Margery 'Margaret' Balch

Margery migrated to New England during the Puritan Great Migration (1621-1640). (See Great Migration Begins, by R. C. Anderson, Vol. 1, p. 84)

Margery 'Margaret' Balch was not a known daughter of John Lovett and his wife Margery Lovett

Margery or Margaret, parents unknown, was born in England about 1603, and died in Beverly, Essex County, Massachusetts Bay Colony. Margery (unknown) Balch died after December 1636 when she appears in the Salem Church list; and before 1648, when John Balch wrote his will, naming his wife "Annis."

She was the first wife of John Balch (1600-d. bef. 28 June 1648) who immigrated with the Gorges Co. from England to a deserted settlement, Wessegussett (Weymouth), Massachusetts in July 1623. In 1624, the colony moved to Cape Ann (now Gloucester, Massachusetts, but their fishery venture was not successful. He was a founder of Salem, Massachusetts in 1626.

They married by 1628, perhaps in Wessegussett.

The three children of John and Margaret Balch were:

1. Benjamin Balch, b abt 1629 (deposed 10 Apr 1706 age c77); m1 abt 1650 Sarah Gardner, dau of Thomas Gardner; she d at Beverly 5 Apr 1686; m2 Marblehead 5 Feb 1688/9 Abigail Clarke, who d at Beverly 1 Jan 1690; age abt 55; m3 Beverly 15 Mar 1691/2 Grace Mallett.
2. John Balch, b abt 1631; m Mary Conant, dau of Roger Conant; she m2 by 1663 William Dodge, son of William Dodge.
3. Freeborn Balch, b abt 1634 (deposed 19 Aug 1657 age 23); on 20 Jan 1658 Walter Price of Salem, exec'r and admin'r to Freeborn Balch, sold to Benjamin Balch of Salem at Bass River for L20 and half of five acres of upland and marsh in Planter's Marsh formerly belonging to John Balch, "all that part of the farm lying at Bass River which John Balch deceased hath given by will unto Freeborn Balch," unless "the abovesaid Freeborn Balch appear to be alive.

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Disputed origins

From https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Unknown-354751

This profile originally stated that Margery Balch, the wife of John Balch, died at Beverly, Massachusetts January 31, 1682 and that John and Margery were married 12 September 1625 in St Cuthbert at Wells, Somerset, England. No evidence has been found to support either statement. Galusha Balch stated "There is no record of her parentage or the date of their marriage, but it is not improbable that theirs may have been the first and perhaps only marriage in the Naumkeag settlement."[1]

Robert Charles Anderson says there is nothing to support the various parishes in Somersetshire that have been suggested as Margery's husband’s origin. Anderson does not name a father for John Balch or a surname for Margery. Anderson says that Margery was in the list of Salem church members in December 1636[2], so her date of death has been changed, only indicating that it was after December 1636.

She is sometimes said to be Margaret Lovell (or Lovett) – a John Balch married Margaret Lovell on 12 September 1625 at St. Cuthbert’s parish in Wells, co. Somerset. Certainly, this is a possible match as the timing and names are correct; however, there remains no direct connection between any John Balch in England and John Balch the immigrant. Furthermore, all indications are that John Balch was in Massachusetts in 1625, and never returned to England. One would have to suppose that he had returned to England, gotten married, and then very quickly returned to Massachusetts. She first appears in the church records of Salem in 1636.

No evidence has been found supporting a maiden name of Lovett for Margery, so it has been changed to Unknown.

Revisions

• Edits: "John returned to England and on 12 Sep 1625, married Marjary Lovell at St. Cuthbert church, Wells, England. Records show John had six children"
• Removed: Birth: circa 1605,Wells, Somerset, England, (Present UK)
• Removed: Marriage: 09/12/1625, Wells, Somerset, England
• Removed: Death: January 31, 1682 (72-81) Salem, Essex County, Massachusetts Bay Colony, (Present USA)
• Detached: Mary Balch as daughter

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References

1. Torrey, Clarence Almon, New England Marriages Prior to 1700, (Baltimore: Genealogical Pub. Co., Inc., 1985). Pg. 35.
2. http://wc.rootsweb.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=trees4u&i... (dead link)
3. WikiTree contributors, "Margery (Unknown) Balch (1603-aft.1636)," WikiTree: The Free Family Tree, (https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Unknown-354751 : accessed 14 January 2025). cites
   1. Galusha B. Balch, Genealogy of the Balch Family in America, Eben Putnam: Salem, 1897, page 6.
   2. Robert Charles Anderson, The Great Migration Begins, Boston, New England Historic Genealogical Society, 1995, Vol I A-F, pages 84-86. < Ancestry.com >
   3. Ferris, Mary Walton. Dawes-Gates Ancestral Lines, vol 1. (1943): 69-82. < Ancestry.com >