A Link or A Miss
According to one of his great grandsons George Sampson of Cincinnati (elder brother of Calvin Sampson), Alexander Sampson was a native of England. "In 1724, when a young man, he visited this country for the benefit of his health, intending a speedy return. But becoming fascinated with the charms of a young lady of Boston - Rebecca Shattuck by name - he determined for her sake to remain on these shores." This account is backed by memoirs of Lemuel Shattuck of Boston, which say "Mr. Sampson is said to have been a reputable gentleman from London, who had visited this country for the benefit of his health, with an intention of a speedy return; but meeting with the beautiful Miss Shattuck, her attractions were too irresistible to allow him to carry out his purpose. He married and remained here." But according to family historian John Adams Vinton, Alexander Sampson was likely a child of Caleb Sampson of Duxbury, Massachusetts based on "probable evidence" which he does not elaborate on. So which is the truth? Or can both be? Was he a son of Mayflower descendant Caleb Sampson who was raised in or spent part of his life in England? After all, this was before the founding of the United States so even the Mayflower Sampsons would still have been British subjects. Regardless of the lack of verifiable proof, the popularity of the name "Alden" in subsequent Sampson descendents suggests that the "Mayflower link" (through Caleb Sampson and Mercy Standish on up to John Alden) was a popular belief among subsequent Sampsons of this line.
Cupid's Playful Arrow
Sources say that Alexander Sampson was born around 1689 and came to America in 1724, when he was 35. And within that same year he fell in love with the charming Miss Rebecca Shattuck, daughter of Dr. Joseph Shattuck, an eminent physician in Boston, and was married to her on October 6 by the Rev. Cotton Mather. So Rebecca Shattuck, a Bostonian born in 1711, was only 13 years of age when she became the wife of Alexander Sampson. She is praised in various sources, said to have been "of precocious development, and of remarkable beauty" as well as "a woman of rare beauty and loveliness of character." Alexander and Rebecca had three children, Elizabeth b.1728, Alexander b.1729, and John b.1731. The second child, Alexander, is the father of Stephen Sampson, who is the father of Calvin Sampson, who is the father of Clarissa, John B. McGown's second wife.
An End that Everyone Agrees On
Regardless of which version of the Alexander Sampson life story one looks at, the single point that all agree upon is the manner in which that life ended. George Sampson is quoted as saying that "upon a pleasure excursion in Boston Harbor, he was knocked overboard, and devoured by a shark." Likewise, the memoirs of Lemuel Shattuck say that "while upon a pleasure excursion in Boston Harbor, his boat was attacked by a shark, and he was tipped overboard and devoured." And according to Lucinda Shattuck, "While on a pleasure excursion one day in Boston Bay, his boat was capsized, and Mr. Sampson met a most horrible fate; being devoured by voracious sharks. This most shocking catastrophe almost killed his beautiful wife." Slightly different nuances but essentially the same story - Alexander Sampson met his end at the jaws of a shark, perhaps an ancestor of one of the Great Whites that roam the New England coast today.
Unfortunate Fortune
Upon the demise of Alexander Sampson, his wife and children no doubt inherited his American assets without problem, but the "large interests in the London docks" that he had in England were quite another matter. Said Lucinda Shattuck of her uncle, "This man's fortune was said to be very large, but inaccessible, especially to outsiders, as it could only be reached and obtained by a long, tedious and expensive course of law, through the English courts of chancery. One of the heirs in this country, a Mr. Sampson, of Cincinnati, went to England to make enquiry and investigate, and learned that the estate had been appropriated by the British parliament to the London dock company, and the money put into the bank of England in a different installment; that the amount was large and had lain there drawing interest for more than forty years, but could not be obtained unless the heirs could legally trace their ancestry, and establish their exact connection with the last possessors of the property. He found the fortune so hedged in, and requiring so much time and money to get at it, that he gave it up. We, therefore, other and more distant heirs, brother Seth and myself, canvassed the matter thoroughly many years ago, and finally concluded the obstacles were too many and insurmountable, and the expense too great and too far beyond our means, so we likewise surrendered the prize, and let the 'land sharks' devour the nobleman's fortune also."
A Link After All
Those who were looking for a link to the "Mayflower" through Alexander Sampson, clinging to the chance of a genealogical breakthrough, well, there is some good news and some bad. The bad news is, no breakthrough as of yet pertaining to Alexander Sampson. Whether you believe it or not is up to you. The good news is, the young and lovely Rebecca Shattuck was the daughter of Joseph Shattuck (1687-1729), who was the son of Rebecca Chamberlain (1665-1728), who was the daughter of Sarah Bugby (1630-?), who was the daughter of Edward Bugby (1594-1668), a pilgrim who sailed from Ipswitch on the ship "Francis" and arrived in Boston in 1634. So although lacking the name value of the "Mayflower," we can still claim a line dating back to one of the earliest pilgrim families.
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