The history and genealogies of ancient Windsor, Connecticut, Vol. II, Part 147

Author: Stiles, Henry Reed, 1832-1909
Publication date: 1891
Publisher: Hartford, Conn., Press of the Case, Lockwood & Brainard company
Number of Pages: 1012

USA > Connecticut > Hartford County > Windsor > The history and genealogies of ancient Windsor, Connecticut, Vol. II > Part 147

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FAM. 6. John 3 (Henry," Henry 1 ), sett. at Wethersfield, Conn., where he was towns- man, 1679; rem. to W., and was dep. to Gen. Ct. in 1698 and afterwards. He m.

* Oldl Ch. Rec. gives this date as Jan. 28, 1678; also gives birth of a Daniel, Ang., 1676, and makes no mention of the above Henry. b. 1650; Christopher, b. 1672, or William, b. 1676.

VOL. II .- 101

802

GENEALOGIES AND BIOGRAPHIES OF ANCIENT WINDSOR.

(1) 13 Feb., 1677, Mary (dan. of Capt. John) Chester, and gd .- dau. of Gov. Thos. Wells, b. 23 Dec., 1654, and d. 10 July, 1689; (2) 22 June, 1692. Mrs. Ilannah Nicholas of Stamford. - W. Rec. He d. 23 Jan., 1711/12; est. invent., £1,300. Children :

1. John, b. 20 Nov., 1677. FAM. 12. Eng. estate: m. 3 Nov., 1719, Mrs. Jone (wid. Ed-

2. Henry. b. T Ang., 1679; d. 29 Apl., 1680. ward) Gilhampton of Tolland, Eng., where 3. Charles ( Lient.), b. 3 Sept., 1681. FAM. 13. he d. : apparently no i-sne, prior to 1732.

1. George. b. 9 Oct .. 1683; d. uni'd before 1719.

5. Benjamin, res. or was at Salem, Mass., 1:02: pro-

ceeded to Eng. to assert a personal claim on the W.

6. Mary, m. 19 Dee., 1606. Esq. John (gd .- s. of Rev. John, "the Apostle to the Indians") Eliot of Roxbury, Muss.

FAM. 7. Samuel 3 (Henry," Henry1), merchant in W .; dep. to Gen. Ct. 1685; rem. to Wethersfield; located on Wolcott Hill, still inhab. by his desc., including all of the name now residing in that town. He m. 6 Mch., 1678, Judith (dau. Esq. Sam'l) Appleton of Ipswich, Mass., who d. 19 Feb., 1741, æ. abt. 88. Ile d. 14 June, 1695. Children :

I. Samuel, b. 11 Apl., 1679. Sce Wolcott Memorial.

2. Gershom, b. 14 Nov .. 1680: d. 23 Sept., 1682.

3. Josiah, b. 97 Feb., 1682; d. 2% Oct., 1712.

4. Hannah, b. 19 Mch .. 1684; m. 8 May, 1204, Rev. William Burnham of Kensington, Conn.

5. Sarab. b. 11 Aug., 1656: m. 12 Dec., 1206, Capt. Robert Wells of Wethersfield.

6. Lucy, b. 16 Oet., 1688; mi. 1 Feb., 1713, Samuel Robbins of Wethersfield.

7. Abigail, b. 23 Sept., 1690; d. 9 Nov., 1214.

8. Elizabeth, b. 31 May. 1692; d. 15 Mch., 1665.

9 Mary, b. 11 May, 1691; m. 26 May, 1715, Jotin Stillman.

FAM. 8. Simon 3 (Simon," Heury1), res. So. W., abt. a mile S. of present Ch .; was one of orig. propr's of Tolland; m. 5 Dee., 1689, Sarah (dan. Capt. John) Ches- ter of Weth., who d. 8 Aug., 1723, in 67th year (C. R.); he d. 28 Oct., 1732, in 66th year. Children :

1. Sarah, b. 1600; m. 22 Nov., 1716, Sam'l Treat of Wetb. [Stoughton.

2. Martha, b. 1692: m. 17 July. 1735, Sgt. William

3. Simon, b. 1691; d. 21 JJuly, 1742 .- E. B.C.R.

4. Christopher. b. 1696: d. 19 Oct., 1727 .- C.R. [C.R. 5. Ennice, b. 94 Sept., 1697; d. 18 Feb., 1725 .- F. H. 6. James, b. 1700; by his d., 16 Feb., 1218, this fam- ily became extinct, in male line.

FAM. 9. Henry3 (Lieut.) (Simon,2 Henry1), one of the orig. propr's of Tolland and Wellington, Conn .; a man of affairs in town, and (as were his family) tall of stature. Hle m. (1) 1 Apl., 1696, Jane (dau. Thos.) Allyn of W., b. 22 July, 1670; d. 11 Apl., 1702 ( W'. Rec.); (2) Rachel Talcott, who d. 8 Jan., 1725/6 ;* he d. 17 Nov., 1747 (C. R.); res. So. W., abt. a mile S. of present Ch., on W. side street. Children :

1. Henry, b. 28 Feb., 1697. FAM. 1.4. 1. Giles, b. 16 July, 1734: served in Fr. and Revol. 2. Thomas, b. 1 Apl .. 1702. FAM. 15. war -: m. 1779. Sibyl Alden : left 4 sons,

3. Peter, m. 30 May, 1:33, Mrs. Susanna Cornwell (dan. Wm.) Hamlin of Middletown; d. Dec., 1733, in Cork, Ireland. Issue :

4. Rachel, mı. Joseph Hunt of Northampton.

5. Jane, b. 20 Oct., 1710: d. 16 (4, E. W. C. R.) Mch.,

6. Gideon (C'apt.), b. 1:12. FAM. 16. [1710. 11. FAM. 10. William 3 (Mr.) (Simon,? Henry 1), res. So. W., a little north of his brother Henry's; was "a large, tleshy man. very handsome and good-natured"; m. 5 Nov., 1706, Abiah Hawley of W .; he d. 2; Jan., 1749, in 73d yr .; she d. 16 June, 1716. Children :

I. Abiah, b. 14 Jan., 1,08; m. Samuel Stough- ton.

2. Ineia. b. 7 May, 1710; m. Stephen Olmsted of Hartford.

3. William, b. 21 July, 1711. FAM. 17.

4. Ephraim, b. 13 Mch., 1714. PAM. 18.

5. Martha, h. 20 .Jan., 1718: m. 21 Oct., 1749, Joseph Chapin of Springheld. [W'm. had a dau., d. Aug., 1749 .- E. W. C. R.]

FAM. 11. Roger3 (Gen., Gov.) (Simon,? Heury1). We cannot do better than to give

epor Roger Wolcott ofes pac.

the biography of this remarkable man, as recorded by himself in his Journal, now among the Wolcott Papers in the custody of the Conn. Historical Society. " To call to and keep in remembrance Mercy, and some remarkable Providences that have hitherto fallen to my share, in this weary pilgrimage of life.

* W. Rec. suy Lieut. Henry m. Mrs. Hannah Porter, 11 Apl., 1727. If so, it was a & m. not noticed in Wolcott Mem.

803

THE WOLCOTT FAMILY.

" Windsor, June 10th, 1755 .- Come, my soul, enter into thy chamber and shut the door. Consider seriously thy sun is setting and just in the horizon; yea, the shadows of the evening are already drawn over my heart, and my strength faileth. I am now far advanced in the 77th year of my age; the things of time and sense have lost their relish; I can no more hear the voice of singing men and singing women, and the things of God, if any there be that remain in thee, are ready to dye. Dost thou not want to have them strengthened? Canst thon not call the sun some degrees back upon thy dial, by calling to mind the days of old and the right hand of the Most lligh, to excite thy thankfulness and dependence upon Ilim? Is there nothing in these many stages of time and tasks of life that thou hast already passed, tbat may subserve hereunto? Come then, and with the sweet Psalmist of Israel (Psalm 103. 2) Forgett not all Ilis benefits.

"I was the youngest child of my hond father, M' Simon Wolcott, tender and beloved in the sight of my mother, MI" Martha Wolcott, and was born January 4th, 1679, at a time when my father's outward estate was at the lowest ebb.

"Some years before, be sold his estate on the west side of the River in Wind- sor, to settle on a farm at Simsbury, to which he removed and laid out his money to promote his settlement there. But in the calamitous year for New England (1675) he was driven back to Windsor with his Family by the war; his buildings were burnt, and his farm at Simsbury ruined by the Indians. He had left about 200 acres of meadow and uplands adjoining, on the east side of the River in Wind- sor, but durst not then settle upon it for fear of the enemy. His family was charge- able, the public taxes high, he was much in debt, and no house to put his head in but upon hire, and that upon high rents and dithicult to be obtained.

"Soon after I was born, I was taken with a sore mouth which prevailed to that degree that my life was almost despaired of, but thro' Divine Goodness recovered, and thro' merey this is the only threatening sickness I have had in my life.

"In the year 1680 my father settled on his own land on the east side of the River in Windsor. Everything was to begin; few families were settled there. We had neitber Minister nor school, by which it bath come to pass that I never was a Scholar in any school a day in my life; my parents took care and pains to learn their children, and were successful with the rest, but not with me, by reason of my ex- treme dulness to learn.

" On September 11th, 1687, dyed my hond father, in the 624 year of his age; it was just before the coming of Sir Edmund Andross. It was generally expected persecution for religion would soon ensue; it filled him with agonizing fears, and excited his fervent prayers for deliverance, but God took him away from the evil he feared to come. We were now a widow and six fatherless chiklren ; the buildings unfinished, the land uncleared, the estate much in debt, but we never wanted.

"In the year 1689 my mother marryed with Daniel Clark, Esq. I went to live with her on the west side of the river. The times were now changed. King Wil- liam and Queen Mary ascended the British throne. With them all fears of per- secution vanished. Those that come after will never conceive the joy of New England at King William and Mary's coronation. The French Leviathan, that had long been King of the children of pride, was by our glorious monarch stopt in his career. In the year 1690 my mind turned to learning, and 1 soon learned to read English and write. In the year 1691 thro' the constant monitions of my father- in-law and my mother, I had many convictions of my sin and danger, but after a while they wore off. In 1694 1 went an apprentice to a Cloathier.

" The year 1697 was a year of great searcity and mortality. The summer was cool and cloudy, not a month without a frost in it; the winter very long and severe. In February and March the snow was very high and hard. There was a great ery for bread. The cattle famished in the yards for want. The sickness was very

804

GENEALOGIES AND BIOGRAPHIES OF ANCIENT WINDSOR.

distressing and mortall; those in health could seareely get food, tend the sick, and bury the dead. Many suffered for want of firewood and tendance, but I was pre- served in perfeet health and never wanted. On January 2, 1699, 1 went into my own business. My hands were enabled to perform their enterprise and my labor was crowned with success."

[in an obituary notice which appeared in the Connecticut Courant of July 27 succeeding his death, we find this statement: "As soon as he left his master he was determined to have a liberal education if possible; but, on taking an inventory of his estate he found it not to amount to fifty pounds, so he was obliged to drop that design; but still unalterably determined not to remain in a state of ignorance, he borrowed such books as he could get, and read with attention, and having a reten- tive memory and solid natural judgment, what he read he retained, digested, and made his own. He got an acquaintance with men of the best abilities of his time, and by an indefatigable industry and application got acquaintance with most branches of literature; for he was an exact chronologer, well acquainted with bis- tory, ecclesiastical and civil, and geography, both ancient and modern, and with the Newtonian philosophy, and most of the eurious discoveries of the moderns."]

" December 3d, 1702, I marryed Mr. Sarah Drake, and went to live on my own land, on the east side of the river, in Windsor. My settlement here was all to begin, yet we lived joyfully together; our mutual affection made everything easie and delightfull; in a few years my buildings were up and my farm made protitable.

"In 1907 I took my first step to preferment, being this year chosen selectman for the town of Windsor.

" In the year 1709 1 was chosen a Representative for that town in the General Assembly.

" In the year 1710 I was put on the Bench of Justices. This year, the 10th of August, dyed my kind father-in-law, Daniel Clark, Esqr, in the 86th year of his age, with which I was much affected, and soon after, these words came powerfully into my mind: What hope hath the hypocrite tho' he hath gained, when God taketh away his soul? and were followed with such convictions as I hope will never wear off.

"In 1711 I went in the expedition against Canada, Comissary of the Connecti- cut Stores. . In 1714 I was chosen into the Council. [In 1719 he notes the death of his mother, wid. of Dan'l Clark, Esq.] In the year 1721 I was appointed Judge of the County Court. In the year 1732 I was appointed one of the Judges of the Superior Court.

"In March and April, 1733, my family was visited with sore sickness, my house, like a hospital, was full of sick persons; all in it were sick but myself, my wife, and one child. In this hurry and distress I was impressed, as if it had been a voice: 'Be still, and know that I am God'; this something laid my troubled mind, and disposed me humbly to wait the issue. I lost, in this sickness, a son and a ser- vant; the rest, after a long time, recovered.

"In the year 1741 I was chosen Deputy-Gov of this Colony, and appointed Chief Judge of the Superior Court. In the year 1745 I led forth the Connecticut troops in the expedition against Cape Breton, and reed a Commission from Govr Shirley and Govr Law for Major-General of the army. I was now in the 67th year of my age, and the oldest man in the army except the Reva Mr. Moody [of York, Me., b. in 1676, a minister of some note in his day]. It was a tough business; Divine Providence appeared wonderfully in our favor and should forever be re- membered with thankfulvess, nor ought the firmness of our troops ever be forgot- ten. After we had continued the siege 19 days, the City of Louisburg was surren- dered on Capitulation and we with great joyfulness entered it. [In this campaign Lieut .- Gov. Wolcott not only commanded the Conn. troops, but was second in eom- mand of the united colonial forces under Gen. William Pepperrell (see pp. 245, 246, Vol. I.) Among the family papers is his daily journal, detailing the events of the siege, with copies of the official communications which passed between the respect-

805

THE WOLCOTT FAMILY.

ive commanders, letters from friends and high officials, ete. In this affair he en- joyed not only the sincere respect of all those officers, both regular and volunteer, with whom he came in contact, but became the hero of his own colony and town. Yet amid all this personal admiration and the delirium of joy which filled the public mind, his modesty proved equal to his valor; he wrote to Gov. Hamilton: " God gave us the victorie; but, humanly speaking, it was because our soldiers were free- holders and frecholders' sons, and the men within the walls were mercenary troops. "]

"On the 21st of January, 1747, God took away the desire of my eyes with a stroke. My wife for a long time had been out of health, but constantly attended her business, and rose this morning not well, but took care of and went about the business of the family. About two hours after she was up she was taken with an apoplexy, and in a short time expired, in the 61st year of her age. Upon consider- ation of her life and sudden death my thoughts burst out in the following reflections:

This bird of Paradise upon the wings Of flaming Seraphs mounts; she sitts and sings And sees as she is seen her God above,

And in the arms of Jesus drowns in love. Me. ah! bereaved! me now left alone, - My lovely turtle ever to bemoan;

So long my morning star whose beaming eyes

Did never open but my day would rise: So long my constant help to give relief, Double my comfort and divide my grief ;

So long iny living wife, of thee bereaven,

I have no friend so good unless in Heaven:

I'll not forget thy kindness nor thy charms, But love thee dead that long lay in my arms.

"In the year 1750 I was chosen Governor of the Colony of Connecticut [sue- ceeding Gov. Jonathan Law, who died in office. He filled this position, as he had others before, to good acceptance, till the affair of the Spanish ship (Nov., 1752), which came in distress into New London harbor, and a considerable part of whose rich cargo being embezzled and wasted through the indolence, inadequateness, and inattention of the Spanish supercargo, the freemen were, by designing persons, made to believe that the loss was occasioned through Gov. Wolcott's fault, and that the people must be taxed for repayment. Ile writes] "the Council approved of what I had done, but the House of Representatives were terryfy'd with it, and refused to approve it. Soon after the rising of the Assembly the land was filled with Reports that I had oppressed the Merchant and extorted vast sums out of his cargo, and occasioned his delay and loss of time; that I had laid my proceeding in the affair before the Assembly to be approved, but they refused to approve it; that then 1 pleaded with the Assembly to tax the Colony for damages, but could not prevail. . . The people see the cargo wasted, and these reports so imprest upon them, that at the election in May, 1754, I was dismist by a great majority of voices.

" I had now the common fate of discarded favorites. Neither the Government or Assembly took any more notice of me than of a common porter. To redeem my name from infamy and the people from their fears, I moved to their Court to be examined on oath upon that affair, and submit to their judgment, but they shut their doors against me. Note :

If solid virtue don't support the frame, They are but fools who hold on babbling fame; Ransack thy conscience, there if thou'd find friends, Leave it to linie to make thy name amends.

" And having now done all I could, here I left it, supported with the sense of my own innocence, and it was not in vain; for the redemption of my name that I could not obtain from the Assembly, was in a short time rolled upon me. The As- sembly's complaint was laid before the King in Council, when no fault was found in any one step of my conduct in it; yea, the merchant declared that I had been friendly and favorable to him, and in this manner went off with his cargo. A uni- versal opinion prevailed that I was innocent and abused by these reports, and the reporters sunk into contempt. ["He retired with composed, unruffled grandeur, cheerfully referring it to Divine Providence to find means to evidence that inno- cence that he had an inward consciousness of; nor were his expectations disap pointed, for we suppose every one is now fully convinced that that affair was well conducted, and that to a wonder, considering its suddenness and the little acquaint- ance this Colony had in affairs of this nature."]

806

GENEALOGIES AND BIOGRAPHIES OF ANCIENT WINDSOR.

" My conduct being thus searched to the bottom and thereby appearing to be without fraud or error, the freemen now looked upon the whole affair in a true light, and at the next election, in 1755, I had more than 2,500 of their voices, and did not want 200 more to put me in my former seat.

" Undoubtedly there were a few malicious persons that were from that princi- ple active and furious in raising and fomenting these Reports; but the effects were from mere terror, and how can we blame the Assembly or the people acting under this passion?

"It is certain that terror may be and often is impressed as strongly from imagin- ation only as from real danger, and when it is by any means imprest upon the mind, it is an irresistible passion. It made a whole herd run violently down a steep moun- tain into certain perdition. The Syrian army that in the days of King Joram fled from the walls of Samaria and left the camp as it was and cast away their garments and their vessels in the flight, tho' we may imagine that when they had rested and found they had neither seen an enemy nor lost a man, it raised many speculations among them, yet we have no reason to think they blamed themselves for making haste in the condition they had been under.

" Nor may we in these times, without offering violence to human nature, blame men that are innch in the same condition for aeting a like part. No; nor may we blame them for not staying to examine, for in such case men can think of nothing but now or never, and then 'tis best to ent and run, and yet we find that afterwards, if they find they had an old servant that dare stand the shock, and prudence to avert the danger, he will not fail of their esteem.

"I am now stript of all public trust and business, and yet have lost nothing that was my own, or that I had right to claim a continuance of, or anything that, considering my age, it is not better for me to be without than to have. May 1 not then take this as a benefit, and since my mother's Sons have discharged me from keeping their vineyard, apply myself more closely to the keeping of my own. There is work enough to be done in thankful acknowledgments of former favors, and living up to my duty for time to come. .

Thus far the Governor. From other pens we learn that, "after his retirement from public life, he divided his time between devotion, reading (which was prinei pally church history and the works of the most celebrated divines, especially Doct. Owen and Doct. Bates), agriculture, - his beloved employ - and the enjoyment of his friends.

" llis body was strong and well-proportioned; his countenance and deportment peculiarly adapted to command reverence and esteem; his wit was ready and nu- commonly bright; his method of reasoning (free from sophistry) was clear, nervous, and manly, as became a generous inquirer after truth. He was a sin- cere, unfailing friend to every industrious, virtuons, honest man who acted his part well, whatever was his station in life. . . . But, above all, persons of true piety were his delight. lle was a wise legislator and an able statesman. While he was a judge, he held the balance of justice with a steady, unwavering hand: and, being far superior to venality, or the influence of personal, family, or party connections, he pronounced the law impartially ou all the causes brought be- fore him. As a governor, he appeared to advantage; this was his proper element. for he seemed originally formed to govern."*

* (Įnotations from an obit, sketch in Conn. Courant of July 27, of the year of his death.

Mere lyeth the Body A: of the

Honbe ROGER WOLCOTT EST of Windsor, . "[ ..... Who for Several Years was GOVERNOUR of the Coloney of Connecticutl; And

died May 17

Etatis 89.

Anno Salutis 1767

Earth'shigheft Station endsin Here he hes, And Duft toDuftconcludes her nobleft Son g.

In Memory of SARAH DRAKE =

wife of Hon- ROGER WOLCOTT

BORN A1684 DIED A 1747

807

THE WOLCOTT FAMILY.

Psalm exii, 6; Iviii, 11; Text, Deuteronomy xxxiv, 5, Hartford, Printed by Thomas Green), describes him as "a kind husband, a good father, and a compas- sionate master. Ile was a member of this church for a great many years; a steady professor of the Christian name, a constant and devout attendant on publie worship and holy ordinances. Ile was one of your praying rulers; had the grace as well as the gift of prayer. He made the Bible his test, and had a particular affection for the peculiar doctrines of grace, rightly understood; and with a catholick spirit, embraced the Calvinistiek scheme. On making him a visit, in his last sickness, a few days before his death, I was surprised to find how well he retained his intellectuals, and glad to see how well he supported a firm trust in God, and dependence on CHRIST, and a good hope of glory. Thus lived, thus died, and thus was buried that eminent servant of the Lord, whom we may, for his resemblance in many instances to the illustrious Hebrew in the text, call the Moses in our Israel."

Unfortunately there is extant no portrait of him, but his grandson, Gen. Roger Newberry (whose portrait will be found in this volume), was said strongly to re- semble him. In one of the political squibs of the day he is referred to as " stately. smoking Roger." A dau. of Rev. Mr. Marsh of Wethersfield has preserved a pen- picture of him, as received from her mother, who had often seen him in childhood. at a time when he was at the height of his popularity. lle was a frequent visitor at her father's house, and the costume of an officer under the royal government was too imposing to pass unnoticed. "Several times a week he rode out on horseback, and never appeared abroad but in full dress. Ile wore a suit of scarlet broadcloth. The coat was made with wide skirts, and trimmed down the whole length in front with gilt buttons and broad gilt vellum button-holes, two or three inches in length. The cuff's were large and deep, reaching nearly to the elbows, and were ornamented like the sides of the coat, as were also the pocket-lids, with gilt vellum button holes and buttons. The waistcoat had skirts and was richly embroidered. Rutlles at the bosom and over the hands; they were of lace. He had a flowing wig, and a three- cornered hat, with a cockade, and rode sternly and stately on a large black horse, whose tail swept the ground."

The Governor's house was in So. W., about a third of a mile N. of the present meeting-house; a sketch of it appears opp. p. 773, Vol. I. Ile built it in 1704, the year of the attack on Deerfield, and the walls of the front room were covered with a painting descriptive of that scene. The house was taken down abt. 1770, and some of the panels which helonged to that apartment are preserved in the neighborhood as relics. He spent the last years of his life with his daughter, Mrs. Newberry, in Old Windsor, where he died 17 May, 1767, and was buried there with his fathers. His estate invent. €1,805, 4x, 2d. lle m. 3 Dec., 1702, Sarah (dau. of Job) Drake of W. (gd .- dau. Job and Mary Wolcott Drake), b. 10 May, 1686, and who d. 20 Jan., 1748 .- C. R. Children :

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The history and genealogies of ancient Windsor, Connecticut, Vol. II, Part 147

Author: Stiles, Henry Reed, 1832-1909 Publication date: 1891 Publisher: Hartford, Conn., Press of the Case, Lockwood & Brainard company Number of Pages: 1012

Author: Stiles, Henry Reed, 1832-1909
Publication date: 1891
Publisher: Hartford, Conn., Press of the Case, Lockwood & Brainard company
Number of Pages: 1012