Samson (Y-DNA)

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Status summary

As of January 11, 2016:

  • [https:pilgrimhenrysamsonkindred.org | Pilgrim Henry Samson Kindred contacted]
  • Recruiting patrilineal (all male line) descendantsfor NGS/WGS testing. Any male who believes they are such a descendant should Read me First

IMPORTANT Read me First

Paper trail

For more information see: Sherman, Robert Moody and Ruth Wilder Sherman, Mayflower Families Through Five Generations: vol. 20 Samson

English Ancestry[1]

John Sampson[2] was the paternal grandfather of Pilgrim Henry Samson. John is said to have had eight children baptized in Campton, Bedfordshire, England, but the names of the father were only included for the last three children.

James Sampson was the second Sampson son (and second child) found in the Campton parish register. James was baptized 20 Jun 1574 and was buried at Henlow, Bedfordshire on 2 Feb 1638/9. James married at Henlow 20 Mar 1599/1600 to Martha Cooper.[3] James and Martha had eleven children with their second child being Henry.

Laurence Sampson was baptized at Campton 23 Nov 1576, presumably son of John Sampson and brother to James (above). Laurence married at Cranfield, Bedford Mary Shabery and they were the parents of Abraham Sampson, baptized Campton 14 Aug 1614. This Abraham was undoubtedly the Abraham Sampson who emigrated to New England and settled in Duxbury. Thus Abraham Sampson was a first cousin to Henry Samson. Y-DNA evidence (see below) supports this close relationship, but DNA evidence in and of itself it does not prove this exact relationship.

First Generation

[1] Henry Samson[4] was baptized at Henlow, Bedfordshire, England 15 Jan 1603/4, son of James Sampson and Martha Cooper.[5] He died at Duxbury 24 Dec 1684.[6] Henry married at Plymouth 6 Feb 1635/6 Anne Plummer.[7] Henry and Ann had nine children (order unknown, likely all born at Duxbury): Elizabeth, Hannah, ______, John (never married), Mary, Dorcas, James, Stephen and Caleb.

Second Generation

[2] James Samson was born about 1644 and married by 1679 Hannah (_____) Wait, widow of Samuel Wait. Surviving children (from his will): Henry (executor and likely eldest son)(never married), James, Joseph, Anna (married, but no children), Penelope, Susanna & [Hannah, widow Wait (mtDNA)#Second Generation |Priscilla]].

[3] Stephen Samson was born about 1638 and married by 1686[8] Elizabeth _______. They had Benjamin, John, Cornelius (never married), Hannah, Mary, Elizabeth, Dorcas & Abigail

[4] Caleb Samson was born about 1664. He married twice, first about 1686 Mercy Standish. Caleb married second, Duxbury 30 Jan 1728/9 Rebecca (BARTLETT) Bradford Stanford (no children by this marriage). By his first wife, Caleb had had David, Lora(h), Priscilla, Caleb, Joshua, Rachel, Ruth, Jerusha, Sarah and Alexander.

Third Generation

James Samson (II) was prob.born Dartmouth about 1680[9] and died Arundel (now Kennebunkport), ME bet. Jul 1755 - May 1761.[10] He married prob. Maine bef 1709 Ruth Sawyer and they had eight children (first three b. Dartmouth, others prob. at Wells, ME): Ebenezer (1709-1747 unm.), Hannah (1710), Sarah (1712), William (c1714 m. Hannah ___ & Judith JEFFREY Grover), James (c1716-1718), Timothy (1718 unk. if married), Ruth (c1720) and Penelope (c1722).

Joseph Samson was prob.born Dartmouth about 1685[11] and died bef. 26 Feb 1738/9.[12] He married Duxbury 6 May 1719 Sarah Sampson and they had six children (born Dartmouth): John (1724/5-b1747 unm.), Benjamin (twin 1726-b1747 unm.), Joseph (twin 1726 m. Mercy Eldridge), Lois (1728), Sarah (1733) and Ruhamah (c1735).


Benjamin Samson was prob. born Duxbury abt 1676[13] and died Kingston 19 Apr 1758. He married Plymouth 19 Mar 1716 Rebecca Cooke and they had six children (born Kingston): Micah (c1717-1740 m. Deborah Gardner), Deborah (c1722), Cornelius (1724-1796 m. Desire Crocker), Rebecca (1726-1748), Benjamin (1728/9-1778 m Deborah Cushing & Esther Weston) and Josiah (1731-1732).

John Samson was born Duxbury 17 Aug 1688 and died there after 26 Jan 1770. He married Duxbury 31 Dec 1718 Priscilla Bartlett and they had nine children (born Duxbury): Lusanna (1720), Zilpah (1721/2-1796), John (twin 1724-1724), Priscilla (twin 1724), Elizabeth (1725/6), John (1727-1805 m Rebecca Brewster & Abigail Stetson), Elisha (1730-1748 unm.), Sylvanus (1731/2-1758 m. Sylvia ____ but no evidence of children) and Elijah (1734-1805 m Ruth Bradford).


David Samson was prob. born Duxbury abt 1686 and died there 10 May 1772. He married Marshfield 5 Jun 1712 Mary Chaffin/Chapin and they had ten children (born Marshfield): Lydia (1713), Charles (1715-c1790 m Mary Church), Ebenezer (1717-1808 m Hannah Harlow), David (1719-p1767 prob. unm.), Mary (1722), Jonathan (1724-1809 m Sarah Drew & Lydia BARNES Barnes), Elizabeth (1727), Mercy (1729), Eleanor (1732) and Chapin/Chaffin (1735-1773 m Betty Clift).

Caleb Samson (II) was prob. born Duxbury abt 1605 and died there 17 Oct 1750. He married Marshfield 12 Feb 1729/30 Mehitable Ford and they had five children (born Duxbury): Paul (1730-1811 m. Esther Chandler), Michael/Micah (1732-1817 m Hannah Pool & Deborah Richmond), Bethiah (c1734), Gideon (1735/6-1814 m Keziah Carver & Millicent Bates) and Martin (1740/101758 unm.)

Joshua Samson was prob. born Duxbury abt 1690 and died there 4 Aug 1741. He married Marshfield 23 May 1724 Mary Oaksman and they had four children (born Duxbury): Amos (1725-1795 m Deborah Samson), Anthony (1728-1815 m Anna Samson & Keturah SAMSON Gullifer), Sarah (c1730) and Huldah (1734).

Alexander Samson was prob. born Duxbury abt 1705 and died 1730. He married Boston 6 Oct 1724 Rebecca Shattuck and they had one child: Alexander (1729 m Hephzibah Hastings).


  1. ↑ TAG 56:141-43
  2. ↑ Henry Samson Kindred Genealogy page states John was born Henlow, Bedford in 1549 son of Gregory Sampson. However, this site is not sourced and has other errors so this information still needs to be confirmed.
  3. ↑ TAG 52:198-209 which includes her ancestry.
  4. ↑ Pilgrim Hall Museum Henry Sampson biography.
  5. ↑ TAG 52:206-07
  6. ↑ Duxbury published VRs:410
  7. ↑ Plymouth Colony Records 1:36
  8. ↑ eldest child died 19 Apr 1758 in 72nd year.
  9. ↑ deposed aged 74 in 1754
  10. ↑ James signed a power of attorney on 10 Jul 1755, and widow signed deed on 6 May 1761.
  11. ↑ Estimate, based on married in 1719.
  12. ↑ appraisers of inventory sworn.
  13. ↑ died 19 Apr 1758 in his 72nd year.

DNA Results I-FTB4532

Previous Y-DNA testing

Previous Y-STR testing through the Mayflower Society DNA Project and the Pilgrim Henry Samson Kindred DNA Project has identified a 111 Y-STR haplotype for the Mayflower Samson lineage, which belongs to the I-M223 Y-DNA haplogroup. Nevgen.org further refines this prediction to fall under I2a2a I-M223>P222>CTS616>CTS10057>Z161>FGC3575>S2452>L801>Z165>CTS1977>Y4946>BY526 (Y8935) with 100% probability. NGS/WGS testing will be able to confirm this assignment and further refine the clade.

NGS/WGS testing

Descendants of two different sons of Henry Samson and three descendants of his cousin Abraham Samson have taken the Big Y test. Their results confirms the haplogroup prediction from NavGen and assigns the two branches to a further subclade: Y12052>FTB708. Furthermore, the descendants of Henry Samson fall under the FTB4532 subclade of FTB708 while the descendants of Abraham Sampson fall under the FTB635 subclade of FTB708.

The FTB4532 mutation must have occurred either in Henry Samson himself, or his father, James. Likewise, the FTB635 mutation occurred within either Abraham Sampson or his father Lawrence. James and Lawrence were almost certainly brothers, but this Y-DNA evidence itself cannot prove this exact relationship.


References and External links

  • Sherman, Robert Moody and Ruth Wilder Sherman, Mayflower Families Through Five Generations: vol. 20 Samson General Society of Mayflower Descendants, Plymouth MA. part 1 (first four generations) 2000, part 2 (also with Jane Fletcher Fiske as compiler) 2005, part 3 (also with Jane Fletcher Fiske) 2006
  • Roser, Susan E., Mayflower Increasings From the Files of George Ernest Bowman at the Massachusetts Society of Mayflower Descendants, Genealogical Publishing Co., Baltimore, MD, Second edition 1995, 1996. pp. 91-97
  • Roser, Susan E., Mayflower Passenger References (from contemporary records & scholarly journals) [www.stewartbooks.com Stewart Publishing & Printing], Canada. Second Edition, 2015
  • The American Genealogist 52:198-209 "English Ancestry of Seven Mayflower Passengers: Tilley, Sampson and Cooper" by Robert Leigh Ward
  • The American Genealogist 56:141-43 "Henry Sampson's Paternal Grandfather" by Robert Leigh Ward
  • The Genealogist 6:166-86. by Robert Leigh Ward
  • Pilgrim Henry Samson Kindred
  • Children & Grandchildren of Henry Samson
  • Find A Grave memorial for Henry Samson NOTE: Henry (and wife Ann) were NOT buried at Coles Hill in Plymouth. This hill is believed to have been used only during the winter of 1620/1 (and possibly a bit later). Henry and his wife died at Duxbury and almost certainly buried there.
  • wikitree profile for Henry Samson
  • The Samson Family - The Mayflower Society


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