A year ago we moved to Ida Culver Broadview, 3.6 miles from our home in Ballard. One of our neighbors kindly said she would provide a safe home for Katerina. All was well I hoped. But then the neighbor moved and news of Katerina vanished. Our granddaughter stayed in our house for a while and Katerina showed up occasionally. so we knew she was well but where was she really living? Our neighborhood cat!

Mystery happily solved! She is still in the neighborhood but one street over. Her name is now “Sweetie”. The new owner/neighbor wants to formally adopt her – make it legal! I am so happy! And it looks as if Katerina is really receiving loving (and luxurious) care in her new home. Her new owner lives within a stone’s throw of our old house but one street over.

How did the new owner find me? Well it was thanks to the microchip in Katerina’s ear. A local vet followed the electronic trail and contacted me on behalf of Sweetie’s aka Katerina’s benefactrice. Clever Katerina, lucky Katerina.

I was idly reading the Seattle Times at breakfast this morning when I came across an article by a Peace Corps volunteer in Cameroon. The Peace Corps – I immediately think of my mother who at the age of 50+ served in Nepal in the 1960’s. She was in one of the first groups of volunteers to serve in that country. At the close of the Seattle Times article I discover that the author is a Seattle native AND he is a graduate of Middlebury College – my alma mater. Bing! I must follow up on this.

The author of the Seattle Times article, Grant Friedman, was serving in Cameroon when he, along with all the other Peace Corps Volunteers around the world, was recalled to the U.S. because of the spread of the COVID virus. This was the first time in the 60 year history of the Peace Corps that such a recall had taken place.

This is my second blog post in my proposed series of my immigrant ancestors’ stories.

I have randomly chosen Andrew Warner and Mary Maria Humphrey, my tenth Great Grandparents. They came from Essex in the eastern part of England. They were married in 1624 in Thaxted in Essex. Andrew was about 30 years old and Mary a bit younger about 23. They had 4 children when they departed from Bristol in late August 1631 on the ship Lyon. Their voyage to North America took a little over 60 days. They landed at Nantasket Beach Plymouth Colony Massachusetts. There is no mention of the 4 children but let us assume the children accompanied them..

Andrew was a farmer and they settled in the Connecticut River Valley in western Massachusetts…They had several more children. Mary died in 1672 at the age of 71. Andrew lived to about age 88, dying in 1684 The inventory of his estate totaled over 356 pounds, of which 253 pounds was real estate.: “4 acres land in Hoccanum,” 20 pounds; 2 acres and a rood at the burying yard,” 5 pounds; “house and homestead, 65 pounds; “6 acres in the great meadow on the south side of the middle way,” 30 pounds; “4 acres in the swamp,” 32 pounds; 4 acres in said meadow,” 24 pounds; “4 acres in said meadow, 24 pounds; “4 1/2 acres inHoccanum.” 20 pounds; “one piece of skirts there,” 2 pounds; and “12 acres of land over the river,” 55 pounds

I’ve been doing so much work on my genealogy – it’s time to share a bit more of that information. I plan to do a series of blog posts about my ancestors who immigrated to North America. These people are specifically and mostly my 7th, 8th, and 9th great grandparents and they haled from England and came to New England. The list totals over 300 men and women. .I really should start with those who came on the Mayflower but just to be perverse I’m starting more randomly and I’ve chosen Thomas Dexter, my 9th Great Grandfather.

There are 4 Thomas Dexters in my genealogy and it has taken a while to sort them out.

Thomas Dexter 1 1520-1574 my 12th GGF (Great Grandfather)

Thomas Dexter 2 1548-1606 my 11th GGF

Thomas Dexter 3 1575-1676 my 10th GGF

Thomas Dexter 4 1594-1676 my 9th GGF

It is Thomas Dexter 4 above who is the immigrant ancestor I am going to profile here. He was a man of staunch character. He came to America either with Mr. Endicott in 1629 or in the fleet with Governor Winthrop in 1630 Accompanying him were at least 3 of his children and several servants. It is presumed that his wife died before they sailed from England.It is assumed that he formerly lived in Bristol England, as he had a number of dealings with people who lived in that part of England.

In 1630 he settled on a 800 acre farm in Lynn Massachusetts. The farmhouse was located on the west side of the Saugus River, about where the iron works were later erected.

In 1633 he built a bridge over the Saugus River and stretched a weir across. A little later he built a mill nearby.

He had a good education and had a lot of energy but rather a bellicose nature.

He was very interested in starting an iron works which were the first to be built in North America. The iron ore was to be brought from Cape Cod. He got capital from England to invest in the project. He became the General Manager of the project but some years later he withdrew feeling that the project could not succeed.

In 1631 he became a Freeman but was disenfranchised in 1933. He was a man who had many quarrels and vexatious lawsuits.

In 1637 Thomas Dexter and nine others obtained from the Plymouth Colony Court a grant of the township of Sandwich It was there that he built the first Grist Mill. However, he remained in Lynn until 1646.

In 1657 Thomas Dexter took the oath of fidelity. He was admitted Freeman of Plymouth Colony in 1658. He retired to live a quiet life looking after his farms and his mill. He spent his final years in Boston with his daughter. He is buried in King’s Chapel burying-ground.