According to Manning35 this William Lakin is often confused with his first cousin William, the son of Ensign John Lakin (d. 21 Mar 1697). Shattuck’s Memorials36 makes this mistake. Manning provides the following documentation to clarify the matter: “5. WILLIAM4 LAKIN (William3, William2, William1) was born 6 May 1655. For two generations he has been widely called the son of John3, not of William3; hence the evidence will be given in detail. First, William and John, brothers, each had a son William, one of whom died in 1672, ‘aged about nine years,’ while the other, the subject of this sketch, lived to old age. Secondly, in deed vol. 18, p. 279, in 1697, John called his son Joseph his ‘eldest’ son, proving that his child William was then deceased, but the subject of this sketch lived until 1735. Thirdly, in the settlement of the estate of William, in 1718, his ‘eldest’ son is given as William. Fourthly, in 1688 William Lakin and William Lakin, Jr., signed a note which was the cause of a lawsuit in 1711[original footnote: “Inferior Court, Green v. Lakin.”], at which time the older signer was dead. A clause in the note is: ‘And William Lakin, Jr., do bind myself with my father’ to pay the debt, and then follow the signatures of both men. Fifthly, in 1723 ‘William Lakin, Sr.,’ the subject of this sketch, sells land by deed vol. 32, p. 501, ‘being part of the 20 acre right which belonged to his father, William Lakin, deceased,’ and in deed vol. 34, p. 25, he calls Abraham and Jonathan Lakin his ‘brothers.’ He always lived in Groton. As early as 1730 he was blind.[original footnote: “Court of Sessions.”] He married at Chelmsford, 4 Jan. 1685, ELIZABETH ROBERTSON (also spelled Robyson and Robinson), daughter of James and Elizabeth (Farnsworth), born at Groton 3 Oct. 1668. She was living 1 May 1753.[original footnote: “Inferior Court for 1753, Lakin v. Lakin.”] William died 18 Mar. 1735. In his later years he conveyed various lots of his extensive land holdings to certain of his children, the homestead being deeded to Thomas 12 Apr. 1733. On the same day, the latter gave a bond [original footnote: “Ibid. for 1752, Lakin v. Lakin.”] to maintain his parents while they survived, and himself to live in the same house.” Manning continues with an account of William and Elizabeth (Robertson) Lakin’s children.