Various spellings of Estey
Easte, Este, Estee, Estes, Estey, Esty
The Salem witch trials were between February, 1692 and May, 1693.
Many factors led to the witchcraft accusations in Salem.
The town of Ipswich was established on August 5, 1634, from common land called Agawam. On October 18, 1648, that portion called the "Village" at the New Meadows was set off as Topsfield. The boundary line between Ipswich and Topsfield was established, February 28, 1694.
Sarah Estey Gill Ireland was born on June 30, 1660 in Topsfield, Essex County, Massachusetts. Her parents were Isaac Estey and Mary Towne.
She married Moses Gill of Amesbury, Essex County, Massachusetts. Moses was born on December 26, 1656 in Salisbury and his parents were John Gill and Phebe Buswell.
On her marriage she received “her full propotion out of my estate upon her marriage in Cattle bedding or otherwise."
Sarah and Moses' children included: Benjamin Gill (1688/89),
Moses Gill (1685) and
Sarah Gill Glover (1691, married Edward Glover).
Sarah became a widow when Moses died March 1, 1690 in Ipswich.
Their daughter, Sarah Gill, was baptized on May 3, 1691 and son Benjamin Gill was baptized on September 27, 1691.
In 1692 her mother, Mary Towne Estey, became a victim of the Salem hysteria and was executed for witchcraft.
Before her father's will was written, Sarah’s married a man named Ireland.
In 1712 when her father died she did not inherit, since she had already received her share, but her daughter Sarah received ten pounds.
Sarah died June 29, 1749 in Topsfield, Massachusetts.
Old Style Calendar
Before 1752 the year began on Lady Day, March 25th,. Dates between January 1st and March 24th were at the end of the year. Old Style (O.S.) and New Style (N.S.) are used to indicate whether the year has been adjusted. Often both dates are used.
The settlement of New Meadows was incorporated as the Town of Topsfield by authority of the General Court of the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1650. The church "gathered" on November 4, 1663 with the Rev. Thomas Gilbert. The third Meeting House was built on the Common in 1703 with Rev. Joseph Capen as pastor.
American colonists continued to use British monetary units, namely the pound, shilling and pence for which £1 (orli) equalled 20s and 1s equalled 12d. In 1792 the dollar was established as the basic unit of currency.
The Founders of the Massachusetts Bay Colony by Sarah Sprague Saunders Smith
John Gill, at Salisbury 1636-40, also Wells, Maine. Richard Gill 26 yrs, Barque Prenrose, Capt. Douglas, 27 July, 1635. Supposed to be sons of a wealthy London merchant, Thomas Gyll, whose daughter Isabel was third wife of Thomas Saunders of Amersham Berks Co., England.
Children of John Gill and Phebe Buswell, dau. of Isaac Buswell, born at Salisbury, Mass., where John Gill was one of the original proprietors with John Saunders and others.
1. Elizabeth, b. 8: 11m, 1645.
2. Phebe, b. 6: 11m, 1649.
3. Samuel, b. 5: 11m, 1651.
4. Sarah, b. 27: 4m, 1654. 5. Moses, b. 26: 10m, 1656.
7. Isaac, b. 24: 2m, 1665.
Dedham, Massachusetts was settled in 1635 by Puritans.
The Fisher Genealogy: A Record of the Descendants of Joshua, Anthony, and Cornelius Fisher, of Dedham, Mass., 1630-1640 by Philip A Fisher published by Massachusetts Pub. Co., 1898
Abigail [Partridge], daughter of Vigilance (15) and Rebecca (Partridge) Fisher, was b. at Dedham Aug. 26, 1692; m. there, Sept. 24, 1728, Benjamin, son of Moses (b. Oct. 26, 1656,) and Sarah (Estey) Gill, who was b. at Salisbury,
Mass./1689, and d. ( ). She was dismissed to the
church in Stoughton, Dec. 22, 1728.
Benjamin Gill and his brother, Moses, b. 1685, moved from Salisbury to Canton in 1704, and in 1705 leased one hundred and seventy-two acres of land of the Indians. In 1716 they divided the laud between them, Moses taking the land on the east side of the Taunton road, and Benjamin on the west. Benjamin Gill had m. for his first wife, Abigail (who died at Stoughton, Aug. 14, 1726), the daughter of Peter Fales, of Walpole, and by her had one child, Sarah, who m. Samuel Chandler, of Stoughton.