Augustine “Austin” BEARSE^[1]

1618 - 1686  (68 years)

• Name	Augustine “Austin” BEARSE
  Born	1618	Southampton, Hampshire, England
  Gender	Male
  Migration	24 Apr 1638	“Confidence”
  Immigrant?	Y
  Married?	Y
  Died	2 Jun 1686	Barnstable, Barnstable, Massachusetts
  Person ID	I38751	Main
  Last Modified	9 Dec 2023

  
  

  Family	Mary MNU,   b. Abt 1624, prob England ,   d. 21 Feb 1678, Yarmouth, Barnstable, Massachusetts  (Age ~ 54 years)
  Children	+ 1. Sarah BEARSE,   b. 28 Mar 1646, Barnstable, Barnstable, Massachusetts ,   d. 30 Mar 1712, Hamlin’s Plains, Barnstable, Massachusetts  (Age 66 years)   2. Presiller BEARSE,   b. 10 Mar 1643, Barnstable, Barnstable, Massachusetts ,   d. 30 Mar 1712, Yarmouth, Barnstable, Massachusetts  (Age 69 years)
  Last Modified	21 Dec 2023
  Family ID	F27681	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

• Event Map		Died - 2 Jun 1686 - Barnstable, Barnstable, Massachusetts  = Link to Google Earth
  Pin Legend	: Address       : Location       : City/Town       : County/Shire       : State/Province       : Country       : Not Set

  
  

• Notes

  The following is from http://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Bearse-3: The first Bearse in the line was Augustine Bearse, also known as Austin Bearse. What we know for sure about Augustine Bearse is that at age 20 he arrived at Plymouth from Southampton, England on April 24, 1638 aboard the "Confidence". He is listed immediately following Martha Wilder and Mary (!), her daughter (no ages given) of Shiplocke, Oxfordshire, England.[3] After a short time in Plymouth proper, he moved to Barnstable (Cape Cod) with the first company in 1639. His house lot, contained 12 acres of very rocky land and was in the westerly part of the East Parish and bounded westerly by John Crocker's land, northerly by the meadow, easterly by Goodman Isaac Rolinson's land and "southerly into ye woods." He owned six acres of meadow adjoining his upland on the north, and two thatch islands, still known as Bearse's islands (in the 1870's). He also had six acres of land in the Calves Pasture, esteemed to be the best soil; in the town, eight acres of planting land on the north side of Shoal pond, and bounded by Goodman Cooper's, now call Huckins' Neck, and thirty acres at the Indian pond, bounded easterly by the Herring River. The Indian pond lot he sold to Thomas Allyn. He was proposed to be admitted a freeman, 3 June 1652, and admitted 3 May 1653. Rarely found in the records, nonetheless he is shown as a grand juror in 1653 and 1662, and a surveyor of highways in 1674. He was a farmer, lived on the produce of his land and brought up his large family to be useful members of society. His house stood on the north side of the road, and his cellar and some remains of his orchard still existed up to the beginning of the 1800's. In 1643 he was the first to join the church of Rev. John Lothrop which had moved to Barnstable after a dispute over infant baptism, which the Lothrop Church supported. In 1652 Bearse was admitted a freeman. It is said that he was one of the few residents against whom no complaints were ever filed. He was a farmer, but in his civic role he served as surveyor of highways in 1674. He was still living in 1686 but had died by 1697. Augustine Bearse was said to be a very pious man as shown by the following excerpt from Genealogical Notes of Barnstable Families: He appears to have been very exact in the performance of his religious duties, causing his children to be baptized on the Sabbath following the day of their birth. His son Joseph was born on Sunday, Jan'y 25, 1651, O. S., and was carried two miles to the church and baptized the same day. . . .Now such an act would be pronounced unnecessary and cruel. The Bearse name survives on Cape Cod to this day in the short unpaved road near his former homesite in Eastham known as "Barss Lane". Austin's wife's name is unknown. She was unidentified by both Otis and Newcomb in their pre-1875 works. Early 20th century claims were made that she was a Native American. There is no record of his death nor estate settlement in the Probate records. OR: he died 2 Jun 1686 in Barnstable, MA. A road from his house to Hyannis is still known as Bearses' Way (easily located in Google Maps).

  
  

• Sources

  [S41] The Great Migration Study Project, Anderson, Robert Charles.