Rich, At 01:55 PM 1/14/2001 -0600, you wrote: >Seeking info on Lydia Washburn >born 2 Mar 1748 >died 9 Jul 1784 New Bedford, Bristol, Mass. >married Capt. John Sherman 12 Dec 1771 New Bedford, Bristol, Mass. > John Sherman b. 4 Mar 1749 New Bedford, Bristol, Mass. > d. 16 Nov 1843 New Bedford, Bristol, Mass. > >Anyone know anything about her? > >Rich Wendling > >e-mail: richwendling@yahoo.com > I was just working on this problem this weekend. Capt. John Sherman's first wife, Lydia Washburn, is one of those unidentified female Washburns who has been difficult to place. After Lydia died, in 1784, Sherman remarried to Anna Washburn, eldest daughter of Peter and Abigail (Pope) Washburn, of Dartmouth, in ca. 1786, probably in Dartmouth (marriage intenions recorded in Dartmouth on 29 Dec. 1785.) She is proven a daughter of Peter Washburn by his will, dated 20 Mar. 1806, and probated on 7 Oct. 1817, where he mentioned the heirs of his deceased daughter Anna Shearman, namely Ebenezer Shearman, Ruben Shearman, and Thurston Shearman. Anna (Washburn) Sherman had died on 26 May 1791, aged 36 years, and John Sherman had remarried again to Mary Church, of New Bedford, on 29 Dec. 1796, who died 26 June 1799, and he married his fourth wife, the widow Charlotte (Marshall) Russell, of Nantucket, in 1800. Peter Washburn, the father of Anna Washburn, was the eldest son of Moses Washburn and Hannah Cushman, who were married in Kingston, MA, on 23 May 1727. Peter was born in Bridgewater, MA, on 16 June 1728. There is a strong likelihood that Lydia Washburn, the first wife of Capt. John Sherman, was also a daughter of Moses Washburn and Hannah Cushman, born probably after their move from Bridgewater to Taunton, MA, but not recorded in the vital records there. Two other sons, Bezaleel Washburn and Thomas Washburn have already been identified as sons of Moses Washburn and Hannah Cushman through Bristol County deeds, born most likely in Taunton in the early 1740s. Unfortunately Moses Washburn left no will when he died in Dartmouth, MA, which identified any of his daughters, so at this point only his sons can be proven through deeds, but Moses appears to have been probably the only Washburn patriarch living in Dartmouth, MA, in the period leading up to 1767 when Lydia Washburn was married to John Sherman. Hannah (Cushman) Washburn was still alive in 1750, when she joined her husband, Moses Washburn, in selling their homestead in Taunton to Nathaniel Gilbert, in exchange for a farm in Dartmouth. Although Hannah would have been 43 years old when Lydia was born, which is certainly not impossible, it would mean that Lydia was probably the youngest child of Moses and Hannah Washburn if she were indeed a daughter of theirs. Deeds executed by John Sherman in Bristol County need to be closely examined to see if there might be any further link between the families of the sons of Moses and Hannah Washburn and that of John and Lydia Sherman, and I have not done this yet. I think there is a good chance the identity of Lydia can be solved with a little more research. If it does turn out that Lydia was a daughter of Moses Washburn, then John Sherman's second wife, Anna Washburn, was actually the niece of his first wife. Rich, please let me know what else you have found so far. Have you discovered the parents of Capt. John Sherman? Have you researched any of his Bristol County land records? John A. Maltby Redwood City, CA jamaltby@creative.net