| Note |
- BIRTH-FATHER-SPOUSE-CHILDREN-DEATH-BIOGRAPHY: Samuel Pearce May, THE DESCENDANTS OF RICHARD SARES(SEARS) OF YARMOUTH,MASS; 1638-1888; Albany, Joel Munsell's Sons, 1890; p 182; NEHGS Library, Boston, MA; Roland Sears removed to Ashfield, MA, and bought a farm, May 1773; was in Lt Bartlett's Co., which marched on Lexington Alarm, 22 Apr 1775; and was credited with 5 days' service and mileage, L7.1.2; he subsequently enlisted in Capt Eben Webber's Co., Col John Fellows' Regt. A dau. m. ___Fuller of Ann Arbnor, MI,and another m. ____Thayer of Williamsburg, MA. !BIRTH-FATHER-SPOUSE-CHILDREN-DEATH-BIOGRAPHY: Patricia Ann Hoagland McEwen, ROBERT McEWEN Scottish Exile to America 1685 AND HIS DESCENDANTS; 1685-1991; Palo Alto, CA, McEWEN, 1991; pp 51,52-53; Copy in poss of Ray Sears, Duncan, OK; Ashfield was a town of only six hundred inhabitants during the conflict [Rev War] but had responded strongly in the cause of liberty, sending one hundred of its men to fight, voting to support the men of the town who were suffering at Valley Forge, orgainzing a Committee of Safety, and caring for the soldeirs' families during their absence in the field[38-Howes, pp 227-35]. He married at Bridgewater, MA, on 9 Apr 1777 Jedidah Conant[49-Bridgewater VR, vol i:p 77; Conant, passim.] Rowland and Jedidah lived out their lives together in Ashfield, where their ten children were born, and they were buried side by side in the Hill Cemetery[50-Ashfield VR, pp 96-99, 261-62.] Rowland was a Selectman of the Town in 1780, 1788-92, and in 1794 and 1795. In 1812 he served on a committee to plan for a new meetinghouse and to appraise its pews. He collected a wolf bounty of four dollars in 1787, and we may mention here another natural history note: the year 1831 saw the last bear killed within the township boundaries. Today a visitor to Ashfield finds a small town of quiet but firendly air, set in a valley with rolling hills rising on either hand. Its aspect is similar to that of Deerfield, not far away. The main street is dominated by the steepled town hall, formerly the very church approved in 1812 by Rowland Sears and his fellow Town Selectmen. The framed building is adorned with a square belfry, which we found dismantled for renovation in 1985. The reconstruction was being carried forward with great care, duplicating the original configuration of timbers and the original materials, including different sorts of wood. Scuffing through birch leaves in the old Hill Cemetery in the thin sunlight of April, my husband and I found the upright black headstone of Rowland Sears, with its veteran's marker and flag. Beside it was the white marker of his wife. In memory of In Rowland Sears memory of who died July 5 Mrs. Jedidah 1819 wife of Mr. AE 74 years Rowland Sears Who Died Jan. 11 1828 Aged 75 years
In the early nineteenth century Ashfield had a solid economic base, in addition to more common farming, in the growing of herbs, especially peppermint[53-Howes, pp 104-5]. At one time there were several distilleries for processing peppermint oil in the township and many of the young men made a living as peddlers of this and other flavorings and herbs. When hard times overtook the area in the decades between 1830 and 1850 many families left, and those who settled in Michigan established anew the peppermint oil extraction industry.
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1745 - 1819 (74 years)
