Rev. Ichabod Wiswall was born 3 June 1637 in Dorchester, Suffolk County, Massachusetts, United States to Thomas Wiswall (1601-1683) and Elizabeth Burbage (1610-aft1664) and died 23 July 1700 Duxbury, Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States of unspecified causes. He married Priscilla Pabodie (1653-1724) 24 December 1677 in Duxbury, Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States.
Biography
Reverend Ichabod Wiswall was the third pastor of the church in Duxbury, Plymouth Colony, British America.
Wiswall was the son of Thomas Wiswall (1601–1683) and Elizabeth Berbage. The third of ten children, he was born in Dorchester, Massachusetts, on 3 June 1637.[1]
Wiswall matriculated into Harvard University in 1654, at 17 years of age. During his time of study at Harvard, the course of study was changed from three years to four years. Wiswall left Harvard in 1657, after only three years, thereby forfeiting the honor of being able to claim himself as an alumnus of that institution. Beginning on 7 March 1656, Wiswall served for at least three years as a teacher in the public school at Dorchester.
Wiswall later studied for the ministry, and was ordained as minister of the church in Duxbury in 1676.[2] From 1676 until his death in 1700, Wiswall served as the third minister of the church in Duxbury, Massachusetts.[5]
Combined Plymouth and Massachusetts Colonies
In 1689, Wiswall went to London to petition for a new royal charter for the Plymouth Colony. There he encountered Reverend Increase Mather, a fellow resident of Dorchester, but one who favored a charter which united the Massachusetts Bay and Plymouth colonies. The result of their combined and opposing efforts was the 1692 charter, which established the Province of Massachusetts Bay (now the Commonwealth of Massachusetts), merging the two colonies.
Death & Burial
In 1697, Wiswall officiated at the burial of Capt. Jonathan Alden, son of famous Pilgrims John and Priscilla Alden. This ceremony was conducted in Duxbury, Massachusetts. While Duxbury records claim that Wiswall's sermon at this event was the first known funeral sermon in British America, other funeral sermons (including James Fitch's sermon on the death of Anne Mason (Norwich, CT, 1672)) predate Wiswall's sermon by a quarter century.
Gravestone of Rev Wiswall at Standish Burial Grounds in Duxbury MA.
Wiswall himself would be buried in the same cemetery, three years later; he died on 23 July 1700. Wiswall's tombstone is located close to that of Myles Standish, in what is now known as the Myles Standish Burial Ground in Duxbury, Massachusetts. His is the second oldest gravestone found today in the historic cemetery.
- Gravestone Location: Myles Standish Burial Ground in Duxbury MA.
- Gravestone Inscription per "Elizabeth Pabodie and Descendants" (1897), p. 13:
Here lyeth buried the Body of ye Reverend Mr Ichabod Wiswall. Died July ye 23rd Anno Domini. 1700. in the 63 year of his Age
Marriage & Family
He married Priscilla Pabodie (1653-1724) ,the daughter of Elizabeth Pabodie, and the granddaughter of Mayflower passengers John Alden (c1599-1687) and Pricila Mullens.
Children
| Name | Birth | Death | Joined with |
| Elizabeth Wiswell (1670-1741) | 6 November 1670 Duxbury, Plymouth County, Massachusetts | 25 January 1741 Duxbury, Plymouth County, Massachusetts | Elisha Wadsworth (1669-1741) |
| Mercy Wiswell (1670-1716) | 4 October 1670 Duxbury, Plymouth County, Massachusetts | 12 November 1716 Duxbury, Plymouth County, Massachusetts | John Wadsworth (1671-1750) |
| Peleg Wiswall (1683-1767) | |||
| Perez Wiswall (1686-1700) | |||
| Priscilla Wiswall (1690-1780) | |||
| Deborah Wiswall (1693-1776) | |||
Siblings
| Name | Birth | Death | Joined with |
| Enoch Wiswall (1633-1706) | |||
| Ester Wiswall (1635-) | |||
| Ichabod Wiswall (1637-1700) | 3 June 1637 Dorchester, Suffolk County, Massachusetts, United States | 23 July 1700 Duxbury, Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States | Priscilla Pabodie (1653-1724) |
| Noah Wiswall (1638-1690) | 16 December 1638 Dorchester, Suffolk County, Massachusetts | 6 July 1690 Lee, Strafford County, New Hampshire | Theodosia Jackson (1643-1725) |
| Mary Wiswall (1640-1727) | |||
| Ebenezer Wiswall (1641-1691) | |||
| Thomas Wiswall (1642-) | |||
| Sarah Wiswall (1643-) | |||
| Elizabeth Wiswall (1649-) | |||
| Benjamin Wiswall (1649-) | |||
References
- Elizabeth (Alden) Pabodie and Descendants (1897) - by Mary Langford Taylor Alden (Author). Fascinating story of this family of Mayflower descendants that helped settle Duxbury MA and parts of New England.
- Ichabod Wiswall - disambiguation
- Wiswallin Massachusetts
- Ichabod Wiswall - Wikipedia
- Tour Historic Duxbury MA - Notable Families of Duxbury
- History of the Town of Duxbury MA - Free on Google Books
- DuxburyHistory.org
- Alden Family Kindred Society
Residences
Footnotes (including sources)
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