John Andrews - Pequot War Veteran and Tax Rebel
Family Connection - 8th great-grandfather of Roy Ellsworth Stricker
John Andrews was born in about 1621 in England. He immigrated to Massachusetts in about 1636 and settled in the town of Ipswich. It has been suggested that he was a servant to John and Sarah Dillingham of Ipswich when he first arrived.
John served in the Pequot War in 1637. For his service, he was granted an eight acre lot in the part of Ipswich known as Chebacco.
He was a carpenter and yeoman by trade. Sometime around 1645 he married Jane Jordan, daughter of Stephen Jordan of Ipswich. They had five children, all born in Ipswich:
John b. 1646 d. 1717
William b. 1648 d. 1716
Elizabeth b. 1650 d. 1709
Thomas b. 1654 d. 1718
Joseph b. 1656 d. 1724
John was active in civic life. He served on the Essex grand jury five times between 1669 and 1685. He served on the Essex Petit Jury three times between 1663 and 1666. He was elected Selectman (Town Councilman) four times between 1672 and 1693. In 1687, he was the Town Meeting Moderator. His other positions included Tithingman (tax collector), Surveyor, and member of at least eight town committees.
By February 12, 1671, he was the Corporal of the Ipswich train band (local militia). By March 1683 he was named Lieutenant of the 3rd Company of Chebacco.
In 1674, the area of Ipswich called Chebacco built their own meetinghouse. By 1679, they started their own church, known as Second Ipswich Church, with the Rev. John Wise as minister.
In the early 1680's, King Charles II of England revoked the Charter of the Massachusetts Colony and installed Edmund Andros as the Royal Governor. Among Andros' first actions was to invoke a large tax on the colonists. In Ipswich, a group of town leaders including Andrews met and voted to refuse to appoint a special tax collector and refuse to pay the tax. A town meeting was held shortly after, and a statement was unanimously passed, refusing to pay the tax. Shortly after, Rev. John Wise and five other town leaders including John Andrews, were arrested, taken to Boston, jailed, and heavily fined. John Andrews' fine was £30, an amount equal to the average yearly income for a colonist. Andrews and the others were released after paying the fines.
Mural in Ipswich Post Office portraying the Tax Revolution of 1689
Mural was painted in 1941. John Andrews is likely portrayed as the man sitting on the stool, presiding over the meeting in his role as town clerk and moderator
John Andrews and his four sons also signed a petition in 1692 in support of John and Elizabeth Proctor of Salem, formerly of Chebacco, stating that John and Elizabeth were innocent of witchcraft. John and Elizabeth were found guilty. John was executed. Elizabeth was spared immediate execution because she was pregnant. By the time she had the child, the witch hysteria had died down and she was released.
John Andrews died in Chebacco on April 20, 1708. Jane, his wife, died in 1706. Their burial locations are not known.
John Andrews > John Andrews > Judith Andrews > Jerusha Larabee > Ebenezer Grover > Aaron Palmer Grover > William Grover > Eugene Grover > Lillian May Grover > Gertrude Myra Newland > Roy Ellsworth Stricker Charts S-D and S-Main
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