William won a legal case in October 2, 1666 and was awarded damages for beating given to his son, Samuel, who was 12 at the time. As the plaintiff, he had declared that his son, Samuel, was set to make hay for Goodman Benham. He claimed that Jonathan Tuttle came to Samuel in the meadow and threw him down and kicked him. The defendant denied this act but the evidence was plentiful and the jury found for William Bassett to receive forty shillings damages and court costs. William Bassett was seated at the New Haven general court of January 7, 1667 and received 20 acres of land in the December 1680 third division of land in New Haven and his son Samuel received 21 acres.
William Bassett’s will was witnessed on Jan 1, 1679 by Thomas Yale, Sr. and James Clarke. He named John Cooper and Abraham Dickerman as the overseers of his estate. They had recently become his in-laws as his son, Samuel, married Mary Dickerman, daughter of Abraham and granddaughter of John Cooper, on June 21, 1677. He provides bequeaths to his daughters, Bia Bassett (Abiah), Phebe Rose (his step daughter Phebe Ives), Hannah Parker, and to his son Joseph Ives (his step son).
For some reason, not known, this will leaves out his other children and step children: John Bassett, Samuel Bassett, Martha (Ives) Beach, and John Ives. John and Samuel Bassett were living when he wrote his will as was John Ives (although John Ives died in 1682, two years before his step father passed on). The date of Martha Ives Beach’s death is not known. After William Bassett died on August 29, 1684*, his estate was inventoried by John Winston and Joseph Mansfield who reported a value of 50 pds, 10 shillings on Sept. 1684.
William and “Goodwife” Bassett had four children.
1. Hannah Bassett was born in New Haven on September 13, 1650, baptized in New Haven on September 15, 1650, and died in Wallingford, on June 7, 1726. She married John Parker (1648-1711), son of Edward Parker and Elizabeth Potter (widow of John Potter), on Nov. 8, 1670. They had eleven children, the first four were born in New Haven, the fifth in Wallingford and the others are uncertain: Hannah (1671-1758), Elizabeth (1673-1751), John (1675-1745), Abiah (1677-1767), Rachel (1680-1763), Joseph (1682-1758), Mary (1685-1770), Eliphalet (1687-1758), Samuel (1690-1750), Edward (1692-1776), Abigail (1694-1732).
2. John Bassett was born in New Haven on December 24, 1652, and died on Feb 8, 1713 in New Haven. John served in the King Philip War in 1675 and took part in the Great Swamp Fight with the Narragansetts in December of that year. He is listed as a Proprietor of New Haven, CT, in the Year 1685 (NEGHSR, vol. 1, pp. 157–8). He married Mercy Todd (1655-1717), daughter of Christopher and Grace (Middlebrook) Todd. They had nine children, all born in New Haven: Mercy (1676-1756), Hannah (1679-1766), Sarah (1682-1771), Lydia (1685-1738), Abigail (1687-1743), John (1691-1757), Joseph (1694), Rebecca (1694-), Joseph (1697-1761).
3. Samuel Bassett was born in New Haven on February 15, 1654, and died in New Haven on April 8, 1716. He is listed as a Proprietor of New Haven, CT, in the Year 1685 (NEGHSR, vol. 1, pp. 157–8). On June 21, 1677, in New Haven, he married Mary Dickerman (1659-1728), daughter of Abraham and Mary (Cooper) Dickerman. They had ten children: Mary (1678-1751), Phebe (1681-), Abiah (1684-1760), Samuel (1686-1744), John (1690-1726), Abraham (1692-1755), Martha (1695-1759), Amos (1697-1751), Ebenezer (1700-1722), Thankful (1702-1787). (see above)
4. Abiah was born in New Haven on Feb. 7, 1657, married Ralph Lines (1652-1712) on April 27, 1681. They had twelve children: Rebecca (1681-1696), Ralph (-1688), Hannah (1684-), Joseph (1685-1749), Phebe (1687-), Alice (1688-1689), Ralph (169-1693), child (1693), Benjamin (1694-1755), Abiah (1695/6-), Rebecca (1697/8-1780), Alice (1697-1780).
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