Elizabeth and Elias Heath,
of Boston, Massachusetts

           The earliest Groton record I have found for anyone of the surname Heath is a land deed, dated May 3, 1707, wherein Elizabeth Heath, widow of Elias Heath of Boston, through the representation of her attorneys, bought a tract of land in Groton from Samuel Avery of Groton (see details, below). Elizabeth (Eldridge) Heath married Elias Heath in 1699 and is mentioned in the Heath Family Association Quarterly, Vol. 4, #1, under the section entitled Unconnected Heaths:

"ELIAS HEATH "of Boston" m 5/13/1699 Elizabeth Eldridge. He d 10/9/1706 ae 55 (In Boston?). No more of him per Savage. He was a Constable, Overseer of the poor, and Selectman of Boston. Any issue?"

 In the Dictionary of the First Settlers of New England, Vol. 2, p. 222, Savage wrote of Elias Heath:

"[Heath,]ELIAS, Boston, m. 13 May 1699, Eliz. Eldridge. No more is kn. of him but that he had sis. Ann of Buckland, Co. Surrey; and he d. 19 Oct 1706, aged 55. He is in the list of taxa. inhabs. 1695."

         Elias Heath was christened on February 23, 1652 in Buckland, Surrey, England, the second of three known children born to Elias and My (Mary?) Heath of Buckland. He emigrated from England to New England in October 1690, when he was about 38 or 39 years of age. He married Elizabeth, the widow of Joseph Eldridge, nine years later. 

         Elizabeth Eldridge had been married twice before her marriage to Elias Heath. A few sources list her maiden name as Phillips, but I haven't yet found a record to substantiate this claim. Her first marriage, probably about 1671 (her first child was born in 1672) was to Thomas Grosse of Boston, with whom she had seven children. She next married Joseph Eldridge of Boston on October 9, 1695, who died some time before 1699, the year she married Elias Heath. Elias Heath died on October 9, 1706.  It is Elias Heath's will, written October 18, 1706 and proved November 8, 1706, that fairly conclusively eliminates the likelihood of his being an ancestor of William Heath of Groton, or for that matter, of having any children of his own.  In his will, Elias Heath named his "loveing sister Anne Turner Widow liveing in Buckland in the county of Surrey in England".  He also named Anne Turner's children Thomas and Elias Turner, and he left all the residue and remainder of his estate, both real and personal, to his wife Elizabeth Heath, who was also name sole executrix of his estate.

        Elizabeth Heath  married a fourth and final time to Francis Burroughs, also of Boston, on December 29, 1709.   On May 18, 1713, Elizabeth and Francis Burroughs signed a deed which, in essence, returned the Groton land to Samuel Avery at a loss of 156 pounds.  This appears to be the last of Elizabeth Heath's activity in Groton.  Francis Burroughs' will was proved December 11, 1713, and shortly before his death he made good provisions for Elizabeth and four of her daughters from her marriage to Thomas Grosse. It's quite unlikely that either Elias or Elizabeth Heath were the ancestor of my line of Heaths, since Elizabeth was close to fifty years of age by the time she married Elias Heath, and there is no evidence Elias Heath had any children of his own.

        Given the date (1707) of the initial deed of Elias Heath, and the fact that it was Avery land, it is possible that Elias Heath may have had an earlier connection with the other Heaths who moved to Groton, most notably Joseph Heath (discussed below) who came to Groton around 1712, or perhaps Joseph's father, Richard Heath of Swansea, Massachusetts.

          Groton Land Records of Elizabeth Heath/Burroughs of Boston

May 3, 1707:  Elizabeth Heath, widow of the merchant Elias Heath of Boston, under the representation of her attorneys Samuel Williams of Roxbury, husbandman, Thomas Gross of Boston, merchant, and Joseph Saxson of Stonington, merchant, bought for 456 pounds, 1 shilling and 8 pence from Samuel Avery of Groton a tract of land bounded by Governor Winthrop's land on the south; Alewife Brook on the west; Nehemiah Smith's land on the north; and Captain John Avery's land on the east."  The deed was signed by Samuel Avery and witnessed by Ephraim Minor, Senior;  James Parkes and William Smith. [Groton, Connecticut Land Records, Volume 1A, pp. 17-18, LDS FHL microfilm # 0004293].

May 18, 1713:  Francis Burroughs, shopkeeper, and Elizabeth, his wife, "formerly the relict widow and sole executrix of the Last Will and testament of her late husband Elias Heath, both of Boston, signed a quit-claim for 300 pounds to Samuel Avery of Groton.  The deed was signed by Francis and Elizabeth Burroughs and witnessed by John Ballantine and James Jordan of Boston. [Groton, Connecticut Land Records, Volume 1, pp. 161-162, LDS FHL microfilm # 0004293].