John Wells (abt. 1660 - abt. 1736)

John Wells

Born about 1660 in Wallingford, Berkshire, England [uncertain]

Son of [father unknown] and [mother unknown]

[sibling(s) unknown]

Husband of Mary Anne Unknown — married [date unknown] [location unknown]

DESCENDANTS 

Father of Edward Wells

Died about 1736 in Pennsylvania

prof'l genealogist, Michael

 WOOD,   'The pedigree of WELLS of Wallingford

 prepared by Major H R E RUDKIN [HR], that is at

 SoG, says the Edward WELLS who died in 1749,

 will proved 1750, was son

 of John WELLS who mar.

 19 Sept 1683 Susannah

 WEST, [see ID 1 at *1650

 WELLS of Wantage at 3.2

 below] whose son Edward

 was bapt 19 April 1685

 [IGI].

But this cannot be so,

 because the Wallingford

 Borough Minutes at

 Berkshire Record Office,

 reference W/ACa 2, says on f. 203 that on 28

 September 1703 "Att a

 Common Councell ... a fine of foure pounds was then agreed to be sett upon ----- WELLS fellmonger for exercising the said trade of a fellmonger within this Borough upon payt, of such fine, it is ordered he shall be made a freeman." On f. 205, "At a Common Councell held for the said Borough the fifteenth day of Dec'  Anno Dom' 1703 then Edward WELLES was sworne a Freeman of  this Borough for Exercising the trade of a Fellmonger only and paid into the hands of the Chamberlain foure pounds for his Fyne,  Rich BLACKALL, Mayor."

  Our ancestor who died in 1749 described himself as fellmonger in his will, so is this man. The freedom of a Borough was granted only at age 21 or later, either by patrimony, that is, as the son of a freeman, by apprenticeship, usually after seven years, or, as in this case, by redemption, that is, payment of an entry fee ("fine") when a man who moved to the borough had to become a freeman so that he could lawfully do business within the borough. Therefore our ancestor was born in or before 1682.' [Me: There is also the unlikely possibility that Edward was not bp'd til he was 3 or 4.]

 His surname was common in Berkshire and Oxfordshire, and although I have not been able to prove it, I think our ancestor might be the Edward son of Edward and Elizabeth WELLS who was baptised 23 Feb 1678/9 at Goring, Oxon. He had several brothers and sisters, but although that of a brother Ralph is not recorded this could be because of a gap from 1686 to 1689. However, Ralph and Mary WELLS had nine children bapt at Goring 1716 to 1733. Against this attribution is that the register [SoG OX/R217] says Elizabeth wife of Edward WELLS was buried there 25 Sept 1728, and Edward WELLS "from the Almshouses" 21 Jan 1739/40. Would the successful fellmonger at Wallingford have let his father die in an almshouse?'

Sources

• Michael J. WoodProfessional Genealogist, London.