William Smead, Jr.: Revolutionary War Veteran and Early Settler of Scipio

Family History of William Smead, Jr. (1742-1815)

William Smead II (ca. 1626-ca. 1703)

The Smead Family has a long history in the New World, beginning with a William Smead II, son of William Smead I (ca. 1595-ca. 1628), who was first brought from Gravesend, Kent, England in the fall of 1635 to the island of Barbados in the eastern Caribbean by his twice-widowed mother, Judith Stoughton Denman Smead. The family subsequently arrived at Dorchester in the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1636. Judith died there about 3 years later. William Smead II lived at Dorchester over the next two decades, removing to Northampton, Hampshire Co., Massachusetts in 1660, not long after marrying Elizabeth Lawrence. In 1684, William and Elizabeth removed to Deerfield, Franklin Co., Massachusetts where William died ca. 1703.

John Smead I (1673-1720)

Among the children of William Smead II and Elizabeth Lawrence was a son, John Smead I (an earlier son of the same name died young) born 27 August 1673 at Northampton, Hampshire Co., Massachusetts. John married Anna Weld at Deerfield on 22 November 1699. They resided at nearby Wapping. John was wounded by Indians during the "Deerfield Massacre" of 1704 and carried a musket ball in his thigh for the rest of his life. Thus began what seemed to be a propensity of Smeads to suffer Indian attacks, perhaps because they repeatedly settled on the frontiers of the day. John served as a Selectman and Assessor before his death at Wapping on 30 April 1720.

Ensign William Smead, Sr. (1706-1797)

[NOTE:  William Smead, Sr. appears with the surname spelling "Smeed" on his tombstone and in most contemporary records. Earlier and later generations generally used "Smead."]

This William Smead -- who might also be considered another William Smead I given his son and grandson named William -- was born to John and Anna Weld Smead at Deerfield on 22 October 1706. At the age of 27, William became a Proprietor of the Upper Township on Ashuelot River in 1734 with the payment of 5 pounds for an 8-acre house lot in the wilderness up the Connecticut River. The initial lots would accommodate about 60 families under a land grant from the Massachusetts Bay Colony. This area would later become Keene, Cheshire Co., New Hampshire. Year-round occupancy of the new settlement began in the spring of 1737 after several years of summer work laying out the house lots and surveying additional lots to support agricultural activity.

William married Phebe Partridge on 9 November 1738 at Medway, Norfolk Co., Massachusetts. As far as known, Phebe accompanied her husband back to the Upper Township on Ashuelot River following their marriage. William was by this time a Sergeant in the local militia, and events on the frontier would require his service within the following decade. King George's War, later locally known as the Old French and Indian War, caused removal of all the settlers from the Upper Township in March 1747. Where William moved his family is not evident but may have been to Deerfield or to Medway where Phebe's mother yet lived. William, however, returned to the frontier to serve as Sergeant in Captain Josiah Willard, Jr.'s Company at Fort Dummer (near present-day Brattleboro, Windham Co., Vermont) and at Ashuelot for the duration of the War, mustering out on 26 October 1748.

William and Phebe probably returned to the Upper Township on Ashuelot River in the spring of 1749. The settlement largely had been destroyed by the French and Indians, necessitating reconstruction of houses and outbuildings. In 1753, the Proprietors after many petitions to the government of New Hampshire finally succeeded in getting their land grant from Massachusetts rechartered as Keene by New Hampshire to reflect the contemporary colonial borders. The Smeads again seemed to attract French and Indian attacks with the outbreak of the Seven Years' War, locally called the New French and Indian War. William's military rank was specifically noted as Ensign between 1755 and 1760, indicating continuing militia service while he also served 4 years as Selectman.

The family remained in Keene until about 1761 when William sold extensive tracts of land after they had already removed to nearby Walpole, Cheshire Co., New Hampshire. William and Phebe resided at Walpole through 1767. By 1771, the family was in Windsor, Windsor Co., Vermont where they remained. Ensign William Smead, Sr. died 26 October 1797 at Windsor.

William Smead, Jr. (ca. 1742-1815)

The first two sons of William Smead, Sr. and Phebe Partridge, Asa and Joel, died in 1744. William and Phebe later would have two more sons bearing those names. William Smead, Jr. -- who might also be called William Smead II given his father and son named William -- was the third son of William and Phebe, probably born in 1742 at the Upper Township on Ashuelot River. William, Jr., as far as known, grew up on the family lands there and presumably removed with his parents to Walpole ca. 1761. He married Mehetebell Brown at Walpole on 20 August 1767, the ceremony being performed by Rev. Thomas Fessenden of the newly formed Walpole Church of which William's father, and probably mother, were founding members earlier that year.

William Smead, Jr. appears as a Head of Household in a census taken at Windsor in 1771, indicating that he and Mehetebell had removed there from Walpole at about the same time as his parents. William's deed at Windsor was reconveyed in 1772 following a change in jurisdiction of the area from New Hampshire to New York. By 1777, William, Jr. is censused at Cornish Township, Sullivan Co., New Hampshire. This area is directly across the Connecticut River from Windsor.

William Smead, Jr. in the Revolutionary War

The Revolutionary War did not seem to affect William in 1777, despite the Battles of Saratoga being fought in September and October, not far from Vermont. However, Major Ebenezer Woods directed that men from Windsor conduct scouting activities between June and September 1778. A William Smead served as a Scout for 3 days during this time. It is likely that the "Wm. Smead" shown on the rolls of Vermont was William Smead, Jr. because his father was then 71 years old.

William was not called to serve again until 1780. Between 2 August and 8 August of that year, William was a member of Captain John Mercy's Company (also seen as Captain John Marcy's Company) for 6 days when they marched 20 miles in pursuit of Tories on the order of Colonel Ebenezer Woods of Windsor. William's pay rate was 1 shilling 4 pence per day. He received a mileage rate of 4 pence per mile. His total pay for this period was 14 shillings 8 pence.

William again served from 20 October to 31 October 1780 in Lieutenant Asahel Smith's Company, Vermont Militia, marching to Fort Fortitude by order of Lieutenant Colonel Safford. The Fort was located at Bethel, Windsor Co., Vermont near the White River, but the exact location has been lost. Captain Smith's Company marched 40 miles during this time, for which William's total pay was 1 pound 8 shillings.

No further reference to William Smead, Jr. appears in the Vermont records of Revolutionary War soldiers. We can presume that William returned to his land in or near Windsor after each of his brief forays scouting or with the militia. In terms of Revolutionary War service, William's total time of 20 days was minimal and may not have included any actual combat. Nevertheless, we honor the fact that William was a patriot who contributed to securing independence for the Colonies.

William Smead, Jr. and Settlement of Scipio

No records of William and Mehetebell Brown Smead in the decade between the William's last Revolutionary War service and the first federal census in 1790 are readily accessible. At some point, the family must have removed from the area of Windsor because William appears at Queensbury, Washington Co., New York (now Queensbury, Warren Co., New York) in the referenced census, adjacent to David Eddy. The Smead and Eddy families must have moved westward together to settle in the Town of Scipio, Cayuga Co., New York before 1800 because they are again adjacent in the 1800 federal census of Scipio, thus beginning what would be a long association between the families. No mention of William Smead, Jr.'s settlement in Scipio appears in Storke's (1879) account of this period. One bit of evidence may be gleaned from the date of David Eddy's settlement, as known from an account by his son, Owen, who stated that David moved to Scipio when Owen was 8 years old. That would make the year ca. 1795. We can speculate that William Smead, Jr.'s family came in at the same time, given their adjacent locations in 1800.

William Smead, Jr. probably resided on present-day Bergerstock Road in the Town of Scipio. His oldest living son (as of 1800), William Smead III , appears there (with surname spelled "Smeed") on an 1853 map of Scipio, presumably having inherited his father's land. The Smead farm was on the north side of the block where David Eddy, whose farms were on present-day Manchester and Black Street roads, settled. William Smead, Jr. died on 17 February 1815. His wife, Mehetebell, died on 6 January 1823. Both are buried in the Eddy Cemetery on Manchester Road.

Monument for Revolutionary War veteran William Smead, Jr. and his wife, Mehetebell Brown Smead in Eddy Cemetery, Manchester Road, Scipio, Cayuga Co., New York

Children of William Smead, Jr. and Mehetebell Brown Smead

William and Mehetebell had four living sons when the family settled Scipio:  William Smead III (aka William Smead, Jr.) (1779-1860), Jedediah Levens Smead (1781-1865), Marshall Smead (1784-1853), and Allen Smead (1788-1858). Their first son, David Smead, died at Walpole in 1768, probably at or near birth. One source references a William Smead baptized on 17 May 1772 at Windsor. This William may have died young because William Smead III appears to have been born in 1779. Other, unrecorded, children also may have been born and died young during the 11-year gap between David and William Smead III.

With the exception of William Smead III of  Bergerstock Road, the sons of William and Mehetebell eventually removed to the western portion of New York State settling in Livingston and Genesee counties, where they left many descendants, including some who later returned to Scipio.