Our Dingley lineage relates to one John Dingley who was born in England in 1608+/-. The location of the birth place and his ancestry is not known. For many years, based upon the book, “Ancestry of Edward Nelson Dingley and his wife Marian Gardner Robinson” published in 1947, our New England John Dingley was noted as being one and the same as John Dingley, born in 1594 at Charlton Parish, County Worcestershire, the son of Francis and Elizabeth Bigge Dingley. This Francis Dingley’s lineage was then noted as being “nobly descended on both sides, i.e., his father and mother”. In short, John Dingley, the son of Francis and Elizabeth Bigge, had an out standing and enviable noble and royal ancestry. Eugene Stratton has done considerable research on this subject which resulted in two published articles, The American Genealogist:V56:207-210, and NEHGR:V62:234-240. With clear logic and valid evidence, Eugene Stratton has disproved the premise that our John Dingley, born 1608+/- was not the John Dingley who was born in 1594 at Carlton Parish, County Worcestershire, the son of Francis and Elizabeth Bigge Dingley.

Our John Dingley, born 1608+/- died shortly before 13 March 1690 at which time his inventory was taken. William Ford of Marshfield, Ma. and Josiah Keane of Duxbury, Ma. were named as administrators of his estate. John married about 1636/1637, at Lynn, Ma. Sarah (–). Her surname and ancestry are unknown. John Dingley was associated with Thomas Chillingsworth, perhaps in Lynn, Ma. and certainly in Sandwich, Ma. and later on in Marshfield, Ma. Many sources have noted our John Dingley as having married Sarah Chillingsworth daughter of Thomas. However, we find that Sarah Chillingsworth was married to on Samuel Sprague by1665 at which time our John Dingley was alive and well. Little is known of John Dingley’s wife, Sarah (–); we have no indication of her death date.

Th date and ship that John Dingley emigrated from England is unknowm; it is said that he was in Lynn, Ma. in 1637 where he married Sarah (–). John, with his wife, removed from Lynn to Sandwich, Ma. which is about 55 miles southward of Lynn. His first child, Mary, was probably born here in Sandwich. On 04 Dec. 1638, John Dingley of Sandwich was presented by the grand jury “for being defective in arms and for keeping two hogs unringed”. On 16 April 1640, John Dingley was one of the Sandwich residents granted meadow land recsiving 5 ½ acres; 23 men received larger shares and 43 got less. John was on the 1643 list of colony men, between the ages of 16 and 60, able to bear arms, under both Sandwich, later crossed out, and Marshfield. This tells that John, with his family, removed from Sandwich to Marshfield, Ma. Four of John and Sarah (–) Dingley’s children were born in Sandwich, Ma., i.e., Mary born 1638, Sarah born Nov. 1639, Jacob born 1641, and Hannah b 1643.

We next find John, as a constable, in Marshfield, Ma. on 05 June 1644. Being a constable was not an enviable position in Plymouth Colony; it was an onerous task to be the middleman squeezed between the General Court and the people. John was made a freeman 04 June 1644. He was chosen as a member of the Grand Jusy, a position of respect and considerable collective power in straightening out the wrongs in the colony. Orthodoxy was a desirable trait in a grand juror and there is a presumption that John Dingley was not a rebel or trouble maker, all the more so since he was chosen for the Grand Jury again seven times ending in 1672. John served on the coroner’s juries in 1652 and 1654-55. He was highway surveyor for Marshfiled in 1666.

John, by trade, was a blacksmith plus and industrious “tiller of the soil”. His farm in Marshfield has been known as the Dingley homestead and was occupied for many generations by the Dingley family.There are numerous other records concerning our immigrant ancestor, John Dingley;who is seen as a respectable, rather average member of Plymouth Colony’s broad middle class. The term average has to be tempered with the fact that, for the most part, our 1620-1650 colonial ancestors had to be people of conviction, strength, and faith in order to embark upon the perilous journey to essentially unknown new world.
References: TAG:V62:234-240; TAG:V56:207-210; PH7:222; PH17:V2:52; PH76:9,304; PH81: 120; PH86:140; PH152:255.

Sarah Dingley, the second child and second daughter of John and Sarah (–) Dingley, was born 04 Nov. 16398 at Sandwich, Ma. and died 07 May 1727 at Marshfield, Ma. She married, on 04 Nov. 1658 at Marshfield, William Ford, Jr. who was born in 1633 and died 07 Feb. 1720 both at Marshfield, Ma. He was the son of William and Anna Eames Ford.
References TAG:V62:237; PH7:275; PH17:V2:52; PH81:120; PH86:140.