by Simon and Anne (Brigham) Crosby were my 8th Great Grandparents. They were born in Holme-on-Spalding-Moor in the County of York, England at the beginning of the 17th century.
Simon, the son of Thomas and Jane (Sothern) Crosby was born in 1608 and Anne was born in 1606 to Thomas and Isabel (Watson) Brigham. The two married on April 21, 1634 and Anne gave birth to their first child, Thomas Crosby (my 7th Great Grandfather) on February 26, 1635.
Simon and his family didn’t stay long in Holme-on-Spalding-Moor. The information I have located does not give the reason, but in July 1635 Simon, Anne and Thomas arrived in Boston, MA aboard the sailing vessel Susan and Ellyn. Sailing to America in the 1600s was not a simple voyage. Aside from any dangers from the sea and storms, the trip took about 2-4 months. This would have meant that Thomas set sail when he was 8-weeks old.
The family settled in Cambridge, MA where Anne gave birth to Simon (6 Aug 1637) and Joseph (12 Aug 1639).
On April 18, 1638, Simon’s parents set sail from London for America aboard the John of London.
… before the end of 1635 we find Simon Crosby living at Newtown (Cambridge). He was admitted as a freeman on March 3, 1636 and chosen as a selectman in the fall of that year. In September of 1637 he was elected surveyor of highways; was selectman again in 1638, and in October of that year was elected constable.
On Dec. 5, 1636 land was granted to him and six others for pasture. He died in Cambridge in September 1639, at only 31 years of age. The cause of his death is not known, but we can surmise that his death may have been fairly sudden, since he died intestate. An addendum to Ernest Howard Crosby’s record quoted above says that the orginal inventory of the estate of Simon Crosby, signed by his widow Anne, is on file in the archives of Massachuetts at Boston. It places the value of his property at 433 pounds.
— Henry Howard Crosby, The New York Genealogical and Biographical Record, October 1898.
Simon’s wife, Anne, died on 11 October 1675, in Braintree, MA.
Thomas, Simon’s oldest son, helped to ensure that the Crosby name lasted in America. Thomas and his wife, Sarah Fitch, were married in 1662 and had 12 children. Some of the names — Mercy, Increase, Ebenezer & Eleazer — were typical for New England in the late 1600s.
Thomas graduated from Harvard in 1653 and for a period of 15 years, beginning in 1655, he was the Reverend for the church in Eastham, MA. Thomas subsequently became a merchant in Hawrich, MA and wrote several religious books.
On June 27, 1702, Thomas died and was buried in Old Granary Burying Ground, Boston, MA. His wife Sarah re-married (m2: John Miller, 28 Apr 1704) and died in 1719 in Fairfield, CT.
The lineage from Simon Crosby to my son is as follows:
Simon Crosby > Thomas Crosby > Thomas Crosby > Edward Crosby > Edward Crosby > Edward Crosby > John Crosby > John Crosby > Roy Crosby > Maurice Crosby > Maurice Crosby Jr. > Maurice Crosby III
Sources:
- New York Genealogical and Biographical Society, Vol 28-29 October 1898: Henry Howard Crosby
- The Descendants of John Crosby (PDF File @ http://fcrosby.com)
- Yarmouth Nova Scotia Genealogies, 1896-1909
- Simon Crosby the Emigrant by Eleanor Crosby, published 1914.
Very cool information. My closest Crosby Ancestor was Amanda Crosby born in Putnam NY. Her Father was Stephen Crosby (he married Lydia Sears), his father was Abner Crosby,his father was David Crosby Jr, and then David Crosby Sr., his Father was Thomas, and ending with Simon. Funny thing, my daughter’s father is a Crosby. Didn’t know I had a Crosby line when we were together. My daughter gets grossed out by this. Not sure exactly where we are related. The trial ended in NY.
Lisa,
My tree has a loop in it as well. Two great grandchild of a Wenger married each other. It wasn’t all that uncommon in the 18th & 19th centuries.
Hi Moe,
Great website! I just stumbled across it today. I have been working on the Hayward genealogy for quite some time (my husband’s side) and had quite a bit on the Crosby’s, but your site has clarified so much for me and it’s been really helpful – Thank You for all of your hard work! Our line goes: Thomas, Symon, Simon, Jospeh, Prudence, Jesse Fisher, Mary Polly Fisher, Jesse Howard, Samuel Howard, Arthur Howard who is my husbands Grandfather.
Julie
Julie,
Glad the site was of some use to you. Even though we share distant Crosbys, your line has an America birth before mine. We split at the generation after Simon… my line goes to Thomas and yours goes to Simon. Thomas was born on voyage to the new world, while Simon (2) was born in Massachusetts.
There is a link in the article for the book about Simon the Emigrant. That book traces the line all the way to the 1400s. This post has a brief bio on our ancestors from Simon backward.
http://epluribus.me/2013/06/16/my-fathers-fathers-the-crosby-line-1440-1936/
Moe
Good day Moe., I am a descendant of Rev. Thomas Crosby, His wife was Sarah Fitch,
She died in 1704, it is said that she was in Yarmouth Ma at the time of her death, probably
living with her son Joseph Crosby (1668-1725) please correct me if I am wrong.
Dr J. Le Francois Niagara on the Lake ON.
Hello cousin,
According to the “Simon Crosby the Emigrant”, Sara was remarried 28 Apr 1704, after Thomas’ death, to John Miller of Yarmouth, MA.
The information I have found says Sara died 1719 in Fairfield, CT. However, there is no citation for that information and I can’t confirm the date or place.
Here is the link to the Crosby book that I mentioned… http://epluribus.me/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/Simon_Crosby_the_emigrant.pdf
Thank you for sharing this information. Simon Crosby is my 10th great grandfather (if I counted correctly.). We are all related in this world, it seems but it’s fun when we find ancestors in common.
Here is a website about Simon Crosby the Emigrant and some descendants. You can download the book here, too, for free.
https://acrosbystory.com/sources/
Moe – thanks for including the link above. I really enjoy the Crosby search,as do all of you. However, in addition to the actual family tree, which I refer to as the skeleton of the family, I am trying to add flesh to that skeleton. The flesh are the actual stories of the families – the things that make them real and human.
To that end you will see videos, story line, family letters and anything else which I can use to build a story. Examples are the Simon Crosby video, and the George Francis Crosby story under Families/Crosby/George Francis.
This format is my attempt to interest the younger generations in what it means to be a Crosby.
If you or anyone else has stories to tell, please contact me via the Contact Form at “acrosbystory.com”
Best regards,
cousin Larry
Trying to find an Isabel Crosby married to John Thomson, her father was Hugh Crosby.
Thank you for this site it has given me a glimmer of hope.
Trying to establish a Mayflower connection
In appreciation,
Lefayre.
Hello Lefayre. I have none of those names in my database. I tend to stick with my direct ancestors in my research. I do list all of their children when I find the information, but most times I don’t follow those children. In the right hand column there are some links that may help you. Particularly the “Descendants of John Crosby” link. There is also a site listed above your message. Best of luck!
Appreciate the knowledge that you are related to Simone and Thomas, I too have seen our family tree that goes back to Simone through the two Thomas’s,
I am from Newton Massachusetts and born in Boston and my dad had taken me as a boy to Yarmouth to many of the graves and other areas follow the family line.