Birth: 20 Mar 1951, Battle Creek, MI
Father: Charles Edward Decoteau
Mother: Anita May Chambers
Partner: Roy Moored
Birth: 20 Oct 1713, Wrentham, Norfolk, MA
Death: 10 Jun 1726
Father: Nathaniel Ware
Mother: Mary Wheelock
Birth: 30 Sep 1676, Medfield, Norfolk, MA
Death: after 31 Mar 1727
Father: Benjamin Wheelock
Mother: Elizabeth Bullen
Spouse: Joseph Ward
Marriage: 5 Jun 1700, Marlborough, Middlesex, MA
Notes:
The Medfield vital records call her "Abiell Wheelocke". The Marlborough marriage record calls her "Abiah," and states that she and Joseph were "both of this town."1
She was administrator of her husbands estate, and was alive on 31 March 1727 when she put her mark on a probate document, acknowledging the division of estate. The probate records contain references to her as Abiel, and as Abiah.2
A death record has not been found.
Disputed Parents:
Despite the extant Marlborough record of marriage between Abiah Wheelock and Joseph Ward, arguments have been made that Abiel, daughter of Benjamin and Elizabeth (Bullen) Wheelock married Benjamin Albee of Mendon. Lacking a marriage record, the arguments were developed to explain the identity of Abial, with whom Benjamin Albee had multiple children in Mendon between the years 1694 and 1721. These arguments appear to originate in research submitted to the International Genealogical Index, and have been copied across the internet.
Clearly the two women were distinct. Abiah and Joseph Ward had children between the years 1701 and 1716, and Abial had children with Benjamin Albee in the overlapping years between 1694 and 1721.
While it may be tempting to say that Abiah and Abiel are different names, and therefore belong to different people, no reliable conclusions can be drawn from the different spellings in the Marlborough and Mendon VRs. Records in Marlborough refer to the wife of Joseph Ward as Abiah, and Abiel, though Abiah seems to be the more common variant.3 Records in Mendon refer to the wife of Benjamin Albee as Abial (not Abiel), and in one instance, Abigail.4 These variations in spellings are found throughout the Massachusetts vital records, with Abiel, Abiah, and Abial used interchangeably, often in the same document. Abigail is common variant as well, though less frequent.
The evidence for the Abiel Wheelock - Joseph Ward marriage is direct and straight-forward:
1) The Marlborough marriage record clearly identifies the spouse of Joseph Ward as Abiah Wheelock (or Wheelocke).
2) The marriage date and birth dates of her children are all consistent with her birth record in Medfield.
3) Though Abiel presumably lived in Mendon, her aunt, Record Wheelock, lived in Marlborough, and was a member of the Ward family there.
4) Abiel is an unusual name, and does not appear elsewhere in the Wheelock family at that time. There is no other candidate for the Abiah Wheelock who married Joseph Ward. Even considering variants (Abiel, Abial, Abigail), there is no other candidate.
5) Wheelock genealogies do not identify the husband of Abiel as Benjamin Albee. Many don't trace Abiel, but those that do identify her husband as Joseph Ward.5
6) No published Albee genealogy identifies Benjamin Albee's wife as Abiel Wheelock. They all acknowledge that her maiden name is unknown.6 Torrey does not identify the surname of Benjamin Albee's wife, nor does Gary Boyd Roberts, in his 2009 book Ancestors of American Presidents.7
The case put forward for the Abiel Wheelock - Benjamin Albee marriage is built on indirect evidence:
(1) Abiel and Benjamin lived in the same town.
(2) Abiel is an unusual name. Besides Abiel Wheelock, there are no other women in the Mendon VRs with the same first name (or variants) during that time period.8
(3) It is known from deeds that Benjamin Albee owned land adjacent to that of Obadiah Wheelock, Abiel's brother.9
(4) Benjamin Albee and his wife Abial had a child named Obadiah, a name that is not known to appear elsewhere in the ancestry of Benjamin Albee.
(5) A g-grandchild of Benjamin and Abial named their first born son Obadiah Wheelock Albee.
(6) Abial Albee bore children between 1694 and 1721 - nearly the full range of fertility for a woman during that period. She could not have been born much earlier or later than 1676.
There are some caveats and counter-arguments that should be considered:
It would not have been unusual at the time to name a child after a respected neighbor. This is one possible alternate explanation for the name Obadiah, which is not known to otherwise appear in the Albee family.
Abiel was born in Medfield and lived in Mendon, at least for a time, but there are at least two plausible reasons for why she might have moved to Marlborough, where she was resident when she married Joseph Ward in 1700. First, Abiel's mother died in 1689, when Abiel was 13 years old. Possibly she went to live with her aunt in Marlborough. Her older sisters may also have moved out of the Mendon household. Neither appears in the Mendon vital records after their births. Her sister Mary, was married in Wrentham, Masschusetts, raising the possibility that she moved there prior to her marriage - though no close relative has yet been identified there. Second, Record (Wheelock) Ward's husband died in Marlborough in 1690, leaving Record with seven minor children to care for. Abiel may have moved to Marlborough to help out her aunt, perhaps later in the 1690s, when she was older.
The fact that Abiel and Benjamin had a g-grandchild named Obadiah Wheelock Albee (O. W. Albee for brevity), a resident of Milford, does not necessarily mean that the middle name was handed down from Abiel Wheelock. A plausible alternate explanation is that it results from a relationship between O. W. Albee's parents and the Josiah Wheelock family of Milford. The relationship is demonstrated by the fact that O. W.'s father, Moses Albee, was a witness to Josiah Wheelock's 1793 will, and took inventory of the estate of Experience (Clark) Wheelock, Josiah's wife, in 1807.10 In 1794, O. W.'s grandfather, Stephen Albee, sold property in Milford to the son of Josiah and Experience, whose name happened to be Obadiah Wheelock.11 Obadiah Wheelock died at a relatively young age in 1805, a few years before Obadiah Wheelock Albee was born. Possibly O. W. Albee was the namesake of this Obadiah.
Of course, the alternate explanation may also be true - that the close relationship between the Albees and the Wheelocks of Milford (the latter being descendants of Abiel Wheelock's brother Obadiah) is a result of kinship, supporting the Abiel Wheelock - Benjamin Albee marriage. But it is not the only explanation for O. W. Albee's middle name.
To date, the deeds and probate records of Middlesex, Suffolk, and Worcester Counties provide no additional evidence to argue one way or another. However, the existence of a marriage record and a birth record to match, and the lack of any other plausible alternative candidate argues strongly in favor of the marriage between Joseph Ward and Benjamin Wheelock's daughter, Abiel.
The question might not truly be laid to rest until a plausible alternate identity is found for Benjamin Albee's wife, Abial.
Sources:
Birth: about 1852
Father: Francis Henry Wheelock
Mother: Nancy J. Dewey
Notes:
Emma's name is difficult to read in the 1870 Census. It may be Emeline, or a variation.
HOME INDEXBirth: 4 Mar 1876, Lawrence, Essex Co, MA
Father: Major Chipman Wheelock
Mother: Mary Lois North
Notes:
Ernest was married twice.1
Sources:
Birth: 4 Apr 1790, Calais, Washington Co, VT
Death: 22 Mar 1875, VT
Burial: Robinson Cemetery, Calais, VT
Father: Peter Wheelock
Mother: Lydia Green
Spouse: Winthrop Gove
Marriage: 3 Feb 1813, Calais, Washington Co, VT
Notes:
Her estate was administered by Albert C. Bliss, nominated for the position by Orilla A. Bliss, daughter of Lucinda Gove. [Washington County, Vermont, probate records, case A510, volumes 2:51, 6:379.]
Research Notes:
Her probate records are in Washington County, Vermont, FamilySearch index image 3688 of 13585 (Index of Close estate Files), contained in 2:51 and 6:379.
HOME INDEXBirth: 17 Feb 1969
Father: Joseph Gerald Wheelock
Mother: Marie Allard
Partner: (--?--)
Birth: 1950
Death: 2001
Father: William Joseph Wheelock
Mother: Theresa Klug
Birth: 28 Nov 1826, Cheshire County, NH
Death: 23 Apr 1883
Father: William Elijah Wheelock
Mother: Harriet Porter
Spouse: Alvin Thayer Willard
Marriage: 12 Nov 1850, Winchester, Cheshire Co, NH