That line started with Nathaniel Page/Paige who arrived in Bedford, MA in the 1600's. He had several descendants who were Cornets and other grades of officers in the Rev. War starting from the first battle, Lexington, and Bunker Hill. One of the Nathaniel Pages was a Minute Men of Bedford. The spelling of the last name of this line switches back and forth between Page and Paige. Nathaniel Page/Paige was b. in England in 1645 and m. a Joanna __?__ there. He died in Boston, Mass. Apr. 12, 1692. He immigrated with his family to America about 1675 (some records say 1684) and at that time altered the spelling of his name to "Paige." He was one of the eight original purchasers of what became Hardwick, Mass.. He was living in Roxbury, Mass. in 1686. Two years later he removed to Billerica, later called Bedford, Mass.. He was a marshal of Suffolk Co., Mass.. In his will, dated Apr. 11, 1692, he bequeathed considerable property, including farms at Billerica, Dedham, Squabauge and Worcester. The best record of this family is in Brown's "History of Bedford," but he uses the old spelling "Page", which was later again adopted by some of his descendants. Children of this immigrant include: i. Cornet Nathaniel Paige, b. in Eng. (NOT Billerica, Mass.), m. Susannah Lane Nov. 6, 1701, and d. in Bedford, Mass. in 1755. They had three known sons, two of which had known descendants, and two daughters. His grandson, David Page, b. Bedfont Apr. 1, 1740 (Called King David) married Abigail Jones in 1764 and died Jan. 11, 1819 spelled his name, as did his descendants, "Page." SEE BELOW ii. Elizabeth Paige, b. in Eng. who m. John Simpkins of Boston in 1698. iii. Sarah Paige who m. Samuel Hill, Jr. of Billerica, Mass. in 1699. iv. James Paige, bapt. Nov. 28, 1686, d. July 31, 1687. v. Christopher Paige, b. Billerica Feb. 6, 1696. Married a Joanna __?__ who died Oct. 27, 1719. Married (2) Elizabeth Reed in 1720. Moved to Hardwick, Mass. about 1735. He died in Hardwick, Mass. March 10, 1774. He had eleven children, many of who had known descendants. [Source: Charles Nash Page's Chart #4, Point Lomas, CA January 1918 found in the Library of Congress under their call number CS71.P133, 1917-] There is a stained glass window at the Harrow School, in county Middlesex, England of the coat of arms of William Page, Gent. (in Latin). The augmentation shown on his coat of arms (which was also on the Bedford flag flown by the Minutemen at Concord Bridge) is not listed as belong to any of the Page family in James Fairbairn's, "Crests of the Families of Great Britain and Ireland!" It was awarded to his ancestor Sir Richard Page, Knt. Sir Richard Page, Knt. was baptized 28 Aug, 1603 at St. Mary Harrow on the Hill, Middlesex, Eng. the son of Richard and Frances (Mudge) Page. Sir Richard Page may have m. about 1635 Elmira Whitecliffe as well as Frances Burrows. By Elmira they were the parents of Richard Page (bp. 30 Aug. 1629 - d. 1714); Francis Page (d. 1692, m. Mary Owen --- not the ancestor of Col. John Page of Virginia c, 1650!); Mary Page (bp. 20 Feb. 1630/1); and Nathaniel Page, but the latter child does not appear in the parish records! Rev. H. W. R. Elsley Vicar of Tokyngton in his1958 book "Wembley Through the Ages" refers to Sir Richard Page on p. 131 as being from Uxendon, a Royalist and a captain and promoted to Lt. Col. in 1644, and knighted (on 2 June 1645) by Charles who he accompanied on his journey from York to Oxford during the Civil War. He was a Lt. Col. in the Second Battle of Newbury on 27 Oct. 1644. In May 1645 he was granted an augmentation to his arms of "a canton gules, a lion passant guardant or" from the arms of the King and Crest: "A hand in armour proper issuing out of a ducal coronet or gutte'e de sang" in consideration of his services during the battle at Edgehill (23 Oct. 1642) and other places. This was just before the Battle of Naseby fought on 14 June 1645. Note: This augmentation on the top dexter side of the this Page family's coat of arms appears in the Old Speech Room, now the art gallery, of the Harrow School in the colored stained glass coat of arms of "Guilielmus Page, Armiger" (William Page, Gent.). It is the inherited coat of arms the William Page who was a governor of the school in 1803? [Source: Rev. H. W. R. Easley, Vicar of Tokyngton, "Wembley Through the Ages" (Wembley, Middlesex: Wembley News Neeld Parade, 1953), p. 133.] I have an 8" x 11" colored reproduction of this stained glass window. The Cornet Nathaniel Paige associated with the incident at Concord Bridge and who furnished the flag was b. in Bedford, Mass. Sep 4, 1702, the son of Cornet Nathaniel & Susannah (Lane) Paige who died in Bedford, Mass. The latter Cornet Paige was in turn the son of the immigrant Nathaniel Page/Paige who was b. in Eng. in 1645. From my research so far the family was from co. Devon, but I have no documented proof. The coat of arms of the Pages from co, Devon was: Ar. on a bend [ ] 3 eagles displayed [ ]. Crest: A demi-eagle couped. [Seal of Nicholas Page of Boston 1679 in a Mass. Archives doc., vol. 61, p. 196.] According to "Burke's "The General Armory:" Page or Paige (co. Devon). Ar. a bend between three eagles displayed sable. Crest: An eagle displayed ermine. The ancestry of the immigrant Nathaniel Page/Paige as shown by Charles Nash Page in the early 1900s appears to be wrong! There was another Nathaniel Page, the son of a John Page of Alperton, baptized on 22 Sep. 1639. Alperton is a small village within the parish of Harrow on the Hill in co. Middlesex, Eng. George W.Page +++++++++ At 07:13 PM 1/7/2001 -0500, you wrote: >I am working on the English origins of Nathaniel Page, immigrant >ancestor of the Page line that lived in Bedford for 200 years and is >associated with the Bedford Flag. > >Has anyone researching this Nat Page found anything other than the >conventional story passed down by Charles Nash Page that he was born >in Plymouth, England? I have visited the Devon Record Office and find >no Nathaniel in birth or marriage records or births of his children. > >Similarly, the old family tree printed by Charles Lauriat in the early >part of this century puts him on the great Page Estate in Middlesex, >England but my research in that family shows no Nathaniel (and no >Elmira Whitecliffe!) in the mid 1600's. > >I live not two miles from the old Page Homestead and it is part of >my job to show the Bedford Flag to visitors. Fascinated by the story, >I have written a book about it, but still have no clue as to where >Natty hailed from. (Last summer looked for him in Lincolnshire, and >am presently trying to ferret him out in Essex from whence came a >big batch of Pages... But no joy as yet.) > >Anybody got any clues? >Yours Sincerely >Sharon Lawrence McDonald >[email protected] > > >==== PAGE Mailing List ==== >PAGE list website - http://www2.netdoor.com/~cch/lists/PAGE.htm