Curious Crockers of Barnstable: Sarah Crocker Lawrence (1749-1825)

It is not very common to find an extensive description of an 18th-century Barnstable woman in our archives; so, when we do it is often a delight. This is the case of Sarah (Crocker) Lawrence (1749-1825). Amos Otis provides a wonderful description of this accomplished woman in his book, Genealogical Notes of Barnstable Families.

According to Otis, Sarah was the daughter of Cornelius and Lydia (Jenkins) Crocker of Revolutionary War fame. She lived in Barnstable Village. Otis states, “the sons and daughters of Cornelius Crocker were all persons of more than ordinary intellectual vigor. All the family were well educated for the times. They were close observers of passing events, and were all distinguished for their conversational powers, and their ready command of language.”

Otis goes on to provide a lengthy description of Sarah’s character:

"Sarah, daughter of Cornelius, married Captain David Lawrence, after a very brief courtship. He was a sea captain and was the first who displayed the Stars and Stripes in the port of Bristol, England. ... [He] died soon after his return, on the 3d of October, 1783, aged 35 years. She survived until Feb. 21, 1825, when she died, aged 76.

Mrs. Lawrence was distinguished for her conversational power. She had read all the current literature of the day. Her friends were among the leading men of the times, and she was well versed in local history, and in all the leading topics of conversation in her day. Her wit was keen and cut without seeming to give offence. She was not fastidious, and the point of her wit was never blunted to avoid an allusion which prudery might condemn. She was open, candid, and decided in all her opinions, and in the expression of them, her wit often sparkled with a brilliancy that silenced opposition. Her instantaneous reply to Colonel Freeman and other members of the Whig Vigilance Committee, when they inquired of her whether she was Whig or Tory was of this character, and will be long remembered.

She belonged to the same school of politics with her brother Samuel and held that the asking of young ladies such questions was not only uncalled for; but impertinent. Her most cutting rebuke consisted of only four words; and that committee never forgot them, and ever after treated her with the most marked respect. I have often heard her relate the story, but the reply she made was always pronounced in a suppressed tone of voice.

She lived a widow over forty-one years, and her house was the resort of numerous friends who appreciated her talents and listened with delight to her conversation. Intellectually she never grew old. She could, without seeming effort, adapt herself to the old and the young, the gay and the religious. She could discuss the merits of the last novel, or the doctrines of the last sermon. Her friends and relatives always treated her with marked respect, and the survivors still fondly cherish her memory. "

She is buried in Cobb’s Hill Cemetery, if anyone cares to visit her gravestone. She is worth remembering.

Author:

Jeffrey D. Crocker

Source:

Otis, Amos, Genealogical Notes of Barnstable Families, F.B. & F.P. Goss (1888), page 238.