Henry Townsend was the son of Henry Townsend

Henry Townsend (Norwich)

Henry Townsend was an early settler of the American Colonies.-Biography:Disagreement exists surrounding the facts of Henry Townsend's place of birth and his parentage...

, an early settler settler of the American Colonies, and a member of the Quaker religion.

Biography

Henry Townsend (1649-1703) was the son of Henry Townsend, and grandson of Thomas Townsend (1594-1677) who emigrated to the colonies in 1637 from Norfolk, England. Eventually Henry Townsend settled in Oyster Bay, where his son Henry Townsend was raised.

Henry Townsend married Deborah Underhill in 1657. Deborah Underhill (1659-1698) was daughter of Captain John Underhill

Captain John Underhill

John Underhill was an early English settler and soldier in the Massachusetts Bay Colony, the Province of New Hampshire, the New Haven Colony, New Netherland, and later the Province of New York...

 (1597-1672), another important figure in Colonial America who trained the militia of the Massachusetts Bay Colony

Massachusetts Bay Colony

The Massachusetts Bay Colony was an English settlement on the east coast of North America in the 17th century, in New England, situated around the present-day cities of Salem and Boston. The territory administered by the colony included much of present-day central New England, including portions...

and served as magistrate of Flushing for a brief period of time, before settling on 150 acre (0.607029 km²) of land outside of Oyster Bay. Captain Underhill was converted to Quakerism by his second wife, thus making the union of Henry Townsend and Deborah Underhill the combining of two of the most influential Quaker families in Oyster Bay.

They had at least three children together: Robert Townsend (b. 1687), Elizabeth Townsend (1692-1756), and Uriah Townsend (1698-1767).