Dr. Thomas Hastings (2) family
His tombstone at the Old Burying Ground (aka The Hill Cemetery), Hatfield, Mass.
Dr. Thomas Hastings was born in Watertown, Mass. on July 1, 1652. He was the first child of Thomas & Margaret (Cheney) Hastings. In his father’s Will it was written, “I have been at great expense to bring him up a scholar, and I have given him above threescore pounds to begin the world with.” What education Thomas was given is not known today but there is not record of him having attended Harvard. Perhaps he was privately tutored but, whatever the mode, he evidently earned the appellation of doctor (there being no formal medical curriculum commonly available at the time in New England). It was in this capacity, that he later move to the Western part of the Massachusetts Bay Colony and settled in Hatfield. For most of his adult life, he was the only physician serving Hatfield, Northampton, Hadley and Deerfield. He played an active and heroic part in attending to settlers and indians alike during the latter’s raids of Deerfield and the surrounding area circa 1705. He died on July 23, 1712. He married first (1672) Anna Hawkes, who died Oct. 25, 1705. He married second (1706) Mary Burt who survived him and April 13, 1734.
About the Thomas Hastings Descendants Database Project: This database of Thomas Hastings descendants and related families was begun nearly 20 years ago. It now contains over 42,000 individuals — many with narrative, photographs and other life artifacts such as signatures, Wills, etc.. The goal of this project is to produce a modern update to the venerable Hastings Memorial originally published in 1866 that will carry as many lines as possible to the present day. Shown below are some surnames of those descendants who have contributed information to this line. If you would like to contribute, please email Scott Billigmeier (SBmeier@outlook.com).
Allen
Groth
Hastings
Jones
Leach
MacIver
Myers
Russell
Sammis
Wiest
Wilson
Thomas Hastings Y-DNA Project: We are looking for descendants of Thomas Hastings whose ancestry is patrilineal (unbroken male line from father to son) for the purpose of determining his English ancestry. Thus far, the paper trail has run cold beyond his departure from Ipswich, Suffolk, England in April 1634. Identifying the Haplogroup and subclade of his male descendants, with the unique DNA sequences that mark every Y chromosome, will be key to solving mysteries such as when the Hastings arrived in the British Isles, perhaps where and whether, once and for all, they are connected to the noble Hastings families.
We are in particular need of qualified volunteers descended from this son. For more information on how to participate please visit our Y-DNA project page.
Sources:
The Hastings Memorial, by Lydia Nelson (Hastings) Buckminster, 1866.
New England Outpost, by Richard I. Melvoin, 1989.
History of the Thomas Adams and Thomas Hastings Families, of Amherst, Massachusetts, by Prof. Herbert Baxter Adams, 1880.