John MacCoone

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John MacCoone (1630 - October 8, 1705) also spelled phonetically as McCoon or McCoone was a Scottish Royalist soldier during the Anglo-Scottish war, a Scottish colonist, and one of the original 24 founders of Westerly, Rhode Island on May 13, 1669. [1] [2] Following his arrival to the American colonies, MacCoone later became a juror and member of the General Court of Rhode Island (later the Rhode Island General Assembly). [3] [4] John MacCoone was married to Deborah Bush (1635-1664) of the famous Bush family, a political family of the United States.

Contents

Member of the Rhode Island General Assembly

John MacCoone (John McCoon)
Scottish Covenanter Flag.svg
The Scottish Covenanter Flag.
Bornc.1630
Aberdeen, Scotland
DiedOctober 8, 1705
East Cambridge, Massachusetts
AllegianceScottish Covenanter Flag.svg Scotland
Years of service1650-1650
Known forFounding Westerly, Rhode Island
Battles / wars
Spouses
  • Sarah Wood
  • Deborah Bush

Biography

John MacCoone (Anglicized phonetically as McCoon or MacCoon) was born around 1630 near Aberdeen in the Kingdom of Scotland. [5] Not much is known about John's life before the Anglo-Scottish war except for the fact that he was part of the Covenanters movement which supported the Presbyterian Church of Scotland.

Capture at the Battle of Dunbar

MacCoone took part in the Anglo-Scottish war, a continuation of the Wars of the Three Kingdoms against Oliver Cromwell. MacCoone was part of the 22,000-man army under David Leslie, 1st Lord Newark which marched towards the Firth of Forth and fought in the ensuing Battle of Dunbar on September 3, 1650. John MacCoone, along with 10,000 other Scots were captured as prisoners of war. [6] Following the Scottish defeat by Cromwell's New Model Army, there were roughly 4,000 deaths, 10,000 prisoners, and 4,000 men who escaped. [7] [8] [9] Cromwell's government was presented with an immediate dilemma, holding 10,000+ Scottish prisoners would be costly, however, letting them go could prove to be very dangerous and had the possibility of seeing a continued rebellion or guerrilla war against the Parliamentarians, hence, the deportation of Scots was one of the only "reasonable" option for Cromwell's government. [7] [8] [9] [10]

Deportation to the Massachusetts Bay Colony

The English ship Unity which was based out of Cambridge, Massachusetts transported 150 prisoners of war from Scotland to the Massachusetts Bay Colony. [10] As a penalty for being captured and taking part in the Anglo-Scottish War, John and others were forcefully deported and confined aboard the English ship Unity as indentured servants for 6-8 years. [1] [2] [10] [11] According to the Scottish Prisoner of War Society (SPOWS), MacCoone is listed as prisoner #57 on the George Sawin Stewart document for Scottish prisoners of war who had been captured at the Battle of Dunbar. [12] MacCoone and 149 other Scottish prisoners arrived in Charlestown, Boston in December 1650 and immediately began their terms of indentured servitude. [2] The length of servitude varied, but the typical term of indentured servitude was between 6 to 8 years, averaging around 7. [9] Many of the Scottish prisoners aboard the Unity ended up working as servants for the Saugus Iron Works in Saugus, Massachusetts. [7] During this time MacCoone married a woman named Deborah Bush (1635-1664) on November 8, 1656, almost five years after his arrival. [13] The book Lost Lives, New Voices: Unlocking the Stories of the Scottish Soldiers at the Battle of Dunbar 1650 lists John MacCoone as still living in Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1656. [14] [15]

Founding of Westerly, Rhode Island

Following his term of indentured servitude MacCoone was given 5 acre s of land in Cambridge [16] and later laid claim to lands in the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations near the Pawcatuck River. John is listed as one of the original 24 settlers and freeman of the settlement of Westerly on May 13, 1669. A full list of the first original settlers of Westerly include the following men: [17]

  • John Crandall
  • Edward Larkin
  • Stephen Wilcox
  • John Lewis
  • James Cross
  • Jonathan Armstrong
  • John Maxson
  • Jeffrey Champlin, Sr.
  • John Fairfield
  • Daniel Cromb
  • Nicholas Cottrell
  • Shubael Painter
  • Tobias Saunders
  • Robert Burdick
  • John Randall
  • John MacCoon
  • John Sharp
  • Daniel Stanton
  • James Babcock, Sr.
  • Thomas Painter
  • James Babcock, Jr.
  • John Babcock
  • Job Babcock
  • Josiah Clarke

Court

John periodically served as a colonial juror for the General Court of Rhode Island, later called the Rhode Island General Assembly as well as the town court of Westerly. [3] The book A dictionary of Scottish emigrants to the U.S.A. by Donald Whyte lists John as a member of the Rhode Island General Court, specifically of Westerly bedsides being a colonial juror for civil court hearings. [4] [18] [19]

Personal Life and Death

John had two wives, Sarah Wood (c.1668) and Deborah Bush (1635-1664) of the Bush family. Between his two wives he had a total of 6 children. [20] John is listed as dying on October 8, 1705, according to his will and testament and probate records from Middlesex County, Massachusetts. [19]

References

  1. 1 2 Whyte, Donald (1972). A Dictionary Of Scottish Emigrants To The U.S.A. Baltimore, Maryland: Magna Carta Book Company. p. 285. ISBN   091094623X.
  2. 1 2 3 "MacCoon, John | Scottish Prisoners of War Society". spows.org. February 2, 2016. Retrieved October 2, 2025.
  3. 1 2 "John Maccoon of Cambridge, MA, and Westerly, RI - Doug Sinclair's Archives". dougsinclairsarchives.com. Retrieved October 2, 2025.
  4. 1 2 Whyte, Donald. (1972–1986). A dictionary of Scottish emigrants to the U.S.A. Baltimore, Md.: Magna Carta Book Co. ISBN   978-0-910946-28-5.
  5. ↑ Cutter, William Richard (1915). New England families, genealogical and memorial; a record of the achievements of her people in the making of commonwealths and the founding of a nation;. Allen County Public Library Genealogy Center. New York: Lewis historical Publishing Company. p. 42.
  6. ↑ "Following the trail of the 1650 Scottish Prisoners - Old Berwick Historical Society". www.oldberwick.org. Retrieved October 2, 2025.
  7. 1 2 3 daseger (May 27, 2018). "Scottish Prisoners of War in Salem". streetsofsalem. Retrieved October 2, 2025.
  8. 1 2 "English Civil War Battle of Dunbar, 1650". Warfare History Network. Retrieved October 2, 2025.
  9. 1 2 3 markeminer (July 24, 2012). "Scottish Prisoners". Miner Descent. Retrieved October 2, 2025.
  10. 1 2 3 "The 'Unity'". www.douglashistory.co.uk. Retrieved October 2, 2025.
  11. ↑ "Forced Indenture – Scottish Prisoners in Massachusetts". Commonwealth Museum. Retrieved October 2, 2025.
  12. ↑ "George Sawin Stewart Documents". Scottish Prisoners of War Society. September 16, 2016. Retrieved October 2, 2025.
  13. ↑ Massachusetts: Vital Records, 1620-1850 (Online Database: AmericanAncestors.org, New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2001-2016). https://www.americanancestors.org/DB190/rd/7674/456/140969524
  14. ↑ Gerrard, Christopher; Graves, Pam; Millard, Andrew; Annis, Richard; Caffell, Anwen (2018). Lost Lives, New Voices: Unlocking the Stories of the Scottish Soldiers at the Battle of Dunbar 1650. Oxford, England: Oxbow Books (published June 25, 2018). p. 250. ISBN   9781785708473.
  15. ↑ "Dunbar Prisoners from Lost Lives, New Voices". Scottish Prisoners of War Society. August 13, 2018. Retrieved October 2, 2025.
  16. ↑ The Register Book of the Lands and Houses in the "New Towne" and the Town of Cambridge within the Records of the Proprietors of the Common Lands: Being the Records Generally Called "The Proprietors Records". Cambridge, Massachusetts: John Wilson & Son. 1896. p. 148.
  17. ↑ Denison, Frederic (1878). Westerly (Rhode Island) and its witnesses : for two hundred and fifty years, 1626-1876 : including Charlestown, Hopkinton, and Richmond until their separate organization, with the principal points of their subsequent history. Allen County Public Library. Providence : J.A. & R.A. Reid. p. 52.
  18. ↑ Rhode Island; Bartlett, John Russell; Rhode Island (1856). Records of the colony of Rhode Island and Providence plantations, in New England. Printed by order of the General assembly. Boston College Libraries. Providence, A. C. Greene and brothers, state printers [etc.]
  19. 1 2 Middlesex County, MA: Probate File Papers, 1648-1871.Online database. AmericanAncestors.org. New England Historic Genealogical Society, 2014. (From records supplied by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Archives. Digitized images provided by FamilySearch.org) https://www.americanancestors.org/DB536/i/14464/14446-co3/38323360
  20. ↑ "Record | American Ancestors". www.americanancestors.org. Retrieved October 2, 2025.
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