PUFFER, Almira Palmyra

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Almira married HASTINGS, Ephraim on 28 Oct 1834 in Boylston, MA. Ephraim (son of HASTINGS, Silas and REED, Hannah) was born in 1785 in Boylston, MA; died on 29 Aug 1855 in Berlin, MA; was buried in Berlin, MA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

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• Ref#: 36
• _COLOR: 11
• Ordained: 26 Sep 1781, Berlin, MA

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Graduated from Harvard College in 1778. In 1810 he received from Harvard the honorary degree of D.D. He was ordained in Berlin, November 26, 1781, the first minister, and continued pastor of the Congregational church there to the end of this life. He was a very useful and able minister. He delivered the Dudleian lecture at Harvard College, May 11, 1808, and preached a sermon at the annual convention of Congregational ministers at Boston May 30, 1811. Both of these sermons were published in pamphlets.

Rev. Dr. Puffer spoke at the inauguration of John Adams  to Massachusetts State Senate.


The late Rev. Dr. Allen of Northboro in an article in the Boston Advertiser gives the following incident among his Cambridge reminiscences of 1810.

"Quite a sensation was occasioned in June of this year by the delivery of the Dudleian lecture by a country minister, with whom many years afterwards I had pleasant intercourse as a neighbor and friend, Rev. Reuben Puffer, afterwards D.D., of Berlin. He had previously delivered the election sermon in Boston which first introduced him to notice, and probably led to his appointment as lecturer. We were given to understand that he was a poor country minister, with small salary and a large family, and our expectations on entering the Chapel and seeing an ordinary-looking man in the pulpit were not raised to a high pitch. But we were disappointed and we listened to the discourse with intense interest from first to last.

His text was "Can any good thing come out of Nazareth? Philip saith to him, come and see." And so we found that a very sensible, rational, eloquent discourse could come from the minister of the obscure little town of Berlin. The result was that a meeting of the Students was called, a Committee chosen to request a copy for the press, and the profits of the pamphlet, amounting to about one hundred dollars, was given to the poor country minister."

Rev. Dr. Puffer left a large estate for his day. He made special bequests of Scott's Family Bible, Brown's Dictionary of the Bible, Burder's Village Sermons; Cowper's Poems; Newton's Letters; Memoirs of Mrs. Ramsay and some of his manuscripts. He had a large library. He gave his watch to his son Oliver and his clock to his son Henry; a gold necklace of his deceased daughter Sarah to his granddaughter Sarah Puffer Fay. Edward Baker was executor. His will was dated Sept. 3, 1828.

The widow Phebe Puffer remembered each of her husband's children in her will, which was dated March, 1851, and allowed February 5, 1856. She gave to Phebe Goodnow, granddaughter of her husband, her gold necklace. She gave Scott's Family Bible to Oliver Puffer; Barley's English Dictionary to Thomas Stone's wife; $30 each to her own sons, Truman, Freeman and William Stowe. Among other legacies to her granddaughters, Eugenia Stowe Gilbert and Phebe Morse Stowe, daughter of Truman Stowe, was "a large chest with one drawer" that "came from her ancestors," also wearing apparel, household goods, desk, papers, etc.

He married, first, Feb 9, 1779 or 1780 at Stow, Hannah Perry, who was born Sept 21, 1760, died Jan. 5, 1812.

He married, second, in 1814, Phebe (Morse) Stowe of Marlborough, daughter of William and Phebe Morse. By her first husband Truman Stowe, she had children William, Truman, Freeman and Eugenia Stowe. Eugenia Stowe married September 28, 1828, Rev. Lyman Gilbert of West Newton. Phebe died Jan. 12, 156, aged 84 y. 28 d.

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Reuben married PERRY, Hannah on 9 Feb 1779 in Stow, MA. Hannah (daughter of PERRY, Obadiah and KIMBALL, Elizabeth) was born on 21 Sep 1760 in Berlin, MA; died on 5 Jan 1812 in Berlin, MA; was buried in Berlin, MA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

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• Ref#: 17
• _COLOR: 11
• Arrival: 1712, Sudbury, MA
• Confirmation: 12 Jul 1727, Sudbury, MA

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He went to Sudbury with his father, and became a substantial citizen. He served in the French and Indian Wars, as private in Capt. Josiah Brown's Co., in 1739 and as ensign in Capt. Josiah Richardson's Co., in 1757. Later he was captain of a Sudbury company. He was on a town committee to widen the causeway at Ironworks meadow in 1771. He lived in the house, built by his father, enlarged by himself, and still standing in 1900. He and his brother Ephraim of Sudbury deeded to Ephraim Keith of Bridgewater land at Petersham, July 21, 1738 (W.D. 10-526) and also land bought of Thomas Baldwin at Petersham (Nichewaug) March 5, 1743-4 (W.D. 2 9-355). He deeded land to his son Jacob at Templeton, April 13,1764 (W .D. 55-379).

His gravestone is in the burying ground at Sudbury Center. In his will dated April 8, 1785, he bequeaths to his wife Sarah: children James, Jacob, Daniel, Reuben, Rebecca Gibson and grandchildren Nahum and Reuben Rice.

Will of Capt. Jabez Puffer

"The following was one of the five wills made by Capt. Jabez Puffer and w as not the one offered for probate: "In the name of God Amen! This eighteenth Day of March Anno Domini One Thousand Seven Hundred and seventy Nine and in the third year of American Independence, I Jabez Puffer of Sudbury, in the county of Middlesex and state of the MA Bay, New England, Gentleman, being indisposed in Body, but of good and perfect mind and memory (thanks to Almighty God) and calling to remembrance the uncertain state of this transitory Life, and that all flesh must yield to death when it shall please God to call; do make and declare this my last will and Testament in manner and form following: -- Being penitent and sorry for all my sins, and most humbly imploring forgiveness for the same I commend my soul unto Almighty God my saviour and Redeemer in whom and by whose merits i trust and believe assuredly to be saved, to receive a full remission of all my sins, and inherit the Kingdom of God; and my body I commit to the Earth to be decently interred at the discretion of my Executor hereafter named: and for the settleing of my temporal estate, and such Goods, Chattels and Debts as shall be found at m y decease, all lawful demands on the same being satisfied, I appoint an d order to be done in the following manner: -- First-- I give and bequeath to my well beloved wife Sarah Puffer, the income of all my Lande lying in Sudbury, she being at the charge of all the Labor for said income. Also I give her a good steady Horse and Chaise to use at her election; also the use of that part of the dwelling house and Sellar which I now possess, together with the free use of all other buildings on the Premises; also I bequeath unto her my loving wife two Cows, and all the Household furniture she brought with her, to dispose of as she shall think proper, the income of said Lands, and the use of Horse, Chiase, House, Sellar and other buildings to be hers so long as she remains my widow .
Also I give and bequeath to my four dutiful and well beloved sons (viz) James puffer, whom I have settled in Sudbury, Josiah Puffer whom I have settled in Westminster in the county of Worcester, Jacob Puffer whom I have settled in Ashby in the county of Middlesex and Daniel Puffer whom I have settled with myself in Sudbury, to them and each of them five shillings to be paid to them by my Executor in one year after my decease.
To each of them I have give good farms or settlements and my son Daniel Puffer is to have the refusal of my Homestead at the appraisal after my Decease if he pleases and agrees with his mother in law (stepmother), an d pays at, otherwise it shat be free for the purchase of any other person.
Also I give and bequeath to my dutiful and well beloved son Reuben Puffer having already given him an education at Harvard College twenty six Pounds thirteen shillings and four pence to be paid him by my Executor in one year after the beginning to settle my estate. Also I give to the s aid Reuben Puffer a Bed, with the furniture thereto."
(Charles Nutt has another will dated Feb. 21, 1774.)
Epitaph: "Here rests in hope of a resurrected life the mortal part of Capt. Jabez Puffer who departed this life June 21 A.D. 1789 in the 85th y ear of his age.
"My flesh shall slumber in the ground
Till the last trumpet's joyful sound
Then burst the chains without surprise
And in my Saviour's image rise."

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Jabez married TREADWAY, Hannah on 18 Oct 1738 in Framingham, MA. Hannah (daughter of TREADWAY, Benjamin and MAYNARD, Mary) was born on 19 Mar 1714; died on 28 Jul 1777 in Sudbury, MA; was buried in Sudbury, MA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

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For eighteen months, she was kept a captive by the Indians. She was taken when eighteen years old, and finally ransomed for L50.

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Obadiah married KIMBALL, Elizabeth. Elizabeth was born in 1730; died in 1806. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

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• Confirmation: 21 May 1704, Braintree, MA
• Residence: 1712, Sudbury, MA

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Baptized in Sudbury Feb 22, 1673-4. He and his wife joined the Braintree church, May 21, 1704. He was a boatman, resided at Ship Cove, now Quincy Neck. "Jabez Puffer, boatman, for L 20 7s, sold to John Ruggles 4 acres of upland and meadow called the "great fence field" near the house of Ruggles. Bounded westerly on land of Samuel Newcome, deceased, easterly and northwesterly on land of Ruggles, southerly on the creek called Sheep Cove." In 1712, he bought land in Sudbury and came with his brother James to settle there. He was captain of the Sudbury company (militia). His farm was in the northeast part of Sudbury in what is now Maynard, near Puffer's Pond, which took it's name from the family.

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Jabez married GLAZIER, Mary on 3 Dec 1702 in Braintree, MA. Mary (daughter of GLAZIER, John and GEORGE, Elizabeth) was born on 6 Oct 1682 in Sudbury, MA; died on 2 Jan 1749 in Braintree, MA; was buried in Wayland, MA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

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Benjamin married MAYNARD, Mary on 19 Apr 1714 in Framingham, MA. Mary (daughter of MAYNARD, Zachariah and GOODRICH, Hannah) was born on 2 Jan 1690 in Sudbury, MA; was christened on 10 Aug 1714 in Marlborough, MA; died on 27 Nov 1766 in Framingham, MA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

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