The historian Samuel Eliot Morrison described Thomas Hickling’s second wife, Sarah, as coming from an old Portugese family. While her children all went on to marry Portugese people, their actual story is probably something along the lines of what is related below. (Interestingly, the Hickling name appears on far more Portugese genealogy websites than American.)
I don’t have much context to offer for the following email, posted on a family genealogy site in the late 1990s. It is from a researcher, Eloise Cadinha, to a Mr. Lothrop.
A version of this email, with only small changes, is currently available on the Ivens family blog.
____________________________
From: <XXX>
Subject: [PORTUGAL-L] Re: Thomas Hickling’s second wife.
Date: Fri, 18 Dec 1998 02:33:24 EST
Dear Mr. Lothrop:
I recently found in my files an article about Tomas Hickling, by Dr. Joao H. Anglin, a descendant. It is from “Insulana” which is an organ of the Instituto Cultural of Ponta Delaga. The names in this article are written in Portuguese.
Tomas Hickling married twice. He married in 1764 in Boston, Sara Green, of Boston. 2 children were born to this marriage.
- Catarina, who married in 1793 William Prescott, and she was mother of the famous historian, William Hickling Prescott.
- Guilherme (William) who died in 1794.
Hickling left America in October 1769 and never returned. His first wife never visited the Azores. She died in 1774.
In 1778 Thomas Hickling, a widower, married Sara Falder. According to the article, Sara Falder was from Philadelphia, and tradition has it that Sara was the daughter of a ship’s Captain. [Thomas Falder / Faulder / Foulder / Foulger / Faldez, perhaps of Nantucket, perhaps of Philadelphia.]
On a voyage to India, the Captain had on board the ship his daughter and his wife. The wife became ill and the mother and daughter were left in Ponta Delgada, and supposedly were to be picked up on the return voyage. The father and the ship were never heard from again and it was supposed that the ship had been lost at sea.
Of this marriage, 16 children were born. Five of them died before their tenth birthday. (I copy the children and marriages as listed in the article)
- Maria Hickling, married John Anglin of Cork Tomas Hickling (junior) died 10 Oct 1875. He was 93 years old and his father’s successor as American Vice Consul.
- Sara Clarisse Hickling (twin of Isabel Flora) married William Shelton Burnett.
- Isabel Flora Hickling (twin of Sara Clarisse) married William Ivens. Ana Joaquina Hickling married John Anglin, widower of her sister, Maria Hickling.
- Carlota Sofia Hickling married Jacinto Soares de Albergaria Francisca Hickling, died less than 10 years old and was the twin of Maria Ana who married dr. Joaquim Antonio de Paula Medeiros.
- Harriet Federica Hickling married Dr. John White Webster.
- Amelia Clementine Hickling married two times. 1) Hugo Chambers 2) Tomas Nyes of New Bedford. Maria Ana Hickling married for the second time William Ivens, widower of her sister Isabel Flora
- Guilherme Anglin Hickling married twice 1) unknown 2) Jessie Green of Scotland
Thomas Hickling (senior) died 31 Aug 1834. He was 91 years old. He was buried in the British Cemetery in Ponta Delgada. His son, Thomas, who was his successor was buried in same tomb. He died 10 Oct 1875. he was 94 years old. [Sic]
Sara Falder outlived her husband and she also is buried in the British Cemetery. She died 20 Oct 1872 [WRONG.–LSL]. She was 75 years old.
According to Insulana, a descendant of T. Hickling is Otmar U. Seeman, a lawyer in Winnipeg, Canada, and Antonio da Camara Melo Cabral, a resident in Ponta Delgada.
Possibly you have Nye cousins living nearby, and you certainly do have relatives in the Azores.
Just last month there was an article in the Acoriano Oriental: “Hickling: a grande aventura de um americao dos Azores” (“Hickling: a great Amercian adventure in the Azores” [my translation] The article mentions a diary of 80 pages, written by Catherine Hickling in 1808, when she visited her father in the Azores. It is in the hands of Russel Mac Ausland. The article also mentions the traditional story of Sara Falder.
Best,
Eloise Cadinha
Kinsmen and Kinswomen 