USA > Connecticut > New Haven County > New Haven > Families of ancient New Haven, Vol. III > Part 39
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ADEE. This name may have been originally Eddy, and the first William of this family may possibly have been son of William and Hannah (Smith) Eddy of Bristol, R. I. (Page 12). FAM. 1, 1. The will of the second Wil- liam made his brother Lemuel Hotchkiss, Executor. His wife Sarah was therefore da. Caleb Hotclikiss, b 12 Nov 1731 (see p. 800). The son Caleb Adee chose his father-in-law Dea. Gideon Stoddard for guardian 1 Oct 1771. This proves that William's widow mn (2) Gideon Stoddard. [Con- tributed by Mr. Horace W. Dickerman, New Haven.]
ALLING. (Page 19). FAM. 5, 6. Samuel's 2d w. was Mary da. William & Abigail (Crampton) Ward, wid. Abijalı Waterliouse. Their da .: vi Mary, b c. 1771, d 17 Aug 1848; m (1) 11 Nov 1790 Zerah Munson, b 20 July 1768, d 14 Sep 1822; m1 (2) Jesse Scovill of P.
(Page 24). FAM. 9, 7, x. Jesse mn Saralı Gorham, not Graham. She was Sarah da. John & Susanna (Gilbert) Gorham, wid. Jared Munson. (p. 677.) xi. Elizabethı in Benjamin (not Thomas) Mix. The "Alling Genealogy," p. 229, erroneously states that slie d unm. Proof of her marriage has re- cently been found among old papers of the Alling family. [Contributed by Mr. Edward B. Alling, Orange City, Fla.]
(Page 30). FAM. 14, 4. Hezekialı m Hannalı Fitch; children were Fitch, b c. 1755, d 18 Nov 1777 æ. 23 NHT1, x. 22 NHCI ; Laura, m Josialı Stebbins; & Hannalı, b c. 1759, d 1833, m Timothy Higgins (1755-1829) of M, My & Wol. [Not positively proved, but worked together from several family sources & believed to be correct].
BEECHER. (Page 171). FAM. 6, 4, iv. Justus, b 20 May 1763 (at C) F, d 1852 (Union, N. Y.) F. [Contributed by Mr. E. Stanley Welles, Newing- ton.]
BRINTNALL. (Page 308). William m 19 Dec 1729 Zerviah Buckminster of Framingham. See Bailey's Early Mass. marriages, Book III, p. 89. They had also a da. Lucy who m Stephen Miles. [Contributed by Mr. Wm. Molthrop Stark, New London.]
BROWN. Old document, probably mostly in handwriting of Francis
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ADDITIONS AND CORRECTIONS
Brown, gives more complete dates of FAM. 12 (p. 354) than we had from public records. The records follow (courtesy of Mr. Cleveland J. Rice, New Haven). Francis, b 6 July 1743; Hannah, b 8 Sep 1743; m 1 Jan 1767. Francis d 5 July 1810 æ. 67. (Births of children). Isaac, 24 Oct 1767; Sal- ly, 3 Dec 1769; Francis, 9 Apr 1772; Hannah, 15 Aug 1774; Wheeler, 21 Aug 1779; Harriet, 7 Dec 1781; Nancy, 18 July 1785. "Age of grandchildren." Little Francis (of Francis) 14 Jan 1799; Maria (of Francis) 13 May 1796; Lit- tle Harriot (of Wheeler) 19 Mar 1803. (Deatlıs). Isaac, 21 Nov 1788; Harriot, 16 May 1794 æ. 12-6; Francis, 28 Nov 1802 æ. 30-7; Wheeler, 23 July 1803 æ. 24; Hannalı, 11 Oct 1810 æ. 36.
BUNNELL. (Page 359). It was hypothetically stated in brackets that Na- thaniel's da. Lydia m Ephraim Price. Various N. J. publications state that Lydia prob. m Samuel Little & that her sister Jane prob. mi Epliraini Price. [Contributed by Mrs. C. W. Nichols, New Britain.]
COOK. (Page 445). FAM. 10, 8, ii. William enlisted in the Rev. War at age of 14 & served 6 years; became a Dr. & rem. to Durham, N. Y., where he d 25 May 1846; mi Mary Whittlesey, b 9 Apr 1761, d 17 Oct 1836. Child- ren: 1 Major, b 1790, d young. 2 Polly, b 1793. 3 William Augustus, b 1797. 4 Samuel W. D., b 1798. 5 George H., b 1801. 6 Alexander, b 1804. 7 Andrew H., b 1805. [Contributed by Mrs. M. E. Rockwell, Meri- den.]
(Page 447). FAM. 14, 6. Aaron's wife Was not wid. Samuel Way; it was her cousin, another Betsey Preston, who m Samuel Way.
DAYTON. (Page 529). FAM. 3, 5. Samuel b 1750, not 1751.
FORBES. (Page 610). FAM. 2, 5, ii. Omit John's date of marriage to second wife. The date has not been found.
FORD. (Page 616). FAM. 7, 2. Ellard had in addition to the children listed a s. Lewis Hart, b 17 May 1799, d 29 Nov 1879 at Belfast, N. Y .; 11 23 Dec 1823 (at Belfast) Deboralı da. Nathaniel & Margaret (MacElwayne) Reynolds, who d 1885. They had children: 1 Darius Reynolds, b Oct 1824. 2 Lucinda, b 25 Feb 1826. 3 Lewis, b 28 Oct 1827. 4 Emeline, b 27 Mar 1830. 5 Charles L., b 30 Aug 1833. 6 Sidney Allen, b 12 Nov 1837. 7 Hester, b 21 July 1840. 8 Robert Wilmer, b 21 Oct 1845. 9 Willis El- lard, b 22 Feb 1850; res. Utica, N. V. [Contributed by Mrs. Frederick R. Ford, Utica, N. Y.]
GILBERT. (Page 646). FAM. 3, ii. Abraham's wid. Abigail d at Chester, Oliio Jan 1837. (Page 654). FAM. 17. Family sources give Abraham two more sons, Jared & Wyllys. Merritt d 6 Nov 1854 æ. 74 TollandT; his w. Phebe Ann d 9 Dec 1823 æ. 43; Aurelia his second w. d 23 Apr 1871 x. 90. Wyllys lived in Tolland until 1837 or later. Joel, b 3 Oct 1789 F, d at Chester, Olio, 27 Mar 1852; 111 (1) 28 Feb 1813 Lucy S. Hall, b 28 Aug 1787, d 29 Apr 1816; m11 (2) 16 Dec 1816 Arisilda Crocker, b 18 May 1786, d 13 Feb 1835; m (3) 25 Sep 1835 Naomi Whitmore, b 10 May 1802, d 3 July 1884. Children of Joel by Ist w .: Norton, Lncy S .; by 2nd w .: Alınan, Martha J., Arisilda, Sabrina, Saralı, J. Dwight, Miles Bradley, Lauren & Warren; by 3rd w .: Clarinda R., Mary R., Abigail R., Charlotte, Darius, Martha, & Freeman. (Contributed by Homer W. Brainard, Esq., of Hartford).
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ADDITIONS AND CORRECTIONS
GLOVER. Mr. Herbert E. Thayer, 32 Sunapee St., Springfield, Mass., kindly contributes the following from Hampden County Real Estate Rec- ords, vol. A, p. 25: a conveyance dated 8 Nov 1662 from Ensign Thomas Cooper of Springfield to "his brother Henry Glover of New Haven" of one quarter of lands at Worronoco granted by the town of Springfield to En- sign Cooper. Sarah the w. of Ens. Thomas Cooper consented to the sale . Now who can tell us: did Thomas Cooper marry a sister of Henry Glover? And was Jolin Cooper of New Haven brother of Thomas Cooper of Springfield?
GOLDSMITH. (Page 663). Ephraim's w. was wid. Jonathan Atwater, not Beach; an overlooked clerical error. [Corrected by Mr. Alfred H. Beach, Casper, Wyo.]
GORHAM. (Page 675). FAM. 1, 3, ix. Elias d May 1811 æ. 46 ConnH.
(Page 677). FAM. 4, 4. Sarah m (2) Jesse Alling (see Alling above & p. 24).
GREEN. (Page 688). FAM. 2. A letter written by Miss Lucy Davis But- ler, a grandaughter of Samuel Green, states that Samuel was b 4 Dec 1744, mn 25 Oct 1774 Abigail Buel, b 14 June 1749; they had 4 children : 1 Abigail, b 18 Sep 1779, d 6 July 1783. 2 Elizabethi, b 20 Apr 1782, d 7 May 1794. 3 Abigail Elizabeth, b 30 June 1785, in Aaron Forbes & had a da. Abigail Green Forbes. 4 Rebecca, b 1 Oct 1788, 1 7 Oct 1806 Henry Butler. [Con- tributed by Mrs. Elizabeth French Bartlett of Boston, Mass.] From this it appears that Abigail Hall was not w. of Samuel Green. She may have been the 2nd w. of Thomas Green, brother of Sammuel; it is certain she m a Green.
HAWES. BETHIA of M had a nat. child b 1658, of whose paternity she ac- cused Jolin Baldwin, but he was ably defended and not convicted. Bethia m 31 Oct 1660 MV-Obed Seward .. ELIZABETH In 1 Apr 1675 NHV- Nathaniel Potter. In the printed New Haven Vital Records, Elizabeth's name is given as Howes (a variant of How), and on p. 658 we followed this by giving it as How; but we believe Hawes to be the correct reading.
HEATON. (Page 725). James, b c. 1633, not 1642. "The Street Geneal- ogy", p. 8, states that he d 1712 æ. 70, and this erroneous statement we corrected to æ. 79, but neglected to alter the birth date to correspond. He first bought land 1654, and must then have been of age.
(Page 728). FAM. 5, 1 ., Jacob removed, to New York, N. Y., where he had a second w. and family. By his first w., Sarah Hemingway, he was father of Samuel Eaton, b 17 May 1772, d at Madison, N. Y., 20 June 1842, mn Grace (Smith) Allen, b 4 Aug 1771, d 10 Sep 1848. This was the Sam- uel named in the will of his grandfather Seth, and not a child of Philemon. [Contributed by Mrs. Jewett of Buffalo, only great-grandchild of Samuel].
(Page 730). FAM. 11, 1. Isaac, b 12 Nov 1793, d 10 May 1866; m (1) 18 May 1819 Jane Ann Kelly, who d Sep 1843; m (2) Eunice Bush; lived in Spencer, Owen Co., Ind., had 12 children. Charles Dennis, s. of his bro- ther Julius, m Maria Foot and had a s. Julius who m Olivia Linsley and had 4 children. Merab Rosette m Chauncey Blakeslee, b 4 Apr 1825, d 16 Feb 1875. Susan Cirilla (p. 731) d 14 Oct 1925; m John E. (not Marshall)
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ADDITIONS AND CORRECTIONS
Brockett, b 1828, d 1910. [Contributed by Mrs. H. Nelson Stiles, North Haven.]
HODGE. (Page 782). FAM. 2, 3. Benjamin & Eliphal had also a da. Sa- rahı, b 13 Dec 1790; m Sammel Burwell.
HOLT. (Page 784). FAM. 1, 4. Eleazer's second w. Mary (Sanford) (Ash- burn) Hotchkiss d 26 Aug 1750 MV. (Page 790). FAM. 7, 4, iv. Edward, b 17 Aug 1806 (at EH) F, d 12 Mar 1900 F; m 28 Sep 1836 F-Mehitabel, ua. David & Martha (Hine) Clark, b 20 Oct 1818 (at M) F, d 24 Nov 1900 F.
[Contributed by George C. Bryant, Esq., Ansonia.]
HOTCHKISS. (Page 800). FAM. 3, 2, ili. Sarah m (1) William Adee; m (2) Dea. Gideon Stoddard.
(Page 809). FAM. 9, 7, iv. Esther in Jacob (not Abner) Johnson.
(Page 812). FAM. 12, 3, vi. Cyrus m Catherine da. William & Eunice (Baldwin) Fowler, b 1 Feb 1780 OC.
(Page 832). FAM. 45. Some of the grandchildren of Elias are misplac- ed. Ransom, Lauren, & Rebecca were certainly children of Seymour, & Maria probably was. Rebecca m 14 Mar 1838 Alonzo Sperry of Bethany. Seymour also had da. Mabel Beecher (1828-1857) who m Chauncey S. Mor- ris. Sheldon, the other s. of Elias, was father of Soplironia & Atlanta. Sophronia m 22 Nov 1826 NHV-Daniel Merrill; Atlanta i11 18 Nov 1828 N HV-Dorus Clark.
['The following notes contributed by Clarence D. Smith, Rome, N. Y.] (Page 799). FAM. 2, 5, iv. Robert, Census (Southold, L. 1.) 2-0-3, should read (Freehold, N. Y.), the former name for the present town of New Dur- liam. This census evidently refers to Robert FAM. 19, 1 (p. 818), who was an early settler in Freehold. If this is the same Robert who appears in Census (C) 2-0-2, he must have rem. to Freehold in time to get into the census there, with one more in his family. A Samuel also appears in Free- hold Census 1-2-2, identical with Samnel (p. 818) FAM. 18, 3. George (p. 818, FAM. 19, 7) res. in Freehold & had s. called Robert jr.
(Page 827). FAM. 37, 10. Henry, b 9 Ang 1785, d 1870: m Sarah Coch- ran, who d 1874 æ. 87; had issue; res. Durham, N. Y.
(Page 835). FAM. 53, 7. Charles Todd Hotchkiss, according to Cort- land, N. Y. Probate records d there 1812 leaving no children, his father David being the only heir. Calvin, listed as his s. who rem. to Homer, was s. of Enoch & Lois (Wolcott) Hotclikiss, (p. 845), both of whom reni. to Pontiac, Mich. Enoch appears 1796/7 in Homer, locating on Lot 76. Two other children of Enoch have been identified, viz .: Charles, b c. 1784, d 20 Oct 1868 æ. 84 (Virgil, N. Y.); had issue; & Rhoda, who m 1809 Tril- man Doud.
(Page 845). Henry Hotclikiss, b 24 Sep 1770, d 4 Oct 1843, s. of Amuos (p. 802, FAM. 4, 1, viii), & Desire (Doud); m 13 Oct 1793 Eliza Tuttle da. Samuel & Hephsibah (Collins) Barnes, b 7 Mar 1770 EHR, d 25 Sep 1850. Children: (1) Polly, b 27 Jan 1795, d 1870; m Angustus Crittenden. (2) Henry Collins, b 16 Ang 1796, d 14 Feb 1840; m 1818 Hannalı L. Richards. (3) Lyman Morris, b 14 Nov 1798, d 5 July 1875; in 15 May 1828 An (Shel- ley) Richards. (4) Eliza, b 27 Nov 1800, d 16 Mar 1878; in Simeon Leete.
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ADDITIONS AND CORRECTIONS
(5) Henrietta, b 4 Feb 1805, d 21 Nov 1868; m Henry Benedict. (6) Sally, b 12 July 1807, d 13 Dec 1868; m Jonathan Morse. (7) Amos Samuel, b 9 Sep 1810, d 1893; m (1) 10 Apr 1831 Mary M. da. Merritt Mix of NH, b 4 July 1805, d 14 Aug 1866; m (2) 12 July 1871 Laura S. Hawkins.
Moses Hotchkiss, b "somewhere near New Haven" 1774, d 8 Dec 1838 (at Bergen, Genesee Co., N. Y.); in Lucy Griswold, b 17 Aug 1780, d 20 Dec 1836; rem. to Greene Co., N. Y., thence to Genesee Co. in 1817. Chil- dren (order uncertain) were: (1) Thomas; rem. to California. (2) Ezekiel, rem. to Homer, N. Y., thence to Pa .; had a large family. (3) Sterling, b in Conn. 1803; rem. to Bergen, N. Y., 1817; m there 27 Apr 1826 Anna da. Aaron & Polly (Allen) Jacobs. (4) Edward; rem. to Monroe, Miclı. (5) George; m & rem. to Ind. (6) Hiram (youngest s.) b 9 Dec 1815, d 11 Jan 1848; m 10 Dec 1840 Lucy Sawins; res. Genesee Co., N. Y. (7) Katie. (8) Flinda. (9) Harriet. (10) Eunice; m - Hitchins; rem. to Michigan. (11) Sally. (12) Nancy; m (1) - - Curtiss; m (2) - - Drew. (13) Mary. This Moses has been confused with Moses FAM. 66, 2 (p. 840), but exhaustive research convinces us they are not identical.
James T. Hotchkiss, from Woodbridge, Ct., located on Lot 54, Homer, N. Y. in 1803. Affidavit in Cortland Co. Probate Court gives date of death 1813, in U. S. Military service, no age given. Heirs were: Mary, James P., & Erwin P. Hotchkiss.
Who can connect Enoch, Moses, & James T., with their Connecticut ancestry?
BEECHER BIBLE RECORDS
The family of Abraham Beecher, given incompletely on p. 179 (FAM. 25), is given in the family Bible, the record being furnished by his des- cendant, Mrs. Mignonette M. Riker, of Flanders, N. J. Abraham Beecher, b at Woodbridge, Ct., 17 Sep 1745, d at Sharon, Ct., 11 Oct 1823. Desire Tolles, b at Woodbridge, 12 Sep 1745, d at Sharon, 10 June 1812. They were m at Woodbridge, 28 Apr 1768. Children:
1 Philemon, b at Woodbridge, 19 Mar 1769, d at Oxford, 28 May 1774.
2 Abraham, b at Oxford, 20 June 1771, d at Northampton, Fulton Co., N. Y., 27 Aug 1845.
3 Amos, bat Oxford, 12 Sep 1773, d at Litchfield, 18 Dec 1819.
4 Philemon, b at Oxford, 19 Mar 1776.
5 Eli, b at Oxford, 22 Jan 1778.
6 Betsey, b at Oxford, 6 Jan 1780.
7 Fanny, b at Oxford, 22 Feb 1782, d at Sharon, 26 Apr 1803.
8 Isaac, b at Kent, 22 Nov 1783.
9 Jesse, b at Kent, 7 Jan 1785.
10 Robert Ransom, b at Kent, 12 Dec 1789,
Abraham Beecher Jr. m 23 Apr 1792 Lydia Day Fuller, b 9 July 1770. Children :
1 Leman, b 12 Feb 1793.
2 Desire, b 24 July 1794.
3 Truman, b 18 June 1796.
4 Betsey, b 1 Apr 1798.
5 Lydia Day, b 12 Sep 1800.
6 Abraham, b 2 Sep 1802, d 29 Oct 1803.
7 Abraham Fuller, b 11 Feb 1805.
8 Laura, b 11 Apr 1807.
9 Philemon Tolles, b 29 Aug 1809.
Laura Beecher, b 11 Apr 1807, d 4 Feb 1884; m 14 May 1828, Langdon Ithiel Marvin, b 20 June 1805, d 31 Jan 1869. Children: 1 Philemon Beecher, b 26 Feb 1829, d young. 2 Philemon Beecher, b 19 June 1830. 3 John Henry, b 16 Sep 1832. 4 Laura Augusta, b 5 Jan 1836. 5 Lucy Jessena, b 19 Feb 1838. 6 Frances Elizabeth, b 26 Jan 1840. 7 James Langdon, b 26 May 1842. 8 Abraham Tolles, b 11 May 1844. 9 David Truman, b 30 Mar 1847. 10 Lydia Day, b 19 Nov 1848. Of these, James Langdon Marvin in 9 May 1865 Mary Frances Force, & was father of Mrs. Riker, who sent a copy of the above records.
Leman Beecher, b 12 Feb 1793, d 13 Oct 1848; m 5 Nov 1818 Catherine Shew, b 4 May 1794. Their s .: Abraham Philemon, b 16 Jan 1834; m 1 Nov 1860 May Anna Draper. Their da. Emma May Beecher (Mrs. Clarence Wilbur Smith) furnished these dates.
OLD BRADLEY RECORD.
(From a copy printed in a newspaper, 26 Jan 1916. This record con- firms the account of this family given on pages 265 to 267, and adds a few particulars.)
On the first of January, 1806, the owner of this Book thoughit within himself that he would inquire after the Geneoligy of his ancestors, and up- on inquiry he found :
That in the Latter Part of the Sixteenth [17th] Century there was a venerable Old Gentelman Lived in the Northeasterly Part of the City of New Haven, in an old Brick house, of the name of John Bradley, who had five Sons and Three Daughters, Namely, Enos, Jason, John, Jehiel, Saralı, Elizabeth, Phineas & Susannah. His family being thus increased, he, with two of his Sons, made a Settlement about two or three miles out of town, on the Road leading to Sperries' Farm, and built two houses, a Grist Mill, Saw Mill & fulling mill. This was done the forepart of the 17th [18th] Century, and that Settlement was then called Bradley Town, which name it inherits to this day, When the said John Bradley died is not known.
The children of Enos were four sons and two Daughters, namely, Grif- fin, Enos, Ariel, Tibbetts, Ellen and Gamaliel. The children of Griffen were 6 sons and 6 daughters; the children of Enos were 2 sons and 2 daughters; the children of Arial were 3 sons and one daughter; the chil- dren of Tibbetts were one son and 2 daughters and the children of Ellen were thirteen in number. And Jason, second son of the first-named John, was married, but had no children, and he took his brother Enos's youngest son, named Gamaliel, and made him his Heir. And Gamaliel took a wife of the daughters of the Carmelites and she bore him 9 children. And Jolin, the third son of the first Jolin Bradley, had two sons and two daughters. One, Jehiel, had three sons. And Sarah, first daughter of the first-namı- ed John married John Adee, and had 2 sons, viz: John and William. And Elizabeth, second daughter, married Richard Sperry, and had 2 sons and 3 daughters. And Susanna, third daughter, married Phineas Perkins, outof a tribe that then lived in New Maddatuck, by whom she had ten children.
We shall be more fortunate respecting Phineas, the youngest son of the first named John Bradley, and his descendants, which are taken from his own record, which he kept in a large account book, Page 56.
Phineas Bradley was born 9th. October 1715. He was married to Mar- tha Sherman, 5th. May 1750, who was born 1st of August, 1721. Their de- scendants were:
1. A Son, Erastus, Born 29th. April 1751.
2. A daughter, Electa, Born 31st. January, 1753.
3. A son, Phineas, Born 29th May, 1755.
4. A son, Zina, Born 3rd. January, 1758.
5. A daughter, Martha, Born 6th. November, 1750 [or 1760?].
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OLD BRADLEY RECORDS
6 A son, Aner, Born 5th. March, 1753 [or 1763?].
7 A Daughter Asenath, Born 17th. September, 1755 [or 1765?].
8 A daughter, Huldah, Børn 13th. November, 1757 [or 1767?].
9 A daughter Sarah, Born 19th June, 1760 [or 1770?].
10 A daughter, stillborn, Born 14th May, 1762 [or 1772?].
11 A daughter, Molly, Born 24th. April, 1767 [1777?].
And the said Phineas, father of the 11 children, as above, died in a Fit of Appoplexy on the morning of the 30th. of December, 1780, and Martha, his widow, died 10th. of April, 1795.
Erastus, their first son, married and had 4 sons and 2 daughters. 3 of his sons died in infancy. Electa married James Storer and had 2 sons, William and James. She died 16th. November, 1768. Phineas married and had 2 sons and 2 daughters; he died 24th. of June, 1797. Zina married and had 2 sons and 2 daughters; he died 19th November, 1802. Martha married John Hubbard and had 4 sons and one daughter; she died June 6, 1812. Aner married and had 4 sons and 5 daughters. Asenath married and had 3 sons and 3 daughters; she died December 6, 1822. Huldah died 8th of December 1780. Sarah married and had 3 sons and 4 daughters. Molly married and had 2 sons and 2 daughters.
Connecticut Witches.
It was formerly the intention of the writer to prepare a book on this interesting subject, which has never been treated exhaustively, and to identify each "witch" who was ever accused or tried in Connecticut and New Haven Colonies, to identify their accusers, and to print in full the contemporary records covering each case. This plan hasbeenindefinitely postponed because of the pressure of other labors; but since the material in a few witchcraft cases has been prepared for some time, and since the subject is one which has a certain fascination, a hold on theimagination of the general reading public, it has been decided to preserve the material which has already been collected by offering it to the readers of this pub- lication. Two cases, those of Mary Johnson and Goodwife Bassett, are presented herewith, and the results of our research should be of special interest because so little has come down to us in the contemporary records relating to them, and in consequence fallacious conclusions have been reached by earlier writers on the subject, which here we examine and re- fute. To this is ad led the Benham case, which we believe was the last witchcraft trial in New England.
In considering each case, we reproduce first the pertinent original rec- ords, quoting them verbatim but not literatim; spelling and punctuation have been modernized, to enable the general reader to grasp more readily the sense of the passages; the spelling of personal names, however, has been retained. We reproduce next the accounts of the case, if such exist, print- ed by Mather and other early writers who were contemporary, or nearly so, with the events they narrated. Lastly, we add our own comments and conclusions drawn from the quoted sources and from other sources.
I. MARY JOHNSON.
Connecticut Colonial Records, volume 1, page 143; Court held 21 Aug. 1646:
Mary Johnson, for thievery, is to be presently whipped, and to be brought forth a month hence at Wethersfield, and there whipped.
Connecticut Colonial Records, volume 1, page 171; Court held 7 Dec. 1648:
The Jury finds the Bill of Indictment against Mary Jonson, that by her own confession she is guilty of familiarity with the Devil.
Cotton Mather's "Magnalia," Sixth Book, Chapter VII, Eighth Example :*
There was one Mary Johnson try'd at Hartford in this countrey, upon an indictment of "familiarity with the devil," and was found guilty there- of, chiefly upon her own confession. Her confession was attended with such convictive circumstances, that it could not be slighted. Very ma-
* The same story, in similar phraseology, was first told by Mather in 1689 in his "Memorable Providences." Hale's brief notice of it in "A Modest Inquiry" (writ- ten in 1698) is drawn from Mather's account.
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CONNECTICUT WITCHES
terial passages relating to this matter are now lost; but so much as is well known, and can still be prov'd, shall be inserted.
She said her first familiarity with the devil came through discontent, and wishing the devil to take this and that, and the devil to do that and t'other thing: whereupon a devil appear'd unto her, tendring her what ser- vices might best content her. A devil accordingly did for her many services. Her master blam'd her for not carrying out the ashes, and a devil after- wards would clear the hearth of ashes for her. Her master sending her to drive out the hogs that sometimes broke into their field, a devil would scowre the hogs away, and make her laugh to see how he feaz'd them. She confessed that she had murder'd a child, and committed uncleanness both with men and with devils. In the time of her imprisonment, the f :- mous Mr. Stone was at great pains to promote her conversion from the devil to God; and she was by the best observers judged very penitent, both before her execution and at it; and she went out of the world with comfortable hopes of mercy from God through the merit of our Saviour. Being ask'd what she built her hopes upon, she answer'd, "Upon these words: 'Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest;' and these: 'There is a fountain set open for sin and un- cleanness.'" And'she dy'd in a frame extreamly to the satisfaction of them that were spectators of it.
Comment.
This witch was an apprentice, a servant girl, of Wethersfield, and was probably of weak mentality.
Taylor, in "The Witchcraft Delusion in Colonial Connecticut," page 144, assumed that she was identical with an Elizabeth Johnson who had a child born in prison. There is no reason whatever for such an inference. To clear up this matter, the four references to the other Johnson woman need to be quoted in full (Conn. Col. Rec. I. 209, 222, 226, 232):
On 21 May 1650, "Will: Rescew's bill of charges for Elizabeth John- son's imprisonment to the first Thursday of the next month, being 24 weeks, amounting to 6£ 10s. is allowed and approved: and the Court de- sires Mr. Ludlow and Mr. Warde to see the bill discharged to the said Will: Rescew out of her estate."
On 15 May 1651, "The Court grants their consent that Nathaniell Rescew should have Goodwife Johnson's child, which was born in the prison, as an apprentice to him, till he is of the age of twenty one years, and that the said Rescew shall have ten pounds with him, out of New- ton's estate."
On 6 Oct 1651, "Mr. Warde and John Bankes are desired to gather up and make sale of any estate of that which was sometime Peter Johnson's of Fairfield, and that they shall therewith satisfy the charges of the nurs- ing of the child of Goody Johnson."
On 20 May 1652, "This Court orders that Nathaniell Rescue shall be paid five pounds more with the Goody Johnson's child, according to her promise to him, he having engaged himself to maintain and well educate her son without any further demand of charges either of her or the coun- try."
953
CONNECTICUT WITCHES
The witch Mary Johnson was eondemned at the end of the year 1648, while Elizabeth was certainly living in May 1650, and she is not called de- ceased in any of the records quoted. It is clear she was widow of Peter Johnson of Fairfield, and Roger Ludlow, Andrew Ward, and John Banks, who were appointed to attend to certain matters in this case, were all Fairfield men.
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