ROBERT CARR4 MAXFIELD (Michael3, John2-1) was born at Salisbury, Essex County, Massachusetts, on 20 October 1761[1] a son of Michael Maxfield and his wife Susannah Carr. He died at North Yarmouth, Cumberland County, Maine, on 14 August 1854.[2] He married at Cumberland, Cumberland County, on 9 January 1786 TABITHA CLOUGH.[3] She was born about 1763-4 and died probably between 1830 and 1840.
Robert Carr Maxfield was baptized at Second (Congregational) Church, Salisbury, on 10 July 1763.[4] He grew up in Salisbury, the fourth of seven children to survive infancy.
Robert was thirteen years old when the Revolutionary War began, and his older brother, John, went off to fight. About a year later his mother died. Within a year and a half of her death, Robert enlisted in the Revolution. Perhaps he did not tell them he was only fifteen. For the next three and a half years, Robert was a soldier, repeatedly re-enlisting. His record of military service, found both in Massachusetts and New Hampshire records, and under various spellings of his name, follows.[5]
Robert Carr Maxfield appears to have served in Rhode Island and New York State. Like his older brother, he was stationed at West Point, but not at the same time. When Robert's enlistment was completed, he went to West Point to take the place of his younger brother, who had also enlisted, but the younger brother refused to leave.
- Salisbury. Private, Capt. Moses Nowell's co., Col. Titcomb's regt.; arrived at destination May 4, 1777; discharged July 4, 1777; service 2 mos 9 days, including 9 days (180 miles) travel out and home; company marched to Rhode Island to serve for 2 months from the time of their arrival in Providence;
- Robert Maxfield, enlisted July 1; on duty; Pay Bill of Capt. Joseph Parson's co., etc., from New Hampshire: Robert Maxfield, Private, entry July 1, 1777; discharge Jan 6, 1778 serve 6 mo 6 d; pay 2-0-0/mo wages 12-8-0 plus travel
- Capt. Joseph Parson's co. in Col. Senter's regt., Rhode Island, 1777; enlisted for New Hampshire; paid Aug. 1777: Robert Maxfield--bounty pd £ 4-10-0
- receipt of 5 shillings for travel and billeting in Rhode Island--Sep 8, 1777--Robert Maxksfield
- Capt. Samuel Huse's co., Col. Jacob Gerrish's regt. of guards; enlisted Nov. 10, 1777; service to April 4, 1778, at Winter Hill
- Marshfield, Robert. Private, Capt. Jonathan Evan's co., Col. Nathaniel Wade's regt.; enlisted July 8, 1778; discharged Jan 1, 1779; service 6 mos. at North Kingston, Rhode Island, including 6 days (115 miles) travel home; roll sworn to at Newburyport; also same co. and regt.; muster roll dated North Kingston, Nov. 6, 1778; also same co. and regt.; muster rolls dated East Greenwich, Sep. 17, Sep. 22, Oct. 14, and Nov. 13, 1778; enlistment to expire Jan. 1, 1779;
- also, return dated Boxford, Dec. 8, 1779, of men mustered by John Cushing, Muster Master for Essex County, to join the Continental Army for the term of 9 months, agreeable to resolve of June 9, 1779; also, descriptive list of men raised in Essex Co. in 1779 to serve in the Continental Army; Capt. Merrill's co.; age 18 yrs.; stature 5 ft. 7 in.; complexion, light; engaged for town of Salisbury; delivered to Lieut. William Storey;
- Lt. Col.'s co., 15th Mass. regt.; entered service July 19, 1779; discharged April 19, 1780, term 9 months (called Robert Maafield)
- also, Private, Capt. Richard Titcomb's co., Col. Nathaniel Wade's regt.; enlisted July 4, 1780; discharged Oct. 10, 1780; service, 3 mos 20 days, including 13 days (200 miles) travel home; company raised in Newburyport, Salisbury, and Amesbury; regiment raised in Essex Co. to reinforce Continental Army for 3 months.
Following the War, the Maxfield brothers moved to Chichester, Rockingham County, New Hampshire. However Robert soon moved on to North Yarmouth. In 1784 he had his taxes refunded to him at Chichester.[6] He married at Maine, in 1786. On 3 December 1787 Robert Carr Maxfield of Chichester, yeoman, purchased from David Smith of Chichester, yeoman, for £ 20, 15 acres in Chichester. [7] He soon moved, and is probably the "Robert Maxwell" reported at North Yarmouth in the 1790 census.[8] On 14 November 1794, Robert Maxfield of North Yarmouth, yeoman, sold this 15 acre parcel to his brother John, of Chichester, husbandman, for £ 16 10s.[9]
The Robert Maxfield family was reported in North Yarmouth in all the censuses from 1790 to 1830, although he was called "Robert Maxwell" in 1790 and 1820. In this period the census only reported the name of the head of household, and the numbers of persons in the household of various age and sex categories. Here follow those census reports,[10] with a possible identification of who the persons might have been.
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The above designations assume that the census taker in 1810 did not get everyone's age correct. The last two identities in 1820 are provided from the pension records. Robert Maxfield was residing with his son Reuben in North Yarmouth in the 1840 and 1850 censuses. I find no indication of Tabitha in those censuses, leading me to suspect that she may have died between 1830 and 1840.
Robert Maxfield pleaded poverty when he applied for a pension in 1820:[11]
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Schedule of real and personal estate: Real estate-- Ninety-four acres of land in North Yarmouth, twenty-five acres of which is swamp and fifteen acres of it a ledge of rocks--and the residue hard land--a small old house of two rooms only, and a barn. Personal estate-- two cows; two steers and one yearling; nine sheep; three pigs, and two old horses to haul coal to market, a few broken articles of house furniture; a few farming tools. Schedule of the family residing with me Robert Maxfield who, by occupation am a farmer, which I am not able to pursue by reason of infirmity--am sometimes able to ride on a coal cart to market. Names Ages Capacity of each to contribute to their support
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Robert Maxfield found it necessary to reapply for a penion in 1823. On that occasion he wrote:[12]
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Robert Maxfield, 63, Cumberland, Eliot's co., Bigelow regt., Mass. Real estate none. Personal estate, nothing except a few old but necessary articles and utencils of household stuff. At the time [of the first schedule] I was in possession of a small tract of land and 2 old horses for teaming. I did on 21 July last sell said land to Reuben Maxfield for $147. One old horse I sold long since for family supplies, the other died. Farmer, not able [due to] the shaking palsey and other bodily infermities. Tabitha, wife, 55, feeble from a broken arm. Betsey, daughter, 21, able to do housework, Susan Lufkin, granddaughter, 6, not able to contribute to support. |
Robert Maxfield's pension was restored on 2 August 1823 to the amount of $10 annually.
The 1840 census reported Revolutionary Pensioner Robert Maxfield living with his son, Reuben, at North Yarmouth. In 1850, at age 88, he was still living with son Reuben. Robert Carr Maxfield's death, on 14 August 1854, was acknowledged in the New York Post:[13]
North Yarmouth, Aug 14, Robert Carr Maxfield, 94 years, oldest person in town, born Salisbury, Mass.When a person reaches that age, no one minds a slight exageration of years. He was 92 years old. He is buried at the Congregational Cemetery in Cumberland Center.
Robert Carr Maxfield and his wife Tabitha Clough had the following children:
1Vital Records of Salisbury, Massachusetts, to the End of the Year 1849 (Topsfield, Massachusetts: Topsfield Historical Society, 1915), 152.
2Gertrude A. Barber, "Death Notices from the New York Evening Post , 1801-1890," online database, New England Historic Genealogical Society, American Ancestors (americanancestors.org : accessed 20 October 2012); R. Stanton Avery Collection, NEHGS, Boston, MA
3Genealogical Society of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, "Maine Marriages, 1771-1907," database, Family Search (familysearch.org : accessed 14 September 2012), Maxfield-Clough, 1786.
4David W. Hoyt, The Old Families of Salisbury and Amesbury, Massachusetts (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1982), 448.
5Commonwealth of Massachusetts Office of the Secretary, ed., Massachusetts Soldiers and Sailors in the Revolutionary War (Boston: Wright L. Potter, 1902), 10:102, 267, 368; Nathaniel Bouton et al, eds., Documents and Records Relating to New Hampshire, 1623-1800, 40 (Concord, Manchester, Nashua and Bristol, New Hampshire: n.p., 1867), 14:256, 259, 260, 262.
6French, Harry Dana. Descendants of John Maxfield of Salisbury, Mass., New Hampshire Historical Society Library, Concord, New Hampshire, about 1952.
7Deeds, 140:92; digital images, Rockingham County Registry of Deeds (nhdeeds/rockingham : accessed 2012).
8First Census of the United States: 1790, population, North Yarmouth, Cumberland County, [Maine] Massachusetts, 2:272; digital images, Ancestry (ancestry.com : accessed 2014).
9Deeds, digital images, Rockingham County Registry of Deeds. 140:93.
101790 Census, North Yarmouth, Cumberland County, [Maine] Massachusetts, 2:272; Second Census of the United States: 1800, population, North Yarmouth, Cumberland County, [Maine] Massachusetts, 6:79; digital images, Ancestry (ancestry.com : accessed 2012); Third Census of the United States: 1810, population, North Yarmouth, Cumberland County, [Maine] Massachusetts, 11:221; digital images, Ancestry (ancestry.com : accessed 2012); Fourth Census of the United States: 1820, population, North Yarmouth, Cumberland County, Maine, 34:472; digital images, Ancestry (ancestry.com : accessed 2012); Fifth Census of the United States: 1830, population, Cumberland, Cumberland County, Maine, 46:141; digital images, Ancestry (ancestry.com : accessed 2012).
11Selected Records from Revolutionary War Pensions and Bounty Land Warrant Application Files, microfilm publication (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, ), Robert Carr Maxfield.
12Paul R. White Jr., "Maine Estate Schedules from Revolutionary War Pensions," New England Historic Genealogical Register, 142; 145 (1988, 1991): 145:166.
13Barber, "Death Notices from the New York Evening Post , 1801-1890."
14Genealogical Society of Utah Salt Lake City, Utah, "Maine Births and Christenings, 1739-1900," database, Family Search (familysearch.org : accessed 21 October 2012), Reuben Maxfield, 1789
15Walnut Hill Cemetery, North Yarmouth, Cumberland County, Maine, Find a Grave, digital images (findagrave.com : accessed 12 August 2017), Reuben Maxfield; Created by: Maine 101, Photo added by E.
16state given in 1850, 1860 census records, year from Walnut Hill Cemetery, North Yarmouth, Lucy A. Maxfield; Created by: Maine 101, Photo added by E.
17Walnut Hill Cemetery, North Yarmouth, Lucy A. Maxfield; Created by: Maine 101, Photo added by E.
181820 Census, North Yarmouth, Cumberland County, Maine, 34:472; Sixth Census of the United States: 1840, population, North Yarmouth, Cumberland County, Maine, 138:339; digital images, Ancestry (ancestry.com : accessed 2012); Seventh Census of the United States: 1850, population, North Yarmouth, Cumberland County, Maine, 249:256B, 469; digital images, Ancestry (ancestry.com : accessed 2012); Eighth Census of the United States: 1860, population, North Yarmouth, Cumberland County, Maine, 437:12, 91; digital images, Ancestry (ancestry.com : accessed 2012).
19"Maine Births and Christenings, 1739-1900," Suzanna Maxfield, 1792.
20"Maine Marriages, 1771-1907," Lufkin-Maxfield, 1814.
21"Maine Births and Christenings, 1739-1900," Bethiah Maxfield, 1800.
22Walnut Hill Cemetery, North Yarmouth, Bethiah Lufkin; created by Susan Kaufmann.
23"Maine Marriages, 1771-1907," Lufkin-Maxfield, 1818.
24"Maine Births and Christenings, 1739-1900," Elizabeth Maxfield, 1803.
25Congregational Cemetery, Cumberland Center, Cumberland, Cumberland County, Maine, Find a Grave, digital images (findagrave.com : accessed 7 August 2017), Betsy Maxfield; created by and photo by Stone Finders, maintained by Find a Grave.
261850 Census, North Yarmouth, Cumberland County, Maine, 249:257A, 476; 1860 Census, Cumberland, Cumberland County, Maine, 436:521, 86; Ninth Census of the United States: 1870, population, Cumberland, Cumberland Coounty, Maine, 539:196B, 132; digital images, Ancestry (ancestry.com : accessed 2013).
Barber, Gertrude A. "Death Notices from the New York Evening Post , 1801-1890." Online database. New England Historic Genealogical Society. American Ancestors. americanancestors.org : 2012.
Bouton, Nathaniel et al, editors. Documents and Records Relating to New Hampshire, 1623-1800. 40. Concord, Manchester, Nashua and Bristol, NH: n.p., 1867.
Commonwealth of Massachusetts Office of the Secretary, ed. Massachusetts Soldiers and Sailors in the Revolutionary War. Boston: Wright L. Potter, 1902.
Congregational Cemetery, Cumberland Center, Cumberland, Cumberland County, Maine. Find a Grave. Digital images. findagrave.com : 2017.
Fisher, Carleton E., and Sara G. Fisher, editors. Soldiers, Sailors and Patriots in the Revolutionary War - Maine. Louisville: National Society of the Sons of the American Revolution, 1982.
French, Harry Dana. Descendants of John Maxfield of Salisbury, Mass. New Hampshire Historical Society Library, Concord, New Hampshire, about 1952.
Genealogical Society of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah. "Maine Births and Christenings, 1739-1900." Database. Family Search. familysearch.org : 2012.
________. "Maine Marriages, 1771-1907." Database. Family Search. familysearch.org : 2012.
Hoyt, David W. The Old Families of Salisbury and Amesbury, Massachusetts. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1982.
Rockingham County Registry of Deeds. "Land Records." Digital images. Rockingham County Registry of Deeds. nhdeeds/rockingham : 2012.
Selected Records from Revolutionary War Pensions and Bounty Land Warrant Application Files. Microfilm publication . Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration. Onondaga County Library, Syracuse, New York.
United States, Department of the Census. First Census of the United States: 1790, population. Digital images. Ancestry. ancestry.com : 2014.
________. Second Census of the United States: 1800, population. Digital images. Ancestry. ancestry.com : 2012.
________. Third Census of the United States: 1810, population. Digital images. Ancestry. ancestry.com : 2012.
________. Fourth Census of the United States: 1820, population. Digital images. Ancestry. ancestry.com : 2012.
________. Fifth Census of the United States: 1830, population. Digital images. Ancestry. ancestry.com : 2012.
________. Sixth Census of the United States: 1840, population. Digital images. Ancestry. ancestry.com : 2012.
________. Seventh Census of the United States: 1850, population. Digital images. Ancestry. ancestry.com : 2012.
________. Eighth Census of the United States: 1860, population. Digital images. Ancestry. ancestry.com : 2012.
________. Ninth Census of the United States: 1870, population. Digital images. Ancestry. ancestry.com : 2013.
Vital Records of Salisbury, Massachusetts, to the End of the Year 1849. Topsfield, Massachusetts: Topsfield Historical Society, 1915.
Walnut Hill Cemetery, North Yarmouth, Cumberland County, Maine. Find a Grave. Digital images. findagrave.com : 2017.
White, Paul R. Jr. "Maine Estate Schedules from Revolutionary War Pensions." New England Historic Genealogical Register 142; 145 (1988, 1991): 142: 29-38, 197-209, 298-304, 386-391; 145:44-56, 159-173.
Wright, Elizabeth. "John Maxfield of Salisbury, Massachusetts, 1652, and Some of His Descendants." The Nebraska and Midwest Genealogical Record (1928–1930): 6:52-56; 7:20-24, 42-47, 61-71, 87-96; 8:15-22.
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