Genealogy is an interesting part of history. Learning about our own and others’ ancestors benefits us in several ways. For instance, this type of knowledge increases our understanding of the past, builds appreciation for the accomplishments and sacrifices of our forebearers, reveals character qualities to emulate and good examples to follow, demonstrates attitudes and actions to avoid, gives insight into the power of faith in people’s lives, allows clearer perceptions of relationships, and so much more. In opposition to current trends, we can and should hold onto and share our remembered past without bashing whole groups of people.
Gideon Tabor was one of my fourth great-grandfathers.[1] He was born circa 1762 in Tiverton, Newport County, Rhode Island to Water Tabor (Walter, Taber)[2] and Hannah Taber. Water and Hannah were both descendants of Francis Cooke who arrived on the Mayflower in 1620 and Deacon Philip Taber who emigrated to America in the 1630s. Francis Cooke, a “saint,”[3] was a signer of the Mayflower Compact and a wool carder. Water descended from Cooke’s daughter, Mary, and Hannah from Cooke’s son, John, who also came over on the Mayflower. Hannah’s ascendants included two other Mayflower Compact signers: Richard Warren, a “stranger” and merchant, and William White, a “saint” and wood carver. William ‘s wife, Susannah Winslet (Winslow), gave birth to Hannah’s third great-grandfather, Perigrine White, on the Mayflower after the Pilgrims landed.
Deacon Philip Taber worked as a carpenter and sawyer. He willingly donated planks for a local sea fort. Deacon Philip served as the deputy of Yarmouth in 1639-1640, a magistrate for Martha’s Vineyard in 1654, and a representative in Providence in 1661. Water descended from Deacon Philip’s sons, Joseph and Captain Thomas, and Hannah from another son, Philip. Water Tabor fought in the American Revolution in Captain Christopher Manchester’s unit under Colonel Richmond’s regiment of Rhode Island. Besides fighting in the Revolution, Captain Thomas Tabor served in Dartmouth as town surveyor for a few years, starting in 1673, as town clerk and constable in 1679, as Selectman for six years between 1685 and 1711, and as a representative to the General Court for two years.
Like his father and grandfather, Gideon Tabor served his country, first as a minuteman and later as a public leader. Gideon joined the War of Independence at the age of sixteen and continued to fight for four years. In November 1787, he married Hannah Carpenter, the daughter of Beloved Carpenter and Mary Williams. Beloved, whose great-grandfathers, Joseph, William, and William, had transplanted themselves from England to Massachusetts over one hundred years earlier, was an early settler under the Harwick charter in Vermont. Mary was the great, great granddaughter of Roger Williams, the founder and governor of Rhode Island. Gideon and Mary’s families were interconnected in multiple ways. The young couple soon started having children; in all, over the next twenty-one years, they parented twelve children.
The year following his marriage, Gideon began his long public career. On March 17, 1788, he became the moderator for the organization of the township of Harwick. Gideon proceeded to serve his neighbors as town clerk for twenty-eight years, justice of the peace for thirty years, and as a representative to the Legislature for over thirty years. He seems to have been well liked and trusted. In 1803, when it was decided the township of Harwick should be renamed because of its close spelling to the township of Hardwick, the new name selected was Mt. Tabor, in Gideon’s honor. In 1818, when the Legislator decided to build a road from Danby to Mt. Holly through Mt. Tabor, Gideon was appointed the task of collecting two cents per acre from each of the local residents. Gideon Tabor worked at serving his community until his death in February 1824 at the age of sixty-two.
[1] The information for this blog was compiled from family records, Early American Imprints: Acts & Laws Passed By The Legislature Of The State Of Vermont … October One Thousand Eight Hundred and Ten. Danville: Ebenezer Eaton State Printer; “An Act, To Regulate The Choice Of Council Of Censors; Passed October 28th, 1805.” Peachem: Samuel Goose, 1805; Legislature. A Journal Of The Proceedings Of The General Assembly Of The State Of Vermont … October Eighth, One Thousand Seven Hundred And Ninety Five. Rutland. The Vermontess Almanac And Register, For The Year Of Our Lord 1796 […]. VT: James Kirkaldie; Walton’s Vermont Register, And Farmer’s Almanack, For The Year Of Our Lord 1819 […]. Montpelier, VT: E.P. Walton; Online souces: Hamilton Child, comp. Gazetteer and Business Directory of Rutland County, Vermont; 1881-82, Syracuse, NY: Journal Office, 1881. Transcribed by Karma Allison, 2004; Leonard Deming, Catalogue of the Principal Officers of Vermont: As Connected with Its Political History from 1778 to 1851: With Some Biographical Notices, & C. Middlebury, VT: Leonard Deming, 1851; and genealogical websites, such as geni.com, genealogieonline.nl, findagrave.com, familysearch.com, and accessgenealogy.com.
[2] In the early eighteenth century and before, the same person’s name could be written with a variety of spellings, even on official documents. On geni.com, known alternative spellings and nicknames are often listed. Although all the women in Gideon’s line of heritage were married and took their husband’s last names, the women’s maiden names are given when known to help trace lineage.
[3] Passengers on the Mayflower were labeled saint, stranger, or servant for identification purposes.