John Gay (Dedham)

John Gay (died March 4, 1688) was a prominent early settler and selectman in Dedham, Massachusetts.^{[1][2][3][4][5][6]}

Coat of Arms of John Gay

Gay emigrated to America with John Winthrop on the Mary and John on May 30, 1630.^[1] He settled first in Watertown, Massachusetts and was a grantee in the Great Dividends and in the Beaver Brook plowlands, owning altogether forty acres.^[1] He was admitted freeman on May 6, 1635.^[1] With his wife, Joanna,^[a] he had 11 children.^[1]

With others of Watertown, he was one of the founders of the plantation of Dedham, Massachusetts.^[1][4] He was one of those who petitioned for incorporation of the town on September 6, 1636^[1] and signed the Dedham Covenant.^[7] He served as selectmen in 1654^[1][8][2] and in a variety of other positions, including constable and member of the county grand jury.^[9]

In 1661, Gay was the richest man in Dedham.^[9] His wealth dwindled in his later years, though, with much of it likely going to his sons, until he was in near poverty at the time of his death.^[9] Gay died March 4, 1688.^[1][9] His will in the Suffolk records was dated December 18, 1686 and was proved December 17, 1689.^[1] His estate was valued at £91 5s 8d.^[1][9]

Notes

1. Joanna died August 14, 1691. She is said in family tradition to have been widow Baldwicke before her marriage to John Gay.^[1]

References

1. Gay, Frederick Lewis (1879). John Gay of Dedham, Massachusetts: And Some of His Descendants. D. Clapp & son, printers. p. 3. Retrieved 22 December 2019. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
2. Lockridge 1985, p. 40.
3. Abbott, Katharine M. (1903). Old Paths And Legends Of New England (PDF). New York: The Knickerbocker Press. p. 290. Retrieved October 6, 2018.
4. Worthington 1827, p. 84.
5. Worthington 1827, p. 122.
6. State Street Trust Company (Boston, Mass.) (1920). Towns of New England and Old England, Ireland and Scotland ... Connecting Links Between Cities and Towns of New England and Those of the Same Name in England, Ireland and Scotland: Containing Narratives, Descriptions, and Many Views, Some Done from Old Prints; Also Much Matter Pertaining to the Founders and Settlers of New England and to Their Memorials on Both Sides of the Atlantic. G.P. Putnam's Sons. p. 104. Retrieved 22 December 2019.
7. Hill, Don Gleason, ed. (1892). The Early Records of the Town of Dedham, Massachusetts. 1636–1659 (PDF). Vol. 3. Dedham Transcript. p. 3.
8. Worthington 1827, p. 79–81.
9. Lockridge 1985, p. 61.

Works cited

• Lockridge, Kenneth (1985). A New England Town. New York: W.W. Norton & Company. ISBN 978-0-393-95459-3.
• Worthington, Erastus (1827). The history of Dedham: from the beginning of its settlement, in September 1635, to May 1827. Dutton and Wentworth. Retrieved November 8, 2019.