USA > Connecticut > Hartford County > Farmington > Farmington town clerks and their times (1645-1940) > Part 6
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
In these years, too, other of the original families who had vast tracts of land given to them in the Grand Division, were going toward the west and south.
In the Great Plain, Poland, Bohemia and New Cambridge, first known as the Great Forest, now Bristol, sons of the original settlers were gone to see for themselves their inheritance. Daniel Brownson was the venturesome leader there, building a house near the westernmost line on now West Street, in 1727 where he had a large farm. In 1728 Ebenezer Barnes built his
53
John Hooker
home, used for many years as a tavern, and added to at one end for a married daughter and at the other end for a married son, near the Pequabuck River. The Barnes family lived 100 years in this house. It was later the homestead for the Pierce family and in the fall of 1939, after 210 years of being lived in and in the possession of only two families, with the exception of a few later years as the property of the Bristol Brass Com- pany, the house was carefully removed by Mr. Fuller Barnes, a descendant of the first owner Ebenezer Barnes, and the fine old timbers are to form the structure of another Barnes home- stead on Federal Hill in Bristol. An honorable end for the old home. The road to Bristol in those years lay to the north of the present Bristol Road, passing the Old North Cemetery to the road running up "the hill." Here many Lewis families built their homes and on the hill the first church was built. The Peck fami- lies lived off West Street where there was a schoolhouse; Joseph Benton, who gave the land for the church and the Federal Hill Green lived at what is now the junction of Maple, Bellevue and Center Streets, and there were other Barnes families at the corner of South and West Streets. Soon the need was felt there as in Berlin for the formation of their own society, and the Rev. Samuel Newell was soon installed as their first min- ister, not however without some opposing votes. Caleb Math- ews, Stephen Brooks, John Hikox, Caleb Abernathy, Abner Mathews, Abel Royce, Daniel Roe and Simon Tuttle declared themselves of the Church of England and formed the first Episcopal society in New Cambridge. In 1746 the first Con- gregational meeting house was built in New Cambridge near the site of the present building, it being thirty feet by forty feet, and with small comforts. The support of the minister was a very great problem in those days of no hard cash, and the loss of even a few members of their community by the forma- tion of another church, was a severe blow to their endeavor to form their own society.
And in the same years another daughter was being added to the growing Farmington family. As early as 1698 Samuel Woodruff, owning a great acreage in the South Division, built a house there and moved his family there, undoubtedly the
54
Farmington Town Clerks and Their Times
first settler. Within the following ten years the families of Woodruff, Root, Bronson, Newell, Scott, Barnes and Cowles were all established in their first homes in what was later South- ington. The ground and climate were considered exceedingly poor and cultivation of crops discouraging. For many years, the comparison to the settlement, known as Panthorn, was "poor as Panthorn." In 1721 the inevitable result however was that the families found no further good reasons for the long walk to church at Farmington every Sunday and petitioned for a separate society. Again the Farmington church members protested - losing so many in the recent years was a severe loss to membership and to income, and the South Division applicants were refused. But in 1722 they hired their own preacher, and asked abatement of one-third of their tax toward the support of Mr. Whitman at the Farmington Church. Mr. John Hooker, Lieutenant Samuel Wadsworth and Ensign Samuel Newell were commissioned a committee to reply to the South Division settlers. The committee's opinion was that "considering the weekness and inability of ye said ffarmers at ye present time it is Nearest their duty to content themselves for ye way they are now in for another year or years." How- ever the early Connecticut people were persistant and deter- mined and in May 1724 they again petitioned, this request being granted in two weeks' time. With the satisfaction of their ecclesiastical needs, they continued as a contented part of the town until 1785.
THE
YEARS OF CULTIVATION
Des John Hart.
1741-1748
THE BEGINNING of the second hundred years of the founding of the Town of Farmington found Deacon John Hart in the office of Town Clerk. He had served the town in many capaci- ties during the past twenty-five years and had been twenty- three times elected to the General Court from this town. He lived on the site of the homestead of his famous great-grand- father Stephen Hart, the original settler and founder of the Hart family in Farmington, and had inherited the farm, with the new house standing on that land.
Born in this Hart homestead in 1684, son of Captain John and Mary (Moore) Hart, he married Esther Gridley March 20, 1706, taking her to this ancestral home, and it was here that their seven children were born. Great barns stood around the old house, and down the Mill Lane was the very necessary mill, just where it stands today. Near the mill was a ford enabling the farmers to reach their land in the meadows and return with crops and cattle to the barns in the winter. In this house were kept the town records, and vital statistics of marriages, births and deaths were reported there.
Deacon John Hart was chosen deacon in the Farmington church November 19, 1718. His wife Esther died in 1743 and in the same year he married for his second wife, the widow Hannah Hull. He served as town clerk from December 14, 1741, to 1748, afterward moving to Kensington where he was also deacon in the church. He died there October 7, 1753, aged 69 years. In his will he gave his son John the choicest pieces of his farm, including the old homestead (which the son John sold in 1765 to Solomon and Amos Cowles), and also a three-and-
56
Farmington Town Clerks and Their Times
one-half-acre lot known as the Meeting House lot located east of the church - hence its name.
Deacon Hart's three daughters "married well." Esther mar- ried Nathaniel Newell who inherited the Newell homestead; Mary married (1) Timothy Root, (2) the Rev. Samuel Newell who later became, after some controversy, the first and beloved pastor of the first church in Bristol; and Sarah married first Stephen Root, and as her second husband Captain Eldad Lewis. Deacon Hart had three sons - Judah, John and Solo- mon.
No mention is made in town minutes of any notice taken of the passing of the first hundred years. It is almost inevitable that it was spoken of, and with some pardonable satisfaction. The passing generations had carried on with the traditions of their fathers. They kept their dignity, even in the face of differ- ences of opinion in church and state, their courage in years of the most difficult hardships, and their faith in the good future of their town and state never wavered. Everything they had, had been carved by them out of the rough. If they thanked God for the completion of those first hundred years, they must have done so with full realization that God had worked hand in hand with them, and they were thankful without being jubilant.
An old fashioned election day ushered Deacon John Hart in office. Held in the church across the path from his house, it was an all-day affair, with an hour's adjournment twice in the day for refreshment and possibly some political planning. The dinner could have been no mean affair, with home-made breads, cakes, pies and all manner of meats from the farm and each housewife vying as to preserves and pickles. Cider was a fore- gone conclusion with all the farmers and with the ticket picked for the afternoon session, the election went on. An early start had to be made by some of the voters. They lived in South- ington, Bristol, Burlington and Kensington and it was a long way to come with chores to be done first. It was an eventful day and one not to be missed.
A page from the record book of that year tells us of strange offices filled by famous names.
57
John Hart
"A Town Meeting held in Farmington for ye Choys of officers December 14th A.D., 1741.
"Att the same meeting Deacon John Hart was chosen Mod- erator to lead the town in this theyer present meeting.
"Att the same meeting John Hart was chosen Town Clerk and Register.
"Att the same meeting Capt. William Wadsworth was chosen Moderator to lead ye town in this meeting.
"This meeting is adjourned for one hour - ye town met ac- cording to adjournment.
"At ye same meeting Capt. John Newil Capt. Josiah Hart Mr. Samuel Hooker Capt John Webster were Chosen Selectmen for ye year ensuing & Mr. Nathaniel Wadsworth.
"At ye Same Meeting Samuel Nash John Hooker & Daniel Woodruff were Chosen Constables. for ye year ensuing & Sd Saml Nash to make up accts with
"At ye Same meeting Ens Jonathan Bird & Roger Hooker Ens Jonathan Lee John Cowles Left Saml Woodruff & Howkins Hart were chosen grandjurors for ye year ensuing
"At ye same meeting were chosen for Surveyors of highways for ye year Ensuing Nathaniel Newil Daniel Gridley Thomas Root Josiah Lee Gideon Norton Saml Saymor & Joseph Hart his limit to Extend South to Jeames Andrus northward both sides of ye highway to bound line - & John Bird his limits to Extend South to ye highway by Segwicks north and all Hartford Di- vision to Simsbury line & for Southington John Root Abram Clark Isaac Newil Stephen Smith & Edward Gaylord his limits Extend only ye fouer westermost tear of lots in ye west division of Lands & Eliah Hart his limits from Kensington line to Ezra Warners & Nehemiah Manross his limits ye two first tears of lots - Gailors and Manross their limits to extend north as far as Jonathan Smiths.
"At ye same meeting Voated by ye town that their swin should roam at large ye year expiring this meeting
"This meeting adjourned until to morrow morning 9 of the clock - the town mett according to ajournment.
"Att ye same Meeting Thomas Standly Isaac Norton Jr.
58
Farmington Town Clerks and Their Times
Staphen Andrus of Southington were Chosen Collectors to colect ye town rate that shall be granted at this meeting.
"At ye Same meeting Serg Samuel Thomson is Chosen Grand- juror in ye Room of Jr. Jonathan who is hereby released.
"At ye Same Meeting Daniel Lewis Mr Timothy Porter Na- thaniel Thomson Elisha Lewis Capt Saml Cowles Joseph Smith Jr Nathaniel Gridley Jeames Brownson Moses Lyman were chosen Listors for ye year ensuing.
"At ye Same Meeting Ebenezer Smith was Chosen Surveyor of highways his limits encluding to those persons annexed to Newington
"At ye Same Meeting Simon Newel Samuel Hart Isaac Halli- bard Phinahas Judd Jonathan Hulabart John Upson were chosen tithingmen for ye year Ensuing.
"At ye Same Meeting Samuel Nash was Chosen for Sealor of weights for ye year Ensuing
"At ye Same Meeting Serg Will Porter was Chosen Sealor of Measurers for ye year Ensuing.
"At ye Same Meeting Jeames Gridly was Chosen Sealor of Leather for ye year Ensuing
"At ye Same Meeting there was Chosen for ratemaker for ye year ensuing Mr Timo Porter Mr Elisha Lewis Joseph Hooker John Hart
"Att ye Same Meeting Capt Will Wadsworth was Chosen town treasurer for ye year Ensuing
"Att ye Same Meeting Eben Buck Thomas Langton Na- thaniel Cole Jr Daniel Cowles were Chosen fence viewers for ye year Ensuing
"Att ye Same Meeting ye town by a voate granted Liberty for fiering on ye Comons on ye Common on ye west side of ye River for to Secure ye Comon fence provided it be done by the twentieth day of April next.
"At ye Same Meeting it was voated by ye Town that they would be at ye charge of Setting up a gate Sufficient for Carts to pass and repass on ye Comon fence on ye Road leading to Litchfield & another on ye Road leading to New Hartford --- ye sd gates to be set up by ye direction of ye Selecttmen.
"At ye Same Meeting the town granted a Rate of a half
.
59
John Hart
penny on ye pound to be colected of ye inhabitants .according to ye present list
"Att ye Same Meeting Joseph Judd Left Joyles Hooker Asahel Strong are fully impowered to comfirm their agreement with Serg Will Porter by giuving deeds of exchange in ye name of ye town
"At ye Same Meeting the town by their act do fully impour ye present Selectmen of ye first Society to be their Commt to defend the town right in any action or actions that shall be commenced against ye town of farmington ye year ensuing
"At ye Same Meeting Deacon Willm Porter Jr Saml Lewis are impowered to consider ye request of Saml Nash and to approve or disapprove ye same upon ye cost of sd Nash
'Att ye same Meeting Serg Asahel Strong was Chosen for one year & to joyne with ye Commt apointed to remove nusones on ye Highways (Vol. I page 237)"
During the ensuing years this manner of election went on without variation. The only special town meeting in this period was July 4, 1748, when the only business transacted was the "voat that from this day their swine & shoats run at larg on their commons until ye first day of January & being sufficiently Rung in nose."
Unusual recording appears in the land records during the first six months of 1741. The deeds taken in by John Hooker were not recorded for the previous six months and the pages in the record book were carefully divided in half, the upper half being for the recording done by John Hart, the new town clerk and the lower half given to the deeds received and still to be recorded by John Hooker, his predecessor, until all had been recorded. John Hooker was by that time an old man and his writing was irregular and his work not done as quickly as in the early years.
The first mention in the town minutes of providing for those who could not provide for themselves was in 1748, when it was "Voated at ye Same Meeting that they would have a house built for to Entertain ye poor in & to be set in ye highway near against Deacon Porters & ye Selectmen of ye first society to take ye care & order in that affair."
60
Farmington Town Clerks and Their Times
Deacon Porter's farm was next the site of the house used for so many years recently as a town farm, and now part of the large dairy farm of T. E. Stephenson.
This was the last meeting for Deacon John Hart as Town Clerk. He retired to his farm in Kensington where he lived for five years before his death in 1753.
S
TRUGGLE
AND ANXIETY
.
Comp. goteph ooka.
1748-1764
WHEN Joseph Hooker married Sarah Lewis' daughter of Na- thaniel and Abigail (Ashley) Lewis in 1735, his father, John Hooker gave him one of the oldest and finest family home- steads in Farmington for their home. The John Stanley place had been located at the corner of Mountain Road and Back Lane, (now High Street) since at least 1672. John Stanley's daughter was Joseph Hooker's mother, consequently the place was a second home to him. John Stanley had lived in that house probably before building the new homestead on High Street - now the Farmington Museum - and after his death it went to his daughter Abigaill and her husband John Hooker. Here Joseph Hooker lived all of his married life and here his six chil- dren were born. Across the street on the opposite corner lived William Porter in one of the old houses, very similar in con- struction to the Farmington Museum. On the opposite side of Mountain Road lived Stephen Hart in the little house close to the road inherited from his father. On the corner of Mountain Road and Town Street, now Main Street, lived the Rev. Samuel Whitman, and in the so-called Whitman house, now the Mu- seum, lived Elnathan Whitman. They were all good friends, with closely related tastes, politics and religion and, we know, of one purpose, that of building and maintaining a solid muni- cipal structure.
Joseph Hooker inherited some property and his wife had a large portion of the Lewis lands. Among their holdings was land at Burnt Hill, Bull's Way, Old Farms, Long Swamp, Indian Neck, second Mountain, the 17th lot in the third divi- sion west (now Bristol), a Pitch lot, and Dead Swamp, together
62
Farmington Town Clerks and Their Times
with such lots as were inherited from ancestors in all the various divisions surrounding the reserved land.
This homestead was kept in the Hooker family for another three generations, going by inheritance to Noadiah, son of Joseph, who became a famous soldier and Colonel in the War of the Revolution, then to Noadiah's son Edward of "Old Red College" fame, and to his son John Hooker. Edward Hooker demolished the old house and built a new one on the same loca- tion for his bride, Eliza Daggett of New Haven.
Joseph Hooker had six children-Abigail, born February 5, 1735-6, Noadiah, born August 29, 1737, Mercy, born January 19, 1741-2, Ruth, born February 21, 1743-4, Anna, born De- cember 14, 1749 and Joseph, born March 30, 1751. The Hooker Genealogy has this to say of Joseph: "During his younger days Joseph Hooker was an enthusiastic military man and was cap- tain of the local militia. In later years he became excessively corpulent, so much so that for several years he was unable to attend to any active business and on fine days a large chair was placed in the front yard of his home near the door and he sat there smoking his pipe and visiting with passers-by. When local militia paraded or when there was any military assem- blage at Farmington it was customary for them to march around by Captain Hooker's house and salute him as he sat in his big chair by the door."
Joseph Hooker was elected Town Clerk in 1748 and served until December 12, 1764. He died December 19 of that same year. During his sixteen years in town office he was five times appointed justice of the peace by the General Assembly, as was the procedure at that time.
These years in the middle of the eighteenth century have been indistinct in Farmington history. Several short histories of Farmington have been written in pamphlet form, but only the cream has been taken - no thorough search of records has been made to bring out period by period. These years were more. of the "growing years" of the town, when original homes became more secure, farms were yielding well and must be managed. rather than started, and much of the early work remade, to fit changing conditions.
63
Joseph Hooker
Trade was still extremely difficult and silver money rare.
Also there were wars all along the Atlantic seaboard with France attempting to seize desirable English interests, and men of Farmington were called to fight for England's colonies. High- ways were one of the intense problems of the time. They had been laid out from five to forty rods in width, and for the next fifty years, specially appointed committees worked to dispose of much of the unneeded highway land. These were "committees to exchange highways" and they bought land of adjoining prop- erty owners, giving them in return land from highways, in that way laying highways of more practical width and in more de- sirable locations.
In 1750 many of the outlying districts had built their own churches and had been established as a society. In Bristol Parson Newell was in his new house on present Burlington Avenue. This was quite some distance from his church on Fed- eral Hill, but distances meant less to those people than today, when the ministers live next door to their church. Joseph Ben- ton owned most of the Federal Hill, selling some of the land to the church society, and later, part for a schoolhouse and the remainder for the town "green." Burlington was being settled in 1750 - Bristol had two schools, one at the far north side of the settlement near Lewis' Corner and one at the junction of South Road and the Pequabuck river. Substantial houses standing today after one hundred and ninety years were being built in Southington, Berlin and Nod, now Avon. Under a Connecticut Statute of 1750 providing for thirteen regiments of militia, the First Regiment included the First Society of Farmington.
A long gap in the records concerning schools and school mas- ters leaves us with very meager knowledge of their schools. We do know that the buildings were small and placed in the best position as to settlements with such teachers as could be found and induced to try their hand (often very literally) with the farm boys. No complete records have been found until the establishment by the town in 1799, of the twelve existing dis- tricts.
In our local church the Great Event of 1750 was the final
.
F
e S Y S e e
d t e
1 r e 1
2 t
0
64
Farmington Town Clerks and Their Times
outcome of the leading in singing of the psalms. Watts version grew in interest and demand, despite the protests, and even the withdrawal of one of the deacons. It was but a step from the Watts version of singing to the use of instruments in the church, and soon the bass viol, little viol, flute and clarinet were in use. Elijah Cowles and Fisher Gay "set the psalms" at this period.
In 1751 the long-beloved Rev. Samuel Whitman died. He is buried in the old cemetery on Main Street. During his pastorate the second church had been built. A bell was added in 1731, a town clock in 1738, and all had been harmonious for the years following the troublous times at the beginning of the century. The next year, 1752, the Rev. Timothy Pitkin accepted the pastorate of the church and introduced a new era of living. He brought his bride to Farmington in a fine new carriage - something not before seen here. He brought fine furniture, silver and clothing, and an influence toward a culture in living, which, though inherent in the families here, had, through neces- sity of the hard struggle for existence, lain dormant. While Timothy Pitkin was here the third and present church was built, of which more later.
The society of Kensington lost their minister, the Rev. William Burnham, in 1750, and the direct result of this was the division of that community, long threatened, and the incor- poration of the society of New Britain. Camp, in his history of New Britain, says: "The first settlers of New Britain were farm- ers with such limited education as could be obtained at that day. Nearly all had some property, which by frugality and industry was increased after they occupied their new homes. At or about the time of the incorporation of the New Britain Society, in 1754, most of these farms were provided with com- fortable frame houses and outbuildings."
In 1754 the townspeople voted to have the Town Clerk "alphebet" the town books.
Another town vote in that year gave residents of New Cam- bridge liberty to "have ten feet in the highway for Sabbath Day houses, also to set a school near the dwelling of Joseph Benton and to set a school on Cochepaniese Hill."
In 1758 a new officer was chosen in addition to others -
65
Joseph Hooker
this was the keeper of the key to the pound. And John Hooker and John Gridley of Kensington were given liberty to build and improve a cider mill during the town's pleasure.
In 1759 Roger Hooker, a son of John Hooker, owned the mill and dam on the Farmington River "a littel west of the meeting house where for time out of mind there has peacably been kept up and maintained ye principal gristmill in said Farmington by virtue of an ancient grant, and the town ap- prove the said Hooker repairing the dam and approve to Hooker his heirs and assigns full power and liberty to keep up and maintain forever said dam."
During these years attempt was being made toward a more stable currency, the trend being away from the barter and trade of the past hundred years when money had been scarce. This tended to tangle all trade relations. Deals in hard money had the advantage of offering a reduced scale where the equiva- lent in trade demanded more, but was not so well received. This scaling down to a hard money basis was not conducive to business.
This through the ages has led ultimately to war. The Colonial War of this period affected this comparatively small and remote town. Julius Gay says in his paper Soldiers in Colonial Wars: ". - Of Farmington soldiers in 1755 we can identify Ezekiel Lewis, sergeant; Ebenezer Orvis, ensign; and Privates Bela Lewis, Samuel Bird, and Noah Porter, father of the Dr. Noah Porter and grandfather of President Porter." These men also were in the campaign of 1756 against Crown Point, where Josiah Lee was captain of one of the companies. A campaign of 1757 at Fort William Henry saw Ezekiel Lewis, ensign, Privates Samuel Bird, Sylvanus Curtis, Gershom Orvis and Betheul Norton. The call for reinforcements further enlisted Captain William Wadsworth, Sergeant Judah Woodruff, Clerk James Wadsworth, Corporal Hezekiah Wadsworth, and Pri- vates Amos Cowles, Phineas Cowles, Rezin Newell, Joseph Root, Timothy Woodruff, Solomon Woodruff and an Indian who was a large landowner, Elijah Weampey. Julius Gay gave the following list of Farmington soldiers in Colonial Wars in his paper by that title: David Andrews, Joseph Andrews, Ben-
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.