William Bassett

From Sandwich, Kent, by way of Leiden. The Leiden records, as abstracted by Dexter: “Bassett, William. From Sandwich, Kent. Master-mason. Widr. of Cicely [Light].” He was betrothed on 19 Mar 1611 to Mary Butler of Norwich, with William Brewster as a witness; she died before the wedding (buried 9 Apr 1611). He was betrothed on 29 July 1611 to Margaret Oldham, and married her on 13 Aug 1611. Dexter adds that his second wife “also, died before 1621, for he came to Plymouth in that year in the Fortune, accompanied by a third wife, Elizabeth.” There is no Leiden record of that marriage (Dexter, The England and Holland of the Pilgrims, p. 532 and n.).

Came to Plymouth on the Fortune in 1621 (GMB 1:127-130, as cited by WikiTree), so not a Mayflower passenger. He sat on the 1636 jury that found John Deacon died of “bodily weakenes, caused by long fasting & wearines, by going to & fro, with the extream cold of the season” (PCR 1:40). In 1638 he was one of the four, with William Collier, who approved newcomers to Duxbury lands (PCR 1:84). Later of Bridgewater.

In 1656 he deeded South River land to “my two sonnes there liveing viz Perigrine White and Nathaniell Bassett” (deed of 16 June 1656, MD 10:25-27); Peregrine White was his son-in-law.

His will is dated 3 Apr 1667, and his inventory “contained a number of theological books”; he died before 5 June 1667 (Wikipedia; the underlying records not seen).