Portsmouth Historical Society audience hears how genealogy can transform familiar landmarks into personal connections
The Portsmouth Historical Society recently welcomed Christopher Barker for a thoughtful and engaging presentation on how genealogy can deepen our connection to place. His talk, “Pocasset Legacies: A Deeper Experience of Home Through All-Lines Genealogy,” invited attendees to look beyond family names and dates and consider the stories that still live within Portsmouth’s historic landscape.
Barker shared how tracing family connections across 400 years can reveal new meaning in familiar roads, farms, churches, cemeteries, and neighborhoods. By overlaying Nicholas Easton’s original 1638 farm allotment onto a modern aerial map of what is now Montaup Country Club, he showed how history can become more vivid when we connect it to places we pass every day.
The presentation included several remarkable stories from Barker’s own family history. One centered on James Barker, who arrived in New England as an orphaned child and was welcomed into Nicholas Easton’s household. From those difficult beginnings, James went on to serve his community and eventually became Rhode Island’s 10th deputy governor.
Another memorable story focused on Isaac Barker, who secretly provided military intelligence to Patriot forces during the British occupation of Aquidneck Island. In a dramatic twist, the British colonel responsible for that part of the island was living in Isaac Barker’s own home, never realizing that the spy he sought was sitting across the dinner table.
Barker also spoke about his personal discovery of deep family ties to St. Mary’s Episcopal Church in Portsmouth. After attending the church with no knowledge of any ancestral connection, he later learned that generations of his relatives were buried in the churchyard. He has since identified 57 relatives resting there, turning the cemetery into a powerful reminder of family, faith, and community history.
Beyond his own research, Barker hopes to encourage a broader community effort. He envisions a collaborative genealogy database through the Portsmouth Historical Society, where residents can share family information, compare histories, and discover how their own ancestors may connect to Portsmouth’s founding families.
His message was ultimately one of connection. Through genealogy, Barker reminded the audience that Portsmouth’s history is not only found in archives and historic sites, but also in the relationships between families, neighborhoods, and generations. Anyone interested in sharing genealogical information or comparing family histories may contact Christopher Barker at christopherbarker@cox.net.
Read the full article on East Bay RI News
