History of Fairfield County, Connecticut : with illustrations and biographical sketches of its prominent men and pioneers, Part 79

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) comp. cn
Publication date: 1881
Publisher: Philadelphia, J. W. Lewis & co.
Number of Pages: 1572

USA > Connecticut > Fairfield County > History of Fairfield County, Connecticut : with illustrations and biographical sketches of its prominent men and pioneers > Part 79

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).

The property passed out of the Silliman name not far from the beginning of the present century.

Nathan Hayes was the second owner. Then it . came into possession of James Penfield (who lived

* Fisher's Life of Benjamin Silliman, vol. i. r. 275.

he in

his he

ras ing er- de-

ing 1 st

He e of

the

ried

. in ster e at Held hei le of sken hich ar!

¡ the pere,

Jer e-

je inst

a Jer

mv.

316

HISTORY OF FAIRFIELD COUNTY, CONNECTICUT.

and died therc), a man of much respectability in Fairfield, judging from the records and tombstones. The next owner was Lydia Penfield, who sold it to Lewis Penfield, of Bridgeport, who repaired it. He disposed of it to Bradley Nichols, of Nichols' Farms, who now occupies it.

It has been repaired and newly covered, yet it is a historic dwelling and in an excellent condition. The school-house stands near, where the Sillimans attended school, and tradition was teaching the pub- lic that this was the identical school-house of a hun- dred years ago, but the inhabitants who gathered their lore from the desk against the three sides of the house, and the plank benches held by four sticks spreading at their contact with the floor, state that this is another structure, erected in 1835 on the orig- inal sitc.

No. 46 is a "colonial" built by a Urialı More- house in 1773-75. It fell to John Morehouse in 1827, and to Uriah Hill Morehouse in 1836. The present owner is John Gould Morehouse, whose claim was valid in 1844. His wife (Mrs. J. G. Morehouse) was born in " colonial" No. 44.

The first settler bearing this name was Thomas Morehouse, who was located in Wethersfield in 1640, and joined the colony at Fairfield in 1653, when he purchased a tide-mill of Henry Jackson, together with the privileges granted to said Jackson by the town in 1648.

It appears that Thomas Morehouse was deputy at the General Court at Hartford at the autumn session of 1653. He died in 1658. In his will (on the Pro- bate records in Fairfield) he names four sons and sev- eral daughters. These sons are the heads of the various lines of Morehouses through the country. They were Samuel, Thomas, John, and Jonathan.

Samuel was lieutenant and county marshal from 1675 to 1687. He was the ancestor of the More- houses now living in the town of Fairfield. His sons were Samuel, Thomas, Jolin, Daniel, and James.

John, the son of the first Thomas, was ensign in the company of soldiers raised in Fairfield County in 1676 for the campaign against the Indians that year, and afterwards removed to Southampton, L. I. Of the next generation, Ephraim and James settled in Litch- field Co., Conn.

John Morehouse, of the fourth generation, had two sons, who survived him,-Uriah, born in 1740, and William, born in 1749. Uriah had one son, John, who was commissioned ensign in 1813, and captain in 1814, of a company of volunteers organized for local defense. William's sons were Deacon William (father of Stephen Morehouse), William B., late of Green- field, and Mayor John B.

Of the many descendants, Gould went to Saratoga and died there; another was judge of the Supreme Court in New York.

The sea-wall and the breakwater at Black Rock were in progress in 1837-40, having for contractors Jona-

than Scranton, Madison, John G., and Uriah L. More- house, of Fairfield. This public work, near the dwelling-house, was built by Webb and Beach Downes, of Monroe. It was continued in 1847 by John G. Morehouse as contractor, under the general superin- tendence of Capt. William H. Swift, United States engineer, and finished in 1849.

The oldest gravestone in the Fairfield grounds yet discovered is, from its date and initials,-"S. M. 1687,"-supposed, from its location, to be Samuel Morehouse. The people of that family-name are numerous and of stability both in Church and State affairs.

No. 47. This "colonial," in Southport, stands nearly opposite Mr. Oliver Bulkeley's mansion, and was built a long time before the Revolution. The information given in regard to it is that it originally belonged to James Bulkeley, son of Peter and Hannah (Ward) Bulkelcy. He was born Aug. 3, 1729, and married Elizabeth Whitehead, Jan. 16, 1738. The next owner remembered was Darrow, who died here. Some of his family history is given on his tombstone, which is near the gate in the old (Fairfield) cemetery :

" This stone was erected by Capt. Eleazer Bulkeley to the memory of his father, Mr. James Bulkeley, who died Feb. 3, 1803, aged 73, and Mrs. Elizabeth, his mother, who died June 27, 18/9, aged 71. Likewise to his sister Mary, who died 1779, aged 22 years, and to his brother Andrew, who died 1788, aged 14. Also to Brother Moses, who died 1796, aged 20, and his brother James, who died at Norfolk, in Virginia, Sept. 13, 1803, aged 37."

The second Mary in this family-the first died young (the eldest and youngest of the eleven children were called Mary)-married Capt. Joab Squire. They removed to Ohio in 1817. They exchanged this " colo- nial" for a place near the shore with Benjamin Dar- row, who died in this house, leaving three daughters, one of whom married Levi Downes, who disposed of it to Joseph Furniss, present owner and occupant.

No. 48. The house now occupied by Charles Rock- well was the old farm-house kept by John and after- wards by his son Howes Osborn, who married Mary Bulkeley, daughter of Peter and Hannah Ward Bulkeley. The old stage-route was past their door, and in the rear of - Edward's house. Gen. Wash- ington was entertained there with others, as it was considered as a public inn.

A deed conveying a portion of said estate to John Osborn is dated on the first day of August, in the eighth year of the reign of our sovereign lord George the Second of Great Britain and King, Annoque Domini 1734. Signed, John Norris; signed, sealed, and delivered in presence of Lothrop Lewis, Andrew Burr.

A deed from Job Bartram to Howes Osborn con- veying a certain negro woman, named Time, for fifty pounds, about thirty-five years old, is dated April, 1778, and witnessed by Moses Jennings, Elipha't Bar- tram, Jr.

A deed from Ebenezer Wakeman, Jr., to Howes

بها

ـر

John Gould

TATARIENT N

一

ше

٦/١١

١٤٠١١١٣٦

سيحاب سب - ١

317

FAIRFIELD.

Osborn, conveying a negro man, Fortin, for fifty pounds, is dated in Fairfield, Jan. 26, 1782.

Mr. Howes Osborn died in 1807, aged eighty-five, and his wife in 1812, aged eighty-one.

No. 49. There is an old building on the premises of Mrs. - - Brown, known as the Powder-House. This stood on Jennings' property. The colony used this structure, made of stone, for a magazine. Here at one time a wortliless fellow, for some misconduct, was imprisoned. Owing to a stroke of wit, low- ever, his incarceration was short, as he drew his knife across a stone to produce a spark, which, in ease it came in contact with the powder, would produce an explosion. As he continued the attempt he exclaimed, "Free toleration, or no toleration! Free toleration, or no toleration!" The officers, valuing the powder more than his head, permitted him to go free.

No. 50. It is not known who built this house. Capt. William Bulkeley, born in 1741, died in 1787, owued it and the store opposite. He disposed of it to Capt. Joshua Jennings, who sold it and went West. Wakeman B. Meeker was the purchaser; he subse- quently died on these premises, and his estate has never been settled. His son carried on the store and shipping business for years under the name of W. B. Meeker & Son.

No. 51. This house, between Greenfield and South- port, was used as a tavern in Revolutionary times. In later years it was owned by Timothy Bulkcley, born in 1787; he remodeled and repaired it. After his death his widow disposed of it to Elijah Gray, the present owner. His son, Charles H. Gray, is one of the contributing editors to the Southport Times.

The reader will perceive that very little of this matter can be gathered from Probate records, or from books in general, as this has heretofore been unwritten history. The data have been carefully collected and compared. In many iustauces none could be given, and the only authenticity was from the circumstances connected with the subject in question.

For information concerning the "colonial houses" eredit is due Miss Hannah Hobart, Miss Eliza Hull, Mr. Henry Rowland, Mrs. Jane Kippen, Miss R. S. Carew, Mrs. Isaac Milbank, Mr. A. R. T. Nichols, Mr. Henry Bradley, Mr. Samuel Wilson (the gun- smith), Mr. John G. Morchouse, Mr. T. Minot Banks, Mrs. Elizabeth Meggs, Mrs. Abigail Sturges, Mr. Oliver H. Perry, Mr. Winthrop H. Perry, Capt. Julius Pike, Mr. David Beers, Mr. J. Frederic Jennings, Mr. Au- gustus Jennings, Mr. Ebenezer Burr, Mrs. Ebenezer Burr, Mr. Daniel Maloney, and the various people on the colonial premises.

Manuscripts were also kindly furnished by Mr. Henry Rowland, Mr. A. R. T. Nichols (who also loaned the " Musings of Memory," written by Uriah Bulkeley in his eighty-seventh year), and Mr. J. G. Morehouse. Extracts are given from "Noyes' Let- ters," "Life of Benjamin Silliman," Bulkeley Gene-

alogy, Barber's "Collections," Nash Genealogy, Burr Genealogy, and the Republican Standard for the past thirty years.

CHAPTER XXXI.

FAIRFIELD (Continued).

SPECIAL HOUSES.%

1. The Home of the Late Hon. John Gould .- " This family was connected with the carliest settlement of the State. By these first settlers for three generations the name was spelled Gold, but for some reason por- tions of the family have changed to Gould; yet most of those holding that name have no connection with the Golds.

"Maj. Nathan Gold married Martha, widow of Edward Harvey. They had one son, and daughters Sarah, who married John Thompson; Deborah, who married George Clark; Abigail, who married Jona- than Sellick.

"Maj. Nathan Gold removed from St. Edmonds- bury, in South Britain, to Fairfield, Conn., in the reign of Charles II., and was one of the first settlers of the town. He was a wealthy and educated gentle- man, and is often mentioned in Smith's 'History of New York.'

"In the first volume of the town records of Fair- field we find him a landholder in 1649, and in 1653 a purchaser of fifteen separate pieces of land, some of which remains in possession of his descendants to this day. He was one of the petitioners (nineteen in number) named in the charter of Connecticut, dated April 12, in the fourtecuth year of the reign of Charles II., which petition was signed by no gentleman nnless he had sustained a high reputation iu England before he came to New England. He was an assistant or member of the eouneil from 1657 to 1694, and 'de- parted this life into the mantions of Rest upon the day of Rest, on Saboth, it being the 4th day of March, 1693-94.' Inventory of his estate, £400 38. 6d."+

There is a guu in the possession of T. S. Gold, of Cornwall, which is said to have been brought by this Nathan Gold from England.

There are " two sermons occasioned by the death of Maj. Nathan Gold, one of the pious and worthy magistrates of Connecticut Colony, who deccased at his own house in Fairfield, the fourth of March, 1692." These sermons are in the handwriting of Rev. Joseph Webb, minister of the Congregational Church in Fairfield in 1700, and one of the founders of Yale College. The manuscript was presented to Mrs. Elizabeth Gould, by the Rev. William A. Johnson, of Salisbury, Conn., Aug. 5, 1879. His body, in all probability, is interred in Fairfield's illustrious bury-

* Contributed by Mrs. Kate E. Perry.

+ From History of Cornwall, by T. S. Gold,

318

HISTORY OF FAIRFIELD COUNTY, CONNECTICUT.

ing-ground, but at that date it was impracticable to furnish tombstones.

Along the salt meadows of Connecticut stone is scarce, and probably there was neither time to be spent in search of suitable stone, nor engravers to cut the inscription, nor means of conveyance. His son, Nathan Gold, Jr., married Hannah, born in Hartford, Dec. 8, 1663, daughter of Lieut .- Col. John Talcott and Helena Wakeman. He died Oct. 3, 1723. A low plain stone contains this simple inscription :

"Here lies the Body of the Honorable Nathan Gold, Esqr, Lievt .- Governor in His Majesties Colony of Connecticut, Decd Octr the 3d 1 7 2 3 Ætatis Suæ CO."

In the list of town clerks prepared by Daniel Ma- loney is this statement :

" Nathan Gold, chosen 1684, served to 1706,-twenty-two years. He was town clerk and deputy governor, with Peter Burr for assistant; served from 1706 to 1724, a period of eigliteen years."

He was also chief justice of the Supreme Court in 1712.

On the church (Congregational) record is found :

" The first volume extant; the earlier records, both of the church and town, are lost, carried to Virginia by Mr. Ludlow in 1654 .* This state- ment was generally believed, but, the earliest town record being found in Fairfield, it is believed the early church records were burnt."

This volume was rebound in May, 1868. On the old cover was the following inscription :

" This Booke of Records belongs to the church of Christ in Fairfield, of which I am Pastor .- JOSEPH WEBB. Bonglit in the year 1704; cost 68. in money, paid for by the church."

In this record is the following : "Mrs. Sarah Gold, wife of the worshipfull Capt. Gold, admitted Feb'y 10th 1705," which for people of to-day is interpreted 1705, Old Style. She was second wife of Nathan Gold, Jr. She died Oct. 17, 1711.

Another item from samc record :

"Jenny, negro girl belonging to the Honorablo Nathan Gold, Esq., D: G : bapt. June 9th, 1717."

The slaves were baptized and admitted into the church, married, and were recorded right along with the rest. Their names and their families also are on the town record.

The children of Nathan Gold, Jr., were : Abigail, born 1687, married Rev. Thomas Hawley of Ridge- field; John ; Nathan ; Samuel ; Joseph ; Rev. Hcz- ekiah, børn 1694, married Mary, daughter of Rev. Mr. Ruggles, of Guildford, (they had thirteen chil- dren); Onesimus, had a daughter Rebecca, who mar-" ried Ephraim Nichols (see "Colonial," 18), of Revo- lutionary uote; David; and Martha.

As Samuel inherited the premises under descrip- tion (No. 1, "Specials"), his family is here given : He married Esther Bradley. Their children were David, born in 1717; Esther, 1719; Abigail, 1724; Abell,

1727-1769; Col. Abraham, 1732-1777, who inherited the Gould homestead. He married Elizabeth, daugh- ter of Capt. John Burr (she died 1815, aged eighty- four), and had children : Abigail, born 1754, married Isaac Jennings (whose home is now Capt. Isaac Jen- nings') in 1770; Hezekiah, born 1756, who in 1789 was walking on a plank from the wharf to the vessel in New York ; the end of the plank dropping off from the vessel, he struck his breast and was drowned. Anna, who married - Silliman; Abraham, born in 1766; Jason, 1771; John B., died at sea in 1781 ; Daniel, died at sea off the coast of France in 1796 ; Elizabeth, married - Curtiss, of Newtown ; Sarah ; Deborah, married - Osborne, died 1785.

Col. Abraham Gold was killed on his horse by the British at Ridgefield in 1777, and his body was brought on horseback to Fairfield for burial.

The homestead was inherited by Jason, who changed his name to Gould. His interest in the family is shown by the stone set up to his father and family :

" A. G. This stone is erected by Jason Gould in memory of his honored Father, Col. Abraham Gould, Who fell in defense of his Country at Ridgefield, April 27tl1, 1777, aged 44 years ; and of his deceased brother, John Burr Gould, wbo died at sea, 1781, aged 20; and of Hezekiah Gould, wbo was drowned at New York, Oct. 20th, 1789, aged 30; and of Daniel Gould, who was drowned off the coast of France, Dec. 28, 1796, aged 20."

The sword used by Col. Abraham Gold is in the possession of his great-grandson, Abraham Gold Jen- nings, who resides in Brooklyn, N. Y., and his sash and coat were deposited in the Trumbull Gallery at New Haven. The sword is straight, silver-mounted, three-cornered, and at his death was found stained with the enemy's blood.

Jason had a son John, born in 1801, who possessed the ancestral acres, and died in 1871.

Hon. John Gould held many positions of public trust ; was member of the House of Representatives from Fairfield for several sessions, and member of the State Senate from the Tenth District in 1847; rail- road commissioner from 1854 to 1861; in 1864 ap- pointed United States marshal for Connecticut by President Lincoln, and held the office for four years. His widow, Mary Wakeman Thorp, daughter of Capt. Walter Thorp, died in 1879. His daughters own and occupy the homestead.

At his death being announced the world did him honor in various ways. One obituary reads :

"The Hon. Johu Gould died of apoplexy at his residence in Fairfield, Sept. 5, 1871, aged seventy years. Capt. Gould has been for many years one of our most prominent and useful citizens. He has been intrusted by his fellow-townsmen with many important offices of trust, which he

* See Trumbull's History of Connecticut.

" WILLOW LAWN "

RESIDENCE OF THE LATE HON. JOHN GOULD . FAIRFIELD_CONN

Iblic ive: the rail- by

the Jen- Resh

red, ined

api and

him Bell

Jen-

the

nged

IT:

ـبيتك

319

FAIRFIELD.

always filled with integrity and fidelity. ... A contemporary says of him : 'Capt. Gould was a natural gentleman, always dignificd and cour- teous in his mannors, and kindly in his deportment towards every one. By his industry and entorprise in early life he acquired a reasonable competence ; so that, apart from his public duties, he lod a life of com- parative case at his fine rosidenee in Fairfield. IIo was a man of most estimable private character and a member of the Congregational Church in his native town.

"' Ilis death is lamented by his numerous friends in all parts of the State, and to his family, wbo were tenderly attached to him, tho loss is irreparable.' . . .

" It will be long beforo Fairfield can boast a finer gentleman, a kinder friend, a more useful citizen, and a more upright man than her departed son, Jobn Gould."

At a meeting of the Connecticut National Bank, Capt. Jonathan Godfrey, of Southport, pronounced this eulogy :

" Capt. John Gould was a man whoso whole public life had challenged the admiration of the people of the State. In whatever station he was called to, his conduct evinced the strongest evidence of sound judgment and unflinching fidelity, and whenever in the Assembly or Senate of the State his action commanded the fullest reliance, his opinions and counsel were largely sought and confided in. As general railroad commissioner his supervision gave confidence to those who traveled on tho roads of tho State. When President Lincoln appointed him United States marshal for this State, the bench and the bar hailed his appointment with ae- claimed approval. Through years of friendship he was never known to utter an unkind word of any one nor to any ouc, and his home character was the same as abroad. No matter what the provocation, his noble manhood seemed to rise above it: His genial and pleasant nature always triumphed. It has been well and truly said, 'John Gould was one of Nature's noblemen.' Of commanding person and graceful carriage, he won the beholder at sight, creating impressions the most favorable."

Resolutions were passed acknowledging the traits set forth above, with expressions of sympathy, and passed to his family.

Among the many resolutions of various institutions, the board of directors of the Connectieut National Bank, at Bridgeport, met at their banking-house in Bridgeport, Sept. 8, 1871, and passed the following :

" Resolved, That the death of Mr. Gould, who was for nearly a quarter of a century a member of this board, is regarded by us as an irreparable loss to our institution and to tho members individnally ; that he was in his personal endowments and graceful and courteous manners, as in the clearness of his understanding, the manliuess of his sensibilities, and his integrity of character, a worthy representative of an old colonial family, a true New England gentlemau, who adorned the society in which he lived. . . .

" Resolved, That a copy of these resolutions be transmitted to both the daily papers of this city for publication, and that they also bo placed upon the records of this bank."

Capt. John Gould, his wife, Mary Wakeman Thorp, with other members of the family, lie in Fairfield East burying-ground.

There have been four houses on their homestead. The first was burnt by the British ; this was onee the home of Governor Ludlow. The second was a tem- porary house, which was improvised out of a eorn- house till they could have a better one. The third was removed about 1840 to give place to the last, which is a stately mansion on a rise of ground which gives a commanding appearanee and dignity to the estate. The lofty trees, extensive lawns, and the house, with its large Corinthian pillars, constitute a charming country residenee.

The families of Goulds and Thorps so intermarried

that Capt. Gould's daughters state truthfully. in say- ing: "My father lost his father; my mother lost her mother; then, in due time, my mother's father mar- ried my father's mother, and the father's daughter married the mother's son."

Here is a museum of curiosities, many of which were purchased in foreign parts by their grandfather, Capt. Walter Thorp. Among them are elegant china, deeanters and wine-glasses, antique yet handsome, also artieles made of tortoise-shell, spectacles, frame and bows, snuff-box, and other things made to order from the shell he furnished. Many of the articles are one hundred years old, others older. Here are the family pietures, portraits, silhouettes, etc. A domestic asked a member of the family if one of the ancestors was colored, as she saw a black picture (silhouette) among the group.

Among the curiosities is a pair of seales for weigh- ing money, which seemed essential in the days when our captains traded at all ports and we had no estab- lished curreney of our own. A paper accompanies, with a table of eoins and this statement :

"One Ounce of Gold is worth Five Pounds One Shilling and Four Pence, Lawful Money; and an Ounce of Silver, Six Shillings and Eight Pence. One Pennyweight of Gold is worth Five Shillings and Three Farthings; A Pennyweight of Silver, Four Pence. One Grain of Gold is worth Two Pence Half-penny. 24 Grains make 1 Pennyweight; 20 Pennyweights 1 Ounce; 12 Ounces I Pound.

"The Customary Method of receiving Gold in Payments is to take any of the above Picces for the Valne expressed in this Table, provided they fall short Two Grains only ; but if a greater Number of Grains than Two are wanting, then every Grain short of full Weight is to be allowed for at tho Rate of Two Penco Half-penny, Lawful Money, each Grain.

" The coins are Crowns, Ilalf-Crowns, Shilling, Six-pence, Spanisli Dollar, Half Dollar, Quarter of a Dollar, Five Moidore Piece, Double Jo- hannes, Doubloon, a Two-and-a-half Moidore, Single Johannes, Two Pis- tole Piece, Moidore, A guinea, Half Johannes, a Pistole, Ilalf Moidore, Ilalf Guinea, Quarter of a Johannes, Three English Farthings, and Eng- lish Ilalf-pence, in greater or less number, in Proportion."

On the baek of one of the rates of eoins adopted by the Chamber of Commerce, Aug. 7, 1770, the rates of stages from New York to Philadelphia are given :

"The Flying Machine, kept by John Mercereau, at tho New-Blazing- Star Ferry, near New York, sets off (during the summer season) from Powles-Hook for Philadelphia every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday Mornings. From tho first of November to the first of May it performs the journey only twice a week, and sets out on Mondays and Thursdays. Tho Waggons in Philadelphia set out from the House of Mr. Joseph Van- degrist the samo mornings. As the Stages set off early in the morning from Powles-IIook, Passengers would do well to cross the Ferry thie Evening beforc. The Price for each Passenger is 20s. Proe. and Goods as usual."

Probably the people of 1770 never onee thought that in 1870 a passenger eould leave Fairfield at 7.20 A.M. and arrive in Philadelphia at 4 P.M. after having spent a couple of hours in New York. A knowledge of the rates of money and of travel was necessary to traveling and commercial men.

In 1786 several of the descendants of Nathan Gold removed from Fairfield to Delaware Co., N. Y., some retaining the Gold, others changing to Gould. A large colony eut their way through the forests to the sourees of the Delaware over the Catskill Mountains. Abraham Gold was a prominent man in the town

320

HISTORY OF FAIRFIELD COUNTY, CONNECTICUT.

of Roxbury, N. Y. His oldest son, John Burr, was also a prominent man, and quite a hero in the Anti- Rent war of 1846. The Fairfield colony settled on leased land; rent, twelve and a half cents per acre.

Abraham Gold had six sons and four daughters. Jay Gould, the New York banker, is one of his grand- sons. Another was Daniel Gold, who studied law in Delhi, was clerk in the New York Legislature, and afterwards appointed chief clerk of the House of Representatives at Washington, D. C.

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.

History of Fairfield County, Connecticut : with illustrations and biographical sketches of its prominent men and pioneers, Part 79

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) comp. cn Publication date: 1881 Publisher: Philadelphia, J. W. Lewis & co. Number of Pages: 1572

Author: Hurd, D. Hamilton (Duane Hamilton) comp. cn
Publication date: 1881
Publisher: Philadelphia, J. W. Lewis & co.
Number of Pages: 1572