Capt Richard Sackett

Capt Richard Sackett, son of Jonathan Sackett and Hannah ___, was born in New Haven, Connecticut, in about 1678.^1,2 He died in Wassaic, New York, in 1746.² He married in New York on 11 May 1699, Margery L (___) (Crego) (Wislake) Slade.^2,3,4
     In 1703 Richard was living in New York City and was recorded in the census as Richard Sackett in the East Ward. Other members of his household were his wife, four children (two sons and two daughters), and four negro slaves (three male and one female). It is assumed that the children would have been Richard, John, Catherine, and Mary/Maria.⁵
     Richard made his will in Dover, Dutchess County, New York, on 14 December 1744. Named as beneficiaries were his wife Margery, his sons Richard and John, his "son Josiah Crego" [see comments below], his daughter Catherine Margeson, and the heirs of his deceased daughter Mary Dean.

Sacketts of America: biography
Comments:
"Josiah Crego Sackett"
In his Sacketts of America, Weygant lists a Josiah Crego Sackett among the children of Capt. Richard Sackett. The identification of this man would appear to have been based on an abstract of Richard's will. This abstract, although not factually incorrect, was deficient in some essential details, leading Weygant to be misled. Study of the full will and of research data given in Roy Crego's Selective History of the Crego Family indicate that Josiah (more usually Josias) Crego was Richard's stepson, being a son of Richard's wife Margery by an earlier marriage to a Stephen Crego.
Richard's Will
Important details in the full will not dealt with in the abstract are:
1. The abstract includes the words, "I leave to my son Josiah Crego, and to the heirs of my daughter Mary Dean deceased, and to my daughter Catherine during her widowhood, and to my sons Richard and John the whole of my remaining estate ...". Weygant, not unreasonably, would appear to have taken the reference "my son" literally. He appears also to have taken both names "Josiah Crego" as given names on the basis that other beneficiaries - Catherine, Richard, and John - are also referred to by their given names. However, in the full will, it is seen that Richard and John are referred to consistently as Richard Sacket and John Sacket, and Catherine, although mentioned once as Catherine, is referred to later in the sentence as Catherine Margeson. In the context of all the other names being full names, including the surname, it becomes clear that "Crego" was Josiah's surname.
2. A further clue to the relative status of Josiah Crego and Richard and John Sackett is that Capt. Richard left his remaining estate, after specific bequests, to "my sons Richard Sacket and John Sacket". Josiah Crego was not included here as one of Capt. Richard's sons.
3. The most persuasive clue appears at the end of the will where Capt. Richard, in a disposition apparently concerning his slave Hagar, refers specifically to "my two sons" - "after my Decease and my Wifes Decease hagar shall have the liberty to Chuse which of my two sons she will live with". In the context of the rest of the will, "my two sons" can only have been Richard and John.
4. Josias Crego signed as a witness to the will. It would seem most unlikely that this Josias Crego and the Josiah Crego who was a beneficiary of the will were not the same man, and equally unlikely that Weygant would have "created" a Josiah Crego Sackett had he had sight of the full will.
Margery's Marriages
Weygant records Richard's marriage to Margery L Sleade by license issued in New York in 1699. Research data given by Roy Crego in his book shows that Margery was married three times before, the first marriage being to a Stephen Crego sometime before say 1683 when Josias (Josiah) Crego was born. Had Weygant had knowledge of Margery's earlier marriage to Crego, he would surely have concluded that the Josiah Crego of the will was Richard's stepson, not a natural son Josiah Crego Sackett.
Margery's marriages were:
1. Margery ___ to Stephen Crego, sometime before say 1683.⁶
2. Margery "Crege" to Edward Wislake 1692.⁷
3. Margery Wislake to Peter Slade 1694.⁸
4. Margery L "Sleade" to Richard Sackett 1699.^3,9,10
Research Note
Although it is concluded above that Josiah Crego Sackett did not exist, his name has been retained in this database, pending further research, as a place marker for the unidentified father of Skene Douglas Sackett (and Skene's siblings) who were attributed by Weygant as children of the alleged Josiah Sackett.

Sackett Family Association descendants of Capt Richard Sackett & Margery L (___) (Crego) (Wislake) Slade:
Nancy Cluff Siders, Liesa Robarge, Wendy Sacket, Mary Lou Petrie, Barbara McKay Hallum, Terri Mulliken Allen, Peggy McKay Mineer, Sandra Mueller, Harry & Blanche McKay, Wilma Fleming Haynes, Carol Keely, Lauri Diel, John W Sackett, Ed Sackett, Stefanie Sacket-Mowers, Sean Sackett, Paulette Wright and Randall A Warner.