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The purpose of this search is to find the birth place of William Jaggard who
purchased land in Gloucester County, New Jersey in 1730 from the Widow Sarah Bull.
He sold part of his land to his son Thomas in 1738. This means that Thomas must have
been born before 1717 to be of age at that time. In the deed the land sold to Thomas was
recorded as bordering on land owned by James Jaggard. The deed did not specify the
relationship between William and James. Family members assumed that James was the
older brother of Thomas. He could have been the father William’s brother. William’s
sons are shown in family histories as William, James, Samuel and Thomas. By the
second generation James was signing legal documents as a Quaker. While many William
Jaggards were born in England between 1660 and 1720, there were few named James. A
Samuel Jaggard shows up in the card file at Gloucester Co. Historical Society as being
accused of fathering a bastard child (male) with Sarah Ward. James Jagard put up bail
and Michael Fisher signed. Therefore, finding Jaggard families with the names of
William, James, Samuel and Thomas is important. During the first two generations
Jaggards or their widows living in New Jersey married into the following families:
Chew, Flaningam, Fisher, Pearce, Lodge, Roe, Hurff, Morgan, Jennings, Inskeep,
Dilkes, Bee, Turner, Hughes, Cheeseman, Zane, Porch, Clement, Peterson, Cattell,
Kay and Albertson.
At this time the author has found no records of Jaggards arriving on ships to
America. There are records of Jaggards shipping goods to America from London. John
Jaggard was a shipper to Virginia in 1677 . On that same ship John Jennings was
shipping goods. Francis Jaggard was a shipper to New Jersey in 1680. In 1685
William Jaggard and John Hobbs shipped goods to Virginia. Later that year John
Jaggard was shipping to Virginia. The records of descendants of a Jeremy Jaggard in
the early days have been traced and there were no sons named William from this family.
An Abraham Jaggard sold land in Philadelphia before 1716. It is certainly possible that
there may have been more than one family of Jaggards who settled in the Colonies
before 1730. This could explain the different stories told by our fathers.
The author copied from the IGI all Jaggards found in England before 1750 and
made a GEDCOM of these names and events. Transferring that file into the Research
Data Filer of the Personal Ancestral File the events were separated by county. Each
County Record Office in England where there were Jaggards was searched for parish
christenings, marriages and burials. Deaths were searched by using wills, administrations
and death records. Arranging by families, each William Jaggard was traced. The
purpose was to eliminate those who died in England or whose family stayed in England.
There are 197 references to Jaggards in London. Since William Jaggard was
documented as being the printer of Shakespeare’s work the search for our William
started in London. The family of the printer was traced from Parish Records found in the
Society of Genealogist Library in London and the Public Record Office in London.
Boyd’s Male Burials 1538-1853 was used to check London deaths. Wills were found at
the Guildhall and at the Public Record Office in London. The families were traced from
about 1570 through 1730. No William born in London before 1665 could be the William
who was shipping from London to Virginia in 1685. Shipping on the same ship in 1685
was a John Hobbs. Long after our William was in New Jersey (1844) a John Jaggard
married Mary Ann Hobbs in Stetchworth, Cambridgeshire and had one child, William
Jaggard, shown in the 1851 census. This leads to the assumption that our William’s
family came from the Cambridgeshire, Essex, Suffolk area where so many Jaggards
lived. Since Ipswich was only a day away from London by ship in those days, it is quite
possible that our William Jaggard was from that area. Some Jaggards in that area were
drapers and would have goods to sell. There was a William who married Rebeca
Murden in 1706 in St. Mary Magdalene Old Fish Street Parish in London. This William
was not found in birth records in London, so must have come from some other County.
He could be the William from Bury St. Edmunds born to William and Sarah Jaggard 18
Apr 1675. There was only one James Jaggard in the London area at this time. He had
one child Mary in 1708. No death is recorded for this family in London before 1750. The
St. Mary at Hill Parish in London has good documentation of the family of Francis
Jaggard who married Hannah Leader in 1629. They had nine children who lived. The
sons were Abraham, born in 1634, John, born in 1641, Francis, born in 1640 and
Humphrey, born in 1650. It is very likely that this is the family who were the shippers
from England between 1680 to 1685.
In Cambridgeshire there are 490 data records of Jaggards. The records show
Jaggards in West Wratting, Cambridge, England in 1580. A John Jaggard and Ann Ayre
(or Hare), who were married in West Wratting in 1644, are of interest. Guy Jaggard,
father of the author, said that he came from a family of the youngest son of a youngest
son of a youngest son who never inherited anything. His family always had to move on
to another place. They moved from France to England to New Jersey to Illinois to Kansas
to California. A will of John Jaggard , who died in West Wratting in 1663, left his
property to his wife Annis for her lifetime and then to his oldest son John. Each of the
other sons, Thomas, Robert, Gilbert and William, are to have five pounds each from John
when he takes over the property. This William born in 1654 could be the William who
goes into London and is the shipper in 1685. He would be too old to be the William
Jaggard buying land in New Jersey in 1730.
In 1656 Robert and Martha (not of this Parish) Jaggard are married in West
Wratting. According to the parish records their first son was John. He would be too
young to be the John who marries Johanna and has a son John in 1667. This may be the
same John whose wife Martha has died. A John and Ann Jaggard have their first son
John before 1688 when William is born. This family has a daughter Emme in 1690. A
son Robert is born in 1692 but is not named in the will, so must have died. Martha is
born in 1696. A William Jaggard from West Ratting marries Frances Webb in Little
Thorlow, Suffolk County in 1712. This is probably the William, son of John and Ann
born in West Wratting in 1688. They have one child in Little Thurlow and then move to
West Wratting where they have six more children. William, the fifth child, was born in
1722. The Parish Records show that William died in 1740 in West Wratting and his relic
Frances carries the Administration papers. Assuming that this is the father, it rules him
out as being the New Jersey ancestor. The Administration papers to Frances, his relic,
stated that William was from Dullingham. The Dullinham family is the one the
descendants of the printer of Shakespeare’s works claim as their connection. They claim
their decendancy through William Jaggard born in 1730 in Dullingham. There is no
James Jaggard born in Cambridgeshire between 1632 and 1727. This fact also helps to
rule out this family.
In Essex County there are 129 data references to Jaggards. In Wendens Ambo
there was a good possibility. Robert Jaggard married Margaret in 1650. They had three
daughters before Andrew was born. This Andrew of Wendons owned a pub and ran a
good tavern in 1681. He married Elizabeth Hovell in 1667. They had a son Andrew Jr.,
three daughters and then William , born in 1691. Robert and Thomas were born after this
date. This William marries Ann Tolman in Arkesden, the parish just west of Wendens
Ambo in 1729. He had no marriage before that, so could not have had a son Thomas who
bought land from his father William in 1738. Andrew Sr. and Elizabeth had two sons
after William: Robert and Thomas. Both Robert and Thomas marry, have children and
stay in England.
In Suffolk there are 391 references to Jaggards. There were Jaggards in Suffolk
in 1638 when the Able Men of Suffolk were listed. George Jaggard was one of these.
There were many Jennings as well as Jaggards who married between 1676 and 1750.
The New Jersey names of Dilkes, Bull and Chew also are found. The earliest William
found is William Jaggard who married Ursley Reeve in Exning in 1616.A William
Jaggard was born in 1624, the son of William Jagger and Elizabeth. His name was
changed to William Jaggard when he married Mathew (Martha) Waker. Their son
William was born 21 Jan 1648. He married Sarah Raft on 26 Jun 1671. Sarah was the
daughter of John and Ann Raft of Bury St. Edmunds. They had two girls, Elizabeth and
Sarah before a son William was born 18 Apr 1675. At this time it would appear that this
William is the most likely person to be the William Jaggard who buys land in New
Jersey in 1730. After he was born, William and Sarah had John, born in 1677, James,
born in 1678 and Mary, born in 1681. The father William died 10 Feb 1680. This left his
wife Sarah a widow with five young children. A daughter Mary was born to Widow
Jaggard in 1681. The Widow Sarah died in that same year. This left the family orphans.
William would have been only six years old at that time. The parents of Sarah died in
1680 and 1681 so there were no maternal grandparents to care for them. Thomas, the
youngest son of William and Martha, was born in 1666 and married Mary Moore in 1693.
He would not have been old enough to care for the orphaned family. Thomas and Mary
Jaggard had a son Thomas who married in 1730 and died in England in 1749. They had
three sons named William and all died as children. They also had a daughter Sarah.
In Norfolk there are only five references. John Jaggard (the son of Abraham Jr.
from London, according to Captain William Jaggard’s Jottings) was the Rector at King’s
Lynn and died there in 1702. His widow Elizabeth, however, did not follow through as
executrix, so John Cotton acted on behalf of the two children Margaret and Elizabeth.
There were no sons mentioned in the will.
There is only one reference in Herefordshire, two in Hertforshire, one in Kent and
two in Middlesex. None of these are a William or a James.
West Yorkshire records were checked for the name Jagger as well as Jaggard at
the Borthwick Institute of Historical Research in York, Yorkshire Archaeological Society
in Leeds and at the West Yorkshire Archive Service in Wakefield. There are 467 data
references to Jaggers in West Yorkshire. Original research accounts for 170 of these
records while the rest are taken from the IGI. Most of these Jaggers were non-
conformist. They would have known about the Jaggards in London since Thomas
Jaggard, who graduated from Cambridge , came up to a Puritan Parish in their area as a
minister in 1639. This was the parish of Kirby Overblow. There were some Williams and
two with the name James in that area.
In conclusion the family names of William, James, Thomas and Sarah in the Bury
St. Edmunds family in Suffolk adds to the evidence showing that the William Jaggard
born in 1675 is most likely the ancestor of the New Jersey family. There are no Parish
Chest records remaining so it is impossible to tell what really happened to this family
when both the mother and father died when the children were so young. It is possible that
the London family of Jaggards took them to live in London. There are no deaths in
England for any of this Suffolk family. William’s brother James, who was born in 1678,
could have been the James Jaggard who owned land bordering on William’s land in New
Jersey which William sold to his son Thomas in 1738. This could explain why James
Jaggard who died in 1767 in New Jersey was said to be “at an advanced age”. The James
who signed as co-executor of Thomas’s will in 1749 could have been an uncle instead of
a brother. A Samuel shown in New Jersey as being accused of fathering a bastard child
(male) with Sarah Ward in 1750 is probably the son of William. James Jaggard is
shown as putting up bail and Michaell Fisher signed.
There are other clues that lead to the conclusion that this is the correct family.
William’s sister Sarah marries a Symond Gagard in Bury St. Edmunds in 1700. In the
History of Gloucester County, NJ a John Gagard is listed as Overseer of ye poor in
1756. This could be the nephew of William. If William and James came to New Jersey,
their sister and her husband might have come as well. The Bull family had been in Bury
St. Edmunds for some time. John Bull was the curate in Bury in 1648 and Thomas Bull
owned the “Angel” (a hotel still in Bury St. Edmunds) and was the common carrier to
London at the time of the plague in 1637. It was from the Widow Bull that William
purchased his land in 1730. Another connection is the name Dilkes. Edmund Dilkes lived
in Bury St. Edmunds. He was imprisoned and fined in 1648 for being a Quaker. Later,
when it was safe to be a Quaker, he went around the countryside near Bury St. Edmunds
and certified dwelling houses as being a proper place to hold Quaker Meetings. Two of
our Jaggards married Dilkes in New Jersey.
The author will be most happy to communicate with anyone who has information
that might help in the proof or disproof of the conclusion that the Preponderance of
Evidence shows that the Bury St. Edmunds family is the ancestor of the William Jaggard
who purchased land in New Jersey.
bap@caltel.com
Betty Ann Prescott
P.O. Box 4296
Camp Connell, CA 95223
Gloucester County New Jersey Deed Book, Vol. E Page 396. Deed of William H to Thomas Jaggard, 26
Sep 1738 lists previous owners and dates of purchase of the five hundred acres. Richard Bull had
purchased from Richard Bromley and from Henry Chew and had surveyed some land in his own Right..
When Richard Bull died his lands descended to his brother Thomas, who sold the land to Sarah Bull,
widow of Richard Bull. She sold five hundred acres to William Jagard 20th day of June 1730 for one
hundred fifty pounds. It was part of this land that William Jagard was selling to his son Thomas on 26
September 1738 for thirty-five pounds. In the description of the land one side bordered on James Jagard’s
land.
Will of James Jaggard April 2, 1783 on Film #0533163 H2201 in the Family History Library in Salt Lake
City.
Ora L. Flaningham, Flaningam Family History, published by The Gloucester County Historical Society,
Woodbury, NJ, 1991
Peter Wilson Coldham The Complete Book of Emigrants 1661-1699 E187.5, C644, 1990 in California
Genealogy Library, San Francisco, CA p 286
Ibid, p. 361
Ibid., p. 540
Ibid., p. 346
Philadelphia, PA Deed Book E7 No. 9, p292
Edwin Eliott Willoughby, A Printer of Shakespeare, The Books and Times of William Jaggard, New
York, E.P. Dutton & Co., owned by Arthur Jaggard
Peter Wilson Coldham The Complete Book of Emigrants 1661-1699 E187.5, C644, 1990 in Calif
Genealogy Library, San Francisco, CA p. 540
Card Index at Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk Co. Public Record Office: HA517/C54 & HA511/C28
IGI in London Family History Library
Salt Lake City Family History Library Film # 993230: Bury St. Edmunds Baptized.
IGI in London Family History Library: James Jaggard married Mary in St. Mary at Hill Parish,
London,1706
IGI in London and Parish Records in Society of Genealogist Library London.
West Wratting Christenings-Baptisms Parish Records in Cambridgeshire Records Office in Cambridge
Cambridgeshire Record Office 101/T/894
Bury St. Edmunds Suffolk Record Office, Little Thurlow Parish Registers & Index of marriage License
allegations in Archdeaconry of Sudbury 1684-1754
Captain Wm. Jaggard, Jaggard Family Jottings Through The Countries
References in card catalog in Chelmford Record Office
Parish Records in Chelmford Record Office and in Society of Genealogist Library in London.
Charles Edward Banks, Able Men of Suffolk 1638, Transcribed from the original in the Public Record
Office London, England: in Salt Lake City Family History Library, British Floor, 942.64 M2lb, p 336
Boyd’s Male Marriage in Suffolk 1651-1700 in Bury St. Edmunds County Record Office, Boyd’s
Marriages in Suffolk, 1650-1700, Female names and The Suffolk Poll Book 1710
Photograph of original parish record from Bury St. Edmunds Suffolk County Record Office
Above records from Parish Records in County Record Office at Bury St. Edmunds for St. James Parish,
Suffolk
ANW will 1702 p 436 in Norfolk County Record Office in Norfolk
Revs Oliver Heywood & T.Dickenson, The Nonconformist Register of Baptisms, marriages and Deaths
1644-1702, 1702-1752 generally known as the Northowram or Coley Register
John Venn and J.A. Venn, Alumni Cantabrigienses Part I From the Earliest Times to 1751, Cambridge
At the University Press, 1922
Thos. Cushing, M.D. and Charles E. Sheppard, Esq. History of the Counties of Gloucester, Salem, and
Cumberland, New Jersey, Philadelphia: 1883: p. 189
Margaret Statham, The Book of Bury St Edmunds, Barracuda Books Limited Buckingham, England 1938
on the British Floor at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City 942.6H/B5 Hes
Betty Curtayne, 300 Years of Quakerism in Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk in Salt Lake City Family History
Center, British Floor 942.64/BS, K2c
MAIL© 1997 edjaggard@usa.net