John Coller Sr.

  General Notes:

According to Bond in the Genealogies of the Families and Descendants of the First Settlers of Watertown, Massachusetts, pg. 163, John Coller was age 19 in 1652, a servant of Thomas Hammond. At age 25 in April 1657, he and his wife Hannah, age 20, were of Watertown and witnesses in a court case. He was of Sudbury in 1684. He took the oath of fidelity in Watertown, Massachusetts, in 1652.

According to the Vital Records of Framingham, Massachusetts, John Coller came to Framingham, MA in 1687 with the Mellen family and, with the consent of Gov. Danforth, took possession of lands west of Park's Corner and adjoining the Mellens. His house was near the river and the bridge at Cutler's Mills was known in early records as "Collers' bridge". He had meadow on the west side of the river and the meadow near the Badger place was named for him. His lands were reserved to him in Danforth's lease to Buckminster. He is probably the John Coller who was of Cambridge, age 25 in 1658, of Sudbury in 1684. No second wife was mentioned.

The following is copied from "Ancestors and Descendants of Joshua Williams and John Collar," by Christine R. Brown (Knoxville, Tenn., 1984):
John Collar, b. around 1632 in England, came to America in 1649 when 17 years of age ... his passage was paid by one Thomas Hammond ... in 1652, he was still indentured to Mr. Hammond to pay off his passage and finish his bondage. At age 19, he took the Oath of Fidelity in Watertown, Mass. He married Hannah ___, age 20, in April 1657 at age 25. He soon moved to Cambridge, Mass., where sons John and Thomas [and Nathaniel] were born ... after birth of son Nathaniel (b. 1665), he moved to Sudbury, Mass. and had two other children born there. ^25,26

  Noted events in his life were:

• Immigration, 1649.

• Alt. Birth, 1631 or 1632.

• Alt. Death, 23 Oct 1702, Oxford, Massachusetts.

• Alt. Death, After 23 Oct 1702, Watertown, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts.

• Picture: Location of John Coller land near Framingham, 1687, Cutler's Mills. John Coller came to Framingham, MA in 1687 with the Mellen family and took possession of lands west of Park's Corner and adjoining the Mellens. His house was near the river and the bridge at Cutler's Mills was known in early records as "Collers' bridge". He had meadow on the west side of the river and the meadow near the Badger place was named for him. In this current day picture, Cutler's Mills would be where Fountain Street crosses the Bracket Reservoir. That would also be "Collers' bridge".

• Picture: Location of Framingham - Ashland, 2008. To help put the location of John Coller's land between Framingham and Ashland in perspective, this map shows Framingham and Asland west of Boston on a current map. John Coller's land was about half way between the two towns. Another picture provides a detailed location.

John married Hannah Cutler, daughter of James Cutler Sr. and Anna Cakebread, in Apr 1657 in Watertown, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts.²⁴ (Hannah Cutler was born on 26 May 1638 in Watertown, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts and died on 23 Nov 1672 in Cambridge Farms, now Lexington, Massachusetts.)

  Noted events in their marriage were:

• Alt. Marriage, 1655. John Coller and Hannah Cutler may have married in 1655 in Watertown, Massachusetts.

• Alt. Marriage, Abt 1659. ²⁷ John Coller and Hannah Cutler may have been married about 1659.

John next married Mary Cutler, daughter of James Cutler Sr. and Anna Cakebread, before 1684 in Watertown, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts. (Mary Cutler was born on 29 Mar 1643 in Watertown, Middlesex Co., Massachusetts and died in 1715 in Sudbury, Massachusetts.)

John next married Elizabeth.