Nicholas Wright IV1,2,3

M, b. 1609, d. before 18 December 1682
FatherNicholas Wright III b. c 1560
MotherMargaret Nelson
     Nicholas was born in 1609 in Barton Turf, County Norfolk, England. Nicholas married Ann (?) circa 1637 in Sandwich, Cape Cod, Barnstable County, Massachusetts. Nicholas, as did his brothers, did well financially, and became one of the largest land owners at Oyster Bay. After his death, there was apparently some disagreement over the division of the estate and after the death of his widow Ann, the children entered into a legal agreement to end the dispute.
He made his will 10 April 1674 at the Town of Oyster Bay, Queens County, Long Island, New York.

I, Nicholas Wright aged Sixty five yeares or thereabouts, being Sick & weak yet in Pfect memory do Bequeath my Soul to ye Almighty God that gave it me and my Body to ye earth from whence it same.
Imprrnis. I make my Loving Wife Ann Wright Sole Executrix of my movables both wtbin my house and wthout, both of kine, horseflesh & swine Together wth my House & Lands which I now possess, during her Life: And to have y full Disposing of any parts or parcell of it as Shee Shall See Cause, for her use & relief whilst Shee Doth Live: Onely a parte of my Home Lott from ye North Side of my Orchard to the Highway next to my Sisters Crabbs, I have given to my son Caleb for his prsent use it being ye Same Breadth to ye Reare of my Lott, And after my decease, and my wives Decease, All ye Home Lott & Orchard is to my soon Calebs wth a right of Cocoons to it: And my Lands upon Hog Island to be Equally Divided between my three Sonns Caleb, John & Edmond, And also my right of Meadow at ye South is to be Equally Divided Betweene my beformentioned Sons, And also my Meadows Lying on ye Bever Swomp Crick, 'Oh my Share of Meadow in ye Home Meadows is to be Equally Divided between my Sons Caleb & Edmond and ye Share of Meadow on ye West side of ye Bever Swomp River I give unto my Son John, and further, that Lott of Land lying by Joseph Weekes Home Lott is to be equally Divided between my Son John & Edmund, And further my Lands by y Way that goes to Robert Williams plantacon with comon priviledges is to be equally Divided amongst my three Sonns before named, And y pence of Land Lying before my Home Lott that was given to my Soune John by y Town is to be my Soon Edmonds in Lew of this peeve of Land I give my Sonn John that pece of Land whereon he now Lives, And my peece of Swomp in the Mill River Swomp is to be equally Divided between Caleb and Edmond, All these Lands & Meadows here menconed Excepting that t to Caleb that is given to him presence is to be all, at my wives Disposing during her Life & this is my Last Will & Testament.
It is to be understood that peece of Land within menconed on y other side that I give to my Soon John in Lew of that peeve I had of him, before my Home Lott, that was given him by ye Town, he is to have all that Lott whereon he now Lives to him & his Heirs forever, provided he pays five pounds at Slattertime next ensuing in Beafe or porke at Merchants price: And to this I Subscribe my hand
Nicholas Wright [his signature] & Seal
Witnesses: Thomas Townsend. Gideon Wright [New York Wills: Liber 1-2, page 449].



Nicholas departed this life before 18 December 1682 in the Town of Oyster Bay, Queens County, Long Island, New York. His will was probated on 18 December 1682. At a Court of Sessions held at Jamaica, in the North Riding of Yorkshire, on Long Island, and is recorded in New York County Surrogate's Court, in Liber 2 of Wills, at page 448.

Family

Ann (?) d. b 4 Jun 1683
Children

Citations

  1. [S30] New York Historical Society, Collections of the New York Historical Society Abstract of Wills, Volume 25: pages 121-122.
  2. [S106] Howland Delano Perrine, The Wright Family of Oysterbay, L.I. with the ancestry of and descent from Peter Wright and Nicholas Wright, 1423-1923, page 25 - Anthony, Peter, and Nicholas Wright migrated together, first landing in the New World, at Saugus, now Lynn, Massachusetts Colony, in August, 1635.
    The brothers remained at Saugus, or vicinity, until 1637, going from thence to Sandwich, in Plymouth Colony, at which place they remained until their final migration to Oyster Bay in 1653. While settled at Sandwich the brothers appear to have been quite active in the affairs of the settlement, in acquiring lands, and in the civic and social administration of that historic town on Cape Cod. (Oyster Bay Town Records. Vol. 1, pp. 102-103.) We have no date of marriage of Nicholas Wright, but it was probably at Sandwich that such a ceremony occurred. While living there children were born to both Peter, and Nicholas Wright.; page 133 - Nicholas Wright, the youngest of the three brothers, was born in England in or a little prior to the year 1609-10, coming with his brothers Anthony and Peter Wright, to America, in 1635. He had married probably shortly prior to or after his coming to the New World, one Ann -, but further details could not be found. Nicholas Wright was of Sandwich in 1643, and had been of Lynn (Saugus) in 1637 (Gen'l Dictionary of First Settlers of New England, Savage, 1860, Vol. 4, p. 658.) Neither the name of Nicholas Wright, nor of his brothers Anthony and Peter, appear in Hotten's Lists, which is generally accepted as not complete. Much has been said of Nicholas Wright under the head of "Peter Wright", his brother, and to which reference is here made.
    The Town Records of Oyster Bay contain many mentions of his name, as occupying numerous public positions, and also showing him to have been a man of considerable estate for that period. He died at Oyster Bay in November 1682, about 73 years of age according to his Will, a copy of which interesting document follows : (Oyster Bay Town Records, Vol. 1, p. 327-328.); Will: page 140 - His wife Ann, whom he had married probably before leaving England, or shortly after corning to America, was born probably a few years later, or perhaps about same time as her husand ; she died at Oyster Bay in April or May 1683. The issue of this marriage follows, but not with the exact dates of birth.
    +450 Caleb, b. 163- ; d. Feby. 5, 1695.
    +451 John, b. 1636; d. 1707.
    +452 Edmund, b. 164-; d. 1703.
    453 Rebecca, born 1644; d. before 1719; m. (1) Eleazer (Rev. William) Leverich of Huntington, L. I.. 1662; divorced Oct. 22, 1670. No issue. (2) WiIIiam Frost, of Long Island, 1672; d. Nov. 19, 1719. (N. Y. Gen. & Biog. Record, VoL 11, p. 170; Frost Family, 1912, p. 19.) Issue : Hannah ; William, b. 1674. d. Nov. 29, 1728, m. Hannah ( John and Elizabeth ( Bovine) Pryer, of Matinecock, L. I., 1700, b. Dec. 22, 1681. d. Dec. 18, 1771 (Shotwell's Annals, A. M. Shot-well. 1895. p. 241; N. Y. Gen. & Biog. Record, VoL 11, p. 171; N. Y. Surrogate's Court, Liber 9 of Wills, p. 198) ; John. in. Abigail ; Joseph; Wright, b. 1676, d. May 28, 1738, m. Mary ( John and Mary Pryer) Underhill, of Long Island, b. Feb. 26, 1677, d. 1751 (N. Y. Gen. & Biog. Record, Vol. 3, p. 186; VoL 11, p. 171; N. Y. County Surrogate's Court, Liber 13 of Wills, p. 208) ; Daniel, d. 1751, s. p. ; Mary, m. Zebulon Under-hill, of Long Island, 1702.
    454 Sarah, b. 1646; m. Josias (Richard and Christian) Latting, of Concord, Mass.. 1667; b. Feby. 20, 1641; d_ 1720. (Oyster Bay Town Records, Vol. 1, pp. 76, 77, 207; N. Y. Gen. & Biog. Record, Vol. 2, p. 12.) Issue: Josias, m. Susannah (Daniel) Coles, of Musquito Cove, L. L, 1693; Sarah. m. Johannes Provoost, of New York City, cooper, June 25, 1718, bapt. Sept. 27, 1676 (Provoost Family, E. R. Purple. 1875. p. 8; Provoost Family, Andrew J. Provoost, 1895, p. 96; N. Y. Gen. & Biog. Record, Vol. 2, p. 13; Vol. 6, p. 4) ; Richard, b. 1705, d. 1754-5, was second husband of Mary (John and Mary (Townsend) Wright (462) (N. Y. Gen. & Biog. Record, Vol. 2, p. 14.)
    455 Deborah, b. 164- ; d. 169-; m. Nathaniel (Robert and Mary Hauxhurst) Coles, of Musqueto Cove. L. I., circa 1660-70; b. 1640; d. circa 1712. She was his second wife. Issue, order uncertain : Thomas, died after his father, s. p.; Caleb, will dated Feby. 9. 1729, s. p; Harvey, d. 1710, m. Mary Cooper (relict of Edward White), 1709; Martha, m. Samuel Macoune, circa 1700; Barak, d. circa 1740, in. Sarah (relict of Whipps), of Charlestown, Mass.; Robert, m. Mary Harcurt (relict of Morris Shad-bolt).
    456 Mary (Mercy), b. June 4, 1651; d. Oct. 21, 1705; in. Robert (Robert and Mary Hawxhurst) Coles, of Musqueto Cove, L. I., Jany. 1, 1670; b. 1630; d. Apl. 16, 1715. (Oyster Bay).
  3. [S124] A Memorial of John, Henry, and Richard Townsend & their descendants., page 59-61 - "Whereas, our father and mother, Nicholas and Ann Wright, deceased, and left a considerable estate amongst us, their children, underwritten; and for a true settlement of said estate, and prevention of further contests and troubles that may arise thereby, we do jointly and unanimously agree, and freely condescend to each other, that our father's will for the division and stating of his lands upon his sons, according to his will, shall stand good to them, and their heirs forever; and, forasmuch as there was no certain order in the said will, or at the death of our mother, for the division of the movable estate, as left by our deceased father and mother, we do unanimously agree, that all the said movable estate shall be for the sisters' portions, to be divided as they shall order or agree, excepting only all the neat-cattle, one great kettle, and all the iron-work belonging to the cart and plough, and our deceased father's clothes, to be divided among his three sons ; and in consideration, by agreement, that our brother, Caleb Wright, is to have all the neat-cattle, as above said, excepting only two heifers, one in the possession of John, the other in the possession of Edmond, for which they, with their brother Caleb, are equally to pay all their deceased father's and mother's debts, and acquit and discharge their sisters from any trouble or demand that may arise thereby, and their heirs forever; and Caleb Wright doth engage, in consideration of the cattle, as above mentioned, to pay to his four sisters, their husbands', or their order, ten pounds current, merchant pay, according to pork, at threepence per pound, at or before the first day of November, next ensuing the date underwritten. And the movables that are to be divided amongst our sisters, is the swine, horseflesh, brass, pewter, tin, iron, wooden ware, woollen, linen, silver, gold, earthenware, or what else be to the said estate whatsoever, only what is above excepted ; and to the true performance of this our agreement, we have interchangeably subscribed our hands to each other, in Oyster Bay, June 4th, 1683. Caleb Wright, Josias Latting, John Wright, Nathaniel Coles, Edmund Wright, Robert Coles. In presence of us, " Richard Harcut, Constable. " Thomas Townsend, Recorder. " John Weeks, Overseer,'Gr." [Note: this document shows that Ann had died]