The Story of John Mead and the Quaker

The first known Mead recorded in Fairfield County, Connecticut was William Mayd [Mead]. On December 7th, 1641, he received from the town of Stamford, a homelot and 5 acres of land.  Records show that William had three children, Joseph, b. 1630, who is believed to be the ancestor of the Ridgefield and North Fairfield Co. Meads; Martha, who married John Richardson (my ancestor) of Stamford, and John, the ancestor of the Horse-Neck Meads. 

John moved from Hempstead, Long Island to Greenwich which was then known as Horse-neck in 1660. He bought land from Richard Crabb, the date of the deed was October 26, 1660.  John and his wife, Hannah Potter had eight sons and three daughters. The following story is about John Mead handed down by his descendants that shows his character.

One day when he [John] had become quite an old man, as he was going for his grist at the mill at Dumpling Pond, before he reached Myanos River, he overtook an old Quaker jogging slowly along loaded with a heavy budget. In a reqal spirit of kindness, he offered to take the Quaker's load upon his horse and thus give him a lift on his journey. "No," replied the Quaker, "thee don't get my bundle. I can read men's thoughts. Thee wants to get my bundle, and then thee'll run off.  Thee don't get my bundle."  "Very well," was the simple reply; and so they went slowly on together. At last they came to the brink of teh Myanos, and here Mr. Quaker was really in trouble. How to cross the river, two or three feet deep, dry shod, was quite a problem. But he gladly accepted a second offer of assistance from the horseman. The bundle was mounted in front, John in the middle, and the Quaker behind. Arriving at the center of the stream, in pretending to adjust his stirrup, John Mead caught the Quaker by the heel, and gave him a gratuitous bath.  Such treatment was too much for even Quaker forebearance, and the victim with his hands full of pebbles, would have taken summary vengeance, had not the other party threatened to put the bundle under a similar course of treatment.  This threat, and the lecture that followed it gradually cooled off the man's ander.  Mead informed him that all had been done for his good, to teach him a lesson, and the lecturer said he hoped he would never again profess to read men's thoughts. "For," said he, "I asked you to ride the first time in all kindness, and you refused; but at the second time of asking, I really intended to do as I have just done." So saying, and tossing back the bundle, he rode on, leaving his companion to apply the moral as he thought proper.

​And the moral of the story.....we should all think about it!!

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The above story is an excerpt and can be found in the book "Genealogy of a Branch of the Mead Family" by Lucius Egbert Weaver; Rochester, NY, 1917;  pg. 13