Staggs Family History

BIRTH: 1638, Duxbury, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA
DEATH: 23 NOV 1711, Middleborough, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA
FATHER: Henry Samson (1604-1684)
MOTHER: Ann Plummer (1615-1684)
SPOUSE: Robert Sprout (1634-1712)

When Elizabeth Samson was born in 1638 in Duxbury, Massachusetts, her father, Henry, was 34, and her mother, Ann, was 23. She married Robert Sprout in 1661. They had eight children in 18 years. She died on November 23, 1711, in Middleborough, Massachusetts, at the age of 73.

Her story

Born around 1638 in Duxbury, Plymouth Colony, Elizabeth Samson was the daughter of Henry Samson, a teenage passenger on the Mayflower, and Anne Plummer, a settler of English origin. Her birth marked the beginning of the second generation of Pilgrims—children born not in England, but in the fledgling communities of New England, where survival had begun to give way to permanence.

Elizabeth grew up in a household shaped by faith, resilience, and civic duty. Her father, Henry, though not a signer of the Mayflower Compact due to his youth, became a respected member of Plymouth Colony, serving as constable, juror, and tax collector. These roles likely influenced Elizabeth’s upbringing, instilling in her a sense of responsibility and community engagement.

In the early 1660s, Elizabeth married Robert Sprout, a Scottish immigrant who had settled in the colony. Their marriage united two distinct strands of colonial experience—one rooted in the Mayflower legacy, the other in the broader migration of Europeans seeking opportunity in the New World. Together, they raised a large family, including Mercy Sprout (1662–1725), who married Thomas Oldham and became a matriarch of the Oldham line; Elizabeth, Mary, Robert, James, Ebenezer, Anna, and Hannah—children who carried forward the Sprout name and helped populate the growing towns of Plymouth County.

Elizabeth’s life spanned a period of dramatic change. She witnessed the aftermath of King Philip’s War, the consolidation of colonial governments, and the increasing tensions between Puritan orthodoxy and emerging dissent. As a mother and matriarch, she would have managed a household that blended domestic labor, religious instruction, and agricultural work—essential contributions to the colony’s survival and growth.

She died sometime after 23 November 1711, likely in Middleborough, Massachusetts, having lived into her seventies. Though her burial site remains uncertain, her legacy endures through the genealogical records that trace her descendants and the historical memory of her Mayflower heritage.

Legacy of Elizabeth Samson

Parents

Father: Henry Samson (1604-1684)

Mother: Ann Plummer (1615-1684)

Married

Married Robert Sprout (1634-1712) in 1661 in New England, USA

Children

• Mercy Sprout (1662-1725) married Thomas Oldham (1660-1733)
• Elizabeth Sprout (1664-1726)
• Mary Sprout (1666-1726)
• Robert Sprout (1669-1690) died while serving in the Massachusetts Bay Colony’s attempt to capture Quebec, Canada, during the ill‑fated Phips Expedition during the King William’s War.
• Anna Sprout (1671-1739) married Ebenezer Richmond (1676-1729)
• James Sprout (1673-1748) married Elizabeth Southworth (1682-1700)
• Ebenezer Sprout (1676-1726) married Experience Hawes (1686-1758)
• Hannah Sprout (1680-1729) married Ephraim Keene (1669–1731)

Documents

• Birth Records
  • New England, The Great Migration and The Great Migration Begins, 1620-1635 > Elizabeth b. say 1642
  • Mayflower Births and Deaths, Vol. 1 and 2 > Elizabeth Samson, b. pre 1647; d. betw. 23 Nov. 1711 – 12 Dec. 1719
  • Find a Grave Birth: 1638
• Marriage records
  • New England, The Great Migration and The Great Migration Begins, 1620-1635 > Marriage of Elizabeth Sprout and Robert Sprout
  • Mayflower Marriages > Elizabeth Samson and Robert Sprout. c1661
  • U.S., New England Marriages Prior to 1700 > Robert and Elizabeth Sprout
• Death records
  • Mayflower Births and Deaths, Vol. 1 and 2 > Elizabeth Samson, b. pre 1647; d. betw. 23 Nov. 1711 – 12 Dec. 1719
  • Find a Grave Death: 23 Nov 1711
• Other
  • Mayflower Births and Deaths, Vol. 1 and 2 > Volume 2 > Sampson > Elizabeth Sanson > Children of Elizabeth Samson and Robert Sprout
  • North America, Family Histories, 1500-2000 > The Sampson Family > First Generation
  • Representative men and old families of southeastern Massachusetts > Vol III > Robert Sproat, of Scituate in 1660, later became a resident of Middleboro. He married Elizabeth, daughter of Henry Sampson, of Duxbury, who was a member of the family of Edward Tilley, and a passenger of the “Mayflower,” 1620. Robert and Elizabeth’s children were: Mercy, born in 1662; Elizabeth, born in 1664; Mary, born in 1666; Robert, born in 1669; Anna, born in 1671; James, born in 16″73; Ebenezer, born in 1676; and Hannah, born in 1680.
  • American Genealogical-Biographical Index (AGBI) > Name: Elizabeth Sampson; Birth Date: 1640-1649; Birth Place: Massachusetts, USA; Volume: 152; Page number: 295; Reference: A Genealogical Dict. of the First Settlers of New England, Showing Three Generations of Those Who Came Before May, 1692. By James Savage. Boston. 1861. (4v.)V.4:10 Gen. Column of the “Boston Transcript” 1906-1941.

Relation of Elizabeth Samson to Steven Barry Staggs: 10th great-grandmother

Page last updated November 30, 2025

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