Joseph Rochemont de Poyen (1767-1850) was the other French royalist who landed in Rocks Village after escaping from the slave revolt in Guadeloupe. His more famous relative Count Francis de Vipart traveled with him and other family members to Newburyport in March of 1792. Both men married Rocks Village women, but due to the tragic early death of Francis’ wife Mary known as the Countess, only Joseph de Poyen managed to live in the village for many years.
In 1805 Joseph married Sally Elliot (1781-1858) the daughter of Thomas Elliott and Sarah Swett. Sally and Thomas Elliott ran the tavern on E. Main St. Sarah Swett was the granddaughter of John Swett III, the ferryman and large landowner in the village. Thomas Elliott was the son of Ephraim Elliot, another large landowner.
Joseph was the son of Pierre Robert de Saint Sauveur Poyen, a sugar cane plantation owner in Guadeloupe. They are descended from Marquis Jean de Poyen who emigrated from France to Guadeloupe in 1658. Pierre Robert escaped from Guadeloupe with several of his children including Joseph and his step-nephew Count Francis, leaving behind two of his sons who had been executed.
Joseph Poyen (in early documents the ‘de’ is often omitted from de Poyen) owned half of 38 E. Main St. and probably lived there from 1798 to 1804 before marrying Sally. The couple owned a house on River Rd. 1805- 1822, and they also owned half of the house at 19 Wharf Lane, likely inherited from Sally’s father Thomas Elliot. Joseph is described in various deeds as a trader, a tobacconist, and a combmaker.
The Poyens owned land in the wooded area near Twelve Rod Way and E. Broadway and also across the street in the triangular block described by Ames Line Rd, E. Broadway and Merrimac St. known as the Island of Four Acres. In his will Joseph left 2 acres of land at ‘the Rocks” as well as other acreage in the east parish of Haverhill and Amesbury. Joseph died in Amesbury in 1850.
Sally and Joseph’s son John Saint Sauveur Poyen, born in 1819 was a carriage maker in Amesbury, a selectman and prominent citizen. He helped incorporate the town of Merrimac. Their daughter Abigail married John Greenleaf Whittier’s younger brother Mathew Franklin Whittier. A letter published in a Portland, ME newspaper in 1844, signed M. F. W., is a tribute to Dr. Charles Poyen, an oft-maligned proponent of ‘animal magnetism’ (or mesmerism). The letter’s author could have been Matthew Franklin Whittier. Charles Poyen was born in Guadeloupe in 1808 and died in France of disease at the age of 35.
Pierre Robert de “Saint Sauveur Poyen (23 Jul 1740 – 14 Oct 1792)
Pierre Robert de Poyen Saint Sauveur (1740 – 1792) was a direct descendant of Marquis Jean de Poyen who emigrated from France to Guadeloupe in 1658. He was a sugar cane planter in the village of Habitation Piton near Saint-Rose, Guadeloupe on the sea coast. Pierre Robert de Poyen Saint Sauveur (1740 – 1792) was the son of Jean Pierre de Poyen Saint Sauveur (1716 – 1757) and Marie Élisabeth van SCHALKWYCK of Sainte-Rose, Guadeloupe, France, in the West Indies, who ran a large sugar plantation before the French Revolution. “Saint Sauveur” signifies his branch of the Poyen lineage in Guadeloupe. He married Marie Joseph Mauvif (born 1743 in Baie-Mahault, Guadeloupe, Guadeloupe) daughter of Jean Mathieu MAUVIF (1706 – 1743) and Anne Marie Rose HUBERT (1706 – 1743). They were the parents of five sons and two daughters. He was a royalist and supported Louis the XVI and fled Guadeloupe after Republicans executed two of his sons: Robert de Poyen and Saint Sauveur de Poyen. He escaped with three sons: Dupiton de Poyen, Montrape de Poyen and Joseph Rochemont de Poyen (1767 – 1850), two daughters, a sister (Agathe Anastase de POYEN SAINT SAUVEUR born 1752 in Guadeloupe who died later in Baltimore after 1792, widow of Mr Laperelle) and a step-nephew, Count Francis de Vipart (François Félix Hector de VIPART MORAINVILLIERS 1776 – 1811) and arrived in Newburyport in March of 1792. He died just before the execution of Louis XVI.
Sally Elliott (12 Jul 1781 – 1 Jul 1858) (daughter of Thomas and Sarah (Swett))marries Joseph Rochemont de Poyen (13 Jun 1767 (or Aug 16) – 17 Feb 1850) , one of the exiles from Guadaloupein the time of the French Rebellion (26) Sally, and Joseph Poyen of Hampstead, married Mar. 5, 1805. Joseph died in 1850, see probate below.
One account of Joseph Poyen:
He married a big, strong, “handsome” woman who was the daughter of the tavern-keeper where they were staying, named Sally Elliot. She would bear him nine children, of whom Abby was the sixth. Abby was, apparently, the runt of the litter–a little thing with big, beautiful eyes, who was smart as a whip. She was probably tutored privately, and in the European tradition, she had a full education, not the New England version which only prepared a girl for marriage. (http://www.ial.goldthread.com/updates.html)
Children of Joseph and Sarah:
1. John Saint Sauveur (22 Oct 1819 – 22 Feb 1880)., of Amesbury who marries Elizabeth P. Kennison ((1824 – 1901), (oldest daughter of Dr. T Kenison of Rocks Village) 7 Dec 1843. (John dies before Thomas his brother in Pointe-à-Pitre, Guadeloupe of yellow fever while visiting family)). He was a carriage builder in West Amesbury (now Merrimac)
During the years 1870-1871, John S. Poyen was elected selectman. He subsequently had a role in incorporating the town of Merrimac (formerly the village of West Amesbury) in 1876, in organizing the First National Bank of Merrimac and the Merrimac Savings Bank, and in bringing the railroad to town. [Joseph Rochemont and Sally de Poyen of Rocks Village by Damon Di Mauro]
Probate 50789 and 50790 (guardianship of John S. 1881 May released and Edward A. 1996 March released)
Included 87 acres of woodland in Haverhill
112 Newbury street in Boston. (Edward’s 1/5 sold to Caroline A. Whipple, wife of Lyman Whipple in 1881 for $3,476)
Children of John and Elizabeth:
1a) Sarah Goodrich Poyen (15 Apr 1846 –) married four times to: William H Sawtell, Elliot Sandford, Elias Milliken and finally William Basset. Sarah Goodrich, d. John S., trader, and Elizabeth B., at Corner, born Apr. 15, 1846.(Amesbury).
1b) Emma Josephine Poyen (1852 –) married George W Weymouth (1880 –).
1c) Helen Maria Poyen (1856 –) was married in 1881, Thomas E. Barry
1d) Abby F Poyen (1858 – 1859), died young.
1e) John Saint Sauveur Poyen (1860 – 1943) married Fannie J Huntington (1858 –) lived between Seattle, WA and Phoenix, AZ, was a ship and carriage builder. He was know for his boxing and swimming in Boston.
1ea) John Saint Sauveur Poyen (1883 – 1902)
1ea1) John Saint Sauveur Poyen (1882 Merrimac, MA – 1945) married Verna Robbins (1889 Port Norris, NJ- 1938)
1ea1a) John Saint Saveur Poyen (1915 NY, NY-2003 Hawaii) married Betty Louis Boerstler (1919 Boulder, CO-2004 Hawaii) in xxx.
1ea1a1) John “Jock” (1940 Denver, CO – 2014 Calgery, Alberta) married Janet Hyndman (xx-xx) in xxx.
1f) Edward Austin Poyen (1865 – 1902) married Elizabeth Blanche Biddle (1877 – 1875). (guardian: E. B. Poyen and Albert Sargent of Merrimac at time of Thomas’ death)
2. Abigail Rochemont Weld (2 Jun 1816 – 29, Mar 1841 (consumption) marries Matthew Franklin Whittier (his first wife) (younger brother of John Greenleaf Whittier), Aug. 4, 1836.* (Whittier Newsletter: 88, suggests she was only 17) They moved to Portland Maine.
Children:
2a. Joseph Poyen Whittier ( Sept 1837 – 5 Aug 1838) died aged 11 months 15 d of scarlet fever.*
2b. Sarah Greenleaf Whittier (1840 – 1841) died aged 8 months.
2c. Charles F Whittier (1843 – 1909) half sibling (daughter of Jane Elizabeth Vaughan) marries Fanny Parker Bradley McQuesten (1823 Haverhill – 1890 Bangor) d. of John J. McQuesten and Abigail P. Bradley who ran the Tavern and owned 1 Wharf Lane. (actually think she married Charles T. Whittier, a distant cousin of John Greenleaf).
2d. Elizabeth Hussey Whittier Pickard (1846 – 1902) half sibling, Daughter of Matthew F. Whittier and Jane Elizabeth Vaughan (Matthew’s second wife), married Samuel Thomas Pickard (1858 – 1915)
2e. Alice G. Whittier Berry (1849 – 1898) half sibling Married Wilbur F. Berry (1840 – 1897)
3. Elizabeth Josephine (Jan 1804 – 6 Apr 1868 Portland, Maine) marries Stephen Patten (20 Oct 1805 – 24 Oct 1869 Portland, ME) of Amesbury, int. Nov. 4, 1826.*
Children of Elizabeth and Stephen:
3a. Ann Crosby Patten (13 Jun 1828 – 6 Mar 1911). (wife of James Hopkinson Hamlin), Elizabeth J. (wife of Eliot Sanford)
Children of Ann and James:
James Clarence Hamlen (1852 – 1936)*
Maria Patten Hamlen (1855 – 1950)*
3b. Edward T. Patten (xxxx – 18 Oct 1877) married Alice Ashley Patten (1878 – 1916)*(his son in Thomas’ will: Stephen Stanley (2 Oct 1871 – 1 Dec 1912). Patten, his guardian is his grandfather George W. Stanley)
3c. Susan Maria Patten(13 Apr 1832 – 3 Mar 1854) doesn’t look like she marries.
3d. Elizabeth Josephine (1836-1883) marries Elliot Sanford (xx- xx) in 1870.
3e. Stephen Jr. Patten (25 Jan 1838 – 15 Aug 1863) (his daughter: Audrey H. Patten) in Thomas’ will). Marries Mary A Stanley Patten (1836 – 1876)
4. Sarah Elliot(2 Mar 1812) married Moses Goodridge [Goodrich. int.] of West Newbury,Dec. 1, 1831.*
5. M. A. Poyen (listed in probate) (Mary (Marie) Antoinette) (21 Jan 1808 – 11 Oct 1895) died unmarried. She lived for a time with her brother, John Saint Sauveur de Poyen, and later lived with her brother, Thomas Elliot de Poyen.
6. Francette C. Poyen (1820 – 24 May 1909) (listed in probate). She died unmarried at the age of 89 in Danvers. She lived for a time with her brother THOMAS ELLIOT De Poyen in the home of Charles H Palmer.
7. Lucy Maude Palmer (1825 – 7 Jun 1878) (listed in probate) Charles Henry Palmer, Sr (1819 – 1892) the son of Enoch Palmer (1789 – 1850) and Margaret Pitman de Grush (1790 – 1880) of West Newbury, marries Lucy M. Poyen, Dec. 20, 1843.
Charles and Lucy had six children:
7a) Abigail Poyen Palmer (9 May 1844 – 12 May 1844), twin, died young.
7b) Margaret Poyen Palmer (7 May 1844 – 12 May 1844), twin, died young.
7c) Charles Henry Palmer, Jr (1846 – 1914) married
Elizabeth R Baker (1852 – 1925), They had:
7c1: Lillian Frances Palmer (15 Oct 1878 Merrimac, Essex, Massachusetts – 27 DEC 1964 Queens, New York, New York) who married first Marvin Ford Dundas (1869 – 1900), married second William R Webster (1870 –) and married third Fred Andrew Heath (1883 – 1958). She has two children: Fred Andrew Heath (1915 – 1985) and Elizabeth Ellen Heath (1918 – 1995).
7d) Margaret Saint Sauveur Palmer (1848 – 1912) married Herbert Otis Delano, Jr (1847 – 1926), daughters: Sarah Payson Delano (1873 –) and Alice Herbert Delano (1876 –). There may have been an earlier Margaret who died young: Margaret P., d. C[harles] H. and L[ucy] M. [(Poyen)], May 12, 1844, a. 5 d. G
7e) Joseph Poyen Palmer (9 May 1851 – 5 Oct 1853), died young.
7f) Moses Goodrich Palmer (4 Oct 1855 – 4 Oct 1900) married Marie Louise Firth Sheilds (1825 –7 Jun 1878), no children.
8. Francis Louis (2 Dec 1810 – 24 Aug 1838) Louis marries Lucy Ann B. Smith of Boston, int. July 15, 1836.
9. Thomas Elliot Poyen (2 jun (or Mar 12 1814) 1816 – 8 May 1881)- (listed in probate).On 23 Sep 1843 in Pembroke, Plymouth, Massachusetts he married Elizabeth Bailey Loring (1823 – 1905) the daughter of Alden Loring (1780 – 1861) and Lucinda Briggs (1784 – 1852). They had no children. His own probate #50792 in 1881. After Thomas dies, she moved to Chelsea.
In his will
Wife: Elizabeth B.
Sister: Francette
Sister: Sarah Goodrich (wife of Moses deceased)
Sister: Mary Antoinette Poyen
His sister Lucy Palmer has died but her kids are in the will
His sister Elizabeth has died but her kids are in the will (Elizabeth’s husband Stephan has also died at this point.)
His brother John S. has died, but his kids are in the will
Deeds:
38 E. Main St., possibly western half:
164/30 in 1798 Walter Little to Jos. Poyen, ½ of a 25 rods lot and buildings, start at sw corner, go n 7 .5 by M Moody , e 3R 5’, s 7.5R by Francis Carr, w 3R 5’ by the landing to start.
1803, June 28: Walter Little to Joseph Poyen (172/207) 1/2 lot and 1/2 building bounded as follows. Westerly by Moses Moody 7.5R, Northerly 3R5feet, Easterly 7.5R by Francis Carr, South 3R 5f by landing. $312.00. Sounds like the same property as 164/30?
(175/119) 1804, Nov 20: Joseph Poyen to Frederick Parker land and building bounded as follows: West by Moses Moody 7.5 R, North by Francis Carr 3R 5feet, Easterly by John Johnson 7.5R, Southerly Road 3R 5feet. $800.00. Sounds like same land as 172/207; “land by Moses Moody” was enterlisied? before signed. witness Francis and Nabby Carr.
River Rd.:
(177/49) 1805, 13 Sept: Moses Copps and Mary Copps to Joseph Poyen, tobacconist, 50 R land and buildings thereon, start s corner, n by public highway 9R 2’, e by Suil Short 5R 10’ to river, by river s 9R 6’, w partly of John Brown Jr and part by Aaron Peasley to start.
232/73 : 1822 Poyen to Edward Moody, same desc as 177/49 except run e by Cutting Moody to river, and no mention of Aaron Peasley. Signed Joseph and Sarah Poyen Witness Enoch and George Foot.
Woodlot at 12 Rod Way and E. Broadway:
1825, June 21: Elias and Abigail Weld to Edward S. Moody (241/86) running westerly by road leading to Rocks Village 16R, southerly along 12-rod way about 12 R, then easterly by land of David Elliot 14R then northerly 14R to bound first mentioned. Being 1.5 acres more or less.
1826: Edward S. Moody and Abigail (George) Moody to Joseph de Poyen (241/87) running westerly by road to rocks village 16R then southerly 12 R along 12 Rod way then easterly by land of David Elliott about 14R then northerly about 14 rod.
Reference to Poyen land in the Island of 4 acres:
1832, Mar 13th: Daniel C. Bailey (Amesbury) to David Elliott (Haverhill) (309/244). 8R land + blacksmith shop. Starting at the “crotch of the roads” going 70′ nw along the road to the Baptist church (Ames Line Rd) to Poyen then s. 50′ on Poyen to the road to the school house, 70′ e along that road to start.
1843: Isaac Hoyt to Sarah wife of Joseph – 80 Rods of land with dwelling house and barn in Amesbury (437/142). Sally then sells the property to her son John S. Poyen in 1850 (437/142). John then sells 70 rods of land (same property?) in Amesbury to Charles H. Palmer, his brother-in-law, also in 1850. 1850 is the year Joseph Poyen died.
1844, 11 Sept: Stephen S. Crosby’s (348/82) to Joseph Poyen. 15 acres of wooded land bounded as follows: Westerly by land of Johnson and Eutis Chase, Southerly and Easterly by Poyen, Northerly by Ephraim Elliott. Second piece of land 1 individual half of 20 acres bounded Southerly and Westerly by Ephraim Elliott, easterly by Stickney Chase, northerly by public way.
1852: Sally sells to John S. Poyen 13 acres in East Haverhill near east parish cemetery (is this Greenwood?)
1856: Sally de Poyen to Abraham Colby (532/131) 4 acres Sally could have gotten this from her father Thomas Elliott. From School house (school district #6) lot westerly 28 R along East Broadway, 38 R along Old Amesbury Line Road, 37 road easterly along Amesbury Line Road (road from bridge to Plaistow) to stone wall, 7.5R along stone wall to bound first mentioned. Known as the Island containing 4 acres. Formerly occupied by Joseph Poyen (deceased)
Island of 4 acres
Probate #50791 Joseph Poyen in 1850 Amesbury. Sally widow and list of heirs appoint Thomas Poyen (son) as executor. First item in inventory is 2 A of undivided land at the Rocks. Estate valued at about 1440. Widow gets her apparel and $100. After debts paid $1316. 7 children in her care. Later they seem to have discovered another $2700 from Guadaloupe. So Sally got $1239 and each of the 8 children $310 after debts were paid.
Hazen Kimball is guardian of Lucas t or f Poyen
Abby’s first Cousin: Charles Poyen: Letter to newspaper.