USA > Connecticut > Fairfield County > History of Fairfield County, Connecticut : with illustrations and biographical sketches of its prominent men and pioneers > Part 17
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ment many days. In February, 1864, went with Ames' brigade to Jacksonville, Fla .; there put in command of brigade; at Jacksonville about a month and a half; assigned in April, 1864, to command of St. Augustine; placed in command of brigade and all the country east of the St. John's River; com- manded brigade at capture and destruction of Bald- win, Fla .; sent in command of cavalry, artillery, and five regiments South to Sand Lakes, and to cripple Cedar Keys Railroad; returned to Magnolia, on St. John's; in command of Fort Construction and post at Magnolia, and force there, and of the posts and forces east of the St. John's, including St. Augustine, August and September, 1864; sent during September, 1864, with cavalry, infantry, and artillery, per land and steamer, up the St. John's River and Duns Lake, Fla., to break up Confederate recruiting-station, cap-
turing a company and many disloyal Floridians; De- cember 24th captured by enemy's scouts while return- ing across country from court-martial as a witness, between Jacksonville and St. Augustine; taken to Baldwin; thence to Tallahassee, to Chattahoochee River, to Columbus, to Macon; at Macon under parole a month and a half at Camp Oglethorpe; thence to Andersonville for a month and a half; thence for exchange per rail and march across Geor- gia, Alabama, and Mississippi to Vicksburg; thence to St. Louis, in command of Eastern paroled Union men ; thence to Annapolis, May, 1865, in command of one thousand Union soldiers from rebel prisons to be mustered out; returned home and has suffered for many years from the malaria born of exposure in al! weathers and climates. Since the war he has devoted himself to the law, real estate, etc .; was brevetted brigadier-general, by recommendation of Gen. Grant, in June, 1865 .- EDITOR.
Our military history is closed. We have faithfully traced the history of the various regiments, and it has been our honest endeavor to place before the people of Fairfield County a truthful record of her gallant sons who risked their lives in the defense of their country. We have sought to deal justly with all and give deserving credit to cach and every regiment.
While the history is a record of many of the severest battles of the war, it is not in any particular over- drawn: it is a "plain, unvarnished tale." It has been impossible to sketch many individual acts of heroism, but these were not wanting.
Fairfield County may justly feel proud of the record of her soldiery, as no section of our country acted a more prominent or honorable rôle in the great tragedy.
Fifteen years have now elapsed since the close of the Rebellion, and we find our country a united and prosperous people. Sectional strife is rapidly passing away, and the same hand strews flowers alike on the graves of the Blue and the Gray.
" No more shall the war-cry sever, Or the winding rivers be red ; They banish our anger forever When they laurel the graves of our dead ! Under the sod and the dew, Waiting the judgment-day ;
Love and tears for the Blue, Tears and love for the Gray."
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64
HISTORY OF FAIRFIELD COUNTY, CONNECTICUT.
CHAPTER VI. POPULATION AND SCHOOL STATISTICS. POPULATION.
1756.
1774.
1782.
1790.
1800.
1810.
1820.
1830.
1840.
1850.
1860.
1870.
1880.
TOWNS.
Whites.
Negroes.
Whites.
Blacks.
Whites.
Indians
Negroes.
Total.
Total.
Total.
Total.
Total.
Total.
Total.
Total.
Total.
Total.
Bridgeport
2,800 4,311
4,570 4,504
7,560 5,964
13,299
19,835
29,153
Danbury
1,509
18
2,473
53
2,967
50
-3,031
3,180
3,606
3,873
Bethel
1,711
2,311
2,726
Brookfield ....
1,018
1,010
1,037
1,159
1,255
1,359 1,454
1,705
1,808
1,902
Easton ..
1,350
1,288
1,145
Fairfield
4,195
260
319
5,003
273
4,009 *
3,735
4,125
4,151
4,226
3,654
3,614
4,379
5,645
+3,748
Greenwich.
2,021
122
2,530
93
3,047 2,792
2,770
2,805
1,371
1,326
1,301
1,477
1,527
2,504
Monroe ..
New Canaan ..
713
1,288
20
1.429
12
1,573
1,665
772
788
939
956
927
915
870
791
Newtown
1,230
23
2,168
61
2,354
50
2,764
2,903
2,834
2,879
3,09G
3,189
3,338
3,578
3,681
4,013
Norwalk
2,956
94
4,243
145
3.919
132
Yz
5,146
2,983
3,004
3,792
3,863
4,651
7,582
12,119
13,960
Redding.
1,189
45
1,257
53
1,503
1,632
1,717
1,678
1,686
1,674
1,754
1,652
1,624
1,540
Ridgefield
1,069
46
1,673
35
1,672
1,947
2,025
2,103
2,301
2,305
2,474
2,237
2,213
1,919
2,028
Stamford
2,648
120
3,503
60
3,756
78
4,352
4,440
3,284
3,707
3,516
5,000
7,185
9,714
11,417
Stratford
3,508
150
5,201
354
5,105
368
3,241
2,650
2,895
3,438
1,814
1,808
2,040
2,294
3,032
4,251
Trumbull
1,204
1,309
1,474
1.335
1,323
Weston.
2,469
2,680
2,618
2,767
2,997
2,561
1,056
1,117
1,054
918
Westport
1,803
2,651
3,293
3,361
3,477
Wilton ...
2,053
2,066
2,208
1,994
1,864
Totals.
19,849
711 28,936
1,214 29,722 1,134
36,239
38,108
40,950
42,739
46,950
49,917
59,775
77,476
95,276
112,155
Contin. Employed. Beginners.
Bridgeport ..
$11,979,850
1
13
66, 204.00
6,362
4,145
4,101
107
4,840
250 1,379
3,501
3
3
77
78 $146.66 $17.49
79
4
Danbury.
5,190,376
12
16
41
198.66
2,545
1,880
1,853
41
2,192
72
322
1,501
336
3
3
8
8
57.35
32.64
9
Brookfield ....
601,155
8
8
8 180.88
235
200
175
2
229
5
14
134
117
3
1
5
7 32.00
26.00
4
Darien
1,766,099
5
5
7 205.14
391
325
310
19
352
32
26
210
201
3
3
5
5 53.33
33.00
6
0
Easton.
458,948
8
8
8. 178.75
207
191
165
207
6
5
120
101
6
3
2
5
22.39
20.05
2
Fairfield
2,177,978
14
14
18 199.50
856
704
618
29
800
50
65
463
389
9
6
12
56.62
38.21
17
0
Greenwich
3,693,761
19
19
25 200.00
1,901
1,325
1,087
40
1,535
169
262
858
740
6
6 21
21
51.25
36.78
27
0
Huntington ...
919,480
12
12
7
249
198
181
10
238
13
8
128
107
3
1
4
6
27.25
22.60
4
4
New Canaan ..
1,279,981
11
11
14 201.14
620
541
524
33
594
25
36
334
313
5
4
10
11
38.78
26.67
3
New Fairfield
427,187
7
7, 173.14
178
165
140
21
191
0
13
100
75
5
1
2
G
32.04
23.93
2
Newtown.
1,813,529
21
24 200.00
1,094 3,141
2,262
1,920
55
2,575
139
502
1,723
1,445
113
5
4
5
6
27.00
25.09
1
Ridgefield
1,066,904
14
13
13 190.54
442
368
319
14
410
10
41
236
231
2
3
11
10
26.15
28.85
6
1
Sherman
361,885
6
6
6
155.00
144
138
111
21
164
0
5
72
58
3
0
3
6
27.67
22.38
2
1
Stamford
6,575,436
1
17
29 200 00
2,627
1,383
1,278
102
1,605
613
547
1,030
987
8
8
24
24
77.63
41.28
32
4
Stratford
1,709,385
9
9
15 199 33
854
628
581
19
763
44
69
457
417
4
4
11
11
68.75
29.45
15
0
Trumbull
663,468
6
6
6 200.00
272
220
218
9 242
18
23
139
98
8
361
276
8
7
4
5
51.04
26.61
11
2
Wilton
728,725
10
10
10, 197.00
428
334
350
6
415
5
22
225
206
4
3
6
7
25.57
23.62
4
0
23 Towns
$52,338,375
214
247 400 -197.30
-
25,088 17,816 16,540
637
20,551
1,691 3,595 13,070 11,926 116 83 312 346
$50.72 $36.86
364 41
1
* The population of Greenwich, Norwalk, and Stamford in 1790, in the aggregate, was 11,942. They are not given separately.
f In 1870 a part of Fairfield, containing a population of about 1900, was annexed to Bridgeport.
There was a census taken by order of the General Assembly in October, 1761, to be completed at or before Jan. 1, 1762. According to that census the population of the colony was, -- white, 141,000; blacks, 4590. The only details relative to Fairfield County which I can give are that the population of Greenwich was 2021 whites, 52 blacks,-that of Stamford 2746 whites, 86 blacks.
CHAS. G. HOADLEY.
E F
G
B
B
D
B
B
B
1
5,036
6,522
7,644
7.956
Huntington ...
1,522
1,351
1,442
1,382
1,226
1,157
1,599
1,689
1.830
2,217
2,600
2,771
2,497
2,674
Sherman
949
957
947
938
984
911
846
828
1,291
1,241
1,232
Schools.
In no
School.
W.
S.
W. S. W.
S.
Male.
male.
7
Betliel
876.493
G
G
11 195.45
606
509
528
17
558
15
54
359
305
283
4
2
11
13
42.56
28.77
13
1
Monroe ...
527,022
7
15 184 00
519
442
404
18
514
6
81
46
565
458
12
8
8
40
40
77.25
41.77
2
Redding.
890,753
10
10
10 194.00
376
254
202
4
285
16
7
151
3,331 1,531
5
5
37
37
70.16
37.40
38
Av. Attend.
Male.
Fe- male.
Wages, Month.
TOWNS.
Grand List, 1878.
No. of Districts.
No. of Schools.
Departments.
Average Length.
Registered.
Enum.
Jan. 1879.
W.
S
Over 16.
Reg.
Priv.
3,790
3,801
3,921
1,224
1,193
1,151
Darien
1,126
1,255 1,212
1,080
1,432
7,234
8,753
11,619
PRESENT CONDITION OF SCHOOLS.
SCHOLARS.
TEACHERS.
Diff'nt Schol.
Fe-
U
0
6
9
7
21
6
12
18
31.16
21
3
Norwalk.
6,034,499
11
12
G
6 180.33
197
163
139
7
193
0
15
Westport
2,165,940
10
11
11 200.99
844
527
452
42
647
122
117
130
2
0
4
6
32.00
31.78
2
1
Weston.
429,519
5
2
1
4
21.96
18.61
1
3
13 3
914
884
13
1,002
26.18
46
5
25
2,742
3,533
1,728
1,818
2,097
1,242
17
7 193.57
43 202 65
6
4,544 2,654
New Fairfield
P
8
and
65
BRIDGEPORT.
RECEIPTS.
EXPENSES.
TOWNS.
Town School Fund, etc. Deposit.
Local Funds.
Town Tax.
District Tax.
Total.
Teachers' Wages.
Fuel, etc. Repairs.
Other Objects.
Total.
Districts
Taving.
Bridgeport
$15,268.80
$431.49
$168.00
$41,952.95
$58,141.24
$41,594.62
$6,182.94 $2,369.14
$2,846.09
$$53,166.51
0
Danbury.
6,108.00
526.04
405.46
15,106.42
$337.70
23,262.06
17,596.90
2,465.82
842.63
3,142.94
*24,104.29
Bethel
1,454.40
185.03
12,54
3,025.88
204.61
5,002.63
4,1×6.07
495.12
228.45
134.50
$5,170.31
Brookfield,
564.00
193.37
28.18
1,358.93
2.154.4x
1,941.55
163.31
50.00
2,154.86
0
Darien
938.40
148.00
2,022.44
201.97
3,360.81
2,756.34
270.00
251.07
82.50
3,360.81
1
Easton.
496.80
139.38
1,277.27
1,925.45
1,741.14
127.56
57.00
1,925.70
0
Fairfield
2,054.40
504.00
270.72
6,323,32
237.27
9,413.36
7,560.90
1,021.18
361.01
462.27
9,408.36
1
Greenwich
4,562.40
516.61
54.60
6,714.12
3,329.25
15,447.19
10,990.00
768.71
1,055.07
533.41
*15,447.19
Huntington
1,245.60
211.27
2,7>4 74
3,312,42
7,585.63
4,433.95
247.51
131.00
515.71
*7.653.00
New Canaan.
1,488.00
310.98
20,31
3,151 83
5,119.97
4,459.08
439.71
194.49
5.093.28
0
New Fairfield.
427.20
144.00
1,300.73
1,871.93
1,680.35
116.72
98.00
1,895.07
0
Newtown
2,625.60
526.12
90.00
4,198.17
3,367.23
31,194.01
23,028.94
1,979.84
1,042.88
4,436.41
*30,556.84
3
Redding
902.40
259.81
20.01
1,936.01
3,691.17
3,268.13
302,87
84.00
*3,691.50
0
Sherman
345.60
144.00
723.63
1,213.23
1,102.38
78.85
32.00
1,213.23
C
Stamford
6,304 80
567.27
190.19
12,863.72
19,925.98
16,425 72
2,133.71
565.15
801.40
19,925.08
0
Stratford
2,049.60
279.55.
140.00
4,186.95
2,380.18
9,083.28
5,990.27
480.18
106.52
1,405.56
$8,006.53
2
Trumbull
652.80
191.39
39.10
1,258.21
2,215.88
1,959.90
147.40
169 43
40.00
2,316.73
()
Weston
472.80
179.92
95.97
491.26
1,239.95
1,120.59
80.86
38.50
1,239.95
0
Westport
2,025.60
336.00
3,126.00
200.00
5,687.60
4,996.03
31x,88
419.38
150.00
5,884.20
1
Wilton
1,027.20
323.15
1,374.05
423.88
3,289.28
2,406.50
250.51
19.27
140.14
*3,125.42
1
$60,211.20 $7,240.00 $1,747.08 $136,401.23 $13,994.51 $223,163.86 $170,393.05 $18,918.72 $7,561.90, $15,617.52 *$217,700.58
19
1
CHAPTER VII. BRIDGEPORT +
Preface-The Paugusset or Golden Hill Indians-Destruction of the Pe- quots-Indian Agriculture-Orders of the General Court-Religious Instruction-Precautions against Surprise during King Philip's War- Golden Hill set off as an Indian Reservation-Value of Real Estate in 1659-The Shepherd of Stratford severely Handled-Shillings and Chops acquitted of the Charge of Murder-Elder Sherwood's Wrest- ling-Match-Sale of part of Indian Reservation to Samuel Hawley- Deeds of Land on Golden Hill in 1700 and 1701-Encroachments by the Whites, and Sale of the remainder of Reservation-Extortion by an Indian Agent redressed by the General Court-List of Official Guardians of the Indians-Purchase of Turkey Hill Meadow-An In- dian sold into Slavery-Survivors of the Tribe in 1880-Financial Statement.
PREFACE.
THE following paper upon the history of Bridge- port has been compiled after a careful study of orig- inal documents, such as church and society records, contemporary newspapers and pamphlets, petitions, deeds, wills, etc. It undoubtedly contains some errors, but it is hoped that they will not be very numerous, and a number of mistakes made by me in previous publications are here corrected. Thanks are due to Mr. R. B. Lacey, from whose excellent "Municipal Register" I have made frequent quotations, to the Standard Association for the use of their files, and to all others who have kindly assisted me. If the article is found to be of service to the community, I shall feel well repaid for the time spent in its preparation.
WILLIAM B. HINCKS.
BRIDGEPORT, Oct. 1, 1880.
THE PAUGUSSET OR GOLDEN HILL INDIANS.
The Indians found in this vicinity by the first white settlers called themselves the Paugussets. Their neighbors upon the east were the Quinnipiaes, of New Haven; on the west the Uncawas, of Fairfield ; and upon the north the Potatucks, of Newtown and Woodbury. Their aequaintanee with the English be- gan in the summer of 1637, when the latter, under command of Capt. Mason and Lieut. Davenport, sur- rounded Saseo Swamp, in Fairfield, and killed or captured the remnant of the fierce Pequot tribe who had taken refuge there. From passages in the early records of the colony, it would appear that a fine or tribute was imposed upon the Indians of this vieinity for having harbored the Pequots.
In 1639 settlements were begun by the English at Stratford and at Fairfield. So far as known, the planters in every case purchased the land from the Indians, and upon the records of these two towns may still be seen partieulars of many such transactions. The terms "old field," and " old Indian field," fre- quently occurring in these records, are believed to re- fer to land which had been cleared by the Indians for cultivation before the arrival of the whites. These tracts were large,-a faet that would indicate that the Indians depended to a greater extent upon agriculture for their support than has generally been supposed.
The relations between the English and their wild neighbors at this early day are clearly shown by the orders passed by the General Court. It was forbidden to sell to an Indian, arms, ammunition, or liquor of any kind, or horses, or boats. Sachems were made answerable for the conduct of their tribes. Indiaus were forbidden by law to enter the houses of the set-
* Including money for new school-houses, and for libraries and appa- ratus.
t Copyright, 1880, by William B. Hincks.
7,439.89
6,759.90
501.99
200.00
7,461.89
0
Norwalk
7,53₺.40
472.62
212.00
18,191.53
3,118.23
2,791.68
206.55
120.00
3,118.23 0
Ridgefield
1,060.80
350.00
2,147.06
1,780,61
1,602.11
126.50
52.00
1,780.61
()
Monroe
597.60
300.00
883.01
2
23 Towns
66
HISTORY OF FAIRFIELD COUNTY, CONNECTICUT.
tlers, or to handle their fire-arms or other weapons, under penalty of a fine for disobedience, or retaliation in kind if any loss of life or limb was occasioned by their carelessness. It was not allowable for more than two or three Indians to come into a settlement together, and, in any case, they were to leave their weapons be- hind them; and if found prowling around the dwell- ings of the settlers after dark, it was lawful to shoot them.
At the same time they were treated, in the main, fairly. Injuries to them in person or property were severely punished, and some attempts to Christianize them were madc. The General Court passed resolu- tions instructing the Governor and other magistrates to endeavor to convey through suitable interpreters some knowledge of God and his word to " those poore lost, naked sonnes of Adam," and ordered that at least twice in every year a teaching elder and an in- terpreter should go among them and "endeavor to make known to them the counsels of the Lord." Jolın Blackleaclı, Sr., who kept the ferry over the Housatonic River between Stratford and Milford, deserves honorable mention in this connection. In 1669 he petitioned to be allowed to make known to the Indians, as he should have opportunity, "some- thing of the knowledge of God." The General Court granted his request, and expressed the hope that the divine blessing might accompany his labors. That at least a portion of them were in the habit of attend- ing church is evident from a vote passed at an early date in Stratford forbidding the Indians to enter the meeting-house during the prevalence of a contagious disease,-perhaps the smallpox, then raging among them.
The colonial records clearly show, however, that they were always regarded by the whites as dangerous neighbors. It was early enacted that, to prevent sud- den attacks upon the Sabbath or lecture days, one from each household should come to meeting fully armed and equipped,-a custom which had not en- tirely fallen into disuse in 1695, when the First Church of this city was gathered.
During the prolonged contest with the Eastern In- dians known as Philip's War, great anxiety was felt throughout the colony. The Governor and Assist- ants, in session at Hartford, July 1, 1675, caused orders to be sent to all the western plantations to put themselves in a state of defense, and a little later, " from a deep sense of the eminent danger" impend- ing, instructed them to provide places of refuge to which the women and children and other non-com- batants might repair in case of assault. It was also ordered that strong guards be stationed in each town from twilight to sunrise, and that all males between the ages of sixteen and seventy, excepting magis- trates, ministers, millers, physicians, and schoolmas- ters, should do their share of guard and other military duty. Patrols were to be sent out every day to keep open communication between the towns, and exposed
frontier settlements were broken up for the time and their inhabitants counseled to return to places of greater security. All persons working in the fields were to go and come in companies of not less than six, especially if necessity called them to go more than half a mile from the settlement. In Stratford a vote was passed to prevent false alarms and need- less waste of ammunition. It is dated Aug. 8, 1675, and reads as follows: "Voted: That there shall be no gun shot off in the town-plot, or within the field, or upon the common road to Fairfield, upon any oc- casion whatsoever, except upon defense or occasion against the enemy, under penalty of five shillings for every gun. This order to stand during the present trouble with the Indians." A similar order was issued by the colonial government Sept. 3, 1675.
In the same year Richard Hubbell, Sr., of Strat- field, being indebted to the town of Fairfield to the amount of sixteen pounds, the balance due for a tract of land purchased from the town, was ordered, in lieu of the cash, to turn into the public "maga- zeen" eight hundredweight of lead, to be used in casting bullets.
The whole colony was, in fact, placed for a time under martial law; but, happily, the precautions taken were so successful that even if an outbreak was meditated by the Connecticut Indians, none took place, nor were any of the frontier settlements sacked by the enemy.
In 1659, twenty years after the first settlement, the General Court granted the request of the Indians that Golden Hill might be set apart for them as a perma- nent dwelling-place, and instructed Mr. Canfield, Mr. Fitch, Richard Olmstead, and Nathaniel Ely, of Nor- walk, to lay out eighty acres for them upon said Golden Hill, "beginning at ye foot of ye hill where ye Wigwams stood, and so to run upward on the hill." As part of the Indians who were removed to the reser- vation were from Fairfield, and as the reservation was wholly in Stratford limits, the committee awarded damages to the latter place as follows : " Fairfield men shall pay to Stratford, for the 80 acres of land that the Indians do possess at Pequannock, twenty pounds, to be paid in beef, pork, wheat, and peas ; 2 barrels of beef, 2 barrels of pork, good and merchantable, which we value at £12, and £8 to be paid in wheat and peas : wheat 4s. 6d. the bushel, peas 3s. 6d. the bushel.
"May 2, 1660."*
Although at present real estate is not very active, eighty acres upon Golden Hill would be consid- ercd a bargain at the price specified in this appraisal. The Indians also agreed with Stratford to keep up a fence, so that the swine of either party might not "damnifye" the growing crops of the other.
After the year 1659, when their land was set off to them, these Indians were commonly known as the Golden Hill tribe, from the name of their reservation.
* Conn. Rec., i. 335, 348 ; Stratford Rec., i. 249, 250.
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BRIDGEPORT.
In the summer of 1725 the shepherd of the town flock in Stratford was set upon by a number of Indians en- gaged in a drunken- carousal, his face painted, his body stamped upon until he was breathless, when he was "buried as dead." The manner in which the charge is made, however, implies his subsequent resus- citation, and it is probable that Newtown and New Milford Iudians, and not those living upon Golden Hill, were guilty of the outrage. . About the same time David Lane, infant son of Alexander Lanc, of Strat- ford, was thought to have been murdered, and two Indians, bearing the euphonious names of Shillings and Chops, were tried for the crime before the Supe- rior Court at Fairfield, Aug. 30, 1726, but were ac- quitted. An entry upon the Stratford records shows that it was finally determined that the child was acci- dentally drowned.
A few years later occurred an incident which the late Deacon David Sherwood was fond of relating as illustrating the uncommon physical strength of his grandfather, John Sherwood, captain of the train- band and the founder and first elder of the Stratfield Baptist Church. On a certain training-day, among the spectators present was a party of Indians from the reservation on Golden Hill, who had been behaving rather insolently, and one of theni, a burly, athletic fellow, finally challenged the whites to choose their best man and he would defeat him iu a wrestling- match. None of the spectators, sturdy farmers though they were, felt able to cope with the Indian athlete, whose muscular frame plainly showed him to be a very formidable antagouist; yet all felt it to be importaut that his challenge should be accepted, and that he should be defeated, for the sake of the effect upon the other savages. After some deliberation it was decided that Capt. Sherwood was the only man capable of van- quishing him, but doubts were expressed whether he would be willing to engage in a wrestling-match now that he had become so active in religious matters. A deputation came to him as he was drilling his men upon the parade-ground, and after hearing their story he briefly answered that his present duty was to drill his company, but that afterwards he would attend to the matter. Accordingly, when the parade was over and he had laid aside his regimentals, he approached the Indian champion, who was naked to the waist and shining with grease, so that it would have beeu diffi- cult for another man to lay hold of him. But, bring- ing his right hand down upon the shoulder of the astonished savage, Elder Sherwood crumpled it up in his vise-like grasp, and then, throwing his left arm around him, he gave him such a hug and mighty fall as to leave him almost senseless upon the field, while the air rang with the plaudits of the spectators.
At some date unknown, but probably about the year 1700, the Golden Hill Indians sold half their reserva- tion to Samuel Hawley, of Stratford. Mr. Hawley subsequently conveyed one-half his purchase to Rich-
ard Blackleach, the phraseology of the deed, omitting legal verbiage, being as follows :
"Know all men By thes presents that I Sain" Haley, of Stratford In the conutey of fairfield and colony of Connecticut, have sold, alenated & confirmed. and Do by thes presents soll alienate set over and confirme unto Mr Richard Blacklidge of Stratford aforesaid his heirs &c the Juste & Equal halfe of a tract of Land which I have Bought of the Endens [Indian] proprietors.
" Lying and Beeing on a place comonly caled golding hill; the whole quantety Beeing fortey acres Bee it more or less: Bounded north with the Inden fence; westerly with Land of Jacob waclen ( Wakeley); South- erly with land of Jacob wachen, Capt Bardsley, and Sumers his land; Easterly with a Springing nedo & highway : I say I have for a valuable Consideration to mee In hand Recdd. sold alienated and confirmed the equall halfe of the sd. tract of Land to M' Richard Blacklidge of Stratford his heirs & assigns &c. for ever. . . . Witness my hand and seall this 5th day of June 1706 Sel.
" SAMI HALLEY Senr. O =
This deed was witnessed by Jacob Walker, and was duly acknowledged before Justice Matthew Sher- wood, but was not recorded until May 3, 1710. The amount of the valuable consideration paid for forty acres of land on Golden Hill is not stated, but, ten months afterwards, Mr. Blackleach sold sixteen acres in the same locality to Benjamin Fayerwcather for the sum of thirty-two pounds in provisions at market rates. The essential portions of the deed, abbrevi- ating as before, are as follows :
. "Know all men pr. thes presents that I Richard Blackledg Sr. for a valuable consideration to mee in hand allready contented & paid pr, Benj fayerweather of fayerfield Do pr these presents sell alinate, set over & coufirme to the sd Benja. faycrweather lis heirs &c. for ever ; sixteen acres of land, bee it more or less, situate within the limits of Stratford on Golding hill, commonly soo caled ; & is the oue halfe of a parcell of Land that Sam11 Haley Bought of the Indens Belonging to said golding lill, except a small parcell that Lies on the south side of the high way that runs acros sd Hill now In the ocupation of Elizer fayerchild containing about three acres. The sd. land I have sold to said fayerweather Is Bounded Southerly with the Land of henery Sumers & John Sumers; westerly with the Land of Jacob Waclen; northerly with the Land of sd Indens, or thomas Haley's Land which he now improves in right of above sd Sam" Haley his father, Beeing the Remainder of his above sd. purches: easterly with sd. Indens land or the highway. southeasterly with the highway and so ranging tell you com to Heuery Sumerses Laud as the highway Runs. . ..
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