Ford Strong ~ Remembering Those Gone Too Soon

 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks 2023: Week 33 (STRENGTH)

Long before the Ford Company began in 1903 my 2nd cousin X9 removed, FORD STRONG, was born.

He died at only 2 months old.

Many years later Ford would use the slogan

I had misremembered the slogan as BUILT FORD STRONG when I saw the name of my 2nd cousin X9 removed recently and decided to write about him this week. 

Ford was born on September 2nd 1668, and died on November 1st 1668. He was born & died in Northampton, Massachusetts, USA.

The death of an infant is sad.

I can't imagine it was any less sad in a time when infant mortality was so high. 

Infants who die leave no one behind to search for them, to remember them, or to honour them.  

It is this reason that I frequently write about my distant cousins who died as infants.

I am fairly confident it is why genealogy researchers often save an image for a baby born still or died as infants. 

We want to remember all of our relatives.

Ford's parents were
Captain, Jedediah Strong
BIRTH 7 MAY 1637 • Windsor, Hartford, Connecticut, USA
DEATH 22 MAY 1733 • Coventry, Tolland County, Connecticut, USA
& his first wife
Freedom Woodward
BIRTH 1 JUL 1642 • Dorchester, Massachusetts, USA
DEATH 17 MAY 1681 • Northampton, Massachusetts, USA

Ford must have been named after his grandmother, Jedediah's mother,
Abigail Ford
BIRTH 8 OCT 1619 • Bridgeport, Dorset, England
DEATH 6 JUL 1688 • Northampton, Massachusetts, USA
married to
John Strong
BIRTH 1605 • Taunton, Deane Borough, Somerset, England
DEATH 14 APR 1699 • Northampton, Massachusetts, USA

My 9th great grandmother, Hepzibah Ford, was Abigail's sister.
Hepzibah Ford
BIRTH 15 MAY 1625 • Dorchester, Dorset, England
DEATH 11 APR 1683 • Northampton, Massachusetts, United States
& 1st husband
Richard Lyman
BIRTH 24 FEB 1618 • High Ongar, Co. Kent (Canterbury) England
DEATH 3 JUN 1662 • Windsor, Hartford, Connecticut, United States

Where Ford and I have our family lines connect is also where Princess Diana and I connect.

Ford's parents are Princess Diana's 8th great grandparents.

Ford is Princess Diana's 7th Great-Grand Uncle

Princess Diana is my 11th cousin.
We share 10th great grandparents, Abigail & Hepzibah's parents
Thomas Ford
BIRTH 6 JAN 1589 • Powerstock, Dorset, England, United Kingdom
DEATH 28 NOV 1676 • Northampton, Hampshire, Massachusetts, USA
and
Elizabeth Charde
BIRTH 1589 • Thorncombe, Bridgeport, Dorsetshire, England
DEATH 18 APR 1643 • Windsor, Hartford, Colony of Connecticut, British Colonial America

When listening to the audiobook "The Winthrop Woman" (my husband's 10th great grandmother) there were many mentions of the folks connected in this area of our Bramble Bush. I loved hearing mention of my family members alongside Chris'

The STRONG legacy of this family is evident in their descendants.

Remembering those who left us too young!!! 

This is why I search - 

Cause ... 

You can pick your friends, but you can't pick your family you know!

***Any errors are my own. Please send me any updates or corrections via the comments at the bottom of this blog post***

Photos:

Built Ford Tough FREE SVG File, Tiffany,  original November 28, 2019      Retrieved August 13th 2023 from
https://freesvgs.com/index.php/2019/11/28/built-ford-tough/

The Winthrop Woman audiobook. Seton, Anya. Narrator: Corrie James. Tantor Audio. 2014. Originally published in print 1958.

Links:

Amy Johnson Crow, 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge
https://www.amyjohnsoncrow.com/52-ancestors-in-52-weeks/

If you reference or use my blog posts in any way please

include a link to the specific blog and

credit http://somehowrelated.blogspot.com/

My blogs are ©Deborah Buchner, 2014 forward.

All rights reserved.

Please & Thank you!

______________________________________________________________

Ford Strong ~ When the Two Families Merge

While researching last week's blog I discovered who I wanted to write about for this week's prompt STRENGTH.

John Strong & Abigail Ford had 14 children. John had 2 children with his first wife Marjory Deane. Of those 16 children  15 lived into adulthood.

This was rare for the time when so many children died. 

John & Abigail's oldest child was Jedediah. 
Jedediah Strong
BIRTH 7 MAY 1637 • Hingham, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA
DEATH 22 MAY 1733 • Coventry, Tolland County, Connecticut, USA

On November 18th 1662 Jedediah married Freedom.
Freedom Woodward
BIRTH 1 JUL 1642 • Dorchester Suffolk County Massachusetts, USA
DEATH 17 MAY 1681 • Northampton.  Massachusetts, USA

Jedediah & Freedom had 13 children, 8 lived through to adulthood. Losing 5 children was typical of the time. It can't have been easy. 

Their first child, Elizabeth, lived till age 26.
At age 20 she married Ebenezer Wright. 
Elizabeth Strong
BIRTH 9 JUN 1664 • Northampton, Massachusetts, USA
DEATH 17 FEB 1691 • Northampton, Massachusetts, USA

Their second child, Abigail, lived till age 23.
At age 17 she married Thomas King.
Abigail Strong
BIRTH 9 JUL 1666 • Northampton, Massachusetts, USA
DEATH 24 JUL 1689 • Northampton, Massachusetts, USA

Their third child, Jedediah, lived till age 42.
At age 21 he married Abijah Ingersoll. 
Jedediah Strong
BIRTH 7 AUG 1667 • Northampton, Massachusetts, USA
DEATH 12 OCT 1709 • Wood Creek, New York, USA

Their fourth child, Ford, lived only 2 month.
Ford Strong
BIRTH 2 SEP 1668 • Northampton, Massachusetts, USA
DEATH 1 NOV 1668 • Northampton, Massachusetts, USA

Their fifth child was born still, or died soon after birth 
Infant Strong 
BIRTH 11 OCT 1669 • Northampton, Massachusetts, USA
DEATH 1669 • Northampton, Massachusetts, USA

Their sixth child, Hannah, lived till age 92.
At age 21 she married Benjamin Carpenter.
Hannah Strong
BIRTH 3 FEB 1670 • Northampton, Massachusetts, USA
DEATH 20 MAR 1762 • Coventry, Connecticut, USA

Their seventh child, Thankful, lived till age 70.
I wrote about her in last week's blog.
At age 18 she married the Deacon Thomas Root.
Thankful Strong 
BIRTH 15 APR 1672 • Northampton, Massachusetts, USA
DEATH 16 APR 1742 • Coventry, Connecticut, USA

Their eight child, John, was born still or died soon after birth.
John Strong
BIRTH 15 NOV 1673
DEATH NOV 1673 • Northampton, Massachusetts, USA

Their ninth child, Lydia, lived till age 42.
At age 19 she married David Lee (Brother to Preserved's wife Tabitha)
Lydia Strong
BIRTH 9 NOV 1675 • Northampton, Massachusetts, USA
DEATH 16 JUL 1718 • Coventry, Connecticut, USA

Their tenth child, Mary, was born still or died soon after birth.
Mary Strong
BIRTH 25 MAY 1677 • Northampton, Massachusetts, USA
DEATH MAY 1677 • Northampton, Massachusetts, USA

Their eleventh child, Experience, lived 29 days.
Experience Strong
BIRTH 19 AUG 1678 • Northampton, Massachusetts, USA
DEATH 16 SEP 1678 • Northampton, Massachusetts, USA

Their twelfth child, Preserved. lived till age 85.
At age 21 he married Tabitha Lee (sister to sister Lydia's husband David Lee).
Preserved Strong
BIRTH 29 MAR 1680 • Northampton, Massachusetts, USA
DEATH 26 SEP 1765 • Coventry, Connecticut, USA

Their thirteenth child, John, lived till age 17.
John Strong
BIRTH 10 MAY 1681 • Northampton, Massachusetts, USA
DEATH 21 APR 1699 • Northampton, Massachusetts, USA

Freedom died one week after giving birth to her 13th child John. 

Jedediah outlived 10 of his 14 children.

After Freedom's death Jedediah married Abigail Bartlett in 1681. She was the widow of John Stebbins. They had one child, Mary, born in 1683. Abigail died in 1689. 

For his 3rd wife Jedediah married Mary Hart. She was the widow of John Lee, and mother-in-law to two of Jedediah's children: Lydia & Preserved.

I think I noticed Jedediah & Freedom while I was researching last week because of the name of their son Ford Strong. My connection to this family is through Ford's grandmother Abigail Ford. She was the sister of my 9th great grandmother Hepzibah Ford.  Ford is my 2nd cousin X9 removed. Once I started looking at the details of the family I decided this couple fit for strength in so many ways.

The name STRONG.

The losses the experienced, and yet they endured. 

I also thought about the Ford company slogan BUILT FORD TOUGH, and wondered if this family is connected to the Ford motor company.  

This is definitely a tale for another time.

I have included The History of the Descendants of Elder John Strong, of Northampton, Mass. written by Benjamin W. Dwight in my sources below.

There is a lot of information about the Strong family & all of the other interconnected families like FORD and LYMAN & more.
It's the full pdf available for downloading. 

Knowing there will always be a new thread to tug in researching family!

This is why I search - 

Cause ... 

You can pick your friends, but you can't pick your family you know!

***Any errors are my own. Please send me any updates or corrections via the comments at the bottom of this blog post***

Sources:

Dwight, Benjamin W. The History of the Descendants of Elder John Strong, of Northampton, Mass. Bibliolife DBA of Bibilio Bazaar II LLC, 2015. Retrieved December 3rd 2021 from
https://ia600206.us.archive.org/16/items/cu31924092508682/cu31924092508682.pdf

Freedom Woodward, FindAGrave. Retrieved December 3rd 2021 from 
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/36163848/freedom-strong

Jebediah Strong, FindAGrave. Retrieved December 3rd 2021 from 
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/36163752/jedediah-strong

Links:

Amy Johnson Crow, 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge
https://www.amyjohnsoncrow.com/

If you reference or use my blog posts in any way please

include a link to the specific blog and

credit http://somehowrelated.blogspot.com/

My blogs are ©Deborah Buchner, 2014 forward.

All rights reserved.

Please & Thank you!

________________________________________________________________

Preserved Strong (the person) ~ Preserving Fall Harvest (the bounty)

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks: Week 40 (HARVEST)

When I first thought about the prompt HARVEST I looked to see if we had anyone in our family tree named Autumn. 



Nope!  


Then I remembered a branch of my tree that included early Puritan settlers of Massachusetts. I knew there were many Thankfuls and wondered about anyone named Bounty or Blessing - None! Feeling disappointed I kept looking through the unusual names. I found Preserved Strong. Born to Jebediah & Freedom (nee Woodward) Strong. 

"He was born March 29, 1680, and is said to have received
his name from the fact that he was born in a great snow storm, and preserved,
'notwithstanding its severity, and the extreme cold weather following.'" 1

I have always thought of the word preserved in reference to maintaining or retaining. 

The early Puritan settlers viewed it differently when naming children. 

"PRESERVED   m & f    English (Puritan)       Name given to a child when spared from certain death during childbirth."  2

Preserved Strong's Grandparents 

Abigail Ford (sister to my 10th great grandmother Hepzibah Ford)
BIRTH 8 OCT 1619 • Bridport, Dorset, England
DEATH 6 JUL 1688 • Northampton, Hampshire County, Massachusetts, USA
at the age of 16 she married widower
John Strong (Elder in the Puritan Church)
BIRTH 1610 • Taunton, Taunton Deane Borough, Somerset, England
DEATH 14 APR 1699 • Northampton, Hampshire County, Massachusetts, USA

John had 2 children with first wife Margery/Marjory (one survived to adulthood), and 16 children with second wife Abigail (14 survived to adulthood).



Abigail & John's first born (of the 14) was 
Jedediah Strong
BIRTH 7 MAY 1637 • Hingham, Plymouth, Massachusetts, United States
DEATH 22 MAY 1733 • Coventry, Tolland County, Connecticut, USA
who married
Freedom Woodward
BIRTH JUL 1641 • Dorchester Suffolk County Massachusetts, USA
DEATH 17 MAY 1681 • Northampton Hampshire County Massachusetts, US

Jebediah's second wife (1 child) was 
Abigail Bartlett (widow of John Stebbins, 10 children)
BIRTH 1637 • Cambridge, Middlesex County, Massachusetts, USA
DEATH 15 JUL 1689 • Northampton, Hampshire County, Massachusetts, USA

Jebediah's third wife (no children) was
Mary Hart (widow of John Lee, 6 children
BIRTH 14 AUG 1630 • Hartford Hartford County Connecticut, USA
DEATH 10 OCT 1710 • South Hadley Hampshire County Massachusetts, USA



Jebediah & Freedom 12th child (of 14) was 
Preserved Strong
BIRTH 29 MAR 1680 • Northampton, Hampshire, Massachusetts, USA
DEATH 26 SEP 1765 • Coventry, Tolland County (Tolland), Connecticut, USA
On October 23rd 1701 he married his step-sister 
Tabitha Lee (Mary (nee Hart) Lee's daughter)
BIRTH 11 NOV 1677 • Farmington, Hartford County, Connecticut, USA
DEATH 23 JUN 1750 • Coventry, Tolland County, Connecticut, USA

They were married 9 years after Jebediah's father and Tabitha's mother were married.

Preserved & Tabitha had 8 children

Noah Strong
BIRTH 20 SEP 1702 • Northampton, Hampshire County, Massachusetts, USA
DEATH 23 JUN 1771 • Addison, Addison County, Vermont, USA

Elizabeth Strong  ***
BIRTH 27 SEP 1704 • Northampton, Hampshire County, Massachusetts, USA
DEATH 4 MAY 1792 • Coventry, Tolland County, Connecticut, USA
*** (7th great grandmother of Princess Diana who married her not so distant cousin
      Joseph Strong, but that is a tale for another time )

Moses Strong (Twin)
BIRTH 14 MAY 1708 • Northampton, Hampshire County, Massachusetts, USA
DEATH Unknown

Aaron Strong (Twin)
BIRTH 14 MAY 1708 • Northampton, Hampshire County, Massachusetts, USA
DEATH 1764 • Southampton, Hampshire County, Massachusetts, USA

Tabitha Strong 
BIRTH 13 AUG 1710 • Northampton, Hampshire County, Massachusetts, USA
DEATH 20 NOV 1730 • Coventry, Tolland County, Connecticut, USA

Mary Strong
BIRTH 10 JUN 1714 • Northampton, Hampshire, Massachusetts, USA
DEATH 9 JUL 1754 • East Hartford, Hartford, Connecticut, USA

John Strong (a General)
BIRTH 25 FEB 1715 • Lebanon, New London, Connecticut, USA
DEATH Prob. Coventry, Tolland, Connecticut, USA

Enoch Strong
BIRTH 16 JUL 1720 • Coventry, Tolland County, Connecticut, USA
DEATH 1790 • Salisbury, Litchfield County, Connecticut, USA



Returning to the topic of fall harvest and preserving the bounty!

Growing up my mom always scooted us kids away while she was preserving the garden harvest. She told us it was too dangerous for us to be underfoot. Once I was grown she confessed it was her way of getting some alone time, but it was too late for me to not be afraid of the process.
    

The first time my husband said he wanted to try canning I argued with him that the process was subject to explosions in the kitchen and if he wasn't careful the food he made could kill us. I have repeated a variation of this sentiment for 25 years. 



Luckily for our family he doesn't listen to me. All winter long we enjoy HIS jams, pickles, salsa, canned fruit, and frozen vegies. I take no credit for any of the harvested preserves. My fear is still solidly in place. There are times I suspiciously look at the jar to see if it looks like it holds my impending death. I avoid the kitchen (or crane my neck suspiciously from the doorway) while he is processing his preserves. I am visualizing explosions that involve goo dripping down the walls with ginormous shards of glass embedded everywhere. Now that he wears glasses I no long discreetly place safety goggles on the counter. I am only slightly exaggerating my fear of the preserving process.




 

Childhood fears taken into adulthood!







This is why I search - 



Cause ... 





You can pick your friends, but you can't pick your family you know!
















***Any errors are my own. Please send me any updates or corrections via the comments at the bottom of this blog post***





Related Previous Blogs:

Somehow Related Blog Spot,
This lady in waiting --- too late to meet my famous cousin
somehowrelated.blogspot.com/2019/01/this-lady-in-waiting-too-late-to-meet.html

Footnotes:

1 JOHN LEE: Of Farmington, Hartford County, Conn., and His Descendants
written by Sarah Marsh Lee, 2nd edition compiled by Leonard Lee & Sarah Fiske Lee, Norwich, 1897, p. 467 retrieved October 1st 2019 from 
https://books.google.ca/books?id=I-q3AE_JbngC&pg=PA467&dq=%22he+was+born+march+29,+1680,+and+is+said+to+have+received+his+name%22&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwj4h-jxt_7kAhXVIDQIHVJ2DQ8Q6AEIKjAA#v=onepage&q=%22he%20was%20born%20march%2029%2C%201680%2C%20and%20is%20said%20to%20have%20received%20his%20name%22&f=false

2 Behind the Name, Puritan Names, Preserved, retrieved October 1st 2019 from 
https://www.behindthename.com/submit/names/usage/puritan

Sources:

Ancestor Biographies Blog Spot, Father or Step-father to 32 Children — Jedediah Strong, Retrieved October 2nd 2019 from     
http://ancestorbios.blogspot.com/2012/03/father-or-step-father-to-32-children.html

Ancestor Biographies Blog Spot, Pregnant Each Year of Married Life – Freedom Woodward, Retrieved October 2nd 2019 from
http://ancestorbios.blogspot.com/2012/03/mother-of-fourteen-children-freedom.html

Ancestry Island, Monday Is for Mothers : Freedom Woodward (1642 - 1681), Retrieved October 2nd 2019 from
http://ancestryisland.blogspot.com/2015/08/monday-is-for-mothers-freedom-woodward.html

Find A Grave, Mary Hart Lee Strong,  Retrieved October 2nd 2019 from
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/36254936/mary-lee_strong

Find A Grave, Preserved Strong,  Retrieved October 2nd 2019 from
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/36164159/preserved-strong

John Lee and His Descendants 1634--1878, Sarah Marsh Lee, Norwich, 1878, retrieved October 1st 2019 from
https://www.mightyape.co.nz/product/john-lee/27342962




Links:

Amy Johnson Crow, 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge
https://www.amyjohnsoncrow.com/

If you reference or use my blog posts in any way please

include a link to the specific blog and

credit http://somehowrelated.blogspot.com/

My blogs are ©Deborah Buchner, 2014 forward.

All rights reserved.

Please & Thank you!

_____________________________________________________________________