USA > Connecticut > Encyclopedia of Connecticut biography, genealogical-memorial; representative citizens, v. 1 > Part 8
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57
51
ENCYCLOPEDIA OF BIOGRAPHY
lee and widow of Jeremiah Judson. Chil- dren by first marriage: I. Eunice, born April 30, 1761, married William Pendle- ton and had three daughters, one of whom, Abigail Pendleton, married Cap- tain Loudy Lafield, of Maryland. 2. Ste- phen, born March 5, 1763; a ship captain in domestic and foreign trade. 3. David, born October 28, 1764, died March 25, 1765. Children by second marriage: 4. Elizabeth, born September 4, 1767, mar- ried Sterling Edwards. 5. Huldah, born March 26, 1769, married Joseph Backus, of Bridgeport, grandson of Rev. Timothy Edwards, of East Windsor, and had several children. 6. Abijah, born Janu- ary 17, 1771, merchant captain, sailing to the East Indies, lost at sea, September 24, 1795. 7. David, born October 31, 1773, lost at sea, September 25, 1795. 8. Isaac, born October 15, 1775, sea captain and successful merchant, married Rebec- ca, daughter of Andrew Hurd, and had several children, one of whom, Catherine A. Burroughs, married Allison A. Pet- tingill, the editor then of the "Bridgeport Standard," and she gave the building for the Public Library (known as the Bur- roughs Library) to the city of Bridge- port, and also donated thirty thousand dollars to St. John's Church of Bridge- port, Burroughs Memorial Chapel, and founded Burroughs Home for unmarried women at Black Rock.
WADSWORTH, James,
Soldier of the Revolution, Legislator.
General James Wadsworth was born in Durham, Connecticut, July 6, 1730, son of James and Abigail (Penfield) Wads- worth; grandson of Colonel James and Ruth (Noyes) Wadsworth, and great- grandson of John Wadsworth, who came from England with his father, William, in 1632. Colonel James Wadsworth served as the first justice of the peace of
Durham; commanded the first artillery company of volunteers, and then the Tenth Regiment ; was speaker of the house, 1717 ; assistant, 1718-52; justice of the Su- perior Court, 1725-52, and with several others a grantee of "Esquire's Farm." He died in 1756.
General James Wadsworth was gradu- ated from Yale College, A. B., at the age of eighteen, and received the M. A. de- gree three years later. He served as lieu- tenant in the militia in 1753; took part in the Ticonderoga campaign, 1758, and was commissioned captain, 1759. He suc- ceeded his grandfather as town clerk in 1756, serving until 1786. He was a repre- sentative in the General Assembly, 1759- 85, being for two sessions a colleague of his father, and serving as speaker of the house, 1784-85 ; justice of the peace, 1762; assistant judge of the New Haven county court, 1775-78, and subsequently pre- siding justice. He made a distinguished record during the Revolution. He was a member of the Committee of Safety in 1775; and the same year was commis- sioned colonel of the Tenth Connecticut Regiment of militia; being promoted to brigadier-general in June, 1776, over the Connecticut regiments raised to reinforce Washington at New York. In the latter year he also served as a member of the committee appointed to revise the militia laws of the State. In May, 1777, he suc- ceeded David Wooster as second major- general, serving on the defence of coast towns until his resignation in May, 1779. He was a delegate to the Continental Congress, 1783-86; a member of the Ex- ecutive Council of the State, 1786-88, serving at the same time as Controller of the State and a member of the conven- tion of 1788 that ratified the United States constitution. He was the author of a map of New Haven, taken in 1748, and engraved and published in 1806. His nephews, James and William, founded
52
ENCYCLOPEDIA OF BIOGRAPHY
the town of Genesee, New York; the latter was brigadier-general of New York militia in the War of 1812. He died in Durham, Connecticut, September 22, 1817.
He was married, January 13, 1757, to Katharine, daughter of Ebenezer and Rhoda Guernsey, of Durham.
HUNTINGTON, Jedidiah,
Revolutionary Officer, Government Official.
Simon Huntington, the first of the line here under consideration of whom there is record, was a native of England, from which country he emigrated to America, accompanied by his wife, Margaret (Baret) Huntington, and children, but he died of smallpox during the journey, his body being consigned to the ocean. Their son, Deacon Simon Huntington, was born in England about 1629, died in Norwich, Connecticut, June 28, 1706. He was a large land-owner, a man of enterprise, and represented Norwich at the General Court in 1674 and 1685. He married Sarah Clark. Their son, Deacon Simon Huntington, was born in Saybrook, Feb- ruary 6, 1659, died November 2, 1736. He filled many of the important offices of the town of Norwich. He married Lydia Gager. Their son, Joshua Huntington, was born in Norwich, December 30, 1698, died August 26, 1745. He was a man of enterprise and ability, and laid the foun- dation for the future wealth of the family. He married Hannah Perkins. Their son, General Jabez Huntington, born August 7, 1719, graduated from Yale College in 1741 ; was elected a member of the Gen- eral Assembly of Connecticut in 1750; represented his native town in that body for many years, and frequently acted as presiding officer of the lower house; he engaged in the West India trade and amassed a large fortune. He was a mem-
ber of the Committee of safety during the Revolutionary War; was appointed one of the two major-generals of Connec- ticut militia in 1776; and upon the death of David Wooster, the other appointee, was appointed major-general over the entire militia of Connecticut. He mar- ried (first) Elizabeth Backus, and (sec- ond) Hannah Williams.
General Jedidiah Huntington, son of General Jabez and Elizabeth (Backus) Huntington, was born at Norwich, Con- necticut, August 4, 1743, and died Sep- tember 25, 1818, at New London, where his remains were at first interred, but later removed to the family tomb at Nor- wich. He was graduated from Harvard College with honor in 1763, and Yale Col- lege conferred the degree of Master of Arts upon him in 1770. Upon the conclu- sion of his studies, he became associated with his father in the latter's mercantile enterprises until the beginning of the Revolutionary War. His military record is so closely and so brilliantly interwoven with the history of this struggle that a record of one is practically a record of the other. In April, 1775, he entered the army with the rank of captain. He was especially recommended for promotion by General Washington, and was com- missioned brigadier-general in May, 1777; his military service was in Pennsylvania and New York. In 1778 he was a mem- ber of the court-martial that tried Gen- eral Charles Lee; and in 1780 of the court that tried and sentenced to death the illfated Major Andre he was brevetted major-general in 1783. He was a member of the committee which drafted a plan of organization resulting in the constitution of the Society of the Cin- cinnati. Upon his return to Norwich, General Huntington resumed his busi- ness operations, was chosen sheriff of the county, treasurer of the State, and dele-
53
ENCYCLOPEDIA OF BIOGRAPHY
gate to the convention which adopted the constitution of the United States. In 1789 he was appointed by President Washington Collector of Customs of New London, retained this office under four administrations, and resigned a short time prior to his death. He made a pub- lic profession of religion when twenty- three years of age, and throughout his life was a most active supporter of the in- terests of the church.
General Huntington married (first) Faith, daughter of Governor Jonathan and Faith (Robinson) Trumbull. She died at Dedham, Massachusetts, on her way to camp, December, 1775, leaving one son. He married (second) Ann, daughter of Thomas Moore, who was the mother of seven children, and survived her husband.
JOHNSON, William S., Lawyer, Strong Public Character.
William Samuel Johnson was born at Stratford, Connecticut, October 7, 1727, son of the Rev. Samuel and Charity Floyd (Nicoll) Johnson, and grandson of Colo- nel Richard Floyd, of Brookhaven, Long Island. He was prepared for college by his illustrious father, entered Yale Col- lege and was graduated therefrom with the degree of Bachelor of Arts in the class of 1744, and though but seventeen years old at the time of his graduation, he was elected a "scholar of the house" under the bounty of Dean Berkeley. In 1747 he received the degree of Master of Arts from the same institution. After his graduation he pursued his theological studies at home, but deciding to become a lawyer, he became a student at Harvard College, where he pursued a course of lec- tures, and from which institution he re- ceived the degree of Master of Arts. He continued his studies on a large and
liberal scale of his own devising, and in due course of time became an eminent lawyer, being frequently chosen as coun- sel in the religious controversies which were at that time unfortunately forced upon churchmen in different parts of the colony. He was elected in 1761 to repre- sent the town of Stratford, in the Lower House of the General Assembly, and four years later was reëlected for two sessions, and took his seat in the Upper House. He was also appointed a delegate from Connecticut to the stamp act congress, which convened in New York City in October, 1765. He was elected to the Upper House again in 1766, and ap- pointed a special envoy to the court of Great Britain to present the claims of Connecticut to the title of a large tract of land in possession of the Mohican Indians, which was claimed by the heirs of Lieu- tenant-Governor Mason for services he had rendered to the Indians as their agent. Dr. Johnson accepted the mis- sion, but met with innumerable delays, and not until June 11, 1771, was he able to finally settle the case, which was done in favor of the colony. Upon his return to this country in 1771, he resumed his seat in the House the following year. In October, 1772, he was appointed one of the judges of the Superior Court of Con- necticut, but resigned after occupying the position for a few months. At the ter- mination of the Revolutionary War he resumed his law practice, and soon after peace was concluded, was reinstated in his position as a member of the Upper House of the General Assembly. In 1774 he was a delegate to the Continental Con- gress to assemble at Philadelphia, but he was excused from service in Congress, having been chosen an arbitrator of the Van Rensselaer estate dispute. He was a member of the State Council, 1780-82, and was counsel for the State in the con-
54
ENCYCLOPEDIA OF BIOGRAPHY
troversy with Pennsylvania relative to the Ohio lands; a delegate to the Conti- nental Congress, 1784-87; a delegate to the Constitutional Convention of 1787; member of the committee of five which was appointed to frame a federal consti- tution and "to devise such further pro- visions as were necessary to make the constitution of the Federal government adequate to the demands of the United States ; he served as chairman of the com- mittee, and among other measures he proposed was that of forming the Senate into a separate body ; in 1788 was one of the three counsellors for Connecticut in the celebrated trial known as the Sus- quehanna case; and a United States sen- ator from Connecticut, 1789-91, resigning his seat in March, 1791, and being suc- ceeded by Roger Sherman.
Dr. Johnson was appointed president of Columbia College, New York City, May 21, 1787, and thus became the first head of the institution under the new charter, as his father had been of King's under the royal charter. The college had tallen into decay during the Revolution- ary War, the regular course of instruc- tion had been suspended, and its reorgani- zation demanded the energies of a thor- oughly efficient man, a man of Dr. John- son's calibre. When he assumed the office there were thirty-nine students in the college, nearly half of whom were freshmen. There were no faculties of law and divinity, and the faculties of arts and medicine consisted of three profes- sors each. In 1792, the medical school was established on a broader basis, and other improvements subsequently made. Dr. Johnson resigned this office, July 16, 1800, and returned to his home at Strat- ford, where he lived in retirement. He was a trustee of Columbia College, 1788- 1800, and received the honorary degree of A. M. from Columbia and Harvard in
1747, J. C. D. from Oxford in 1766, and LL. D. from Yale in 1788, being the first graduate of the last named college to re- ceive the honorary degree in laws, as his father was first to receive the honorary degree in divinity. With Oliver Ells- worth he framed the judiciary system of the United States, as adopted by Con- gress, and his letters from England were published by the Massachusetts Histori- cal Society in the "Trumbull Papers." He left some valuable contributions to literature. The following letter from Governor Huntington, in accepting the letter of resignation of Dr. Johnson from the Senate, shows the esteem in which he was held: "I am sorry that Connecticut and the Union should be deprived of so able a councillor in that honorable body ; but must believe on due deliberation you have discovered reasons sufficient to jus- tify the measure you have adopted, and am satisfied that you will not fail, as opportunities shall offer to promote the happiness and prosperity of this State." The following is also among the tributes paid to him: "He had a keen perception of what he dwelt upon in his public ad- dresses to the graduating classes of Col- umbia College, that the first duty of man is owed to heaven, to his Creator, and Redeemer, and he practiced that duty in all the posts of honor and responsibility which he was called to fill. He was on this account more noble. For a Christian statesman is the glory of the age, and the memory of his deeds and virtues will re- flect a light coming from a source which neither clouds can dim, nor shadows ob- scure." Dr. Johnson died in Stratford, Connecticut, November 14, 1819.
ROOT, Jesse,
Patriot, Jurist.
Jesse Root was born in Coventry, Con- necticut, December 28, 1737 (or January,
55
ENCYCLOPEDIA OF BIOGRAPHY
1737), son of Ebenezer and Sarah (Strong) Root, and grandson of Thomas Root, of Northampton.
He was graduated from the College of New Jersey, A. B., in 1756, and received the A. M. degree in 1759. He studied theology under Rev. Dr. Samuel Lock- wood, of Andover, and preached for two or three years, then leaving the ministry for financial reasons. He then studied law, and was admitted to the Connecticut bar in 1763, and established himself in practice at Hartford, Connecticut. He was an ardent patriot, and by his in- dividual notes, aided to secure funds for the expedition against Ticonderoga. In 1776 he organized a company of volun- teers at Hartford, receiving commission as captain dated December 31 ; was made lieutenant-colonel, shortly after joined General Washington's army at Peekskill, New York, and was subsequently made adjutant-general. He was a delegate to the Continental Congress, 1778-83; a representative in the State Legislature ; State Attorney, 1785-89; judge of the Superior Court in 1789; and was Chief Justice of Connecticut from 1796 until his resignation in 1807. While occupying this position he received the degree of LL. D. from Yale College. He delivered the address of welcome when General Washington visited Hartford in 1790. For many years he was a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and of the Connecticut Academy of Arts and Sciences. The honorary degree of A. M. was conferred upon him by Yale College in 1766. He was the author of : "Reports of Cases, Adjudged in the Courts of Errors of Connecticut (2 vols., 1798-1802).
He was married, in 1758, to Mary Banks, of Newark, New Jersey. He died in Coventry, Connecticut, March 29, 1822.
WALDO, Daniel,
Chaplain, Centenarian.
Daniel Waldo, nearly the last if not the very last survivor of the soldiers of the Revolution, and remarkable for his activ- ities as a centenarian, was the ninth in a family of twelve children of Zacheus Waldo, and grandson of Deacon Edward Waldo. He was born in Scotland Parish, Windham, Connecticut, September 10, 1762. His mother was Tabitha, daughter of Joseph Kingsbury, of Norwich. He was brought up on his father's farm and obtained his early schooling in his native town. In April, 1779, he was drafted into a company of Connecticut militia and, being taken prisoner in December follow- ing, was detained for two months in the "Sugar House" in New York City. After his release he returned to his father's place and labored diligently thereon until he was about twenty years old, when he determined to become a minister, and as preliminary thereto to compass a liberal education. He was prepared for college by Rev. Dr. Charles Backus, of Somers, and was graduated from Yale in 1788. He then studied theology with the Rev. Dr. Levi Hart, of Preston, and was licensed to preach by the Windham Association of Ministers, October 13, 1789.
After preaching for brief periods in sev- eral Connecticut pulpits and pursuing fur- ther theological studies with the Rev. Dr. Nathan Perkins, of West Hartford, he was ordained, May 23, 1792, as pastor of the Congregational church in West Suf- field, where he remained in charge until December, 1809, although for a portion of the time absent in missionary service. Withdrawing from West Suffield he en- gaged in various clerical labors for the ensuing two years at Westminster and Salem., Connecticut, and Cambridgeport,
56
ENCYCLOPEDIA OF BIOGRAPHY
Massachusetts. He next went, under the patronage of the Evangelical Missionary Society, to Rhode Island, wherein he served until 1820. In September, 1823, he became the pastor of the Congrega- tional church in Exeter, a parish of Leb- anon, Connecticut, where he continued until 1834, when he resigned mainly on account of the inability of the parish to support him. Although, as a preacher, "Father" Waldo, as he was called many years, was not especially eloquent, he was luminous, direct and eminently practical, as he was greatly beloved in every place where he was stationed.
In 1835 he followed one of his sons to a farm in Wayne county, New York, and his residence continued in this State until his death, nearly thirty years later. He was not again settled over a church, but was employed as supply in various places, and from 1843 until 1846 acted as a mis- sionary in connection with the Presby- terian communion in Cayuga county. Late in 1846 he removed to Geddes, then a suburb of Syracuse, but now incorpor- ated therein, and ten years later settled in the city. In December, 1856, at the in- stance of the Hon. Amos P. Granger, then representing the twenty-fourth district, he was at the age of ninety-four chosen chaplain of the House of Representatives at Washington and was reelected the en- suing year. Even at his advanced age he performed his duties earnestly and effi- ciently, and was highly regarded by the House. It is not on record that any legis- lative body has been served spiritually by one whose years numbered nearly a cen- tury, and who still retained his faculties unimpaired, and about whom lingered the respect for one who had fought for the in- dependence of the republic. He preached the Word after he had entered his one hundred and second year, delivering a notable sermon in Jordan. He was a
familiar figure in the streets of Syracuse, frail but not feeble, with eyes still bright, with agile step and cheery greeting, and enjoyed comfortable health until early in July, 1864, he fell down stairs at his home and died from the shock on the thirtieth day of the month, being one hundred and one years ten months and twenty days old. An engraving in the "Waldo Gene- alogy" represents him in extreme old age.
He married, September 14, 1795, in Suf- field, Connecticut, Nancy, daughter of Captain Oliver and Rachel (Gilbert) Han- chett, who died in Syracuse in 1855, hav- ing been afflicted with derangement of the mind for nearly fifty years. Their chil- dren were five sons, the eldest of whom was graduated from Harvard College in 1818, and died while studying theology. The other sons survived their father.
SMITH, Nathaniel,
Member of Congress and Jurist.
Richard Smith settled in Judea Society, Woodbury, Connecticut, about 1750. The "History of Woodbury" says he probably came from Lyme, Connecticut. A con- siderable family of Smiths was located in the adjoining town of Haddam and judg- ing from the similarity of the personal names he belonged to that branch. He was born in 1731, and died January 20, 1807, aged seventy-six, in Roxbury Soci- ety, Woodbury. He married Annis, daughter of Nathan Hurd, and grand- daughter of Benjamin Hinman, of Wood- bury ; she died April 18, 1808, aged sev- enty-five years. Many of their descend- ants have been distinguished men.
Hon. Nathaniel Smith, son of Richard Smith, was born at Woodbury, Connecti- cut, January 6, 1762. His father was poor and frequently moved ; his opportunities for schooling were few, and at an early age he had to work for his living. Both
57
ENCYCLOPEDIA OF BIOGRAPHY
he and his brother became traveling mer- chants, peddling their wares all the way from Philadelphia to Northern Vermont. On one occasion, it is related, they started from Philadelphia by different routes, agreeing to meet at the court house at Rutland, Vermont, on a certain day. Na- thaniel arrived first, and while he waited listened to the trial of a case in court. On meeting his brother he told him about the case, saying that it was not well man- aged by either lawyer, and declaring his intention to study law. This was the turning point of his life. He applied to Judge Reeve for admission to his office as a law student. Notwithstanding his lack of education he made such rapid progress in reading law that within a period short of what was allowed by the rules of the bar, in consequence of the representations of his instructor and the favorable opinion in which he was held by lawyers whom he had met, he was admitted to the bar, in 1787. He immediately began to prac- ti e in Woodbury and continued to reside there until his death, March 9, 1822.
Almost immediately after entering upon the practice of his profession, he rose to eminence in it. Some of his first arguments were masterly forensic efforts. At that period the bar of Litchfield was second to none in the State. It was furnished with a large number of men of distinguished ability. Notwithstanding this com- petition he soon found himself favored with a large and successful practice, and rose more rapidly to the higher grades of his profession than perhaps any other man before him. His powers of thought and elocution gave him almost unlimited dominion over his audience. When- ever he spoke there was a breathless silence. All eyes were upon him and all ears heard. In October, 1789, less than two years after his removal to this town, he was elected a member of the General Assembly, and was reelected four times previous to 1795. By this means an oppor- tunity was afforded him of becoming more gen- erally and widely known. In the house he was a distinguished member and took a leading part in the deliberations. To him this State is in- debted in no inconsiderable degree, for some of
the leading measures of those times. Among these may be mentioned the gradual extinction of slavery, and the permanent system of common school education, connected with the disposal of public lands belonging to the State. In the year 1795 Yale College bestowed upon him the honorary degree of master of arts. In the same year he was elected a member of the Congress of the United States, in which office he served four years, when he declined a second reelection. * * * He particularly distinguished himself in the discussions in the house, relating to the ratification of the British treaty.
On his making known his intention to decline a third election to Congress, in the fall of 1798, he was elected to the council, or upper house of the state legislature, and served in that body from his return from Philadelphia, in 1800, until May, 1805. He was elected a judge of the Supreme Court in October, 1806, and filled that great judicial office with distinguished ability and impartiality. He left the bench in 1819 with a high and unsullied reputation, followed by the regrets of his fellow-citizens, even of those whose political opinions did not accord with his own. Together with Chancellor Kent and a distinguished divine of New Hampshire, he served on the committee to establish a new site for Williams College. He died March 9, 1822.
He married Ruth Benedict, born Janu- ary 20, 1767, daughter of Rev. Noah Bene- dict. She died June 30, 1845.
Hon. Nathan Smith, brother of Hon. Nathaniel Smith, was born January 8, 1769, in Roxbury Parish, Woodbury, Connecticut, in an old house that for- merly stood nearly opposite the dwelling house of Ezekiel Beardsley. During his youth he worked at farming and various other occupations, and had but little schooling. After his brother Nathaniel had begun to practice, he was naturally ambitious also to study law, and he be- gan to read in his brother's office, com- pleting his legal education in the office of Judge Reeve. In due time he was admit- ted to the bar of Litchfield county, and immediately afterward began to practice at New Haven. Slowly but surely he won his way to the highest professional eminence. He mastered the subjects
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.