FIELD (Brockton family). The name of Field is an ancient and honorable one in England, and can be traced far back of the Conquest. The first ancestor of whom there is any record was Hubertus de la Feld, who went to England with William the Conqueror in the year 1066 from near Colman in Alsace, on the German border of France. He received from William the Conqueror large grants of land for military service. In the fourteenth century the English De la Felds dropped their French prefix De la and ever after wrote the name Field. Sir Hubertus, the first in England, settled in Lancaster, near the city of Chester, and from him descended John Field, the Providence settler, from whom sprang the Brockton branch of the family here considered.
The American Fields are numerous and many of them have been distinguished. The grandmother of President Thomas Jefferson was a Field. Such names as David Dudley, Cyrus W., Stephen J. and Marshall Field have shed luster on the name. And here in this Commonwealth and in Brockton (which is a part of old Bridgewater) the local branch has given a good account of itself from the early Colonial period; the name appearing of record in one capacity or another all through the town’s history. Bridgewater was the first interior settlement of the Old Colony, the plantation being granted in 1645, though it was not settled until 1650 or 1651; the first lots were taken up in West Bridgewater, where was built the first house and the first improvements were made; while North Bridgewater (now Brockton) was not settled until after 1700. Of the Field family here of the earlier generations such men as Daniel Field, Jr., who was one of the petitioners for the North Parish in 1738; Jabez Field, who was treasurer of the same parish in 1757; Barzillai Field, a patriot soldier of the Revolution and many times a member of the school committee of the town; Zophar Field, who was a member of the school committee; Fobes and Richard, who were minute-men on the Lexington Alarm, members of Capt. Josiah Hayden’s company, Colonel Bailey’s regiment, and as well served at other times during the war; Corporal Ephraim Field, a member of Capt. David Packard’s company in 1780, and later held such office in the 7th Company of Militia in Shays’s Rebellion; and among others Waldo and John Field, who were members of Capt. Nehemiah Lincoln’s company in service in the war of 1812, were active and useful in their day, as have been and are still their posterity and those of other members of the family, and among the substantial men of the town. This article is to treat of the ancestors and of the family of the present William Lawrence Field, one of the substantial and honored citizens of Brockton, and his sons, who have been so prominently identified with the shoe industry of that city, where they hold noteworthy and influential places in the financial and social world.
John Field Family of Providence, Rhode Island
John Field, son of William, who was a resident of Thurnscoe, England, and a direct descendant of Roger Field, of Sowerby, England, and he from Sir Hubertus De la Feld, the head of the family which settled in the Counties of Lancaster and Kent, England, appears in New England at Providence, R. I, where in 1637 he was one of the thirteen signers of a compact preliminary to a form of government. His lineage from Roger Field (above) is through Thomas, John, Thomas (2), Thomas (3), William, William (2), Richard, John and William (3). John Field bought property at Providence and made the town his home. He became a freeman, served as juryman and as deputy to the General Court. He died in 1686. His children were:
- Hannah Field
- John Field
- Daniel Field
- Zachariah Field
- Ruth Field
John Field Family of Bridgewater, Massachusetts
John Field (2), son of John, married Elizabeth Everden. Mr. Field removed to Bridgewater, Mass., about 1677, being the first person of the name in that town, settling in what is West Bridgewater. Mrs. Field was the daughter of Hon. Anthony Everden, who was several times a member of the town council and a number of times deputy to the General Court. Mr. Field died in 1698. His children were:
- John Field, born in 1671
- Elizabeth Field, born in 1673
- Richard Field, born in 1677
- Lydia Field, born in 1679
- Daniel Field, born in 1681
- Ruth Field, born in 1683
- Hannah Field.
Richard Field of Bridgewater, Massachusetts
Richard Field, son of John (2), born May 17, 1677, in Providence, R. I., married Jan. 17, 1704, Susanna Waldo, born in 1684. They resided in Bridgewater, Mass. He died Sept. 14, 1725. Their children were:
- Zobiah Field, born in 1705 (died in 1708)
- Zebulon Field, born in 1707
- Mary Field, born in 1709
- Richard Field, born in 1711
- Jabez Field, born in 1713
- Ruth Field, born in 1715
- Zobiah Field, born in 1719
- Susannah Field, born in 1721 (died in 1732)
- Mercy Field, born in 1723
- Susanna Field, born in 1725
Jabez Field of Bridgewater, Massachusetts
Jabez Field, son of Richard, born Sept. 29, 1713, in Bridgewater, Mass., married Feb. 25, 1745, Mary, daughter of Ephraim Fobes. Mr. Field was a yeoman of Bridgewater. He died in 1804, aged ninety-two years. His children were:
- Jabez Fobes Field, born in 1747, who died unmarried, a soldier of the Revolution
- Susanna Field, born in 1748
- Richard Field, born in 1751
- William Field, born in 1753
- Ephraim Field, born in 1755
- Daniel Field, born in 1758
- Barzillai Field, born in 1760
- Bethuel Field, born in 1763, who died unmarried in 1849
- Waldo Field
Daniel Field of Bridgewater, Massachusetts
Daniel Field,