Thursday, March 2, 2023

Will the Real Stephen Wright Please Stand Up!



In 1776 a man named Stephen Wright from Westford served in the Continental Army as a drummer at White Plains and in 1778 and 1780 in Rhode Island. He may have received a pension for his service. Town records show his burial place to be unknown but an online genealogy shows that place to be Bethel NY.

A gravestone in Westlawn Cemetery in Westford also has a gravestone for a Stephen Wright, this man was from Littleton and would have been 12 years old in 1776. Although it is not too young to be a drummer there is no listing for a Stephen from Littleton having served. Could these be one in the same man or are they different.

Steven Wright #1 was born in Westford May 18, 1758 to Henry and Sarah Wright according to Westford Vital Records. (1) He was one of 10 children born between 1753 and 1770. He would have been 18 years old in 1776 and 21 at the time of his marriage to Sarah Carter of Hollis NH, the intention of marriage published December 8, 1779. (2) It is unclear when they moved to New York but there is a Stephen Wright on the 1810 census for Genesee NY although there are no identifiers on that census sheet. (3) The 1820 census shows a head of household over 45 years of age, Stephen would be 62 at that time (4) Graves for Sarah and Steven Wright are located in Transit Cemetery, Bethany Center, Genesee NY both died in 1831. (5)

Stephen Wright #2 was born in Littleton May 24, 1764 to Peter and Ellen Wright according to Littleton Records. (6) He had 3 older brothers. Peter Wright died in 1770 per Littleton records (7) however, his probate is dated October 1768 (8) and Ellen/Elnenor is listed as the taxpayer in 1770. (9) The property then goes to Ezekiel in 1782 with Ellen getting her widow’s thirds and the 2 youngest children Stephen and Betty are assigned a guardian as they are still not of legal age. (10) On April 5, 1787 Stephen married Sarah Prescott of Westford, vital records note Stephen still in Littleton (11)  Stephen died at the home of his daughter in Shelburne MA on February 16, 1857 at 92. His obituary notes he “enlisted in the revolutionary war at the age of 16” (12) which would have been in 1780 but the Find a Grave entry states he fought at and was wounded at Bunker Hill in 1775 at which time he was 11 years old.  It is possible, that who ever wrote the obituary was unaware that Stephen #2 was not from Westford and stated he was a veteran as the names matched. There is no listing in Massachusetts Soldiers and Sailors of the Revolutionary War for a Stephen/Steven from Littleton. A history of Littleton also notes a Stephen Wright served but gives no details (13) There is an interesting tidbit from what looks to be a pension application in Abstracts of the Revolutionary War Pension Applications Nancy Lowrie Wright, Cathy Dantin Shannon · 1990 · Snippet view page 236 “Stephen Wright has been in the tannery business in Littleton for more than 60 years and he is a man of unblemished integrity. Benjamin has a thorough acquaintance of the people of Littleton and feels confident that no other Stephen…” This does not give any details as to what that service was.

There are listings in Massachusetts Soldiers and Sailors of the Revolutionary War Volume 17 page 958-9 for 5 men named Stephen Wright (no men named Steven Wight). These men are from Granville, Southampton, Westford and a man from western MA and someone who was a sergeant, but none from Littleton. The Stephen from Granville was the only one with service in 1775. 

It would be useful to see tax records from Littleton to see how long Stephen did live in Littleton and when he came to Westford but since both men married a woman named Sarah it is going to be difficult to determine which is which during the time they are both in town. Also, useful would be to see all the pension paperwork for the Stephens.

Based on this research, I believe the soldier listed as being from Westford and matching the listing in MSSRW is Stephen Wright #1, as he was born and living in Westford during the Revolutionary period. He is not buried here but in Bethel NY. Stephen Wright #2 is living in Littleton through the Revolutionary war years as noted by the probate paperwork for guardianship in 1782. If he is the Stephen with the tannery then he did not live in Westford until later in life.   

 

1.    (1) https://ma-vitalrecords.org/MA/Middlesex/Westford/BirthsW.shtml

2.     (2) https://ma-vitalrecords.org/MA/Middlesex/Westford/MarriagesW.shtml

3.    (3) https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33SQ-GYYY-42Q?cc=1803765&personaUrl=%2Fark%3A%2F61903%2F1%3A1%3AXH2P-L7H

4.    (4) https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33SQ-GYY1-2K1?view=index&personArk=%2Fark%3A%2F61903%2F1%3A1%3AXHLV-7LN&action=view&groupId=TH-1942-25139-13069-69

5.   (5) https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/77843013/stephen-wright

6.   (6) https://www.google.com/books/edition/Records_of_Littleton_Massachusetts/RcYMAAAAYAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&bsq=%22stephen%20wright%22

7.    (7) https://www.google.com/books/edition/Records_of_Littleton_Massachusetts/0Q150tWDQ7wC?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=Peter+wright+1768+littleton&pg=PA440&printsec=frontcover

8.    (8) https://www.americanancestors.org/databases/middlesex-county-ma-probate-file-papers-1648-1871/image?rId=38454519&volumeId=14469&pageName=25744:2&filterQuery=

9.    (9) https://legacy.sites.fas.harvard.edu/~hsb41/masstax/masstax.cgi?state=person&person=03230344

10.(10)  https://www.americanancestors.org/databases/middlesex-county-ma-probate-file-papers-1648-1871/image?volumeId=14469&pageName=25745:3&rId=38454533

11. (11) https://ma-vitalrecords.org/MA/Middlesex/Westford/Images/Westford_M219.gif

12.(12) https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/168595917/stephen-wright

13.  (13) PDF history of Littleton, citation needed

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