| Notes |
Stephen was probably born in England about 1579 based on estimated date of first marriage. Stephen's first marriage occured by 1604 to Mary _____; she was buried at Hursley, Hampshire, England 9 May 1613. Stephen's second marriage was to Elizabeth Fisher in St. Mary Matfellon, Whitechapel, London, England on 19 February 1617/8. She died at Plymouth sometime in the early 1640s before her husband, who desired to be buried near her. He and was a Mayflower passenger in 1620. His occupation was tanner and merchant. Stephen Hopkins was one of only a few passengers on the Mayflower to have made a prior trip to America. He came in 1609 on the Sea Venture headed for Jamestown, Virginia. But instead, they were marooned on an island following a hurricane, and the 150 passengers were stranded for nine months. Hopkins led an uprising, challenging the governor's authority,and was sentenced to death. But he begged and moaned about the ruin of his wife and children, and so was pardoned out of sympathy. The company eventually managed to build a ship, and escaped the island. After spending several years in Jamestown, Hopkins returned to England sometime between 1613 and 1617. Stephen Hopkins brought with him on the Mayflower his wife Elizabeth, children Giles and Constance by his first marriage, and Damaris by his second marriage. A son Oceanus was born while the Mayflower was at sea. Stephen participated in the early exploring missions and was an "ambassador" along with Myles Standish for early Indian relations. Stephen Hopkins is mentioned in a letter written by William Bradford and Isaac Allerton on 8 September 1623, which was found in uncalendered papers at the Public Records Office in London. The letter was presented as evidence for the defense in the 1624 court case Stevens and Fell vs. the Little James. The letter is published in American Historical Review, 8 (1903): 294-301. The short section about Stephen Hopkins reads as follows (spelling modernized): About Hopkins and his men we are come to this issue. The men we retain in the general according to his resignation and equity of the thing. And about that recconing of 20 odd pounds, we have brought it to this pass, he is to have - 6 - " - payed by you there, and the rest to be quit; it is for nails and such other things as we have had of his brother here for the companies use, and upon promise of payment by us, we desire you will accordingly do it. Another little-known reference to Stephen Hopkins, which also alludes to his two servants (Edward Doty and Edward Leister), is found in the Minutes for the Council of New England, on 5 May 1623 (reprinted from Proceedings of the American Antiquarian Society, April 1867, pp. 93-94) :Touching the difference between Mr. Hopkins and Mr. Peirce, Mr. Hopkins alleadgeth that he hath paid to Mr Peirce for Transportation of himself and two persons more, and Likewise for his goods, which Peirce acknowledgeth, but alleadgeth, that by reason of his unfortunate return, the rest of the passengers that went upon the Like Conditions have been contented to allow unto 40s a person towards his loss, and therefore desireth that Master Hopkyns may do the like, which Mr. Hopkins at length agreed unto, so as Mr. Peirce and his Associates will accept of �6 for 3 passengers out of �20 his adventure which he hath in their Joint Stock. And therefore they both pray that the Council will be pleased to write to the Associates to accept thereof, which they are pleased to do. In 1636, Hopkins was fined for the battery of John Tisdale, in 1637 he was found guilty of allowing men to drink on a Sunday at his house, and in 1638 hewas fi ned for not dealing fairly with an apprentice-girl, Dorothy Temple.He was also charged with s everal other minor crimes, including selling glass at too high a price, selling illegal intoxicants, and allowing men to get drunk at his house. However, this in no way indicated he was disloyal to the Colony--in fact he was Assistant governor from 1633 until 1636, and he volunteered to fight in the Pequot War of 1637. He made freeman in the "1633" list of Plymouth freemen. He signed his will. The inventory included "diverse books" valued at 12s.
OFFICES: Assistant, 1633-36 [PCR 1:5, 21,32, 36]. Volunteered for service in the Pequot War, 1637 [PCR 1:61].
ESTATE: In the 1623 Plymouth division ofland "Steven Hobkins" received six acres as a passenger on the Mayflower [PCR 12:4]. In the 1627 Plymouth division of cattle Stephen Hopkins, his wife Elizabeth Hopkins, Gyles Hopkins, Caleb Hopkins and Deborah Hopkins are the first five persons in the seventh company, and Damaris Hopkins is the thirteenth person in the eighth company [PCR 12:11, 12]. In the Plymouth tax list of 25 March 1634 Stephen Hopkins was assessed �1 7s., and in the list of 27 March 1634 �1 10s. [PCR 1:9, 27]. "Steven Hopkins" was one of the Purchasers [PCR 2:177]. On 1 July 1633 "Mr. Hopkins" was ordered to mow where he had mowed the year before [PCR 1:15], followed by similar orders on 14 March 1635/6 and 20 March 1636/7 [PCR 1:41, 57]. On 5 February 1637/8 "Mr. Stephen Hopkins requesteth a grant of lands towards the Six Mile Brook" [PCR 1:76]. On 7 August 1638 "[l]iberty is granted to Mr. Steephen Hopkins to erect a house at Mattacheese, and cut hay there this year to winter his cattle, provided that it be not to withdraw him from the town of Plymouth" [PCR 1:93]. On 17 July 1637 "Steephen Hopkins of Plymouth, gent.," sold to George Boare of Scituate, yeoman, "all that his messuage, houses, tenements, outhouses lying and being at the Broken Wharfe towards the Eele River together with the six shares of lands there unto belonging containing six acres" [PCR 12:21]. On 30 November 1638" Mr. Steephen Hopkins" sold to Josias Cooke "all those his six acres of land lying on the south side of the Town Brook of Plymouth" [PCR 12:39]. On 8 June 1642 William Chase mortgaged to "Mr. Stephen Hopkins ... all that his house and lands in Yarmouth containing eight acres of upland and six acres more lying at the Stony Cove" [PCR 12:83]. On 1 June 1640 "Mr. Hopkins" was granted twelve acres of meadow [PCR 1:154, 166]. In his will, dated 6 June 1644 and proved 20 August 1644, Stephen Hopkins "of Plymouth ... weake yet in good and perfect memory" directed that he be buried "as near as conveniently may be to my wife, deceased," and bequeathed to "son Giles Hopkins" the great bull now in the hands of Mrs. Warren; to "Steven Hopkins my son Giles his son" 20s. in Mrs. Warren's hands; to "daughter Constanc[e] Snow, wife of Nicholas ... my mare"; to "daughter Deborah Hopkins" cows; to "daughter Damaris Hopkins" cows; to "daughter Ruth" cows; to "daughter Elizabeth" cows; to "four daughters Deborah, Damaris, Ruth and Elizabeth Hopkins" all the moveable goods; if any of the daughters die, their share to be divided equally among the survivors; to "son Caleb heir apparent" house and lands at Plymouth, one pair of oxen and hire of them and all the debts "now owing unto me"; daughters to have free recourse to use of the house in Plymouth while single; "son Caleb" executor; Caleb and Captain Standish joint supervisors [PCPR 1:1 :61]. The inventory of the estate of Stephen Hopkins was taken 17 July 1644 and was untotalled, with no real estate included [PCPR 1:1:62-63]. On 28 October 1644 "Caleb Hopkins son and heir unto Mr. Steephen Hopkins of Plymouth deceased" deeded to "Gyles Hopkins of Yarmouth, planter, one hundred acres of those lands taken up for the Purchasers of Satuckquett which said lands do accrue unto the said Steephen as a Purchaser".
Stephen died in Plymouth between 6 June 1644 (writing of will) and 17 July 1644 (proving of will).
Children with first wife include:
i ELIZABETH, bp. Hursley ,Hampshire, 13 May 1604 [TAG 73:170]; living on 12 May 1613 [TAG 73:165]; no further record.
ii CONSTANCE, bp. Hursley,Hampshire, 11 May 1606 [TAG 73:170]; m. Plymouth by 1627 NICHOLAS SNOW (in the 1627 Plymouth division of cattle "Nickolas Snow" and "Constance Snow" were the sixthand seventh persons i n the seventh company, which was headed by Stephen Hopkins [PCR 12:11]).
ii GILES, bp. Hursley, Hampshire, 30 January 1607/8 [TAG 73:170]; m. Plymouth 9 October 1639 Catherine Whelden [PCR1:134; TAG 48:5].
With second wife:
iii DAMARIS, b. say 1618; probably died at Plymouth before the birth of her sister of the same name.
iv OCEANUS, b. at sea on the Mayflower voyage between 16 September and 11 November 1620; died by 1627.
v CALEB, b. Plymouth say 1624; "became a seaman & died at Barbadoes" between 1644 and 1651 [Bradford 445].
vi DEBORAH, b. Plymouth say 1626; m. Plymouth 23 April 1646 as his first wife Andrew Ring [PCR 2:98; TAG 42:202-05], daughter of widow MARY RING.
vii DAMARIS, b. Plymouth say 1628; m. Plymouth shortly after 10 June 1646 Jacob Cooke [MD 2:27-8], son of FRANCIS COOKE. (Since this Damaris was still bearing children in the early 1670s, she cannot be the same as the Damaris who came on the Mayflower.)
viii RUTH, b. Plymouth say 1630;d. after 30 November 1644 and before spring 1651 [Bradford 445]; unm.
ix ELIZABETH, b. Plymouth say 1632; believed to have died by 6 October 1659 when her property was appraised "in case Elizabeth Hopkins do come no more" [MD 4:114-19]; unm.
COMMENTS: Caleb Johnson's discovery [TAG73:161-71] of the family of Stephen Hopkins in Hursley, Hampshire, eliminates at last the suggestion that Stephen Hopkins was son of Stephen Hopkins, a clothier, of Wortley, Wooten Underedge, Gloucestershire [MF 6:3, citing "[t]he Wortley historian"]. Johnson's discovery also strengthens the argument that this was the same Stephen Hopkins who was the minister's clerk on the vessel Sea Venture which met with a hurricane in 1609 while on a voyage to Virginia [TAG 73:165-66]. One of one hundred and fifty survivors marooned on a Bermuda, he fomented a mutiny and was sentenced to death, but "so penitent he was and made so much moan, alleging the ruin of his wife and children in this his trespass," that his friends procured a pardon from the Governor [MF 6:3, citing William Strachey's account]. In his listing of Mayflower passengers Bradford included "Mr. Stephen Hopkins and Elizabeth his wife, and two children called Giles and Constanta, a daughter, both by a former wife. And two more by this wife called Damaris and Oceanus; the last was born at sea. And two servants called Edward Doty and Edward Lester" [Bradford 442]. Stephen Hopkins signed the Mayflower Compact. In his accounting of this family in 1651 Bradford reported that "Mr. Hopkins and his wife are now both dead, but they lived above twenty years in this place and had one son and four daughters born here. Their son became a seaman and died at Barbadoes, one daughter died here, and two are married; one of them hath two children, and one is yet to marry. So their increase which still survive are five. But his son Giles is married and hath four children. His daughter Constanta is also married and hath twelve children, all of them living, and one of them married" [Bradford 445]. In June 1621 Steven Hopkins and Edward Winslow were chosen by the governor to approach Massasoit, and Hopkins repeated this duty as emissary frequently thereafter [Young's Pilgrim Fathers 202, 204]. Despite his social standing and his early public service, Stephen Hopkins managed to run afoul of the authorities several times in the late 1630s. In June of 1636 while an Assistant, he was fined for battery of John Tisdale, whom he "dangerously wounded" [PCR 1:41 -42]. On 2 October 1637 he was fined for allowing drinking on the Lord's day and the playing of "shovell board" [PCR 1:68] and on 2 January 1637/8 he was "presented for suffering excessive drinking in his house" [PCR 1:75]. On 5 June 1638 he was "presented for selling beer for 2d. the quart, not worth 1d. a quart" [PCR 1:87]; for this and other similar infractions he was on 4 September 1638 fined �5 [PCR 1:97]. He dealt harshly with his pregnant servant Dorothy Temple and only the intercession of John Holmes freed him from being held in contempt of court [PCR 1:111-13]. In December 1639 he was presented for selling a looking glass for 16d. when a similar glass could be bought in the Bay for 9d. [PCR 1:137].
BIBLIOGRAPHIC NOTE: In 1992 John D. Austin published an excellent and extensive account of Stephen Hopkins and his descendants as the sixth volume in the Five Generations Project of the General Society of Mayflower Descendants [cited herein as MF 6]. In 1998 Caleb Johnson published his discovery of the baptismal place of the children of Stephen Hopkins by his first wife [TAG 73:161-71].
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Davis Uriah I | Born 1707
Abt 1581 - 1644 (~ 63 years)