USA > Connecticut > Encyclopedia of Connecticut biography, genealogical-memorial; representative citizens, v. 7 > Part 29
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(III) Deacon William (2) Wilcox, son of Samuel and Hannah Wilcox, was born in Connecticut, about 1670. He was a lifelong resident of Simsbury, where he was the owner of considerable property. He married, January 18, 1699, Elizabeth Wilson, daughter of Samuel and Mary (Griffin) Wilson, of Simsbury. They were the parents of William, mentioned below.
(IV) Deacon William (3) Wilcox, son of Deacon William (2) and Elizabeth
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(Wilson) Wilcox, was born in Simsbury, Connecticut, April 22, 1702, and died there December 27, 1772. Like his father he was a leader in religious activities, and one of the foremost citizens of the town. He married, May 2, 1723, Thanks Adams, who was probably a daughter of Daniel and Mary Adams, of Simsbury.
(V) Lieutenant William (4) Wilcox, son of Deacon William (3) and Thanks (Adams) Wilcox, was born April 1, 1728, in Simsbury, Connecticut, and settled about 1750 in West Simsbury, where he died in 1775. He was among the minute men who marched from Simsbury on the Lexington Alarm, April 19, 1775. He married Lucy Case, born October 17, 1732, died in 1805, daughter of John (3) and Abigail (Humphrey) Case, grand- daughter of John (2) Case, and great- granddaughter of John (1) Case, founder of the family.
(VI) Daniel Wilcox, son of Lieuten- ant William (4) and Lucy (Case) Wil- cox, was born in West Simsbury, March 25, 1772, and died in 1833, in Weatogue, where he spent his latter years. He mar- ried Esther Merritt, who was born on March 8, 1771, died November 10, 1860, at Weatogue. She was a daughter of James and Hannah (Phelps) Merritt, the latter a daughter of Thomas and Mar- garet (Watson) Phelps, of the ancient Windsor family of that name. Daniel and Esther (Merritt) Wilcox were the par- ents of ten sons and one daughter.
(VII) Averit Wilcox, son of Daniel and Esther (Merritt) Wilcox, was born January 25, 1793, and was a prosperous farmer of Simsbury, where he died Janu- ary 23, 1866. He married, August 21, 1821, Sally Tuller, who was born Febru- ary 10, 1799, in Simsbury, daughter of Elisha and Elizabeth (Case) Tuller.
(VIII) Elizabeth Esther Wilcox, daugh-
ter of Averit and Sally (Tuller) Wilcox, was born in Simsbury, Connecticut. She married, January 1, 1851, Seth Porter Norton, of Collinsville, Connecticut, and they were the parents of Harriet Eliza- betli Norton. (See Norton VI).
HILL, Junius Fayette,
Builder, Contractor.
Arms-Sable a fess argent between three leop- ards passant or, spotted sable. The fess is charged with three escallops gules. Supporters : Dexter a leopard gules, spotted or, ducally col- lared or. Sinister, a stag, attired gules.
Crest-A stag's head and neck, azure, attired gules, on a wreath, over a ducal coronet. Motto-Per Deum et ferrum obtinui.
The family of Hill have been well known and prominent in England since the middle of the fourteenth century, and especially eminent for their antiquity and worth, in the counties of Stafford, Devon, Somerset, and Salop. Since the time of Queen Elizabeth it has been of great note and esteem in the counties of Down and Antrim, in Ireland. The family has pro- duced in every generation soldiers, states- men and diplomats of note, and has had its chief seats in the county of Down, Hillsborough; North Alton, in Oxford- shire; and Twickenham, in the County of Middlesex.
The American branch of the family ranks among the foremost of our great Republic, holding a place of prominence in the only aristocracy which America knows-that of sterling worth and achievement. The Hill family of Con- necticut, of which the late Junius F. Hill, of Waterbury, Connecticut, was a mem- ber, traces its history through a period of two hundred and eighty years, through a line of stern and rugged patriots, who in time of need have served their country well, men who have gained notable suc-
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cesses in the professions, men of keen business intellect, and virtuous and cap- able women.
(I) William Hill, progenitor of the family in America, emigrated from Eng- land, and arrived in Boston Harbor, Massachusetts, on the ship "William and Francis," on June 5, 1632. He was a man of note, and settled with the company at Dorchester, Massachusetts. He was made a freeman of the Massachusetts Colony, November 5, 1633, and elected a select- man of Dorchester, in 1636. He received an allotment of land from the town on November 2, 1635. In 1636, or shortly afterward, he removed to Windsor, on the Connecticut river, where he was granted a home lot and set out an orchard. In 1639 he was appointed by the General Court to examine the arms and ammuni- tion of the colony. He was auditor of public accounts, and was elected deputy to the General Court from 1639 to 1641 and again in 1644. After 1644 he removed to Fairfield, Connecticut, where he lived and died, and where his last will and tes- tament is recorded in an ancient volume of the records of the "Particular Court for Fairfield County" (to be found in the Fairfield Library). In Fairfield he be- came one of the leaders of the official life of the town, serving as assistant, and later being appointed collector of customs. He was selectman in 1646. He and his son William were granted by the town home lots between Paul's Neck and Robert Turney's lot on the northeast side of Dor- chester street and Newton square. Wil- liam Hill died in 1649, as his wife is called a widow at that time in the town records. His will is dated September 9, 1649, and was admitted to probate, May 15, 1650. He bequeathed to his wife Sarah, and children : Sarah, William, mentioned be-
low; Joseph, Ignatius, James, and Eliz- abeth.
(II) William (2) Hill, son of William (1) and Sarah Hill, was born in England, and accompanied his parents to America. It is probable that he was with his father in Dorchester and Windsor, for he ac- companied him to Fairfield, where he re- ceived an allotment of land from the town. He later became one of the most promi- nent citizens of the town. He was town recorder in 1650, and continued in that office for several years. To him Roger Ludlow delivered town papers of value when he left Fairfield, in 1654. The town records show that on February 1, 1673, he received a portion of his father's estate from his father-in-law, Mr. Greenleaf, which would seem to indicate that his mother married a second time. (The term father-in-law was an equivalent of step-father of to-day). William Hill re- ceived from the town, on February 13, 1670, the Lewis lot on the northwest corner of Newton square. He died on December 19, 1684.
Mr. Hill married, at Fairfield, Connec- ticut, Elizabeth Jones, daughter of the Rev. John Jones. Their children were: William, Eliphalet, Joseph, John, of fur- ther mention ; James, and Sarah.
(III) John Hill, son of William (2) and Elizabeth (Jones) Hill, was born in Fair- field, Connecticut, and died in 1727. He married Jane -. He owned consid- erable real estate, and was prominent in the town. He later removed to New Haven.
(IV) Obadiah Hill, son of John and Jane Hill, was born in October, 1697. He married Hannah Frost, who was born in June, 1706. Their children were: I. Eunice, born March 28, 1731. 2. Sarah, born May 20, 1732. 3. Mary, born Octo- ber 5, 1733. 4. Jared, of further mention.
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There were other children, record of whom is lost.
(V) Lieutenant Jared Hill, son of Oba- diah and Hannah (Frost) Hill, was born in North Haven, Connecticut, August 10, 1736. He married Eunice Tuttle, daugh- ter of Daniel and Mary (Mansfield) Tut- tle, both descendants of pioneer colonists of New Haven. Jared Hill, the progen- itor of the Waterbury Hills, removed there with his wife in 1784, and purchased a farm on East Mountain. They were the parents of twelve children, all of whom, except Samuel, were born in North Haven. He rendered distinguished services throughout the French and In- dian War, as a private, and had the repu- tation of a good soldier. He died April 20, 1816. His wife, who was born in 1739, died December 28, 1826.
(VI) Samuel Hill, son of Lieutenant Jared and Eunice (Tuttle) Hill, was born in Waterbury, Connecticut, September 4. 1784. He was educated in the public schools of the city, and after finishing his education learned the carpenter's trade, which he followed during the summer months. He was a man of much literary ability, and a scholar, and during the win- ter months taught school in Waterbury. He was also a talented musician, and served as fife major in the Second Regi- ment from 1807 until 1818. Samuel Hill gained considerable distinction for poetic ability in Waterbury, and the surrounding country.
Mr. Hill married, October 14, 1807, Polly Brockett, daughter of Giles and Sarah (Smith) Brockett. (See Brockett VI). He died on April 26, 1834, and after his death his family removed to Naugatuck, where his wife died October 8, 1853. Both are buried in the Hill plot, in Riverside Cemetery. Their children were: I. Henry Augustus, born January
19, 1809. 2. Junius Fayette, mentioned below. 3. Sarah Maria, born April 14, 1816, died January 24, 1822. 4. Eunice Hortensia, born November 8, 1818, died April 1, 1890. 5. Ellen Maria, born June 19, 1824, died April 29, 1896, in Oneonta, New York; married, March 4, 1844, in Naugatuck, Connecticut, John Benjamin Taylor. 6. Robert Wakeman, mentioned below.
(VII) Junius Fayette Hill, son of Sam- uel and Polly (Brockett) Hill, was born in Waterbury, Connecticut, July 11. 1811. He received his educational training in the public schools of Waterbury, and upon completing his education, learned the carpenter's trade, which he followed for the remainder of his life. He later engaged in business independently, and became one of the leading builders and contractors of the city. He was a man of great business talent, and possessed great ability for organization and management. In addition to his prominence in the bus- iness world, he was also a leading figure in the political affairs of the city, always active in the interests of issues which he thought were of benefit to the community. He was nominated for the State Legis- lature on the Democratic ticket, but de- clined to accept. Mr. Hill was one of the best known and most thoroughly re- spected business men of Waterbury of the middle part of the last century, sub- stantially successful, and highly honored. He died at Naugatuck, Connecticut, March 31, 1859. He was a prominent Mason, and a member of Shepherd's Lodge, Naugatuck. He attended St. Michael's Episcopal Church in Nauga- tuck.
Mr. Hill married Elizabeth Augusta Porter, daughter of Samuel Porter, of Naugatuck, Connecticut, on May 4, 1835. She was born in Naugatuck, September
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21, 1812, and died at Waterbury, January 9, 1899. Their children were: 1. Marie Louise, unmarried, resides at Woodmont, Connecticut. 2. Ellen Augusta, married Henry Leach, and resides at Woodmont ; child: Robert Hill Leach, who married Florence Woodruff, of Milford, Connec- ticut, and they have one daughter, Sus- anne Hill Leach. Mr. Henry Leach was a native of New York City, and was edu- cated there. Later in life he removed to Waterbury, Connecticut, where he be- came a pioneer rubber merchant, and one of the leading manufacturers of the city. He died in 1907, aged sixty-two years. Mr. Leach was a member of the Masonic order, and of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and attended St. John's Episcopal Church. Mrs. Leach is a charter member of the Milicent Porter Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution. 3. Susie Elizabeth, men- tioned below. 4. Caroline Eunice, died at the age of three years. 5. Lucy Brown, married Joseph Ives Doolittle, who died in 1907. She died in May, 1914, and is survived by her two sons, Trubee J., and Clarence Lewis, who reside at Wood- mont, Connecticut.
(VII) Robert Wakeman Hill, son of Samuel and Polly (Brockett) Hill, was born in Waterbury, Connecticut, Septem- ber 20, 1828, and received his early edu- cation there. He later removed to New Haven, Connecticut, and there attended the Young Men's Institute. After com- pleting his studies there, he entered the offices of Mr. Henry Austin for the pur- pose of studying architecture. After thoroughly mastering the technicalities of his professions, he went to the State of Wisconsin, and there engaged in bus- iness in the city of Milwaukee. After several years, during which he built up a splendid career, he returned to Water-
bury, and there engaged in his work for the remainder of his life. Several of the most important public buildings of Waterbury, New Haven, Hartford, and other large cities of the State of Con- necticut, are monuments to his genius as an architect. During his lifetime he was recognized as the leader of his profes- sion in Waterbury. He was affiliated with the Republican party, but although he took a keen interest in politics he re- mained outside the circle of political in- fluence. He was a well known figure in the financial life of the city, and at the time of his death was a member of the board of directors and vice-president of the Manufacturers' Bank of Waterbury. He was also a member of several social and fraternal organizations, a founder of the Waterbury Club, and a member of the Mason Clark Commandery. He was a communicant of St. John's Episcopal Church. Robert Wakeman Hill died on July 16, 1909.
(VIII) Susie Elizabeth Hill, daughter of Junius Fayette and Elizabeth Augusta (Porter) Hill, was born in Waterbury, Connecticut. She is a resident of Water- bury, and devotes much time and atten- tion to social and public welfare in the city, supporting generously charities and benevolences of worth. Miss Hill takes a keen interest in the issues of impor- tance in the life of the city. She is a member of the Milicent Porter Chapter of the Daughters of the American Rev- olution, the Mattatuck Historical Society, and the Naturalist Club. She is also prominent in the social life of Waterbury.
(The Pierpont Line).
Arms-Argent, semée of cinquefoils, gules. A lion rampant, sable.
Crest-A fox passant proper, on a wreath. Motto-Pie repone te.
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The Pierpont family is of Norman ori- gin, antedating the Norman Conquest. The Castle of Pierrepont took its name in the time of Charlemagne from a stone bridge built to replace a ferry on the es- tate of Pierrepont, which is located in the southern part of Picardy, in the dio- cese of Laon, about six miles south of Saint Saveur, Normandy. The first lord of whom we have authentic information was Sir Hugh de Pierrepont, who flour- ished about 980 A. D. He was succeeded by his son, Sir Godfrey de Pierrepont, who was the father of Sir Godfrey de Pierrepont, who left two sons, Sir God- frey and Sir Robert de Pierrepont. This Sir Godfrey de Pierrepont was the father of Sir Ingolbrand de Pierrepont, Lord of the Castle about 1090 A. D., and ancestor of the French family of the name. Sir Robert de Pierrepont went to England in the train of William the Conqueror, and was the founder of the English family.
The seventh in descent from Sir Rob- ert de Pierrepont was Sir Henry, of Holme Pierpont, in right of his wife An- nora, daughter of Michael Manvers, Lord of Holme. A generation later Robert Pierpont was created Earl of Kingston in 1628. His last male descendant was Evelyn Pierpont, second duke of King- ston, who died in 1773. Robert, Earl of Kingston, had a younger brother, Wil- liam Pierpont, who was the father of James Pierpont, the immigrant ancestor of the American family.
(I) James Pierpont, founder of the family herein dealt with, emigrated to America with two sons: John, of further mention ; and Robert.
(II) John Pierpont, son of James Pier- pont, was born in London, England, in 1619, and came to America with his father, settling in Roxbury, Massachu- setts, now a part of Boston, where he
bought three hundred acres of land. He was a deputy to the General Court, and clied in 1682.
He married Thankful Stow. Their children were: 1. Thankful, born Novem- ber 26, 1649, died young. 2. John, born July 22, 1651, died young. 3. John, born October 28, 1652. 4. Experience, born January 4, 1655. 5. Infant, born August 3, 1657, died young. 6. James, of further mention. 7. Ebenezer, born December 21, 1661. 8. Thankful, born November 18, 1663. 9. Joseph, born April 6, 1666. 10. Benjamin, born July 26, 1668.
(III) Rev. James (2) Pierpont, son of John and Thankful (Stow) Pierpont, was born in Roxbury, Massachusetts, Janu- ary 4, 1659. He was a graduate of Har- vard College in the class of 1681, and three years later preached before the church in New Haven as a candidate. He was an able preacher, and in addition to his ability won the love and confidence of the congregation. He was ordained and settled as its pastor in 1685, and re- sided in New Haven until his death thirty years later. He was the successor of the Rev. John Davenport, and through the influence of his position in the community and the recognized value of his counsel, he was able to revive and carry out John Davenport's long cherished plan for a college in Connecticut. Through his in- fluence and efforts the original board of trustees of Yale College was organized, a charter secured, and a rector appointed. Tradition also states that he presented six of the original forty-one books which were the foundation of the College Li- brary. Mr. Pierpont has been called the "Founder of Yale." Largely through his energy and foresight, the college was es- tablished, and he guided it through the carly struggle for a firm footing. He was
Conn-7-14
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instrumental also in securing Elihu Yale's gifts.
Rev. James Pierpont was a member of the Saybrook Synod in 1708, and is said to have drawn up the articles of the fa- mous "Saybrook Platform" which aimed to promote discipline and closer fellow- ship among the churches of Connecticut. He was one of the leaders of the Synod, and was noted throughout New England for the nobility of his character and the spirituality of his life. His only publica- tion was a sermon preached in Cotton Mather's pulpit in 1712, on "Sundry False Hopes of Heaven Discovered and De- cryed."
He married (first) Abigail, granddaugh- ter of John Davenport, October 27, 1691, who died February 3, 1692. He married (second) May 30, 1694, at Hartford, Con- necticut, Sarah, daughter of Rev. Joseph Haynes ; she died October 7, 1696. He married (third) in 1698, Mary Hooker, born July 3, 1673, died November 1, 1740, daughter of Rev. Samuel Hooker, of Farmington, and a granddaughter of Rev. Thomas Hooker, of Hartford. Child of second wife: Abigail, born September 19, 1696. Children of third wife: James, born May 21, 1699; Samuel, born De- cember 30, 1700; Mary, born November 23, 1702 ; Joseph, of further mention ; Ben- jamin, born July 18, 1706, died December 17, 1706; Benjamin, born October 15, 1707, graduate of Yale College, 1726; Sarah, born January 9, 1709, married Jon- athan Edwards, the noted divine; Heze- kiah, born May 6, 1712.
Rev. James Pierpont died November 2, 1714, and is buried under the present Center Church in New Haven. A me- morial tablet in this church has upon it the chief facts of his life, the engraved arms of the Pierpont family, and the fol- lowing inscription: "His gracious gifts
and fervent piety, elegant and winning manners were devoutly spent in the serv- ice of his Lord and Master." Among the lineal descendants of James Pierpont were Jonathan Edwards, the younger, his grandson; the elder President Timothy Dwight, his great-grandson; and the younger President Timothy Dwight, late president of Yale College. His portrait, which was presented to the College, hangs in Alumni Hall.
(IV) Joseph Pierpont, son of Rev. James (2) and Mary (Hooker) Pierpont, was born in New Haven, Connecticut, October 21, 1704. He married Hannah Russell, who died in 1748. Among their children was Mary, who married, on March 13, 1756, Richard Brockett, son of Moses and Lydia Ann (Granis) Brockett (see Brockett IV). She was born Octo- ber 20, 1738, and died June 21, 1773.
(The Brockett Line).
Arms-Or, a cross patonce, sable.
Crest-A stag lodged sable, ducally gorged and lined or.
Motto-Crux mea lux.
The name of Brockett, a very old and honored one, appears very early in the records of English history, and is traced authentically to the year 1201 A. D. It is of Saxon origin, and in all probability was established in England at the time of the Saxon invasion in the seventh century, A. D. The family has always been held in high repute locally, and is connected through marriage with sev- eral of the most noble lineages in Eng- land. Several of its members fought in the Crusades, and a mark of the trend of the times, as well as of the character of the house, is found in the motto still retained in the Brockett coat-of-arms, namely, Crux mea lux-The cross my light. The Brocketts have from time to time acquired
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the following manors: Manor of Alme- shoebury, Letchworth, Rathamsted, Ayot St. Lawrence, Ayot St. Peter, Offley Mag- na, Mandlesen, Spain's Hall. Brockett Hall, the ancestral home of the family, was located in Wheathamstead, County Herts, originally described as Watam- stede, in the Domesday Book. This estate originally adjoined Hatfield, which is noted in history. In the year 1312, Brockett Hall was the meeting place of the Barons in their war against Edward II.
A tradition which has existed for two hundred years in New Haven, traces the ancestry of the progenitor of the Amer- ican Brocketts, John Brockett, to this famous English family above mentioned. John Brockett is thought to have been the eldest son of Sir John Brockett, of Brockett Hall, Hertfordshire, England, disinherited because of his sympathies with the Puritanism then gaining a strong foothold in England. Because of perse- cution of Puritanism in England and fan- ily disagreement, John Brockett came to America, in 1637.
(I) John Brockett, who is the first of that patronymic to be mentioned in rec- ords in this country, was born in Eng- land in 1609, and came to America in 1637, probably in the ship "Hector," ar- riving in Boston, June 26, 1637, in com- pany with Rev. John Davenport and Theophilus Eaton.
It is said of the little band which ac- companied the Rev. John Davenport, "They were gentlemen of wealth and character , with their servants and house- hold effects. They were for the most part from London, and had been bred to mercantile and commercial pursuits. Their coming was hailed at Boston with much joy, for they were the most opulent of the companies who had emigrated to New England." These men were un-
willing to join the Massachusetts Colony. and explored the coast of Long Island in search of a site on which to settle. They selected a tract of land near the Quin- ipiac river, the site of the present city of New Haven, and left seven of their num- ber to hold it for the winter. In the spring of the following year, the Rev. Mr. Davenport, and a company of men, among whom was John Brockett, reached the site, bought the ground from the In- dians, and set up an independent govern- ment or "Plantation Covenant," founded, as were all the early governments of New England, on a stern religious basis. They called the town which they founded, New Haven. In the early Colonial records of New England and New Haven, the name of John Brockett appears more often than any other name with the exception of Theophilus Eaton. He was a man of im- portance and influence in the civic organ- ization, and because of his ability and ex- cellent judgment was often called upon to represent the community. In the set- tling of difficulties with the Indian tribes of the neighborhood, he was appointed "one of a committee of four to investigate and advise with the Indians." He was also appointed commissioner to settle the question as to boundary lines between the Connecticut Colony at Hartford and the New Haven Colony. John Brockett was skilled and well known as a civil engineer and surveyor, and his services were often needed in the town. In June, 1639, he laid out the square which is now the cen- ter of the city of New Haven in nine equal sections, calling forth mention in the Colonial Records for the perfection of his work. Shortly thereafter the governor of New Jersey deputed John Brockett "to lay out, survey, and bound the said bounds of Elizabeth Towne (now the city of Elizabeth, New Jersey), the planting
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fields, town lots, and to lay out every particular man's proposition, according to his allotments and the directions of the Governor, for the avoiding of all contro- versies and disputes concerning the same, having had certain notice of the good experience, knowledge, skill and faithful- ness of John Brockett in the surveying and laying out of land." As a reward for his services in the above instance he was allotted a portion of land in Elizabeth, which he held until 1670, when he sold it to one Samuel Hopkins. During the time he was surveying in Elizabethtown (from December, 1667, to 1670), John Brockett lived there, and became an im- portant member of the community, and was chosen, with John Ogden, Sr., to rep- resent the town in the House of Bur- gesses.
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