Descendants of William SYMES

Second Generation

2. SIMS (William ).

He had the following children:

+	4	M	i	John SIMS was born in 1765.
	5	M	ii	James SIMS.
				James married 1 Amelia RAIMOND in 1795 in Kingsdon, Somerset, England.

3. John SYMES (William ).

John Symes was the eldest son and heir of William and Elizabeth Hill Symes. He was born in 1581, and died October 21 1661, at the age of 80. He married Amy Horner, daughter of Thomas Horner, Esq., of Mill County, Somerset.
John and Amy Symes had three children: John, Henry and Thomas, John was the eldest and predeceased his father, but not before he married Abigail Arscott of Devonshire. They had a son, William, who inherited Poundsford, the Symes ancestral estate. William married Rachael Bluett, daughter of Francis Bluett who was killed at Lyme in 1664.
(8) "North Petherton is a very large parish between the towns of Bridgewater and Taunton. Within it are North Newton and about fifteen other hamlets. It was one of William the Conqueror's towns, and came into possession fo the Bluett family which is so closely allied with the Symes family."
(9) (Note: This information is the only record in this account of the person who inherited Poundsford.)
Ther second child was Henry and he is included here for historical interst only. Henry married Amye Seymour, daughter of Sir John Seymour of Bitton, Gloucester. According to W. H. Bason, genealogist, Seymour is a royal line.
(10) Here is another reference to the close association between the Seymour and Symes families. Henry Symes' will was dated January 28, 1678, and was proved February 12, 1682. He mentions no sons, but five daughters.
(11) The thrid son was Thomas who is our next direct ancestor in the Symes family.
... John Symes... was honored by his neighbors for his services to his community and to his country. There is a long epitaph in Frampton Cotteral Church, and in the church of Bishop Hull there is a monument to the memory of John Symes of Poundsford.
It records that he was:
'...greatly renowned for wisdom, justice, intergrety, and sobriety, which talents he did not hide in a napkin, but religiously exercisedexercised in the whole conduct of his life, especially in the government of the country wherin he bore all the honourabale affairs incident to a country gentleman as knight of the shire, high sheriff, deputy lieutenant for many years, and justice of the peace for forty years and upwards.'

He had the following children:

6

M

i

Thomas SYMES. Thomas Symes was the third child of John and Amy Horner Symes. Thomas was married in 1640 to Amy Bridges, the fifth child of Edward and Phillippa Bridges (13) I am including the will of Elizabeth, daughter of Thomas and Amy Bridges Symes, because of the interesting bequests. In it is another reference to the Seymours. This will also tell us that Thomas and Amy Symes had a large family and that Elizabeth was a well-to-do spinster. 'Elizabeth Symes of Doynton, Clouc., Spinster. Will dated Nov. 22, 1675; proved July 12, 1676 (Gloucester Will). My body to be buried at the disposing of my loving Ants, Mrs. Elizabeth Longton & Katherine Bridges. To my brothers Henry, George & Richard Symes, 5 pounds each. Rings to my brothers Edward and John, My sisters Amy, Katherine, and Mary Symes, my cousin Elizabeth Guise, my cousin Still, Mr. and Mrs. Wilkes, Mr. Ware and my cousin, Ann Meredith. 5 pounds and my Ant Langton, Ant Bridges, brother William Symes. Poor of Doynton. To my Uncle George Bridges 20/ & a ring. To Robert Wilkes for a sermon 20/. To my brother Charles a silver cup. 5 pounds to my brothers Edward and John Symes. Residue to my sisters Amy and Katherine, Extrices.' 'It is interesting to see that Elizabeth made her sister "extrices" of her estate when she had numerous brothers. Perhaps she knew better than most what the events of her times would mean to her family. (Here is included a shallow, but long history of the "events of her times" which I shall not include; it's in all the history books.) Hundreds of men who sided with the Duke of Monmouth were arrested for high treason and jailed. James 11 extended mercy to many of the rebers and "pardoned them their lives upon condicion of transporation into osme of his Majesties' plantations beyond the seas..." Three of the Symes (all of them brothersof Elizabeth whose will we just read) were implicated in the Monmouth Rebellion. Richard Symms was one of a group of 100 prisoners that was transported from Taunton and was put aboard the 'Jamaica Merchant,' shipped to Barbados, and sold to a Major Abell Allen. John and Henry Symes were held at the jail at Drochester. Eventually they were put aboard the 'Betty' and shipped to Barbados where John was sold to Thomas Berresford and Henry was sold to Richard Chessman. (16) Barbados was the intermediate stop of the Symes family from England to America.

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