USA > Connecticut > Fairfield County > Greenwich > Ye historie of ye town of Greenwich, county of Fairfield and State of Connecticut, with genealogical notes on the Adams. > Part 15
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In December, 1812, Commodore Hardy, with a British fleet, appeared off the eastern end of Long Island Sound, and for the greater part of the year 1813 had almost complete control of the waters of the sound. Many vessels were burned, or sunk, by the enemy, and in September they pushed through the sound nearly to Throgg's Neck.
At this time the people of Greenwich and vicinity were greatly alarmed, and feared the enemy would attempt to land. Thereupon Samuel Dean of Stamford, Colonel of the 9th Regiment, Connecticut Militia, ordered out several details from the various companies to guard the coast. The Greenwich companies were under the command of:
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Soldiers in the War of 1812
189
Mead, Ebenezer, Jr.,' Major, of Horseneck.
Captain Seth Mead's Company. Mead, Seth, Captain, of Horseneck. Husted, Drake, Lieutenant.
Sergeants.
Banks, John, Howe, Jonas, Lyon, Samuel.
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Corporals.
Avery, John, Hobby, Thomas, Lyon, Merritt.
Musicians.
Mead, Bush,
Merritt, Abraham.
Privates.
Blodgett, Jonathan,
Mead, Selah,
Brown, Robert,
Merritt, Benjamin,
Bush, David W.,
Merritt, James,
Collins, Edward,
Merritt, Solomon, Jr.,
Dunton, Royal,
Merritt, William,
Greenman (Grumman), Epenetus,
Peck, Ard,
Lyon, David,
Platt, George,
Lyon, Floyd,
Platt, Jeremiah,
Lyon, Shubal,
Scofield, David,
Mead, James,
Smith, Benjamin,
Mead, Job,
Tracy, Hezekiah,
Mead, Luke,
Wilson, Nehemiah, 3rd.
Captain Horton Reynolds' Company. Hobby, David, Lieutenant, of Horseneck.
Sergeants. Mead, Edmund, Reynolds, Abraham, Rundle, Jonathan.
Corporals.
Finch, Henry,
Rundle, David.
Mead, Rogers,
I See Connecticut in the War of 1812.
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Ye Historie of Ye Town of Greenwich
Privates.
Brush, Joseph,
Lockwood, Henry,
Davis, Martin,
Palmer, James,
Fairchild, Ogden,
Reynolds, Ambrose,
Ferris, Sandy,
Reynolds, Gideon,
Finch, Jeremiah,
Rogers, Nehemiah,
Hobby, Lewis,
Rundle, Amos,
Jessup, Samuel,
Sempeny (Timpany), John,
Jones, David,
Smith, Isaac, Jr.,
Knapp, Henry,
Studwell, Richard,
Lane, Josiah,
Studwell, Solomon,
Tempeny, William.
Captain Alexander Hendrie's Company. Hendrie, Alexander, Captain, of Greenwich, Old Town. Ferris, Stephen, Jr., Lieutenant. Ferris, John, Ensign.
Sergeants.
Ferris, Samuel,
Knapp, Isaac, Reynolds, Jared.
Corporals.
Lockwood, Frederick,
Peck, Isaac.
Privates.
Bailey, Asa P.,
Knapp, Enos, Jr.,
Burley, Henry,
Lockwood, David, Jr.,
Ferris, George, Jr.,
Lockwood, George,
Ferris, Gideon,
Lockwood, Henry,
Ferris, James, Jr.,
Lockwood, John,
Ferris, Samuel,
Lockwood, John H.,
Horton, John,
Lockwood, Morris,
Husted, Henry,
Lockwood, Noah, Jr.,
Husted, Samuel,
Johnson, Robert,
Lockwood, Richard, Palmer, Oliver,
Palmer, Warren.
Time in service, September 8, 1813 to September 13, 1813, five days.
IN THE REGULAR ARMY.
Doane, Joshua,
Knapp, Jonathan,
private, 25th Infantry. 37th Infantry.
19I
Incidents of the War of 1812
Lockhart, William, private
25th Infantry.
Lockwood, Shubal,
25th Infantry.
Peck, Andrew, Musician,
25th Infantry.
Sweetland, Lionel R., private,
29th Infantry.
White, John,
25th Infantry.
The above companies were posted on Field Point, on Mead's Point, and on Greenwich Point, respectively.
During one of the nights when these points were guarded, Captain Elijah Reynolds undertook to bring his vessel round from Bush's harbor into the Mianus River. Being seen and well known from Field Point, he was permitted to pass out, but the sentinels at the mouth of the Mianus River, having hailed him to no purpose and supposing it might be an enemy, fired upon him. However, lying close to the deck, he passed on, appearing to take no notice of his challengers. One of the sentinels, John Horton, now supposed it certainly to be a British vessel, and throwing down his gun, and calling upon his locomotive powers, cried, "Now, legs, if you ever did your duty, do it now." It is gravely said by those who heard and saw him, that he tore down three rows of standing corn in making his hasty retreat from the supposed place of danger.
Bush Mead, one of the Horseneck Company, having been sent from Field Point after some straw, found on being chal- lenged by the sentinel on his return that he had forgotten the password, and finally stammered out in reply, "Straw, straw for beds."
Selah Mead, one of the sentinels on Field Point, seeing but little excitement arising from the approach of the enemy, put into execution a practical joke of his own. Equipping himself in his birthday suit, he slipped without noise into the water, and swam silently around the point, where he found another sentinel asleep, whom he suddenly clasped around the waist, and shook to wakefulness, who awoke the neigh- borhood with his cries, supposing he was in the power of a real live mermaid.
For some time the blockade of the sound continued
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Ye Historie of Ye Town of Greenwich
impenetrable to all vessels. Captain Daniel Merritt of the sloop Orion, however, watching his opportunity, when the whole British fleet lay east of Greenwich Point, slipped out of the harbor and sailed safely to New York.
Soon after this the enemy's ships withdrew to the eastern part of the sound, and the several companies were dismissed from guard duty. In case of alarm, however, the bells were to be rung, and one fine morning, shortly after, the greatest consternation was created by the fierce ringing of the alarm- bells. Men hurried to and fro, and the news spread that the British had landed on Greenwich Point during the night, and the people, especially in Old Greenwich, were in a terrible flurry. The militia was hastily summoned and Major . Ebenezer Mead, Jr., having collected his forces at Horseneck, hastened to the scene of action. Arriving at the meeting- house in Old Greenwich, about two miles from the position known to be occupied by the supposed enemy, he came to a halt and called for volunteers to reconnoitre. Whitman Mead, a son of Captain Sylvanus Mead of the French and Indian and the Revolutionary Wars, was the only one there who had courage enough to volunteer. Carrying a white handkerchief fastened to a cane he started off, and on investigation found the supposed enemy to be a fleet of American gunboats under Commodore Lewis, who had been in search of one of the enemy's privateers, and had landed upon the point for breakfast. Mr. Mead so liked the joke that he stayed with the Commodore much longer than he should have done, and breakfasted with him. In the mean- time our forces were in the greatest anxiety of suspense, and supposed that their scout had been taken prisoner and their flag of truce violated. He, however, returned safely and explained all to the officers of our forces, and they thereupon dismissed the troops and returned home. The treaty of peace of December 24, 1814, ended the war, and the Battle of New Orleans was fought January 8, 1815, before notice of the termination of hostilities had been received.
Major-General Ebenezer Mead was a direct descendant
RESIDENCE OF THE LATE GENERAL EBENEZER MEAD ON THE OLD POST ROAD. BUILT ABOUT 1799.
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General Ebenezer Mead
from the first John Mead through the Ebenezer branch, and was born on the twelfth day of December, 1748. He served in the Revolutionary War as a private in Cap- tain Joseph Hobby's Company, 9th Regiment, Militia, Colonel John Mead, during the latter part of 1776, and the early part of 1777. The regiment was ordered to Westchester County, New York, and employed in guarding its borders. During one of the skirmishes he was shot through one of his lungs by a musket ball, which incapacitated him for further military service for some time. He stood in the doorway of his house just beyond the foot of Put's Hill and saw General Putnam ride down the hill, when chased by the British; saw him turn in his saddle as he gained the turnpike at the foot of the hill, and heard him holler "damn ye" to the tories, who were firing at him from the top of the hill.
After the Revolutionary War he gained distinction as a training master in the militia, was promoted to brigadier- general in 1801, and as a result of his meritorious service in connection with the Connecticut Militia, he had conferred upon him the rank of major-general, under which title he served with distinction through the latter years of his mili- tary career. He died on the seventh day of February, 1818, and was buried at the foot of Put's Hill, near Ten Acres. The only mark now left to distinguish this veteran of the Revolutionary War is a broken and well-worn stone on which is inscribed :
"Major-General Ebenezer Mead, died Feb. 7, 1818, aged 70 years."
It was his son, however, born on the second day of March, 1778, who was first major in the 9th Regiment during the War of 1812, as appears by a search through the Connecticut Registers, and not the senior Ebenezer Mead, as heretofore believed to have been. At the time of the British scare, caused by the appearance of a British fleet, under Commo-
I3
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Ye Historie of Ye Town of Greenwich
dore Hardy, off the eastern end of Long Island Sound, which had almost complete control of the sound to Throgg's Neck, Major Ebenezer Mead, Jr., was detailed to guard the coast against an invasion of the enemy. He had his forces stationed at several of the most strategical points, and through his vigilance the enemy was unable to effect a land- ing and was finally compelled to withdraw its forces from the waters of the sound. He was colonel of the 9th Regiment from 1816 to 1820.
At a special town meeting held on the twenty-eighth day of March, 1814, Hezekiah Tracy was chosen town clerk and registrar in place of Colonel Jabez Fitch resigned. "Voted that the thanks of this meeting be given to Colonel Jabez Fitch for the fidelity and correctness of his conduct in the execution of the office of town clerk in this town and his great care and attention in preserving the records during the great length of time he has held said office," which was since the first day of January, 1777, and for over thirty- seven years continuously.
At a special town meeting held on the twenty-fifth day of March, 1818, for the purpose of taking into consideration and expressing an opinion on the subject of the formation of a written constitution of civil government for the State of Connecticut, it was:
Resolved, that in all well regulated communities of mankind it is essential to the welfare of the same that there be a sound compact originating in and emanating directly from the people defining the powers granted to their rulers and those retained, that it is also the duty of the people from time to time to amend or frame anew the charter of their rights, as experience may suggest, or change of circumstances may render necessary.
Resolved, that whereas the people of this state have from time immemorial yielded an implied consent to the present form of government, we feel no disposition to deny its legitimacy or to impair its obligations, by denying the validity of acts and laws made under it, but deeming it materially imperfect in many important particulars; there-
.
195
State Constitution-Visit of Gen. Lafayette
fore, we are induced to declare our opinion that a written constitution of civil government, made and approved by the people, will have a tendency to improve the internal peace and happiness of the state and promote the general welfare.
Resolved, that it be respectfully recommended to the good people of this state to express their opinions freely and publicly on this important subject.
Resolved, that the town clerk be directed to furnish an attested copy of the proceedings of this town meeting to the representatives from this town to the next General Assembly and to the editors of newspapers published at Hartford and Bridgeport.
On the fourth day of July, 1818, a special town meeting was held to elect delegates to meet in convention at Hart- ford on the fourth Wednesday of the following August, and if they saw fit to form a constitution of civil government for the people of this state, which resulted in the choice of Clark Sanford and Enos Lockwood, as such delegates.
At a special town meeting held on the first day of Octo- ber, 1818, pursuant to a resolve of the General Assembly of the preceding May and the recommendations of the con- vention of the fifteenth day of September, 1818, for the purpose of ratifying the constitution recommended by the convention begun and held at Hartford on the fourth Wed- nesday of August last; the town clerk submitted said con- stitution to the qualified voters of the town then present for their approbation and ratification, and thereupon the ques- tion being put there were in favor of ratifying said consti- tution ninety votes and thirty-seven votes were against it.
PursuantI to a formal invitation from Congress through President Monroe to visit the United States, General La- fayette, after declining to be transported in a ship of war, left Paris on the eleventh day of July, 1824, for Havre, and took passage from that port on the American merchant ship Cadmus, Captain Allyn, on the thirteenth day of July, 1824, for New York. He was accompanied by his son,
I American Historical Register, July 1895.
196
Ye Historie of Ye Town of Greenwich
George Washington Lafayette; his secretary, M. Auguste Levasseur; and his valet, Bastien. The ship arrived off quarantine in the harbor of New York on the fifteenth day of August, 1824, where General. Lafayette was met by a delegation of prominent New Yorkers, and in due time escorted to the City of New York, amidst every demonstra- tion of joy that a grateful people could bestow.
On Friday morning, August 20, 1824, General Lafayette started from the City Hall, accompanied by a large escort under the command of General Prosper M. Wetmore, for a tour through New England. On the General's arrival at Byram bridge, the state line between New York and Con- necticut, at about four o'clock, he was met by a Connecticut Troop of Horse under the command of Major Huggins, and a salute was fired as soon as he entered this state. At the junction of Putnam Avenue and the Field Point Road, he was met by a committee of representative Greenwich citizens, consisting of :
Isaac Howe, Rev. Isaac Lewis,
Alvan Mead, Ebenezer Mead, Jonas Mead,
Peter Mead,
Thomas A. Mead,
Asahel Palmer,
James Smith,
John Jay Tracy,
and others, who extended the hospitalities of the town, and a reception was tendered him at the residence of the late Colonel Thomas A. Mead, after which he proceeded to Put's Hill. Here General Lafayette again left his carriage and walked down the hill accompanied by the committee. The road at this point is cut through a solid rock, rising about twenty feet perpendicularly on each side. Hundreds of ladies thronged the hill on one side and gentlemen on the other. As the General passed down the hill a salute was fired. From one side of the rock to the other, over the road, a rural arch was suspended, made of hemlock branches and wild brier, and decorated with roses, the whole designed by the ladies of this town; pendent from the centre of the arch was a shield bearing the following inscription :-
197
Town Hall
This arch on the hill rendered memorable by the brave General Putnam, is erected in honor of the illustrious General Lafayette, the early and distinguished champion of American liberty, and tried friend of Washington.
The centre of the arch was surrounded by an old Revolu- tionary flag, battered and torn. It was the flag that was carried at the Battle of White Plains. The Rev. Mr. Lewis read the inscription to the General, told him the history of the flag, and pointed out to him the exact spot of the heroic exploit of the brave General Putnam. On parting, the patriotic parson, who was a Revolutionary soldier also, said, "General, America loves you." "And I, sir," said the General, "most truly love America."
On the fifth day of May, 1829, a special town meeting was held to take into consideration measures to prevent the slaughter of sheep by dogs. During the year, thirty-two of the inhabitants reported that one hundred and ninety-seven sheep and one hundred and sixteen lambs had been killed by dogs. The loss was estimated at eight hundred and seventy- six dollars.
The question of building another town house was dis- cussed in 1832, and at a special town meeting held on the twenty-second day of September, it was "voted to build a town house on condition that we can agree upon a proper place for locating it and upon proper terms." At the annual town meeting held on the fifth day of October, 1835, it was "voted that the Town of Greenwich build a town house to hold their public meetings in; that it be for that express purpose and no other, and that it be built on or near the ground where Seymour's blacksmith shop formerly stood in Horseneck; that Silas Davis, Thomas A. Mead, and William Timpany be a committee to oversee the building of said house and also to contract for the same; that said com- mittee consult with the selectmen of said town as to the size and manner of said building, and that the same be completed by the first day of November following." The annual town
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Ye Historie of Ye Town of Greenwich
meeting held on the third day of October, 1836, was held at the site of the new town house, which was then not com- pleted. It stood on the site of the present soldiers' monu- ment near the Second Congregational Church, and was the second town building.
A special town meeting was held on the eighth day of May, 1841, "for the purpose of appointing persons to attend before a committee of the General Assembly now in session at Hartford for the purpose of having the court house and jail removed from Fairfield to Norwalk," which resulted in the choice of the following committee :-
Peter Ferris, Obadiah Mead,
Bartow F. White,
Isaac Peck,
Thomas A. Mead,
Augustus Mead.
"Resolved by said meeting that rather than to have the court house and jail located at Bridgeport, as petitioned for by the inhabitants of Bridgeport, we should favor having the county divided."
THE WAR WITH MEXICO, 1846-1848.
The principal causes which led to the Mexican War were the annexation of Texas and the aggressive action of the United States Government against Mexico. The Battle of Palo Alto, May 8, 1846, marked the commencement of active hostilities, and on the thirteenth day of May, 1846, Congress passed an Act providing money and men. The Treaty of February 2, 1848, ended the war, and the Mexican Government ceded to the United States an immense terri- tory in the southwest and on the Pacific Coast.
Connecticut furnished her quota of men, which was small, and among the number mustered into the United States service, was: Finney, Abijah, of Greenwich, Company H., Ist Dragoons. The printed rolls do not contain the name of any one else whose address is given as Greenwich; although there were quite a number from Stamford.
In the year 1853, the Town of Greenwich was set off as
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THE FIRST BRICK HOUSE IN GREENWICH, FORMERLY AT INDIAN FIELD. BUILT BY EPHRAIM MEAD IN 1830.
199
Probate Court-Town Farm
a probate district by itself, and at a special election held on the thirtieth day of June, 1853, for the election of the first judge of probate, pursuant to an act of the General Assembly passed at the session held on the twenty-third day of June, 1853, Augustus Mead was elected said judge of probate.
For a number of years prior to 1854, the town had authorized the selectmen to lease from time to time a suitable house to keep the town poor in and to be provided for and helped at one place. At the annual town meeting, however, held on the first Monday of October, 1854, a com- mittee consisting of Augustus Mead, Ard Knapp, Thomas A. Mead, Edwin Keeler, William A. Ferris, were appointed to see at what price a farm could be obtained for the use of the poor of the town and report to some future meeting.
The committee reported at the next annual town meeting held on the first Monday of October, 1855, that it was "unanimously of the opinion that a farm for that purpose suitably located would be a great saving of expense to the town, also the poor would be better accommodated, if the town owned the farm and buildings. They could provide suitable buildings to accommodate all who would be proper subjects of alms."
"Voted that Josiah Wilcox, Augustus Mead, Ezra Keeler, Zaccheus Mead, be a committee with the se- lectmen to purchase a farm, and the selectmen with said committee have power to purchase a farm for the use and benefit of the Town of Greenwich for the support and maintenance of the town poor; and voted further that whensoever the selectmen and said committee have purchased a farm for the Town of Greenwich, the fund agents are hereby directed to call in so much of the town deposit fund as may be necessary for the purchase of said farm, and the selectmen are directed to give a note to the treasurer of the town deposit fund for the money so called for."
The town farm and poorhouse were located at Pecksland
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Ye Historie of Ye Town of Greenwich
and remained there until 1905, when the town at its annual meeting, held on the second day of October, authorized the selectmen to sell the premises and remove the occupants thereof to a new home situate on the Parsonage Road, near the Contagious Hospital and the entrance to Putnam Ceme- tery, where the poorhouse is now located.
CHAPTER XII.
THE CIVIL WAR, 1861-1865-EXTRACTS FROM MINUTES OF TOWN MEETINGS-SOLDIERS IN THE CIVIL WAR.
THE bombardment of Fort Sumter, South Carolina, the first overt act by the seceded states against the Federal Government, began on Friday, April 12, 1861. The fort was surrendered by Major Anderson on the following day, after an attack in which one man was wounded, but none killed. The news was published in the papers of Sunday, April 14, 1861, and on Monday morning, April 15, 1861, President Lincoln's first proclamation, calling for 75,000 men to suppress the rebellion, was issued. This was followed, May 3, 1861, by an additional proclamation calling for forty more regiments and 18,000 seamen, and on July 2, 1862, by a call for 300,000 volunteers.
The inhabitants of the town responded with alacrity to the call for volunteers and at the annual town meeting held on the first Monday of October, 1861, it was:
Resolved, that a military committee of three be ap- pointed for the year next ensuing to make such appropri- ations as may be demanded for the raising of volunteers within the Town of Greenwich and supplying the wants of such volunteers as may from time to time be necessary, provided the sum expended by said committee shall not exceed the sum of $500.
This sum was increased to $1000.00. The committee chosen was: Dr. James H. Hoyt, Julius B. Curtis, Edward B. Hewes,
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Ye Historie of Ye Town of Greenwich
At a special town meeting held on the fifth day of August, 1862, it was:
Resolved that the bounty to each volunteer shall be $100, provided such volunteers are enrolled on or before the sixteenth day of August, 1862.
Resolved that the selectmen be and they are hereby directed to draw an order on the treasurer of the town in favor of said volunteers for the sum of $100 on application of the Committee legally appointed to recruit volunteers, who shall make oath that said volunteer has been examined and sworn into the service of the state, or the United States, in answer to the call of the President.
Resolved that the selectmen be and they are hereby authorized to draw such sum of money as may be demanded to pay the expenses incurred in raising volunteers and that a tax to pay said bounty be levied on the ratable and taxable property of said town.
Voted "that the Committee appointed at the last annual town meeting, viz .: Dr. James H. Hoyt, Edward B. Hewes, Julius B. Curtis, together with the selectmen, be a Commit- tee to superintend and draw orders on the treasurer of the town for the payment of said volunteers."
At special town meetings held on the twenty-sixth day of August, 1862, it was:
Resolved that the Town of Greenwich pay the sum of $100 to each volunteer raised under the call of the President for men for the military service of the United States for the period of nine months to fill the quota of the town, and that the selectmen be and they are hereby directed to draw an order on the treasurer of the town in favor of each volunteer for said sum of $100, provided said volunteers shall have first passed the requisite examination and have been mus- tered into service, and further provided that said sums paid shall not exceed the sum of $8300.00, and the selectmen are further authorized to loan a sufficient sum of money to meet said payment.
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Civil War
Resolved, that the sum of $100 be paid by the Town of Greenwich to each person who shall by the eleventh day of September, 1862, volunteer to fill up Company I., 10th Regiment, Connecticut State Volunteers, not to exceed the number of twenty-one men,
and that the selectmen be authorized to loan the money to pay the volunteers as mentioned in said resolution.
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