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Ancestor of Prime Minister Winston Churchill. John was killed on Mar. 26, 1676 in the massacre of Capt. Michael Pierce’s Company near Pawtucket (Central Falls), Providence, Rhode Island in King Philip’s War. Capt. Pierce’s company included 65 men and about 20 friendly Indians. Locating hostile Indians near the Pawtucket River, Capt. Pierce sent a messenger to nearby Providence to summon reinforcements. The messenger, having arrived at the time of public worship, refrained from delivering the message until the service was concluded, at which point, Capt. Andrew Edmunds hurriedly set out with the Providence militia to join Pierce, but it was too late. They arrived to find that Capt. Pierce and his men had been massacred by a superior force of Narragansetts: 55 colonists were killed and 42 were buried on the site. King Philip's War, 1675-76 King Philip was the chief of the Wampanoag Indians and the son of Massasoit, the chief who had befriended the Pilgrims and celebrated the first Thanksgiving in 1620. King Philip resented the intrusion and domination of the colonists and led an uprising of several tribes, including the Narragansetts, in 1675-76, terrorizing New England in what would become known as the bloodiest Indian War ever to take place there. By the time the war ended 52 out of 90 New England settlements had been attacked, 12 completely destroyed. King Philip himself was trapped and killed in Aug. 1676. Some sources say John was killed in The Great Swamp Fight, but that battle took place December 19, 1675. Additional information: Francis Sprague and Mother came from London, England on the good ship 'Anne'. John was their 3rd child and only son. At Duxburrow they settled on a large grant of land adjoining that of Elder William Brewster, not far from the town meeting house. This land, near what was known as the "Nook", lay along a bay with good meadows, salt marshes and a creek that is still known as Sprague's Creek. John's birth date is unknown, probably between 1630-1633 - no actual proof. Information from different sites, Sprague Project, family tree, and family information. As far as I know there are no actual records of John Sprague's birth. John Sprague and Ruth Bassett married in 1655 resided for a time in Marshfield, as the birth of their daughter Ruth is recorded there. Ruth Bassett's father, William Basset (born about 1590 in England) had arrived in America in 1621 aboard the ship FORTUNE (Thomas Barton, Master). This John, more likely than John of William, was a Counsellor of Sir Edmund Andros. John of Duxbury succeeded to his father's business in 1669. John Sprague apparently inherited his father's ardent temperament. Described as a "...spark off the old flint", he is known to have spent several hours in the stocks on at least one occasion for "...highly misdemeanant himself in the house of James Cole of Plymouth near unto or on the evening before the Sabbath Day, in drinking, gaming and uncivil reveling, to the dishonor of God and the offense of the government, by his gaming and the bringing of his mare uncivilly into the parlor of James Cole, aforesaid." "John Sprague was killed in the massacre of Captain Michael Pierce's Company of English Militia during the King Philip's War when, on 26 March 1676, that company of 65 men (supplemented by about 20 friendly Indians) engaged a superior force of hostiles near the Pawtucket River in Rhode Island, about 5 miles north of Providence. According to Douglas Edward Leach in his history of that war entitled FLINTLOCK AND TOMAHAWK - NEW ENGLAND IN THE KING PHILIP'S WAR, Captain Pierce, having determined that there was a band of hostile Indians located near the Pawtucket River, had prepared his men for battle and had sent a messenger into the nearby town of Providence requesting reinforcements before attacking. For some reason this messenger, arriving at the time of public worship, chose to wait until after the service had concluded before delivering Captain Pierce's request. When the situation was made known, Captain Andrew Edmunds of the Providence Militia immediately set out with a group of armed men in order to join forces with Pierce's company. Meanwhile, the Plymouth Militia group had unwittingly engaged and become surrounded by an extremely large force of hostile Narrangansett Indians and were overwhelmed. By the time Edmunds and his men arrived, it was too late. The fact that some 42 of the 55 colonists killed that day were buried at the site of the battle, including that of John Sprague of Duxbury, indicates that there were some survivors, or it may indicate that there were bodies which may not have been recovered." Ruth afterwards married a Mr. Thomas. John and Ruth's children: 1. Lt. John Sprague (Jr.), born abt 1656 in Duxbury, Plymouth Co., MA and died March 1728 in Lebanon, New London Co., CT at age 72 years. He married 1st Lydia and 2nd Lois Standish 2. Elizabeth Sprague abt 1657 in Marshfield, Plymouth Co., MA and died May 27, 1727 in Plympton, Plymouth Co., MA. She married George Sampson abt 1678 in Plympton, MA. 3. Ruth Sprague born February 12, 1660 in Marshfield, Plymouth Co, MA and died 1743 in Duxbury, Plymouth Co., MA at age 82. She married August 12, 1680 in Dartmouth, Bristol Co., MA. She married Eleazer (Elizer) Smith. 4. William Sprague born 1658 in Duxbury, MA and died November 25, 1712 in Duxbury, MA at age 48. He married Grace Wadsworth January 1700 in Duxbury, Plymouth Co., MA. William died by drowning - his whaling ship went down. 5. Dorcas Sprague was born abt 1666 in Duxbury, MA and died January 1710 at age 44. She married January 10, 1710 in Duxbury, Plymouth Co., MA Joseph Hatch born May 7, 1654 in Falmouth, Barnstable Co., MA (son of Jonathan Hatch and Sara Rowley) and died February 16, 1734.. 6. Desire Sprague was born abt 1668 in Marshfield, Plymouth Co., MA and married November 24, 1696 in Falmouth/Sandwich, Barnstable Co., MA John Gifford. 7. Lt. Samuel Sprague born abt 1669 in Duxbury, Plymouth Co., MA and died July 25, 1740 in Rochester, Plymouth Co., MA at age 71. He married November 29, 1695 in Duxbury, Plymouth Co., MA Ruth Alden. Information from "The Sprague Project". Nine Men's Misery - Thank you Donald Thompson for this article Nine Men's Misery is a site in current day Cumberland, Rhode Island where nine colonists were tortured by the Narragansett Indian tribe during King Philip's War. A stone memorial was constructed in 1676 which is believed to be the oldest veterans memorial in the United States. History On March 26, 1676 during King Philip's War, Captain Michael Pierce led approximately 60 Plymouth Colony troops and 20 Wampanoag Indians in pursuit of Narragansetts who had burned several Rhode Island towns and attacked Plymouth. Pierce's troops caught up with the Narragansett, Wampanoag, Nashaway, Nipmuck, and Podunk fighters, but were ambushed in what is now Central Falls, Rhode Island. Pierce's troops fought the Narragansetts for several hours but were surrounded by a larger force. The battle was one of the biggest defeats of colonial troops during King Philip's War, with nearly all killed, including Captain Pierce and the Wampanoags (exact numbers vary by account). The Narragansetts lost only a handful of warriors. Nine of the colonists who were among the dead were first taken prisoner, along with a tenth man who survived. These men were tortured to death by the Narragansetts at a site in Cumberland, Rhode Island, currently on the Cumberland Monastery and Library property. The nine dead colonists were buried by English soldiers who found the corpses and created a pile of stones to memorialize the men. This pile is believed to be the oldest veterans' memorial in the United States, and a cairn of stones has continuously marked the site since 1676. The "Nine Men's Misery" site was disturbed in 1790 by medical students led by one Dr. Bowen looking for the body of one of the dead colonists named Benjamin Bucklin, who was said to be unusually large with a double row of teeth. They were stopped by outraged locals. The site was desecrated several more times until 1928, when the monks who then owned the cemetery built a cemented stone cairn. The cairn and site can still be visited on the monastery grounds. Pierce's Fight was followed by the burning of Providence three days later, and then the capture and execution of Canonchet, the chief sachem of the Narragansetts. The war was winding down even at the time that Pierce's party was destroyed, and King Philip himself was killed in August.
William B.
