Rhode Island, on land originally owned by Richard and Mary. Possibly it was George's son Richard who built the house. The younger Richard inherited Richard and Mary’s land from his father. The house included or replaced the cellar of Richard and Mary's house. It can be seen today at 1236 East Main Road, Portsmouth, Rhode Island. About 1998 it was purchased by Roland A. Morgan, a trained historical restorer. He was planning in 1998 to open an antique shop there, though in 2007 he was living upstairs and only storing his finds on the ground floor. A house on that land may originally have been built in the 1650s, and some people think that the cellar was incorporated into the house now there.
During the 1660s Richard and Mary lived with or near their son James, in Westport, Plymouth Colony, now in Bristol County, Massachusetts. James owned a large piece of land there. Richard and Mary returned to Portsmouth, probably before King Philip's War in 1675-1676. See
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/King_Philip's_War for an account of that war. Richard died in Portsmouth, though later Mary returned to Dartmouth and died there.
“Before the King Philip War it would have been venturesome to think of settling eight miles from the seashore [at Westport], and so far as is known only one made the attempt. If the information furnished by the records is complete, the first man to locate at the head of the Noquochoke River was Richard Sisson, and he was bold and hardy enough to locate his home as early as 1671 on the west side of the river and on the south side of the highway, for in that year he was elected surveyor of the Town Roads.” From Henry B. Worth. An address at Westport’s "Old Home Week," 24 August 1908. Quoted in John L. Martin's "The Sisson Family."
"The will of Richard Sisson was dated October 18th, 1683, and was proved in Dartmouth February 26th 1684. The executor was his son James." The inventory was dated Nov. 15, 1683 (The will is listed under Richard Sison [sic] at http://etext.lib.virginia.edu/users/deetz/Plymouth/willsindex00.html).
"To wife Mary, my dwelling house and movables during her life, and twelve pounds sterling yearly rent; with firewood, orchard fruit, land for garden, liberty to keep poultry for her use, and also a horse to be maintained and kept at her command to ride on, also 2 oxen and two cows that I bought with my money; all debts due me I give to my wife. She shall have a milch cow maintained for her use, with winter shelter and summer pasture during live and two parts of all my swine. Also she shall have her corn carried to the mill and the meal brought home again sufficient for use during life, and 10 bushels of Indian corn, 3 of Rye and half of my wheat and barley.
“To son James, all my housing and land in Dartmouth, excepting land near Pongansett Pond and reservations to wife as aforesaid.
“To daughter Ann Tripp and her husband Peleg, tract of land near Pongansett Pond, and to daughter Tripp and her husband Peleg Tripp's children, all those sheep he is keeping.
“To son John, all my house and land in Portsmouth.
“To son George, five pounds in money.
“To daughter Elizabeth Allen, wife of Caleb Allen, five pounds.
“To Indian servant Samuel, a two-year-old mare.
“To grandchild Mary Sisson, daughter of George, three cows and one bed, etc., on the day of her marriage, and one pewter flagon and brass kettle which were her Aunt Mary's."
"The inventory of the estate was Ð600/19s . viz:
House & lands in Dartmouth Ð40
[ditto] Rhode Island Ð60
Cattle and horse kind Ð113/15s
Swine Ð30
Sheep Ð14/10s
Beds, etc. Ð50
New cloth, wool yarn, hemp & flax Ð13
One Negro servant Ð28
One Indian [ditto] Ð10
Money Ð12"
Useful references for Richard and his descendants are:
* Rhodes, ed. "Colonial Families of the United States," Vol II (D&J Sisson’s #4)
* Austin, John O. "160 Allied Families" (Salem, Mass.) pages 120, 208-12 (D&J #5)
* Munsell et al. "American Ancestry," (1899) Vol. 12 (D&J #6)
* Arnold, James N. "Rhode Island Vital Records" (D&J #7)
* Welling, B. "They Were Here, Too" (Greenwich, Washington County, NY: New York Historical Society, 1963-71) (D&J #8)
* Paige, Lucius R. "List of Freemen of Massachusetts, 1630-1691" (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 1978) (D&J #9)
* Austin, John O. "The Genealogical Dictionary of RI," (Albany, 1887), p. 181 (D&J #10)
* Martin, John L. "Sisson Family" (New Bedford, Mass.: typescript, 1930s; indexed by David S. Martin, 1991) Vol I, pp 10-4, 7, 17 (D&J #11)
* Rhode Island Historical Society. "The Early Records of the Town of Portsmouth." (Freeman and Sons, 1901) (D&J #392)
