History of Middlesex county, Connecticut, with biographical sketches of its prominent men, Part 3

Author: Whittemore, Henry, b. 1833; Beers, J.B. & Company, publishers
Publication date: 1884
Publisher: New York : J. B. Beers & co.
Number of Pages: 818

USA > Connecticut > Middlesex County > History of Middlesex county, Connecticut, with biographical sketches of its prominent men > Part 3

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).

"Upon this, Colonel Bayard, by his excellency's command, sent a let- ter to the Assembly, declaring that his excellency had no design upon the civil rights of the colony; but would leave them in all respects as he found them. In the name of his excellency he tendered a commission to Governor Treat, empowering him to command the militia of the colony. He declared that his excellency insisted that they should ac- knowledge it as an essential right inherent in his Majesty to command the militia, and that he was determined not to set his foot out of the colony until he had seen his Majesty's commission obeyed; that he would issue his proclamation, showing the meaus he had taken to give ease and satisfaction to his Majesty's subjects of Connecticut, and that he would distinguish the disloyal from the rest.

"The train bands of Hartford assembled, and as tradition is, while Captain Wadsworth, the senior officer, was walking in front of the com- panies and exercising the soldiers, Colonel Fletcher ordered hiscommis- sion and instructions to be read. Captain Wadsworth instantly com- manded ' Beat the drums! and there was such a roaring of them that nothing else could be heard. Colonel Fletcher commanded silence. But no sooner had Bayard made an attempt to read than Wadsworth commands . Drum, drum, I say!' The drummers understood their bus- iness, and instantly beat up with all the art and life with which they were masters. 'Silence! silence" says the colonel. No sooner was there a pause than Wadsworth speaks with great earnestness, ' Drum, drum, I sayl' and, turning to his excellency, said: ' If 1 am interrupted again I will make the sun shine through you in a moment.' He spoke with such energy in his voice, and meaning in his countenance, that no further attempts were made to read or enlist men. Such numbers of people collected together, and their spirits appeared so high, that the governor and his sulte judged it expedient to leave the town and return to New York."

When the matter was presented in England the legal officers of the Crown gave their opinion in favor of Con- necticut, and the king and council determined the mat- ter in accordance with their opinion.

OUTLINE HISTORY OF THE STATE OF CONNECTICUT.

CHAPTER VI.

PROGRESS OF THE COLONY .- FRENCH AND INDIAN WARS .- CLAIMS OF CONNECTICUT TO LANDS IN PENNSYL- VANIA AND OHIO, AND THEIR ADJUSTMENT.

TN 1698 the General Assembly enacted that the colo- nial Legislature should thereafter consist of two houses, one consisting of the governor, or deputy gov- ernor, and magistrates, the other of deputies from the several towns in the colony, now known as represent- atives. From that time the concurrence of both houses was required for the enactment of a law. The town of New Haven was, in 1701, designated as the place for holding the October session of the Legislature, the al- ternate session being held at Hartford, as before.

War existed with France at this time, and Connecticut was subjected to heavy expense on that account. In 1709 the colony was compelled to issue paper money to defray the expense of an expedition against Canada, for which she raised 350 men. It was enacted that £8,000 should be issued for this purpose.

At about the commencement of the eighteenth century the colony was again harassed by an attempt to deprive it of its charter. Lord Cornbury, governor of New York and the Jerseys, and Governor Dudley, of Massachusetts, conspired for this purpose, and they would have suc- ceeded but for the able effort of Sir Henry Ashurst, who was the agent of Connecticut, and a firm friend of the colonies.

In 1713, Connecticut had about 1,700 inhabitants. There were thirty-eight towns, and the counties of Hart- ford, New Haven, New London, and Fairfield, had been incorporated. Each county had a regiment of militia, making an aggregate of 4,000 in the colony. Two small brigs and seventy sloops constituted the shipping, and these were manned by about one hundred and twenty seamen. The principal trade was with New York, Boston, and the West Indies. To the two former, pro- duce, such as wheat, rye, barley, Indian corn, peas, pork, beef, and cattle was taken; to the West Indies, horses, cattle, beef, pork, staves, and hoops were exported, and rum, sugar, molasses, cotton, and some money received in return.

The sessions of the Legislature which met twice in each year, were usually limited to ten days, and the annual expense of the two sessions was about $1,600. The gov- ernor received a salary of $800, and the deputy governor of $200. The total expense of the government was within $3,500; which was a smaller sum than was usually allowed to a royal governor in the colonies.

The record of Connecticut in the French and Indian wars, which prevailed between 1745 and 1763, is an ex- ceedingly honorable one. She furnished one thousand men in the expedition of the colonies against Louisburg, and after the reduction of that place three hundred and fifty men were provided by the colony for the winter garrison. A sloop manned with one hundred men was

also furnished. During the continuance of the war it is believed that Connecticut did fully double her propor- tion, compared with the rest of the colonies, for its main- tenance. More than six thousand of her men were in actual service in 1759. She also sent her full quota to the West Indies in 1762.

After the termination of the French wars, in 1763, Connecticut increased rapidly in population, wealth, and commerce. Her settlements and towns multiplied, and she was soon able to discharge the debt incurred in the prosecution of the war. Her prosperity continued till the commencement of the Revolution.

By the charter of 1662 Connecticut was bounded "on the north by the line of the Massachusetts plantation, and on the south by the sea," and extended " from the said Narragansett Bay on the East to the South Sea on the Weste part." Nineteen years later a grant was made to William Penn of lands on the west side of the Delaware River as far north as the 43d degree of latitude. This grant included a part of the territory embraced in the charter of Connecticut. During ninety years these lands, which lay west of the colony of New York, were not claimed by Connecticut. In 1753 her lands east from that colony had all been granted, and a company for settling those on the Susquehanna was formed. The Indian title to a large tract at Wyoming was extinguished, and settlements were made there. The jealousy of the proprietaries in Pennsylvania was aroused, and they ob- tained from some of the chiefs who had not signed the grant to the.Connecticut purchasers, a deed for the same lands. Grants were made by Pennsylvania, and settle- ments thereon were commenced. Fierce disputes were thus excited, and the parties sought to maintain their claims by force of arms; and during several years what was known as the " Yankee and Pennanite war " pre- vailed. This controversy was suspended during the Rev- olution, but on the return of peace it was renewed. In 1782 the matter was determined by a joint commission, which decided adversely to the claims of Connecticut, and this State acquiesced in the decision.

The claim of Connecticut to the land within the north- ern and southern boundaries, as expressed in the charter, west from Pennsylvania, was not relinquished. In order, however, to obtain the implied sanction of these claims, Connecticut, in 1786, ceded to the United States all these lands except a tract one hundred and twenty miles in length west from Pennsylvania, within the charter limits. The United States accepted the cession. Of these reserved lands half a million acres were granted by the State to the inhabitants of New London, Fairfield, and Norwalk, as an indemnity for property destroyed by the enemy during the Revolutionary war. The remain- der was sold, in 1795, and the proceeds, $1,200,000, were appropriated to the school fund of the State. The title to these reserved lands was confirmed by Congress in 1800, and the territory, which is now a part of Ohio, is still frequently spoken of as the Western Re- serve.

REVOLUTION-WAR OF 1812-WAR OF THE REBELLION.

CHAPTER VII.

CONNECTICUT IN THE REVOLUTION AND IN THE WAR OF 1812.

ONNECTICUT was one of the first among the Several buildings were badly shattered, and some were

American colonies to protest against the Stamp Act, and to insist on the rights of trial by jury, and of the people to represent and tax themselves, and the As- sembly early adopted an address to the English parlia- ment on the subject. After the passage of the act, its execution in the colony was firmly and successfully re- sisted by the people. The non-importation agreement was faithfully carried out by the people of Connecticut, and, after the passage of the Boston Port Bill and the rumor of an attack on Boston, 20,000, it was estimated, of the citizens of the colony armed themselves and start. ed, or were ready to start, for that city.

The news of the battle of Lexington was received in Hartford while the Assembly was in session, and with the tacit consent of the members the expedition against Ticonderoga was planned, and it was paid for from the treasury of the colony.

Following these first aggressive acts by armed Ameri- can forces came the rapid preparations for the hostilities that were to follow. In these Connecticut was among the foremost. She was hampered by no royal governor, and the spirit of liberty, which had been nourished and in- vigorated by more than a century of self-government, prompted her sons to the active and energetic resistance to the acts of Great Britain which, from first to last, characterized them. 'At the battle of Bunker Hill, Con- necticut men, under Putnam and other officers from this State, rendered effective service, as they did on every battle-field where they fought during the protracted con- test.

It will be remembered that after the battle of Long Island, in 1776, the enemy held possession of that island till the close of the war, and that the shore of Connecti- cut was subject to hostile incursions from the British, while Long Island was often raided by parties of patriots from Connecticut. In addition to these minor operations the State was several times invaded, and its towns were burned and pillaged. The last invasion of this kind was under the infamous traitor, Arnold, who was born in Connecticut, and who, after having basely attempted to betray his country, filled the measure of his infamy by bringing fire and sword into the state of his nativity.

In the last war with Great Britain, commonly known as the War of 1812, it is notable that in the first conflict on the ocean the first flag was struck to .a native of Con- necticut. On the land, the first flag that was taken was also surrendered to one of her sons.

coast. In August 1814, Stonington was bombarded, the bombardment continuing during four days. The attack was resisted as vigorously as could be done with the feeble force available, and the vigilance of its defenders thwarted the designs of the enemy to burn the town.

wholly destroyed; but no one in the town was killed.

CHAPTER VIII.

CONNECTICUT IN THE GREAT CIVIL WAR .- CONSTITU- TIONAL GOVERNMENTS .- CIVIL LIST.

I T IS quite unnecessary to record the events which led to the war of the great Rebellion. During the interval between the election of Abraham Lincoln to the presidency, in 1860, and the bombardment of Fort Sum- ter, in 1861, the position of Connecticut was not equiv- ocal. The declaration and acts of her governor, her Legislature, and her representatives in Congress, were all in favor of a firm maintenance of the national honor, and against any concession to those who sought to compro- mise that honor, or to humiliate the nation.

There were, however, in Connecticut, as in the other loyal States, some who, if not in sympathy with those who had seceded from the Union, were not heartily in accord with those who advocated prompt and energetic measures for the defense of the national integrity. The attack on Fort Sumter, however, aroused in many of these their dormant patriotism, and the sympathizers with the rebels were reduced to an impotent minority.

As in other parts of the loyal North, there was here a spontaneous uprising for the support of the government; and such was the enthusiasm of the people that, in four days from the first call for troops, a regiment was at its rendezvous, and within three weeks 54 companies, or five times the quota of the State under the call, had ten - dered their services.

Did space permit, an account of the self-sacrificing patriotism which was manifested in all parts of the State would be of interest. Different localities seemed to vie with each other in their efforts to sustain the government which had conferred on them prosperity and happiness.

As time wore on, however, and the armies of the Union encountered disasters in the field, the opponents of the war became bolder and more outspoken. In the darkest hours of that struggle, however, they were not able to obtain control of the State government, and from the beginning to the end of that terrible war, Connecti- cut sustained her full share of the burden which it im- posed on the nation.

It is worthy of remark that on the first day of the next session of the Legislature after the return of peace, the amendment to the Federal constitution abolishing and prohibiting slavery was ratified without a dissenting vote.

In 1813 a blockade of the principal ports on the Sound was established, and this blockade was more rigidl- en- forced after a torpedo vessel had been sent into the Sound with the design of destroying a portion of the The number of men furnished by the State during the war was 54,882, of whom 1, 804 were in the naval service. blockading squadron. During this blockade, several spirited affairs of minor importance occurred on the ! This total, when reduced to a three years' standard, gives

OUTLINE HISTORY OF THE STATE OF CONNECTICUT. 1

41,483, a surplus, in three years' men, of 6,698 over the total quota required to be furnished by the State. The number of men furnished, in proportion to the popula- tion of the State, was greater than that of any other State except Iowa and Illinois. The total war expenses of the State were estimated at $6,623,580.60.

Connecticut furnished the following general officers who were natives or residents of the State, or who were officers of Connecticut regiments, and became general officers during the war:

Henry W. Benham, Darius N. Couch, Joseph R. F. Mansfield, Joseph A. Mower, Newton, John Sedgwick, Alfred H. Terry, Horatio G. Wright, major- generals; Henry L. Abbott, Henry W. Birge, Joseph R. Hawley, Alexander Shaler, Joseph G. Totten, Robert O. Tyler. Henry W. Wessells, A. S. Williams, brevet major. generals; Luther P. Bradley, Henry B. Carrington, Wil- liam T. Clark, Orris S. Ferry, Edward Harland, Henry M. Judah, William S. Ketchum, Nathaniel Lyon, Ra- nold S. Mackenzie, James W. Ripley, Benjamin S. Rob- erts, Truman Seymour, A. Von Steinwehr, Daniel Tyler, H. D. Terry, brigadier-generals; Erastus Blakeslee, Wil. liam G. Ely, Theodore G. Ellis, E. D. S. Goodyear, Ed- win S. Greeley, James Hubbard, Brayton Ives, Edward M. Lee, Gustavus Loomis, John Loomis, William H. Noble, John L. Otis, Joseph G. Perkins, William S. Pierson, Alfred P. Rockwell, Samuel Ross, Griffin A. Stedman, John E. Toutellotte, Edward W. Whitaker, Henry M. Whittlesey, Henry C. Ward, brevet brigadier- generals.

It is a fact, of which their descendants have reason to be proud, that the founders of Connecticut comprehend- ed the great principles of civil and religious liberty, and established the government, from the first in strict ac- cordance with those principles. While the other colo nies were suffering under the domination, and often under the tyranny of royal governors, she had her affairs administered by officers of her own choice. As has been seen she firmly and successfully resisted every attempted encroachment on her rights, and every effort, whether by insidious craft or open intimidation, to deprive her of her charter.

In this State it was not found necessary after the Dec- laration of Independence to adopt a constitution, but simply to enact a statute providing that the government should be administered according to the provisions of the charter, which was already republican in its character. This form of government continued without essential change till 1818.

The changes that time had gradually wrought rendered the adoption of a new fundamental law desirable, and accordingly, in that year, a convention of delegates from the several towns assembled in Hartford, and in a ses- sion of about three weeks elaborated a constitution. This was submitted to the electors of the State, in Octo- ber of that year, and was ratified by a majority of fifteen hundred and four.

The following is a list of the colonial and State gov- vernors of Connecticut:

John Haynes, first chosen in 1639, served 8 years; Ed- ward Hopkins, 1640, 7; George Willys, 1642, I; Thomas Weller, 1655, 2; John Webster, 1658, 1; John Winthrop, 1657, 18; William Leete, 1676, 7; Robert Treat, 1683, 4; [Sir Edmund Andross, 1687, 2]; Robert Treat, 1689, 9; Fitz John Winthrop, 1698, 9; Gurdon Saltonstall, 1707, 17; Joseph Talcott, 1724, 17; Jonathan Law, 1741, 9; Roger Wolcott, 1750, 4; Thomas Fitch, 1754, 12; William Pitkin, 1766, 3; Jonathan Trumbull, 1769, 15; Matthew Griswold, 1784, 2; Samuel Huntington, 1786, IO; Oliver Wolcott, 1796, 2; Jonathan Trumbull, 1798, II; John Treadwell, 1809, 2; Roger Griswold, 1811, I; John Cotton Smith, 1813, 4 ; Oliver Wolcott, 1818, 9 ; Gidion Tomlinson, 1827, 4 ; Jonn Samuel Peters, 1831, 2 ; Henry D. Edwards, 1833, I ; Samuel A. Foot, 1834, I ; Henry W. Edwards, 1835, 3 : William W. Ellsworth, 1838, 4 ; Chauncey F. Cleveland, 1842, 2 ; Roger Sher- man Baldwin, 1844, 2 ; Isaac Toucey, 1846, I ; Clark Bissel, 1847, 2 ; Joseph Trumbull, 1849, I ; Thomas H. Seymour, 1850, 4 ; Henry Dutton, 1854, 1 ; William T. Minor, 1855, 2 ; Alexander H. Holley, 1857, I ; Willianı A. Buckingham, 1858, 8 ; Joseph R. Hawley, 1866, I ; James E. English, 1867, 2 ; Marshall Jewell, 1869, 1 ; James E. English, 1870, I ; Marshall Jewell, 1871, 2 ; Charles R. Ingersoll, 1873, 4; Richard D. Hubbard, 1877, 2 ; Charles B. Andrews, 1879, 2 ; Hobart B. Bigelow, 1881, 2 ; Thomas M. Waller, 1883.

The deputy or lieutenant governors of the colony and State of Connecticut have been:

Roger Ludlow, first chosen in 1639, served 3 years; John Haynes, 1640, 5; George Willys, 1641, 1; Edward Hopkins, 1643, 6; Thomas Weller, 1654, 4; John Web- ster, 1655, I; John Winthrop, 1658, I; John Mason, 1660, 9; William Leete, 1669, 7; Robert Treat, 1676, 17; James Bishop, 1683, 7; William Jones, 1692, 5; Nathan Gold, 1708, 16; Joseph Talcott, 1724; Jonathan Law, 1724, 17; Roger Wolcott, 1741, 9; Thomas Fitch, 1750, 4; William Pitkin, 1754, 12; Jonathan Trumbull, 1766, 3; Matthew Griswold, 1769, 15; Samuel Hunting- ton, 1784, 2; Oliver Wolcott, 1786, 10; Jonathan Trum- bull, 1796, 2; John Treadwell, 1798, 11; Roger Griswold, 1809, 2; John Cotton Smith, 1811, 2; Chauncey Good- rich, 1813, 2; Jonathan Ingersoll, 1816, 7; David Plant, 1823, 4; John S. Peters, 1827, 4; Henry D. Edwards, 1831, I; Thaddeus Betts, 1832, I; Ebenezer Stoddard, 1833, I; Thaddeus Betts, 1834, I; Ebenezer Stoddard, 1835, 3; Charles Hawley, 1838, 4; William S. Hollabird, 1842, 2; Reuben Booth, 1844, 2; Noyes Billings, 1846, 1; Charles J. McCurdy, 1847, 2; Thomas Backus, 1849, I; Charies H. Pond, 1850, 1; Green Kendrick, 1851, 1; Charles H. Pond, 1852, I; Alexander H. Holley, 1854, 2; William Field, 1855, 1; Albert Day, 1856, 1; Alfred A. Burnham, 1857, I; Julius Catlin, 1858, 3; Benjamin Douglas, 1861, I; Roger Averill, 1862, 4 ; Oliver F. Winchester, 1866, I ; Ephraim H. Hyde, 1867,2; Francis Wayland, 1869, 1 ; Julius Hotchkiss, 1870, 1 ; Morris Tyler, 1871, 2 ; George G. Sill, 1873, 4 ; Francis B. Loomis, 1877, 2 ; David Gallup, 1879, 2 ; William H. Bulkeley, 1881, 2 ; George G. Sumner, 1883.

GENERAL HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY.

CHAPTER I.

GEOGRAPHY, TOPOGRAPHY, AND ORIGINAL CONDITION.

M IDDLESEX COUNTY was incorporated by an act of the Legislature passed at the May ses- sion, 1785, and at that time consisted of six towns. Of these, Middletown, Chatham, Haddam, and East Had- damn were taken from the county of Hartford, and Say- brook and Killingworth from New London county. Dur- ham was annexed to the county in May 1799, from the county of New Haven. New towns have been erected from the original six till the number is now fifteen. From the first Middletown and Haddam have been half shire towns, and public buildings have been erected and main- tained in each.

The form of the county is irregular. Its average length between north and south is twenty-seven miles, and its average width from east to west is about fourteen. Its general boundaries are Hartford county on the north, New London county on the east, Long Island Sound on the south, and New Haven county on the west.

The surface of Middlesex county is generally uneven. On the margin of the sound is an area of from half a mile to two miles in width that is comparatively level, as are also small areas in other parts of the county.

A range of wide hills passes obliquely through the county from south west to northeast, crossing the Connec- ticut River at a place called the " Straits," and passing thence to the interior of New England. On the western borders of Middletown and Durham are Wallingford Mountains, some of which are known by distinct names, as Higby Mountain, from a settler near it, and Lamenta- tion Mountain, the origin of the name of which is uncer- tain.

From the sides and bases of the many hills in the county issue springs which form brooks that gather into larger streams. These, as they pass onward to discharge their waters into the Connecticut River, afford valuable water power, which is extensively utilized for mills and manufactories.

The Connecticut River passes in a general southeast- erly course through the county, separating the towns of Portland, Chatham, and East Haddam on the east from the other towns on the west of it. The same name (spelled Connectiquot) was applied by the Indians on Long Island to a river in Suffolk county, N. Y. In the Indian tongue it meant the Long River, and here it gave its name to the State. It rises in Canada, on the south- ern side of the water shed which separates the waters that pass through the St. Lawrence from those that go south through New England. At the point where it en - ters the United States it is no more than ten rods in width. For a distance of about two hundred miles it forms the boundary between Vermont and New Hamp- shire, receiving affluents from the Green Mountains on the west, and from the White Mountains of New Hamp- shire. It passes centrally through Franklin, Hampshire, and Hamden counties in Massachusetts, and Hartford county in this State, receiving in its course through these counties large affluents on both sides. It passes through the northern part of Middlesex county and between this and New London counties to its mouth in Long Island Sound.

The river varies in width through and along this coun- ty from thirty-five rods at the straits to more than one hundred in other places. The tide sets back in this river as far as Hartford, to which point it is navigated by steamboats as well as sailing vessels. Its minimum depth is about ten feet at high tide, and it has an average depth of fifteen feet. The ship channels in the river un- dergo changes from time to time by reason of natural or artificial changes along its banks.

There are several islands in the course of the river through this county. These undergo gradual changes, some of them being augmented in area by the deposit of sediment, especially during freshets, and some are di- minished or even obliterated by the erosion of their shores, while others are formed around temporary obstructions of the current, then increased by the deposit of sedi- ment in the eddies below them.

The current of the river is usually gentle, except at the

HISTORY OF MIDDLESEX COUNTY.

Straits, some two miles below Middletown, and here it is necessarily more violent, especially during the ebbing of the tide.

The river is subject to freshets, especially at the melt- ing of the snows in this vicinity in the spring, and later, when the snow and ice dissolve at the sources of the river and its tributaries in the mountains above. At such times the obstruction, at the Straits, of the large volume of the water tends to increase and prolong the floods above, and ice-packs have been known to occur at this narrow part of the river's course, which, by damming the waters, have occasioned much damage. These freshets, however, greatly fertilize the lands which are overflowed.

This river and its tributaries formerly abounded with fish, and the taking of these in their season was once an important branch of industry; but the number that fre- quent these waters, especially of the more valuable vari- eties, has so diminished, that the business has dwindled into comparative insignificance. Field said, in 1818: " There are eighty places where shad are now caught in the season of fishing, beginning about the middle of April and ending in the middle of June, viz .: 26 in Say- brook, 17 in Haddam, 16 or 17 in Middletown, 13 in Chatham, and 5 in East Haddam. At the fish places in Saybrook there were salted, in 1817, according to the report of the deputy inspector, 2,194 barrels of shad; at the fish places in Haddam, 146 barrels; and at those in East Haddam, 169; making a total of 2,509 barrels."

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 Middlesex county, Connecticut, with biographical sketches of its prominent men, Part 3

Author: Whittemore, Henry, b. 1833; Beers, J.B. & Company, publishers Publication date: 1884 Publisher: New York : J. B. Beers & co. Number of Pages: 818

Author: Whittemore, Henry, b. 1833; Beers, J.B. & Company, publishers
Publication date: 1884
Publisher: New York : J. B. Beers & co.
Number of Pages: 818