Little is known about the origins of Henry Lee and his wife Mary. His name first appears in the records of Manchester in 1650, but because some of Manchester's records were lost he may have been there several years previous to that date. Leach states that in 11th 5th month, 1650, Henry Lee voted in town meeting regarding cutting of timber. One article on his descendants states that it is thought that he came from Cheshire, England, but no definitive proof has been found. His name is variously spelled Ley, Lea, and Lee in the records.
In 1651, 29th 1 mo: Henry Lea was allotted Lot #2 in the division of the farther marsh at Kettle Cove, between Thomas Chubb and William Everton, according to a copy made by Samuel Friend, Clerk on Sept. 20, 1680. By 1654 he was voted constable for Manchester, and by 1659 he was voted Selectman, the highest town office other than clerk. It is not known when he married, but it was probably before 1659. The first proven record of a child is the baptism of his son John, in Salem in 1661. Baptisms of five of his six known children can be found in the Salem and Beverly church records, and one, Samuell, appears to have been baptized first in Manchester and later in Salem. Although the Salem baptism might have been a second child of the same name, no death record appears for the Samuell baptized in Manchester.
Henry was a farmer. He must have been a man of some means, as his sons were well-to-do. He made his will 12 February 1674, and it was proved 21:5:1675. In it he names sons John, Samuell, and Thomas, and daughters Hanna, Mary, and Sarah.
In May 1675 James Standish of Salem confirmed a dwelling house & 3/4 acre land in Manchester to Mary, widow and executrix of Henry Lee. Henry had purchased it for 20 pounds, sale not being legally aproved. (E.W. LeachMS History of Manchester, Appendix, p. 197.) On June 1, 1675 Mary Lee, widow of Henry, married John WEST at Beverly. Another house, built by Henry, was still standing until after 1900 on what became Pine Street, always occupied by male or female descendants of his.
In 1677 John West, as guardian of John and Samuel Lee, was owner of one share of the common ground. The list was made in 1677, but the grants were all previous to 1662, so it would have had to be made to their father Henry.
Mary and John West apparently had a difference of opinion regarding the estate left her by Henry Lee, as there is appended to the probate of John's estate an arbitration dated 21 July 1680, performed by their neighbors Samuel Corning, John Dodge, and John Bennet of Beverly, to which the couple agreed, which secures to Marey the estate left her by Henry Ley, for her to dispose of with no interference by John West and agrees in lieu of dower rights to give her five pounds a year if he should predecease her.
The inventory of her estate, taken 20 Nov. 1690 by John Hill, Thomas West, and John Siblee, shows that it amounted to L 161, 19 s, 6 d. John Lee was appointed administrator. Her three sons split the estate among them, proving that Thomas Lee was still alive as of that date. None of the daughters are mentioned in her will, leading to the conclusion that they were deceased by that date, as no record of their marriages can be found.
John was, according to his will, a weaver. He married twice, and had 10 children. The youngest, Benjamin, was a deacon of the church in Manchester. At least three of Benjamin's sons moved at the time of the Revolution to Moultonborough, New Hampshire, where free land was available. John Lee's will is a goldmine of genealogical proof, as it names all his children, and several grandchildren.
Samuell was one of the first deacons of the church in Manchester. Hhe had 8 children. His descendants include grandson Col. Jeremiah Lee, a noted merchant of Marblehead. Jeremiah was one of the Committee of Inspection in 1770, and elected to the Continental Congress in 1774, but did not attend. He did represent his town at the County Convention, and was elected chairman. On April 17, 1774, his committee and the "Committee of Safety & Supplies" met at Mr. Taylor's house in Concord. On the 18th they met at the "Black Horse Tavern," after which Hancock and Adams went to Lexington for the night. Col. Lee, Col. Orne and Elbridge Gerry remained at the tavern. British troops were traveling past the tavern toward Concord, and a group of them stopped and searched the tavern, the members of the committee escaping out the back door and hiding in a cornfield. On April 19 the battle of Lexington marked the beginning of the Revolutionary War. Col. Lee took cold from his exposure, in only his nightclothes, and never fully regained his health, dying the following May. He died intestate.
Another of Samuell's descendants, Jeremiah's nephew William Raymond Lee, was a Colonel in Glover's Marblehead Regiment, and may have been in charge of the boats that ferried Washington across the Delaware. He later had his own regiment. He owned slaves, but it is said that William freed his slaves before going to serve in the War, stating that he could not fight for his own freedom while he held others who had no freedom. His brother John was a privateer. A sister, Annis, married Capt. John Pulling, who is one of the two men debated as the one who "hung the lantern aloft in the North church tower" for Paul Revere.
Son Thomas was probably one of the men drafted in Manchester in 1690 to fight the Indians. He went with Captain William Raymond on an expedition to Canada, but did not return. Whether he died of illness, as many of these men did, or was killed is not known. His brothers John and Samuell split his small estate.
Many of Henry's descendants were officials in Manchester, some being Town Clerk for a number of years. Descendants by the name of Lee still reside in Manchester, as well as having spread west as far as Seattle and Los Angeles.