Nicholas Aldridge

Name:	Nicholas Aldridge (or Alldredge)
Born:	before 1660 probably England
Died:	about 21 November 1708 (buried 21 Nov)
Buried:	All Hallows' Chapel Churchyard, Anne Arundel County, Maryland (grave now unmarked)
Married:	Martha Besson before 1680, probably in Anne Arundel County, Maryland
Children:	Thomas Aldridge, William Alldredge (b. 1702)

Overview

Nicholas Aldridge is the immigrant ancestor of our Aldridge family. He entered a land grant in Anne Arundel County, Maryland, of 300 acres on the south side of the Magothy River, surveyed for him on 20 August 1680. The grant was issued by Charles Calvert, Lord Baltimore on 11 July 1681, a tract called "Aldridge's Beginning." Like the other elements in my Aldridge-Alldredge tree, Nicholas Aldridge is the subject of a lot of extravagant and poorly supported claims. On this page, I will document what we know for certain, and do my best to distinguish fact from speculation.

Name

There is evidence from records that Nicholas's son William and at least two branches of his descendants (William b. 1729 and Nathan) spelled their surname Alldredge. Of Nicholas's other descendants, his oldest son Thomas's family appears to have kept the spelling Aldridge. Traditionally, Nicholas Aldridge's name has been spelled Aldridge by Memory Aldridge Lester and other researchers. For now, I will stand by this tradition.

Ancestry and birth

It is widely asserted online that Nicholas Aldridge was christened 28 December 1653 in Wellow Parish, Hampshire, England, the son of Nicholas Aldridge. I have seen no documentation to convince me this is correct. There are many Nicholas Aldridges appearing in English birth registers in this time period; on what evidence do we presume this is the right one?

We can assume that our Nicholas was born before about 1659–60, since he was able to receive a proprietary land grant in 1680. We know he was in Maryland by 1678, so perhaps that pushes the probable birthdate back to before about 1656–57. Within the parameters of a Nicholas Aldridge born in England between 1637 and 1657, only one Nicholas Aldridge appears in a search of the birth registers available on FamilySearch, the one asserted above, christened 28 December 1653 in Hampshire. A second appears if I push the search back to 1627, christened 15 December 1633 at St. Margaret's, Westminster, Middlesex, the son of Thomas Aldridge. But how do we know these records are complete? How do we know Nicholas was born in England and not in Scotland, Wales, or anywhere else? We do not. Unless there is some record connecting Nicholas Aldridge in Maryland back to a specific location in England or wherever, I will not make an assumption.

Marriage and spouse

Excerpt of the will of Thomas Besson, with bequest to daughter Martha.

The allowance of Thomas Besson's widow and executrix for the request to Martha, naming the daughter as Martha Aldridge.

Nicholas Aldridge marriage a woman named Martha, probably about 1679–1680. Their oldest child, Thomas Aldridge, was born 5 November 1680.

I have found a fairly strong case for the assertion that Nicholas's wife was Martha Besson, daughter of Thomas Besson. Two records in particular demonstrate this case:

• In the will of Thomas Besson, he names his daughter Martha, leaving to her a mare named Nobsey and a heifer named Eareling:

Item. I give and bequeath unto my daughter Martha, to her and her heirs forever, the young Mare Nobsye Coult with all her Increase, but if in case and the heifer Eareling which was cavd in the yeare 1676 with all her Increase but if in case she my said daughter dyes before she comes to Age to fall to the next heir.

• In the account of Besson's executrix, Nicholas Aldridge is paid a sum of money. The last item in the account contains a petition for an allowance for the heifer and mare due to Martha Aldridge:

The Executrix further prays allowance these following particulars: To Martha Aldridge a heiffer given by will appraised to 500. To 1 Mare called Nobsey as 700.

This indicates that Martha Aldridge is the daughter of Thomas Besson, the same daughter Martha to whom he bequeathed the mare Nobsey and heifer Eareling.

Children

Birth and baptism records of Nicholas Aldridge's older children, from the All Hallows' Parish register.

These children of Nicholas Aldridge and Martha Besson are documented by parish birth records:

1. Thomas Aldridge, born 5 November 1680, married Elizabeth Purdy on 15 July 1703.
2. Ann Aldridge, born 6 November 1684, married Richard Richeson in 1707.
3. John Aldridge, born 31 August 1688, married Susannah Jones on 1 April 1719.
4. Joane Aldridge, born 10 September 1689.
5. Sendy Aldridge, born 9 August 1693, baptized 19 May 1700 [the name is difficult to read].
6. Jane Aldridge, born 3 April 1696, baptized 19 May 1700.
7. Nicholas Aldridge, born 16 May 1698.
8. William Aldridge, born 30 October 1700. Buried 26 September 1702.
9. William Aldridge, born 13 Mar 1702, baptized 11 April 1703.
10. James Aldridge, born 1 July 1706, married Mary Gassaway.

Nicholas Aldridge did indeed have two sons named William, one born after another, and by the dates, it appears he even named the second one William before the first one passed away. Did he, knowing his first son William was sick and would die, consciously give the name again to his next son? Is it possible the second William did not receive the name until his baptism, after the death of the first William? It is difficult to guess exactly what went on here, but the records are clear.

Death

Nicholas Aldridge died in November 1708 in All Hallows' Parish, Anne Arundel County, Maryland, and was buried 21 November 1708 in the churchyard. His grave is no longer marked.