The Relationship Between William and Christopher Wadsworth

The ship Lyon sailed from London June 22, 1632, arriving in Boston September 14/16, 1632. The master, William Pierce, brought 123 passengers, fifty of them children. Among those listed are Wadsworth, William of Braintree, Essex, his wife and their children Sarah, William, Mary, and John. Of the 123 passengers, many remain unnamed.

It's long been speculated that one of those unnamed passengers was Christopher Wadsworth, the younger brother of William. Both Wadsworth men took prominent roles in their new English settlements in this country. William and his descendants were instrumental in the foundation of Hartford, Connecticut, and later of Geneseo, New York, while Christopher served alongside Miles Standish, Jonathon Brewster, John Alden, and Governor William Bradford, in the settlements at Plymouth and Duxbury, Massachusetts, with later family members prominent in the early history of Maine.

The earliest discussion of the relationship between William and Christopher is found in the book "Two Hundred and Fifty Years of the Wadsworth Family in America, published in 1883. The book was an accounting of the family reunion in Duxbury, Massachusetts, held one year earlier. At the reunion, Dr. M. Edward Wadsworth of Harvard University presented his research on "The Wadsworth Name in England", stating that; "The emigration together of William and Christopher from England, the fact that William's name alone is given in the list of passengers, indicates that the popular belief is correct, that they were brothers - or at least, near relatives."¹

In the years since the reunion there has been no new evidence to substantiate the relationship of the two Wadsworth men. Yet the very lack of substantive documentation on their kinship may have allowed a popular belief to become unchallenged fact. That is until now.

The Wadsworth DNA Project has tested the DNA from descendants of both Christopher and William. The results show clearly, that William and Christopher were not brothers; in fact they were not even related.

How this new fact will impact the research into Wadsworth Family genealogy is still unclear, however, it is now unquestionable that there are at least two distinct family lines in America bearing the name Wadsworth. What are the origins of these two famlies? How do you explain the coincidence of their coming to America at the same time? Did Christopher actually come in 1632 as previously assumed, or was he here earlier? These questions may remain unanswered, but as we continue in our quest to find our origins, we will certainly answer many other questions along the way. Stay tuned to this website for new information as it becomes available.