PERKINS OF WENDELL, NH
Greetings, all,
I am attempting to establish the lineage of my ancestors Enoch and Ruth Church. I believe there is some connection with the Perkins family of Wendell, NH.
I have determined from census records that my ancestor Enoch Church was born between 1780 and 1790. Oral history states that the Churches were from Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, and Canada (perhaps Quebec or Nova Scotia) . Enoch Church resided with his wife and children in Goffstown, NH in 1820; Orange, VT in 1830; and Topsham, VT in 1840. He then disappears from census records. He presumably died circa 1845 (but I have no evidence of that except his disappearance from the census records).
Enoch and Ruth Church must have been married circa 1809. Their children were as follows:
Sophia Foster Church, born in Orange, VT, 10 Aug 1810. married Nathan Paine of Orange, VT
Richard P. Church, born in Hopkinton, NH, 27 Nov 1819. married Mehitable Wilds
William Purkins Church, born in Hopkinton, NH, 24 Mar 1821. married Sophia Stockwell
Mary Ann Eastman Church, born in Hopkinton, NH, 24 Aug 1824. married George W. Sanborn.
Harriet Church, born in Topsham, VT, 1832. married Stephen Page.
I am descended from William Church who married Sophia Stockwell. These birth records are only on file in Orange, VT. Hopkinton, NH has no record of the children of Enoch and Ruth Church. An Enoch Church is listed in Goffstown, NH in 1820, not in Hopkinton--rather odd given the assertion that they had children born in Hopkinton between 1819 and 1824!
The middle names of the children: Foster, Perkins, and Eastman, are obviously family names. I initially assumed there was a connection with Enoch Eastman of Hopkinton, NH--no luck so far. There were Church families in Lower Quebec in the early 1800's; specifically in the Brome, Quebec regiou, which lies between the towns of Foster and Eastman, Quebec--this may be relate to the middle names of the children. I have no idea what Ruth Church's maiden name was. It must have been Foster, Perkins, or Eastman. There were many Perkins families in Wendell and Enfield, NH and the death record of my William Perkins Church states that he was born in Wendell, NH. Therefore, there is a possible connection with the Perkins family of Wendell that you are descended from.
Ruth Church appears on the Topsham, VT census of 1860, which states that she was born in New Hampshire. She was 71 years of age at the time, which places her date of birth circa 1789. Her headstone, however states that she was born nearer 1780! No death certificate exists for Ruth or Enoch.
If you have any data on Enoch and Ruth Church that would reveal the Perkins connection, I would greatly appreciate it. This family has been a thorn in my genealogical side for a long time!
Many thanks,
Ryan D. Wood