Ralph Hill II

Ralph Hill was the son of Ralph Hill, one of Billerica's earliest settlers, and was born in England or at Plymouth. He was among the signers of the 1654 petition that asked the General Court to enlarge the Shawshin settlement and name it Billericay, and so is counted among the town's founders. He first had a lot on the Township, on the Andover road, which he sold to John Poulter, and on May 16, 1656 he bought from William Baker the "farme" lot south of his father's, about a mile southwest of the village.

In 1660 he married Martha Toothaker, his own stepmother's daughter. His house, one of the fortified "garrisons" during the Indian troubles of 1675, stood just north of the later Boyden place and, according to town historian Henry Hazen, was still standing with its original windows as late as 1850. In the list of 1675 garrisons he appears as Sergeant Ralph Hill; by 1693 the town record calls him Captain.

He served on the Board of Selectmen for some thirty years, one of the longest tenures of the town's earliest officers: Hazen counts thirty-two years, in 1661 and from 1664 to 1694. Much of the town's practical business passed through his hands. In 1660 he and James Kidder were sent to join Chelmsford in repairing the bridge to Chelmsford, and the same year he and John Parker were chosen to lay out the highway from Woburn to the meeting house. In 1665 he, Henry Jefts and Jonathan Danforth were appointed to run the line with Andover. In October 1676 he signed, with Danforth, Joseph Tompson and John French, the selectmen's petition to the General Court asking relief from the heavy rates of King Philip's War. He represented Billerica at the General Court in 1689 and from 1692 to 1694; in February 1692-3, when the town decided to send one deputy instead of two, it dismissed Joseph Tompson and continued "Capt. Ralph Hill in that service."

Ralph Hill died April 9, 1695; his widow Martha died January 4, 1703-4, aged about 69. Their children included Elizabeth, who married Timothy Baldwin of Charlestown; Deborah, who married John Sheldon; Samuel, born February 18, 1671-2; and Daniel.

References

1. Hazen, History of Billerica (1883), Genealogical Register p. 68, HILL 2 (land, garrison house, marriage to Martha Toothaker, death 1695, children)
2. Hazen, History of Billerica (1883), p. 17 (1654 petition signed by Ralph Hill)
3. Hazen, History of Billerica (1883), p. 74 (appointed to run the Andover line, 1665)
4. Hazen, History of Billerica (1883), p. 113 (Sergt. Ralph Hill's garrison, standing till about 1850)
5. Hazen, History of Billerica (1883), p. 121 (selectmen's petition for abatement of rates, 1676)
6. Hazen, History of Billerica (1883), p. 198 (Capt. Ralph Hill continued as deputy, 1692-3)
7. Hazen, History of Billerica (1883), p. 304 (list of representatives: Ralph Hill, 1689, 92-94)
8. Hazen, History of Billerica (1883), p. 305 (list of selectmen: Ralph Hill Jr., 1661, 64-94, 32 years)
9. Vital Records of Billerica (1908), Marriages p. 270 (Ralph Hill Jr. and Martha Toothaker, Nov. 15, 1660)
10. Vital Records of Billerica (1908), Deaths p. 368 (Capt. Ralph Hill, husband of Martha, died Apr. 9, 1695)