Staggs Family History

BIRTH: 1637, Plymouth, Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA
DEATH: 1705, Swansea, Bristol, Massachusetts, USA
FATHER: John Howland (1602-1672)
MOTHER: Elizabeth Tilley (1607-1668)
SPOUSE: Jonathan Bosworth Sr. (1636-1717)

When Hannah Howland was born in 1637 in Plymouth, Massachusetts, her father, John, was 35, and her mother, Elizabeth, was 30. She married Jonathan Bosworth on July 6, 1661, in Swansea, Massachusetts. They had nine children in 18 years. She died in 1705 in Swansea, Massachusetts, at the age of 68, and was buried in her hometown.

Her story

Here’s a rich portrait of Hannah Howland (1637–1705)—a woman whose life bridged the earliest generations of Plymouth Colony and helped shape the legacy of two prominent colonial families.

Hannah was the youngest daughter of John Howland and Elizabeth Tilley, making her a direct link to two of the most storied families in early American history. Her marriage to Jonathan Bosworth united the Howland and Bosworth lines—both influential in Plymouth and Swansea civic life. Her children and grandchildren spread across southeastern Massachusetts, contributing to the growth of towns like Rehoboth, Plympton, and Swansea.

Hannah was born just 17 years after the Mayflower landed, during a time when Plymouth was still a fragile settlement. Her father, John Howland, famously survived being swept overboard during the voyage—a story retold in William Bradford’s Of Plymouth Plantation. Her mother, Elizabeth Tilley, was one of the few surviving children from the first winter and lived to see multiple generations of descendants.

Hannah died in 1705 in Swansea. Her exact burial site is unknown, but she is memorialized in family genealogies and Mayflower descendant records.

Legacy of Hannah Howland

Parents

Father: John Howland (1602-1672)

Mother: Elizabeth Tilley (1607-1668)

Married

Married Jonathan Bosworth Sr. (1636-1717) July 6, 1661, in Swansea, Massachusetts.

Children

• Mercy Bosworth (1662-1662)
• Hannah Bosworth (1663-1723) married Nathaniel Jenckes (1663-1726)
• Elizabeth Bosworth (1665-1676)
• Jonathan Bosworth (1666-1676)
• David Bosworth (1670-1747) married Mary Sturtevant (1676-1707)
• John Bosworth (1671-1719) married Elizabeth Toogood (1682-1716)
• Jabez Bosworth (1673-1747) married Susannah Carpenter (1688-1758)
• Ichabod Bosworth (1676-?) married Sarah Stacey (1679-1711)
• Jonathan Bosworth (1680-1759) married Sarah Round (1680-1759)

Documents

• Birth Records
  • New England, The Great Migration and The Great Migration Begins, 1620-1635 > Hannah Howland, b. say 1640; m. Swansea 6 July 1661 Jonathan Bosworth
  • Find a Grave Birth Date: 1637
  • Mayflower Births and Deaths, Vol. 1 and 2 > John Howland > Hannah Howland, born to parents John Howland and Elizabeth Tilley
• Death records
  • Find a Grave Death Date: 1705
  • Burial: Burial Hill, Plymouth, Plymouth County, Massachusetts, USA
• Marriage Records
  • New England, The Great Migration and The Great Migration Begins, 1620-1635 > Hannah Howland, b. say 1640; m. Swansea 6 July 1661 Jonathan Bosworth
  • U.S., New England Marriages Prior to 1700 > Name: Hannah Bosworth; Maiden Name: Howland; Gender: Female; Marriage Date: 6 Jul 1661; Marriage Place: New England, USA; Spouse: Jonathan Bosworth
  • Massachusetts, U.S., Compiled Marriages, 1633-1850; Name: Hanna Howland; Gender: Female: Marriage Date: 6 Jul 1661; Place: Swansea, Bristol, Massachusetts; Spouse: Jonathan Bosworth
  • U.S. and International Marriage Records, 1560-1900 > Name: Hannah Howland; Gender: Female; Birth Place: MA; Birth Year: 1637; Spouse Name: Jonathan Bosworth; Spouse Birth Place: MA; Spouse Birth Year: 1636; Marriage Year: 1661; Marriage State: MA; Number Pages: 1
  • History and genealogy of the Mayflower planters and first comers to ye olde colonie > Vol. II. Five sister ships of the Mayflower 1620 > Bosworth
• Other
  • History and genealogy of the Mayflower planters and first comers to ye olde colonie > Vol. II. Five sister ships of the Mayflower 1620 > Bosworth > Children of Jonathan Bosworth and Hanna Howland
  • Mayflower Births and Deaths, Vol. 1 and 2 > Volume 2 > Howland > Children of Jonathan Bosworth and Hanna Howland
  • The Howlands in America by William Howland > Children of John and Elizabeth Howland
  • Register of the Society of Mayflower descendants in the District of Columbia, 1970 : in commemoration of the 350th anniversary

Relation of Hannah Howland to Steven Barry Staggs: 8th great-grandmother

Page last updated November 22, 2025

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