SMITH, Ransford 1800 US Census Readfield (revised 4/2019)

Ransford Smith was the eldest child of Ransford and Elizabeth Lambert Smith of Tisbury on Martha's Vineyard.  His two sons - Ransford and Abijah as well as his brother Elisha came to Readfield about 1770 as well as his uncle Mathias, and the family of his aunt Dorcas (Mrs. Joseph) Baker. There was also a  Thomas Smith who came about the same time but his relationship is not known as yet.


In this section we will discuss Ransford Smith Jr. His brother Elisha Smith settled on the east shore of Lake Maranacook (South Road), and Ransford built his cabin near the northern end of Lake Maranacook (Readfield Depot). For years the ridge along South Road was called "Smith's Hill" in this family's honor. (Stackpole pg. 535). In February 1773 Winthrop laid out a road that ran around Lake Maranacook from Winthrop village and back, and two of the property lines it ran along were those of Ransford, Jr. and Elisha Smith[ii].  

Ransford Smith, Jr. served his country and community. He was a Revolutionary War Veteran - one of the original nineteen men to volunteer when residents of Winthrop received word about the Battle at Concord and Lexington. In 1777 he was chosen as a member of the Committee on Correspondence, Inspection and Safety.  That same year Ransford Smith was chosen as a committee member of five men to find locations and make recommendations for suitable places for burial grounds in Winthrop. 




NOTE 10/26/2015: At one time I believed Ransford Smith's cabin was located near his brother Elisha on South Road, but further research revealed otherwise.  The Ransford Smith family homestead was near the intersection of North Road and Main Street. They owned 100 acres, the southern half of lot #216 and deeds dated 1805 and 1809 specifically mention his wife Mary Smith's house and barn at that location. Robert Page, Esq. deeded that land to Mary Smith and her eldest son Abijah sometime (I do not have an exact date as the deed is yet to be found) but that is mentioned in subsequent deeds from her sons. It was a curiosity why that land was deeded to Mary and her son  Abijah rather than Ransford, Jr. himself until I found one piece of info that may explain. According to the genealogical notes passed down by his daughters Mary and Charlotte, Ransford Jr. returned to Martha's Vineyard because of threats from Indians. He then returned to Readfield in 1792 when Mary was 16years old. This is corroborated by Ransford’s absence on the 1790 US Census in Winthrop. Since he is not included on the 1800 US Census either, the logical deduction is that Ransford, Jr. died between 1792-1800, thus his wife and son were deeded the land.
In 1776 a party of six men, having been told about the fertile Sandy River Valley by hunters and trappers, traveled through Readfield (then part of Winthrop) on their way to explore that wilderness. Their goal was to reach and explore Sandy River Valley near present day Farmington Falls with an eye towards plotting a settlement there. Butler's History of Farmington [iv] relates their trip in a fair amount of detail, which I will relate here in part: "...The party came up the Kennebec River in canoes as far as Hallowell, which was generally known at that time by the Indian name of Bombahook. From Hallowell they proceeded on foot through the sparsely settled district to Mr. Rumford Smith’s, who had settled and built a log cabin a little east of what is now known as Readfield Corner...” (This was without doubt Ransford Smith (not Rumford) Butler went on to say that “…after leaving Mr. Smith’s, the last house on the route, they proceeded a west-northwest route, supposing this course would lead them to what is now Farmington Falls…” Upon arrival there the men surveyed lots, then each agreed to meet and return in two weeks with some tools to begin chopping trees and marking boundaries. Butler also described their second trip to Farmington Falls and it is interesting to note that on their return trip they chose to use the old Indian waterway instead of walking the rugged land terrain they had traversed the first time.  This route took them from the Kennebec River, up Cobbosseeconte Stream, into (what we now know as) Lake Cobbosseeconte, Maranacook Lake and then to Torsey Pond towards lakes and streams further northwest of Readfield. Butler made no mention of them stopping at Ransford Smith’s on this recount.

The Readfield visits made by these Sandy River Valley explorers give insights into why several men who were neighbors to Ransford Smith, Jr., including his own sons, would have moved their families into that area. Included in that migration were Abijah and Ransford III and his son-in-law Josiah Norcross. [v] His brother Elisha moved to Livermore, Maine.

 

One can imagine the stories shared by the adventuresome explorers, about the fertile farmland and opportunities waiting for settlers in Sandy River Valley. Perhaps the explorers even had something to gain themselves by encouraging others to move there and help settle that land. Whatever the case, word must have spread far and wide because in reading the Sandy River Valley, Farmington and Industry histories I see connections and many surnames that are also familiar in early Readfield.

According to the genealogical notes on  Mary (Smith) and Charlotte (Smith) Norcross,[vi] Ransford Smith, Jr. returned to Martha's Vineyard because of threats from Indians. He then returned to Readfield in 1792 when Mary was 16years old. This is corroborated by his absence on the 1790 US Census in Winthrop. He is not included on the 1800 US Census however so deduce his death as between 1792-1800.

In 1800 Ransford III was listed as head of household in Readfield and his mother, Mary, is most likely the female over 45 years of age who is living with him.  Abijah left Readfield in 1800 and over the next nine years sold all his interest in the Readfield property to his brother Ransford. In turn, Ransford sold out to their cousin John Smith in 1809 (more about him in Readfield History Walk #28). Abijah and Ransford Smith moved to Mercer, ME. 

Children of Ransford, Jr. and Mary (Allen) Smith born in Readfield (Winthrop):

1) Abijah b.1/3/1771 d.1/22/1814 Mercer, ME
2) Anna b.1774 d.1780 Readfield
3) Charlotte b.1775 d.9/28/1804 Readfield m. Josiah Norcross
4) Mary b.2/24/1776 d.12/5/1856 New Sharon, ME m. 1805 to her sister's widowed husband Josiah Norcross
5) Ransford III b. 1/27/1779 d.12/11/1869 Mercer, ME 

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[i] Stackpole’s History of Winthrop with Genealogical Notes pub. Heritage Books, Inc. 1994 page 588

[ii] ibid Page 61

[iii] Kennebec Registry of Deeds Book 15 Page 175

[iv] History of Farmington by Francis Butler. Published 1885 republished by New England History Press 1983. Page 19

[v] Ibid page 5

[vi] History of Industry, Maine 1787-1893 by Hatch. Published by New England History Press 1984. Page 749

[vii] Kennebec County Registry of Deeds Book 7 Page 455 and Book 17 Page 28 and Book 16 Page 72
[viii] New England Genealogical Society, Massachusetts, Town Death Records, 1620-1850 (Provo, UT, Ancestry.com Operations 1999)