Elder John Strong, "The Pilgrim" and Abigail Ford

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Husband Elder John Strong, "The Pilgrim" ¹

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           Born: 1605 - Taunton, Somersetshire, England 1
     Christened: 
           Died: 14 Apr 1699 1
         Buried: 

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         Father: Richard Strong (1561-1613) 1
         Mother: 

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       Marriage: Dec 1630 1

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   Other Spouse: Unknown (      -      )

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Wife Abigail Ford ¹

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           Born: Abt 1608
     Christened: 
           Died: 6 Jul 1688 1
         Buried: 

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         Father: Thomas Ford (      -      ) 1
         Mother: 

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Children

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General Notes: Husband - Elder John Strong, "The Pilgrim"

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He lived in London and Plymouth, England. Having strong Puritan sympathies he sailed from Plymouth for the new world, March 20, 1630, in the ship "Mary and John" with 140 passengers arrived at Nantasket, Massachusetts, Sunday, May 30, 1630. Here they were put ashore by the captain of the vessel, although their destination was the Charles river. This colony founded the town of Dorchester, Massachusetts. John Strong and his sister Eleanor shared the fortunes of the new colony until 1635, when John Strong moved to Hingham and on March 9, 1636, took the freeman's oath at Boston. He soon moved to Taunton, Massachusetts, where he was a land owner and proprietor of record December 4, 1638, and in that year was made a freeman of Plymouth colony. He was deputy in the General Court from Taunton 1641-1643 and 1644. From Taunton he moved to Windsor, Connecticut. From Windsor he removed in 1659 to Northampton, Massachusetts, being one of the first and most active founders of that town, as he had previously been of Dorchester, Hingham, Taunton and Windsor. He was a very prosperous tanner in Northampton and owned at various times some 200 acres of land there. He was elected ruling elder of the Northampton Church, as appears from the church records. "After solemn and extraordinary seeking to God for his direction and blessing the church chose John Strong, ruling elder." His first wife died on the passage over or shortly after, and soon afterward her second child also died.

His second wife was the mother of sixteen children.
At the time of his death fifteen of his children had families, their children numbering 114, and these had thirty-three children.

1 John W. Jordan, LL.D., Genealogical and Personal History of Western Pennsylvania (New York: Lewis Historical Publishing Company, 1915), Pg 1522.