Occupation: Fuller, which is someone who cleanses and thickens cloth as part of the finishing process. They lived comfortably by the standards of the day, operating from the mill. His will shows that he owned 80 sheep and forty two lambs and among his possessions were four pairs of shears, so they clearly sheared their own sheep and then processed the wool at the Mill. To keep the Mill going they would also have bought in wool from local farmers.
Birth of Daughter: 1597
Name: Alice Sprague
Birth of Son: 1599
Name: Ralph Sprague
Birth of Son: 1601
Name: Edward Sprague
Birth of Son: 1605
Name: Richard Sprague
Birth of Son: 1607
Name: Christopher Sprague
Birth of Son: 1609
Name: William Sprague
Will: 06 JUN 1614
Note: In the year 1614 Edward Sprague (senior) was still a relatively young man but he sickened and hastily arranged for his Will to be written. This was signed on the 6th June that year, shortly before he died as probate was granted on the 13th of that month. This Will still survives within the family in America. In his will, Edward requested Ralph to “promise that his mother, Christiana, shall quietly enjoy the said living until he shall be one and twenty years of age.”
Death: 1614 Upwey, Dorset, England
Note: At the time of his demise (age 38 yrs), Alice, the eldest, was 17, Ralph who was now technically head of the family was 15 and the youngest William only 5 years old. Their lack of maturity and Edward’s death seems to have precipitated a number of changes.
Burial: St. Laurence Churchyard, Upwey, Weymouth and Portland Borough, Dorset, England
Note: pic of churchyard on the right
parents are unknown
Christiana Holland
Birth: 1578 Upwey, Dorset, England
2nd Marriage: to John Corbin of Upway, Dorsetshire, England
Death: 25 MAR 1651 Upwey, Dorset, England
parents are unknown
Return to Laude Home Page
Return to Genealogy Home Page