USA > Connecticut > Hartford County > New Britain > Memorial. Genealogy, and ecclesiastical history [of First Church, New Britain, Conn.] To which is added an appendix, with explanatory notes, and a full index > Part 4
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Let the reader now take a birds-eye view of this apparently happy community. The parish has now had an existence of about twenty years under the title of Great Swamp, and of about ten with the name of Ken- sington. Its territory extends from Benjamin (now, 1867,) Richard Judd's on the north, far enough south to embrace the Blow Hills, and Blow Mountains, to Wallingford, (Meriden line.) It has the mountainous range of Farmington on the West, Wethersfield and Middletown on the east, yet Middletown then embraced almost the entire locality of the pres-
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KENSINGTON PARISH.
ent village of Worthington, (Berlin,) even west to " lower lane," (or Hart street,) and Wethersfield; the east part of that rich valley lying north through which the Hartford and New Haven turnpike passes. The peo- ple of Stanley quarter, as far south as Benjamin (now Richard Judd's,) with the exception of three families.at the extreme north end, who went to Farmington,) attended public worship at Newington .* The few fami- lies located in the present New Britain village and west of it, never did belong to the Great Swamp, or Kensington parish, but to the old society of Farmington, as will fully appear as we advance in our sketches of the history of Kensington. The families had multiplied towards the "Blow Mountain," and the wealth had increased with the Burnham's, t Hart's, Norton's, and Coles' families near the center. By a natural process of reasoning, while passing to and fro, over bad roads, "long distances," and mostly on foot, they had discovered that their meeting house was too small, its locality too far east, and too far north, and another important fact they
* At a General Court held in Hartford, 9th October, 1712, a portion of Wethersfield extending two miles and fifty rods east of Farmington bounds, was made a Ministerial society, bounded north by Hartford bounds, and south by Middletown. It was called " Wethersfield West Society."
A petition was also presented to the town of Wethersfield by the subscribers, who say in their petition that they live in the west part of said town, in which they ask to be set off by themselves as a parish or new society. Dated 24th December, 1712.
Ezekiel Buck,
Nathaniel Hun,
Nathaniel Churchill,
Abraham Warren,
Eliphalet Whittlesey, Jonathan Wright,
Jonathan Buck,
Stephen Buck,
Richard Boardman,
John Kelsey,
Enoch Buck,
Stephen Kelsey,
John Whaples,
Jonathan Hurlbut,
Joseph Andrus,
Jonathan Buck, Thomas Morton,
Simon Willard, Benjamin Andrus, John Stoddar,
Joseph Camp,
John Camp, Samuel Hun,
Richard Beckley, John Deming, Ephraim Deming, Jabez Whittlesey, Benjamin Beckley.
This petition was granted by vote of the town, 24th December, 1712. The General Court sent Mr. Joseph Talcot and Mr. Aaron Cook to fix a location for the meeting house, and they reported as the proper place, on the common, about thirty rods from the house of Dr. Joseph Andrus, May, 1715. They (the west society, now Newing- ton,) got a bonus of £50 for damage of the south part of the parish, when they were annexed to " Great Swamp." Also £100 16s. of Yale College, for relinquishing Mr. Williams, their first minister, to be President of Yale. Also, from those annexed from Farmington £100 towards a settlement of Mr. Williams.
f Capt. William Burnham who died 12th March, 1748, eldest son of Rev. Mr. Burnham, left an estate of £8,246 10s. 11d., old tenor (supposed.)
3
Daniel Andrus,
Ephraim Whaples,
Ephraim Andrus,
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INTRODUCTION.
had also learned by actual experiment, that the south part of the parish could out vote the north part.
At a meeting of the society of Kensington legally warned and held 26th January, 1729-30, it was voted to build a new meeting house in some convenient place, on Sargt John Norton's lot, on the north side of the Mill River,* there being 42 votes in the affirmative, & 36 in the negative, as was then declared. Troubles now multiply from this period rapidly in "poor Kensington," (as our ancestors, the petitioners used to call it.). They had, as appears from the record, still extant and in good condition, been annoyed by the perplexity of making Rate Bills for their neighbors from Wethersfield & Middletown, who belonged to their ecclesiastical society, but not to the town . of Farmington, as they did. For several years in succession, they had ap- pointed Committees to negociate with them & to ask the Gen. Court for relief in this matter, but no material relief came until years had passed. - The above vote to build a new Meeting house, with so small a majority, & withal to go so far west for a location, (which is supposed to be about where Milo Hotchkiss' new house stands,) kindled a flame of jealousy, passion and prejudice, which seems never to have been quenched, until the final division and incorporation of a separate society. These fathers of ours had a great reverence and love for the honor and worship of God, had a constant care for the education of their children, were sensitive and jealous of their rights to a fault perhaps, were no doubt greatly tempted to be stubborn and self-willed, yet they were patriotic, hospitable, industri- ous and frugal. They abhorred popery, infidelity, prodigality, laziness and indebtedness. They were patient of labor, persevering and indomit- able in energy. Their living was obtained from the products of the soil, in a new country, and in an unsubdued wilderness. With the exception of Mr. Burnham they had but one Mr. in the whole community, viz. Mr. Ebenezer Gilbird (Gilbert,) his inventory 1726, Dec. 17th, amounted to £3,824 12s. 8d., this is less than some of his cotemporaries who died a little later. Saml Bronson, Miller, who sawed the timber for both the 1st & 2d Meeting-houses was located on that branch of the "betsis" (Matta- besset) river, later called Mill river,t and owned the Barret place, and
* This Serg. John Norton lived by the well, at the southwest corner of Milo Hotch- kiss' house lot, the old house still well remembered by the oldest living. It was on the corner of the main road from Farmington to Middletown, and is said on the record to be opposite the foot crossing on Mill river, (reference doubtless to the locality of the present foot crossing. (ED.)
t This Mill river had a special interest in the minds of the colonists some half cen- tury later, inasmuch as it afforded lead with which to kill the British red coats.
" Col. Selah Hart was appointed on a committee, 1775, in May, to provide such stores of lead as they shall judge necessary for the use of the Colony, to contract for & take lead ore that should be raised out of the Mine of Matthew Hart in Far. & to dig & raise ore in said mine if profitable & necessary for the Colony."
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KENSINGTON PARISH.
113901785 the Mills, which fell to Charles, his youngest son, and after to Asahel, his grandson, known for many years as " Percival's Mills," but (now, 1867,) the site of a large manufacturing establishment of J. T. Hart & Co. The estate of this Samuel Bronson, (miller,) who died 22d April, 1752, amounted to £6,874 8s. 3d, Samuel Thompson and Samuel Lankton ap- praisers, 5th May, 1752. Among the items of the inventory are one negro man, Lot, £400, one negro wench, Hannah, £300, eldest boy, Saul, £200, youngest boy, Pharoh, £130, and he bequeathed by his will to Sarah, his grand-daughter, all his sheep, and an unborn child of Hannah, the wench. I have alluded in another place to the estate of Capt. William Burnham, and will instance but one more, that of Deacon Anthony Judd. He was a large farmer, lived in the north part, was a man of influence, represented the town of Farmington in the General Court many times, from 1717 to 1739, perhaps later, his residence where (now, 1867,) Mr. William Ellis lives, and used the same well-his will made 1750, the in- ventory of his estate dated 26th November, 1751, amounted to £5,360 old tenor. Did space allow, the author would delight in giving the location and a brief history of each of these worthies. But we return to some far- ther extracts from the ancient record of the society, since it is one of the principal sources of information. If the reader discovers a strange mix- ture of Church History, doings of the Ecclesiastical and School Society, with town matters intermingled, it only shows the necessity of the times and circumstances into which they were thrown. Remote from the cen- ter of power and influence, (Farmington village,) they felt their own wants and took the responsibility of supplying them the best way they could. If they occasionally chose a surveyor, a constable, a taverner, or voted that their sheep shall run on the common, or divided their parish into squaddams, (naturally the legitimate business of the town only,) yet they deemed it expedient to help themselves. We find a full record of a yearly appointment of a committee to look after the schools, to demand and receive the "country" money for their encouragement.
At a meeting of the society of Kensington, 7th Dec. 1730, Nathl Cole, John Standley, Sarg. Geo. Hubbard, & Jonathan Lewis, were chosen a committee to order the prudentials for a school for this society for the year ensuing. At the same meeting the society agreed by vote to give to the Rev. Mr. Wm. Burnham for his labor in the Ministry the year past, the sum of £100 in Bills of public Credit, or in grain at the market price in
This lead mine is located on this Mill river, (a branch of the Betsis or Mattabesic, ) on its west bank, a little distance below Moore's Mills, and the residence of Matthew Hart was the one now, 1863, owned and occupied by Shelden Moore, Esq. These diggings appear on the west bank of the stream at the right hand below the bridge, on the road as you pass from Kensington Church to the Mills. The Moore family have specimens of the ore. (ED.)
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INTRODUCTION.
May next. And Jacob Deming & Sarj. John Andrus were chosen pru- dential comt. in addition to the present comt. for the year ensuing.
A curious document on a matter of conscience we here find on record, dated Kensington 12th February, 1730-1.
We whose names are here unto published, having been desired by fifty nine of the Inhabitants of Kensington in writing subscribed with their names, to give a resolution upon this question, viz. " Whether the Lot cast among us as it was, considering how the affairs thereof were managed from first to last, ought to be acounted by the whole society, binding to their consciences, there to erect ye Meeting house, viz. where the said Lot fell." And having each of them in ye writing promised that they will act agreeable to the Resolution we shall give of said Question under our hands (unles it be manifestly contrary to the rule of God's word,) as by the said writing may appear, We Resolve the said question in the affirm- ative, that it is our Judgement, that the Lot cast among them, as it was considering how the affairs thereof were managed from first to last, ought to be accounted by ye whole society, binding to their consciences there to erect their Meeting house, viz. where the said Lot fell, and do advise that in a tender Regard to the honor of God, & for peace sake, their Meeting house be built there (where the said Lot fell,) by ye said society that they may avoid all danger of being involved in guilt.
As witness our hands (signed)
Nathaniel Chauncey, Jonathan Marsh, Samuel, Whittlesey, Samuel Hall.
From other pages of the book of records it appears that these are Rev. Mr. Jonathan Marsh, of Windsor, Rev. Mr. Nathaniel Chauncey, of Dur- ham, Rev. Mr. Samuel Whittlesey, of Wallingford, Rev. Mr. Samuel Hall of Cheshire, and that this is the second council in this matter of the cast- ing the Lot. The Lot seems to have been resorted to in order to a settle- ment of the extremes of a Location for the new Meeting-house. The east point was the southwest corner of John Root's house lot, nearly opposite Rev. Mr. Burnham's (now, 1862,) Mr. Norman Porter's. The other extreme west seems to have been the south-west corner of Sargent John Norton's lot, on the north side of Mill river, against the "Mill foot Bridge," about fourteen or fifteen rods from the highway northward, (as then described.) It appears that the society by vote had previously agreed to decide the controversy by lot, provided it could be done in a reasonable way and before sunset. It seems that Rev. Mr. Burnham was present, and after due caution and solemn invocation to God to give a per- fect lot, the first lot was drawn and it fell on the east side, and also the second lot was drawn, and it fell on the southwest corner of John Root's lot. The opposers of the eastern locality claimed that the matter was un-
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KENSINGTON PARISH.
reasonable, and done after sunset. In looking over the list of the fifty- nine who agreed to abide the judgment of the council in this matter of the lot, there is the name of but one man from the northern section of the parish.
At a meeting of the Inhabitants of the Society of Kensington 22d Sept. 1731, then convened by order of the worshipful Mr. Nathl Standley, Esq. agreeable to the act of the Gen. Assembly at Hartford, May last, the aforesaid Mr. Standley being present at the meeting, the society made choice of Thos Hart for Clerk, also made choice of Left Isaac Norton, Sargt Hez. Hooker & Stephen Kelsey for a committee to warn & Lead Society meetings for the remainder of the year, also made choice of Nathl Cole, John Standley, Sargt Geo. Hubbard & Jonathan Lewis a committee to order the prudentials of the School for the remainder of the year.
. At the same meeting it was tried by vote whether the society would proceed to build a new Meeting house for this Society or no, & it was negatived.
At the same meeting Matthew Hart was chosen Collector of the Min- isters' Rate this year.
At a meeting of the society of Kensington 19th Oct. 1731, they voted & agreed to prefer a Memorial to the Gen. Assembly now convened at New Haven, praying them to order, appoint & affix the place, where on, our Meeting house shall be Erected.
At a meeting of the society of Kensington 25th Oct. 1733, a Rate of twelve pence on the pound, was granted for the purpose of building a new Meeting house, & Joseph Porter was chosen collector of the same.
At a meeting of the Society of Kensington, 2d Dec. 1734, Capt. Ste- phen Lee was chosen Moderator, & Thos Hart Clerk, granted to Joseph Steele for sweeping the old Meeting house for ye year past £1 7s. 6d.
The same meeting made choice of Deacon Anthony Judd, Wm Burn- ham & Left Isaac Norton to settle account with the Committee for building the new Meeting house, & report.
At the same meeting it was agreed by the society that no vote should be taken after the Sun is set, for the space of 2 years.
At a meeting of the Society of Kensington 3d Dec. 1735, Capt. Stephen Lee Moderator & Thos Hart Clerk, granted to Rev. Mr. Wm Burnham for his services in the Ministry the year past a salary of £140, to be paid in money or good & merchantable grain at the prices following, viz. wheat at 10s. rye at 6s. & Indian Corn at 5s.
Parish of Ken. 1 Dec. 1736, Capt Stephen Lee Moderator, Thos Hart Clerk, Deacon Anthony Judd & Capt Thos Curtiss chosen a Comt, to agree with Thos Hart about the price of the land on which our new Meet- ing house stands, & to agree about the fence around the Meeting house.
At a society meeting Ken. 7th Dec. 1737, Dea Anthony Judd Moder-
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INTRODUCTION.
ator, Thos Hart clerk, granted to Ins. Saml Lankton for sweeping the Meeting house, voted that the Comt, of the society, provide a suitable Drum, and procure some meet person to beat it on Sabbath days, for the year ensuing, & also provide an hour glass, with a suitable frame for it, & put them up on the pulpit, in ye Meeting house. Voted that Zebulon Curtice, Josiah Lee, & Daniel Dewy, be the Rate makers for the year ensuing.
At a Society Meeting 6th Dec. 1738, Left Saml Hart Moderator, Thos Hart Clerk, granted Thos Hart £4 for sweeping the meeting house, & to Ins Saml Lankton 5s. for an hour glass, & to Nathl Winchel 30s. for beating the drum the past year, & to John Hinsdil for a frame to the Meeting house glass, 12s.
At the same meeting it was agreed by vote, that Dea. A. Judd & Dea. Thos Hart, be a comt, to seat as speedily as may be, the Inhabitants of this society in the Meeting house at their best discretion.
At the same meeting was granted to Wm Ellis 7s. 6d. & to Allen Goodrich 2s. 6d. for framing a bier to carry the dead. It was also voted & agreed that Elisha Goodrich may take within his own enclosure the burying yard of this society, for five years, provided the said Elisha Good- rich clear, & keep the said yard clear from brush, & keep swine from root- ing the same.
Society meeting 9th May, 1739, chose Dea. Thos Hart in their behalf to go before the Gen. Assembly Instantly holden at Hartford, there to show reason if any be why the Memorial of Capt. Stephen Lee & Dea. Judd &c. now depending before said Assembly should not be granted.
Annual meeting of Ken. Soc. 3d Dec. 1740, Capt Stephen Lee Moder- ator, Thos Hart Clerk, Society granted to Rev. Mr. Wm Burnham* a Salary of £160 to be paid in money or grain at the market price, for his good service in the Ministry the year past.
These ancestors of ours were made of stern stuff; perhaps they could bend, but did not accustom themselves to do so very often. And now comes the tug of war. They became restless, and apparently contentious and unhappy for a long series of years. Their chief troubles seem to arise from the difficulty in fixing on a location for the new meeting-house. The following shows the sad plight into which they had fallen :
" General Court holden at New Haven, October, 1732.
" Whereas the Inhabitants of the parish of Kensington applied them- selves by their Committee to this Assembly at their session in May last, praying that a Committee might be appointed to fix a place for setting a Meeting house in said parish, and whereas the said Assembly did then
* Rev. Wm Burnham was chosen Moderator of the Gen. Association of Ct. at their meeting in Stratford, A. D. 1738 ; his name is first on the list of Moderators of Gen. Association of Ct.
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KENSINGTON PARISH.
appoint Capt John Rigs, Capt Isaac Dickerman, & Mr. Ebenezer West to repair to said parish, view the circumstances, & fix the place for building a Meeting House &c. And whereas said Comt, reported to the said As- sembly that they in pursuance of the trust reposed in them had affixed the place for building a Meeting house in said parish, and the Assembly there- upon Enacted that a Meeting House in said Society or parish shall be erected in Deacon Thos Hart's home lot, on the north side of the High way but adjoining thereto, to stand about one rod south of an apple-tree which is partly dead, at which place the said Rigs, Dickerman & West have pitched down a stake, and the Inhabitants of said Society are hereby directed & ordered, with all convenient speed to proceed to raise & finish the said house, at the above described place, & Whereas it has been cer- tified to this Court by Mr. Thos Hart, Clerk of said Society, that at a Meeting of the Inhabitants of said Society on the 14th day of June last past, it was Resolved by their vote that they would not appoint suitable & meet persons to be a Committee to set up, build, & finish a house proper & suitable for said Society to attend God's public worship in, on the place the General Assembly hath lately appointed for the same.
"Be it therefore Enacted by the Governor & Council & Representa- tives at Genl Court Assembled, & by the Authority of the same, that the Treasurer of this Colony shall in his warrant for gathering the next coun- try rate, direct and Command the Constable of the Town of Farmington to collect with the same of the inhabitants of Kensington, Nine pence upon the pound of the Polls & ratable Estate of said Society, & the said Consta- ble is hereby ordered, directed & impowered, to assess & gather the same of said Inhabitants of said Society, & the same being so gathered he shall deliver to the Treasurer, who is hereby ordered & directed upon the receipt thereof, to pay out the same to Capt. John Marsh, Mr. James Church & Capt. Thos Seymour, all of Hartford, who are hereby appointed & impowered to be a Committee or any two of them, to erect & finish a Meeting House at the place aforesaid, for the Society aforesaid. And said Comt, are hereby also ordered & directed to make all convenient speed in the business aforesaid, & give an account to the Assembly of their disbursements of the money aforesaid, & how far they have proceeded therewithal in the business aforesaid, that the Assembly may order what money may be further necessary for the finishing said house to be gathered of the Inhabitants of said Society & to be by said Comt, improved for that end.
We have now come to the autumn of the year 1733, the Committee from Hartford (as will hereafter more fully appear,) have "set up & fin- ished a Meeting house by the appletree in Deacon Thos Hart's home lot ;" it is said to be " 60×45 ft. & capable of holding 1500 persons."* The
* We are not informed how they were seated, or whether seated at all.
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INTRODUCTION.
constable is still drawing forth the hard earned coin from the reluctant pockets of the parishioners, and from the northern section it comes forth at last and is laid upon the table for the collector to count, with a kind of will and snap which signifies, "Well, you shall see what comes of this by and by." And yet they make haste slow, for it is some six years before we hear from them in the following petition :
"To the Hon. Gen. Assembly of his Majesties Eng. Colony of Connec- ticut in New Eng. to be convened at Hartford 10 May 1739 which is to show that we the Subscribers hereunto, Inhabitants of the North part of Kensington parish in Farmington, are under great difficulty to attend the public Worship of God, by reason of the length & badness of travel, espe- cially at some seasons of the year-Whereupon your Memorialists humbly pray that this Hon. Assembly would consider our difficulty & afford us some relief, by granting us the liberty of four Months to meet at some convenient place for the ease of our travel to attend the public worship of God-for the time above specified, we humbly pray that we may be re- leased from paying one third part of the year to our present Minister, pro- vided we procure some suitable person to preach to us the time above specified, or to find some other way as this Hon. Assembly in their great wisdom shall think best for our ease & comfort to attend the public Wor- ship, & we are as our duty is shall ever pray-
Dated at Kensington 9 May 1739-
Stephen Lee
Benjn Judd jun
Ebenezer North
Benjn Judd
John Judd
John Kelsey
Uriah Judd
Phineas Judd
Joseph Smith
James Judd Anthony Judd
Joseph Smith jun
Zeb. Curtice Daniel Dewy
Azariah Smith
Thos Curtice
Saml Hollister
Jedediah Smith
Isaac Lee jun Elijah Bronson Josiah Lee
Joshua Mather
Joseph Woodruff Simmons Woodruff
Jonathan Lewis
Isaac Lee
The parish of Kensington was notified and subponed to attend and show cause why the above should not be granted. The question was put to the lower house and negatived. The question was put to the upper house and negatived. A single remark is called for just here, viz. the signers to the above petition are supposed to have (at that date) lived at and south of the present house of Richard Judd's, and all east and south of the present village of New Britain, and also within the limits of the present town lines ; all other families within the present limits of this town went either to Newington or Farmington for public worship. These peti- tions not only show the conflicting opinions of the different sections, but also the locality of the subscribers. The oldest living descendants will
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KENSINGTON PARISH.
see that the following petitioners lived near the meeting house referred to in the petition, or central part of the parish.
"To the Hon. Gen: Assembly of his Majesties English Colony of Con- necticut, now sitting at Hartford. The humble Memorial of Thos Heart, John Norton, & others subscribers hereunto all Inhabitants of Kensington parish in Farmington in Hartford county humbly showeth-That after a long contention in said parish about a place of Divine service, this Hon. Assembly, did at their session in May 1732 by their committee ascertain the place for the same, but on the Inhabitants neglecting to build a house, though in extreme want thereof, this Assembly at their next session did appoint and authorize a committee to build said house which they speedily and effectually performed of the dimensions of sixty feet in length and 45 in breadth containing in the whole about 1500 persons, this notwithstand- ing that part of said parish that dwell in the Middletown bounds, have been and are endeavoring now to draw off from us (as your Honors are very sensible) & have parish privileges by themselves elsewhere, although the North corner of their bounds be within 2 Mile of said Meeting house & the greatest part of the parish is within 2 miles thereof traveling in the highways, & that the Northern part of the Inhabitants of the parish of Kensington, that dwell much farther from the place of public worship than those mentioned in Middletown, & their travel there too in general as bad as the other, did in December last at the annual meeting of the In- habitants pray that they might all within such & such bounds have leave to obtain of this Assembly, parish privileges for themselves-which prayer aforesaid the Inhabitants granted as followeth viz-Voted that Deacon Anthony Judd be a committee in behalf of said Society to address the Hon. Gen. Assembly at their session in May next, to appoint a committee of able & disinterested persons, at the charge of the parish, to repair to the same, view the circumstances with relation to said prayer, & report to the Assembly of what they think proper to be done in the case, but said Dea. Judd neglecting to move in the affair (for what reason we know not except to help off our south quarter at this time & to break up the whole parish) whereupon with our committee neglecting, or rather refusing to warn a Society meeting at this time, your Honor's Memorialists are obliged in this manner to address this Assembly, humbly praying your Honors once more to take the broken & divided circumstances of "poor Kensington" into your wise consideration, & if consistent with your wisdom appoint & authorize a judicious committee (at the Societies charge) to come and view our whole circumstances as to the affairs above mentioned & make return of what they think best to be done for the best good of each quarter of said parish, or some other way prevent the confusion, we are in danger otherwise of falling into, & your Memorialists as in duty bound shall ever pray. Kensington, 17 May, 1742. Signed,
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