USA > Connecticut > New Haven County > Waterbury > The history of Waterbury, Connecticut; the original township embracing present Watertown and Plymouth, and parts of Oxford, Wolcott, Middlebury, Prospect and Naugatuck. With an appendix of biography, genealogy and statistics > Part 26
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Soon after Westbury was made a distinct society, the people belonging to it began to make arrangements to build a meet- ing house, and applied to the General Court to direct as to its location and to fix a stake. The Court sent a committee, who selected a place one third of a mile southeast of the present churches, a few rods east from the Litchfield turnpike, where the old burying ground is.
17
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HISTORY OF WATERBURY.
The place for a meeting house being determined, the West- bury people applied to the town to provide the ground and the necessary public green. Accordingly, the town directed their committee for laying out highways in the "north east [it should be northwest] quarter," "to widen the highway so as to accommodate said house with a suitable green, according to their discretion, and to award satisfaction to the owners of the land." This was on the 24th day of Dec. 1739, and in February following the committee, John Judd and John Sco- vill, laid out the land as follows :
Beginning at the southwest corner, a heap of stones, then east ten rods to a heap of stones, then ten rods north to a heap of stones, then west eleven rods to a heap of stones, then south eighteen rods to a heap of stones where we began --- butting west on land left for a highway, north on Eleazer Scott's land, south on Stephen Scott's land, east on Eleazer Scott's land, or common land as set out by us.
The land included in these lines, amounting to nearly one acre, belonged to Eleazer Scott, and as a remuneration for the same the committee awarded him " three acres of land to lay out in the undivided land, or fifty shillings in money."
At what time the meeting house was finished I am unable to say, though 1741 has been named as the year. Rev. John Trumbull was the first minister. The Litchfield County (South) Church Manual says he was settled in 1739 ; but the inscription on his monument would make the time later, which says that he " died Dec. 13, 1787, in the seventy third year of his age and the forty eighth of his ministry."
Rev. John Trumbull (called Trumble in the early records) was born in Suffield in 1715. The ancestor of the family came from England and settled in Ipswich in 1645. His son, John, removed to Suffield and had three sons, John, Joseph and Be- noni. The first, John, was the father of the Rev. John Trumbull of Westbury. The second, Joseph, settled in Leb- anon, and was the father of Gov. Jonathan Trumbull. The third, Benoni, was the grandfather of Benjamin Trumbull, D. D., the historian.
Mr. Trumbull graduated at Yale College in 1735 and, at length, (in 1772,) became a member of the Corporation of that institution. His attainments as a scholar were respectable.
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HISTORY OF WATERBURY.
Sometimes he fitted young men for college, as most of the ministers of that day did. He appears not to have been dis- tinguished as a preacher ; but the great influence he acquired over his people was obtained by his generosity, his hospitable manners and friendly intercourse. If one of his parishioners had lost a cow or had met with a similar calamity, he would in- terest himself in the matter, head a subscription for his relief and persuade others to sign the same. It was said of him. that if one of his people turned Episcopalian, he would buy his farm .* He was a large landholder and, for the times, was considered wealthy.
Mr. Trumbull was not tall, but a stout, athletic man. He was sound, shrewd and humorous. Horses he was fond of, and bought and sold them, frequently, with success. On this account, he was sometimes, irreverantly, called jockey Trum- bull. He loved innocent sports, and had once been a great wrestler. A story is told of him, which, though it may not be wholly true, is probably not a pure invention. At any rate, it illustrates the manners of the times. The Waterbury and Westbury people were in the habit of meeting at some half- way place, in the long autumnal evenings, to contend as wres- tlers. They met around a fire and the sport was commenced by two second-rate athletes. When one was thrown, the van- quished called in another from his own side, the object being to vanquish the victor. Thus the experts were called out in succession, and he who remained last on his legs was the bully of the night. In several contests, at the time of which I am speaking, Waterbury had proved too much for Westbury. Mr. Trumbull heard of the defeat of his boys and partook of their mortification. On occasion of the next contest, he dis- guised himself and went down unknown, except to two or three, to give "material aid," if necessary. The wrestlers were called in one after another, till Westbury was again " thrown out," the Waterbury champion having grounded the last of the rival party. At this period, when the signs of ex- ultation on one side and chagrin on the other were becoming manifest, a stranger was dragged in from the outer circle of
* Dr. McEwen's Discourse at the Centennial Celebration in Litchfield, 1852.
.
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HISTORY OF WATERBURY.
the ring, to contend for the Westbury boys. The parties placed themselves in position and began by "playing round," to find each other's qualities. After a little time, the stranger, watching his opportunity, caught his antagonist's foot and threw him upon the fire. Shouts filled the air and the vietor disappeared. Great was the exploit and great the mystery of the affair ; but the secret finally leaked out. The story reach- ed the ears of Mr. Leavenworth, and the next time he met his brother Trumbull, he rebuked him for his levity, and censured lim, particularly, for throwing his rival upon the fire, by which his clothes and flesh were scorched. Trumbull agreed that he had been guilty of levity, but as for the scorching, he thought it his duty to give his (Mr. Leavenworth's) parishioners a fore- taste of what they might expect after sitting under his preach- ing !
Mr. Trumbull was married, July 3d, 1744, to Sarah, daugh- ter of Mr. Samuel Whitman of Farmington. Their children, which are recorded in Waterbury, were 1. Sarah ; b. June 20, 1745. 2. A son; b. Feb. 27, 1746-7. 3. Elizabeth ; b. March 17, 1747-8. The two last died in infancy. The births of John and Lucy are not on record. His widow Sarah and son John were his executors. To his widow, he gave his " negro wench Lemmon ; to his son John of Hartford, his negro girl named Mabel, his knee-buekles, gun and powder horns ; to his daughter Sarah Perkins, wife of Dr. Caleb Per- kins of Hartford, his negro girl Peg, then in her possession ; to his danghter Luey Langdon, wife of the Rev. Mr. Langdon . of Danbury, one negro girl, " late now in her possession." He had a large estate of both real and personal property. He is called in deeds, " clerk," that being the legal appellation of a clergyman.
The house in which Mr. Trumbull lived, and in which his distinguished son was born, may still be seen, standing on the east side of the road to Waterbury, a little south of the old burying yard. His successor in the ministry was Uriel Grid- ley, (settled in 1784.)
The second meeting house was built in 1772," and placed
* Richardson's Sketch.
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HISTORY OF WATERBURY.
in the present center of the village. A third one was dedi- cated in January, 1840.
The early deacons of the Westbury church were Jolin War- ner, Jonathan Garnsey, Timothy Judd, Thomas Hickox, Sam- uel Hickox, Thomas Fenn, Thomas Dutton.
The settlement of Northbury, (afterwards so called,) was commenced a few years after that of Westbury. The first settlers came from other towns, Litchfield, Branford, Walling- ford, New Haven, North Haven, &c. Several of them took up their residences adjacent to the river on the west side. At this place and also on the opposite side of the river hard by, the greatest part of the population resided for several years. The first settler, so far as my enquiries have extended, was Henry Cook of Litchfield. He came with a family about 1728, and had a farm on which he lived on the west bank of the river, not far from the Litchfield boundary. He is men- tioned as of Wooster in Dec. 1730, but that name at that pe- riod was applied, apparently, to all the northwest part of the town lying west of the Naugatuck. He had several sons, three of whom, at least-Jonathan, Ebenezer and Henry, Jr .-- had families and resided in Northbury.
John Sutliff. so far as appears, was the next settler. He came from Branford about 1730, with a family, and built on the west side of the river. He too, at this date, is spoken of as one of the " Wooster" people. After Sutliff, came Sam- nel Towner, Elnathan Taylor, Jonathan Foot, Ebenezer El- well, Thomas Blakeslee, Isaac Castle, (from Westbury,) Daniel Curtis, Barnabas Ford, Gideon Allen, (from Guilford,) John Humaston, (from North Haven,) John Sutliff, Jr., the three first before the close of 1731 and the others before Nov. 1736. These were immigrants from other towns. The first native inhabitants of Waterbury that appeared among them were, as far as I can learn, Ebenezer Richason, (from West- bury,) Lieut. John Bronson, Jr. and Obadiah Warner, all in 1737.
The " up river " people, few in number, living west of the river, joined themselves to the northwest inhabitants in their earliest endeavors to obtain winter privileges, in Oct. 1732. Soon, however, as population increased, they found it expedi- ent to unite with their neighbors on the other side of the river
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IIISTORY OF WATERBURY.
and to act independently. Thus united, they had become so numerous in Oct. 1734, that some of them-Henry Cook, Ebe- nezer Elwell and Samuel Towner-on the ground of their liv- ing so far from the meeting house, requested the town to allow them and others to hire preaching the ensuing winter, and to abate their parish rates while they should thus hire. The town voted "to do nothing in the case." On the 26th day of Oct. 1736, the request was repeated in writing, and was signed by twelve persons-all those whose names have been given as settlers at the time, except John Sutliff, Sen. They wanted the privilege for three years, three months in each year-December, January and February-with exemption from the customary ministerial rates during the time. The liberty asked for they wished to be extended to all those living " within two and a half miles of Barnabas Ford's now dwell- ing-house." The town voted to grant the request. But it seems there was a misunderstanding about the action taken on the subject, or possibly a change of views on the part of the majority ; and the proposed exemption from parish taxes was afterwards denied. At a town meeting held April 18, 1737, " it was asked whether the said [northern] inhabitants shall be exempt from ministerial charge in the town for so much time as they shall hire a gospel minister among [them]" "in addition to a grant made them Sep. 29th," and an answer was . given by vote in the negative.
In May, the disappointed northern people applied to the General Assembly by petition. They said that they lived "on a tract of land about five miles square whereof Barnabas Ford's dwelling house was the center "-that the town voted (at the date above mentioned) that they might have a minister for three months for three years, "with exemption from minis- terial charges for the said term "-that they had employed a preacher, and now are forced to pay rates, &c. They asked winter privileges and the usual exemption from taxes. The petitioners were John Sutliff, Sen., Henry Cook, Ebenezer Elwell, Barnabas Ford, Samuel Towner, Thomas Blakeslee, John How, Gideon Allen, Jonathan Foot, Isaac Castle, Sam- uel Frost, John Sutliff, Jr., John HIumaston, Daniel Curtis, Amos Matthews, Ebenezer Richason, Phineas Royce-seven-
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HISTORY OF WATERBURY.
ten in all. The town appeared against them by remonstrance, and the request was denied. In October, however, of the same year, (1737,) nineteen petitioners, John Bronson, Obadiah Warner and Jolin Garnsey (the last from Westbury) being new ones, renewed the application and were successful. They were released from the usual parish charges for three months, December, January and February, in each year, for three years.
In May, 1738, the up-river people again petitioned. They asked to be exempted from ministerial taxes "for such time only as they had the word dispensed ;" that is, during all the year, provided they employed a preacher of their own. The signers numbered nineteen, the names of Jeremiah Peck, Sen., Jeremiah Peck, (Jr.,) Samuel Curtis, Zachariah Sanford, Wil- liam Ludington, Caleb Humaston, appearing for the first time. They said that the nearest of them lived seven miles, the greater part eight and many nine or ten miles, from the meeting house, on the way to which they were obliged to cross the river (which was often deep and dangerous) nine times. The request was denied ; but in October (1738) it was repeated. There were now twenty-three signers, Jacob Blakeslee's name appearing among them for the first time. They spoke of their three years' privilege expiring with the month of February ensuing, and asked that it might be ex- tended for two years. They alledged that they had a popula- tion of 139, (as I read the figures,) and that to get to meeting at the town center, they had to remove bars and open gates at ten different places. (In the original, the word ten is writ- ten over the figures 17.) The petition was granted.
After Westbury had been incorporated as a distinct society, in Oct. 1738, the way seemed open for the northern inhabit- ants. As they no longer helped support the town minister, the town looked upon the plan of a separate organization with indifference. At the October session of the Legislature, in 1739, a memorial was presented by John Sutliff and Moses Blakeslee, agents, &c. It represented that the people were now
Desirous of being made a society with the privileges of a society that they may settle a gospel minister among them and have God's word preached and
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HISTORY OF WATERBURY.
ordinances administered ; and having prayed said old society in said Waterbury to give them certain bounds and obtained a vote that they, said old society, will not oppose them [&c.] as by the vote may appear Sep. 18, 1739-Whereupon the memorialists humbly pray that this honorable Assembly would appoint a commit- tee and send them to view their circumstances, and state the line between said old society and sd inhabitants and to make return, [&c.]
[Attached to this memorial are the following names : ]
John Sutliff, William Ludington,
Caleb Humaston,
Moses Blakeslee,
Amos Matthews,
John Garnsey,
John Bronson,
Noah Pangborn,
John Sutliff, Jr.,
John Warner,
Matthew Ludington,
Thomas Blakeslee,
Obadiah Warner,
Barnabas Ford,
Gideon Allen,
Daniel Potter,
Joseph Clark, [Jr.,]
Samuel Frost,
Samuel Curtis,
Jacob Blakeslee,
John How,
Joseph Clark,
Daniel Curtis,
Jeremiah Peck.
Henry Cook,
Zachariah Sanford
Only four of these twenty-six signers were native or old in- habitants of Waterbury-John Bronson, Obadiah Warner, Jeremiah Peck and John Warner. The committee asked for was appointed. They entered at once upon their duties and indicated the parish lines. On the west side, the line ran down the West Branch and Naugatuck River along the West- bury boundary to Spruce Brook, "a little below Upson's Island," thence (easterly) a strait line to the falls of Hancox Brook, thence " strait to south side of Mr. Noyes farm," thence due east to the Farmington line, thence round in the old town boundary. The report was approved and accepted, and the so- ciety incorporated by the name of Northbury, all at the same session, Oct. 1739.
The first record of the society of Northbury (the third soci- ety of Waterbury) is a warning for a meeting, on the applica- tion of John Sutliff, Ebenezer Richason and Barnabas Ford, dated Nov. 10, 1739, signed by Thomas Clark, justice of the peace, &c. The meeting was to be held on the 20th day of the month, at which time the first meeting took place. John Sutliff was chosen moderator, Barnabas Ford, clerk, and Moses Blakeslee, John Sutliff and Ebenezer Richason [society's] com- mittee. They "maid choise" of Samuel Todd to be their minister and voted to give him £150 settlement.
That is to say, we will get or cause to get sufficient timber for a house thirty- two foot long, twenty-five wide and fifteen foot between ients [joints-was not
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HISTORY OF WATERBURY.
15 feet the length of the posts ?] frame and set it up, dig and stone up a seller under all ye bigest rume, underpin ye house, ruf it on each side fifteen inches and on each end eight inches, bord and couer ye house with short shingells, prouide all ye materials therefore, coner ye sides and ends with rent claboards and provide nales and clabords and make and put up a sutable number of Winder frames and finish all ye timber work of ye outside of ye house, find stone and build ye chimleys, two fire places below and 1 aboue, and seal the bigest loer rume and glaze it and pro- cure all the materials for it and provide all ye hooks and hinges for all ye rume and prouide all ye materials for doing ye work as above menchened, and ye same to be done workmanlike for Mr. Sam1 todd by ye 1st of October in ye year 1740.
[At the same meeting, Joseph Clark, John How, John Bronson, Thomas Blakes- lee and Gideon Allen were chosen to superintend the building of the house ; and a vote was passed frecing Jeremiah Peek, Daniel Curtis and Barnabas Ford from the charge of building.]
At ye same meeting, it was voted to give Mr. Samuel todd for ye two first years from ye first of last October £100 salary per year and his fire wood and two dayes work a man from sixteen to sixty [years of age] per year, one in summer and one in ye winter, and prouide comfortable house roome for him ye first year upon our own causte, and ye £100 per year to be paid each year in ye months of Oet. Nov. and Dee .- and after ye two first years are up to give him twel [twelve] pence upon ye pound to be his yearly salary, muny or publick bills of credit, until our list at ye lay raises 100 and [ * * ] pounds att ye rate of siluer at three and twenty [shillings] per ounce; and yt to be ye stated salary, and two days work a man til twelue pence upon ye pound makes one hundred pounds as before speci- fide ; and to find him his fire wood so long as he shall continue in ye work of ye ministre amonge us.
At a subsequent meeting, March 3, 1740, (1739-40,) a rate of four pence on the pound in work and one penny in money was laid. At the same time, Moses Blakeslee, Jeremiah Peck and Daniel Curtis were appointed to present to Mr. Todd the " call " of the society and to receive his answer. The follow- ing is his reply, bearing date March 3, 1739-40 :
To Mr. Jeremiah Peck, Moses Blakeslee, david curtis-having resecued your call and proposals in behalf of ye sosiati to settle with you in ye work of ye min- istry, and hauing waid and considered them I declare myself willing upon them to settle with them in ye work of ye ministry, prouided they proseed to a regular ordanation upon or before ye eight day of may next and pray god you may be a blessing to me and I to you.
Sam11 todd.
It was decided that the seventh of May should be the day of the ceremony, at which time, probably, the ordination took place. Afterwards, (Aug. 10, 1740,) the society granted to Lieut. John Bronson, in work or money, £3, 18s. for keeping the council.
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HISTORY OF WATERBURY.
Rev. Samuel Todd, the first minister of Northbury, was the seventh child and fifth son of Samuel and Mary ("Tole ") Todd of North Haven, and was born March 6, 1716-17. He was graduated at Yale College in 1734, at the age of 17 .* He married, August 31, 1739, Mercy, d. of Mr. Peter Evans of Northfield. His children were, Alathea,t (b. Dec. 7, 1740,) Mary, Irene, Eliel, Alathea, Lucy, Samuel, Lucy and Chloe. His house stood a few rods south of the meeting house built during his ministry.
About the time of Mr. Todd's settlement, the Great Revival of New England commenced. He was at first, it is stated, opposed to it, or, at least, regarded it with distrust. He went to Stock- bridge to get a more intimate knowledge of its practical work- ings, and came back with opinions wholly changed. He at once introduced " conference meetings," and labored to rouse the feelings of his church and people. The result was, many of his parishioners and finally a majority, including some of the principal men in both the church and society, turned against him, denounced his doctrines and measures, and at length ob- tained the control of the meeting house and established in it Episcopal worship.
In Jan. 1742-3, the society refused to give Mr. Todd "any thing for the sink of money," (depreciation of the currency,) but they agreed to pay him five pounds old tenor for not fin- ishing his house in the stipulated time. In December, 1743, they voted to allow him £16 yearly, in place of two days' work each, and £12 old tenor for firewood. In 1745, he was to have for his salary " owne hundred forty five pounds old tenor money;" in 1747, £180; in 1748, £300; in 1749, £250 and £30 for firewood, payable in the depreciated old tenor currency. In 1755, he was to receive £46 lawful money, (specie currency)-wheat to be valued to him at 3s. 6d. per bushel, rye at 2s. 4d., Indian corn at 1s. 9d., oats at 102d., pork at 3d. per pound.
* The Manual of the Plymouth Church and Goodwin's Genealogy of the Foote Family say he was graduated in 1834, at the age of 15. The New Haven record gives his birth as above. The Genealogy affirms, also, that he died in 1789, aged 76, and that Mary Evans was his mother.
t According to tradition, the first burial in Northbury was that of a little girl of Mr. Todd, who was drowned in a spring about 1741. It was eight years before another death took place, when the lung fever made its appearance, of which thirty died. [Manuscript notes of the Rev. H. D. Kitchell, late of Plymouth Hollow.]
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HISTORY OF WATERBURY.
Feb. 12, 1756, Mr. Todd made a written communication to the society :
Brethren and Friends-there are evidently many difficulties subsisting among us, in particular with regard to my support among you, ye which we have great reason to suspect is one great ground and rise of all ye rest ye which is just ground of great Humelation and Lemmantation as greatly threttening our ruin [&c.]
IIe offered to take as salary what might be raised by a con- tribution on the sabbath once in two months and what any might hand in at other times, with the grant of the "ministry money." The society accepted the offer. But the plan did not work, and a parish meeting the next year again voted Mr. Todd £46. This was to be his annual salary for four years. The fifth year it was to be £51 and afterwards £56 per annum, (currency of the specie standard, doubtless.) This arrange- ment was satisfactory to Mr. Todd. A good understanding, however, was not obtained, and in Dee. 1763, the society voted to choose a committee of wise and just men to hear and deter- mine whether said society had fulfilled their covenant agree- ment with Mr. Todd.
Mr. Todd's ministry in Northbury was now drawing to a close. After having in vain tried to settle the difficulties with his parish by a council, he at length, with broken health, ask- ed to be dismissed. At a meeting the third Monday of April, 1764, the society voted that on account of difficulty about Mr. Todd's support, and his "prevailing bodily indispo- sition for some time past, whereby he is much disabled from carrying on the work of the ministry, as likewise his request to lay down the work of the ministry," they consented. At the same time, the meeting "maid choise of Dea. John Warner and Dea. David Dutton and Lieut. Danl. Potter to be a com- mitty to apply to ye Association of this (New Haven) County for advice in order to have the pulpit supplyed and to bring in a candidate to preach." Soon afterwards, a communica- tion was received from Daniel Humphrey, John Trumbull, Benjamin Woodbridge and Mark Leavenworth, a committee of the Association, lamenting their troubles and alienations, &c., and recommending the calling of a council to settle matters, or, if thought best, to dismiss Mr. Todd.
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HISTORY OF WATERBURY.
Mr. Todd appears to have been dismissed in August, 1764 ; and in Dee. following the society voted that they "would leave all their diferances with Mr. Samuel Todd in his demands upon this society for and upon account of his sal- ary from time past untill this day unto indeferant gentlemen such as Mr. Todd and the sosiaty commity shall agree to have and abide by the doings of sd arebitrators, and Phineas Royce and Daniel Potter to assist the sosiaty commity herein."
Mr. Todd removed from Northbury to Lanesboro, Mass., where he preached about two years. Thence he went to Adams, where he organized the first Congregational church in that place, and was its pastor till 1778. He took a deep interest in the Revolution, was an ardent Whig and, for a brief period, a chaplain in the continental army. He next lived for a short time at Northfield, with a son. About 1782, he removed to Orford, N. H., where he resided with his chil- dren, preaching occasionally in the new settlements, till his death, June 10, 1789.
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