My Maine Heritage - June 2023 - Person Sheet
My Maine Heritage - June 2023 - Person Sheet
NameOtis Readin Reddin Redden Redin Redding Ready Reddy
Birth Dateabt 1770
Birth PlaceMassachusetts, USA
Death Date21 Nov 1801 Age: 31
Death PlaceWayne, Kennebec Co., ME
FatherUnnamed Readin Redden Redin Redding (~1740-<1807)
MotherHannah (~1745->1807)
Misc. Notes
From FamilySearch.com:
Otis Redden m. Esher (sic) Bowers 1 Jun 1795 Readfield, ME.
Children recorded in Wayne, ME records.
1798 Tax List lists Otis Readin [Ready Reddey] from Wayne, Maine.
1800 US Census lists Otis Readin from Wayne, Maine.
In Maine, Wills and Probate Records, 1584-1999, Kennebec, Vol. 1-2, 1799-1805, on Ancestry.com, Esther Redden appears as administatrix of estate of Otis Redden in the court at Augusta on 28 Jan 1802. Otis is listed as late of Wayne. She posted notice in Wayne and Fayette. William Wing and Aaron Wing were appointed with Isaac Dexter inventoried the estate, which totaled $559.70.
From Maine Families: Bk 3: Hopkins, Murch, Faunce, Canwell, etc by Harold Perham:
pp. 176-210 (207-210 missing)
From the History of Wayne (1898) p. 178
John Canwell was an Englishman, and carried on the business of drover....
Mr. Canwell was twice married, and had five children. His name still clings to the grassy hill-side that was his home, and is known today as the Canwell pasture. Some lonely graves, and excavation which was once a cellar, in the pasture on the east side of Lovejoy Pond, mark the place where John Canwell’s two wives are buried, and the site of the house.
p. 179
“In the Canwell pasture is still seen the cellar which marks the site of the home of Otis Readin, his wife Esther, and their three children. The father died in 1801, and the name of the mother appears for several succeeding years on the town records. An entry in the town accounts records that she was paid a certain sum for the school being held in her house. Whether she was the teacher or not, does not appear. It was, possibly, the first school established in the village.”
To my best knowledge, these are the children of Otis Readen and his wife Esther Readen:
1) John Readen b. 1798, who married Hannah Canwell b. 1793
2) Pattie Readen, who married Reuben Lovejoy
3) Clarissa Readen, who married Salmon Andrews
The 1810 USC for Wayne gives the following records:
Mehitable Candwell -- Total Family of 8 members, 5 males and 3 females
Esther Ready -- Total Family of 4 members, 1 male and 3 females
The census taker recognizes both women as widows.
...we must bear in mind that Otis Readen died in 1801, and John Canwell, Sr. of Wayne died in 1810. Yet there was always a close association of friendship between these families during their lifetime. Young John Readen married Hannah Canwell, and was a Pioneer settler in Franklin Plantation before 1820. Young John Canwell, Hannah’s brother, married Malinda Wing in 1822, and died at over 94 years of age, and is buried in the Franklin Plantation cemetery in Dickvale. One of his daughters, Arvilla H. is buried in the Old Plantation Road cemetery in front of Reuben Wing and Joanna Landers Wing’s lot, located in the first row of cemetery lots. John Reading and Hannah Canwell Reading are buried in the third row, in the same Old Plantation Road cemetery.
The exact year that John Readen and John Canwell removed from Wayne to No. 2 (Franklin) Plantation we do not know, but undoubtedly between 1817 and 1820, for John Readen is recorded as among the first ten pioneers on the 1820 USC for Franklin Plantation.
Otis’ death date from Vital Records of Wayne, ME, (p.77) from NEHGS Research Getaway.
Per Alan Spaulding on Chris Dunham’s Maine Genealogy site:
“Otis Redding died around 1801. His widow Esther remained in Wayne, presumably living on the Canwell property, or what remained of it (another story....), though for how long I don't know. Otis was a member of the Fayette Baptist Church but was excluded from membership for good on May 3, 1800, apparently after a long period of issues related to alcohol. He had been baptized at the church on October 2, 1794, along with "Debour Ridden." The surname appears in various records as Ready, Reddin, Redden, Ridden, and Reading, before the final version of Redding became established. "Debour" appeared elsewhere as Deboren before the final spelling of Deborah appeared in the 1860 census for Fayette. I do not know her relationship to Otis or whether she was a sister. She is located in North Fayette on the 1856 map of Kennebec County (see this site) as "Miss Reading." [This location now {2021} appears to be off the old road in the woods.] In the 1850 and 1860 census reports she is listed as "mulatto." In 1860 she is also described as a weaver, age 85, and a pauper. She was living alone and apparently never married. Deborah Redding was born in Massachusetts, as was Otis, apparently around the same year as Otis, around 1775/1776.“
The Fayette Baptist Church books are part of DigitalMaine.com: https://digitalmaine.com/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?artic...ontext=fayette_books
Entry for October the 2 [1794]: “…Baptized…Otis Ridden & …Debour Ridden.”
Entry for November 2 [1794]: “A communion day took David Moner & Otis Ridden KeIah Mantor & Deborah Ridden into the church had a delightfull meting it seemed the Lord graced the ordinance with his spirit.”
Entry for January 2, 1796: “Brother Otis Ridden brother Daniel Smith both made humbel acknowedgement voted to receive them to fellership again but by brother smith better to set him a side the first communion then concluded by prayer.”
March 4, 1796, March 17, 1796
October 8 1796: “…also to inquier of brother Otis Ridden of his unregular walk & the evel report about him after hearing his relation gained fellowship with him after his acnolidgement to Mrs Walton. Concluded by prayer.”
Oct 29, 1796
June 30, 1798: “…Labored with brother Otis Ridden that had ben out of the way in Drunkeness he seamed to be humbel and confest his folt but we thout best to set him a side for the preasent so concluded by prayer.”
March 20, 1800: “…To Labour with brother Otis Readin & brother Jabez Besse & to cite them to a church meeting to be holden the 5d of Apriel at 10 o clock a.m.”
May 3, 1800: “…then Laboured with brother Otis Ridden that has been under suspenshon for a long time for Drunkeness & for his continouring in it althou he has ben admonished & Laboured with a number of times & now dos not seame to hae a true Repentance but seames to hae sum sorrow brother Billing went to prayer adn Intreted the Lord for him that he might have a Repentance given him but all seamed to be of no avail Voted to exclude him & make it publick the next Lords Day.”
There were a lot of early boundary issues/disputes between Readfield, Wayne, Monmouth, Fayette, and Winthrop. See History of Fayette, Maine.
[Fayette was originally Starling Plt., and Wayne was originally New Sandwich Plt. It’s possible that the Reddings were originally from near Sandwich, MA—look for possible connections here.]
Otis Redden m. Esher (sic) Bowers 1 Jun 1795 Readfield, ME.
Children recorded in Wayne, ME records.
1798 Tax List lists Otis Readin [Ready Reddey] from Wayne, Maine.
1800 US Census lists Otis Readin from Wayne, Maine.
In Maine, Wills and Probate Records, 1584-1999, Kennebec, Vol. 1-2, 1799-1805, on Ancestry.com, Esther Redden appears as administatrix of estate of Otis Redden in the court at Augusta on 28 Jan 1802. Otis is listed as late of Wayne. She posted notice in Wayne and Fayette. William Wing and Aaron Wing were appointed with Isaac Dexter inventoried the estate, which totaled $559.70.
From Maine Families: Bk 3: Hopkins, Murch, Faunce, Canwell, etc by Harold Perham:
pp. 176-210 (207-210 missing)
From the History of Wayne (1898) p. 178
John Canwell was an Englishman, and carried on the business of drover....
Mr. Canwell was twice married, and had five children. His name still clings to the grassy hill-side that was his home, and is known today as the Canwell pasture. Some lonely graves, and excavation which was once a cellar, in the pasture on the east side of Lovejoy Pond, mark the place where John Canwell’s two wives are buried, and the site of the house.
p. 179
“In the Canwell pasture is still seen the cellar which marks the site of the home of Otis Readin, his wife Esther, and their three children. The father died in 1801, and the name of the mother appears for several succeeding years on the town records. An entry in the town accounts records that she was paid a certain sum for the school being held in her house. Whether she was the teacher or not, does not appear. It was, possibly, the first school established in the village.”
To my best knowledge, these are the children of Otis Readen and his wife Esther Readen:
1) John Readen b. 1798, who married Hannah Canwell b. 1793
2) Pattie Readen, who married Reuben Lovejoy
3) Clarissa Readen, who married Salmon Andrews
The 1810 USC for Wayne gives the following records:
Mehitable Candwell -- Total Family of 8 members, 5 males and 3 females
Esther Ready -- Total Family of 4 members, 1 male and 3 females
The census taker recognizes both women as widows.
...we must bear in mind that Otis Readen died in 1801, and John Canwell, Sr. of Wayne died in 1810. Yet there was always a close association of friendship between these families during their lifetime. Young John Readen married Hannah Canwell, and was a Pioneer settler in Franklin Plantation before 1820. Young John Canwell, Hannah’s brother, married Malinda Wing in 1822, and died at over 94 years of age, and is buried in the Franklin Plantation cemetery in Dickvale. One of his daughters, Arvilla H. is buried in the Old Plantation Road cemetery in front of Reuben Wing and Joanna Landers Wing’s lot, located in the first row of cemetery lots. John Reading and Hannah Canwell Reading are buried in the third row, in the same Old Plantation Road cemetery.
The exact year that John Readen and John Canwell removed from Wayne to No. 2 (Franklin) Plantation we do not know, but undoubtedly between 1817 and 1820, for John Readen is recorded as among the first ten pioneers on the 1820 USC for Franklin Plantation.
Otis’ death date from Vital Records of Wayne, ME, (p.77) from NEHGS Research Getaway.
Per Alan Spaulding on Chris Dunham’s Maine Genealogy site:
“Otis Redding died around 1801. His widow Esther remained in Wayne, presumably living on the Canwell property, or what remained of it (another story....), though for how long I don't know. Otis was a member of the Fayette Baptist Church but was excluded from membership for good on May 3, 1800, apparently after a long period of issues related to alcohol. He had been baptized at the church on October 2, 1794, along with "Debour Ridden." The surname appears in various records as Ready, Reddin, Redden, Ridden, and Reading, before the final version of Redding became established. "Debour" appeared elsewhere as Deboren before the final spelling of Deborah appeared in the 1860 census for Fayette. I do not know her relationship to Otis or whether she was a sister. She is located in North Fayette on the 1856 map of Kennebec County (see this site) as "Miss Reading." [This location now {2021} appears to be off the old road in the woods.] In the 1850 and 1860 census reports she is listed as "mulatto." In 1860 she is also described as a weaver, age 85, and a pauper. She was living alone and apparently never married. Deborah Redding was born in Massachusetts, as was Otis, apparently around the same year as Otis, around 1775/1776.“
The Fayette Baptist Church books are part of DigitalMaine.com: https://digitalmaine.com/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?artic...ontext=fayette_books
Entry for October the 2 [1794]: “…Baptized…Otis Ridden & …Debour Ridden.”
Entry for November 2 [1794]: “A communion day took David Moner & Otis Ridden KeIah Mantor & Deborah Ridden into the church had a delightfull meting it seemed the Lord graced the ordinance with his spirit.”
Entry for January 2, 1796: “Brother Otis Ridden brother Daniel Smith both made humbel acknowedgement voted to receive them to fellership again but by brother smith better to set him a side the first communion then concluded by prayer.”
March 4, 1796, March 17, 1796
October 8 1796: “…also to inquier of brother Otis Ridden of his unregular walk & the evel report about him after hearing his relation gained fellowship with him after his acnolidgement to Mrs Walton. Concluded by prayer.”
Oct 29, 1796
June 30, 1798: “…Labored with brother Otis Ridden that had ben out of the way in Drunkeness he seamed to be humbel and confest his folt but we thout best to set him a side for the preasent so concluded by prayer.”
March 20, 1800: “…To Labour with brother Otis Readin & brother Jabez Besse & to cite them to a church meeting to be holden the 5d of Apriel at 10 o clock a.m.”
May 3, 1800: “…then Laboured with brother Otis Ridden that has been under suspenshon for a long time for Drunkeness & for his continouring in it althou he has ben admonished & Laboured with a number of times & now dos not seame to hae a true Repentance but seames to hae sum sorrow brother Billing went to prayer adn Intreted the Lord for him that he might have a Repentance given him but all seamed to be of no avail Voted to exclude him & make it publick the next Lords Day.”
There were a lot of early boundary issues/disputes between Readfield, Wayne, Monmouth, Fayette, and Winthrop. See History of Fayette, Maine.
[Fayette was originally Starling Plt., and Wayne was originally New Sandwich Plt. It’s possible that the Reddings were originally from near Sandwich, MA—look for possible connections here.]
Spouses
Birth Dateabt 1775
Death Datebef 1850 Age: 75
Death PlaceFranklin Plt., Oxford Co., ME
Misc. Notes
She is not Esther Bowers, d. Jerahmeel and Mary (Houghton) Bowers, b. 28 Aug 1768, Leominster, MA, who married Jacob [Jac.] May.
Is she Esther Bowers, b. 13 Mar 1763, d. of Oliver Bowers and Esther, Chelmsford, MA?
From FamilySearch.com:
Otis Redden m. Esher (sic) Bowers 1 Jun 1795 Readfield, ME. This would seem late for someone b. 1763.
No Bowers on 1790 census for Winthrop (Readfield). Readfield split from Winthrop in 1791. No Bowers on 1800 census for Readfield, so no easy family connections there.
In Maine, Wills and Probate Records, 1584-1999, Kennebec, Vol. 1-2, 1799-1805, on Ancestry.com, Esther Redden appears as administatrix of estate of Otis Redden in the court at Augusta on 28 Jan 1802. Otis is listed as late of Wayne. She posted notice in Wayne and Fayette. William Wing and Aaron Wing were appointed with Isaac Dexter to inventory the estate, which totaled $559.70.
1810 US Census lists Esther Ready from Wayne, Maine.
It’s likely that she is the older woman living with son John in Plantation #4 [Greenwood] on the 1820 USC, still in the household on the 1830 USC for Plantation #2 [Franklin Plantation], and still in the household on the 1840 USC for Plantation #2.
Is she Esther Bowers, b. 13 Mar 1763, d. of Oliver Bowers and Esther, Chelmsford, MA?
From FamilySearch.com:
Otis Redden m. Esher (sic) Bowers 1 Jun 1795 Readfield, ME. This would seem late for someone b. 1763.
No Bowers on 1790 census for Winthrop (Readfield). Readfield split from Winthrop in 1791. No Bowers on 1800 census for Readfield, so no easy family connections there.
In Maine, Wills and Probate Records, 1584-1999, Kennebec, Vol. 1-2, 1799-1805, on Ancestry.com, Esther Redden appears as administatrix of estate of Otis Redden in the court at Augusta on 28 Jan 1802. Otis is listed as late of Wayne. She posted notice in Wayne and Fayette. William Wing and Aaron Wing were appointed with Isaac Dexter to inventory the estate, which totaled $559.70.
1810 US Census lists Esther Ready from Wayne, Maine.
It’s likely that she is the older woman living with son John in Plantation #4 [Greenwood] on the 1820 USC, still in the household on the 1830 USC for Plantation #2 [Franklin Plantation], and still in the household on the 1840 USC for Plantation #2.
Marr Date1 Jun 1795
Marr PlaceReadfield, Kennebec Co., ME