Histories

THE BIG QUESTION

For our branch of the FLINT family, the big question is:

When did our first FLINT ancestor move from England to Massachusetts -1638 or 1847?

That 209 year difference is important in family history! 

RICHARD HENRY FLINT, our earliest proven ancestor, was born in 1830 in Liverpool, Lancashire, England. The short story is that he immigrated to Boston, Massachusetts around 1847 or 1849, then moved to Quebec, Canada East around 1850. He might have lived in Quebec City for a year or so, but in any case he was in Montreal by January 24, 1853 when he married HELEN ARLESS. (She was also recorded as ELLEN, and sometimes her surname is spelled ARLISS.) The rest, as they say, is history – family history – which I will add to later. You can use the SEARCH function on this website by putting in “Flint” “Richard Henry” and read all about him and his family.

For genealogists, the regular research path is to find Richard Henry Flint’s parents, HENRY FLINT and SARAH, and keep going back. But in his case, his paternal grandfather adds a new twist. On the marriage registration of his grandparents WILLIAM FLINT and ANN WALTON on September 19, 1785 in St. Nicholas Parish, Liverpool, Lancashire, England, it says that William Flint is from NOVA SCOTIA. Is this correct? So should research be done for Flint’s in England or in North America?

There are lots of questions to be answered about this situation and records have not been found to prove connections. Yes, there was a Flint family in Yarmouth, Nova Scotia before 1784. Does William Flint come from this family? Was this family descended from the Flint families that immigrated to Massachusetts as early as 1638? To complicate research, apparently there was more than one Flint family in early Massachusetts. Were they brothers or cousins or not related at all? The early Flints produced a lot of children, so there is considerable research needed to figure out which line the Nova Scotia family descended from, if they do.

Y-DNA testing could help solve this main question – 1638 or 1847. Finding male descendants with the Flint surname, and having them test is the next big challenge.

Lorna Flint Laughton, July 4, 2015.