Birth: Manasseh Kempton was baptized on February 26, 1589/90
at Berwick-upon-Tweed, Northumberland.
Death: He died on January 14, 1662/3, in Plymouth.
Ship: Anne or Little James, 1623
Life in England: Manasseh (also written Manasses) was the
son of George Kempton, whose other children included Ephraim,William,
Annis, and probably Francis. Manasseh went to Colchester, Essex where he
may have become involved with aSeparatist congregation. From there, he
joined Henry Jacob’s Separatist congregation in London in 1620.
Life in New England: Manasseh Kempton came over as a
single man in 1623. He was a freeman of Plymouth in 1633. He served as a
deputy to the Plymouth General Court and on anumber of juries and
committees. He owned land in several towns besides Plymouth, including
Eastham and Dartmouth, much of which he gave to his stepchildren.
Family: Manasseh married Julian (Carpenter) Morton, widow
of George Morton, before May 1627. She married George Morton in Leiden
on July 23, 1612, and had five children.The family came to Plymouth on
the Anne in 1623, and George died in June 1624. Manasseh and
Julian Kempton had no recorded children.
Children of George and Julian Morton (all born in Leiden, with the
possible exception of Ephraim):
- Nathaniel was born about 1613.He married (1) Lydia Cooper on
December 25, 1635, in Plymouth and had eight children. He married (2)
Anne (Pritchard) Templar in Plymouth on April 29, 1674. He died in June
1685.
- Patience was born about 1615. She married (1) John Faunce in
Plymouth by 1633 and had eight children. She married (2) Thomas Whitney
after June 9, 1660. She died in Plymouth on August 16, 1691.
- John was born about 1617. He married Lettice _____ by 1649 and had
nine children. He died in Middleboro in 1673.
- Sarah was born about 1620. She married George Bonham on December 20,
1644, in Plymouth and had four children. She died in Plymouth in 1694.
- Ephraim was born by 1623. He married Ann Cooper on November 18,
1644, in Plymouth and had nine children. He died in 1693.