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SIXTH GENERATION

17. Edmund Freeman was born about 1596 in Pulborough, Sussex, England.⁽³¹⁾⁽³²⁾⁽²²⁾ He was christened on 25 Jul 1596 in Saint Mary's Church, Pulborough, Sussex, England.⁽³³⁾⁽³⁴⁾⁽³⁵⁾⁽²¹⁾⁽³⁶⁾⁽¹⁷⁾⁽¹⁰⁾ He emigrated on 17 Jun 1635 from London, London, England.⁽³⁷⁾ He signed a will on 21 Jun 1682.⁽³⁸⁾ He died before 2 Nov 1682 in Sandwich, Barnstable, MA.⁽¹⁷⁾⁽³¹⁾⁽³⁹⁾⁽²⁰⁾⁽³²⁾⁽²²⁾⁽⁴⁰⁾ He was buried on 2 Nov 1682 in Sandwich, Barnstable, MA.⁽¹⁷⁾⁽¹⁰⁾ He has Ancestral File number G477-GT. He has reference number 2052. Edmund Freeman (1590-1682), from Eng. in the "Abigail", with wife and four children; settled at Lynn, Mass., where he presented the colony with 20 corslets (armor), moved to Plymouth, 1637, where he was admitted freeman, 1637; was one of the ten to settle at Sandwich, Mass., 1639, and received the largest land grant; dep. Plymouth Colony, 1641; asst. to Gov. Bradford, 1640-47; mem. Council of War, 1642; presiding officer of a court of three "to hear and determine controversies and cawses," and later selected judge; m. Elizabeth --- (d. 1675/76). [Frederick A. Virkus, The Abridged Compendium of American Genealogy, Volume I, 1925]

Edmond Freeman was Deputy for Plymouth Colony 1641, Assistant to Gov. Prence 1640-1646 and member of Council of War 1642. (DAR LINEAGE BOOK VOL 14, P 260)

The Freeman family came from England in the year 1635 on the ship "Abigail." Alice Freeman, 17; Edmund Freeman, 15; Elizabeth, 12; and John, 8, were listed as passengers with their father and mother, Edmond and Elizabeth. Edmond Freeman lived in Lynn, Mass. before settling in Sandwich, Mass. about 1637 or 1638. The will of Edmond Freeman was dated 21 Jun 1682. [STACYN.GED]

Wm.E. WRIGHT: "GREENE & LEWIS"; [private]; Houston, TX; 1991; pp 87-88. He married (2) 10 Aug 1632 in Shipley Parish, Sussex, England, Elizabeth RAYNER. [Crandall homepage http://pages.prodigy.com/NY/cranfamassoc/ne.html]

It seems the town of Sandwich had more than its share of the religious factionalisms widely prevalent throughout the Plymouth Colony in the last half of the seventeenth century. Genealogists of the George Allen family allege he was an Anabaptist. Such an association would be in harmony with the next record: at a Court of 7 Oct 1651 - "Wee further present Ralph Allen, Senior, & his wife, George Allen & his wife, William Allen, Richard Kerby, Peeter Gaunt & his wife, Rose Newland, Edmond Freeman, Senr., & his wife, Goodwife Turner, and Widdow Knott, all of the town of Sandwich, for not frequenting the publick worship of God, contrary to order, made 6 of June 1651." [N.B. Shurtleff, ed. "Records of the Colony of New Plymouth," 1:107] [Maclean W. McLean, "Peter Gaunt (ca 1615 - ca 1678) of Sandwich," National Genealogical Society Quarterly 62:4, p.248 (1974)]

The first Freeman in America was Edmund who arrived in Plymouth in 1635 aboard the "Abigail." He was the son of Edmond and Alice Coles Freeman who lived at Reigate in County Surrey, England.
He was admitted freeman at Plymouth, January 2, 1637. Edmund was prominent, active and influential in affairs of the colony. Edmund of one of the original nine men who founded the town of Sandwich on Cape Cod.
Edmund's first wife was Bennett Hodsoll, but she apparently died in England. Edmund married Elizabeth Gurney who came to America with him. Four children also came American with the family. [Lee Murrah's Freeman Family Page] http://www.murrah.com/gen/freeman.htm

FREEMAN, EDMUND, Lynn, came in the Abigail 1635, aged 45, with others of the name, Mary, 50; John, 35; Thomas, 24; John, 9; and Cecilia, 4; all ent. at the custom ho. 17 June in London; but we kn. of six others for the same sh. ent. 1 July foll. viz. Edward, 34; his w. Eliz. 35; and four ch. not of Edward, but of Edmund, Alice, 17; Edmund, 15; Eliz. 12; and John, 8. Who Mary and the four others were, that took their passage on the earlier day, is all unkn. as well as the Edward with w. Eliz. Conjecture will find no benefit from rec. it is thought; for we are not able to determine whether he brought a w. yet kn. that he had one at Sandwich, but not her name. Presume we may (from his will of 21 June 1682, pro. 2 Nov. foll. naming s. Edmund, John, and Edward Perry, as the w. of Edward Perry was Mary), that he had m. on this side of the water, a wid. Perry, tho. Mr. Winsor took a diverse view, as if E. P. had m. a d. of Freeman. No d. is ever ment. in this country, exc. the two found in the old rec. of the London custom ho. Alice, wh. m. 24 Nov. 1639, deac. William Paddy, and d. at Plymouth, 24 Apr. 1651; and Eliz. wh. m. a. 1645, John Ellis. An Eliz. F. wh. d. at Sandwich, 14 Feb. 1676, may have been the fellow passeng. call. in the rec. w. of Edward, but while we are ignor. wh. Edward was, or where he liv. or if indeed the name be not a delusion on the rec. there may be possibil. of her being the w. of Edmund. Dr. Palfrey found gr.stones of many of this fam. name at Benfield in Northamptonsh. but the late Rev. Dr. James Freeman understood from fam. tradit. that he was deriv. from Devonsh. On the first arr. of Edmund with his assoc. at Sandwich, they call. the place Saugus, out of regard to the Ind. name of the place in Mass. whence they rem. He was an Assist. of the Col. 1640-46 incl. but why in foll. yrs. omit. is not guessed at, nor why among instances of longev. he is not cited, when many younger are. [Savage, Gen. Dictionary, 1965]
EDMOND FREEMAN - Dawes-Gates, p.349-64, gives a well documented account showing that Edmond Freeman was baptized 25 July 1596 at St. Mary's Church, Pulborough, Sussex, the son of Edmond and Alice (Coles) Freeman, and he died 2 November 1682 at Sandwich, Plymouth Colony. He married (1) at Cowfold, Sussex, on 16 June 1617 Bennett Hodsoll, daughter of John and Faith ( ) (Bacon) Hodsoll, who died in 1630 at Pulborough and (2) Elizabeth, whose surname is not known, but who may have been the Elizabeth Raymer who married Edmond Freeman on 10 August 1632 at Shipley, Sussex (parish register). He sailed for New England with four surviving children and some other people with his surname on the Abigail in July 1635, and he settled first at Saugus (Lynn) in the Bay Colony. He was evidently the leader of the Saugus men who moved in 1637 to Sandwich, and it was to him that a deed was granted as agent for the others. He became an Assistant in Plymouth Colony, but was not reelected in 1646, and Edward Winslow wrote to Gov. John Winthrop in Boston that "I suppose the country left [Freeman] out in regard of his professed Anabaptistry & Separacon from the Churches' (MHS Collections, 4th series, 6:178). The Dawes-Gates account shows also that he was of an unorthodox nature for his time and place, and was later sympathetic to the Quakers. He had business interests of his own in New England, and he had a power of attorney in behalf of his brother-in-law, John Beauchamp, who had continued as one of the four London Undertakers after the other Adventurers sold out their interests.

His will dated 21 June 1682, proved 2 November 1682, named his three "sons," Edmond Freeman, John Freeman, and Edward Perry (whose wife Mary has sometimes been assumed to have been a daughter of Edmond Freeman though no evidence has been found). Also named were his daughter Elizabeth Ellis, and his grandsons Matthias Freeman and Thomas Paddy (MD 12:248). Ms son Edmond married (1) Rebecca Prence, daughter of Thomas and (2) Margaret Perry. His son John married Mercy Prence, daughter of Thomas. Ifis daughter Elizabeth married John Ellis. Ifis other children were Alice Freeman, who married William Paddy, and a daughter Bennett and a son Nathaniel, both of whom died young. For additional comments on the Perrys, see Lydia B. (Phinney) Brownson and Maclean McLean, "Ezra Perry of Sandwich. Mass. (c. 1625-1689)," NEHGR 115:86.

Source: Plymouth Colony Its History & People 1620-1691 by Eugene Aubrey Stratton

______________________________________________________________________ _

EDMOND FREEMAN was born before Jul 25 1596 in Pulborough, Sussex, England. He was christened on Jul 25 1596 in Pulborough, Sussex, England. He died between Jun 21 1682 and Nov 2 1682 in Sandwich, Barnstable Co., MA. (dates his will was written and presented for probate) [Beverly J. Freeman. The Lineage of Richard Vernon Freeman. Privately published Auburn MA 1971.] Edmund and his family sailed from Oxford on the Abigail in 1635. They settled first in Saugus (later known as Lynn); Edmund's portion of land was the largest. He presented the Colony with 20 corsletts (pieces of plate armor), supposedly for defense against the Indians. In 1637 they removed to Plymouth. Soon after he removed to Sandwich, with ten others, in order "to worship God and to make money". Received a grant of 500 acres from King Charles I (location not specified by Freeman). Edmund was Assistant Governor 1640-1646, and headed a court that settled disputes in area townships. He was dropped from this position because of his "liberal and tolerant principles" and belief in freedom of worship.

Edmund and Elizabeth both rode on horseback over the area. They were buried on their own land in the rear of their dwelling -- the oldest burying place in Sandwich. A stone on the property resembled a pillion; shortly after Elizabeth's death, it was hauled by oxen to mark her grave. Another stone resembled a saddle, and Edmond had this placed over the precise spot "where ere long another grave must be digged". The monuments are known as the "Saddle and Pillion"; the burial ground was given to the town of Sandwich shortly before 1971. "A well-worn path leads from the street through a field and then one sees the graves under the trees. From the street the Freeman farm is visible, banked on the side with yellow forsythia bushes." That original homestead burned and a new house was built about 1695, by either son John or grandson John. When Beverly Freeman wrote in 1971, the house was still standing, and the property was occupied by a descendant of John Freeman, Mrs. Everard Pratt. [Plymouth & Cape Cod MA Genealogy http://www.gendex.com/users/hhadaway/hadaway/hadawaypage.htm]

EDMOND FREEMAN JR., son of Edmund Freeman and Alice Coles, was baptized July 25, 1596, at St. Mary's Church, Pulborough, County Sussex, England, and died in Oct. 1682, at Sandwich, Plymouth Colony, MA. He married 1st at Cowfold, County Sussex, on June 16, 1617 to BENNETT HODSOLL, daughter of John HODSOLL and his wife, the widow Faith (-----) BACON, of that place. From that marriage there were four children prior to Bennett's pre-mature death in Pulborough in 1630. He married 2nd Elizabeth Beauchamp PERRY the widow of a "gentleman" by the name of PERRY from Devonshire and the Pulborough area.

John HODSOLL, father of Edmond FREEMAN's wife, Bennett, died between August 1, 1617, the date of his will, and November 16, 1617, the date of probate. The will names Faith Hodsoll, my beloved wife; my son-in-law William Scales and Elizabeth his wife, my daughter; my daughter Bennett Freeman, wife of Edmond Freeman; Katharine Hodsoll and Christian Hodsoll, my daughters; my sister Joan Whitacre; my brother-in-law Richard Moorer; Faith Bacon, my wife's daughter; my son John Hodsoll; my nephew John Hodsoll, son of my late brother, Robert Hodsoll; to his son John Hodsoll he bequeaths a farm called Bakers, in the parish of Stansted in Kent, "sometime the lands of my father John Hodsoll, deceased, and which to me descended after the decease of my late brother Henry Hodsoll, and also all those my lands and tenements in the parish of Stansted, Kent, which I lately purchased of Mr. Broughton, merchant taylor." My brother John Gratwick to be executor.

The name Hodsoll, altered to Hadsel, Hatsel and Hatsil, has been used as a given name among descendants of Edmond Freeman, almost to the present day.

Edmond Freeman seems to have had some education, for he wrote a fair hand; a letter of his is preserved in facsimile, shows care and perhaps business training. It is probable that by his marriage he rose somewhat in the social scale and bettered his prospects.

Both Edmond and his brother William, with their respective wives, were beneficiaries in the wills of their father-in-law, John Hodsoll, and his son of the same name, the wives being co-heirs to their brother. In January, 1633/4, EDMOND, on behalf of himself and his five living children, brought suit in Chancery Court against his brother William and others in regard to the disposition of certain lands and tenements formerly belonging to John Hodsoll, his father-in-law. The depositions taken (see below), give evidence, among other things, of the dates of baptism of four of the six children of Edmond at Billinghurst, the register of which was then existent though not now to be found; that he then owned lands in both Pulborough and Billinghurst; that he must have removed in 1619/20 to Billingshurst for a period of seven or eight years; and that he was a man of good credit and repute in the community.

On January 13, 1633/34, John Draper deposed that he knew all the complainants and swears he hath taken out of the register book of Billingshurst the dates of baptism of the children of Edmund and Bennett Freeman, viz. of Edmond, Bennett (who is lately deceased), Elizabeth and John. Of Alice, another child, he says the date is defaced in the parchment, but that she is of the age of sixteen years or thereabouts, "for as this deponent conceiveth she is older than her brother Edmund by two years or thereabouts."

He knows Edmond Freeman th' elder to have lands at Pulborough to the yearly value of 50 pounds, yf the same were in his present possession, but saith one Wexham, an old man of th' age of three score and ten years hath fifteen pounds per annum thereof during his life; and saith that sd Edmond Freeman has copyhold lands at Billingshurst worth 80 pounds per annum, which he holds by copy of Court Roll for the term of his life, and that of one of his children; that he is a man of good credit and estimation amongst his neighbors and soe hath been reported for divers yeares past, and hath divers goods, plate, chattels and household goods.

About fifteen months after the date of this deposition, and perhaps in consequence of the outcome of this suit, Edmond Freeman decided to embark for New England. It is not known if there was any religious motive in his emigration, since it is not known if he was a Puritan. It has been surmised that he was sent over by his brother-in-law, John Beauchamp, to look after his interests in the Plymouth Colony. It is true that in 1635 the financial affairs of the Colony were in a disturbed state, owing to the duplicity of Allerton and the exorbitant demands of the seven London Adventurers, of whom Beauchamp was one. In 1645 Edmond Freeman was called an attorney of Beauchamp, to look after his interests.

During the Fourteenth and Fifteenth century in England, many of the Freeman's were prominent and wealthy land owners. Many carried the title "Gentleman" , which was the equivalent of a "Squire". This title denoted a person of quality, of higher education, of wealth, or of a large property owner. The four main traditional home counties of the Freeman family were: Suffolk, Woechestershire, Buckinghamshire, and Northamptonshire. My first direct descendant from England was from Pulborough or Devonshire, County of Sussex, England.

In 1630, the "Great Immigration" took place. It began with the Winthrope Fleet, consisting of 11 vessels and the flagship, that sailed from England to America. The ships were: Abella (Flagship), Ambrose, Talbot, Jewel, Charles, Mayflower, William, Fransis, Whale, Hopewell, Success, and Trail. They arrived in Salem, Mass. between June 13, 1630 and July 1630. This immigration continued through 1635.

He and his four children, in company with several other individuals of the same family name, whose relationship is not yet established, engaged passage for New England on the Abigail of London, Richard Hackwell, Master. On July 1, 1635, a Freeman family, consisting of Edmund Freeman, husband, 34, Mrs. Elizabeth Freeman, wife, 35, Edward Freeman, 15, John Freeman, 8, Elizabeth Freeman, 12, and Alice Freeman, 17, was enrolled. The ages of the children coincide so closely with the date of their baptisms in the Billingshurst register as children of Edmund Freeman and Bennett, his first wife, that it is almost certain that the family has been correctly identified. The difficulty is in the name of the father as Edward, aged 34. C. E. Banks changed the name of the father to Edmond, but the name of the son aged 15 to Edward, leaving the father's age as 34. This seems arbitrary, unless the Custom House records actually read that way. These records are copies, all in one handwriting, of originals made at the time of enrolling passengers. Thus, there is room for error. The confusion of the similar names of Edmond and Edward and the confusion of the numerals 4 and 9 would be quite possible.

The ship Abigail sailed from Plymouth, England, about August 1, 1635, and arrived at Boston, MA on October 8, 1635, having been on the ocean ten weeks. Two hundred and twenty persons were aboard, some of them distinguished persons, and many cattle. Smallpox developed during the voyage, but whether it claimed any lives is not known.

Edmond Freeman and his family settled first in Lynn, Massachusetts for a short time. During his residence there he presented to the Massachusetts Bay Colony twenty corslets or suits of plate armor. These he doubtless brought over in view of an Indian menace. For some reason he and others of Lynn wished to remove to Cape Cod and asked Plymouth Colony for a grant of land there. On April 3, 1637, it was ordered "that these ten men of Saugus [Lynn], including Edmond, "shall haue liberty to view a place to sitt downe & haue sufficient lands for three score famylies. . ." The present location of Sandwich was chosen and a number of men, many of whom had families, removed there from Lynn in, or perhaps even before, 1637. Certain conditions were to be met before an absolute deed would be given to them by the Colony and in 1647 this document was made out to Edmond as agent, who in turn devised the lands to the town and to its various proprietors on their repayment to him of money invested and their promise to complete the requirements, the matter not being closed until 1651. As a consequence of this agency he is called "the original proprietor of Sandwich."

The status of Edmond may be inferred from the fact that of the fifty-eight men who became entitled to shares in the division of lands at Sandwich, his portion was much the largest and his name was ordinarily preceded by the title "Mr." or followed by that of "Gent."He was called a freeman of Plymouth Colony on March 7, 1636/7, although he was not "sworn and admitted" as such until January 2, 1637, so his removal to Sandwich undoubtedly preceded those dates.

In the autumn of 1641, the eight trustees of the Plymouth public debt and guardians of her trade for the payment thereof, called in John Atwood and William Collier and "some other friends on both sides, and Mr. Freeman brother in law to Mr. Beauchamp." These drew up an inventory of all things which were assets of the trading group, amounting to about £1400, and proceeded to draw up Articles of agreement between the three Londoners and themselves to conclude the long and tiresome business. Dated October 15, 1641, the document was witnessed by Edmond Freeman, William Paddy and others. Is this the foundation of the statement that Mr. Freeman was attorney for Beauchamp in 1641 or 1645?

A letter of Edmond Freeman:

Sr these may pleas your worship to understand that I have appointed my son William Paddy to receve of you for the Corne which I was to have of the last yeare. I desire you would satisfy to him for so much as I paid for yt long sins, which is I think 11 li 13s 4d. there was A cow appointed by Mr. Andrews for Mr. Williams of providens. I desire you woulde be pleased to send me word whether you have any or noe or mony to buy for him; I have directiones from him to the effect that Mr Williams may have a Cow to keepe her for haulfe the calfes I the rather make bold to entreat your answer because Mr Williams hath sent to me often tymes abought yt. With my salutations to you in the lord & to all those that seeke the Lord with you, I take Leave your worshipes to use Edmond Freeman & pr.

Last moneth 25th day 1645 [Feb. 24, 1646?]

The Massachusetts men who were the first settlers of this town were Puritans rather than Pilgrims, many of whom were merchants and some were well-to-do. They were "friends of good order" and good government and were a religious people but free in a remarkable degree "from the acerbities of polemic strife" existing in some parts of the Bay Colony. They started a church as early as 1638, of which Edmond1 was a member and a deacon. Although that church was one of the most bigoted in the Colony, Edmond1 was known as fair and tolerant.

Evidence that they, as a group, were less intolerant than most church bodies of Puritan origin of their day is seen in the fact that their neighborhood later became the earliest stronghold of Quakerism in Plymouth Colony. The Sandwich Monthly Meeting, established in 1660, was the first organized Meeting in New England and even antedated most of those in England. Some of the earlier adherents of this faith seemed to have really craved and invited difficulty with, and persecution by the authorities, but the majority, who are said to have asked only freedom to worship as they chose, soon gained the good will of their neighbors, who often shielded them from the law and thus sometimes incurred penalties on their own behalf. Edmond evidently felt this tolerance, for though he was actively interest in church affairs, as evidenced by his signing a call to a pastor in 1655/6, giving at that time £1 toward the building of a meeting house and contracting on July 17, 1657, to give £1 yearly thereafter toward the pastor's salary, yet he and his wife were indicted on October 7, 1651, for absence from public worship, contrary to the order of June 6 preceding, which absence was a method then frequently employed to show disapproval of the policy of authorities against the Quakers.

He is generally recognized as disfavoring the current "ecclesiastical censures and legislative coercion;" of sympathizing with the Quakers, some say even to the point of considering personal alliance with them; and of having views too liberal for the times. The stringency of the laws provided that freemen who became Quakers, or who encouraged such by attending their meetings, by entertaining them, or by any other means, should lose their citizenship and various men were so penalized. Many more were fined and Captain Cudworth of Scituate was even deprived of his military command because of his sympathies. He made the statement too, that in 1658 "almost the whole town of Sandwich is adhering to them."

Edmond, who had been a Magistrate or Assistant to the Governor for several years, was permanently dropped at the election in 1646, some say as a result of his general theological tolerance. Public opinion in this section in favor of the Friends became so marked, and protection of them from many harshnesses was so frequent, that the Plymouth government in about 1657/8 appointed one George Barlow as a state marshal for this locality to collect the fines from and inflict punishments upon these passive offenders "and their encouragers," but his great unfairness only increased the resentment of fair-minded people. While the most extreme penalties such as cutting off of ears and hanging were not resorted to in Sandwich, the local persecutions included whipping, imprisonment which carried with it a fee for committal, as well as a second one for discharge, and heavy fines for the non-payment of which the offender's cattle or goods were distrained at a preposterously low valuation, and with an admitted intent to confiscate the most needed articles rather than such as could be more easily spared.

At one court in 1661, fines amounting to £150, for attendance at Quaker meetings and for refusal to take the oath of fidelity, were laid on certain Sandwich men in such respective amounts as £24, £46 and £20, the last named fine being assessed against a poor weaver whose entire holdings were of less than £10 valuation. One list of fines imposed upon nineteen Friends in and near Sandwich for this period showed a total of £660 of which over £89 was distrained from Edward Perry, called "son" by Edmond Freeman.

Knowing the disapproval of the Freeman family for these measures, Marshal Barlow had the audacity to call upon Edmond for "aid" in his duties! Prompt and indignant refusal of such assistance caused Barlow to enter a complaint at court, and consistency caused the authorities to lay a fine of ten shillings on Freeman.

Another intimate phase of the question is seen in the fact that Edward Perry married about 1653, Mary (-----), but was so imbued with Quaker ideas that he persistently and repeatedly declined the services of Thomas Tupper, who was the constituted authority to perform marriages. The result was that Edward Perry was fined £5. Governor THOMAS PRENCE [who would have been doubly interested in that he was father-in-law to JOHN FREEMAN] was directed to see this marriage "ratifyed as hee goeth home," and Thomas Tupper for not forcibly performing the ceremony "was required henceforth to desist, and is not intrusted with that business any more."

Evidence that even the Governor's persuasive powers lacked potency in this matter is seen in the Court record of June 6, 1654, when Edward Perry "for refusing to haue his marriage rattifyed before Mr. Prence . . . is fined fiue pounds for this spent Court and soe fiue pounds for euery Generall Court that shall bee during the time of his said neglect for the future. Knowledge of the outcome of this conflict would be interesting, but is not found.

In 1643, Edmond and his two sons Edmond and John were among those "able to bear arms" in Sandwich. The elder Edmond served on the grand jury in 1636 and 1647, as Assistant continuously from 1640 to 1646, and as a Representative in the latter year. As Assistant, he and his associates held court for the three townships, Yarmouth, Barnstable and Sandwich, "for small causes." In 1641, he with Governor Winslow and Myles Standish dealt true justice in ruling that a certain man should pay for a deer which his son had bought of an Indian long before, and that anotherman should pay two shillings for mending a hole which he had shot in the same Indian's kettle. The attitude of Edmond toward the natives is further shown in a case where he addressed several notes to the General Court about 1655 relative to "spoyle done in the Indians corn by horses," and about suitable recompense therefor.

In Sandwhich, Mass. he served as Assistant Proprietor from February 2, 1636-1637. He was admitted a free man at Plymouth on January 2, 1637. While in Sandwhich, Mass. Edmond was prominent, active, and influential in the affairs of the colony. He sold land in Scituate on March 10, 1642, on behalf of his brother-in-law, John Beauchamp, who was one of the adventurers of the Plymouth Colony. Edmond was an active member of the council of war from 1640-1645 and was a deputy. He also served as Assistant Governor of the Plymouth Colony from 1640-1646. Edmond later resided at Duxbury, Mass. and finally settled in Eastham, Mass.

Elizabeth died on February 14, 1675 and Edmond died in 1682. It had been a practice during this time period for couples to ride together on some horse, the husband in saddle in front and the wife on a pillion behind him, a manner in which Edmond and Elizabeth reportedly traveled happily through life. When Elizabeth died, Edmond buried her on a knoll near their home and used a large circular stone, being emblematic of a pillion, to mark her grave. Beside that stone he placed another stone carved in the shape of a saddle which, after his death served as his own headstone. To reach their grave sites today, one would follow Route 6A west from Eastham past two entrances to Tupper Road. Proceed another hundred yards to a break in a stone wall where there is a sign and path leading to their graves "in a charming wooded bower."

Edmond's will was dated: June 21, 1682 and was probated on November 2, 1682. He listed his 2 sons, John and Edmond, and his son-in-law, Edward Perry as executors. He made bequeaths to the executors, his grandsons; Matthias Ellis and Thomas Paddy, and to his daughter, Elizabeth Ellis. Edmond and Elizabeth were both buried in Eastham, Mass. [LeVonda's Family Tree] http://www.pir8.net/levonda/freeman2.htm]

17 Junij 1635
In the "Abigall" prd: p Cert; from the Minister of their conformitie C from the Justices, that they are no Subsedy men.
Edmond Freeman......45
(under entry In the "Abigall" prd. Primo die Julij 1635)
Husb: Edward Freeman......34
"vxor" Elizabeth Freeman......35
Edmond Freeman......15
John Freeman......8
[John Camden Hotten, The Original Lists of Persons of Quality 1600-1700, 1874]

Also have death as 1 Nov 1682 in Sandwich, Barnstable, MA. [Donna Logan's Genealogy Page]
Also have death as bef 5 Jan 1703/4 in Sandwich, Bar

He was married to Bennet Hodsoll (daughter of John Hodsoll and Faith Gratwick) on 16 Jun 1617 in Cowfold, Sussex, England.⁽⁴¹⁾⁽¹⁹⁾⁽⁴²⁾⁽²⁰⁾⁽²¹⁾⁽³²⁾⁽⁴³⁾⁽⁴⁴⁾⁽¹⁵⁾⁽¹⁰⁾ Bennet Hodsoll was born about 1593 in Pulborough, Sussex, England.⁽⁴⁵⁾ She was christened on 25 Aug 1596 in All Hallow Barking, London, Middlesex, England.⁽¹⁰⁾ She died before 12 Apr 1630 in Pulborough, Sussex, England.⁽¹⁷⁾⁽³¹⁾ ⁽³³⁾⁽⁴²⁾⁽²⁰⁾⁽²¹⁾⁽²²⁾⁽³²⁾⁽¹⁰⁾ She was buried on 12 Apr 1630 in Pulborough, Sussex, England.⁽¹⁷⁾⁽¹⁹⁾⁽⁴⁶⁾⁽⁴⁷⁾⁽¹⁰⁾ She has Ancestral File number G477-H1. She has Ancestral File number 1FR0-CVK. She has reference number 2053. Bennet3 Hodsoll (John2-1), married at Cowfold, Sussex, England, 16 Jun 1617, Edmund Freeman, Jr.; their daughter, Elizabeth Freeman, baptized at Billingshurst, Sussex, 11 Apr 1624, married John Ellis and died at Sandwich, Mass. See Mary Walton Ferris, "Dawes-Gates Ancestral Lines," vol. 2 (1931), pp. 349-356, and American Genealogist 17:89-92; also, James Greenstreet's papers on the Hodsoll ancestry in "The Reliquary," 1878 and 1879, and his further discussion in "Archaeologia Cantiana," 1882, vol. xiv, pp. 223-240. [The American Genealogist 37, 1961]

Also have birth as 1597/98 in Pulborough, Sussex, England. [Betz Genealogy; LDS Ancestral File; Plymouth & Cape Cod MA Genealogy www.gendex.com/users/hhadaway/hadaway/hadawaypage.htm; Ward Related Genealogy www.seanet.com/Users/nlic/WARDrelated/SURNAMES.html]
Also have birth as 1600 in Pulborough, Sussex, England. [LDS AFN 1FR0-CVK]
Also have christening as 1597/98 in Pulborough, Sussex, England. [Ward Related Genealogy www.seanet.com/Users/nlic/WARDrelated/SURNAMES.html]

Edmund Freeman and Bennet Hodsoll had the following children:

24 i. William Freeman was born on 12 Sep 1615 in Cowfold, Sussex, England.⁽¹⁰⁾ He has Ancestral File number NF55-JJ.
+25 ii. Alice Freeman.
+26 iii. Edmund Freeman.
27 iv. Thomas Freeman was born in 1621 in England.⁽¹⁰⁾ He has Ancestral File number 1XPX-TM7.
28 v. Bennet Freeman was born before 20 Jan 1621/22 in Billingshurst, Sussex, England.⁽²¹⁾⁽³²⁾ ⁽²²⁾⁽¹⁰⁾ She was christened on 20 Jan 1621/22 in Billingshurst, Sussex, England.⁽¹⁰⁾⁽⁴⁸⁾ She died on 3 Jan 1633/34 in Billingshurst, Sussex, England.⁽²¹⁾⁽³²⁾⁽²²⁾⁽¹⁰⁾ She was buried on 3 Jan 1633/34.⁽¹⁰⁾ She has Ancestral File number 93W1-Q7.
+29 vi. Elizabeth Freeman.
+30 vii. Major John Freeman.
31 viii. Nathaniel Freeman was born on 2 Sep 1629 in Billingshurst, Sussex, England.⁽¹⁸⁾⁽³²⁾ ⁽²²⁾⁽¹⁰⁾ He was christened on 2 Sep 1629 in Pulborough, Sussex, England.⁽¹⁰⁾⁽⁴⁹⁾ He died before 12 Sep 1629 in County Sussex, England.⁽²²⁾ He was buried on 12 Sep 1629 in Pulborough, Sussex, England.⁽¹⁰⁾ He has Ancestral File number GH70-53.

He was married to Elizabeth Raymer on 10 Aug 1632 in Shipley, Sussex, England.⁽²¹⁾⁽⁵⁰⁾ Elizabeth Raymer was born about 1600 in England.⁽²⁰⁾ Also have birth as abt 1601. [Hulshizer Heritage and McCoy Family Tree http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Meadows/9332] She died on 14 Feb 1675/76 in Sandwich, Barnstable, MA.⁽⁵¹⁾⁽⁵²⁾⁽²⁰⁾⁽³²⁾ Edmund Freeman and Elizabeth Raymer had the following children:

32 i. Mary Freeman was born in 1630.⁽¹⁰⁾ She was christened on 16 Apr 1630 in Pulborough, Sussex, England.⁽¹⁰⁾ She died before 1631 in Sandwich, Barnstable, MA.⁽¹⁰⁾ She has Ancestral File number 1PDN-4FT.
+33 ii. Mary Freeman.
34 iii. Cicelia (Cycella Cecelia) Freeman was born about 1633 in London, Middlesex, England.⁽²⁰⁾ She died about 1633 in England.⁽²⁰⁾⁽³²⁾ She has Ancestral File number 1V55-68P. She has Ancestral File number FP4M-KT. Also have birth as 1631 in England. [Hulshizer Heritage and McCoy Family Tree www.geocities.com/Heartland/Meadows/9332; LDS AFN 1V55-68P]
Also have christening as abt 1631 in Pulborough, Sussex, England. [LDS AFN 1V55-68P, FP4M-KT]
Also have birth as 1632 in England. [LDS AFN FP4M-KT]
Also have death as 1632 in England. [LDS AFN 1V55-68P, FP4M-KT]