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UNIVERSITY LIBRARY

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HISTORY OF STAMFORD,

CHAPTER I.

I N T K O D U C T O 11 Y .
Not two and a quarter centuries have passed since the region
in which the beautiful village of Stamford now lies, was a sav
age wilderness. No foot of white man, unless it may have been
that of some adventurous explorer, had over treaded its solitary
paths. The same blue waters mirrored as now the same gently
retreating hill-sides, but they had never photographed as now
the cottages and spires of a civilized and Christian' people. Ov
erlooking the quiet Rippowam harbor were the same hills as
now ; the softly rounded Noroton, towards the rising sun, the
higher central Mataubaun, (the morn revealer,) stretching far up
towards the north, and the lowlier, yet no less lovely ridge to
the west, behind which the setting sun went to his rest for the
night. The " Myanos" and Noroton rivers, larger then than now,
unhindered by dam, coursed their roaring or babbling way be
neath the tufted foliage of the primeval forest into the sunny
waters of the sound ; while the rippling Rowalton separated
these realms of the jealous liippowam from the hunting grounds
of the lordly Mahackeno. No where from the Rowalton to the
Mianus, and from the southern waters along the "four hour's
walk" towards the dreaded forests of the fierce Mohawks, dould
one rest his eye upon either the presence or trace of the pale
face OI- his work.
Bears growled where now the hum of industry is heard.
Wolves roamed and howled amid thickets which no woodman's
axe had ever invaded. Wild birds amid their leafy bowers sang
1

'1 HISTOKY OF STAMB'ORD.
their carols to wild beasts in their leafy lairs. No voice
of man had for once awaked the echoes of these hills and
glens, save when some Indian lover wooed to his side the dark
eye of his heart, or when the proud warrior of some savage clan
rang out the defiant warwhoop of his great wrath.
Here had lived and loved, only another race. Here and there,
nestling amid ledges and between ovcr-areliing trees, was an
Indian's home — a wigwam as rude in its structure and finish as
tlie untutored savage who had built it. A few brawny red men
with their " dusky mates" and bright-eyed little ones, numbering
in all, not to ex'ceed some three hundred souls, were the sole
liuraan tenants on this soil. Nor were even they its permanent
possessors. Their sagamores, Ponus and Wescussue, held the
undisputed title to all the land, and in their paternal condescen
sion, they meted out for the season to their loyal subjects, such
patches as they could j^lant with corn or beans. Of course there
was no general tillage of the ground. The ntmost ingenuity of
Indian art had no conception of the plow, and could furnish but
a sorry substitute for even the white man's axe and hoe and
spade. Nor had the still waters of either Rippowam or Toquam har
bor, yet felt the keel of civilized commerce. The light bark
canoe had for many generations been wont to shoot swiftly from
point to point across the shallower indentations of the coast,
while the huge trunk of some lofty forest oak, excavated by te
dious scraping with shells and sharpened flint stones aided by
the skillful use of fire, had. supplied the aborigines with their
only safe transport for the rougher sea YoyAge, At intervals of
long period, the waters of the sound had been the theater of
fierce and bloody sea-figlits. Not in gallant and gigantic ship,
moved at the commander's will by steam or sail, but in these
rude inonarclis of Indian sea-craft, driven with mightiest stroke
of well-trained oar against each other, in fearfully frightful and
fatal encounter. One such naval engagement had crimsoned
our harbor with savage blood, just before the white man for the
first time entered its glassy waters.

IXTI10DU(.'T0]IY. n
Nor had the sharp crack of the hunter's rifle, nor the roar of
modern artillery, e\n- yet disturbed these solitudes ; though in
stead, the twang of the sounding bow and the sharp whizzing of
the winged arroAV had often brought to the ground the eagle in
his loftiest flight, or cut short the swiftest footed wild deer in
his race.
Here everything was in its rudest dress — hillside and glen,.
forest tree and mossy rock, wavy margined coast and arbored,
murmuring stream, all were as nature made and meant them —
all as their untutored and unambitious occupants had left them.
.411 attempts at improvement by the rude savage had only mar
red the native beauty they had invaded. The homes here built,
the jDaths here opened, all changes here made, begun and ended
still in forest homes arid paths and change. Nature mainly held
her own against the utmost of all that Indian art arid industry
could do.
And still no intelligent and cultivated eye could have gazed
upon this uncultivated domain, without being struck with its
singular and quiet beauty. There was not in it the stirring
grandeur of Alpine scenery, nor yet the sublime immensity of
the prairie's stretch ; but there was something which while it
might move the beholder less would not fail to please him more.
Rarely, on earth, do pleasant hill-sides sweep up more gracefully
from heaven-penciled waters, and still more rarely, do hill and
lowland and vale blend in pictures of more pleasing loveliness.
So felt even the Indian, as his sharp eye swept over the broad
landscape from his outlook on his favorite Mataubaun ; and so
thouo-ht the weary pilgrims of another race as they came to find
on this coast the future homes of their own and their children's
children. The Indian passed away, and with him perished the story of
his race. All their tender loves and all their stern revenges ;
every adventure of chieftain or of subject ; noble deeds of affec
tion and of heroisn^i, all alike unrecorded, have gone forever into
an oblivion from which no pen of historian can recover them.

4 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
The last faint traces which his departing footsteps left, are all
that remain to witness to the Indian's power and skill.
The white man came. In defiance of the savage race on these
borders of a frowning wilderness, in the midst of blood-thirsty
beasts of prey, he was forced to seek his home. He counted
and accepted the cost, He set up the altars of his faith. He
taught the wilderness to bud and blossom ; and bud and blos
som and fruitage he turned to his use. He made of the forest
tree his comfortable house. The virgin soil answered his call,
and loaded his table with her fruits. Idle water streams soon
leaped upon his water wheels, and with tireless gladness helped
on his course. The patient genius of education took his little
ones in care, and taught their young minds to plan and their
hands to execute new triumphs in his progress.
The old- forests and all the profitless savagery of Indian life
soon gave way, and farms and schools, industry and thrift,
civilization and religion, homes of comfort and of elegance
attested the presence of the more intelligent, and permanent
race. For two hundred and twenty-six years that race have now on
this ground plied their intelligence, their invention, their indus
try and their skill. Six or seven generations of their children
have here grown up, borne their part in the great work of man
on earth, and left the accumulating treasures of their career as
a precious legacy to the generation which now have occasion to
rejoice in the succession.
And why may we not, why should we not gather up the les
sons which those busy years can furnish ? Who would refuse
to trace the record which Providence has here drawn ? Who
withhold from the hardy pioneers who inaugurated, and from
the wise and valiant men who have transmitted with the added
luster of their own bright fame, this noble inheritance to us ?
Surely, not the worthy sons of names so worthy. Surely, not
the natives of other towns, who have been drawn hither by the
charms or the promises of good which their earlier homes could

INTEODUCTOEV. 5
not offer, and who are now gathering here the fruits of a pros
perity which others sowed. Every just, every filial, every
honorable son or citizen of Stamford must respond to the claim
which his native or adopted town has to a permanent and
instructive memorial. It were as undutiful, as it is unjust to
the departed generations, to refuse such a tribute. No pains
should be deemed too costly, which can secure it.
It was such a feeling which moved the author, some d'ozen
years ago, to examine the records of the town to learn if they
offered sufficient material towards such a work. Though very
iraperfect, almost illegible in some places and defaced or totally
wanting in others; though exceedingly meager everywhere,
except in recording the annual lists of town officers, from select
men down to the key-keeper of the town pound, there still
seemed enough of the earlier records left to justify the attempt.
Thanks to the providence of our town officers twenty-five years
ago, by whom the mutilated aud raj)idly wasting remnants of
the old records were carefully arranged and bound together for
preservation. This township, whose story for two and a quarter centuries
I have undertaken to tell, occupies about one-third of that sea-
coast parallelogram which stretches off from the southwest
corner of Connecticut. By the.original grant, made over by the
Indians, it must have covered nearly that entire parallelogram,
together with a parallel strip lying on the north of it and now
owing allegiance to the Empire State.
But by the excision of several portions of the tract, the
Stamford to which my research is mainly limited, has come to
occupy the central part of the first grant — -a tract now, not far
from ten miles in length from N. N. W. to S. S. E. ; and on an
average about seven miles in width, on a line running . a little
to the South of West. It is bounded on the north-north-west
by the towns of North Castle and Poundridge ; on the east-
north-east by the towns of New Canaan and Norwalk ; on the
south-south-east by Long Island Sound, and on the west-south
west by Greenwich.

0 HISTOEY' OF STAMFOED.
This entire tract has a gentle slope towards the south-south-
\vest, and its surface is made up of a not ungraceful succession
of ridges having the same general direction, yet of the greatest
possible variety of length and contour, yet gradually lifting
themselves to greater elevations towards the north, where the
central one has by common consent won the distinction of our
High Ridge. Meandering among these ridges, as if to carve
the surface into forms of most pleasing variety, we find the
Mianus and its main tributary on the north-west ; the old Indian
Rippowam, and now, from its English use, the Mill river, with
its eight serviceable branchlets draining ten times as many hill
sides and rippling through many a pleasant vale ; the shorter
Noroton, laughing its joyous way down through the defiles in
the north-east part of the town, to the open plains we call New
Hope, and thence toying its playful way around the eastern
base of our Noroton hill, into the smooth waters of its own
lovely bay ; and next, and still less, the gentle brooklets ever
to be dishonored by their late born names, Stoney Brook and
Good Wife, yet ever to be used for bounding and draining the
gentle slopes whose waters find 'their beds ; and last, as if to warn
us that we must find our eastern frontier somewhere, the prosy
Five Mile, whose beauties and whose uses, we are doomed to
share with our Norwalk neighbors towards the east.
Of all the hills and valleys and plains bounded and separated
by these brooks and streams, the time would fail me to write.
To be known, they must be seen ; and, seen in the freshness of
their summer dress, they will be felt to be a goodly sight.
Whoever scans them, clothed with the variegated hues of the
early autumn, will call them pleasant and beautiful.
A very accurate eye and a sober judgment the topographist
had, who wrote of this town a quarter of a century ago :
" This is a pleasant and fertile township ; rich in the resources
of agricultural opulence, abounding in the means of subsistence,
with the advantages of a ready and convenient market. The
surface of the town is undulating, exhibiting a pleasant diver
sity of moderate hills and valleys. The soil is a rich gravelly
loam, adapted to both tillage and grazing."

I.NTEODUCTOEY. 7
Somewhat more enthusiastic was the estimate of its topo
graphy, in some favored localities, of the very celebrated Dr.
Dwight, who traveled over large portions of our broad land
that he might observe and note their excellences or their
defects. His judgment is worth transcribing for this prelimi
nary chapter of our history :
"There are three uncommonly interesting spots iu this town
ship ; one on the western side of the harbor which is called the
Southfield, a rich and beautiful farm.
" Another is a peninsula on the east side of the harbor. Ship-
pan, the property of Moses Rogers, Esq., of New York. This
also is an elegant and fertile piece of ground. The surface
slopes iu every direction, and is encircled by a collection of
exquisite scenery. The Sound and Long Island beyond it, with
a gracefully indented shore, are directly in front; and both
stretch westward to a ^'ast distance, and seaward till the eye is
lost. On each side, also, lies a harbor, bounded by handsome
points. " A train of groves and bushy islands, peculiarly pleasiug in
themselves, increase by their interruptions, the beauty of the
waters. The farm itself is a delightful object, with its fields
neatly inclosed, its orchards and its groves.
" Here Mr. Jilogers has formed an avenue a mile in length,
reaching to the water's edge. At the same time he has planted
on the grounds surroundins; his house, almost all the forest trees
which are indigenous to this country. To these he has united
plantations of fruit trees, a rich garden and other interesting
objects so combined as to make this one of the pleasantest
retreats in the L^nited States.
"The third, named the Coyq, is on the western side of Noro
ton river. On this spot, in very advantageous situations, have
been erected two large mills for the manufacture of flour, and a
small village or rather hamlet for mechanics of various kinds.
The view of the harbor in front, the points by which it is lim
ited, the small but beautiful islands which it contains, the Sound,
the Long Island shore, a noble sheet of water in the rear, the
pleasant village of Noroton, -and the hills and groves in the
interior is rarely equalled by scenery of the same nature,
especially when taken from a plain scarcely elevated above the
level of the ocean."
Such is the testimony of Dr. Dwight, to the beauty of these
three still noticeable points in the topography of the town.

8 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
Nearly fifty years have passed since that judgment was penned ;
and during this period the progress of settlement or of improve
ment has added many a locality, whose natural or cultivated
beauty equals or exceeds these. Whoever traverses this tract
from east to west, over almost any one of our roads will find
himself frequently surprised by a sudden view of some charm
ing landscape — whose beauty is only enhanced by the silvery
edging of its southern front. Such views one will be glad to
linger upon, from our Richmond, and Strawberry, and Noroton,
and Summer, and Ox ridge elevations, near the Sound; and
from Fort and White hills, from Hunting and Davenport and
Long and High ridges, farther to the north. And besides these,
a score of other summits might be named, each one of which is
itself a gem set in the coronal of our summer landscape, yet
most of all delightful for what it shows us, of the broad pano
rama in which it lies.
But what gave the name Stamfoed to this township ? In his
centennial address, delivered here in 1841, the Rev. Mr. Alvord,
who had evidently spent no little time in his historical inqui
ries, gives this explanation of the name. "Our fathers in
changing the name," from Rippowams, the Indian name, '¦ called
the town after Stamford in England, which j)lace Avas doubtless
the former residence of some of them." This is a most natural
conclusion, and one which we shall be able, neither to prove or
disprove. But if it was true, that an English town gave name to the
New England settlement, it would yet be a question Avhich of
the three places in the mother land, should have the honor. It
might have been the Stamford Bridge, in Yorkshire, on the
Derwent, a place famous for that successful contest in Avhich
Harold utterly defeated the insolent Norwegian invasion. The
orthography of the name, as reported by Hume is precisaly that
which we find on our earlier records ; it is not so remote from
the theatre of the good Mr. Denton's earlier ministerial labors,
as not, for some reason or other, to have been chosen as a fitting
name for the ncAV settlement. Or it may have been that other

inteoductoey. 9
Stamford of England, on the extreme Avestern borders of Wor-
cester.'-hire, as the Connecticut tOAvn Avas, on the same extreme
of NcAV England. We knoAV not but the very lovelhicss of this
beautiful town of the charming Teme, may have been seen or
fancied to belong, in its elements at least, to the new towpship on
the margin of the Ncav England RippoAvam. Good authority, at
a later date, has told us that "the situation of Stamford is de
lightful." And still again, " it Avould be utterly impossible
through the medium of words, or at least any words Avhioh I
can select, to give an idea of the lovely country Avhere I was
born and reared." And yet once moro, Ave haA^e the same en
thusiastic admiration exjaressed by the same gifted pen. It is
the hearty and affectionate tribute of the talented Mrs.. Sher-
Avood — her skillful photograph of the dearest scenes of her
childhood, in Avliich she would commend to all her readers " the
lovely parsonage of Stamford, the elegant home in Avhicli I Avas
born." And surely no one who has an eye for the loA^ely and
beautiful in landscape, will deny that some future Mrs. Sherwood
may, with equal truth, so daguerreotype the charms of more than
one home in the Stamford, yet to be, here in this Southwestern
corner of Connecticut. But, perhaj)S, as has been generally suj)-
posed, the name comes from the Stamford of Lincolnshire.
That, also, Avas a border tOAvn, and like this, on the South
western extreme of the county. And there are, possibly, other
local and historical reasons Avhich may seem to indicate this as
the original, to whose scenery or to the affection of AAdiose duti
ful children, our Ncav England Stamford OAves its name.
As to the English homes of our settlers, our utmost diligence
has failed to trace a single family to the Lincolnshire Stamford.
Indeed, but one of the earlier names of our pioneers, lias been
found on any of the Stamford recoi'ds we have seen. The
Browns, a name, universal almost as the Smiths, Avere early iu
the ancient English Stamford of Lincoln. And they were also
of no little repute. Their monuments still speak of their fame.
The church of All Saints, standing on the north side of the Red
2

10 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
Lion Square, in the old English town, was the gift of ^ John
Brown, Avho was an alderman of the city in 1462 ; and in the
St. Mary's can noAV be seen brass figures of William Brown and
his wife. A hospital, also, founded in the reign of the third
Richard, is still a monument here to the humanity of this Wil
liam BroAvn.
Not far from this Stamford, on the borders of Leicestershire,
Mr. Denton had his nativity, and spent his earlier years ; and it
is not improbable that some feature of the place made so favor
able impression on his boyhood, that when he came to stand, in
manhood, at the head of this yet nameless settlement, he could
find no fitter or worthier name for the place which he intended
to make the home for his old age.
But sometimes the subtlest of influences establishes a new
empire, to AA'hich the most trifling occurrence, a mere slight re
semblance even, shall give its name. So, doubtless it was some
slight feature of many of the townships in New England, which
led to the selection of their names, — their peculiar water margin,
their running streams, their hills, or valleys, or plains ; and the
same unimportant hint Avhich settled the choice of the founders,
settled also the name assigned to the town thus founded.
I confess myself to have been not a little surprised by Simp
son's engraving of the Lincolnshire Stamford. It is foimd in
Allen's History of the County of Lincoln. It is a southerly
view of the old tOAvn, and the first impression it gave me Avas
that of a veritable prototype of the modern Connecticut Stam
ford, as seen from the south-west.
The tAvo landscapes are strikingly alike. The five steeples or
towers are almost literally reproduced in the modern engraving
of the modern Stamford. A large castellated mansion towards
the right of the old picture, occupies nearly the position of the
Noroton Hill residences, on our map ; and the almost involun
tary decision Avas, there need be no wonder why the founders
called these hills and wooded slopes another Stamford.
Nor Avas the resemblance scarcely less, in the engraving found

INTEODUCTOEY. 1 1
in Britton's "Beauties of England and Wales." The landscape
seemed the same. Hills and intervales wore the same contour,
and were cleaved by not dissimilar river beds. And if the self
same mold gave form and feature to the two, Avhy should not
the same express them both ?
But how completely, a careful study of these pictures of the
English Stamford, would dispel the illusion that they designed
to illustrate the trans- Atlantic town.
The artificial of the two is all unlike. The architecture of the
one antedates by long centuries the other. The institutions
and customs which the one illustrates, are equally antiquated
and foreign to the other. Long ages of time and a Avide ocean
in space must certainly separate them.
Witness those huge uplifted arms of that sIoav grinding wind
mill, and you need not ask them if their unwieldy and unsightly
aerimotion belongs to the age or to the neighborhood, even, of the
modern eis- Atlantic town.
Witness those circular arches and Avavy moldings of that old
Benedictine convent, which plainly tell of an age far earlier
than the very oldest of the many styled architecture of the Con
necticut town. Witness those ancient monasteries and friaries,
in which, ages before the white man had even found the site of
the new Stamford, there must have been gathered successive
generations of men who practiced or simulated the holiest self-
denials of the Christian life. Witness, too, those mouldering
ruins, that tell us the presence here, in.ages long since gone by,
of the old Roman and his power ; and those other dismantled
halls, where other generations were trained in all the most
courtly and elegant culture of that early age.
This English Stamford dates from a very early period. Henry
Huntington gives us our first account of it. As early as Bla-
dud, one of the British kings of the ninth century, it was a place
of some note. The Romans called it Durobevia, from the rocky
ford over the Weiland here. The Saxons translated the same
feature into their language, and called it the Stane-ford or rocky

12 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
ford Avhich in the progress of orthographic change has come to
be Stamford. Our first spelling of the modern names, it Avill be
seen, is Stanforde ; and we may, without serious misgiving, ac
cept as its prototype, the ancient Stanforde in the Wapentake
of Ness.
We have already alluded to the local records from which a
portion of these details are drawn. But quite as fortunate is it,
that so many of the papers of the town have been preserved by
the care of the state. But for the aid of these papers, now ar
ranged and indexed in the state library in Hartford, but few of
the older towns of the state could furnish material for an intel
ligible record of their local history. Certainly, Stamford, one
of the oldest of these towns, is greatly indebted to this state
providence for many of the records Avhich this history pre
serves. ,
Next to these sources of our history, stand the ecclesiastical
records of the First Church and those of the Middlesex Church
and Society, (Darien) ; the former commencing with Dr. Welles'
ministry in 1747, and the latter with the organization of the
Society in 1739.
It must alAvays be regretted that the records of the First
Church, doAvn to the settlement of Dr. Welles, are not to be re
covered. The Society records of that period are identical with
such town records as are preserved, and are scarcely less A'a lua-
ble to the history than those of the toAvn itself.
Next in value are those faithful transcripts of the records of
the Ncav Haven colony, from 1688 to 1649, and from 1653 to
1665, published by C. J. Hoadly, Esq., State librarian; and a
like faithful transcript of the Connecticut colony records, from
1636 to 1677, .executed by J. Hammond Trumbull, Esq, Secre-_
tary of State. .Nor should the old Dutch records of the New
Netherlands be lost sight of in this research. Of the history of
this region, anterior to the date when our colonial records be
gin, and. of the earlier conflicts with the Aborigines, they give
us many facts and hints of great interest.

INTEODUCTOEY'. 13
Besides these, Avhich haye the force of original records, Ave
find of great service to the satisfactory elucidation of our local
history, such Avorks as Trumbull's Connecticut, which abounds
in material for its earlier periods, and the later Avork of HoUis
ter which brings the collection doAvn almost to the present date.
Hall's Norwalk, Mead's GreeiiAvich, Prince's and Thompson's
histories of Long Island, and Bolton's thorough AVork on West
chester County, have also great value, treating as they do of
localities whose earlier history Avas so inwoven with ours. Nor
are the printed histories of our revolutionary period to be over
looked in this list of authorities. Especially are we indebted to
the local records supplied by Hinman in his report of the part
Avhich Connecticut bore in that contest ; and scarely less to the
faithful account which Sabine gives us of the opposers of the
Avar. Still more important are the Contemporaneous records,
collected at such cost of time and money in the American Ar
chives. In family history and genealogy, much use has necessarily
been made of Savage's great thesaurus of abbreviated genealog
ical lore ; and for reporting the prominent family of Avhich it
treats, no work or works could readily take the place of Mr.
A. B. Davenport's " Davenport Family."
Besides these sources of our history, the author has had free
access to several of our best historical libraries, from which
have been drawn many of the facts here recorded. Especially
is he indebted for this indulgence granted him, at the Yale Col
lege Library and that of the Ncav Haven Colony Association,
in New Haven ; at the State Library and the Connecticut His
torical Society, in Hartford; at the Astor and Merchants and
NeAV York Society Libraries, of New York city ; and at that of
the Long Island Historical Society, in Brooklyn, N. Y.

CHAPTER IL

THE SETTLEMENT.  1640-42.

In the spring of 1640, a company of dissatisfied and restless
men in Wethersfield, were anxious to end the contentions and
feuds which for four or five years had rendered their home in
that new colony comfortless and unprofitahM. The reasons for
that distracted condition, among a band of men who had left
the father land not six years before, to seek a quiet and peaceful
home for themselves, may never be fully made known. Cer
tainly no contemporaneous record which I have been able to
find has reported them. But, both the town records, and those
of the Connecticut colony, which then included only the three
settlements at Windsor, Hartford, and Wethersfield, agree in
representing the Wethersfield disagreement so positive as not
likely to be harmonized, as long as the spirited factions should
remain together. So thought the Peace Commissioners who
went down from Hartford to see if the peace could be preserved.
So decided the Church Committee from Watertown, who had
been sent out into the wilderness to look after the brethren who
had so recently emigrated from their company. So decided,
also, that princely pioneer among our Connecticut Avorthies of
that age, the Rev, Mr. Davenport, who had gone up from New
Haven to see if fraternal counsel Avould not restore harmony to
that disturbed community ; and so believed the discerning men
among the contestants themselves. Their judgment accepted
the judicious advice of Mr. Davenport, and they proceeded to
arrange the terms of a peaceful separation.
The church at Wethersfield had only seven voting members.

THE SETTLEMENT. 13
six Avho had come from Watertown, and one who had joined
them. Four of them Avere on one side in the cpntroversies
which had divided the people, and three on the other, but the
latter constituted the majority of the community. As a peace
measure the majority of the church agreed to emigrate with the
minority of the planters ; while the majority of the planters
conceded them the right of taking with them the records, and
so transferring their church organization to the new field.
But whither should, or could they go ? All the region to the
Avest of them, until they should^reach the Dutch settlements in
'T^ew Netherlands was as yet an unbroken wilderness. To the
south, at New Haven, and doAvn the river at Saybrook, new
settlements Avere just established, but offered no inducements to
so large a company of emigrants as they Avould muster. On
the Sound, at Guilford, Milford, Fairfield, and Stratford, com
panies of pioneers were just breaking ground for the sites of
their new colonies. EveryAvhere else the wilderness and sayage
held sAvay.
But Mr. Davenj)ort, AVho had advised the separation, though
the enterprise of the young colony to Avhose success he had so
largely contributed, was prepared to offer them a place for a
home. The New Haven colony, in its zeal to maintain an
equal footing Avith the Connecticut colony, whose seat Avas at
Hartford, had just made a purchase, through their agent, Capt.
Nathaniel Turner, of that tract Avhich lies to tlie west of the
present »town of Norwalk. This they offered to thcj waiting-
company at Wethersfield. The Committee api>ointed by that
company, accepted the purchase, and soon the arrangements
were completed for the formal occupation of the place. The
following record of the decision of the General Court of New
Haven, held the 14th of ninth month, 1640, exhibits the title
under which the colonists were to take j)OSsession of their new
domain :
" Whereas, Andrew Ward and Robert Coe of Wethersfield
Avere deputed by Wethersfield men the 30th of the Sth month.

16 HISTOEY OP STAMFOED.
commonly called October, 1640, to treat at New Haven, about
the plantation lately purchased by said town called Toquams,
Avhich being considered of it was agreed upon by the said court
and justices aforesaid that they shall have the said plantation
upon the terms following : first, that they shall repay unto the
said town of Ncav Haven all the charges which they have dis
bursed about it, which comes to thirty-three pounds as appears
by a note or schedule hereunto annexed ; secondly, that they
reserve a fifth part of said plantation to be disposed of at the
appointment of this court to such desirable persons as may be
expected, or as God shall send hither, provided that if Avithin
one whole year such persons do not come to fill up those lots so
reserved that then it shall be free for the said people to nomi-
nate^and present to this court some persons of their own choice
Avhich may fill up some of those lots so reserved if this court
approve of them; thirdly, that they join in all points with this
plantation in the form of government here settled, according to
agreement betwixt this court and Mr. Samuel Eaton about the
plantation of Totokett. ' These articles being read together
Avith Mr. Samuel Eaton's agre-jment in the hearing of the said
parties or dej)uties, it Avas accepted by them, and in yitness
thereof they subscribed tlieir names to the articles in the face
of the court.".
Thus Avcre the founders of Stamford supplied Avith a place for
their future residence. Providence had opened it as a refuge
for them; and they gladly fled to it. They hoped to find in
their ncAV home, equally, freedom from the tyrannous rule und^r
Avhich they had been exiled from the land of their birth, and.
from the petty annoyances which had tried their patience and
their temper in their brief sojourn on the banks of the Connec
ticut. Few pioneers among the emigrants from the old world
to this, had been more severely tested than they had been ; and
we may be assured that they hailed with no common satisfac
tion the pleasant and quiet retreat to Avhicli they had been thus
conducted. The story of their introduction to their ncAV home, the com
pany they constituted, the community they established, tho
plans they made and matured, their trials and their triumphs,
let it be our present business to learn. Reverently and duti-

THE SEl-TLEMENT. 17
full)' let US ask after the men, Avho in times of great trial,
through days and years of Aveakness and suffering, of hope
deferred and pressing fears, sustained themselves in the great
Avork of laying deep and broad foundations for the f)ermanent
prosj^erity of their children's children in this ncAV Avorld.
The following- passage, providentially saved from the first
book of the Stamford records, Avill introduce us to these men.
Defaced as it is in some places, and Avanting as it is in others,
Ave may well be thankful that so much of it remains. It is the
most effectual key .we have to the earlier portion of our history.
We will transcribe what remains of it, as a perpetual Avitness
to some of the earliest and most Adtal facts of the story we are
to trace. The portions of the record now effaced, which are
supplied, Avill be included in parentheses. The remainder of it
is the literal record as it Avas made by the original recorder
himself The first paragraph, Avhich is a mere title, was evi
dently inserted after the name of the settlement had been
changed, tliough written by the same hand Avhich made the
record folloAving it. These earliest records are all in the
haudAvriting of Richard LaA^¦.
1640-41. A tOAvn bo(ok of the) freeholders of the towile (of
Stamford as it) was afterwards called, but iioav Rippowam,
contay(n)in(g the acts) and conclusions of the companie of
Wethersffeld men, to (begin a) removal thither this Avinter.
And also their most matteriall acts and agreements, touching
the place hoAV they came by it, theire i-at(es) and accoiints,
.theire divisions and grants of land, and records of every man's
land, and passages of land from one to another.
First these men whose names are underwriten have bound
thems (elves) under the paiiie of forfiture of 5 lb a man to goe
or sende to Ripp(owan) so begin and psecute the designe of a
plantation there by ye 16th o(f) may next, the rest, theire
familyes thither by ye lastof novembe(r) 12 months, viz.
Ri Denton Ri Gildersleue Tho Weekes Sam Sherman
ma mitshell Edm Wood Jon Wood H Hen Smith
Thur Rainor Jo Wood Jer Jagger Vincint Simkins
Robt Coe Jer Wood J Jisopp Dan Finch
And Ward Sam Clark Jo Seaman JoNorthend20
3 >

18

HISTOEY OF STAJIFOKD.

And whereas the purchase of the place and vewmg of it hist
mayde by our trends of new haueu and we stand mtlebtecl to
them for it : it (is) ordered at the same time That lOObushells
of corne at 35 a bushell be paid in towards it Ave raised and
sent them as foUoweth, m(r) ma mitcliel

Serst. JI. JI.
T. K duel-,
Mr. Denton.
And. Ward,
Ko. Coe,
Ki. (jildersleuc,
Ki. Law,

4').3 ¦2-i.:j 20.1 16.1

bu. p.
14.3 0.3^¦}
4.1 4.1i.U
3.2
40.3

bu.
Jo. Reynoulds, 3. -2
Jo. Whitmore, 3.1
Ko. Bates, 3.1
Ki. Crab, 3.1
Sa. Sherman, 3.1
Jef. Firries, 3.1
Dan. I'iuch, 3.0

Jo. Northeud. 2.3
Jonas AVood, H. 2.3
Edm. AVood, i.'i
Jon Wood, 2.2
.-^am. Clarke, 2.2
Fra. Bell, 2.2
Jer. Jaggar, 2.2
*Jo. Not or M M,2.1 ¦20. 1

Tho. We(ekb), 2.2
Jer. (Wood) 2.1
Th(o Moreho>ise),2.1
(Ko Fisher) 2.0
(Jo. Jissop,) 2.0
(Hen. Smith), 1.3
(Vincint);  1.3
Jo. Se )nian, 1.3
: ' 16.1

100.0 Of the above list, all the names appear on our subsequent re-
oonh, excepting that of " Jo Nott." Though John Nott did not
•,ettle ill the town, he is at this late date Avorthily represented
ill tiie seventh generation by Samuel Nott Hyde, Esq., son of
Luci-etia Nott, daughter of Samuel Xott, D. D. as in note.
Of the thirty men above named, only tAveuty-eight came to
Wtaniford in the summer of 1641, as the record immediately
following the list shoAvs. On the 19th Oct. of that year they
Avere notified by a "sufficient Avarning, to come in," to make
clioice of those Avho should administer the affairs of the new
colony. Mr. Denton, MatheAV Mitchell, AndrcAV Ward, Thurs
ton Raiiier, and Richard, Crab Avere this provisional government.
Their commission, given by that pure democracy then assembled,
made them in all essentials the authoritative rulers over the
people. Enough of the record remains to show what their pre
rogatives were : to order the common affairs or intended plans
of the jjeoplc, and to determine the differences that shall arise ;
and -'M'ttlc them accoi-diug to equity, peace, laAV .and coiive-
)iicii(-i'." Tliat Ihey Avere not unequal to the honor put upon
=^This IS undoubtedly that of John Nott, of AVethersfield, who for some reason did not
come to Stamford. His family remained in Wetherslield for two generations. Hie grand
son, Abraham, went to Saybrook, where his son Stephen was born in 1728. This Stephen
was the father of Samuel, D. D., so long the patriarch of Eastern Connecticut, aud also of
Eliphalet, D. D., so long and so successfully the president of I'nion College.

THE SE'I'TLEMENT. I IJ
them, and that the people did not find their trust beti-a.Aed, the
progress of our history Avill show.
The next item on the records of special interest to us in de
termining who the settlers of the town Ayere, and hoAV thty
sought the interests and rights of each other in the very begin
nings of their civil arrangements, is the account of the first
:issig-nment of lauds to the settlers. The entire list of names is
jireserved on the records, though portions of the statement of
the princiiDlcs on Avhich the appropriation is made are indistinct :
" Also this is to be noted, that in a full meeting of the com
pany that AA'as intending to come hither the same spring that Ave
caiiu', every of those twexty-eight men aforementioned and
.John .Jisop Avere scAX-rally considered of and Avhat quantity of
(hind) Avas meet for every man determined of — the mau under
(-onsideratioii absenting himself Avhile his case Avas in hand, and
so successively ; and Avheii he Avas called in again and demanded
if so much g;ive him content, and so contentment and satisfac-
' tion Avas by every one of these men acknoAA'ledged ; and they
set down these numbers of acres of marsh and upland after the
same proportion as foUoweth :
Acres. Acres. Acvc.-;. Acrfs.
^Math. Mitchell, 28 iJo. Eenoulds, 11 ¦ Jonas Wood H. OS 'Jer. Wood, 0
Thurston Eaiuer,. 20 ^o. AVhitmore, 10 ^ Jo. Northend, 08 -Thos. Weeks, 0
''pllT. Denton, 14 'Ei. Crab 10 Jer. Jagger, 07- <.. Jo. Seaman, G
_A-And. Ward, 14 "Jetf- Firries, 10 "Edm. Wood, 07 (Bo. Fisher, B
¦--Tlo. Coe, 14 "Eo . Bates, 10 ""Jon. Wood, O, 07 Jo. Jissop, 5
I- Ei. Gildersleue, 13 vSam. Sherman 10 ¦ Sam. Clark, 07 ' Hen. Smith, 3
<-E Law, 11 .Dan. Finch, Oi) >- Fra. Bell, 07 Vincint,  3
¦ ^Tho. Marshall, 07 —276
The above record is authoritative as to Avho the first tAventy-
nine landholders of Stamford Avere. The last name on the list
undoubtedly should be Simkins, as it is found among the twenty
who Avere bound to each other to begin the settlement, accord
ing to agreement with the New Haven colony,' -We shall now
proceed to ascertain, as far as the record will enable us to do so,
the other names which during the following season, were added
to the tAventy-nine. The following record is still legible in the
original manuscript of the first recorder :
'¦ And in town meeting, Dec. 7, Avas there granted, besides
house lots as other men had,' Tho. Armitage, ten acres; .To.

20 HISTOEY OF. STAMFOED.
Ogden, ten acres; Wm. Mayd; (Mead), five acres; Avith wood
land as chosable as those above.' >
"Also to these men, besides, house lots as others, (Joh)n
Stevens, Tho. Pop', Tho. Hyoule, Hen. Akeriy^ Jo. Smith, senr.,
Jo Smith, jun., (John Ro)ckwell, Jam. Pyne, Dan Scoffeld, &
Jo. Coe ; every of them two acres (home'lot) and three acres
Avoodland in the field now to be inclosed."
The- above record makes the resident landholders, by Dec. 7,
1641, to be forty-two. Immediately following the last record, are
these :
" (Oc)tober 1642, in a general tOAvn meeting was given these,
foil (owing), these lots as other men, marsh & woodland, viz:
( )i"Pj Jo. Underhill, eight acres ; to Rober^t Hustice seven
acres ; ( ) acres ; Jo. Miller, five acres, to Jo. Finch, six
acres ; ( )ree acres ; & to every of them AVOodland
after the same pro (portion, & to Willi) am NcAvman two acres
marsh & three acres Avoodland.
" ( )ember 1642, Avas granted these men every man (a
house lot &) land in the field to be inclosed, A'iz: Jo.^ Lum, '
Jam.. Sw(ead), ( ), Symon ^feiring, & to Jonas Weede a
house and (pasture lan)d in the field to be inclosed. ( )
Pierson,'.-Jo. ToAvne & Wm.;Graves have had every one (a house
lot) & Tho. SlawBon house lot and three acres in the field
[ ] and eight men are freeholders as above."
We have already seen whom on. their arrival the founders of
the town selected to arrange and administer their affairs. But
yery few other records of this early date are preserved. Yet,
these fcAV are of the more value, since they serve to exhibit to
us the most we can know of these worthy men. In November,
1641, they made a second election of seven men for townsmen,
viz. : "Math. Mitchell, Thurston Raynor, And. Ward, Jo. Whit
man, Ri. Law, and Ri. Crab.',' Their official AVork is defined to
be, " to order town occasions.'-'-
It will be noticed that but six of the seven men are named in
this list, and the omission of one name may be most exactly il
lustrative of the men and the times. By reference to the first
appointment made in October, the name of 6\Ir. Denton will.be
found first on the list. It Avill be marked by still another token
of honor. The others are all recorded with their christian

THE SETTLEMENT. 21
nanies ; he alone with the title of Master. He was their Ministek.
Was it not tacitly understood that his voice was to be heard
in all matters that concerned their Avelfare, Qr that of their fam
ilies ? Was there any need, therefore, of making a formal en
rolment of his magisterial name, when the A^ery name to them
had a leader's and master's authority ?
Another " general town meeting" is held in December, 1641.
Enough of the record remains be shoAV that the business of
the meeting Avas to secure a suitable fencing " of fields for the
freeholders." So much of both margins is gone as to render it
difficult to recover the precise terms on Avhich the fencing was
to be done, but enough is left to show that ^ach man's part of
the work was to be determined by his share of the land to be
inclosed — a certain number of " rodd for every acre he hath then,
well [made] and sufficient." The fence was to be done " by
the first day of April, 1642, and Avhosoever hath [not com
pleted his] fence according to this order by that time shall
forf[iet ] shillings for every rod." Ri Guildersleeve and
Ro Bates were appomted to vicAV the fence after the fitst of
April, and report all defaults, if any, to the " men chosen for
toAvn occasions, [under penalty] of forfeiture of five shillings
a man if they do no[t]."
To secure passable roads we find this decree of the town
passed. It was probably done before any of the last transac
tions recorded. *
'¦ It was ordered. That whereas every man may count [all as
his] Right before his lott to the middle of the street to be his,
[but the trees he may] fall for his own use, if he like not to let
them stand so [ ] the ground and clear the way of
them, and if do not f[all them and clear] the way of them, to
forfite for every tree not so fallen [ ' ] tAvo shillings six
peence." ^
Immediately following the above is this record: "It Avas
ordered by those that Avere now come that Matthew Mitchell
and Fl-a. Bell shall lay out house lots and order the man [ner of
assigning them] ; rectify Avhat is amiss and consider what al-

•22 IIISTOEY OF STAMFORD.
loAvance [is to be made for] holes, etc., not fit to be measured
for land -and to measure [their lots for) every man at two pence
a acre, or three shillings a house lot."
Another public concern of these pioneers, and one which
required their first attention, was the establishment of a grist
mill. Probably the measures for doing this were taken before
they left Wethersfield.. We find, duly recorded, the entire
transaction, a specimen of which must be recorded in these
pages as illustrative of the age to Avhich it belongs. The for
mal order is passed as early as September 1641, to build at a
common charge a mill. The frame and body of the mill Avas to
be made by " Samuel Swane," for "51 li. ; and the other parts
by those of the tOAvn that Avere fit to do such Avork." It seems
tlint the mill Avas built and "set a going," but that during the
vear it AVfl'^ sold to Thur.ston Rainer and Francis Law for £74
1 Os. It also appears that an agreement was made witli Matli.
Mitchell and .To. Ogden for building a dam, of Avhich the town
agreed to bear the charge. In January after these arrange
ments were made, it would seem that either by fire or freshet,
or both, "the mill and the dam Avere brought to nought."
It further is probable from the record, that the town were
responsible for the mill, as they Avere to have the use of it until
the "somer," (summer) of 1643. On the destruction of the
property a rate bill is made out, of fiA'e shillings an acre, and
tAvelve shillings a house lot, to meet the loss by this calamity.
This assessment list is a curiosity, and if carefully preserved
should be engrossed for perpetual preservation on our pages.
In addition to the mill account there is also connected with it
a charge for Avhat in the record is called the " Capt. house."
As many of the charges are considerably obliterated, a single
speciiuen of one less defaced than the most of them, is here
inserted A modern accountant might use a smoother and more
graceful chirography, but would fail of making a more exact

THE SETTLEJIEJIT. 23
balance of the account. The selected siieciinen is that Avhich
stands second on the list:
T. Rainer debtor for lose by mil 44.9 Capt. house 22s. purchase.
mil 18.12.6 all wch 21.19.3 due to him.
[laid the Char, mil 7.18.8 Capt. house 34.8 last Char. 24s. 6d. 8.
Swain 171.00.0— all 27.17.10 towne owes him 5.17.7.
Whoever will take the trouble to effect the reductions neces
sary to the solution of the above problem will find the account
accurate. In the same Avay, the charges are made and the
credits are given through the entire list, Avith a single excep
tion. In the charges against Capt. John Underhill, no mention
is made of the item found in the other accounts of the " Cajit.
house." The presumption therefore is, that the military chief
tain ot our Stamford pioneers, Avas excused from the charge for
the support of the Stamford fortress, since he was expected to
discharge his duty to the community in another Avay.
This account, which seems to have been made out in January
1642, has charges against fifty-tAvo persons. As the margin on
which the names occur is entirely gone from the second page of
the charges, only tAventy-four of the parties are reported in the
regular account. Besides these, four other names casually
occur in the accounts. The only name AA'hich does not already
appear on our li'-t of the settlers, is that of Samuel Swane.
There is probably but one more record, noAV preserved, whicli
can assist in confirming the accuracy of our list of the pioneers
of the Stamford settlement. That was made in the fall of
1641, and is even more defaced than those avc have already
examined. It is thus introduced :
" It was ordered that [ ] should be made for defraying
[town] charges."
Then folloAVS an almost un.iitelligible statement of the nature
of the charges and the principles upon Avhicli they are to be
adjusted. rEnougli remains of the records to show that the
charge made by the Ncav Haven " friends" Avho had secured for
them the territory, had never been paid in full. It also appear
ed that a difference avhs made betAveen the Wcthei-sfield men

24 HISTORY OF STAMFORD.
who came to Stamford with the first company and those Avho
did not come, so that it Avas agreed " to lay 3s. 8d. an acre on
marsh and house lott, upon the company that came from Weth
ersfield, and 3s. 5d. an acre upon the rest."
" The account, very short, yet Avee hope, plainly, noAV foUow
eth, Avith the sd rate included in the ballance of CA'cry partic
ular, but that it may be somd [summed] up, it is drawn in two
[parts]." A single specimen of these charges and credits Avill here be,
given, draAvn up so as to shoAV Avliat is meant by the " two
parts" above.
T. Rainer For bill charges For rate noAV 3. 18. 10 for
85s. 0 for 5 3-4 bush 17s. so much due at av. 2s. 3
3 for 1-2 that he paid at To recv. of S. C. 21s. 1 of
W. 22s. 6 all makes 6. Jer. Wood 19. 9d J Renoude
5. 3 3s. 6 all makes up 06. 5. 5
Then folloAV si.milar accounts Avith all the parties concerned in
the transaction.
On this record occurs the name Jam. Pine, which is probably
the James Pyne on the former list. The names which are
found here are all of them reported already in- the preceding
lists of the settlers.
This adds to the list of our pioneers, all but one of whom Avere
land owners for the second year of the colony, seventeen hcav
names, making in all fifty-nine. No other record reports any
additional distribution of land to the settlers. A few more,
certainly received their lands in the mutual distribution, as is
evident from the records of sev-eral house lots still preserved.
But their names can probably never be recorded.
No fuller list of these settlers down to the end of 1642 can
noAV be hoped for, but the record thus transcribed is authorative
as to the presence here, thus early, of the following- worthy list —
our roll of pioneers. Twenty of them, by the opening of the
summer of 1641, had already doubtless planted themselves near
each other in their pioneer tabernacles, on a sinuous jjath be
tween Noroton and Tomuck, now Richmond Hills, winding its

THE SETTLEMEMT.

25

way around ledges and knolls since then removed, and avoiding
more than one pathless swamp, where Ave now have our most
solid and right lined thoroughfare. Thirty-eight more of them,
drawn by the good report which had gone back from those who
had thus made proof of the goodly land, had followed, and were
here to spend the ninth month of the second year of the colony.
Fifty-nine, at least, of these sturdy men, with their wives and
little ones, braved in their extemporized homes, the colds and
storms of the Avinter of 1642. How many others, and who,
were counted worthy to share Avith them the honors of that bold
adventure, Ave may noA'er know. We have gratefully recorded
these names, that we may knoAV whom Ave honor as we shall
trace the growth and fair fame of the town they thus came to
found. They Avill appear in our third and fourth chapters, Avith
such record as we shall be able to make of their origin and their
families. LIST 01'' PIONEERS TO THE END OF 1642.

1. MatlicAV Mitchel,
2. Thurston Raynor,
3. Rev. Richard Denton,
4. AndrcAv Ward,
5. Robert Coe,
6. Richard Gildersleve,
7. Richard Law,
8. John Reynolds,
9., John Whitmore,
10. Richard Crabb,
11. Jeffry Ferris,
12. Robert Bates,
13. Samuel Sherniaii,
14. Daniel Finch,
15. .lonas Wood, II.,
16. John Northend;
17. Jeremy Jagger,
18. Edmond Wood,
19. .Jonas Wood, O.,
20. Samuel Clark,
21. Francis Bell,
4

31. John Ogden,
32. William Mead,
33. .lohn Stevens,
34. Thomas Pop.
35. Thomas Hoyt,
Henry Akerly,
John Smith, sen.,
John Smith, jr.,
.John RockAvell,
.James Pyne,
Dciniel Scofield,
42. John Coe,
43. John Underhill,
Robert Hustis,
John Holly,
John Miller,
John Finch,
George SlaAvson,
William NcAvman.
50. John Lum,
51. James Swcad,

36.
37. 38.39. 40.41

44
45,46,47,
48
49.

HISTOEY'

OF STAMFOED.

22.

Thomas Morehouse,

52.

Simon Hoyt,

23.

Jeremiah Wood,

53.

Simon Seiring,

24.

Thomas Weeks,

54.

Jonas Weed.

25.

John Seaman,

55.

 Pierson,

26.

Robert Fisher,

56.

John Town,

27.

Joseph Jessup,

57.

William Graves,

28.

Henry Smith,

58.

Thomas Slawson,

20.

Vincent Simkins,

59.

Francis Yates.

30.

Thomas Armitage,

CHAPTER III.

NOTES ON THE SETTLERS AND THEIE FAMILIES.  1640-2.

In this chapter Ave shall indicate the proprietors of the toAvn,
Avho were here before the end of 1642, witlT such account of
their origin and families as Ave have been able to secure. The
record against each i^ame will furnish, usually, the evidence for
its presence here. . Tflie list has been made Avith all possible
care, that Ave might know who and what kind of men Avere the
founders of the toAvn.
Possibly a fcAV other names should have been included as
Avorthy a place on the list, and possibly some of tliese were of
persons too transiently here to be counted among those who so
worthily laid the foundations of our community.
IAkeely, Heney, received Dec. 7, 1641, two acres, homelot,
and three acres of Avoodland. Savage makes him at Nifew Haven
in 1640. The Colony Records mention him there, as rebuked
for "building a cellar and selling it without leave " in April of
that year. Hinman supposes he came with Underbill and
Slawson, Avhile our record makes him precede them nearly a
year. He was a house carpenter and farmer. His death, is re
corded here, June 17, 1650. This name on the records is spelled
as above, and also, Akerlye, Ayckrily, and on the inventory of
his estate, Avhich Avas witnessed Jan. 4, 1658, Accorley. His
widow, Ann, is said to be 75 years old in 1-66^ This name is,
perhaps, now represented by Ackley.

28 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
Armitage, Thomas, received ten acres of land, Dec. 1641.
According to SaA-age, he. belonged to Lynn, Mass. He came
from Bristol, England^in 1635, in the ship James, with the Rca'.
Richard Mather and others, and removed in 1637 to Sandwich,
Mass., whence he came to Stamford as above. From Stamford
he soon went with Underhill and company to Oyster Bay, L. I.
In 1647 he appears on the list of the Hempstead settlers.
Bates, Robeet, came from Wethersfield, with the first -colo
ny, and is on the list of the thirty who paid one hundred bush
els of corn to the Ncav HaA-en " friends," who had surveyed
and transferred the territory to them. His lot in Wethersfield,
which was thirty and a third rods in Avidth, containing 182
acres, was sold in 1641 to William Gibbons. His death is re
corded, at Stamford, June 11, 1675. His Avill, probated Nov. 1,
1675, makes bequests to his son John, his daughter Mary
Ambler and son-in-law John Cross. He bequeathed certain
nciiroes, Avho are to be made free at 40 vears of aare.
Bell, Feancis, is on the list of the twenty-nine settlers,. who
were assigned land in 1640, when he receiA-ed seven acres. As
his name does not appear on the Wethersfield records Avith the
other Stamford settlers, it is probable he was still quite young.
He became prominent here, and has been fully represented in
every generation since, in descendants both of his own and of
other names. His wife Rebecca died here, in 1684, and he, Jan.
8, 1690. His son Jonathan was the first child born in the town,
and his birth was in 1641. Mrs. Bell's clothes, of which the in
ventory is on record. Book 1, Page 12, were by the husband's
order, divided equally between the two daughters, Rebecca Tut-
tle and Mary Hoyt. The inventory of Lieut. Francis Bell,
dated Jan. 1689, is found on page 116, of 1st Book of Records,
amounting to £317 12s. His Avill, on record at Fairfield, dated
3, 24, 1689, makes bequests to his son Jonathan, grand-son
Jonathan, Mary Hoyt, grand-daughter Hannah, and " grand
daughter Rebecca, whom he had brought up," and to his

the settlees and theie families. 29
daughter Tuttle's four sons, Jonathan, Simon, William, and
Nathaniel. Claek, Samuel, came with the company from Wethersfield,
and is on each of the first three lists made at the time of the set
tlement. He received seven acres of land. Savage supposes
he was at Milford in 1669J, thence removing to Hempstead,
L. I. ; that he married Hannah, daughter of Rev. Robert
Fordham, and was living in New Haven in 1685.
CoE, John, son of Robert, received, Dec. 7, 1641, two acres,
houselot and three acres wood land. He was born in England,
Norfolk county, in 1622, and he came with his father to
Watertown, thence to Wethersfield, and thence to Stamford.
He soon went to Hempstead, L. I., thence to NcAvtown, and
afterwards to Greenwich in 1660. He Avas one of the pur-
^chasers of Rye; but returned to Long Island Avhero he was ap-
appointed a Magistrate by the Connecticut Colon)'. He had
five sons; John, Robert, Jonathan, Samuel, and David. In
1651 he sold his house and homelot to Elias Bailey.
CoE, Robert, was born in Norfolk county, England, in 1596,
and eame in the Francis to Watertown, Mass., in 1634. He
was admitted freeman at Boston, Sept. 3, 1634, and is enrolled
among the settlers of Watertown, the same year. He brought
with him his Avife Ann, aged thirty-three years, and three
children ; John, aged eight years, Robert, aged sev^n, and Ben
jamin, aged five. In 1635 he went, to Wethersfield. where he
remained until thesettlement of Stamford. In the first division
of land here he received fourteen acres, Avhich would indicate a
high -standing -among the settlers. He was one of the members
of the Wethersfield church. While here, he once, at least, re
presented the town in- the general court of New Haven. He
werit with Mr. Denton and his colony in 1644 to Hempstead,
L. I. His son Robert went to Jamaica in 1656. Here he was
a man of distinction. He was the deputy from the town to the

30 Hisi^Oey op sI-amFoED. <
general court of Connecticut in 1656, and was Sheriff of the
county from 1669 to 1672. His son Benjamin went with the
father to Hempstead, Avhence he went to Jamaica where he had
a family. His descendants have been both numerous and re
spectable. A record of the Coe family Avas prepared by Rev.
D. B. Coe, D. D., of Ne^AV York, and printed in 1856.
Ceabb, Richard. — His name first appears on the roll of the
general meeting of the freemen, at Hartford, for the election of
magistrates, Jan. 16, 1639; and April 9, 1640, he is present as
deputy, and must have been a man of some note.' He' came to
Stamford with the company from Wethersfield, and is' on the
list of those Avho paid the huiidred bushels of corn to the Ncav
Haven Colony, and of those to whom the first assignment of
land was made. He received ten acres. His land must have
been assigned him Avest of the present limits of the town, as he
is spoken of subsequently in the records, as belonging to Green
wich. His position is sufficiently attested by his apf)Ointment
on the first provisional government of the colony. In 1658, we
find him making trouble in the church. He seems to have be
come a quaker, or at least, to have harbored quakers and kept
quaker books. He could not agree Avith the church in their
opinion of the sanctity of the Sabbath, and spoke disparagingly
or contemptuously of the ministry. Mr. Bishop, the pastor of
the church became discouraged, and we find Mr. Crabb, the of
fender, brought iuto court for trial. He Avas fined to. pay £30
to the jurisdiction, and give bonds in £100, for his good be
havior, and also to make public acknowledgment at Stamford to
the satisfaction of Francis Bell, and those others whom he had
Avronged. In 1660 the constables of Stamford are desired to use
their endeavors to arrest the person of Richard Crabb, of
Greenwich. - Dfnton, Rev. Richaed,- came Avith his parishioners from
¦" Wethersfield. His name heads the first list of the new colony,
and stands third on the list of those Avho paid for surveying the

THE SETTLEES ¦ A>'D THEIE FAMILIES. 3 1
tract. .;, He received fourteen acres, only two of the settlers ex
ceeding him ill the assignment of land. Mather makes him to
have been a minister at Halifax, Yorkshire, England. In 1644
he took quite a large company of the Stamford settlers and
went to Hempstead, on Long Island. See Biographical Sketch.
VFeeeis, Jeffeey, made freeman in Boston in 1635, came with
the first settlers, is on the list of those who paid for the survey,
and received ten acres at the first assignment of land. Savage
says he was from Watertown, Mass., where he was made free
man, probably May, 6, 1635, Avhence he came to Wethersfield.
He sold his lot in Wethersfield, of 45 acres, to John Deming.
He came with the first colony from Wethersfield, and in 1656 is
one of the eleven Greemvich men Avho petitioned to be -accepted
under the New Haven jurisdiction. His will, found on the
probate records at Fairfield, is dated Jan. 6, 1664. He wills to
the four boys he brought up, ten pounds sterling a piece, if
they live Avith any of his children until they are eighteen years
old, the money then to be put out for them until they are twenty
years of age. His Avill names also his wife Judy, son James,
son Jonathan LockAvood, and Mary LockAvood, son Peter's
three children, and son Joseph's tAvo. Judy BoAvers, his wid-
OAV, receipts for her widow's portion. Mar. 6, 1667. His marriage
contract Avith his Avife Susannah, widoAV of Robert Lockwood,
of date May 28, 1661, pledges certain legacies to the children
of Robert Lockwood, deceased, and mortgages his Greenwich
lands and "housings." ^He died in 1666. The name Ferris
is from Leicestershire, house of Feriers, from Henry, son of
Gualchelme' de Feriers, to whom William the Conqueror gave
large grants of land in the three shires of Stafford, Derby and
Leicester. Tradition invests the emigration of this family to this country
with the hues of romantic adventure — the ancestress, high born,
following her plebeian lover out into this western Ayorld, to
share AVith him here the fortunes which English aristocracy
would not allow there.

32 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
Finch, Daniel, made freeman in Boston, 1631, and enrolled
same year among Watertown settlers. In 1636, he was consta
ble in Wethersfield, whence he came with the Stamford settlers,
1641, and is on each of the three first lists of the colony. He
received nine acres in the firs^ distribution of land. Savage
supposes he was from Watertown, M^s., ancl that he came in
the fleet with Gov. Winthrop : that he Ayas made freeman May
18, 163] ; that he Avent to Wethersfield in 163'3 or '36, where he
was constable in the latter year. He also makes him remove in
1653 to Fairfield, where he married, Dec. 25, 1657, Elizabeth,
widow of John Thompson, and died March 1667. His marriage
agreement with Elizabeth Thompson is on the probate records
at Fairfield.
Finch, John, is assigned by the toAvn in October 1642, six
acres, with marsh and npland as the other men. He died here
in 1657. He sold his house and homelot in' 1653 to Richard
Ambler. The inventory of his estate. Book 1, page 66, bears
date 9th of 12th mo., 1658.
Fisher, Robert, Avas here early, if not with the first colony.
He had land assigned him by the town, as appears from the
testimony of Thomas Morehouse, Mar. 17, 1649, in which he
says that John Whitmore sold to his son John, the land which
Avas Robert Fisher's, by gift of the town.
GiLDEESLEEVE, RoBEET, Came with the first company from
Wethersfield, and is on each of the first three lists of settlers.
He received, in the first distribution of land, thirteen acres. In
1664 he went to Hempstead. His lot in Wethersfield, which
was thirty-seven and a half rods wide, containing 255 acres,
was sold to John Talcott in 1643. He and his son are accepted
freemen in the Connecticut colony from 'Hempstead, in 1664.
Before coming to. Stamford, while in Wethersfield, he was
" convicted " before the general court of Connecticut for " per-
nitious speeches," tending to the detriment and dishonor of the

THE SETTLEES AND THEIE FAJIILIES. 33
Commonwealth, fined £20, and bound over under a bond of
£20. Inthe colony records this name is spelled Gyldersly. In
1636 he is appointed with John Plum, by the general court of
Connecticut, to survey the inventory of John Oldham, and per
fect the same to submit it to the court at the next session.
The same restlessness Avhich made him dissatisfied at Wethers
field, seems to have affected him in Stamford. He soon went
Avith Mr. Denton's company to Hempstead, L. L] While here
he once representscj the town .in the general court at New
Haven. ^
Gkaa-ej, William, received a house lot in the distribution ot
Nov. 1642; he lost his wife Sarah, herein 1651, and his son
Benoni, in 1657. In a depd of land to William Newman in
1657, he is said to be of NewtoAvn, L. I.
HoLLY", John, was here, as present records sIioaa', as early as
1647. Wm. H. Holly, 'Esq., copied from the records several
yeai-.i ago the birth of John, son of John Holly, in Oct. i642,
which AA'ould suggest that the family may have been here even
so early. He purchased land on the 26th of 12th, month, 1647,
of William NcAvman ; and from that date his purchases of real
estate are numerous. He was a noted man, and much in the
public service. In 1679, he gave his house and lot to his son
Samuel, and laud to his son John, reserving to himself and Avife,
half the fruit of the orchard. He also gave land at the same date
to his son Increase. In his Avill on record at Fairfield, his lega
tees are his Avife Mary, and his children John, Samuel, Increase,
Elisha, Jonathan, Elizabeth Turney, Bethia Weed, Hannah
Hoyt, and Abigail. See Biographical Sketch.
IIoY'T, OE Ha'att; Thomas, received three acres of woodland.
This name was spelled' very variously on the records — Hoyette,
llyat, Hyot, Ilioute, Hout, Hoyt, Hoight, Hayt, Iliat, Hoit,
and Hoyte. Thomas " Hyat" died here in TGo]} 1 suppose him
and Simon to be the ancestors of the Stamford Hoyts. The in
ventory of his estate Avas ' rendered in court in 1662, amounting
. 5

;i4' HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
to £132 2s. 3cl. The court gave to the AvidoAV her third, -and
made Cornelius Jones administrator, to divide the rest amqjug
the six children. The administrator Avas so Avell pleased with
the case, as to take for his Avife the AvidoAV Elizabeth, and then-
marriage is on record, 1. 8. 1657. The children are recorded as
giving receipts to their father-in-laAV Cornelius Jones, as fol
lows: Caleb, Dec. 23,1661; Ruth, then become Mrs. John
Wescot, Feb. 9, 1667; Rebecc4, 13. 8. 1674, for twelve pounds,
eleven shillings seven pence; Thomas, 21. 8. 1674, a like sum;
and Deborah gives similar receipts, 30. 9. 1669. These receipts
are for their several portions of their father, Thomas " Hiat's"
estate. John "Hiat," of "Younkers," N. Y., gives receipt,
July 6, 1689, for tAventy'pouuds, current pay to the said Cor
nelius Jones, his father-in-law. Afte/careful collation of names,
I am unable to distinguish among the settlers the two family
names, Hoyt, and Hyatt. Within twenty-five years of the settle
ment I find these different Avays of spelling the same name. On
page 113 and 114, Records No. 1, the estates of both Thomas
Hyatt aud Simon Hoyette are receipted for by the heirs of both.
In these receipts Ave have the following different spellings : Hoyt,
1662; Hiat, 1669; Hoyte, 1661; and the promiscuous entry of
these receipts for the tAvo estates Avould seem to indicate that
they b,elonged to the same family. Joshua, son of Simon, spells
his name Hyot. When the namo became settled in its tAvo
leading forms, Hoyt and Hyatt, as distinct family names, I
h;u-.dly think the records Avill show.
IIoY-T, Simon, Avas probably here with the first settlers.
I take the liberty of entering his name in one of the places
Avhose name has been effaced by time. He died here iu 1657,
arid his name occurs quite often on the records of the town. The
inventory of his estate is on record, dated Oct. 9, 1657, and
amounting to 225 pounds. After his 'death, his widow Su
sanna, it appears, married a Bates. His children, as indicated
by receipts given for their portions of the father's estate, were :
Joshua, Moses of Westchester, John, Samuel, Benjamin, M.rs.

THE SE'lTLEES AND TIIEIE FAMILIES. 35
Samuel Finch, and Mrs. Samuel Firman. In the distribution of
tlie estate of their mother, then Susanna Bates, Feb.. 1, 1674,
boSMes tho above names, appeared also that of Thomas Lyon,
Avho probably had married one of her daughters.
IIusTEO, RoBEE-f', Avas oue of the cctoipany who received land
in Oct. 1042. He had come from Mount Wollaston, now Brain-
tree, Mass. He is probably the father of that Robert Hustis
' who, according to Bolton's Westchester, went from Fairfield to
Westchester in 1654. His Avill, dated July 8, 1652, makes be
quests to his son Angel, of all his lands in Greenwich, Avith
housings ; to his son Robert all his lands in Stamford, Avith cattle
and housings ; to his wife a maintenance and other bequests ;
and to his daughter Ann, ten pounds. In 1654, his Avidow
Elizabeth, by Avill makes bequests to her son Angel of Green-
Avich ; to Robert of Stamford, and to her daughter Ann, the
Avife of Richard Hardy.' In the Avill of Robert the name is
Husted, and in that of the AvidoAV the name is Avritten Hustis
and both are equally distinct, and that they refer to the same
family, is also, as clear as the form of the name. The names of
the children are also changed from Husted to Hustis, though in
the second Avill the name is spelled both Hustes and Hustis.
Jaggee, Jeeemy, came Avith the first company from Wethers-
' field, and is on each of the first three lists of the colony. He
received, in the first distribution of land, three acres. His
name occurs frequently in the early records of the tOAvu. He
Avas engaged before the settlement of the tOAvn in the ser
vice of the Connecticut colony, in the expedition against the
Pequods. Here his services Avere of good account, aud thirty-
four years later the general court of Connecticut, in rcAvard for
his merit in the service, gave his three sons tAventy acres of
land a piece. In 1655 we find him petitioning to have his fine
remitted. The court granted the request as long as he " carry
it Avell." An inventory of his estate, prized by Richard Law
and Francis Bell, Dec. 11, 1658, was given in upon oath by
Elizabeth, Avife of Robert Usher, May 19, 1659, amounting to

36 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
£472 and I7s., a large estate for those days. It is on record at
Fairfield. His executor seems to have been Robert Usher, as
receipts to him are on record from two of his sons, Jeremy and
John, for their full portions of their father's estate. He died in
1658. An account of his sympathy Avith those who Avere disaf
fected toAvards the New Haven colony will appear in its appro
priate place.
Je.ssup, John came with the first colony from Wethersfield,
and is on each of the first three lists of the colony. He received,
in the first distribution of lands, five acres. In 1664 he repre
sented Westchester in the Connecticut Assembly. His name is
spelled on our records, Gesseppe, Giseppe, Gesoppe, Gishop.
John Jessup was in Hartford, 1637, Wethersfield, before 1640,
Stamford, 1641, Long Island about 1654, representative fi-om
Westchester,/i664, and back on the Island again, 1673. This
name is thought to haA-e come from Yorkshire, England. (See
Gen. Reg., Vol. X., page 358.)
Law, Richaed, came with the first settlers from Wethersfield,
is on the second and third lists of the settlers, and received, at
the first assignment of land, eleven acres. He married Mai^
garet, daughter of Thomas and Frances Kilborn, of Wethers
field, who was born in 1612. Mr. Law is not on the Wethers
field records as a landholder, like the most >of the settlers
who came with him. But he is reported in the colonial
records, in 1638, when he is appointed Avith George Huberd,
fro m Wethersfield, to trade in beavers with the Indians, on the
Connecticut river. No other Wethersfield man was to do so,'
under penalty of five shillings "per pounde, to be paide pr.
evry pounde they soe trade." He is also reported in the case
of the estate of .John Oldham, as indebted to it £6 4s. lid. A
further account will be given of him in the chapter devoted to
biography. s Lum, John, was here in 1642, and received a houselot in the
distribution of that date.

the SETTLEES AND TIIEIE FAMILIES. 37
Mayde, (Mead) William, received, Dec. 7, 1641, five acres
houselot, with Avoodland. The wife and son of William Mead
died here in 1658. I think this William must have been the
father of the family of this name in GreenAvich, though his de
scendant, the late Major D. M. Mead, author of the History of
Greenwich, supposes his ancestor to have emigrated from Eng
land about the year 1642, a year later than our William is en
rolled among the Stamford settlers-
Miller, JoHN,received from the town in October 1642,five acres,
houselot and marsh and upland, as the other men. This name is on
Chapin's list of the Wethersfield colony, where he was in 1630.
He died soon after coming to Stamford, in 1642, leaving three
sons, according to the inventory of his estate, recorded 12, 24,
1665, John, Jonathan, and Joseph. His widow married Obadiah
Seeley. His son John Avas granted land here in 1667, and pro
posed freeman in 1669. In 1697 he and his tAVO brothers are
named in the patent of Bedford.
Mitchell, Mattheav, came with the settlers from Wethers
field. His naine stands next, on the first list of the colony, to
the minister's, and heads both the next tAvo lists. He paid
about three times as much as any other of the settlers towards
the survey of the land, and received tAventy-eight acres in the
first distribution of the land. His land in Wethersfield, which
seems to have been, in extent, much larger than that of the other
proprietors, excepting one, Avas subsequently ' divided into four
farms, and was taken by the Graves, Gershom Bulkely, John
HoUister, and Robert Rose. He came in 1635, so Savage, Avith
Rev. Richard Mather, in the James. He Avas of Bristol, and
brought with him tAvo sons, David and Jonathan. He was suc
cessively at Concord and Springfield, where he signed the com
pact with Pynchon in 1636. In "l 65 9 he was in Wethersfield.
He is returned to the court in Hartford, in 1640, as for the town
of Wethersfield, but he is found "incapable of the place," lying
under censure of the Court. In June of this year, at the meet
ing of the General Court ui Hartford, it is recorded that " Mr.

38 history of stamf6ed.
Michell" for undertaking the office of town dark or recorder,
notwithstanding his uncapableness of such office by censure of
courte,^e is fyned topay to the county twenty nobles." It is
also added: "that party of the town of Wethersfield' Avho
chose tlie said Mr. Michell to office, notwithstanding the, censure
of the courte, are fyned to the county five pounds." Under
date of July 2dj we find this record : " Mr. Mytchell hath this
day ret'urned into court his acknowledgment to Mr. Chaplin,
and for -that, with other considerations, for former extraordinary
chardges which he had formerly borne for public service at the
forte, the court have remitted his former censure." His will,
jiroved June 16, 1646; makes bequests to his son Jonathan,
daughters Susanna and Hannah, son David and his wife. See
I3iographical Sketches.
jMooehouse, Thomas, is on the list of those avIio shared in the
first distribution of land, and received scA'en acres. In 1649 he
Avas here, as appears from his testimony in court. Savage
makes him iu Fairfield in 1653. His Avill and inventory are oh
the Fairfield Records, Sept; 11, 1658. His wife Isabel, is men
tioned in the will, and children, Hannah, Samuel and Thomas,
the last of whom Avas to be paid his portion in four years ;
¦' Mary in five years, and so each child one year later ; and if any
of them die before 17, their part to be divided, if unmarried.
Neavman, William, hath assigned to him by the town, in
Oct., 1642, two acres marsh and three acr^s woodland. In 1659
complaints having been made to the court in New Haven re
specting the " sizes of shoes," the court hearing that William
Newman had an instrument which he had brought from Ens-
gland Avhich " Avas thought to be right to determine this ques
tion, did order that the said instrument should be procured and
sent to Ncav Haven, to be made a " Standard" which shall be .
the rule between buyer and seller, to which it is required that all
sizes be conformed." Mr. Newman was evidently a man of note
in the young colony, and once represented the toAvn in the Gen
eral Court. Savage supposes he may have removed to Narra-;

THE SETTLEES AND THEIE FAMILIES. 39
gansett after 1669. In 1676 William NcAvman, planter of Stam
ford, sells to John Austin, " taylor" of Stamford some land. His
will, dated 7. 9. 1673, makes his legatees, his wife Elizabeth,
and his children, Thomas, Daniel, John, — ¦. — , Elizabeth, and
Hannah. It also mentions his brother John.
NoETiiEND, John,' came Avitli the colony from Wethersfield,
and is ou each of the first three lists of the settlers. He re
ceived ill the first distribution of the lands eight acres.
Ogden, John, receiA'cd, Dec. 7, 1641 ten acres houselot, Avith
AA'Oodlaud, like the first company. In 1642 he agreed AvithGov.
Kieft, of New York, to build a stone church for tAvcnty-five
hundred guilders. In 1644 he Avas a patentee of Hempstead,
L. I. In 1651 he Avas living in Southampton, where ho Avas
chosen an assistant. He is named in the lioyal Charter of 1662.
He went into Noav Jersey with Gov. Carteret, and Avas a repre
sentative from Elizabethtown in the first assembly of that prov
ince in 1668. In a deposition made by Richard Webb, Nov.
22, 1667, John Ogden is called son of John Budd.
Richard Ogden, brother of the above, Avent to Fairfield where
he became a man of note. His descendants have been, numer
ous and respectable.
PiEESON,  , received in the distribution of Noa^, 1642, a
houselot. The christian name is obliterated, but that of Henry
is given to the Pearson Avho emigrated Avith Mr. Denton iu
1644. A Jacob Pearson (Pierson) Avas among our land-holders
in 1661.
Por, Thomas, received Dec. 7, 1641, a houselot, with Avood
land the same as the first C9mpany. This namo should prob
ably be Pope; and he probably Avent soon after the colony
settled here over to Hempstead. -
Pyne, James, received Dec. 7, 1641, tAvo acres, houselot,
and Avoodland the same as the first company. He went to
Hempstead, L. L, and was accepted as freeman from that town

40 HISTORY OF STAMFORD.
of the Connecticut Colony in 1664. John Pine bought land in
Hempstead, L. L, of Robert Dean, of Stamford, in 1684.
Raynor, Thurston, came with the first company from
Wethersfield. His name on each of the first three lists stands
next to Matthew Mitchell. In the first distribution of lands ho
received twenty acres. He sold his lot in Wethersfield which
contained 330 apres to Richard Treat. Drake's Founders of Ncav
England reports him as passenger in the Dlizabeth, of Ipswich,
the last of April, 1634, Suffolk county, at the age of forty, with
his Avife Elizabeth, aged forty-six. His children, as reported ou
the passenger list, Avere Thurston, aged thirteen; Joseph,
eleven ; EdAvard, ten ; Elizabeth, nine ; Sarah, seven ; and Lydia,
one. Previously to coming to Stamford he had represented the
town of Wethersfield in the Connecticut Colony at Hartford..
We learn from the colony records that he was fined both in
1637 and '38, for failing to appear in court at the appointed
hour. On reaching' Stamford he Avas appointed to the Ncav
HaA'en court with senatorial honors. This distinction places
him among the foremost of our pioneers. From Stair.ford he
Avent to Southampton, L. I., AA'here he was held in honpr. His
Avill was made in Southampton in 1667, and in it, his Avife is
called Martha. She Avas, probably, a second Avife.
Renoulds, John, appears on the list of the settlers of Vfeth-
ersfield, from Avhich place he probably came Avith the first set
tlers of Stamford. His name is on the second and third lists of
the colonists. Ho received in the first allotment of lanfl, ,eleA-eu
acres. Sarah Reanolds, his wife, probably, died here in 1657.
Rockwell, John, received, Dec. 7, 1041, two acres, homelot
and Avoodland, as the first company. He probably Avent to"
Rye, AA'here ho died in 1676. John RockAvell, probably thl
same as the .above, Avas here in 1656, as his testimony in court
of that date Avitnessos. In 1669 he sold land to Daniel We§fi^tt,
the deed being witnessed by Clement Buxton and Matthew
Bellamy. In the same year he sells his house and homelot to
Daniel Weed. John " Keeiler," son of Ralph, formerly of Nor-'

THE SETTLEES AND THEIE FAJIILIES. 41
Avalk, married, June 18, 1679, Hittabel, daughter 'of John Rock
Avell, formerly of Stamford. (See Hall's NorAvalk). This John
Rockwell is supposed by Savage to have been a son of .William
of Windsor, Avho Avas born in England, and who married Sarah
Ensign in 1651. In town meeting, Feb. 14, 1667-8,itAv.as voted
that John RockAA-ell, sen., shall havo liberty to moAV and have
the grass of the meadoAV ujion Noroton Islands, as long as he
shall live in Stamford. RockAvell Ridge is a locality often re
ferred to in the records of the town.
ScoFiELD, Daniel, received, Dec. 7, 1641, tAVO acres, homelot
and Avoodland, as tho first coinpan)-. He died in 1671. His '
children Avere Daniel, John, Richard, Joseph, Sarah the Avife of
John Pettit, and Mai-y. His AvidoAV Mary, became the third
Avife of Miles MerAvin. The son Joseph suffered so much from
hardships in King Philip's war as to lose his life in 1676, giving
his estate to his brothers and sisters. \His Avill, dated Sept. 4, 1664,
gives to his AEife one-third the estate, with use of the house for
her life time y to his daughter Sarah, five ponnds ; and to her
two children five pounds; and to the other four children, Daniel,
John, Joseph, and Mercy, the ixst €)f the estate. His Avife and
Uvjo of the sons, Daniel and John, Avore made executors.
Seaman, John, came Avith the first company from Wethers
field. His name is on each of the first three lists of the colony,
and he received in the first distribution of land three acres.
Seieing, Simon, appears on the records, in 1642, as landhold
er, Avherc his name is spelled Cymon. He is reported on the
list of those Avho went, in 1644, with Mr. Denton to Hempstead,
L., I., and- no further trace of the name is found.
Sherman, Samuel, came with the, first settlers from Weth
ersfield. His namo .appears on each of the first three lists of the
noAV colony, and he received, in the first distribution cf land,
ten atJffes. He and Richard Gildersleeve had a lot together in
Wetli^sfield, Avhich Capt. John Talcott bought. He was a
man of some note, as appears from his appointment as assistant
0

^42 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
in the New HaA'cn court, in 1662, and his re-appointment the
next two ye.ars ; and also to the General Court of Connecticut,
after- the union of the town colonies, in 1665. He Sells land
here in 1664 to John Chapman. In 1672 he is found with the
company who founded Woodbury. ' His children, born in Stam
ford, according to Cothren's list, corrected by Mr. Savage,
Avhich ought to be correct, Avere : Samuel, b. Jan. 19, 1641;
Theophilus, Oct. 28, 1643 ; Mathew, Oct. 21, 1645 ;¦ Edmundj
Dec. 4, 1647; John, Feb. 8, 1651 ; Sarah, Feb. 8,-1654; Nathan
iel, Mar. 21, 1657; Benjamin, Mar. 29, 1662, and Daniel, whom
careful Mr. Judd made David, Apr. 15, 1665. Cothren supposes
he married Sarah Mitchel in England, Avhich Savage does not
credit. In his sale of house and land in 1654, he is said to be
" noAV living in Stratford." In leaving Stamford he probably
took oA-ery member of his family, as the name does not subse
quently occur on our records. The descendants of this pioneer
of Stamford have numbered many very eminent men, among
Avhom are noAV in active service. Senator Sherman,^ of Ohio,
and the nervous and irresistible General Wm. Tecumseh Sher
man. SiMK-iNS, Vincent, came with the first company from Weth-,
ersfield. In Chapin's " Glastonbury for Tavo Hundred Years,"'
this name is given as Smiking. It appears on each of the first
three lists of the colony, excepting the surname is omitted in
the third list, Avhere Vincent  is assigned three acres, and
is the last on the list. This christian name is in some places
Vincen. His widow probably married William Oliver. Her
name was Mary, as appears from the sale of the Simkins place
to John Holmes in 1671. Ihe inventory of his estate was
presented to the Ncav HaA-cn Court of Magistrates in May
1656, haA'ing been prized by John Holly and John Waterbury
in Stamford in November 1653. His wife was daughter of
Henry Akerly, of Stamford. He had two sons, Daniel and John.
Daniel appears among the settlers of Bedford,,^ Y. He was in
Stamford in 1669, '7P; anfl sold here in 1082, 'John sold his laijd

THE SET-I'LEES AND THEIE FAMILIES. 43
in Stamford and removed soon after his father's death, Avhieh
took place in 1653.
Slaaa'son, George, came probably from Sandwich, Mass.,
Avith Thomas Armitage, in 1642. He appears in our account of
the first church of the toAvn as a leading member, and he Avas
also evidently a man of note in civil life. I suppose him to have
been the representative from the town in 1670. Ho had three
children as appears from his will, dated Dec. 16, 1694, Eleazer,
John, and a daughter who married John Gould. He died Feb.
17, 1695. His son John married in 1663, Sarah Tuttle, of NoaV
Haven, and had a son John born in 1664, and Jonathan in
'67. The wife of this John was killed Nov. 17, 1676, by her
brother, Benjamin Tuttle, Avho was executed for it the following-
June. He then married a second wife, Elizabeth Benedict, and
had a daughter Mary and a son Thomas. He died in 1706. He
was' doubtless the ancestor of the present Slason families in
toAvn. Slawson, Thomas, in November or December, 1642, received
a houselot, and- threo acres "in the field," besides. Savage says
ho did not stay long in Stamford.
Smith, Heney, came Avith the first company from Wethers
field. His name is on each of the first three lists of the neA\'
colony, and in the first distribution of land he received three
acres. Whence he came to Wethersfield is not known. He
Avas promoted for freeman in 1670, and died in 1687. He had
a son John, mentioned in his Avill, and a daughter Rebecca, Avho
married, July 2, 1672, EdAvard Wilkinson, of Milford, and a
daughter Hannah, Avho married a LaAvrence.
Smith, John, sr., received, Dec. 7, 1641, tAvo acres, houselot,
and woodland the same as the first company. He and his son
John went to Hempstead, Long Island. Smith, John, jr., re
ceived Dec. 7 ,1641, two acres, houselot, and Avoodland as the
first company, f In 1675, John, jr., in a deposition, giA-eshis age

44 HISTOEY OP STASIFOED.
at 60 years, and says that AV-hilo in Stamford he was called Rock
John Smith, for distinction.
StEVENS, John, received, Dec. 7, 1641, tAvo acres, houselot
and woodland as the first company. The descendants of this
pioneer have been quite numerous.
Savain, Samuel, in Sept. 1862, is engaged to build at the
common charge of the townsmen, a mill, as appears from a
record of that date, and his name occurs later in the records.
This is probably the same " Leeiftenant Swain," who in 1654,
was ordered to suspend further work on the mill he was then
engaged in building in Norwalk. If he had a family here we
haAC no record to shoAV.
SwEAD, James, received a houselot in the distribution of»
Nov. 1642. Of this family name our records give us Henry, as
holding land here in 1650, bounding that of Richard Hardy.
The name is there spoiled SAvede.
Towne, .John, received in the distribution of Noa-. 1642, a
houselot. L'^NDEEiiiLL, Capt. John, had assigned to him in Oct. 1642,
houselot, eight acres, and Avoodland as the others. He was
made a freeman in Boston in 1631. This most famous of our
Stamford settlers will have a more extended notice among the
Biographical Sketches, in its proper place.
Waed, Andeew. — This name appears in the first record of the
" Corte holden at Newtown, 26th April, 1636." He was one
of tlie five worthies, who thus had in their hands the destinies
of the new settlement at Newtown, (Hartford), and so, those of
the state. The record states that he had been dismissed from
the church of Watertown in Mass., on the 28th of May last, and
he with his associates are authorized to renew the covenant.
He continued a member of the court until Sept. 1639. At the
session held Oct. 1639, he is nominated by the court to be pre
sented for the vote of the county for magistrate in April next.

THE SETTLEES AND THEIE FAMILIES. 45
In 1637 he is reported in the records of the General Court, as
collector of Wethersfield and he doubtless came to Stamford
with -the Wethersfield settlers. His name is on each of the
first three lists of the pioneers, and during his life here he Avas
a prominent man. He was chosen magistrate for the colony in
1646 to represent it in the higher branch of the New Haven
court. His will, still found on record in Fairfield, bears date,
June 8, 1659, and makes bequests to his wife Esther, son John,
daughter Sarah, daughter Abigail; and his two youngest sons
Andrew and Samuel. It is stated also that his other children
had received their portions. From this pioneer of the town
have descended eminent names. Henry Ward Beecher gets his
middle name from him, and his daughter Mary was grand
mother of President Aaron Burr.
Weed, Jonas, came to Watertown in 1631 AA'here he Avas made
freeman, and thence to Stamford in 1642. He died here in 1676.
His will, on record at Fairfield, dated Nov. 26, 1672 makes
his legatees, his Avife Mary; and his children, John, Daniel, and
Jonas ; Mary, wife of Geo. Abbot ; Dorcus, Avife of Jas. Wright ;
Samuel; John Rockwell for Elizabeth; Sarah; and Hannah,
wife of Benjamin Hoyt. His administrators Avero his wife Mary,
and his sons Daniel and John. The Avidow died in 1690. His
son John Married Joanna, daughther of Richard " Westcoat."
The son Jonas married Nov. 6, 1670, Bethia, daughter of John
Holly, and to him the father gave in 1671 the house Avhere he
Avas then living.. Tne descendants of this Jonas Weed have
been very numerous here, and they have, also, ahvays been
among our prominent citizens.
Weeks, Thomas, went from Wethersfield to Hadley and re
turned to Wethersfield, from which place he probably came with
the first company of settlers to Stamford. His name is on the
second and third lists of the colonists, and ho received in the
first distribution of land six acres. In 1666 he probably was
in Huntington, L.I., as the grant made in that year includes his
name. Savage makes him of Oyster Bay before 1654. where he

46 HISTOEY' OF STAMFOED.
died in 1671, leaving children, Thomas, John, Rebecca, Martha,
Elizabeth, Mary, and Sarah. This name is variously spelled
AVeeks, Weekes, Wickes, Wicks, Wyx, and Wix.
Whitjioeej John, came with the first company of settlers
from Wethersfield. His nfime is on the second and third lists of
the colonists, and he received, in the first distribution of lands, ten
acres. His lot in Wethersfield, of 54 acres, was sold to Richard
Treat. He was murdered by the Indians, here, in 1648. The
inventory of his estate, £217 4s. 2d., Avas presented at the Court
of Magistrates in New Haven, May 26, 1656, and had been
made Dec. 8, 1648, and jirized by Robert Hustis. and Jeffry
Ferris. He was hold in honor, while living here, having repre
sented the tOAvn in the New Ha,ven Court. His childrtn. Savage
thinks, Avere all born in England — Thomas, born about 1615 ;
Francis, born about 1625 ; John, born about 162.7 ; Ann, born
about 1621 ; and Mary, about 1623.
Wood, .Jonas, sen., came with the first company of settlers
from Wethersfield. His name is on each of the first three lists
of the colonists, and he ,received in the first distribution of
land, eight acres. He Avas aihpng the settlers of Springfield,
in 1636, from which place he went to Wethersfield. In 1648 he
brings an action against Thomas Newton, of Fairfield, when he
is reported as from Long Island. In 1654 he was in South
ampton, L. I„ as appears from an action against him in the
Court of Magistrates at New Haven. In that action he is called
Hallifax Jonas, by Richard Mills, of Stamford, in his testimony.
In 1658, Jonas Wood, (O), and Jonas Wood, (H), both of
Huntington, L. I., agents for the inhabitants of the same, desire
to join with this colony, (New Haven). In May 1662, on the
petition of Huntington, L. I., he is appointed by the general
court in Hartford, the first townsman and custom-master. He
became, on Long Island a man of some prominence. His name
heads tho list of those to whom the town of Huntington ^ras
granted in 1666.
Wood, Jonas, jr., came with the first company of settlers

THE SETTLEES AND THEIR FAMILIES. 47
from Wethersfield. His name is on the second and third lists
of the colonists. He received, in the first distribution of land,
seven acres.
Wood, Edmund, came with the first company of settlers from
Wethersfield. His name is on each of the first three lists of the
colonists. He received in the first distribution of land, seven
acres. He went to Hempstead L. I., in 1644, having come
from Springfield to Wethersfield, and thence to Stamford.
Wood, Jeeemiah, came with the first company of settlers
from Wethersfield. His name is on each of the first three lists
of the noAV colony. He received in the first allotment of land,
six acres. » He went to Hempstead, L. I., and Avas accepted a
freeman from that town in the Connecticut colony in 1664.
Yates, Feancis, is on Chapin's list of the residents of Weth
ersfield, between 1634 and '73. He" Avent to Stamford, AA-here
he staid until 1644, when he removed with Mr. Denton to Hemp
stead, L. I. He made his will in Westchester, N. Y., 1682,
and it names five children : Mary, John, Dinah, Jonathan, and
Dorothy.

CHAPTER IV.

the sectlers and their faaiilies. — 1642-66.

This chapter rejjorts the earliest appearance of those settlers
Avho came to the tow-n, or Avho came into active life, between
1643 and 1660. Possibly some of theso names should have ap
peared in the earliest list, yet tho present condition of our re
cords did not furnish the needed proof 1 1 Avill be noticed that
some of the family names on this list are the same as those on
the earlier list, and belong, it may be in most instances to the
same family. To make the record reliable, I have therefore
doomed it best to avoid presuming on relationship, which the
records, as preserved, did riot clearly state.
Amblee, Richaed, Avas here very soon after the settlement,
at which time he Avas iu Boston, Avhither he had gone from-
WatertoAvn. How early ho Avas here the records do not
shoAV. In 1666, ho is said, on the court record, to be about 55
years of age. His Avife Elizabeth, is on the records, as dying in
1685. By his wife, Sarah, before coming to Stamford he had
born, Sarah, Dec. 1, 1639 ; Abraham, Sept. 27, 1641, who died
soon; and Abraham, Sept. 22, 1642, who came with his father
to Stamford. He probably removed with this son to Bedford,
as both names are among the purchasers of that town from the
Indians in 1085. Possibly he may, on coming to Stamford,
have located, hiniselt'Avithin the limits of that toAvn as the most
of it was included in Stamford. He lived- until 1699.^
Ajibeey, Robeet, had a son Robert born here in 1652, and
his death is recorded in 1650, his children, as appears from tho

THE SETTLEES AND THEIE FAMILIES. 40
will of George Belding, of Westchester, Avere John, Samuel,
Joseph, Moses and Mary. To each of these children of good-
wife Ambrey, Mr. Belden made bequests, bearing date June
10, 1657.
/Andreavs, or Andreas Aaeon, bought land here in 1657,
Avi'tli Garret Rivis. He is called a Dutchman. -. Is he the ances
tor of the Andreas family ? The name AndroAvs and Andrus
occurs often, .and also interchangeably. Jeremiah Andrews is
said to be of Bedford, after 1687. *
r Austin, John, Avas one of tho eleven GreeuAvich men Avho, in
1666, acknoAvledge allegiance to the NeAV Haven jurisdiction,
to constitute part of the Stamford colony. The name is usually
spelled Astin and Asten, on the records. A son of his, Samuel,
died here in 1657, the year, also, of his oavu death. His inven
tory, taken by Richard LaAv and Angell Husted, Sept 5, 1657,
Avas presented in court in Stamford, by his Avidow " Katherine
Astine," May 13, 1658. It amounted to £78 8s. 04d. Several
of this name are reported on the land records during the first
century of the tOAvn,.J
"^ Bayly, Elias, Avas Mr. Denton's attorney for the settlement
of his accounts here, in 1650. In 1651 he buys land of John
Coo,-Avith a house, and sells>4t to John Wood in 1657, Avhen he
was li-ying in NewtOAvn,'. L. I.
T^ASSET, RoBEET, Avas hcrc early. In 1651 he is Avitness to
a deed given by Robert Rugg to Richard Webb. He Avas a
landholder, as appears from the land records. The Avill of his
wife, dated May 17, 1656, makes bequests to her son Robert,
the house and homelot at Now Haveir;* to the eldest four of her
children, John Emery, John Webb, Sarah and Elizabeth Basset,
her person.al estate; the bedding and linen and clothes, to be
equally divided betAA'een goodAvifo Emery and goodwife Webb.
The care of her daughter Elizabeth she entrusted to Robert
Basset. BiSHOi% John, Rev., carae, as ia elscAvherc shoAvn, in 1644,
1

50 HISTORY OF STAMFOED.
In 1650, Rol)ert Lockvvoodof Fairfield, deeded to him the house
and lot which lie had purchased .of EUas Bayley, Rev. Mr. Den
ton's attorney. His will, made Nov. 16, 1694, names his wife
Rebecca, and children, Steven, Joseph, Ebenezer, Benjamin and
Whiting. He married, for his second Avife, Joanna, widow of
Rev. Peter Prudden of Milford, and daughter of Capt. Thomas
Willett. What avc knoAV of him will bo found in our record of
the first Ecclesiastical society of tho town. His descendants
h.avo been among the most respectable citizens of the town
down to tho present time.
Beoavn, Feancis, was here - early. Savage tells us that he
had been a servant of Henry Wolcott, of Windsor, and bouo-ht
out the rest of his time in 1649, and Avas a small trader in 1651 •
aud that ho bought and sold lands in Farmington in 1656. He
seems to have been a pertinacious stickler for the largest liberty
to the individual. In 1662 he headed a petition to the general
court at NeAV Haven, respecting the franchise of all the citizens
respecting equalizing tho rates of the several colonies then
under the jurisdiction of New Haven, and respecting the Colony
School. The court, rather curtly, gave him to understand that
" Avhatover liberties or privileges our laws do allow them, that
thoy should have." He then desires a special court in Stamford
for tho settlement of these questions. In 1663, he is sworn a
constable for the town of Stamford in the general court of Con
necticut, and in 1665, '7, and '9 he represented the town in the
General Assembly. He married, bote, Martha, widow of John
Chapman, and had ono son Joseph, to whom he gave land in
1683. In 1686 he is reported in a gift of land to his son Joseph
as now of Rye.
Petbe BEOAA'xlost Ms . wifo Elizabeth here, Sept. 21, 1657;
and a child Ebenezer Aug. 21, 1658. His will was presented in
the court, Aug. 19, 1658, and his invcutory in Nov. of the same
year, and testified to, upon oath, by widow Brown and Thomas
Brown, Feb., 10, 1658. He had come from New Haven, where
he had a daughter baptised Mercy, April 6, 1645, and Eliza-beth

THE SETTLEES AND TIIEIE FAMILIES. 51
Aug. 1, 1647. He married here, July 27, 1658, Unity, AvidoAv
of Clement Buxton, and died Aug. 22, of the same year. His
Avidow married Mar. 9, 1659, Nicholas Knappr'
Thomas Beoavn owned land here in 1658. In 1669, then in
Rye, he sells his house, and land in Stamford to John Pettit.
He Avas born in 1638, as appears from his testimony in court at
New Haven in 1660.
Buxton, Clement, died here in 1657. He OAvned land here,
as appears from the boundaries of other lands on record still
earlier. The inventory of his estate was taken Sept. 3, 1657,
and apprized by Richard Law and John Holly. It was
given in upon oath of the widow Unica ' Buxton, May
13, 1668. Clement Buxton, 2d, gave bonds here, April
19, 1686, of twenty pounds, in an action against Daniel
Scofield. This name is still -represented among the citi
zens of the town.
Chapman, John, oAvned land here in 1640. The inventory
of his -estate Avas presented to the magistrates' court in May
1667, and had been taken Jan. 30 or June 18, 1655, and prized
by Richard Law and Francis Bell. According to tho town
records it was attested by oath of the Avife of Francis Brown
Oct. 30, 166 — . The legatees are his widow, and his daughters
Mary and Elizabeth. In 1656 Martha Chapman sells to George
Slawson, a parcel of land lying in Northfield, on the east side
of Mill River.
Colgeave, Thomas, had lived here before Oct. 10, 1650, as
the following record shows: "Thomas Morehouse affirmeth
upon oath that he heard Thomas Colgrave say,. in his house,
that if he did not come back to Stamford, that ho Avould give
EUas Bailey all he had in Stamford ; and particularly he named
his part in the ' bark.' "
Clayson, (Clason) Steven,, married here 11, 11, 1654.
Elizabeth Periment, (?), and had children recorded to him.
Jonathan, his son, died in 1685, leaving son Stephen, and

52 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
daughter Sarah, as the settlement"of this estate, June, 22, 1685,
shows. This Stephen in his Avill, dated Mar. 15, 1699—1700
gave his estate to his son Samuel, his wife while she remained
his widow and no longer — sons Stephen and David, daughter
Elizabeth, wife of Francis Dan, grand-son Stephen, son of Jona
than, and his sister Sarah.
CoEKEYB, Thomas, does not appear to' have been a very rep
utable member of the new colony. He Avas living here in 1648,
Avas complained of for being drunk and committing sundry
other offenses against the good order of the toAvn, Avas Avhipped,
according to the usages of the age, and then fined for the Mar
shal's fees. Perhaps it is a fortunate thing tl;iat his name does
not afterwards occur among the records of the toAvn.
Dean, Samuel, was early here, having lands assigned to him
in 1650. His son John was born here in 1659, and Joseph
in 1661. His death is recorded in 1703. His descendants have
been numerous and have given name to one part of the town,
where several of them still reside.
Dibble, John, died 1646, and his widoAV married, the next
year, William Graves, of Stamford. The tAVO sons, Samuel and
Zachariah Dibble, probably came with their father. Zachariah
married, May, 10 , 1666, Sarah Waterbury, and had a son
Zachary, born in 1667. His wife obtained a diA-orce in 1672,
and afterwards married Nicholas Webster.
DisBEOw, Petee, married Sarah Chapman, here, about 1650.
The name in, various forms, appears subsequently on the records,
though none of the descendants are now knoAvn to be left here.
Elliot, John, was here early though his name is variously spelled
on the records. He Avas a landholder in 1050. He lost his Avife
Margret, in 1658; and no later record of the name appears.
Ellison, John. This name occurs early on the records of
the town, and is reported on the list of those AA-ho accompanied
Mr. Denton to Hempstead, L! I., in 1644.

THE SETTLEES AND THEIR FAMILIES. 53
FoEDHAM, Robert, according to Thompson's History of Long
Island, Avas one of the^ settlers at Stamford. Jle went with
Mr. Denton and his colony to Hempstead.
Gaensea', Joseph, came, probably, from New Haven, about
1647, and married here. May 11, 1659, Rose, Avidow of John
Waterbury. He had a son Joseph born here in 1662. He died
Nov. 11, 1688.
GiFFOED, William, was before the court here in 1647 or be
fore. The sentence of the court against him Avas that he be
Avhipped at the court's discretion, and banished.
Geeen, John, lost his wife, Mary, here, in 1657. He Avas
declared freeman of the Connecticut Colony in 1662, and repre
sented the town in 1669. Joseph Green mortgaged lands hero
in 1651, to Thomas Morehouse ;^ and W^illiam Green appears on
the records as landholder in 1650.- His land Avas next to Daniel
Scofield. ¦
IIaedy, Richaed, was here in 1650, and gave name to the
low grounds just west of our harbor, which are still knoAvn as
" Hardy's Hole." He married, probably, Ann Husted-, Avliose
daughter Mary, Avas born Ajpril 30, 1659.' Ho is probably tho
one who in 1639 was living in Concord. In 1683, he gave his
son Samuel a house and land. In his will, on record at Fairfield,
he makes bequests to his daughters Mrs. Elizabeth Pearson,
Hannah Austin, Susanna Sherman, Sarah Close, Ruth Mead,
and Mary and Abigail. He was a man of some distinction,
representing the town three times in the State General Court.
He was declared freeman of the Connecticut Colony in 1662.
Robert Hardy was a landholder here in 1650.
Hill, William, Avas here in 1650, as is evident from the court
record. HoLAiES, Feancis, was a resident here 1648, as appears from
the testimony against Robert Penoyer. His Avill, on record at
Fairfield, dated Sept. 6, 1671, makes mention of his wife Ann,

54 , HISTOR"? of STAMFORD.
and his children Stephen, John, Richard, and Ann, wife of,
Samuel Dean. Stephen Holmes has lands assigned him, by the
tOAvn, 1667. Richard Holmes Avitnesses here, June 17, 1658,
the will of Henry Akerly. John Holmes is on the land records
often before 1660. This name has always been among the most'
respectable of the town.
Hunt, Thomas, was here early in 1650, as the lan(^ records
shoAv. The Hunt Genealogy says he came from England, and
Avas a High Churchman. He went from Stamford to Rye, Tiy
1652, and AA'as a representative in 1664. He is represented in
the family genealogy as one of tho most valuable men in the
colony. His title was Goodman.
Jackson, Henry, had lands herein 1649, as appears from the
boundary of Robert Rugg's land. In 1657 he is brought from
Fairfield to testify for John Waterbury. Robert Jackson is
said by Thompson, in his History of Long Island, to have been
one of the settlers of Stamford. Ho went with M*. Denton to
Hempstead, in 1644. In .1656 he was one of the sfettlers at
Jamaica. Jessup, Edward, had lands here in 1649. This is probably
the one to whom was given the patent of West Farms, West
chester county, in 1666. The other patentee was John Richard
son. His will, (see Bolton's Westchester), is dated August 16,
1666, in which he mentions his daughter Elizabeth Hunt, Han
nah Jessup, Edward Jessup, grandchild Mary Hunt, and his wife
Elizabeth. In notes on the Jessop family, in the tenth volume
of the Genealogical Register, we find this record : " Edward
Jessop, of Stamford, 1641; Sascoe Neck, Fairfield Co., Conn.,
1653 ; NewtoAvn, L. L, 1653-62 ; representative for West
chester, 1662-6 ; proprietor at West Farms, 1666, and died at
Westchester, N. Y., 1666." We still have this name among
us, as appears from our list of A'oters.
Jones, Coenelius, Avas evidently here in 1657. He married
the widow of Thomas Halt, or Hyat, as is evident from the re-

TIIE SETTLEES AND TIIEIE F.jVMILIES. 55
ceipts which three of Thomas Hoyt's .children give him. On
the I7th Dec, 1657, there is a record made of the age of his
children, probably by a former wif6; There are six' of them,
aged respectively, eleven, ton, eight, six, and three years, but
the margin on which the names ^re written is gone. His will,
found at FairfioliJ, is dated June 2, 1690,-and mentions his son
Joseph and his grand-child Ruth " Hyat," explaining also
why he does not make bequests to his daughter, Mary Hyat. '
Joseph Jones, son of -the above, died here before 1690. The
inventory of his estate, of that date, attested by Elisha Holly
and Daniel Scofield, gives the names and ages of his children,
as follows: Mary, 13; Hannah, 11; Joseph, 9; Samuel 6;
and Cornelius, 3. It also gives Rebecca as the name of his
Avife. In the distribution of the estate of Joseph and Cornelius
Jones deceased, 170 3-4 ; Joseph Jones, jun. ; Samuel Jones,
, jun. ; Cornelius Jones, jun. ; Cornelius Seely, husband to Mary
Jones, " dafter" to Joseph Jones ; David Miller, husband to
Hannah, " dafter" to Joseph Jones, are named as the heirs.
The estate thus distributed is said to be " their father's and grand
father's names, Cornelius and Joseph Jones." Cornelius, jun.,
when of age is to pay a debt due to Daniel Scofield and John
Ambler. Kaeman, John, as Thompson in his history of Long Island
tellsus, Avas one of the Stamford settlers. Ho went with Mr.
Denton's colony to Hempstead, L. I., AA'here his son Avas the
first child born in the colony.
Knapp, Nicholas, had land liere in 1649, as appears from
the land records. His wife, Eleanor, died August 16, 1658.
Savage thinks ho may have come in the fleet with Winthrop
and Saltonstall in 1630. His children Avere Jonathan, born Dec.
27, 1631; Timothy, Dec. 14, 1632; Joshua, Jan. 5, 1635; Ca
leb Jan. 20 1637 . Sarah, Jan. 5, 1639 ; Ruth, Jan, 6, 1641 ; and
Hannah, March 6, 1643. After coming to Stamford he had
probably Moses and Lydia. After the death of his wife, Eleanor,

56 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
he married, March 9, 1659, Unity, widoAV of Peter Brown, Avho
had also been the widow of Clement Buxton. He died in April
1670, and his will, noAV in the probate records of Fairfield,
dated the 15th of that month, names the children in the follow
ing order : Moses, Timothy, Caleb, Sarah Disbrow, Hannah,
Ividea, Ruth, and Sarah and Unica Buxton, daughters of
Clement.¦ Knapp, Caleb, son probably of the above, had a son,. Caleb,
born in 1661. His will, bearing date, 10, 3, 1674, names his
children : Caleb, John, Moses, Samuel, Sarah, and Hannaih.
Knapp, Joshua, son of Nicholas, was married here in 1657 to
Hannah Close. He had one child recorded here — Hannah, born
March 26, 1660. He lived later in GroouAvich, having had then
seven children, Joshua, Joseph, Ruth, Timothy, Benjamm, Caleb,
aud Jonathan. His inventory. bears date Oct. 27, 1684.
Lakeson, John, is complained against for selling Aviiie in
1648, Avithout license from the court. In 1651, Obadiah Seely
discharges John Lareson of all debts due himself " from the be
ginning of the world to this day." A James Lareson appears
on the land records in 1650.
Lockwood, Edmumd, in 1650, Oct. 14th, sold all his right and
title in Stamford to Ann Akorley. How long he had been
here at that date does not appear. He Avas probably a son of
Edmund, of Cambridge. His children Avere John, Daniel, Ed
mund, Mary, and Abigail. Under date of March 24, 1698-9,
the town grants the children of Edmund LockAvood, deceased,
liberty to take up as much land for their father's estate in the
second "lotmcnt" at Runkinheag, as he had in the first di
vision there, " his lotment in the first division being not to be
found." He died here in Jan. 31, 1692, as appears from invent
ory of his estate, now on record. Book 1st, page 119, amount
ing to £305. This name has been numerous and prominent here
to the present day. It noAV stands next to the Scofield name
in numbers.
Jjockwood, Jonathan, was here in 1659, as appears from his

the settlers and THEIE FAMILIES. 57
testimony in court, at Fairfield, Feb. 24th of that year. He is
reported as then 24 or 25 years of age. This corresponds
Avith tho prestimption that he was son of Robert Jjockwood, of
Fairfield, and that he is the son born in Watertown, Sept. 10,
1034. His children were Jonathan, Robert, Gershom, Josei^h,
and John. He sold his estate here in 1665, and Avas afterwards
a prominent citizen of GroenAvich, representing that toAvn in
the state legislation for four years.
Lockw-ood, Joseph, went in 1644 to Poundridge, where he had
sons, Joseph, James, Soloman, Israel, Reuben, and Nathaniel.
His AA'if'e was Hannah, daughter of Soloman Close. His oldest
son Joseph, had tAA'O sons — Major Ebenezer, of Poundridge, who
lived until 1821, and Avas the father of the Hon. Ezra and Ho
ratio Lockwood ; and Joseph had also sons, among Avhose de
scendants are the Hon. Albert, of Sing Sing, N. Y., and Gen.
Munson LockAvood, of White Plains.
Lyon, Thomas, Avas here as landholder in 1650, as appears
from land records of Daniel Scofield.
Maetin, John, buys land of John Bishop hero May 1, 1650,
in the East Field, seven acres of iq^land, lying betAveen said
Bishop and Richard Ambler.
Mills, Richaed, Avas here in 1654. In 1657 he pledged his
house and homo lot and a parcel of land in Northfield to pay
Jeremy Jagger a debt. On page 32 of record book No. 1,
" Richard Mills, of Stamford, in New Haven jurisdiction," sold
to Joseph Alsupe (Alsop), of New Haven, for the use of Mrs.
Margaret Skief, of Boston, his " housings and homelot and all
accomodations tJiereunto belonging." This sale Avas March 16,
1662 ; and Joseph Alsop transferred the same j)roperty to John
Miller. June 21, 1687, the toAvn vote Mr. Mills, ship carpen
ter, four acres of land on east side of Noroton River above the
path, " so that he improve it for his, OAvn use." In 1691 John
Mills, shipright, sells his pink called the Blossom, built in Stam
ford, Avith burthen of " seA-enty odd tons." In 1693-4, Jona-
S

58 HISTOEY' OF STAMFORD.
than and John Selleck, brothers, enter a caution, or cavitt
(caveat), against all the lands and housings of John Mills, sen.
In a sale of land, Jan. 18, 1695, executed by John Mills, Mary
Mills, and John Mills, sign the deed ; and in another land record
John Mills' sons are named John, William, and Robert. " Ye
Antient widoAV mary mills dyed ye 19th day of November, 1732."
Mead, Joseph, of Stamford, sells his house and land to John
and Daniel Weed. From his testimony given in court at New
Haven in 1660, it appears that he was born in 1630. He went
to Greenwich, Avhich toAvn he represented in the Connecticut
Legislature, from -1669 to '71.
Mead, Jonathan, sells land in 1650, and in '59 he sells land to
Henry Smith.
Mitchell, David, son of Mathew, had lands here in 1650.
He had come hither Avith his father, and removed not many
years after to Stratford. He had four sons — Matthew, who set
tled in Southbury ; John, who lived in Woodbury ; Nathan in
Litchfield; and Abraham in Southbury. Cothren's History o f
Southbury has a c'atalogue of the descendants of the first two
of these sons. The Rev. Justis Mitchell, who was settled in
New Canaan, was a descendant of this David, of the fifth gener
ation — the steps in the descent being John, of Woodbury, Lieut.
John, Captain Asahel, and Rev. Justus. He married Martha,
daughter of Rev. Josiah Sherman, of Woodbridge, sister of the
Hon. Roger M. Sherman, 'and had a gifted family — amono-
Avhom were Minot, the eminent lawyer of White Plains, an^
Chancy R., the gifted andbrilliant orator ; also a lawyer, settled
at Delhi, N. Y., where he died in the very opening of his busi
ness career.
MoEEis'; Thomas, had land here ^n 1650, as appears from the
boundaries of William Potter's land.
Newman, Daniel, made freeman 1670 (son probably of Wil
lian), died here August 7, 1695, The inventory of his estate is

the SETTLEES AN^D THEIE FAMILIES. 59
on page 141, book 1st. His widow Sarah, August 31, 1695,
makes over to her brotherSj Thomas Newman, David Waterbury,
increase and John Holly, all her right in the estate of her hus
band Daniel Newman.
Newman, Thomas, probably son of William, had land here,
as appears from the boundaries of other lands, recorded in 1649.
His will, dated June 2, 1659, at Easttown, New Netherlands,
gives his estate to his son William at Stamford, who is made his
sole executor. It also requires him to provide for his wife
Mary ; to give Catherine Carles, alias Archer, the, Avife of John
Archer, twenty shillings ; and unto each of his (Archer's) sur
viving children five pounds. The Avill was witnessed by Rich
ard and Samuel Mills, and was probably made in Stamford.
Olineson, Henet, had land here in 1649, as the record of
Thomas Morehouse's land shows.
Ollivee, William, was here in 1658, having June I7th of that
year witnessed Henry Ackerly's Avill, and had property as ap
pears from testimony given by goodwife Slawson, Isaac Finch,
John Holmes, and Richard Law, respecting a heifer which had
been swamped.
Penoybe, Robert, or Penoir, as the name is spelled frequent
ly, was here early. In 1648 he is complained against for drink
ing wine and becoming noisy and turbulent, and abusing the
Avatchman. He had a son Thomas, born here in 1658. He had
several parcels of land assigned him soon after tho settlement
of the town. Savage says he came in the Hopewell, 1635,
aged twenty-one, and that he was sentenced to be whipped in
1639. Petet, John, was here early and had children recorded to
him before 1650. His inventory, dated 5, 4, 1676, made by
Richard Law and Francis Bell, mentions his widow Sarah, and
his two sons, names not given, and his daughters, Sarah, Mary,
an(J Bethia. ' Richard Law was appointed guardian of his

60 history of STAMFORD.
children in a court of magistrates, the governor being present,
14, 4, 1662.
Pettit, Debeoav, died here in 1657. This name is afterAvards
spelled Petit.
PoiTEE, William's, name occurs frequently on the early re
cords. His home lot is on record, 1650. In 1652 he sells his
liouse lot to Thomas Lyon, and purchases a parcel of land from
John Finch. In 1661 he sells land to Jacob Pearson. His will^
dated March 9, 1684-5, gives to the church in Stamford five
pounds, " to be improved for the use of the Lord's tabte" The sil
ver cups now in the service of the table of the First Congrega
tional Church are still witnesses to this bequests. He also made
bequests to the three sons of Mr. Bishop, the minister, Joseph,
Ebenezer, and Benjamin; and to the children of his son-in-law,
John Mead, viz. : John, Joseph, Ebenezer, Jonathan, Benjamin,
Nathaniel, Samuel, Hannah, Abigail, Elizabeth, and David. In
1656 ho appeals to the general court at New Haven, to excuse
him from training in consequence of his weakness. The court
do so, but notify him that if he recover his strength he must
resume the service again. In 1684, in his testimony before
Jonathan Bell, he says he is 75 years old.
RiA-is, Garret, bought land herein 1657. He is called in
the records a Dutchman. He purchased of Peter Ferris, and
also of John Rockwell, and seems to have been in partnership
Avith Aron Andreson, or Andreas.
Rugg, Robert, in 1651, sold to Richard Webb, his housing
and home lot. The sale is witnessed by Thomas Lyon and
Robert Basset. The inventory of his estate is on record and
Avas prized by Francis Bell and Richard Law. The general
court records make the date of it Jan. 29, 1655. This is proba
bly the one of whom the record of the Connecticut Court of
June 5, 1646, makes this unenA'iable entry : ~" Robert Rugge
stands boAvnd in 40 Z.," and that he " keepe good behavior and
appeare the next court." •

THE SETTLEES AND THEIR FAMILIES. 61
Scofield, Richaed, owned land here in 1659, as appears from
the recorded lands which Daniel Scofield sold to John Mead.
His inventory Avas recorded by his widoAV, then the wife of
Robert Penoyer, May 6, 1671. His daughter Elizabeth Avas
born here in 1653, and his son Jeremy in 1658. There Avas also
a Daniel Scofield here at the same date, Avith a family. This
family has become more numerous than any other in town, and
the jDresent representations of it are among our best citizens.
Seeley, Obadiah, Avas early a resident here, as several entries
in the records show. In 1651 he acknoAvledged payment of a
debt due him from John Lareson. He died in 16Cf7, and his in-
A-entory taken 24, 12, 1665, by William Newman and Robert
Usher, 'mentions his widow Mary and his sons Obadiah, Cor
nelius, and Jonas. His Avidow Mary, had been the widow also
of John Miller, of Stamford. He was probably a son of Robert
Seeley, of Watertown, who settled aftei-Avards in Wethersfield,
and became quite famous as a Lieutenant in the Pequot war ;
and still later of the New Haven force under Sedgwick and
Leverett against the New Netherlands. This name has been
Avell represented in all its generations in the town.
Sheewood, Thomas, sells land to John Holly in 1648. His
Avill, dated July 21, 1655, was probated Oct. 25, 1655, and men
tions his wife Mary ; his sons Steven, Mathew, and Isaac; and
daughters Margaret, Ruth, and Abigail, the children of his first
wife ; and probably those of his second wife, Thomas, Joanna or
Jane, daughter Thompson, Mary, Sarah, Hannah, Rose, and
Rebecca. Stevens, Thomas, died here in 1658. He had. been a land
holder as early as 1649, as appears from the land records. His
will and inventory of estate are on record, dated Noa-. 30, 1658.
His property was bequeathed to his wife, for the children ; but
if she should marry, she Avas to have her third and the rest to be
divided ; the oldest son, if deserving and of godly carriage to
have a double portion, if not to share equally with the rest.

, 62 history of STAMFOED.
In 1670,the county court made Obadiah, his son. Administrator^
giving him the home and house lot, and requiring him to pay
the legacies. His children were— Obadiah, Thomas, Benjamin,
Joseph, and Ephraim, of whom, Dec. 20, 1686, Obadiah, Ben
jamin, and Joseph, give bonds for the settlement of their
mother. Steavaed, James, probably a son of Alexander of Water-
town. That he was a resident of Stamford in 1649 is evident
from an action in court of that date, in which he was defendant,
and Robert Hustice and Jeffrey Ferris, plaintiffs. It was shown
that he had engaged to keep the town oxen ; " to keep them
from coming home, and out of the Indian's corne ;" and that
he neglected his duty so that the oxen injured the corn, to the
extent of twelve and a half bushels of corn and two and a half
bushels of peas. The court ordered him to pay th© corn and
peas, and " to boare the charge of the court." He was a land
holder in 1650.
SioifEY, Geoege, bought Henry Jackson's house ancl lot in
1650, and Avas still a resident in Stamford in 1660, as appears
from testimony of Cornelius Jones in court of that year. His
will was probated in court, at New Haven, in 1663, made in
1660, and witnessed upon oath by Daniel Scofield and John
Holly, before Richard Law, at Stamford, Feb. 25, 1660. The
name is spelled Stuckey on the town records. Elizabeth
Stuckey, the wife, probably, of the above, died here in 1656.
In his will he makes bequests to his daughter-in-law Mary Close,
then not of lawful age ; because she hath been obedient to her
mother, to his wife Ann, and his daughter Elizabeth, who was
also under age. He appoints as overseers for the daughters, his
well beloved neighbors and friends Francis Bell, Robert Bates,
Richard Mills, and George Slawson.
Stmings, HuMPHEEY,'was here in 1648, a creditor of Peter
Brown, from whom he received his house and homelot.
Taintbe, Chaeles, witnessed here a deed in 1650. I have
seen no other evidence of his presence here.

the SETTLEES AND THEIE FAMILIES. 63
Tayloe, Geegoey, died here Sept. 24, 1657, and goodwife Tay
lor, probably his wife, the month before him. In 1655 he made
application to the general court at New Haven, to be freed from
watching and training, in consequence of his bodily weakness.
He had come from Watertown, where he was constable in 1642.
He had two children by his wife Achsa ; bu^^they probably died
young, as, after his wife's death, Aug. 18, 16^7, his property is
given by the court to John Waterbury and his wife. The in
ventory of his estate amounted to £48 14s. 6d., taken Oct. 1,
1667, and prized by Richard Law and Francis Bell.^ They tes
tified in court, at Stamford, June 14, 1662, "that these goods
within written, were presented to them and acknowledged by
John Waterbury and his wife, to be the estate which the said
Taylor, deceased, had in possession, and left at ye time of his
death, but ye sd. Waterbury would not acknowledge that "this
was all, nor would his wife attest it upon oath to be a true in
ventory of the whole estate. Alsoe the said apprizers doe tes
tify yt the apprizement is just according to ye best of their
skill." Theale, Nicholas, was here in 1650, as appears from land
records. He was in Watertown, in 1638. He was a landholder,
and died here Aug. 19, 1658. His will, witnessed by Nicholas
Knapp and Joseph Theale^makes bequests to his son Joseph; his
daughter Eliaabeth, Avho mari-ied,Oct. 27, 1769, William Rat-
cliff; and his wife. The inventory of his estate, taken Nov. 29,.
1658, was proved in court Dec. 16, 1658, by widoAV Theil. He
must have been somewhat prominent. His name still remains
attached to the bridge on Broad Street, over Mill river. Joseph
Theale son of the above, made freeman in 1669, represented the
town five years, between 1670 and 1677, and removed to Bed
ford, N. Y., in 1687.
Uffit, Thomas, had lived here before 1660. His widow and
her three children in that year agree to use their portion of his
estate, which Avas in their custody, to pay any debts against

64 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
him in Stamford, provided Thomas Uffit, of Stamford, and his
tAVO brothers, should agree to it, and engage to pay any debts
against him, out of Stamford ; that is, any debts due from him ,
before his marriage to the present AvidoAV Uffit, late AvidoAV
Theale. The Avidow, however, hopes the brothers may allow
her and her children something, in vicAV of the many debts she
assumes. The Avitnossos to this agreement are : Joseph Theale,
William Ratcliff, John Archer, Thomas Uffit, John Uffit, Roger
Ferril, and one Avhoso name is unreadable. In a, subsequent
record, Thomas Uffit, Roger Ferril, and John Uffit, refuse to
make any further allowance for debts to the AvidoAV.
L'sHEE, Robeet, had land hero in 1650. He took the oath of
allegiance at Noav Haven in 1644, and came to Stamford. He
married May 12, 1659, Elizabeth, AvidoAV of Jeremy Jagger.
He Avas a man of some note, as his appointment by tho Connec
ticut government, as constable, and his appointment as repre
sentative Avill show. He .died in 1669, leaving his estate to his
two children, Robert and Elizabeth.
Wateebury', John, came here soon after the settlement, and
had land recorded to him in 1650. He died in 1658. He had
lands here as early as 1650, as ajspears from, assignment of lands
of that date. His inA-entory bears date in April 1659, amount
ing to £185 12s. His sons were John, .Jonathan and David,
and possibly still others. Those three make over to their father-
in-laAV Joseph Garnsey, in 1674, a parcel of land then in posses
sion of John Miller. His AvidoAv had married Joseph Garnsey,
in May 1661, Avhen she attested his will. This is one of the
most numerous as Avell as respectable of the Stamford names,
down to the present day.
John Waterbury, jr., married Mary  , and died here, Nov.,
28, 1688. His Avill was entered on the record, on the testimony
of Jonathan Bell, Dec. 11, 1688. It had been witnessed by
Jonathan Bell and Joseph Bishop. In this will he makes be.
quests to his Avife, of his " noAV dwelling house and orchard,"

the set-tleiis and theie families. 85
&c., for her use Avhile she remains his AvidoAV, after Avhich they
Avere to return to his eldest son John, and to his sons John,
David and Thomas ; and to his daughter Mary. He also make»
his loving brothers Jonathan and David, the overseers of the
cliildren till thoy should come of age.
Webb, Richard, probably came to Stamford from Norwalk,
about 1654. Tho "Mill" in Norwalk was that year abandoned
as Avorthless, and Ave find Mr. Webb here, soon after, engaged
in the Stamford "Mill."' Ho Avas probably a son of Richard
of NorAvalk, though he is not mentioned in his father's will, of
date 1655. ^r. Webb Avas a man of some estate and note, rej)-
resenting the tOAvn in the Connecticut general court as early as
1667. The Avill of Richard Webb, sen., of Stamford, is on
record in Fairfield, having date 7, 1, 1675-0; and the death
of Richard Webb is on our town records as occuring Mar. 15,
1675-0, eight days after the Avill. The inventory of his estate
bears date Apr. 29, 1676. • His legatees AVore : his Avife Margery;
Joseph, Avho took the mill in Stamford, but Avho Avas to ~run it
jointly Avith the AvidoAv; Richard, Avho had the uplands at
Wescott's ; Joshua, Avho took lands in NoAvfield, and the tools,
Avhich Avere in Huntington, L. I. ; Caleb and Samuel, whose
legacy Avas to bo in tho care of their mother; and Sarah. In a
deposition of Richard Webb, made Nov. 22, 1667, he is said to
be " aged 44 years or there about." Joseph Webb died here in
1684, leaving children Joseph, Mary, Hannah, Sarah and Mar
gery. I-Iis inventory, dated Mar. 8, 1684, makes his Avife's
name Hannah. This name is among the most numerous and
reputable names on the Stamford list.
Webster, Nicholas, Avas early here. He married Sarah,
daughter of John Waterbury, who had been divorced from
Zachariah Dibble. He died Aug. 12, 1687. His Avill, dated.
.July 19, 1687, makes bequests ^to his Avife Sarah, and his chil
dren John, David, and Rachel; and to Zachariah Dibble "if
he settle here." He makes his brother Jonathan Waterbury
trustee for his estate. David Webster appears later on the land

66 history of STAMFOED.
records, and had children born here. A John Webster, 1696,
buys a saw mill and land here ; and Rachel Webster married
Henry AtAVood, Aug. 18, 1708.

CHAPTER V.

STAMFORD UNDEE THE NEW HAVEN JUEISDICTION.

We have now found Avho the men were to whom mainly was
entrusted the settlement of Stamford. Let us follow them
through their experimental process of organizing a government,
until they are at length safely and permanently at rest, under
the jurisdiction Avhich to this day their descendants do not fail
to honor.
tFi-om the tenor of their title to the soil, they Avere at first a
part of the New Haven confederacy. Their allegiance had been
pledged in their acceptance of the territory. Their partners in
the confederacy were New Haven, Milford, Guilford, Branford,
and Southold. New Haven, the oldest and largest of these noAV
towns was the capital. Here a general court was held at least
tAvice a year, to which were admitted from each settlement tAVO
classes of members, magistrates and deputies. The magistrate
held what would noAV be called senatorial rank, and the deputies
were mere representatives. To this extemporised legislature,
called in the expressive language of the times, the general court
of New Haven, AndroAV Ward and Francis Bell were admitted
members, Oct. 27, 1641. Their title made them the honorable
members from Rippowam ; and to them was entrusted the re
sponsibility of legislating for the Rippowam colony. The
only business done in the court at that first session in which
RippoAvam was represented, having reference to the Stamford
colony, wasjhe appointment of Thurston Rayner as constable
at Rippowam. ) His office was a very differenf one, from that
which is now discharged under that name. It was one of high
dignity and of solemn responsibility. Inthe original commis

68 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
sion given our tOAvnsman by the August court, Ave learn their
impression of its solemn and responsible'' trust. We will preserve
that commission as a permanent Avitness to the style of legisla-
~tion which prevailed in that early day in the colony. It is ui
these terms: "to order such business as m-ay fall in the town,
^ acfcording to God, for the next ensuing )--<;ar, butt is nott to be
-established in his office till he has receiA-ed his cjiarge from this
court and testified his acceptance to this coiii)t.\'
On, the sixth of the next April, 1642, Mr. Mitchell and John
Whitmo.re-are accepted froin RiiJi^owam, as members of the New
Haven Court, and " accepted the charge of freemen." At
this sessio^xjf ithe court Rijipowam is by legal authority changed
to "^Stamfbrde." Whether this was done at the request of the
deputies or noty dies not appear from the record of the transac-
^iofl.-
.^--^iifing the spring session of the court of this year, Stamford
eiig'ages their attention. The deputies had reported the sus-
piciofis appearance of the Indians residing in the A'icinity, and
called for the advice of the court. The following conclusion is
"'found on their minutes :
r" Whereas, the deputies of Stamford, complain that their
plantation are at some difference with the Indians, and therefore
require the help of advice from the court hoAV to carry towards
them ; it is therefore ordered that the magistrates and dei^uties
for this plantation shall advise Avith the aforesaid deputies of
Stamforde what course may best conduce to their peace and
safety." In the October session of the court, " Goodman Warde" is
chosen constable for Stamford, with powers similar to those of
'his predecessor. , ,
In April, 164.3'- a formal letter from constable Ward gives
official notice of the choice by the toAvnsmen of John Underbill
and Richard Gildersleeve as the deputies from Stamford. The
samo letter makeS a^^plea for a magistrate to be appointed by
the general court, with senatorial rank in the legislative body.

THE NEAV HAVEN .lUEISDICTION. 69
It also proposes the names of tAVO approved citizens, Avho Avere
nominated by the townsmen, as those Avho were suitable to be
entrusted with this authority. These Avere MatthoAV Mitchell
and Thurston Rayner. After carefully weighing the merits of
these men, the court made choice of Rayner, and appointed him
to the high office^
The first business which thoy introduced, pertaining to • tlM?'~'
colony Avhich thejr represented, was the organization of a plan-;^
tation court at ^tamford. By a formal resolution tMs court,
Avas to be coniposed o^ Thurston Rayner for chief judge, and
Capt., Underhill, Mr. Mitchell, Mr. Ward and. ftjpbert Coe, as
his associates. To them Avere entrusted all judiciial' questions
which should arise in the colony, excepting such as were reserved
for the adjudication of the general court at New Haven. These
exceptions Avere in all those civil cases in Avhich the property in '
question exceeded " in valeAV twenty pounds," and every crim
inal cause " when the punishment by scripture light,, exceeds
stocking and whipping, and if the fine be pecuniary, Avhen tho
fine exceeds five pounds." This court was held here from time
to time as occasion called for it for several years. When busi
ness of special interest or difficulty came uj) for adjudication, the
governor and one of his assistants came doAvn from Noav Haven
to sit with the court.
In addition to the organization of this court, i:)rovision was
made for appointing tAvo of the officers of a military company
for 'Stamford. This ordinance is still more illustrative of the
spirit of the times than the appointment of the constable. We
will give it entire : " Ordered, that the trayned band may chuse
or confirm inferior officers, sergeant and corjDoral, or both, to oxk
ercise them in a military Avay, provided that such offi^efe be
both members of th'e 'church and presented to and Approved by
the magistrate and deputies from Stamford, the fundaniental-
agreement for votes and elections being still preserA'ed intyre
and inviolable."
In this ordinance Ave have reference to the peculiarity of the

70 IIISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
Ncav Haven policy as differing from that of the Connecticut
government. Church membership was the test of citizenship.
No man could vote or be eligible to any civil or military office,
Avho did not first qualify himself by a credible profession of re
ligion. For twenty years, therefore, all the freemen and offi
cers of the town wore taken from the church.
That such a policy would give satisfaction in a community in
Avhich but a minority of the adult population Avere church mem
bers could not rationally have been expected. And the evidence
that it was here an impracticable theory of government, is found
in the fact that it did not long succeed. That it greatly re
tarded the groAvth of the Stamford colony will be made appa
rent as we proceed.
We have noAV reached a period of severe trial to the new col
onists. The mere advice of the general court at New Haven,
given in conformity with their decision of April 1641, did not
relieve the dangers of the colony from Indian hostility. The
Dutch had excited the intensest hatred of the surrounding Indians,
and nothing but blood Avould henceforth appease it. The steps
taken by the colonists to meet this peril, will be given
in our chapiter on Indian Plistory. Those were days and
nights of peril and of fear. Our colonists could never intermit
their watch. Every day had its minute mon, -with arms at hand,
all primed for sudden use. And for Aveeks, no day passed Avith
out a formal review of those capable of bearing arms. Not
even the Sabbath was a relief to their : fears or their military
preparations. Their first sanctuary often witnessed, on the
Lord's day, the gathering of muskoted Avorshipers — at least
' four guns, well conditioned, being a legally appointed defense
for that place of worship. The meeting house itself became
the fortress of the town. A strong barricade around it,.-made it
a safe refuge for the people, should a sudden irruption of the
Indians render their dAvellings insecure. The faithful sentinel,
by day and by night, was to give no uncertain signal of
approaching danger.

TIIE NEAV HAVEN JUEISDICTION. 71
In the midst of these constant and pressing dangers, it was
most fortunate for the colony that John Underhill was here. In
October of this year, he makes an appeal to the Ncav Haven
court for help to check and destroy the Indians, Avho Avere
threatening the A-ery existence of the tOAvn. He had appealed
in vain to the Dutch to raise for him a hundred men to prose
cute the war. In the name of the Stamford settlers he now asks
for a loan of twenty pounds. The loan Avas to be repaid out of
the salary which Stamford had engaged to give him " yearly."
So that it is evident that the handful of settlors at Stamford
had been obliged to enter on this defensive war, at thc-ir own
cost. The reception which this appeal met, is a marked tribute
to the character of our military leader.
It appears that the Dutch had now become so much alarmed
that they Avere anxious to secure the services of Underhill. To
retain the captain within their own jurisdiction, the Noav Haven
colonists vote the loan, giving as the reason for it, their wish " to
prevent the success of larger offers for his remove."
The Stamford deputies of this year made, it would seem, a
very earnest plea in court for a vigorous prosecution of the Avar.
They set forth the imminent dangers hanging over their exposed
town. Their wives and children were every hour in fear of the
stealthy and relentless foe. The Indians of the vicinity greatly
outnumbered them, and Avere now laying their jilans for the
sudden extermination of tho last pale face who should stand in
their Avay. Without some speedy and terrible bloAV infiicted
upon them, they Avould inevitably overrun and destroy the en
tire settlement. And as a final appeal, they Avarn the court
that if they fail of furnishing the means now called for, they
should bear the responsibility of whateA-er harm should come
to the exposed town.
Meantime the extreme peril of the Dutch settlement, to the
West of Stamford, had led to the movements Avhich Avill be
mentioned in our Indian narrative, and comparative peace Avas
soon assured the settlement.

72 HISTORY- OF STAMFORD.
The only incidents Avliich appear on record, for some years
after the peace are very foAV, and of but little importance. The
attack upon Mrs. Phelps Avill be hereafter given. In the June
session of the court in New Haven, Mr. Rayner calls for an
efficient force to find and bring the ofi'ender to trial. The court
ordered the search to no purpose. In August, of the same year,
Wachebrough, a Potatuck Indian, succeeded in capturing
Busheag, tho fugitive assassin, and delivered him over to the
Stamford authorities. The charge against him was made good,
tho testimony of the Avoman who had been so nearly killed by
him being positive as to his indontity. His death Avas ordered.
Decapitation Avas executed upon him, as he sat firmly erect,
defiantly gazing into the eye of his unskillful executioner.
Ill 1643 an incident occurred in the toAvn, which shoAVS so
clearly the manner in which justice Avas dispensed, that it Avill
justify our notice. One of the planters, Richard Crab, had a
servant, probably an Indian boy, Avho had been guilty of a pub
lic misdemeanor, such as was an offense to the community in
those days Avheii morals Avere strictly cared for. Mr. Rayner,
tho appointed magistrate, in the undoubted right of his sacred
office, ordered the public chastisement of the boy.
Mr. Crab took offense at the exercise of such jiOAver, aud
claimed that the punishment was excessive and unjust. He
claimed that he had already punished the boy at home, and that
one punishment Avas sufficient. He Avent still further, and in
sisted that as the boy was his servant, and resiDonsiblo to his
administration, no authority existed Avhich could rightly inter
fere in the case. This Avas, therefore, a case of rebellion against
the legally 'constituted authorities. An appeal is made by Mr.
Crab to the court. ' The .case is heard. Tho court brought in
their decision. It Avas designed to settle all similar questions
which might subsequently arise. They fully justify the niagis-
trate as having done only his duty in the case. The ground
they toedi was that the "family correction," though sufficient
for all the purposes of correction at home, being there a timely

I
THE NEAV IIA't EN JURISDICTION. 73
and suitable expression of righteous abhorrence of such an
offense, and a sufficient warning to all who witnessed it
against the commission of a similar crime ; yet it could never
answer the demands of public justice Avhich had been outraged,
or appease the public indignation which was justly aroused.
As the community had been insulted and harmed, a public ex
piation should be made. The court, therefore, would sustain
and honor the magistrate. And since the charges made by Mr.
Crabb, if not rebuked, would serve to bring the authority of the
public minister into contempt, and so undermine all authority,
the court proceeded to make Mr. Crabb himself a public example.
They order him bound over to appear at the next meeting of the
court in Hoav Haven.
At the appointed time, Mr. Crabb appeared and Avas fined five
pounds steriing money, for his presumptuous upbraiding of a
public minister for the performance of his public duty.
-From the first there seems to have been a degree of restive-
ness among tlie settlers in regard to the limited franchise they
enjoyed under the jurisdiction of the New Haven colony. As
early as 1644, but a little more than three years after the settle
ment, this impatience, under such restrictions, was shown by the
secession of quite a portion of the colony. Mr. Denton and
those who agreed with him, decided to try their fortunes under
the Dutch government on Long Island, and accordingly removed
and located at Hempstead. This remoA-al took aAvay from
Stamford the followiag list of the settlers : Richard Denton,
father and son, Robert Coe, John Karman, -Jeremy Wood,
Richard Gildersleeve, Wm. Rayner, Benjamin Coe, John Ogden,
Jonas Wood, John Fordham, Edmund Wood, Thomas Armitage,
Simon Seiring, Henry Pierson, John Coe, Robert Jackson, Tho
mas Sherman, Francis Yates, and John Ellison.
And while this local rupture was taking place, and endanger
ing the continued existence of the settlement, a sudden enemy
appeared on the stage, adding to the confusion and danger.
The Dutch, noAV for some years established in Ncav Amsterdam,
10

74 HISTORY- OF Sl'AMFOED.
at Manhattan, thought their opportunity had come for ex
tending their boundaries permanently to the Eastward, and sent
out an expedition to demand the surrender of the settlement, at
Stamford and GreeuAvich, to their authority. But the timely
division of the settlers had left those disposed to be loyal to
New Haven, free to assert their preference and maintain theu-
choice. The Dutch found thcmseh'os powerless against such
loyalty, and soon gave up their attempt. Twenty years later,
Avhen Sir George Downing, their English minister at the Hague,
wished to recapitulate the provocations giA-en by the Dutch to
his government, Ave find him referring to this same invasion of
the English territory in Connecticut. In his oavu impassioned
style, he asks the Dutch council :
" Did not the Dutch about 20 years agone come to an English
town called Stamford, where none but English liA-ed, and sum
moned them to come under obedience and pay- them contribu
tion, and set up the Dutch arms there ? Did they not send
armed men to an English town called Greenwich ?"
But no Dutch temptation or threat could seduce the English
colonists at Stamford to forswear then- allegiance to the New
Haven, English jurisdiction, even though so many of them dis
liked the tenor of their franchise and the character of much of
their legislation.
But even the large removal, from the young colony to which
Ave have referred, did not put an end to the disaffection. So
positive had this dislike of the New Haven administration be
come in 1653, that a formal protest seems to have been sent
from Stamford, with complaints of their rates and other griev
ances. At the same time, the commission ajipointed by the Ncav
Haven general court, to settle the controversy between the
town' and one John Chapman, reported an alarming degree of
disloyalty, if not of open and avoAved treason. The commis
sioners, Mr. Goodyear and NoAvman, had been sent to quiet
Avhat was thought to be a slight disaff'ection, on the part of the
principal actor, in opposition to the New Haven jurisdiction.
But they found their authority stoutly denied. ]Mr. Chapman

THE NEAV HAVEN JUEISDICTION. 75
claimed the right of being- heard in full court. Whereupon
the commissioners " caused the town to be called together, and
being met they found them, for the most part, full of discontent
Avith the present gOA'ornment they are under, pleading that they
might have their free votes in the choice of civil officers;
making objections agauist their rates ; and propounded to have
their charges of watching and warding the summer past, with
some other work made about their meeting house for their de
fense, borne by the jurisdiction; and that they might have
twelve men sent them at the jurisdiction charge to lye there
all winter for their defense."
The principal speakers for the town before the commissioners
Avere Robert Basset and John Chapman. The commissioners
debated the question, asserting the authority of the general
court, but without allaying the mutinous disposition of the
town. They then read the order of the parliament committee,
requiring their submission to the government they Avere under,
" which did somoAvhat allay their spirits for the present." On
receiving this report from their commissioners, the general court
ordered that the governor, if he see cause, shall issue a Avarrant
" requiring John Chapman and Robert Basset to appear here at
Noav Haven, at such time as the governor shall appoint, to
answer such things as shall be laid to their charge."
In the foUoAving March, the marshall of the Connecticut
colony with a posse, had been sent doAvn to Fairfield to arrest
Thomas Baxter, a sort of border desperado of that town,whose
high handed measures had outraged the government and imper
iled the peace of both the Connecticut and New Haven juris
dictions. On the way they call at New Haven, to get aid from
the government there. Two men are here added to their num-.
ber, with instructions for Richard Law, the constable at Stam
ford, to take men at Stamford and proceed to Greenwich if
Baxter should have escaped from Fairfield, and " if Baxter's
strength be not too great for them to seize him and bring him to
Noav Haven." Thus commissioned the arresting party proceeded.

HISTOET OF STAMFOED. tb
They found the offender and arrested him, when Robert Basset
Avho seemed to have been a confederate with the offender,
attempted by force to release him. They disarm him, and the
marshall orders him to assist in guarding the prisoner. He seemed
to consent to do so, but soon stole away. Soon, as if under his
instigation, the party Avere attacked by a gang of the citizens,
who made a desperate effort to liberate their j)risoner. In the
skirmish one of tho Baxter party was killed and one of tho
arresting party wounded. Soon after. Basset again appeared,
and began to expostulate with the marshall for arresting Bax
ter, when the marshall took him into custody. Arresting two
other of Baxter's accomplices, the marshall takes them safely to
New Haven. Baxter and the Fairfield accomplices are dismissed
to their trial before the Connecticut court in Hartford ; but Bas
set is arraigned before the court ot his jurisdiction at Ncav
Haven. In this trial it was made clear that Basset had been guilty of
seditious conduct ; he had expressed himself against the gov
ernment of the jurisdiction ; he had been active to raise and
carry on an insurrection in both the colonies ; he had, without any
coi^ission sought to raise volunteers against the Dutch ; and
had "been a ringleader in these ways of disturbance, and
undermining the government of this jurisdiction; and all this,
contrary to his oath of fidelity."
How much of a disturber, and hoAV far an exciter of sedition
Basset had been, appears in the testimony of both the Stamford
deputies of this year, those eminently loyal men, sergeant Bell
and goodman Law.
On the seventh of March, the day before the general court
Avas to hold its session, Stamford held its town meeting, to
choose its deputies. Not many less than three score substantial
citizens constituted that body. How many of them were voters
Ave do not know. That there were men present Avho deeply
resented the qivil disabilities Avhich rested upon them, and who
Avere ready for revolutionary proceedings to secure what they

TIIE NEW HAVEN JUEISDICTION. 77
deemed, and what we have conceded to have been their rights,
Avill appear from the spicy discussion which then took place.
Immediately after the meeting had been opened. Basset, the
readiest speaker of the disaffected party, springs to the floor,
and with great excitement demands to knoAV what this meeting
means. " To choose deputies for the general court at New
Haven," answers the constitutional law officer of the town.
" We acknowledge no New Haven court, here," quickly re
torted the unintimidated revolutionist.
" We took our title from the New Haven jurisdiction, and
are here to make proof of our loyalty," Avas the ready answer.
" But we know no laws but England's, and shall heed no
authority but hers," exclaimed a sharp keyed voice, Avhich had
been pitched in the tone of thoroughly radical excitement.
"My authority," coolly replied the law officer, "is from
England." " Give us then English law," shouted the heated and noAV
clamorous partizans for reform. "Let us haA-e our A'Otes.
There is no justice in your New Haven tyranny."
" But we cannot violate the fundamentals of the government
to which we OAve allegiance," solidly replies our right worthy
deputy, Francis Bell. " Mr. Moderator, will you proceed to
call the vote," continues, as if finally, the law-abiding minister
of the government.
But not yet had the radical and revolutionary leader ex
hausted his resources against the hated power. Rising to his ut
most height, wielding his most significant menaces in tone and
looks and gestures, he bursts forth in an uncontrolled and un
controllable torrent of passionate abuse.
" We have no English laws or rights ; we have no votes ; we
have no liberties ; we have no justice here; Ave are mere asses
for fools to ride, and our backs are AA'ell nigh broken. You
make laws Avheii you please and what you please ; you execute
them as you please ; you lay what rates you please, and give
what reasons you please. We are bond-men and slaves, and

78 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
there Avill be no better times for us till our task-masters are Avell
out of the AA-ay."
Such were the testimonies brought against Basset in the New
HaA-en court by the deputies from Stamford. In his defense,
which consisted mainly of humble apologies, he implicated as
his inciters and encouragors at Stamford — John Chapman, Jere
miah Jagger, Old Newman and William Newman.
The court remanded Basset to the care of the Marshall until
the Avritings which had been left at Richard Webb's in Stam
ford, and which Avere thought to prove other and more treason
able offenses against him, should be produced. He Avas also to
be put into irons.
At the next sitting of the court in two Aveoks, three of the
above-named offenders appeared in court and acknowledged they
had taken the oath of allegiance to the New Haven gOA-ernment.
Chapman is first put on trial, the others having been removed
from the court room. He is charged with aggravated guilt,
because he had once been a deputy from Stamford in the gen
eral court. It is proved against him that he had engaged in
soliciting aid to make war upon the Dutch Avithout approbation ;
he had resisted the legal authority established at Stamford ; he
had gone with Basset to Norwalk to stir uji sedition there, and
would have continued on to disturb all the toAvns towards Noav
Haven, had not the New Haven commissioners met them on the
way to Fairfield; and that his real aim Avas to overthroAV
the churches and subvert the civil government of the jurisdic
tion. Jagger Avas next put on trial. Similar charges are made
against him as against Chapman^ He had been even more bit
ter in his invectives against" the magistrates and against the
general government. He had spoken M'ith great contempt of
the commissioners sent from New Haven to check the turbu
lence of the Stamford radicals. He had rated the magistrates
as so many Indians, and had threatened the rate gatherers that
the votes should do them no good. On being alloAved to plead,

THE NEW HAA'EN JUEISDICTION. 79
against the charges, he made a beginning but soon cooled doAvn
and confessed his folly and sin, and expressed his sorroAV for
them. " He sees now more in these things than ever he did be
fore, and Avere they to do again, he should not do them, and
hopes it will be a warning to him hereafter."
" William NoAvman is then called. He is informed by the
court of the charges , against his loyalty. He is told, also, that
his father had been specially offensive to the toAvn and to the
court, but that they had excused his arrest from his great age.
To all this NoAvman offers the excuse that he had done only
as others in Stamford had done, in claiming and insistuig on
more liberty in votes. Yet he confesses his fault and testifies
that his father also " Avished him to inform the court that he is
sorry for what he hath done, and hopes he shall act so no
more." ,
The trial here ends, and the court proceeded to sentence the
parties. Chapman and Jagger are solemnly admonished by the
court of their grave offenses. By the law of the jurisdiction
they had brought themselves "in question for their lives;"
yet the court were inclined to a lenient treatment even of so
serious an offense. They accordingly fine Jagger tAventy pounds,
putting him under a hundred pound bond to maintain his loy
alty hereafter; and Chapman ten pounds, under a bond of fifty
pounds for his future loyalty. Newman is to give his bond of
tAventy pounds, " to attend his oath of fidelity hereafter, and
maintain the foundations laid for government here and the laws
of this jurisdiction, to the utmost of his ability, avoiding all
ways of disturbance in this kind which he hath formerly gone ¦
on in."
The court proceed to instruct the Stamford deputies that if
others in their town give similar offenses, " they are to bind
them to answer it at the next court of magistrates, in the latter
end of May, and particularly, Tuojiee, Theale, Webb and Finch
who hath carried it ill as the court is informed."
It appears that Basset, iu vioAV of his sincere penitence, Avas

80 HISTOEY- OF STAMFOED.
allowed to return to Stamford, where he atoned for his past ir
regularities, by his straight foi-Avard loyalty. Two months later,
in May 1664, ho Avas called before the court again, and
informed that he was expected to make some acknowledgment
for his offenses and give some pledge for his future good conduct.
He makes a full and humble confession of his sin, and ascribes
to God's timely interposition his deliverance from the toils of
sedition into Avhich he had been drawn. He sees the evil of his
course and is ready to acknoAvledge that the government is all
right,- " and settled according to God." As to those " uncom
fortable words in the town meeting which have tended much to
disturb the peace of the place and much grieve the heai-t of
God's people," he testified to his deep sorrow for them, and ex
presses the earnest wish that he may do so no more. The
court express to him their confidence in his reformation, and re -
mit his offense, but require from him a bond of a hundred
pounds, that his future course shall be one of unwavering
loyalty. At the May session of the general court, in 1655, the Stam
ford deputies enter their complaint against the people of Green
wich for sundry irregularities, and ask for protection. The
gricA'ances w-ere such as could not be tolerated. The greedy
Greenwichers had made use of the Stamford commons for pas
turing their cattle ; they were disorderly in their daily Avalk ;
they allowed both the English and Indians in drunkenness, and
so brought on much mischief;, they protected disorderly aud
vagrant children and servants Avho ran aAvay from their proper
guardians; and they had converted their tOAvn into a notorious
Gretna Green for all sorts of clandestine and illegal marriages.
To avoid these irregularities in future, the deputies ask that the
men at GreeuAvich be required to unite under this jurisdiction.
On hearing the complaint the court droAV up a formal order
for the immediate submission of the ' Greenwichers to their
authority, and forward it by the Stamford deputies. To this a
reply is prepared and forwarded the next year to the court.

THE NEAV HAVEN JUEISDICTION. 81
This reply provoked the court. They get the governor to
answer it in the name of the court. They stoutly assert their
claim to Greenwich, and commission the two Stamford deputies.
Law and Bell, to go over to Greenwich, deliver the letter, and
" demand in the name of the court the number of their males
from sixteen to sixty years of age, to be delivered with the
other males of the jurisdiction to the commissioners tho next
. year at Plymouth."
If the GreehAvichers denied their authority or delayed to fur
nish the names, they Avere to bo Avarned to attend the next
meeting of the court of magistrates at Ncav Haven. If they
should fail of appearing in court, "Richard Crabb and some other
of the more stubborn and disorderly ones Avero to bo seized at
Stamford or thereabout and sont to Noav Haven to ansAver for
their contempt of authority."
The court of Magistrates came off in June, but none of the
men Avho had been summoned from Greenwich appeared. The
Stamford deputies report them as positively refusing to submit.
The court decide to Avait a month longer, as the people of
GreenAvich had appealed to Eugland, to see if a now patent
should not reach them from England, then a summary seizure
must bo made of the contumacious and rebellious subjects and
the supremacy of the Noaa' Haven goA'ernment vindicated.
No further notice seems to have been taken of tlie GreeiiAvich
men until June 1657. At the general court then assembled in
Ncav Haven, the deputies of Stamford, Richard LaAV, John
Waterbury, and George SlaAVSon presented the folloAving paper
from the men at Greenwich :
" At GreeiiAA'ich ye 16th of October, 1656.
AVee the inhabitants of Greenwich Avhose names are under
Avritten doe from this day forward freely yield ourselves, place
and estate, to the goA'erument of NewhaA-en, subjecting our
selves to the order and dispose of that general court, both in
respect of relation and government, promising to yield due sub-
11

82 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
jection unto the lawfull authoritie and wholesome lawes of the
jurisdiction aforesaid, to witt of Newhaven, &c.
Angell Husted, Peter Ferris,
Lawranc Turner, Joseph Ferris,
John Austin, Jonathan Reanolds,
Richard Crab, Hanc Peterson,
Thomas Steedwoll, Henry Nicholson,
Henry Accorley, Jan, a Duchman,
comonly called "Varllier."
Tho court accept the submission and order that they " fall in
Avith Stamford and be accepted apart thereof"
From this date, until both Greenwich and Stamford Avere re
ceived under the jurisdiction of Connecticut colony in 1664,
Greenwich seems to have had no town organization distinct
from Stamford. The Stamford deputies in the general court
spoke for GreenAvich. The constable of Stamford had juris
diction also in Greenwich. And the townsmen appointed
for Stamford, served also for " town occasions" of GreenAvich.
We find, therefore, such orders as the foUoAving on the records
of the general court :
" Tho Court orders that those who are in public trust for
Stamford shall require of the inhabitants of Greenwich a list of
their ratable estate, and send it to the treasurer at New HaA-en."
Nor did there seem to be any serious jealousy on the part of
the GreeiiAvich people at this exercise of supervision from the
Stamford authorities. Indeed, the most of the English at
Greenwich had probably come originally Avith the Stamford
colony, and in their exposure to the Indian and the Dutchman,
had in some sort, relied upon their close union Avith Stamford
for their safety and defense.
The boundaries, indeed, betAveoii the two settlements appears
not to have been determined. Several times in the records of
those days, a person mentioned, is spoken of as living about
Stamford and Greenwich. One such record occurs immediately
aftei- the above submission of Greenwich ; and as it reveals the

THE NEW HAVEN JUEISDICTION. S3
continued exposure of those days to savage incursions, we will
insert it ;
" Abraham Frost, who at present lives about Stamford or
GreeuAvich, presented a petition to the court, desiring some re
lief from them because he is very poor, having lost all by the
Indians about a year and a half ago, his wife and children taken
captives, but after brought to this jurisdiction, where they have
lived since in a poor and mean way. The court considered the
case, and ordered that ten bushels of Indian corn, or the value
thereof in other corn, be paid him from Stamford, Avhich to be
allowed them in their rates."
We haA'e already seen that the limitation* of the franchise to
church members, by the New Hay-en GoA-ernment, was the occa
sion of much dissatisfaction among the Stamford colonists.
There Avere also other prohibitions in the fundamental laws of
the colony which we shall see Avere not to be borne. In the
chapter on " Ecclesiastical Provisions," every man Avas forbid
den to use any discourteous language toward the minister, or
regarding his preaching, and every person was to attend meet
ing on the Lord's days, at^least, and on days of public fasting
or thanksgiving. No person Avas allowed to broach or maintain
any dangerous error or heresy. No sinful or servile work, uo
unlawful sport or recreation was to be alloAved on the Sabbath.
Besides these strict fundamental laws, in 1657 a special order
had been passed to guard the faith of these puritan churches,
and to meet an evil which was beginning to shoAV itself :
"It is ordered that no Quaker, ranter or other heretic of that
nature, be suffered to come into, nor abide in this jurisdiction,
and that if any rise up among ourselves that they be speedily
suppressed and secured, for the better prevention of such dan
gerous errors ;" and the next year in May a lengthy act is
passed to secure the churches against' harm from " the cursed
sect of heretics JLately risen up in the Avorld which are commonly
called quakers."/
While this- latter enactment Avas under discussion before the
general court, the heresy which it would punish was being

84 HISTORY OF STAMFOED.
secretly spread through the jurisdiction. It found its way into
Stamford. Zealous disciples of the new faith sought to propa
gate their creed, and found some Avho were ready to entertain
and embrace them. Members of the church became tainted
Avith the subtle heresy, and still more who owed the church a
spite, Avere glad to find in the fiery apostles of this anti-church
creed the heartiest sympathy aud support.
Nor did the zealous disciples of the uoav faith cease Avith merely
publishing the new gospel. They were hotter still with zeal to
mend the old. They went mad for reform. They renounced
the old ministry and meetings and worship; and at once assailed
and Avished to sujiplant the civil government which sustained
them. So officious Avere they that the church felt called upon,
in self defense, to enter an earnest protest ; and the central gov
ernment Avere o'bliged either to vacate or justify their authori
ty. Daniel Scofield, then marshal for Stamford and vicinity, au
thorized by the governor's writ, took a posse of his neighbors
and started for the western side of the toAvn, now Greenwich, to
:irrest one Thomas Marshall, who for some time had been insult
ing and outraging the majesty of the government. They found
him at the house of Richard Crabb, Avho Avas also lying under
charge of serious miscarriages.
The arrest was made, but not Avithout an attempt at inter
ference by Mr. Crabb, and a torrent of abuse from his enraged
Avife. Both of these symjoathizors Avith the vagrant heretic
Avere put under arrest, and bound over to the next court of
magistrates, to bo held in Now Haven in May 1658. -At the
appointed^time Mr. Crabb and his accusers appeared in court.
The Avitnesses against him Avere the party who had assisted in
the arrest of MarshsU, and also Mr. Bishop, pastor of the church
in Stamford. The court inform him that he must noAV answer
for his several miscarriages ; for his many clamorous and re
proachful speeches against the ministry, government and officers ;
for neglecting the meetings of tho Sabbath by himself and his

THE NEAV HAVEN JUEISDICTION. 85
Avife, for Avhose offenses, as they Avere justified by himself, he
must be responsible.
William Oliver, one of the arresting party, testified that
Avhen they came to Mr. Crabb's to arrest Marshall and seize the
Quaker books which were supposed to be in Mr. Crabb's pos
session. Madam Crabb retreated to another room and closed the
door against them. Nor would she yield until the door had
been forced open by violence.
Then folloAved an exciting scene. The plucky woman Avho
Avould not ojjeii the door of her castle, noAV could not shut her
mouth ; nor could the utmost expostulations of her more placa
ble husband, united Avith the utmost array of governmental au
thority before her do it. Neither the one nor the other, nor
both united, could intimidate the zealous defender of her per
sonal rights. We may never recover the entire speech which
that audience Avere required to hear. It had not been Avritten,
and there was no time for the stenographer to be called. It had
no formal exordium, fashioned after the calm rules of rhetoric ;
there were probably but few of those Avell rOunded periods
Avhich give so much dignity to discourse; and the i^eroration
Avas doubtless as abrupt and pithy as the rest.
The door being opened, the Avay was clear for her, and she
used it, apparently, Avithout help or hindrance, and Ave may be
assured that she had no listless or sleepy auditors to the very
end. "Is this your fasting and praying?" breaks forth the im
passioned woman, as she fastens her searching glance upon
the marshal and his attendants. " Do ye thus rob us and
break into our houses ? How can you Stamford men expect the
blessing of God ? Will He bear with youi- mean hypocrisy ?
You have taken away our lands, without right. You have
basely wronged us, and let me tell you Avhat I see without your
hireling priests' help ;the vengeance of God Almighty will burst
upon you. And when it comes, your priest can't help you. He
is as Baal's priest, and is no better than the rest of you. Ye

86 HISTORY' OF STAMFOED.
are all the enemies of God and God's saints, and their blood
shall boon your souls forever."
Fastening her sharp eye on goodman Bell, the same who from
the first had been a pillar in the Stamford church, and Avho had
now come over Avith the marshal, hoping by his fraternal inter
cession to win back the estranged and now perverse hearts of his
erring brother and sister, she continued her bitter invective.
" Thou arch traitor and hypocrite, thou villainous liar, God's
Avrath is on you and shall burn hotter and hotter on your god
less children. Out on you ! poor priest-ridden fool ! "
Springing next upon John Waterbury, Avho had also accom
panied the marshal to aid in the dispensation of justice, she ad
ministers to him a similar castigation. Then she tries the force
of her cutting reproaches and sharp retorts ujion the marshal,
for selling himself to do the dirty work of the God-forsaken
government at Noav HaA'en, and of the over-reaching and
heaven-defying, and priest-cursed crew in Stamford. Then she
assailed George Slawson, that exemplary member of the church,
a peace-maker, and ono Avhom all delighted to honor, and poured
upon him her heaviest abuse. He had hoped to quiet her irri
tability, and in his most winning way had most gently expostu
lated Avith her, reminding her of the former days in which she
had walked joyfully and hopefully with God's people in Stam
ford, and in Avhich she had counted the communion of saints
there, tho most precious of all her earthly blessings. He ven
tured to express the hope that they might again welcome her to
their fellowship in the old church, and that she might again
listen there to the same gospel in which she had once testified
her great interest. This was carrying his persuasion too far.
It seemed to kindle her intensest ire. She was now for once,
put to it for Avords rapid enough, or hot enough to express her
rage. Every possibility of indignant resentment in her soul
Avas taxed to its utmost. Scorn and rage and defiance seemed
struggling together in her utterance for the mastery over each
other, and they seem to have ended the attempt at her recon-

THE NEW HAA'EN JUEISDICTION. 87
ciliation. It Avas a settler to that well-meant parley in which her
womanly temper rejoiced in securing the last Avord. " NcVeri
never, shall I or mine trouble your Stamford meeting more. I
shall die first. My soul shall never be cast away to the doA-il so
easily as that ;" and with uplifted hands, she invoked on their
heads the most sudden and the direst vengeance which heaven
could inflict. When she had exhausted herself in these rapid
maledictions, she called for drink to reviy-e her strength ; and
the ministers of the law could do no more than go through the
ceremony of binding her, with her husband, over to the court.
On the' narration of the case before the court as just stated,
the governor, Francis Newman, informed Mr. Crabb that these
were notorious doings, not to be allowed. Mr. Crabb, for his
wife it appears had not obeyed the summons to attend the court,
attempted an apology. He could not manage his wife. He
did not justify her evil way, but he would have the court
understand her case. She Avas a Avell-bred English woman, a
zealous professor of religion from her childhood, " but Avhen
she is suddenly surprised she hath not power to restrain her
passion." To all this tho Avorshipful governor made aiiSAver ; " th;it
Avhat he had said did greatly aggravate her miscarryings, for if
she have been a great professsour it Avas certain she had been an
ill practiser, in Avhich you have countenanced her and borne her
up, which may be accounted yours, as having falne into cvills
of the like nature yourself, revileling Mr. Bishopp as a priest of
Baal and ye members as liars, and yt Mr. Bishopp preached for
filthy lucre."
Mr. Crabb vainly attempted to explain away or deny Avliat
abundant testimonies corroborated. Mr. Bishop, the pastor of
the church had been so sorely tried, that he " could not continue
at Stamford, unless some course be taken to remove and reform
such grievances." Mr. Bell felt that an end of all government
had come, if the ministers of justice were to be so opposed and
insulted with impunity. The " citizens of Stamford wished the

88 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
court to preserve the peace among them, maintain the ordinances
of religion and government, and encourage their minister. To
all which Mr. Crabb made no further plea. The court sentenced
him to pay a fine of 30 pounds, and give bonds to the amount of
100 pounds for his good behaviour, and that he make public ac
knowledgements at Stamford, to the satisfaction of Francis Bell
and others whom he had abused. The remainder of the sentence
is missing, and so Ave shall probably never knoAV Avhat disposi
tion the court made of the sharp-tongued Madam Crabb who
Avas really the chief offender in the case.
No other case of conflict Avith the Quakers, Avhich Avas deem
ed Avorthy a public prosecution, seems to have occurred in Stam
ford or its vicinity. There Avas disturbance by them in other
parts of the jurisdiction, especially in their settlement at South-
old on Long Island; but themajesty of the law Avas maintained
and the churches defended.
That there Avere still occasions of disturbance at Stamford
needing the strong arm of the law for their repression or control,
the foUoAA'ing special ordinance of the general court Avill attest-
This provision for a permanent annual court, instead of the
occasional courts Avhich from tho second year had been ju'OA-ided
for, may also indicate the increasing importance of Stamford
in the jurisdiction.
"At the general' court in New Haven, May 30, 1660,
upon Aveighty grounds presented, the court desired the gov
ernor and deputy governor, Francis Newman and "Wil
liam Leete, to go to Stamford, there to keep ' court. Richard
Laws and Francis Bell were .chosen to assist in the said court ;
which court hath poAver committed to them equal to any plan
tation court, assisted by two magistrates. It was further order
ed, while there is need, that tAvo nlagistrates shall be yearly
sent to Stamford to keep court, at the charge of the jurisdiction,
the charge of entertainment atStamford to be excepted,Avhich is
to be borne by themselves."
We noAV come to the beginning of the struggle betAveen the
two jurisdictions of Connecticut and Ncav Haven, for the suprc-

THE NEAV HAVEN JUEISDICTION. - 89
macy over the territory thus far held by the Noav Haven juris
diction. The next notice we find of Stamford in the colony records is
of date, Oct. 9, 1662. The new charter of Connecticut had been
received, and Avas decided to coA-er the territory of Stamford
and even of Westchester, now in New York. The Connecticut
court, therefore, call upon the Westchester colony " to demean
themselves in all things as may declare and manifest their readi
ness to subject to his Royal will and pleasure herein." But
their minute regarding Stamford is : " This court doth heartily
declare their acceptance of ye jilantations of Stamford and
GreeiiAvich under this government upon the same terms and pro
visions as are directed and declared to ye inhabitants of Guil
ford ; and that each of these plantations have a constable chosen
and SAVorne." Robert Usher is ordered to be sworn as consta
ble for Stamford for one year, or until a ncAV is chosen.
The same session of the general court — the prospective State
legislature — declare the folloAving Stamford men to be " free
men of this colony," viz. : John Green, Richard Hardey, Jo
seph Mead, Richard Webb, Joseph Theed, (Theal), and Peter
Pheries, (Ferris). These are probably all of those capable of cit-
zenship iu the Connecticut colony, who were thus early ready
to secede from the New Haven jurisdiction. And indeed it
Avould seem, that as late as the spring session of 1669, only
tAVO more of the townsmen, Richard LaAV and Jonathan Sellick
had accepted citizenship in the uoav jurisdiction.
-At the same session of the court, Stamford, GreeuAvich and
Westchester are to "have liberty of ye court at Fairfield, to
issue controversies that may arise among them for future."
We now find Stamford claiined as a colony of the Connecticut
jurisdiction, and the general court proceed to enroll such free
men from the new town as offer themselves for that purpose ;
and Mr. Gould is' authorised- to give them the oath of freemen
at the next court in Fairfield.-''
At the May session of the court for 1663, Ave find this record
12'

90 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
which indicates the division still existing in Stamford respecting
the transfer of their allegiance from New Haven to Connecticut.
" This court orders that Rob. Usher and John Meggs shall
continue in the place and office of a constable over those that
have submitted to this government in there respective planta
tions, until the court see cause to alter otherwise ; and all those
that have submitted are to attend the former order made in
October court last."
The order referred to here is undoubtedly that which pre
scribed their duties as citizens of the new jurisdiction. They
were to be admitted on the same terms as Guilford had been, as
thus indicated :
" And this court doth advise the said persons to carry peace
ably and religiously in their places towards the rest of ye in
habitants, that yet have not submitted in like manner. And
also, to pay their just dues unto ye Minister of their Towne;
and also all publique charges due to this day."
But the transfer of jurisdiction had not yet been approved by
the leading men of Stamford. They still acknowledged the au
thority of New Haven, and in May 1663, by vote decided to send
their deputies, as before, to New Haven. Francis Bell and
Richard Law were chosen, and Mr. Bell took his seat and was
SAVorn in and deputed by the court to give the oath to Mr. Law.
x\nd again in October, they send Mr. Law and George Slawson
to represent them in the New Haven court. At this session of
the court not a little bitterness was shown towards the Connec
ticut colony, for encouraging those at Guildford and Stamford
AA'lio were disposed to object to the New HaA-en administration ;
iind they were inclined not to treat further with the offending
government unless it Avould first return these revolted or
seduced subjects to their former loyalty. A committee were
appointed by the Noav Haven assembly to state their grievances
and demand redress. In a lengthy document they make their.
statement and their plea. The following passage from the
statement shows the part Stamford was taking in the struggle,
and how important hor decision was felt to be.

THE NEW HAA'EN JURISDICTION. 91
" Belore your general assembly in October last, 1663, our
committee sent a letter unto tlie said assembly, whereby they
did request that our members by you unjustly sent from us should
be by you restored unto us, according to our frequent desires
and according to Mr. Winthrop's letter and promise to authori
ty in England, and according to justice, and according to the
conclusion of the commissioners in their last session in Boston,
whereunto you returned a real negative answer, contrary to all
the promises, by making one Brown your constable at Stamford,
who hath been sundry ways injurious to us and hath scanda
lously acted in the highest degree of contempt, not only against
the authority of this jurisdiction, but also of the king himself,
pulling down with contumelies the declaration which was sent
thither by the court of magistrates for this colony, in the king's
name, and commanded to be set up, in a public place, that it
might be read and obeyed by all his majesties subjects, inhabit
ing our town of Stamford."
But the majority of the Stamford people were evidently in
clined to transfer their allegiance to the Connecticut jurisdic
tion ; and, as is not unusually the case, the politicians of the
old school, Avho had been the ministers and law officers of the
old authority, were at length also brought to see the need, if not
the desirableness of accepting the destiny. At this point, also,
the greater qnestion at issue between the New Haven and Con
necticut colony must be settled. The charter made no divided
jurisdiction. I From the Narragansett river on the East, and
the sea oh the South, across the continent towards the west,
and up to the Massachusetts grant on , the north, " all firme
lands, Soyles, Grounds, Havens, Ports, Rivers, Waters, Fish
ings, Mynes, Mynerals, Precious Stones, Quarries, and all and
singular other commodities. Jurisdictions, Royalties, Privileges,
Francheses, Preheminences, and hereditaments whatsoever"
within the said tract, were made over to his " Worshipful John
Winthrop, Governor; John Mason, Deputy Governor; and their
twelve assistants and their successors, forever." There could
be no question as to whether New HaA'en was embraced in this
charter or not. Accordingly, a committee was appointed Aug.
19, 1663, consisting of the Deputy Governor, Mr. Wyllis, Mr.

92 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
Daniel Clark and John Allyn or any three of them, " to treat
with our honored friends of New Haven, Milford, Branford,
and Guildford, about settling their union with this colony of
Connecticut." They Avere instructed, if unable to effect a
union, to declare to them "that this assembly cannot well
recent Jtheir jiroceeding in civil government, as a district juris
diction ; and this assembly doth desire and cannot but expect
that the inhabitants of New Haven, Milford, Branford, Guild
ford and Stamford, do yield subjection to the government now
established." Again, in Oct. 1664, the court appointed Mr.
Sherman and the Secretary to go to New Haven, and the other
hesitating towns, and "by order from this court, in his maj estie's
name, to require all the inhabitants of New Haven, Milford,
Branford, Guilford and Stamford, to submit to the government
of this colony and take their answer." They were, also, to de
clare all the freeman of those toAvns, who were qualified accord
ing to law, and who Avould take the freeman's oath, to be free
men of the Connecticut colony.
Mr. Law, ,'of Stamford, who had already sent in his submission
to the Connecticut jurisdiction, Avas appointed with "magis-
traticall powers," to assist in the government of the plantation.
The appointment of Mr. Law, who had been the leader of the
New Haven party in the town, was a stroke of good policy on
the part of the general court. They had now won over the
last formidable opponent to their claims, and with his surrender
dates the last formal attempt or purpose, so far as records
show, to sustain the falling dynasty which, since 1638, had
essayed its scriptural sway over a people, that with all their
theoretic and practical godliness, had nevertheless proved
themselves too worldly, if not too wicked for the test.
It now only remained for the general assembly to proceed
formally and with authority to " require all householders inhab
iting this colony to take the oath of allegiance, and that the
administration of justice be in his Majestie's name."
They agreed to " bury in perpetual oblivion " all the former

THE NEW HAVEN JUEISDICTION. 93
acts of the New Haven Jurisdiction, Avhich concerned this col
ony. And it only remained for the New Haven colony to
accept the place assigned them by the new charter. In Decem
ber 1664, they make a conditional submission, and in the follow
ing January, finally, and in good faith, accept the charter, and
acknowledge thenceforth the supremacy of the Connecticut
government.

CHAPTER VI.

INDIAN TEEATIES AND IIISTOEY'.

Let US noAV return after our details of the settlement here by
tlie English, to see what we can learn about the aborigines
whom they came to supplant. Our introduction to them shall
bo through such original records as are still w-ithin our reach.
The following papers, six in number, show us the terms on
Avhich the Indians alienated their lands. The necessity for so
many successive " agreements " or " grants " will appear from
the terms of the grants themselves. The first document is a
simple acknoAvledgment, over their own signatures, of the four
original proprietors of the soil, that they had disposed of it,
for an equivalent, to Capt. Turner ; and it is probably the only
proof preserved of the original grant by which the settlers
came into possession of the territory. We shall give these
papers, excepting the sixth, as they are recorded.
(No. 1.)
-iCEMO-WLEDGMENT OP SALE JULY 1, 1640,
Bought of Pouas, sagamore of Toquams, and of 'Wascussue, sagamore of
Shippau, by mee, Nathaniel Turner, of Quenepiocke, all the grounds that
belongs to both the above said sagamores, except a piece of ground* which
the above said sagamore of Toquams reserved for his and the rest of said
Indians to plant ou — all of which grounds being expressed by meadows,
upland, grass, with the rivers and trees ; and iu consideration hereof, I,

* This exception was probably that beautiiul headland now owned mainly by Capt. Bt
L. Waite and the Scofield Brothers, Alfred and Benjamin. This tract, in 1672, was given
to the Eev. Eliphalet lones, then just caUed to assist the Eev. Mr. Bishop. The terms of
the gitt are: " Mr. Jones sliall have that peice of land at Wescus whicn was improved by
the Engins in case it be cleared from all English and Engins and this land to be Mr.
Jones' proper right in lue of that piece of laud granted to him ou Oie west side of the
Southfield."

ttl mo
!zjQ HOw

MH
COO

CQ 1-3OSIo

INDIAN GEANTS AND HISTOEA-. 95
the said Nathaniel Turner, amm to give and bring, or send, to tho above
said sagamores, within the space of one month, twelve coats, twelve howes,
twelve hatchets, twelve glasses, twelve knives, four kettles, four fathom of
white wampum : all of which lands bothe we, the said sagamores, do prom
ise faithfully to perform, both for ourselves, heirs, executors, or assign.i,
and hereunto we have sett our marks in the presence of many of the said
Indians, they fully consenting thereto.
Witness, I J^'^^f ^™!'

¦I

Ponds /^ I /I / his mark

^

OwENOKE, Sagamore Ponus' son

Wescussee \ i ^,.^^ his mark

pd in part payment 12 glasses
12 knives
04 coats

(No. H.)
DEED OF THE EASTERN PAKT OF THE TOWN, 1645.
These presents testify that I, Piamikin, Sagamore of Eoatan and owner
of all the land lieing between Fivemila river and Pinebrook so called by
the English, for diverse reasons aud considerations have given and granted
¦ unto Andrew 'Ward and Richard Law of Stamford for the use and property
of sayd town, from me and myne to them and theirs forever, all the above
sayd lands lying between the sd Fivemile river and Pinebrook, quietly
to possess and enjoye in a full and free manner with all the privileges
thereto belonging or apertaining, as witness my hand in Stamford this

96 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
twenty-fourth day of March, dbno one thousand six hundred forty and
five.

PlAMIKIX,

Witness
Jebemt Jaooeb
Geoege Slison

3

his
Wasasabt I ,„ark

Pemoaton ^ ^^^y^
Mamaiema (^ ^^^
ToQCATUs (^^^^^ „^ark (No. 3.)
WABD AND law's EEPOKT OF DEED OF 1645.
At a general court held at New Haven for ye jurisdiction June 9, 1654 —
Several wiitings recorded concerning lands iu question betwixt Stamford
and Norwalk, which upon the desire of Stamford is ordered to be recorded —
this may certify that Piamikee, Sagamore did upon ye twenty-fourth of
March iu ye year 1645 make a deed of gift of all ye land from that which is
comonly called ye Pine brook by ye English and that which is called Five
mile river or Eowayton, where their planting land doth come very near unto
ye said land, was by a deed of gift made over unto Andrew Ward and
Richard Law ; which they did receive for ye town of Stamford and at the
same time did give unto the said Sagamore one coat in ye presence of
George Slason and after yt three more with some quantity of tobaca, and
ye said Sagamore did confirm ye same by setting his hand to a writing then
made, ye said Sagamore upon ye gift did except against setting houses
because ye English hoggs would be ready to spoil their corn, and yt ye cat
tle in case they come over ye said Five mile river, to which it was granted,
yt to inhabit we did not intend, and our cattle we intended they should
have a keeper, and in case any hurts was done they should have satisfac
tion, yt this laud as aforesaid was by the said Piamikee in ye presence of
other four or five Indians resigned for ever to ye English, in witness
whereof we have set to our hands, Stamford, first month 4, 1654.
,^ Andbew Waed, Eiohabd Law.

INDIAN GEANTS AND HISTOEY. 97
(No. 4.)
DEED BENEWED BY PONtTS AND ONAX, 1655.
Our agreement made with Ponus, Sagamore of Toquamske and with
Onax his eldest son : Altho' there was an agreement made before with the
said Indians and Capt. Turner and the purchase paid for, yet the things
not being clear, and being very unsatisfied, we came to another agreement
with Onax and Ponus for their land from the town plot of Stamford north
about 16 miles and there we marked a white oak tree with S. T. and going
toward the Mill River side we marked another white oak tree withS. T. and
from that tree west we were to run four miles, and from the first marked
tree to run four miles eastward, and from this east and west line we are to
have further to the north for our cattle to feed, full two miles further, the
full breadth — only the said Indians reserve for themselves liberty of their
planting ground: and the above said Indians, Ponus and Onax, with all
other Indians that be concerned in it have surrendered all the said land to
the town of Stamford, as their proper right, forever, and the aforesaid
Indians have set their hands as witnessing the truth hereof) and for and iu
consideration hereof, the said town of Stamford is to give the said Indians
4 coats, which the Indians did accept of for full satisfaction for the afore
said lauds, altho' it was paid before, hereby Ponus' posterity is cut off from
making any claim or having any right to any part of the aforesaid land,
and do hereby surrender and make over, for us or any of ours forever, unto
the Englishmen of the town of Stamford, and their posterity forever, the
land as it is butted and bounded the bounds above mentioned. The said
Ponus and Onax his son having this day received of Richard Law 4 coats
acknowledging themselves fully satisfied for the aforesaid land. — Witness
the said Indians the day and date hereof, Stamford, August 15, 1655.
Witnesses
Wm Newman
Richaed Laws Ponus.  .
Onax.  .
(No. 5.)
agreement of 1667.
An agreement made this 7th of January Anno 1667 between the inhabit
ants of the town of Stamford, the one party, and Taphance son of Ponus
and Powahay sou of Onax, son of Ponus, the other party, for a full and
final esew of all questions about all and any rights of lands formerly be
longing iinto Ponus Sagamore of Toquams and any of his race or lineage
surviving, and for a more full confirmation of the sales of lands, meadows,
rights, privileges formerly made by the foresaid Ponus and Onax unto the
inhabitants of the town of Stamford, the contents of this agreement as fol-
loweth. That, whereas Ponus Sagamore of Toquams, and Wescus, Saga
more of Shippan, sold unto Capt. Nath'l Turner of Quennipiooke, all their
lauds belonging to either of the forementioned Ponus and Wescus — the
faid bale expressing all uplands, meadows, grass, with the rivers ami trees
belonging to the foresaid Sagamores, except a piece of ground which the
foresaid Sagamore of Toquams reserved to plant on— the said sale specified
by a deed under their hands; dated the 1st of July anno 1640. Also the
payment according to the agreement was made to satisfaction of the fore
said Ponus and 'W'esous— these forementioned in the deed are sold and
13

98 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
alienated from the foresaid Ponus and Wescus and their heirs, executors,
administrators and assigns unto the foresaid Capt. Nath'l Tumer, and his
heirs, executors, administrators and assigns forever — moreover, after this
former agreement in the year Anno 1655, the Inhabitants of Stamford and
Ponus Sagamore, and Onax, Sagamore came to an agreement, for the con
venient settlement of their planting ground at Shehauge, as also how far
the hounds of the inhabitants of Stamford should go, which joint agree
ment was to extend sixteen miles north from the sea side at Stamford ; and
two miles short of that the said parties marked two trees with S T; the
aforesaid Ponus and Onax agreeing and granted the inhabitants of Stam
ford that their bounds should run from the aforesaid marked trees four
miles east, and from the foresaid marked trees four miles west; their whole
breadth to be eight miles and for full satisfaction of the foresaid Ponus
and Onax for all and every part of tho lands with the Demensions thereof
forementioned and the Indian's planting Laud excepted, four coats was
paid ancl accepted by the said Indians viz : Ponas and Onax, upon which
receipt the said Ponus and Onax gave a full surrender of all the land fore-
mentioned from them and their heir.s, executors, administrators, and assigns,
and in the behalf of all the Indians unto the English Inhabitants of Stam
ford aud their heirs, executors, and administrators, and assigns for ever,
quietly to possess and enjoy in free and full manner. Unto this agreement
the Indians forementioned viz : Ponus and Onax subscribed their mark
for full confirmation, witnessed by Ei chard Law and William Newman.
Now these presents witnesseth, that we Taphance, son of Ponus and Pow
ahay son of Onax as abovementioned, do hereby acknowledge the several
grants and sales of lands and the several agreements thereabouts as above
specified with the payment for satisfaction given for the same, and do
hereby for us and ours fully confirm the said grants and sales with the di
mensions thereof as above specified^-furthermore we the foresaid Taphance
and Powahay do hereby both for us and our heirs, executors administra
tors and assigns, grant and surrender up unto the inhabitants of the town
of Stamford their heirs, executors administrators and assigns forever all our
land or lands formerly reserved to us for planting at Shehauge and
Hoquetch with all other lands of any sort and privileges of any kind to us
aud our predecessors formerly belonging; the said lands aud privileges
lying between Tatomock near Greenwich on the west and the land formerly
granted by Piamikin to the men of Stamford on the east with the foremen
tioned dimensions of length and breadth; Quietly to possess and enjoy
without future molestation by us and ours — In consideration hereof the
inhabitants of Stamford do both for themselves and theirs give and grant
unto the foresaid Taphance and Powahay and their male issue and posterity
twenty acres planting ground iu convenient place or places — with these
conditions following agreed unto— first, that the said Indians fence their
ground with a sufficient fence— secondly, that they shall not at any time
take in other Indians or Indian to reside with them— thirdly— only 'tap
hance with his wife aud children ;aud Penahay and Paharron and an old
woman called Nowattonnamanssqua are allowed— thirdly that neither Tap
hance nor Penahay, nor any of theirs shall at any time sell, or any way di
rectly or indirectly make over or transfer the said twenty ncres of land or
any part thereof to any; but if the said Taphance and they shall desert
and leave the said land, or if in case the said Taphance and Penahay their
male issue and posterity shall cease and extinguish, then the forementioned
20 acres of laud shall fall to the inhabitants of Stamford, emediately mth-
out any further consideration, as their proper right; fourthly, the foresaid

INDIAN GEANTS AND HISTOEY. 99
Taphance and Penehay both for themselves and theirs do hereby bind and
engage themselves unto a dew and orderly siibjeotion to all town orders of
Stamford and the laws of the jurisdiction that are or shall be made from
time to time and for the true performance of the foresaid covenants and
agreements respectively the parties abovementioned do hereby bind them
selves and tbeirs firmly. In witness of truth they have hereto set their
^ands.the day and date above written.
Signed and delivered In behalf of Stamford.
in presence of Taphance ¦  — Eichard Law
Eichard Beach ) Penahay —  Francis BellJ
John Einbfey V George Slason
Samuel .Mills ) Jonathan Selleck
John Holly
[No. 6.]
CONFIEMATION OP QEANTS, ABOUT 1700.
Still later, about the year 1700, as its locality in the records would indi
cate, we find still another agreement with the Indians. Catoona and Coee con
firm all the previous grants of territory to the English, " westward as far as
Bedford." They acknowledge the receipt of " considerable and valuable
sums of .money. They make special mention of deeds or grants made to
the English, by Taphassee, Ponus, Penehays, old Onax, young Onax, a
deed to Capt. Turner, and also a deed by Hawatonaman, which our records
have not preserved. The following witnesses attest the acknowledgment :
Juhn.Eye alias John Caukee Catena
Pohornes Awaricns Capt. Manin
Eenohoctam Mockea Wequacumak
Eamhorne Papakuma Aquamana
¦ Smjngo Simorn Pupiamak
Am^taugh
The preceding papers constitute nearly all the recorded wit.
ness that we have to the number and character of the original
proprietors of the soil. They report to us the names of some
thirty of the most honored of the Indians here. But .they teach
us very little respecting these signers themselves, and still less
respecting the tribes they represent. They only go to show
that when the white race were in need of these old Indian realms
the red race had been made ready to alienate them. They
.suggest that the great leaders whose, prowess had won for them
Saqhem dominion and honors had all passed away. What names,
illustrious for gifts of Indian eloquence or for deeds of Indian

100 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
daring, may once have ruled here ; of how extensive and popu
lous empire this may have been the seat ; how long the old
races may have here held sway ; or whence they had come to
these wild shores ; all are questions which no records can ever
answer. And then the number of the Indians who occupied the
territory settled as Stamford will probably never be known.
It could not have been very large. Petty chiefs and mere frag
ments of what might once have been small tribes of their race,
were all that the historian can find to reward his most diligent
search. Yet it must not be inferred that the Stamford colony escaped
the hazards, or were altogether strangers to the startling inci
dents of Indian neighborhood. There was enough of the savage
left to suggest what sayage life was, when it had entire sway
over the country. There was enough of Indian cunning and
power left to make the pale face constantly wary and fearful.
It would have been no easy task to subdue here the wildness of
the forest and its beasts of prey ; it was doubly difficult and
hazardous to live in constant exposure to the stealthy movements
of suspicious and suspected savages.
The settlement of Stamford succeeded the complete overthrow
of the most spirited and formidable tribe within the limits of
Connecticut ; and the utter dismemberment of the Pequods had
struck surviving tribes and clans with a wholesome terror of the
white man's power.
The eastern part of the State had been pretty effectually
delivered from all danger from the savages. The Mohegans
now left, with Uncas their chief, were henceforth, as the most
politic course, to count themselves as the ^hite man's friends ;
and in that part of the State it would be a contest between hos
tile tribes of the natives rather than between the aborigines and
the immigrant colonies. In the western part of the State were
many tribes, the most of which were inferior in numbers and
either faint or reckless in spirit, and they were more likely to
burn with revenges against their formidable enemies towards

INDIAN GEANTS AND HISTOEY. 101
the West, the fierce Mohawks, than against the more harmless
pale faces, who were quietly locating themselves here and there
upon the hunting grounds of their race.
Still the red man could not be expected to see himself steadily
alienating the ancestral possessions of his race, steadily wasting
away before the increasing colonies of a people whom he tho
roughly despised, without some struggling against so humilia
ting a destiny. Accordingly, the period of colonial settlements
throughout N"ew England, was also a period of constant collision
between the immigrant and the aboriginal races. The very
year in which our pioneers were taking possession of Rippowam,
was marked by one of those combinations of Indian strategy,
whose aim was the forcible expulsion from Connecticut soil of
the last pale face to be found.
The plot disclosed by a neighboring Sachem to Mr. Ludlow,
of Uncowa, (Fairfield), and by a Long Island Indian, to Mr.
Eaton, of New Haven, and by still another native on the Con
necticut, warned the few colonies in time to avert the threatened
doom. While a portion of the Stamford settlers are on their
way to their new home, the General Court of Connecticut find
themselves called upon to issue the following orders :
" It is Ordered, that there shall be a letter writ fro the Courte
to the Bay to iurther the prsecution of the Indeans, to pr'uent
their mischevus plotte in their late Combination."
" It is Ordered that there shall be a gard of 40 men to com
compleate in their Arms to the meeting every Sabbath and lecture
day, in every Towne within these liberties vppon the River."
The combination referred to in these orders was the last for
midable attempt of the great Miantonomo of the Narragansetts ;
Sequassen, the patriot Sachem of the Connecticut River ; and the
jealous and revengeful Sequin, to save their name and posses
sions from the sudden extinction which they foresaw.
In the same year, so imminent had the danger become, that
the Court interdicted all traffic with the Indians except by
permission of two magistrates ; no smith was to work for an

l02 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
Indian; two wardsmen were to be appointed in every town
within their jurisdiction to ^ive notice of any sudden danger
that may come upon the plantations ; a competent number of
men should remain in every town daily for its defense ; and " 90
coats should be provided within ten days, basted with cotton
wool and made defensive against Indian arrowes."
It was iu the midst of such alarms that Stamford was settled ;
and we may be assured that it required no little nerve to attempt,
and no ordinary prudence and courage to effect the settlement.
In the territory itself were traces of at least four distinct clans.
On the west side of the purchase, with his seat not far from
where the line now separates the town from Greenwich, was the
bold and warlike Mayano, with his vindictive band of warriors,
already experienced in the conflict, both with savage and civi
lized foes. Whence they had come, or how many they might
count, we shall never know ; we shall soon see that they or our
sturdy pioneers must ere long maintain the possession by the
stout heart and arm.
Further to the East, with his princely residence overlooking
both the bays which inclose our finest headland, was Wascussue,
Lord of Shipan. Not as spirited as Mayano, he seemed to linger
with a handful of his tribe, in a sort of princely repose upon the
fair field. which his more youthful arm had won, unwilling to
leave the charming heritage which in his sadness he saw now
for the first time seriously invaded.
Still farther towards the rising sun and beyond the lovely
Noroton bay, was the empire of Piamikin, whose deed of aliena
tion makes him Sagamore of Roatan, and whose jealous eye
guarded the hunting and fishing grounds, as after him our
Stamford colony did, out to the waters of the babbling Rowal
ton, (Five Mile River.)
On the north of these sea- washed realms, lay the more extended
realms of Ponus. From his ancestors he had received the
wooded hills and brook-washed vales that stretch far away, to
the north until they are lost in the forests which even the red

INDIAN GEANTS AND HISTOEY. 103
men did not claim — a wild border ground between the eastern
and the western tribes ; and he hoped to hand them all over to
his idol, Powahay, the bright faced son of his first-born Onax.
But the old patriarch of his wasting tribe, saw his warriors fade
and perish as if touched with the power of his own decay, and
he yielded gracefully to the stern necessity. He lived to sign
with his own hand the deed which forever alienated from him
self and heirs, '' all the uplands, meadows and grass, with the
rivers and trees," that had once been his rejoicing and his pride.
These four clans, under these leaders, with perhaps a few
fugitives from other scattered tribes, temporarily living here iu
their isolated independency, constituted the only aborigines
within the limits of Stamford, with whom the new colony had to
contend. Occasionally other tribes would sweep across the
town and leave in their track of terror some witness to their
ferocity. Single Indians would now and then steal in upon the
unsuspecting settlers and startle them with some threatened or
accomplished revenge.
While the second company of the colony were locating them
selves, a tragedy was enacted, a little to the west of the town,
which for a while threatened the very existence of the new
community. Some of the Dutch traders had stripped an
Indian who had been tempted by them to drink too much, of a
valuable dress of beaver skins. On recovering from his drunk
en fit, the insulted red man revenged himself by killing two
Dutchmen, and fled to feast his memory with the great revenge
among a distant tribe. He could not be found. The Dutch
governor at New Amsterdam, Kieft, sought an opportunitj'- to
punish the Indians for the revengeful deed. ¦ The next winter
the Mohawks fell upon two of the Hudson river tribes, and
after killing their warriors, scattered the remnant in utter d.es-
titution to find food and shelter from the piercing cold among
the Dutch" on the South. The time for a civilized revenge had
now come; and at the instigation of Kieft, with the sanction of
his counselors, more than a hundred of those helpless fugitives

104 HISIOEY OF STAMFOED.
from their savage foe, were sent from their quiet sleep on earth
to the spirit world of their race, by a blow from the Dutch
soldiers, so sudden that they could not even beg for life.
Then Indian blood was stirred. Savage vengeance awoke.
With almost electric despatch, Indian warrior pledged to Indian
warrior, and clan to clan, the direst vengeance on their foe.
"More than fifteen hundred warriors," according to De Forest,
rallied from the confederacy of eleven clans, to constitute this
avenging army. " A fierce war blazed wherever a Dutch set
tlement was to be found ; on Long Island and on Manhattan,
along the Connecticut aud along the Hudson." From Manhat
tan to Stamford the coast was desolated, Dutch and English
alike, atoning to the inexorable spirit of Indian revenge, for the
needless injuries that had been heaped upon the Indian's race.
The white race were in the ascendant. Their arms were more
than a match for the red man's muscle ; their science triumphed
over his cunning ; and the desperate Indian had only the fiendish
pleasure of dealing in his death struggles, now and then, an
avenging blow.
Within hearing distance of the Stamford settlement* were
three Dutch settlers who had excited the wrath of the restless
and brave Mayano. He nobly met them, armed as they were,
with his bow and arrows and brought two of them to the
ground. The third only saved himself by a well-directed blow
which laid the fearless savage at his feet ; and the daring of the
fallen Sachem had made the extermination of his tribe a neces
sity to the safety of the whites. A company of soldiers were
immediately dispatched to capture them. At Greenwich they
were directed by Capt. Patrick to the rendezvous of the mad
dened Indians, but on reaching it not a soul could be found.
Proceeding on into the Stamford settlement they find Patrick
with his own former comrade in arms, our Captain John Under
hill. Thoy immediate suspect him of having given the Indians
notice of their approach. They taunt him with the treachery.
'Between Greenwich and Stamford.— O'CaUaghan.

INDIAN GEANTS AND HISTOEY. 105
He who had led his trusty men so successfully against the
bravest of the New ' England savages, could not brook such
insolence from Dutchmen, even though in arms. He contempt
uously spat in the face of their leader and turned to walk away.
A pistol ball brought him to the ground in death, and the
Dutchmen returned to the pursuit of their savage foe.
Underhill, who had been no friend to the Dutch settlers, now
sympathized with their mortal hatred of the Indian enemy.
He had already signalized his bravery in the Pequod war. His
was already a name of terror to Indians far and near ; and to
his presence our Stamford colony had doubtless owed their
comparative exemption thus far from savage invasions. It was
no time for him to rest inactive when his friends and neighbors
were exposed every hour to some sudden and relentless massa
cre. He offered his services to the Dutch governor, and was
at once sent into the field. The troublesome Indians about
Stamford were the first to feel his power. With one hundred
and thirty men he started from New Amsterdam, on a cold and
cloudy morning in the February of 1644. They were able to
land at Greenwich Point, that evening, in a furious storm.
With the early dawn of the next morning the resolute Captain
was again on the march. All day did the sturdy Dutch sol
diers, under their valiant leader, plod their toilsome way
through the snow, until, at eight in the evening, they had
reached the vicinity of the hostile camp. Soon the clouds gave
way, and a clear, bright moon, flashing from the snowy crystals,
lighted their way to their horrid work. By a little after ten
they filed round the Southern spur of a ridge, stretching
toward the Northwest, and the village, a triple range of wig
wams, lay reposing before them, awaiting their attack. With
marvelous celerity, the captain circles the doomed village
with his trusty men. Now spring upon them, as hounds un
leashed upon their prey, the stalwart forms of more than a
hundred warriors, all prepared for their death grapple with the
foe. But neither their sudden rush, nor their wild war-cry,
14

100 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
could intimidate their assailants. Coolly they are received, a
tenth of them captured, and the rest impetuously hurled baick.
For a whole hour the unrelenting struggle went on. A hundred
. and thirty men wrestled in mortal strife with more than five
hundred of the enemy, and when the doomed Indians were
at length driven back within their lines of defense, one hundred
and eighty of their fallen comrades were already still and stiff
ening in the blood stained snow. Nor would' they yet raise the
flag of truce, or cry for quarter. Each undaunted spirit, left
beneath such shelter as his own or his neighbor's "wigwam
could give, continued the fight. This was the opportunity for
which Underhill was prepared. He called for fire. Torches
lighted the wigwams. Indian men, women, and children,
issuing from their burning homes, were driven back to perish
in the flames. Before the morning dawned, more than five
hundred, who, the night before, had gone to their usual rest,
were now sleeping their last sleep with the unconscious dead.
By noon, of the next day, the victors had already reached
Stamford, on their way home, having in this signal chastisement
of the Indians of this neighborhood, secured the perpetual
peace of the English settlements. From this time there would
be no gathering of clans and tribes against the now victorious
white race. Occasional depredations and stealthy and assassin
stabs, now and then, from some treacherous or revengeful red
man, would be the only further harm the colonists in this
vicinity would have to fear.
Not long was it before an illustration was given of the sav
age revenge which burned among the neighboring Indians. Just
to the north of the village, a family by the name of Phelps had
just located themselves. The husband had left the house one
morning, in the fall of 1644, leaving his wife, with an infant
child at home. An Indian, who had already made himself
somewhat notorious for his hatred of the English, had seen the
husband leave, and knew the defenseless condition of his fam
ily. He gloried in such an opportunity for vengeance. Enter-

INDIAN GEANTS AND HISTOEY. 107
ing the house, he took up a hatchet lying upon the floor, and
when the. mother bent herself, as a sheltering angel over her
defenseless babe, he savagely buried it in her brain. After plun
dering the house he left.
Again the settlers were aroused. They felt that there was
no safety for them. They rallied in large numbers to search
for the Indian. They sent messengers to New Haven and
Hartford for assistance; and were determined to avenge. the
deed so signally as to hinder the repetition of it among them .
Meanwhile, Mrs. Phelps, who survived the blow which the
Indian thought to be fatal, rallied so far as to enable her to
describe the assassin. He was at once recognized. His tribe
were at length prevailed on to give him up. He was taken to
New Haven for trial, and sentenced to death by decapitation.
Now, Busheag, the convicted savage, showed the fearlessness
and more than stoic endurance of his Indian heart. He showed
no sign of concern for himself, none of sorrow for his deed. He
asked no pardon, he simulated no regret. He promised no sup
pression of his hate or his vengeance. He looked his execu
tioner sternly in the face, as he unflinchingly received the
repeated blows which severed his head from his body.
The execution of Busheag, following so soon the signal over
throw of the Indians to the ivest of the town, rendered the sur
viving Indians more cautious and peaceful. They made a for
mal treaty of peace with the English, and pledged a due ob
servance of every usage of good neighborhood. They who
could not endure the humiliation stole away, some of them to
live for a while among the Ridgefield Indians, to the north, and
others penetrated still further into the unbroken wilderness of
the west.
During this period the utmost caution was used among the
settlers, to avoid exciting or provoking the Indians. No man
was allowed to furnish intoxicating liquors to them, under
heavy penalty. And in 1048, at the "Stamford court, it was also
ordered " yt non shall ether sell or give any of oui: English
doggs unto ye Indians at ye displeasure of ye courte."

108 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
Yet no forbearance or caution on the part of the intruders
upon these Indian domains, could long secure their immunity
from Indian revenge. The Indian felt that he and his race
were losing ground; and it is not to be wondered at, that his
hitherto unbroken spirit should rouse his utmost endeavors to
regain it.
In the autumn of 1649, a new tragedy was enacted in Stam
ford. John Whitmore, one of the most respectable of the set
tlers, who had already won a good name here, left his house
one morning to look for his cattle in the common grounds to
the west of the village. He never returned. The utmost ex
citement prevailed throughout the settlement. The most dili
gent search brought no clue to the discovery of the body.
Messengers were sent in every direction. Help was summoned
from New Haven and Hartford, but the search and help were
of no avail.
The perplexity and apprehension occasioned by this myste
rious disappearance were very extensive. The general court at
Hartford made it an occasion of serious deliberation. They
felt that none of the colonists, in any of the Connecticut settle
ments, would be secure, if such surprises were to be possible.
They enter on their record this minute, as expressive of their
convictions of what was due themselves in the perilous crisis :
" This courte, taking into serious consideration what may bee
done according to God in way of revenge of the blood of John
Whitmore, late of Stamford, and well weighing all circumstan
ces, together with the carriages of the Indians (bordering there-
vppon,) in and about the premises : doe declare themselves that
they doe judge it lawfull and according to God to make war vppon
them. This courte desires Mr. Deputy ,Mr. Ludlow and Mr. Tayle-
coat to ride to-morrow to New Haven and conferr with Mr.
Eaton and the rest of the magistrates there about sending out
against the Indians, and to make returne of their apprehensions
with what convenient speed they may."
Meanwhile the search for the body of Mr. Whitmore was
going on. By a providential arrangement, Uncas, the great
Mohegan, who for years had now been the politic friend of the

INDIAN GEANTS AND HISTOEY. 109
whites, was now, with a band of his clear-sighted warriors, in
this vicinity. So unusual was such a visitation, as to leave the
impression that his main object in the expedition was to aid the
Stamford men in their search. To this he might easily have
been induced by the Connecticut colony ; and to this he set
himself earnestly and successfully to -yj^ork.
As, nominally at least, sachem over the tribe whose limits
had once embraced all this territory, he spoke with some show
of authority. Assembling the neighboring Indians, he demanded
of them the body of the murdered man. Taphance, the son of
Ponus, and Rehoron his subject, both of whom had been sus
pected as being either the principals in the murderous deed, or
chief instigators to it, now feeling the pressure of Indian resolu
tion and fearing the consequences of further endeavors to mask
themselves in the presence of these sharp-eyed and now suspect
ing detectives, led the way into the woods directly to the
mangled remains.
It would seem that this would have been sufficient to justify
the prompt arrest of these two suspected guides. It is tyue
they denied haying any hand in the murder. They had pre
viously charged it upon Toquattoes, an Indian who had come
down from among or near the maddened Mohawks, with a deep
revenge in his soul, to be appeased by the scalp of some white
man. Meeting Whitmore alone and without defense, he had
satisfied his vengeance against the race by his sudden death,
and escaped beyond their knowledge and pursuit. But from
the day of the murder, whenever questioned by the neighbors,
these two neighboring and now suspected Indians, had shoyra
the deepest concern and fear ; and now, while leading the way
to the remains, which had already lain three months concealed,
they are seized with a terror which makes them pale with fear,
if not with conscious guilt. And yet the authorities allowed
them to escape. They concealed themselves so effectually as to
elude the officers of justice for several years.
At length, in October, 1662, Taphance is brought before the

110 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
Court of Magistrates, held in New Haven, on a warrant issued
by the governor. The trial is detailed at length in the New
Haven Colonial Records, transcribed and published by Charles
J. Hoadley, pages 458 — 463. The court decided that there
was strong grounds of suspicion against Taphance. His own
acknowledgment, his trembling, his stealing away after promis
ing help in. searching for the murderer, his suspicious looks and
actions before Uncas, were in evidence against him. The tes
timony of Mr. Whitmore's wife and children as to his fawning
manner on the yery day of Mr. Whitmore's murder, was also in
proof The testimony of Mr. Law and John Mead, who were
together when he came to Mr. Law's the second morning after
the murder, and the testimony of Richard Ambler and Goodman
Jessop, who also saw and heard Taphance at Mr. Law's, was in
proof These agreeing testimonies influenced the court to
decide, "that in ye whole there stands a blot vpon him of
suspicion ; that there was sufficient grounds for his aprehending
and comitting to durance, and all that he hath said at this time
canot clear him of a stain of suspicion ; but as being guilty of
ye murder, directly or accessory, he did pronounce him not
guilty in point of death ; but yet must declare him to stand
bound to pay all charges that hath been about him and leave
him guilty of suspicion; and that he stands bound as his duty
to doe his best endeavour to obtain ye murderer, and now to
remain in durance vntill ye next session of ye court, about a
fortnight hence, except he can give some assurance of his pay-
inge the charge before, which charge was concluded to be ten
pound." Taphance accepted the judgment of the court and promised
to do his best towards securing the murderer. He pleaded his
poverty and asked to have his chains removed, pledging himself
not to run away under forfeiture of his life. Upon which- he
was set at liberty, after providing to appear at the nest court.
No further mention ot the case appears on record. The
spirited contest between the New Haven and Connecticut juris-

INDIAN GEANTS AND HISTOEY. Ill
dictions had now commenced, and probably directed th« atten
tion of the court from all less important matters ; and when, in
1666, the Connecticut had asserted its authority over the New
Haven colony, there was probably no need of further prosecuting
the now harmless' Indians. Yet, as the following record shows,
the contest had imposed upon the infant colony a burden they
were still to bear. And that they did not shrink from acknowl
edging the claims of those who defended them against the wily
savage our records abundantly attest. The following is a sam
ple of this testimony :
"In December, 1667, the town granted Jonathan Silleck a
piece of land on the west side of the landing place, beginning
at Hardy's Hole, as a reward for his meritorious services while
engaged against the common enemy."
Evidently the neighboring Indians never again became so
formidable as to disturb the quiet or arouse seriously the fears
of the town. Throughout the century our citizens were occa
sionally called upon to aid in punishing Indians elsewhere, and
that they did good service when thus engaged we find occasional
proofs in our records.
Once more, indeed, our townsmen were somewhat apprehen
sive of danger from a foray of savages. Philip, of the Pokano-
kets, the brave son of brave old Massasoit, had witnessed with
increasing sorrow the inroads which the English were making
into the cherished hunting grounds of his dwindling race. He
could not endure it, thus to bear the doom which was settling
upon him. He rebelled against his fate. He resolved to regain his
alienated grounds, ana bring to the dust the pale-faced invader
of his ancestral rights. He maddened every Indian heart
withiti his reach to an Indian's revenge; and the English set
tlers, from the Kennebeck to the Hudson, began to see and feel
the avenging desolations of a remorseless Indian war. Driven
from his peninsular home, the outraged chieftain, swift as the
winds, yet noiseless as the flight of swallows in the air, moves
from wigwam to wigwam, and from tribe to tribe, drawing even

112 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
the hitherto peaceful Narragansett into the current of his re
morseless revenge, embittering the concealed but now inexorable
hate of the Nipmuc, the Hadley and Springfield, and all the
Connecticut river Indians, and even those still further west ;
until, within six weeks, he had pledged almost the last stout
heart and arm of Indian warrior over all the territory he had
traversed, to one final, terrible blow against the invaders of his
domain. He had done all that Indian cunning, and eloquence,
aud hate could do, and he and his awaited the issue of the
struggle. Their great, grand war-dance, ending in their wild
war-cry, left them no alternative, but the utter extermination of
themselves or their foe. June 24, 1675, had now come. The
war torch was lighted at Swansey ; and no less than twenty-
four of its peaceful citizens poured forth their life-blood, only to
whet to keener relish the thirst of the savage murderers. Sud
denly, town after town was surprised ; and to the horror of
their burning was everywhere added that of an indiscriminating
and unsparing massacre. Brookfield, Deerfield, Hadley, North-
field, Springfield, Lancaster, Medfield, Weymouth, Groton,
Marlborough, Warwick and Providence were successively
attacked. It was during the progress of these desolations of savage war
fare that our townsmen became again alarmed. No immediate
attack was threatened, but neither had the slightest signal fore
tokened the fate of either of the above named towns ; and still,
at a moment when they least expected it, the fire and the toma
hawk were doing among them their terrible work and their
doom was written in letters of blood. And why may it not be
so here was the anxious inquiry of our unguarded townsmen.
That a practical answer was made to such an inquiry is shown
in tho following record :
"In March 1672, Francis Bell, Francis Brown, and John
Green were appointed a committee to treat with the ' Engins,'
and understand what they have to say to the town, and to make
return of what they have to say to the town, that the said In
dians may receive an answer from the town."

INDIAN GEANTS AND HISTOEY. 113
What report this committee made is not to be found on record.
That it did not allay the fears which had boon excited, the fol
lowing records of a later date will show. The first of these is
found in a letter, dated Stamford, Dec. 29, 1673, and directed
to the General Court at Boston. It was intended as an earnest
plea for help :
" Wherefore, in expectation of the armies coming against this
open declared enemy we have been hitherto silent, but by the
long retard and no intelligence upon any prosecution upon that
account we are afraid (it) is laid aside, whereby we shall be
much endangered if not ruined, if your honors do not by some
speedy means relieve us, for we are frontiers and most likely
assaulted in the first place."
The above plea for help seems to have been mode jointly by
Stamford, Greenv/ich and Rye. Again, on the tenth of October,
1675, governor Andros sends word to tho governor at Hartford
that five or six thousand Indians are in league and ready to
fall ujDon Greenwich, Hartford and other places still further
east at the next full moon.
On the nineteenth of the same month he sends word that it
is rumored that the Stamford Indians aro in arms ; and he com
mends the colonists in tho state for putting themselves " in a
fitting posture for all events." What this means we may learn
from our records, which show that in March 1675 '6, Mr. Bell,
sen., John Green, Peter Ferris, John Bates and Daniel Weed
were chosen to attend to the work of fortification, according to
tho order of the council ; and another vote requires that the
stockading of the town shall be fully finished.
Under date of Sept. 22, 1676, we find the following vote :
" The town agrees that all those soldiers that went out upon
service, out of Stamford, against the common enemy, shall have
land of the town; namely, all that did service." In carrying
this vote into effect, the town then voted the following persons
these lands: to Serg. Daniel Wescott, ono and a half acre home
lot on the north side of Joseph Webb's lot. and that swamp by
the flood gate; to Thomas Lawrence an acre and a half house
15

114 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
lot on the south side of Joseph Webb's, to be laid out, having
due respect to the highway ; to Samuel Hoyt, Increase Holly,
David Waterbury, Obadiah Seely, John Waterbury, Thomas
Newman, Joseph Fish, Obadiah Stevens, Benjamin Stevens,
John Jagger, Moses Knapp, Daniel Ferris, Jonathan Seeley,
Joseph Jones and William Penoyer, severally, house lots for
their services.
At the end of the list is this record : " the town doth give
unto John Green two house lots for his sons, next to Abraham
Ambler's front, which homelots were given as they were sol
diers." In Dec. 1677, the town votes to Capt. Jonathan Sellick, "as
was upon service against the common enemy, all that piece of
land lying upon the west side of the landing place, beginning
at tho mouth of the brook commonly called Hardy's Hole, in
length to the Southfield fence^?'
The only other local record which refers to these local strug
gles with the Indians are those in which, occasionally, a citizen
asks for an appropriation for his services. The last of these
claims was preferred in 1692, when Joshua Halt asks for a piece
of land on account of his going out, a soldier, against the com
mon inimy ;" and two acres in the ox pasture were given him
" as a gratuity for his good service in the late war." At the
same time a piece of land is " layed out " to Simon Chapman,
probably for the same reason.
Already our townsmen had felt themselves relieved of fur
ther danger so that they might safely order a final disarmament
as the following record shows.
" 18 Dec. 1695, per vote outcry the town doth sell the fort
wood about ye meeting house to Stephen Clason for seventeen
shillings and nineponce." " The town by outcry doth sell ye fort
gates ye wheels of ye great guns and all ye wood belonging to
ye guns it is now sold to Nathanall Cross and Jonathan Holly
for five shillings and sixpence."
And who shall say that such was not a worthy disposal of the
last witnesses to the struggles which the pioneers of the town

INDIAN GEANTS AND IIISTOEY. US
encountered, with the race that had now almost entirely
disappeared.

CIIAPTEli vn.

ECCLESIASTICAL, 1040-1740.

That the founders of this ancient town were men of religious
principle, and that at the commencement of their settlement
here they had an ecclesiastical organization, needs no labored
proof. Their leader was a minister 'Of religion. The church
was the sacred body they were here to preserve, and tlie society
was only the appointed means for her preservation. Whether
fewer or more of the settlors here were of the select and honored
company of the saints, all felt themselves to be the authorized
defenders, and all were practically the cheerful supporters of
the church. Had not the most of them left their homes in the
fatherland from the love they bore tho church ? Had they not
already attested by their patient and heroic suffering their de
votion to the church ? And was not their very mission hither
an attempt to establish the church, where in purity .and simple
faith she might train her children by her simple and holy rituals
for the service of her divine Lord ?
We may never know how many of the first settlors were
actually members of the church when they came here. That
the most of them were afterwards united with it is more than
probable. The first church of Stamford had already been or-
g.anized in Wethersfield. Of the seven men who constituted
the Wethersfield church, we have seen that four came to Stam
ford. These were the Rev. Richard Denton, who became the
pastor of the church when transferred to Stamford, Jonas Weed,
Robert Coo and Andrew Ward. It is probable that others of

ECCLESIASTICAL. 117
the Wethersfield party, immediately on the separation, attached
themselves to the new body. How many of them may have
done SQ, or how soon, no existing records probably will ever
reveal. But, whether larger or smaller, tho church was the center and
soul of the new society here formed ; so much so, that of all the
organizations formed, that only which had for its specific aim
the care and maintenance of the temporalities of the church,
came to claim for itself the title of" The Society." And so, in
the view of those days, the very term society seemed to mean
that visible company whose most characteristic object is the
preservation and welfare of the militant church. To this organ
ization every voting man among our Stamford settlers belonged.
For its support every freeholder contributed, and this, at first,
not firom compulsion, but rather as a matter of course. The
social necessity for it was as valid and potent as any legislative
enactment could be. In Stamford, as in other of the early Con
necticut towns, the church edifice- was one of the first to be
built. Though the local records of that transaction aro now
gone probably beyond recovery, we do not need to attest the
fact. We may see the form of that rude meeting- house, not
many rods from where the present Congregational Church now
stands, almost as distinctly as though it were standing there
still. Square built and low ; its posts scarcely a dozen feet in
length ; its four roofs mooting over the centre at a hight not
much less than thirty feet ; one generous door on the front open
ing into an area which vras undivided by partition, and unseated
save with rude benches around the three sides looking toward
the minister's stand ; unadorned by art of sculpture or of paint
ing, and never relieved of summer sun by blinds, or of keenest
winter's cold by furnace or stove.
Eyes that did not fear the light- and stoutly beating hearts
that could not well be chilled, were to be provided for in that
primitive place for worship ; yet neither the movable curtain,
suspended as the movement of the sun might require, nor the

118 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
tin hand-stove with its solid coals taken right from the great
hearth-stone at home, was deemed needless or intrusive. No
bell rang out its Sabbath call from that untowered house, but
when occasion called for it, the beat of drum never failed to line
the only paths that met at its door ; and so, more promptly than
now, the gathered congregation were awaiting the solemn and
reverent invocation with which the minister was wont to open
the important service of the day.
There was sanctity in those rude materials of that pioneer
house. Hallowed place was that, where the man of God stood
his two hours each Sabbath morning, and two hours more each
Sabbath afternoon to feed those hardy pioneers with the bread
of life. Solid thoughts were those which could minister to such
hearers amid such surroundings. Nor has more acceptable
worship been paid to Him who dwelleth in temples not made
with hands, in any of the costlier sanctuaries whose graceful
spires and polished altars and cushioned seats have since that
day borne witness to the spiritual glory and power of that first
house of the Lord in Stamford.
One, only incident detracted from the pleasant and grateful
memories of that house. Tradition has it, and in this case the
witness is so respectable as to justify the record of it on these
pages, that when the assembled pioneers in our settlement had
reached the point in the raising of the building, of fastening
together the heavy timbers over its center, a lad, the son of one
of the principal citizens, was sent up to insert the key pin. He
bravely mounted to the perilous hight and his nerve failed.
" Which of the holes shall I put the pin in, father ; " asked the
lad, with wavering tones. " O, my God ! " exclaims the agon
ized father, '• my child is dead."
Turning suddenly over and falling headlong, that little boy
had sealed with his instant death, his deep interest in that house
for his parents' worship, almost before the father could give
that passionate expression to his agonized heart.
Nor was that rude and uninviting meeting house allowed to

ECCLESIASTICAL. 119
be neglected. Every settler here was expected to report him
self and his family each Lord's day. And on no account could
the people consent to have its door closed when that holy day,
the Puritan's only holiday, called them to worship. If the min
ister was sick, had they not men of " gifts in prayer." who could
" orderly lead them " in every act of reverent and acceptable
worship ? Should the minister leave them, need they abandon
their "altar of hope ? " We shall see. Lscarcely three years
had passed over the colony before some disagreement between
the minister and the people led to his removal. And what can
this isolated people do ? There were no ministers as now within
calling distance in readiness to fill such openings. Comino- to
gether, after much deliberation and prayer, the people selected
two of their most trustworthy number, Lieut. Francis Bell .and
George Slauson, furnished them with food for the way, and sent
them on foot to Boston to see if they could not find one John
Bishop, whose name had been reported to them, or some minis
ter whom they could persuade to come back with them, that so
this people might not be scattered and " suffered to sin against
the ordinances of God."
They providentially find Mr. Bishop, then a young man, on
whom was the seal of consecration and of promise, and with
much persuasion,'1rhey prevailed on him to accept this pressing
call from the Lord. Taking his staff and his well-used Bible in
his hand, h? starts with the two brethren for the field of his
labors ; and the meeting house thenceforth, as long as it stands,
bears weekly witness to his faithful and acceptable labors.
Twenty eight years did that house magnify its office. The
fathers of the town had most of them gone from its instruction
to their final rest. One generation of children had been nur
tured by its ministries up to a mature and vigorous manhood.
One generation of adults had been made strong and patient to
endure the service and fulfill the high responsibilities of their
manly years. And so, after its noble work was done, that
sanctuary of the fathers gave way to another.

120 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
But the rest and prosperity of the church during these twen-
ty-ciglit years was not uninterrupted. Their minister found
his work seriously hindered by the many trials incident to
pioneer life. It was with the people a season of extreme phys
ical activity. Their physical wants v/ere all to be supplied —
their homes were to ,be built — their lands must be cleared.
Roads must be cut throughhitherto pathless woods ; and all those
conveniences which, ordinarily, one generation finds prepared
for them by the preceding, these fathers of Stamford had to
gather about their new homes by the most unwearied industry.
Ij'.'siiles, the privations and discomforts incident to such a life
are not helpful to a true social or spiritual culture. They try
tho tempers and often seriously compromise the manners of
those who experience them. And their influence is still more
disastrous upon the condition and character of that generation
of children that are molded by them. The very rudeness and
savagery of a wilderness homo would reach the spirit and rule
to some e.v'tent, at least, tiic manners of any community exposed
to them. There is philosophy, as well as fact, in tho sharply
defined thesis of Dr. Bushnell, that barbarism is the first dan
ger of colonization. Even when the leaders of such a commu
nity are men of culture and refinement, the very hazards and
chances aud excitements of tho life itself will draw into it the
restless and adventurous and unprincipled. '
It would bo very reinai-kable, if among so many ineu as set
tled at Stamford, there should bo none who were impulsive,
wayward and insubordinate. In tho local government, commit
ted to the settlers, it would be very strange if there were not
diversity of views, both as to tlie ends to be secured, and the
methods of securing them. It would be strange if religion
itself, which pledges eventually tho peace and milleiiium of the
world should not prove in such a community a source of alien
ations and of earnest conflict; and especially v,-hen, as hi this
case, its professors alone were to hold all the responsible aud
coveted ofiices in the people's gift. '

ECCLESIASTICAL. 121
Besides, in the case of our Stamford settlers, there were
special reasons inducing disturbance. Their previous discipline
had been amid the conflict of an exciting strife. They were,
themselves, protestants, and among protestants, they had
achieved divisions. What more could be expected from them
than that sharp divisions should arise, and that heated and ob
stinate maintenance of perpetual views and opinions would
end in new animosity and feuds? When the leading men who
composed the new community had .already rendered themselves
obnoxious to the civil power in the colony from which they had
come, as several of them had, who could hope that they would
carry everything along in quiet, in the colony they were to
form? That there were immoral and dangerous mon among the set
tlers, is manifest from repeated records. That great trials came
upon the church, testing the patience and faith of tho minister
and his brethren, is also apparent. The first great division of
this body in 1644, already recorded in a preceding chapter,
though mainly a political movement, is in proof The contest
with the Quaker element is still another proof And after theso
temporary settlements,still other troubles introduced themselves,
to such extent as to threaten more serious disaster to the use
fulness and existence of the church.
At the May session of the general court in New Haven in
1059, report is brought that Mr. Bishop at Stamford finds so
much discouragement that he thinks of leaving his post.
The court refer to Mr. Bell, then one of the deputies from
Stamford for his account of the matter. He acknowledged the
existence of evils, but thinks the pastor should be sustained
and encouraged. After giving the report due attention, the
court declared that if no reformation should be reported from
Stamford, they would send down a commission to examine the
case, ascertain the cause of the comjilaints, and remove what
ever may " hinder the work of God " under Mr. Bishop's care,
16

122 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
adding this quaint reason for their decision : " for if the minis
try and ordinances fall, what will the people do ?"
The same case appears again in the October court of magis
trates. Mr. Bishop, in the presence of two of the brethren of
the church, made a formal statement of the " uncomfortable
unsettled state of the affairs of the church and town." The
court advised and ordered : that on returning home, they should
seek, within twenty days, some effectual course of making a
satisfactory settlement of their difficulties among themselves.
They were then to forward to court a certified record of such a
settlement. If they could not effect the settlement, within that
time, two of the magistrates and two of the telders, (pastors),
should be sent down before winter, if the weather should prove
suitable ; if not, then early in the spring, to help towards the
settlement. In May, 1660, at the request of Mr. Bishop, the general court
desired Rev. Mr. Davenport, of New Haven, and Pierson, of
Guilford, to go to Stamford " to afford their counsel and help
for the well settling of their church affairs." These elders were
to have " a man to attend upon them at the j urisdiction charge,
excepting expenses at Stamford, which were to be paid by the
Stamford peoj)le. I have found no record of the meeting held
in Stamford by the court then appointed, but that they did not
heal all the difficulties existing between the pastor and the
people, is evident from another petition from Mr. Bishop and
others, sent to the general court at their session in May 1662.
The court authorized the governor, William Leete, and magis
trates Fenn, of Milford, and Crane, of Branford, to repair to
Stamford, with the authority of any plantation court, extraor
dinarily assisted, to settle any matters in controversy there.
And by such methods the disturbing elements at work in the
church and community were apparently overruled or expelled,
and further and more serious evils averted.
Meanwhile, from the increase of j)opulation, the old meeting
house had become too strait for their accommodation, and

ECCLESIASTICAL. 123
doubtless, also, was felt to be too rude for their improved con
dition. If the Lord's people were now beginning to dwell in
their ceiled houses, it was every way fitting that they should
honor the place of their worship. No one, probably, had yet
thought of such a result as a division of the territory into
two or more parishes ; and there was no serious thought of any
other denominational service to' divide ,the people. And so the
necessity, besides that of repairing, of enlarging, also, the
Lord's house, began to press upon them. The steps taken
towards this measure, will show how inseparable the civil and
ecclesiastical matters of the colony were.
The first public vote on record is that of March 1069, at a
town meeting, orderly warned, when it was voted that there
shall be a new meeting house built. Voted, also, " that this
new meeting house, before mentioned, shall be a stone meeting
house." And so, not the congregational church for its sectarian uses
merely, but all the dwellers in the town, with a unanimity
which on no other subject will they ever again attain, agree to
enlarge and improve the House of the Lord. There must be
room in it for all who shall dwell within its reach. From the
Reeds, near '" the stadle by the oke tree," on the margin of the
Rowalton, to the Crabbs, who live on the outskirts of the
parish, near where the Mianus seeks its cove, all the dwellers
on hill top and in vale, must be provided with at least one place
of resort. Did they not all of them need the instructions of the
sanctuary ? Had not the tvhole community with one voice, and
with a hearty godspeed, sent those venerable fathers. Bell and
Slawson, on foot, through the wilderness, out to the Massachu
setts colony, to procure a man who should be to them and their
children a religions teacher and spiritual guide ? And how
could he ever accomplish the work to which they had called
him without a larger and better house for worship ?
Accordingly, in October of the same year with the above
votes, a committee was .appointed by the town, (Mr. Law, Good-

124 HISTOEY OF STAMFORD.
man Holly, Goodman Webb, Goodman Ambler, and Joshua
Hoyt,) and invested with full power from the inhabitants of the
town " to make a bargain with a workman, and so to agree
with him as to suit men's convenience in point of pay, and if
they cannot get a house built with stone they have liberty to
get it done with timber, and to endeavor to get it done with as
ranch speed as they can with convenience." '
On Feb. 18, 1670, of this year, the town decided to rescind
the former votes, and resolved to repair the old meeting house
" forthwith for the safety of the town." This decision seems
not to have been satisfactory to the town, any more than the
former one. At any rate, if rejDairs were made, they must have
proved their own insufficiency ; for again, on the 25th of the
same month, a vote is passed to build a new meeting house.
On the 26th of the next month, Mr. Law, Left. Bell, goodmen
Holly, Ambler and Newman have " full power committed to
them to procure a stone new meeting house, and to fully finish
agreement with the workman that hath been treated with ; and
to have an oversight of the work, and to choose overseers and
to call men and teams forth to get stones and other necessary
things." The house was to be " for the worship of God, accord
ing to the word of God," and was to be thirty feet square.
In September, provision is made to assess the cost of the
meeting house equitably on the town ; the vote respecting the
form of the house is reconsidered, and instead of thirty feet
square it is changed to forty-five feet in length and thirty-five
in breadth, " with a house roof, abating two feet in the Light
of the wall, from the first figure, viz : twelve teet hight."
In the following January, 1671, they vote that the "ould
meeting house shall be taken down forthwith by a committee
called forth by Joshua Halt."
In April, finding it impossible to come to any agveement in
the town, they resolve to leave the determination of the form
or figure of the church to the solemn decision of God in the
casting of lots. They only decided that if the lot should re-

ECCLESIAS'TICAL. 125
quire the house to be square, it should be thirty-eight feet
square and the posts twelve feet ; and that there should be a
funnel on the top, of such hight and size as the committee
should direct. Then follows this record as a part of the doings
of that town meeting ; " The solemn ordinance being as above
had, the lot carried it for a square meeting house as above."
Under such auspices the new house was erected. It was en
trusted to the sole management of the committee appointed in
April of the preceding year. In ease they needed advice of the
town, provision was made for them to call a legal meeting
" about an hour by sun in the evening," and whatever the major
part of the voters who should gather within a half hour of the
summons should decide upon, if not in conflict with the previous
vote of the town, should be deemed valid.
The way was now clear for a new house, and without needless
delay, it was doubtless completed. It must have been a great
improvement upon the old one, in size at least, if not in archi
tectural proportions. It must have constituted the most notice
able work of art in the town. There could have been nothing
else here comparable to this- pyramidal block, with its triple
stories ascending, as if to furnish a trinity of steps heavenward.
For more than half a century it was the only house of Avorshiji
in the town. In it, six ministers, John Bishop, Eliphalet Jones,
John Davenport, Ebenezer Wright, Noah Welles, D. D., and
John S.* Avery, none of .them unworthy the sacred trust, made
proof of their fitness for their work. About two generations of
the entire town, and four of the congregation of the first church
of Christ in Stamford, here received their spiritual training, -and
from its training went to their final account.
It must have been in this meeting house that the first bell in
Stamford was hung. There is no record, I think, of this trans
action now existing, but tradition is very distinct as to an
accident which occurred at the hanging- of the bell. It hung
over the center of the house and had to be raised up through
the buildinsr. Just as it had reached the frame which was to

126 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
support it, the rope which held it gave way and the bell fell to the
floor, killing instantly Mr. John Holmes, the great-great grand
father of John Holmes, Esq., of New Hope district, recently
deceased. This meeting house was subject to a regulation,
peculiar to that age, which would hardly be endured by the
descendants of those who required it. We find the regulation,
which in the language of that day was called the " orderly
seating of the meeting house," provided for in the following
enactment :
"The town order that the inhabitants shall be seated in the meeting
house by the following rules, viz : dignity, agge and estate in this present
list of estate ; and a committee shall be chosen to attend it forthwith ; the
committee, Capt. Jonathan Selleck, Lieut. Fra. Bell, Lieut, Jona'th Bell,
Joseph Theale and Joseph Garnsy, who have full pon-er to seat the inhab
itants as above."
By special note, 25th, 2mo., 1673, " Mr. Law, lef. Senor. Bell
and William Newman, are chosen committy to seat the women
in the mooting house." I think this is the only time when the
ladies wore so signally honored. Certainly, I find no other
similar records.
But the now meeting house required other changes. The
pastor, Mr. Bishop, either from temporary failure of his health,
or from the excessive burdens of his extensive parish, reaching
as it did from Norwalk out to the borders of New York, found
it necessary to secure a helper in his work. A Mr. Eliphalet
•lones seems at this time to have been in Greenwich, engaged
probably as a sort of evangelist, and his labors were within the
jurisdiction of the Stamford church. He was, also, very accept
able to the Stamford people. Fearing, doubtless, that his
acceptable services among the Greenwich settlers would even
tually lead to a new parish, and unwilling to have such a diver
sion, the TOWN pass a vote. May 3, 1672, to give Mr. Jones an
invitation to be a minister of the gospel in this place, " if he
remove from Greenwich."
In November of this year he is " accommodated with a piece
of land in his own right," provided he settle here in the work
of the ministry. At the same time Mr. Law, Mr. Holly and

^ , ECCLESIASTICAL. 127
Jonathan Selleck, are chosen to treat with tho Greenwich men
" about their compliance with Stamford for the upholding of
the ministry in this place." Mr. Jones evidently accepted the
proposal from Stamford, and tho next year a house is provided
for him at the town charge. A vote is also passed that " the
town doth agree to give one hundred pounds yearly unto the
ministry in this place as long as there be two ministers in the
place." Mr. Jones remained here probably until 1676, as at
that time the town by vote return to the former ministerial
rate, voting only the sum, sixty pounds, which Mr. Bishop was
to have.
No other attempt seems to have been made to employ an
assistant to Mr. Bishop during his life. No change of much
importance took place in the parish. The Greenwich men wore
required to pay their rates for the support of the gospel here,
and there was no serious resistance on their part to the neces
sity. One of the votes of this period is so characteristic that we
will record it. Its date is Dec. 2, 1680:
" The town doth grant unto the ministry iu this place sixty pounds for
the present year ; one-third part in wheat, one-third part iu porke, and
one-third part in Indian corn; winter wheat 5s. per bush., summer wheat
4a. 6d., and porke at 3|d. per pound, all good and merchantable, and In
dian corn 2s. 6d. per bushel."
Under such pay it would seem that the church and society
continued to prosper. The congregation increased and again it
became necessary to re-arrange the seating of tho house or build
a larger one. The former course was adopted, and in Novem
ber 1689, the seats of the house were by vote of the society
turned round and the pulpit set at the north side of the house.
At this period the town meeting house had another office to
subserve. It was evidently the theory of that early day that
the house of the Lord intended the temporal as well as the
spiritual welfare and safety of the people. Our citizens drew
from it the weapons and motives of the carnal as well as spirit
ual warfare, as the following record of June 7, 1681 will testify:

128 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
" Pr vote, a convenient place should be made in the meeting
house for receiving the town ammonision. Left. Jonathan Bell
is chosen to take care of the ammonision."
In November, 1692, it appears that the ministers of the county
had proposed to the Stamford men to join with the Greenwich
mon in " carrying on the works of God there ; " but by vote the
town declared that they cannot see cause to concur with their
motion. And so for a while the matter was dropped.
A single congregation at the center was all that the town
felt needful, excepting occasionally when extra religious ser
vices were held at private residences in other parts of the ex
tended. parish. One pastor continued to keep watch over this
large flock, and nothing appears to show that his ministrations
and caro were not acceptable to the people.
But tho newly seated meeting house soon became too strait
ened, as the first had been, and the congregation needed more
room. The first stop towards this result seems to have been
taken May 13, 1691, when the town voted "to alter the seats
so as to make them seat more persons." The only restriction
put upon the action of the committee -was to leave the pulpit
where it had stood before, and to make no breach in the wall.
This change was probably made, and the congregation was duly
reseated' by the usual committee.
And now, the good bishop, who so long had kept spiritual
watch over this widely scattered people began to feel the infirm
ities of age pressing upon him. At the town meeting held
Sept. 12, 1692, he expresses an earnest desire that they would
find some one to relieve him. It is equally due to Mr. Bishop
and to tho history of the times to record the action of that
meeting. It will be borne in mind that it was the action not of
a mere ecclesiastical society, nor of a church, but of the town
of Stamford.
"The town desire iu compliance with his motion, being also .sensible of
their own necessity, do therefore think it their duty, first, to settle a main
tenance upon Mr. Bishop, that may be to him yearly paid, during his life
time, in case we have a supply of another minister."

ECCLESIASTICAL. 129
I
Tliey then vote the annuity of forty pounds, to be paid in
rate and specie, that is in such products as had been customary
before. "Furthermore, in pursuance of this work, for a supply of another minis
ter it is the desire and mind of the town to endeavor by advice and endeavor
necessary otherwise, to procure an able, faithful, orthodox ministerj. in
judgment to comply with and act, so far at least, according to the synod~in
New England, in the year 1662."
They next vote fifty pounds to be paid annually to another
minister during Mr. Bishop's life ; and appoint Captain Selleck
and Lieutenant Bell to advise with the ministers of the county
respecting a suitable man for settlement here.
The only other votes recorded which testify to the continued
acceptability of Mr. Bishop here, are occasional gifts of land to
him in his own right. In December, 1667, they, vote to free his
estate from the annual minister's rate or tax. In 1681 tliey
donate to him by vote the fortification wood about the meeting
house, and during the same year make his salary seventy
pounds. They then add as a guide to their committee, " that the min
ister who shall be brought into the town shall be called to
office in convenient time ; and such ministers as shall come,
sh,all promise to the church and town to' take office charge upon
him." In November, 1692, the town by vote manifest their desire to
have Mr. John Davenport, of New Haven, for their minister ;
and appoint Abraham Ambler, Daniel Weed and Joseph Tur
ney to treat with him and report to the town. In December of
the same year they again express their cojifidence in him as the
man for the place, and are glad that he does not discourage
their hopes. They commission their committee to engage him
to come among them for trial and promise to furnish him with
." suitable maintenance and satisfaction."
On the loth March, 1692-3, the town "at a full meeting,
being duly warned, and also more fully by warrant from au
thority added, * * * do now further order and appoint a
17

130 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
committee to manage this affair, to treat with Mr. Davenport
in order to a settlement in this place as a minister of the Gosjiel
amongst us ; * * and they have power to agree with him
and provide for his comfortable settlement in respect of house
and lands, and what else is needful for his encouragement the
coirimittee have full power to do according to their best discre
tion and the town's ability; and that the matter be forthwith
attended." The committee were : Capt. Selleck, Left. Bell, Mr. Ambler,
Mr. Jonat. Selleck, Serj. Samuel Halt, Daniel Weed, Serj. David
Waterbury, Jonas Weed, sen., and Mr. John Selleck.
In April they also vote, " the town doth ingage to finish the
pasinedge house, fence in the lott, digg a well, plant an orchard
and give it to Mr. John Davenport when he is a settled minis
ter in Stamford."
In July, 1693, the town vote to Mr. Davenport, when he
shall be a settled minister, one hundred pounds a year. They
vote further to give him " ten pounds a year during Mr. Bishop's
life," that is to say, ten pounds to be added to the sixty pounds
if Mr. Davenport doth settle in a family before J[r. Bishop's
death. They then vote to send for Mr. Davenport, whenever
and however will best suit him. The last vote of this date is
characteristic. " The town by vote doth give and grant to Mr. John Daven
port, when he is settled here in a family, his firewood, which is
to be done in a general way and not by rate upon the town,
and to be done when the townsmen do order a day or two in
the year for it ; further it is to be understood that it is to be
done by the people of the town, all male persons from sixteen
years and upwards."
On the 18th of December following, they vote to Mr. Daven
port " forty pounds for the time he has been here in Stamford
and until the next March." They vote also to Mr. Bishop fifty
pounds for the year. They renew their desire that Mr. Daven-

ECCLESIASTICAL. 1 ,3 1
port be called to take office, and this desire was answered by
his settlement by ordination here in the following year.
In conformity to the vote of July 17,1693, respectino- fire
wood, we find the following vote of Oct. 23, 1696, in which
" the town do now further order that every inhabitant of this
town shall cut and carry to Mr. Davenport for his use a o-ood
ox load of good wood to be done by the last of November an
nually, upon the penalty of the forfeiture of four shillings to be
paid to the town by the person neglecting his duty herein."
Mr. Ambler was appointed to take account of the wood .and
report to the town. These votes were repeated almost annually
during Mr. Davenport's ministry.
That this duty was not always promptly discharged the sub
sequent record shows. Under date of Mar. 25. 1096, we find
this record: "per vote, John Slason, senior, and Increase Holly
are impowered to appoint a day and to call forth those men yt
are behind to attend ye work of getting and bringing wood to
Mr. Davenport, and to doe it as soon as may be."
And that the town were jealous lest their minister should be
wronged, we find proof on the records, of the same date, in this
vote: "the town impower Daniel Scofield, sen., and Jonas
Weed, jun., to order those men that are behind in the fence of
Mr. Davenport's pasture, to make up the posts, and if they shall
neglect to do it up, then to hire men to set it up and to strain
for the pay according to law."
In the year 1698, an incident occurred here illustrating so
clearly the religious and ecclesiastical character of the times,
and also the position and character of Mr. Davenport as a min
ister in the county, that we will let the record speak for itself.
For the record I am indebted to the kindness of Rev, Joseph
Anderson, one of Mr. Davenport's successors in the pastorate.
It was found in a manuscript volume detailing the journeys of
Roger Gill and Thomas Story between Rhode Island and Caro
lina in 1698. They were members of the proscribed sect, of
Quakers, and were bent on propagating their religious tenets.

132 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
After describing their journey from Philadelphia to Westches
ter, in the State of New York, the journal continues as follows:
"Ye next day we sat forward, ye land way, for new Ingland— 2 friends to
bear us Compn'y. Came yt Evneing to a tovn Caled Stamford iu Conaok-
teook Colony — it being a prity larg bvt a very dark tovn ; not a frind liv
ing in all yt provenc, as we had hard of, nather wovld they sofer the testy-
mony of trvth to be declared amonght them, nor had it ever bin declared
— they being Eiged prespetrions or independents, I know not whither, but
one thing I am shure of, they had one father, so we went to an Inn. I
asked ye woman of ye hows if yt .shee wovld be willing to sufer a meting to
be in her hovs. She said yes, she wovld not deny no sivel Company from
coming to her hovs. now I felt a Grat power and wight of darkness, so yt
I Could not be Clear in my spearet to peas thorow ye town of Stamford.
and thar for I sent those frinds yt war with us to go and invite ye peopel to
com to our inn, for we ware of those peopel Caled qoekers, and we had som-
thing to say to them, and whilst our frinds went to invite the peopel, we
went to aqvint ye Jvstes of ye town of our intencons, and to open ovr
minds to him, for he was a independent, and seemed to be somwhot mod
erated before v/e parted with him — who answered us thvs, I will not spek
mvch to you, for we heve a low yt no qvaker shal prach ; so I will not tol
erate yov. then he aded ye word. bvt. imploying as much as he wovld wink
at ye meeting. So we appoynted a meetii g to be next day at ye 9 ovr. So
when ye tim Came, saveral of ye peopel cam acording to ye time : a Con-
stabel Cam with them, with a warant to Comand us to go ovt of ye town,
being filed with surallvs words and bed names, Cemanding ye peopel to
depert, and Comending yo women of ye hovs not to sufer us toprech in her
hovs. so thomas stod vp to shov ye vnresnapelnes of ye werant, and with
all disered a Copy, but it Covld not be granted, then when thomas had
spak a few words to yt pvrpvs, I was moved to stand vp and to spek to ye
peopel. then Came ye Constable, Comanded me in ye governer's name to
to be silent, and pvshed me ovt of ye hovs by my arm. but ye pover of ye
Lord yt wos vpon me wovld not be silesent by him. so when he had haled
me ovt of ye hovs, ye sperit and pover of ye Lord Cam vpon me, and I lift
vp my vovs in ye streets, cryed ovt. wo. wo. wo. vnto all ye inhabetenc of
ye tovn of Stamfort, who hold a profeshon of Christ ovt of ye Life of Christ.
this Chry, with some other words to ye same pvrpos so alarmed ye peopel
yt ye hovl body of ye tovn hard; and meny of them being gathered to
gether, I had time to easey my speret a monght them, then after I was
easey, we Eetvrned to ovr inn, when saverall of their dispvtants Came to
disspote, who wos very fvrvs at first, pvt war so handeled by thomas vpon
saveral poynts, bvt espesaly vpon Election and repprobation, yt svm Con-
fesed svm trvths and departed very calm— ye Lords trvth yt day wos over
them. So being both Clear of ye town, -R-e Cam yt night to farefeeld.
Lodged at philiph Lewies."
"Ye next day ther wos a Lectverheld at faerfeld, by 7 preests, and to it
wos gathered abvndanc of peopel: and finding a Consarn to Com vpon my
sperit to visit yt people at their lectver— for I wos mvch boved vnder ye
Consern— tovld thomas, who wos wiling to go with mee. So up to their
meeting wee went, but went not in vntil ye singing of their song was over:
then in we went, and vp towards ye pvlpit I want, thomas fovUing of me.
I looked stidfastly vp to ye pvlpit, wher w-er 5 preests sitting; and to sat
below, then ye ovld preest took his text ovt of ye profet Isaiah. Iv.

ECCLESIASTICAIi. 133
first, second, ye words wor Com, bye wine and milk, without money and
without priser, fovUoing with these three heads — first, wherefore spend ya
j'Ovr mony for yt which is not bred, and your labor for yt which satisfleth
not? harkeu diligently vnto me, and eat ye yt which is good, and let yovr
sovl delight itself in fatnes: Secondly, incline yovr ear and come vnto me,
hear and yovr sovl shall Live: thirdly, Christ sends ovt his sarvents by his
Sperit, with a free invitation to ye peope [1], but ye make excuses. So wee
stood still to here him make ovt his sarment: and poore man, to give him
his dew, he mad it with no small labor, as wel as no Litel terer; for he
drove it on like Pharoah Charats whilees very heavily, so when he had
mad an end, I being moved of ye Lord stood vpon a form wher I might
both be seen and hard both of preests and peopel. then I spake as follveth
to ye peopel: freinds, yov heve all seen this day yt I heve hard yovr mines-
ter with peachenc, neither heve I iuteropted him nor mad any disturbance:
therefore I disire yc same Christian Liberty of you : for I heve somthing
from the Lord to deliver a mounght yov. then were ye peopel very still.
so then I began with thos words yt ye preest took for his text, but befor I
had spoken them, down Came ye preests ovt of ye pvlpet. Like disstraoted
men. oue Cried ovt, wher ye povers of ye Church ? wher are ye magis
trates? what, is ther no Constabels here to take him away? another of
them Interrapting me sad, Sur, yov are not called to be a minister to this
peopel. whereupon I asked him by whot he was filed, prepered and called
to ye worke of ye ministry, he sad, by ye voice of ye peopel. then I spek
with a loud vice to ye peopel, bad them take notes yt (;heir minister sad yt
he wos fited, pi-epored and Called to ye work of ye miuistro by their voyces .
wherevpon the preest wovld heve denied it, saying, yov cat[c]h me. then
ovld preest yt preohed the sarmant Caught me by my hand, saying, dear
sor Come dovn. who strooking my hand aded, dear sor, I prey come down,
ye peopel are well satisfied, bvt abovt this a Constabel Came to me and
wovld heve pvled ma down bacward. then up steps one of the hearers, as
thomas told me, and pvUed him from me. So by this time the first pieest,
whos name is John devenport had mvstered vp one Jvstes & to Constabels,
who by vilence pvled me dovn, hailing ovt of ye meeting. I spak thes
words to the peopel. 0 ueopel, fear and. dread ye Lord God, and mind ye
Light of Christ in yovr Consencenes yt will show yov yovr state & will let
yov see what sperit yovr ministers are of. So when I wos ovt of their meet
ing I demended my liberty, but they sad no. then ye Jvstes Comending
ye peopel to depert, some of them did, bvt others wovld not. allso he
Comended ye Constabels to take me into a back lane wher my voyce should
not be hard: for I speke to ye peopel as he haled me a longe and several
fovled us into ye lane . . then thomas desered to know by what Low ye
proseeded against vs. they sad they had a Low yt no quakers shovld prech
a movnght them, then I demanded to see their warant. they sad they had
none. So I comended my liberty, as they wovld answer it, Caled to ye
peopel 'to know their nams, who wer very Eedy to tell vs their names.
then they leet me goo. so vp to ye meeting hovs green I went, where wer
sevrall hondreds standing, then a peesebel & a Good time I had amonght.
ye Lords pover Came over them, saverall were soled, some tendered. So
when I had Clered my sperit amovnght them, Greet pees I witnesed whith
ye Lord.
" So when I was Clere, thomas felt somthing vpon his mind, to speek to
ye preests. so we tovld ye peopel of it, asking into -ft'hat hovs they wer
gon they into ye percons. so we fovUoed them ; & I do beleve an hondred

134 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
of ye beds of ye seven perishes fowUoed us. So Coming to ye hovs we
went ill. ye preests wer in a Larg room, seeing vs met vs, taking vs by yo
hand invited kindly to dine wh them, tovld vs we shovld be as weleorae as
any of them yt wer ther yt day. bvt we refvesing, they sad, why wovld
wee not ? why should ther be any diference in society alltho ther might
be some in pi-inoebles. then I sad, had wee met with a Christian sperit
amonght yov, we might have dined with yov: but inasmuch as we did not
mett with a sperit of humanity, how covld we heve any society ? & as we
had not interopted them in their worship nother wovld we; so we wovld
withdraw to ovr inn, tel ther diner wos ended, and Come up to them ageyn.
So weejoame to them; ye peopel stil remened abovt ye hovs, went unto ye
hovs with vs. So then after a few bantering words we receved from preest
devenport, thomas fell into a diipute with devenport abovt babtisem, which
hald more than on over: and had not thomas binn interupted by ye rest of
ye prests, devenport had confesed babtisem as they held it, to be a Eellik
of popery, whervpon, I being much greeved to see ther unfar delings
with us — for I had mad an agreement with them yt ther shpvld be no inter-
option between them on either side, before all ye peopel — then I spake to
ye peopel, saying, let ye evidence of gods sperit in all yovr harts bear wit
ness between vs & them this day. moreover I sad we wer here to vindicate
ye thruth agenst all vnthrvth, ading with a lovd vovice befor them all sad,
senc they had bin so vnfar, if yt they wovld call vp j-e Congregation to
gether, wee wovld tary to days in town, & wovld prove yt babtisem as yt
hald it not to be [neither ?] instituted by Christ nor eny of his abostels, nor
practised, bvt not one man mad one word of an answer, all being sHent.
so after a litel pawes, they sad they had a select meting; therefor they dis-
iered vs to withdrew — their time was spent. So then, after a few words
wee parted with them, ye peopel wer Loveing to vs and one Justes of ye
peece f jUoed vs, & sad, frinds, yov hsve incovnted with a body of divinity
to-day. So we took hors & a way wo Came yt night to Stratford: & had
greet peece with ye Lord."
No noticeable changes occur in the next few years, Mr. Dfj.'
venport seems to have won the esteem and confidence of the
people, and to have stood high among his brethren in the
county. The congregation increased to the full capacity of the
house and at length beyond the possibility of being seated.
Resort is now had to " galeries," for which provision was made
in Mar. 1700. When the galleries were done a committee were
to reseat the people. But the old meeting house was not to be
made roomy enough for the growing congregation. A vote is
passed, July 8, 1702, to build a new meeting house next fall,
fifty feet square, of customary hight, where the pound stands.
Major Selleck, Capt. Selleck, Dea. Halt, Left. Waterbury, Dan
iel Scofield, sen., Sergt. Webb, Sergt. Knap, Mr. Stephen Bishop
and Ensign Holly, are made the building committee, with in
structions to get the shingles at home and have them of cedar.

ECCLESIASTICAL. 135
In May, 1703, they vote to raise the meeting house as soon as
conveniently it may be; and as late as Nov. 14, 1705, we find
this vote : that when the floor is laid and fitted to meet in, the
pulpit and seats shall be removed to the new, for the present.
But a far different use was to be assigned to the old floor of
that hallowed house. The town had just voted to repair their
mill-dam ; and as mill-dam and churches were equally the care
of the town, the good economy is practiced of voting to use
the " pauke flore " of the old meeting house, on the dam.
It would seem that this third house of worship had no bell
as provision was made in 1707 for beating the drum in the
"ferrate" (turret) of the new meeting house for one year, and
to begin the first of March next.
The " orderly " seating of the congregation in this meeting
house was still deemed of so much importance that the follow
ing provision was made for it, in full town meeting, July 4,
1710; " The town by vote do agree for the more orderly seating of the meeting
house that these rules be observed in the seating thereof: first, that it be done
in proportion to the whole of its charge by which the house was built, and
finished, as may appear by those lists of Eastates by which the several
rates or levyes were raised for the defraying the charge of the same ; also
that a christian due regard be had unto, aud suitable respect given unto
civil authority, age and military commission office, commissioned by the
court. "
To do this delicate work the same town meeting duly ap -
pointed Major Jonathan Selleck, Deacon Samuel Hoyt, Mr.
Daniel Scofield, sen., Mr. Elisha Holly and Mr. Joseph Bishop.
In another vote the meeting provided that " the major part
of the committee agreeing," shall have power to order
the seating, and they are to do it as soon as convenient.
There is no record of the seating, as above directed, but very
frequently at this period the town voted as a special honor the
use of the first seats to those of the citizens whose dignity
would bear such promotion.
There is this special provision made in 1722, that . " the town
do grant that the pew at the east end of the gallery shall befor

136 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
the proper use and benefit of Mr. Davenport's family, forever,
he bearing the charge and cost thereupon."
In 1757, the society vote that "Jonathan Waterbury, lieut.
Weed and capt. Weed are ordered to set in the fore pew in the
meeting house ; and Caleb Smith and Joseph Webb in the sec
ond pew, and capt. Pcirre Fitch, in the fore seat."
But in the growth of the town, all of the citizens still main
taining their connection w-ith this congregation, this house, as
its predecessor had done, soon became too small, so that in
1723 it was necessary to build extra galleries. At this time
Capt. Samuel Hayt, and Capt. Jonathan Hayt were " to take
their place to set in the second pue ;" and Samuel Weed in the
fore seat.
At this date also aj^pears the curious provision which was
made to accommodate those who had come from a great dis
tance to meeting. The town gave James Slason permission
" to sot up a house for ye advantage of liis having a place to go
to on Sabbath days, at ye west end of Mr. Blachly's shop."
" The town grants to James June and all that live at Larence's
farm to set up a house upon the town's land on the west side of
Ebenezer Weed's lot to " a Commodate for their conveniency
of coming to meeting on the Sabbath day."
It is the tradition that a part of the house, recently removed
from the northwest corner of Main and Atlantic Streets, occu
pied by the Jarvis family, was originally built as a " Sabbath
day house," for the comfort of families coming from a distant
part of the parish.
It would seem from the records that at this period an
nnsteady currency was the occasion of much trouble between
the pastor and the people. This seems to have been the occa
sion of the only variance between Mr. Davenport and the par
ish. It was to come to some mutual understanding respecting
the obligations of the parish, that, in 1725 Mr. Davenport re
quested of the town their understanding of the contract regard
ing his pay in money — whether they were not to pay money

ECCLESIASTICAL. 137
" fully to answer two thirds of one hundred and thirty pounds,
according to the known reckoning of our place." " Answered
by the town : that upon the payment of the town to Mr.
Davenport, eighty-six pounds thirteen shillings and four pence
money, doth fully answer the town's obligation to Mr. Daven
port of a hundred and thirty pounds i^ay."
Again, in Feb. 1728-9, by vote, Mr. Davenport was "intro
duced" into the town meeting and allowed to state his under
standing of the contract above referred to. Dea. John Hoyt,
Jona. Maltby and Jona. Bates were chosen to " Discors " with
him, relating to his " Sallory." They proposed arbitration to set
tle the difference, Mdiich ivas negatived. Thoy propose an addi
tion to the above sum,w-hich was also negatived, whereupon Mr.
Davenport submits in writing his statement and demand. On
this, tho meeting adjourned to the 14th instant. At this meet
ing they vote the additional sum, forty-three pounds six shillings
and eight pence, to be paid in current bills of credit or in pro
vision at price current.
Capt. .lona. Hoyt, Samuel Blachly, Samuel Weed, Benjamin
Weed, and .lonathan Pettit entered, a protest agahist the neg
ative vote of the previous meeting.
Feb 18, 1731, fifteen days after the death of Mr. Davenport,
a special town meeting was called. Capt. Bishop was chosen
moderator and deacon Hoyt was to assist him. The town had
been plunged into universal grief by the late sore
bereavement. Scarcely any calamity of that day could
compare with it. So thought, at least, the fathers of the
town as they came together. They felt their need of
Divine comfort and guidance. Their first vote, and every vote,
showed that their only hope was in the faithful God, whoso
ambassador they had so recently lost. These were thoughtful
and appropriate words, in which, by vote, they express this
conviction: " By vote the town ageee that there shall be a
day of humiliation kept, and to call in such ministers to assist
in the work as shall be thought needful." 18

138 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
They appoint the first Wednesday in the following month as
the day, and appoint Capt. Bishop, Dea. John Hoyt, and Capt.
Jonathan Hoyt a committee to make the needed preparations.
They also impower this committee to advise with the elders re
specting a minister, and also to invite in a minister to be accepted
by the town.
They adjourn to the first Tuesday of April. At this meeting
they vote to give Mr. Sherman " something further of tryall in
order to settlement." There were ninety-four votes and twenty-
one blanks, making at that meeting one hundred and fifteen
voters on the question of settling a minister. One more meet
ing was held by the t&wn in May, and the committee was in-
cre.ased by adding Capt. Samuel Hoyt and Jonas Weed. This
enlarged committee were authorized to hire a minister " for a
day or more as there shall be occasion."
And now occurs a change in the administration of civil aud
ecclesiastical affairs. They are separated in 1731. The former
are managed in what are henceforth called society meetings,
and the latter in town meetings. The same book, however,
contains, down to 1759, the records of both meetings. The
same moderator presides, and the same scribe officiates at both.
The same page will show, in two separate records, what was
done in the town, and what was done in the society meetings.
In 1760 a new book was procured, and from this time the
records of the society are kept separately from those of the
town. Joseph Bishop, who, since 1738, had been clerk both of
the town and society, is continued still for one year as clerk of
the society, when his office was given to Abraham Davenport,
who was sworn in to the fiiithful performance of its duties.
The first of the meetings of the society proper was held July
28, 1731. It had been orderly w-arned according to law. Dea
con Hoyt was its moderator and Samuel Weed its clerk. It
was called on the minutes a " Sosiatys " meeting.
" Mr. Right " was, by an " almost unanimous " vote, invited
to become the minister of the tow-n. In September, at an

ECCLESIASTICAL. 139
adjourned meeting the vote was unanimous in favor of Mr.
Right. They engage to buy him a homelot and build him a
" credable Decent Dwelling house," and pay him a salary of
150 pounds. This meeting- adjourned to the annual tow-n meet
ing in December. Mr. Ebenezer Wright accepted the call thus
made to him. In the December meeting arrangements
were made for his settlement. They set apart the third of the
following May as a day for humiliation and prayer, and the
seventh, for the ordination of Mr. Wright, now pastor elect.
The society now takes upon itself, also, the care of the schools.
This year the record shows there were five schools in the town :
tho center school, the one over the Noroton, the one west of
Mill river, the Simsbury, and the Newfield schools. At the
society's meeting, in December 1733, Mr. Wright being now
fairly installed, a new "seating" of the people was ordered.
The committee, in discharging this trust, were to consider the
former charge of building the house, and the charge of making
the galleries, and also the age and dignity of persons, and still
further, the present list of estates, and others foregoing.
Those persons that pay the minister at Five Mile river were
discharged from paying Mr. Wright, for three months, if they
bring sufficient proof that they pay as much there. In 1734
the society grants to the people at the Five mile river, and at
Woodpecker Ridge their proportion of the minister's rate for
three months in the winter, provided they hire a minister to
preach for^ them. The next year they extend the time at the
Five Mile meeting for four months.
In 1735 the society saw " cause to seat Mr. Abraham Daven
port and Mr. James Davenport in the foremost pew, on the west
side of the meeting house."
At this meeting they also provide for repairing the house.
At their meeting in May 1736, on a proposition to give the people
at the east end of the town the right to organize a society, they
yoted promptly in the negative ; and Capt. Jonathan Hoyt and
Mr. Jonathan Maltby were appointed their agents to appear at

140 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
the general assembly and show why the separation should not
be made. In 1736, the society grant the people east of Stony
Brook their minister's rate for four months ; and the people of
Newfield, as low as Josiah Hoyt's south ; and also the people
of "Shitten" plains, as far as Joseph Hunt's. In 1»38, Capt.
Jonathan Maltby was " ordered to set in the fore pew and his
wife to set answerably thereto." It was also " per vote agreed
that the committee that formerly seated the meeting house
should at their discrision advance sum elderly parsons in the
seting in the meeting house." This, I think, is the last instance
in which the town or society are reported as seating the meet
ing house.
Again the Stamford first church are called to part with their
minister. Mr. Wright, ' who had served them with great
acceptance, was removed by death in May 1745, and the society
appointed the 18th of June as a day of fasting and prayer.
Again the ministers of the county are called in to advise in the
selection of a new candidate.
By September a candidate had been so far " tryed " by them
that a society meeting was called to consider his claims. The
form of the vote will illustrate the gravity of the question be
fore them. With Col. Jonathan Iloyt in the Chair, it was
" put to vote, whether the society were so well satisfied in what
they have already experienced as to Mr. Noah Well's ministe
rial qualifications so as to proceed further to the settlement of
him forthwith." " Voted in the affirmative one hundred and
four votes, and in the negative twenty-three votes, and many
more sent their desires in the affirmative."
Whereupon the meeting instruct their committee to "dis
course " with Mr. Welles regarding his wishes on the subject,
and report at a meeting to be held in four days. The report
being favorable to the settlement, arrangements are made to con-
suitiate it.
The following vote shows the care taken for securing to the
minister his full pay,

ECCLESIASTICAL. 141
" Whereas this society at their meeting on Sept. 22, 1746 did agree to give
Mr. Noah Welles seventy-five pounds silver money at eight shillings per
ounce, for his yearly salary, or the equivalent iu the old or new tenor cur
rency; aud lest there should a difficulty arise to know what should be the
equivalent above, the society do now agree, per vote, that their committee
for the time being shall have full power yearly to agree with him, what the
equivalent shall be; aud if they can't agree, tben the committee are hereby
impowered to leave the matter to some indifferent men, whom they and
Mr. Welles shall chose in the 'naibourwood,' which agreement and judg
ment as above shall decide the controversy."
But by this time the process of dividing the territory into
separate parishes had commenced; and already there were many
indications that these parishes themselves could not long con
tinue to worship together under the old denominational stand
ard. For nearly a century one parish and one creed had sufficed.
The few who could not heartily subscribe to either condition of
the infant settlement, seemed to yield, with some sort of grace,
to the manifest propriety of a quiet submission to the only
" standing order " known, and await the coming time for an
open assertion of their cherished theories, either in the doctrine
or in the government of the church. The necessity for the two
fold division which so soon resulted in so many separate par
ishes and distinct churches, could not by any expedients have
been long postponed.
Praptically, already, the dwellers on the outskirts of tho
town had been gi:adually dropping out from attendance on the
public worship of the people, held only at the center of the
town; and for years occasional services in the more distant
neighborhoods had endeavored to supply their want. Practically,
also, the germs of new ecclesiastical organizations were begin
ning to show themselves ; and under the liberal indulgence
granted by the easy civil administrations of the day, nothing
could hinder their rapid growth.
It will be the object of the following chapter to exhibit the
progress of this disintegration and its results. We shall first
indicate the territorial division into three distinct parishes and
the fragments of three others, and, in a following chapter, exam-

142 HISTOEY or STAMFOED.

ine the denominational organizations, which, in the process of
time arose on the ground which, from the settlement of the
town had been held, and not unsuccessfully improved, by the
one puritan church of the congregational order.

CHAPTER VIII.

SEPAEATK PAEISH OEGANIZATIONS.

At the settlement of the town, and for many years after, the
entire territory embraced in the grant received from the In
dians, about eight miles wide east and west and sixteen long
north and south, constituted but one civil ecclesiastical juris
diction. This was under the control of the town. By the town
the church of Christ w-as supplied with a place or places for
worship, and to the town every citizen was responsible for at
tendance upon the w^orship for which provision had been niadcj
and for meeting his share of its expenses. In the progress of
settlements in the vicinity where the dwellers on the outside of
the town could be more conveniently accommodated elsewhere
than at any place within this tract, special permission was given
to them to embrace such opportunity, and a special vote released
them from the legal support required here. These special votes
are very numerous all along the early history of the town for
more than a hundred years ; and this method was resorted to
to obviate the necessity of permanently cutting off any portion
of the jurisdiction. Of course, as the population increased, and
the central congregation became so full that the absence of large
numbers would scarcely be missed, it became an easier thing
for the most distant families to get away. It would seem that
there was no need of an apology or a very earnest plea, for
Thomas Potts and Noah Parketon, who must have lived about
eleven miles north of the village, and their neighbors living still
further north, to obtain permission to attend meeting at Pound-

144 HISTOEY OF STAAIFOE.D.
ridge, as late as 1771. And yet, such permission was sought
and granted for several successive years. But no strength of
ecclesiastical bond could hold in jiei-jDetual unity the broad tract
with its increasing population ; and w-o shall find it resolving
itself into at least six territorial jurisdictions.
OLD SOCIETY OF GEBENWICH.
The first step towards alienating any portion of the old ec
clesiastical territory of Stamford, seems to have boon taken on
the southwest corner of tho parish. Down to about 1678 no
regular and permanent society had been organized at Greenwich.
That the people of Greenwich w-ere regarded as belonging to the
Stamford parish is abundantlj^ shown by our early records. As
late as March 2, 1774-5, in town meeting, it was voted "tho
town do iudgc it moot that Grinwich while thoy have the bene
fit of the ministry among us, yt thay allso should pay to ye
ministry." Indeed, the General Court or Legislature of Con
necticut had decided ton years before tliis, that the only condi
tion upon w^hich Greenwich could become a township, "intire
of itself," was that they " procure and maintain an orthodox
minister ; and in the meantime, and until yt be effected, they are
to attend ye ministry at Stamford, and to contribute projior-
tionably with Stamford to ye maintenance of ye ministry
there." There is now, probably, no record of the surrender of the
present territory of Greenwich by this ecclesiastical society, but
as the line of separation between tho two towns was run by the
Committee in 1681, and confirmed by tho P.atent in 1085, it is
probable that the tow-n limits were made also the limits of the
two thenceforward separate societies. This line has probably
not been materially changed since.
BEDPOED PAEISH.
The first step towards sotting off any of the northern part of
the town was taken in January, 1720-1.
This portion of tho town had been bought with the rest of
the tract in 1000 and reconfirmed in 1055, .and agjiin in 1680.

PAEISH OEGANIZATIONS. 145
The Indians who signed the last surrender, December 23, 1680,
were Katonah, Stockawae, Segotah, Jovis, Tohonacogyah, Yan-
nayo and Kackennond ; and the persons recognized as the occu
pants or holders of the tract, then called the Hop Grounds,
were: Richard and Abraham Ambler, Daniel Weed, John
Wescot, Jona. Petit, John Cross, John Miller, Nicholas Web
ster, Richard Ayres, Wm. Clark, James Seeley, Joseph Steph
ens, Dan Jones, Benj. Stephens, Thos. Tomoyou and Joseph
Cheoles. The surrender was signed in presence of Joshua
Knaj) and David Waterbury. Yet this entire tract was still
subject to the ecclesiastical jurisdiction of St.amford. At the
Court of Election in Hartford, May 11, 1682, tho Court "grant
the liberty of a plantation to tho people of the Hop Ground, to
be called Bedford; and appoint Joseph Theal to be for the pre
sent the chief military officer of the train band of Bedford, and
Abraham Ambler is empowered to grant warrants to several
officers and witnesses, and to join persons in marriage."
.lames White, Michael Warin, John Ingei-sol and John Right,
living towards the northern end of Long Ridge, in Janu.ary,
1720-1, were released from paying towards the ministry in
Stamford for the year ensuing, they observing the following
conditions, viz : " that they shall duly attend on the public
worship at Bedford, and shall bear their part in proportion with
the people of Bedford in the maintenance of the ministry there,
they bringing a certificate from the town of Bedford of their so
doing." In 1722 the inhabitants of Chesnut Ridge, viz: Geo. Dibble,
Timothy Concklin and Thomas Corey, were also allowed to pay
their minister's rate in Bedford, " if they bring Rev. Mr. Ten-
nant's certificate that they have paid to him, to next town
meeting." STAN-WICII SOCIETY.
This society is made up of parts of the Greenwich and Stam
ford societies The first local meeting whose records I have
found was that of February 5, 1730, when forty-eight men from
19

140 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
these two societies met and voted to call for the organization of
a new society. In May, 1731, they petition the legislature for
an act of incorporation, which petition was summarily dismissed.
Immediately, twenty-seven of the petitioners from Greenwich
and nineteen from Stamford notify the t wo towns that they
shall renew their petitions and persist in their organization.
Accordingly in October of the same year, fifty-three send in
their second petition to the Assembly, which from some infor
mality in the proceedings was withdrawn, when the petitioners
"¦ave their legal notice to the two towns of their purpose to
prosecute their plea.
In May, 1732, they forward their petition the third time to
the Legislature, stating that they liave already raised their
meeting house, a suitable building forty feet long and thirty
wide, and that the " most of the stuff" for it is provided.
Twenty Stamford families notified the Stamford society of
their action ; and a remonstrance against it, signed by twenty-
four members of the Stamford society, was forthwith forwarded
by interested and influential men to defeat the project before
the legislature. An agent from the society in Horseneck was
also sent to the assembly to oppose the plea of the petitioners.
An earnest protest was urged by both the societies on the
ground that the division would weaken them, and 'endanger
their very existence. Besides these counter appeals, another
remonstrance was sent forward from the dwellers in the vicinity
of Round Hill, a little to the west of the proposed society, on
the ground that if the new society should be organized it -would
interfere with the one they were contemplating, and which was
much more needed.
But after listening to the petitioners and the remonstrants,
the legislature in their October session, 1733, passed the act
incorporating the Stanwich society. As a part of the new soci
ety was still wdthin the limits of Stamford, in their town meet
ing of Dec. 14th, among other town officers, John Newman and
Ebenezer Smith were appointed tything men for the new parish

PAEISH OEGANIZATIONS. 147
of Stanwich. These appointments were annually made until the
society at Stanwich became pernianently independent of the
parent societies. NEW CANAAN.
This parish was made up of parts of Norwalk and Stamford.
The first notice of it as a distinct parish on the Stamford records
is of date Dec. 8, 1730, when "John Bouton and others ask
liberty of moving out of town to join Avith a part of Norwalk in
order to be a society." The town voted in the negative. Yet
the opposition could not have been very strenuous, because wo
find under date of Dec. 14, 1731, Ebenezer Seely and Nathaniel
Bouton are, in town meeting, appointed tything men for the
new society. The next year^ John Bouton and Ebenezer Seely
are chosen to the same office, and their field of service is called
" Cannan Parrish."
There could not have been as much opposition to the organi
zation of this parish as there had been to that of Stanwich. Our
records have a vote passed Dec. 27, 1733, which shows good
will towards the New Canaan enterprize, which is also expres
sive of the town's regard for the ordinances and institutions of
religion. " The town agree that there shall be a committee chosen to
agree with those men that have land lying where it may be
thought needful for a highway for the conveniency of 'Canaan
parish to go to meeting,' and to lay it out where they think it
may be most convenient."
Of the twenty-four members constituting this church when
it was founded, eleven were from Stamford, and two of these —
John Bouton and Thomas Talmadge — ^were its first deacons. The
names of the Stamford members were : Deacon John Bouton
and his wife Mercy, deacon Thomas Talmadge and his wife
Susanna, John Davenport, John Finch, Eliphalet Seeley and
Sarah his wife, John Bouton, jun., and Mary his wife, and
Jerusha,- the wife of David Stevens.

Hoyt Job,

. 36.02.0

Hoyt Joshua,

26.00.0

Slason Eliphalet

. 41.02.0

Seeley Eliphalet, .

32.09.0

Seeley Ebenezer,

. 38.00.8

Talmadge Thos., .

71.02.9

Stevens David,

. 54.05.0

Waterbury David, .

44.00.6

148 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
The society was incorporated in 1731, but the town continued
to belong to Norwalk and Stamford until 1801.
The first meeting of the New Canaan society was held July
1, 1731, when John Bouton was made moderator, and John
Betts, sen., clerk. The committee appointed were, Samuel
Seymour, Zerubabel Hoyt, and David Stevens.
In 1732 the list of the Stamford portion of the New Canaan
settlers, as reported on the society records of New Canaan, is
as follows :
Bouton John, . . 36.00.0
Bouton Nath'l, . 61.11.9
Bouton Danieli . . 22.01.0
Bouton Eleaser, . 41.10.0
Bouton John, jr., . 27.04.0
Davenport John, . 68.08.0
Finch John, . . 55.08.0
Green Nalh'I, . 49.12.0
Hoyt James, . . 39.00.0
MIDDLESEX (dAEIEN.)
How early separate religious services were held in this part
of the town no existing records show. Probably for years
before Dr. Mather was settled here in 1744, there had been
preaching, with more or less regularity.
At a society meeting, held in the first society of Stamford,
Dec. 20, 1733, by vote "the society agree that those particular
persons that pay to the minister at Five Mile river, shall be
discharged from paying their proportion of Mr. Wright's rate,
during the term of three months, provided they bring sufficient
proof to the society's committee that they pay as much to the
minister there, as their proportion to Mr. Wright for the time
above said."
In 1734, forty-six planters on the west side of Norwalk river
petition for a new society. The next notice taken of this
project, as far as records show, was simultaneously in Stamford
and at the May session of the legislature, in 1736. Sixty-nine
petitions, representing eighty families, and a list of £5,880,

PAEISH OEGANIZATIONS. 149
made a formal request to be incorporated as an ecclesiastical
society by themselves. The petition was negatived, only to be
renewed in October of the same year, by fifty-six men. The
urgency of the petitioners led to the appointment of a special
committee to examine their claims. In May 1737 the committee
report favorably, assigning as proper boundaries of the society
the Five Mile river on the east, and the Noroton on the west. In
October of this year the act of incorporation was passed. It is
curious to note upon what frail boundaries they relied. The
moment they leave the rivers, which they might presume to be
permanent, they fix upon the most perishable objects, in the
most indeterminate of localities, to answer as permanent bounds
for the society. On the west side of the parish, to separate it
from the older society of Stamford, they define, as the western
most limits of Middlesex, " an old chimney about two and a
half miles east of the Stamford meeting house," and " so to run
a strait line midway between Stephen Bishop's house and David
Dibble's house," and thence to where the Noroton crosses the
Canaan line. But this separation was not to be a peaceable
one. Though no blood seems to have been shed in the struggle,
there were many earnest and clamorous appeals and remon
strances between the parishes themselves and between the par
ishes and the legislature; so that the peaceful settlement of the
Middlesex seceders was not accomplished before the summer of
1741, about a dozen years after the need of such a society was
felt and its incorporation demanded.
Eleven somewhat lengthy documents, now on file in the state
library at Hartford, testify to the great interest shown in both
the old and the new parishes in the proposed division.
These papers indicate the most obstinate determination on the
part of the first society not to allow any further alienation of
any part of their ecclesiastical jurisdiction. Assuming a sort
of indefeasible right to the territory, the society, by a unani
mous vote of all excepting the seceding portion, declared that
they would " not grant to the people at the east end of the

150 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
town the liberty of a society apart." They also appointed
Captain Jonathan Hoyt and Mr. Jonathan Maltby as special
agents to the legislature to. report the reasons of the town
against forming the new society. But the seceders at length
prevailed. The names of the petitioners to the " Five Mile river peticion,"
dated the second Thursday of October, 1736, the original
petition being now before me— are : Thos. Reed, Edmond
Waring, Jona. Cristy, Jona. Bates, Robert Mills, John Reed,
Joshua Scofield, Isaac Bishop, Jona. Bell, Josh. Morehouse,
John Bates, Jona. Petit, David Selleck, Nath'l Bates, Ed.
Waring, jun., Jos. Pengban, Thos. Reed, jun., John Petit,
Joseph Whiting, John Reed, jun., James Slason, jun., David
Bates, Eliiis Reed, John Raymond, Nath'l Selleck, David Sco
field, Sam. Richards, Jos. Waterbury, Joilas Weed, Deliverance
Slason, Chas. Weed, Theop. Bishop, John Andrus, Nath'l
How, John Dean, David Waterbury, Eb. Bishop, Zach. Dibble,
Thomas Bishop, Sam. Bryan, Nathan Sturgis, Benj. Dibble,
David Slason, David Dibble, Nathan Selleck, Nathan Waring,
Sam. Brinswade, Eb. Green, John Bolt, Jacob Waring, John
Waring, Dan. Reed, Abr. Raymond, Comfort Raymond, Isaac
Wood, and Sam. Reed.
The first record of a society's meeting in Middlesex bears
date June 15, 1739. Ensign Nathan Bell was its moderator
and Joshua Morehouse was appointed society's clerk. The
meeting was held at the house of John Bates. At an adjourned
meeting held June 21st, Tht)S. Reed, Jona. Bates, Daniel Reed,
Isaac Bishop, JonathEwi Selleck, Samuel Reed and ensign
Jonathan Bell were appointed a committee to " caryon " the
building of the "metting hous." They were instructed to
make the house fifty feet long, thirty feet wide and twenty feet
post. ¦They then voted a tax to meet the expenses of the building,
and to pay Mr. Buckingham " for His preaching the time
agreed." Jonathan Weed was appointed collector. The society

PAEISH OEGANIZATIONS. 151
records from this date to that of the organization of tho church
show that thfe following ministers labored here either simply as
supplies or as candidates : Rev. Mr. Birdseye, Gideon Mills, Eb
enezer Mills, David Judson, Mr. Ells and Mather. At a meet
ing held Dec. 11, 1741, the society voted, by a large majority,
forty-two to four, to settle Mr. Judson. But to give every man
in the society an opportunity to vote, Mr. Morehouse, the clerk,
was ordered to carry a paper with the vote " about and read the
same to those persons that belong to said society, which -were
not at said meeting, that they might have opportunity to sub
scribe to the same."
At their meeting Sept 1, 1742, while Mr. Mather was still
preaching as a candidate for settlement, we find this vote : " Ye
Society by major vote granted to ye Rev. Mr. Right (Wright),
to preach in any part of Middlesex parish on any needful occa
sion as often as he shall see fit."
A record of the doings of this society in 1747 respecting the
seating of the meeting house explains more fully the process of
this custom than any record now existing of any other parish in
town, and is worth preserving as a curiosity of the times. Be
sides, it indicates some of the principal men of that day, in this
part of the town.
By the first vote the society decided to seat the meeting by a
committee. 2. pr vote ye society a lowed ye first pue to be ye hiest in Dignity.
3. pr vote the 2 pew to be 2 hiest in Dignity.
4. pr vote, the fore seat alowed to be the 3 hiest in Dignity.
5. pr vote, the front pew, by ye great Dorr to be ye 4th hiest in Dignity.
6. pr vote, the corner pew at the norwest to be ye 5th hiest
7. pr vote, to be ye 6th hiest.
8. the west pew nex ye norwest to be ye 7th hiest.
Sth per vote 10th per vote 11th per vote 12th per vote 13 per vote Cnpt.
John Eaiment, Capt- Jona. Bates, Left. Jona. Bell, sr., Saml Bishop,
and Daniel Eeed chosen a comety and a pointed to seat ye meeting
hous as the society shall by their vote direct.
14. pr vote Mr. Bavid Tuttle, Mr. Thos Eeed, Cpn. John Eai'nent, Mr.
Edmun Wearing, Mr. Jona. Bates, Mr. Nathan Selleck, Mr. Jeams
Slason and Mr. jona. Bell all to set in ye fore pew.

152 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
15 and Decon Bishop also by ye vote of ye society to set iu his seat be
fore ye pulpit.
IG. pr vote, the .Society Impowered the comety to sent ye remainder of
j'e hous a cordin to their own discretion.
The above record is of date Aug. 9, 1747, and the next meet
ing of the society was held "genewaryye 28th, 1747-8." A
record of this meeting is also so characteristic of the times as
to justify insertion.
" Voted yt Mr. Jona Bell or any other man a greed upon to
sing or tune ye salm in his absence in times of publickt worship
may tune it in ye old way or new- which suits you best, vote
yt Elijah Jones shall tune ye salms in times of worship in Mr.
Bell's absence. Vote yt Left. Jona. Selleck shall Reed the salms
in Mr. Bell's absence."
We have now cut off from what was the parish ot Stamford
under the first three pastors here, from the west side portions
of the First society in Greenwich and of the Stanwich society ;
to the north we have transferred a section to the Bedford parish
aud to the east a portion of the New Canaan and the most of
the Darien societies. There remains, therefore, only the central
portion of the old parish left, extending over two miles east of
the meeting house in the village and about a mile and a half
west, and stretching from the waters of the Sound ten or eleven
miles tow-ards the north. Only one other sub-division of this
territory into ecclesiastical societies remains to be noticed.
NOETH STAMFOED SOCIETY.
For several years before the incorporation of this societj', re
ligious meetings had been held in this part of the town. As
early as Dec. 9, 1742.
Pirst Society meeting, grant to the people of Woodpecker's Eidge aud
such as formerly used to joyn with them or may still joyn with them in those
limits, an abatement of their part of the ministerial rate for the year ensu
ing during the time of three months, if they employ a regular and orthodox
person to preach among them, in case said people in an orderly and regular
manner attend all the stepts of the law for the obtaining and improving a
person to preach in such a capacity.

PAEISH OEGANIZATIONS. 153
• Vote tljis meeting is adjourned to 23 day instant at one of the clock at
this place ;' viz •¦ the house of Joseph Judson.
Met and adjourned to first Mond. Feb. next, same place.
Dec. 27, 1743. Woodpecker Eidge shall have the liberty to introduce the
Eev. Mr. Writ to preach unto them ; if the said Mr. Writ shall be willing,
for this four months next coming, -viz : one Sabbath ina month.
Deo. 22, 1762. The inhabitants of the Society living at Woodpecker
Eidge and Scofield Town and Thomas Potts, John Dean and Eeubeu Weed
shall be excused from paying their society's rates this year for the time they
shall hire a preacher, provided it shall not exceed four mout'.s.
In 1763 vote to pay to the inhabitants living as above, and
those beyond Woodpecker Ridge, their proportion of one hun
dred pounds, for the time they shall hire preaching, if not for
more than four months.
Similar votes were passed annually by the first society until
1773, when it was voted that " twelve pounds, lawful money
raised in the first society on the list of this year, be given to
the people of Woodpecker Ridge," and Benjamin Weed and
Hezekiah Weed were appointed to receive and disburse it. The
next five years a similar vote was passed, increasing the appro
priation until it reached eighteen pounds.
In 1779, after maintaining separate worship for nearly forty
years, the people living at and near Woodpecker Ridge sent a
formal petition to be set off as an independent society. Now
commenced ono of the most heated contests which the town has
ever witnessed. The petitioners were earnest and revolutionary
in spirit, determined to regulate their own society affairs; and
the remonstrants, the entire southern portion of the town, w-ere
as earnest in opposing them. Both parties besieged tho legis
lature, and the Supreme Court of tho State hesitated. Both
were well represented, and such was the vigor of the contest
ants and so nearly balanced their opposing pleas, that they pre
vailed to postpone for another year the final action of the legis
lature. The next season. May 1780, a committee consisting o-
Lenuiel, Sanford, Clap Raymond and Mathew Mead, was consti
tuted by the legislature to run a line for the southern boundary
of the proposed society, if on a local examination they were satis
fied there was any need for the new organiza tion. The coni-
20

154 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
mittee decided in favor of the division and located the line of
separation. They presented their report at the next session of
the legislature, and the plea they make is based on this justifi
cation : " There is a number of considerable farmers in the
place, where they have already built them a meeting house, and
it will admit of considerable improvements, and many more in
habitants." Against so conclusive reasoning, no plea of the remonstrants
could find weight. Their fears of the " utter weakening " of the
parent society, their dislike of the committee's line, which so
encroached upon the territory they needed, and the utmost elo
quence of their champion, the weighty colonel Charles Webb, ,
were alike ineffectual, and the last excision from the first eccles
iastical society was at length sanctioned by the state legislature
in their spring session 1781.
Simultaneously with the above territorial division of the town
ecclesiastically, another process of excision was going on. By
this process, portions of the territory were cut off and assigned
to new towns as they were organized. Greenwich seems first
to have been relinquished.
The town limits to the north extended some four miles further
than now, and in 1731 the present line was run, leaving the ter
ritory north of it in Poundridge, Bedford and North Castle. In
1860 the northeast part of the town was set off as a part of the
town of New Canaan. In 1830, all that part of the town lying
east the Noroton river was incorporated as Darien. These suc
cessive excisions from the territory leave for the present town
ship a territory of about three miles in width at the southera
end, about four and a half miles width at the northern end, and
about ten miles in length from north to south.
The accompanying map gives the original territory covered
by the purchase made by Capt. Turner for the Wethersfield men,
and indicates the portions cut off for the new towns as they were
organized.

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THE STAMFOED OF 1685
CHAPTER IX.

BIETHS, MAEEIAGES AND DEATHS TO 1 700.

[jtn this chapter we shall give an alphabetical list of births
marriages. , and deaths, found on the towm records, down to the
year 1700,-^It was the intention of the author to continue this
list through the first hundred years of the town, but neither
time nor the expense would allow it. It is believed that before
the year 1700, no record of this class has escaped the author's
notice. Though but a small part of the entire number which
must have been registered, with our two chapters of the settlers
they will probably indicate nearly all of the different family
names found in town, down to the beginning of the eighteenth
century. Akerly, Henry, died June 17, 1650.
Ambler, Elizabeth, wife of Eichard, d. March 27, 1685.
Ambler,  and Hannah Gold, married Jan. 12, 1692.
Ambler, Ambram and Mary Bates m. Deo. 25, 1662. Their children
were: Mary, b. Jan. 15,1663 — Abram, Jan. 5, '65— John Feb. 1,. '67 
Joshua, Sept. 8, '70— and Sarah, Oct. 6, '72.
Ambler,'John, son of John, b. Feb. 15, 1695 — Stephen June, 22, '98 
and Martha, March 17, 1700.
Ambler, Abraham, son of Abraham, b. Sept 6, 1693.
Ambrey Eobert, d. July 21, 1656— Moses, son of Eobert, b. Dec. 16,
1652. Andrus, Jeremiah and Hannah Ambler, widow, m. Sept. 8, 1J(97. Thei
children were : John, b. Jan. 31, 1700 — Ann, Aug. 3, '02 — and Jeremiah,
Dec. 5, '05.

156 EEGISTEY — 1640 — 1700.
Astin, John, d. 6, 24, 1657— and Samuel, his son, 21, 7, '57.
Banks, John and Abigail Lyon, m. April 3, 1672.
Bates, John and Elizabeth Lockwood m . Jan. 18, 1693-4. Their chil
dren -o'ere, John, b. Nov. 6, 1694— Nathaniel, Oct. 4, '97— Elizabeth, Dec.
10, '99— and David, May 23, 1702. Elizabeth, wife of John Bates, d. May
23, 1702. He m. Sarah Smith Dec. 28, 1702, and had Nehemiah, b . March
29, 1704^and Hannah, May 5, 1705.
Bates, Thomas, of Eye, and Mary Butcher, m. Feb. 21, 1669.
Bates, Eobert und Margaret Cross m. June 26,  .
Bates, Eobert, d. Jan. 11, 1675, in the night.
Bell, Francis, d. Jan. 8. 1689— Eebecca, his wife, d. May 17, 1684. Their
children were: Jonathan, b. Sept. 1640 — Eebecca, Aug. 1643 — and Mare,
the last of May, 1646. (Old family bible now in possession of Abraham Bell,
of Hope Street.)
Bell, Jonathan and Mercy Crane, m. 22, 8, 1662. Their children were :
Jonathan, b. Feb. 14, 1663— Hannah, 29, 8, '65— and Eebecca, Dec. 6,
'67, and died Sept. 24. 1689. Mercy, wife of Jonathan Bell, d. Oct. 26,
1671. He then m. Susunna, daughter of Eev. Abraham Pierson of Bran
ford, Oct. 31, 1672, and had Abigail, b. 23, 12, '73, and d. 5, 4, '74— Abra
ham, June 22, '75— Mercy, Nov. 5, '78— John, Jan. 16 '81— a daughter, b,
and d. Aug. 3, '83 — James, Dec. 11, '84 — Susannah, Dec. 25, '86— and Mary,
Sept. 29, '89.
Bell, Left. Jona. d. Mar 11, 1698.
Bell, Left. Jonathan and Grace Kitehell m. March 22, 1693. Their son
Jonathan was born Jan. 15, 1693-4. Grace died in February.
Bertley, Henry, d. Sept. 17, 1656.
Bishop, Abraham and Stephen, sous of Stephen, b. Oct 28, 1684 — The
ophilus, Feb, 1, ¦&7— Isaac, Oct. 30, '89— Eebecca, April 9, '92— and Ab igail
July 15, '96.
Bishop, Mary, daughter of Mr., d. 25, 5, 1658.
Bishop, Benjamin and Susanna Pierson m. 24, 6, 1696. Their children
were Abigail, Oct. 3, 1697— Susana, July 2, '99— Benjamin Nov. 28, 1701—
James, April 3, '04— Euth, June 13, '06— and David, June 26, '08.
Bishop, Joseph and Elizabeth Kuowles m. Nov. 3, 1691. Their children
were : Joseph, b. Oct, 16, 1692— Alexander, April 15, '94— Charles,. May 5,
'95— Andrew, Oct 3, '96— Hannah, July 8, '98— Nathan, Oct. 29, '99— Eliza
beth, Jan. 3, 1700— Sarah, Dec. 27, 1701— and Eebecca, Aug. 17, 1703.

HISTOEY OF STAMFOED; 157
Blachley, Samuel and Abigail Finch, m. April 6, 1699. Their children
were : Samuel, b. March 8, 1699-1700— Sarah, Nov. 7, 1702— and Abigail,
Sept.. 23, 1705.
BouU (Buel) John and Elizabeth Clements, m. 23, 9, 1694.
Brown, Joseph, had a son, b. Dec. 24, 1686 — a second son March 11, '89,
Hannah, Sept. 21, '92— Nathaniel, June 16, 96— Nathan, Oct. 29, '97— Jon
athan, May 14, 1701— David, March 22, 1703-4^and Mary, Octobtsr 2,
1705. Brown, Elizabeth wife of Peter, d. 21, 7, 1657.
Brown, Ebenezer, child of Peter, d. 21, 6, '58.
Brown, Peter, d, 22, 6, '58.
Brown, Eleanor, wife of Peter, d. 21, 6, '58.
Brown, Peter and Unica Buxton, m. 25, 5, '58.
Brown, Francis aud Martha Chapman, m. 17, 10, '57.
Butler, John and Mary Clements, m. 23, 9, 1694.
Burr, Daniel and Abigail Prigter, m. Feb. — , 166-.
Buxton, Clement, died Apr. 6, 1657.
Buxton,  , died Aug. 21, 1657.
Buxton, Clement, had Clement, b. Aug. 16, 1683— Mosea, Aug. 21, '86—
aud Mercy, Nov. 5, '92. Clement Buxton, jr., married in Danbury April 4,
1711, to Elizabeth Ferris.
Buxton Samuel, ye sou of Clement and of Judith Buxton, was born in
Stamford, and was 14 years old ou ye 15 day of July, Anno Domo. 1713.
Buxton, Eunice, dau. of do. , was 35 years old, Nov. 3, 1713.
Buxton, Sarah aud Abigail, do., -were 24 years old Aug. 14, 1713.
Baxton, Elizabeth,' do., was 17 years old June 7, 1713.
Cloyson (Clason), Stephen and Elizabeth Periment m. 11, 11, 1654.
Their children were : Jona., b. 11. 12; 1655— Stephen, 17, 12, '57— Ee
becca, Mar. 1, '59-60— and a son May, 18, '62.
Cloyson, Jonathan and Sarah Eoberts, m. 16, 10, 1680— and Stephen, b.
2, 10, 1681-rJonathan, d. 10, 4, '85, and Sarah his wife, 30, 6, '84.
Cloyson. Mary, dau. of David, b. Aug. 17, 1689— Deborah, Nov. 2, '95— '
Hephzibah, Nov. 4, '98.
Clawson, ;  and Mary Homes, m. Dec. 1, 1692.
Clason, Samuel aud Hannah Dunham, m. Deo. 7, 1693.

158 EEGISTEY — 1640—1700.
Copp, John and M.iry, widow of late Ephraim Phelps, m. March 16,
1698. Cressy, John and Abigail Knap, m. Dec. 1, 1692. Their children were :
Sarah, b. April 25, 1693— Abigail, March 8, '95— John, Feb. 2, '96— Debo
rah, Feb. 14, '98— Nathaniel, Sept. 16, 1700— Moses, Feb, 14, 1701-2— and
Mary, Feb. 15, '04-5.
Cressy, John, son to William, b. May 15, 1695.
Crissy, Mary, d. 25, 5, 1658.
Cross, Nathaniel and Abigail had Hannah, b. Feb. 23, 1687 — aud Abigail,
April 8, '94, and d. Sept. 5, 1710.
Cross, Nathaniel and Hannah Knapp, m. Nov. 6, 1696, and had Deborah,
Feb. 17, 1701-2— and Nathaniel, April 13, '03,
Dann, Francis and Elizabeth Clason , m. Nov. 19, 1685, and had Elizabeth,
b. August 27, '86.
Davenport, Eev. John and Mrs. Martha Sellick, widow of John Sellick,
m. April 18, 1695, and had Abigail, b. July 14, '96— John, Jan. 21, '98—
Martha, Feb. 10, 1700— Sarah, July 17, '02— Theodora, Nov. 2, '03, d. Feb.
15, '12— Deodate, Oct. 23, '06— Elizabeth, August '08— Abraham, in '15—
and James, in '16.
Dean, John, son of Samuel, b. Dec. 10, 1659— and Joseph, April 6, '61.
Dean, Samuel, d. Dec. 27, 1703.
Dibble John, d. Sept. 1646.
Dibble Nathaniel aud Sarah Waterbury, m. 10 3, 11666.
Dibble, Zacharia, and Sarah Waterbury, m. May 10, '66,- and had Zach -
ariah, b. Dec. 19, '67.
Dibble, Zachariah and Sarah Clements, m. August 13, 1698, and had
Zachariah, b. July 16, 1699— John, Oct. 22, 1701— Daniel, Feb. 19, '03-4-
Ebenezer, July 18, '06- and Eeuben, Oct. 2, '08.
Disbrow, John and Sarah Knap, m. 6, 2, 1657.
Disbrow, Peter jind Sarah Knap, m. April_6, 16—.
Elliot, Mary wifu of John, d. 17, 6, 1658.
Ferris, Joseph and Euth Knap, m. 20, 9, 1657, and had Peter, b. 8, 9,
1660. Ferris, Jeffrey, d. 31, 5, 1658.
Ferris, Susannah, wife to Jeffry, died at " Grinwich," Dec. 23, 1660.
Ferris, Elizabeth, daughter of Peter, b. 28, 11, 1659, d. 5, '2, '60.

HISTOBY OF STAMFOED. 159
Ferris, Joseph, son of Peter, b. 20, 6, '57— a son, 20, 6, 69— Mary, May
2, '62— and Elizabeth, Jan. 2, '64.
Ferris, Martha, dau. of Isaac, b. June, 19, 1672.
Feiris, Joseph, son of Joseph, b. March 31, 1688— Mary, Dec. 12, '90—
Nathan, Oct. 22, '94-Samuel, Sept. 5, '96- Elizabeth, March 19, '98-9—
Abigail, April 13, 1701 -Hannah, June 20, 1704— and Deborah, August 27,
1706. Finch, John. d. Sept. 5, 1657.
Finch, Joseph and Elizabeth Austin, m. Nov. 23, 16—.
Finch, Isaac and Elizabeth Basset, m. — 8, 1658, and had John, b. 20,
9, '59—  , April 12, '62— Abraham, July 5, '65, before day— Elizabeth,
Nov. 14, '69— Martha, June 19, '72— Eebecca March 17, '82-3— Sarah, 23,
11, '86— Jacob, Oct. 9, '91, and died 15, 2, 1702— and Benjamin, Jun e 29
1695. Finch, Samuel and Sarah, had Mary, b. March 2, 1692-3— Susannah,
March 3, '93-4— Sarah, Sept. 25, '95— Abigail, July 15, '97— Hannah, March
23, 1700-1— and Martha, July 23, 1703.
Finch Israel and Sarah Gold, m. Deo. 1, 1692.
Finch, Ann, d. Nov. 9, 1703.
Finch, Samuel, sr., d. April 23, 1698.
Garnsy, Joseph and Eose Waterbury, m. 11, 3, 1659, and had Joseph, b.
June 30, 1662.
Garnsey, Joseph and Mary Lockwood, m. march 2, 1692-3, and had
Mary, b. Sept 8, 1693— Joseph, April 23, '95— John, May 23, '97— Eose,
April 11, '99— Jonathan, Nov. 14, 1701— Hannah, Jan. 27, '02— and Debro,
Sept. 10, '04.
i Graves, Sarah, d. Sept 13, 1C56.
Graves, Benony, son of William d. April 12, 1657.
Green, Mary, wife of John, d. 14, 9, 1657.
Greer, John and Martha Finch, m. — , 7, 1658.
Green, Benjamin and Susan, had a daughter, b. April 19, 1684 — a second
daughter, July 8, '86— Lucretia, July 20, '90— and Benjamin, Nov. 5, '93—
Susan, wife of Benjamin, d. Nov. 5, 1694, Benjamin and Hester Clemence,
m. March 26, 1696, and had Hester, b. Dec. 19, 1696— Debro, April 25,
1701— and Joanna, March 14, 1702-3.

160 ' EEGISTEY— 1640— 1670.
Green, Joseph, had Mary, May 30, 1681— Elizabeth, August 5, '83—
Waightstill, Nov. 26, '85— Joseph, Jan. 23, '87-and John, Sept. 22, '91.
Hardy, Mary, daughter of. Eichard, b. SO, 2, 1659.
Hardy, Samuel and Eebeooa, Hobby, m. Nov. 18, 1686, and had Eebeoo.i
b. Sept. 28, 1687. \'''' '
Hardy,Samael aud Eebecca ¦ Farbust, m. May 12, 1693,^ a second wife,
They had Samuel, b. Aug. 8. 1701.
Holly, Elisha, son of John, b. 6, 1, 1659  son of John, b. March
1, 1662-3.
Holly, John, Mr., d. May 25, 168), in 63d year of his age.
Holly, Increase and Elizabeth Newman, m. April 2, 1679, and had John,
b. Feb. 29, '79— Jonathan, Feb. 23, '84— Joseph, March 24, '86-7— and Na
than, Sept. 26, '92.
Holly, Jonathan audi  , had Jonathan, b. Aug. 16, 1C87— Sarnh,
Dec. 4, '90— Charles, Aug. 21, '9i— David, Jan. 16, '95.6-Bethia, Feb. 4,
'97-8, d. Jan. 20, '98-9— Jabez, Nov- 20, 99— Jobn and Increase, Sept 2,
1703— John, dying Sept. 20 -and Deborah, b. March 11, 1705-6.
Holly, John and Hannah Newman, m. April 2, 1679, and had Daniel,
b. 9, 3, 1680, and died 4, 6, '80— and Abigail, July 0, '82.
Holly, John and Mary Cressy, m. March 10, 1697, aud had Abigail,- b.
Oec. 15, 97— Ebenezer, March 31, '98-9— and Noah, Jiin 3, 1700-1.
Holly, Jonathan.and Sarah Finch, m. Dec. 2, 1686.
Holly, John .and  , had John, b. April 14, 1685— Nathaniel, Feb. 9,
•86-7— Josias," Feb. 27, '89-90— Hannah, Nov. 20, '94-Elizabeth, March 4,
'97-8- and Sarah, Sept. 30, 1701.
Hollj', Samrtcl,son of Samuel, b. Jan. 31, 1686-7.
Holly, Elisha and Martha Holmes, m. Dec. 2, 1686, sud had Elisha, h.
Nov. 10, 1687— Elizabeth, March, 2, 90— Martlm, Dec. 28, '91-^Eli2abetb,
Jan. 28. '93-4— Elnathan, March 20, '96— Israel, Jan. 16, '97-'S-^A.bigiiil,
June 8, 1700— John, Nov. 20, 1702, and died Dee. 8,1702— and Mary and
Sarah, b. May 0, 1705, Mary, dying May 8, 1705.
Holly, Samuel and Mary Close, m. Juno 25, 1668, and had John, b. April 20,
1670— Samuel, .May 10, '72— Hannah, Aug'. 15, '76, d. April 10, 1700^Jo-
seph, b. Airril 2, '78— Mary, 26, 2. '80— and Benjamin, Oct. 4, '84.,
Holly, Samuel, d. iu ye 68th year of his age, May 13, 1709.
Homes, Johu aud Eaohel Waterbury, m. 12, 8, 1659, apd had Mary, b.'

EEGISTEY — 1640 — 1700. 161
Sept. 25, 1662,— Stephen, Jan. 14, '64— Eachel, Dec. 7, '69— and John, Oct.
18, '70.
Homes, John and Maroy Bell, m. Jan. 15, 1701-2, and had Jonathan, b.
May 21, '03, and because of his father's death, re-named John.
Homes, Stephen and Mary Hubby, m. Nov. 18, 1086.
nyat, Thomas, d. Sept. 9, 1656.
Hoyt, Simon, d. 1, 7, 1657.
Hoyt, Mary, daughter of Joshua and Mary, b. Dec. 22, 1664— Eebecca,
Sept. 21, '67— Joshua, Oct. 4, '71— Sarah, April 17, '74— Samuel, July 3,
'78— Hannah, Sept. 1, '81— Moses, Oct. 7, '83— and Abigail, Aug. 20, '85.
Joshua, the father, d. Nov. 9, '90, as recorded -n-ill attests.
Hoyt, Benjamin and Hannah AVood, m. Jan. 5, 1670, and had Benjamin
b. Dec. 9, '71— Mary, Sept. 20, '73— Hana, June 3, '76— Simon, March
14, '77.
Hoyte,, Samuel and Hunnah Holly, m. Nov. l(i, lti7— and had Scmuel,
b. July 27, '73— John, Jan. 9, '75— Hannah, Nov, 23, '79- '80— Jonathan,
June 11, '83, and died six -H-eeks old — Joseph, June 12, '86 — Ebenezer,
Nov. 29, '87, and " dyed"— Nathan, Mhr. 24, '91— and Nathaniel, April 1,
'94, and died July 27, 171—.
Hoyt, Joshua and Mary Picket, m. March 16, 1098, aud had Jorusha, b.
Dec. 8, '98 -and Joshua, June 7, 1700.
Hait, Benjamin, jr. aud Elizabeth Jagger, m. June 10, 1097, aud had De
borah, b. Aug. 9, '98— Benjamin, Aug. 24, 1700— David, Jan. 23, '02— Abra
ham, June 16, '04— Samuel, who died Aug. 29, '03— Elizabeth, b. Sept. 26,
'10, and died July 31, '12— Ebenezer, b. Oct. '12— Hannah, Deo. 8. '16, aurl
Jonas, May 8, '20-
Hoit, Samuel and Susanna Slason, m. Oct. 24, 1700.
Hoyt, Mr. Samuel, Sr. and Mrs. Mary Gold, m. Sept. 20, 1714.
Halt, Dea. Samuel, d. April 7, 1720.
Hait, Eebecca, wife of Dea. Samuel, d. Deo. 8, 1713.
Hughs, Eobert and Elizabeth Buxton, m. Jan. 6, 1655.
Jackson, John had a daughter b. July 21, 1662.
Jagger, Elizabeth, daughter of Jeremy, b. Sept. 18, and d. Dec. 17, 1657.
Jiigger, Jeremy, d. 14, 6, 1658. 21

162 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
Jagger, Jonathan and Eebecca Homes, m. Aug. 22, 1700.
Jones, Cornelius and Elizabeth Hyat, m. 6, 8, 1057.
The age of the children of Cornelius Jones, entered this 17th Dec. 1657.
eleven year old ye 20th of Aug. last ;  ten year old next Feb. ;  nelius
eight year old ye beginning of Nov. last ;  six year old, May next ; and
 three year old last Jan.
Jones, Mary, daughter of Joseph, b. Jan. 4, 1677 ; Hannah, March 16,
79_'80— Joseph, Dec. 20, '82— Samuel, March 1, '84-85— and Cornelius,
March 1, '87-'8.
Juno, Peter, had Sarah, b. Jan. 30, 1680— Peter, Nov. 22, '83- James,
June 29, '87— Thomas, July 23, '90— Mercy, Sept. 11, '92— aud Mary, July
30, '99.
Knap, Joshua and Hannah Close, m. June 9, 1657, aud had Hannah, b.
March 26, '60— Joseph, in '64 — Euth, iu '66 — Timothy, in '68 — Benjamin,
in''73— Caleb, in '77— and Jonathan, in '79.
Kuap, Elinor, wife of Nicholas, d. 16, 6, 1658.
Knap, Nicholas and Unica Brown, widow of Peter, m. 9, 1, 1659.
Knap, Caleb, son of Caleb, b. Nov.* 24, 16G1— and John, July 25, 'G4.
Kuap, John and Hannah Ferris, m. June 10, 1692, and had Samuel, b.
Aug. 27, '95— John, Aug. 14, '97— Hannah, March 10, '98-'9— a son, b.
Aug. 15, '01— Charles, March 9, 1703— and Deborah, June 28, 1705.
Knap. Moses and Elizabeth Crissy, m,  ¦ 168—, and had Elizabeth, b.
Sept. 7, '90.
Knapp, Caleb and Hannah Clements, m. 23, 9, 1G94— Caleb, b. Sept. 30,
'95— William, Dec. 15, '97— Sarah, Jan. -18, '99- Abigail, Jan. 9, 1701-2—
Joshua, April 10, 1704— Joseph, Deo. 10, '06— Hanna, April 10, '10— Jo
iiathan, Jan. 12, '12-'13. The next two children of this family were bom
in Norwalk.
Lawrence, Thomas, d. Aug. 16, '91.
'Leeds, John and Mary, had Jouathau, b Oct. 12, 1693 — John, IMiirch 8,
'94— Sarah, Feb. 8, '96— Samuel, Feb. 21, '97— Ebenezer, Jan. 17, 1700—
and Mary, Oct. 23, 1702.
Lounsburj', Henry, son of Richard aud Elizabeth, b. Aug. 15, 16S4.
Lockwood, Eliph-dlet and Mary, daughter, of John Gold, m. Oct. 11, 1099.
Lockwood, Edmun, d. Jan. 31, 1692.

EEGISTEY — 1640—1700. 163
LookwooJ, Jo.ieph and Elizabeth Ayrea, m. May 19, 1698, and had Jo
seph, b. May 13, 1693—Hannah, March 24, '01— John, Sept. 18, '03— and
Nathaniel, April 1, '06.
Mdad, Baujamia and Sarah Waterbury, m. May 10, 1700.
Mead, wife of William, d. Sept. 19, 1657.
Merwin, Miles and Sarah Scofield, m. Nov. 30, — .
Merwin, Joseph, son of John, b. May 2, 1657.
Mills,  sou of Eichard, died Dec. 25, 1660.
"Jno. Mills of Stamford, and Mary Fountain daughter unto Aron Fouu-
tain, who was born unto him by his wife Mary whose maiden name was
Mary Beebe, who was ye daughter of Mr. Samuel Bcebe of new london,
ware married ia Fairfield, by major Peter Burr, Assistant, October ye 2th,
1702." Miller, Sarah, daughter of Johu, b. Nov. 10, 1662.
Newman, Hannah, daughter of William, b. 29, 10, 1637- Mary, d. 18, 10,
'o'J— and Jonathan, b. April 21, '61.
Oliver,  bora 20, 6, 1657.
Oliver,  son to William, b. 19, 9, 1650— a second sou, April 14, '62.
Penoyer, Thomas and Lidde Kuap, m. May 22, 1GS5. and had Abiga'il
b. 13, 8.. '86-Mary, Nov. 22, '88— Mellioent, April 13, 91— Mercy, Sept. 28,
'93 -Samuel, April 3, '96— aud John, May 26, 98.
Penoyer, Thomas, son of Eobert, b. March 29, 1658 -Mary, Nov. 25, 'GO
—Martha, Sept. 23, '61--and Abrigail, 13. 8, 'OS.
Pettet, Debrow, d. 7, 9, 1657.
Pettet, John's wife d. 27, 7, 1G57.
Pettot,'^-!^' and Sarah Scofield, m. 13, G, 1665.
Pettet, David, son of John, b. July 20, 1654, and d. 2, 8, '57— Jonathan, b.
Feb. 23— ,Sai-ah, 27, 6, 1666-John, b. 26, 8, '68— a son, 20, 6, 72— and
Mercy, b. 5, 9, '74.
Pettet. Jouathau, son of Jonathan, b. latter end of Oct. 1693 — John,
March 8, '9d^5— Sarah, Feb. 8, '96-7— Samuel, Feb. 21, '98-9— and Ebenezer,
Jan. 17, 1700-1.
Pond, Abigail, daughter of Nathaniel and Elizabeth, b. ApriflS, 1698—
Elizabeth, Nov. 22, '99-Josiah, Jan, 13, 1701— Hannah, Feb. 13, 1702-3—
and Naomi, March 22, 1704-5.

164 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
Potter, John and Sarah Sellick, m. August 30, 1698.
Eatliffe, William and Elizabeth Thele, ra. 29, 8, 1659' and had Mary, b,
Oct. 27, 1662.
Reynolds, Saragh, d. August 21, 1657.
Reynolds, Jonathan, had Rebecca, b. 1656 — Jonathan, '60 — John, '62—
Sarah, '65— Elizabeth, '67— aud Joseph, about 69- The father, Jonathan; d
in 1673.
Eich, Henry, and Martha Penoir, m. 21, 10, 1680.
Eock, Hittabel, died Sept. 14, 1656.
Eockwell. child of John, died 31, 5, 1658.
Eoberts, Thomas aud Sarah Elliot, m. 27, 11, 1658, and had Sarah, b.
Sept, 4, 1561, and a child, April, 1, '83.
Scofield, Eichard, had Elizabeth, b. Nov. 27, 1653, and Jerimy, 10, 1, '58.
Scofield, Mejcy. daughter of Daniel, b. the latter end of Nov. 0 9, 1657.
Scofield, John and Hannah Mead, m. July 10, 1677— and had Samuel, b.
July 10, '78— John, Jan. 15, '79— 80— Ebenezer, Jan. 26, '85— Nathanial,
Dec. 10, '88— Mercy, Oct. 30, '90— Mary, Aug. 4, '94— and Susanna, March
2, 97-8.
Scofield, John, died March 27, 1698-9.
Scofield, Eichard and Euth Brundish, m. Sept. 14, 1689, and had
Jeremiah, b. April 1, '91— Joshua, Nov. 5, '93— James, April 1, '96— Jona
than, Oct. 9, '98— Hannah, Nov. 14, 1700— Debro, Feb. 14, 1702-3.
Scofield, Daniel and Hannah Hoyt, m. April 17, 1701, and had Nathan,
b. April 14, 1702.
Seeley, Obadiah, d. August 25, 1657— Habakuk, d. 13, 6, 1658.
Seeley, Martha, daughter of Jonas, b. Sept. 20, 1690— Jonas, July 22, '92
Susanna, June 12, '94— Ebenezer. Jan. 18, 96-7— Nathaniel, August 23
'99— and Ehzabeth, August 20, 1701.
Seeley, John, son of Obadiah, b. August 25, 1693— Nathaniel, June 19,
'95— Mercy, Jan. 30, '98— and Obadiah, August 7. 1701.
Seeley, Sarah, daughter of Jouas, born Feb. 1694-5.
Se! lick, Jonathan, and Abigail Law, m. May 11, 1665.
Sillick, Jonathen, son of Jonathan, b. July 11, 1664 -David, Jan. 27, '65

EEGISTEY  1640  1700. 1.65
Selleck, John and Sarah Law, m. Oct. 28, 1669, and had Sarah, b. August
22, 1670— David, Dec. 27, '72— Nathaniel, April 7, '78— John, June 7, '81.
Selleck, Mr. John, had Susanna, b. Feb. 2, 1683, and Johanna, b. May
31, '86.
Selleck, Jonathan Jr., and Abigail Gold, m. Jan. 5, 1685— and had Abi
gail, b. April 3, 1685— Nathan, Sept. 12. '86— and Theophila, Feb. 11, 94-5.
Selleck, Nathaniel and Sarah Lockwood, m. Jan. 25, 1699— and had
Daniel b. Dec. 23, 1700.
Selleck, Capt. Jonathan, d. June 11, 1710.
Selleck, Maj. Jonathan, d. Jan. 10, 1712-13.
Shepard, Mary, widow, d. August 15, 1683.
Simkins, Jonathan, d. 7, 8, 1657.
Skelding, Thomas and Rebecca Slason, m. June 11, 1701.
Slason, Sarah, daughter of John, jr., b, Jan. 20, 1693— Johu, Oct. 4, '95
—Martha, Sept. 17, '99— and Elizfibeth, April 18, 1703.
Slason, Jonathan and Mary Waterbury, m. Feb. 4, 1699-1700- and had
Abigail, b. March 8, 1700— Mary, Jan. 20, 1704.
Slason, John, son of John, b. Sept, 9, 1664— Sarah, Jan. 20, '67— Jona
than, July 25, '70— Elizabeth, Jan. '30, '72— Mary, April 21, '80— Thomas,
3, 12, '81— and Hannah, March 12, 85—6.
Smith, Samuel, son of Henry, died 16, 8, 1658— Mary, 3, 10, '58— and
a daughter, August 9, '61. ' Ann, wife of Henry, died second week in June,
1685. Smith, Elizabeth, wife to John, d. Oct. 6, 1703— and his youngest daugh
ter, Oct 10, 1703.
Smith, Hannah, daughter to John, d. Oct. 27, 1703.
Stevens, Thomas, died, 19, 6, 1658.
Stevens, Obadiah and Eebecca Eose, m. Dec. 18, 1678— and had Tho
mas, b. Sept. 6,- 1679— Ephraim, Jan. 28, '80— Rose, Oct. 14, '83— Rebecca ,
12, 2, '86— Elisha, April 23, '88— Daniel, Nov. 30, '90— Nathan, Deo. 1, '94
and Deliverance, a son, August 1, 1697.
Stevens, Joseph and Sarah Buxton, m. June 24, 1680— and had Joseph
b. May 21, '81— Unica, Dec. 5, '83— Sarah, Jan. 27, '86— and Mary, Jan, 30,
'91— Stevens, Obadiah, d. Dec. 24, 1702.
Stukey, George, and Ann Quimby, m. 28, 9, 1657'

160 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
Stukey, Elizabeth, d. Sep. 4, 165G.
Stukey, George, d. Nov. 28, ISGO.
Taylor, Gregory, d. 24, 7, 1057.
Taylor, Goodwife, d. 18, 6, 1657.
Theal, Nicholas, died 19, 6, 1658.
Uffert, Eiiz-abeth, widow, d. Dec. 27, 1660.
Usher, Eobert and Elizabeth Jagger, m. 12 , 3, 1659, aud had Elizabeth
b. Feb. 25, 1659-60.
Waterbury, John, d. 31. 5, 1G58.
Waterbury, Sarah, daughter of Jonathan, b. August, 15, 1677 — Unice,
Oct. 7, '79— Eose, Jan. 21, '81— Eaohel, Aug. 26, '84— Jonathan, Feb. 9,
'85— Abigail, July 1, '88— and Joseph, Jah. 20, '91.
Waterburj', Jouathanj d. Jan. 14, 1702.
Waterbury, Mary, daughter of John, b. March 20, 1679— John, Oct. 30,
'82— David, Jan. 24, '84— and Thomas, May 12, '87.
Waterbury, John, sou of David, b. Jan. 25, 1G81-2— Elizabeth, Jan. 19,
'83-4— and Sarah, Jau. 10, 84-5.
Waterbury, David and Sarah Weed, 2d. -wife, m. August 11, 1698- aud
had Euth, b. Jau. 3, 1699— and David, Nov. 9, 1701.
AVaterbury. .  , son to Jonas, b. Sept. 12, 1694.
Webb, Eichard, d. Jan. 1, 1656.
Webb, Joshua, son of Eichard, b.  -; and — — Nell, March 30,
1662. Webb, Eichard, died, March 15, 1675,-6.
Webb, child of Richard, died, Jan. 1, 1656.
Webb, Joseph aud Hannah Scofield, m. Jan. 8, 1672, aud had Joseph, b.
Jau. 5, 1674— Mary, April 14, '77 -Hannah, March '79— Sarah, Oct. 16,
'81— aud Margery, Oct. 4, '83.
Webb, Waitstill, child of Samuel, b. Jau. 6, 1690-1— Samuel, Nov. 6, '92
Mercy, April 11, '93— Charles, March 12, '96-7— Mary, Jan. 7, '98— 9— and
Nathaniel, Nov. 0, 1700.
Webb, Joseph, and Mary Hait, m. Feb. 23, 169S-and .had Joseph, b.
Jau. 26, 1700-1— Ebenezer, b. March 7, 1704, and died, -April 16, 1704— Ben-
j amin, August 24, 1705.

EEGISTEY — 1640 — 1700. 167
Weed, Jonas, child, d. July 15, 1656.
Weed, Jonas, son of John, b. Feb. 5, 1667— Daniel, Feb. 11, '69— Joseph,
d. Jan. 7, '90, aged 12 years— Isaac, April 20, '91, aged 9 years— Mary,
April 21, '91, aged 7 years, aud Hanna, March 22, '91, aged 4 years.
Weed, Jouas and Bethia Holly, m. Nov. 16, 167 — .
Weed, Jonas, son of Jonas, (Shoemaker), b. July 26, 1678— Benjamin
April 5, '81— Jonathan, AprillS, '84 — Abigail, Aprils, '95— John, Nov. 19,
'98— Miles, Feb. 24, 1700-1— Sarah, March 10, '02-'03— and Nathan, May
20, 1705.
Weed, Jonas, (Shoomaker), d. Nov. 18, at eaveniug, 170G.
Weed, Daniel and Mary Webb, m. Sept. 23, 1697.
Weed, Daniel, had Abraham, d. 18 years old, Aug. 18, 16D8— Sarah, 23
years jold, Nov. 18, '98— Daniel, 13 years old, March 19, '98— Ebenezer, 6
years old, Oct. 22, '98— Nathaniel, 2 years old, Oct. 22, '98— Joseph, b. Aug.
18, '98— David, Aug. 19, 1700- Joanna, Nov. 8, '02— and Dairiel, May 14, '05
Weed, Samuel and Abigail Scofield, m. April 17, 1701.
Weed, Joseph and Eebecca Higginbotham, m. Dec. 10, 1701.
Weed, Jonas, at Noroton Corners, aud Sarah Waterburj', m. Jun. 20,
1703- 4, and had Jonas, b. at Noroton CornBra,.Dec. 24, 1704.
Weed, Jonas, Sr. d. Nor. 19, 1704.
Wiat, Nathaniel, sou of Nathaniel, b. July 18, 1637.
Youngs, John aud Euth Eliat, (Elliot), m. Jan. 30, 1690, and had Eliza
beth, b. April 22, '94, and d. April 15, 1706- Euth, b. May 21, '96— Mary,
Aug. 30, 1700— John, May 5. 1703— Abigail, ilarch 13, '05-6— Thomas,
Feb. 21, '07-8— Elizabeth, May 30, '10-Samuel, Sept. 30, '12— and Sarah,
June 18, '15.

CHAPTER X.

¦STAMFOED IX 1700.

This year finds in Connecticut twenty-seven towns incorpo
rated, of which Stamford ranks the thirteenth on the grand
list. The population of the town is probably somewhere be
tween five and six hundred. The territory is about seven and
a half miles in width and not far from eleven in length.
Sixty years have now passed since its settlement ; and they
have been years which must have left many and well defined
traces of their course.
Already Eastfield, Southfield, Xorthfield and Newfield, em
bracing a large part of the territory south of what is now the
North Stamford Parish, had been " layed out " to the proprie
tors or their children, or were yet used as common grounds for
" winter corn " or summer pasture. Enough had been learned
ot the several parts of this domain to have already established
in common use names long since outworn or forgotten.
Runkinheag and Short Rocks, Hardy's Hole and Slason's
Wolf Pit, Elbow Plain and Rump Swamp, Great Fresh Meadow
and Jagger's Den, Clabord Hill and Hollow Tree Ridge, are
names of less significance in these modern times than when they
expressed localities closely connected with the most important
interests of the young colony. A well built fence running across
its neck, and which twenty years ago had taxed the common
time of the whole people, had secured the whole of our beauti
ful headland, Shipan, as the yearly corn ground of the proprie
tors ; while another fence running across eastward from below

STAMFOED IX 1700. 169
the landing place to the north of where our new cemetery now
lies, cut off the early Rocky Neck as their nearest pasture
ground. Across this territory ran an irregular road, near the
course of the present principal street through the town. From
this, cart paths radiated at dift'erent points, ont to the several
fields which had then been laid out, embracing the most of the
southern part of the tract, while almost all the northern portion
of it was still aforest,with openings for here and there a pioneer
home on the two northward routes leading from the present
center of Darien and Stamford over Woodpecker Ridge into
the new settlement at Bedford across the Dutch lines.
Of the state of these roads at this period, even the best of
tiiein, that which formed the chief landward route between New
Haven and New York, we find a very reliable description in
the private journal of Madam Knight. She had started on
horseb.ack from Boston, Oct. 2, 1704, to visit New York. Dec.
6th she left New Plaven attended by a kinsman of hers, Thomas
Trowbridge of that city, also on horseback. They made the
journey together, and started on tlieir return Dec. 15th. The
journal thus mentions the route across Stamford. As she left
Kye she says : " here we took leave of York government and
descending the mountainous passage that .almost broke my
heart in ascending, before wc eame to Stamford, a well compact
town, but miserable meeting house which we passed and through
many great difficulties, as bridges -which were exceeding high,
and very tottering, and of vast length, steep and rocky hills and
precipices (bugbears to a fearful fem.ale traveler). About nine
at night we came to Norwalk, having crept over a timber of a
hroken bridge .about thirty feet long and perhaps fifty to the
water." On the journey to New York she says that between
Xorwalk aud Rye they proceeded " walking and leading their
horses neer a mile together, up a prodigious high hill." This is
the hill of which she speaks on the return. Of the condition of
the other roads traversing the town we have no account. '>'2

170 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
Already were visible the germs of at least two other cen
ters on this tract, at Middlesex and at Woodpecker Hollow.
But as yet no effort had been made to establish church or per
manent school privileges elsewhere in all this stretch of terri
tory, than at the very center of the town plot. Here, close by
where the first rude church had been built, stands the third
edifice, now in its sixth year of good service rendered the town,
yet already undergoing such changes in its interior as the in
creasing population demands. This very year the order is given
to transfer the pulpit to the north end, and turn the seats to
face it, and to throw galleries around the hitherto unused walls
to accommodate those for whom there are now no seats.
The fathers of the town were nearly all gone, and the third
generation were now coming forward to the responsibilities and
honors of social and civil life. We will see who are still here
and in what positions, as far as the records of that day will
show. The chief man of this now soine^\diat organized town Rev.
John Davenport, has for some six years held his throne in the
hearts of the peojDle who had voluntarily placed him there ¦ and
there seems to be no abatement of their loyalty or their love.
They still, with great unanimity, vote his annuity of the usual
" specia," and a most bountiful supjjly of wood. Early Novem
ber of this year gathers them together in formal town meeting,
and the first and most important business of the day is to see
that all the temporal wants of their faithful pastor are supplied.
Sec how fully those citizens of the year of grace, 1700, jji-ovide
for one of their pastor's wants. The whole town are assembled.
Samuel Hoyt, the same who was to sit with Mr. Davenport, ere
long, in the famous Saybrook Convention to aid in framing the
famous Saybrook Platform, Avas doubtless their Moderator.
The drum has ceased its summons, and the ready pastor has iu-
voked on his people the presence and blessing of God. He re
tires and the second man of all this people, moderator Hoyt,

STAMFOED IX 1700. 171
calls for such business, as now the providence of God orders
them to " attend."
The first response, introduces as of first importance tho claims
of the good pastor, who was in charge of the spiritual interests
of the whole town.
Nineteen closely written lines, in the hand writing of the
the honored recorder of the town, Samuel Holly, Sen., repoi-t to
us all that was done in that November meeting ; but fifteen of
them are devoted to recording the care which the people took
of him whose sacred office they had been trained to honor, and
whose personal character they had learned to respect and love.
They now vote Mr. Davenport, his annuity of wood. Lest
any part of it should bo lacking, the amount was provided for
iu the town rate ; yet each inhabitant dwelling between Nor-
w.alk and Greenwich was allowed " reasonable time and warn
ing" for carting his proportion of the wood, which, from a
previous record we learn must be deposited in the minister's
yard before the end of November. They, then, vote the price
which each person must pay who fails to carry his proportion
of the supply, — eight shillings for each load — and order that
none of the wood carried shall be cut over " six foot" long.
Aud lest these orders should fail of practical execution, the fol
lowing vote secures the desired result.
"By voate ye town doe appoint Daniel Scofield and Elisha
Holly to apportion to each man what wood he shall carry to Mr.
Davenport, and to order ye time when it shall be carried ; and
do Impower ye sd Scofield and Holly to hire all such men's pro
portion of sd wood as shall neglect or refuse doing their sd pro
portions, after Reasonable warning and time allowed for ye
performing of ye sd worke, and shall pay all such as are hired,
town Rate not exceeding eight shillings ye coard, and for their
incouragement to ye sd persons improued In ye worke they
shall have allowed them so much as their proportion is in ye
town Rate ; yt is of wood."
I have introduced this item of town business in its full pro-

172 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
portions, as most distinctly revealing the leading aim and spirit
of the town, a hundred and sixty-eight years ago and to indi
cate the manner in which they sought to realize it. Religion
and its support was this aim, and for this the town government
was framed and- pledged.
Let us now name the men who are here, and their recorded
positions. At the first town meeting held this year, March 5, 1700, the
following offices are filled :
For "viewers," that is, for those who were to inspect the
fields and see that that they were closed so as to " turn creturs"
by the fifteenth of March, but who were obliged to officiate the
twentieth day of the month, we have the names of John Slason,
sen., and Isaac Finch, sen., for the Northfield ; Joseph Garnsy
and Daniel Cloisen for the Southfield ; and John Slason, jr., and
John Crissy for the Eastfield.
For " pounders," that is, for those authorized to impound
lawless cattle, there were : Thomas Slason and Samuel Finch
for Northfield; Daniel Lockwood, for the Southfield; John
Green and John Bishop, for Eastfield ; and Clement Buxton for
Roekyneck. For " suruaires," (surveyors,) were : Richard Scofield and
Nathaniel Cross for Southfield and westward ; Benjamin Hoit,
sen,, and Dan. Scofield, for Northfield and"Norward; Steven
Bishop and Steven Homes for Eastfield and eastward and Rocky-
neck. Mr. Samuel Hait and Elisha Holly are added to the committae
for laying out Runkinheag or Short Rocks.
Mr. Jonathan Selleck, jr.. Mr. David Waterbury and Eli
sha Holly, are appointed to prosecute all " found defective
upon the account of lands." Benjamin Green and Nathaniel
Cross are to " vewe" the land west of Joseph (^arnsy's lot and
report. Zacri Dibble is allowed ten acres from the sequestered lands,

¦ STAMFOED IN 1700. 173
Elisha Holly is to have six and Jonathan Crissy ten. David
Waterbury and Elisha Holly are to report a place on Stony-
brook for Mr. Bates to set a fulling mill, as he wishes leave
to do.
At the town meeting held August 23, 1700, Peter Ferris, jr„
and Jonathan Bates are appointed to make out the town list,
and Samuel Holly, sen. " is to fit it for ye corte." No other
vote of this meeting is recorded.
At the town meeting held November 8 of this year, in addi
tion to the votes respecting Mr. Davenport already reported,
.John Holly, " Increasis son," has donated to him " a corner of
land within the Eastfield gate next his lot, not preyising the
highway," and Stephen Bishop, Jonathan Waterbury are to
vewe ye sd land and stake it out to him.
Daniel Scofield. sen. and Elisha Holly are chosen auditors.
At the meeting held December 27th of this year, Benjamin
Iloyt, sen. and John Ambler are chosen collectors to ga'ther
Mr. Davenport's rate.
John Slason, sen. and Joseph Ferris, constables.
Daniel Scofield, sen. Jonas Weed, sen. Richard Scofield, Eli
sha Holly and Samuel Holly, sen., are made townsmen.
Left. Waterbury and Daniel Scofield, sen.. " Sheep masters
to take care of ye flock."
Joseph Turney and Increase Holly to lay out the laud granted
by the town to " Zacry Debbie," and Jonathan Cross and Elisha
Holly. The above are all the names which occur on the busi
ness records of the town for the year 1700. Others who were
living on this tract at the time, will appear from the assign
ment of land by lot, December 26,1699. There were sixty-
nine lots, and they were drawn by seventy-five persons in the
following order.
Stephen Clawson Ensign Bates William Clemance
John Arnold Nathaniel Cross Joseph Garnsy
John Crissy George Slason John Pettit
John Holly, sen. Lieut. Bell Daniel Scofield
Jonas Seeley Peter June Increase Holly

174
Abram Finch
" ye pi-Sonage
Mr. Mills
Elawzer Slas ou
Isaac Finch
Mr. Bishop
John Holme-s
Johu Slason
Jonathan Holly
Joseph Turney
Gapt. Selleck
Mr. Lawes
Eichard Scofield
Joseph Theil
Johu Smith
Ed. aud Jo. Lockwood
Thomas Penoyer
John Weed_
Caleb Knapp

HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.

Stephen Holmes
Francis Dan
Jonathan Waterbury
Samuel Hoyt
Thomas Lawrence
Benjamin Green
.John Scofield
Joseph Green
Clement Buxton
Samuel Webb
Peter Ferris
John Miller
John Wescott
David Waterbui-y
Samuel Finch
John Waterbury
John Austin
John Finch, Jan.
Joseph Stevens
Samuel Dean

Abraham Am bier
Jeremy Jagger
Joseph tirown
Joseph Hoyt
Jouas Weed
Elisha Holly
Thomas Newman
Moses Knapp
Daniel Weed
.Xonathau Jaggor,
Widow Webster
Seely, deceased
Samuel Holly j
Obadiah, Slevena
Benjamin Hoyt
John Finch
Cornelius Jones
John Goold

Samuel Hardy
In addition still to these names we have others in the follow
ing list of estates made out in January, 1701. This list will
also be in proof of the relative pecuniary standing of the citi
zens at this date. The list is said to be that " belonging to
ye proper inhabitance in Stamford." It is alphabetically arranged
on the original record, and may be found in Book of Records
A, page 376.

£ s. d.

X .s. d.

Ambler. John,

92 10 0

Holly, Samuel, sen.

52 00 0

Andrews, Jeremiah,

96 18 0

Holly, John, ser.

71 10 0

Austen, John,

34 04 0

Holly, John,

63 00 0

Bates, John, sen.

135 00 0

Holly, Elixabeth,

61 16 3

Bates, John, jiin.

90 00 0

Holly, Jonathan,

58 10 0

Bell, Mrs.

105 00 0

Holly, John, jun..

30 00 0

Bell, Jonathan,

55 05 6

Holly, Samuel, jun..

20 00 0

Bishop, Stephen,

143 10 0

Holly, Joseph,

25 00 0

Bishop, Joseph,

55 12 0

Holly, John,un ,

20 10 0

Bishop, Ebenezer,

33 00 0

Jagger, Jonathan,

39 05 0

Bishop, Benjamin,

38 10 0

June, Peter,

75 15 0

Brown, Joseph,

78 10 0

Jones, Orp, (orphan?)

04 Ofll

STAMFOED IX 1700.

17.5

Baxton, Clement,

112 00 6

Knap, Moses,

45 05 0

Blachley, Samuel,

37 07 3

Knap, John,

111 05 0

Crissy, John,

40 16 0

Knap, Caleb,

34 17 6

Crissy Jonathan,

18 00 0

Lockwood, Joseph,

40 07 6

Cross, Nathaniel,

54 00 0

Lockwood, Daniel,

38 02 6

Closon, Daniel,

64 05 6

Lockwood, Edmund,

28 10 0

Closon, Samuel,

55 12 0

Mills, William,

21 00 0

Chapman Simon,

26 00 6

Mills, Johu,

18 00 0

Clemance, William,

27 12 0

Newman, Thomas,

83 00 0

Clark, Joseph,

21 00 0

Pettit, John,

56 07 9

Dan, Francis,

27 00 0

Penoyer, Thomas,

72 05 0

Dibble, Zechary,

26 05 3

Pond, Nathaniel,

36 00 0

Dean, Samuel,

14 13 0

Slason, Johu, 'sen.

101 05 0

Dean, John,

30 00 6

Slason, John, juu..

57 15 0

Doan, Mathew,

18 00 0

Slason, Jonathan,

33 00 0

Ferris, Peter,

118 12 0

Slason, James,

43 02

Ferris, Joseph,

72 02 0

Slason, Stephen,

18 00

Ferris, Peter, juu.

39 00 0

Seeley, Obadiah,

26 00 0

Finch. Isaac, sen.

27 10 0

Seeley, Jouas, jun. .

18 00 0

Finch, Abraham, sen.

.37 02 0

Scofield, Daniel, sen..

115 05 0

Finch, John,

22 00 0

Scofield, Daniel, jun.,

55 10 0

Finch, Samuel,

46 02 6

Scofield, Widow,

66 05 0

Finch, Joseph,

42 02 6

Scofield, John,

27 03 0

Finch, Abraham, jun.

35 00 0

Scofield, Eichard,

56 02 6

Pinch, Isaac, jun.

22 00 0

Smith, John,

107 02 0

Garnsey, Joseph,

46 10 0

Smith, Daniel,

148 0 0

Green, John,

28 17 6

Stevens, Obadiah,

79 07 6

Green, Benjamin,

55 09 0

Stevens, Thomas,

18 00 6

Green, Joseph,

81 01 0

Stevens, Joseph, '

46 17 0

Gold, John,

88 02 6

Stone, John,

22 00 0

Hardy, Samuel,

47 00 0

Selleck, Major,

91 15 0

Higgingbothum, Mr.

30 00 0

Selleck, Widow,

106 05 0

Holmes, Stephen,

83 05 0

Selleck, Captaiu,

123 10 6

Holmes, Samuel,

18 00 0

Selleck, Nathaniel,

57 0 8 0

Holmes, John,

31 00 0

Seeley, Jonas, sen.,

116 170

Hayt, Samuel, seu.

94 10 0

Traheru, Edward,

41 10 0 0

Hayt, Samuel, jun.

24 02 6

Turney, Joseph,

63 05 0

Hayt, John,

19 00 0

Waterbury, Daniel,

136 10 g

Hayt, Benjamin, seu.

112 00 0

Waterburj', Jona.

100 00 0

Hayt, Benjamin, jun.

52 05 6

Weed, Jonas, sen. ,

1.54 10 0

Hayt, Joshua,

31 12 6

Weed, Widow,

96 10 0

Hayt, Samuel, (smith)

36 12 6

Weed, Daniel,

26 07 0

176 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
Weed, Samuel, 22 15 0 Webster, Daniel, 30 0 0
Weed, Joseph, 55 06 3 Wood, Mr. 119 10 0
Webb, Samuel, 56 10 0 Youngs, John, 46 10 0
Webb, Joseph, 61 08 9 Davenport, Mr. John, 100 00 o
Webster, John, 41 00 0
Entered tliis 28lh of Jan. 1701-2, by Sam'l Holly, recorder.
The following choice morceau, found in the New York colo
nial records of this date, will enable us to estimate the influence
of Stiimford, in wha,t has since become the metropolis of the
continent. It bears date. New York, November 28, 1700, and
was written by the " Earl of Bellomont," to the English Lords
of Trade, his mastei-s. It will give us a pretty clear idea of the
Yankee enterprise of at least one of the Stamford boys of that
day. The record will also, reveal the natural results of the
nearness of Stamford to the great metropolis of the country, in
dicating thus early in its history how strongly our businessmen
are temjated towards the city.
" Theres a town called Stamford, in Conn. Colony, on the
border of this province, where one Major Selleck lives, who has
a ware house close to the sea, that runs between the mainland
and Nassau, (Long Island). Tliat man does us great mischief
Avith his ware house, for he receives .abundance of goods from
our vessels, and the merchants afterwards take their opportu
nity of running them into this town. Major Selleck received
at least £10,000 worth of treasure and East India goods,
brought by one Clarke of this town fi-om Kid's sloop, and
lodged with Selleck."

CHAPTER XI.

XEW FAMILY NAMES BETWEEN" 1660 AND 1775.

This chapter proposes to reeord the introduction of new fami
lies between 1660, to which date our fifth chapter brings down
the list, and the opening of our revolutionary war. We shall,
as iu the former chapters on the settlers, give such account of
these new families as we have been able to secure. A few other
names may appear in the text, but of persons probably tran
siently here. We regret a want of space which compels quite
an abridgment from our original draft of this chapter on the
pioneer names of these new families.
Aenold, Joseph, 1685, by vote of the town is allowed to set
lip a shop on the town lot, towards the nortliwest corner.
In 1688, with such help as he could command, he was found en
gaged in rigging up a brigantine under suspicious circumstances.
They could not or would not report the object or destination of
the craft. This, too, was at the time when the English govern
ment were continually finding fault with the New England colo
nies for allowing piratical expeditions to be fitted out in their
harbors. The fathers of the town, against whom no suspicion
of disloyalty or even remissness in civil duty could be raised, at
once issued their injunction upon the proceeding. The mere
fact that the cause for rigging up the brigantine was unknown,
was the ground of the injunction.
He is called mariner, on leaving home. Mar. 20, 1688-9. The
record states that "being designed on a voyage to sea, by
God's grace," he appoints his brother John and his loving friend
23

178 HISTOET OF STAMFOED.
Peter Chocke his attorneys. Several families of this name must
have been here during the first half of the last century.
Ayees, Richard, sen. gives son Philip land, Dec. 19, 1705;
and his house and use of land to son " Harence." Mary his wife
died, Jan. 19, 1715-6. Richaed, jr. said to be of Stamford,
buys land, April 5, 1703, of Richard Sco'field. He, or another
of the same name, married, Abigail  , Dec. 18. 1712, and
had a son John born in '14. The widow of Richard Ayres,
married John Mott ; and in '35, John and Abigail Mott quit
claim to their sons John and Ebenezer Ayres and their daugh
ter Mary Ayres, all their interest in the estate of their honored
father Richard Ayres.
Bakee, Samuel 1775, buys of Wm. Budd Lucas, on Bald
Hill. The name disappears for three quarters of a century, to
re-appear in Luke Baker, whose family now live on South St.
Banks, John, IT'SO. This family have continued in the north
west part of the old township until the present day.
Beachgood, John and Hannah, had children born here ;
Mary, Nov. 18, 1721; Martha, March 0, '25 ; Peter, March 17
'26-7; Hannah, Sept. 8, '31.
Beldin, John, 1691, is a partner with Jonathan Selleckin the
purchase of the Pink Blossom, built in S tamford, by John Mills.
This family was quite numerous and evidently had both means
and influence about the middle of the laSt century.
Bellamy, Slatthew, teacher, buys land of Robert Usher in
1688, when he is said to be of Stamford. In 1670 he was hired
to teach school ; and the town give him a house lot, binding him
to build on it within two years. The name soon disappeared
from the roll of citizens.
Blachley, Samuel, blacksmith, Aug. 15, 1695, buys land of
Abraham Finch, and next year appears on the list of town offi
cials. In 1708 he is on the school committee. In 1714, he
was voted the liberty of Mill river, above Northfield for a mill,

NEW FAMILY NAMES. 170
if he will build on it within three years. In 1723 he had a
shop near the meeting house ; and by 1730, he had made such
progress in position as to be allowed the honored prefix, Mr. to
his name. By his first wife, Abigail Finch, he had Samuel,
Sarah, and Abigail ; and by the second whose name was Sarah,
a Mary, b. Aug. 24, 1710. His death occurred Oct. 14, '56.
Blackley, Joseph, 1736-7, married Abigail Hoyt. Children,
Sarah, b. Sept. 20, '37, and Joseph, June 24, '39. The wife
Abigail died, June 27, 1739.
This name is spelled Blatchely, Blachly, Blackesly, and in
several other ways, making it difficult often to decide what
family is indicated. The name appears often on the land re
cords of the town.
Blackman, Josiah, married here, Aug. 5, 1714, Sarah Brown.
Children, one who died Feb. 25, '14-15; Josiah, born in 16;
Sarah, b. Oct. 15, 1718 ; Joseph, b. Nov. 5,-1719 ; Elizabeth, d.
April 11, 1730; Josiah, jr., d. Mar. 14, 1738-9. His name is
several times on the list of town officials and his death is re
corded, June 17, 1747. His wife died, Aug. 16, '45.
Blanchaed, William and Abigail, had children ; Jacob, b.
Feb. 28, 1744-5 ; Abigail, b. Sept. 7, 1746 ; William, b. Jan. 8,
1749-60, and a second Jacob, b. Feb. 5, 1752. He is among
the ofiicials of the town as early as 1751.
BoAEDMAN, Israel, was here in 1724, when his "ear mark"
was entered to him. An Israel Boardman, married here March
13, 1745-6, Mary Blackman. Children, one that was b. and d.
same day, and Mary, b. Feb. 1, 1753.
BooLOCH, Richard, then 66 years old, owned a farm here in
1677, which had been given by John Budd to his son-in-law,
John Ogden.
Bostwice;, Ephraim, purchased Dec. 3, 1745, of Peter Quin
tard of Norwalk, and Hannah Quintard and Nathaniel Hubbard
of Stamford, the land of Isaac Quintard deceased.

180 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
From similarity of names in their families he was doubtless a
grandson of that Arthur Bostwick whom Savage brings with
his son John from the county of Chester, Eng. to Stratford.
He was probably a cousin of the Rev. Ephraim Bostwick who
was recorded here, as married to Mrs. Abigail Allen, March 1,
1738-9, and who was settled as pastor over the First Church in
Greenwich, from 1730 to 1746. To this Rev. Ephraim, there
were born and recorded here, Zachariah, b. Nov. 39, 1737;
Ephriam, Oct. 25, 1741.; Mary, Aug. 4, 1743; Abigail, Aug:
16, 1745; Ebenezer, March 14, 1749; William, April 19, 1751,
and Samuel, July 29, 1753. Ephraim Bostwick seems to have
been active and prominent in the school society.
BoEDEN, Nathaniel is on the list of the town officers in 1737.
Bouton, Richard, had died here June 27, 1665, when his will
was probated. His wife Ruth had the use of his property, and
at her death, if there should be any left, it was to go to his son
John's son John.
John, 1722, is on the official list of the town, and Nathaniel
is admitted an inhabitant the next year by vote of the town.
John, jr., and Mary Pettit, m. Feb. 18, 1731-2. Children,
Mary, b. Dec. 24, 'S3 ; Gold, b. Jan. 24, '33-4. This name has
been quite numerous and furnished a good number of respect
able citizens.
Beiggs, Daniel in 1707 had lands here. He had married,
Nov. 24, 1704, Elizabeth Newman at Rye, and his daughter
Sarah is recorded as seven years old, March 29, '12-13. They
had a daughter Mary, b. Jan. 24, '16-17. The name has con
tinued until the present time though never very numerous.
Beookbe, Samuel, 1748, is on the official list of the town and
for several years must have been quite active and prominent.
Beyan, Samuel and Augustin had families here during the
first half of the last centurv.

NEW FAMILY NAMES. 181
Ghestee, Richard, tailor, in 1708-9 buys dwelling house here
of Joseph Lockwood.
Chiciiestee, Daniel, 1722, married Abigail Bishop and had
children.; Abraham, b. '25 ; Abigail, b. '27 ; Susannah, b. '33 ;
and Daniel, b. '35.
Clements, William, 1671, seems to have succeeded Mr. Ri
der as teacher. In 1677 he is given a house lot if he and his
" do forever maintain all the town fence lying by the two North-
field gates, and for secnrity the above land shall be bound for
ever." Clements, Widow Elizabeth, died here in 1727-8.
Cluggston, John, 1721, takes his cattle mark. He and Eli
zabeth had children, Elizabeth, John, Ann, Deborah, Samuel,
Mary, Abigail. He had been twice married.
Clock, John, was admitted an inhabitant by vote in 1725.
He married Deborah Scofield, and had a daughter Catherine
born, Jan. 6, 1725, and a son Albert, May 9,' '29. This name
is still in the eastern part of the old township.
Coeey, Thomas, 1720, when the following children are re
corded to him and his wife Elizabeth ; Jane, six years old, Feb.
17th; Mary, four years old, Oct. 6th, and Thomas, one year
old, Feb. 10th. "^
CoNKLiN, Gary, 1728, in north part of the town, has liberty
to pay ministers rate in Bedford.
Ceawfoed, James and Abigail had children ; John James,
b. June 10, 1763, and d. April 21, '66 ; Joanna, b. Nov. 24, '65,
and John, July 2, '67.
Ceissy, William, Jan. 16, 1666, testifies in the Stamford
court. His son John was born in 1665 ; and probably it was
his daughter Mary who died in 1658. In 1672, in a deed of
land sold to Nicholas Webster, he is styled planter. This
name has been both numerous and respectable.
Geoss-,, Nathaniel,- 1673, was' voted a home lot. In 1687, he
buys- of Ebenezer Mead of Greenwich; land in Stamford. In

182 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
1693, John Cross of Windsor, sells his house aud home lot in
Stamford to his brother Nathaniel of Stamford.
CuETiss, Cornelius, Oct. 3, 1712, married Deborah Green.
Timothy, in '47 was one of the school committee and promi
nent among the town officials afterward.
Dan, Francis, the first of this name in town, bought land of
Isaac Finch, March 17, 1684-5. By his wife, Elizabeth, he had
children, " born in Stamford;" Abigail, b. March 30, 1699 ; Re
becca, Aug. 25, 1706; Jonathan, Nov. 9, '09. This family set
tled in the north part of the town and gave name to a part of
it. D.vNiEL, (Daniels) Richard, married Bethiah Hoyt, March 1,
1750, and had a son Abraham, b. Sept. 24, '52.
Davis, John, 1709, is admitted by vote an inhabitant of the
town. Davenpoet, Rey. John, the ancestor of this family came
here as our Chapter of Ecclesiastical history shows in 1693 ;
.and his family from that date have been prominent in the his
tory of the town. See Biog. Sketches ; and lor an account of
the descendants of Mr. Davenport, the first of the family here.
uee also the Davenport Family, by A. B. Davenport, Esq., of
Brooklyn, N. Y.
Delay AN, Cornelius, was probably the first of this name here.
He had property here in 1713, and his wife Deborah had son
Timothy, b. July 29th, of the same year; and in '46 appears
among the officials of the town. John Delevan must have been
here about as early, as he had a son Cornelius born here in '15.
The family settled in the northeast part of the town where the
name is still respectably represented.
Demill, Peter, of French parentage, was here in business in
1703. He was evidently a man of means and of business en
ergy. He lived on the ground now occupied by the Congrega
tional Church. He died here in '22, when he was styled cap
tain. Peter, son, probably of the above, had son Peter, b.

NEW FAMILY NAMES. 183
May 23, 1731, and son Abraham, Dec. 21, 1735. He and An
thony Demill a brother, probably, in 1727, were granted the
privilege of building a grist mill at the mouth of Mill river,
twenty rods below where " Harriss's old mill" was. For several
years the name was quite prominent in the records of the town ;
and is still well represented among the business men of New
York. De FoEEST, Anthony .and Martha had son Reuben, b. Dec.
1756. Dixon, John, married Ruth Hait of Norwalk, and had son John
born here, Nov. 25, 1761. He married fov his second wife,
Rachel Sherwood of Stamford, and they had a son Hugh, b.
Oct. 29, '70. The name is still found on our roll of citizens.
DEEW,Dr. John, married here Feb. 4, 1714, Elizabeth Green.
ilercy Drew, a daughter, probably of Dr. Drew, married here
Jan, 8, '35-6, Jonathan Weed. (See list of physicians.)
DcTFEEES, John and Mary, and Stephen and Sarah had chil
di-en here between 1760 .and '75. They were land owners hero
during the revolutionary war .and occupied a part of "Bauld"
Hill, Canaan parish.
Emeey, John, 1668, sells house and land to Richard Law.
Fanchee, John, and Emice Bouton, m. Nov. 19, 1736, '34,
fireman, '47, buys land of John Jacklin, and in '50 is on the
official list of the town. Hanna, m. Joseph Garnsey, June 6, '28.
Fountain, Mary, dau. of Aaron and Mary, m. John Mills, of
Stamford, Oct. 2, 1702.
Fountain, Sam. and Martha Scofield, m. Nov. 23. '74 Moses ;
b. June 3, '76 ; S,am. b. June 4, '78.
Fountain Eneas and Elizabeth Smith, m. Julyl779 ; Joseph, b.
Jan. 3, '80.
Gagee, Jeremiah, 1666, in the Court Records is said to be-
25 years of age; aud John, has lands assigned him in 1667.
Gale, Joseph, a town officer in 1758. By wife Rebecca, he
had children born between '32 and '44.

184 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
Gayloe, Jeremiah, the first of this name on the town records,
had land assigned him in 1665. The name is still well repre
sented in our list of town officials, and in families of other
names. Gold, John, is outhe list of freemen in 1734, and sells land here
in 1681. John, his son, probably married here, April 3, 170 7
Hannah Higginbothum. John sen. died in '02. This. name
is found often on the land records of the town for about fifty
years. GoEUM, George, the first of this family in Stamford, was
licenced to sail from New London to Barbadoes, with his sloop
Hennah, in 1727.
He soon after this came to Stamford and settled on the spot
now owned by Capt. Isaac Weed, in Darien. He afterwards
went down to the landing, near the mouth of Goodwin's river,
where his descendants still remain.
In 1743, Capt. George Gorham, appears among the town offi
cials. He had married, iu NewRochelle, July 20, '26, Hannah
Banks ; the service being performed by " a Church of England
Minister." Their children, recorded, were: Hannah, '28 ;
Puella,'30; Abigail, '31; Phebe, '35; Daniel, '37; Jonathan,
'40 ; Sarah, '42 ; George, '44 ; Joseph, '45 ; and Deborah, '48.
Geay, Daniel and Prudence Waterbury, married here, Nov.
15, 1765, and had daughter, Mary, b. May 18, '67. Joshua and
Elizabeth Dibble, married. May 20, '66, and had daughter
Abigail, b. Feb. 9, '69. The name disappears from the records
soon after the close of the war.
Haeeis, Robert .and Eliz.abeth, were hereabout 1710, and had
several children.
RiCKOx:, Benjamin, was hei-e in business in 1715. He married,
Feb. 3, '13-4, Sarah Selleck, and had two children rocordexl to
them, Abigail and Bethel.
Higginbottom, Richard, 1696, buys land of Daniel Wescot.
According to Savage, he had gone from New Haven to Eliza-

new family names. 185
bethtown, whence he removed to Stamford. He was a tailor and
had married Elizabeth, daughter of Thomas Munson, and had
a daughter, Rebecca, b. Oct. 12, 1682. He married, Dec. 11,
7107, Youne Waterburj^ At her death, in 1710, She is called
Eunice. By vote of the town, Richard Higginbothom, is accept
ed an inhabitant Jixn. 31. 1708-9.
Hobby, John, 1663, had land bounded by William Hubbard's
of Greenwich, and is, probably, the ancestor of the families of
this name in town. The names spelled Huby, Hoby, Hubbe,
llubey. Hubbey, .and Hubbey.
How, John, 1710, married Comfort Finch; Isaac and Eliza.
beth, had a son David, b. in 1720 ; Ebinezer, in '23, and James,
'25. In '32, Isaac How was chosen ensign of the 1st company
or trainband of Stamford.
HuBBAED, William, "formerly of Greenwich," bought lan
herein 1697, and again in 1704-5, he buys another parcel, west
of Mill river, on "Pepperwood Ridge." The name is spelled
Hubert, and Ilubbart. He w.as probably a grandson of George
and Mary Hubburd, who came from England in 1635 or '36, and
settled at Wethersfield. This George removed to Milford,
and had a large family ; John, George, Daniel, William, Mary,
Sarah, Abigail, Hannah and Elizabeth.
Hull, Josiah and Hanna, has son Samuel, b. March 2, 1740-1,
the father being dead.
HurroN, Samuel, 1744, buys land of Joseph Judson & Joseph
Brown. He was a man of some prominence in the town for a
number of years. In '48 he paid forty shillings fine for refusing
to serve on the grand jury. By his wife Rebecca, he had a
daughter, Rebecca, and a son, Samuel, Feb. 20, '57.
Ingeesol, John, 1721, is the first of this name on record here.
and Simon, who appears twelve years later, when he married
Hannah Palmer. This family has since then eeii well repre
sented in all the generations.
Jaevis, Samuel, bought dwelling house, homelot, barn and
24

186 HISTOEY OF STA3IF0ED.
shop, Jan. 11,1 744-5 of Nathaniel Finch. To Samuel and Mar
tha Jarvis are recorded the following children : Monson, b. Oct.
'42; Samuel, July 4, '45; Polly, Feb. 21, '46-7; Sarah, Nov.
28, '50 John, Oct. 11, '52; William, Sept. 11. '5(3; Hannah,
Sept. 27, '58, and Lavina, Oct. 5. '61. This family for several
years was quite numerous and has always been in all its branches
highly respectable. (See list of loyalists.)
Jeffeey, John, admitted an inhabitant in 1727. The children
of John and Sarah recorded here, are John, Samuel, and Mary.
Jointee, Isaac, admitted an inhabitant by vote, 1713.
Judson, John and Charity Smith, married, Mar. 17, 1768, and
had children ; J ames, Mary, John, and Sarah. In '73 he buys
land of Wm. Wheaton.
King, William, 1728, is allowed a lot, four rods north and
south, and two rods east and west, below Long Bridge, west
side of Mill river for a tannery.
Ketchum, John, of Huntington, and Hannah Bishop, m. June
11, 1728; and had, Hannah, Sarah, Joseph, Jonas, Zophar, Re"
becca, and Ruth. This family is still represented here.
Kimball, Henry, 1690, blacksmith, late of Boston, binds
himself to pay Moses Knap, jun. blacksmith, forty-three
pounds. L,vwEENCE, Thomas, sells land in the rear of his house lot to
.lohn Thomjison, in 1667-8, .and was made freeman in 1670.
He was one of the wealthy men of the town, as the list of
1687 shows. "Lawrence's farm" was a noted locality in that
day. He died in 1691, as his inventory testifies.
Leeds. How earl j' this family came to Stamford or whence
they came, no records probably shovr. Our catalogue of the
births before 1700, gives us the family of John and Mary, re
corded here; and their children are: Jonathan, b. Oct. 12,
1603 ; John, b. March 8, '94 ; Sarah, Feb. 8, '96 ; Samuel,
Feb. 21, '97; Ebenezer, Jan. 12, 1700, and Mary, Oct. 23,
1702.

NEW FAMILY NAMES. 187
An interesting letter from II. H. Leeds, Esq., of New York
city, to his kinsman, J. W. Leeds of Stamford, indicates the
locality of the family in England.
Two brothers, John and William Leeds, once owned maiulv
the territor}' on which the present city of Leeds is built, and
from them the city takes its name. One of the descendants
of William, was that Doctor Leeds, of Glare Hall, Cambridge,
who purchased the manor of Graxton, near the middle of the
16th century. Three of his descendants came to America
about 1650, one of them settling in Stamford, one in New
London, and the other in New Jersey. The first record, I
think, in Stamford, in which that name occurs is found under
date of Sept. 30, 1692. It states that Mr. John Leeds made
complaint before Jonathan Bell, commissioner, against a Mr.
Johanes Courtland, merchant of New York, "for want of the
iron Avork for carrying on of the vessel which he the said
Leades is in building, for the said Courtland". Gary Leeds buys
land here of John Waterbury, in 1708.
A Gary and Martha Leeds, were living here early in the last
century, having children ; John, b. Dec. 13, 1714; Gideon, b.
May 4, '16 ; Israel, b. Sept. 29, '19 ; and Gary, b. to his, wid
owed mother, Sept. 4, '30, the father Gary having d. June
7, '30. This Gary, m. Sept. 6, '57, Mary Giles, and was the
grandfather of the present John W. Leeds, president of Stam
ford Bank.
Lloyd — The first mention of John Lloyd, the ancestor of
this family in Stamford on our town records, bears date Dec.
17, 1747. He makes a plea to the town for permission to cart
a " parcel of small stones out of his orchard on to the " sloug-
hey" place in the road between the town and the common
landing place, by Peter Demills especially " in the flat land all
along the front of my orchard" ; and that he might be credited
with this expense on the town-tax account. The record of this
family is so exact, on the register of births, that I will copy it.
The family did not remain long in town, yet he must have been

188 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
a prominent man during our revolutionary period to have been
appointed to offices which he held.
" Henbt was born in Stamford, in Connecticut, unto John and Sarah
Lloyd, on Friday ye 22nd day of July, 1743, at ten minutes after eleven a
clock in ye day, and was christened by ye Eev. Mr. Eichard Caner of Nor
walk, ye Sth day of August, 1743.
John, was born Feb. 22, 1744, nine minutes after six o'clock, evening,
and christened by Eev. Mr. Samuel Seibury of Hamstead, Nov. 31, 1744 ;
Eebecca, born in Stamford on Fryday, Jau. 2nd, 1746-7, at four o'clock in
ye morning, and was baptized by ye Eev. Mr. Ebenezer Dibble, June ye
29th, 1746.
Abigail, on Wednesday, Feb. ye 13, 1750, at four o'clock in the morning,
and was baptized by Eev, Mr. Ebenezer Dibble, March ye 3, 1750.
Sarah, born Monday July ye 2nd, 1763, at 40 minutes after one of the
clock in ye morning, and was baptized by the Eev. Mr. Ebenezer Dibble,
July 29th, 1753."
Lewis, John and Martha Finch, married here April 23, 1729,
and had a daughter Sarah recorded to them, Aug. 11, '39, and
a son James, March 27, '41-2. Jonathan and Millecent Weed,
married, March 20, '74, and had son James, born July 15, '75.
Lines, David and Mary Cheson, married,Jan. 14, 1747-8, and
had Mary, born April 9, '49; Polly, January 21, '52; Esther,
Jan. 12, '55, and Nancy, Feb. 28, '57.
LoNGWELL, John and Susannah, had a David born, Feb. 3,
1736-7, and a John in '46.
LoDEE. Several of this name were living here after, about
1710, the name first occurring in 1685.
LouNSBUEV, Richard, the first of this name recorded, was here
in 1684. He and his wife Elizabeth, had son Henry born in
that year. Michael Lounsbury in 1702, bought land on "Pep
per Ridge, near Taunton." He married Sarah Lockwood. This
name has beeu quite numerous in the north part of the town.
Maesiiall, .John, has land assigned him by the town in 1667 ;
and in 1687, he buys land of Richard Scofield. Nehemiah
Marshall and Patience Webb, were married April 4, 1743, and
had two children, Bethiah and Nehemiah, recorded to them.
Maltby, Jonathan and Sarah, had son Jonathan, born June
29, 1720. He was one of the prominent men of the town for a

NEW FAMILY NAMES. 189
number of years. He. attained colonel's rank in military life,
.and held various civil offices in the gift of his townsmen.
Mathews, Thomas, shepherd, appears as an inhabitant on the
land record in 1690, and on leaving town on an expedition for
Albany and " Ganadey," mortgaged his real estate as security
for his debts. The land had been laid out to him in 1687.
MiDDLEBEOOKS, Nathaniel and Elizabeth Hoyt, married 1749,
and their child Mary was born March 16, '53, at which date the
father was one of the town school committee. In '59, Nathan
Middlebrook is named on the town committee.
Mott, .John, 1735, had married widow Abigail Ayers, and
with her gives quit claims to her children for their father Rich
ard's estate.
Nichols, Robert and Elizabeth had recorded to them, Ruth,
Mary, Robert, Sarah, Abraham, Noah, David and Reuel.
Thomas Nichols was here on official list of the town in 1763,
and Robert in '74. The family name is still well represented
here. NoETON, Hugh and Mercy  had a son James born in
May, 1729, and a son William who died, Aug. 16, '31. The
death of the father is recorded. May 12, '38, and that of the
mother. May 11, '34-5.
OsBOEN, Abner and Marcy Pettit, married here. May 13,
1752, and had Samuel, Ebenezer, Benjamin, Mary and David.
Palmee, Samuel and Hannah Cross, married Mar. 31, 1715,
and had daughter Hannah. This family name is still honored
not only on our citizens' list, but in one of our finest hills.
Paedee, John, married Sarah Webb, and Joshua married Eli
zabeth Webb, and both of them had families here soon after
the middle of the last century.
Paeketon, James and Mary, had children here ; Mary,
James, Denne and John. In 1752, he is allowed £20, "old
tenor money" for keeping his mother-in-law Abigail Whitehing,
(Whiting.)

190 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
Pelton, Robert, 1744. Peeey, John, '09.
Paedy, Joseph, admitted inhabitant, 1718.
Philips, George 1688, is admitted an inhabitant "if becomes
here to settle with his family."
Platt, Stephen, admitted inhabitant, from Huntington, in
1757. Pond, Nathaniel, 1698, " blacksmith, late of Branford," buys
land east of Noroton river of Jonathan Selleck, and in 1698, he
also buys and sells land on Stony Brook. He was by vote ad
mitted an inhabitant, Jan. 31, 1708-9. He had a large family.
Potts, Thomas and Hannah Garnsy, were married, Jan. 1,
1735-8, and had children here.
PowEES, Andrew, buys land in 1775, of Peter Weed in
Canaan parish.
PuEDY, Joseph and Elizabeth Ferris, m. Dee. 25, 1723, had
Miiry, Joseph, and Elizabeth.
Peovoece,. (Provost,) Samuel and Sarah Bishop, m. Jan. 5,
1765, and had nine children. A brother of this Samuel came
to Stamford about the same time and had also a family.
QuiNTAED, Isaac. This pioneer of the Stamford family of
this name, as his grave stone in the north east corner of the
Episcopal burying ground testifies, was " born in Bristol, in Old
England," and died "February ye last day 1738, aged 42 yrs."
How early the family came to Stamford no record shows. Our
records have the marriage of Isaac Quintard and Hannah
Knapp in 1716, from which, it is probable that the pioneer,
then a young man of twenty years, had found his way out of
New York and been ensnared by one of our Knapp maidens.
Five children are recorded here, the first born April 1721 ; the
second born May, 1722; Hannah, b. June 28, '24; Isaac, b.
Dec. 29, '27; and Peter, born in '30. The first appearance of
the name on our records which I have found, is in a record of
sale of land from Robert Embree to " Isaac Quintard of New
York City, merchant," dated Oct. 1, 1708. The land was

NEW FAMILY NAMES. 191
bounded by the home lot of Bates, north ; by the home lots of
Sam. Hait and Sam. Scofield, deceased, east ; by the common,
west and south.
Peter, son of Isaac, man-led in 1761, Elizabeth De Mill, and
had five children, of whom Isaac the second child, married Han
nah Palmer, March 20, 1786, and had six children, of whom,
Isaac, the third son now occupies the house which his father was
occupying at the opening of this century.
Reed, John, the progenitor of this family in Stamford, ac
cording to the family history, was born in Cornwall, Eng
land, and in his sixteenth year entered Cromwell's army, and
ou the restoration of Charles II. came to America. He is sup
posed to have stopped first in Providence, R. I. — thence he
went to Rye, N. Y. — thence to Norwalk, where we find a
John Reed in 1666 or '67 John Reed, jr. of Norwalk, son of
the John above, in '91, buys land of Stephen Clason, of Stam
ford. In 1709, he buys of Cornelius Jones, and '13, of Jona
than Bates. The land was lying on the Five-mile river, near his
father's homestead. This family h.as been quite numerous.
Rich, Henry, purchases of Caleb, Webb land 1681,
and of Samuel Webb his home lot on the west side of
Mill river, in the " Ox jjasture so called." In '80, on publish
ing his intention of marriage with Martha Penoyer, a minor,
her guardian objected. They, however, drew up articles of
agreement between themselves and the parties to be married,
on signing which " with witnesses, legally, then ye overseers do
so for consent yt ye partys may proceed in m.arriage ; ye 20tli
of December, 1680." Both "Hennery" and M.artha, sign the
bond with their marks. In '85, this Henry Rich mortgages
his land and house lot ou Horseneck, to secure Thomas Penoyer
of Stamford, having sold his real estate in Stamford in '84.
RoBEETS Zachariah, by special vote is admitted an inhabi
tant, Jan. 31, 1708-9. He was ssiid to be of Bedford, when
he first purchased land here in '01.
RiCHAEDS, Samuel and Esther Hadyn, married, Nov. 24,

192 IlIST'OEY OF STAMFOED.
1768, and had Sarah, b. '70; Esther. '71 ; Lewis, '73 ; Noyse,
1777. Skelding, Thomas, 1701. married Rebecca Austin and their
son, Thomas, w.as b. in '03
St. John, David, blacksmith, 1758, is allowed by vote of the
town to settle at Woodpecker Ridge.
James, and Hanna Hait, m. Sept. 19, 1753, and had a large
family. Selleck. — This famllj^, natives of Wales, as the tradition
is, were in Boston as early as 1643. Two of the sons of David
.and Susanna Selleck of Boston, — Jonathan, born. May 20, '41,
the very year of our settlement, and John, b. April 21, '43;
came to Stamford about the year '60. Jonath.an had house and
land recorded to him in '63.
Jonathan, married Abigail, daughter of Richard Law, and
had his first child, Jonathan, born here, .July, 11, 1664. He had
two other sons, David, b. Jan. 21, '66, and John, who graduated
at Harva.id, in '90. These sons all died, so Savage tells, us before
the father's death, which is recorded as taking place, Jan. 10.
1712-13. This Jonathan was a prominent man, and at his
death he bequeathed his Latin, Greek and Hebrew books to
the Rev. Mr. Davenf)ort.
John, the other jjioneer of this name, made freeman, 1669 ;
married Sarah Law, a sister of his brother Jonathan's wife and
had children, Sarah, b. August 22, 1669 ; David, b. Dec. 27, 1672;
Nathaniel, b. April 7, '78 ; John, b. June 7, '81 ; Susanna, b.
Feb. 2, '83, and Joann.a, b. May 31, '86. This .John was a weal
thy ship-owner .and captain. Under date, Feb. 25, '68-9, the
town granted Mr. .John Selleck a piece of Avaste land by the
landing place to set a dwelling-house, or AA'^are-house. He Avas
taken prisoner on a voyage to England, in May, '89, by the
French, and never returned to Stamford. His estate Avas settled
here in 1700, and Avas very large. A branch of this family Avent
just after our revolutionary war to Oyster Bay, on Long Island,

NEW FAMILY NAMES. 193
where, down to the present day there are found worth y repre
sentatives of the name. Abigail, wife of Maj. Selleck, d. Dec.
20, 'II.
Stone, John, in 1701, sells to Zach. Roberts, sen. of Bedford,
the land and house he bought of Samuel Dean. He was one of
the townsmen for a number of years.
Stuaet, Charles, was here in 1763.
Studwell, Joseph, was here in 1667. Thomas was here in
March, '67-8, and binds himself to pay for, or return a cata
logue of goods, among which were hatters tools. As security,
he mortgaged three acres of meadow in the East field.
Stueges, Christopher, admitted inhabitant by vote in town
meeting, 1718, and had a son, Jabez, b. here, '21. For several
years after '23, he is enrolled among the town officials. His
wife, Mary, d. Feb. 17, '46-7.
Stuedivant, Wm. In 1682, Nicholas Webster, receives from
the tOAvnsmen a piece of land in the rear of his lot, which had
been layed out to this Wm. Sturdivant.
Talmadge, Thomas, was here in 1709, and by vote admitted
an inhabitant. He married Mary Weed, and had a daughter
Hannah. He had married again in '21, when his son James was
born. Thompson, John, " gunsmith and resident in Stamford," sells
house aud lands to Jonathan Selleck, May 7, 1667. He was here,
also, in '69 and in '70 — sold land to Richard Webb.
Teyheen, (Tryon) Edward, appears on the land record as
early as 1684. One of his daughters married John Webster.
Sarah, his wife, died here, Sept. 2, 1702, and his death oc
curred May 14, '74 ; down to Avhich date his name is found quite
frequently in the records.
Thorp, Charles, was living here in 1733, when his son Ed
ward Avas born.
Todd, John, jr. AV.as an inhabitant in 1774.
TuENBY, Joseph, had lands laid out to him in 1686 ;0n the
25

194 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
Other, (east) side of Noroton river. He was a man of some
means. The family has never been numerous here.
Walsh, James and Rebecca, had children ; Hannah, b. at
Croswise, Jan. 17, 1736; Catherine, at Stamford, Aug. 12, '38 ;
Mary. Feb. 8,1701-2; James, Aug. 28, '44; Jane, Oct. 17,
'46 ; Lydia, Daniel and Abraham, Feb. 7, '49-50. The name is
spelled both Walsh and Welsh.
Waeing, Michael, came from Queen's Village, L. I. in 1717
iu company with James Wliite and Thomas Brush. They pur
chased on Longridge. The family for tAVO or three generii-
tions must have been quite numerous. In the first deed the
names is Waron.
Watees, John, married here in 1753, Oliver Delavan, and
had a large family in the north part of the town.
Waedwell, (Wardell) William, is the first of this family on
our records. He was a son of Usual and Grace Wardwell of
Ipswich, Mass. and Avas born in Bristol, R. I. May 13, 1693. Tho
name appears here, Dec. 7, 1726, with that of Margaret his wife.
Their daughter, Hannah is in the record of births. In '35, in
Society's meeting, four pounds and nineteen shillings were
granted to himfor AVork, Avhich by committee's order, had been
done to Mr. Wright's house. In '43 he is recorded as sealer of
measures. Wescott, — Spelled first Westgatt and variously afterward.
Daniel was here pretty soon after 1660, and was propounded for
freeman of the Conn. Colony, at the Hartford Court, in Oct. '69.
He and his brother John had come probably from Fairfield, to
which place they had come from Wethersfield. Both of them
are reported frequently on the land records.
Wescott, John .and Rose Holmes of Bedford, married April
9,1702. Wheelee, Justus iind Elizabeth had a son Justus, born in
1731. Whitney, Eliaseph is reported on the records in 1 748.

NEW FAMILY NAMES. , 195
Whiting, Joseph, is in business here, 1724, and same year had
recorded the birth and death of a daughter, Sarah. His wife
Abigail died in '33, and he married Hannah Beachgood, Jan.
25, '33-4.
White, James came from Huntington, L. I. in 1717. In com
pany with Michael Waring and Thomas Brush, he purchases
of John Hplly a tract of 246 acres, bounded by the New York
State line on the north, by hills east of Great Meadow on the
east, by Stony Brook on the north, and Miannus river on the
west. He married Elizabeth Waring, Feb. 30, 1720, and had
children, Timothy, Sarah, Jacob, Richard, Uriah and James. The
family are still in possession of a part of the first purchase made
by James, the pioneer, on Long Ridge.
' WiATT, Nathaniel and Mary, had son Henry, born in 1726.
He was among the tOAvn officials in 1737.
WiiEATON, Benjamin and his Avife Ruth had son Samuel, born
herein 1750-1. How long the family had been here does not
appear. The marriage of Jemima Wheaton to Reuben Holly
is recorded in 1748-9. Samuel Wheaton and Mary Skelding
were married in 1776, and had here, Mary, Samuel S., John S.
and Ehza Ann. The Wheatons of New England, are said to be
descended from an immigrant from SAvansea, Wales, who settled
in Rehoboth, Mass.
WiLLSON, John, Dr. 1 765, began the practice of medicine here,
and Avas the fiither of a family Of physicians. That his father's
family were living here previous to his birth, our records do no t
show ; though his descendants suppose that fhey were.
WiLMOT, Zophar and Sarah Webb, married Dec. 29, 1760,
and had children ; John, b. July 9, 1762 ;Enos, April 18, 1766 :
and James, Nov. 17, 1769.
WiLMOT, Joseph and Hannah, had a son Isaac, b. Nov. 20,
1775. Williamson, John, married Mercy Hoyt, Sept. 17, 1746, and
had children, Joanna, b. May 5, 1748 ; and Mary, Sept. 8, 1750.

196 • mstOEY 01* STAiiFOfil).
WooLSEY, Gilbert, buys land here of Thomas Morehouse, in
1672. The name reappears again in Ebenezer and Margaret his
wife who had children here; Anna, in 1717; Thomas, in 21 ;
and Mehetable, in '23. In '25„ he is said to be of Fairfield,
when he buys land on Ox Ridge, of David Waterbury. In
'28, he is said to be of Stamford, and sells land to Abraham
Wooster, of Ripton Parish, Stratford. In '30, he is allowed by
the society to pay his church rates elsewhere. He died in Jan.
'65. There must have been quite a family of this name here
down to about 1800.

CHAPTER XII.

THE PEEIOD OP THE FEENCH AND INDIAN WAES.

The second quarter of the eighteenth century was marked in
this country by the varying struggle between the English and
French for supremacy, on the border ground of the colonial
settlements. With a more persuasive policy, the French had
made friends of the Indians more readily than the English, and
as early as 1737, attempted to use the advantage thus gained
by erecting a fort at Grown Point — then claimed as within En
glish territory. From this time until 1763, there was no settled
peace'between the two parties, and the conflict which ensued
called for large forces from all of the English settlements. How
many of the three thousand soldiers, called into the service
from Connecticut were from Stamford, we have no records to
show. That the people of the toAvn were not indifierent wit
nesses to the struggle is evident from occasional records still
preserved. Of these we shall give the fullest account which
can now be made up from reliable authorities.
Tavo men appear now on the stage here, who were to become,
before our revolutionary period should close, the two most
eminent representatives of the town, the one in civil and the
other in military service. Abraham Davenport, now entering
upon the prime of his manhood, was one of that band of large
minded citizens of the State, who attempted the permanent oc
cupancy of the Susquehanna grant. This movement was origin
ally made in the interest of the English against the Indians — a
colony which should be so mature and so thoroughly protect
ed, as to furnish a sort of bulwark against any future invasions

198 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
from hostile Indian tribes. And upon the success of such a
colony would largely depend the future conduct of the Indians,
as they should be tempted by Spanish or French appeals to
them for aid against the English.
David Waterbury, another son of Stamford, was now brought
forward into military life, and we find him before the close of
these French hostilities doing^ acceptable service Avith his regi
ment, having already attained a major's rank. We must always
regret the loss of the personal journals and letters, which these
and others who Avere with them in the conflicts of these years
of strife, must have written. From our town records, however,
we shall find enough to hint, at least, the temper and mettle of
the people, though a full catalogue, even, of those who served
in these Avars from Stamford it will be impossible now to make.
The following records still found in our book. No. I, of births,
marriages and deaths, show how faithful the good clerk, Joseph
Bishop was to make honorable mention of the soldiers' sacrifice.
His own son is the first victim of the war whose fall he has to
record. " Joseph Bishop, a Sholger, son of Joseph Bishop of Stam
ford, died with sickness at Lake George, Nov. 25, at night in
the year 1755."
" Stephen Ambler, a soldier in the expedition at Lake George
in 1754, son to Sergeant Stephen Ambler, died on his return at
Sharon, Oct. 19, 1756."
" Ezra Hait, of Stamford a sholger, dyed at Albyny Dec. 28,
1755." " Joseph Ferris, a Shoulger from Stamford in ye expedition
towards Crown point in ye year 1756, in his return from the
expedition dyed with sickness at Newfilford, on December ye
18, 1756."
Peter Scofield, Reuben Scofield, and Abijah Weed, were also
active in the military service of these years : and, also, among
the revolutionary soldiers of the war of independence. Ben
jamin Webb, grandfather of Benjamin S. Webb, was at the tak
ing of Quebec by the English under Wolfe in 1759 ; and Char-

FEENCH AND INDIAN WAES. 199
les Webb, Avho became so prominent an actor in the revolution
ary period began here, also, his military career.
The folloAving record shows that Stamford was not yet utterly
Avanting in allegiance to the government of her sovereign, and
also indicates three of the principal, perhaps the three most pro
minent citizens of the tOAvn.
At a town meeting held in 1757, the toAvn voted, that if the
"Lord of London" shall send regulars into this town, the town
will bear the charge of accommodating them with what shall
be necessary for them." A tax of one penny on a pound is
voted and Samuel Broker is appointed collector to gather it in
by the first day of March next and hand it over to the commit
tee, Col. Jona. Hoyt, Mr. Abraham Davenport and Ensign Hol
ly, if the regulars come, and if not, he is excused from collecting
the rate.
In December 1758, we find thefolloAving record. " Col. Hoyt,
Mr. Abraham Davenport, and Ensign Holly are appointed a
committee, to supply his majesty's regular forces now quartered
in this town, with fire wood for their guard room and hospital
and what bedding they shall think proper to proAdde them Avith,
to be paid for out of the toAvn treasury." We find, also, that
the Governor and company of the Colony of Connecticut, at
their meeting in New Haven, on the second Thursday of Octo
ber, 1758, ordered the colony treasurer to pay the town of Stam
ford 369£, 13 shillings and fourpence half penny to reimburse
the toAvn for cost of keeping " a part of Colonel Eraser's High
land battalion the last winter." The folloAving certificate from
the committee is also on record.
These may certify your Honors, that the Highland soldiers
ordered to be quartered in the town of Stamford, arrived at said
tOAvn, Nov. 30, 1757, and Avere quartered thereuntil March, 30,
'58. The number of soldiers, officers included was 250. There
were also belonging to them, seventeen women and nine chil
dren. They were at the cost of the toAvn provided with house-
room, bedding, firewood, candles, &c., &c, Their officers in-

200 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
sisted upon their being kept within a small compass, Avhich ex
posed us to much more trouble and cost than otherwise Avould
have been necessary.
Stamford, April 28, 1758. Jona. Hoyt, ] Committee to
A T> . „,™«T,.„ C to take care
Abe. Davenpoet, > „,, „. ,
' of the High-
Jno. Holly, J landers.
In addition to the names already reported as prominent citi
zens of the town at this period, we find those of Jonathan Dib
ble and Charles Webb, in the Legislature. In military com
mission, the town had David Waterbury, a captain in the 9th re
giment. Conn. Militia, and in 1658, major in the 3rd regiment;
Col. David Wooster, who in the revolutionary war became a gen
eral ; and Joseph Hoyt, 1st lieutenant, who became one of the
most gallant of our revolutionary colonels.
The rolls of military papers preserved in the State Library in
Hartford, gives us also the folloAving names of Stamford men in
the service during these Avars.
In 1754, Charles Knap, ensign, was discharged and Joseph
Husted chosen in his place. In Nov. of this year, Joseph Wood
was chosen lieutenant of Gapt. White's company.
In 1755, CO. Sth of 4th regiment, was officered by Samuel
Ilanford, cajst. ; Joseph Hoyt, lieut. and Isaiah Starr, 2d lieut.
to go against GroAvn Point.
March 10, 1757, Col. Jonathan Hait, notifies Capt. David
Waterbury that his ensign, John Waterbury, had asked for dis
charge from having fallen from his horse and broken his leg.
Samuel Hutton was chosen in his place.
Jonathan Maltby Avas captain of Co. 2 ; and on his resignation,
Ebenezer Weed Avas chosen capt. Ezra Smith, lieut., and Char
les Knap, ensign.
In the east part of the town the company called out in 1747,
had for its officers, .Jonathan Bates, capt. ; Jonathan Selleck,
lieutenant, and Thomas Hauford and Nathan Reed, ensigns.
These wars did not of course expose our toAvnship to any hos-

FEENCH AND INDIAN WAES. 201
tile invasion from the French forces, and so Stamford, felt uo
other interest in them than that of a loyal colony of His Ma
jesty's royal government. But the service which the town here
rendered, was not without its value, in fitting her sons for the
great struggle, whose seeds Avere everywhere being sown.
The Earl of Loudoun, whose forces we find quartered here,
must have left among our observing citizens the feeling that it
would not be always safest for the colonies to be at the mercy
of so much haughtiness. His SAV'ay must have at times seemed too
imperious to be borne ; and the inference would be, that the gov
ernment which would commission and sustain such ministers of
their authority, could not be long endured. Already the Bos-
tonians had muttered, not indistinctly, their discontent. " If the
EngUsh cannot protect us from the French and Indians, let us
have the management of our afl^airs and we shall at least knoAv
what we can do" — was the under current of feeling which Avas
beginniijg to unite the English colonies, for their oavu defense
and control. That our toAvnsmen shared largely in this feeling
we shall soon see.
, The following are the only other names I have been able to
recover of the citizens of the town engaged in these Avars : —
Jonathan, Sylvanus and Deliverance Slason, sons of Deliver
ance and Hannah (Hoyt) Slason, of Avhom Jonathan was in the
navy of the war. Neither of the sons ever returned.
Ebenezer and Walter Weed sons of John Weed, Avere also in
the service, of Avhom Ebenezer died Avhile on shipboard.
Nothing else of material interest to our history occurred dur
ing these years, save Avhat will be detailed in our religious and
eoolesiastical record in a future chapter. There was a moderate
growth in population and wealth in the town ; and doubtless a
smoothing off of the early roughness of the ruder period. New-
roads were opened, new and better bridges spanned our streams,
school-houses multiplied as the population scattered over the ter
ritory, a better culture was increasing the agricultural produc
tions of the soil, and preparation was going on for still more
26

202

HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.

marked improvements in the future history of the town. Of
the capabilities of the town in means, and men, and patriotism,
the following chapters will furuish us the best proofs.

CHAPTER Xlir.

EEVOLUTIONAEY WAE.

At the commencement of the revolutionary Avar, Connecticut
numbered but sixty-seven towns, and Stamford ranked in popu
lation the sixteenth. Her grand list was £34,078 8 shillings,
which evidenced a still higher rank in means than in population.
The year 1775 found her represented in the State Assembly by
David Waterbury and Charles Webb, both of whom had seep
service in the old French Avar, and were therefore competent to
advise in the present emergencies of the state ; and by an unu
sual stroke of good fortune, she was also honored in the senate
of the state, by the first name among her civilians, the Hon.
Abraham Davenport, Avho also had been active and influential
during the long struggles of the French and Indian wars. The
long expected crisis had noAV come. Everything indicated war.
Yet though there were many reasons why our tOAvnsmen would
be likely to shrink from an earnest contest with the mother
country, they were not altogether unprepared for it. They had
both the men and the means to begin and prosecute the strug
gle. At the head of our ministers, of which the town then counted
only five, was that patriot and scholar. Dr. Noah Welles, who,
since his sermon preached Dec. 19, 1765, to arouse the people
over the great outrage attempted against them by the Stamp
Act, had missed no opportunity of encouraging his townsinen
to a manly resistance against all such oppression ; and who,
though called to lay down his useful life even at the beginning
of the struggle, yet lived long enough to preach his annual

204 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
thanksgiving sermon, Nov. 16, 1775. In that sermon, a manu
script copy of which is in my possession, he moved his people to
a grateful commemoration of the goodness of their father's God
as shown them in " frustrating the plans of our enemies," espe
cially in their attempts to secure the aid of the Canadians, and
Indians and negroes ; in so signally preserving the lives of our
exposed people ; in granting the remarkable success attending
our military enterprizes at Lexington, Charleston, and more
lately to the north, in which though " engaged with the best
British troops " he assures them avc were " yet never worsted ;"
and in inspiring the remarkable union and harmony through
the colonies in the present struggle for liberty."
Nor behind him, in his fervent patriotism, Avas that faithful
co-adjutor. Rev. Dr. Moses Mather, then the patriot minister of
the Middlesex, (Darien) Church, and so soon to test his patriot
ism, amid the insulting- jeers of the ruthless soldiery Avho Avere
to drag him from his own consecrated sanctuary, and still more
triumphantly, amid the cruel hardships and threatened horrors
of the execrable Provost prison to which he was doomed.
At the head of our civilians stood the honorable Abraham
Davenport, a man of college education, long familiar with the
public service in civil life, well grounded in such legal learning
as enabled him, with no misgivings, to rely upon the essential
justice of the revolutionary cause, endowed, more than most
men, with an instinctive reverence for what was right and an
inflexible purpose to insist upon it, and what was of scarcely
less value to him for the part he was called to act, the inheritor
of a large estate, and the father of an educated and noAV influ
ential family who thoroughly sympathized with him in his
espousal of the patriot cause.
Side by side with him, ready to the utmost of their means
to sustain any measures which might promise to aid them in as
serting the rights of the colonies against the unjust demands of
the crown, stood the substantial citizens of the town — the
Hoyts, and Hollys, and Lockwoods, and Knapps, and Scofields,

EEVOLUTIONAEY WAE. 205
and Smiths, and Seelys, and Warings, and Waterburys, and
Webbs, and Weeds.
Nor were we without military men for the emergency. There
were the Waterburys then known as senior and junior, the
former long a colonel in the continental service who had earned
some reputation for good judgment and military ability in the
field, and the latter soon to earn by his personal fitness for it,
the rank of general of brigade ; and also the two Webbs, father
and son, the one now a colonel, to test and prove his claim still
more fully in several well fought battles of the pending strife,
and the other to pay the forfeit of his active and not unmerito-
rious service with his own imprisonment and death. Then there
wag the spirited Joseph Hoyt, the leader of our minute men,
who only needed to hear that patriot blood had been shed at
Lexington, to fly to our exposed metropolis for its defense, and
who was so soon to become the fighting colonel of our fighting
seventh ; and then our captains and lieutenants and ensigns,
and, still more needed and helpful than they, our long list of
resolute privates, honoring the name of all our principal Stam
ford families and cheerfully girding themselves for manliest de
fence of their, homes. Thus with one brigadier, two or more
eolohels, a half dozen captains, a full dozen lieutenants, with a
number of commissaries and agents of the military power, sus
tained by a gallant band of the rank and file of the army for
independence, Stamford, in spite of the special temptations to
the opposite course, maintained her honor in that great struggle
which made these British colonies forever free from the dicta
tion and greed of an unscrupulous foreign power.
An ihcident occurred in March, 1774, which might seem to
forebode indecision and weakness among the patriots of the
town. A special town meeting had been called to appoint de
legates to the convention to be held, March 27th in Middletown.
After the meeting was opened by the appointment of Colonel
Abraham Davenport, moderator ; it was voted that the town
will appoint a committee to meet at Middletown on the last

206 HISTOEY OF STAMFOltD.
Wednesday iu March, instant, there to consult proper measures
to be pursued to evade the evils Avhich the town apprehend they
are in danger of concerning Susquehannah."
x\fter this vote, which for aught that appears was unanimousj
Gapt. Fyler Dibble and Dr. John Wilson were appointed the
committee. The meeting adjourned to meet again on the 11th
of the following month to hear the report of the committee. At
the appointed time the adjourned meeting was held. The town
make an appropriation to cover the expenses of the committee
and vote, that the petition recommended by the Middletown
Convention, should be signed by the town clerk, Samuel Jar
vis, in the name of the tOAvn, and forwarded to the Assembly at
its next Session.
This petition was a lengthy argument framed in the interests
of the Pennsylvanians against the claims of Connecticut to the
territory then held by her citizens and subject to her authority.
The convention authorizing it, was made up of delegates from
only tAventy-three of the sixty-three towns belonging to the
state ; and their action received but little sympathy from the
mass of the people. Their petition was couched in terms indi
cating an excessive loyalty to the English government and a
readiness to abide by almost any decision of the crown. Mr.
Ingersoll of Pennsylvania, was later an avowed tory. Captain
Dibble and Mr. Jarvis of Stamford also enrolled themselves
among those loyal still to the king ; and it would seem that the
Stamford people, in mass, were by this action committed to the
side of the crown against the revolution, whose beginnings
Avere already felt and seen.
But a fcAV months will show how erroneous such a conclusion
would be. We shall find ample record to show, that during
that long struggle, the great majority of our townsmen were
heartily and self-sacrificingly for the war. Before the opening
of hostilities on the eventful 19th of April, 1775, our citizens
had expressed themselves unequivocally for the patriot cause.
The insolence of the crown, exhibited in the arbitrary and ty-

EEVOLUTIONAEY WAE. 207
rannical acts which disgraced the records of the English parlia-
nient from the time GrenviUe, in 1763, accepted Jenkinson's
Stamp Act as the legal process for collecting revenue in America,
down to that most odious coercion act which closed the port of
Boston, had most effectually schooled the great mass of Ameri
can citizens to an earnest and impassioned resistance to any
further demands of the English government. Henceforth, not
even the former concessions to the croAvn would be allowed ;
and the people of the several colo nies, needed only a fcAv months
of mutual interchange of opinions and purpose to be fully pre
pared for their irrevocable declaration of independence. To
prepare the way for that declaration, the voice of Stamford was
not wanting. The Boston Port Bill had been passed and great
sufiering was the result. Our patriot citizens felt that the in
sult and injury done to Boston was also intended for themselves
and all who had ventured to question the right of the British
parliament to issue and enforce such demands ; and they Avould
not meanly shrink from an open espousal of the cause which
had already brought down the vengeance of the crown upon
their suffering brethren. Accordingly they met on the 7th of
October, 1774, in the town house, which proving too small for
the patriot band, they immediately adjourned to the meeting
house, when the following minute was promptly passed.
"The inhabitants of this town sensibly affected A\'ith the distress to
which the town of Boston and province of Massachusetts Bay are subjected
by several unconstitutional acts of the British parliament ; * * * * hoping
to convince the people of this continent that notwithstanding our long si
lence Ave are by no means unwilling to join with our sister towns to assert
our just rights aud oppose every design of a corrupt ministry to enslave
America, do declare that we acknowledge our subjection to the crown of
Great Britain and all the constitutional powers thereto belonging as esta
blished in the illustrious house of Hauover ; that it is our earnest desire
that the same peaceable connexion should subsist between us and tho mo
ther country as had subsisted for a long time before the late unconstitution
al measures adopted by the parliament of Great Britain ; and we hope that
some plan will be found out by the general congress to effect the reconcilia
tion we wish for ; yet we are determined by every lawful way to join -with
our sister oolenies resolutely to defend our just rights : * * ' thnt weare
pleased that a congress of deputies from the colony is now met at Philadel
phia, and relying upon the wisdom of that bodj' we declare that we are
ready to adopt such reasonable measures as shall by them be judged fov
the genera! good of the inhabitants of America."

208 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
This action testifies to the heartiness Avith which our towns
men entered upon the great struggle against the encroachments
of the mother country. Before the opening of the Avar the peo
ple had been prepared for it. And when the news of the first
battle at Lexington and Concord reached the town it was fo und
ready Avith a prompt response. New York, then rapidly ad
vancing in importance, was thought to be in especial danger
from an invasion of the enemy. Joseph Hoyt of Stamford, who
had now for about twenty years been in military life enlisted
immediately a company of thirty men and started for the city.
As no immediate danger was apprehended to the city the com
pany returned to Stamford and reported only eight days service.
The bill of service thus rendered, would in these days be
deemed a model for economy. I append it in full.
Whole pay for men's time, £20 8 4
Gash expended by Gapt. Hoyt on the march, 3 12 0
Cash expended by Lieut. Webb, 0 17 0
Cash expended by Lieut. Ezra Lockwood, 0 6 9
A sloop with part of the company and 12 men be
longing to Greenwich, under Capt. Hoyt, from New-
York to Stamford, £2 11 9
Gapt. Hoyt's horse hire, 0 12 6

£28 8 4
The Ezra Loc^Avood here reported as lieutenant, is enrolled
on the company list as a private. All of the names are found iu
our alphabetical list.
But not thus easily were o-ar townsinen to meet their obliga
tions to the patriot cause. On returning Captain Hoyt com
menced raising another company, for the continental service
wherever needed. By the sixth of July, he had organized a
company of seventy-five men AAdio Avere reported ready for duty.
The names Avould indicate that nearly all of them were Stam
ford men. This second company continued in the service until
December 24, 1775, and the entire cost of the service rendered

EEVOLUTIONAEY AVAE. 209
by them was reported as one thousand one hundred and thirty-
nine and a half pounds sterling.
A third company was raised here early in the Spring of 1776.
In one of the pay-rolls of this company it is called the " Com
pany of Col. David Waterbury, in the regiment of forces of
the United colonies under command of Colonel David Water
bury." On the list David Waterbury is euro lied as colonel and
captain, and Sylvanus Brown as captain and lieutenant. The
number of days service is appended to the names, and this will
indicate the company in the alphabetical list at the end of this
chapter. In the summer, of 1776, Ave were also represented in the service
by a part, at least, of another company under Captain Webb,
who were stationed in Ncav York city. Hoav many other com
panies or parts of companies Avere raised in Stamford, we have
no means of knowing. Our catalogue of revolutionary men at
the end of this chapter, will doubtless fail to report many who
honored Stamford in the Avar. Every record, it is believed,
which our tOAvn and State can now furnish has been carefully
examined to complete it; and every local record has been sought
for the purpose of reporting fully all eng,agements and skir
mishes and every form of military movement here, during the
struggle. But Stamford Avas not destined to become the thea-
ter of any general engagement between the opposing armies.
A few excursions of small detachments of the British troops,
and more freqnent sallies from their loyal holds on the IsLand,
or from their tolerated tory homes in the tOAvn, of the still
trusty subjects of the crown, constituted all the AA^arlike en
terprises Avhieh disturbed the quiet of the town. No British
army, it is believed, ever crossed the entire breadth of the terri
tory, and probably, never more than a single brigade of the
patriotic troops at a time, Avere quartered here. Once, at least,
after the memorable repulse of the revolutionists at Horseneck,
and that still more memorable feat of the daring Putnam, in his
fearless flight to Stamford for aid, the British did probably in-
27

210 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
suit the extreme borders of our soil ; but the gallant general
had so far outstripped them, as to have rallied our townsmen in
sufficient numbers with the aid of the garrison in our fort, to
meet them and turn their invasion into a precipitous retreat.
Once, also, probably, Avas the eastern margin of our patriot
town desecrated with the stealthy tread of British armed men ;
but their safety demanded a hurried return to the transports
which had landed them, and so the town was spared the rav
age they had designed.
The folloAving letter from our most distinguished townsman, is
authentic respecting the standing of two other of our citizens,
and shows' how our people managed their foreign commerce
during the war : Stamford, Dec. 8, 1775.
Eespboted Sik, — Mr. Selleck aud Mr. Bates, two of my neighbors own
a vessel of about fifty tons, with which they are desirous to make a voyage
to the West Indies, to carry cattle and provisions and bring back military
stores, if a permit can be obtained of your Honor, for the performance. I
suppose that is expected that Mr. Bates will go Master, if the vessel is per
mitted to go. I believe he may be depended ou ; and I do not know a mau
better calculated for the business. The vessel is said to be a prime
sailor. We have but a few pounds of powder in our town stock, and I believe it
will be universally agreeable to the inhabitants of the town, thet a permit
should be granted. At the desire of Mr. Bates, I write this. He inform-
me that Mr. Selleck wilt apply to your Honor for the permit, and will give
bond, if required, for the faithful conduct of the master. Mr. Selleck is e,
man of considerable interest, and his bond will be quite sufificient.
I am with the greatest esteem aud respect, your Honor's most obedient
and humble servant, ABRAM DAVENPOET,
Hon. Gov. Teumbull.
But the most extensive invasion of the town by the British
and their loyal abettors here, occurred Sunday, July 22, 1781.
The leaders in that sacriligious foray were from among the tories
of the eastern part of the tOAvn, and their depredations and cap
tures were confined to their oavu neighbors and friends. During
the night preceding they had crossed the Sound from Lloyd's
neck in scA^en boats, and stealthUy secreted themselves, about
forty in number, in a SAvamp a few rods south of the meeting
house, Avaiting the gathering of the congregation for their usual
worship Providentially several of the leading patriots Avere

EEVOLUTIONAEY WAE. 211
not at church in the morning, and the attack was delayed. In
the afternoon the unsuspecting citizens had taken their seats as
usual. The services had commenced. Dr., then Mr. Mather,
was in the pulpit \vhich he had now occupied for nearly forty
years, and it Avas undoubtedly his earnest patriotism which had
led to this attack. Its object was to capture that fearless preacher
of treason, and the leaders of his people whom he had so
effectually seduced from their loyalty. Suddenly the house
was surrounded and the summons to surrender was issued, in the
well known voice of their neighbor, Captain Frost. Small
chance had been left for the congregation to escape. Yet, a
single old lady, thoroughly patriotic and as thoroughly plucky,
marched through their encircling line. Four youths who had
noticed the incipient move of the tory invaders, had also made
proof of their agility and Avere out of reach of the sentinel's
shot. One other lad, a son of the officiating minister, ventured
also an attempt at escape. Seizing his hat he started for the
door Avhere he encountered a leveled gun, and the insulting ex
clamation, " there, I've got you now" ! " Not yet," he quietly
said, as he struck doAvn the gun and leaped from the door. Nor
was the sentinel quick enough to cut short his flight, though
the shot which was meant to do it, left its scar, life-long, on his
heel. And now 'commenced in earnest the work of tory re
venge. With derisive jeers, the venerable pastor was called
doAvn from the pulpit to lead his congregation in a very differ
ent service.
The men and older youths of the congregation were drawn
up two and two in marching order, and tied arm to arm. The
pastor was ordered to the front, alone, to lead the march. All
was UOAV ready for the start. The yaluable articles of jewelry,
found on both the men and women had been appropriated by
the excellent captain. Every horsg needed for the invading
band had been taken, and the women and children consigned
to the care of the rear-guard, until the captors with their pris
oners and spoil should be well under way. The orders are
given, and, driven by their former neighbors and the venial sol-

212 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
diery of the British power, some forty-eight of our townsmen
Avere hurried away to the boats awaiting them at the. shore.
They were thence taken over to Lloyd's Neck. Here they
found, not congenial friends, but many of their life-long neigh
bors and kindred, whom the revolution had alienated and made
their open and bitterest enemies. But they were soon disposed
of Twenty-four of the number were released to return home
on parol. The remainder, tAventy-six in number, Avere ordered
on board a brig and confined below deck. They were taken to
the Provost prison to New York city, where they endured every
conceivable indignity. Here they Avere kept until the 27th of
the following December, when those of them who survived the
horrors of that confinement, nineteen in all, were exchanged.
We have in Dr. Dwight's travels, the following account of
the sufferings to Avhich Mr. Mather was subjected during this
imprisonment. " This venerable man was marched with his parishioners to the shore,
and thence conveyed to Lloyd's Neck. From that place he was soon
marched to New York and confined iu the Provost prison. His food was
stinted and wretched to a degree not easily imaginable. His lodgings cor
responded with his food. His company, to a considerable extent was made
up of a mere rabble, and their conversation, from which he could not re
treat, composed of profaneness and libaldj-y. Here, also, he was insulted
daily by the Provost marshal, whose name was Canuinpjham,— a -wretch
remembered iu this country, only with detestation. This wretch, among
other kinds of abuse, took a particular satisfaction in announcing from
time to time to Dr. Mather, that on that diy, the morrow or some time, at
a little distance, he was to be executed. But Dr. Mather was not without
his iriends, however, who know nothing of him, except his character. A
lady of distinction, having learned his circumstances, and having obtains d
the necessary permission, sent to him clothes and food, and comforts with
a liberal hand."
I hoped to be able to make out a complete list of the men who
were carried away in this expedition of the British and tories.
No contemporaneous records, within my reach, have enabled
be to do so.
But if there were no greaj, engagements between large armies
within this territory, it must not be inferred that the town was
unaffected by the war. Every neighborhood in the town^ and
almost every year of the war, witnessed events of greater or
less importance, which contributed according to their measure.

EEVOLUTIONAEY WAE. 213
towards the great result. In many ways the loyalty of our
people was testified, and they who were never in arms, were
called at times, to show a soldier's courage. They who seemed
to do least in furtherance of the cause, made often the most
eostly sacrifices of affection and treasure to its success.
The little, every day contributions, which really constitute
the most unequivocal testimonies to a people's spirit and power,
are not of a character to seek or win publicity. No diary of
the times reports them. No actor publishes them. They come
unheralded and pass by unchronicled. Nevertheless they are
neither unknown nor forgotten. Their influence is felt, and
that influence determines the people's destiny.
Let us gather some of these floating waifs of our revolution
ary period. They come down to us with the authority of
chance-saved letters perhaps, preserved, no one knows how, in
spite of our proverbial waste of all this most precious material
for human history. They have been tossed about and along on
mere tradition, it may be, yet so credibly preserved, as to war
rant our fullest confidence, or they were intrusted to the faith -
ful guardianship of some memento of transmitted love, voiceless
indeed, yet with a language that can never be misunderstood.
What a story of family affection and family exposure the fol
lowing narrative tells. During the war the family of Capt.
John Holly was living in the house now owned by Samuel
Leeds, Esq., on Clark's hill. Among their most precious trea
sures was a quarto bible, an elegant edition for those times,
printed in London in 1763. This bible had been giA^en to Miss
Holly, afterAvards Mrs. David Waterbury, at the early age of
five years for the ease and correctness with which she read one
of the chapters in Chronicles, filled with scripture names. When
the family, for their earliest patriotism Avere exposed to stealthy
depredations both from British and tory vengeance, the bible
was carefully buried in the back yard with other family trea
sures. There it remained through the war. When it was ex
humed, it was found in good condition excepting the heavy

214 IIISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
clasps upon it, which had been rusted off. That old bible still
remains a precious relict in the possession of Mrs. Abigail H.
Seely, a daughter of Mrs. Waterbury, audits story shows what
trials belonged to the period of our revolutionary war.
And now let us see hoAV the war entered our families in • ano
ther way, taking off their sons to the field, or to garrison ex
posed points, wherever needed. The foUoAving stray letter is
one of thousands written during the war from the town, but
this has survived the fate of the most of the rest. It was writ
ten on a half sheet of coarse foolscap, now, of course, brown
Avith age ; and directed in a large fair hand " to Silas, Thaddeus
and Bates Hayt, in Capt. Webb's company, in Main street,
near the chapel, Ncav York. Per. favor of Henry Marshall."
The entire letter, for which I am indebted to Mr. John Holmes
of Ncav Hope, recently deceased, is as follows :
Stamfoed, Aug. 20. 1776.
Deae Childeen, '
We reoived Bates' Letter of Aug. 19th, and greatly rejoice to hear of
your welfare. We gladly improve the present opportunity of writing to in
form you that we are all well ; and that we send a pail of butter, two
pounds of Avhich belongs to Bates, one pound to Henry Wix and the re
mainder to Silas and Thaddeus. We should have been glad to send you
potatoes if to be had. We send you some sauce, which you must distri
bute. Henry Wix has some by himself. After wishing you the Divine pro
tection, we remain your affectionate parents, Abe'm Hait.
Hannah Hait.
P. S. — "Mr. Merceir has applied to me for your horse, bridle and sad
dle ; and if you are willing to part with him you will inform me thereof. I
shall be willing to make you a present of my horse, a new saddle and bri
dle aud a watch in lieu thereof."

What a revelation of neighborhood estrangement and its cure
is found in this morceau of our family history.
The Jarvis family were excellent and prominent people here,
but their affections were Avith their king, rather than with his
rebellious subjects. When therefore it seemed necessary that
this family should be sent over the line, Gapt. Samuel Lock.

EEVOLUTIONAEY WAE. 215
wood of GreenAvich AA'as appointed to execute the order. This
he did with the ready zeal of a revolutionary patriot ; and of
course his officiousness alienated the two families. No loyal
Jarvis could thenceforth endure one of the notoriously rebell
ious Lockwood tribe. But the years roll on and work strange
cures, as Avell as aggravate maladies not to be healed. A grand
son of the inexorable captain was Avon to a surrender by the
maidenly graces of a grand-daughter of the courtly royalist, and
so far at least the old feud Avas healed, as the family of our
worthy citizen judge Ferris will attest.
Take also this illustration of the restoration of confidence and
affection on the return of peace.
Captain Slason and deacon Joseph Mather, while on guard
one night in the eastern part of the town, recognized two of
their former neighbors, now tories, landing with a boat load of
contraband goods, with which to drive a profitable trade with
the knowing ones in th.at neighborhood. The captain and dea
con at once take possession of the men and their boat. Going
eagerly to the AVork of landing the choice goods which in the
process became their prize, they incautiously left their muskets
on the shore. Naturally enough. Smith, one of the tories, seiz
ed the captain's gun .and called upon his comrade to take the
deacon's ; jind so, they could make themselves more than even
with their captors. But the stahvart captain Avas not so to be
trifled with. Springing from the boat, he dashes down Avith a
single blow the exulting tory, and remains master of the field.
The end remains to be told. After the Avar Avas over, the tory
Smith remaining here, by due course of nature came to his end.
The doughty captain, Avho had so signally humbled him, spent
his last years as the happy husband of the reconciled and hap
py widow.
What a touching picture of tragedy, unnatural, the follow
ing fact exhibits. Zachariah Hoyt and several of his neighbors
were on guard near the mouth of GoodAvives river; and as
nothing betokened the presence of British or tory foe, they

216 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
were enjoying a pleasant hour of merry chat and sport., Sud;
denly a volley from loyal muskets, mortally Avounded two of
their number, when the rest hurriedly escaped. And now the
concealed tory band came forward, to see whom of their old
friends and neighbors they had made to bite the dust. One of
them, as if momentarily grieved for the shot he had fired, could
only ask, in soothing terms : " Cousin Zach, is this you ?" And
a mournful " Yes" was the only answer of the dying man.
Among the memorabilia of our revolutionary period should
be recalled the athletic frame and reckless and successful daring
of " Uncle Thad." Thaddeus Hoyt, who had lived a few rods
south west from the place where Alfred Hoyt, Esq., now lives,
was one of our most earnest Avhigs. His actiA'e patriotism had
aroused the hatred of every tory in the neighborhood, and ex
posed him to incessant annoyance and hazard from their raids
upon his property or their attacks upon his person. So much
exposed was he in his house by night, that he often retired in
the evening with his gun and blanket to a neighboring clump of
cedars which afforded him safer shelter. His cattle were all
marked for seizure and one by one they Avere stealthily carried
off. Having pretty good evidence that one of his tory neigh
bors, Samuel Lockwood, was a leader in these depredations, he
determined upon confronting him, on one of his predatory incur
sions. The opportunity soon came. The neighbor had selected
just such cattle as would best answer his purpose and was hur
rying off to the British lines Avith his prize. Suddenly, " uncle
Thad " arrests his progress. The tory thus unexpectedly caught,
quickly levels his gun and sn.aps. The musket, loyal to the
king, failed her duty to his subject. Not to be thus defeated,
" uncle Thad" strikes down the gun, grapples with the tory,
himself, and holds him in his unrelentiug grasp. Nor does he
release his hold before, thoroughly subdued, he begs for quarter
and pledges a future abandonment of his tory practices.
And the prowess of our toAvnsmen Avas witnessed on the
water, also, as Avell as on the land. The following will best il-

EEVOLUTIONAEY WAE. 217
lustrate Our m.arine heroism during the Avar. I will let this
story stand, as my predecessor in this field of research. Rev. J.
W. Alvord, tells it.
" A frigate and sloop-of-Avar, belonging to the enemy, Avere
lying in Oyster Bay, opposite this village, and the Avhale-
boats from this place, commanded by Captain Jones, determin
ed on taking the sloop. On a foggy morning they rowed
silently around her, and coming nearer and nearer, they were at
length discoA'ered and instantly hailed — "Who's there?" '-A
friend." "A friend to whom?" " PU let you know," said
Jones, " the rebels have been rowing round the bay all night
and you've known nothing about it. I'll report you to the Ad
miral for neglecting your watch." By this time the men in the
boats were climbing up the sides of the British vessel, while
Jones, who was as rough as the ocean on Avhich he had been
brought up, kept storming aAvay at the captain for his negli
gence. The British officer trembled from head to foot, thinking
that he had run foul of some violent old tory, who would cer
tainly report him to his commander. He assured Jones that he
had kept the strictest Avatch — begged him to look at the order
of his vessel — the training of his guns, and the priming of his
muskets.- A number of these muskets were by this- time in the
hands of the assailing party, when instantly Jones' foot stamp
ed heavily upon the deck, and in the next moment the sloop
was theirs ! She carried fifteen or twenty guns, and was fully
equipped for service. Another vessel was about this time cap
tured by these whaleboats as she lay in the narrows beloAv.
They attacked her in open day — one, as tliey approached, had
its rudder carried away by a cannon shot, and swinging under
the stern of the English vessel, the men entered her cabin win
dows, just as the crew were driven below, by the men in the
other boats, Avho had obtained possession of her deck. After a
short and desperate fight with broadswords and bayonets, in
the cabin, the crew surrendered, and the vessel Avas brought to
Stamford," 28

218 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
Among our enterprising townsmen who did good service in
harassing and weakening the enemy was one of our numerous
Smiths of that day. It has come doAvn to us, well authentica
ted, that a British officer Avho had been landing the loyalty of
the leading tories of the town, wound up his eulogy with this
comforting reflection : " and in fact we could get along well
enough with you Stamford Yankees if it wasn't for that old red
haired Smith."
Take this incident, illustrative of the exposure of the revolu
tionists to another sort of treatment Avhen the tories gained
some temporary advantage. The house of deacon Joseph Ma
ther was visited one night by a band of these prowling loyal
ists. They had heard that the deacon's house was used as a
safe depository of the valuables of his neighbors. Finding Mrs.
Mather at home, they drove her, at the point of the bayonet to
the place where her silver had been buried. They take the col
lection, and then dri\'e her back to the house and compel her to
cook them a warm supper. On leaving they take the deacon
with them down to the shore, to prcA'cnt him from giving an
alarm. The following are tAvo illustrations of the dreadful Avreck
which a period of war sometimes makes. Among those Avho
were engaged, July 22, 1781, in capturing the congregation in
Middlesex, was RoAvland Slason, an incorrigible tory. He re
sided but a short distance from the church, and those on whom
he then laid violent hands, Avere his life-long neighbors and
friends. After the war he was allowed to remain in possession
of his home and property, but he could nevermore have ration
al enjoyment from either. He had sunk under a heavy cloud,
Avhich no earthly sun was ever to pierce. His mental faculties
had given Avay, and he at length roved aimlessly about, a piti
able maniac.
Not less painful Avas the effect of the war upon the mind and
the life of Stephen Weed. His first experience of British and
tory tveattPent had been a lesson he could not forget. Tho

EEVOLUTIONAEY AVaE. 2l9
sanctuary to Ayhich he had gone with his parents, was no de
fense against their ruthless violence. They had stealthily sur
rounded that halloAved pjace, and seized and carried off his
friends and neighbors and even his venerated pastor. Nothing
but his own agility, had saved him from the cruel doom of his
friends. He was one of the five Avho escaped from the congre
gation. But the lesson had taught him that he had nothing
more to hope from the forbearance or mercy of the enemy, and
he at once enlisted in the service of his country. He cheerfully
offered himself to whatever peril the sacrifice might involve. In
the march and on the field, by day and by night, in heat and in
cold, he stood at his post and did nobly what a good soldier
should do. To the end of the war, he lost no opportunity of
making proof of his courage and his patriotism. But the in-
cessancy and severity of his duties aggravated by his confine
ment in the execrable Provost prison of New York, were more
than he could sustain. He gradually broke down and at length
sunk into a state of mental derangement, from which there was to
be no recovery. Yet in his insanity, he remained a soldier still.
His talk was of the battalion. His walk was a soldier's march.
His work was that of the field, in front of or near a threatning
foe. He lived in constant expectation of the invasion of a for
eign enemy. He had a clear presentiment of the time and man
ner of the approach. He long and steadily insisted that the in
vading march was to be up the Noroton valley, and unless its
progress could be resisted, the whole country to the north would
be mercilessly laid waste. The line of march was to be just to
the west of his oavu residence, and he could never leave his own
home and country to be thus laid waste, without exhausting all
his means for their defense.
Nor was he long in planning his defense. Choosing a felicitous
position commanding the intervale below, he commenced the
work of fortifying. He built a stone fort enclosing a subter
ranean retreat which might answer for a magazine, and sur
rounded the whole with a ditch. One only entrance admitted

220 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
friend or foe to tfiis work. After having thus completed the
fort, day after day, for nine weary years, he stood sentinel or
paced his appointed beat, Avith his watchful eye ever ready on
his trusty lock, or scanning the opening vale to the south for
the first glimpse of the coming foe. Here he was proud to re
ceive the notice of strangers as they visited his fort to witness
his military drUl. He never tired of telling over his old cam
paigns and seemed to have an accurate remembrance of what
had transpired during his service in the war of his country.
But he would allow no change to be made in the works on
whiah he must rely for defense. One little addition enly to his
own arrangements was permitted. A huge black snake was
one day found coiled up in the sun on his grand promenade in
front of his works, and the idea seized him that this was to be
his relief sentinel. He therefore only took note when his relief
was posted, and Avould neither tempt the faithful sentry to leave
his post nor allow any one else to disturb him. Day after day
did the faithful and apparently sympathizing sentinel take his
post and relieve for a while the old man, until one day he loca
ted himself on another part of the ground than that to Avhich
he had been assigned. Immediately, in the exercise of his mili
tary authority the uncompromising old disciplinarian summarily
dispatched him for being thus found off his guard.
But the years wore away, and the old soldier was called to
lay down his arms. Nothing but phy.sical exhaustion could
cheat him out of the service in which he gloried, and he died as
he had lived, under the shadow of that great war cloud which
death alone could shake off from his burdened spirit.
We have now learned from the main drift of the incidents we
have collected, that Stamford was exposed all through the war,
to the petty annoyance of small bands of tories. The " cow
boys," her OAvn sons, or at least under their guidance, were
everywhere on the alert to seize upon all unprotected cattle and
grain with which to maintain their credit with the king and his
army. They were not loyal enough to take sides openly with

EEVOLUTIONAEY WAE. 221
the king's soldiers, and either their fears or their hopes hindered"
them from espousing heartily the cause of their neighbors. And
the social position of this class was such as to render their op
position all the more hurtful to the patriot cause. They were
not the poorest and least influential of the community, who
thus held back and so effectively opposed the struggle for our
independence. Many of the most talented and wealthy were
in their ranks. The arguments by which they sought to justify
their course, were those to which the loyal and conservative of
every age resort. At the first, the great body of the people,
and to the -last, a large minority could not think of breaking
away from their allegiance to the crown. By every means in
their power therefore excepting an absolute resort to the ranks
of the king's forces, they sought to hinder and harass the king's
rebellious subjects.
Incidental or purposed collision between these tories and the
avowed revolutionists were very numerous. Sometimes serious
damage to property, and even loss of life was the result. The
foUoAving chapter will best set forth this feature of those days
which " tried men's souls."

CHAPTER XIV.

CHEONOLOGICAL EECOED_ OP EEVOLUTIONAEY ACTS IN STAMFOED
DUEING THE WAE.

This chapter will report many facts which could not well be
introduced into the preceding chapter, and yet of sufficient lo
cal importance to justify preservation in our history. In many
instances the day of the month is not given in the record from
which our extracts are made. 1774.
This year finds the town represented in the general assembly—^
David Waterbury and Thomas Young for the Spring Session,
and Charles Webb and David Waterbury in the Fall.
Oct. 7. — At a meeting warned to consider the claims of the
Bostonians then suffering from the action of the port bill, John
Lloyd, Samuel Hutton, Capt. Samuel Youngs, Capt. David
Hoyt and Charles Weed Avere appointed " a committee to re
ceive subscriptions for the supply of the poor in the town of
Boston." The foUoAving is the clerks' attestation which follows the re
cord. " The above is a true copy of record, it being a very full meet
ing — almost an unanimous vote." S. Jaevis, Town Clerk.
1775.
Abraham Davenport, assistant ; and Col. David Waterbury
and Col. Charles Webb, representatives for the Spring Session,
and Benjamin Weed and Thomas Young, for the FaU Session of
the general assembly.

CHEONOLOGICAL EECOED. 223
June 6. — Col. Charles Webb reports his mission of 22 days to
Crown Point and Ticonderoga, and gives his note with six
others for 500 pounds to raise funds to pay expense of the ex
pedition. June 15. — Col. Waterbury reports his command at Stamford
ready for orders.
June.— Capt. Joseph Hoyt, Avith Chas. Webb, jr., for his
lieutenant, and Samuel Whiting, ensign, Sam. Hutton, Benj.
Weed, Sam'l Wheaton and Sam'l Webb, sergts. and 24 privates,
march to New York for the defense of the city. Hinman's
" war of the Rev." gives him only 23 men.
June 19. — New York calls for Wooster's and Waterbury's
troops in Stamford, to march within five miles of the city. They
marched. July. — Charles Webb, appointed colonel of seventh regiment.
Sept. 19. — Committee of safety for the town, appointed agree
ably to recommendation of the continental congress. Col. Da
venport, Esq., Benj. Weed, Esq., Amos Weed, Charles Weed,
Israel Weed, Nathan Lounsbury, Thaddeus Bell, Stephen Bi
shop, Deodate Davenport, Charles Smith and James Young.
Witness : Sam. Jarvis, clerk.
Oct. — Daniel Gray is authorized to transport a sloop load of
rye and corn to Machias and Falmouth, under 500£ boiid.
Dec. 11. — Committee of safety re-appointed; Ab. Davenport,
Esq., David Waterbury, jr., Esq., David Webb, Jona. Waring,
jr., Lieut. Sam'l Hutton, Benj. Weed, Esq., John Hoyt, jr.,
Charles Weed, Abraham Weed, Nathan Lounsbury, Samuel
Richards, Gapt. Amos Weed, Chas. Smith, Isaac LockAvood,
Jas. Young, Deodate Davenport, Jona. Bates, Hezekiah Daven
port, Abraham Bates, Jos. Webb, jr., and Thaddeus Bell.
1776.
Abraham Davenport, assistant; and Benjamin Weed and Col.
D. Waterbury, representatives at Spring Session, and Benjamin
Weed and John Davenport at the Fall,

224 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
Jan. 22. — Gen. Lee in Stamford with 1200 continental troops.
Feb. — .Jos. Hull and Philip Redfield who were here in Ward's
regiment, were detailed as privateers in Captain Selleck's sloop
to serve for six weeks.
March 1. — Captain Ebenezer Slason, made major ; Henry Sla
son, captain; Ebenezer Scofield, 1st lieutenant ; Daniel Water
bury, 2nd lieutenant, and David Purdy, ensign.
April 3. — ^Trial of Munson Jarvis and David Picket.
Joshua Stone, a spy, captured here, and imprisoned, and fined
20£. June. — David Waterbury, jr., appointed brigadier general;
Sylvanus Brown, captain ; Joseph Webb, 1st lieutenant ; Thad
deus Weed, 2nd lieut, and Gideon Waterbury, ensign.
June 22. — Gen. Lee at Stamford, with 1200 men, hoping to
take them into New York. The committee of safety of New
York are afraid and stop the force this side. Gen. Waterbury
goes to the lines to see what can be done, Avhile Lee, disabled
with the gout, remains at Stamford.
Oct. — Captain Niles of the famous " Spy ", to cruise between
Nantiicket and Stamford.
Sept. 16. — Corp. Chas. Steward, from Stamford, is confined in
Halifiax. Nov. 8. — Robert Parke, stationed here to recruit for the
army., Nov. 14. — Disaffected citizens sent to Lebanon, Ct., as dan
gerous to the state.
NoA'. 20. — A party of loyalists from a British tender landed,
and shot 'and carried off two fat cattle.
1777.
Abraham Davenport, assistant ; John Davenport and John
Hoyt, jr., representatives in Spring Session, and Gapt. Sylvanus
Knapp and Capt. Isaac Lockwood in the Fall.
Feb. 14. — Benj. Betts taken from his bed and carried to Long
Island and forced into the British service. He subsequently

CHEONOLOGICAL EECOED. 225
escaped, and being suspected of toryism, was arrested, imprison
ed and fined, and requested to give bonds for future loyalty.
Feb, 24. — Samuel Crissy and Nathan Munday come home,
and on signing a declaration of allegiance are permitted to re
main. Feb. 28. — Wm. Fitch, a tory couvict, is allowed to return to
Stamford and back to Canterbury in 20 days.
March. — Doolittle & Co., to forAvard to Stamford, 600 lbs.
powder, 30 six-pound shot, and 30 three pound-shot. In May the
Gov. orders the Ncav Haven mill to send the same amount of pow
der. In June, the Salisbury furnace, to send 100 round shot to
suit the Stamford cannon.
Saturday before May 23. — A number of British ships, vessels
and flat bottomed boats appeared off the harbor.
Gen. Wooster is here with several regiments. The stores of
medicines then here under charge of Dr. Turner, were ordered
to be sent io Danbury.
July 7. — Capt. Reuben Scofield and Capt. Edward Rogers,
ordered to march their companies to GreenAvich and Capt.
Bradley to march to Stamford.
Sept. 3. — A bushel of salt ordered to be sent to Stamford for
the army.
Oct. 11. — " To the general assembly of the State of Connec
ticut UOAV sitting at Hartford, by adjournment, the memorial of
us the subscribers, select men of the toAvn of Stamford — sIioav-
eth, that the said town is overcharged in the number of soldiers
as their quota filling up the Continental army, at least ten men,
upon computation of the number of whites in said tOAvn accord
ing to the return of the number in the year 1774 — that since
that time more than 1 00 men have gone off to the enemy from
sd toAvu besides the number killed in battle and who have died
in captivity and by sickness brought into the tOAvn from the
army aud otherwise Avliich have greatly diminished their num
bers aud rendered it extremely difficult if not imjiracticable to
29

226 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
supply their quota as now stated — and the more as they, are a
frontier town." Ab. Davenp. I Senator
Isaac Lockwood, y and
Sylvanus Knapp, j Representatives
Nov. 14. — Gen. Ass. voted that the Committee of inspection
of Lebanon, be and they are here by directed and, authorized
to take care and custody of the prisoners sent here under guard
from Stamford, as being persons dangerous to the state, and to
dispose of and govern them in the best manner they can as their
prudence shall direct, until further orders from the Gen. Ass. or
the Governor and his Com. as aforesaid.
Dec. 1 — Committee to care for families whose husbands had
gone into the continental service ; Jas. Young, Jona. Waring,
jr., Chas. Knapp, Chas. Weed, Amos Weed, Thaddeus Bell,
Jona. Bates and Thos. June.
At the same time, Jos. Ambler, Ab. Weed, Thad. Hoyt, and
Samuel Richards, Avere appointed to supply the commissary
Avith such clothing, <fcc., as the law required.
1778.
Abraham Davenport, assistant ; Maj. John Davenport and
Col. Chas. Webb rej^resentatives in Spring and Capt; Daniel
Bouton and Capt. Isaac Lockwood in the Fall.
The year opens under the defense of an encamped artillery
company, consisting of 24 men, to hold the post until June
1779. Jan. 12. — Articles of Confederation read and assented to, and
corresponding instructions forwarded to Capts. Lockwood and
Knapp, representatives in grand assembly.
Feb. 6. — An artillery company under Lieutenant John Bear
stationed here.
Twenty-four men levied on Stamford for coast defense.
March 20.— -Vote that all the fines due from delinquents AA'ho

CHEONOLOGICAL EECOED. 227
refused when drafted last winter to join the troops at the SaAV-
pitts under Gapt Jesse Bell or any other officer commanding
any of Stamford drafted men, to be, by said officers, equaUy
distributed among those non commissioned officers and soldiers
Avho joined and faithfully did their duty at the Sawpitts last
winter. March. — ^Ebenezer Holly, taken in arms against the U. S. is
imprisoned in Hartford jail.
John Morehouse, who had enlisted into the service in Silli
man's brigade at 16 years of age was enticed out of Stamford,
taken to New York and put on the sloop of the notorious re.
negade, Stephen Hoyt. He escapes into Rhode Island and re
ported himself to Gen. Washington.
Joshua Stone, Avho had been imprisoned in Ncav York by the
British, escaped to Stamford, is arrested by our committee of
safety, imprisoned and fined 20£. He is released on enlisting for
three years and paying- 30£. 1779.
Abraham Davenport, assistant ; Col. Chas. Webb and Capt.
Daniel. Bouton representatives in both sessions.
Mar. 26. — Gen. Putnam rides into the village from his peril
ous feat at Horseneck to rally help to drive back the British.
May. — Samuel Webb exchanged.
June 17. — Noah Welles taken prisoner at Horseneck and sent
to New York.
Aug. 3. — Rev. Dr. Mather and four sons captured at the par
sonage and carried off to New York by eight tories, of whom
five were the doctor's parishioners.
Sept. 5. — Major Tallmadge with 130 light dragoons, crosses
from Shipan point over to Loyd's Neck and at ten in the even
ing, attacked 500 tory refugees then entrenched, and before
morning had returned, he landed again in Stamford with nearly
the entire garrison, without losing a man.
Oct. — Capt. Jona. Waring with 50 or 60 men and Captain

228 HIstoeY of STAJiFOEl).
Sam'l Lockwood of Greenwich, plunder the GreenAvich tories of
20,000£, as appears from an appeal for restitution from John
Mackay. Dec. — Town grant liberty for a hospital under Dr. Coggswell,
at Capt. Reuben Scofield' s and elsewhere.
1780.
Jan. — Two Matross companies are reported at Stamford, num
bering 26 and 67 men.
Of the 530 men to be raised in the county this year, Stamford
Avas to furnish 57.
April 14. — Col. Chas. Webb, petitions the assembly to secure
an exchange for his son Charles, then a captive in the Sugar
House, New York, both of his feet having been frozen. He was
exchanged for Wm. Addington, then in Hartford jail.
June 26. — Lieut Reuben Weed, Gapt. Sam'l Hoyt, Lieut.
Sam'l Hutton, Capt. Isaac Lockwood, Mr. John Bell, captain
Chas. Smith, Mr. Tim. Reed, Mr. Silas Davenport, Gapt. lieu
ben Scofield and Lieut. Jona. Whiting, are appointed to pro
cure each a recruit for three years or during the war, for the
continental army. Voted, a tax of threepence a pound to pay
these recruits. Voted that David Bates and Enos Fountain be
reimbursed for " two great coats and one pair of overhauls "
which had been stolen from the goods which Thaddeus Hoyt
was transporting for the army in 1778.'
Nov. 13. — Lieut. Seth Weed and Mr. Silas Davenport ap
pointed to procure the provisions needed from Stamford for the
continental army and state troops.
Nov. 27. — Charles Webb, Joshua Ambler, Isaac Lockwood,
Charles Smith, Gershom Scofield, Reuben Scofield and Jesse
Bell, appointed to hire fifteen able bodied, effective recruits, as
soon as may be done.
Nov. 30. — British land at " Rhoton" Islands, and march to
Middlesex, capturing 35 cattle and five horses. This irruption
leads to the appointment of a committee.

CHEONOLOGICAL EECOED. 229
1781.
For tliis year. Major John Davenport reports in the service
from Stamford as foUoAvs : In Capt. Chas. Smith's company, 5 ;
in Gapt. Fitch's, 7 ; in Isaac Lockwood's, 53 ; in Lieut. Jona.
Whiting's artiUery, 16 ; in captain Nathaniel Slason's, 15 ; in
Ebenezer Jones' (naval), 30. Whole number killed 12 ; drown
ed, 6 ; taken prisoners, 60, seven of Avhom are dead and seven
wounded. The state gives credit to Stamford for 147 men in the service.
Jan. 8. — A tax is laid of one penny on a pound, to be be paid
in flour, wheat at 24 shillings a bushel, rye at 16 shillings and
Indian meal at four shillings.
March 1. — Smith Weed's account for provision for David
Waterbury's command, embracing 182,623 1-2 rations, 120,173
lbs. of Avheat flour and 39,005 lbs. rye flour.
April 1. — Samuel Webb appointed brigade major, and served
to March 1, 1782.
May 18. — Select men Charles Weed and David Waterbury,
complain that great numbers of the good subjects of the state
in Stamford, have been plundered and driven into the Avoods
and disabled from paying taxes. They ask a commission with
power to recruit or abate the tax assessed upon them. The ex
emption asked was granted.
May 30. — Gapt. Daniel Bouton and company march to Cam-
po Bay, Norwalk, to repel the enemy. He is shot in the shoulder
and lost his left arm. In the following January he petitions
the legislature for pecuniary help and is allowed 65 pounds.
This case is endorsed and the plea is urged by several citizens.
.July 3. — A tax voted of " four pence on a pound to be col
lected in silver or gold."
July 22. — The church in Darien surrounded Avhile the congre
gation were at worship and forty-eight of the worshipers dri
ven off as prisoners. Eli Reed escapes Avith a sUght wound in
the leg. Mrs. Sally Dibble was wounded in her plucky defense
of the horse on which she had rode to church.

230 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
Aug. 24. — D. Waterbury, in camp near Stamford renders his
commissary account.
Aug. 30. — Lemuel Sanford, Eli Mygatt und Timothy Keeler,
a committee appointed by the general assembly to make out a
list of dangerous persons, report sixteen names from Stamford,
as persons " inimical to the liberties and independence of the
United States."
Sept. 26. — Gidoou Lounsbury, Avhose name Avas on the list
above, was acquitted of the charge. 1782.
Jan. — 300 men are stationed here to relieve those Avhose term
of service would end in February, to remain in garrison until
May. Number of toAvn guards as reported by Major John Dixven-
port, 124, and in the boat service, under Ebenezer Jones, 27.
March. — ^His certificate of this date also testifies that Capt. S.
Knapp had transported 31 loads of public proA'isions fi-om the
landing to the town, " said to be a mile and a quarter," and
eight loads from the town to the garrison being 3 1-2 miles.
Feb. 25. — Vote 120 non-commissioned officers and soldiers
for the defense of the town, to be commanded by Capt. Jesse
Bell, Lieut. Nath'l How, Lieut. Jesse Hoyt and ensign Jos.
Mather. They were to serve until Jan. 1, 1783.
Feb. — Voted, that select men be desired to appoint some
suitable person to manage the field pieces, and to fill all vacan
cies in offices, on refusal of any to serve
Voted, a tax of six pence on the pound.
Juno 24. — The toAvn discharge Jesse Bell and the officers and
soldiers from keeping town guard.
Voted to class themselves and go on duty by rotation for
the defense of the town.
Oct. — Lieut. Col. Ganfield in command at Stamford.
1783.
May 3. — The Stanwich people pray for an abatement of their

CHEONOLOGICAL EECOED. 231
taxes, in view of their many and serious losses. Not granted.
May 24. — Silas Davenport reports his commissary expenses
for 1781 and '82, .and draAvs on the state treasury for pay. The
funds were voted.
Dec. 8. — Sam'l Hutton, moderator. Voted, that the select
men be directed, and they are hereby directed forthwith to
warn out of this town all those persons who have heretofore
put and screened themselves under the power and protection of
the king of Great Britain, together with all other unwholesome
inhabitants, and to see that they are kept out as the law directs.
1784.
Jan. 1. — -William Brown, in a document stating that he had
served the government as a soldier six years and tAvo months,
reports the loss of his pocket-book in July last, on the road to
NeAV Canaan, containing thirteen goverment notes, all his earn
ing for his military service. He asks to have the loss made up
to him which was granted.
May 4. — Capt. Dan'l Bouton, endorsed by tAventy substantial
citizens, reports to the assembly his disabled condition. The
legislature in consideration of his condition and services, abate
his taxes and vote him <an annuity of 20 pounds.

CHAPTER XV.

CATALOGUE OF SOLDIEES IN THE EEVOLUTIONAEY WAE.

The foUoAA'ing list embraces the names of all those Avho have
been found as engaged in the revolutionary Avar from the town
of Stamford. The most of the names were found in contempo
raneous records, manuscript or printed, and a very few have
been added on the testimony of descendants Avhose account the
author deemed trustworthy.
Andreas, Jeremiah, was a jiensioner.
Austin, Charles S. served 141 days in 1776, as appears from
the manuscript pay-roll of Col. David Waterbury's company of
that year.
Barnes,  a soldier from Stamford, during one of the raids
into the northern part of the town, Avas shot but a short dis
tance east from the store on High Ridge.
Betts, Stephen, in 1774, at the age of 18 years, enlisted into
Colonel Charles Webb's regiment. He went to Boston imme
diately after the action at Lexington Avhere he remained until
HoAve evacuated the city. He was in the Bunker hill fight. In
1776, he Avai in the battle of Trenton, and in 1777 in the bat
tles of Princeton and White Marsh Avhen he was commissioned
captain. In 1778 he was in the engagement at Monmouth. In
1779 he had command of a company of reguLars at Norwalk and
Avas there Avhen Tryon burned the vUlage. In 1781 he was in
Colonel Hamilton's battalion of light infantry. He Avas at the
siege of YorktOAvn, and Avas among tlie first of our troops to
enter the redoubts of the British ; though he paid the penalty

CATALOGUE OF SOLDIEES. 233
of his daring by a bayonet Avound AA'hich he received in his side.
He died in 1832. See Sentinel of Dec. 11, 1832. His AvidoAv
died here in 1838, aged 94 years.
Baker, Seth, enlisted July 6, 1775.
Bates, Thaddeus, served 211 days in 1776.
Beers, Abijah, enlisted July 6, 1775.
Beers, Daniel, enlisted July 6, '75, and waj fifer.
Bell, Francis, enlisted July 6, '75.
Bell, Isaac, Capt. led a company to the defense of Horseneck.
Bell, Abraham, Avas pensioned.
Bell, Jesse, Avas in the sea battalion in 1778. He reported
perilous service from March 25, 1779 to Jan. '80, and asks in
demnity against loss from depreciated currency.
Bell, Jonathan, served 220 days in 1770, and Avas pensioned
He was born in 1755.
Bell, John, enlisted July 6, '75.
Bell, Stephen, served 133 days in '76, andAvas pensioned. He
was 2ud lieutenant in Captain Joseph Hoyt's company.
Bell, Thaddeus, see Biog. sketch.
Bennet, Benj. enlisted July 6, '75.
Besse, John, enlisted July 6, '75.
Besse, Peleg, enlisted July 6, '75.
Betts, Stephen, a serg't in '75, and ensign in '76.
Birchard, John, enlisted July, 6, '75.
Bishop, Hezekiah, enlisted at sixteen and Avas pensioned.
Died in 1839.
Bishop, Jonathan, in company for the defense of New York,
1775. Bishop, Stephen, served in '75, and 197 d.ays in '76, and then
re-enlistecl. He Avas a sergeant and was pensioned.
Bishop, Jacob, served 133 days in '76.
Blanchard, Jacob, a pensioner died here, March 19, 1831,
aged 78.
Blatchley, Jesse, served 118 days in '76. 30

234 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
Bouton, Daniel, Gapt. was in the engagement at Gampo, May
30, 1781, when he was shot in the shoulder.
Briggs, Isaac, was pensioned.
Brown, BazaleU, 1st lieutenant in 1776, in Col. Waterbury's
regiment.
" Isaac, in company for defense of New York in 1775,
served 217 days in 1776.
" Nathan, enlisted July 6, '75.
" Roger, served 149 days in '76.
" Jonathan was a pensioner.
" Stephen, served 149 days in '76
" William, was in the service six years and two monthh.
" Sylvanus, Gapt. served 227 days in '76, and was capt.
of Go. 2, 8th regiment of the line.
BrothsAvell, Joseph, enlisted July 6, '75.
Buxton, John, enlisted July 6, '75.
Brown, John, was a prisoner.
Bush, Samuel. This name should not be allowed to drop out
of our revolutionary roll of honor. He was a humble man it is
true, and of African descent. But he united with the jiatriots
of that day and entered the army. It was the boast of his sub
sequent life, that he had served under Washington. It was the
proudest achievement which he used to tell of himself Avhile
connected Avith the army, that on one occasion he personally as
sisted Gen. Washington to cross a stream in the way of the
army. At the exiDiration of his service the general drew up,
and signed for him, his discharge from the service ; and as he
handed the paper to him said : " take this and keep it Avith care,
it may some day be of use to you." And so it proved, for when
afterwards pensions had. been provided for, Samuel found this
autograph of his general, all that Avas necessary to attest his
service. After the war he married, here, in 1784, Hannah Mid-
dlefield by whom he had five children.
Clock, John, was a pensioner.
Clason, Nathaniel, was a pensioner.

CATALOGUE OF SOLDIEES. 235
Clason, Isaac, Avas Avith the garrison on Fort Hill, and was
pensioned. Clason, Samuel, was a pensioner.
Clason, Stephen.
Clerk, Mathew, served 195 days in '76.
Clock, Jonathan, served 192 days in '76 and re-enlisted.
Coggins, David, enlisted July 6, '75.
Coleman, Wm. served 194 days in '76.
Goley, Daniel, enlisted July 6, '75.
Couch, Thomas, served 154 days as quarter-master.
Curtiss, Timothy, junr., in company for defense of New York
in '75 and served 220 days in '76.
Curtiss, Jeremy, was a pensioner.
Dan, Nathan, served 178 days in '76.
Dan, Squire, served 194 days in '76 and re-enlisted. He Ava's
pensioned. He died here, March 25, 1839.
Daskam, Wm. Capt. served under Lafayette and received his
discharge from Washington, himself He was pensioned.
Davenport, Hezekiah, Lieut, was shot at Ridgefield, AprU 27,
'77, after the burning of Danbury.
Davenport, James, appointed commissary. May 30, '77. See
Biog. sketch.
Davenport, John, a commissary with major's commission.
See Biog. sketch.
Defreere, Reuben, was pensioned.
Davis, Abraham, served 217 days in '76.
Davis, David, served 59 days and had "deserted" appended
to his name.
Dean, Ebenezer, was pensioned. He died here Aug. 14, 1847,
aged 32.
Dean, Samuel, entered the army at thirteen and served until
he was twenty. He died here July 30, 1845, aged 83. He was
pensioned. Dibble, John, was pensioned. He died in Darien, in April
1852, aged 93.

236 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
Dogherty, Andrew, served 220 days in '76.
Duncomb, Wm. enlisted July 6 '75.
Eldridge, Wm. served 180 days in '76.
Ferris, Peter, was in both the French and revolutionary war.
Ferris, Jonathan, served and Avas entitled to a pension, which
he refused. His wife secured it after his death.
Ferris, Ransford A. was in the battle at Bunker Hill, and
pensioned. He died here Jan. 2, 1824, aged 72. Had a ball in
his right arm till he died.
Finney, Daniel, went to the defense of New York in '75, and
served 210 days in '76.
Fitch,  was captain here in 1781.
Forster, Thomas, enlisted July 6, '75.
FuUon, Thomas, " " " "
Finch, James, was pensioned. He brought from the field a
belt from an English officer.
Garnsey, Samuel, served 192 days in '76, as sergt.
Gibbs, John, served 176 days in '76.
Gould, Talcot, enlisted July 6, '75.
Green, Asabel, served 217 days in '76.
Gregory, Elias, enlisted July 6, '75.
Griffet, Wm. enUsted July 6, '75.
Gregory, Benoni, served 212 days in '76.
Hanford, Theophilus, served 214 days in '76.
HaAvley, Thomas, enlisted July 6, '75.
Hay, James, served 196 days in '76.
Heacock, Bethel, served 193 days in '76, and re-enlisted.
" Ebenezer, served 216 days in '76.
" Morris, served 216 days in '76.
Hedden, Zadoc, died in Stamford, April 29, 1840, aged 82
years, he having been a pensioner for service in the revolution
ary war.
Hine, Jared, enlisted July 6, '75.
Hinman, Enoch, enlisted July 6, '75.

CATALOGUE OF SOLDIEES. 237
Hobby, Thomas, G.apt. 3d co. 5th reg't, April, '75, and was
appointed major.
Holly, Abraham, served thro' the war and was pensioned.
" Ebenezr, junr., served 220 days in '76.
" Isaac, enlisted July 6, '75.
" Nathan, was in the commissary department.
" Stephen, was a pensioner. He was once a prisoner in
the Sugar House.
Holmes, John, was in the Danbury fight and brought back a
gun now in his grandson John's possession.
How, Nathan, served 174 days in '76. He was pensioned.
How, Nathaniel, Avas lieutenant in 1782, and at the close of
the war captain. At one time. Avith tweh-e soldiers he had
charge of sixty tories who had been arrested.
Hoyt, Bates, was in Ncav York city, in Gapt. Webb's com
pany in 1776.
Hoyt, Ebenezer, born in 1763 Avas pensioned.
" Elijah, enlisted July 6, '75.
" Jesse, Lieut, seiwed 176 days in '76, and continued in
the service pensioned.
" Jonathan.
" John.
" Joseph, Lieut. Col. of the Sth Conn, reg't, regular ar
my. He had been captain in 1775.
" Josiah, enlisted July 6, '75.
" Nathaniel, enlisted July 6, '75, and was sergeant.
" Neazer, born Nov. 8, 1751, served 49 days in 1776.
Died here Feb. 15, 1811.
" Samuel, captain in 5 Conn, militia, thro' the war. He
Avas pensioned.
" Samuel, enlisted July 6, '75, and served 158 days in
'76 as ensign. He was afterwards a lieutenant. He
died in Darien, Dec. 30, 1832, aged 80 years. He
Avas pensioned

238 HISTOEY OP STAMFOED.
Hoyt, Sylvanus, died on returning home from his campaign,
Sept. 8, '76, leaving a wife and four children.
Warren, was in the war in '75, and pensioned.
" WUliam, took the small pox while in the service and
died of it, Nov. 15, '78, leaving two sons, WiUiam
and Rufus, who went to Black Rock, Fairfield.
" Thaddeus, Capt. one of the most fearless and resolute
of our patriots, as our history elsewhere shoAvs. He
Avas in Captain Webb's company in New York city,
in August '76, as appears from a letter from his pa
rents.
" SUas, brother of Bates and Thaddeus Avas with them
in New York city in '76.
Hubbel, Salmon, enlisted July 6, '75.
Hurd, Williston, was in Capt. Chapman's company, 5tli Conn.
Husted, Nathaniel, served 78 days in '76, as corporal.
" Thaddeus, Avent in '75, for the defense of New York.
Hutton, Samuel, sergeant in Gapt. Hoyt's company in '75.
Jackson, Nathan P. enlisted July 6, '75, and Avas serg't.
" WUliam, enUsted July 6, '75.
Jennings, Justus, enlisted July 6, '75.
Jervis, Jonathan, enlisted July 6, '75.
Johnson, William, served thro' the war and was pensioned.
Jones, Ebenezer, Gapt. commanded a boat, used to annoy
the enemy's shipping in the sound — a man of great daring and
courage. In 1781 he had under his cojnmand 30 of the Stam
ford men.
.Tones, Ephraim, Avas a pensioner.
June, Reuben, entered the service at 16, and was pensioned.
June, Silas, Avas taken prisoner by the British at White
Plains. He was pensioned.
June, Thomas, was shot as he Avas returning from hoeing in
the field and his two sons Avere taken iDi-isoners,
June, Israel, was a pensioner.
Ingersol, Benjamin, died in the service.

CHEONOLOGICAL EECOED. 239
Ingersol, Samuel.
Keeler, Isaac, enlisted July 6, '75, a corporal.
" Lockwood, " 6, "
" Thaddeus, " 6, " and Avas serg't.
Kellogg, Asahel, served 191 days in '76, and re-enlisted.
Kenney, John, enlisted July 6, '75.
Knapp, Bouton, served 135 days in '76.
" Hezekiah, born in 1750, was a pensioner.
" John, served 223 days in '76. \
" Sylvanus, was captain of the town guards.
" Usual, Avas pensioned. He had been a prominent man
and much in favor Avith Washington. He died
at NoAvbury, N. Y., Avhen special honor was done
to his memory.
" Timothy, enlisted July 6, '75.
" William, born in 1756, was a pensioner. He served
under Putnam and was with him at Greenwich at
the time of his famous plunge on horseback down
the steps. He died here Jan. 31, 1844.
" Jacob, was a pensioner.
Lee, Seth, enlisted July 6 '75.
Lindsay, James, enlisted Jul}' 6, '75.
Lines, Holly, served 220 days in '76.
Little, John, was a pensioner.
Lloyd, Clement, served 194 days and re-enlisted.
Loder, Jacob, Avas a pensioner.
Lockwood, David, served 220 days in '76, and was taken pri
soner at Ncav York. He Avas a pensioner.
Lockwood, Ezra, went to the defense of Ncav York in '75.
" Isaac, was captain of the town guard in '81. He
was pensioned. He died here, July 31, 1836.
" Noah.
" Reuben, enlisted July 6, '75, and Avas pensioned.
" Titus, enlisted July 6, '76, and after the murder
of his brother by the cowboys, he was the inex-
rable avenger of every injured patriot.

240 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
Lockwood, Timothy, served 176 days in '76- His tragic end
will be found among the incidents of the war.
" .Charles, Avas pensioned.
" Samuel, 2nd Lieut, in '75, in Col. Waterbury's
regiment.
Lounsbhry, DaA'id, enlisted July 6, '75, account balanced in
Vol. 5th, in the comptroller's office, AA'hen he received £20 14
shillings. Lounsbury, Jacob, enlisted July 6, '75, and Avas a pensioner.
McCurtiss, Daniel, enlisted July 6, '75, a drummer.
Mason, John, served 12 da;^s in '76 and deserted.
Mather, Samuel, Avas a pensioned.
Mather, Joseph, served 216 clays in '7^, and was ensigu in
'82. He was pensioned.
Mead, Peter, served 220 daj's in '76.
Mead, Theophilus, enlisted July, 6, '75, and Avas fifer.
Mead, Reuben, was a pensioner.
Meeker, Ebenezer, enlisted July 0, '75.
MiUs, George, captain and actiA'C in the Avar.
Mills, John, served 215 days in '76, quartermaster 31 days,
and adjutant 139 days.
Mills, John, junr., served 216 days in '76.
Nichols, John, AA'as pensioned.
Nichols, Daniel, was in the regular service in '76 one year, in
the array of the north. AfterAvards thro' the Avar he was often
engaged as scout to find and report the tories. He Avas pen
sioned. He died here, Feb. 18, 1834.
Nichols, Abel, enlisted July 6, '75.
Nichols, Joseph, was pensioned.
Northrup, Gamaliel, enlisted July 0,'75 and was a lieutenant.
Nichols, James, was pensioned.
NcAvman, Rufus, Avas pensioned.
Odell, John, enlisted July 6, '75.
Olmstead, Koger, enlisted July 6, '75.
Olmstead, David, enlisted July 6, '75, a corpoi'al.

CATALOGUE OF SOLDIEES. 241
Pangburn, Richard served 196 days in '76, and re-enlisted.
Parrot, David enlisted July 6, '75.
Parsons, Ja's enlisted July 6, '75, and was marked as deserter.
Patchin, Elijiih enUsted July 6, '75.
Patchin, Israel enlisted July 6, '75 and was corporal.
Peat, James served 153 days in '76.
Peck, Ephriam served 149 days in '76.
Powers, Andrew served 212 days in 76, and was serg't.
Provost, Thomas Avas pensioned.
Provost, Daniel was in the Avar. He died here Dec. 14, 1832,
aged 79 years.
Provost, Samuel was a pensioner. He died here Nov. 30,
1843, aged 80 years.
Purdy, David was ensign in '76.
Quintard, Isaac AA'as a pensioner.
Raymond, David was a pensioner. He Avas in the battle of
White Plains.
Reed, EUas served 193 days in '76, and re-enlisted.
" Ketchel served 132 days in '76.
" SUas served 220 days in '76, as fifer.
Richards, Wm. was shot when on duty at Ringsend.
St. John, Abraham went in '75 for the defense of New York
city.
" " Justin, enlisted July 0, '75.
Saunders, John M. served 218 days in '76.
Scofield, Abram served 175 days in '76.
" Benjamin went for the defense of New York citv in
1775.
" Ebenezer was 1st Lieut, in the service.
EUsha served 153 days in '76.
" Ezra enlisted July 6, '75, served seven years and
was pensioned.
" Gershom, a lieutenant, died in 1824, aged 75. He
preserved bis powder-horn, on which while in the
service he had carved, " Liberty, property and no
tax in America." 31

242 • HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
Scofield, Gideon.
" Gilbert was drafted, but at his father's wish deserted.
" Hait, orderly serj't and Avas in many engagements.
He was pensioned. He died here July 16, 1840
aged 84 years.
" Israel, 3rd, went in '75 for the defense of New York
city.
" Jacob went in '75 for the defense of Ncav York, and
re-enlisted July 6, '75.
" Jared was a pensioner.
" Josiah 4th, went in '75 for the defense of New York,
and re-enlisted July 6, '75. He was a serg't. '
" Josiah W. was a pensioner.
" Joseph in '75 Avent for the defense of Ncav York
city, and re-enlisted July 6, '75.
" Peter enlisted into the revolutionary service July 6,
'75. He died here AprU 28, 1830, aged 91 years.
" Pettit Avent in '75 for the defense of New York city.
" Reuben was -serg't .July 6, '75, and captain July 9,
'77, in a battalion for the defense of the sea coast.
He succeeded Jesse Bell Avho resigned. He served
as captain several years, and received a captain's
pension. He died here in 1835, aged 93 years.
" Thaddeus served 207 days in '76.
" Seth AA-ent in '75 for the defense of Ncav York city.
" Enos Avas pensioned. He moved after the Avar to
Bedford, N. Y.
" Syh'anus, a pensioner died here, Sept. 21, 1831
aged " about 80."
Scott, William enlisted July 6^ '75.
Seeley, John was in the service three years. He died in 1832.
Selleck, Darling Avas at the battle of White Plains.
Selleck, David served 220 days in '76.
" Ebenezer served 187 days in '76. He Avent over to
Oyster Bay after the Avar.

CATALOGUE OF SOLDIEES. 243
Selleck, Joseph was pensioned. He Avas a teamster.
" Simeon a commissary, served 32 days in '76, and suc
ceeded in capturing the king's stores at Horseneck.
Share; Daniel served 193 days in '76, and re-enlisted.
Selleck, WUliam.
Sherwood, Daniel enlisted July 5, '75.
Skelding, Thomas served in the commissary department.
Slason, Ebenezer Avas a major in '76.
" Henry was captain here in '76.
" Nathaniel was captain of the home guard in '81, and
was pensioned.
Shelp, William was pensioned.
Smith, Austin, junr., reported 220 days service.
" Azariah, reported 77 days service in '76.
" Amos Capt.
" Charles Gapt. of state guards between the lines in '81.
" " junr., was a pensioner.
" David 3d, Avas stationed at Greenwich. He was fam
ous as a scout, hunting down the tories. He was
¦ a pensioner. He died May 26, 1840. His children
were Joseph, Benjamin, Sally, Mary C., and Mrs.
. Lavina White.
" Daniel enlisted July 6, '75.
" Ezra, 3d, went to the defense of New York in '75, and
reported 163 days service in '76.
" Ebenezer, captured by tories in the Farms district and
put into the " Sugar House." He was a pensioner.
" Isaac, reported in '76, 220 days service.
" Isaac, served from '77, thro' the war. He was father of
Chas. Edgar.
" Jabez, reported 154 days service in '76. Pensioned.
" Jabez, junr., went for defense of New York in '75, and
reported 135 days service in '76.
" Job. enlisted July 6, 75.

244 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
Smith, Joseph, was ensign in '75.
" Joshua reported 148 days service in '70.
" Josiah, Lieut, was active thro' the war. Had oue
thumb struck off by a ball, aud Avas badly cut in
both arms and the face while Avarding off the
strokes of a British officer. He died Nov. 29,
1830, aged 81 years. He Avas a consistent Chris
tian patriot, a member of the North Baptist
church of this town^
" Levi enlisted July 6, '75.
" Nathaniel reported 175 days service iu '76.
" Peter reported 238 days service in '76. He was shot
at the Noroton.
" WiUiam, Capt.
Sniffin, Reuben was in the battle of White Plains. He died
here.
Stevens, Daniel.
" David was shot at Ridgefield. See incidents of the
war.
" Ezra- served 151 days in '76. After the war, was a
justice and town lawyer. He lived in the north
east part of the town.
" Jacob was at the battle of White Plains.
" Obidiah, junr., went for the defense of New York in
'75. He was an older brother of Mr. Peter Ste
vens, still liA'ing, 1864, on Hoyt street.
" Reuben, after the war moved into the State of New
York. He was at the fight at Bunker HiU.
" Sylvanus served 191 days in '76, and re-enlisted.
" Thomas.
Stewart, Charles served 238 days in '76. He was corporal,
and was captured and imprisoned in Halifax, N.
S., Sept 16, '76.
Swords, Francis D. enlisted July 6, '75.
Thompson, William served 194 days in '76, and re-enlisted.

CATALOGUE OF SOLDIEE.S. 245
Todd, John.
Tryon, Samuel served 211 days in '76.
Wardwell, Isaac entered service at sixteen, near the end of
the war.
" Jacob, b. Aug. 19, 1744, served thro' the war.
" William, b. Feb. 1760, before the war closed was
enrolled in the army.
Wai-ing, Benjamin served 196 days in '76.
" Joseph was pensioned.
" James was pensioned.
" John, Serj't served 151 days in '76.
" Jonathan was captain in '79.
" Simeon served 53 days in '76.
" Thaddeus was in the town guard arid in a skirmish
east of tho Noroton.
Waters, Elisha joined Arnold to repel the British at Horse
neck.
" John was imprisoned in Ncav York.
Waterbury, Daniel was 2nd Lieut, in '76.
" David was in pursuit of the British retreating
from Danbury. He saw Wooster shot and Ar
nold as he left his fallen horse, taking his pistols
with him.
" David. See Biog. sketch.
" David 3rd.
" Enos, a commissary and pensioner. Died here
about 18 years ago.
" Gideon, an ensign.
" John, ensign, served 178 days in '76.
" John Sth, a private.
" Joseph served 193 days in '76.
" Peter.
" Epenetus and David, both died in Canada during
.the war.

240 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
Waterbury, William, after the war, Avent to Saratoga,
Avhere he died July 20, 1846, aged 77.
Waterbury, William served 217 days in '76, was in Colonel
Chandler's regiment three years and was pensioned. He Avas
taken prisoner at fort Washington on the Hudson, and Avas se
riously injured by the poisoned wine Avhich his captors gave
him. He served under Lafayette, and Avas in the batte of Mon
mouth. When Lafayette in 1825 passed thro' Stamford, he at
once recognized his soldier and gave him a hearty salutation.
He died in Stamford A'illage .June 22, 1830, in the 74th year of
his age.
Webb, Benjamin who had been in the French war.
Webb, Charles Col. See Biog. sketch.
Webb, Charles, junr., was lieutenant in '75, served as adju
tant 52 days in '76, and was still later in his father's regiment.
He Avas a prisoner in New York. He was killed on a gun-boat
in the Sound.
Webb, David was commissary in '76.
" Ebenezer died here Sept. 4, 1834, aged '70.
" GUbert served 158 days in '76.
" Joseph junr., was 1st Lieut, and wounded.
" Hezekiah enlisted July 6, '75.
" Samuel was serj't in the company which went under
Gapt. Joseph Hoyt to defend New York city in
'75. He served as clerk of Col. Waterbury's re
giment, 196 days in '76, and re-enlisted. He was
brigade major in '79, and was captured and ex
changed.
" Nathaniel Gapt.
Weed, Charles was a pensioner.
James Avas a pensioner.
" Abishai was pensioned. He died here Jan. 31, 1840,
aged 80 years.
" Abijah who been in the old French and Indian war,
early entered the revolutionary service. He after-

CATALOGUE OF SOLDIEES. 247
Avards joined the British and went to Canada and
died there.
Weed, Asahel.
" Benjamin went in '75 to defend New York city and
served as serg't in that year 170 days. He was
wounded in the Ridgefield skirmish by a ball
Avhich he carried the rest of his life. He Avas pen
sioned.
" Annanias went in '75, to the defense of Ncav York
city and served 222 days in '76. He was serj't
and commissary and served thro' the Avar. He
died here in 1820.
" Daniel was pensioned.
" Hezekiah Avas a pensioner.
" Elnathan served 212 days in '76.
" Ezra Avas captured and imprisoned in Canada.
" Gideon enlisted July 6, '75. He Avas the youngest
member of Capt. Hoav's company and during the
absence of the captain he was appointed to take
his place on the sudden appearance of a gang
of tories. He drew up the company near the
school house in Darien and Avas himself shot
doAvn as he stood between tAvo of his brothers,
Hezekiah and Jonas.
" Henry was pensioned.
" Jabez.Jared.
Joel.
" John Avas a pensioner. He served under Lafayette.
" Jonas Avas Avounded and carried a buckshot in his arm
all his life. He Avas a pensioner.
" Jonathan Avas a pensioner. He died here Jan. 31 , 1840,
aged 80 years.
" Hezekiah 4th, Avent in '75 for the defense of New
York city, and Avas Avounded Avith a shot he car
ried all his life.

248 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
Weed, Seth Lieut, served 161 days in '76. He died Dec. 26,
1822.
" Silas went in '75 to defend NewYork city and served
220 days as corporal and 80 days as serg't in '76.
" Stephen was made insane by his exposures. See Biog.
sketch.
White, Jacob was a pensioner.
Whiting, Jonathan, 2nd Lieut, in Col. Waterbury's regi
ment in '75.
Woolsey, Gilbert was a pensioner. He bears the name of the
pioneer of the family AA'ho settled here.
Weeks, Henry died in 1824.
WJieaton, Samuel, sergeant in Capt. Hoyt's company in '75.
Young, Samuel, Avas in the service, he died July 8, 1827.

CHAPTER XVI.

THE LOYAL ELEMENT OP OUE EEVOLUTIONAEY PEEIOD.

The Loyal element in that trying day Avas much more gener
al and troublesome to the patriot cause, than our current history
shows. In all of our tOAvns it existed, and in a large number of
them it Avas a serious hindrance to the effective prosecution of
the war. In the immediate 'vicinity of the British lines, and
elscAvhere soon after British successes, it asserted itself Avith
great distinctness; and at all times and in all parts of the land,
it was sufficiently demonstrative to embarrass the patriot cause.
It showed itself in many ways, and most unexpectedly. Stam
ford Avas of course not without this element. Indeed, it would
not be strange if it existed here more offensively than in many
other of our Connecticut towns. The British lines for several
years were very near, at times even within hearing of the vil
lage. The Episcopal Church, Avhich had already attained here a
prominent position both in numbers and infiuence, and which as
a matter of conscience had all along been accustomed to pray
for " Our good King George the Third," Avere in their religious
sentiments opposed to any such revolution as the Avar aimed to
achieve. Accordingly we find the very opening of the great struggle
seriously checked, .and the cause of Colonial independence con
stantly endangered by this secret or open opposition of those
who could not or would not espouse it. They opposed enlist
ments into the army for independence. They concealed their
neighbors Avho had been drafted or aided their escape from the
service after they had been sworn into it. As a good illustra-
32

250 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
tion of this style of opposition to the war let the following in
stance ansAver. James Scofield's son Gilbert, a mere boy, had
been drafted and sent Avith our recruits to New York. The
father who was notoriously opjjosed to -the Avar, mounted his
horse and pursued. By adroit management he found his son
and succeeded in releasing him and putting him beyond reach
of those Avhose duty it was to find and arrest deserters. As this
could not be done safely on the patriot side of the lines, the
youth Avas transferred to the other side Avhere for about two
years he rendered such service as his years and ability would
alloAV. Witness also another fact in the very opening of the Avar for
independence. I shall simply quote from the record of the gene
ral assembly, their action in March 1775.
"It having beeu represented to this assembly that Isaac Quintard of
Stamford, in the County of Fairfield, Capt. of the 2nd military company, in
the town of Stamford, in tbe 9th regt. in this colony, and JFyler Dibble of
said Stamford, Capt, of the first military company of Stamford, in said re
giment, at said Stamford, in January last, in contempt of the authority in
this colony, did attempt and endeavor to prevent the introduction of certain
barrels of gun powder into this colony for the government's use, agreeably
to the orders and directions of legal authority, Avhich conduct is inconsist
ent with the duty of their said office and of dangerous tendency ; where
upon it is resolved by this assembly, thiit G-old Selleck Silliman and Jona
than Sturgiss, Esquires, be and they are hereby appointed Commissioners,
and are fully authorized and empowered to notify said Quintard and Dibble
to appear before them, at such time and place as shall be by them appointed
and to examine the witnesses relative to said conduct and examine into the
truth of said representations and to report what they shall find to tho gene
ral assembly at the session in May next. "
No record of the arrest and trial of the captains has been
found ; but from the American Archives we learn that Fyler
Dibble, Sept. 26, 1775, asks the forgiveness of the people for op
posing the appointment of a committee of inspection, and pro
mises to yield hearty obedience to the continental association.
Captain Quintard, also, waived his further opposition and made
a humble confession.
Yet these were by no means tho only citizens who Avere op-

LOYAL ELEMEiiT OF THE WAE. 251
posed to the Avar, as abundant records of that day testify. The
first Tuesday of June, 1775, must have been a day of no little
excitement in this usuaUy quiet toAvn. The patriotism of the
citizens had been outraged by the sale among them of that
once innocent, but noAV proscribed article, tea.
Stamford must purge herself from the vile treason. She had
not, like Ridgefield, refused to represent herself in the county
convention which had in the preceding February sounded so
clearly the tocsin for Avar, rather than a base submission to the
taxation of the British Crown ; nor had her select men like
those of Newtown, contemptuously set up at vendue for a pint
of flip, a copy of the patriotic address sent out by the general
assembly, to indicate to all good citizens their future duty. But
the occasion now offers for her citizens to make signal proof that
their hearts and means are with all who will unite to sunder the
ties which had held them as mere vassals of the English crown.
It appears, that though mainly ready for any personal sacri
fice which the struggle might call for, there was one among
them, whose greed out-weighed his patriotism. Sylvanus Whit
ney, more thrifty than patriotic, ventured to traffic in contra
band goods. He thought he knew when it would be a money
making thing to dispose of good tea for a good price, and he
supplies himself His friends or his traffic betray him. He is
summoned to answer to his townsmen for his treasonable prac
tice. Under the pressure of the moral or stringently physical
force used on the occasion, Mr. Whitney submits himself and
his, to their disposal,, as follows :
"Whereas I, the subscriber, have been guilty of buying and selling Bo-
hea tea, since the first of March last past, whereby I have been guilty of a
breach of the association entered into by the continental congress ; and
sensible of my misconduct, do in this public manner, confess my crime and
humbly request the favor of the public to overlook this my transgression,
promising for the future to conduct myself as a true friend to my country ;
and in testimony of my sincerity, I do now deliver up the ,tea I have on hand
unto the said committee of inspection to be by them committed to the
flames." " SyLVANCs Whitney.

252 IIISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
On this confession and pledge the committee released the ar
rested culprit from further prosecution, but proceeded to arrange
for the evening entertainment which had already been announ
ced. We will report the festivity which followed in the words
of the contemporaneous record, now preserved in the American
Archives. " About 8 o'clock, in the evening, a galloAvs was erected in the middle of
the street, opposite the Webb tavern ; a large concourse of people collect
ed, and were joined by a number of soldiers quartered in the town. A
grand procession soon began to move. In the first place, a large guard
under arms, headed by two captains, who lead the van , while the unfortu
nate tea hung across a pole, sustained by two unarmed soldiers. Secondly,
followed the Committee of Observation. Thirdly, spectators came to see
the great sight. And after parading through part of the principal street,
Avith drums beating and fifes playing a most doleful sound, they come to
the gallows where the common hangman soon performed his office to the
general satisfaction of the spectators. As it was thought dangerous to let
said tea hang all night, for fear of an invasion from our tea lovers, a large
bonfire was made under it, which soon reduced it to ashes ; and after giv
ing three loud huzzas, the people soon dispersed to their respective homes
without any bad consequence attending. The owner of the aforesaid tea
attended, during the execution, and behaved himself as well as could be ex
pected on the occasion."
The next year, also, witnesses a trial in Stamford. Munson
Jarvis and David Pickett are summoned before the committee
of inspection, April 3, 1776. They had signed a seditious pa
per pledging themselves " to assist the king and his vile minions
in their wicked, oppres.sive schemes to enslave the American
colonies," and to discourage any military preparation to repel
the invasion of the British forces and to dissuade persons from
observing the orders, of the continental congress. They ac
knowledged their signatures to the paper, when they were pro
nounced guilty of a great crime.
Mr. Jarvis prepared a confession, professing himself son-y for
what he had done and promised to obey every order of the
continental congress, excepting .as he was held back by a " re
ligious tie of conscience."
Mr. Picket, also, makes confession and begs to have the past

LOYAL ELEMENT IN THE WAE. 253
overlooked and he will henceforth " conduct himself agreeably
to the good and wholesome laws and rules uoav in the colonies,
which may be for the good of his country."
They were then asked Avhat they meant by that " tie of con
science" which was to control their future course, and what were
the laAVS "for the good of the country," which they were pre
pared to obey. In their reply, they protested that they could
not join with the country in pursuing the measures adopted by
congress in defense of the just rights and privileges of the colo
nies; and upon this explanation, the committee pronounced
their confession and promises unsatisfactory The charges
against them were sustained. The committee voted to advertise
them as eneinies of their country, and conclude their sentence
thus : " and Ave hereby recommend it to all persons to break off
all commerce and dealing with them, and to treat them agreeably
to the resolves of congress for those Avho are deemed enemies of
their country." The original record of the transactions is signed
by John Haight, jr., clerk of the committee.
The following transaction, preserved in the American Ar
chives, shows that the opposition to the war went still further.
William Budd Lucas was a marked patriot, then temporarily
living in Stamford. He was red hot against all tories, and his
zeal maddened them beyond control. They therefore united
with some of the same faith in Norwalk and gave him a most
unmerciful whipping. For which offense they were arrested and
brought to the following confession :
" Mr. .Luke Raymond, Ebenezer Eaymond and Billy Saunders of Nor
walk in Conn, having in a cruel and unjustifiable manner been guilty of
attacking, beating and mauling William Budd Lucas of Stamford, for which
crime we are heartily sorry, and in the first place earnestly beg the for
giveness of said Lucas, and of all other persons whom we have offended,
and furthermore Ave, William Starr, Jame^ Hoyt, jr. Prince Howes and
Samuel Beebe of Stamford, and John Bigelow of Norwallt, having been
guilty of being drawn into, the riotous company above written, for which
misconduct we are sincerely ashamed and heartily sorry, and humbly ask
forgiveness of all whom we have ofi'ended. Furthermore, we. Prince Howes,
Jas. Hoyt, jr. and Samuel Beebe aforesaid, having imprudently subscribed

254 HISTORY OF STAMFOED.
a certain paper said to be drawn up by Capt. Fyler Dibble, for which mis
conduct we ore sorry and humbly ask the forgiveness of all whom Ave hove
offended. Aud furthermore, we, oue and all, solemnly promise and declare
that .we "will, to the utmost of our power and ability, exert ourielves.in
the defense of our country in opposition to the King's troops. Signed,
Stamford, Sept. 15, 1775."
After these records it can scarcely be doubted that some
stringent measures Avould be justified by the patriots of that day
in putting down this opposition to their cause. Accordingly,
the assetnbly for the state, in December of this year passed their
famous act, for restraining and punishing persons who are inim
ical to the liberties of this and the rest of the united colonies.
That act made it a treasonable offense to " libel or defame any
of the resolves of the congress of the united colonies or the'EtSts
and proceedings of this assembly, which are made for the de
fense and security of the rights and privileges of the same."
Any person found guilty was to be disarmed, and rendeted in
capable of holding or serving in any office civil or military, and
he could be further punished by fine, imprisonment or disfran
chisement. If such legislation seems needlessly harsh, we must remem
ber the necessity which called for it. The tories of that day
were as earnest and as honest in their opposition to the inde
pendence of the American colonies as the British theiiiselves.
They not only did their utmost by tongue and pen, to oppose the
patriot cause, but they openly furnished arms and men to the noAV
declared public enemy. Whole regiments of them joined the
British cause. Incidents often occurring in this town showed
conclusively that either the tories must be restrained or the cause
of colonial independence abandoned.
Witness the capture of the patriotic Dr. Mather and his four
sons, taken from their own home, and that, the parsonage, and
hurried to New York, where they could no more preach treason
against their sovereign, or aid his rebellious subjects in resist
ing his abjured authority. Five of the eight agents engaged
in this capture were parishioners of the venerable man against
whom they were executing this vengeance of the king.

LOYAL ELEMENT IN THE WAE. 255
Witness, also, this, well accredited fact. When the enemy
landed at Gampo Bay, May 30th, 1781, at the same time that
OUT patriot company under their gallant captain, Daniel Bouton,
were on their forced march to repel the invaders, two of the
loyalist portion of the town were actually piloting the miscre
ants to the best farms of the neighborhood for such plunder as
they could appropriate. That such opposition should greatly
try and exasperate the patriots of that day and lead to severe
punishment would be . most natural. We shall find abundant
proof of such results in many occurrences of the times, as is
evident from the following case.
David NeAvman, a man of good repute for all that appears,
had a son, Joshua, who in a freak of youthful temper early in
the war had gone over to the enemy, on Long Island. Here he
soon found a gentle damsel Avhose attractions only served to
weld the bonds Avhich already held him in the British power.
The months swept on and the fair enchantress Avins a pledge of
marriage and the nuptial day is appointed. Not being yet fully
absolved from all ties of home, the gallant Joshua ventures to
brjive the dangers of a return that he may have the blessing of
" the old folks at home," to add to the cheer of the approaching
AA'cdding. He reaches Stamford and safely enters Avhat.had onco-
heen a safe altar of refuge for him. E.agle-eyed vigilance is arous
ed. The presence of the young traitor is suspected, and the swift
footed ministers of the patriotic citizens are out on the search.
The house is surrounded and explored, but the anxious parents,
whose love Avas as keen and vigilant as the sharpest patriotism,
l^ad so skillfully screened or adroitly removed their " boy, stiU,"
that he could not be found. But what could the outraged citi
zens do? The traitor son had escaped. The father must have
aided him, and he Avas in their poAver. J^or this offense, that of
shielding his son and so giving aid and comfort to the enemy,
he was arrested and throAvn into the county jail. No plea of
hifi family and no pledge of his personal loyalty could avail.
Weeks and months he paid in confinement the penalty of his
offense, that of holding the calls of parental affection above the

250 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
demands of the pubUc safety. Not until his jailor had testified
to his loyalty and his uncomplaining readiness to suffer yet long
er, if so his townsmen required, would the stern sense of the
people consent to his release.
Another instance which shows how determined was the po
pular indignation against the loyalists towards the close of the
war is found in a petition, signed Jan. 2nd, 1782, by thirty-seven
Stamford and Greenwich men, in which the petitioners remon
strate against allowing " tories" who had served in the British
armies to return again as citizens of either town. The remon
strance states that " since the capture of ComwaUis and his
army many unprincipled wretches from us who had with arms
joined the common enemy," had returned home, and that a
number of them belong to the most infamous banditti, called
Delancey's corps. The names of the petitioners are ; — Benj.
Mead, jr., Abr. Mead, Caleb Lyons, Jesse Mead, SUas Mead, jr.,
Eb. Mead, Isaac How, Abner Mead, Wm; Weed, Richard Mead,
Abr. Weed, Daniel Bouton, Eeuben Weed, Jared Mead, Deodate
Davenport, Jas. Ambler, Holly Scofield, Jos. Seely, Timothy
Reed, Daniel Chichester, John Mather, Sen. Webb, Samuel
Young, Philip Jones, Israel Weed, Zebulon Husted, Jona. Sco
field, Benj. Weed 3rd, Thaddeus Husted, Jehiel Mead, Soame
Fountain, Chas. Smith, Benj. Marvin, Andrus Powers, Eli Reed,
Theodore Hanford and Jona. Weed.
But as the struggle approached its close, and it began to be
seen that the colonies AA'ould maintain their independence, those
who had allowed themselves to oppose the struggle began to
repent. They sought every opportunity to excuse and palliate
the guilt of their course. How completely they had been sub
dued by the progress of the war the following incidents will
fully show.
John William Holly, in a document dated Sept. 30, 1782,
testifies that Avhen he Avas fourteen years old his father_went
over to the British and put him under the protection'of the
British army. He had continued to live in New York aud at
Lloyd's Neck, until a month ago. He then resolved not to op-

LOYAL ELEMENT OF THE WAE. 257
pose his country longer, as his father was now dead and his
widowed mother was living alone at Stamford. He therefore
begs to be allowed to return, as a loyal citizen of the new gov
ernment. The request was granted by the legislature. Mr.
Holly afterwards became the proprietor of the Cove MiUs, and
a prominent and honored citizen.
Elnathan Holly a youth of nineteen years, in 1776, joined the
enemy, and was employed in the army. In April, 1782, he
abandoned the British service, returned to Stamford and was
imprisoned. He forwards to the legislature a penitent confes
sion, his sacred oath of future allegiance, and a fervent plea for
his liberation. The petition was granted.
In May, 1782, AvidoAV Mary Wooster, pleads before the legis
lature the case of her son then in Ncav York. He had been
early drawn over the lines and into the British service. He had
never taken up arms ; and of late had lived in Ncav York, car
rying on his trade as tailor. He had made money, and is now
anxious to visit his mother and make Stamford his future home.
He is ready to give pledges of his loyalty to the new govern
ment and is by vote of the legislature allowed to return.
After the depredations committed by the British in the east
ern part of the toAvn, as reported in our chronological record
under date of Noa'. 30, 1780, the legislature appointed a com
mittee to report all dangerous persons from Stamford. This Avaa
done, when the following names Avere reported ; Gideon Leeds,
Admer Stevens, Sam'l Hoyt 3i-d, Sam'l Crissy, John Selleck,
Anthony De Mill, Daniel Selleck, Josiah Scofield 3rd, Josiah
Scofield, John Bates, Nathaniel Dan, James Scofield, junr.,
Jonathan Lewis, David Hoyt, Gideon .Lounsbury and Sylvanus
Seeley. Our chronological record shows that Gideon Lounsbury
was acquitted of the charge. In the State Archives I found
other p.apers respecting these tories worth reporting.
One contains an .appeal from Samuel Crissy and Gideon
Leeds, demanding an examination, which was granted. At the
trial they brought forA\'ard such proofs of their substantial
33

258 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
agreement with the patriots that their names Avere, also, erased
from the black list. Thus encouraged the remainder of the list,
April 29, 1782, urge upon the governor and his council their
claim to be acquitted of the charge made by the assembly's com
mittee, and demand an early re-examination. Accordingly the
Governor immediately issues a Avarrant to the Sheriff of Fair
field coimty or a constable at Stamford, to summon John Hoyti
junr., town clerk, and the rest of the inhabitants to appear be
fore the general assembly in May and show reason Avhy the
prayer of the petitioners should not be granted.
At the same time, the question of opposing the petitioners
before the legislature Avas discussed by the select men of Stam
ford and by a majority vote they decided not to furnish John
Hoyt Avith funds to prosecute the oi^position. Sheriff Elijah
Abel, executed his Avrit of summons in person, and the case went
before the legislature. After examin.ation the legislature voted
to refer the petitioners to the county court, Avith the suggestion
that if the court should see fit, they should cause the names of
the petitioners to be erased from the town clerk's books and all
monies expended by them in the suit to be refunded. It is pro
bable that the court did not adopt the advice of the legislature.
At any rate, the names still occupy their original position, Avith
no line of erasure, or word of palliation.
In view of the strong feelings which these recurring collis
ions must produce it is not strange that the popular indignation
at times broke out into acts of violence for which the law made
no provision, and which the local authorities Avere impotent to
control. Of such was that summary vengeance inflicted on
that leader among our loyalists, Joseph Ferris, when our usual
ly sober-minded citizens, after dipping him to their content in
our mUl pond, substituted for his comfortable homespun, a full
and close fitting Avardrobe from head to toe, of nicest down,
made Avearable for the time being, by softest tar. Of such too
was the spontaneous reception whicli our neighboring Nor-
walkers gave our loyalist townsman. Increase Holly, who had
visited his brethren af\er his British confreres had burned the

LOYAL ELEMENT' OF THE WAE. 259
town, to rejoice with them at the success of our good King
George. He had gone down, as he announced on leaving home,
to bear them the olive of peace. He sorrowfully reported on
his return that all he kneAV of an olive branch, he felt from the
twig?, with which the patriot, Norw,alk wide-aAvakes, so merci
lessly tingled his exposed parts.
At the close of the war some of the most determined tories
left tOAvn Avith such of their families as could not be content to
remain here. Of those Avho remained the most soon yielded to
the demands of the ncAv government and rendered as loyal scr-
A'ioe as though they had aided in its establishment. The .aliena
tions which had sprung up in families and among neighbors
were gradu.ally healed, and the former mutual confidence and
affection Avere restored ; so that the grand-son of the most pa
triotic whig could find in the grand-daughter of the hottest
tory, the most attractive and lovable maiden of his youth, and
the most congenial and affectionate wife of his later years.
Fifty years after the war, when there was now no longer any
bar to free intercourse between the exiles and the friends they
had left behind, an occurrence took place in that part of the
town which had already been incorporated as Darien, shoAving
how strong were the sentiments of country and family still,
among those who had been forced by the strife to leave. In
1838, Walter and Augustus Bates, who were among the ban
ished loyalists, returned to the home of their childhood. Though
honored and much esteemed in the home of their adoption, they
still retained their youthful love for the one they had lost. By
the kindness of Mrs. Seeley, of Darien, I am alloAved to use the
following extracts from a brief " JubUee" which the former of
those returned exiles penned, as expressive of their feelings on
that joyful occasion. Doubtless many others of the refugees,
retained to their death, their early love of the place and asso
ciations of their youth.
"Oar two oldest brothers being dead, the remaining family eight in num
ber were thus singularly separated — two only remained in our native town,
ttfo settled in different towns within the United States, two in the province

260 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED,
of New Brunswick and two .in Upper Canada, where we remained twelve
hundred miles from each other and six hundred from our native place, un
til the eldest had arrived at the age of eighty and the youngest to the sixty-
second year of his age. After the full term of fifty years, guided and pro
tected by a kiud Providence, we are permitted to visit our native home, the
town and place of our birth, here to celebrate our jubilee with praise and
thanksgiving to Almighty God for his special providence, permitting us
at this time and place, to meet together, praising God in communion with
our remaining relations and friends, in the same church wherein we were
in infancy, by baptism, first dedicated to God by our parents.
At first view of our native town, the neatness of the village appeared as
if all things had become new. The former meeting-house, of ancient ar
chitecture, pulled down and a new one in its place ; the- church had under
gone a change for improvement ; new dwelling houses, store houses, and
public offices erected ; and sloops and steaoaboats in the center of tbe town
by a canal. On our further view we saw with regret tho few old dwelling
houses that remained, unrepaired, and mouldering into decay and ruin ;
the public burying-ground, where lay concealed the powdered remains of
the deceased for more than a century past, totally demolished ; a new Me
thodist meeting-bouse erected upon the consecrated ground and the ancient
monuments of the tombs converted into stepping-stones. Should those
monuments be thus converted ?
We gaze on these objects, thus changed, with sadness and sighing ; and
hasten away lest their present state should weaken the images which our
memory had preserved. • • • * Feasting ou our anticipations we at
length reach the object of our fondest wishes, the house and place of our
nativity. We found the same house, but like every other object it had un
dergone a visible change, one part having been pulled down and improved
with a chamber over it. The first appearance of the house struck our hearts
with awe. » * * Melancholy gloom pervaded our memory in every part
of the house ; all those kind visitors who were once the free guests and
fond companions of our youth started fresh to our remembrance. » * »
What unspeakable pleasure did we enjoy, whenever we had the happiness
to behold the countenance of one of those few known companions who still
survive ; with what eagerness did we embrace them ; with Avhat affection
did we address them."
An incident of our revolutionary period is still preserved
among us, well attested, which shows how even the tory Avomen
of that day were in no wise behind their husbands and sons in
loyal courage. Mrs. Robert Nichols, who still has many de
scendants among our citizens, was then living on the westem

LOYAL ELEMENT OF THE WAE. 261
frontiers of the town and not far from the military lines separat
ing the two belligerent forces. One evening she had occasion
to go on an errand to a neighbor's,- and as it Avas a time of con
siderable military activity, she felt the need of acting the man
ly, and if need be, the martial part. She accordingly donned
an immense hat and overcoat which had been wont to do her
absent husband good service, and with a heavy cane, also ser
viceable on occasions of surprize, she started on her errand.
She had not gone far, before she caught a glimpse of a man's
form, evidently bent on a mischievous raid over the lines into
the domains of the still faithful loyalists.
He had come so near that retreat was now impossible ; and
with a woman's ready instinct, she took tho advantage of the
first charge. With as heavy voice as she could summon to her
help, she hails the unknown stranger. " Who comes there ?"
" A friend," is the prompt reply. "A friend to whom ?" con
tinues the gruff voice of the would-be martial respondent. " To
George Washington and the patriot cause." " Ground your
arms and give the countersign," was the thundering charge,
which instantly followed, and which was as promptly obeyed.
A moment more, and the patriotic lieutenant, Josiah Smith, dis
armed, stood a prisoner, before his life-long neighbor, Madam
Rober Nichols — a valiant man, outAvitted and now in the power
of a plucky and still loyal woman.
But, thanks to the patient and heroic endurance of the patri
ots of those trying days, and the wisdom and energy and hope
fulness of their leader, Washington, a truce was at length
reached to these neighborhood estrangements and hostilities.
As in our last chapter we reported the soldiers engaged in sus
taining the war to its favorable end ; in our next, we shall as
faithfully catalogue those, who in their loyal zeal, defended, to
the last, the cause of their acknowledged king.

CHAPTER XVIL

LIST OF STAMFOED LOYALISTS.

The following list embraces the names of all Avhom I have
found reported as loyalists. For the list as here submitted I am
indebted to our original manuscripts in the State Library, to
the American Archives, and to Sabine's History of the Loyal
ists. For some of the later facts appended to several of the
names, I am indebted to the notes of our townsman, the late!
Wm. H. Holly, Esq., who while passing a few months in 1822,
in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, visited several of their de
scendants. Bates, John.
Bates, Walter, son of John and Sarah (Bostwick), and was
born March 14, 1760, in the eastern part of Stamford, now Da
rien. In '83 he went in the Union to St. John, New Bruns
wick. He was for many years sheriff of King's County, He'
died at Kingston in 1842, aged 82 years. A sister of his, Lavihia
married another loyalist, Thomas Gilbert, junr., of Berkley,
Mass., who was banished after the war, and died at GagetoW'n
on the St. John's river. New Brunswick.
Bates, WiUiam. brother of Walter, born May 1, 1758, was
under ComwaUis at Yorktown ; and after the surrender, he went
to New Brunswick and still later to Canada.
Beebe, Samuel.
Briggs, Stephen, a farmer living out in the Farms district.
His farm was confiscated, and though after the war he returned
to the neighborhood, he never recovered his title to it. Yet hia

STAMFOED LOYALISTS. 263
widow by a little cunning, secured a pension for his services.
Crissy, Samuel.
Dan, Nathaniel.
Dibble, Frederic. This name is spelled Diblee by Sabine. He
Avas son of Rev. Ebenezer and Joanna Dibble of this town where
he was born in 1753. He graduated at King's College, now Co
lumbia, jn New York. He removed to New Brunswick after
the Avar and Avas made rector of the Episcopal church in Wood
stock. He Avas a most es'timable gentleman and much beloved
by his parishioners. He had a large and interesting family of
seven sons and six daughters. He died at Woodstock, in 1826,
at the age of seventy-three. His widow, Nancy, died in the
same place in 1838, aged eighty-three years.
Dibble, Fyler, born Jan. 18, 1741-2, was a practicing attor
ney here Avhen the war opened. We have already reported him
as captain of the first militia company of the town in 1775. It
seems that in violation of his pledge then given, he Avent over
to Long Island and entered the service of the British. Here he
was captured with other loyalists in '78, .and his property in
Stamford confiscated. In '83 he was a deputy agent in trans
porting loyalists from New York to Nova Scotia. In April of
this year he went Avith his Avife, five children and two servants
to St. John's, New BrunsAvick, when in 1784 he was granted
two city lots ; and Avhere some years later he put an end to his
own life. His wife was Polly, sister of Seymour JarA'is of this
town. They were married here June 18, 1763, and the follow
ing children are recorded to them; Walter, born Feb. 7, 1764 ;
William, born Jan. 14, 1766; Peggy, born Nov. 28, 1767, and
Ralph, born Oct. 22, 1769.
Dibble, Walter, son of Fyler, born as above. After the Avar
he Avent in 1783, to St. John in New Brunswick. He died in
Sussex Vale, in 1817, aged fifty-three.
Dibble, William, brother of Walter, Avent also to New Bruns
wick in 1783.
De MUl, Anthony.

264 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
Ferris, Joseph, became one of our most active loyalists,
throwing himself with all his heart into the service of his king.
He raised a company, joined colonel Butler's rangers and re
ceived a captain's commission. Once during the war he was
captured by his own brother-in-law but escaped. After the war
he settled in New Brunswick. During the war when the Brit
ish held, temporarily, Eastport in Maine, he made it his home,
but on its surrender to the United States ag.ain, he returned to
New BrunsAvick. He died at Indian Island, New Brunswick,
in 1836, aged ninety-two years.
Freeze, Reuben, a notorious cow-boy Avho hung around Heth
Stevens, and Avas quite officious in annoying the revolutionists.
Hanford, Thomas was a hatter, here, before the war. At the
close of the war he went to St. John's, New Brunswick, where
he became a prominent merchant, and where he died in 1826,
aged seventy-three. His Avidow died there, aiso, at the age of
seventy-eight. Howes, James, deserted.
Holly, Increase.
Holly, Ebenezer.
Holly, Elnathan, in 1776, at the age of nineteen, went over to
the British and served in their army until 1782.
Holly, John Wm. at fourteen years of age was put under the
protection of the British, as before recorded.
Holly, Samuel met our men retiring from Norwalk and Avish
ed them success, supposing them to be British. They rode him
on a rail, to record his pertinacious loyalty.
Hoyt, David.
Hoyt, James Avith Uriah, below, Avere exchanged for Peter
Waterbury who had been captured here, Sept. 8, by the British.
Hoyt, Samuel 3rd.
Hoyt, Stephen.
Hoyt, Uriah.
Howes, Prince.

LOYAL ELEMENT OF THE WAE. 266
JarA'is, Samuel was carried to Long Island and went thence
to New York where he died Sept. 1, 1780. Martha his widow,
died Dec. 1, 18—. Their chUdren sympathized with them in
their loyalty and removed to the British provinces to the north.
Our records have their death reported in full as follows ; Mar
tha King, died in Halifax, N. S., in 17'84, in the 36th year of
her age ; WiUiam, died in York, U. C, Aug. 13, 1817, in the
61st year of his age; Munson, died in St. John, N. B., Oct. 7,
1825, in the 83rd year of his age; Polly Dibble, died in New
Brunswick, May, 1826, in the 80th year of her age; Hannah In-
gersoU, died in New York, AprU 23, 1829, in the 7lst year of
her age ; Levina Todd, died in Stamford, Oct. 26, 1841, in the
8 1st year of her age and Seymour died in Stamford, Oct. 4,
1843, in the 75th year of his age.
Jarvis, Munson, born in Stamford in 1742. In 1783 he Avent
to St. John, New Brunswick, when he became a prominent citi
zen. He was Avas once a member of the provincial assembly.
He died in St. John in 1825, aged 83. One of his sons, Edward
James, became a member of the council of New Brunswick and
Chief-Justice of the Colony of Prince Edward's Island.
Jarvis, John went to Kingston, Ncav Brunswick, where he
Avas living in 1822.
Leeds, Carey petitions the legislature, Jan. 4, 1779, for the
clemency of the state. In his plea he calls himself " one of those
unhappy persons who has been over to the enemy and been in
their service, and by his folly is brought into a most disagree
able and miserable situation." He claims that he could not at
the opening of the contest decide what his duty was, and decid
ed to take a neutral course, which he did, to the best of his
abUity. On the 20th of December, 1775, he Avent over to Long
Island, Avas taken up and forced into the British service, from
Avhich he escaped Sept. 28, 1776, and found his way home again.
Here he was arrested and imprisoned in Fairfield County Jail —
and he noAV " acknowledges the great offense " he committed
34

266 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
and hopes for merciful treatment. He also promises to be a
"faithful member of the United States." The legislature would
not release him.
Leeds, Gideon, a brother of Carey.
Lewis, Jonathan.
Loder, Jacob, son of Daniel and Margaret, born in Stamford,
Aug. 13, 1734, and went to Ncav Brunswick where he died at
Sheffield in 1817.
Lounsbury, Gideon, arrested in 1775, on suspicion of favoring
the British. Makes a humble apology and promises " to my
utmost to exert myself in opposition to the ministerial troops."
Men-it, Shubael, a " cowboy " who Avas shot, over in Green -
wich. MiUs, Jesse, had rendered himself so offensive to the patriots
of the north part of the tOAvn that, he Avas pursued into his sis
ter's house, which stood near where Isaac L. Jones' store now
stands, on Highridge, and Avas wounded by a shot. He escaped
from his pursuers and Avent to Nova Scotia.
NcAvman, Joshua.
Picket, David went with his wife and seven children to St.
John, New Brunswick in 1783. He was a magistrate of the
colony and a Justice of the Court of Common Pleas of King's
County, where he died in' 1826.
Rodgers, Fitch went with four brothers to St. John, New
Brunswick, but returned to Stamford Avhere he died.
Quintard, Isaac, had command of the first company of militia
in Stamford, in 1775.
Scofield, James, junr.
Scofield, Josiah 3rd.
Scofield, Ezra, a brother of the patriot Captain Reuben, went
to St. John, N. B., and became a prominent man.
Selleck, Daniel:
Selleck, John.
Seeley, Obadiah.

LOYAL ELEMENT OF THE "WAE. 267
Seely, Seth, father and son, of Avhom the latter was a successful
privateer in the war of 1812.
Smith, Joseph seems to have been one of the most active aud
mischievous of the " cowboys" in the vicinity of Stamford. He
was without mercy, whenever he found one of the king's rebel
lious subjects. He felt himself justified in killing rebels any
where and had the reputation of frequent success. He is reported
as wounding Sally Dibble of Darien in the church, when the
congregation were captured, because she screened a boy under
her seat. She carried a handkerchief filled with tiie holes which
his bayonet made as it pierced through it into her breast. He
was himself seriously wounded, near the house of Nathaniel
Weed in Darien. He managed to escape his pursuers until he
reached Daniel Gorman's ; and when overtaken, the rage of his
captors was such that they were determined to kill him at once.
On the intercession of Mr. Gorman, and on his promise that as
soon as he was sufficiently recovered from the wound he had re
ceived,, he should be delivered over to them for trial. But he Avas
next heard of in Nova Scotia.
Slason, Jedidiah, went to St. John's in 1783, and afterAvards
to Frederictown. He was a man of considerable distinction,
having been a member of the provincial parliament. He died
in 1844, aged 79 years. He was quite wealthy.
Stone, William.
Stevens, Admer.
Stevens, Heth, kept a rendezvous for tories on Highridge.
One loyalist was shot there.
Stephens, Henry claimed that he Avas over persuaded to join
the enemy, went over to Lloyd's Neck and was forced info the
British army, and in September 1781, deserted, reached New
London and gave himself up to the authorities and got a pass
to go to Stamford, where he was at liberty for four weeks.
Then the grand juror had him confined in Litchfield jail. He
acknowledged his guilt, petitioned for release which was grant'
ed, when the Stamford authorities permitted it.

268 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
Tucker, Solomon, according to Sabine, was from Stamford,
^nd went with his wife and four children to St. John, New
Brunswick, inthe ship Union, in the spring of 1783.
Thorpe, Edward, was " with the enemies of his country," May
15, 1781, as James Nichols, administrator on his confiscated
estate testifies.
Waterbury, David, brotherof Nathaniel of Middlesex parish.
He went to St. John, New Brunswick, where he became a man i \<j
of some distinction, and where he died in 1833, aged seventy-
five years.
Waterbury, John, was with " the enemies of his country,"
March 15, 1781, as appears from the testimony of James
Nichols the administrator on his confiscated estate. He went
to St. John, New Brunswick, and was one of the original gran
tees of that town. He was a military man in the province at
the close of the last century. He died in St. John, in 1817, at (Ml
the age of 68 years. His widow was living at Mahogany, iu
1822. Whitney, Sylvanus, son of Eliaseph and Mary, born Feb. 3,
1748, was here in 1775, as our record will show. He went to
St. John, New Brunswick, where he became an alderman and
one of the colonial magistrates. He died in 1827, aged 79 years.
Weed, Abijah, had served in the old French and Indian
war, but soon after the opening of the revolution, he deserted
and went to Canada.

CHAPTER XVIII.

BIOGEAPHY.

This chapter embraces sketches of those prominent citizens of
the town, Avho were in active life, mainly, in the first century of
our history. Others, doubtless, Avere worthy of a place on this
list, but the materials were wanting for sketches of them, other
than such as has already been given in our first and second
chapters on the settlers of the town.
Bishop, Eev. John, was probably educated m England.
Savage says he Avas in Taunton in 1640, but does not mention
his business. The manner of his coming to Stamford from Bos
ton, has been already given, in c^ur chapter on the early ecclesias
tical history of the town; and both the long continued ministry
of Mr. Bishop and the affection shown him in his old age by the
people, are in evidence of his success in the office which he held.'
WhUe here he married 1st Rebecca  , and by her had four
sons and one daughter and perhaps more. The sons mentioned
in the avUI are Stephen, Joseph, Ebenezer, Benjamin and Whit
ing. The daughter, Mary, died here on the 25th day of fifth
month 1658. He married for his second wife, Joanna, (Boyse),
who had been the widow, first of Rev. Peter Prudden of Milford,
and second, of Gapt. Thomas Willet of Swanzey, who had died,
as Savage tells us, on the third, though the grave-stone says, on
tj)e fourth of Aug. 1674.
(The only specimen of the scholarship of Mr. Bishop, now ex
isting, is probably that epistle of the Rev. Richard Mather of

270 HISTORY OF STAMFOED.
Dorchester, Avritten in latin, and published in the Magnalia,
Vol. 1, page 458, edition of 1855.
Mr. Bishop died here in 1694,'and was buried in the first bury
ing lot, Avhere our west park is now. The old stone which indi
cated the ]Dlace of his grave, was removed in 1866, to a suitable
base prepared for it in the Episcopal lot near St. Andrew's
chapel, by the affectionate veneration of his great, great grand
son Edwin Bishop, Esq.
Davenpoet, Rev. John Avas born in Boston, Feb. 28, 1669,
and was the son of John Davenport, Esq., the only son of Rev.
John Davenport, the ecclesiastical founder of New Haven. He
graduated at Harvard in 1687, and commenced preaching in
1690. Our chapter on ecclesiastical matters will give a full account
of his call and settlement in Stamford. The records of the
tOAvn for the time he lived here, are full of testimonials to the
esteem in which he was held. While here he married Martha
Gould, the widow of John Selleck. They had seven children ;
Abigail, who became the Avife of Rev. Stephen Williams, D. D.,
of Springfield, and the mother of an illustrious family ; John
of New Canaan; Martha, the wife of Rev. Thomas Goodsell, of
Branford ; Sarah, who married first Capt. William Maltbie, of
New Haven, and second Rev. Eleazer Wheelock, D. D., the
founder and first president of Dartmouth College, and became
the ancestress of a talented and noble lineage ; Theodore, who
died early ; Dea. Deodate of East Haven ; and Elizabeth the
wife of Rev. William Gaylord, of Wilton, Conn. His wife died
Dec. 1, 1712 ; and that her death was deemed no ordinary event
is attested by the extraordinary record of it found in Book 1,
page 110, town records.
" That eminently Pious and very virtuous. Grave and worthi
ly much Lamented Matron, Mrs. Martha Davenport, Late wife
to the Reverend Mr. Jno. 'Davenport Pastor to ye Church of
Christ in Stamford Laid down or exchanged Her mortal or
temporall Life to putt on Immortality and to be Crowned with

BIOGEAPHY. 271
Immortal - Glory : on ye 1st Day of Decemb 1712." He mar
ried for his second wife, Mrs. Elizabeth Maltby, daughter of
John Morris, by whom he had two chUdren ; Hon. Abraham,
and Rev. James, biographical sketches of both of whom will
follow. ' Mr. Davenport Avas a prqminent man in his profession. He
had been thoroughly educated and inherited many traits Avhich
would give him a special fitness for the work of the ministry.
Butfew Connecticut pastors of that day had such qualifications
for the sacred office. While especially eminent in the pulpit, he
seems never to have lacked discretion out of it. He was equal
ly wise in his public official administrations, and in his private
influence among his people. He died here, Feb. 5, 1731. The
Rev. Samuel Cooke, of Bridgeport, preached his funeral sermon,
which was printed. The sermon, from the text " My father, my
father, the chariot of Israel and the horsemen thereof," contains
these testimonials to his eminence and Avorth.
" The person whose exit now calls for our deep lamentation
and mourning, was both our crown and our bulwark, our glory
and our defense. Our crown is fallen from our heads, and our
defense is departed. We have our chariot and horsemen taken
away. Wo unto us that we have sinned. It was many years
since looked upon by the serious and judicious as a special favor
of divine Providence, that a person of such distinction as we
have now lost, was seated so near to the western limits of Ncav
England as a buhvark against any irruptions of corrupt doc
trines and manners. Wo to us, our hedgeAvall in that respect is
broken doAvn. * * He Avas proof against the temptations of
the smiles or froAvns of others, to turn him out of the Avay to the
right hand or to the left."
Dr. Bacon in that admirable historical discourse, delivered
before the general association of Connecticut at their one hun
dred and fiftieth anniversary in Norwich, says of him, while
characterizing the members of that memoriible body .of divines
Avho met at Saybrook, in 1708, and drew up the Saybrook Plat-

272 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
form, " John Davenport pastor of the church in Stamford, was
not inferior in ability to any other member of the Synod. In his
OAvn church and toAvn, and among the ministers and churches of
that county he had a commanding influence."
Denton, Rev. Richaed. — His name Avill be found among the
pioneers in the settlement of Stamford. His position among
them and his eminence as a Christian preacher and minister, de
serves a fuller notice than was then taken of him.
Mather, in his Magnalia, has given him a high rank among
the great lights of that day. With some deduction for the
highly figurative language used by the Magnalia, the portrait
of him by Mather is doubtless very just. He introduces him
as " our pious and learned Mr. Richard Denton, a Yorkshire
man, who having Avatered Halifax in England with his fruitful
ministry, was by a tempest then hurried into Ncav England ;
Avhere, first at Wethersfield and then at Stamford, his doctrine
dropt as the rain, his speech distilled as the dcAV, as the smaU
rain upon the tender herb, as the shoAvers upon the grass." He
then gives us this quaint description of the man. We probably
are indebted to it for all we can ever learn of his personal ap
pearance; and perhaps our utmost research will add nothing to
its estimate of his piety and scholarship.
"Though he Avere' a little man, yet he had a great soul ; his
Avell accomplished mind in his lesser body, was an Iliad in a nut
shell. I think he was blind of one eye ; nevertheless, he Avas
not the least among the seers of our Israel ; he saw a very con.
siderable proportion of those things Avhich ' eye hath not seen.'
" He was far from cloudy in his conception and principles of
divinity, whereof ho Avrote a system, entitled "SolUoquium Sacra"
— so accurately considering the fourfold state of man in his
"Created Purity;" "contracted deformity;" 'restored beau
ty" and "celestial glory," that judicious persons, who have
seen it, very much lament the churches being so much deprived
of it."
" At length he got into heaven beyond the clouds, and so be-

BIOGEAPHY. 273
yond storms, Avaiting the return of the Lord Jesus Christ, in
the clouds of heaven when he aa'UI h.ave his rcAvard amons the
saints." As was his Avont iu his brief biographical sketches of the
ministers noticed in his MagnaUa, Mather appends to this canon
ization of Mr. Denton, what he deemed an equally appropriate
epitaph. Its original and the translation, I shall give as they
are found in Robins's edition of the Magnalia.
" epitaphium.
Hie jacet et fruitur tranquilla sede Richaedus,
Dentonus, cujus fama perrennis erit.
Incola jam coeli vclnt astra micantia fulget.
Qui multis fidei lumina clara dedit.
teanslation.
Here Denton lies, his toils and hardships past ;
Whose name no memory of dishonor mars,
On earth a light of faith he shines at last.
Full orbed and glorious Avith the eternal stars."
Of Mr. Denton's career while in Wethersfield but very little
has ever transpired. Precisely Avhat his official connection with
the now church Avas, does not appear, from any contemporane
ous account I haA'C been able to find. Mr, Chapin's excellent
.and reliable account of the beginning of that church in his
" Glastonbury for two hundred years," leaves the matter much
in the dark. Nor do the occasional references to Wethersfield
miitters in the old Colony Records, much add to our informa
tion. For reasons never fully explained, the materials gather
ed for that new community AA'ere so discordant and infusable, as
never to mingle together into a body politic or religious. Two
pretty well defined parties sprfing up and Mr. Denton took side
with that Avhich seems to have been the progressive and radi
cal. He carried Avith him the majority of the church, but a
minority only of those not connected Avith the church. 35

274 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
On reaching Stamford, an experience somewhat like that
Avhich fell to him in Wethersfield seems to have been his lot;
The restless and disaffected portion of the uoav colony, not liking
the overshadowing influence of Ncav Haven jurisdiction, found
as before, a leader in their minister, and in 1644, Ave find him
removing Avith them to attempt a neAV settlement at "Manetos,
Ncav Netherlands," now Hemp^ted on Long Island. Here he
labored accejjtably for several years, when he returned to Eng
land in 1659, Avhere he died in 1662 aged 7B yearaP He left four
sons, Richard, Samuel, Nathaniel and Daniel. Richard was
among- the settlers of Hempstead, L. I., and Nathaniel in 1660,
Avas living in Jamaica, where he and his squadron Avere author
ized " to moAV at the Haw-trees."
IIoLLV, John, the ancestor, probably, of the numerous family
of this namo, in this vicinity, Avas one pf the most prominent of
our early settlers. He was from the first employed in the al
most constant service either of the town or of the colony. In
1647, he was appointed marshal for the settlement, an office re
quiring a man of no inferior intelligence or business tact. He
was later made collector of customs and excise here, Avhich of
fice he discharged to the acceptance of the general court, to
which he was responsible. He Avas repeatedly one of the select
men of the town, .and one of its representatives in the general
court. He was often appointed on resjjonsible commissions,
both by the town and by the legislature. In 1654 he was made
associate judge with those Avorthies Law and Bell, for the court
to be held at this jjlantation. After the union of New Haven
Avith the Connecticut colony he Avas made commissioner with
Law, for Stamford, GreenAvich and Rye, and to assist in the
execution of justice at the Fairfield County Court. It seems to
have been a singular appointment, as he is next year, 1569, pro
pounded for freeman in tlie Connecticut jurisdiction, Avhere he
is distinctly indicated by the title of senior. It Avould seem that
he had shown himself so competent and useful under the New
Haven administration, that he Avas appomted to tho most re-

BIOGRAPHY. 275
sponsible offices before tl^ usual form of enfranchisement. Mr.
Holly seems to have been as active in ecclesiastical as in civil
and judicial matters.
The family descended from Him have been both numerous and
respectable. Alexander H. HoUey, of Salisbury, governor of the
state in 1857, was one' of his great, great, great grand-sons, and
Horace Holley, D.D., late President of Transylvania Univer
sity,. Ky., Avas another. The family number among their ances
try in England, Dr. Luther Halley Avho was born Oct. 29, 1556,
in St. Leonard's parish, Shordith, London.
Mr. Holly died here, May 25, 1681, aged 63 years. A portion
of the land Avhicli he received in the early allotment of lands,
still remains in the hands of his descendant, our honored citizen
Alexander N. IloUy, Esq.
Jones, Rev. Eliphalet, Avas the son of Rev. John and Su
sanna Jones of Concord. His father had emigrated to this
eountry in the Defence, in 1635, and settled first in Concord,
from which place he eame to Fairfield in 1644,,Avhere he died in
1044, leaving six children, of whom Eliphalet, born Jan. 9, 1641,
entered Harvard but did not graduate and Avas ordained about
1677. Savage says he was a preacher at Rye. Our ecclesias
tical record shows that he Avas living in Greenwich when he
was called, in 1672 to Stamford. Here he labored under the Rca'.
Mr. Bishop, probably until he was called in April, 1673, to
Huntington, L. I., where he Avas ordained in 1676. The long
period, during which he maintained his post, must be held as
good proof of his faithful and acceptable service. He died June
5, 1731, leaving no children. While living in Greemvich, in
1670, he was made a joint trustee, with Joseph Mead and John
Renolds all of GreenAvich, of all the lands of WUliam Grimes,
also of Greenwich, to be disposed of by them in such way as,
they should judge best for "inlarging of ye town of Greenwich."
These trustees appropriated the lands to the use of a minister
aud iu case there was no minister in tOAvn, Mr. Jones, as his
own affidavit dated at Huntington, L. L, AprU 22, 1691, testi-

276 HISTORY OF STAMFOED.
fies, proposed to give the profits of the land " to helpe maine-
taine such as shall bee Imployed in teaching children to Reade."
In May, 1674, the Connecticut court desire Mr. Jones "to
take the paynes to dispence the word of God to the people of
Rye once a fortnight on the Lord's day tUl the Court, October
next, and then thi^ court will take further order concerning
them and for Mr. Jones satisfaction." Mr. Jones remained in
Huntington, preaching and laboring Avith general acceptance
down to his death. He is not knoAvn to have left children.
Law, Richaed, was perhaps the first civilian among the Stam
ford settlers, the acknowledged legal adviser of the community
for more than a quarter of a century. His scholarly and cleri
cal abilities gave him great advantage among the settlers.
Though not one of the first tAventy to inaugurate the settlement,
he was at Wethersfield, arranging to join the colony at the
opening of their second season in their new home. He probab
ly took with him from Wethersfield, as his gifted help-meet,
Margaret, the oldest daughter of Francis Kilborn ; and their
home, though not the most expensive, Avas^ to be one of the most /
honored of the colony. Their family, though not to remain
through other generations to honor the town they were so help
ful in founding, was to furnish names to give a new luster to
the state whose highest civil and judicial seats they were to fill.
From the first he seems to have been the scribe of the colony.
His pen Avas equally ready for the records of the tOAvn, the
church, and the courts. He was the only town clerk appointed
for about twenty-four years. He was the ready lawyer, in the
age preceding, technically that profession among us. He was
oftener a deputy in the general court at Noav Haven than any
other of the settlers, and apparently more in demand when
there. As constable, he was noted for a fearless and tireless
efficiency. He seemed to have exercised a sort of personal dis
cretion in regard to prosecutions, Avhich was not always most
acceptable to parties who Avould dictate his official duty. John
Mead once had good proof of his fidelity, never to be bribed

BIOGEAPHY. 277
He had sought the help of. the constable to recover damages
from a neighbor for some harm done by him. The sharp-eyed
official saw at a glance that there was no ground for the attach
ment, and refused the pi-o,pess. Mead scolded and threatened,
but to no purpose. He then goes into court with an action
against him for neglecting his official duty. But the angry
plaintiff soon finds himself a sorry defendant, with but a miser
able advocate. Law had him put under trial for scandalizing
the church, for slanders and defamatory reports and for disturb
ing the peace of the church and the toAvn. To all which nothing
in extenuation could be said, and the court exculpating their
officer, sentenced Mr. Mead to make full acknowledgement at
Stamford, to the satisfaction of the church and Mr. LaAV, to pay
Mr. LaAV ten pounds for his expense in the trial, to pay ten
pounds more for disturbing the jurisdiction, and then that he
and his brother or some other acceptable man, be bound over
for his good behaviour. After the sentence Mr. Mead made the
fullest confession and retraction, and Mr.- Law Avas left thence-
foi'Avard to prosecute his official business unhindered.
Mr. Law had married in Wethersfield, Margaret Kilbourn,
by whom he had three children ; Jonathan, b. 1636-7 ; Abigail,
who married. May 11, 1665, Jonathan Selleck of Stamford ; and
Sarah, Avho married, Oct. 28, 1669, John Selleck, also of Stam
ford. The son Jonathan, married June 1, 1664, Sarah Clark,
daughter of Dea. George Clark of Milford, and removed to Mil
ford, where he was a man of note. His son, Jonathan, b. Aug .
6, 1674, graduated at Harvard College, 1695; AA'as chief-justice
of Connecticut for sixteen years and governor of the state from
1741 to 1750.
Mr. Law probably died in Stamford, though there is no re
cord to shoAV it. His will, the last document' in which his name
appears, bears date March 12, 1686-7. His widow had pro
bably died before this date as no mention is made of her in the
will. There is a paper, entered on the town records in 1686, bearing

278 UISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
date Feb. 15, 1680, Avhich speaks of the misunderstanding under
which he had given his son. Law, his land. It seems that the
son removed from Stamford to MUford, and this removal Avas a
source of dissatisfaction to the father. Still adhering to the
former grant to his son, he now insists on dividing the lands
Avhich had come into his hands since that former gift, to his
daughters, the two Mrs. Selleck, so that they may each have a
half as much as he ; for Avhichhe says " the word of God is clear,
and good reason for it, and why any Christian man that loveth
righteousness and equity should be against this, I see not."
MiTi'HELL, Rea'. Jonathan, was son, not of Jonathan, as
Sprague's Annals of the American Pulpit has it, but of Matthew
Mitchell, the wealthiest and otherwise most noted of the lay
settlers of Stamford. He was born, so Savage supposes, at
Halifax, Yorkshire, Eng., and in the year 1624, according to
Mather. He came with his father, in the James, from Bristol,
in 1635, to Cambridge, Mass., and thence to Concord and Spring
field, and in 1640 to Stamford. He remained here probably un
til he entered Harvard College, where he graduated, A. B., in
1047. He Avas ordained, Aug. 21, 1650, at Cambridge, vhere
he labored in the ministry for eighteen years.
He Avas one of the early New England ministers whom the
quaint Mather has immortalized in his Magnalia, He styles
him the " Ecclesiastes ;" " a Pastor of the Church, and a glory
of the College in Cambridge, New England." In his epistle
dedicatory, ho caUs him "blessed Mr. MitcheU," and in his
sketch of the life and labors of Mr. Mitchell, he makes him the
" excellent," the famous pastor" and " this best of preachers in
our ncAV English nation." The opening of his biographical
sketch is Avorthy of a place here, as illustrating the times to
which our subject belonged, and also, as furnishing us an in
teresting clue to bis character and that of his famUy :—
" If it were counted an honor to the town of Halifax in York
shire that the famous John de Sacro Bozco, author of the Avell
known treatise " De Sphoera," Avas born there ; this tOAvn was

BIOGEAPHY. 279
no less honored by its being the place of birth to our no less
worthUy famous Jonathan Mitchell, the author of a better trea
tise of heaven, who, being descended, as a printed account long
since has told us, of pious and wealthy parents, here drew his
first breath, in the year 1024. The precise day of his birth is
lost, nor is it AVorth while for us to inquire, by an astrological
calculation, what aspect the stars had upon his birth, since the
event has proved, that God the Father was in the horoscopes,
Christ in the mid heaven, the Spirit in the sixth house, repent
ance, faith and loA'e, in the eighth; and in the tAvelfth an eternal
happiness, where no Saturn can dart any malignant rays. Hero
while the " father of his flesh " was endeavoring to make him
learned by a proper education, the "Father of Spirits " used the
methods of grace to make him serious ; especially by a sore fever
which had like to have made the tenth year of his life the last,
but then settled in his arm with such troublesome effects, that
his arm grew and kept a little bent, and he could never stretch
it out right until his dying day. * * * The ship which
brought over Mr. Richard Mather, * * Avas further enriched
by having on board our Jonathan, then a child of about eleven
years of age ; Avhose parents with much difficulty and resolution
carried him unto Bristol to take shipping there, Avhile he Avas
not yet recovered of his illness."
Mather thus speaks of his mental ability and scholarship.
" The faculties of mind, with Avhich the ' God that forms the
spirit of man' enriched him, were very notable. He had a clear
head, a copious fancy, a solid judgment, a tenacious memory
and a certain discretion, without any childish laschete or levity
in his behaviour, Avhich commanded respect from all that vicAv-
od him. * * * Under these advantages, he was .an hard
student, and he so prospered in his indefatigable studies, th.at
he became a scholar of illuminations, not far from the first mag
nitude ; recommended by which qualifications, it Avas not long
before ho Avas chosen a Fellow of the College." '
He first received a call to preach in Hartford, Avith the most

280 HISTORY OF STAMFORD.
flattering offer of generous aid to him in supplying himself with'
a suitable library. Thej' had sent a m.an and a horse to Boston
for him and he preached to their acceptance, June 24, 1049. On
his return to Cambridge, through the entreaties of the venerable
Mr. Shepard, who was providentially just about vacating by
death his field of honored usefulness, he was induced to preach
there as a candidate for settlement. He commenced his labors
there Aug. 12, 1649, to continue them with great acceptance
and success until his death, July 9, 1608.
His preaching talents were of a high order. His sermons
Avere " admirably Avell studied.'/ " He ordinarily meddled with
no point but what he managed Avitli such an extraordinary in
vention, curious disposition and copious application, as if he
Avould leave no material thing to be said of it by any that
should come after him. And when he came to utter what ho
had prepared, his utterance had such a becoming tunableness
and vivacity, to set it off, as w.as indeed inimitable, though manj'
of our eminent jsreachers, that were in his time students at the
college did essay to imitate him."
Mr. Mitchell married at Cambridge, Margaret, AvidoAV of his
predecessor. Rev. Mr. Shepard. Two of his sons, Samuel and
.lonathan, Avere graduates of Harvard. One of his daughters,
Margaret, married Stephen ScAvall of Salem, and Avas mother of
Chief .Justice Stephen ScAvall of Massachusetts.
Mitchell, Matthew, the second on our list of pioneers, .and
the first in point of Avealth, probably, Avas a man of marked
abUity. His name is not so fironiinent among our early tOAvns-
men as it Avould have been, if he had decided to m.ake this his
permanent home, and that of his family. In the gi-e.at secession
of 1644, he Avent Avith his minister Mr. Deaton, over to Hemp.
sted ; but probably soon repented of the move, and retui-nod_
According to contemporaneous accounts, he must have been
sorely tried, as he seems to have been much reduced in his pe
cuniary condition, by various adverse providences. He had left
his home in England to secure the freedom denied his religious

BIOGEAPHY. 281
faith there, and perhaps this very aim, rendered him restless,
until he should attain it. His Avanderings and trials are a very
fair illustration of what the pioneers of our town had to endure
and suffer.
Born in 1590, Ave find him, Feb. 24, 1622-3, a witness to the
AA'UI of widoAv Susan Feild, Avhose husband William Feild, had
died in North Ouram, parish of Halifax, in 1619. Here he Avas
doubtless enjoying the instructions of Richard Denton, then
curate of Goley Chapel ; and it is not to be wondered at that
lie heartily united his fortunes Avith those of his minister. May
23, 1035, seems the probable date on Avhich he set sail for the
neAV AVorld ; and if so, he reached Boston, Aug. I7th. His first
temporary home was among the pioneers of GharlestoAvn, where
he spent a winter of great discomfort. And, indeed, his trou
bles had preceded his landing. Tavo days before reaching the
harbor, a furious storm had arisen, Avhich almost dismantled
their ship. The foUoAving spring he Avent to Concord, Avhere a
fire consumed much Avhich the coast Avreck had spared. Find
ing here no fitting home he next appears at Springfield, in May
1636, in the comp.any of William Pynchon, where he and tAvo
other of our Stamford settlers, Edmond and Jonas Wood, have
prominent lots assigned them. From Springfield he Avent to Say
brook Avhere he stayed but a few months, Avhen he cast in his
lot Avith the Wethersfield planters, as before .stated. Here,
also, he Avas particularly unfortunate. On his visit to Saybrook,
he had encountered that savage irruption of the Pequots and
had barely escaped Avith his life ; and in Wethersfield, his estate
was doomed to suffer still more seriously, from frequent Indian
raids. Other difficulties were iu his Avay. He could not com
ply Avith some of the requisitions of the unsettled times and
people among which he was called to live. He was evidently a
mau of positive and independent character, and Avas wont to
assert and defend himself. He became obnoxious to a Mr.
Chaplin, and in the heat of the contest, excited the displeasure
of the court, Avhich at that timoAvas the only legislature known.
His toAvnsraen had chosen him their recorder. The court would
36

282 HISTORY OF STAMFORD.
not ratify the choice. He discharged his clerical duties, and
Avas fined, as elseAvhere appears.
At this point in his Wethersfield experience, he betakes him
self Avith those of his fellow colonists, Avho had incurred like
censure from the general court, to a ncAV home. Stamford was
the chosen site. His position among the settlers here is evinced
by that of his name. Our pioneer list reports it. As member
of the New Haven Court, and one of the judges of the local
colony court, and as townsman for two years before he tempo
rarily removed to Hempstead, he seems to have met the approA-al
of his new townsmen. On what contemporaneous authority he
is reported as haA'ing removed to Hempstead, I have not found.
It is not at all unlikely that he did so ; yet he must soon have
returned to Stamford. He died before May 19, 1646, as^js evi
dent from the statement of the court that approved his AVJUi
His only children of AA-hom I find any mention Avere, Eev.
Jonathan, (see preceding sketch), and David, who settled in
Stamford, and had four sons. A list of their descendants can be
found in Cothren's History of Ancient Woodbury.
L'ndeeiiill, Captain .John. No name among the Stamford
settlers Avas as famous as this — equally famous for successful
military feats, and for a strangely erratic social and domestic
(¦areer. History transmits his character to us variously shaded,
now to be envied for its self-sacrificing and brilliant achieve
ments, and again to be deplored for its shameful humiliations.
Though here but a short time, his name deserves to be record
ed among our settlers ; and special mention is due to it, because
it Avas so closely connected Avith the preservation of the young
settlement. His descent Avas from an honorable family in Warwickshire.
His earliest years must have exhibited more than the ordinary
restlessness of boyhood. Though we have no account of his
cliildhood, Ave may be assured that they were no ordinary feats
of mischief and of daring which Avere his pastime. Nothing
less than a mock broad sword, or a mimic b<attle, could have

BIOGEAPHY. 283
met and satisfied the deepest longings of tliis child-hero ; and
so, .as soon as his years Avould let him, we find him ready for the
deed .and daring of the thickest figlit.. Tli.at Avas no unmeaning
pupilage through which he went in the English service, under
such a leader as the gallant Essex in his Av.ars Avith Spain. Tliat
was, to the young soidier, no useless lesson Avhich he learned in
the fierce and successful storming of Cadiz. Aud those later
days of service in the ranks Avith veterans Avho had groAvn old
and wise in war, Avere full of hints for his judgment and stimulants
for his courage, preparatory to his career in the new Avoi-ld.
Nor were those successful struggles of the Dutch, in which he
shared, and from which they arose to a merited independency
of their haughty Spanish masters, Avithout many a lesson to him
on the fundamental question of his personal rights and respon
sibility. So that by the time the way was open for him to seek
a home for himself and his, across the Atlantic, he had received,
in some sort, a providential training for a special and needed
work. What special reasons induced him to leave England, are not
given by the historian. That his spirit would brook with much
patience even slight restraint, whether upon his conscience or
practice, either in religion or in politics, Avas not to be expected ;
and the probability is, that greater freedom than the staid po
licy of the fatherland allowed, moved him to the change. But
without such a reason, the very restlessness of his excitable and
roving disposition, would have tempted him to try the novelties,
while the utter recklessness of his fearless soul, Avould have
taken richest pleasure in braving and conquering the dangers
of the yet savage wilderness.
We find him in 1630 in Boston, then a new settlement, enroll
ing himself among the pioneer founders of Ncav England ; and
that he was deemed worthy of position among them, is eviden
ced by his appointment to responsible offices, civil and military.
The old " Ancient and Honorable Artillery Comjjany" of the
Bay state bears testimony to his military standing ; and the

284 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
general court of Massachusetts honored him as their metropoli
tan deputy.
But he Avas soon found to be most serviceable in the field.
The exposed colonists Avere perpetually harassed and endanger
ed by wily and hostile Indians ; and L^nderhill was more than a
match for them. He was inferior to them, neither in celerity,
nor in cunning ; he was greatly their superior in intelligence,
judgment aud skill. So signal Avere the services Avhich he ren
dered, that as early as 1632 he received a pension of thirty
pounds ; and thenceforward he is one of New England's most
reliable defenders against their most dreaded foe.
The Pequod war soon enabled him to show his courage and
his skill. Under the resolute and prudent Mason, he performed
prodigies of valor at the storming of their principal strong
hold on the banks of the Mystic All the intrei^id heroism of
his nature found room for play ; and the boldest saA'age of that
most untamable tribe quailed before him, whenever he moved
about among the falling and the fallen of their race.
And, now, we begin to find dcA'eloping another phase of the
hero's character. He had become professedly a Christian. His
religion, as might be expected, was in earnest. Zeal, whether
according to knowledge or not, was its most noticeable charac
teristic ; and he began to suspect and denounce those who
could not sympathize and work with him. The Boston clergy
Avere too tame to suit him. Their only zeal was that of the
scribes and pharisees or that of Paul before his conversion.
Mrs. Hutchinson's piety, and Wheelwright's liberty, and Vane's
polity had much more in them to suit his tastes. When, there
fore, these were condemned by a majority of the Boston author
ities, he could do no less than to utter his protest, and he
accordingly signs the petition to have Mr. Wheelwright restor
ed. For this, he too, is disfr.anchised and given permission to
depart. We next find him the governor of the new colony at
Dover, but not to hold his position long. Gov. Endicott, writes
a member of the colony, " how ill we should relish if they should
advance Captain UnderhUl whom we have thrust out for abus-

biography. 285
ing the court and feigning a retraction, both of his seditious
practice and also his corrupt opinions, and after denyino- it
again." This letter put the Dover colonists on their good be
havior and led to the removal of Underhill. Underhill, himself,
seems to have lost his spirits, and descended to the humblest
apologies and earnest entreaty for forgiveness.
But his offenses, extending even to repeated adulteries, as was
then believed, Avere not to be borne, and his sentence was ban
ishment. We find him next in England. While here he issues from
the press, his history of the Pequod war, entitled " News from
America, or a new and experimental Discovery of NeAV Eng
land; containing a true relation of Avarlike proceedings these
two years past, Avith a figure of the fort or palisado, by John
Underhill, a commander in the wars there."
In 1639 he again appears in Boston, occupying literally "the
stool of repentance," Avith the white cajp covering his head, be-
Availing his past insolence and crimes, and promising amend
ment. The church accept his confessions, and the court restore
him to their favor.
During the summer, in which our Stamford fathers were
taking possession of their purchase, we find him again the sub
ject of legal process in Boston, and this time, it would seem,
without law or right. He was arrested by the order of the
governor, without charge cf any offense committed since he had
been pardoned both by the church and the court. He is dis
missed. The same farce seems to have been repeated in the
following year, and with a like result.
But the suspicions and persecutions which awaited him in the
Massachusetts colony, rendered a home there intolerable to him.
He had already made trial of our Connecticut air and soil, and
was not averse to them. The Dutch further to the west, despite
his attachment to the loving damsel, who had followed him
from his Holland campaign, hither, would have suited him well
enough, had he not been compelled to own allegiance to the

286 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
States General and the Prince of Orange ; and for a similar
reason he Avould not join the English settlers on Long Island.
Refusing a handsome offer from the Dutch governor, who would
gladly have secured his services in his incessant collision with
the Indians in his colony, he decides to make Stamford his fu
ture home. Furnished with an outfit and a pinnace, by the
church, this versatile man finds his Avay, with his famUy into
the Stamford harbor; and in October of our second year he
takes his jilace among the fathers of the ncAV settlement.
Hoav favorable an impression he made here, is shown in his
appointment the next spring as deputy to the New Haven court ;
and the opinion of his character held at New Haven appears in
his appointment by the general court, with gentlemen Mitchell,
Ward, and Robert Goe, as the local court, auxiliary to the
general court, " for the more comely carrying on of public
affairs." Thus, before the end of his second year in Stamford,
he was fairly installed in citizenship and in high official posi
tion. We have seen in the previous history hoAV much the new
colony were indebted to him for their safety in the midst of sus
picious, and hostile savages. No one more than he held in check
the inflamable passions of resident Indians ; and none in all the
region had a name so full of terror to neighboring tribes. When,
therefore, savage tribes stole down from the north and threat
ened the entire destruction of the Dutch settlements, to whom
else should the endangered colonists look for help ? And when
the scattered settlements on the Island, from Manhattan to
Montauk were in danger of extinction, who, if not he could be
entrusted with the management of their defense ? And both
the English on the Island, and the Dutch, both on the Island
and on the main land, between Stamford and New Amsterdam,
Avere loud in their praise of their great captain, who so signally
wrought out deliverance for them.
It was while engaged in chastising the Indians on the Island

BIOGEAPHY. 287
that he seems to have formed the purpose of m.aking it his
future home; and Ave find him as early as 1660, established in
his new home in Oyster Bay, where he died in 1672.

CHAPTER XIX.

STAMFOED IN 1800.

Connecticut, at this date, had more than quadrupled the num
ber of her towns reported in 1700; — from 27, having increased
to 118. But Stamford, meauAA'hile, had gone forAvard in popu
lation, from the little scattered community of 585 souls, to tho
respect.able township of 4465 — a growth nearly eight-fold in the
century, and the growth in wealth, had been even greater than
in population ; Avhile the advance in facilities for travel, and in
all the arts Avhich minister to the social Avell being of a com
munity, had been still more rapid than in Avealth.
The territory had not yet suffered excision ; though the citi
zens of the eastern part of the toAvn Avere beginning to think of
caring for themselves. The northern end of that portion had
already concerted a plan for speedy secession. But we find the
tOAvn exceedingly loth to surrender a single foot of the territory,
or a single A'ote of the subjects that for more than a century
they had ruled aud cared for as inalienably their own. The
citizens entered upon the contest Avith those portions of tho
town which asked permission to leave the old jurisdiction, and
set up for themselves under uoav auspices; and the struggle was
long and earnest until the secession of a part of New Canaan
and the whole of Darien was finally carried.
Noav York AA'as not yet so accessible as to stimulate very
noticably the business longings, and educate the business
talents of our young men. The days of the old stage-coach had
indeed been for years wearing themselves out in the hum-

STAMFOED IN 1800.

289

drum style of those quiet and sober times ; and Stamford
was simply a well-to-do town, whose honest and industrious
people were mainly content with such gains and show, as they
could win from the soil, or as they could coin from the sobered
prosecution of their varied handicraft.
In making up our estimate of the condition of the town at
this date, let us first see who are occupying its varied o.Tices of
honor and trust. The list we shall report, without giving the
offices assigned to the several nanies. Captain Isaac Lockwood
leads our citizens, evidently, as appears from the uniformity
with which, at this period he is called to preside in our public
meetings; and with Nathan Weed, jr., he also represents the
town in the state legislature. John Hoyt, jr., is still, as for the
last twenty-five years, the faithful clerk of the town, and his
large, fair, hand-Avriting will be easily legible, as long as the
accurate records shall be preserved. FoUoAving these names,
stand the long list of those who in one Avay and another Avere
found AVorthy to serve the tOAvn of their nativity or adoption.
The list is Avorthy of reservation. It reports to us the names
of the fathers and grandfathers of the present citizens of the
town, as they sought to do their duty here, sixty-eight years
ago.

LIST OF TOWN OFFICIALS FOE THE YEAE 1800.

Josiah Smith,
Cary Leedsj
Amos Weed,
Isaac Penoyer,
Stephen Bishop,
Jesse Hoyt,
Samuel Hoyt, 3rd.
Jona. Bates,
Stephen Selleck, jr.,
Samuel Whiting,
Nath'l Clock,
Amos Lnunsbiii-v,
Smith AVeed,
John Wm. Holly,
Kobert Scofield,'
Isaac Smith, jr.,
Ezra Lockwood,
Charles Knapp,

Isaac Quintard,
Jeremiah Palmer,
Zadoc Newman,
David Smith, 3rd.
Jeremiah Knap, jr.,
Josiah Dibble,
Ebenezer Webb,
Nath'l Webb,
John Nichols,
Thos. Loansbury,
Thnddeus Hoyt,
Jas. Buxtou,
John Lounsburj',
Bradlej' Ayers,
Abishai Weed,
Enoch Stevens,
Epenetus Hoyt,
Reuben Jones,

Jacob Scofield,
John Davenport, Ord.
Warren Scofield,
Rufus Newman,
Warren Hovt,
William Weed,
Gold S Pennoyer,
Elisha Stevens,
Joseph Smith,
Nath'l Waterbury,
Elisha Leeds,
Johu Watevbury, 3d.
Nathan Seelv,
.John Bell,
David Foster.
Nathan Reed,
Nathan Boutou,
Josiah Smith, 37

290 HISTORY OF STAMFORD.
John Nichols, Sylvanus Knap, Nathan Seely,
Joseph Bishop, Isaac Lockwood, Israel Weed,
Jona. Brown, Joseph Waring, Benjamin Brush,
Charles Weed. 3rd. Jesse Foyt, Samuel Mather,
Enoch Comstock, Shadrach Hoyt, jr., Enos Waterburj-,
Stephen Bishop, Hoyt Scofield, Gold Smith,
Benj. Weed, jr., Wm. Waterbury, 4th. Abraham Davis.
So many and such are the names, recorded in 1800 to transact the busi
ness of the town.
Let US next see what were the religious condition and privi
leges of the town at this date. There Avere standing within the
Stamford limits, in 1800, six church edifices. In the oldest, the
first Congregational, Rev. Daniel Smith, a young man had just
entered upon his long ministry, and both as preacher and teacher
was laying good foundations for his Avork. The Episcopal con
gregation Avere still worshiping in their first church, standing
on the rocks, south-east from their present church on Main
street. They were still in sorrow over the recent death of their
first rector. Dr. Dibble, though hoping much from the opening
ministry of Rev. Calvin White, who had come here to his aid
in 1798. The Baptists were rejoicing in their new meeting
house, so upright and square, overlooking the Mill-pond on
River street. The patriarch of their denomination, Ebenezer
Ferris, was still Avith them and with the Rca'. Marmaduke Earl,
in charge over the congregation at the Bangall church, was
providing for the spiritual training of both branches of the de
nomination. Two or three Methodist preachers officiated with
in the limits of the township, though as yet no church edifice
had been built for their worship — the priA'ate dwelling of Mr.
Isaac Reed, their pioneer, still accommodating all who wish to
attend their meetings at the center of the town. In North
Stamford, Avhieh by this time had outgrown the old title of
Woodpecker ridge, a good congregation were edified by the
youthful ministry of their third pastor Rca'. Amzi Lewis. In
Middlesex, (Darien), the venerable Moses Mather, D. D., the
same Avho for his revolutionary zeal Avas taken nineteen years
before from his own pulpit and marched over the British lines
into Ncav York, was still doing good service in his ministerial
Avork.

STAMFOED IN 1800. 291
Thus instead of the simple church and its solitary pastor of
1700, the opening of this century gives us six church edifices
Avith six settled pastors and the gradual preparation for at least
three other places of Avorship.
Our schools were under the management of three ecclesiasti
cal societies ; and tho Avhole territory had been divided into
twenty-seven districts, and parts of three others so as to bring
the school within convenient distance of all parts of the tOAvn.
In parson Smith's house, still standing south of the Baptist
church, and then the imperial mansion of the tOAVu, Avere thus
early the rudiments of a town and boarding school, in Avhich,
for many years, many of the youth of the town and not a few
from New York, received the finish to their prejDaration for col
lege or business. Another of these institutions was soon to be
opened under the auspices of a son of the town, Frederick Scofield ,
Avho graduated in 1801, and began here his career as teacher.
The children of the center of the town in District No. one, Avhich
then extended from Mill river to the Noroton, were accommo
dated in that little square structure, with its slight cupola on
its top, now standing across Bank street from the Congrega
tional church. The pi ly grounds for these chUdren were all
that triangle now inclosed by Main, Atlantic and Bank streets,
the school house being then the only building on the entire
opening. Some of our oldest citizens of 1868, remember to
have used those grounds for their mimic navies in summer and
their ringing skate steel in winter. But that was before they
were needed for the A'arious business uses to which this last half
century has Avrested them.
Let us look noAV at the business of the village, that part of
the town now in the Borough. We shall find here four little
stores, in each of which we might have bought whatever the
frugal habits of that day needed for use, of dry goods or gro
ceries, not excepting even the " good creature," Avhich then had
not been voted contraband. These stores AA'ere standing, the
first just east of where the Union House now stands, next to

292 HISTORY OF STAMFOED.
Smith Weed's house ; the second, on the south-Avest corner of
the lot where Mr. S. W. Smith's, new brick block stands, and
was in the hands of that early woman's rights practicioner, Mrs.
Munday, Avhere some of our oldest citizens now living bought
their first stick of candy and took their first lessons in commer
cial life ; the third, where our citizens Hurlbutt are now carrying
on their tailoring business ; and the fourth, on the corner of
south street, Avliere Chas. Williams, Esqr., uoav lives. Where
the Rippowam Woolen Mills stand, then stood the village grist
mill, which for 158 years had been maintained as the chief and
most important business institution of the town. On the cor
ner of parson Smith's lot, about where our jeweler Weed has
his handsome front, stood what was called a hat shop, the age
of factories not having yet dawned. The only other biiilding
used for business purposes, within the present borough limits,
Avas the slaughter house of the toAvn, standing then, where Dr.
Trowbridge noAV lives, near the north-west corner of the old
burying lot. Of the seventy-seven families then residing on
this territory, only one remains in 1868, in actual occupancy of
the same lot and residence, and that is our citizen Isaac Quin^
tard. On all this territory, there are no signs of an " Algiers"
or " Dublin," of canal or of railroad. Our thoroughfares Avere
one street, east and west, nearly coinciding with our present
Main street ; and one north and south where Atlantic and Bed
ford streets are now. Besides these, on this territory, was only
a lane from the gate, then standing on the corner south-east of
St. John's Park— leading over to the cove and down to Ship-
pan point by the Indian Cave, AA'hich itself has disappeared in
the progress of blasting ; and what was then called west south
street, now south, from the bridge on Broad street, down to the
Landing. Broad street, was opened castAvard, only to Atlantic
street. All other parts of the territory from Norwalk to Green
wich were as Avell supplied Avith roads as the village itself, and
since that date about one-half of the roads in the rest of the
town have been opened. The business of the town was largely
agricultural — the saw-miU,'the grist-mill and the tannery being

STAMFOED IN 1800. 293
the extent, as yet, of our other business enterprizes. Darien,
North Stamford, Long-ridge and "Bangall" constituted
four business centers, each of Avhicli Avas no mean rival to the
enterprize of the village itself. The old burying-ground of the
first pioneers, still held sepulchral sway over the very ground
where our main street now runs ; and but for the new era of
steam, soon to dawn, the Stamford of 1868 Avould but little
exceed the sketch which indicates its groAvtli in 1800.

CHAPTER XX.

SEPARATE CHUECH OEGANIZ.VTIONS.

In this chapter we shall give such account, as the materials
Avithin reach will enable us to do, of all of the churches which
have been organized on the territory, Avhich doAvn to .about the
first of the last century Avas under the spiritual care of the only
church then in existence here. We shall commence this cata
logue with our record of that First Church of Christ in Stam
ford, and at the point in its history Avhere our seventh chapter
leaA'os it. FIRST CHURCH OF CHRIST IN STAMFORD.
The first knoAvn records of this church, distinct from tho
toAvn records, Avere those begun by Mr. Welles, at his ordination,
Dec. 31, 1746. He prepared the folio in Avhich the records were
to be kept, as if for a permanent depository of all the doings of
the church in Stamford. Its title page, in large round hand,
reads : " Notitia Parochialis Stamfordiensis
or.
Stanford Church records.
Begun Jan. 1st, A.D. 1747.
By Noah Welles, Avho under the conduct of diA'ine providence
was called to office by the church and society in said Stanford,
and by ordination fixed in the work of the gospel ministry therfi.
The day of my ordination and solemn investiture according to
divine institution, by fasting and prayer Avith the imposition of
•the hands of the presbytery, the elders of the churches of

SEPAEATE CIIUECH OEGANIZATIONS.

295

Christ in the western association of Fairfield County; the Rev.
Messrs. Noah Hobart, John Goodscl, Benjamin Strong, Jona
than Ingersol and Moses Mather, Avas Dec. 31. 1746.
N.B. In the following records the year begins Avith the 1st
day of January, being the day after my ordination."
The first record made is that of all the names of those Avho
were in full communion in the church at the time of his ordina
tion. That list, just as it appears on the third and fourth pages
of the records is as follows :

Jonathan Hait, Esq., Deacon,
S.amuel Hait, Esq., Deacou,
Jon athan Maltbie, Esq.,
Benjamin Hait,
Samuel Blatchley,
Samuel Scofield,
Benjamin Weed,
Lieut. Daniel Weed,
Stephen Ambler, Deacon,
Joseph Bishop,
James Bishop,
Benjamin Bunnel,
Jonathan Waterbury,
Jonathan Clauson,
Fbeuezer Hait,
John Scofield,
'Thomas Waterbery,
Miles Weed,
Nehemiah Bates,
Abraham Davenport, Esq., Deacon.
David Bishop,
Captain Bishop,
E. Bishop,
Joseph Webb,
Lieut. Nathauael Webb,
Nathan Hait,
Nathan Bishop,
Benjamin Weed, junr., Esq.,
Daniel Weed , juur.,
Daniel Weed, 3rd.,
Joshua Lounsbery,
John Scofield, junr-,
Nathaniel Stevens,
Epenetus Lounsbery,
Josiah Scofield,
Charles Scofield,
Eeubeu Scofield,
Israel Bordman,

Zebulun Husted,
NathaiL Scofield — Bapt.
Abraham Hait,
Peter Knap,
Benjamin Jones,
Ebenezer Scofield,
Charles Bishop,
Miles Scofield,
Lieut. Johu Bates,
Johu Weed,
Ebenezer Weed, jr.,
Timothy Curtis,
Josiah Holly,
Joseph Judson,
Epenetus Webb,
Benjamin Hait, junr..
Ensign Charles Knap,
David Hait,
Jagger Hait,
Hezekiah Weed,
(1769,) Joseph Scofield,
Ensign Israel Weed,
Thomas Potts,
Jonas Scofield,
Jeremiah Hait,
Gideon Lounsbery, Episcopal.
Capt. Amos Weed,
Nathan Lounsberj',
Joseph Hustead,
Nathanial Cressy,
Reuben Weed,
Joseph Finch,
Jonathan Garnsey,
Lieut. Hezekiah Weed, jr.,
Ezekial Roberts, Quaker.
Samuel Weed,
Whole number 75 Males.

Madam Davenport,

Hannah, Dan, We of David,

296

HISTORY OF STAMFORD.

Sarah, wife of Nathan Scofield,
Ruth Bishop,
W'w of Deacon Hait,
W'w Burnham,
Mary, wife of Lieut. E'o. Weed,
Elizab. we of Lieut. Daul. Weed,
W'w Hait,
Mrs. Blatchely, we of Saml.
Eliz.ib. W'e of Benj. Hait,
Millescent, W'e of Col. Hait,
Experience, W'e of Sam'l Ferris,
W'w Blatchely, W'e of Abr'm Hait,
Eose, W'e of Joreph Weed,
M«ry, W'e of Sam'l Hait, Esq.,
Deborah, W'e of Stephen Ambler,
Wife of Lieut. Waterburj',
W'w Bishop, of Capt. Bishop,
W'w Blackman, w'e of Josian,
W'w Martha Leeds,
Azubah, W'e of Simeon June,
W'w Hannah Thorp
Sarah, W'e of Jona. Maltby, Esq.,
Mary, W'e of Chs. Sturges,
Eliz.ibeth, W'e of Jona. Clauaon,
Mary Bishop,
Sarah, W'e of Josiah Scofle d,
Deborah, W'e of Lieut. N. Webb,
Elizab. dau. of Lieut. D. Weed,
Hannah Slason,
Mary, W'e. of Lieut. Ezra Smith,
Elizabeth Jessup,
Mary, W'e of Josiah Scofield,
Joanna, W'e of Miles Weed,
Hannah, W'e of Jos. Lcunsbury,
Susanna, W'e of Nehem. Bates,
Hannah, W'e of Abr'm Hait,
Sarah, W'e of James BbII,
Eebecca, W'e of Samuel Weed,
Sarah, W'e of Jno. Lockwood,
Hannah, W'e of Samuel Weed, jun.
W'w Susanna Waterbury,
Mary, W'e of Benj. Weed, jun.
Marg, W'e of Ebeur. Hait,
Lydia, W'e of Seremiab Hait,
Abigail, W'e of Eeub. Scofield,
Sarah Hait,
Lydia, W'e of Eeub. Weed,
Mrs. Sarah Slayd,
Abi'^jail, W'e ot D ivi.l Dibble
Wid. Abigail Clauson,

Kezia. W'e of Daniel Weed, 3d,
Euth, W'e of Nathan Browu,
Anua, W'e of Nath'l Brown,
Abigail, W'e of Zab. Hustead,
Mary, W'e of Peter Knap,
Susanna, W'e of Dan'l Weed,
Mary, W'e of Ebenezer Scofield,
Mary, W'e of Chris'n Sturgis,
Hannah, W'e of Sam'l Scofield,
Eachel Lounsbury, W'e of J. Scofield,
Abigail Lounsbury,
Deborah. W'e of Jonath. Garnsey,
Bethia Brown.
Sarah, W'e of Dan'l Lockwood,
Eebecca, W'e of Jos. Gales,
Hannah, W'e of Lieut. Sam'l Scofield.
Susanna, W'e of Timothy Curtis,
Sarah, W'a of Capt. Knap,
Mrs. Hannah Wright,
Martha, W'e of Jos. Smith, now of
B. Weed, Esq.,
Mercy, W'e of Jona. Weed,
Mercy, W'e of Quinton Patch,
Sarah, dau. of Jouas Weed,
Elizabeth Hunt,
Eliz. W'e of Sam'l Scofield,
Mary Holly,
Deborah Webb, now We of Dan'l '
Smith,
Mary, W'e of Charles Buxton,
Abi-^ail, W'e of Wm. Blanchard,
Abigail, W'e of Eichard Webb,
Eebecca, W'e of Jona. Ayres,
Deborah, W'e of Jos. Husted,
Kezia, W'e of Jas. Eoberts,
Thankful, dau. of Mrs. Weed,
Martha, W'e of  Waring,
Hannah, W'e of Jas. S3ofi3ll,
Elizab. Bishop,
, Esther, W'e of D.ra'l Whiting,
Mary Bouton,
Bethia Scofield,
Mary Lounsbury,
Siii-ab, W'e of Ger.shom Mead,
Mary, W'e of Sergt. Jno. Scofield,
Mary, Dau. ot Sergt. Sam'l Scofield,
Mrs. Hannah Mather,
Hannah D^n, W'e David,
Miry, W'e Benj. Jones,
Whole No. 99 Females. Total 174.

The above list comprises probably all the resident members
of this first church of Stamford in 1746.

SEPAEATE CHURCH ORGANIZATIONS. 297
Dr. Welles continued here until his death in 1776. Under
his ministry there was a steady growth of the church, without
any very marked season of revival ; the largest number added
in any one year being twenty, in the year 1769. In all, durino-
his ministry, there Avere added to the church 173, of whom onlv
61 were males. He baptized during the thirty years of his
ministry here, 1365. That no more additions Avere made to the
church may be ascribed to the increase of membershij) in other
churches during this period. We shall see in the record of the
several churches established on the same ground, that while
the parent church held her own, the cause of religion was ex
tending through the rapid multiplication of churches, all of
which were thoroughly evangelical. To estimate truly the
progress which religion was making, therefore, during this pe
riod of the town's history, it Avill be necessary to examine the
establishment and groAvth of the several churches of the same
name and those of difierent names, Avhieh sprang up on tho same
ground occupied for about a century by this first church alone.
Very few incidents occurred during Dr. Welles' ministry, the
entire records of the church for that period being found on
eight pages of the church journal. These records are mainly
those of cases of church discipline, about Avhich there is nothing
striking or instructive. They only serve to show us that the
chm-ch of that day was not altogether remiss in her watchful
ness. If not yet perfect, she had no little regard for the purity
of her name, and the unworthy Avere not alloAved, unwarned
and nndiscijjlined, to bring reproach on this fair heritage of the
Lord. The year after Dr. Welles' settlement, was made memorable
by the advent of a bell for the church, the first of which oui
records make mention. The enterprising pastor, it would
seem, started a subscription, to procure this aid to him in his
work, and so far succeeded as to secure a vote of the society,
in 174S, to make up the deficiency, and furnish all the means
for hanging the bell and clock in the meeting-house. The
38

298 HISTORY OF STAMFOED.
three tOAvn notables of that day. Gol. Jona. Hoyt, Gapt. Jona.
Maltby, and Mr. Abraham Davenport, were made a committee
to "manage that affear." A fcAV years later, 1762, the society
add a hundred pounds of uoav metal to the bell, and have it run
ancAA'. The clock seems to have been a bUl of expense and
trouble to them, and it was soon removed.
Another innovation Avas introduced in 1747. The society,
probably out of regard to the wishes of their new pastor, voted
to change the form of their service of song in the sanctuary;
and this change took place, both in the first church at the Cen
ter and in the uoav church in Middlesex parish, noAV Darien.
The vote of the first society is : " Per vote, the society agree
to sing according to regular singing, called ye new Avay of
singing, in ye public AVorship of God." The vote in the Mid
dlesex society Avas : " Yt Mr. Jonathan Bell, or any other man
agreed upon to sing or tune ye salm in his absence, in times of
publicht Avorship, may tune it in ye old Avay or ncAV, which
sutes you best."
This change from the old to the new Avay of singing had
been introduced in 1721. The eight or nine tunes brought
over with the pioneers "had become barbarously perverted,"
and Rev. Thomas Walter, of Roxbury, Mass., composer in that
year, published " The Grounds and Rules of Music Explained ;
or, an Introduction to the Art of Singing by Note." The
treatise " contained tAventy-four tunes, harmonized in three
parts." In 1750 one other innovation seems to have completed tho
changes Avhich were deemed of absolute need. After due de
liberation, doubtless, "the society agrees that Doctor Watteses
"avartion of ye psalms shall be introduced into ye prisbeterian
congration." The foUoAving vote, passed Dec. 10, 1770, in society's meet
ing, is preserved, to shoAV hoAV lenient the society Avere towards
those from Avhom legally they might collect taxes. That the
aUusion to nanies may be understood, it must be knoAvn that at

SEPAEATE CHUECH OEGANIZATIONS. 299
a previous meeting, the persons named, in the northern part of
the town, had been excused from paying their rates, in part, if
they would pay them at Poundridge. The society vote Mr.
Welles' rate, two pence a pound, " deducting therefrom only
Avhat is above ordered to be abated to Thomas Potts and .John
McGollum, and the other inhabitants of this society Avho live
above them, and also such rates of poor persons in this society
as the society committee may think proper to abate."
Once, only, during Mr. Welles' occupancy of the parish Avas
the church called upon to record its vote upon the mere ques
tion of purity of doctrine. The erratic course of the Rev.
James Davenport, a native of the toAvn, had engaged the no
tice of the church, and about a year after Mr. Welles' settle
ment they had become divided on the question of inviting him
to preach, on occasions of his visits to his friends. Without
taking the responsibility upon themselves, they voted that the
reverend association of the western district of Fairfield county
be desired to convene ancl settle for them their duty in this
matter. The reverend gentlemen met according to request,
April 6, 1748, at the house of Mr. Bostwick. The church were
represented on the occasion by Col. Jonathan Hoyt, Gapt. Jon
athan Maltbie, Abraham Davenport, and Stephen Ambler.
After hearing the case stated, the clergy, finding that the ob
jections to Mr. Davenport's officiating in the pulpit of his na
tive town not so formidable as to threaten serious disturbance
and divisions if he should be suffered to do so, gave, probably,
the only advice they could safely give : " that the said Mr.
DaA'enport be sometimes invited, as per record of association
may appear."
One case brought before the church may shoAV how anxious
they were to maintain the sacredness of the Sabbath. Eben
ezer Weed, on his own confession, had traveled several miles
on the Sabbath, and taken ofiT the skin of a dead horse. His
defense was that it was a work of necessity. The church de
liberated, and finally " concluded to take further time to con
sider whether the action was a breach of the fourth command-

soo tiistSRY 6f sfAMfORb.
ment or a Avork of necessity." At a later meeting, Mr. Weed
offered a satisfactory confession of the offense above alluded to,
and also of having been guilty of " drunkenness," and was con
tinued, by the approval of the church, in Christian fellowship.
A serious cause of offense during the administration of Mr.
Welles was evil and censorious speaking ; and the offense was
sharply rebuked, or, it even led to the suspension of offending
members. But the offense which oftenest disturbed the peace
of the church, and called for most constant watchfulness, was
that of intemperance. Drunkenness was a crime not to be over
looked, and there was no offense to which it did not lead. We
find, therefore, the church occasionally scandalized by the pres
ence of this evil, but mainly, efficient in checking it. In all,
during the thirty years of Dr. Welles' administration, there
were but eleven cases of discipline reported on the records.
These are probably all that occurred worthy the notice or ac
tion of the church. When we take into account the entire
number of church members represented by these delinquents,
422, and also the almost universal use of intoxicating drinks,
even to excess, we must acknowledge the rare fidelity and pu
rity of the church.
Dr. Welles died in 1776, after the struggle of our revolution
had fairly begun ; and the church was left without a pastor un
til its close. A blank occurs in the church records for this en
tire period, and the society and town affairs had now become
so distinct that the toAvn records give us no light upon the
condition of the church. There was, doubtless, preaching here
during those years of trial and strife, and a maintenance of all
the ordinances of religion ; but the presumption is, that other
aud more stirring themes engaged and ruled the thoughts and
feelings of the people
The last record in the fair handwriting of Dr. Welles bears
date December 8, 1775, and simply preserves the appointment
of Stephen Bishop as deacon in the church.
The regard of the society for their deceased pastor is shown

SEPAEATE CHUECH OEGANIZATIONS. 301
in their vote to continue his salary to his widow so long as the
" Rev. Elders " in the western district shall see the pulpit sup
plied. And in 1779 they still further vote to raise, by sub
scription, enough to make up the depreciation of the currency
occasioned by the progress of the Avar, or the committee were
to draw upon the society fund.
Several candidates, it would seem, officiated here after Dr.
Welles' decease. The church has no record to shoAV that they
invited either of them to settle. The society, in 1780, make
application to Rev. Mr. Kettletas to supply the pulpit, if pos
sible; and from baptisms performed during this interval, he
probably preached some months.
The peculiar language employed iu the records of the society
of date March 24, 1777, would suggest that they Avere not pre
pared to settle any one as pastor. By 1781 they had evident
ly become tired of being without a settled minister, and form
ally voted to endeavor to settle one. They vote, also, to apply
to Rev. Mr. Searl to accept the pastorate.
But in August of this year they are more successful in their
attempt. They unanimously vote to settle Rev. John Avery.
They vote him a hundred pounds annually, for three years, in
silver or gold, and to give him three hundred pounds also, in
three equal payments, and after the third year to give him one
hundred and tAventy-five pounds annually.
The society's records supply an omission in those of the
church. They copy the doings of the church for November 28,
1781, which shoAV us that "Mr. John Avery being present, and
after discoursing at large on church government, said church,
by ,an unanimous voice, voted to give said Mr. Avery a call to
a settlement in the gospel ministry, and to take the pastoral
charge of said church, expecting to be led find governed by the
rules laid down in the Saybrook Platform and practice of the
consociated churches in this State."
The Rev. John Avery was ordained January 16, 1782, and
the record is agjain resumed.

302 HISTORY OF STAMFOED.
A period of severe trial for the church had just been passed.
Without the care of. a faithful pastor, and that in a time of
Avar, the church had greatly suffered. Every interest of re
ligion had been exposed, and the exposure had left its marks.
Not that none Avere left faithful and true. The church of
Christ remained. There Avere still not a few whom years of
comparative spiritual abandonment .and the evil passioSs Avhich
war engenders could not seduce from the precious faith.
But it cannot be disguised that these years had seriously
lowered the standard of piety in the majority of the church,
and left too many of the less established Christians a prey to
their spiritual enemy. The sad proof of this degeneracy is
abundant in the records which Mr. Avery, a faithful and effect
ive pastor, is obliged to make during his short pastorate. The
most favorable result, which a careful examination of all the
evidences in our reach has forced upon us, is, that at the end of
our revolutionary period this ancient church exhibited about
five-fold the irregularity and looseness in morals which marked
her previous career. Under the searching preaching of Mr.
Avery, and the earnest and effective discipline which the
church iioAV maintained, these evils were gradually corrected.
For the four years after Mr. Avery's ordination only fifteen
new names were added to the church. But the seed which he
so faithfully and industriously sowed during those years of pa
tient waiting and working, began now to spring up. The sow
er began at last to reap. The next year, 1786, added forty-
soA'en new members to the church. It may also indicate the
increasing success of Mr. Avery's labors, and the growing fideli
ty of the church, that the same year also records the baptism of
sixty-one of the children of the church.
Mr. Avery continued to preach here until Sei3tember, 1791,
in which month his death occurred. The last records made hy
his hand are of September 4th, in this year, the one enrolling
Abraham Smith as member of the church, and the other wit
nessing the marriage of John Larkin and Elizabeth Hoyt.
Nearly tAVO years passed before his place was permanently

SEPAEATE CHUECH OEGANIZATIONS. 303
supplied. And here, too, we must learn of the movements in
the church during the interval betAveen Mr. Avery and his suc
cessor, from the society records alone. It seems the church and
society had agre2d, in hearing Mr. Jonas Goe, as yet only a li
centiate preacher, and, liking him, had called iu the advice of the
Association of the Western District of Fairfield County. The
committee appointed by the association. Revs. Moses Mather,
Isaac Lewis, Robert Morris, and John Shepperd, heard Mr. Goe
preach, and examined him " on the most important points of
divinity," and expressed their " entire approbation of the so
ciety's improA'ing Mr. Coe, for the purposes " of a settlement.
This approval is dated April 4, 1792. On the 11th of the same
month the society unanimously vote Mr. Coe a call to settle,
on a salary of one hundred and fifty pounds ; and the committee
were to Avrite to Mr. Goe and to the Presbytery of Noav York,
to inform them of the proceedings. The church, on the 13th of
the same month, after listening to Mr. Coe, vote, also, nnaui-
mously to approve the call. The answer of Mr. Coe does not
appear in the records of either the church or society.
In the foUoAA'ing spring, March 21, 1793, the church, after
"conversing at large upon church government, Avitli Mr. Dan
iel Smith," who had probably been supplying the puljjit for
some time past, unanimously voted to give him a call to settle.
To this course the committee of the association also gave their
advice. On the 25tli of the same month the society unani
mously approved the vote of the church, and voted also the
salary of one hundred and fifty pounds.
In answer to this call, Mr. Smith was ordained pastor of the
church, June 13, 1793. He had come to the field well com
mended, to commend himself still more fully, in a long and sue.
cessful ministry.
There Avere no violent changes io the church and society du
ring the ministry of Mr. Smith. His OAvn urbanity would ex
empt him personally from violent opposition, and his easy
courtesy disarmed what opposition might arise, of its most
effective motive. During the earlier part of his ministry his

304 HISTOEY OF STAMFOF.D.
salary had been raised by taxation. That the people became
restive under that mode of ministerial support the following
transaction attests.
For five years, ending Avith 1806, quite a list of unpaid taxes
had accumulated, and the next year Augustus Lockwood is
appointed a special collector, Avith instructions forthAvith to
levy upon the estates of such as failed to meet the arrearages.
In the prosecution of his duty he seized a horse of William
Waterbury, 4th, and sold it under the ordhiary warrant. The
defendant turns plaintiff, and institutes a suit against the col
lector for the recovery of his horse. The society stand by their
agent, as appears from the following vote, of December 6, 1809 :
" Voted, un.animously, th it this society will indemnify Augus
tus LockAvood, in the suit that William Waterburj', 4th, has
commenced against him, Avliich is noAv pending in the Superior
Court, on account of horse which said Augustus Lockwood
took from said Waterbury, by virtue of AV.arrants for society
taxes, of which said Augustus Avas collector." In 1811 Ave find
a heavier tax than usual levied — five cents on a dollar — and the
excess over the usual rate, Avhich had been about tAvo and a
half cents only, seems to have been charged to the above suit.
The vote states that it " is granted for the purpose of defraying
the necessary expenses of the society, and for discharging the
demand Augustus Lockwood has against s,aid society." The
last tax voted by the society seems to haA'e been in 1835, the
expenses of the foUoAving year having been met by a subscrip
tion. Another event of this period indicates a change Avhich has
taken place in the mode of Avarming our churches. In 1817,
the society vote to purchase " an iron stoA'e,, sufficiently large
to keep the house comfortable, ancl set up the same in the
meeting-house ; and that the committee sell the brick compo
sing the present stove to the best advantage." The record
states that the " brick of the stove " sold to Sturges B. Thorp,
for five dollars. To make this record intelligible to those who
are accustomed only to the modern furnace, we will attempt to

SEPARATE CHUECH ORGANIZATIONS. 305
exhibit the interior of the meeting-house as it Avas, no longer
than fifty years ago. The house stood, as the most of my read
ers will remember it, where our cosy, little, ornamental park
now lies, in the center of our vUlage. You enter the sacred
precincts through the tower, which was built in front of the
main building, and which, at the time to which we are refer
ring, was surmounted by a spire.
Opening the double doors, connecting with the audience
room, you enter an arena of little square pews. An aisle leads
you up to the deacon's seat, directly beneath the stiff and solemn
pulpit, Avhich fronts the entrance, and which stands up as a
stately sentinel, commissioned to take note of all which trans
pires in tho remotest corners of the room. The front of the
room, over the entrance, and both sides, are darkened by Avide
galleries, around which stretch two tiers of seats, and still fur
ther back, beyond a narroAV aisle, a row of square pews, lining
the entire Avail of the house, save the two openings near the
front corners for the staiiAvays. On the loAver floor you have
the four Avails of the room lined Avith poAvs, ex'cepting the en
trances on the front and on the middle of both sides, and the
center of the rear, or north end, Avhere the pulpit stood. With
in this roAV of peAvs was a generous .aisle, sufficiently Avide in
these ante-days of crinoline for two j)ersons to Avalk abreast;
and this aisle enclosed the tAvo center parallelograms of poAVS
flanking the center aisle.
But when, in the progress of improvements, it became neces
sary to introduce some apparatus for Avarining the room, no
place was found for the innovation. No chimney had been
built in the house, since such a thing as fire for the church had
never been contemplated. Not yet had stoves beeu cast which
could promise to furnish the warmth for so large a space. But
thanks to the meddlesome spirit of invention, a "Russian
stove " was devised, and forthwith a place is prepared for it.
Taking out the outer sides of two poAvs from the south-west
corner of the west parallelogram of jiews, and the seat and par
tition which separated them, a space of about six by tAA'elve feet
39

306 HISTOEY OF STAMFORD.
was made for the noAV experiment, and the construction begins.
Cart-loads of new brick, as if for some modern, edifice, are duly
deposited at the side door. Masons are seen, busy as never be
fore in the sanctuary. The floor is removed from a portion of
the cleared space, and solid stone AVork, the foundation for the
huge, oven-like structure, is laid even with the floor. Then the
inner walls of the vast central oven, six feet in length and three
or four in width, arise, arching over at the hight of three feet,
with flues coursing their skillfully arranged circuits among the
mass of solid brick-work, fully tAVO feet in thickness, enclosing
them, until the huge pile stands ready for use. Friday morn
ing — the first Friday in December after the work is done — has
come. Winter has fairly set in. The Sabbath is drawing on,
and the sanctuary must be made ready for the comfort, now, as
well as the Avorship of God's people. The fire is kindled in the
new " stove," Avith solid logs of solid wood, and is to be re-
ncAved and kept agloAv, day and night, until the tune for Sab
bath service.
All day it takes to warm up that mass of brick, and at
night the added fuel serves to prolong the heat, and soften
slightly the chill in the great room, iieA'or before modified save
by the summer air or by the gloAV of Avarm breathing and beat
ing hearts. All day Saturday, all the night which brings in
the Sabbath, and all the morning of the holy day, the faithful
committee — and no names are more faithful than those honor-
ables, Davenport, and Knapp, and Lockwood- — ply the huge
oven with selectest fuel, and lo ! when the sharp Sabbath air
cuts all about that meeting-house, you might have felt, on en
tering it, only the pleasant and bracing chillness of an eai-ly
.autumn air. A great triumph had been Avon. The " Russian
stove " became, thenceforth, until the more recent iron stove
and furnace took its place, a necessity in God's house.
One other incident, occurring in the time of the edifice in
Avhich this Russian stove Avas built, gives us a lunatic's idea of
the peculiar pulpit which Avas built in it. The old "barrel"
pulpit, Avith a single pair of stairs, had been removed, and a

SEPARA'TE CHURCH OEGANIZATIONS. 307
larger one, with stairs on both sides, took its place. Peter
Hoyt, known for many years as " Crazy Pete," entered the
church, as usual, on the Sunday morning following this ex
change. He had scarcely caught sight of the two-fold ascen
sion to the pulpit, Avhen a singular fancy seized him. Grasp
ing, with indignant vehemence, his hat, he started for home.
As he pressed on, his indignation grcAA'. A neighbor, who met
him, rallied him on getting through service so soon. Peter,
with no room in his soul for any other feeling than that of his
outraged orthodoxy, exclaimed : " Never go to that old Pres
byterian meeting-house again, as long as I live ! Only think of
it ! Who ever heard such doctrine before ? Two ways np to
Heaven ! I'll never stand that pulpit doctrine, anyhoAv."
Before closing our record of the first society of Stamford,
two illustrations of the legal authority of that venerable society,
in the time now gone, to return no more, should be given.
They illustrate not the power of the society more than the
spirit and sharpness of the men whom it had to manage.
Captain William Waterbury, the only son of the General
David Waterbury, who had been eminent for his loyalty both
to the civil and ecclesiastical authorities over him, signalized
the opening of the present century, in this usually quiet place,
by a persistent refusal to pay the annual society's tax. He
claimed that as he did not receive anything from the society, —
no tangible commodity, temporal or spiritual, there was no
reason why he should be set upon for his purse. Patiently,
the good-natured collector, Augustus Lockwood, Esq., reasoned
the matter with him, showed his authority to collect, and in
the name of the great State itself threatened his suit. The re
fractory subject still refused, and calmly awaited the execution.
True to what was then thought to be the right, as well as the
law of the case, the execution was issued. A mare was at
tached, an old mare, which the owner told the officer would yet
kick to the full satisfaction of the society, if they dared to take
her. Before the process Avas served the mare had been spirited

308 HISTORY OF STAMFORD.
aAvay, and could not be found. The officer, hoAvever, not to be
foiled thus, seized upon a similar one and sold her, and thus the
tax seemed to be paid.
Noav Avas the time for the Captain's offensive. He sued out
a writ of replevin, and the society vote to back their faithful
collector in the legal contest. The lawyers enjoyed the game,
and both the contestants were quite Avilling to foot the bills.
Nor did the plucky parties cease the play before each had in
flicted on the other a bill of expense of about a thousand dollars
apiece. Nor did the resolute captain forget or forgive, even then, the
presumptuous claim of the society. A half score years roll on,
and a meeting is notified, for the sale, at auction, of a certain
lot of land, which " parson " Smith greatly desired to buy. The
neighbors who were interested in the transaction 'gathered at
the appointed hour, the good jiarson among the first. The cool,
imperturbable Captain Waterbury was also on hand, walking
about, as if to pass away an unemployed hour, and get the
news of the day.
The auctioneer begins. The lot is offered, and a long sus
pense awaits a bid. The neighbors, supposing the parson would
like the lot, were OA'idently not disposed to anticipate him. At
length the parson bids, and another long pause ensues. No
volubility of the man at the hammer could tempt a higher bid.
" Going, going, — gentlemen, I can't dAvell, I shall strike it off
for the mere song named, unless you speak quick, — going —
going— go—
" Five dollars an acre more," sloAvly, but very coolly, said the
captain, just in time to save the fall of the hammer.
Another pause, and then another call for bids, until the anx
ious parson took from the captain his chance. Now the utmost
ingenuity of the auctioneer could not induce for a long time a
higher bid, and the "going, going, going," and the significant
flourish of the hammer at the very last moment of grace, roused
once more the consciousness of the still cooler captain, as he

CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH, CORNER OF ATLANTIC AND BANK
STREETS.

SEPARATE CHUECH OEGANIZATIONS. 309
StUl more deliberately interposed again : " Five dollars an acre
more, if you please, auctioneer."
Thus gaining, the hammer rises again, and a still louder call
for bids. Not to lose a good chance thus, the parson raises
upon the last bid, and again it hangs. Just in season to anti
cipate the final " gone," the captain, consciously pleased, and
not without a chuckle, Avhich the discerning might have noticed,
adds, "five dollars an acre more."
Once more the excited parson advances, and now the auction
eer has no art by which to tempt another bid. His utmost elo
quence is in vain. With a tAvinkle in his eye, not altogether
unused to humor, the roguish captain quietly relieves himself:
" I have to say, auctioneer, I don't want that lot. It's not in
my line. It's only that old mare that wasn't mine, that's kick
ing yet."
One Obed Scofield, also, a blacksmith, who din't use the
meeting-house or the minister, thought he should not be taxed.
He, too, defied an execution, which finally came. He pointed
out his "Scott's Bible" as the first article which the sheriff
must sell. At the appointed time for the sale the books were
struck off to the good Mrs. Scofield, ivho valued the good book
at a higher rate than her industrious husband. But how was
the good Avomaii to pay for the books ? Evidently by drawing
upon her husband, and to him the sheriff was accordingly sent.
Anticipating- just such a result, the sharp blacksmith had pre
pared for it. He coolly hands over to the sheriff a copy of the
legal posting of his wife, and the officer finds himself tricked, at
once, out of both the tax and the books.
Since Mr. Sinith's day no marked change has taken place in
the condition of this church. The old church edifice becoming
antiquated in appearance, and uncomfortable, from its exposed
position in the very, center of the rapidly increasing village,
was sold in 1857, and used as a place of worshiis the last time,
September 19, 1858. A ncAV house, built on the corner of
Atlantic and Bank streets, was dedicated Sejrtember 23, 1858.

310 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
The following is the list of ministers who have served this
church from its organization :
EiCHABD Denton, 1641-4. (See page 272.)
John Bishop, 1644-94. (See page 269.)
John Davenpoet, 1694-1731. (See page 270. )
Ebenbzeb Weight, ordained tn 1732, and died here in Alay, 1740.
Noah Welles, D. D., ordained Dec. 31, 1746, and died here, Dec. 31,
1776. (See later biogriiphy. )
Abraham Kettletas, preacher in 1789. He was licensed by Fairfield
East Association, iu 1756.
John Avebt, ordained Jan. 16, 1782, and died here, in September, 1791.
Daniel Smith, ordained Jane 13, 1793, and died here, 1846. (&eo later
biography. )
John W. Alvoed, installed colleague with Mr. Smith, March 16, 1842,
and dismissed Oct. 14, 1846.
Isaac Jennings, installed Sept. 1, 1847, and dismissed April 28, 1853.
James Hoyt, preacher from June, 1853, to January, 1855.
Heney B. Elliot, installed Dec. 4, 1855, and dismissed July 6, 1858.
Joseph Andeeson, was called Dec. 9, 1858, installed March 27, 1860, aud
dismissed Feb. 26, 1861.
Leonaed W. Bacon, pastor elect, from Nov. 17, 1861, until January, 1865.
Richaed B. Thoeston, the present pastor, installed Oct. 3, 18G5.
CONGREGATIONAL CHUECH, OF DARIEN.
This church was duly organized at a meeting of the conso
ciation of Fairfield West, June 5, 1744, when the following
persons were enrolled as its members: Rev. Moses Mather,
David and Martha Tuttle, Thomas and Mary Reed, Edmund
and Elizabeth Waring, John and Hannah Reed, John Ray
mond, Daniel and Elizabeth Reed, John and Mary Smith, John
and Katherine Waring, Samuel and Mehitabel Brinsmayd, Eli-
akim and Anne Waring, Nathan and Mary Reed, Isaac Bishop,
Joseph Waterbury, Nathan and Sarah Sellick, Joshua and
Anne Morehouse, Samuel Bishop, Charles and Susannah Weed,
Theophilus and Sarah Bishop, Nathaniel and Sarah Bates,
James and Elizabeth Scofield, John Reed, Jr., and wife. Desire;
Elias and ^Mary Reed, Elijah Jones, Sarah, wife of Samuel Reed;
Sarah, wife of Thomas Reed ; Ehzabeth, wife of Samuel Rich
ards; widoAV Rachel Raymond, Rebecca Raymond, Avidow

SEPARATE CHUECH OEGANIZATIONS. 311
Martha Reed, Elizabeth Reed, Joanna, wife of Jonathan Bates ;
Abigail, Avife of David Bates ; Mary, wife of Eliaseph Whitney ;
Mercy, Avife of Ebenezer Brown ; Mercy, wife of John Pettit ;
Rebecca, Avife of Jonathan Crissy ; Elizabeth, wife of James
Slason ; Hannah, wife of Deliverance Slason ; Mary, wife of
David Weed ; Abigail Andrus, widoAV sarah Crissv, and Jona.
Bell. Under Mr. Mather the church was greatly prospered. The
records kept by him, and still preserved, show, that down to
October, 1803, he had baptized 921 persons; down to October,
1804, he had solemnized 361 marriages, and admitted to the
church 258 members. In addition to those admitted to full
communion with the church, 161 persons publicly " OAvned the
covenant." ,
Dr. Mather recorded, during fifty-six years of his ministry,
766 deaths in his parish.
The organization of this church Avas a very simple process.
After the council had examined and approved Mr. Mather as
the pastor elect of the church to be constituted, and tAventy-one
of the brethren, whose names are on the preceding list, had ex
hibited their credentials of church membership in the several
churches to which they then belonged, and had, before the
council, " entered into a solemn covenant relation with each
other, according to the constitution of the churches in this gov
ernment ; the council acknowledged them as a particular
church, and as a member of this consociation." After thus
constituted "a particular church," they formally chose Mr.
Mather to be their minister, and the ordination service Avas im
mediately performed.
The first meeting-house of this parish stood until 1838, Avhen
it was taken down, and the present substantial brick church
was built.
The ministers of this church have been :
Moses Mathee, D. D., ordained aud instAllod Jaaa 6i 1744, und died
Sept. 21, 180G.

312 HISTORY OF STAMFORD.
William Flshee, ordained and installed July 16, 1807, aud dismissed
M.irch 31, 1819.
Eeenezee Pl.vtt, ordained aud installed in September, 1825, dismissed
in August, 1833, aud died here April 7, 1863, aged 68 years !ind 5 months
B. Y. Messekgee supjjlied tho pulpit oue year.
Uleio Maynaed, installed June 24, 1835, and dismissed April 24, 1838.
Ezea D. Kinney, installed Aug. 8, 1838, and dismissed May 3, 1859.
Jonathan E. Baenes, ordained and installed Aug. 21, 1860, and died
here. May 31, 1866.
F. Alvoed was installed Dec. 26, 18GG.
NOETH STAMFORD CONGEEGATIONAL CHUECH.
This church was organized June 4, 1782, and consisted of
tAventy-two members, as foUoAvs :
Benjamin Weed, Ebenezer Weed, Zebulon Husted, Amos
Weed, Israel Weed, .Joseph Ambler, John McCuUum, Ebenezer
Dean, Miles Weed, Reuben Scofield, Mercy Hoyt, Elizabeth
Ambler, Abigail Weed, Kezia Dean, Mary McCuUum, Mercy
Hoyt, Jr., Prudence Weed, Sarah Seeley, Elizabeth Scofield,
Rebecca Ayres, Rebecca Curtis, and Rebecca -Beedlo.
Previously to this date, the celebrated Dr. Samuel Hopkins,
of Newport, R. I., Avho had left his parish when the British
took possession of the tOAvn, in 1776, and who had come to
Stamford in 1778, to supply the pulpit of his deceased class
mate. Dr. Welles, had been also su2:)plying this pulpit for .about
a year and a half He left in 1780, and the church Avas sup
plied Avilh temporary preachers until March 23, 1784, Avhen
Solomon Wolcot Avas ordained its first pastor. He continued
to labor hero until his dismission, June 21, 1785.
The other ministers of this parish have been :
John Sheppeed, ordfiined June 27, 1787, and dismis.sed Juue 11, 1791.
Amzi Lewis, installed June 17, 1795, and died liere April 5, 1819.
Heney Fullee, installed June 6, 1821, and dismissed Jan. 23, 1844.
Nathaniel Pieeson, preached here from April, 1844, to Januavy, 1846.
Wm. H. Magie, from January, 1846, to January, 1849.
Wm. E. Catlin, from March, 1849, to March, 1850.
F. E. M. Bacheloe, for several months in 1850 and 1851.
Livingston AVillaed, installed March, 1852, and dismissed in June, 1856.
John White supplied the pulpit from May, 1857, to October, 1858.

SEPAEATE CHUECH ORGANIZATIONS. 313
.W. S. Clakk, installed in April, 1859, and dismissed in 1861.
H. T. Foed, in 1862.
Eoswell Smith, in 1863 and 1864.
H. L. Telleb, ordained May 15, 1866, and dismissed in 1868.
Josiah Peabodt, began preaching in the spring of 1868.
LONG EIDGE CONGEEGATIONAL SOCIETY.
About the year 1840, a union church was built on Long
Ridge, which the Congregational portion of the community
secured in 1842, when they organized a church and society.
The names of the members of the church Avere Isaac Ayres, Ja
red Holly, Charles E. Smith, William L. Holly, Alfred Ayres,
Ransford A. Ferris, PoUy Holly, Harriet M. Holly, SaUy Sco
field, Harriet E. Ayres, Hannah R. Raymond, Mary W. Smith,
Ann M. Holly, Lydia Ferris, Gl.arissa Smith, and Phebe Sco
field. Rev. Feedeeick H. Ayees was engaged to supply the pul
pit, commencing his ministry Nov. 6, 1842, and preaching un
tU 1853.
From that time meetings have been kept up for the most of
• thetime, the church having enjoyed the labors of the foUoAving
ministers, none of whom have been installed: Mr. Perry, Au
gustus B. Collins, John Smith, Ezra D. Kinney, Dennis Platt,
— Timloe, and — Gilbert. EPISCOPAL CHURCH.
St. John's. — The first aUusion which I have found to the
presence of Episcopalians in Stamford, is in a letter from the
Rev. Henry Caner, of Fairfield, dated March 15, 1727-8, and
addressed to the Secretary of the " Society for Propagating the
Gospel in Foreign Parts." I am indebted for this letter, as for
many of the following quotations, to that thoroughly exhaust
ive "Documentary History of the Protestant Episcopal Church
in the United States of America," edited by Francis L. Hawks,
D. D., LL. D., and Wm. S. Perry, A. M.
In this letter, which is a report of his mission, Mr. Caner in
forms us that among his other labors he had preached several
times, during the preceding Avinter, in Stfimford. The same
40

314 HISTORY OF STAMFOED.
letter shows us that the field in which Mr. Caner was then la
boring embraced, besides Fairfield, the following towns and
villages : Poquonnuck, Greensfarms, Greenfield, Norwalk,
Stamford, Greenwich, Chesnut Ridge, Newtown, Ridgefield,
and Danbury. At Newtown, only, did Mr. Caner have any
assistance, sharing the labors of that parish with Rev. Mr.
Johnson, of Stratford. He also tells us that in " most of the
above-mentioned places there are seven, ten, or fifteen families
professing the Church of England ; " and that " the taxes
strained from members of the church for the support of dis
senting teachers amount to £100, which is £40 sterling, of
which Fairfield pays about half * * * Not-withstanding
this discouragement, the church grows arid increases very
much." In another letter, found in the same work, in 1728, Mr Caner
intercedes with the society to appoint him their missionary, to
serve "from Fairfield to Byram river," with permission to "re
side sometimes at one of these places and sometimes at anoth
er." This proposal Avas made to meet the provision which had
been made by the State government, allowing all Episcopalians
who lived near enough an Episcopalian minister to attend con
stantly his preaching, the privilege of paying their ecclesiastical
tax to him rather than to the Congregational clergy.
In 1738, a very earnest and lengthy plea was sent to the
General Assembly of Connecticut, asking that the members of
the Church of England in the State might be excused from
paying for the support of the Congregational mode of worship.
This plea has attached to it the signatures of 636 EpiscopaUans
in nine towns. Fifty of these names are from Stamford and
GreenAvich. They are, Gershom Lockwood, Samuel Mills, Ca
leb Knapp, John Lockwood, Wm. King, Henry Jones, Benj.
Knapp, James Knapp, Jos. Knapp, Jeremy Peck, Hez. Lock-
wood, Jonathan Lockwood, Jonathan Austen, Thos. Johnson,
Thos. Ballis, David Reynolds, John Avery, John .Johnson, John
 , Jas. Wilson, Benj. Young, Rob. Arnold, John Burley,

SEPAEATE CHUECH OEGANIZATIONS. 315
Nath'l Hubbard, Peter Demill, John Finch, Benj. Day, John
Hicks, MUls Riggs, Israel Knapp, Chas. Southerland, Richard
Charlton, Sam'l Morine, Isaac Quintard, Jos. Barton, Nath'l
Lookwood, John Kirkham, Nath'l Worden, Thos. Roberts, and
Abraham Rundal, Jr. The above list is preceded by this mem
orandum :
"TJnder the care of Eev. Mr. Wetii ore. The subscribers belonging to
Greenwich and Stamford to be annexed to the general address of the mem
bers and professors of the Church of England, iu the colony of Connecticut,
To the Honorable General Court, in May, 1738 ; which address having bren
commiinicated to us, the subscribers, we hereunto sign our names."
In addition to the above-named address, these Stamford pe
titioners drew up a plea of their own, of more than three closely
written foolscap pages, urgently demanding at least a partial ex
emption from the tax imposed upon them, to support a ministry
which they could not approve. They asked that, at least, they
might be allowed to join with those of their own church, in a
neighboring colony (Greenwich), and that they might use their
tax for the support of the ministers of their own choice in that
colony, "provided, always, that the said minister's settled
abode and residence be within five miles of this colony, and
that by officiating alternately in each colony he performs di
vine service at least twelve times in the year in this colony."
In addition to the preceding names, this special petition has
the foUoAving, — Abraham Nichols, John Matthews, and Nath'l
Worden, Jr.
The petition Avas negatived in both houses of the legislature.
In 1740, the Rev. James Wetmore was preaching in Stamford
once in four weeks, and this seems to have been the only Epis
copal service held at that time in the town.
The following votes of the town give us our only knowledge
of the progress made by the Episcopalians at this time. The
first was under date of Dec. 2, 1742, and is in answer to an ap
peal made by the Episcopalians for a grant of land, on which
to build :
"The town agree to put in a committee to view the place by Mr. Elipha
let Holly's, where the professors of tho Church of England have petitioned

316 HISTOEY OF STAMFORD.
for setting a church house, whether it may be granted without damage to
the town, and to make return to the adjourned town meeting ; and Ensign
Jonathan Bell, Sergeant Nathaniel Weed, and Joseph Bishop, to be the
court, for the purpose aforesaid."
The result of the examinatiomnade by the committee appears
under date of Dec. 10, 1742 :
"The town agree to give the professors of tbe Church of England a piece
of land, to set a church house upon, on the hill between the widow Holly's
house and Nathan Stevens' house — the piece of land to be 45 feet long,
east and west, and to be 35 feet wide, when the committee shall lay it out ;
the committee to be Ensign Jona. Bell, Sergeant Nathaniel Weed, and Jo
seph Bishop."
The lot granted, as above, to the Episcopalians, was the
south-east corner of the present lot held by St. John's parish, in
front of their parsonage. It was at that time a rude ledge of
loose rock, and bounded east and north by an almost impassa
ble swamp, so that, in all probability, its alienation to the new
proprietors did not materially " damage " the town. On this
lot the first church was built. Of the date of its corner-stone,
or completion, we find no record. It was so far finished in
March, 1747, that it Could be used.
Mr. Wetmore seems to have been succeeded by the Rev.
Henry Caner, of Fairfield, who, with his brother Richard, of
Norwalk, and a Mr. Miner, supplied the Episcopalians Avith
what preaching or service they had down to the commencement
of Mr. Ebenezer Dibble's long and successful ministry.
In a letter from Mr. Caner, in 1744, alluding to a petition
from the people of Stamford, Greenwich, and Horseneck, for a
minister to reside among them, Ave find this charge, for which,
in view of the age to which it belongs, we can believe there
Avas too much necessity : " These people have been much perse
cuted by the dissenting government, for when they would have
rewarded the Rev. Mr. Wetmore for his monthly attendance in
ofiiciating among them, by paying their proportion of the rates,
according to an express law of the colony, they were prevented
by a very oppressive judgment of the court."
In 1746 we find Mr. Caner, of Fairfield, bitterly lamenting
the want of ministers for both Norwalk and Stamford. He

SEPAEATE CHUECH ORGANIZATIONS. 317
reports both places as losing ground, for want of " a more
constant service " than he can supply.
The following letter deserves a place in our local history ;
partly as illustrating the religious movement of the age, and
still more as our introduction to Mr. Dibble, who bore so con
spicuous a part in the progress of the Episcopal church of the
town : Colony of Connecticut, I
Stami-obd, March 25th, 1747. j
Eeverend Sir : — We, the subscribers, churchwardens and vestrymen of St.
John's Church, in Stamford, with the unanimous concurrence, and in be
half of all the professors of the Church of England, in the towns of Stam
ford, aud Greenwich, in Connecticut, beg leave to represent to the venera
ble society the state of our church, and with humble submission request
their patronage, and that the effects of their extensive charity, which hath
brought the means of salvation to many thousand souls, may preserve us
and our posterity from wandering iu error and darkness, and guide our
feet in the ways of peace, by assisting us to procure a settlement of the wor
ship of God among us, according to the x^ure doctrines, and wholesome
rites and usages of the Church of England, which we highly reverence and
esteem. We have struggled with many and great difficulties in advancing
to the state in which we now are, to have a church erected, and so far fin
ished as to be fit for our assembling in it, and with accessions to our num
ber of professors sufficient to be enabled to purchase a glebe, aud to pay
twenty pounds sterliog per annum to a minister, which we have obliged
ourselves to do, by subscription, under our hands, and hope to make some
additions, so the whole may be worth thirty pounds sterling per annum,
which is the most that we are able to perform at present, and too little for
a decent support for a minister. We have been much oppressed by the
Dissenters among whom we live, who, under protection of the laws of the
colony, have obliged us to pay taxes to their minister, and to build them
meeting-houses, even when we had obliged ourselves to contribute, accord
ing to our abilities, to reward ministers of the Church of Eugland for com
ing to preach among us, and administer to us the Holy Sacraments ; and
several have been imprisoned, and others threatened with imprisonment,
to compel them to pay such taxes ; and we could get no relief from the
courts of justice here. This has made us very desirous to obtain a minister
in orders among us, which is the only means to obtain exemption from
such taxes, according to the express words of the colony act. We, there
fore, exerted ourselves to the utmost of our abilities to assist Mr. Miner to
go for orders, Avho was taken by the French, on his passage, with the Eev.
Mr. Lamson, aud afterwards died in England, which proved a very melan
choly disappointment to us ; and before, Ave had contributed considerably
to assist Mr. Isaac Brown, when he went home for orders, Avith hopes that
he might have been sent to us, but were disappointed by his coming back
for Brook Haven. Since Mr. JVIiner's death we have applied ourselves to
Mr. Ebenezer Dibble, by the advice of Eeverend Mr. Caner and others.
This gentleman has read prayer and sermons among us, to our very great
satisfaction, for near a year and a half, and being willing to go home for
holy orders, and to return to us, to be our minister, we have again exerted

3X8 HISTORY OF STAMFOED. .
our utmost power to obtain a glebe, subscribed for his support annually.
twenty pounds sterling, and do assist him further to defray the expense of
his voyage. We have applied to the Eeverend Clergy to represent our
state, who all of them approve well of Mr. Dibble, and having given him
testimonials to the Lord Bishop of London, we earnestly hope he may ob
tain holy orders, and humbly entreat the venerable Society to compassion
ate our circumstances, and admit Mr. Dibble to be their missionary to us,
with sucH salary as they may think fit to allow, which we hope will con
tribute to the glory of God, and to the salvation ot many poor souls, and
we, your poor petitioners, as in duty bound, shall ever pray for the en
largement of Christ's kingdom by the extensive charity of your venerable
Society. We are, Eeverend Sir, your most obedient, &c.

THOMAsXoNas, [^'^"-'¦^Vardens.

And others.
The Rev. Mr. Miner referred to in the above letter Avas prob -
ably the Rev. Richardson Miner, a Congregational clergyman,
settled in 1730, in Unity, late North Stratford, and noAV Trum
bull, who, in 1742, declared in favor of Episcopacy; was dis
missed March 21, 1743-4, and went to England for orders, and
died there.
The result of the above appeal was the admission of Mr. Dib
ble to priest's orders some time in the year 1748, and his return
to Stamford. Here he, at once, entered with all his heart, upon
the work of his ministry, as rector of St. John's parish, where
he spent the rest of his honored and useful life.
It was in this year, also, that Mr. Caner, who had labored
Avith marked success in Fairfield, Norwalk and Stamford, was
appointed to the King's Chapel, Boston, and on leaving he
gives this estimate of the progress of Episcopacy in this vicini
ty. He had come to this mission in 1727, when he found in
Fairfield 12 communicants, and left 68 ; at Norwalk, none
when he came, and 115 when he left; and 20 at Stamford.
The next year Mr. Dibble reports 16 communicants in Stam
ford. In 1757, Mr. Dibble reports his parish, united and prosperous.
He says : " We have sundry accessions to the church since my
last of the 29th of September." It will Ulustrate the times to
add from this letter the statements,— " I preached, last Christ
mas, to a numerous assembly. Multitudes of the dissenters

SEPAEATE CHUECH OEGANIZATIONS. 319
came to church, and behaved with great decency. Seven heads
of families have declared conformity since my last account, in
Stamford, and some at Horse Neck and Stanwich."
The following plea to the Connecticut Assembly explains the
disabilities under which the Episcopalians were laboring, and
proved one of the steps which at length led to their recognition
as a distinct denomination, entitled, in their own way, to sup
port their own worship :
" Your memorialists, being desirous to enjoy the worship of God accord
ing to the liturgy and discipline of the Church of England, to which we
conscientiously thought it our duty to conform, did, several years ago, un
dertake to build a church for divine worship, and engaged our present wor-
tjiy incumbent, then not in orders, to read prayers lo us, and afterwards
sent him home to England, for orders, who accordingly went, and soon re
turned in orders to us, we having laid ourselves under obligations to pay
him a considerable sum annually, towards his support, and for his expenses
in going home, all which undertaking laid us under a considerable burden-,
which, however, we cheerfully endorsed, but soon finding we were unable
to advance monies requisite to carrying on these designs, we ventured to
borrow a considerable sum of money, in New York, for the purposes afore
said, which, together with some benefactions procured for that end, we
laid out in building our church, hoping we should be able, in a few years,
to repay the same. * * • But, soon after these transactions, the nation
became involved iu a dangerous and expensive war, » • • and not
being by law empowered to tax ourselves, our church must still remain un
finished, and we are scarcely able to support our incumbent, who has a
numerous family : Wherefore, we humbly take the liberty to request the
favor of your Honors to grant us liberty to set up and draw a small lottery,
of about £2,000, lawful money, subject to a deduction of fifteen per cent. ;
* * • we are strongly encouraged and almost assured, if we obtain this
favor of your Honors, that we shall be able to sell the most of the tickets in
New York, Boston and Philadelphia, and consequently bring money into
the colony, rather than carry any out ; and we conceive there is no danger
of its being a prejudice to the public, or to any particular person."
May 9, 1759. Ebenbzeb Dibble, Clerk.
John Lloyd, "|
Peteb Demill, | y.,i„,
Ebenezee Holly, r '^^*"»'

[• Church Wardens.

John Bates,
Ephraim Smith,
Samuel Jarvis,
How this petition was treated by the Assembly the following
complaint of the Rev. Mr. Dibble sufficiently attests :
"But, alas, no such favor could be obtained, not even to draw a lottery
in the government, if we should .not offer a ticket for sale in it. And why?
Not because it is repugnant to their principles, for they have given counte
nance to public lotteries, even to repair broken fortunes of private persons,
and to help- build up and establish an Independent College in the Jerseys,

320 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
when they could obtain no such favor in their own province. But, alas,
this was too great an act of favor to the Established Church. "
In September, of this year, Mr. Dibble reports to the score
tary of the society the peaceful and united state of his people
in all parts of his extensive mission. The French war, however,
was seriously interfering Avith accessions to the church, in
Stamford the enlistments into the public service even diminish-
_ing the church; and what Avas still more trying, was the death
of " twelve heads of families — seven males — some of them the
best ornaments of religion." He reports this year thirty-nine
communicants. The next fact of interest occurring in connection with this
church in Stamford, I find recorded under date of April 16, 1765.
John Lloyd, the same, doubtless, Avhose name appears as one of
the vestry of the church, in 1759, in consideration of £343 6s.
lid., received from St. George Talbot, Esq., of Barn Island,
N. Y., makes over " to the venerable Society for the propaga
tion of the gospel in foreign parts " two tracts of land — one of
eighteen acres one rood and twenty-three rods, in Northfield,
on the west side of Mill river; and the other of four acres,
tAventy-nine at North street, bounded south by North street,
west by Church of England jDarsonage, and east by highway.
These lands, by the terms of the surrender, were " to be and
inure to the use of the missionary, for the time being, the rector
or incumbent of St. John's Church, and his successors, as the
glebe lands of the Church of England in said Stamford."
The following record shows hoAV far the "ruling order" of
that day Avas disposed to recognize and aid the Episcopalians.
At the meeting of the Congregational Society, held Dec. 15,
1772, it was voted that two collectors shall be appointed, the
one to collect the rates belonging to the " Presbyterians "
(Gongregationalists), and the other those belonging to the
"Church of England Avithin this society." .Jonathan Waring
is appointed for the CongregationaUsts, and Abijah Bishop for
" that part of the ministerial rate that belongs to the Rev. Eb
enezer Dibble." The records of the Darien Congregational

SEPARATE CIIUECH OEGANIZATIONS. 321
Society still preserve the receipts which the Rev. Mr. Dibble,
of Stamford, and Rev. Mr. Leaming, of Norwalk, gave to the
society's collector for their part of the rates.
The following is a specimen of one of these receipts :
" Stamtoed, Jan. 5, 1779.
Mr. Johu Bell, and Mr. S.unuel Eichards, aud Mr. Gershom Eichards,
Soliciting Committee in Middlesex parish, 1778 : — Please to discharge your
collector, Mr. Jonathan Bell, Jr., on account of the rates he was to collect
of the professors of the church. It shall be accepted in full of all demands
upon yo.ir society in the year 1778, said rate made up on list, 1777.
Test., Ebenezer Dibble.
The fjregoiug is a true cojiy of the original.
Test., Gershom Scoeield, Society Clerk."
And in 1786, avc find the following witness to the temper of
the tOAvn regarding the claims of the Episcopalians. The vote
shows that th'i citizens were not yet ready to make extrava
gant concessions to the ncAV order :
"Per vote: Whereas, Capt. Nathaniel Webb and Alexander Bishop, in
behalf of themselves and the rest of the Episcopal Church iu Staralord,
made application to this town to grant them liberty to erect a decent fence
arouud^heu- church, at the distance of one rod from said building, the Se
lectmen are hereby directed to vievv the circnmstauces thereof, and order
aud direct therein ns they shall think proper therein."
Under the administration of Mr. Dibble and his successors,
the parish was greatly prospered. Their first house of worship
answered for the use of the congregation until 1843, when the
present church was built, where it noAv stands. This, in its
turn, was soon found too small, and aa^'is enlarged, in 1855, to
its present dimensions. But even this enlargement Avas not
found to answer the needs of the parish long ; and May 14,
1860, they Avere called to lay the corner-stone of their new mis
sion chapel, St. Andrew's, between Washington avenue and
Northfield street. The only rectors of this period were Revs.
Jonathan Judd and Ambrose S. Todd. From the summer of
1858, the labors of Dr. Todd having become too great for his
failing strength, the parish employed an assistant, Rev. Walter
Mitchell, then in deacon's orders, and who Avas ordained priest
AprU 27, 1859.
Dr. Todd continued in the rectorship of the parish until his
41

322 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
death, June 22, 1861 ; and his assistant, Mr. MitcheU, was insti
tuted rectoi- Nov. 13, 1861. Under his rectorship the church
was increasingly prosperous. He was assisted by Rev. F.
W. Braithwaite. On the resignation of Mr. MitcheU, in 1866,
Rev. William Tatlock entered on the rectorship, Aug. 30, 1866.
He is assisted by the Rev. Joseph W. Hyde. The continued
prosperity of the parish is evinced by the buUding of Emman
uel Church, at Shinoh, in 1867, to moot the wants of the north
east part of the parish.
The following is the list of the clergy Avho have officiated in
this parish, as far as the records of the church and contempo
raneous history have furnished their names :
James Wetmoee, 1735-1741.
Heney Canee, 1744-1747.
Ebenezee Dibble, D. D., 1747-1799. (See later biography.)
Calvin White, 1798.
J. H. Eeynolds, S. Wheaton, and Ammi Eogehs, the latter of whom
was degraded from the ministry, by Bishop Jarvis, in 1804.
Jonathan Judd, instituted rector October 10, 1810, and resigned in 1822.
Bennet Glover.
Ambrose Todd, D. D. (Seo later biography.)
Walter Mitchell, instituted rector Nov. 13, 1861, and resigned Feb. 4,
1866. William Tatlock, instituted rector, August 30, 186G.
St. Luke's, Darien. — The Rev. W. II. G. Robertson, an
English gentleman, commenced preaching in 1854, in the
chapel which was more recently used by the Presbyterian
Church. In August, 1855, the Episcopal parish was regularly
organized. James E. Johnson was chosen senior, and Ira Sco-
field, junior Warden. John W. Waterbury, Edward A. Weed,
and Isaac H. Clock, Avere appointed Vestrymen. The corner
stone of the present church Avas laid August 11, 1855, by the
Rev. Dr. Todd, of Stamford, to Avhose jurisdiction this part of
Darien had previously belonged. It Avas consecrated by Bishop
WiUiams, March 27, 1863.
The rectors of St. Luke's have been :
W. H. C. Eobeetson, from the organization of the parisji, in 1855.

SEPAR.i.'rE CHUEOH OEGANIZATIONS. 323
Geoeqe D. JoaN SON, iustituted September, 1861.
Lbuis H. Feench, August 2, 1863, the present iaeumbcut.
St. Andeew's Chapel. — The corner-stone of this chapel,
between Washington avenue and Northfield street, Avas laid
May 14, 1860, and the house was finished and consecrated
May 8, 1861. The persons who have officiated at this chapel
have been Thomas W. Punnett, who, in November, 1861,
accepted the rectorship of St. Paul's Church, Staten Island,
aud Arthur Mason, Nathaniel E. Whiting, and F. Wind-
gOE Beathwaite, who was ordained deacon in rSt. AndroAv's
Chapel June 17, 1862, and ordained priest June 17, 1865.
About the same time, St. AndroAv's was organized into au in
dependent parish, and Mr. BrathAvaite Avas called to be rector.
This is a free church.
Emmanuel Ciiuech, Shinoh. — The corner-stone of tliis
church was laid June 29, 1867. This neat, Gothic structnre,
of stone, was built by the Missionary and Benevolent Society
of St. John's, as a chapel of the parish church. It stands on
the New Hope road, about three miles from the village ; and
religious services are held here by the rector of St. John's and
his assistant. baptist chueches.
The records of the Baptist Church and society are preserved
much more fully than those of the other denominations in tOAvn.
The first item of information respecting the Baptists is a, state
ment made in 1769, by Ebenezer Ferris. He had united Avith
the Congregational Church, here, with his wife, Abigail, Feb.
12, 1769, and by Oct. 27th, of the same year, he had become so
far convinced of the invalidity of his baptism as to seek immer
sion, at the hands of Elder Gano, of New York city. His own
statement of the change is as follows :
"Having been some time exercised in mind, in disputes upon religiou.s
subjects, searching the Scriptures, for understanding, aud beuomiug con
vinced that the Baptist, in their practice, are agreeable to the order of tlie
gospel, (I) made application to the Baptist Church iu New York, under the
pastoral care of Elder Gano. Desiring to unite with them iu the privi
leges hf the gospel, after being examined, they manifested their freedo i .
Was baptized Oct. 27, 1769, and received into church fellow-ship."

324 HISTOEY OP STAMFOED.
From the same records we learn that Elder Gano, in April,
1770, preached here, and baptized Nathan Scofield and John
Ferris, of Stanwich, the former having been a member of the
Congrecrational Church from the settlement of Dr. Welles, in
1647. In June he came again, and baptized Nehemiah Brown
•and D^vid Wilson, of Horseneck, and Moses Reynolds, of
Stanwich. In the following March, 1770-1, the persons above-named, as
being baptized " Avith Moses Fountain, a Baj)tist, Avho lately
came to this place, having joined the church of Noav York, our
number seven was by said church considered as a branch of the
same, residing in Stamford; and to have the privilege of having
ordinances of the gosiDol administered here by the Elder Gano,
and to receive into church felloAvship such persons as should be
judged meet subjects by this branch and the Elder."
It was further provided that Mr. Gano should preach here
once a month, for six months ; upon which the branch " agreed
to meet statedly on Lord's-day, for public worship, at the house
of Moses Fountain. Begun first, in April, 1771."
The foUoAving persons were baptized during this year : Oli
ver Sherwood, of Horseneck; James Winchel Elizabeth Davis,
Hannah Ferris, Rebecca Reynolds, of StauAvich ; Elizabeth
RoAvel, of Horseneck; Mindal Smith, of Bedfoi'd; WUliam
Brundage, and Nathan Sutton, of Horseneck — making the
number, at the end of 1771, sixteen.
In July of this year Ebenezer Ferris had been chosen deacon.
The record states that of the above persons Mindal Smith had
been previously baptized.
The Congregational Church records of 1772, have this vote
in them, the first allusion to the existence of the Baptists which
these records contain: "Samuel Youngs shall be exempted
trom paying society rates as long as he continues in thi society,
a Seventh Day Baptist."
Another vote of the Congregational Society, Dec. 27, 1773,
is Avorthy of preservation. It abates the society rates for tho

SEPARATE CIIUECH OEGANIZATIONS. 325
year 1771 of the following Baptists: Moses Fountain, Nathan
Scofield, Ebenezer Ferris, Nathan Scofield, Jr., Daniel Scofield
Samuel Clason, Joshua June, and the Avidow Sarah Mead. At
the same time they abate the rates of 1772, of the following ad
ditional names: Joseph Webb, Jr., Daniel Turney, Stephen
LongAvell, Peter Mead, Jesse Smith, and John Lockwood, Jr.
The above names are probably all Avhich constituted the pio
neers in the Baptist movement in this place.
Deacon Ferris purchased a piece of land, in October, 1771,
for a church site, for which he paid £4 10s., York money ; and
on this site the frame of the first Baptist church this side of
New York Avas raised, June 11, 1772. The same frame stands
on the same lot, in the Bangall district, to this day. It is the
only surviving representative in toAvn of the almost universal
type of the "Lord's house" Avhich prevailed in New England
a hundred and fifty years ago.
On the 6th of November, 1773, those Baptists Avho were liv
ing in this vicinity were organized into a separate church. El
der Gano being present, and giving them " the right hand of
felloAvship." The list of the noAV church numbered twenty-one
names. They are Ebenezer Ferns, Ezariah Winchel, Nathan
Scofield, John Ferris, Nehemiah Brown, Sylveniis Reynolds,
Gabriel Higgins, Joseph Webb, Jonathan Whelpley, Moses
Reynolds, John Higgins, Elizabeth Brown, Mindal Smith, Han
nah Ferris, Rebecca Reynolds, Mary Reynolds, Elizabeth Da
vis, Mary Miller, Sarah Higgins, Esther Smith, and Hannah
Tyler. The ministers Avho labored here for the next ten years were
Elder Coles, 1773 ; Thomas Ustic, 1775 ; President Manning, of
Providence, 1775, and Robert Morris. Mr. Morris had been
licensed by the church to preach, in 1776, but he became loose
in his doctrinal views, and in 1780 his license was Avithdrawn,
and he was excommunicated. In October, of this year, Elka-
nah Holmes, of Nine Partners, came here and took the charge.
His family followed him the next spring, and he continued here
until October, 1784. Mr. Ferris, who had well discharged the

32 j HISTORY OF STAMFOED.
office of a deacon, Avas also thought Avorthy of the ministerial
office, and accordingly, iu October, 17S3, he Avas licensed to
preach, and on the 3d of the next July he Avas ordained formal
ly to the Avork of the gospel ministry.
The Baptist Church seemed from the first to prosper. It
established branches in the loAver part of the town, in Salem,
Bedford, YorktOAvn, and Sing Sing, N. Y. In December, 1784,
they dismissed tvi^enty-five of their members, to constitute the
church of Salem, N. Y., and Elder Holmes was transferred to
the charge of that new church. Elder Ferris remained in charge
of the Stamford church for the rest of his life.
In 1787 they dismissed seventeen, to constitute the Baptist
Church of Bedford, N. Y. In October, 1788, they dismissed
thirty-tAVO, to constitute the Church of Courtland Manor, N. Y.,
and in 1790 they dismissed thirty-four, to be organized into the
Church of Mount Pleasant (Sing Sing), N. Y. The records
shoAV that after these several dismissions there still remained on
the list of the Stamford church thirty-nine communicants.
The Baptists in the loAver part of the town becoming more
numerous, demanded a place of worship nearer than the
one on Fort Hill, and accordingly, on the 24th of June, 1790,
they raised the second Baptist house of the town, on the lot
on River street, a few rods south of the bridge. This house —
similar in form to that on Fort Hill — gave Avay, in 1856, to a
neat church, and this, in 1860, on the completion of the present
elegant house on the corner of Broad and Atlantic streets, was
converted into the block noAV overlooking our village pond.
In June, 1791, the Stamford parish being so large, and the
work in tho vicinity so burdensome, Marmaduke Earl, Avho was
a licensed preacher at Scott's Plains, was invited to come to
the assistance of Mr. Ferris. He removed to Stamford the next
month, and entered upon his labors. In February, of the next
year, Mr. Earl made a formal proposition to the church, if
they wished him to remain another year, to provide for him a
home, by fitting up the parsonage, and allowing him forty
pounds a year, with the privilege of teaching school. This

SEPARATE CHURCH ORGANIZATIONS. 327
proposal the church and society accepted. Before the year had
closed Mr. Earl had taken exceptions to the action of the church
upon doctrinal points, .and a long and spirited contest com
menced. Mr. Ferris, Avho was, to the last, sustained by the church,
commenced his labors in the new building on River street, in
1792, and the old church on Fort Hill was for a Avhile held by
the opposition, and was finally, in 1806, transferred to the Long
Ridge Baptists, and became the Second Baptist Church of
Stamford. There have been from this church five members licensed to
preach, four of whom were afterwards ordained to the work of
the ministry. They were Robert JMorris, \A'-ho, being licensed
in 1776, soon proved himself uuAVorthy of the trust, and his li
cense was withdrawn ; Ebenezer Ferris, Greenleaf S. Webb,
Frederick Smith, and Henry Little.
The following record we preserve here, as too illustrative of
the devotion of a member of this church, and of the wants of
the earlier age to which it belongs, to be lost :
"Oct. 8, 1797. Died, at Norwalk, Sybil Whitehead, aged 116, as pub
lished in the public prints, a member of this church, baptized and added,
Oct. 5, 1780, which must have been in the 99th year of hor age. She lived
at Norwalk, whBre she taught a school, and for years frequently atteudcd
public worship with the church in this place, which was thirteen miles dis
tance. Came on Saturday imd returned on Monday, horseback. The la.'.t
time she came was May, 1789. She came nine miles on foot, anil relurucri
on foot, in the 99th year of her age — said person having never been mar
ried. Frederic Smith, Clerk."
The ministers ot this church Avho have officiated since Mr.
Earl's co-pastorship with Mr. Ferris have been :
Feedeeick Smith, co-pastor, from August, 1807, to February, 1817.
Geeenleap S. Webb, co-pastor, from June, 1816, to April, 1821.
John Ellis, pastor, from December, 1822, to October, 1836.
William Biddle, from October, 1836, to January, 1839.
James M. Stickney, from April, 1839, to April, 1842.
Addison Parkee, from April, 1843, to April, 1845.
Henrt H. Eouse, from November, 1845, to April, 1848.
James Hepburn.
J H. Parks, to the union of this aud tbe Bethesda Church.

328 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
In 1848, the Bethesda Baptist Church Avas organized, by
sixty-two members from the First Church. They buUt on the
corner of Atlantic and Cottage streets, Avhere they continued a
separate organization nntU the two Avere happUy r"-united in
1858. On the organization of the Bethesda Church, in 1848, Mr.
Rouse became the pastor of the new church, Avhere he continued
to officiate until January, 1857.
Alanson H. Bliss succeeded him, and remained until the re
union of the tAVO churches, in October, 1858.
At the union of these tAVO village churches, disposing of the
two lots and church buildings Avhich they owned, they pur
chased a lot on the corner of Broad and Atlantic streets, and
erected the elegant brick structure Avhich noAV stands there.
Its corner-stone Avas laid in August, 1859, and the house was
dedicated. Its two pastors have been Philip S. Evans, installed in Nov.,
1858, and resigned in 1865, and Edward Lathrop, D. D., who
Avas instaUed Feb. 22, 1666.
METHODIST CHUECHES.
Main Steeet. — There seems to have been no record of the
early Methodist movement in this vicinity, and it is doubtful
whether any was made for several years after this denomination
began its labors here. The earliest records, uoav existing, are
those begun in 1830, by Rev. Daniel De Vinne, AA^ho was then
stationed here. He introduces his records with a historical
sketch, from Avhich I take the following statement :
"The first regular society of the Methodist Episcopal Church,
in thiS' town, was formed about the year 1788. What circum
stance led our ministers to this place, Avho was the first preach
er, or Avho formed the first class, cannot at present be ascer
tained. But it is most probable that it was the Rev. Samuel ,
Q. Talhot or Petee Moeiaety, who traveled on the New Ro-
chelle circuit. The next year, 1789, the Rev. Jesse Lee. and
Andeew Van Nosteand Avere appointed to Standford circuit.
On their arrival at this place they found kindred spirits, who

tir^'"T|

H f tii f iJf J'^

BAPTIST church, corner OF ATLANTIC AND BROAD STREETS.

SEPAEATE CHUECH OEGANIZATIONS. 329
had drunk at the same fountain with themselves. Sister Elsie
Scofield, who is now (1830) living, had been awakened by his
ministry in this village, at the house of Mr. Gurnsey, some years
previous to 1791, the time at which she joined the infant socie
ty in this place. 3Irs. Martha Reed, who had been awakened
by the ministry of the Rev. Freeborn Garretson, in Shelbume,
Nova Scotia, settled in this village in 1790. Immediately on
her arrival she attached herself to the class, which consisted of
about twelve, over which one Enos Weed was placed as leader.
The stated, meetings Avere held at the house of a Mr. LockAvood,
now owned by Mrs. Smith, near the present Methodist Episco
pal Church; and the preachers were entertained by General
Waterbury, near the harbor, whose Avife and sister were mem
bers. Mr. Isaac Reed, Avho, during the Revolutionary Avar, had
become a Christian, joined the church, at the same time, with
his wife, aud invited the congregation and minister.-* to hold
their public meetings in his house. In this place the ark of
Methodism rested for nineteen years; and this excellent family
subjected themselves, during all this time, to the inconvenience
of accommodating, almost weekly, meetings, supporting the
preachers and their horses, and also furnishing more than their
quota of traveling expenses.
After frequent petitions, the town, which was at that time
under the influence of the Gongregational order, granted to the
" Fanatics " a place — a mud-hole — on the commons, on which
to build a church. About 1813 the church was finished and
dedickted, and six years after was cleared of debt."
Such, probably, Avas the origin of this enterprising denonjii-
nation of Christians iu this village. Our town records show
that the selectmen were empowered, Feb. 17, 1814, "to give a
lease, for ninety-nine years, to the trustees of the Methodist
Society, of a spot of ground near the dAvelling-house of Fred.
Hoyt, on the west side of the old burying-ground, for the pur
pose of erecting a meeting-house." This must have been the
" mud-hole " referred to in the preceding statement. It was a
little to the east of the present site of the Methodist church on
the park; and the frame of that first church still stands on
River street, the second house from the corner of Park place.
The only nanies on the record of this church for thirty years
42

330 HISTORY OF STAMFORD.
are the following : Martha Reed, Elsy Scofield, Lanney Garn
sey, Jonathan Brown, Ezra Garnsey, John Thompson, William
Waterbury, Lois Waterbury, Hannah BroAvn, Richard Scofield,
Hephzibah Scofield, Joseph Selleck, Phebe Selleck, Solomon
Smith, Polly Smith, Isaac Wardwell, Jane Weeks, Mary
'Trowbridge, Joanna Augusta Devinne, Nancy H. Lockwood,
James H. Trowbridge, Phebe Adams, Nancy Knapp, and Mar
garet Valentine.
From such beginning, so recently made, to quote from the
records of the movement, the Methodist " Gion continued to
grow, notwithstanding the shade of public sentiment and tho
rude attempts of the bulls of Bashan to devour it."
The second Methodist church built in the village was finished
and dedicated Oct. 12, 1843. It stood north-west of the first
house, Avhere it was used by the society until 1859. It still
occupies mainly the same ground, on the corner of River street
and Park place, having been turned round and converted into
tenements. The present Methodist church was dedicated Feb. 16, 1859.
This denomination has made A'ery rapid progress, as our notice
of several congregations in town Avill indicate. Yet its growth
was not very marked until about 1855, since which its progress
has probably had no parallel among our congregations.
The foUoAving list of the ministers of this denomination who
haA'e been located in Stamford, embraces all Avhose names have
been recovered, with the dates of entering upon their labors
here :
1788. S. Q Talbot and P. Moriarty.
1789. Jesse Lee and AndrcAv Vau Nostrand.
1790. Freborn Garretson. 1812, Snmuel Luckej-.
1813. Tho aas Drummond and Benj. Griffin.
1814. Phineas Eice and Benj. Griffin.
1815. Coles Carpenter and Theodosius Clark,
1816. Theodosius Clark and Aiirou Hunt.
1817. John Eeynolds, two years.
1S19. John M. Smith and Samuel D. Furgusou.
1820. EHsha P. Jacob and John M. Smith.

SEPAEATE CHUECH OEGANIZATIONS. 331
1S21. John B. Matthias, two years.
1822. Eli Dennistou, two years. 1823. Jarvis Z. Nichols.
1824. Nathaniel Porter and Noble W. Thomas, two years.
1825. Cyrus Foss.
1826. Elijah Woolsey, two years, and Lumau Andrews.
1827. Samuel XJ. Fisher, two years.
1828. Daniel De Vinne, two years. 1829. Edward Oldren.
1830. Samuel Corcoran and Diuiel I. Wright, two years.
1831. Henry Hatfield, two years. 1832. John Lovejoy.
1833. E. Hibbard. Abraham S. Francis, and Geo. Brown.
1834. Oliver V. Ammermau and Charles Stearns.
1835. Eichard Seaman and Zachariah Davenport.
1836. A. S. Hill, two years, and D. B. Ostiander, Jr.
1837. Wm. Gothard, two years. 1838. Edward Oldren, two years.
1839. S. J. Stebbins, two years . 1840. John Tackerbury.
1842. George Brown. 1844. Peter C. Oakley.
1846. Aaron Eodgers. 1850. Friend W. Smith.
1852. Albert Nash. 1854. Samuel Smith.
1856. George Dunbar. 1858. Eobert M. Hatfield, D. D.
1860. L. S. Weed, D. D. 1862. Thomas Burch, D. D.
1861. E. G. Andrew.s D. D. 1867. Wm. C. Steele.
Highridge. — From the historical sketch, drawn up by Mr.
De Vinne, in 1830, we learn that this organization, then called
the Duntown Church, is the oldest Methodist church on the
Stamford circuit. We learn, also, that the Stamford circuit is
the oldest circuit in Ncav England. It appears that one Henry
Eames, who had been converted under Wesley's preaching, in
Ireland, came to this country and settled in the south part of
Poundridge. He soon gathered about him a number " of the
sons, in the gospel, of his spiritual Father, and invited them to
his house." These became the nucleus of a church and society.
Some time in the year 1787,'the Rev. Samuel Q. Talbot, sta
tioned on New Rochelle circuit, came to these neglected parts,
preached in sever il places, and formed several in a class, some
of whom remain to this day" (1830).
The first house of worship built by this society stood just
across the Stamford line, in Poundridge, where the church held
their meetings until 1841, when the present chapel was built
or them on Highridge. The only two names now on the rec-

382 HISTORY OF STAMFORD.
ords of the Dantown church, for the year 1787, are Samuel and
Ruhamah Dann. In 1797 these two are added: Sarah Selleck
and Hannah Deforest ; and in 1799 these four: John Slauson,
Rhoda Slauson, Enoch Stevens, and Ruhamah Bishop.
It will appear from these records that we had organized here
a Methodist church, enjoying the ordinances of the gospel at
least tAVO years before the time Avhen, according to Dr. Bangs,
"the first seeds of Methodism were soAvn in Connecticut."
This church was earlier by two years than that society in Strat
ford Avhich is called the first in Connecticut, consisting of three
Avomen, and which Avas formed Sept. 26, 1789.
The Stamford circuit was already organized before 1790, the
year in which the three circuits of New Haven, Hartford and
Litchfield Avere established; and AA'hen, according to the "Con
tributions to the Ecclesiastical History of Connecticut," there
Avere but four Methodist ministers in New England. The min
isters of this church have been the same as those who have
officiated at Hunting ridge and Poundridge.
Darien. — That there were meetings of this denomination in
Darien as early as 1788 is testified by the certificates of th.at
date, Avhich Samuel Quinton Talbott gave to Joseph Waring,
Jr., Gershom Raymond, and EdAvaid Raymond. Cornelius
Cook also gives similar certificates, in the same year, to Ezra
Slason and Jesse Waring. These certificates testify that the
five gentlemen above-named were considered as " members of
the Methodist congregation." During the next six years the
following ministers give similar certificates to relieve the bear
ers from the legal obligation to pay their ministerial rates to
the Congregational treasurer: Jesse Lee, Daniel Smith, and
John Clark, and the number of such certificates is nine.
LoN(}RiDGE. — My account of this church is also taken from
the records of the Stamford circuit, as made out in 1830, by
Mr. De Vinne: "About the year 1809, Mrs. Phebe Mead
moved into this neighborhood, and finding no religious meet
ings, invited the Methodist ministers to come and preach at

SEPAEATE CHUECH OEGANIZATIONS. 333
her house. The first who accepted the invitation and preached
was Daniel Welpley, a local preacher. Some time after him
the Rev. Eben Smith occasionally visited the place and
preached. When the Rev. John Reynolds was appointed to this circuit,
he preached here some time statedly, although it was even to a
single family. About the year 1819, Avhen the Rev. John M.
Smith traveled, the preaching Avas moved to the school-house,
iu which place it has continued ever since ; " that is, until 1830.
Bangall Chapel. — This chapel Avas built before 1834, and is
supplied with preaching by such ministers of this denomination
as are living in the vicinity.
Hunting Ridge. — This chapel, making the sixth place of
worship for this denomination within the territory of the an
cient Stamford, was built in 1850, the Rev. Walter W. Brewer
having previously labored successfully for tAvo years in gather
ing a congregation on the Ridge. Mr. Brewer subsequently
made the Ridge his home, where he died, in 1808, much es
teemed for his piety and usefulness. Since then, the following
ministers have been stationed here, the most of them for two
years each : Miles Olmstead, Joseph Heuton, John A. Sil
leck, Haevey Husted, T. D. Littleavood, William Graav-
FORD, William Ross,  Monson, and  Maguire.
UNIVEESALISTS.
Longridge Society. — For the foUoAving facts, respecting this
society, I am indebted to Rev. Eber Francis, formerly of this
town : .
During the Revolutionary war, Richard Sibley, a Universal
ist, came from Long Island and settled on Longridge ; and, so
far, as is knoAvn, he was the first resident Avho openly aA^owed
Universalist sentiments in the toAvn. Solomon Glover, of New-
tOAvn, Connecticut, a few years later, came down occasionally,
and preached in the school-house on the Ridge. Mr. Ferris,
Mr. Dykeman, Mr. Babbitt, and Thos. F. King were successive
ly employed as preachers on the circuit to which Longridge

334 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
belonged. This Mr. King Avas father of the late lamented lec
turer and preacher, T. Starr King, of San Francisco. From the
removal of Mr. King, in 1825, to 1832, there was no stated
preaching here. Rev. Shaler J. Hillyer was settled here at this
date, preaching a part of the time, also, .at North Salem, N. Y.,
in which place he finally settled, and where he still remains.
The formal organization of the society bears date April 27,
1833. Fourteen persons gave in their names to constitute
the society.
Of them the late Ebenezer Dean, Esq., Avas chosen Modera
tor, and Smith R. Sibley Clerk. The first committee Avere Geo-
Lounsbury, William Todd, and Aaron Dean.
In October, 1834, the present house of AVorship having been
completed, it Avas formally " dedicated to the Avorship of Al
mighty God," with appropriate solemnities, the Rev. Dr. Saw
yer, of New York, preaching on the occasion. For years this
was the only house for public worship in that part of the town_
Second Univeesalist Society. — For the following facts I
am indebted to the Rev. Eben Francis, who Avas pastor of this
church about three years :
For a number of years there had been irregular preaching
here by ministers of the Universalist denomination, when in the
spring of 1835 the ReA^ F. Hitchcock accepted a call to settle
here. He Avas succeeded by Rev. S. J. Hillyer, who also re
mained but a short time, and was succeeded by Rev. B. B. Hal-
lock. The society was not organized until 1841, at Avhich time
thirteen persons subscribed the constitution. Its con;mittee
were, — Wm. H. Potts, Wm. E. Young, and James B. Scofield.
In 1844 the society took steps towards building, having thus
far mainly depended upon the Town House for a place to wor
ship. They purchased the comer lot, on Avhich their church
now stands. The church was dedicated Feb. 5, 1846, during
the ministry of Mr. Ilallock. The following ministers havo suc
ceeded Mr. Hallock :'
J. J. Twiss, J. H. MooBE, tAVO years ; C. H. Fay, Iavo years ;

SEPAEATE CHUECB ORGANIZATIONS. 335
Asa Countryman, one year ; Eben Francis, about three years,
and J. Smith Dodge, Jr., who is still the occupant.
catholic church.
The first Catholic services in Stamford, of whioh we have any
account, were held by Rev. John Smith, in September, 1842, in
the house of P. H. Drew, in West Stamford. At that date
there were but three Catholic families in the town. Services
Avere held there, monthly, until 1846. Mr. Drew removing to
the old " Webb Place " on South-St., services were there held,
first, by the Right Rev. Bishop Tyler. Here the meetings of
this denomination were continued, by several ministers, until
the church on Meadow-St. was built in 1851. Since then, the
Catholic population has increased very rapidly. The church
has been once enlarged, and the present necessities of the con
gregation call for still greater enlargement, for which provision
is being made.
The following priests have been stationed here :
James Brady, 1850—1854.
Edward Cloney, 1854—1857.
James Eeynolds, 1857, and died here Oct. 20, 1858.
James 0'. Veil, from Sept. 18153 to the present iime. He has beeu assisted
by the following curates, Edward O'Neil, who died while in this office,
Christopher Dugget, and his present assistant, curate Eugene Gaffuey.
FRIENDS MEETING.
How early the movement Avas started which led to the
Friends' meeting in Darien, I have been unable to learn. From
a work published in 1844, embracing the biographies of Cath
erine Seely and Deborah S. Roberts, who were themselves
Friends, we learn that their grandmother, Catherine Selleck,
was the first member of the sect in Stamford. The opening of
a Friends' meeting at a private residence is thus described by
Miss Roberts. " After seriously weighing the subject, on the
21st of 6th month, 1828, and on the 1st day of the week, we
convened at the house of Uncle Wyx Seely, and quietly sat
down together in the capacity of a religious meeting for wor
ship. It was held in the sick room of my dear cousin C. Seely

336 history of STAMFORD.
and was the same one in which our worthy grandmother Cath
erine Selleck, the first member in this place, sat down in the
same way, herself alone. At length others joined her and finally
a meeting Avas allowed." The first "minister" they had, was
probably a woman by the name of Grifiin; and the only
preacher Avho was located there was probably one of the resi
dent members, Mr. Samuel Bishop, Avho died in 1852, a lineal
descendant of Rev. John Bishop, the second pastor of the first
Congregational church of Stamford. The Friends built a small,
square meeting house in 1811, and for a few years held in
it their simple service. But the meetings were long since aban
doned, nothing being left as a witness to the fact of such an
attempt, save the old square frame in which the meetings were
held. FIRST PRESBYTEEIAN CHUECH OF STAMFORD.
The first records of auy movement towards organizing a
Presbyterian church in St.amford, are found among the records
of the Gongregational church. After the communion service of
Jan. 2, 1853, in a church meeting, the following members of the
Congregational church called for letters of dismission from the
church, to constitute a Presbyterian church about to be formed.
Augustus R. Moon, Alexander Milne, George Elder, James
D. Hafi", Luke Baker, Hiram Warner, James Robinson, John
Holmes, Mrs. Sophia A. Moen, Miss Cornelia A. Moon,
Hannah E. Elder, Mrs. Mary E. Half, Mrs. Almira Baker,
Mrs. Sophia Warner, Miss Elizabeth M. Warner, Mrs. Georgette
A. Robinson, Mrs. Catherine Holmes.
Letters of dismission Avere voted to these members of the
church according to the rules of the church, Jan. 16, 1853.
During the next few Aveeks similar letters Avere given to the fol
lowing members of the Congregational church:
Wells R. Ritch, Mary Ann Sturges, Elizabeth Sturges, Mrs.
Amzi Ayres, Miss Matilda Moen, Mrs. Sarah A. Ritch, Miss
Sarah L. Ritch.
This church was organized Feb. 25, 1853 with twenty-six

SEPAEATE CHUECH ORGANIZATIONS. 337
members. It has since then- added about 250 to its membership,
and is one of thi wealthiest of our churches. Its ministers have
been :
J. L. Corning, i istalled Apr. 19, 1833 aud resigned Oct. 15, 1856. He is
now settled in Poughkeepsie.
R. E. Booth, D. D-, installed Mar. 4, 1857, aud resigned iu Feb. 1861,
to accept the pastorate of the Mercer St. Presbyterian church iu New York.
James P. Leeds, preached very acceptably one year.
Dwight E, Bartlett, installed Apr. 14, 1862, resigned, in Feb. 1864.
Samuel P. Halsey. installed. Mar. 8, 1865 and resigned Feb. 7, 1867.
A. S. Twombly, installed, Apr. 30, 1868.
Mission Chapel. — This chapel of the First Presbyterian
church grew out of a movement, organized in 1859, to supply a
local want in the Wescott neighborhood. It is situated on the
"Cove" road, and was built in 1868.
FIRST PEESBYTERIAN CHUECH OF DAEIEN.
This new organization was made Nov. 4, 1863. The foUoAv-
ing list of members were from the First Congregational church
in Stamford :
Isaac Weed, Benjamin Weed, Rufus Weed, Mrs. Sally Weed,
Mrs. Mary Weed, Mrs. Phebe Weed, Mrs. Hannah Weed, Miss
Mary Weed, Miss Rebecca Weed, Mrs. Sarah W. Crissey, Mrs.
Abigail W. Bishop.
The foUowing were trom the First Presbyterian church in
Stanjford :
William A. Cummings, and his wife Louisa Cummings.
Mrs. Anna E. Ballard and Mrs. Martha Harris, from First
Presbyterian church, Noav York City.
Lewis E. Clock and his wife Eliza, Miss Eliza Clock, an d
Mrs. Hannah Waterbury, from the Congregational church of
Darien ; and Miss Fanny Kennedy, from the Methodist Episco
pal church of Stamford.
This church commenced Avorshiping in the chapel which
had been built here, a quarter of a century ago, as a Union
chapel, for all evangelical denominations. This church is under
the care of the fourth presbytery of New York city. Their
43

338 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
new church, a beautiful structure of light colored brick, Avas
dedicated May 31, 1866.
Their only pastor has beeu the Eev. James Wm. Coleman, who wa<i or
(Irtinod and installed here Mar. 6, 1864.
UNION CHAPEL, NEW HOPE
This house was built in 1858 for the use of a Sunday school,
and for eA'oning services for that part of the town, and was
dedicated Thursday, Jan. 27, 1859. Services have been held
here, somewhat irregularly, conducted by clergymen of the five
evangelical denominations in town. There is no church organi
zation connected with the chapel. A Sabbath School has been
kept up here for the most of the time since the house was built,
as there had been in the district school house for years before.
UNION CHAPEL, TUEN OF TIIE EIVER.
This house Avas built for the use of this neighborhood as a
convenient place for holding the meetings of the Sunday school
which had been previously held in the school house. It was
dedicated in 1860, and has since had in it Sunday evening servi
ces conducted by the brethren of the vicinity, or by some one
of the ministers ot the town.

CHAPTER XXI.

EDUCATION.

Among the founders of Stamford Avere a foAv men of literary
culfure. But neither the age, nor the country in Avhich they
had grown up, nor their family means, nor the tempestuous
times whioh had otherwise engrossed their earliest attention,
had allowed the majority of them the advantages of scholastic
training. Gifted they were in intellect, men of strong, sound
Sense, thoughtful, accustomed to self-reliance, and fertile in
devices for their personal improvement and prosperity, and they
could not overlook the claims of their children. Indeed, the
New England fathers, and our pioneers were among them, saw
that the only way to establish here, and perpetuate a society
which could satisfy either their tastes or their hopes, would
be through a more careful and thorough, and general educa
tion of their children than might have been necessary in the
mother land. A necessity seemed to be laid upon them to look
after all the resources at their command ; and to none of them
did they turn Avith a wiser forecast than to those Avhich their
very intuitions told them were awaiting development in the
hearts and minds of their children.
How soon our Stamford fathers reared their first school house,
where it stood, -what its size, and how furnished, are interesting
facts now beyond our reach. The record of that incipient
school enterprise here is lost. Its infiuence upon the genera
tions which haA'e succeeded has been incalculable.
Of one thing we may be certain. The first school house here
had no needless room in it, no uselessly expensive adorning, and
no special provision in its fiirnishments to minister to the ease

340 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
and promote the efieminate languor of the children to be edu
cated in it. It was set up by the hard and self-denying labors
of the parents for the place of the hard and protracted work of
their children — not for five hours a day, four or five days in the
Aveek, but for eight and ten hours, for each of the six working
days of the -week.
The fundamental laws of the New Haven jurisdiction re
quired under severe penalties every toAvn to provide means for
the early instruction of their children. The parent who should
allow himself to neglect his child's education, was to be duly
warned by the civil magistrate. If he did not at once atone for
his neglect, he was to be fined ten shillings for the first ofiense.
If the neglect should be continued, in three months the fine
should be doubled ; and if then the guilty parent should refuse
to do his duty to his children, the law would take from him their
care and find a guardian who should better educate and govern
them, "both for public conveniency and for the particular good
of the children."
It seems that some tOAvns did not provide for the education
of their children. Accordingly, in 1657, the Ncav Haven court
• ordered, " that in every plantation where a school is not already
set up and maintained, forthwith endeavors shall be used that
a schoolmaster be procured that may attend that work, one-
third part shall be paid by the town in general as other rates,
the good education of chUdren being of public concernment."
In 1660 it was added to the fundamental laAV of the colony
under the same penalty before noticed, " that the sonnes of all
the inhabitants within this jurisdiction shall be learned to Avrite
a leegible hand, so soone as they are capable of it."
Nor was the theory of the Connecticut jurisdiction any less
exacting in its demands for the general education. When
Stamford was brought under this jurisdiction, the fundamental
law of education still read much as that in Ncav Haven had
done. There could be no mistaking its terms. " The select
men of every town in the several quarters and precincts where

EDUCATION. 341
they dwell, shall have a vigilant eye over their brethren and
neighbors, to see, first, that none of them shall sufier.so much
barbarism in any of their families, as not to endeavor to teach,
by themselves or others, their children and apprentices so much
learning, as may enable them perfectly to read the English
tongue, and knowledge of the capital laAA^s, upon penalty of
twenty shillings for each neglect therein."
It was stilll further provided, that every tOAvn having fifty
householders in it, should " forthwith appoint one within their
town, to teach all such children, as shall resort to him, to write
and read, whose wages shall be paid, either by the parents or
masters of such children, or by the inhabitants in general."
Under such laAVS, Stamford could do no less than make full
legal provision for the education of the young. The one central
school house was early built, and to it, all the first generation
of the town children were sent. And it came to be a settled
principle that all classes, alike, must sustain, and receive their
education from the town school. They made no. provision for
a superior education for a favored portion of the community ;
but seem, as occasional records show, to have made the needed
provision for educating the children of the most "Avorshipful"
part of the settlers, and then by penal motives, held the poorer
class to the necessity of using them. Our very first record
which refers at all to the school, indicates the existence in that
early day of a better philosophy than has since then prevaUed
in our State.
It bears date, December 24, 1670, and is as foUows: "ye
towne hath agreede to hyr mr bellemy for a scoole Master
for this yeare ;" and as if to shoAV that they Avere in earnest,
and meant to discharge their full responsibUity in that impor
tant trust they add : " ye toAvne doth graunt and agree to putt
doun all peety scools yt are or may be kept in ye toune, which
may be preiudicial to ye general scoole." " The toune hath
graunted Mr. MathoAV Bellemy a home lot of about oue acere
& halfe & he is hereby Ingaged to bouUd a habitable house

342 HISTOEY' OF STAMFOED.
upon it within tAvo years, before he alienate it to any one, or els
to throw it up to ye toune again."
Whether Mr. Bellamy found the post too diSicult to fiU, or
the pay too small for his support does not appear. We find
the next spring, arrangements made for a new teacher, and the
lot which had been assigned to Mr. Bellamy, transferred to a
Rev. Wm. Clements. The votes passed respecting the new
teacher, will indicate somewhat the literature of the day, and
the propriety of a prompt and thorough trial of the master's
vocation. On the 31st of the 11th month, (January) 1670, it was voted
in town meeting "that Mr. Rider be admited in to the town
for a time of triall to keep school as a comite apointed for that
end shall agree with him, and if after triall the town aprove
him and he like to stay they may after acomidate him accord
ing to their capacity as they se good. Mr. Seleck, Fra. Brown
and Jonathan Bell are chose to treat, and, if they can, so agree
with Mr. Rider to teach school in the towne."
On the 2nd of 2nd month, (April) 1671, the town grant to
Mr. Rider " so much timber of the ould meeting house as may
build him up a room to the school house of about ten or twelve
foot square, and in case he doth remove it shall return to the
town." Mr. Rider evidently did not suit the town, as the next year
we find this record: "voted, the towne is not minded to hier
Mr. Rider any more." At the same time the following vote
shows how careful the town authorities were to see that the
school master was paid for his services. " By vote, the town
inioyne all the children that went to anny other scoole this last
yeare, except only such that went only to larn to knitt or sowe,
shall paye their proper filers, (fares) to the scoole master."
The above records, a literal transcript of the original, are
themselves a very good exponent of [the rude provisions made
for the town school of that day. There seems to have been, as
yet, only a single public school ; and from the nreceding record,

EDUCATION. 343
the town was apparently accommodated by a room of ten or
twelve feet square. This pioneer school room, for it could
hardly be called a house, stood probably not far from where the
old square school house of the first district in Stamford has so
long stood, on the corner of Bank and Atlantic streets, a little
to the east of the last one built there, now used as a dwelling
house. Here Avere laid the foundations of Avhatever education
the first two generations of the Stamford children received.
At this ,day we can have no adequate conception of the ex
treme difficulty attending those early educational measures. So
completely were the energies and resources of the settlers taxed
to supply their physical wants, that we could hardly blame
them for neglecting altogether those of their intellectual and
social natures. And yet there was among them so clear a dis
cernment of the need and worth of education, that no pains Avere
spared to secure it for their children. Every one of those to
whom would soon be entrusted the entire control of the new
community here formed, must at least be so far taught as to
learn " to read perfectly the English tongue," and write a legi
ble hand. -The civil magistrate was to make it his first concern
to see that this result was reached.
Once, at least, each year, should he personally visit every
famUy suspected of neglecting this duty, to call him to account.
If no application should be made for the teacher's post, he was
authorized to appoint some one, in whose competency he had
confidence, and forthwith summon him to this work. And Avhy
should not some officer be required to " attend this duty of the
town?" Was not every citizen liable to be called upon to
serve the town in other departments of the public service, and
was not the refusal to respond a finable ofiense ? Why, then,
should this, the most important of all the public interests be
neglected, when citizens could be found competent to attend to
them ? Accordingly we find our highest civil dignitary making
annual arrangements for the education of the young — teaching
them himself at his own house, requiring some competent citi-

344 HISTORY OF STAMFORD.
zen, to arrange for the same needed service at his home; next
engaging some applicant to perform this duty in the " scoole"
house, built for the " better entertainment" of " scoUers" on the
corner of the town plat; and finally, as Avas his duty, when it
came to be a necessity, choosing some one from some other pur
suit, and requiring him, for a season, to serve the town as its
official teacher. Such a summons, I think, must have been
issued in 1680 to Stephen Bishop, prob.ably a son of the pastor;
and at the end of the year, the town, unwilling to impose exces
sive labors upon its officials, grant him a release from the ser
vice. Thus the education of the young was managed by the town
for about a century from its settlement. The first .and second
school rooms of course had to give Avay to larger, as the town
increased, and by 1690, in September, we find on record a vote
to build a uoav house. The old school house, which had been
built of the remains of the old meeting house, and must there
fore havo been a much nobler structure and of nicer finish than
the old rude germ of riven logs, and plank covering, Avhich it
had succeeded, was " by outcry" sold to the same Steven Bish
op who had once, at least, been its acknowledged master. It
may show us the times, !Xt least thus much, to report the value
of the sale, "tAventy shillings and sixpence," but we must also
report that the toAvn reserved for their own use " ye dore hings
and flores." It ought, perhaps, .also to be added that the
school house, now sold, had beeu quite recently improved by
the addition of a stone chimney, a luxury AA'hich had doubtless
been denied the home-Avarmed children in their home-made
clothes, down to 1685.
The progress of the toAvn had now become such that the one
school house was thought to be too small for their accommoda
tion ; and the people at a distance from the center Avere begin
ning to feel the need of schools nearer to their own homes.
Little schools were held for a few Aveeks at a time in two or
three localities distant from the center. Temporary schools,
also, sprung- up to minister to some local want for some pecu"

EDUCATION. 345
liar class of pupils; and it became a question what school or
schools should receive the sanction or support of the public, at
the public expense.
So, in 1702, the town were called in midsummer to settle this
question. They vote as follows : " ye town doth say that they
doth accept ye present scoole kept by ye person, (Samuel Holly
then town clerk,) to teach to reade English and to Avrite and
arrithmitick — is a scoole according to lawe" — the simple mean
ing of Avhich probably is, that reading, writing and arithmetic
were the branches for which the laAV enabled them to make
provision ; and so they could sustain Mr. Holly's private school.
The town meeting arrange also for the foUoAving schools, in
addition to the toAvn school at the center.
"Ye towne doth give liberty to ye people of yo east side of norwoalon
Kiucr, aud ye people ou ye west side side of ye mill i-iuer, to hire a woman
scoole on boath sids ye sd riuer; and that ye mony collected in ye cuntry
Eate shall be distributed to each scoole; yt is to say, to ye three scoolesl
on iu ye middle of ye tow-ne and ye other two above sd, according to ye
heads in said scoole; and ye Eate to be paid by y6»heads yt Goes to sd
scools'." We now have provision for these three schools, but the re
cords shoAv that even this number was deemed too great, and
that the muliplication of schools was strenuously opposed.
As early as 1702, Ave have seen a privjite school was estab
lished, probably to teach higher branches than the tOAvn school
admitted. By the colony laAV a grammar school had been
established in Fairfield for this part of the colony, to which the
advanced pupils of the toAvn had access ; and it was probably
to fit pupils for this county school or to aid those who could
not attend it, that the private school had been opened. From
time to time the toAvn testified their approbation of the new
school, and their confidence in "master Holly," by appropria--
tions from the " county fund."
But it Avould seem the native teachers were not specially in
favor with tho tOAvn. In 1708, the committee, who were the
select men of the town, were definitely instructed to hire " a
44

346 HISTORY OF STAMFORD.
stranger who is not a inhabitant to keep schoole upon Tryall."
The support of the schools at this period was raised by a tax of
40 shillings on the 1000 pounds in the town list, and this was
to be collected by the school committee Avhen such were ap
pointed and at other times by the selectmen; and if this were
not sufficient, as in Stamford, it was increased by an assessment
on scholars. In 1705 this additional assessment the toAvn de
clare by vote " shall be paid by the scoUars that goes to scoole."
But a permanent division of the town for school purposes
took place in 1716 ; when it was voted in town meeting, that
" all east of Benj. Hickox and all east of Noroton river, and
all west of Mill river, shall have the privilege of their own
county money for the encouragement of schools among' them
selves." In 1722 the town granted to the inhabitants "north of Thos.
.June's and Stephen Bishop's jun." the same privilege as was
allowed those east of the Noroton and west of the Mill river in
1716. The next ^ear, hoAvever, we find the money divided into
three parts, to be " E QauU according to the lists ;" but any
family might send their children to either of the schools by
paying there his proportion of the money.
In 1727 the Newfield people, as far north as Nathaniel
Brown's, and as far south as Nathaniel Holly's, were allowed
their school money ; and the people on the west of Mill river
Avere empowered to divide their money and build a school house
" between Clement Buxton's and Benj. Green's AA'here they can
do it with the least damage to the public."
In 1734, the "Simsbury" people doAvn to the Sequest, and
over the river to "Tanton," are alloAved their projiortion of the
school money.
This year marks a new era in the administration of the
schools. They are iioav provided for, not in the town meeting
as heretofore, but in the ecclesiastical Society meeting. By
this meeting, orderly warned, Dec. 26, 1734, three committees
are appointed to take care of the schools ; the first consisting
of Eliphalet IloUy, Mr. Jona. Maltby, and Ebenezer Weed ;

EDUCATION. 347
the second, of Capt. Jonas Hoyt, Joseph Waterbury, and
Nathaniel Weed, and the third of Ensign Knapp, John Pe
noyer, and Nathaniel Webb. Though the record assigns
them no restricted territory over Avhich their respective juris
diction is to extend, the names would leave us to assign to the
first committee the center of the toAvn, between Mill and No
roton rivers; to tho second, all east of the Noroton, .and to
the third, all west of the Mill river.
Two years later three committees are again appointed, Avhen
the members are located as foUoAvs : Thomas Skelding and
John Holly, middle of the town ; Justice Wheeler, Jona. Cla
son and Moses Knapp, over Mill river; and Capt. Jona. Hoyt,
Nath'l Weed, and Jona. Bell, over the Noroton river.
In 1739, the town give permission to " the inhabitants of the
middle portion of the tOAvn to set up a school house on the Avest
end of the town house, and the town's committee to stake out
the place for them."
In 1744 the Simsbury people Avere allowed to use their part
of the school money if they choose to do so at home, if not, it
must go to the people on the west side of Mill river.
At this time, and for some years later, the school committee
seem to have been appointed as one body, yet selected doubt
less with reference to their residence in the diffisrent parts of
the town. In 1747 this committee consisted of Ensign John
Holly, Sergeant James BeU, Peter Demill, Col. Jona. Hoyt,
Lieut. David Waterbury, Eb. Scofield, Monmouth Lounsbury,
Miles Weed, Timothy Curtiss, Benj. Weed, jun., Sergt. Jona.
Clason. Books Avere in these days a somewhat rare article — and of
course the day for the general distribution of newspapers had
not yet come. Bnt that the good people of the state who were
supposed to be thoroughly instructed in divine law, might also
have no excuse for remaining ignorant of our human code, the
laws of the state had been printed for their use, and in the
town meeting of 1756 we find this vote to secure their distribu
tion: "the town agree that the law books shall be distributed

348 HISTOEY OF stamfoed
into all parts of the town according to their lists of estates, to
say £1,000 and a little more to a law book." To carry this
vote into efiect, Col. Jona. Hait, then, perhaps the most eminent
man of the town, is appointed to make the distribution. The
number of books thus furnished for distribution in the town
was seventy.
That this work was not very thoroughly done, and that it
was still felt to be an important measure for the town, we find
proof in additional legislation passed in 1761 ; "that Col. Hait
and Mr. Abraham Davenport shall divide the law books ; viz. :
law books according to act of assembly, by the first of March
next." And, as though the town felt themselves under still fur
ther obligations for the enlightenment of the people, they pass
this additional vote : " that Col. Hait and Mr. Davenport shall
divide the Confessions of Faith, by the first day of March next,
on August list, 1760."
One more A'Ote shows how earnest the town had become in
this matter of circulating especially legal science among the
people ; viz. : " that every person that has got any of the law
books and refuseth to deliver them to the committee appointed
to divide them, shall incur the penalty of twenty shillings,
lawful money."
This last record would suggest that this second division of
the law books was simply a re-distribution of them, so that other
citizens also could havo access to them. And may it not be,
that thus early we have in this town transaction, the hint of a
town circulating library.
In 1772 a committee of whom Abraham Davenport Avas chair
man, was appointed to report at the next annual society's
meeting, some proper division of the society into school districts.
This report AA'as not recorded, but in 1775 it was voted that
the school monies raised in the Society shall be delivered to
committees of the respective districts in sd society according
to their lists." The process of districting went so far, that the

EDUCATION. 349
same territory which in 1710 needed but three districts, had
been divided into not fewer than twenty-eight, leaving still,
fragments of other districts, connected with those of the neigh
boring towns.
Stamford, it must be confessed, down to a date quite recent,
had not been noticeable for any very marked eminence in edu
cation. The earlier attention given to this subject by the
fathers, was certainly creditable to their times. The list of
professional men, who from the settlement of the town, have
here exercised their gifts, will compare favorably with that of
our most advanced New England tOAvns. We have had men
of eminent ability in every profession. But from our compara
tive distance and isolation from the educational center of the
state ; from the somewhat urgent call on our young men to the
exciting commercial temptations of the national metropolis ; from
the unfortunate dependence which the last two generations
came to put upon the gSnerous school fund, which instead of an
aid and stimulus to the improvement, was too generally accept
ed as the sufficient support of our town schoois ; and from that
unrecognized yet prevalent delusion among the wealthy, that
the expensive education of the few would save a people from
the reproach of neglecting the many, it followed that the town
had educationally fallen behind many of her sister towns, and
private schools came to be the main dependence of the citizens
f6r the education of their children.
Dr. Dwight, in his Travels, probably did the town no in
justice, when near the close of the last century he writes : " both
religion and education have always been here at a low ebb ;
yet for many years there have been several good private schools,
in which, however, children from New York are almost the
only pupils."
As, however, the center of the tOAvn began to fill up, on the
opening of the railroad through it, it was soon found that our
public school at the center, was not doing the proper work of
such an institution. The accommodations for pupUs were nei-
. ther sufficient in extent, nor suitable in character. After con-

350 HISTORY OF STAMFORD.
tinned deliberation over the matter a noAV graded school was
established in 1852, in a beautiful, and, as was supposed, ample
structure at the east end of Broad street. This building was
erected under the direction of J. D. Warren, Theodore Daven
port, and Edwin Bishop. On the burning of this building in
1866, provision was made for a much ampler and more durable
strueture of brick on the same site. This elegant building was
dedicated to school uses May 18, 1867. No more creditable
school building has yet been erected for public school uses in
the state. It is thoroughly finished in the best and latest style,
and heated by the best steam heating apparatus in use. Its
capacity is equal to the generous accommodation of eight
schools of fifty pupils each ; and the space occupied by it e.x-
ceeds that of thirty-two just such structures as the pioneers of
the town required for the first school house designed for the
children dwelling on more than forty times the territory for
Avhich this provides.
It was the intention to raise the range of studies in the higher
department of this school to embrace all those included in the
regular course preparatory to college ; and a number of stu
dents already have been fitted for college.
The present committee of the district are John D. Ferguson,
Esq., L. H. Huributt, M. D., and Thomas G. Ritch, Esq.
The Principals of this central school, thus far, have been : E.
A. Lawrence, Rev. E. B. Huntington, Henry Balcam, Samuel
Coburn, W. C. Ginn, and Alden P. Beals.
STAMFORD ENGLISH AND CLASSICAL BOARDING SCHOOL.
Among our private school enterprises, none have been more
successful than that of James Betts, Esq. Mr. Betts is a native
of Wilton, in this State. He opened a private school in North
Stamford in 183 8, but soon removed to his present location on
Strawberry Hill. Here his career, from the first, has been one
of great success. About five hundred youth have gone from
this institution either to college or into business.
Mr. Betts is a deacon in the Gongregational church, and ear-

EDUCATION. 351
nestly alive to everything which promises to promote the wel
fare of the town. Though principal of a private school, he
takes a deep interest in the public schools of the town ; believ"
ing that the public school should be good enough for the richest
families, as well as cheap enough for the poorest.
STAMFOED INSTITUTE.
Another successful school of the town is that established in
1850 on South street, by Richard E. Rice, Esq., a graduate of
Yale in 1839. He was born in Saybrook, Conn., Feb. 8, 1810,
and after his graduation, spent some three years in mercantile
pursuits at the south, and subsequently located himself in
Stamford, as above. While here be Avas chosen deacon in the
Gongregational church. His health giving way, he sold his
"school to Wallace G. Willcox, of St. Louis, Mo. Mr. Willcox
is also a graduate of Yale college, and a native of New Haven.
Under his vigorous management the school has greatly pros
pered. Like his predecessor, Mr. Willcox Avas chosen deacon
iu the Gongregational church.
GEO. B. glendining's school.
Another school, which for several years has been well patron
ized, both by attendance from tho town, and by boarding
pupils, is that of Geo. B. Glendining, Esq., on the corner of
Washington avenue and N-orth street. Mr. Glendining is an
English gentleman, educated at Oxford. He was engaged for
years in a successful school in Troy, N. Y. ; afterAvards in Sey
mour, Conn. : and since 1853, in Stamford. The demand for
admission into his school, has for several years exceeded its ac
commodation for pupils. MISS ANNA AVEBb's SCHOOL.
This excellent school was commenced in 1854 and has con
tinued to merit and receive the confidence of its patrons. Its
average number of pupils is about thirty.
MISS aiken's young ladies' seminaey.
This institution Avas opened in the fall of 1855, in the com-

352 HISTOET OF STAMFOED.
modious boarding house, on Henry street. From the first it
has won a good name for the thoroughness of its instrucuction
in all the essentials to a complete school education. In 1862 it
was removed to Clark's Hill where under the efficient adminis
tration of Miss Aiken, who has now associated with her, Mrs.
Williams in the boarding department, the school has assumed
the character of a permanent and flourishing institution. In all
the qualities of an excellent young ladies seminary, very few in
the country can surpass it.
THE MISSES scofield's DAT SCHOOL.
This flourishing school for misses was opened in 1862 by Miss
Kate Scofield, eldest daughter of Edwin Scofield, jr., so long
our ToAvn Clerk. Since then the school has greatly increased,
and Miss Scofield has associated with her her sister Emma,
under Avhose joint supervision it is becoming one of our most
successful schools. claek's hill institute.
W. C. Ginn, a graduate of the Wesleyan university at Mid
dletown, Conn., opened this priA^ate school for boys, — both day
and boarding pupils, in 1859. His accommodations are de
signed for a school of about tAventy-five pupils.
catholic school.
In 1862 this school was opened, for the children of Catholic
parents, on Meadow street, near tho Catholic church. The
number of children in attendance has been about two hundred,
under two teachers.

CHAPTER XXII.

WAE OF 1812 — '15.

This war began in the vicious claim of England to the service
of every subject born Avithin her dominions, however long he
might have been a resident and citizen of other countries, and
ended in the efiective denial, both on land and on the high seas,
of any such authority over American citizens. Fought out,
largely, on the sea, the war excited here comparatively little
local concern or interest. Our records show no public meet
ings or action with reference to the war. Probably none was
needed. Our citizens, however, were called on for such service
as their position justified ; and they heartily responded to the
call. The tOAvn enrolled men and kept them in readiness for
service Avhen the needed emergency should come ; and the most
that our record proposes is to register their names and service.
My first list is found on the following " muster roll of a com
pany of infantry under the command of David Waterbury,
Capt. in the 37th Regt. of the U. S., commanded by Lieut-Col.
Aaron Benjamin, from the 31st Oct. when last mustered to the
31at Dec, 1813." The roll Avas furnished for use in this History
by Charles Brown, Esq., son of John BroAvn, the first lieuten
ant on the roll.
On the back of this muster roll, in very distinct aud ambitious
chirography, is inscribed, in the captain's hand, " Don't give up
the Ship." "Lawrence." "David Wateeburt."
David Waterbury, Capt. ; Nehemiah Eose, Sergt. ;
John Brown, 1st Lieut. ; L'iwi.5 Jones Corp. ;
Hunry Hiyt, 2Qd Lieut. ; Wm. Jones, Corp. ;
Siinuel Keeler, 3rd Lieut. ; James Sandford, Drummer ;
Slim qel Keeler, jr., Ensign ; Nathan Obamplin, Drummer ;
Alanson Holly, Sergt. ; 45

364

history of STAMFORD.

David Brown,
Wm. H. Buel,
JosephJClock,
Elisha Crab,
Ebenezer Dennis,
John Dean,
John A. Dickens,
James Forbes,
ElisbaJFish, Shadrack Ferris,
Lysauder Fancher,
George A. Fox,
Charles French,
ChHrles Gill,
Warren Huchius,
Joel Hoyt,

Daniel Johnson,
Eeuben Knapp,
John Larkin,
Moses Mountcalm,
Benjamin Odle,
Harry Provost,
Isaiah Eogers,
Charles Kowlson,
Amos Stickland,
William Stevens,
J. W. Shallenburg,
Selleck Scofield,
Oliver J. Smith,
David Tucker,
Samuel K. Weeks,
Isaac Wilmoth.

Our second list is that found on the following muster roll,
noAV in the Controller's Office in Hartford. It is the roll of
Captain Elijah Reed's Company in the 34th Regt., commanded
by Nehemiah Lockwood, and bearing date Sept. 8-13, 1813
It has on it the following minute, probably in the handwriting
of the Captain :
"The enemy appsai-ing hostile ia tbe Sound by the vorbal order of Ne
hemiah Lockwood, Esq., Lieut.-Col. comt, I c&Ued the Company iuto
service on the 8th of Sept., 1813 aud on the 13th, by his verbal order dis
missed them."

Elijah Becd, Cupt. ;
Ja.s. Clock, Lieut. ;
Eklph Hoyt, Ens. ;
Selleck Weed, 1st Sergt. ;
John Street, 2nd Sergt. ;
Abr. Tibbet, 3rd Sergt. ;
David Camp, 4tb Sergt. ;
Holly Bell, 1st Corp. ;
Eo-swell Eeed, 2ud Corp. ;
Jacob Wardell, 3rd Corp. ;
Isaac Bishop, 4th Corp. ;
Geo. Weed,
Isaac Warren,
Seely Slason,
Isaac Bouton,
Chas., Erown,
Lewis Waterbury.
Scudder Weed,
ChiLS. Weed,
Lyman Seely,
Heury Smith,
Johu M. Nash,
Baymond Mather,

Fred. Smith,
David Scofield,
Nathan Nash,
Samuel Street,
Leander Hoyt,
Ezra Hoyt ,
David How,
Jas. B. Weed,
Walter B. Hoyt,
Miirza Scribner.
David Weed,
Joseph Wood,
Jacob Little,
Chatman Smith,
Andrew Bixbee,
Samuel Holden,
Benj. Little,
Jonas Weed,
David Holly, drummer, not on duty ;
Joseph Scofield, absent ;
l-cter Stevens, appeared, but excused
for ill health ;
Alvah Scofield, not called on ;

WAR OF 1812. , 355
Isaac Weed, Samuel Waterbury, lived remote ;
Henry Weed Thos. Robertson, not called on ;
John L. Webb, John A. Scofield, not called ou.
Hervey Waterbury,
Our third list is that of the company in command of Captain
Peter Smith, then lieutenant. The foUoAving roll is now in the
Controller's Office in Hartford. It is headed Avith this minute,
-'Co. 3, commanded by Peter Smith, lieutenant, Col. Samuel Dean's
regiment, September 8-12, 1813."
The company was called out on the appearance of a hostile
fleet, and was stationed fot four days on Shippan Point. They
were alloAved twenty cents a day by the government — the lieu
tenant, commanding, having received sixty cents a day.
Isaac Knapp, Sergt. ; Isaac Nichols,
Jas. Webb, Sergt. ; Wm. Waterbury, 6th,
John Selleck, Sergt. ; John Hanohaw,
Luther Knapp, Sergt. ; Wm. W. Scofield,
Chas. S. Gay lor, Corp. ; Jas. Hoyt. jr.,
Andrew Webb, Corp. ;; Josiah Austen,
Elisha Hawley, Corp. "; Alanson Provost;
Darius Lockwood, Drummer ; Epenetus Scofield,
Lewis Lockwood, Fifer ; Annanias Hoyt,
Isaac Ferris, ' Wm. Scofield, jr.,
Solomon Garnsey, Eber Smith,
John Andrews, Drake Studwell,
Moses W. Smith, Jas. 8mith, jr.,
Smith Knapp, Elisha Scofield,
Benj. Hoyt, jr., Gilbert E. Waterbury.
Thos. Weeks,
The following are still other names of our townsmen who
were in the service. Their names have been collected from
various sources, such as seemed entitled to credit.
John Billings, Avho is still living on Harvey Scofield at New London, in
Longridge, was at Ncav London. 1812.
John Dan and Jonathan Dan, were Samuel Sherwood, at New London.
also at New London. John Sherwood, son of Matthew, was
Eeuben Dibble, son of John, was for in Canada.
twenty-three months a prisoner in John Burgess.
the famous Dartmoor prison. Elisha Leeds.
Stephen Haight, of North Stamford, Noah Lockwood.
then living in New York, was in Solomon Scofield.
regular service. Ezra Stevens.
Alanson Holly, enlisted and served. Lewis Waterbury.
Amasa Loun.sbury was in the navy. Sylvanus Meed.
William W. Lounsbury was taken James Sniffin.
prisoner at New Orleans, in 1812. James Weed.

356 HISTORY^ OF STAMFOED.
Tyler Mead was in service at Saratoga. Scudder Weed.
Squire Palmer was sergeant at New Henry Sniffln.
London. Silas Weed.
Samuel Provost was pensioned for Eufus Weed.
service. Among the natives of Stamford who rendered good service
during this war was also Nathaniel Weed, Esq., now of
Darien. At the opening of the war he had just become well
established in business ; but at the call of the government he
consented to accept a captaincy in the army. At the close of
the war he had reached the rank of colonel, and won a good
name for his uniform promptness and efficiency at every post.
(See later biography.) Harvey Weed, brother of Nathaniel,
was also in service in this war. He was a lieutenant and was
appointed paymaster. Like his brother, he was living in New
York. He is now residing in Newburg, N. Y.
Captain William Skiddy, now an honored resident here, was
an active participant in the naval struggles of the war. At its
opening, he was before the mast. He was midshipman on
board the Hornet, captain Nicholas Biddle, in the successful
fight with the Penguin ; and the following graphic account from
his journal will be of .sufficient historical interest for insertion
here. It has never before been printed. The squadron in which
the Hornet sailed consisted of the President, Hornet, Peacock,
Tom-Bowline, and a private armed merchant brig.
-"The ships A\ere prepared for sea by the middle of December (1814)
but were so closely watched by a much larger squadron in the ofBng,
New York harbor that no opportunity presented of sailing until the 13th
of the following January ; when all the ships except the President, suc
ceeded in getting to sea with orders to rendezvous at the island of Tristan
d'Acanha, on the coast of South America, and there await tbe order of the
President."* We will now leave the journal to tell its own story.
" Nothing material took place until the 15th of March, when Ave arrived
off Tristian d'Acunha, iu latitude 37 south, and longitude 11 west. Our first
lieutenant, D. Conner, had just landed, when the signal was made to re
turn, there being a strange sail in sight bearing down for us. We hove to,
* Perkins' Later War.

WAR OF 1812. 357
aud were getting dinner (it was duff day), while she was running down.
The " duff" was hardly swallowed, when the drum beat to quarters ; thiu
required but a few minutes, and all was ready for action, every eye watch
ing the stranger. He Soon luffed to on our weather quarter, about pistol
shot off, hoisted the British flag, and gave us a guu ; this we did not no
tice, waiting for him to shoot ahead more. *
He now gave us the first broadside, and as soon as the guns flashed, ours
were in operation, and in five minutes I perceived the blood running from
his scuppers a stream, and as he almost stopped firing, our little captain
ordered us to cease. The enemy thinking we were disabled, renewed his
tire, and, of course, we soon convinced him of his mistake. He then, as a
dast alternative, ran his bowsprit between our main and mizen masts, with
the intention of carrying us by boarding. I was stationed with the first
lieutenant in the third division on the quarter deck, (three after guns each
side), and was now commanding this division, the first lieutenant having
been severely wounded at the commencement and carried below. The jib
halyards being shot away, the fore-tack was hauled down to veer tha ship.
The enemy was now fast of us, and all hands called to repel boarders. Wo
were then hand to hand, and the enemy soon driven back. We were now
on the enemy's bows, and it required all the exertions of our captain and
officers to prevent our men from boarding them ; had they gone, the enemy
would have suffered very much. Their men were now (heaving the cry
for us to board,) running below, and left their first lieutenant, McDonald,
nlone on the forecastle. Many muskets were levelled at him, but were
prevented by our officers from firing on so brave a man. He then asked
our leader, the second lieutenant, Lieutenant Newton, the name of the
ship, and was answered, 'TJ. S. sloop Hornet,' when he waived his sword
and walked aft.
Our ship in shooting ahead, carried away his bowsprit, tore away all our
mizzen rigging, and the enemy lay across our stern. Our captain was
standing on the arm-chest aft, speaking to them, v/hen their foremast fell
along the lee waist. The marines in the fore-top clung with their muskets
to the rigging as the mast fell, and as soon as down, jumped forAvard, fired,
and wounded our captain, the ball passing through his neck. They under
took to rakes us with their bow guns, then opposite our stern. I was stand
ing in one of th.e stern ports (being open), lookirg directly at them, and
only about twelve feet off. We were then all hands aft to prevent their
boarding, and certainly expected to see many of us fall at", that fire. Had
those guns been well directed, many of us must have been, killed, but for-
Innately at that very moment the sea lifted our ship's stern, and the balls
went under the counter in the water.
Our ship now came round on the other tack, [port] and I played my di-

358 HISTORY OF STAMFORD
vision of guns into them, raking them fore and aft. They again cried
quarter, and our captain ordered me to cease firing.
She proved to be H. B. M. sloop-of-war Penguin, Captain Dickinson,
who was killed during the action, by a ball through the heart. She mounted
nineteen guns, — sixteen thirty-two pounders, two long nines, and one
twelve pounder on the forecastle. They reported fifteen men killed, and
twenty-eight wounded. They had a number of men on board from the
Medway, seventy-four, and was sent expressly to cruise for the young
Wasp privateer. We made out by the rolls on board of her, twenty-five
killed, aud several of those wounded died.
The Hornet was the same length, one foot less beam. The size and
number of guns, except the twelve pounder on her forecastle. We had
oue mau killed, and eleven wounded, and all in the after division — my div
ision. The poor fellow that we killed, was a six-foot marine that was firing
over my head, and the first I perceived was his brains on my shoes ; and
in turning, I observed the top of his skull taken off by a ball. As he was
much iu the way, I shoved him through one of the ports overboard.
The first lieutenant was also wounded, standing by me. I carried him
out of the way of the guns, and had him sent below.
The most painful was the heart-sickening sight after the fight, of all
those poor fellows who, only a few minutes ago, were well and joyful, now
mangled by different kinds of balls and splinters. Groans were heard
from all quarters. We were now employed getting the prisoners on board,
imbedding and bending sails, repairing rigging, and replacing, soon as pos
sible, all damages. This called us from the dying groans of the Avounded.
The surgeons were all employed amputating limbs and dressing wounds.
The prize taken in tow, and night visited the dismal scene. Several died
during the night, and were committed to the deep without any ceremony,
and tho captain, Dickinson, was buried the day after with the honors of
war ; his own officers and marines officiating.
Penguin's number of men  158
Hornet's " "  130
Difference in men  28
In addition to the above account, we have only to add that a
number of our townsmen during this " war of the sea," laid
the foundation of their fortunes in privateering. How many
of them were thus favored, and to AA'hat extent their fortunes
were increased, we are without records to show.

CHAPTER XXIIL

physicians and LAWYEES of STAMFOED.

PHYSICIANS.

Moen or Moene, Jacob, is the first member of the medical
profession whose professional title I have found on our records.
The first record in which this name occurs, bears date Mar.
4, 1701-2. In regular tOAA'n meetings, " by voat ye town do
grant to Mr. Jacob Monen, chirgaim, (chirurgeon,) that peese
of land in Rocky neck which ye town had of Stephen Bishop
upon exchange, for his incouragement to build on upon con
ditions that he settle among us."
Another bears date Oct. 6, 1707. In it, Jacob Moon sells
land to David Smith, and the " Majesties' justice," Samuel Peck,
before whom he witnessed the sale, calls him Doctor Jacob
Moene. I find an earlier record in which Jacob Moon and Mrs.
Abigail Selleck Avere recorded as married Jan. 11, 1704-5; and
subsequently several children are recorded to them. On the
10th of October, 1707, Dr. Jacob Moen, chirurgeon, desiring to
remove to New York, acknowledges receipt from John Gold,
jun., on account of his father, John Gold, sen., yeoman, one
gray mare, one quarter of mutton, and tAvelve pounds of flax.
This receipt is signed. Doctor Jacob Moene. This name is
spelled by the recorder Moon as well as Moen ; and it is sub
scribed by the Doctor himself, neither the one or the other, but
Moene. When he came hither and how he succeeded in his
profession, we knoAV as little as we do concerning the orthogra
phy of his name.
Deew, John, is the second name on our records which bears

360 HISTORY OP STAMFORD.
this professional title. He married here, Feb. 4, 1714, Eliza
beth, a daughter, probably, of one Joseph Green. Mrs. Drew
is on record as having died Mar. 25, 1716; and of Dr. Drew,
nothing further appears on record.
Bishop, Ebenezee, stands third on the medical list. This
name is found on page 58 of the records of births, marriages
and deaths. Book No. I. The record informs us ' that Doctor
Ebenezer Bishop dyed on October ye 4th day, 1743. The same
record gives us the death of Thomas, a brother of the doctor ;
of Mrs. Sarah Jefferey, his sister; and Sarah, his mother.
Hubbard, Nathaniel, is our fourth recorded " Doctor ;" and
the first mention of his name with its professional title, is in
the year 1748, when he is reported as a member of the school
committee. It is still remembered by some of our oldsst citi
zens that a physician of this name once lived in the house on
South Street, just north of the residence of John Furguson, Esq.
It is also remembered that he Avas spoken of as a man of unusual
skill in his profession ; that he was a very active and energetic
man ; that he was remarkably prompt and forcible both- in
speech and act ; and that his unusual force of character and ex
pression, together with his inexorable practical applications,
left the impression that he was a man of unfeeling and cruel
harshness. He probably is the Nathaniel Hubbard Avho mar
ried. May 18, 1733, Mary Quintard. They had a son, Na
thaniel, who was b. Apr. 29, 1745. In 1853 he seUs land lying
on the road to Stanwich.
On our list of physicians should be found the names of sev
eral " ancient" dames of the town, in Avhose hands for the
first hundred years probably was the most of the medical
practice known here. It is hardly probably that they Avere
ever matriculated, M. Ds., as this branch of the medical faculty
was yet to come, nor Avere they, probably, professionally
taught the healing art ; yet they exercised such gifts and skUl
of healing as came to them when the necessity for such practice
'arose.

physicians and LAWYEES. 361
That the profession was honorable in these early days is plain
from the honorable mention made of it in the records, as wit
ness the following : " Mrs. Sarah Bates, a useful and skillful
midwife, departed this life in Stamford in the evening of the
eighteenth day of February in the year 1711-12."
Peeez Fitch, who graduated at Yale in 1750, stands next on
the list. He was born in Canterbury, a son of Major James F.
Fitch and great grandson of Rev. James Fitch, the first minis
ter in Norwich. He married here Sept. 4, 1753, Mrs. Martha
Coggshall ; and they had children recorded to them ; Martha,
b. July 20, 1754; William, b. Oct., 10, 1756; AbigaU, Mar. 29
1760; Kate, baptized in 1763; Betsey, b. Oct. 4, 1765, and
Samuel, b. Aug. 20, 1768.
Dr. Fitch united with the church here, by letter, Sept. 9, 1759 ;
and Martha, his Avife, July 6, 1760. In 1757, Capt. Perez Fitch
is ordered to sit in the fore pew in the meeting house, which
fact sufficiently indicates the social position of the family at
that date. Dr. Fitch died before 1776 ; and of course we have
no citizens now left who have any personal knoAvledge of him
01 of his professional standing. We have those still living,
hoAvever, who remenber to have heard him spoken of as a very
afiable and pleasant gentleman ; as urbane and courtly as his
competitor. Dr. Hubbard was, forcible and rough. After his
death his widoAv married, Aug. 8, 1776, the Hon. Abraham
Davenport, of this town.
CoGGSAVELL, James, son of the Rev. Dr. .James and Alice
(Fitch) GoggsAvell, of Windham, Scotland Society. After
studying medicine, he was settled for a while in Preston ; and
on the opening of the revolutionary war he was commissioned
a surgeon. In the practice of his official duties, he was sta
tioned in this \acinity, and while the war was going on, he mar
ried here, August 8, 1776, Ehzabeth, third chUd of Hon. Abra
ham and Elizabeth (Huntington) Davenport. While here he
seems to have been active, both in the affairs of the church and
those of the town. On the death of Dr. Welles, in 1776, be
46

362 HISTOEY OF STAMFOED.
was appointed on the committee of sujDply for the church. In
1779, while the war Avas still going on, the town voted him
liberty " to set up a small pox hospital at the house of Gapt.
Reuben Scofield, and at such other houses not within one mile
of the heart of the tOAvn, after liberty first obtained of the
neighborhood ; and all such hospitals to be under the inspection
of the selectmen." Dr. GoggsAvell remained here untiL aftor
the war. His Avife died, November 15, 1779, and he married
the second time, May 18, 1783, Mrs. Abigail Lloyd, by whom
he had children — James, John, Sarah, and Harriet. He re
moved from Stamford to New York city, where he became emi
nent both for professional skill and for his unobtrusive yet effec
tive piety. His first wife left one daughter, Alice, who became
the wife of the Rev. Dr. Samuel W. Fisher, of Greenbush, N.
Y., and the mother of Rev. Dr. Samuel W. Fisher, Pres. of
Hamilton College.
Hough, Waltee, Avas stationed here as surgeon during the
revolutionary Avar, having his post at the fort on Fort Hill, on
the lot on which John Clason, Esq., has recently built. Ho re
mained here some years after the war. He married Patty, a
daughter of Dea. Daniel LockAvood, and lived about a mile
south of the fort. While here, his son John was born, August
17, 1783. After the birth of this son, the family removed to
Canterbury. Hubbard, Nathaniel, Avas the son of Henry Hubbard, and
was born March 4, 1772, in GreenAvich, StauAvich Society, a
short distance west of the Stamford line. After being licensed
to practice medicine, he located himself first in Greenwich, and
then for a short time in Carmel, N. Y., and in 1796, he estab
lished himself at what has since been knoAvn as Hubbard's Cor
ner, in the west part of Stamford. He so6n became knoAvn as
a successful physician, and his practice rapidly extended. For
quite a number of years his business Avas very great, and his
health was seriously impaired. His nervous system Avas so
much deranged, as to require him to abandon, at length, his

PHYSICIANS AND LAWYERS. 363
practice. In the vigor of his manhood he Avas noted for a re
markable memory, and for unusual powers of observation. Our
records give ns a partial report of his marriage. "Dr. Nathan
iel Hubbard and Mary Hubbard were married by Mr. Platt
Buffet, pastor of the church in Stanwich." The important
point of such a record, the date, is omitted. The children of
doctor and Mary, his Avife, are registered as foUoAvs : Arch, b.
in GreenAvich, October 14, 1798 ; Henry, b. in Carmel, N. Y.,
August 17,1800; Alexander, b. in Stamford, June 3, 1804 i
Mary, b. October 28, 1808 ; John Wheaton, b. May 26, 1808 ;
George Mackay, b. June 10, 1810; Eleanor, b. October 10,
1812; Sarah Thomas, b. February 17, 1815, Cornelia, b. May
16, 1817; William, b. July 24, 1719; .and Francis, b. August
17, 1821. Dr. Hubbard died in Stamford, June 27, 1855.
TowNSEND, Platt, is reported here in 1763. The town as
signed land to him, and mads over to him an old highway that
Avent from the "landing place " to Totomok Point, provided he
Avoiild secure to the town a good road to said landing, through
his land. He married here, April 26, 1760, Elizabeth, daugh
ter, probably, of Nathaniel and Mary Quintard Hubbard, who
Avas born here. May 18, 1743 ; and had a daughter, Elizabeth, b.
AprU 25, 1763. In 1777, he deeds to Charles Wright, of Hart
ford, the Tatomoc bottom lands : three islands in Stamford har
bor, near Rocky Neck and Jack's and Grassy islands, near
Shippan. In this deed he is said to be of Greenwich.
Wilson, John, is reported as being a native of the town.
He commenced practice here about 1760. He was evidently
much respected in tOAA'u; and during our revolutionary war
was one of the most influential of our citizens. He remained
here until 1796, when he removed to New York city, where he
died in 1802. He had four sons. John, who became a physi
cian, and was settled in New York city ; Stephen, also a physi
cian, of Noav York city ; James, who was a physician of West
chester county ; and Henry, b. October 10, 1763, a physician,
who settled in Bedford. He had also two daughters — Phebe,
b. September 9, 1765, and Mary.

364 HISTORY OF STAMFORD.
After the death of the mother of the above children, he m.ar-
ried again, June 16, 1787, Mrs. Elizabeth Holly. Our town re
cords, under date December 7, 1784, thus report him tous:
" Upon application made by Dr. John Wilson, praying liberty to carry
on the innoculation of the small pox under proper regulations. Voted,
That the town grant the above request, and authorize the civil authority
and selectmen to grant liberty to said Wilson to carry ou lunoculation
under the direction of said authority, as the law directs."
Wilson, John, jr., Avas with his father in business here for
some years, and then went to New York city. While here, he
married, August 12, 1778, Lydia Quintard. The births of two
of his children, are recorded here — John Quintard, b. February
3, 1781 ; and Isaac, b. April 22, 1783. He became somewhat
eminent in the city.
Smith, Isaac, was here in 1780, and as late as 1789, as phy
sician. He was son of Nathaniel and Abigail Smith, and mar
ried Abigail Waring.
Darius Knight, brother of Dr. Jonathan Knight, of Nor
walk, was a teacher in this town, and afterwards a practicing
physician for a couple of years. He was located in Darien.
James Knight, son of Dr. Jonathan Knight, of Norwalk,
settled here in the practice of medicine, and died soon after
wards, in 1818.
Samuel Webb, was born here, March 7, 1760, and Avas son
of Gol. Charles Webb, who so distinguished himself in our re
volutionary war. He graduated at Yale, in 1779, and soon es
tablished himself here in the medical profession. He became
eminent in his profession, and eminent also in civil life. He re
presented Stamford in the state legislature several times, and
was one of the most active citizens in all measures which pro
mised the social Avelfare of the community.
He had studied medicine with Dr. John WUson, an eminent
physician of the town. He married December 15, 1781, Mary,
a daughter of Dr. Wilson, and by her, had Charies, b. Septem
ber 29, 1782, who became a seaman, and died in China; John

PHYSICIANS AND LAWYERS. 385
Wilson, born August 3, 1784, who was also a seaman and cap
tain, and who died of yellow fever in New Orleans ; Henry
WUson, b. November 28, 1786, and became an eminent physi
cian in New York ; William, who died in Lima, Peru ; Mary
and Betsey who died single in Stamford ; Cornelia, who died
single in Indiana ; Caroline, who became the wife of WUliam
H. Holly, Esq., and who is still living ; Angeline, and Catherine,
who married a Morehouse, of Indiana. On the death of his
first wife, he married a Miss White, of BallstOAvn, N. Y., and
had by her, James A., who was in the whale fishery, hailing
from Nantucket, and was lost ; Lucy P., who married a Mr:
Shaw, and now lives in Nova Scotia ; Fanny, who married a
Mr. Royce, and died in Nova Scotia ; and Elizabeth, now Mrs.
Thomas, of Sacramento, Gal. Dr. Webb occupied the house
still known as the " Webb house," on Atlantic street, where
he died, December 29, 1826.
Waeeen Peecival, son of Dr. Percival, of East Haddam,
where he was born, April 5, 1783. Three of his uncles and
four of his brothers were physicians. He studied with his uncle
James, father of the poet Percival, and on being licensed to
practice medicine, located himself in Middlesex parish, Stam
ford. Here he remained until his death in 1851, having prac
ticed his profession for forty-six years. He was always a care
ful but successful practitioner, and died regretted by all his old
friends and patrons. In 1809, Dr. Percival married Sarah, a
daughter of Major David Street, and by her had two children,
the eldest, a daughter, Avho married Dr. Chauncey Ayres ; and
the other, a son, who died in 1S54. Dr. Percival survived both
his children ; but his widow is stUl living on the old homestead
in Darien, in 1868.
Samuel Lockwood, Avas one of ten children of Ezra and
Anna (Davis) Lockwood, of Stamford. His parents had moved
to Watertown where he was born in July, 1787. In 1801, the
family returned to Stamford. After studying medicine with
Dr. Elton, of Watertown, he graduated at the New York Med

366 HISTORY OF STAMFORD.
ical College, and soon opened an office here, on the north side
of Park place, where Mr. SAvartAA'Out now lives. His practice be
came quite extensive, and he at once rose to eminence in his
profession. He was also much esteemed as a citizen. On re
tiring from active business in 1838, he removed to the home
stead of his father and grandfather, and built near it the resi
dence now occupied by Israel Minor.
He married Helen Sheddon, a native of Scotland. His chil
dren were, Robert, John, William, Ann, Francis, and Helen,
now Mrs. Phyffe, of Ncav York, the only surviving member of
tho family.
John Augur came to North Stamford as a teacher, about
1800, and Avas successor of RockAvell & Foote. He was a good
physician, and remained here until his death, April 16, 1827,
aged fifty years. His widoAv continued to reside in the house
he left, until her death, in 1865.
Samuel Beach came to Stamford in 1827. He at once en
rolled himself as member of the Congregational Society, and in
1 830 Avas chosen deacon of the church. He was very active
in the church, and was a popular man in the community. He
removed to Bridgeport in 1834, and was one of the victims of
the Norwalk railroad disaster of May 6, 1853.
William Turk, about 1805, a choir leader in the Congrega
tional church, and was thought skillful in his profession. He
had been a surgeon in the United States navy, to which he re
turned Avhen he left his practice in Stamford.
 Rockwell, was several years in North Stamford, and
went to Noav York city.
Benjamin Rockwell, son of above, became a physician, and
after practicing with his father, went to Noav York.
Uriah Turner, an inteUigent man and skillful physician
Avas here a few years, and Avent to New York.
A few other names have appeared, for a brief time, on the list
of practicing physicians in the town, of which I have been un-

physicians and lawyers. 387
able to learn any other facts. Their names have been, Foote
Banks, Guilds, Tuckee, and Close.
Nathaniel D. Haight, a native of Peekskill, N. Y., gradua
ted in medicine at Pittsford, N. Y., in 1825, and came to Stam
ford in 1826, settling first at North Stamford, but soon removing
to the village, where he has had an extensive practice ever
since. He married in 1824 Phebe Dauchy of Ridgefield. They
have had three children ; Wm. B., now in the drug business in
Stamford ; Bradford ; and Mary E., wife of Samuel H. Holmes of
Stamford. Chauncey Ayres, born in New Canaan, Ang. 14, 1808 ; grad
uated in medicine at Yale in 1831. He first opened an office in
Greenwich, and later in Ngav York, but after a few months set
tled permanently here in 1834, Avhere he has secured a good
practice. His first wife Avas daughter to Dr. Peroival, of
Darien ; and their children Avere a son, now engineer in the LT.
S. N., and three daughters. His second Avife was Mrs. Julia A.
Simpson, of Brooklyn, N. Y., by Avhom he has three children.
Harrison Tellee, settled in 1843, in Stamford, and afte.i
ten year's practice, went to Brooklyn, N. Y. His wife and
two daughters Avere members of the church in North Stamford
in 1848.
Samuel Sands has practiced medicine for several years in
Darien, where he still resides.
Robert Lockwood, son of Dr. Samuel above, was a native
of the tOAVii. He studied medicine with his father, aud took
his diploma from the New York Medical College. He engaged
here in the practice of medicine, and in the drug business, bnt
died at the early age of thirty.
Lewis Raymond Hurlbutt, is a native of Wilton. He
graduated at Yale in 1843, was tutor from 1847 to 1850, Avhon
he received his medical diploma. He came to Stamford in 1852,
and from the first took a high rank in his profession. He rnar-
ried MatUda, daughter of Augustus R. Moon, of Stamford, and
has had seven children.

368 HISTOET OF STAMFOED.
William H. Trowbridge, son of James H., of Danbury,
graduated in medicine at Yale in 1835, and located him.self
here in 1851. Excepting the period he Avas in the service of the
government as army surgeon he has been in successful practice.
Joseph Hoave, a native of Bedford, N. Y., where he studied
medicine. He settled in North Stamford in 1853, where he
died of consumption, after a successful practice of eight years,
NoA^ 2, 1861. He was a worthy christian gentleman, as well as
a good physician.
George Huntington, a graduate of Albany Medical College
was here a few months, and Avent to Portage City, Wis. He
was surgeon in the LTnion army during the late Avar.
George W. Biech, a native of New York city. He studied
medicine in Brookfield, Conn., and graduated M. D. at Yale in
1858, and settled first in Reading, and in 1861 came to-North
Stamford, as successor to Dr. Howe. Ho has this year, (1838)
removed to the Borough of Stamford and opened his office on
the corner of Atlantic and Broad Streets.
Russell Y. Griswold, graduated at WilliamstOAvn College in
1832 and in medicine at Pittsfield, Mass. He commenced
Ijractice in Lanesboro, Mass., and in May, 1859, settled in
Stamford. ' B. Keith, came to Stamford from New York city, where he
had been for many years a medical practitioner. His specialty
js in the treatment of chronic diseases.
Pierre R. Hollt, son of Wm. Welles IloUy, of Stamford,
graduated at Yale in 1852. After a practice of a few years in the
West Indies, and in GreenAvich, Conn., he settled, here, in his
profession in 1860.
James H. Hoyt, a native of New Caanan, graduated in medi
cine at the College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York and
practiced in that city one year, and .afterwards in Greenwich.
He came to Stamford in 1867 and went into partnership with
Dr. Haight.

physicians and lawyers. 369
laavyees.
The foUoAving embraces all whom I have found accredited to
Stamford, at any time, as lawyers. The list begins in 1797,
when the State Register reports the first tAvo on the list.
John Davenpoet, the first child of Hon. Abraham and
Elizabeth (Huntington) Davenport, was born in Stamford, Jan.
16,1752. He graduated at Yale in 1770. His scholarship is
indicated in his appointment to a tutorship in 1773. Entering
on the legal profession, he Avas soon called to take an important
place among the revolutionary patriots of that day. With a
major's- commission he was employed in commissary depart
ment, and his duties here were often onerous and difficult.
When the patriot cause was suffering for the Avant of a suitable
public interest in the Avelfare of the new nation just ordained by
the declaration of independence, he was appointed by the As
sembly of the state as one of a commission to visit the principal
towns and arouse the people to a just sense of their dangers and
move them to corresponding exertions.
On the death of his brother James, in 1799, he Avas chosen to
take his place in the national Congress, and held his seat in the
House of Representatives until 1817, Avhen he declined a re
election. He was a member of the Congregational church in
Stamford, of which he was appointed deacon in 1795. This was
the office in which his eminent goodness was best shoAvn. He
was, to his death, an example of earnest, living piety, whose
fruits Avere ever manifest in the character of a benevolent, fer
vent and exemplary christian. His death occurred Nov. 28
1830. His wife was Mary Sylvester Welles, daughter of the Rev.
Dr. Noah Welles, of Stamford. They Avere married May 7,
1780. Their children Avere, Elizabeth Huntington, Avho mar
ried Judge Peter W. Radcliflfe, of Brooklyn, N. Y. ; John
Alfred, who recently died in New HaA-en, Conn. ; Mary Welles,
who married James Boorman, Esq., of New York city ; Theo
dosia, who died in her tAventy-second year; Theodore, still,
47

370 HISTORY OF STAMFOED.
1868, a deacon in the Congregational church of which his great
grandfather Avas so long a pastor; Rebecca Ann, Avho died
young; and MatUda, now the Avife of Rey. Peter Lockwood, of
Binghamton, N. Y.
Joel T. Benedict, son of ReA^ Mr. Benedict of North Stam
ford, after a short practice of his legal profession became a
preacher. James Stevens, Avas the youngest child of David and
Mary (Talmage) Stevens, and Avas born July 4, 1768, in that
part of Stamford, Ponus Street, Avhich has since been incorpo
rated with the town of New Canaan. He became a lawyer, and
opened an office in his native toAvn, in the village of Stamford.
He was a man of considerable native talent, and joining heartily
n the democratic movement, then inaugurated, he won his way
to a seat in the house of representatives of our national con
gress. He was in that famous congress which passed the "Mis
souri Compromise," and gave his vote for that measure. He
represented Stamford thirteen times in the state legislature,
and Avas much in public life until his death, which took place
Apr. 4, 1835.
A brief obituary of him in the Senti7iel of that date, says ;
" Mr. Stevens has been extensively known as a kind neighbor and friend,
as a politician of sterling integrity, and as au inflexible advocate of demo
cratic principles. He has represented this toAvn iu both branches ot the
legislature of this state ; was for some time a judge of the county court ;
has been a representative from this state iu the congTe.<!s of the United
States." While here he married iu 1813, Mary, fourth daughter of
Thaddeus Hoyt. They had two daughters, Mary H. and Ann
G. Stevens, both of AA'hora are still liA'ing.
Minor, Simeon H., was son of — — -  , of Woodbury,
where he Avas born, in 1777. He was descended from that
Thomas Minor who Avas born at Chew Magna, England, April
23, 1608. Game to Noav England in 1630, and settled in New
London in 1645, where he died in 1690. He was a prominent
roan among the settlers in eastern Connecticut. His family

PHYSICIANS AND L.\WVER.S. 371
name dates back to about the middle of the fourteenth century,
when the Third Edw.ird bestowed it upon Henry the Miner, of
Mendippe Hills, Somersetshire, England, for his prompt effi
ciency in furnishing him an escort, as he embarked on that
famous invasion of France, in whioh he won the battle of Crecy,
against so great odds.
John Minor, third son of John, of Noav London, was born
in 1634, so Cothren, in his History of Woodbury, says, went to
Stratford, and thence to Woodbury, and Avas a leading man for
years. Simeon H., of Stamford, was probably a great, great grand
son of this second John. On being admitted to the bar, he set
tled in Stamford in 1831, and spent here the rest of his life.
Ho rapidly won a high position at the Fairfield county biir
of which he was a promiuent member until his de.ath, August
2, 1840. The Stamford Advocate, of the same Aveek, pays a
high tribute to his professional ability. " Possessed of a strong
mind, and sound legal judgment, no member of the bar com
manded a greater share of practice, until his health began to
fail him, than he. For fourteen years he discharged the office
of state's attorney." He represented the town in six sessions
of the legislature, and was judge of probate several years. In
the discharge of all official duties he was prompt and efficient.
He married, in Stamford, May 31, 1812, Catherine LoclcAvood,
of Greenwich. They had three children : James Hinman, b.
November 17, 1813 ; William Thomas, b. October 3, 1815 ; and
George Albert, b. June 19, 1817. His wife ' died, March 29,
1819. Feedeeick Scofield, son of Benjamin, and brother of our
venerable townsman, Selleck Scofield, was born, August 13,
1778. He graduated at Yale, in 1801, and entered the legal
profession, and for a foAV years had an office here. He subse
quently became a teacher in PhUadelphia, where he died in
1841. Wood, Joseph, was a descendant in the sixth generation, of

372 HISTOEY OF STAMFORD.
Jonas Wood, one of the pioneers of the settlement in Stamford.
Joseph Wood, second, a great grandson of the pioneer, removed
from Hempsted to Stanwich, Avhere Joseph was born, March
24, 1779. His father David, son of the above Joseph, second,
was among the respectable farmers of Stanwich, a man of intel
ligence and piety. His mother, Sarah Ingersoll, was noted for
her cheerful and amiable disposition.
Brought up on his father's farm, he acquired habits of indus
try, and being of an inquisitive turn of mind, he commenced in
his seventeenth year fitting for college. He graduated at Yale
in 1801, and devoted himself to the legal profession. His law
teacher was Judge Ghauncy, of New Haven. He was admit
ted to the bar of New Haven, when he selected Stamford as the
field for commencing- his professional career. Here he opened
an office in 1803, where he continued to practice until 1829.
During his stay here, he was held in esteem as a good citizen,
and honorable in his profession. He rejpresented the town in
the state legislature, and was judge of probate several years.
While here, he married, May 10, 1809, Frances, second
daughter of Chief-Justice Oliver Ellsworth. She was born in
Windsor, August 31, 1786, and died March 14, 1868, in New
Haven, much revered and loved for her many excellent qualities
both of her head and heart. Their children, six in number,
were all born in Stamford. Their residence was the stone
house, which has recently been transformed into the elegant
mansion of our enterprising toAvnsman, George A, Hoyt.
Frances Wolcott, their oldest daughter, was born, March 25,
1810, and is now the wife of Rev. S. GoAvles, of Gowanda,
N. Y.
Oliver Ellsworth, b. April 14, 1812, resides in New York
city, where he has for years been well known in business circles.
George Ingersoll, b. May 20, 1814, graduated in Yale, in
1833, and is a congregational minister.
Delia Williams, b. September 20, 1820, is now the wife of
Prof G. S. Lyman, of Yale College; and WiUiam Gowper, b.

PHYSICIANS AND LAWYEES. 373
November 10, 1822, married Miss Lawrence, of Brooklyn, L. I.,
and is now living at Joliet, III.
In 1826, Mr. Wood removed to Bridgeport, thence to New
York city in 1837, and from this city, in 1841, to Noav Haven,
where he spent the remainder of his life. Here he stood among
the first citizens of the classic city, in intelligence and social
Avorth. He joined Dr. Bacon's church in 1843, by a public
profession of the faith he had long cherished ; and the confi
dence he Avon for his Christian character is best shoAvn by his
selection to fill a deaconship in that ancient church in 1848.
After his removal to New Haven, he was appointed judge of
the county court, in which office he showed eminent qualities as
jurist. His stern and sterling integrity never forsook him here.
He was still later chosen to the office of the city clerk. His
tastes were especially literary. While in Ngav York he had
edited an agricultural periodical. He had also gathered large
ly the materials for a memoir of his father-in-laAV, but never
published it.
He died Nov. 13, 1856, during a session of the literary club
at the residence of Rev. Pres. Day, just after an interesting dis
cussion in which he had taken part.
Benjamin T. Shelton is reported as a practicing lawyers
here in 1812.
Chalres Haavley was born June 15, 1792, in Avhat is now
the town of Monroe, formerly Huntington, and still earlier
Stratford. His ancestors were among the early settlers of that
old town, and both on his father's and mother's side,they were
among the most respectable and honored of the settlers. Joseph
Hawley, the progenitor ot the family in this country, came to
Stratford, probably with the pioneers of the town, and for many
years was a leading man in the new colony. He represented
the town several times in the state general assembly. In his
wUl in 1689, he gives to his son Samuel all his " buildings and
lands in Parwidge, Derbyshire, in old England," indicating thus,
no doubt, the early English locality of the family.

374 HISTORY OF STAMFORD.
On his mother's side, Mr. Hawley was descended from Wil
liam Curtiss, another of the prominent settlers of Stratford.
He also numbered among his Stratford ancestors, '3ffe»ry« De
Forest, Avho fled from France on the revocation of the edict of
Nantes, in 1655, and Richard Booth, the ancestor of another
honored line.
Thus Mr. Hawley is found to belong to the best names of
Avhich our country can boast. From a record of his ancestry,
gathered by him with much pains and care, we learn the follow
ing facts. His great, great grandmother, Bethia Booth, Avas
born in 1658, and lived until 1759. At the time of her death,
her grandson, Milton Hawley, the grandfather of Charles, was
twenty-four years of age; and at the date of his death in 1819,
Charles Avas twenty-six. Thus it was made possible for Mr.
Hawley in 1865, to report from the lips of his grandfather, the
the story which he had learned from the lips of his grand
mother, of events coming under her personal observation, as far
back as 1665.
Possibly so rare an opportunity of learning the family story,
may account for one of the most marked characteristics of Mr.
HaAvley's later years, his strong family affection.
Mr. HaAvley graduated at Yale college in 1816, and entered
on the study of law in the Litchfield law school. On being
admitted to the bar, he established himself in Stamford in 1819.
From the first, his diligence in business, and his zeal in Avorking,
won the confidence of the public. That he might fit himself
locally, for his profession, he made himself early familiar Avith
the records and traditions of the toAvn ; and even became so
much interested in these gleanings for professional use, as to
form a plan of the history of the town. But he Vose so rapidly
in his profession that he found himself obliged to abandon this
attempt ; and so the opportunity of presevering much of the
material for such a history, which then existed, Avas forever lost
to the toAvn.
Giving himself wholly to his professional Avork, he soon

physicians AND LAWYERS. 376
placed himself among the first jurists of the State. From the
very beginning of his professional career he was thorough, ex
act and exhaustive in Avhatever cause he undertook. His sense
of right and justice was as keen as his discriminations of false
hood and truth ; and this made him one of the most persistent
and inexorable of advocates. A cause accepted by him became
a bond on his conscience; and he could do no less tlian his best
in its management.
He was never a politician, yet few men of the age had more
carefully studied the Avhole science of government. Without
seeking or wishiEg office he represented his adopted town in
seven sessions of the state legislature, and once represented his
senatorial district in the state senate. Once, also, he served
the state as its Lieutenant-Governor.
But his tastes and aims Avere pre-eminently professional ; and
his success and reward, both in professional eminence and in sub
stantial wealth, were very great. His estate was one of the largest
ever gathered in the toAvn, and it was as solid as it Avas large.
Of Mr. HaAvley's fine literary tastes almost every plea he
made for the last half of his professional career; and indeed
his most ordinary conversation on ordinary topics, gave most
abundant proofs. His language Avas exceedingly terse and ex
act, rising often under the glow] of earnest feeling, to a high
degreeof strong and fervid eloquence.
In his religious experience, Mr. HaAvley's record is peculiarly
one of the conscience and heart. Educated early in the faith of
the Congregational church, to the day of his death he accepted
and cordially endorsed that faith. Without ever making a pub
lic profession of religion, few men havo given better evidence of
the control of religious principles ; and both his lips and his life
modestly, yet unequivocally assured those Avho kncAv him best,
that his was the faith of Jesus.
Mr. Hawley was married Jan. 28, 1821, by the Rev. Jona
than Judd, rector of St. John's church in Stamford, to Mary S.,
daughter of David Holly, Esq., of Stamford. Their chUdren

376 HISTORY OF STAMFOED.
were ; Charles Augustus ; Martha Coggshall, now Mrs. Brant-
ingham ; Jane De Forest, noAV Mrs. Windle ; Marianna Clarke,
now Mrs. Charles W. Brown; Emmeline Smith ; Elizabeth King ;
Maria Adelaide and Francis Milton. (Soe list of graduates.)
With the excejDtions of Mrs. Windle, and Maria Avho is dead
the family are all now living in Stamford.
Alfred A. Holly, son of John Wm. and Rebecca (Welles)
HoUy, of Stamford, graduated at Union college in 1818, was
admitted to the bar, and began practice here. He soon
left the profession, and since then has been connected with the
Stamford and Savings Banks of the tOAvn.
John Bissel, was a student of law in tlie office of Charles
Hawley, and after being admitted to the bar, opened an office
here, but soon went to New York city.
Joshua B. Ferris, a native of GreeuAvjch, graduated at Yale
in 1823. He commenced Hfe in Stamford as a teacher, and af
terwards, Avhen admitted to the bar, opened here an office. He
has been successful in his profession, taking high rank as an
advocate among our Connecticut lawyers, He has represented
the town in the state legislature, and his district in the senate
He was for years judge of probate and state's attorney.
He married in 1823, Sally H. daughter of Wm. B. Peters,
Esq., and grand daughter of Rev. Dr. Peters, of Hebron.
Their children have been : Harriet,who died young ; Samuel J.,
Avho was lost at sea ; Isadore W.; Joshua B., who was drowned ;
EHzabeth J., now Mrs. Wm. R. Fosdick, of Stamford ; Mary,
L., now Avife of Rev. E. O. Flagg, of New York; Samuel P.
now major in the U. S. A. (see Stamford soldier's memorial);
and Henry J., now in the insurance business in New York.
Minor, William Thomas, LL.B., the second son of Simeon
H., of this town. See preceding sketch. He graduated at
Yale, in 1834, and studied law with his father. After being
admitted to the bar, he commenced practice in his native town
where he has continued to reside. He has alw:ays been popular
at home ; and his townsmen froin the first have looked to him

¦ ^A^M T. MINOR, L,L.D.
LATE GOVERNOR OF CONNECTICUT

physicians and lawyers. 377
as a loader for them in all local movements for the prosperity of
the tOAvn. He has represented the town in the state legislature
seven times; and once, his district, in the state senate. In 1855,
he was chosen governor of Connecticut, and re-elected the next
year. He received in 1855 the honorary LL.D. from the Wes
leyan University at MiddletOAvn. In 1864 he was appointed by
President Lincoln consul-general to Havana, which office he re
signed in 1887.
He married here, April 16, 1849, Mary C, daughter of John
W, Leeds, Esq., of Stamford. They have had five children, of
Avliom only tAvo are now living — a son, Charles W., now in the
university of Munich, Bavaria, and a daughter.
On returning to his native town, he Avas chosen to represent
the tOAVii in the state legislature ; and by the legislature he was
appointed judge of the superior court of the state.
Henry A. Mitchell, of New Canaan, was here in 1842 and
1843. He Avas judge of probate, and Avent to Bristol, where he
StiU resides.
.Tames H. Olmsted, a native of Ridgefield, came to Stam
ford as a teacher and student at law. He was admitted to the
bar, and located himself here, where he has been successful in
his profession. He married here a daughter of Col. Lorenzo
Jleeker, and has had four children.
Feancis M. Haavley, son of the Hon. Charles, a native of
Stamford, graduated at Trinity College, studied law with his
father, Avas admitted to the bar in 1864, and opened hero a law-
office. CuE'ris, Julius B., son of Nicholas Curtis, of Stamford. After
[iracticing in his profession for several years in GreenAvich, Ct.,
removed to Stamford, in 1868.
Child, Calvin G., son of Asa Child, Esq., a native of Nor
wich, Ct., graduated at Yale, 1855 ; Avas a practicing lawyer in
Noav York city until 1866, Avhen he formed a business partner
ship Avith J, B. Ferris, Esq., of this place. 48

CHAPTER XXIV.

LATER BIOGRAPHY.

Ambleb, David, son of Stephen and Deborah Ambler, Avas
born in Stamford, April 29, 1739. He spent the first thirty-four
years of his life in his native town, and won here a good name.
In 1766 he united with the Congregational church. Our re
cords, both church and town, show him to have been an active
and efficient man, and when he removed to Woodbury, he soon
Avon for himself there the reputation of a thorough, practical
man, and was held in great esteem and honor. He was proba
bly a grandson of our Abraham Ambler. He married in 1761,
Olive A., sister of Rev. Benjamin Wildman, of Suuthbury, and
in 1773, removed to Bethlehem society, then in the toAvn of
Woodbury, but since incorporated as a separate town. He re
presented his adopted town in ten sessions of the state legisla
ture. Cothren's History of Woodbury says of him:
"He had for a long period the supervision of the town affairs in the sec-
tion where he resided ; was an efficient magistrate, aud during the revolu
tion rendered important services to the country, as committee of safety
and in procuring aud forwarding supplies to the army. He died January
8, 1808." His widow moved to Bridgewator, N. Y., Avhore she lived
many years with her daughter. They had ten children.
Bell, Thaddeus, was the son of Thaddeus and Mary (Leeds)
Bell, and Avas born in Stamford, March 18, 1758-9. He was
early brought forward into public lite, and for a period of a half
century, was ono of the most noted men in tlie town. For eleven

LATER BIOaRAPHA". 379
sessions he represented the town in the legislature, and was
much of his life employed in public business, for his town and
county. But he is best known a^ one of the most earnest of
our revolutionary patriots. The following tribute to his serv
ices in that struggle, is from the pen of G. G. Hathorn, Esq.,
late of Williamsburg, Avho married a daughter of Mr. Bell.
"He Avas attached to the coast gjiardduripg the revolutionary war, and for
a considerable portion of the time was orderly sergeant iu the company to
which he belonged. He was present on several noted occasions iu the Avar,
such as the burning of Danbury, he being one of the small number who com
pelled the British forces to retreat precipitate ly through Saugatuck, now
Westport, to Compo, the place- of their embarkation. He also participated
in an attempted defense, on the firing ot Norwalk by the British, and was
among the number Avho reinforced the brave Gen. Putman after his famous
descent on horseback of the precipice now known as '• Put's Hill." He re
membered having seen tbe holes iu the General's hat produeed by a baU-
fired at him in his daring descent, and often reiterated the exclamation of
brave "Old Put" when he in, turn became the pursuer, and waving his
Bword shouted, " come on brajzebojis."... He was- also, with a number of his
follow parishoners, and.^tjheir veUerable pastor, Doctor Mather, taken un
armed fromtbe hpuae in which he wiis worshiping on 'the Sabbath by a band
of tories aud British, and conveyed to New York, where he sijffered impris
onment foj- upwjAi-ds of four mouth's, among felons of the lowest grade. His
own brother died on his wayhoiiie, -and be himself Ai-as so low and emaci
ated that' he was unable ;t6 wivlk and had to be caiirrje-l to'his home and
family npojia lilter." r ¦ •.
Mr. .Bell :married hare. May 4, 1780, Elizabeth How. Their
children Avere : Hannah,' b. September 14, 1781 ; James, b. Oc
tober 7, 1763; and !Sarali,b'. May 6, 1787. He "died, aftcrause-
fullife, iu great pe.ace, and, with a firm hope, October 31, 1851.
Bishop, Alfred, descended from our second minister. Rev.
John Bishop, was son of WiUiam and Susanna (Scofield) Bish.
op, and Avas born here, December 21, 1798. His boyhood Avas
noted for nothing more than its quiet and respectful deportment.
At an early age, he commenced his self-reliant career as a
teacher in one of our public schools. He taught but a short
time, when he Avent into Noav Jersey with tho intention of
spending his days in farming. While thus employed, he made
presonal experiments with his pick ax, shovel, and wheelbarrow.

380 HISTOKY' OP STAMFORD.
from Avhicli he accurately estimated the cost of removing vari
ous masses of earth to different distances. In this AA'ay he pre
pared himself for the great work of his life, as canal and rail
road contractor. Among the public works on which he was
engaged, and Avhich constitute the best monument to his name,
are the Morris canjil, in New Jersey; the great bridge over the
Raritan, at Noav BrunsAvick ; the Housatonic, Berkshire, Wash
ington and Saratoga, Naugatuck, and the New^ York and New
Haven railroads.
He removed from New .Jersey to Bridgeport, Ct., where he
spent the rest of his life. It is not claiming too much for him
to say, that this flourishing city owes much to his enterprise
and public spirit. Mr. Bishop readily inspired confidence in
his plans for public improvements, and at his call the largest
sums Avore cheerfully supplied.
But in the very midst of his extensive operations, and Avhile
forming plans for still greater works, he was suddenly arrested
by his last sickness. From the first he felt that it Avould jirove
fatal ; arid nOAV, still more than Avhile in health, he disj^layed
his remarkable talents in arranging and planning all the details
of a complicated operation. In the midst of great physical
sufifering, he detailed with minuteness the necessary steps for
closing up all his extensive business eugagements, laying out
the work for his executors, as he Avould plan the details of au
ordinary contract for a railroad. He then, in the same business
manner, distributed his large estate. One quarter of it he dis
posed of in gratuities, outside of his own family, partly to his
more distant relatives, partly to his personal friends Avho had
been unfortunate, and partly to strictly benevolent uses. His
pastor was remembered Avith a hundred dollars annuity. The
American Bible Society received $10,000, and -the Female Ben
evolent Society, of Bridgeport, $5,000. After thus distributing
one-fourth of the estate, he entailed the balance upon his Avife
and children.
Mr. Bishop married Mary, daughter of Ethan Ferris, of Green
wich, and had three sons, all born in New Jersey.

LATER BIOGRAPHY. 381
Ethan Ferris, Avho was educated at Yale, and took his mas-
er's degre e at Trinity, took orders in the Episcopal church,
and has had charge of a parish in Bridgeport, Ct., where he es
tablished St. Luke's college for the education of orphans and
destitute boys.
WUliam Darius graduated at Yale, 1849, and has once re
presented his district in the national congress, and is noAV pre
sident of the Noav York and NeAV If aven railroad ; and Henry,
Avho Avas educated at Trinity college, Hartford, and uoav lives
in Bridgeport. The widow, Avho is noAV traveling in Europe,
still occupies the elegant residence built by her husband, on
Golden Hill, in Bridgeport.
Davenpoet, Hon. Abeaham, Avas born in Stamford, in 1715,
the eighth child of the Rev. .John Davenport, by his second
wife, Mrs. Elizabeth (Morris) Maltby. He graduated at Yale
in 1732, and we soon find him at home filling such offices in the
gift of his tOAvnsmen, as the most promising young man of the
times were allowed to hold. Our town records, from that date
to the end of his eminent and honored Hfe, are full of witnesses
to the esteem with which the people regarded him, and the uni
versal trust reposed in him. In the most trj'ing period of our
history, that of our revolution, he seems to have been the one to
VA'hom the town looked for counsel and defense. No man has ever
served the town as one of its selectmen as long as he. He also
represented the town in the state legislature for tAventy-five ses
sions, and at several of them was clerk of the house. He was
state senator from 1766 to 1784. He was judge of probate for
several years, and at his death Avas judge of the county court.
He was, also, very active in religion, being a deacon in the Con
gregational church from 1759 to 1789.
In 1776 he and his son John and Thaddeus Burr, were sent
to the army under Washington, to assist in '• arranging it into
companies and regiments," and to commission the officers ap
pointed by the assembly for the battalions raised by the state.
Ho was likoAvise empowered to arrest and bring to trial persons
suspected of irresolution or disloyalty.

382 ULSTORY of STAMFORD.
Iu 177 7 he Avas one of the committee of safety for the state;
and he Avas always consulted by Governor Trumbull and Gen
eral Washington as one of the Avisest counselors in our most
trying days.
He married his first Avife, November 16, 1750, Elizabeth
daughter of Colonel Jabez Huntington, of Windham. Their
children Avere : John, whose biographical sketch will ajipear in
its place ; Abraham, who died in infancy ; Elizabeth, Avife of
Dr. Cogswell, Avhose record is among our physicians ; James,
Avhose sketch Avill foUoAV in its place; and Huntington, Avho
died in childhood. After the death of his first wife, December
17, 1773, he married August 8, 1776, 3Irs. Martha, Avidow of
Dr. Perez Fitch, of this tOAvn.
The foUoAving is the estimate in Avhich he Avas held by a man
as competent to judge as the eminent Dr. Dwight. The testi
monial deserves a place in our local history.
" Col. Davenport was possessed of a vigorous understanding aud invinci
ble firmness of mind, of integrity and justice unqutstioned, even by his
enemies ; Of veracity exact iu a degree nearly singular ; and of a weight of
character which for many years decided in this county almost every ques
tion to which it was lent. He was early a professor of the christian reli
gion, and adorned its doctrines by an exemplary conformity to its precepts.
He was often styled a rough diamond, and tbe appellation was, perhaps,
never given with more propriety. His virtues were all of the masculine
kind ; less soft, graceful and alluring tban bis friends wished, but more ex
tensively productive of real good to mankind than those of almost any
man who has been distinguished for geutleuess ot character. It would be
happy for this or any other country, if the magistracy should execute it?
laws with the exactness for Avhich he was distinguished. Col. Davenport
acquired property with diligence, and preserved it with frugality ; and
hence Avns by many persons supposed to regard it with an improper attach
ment. This, however, was a very erroneous opinion. Of what was merely
ornamental, he Avas, I think, too regardless ; but the poor found nowhere
a more liberal benefactor, nor the stranger a more ho.spitable host. I say"
this from a personal knowledge, acquired by along-continued and intimate
acquaintance with him and his family. While Ihe war had its pviuoipai
seat in the state of New York, he took the entire superintendence of tbe
sick soldiers, who were returning home ; filled his own house with them,
aud devoted to their relief his own time and that of his family, while he

LATEE BIOGEAPHY. 383
provided elsewhere the best accommodations for such as he could not re
ceive. In a season when an expectation of approaching scarcity had raised
the price of bread corn to an enormous height, he not only sold the produce
off his own farms to the poor, at the former customary price, but bought
corn extensively, and sold this also, as he had sold his own. His alms wi-re
at the same time rarely rivaled in their extent.
"Two instances of Col. Davenport's firmness deserved to be mentiomd.
The 19th of May, 1780, was a remarkably dark day. Candles were ligbted
in many houses ; the birds were silent, and disappeared ; the fowls retired
to roost. The legislature was then in session at Hartford. A very general
opinion prevailed that the Day of Judgment was at hand. The house of
representatives being unable to transact their business, adjourned. A. pro
posal to adjourn the council was under consideration, when the opinion of
Ool. Davenport was asked. He answered :
"'lam against an adjournment. The Day of Judgment is either ap
proaching, or it is not. If it is not. there is no cause for an adjourn meut ;
if it is, I choose to be found doing my duty. I wish, therefore, that cau
dies may be brought.'
"The other instance took place at Danbury, at the court of common
pleas, of which he was chief-justice. This venerable man, after he wn.'i
struck with death, heard a considerable part of a trial, gave the charge to
the jury, and took notice of an article in the testimony which had escaped
the attention of the counsel ou both sides . He then retired from the bench.
and was soon after found dead in his bed.
" To his private friends Col. Davenport extended his acts of kindness,
as if they had been his children. I say this from experience. Of his coun
try, and of all its great interests, he was a pillar of granite. Nothing im
paired, nothing moved his resolution aud firmness, while destined to .'•up-
port iu his own station this valuable edifice. He died, as he had long
wished to die, iu the immediate performance of his duty, November 20,
1789, in the seventy-fourth year of his age."
Rev. James Davenport, Avas the younger son of Rev. Jo!in
Davenport and his second wife, Mrs. Elizabeth (Morris)
Malthy. He was born in Stamford in 1716 and graduated at
Yale in 1732. In 1738 he became pastor of the church in
Southold, L. I. Here he labored with great acceptance, about
two years. He was regarded as a m.an of much promise, Avarni
hearted, zealous, sound in doctrine, and faithful to the sacred
responsibilities of his office. Earnest and impressive, he Ava.^
eminently fitted to move the masses in any community, and lii.-;

384 HISTORY OF STAMFORD.
opening ministry gave promise of great influenee and usefulness.
Soon after his settlement the gifted and earnest Whitfield
came to this country, and by his impassioned eloquence stirred
the hearts of all christian believers with new and strong im
pulses. Even cold hearted christians were warmed to the earu-
est fervor of religious zeal. Mr. Davenport could not resist
those moving appeals. He yielded to the spell of the great pul
pit orator, and his enthusiasm know no bounds. He became
restless under ecclesiastical restraint. He could no lo nger con
tent himself to work on the narroAV field of his limited parish.
Fie, felt himself called to go forth and stir up unfaithful churches,
and arouse from their slumbers the masses of the impenitent,
Avho seemed to him to be on the very verge of ruin. GaUing
his people together, he gave them notice of the new call he had
received, and after a lengthy and impassioned expostulation
with them for their worldliness, he turned away, burning with
a zeal which would brook no hindracce to achieve elsewhere
readier triumphs in his master's cause. He soon joined the
Tennents and Whitfield and even incited them to greater fervor
in their holy work. In Pennsylvania, Noav Jersey, New York,
Connecticut and Rhode Island, wherever listeners could he
gathered, and Avhere could they not be found flocking around
any banner sustained Avith such gifts and such zeal, this earnest
apostle labored, in season and out of season, rashly at times, no
doubt, yet with constant witnesses to his poAver. Wherever
he AA^ent he was thronged. Even ministers, who deprecated his
irregularities, were moved often to admiration of his spirit and
success. Warm-hearted and impulsive men called him " the
angel of the Lord." Sober-minded and careful men acknowl
edged the poAA'or they Avcro unable to resist. Abundant testi
monies are on record to the triumjihs of his eloquent zeal.
Whitfield, himself, felt rebuked by his heavenly spirit, and the
ardent Tennent was stimulated by him to intenser earnestness
in his self-consuming Avork. His brethren in the ministry every
Avhere yielded to him the palm for an ardor and efficiency in
Avinning men to Christ, AA'hich Avns beyond their reach. Towns

LATER BIOSEAFHY. 385
which had never before been visited with what could have been
called a revival of religion, were swayed by his impassioned
plea, as the forest by the winds. Strong men and children
bowed themselves down together, trembling with terror, or
molting in tenderness and love. But it Avas not long before
Mr. Davenport found that not even his eloquence could plead
his cause against the fears of his brethren, who were set to
guard the orthodoxy and the ecclesiastical proprieties of these
churches. It was rumored that he was becoming intemperate
in his zeal ; that he was undermining the confidence of the church
es in their o;rdinary means of grace ; that he was sowing broad
cast, seed most fruitful of divisions in the churches, and apostacies
from the faith, and of the wildest and most lawless fanaticism.
Gradually his ministerial brethren began to distrust and de
nounce him. In his turn he became censorious. If he could
not preach to the people, he could find occasion to pour his in
vective upon their ministers. He could cast contempt upon the
profession, of piety which did not approve and aid his plans.
He could forge his hottest anathema for those who sought to
moderate his zeal or to limit his influence.
And the opposition Avhich his erratic career aroused against
him, went still further. A petition to the governor and assem
bly, at Hartford, was sent from the parish of Ripton, in Strat
ford, by Jo,seph Blackleach and Samuel Adams, charging that
Mr. Davenport had come into their parish between the tAventy-
first and tAventy-fifth of May, 1742, and Avith " one Pomeroy,"
and several "Elotarate" men, had acted in a strange and mr
accountable manner, Avith many expressions unwarranted from
the word of God ; did affright and terrify the people, and put
them into the utmost confusion, contention, hate, and anger
among themselves. This charge and plea the general assembly
deemed Avorthy their notice. They issued a warrant to Samuel
Tiilcott, sherift" of Hartford county, to arrest both Davenport
and Pomeroy, afterwards Dr. Pomeroy, who for half a century
was the minister of Hebron, where he had been ordained iu
1735. A laAV had just been framed by the assembly, in view of
49

386 , HISTORY OF STAMFORD.
the great excitement attending the great revival of 1740,
against all fanatical excesses and gross irregularities. The as
sembly found that Mr. Davenport had been guilty of "great
disorders." Yet in consequence of some indications of partial
insanity, by reason of his " enthusiastic impressions " and im
pulses," he Avas dismissed with no further punishment. They
also decided that Mr. Pomeroy had done nothing "worthy of
stripes or death ;" and he, too, Avas dismissed. Mr. Davenport
continued to labor " in season, out of season," through the rest
of this and the foUoAving year. His feelings, which had been
his master, gradually yielded to the dictates of his taste and
Judgment, which were constitutionally right. In 1746 he Avas
regularly dismissed from his charge in Southold, L. I., and soon
settled in Hopewell, N. J. Here he labored Avith general satis
faction, until 1755, when death put an end to his somewhat
checkered but by no means useless life. He had threo chil
dren : John, Avho graduated at Princeton in 1769, and became
a Presbyterian clergyman ; James, and Elizabeth, who married
a Mr. Kelsey, of Princeton.
Davenpoet, Hon. James, the fourth child of Hon. Abraham
and Elizabeth (Huntington) Davenport, was born in Stamford,
October 12, 1758, and graduated in Yale in 1779. Like his
father and his elder brother John, he Avas an earnest patriot,
and during the revolution Avas employed in the commissary de
partment. His tastes were especially literary ; .and though
much in public life, having been a laAvyer by profession, with
the office of the judge of the court of common pleas, a member
of the state legislature in both houses, and a member of the
national congress, he still found time to make himself one of the
most intelligent men of his times, upon all subjects that received
the attention of scholars and thinkers He Avas a fellow of Yale
college from 1793 until his death. The folloAving testimony of
Dr. Dwight, himself one of the most learned men of the day, is
worthy a place in this tribute to one of the most gifted men of
the tOAvn.
"^Few persons in this country have been mote, or more deservedly

LATER BIOGRAPHY. 387
Bstaemed than the Hon. James D.'^venport. His mind was of a structure
almost singular. An inferior constitution precluded him to a considera
ble extent, from laborious study, during his early years ; and, indeed,
throughout most of his life. Tet an unweraied attention to useful objects,
a critical observation of everything important which fell under his eye, and
a strong attachment to intelligent conversation, enabled him by the aid of
a. discernment almost intuitive, to accumulate a rich fund of valuable
knowledge. With respect to conversation, he Avas peculiar. The company
of intelligent persons he sought, with the same eagerness and constancy, as
the student his books. Here he always started topics of iuvestigfttion, fitted
to improve the mind, as well as to please, and in this way gathered knowl
edge with the industry and success with which the bee makes every flower
increase the treasure of its hive. I never knew the value of intelligent con
versation and tbe extent of the coutiibutions, which it is capable of furn
ishing to the stock of public knowledge possessed by an individual, exhibited
more clearly and decisively, tban in his example. At the same time his
own conversation was so agreeable, and intelligent, and his manners so en
gaging, that his company was coveted by all his numerous acquaintance.
His life, also, was without a stain ; and on his integrity, candor, and jus
tice, his oountrymeu placed an absolute reliance. With these qualifica
tions, it will not be a matter of wonder, that at an early period of his life,
he was employed by the public in an almost continual successiion of
public business : or that he executed every commission of this nature. He
died in the thirty-ninth year of his age of a paralytic stroke, brought
on by a long continued, and very severe chronic rheumatism. Few persons
have been more universally or deeply lamented."
He had married May 7, 1780, Abigail Fitch, who died in
November, 1782. He married his second wife, November 6,
1790, Mehitabel Coggshall. The only chUd of his first Avife,
Betsey GoggshaU, became the wife of Charles W. Aphthorp, of
Boston. By his second wife he had three children : Abigail
Fitch, born November 18, 1791, Avho was the Avife of that gifted
pulpit orator. Rev. Philip Melancthon Whelpley, the pastor of
the first Presbyterian church in Noav York city ; Mary Anne,
born November 16, 1793, the wife of the accomplished scholar
and Christian minister, Rev. Matthias Bruen, of the Bleecker
street church, Noav York city ; and Frances Louisa, born Nov
ember 10, 1795, the wife of that eminent preacher and theolo
gian, the Rev. Dr. Thomas H. Skinner, of New York.
He died August 3, 1799.

388 HISTORY OF STAMFORD.
, Ebenezee Dibble, who became the principal pioneer in the
Episcopal movement here, I have supposed to be the son of
Zachariah and Sarah (Clements) Dibble. If so, he Avas born
July 18, 1706. He graduated at Yale in 1734, and the same
year was licensed to preach by the Fairfield East Association.
We hear nothing further of him, — except that the First Soci
ety, of Stamford, passed a special, and apparently an exception
al vote, in 1741, giving him a vote in Society meeting — untU
we find him seeking orders in the Episcopal church. This ap
pears in 1746, in a letter of Dr. Johnson, of Stratford, who
writes, " I have heretofore desired leave for Messrs. Dibble and
Leaming to go for orders." But the next year, in a letter to
the Bishop of London, after stating that he is alone in the min
istry on the seacoast, for a distance of a hundred miles, and that
his burden is insupportable, he complains that no leave has yet
been granted to any to go home for orders, " though there are
five or six valuable candidates."
Under date of December 27, 1747, the secretary of tho Soci
ety grants liberty for Mr. Dibble to go home for holy orders,
and to take charge of our (Stamford) church, with that of Nor
walk ;" the conditions being " that Stamford should pay ten
pounds sterling annually for his support ; and NorAvalk should
give security for twenty pounds more, with the actual posses
sion of their glebe."
In the letter which gives us these items of intelligence, dated
April 26, 1748, the churchwardens of Stamford urge their plea
for the entire services of Mr. Dibble, on the ground that they
appreciate his labors more highly than the Norwalk people, be
cause he had already read service " among us steadily for two
years and a half," and because " Ave have great esteem and re
gard " for him. They add, using their own italics, " we shall
be very much gratified if we can obtain from the venerable so
ciety's great charity, his being appointed their missionary for
our church." Again in this letter they say, " our people, from
a hearty affection to Mr. Dibble, resolved cheerfully to under-

LATEE BIOGRAPHY. 389
take the expense of his voyage, and avo have effectually secured
the payment of twenty pounds sterling per annum to the soci
ety's missionary, according to our bond in Mr. Dibble's hand,
and promise hereby to put him in possession of our glebe, which
is better than that of Norwalk." If, hoAvever, the society
should still think it better to keep the two parishes united
under Mr. Dibble's care, they gracefully add, " we humbly sub
mit, and shall be heartily thankful for any share in Mr. Dibble's
ministry." Mr. Dibble reached Stamford , October 25, 1748, after having
taken orders in England. In his first report to the secretary of
the society, November 14, 1748, he mentions the cordial recep
tion he met with on his return home. He speaks also of the
ofiense which his course had given the Norwalk people, allu
ding probably to his nnwillingness to accept the united charge
of the two parishes.
Of Mr. Dibble's laborious service in his profession, we have
abundant proof in his reports to the society. His zeal and labors
must have been quite apostolic, extending to Norwalk, Ridge
field, and on the "oblong" between New York and Connecticut
twentyor thirty miles," at the same time, faithfully ministering
to the spiritual wants of his OAvn parish.
In 1752 he received a call to the parishes in NewtovA'n and
Reading, with a larger salary than he was getting here. This
call he refused. A similar call came, also, in 1760, from Rye,
but could not tempt him to leave the Stamford parish.
On the opening of the revolution Mr. Dibble, as a matter of
course, opposed the revolutionary move. As early as October
18, 1768, we find him in one of his reports to the society using
this language :
"With pleasure I can inform the venerable board, of the peaceable,
flourishing, increasing state of my parish, and of their firm attachment to
our happy constitution, both in church and state, nothAvithstanding party
rage never ran higher ; and under the specious pretence of civil and reli
gious liberty, every art is used to throw us into all imaginable confusion,
and to prejudice hia majesty's subjects against the conduct of the govern-

390 HISTORY OF STAMFORD.
ment in being, and our religious constitution in particular. We hope in
God for better times."
His position in 1775, on the opening of actual hostilities, is
thus shown in another letter, of the 5th of April, of that year.
"We view with the deepest anxiety, affliction and concern, the great dan
gers we are in by reason of our unhappy divisions, and the amazing heigUt
to which the unfortunate dispute between Great Britain and these remote
provinces hath arisen, the baneful influence it hath upon the interest of
true religion, and the well-being of the church. Our duty as ministers is
now attended with peculiar difficulty — faithfully to discharge the duties of
our office, aud yet carefully to avoid taking part in these political disputes,
as I trust my brethren in this colony have done, as much as possible, not
withstanding any representation to our prejudice, to the contrary."
While thus opposing the revolution with conscientious earn
estness, 1 find no evidence that he was ever seriously endangered
in his person and family, by Avhat, he still spoke of as an unjus
tifiable rebellion. His personal popularity was probably his
defense. Mr. Seabury, who afterwards became bishop, iu
speaking of the Episcopal clergy of Connecticut says : " 1 be
lieve they are all, either carried away from their cures, or con
fined to their houses, except Mr. Dibble, who is gone to Sharon
to be inoculated for the small pox, — possibly hoping thereby to
enjoy a few weeks respite from persecution." However it may
have been during the Avar, at its close he came forward and care
fully acknowledged his allegiance to the new government and re
mained until his death a faithful churchman, and a successful
and popular minister.
Testimonials to the gentlemanly bearing and christian
character of Mr. Dibble are abundant. He was hold in very
high esteem by Christian people of every denomination. One
of the lay patrons of the Episcopal Church who spent large
sums of money and devoted much time to the welfare of the
church he loved, who had made a tour of the churches Avith him
in 1762, boars witness to the unwearied and unceasing labors
in which he endeavored " to serve the interest of true religion
and our holy churcli : — whose services I find universally accept
able, and his life agreeable to his pubUc chsiracter."

LATEE BIOGEAPHY. 391
The foUoAving record, on the monument in St. John's Church,
is a just tribute to the AVorth of this successful minister of
Christ :
" As a missionary of the ' Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in
Foreign Parts,' he entered upon the duties of his sacred office October 16,
1748, and continued to discharge them in this capacity, with great fidelity
and zeal until the close of the revolutionary war. Subsequently to this
period he fulfilled his duties unconnected with the society in England until
1799 when he died full of years, in peace with God and charity with man-
rector of St. John's pa]-i.sh 51 years.
He became endeared to all by his unwavering devotion to their best in
terests, bis holy life, unremitted zeal in the name of Christ and his
church." Of the family of Dr. Dibble I have found on record only the
foUowing : A gift of land to Dr. Dibble in 1752, for his AA-ife,
Joanna from Jonathan Bates, calls her " my loving daughter,"
thus preserving for us her parentage. The only children re
corded to them, which I have been able to find, are : Ebenezer,
born December 19, 1737; Joannah, born June 15, 1739; Fyler,
born January 18, 1741; and Frederick, born in 1753.
FuLLEE, Rev. Henry, Avas born August 11, 1789, in Ver-
shirc, Vt. He graduated at ]\Iiddlebury college in 1812, and
studied theology with Dr. Asa Burton, a somewhat famous
theological teacher of Thetford, Yt. He Avas ordained to the
Avork of the ministry, as pastor of the united churches of Smith-
town and Freshpond, L. I., October 23, 1816. He was next in
staUed pastor of the Congregational church in North Stamford,
June 6, 1821, where he continued until January 23, 1844. He
was a very acceptable proiicher and pastor while here. After
his dismission, he removed to Huntington, L. I., in 1845, Avhere
he resided until his death, September 2, 1867.
Of his children the oldest, Amanda, born in Smithtown,
died in North Stamford, at the ago of tAventy-three years. The
other children were born in North Stamford. They Avere : Wil
liam Henry, Hannah Maria, EdAvard Thurston, Avho died in in
fancy, and Edward Thurston. The latter graduated at Yale
college in 1857, and died while a member of the Princeton the-

.392 HISTORY OF STAMFORD.
ological seminary, November 7, 1859, at twenty-four years of
.age. Gay, Royal Leavens, Avas a native of Stafibrd, Conn., Avhere
he Avas born, November 4,1780. He came to Stamford in 1811,
and settled on Shippan. His inteUigence and practical tact
and strong good sense soon Avon the confidence of the citi
zens, and almost from the first he Avas entrusted with their
most important offices. Few men have over served the
town Avith more marked ability, or more to the credit and ap
proval of the tOAvn; and when, in the winter of 1856-7, he was
obliged from increasing years and infirmities, to ask relief from
the cares of office, he was not permitted to vacate the places of
trust he had so well filled, without most gratifying vAdtnesses to
the esteem he had Avon. An elegant service of silver, consist
ing of four pieces, suitably inscribed, constituted the tribute of
his fellow townsmen who had knoAvn him longest and best.
Both the pitcher and salver testify to his " long and faithful
service," and the "personal esteem and appreciation of his pub
lic service," by his felloAV citizens. One of the goblets has the
simple inscription, " Selectman twenty years " ; and the other,
" Treasurer fourteen years." One passage from the presenta
tion address, made by his excellency Governor Minor, so clearly
expresses the sentiment of the community regarding Mr. Gay's
official career, that its insertion is due to the memory of the man
whom it honors.
" ¦your friends have witnessed with high gratification your career in pub
lic office for the last quarter of a century, being assured that the honesty,
integrity, and impartiality which have ever characterized your discharge of
public duty, have proceeded from a good heart and an honest desire for the
best interests of the public."
Besides these offices, Mr. Gay represented tho tOAvn in the
state legislature. lie Avas, also, an efficient officer in tho eccle
siastical society (congregational) of Avhich he was a faithful
member. Indeed, there Avas nothing which could promote the
civil or social welfare of the community in Avhich he AA'as not in
terested and which he did not most cordially support.

LATER BIOGRAPHY. 393
But the death of this useful and honored citizen soon came ;
and deep and hearty was the mourning of the afflicted town.
At a meeting of the Warden and Burgesses of the borough, June
23, 1857, tAVO days after his decease, resolutions were passed,
expressive of the universal sorrow felt at his death. They testify
to the great loss Avhich the borough and the town ; the poor
and the afflicted had experienced. They honor his public
career as one of unsAvevering fidelity ; and his private life
as " courteous, full of brotherly kindness and charity which
never failed."
Mr. Gay married in Tolland in 1811, SaUy Shepherd. They
had five children ; — Ann Elizabeth, who married Edmund
Lockwood; William S., who died in infancy; William who
has been successful in business as one of the Stamford Manufac-
tury Company at the Gove ; EdAvard, who died young, and
Theodore, Avho died at nineteen years of age. The first Mrs,
Gay, who Avas a most excellent woman .and a devoted christian,
died January 16, 1822. Mr. Gay married for his second
wife her sister, Ann Shepherd, by Avhom he had one son, Ed
ward, Avho is still living in Stamford, where he is held in honor.
The second Mrs. Gay, an estimable lady, died in Stamford,
December 18, 1851, aged 66 years.
Holly, William Heney, son of Isaac and Levinia (Bisho]i)
HoUy, Avas born here. May 5, 1798. His life was mainly spent
in his native town, and the most of it in such services as gave
him prominence in public affairs, and made him more familiar
Avith the history of the tOAvn than any other man of his time.
Descended in the seventh generation from John Holly, the pio
neer of this name, he seems to have inherited his ancestor's
husiness character, and to have reproduced the same style of
public life. He Avas for several years judge of probate for his
district, Avhich office he held to the last year of his life. He
was also assistant assessor under the national revenue law. He
died very suddenly, June 29, 1887. He married here, Caroline,
daughter of Dr. Samuel Webb. He left at his death three
daughters : Gertrude, Caroline, and Angle. 50

:iU4 HISTORY t)F .STAMFORD.
lluuGii, Rev. John, D. D., was the son of Dr. Walter and
Martha (Lookwood) Hough, and Avas born fn Stamford, in the
house occupied by Malthy Smith, Esq., 1783. He graduated at
Yale in 1802, and commenced the study of theology with Dr.
Moses G. Welch, of Mansfield, Conn., and subsequently studied
with Rev. Joel Benedict, of Plainfield, and Dr. Hart, of Pres
ton. He was also in the first class of theological students under
tlie teaching of Dr. DAvight. Pie Avas Ucensed to preach by the
Windham Association in 1805, and Avas appointed missionary to
Vermont the next ye.ar. He Avas ordained in Vergennes, Vt.,
March 12, 1807, where he preached until 1812. In November
of this year he Avas apponited professor of Greek and Latin in
Middlebnry college, and for twenty-seven years he here madp
proof of his fitness for teaching the classics and theology.
His biographer in the Congregational Quarterly, of October,
1861, says of him: "He was eminently successful as an instruc
tor." In 1839 he resigned his professorship, and Avent West,
Avhere he spent the next ten years in jjreacliiiig. Losing his
sight in 1850, he spent the remainder of his life with his sons.
He died at Fort Wayne, Ind., July 17, 1861.
He married November 19,1812, Lucy, daughter of David
Leavitt, of Bethlehem, Conn., by whom he had two sons: John,
Avho graduated at Middlebury college in 1838 ; and David Lea
vitt, AA'ho graduated in 1839. Mrs. Hough died at Fort Wayne,
February 11, 1859.
Hoyt, Abraham, son of Benjamin, who was tiie son of Ben
jamin, who Avas the son of Simon the pioneer, was born in
Stamford, in 1704. He Avas a man of solid and substantial
Avorth, and Avas much in public life. He Avas .also an active
member of the Goiigregational church for a good many years.
He married here, November 27, 1720, Hannah Bates, by Avhoni
he had the foUoAving children : Abraham, boi-n October 13,
1732, .and died young; Isaac, born September 15,1734; Ezra,
born April 23,1737; SUas, born Mar.:h 2, 1738-9; Sarah, born
P'ebruary 3, 1740; Thaddeus, born January 26, 1742; Rachel,
born Augnst 7, 1745, and died same year. He married for his

later mography. 395
second Avife, June 3, 1748, widow Hannali Blachley, by Avhoni
lie had Iaa'O children: Mary, born August 22, 1750, and died
Xovenibor 17,1754; and Bates, born July. 7, 1754. His des
cendants are very numerous, and they have been as enterprising
.is they are numerous.
Hovt, Amos, Avas the son of Peter and Sarah Hoyt, and Avas
horn in 1762, and died September 10,1793. He Avas a young
man of great promise. His mind was of a high order, and his
opportunities for improving it had been seduously improved.
He entered Yale college in 1788, and graduated with honor in
1792. Ho was among the most promising and popular meni-
hers of his class.
Many years after his death, the late Thomas S. WiUiams, of
Hartford, Avas pleased to recall his many excellent traits, and
to acknoAvledge his own personal obligations to his good will
aud kindness. To be praised by such a man is no slight honor ;
to be counted among the benefactors of such a man, is to have
earned fame. This young man, so gifted and so honored, did
liot live to fulfill the high expectations of his friends. His
gravestone shoAvs that he had just completed his academic and
professional studies when he died, away from his friends, in
Glastonbury. His remains were buried in the Hoyt burying
lot, on Hope street road, where his simple memorial stone testi
fies to the parental .affection which could not leave his previous
remains to lie in a stranger's grave.
The Stamford ancestors of this member of the Hoyt family,
according to their historian, Avere : Peter, David, Benjamin,
Benjamin, Benjamin, and Simon, the pioneer.
HoY-r, Edavin, the son of Abraham and Sarah (Knap) Hoyt,
was born in Stamford in 1804. His grandfather Avas that cap
tain Thaddeus Avho was so prominent among the patriotic civil
ians of the town during our Revolutionary period ; and who at
his death had gathered one of the largest estates of the town.
-¦Vinong his descendants have been several Avho have foUoAved
tho venerable patriot in Avordly success; yet among them all,

396 HISTORY OF STAMFORD.
and they are quite numerous, none has attained greater emi
nence in all those special qualities which constitute the successful
business man than the subject of this sketch. And I think, too,
none of the sons of'the town has better illustrated the leading
spirit of the town, or is more exactly its business representa
tive than he. Receiving, here, the substantial rudiments of such
an education as the boys of an industrious agricultural people
acquire, he found his way, still a youth, into Noav York ; and
there, beginning at the foundation, built for himself firmly, the
basis of what has since been one of the most solid business
characters in the metropolis. As clerk, diligent, active, studi
ous, faithful, he soon won esteem and confidence. As partner
in the successive firms of Hoyt & Fearing ; Hoyt & Bogart ;
Hoyt, Tillinghast <fc Go. ; and Hoyt, Spragues & Co,, he has in
each successive advance steadily increased his reputation. The
great crisis in commercial and mercantile life, in which so many
splendid fortunes have been wrecked, have only the more tri.
umphantly shown his great energy and tact. At these periods
his resources never fail. In the fearful crisis of 1837, when
every movement around him foreboded disaster to his house, he
calmly examined his ground and resolved, even under circum
stances which would have appalled almost any other man in the
business circle to which he belonged, to go on. With wonder
ful courage and an activity as astonishing as it was success
ful, he provided for large amounts of the maturing paper of a
long list of heavy debtors, and, though suffering heavily, came-
all the stronger out of the trial. Since then, his house has stood
second to none in the metropolis.
With all his promptness and energy in business, and Avith a
self-reliance Avhich never fails him in an emergency, Mr. Hoyt
is still one of the most quiet and modest of men. He lives in and
for his business, and his success has fully justified this habitual
and life long devotion. Mr. Hoyt married Susan, daughter of
Governor William Sprague, of Rhode Island. They have had
four children, all now living ; Sarah, Susan Sprague, William
S. and EdAvin. The family occupy during tha summer their

^^s^^^^-.^^"^ ^ ^

ISAAC T..HOXT
Cap*10'^Coim,'Aol3.

LATER BI0GRAPIIA-. 397
beautiful residence on the East River in Astoria ; and for the
winter, their elegant mansion on Fifth avenue. With all his de
votion to business, Mr. Hoyt has maintained a deep interest in
the family name in the tOAvn of his nativity, which his career
has so honored.
Isaac Lockwood Hoyt, the son of Thaddeus and Rebecca
Hoyt was born in that part of the town which has since been
incorporated as Darien. On the breaking out of the late war
he cheerfully entered the Union service, though at great per
sonal sacrifice.
In his first term of service, three months, he Avon for himself
the love and confidence of the entire company. Though not
in command, it is not too much to say that he was the man in the
company to whom they had cause to look for advice and help ;
and under whom they would gladly trust themselves, if the
country should again call them to the;field.
Accordingly, after a few weeks of rest from the severe service
they had seen,' when' the question Avas raised, who shall take
another company, of our sons into the field, he seemed to be the
one to Avhom all our peoj^ile^ tjitned. With unaffected modesty
he urged his sense of incompetency. He had received no special
military training and he felt no mUitary ambition. He had al
ready sacrificed much, but with every interest of his country still
at stake; he could not long hesitate. He accepted the command
to give himself thenceforth to his country. He was in the
Tenth. Connecticut, a regiment destined to win no mean honors
for the state, whose name and fame they were proud to bear.
In the famous Burnside expedition into North Carolina, they
were not a whit behind the bravest regiment under their gallant
commander, and Captain Hoyt's company was never wanting
where daring was needed. The zealous patriotism, and the
calm and deliberate devotion of their captain were, also, shared
by the men. But he was not long to command his company.
The local fever seized upon his healthy frame and he was forced
to yield. Though warned again and again of his danger, he
Avould not ask for a furlough Avhile his company needed his care.

398 HISTORY OF STAMFORD.
He risked his own life that he might care for them ; and cheer
fully paid the price of his Avhole-souled devotion. His death
occurred on board the Ncav Brunswick, at Newborn, N. G.^
March 20, 1862. His remains Avere taken to Darien, where they
Avere interred in the pleasant cemetery on the western slope of
the Ridge on Avhich he had spent his days. This patriot son of
Stamford went to his grave amid the sincerest tokens of sorrow
Avhich a grateful people could pay to his honored and cherished
memory. Oar history elsewhere will show, that before the Avar
he h.ad been honored by his native town, having served his
tOAvnsmen both as their selectman and as their representative
in the state legislature.
HoYT, James Henry, fourth son of Billy and Sarah (Wood)
Hoyt, was born in Stamford April 14, IHOO. See sketches of
Abraham and Thaddeus Hoyt.
His father was a farmer, and his early educational advanta
ges Avere those of the sons of our ordinary New England far
mers. At the age of seventeen he Avas apprenticed to the
cabinet-making business, and at the close ofhis-minority he took
the business of his former master into his hancts. He soon con
nected Avith this business the lumber trade. It will illustrate
his enterprise thus early in his business life, that while engaged
in this trade he imported the first cai-go of hard coal ever
brought to Stamford.
In 1831, the canal extending from the harbor up into the cen
ter of the village Avas opened. Mr. Hoyt united his business
Avith the drygoods and grocery trade of his two brothers, Wil
liam and Roswell. Leasing the canal for five years, they
purchased shipping- and did their OAvn carrying trade, and im
ported their own West India goods. In this business he
continued with varied success until the expiration of their lease,
when he resumed the lumber trade, in which he continued until
the Noav York and Noav Haven Raihvay was projected. In
the building of this great thoroughfare he entered into con
tracts for grading portions of it, buUding bridges, aud furnisli-
ing ties. All of these contracts Avere promptly and acceptably

LATER BIOGRAPHY. 399
e.vecuted. On the completion of the road, at first built with a
single track, he contracted to supply it Avith fuel, and when the
second track Avas laid, he was a heavy contractor for the AVork.
From this statement it Avill be seen that Mr. Hoyt, from the
very beginning of this great p)ublic Avork until it had fairly
established itself as an efficiently-managed enterprise, had been
connected with it in such ways as to make him familiar Avith its
cliaracter and Avants. He had enjoyed a good opportunity of
Avatching the management of the road under its chief engineer
and first superintendent, Mr. R. B. Mason, subsequently con
nected Avith the Illinois! Central Railway ; and also under its
second superintendent, Geo. W. Whistler, jr. That he had not
neglected the opportunity thus furnished him is evidenced in
the unanimity of the choic* AAdiich called him to the superiii-
toudency of the road on the resignation of Mr. Whistler in 1854.
Still better evidence has been furnished in the increasing suc
cess Avhicli has attended his administration during the fifteen
years he has held this onerous and responsible post.
His entrance upon the office Avas signaUzed by a sudden blow,
Avhich, under a less efficient administration, Avould have doomed
tlie road to a partial or total suspension. Bnt, despite the ex
tensive Schuyler frauds, aud the preceding catastrophe at the
the NorAvalk bridge, the stock of the road has steadily risen
from about 90, its market price Avhen Mr. Hoyt entered upon its
superintendency, to over 150. Nor is it more than the truth
will warrant, to affirm, that no one Avho has been connected
Avith the road from its opening to the present time, is its
advance moro certainly due than to Mr. Hoyt. His unAvearied
care and painstaking devotion to the interests of the road from
the time of his first contract ; his minute attention to the least
defect, either in the road-bed, or bridges, or rolling-stock, or in
tho habits or manners of the employees on the road, with his
prompt remedy for it, or as faithful and prompt a reference of
it, if not within roach of his authority, to the board of directors,
have made him first among our eminent railway superintendents ;
and he has not been Avithout abundant testimonials, both from

400 HISTORY OF STAMFOED.
his own board of directors and from the employees of the road,
to the esteem and affection in Avhich he is held.
In his private life Mr. Hoyt is eminently a domestic man.
His home, Avhen not in his business, is emphatically in the
bosom of his family. He married January 31, 1838, Sarah J.
Grey, of Darien, and thoy had five chUdren, throe of Avhom are
now living. It was a very severe stroke Avhich bereaved him
of his Avife. He had entrusted to her the entire administration
of his domestic matters, because his official duties required all
of his strength. He only asked, AA'hat inthe stress of his care
and responsibility he so much needed, a quiet and restful home,
in which he could find the repose that should refit him for his
AVOrk. And it Avas just such a home that he found, under her
administration, ahvays ready to welcome him.
In politics Mr. Hoyt has always been Avith the democratic
jiarty. Though not an aspirant for office, he has fepresented
his native town and his senatorial district in the state legisla
ture. He Avas a principal mover in the organization of the
Stamford Savings Bank, of Avhich he has been for several years
the i:)resident.
As a practical business man, Mr. Hoyt stands among the first
of his townsmen. He has reaped the rewards of his earnest
and honorable enterprise, both in a most excellent business
reputation, and in the still more tangible token of a handsome
worldly estate.
Hoyt, Jonathan, for several years, about the middle of the
last century, stood at the head of our public men, and was
especially prominent during the period of the French and Indian
Avar. He was equally eminent in civil and religious and mili
tary affairs. As early as 1747 he was a deacon in the Congre-
g.ational ch-.ireh. As one of his majesty's justices, he ofliciatcd
at many of the marriages of the tOAvn, and is recorded as the
" Avorshipful" Mr. Hoyt. He attained in military service the
rank of colonel ; and from the positions assigned him in trying-
days he must have been held in confidence and esteem. As
evidence of his reputation Ave find this characteristic vote of the

LATER BIOGRAPHY. 401
society, December 23, 1731 ; " per vote ye Society do agree and
Desire Capt. Jonathan Hait to set in ye foremost pew in y e
meeting- house."
Hoyt, Thaddeus, son of Abraham and Hannah (Bates) Hoyt,
was born in Stamford, Jan. 26, 1742-3. His entire life was
spent in his native town, where he became a man of influence,
and, for the age in which he lived, of quite considerable wealth.
During the revolutionary Avar he was one of the most earnest
and efficient advocates of independence. He married April 28,
1766, Hannah Holmes. Their children were Frederick, born
Jan. 24, 1767; Hannah, born Oct. 16, 1768, who became the
wife of Joshua Scofield; Abraham, born Oct. 16, 1770 ; Thad
deus, born Oct. 21, 1772; Billy, born July 30, 1774; Darius,
born Jan. 30, 1776; Rebecca, the wife of Capt. John Brown;
Mary, the wife of Hon. James Stevens ; Betsey and Bates.
Leeds, Feancis Randolph, was the son of Sylvester and Susan
nah (Watson) Leeds, and Avas born in Stamford, June 18, 1835.
He Avas early employed in the Stamford bank, where he won for
himself a good reputation for accuracy, faithfulness and skill.
He Avas eminently gifted with those traits of character which
make the business man popular ; and few young men were ever
more universally esteemed than he.
In 1862 ho was authorized to raise a company of volunteers
for the service of the government in suppressing the great Re
bellion. His ranks were rapidly filled up, Avheii he received a
captain's commission and left with his men for the seat of the
war. Having already in his southern travels been attacked by
the fever, he became again an easy prey to the insidious foe. He
came north to recruit his impaired strength ; but, impatient to
join his command, he again left for that purpose, Jan. 2, 1863.
He rejoined his company atPensacola, Fla., only to be struck
down, this time fatally, by the relentless disease. He died at
Pensacola, Feb. 17, 1863, deeply lamented by his command,
who seemed to love him with an affection truly fraternal. His
remains were brought home and interred in the new cemetery.
51

402 HISTORY OF STAMFORD.
Leeds, John, Avas the son of Cary and Mary (Giles) Leedsi
and was born in Stamford, July 31, 1764. He was a merchant
and farmer, living in New Hope district. He was long an earn
est and active member of the Episcopal church, and a most
estimable citizen. His death, which took place Sep. 15, 1831,
was felt to be a " public as avoU as private loss." He was one
of those meek and quiet men whose lives are filled Avith unno
ticed, because unobtrusive deeds of kindly good will. He Avas
esteemed as a model in those graceful excellences Avhich most
endear to us our most trusted and prized companions. His in
tegrity could not be questioned, and his personal friendship Avas
courted as an honor and cherished as a blessing. He married,
Dec. 6, 1796, Honor Williams, daughter of Moses and Martha
(Robins) Williams, of Rocky Hill, Conn. Her paternal grand
parents were Jacob and Eunice (Standish) Williams. This
Eunice Standish Avas daughter of Thomas Standish of Hart
ford, the son of Alexander of Roxbury, Mass., the oldest
son of the famous colonial captain Miles Standish. Their chil
dren were John Williams, (see following sketch), Jacob W.
and Harry, the last tAvo of Avhom are dead. Mrs. Leeds died,
August 22, 1849, aged 83 years.
Leeds, John Williams, son of John and Honor (Williams)
Leeds, was born in Stamford, August IS, 1797. He has
always resided in his native town, Avliere he has been held iu
deservod esteem. His business has been mainly mercantile and
financial : and his success has placed him among the first men
of the tOAvn. On the opening of the Stamford bank in 1834, he
Avas chosen president of it, and has held the office until noAV.
As a business man he ranks rather with the cautious and pru
dent than Avith the venturesome and daring, .and his success has
justified his business career.
He married Eliza, daughter of Elisha Leeds, and has had nine
chUdren, of Avhom six are living; Charles Henry, avoU known
as one of tho proprietors of the extensive Cove Mills ;^ Sarah
Elizabeth, Avife of GoA^ Wm. T. Minor of Stamford : Mary Cath-

JOH]>f WILLIAM LEEDS

PRESIDENT OF STAMFORD NATIONAL BANK.

I.ATEE BIOGRAPHY. 403
erine, Avife of Dr. Samuel Lockwood, dentist, of Ncav York city ;
.Josephine Eliza ; EdAvard Francis, and Emily Irene.
Lockwood, Isaac, son of Isaac and Rebecca (Seely) Lock
Avood was born in Stamford, Nov. 4, 1762. Like many others
of the sons of the town during the last half century, he com
menced his life as a seaman. He soon abandoned his sea-life,
returned to Stamford and settled down, on what Avas then the
old turnpike, in the old Lockwood homestead, now occupied by
George Hubbard, Esq. Here he spent the rest of his days. He
was soon found ready and efficient in aiding forward every
needed enterprise of the tOAvn, and rose rapidly to his place
among tho first citizens. At the beginning of this century, no
man stood higher than he*in the public esteem. For nineteen
years he did good service as one of the select men of the town,
and represented the tOAvn in eight sessions of the state legisla
ture. He Avas characterized for his promptness and punctuality.
It was a proverb that Capt. Lockwood's rambling pony was tha
best time piece in the tOAvn, never failing- to appear Avith her
rider at the post office at the appointed time.
Mathee, Joseph Avas the second son of Rev. Moses Mather,
D. D., of Middlesex Society, Stamford, (Darien,) where he was
horn, July 21, 1753. He united Avith his father's church, Aug.
9, 1778. HoAvas a young man of much promise. And soon at
tained a position of influence among the citizens of the town.
He distinguished himself early as a warm advocate of the inde
pendence of the American colonies; and of course, like his
patriotic father, he Avas a constant mark for the shafts of British
and tory vengeance. He lived about two miles to the north of
the viUage, and his house was used as a depository for the more
costly treasures of the citizens who were more exposed to the
raids of the enemy from Long Island. But, removed as he was
from the center of the parish, he was easUy found and greatly
harassed by his former neighbors, who had now gone over to the
enemy. No less than forty-four of his father's parishioners
were af one time during the Avar, just across the Sound on

404 HISTOEY OF STAMFORD.
Lloyd's Neck, more bitter against patriots than the king's
troops themselves.
He married, May 29, 1777, Sarah Scot, of Ridgefield. Their
children, eight of whom are still living, (1862,) were Hannah,
born June 2, 1777; Sarah, born March 28, 1780; Moses, born
May 21, 1782; Raiiia, born May 4, 1784; Glare, born July 31,
1787 ; Joseph, born Sept. 30, 1789 ; Nancy, born Jan. 27, 1792 ;
Betsey, born March 23, 1794 ; David Scott, born Dec. 14, 1795 ;
and Phebe, born Nov. 27, 1798. At his death he left these ten
children, forty-five grandchildren, forty-eight great-grandchild
ren, and one great-great-grandchild.
Mathee, Moses, D. D., was the son of Timothy Mather of
Lyme, Conn., where he was born March 6, 1719.
He graduated in Yale in 1739, and was settled over the
church in Middlesex Society of Stamford, now Darien, June
14, 1744, having begun to preach there April 19, 1742. Here
he remained a faithful and successful preacher and pastor until
his death, Sept. 21, 1806 — more than sixty-four years — which
fact of itself is ample testimony to his usefulness. His ability
is also testified in the works which he left, which though not
numerous, evince his solid learning and his deep piety. He won
his doctorate from the College of New Jersey in 1791. From
1777 to 1790 he was a FelloAv of Yale College.
But the doctor will be best knoAvn for his earnest and active
patriotism during the struggle which Avon our colonial indepen
dence, of which our account of that struggle will furnish ample
proof The following testimony from Dr. Dwight's " Travels" is
abundantly corroborated by all' that Ave hear of his character
from those who remember him, or from those who heard their
j)arents dAvell upon his precious memory.
"Dr. Mather was a m.an distinguished for learning and piety, a strong
understanding and a most exemplary life. His natural temper Avas grave
and unbending. His candor was that of the Gospel, — the wisdom which is
from above — which, while it is ' pure and peaceable' is also ' without par
tiality."

'^'p^'^

0mm ^m,

"V

STEPHEN B PROVOa"

later BIOGEAPHY. 405
Dr. Sprague's " Annals of the American Pulpit" contains an
interesting letter from Rev. Mark Mead of Greenwich, which
gives us the following delineation of his personal appearance
and social character.
" He was a man of about the middle stature, rather slender than other
wise, of a pleasant expression of countenance, and free and easy in conver
sation. Dr. Mather, though generally a poor man, had a rich vein of hu
mor, of Avhich there still remain many traditions. A man in his parish
who pretended to be a sort of half Quaker, half infidel, and who was a mem
ber of the vigilance committee in the revolution, as he was riding in com
pany with him on horseback, said to him, 'Your Master used to ride an ass
and how is it that you ride a horse?' 'Because," said the doctor, 'the
asses are all taken up for committee men.'
"Dr. Mather used to wear a long, rounded, Quaker coat, Avilh very large
brass buttons from top to bottom. The Quakers, at that time, used to Avear
buttons made of apple tree, and just enough to fasten their coats. The
samo man mentioned above, on meeting Dr. Mather one day, said to him,
' Moses, why does thee wear so many buttons ou thy coat.' ' To show you, .
said the Doctor, ' that my religion does not consist in a button. ' "
Nor is the Dr. scarcely less to be remembered for the family
which he left: Soon, after his settlement, Sept. 10, 1746, he
married one of his parishioners, Hannah Bell, by whom he had
three children — John, born Sept. 20, 1747, Hannah, born May
20, 1751, and Joseph, born July 21, 1753. His Avife died April
23, 1755, and he married again, Jan. 1, 1756, Mrs. Elizabeth
Whiting, also a ¦'parishioner, by whom he ha-d only one son,
Noyes, born September 1, 1756. His second wife died Dec. 18,
1757. He married for his third wife, Rebecca Raymond, of
Norwalk, Aug. 23, 1768, by whom, there Avere recorded to him
four chUdren ; Moses, born Nov. 13, 1760. Raymond, born Jan.
31, 1763, Isaac, born Dec. 6, 1764, and Samuel, born Dec. 19,
1765. Of the above children, Hannah married Philo Betts and
had eleven children ; Joseph married Sarah Scott, of Ridgefield,
and had ten children, six of whom, now venerable both for
years and personal worth, it was the author's good fortune to
meet at the homestead of their father in the summer of 1862 ;
Noyes married and had nine children, and Samuel had five.

406 history of STAMFORD.
Of the ten children of Joseph, eight had families, and their
children to the number of fifty-five are enrolled in the " Gene
alogy of the Mather Family."
In 1855, Rev. Mr. Kinney, then pastor of the church in Darien,
makes this interesting record for Dr. Sprague's " Annals of the
American Pulpit :"
"I think that more thau half of those who compose my cougregatiou on
the Sabbath, and nearly our whole choir of singers are his (Dr Mather's).
de.sceudants. Two of his great-grandsons have recently been ordained
deacons of this church."
Provost, Stephen Bishop, son of Daniel and Elizabeth
(Bishop,) was born in Stamford, April 23, 1792. His mother
Avas daughter of deacon Stephen Bishop of the North Stamford
Gongregational church, who was grandson of Rev. John Bishop,
the second pastor of the. first church of Stamford. Mr. Provost
Il as spent the most of his life in his native town, where he has
been successfulin business, and much respected and honored,
as our official record will show. He married, April 5, 1821,
Catherine, daughter of Christopher and Elizabeth Tillman, ot
Noav York. Their children have been ; Stephen Henry, noAV a
merchant in New York city; Christopher Tillman ; David R.,
now in California ; Mary Catherine, thedate Mrs. Edward Sco
field ; Elizabeth Jane^nowMrs. Hiram Taylor, of Stamford; and
Julia Francis, who died young.
QuiNTAED, Geo. W., eldest son of Isaac Quintard and his
Avife, Mrs. Clarissa (Hoyt) Shay, was born in Stamford, April
22, 1822. He went, still young, into New York city, where ho
Avas engaged a few years in the grocery business. He married,
Feb._ 15, 1844, Frances, daughter of Charles Morgan, Esq.,
later proprietor of the Morgan Iron and Ship Works, corner of
Ninth-st. and East River. Disposing of his grocery business,
he entered the firm of his father-in-law, then T. F. Secor & Co.,
Mr. Secor being the foundry-man of the firm, and Mr. Morgan
the financier. Afterwards, under the title of the Morgan
Iron Works, in company with his father-in-law, and later
Avitli his brother-in-law, Hon. F. M. Merrit, of Stamford, and

LATER IJIOGEAPHY. 407
Still later as the sole proprietor of those extensive works, Mr.
Quintard laid the foundation of the great business prosperity
which has placed him among the leading men of the city.
During the recent war he Avas largely employed in furnishing
engines for the Avar ships needed in the United States Navy,
and rendered timely and important aid to the Union cause.
Since the war he has retired from the iron business, and is uoav
president of one of the southern lines of steamship transporta
tion. He is also connected with various other business boards
in the city. His summer residence is in Rye. He has tAVO
children. Quintard, Charles Todd, brother to the above, Avas born in
Stamford, Dec. 22, 1824. He graduated M. D. at the University
of New York in 1846, having been a student of Dr. Valentino
Mott. After spending a few months in the Bellevue Hospital,
and as physician to the Noav York City Dispensary, he removed
to Georgia. Here he soon Avon reputation in his jprofession and
as a medical Avriter, and in 1851, he was called to the chair of
physiology and anatomy in the Memphis Medical College.
Devoting himself, meanwhile, also, to theological studies, under
the direction of Bishop Otey of Tennessee, in 1855 he was ad
mitted to orders. At once, he entered on the rectorship of Cal
vary church, Memphis, from Avhich he went, in 1858, to the
church of the Advent, Nashville. Under his successful ministry
of four years, this church advanced from thirty-six to about
three hundred communicants. His progress in his uoav profes
sion of theology Avas rapid, as in that of medicine,' and in 1866
ho received his doctorate in Divinity,«and was chosen Bishop of
Tennessee, to Avhich office he was consecrated by the General
Convention of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United
States, in Philadelphia.
Quintard, Edward A., brother to Geo. W. and Charles T.,
above, is also a native of Stamford, Avhere he was born in 1826.
He went to Noav York as clerk to the Scranton Coal Com
pany. Since then he has been largely engaged in the coal busi-

408 HISTORY OF STAMFORD.
ness, making for himself a good name and an eminent place,
among the leading firms in his branch of business. He is ex
tensively engaged also in mining coal. For a number of years
he has spent his summers in Stamford, and in 1867, he built
on Clark's Hill, a fine family residence of stone, one of
the most imposing as well as costly of our many elegant
Stamford homes. He married for his first wife, Matilda Gil
lespie, of NoAA' York city, who died leaving two children.
He married for his second wife, Mary, daughter of cap
tain William Skiddy, of Stamford, by Avhora he has tAvo
children. Reed, Elijah, son of Jesse aud Mercy (Weed) Reed, was
born in Stamford, Middlesex parish, in 1778. In his thirty-sixth
year he became a christian, and de voted himself with singular
earnestness, to the duties of the christian life. He was chosen
deacon of the church in Darien ; and from that tirne he felt
himself to be a servant of the Lord. There was no .call which
the church could make upon him to Avhich he did not respond.
In season and out of season, he embraced opportunities, or cre
ated them, for doing good. The Bible was his daily compan
ion ; and from its treasury, he never failed to draw timely
instructions for all classes whom he met. No man practiced a
more rigid self denial than he, that he might do good. None
cultivated .all the graces of the spirit more than he. None
evinced a deeper interest in the welfare of Zion, or in the spirit
ual condition of impenitent men than he. And no one had more
faith in the divinely appointed mean^ for tha recovery and
salvation of men.
This good man died Nov. 16, 1561, when, and as he Avould
have Avished to die, on the morning of the Lord's Day, with all
the peace and joyful hope which that day had been wont to bring
him. Mr. Reed Avas only the fifth generation removed from tho
John Reed whom we have enrolled as the pioneer of the family
in the town. The line of the ascent will be John, Thomas,
and Thomas, the second son of John, as above.

'C<_jay^^

J

LATER BIOGRAPHY. 409
lliCHAKos, James, D. D., was born Oct. 29, 1767, in New
Canaan parish, a short distance east of tho old line between
Stamford and Norwalk. While still a boy, he came to Stam
ford village and engaged himself as an appren tice to the cabi
net making trade. He proved a faithful apprentice, yet found
time in his leisure moments for reading and study ; and at length
formed and executed the purpose of fitting himself for college.
While in Stamford he became a teacher in one of our village
schools. He was also the subject of a re vival of religion, and
united with the Congregational chnrcli here, Sept. 17, 1786.
Iu 1739 he entered Yale coUega, and received, in 1794, the
honorary degree of A. M. He studied theology Avith Dr.
Dwight, and vras licensed to preach by the Fairfield West As
sociation in 1793. The same year he Avas settled inMorristOAvn,
N. J., as pastor of the First Presbyterian Church there. He
soon gave proofs of that strong good sense and efficiency in all
that he attempted, which at length gave him the enviable repu
tation Avhicli he won and retained. From Morristown he Avas
called to Newark in June 1809, to succeed that prince among
our pulpit orators. Dr. E. D. Griffin, Avho had then accepted his
professorship at An dover. Here Mr. Richards became very
eminent in his profession, both as jii-eacher and pastor. In
1823 he Avas called to the chair of Christian Theology in the
Auburn Theological Seminary. He died in Auburn, N. Y.,
Aug. 2, 1848.
Skelding, Dea. Thomas, was son of James and Mary
Skelding, and Avas born in Stamford, Feb. 6, 1773. The year
after his marriage he removed to Troy, N. Y., where he
soon attained eminence among the enterprising men of that
flonrishhig city. He Avas equally eminent in business and re
ligion. Brought up a Congregationalist, after his conversion,
I'.o united Avith the Baptist church in Troy in 1806, and proved
himself one of the most faithful and devoted of christians. He
vi&s chosen deacon of this church in 1812; and when, in 1822,
lie removed to New York, he was at once called to the samo of
fice in the South Baptist Church of that city, then just organ-
62

410 HISTORY OF .STAMFORD.
ized. Here he labored with a groAving zeal until his work on
earth AA'as done. On the second Sabbath of December, 1830,
while enjoying the usual services of the sanctuary, he was
struck Avitli a sudden paralysis which almost deprived him of
motion and speech. He was taken home, Avhere he languished
many weeks, but partially recoA'oring the use of his limbs and
of his voice. In July of the next year he visited his friends and
kindred in his native tOAvn ; and while here, surrounded Avith
the grateful reminiscences of his early days, in the family of his
brother James, he peacefully and in joyous hope closed his
earthly career Aug. 1, 1831. His obituary in the Baptist Re
pository, gives us a very pleasant imjsression of the chocu-fiil
and beneficent piety of this good man : '-In Avealth ho was an
example to the rich," and when deprived of his earthly pos
sessions, his cheerful trust in God still " taught the poor to bo
humble, submissive and thankful."
Smi'th, Rea'. Daniel, wa,% the son of Peter and Mary Smith
of Noav Canaan, where he was born Aug. 3, 1764.
He graduated at Yale in 1791, and the same year united with
the Congregational church in Sharon. After studying theology
Avith the ReA^ Cotton Mather Smith of Sharon, whose youngest
daughter he married, he Avas licensed to preach, Oct. 2, 1792,
by the Litchfield North Association, and ordained pastor of the
First Congregational church in Stamford, June 13, 1793. Here
he labored in word and doctrine with very great acceptance
doAVii to a very advanced age. He Avas a man, who is remem
bered still by many of the citizens of Stamford, both in the
denomination to which he belonged, and in others, as ono of
unusual good sense and Avisdom. Few pastors ever endeared
themselves more to their people than he. His hold on his peo
ple Avas fully and most promptly shoAvn, Avhen in 1839, after a
ministry of forty-seven years, he recounted his labors, acknoAvl-
edged his groAving infirmities, and asked to be relieved from a
portion of his cares. Their reply is found in the following reso
lution :
"That we reeoguize, iu our pastor a diligent servant of Christ, one who,

later eiography. 411
for the long time he has ministered to us in holy things, has ever exhibited
a happy union of prudence witjji zeal; and one who, iu all his intercourse
Avith ns and his ministrations to us has cultivated those feelings Avhich
most endear a pastor to his flock. And we earnestly entreat our God that
he may long be spared to watch over us, to instruct us and to pray for us."
In addition to the labors of preacher and pastor, Mr. Smith
conducted a private school in his oavu house for many years ;
and many of the youth of the toAvn recall with affectionate in
terest the days of their pleasant pupilage under his kindly care.
lie married for his first Avife Mary Smith, as aboAC, July 9,
1793, by Avliom he had tAVO children, JuHa Ann, born April 5,
1794, aud Thomas Mather; born March 7, 1796..
He married again June 14, 1801, Catherine, daughter of David
Webb, of Stamford. Their children were David Webb, born
April 11, 1802, lived single and died in Stamford ; Mary Eliza
beth, born Oct. 28, 1804, and married Fitch Rodgers, of Stam
ford, and still survives to occupy the house which her father
left; James Augustus, born Aug. 1, 1807; EdAvard William,
born Sept. 2, 1813, Avho graduated at Yale in 1835, and studied
law; and John Cotton, born April 6, 1811, graduated at Yale
in 1835, and Avas studying medicine Avhen he died.
Smith, Thomas Mather, oldest son of Rev. Daniel, (sec pre
ceding sketch,) Avas born in Stamford, March 7, 1796. He
graduated at Yale College in 1816 ; and after spending a year
Avith his uncle, Hon. John Cotton Smith, he entered the theo
logical seminary, where he graduated in theology in 1820. In
1822 he Avas ordained to the Avork of the ministry, and settled
over the Third Congregation church, in Portland, Maine. He,
also, Avas settled as Congregational pastor at Fall River, Mass.;
at Catskill, N. Y. ; and at New Bedford, Mass. While here,
his vioAvs of church polity changing, he embraced the Episco
pal theory, and Avas ordained deacon, by Bishop Smith, of
Kentucky ; and the next year, priest, by Bishop Eastman, of
Massachusetts. In 1845, he was appointed MUnor Professor of
Systematic Divinity at Kenyon College, Gambler, Ohio. In
1850 he Avas honored Avith the degree of Doctor of Divinity, by

412 HISTORY OF STAMFORD.
Bowdoin College. He remained at his post in Kenyon College
until 1863, — discharging its duties, Avhich Avere often very exact
ing, — having embraced at times those of president of the institu
tion, with great acceptance and success. On his resignation,
in 1863, he Avas honored as Emeritus Professor.
The following testimony is borne to his character by his
classmate, Rev. Dr. W. G. Fowler, of Durham, Conn. He says,
'¦What struck me was his fine social nature. Perhaps the reason of
this was, that his mother and my mother were first cousins, through their
grandfather, Eev. 'William Worthington. He always met me as a cousin,
frank, confiding, aflfectionate. The movements of his mind were easy and
natural, not requiring any special excitement to bring them into play. His
emotional nature was healthy and easily stirred, but also controlled, .so far
as I saw, by the proprieties of time aud place. He was always a good schol
ar, with the power of being a better one. In short, I think he showed,
while in college, in perceptible embryo, the same mental characteristics,
which in subsequent life were so finely developed and matured."
Mr. Smith married, Sept. 26, 1822, Mary G. eldest daughter
of Rev. Dr. Leonard Woods, of AndoA'er, Mass. They had six
children, three of whom died in infancy. His son, John Cotton
Smith, graduated at BoAvdoin College in 1847 ; studied theol-,
ogy at the seminary of Avhich his father Avas a professor, and is
noAV a popular preacher of the Episcopal denomination in Now
"York city. He, also, has been honored Avith a doctorate of
divinity. Smith, .James W., oldest son of Philander and Clarissa
(Holly) Smith, was born on Longridge, July 8, 1810. He fitted
for college under the late Hawley Olmstead, Esq., of Wilton,
having the AVork of the ministry in view. His physician think
ing his health Avould never allow him to be a preacher, dissuad
ed him from the attempt, and he devoted himself to the study
of medicine, graduating at the New York Medical College ; and
was commissioned by the American Board as physician to their
Sandwich Island mission in 1812. While engaged in the Avork
of his profession as missionary physician, he was also called to
the office of lay preacher ; and such Avas the urgency of tho calls
upon him, that he Avas, in 1854, ordained as pastor of the church

LATER niOGRAPHV. 413
in Koloa, on the island of Kauai. Here Ave soon find limi in
full charge of the missionary work at his station, and gathering
around him and training faithful native helpers.
Wo next find him so strongly endeared to his people, that
they are ready to propose supporting him, themselves. Accord
ingly wo find him, in 1851, asking a release from the service of
the Board, and since that date he has been supported by the
people whom he was appointed to lift up out of the degradation
of heathenism. During his residence on the island he has filled
several important offices, and in thom all has commended him
self to the people.
He married Millieent Knapp, of North GreenAvich, a sister of
the two excellent christian ministers, 'j^Rovs. Horton, and Jared
D. Knapp. They have had nine children, of whom seven aro
still living; William Owen, Jared Knapp, Alfred Holly, Emma,
Lottie, Molina and Juliett.
Smith, Truman, a native of Roxbury, Conn. He graduated
at Yale in 1815, and entered the legal profession, in which he
became one of our most eminent jurists and advocates.. Entering
upon public civil life, he became as representative and senator
from Connecticut in the United States Congress, — one of our
ablest statesmen. In 1853 he removed to Stamford, Avhero he
has since then resided. His first Avife was Maria Cook, of Litch
field, Avho died April 20, 1849, leaving one daughter, Jenny P.
now Mrs. George A. Hoyt, of Stamford. His second wife Avas
Mary A. Dickenson, by whom he has had six chUdren.
On the organization of the Court of Claims, to decide cases
arising under the various acts growing out the rebellion, Mr.
Smith was appointed one of the judges, holding the office
untU the court terminated. No generation of Connecticut jur
ists or statesmen has furnished us an example of more diUgent
and successful Avorking, or of more uncompromising loyalty to
the Avelfare of the people.
Stea''ens, Edwin, Avas the son of deacon David and 
Stevens, of Ponus street, in Avhat is uoav Noav Canaan, He Avas

414 HISTORY OP STAMFORD.
born Julv 4, 1802, and graduated at Yale with honor in 1828.
He was also tutor in Yale in 1831 and '2. In 1831, ho was
licensed as preacher by the New Haven East Association, and
became a christian missionary. He commenced this service as
chaplain to our seamen in the East, and for three years had his
home in Canton, laboring in season and out of season for the
temporal good of this long neglected class. In 1838, he Avas
transferred from tho support of the Seaman's Friend Society, to
that of the American Board of Foreign Missions. He started
in March of this year, with those apostolic missionaries, Roa'.
Messrs. Gutzlaff and Medhurst, on a tour up the coast from
Canton. They_ ascended the Min, four days journey, Avithout
opposition, but on the fifth clay their course was arrested by
hostile demonstrations from the natives. They were fired upon,
and two of their company, which numbered eighteen souls,
Avere Avounded, and the attempt to proceed further was post
poned. The time had not yet come for that populous territory
to be opened to the intercourse of foreigners, and they, the
teachers of a new religion. They succeeded in retreating doAvn
the Min, and coasting along the shore ; and, stopping where
allowed, they distributed books and held such conferences Avith
the natives as might promote their work. In Shantung, alone,
in two days, they succeeded in distributing 1,000 volumes of
religious works, and Avherever they could come in contact with
the peojile, not over-persuaded by the presence of suspicious
officials, they found a readiness to entertain their message and
receive their books.
Bnt the government Avere soon on the guard, and the move
ments of the missionary party were effectually arrested. Their
voyage was the first ever made by missionaries along- that coast
for the purpose of evangelizing those teeming millions, without
first conciliating them by the gift or sale of opium. On the
temjiorary interruption of their labors, Mr. Stevens applied
himself with very gre.at success to the mastery of the Mandarin,
the national language of China.
Tn December, 1836, he started on board the Hinimaleh, to

LATER BIOGRAPHY. 415
visit several of the islands in the Indian archipelago, to examine
the spiritual condition of the people and distribute among them
such books as he might be able to induce them to take. In the
prosecution of this pioneer missionary work, he touched at Sin
gapore on the 15th of the month. The fever of that climate
suddenly seized him, and terminated his life, Jan. 5, 1837.
His co-laborers in the field where he so prematurely fell, agree
in testifying to his great worth. His loss was deeply felt by
thom. They had proved his great excellence. His scholarship
and his deep-toned piety Ayere aUke needed, and they felt that
the loss of them was irreparable. Their testimony of him is :
" He possessed a mature judgment and remarkable decision of character,
A holy intrepidity in facing dangers that came iu the path of duty. From
his conversion, the Bible was his constant companion. ' Chjist, our rock,
was pre-eminently his theme. Accuracy characterized him as a Chinese
student. His knowledge of the Bible and critical study of it, marked him
oat as an invaluable assistant in the future revisions of the Scriptures into
Chinese; and to this his own attention seemed to be turned."
Todd, Ambrose Seymoue, D. D., son of Roa-. Ambrose and
Lavinia Todd, was born in Huntington, Conn., Dec. 6, 1798.
He was ordained deacon in the Episcopal church, July 15,
1820, and priest, June 30, 1823, by Bishop Brownell, and insti
tuted rector of St. John's church, Stamford. For nearly forty
years he remained in charge of the St. John's parish. With
more than ordinary ability in the pulpit, he showed great tact
and wisdom in his pastoral oversight of his charge. Few mon
have secured more universal esteem. Few pastors have avoii so
much regard and confidence, at the same time, from both their
own and other denominations. His death occurred here June 22,
1861. The following extract from the funeral address, delivered by
Bishop Williams, is a fitting testimonial to his ministerial fidel
ity and success :
"This ministry, with its trials and its cheer, our brother exercised faith
fully through more than twice a score of years, aud — Avhat is specially
remarkable in these days of change— for almost tho entire period in a sin;,d'j
cni-o. And he was permitted to live to see great fruits spi ing from th ai

416 HISTORV OF STAMFORD.
long-continued and faithful labors. What was the oue cure, thirty-eight
years ago, forms to-day five parishes, with seven churches and chapels
duly consecrated, served— till he himself was removed — by seven clergy
men. "In this immediate parish, the humble edifice that in the beginning
more than served its needs, has given place to this in which we meet to
day; and this has been once enlarged itself, and there is added to it now
another house of God. Thirty-six years ago, the number of those who galh.
ered to the Lord's table, in all tbe cure, was ninety; to-day, the roll com
prises the names of near five hundred.
These are some tangible and visible results, whose testimony comes be.
fore us to-day, aud whose witness is laid up on high. But, brethren, how
much more is there Avhich is not written, which cannot be writt'.n here —
Avhich man's eye can never see, of Avhioh man's lip can never speak, aud
¦ which, after all, is the true and living history of this, as of every other fpiith-
ful piistorabip ! The unwritten story of the spiritual lives of the genera
tion of this people that has passed away; the sermons preached; the
baptisms and euoharists administered; the young trained aud led on to
confirmation; the sick visited and prepared for death; sinners pointed and
brought to the blood of Jesus; the pastoral counsels, the priestly labors,
the ministrations to tlie poor and the afliicted, the public service, and the
work Irom house to house — what a hislorv do all these make up— what a
testimony do they bear !"
Nor is the following testimony, from the excellent discourse
preached on the Sunday following his death, by his assistant and
successor, Rev. Walter Mitchell, less beautiful or illustrative
of the character and influence of the man :
"Thirty-eight years are this day completed siuce he knelt before tho
same altar where, thirty-six years before that, I'is father had kuelt, to re
ceive, at the hands of Bishop Seabury, the commission to preach and to
baptize. Thirty-eight years are this day fulfilled, during which his life has
been all yonr own. Its story is better known to you than to me ; for what
I have but heard, you — at least many of you — have seen and felt. Yet I
may allude to facts, long siuce occurred, which may have passed from yonr
memories. At the time of his eoming, the town of New Caanan was within
the same charge, aud for one or two years it was his constant cu.stom to
mount his horse, at the close of the second service here, and to ride over
roads far less easy of travel than at present, to repeat his ministrations at
that distant station. Iu addition to this, his cure extended over what is
uow Darien on the east and Greenwich on the Avest. And that was then no
nominal labor. As I have gone with him upon his more distant visiting.?,

LATER BIOGRAPHY. 417
there would scarcely be a house at which had he not at some time held ser
vices. For every funeral, almost every occasion at Avhioh believers were
called together, was then held to be a fit time and place for the pastoral
voice to be heard. Through the whole extent of this and the neighboring
townships — a territory as wide as the See of many a primitive bishop— there
i8 hardly a place not associated with his labors.
During the period of his ministry, he preached more than four thousand
five hundred times, exclusive of extempore addresses and funeral discour
ses ; performed over four hundred funeral services ; baptized over five hun
dred infants and more than one hundred adults, and presented for con
firmation threo hundred aud tweuty-six persons. He also fulfilled the
duties of Trustee of the General Theological Seminary and of the Berk
ley Divinity School, at Middletown, of this diocese, and represented tho
diocese as a delegate to the eventful Gjuaral Assembly of 1841. The de
gree of Doctor of Divinity was the same year conferred on him by Colum
bia College. He was the first to propose aud to organize the county
meetings of the clergy of Fairfield county, and to his efficient aid and
counsel, they owed, for many years their success.
Waterbury, David, Jr., son of John and Susanna Water
bury Avasborn in Stamford, Feb. 12, 1722. His prominence as
oaa of th'j military a:-tors in our revolutionary struggle will
justify the space which our sketch of him must occupy in our
tOAvn history. "We probably had several citizens engaged with
the patriots in that memorable contest, who in many respects
w-ere his superiors ; but ho attained, and, as Ave are increasingly
convinced, not AA"ithout merit, a rank in the service liigher than
auy of them.
That he had already seen service in the French and Indian
War has been elsoAvhere shoAvn. That he wa,5 ready at the
opening of tlie revolutionary struggle to enter heartily into tho
service of the patriot cause, is most abundantly evinced by the
responsible military offices he accepted and honored. Our first
introduction to him as a military officer in the revolutionary
war, Ave have throui>'li the following letter from Gen. Lee :
New Hates, Jan'ry ye 16th, 1775.
Siui— It is with the greatest coucern that I am informed you have re
ceived orders to disband the men whom you had engaged. The important
news from Canada renders it necessary that they should without loss of
time be re-assembled. I must request therefore that you will immediately
53

418 HISTORY OF STAMFOED.
call 'em together. I will mj'self answer for the measure to the' Continental
Congress. I entreat and conjure you therefore that they may be re-enlisted
and equipped for service with all possible expedition. As to the arrange
ment of your officers you shall receive instructions before the men can be
assembled. I'or God's sake lose no time. Every thing, perhaps the fate
of America depends upon your expedition.
I am sir, your most obedient servant, Chaeles Lee,
To Colonel Waterbury, Stamford. Major General.
Early in March we find Gol. Yv'aterbury Avitli his regiment
recruited, and ready to march from Stamford. He preceded
them himself to New York, to jirepare for the coming action.
The colonel finds at Kingsbridge a deputation of citizens,
earnestly pleading Avith him not to enter the city, as the enemy
had SAA'orn to fire it, if revolutionary troops should be found in
it. Bat the Connecticut men had enlisted for the fight, and
under their leader they Avere not inclined to cede any part of
the domain to the rule of King George's troops : and we ac-
accordingly find him quartered in the upper j^.art of the city.
On the si.x:tli of March he is still in the city and is ordered to
send doAvn from the upper barracks, Wm. Lounsbury and
others confined there for spiking our guns beyond King's
Bridge. They Avore sent doAAai, according to orders and on be
ing tried and found guilty were remanded to the same confine
ment. We next find him at the head of his regiment, a thousaud
strong, leaving- Ilarlaem the third Tuesday of July, 1775, for
Albany. August 28th, he embarks from Ticonderago for Isle
aux Noix, fourteen miles beloAV St. John, toward Avhich tho
army were uoav moving. The object of the campaign was the
permanent occnj)ancy of CroAvii Point and Ticonderoga, they
having just been taken from the British, Avho had held posses
sion of both forts since the memorable campaign of 1759.
On his return from his northern expedition in January, 1776,
Col. Waterbury Avas ordered by President Hancock to raise
five or six hundred men and go over to Long Island to capture
tories Avho had refused to AOte for deputies to the convention

L.VTKU BIOORAPnV. 419
to be held in New York. It appears that when ho had gathered
his quota of men his orders Avere countermanded. A letter of
the colonel is preserved in the American Archives to President
Hancock, dated Ncav York, Sept. 16, 1775, asking for indem
nity for his expenses for the preparations then made. Though
he seems not to have jiursued the tories on the Island, he had
done very efficient service .among their sympathizers in West
chester county. Great complaint was made of his severity
tOAvards that class of traitors. He seems to have shown them
no mercy. One of the reasons given by citizens in this vicinity
for going over to the enemy was the excessive rigor of Colonel
Waterbury. So Elisha Davis, of Greenwich, testifies for him
self, when he made a plea for the restoration of his estate. In
February, 1776, Colonel Samuel Drake, of Westchester, made,
an appeal for thirty guns, two pair of holsters, nine cutlasses,
and three pistols, which the officious colonel had taken from
suspected citizens Avithin his jurisdiction, by orders from General
Lee. The following testimony regarding the colonel bears date
Mareh 2, 1770, aud shows us how jealous he Avas of every bin.
dranco to tho progress of the Revolution : " Jos. Cheeseman,
of Noav York, testifies that this day being on board a boat in
Peck's Slip, he heard Gol. Waterbury say that he had for some
time thought that things Avould not go well unless the city of
New York was crushed down, and that it must be done by their
people before things would go aa^oU." (Am. Archives, vol. v.)
That this sensitiveness to the toryism of the day did not dis
qualify tho colonel for his military position, the following order
shows : Camebidgb, March 15, 1776.
Sie : — You are to proceed with the regiment under your command to Nor
wich, in Connecticut. His excellency expects yoa will preserve good order
and discipline upon your march. » , * The general, depending upon
your zeal, experience and good conduct, is satisfied that on your part no
vigilance will be wanting.
Col. D. Waterbury, juu. Hok.vtio Gates, Adjuta-at General.
The foUoAving correspondence exhibits still further the esti
mate in whioh Colonel Waterbury's services at this period were
held :

420 HISTORY OF STAEFORD. Lebanon- April 29, 1776.
Sie :— David Waterbury. juu., oi Stamford, E.squire, Ool. of a regiment
from this colony in the northern department the last year, and at the taking
of St. Johns and Montreal, nnd lately in the service at New York with
major general Lee ; at all times behaved with bravery and honor. When
you have a vacancy ia the army answerable to hi.s rank, I do heartily com
mend him to your kind notice aud regard.
I am with great esteem aud regard, sir, your ob.l. humble servant,
To his Excellency Gen. Wa.shingtou. .Tona. TaUiMBOLL.
New Yoek, May 13, 1776.
Sie .-—Gov. Trumbull has been pleased to mention you to me as a proper
person to fcuccecd to the command of a regiment lately General Arnold's.
If you incline to engage in the service again, I shall be obliged to yon for
signifying as much, iu order that I may lay the matter before congress for
their approval. I am, sir, with great respect, your most obd. servant.
To Colonel DaA-id Waterbury, of Stamford. Geo. Washington.
In his reply to this proposal of Gen. Washington, the colonel
complains that he had not hitherto received the promotion which
was his due, and while he asked no further commission, he
pledges his readiness to volunteer his services at any moment
Avhen they may be needed.
The general assembly in their session of June, 1776, appointed
Col. Waterbury a brigadier general " in the battalions of mil
itia now to be raised to reinforce the continental army in
Canada." On the 5th of July, at the head of the first division of the
continental forces, he reached New York, sharing the command
of that division with General Wadsworth. With all possible
dispatch the men are hurried to the scene of the openin<^
campaign on Lake George.
The general himself reports from Skeensborough, July the
15th, where he is forwarding troops to Ticonderoga, .as fast as
they can come up.
Under date of July 18th, h- again wi-ltes lo Washington as
follows :
"Deae Sie : I received your favor of the 16th, aud your honor may rest
assured that I shall execute the orders as fur as lies in my p jwor I would

L.\.TEE BIOGRAPHY. 421
inform your honor there are no troops arrived yet. I hnvo had intelligence
of their being ou the march to this place, and I hope tho3» will soon arrive.
I have a small party now clearing out Wood Creek aud a small party build-
iug a place proper to keep a guard on the hill east of the mill ; and the rest
are employed in getting timber for the carpenters and mills, and on guard.
I have not men sufficient to begin the fortifications ou the west side of the
mill. Your honor will see by the returns that there are but few men here ;
but what there are I shall eud3:ivor to keep well employed ; and as soon as
others come in, I shall do the same by them. I have picked up all the
axes, and the blacksmiths have overhauled them. I shall stAud in great
need of tools on the arrival of troops.
Sir, I shall with pleasure receive your o.-Ijrs as you sue cause to send
them, and hope I shall bo abla to put them iuto execution agreeably to your
honor's expectation. David Wateeboet, jr."
From this time, until early iu September, he remained here
in command, exercising the utmost disi^atch in drilling and
transmitting recruits. His labors must have been very great,
as his letters and special dispatches of that period evince. A
large number of these letters are preserved in the ^^merican
Archives; and it is not saying too much of them to claim that
they show the general to has'c been an earnest patriot aud a
faithful servant of the people in that day of their great strug
gle. The only one of these letters which our space wUl allow
iis to use is that of August 31st. It discloses both the hum.ani-
ty and the fidelity of the gener.al. It Avas addressed to his
superior officer, General Gates.
Sm : —Col. Woodbridge and his major have been detained in this neigh-*
borhood fourteen days, iu consequence' of having been inoculated, and not
bringing certificates that they were properly cleansed ; and they grow un
easy that they are kept back. I shall be glad to know if your honor intends
I shall let them go forward to Ticonderoga. If not I shall be glad to have
some instructions how to act; concerning them.
I am, de.ir general, your honor's most obd. humble servant,
David Watesbuet, Jr.
That the general Avas held in high esteem among the highest
officers in the army is abundantly attested, by the army cor
respondence of that day. Under date of Aug. 7, 1776, General
Schuvler thus writes to him from German Flats :

422 HISTORY OF STAMFORD.
"I thauk you for your attention, and the information yoa gave. My
long stay here very much distresses me. It is however a great alleviation
of my anxiety that you are at Sksensboro-ugb, aud 1 am confident you Avill
expedite the work as much as possible. I am, dear general, sincerely yonr
most obedient humble servant, Philip Schuylee.''
Under date of Aug. 18, 1776, General Gates, then in com
mand of the northern army, thus coinmends and endorses Gen
eral Waterbury : " As he is an able seaman and a brave officer,
I intend that he shall join General Arnold Avith the rest of the
squadron, the instant thej' can be armed and equipped. As
General Arnold and he are upon the best terras, I am satisfied
no dispute about command or AA-ant of confidence in each other
will retard the public service."
And, again, Aug. 20th, General Schuyler thus v/rites to Gen
eral Gates : " I am extremely happy that General Waterbury
is to join General Arnold. I know him to be a good man as
Avell as a good officer."
General Waterbury Avas appointed, Sept. 2nd, second officer
in the fleet under General Arnold, then in Lake Ghfimplain ;
and on the eighth, he started for Ticonderoga to take this new
command. On the second of the foUoAving month he saUed
from Ticonderoga with tAvo galleys to join the fleet.
On the fourteenth, a letter from Sir Guy Carleton to Lord
Germain introduces General Waterbury to us as a prisoner.
He ends his account of their victory with this exultation : " We
have taken Mr. Waterbury, the second in command, one of their
brigadier generals."
The following dispatches also show him to be a prisoner of
war, yet show in what esteem ho is held by his superior in
command. Saeatoga, Oct. 18, 1776.
SiE :— General Waterbury, who is prisoner on his parole, is on his way
from Albany to Connecticut. I have advisod him to go directly from Al
bany to yon. He is capable of jgiving you that information you requested
in your last favour to me. He is not only a brave and good officer, but a
candid and honest man, uninfluenced by any unbecoming prejudices. He
will also acquaint you with our affairs at Ticonderoga.

LATEE BIOGEAPHY. 423
I am, most respectfully, sir, your obedient and very humble servant,
To the Hon. Jona. Trumbull. Ph. Schuyler.
Oct. 23, 1776.
General Waterbury has entreated me to recommend him to congress to
be exchanged for General McDonald, or any other officer. I wish it to be
accomplished. Ph. Schuylee.
To John Hancock.
A lengthy letter from General Waterbury, dated Stamford,
Oct. 24, 1779, and addressed to President Hancock, giving his
account of his capture, is preserved in the American Archives.
The general was soon exchanged. I do not find that he was
afterwards in any special engagement, though he was contin
ued in command.
He returned to liis native town, where he was held in honor
by his townsmen. He served the town as selectman, and as
representative in the state legislature. His residence Avas on
the west side of our harbor, where his business Avas that of a
farmer. He died June 29, 1801, and was buried in the old burying
lot, on the west side of Mill River. His widow, Mary, died
Nov. 7, 1810, aged 77 years. They left one son, William, who
Avas a man considerably in public business of the toAvn, known
as WiUiam Waterbury 4th. He left, also, one daughter, Mary,
who died single, at twenty-six years of age.
Wateebury, Charles, son of Jonathan B. and Betsey (Weed)
Waterbury, was born here, in November 1819. He learned tho
saddler's trade in Bridgeport, but on the opening of the Noav
York and New Haven Railroad, he engaged in the service of
the railroad as baggage master. He afterwards served as bag
gage master, conductor and assistant superintendent on the
Naugatuck road, untU he was appointed, in 1843, its superin
tendent, which office he held until his death in 1868. Few men
in these offices, have commended themselves more fully to the
traveUng pubHc than he has ahvays done. Modest and retiring
in disposition, he Avas nevertheless a prompt and most efficient
business man. Tlie W.aterbury dust-excluding ventilator, which

424 HISTORY OF STAMFOED.
a few years ago added so much to the comfort'of passengers
over his road, during the summer months, was his invention,
and from the sale of the patent he realized a handsome sum.
Mr. Waterbury was also an earnest christian man, and has been
for years connected Avith the second Gongregational church in
Bridgeport. His funeral, which was atteuded in Bridgeport,
on Sunday Sept. 6, 1868, was a marked tribute to his private
and public worth. He married Cordelia Lockwood, of Green
Avich, who survives him. They had no children.
Charles Webb was the son of Charles and Mai-y Smith
Webb, and Avas. born here, Feb. 13, 1724. He became early
prominent in civil and military affairs, as the town records
abundantly show. In 1757 he was chosen selectman for the
first time, and was afterwards re-elected nineteen times. In
1758 he was chosen for the first time to represent the town in
the state legislature, and was re-elected to the same office
tAA'enty-three times. At this date he had become so promi
nent as to be entitled by vote to the third pew in the meeting
house. He was also a military man, having attained, in 1760,
the rank of captain. On the opening of the revolutionary war,
he was at once looked to as one of the leaders of the town in
opposition to the demands of the croAA'n. We find him in the
state legislature, and at home, speaking for the war ; and when
at length the war had been declared, Ave find him entrusted
with posts of Aveighty responsibility, both in civil and military
life. In May, 1775, he was sent by the Continental Congress ou a
tour of military investigation to Ticonderoga, of Avhich he made
a satisfactory report on the Sth of June following. In July of
this year the legislature commissioned him colonel, and he is
put in command of a regiment of the state militia, and is
stationed at Greenwich. In September he is ordered to New
Haven, and in Oct. 23, he writes from his camp. Winter HUl,
that he has noAV prepared his command for any service to which
General Washington may call them.

L.\TEE BIOGRAPHY. 425
He was in the battle of White Plains, Oct. 28, where he won
for himself the reputation of an excellent and bold officer. The
following certificate from the colonel is preserved in the
American Archives. HARxroED, Juue 16, 1777.
" I hereby certify that in the action at the White Plains, on rho 28 th of
October, 1776, the regiment then under my commimd, in obedience to my
orders unslung aud laid down their packs to engage the enemy '; aud the
enemy overpowering aud gaining tho ground, said jiacks and the baggage
of the regiment fell intc the bauds of the enemy without the default of the
losses and by the merit of tbe chauce of war-. Chas. Webb, Col. 19 Eegt.
Cousiderable loss of clothin;; and arui.s \v:i3 sustained by the regiment
uuder my command in the action aud retreat oa Long Island in August
1 ist, none of which, so far as came to my knowledge, appeared lo happen
thro any neglect or disobedience of orders of the loosers ; also on York Is
land Sept. 15, 1776, said regiment were ordered by Gen. Scott to unsliug
their packs to engage the enemy, which we did accordingly, and the enemy
advanced ; and precipitate retreat being ordered, siv'id packs fell into tht^ir
hands aud witho-at auy neglect or co-vvardioa of the owners, so far as I could
jiidgo. Hartford, Jun8;2, 1777."
He was also at the battle of White Marsh, December 1777,
where his reginient received the attack of the Hessian forpe.
The struggle was very spirited, and his regiment lost eighty-
four killed on the field and a large number Avounded.
^ As an officer, Colonel Webb Avas marked for his promptness
aud efficiency. He was a strict disciplinarian. Thoroughly in
sympathy with the revolutionary movement himself, he could
accept nothing less than a Avhole-hearted earnestness in all who
were engaged iu its support. He tolerated no patriotism which
suspicion could touch.
He married here, July 16, 1747, Mary Holly. Their children
were, Charles, born Dec. 30, 1750; Sarah, born May 2,
1753; Hannah, born May 28, 1766; Samuel, born March 7,
1760; and Isaac, born July 28, 1766.
The son Charles Avas with his father in the revolutionary
army, and was killed on a gun boat in the Sound but a short
54

426 HISTORY OF STAMFOED.
distance from Stamford harbor. He had married here, Feb. 16,
1772, Elizabeth Smith, and had a daughter, Betsey, born Oct.
16, 1772.
Weed, Charles A., son of Smith .and Mary (Youngs)
Weed, was born in Stamford, May 13, 1826. He had been liv
ing in Richmond about nine years, when the southern rebellion
opened, and had about fifteen thousand dollars invested in his
business. As he would not renounce his allegiance to the govern-
ment of the United States, the local authorities took possession
of his property and gave him a few hours to leave the city with
his family. He accepted the terms and removed his family
again to Stamford, preferring even jDOverty, if it must be so, to
treason. When at length in the progress of our Union armies. Gen.
Butler had taken possession of New Orleans and the surround
ing country, Mr. Weed was at liberty to avail himself of tho
advantages offered to loyal citizens. He had been despoiled
by the rebellion of his entire property, and the chance was now
offered to him to wrest from the rebellion many times his loss.
He found on reaching New Orleans, in July, 1862, the large
plantations of theneighborhood covered with crops, which the
fugitive planters had' sown, now neglected and in danger of
beuig utterly lost. Under governmental protection he went to
the work of gathering in the crops. He hired the negroes who
had been abandoned by their masters, giving to the govern
ment one half of the products secured, and abundantly indem
nifying himself for the loses he had sustained in Richmond.
Since then he has been engaged in business in New Orleans,
where he has had an extensive commission house under the
firm of C. A. Weed & Co. His enterprise is also shown in
other ways. He found the old New Orleans Crescent in a
bankrupt condition, purchased it, and substituting for it the
New Orleans Times, has built up the largest and one of the
most successful newspaper enterprises of the South. He was
also the original mover of the First National Bank of the city,

LATEE BIOGRAPHY, ,427
and the largest stockholder in it. He was oft'ered the presi
dency of it, but refused. He, also, projected the New Orleans
Fire Insurance Company, which has also grown to b? au insti
tution of great local value.
Mr. Weed is now erecting a family residence on Noroton hill,
one of tho most commanding sites in his native town, which is
to be for the present, the summer, and Avhicli he intends to make
the permanent residence of his family. He married in 1826,
Abigail S. Lounsbury, daughter of Samuel Lounsbury, and has
four children, three sons and one daughter.
Weed, Edward, son of Philo and Abigail  Weed, was
born in the north part of the town, July 17, 1807. In 1817 his
parents removed to the toAvn of Denmark, New York, Avhere
from the frontier condition of that neighborhood, but few priv-
ilges could be enjoyed.
At the usual age he commenced learniug a trade ; but ou his
oonversion, in his eighteenth year, longing to do all iu his
power to win others to the Saviour, he left his trade and began
studying in the hope of becoming a preacher. In two years
he had fitted himself to teach, and engaged for the Avinter of
1826-7 in a school in BoonvUle, N. Y. During this time he
was very actively engaged in christian labors, and showed a
zeal and skill which promised much future usefulness. The
next summer he ^entered the Oneida Institute, then just estab
lished on the manual labor plan, where he remained four years.
He spent also three years in Lane Seminary from its opening
in 1832, Avhen he showed himself an honest christian scholar.
Among the questions discussed at the literary society of the
students, that of anti-slavery forced itself upon their attention.
It eHcited the intensest interest, and became so engrossing as
to excite the fears of the trustees of the seminary; and they
soon prohibited its further discussion. Several of the students,
of whom Mr. Weed was one, left the seminary, and spent some
time in the careful study of the interdicted subject, and became
henceforth zealous and effective champions of the slave.

42 S - HISTORY OF STAMFORD.
He was licensed to preach by the Chilioothe Presbytery in
November, 1835, and entered upon this work with a zeal al
most apostolic. He soon engaged in lecturing upon anti-slavery,
and was employed by the Ohio State Anti-Slavery Society. In
this field of labor he was uuAvearied, through evil report as Avell
as good, counting not his oAvn life dear unto him, if by its sac
rifice he might help the oppressed. He labored on, amid op-.
position and ridicule and persecution, until the spring of 1838,
when he was invited to the pastorate of the free Presbyterian
Church of Mount Vernon, Ohio. Here he labored with great
acceptance until the year 1842, when he accepted a call to Pat-
erson, N. J. While connected with this church he labored ex
tensively as a revivalist in many other churches, and was
greatly blessed. In January, 1842, he was, greatly to the sor
row of his church and people in Paterson, dismissed, that he
might take charge of the free Presbyterian Church in Brooklyn,
N. Y. He returned to his former charge in Paterson, after an
absence of fifteen months, was installed and continued to labor
among them until his health failed in the spring of 1849, and
he was obliged to ask for a dismission. Hoping to recover his
strength, he accepted a kind invitation from captain Knight,
of the ship New World to take the ocean trip with him on his
next voyage to Liverpool. While in England he made many
warm friends who ministered to his comfort and supplied all his
earthly wants. But no care from them and no solicitude of the
dearer ones he had left behind, could arrest the progress of his
disease. It was decided by his physicians that he could not
long live, and he resolved to return and die among his friends
at home. He reached home Dec. 22, 1850, and lived until Jan.
20, 1851. On the 23rd he Avas buried in Paterson amid the
tears of an affectionate family and an endeared people. He
had been greatly beloved for his great excellence of character,
and the mourning was noAV most heart-felt, because his great
usafulness had so soon ended.
Mr. Weed married for his first Avife, Nov. 5. 1836, Phebe
Mathews of Mexicoville, N. Y. She died Dec. 12, 1843. He

LATER BIOGRAPHY. 426
married for his second wife, Sept. 9, 1844, a Miss Porter, of
Whitestown, who survived him. He had four children, to whom
allusion is made in his memoir; Benjamin, Josephine, Edward
and Albert.
Weed, Enos, was one ot tho most erratic characters that
Stamford has produced. He was the son of Enos. He was a
man of considerable originality, thinking independently of
books, and practicing, in everything, A\-ith no. special regard to
the rules or usages of customary practice. He went into med
icine, and became somewhat noted as a medical adviser and
practitioner, but, in his own way. He went into letters, and
constructed a spelling book with many novelties, both in the
alphabet employed and in the orthography.
He went also into religion and theology. Following no school
or sect, he struck out for himself, and became a preacher, whom,
though the orthodox could not wholly endorse, they could
not utterly condemn. It may be due his memory to note the
fact that with all his eccentricity, he Avas counted worthy, in
1790, of being appointed leader of the first Methodist class
established in Stamford ; and that he Avas an authorized local
preacher in that denomination.
A single specimen of his genius and spirit is here insei'ted,
taken from an old paper to which he sometimes contributed,
and probably nothing which the historian could Avrite, would
so effectuaUy set this unique son of the toAvn so exactly before
the reader as this autobiographic Avaif :
My name is Enos Weed, and junior too,
Which is something more,
It shows that Weeds have grown before.
Long as you see this in the paper,
From place to place I mean to caper.
And pick up all the cash I can,
Conforming to my preseut plan.
How large the " pile" was, which his capers gathered, history
does not show.
Weed, Nathaniel, son of Hezekiah and Rebecca (Knapp)
Weed, was born in Stamford, Oct. 1, 1785. He is a descend-

430 HISTOEY OP STAMFORD.
ant probably in the sixth generation from Jonas Weed, whose
name occurs among the pioneers of the town. At the early age
of fifteen years he went into Noav York city, where he engaged
as clerk untU he should become of age. Before this period
arrived he had Avon such confidence in his business integrity
and skUl, as to secure flattering offers to engage in ncAV business
enterprises ; but ho characteristically decided to fulfill his
engagements Avith his employer to the end of his minority.
When his time was out and he had enjoyed a visit to his
parents for a foAv davs, his former employer proposed engaging
him still longer, as a clerk. His prompt answer was, " I shall
be no man's clerk hereafter. I can manage for myself, and if it
must be, with a buck and saw, I can still do better than to clerk
it longer." With this spirit he entered the dry goods business,
and success was with him.
In 1827 he was chosen president of the North River Bank^
and soon organized the Ocean Bank, of which he was for years
president, and which he left in 1850, greatly to the regret of the
directors. He still has among the cherished memorials of his
business life the elegant vase which they gave him on his re
tirement from that office.
Retaining his interest in the town Avhich gave him birth, he
built the elegant mansion which he still occupies in Darien, only
a few rods east of the place on which he was born. Here, since
1850, he has lived, respected and honored in. a graceful old age.
He married, first, Hannah Smith, of New York city, in 1810,
by whom he had a son, Harvey A., who graduated with first
honors of his class in Columbia College, New York, and became
a lawyer ; and a daughtci, Caroline, Avho died at the age of
tAveuty-six. Mr. Weed married for his second wife, in 1840, Mrs. Mary
(Smith) Weed, a younger sister of his first -ftnfe, and the widow
of his younger brother.
Weed, Samuel, son of Ananias and Sally (Brown) Weed, was
born it Stamford in 1791 He fitted for college at the North

^¦i'»*bvrio. r^PermeSf-

NATHAETEL "XVEED.
LATE PRESIDENT OF THE OCEAN HA NX EITTA^ j VEK .

LATER BIOGRAPHY. 431
Salem Academy, and entered Yale College in 1809.- He grad
uated with his class in 1813, taking a good stand in a class con-
laiuing such names as Geo. E. Badgor, L. L. D. ; Elias Cornelius,
D. D., of whom he was the room mate while in college ; Norris
Bull, D. D. ; David B. Douglass, L. L. D. ; WUHam T. Dwight,
D. D. ; Prof Alexauder, Wm. Fisher, Charles Hawley, Esq. ;
Augustus B. Longstreet, L. L. D. ; Elisha Mitchell, D. D. ; Prof
Denison Olmsted, L. L. D., and Dr. George Sumner.
He commenced the study of theology with Rev. Ebenezer
Philips, of East Hampton, L. I., and after being licensed to
preach, supplied the church in Babylon, L. I., for a year. While
hero he received a call to settle in North Stamford, his native
parish, and had decided to accept it. Being already under ap
pointment to the general assembly of the Presbyterian Church
at their first session in Philadelphia, he started to'^attend the
meeting and was taken with the sickness from which he never
recovered. He died in Philadelphia in June, 1 820.
Weeks, Jonathan Dibble, Avas the son of Lewis and Sarah
(Guire) Weeks, and was born in Stamford, Feb. 2, 1811. His
youth was spent in comparative poverty. His advantages
Avere only those of the poorer boys of our poorer rural school
districts. But he had in him that which gives tbe^ poorest boy
a certain passport to most substantial prosperity and Avealth.
Industrious, honest and persevering, he Avas equally faithful to
himself and his employer.
The talent entrusted to him, thus faithfuHy used, was soon
more than doubled. Beginning as an apprentice in the rolling
mills at RippoAA'am foundry, he' went, at about the age of
twenty, into the employ of Davenport & Layton, at Roxbury
miUs, where he soon became an equal partner with John A.
Davenport. During his apprenticeship, by unwearied application, he had
made such progress in his studies that he had read the neces
sary Latin and Greek for admission to college at his tAventieth
year; and had, also, by his industry and economy, besides con-

432 HISTORY OF STAMFORD.
tributing to the support of his father's family, laid by what he
supposed would enable him to take a collegiate course, prepara
tory to the study of law, in which profession he hoped to spend
his life. But unexpected sickness thwarted this cherished plan,
and regretfully, yet with earnest purpose, he still gave himself
to the business Avhich Provideuce seemed to appoint him. After
a successful career at the Roxbury mills he became joint part
ner with the Davenport Brothers, in the extensive rolling mills
at Stillwater. Here he spent the rest of his life. In the duties
of his extensive business, whose business Avas mainly entrusted '
to his care, and in quiet and private acts of his noble generosity,
ho accomplished great good.
He Avas universally beloved by the mauy laborers Avho were
in his employ. They were all mourners when he died. Multi-.
tudes of the poor of his native town Avete the objects of his gen^
erous benefactions. He seemed most pleased in giving, and, to
those who most needed it.
He never married, but he found or made for himself a home
in the family of his younger brother, James William, where he
found all that he wanted in a home. Here he enjoyed himself,
and here he was the joy of those whom he spoke of as his OAvn
family. Nothing could fempt him to leave it. For the last
eloA'^en years of his life he had not spent a night aAvav from the
home he so much loved.
Here he gave himself to his business and reading. In both
he was diligent and thorough. Every hour Avaa employed, and
well employed. His reading Avas carefully selected. He could
not be entertained by the fashionable light literature of the day ;
he needed something more substantial. History, biography,
phUosophy and science, Avere the works Avhich engrossed his
time, and in them his reading Avas quite extensive.
Two characteristics prominent in his Avhole life, made him one
of the most beloved and trustAVorthy men of the town. He was
conscientious and benevolent. After he had reached manhood,
learning that a school bill of his boyhood had never been paid,

LATER BIOGEAPHY. 433
he carefully enquired after every possible arrearage of those
early years, and cashed them Avith full interest. His benevo
lence was unbounded, and much of it ivas unknoAvn. Though
he gathered a handsoms estate, he had, while living, the truer
joy of distributing in benefactions, Avhere he knew they would
do good, probably a still larger amount.
Ilissiidden death occurred Jan. 21, 1864, and the multitudes
who gathered at his funeral were the best witnesses a good man
could have, to the esteem, in Avhich ho was held. Unaffected
and universal mourning attested the public' bereavement.
Welles, Noah, D. D, Avasborn in Colchester, Jan. 23, 1718,
and graduated at Yale College in 1741. His scholarship is in
dicated in his appointment as tutor in his Alma Mater in 1745.
After receiving his license to preach he Avas settled as pastor of
the Stamford Church, as our chapter on ecclesiastical matters,
shoAvs, Dec. 31, 1746. We have already in our history been
obliged to report his success in the work of the ministry here.
He attained a high rank among the ministers of Connecticut.
He Avas chosen a Fellow of Yale CoUege in 1774, and received
the degree of D. D., the same year from the CoUege of New
Jersey. Dr. Dwight thus testifies to his ability and standing.
"Dr. Welles was early distinguished for his talents. His imagiuatiou
VA'as vivid and poetical, his intellect vigorous, aud his learning extensive.
His manners at the same time were an unusually happy compouud of
politeness aud dignity. Ia his couversation, he w.is alternately sprightly
and grave, as occasicii dictated, and eutertaiuiug aud instructive. At the
same time he was an excellent minister of the Gospel ; exemplary in all the
virtues of christian life ; an able preacher ; a wise ruler of the church ; and
au eminently discreet manager of its important concerns. He was oue of
the three chosen friends of the late Governor Livingston of New Jersey, to
whom he addressed, when young, a haudsoraely written poem, prefixed to
bis Philosophic Solitude.''
Dr. Welles was soraoAvhat fond of theological controversy.
And as his ministry Avas in that period in Avhich Episcopacy
Avas Avorking its way into the colonies, and particularly into
Fairfield County, he felt himself called upon, in virtue of his
55

434 HISTORY OF Sl'AMFOED.
office here, to defend the church organization to which ho was
.attached. His discourse on Presbyterian ordination, printed
ia 1763, at the new printing office, near tho Royal Exchange,'
by John Hoyt, was an able justification of his authority as
a minister of the church of Christ. It had been preached on
two successive Sabbaths to his own people. Subsequently, ho
published a still more lengthy, and perhaps still more spirited
defense of the authority of the Congregational clergy, and of
the polity of the Congregational Church. Though earnestly
entering into their discussions, he was never diverted by them
from the great work of his profession ; nor was his spirit ever
soured by them towards the Episcopal clergy or the denomiua-
tion. The work just named stirred up considerable denonina-
tional feeling among the Episcopal clergy, and called forth from
the earliest clergyman of that denomination here, the Rev. James
Wetmore, a work of some spirit entitled ; " A Vindication of tho
Professors of the Church of England in Connecticut, against
Invectives contained in a sermon by Noah Hobart, of Stamford,
Dec. 31, 1746." The name Hobart in the title of the work is of
course a mistake of the printer, for Welles. (See Wetmore
FamUy.) Dr. Welles, married in 1751, Abigail Woolsey, daughter of
Rev. Benjamin Woolsey, of Oyster Bay, by whom he had the
folio Aving children : Sarah, born Nov. 9, 1752 ; Mary Sylvester,
born Oct. 20, 1754; Theodosia, born Oct. 22, 1758; AbigaU,
born Oct. 12, 1760; Noah, born Oct. 3, 1762; Betsey, born
Feb. 23, 1765; Rebecca, born July 5, 1767; WiUiam, born
Jan. 22, 1769; Melancthon Woolsey, born Dec. 9, 1770;
ApoUos, born Oct. 10, 1773 ; John and James, tAvins, born
AprU 7,^1776. Dr. Welles died Dec, 31, 1776, and his Avife
Oct. 28, 18 11, aged 81,

CHAPTER XXV

MlSflELLANEOUS TOPirs.

U-XTON LODOK.

This is one of the oldest institutions ot the town, and de
serves its place in our history. Its charter bears date, Nov.
18, i763 ; and Avas issued by " Geo. Harrison, Esq., Provincial
Grand Master of the most Ancient and Honorable Society of
Free and Accepted Masons in the province of Ncav York." It
authorizes Sylvanus Waterbury, " our Avorshipful and well be
loved brother," " to form a lodge, to choose his Avardens, and
.appoint other officers, Avith the consent of the brethren assem
bled in due form, to make masons, as also to do all .and every
such acts and things appertaining to said office, as usually have
and ought to be done by other masters." He is to pay over
to the Provincial Grand Lodge at New York, out of tho first
monies he shall receive, three pounds and three shillings ster
ling, to be applied to the use of the Grand Charity. This lodge
Avas designed for Stamford and Jlorseneck, (GreenAvich,) and
parts adjacent.
The records of the lodge from 1763 to 1780 are lost, the only
name of the members for that period, preserved, being that in
the charter, Sylvanus Waterbury. Since then there have been
four hundred and sixty names added to the membership.
The worshipful masters of the lodge, according to the records
preserved have been, Sylvanus Waterbury, John Anderson,
Israel Knapp, Jabez Fitch, Wm. Bush, Isaac Reed, Sturges
Perry, Samuel Bush, Noyes Mather, Alexander MiUs, James
Stevens, Isaac LockAvood, Samuel Keeler, Simeon II. Minor,
Benj. Huested, Isaac Bishop, Charles Hawley, Erastus Weed,
John W. Leods, fourteen years; Peter Brown. Sands Adams,

436 HISTOEY OF STAMFORD.
A. A. Holly, nineteen years ; W. H. Holly, Roswell Hoyt, H-
Bulkley, PhUip L. Hoyt, T. J. Daskam , John A. Scofield, JamcS
H. Olmstead, and Dwight Waugh.
RITTENHOUSE CHAPTEE.
This chapter of royal iirch masons was chartered at a grand
chapter of royal arch masons held in New Haven, Oct. 18,
1810, on a memoria] presented to them by James Stevens and
sundry other brethren, noAV residing in, and adjacent to, Stam
ford. The officers installed by the chapter are the most Avor
shipful brother James Stevens, H. P. ; the right worshipful
brother, Isaac Lockw ood, K-g. ; and the right Avorshipful
brother Ezekiel Lockwood, S-e.
The high priests of this order have been : James Stevens,
Isaac Lockwood, Simeon H. Minor, Joseph Keeler, Wm. J.
Street, Charles Hawley, John W. Leeds, Nathan Camp, Wm.
Holly, Smith Scott, Geo. B. Glendining, Luke A. Lockwood,
and James H. Olmstead. ROADS.
At this day we have no conception of the difficulties connect
ed with travel in the early period of our history.
For many years the travel was on foot or on horseback j and
theroiids Avere only meandering paths, such as aflTordcd easiest
progress for the Aveary feet. For many years they were marked
hardly more than to clear off the trees and bushes, and this
was done by each landowner before hi s own lot. Hoav rapidly
these paths or roads were laid out we have no means of know
ing. One pecuHarity of the highw ay of that eariy day was the
fact of a gate across the road, wherever a side road entered
the main one of the settlement— so that for several years, one
could not probably have traveled a half mile in any direction
from the center of the town, Avithout meeting one of these
gates. After a few years, by special action in town meeting,
these gates Avere removed, generally on petition of some of the
outsiders who found them a serious annoyance.

miscellaneous. 437
The following vote of 28th, 2d month, 1682, is a sample of
the A'Otes providing for the support of these highway gates :
"Joseph Stevens is to have on acre aud half of land joyning to ye north
of his lot in cousideration whereof he is to keep and maintain ye lower
south field gate; and ye sd land is bound forye maintaining thereof. Also
the sd Stevens is to keep & maintaine ye rooky neck gate for ye same
tiuantity of land yt before Avas laid to it & ye laud to stand bound for ye
gate as aforesaid: goodman. Dean & Joshua Hoit are apointed to lay It
out.'' ,
The following vote is curious, as showing how even the
great coast-route thoroughfare must have boon subject to a
similar obstruction. It bears date, Jan. 1764. " By vote ye
tOAvn doth own the prosecution yt hath bine made upon ye
state of John Pettit or ye fins for tho deffects in a pece offence
by GrinAvich bars, markt I P, and neglected by him, viz. John
Pettit." These gates, bars and fences across the roads Avere found
exceedingly troublesome ; and when other reasons could not
induce their removal, resort Avas sometimes had to the strong
arm. Thus, in 1723, we find this record : "the town by vote
agree that they will stand by and justify those men that have
been employed by the proprietors to pull down the fence that
was set up across the highway near Thomas Stevens."
Without prosecuting the research further, it is due at least
to the entertainment of future readers of our tOAvn history, that
we attempt to sketch the fin,al touches to the great thorough
fare of the town. From the first, tho route betAveen New
Haven and New York ran through Stamford, mainly where
the main road noAV lies. Yet, from local impediments, it Avas
much more crooked, than now. Our engineering skill had not
yet come to test its abUlty, in the encounter with very formi
dable granite bluffls, nor with what seemed the bottomless
marshes and impenetrable swamps of our impracticable sur
face. And so it happened, that as business grew, and demand
ed greater expedition, — as Avheeled carriages succeeded eques-
t rian or pedestrian locomotion, and felt more than they, these

438 HISTORY OF STAMFORD.
deviations from a right-lined course, our enterprising town,-:'-
laen gave themselves no rest until they had done Avhat
seemed to them possible, towards leveling and straitening
their roads.
Especially on those roads built for the daily passing of tho
heavy stage coach, did this improvement seem indispensable.
Such was our main road through Stamford. Tlie entire pojju-
Iatio,n in Eastern Connecticut, and so on .all the Avay to Provi
dence and Boston, were interested then as now, in shortening
the distance and the time over the route. They had succeeded
in .satisfying themselves with the old roads until about 1795,
when the call for thorough improvement began to be heard.
The state legislature appointed commissioners, Avith almost ab
solute authority, to go over the road and lay out a uoav turn
pike for greater expedition in travel. All along on tho road
betAveen Ncav Haven and Greenwich, there arose dissatisfaC'
tion and opposition. In Stamford there seems to have been no
very earnest objection to the route adopted by the committee
until, in their zeal for reform, they decided that the interest of
the traveling public demanded a strait road through the vil
lage. But here they found themselves arrested by the old
burying lot which, from the earliest remembrances of the towns
people, had been held sacred for the rest of their dead. This
lot covered the ground between the old " Washington House,"
or Webb Tavern, and the corner occupied by the Methodist
Church ; and the old turnpike had followed the present route of
Park Place till it enters River street. The enterprising com
mittee insist on laying out the noAV turnpike right across that
hallowed spot. The town opposed, and for years kept the com-
xnittee and the legislature at bay. But the world moves on
and by 1805, enough of our townsmen had been draA^^n into
the current to approve ancl second the measure. John Daven
port even took stock in the sacrilegious enterprise, and Ave find
his name at the head of a petition for the summary and au
thorative opening of the desired road. The town oppose and
ithe corporation persevere. The legal authority is granted, and

miscellaneous. 439
the invasio n begins. Entering the burying lot, j ust south of the
cast end of our present Park Place, they plowe d strait across,
as the present Main street runs, to the Methodist Church,
where they again entered the old turnpike. Removing care-
fuUy the grave stones and exhuming the remains beneath, they
commence the thorough grading of the new road. In spite
of the mutterings, which betokened serious hostility to tho
daring act, the corporation go on in their work. Night over
takes them, and they are obUged to rest. But now is the time
for the opposition. Team after team of Stamford oxen, sturdy
and true to the sturdy and true men who drove them, filed on
towards the newly opened road. Immense rocks Avere hauled
right across both ends of the opening ; and when " Uncle
Thad," the same who thirty years before had so delight ed his
townsmen by shaking his tory neighbor, was satisfied that the
turnpike corporation would have a job sufficiently discouraging
to remove the obstructions, the men and teams Avere withdrawn
to rest for another night's work, if it should be necessary.
Twice more this game was played, but the influence of the
age and the strong arm of the law Avere alike against it, and
the opposition of the town had to yield. The road was fin
ished ; but the feeling of some of the opposition, at the head of
whom were such leaders of the people as Captain Isaac Lock-
wood and Captain Thaddeus Hoyt, was so deep, that no pres
sure of business could ever prevail on them to drive over those
few rods of what, to the day of their death, thoy looked upon as
desecrated ground. NEWSPAPERS.
In April, 1829, Stamford took a new step forward in her
progress. A printing office Avas opened here and the Stamford
Intelligencer was issued. The editor not succeeding to his sat
isfaction, Wm. H. HoUy, Esq., at the solicitation of some of the
citizens of the toAvn, and under a pledge of pecuniary support 3
started a new paper, Feb. 16,1830, under the title of the Stamford
Smtin&l From that date to the present^ the tOAvn has not.

440 HISTORY OF STAMFOED.
been without its weekly paper. Mr. Holly continued in charge
of the paper under the title of " Sentinel," ¦' Democratic Senti
nel" and " Farmer's Advocate," until June 27, 1841. It is not
too much to say for the paper that its management was marked
by great abilitj'. As a pioneer paper, few of its day equaled it.
Alfred W. Pearce succeeded Mr. Holly, under whose editor
ial care it continued until Sept. 29, 1841, when Henry Nichols
succeeded him. The last paper issued by Mr. Nichols, which
I have found, bears date March 26, 1842, and in June of the
same year the " Farmers and Merchant's Advocate" was issued
under the editorial management of the former editor, Wm.
Henry Holly.
In May, 1848, Edgar Hoyt and AndroAv J. Smith took charge
of the paper, and enlarged with the simple title of the "Stamford
Advocate," Avhich it has since retained. On the dissolution of
the copartnership between Mr, Hoyt and Smith in June, 1849,
Mr. Hoyt assumed full control of the Advocate until 1860,
when Wm. S. Campbell, who proved an efficient editor, became
proprietor. There were foAV papers in the state more ably man
aged, than the Advocate, while in his hands. He soon took
into partnership with himself, Wm. W. Gillespie, the foreman
in his printing department. On his death, Mr. Gillespie formed
a neAV partnership Vith Hev. James J. Woolsey, which was dis
solved in the spring of 1868. Mr. GiUespie immediately organ
ized a new firm, W. W. GUlespie & Co., introduced steam as
motive power, and greatly enlarged his facilities for carrying on
all_departments of his business. Hoav satisfactorily the paper is
managed, and how necessary it is found to be to the town are
seen in the increasing subscription list, this having more than
trebled during^ the last three years.
STEAMBOATS.
As early as 1825, the OHver Wolcott Avas put on the Stam
ford line, and for years made trips every other day to New
York. But the town has been mainly supplied by boats which
touched here on the route from ports further east. In the

.MISCELLANEOUS. 441
spruig of 1849, the Steamboat Norwalk, riinuing between Nor
Avalk and New York stopped at Stamford. And since then,
successively, the Ella, and Stamford, and Shippan, have done a
Large part of the freighting between Now York and Stamford.
At first, at low tides, the boats landed on the Avest side of the
harbor, but a short distance above the present residence of our
venerable deacon Theodore Davenport; but in 1856, the
brothers Knapp — James E., of Noav York, and John B. of
Richmond HiU, opened the channel to their new dock at tho foot
of South street, to which point the boats have continued to run
until now. For several summers, the only steamboat Avhich
accommodated Stamford stopped at Portchestor.
CANAL.
- This Avork was due mainly to the energy of Alfred Bishop-.
(See Later Biognaphy.) It was deemed the beginning of bet
ter days for the town, Avhen in 1833, this feat was accomplished.
The first sloop Avhicli cleaved its Avaters was onr " May-
floAver," and Ave may be sure its young captain, not yet among
our oldest citizens, Rufus WardAvell, Esq., felt no little pride as
ho pioneered our local commerce. Those Avarehouses which
lined the terminus of the canal, Avere doubtless looked upon as
tho beginning of no slight commercial prosperity. But a
readier aA-enuo to the gre.at commercial center was destined at
no distant day to be opened ; and our commercial warehouses
Avere doomed to decline into the AVork shops and Ioav tenements,
Avhicli we shall have to aAvait the coming of a better time to
remove. Two years after it Avas opened, our local paper, the Sentinel,
thus speaks of its possibilities:
" Through the perseverance of a siuglo individual, a ship cbnunel has
been opened, and the enterprising Messrs. Wm. and B. Hoyt & Co., have
despatched the schooner James Star with a full freight for the West Indies,
The A'alue of this canal to this vicinity, is not yet fully realized, but every
day unfolds to the skeptic new evideaoes of its utility.
The schooner in due time, about six weeks, returned, " nine
days from Eleuthall, Avell laden Avith fruit, copper, dye AA^oods,
56

442 HISTORY OF STAMFORD.
<fcc., proving a profitable experimeiit for the adventurers." .The
editor acknowledges his obligations to the captain for a li.and-
some present of pine apples.^
STAMFORD SHIP CANAL COMPANY.
Joseph B. Hoyt and JosejihD. WarrenihthoAvinter of 1867-8,
conceived the plan of opening a permanent ship canal, from the
liarbor up, so as to connect easily with the railroad. .They, ac
cordingly purchased the needed land, controlling both sides! of
the proposed canal, and entered, in the spring of 1868, upon the
Avork. Beginning in the bed of the old canal, about sixty rods
below the Depot of the Noav York ancl Noav Haven Railroad,
they are digging some nine feet below the present bed of the
tanal and opening a channel, down" to the harbor, eighty feet
Avide ; making as they go, solid land as fair as the material thus
removed Avill extend, on each side of the channel, for building-
and business uses. When successfully completed, this enter
prise promises a large addition to the facilities Avhich the fown
Avill offer, for mechanical and manufacturing purposes.
RAIL-ROAD.
That Avas a new and exciting day for our quiet villagers,
when in 1844, a special to-wn meeting lyas called to consider
the petition of the Housatonic Railroad Company for a road from ,
Bridgeport "to Byram river along the Long Island shore. The
town came together May 7th, and after considering, variously,
tho strange proposal, agree, with a singular unanimity, in favor
of the road, aud instruct their representatives in the as sembly
to favor it. But, as is the fate with most novel enterprises, this
Avas doomed to delay ; and the restive and ambitious citizens
of the toAvn had to Avait four years more for the fulfiUnierit of
their desire. But the fulfillment came, and Avhen, in 1848, the
great thoroughfare between Boston and New York Avas opened,
under date of Dec. 19th of that year, we find in the Stamford
Advocate, then edited by Edgar Hoyt, Esq., the following
graphic note on the AVondevfiU event ot the first appearance of
the iron horse amono- ns ;

BESIDBNCB OF JOSEPH B. HOYT, NORTON HILL, STAMFORD.

.MISCELLANEOUS. 44:'i
"The citizens of the village, as well as the horses, cattle, &a., were
nearly frightened out of their propriety on Wednesday afternoon last, at
about five o'clock, by such a horrible scream as was never heard to issae
from any other thau a metallic throat. Animals of every description went
careering round the fields, snuffing the air in their terror, and bipeds of
every size, condition and color, set off at a full run for the railroad depot.
In a few moments the cause ot t he commotion appeared in the shape of a
locomotive, puffing off its steam and screaming with its so-called whistle at
a terrible rate. Attached to the locomotive were a lumber and a passenger
car, and the latter, we believe, is one of the most splendid description now
in use on any road in this counti-y. * * ¦' They have not yet com
menced running regularly to this place, and it is not probable that they
Avill do so until the road is finished to NewYork, which will probably bn
about the latter part of the present week or the first of next."
By January 1st the road had been completed, and the year
1849 Avas inaugurated by Avhat was deemed a great marvel, the
actual transit of three trains, daily, the whole distance from
New Haven to Noav York and back again. The trial trip had
been made on Monday, Dec. 26, and a single passage, in the
.account of that trip, from the pen of William H. Holly, Esq.,
Avho was one of the honored passengers of the occasion, is worth
preserving in our history of the times :
" The train hnd to remain at Cosoob Bridge some three hours for the
last rails to be laid over it, and the delay gave ample opportunity to the
surrounding people to come in and witness the wonderful feat. The gen
eral impression among them seemed to be, that the first train that attempt
ed to cross this elevated pass would also be the last. All sorts of old
women's stories to frighten tlie children had been put in circulation re
garding the safety of this bridge, and many a spectator expected to see our
splendid locomotive, elegant car, and confiding attendants and passengers
plunged into the deep bcloAv.
Ten minutes before two o'clock, P, M., Mr. Mason, chief engineer of the
company, gave the word, ' all ready.' Our prancer was let loose. Every
skeptic's heart rose to his mouth. Breathless anxiety pervaded the multi
tude on each shore. The train moved majestically along and the next min
ute the western shore received its ponderous weight, and the Avelkin rang
with the shouts of the congregated people."
Probably no event in the history of Stamford has had more
to do in shaping the future of the town than the opening of this
great thoroughfare. Very soon after the road Avas built, all

444 HISTORY OF STAMFORD.
fears of an unfavorable result upon the prosperity of the town
Avere dissipated. We were soon seen to have been made a sub
urb of the great city. Onr talent could find a much readier
field for its use in the city, and thevA'ealth and talent of the city
a much more attractive home here. The sons of Stamford who
had proA'iously been wont to go to the city to make their for
tunes, could now return to invest and enjoy them here. Now,
and hereafter, without changing their residence for a week, our
sons can avail themselves of all the aid which the city can give.
The following postscript in the Stamford Sentinel of ,Tune 6,
1836, may indicate how much avo may have gained, in time at
least, from this iron track :
" Just arrived, sloop Mary Flower, Bell, nine, days from New York, via.
Cow Bay, where she was detained by the inspector of the weather. Hands
all well, but rather meager in countenance for want of fresh provisions and
ordinary exercise. Left New York, where it formerly stood. Business
brisk. Spoke two hundred vessels or moie bound up, awaiting favorable
weather." And what gain the railroad has made upon its own beginning,
we shall easily see in comparing the time table of 1849, Avithits
three daily tri23s, AA'ith that of 1868, furnishing us Avitli thirteen.
Nor is it foreign to our record to add, that much of this marked
progress has been due to the long and successful superinten
dency of our townsman, the Hon. James H. Hoyt.
NEW CANAAN AND STAMFORD RAILROAD.
This new enterprise A\'as chartered in 1867, with a capital of
$100,000, with the privilege of increasing it to $200,000.
Its trac*k Avas so far completed that an excursion train
was run OA^er it, July 4, 1868. Already we have evidence
of the stimulus which this road has given to the north east part
of Stamford, as well as to the business of Noav Canaan, by
Avhose capital and for whose special interest it Avas mainly built.
CEMETERIES.
In the meeting of the society, held Dec. 24, 1747, a commit
tee consisting of Gol. Jona. Hoyt, Gapt. Jona. Maltby and Mr.
Abraham Davenport Avas appointed " to seek a proper place for a
burying ground and purchase it at the society's charge.

t.

o n
owK

o

-4

P -"wv^
I.
r
1
^ -A
MISCELLANEOUS. -I4.'j
This is the first record of .any action taken by the tOAvn re
garding places of burial. For more than a century the main
question in choosing a place for the graves of a family had beeu,
where is the most convenient place. Much was made of tho
funeral service, but little heed Avas given to the place of sepul
ture. Accordingly, all over town we find the scattered graves
of the departed generations — the number of society and neigh
borhood and family burying grounds on the old territory hav
ing increased to nearly one hundred ; and during- the first cen
tury, the number of single graves, opened in places now
unmarked and unknown must have been very much greater.
With literal truth we live and tread among the graves
of the former generations.' Our principal street opened
its Avay through thick graves. Our middle aged citizens re
member the little hill just east of the Methodist church, Avhere
slept the remains of several generations of our departed. This
was undoubtedly the spot chosen in 1747, .as above, for the
town burying ground. At that time the tOAvn street at the
center of the plot Avhere the Congregational meeting house
stood, turned to the north west, making what is now Park
Place, and then turning to the north, up to what is now Broad
street, crossing Tlieal's Bridge and so over Palmer Hill to
wards Greenwich. When Main street was straitened, by order
of the committee of the assembly, it entered the burying lot at
the east end of where our west Park is, and crossed it to tho
corner where the Methodist Church is, leaving two small bury
ing lots on each side of a street four rods in width. As late as
1807, the town grant permission to the citizens of Stamford
old Society to fence in the burying ground betAvoeu the house
of Enoch Hoyt and Andrew Newman, reserving tAVO rods each
side, of the old cart path through the burying ground, as laid
out by the assembly's committee. If, hoAvever, they should
find the road running through Enoch Hoyt's garden, thence
west over the burying ground, they were to proceed no further.
.\fter the road Avas opened, and it Avas done by the strong
hand, avo find a vote authorizing Isaac and Enoch Lockwood

446 HISTORY OF STAJIFORI).
Isaac Wardwell and Isaac Hoyt and associates, to fence in the
burying ground north and south of the turnpike, and tho
ground to be used for nothing but burying lots. Some twenty
years later, the remaining grave stones Avere removed to the
burying lot on Northfield street, and the old hill leveled, the
church being removed across Park Place to the corner.
But a neAV order, we trust, has boon inaugurated in the open
ing of the AVOODLAND CEMETERY.
This beautiful rural cenietery occupies a portion of Avhat, in
the earlier records of our town, was denominated Rocky Neck)
and still later, the " Uplands." To the east and southj it lies
on the oast cove of our harbor, and undor the skillful engineor-
iiig of Mr. Hathaway, it is fast becoming one of the points of
attraction in the town. The tract of about forty acres had been
purchased for this use by an association of gentlemen, Avho
organized themselves for the purpose, in August, 1866. Tho
entire stock of the association, $20,000, was subscribed by sixty-
three citizens of the town, and they chos for their first official
board the foUoAving gentlemen : President, Charles Williams ;
Treasurer, William Skiddy ; Secretary, H. M. Humphrey,
Directors, George L. Brown, Wells R. Ritch, William Pitt,
Henry Taff, J. B. Hoyt, Theodore Davenport, .James L. Jjock-
Avood, Oliver Hoyt, and George A. Hoyt.
Lender their direction the grounds, substantially enclosed,
Avere skillfully laid out by their engineer, B. F. Hathaway, and
so far Avorked as to authorize a formal dedication of the ceme
tery, July 29, 1861. The following gentlemen participated in the
exercises of the dedication: Prayer by Rev. P. S. Evans, and
reading of the Scriptures by Rev. Wm. C. Hoyt. Rev. J. S.
Dodge furnished au original hymn — which was sung. Rev.
Mr. Weed, of the Methodist Church, and Rev. Mr. Francis, of
the Universalist Church, made appropriate addresses. Rev.
Mr. Mitchell, of the Episcopal Church, read a poem, and tlie
Hon. Wm. T. Minor m.ade the presentation address. The ser-

MISCELLANEOUS. 447
vices Avere closed by a prayer and benediction froiii Rev, Mr,
Booth, of the Presbyterian Church.
STAMFORD BANK.
This bank Avas incorporated in 1834, Avith a capital of $100,-
000, on condition that the bank should pay a bonus of $5,000
to the Wesleyan University of Middletown, in two install
ments. There were 363 subscribers to the stock of tho bank, of
whom 84 Avere Stamford residents.
John W. Leeds was chosen President, and ho has retained
and honored the post down to the present time. The Bank has
had the foUowing cashiers : J. F. Henry, Edward HiU, Sam
uel K. Satterlee, Charles K. Rockwood, Douglass R. Satterloe,
H. M. Humphrey, Francis R. Leeds, and Joseph L. Leeds, its
cashier since 1863. The character of the bank is pretty avoU
shown in the fact that when, in 1861, permission was given to
increase the capital stock $90,000, in one week from the opening
of the subscription, $144,000 was pledged. In 1865, tho bank
became tho Stamford National Bank.
FIRST NATIONAL BANK OF STAMFOED.
This bank was established in 1863, with a capital ot 200,000.
Under the presidency of H. M. Humphrey, M. D., formerly of
the Stamford Bank, Avitli its cashier, Charles W. Brown, it has
established itself in the confidence of the public. During tlie
temporary absence of Mr. Humphrey, Joseph B. Hoyt, Esq., and
Welles R. Ritch, Esq., have been acting presidents.
STAMFORD SAAaNGS BANK.
This institution was organized July 21, 1851. Its presidents
have been Theodore Davenport, Charles Hawley and James II.
Hoyt. Its vice-presidents, Joseph D. Warren, James II. Hoyt,
and John W. Lsods. Its troasurers, .Chas. G. Rockwood, Sam
uel K. Satteriee, Francis R. L33ds and Alfred A. Holly. That
the institution has bsen suco33sfal is evidenced in its rapidly
increasing deposits. STAMFORD BOROUGH.
This Avas incorporated in the spring of 1830. An enumeia-

448 HISTORY OF STAMFORD.
tion of the population had been made the preceding summer,
Avhcn, Avithin the limits of tho proposed borough, the following
results had been reached : families, 92 ; inhabitants, 663 ;
Avhite males, 354 ; white females, 283 ; free colored males, 10 ;
freo colored females, 14; and two slaA^es.
The petition for incorporation was headed by David Holly,
Esq. The persons named in the act to call the first meeting of
the borough were, Charles Hawley, Simeon II. Minor, Theodore
Davenport, and Seymour Jarvis.
The officers chosen for the borough for the first year were, for
Avarden, Simeon H. Minor; clerk and treasurer, Seymour Jarvis,,
burgesses, John W. I^eeds, Wm. H. Holly, Charles HaAvley
Esq., John S. Winthrop, and David Hoyt ; street commission
ers, Isaac Quintard, sen.. Sands Adams, Fitch Rodgers, Smith
Scott, ancl Peter Smith, jun. ; agent, J. B. Ferris.
In 1850, so great had been the irregularity and confusion iu
the names of streets in the borough, that a formal meeting Avas
held and a committee appointed, with authority to make a se
lection of names, and submit them to a subsequent meeting.
That committee consisted of .J. W. Leeds, James H. Hoyt,
Wm. II. Babbitt, Edwin S. Bishop, AndroAV Perry, and H. J.
Sanford. Their report recommended, mainly, the names which
the streets then opened, noAV bear. The growth of the borough
has been A'ory rapid in population and wealth. From 1840 to
1850, the j)opulation of the borough gained about 133 per cent.,
and that of the entire town about 42 por cent.
The following is the entire list of wardens, to tho present
time: Simeon H. Minor, two years; Charles Hawley; J. W.
Leeds; four years; Wm. H. Holly; Sands Adams, two years;
Theodore Davenport, five years ; Ezra Scofield ; Henry II.
Waring; II. J. Sanford, six years ; Geo. E. Waring ; James II.
Hoyt ; Ghauncy Ayres, three years ; Jona. M. Hall ; Wm. T. Mi
nor ; Albert Seely ; Charles Williams, two years ; Geo Elder ,"
H. K. Skelding, three yrs. ; Wm. P. Joiies and E. Gay, tAvo yrs.
fitch's home for SOLDIERS.
This institution, situated about a half a mile east of the pres

MISCELLANEOUS. 449
enfc Stamford Hue, in the town of Darien, was chartered in
1864, to provide for the disabled soldiers of the twelfth senato
rial district of the state. It jtakes its name from its founder,
Benjamin Fitch, Esq., of Darien, Avho has contributed towards
its endoAvment and support, something over $100,000. It was
found that it was not needed for disabled soldiers, and in
February, 1866, the trustees, Hon. Morgan Morgans, Joseph B.
Hoyt, and Charles Starr, of Stamford ; Wm. A. Cummings and
Charles Brown, of Darien; E. C. Bissel, of NorAvalk; Stephen
Hoyt, of NeAV Canaan ; M. B. Pardee, M. D., of South Norwalk ;
Charles Marvin, of Wilton, and P. Button, of Greenwich, deci
ded to open here a home and school for the orphan and desti
tute children of our fallen or disabled soldiers. Rev. E. B.
Huntington, their agent, gathered into the Home by tho end of
May, twenty-seven of these children, where the most of thom
have since been supported. Others have been added to their
numbers, making the entire number thus far supported about
sixty. Mr. Fitch, in addition to the buildings used for the or
dinary uses of such an institution, has given to the Home a fine
brick building for a library, and a gallery of paintings and
statuary. At his own expense, mainly, he has gathered here
over two hundred paintings, making a very showy gallery, cost
ing not far from $50,000.
When no longer needed for the soldiers or soldiers' children
of the twelfth senatorial district of the state, the funds of the
Home are devoted, by the charter, " to the support of aged
and infirm persons of said district, and to tho support aud edu
cation of orphiin children of said district."
FIRE COMPANIES.
In ISio, on petition of Sands Seeley, Lorenzo Meeker and
James H. Minor, they, and such other citizens of Stamford, not
to exceed thirty, as might unite with them, were chartered un
der the title of the Rippowam Fire Company. By special
act of the legislature of 1855, the Rippowam Company was au
thorized to increase its number to sixty members. 57

4.50 HISTORY OF STAMFORD.
STAMFORD FIEE ENGINE, NO. 2.
In 1854, Andrew Perry, Edwin Bishop, G. K. Riker, T. J.
Daskam, Geo. E. Scofield, Jesse A. Reed, J. N. Webb, Theo
dore Lockwood, Wm. Lavender, Francis Dauchy, Theodore
Hoyt, Wm. W. Smith, C. F. Peck, Theodore Davenport, jr.,
and Charles B. Finch, and such other citizens as might unite
with them, not to exceed forty, were incorporated as the
" Stamford Fire Engine, No. 2."
Of the efficient character of this company, and their machine,
we have ample testimony in the results of the national trial of
fire engines in Albany, Sept. 30, 1859. Thirty-six engines
Avere entered for the trial; and Stamford, No, 2, stood second on
the list, being excelled only by No. 3, of Brooklyn.
STAMFORD GAS LIGHT COMPANY.
This company Avas organized in 1858, on a capital of $20,-
000, Avhich has now reached $52,500. Their works are located
on Mechanic street, near the depot. The first board of direc
tors were, H. K. Skelding, president, Geo. A. Hoyt, Geo. L.
BroAvn, Geo. Scofield, Wm. Gay. John W. Leeds, trea
surer. Charles Pitt is noAV president, and Edward Gay,
treasurer and superintendent. CRYSTAL LAKE ICE.
In 1855, John B. Knapp, Esq., formed an artificial lake, iu
Avliat was called the Ladden brook, crossing the " turnpike" a
few rods east of the Greenwich line, for the purpose of securing
ice for the toAvn. Commencing in the winter of 1855, with a
stock of about 400 tons, the demand has increased steadily,
until noAA', when its buildings will hold about 6,000 tons, and tho
one horse wagon of 1855, has been succeeded by the heavy
teams uoav traversing every part of the village.
MILL RIVER ICE COMPANY.
Charles E. Smith, Esq., aud sons, in the fall of 1866, convert
ed Avhat had been an old ])ottory, standing on the west bank

MISCELLANEOUS. 45 J
of the " mill pond," into an ice house, Avhere ho now stores
about 1,800 tons, yearly. COVE MILLS.
In 1791, AVilliam Fitch secured permission to build a dam
across the Noroton Greek, at a place caUed Noroton Gut. The
terms Avere : that he should build a mill within seven years,
and thereafter grind and bolt as other mUls do ; that after throe
years, he should, every summer, draAV off the water, giving no
tice to the inhabitants that they may take shell fish therein ;
that he should keep a good scow in the mUl pond, sufficient for
carrying 2,000 bushels of grain, which should always be freefor
tho use of the tOAVii ; that he should build a good wharf beloAV
tho dam ; and that he should make good any damage to indi
viduals who have property abo\'e said Gut— tho damage to be
assessed by throe indifierent, judicious men.
The next year John W. Holly moved over to the Gove, then
caUed the *Pound, and, in company Avith Mr. Fitch, commenced
building the dam and mills. It will indicate the great change
which has taken place since that date to state that there was
no house between the one now occupied by Robert Walsh, Esq.,
at the south east corner of St. John's Park, and the one Avhieli
Mr. Holly built at the Cove. Nor was there any road, excepting
the path leading from the east-field gate, where Elm] hoav
crosses Meadow street, through open fields or the old forest,
over to the Pound.
Under Mr. Holly, in his tAvo mills, Avas carried on, for years,
a heavy flouring business. He also added to this the grinding
of dye woods. After the death of Mr. Holly, his son, Wm. W.,
rented, and afterwards sold the mills to John and Henry San
ford, who had already commenced the preparation of dye
AVOods in Greenwich.
In 1844, they organized the Stamford Manufacturing Com-
?This name is still attached to the rocky headland now so much resorted to by our sum
mer pleasure seekers, and was given to the locality from the fact, that in the autumn of
the year, the town herds which h^d been roaming over these common grounds during
the warm months, were taken, by being driven down to this point, as into a pound, over
the nari'o\Y neck of land which has since been cut by the mill canal.

452 IILSTORY OF STAMFORD.
pany, which from that date have done here, the heaviest busi
ness in the tOAvn. They purchased, also, the flouring mill of
David Holly, at the mouth of Mill river, and, also, own mills in
other towns. The business carried on by this company has
been that of grinding dye woods, spices and barytes, and also
the making of extract of licorice. The present company con
sists of Charles II. Leeds, president; H. J. Sanford, J. C. San
ford, Sanford Brown, 'John W. Leeds, Wm. Gay, E. F. Leeds,
A. W. Bissel, and S. K, Satterloe, directors.
In August, 1655, these works at the Cove were destroyed by
fire. They were immediately built of brick, and are now fire
proof STILLWATER AND ROXBURY ROLLING MILLS.
Ill 1825, Mr. Wm. Lacon, an Englishman, started the Rox
bury rolling mills, and soon associated with himself Dea. Theo
dore Davenport. Subsequently, these Avorks were owned and
improved by J. A. Davenport and J. D. Weeks, as a rolling and
wire mill. On the organization of the StUhvater Company, in
1835, consisting of Dea. Theodore Davenport, J. D. Weeks and
J. A. jDavenport, they purchased the farm which had been
owned by Joseph Watson , of Stillw ater, and built the heavy
rolling mills still in operation there; carrying on, also the works
at the Roxbury mills. Since that date, both of these localities
have been used by the StUhvater Company — the one at Still
water as a rolling mill for the manufacture of iron and steel,
and that at Roxbury, for making wire. The present ownerg
.are Dea. Theodore Davenport and his sons, and Jeremi.ah N.
..\yrcs. ' AVOOLEN MANUFACTOEV.
Near tho beginning of this century, Samuel Wheaton im
proved the water power on tho Mianus, just above Bangall, as
a site for a woolen mill ; using it for carding wool and dressing
cloth. In 1826, Benjamin Mathews purchased the property,
an^, for years, added to the former business, that of weaving
AA'oolen goods. The property is now OAvned by J. F. M.athews,

SIISCELLANEOUS. 453
son of the former owner, and E. June, aud is used for the m.an-
ufacture of woolen yarns.
STAMFORD STOVE FOUNDRY.
This enterprise had its origin in the iron foundry established
by Geo. E. Waring, having its first location on the west side
of Bedford street, just south of Avhere Spring street now
enters it. On building the elegant cottage on the corner
of Bedford and Broad streets, Mr. Waring removed his Avorka
down to the rolling mills of David Holly, purchasing the entire
mill privUege and property. The Holly Rolling Mill had suc
ceeded the carding and grist mills of the brothers Thorp, and
these works occupied the site of the earliest mill privUege
granted to the Webbs. In 1848, Mr. Waring formed a part
nership with J. B. Scofield, J. M. Hall, and Isaac Wardell. The
next year, Joseph D. Warren took Mr. Hall's place in the firm,
and after the withdrawal of Mr. Waring, the other throe gen
tlemen, under the firm of J. D. Warren & Co., removed the
works over to the head^of the canal, where it is noAv situated. In
1867 they greatly enlarged their business facilities, and aro hoav
employing between fifty and sixty men.
PHOENIX CARRIAGE MANUFACTORY.
This company was organized in 1860. John ii. Reed, Avho
had been in the business a nu mber of years before, united with
Grant Judd, E. P. Whitney, Isaac G. Traphagon and Benjamin
U. Lyon, and located their works on the east side of Gay street,
Avhere their iron work is still done. Soon finding their room too
small for their works, they commenced building, also, on the
west side of the street. In 1858 they purchased the old Con
gregational Church, then standing where the triangular park
now is, in the center of tho village, and removed it to the rear of
their ware room on the Avest side of Gay street. By introducing
tAVO floors, they divided the buUding into three stories, giving
them a great amount of room for their business. Since then,
they have been engaged successfully in the manufacture of aU
descriptions of the better styles of carriages, omiDloying from

454 HISTORY OP STAMFORD.
thirty to forty men. There has been but a single change in tho
firm since its organization, resulting from the removal by death
of Mr. Traphagon in 1866. Mr. Reed has, fiom the beginning,
boon the financial agent of the firm.
STAMFORD AVOOLEN MILLS.
These extensive Avorks occupy the grounds formerly occupied
by the earliest grist mill of the tOAvn ; and more recently by the
Rippowam Iron Foundry. They are now owned by Harding,
Smith & Co., Avho commenced, iu 1867, the manufacture of
woolen goods. John A. Smith, one of the proprietors of
the firm resides here, and has the management of the works.
They are iioav employing about one hundred and fifty persons
in the establishment. LONG RIDGE SHOE FACTORY.
The shoe business has been carried on at the Ridge for uearlj^
half a century. Under George W. Todd, Scofield & Todd,
and Scofield, Cook & Co., it had groAvn to be quite an interest
of the locality. Some ten years ago, our enterprising young-
townsmen, Cook & Lounsbury took hold of it, and have done
here an excellent business. They employ about fifty hands, and
Avitli the aid of machinery are able to turn off about 20,000
pairs of shoes a year. The time needed for sewing on the sole
of a shoo Avith their stitcher, is somoAA'hat loss than a half
minute. UNION FIRE-BRICK AND DRAIN-PIPE WORKS.
In 1845 Charles Anness, Esq., began these works on the west
bank of Mill river, opposite Harding & Smith's woolen mills.
His brother Samuel succeeds him in the business he.ie, having
remoA'od the works in 1862 to Water Side, where he noAv em
ploys in the business about fifteen hands.
SHIRT FACTORY.
G. D. Jones has been for years engaged, quite extensively, in
the manufacture of shirts and draws on High Ridge. The
Avork, here, is done mainly for the Noav York market, and has
employed a large number of operatives.

MISCELLANEOUS. 455
NEAV ENGL.VND MANUFACTURING AVORKS AND COMPANY.
This joint stock company was organized in 1868, with a cap
ital of $60,000, for manufacturing machinists' tools. They are
now operating by steam on Main street, near South, but havo
found it necessary to enlarge their works ; and havo purchased
and are building at the foot of South street, near Knapp's Dock.
Robert Fairchild is president ; G. W. Bishop, the patentee of
the articles now manufactured, is superintendent, and J. E.
Law, treasurer. BROAD STREET STEAM PLANIN:G AND SAAV MILL.
This enterprise was started in 1864 by Richmond Fox and
John St. John. Since the death of Mr. Fox, in 1867, Harvey
Hoyt has been one of the partners of the firm. There has been
done, here, in connexion with their lumber yard, a fcAV rods
north on Bedford street, a heavy lumber business.
CONCENTRATED MEDICINE LABORATORY.
Those works were opened here in 1865, by B. Keith & Co.,
for the prei^aration of organic medicines. They are located
at Water Side, and require about five hands to carry them on_
CANAL STREET STEAM MILL.
This work was begun here in the spring of 1S6S, by Edgar
Studwell and B. Franklin Hobby. It is designed as a saAV, plan
ing and grist mill, and is now AVorked by Hobby, Stivers & Co.
WOODSIDE PARK.
This Park has just been opened by its proprietors, the broth
ers T. L and S. JL Ferris, jun. It lies on the west sido of MUl
river, about a half mUe north of the village, and has an excel
lent, circular track, a half mile in length.
TELEGRAPH.
1848 added the Telegram to the former laciHties to Stamford
business ; and we are sure no little curiosity was excited here,
by the arrival of this noiseless messenger. At ;first, the tele
graph office Avas opened in the buUding next east of the

456 HISTORY OF STAMFORD.
Union House, but was removed to the Depot, where it has been
ever since. The business has increased until it has come to be
a necessity to business itself, twelve wires supplying us with
instantaneous reports of important changes, from every point
on telegraph routes. Its present manager is J. K. Butler, with
two assistants. CAMPHOR AND AVAX FACTORIES.
Those works were established here in 1866, by Charles H.
PhiUips, Esq., of New York, for refining camphor and bleaching
Avax. They are located about a mile and a half north east from
the village, at our "New Hojie," and are among the most ex
tensive refineries in the country, emjiloying not far from
tAventy-five hands. To the rear of these works, on the banks of
tho Noroton, Mr. Phillips has laid out and worked to a charm
ing perfection, one of our completest gems in landscape culture.
Everything about it — its summer house, fish ponds, fountains,
statues, lawns, shrubbery and walks, — is as near perfection as
human skill can make it ; and altogether constitutes one of the
most attractive localities in the town.
SLATES.
"Jack, Son to Kose, a servant of Samuel Bu3h of Graeawich, said Jack,
being the property of Isaac Quintard, deceased, was born on Jane 20 <
1788." Stamfoed, April 6, 1797.
This is to certify, that, I, widow Mary Selleck of Stamford, do freely give
Nathaniel and Africa Chloe his wife, a certain negro boy, by the name of
Harry, their son, formerly belonged to me.
Charles A, Belding, ) Maey Selleck.
Anna Belding, j
The records above are specimens of those Avhich remind
us of an institution never again to be revived in Stamford.
They are here preserved as a part of the history of the earUer
times in this old puritan town,

APPENDIX. A.

THE PATENT.

Whereas the generall court of Connectioutt hath formerly Granted unto
the proprietors Inhabitants of the town of Standford all those lands both
meadow and upland within these abutments upon the seu at the south, east
ou tbe hue Mile Brooke between Standford aforesaid & Norwalke from the
mouth of tbo sayd Brook till it meet with the cross pass that now is where
the country i-oado crosseth the sayd path, & from thence to run up into the
country till Twelve miles be run out upon the same lyne that ia between
Stratford and fayrefield; and upon the west Tatomak Brooke, where the
lowermost path or road that now is to Greenwich cutts tbe sayd brooke &,
from thence to run on a straight lyne to the we.st end of a lynedrawne, irom
the falls of Standford Mill river which sayd lyno is to run a due west poynt
towards Greenwich bounds a meat mile & from the west end of sayd line
to run due north to the present county roade towards Eye aud from thence
to run up iuto the couulry the same line that it is between Norwalk and
Staudfordto the end of tbe bowuds, the sayd lands having been by purchas
or otherwiae lawfully obtayned of tlie Indian native proprietors, and where-
!ia the proprietors, the aforesayd Inhabitants of Standford iu the colony of
Connecticutt have made application to the Gouernor and company of the
sayd colony of Connecticutt assombled Iu court ''Way 25, 1685, that they
have a patent for confirmation of the aforesayd lands so purchased and
granted to them as aforesayd & whioh they have stood seized and quietly
possessed offer m:iuy years last past without Interruption now for a more
full confirmation of the aforesayd tract of land as it is butted and bounded
.aforesayd unto the present proprietors of the sayd township of Stanford,
iu their possession and enjoyment of the premises; know ye that the said
Goueruor & company assembled in genekal ooitbt according to the com
mission granted to them by his Ma'tie iu his charter have given & granted
& by these presents do give, grant, ratify and confirm unto Mr. John Bish
op, Mr. Eichard law, Capt. Jonathan Silleck, Capt. Johu "Silleck, Lieut.
Francis Bell, Lieut. Jonathan BeU, eu.sign Johu Bates, Mr. Abraham Am
bler, Mr. peter ferris, Mr. Joshua Hoyte, aud the rest of the sayd preseut
pi-uprietovs of tho township ot Standford their heirs, successors and assigns
forever, the aforesayd paroell of land as it is Butted aud Bounded together
with all the meadows, pastures, ponds, waters, rivers, islands, fishings.
Huntings, fowlings, mines, minerals. Quarries and precious stones upon
or within the sayd tract of laud and 'all other proffitts comodities thereun
to belonging or iu any wayes appertaining and do grant unto the aforesayd
Mr. John Bishop, Mr. Kichard lawe, Capt. Jonathan Silleck, Capt. John
58

.to8 HISTORY OF STAMFOED.
Silleck, Lnt. franois Bell, Lnt. Jonathan Bell, ens. John Bates, Mr. Abra
ham Ambler, Mr. peter ferris & Mr. Joshua Hoyt & the rest of the propri
etors Inhabitants of Standford their heirs successors and assigns forever
that the aforesayd tract of land shall be forever after deemed, reputed &
be an Intire Township of it selfe, to have aud to hold the sayd Tract of
land and premises with all and singular their appurtenances together, with
the priviledges and Immunities and franchies herein given and granted
unto the sayd John Bishop, Eichard law, Capt. Jonathan Silleck, Capt.
John Silleck, Lnt. francis Bell, Lnt. Jonathan Bell, Ens. John Bates, Mr.
Abraham Ambler; Mr. peter ferris & Mr. Joshua Hoyte and other tha pres
ent proprietors Inhabitants of Standford their heirs successors and assigns
forever and to the only proper use & behoofe of the sayd Mr. John Bishop,
Eichard law, Capt. Jonathan Silleck, Capt. John Silleck, Lnt. Francis Bell,
Lnt. Jonathan Bell, Ens. John Bates, Mr^ Abraham Ambler, Mr. peter fer
ris & Mr. Joshua Hoyte
And other proprietors Inhabitants of Standford their heirs, successors and
assigns forever, according to the tenor of East Greenwich in Kent in free
& comon soccage & not in oapitee nor by knight service —
They to make improvent of the same as they are capable according to
the customs of the country, yielding, rendering and paying therefore to
our sovereign lord the king his heirs and successors his dues according to
* charter: In witness whereof we have cause the seale of the colony to be
here unto aflixed this Twenty sixth of May One Thousand Six Hundred
eighty-five in the first year of the reign of our souereign lord king James
the second of England, Scotland franco & Ireland, defender of the fayth.
per order of tho General Court, signed per me, John Allyn Sec'y.
B.
.V list of graduates and professionally educated men, natives of Stamford,
or belonging to Stamford families. This list embraces only those who have
not been already indicated in the preceding pages.
Adams, Benjamin, son of Sands, a Methodist preacher.
Bishop, James "W. , son of Kitchel, of Darien, uow city missionarv in Brook
lyn, N. Y.
B,vkton, Eev. J. G., a student of St. Paul's, N. Y., and received his diploma
at St. James', Md., in 1843. He was chosen Professor of Belles lettres
and English literature in the Free Academy, since named the "College
of the City of New York," in 1852, and siuce 1853, has lived in Stam
ford. He still holds his chair in the college.
Betts, Silvester M., son of James, in Yale, class of 1864, was obliged to
leave from failure of sight. He is now a publisher in Hartford.
Betts, 'William J., second son of James, member of Yale, class of 1870.
Betts, Alsop L., third son of James, member of Yale, class of 1872.
Clason, Solomon, a native of Stamford, who became a physician, having
studied with Dr. Close. Taught school and went west, where he has
been a successful physician.
CousTocK, David C, a native of New Canaau. Graduated at Yale iu 1830,
where he was tutor. Studied theology and was settled in the minis
try, (Congregational), in Eedding, 1840- '45. Came to Stamford in 1851,
and taught a .¦school for young ladies. He still lives here. He mar-

APPENDIX. 459
ried Elizabeth Ann Tompkins of New York city, aud has had six
children.
Comstock, 'Wm. S., a native of Eedding, and son of the above. Graduated
at Yale, 1865, with honor. He is now engaged revising and correcting
surveys for local maps iu the vicinity of New York city.
Comstock, David, son of Eev. David C. , and born in Eedding. Was in the
Union service during the war, mainly in the Hospital department. Ih
now, 1868, a medical student at Ann Arbor, Mich.
CocKEOET, William, graduated at Columbia College, N. Y., iu 1834, and nt
the Medical College in 1837. He purchased, in 1863, the beautiful
place on Elm Hill, which he has made one of the most attractiA-e resi
dences in town.
Davenpoet, John, son of Eev. James, graduated at Princeton, N. J.. 17G9,
became a minister and settled in Southold, L. I., and at Bedford,
N. Y. and Deerfield, N. J. He died at Lysander, N. Y., July 13, 1825,
at 73 years of age, leaving no children.
Davenpoet, John Alfeed. son of John, graduated at Yale, 1802, aud soon
went into business in New York. After a successful business career
of some fifty years, he moved to New Haven in 1853, where he died,
Oct. 14, 1864, in the 82d year of his age.
Davenpoet, Geoege F., son of Eufus, graduated at University of No^v
York, 1830, and was a lawyer in New York city.
Davenpoet, John Sidney, son of John A. , above, born iu Stamford, Sept.
26, 1808, became au Episcopal minister and was settled at Oswego,
N. Y., and after going abroad, returned and accepted a charge m Bos
ton.
Davenpoet, James Eadcliefe, brother of John S., graduated at 'Yale, 1830;
became an Episcopal minister, and was settled in Albany, N. )(. He
now resides in New York City.
Davenpoet, James, son of deacon Theodore, entered Yale in 1861, but left
his class at the end ot the junior year to go into business.
Dean, Henet, son of Samuel, began teaching early, and became a Congre
gational minister. He removed to Brooklyn, where he taught, ant*
where for years he has been clerk of the board of education.
Dean, Geoege W., son of Col. John, of North Stamford, graduated at Co
lumbia College and became an Episcopal minister. He was settlecl at
Ballston, N. Y., and is now professor of Latin and Greek at Eacine
Febeis, Samuel P., son of Joshua B., graduatsd atWestPoint in 1861; and
is now a captain in the U. S. A.
Ferguson, John Day, son of John and Helen G.[Mor6Avood] Ferguson-
the family having moved to Stamford in 1842-graduated »* Trmitj
College, Hartford, in 1851. He studied law, and has had an ofdce in
New 'York city. .
Feeguson, Samuel, brother of the above, graduated at Trinity m lbS7. ne
and his brother Henry were on board the Hornet, a clipper ^^'^b lelt
New York for San Francisco in Jan. 1866, and which was bur°cd on
the Pacific, May 3d. For forty-three days t^^? ^%« "^ V veLe of
boat with fourteen others. They were ^/duced to the verge ol
starvation, when they drifted into a port of Hawaii, just m time to
avoid a horrible death. The journal which he managed to wnte is
one of intensest interest. He died in San Francisco, Oct. 1, 186b.

460 HISTORY OP STAMFORD.
Feeguson, Edmund M., third brother of this family was in Trinity College,
class of 1857, but left from sickness.
Feeguson, Walton, fourth member of this family was also in Trinity Col
lege, class of 1863, but was obliged to leave from sickness.
Feeguson, Heney, fifth and youngest son of John, graduated at Trinity
College the preseut year, 1868, one of the prize students.
Fessenden, Samuel C, graduated at Bowdoin College in 1834, and at tha
Bangor Theological Seminary in 1837. He was also admitted to the
bar in 1856. He is now in the government service in Washington. Ho
has resided, since 1866, iu Stamford.
Finch, Sheeman, a native of the toAA-n; graduated at Yale, 1828, studied
law aud settled in Ohio.
FuEETES, E. A., a. native of Porto Eico; graduated B. Ph. and M. D. in
Porto Eico, and civil engineer in Troy, N. Y. He has lived here since
1864.
Holly, Wm. Welles, son of Alfred A., was three years at Trinity; studied
law at Yale; admitted to orders in the Episcopal Church; was first as
sistant to the rector of St. John's church, New Haven, and now rector
of church at Elton, Long Island.
•Holly, Chaeles F., son of Isaac, educated at Kenyon, Ohio; became a law
yer aud settled in Nebraska. He was appointed assistant Judge of the
Territory of Colorado. During the recent war he raised and com
manded a company of volunteers.
Holly, Feancis Manton, son of "Wm. Welles, graduated in medicine at
Yale, 1855, and is now in Texas, a surgeon in the United States Army.
Hoyt, Sherman, son of Dea. Johu, a Congregational minister, now settled
at Pleasant Plains, Fishkill, N. Y.
Hoyt, John Benedict, graduated at Yale, 1814.
Hoyt, Philip, son of Enoch and Hannah [Lockwood] Hoyt, is a Methodist
preacher.
Hoyt. William C, brother of Philip, received the degree of A. M. at the
Wesleyan University; became a Methodist minister, and, in 1860 was
appointed presiding elder of tbe Bridgeport district. He resides iu Stam
ford, and is engaged in the Methodist Book House in New York city.
Humphrey, H. M., graduated at the Jefferson Medical College, iu Phila
delphia, iu 1842, and practiced medicine iu Philadelphia and New
Yorl£ city. He removed to Stamford in 1855, where he has been con
nected with our banks, as cashier of tbe St;amford Bank, and as presi
dent of the First National Bank of Stamford.
Lockwood, Eufus A., son of Daniel, graduated at Yale, 1831, became a
minister, and settled in Teuuessee, where He died in 1835.
Lookwood, John D., sou of Eev. Peter aud Matilda [Davenport], born
iu Stamford, Oct. 9, 1825, died while a member of Yale College in
1844. [Memoirs of J. D. Lockwood].
Lord, John, L. L. D , graduated at Dartmouth College, 1833, and studied
theology. He has devoted his life, mainly to lecturing on historical
topics, in which he has been very successful. He has resided in Stam
ford since 1853.

APPENDIX. 461
Lyman, Joseph B., graduated at Yale, 1850. He came to Stamford, iu 1885,
exiled from the South, and is now the agricultural editor of the New
York World.
Minor, Charles Wm., son of Gov. Wm. T., now a student in Germany.
Mcnob, Issvel, jr., graduated at Yale, 1862, studied law at the Columbia
Law School, was admitted to the bar in 1864, and is now practicing
law in New York city.
Minor, John Channel, son of Israel Minor, graduated at the College of
Physicians and Surgeons iu New York city, iu 1865. AVas appointed
professor of chemistry and natural science in East Tennessee Univers
ity in 1866, and also state ¦ assayer of Tenne.-isee. Eesigued these
posts, and in 1863, resumed the practice of medicine in New York city.
He was, during the war, also in the service of the government as Act.
Ass. Surgeon, U. S. A.
Mead, J. D., a successful physician, for years in New York city. Has
lived, retired, for several years on Long Eidge.
Prior, Israel, jr., sou of Capt. Prior, graduated iu medicine, NewYork
Bellevue Hospital Medical College, 1865 ; married "Mary F., daughter
of Philip H. Brown, Esq., and is now in the practice of his profes
sion in Caclia, 111.
ElTOH, Thomas G.ardinbr, son of Welles E., graduated at Yale, 1854, be
came a lawyer, and has his office iu New 'jork city.
EooKWELL, Heney, graduated in New York, 1862. He is a surgeon in the
U. S. A., flow stationed west of St. Paul, Minn.
Scofield, Azaeiah, son of Uriah, born in Feb., 1776, graduated at Yale
ISOl, and became a teacher aud merchant.
Scofield, James, a physician, went to Danbury.
Scofield, Jared, son of Eeuben, graduated at Yale, 1801, and Avas a
teacher in Ptiiladelphia.
Scofield, John O,, sou of Dea. Alfred, born Sept. 18, 1846, graduated M.D.
1886, at the Bellevue Hospital Med. Coll. He is now practicing med
icine in Bedford, N . Y.
Scofield, Walter, son of Dea. Alfred, born in Stamford, April 28, 1839
and grad. M. D. at the New York College of Physicians and Surgeons,
1861. Comoiissioned Ass. Surgeon, U. S. Navy, June 20, 1861, promo
ted Surgeon, June, 1866. He accompanied theU. S. Squadron to Eus-
sia, in 1866, and now has his headquarters in Boston.
Selleok, Charles G., son of Charles, of Darien, grad, at Yale, 1827,
licensed to preach by Fairfield 'West association, and settled in Eidge-
field from 1831 to 1837. He went to Illinois and preached at Alton.
He then opened a school for young ladies in Jacksonville, which was
quite successful. He afterwards wenc to Plaqnemine, La., where he
also established a flourishing school for young ladies, in which he was
engaged, when, in 1861, tbe local authorities, finding him too thorough
ly a" Union man," gave him five hours to leave the place. He is now
in,Hopedale, near De Soto, III.
Seeley, Ebenezer, graduated at Yale, 1841, became a physician, and set
tled in Oyster Bay, L. I.
Selleok, John, graduated at Harvard in 1690.
Skjujjino, Thomas, son of Henry K., graduated M. D., in New York, 18C5 ;

462 HISTORY OF STAMFORD.
and was physician to the New York City Hospital. He is now at the
General Hospital in Vienna, Austria.
Smith, Arthur, son of Charles E.and Mary [Waring] Smith, born in Stam
ford in 1843 ; graduated M. D. at the Bellevue Hospital Medical Col
lege, New York city, in 1866 ; and has since been in the of6ce of Dr.
Wood in the city.
Smith, Eev. John, a native of Wethersfield, graduated at Yale, 1821, and
was licensed to preach by the Fairtield. East Association, in 1824.
From 1839 to 1818 ha was settled as pastor over the Congregational
Church in Wilton. Since 1850, he has resided in Stamford. His wife
died here. He has three sons, James D., Charles S., aud Walter M.,
all iu successful bu.sineas in New York, and all residing with their
families in Stamford. He has, also, three daughters, Susan W., Esther
M., and Maria L.
Webb, Henry W., son of Dr. Samuel, was a physician in New York city.
Webb, Benjamin, graduated at Yale, 1856 ; studied theology, aud became
an Episcopal minister. He is now ia the service of the Pacific Coast
Associate Mission, and is located at San Jose, Cal.
Weed, Benjamin, was a preacher, and during the revolutionary war, he
had his Bible taken from him by a party of the British.
Weed, Thomas A., son of Philo, studied in Oberlin and at Lane Seminary,
and was settled in the ministry at Mexico, N, Y.
Weed, C. Milton, son of Charles A., a member of Harvard, class of 1772.
Weed, Harvey, son of Nathaniel, graduated at Columbia College, 18—,
with the honors of his class. He practiced law in New York city until,
his health failing, he retired to the family home in Darien.
Welch, Michael, a missionary of the American and Foreign Christian
Union. Has lived here several years .
Wheelock. Ealph, son of Eev. Eleazer D. and Sarah Davenport, gradua
ted at Yale, 1765.
Whelpley, James Davenpoet, son of Eev. Philip M. and Abigail F. [Dav-'
euport], graduated at Yale, 1837, and in medicine in 1842.
Williams, Stephen, son of Eev. Stephen, D. D. and Abigail [Davenport],
graduated, 1742, and was settled in Woodstock, Conn., in 1747. He
preached nearly fifty years.
Williams, Waeham, brother of Stephen above, graduated at Yala 1745,
and was settled in Northford, Conn. He preached about forty years.
Williams Nathan, brother of the two above, graduated at Yale, 1756,
aud settled iu the ministry at Tolland, Conn. He preached about
sixty-six years.
Wood, George Ingersoll, a native of the town, son of Joseph, graduated
at Yale iu 1832, aud has been a successful minister. He is now preach
ing in St. Cloud, Mich.
Wood, Oliver E. , son of the above, is now at the West Point Military
Academy.
Woodbury, 'W. H., author of works in modern languages, on the Ollen
dorff system. Located at Springdale in Stamford in 1867.

APPENDIX. 46,3

9l
OFFIGIAL^LISTS.
1. REPRESENTATIVES AND SENATORS FROM STAMFOED.

The following list contains all the names which cau now be recovered of
yia-representatives and senators of Stamford in the state legislature. Down
to 1665 they represented the town in the general court of New Haven ; af
terwards in the general court or legislature of the colony and state of Con
necticut. The omission of names batweeu 1644 and 1653 was occasioned
by the loss of the New Haven colony records of that period, a loss probably
not to be supplied. There will also be found occasional omissions of the
regular meeting of tho legislature, occasioned by the fact that no represent-
ativas appeared from the town at those meetings. The omission for
October 1687, the two sessions of 1688 and for April 1889, is due to the as
sumption of the government by Sir Edmund AndrosirtHfr that period. Our
list contains also the representatives for Darien from the incorporation ot
that town in 1820. The thanks.of the author are due to the kindness of J.
Hammond Trumbull, for his cheerful aid iu completing the catalo gnc.
1641— Andrew Ward and Francis Bell.
164.2_Mattbew Mitchell and John Whitmore.
1643 — John Underhill, Eichard Gildersleeve and John Chapman.
 . 1644- AndreAv 'Ward and Eobert Coe.
1653— Eichard Law and Francis Bell.
1654— " " and John Holly, .
1655—1656—1657 — " John Waterbury aud George Slawsou.
1^58— " and Franois Bell.
16^9—1661—
1663— " John Holly and George Slawson.
1664 — '- and Franois Bell.
1665— " Peter Disbrow and Francis Brown.
1666— 1667— Eobert Usher and Francis Brown.
1668— Francis Brown and John Green.
1669  Ensign Francis Brown, John Green and EicharJ Law.
1670 — Lieut. Jonathan Selleck and Johu Green.
" — Oct. John Holly and Jonathan Bell.
1671— May, Lieut. Jonathan Selleck aud John Greeu.
" —Oct., .John Green and Joseph Theale.
1672— Eichard Law and Jonathan Selleck.
1673— Johu Green and Joseph Theale.
1674— May, Lieut. Jonathan Bell and Abram Ambler.
'< — Oct., Joseph Theale and Johu Green.
1675— May, Jonathan Selleck and Joseph Theale.
" —Oct., Lieut. Jonathan Bell and "
1776— May, Capt. Jonathan Selleck and Lieut. Jonathan Bell.
" —Oct., Lieut. Jonathan Bell and Joseph Theale.
Ig77  MaA'. " " Abram Ambler.

i t HISTORY OF STAMFORD.
1677— Oct.. Joseph Theale, Abram Ambler and Jon. Eeynolds.
1678— May,
" —Oct.,
1679— May, •' •'
" —Oct., "
1680— May, Jonathan Bell and Joseph Theala.
" —Oct.,— Joseph Theale.
1681— May, " and Abram Bell.
" — Oct., Lieut. Jonathan Bell and Joshua Hoyt.
1682 — May, Abram Ambler and Joseph Theale.
" — Oct., Lieut. Jonathan Bell and Joshua Hoyte.
1683 — May, Lieut. Jonathan Bell and Capt. Jonathan Selleck.
" -Oct., " Joshua Hoyte.
1684— May,
" -Oct.,
1685 — May, Capt. Jonathan Selleck and Lieut. Jonathan Bell.
" — Oct., Jonathan Bell and Joshua Hoyt.
1686 — May, Capt. Jonathan Selleck aud Lieut. Jonathan Bell.
" — Oct., Jonathan Bell and Jcshua Hoyt.
1687 — May, Capt. Jonathan Selleck and Lieut. Jonathan BeU.
1689 — Aug., Ens. John Bates, abs.
" — Oct., Samuel Hoyt.
1690— May,
" — Oct., Abram Ambler.
1691 — May, Jonathan Bell and Abram Ambler.
" — Oct., Abram Ambler and Daniel WescOtt.
1692— May, Samuel Hoyt
" — Oct., Abram Ambler "
1693— May, Samuel Hoyt and David Waterbury.
" — Oct., David Waterbury.
1694— May, " aud Daniel Westcott.'
'- — Oct., Daniel "Wescott and Daniel Weed.
1695— Oct., David Waterbury.
1696— May, Lieut. Jonathan Bell.
" — Oct., Sergt. David Waterburj-.
1697— Oct., " Samuel Hoyt.
1698— Oct., Lieut. DSvid Waterbury.
1699— May, " and Ens. Samuel Hoyt.
" — Oct., Samuel Iloyt and Jonathan Bell.
1700— May. Elisha Holly.
" —Oct., Lieut. David Waterbuiy and Stephen Bishop.
1701— May, " Elisha Holly.
" —Oct., " .<
1702— May, Samuel, Webb.
" —Oct., Lieut. David Waterbury and Samuel Webb.
1703-May, " Capt. John Clock.
" —Oct.. Samuel Hoyt.
1704— May, " Elisha Holly.
" —Oct.,
1705— May, Capt. Jonathan Selleck aud Lieut. David Waterbury.
" — Lieut. David Wi),tei-bury.
1706— May, Cape. Jonathan Selleck and Lieut. David Waterbuiy.
" —Oct., Lieut. David Waterbury and Jonathan Selleok.

-kPfK.MUX.
1707— Alay, Capt. Jonathan Selleck and Eli.sba Molly.
" — Oct., Stephen Bishop
1708— May, Capt. Jonathan Selleck
" —Oct., Stephen Btshop
1709— May,
'• —Oct.,
1710 — May, Jonathan Bates.
" —Oct., Elisha Hollv.
1711— May, " " John Ambler.
",— Oct.,
I7l5— May, Jonathan Bates and John Stone.
" — Oct., Jonathan Bell.
1713— May, Eli.sha Hawley and .lonathan Bell.
" —Oct.,
1714— May, Jonathan Bell aud Jonathan Bates.
" —Oct.', " John Stone.
1715— May,
" — Oct., Jonathan Bates and Johu Hoyt.
1716— May, John Hoyt and John Stone.
" ^Oct., John Stone and Samuel Hoyt.
1717— May, John Hoyt and Jonathan Bell.
" —Oct., John Stone and John Hoyt.
1718— May, Samuel "Weed and Jonas "Weed.
" —Oct., John Stone " '
1719— -May, John Hoyt and John Stone.
" —Oct., " and John Bell.
1720— May, " John Stone.
1721— May, ' ' Samuel Weed.
" — Oct., " John Stone.
1722— May,
" —Oct.,
1723— May,
1724— May,
" -^Oot., Capt. Jouathau Hoyt and Jonathan Bates.
1725- May, " "
" —Oct.,
1726— May,
•' —Oct.,
1727^May, " — Oct., Capt. Samuel Hoyt and Samuel Weed.
1728— May, Capt. Jonathan Hoyt and Capt. Samuel Hoyt
" — Oct., Capt. Jonathan Bates and Capt. Jonathan Hoyt
1729— May, Capt. Jonathan Hoyt and Capt. Samuel Hoyt.
" — Oct., Capt. Jonathan Bates and Capt. Jonathan Hoyt.
1730— Oct., Capt. John Bell
1731— May, Capt. Jonathan Hoyt and Johu Bell.
" — Oct., John Hoyt and Jonathan Bates.
1732- May,
" — Oct., Capt. .Jonathan Hoyt and John Bell.
1733 — May, " Jonathan Bates.
"-Oct., " Samuel Hoyt.
1734— May,
"  Oct., " Samuel Hoyt.
1735— May, " Jonathan ilaltby.
59 /

HISTORY OF STAMFORD.

Capt. Jonathan Hovt and Jonathan BatcK.
" Jonathan Maltby.

1735-Oct., 1736— May,
" —Oct.,
1737— May,
" —Oct.,
1738— May,
" —Oct.,
1739— May,
" —Oct.,
1740— May, Col.
" —Oct.,
1741— May,
" —Oct.,
1742— May,
" —Oct.,
1743— May, Col. " Jonathan Bates.
" —Oct.,
1744-  May, Col. " Jonathan Maltby.
" —Oct.'
1745— May,
"  Oct., Col. '• Jonathan Bates.
1746— May) " Jonathan Maltby.
" —Oct., " Capt.
1747— May,
" —Oct., Capt. Nathaniel Weed and Abraham Davenport.
1748— May, Jonathan Hoyt
" —Oct., Col.
1749— May,
" —Oct., Col.
1750— May,
" —Oct.,
1751— May,
" -Oct.,
1752— Mav.,
" —Oct.,
1753, May,
" —Oct.,
1754— May, " Jonathan Maltby
" —Oct.,
1755— May, " "
" —Oct.,
1756— May, John Holly.
" — Oct., Col. Jonathan Hoyt "
1757 — May, " Jonathan Selleck.
" — Oct., " Abraham Davenport.
1758— May, Chr.rles Webb and Jonathan Dibble.
" — Oct,, Jouathan Dibble and Charles Webb. .
1759 — May, Charles Webb and Abraham Davenport.
" — Oct., Abraham Davenport and Charles Webb.
1760 — May, Col. Jonathan Hoyt and Abraham Davenport.
" — Oct., Abraham Davenport and Capt. Charles 'Webb.
1761 — May, Capt. Charles Webb and Abraham Davenport.
" — Oct., Abraham Davenport and Col. Jonathan Hoyt.
1762 — May, Col. Jonathan Hoyt and Abraham Davenport

APPENDIX.
1762— Oct., Abraham Davenport and Col. Jouathau Hoyt.
1763— May, Col. Jonathan Hoyt and Abraham Davenport.
" —Oct., Abraham Davenport and Col. Jonathan Hoyt.
1764— May, Col. Jonathan Hoyt and Abraham Davenport.
^" —Oct, Abraham Davenport and Col. Jonathan Hoyt.
1765 — May, Col. Jonathan Hoyt and Abraham Davenport.
" —Oct., Abraham Davenport and Col. Jonathan Hoyt.
1766— May, Capt Charles Webb a' d Abraham Davenport.
" --Oct., Charles Webb and Col. Jouathan Hoyt.
1767— May, Capt Charles "Webb and Ool. Jonathan Hoyt.
¦' -Oct., Charles Webb.
1768— May, Capt, Charles Webb and Be-oj. Weed.
'• —Oct, Charles Webb
1709— May, Capt. Charles Webb and Maj. David Waterbury.
" — Oct, David Waterbury and Benj. Weed.
1770— May, Capt. Chas. Webb and Maj. David Waterbiii-y.
" — Oct, Benjamin Weed.
1771— May, Chas. "Webb and Benj. WeeJ.
" —Oct.
1772— Mav,
" —Oct,
1773— May,
" —Oct,
1774— May, David Waterbury and Thos. Young.
" — Oct, Chas. "Webb fitod David Waterbury.
1775— May, Col. Charles Webb and Col. David Waterbury.
'- — Oct., Benjamin Weed and Thos. Young.
1776— May, " Col. David Waterbury.
" —Oct, " John Davenport
1777 — May, John Davenport and John Hoyt, Jr.
" — Oct., Capt. Syh'ester Knapp and Capt Isaac Lookwood.
1778— May, Maj. John Davenport and Col. Charles Webb.
" — Oct., Capt. Daniel Bouton and Capt. Isaac Iiockwood.
1779— May, Col. Charles, Webb and Capt. Daniel Bouton.
" — Oct., Capt Daniel Bouton and Charles Webb.
1780— May, Col. Charles Webb.
' ' — Oct , Charles Weed and Charles 'Webb.
1781 — May, Only record, in private journal of Gov. Trumbull.
" —Oct., Charles Weed.
1782 — May, Maj. John Davenport and Charles Weed.
" — Oct, Charles Weed and Maj. John Davenport
1783— May, Gen. D. Waterbury and Charles Weed.
" — Oct, Charles Weed and Gen. D. Waterbury.
1784 — May, Maj. Johu Davenport and Charles Weed.
" — Oct, Charles Weed and Maj. Johu Davenport
1785 — May, Maj. John Davenport and Charles Weed.
" — Oct., Charles Weed and James Davenport
1786 — May, James Davenport and Charles Weed.
" —Oct,
1787 — May, James Davenport and Charles Weed.
•' —Oct,
1788— May, " John Davenport.
" — Oct, John Davenport and James Davenport.
1789 — May, James Davenport and Col. Joseph Hoyt.

468 HLSTORY OF STAMFORD.
17s9— Oct, Johu Davenport and .Tames Davenport
1790— May, Maj.
" —Oct, " Ben). Scofield.
1791— May, Maj. '- ' William Fitch.
" —Oct,
1792— May. Maj " Thaddeus Weed.
" —Oct,
1793 — May, Maj. " Benjamin Scofield.
" —Oct,
1794 — May, David Waterbgry ai.d Thaddeus Weed.
-' — Oct. , John Davenport' "
1795— May, David Waterbury
" — Oct., John Davenport and George Mills.
1796— May, *Joshua King and William Forrester.
" — Oct., John Davenport and George Mills. "
1797 — May, George Mills and Noyes Mather.
" — Oct., Noyes Mather and George Mills. ^
1798 — May,iGeorge Mills and Noyes Mather.
" — Oct., Noyes Mather and Isaiah Tiffany.
1799 — May, Isaiah Tiffany and Isaac Lockwood.
" — Oct., Isaac Lockwood and Nathan Weed, Jr.
1800— May,
" —Oct,
1801— Mav, " Edward McLaughlin .
" —Oct, " Wm. Waterburv 4th.
1802— May, " " '
" — Oct., Nathan Weed and Noyes Mathey.
1803— May, Isaac LockAvood and John Wm. Holly.
" — Oct., Nathan Weed and Isaac Lockwood.
1804— May, " and Jas. Stephens.
" —Oct, Jas. Stephens aud Thaddeus Bell, Jr.
1805— May,
" ^Oct, " Nathan Weed.
1806 — May, Isaac Lockwood and Thaddeus Bell, Jr.
" — Oct, Josiah Smith and Nathan Weed.
1807— Oct., Thaddeus Bell and Ezra Lockwood.
1803— May, Wm. Waterbury 4th and Isaac Lockwood Jr.
" — Oct., Isaac Look-Wood and Jas. Stephens.
1809 — May, Jas. Stephens and Isaac Lockwood, Jr.
" — Oct,, Smith 'Weed and Jas. Stevens;
1810— May, Jas. Stevens and Nathan Weed.
•' — Oct, Thaddeus Bell and Jas. Stevens.
1811 — May, " Isaac Lockwood. Jr.
" — Oct, Henry Hoyt , Jr. and John Weed, Jr.
1812— May, John Weed, Jr. and Henry Hoyt, Jr.
" — Oct, Nathan Weed and Simeon H. Minor.
1813— May, John Weed, Jr.
" — Oct, Isaac Lockwood and John Augur.
1814— May, Jas. Stephens "
• ' — Oct., Isaac Lockwood and Henry Close .
1815— May, Jas. Steven's and Thaddeus Bell.
*Ha,i6., in pciipil. to be from RidReflokl. Both names areprobably by mistake credi
ted to Stamford.

1815 1816

1817-

Oct,
May, Oct, May,
'- -Oct,
1818 -M-ay,
" -Oct,
1819— May,
1820— -'
1821— •'
1822— "
1823— •'
1824- "
1825-1826-1827- 1828-
1829-1830-1831- 1832-
1833- 1834-
1835-
1836-
1837- 1838-
1839-1840- 1841-
1842-1843- 1844-1845-
1846- 1847-
1848- 1849-
1850- 18S1-
1852-
1853- 1854-
1855-
1856- 1857-
1858-1859-
1860- 1861-
1852-1863-
1864- 1885-

APPESDIX.
Isaac Lockwood aud John We^, Jr.
John Browu, Jr. and Solomon Clasou.
Isaac Lockwood aud Johu Brown, Jr.
Jas. Stevens and Simeon H. Minor.
Thaddeus Bell.
, Thad. Bell and Isaac Lockwood.
" Johu Augur.
Joseph Wood aud Chas. Hawley.
" Daniel Loekw'ood.
Chas. Hawley "
Isaac Lockwood and T. Davenport
Chas. Hawley audJotham Hoyt
" Abel Eeynolds.
" Simeon H. Minor.
S. H. Minor and Wm. Waterbury, Jr.
Wm. Waterbury and Sol. Clason.
" Selle^ik Scofield.
Selleck Scofield and Eoyal L. Gay.

mu

Eoyal L. Gay and Joshua B. Ferri'<.
Selleck Scofield
Joshua B. Fori-is and Seth Clasou.
Selleck Scofield and S. Lockwood.
Andrew Perry.
Wm. T. Minor aud Josephus Brush.
Selleck Scofield and Wm. T. Minor.
Wm. T, Minor and Josephus Brush.
Selleck Scofield aud Wm. T. Minor.
" Eoyal L. Gay.
Wm. T. Minor.
Amzi Scofield "
Heth Stevens and S. Lockwood, Jr.
' ' Henry J. Sanford.
Steph'n. B. Provost and Josiah Smith.
Seth Miller and John Clason.
Wm. T. Minor and S. B. Provost.
James H. Hoyt and Chas. Brown.
Wells E. Eitch and Jobn Clason.
J. D. Warren and Hiekford Marshall.
Chas. A. Weed and E. P. Whitney.
Wm. W. Holly and Geo. Lounsbury.
Chas. H. Leeds and Wm. W. Scofield.
" George Scofield.
H. M. Humphrey and I. S . Jones.
W. E. Eitch aad I. S. Jones.
Morgan Morgans, aud I. S. Jones.
Selleck Scofield and J. D. Warren.
J. B. Hoyt and Alfred Hoyt.

DAKIEN5,
Thaddeus BelL
Henry Bates.
¦John Weed, Jr.
John Bell.
Abraham Clock.
Thaddeus Bell.
John Bell.
Jonathan B.ites.
.Johu Bell.
Holly Bell.
Edward ScoflsU
Johu Weed, Jr.
Edward Scofield,
Holly Bell.
Nathl. H. Wildm*u,
Edward SootleUi.
Wm. Androas-.
Edward Scoflt-UI.
Gil. G. Waterbury.

Isa:io L. Hoyt.
<(
Benj. S. Eeed.
Ira Scofield.
Benj. S. Eeed.
Lester St John.
Benj. S. Eeed.
G. G. Waterbui-y.
(i
Thomas Eeed.
Holly Bell.
Nathan Eoberts.

Chas. Brown.
Holly Bell.
Benjamin Weed.
W. A. Cummingi.
Hcury Moreho*is.

00

470

HISTORY OP .STAMFORD.

1866- 1867-
1868-

¦May, J. D. Ferguson aud Seth S. Cook.
H. G. Scofield.
¦ " W. T. Minor and H. G. Scofield.

Henry Morehouse.
Ira Scofield.

STATE SENATORS FROM STAMFORD.

1G43 & 4— Thurston Eaynor.
1616— Andrew Ward.
1647— Eichard Law,
1695-1701— Maj. Jouathau Selleck.
1766-1784— Abrah.im Davenport
1.790-1797— James D.ivenport.

1830— Charles Hawley.
1850— Joshua B. Fern.i
James H. H 'yt.
1859— Matthew F. Merrit.
1863— Morgan Morgans.
1865-Charles W. Ballard.

2. TO-WNSMEN^ OR SELECTMEN OF STAMFORD.
The following catalogue of " townsmen," or Selectmen, is as complete as
the town records enabled the author to make it. From 16l2 to 1666 there
are no records to show who were appointed ; and in 1673 the records which
are otherwi;<e full, make no mention of the choice of towusme i. The other
years for which there is uo record of a choice, are, 1681, 2 & 3, 1685 aud
1699. Instead of copying the list, as chosen, I have simply indicated the
year when each ope was tirst chosen, and the number of ye.irs he served.

1640— Eev. Eichard Denton, 1
" Matthew Mitchel, 2
'- Andrew Ward, 2
" Thurston Eaynor, 2
" Eichard Crabb, 2
1641— John Whitmore. 1
" Eichard Law, 6
The most of the above served
probably through the next twenty
year.s, of w-hich there is no record,
1666— Lieut Francis Bell, sen., 5
" John Holly, 4
" William Newman, 2
" Eiihiird Hardy. 3
" Joseph Garusey, 1
" Eichard Ambler, 2
1667— Peter Ferris, 7
" Eichard Webb, 2
" Abraham Ambler, 13
1668— Eobert U.sher, 1
" Jonathan Bell, 14
16G9-John (Jreen, 3
" Francis Brown, 1
1670- Jonathan Selleck, 1
1671 — Georfie Sl»Whon, sen., 3
" Johu Pettit 1
" John Holmes, 2
" Joshua Huit 6
" John Slawson, 2
1674— John Bates, 3
1676— Sjmuel Hoyt 8 '
" Daniel Weed, 5
" Daniel Westcott, 5

1677— Joseph Theal, 3
1680— Samuel Dean, 1
" James Weed, 1
Jouas Weed, 11
1684— Steven Bishop, 5
'• John Waterbury, 6
1686-Josepn Hovt, 2
1687- David Waterbury, 11
1689— Daniel Scofield. 20
" John Scofield, 2
" John Bates, jr., 9
1690— Eleazer Slason, 1
¦' Benjamin Hoyt, 1
1694— Increase Holly, 1
1695— Elisha Holly , 6
1696 -Jouathan Selleck, 1
" John Holly, sen., 1
1700— Eichard Scofield, 1
" Samuel Holly, 1
1701 — Benjamin Green, 2
" Jouathan Bell, 19
" Joseph Ferris, 7
1703— Deacon Sam'l Hoyt 6
1704-Capt Joseph Bishop, 10
1709-J bn Ambler, 2
" Lieut. Sam'l Weed, 14
1713— John Bell, 1
1714 — Johu Slason, sen., 4
" Deao. Jobn Hoyt 13
" Sam'l Blachley, 4
1716 — Capt John Kuapp, 1
'¦ Gapt Sam'l Hoyt, jun., 17
1717— Deae. Jonathan Hoyt 1

-VPPENDIX.

4'i

1719— Lieut Joseph Webb, 9
" Serg't John Scofield, 1
" Jonas Weed, 9
" Benj. Hoyt, jr., 4
1725-Samuel Scofield. 3
1728— Capt. Jouathan Hoyt 29
" Miij. Jonathan Maltby, 20
1734— Lieut. John Waterbury, 4
1735— Lieut. Samuel Weed, 3
1738— Joseph Bishop, 8
1740— Serg't Jouathan Clason, 7
1741— Serg't Samuel Scofield, 5
1742- Capt Nathaniel Weed, 8
1746— Col. Abraham Davenport, 31
1747— Lieut. Jonathan Bell, 9
nSO—Eu.sign Johu Holly, 21
1754— Serg't Stephen Ambler, 2
" Capt. David Waterbury, 1
" Lieut Eliphalet Seeley, 22
1756 — Lieut Jonatban Selleck, 4
" Capt Stephen White, 1
1757— Col. Charles Webb, 20
1760— Samuel Broker, 1
1761— Serg't Samuel Bishop, 4
1763— Joseph Husted, 2
" Abraham Hoyt, 10
1769— Thomas Youiigs, 2
" Benjamin Weed, 2
1771— Gen. David Waterbury, 7
1775— Lieut Samuel Hutton, 2
" David Webb, 2
1776— John Bell, 3
" Capt Isaac Lockwood, 19
" Thoipas June, 1
1777 — Deao. Joshua Ambler, 10
1777— Daniel Boutou, 2
" Ebenezer Ferris, 2
Capt. Svlvanus Kuapp, 23
1778— Capt. Charles Smith, 12
1779— Capt Gershom Scofield, 6
" Capt. Eeuben Scofield, 1
1780— Charles Weed, 5
" Capt Amos Smith, 2
1781— Isaac Weed, 2
" Samuel Eichards, 2
" Serg't Jonathan W aring, 2
** Jesse Bell 2
1786— Lieut Seth Weed, jr., 10
1789— Hon. James Davenport, 6
1790 -Thaddeus Hoyt 1
1791— Capt Nathaniel Webb, 5
" • Capt Thiiddeu.s Weed, 2
1792— Nathan Weed, jr., 8
1794— David Maltby, 1

1794- Stephen Eookwell, 1
" Frederick Hoyt, 1
1795 -Hon. John Davenport, 1
179G--Josiab Smith, 12
" Beiijamin Weed, 1
1799— Amos Weed, 11
" Alexauder Mills, 1
1800- Carey Leeds, 1
" Isaac Penover, 2
1801— Ezra Lockwood, 3
" Wm. Waterbury, 4th, 9
1802- Thaddeus Bell, jr., 8
George Mills, 4
1807— Isaac Wardwell, 6
" David Smith, 3d, 1
1809-Smith Weed, 1
" Simeon H. Minor, Esq., 1
" Carey Bell. 4
" Seth Smith, 6
1810— John Weed, jr., 8
" Hi'nry Hoyt jr., 1
" Jeremiah Andreas, 1
" Abishai Weed, 5
1811— Timotby Eeynolds, 4
" John Browning, 2
1812 — Jonatban Brown, 3
1813— Daniel Lockwood, jr., 8
1814 — Isaac Lockwood, jr., 3
1815-James Stevens, Esq., 3
" Philo Weed, 3
1817— John Bell, 2
" Solomon Clason, 3
1818— Epenetus Hoyt 5
1819— Nathaniel Weob, 1
" Luther Weed, 1
" Isaac Holly, 1
From this date there have been
but three Selectmen.
1810— Dr. Lockwood, 1
1821— Joseph Wood, Esq., 3
" Abishai Scofield, 3
1824— Jotham Hoyt, 6
" Abel Eeyuolfis, 6
1825— Theodore Davenport, 3
1828— David Hoyt, 1
1829-Ezi-a Kuapp, 1
1830— AVm. Waterbury, 2
'• Selleck Scofield, 20
" Jobn Brown, 1
1831-EoyalL. Gay, 20
1832-Beuj. M. Weed, 8.
1839— Heth Stevens, 6
1841— Edwin S. Holly, 1
" Amzi Scofield, 1

472
1842- 1847- it
1851- tt
1852-1853- It
1854-

1820-

1821-1822- 1826- 1830-1831- 1832- 1837-

1839- 1840
1844-1849-1850-

HISTORY OF STAMFORD.

-Ebenezer Lockwood, i
-Abishai Weed, 1
Nehemiah Hoyt 1
-Charles Brush, 1
Nathaniel Lockwood,
-Philip H. Brown, 2
Isaac Jones, 1
Nelson W. Smith, 1
-Edwin Scofield, jr., 1
Walter Searls, 1
-Seth Miller, 1
Lorenzo Meeker, 1
Hiekford Marshall, 3

-John Bell, 1
Johu Weed, 2
Henry Bates, 12
-John Bell, jr., 2
-John Weed, jr., 8
-Enos Wilmot 8
-Wm. H. Bates, 3
-Jeremiah Andreas, 2
-Abraham Clock, 4
Holly Bell, 5
-Wm. Andreas, 13
Jacob Lockwood, 4
John Holmes, 10
—Daniel Beers, 1
Elisha Seeley, 1
-Edward Scofield, 3
—Joseph Mather, 4
—Benj. S. Eeed, 6
—Nathaniel A. Bouton, 1

1855— Wells E. Eitch, 12
" Edward Gay, 1
1856— Geo. Lounsbury, 1
" Charles Brown, 1
1857— Stephen B. Provost 1
1858— Floyd T. Palmer, 2
" Josiah Smith, 1
1859— Wm. Wallace Scofield,
1861— Cephas Stevens, 4
1866— Charles Gaylor, 1
" Wm. E. Lockwood, 3
" Lewis Eaymond, 2
Erastus E. Scofield , 1

1868-
DARIEN. 1851- 1852-

1854-1855- (I
1856- 1757- it
1858- 1860-
1861-1862-1863- 1864-1867- 1868-

G. G. Waterbury, 1
Isaac Weed, 1
Henry Gorham, 4
Eichard Bates, 1
Henry Morehouse, 3
-George Mather, 1
¦George E. Stevens, 5
Chas. A. Bates, 1
Chas. Hoyt, 1
¦Nathan Eoberts, 1
John N. Scofield, 4
-Walter H. B»tes, 2
-Isaac L. Hoyt, 1
¦John D. Farrington, 1
¦Legrand Winters, 1
¦Ira Scofield, 6
-Edward O. Page, 1
-Holly Bell, 4
-Sam'l Sands, M. D.. 2

3. TOWN" CLERKS.

Eichard Law, 1641-1664.
Jona. Selleck, 1664-1668.
John Holly, sen., 1668-1670.
Abram Ambler, 1670-1686.
Jona. Bell, 1687-1699.
Samuel Holly, seu., 1699-1708.
Elisha Holly, 1708-1709.
Stephen Bishop, sen., 1709-1722.
Lieut Sam'l Weed, 1722-1738.

Joseph Bishop, 1738-1760.
Samuel Jarvis, 1760-1775.
John Hoyt jr., 1775-1806.
Samuel Hovt jr., 1806-1819.
Seymour Jarvis, 1819-1843.
Wm. H. Holly, 1843.
Eoswell Hoyt 1843-1844.
Edwin Scofield, jr., 1844-1868.

DARIEN.

1S20 — Jo.-ihua Morehouse.
1822— Darius K. Scofield.
1828— Joshua Scofield.
1831— Edward Scofield.
1838— Abram Clock.
1839— Geo. H. Wallace.

1840— Chas. H. Waterbury.
1842— Jas. N. Gorham.
1844— Ira Scofield.
1856 — Henry Gorham.
1857— Johu S. Waterbury.

A-PPENDIX. 473
4. TREASURERS.
.Idha stone, 1713. Samuol Hoyt, 1807-1819.
Samuel Weed-, 1733. Seymour Jarvis, 1819-1843.
Abtilham Davenport .1779. , Eoyal L. Gay, 1844-1S57.
Ebenezer Weed, 1779-1790. ' Welles E. Eitch, 1857-1861.
John Hoyt, jr.. 1790-1802. Stephen B. Provost 18G1-1802
Alex;. Mills, 1802-1807. Welles E. Eitch, 1862-1868.
5. POSTMASTERS IN STAMFORD.
Abraham Davenport, down to 1820. Sands Seeley, twice.
Hon, James Stevens. Eoswell Hoyt twice.
John Brown. Theodore -J. Daskam, siuce ISBl.
William Hoyt, jr. D.
STAMFORD BUSINESS,"^ uses.
This list will show how early any of the parties indicated were in busi
ness in the town, und is as full and accurate, as the time allowed the author
to make it.
Adams, Nathaniel E., architect and builder, 1827
Arnold, A. C, do do 1860
Alpbonse, John W., friiitand confectionery, police, 1863
Alphonse, Charles, police, 1865
Avery, Horace, blacksmith, threo hands.
Brown, Philip H., mason, eighteen men, 1840
Billard & Nichols, sash and blinds, nin^ hands, 1861
Barker & Avery, blacksmith at Eing's End, 1860
Barber, Mrs., boarding house, 1867
Buxton & Webb, builders, eight hands, 1844
Brown, Samuel C, livery, 1862
Benjamin, Ealph, billiards.
Bates, Mrs. Fred., fancy goods, 1863
Birchard, James, cabinet at Darien depot, 1865
Brooks, Wm. H., barber, 1860
HoutOn, Samuel M., carman. 1865
Bunten, Cornelian, blacksmith and carriage maker, eight men, 1844
Bunteu, Aureliau, do. do. do., four men, 1847
Bostwick, John, jr., carpeuter.
Bates, Chas. E., coal and fuel, at Eing's End, 1864
Bernhard, T. & Bro., fancy dry goods and millinery, 1868
Benas, Maurice, cigars and tobacco, 1865
Boettger, Mrs, Clara, millinery, 1868
Barret, Isaac, carman.
Briggs, S., Union House, (built 1844,) successor to Theodore Searls, 1864
Beers, Miss S. A., fancy goods, at Darien depot, 1868
Broadway, W. H., grocer, Qaintard's Block, 1868
Brown, Francis H;, music conservatory, 1867
Bostwick & Waterbury, grocers, four hands, 1865
* 'Excepting ouch as is already recorded In the preceding pages.
61

474 HISTORY OF STAJitFOP.D.
Butler, J. K., telegraph at depot, two assistants, 1867
Buiton, fidwin, shoes, at Turn of Eiver, 1833
Buxton, Nelson, do. do. do., 1836
Buxton, John H., do. do. do., 1838
Clark, David H., insurance and real estate agent and auetioaeer, 1800
Crabe, Allen L., cooper in North Stamford.
Cook, M. L., fancy goods, 1865
Cook, Mrs. C., hairdresser, 1866
Christie & Clancy, Misses, milliners, 1867
Card & Hill, painters, 1856
Crawford, James S., photographer, 1861
Crombie, Richard, tailor, 1854
Cohen, 'W., tailor, three hands, 1862
Curtis, Hiram, baskets, 1850
Combs & Provost, carriage makers, eight hands, 1846
Daskam, B. J., grocer, 1835
Daskam, T. J., insurance agent and deputy assessor, 1861
Dibble, Wm. H., boarding-house, Strawberry Hill, 1847
Dayton, George, cooper in North Sti.mford.
Dann, Seth, do.
Dixon, G. H., grocer at New Hope, - 1863
Dean, Geo. 'W., marble yard, 1856
Daniel, James, painter, seven hands, 1851
Dammyer, John C, painter, four hands, 1864
Davis, Theodore, sash and blind, 1855
Dix & Cousin, shoes, at Darien depot, thiity-slx handH^ 1856
Dean, Isaac, shoes, at Deanville.
Dean, Seth, cooper, at North Stamford.
Ells & Gogan, painters, 1845
Fairchild, Eobert, builder, 1861
Finney, Henry & Bros., blacksmiths, West Stamford.
Fox, Jacob, clothing merchant ami tailor, 1659
Picket, John B., carpenter, in Darien.
Ferris, De Forest, carman.
Gifford, carriages, at Long Eidge, four hands, 1856
Goldy, Henry, builder, ten men.
Guernsey, William.
Gardner, jr., Thomas.
Gorham & Garland, grocers, iu Darien, 1856
Goff & EUwood, soda and sarsaparilla, 1868
Hicks, John H., billiard saloon, 1867
Holly, Alexander N., hardware and lumber, 1842
Hoyt jr., Wm., dry goods, 1826
Hoyt & Leeds, grocers, 182S
Hoyt, Lyman, cabinet, seven hands, 1837
Hoyt, James H., carpenter.
Hoyt, George, ticket agent at depot, 1855
Hoyt <fc Ayres, grocers, 1862
Hoyt, John 'W., restaurant Cornucopia. 1866
Hoyt J. A., shoes, two men. I860
Hobble, Chas. A., carriage and blacksmithing, five men, Darien, 1850
Harper, Eobert music.
Hay, William, carman.
Hathaway, B. P., eivil engineer, liS5f

¦ AP^ElfDXS, 475
Hubbard & Holly, dry goods and tailoring, 1855
Hurlbutt, W. P. & L. H., merchant tailors, fifteen hands, 1861
Hallock, Wm. H. H., mason.
Hendricks, Wm., photography, 1867
Johnson, Lewis, boating. Ig^Q
Johnson, Sam'l H., boating. 1861
'Jerman, W. H., shoes, six men, 1851
Jessup & Lockwood, builders.
Jones, Thaddeus, carman, 1840
Jennings, W. H., dyeing.
Jennings, Mrs. L. A., dressmaking, Madam Demorest's agent.
Jones, Charles & Co., dry goods, five hand.i, 1858
June, Hanford, carpenter.
Jones, Lewis, flour and feed at mill, High Eidge.
Jacobs, P. S.. grocer, 1865
Jones, N. D. & Co., fish market 1863
Jones, Daniel H., carman.
, Keeler, J. H., carman, successor to his father, who -n-aa here in 1841
Knapp, Charles H., mason.
Knappe & Crossner, barbers, succeed Andrew Schmidt 1862
Knapp, Sylvester L., grocery and dry goods, at Eoxbury.
Knapp, David H., shoes, at North Stamford.
Knapp, John B., harnesses, 1865
Ketcham, Oliver & John, oyster trade.
Kirk & Scofield, builders, four hands, 1§57
Kennedy & Burke, restaurant, 1867
Lehigh, John, stair builder, 1862
Leeds, E. A., livery, successor to his father, 1845
Lounsbury, H. I., shoes, four men, 1857
Lownds, Geo. L. & Son, builders, ten men, 1847
Lockwood, James L., stoves aud tinware, nine hands, 1847
Lockwood & Haight, druggists, successors of the Drs. Lockwood, 1848
Lookwood, Wm. W., news office, books and stationery.
Lockwood, Wm. A., blacksmith, four men, 1852
Lookwood, Sylvester, blacksmith, at Long Ei'lge. 1844
Lookwood, Edward E., cooper, at Long Eidge.
Lockwood, Samuel, dentist, 1840
Leeds, E. A., gate fixtures, inventor and manufacturer, 1867
Lockwood, y. B., grocer, 1863
Lounsbury, C. W., stoves and tinware, at Darien depot, 1867
Lum, H. B.., stoves and tinware, seven hands, 1851
Mather, M. S. & J. C, successors of George, Darien depot 1830
Merritt Mrs. H. 'V., dressmaker, eighteen bauds, 1856
McCoun, Samuel, billiards, Quintard's Block, 1864
McQuhae, George, blacksmith, three hands, 1862
Miller, C. O. & Co., dry goods, four hands, 1868
Matthews, Jas. L., flour and feed, mill at Eiver Bank.
Miller, E. S., grocer, 1855
Morgan, O. A., shoes, 1860
Morgan, O. B., grocer, 1867
Moore, Hampton, plastic s'ate, 1864
Moore, Johu, harness, 1868
Morris, Mrs. E. F., millinery, suoeeeds Mrs. N. A. Weed, four hands, 1859
Monroe & Thompson, painters.

476 HISTOEY OF STAMFORD,
Morgan, Alonzo B. , carman.
Newman, John, carriage and blacksmith, at High Eidge, 1849
Nichols, Charles H, carpenter.
Nichols, Wm. B., livery, 1856
Nichols Emma C, millinery, 1863
Payne, E. T., dentist 1863
Provost William, blacksmith, West Stamford, 1818
Price, William, grocer, three hands, 1852
Peck, J. A. & Co., grocers, at Eiver Side.
Provost & Drew, grocers, 1868
Palmer, W. & Son, grocers, at Long Eidge. 7
Powelson, C. G., watch work and sewing machines, 1840
Palmer, Hannah, milliner, I860
Prior, A. M., oyster trade.
Playford, Thomas, fresco work.
Eeed, J. W., hats and furs, 1835
Eenoude, Jarvis', cabinet 1846
Eichards, Ambrose, carpenter, in Darien.
Eead, Jane E., dressmaker, nine hands, 1858
Eockwell, James E., grocer, at Long Eidge, 1866
Eeardon, Mrs., harness, , 1864
Scofield, Erastus E., flour and feed, 1857
Scofield, John A., painter, seven hands, 1854
Scofield, Charles H., drygoods, five clerks, 1851
Scofield, Henry, carpenter.
Scofield, M. S., carpenter.
Scofield, Oliver & Son, cdal, fuel aud building materials, 1848
Scofield, S. N., cooper, North Stamford.
Scofield, D. L. , civil engineer aud railroad contractor, 1848
Scofield, H. G., civil engineer, 1866
Scofield, Cbas. W., mason.
Scofield, Edward, miller, North Stamford.
Scofield, S. W., house furnishing goods, 1861
Scofield, H. L., meat market 1660
Schlocker, Geo. P. , landspape gardening and rustic work, 1850
Silliman & Morrison, drnggists, succeed S. C, Silliman, 1857
Saunders, Wm. H., blacksmith aud carriage making, N. Stamford, 1849
Shaw, W. F., grocer, 1857
Shaw, James, carpenter, iu Darien.
Shaw, Fred., do. do.
Slater, Charles, cooper. North Stamford.
Smith, Wm. L., grocer, 1859
Seeley, Albert Stamford House, (built 1810, ) 1837
Smith, A. T. & Son, millers, Long Eidge, 1857
Smith, Wm. H., carpenter.
Smith, Wm. D., coal, fuel and building materials, 1867
Smith, James, grocery,- at Eiver Bank.
Smith, Frank., grocer, at Darien depot, 1864
Smith & Dayton, house furnishing goods, 1863
Smith, S. H., watchmaker aud jeweler, 1859
Sherwood, Samuel, cooper. Hunting Eidge, \ 1840
Smith, J. H., shoes, ' 1825
Smith, Geo. W., blacksmith, at Covo.
Smith, T. F., blacksmith, at Cove.

APPENDIX. 4^^
Studwell, Edgar, builder.
Spaulding, Gilbert, real estate.
Stottlar, John, fish market, Iggg
Stevens, Samuel, shoes, at High Ridge.
Stevens, Cephas, baskets.
Stevenson, E. J., boarding-house, Heury Ktrect
Taylor Brothers, grocers, 1868, successors to A. O. Clark & Co., 1830
iuylor,  , shoes, at Eiver Bank.
Turkiuton, John, shoS.s, twelve men, 1852
Todd, C. J., grocer, 1855
Toucey, Wm. B., clothing, ' 1850
Triaea & Co., soap manufacturers. West Stamford,
Trinka, M,, cigar manufacturer, five hands, 1868
Uncles, Johu, shoes, seven mon, 1862
¦Valentine, Chas. W., meat mai-ket 1855
Voorhies, A. W., baker. 1867
Waterbury, David & Wm. T., steamboat, 1839
Wardwell, Eufus, coal and fuel, 1848
Waterbiiry, J. S., grocer, successor to Ira Seofleld, Darien, 1856
Waterbury, S. C. & Co., meat market, 1863
Waterbury, Geo. H. & Son, florist and gardener. 1844
Waterbury, C. H., cooper. North Stamford.
Wicks, H. W., bakery, I860
White, Elbert, manufactures, insurance and real estat*, 1840
Weed, Augustus, watchmaker and jeweler, 1848
Whitney, C. S. & W. S., grocers, at Darien depot 1867
Webb, 'Wm., carpenter.
Webb, Mary, millinery, 1830
\Vhitnej', Wm. M., carpenter, in Darien,
Whitney, James, shoes, three hands, 1806
AVilliams, Mrs. , boarding, Clark's Hill.
Weed, A. G. & Bro., grocers, 1862
Weed, Alvan, groceries and dry gooda. North Stamford. 1841
Weed, C. L., groceries and dry goods. High Eidge, 1865
Weed, Wm. A. & Co., meat market, 1853
Wood, John, cooper, Hunting Eidge.
Woodman, L & H., builders, 1849
Weed & Ensley, stoves and tinware, four h»nd«. 1867
Webb, J. N., harnesses, three hands, 1847
Williams, A. W., restaurant, near depot 1^^^
Williams, Andrew T., auctioneer.
White, Wheeler & Bulkely, restaurant, at depot 1^^^
Woeltge, Albert, music, 185S
NAMES REPRESENTED IN BUSINESS, ELSKWHBBE.
Adams, John, Frank & James J. Canfield, D. W.
Betts, Wm. G. & Charles E. Crane, Thomas & Albert
Bliss, Ira Daskam, James W. & Eugena B.
Brantingham, Charles Davenport Amzi B., James J., Joii*
Brown, Capt Chas. H., George L., & James B.
Samnel& Belden B. Dewing, Hiram
Brooks, Horace De Forest C. T.
Burgess, C. A. Dodge, J. Smith
Oaodee, Julius A. it Q. W. Dowe, Jobn 3. es

478

HISTORY OF STAMFORD.

& Eob't, jr.

Louis & George

Samuel H.,

Dunn, .1.
Elder, Geo., Geo., jr,
Faulkner, James C.
Fair. Eobert
Fosdick. Wm. E.
Flint, J. T.
Frost, M. S.
Genung, E. W.
Gardner, Thomas, jr.
Gillespie, Fred. E.
Gorham, Edwin
Gwyune, John A.
Haldeman, Johu
Hawlev, Francis M.
Hale, j.
Hall, Thomas S.
Hobby, Moses M
Holly, Edward
Holmes, Samuel,
& Frederick
Ilojt, Joseph ii.. Oliver,
George A , ,Frank L.
Eufus
Hook, Guhan
Hubbard, Alex.-inder .t Joliii W
Hvdc, Samuel N.
Haight Jas. P.
Ingraham, Charles W.
Inslee, Gage
Jacquelin, Charles
Jones, Wm. P. <fe Wm. P., jr.
Jenkins, G. W. A.
Ketcham, J seph,
Lockwood, Jobn E. & Munson
McKenzie,. Alexander
Milne, Alexander
Merritt M. F.
Moffatt, E M.
Marsden, F. A.
Mowbray, Oliver
Munn, Benj.
Neabitt, George P.
Paradise, Andrew W.

Pitt Charles & Charles, jr.
Porter, Eleazer
Quintard, Charles E.
Eedding, George
Ehodes, Fn.nk
Eickard, E. H.
Eiker, 'Thaddeus
Eobins, David
Sackett J. L. & J. W.,
Scofield, C. E.
Seely, Sonds
Skiddy, Wm. W.
Sloan, John & Wm. J.
Smith, Truman, James D., Chas. L.,
Walter M., Charles Edgar, W. H.,
Charles Edwin, & Theophilus
Snelling, J. G.
Skelding, William F. & Francis E.
Luke Stebbins, Jared N.
Stickney, C. L. & Charles
¦ft^'illiam, Swartwout, Eobert Satterlee i Eobtrt
Edgar & D.
Starr, Charles J.
Strowbridge, Wm. C.
Taylor, Frank
Talmadge, Wm. H.
Trowbridge, Dudley L.
Van Name, C.
'Vmton, Gen. D. H.
'Voorhies, Abraham
Waidell, Charles W.
Warner, B.
Warren, James. James E., Joseph C.
& George E.
Weed, Addison
Weston, C. W. & C. W., jr.
Wilcox, James & Charles H.
Wheeler, Frederick G.
White, John M.
Whiting, Lieut Wm. B.
Wright, John
'young, -J.'. S. &F. H.

E.

HOYT FAMILY MEETING.*
This meeting was the result of a circular issued in May, 1865, over the
names of the following Hoyt's : Eev. Wm. C, of Stamford; James A., of
Norwalk; Henry, of Boston; Wm. H., oi Burlington, 'Vt; Eev. Ealph
New York city; Eev. James, Orange, N. Y. ; F. A., Philadelphia; David W.,

* This record accidentally dropped out of its place in Chapter XSiy., bwt is of too
great historic interest to be omitted.

APPENDIX. 479
Providence, E. I.; Eev. C. A., Oberlin, O; and Alfred Hoitt of Durham,
N. H. The time and place of the meeting were fixed at a meeting held at
the residence of Seymour Hoyt, Atlantic street, Stamford, March 19, 1866;
and the meeting itseif was held iu the Congregational Church of Stamford,
June 20 and ^1, 1866. Its organization was as follows:
President— Oliver Hoyt, of Stamford.
Vice Presidents — Henry, of Boston; Wm. H., of Vermont; Hon. Joseph
G., of Maine; James H., of Connecticut; Wm. C, of Michigan; Dr. John P.,
of Penn. ; Edwin, of NewYork; Eev. j. Chcbter, of NewYork; Eev. Cor-
nehu-s A. , of Ohio; and Jas. L., of Illinois.
Secretaries— Eev. Jas., of N. J.; Henry E., of Michigan, and David W.,
of E. I.
David W. Hoyt, of Providence, the author of the Hoyt Family, and -who
has since then been arranging the descendants of tbe Connecticut Hoyts
for an addition to the former work, was the orator of the meeting, and the
bpeeclies made were many and iuterestiug. '1 he entire meeting was a very
deligh.ful one.
.\, permanent organization of the Hoyts was made, under the name of
The Host Family Union, whose officers are:
President— Joseph B. Hoyt, of Stamford, Conn.
Secretary — David W. Hoyt Providence, E. I.
Permanent Committee — Hon. Joseph G. Hoyt Farmington, Me. ; Aaron
B. Hoyt, Sandwich, N. H.; Wm. Henry Hoyt, Burlington, Vt; Dr. Enos
Hoyt Framingham, Mass.; David W. Hoyt, Providence, E. L; Joseph B.
Hoyt Stamlord, Conn.; Dr. Wm. Henry Hoyt, Syracuse, N. Y. ; Eev. Jas.
Hoyt, Orange, N. J. ; Gen. Henry M. Hoyt, Wilkesbarre, Pa. ; Eev. Prof.
Cornelius A. Hovt, Oberlin, Ohio; Prof. Benj. T. Hoyt Greencastle, Ind.;
James L. Hoyt 'Woodstock, III.; Wm. C. Hoyt, Esq., Detroit Mich.; John
W. Hoyt, Madison, Wis. ; Gould E. Hoyt, Lake City, Minn. ; Cbas. Hoyt,
South Fnghsb, Iowa; Eev. Prof. James W. Hoyt Nashville, Tenn.; Ira 6.
Hoitt San Francisco, Cal. ; Leopold A. Hoyt, Hillsborough, New Bruns
wick; Jesse Hoyt New Glasgow, Nova Scotia.
A full report of the meeting was issued in pamphlet lorm by the Historian
of the family, D. W. Hoyt, of Providence, in 1866, and the complete
geusalogy of Ihis numerous family will s oon be ready for publication.

~— POPULATION AND GROWTH OP STAMFORD.
Se»r PopulaVn. Year. Populafn. Vear. Popnlafo.
1665  420 1745  1510 tmo  3284
1676.... ^...405 1756  2648 1830  3705
1687  410 '1760  2580 1840  8516
1700  685 1800  4465 n850  4965
1714 905 tl810  4440 I860  ...7185
In 1868, including Darien and the part of New Canaan once in the town,
the BODulalion would not be less than 11000.
The following facts will show the relative growth of Stamford, and eave
us with a promise of what we may hope for, when tbe History of the town
shall be revised and enlarged at some future day.

* The first official census.
•f A part of New Canaan had been cut oil.
i Darien had just been cut off.
IT N. Y. & N. H. R. B. just buIU.

480 arsTOBY of sTAMi'or.».
In 1665, of 20 towjjs in Connecticut Stamford ranked the tenth in
wealth. • la 1678, of 23, it was the eleventh in wealth and twelfth in population.
In 1687, of 24, it was the fourteenth in wealth and twelfth in population.
In 1829, of 130, it stood the twentieth in wealth and twenty-sixth in
population. In 1850, of 160, it was the eighth iu wealth aud ninth in population.
In 1857, it ranked the third town in the State, in inokease op -wealth
during the ten preceding years. The entire State had increased 60 per
cent ; fourteen towns only had increased 100 per cent. ; while Stamford
had gone forward 200 per cent. The only two towns whose increass had
been greater than thatof Slamford, were Waterbury and Meriden.
This nolo ou the population and growth of Stamford, accidentally final,
will yet furnish a pleasant and hopeful introduction to the history of tho
Stamford yet to be. We leave these studies of this ancient town with the
strongest conviction, that in uo New England town can be found (he el»-
ments of a surer growth or of a more stable prosperity.

fi
oEloa

M
o

OUR WOOD OUTS.
For the beautiful cuts of Stamford residences with whieh onr History in
so well illustrated, the author is happy to acknowledge his great indebted
ness to James Wilcox, Esq., whose own residence is a perpetual witness t»
his interest in the locality whioh he chose, and whioh his taste has done so
much to adorn.
The following brief description of these residences will be of sufficient
historical interest to justify ins rtiou in our record of the town.
ECHO LAWS.
This place, now owned by James Wilcox, Esq., of the firm of Wilcox A
Gibbs, New York, embraces about fifty acres of land on the western slope
of the Noroton Hill. It famishes a delightful view of the village to tho
south-west; of Clark aud Eichmond and the more distant Greenwich hills,
to the west; and of Str&wberry Hill to the north-west; with pleasant
glimpses of the Sound and Island to the south. From one of our roughest
hill-sides, falling off abruptly into one of our rockiest and most imprac
ticable marshes. Echo Lawn no-w presents to the visitor a picture which
even our beautiful cut does not flatter. It shows what good taste aud
liberal expenditures can do in the hands of adequate enterprise.
JOSEPH B. hoyt's BKSIDBNCE.
In 1858, Mr. Hoyt, after a successful business career as the oldest of the
Hoyt Brothers, built this elegant and substantial Home, a liUle w«st of the
summit of the hill where Main stceet crosses it A little east of north,
across Main street, lie the beautiful grounds of his brother Oliver, crowned
with their showy residence, and to the north-east, about a hundred rods,
stands the.massive brick residence af his brother William.-on the old hom«
lot of the faiailj-. i. B. Davenport's BEsiDENce,
This showy structure occupies a most commanding view from the west
slope of Davenport Eidge. It is about five miles noitb by east froa
the Stamford depot Tho panorama stretching around it is, at any season
of the year, -well worth a study, and in summer is very beautiful.
This locality was voted to the Eev. John Davenport, of Stamford, by the
proprietors of the town, in January, 1705-6, in consideration of his hun
dred ponnds .interest in the "Long Lots," as agreed upon at the time of
his settlement in the ministry hero in 1693. By his will, January 20, 1728,
he gave it to his eldest son, .John, who bnilt his home upon it »od diod

482 mSTOEX OF SrAMFOKD.
there in 1742. The property passed nest into the hands of the third John,
who died in 1756, leaving it to the fourth John, a deacon in the North
Stamford Church, who died in 1820. A portion of this land was bought of
the heirs, by Amzi B. Davenport, a grandson of this deacou John, in 1857,
and on it he built the residence represented in our cut. It occupies tha
site of an old residence removed about eighty years ago.
"SPBINO HILL."
This is one of the most expensive, as it is one of the most attractive and
showy residences of the town. It is built of granite, and shows to admir
able advantage from the summit of the gently rounded elevation on whioh
it stands. The lawn in front, to the west, and the undulating surface to
wards the south and east, are very beautiful. In 1864, Mr. E. A. Quin
tard purchased this tract of Mr. Z. B. Nichols, and removed the building
in whieh Mr. Nichols had carried on his boarding-school for years, and
riibstituted for it the fine structure, with which we are happy to illustrate
one feature of our town prosperity. SOUND VIEW.
This elegant retreat, owned since 1854 by Benjamin L. Waite, Esq., is
at the present terminus of our Westcott road, about a mile and a half east
of the villftgei It overlooks a stretch of beautifal fields, sloping gracefully
towards the south, until they meet the waters of the Sound. These, and
the added beauty of the Island beyond, constitute a very charming view.
ODB CSUBCHES.
AVe are sure we need no apology for introducing iuto their appropriate
places the two elegant cuts of our Gongregational and Baptist churches.
Our only regret is that we could not get as good ones of tho other ehnrchea
of the town.
XoTE  -While these last sheets have been printing, the old "-WaBhington House,"
referred to as " Webb's Taivam," page 262, has been removed: The ground has been
thoroughly explored b; Charles Alphonse, Esq., and the many coins, both silver and cop
per, together with various other relics found there, Indicate it to have been as noted a
place as our local tradition supposes it to have been.

terrors and A4t«tlUoitf«.
Page 18, line 24, for Lucretia, read Susan.
Marshall, read Morehouse.
Whitman, read Whitmore.
1851, read 1856.
1.8, read 6.8.
1860, read 1801.
1830, read 1820.
Wooster, read Waterbury, 2J.
following chapter, read Chapters XVI and XVII.
32, read 82.
Mrs., read Miss Lucretia.
Lavinia, read Lucretia.
Gorman, read Gorham.
Stamford, read Stratford.
Shay, read Shaw.
honest, read earnest.
On page 434 occurs an error of the author, arising from a verbal mistake
made iu the "Wetmore Family." The sermon whioh called forth the
"Vindication ''from Eev. James Wetmore, was that of Noah Hobart, of
Fairfield, not of Stamford. Tho sermon was preached in Stamford on the
occasion of Dr. Welles' ordination; and in the hurry of the author to vin-
dioato the truth of our local history, he committed an error greater than
the one he would correct
Page 454, line 34, for draws, read drawers.
" 456, " 27, " and Africa, read Africa and.
To the list of graduates, page 459, add :
Davenport William, son of William of North Stamford, a member of
Amherst College, class, 1870.
Sloan, Wm. J., a surgeon in the U. S. A., whose residence i^s iu Stam
ford, and who will be reported in the Soldier's Memorial.

19,

30,

20,

32,

33,

32,

34,

6,

154,

25,

ti

26,

200,

15,

221,

20.

235.

31,

259,

29,

262,

17,

267,

15,

377,

31,

406,

27.

427,

28,

INDEX TO SURNAMES.

The reader will notice the abbreviations in the reference to the pages.
A dash indicates that all of the intervening pages are included in the
reference.

Abbot, 45.
Abel, 258.
Adams, 330, 85 ; 435
48, 58, 73, 8.
.Addington, 228.
Aiken, 351.
Allyn, 92, 180, 458.
Alvord, 8, 217, 310, 12.
Alexander, 431.
Alphonse, 473, 82
Akerly, 20, 5, 7; 42, 54
9; 82, 155.
.\mbler, 28, 48, 9; 55,
110, 14, 24, 29, 30, 1,
45, 55, 73, 4, 98; 226
8, 56, 95, 6, 9; 312, 78;
457, 8, 63, 4, 5, 70, 1.
Ambrey, 48, 155.
Ammerman, 331.
.Andrews, Andrei.s, 49,
60, 232, 331, 55, 69,
71, 2.
Ander.son, 131, 310, 435.
Andros, 113.
Andros, 150, 5; 311.
Auness, 454.
Amtaugh, 99.
.'Vquamana, 99.
Aphthrop, 387.
Archer, 59, 64.
Armitage, 19, 26, 8, 43,
73.
-Arnold, 173, 7; 245. 314,
420 2 73
Austin, 39, 49, 53. 82,
156, 9, 74, 92; 232, 314,
55.
-Augur, 366, 468, 9.
Avery, 125, 301—303, 10,
4; 473.
Ayres, 145, 63, 78, 9;
289, 96; 312, 3, 36, 65,
7: 448, 52, 74.

Babbitt 333, 448.
Bacon, 271, 310, 73.
Badger, 431.
Baker, 178, 233, 330.
Bachelor, 312.
Banks, 156, 78, 84; 367.
Bangs, 332.
Walcam, 350.
Bassett 49, 60, 75—9
159.
Barnes, 232, 312.
Baxter, 75, 6.
Ballard, 337.
Barber, 473.
Bailey, 29, 49, 50.
Ballis, 314.
Barker, 473.
Bates, 18, 19, 21, 5, 8,
34, 5, 62; 113, 37, 50,
1, 5, 6, 73, 4, 91; 200,
10, 23, 6. 8, 33, 57, 8,
62, 89, 95, 6; 310, 11,
19, 61, 91, 4; 401, 57,
8, 64^6, 9, 70. 2, 3.
Barton. 315, 458.
Bartlett 337.
Barrett 473.
Beach, 99, 366.
Beachgood, 178.
Beadle, 312.
Beebe, 163, 253, 02.
Bear, 226.
Beals, 350.
Beecher, 45.
Beers, 233, 472, 3.
Biddle, 356.
Bell, 18, 19, 21, 5, 8; 30.
5; 51, 9; 60, 2, 4, 7;
76, 7; 81, 6, 8; 90, 9;
112,3,19,21,24,26,28,
30, 50, 53,\^ 61, 73,
4, 87; 223, 678, ,3a 3,
79, 89, 98; 311, 16, 21,

42. 7, 54, 78, 9; 405,
57, 8. 63. 4, 5, 8—72.
Bishop, 30, 49, 50, 60,
64, 84. 87, 94. 119, 21.
2,5, 6, 8—30,4,5,7.8,
47-9-50, 2, 6. 72, 4, 86,
90, 8; 223, 33, 69, 70,
5, 89, 91, 5, 6; 300, 10,
16, 20, 1, 2. 5, 7, 44, 6,
50.4, 60, 79—81; 40S,
35, 41, 8, 50, 5, 7, 8,
64, 5, 70—2.
Birch, 368.
Bellamy, 40, 178, 341,
42.
Benas, 473.
Belden, 178.
Bixbee, 354.
Benedict, 43, 370. 94.
Betts, 148. 224. 32, 3;
350, 405. 58, 77.
Bentley, 156.
Benjamin, 353, 473.
Bennet 233.
Besse, 233.
Belding, 49. 456.
Bigelow, 253.
Biddle, 327.
Billings, 355.
Billard, 473,
Birdseye, 150.
Birchard, 233, 473.
Bissel, 376, 449, 52.
Blackleach, 385.
Blachley. 136, 7, 57, 75,
8, 9; 233, 95. 6; 394.
Blackman, 179, 296.
Borden, 179.
Bogart, 396.
Boetger. 473.
Bolt, 150.
Bliss, 328, 477.
Blanchard, 179, 233, 86.

Bostwick, 179, 80; 262,
99; 473.
Brantingham, 376, 477.
Bolton, 13.
Brathwaithe, 322, 3.
Bouton, 147, 8, 79, 83;
226, 7, 9, 31, 4, 55, 6,
89,96; 354; 467, 71,3.
Brinsmade, 150, 310.
Brewer, 333.
Boardman, 179, 295.
Boolooh, 179.
Broadway, 473.
Brundage, 324.
Booth, 337, 74; 447.
Brown, 10, 50, 1, 6; 91,
112, 57, 62, 74, 9, 85;
209, 24, 31, 4, 91, 6;
311, 17, 24, 5, 30, 1,
42, 6, 53, 4, 76; 401,
30, 5, 46, 7, 9, 50, 2,
61, 3, 9—73, 7.
Brundish, 164.
Boyse, 269.
Briggs, 179, 234, 62; 473.
Brooker, 179, 99; 471.
Boorman, 369.
Brooks, 473, 7.
Bryan, 150, 79.
Brusli, 194, 5; 290, 459,
72.
Bulkeley, 37, 436.
Brownell, 415.
Browning, 471.
Buel, 157, 354.
Bruen, 387.
Bull, 431.
Busheag, 72, 107.
Bushnell, 129.
Buckingham, 150.
Burr, 45. 157, 63,..381.
Burley, 314.
Budd, ,39, 179.
Buffet 362.
Butler, 157, 264, 456,
74.
Burgess, 355, 477.
Butcher, 156.
Buxton, 40, 50, 1,6; 157
65, 7-2, 4, 5; 234,
96; 346, 473, 4.
Biady, 335.
Bunten, 47".?.
Bradly, 225.

INDEX.
Bunnel, 295.
Burke, 475.
Brothswell, 234.
Burnham, 296.
Burton, 391.
Bush, 234, 435, 456.
Burch, 331.
Button, 449.
Carleton, 422.
Camp, 354, 436.
Campbell, 440.
Carteret, 39.
Carpeuter, 330.
Caner, 188, 313, 4, 6—8,
22.
Oaudee, 477.
Canfield, 230, 477.
Catorn, 99, 145.
Card, 474.
Child, 377.
Catlin, 312.
Cbampliu, 353.
Chichester, 181, 256.
Childs, 367.
Chapman, 42, 50, 1, 2,
74, 5, 8, 9; 114, 57. 75;
238, 463.
Chester, 181.
Cheoles, 145.
Cheeseman, 419.
Chocke, 178.
Clark, 17—19, 25, 9, 92;
145, 75, 6; 277, 313,30,
2; 474.
Cheson, 188.
Chaunoy, 312.
Chaoin, 273.
Charlton, 315.
Clason,51, 2;114,57-59,
62, 72, 3, 5, 91; 234, .5,
95, 6; 325, ,47; 458, 67,
9, 71.
Chaplin, 281.
Christie & Clancy, 474.
Clements, 157, 9,. 62, 72,
5, 81; 342, 91.
Clerk, 235.
Close, 53, 6, 7, 62; 160,
2; 367, 458, 68.
Clock, 181, 234, 6, 89;
322, 37, 54; ..464, 69,
72.
Cluggston, 181.
Cluney, 335.

CoDurn, 350.
Coggshall, 387.
Coe, 15, 17—20, 5, 9, 30,
49, 73, 116, 286, 303,
463.
CoggsweU, 228, 361, 2.
82.
Coggins, 235.
Cohen, 474.
Colgrave, 50.
Comstock, 290, 458, 9.
Oonklin, 181.
Connor, 356.
Copp, 158.
Cook, 271, 332, 413,, 54,
69, 474.
Cockrolt 459.
Corey, 145, 181.
Corcoran, 331.
Coleman, 235, 338.
Collins, 313.
Corkrye, 52.
Corning, 337.
Coley, 235.
Coles, 325.
Cothren, 42, 58, 282, 371,
78.
Combs, 474.
Cousin, 474.
Courtland, 087.
Cornelius, 431.
Couch, 235.
Cowles,,372. Crane, 122, 56; 477.
Countryman. 334.
Crabb, ,18— 20, 5,130, 72,
3, 81, 2, 4, 5, 7, 8;-354,
470.
Crawford, 181,-333,474.
Crombie, 474.
Crabe, 474.
Cromwell,. 191.
Crissy, 150, 8, 60, 2, 72,
3, 5, 81; 225, 57, .63,
95; 311, 37.
Cross, 28, 114, 45, 56,-8,
72, 3, 5, 81, 2, 9.
Curtis, 182, 235, 95, fi;
312, 47, 74. 7; 474.
Cummings, 337. 449, .:69.
Cunningham, 212.
Dammyer, 474.
Dan, 52, 158, 74, 5, 82;
235, 57, 63, 96; 332,
64

.486 55; 474.
Daniels, 182.
Daniel, 474.
Dauchy, 367, 450.
Davenport 13, 14, 122,
5, 9, 30, 1, 3, 4, 6-8,
47,8,70,1,3, 6,82,92.
7, 9; 200, 3, 4, 5, 10,
22, 4, 6, 8, 30, 1, 5, 56,
70—2, 95, 8, 9; 306, 11,
31, 48, 50,61,9,81—7;
431, 8, 41, 4, 6, 8, 50,
2, 9, 60, 6—71, 3, 7, 81.
DavLs, 182, 235, 90; 324,
5; 419, 74.
Daskam, 235, 436, 50, 73,
4, 7.
Day, 315, 73.
Dayton, 474, 6.
Dean. 40, 52, 4, 150, 3,
8, 74, 5, 93; 235, 312,
34, 54; 437, 59, 74.
Defreere, 235.
Dennistou, 331.
De Forest, 104, 83; 332,
74; 477.
Dennis, 354.
Deming, 31.
Delaucy, 256.
DeMill,182,7,91;257, 63
315, 19, 47.
Delavan, 182, 194.
De Vinne, 328, 32, 2.
Denton, 8, 17—19, 25, 9.
30, 3, 9, 47, 50, 2, 3, 5,
73, 117, 272—4, 80, 1;
310,470.
Dewing , 477.
Dibble, 52, 65, 145, 9,
50, 8, 72, 3, 5. 84. 8:
200, 6, 29, 35, 50. 4,
63, 7, 89, 90, 6; 316—
22, 55, 88— 91; 406, 75.
Disbrow, 52, 6, 158, 463.
Dickens, 354.
Dickinson, 358, 413.
Dix, 474.
Dixon, 183, 474.
Dowe, 477.
Downing, 74.
Drake, 419.
Drew, 1S3, 335, 69; 476.
Dwight 7, 212, 349, 82,
6, 94; 404, 9, 31, 3.

Dutrets, 183.
Dunbar. 331.
Diinbam, 157.
Dykcmsin, 333.
Dodge, 335, 446, 77.
Dogherty, 236.
Doolittle, 225.
Douglass, 431.
Drummond, 330.
Duun, 478.
Duncomb, 236.
Duggett 335.
^Eiime.s 331.
!Eai-l, 290, 326, 7.
EaKtman. 411.
Eaton, 16, 101. 8.
Elder. 336, 478.
Eldridge, 236.
Elliot, 52, 158, 64, 7;
310,
Ellis, 327.
Ellison, 52, 73.
Ellsworth, 372.
Ellwood, 474.
Ells, 151. 474.
Elton, 365.
Endicott, 284.
Eusley, 477.
Embi-ey. 99, 190.
Emeiv. 49. 183.
Evans: 328. 446.
Eye. 99.
Fairchild, 456, 74.
Fair, 478.
Fancher, 183, 354.
Faulkener, 478.
Fay, 334.
Fearing. 3.^6.
Field, 281.
Fenn, 122.
Ferguson, 350, 4. 9. 69.
FeiT'l, 64.
iFei-ris, 18, 19, 2,5, 1, 46,
i 60,8-2,9; 113, 4, 57-9,
I 62, 7.3—5. 90, 8; 214,
; 36, 58, 64, 90, 6; 313,
23—7, 33, 55, 76, 7, 80;
448, 55, 7-9, 69—71,
4.
Fessenden, 469.
Picket 474.
Finney, 236, 474.
Finch, 17-20, 5, 32, 59,
60, 147, 8, 59, 72, 4, 5,

8, 9, 82, 6, 8; 236, 95,
315, 450, 9.
Fish, 114, 354.
Fisher, 18, 19, 26, 32,
312, 31, 54, 62; 431.
Flagg, 376.
Flint, 478.
Fitch, 139, 225, 9, 36;
361, 82, 7 ; 435, 48, 9,
15, 68.
For.i, 313.
Foote, 366, 7.
Forbes, 35.i.
Fordham, 29, 52, 73,
Fosdick, 376, 478.
Foster, 236.
Forrester, 468.
Foster, 289.
Fowler, 412.
Fountain, 163, 83; 228,
56; 324, 5.
Foss, 331.
Fox, 354, 455, 74.
Frazer, 199.
Francis, 331, 3— 5; 446.
Frost 83, 211. 478.
French, 323, 54.
Freeze, 264.
Fnibust. 160.
Fuertes. 460.
Fnrgnson, 330.
Fuller, 512. 91.
Fulton, 326.
Gaffnev, 335.
Gi.Rer, 183.
Gale, 183, 296.
Gano, 323 5.
Gai-nsey, 53. 64, 126, 69,
72, 3, 5,83,90; 236, 95,
6; 330, 55; 470.
Garretson, 329, 30,
Gates. 419, 21, 2.
Gaylor, 184. 355, 472.
Gttv, 391. 2; 448, 50, 69,
71-3.
Gaylord. 270.
Gardner, 474, 8.
Gibbs. 236.
George III, 249, 59.
Garland 474.
Gibbons, 28.
Genung. 478.
Gilbert, 26-2. 313.
Gildeisletvt. 17-20, 5,

32, 68, 73, 463.
Gifford, 53, 474.
Gillespie, 408, 40, 78.
Gill, 131. 354.
Giles, 187, 402.
Giun, 350, 2.
Glendining, 351, 436.
Graves 20, 26, 32, 52,
159
Glover, 322, 33.
Gogan, 474
Gold, 155, 9, 61, 2, 5. 74,
5, 84; 359.
Goodsell, 270.
Goff, 474.
Goldy, 474.
Gould. 43, 89, 236, 70.
Gorham, 267, 472, 4, 8.
Goodyear, 74.
Gorum, 184.
Gray, 184 223.
Grey, 400.
Gothard , 331.
Green, 53, 89, 112—14,
48, 50, 9, 60, 72, 4, 5,
82, 3; 236, 346. 59; 463,
70.
Gregory. 236.
Griffet 236.
Griifin, 330, 6; 409.
Griswold, 368.
Guernsey, 329, 474.
Guire, 431.
Gutzlatf, 414.
Gwynne. 478.
Hafi; 336.
Hals, 478.
Halse-y, 337.
Haight, 355 67, 68; 475,
8:
Hall, 13, 44tj, 53, 78.
Hallock, 334, 475,
Hamilton, 232.
Haushaw, 355.
Haldeman, 47a.
H.idyn, 191.
Hancock, 418, 9, 23.
Hanford, 200, 36, 56,
64.
Hathaway, 446, 74.
Hathorn, 379.
Kaiding 454.
Hardy, 44, 53. 89, 160.
ri, 5; 470.

INDEX.
Harper, 474.
Harris, 183. 4; 337.
Hatfield, 331.
Harrison, 435.
Hawatonaman, 99.

487
Hough, 362, 94.
How, 150, 85; 230,7.47,
56; 354, 68, 79.
Howes, 258, 64,
Hoyt20, 5,6,8, 33.4,45,

Hawley, 236, 355, 73—7 ; 54, 5, 114, 24, 26, 30,
431, 5, 6, 47, 8, 65, 9, 4—40, 8, 50, 61. 2, 4.

70, 8
Heustin, 20, 5, 46, 62.
Hay, 236, 474.
Hawks, 313.
Heacock, 236.
Heuson, 333.
Higinbothum, 167, 75,
84, 5.
Hendricks, 475.
Hill, 53, 331; 447, 74.
Hibbard, 331.

6, 70, 2, 3—5, 9, 82, 3,
9, 91, 2, 5, 8, 9 ; 200,
4, 8, 14—16, 22, 8, 6—
8, 30, 3, 7, 8, 46, 8, 53,
7, 8, 64, 89. 90, 5, 6.
8, 9; 302, 7, 10, 12, 29,
47, 8. 53—5, 68, 70, 2,
i 94—401, 6, 13, 36, 7.
9, 40—50, 7, 8, 60, 4—
72, 4, 8, 9, 81.
Hughes, 161.

Hinman, 13, 27, 223, 6. iHubbel, 238.
Hoadley, 12, 110. Huchins, 354.

Hobart, 295.
Hine, 236.
Hillyer, 334.
Hobbv, 160, 61, 85; 237,
455. 74, 8.
Hickox, 184, 346.
Hieks, 315.
Henry, 447.
Higgins, 325.
Hitchcock, 334.

Hubbard, 36. 179. 85;
315, 60— 3; 403, 75, 8.
Hull. 185. 224.
Hunt, 54. 140, 296, 330.
Hutton, 185, 200, 22, 3,
8, 31, 8; 471.
Hyde, 18, 322, 478.
Hurd, 238.
Hurlbutt 192, 350, 67;
475.

Husted, 35, 49, 53, 82, Hutchinson, 285.
200, 56, 95, 6; 312, 33.1Huntington, 350, 61, 8.
435. 71. 9, 82, 6; 449.
Hedden, 236. Humphrey, 446, 7, 60.
Holden, 354. Ilnsersol, 145, 85, 206,
Hepburn, 327. 38, 9.

Holly, 33, 42, 5, 51, 5,
9, 61, 2, 99, 114, 24,
6, 31, 4, 5, 60, 1, 7,
71-4,95, 9, 200, 4. 13,
27, 37; 56- H. 62, 4, 74,
5, 89, 95, 6; 315, 16,
19, 36, 45—7, 53—5,
63, 5 — 8, 75, 6, 93,
411. 25, 36, 9, 40,
3, 7, 8, 51, 3, 60, 3, 6,
Q  rj2 4 5 8
Holmesi 42, 53, 4, 9, 126, Jervis, 238.
57. 60—2, 74, 5, 94; Jenkins, 478.
214. 37; 325, 6, 67; Jarvis, 185, 206, 14, 15,
401, 72, 8. 22. 3, 4. 52, 63, 5; 319,
HoUister, 37. 22;448, 72, 3.
Hopkins, 312 Jessup, 17—19, 26, 36,
'Hook, 478. 54, 110, 475.

Ingraham, 478.
Inslee, 478.
Jackson, 54, 62, 73, 161,
238
Jacklin, 183.
Jacob, 330.
Jacobs, 475.
Jaquelin, 478.
Jagger, 17—19, 25, 35, 6,
64, 78, 9,96, 161,2. 66.
74.

488

IKDEX.

Jeffrey, 186, 360.
Jenkioson, 207.
Jennings, 238, 310, 475.
Jerman, 475.
Jointer, 186.
Jones, 34, 54, 5, 62, S4
114, 25—7, 52, 62, 74,
91; 217, 29, 30, 8, 56,
66, 75, 6. 89, 95; 310,
14, 53; 448, 54, 69, 72,
5, 8.
Johnson, 238, 314, 22, 3,
54, 91; 475.
Jovis, 145,^214.
June, 136, 62. 73, 4; 226,
38; 325, 46, 53, 71, 5.
Judd, 321, 2, 75; 453.
Judson, 151, 3, 85, 6
295.
Karman, 55, 73.
Kakenond, 145.
Kinney, 239, 312, 13;
406.
Kenuedv, .337, .475.
Kelsey, '386.
Kellogg, 289.
Kieth, 368,455.
Keeler, 40, 230, -39; -353,
436, 75.
Ketcham, 186, 475, S.
Keil't, 39, 103.
Kettletas, 301, 10.
Kid, 176.
Kilborne, 36, 276, 7.
Kmg, 186, -314, -33, 4;
468.
Kimball, 186.
iKirk, 475.
Kirkham,-315.
Kitchel. 156.
Knapp, 51, 5,.:6; 134, 45,
58, 62, 3, 74, 5,-86, 90;
200, 4. 24, 6,:30,.9, 89,
90, 5, 6; 306, 14, 15,
30, 47, 54, 5, .95; 413,
29, 35, 41, -50, .67, 70,
1, 5.
Knight, 169, 364.
Lacon, 452 .
Lareson, 56, 61.
Layfayette, 235,; 46, 7.
Larkin, 302,-54.
Lamson, 317.
Lathrop, 328.

Law, 17—20, 2, 5, 35, 6,
49, 51, 9, 60, 2, 3, 75
6, 81, 88—90,2,5-99,
110, 22, 4, 6, 64, 5, 74
92; 274, 76— 8; 455, 7.
8, 63, 70, 2.
Lavender, 450.
Layton, 431.
Lawrence, 43, 113, 62,
74, 86; 350, 73,
Learning, 321, 91.
Leavitt 394.
Lee, 224, 39; 328, 30, 2;
417.
Little, 239, 327, 54.
Littlewood, 333.
Leeds, 162, 86, 7; 213,
57, 65, 6, 89, 96; 337
55, 77 ; 401 — 3, 35
6, 47, 8, 50, 2, 69, 71
5.
Lines, 188, 239.
Lincoln, 377.
Lindsay, 239.
Leete, 88, 122.
Lehigh, 475.
Lewis, 188, 257, .66, 90
303, 12.
Leverett, 61.
Lloj'd, 187, 8; 222, 39;
.318—20, 62.
Lockwood, 31, 50, 6, 7,
156, 62, 3, 5, 72, 4, 5,
81, 8; 204, 5, 14—16,
23, 4, 6, 8, 9, 39, 40,
89, 90, 6; 304, 6, 7, 14,'
15, 25, 9,-55, 62, 5, 7,
70, 1, .93, 4; 403, 24,
35, 6, 9, 45, 6, -50, -60,
7-9, 71, 2, 5, 8.
Loder, 188, 239, 66.
Lounsbury, 162, 88; 223,
30, 40, 57, 66, S9, 95,
6; 334, 47, 55; 418, 27,
54, 69, 72, 5.
Longwell, 188, ,325.
Longstreet ¦431.
Lucas, 178, 253.
Lovejoy, ,331.
Lord, 460.
Ludlow, 101,-8.
Luokey, 330.
Lownds, 475.
Lum, 20, 5, 36, 475.

Lyman, 372, 461.
Lyon, 57, 60, 156, 453.
Lyons, 256.
Mackay, 228.
Maguire, 333.
Magie, 312.
Mahackeno, 1.
Manin, 99.
Manning, 325.
Mamaiema, 96.
Maltby, 137, 39, 50, 88;
200,70, 1,95,8, 9; 346,
81, 2; 444, 65, 6, 71.
Marsden, 478.
Mason, 91, 240, 84; 323,
99; 443.
Marshall, 84,5, 188; 214,
469, 72.
Mather, 28, 37, 148, 51;
204, 11, 12, 15, 18, 27,
30, 40, 54, 6, 69, 72, 3,
8, 9, 90, 6; 303, 10, 11,
54; 403—6, -35, 68, 72,
5.
Martin, 57.
Marvin, 226, 449.
Mathews, 189, 315,428,
52, 75.
Maquano, 102, 4.
Maynard,-312.
Mead, 13, 19, 25, 37, 53,
S, 60, 1, 89, 153, 63,
4,- 81; 240, 56, 75—7;
325, 32, 55, 6; 406, .61.
Massasoit, 111.
Matthias, 331.
Meeker, 240, .377, 449,
472.
Messenger, 312.
McCurtis, 240.
McDonald, .377, 423.
Men-it 266,,=406, 75,-8.
McCoun, 475.
McCullum, 312.
McKenzie, .478.
Meggs, 90.
Middlefield, 234.
McLaughlin, 468.
Merwin, 163.
MedhiSrst, 414.
Middlebrooks, 189.
McQuhae, 475.
Miller, 20, 5, 37, 55, 61,
4, 145, 63, 73; -325, 469,

72 5
Mills, 57—9, 62, 99, 150,
1, 63, 74, 5, 8, 83; 240,
66; 314, 435, 68, 73.
Milne, 336, 478.
Mitchel, 17—22, 5, 37, 8.
40, 2, 58, 60, 9; 278—
82, 6; 321, 2, 77; 416,
31, 46, 63, 70.
Miner, 316-18.
Moffatt, 478.
Minor, 366, 70, 1, 6, 7,
92; 402, 35, 6, 46, 7, 9,
61, 8, 9, 71.
Morehouse, 18, 19, 26,
32, 8, 53, 9, 150, 51,
96; 227, 310, 469, 70, 2.
Mockea, 99.
Moen, 336, 59, 67.
Morewood, 459.
Monson, 333. ^
Moore, 334, 475.
Morgan, 406, 75, 6.
Morgans, 449, 69, 70.
Moriarty, 228, 331.
Monroe, 475.
Morris, 58, 271, 303, 25,
7, 81—2; 475.
Morine, 315.
Morrison, 476.
Mountcalm, 354. '
Mott 178, 89; 407,
Mowbray, 478.
Munn, 478.
Munday, 225.
Munson, 185.
Mj'gatt, 230.
Nash, 331, 54.
Newman, -20, 5, 33, 8, 9,
58, 9, 61. 78, 9, 87, 8,
* Wi, 24, 6, 46, 60, 3,
74, 5, 80; 240, 55, 66,
89(^5, 70, 6. '
Nesbitt, 478.
Newton, 46, 357. ,.
Nichols, 240, 60. 1, 8, 9,
90, 315, 31. 55; 440, 73.
6, 81.
Nicholson, 82.
Niles, 224.
Northend, 17—19, 25.
Norton. 189.
Nott, 18.
Northrup, 240.

INDEX.
Nowattonnamanssqua,9!Oakley, 331.
O'Callaghan, 104.
Odell, 240, 354.
Ogden, 20, 2, 5, 36, 9
73, 179.
Oldren, 331.
Oldham, 33.
Olmstead, 240, 333, 77;
412, 36.
Olineson. 59,
Oliver, 42, 59, 85, 163
O'Neil, 335.
Osboi-n. 189.
Onax, 97—9, 103.
Ostrander, 331.
Otey, 407.
Owenoke, 95.
Paharron, 98.
Pohoiues, 99.
Palmer, 185, 9, 91; 289,
356,472,6.
Pangburn, 241.
Papakuma. 99.
Parker, 327.
Park, 224,
Parsons, 241.
Pardu,189,449.
Patchin, 241.
Pardy , 190.
Patch, 296.
Parrot, 241.
iPayne, 476.
'Perry, 190, 313, 435
48,50,69.
Percival, 365, 67.
Peltou,190. Peat, 241.
Parketon, 143, 89.
Paradi.se, 478.
Papiamak, 99.
Pairick, 104.
Peabody, 313.
Pearce, 440.
Pearson, 20. 6. 39, 60.
Pemgaton, 96.
Penoyer, 53, 8 —
114, 63, 64; 174,
191, 289, 347.
Pettit 51, 9, 60, 137,
145, 50, 63, 73, 75,
180, 89, 311, 437, 70.
Philip, 111.
Penehay, 98, 99.

489
Pengban, 150.
Picket 161, 224, 52, 66.
Pierson, 73, 121, 56,
312
Pine, 20, 24, 25, 39.
Pitt, 446, 50, 78.
Piamikin, 95, 6, 8, 102.
Pond, 163, 75, 90,
Pope, 20, 5, 39.
Porter, 331, 429.
Potter, 58,00, 163.
Potts, 143, 53, 90, 295,
98, 334.
Prigter, 157.
Prudden, 50, 269.
Prince, 13.
Price, 476.
Prior, 461.
Punnett, 323.
Page, 472.
Periment, 157.
Peck, 241,314, 450, 76.
Peterson, 82.
Peters, 376.
Phelps, 72, 106, 7, 57.
Phihps, 190.
Phillips, 456.
Phyffe, 365.
Platt, 190,311,13.
Playford, 476.
Plum, 33.
Pomeroy, 385, 6.
Ponus, 1,94, 5,7,8.
Porter, 478.
Powahay, 97— 9, 102,9.
Powers, 190, 241,56.
Powelson, 476.
Provost, 190, 241, 354,
55,6; 406,69,72—4,6.
Purdy, 190, 224, 41.
Putnam, 209, 27, 39
Pynchon, 281.
Quintard, 179, 90, 1 ;
241, 50, 66,89, 92;
315, 60, 3, 4 ; 406—8,
48, 56, 78, 82.
Quimby, 165.
Katoliff, 63, 4 ; 164.
Eadcliff'e, 369.
Eaymond, 150,53; 241,
53 ; 310, 13, 32 ; 405,
72.
Eaynor, 17—20, 2—5,
40,67,9,72,470.

490

INDEX.

Eead, 476.
Eeed, 150, 51, 91 ; 200,
29, 41, 56, 89, 90 ;
310, 11, 29, 30,54 ;
408, 35, 50, 3, 4, 69.
72, 6.
Eamhorn, 99.
Eeardon, 476.
Eedfield, 224.
Eedding, 478.
Eenohoctan, 99.
Eehoron, 109.
Eeynolds, 18, 9, 25, 40,
164, 275, 313, 322,
4, 5, 30, 3, 5; 464, 69,
71.
Eenoude, 24, 476.
Ehodes, 478.
/Rider, 181, 342.
Eickard, 478.
Eiker, 450, 78.
Eivis, 60.
Eice, 351.
Eich, 164. 91.
Eitch, 336, 50 ; 446, 7,
61 9 72 3
Eich'ards,"'l5'0, 91, 226,
241, 310, 21 ; 409, 76.
Eight 145.
Eig^s, 315.
Eoberts, 164, 91, 3; 295,
6; 315, 35, 69, 72.
Eo-jers, 225, 66; 322,
31, 54; 448.
Eock, 164.
Eobins, 402, 78.
Kobinson. 336.
Eobertson, 322; 55.
RoekwrU, 20, 25, 40, 45,
60; 164, 366, 447, 61,
71, 6.
Eouse, 327. 28.
Eoyoe, 365.
Eose, 37, 165, 353.
Eoss, 333.
Eowelson, 354.
Bugg, 49, 60.
Eowel, 324.
Kimdall, 315.
Haltoustall, 55.
Sabine, 262, 3, 8.
Sands, 367, 472.
Schlocker, 476.
Sackett 478.

Sanford, 153,' 230, 353,
448, 50, 2, 69,
Saunders, 241 ; 53,476.
Seiring, 20, 6,41, 72.
Scofield, 20, 5, 41, 53,
55, 61, 62, 84, 94; 131,
4, 5, 50, 63, 4, 6, 7,
71—5, 8, 81, 3, 8,
91; 204, 24, 5, 8, 41,
2, 50, 6, 7, 66, 89, 90,
5, 6 ; 309 — 13. 21,
2, 4, 5, 9; 334, 47, 52,
4, 5, 71, 9; 401, 6, 36,
48, 50, 3, 4, 61, 8, 72, 5,
O Q
Savage, 13, 42, 43, 55,
9, 278.
Sawyer, 334.
Seabury, 188, 391.
Satterlee, 447, 52.
Seaman, 17, 18, 19, 26,
41, 331.
Searls, 301, 472.
Seeley, 37, 55, 6, 61,
114. 45, 47, 8, 64, 73-
5; 205, 14, 42, 56, 7,
9. 66, 7, 89, 90; 312,
30, 5, 54; 403, 48, 9,
61, 70—3, 8.
Sedgwick, 61.
Secor, 406.
Scott, 242, 404, 5, 26.
36, 48.
Seguin, 101.
Segotah, 145.
Selleok, 89, 99, UO, 4,
26, 7, 9, 30, 4, 5, 50,
1. 8, 63, 4, 5, 72, 4—
6, 8, 84, 90,2 , 3; 200,
10, 24, 42, 3, 57, 66,
70, 7, 8, 89 ; 310, 30,
2, 3, 5, 42, 55, 6-8,
61, 3, 4, 5, 70—2.
Scribner, 354.
Schuyler, 421—3.
Sequassen, 101.
Sewall, 280.
Seymour, 148.
Shallenburg, 354.
Share, 243.
Shaw, 365, 406, 76.
Sheddon, 366.
Shepard, 165, 280, 303,
12.

Shephdrd, 393.
Shelp, 243.
Shelton, 373.
Sherman, 17, 18, 19, 25,
38, 41, 42, 53, 58, 138.
Sherwood, 9, 61, 183,
243, 3.M. 55, 476.
Siblev, 333, 334.
Simkins, 17, 18, 19, 26,
42, 165
SiUimau, 227, '50, 476.
Simpson, 367.
Simorn, 99.
Skeldin:?, 165, 92, 95,
243, U7. 409, 10, 48,
50, 61, 78.
Skiddy, 356, 406. 46,' 78.
Smingo, 99.
SneUiag, 478
Sloan, 478.
Skinner. 387.
Sniffin, 244, 355. 356
Spra-<ue, 278, 396, 405
—6.
Slason, 20, 6. 7. 43, 51,
62, 81, 90, 6. 9, 119,
31, 6 4, 8, 50 -1, 61,
5, 72-5; 201, 15, 8,
24, 9, 43, 67 ; 311, 31,
2, 54, 63, 71.
Starr, 200. 53 ; 449.
Slayde, 296.
St John, 192, 241, 455
69.
Steele, 331.
Slater, 476,
Southerland, 315.
Stebbins, 331, 478.
Spaulding, 477,
Stevenson, 477.
Smit,)i, 17-20, 5, 6, 43,
58, 136, 46, 56, 65, 74,
5, 83, 6 ; '205, 15, 18,
23, 8, 9, 43, 4. 56, 61,
7, 89—92, 6; 302, 3. 9,
10, 3. 9, 24, 5, 7, 8,
30, 2, 5, 54, 5, 8, 64,
94; 410 — 13, '26, 30,
40, 8, 50, 4, 62, 8, 9,
71, 2, 6, 8.
Stevens, 20. 5, 44, 61.
2, 114, 45, 7, 8, 65, 74,
5 ; 244, 57, 67. 89, 95 ;
332, 54, 5, 70 ; 401 , 13,

»

INDEX.

491

5, 35, 57, 68, 9, 71, 7.
Steward, 62, 224.
Stone, 175, 93, 224, 7,
67, 465, 73.
Stewart 244.
Stickney, 478.
Stuart, 193.
Stearns, 331.
Stokey, 62, 165, 6.
Stur«es.s 193, 250, 96,
338.
Swain, -22. 3, 44.
Standish, 402.
Story, 131, -2, 4.
Street 354, 65, 436.
Swead, 20, 5, 44.
Starr, 478.
Stottlar, 476.
Stivers, 445. '
Studwell, 82, 193, 355,
455, 77.
Syming.s, 62.
Swords, 244.
.-Murdivaut, 193.
Stevenson, 477.
Sumner, 431.
Sticlmey, 327.
Strowbridge, 478.
Sutton. 3-24.
Strickland, 354.
Swartwout, 366, 478.
Tail) tor, 62.
Talbot 320, 8, 30 -32,
Talcott, 32, 108, 385.
Taff. 446,
Talmadg.-. 147, 8, 93,
227, -370, 478.
Taylor, 63, 166, 406,
77, S
Ta,(-kerbni-v. 331.
Tatlock. 322.
Taphance, 98, 9, 109.
Teller, 313, 67.
Tenn.mt, 145.
I'eunent, 384.
Thomas, 331, 65.
Tibbet 354.
Ttiompson, 13, 32, 186,
93, 244, 330, 475.
Thorpe, 268, 301.
Teiifany. 468.
TOe.d. 63, 4. 89, 126,
45, 64, 6, 74 ; 463, 4,
70.

Thurston, 310.
Tillman, 406.
Thorp 193.
Tillinghast 396.
Timlos, 313.
Tomoyou, 145.
Tohonacogyah , 145.
Todd, 193, 245, 321, 2,
334, 485-7, 54, 77.
Toquatus, 97, 109.
Trahern, 175.
Traphagen, 453, 4.
Town, 20, 6, 44, 224.
Toucey, 477.
Tryon, 193, 232, 245.
Townsend, 263.
Treat 40, 6.
Trowbridge, 169, 330,68
478.
Trumbull, 12, 3, 210,
382, 420, 67.
Triaea, 477.
Tucker, 268, 354, 67.
Turner, 15. 82, 94, 7—9,
1.54. 75, '225, 366.
Turk. 366.
Turkintou, 477.
Tin-ney 33, 129, 73—5,
93, 325.
Twiss, 334.
Tuttle, 29, 43, 151, 310.
Tw-imbly, 337.
Tyler, 325, 35.
Uttert. 166.
Uffet 63, 4..
Uncles, 477.
Underhill, 20, 3, 5, 7, 8,
44. 68, 9, 71, 104—6,
282 -7, 463.
Uncas 108.
Usher, 35, 6, 61, 4, 89,
90, 166. 78, 463.
Ustic, 325.
Valentine, 330, 477.
Van Nostrand, 328, 30.
Van Name, 478.
Varlior, 82.
Vinton, 478.
Voorhies, 477, 8.
Wadsworth, 4'20.
Wal.sh. 194, 451.
Waiihebrough, 72
Wallace, 472.
White. 94, 482.

Walter, 298,
Warner, 336, 478.
Wai-reu, 350, 4, 442,47,
53, 69, 78.
Watts, 298.
Ward, 15,7—20, 5,44,5
67—9, 95, 6, 116, 224,
86, 463, 70.
Watson, 401.
Wardwell, 194, 245, 330,
441, 6, 71, 7.
Wardell, 354, 453, 78.
Waring, 145, 50, 94, 5,
205, 23, 6, 7, 45, 90,
6, 310, 20, 32, 64, 453,
71.
Waterbury, 42, 58, 9,
64, 5, 81, 6, 114, 30,
4, 6, 45, 48, 50, 8, 60,
3, 5-7, 72, 3—5, 184,
5, 96, 8 ; 200, 3, 5, 9,
13, 4, 22—4, 9, 30, 2,
4, 40, 5, 6, 8, 68, 89,
90. 5, 6 ;304, 7, 8, 10,
22, 9, 30, 7, 47, 53, 5;
417, 4, 35, 63, 4, 7, 8—
72, 7.
Wassasary, 96.
Waters, 194, 245.
Waugh, 436.
Webb, 39, 49, 60, 5, 78,
89, 113, 4, 24, 34, 6,
66, 7, 74, 6, 88, 9, 9 1,
3, 5. 8, 9 ; 200, 3, 5,
8, 9, 14, 22-4, 7, 9',
32, 8, 46, 52, 6, 89,
95, 96; 321, 5, 7, 47,
51, 5, 64,5,93; 424—6,
50, 53, 62, 6, 7, 70, 1,
3, 7.
Webster, 52, 65, 6 ; 145,
74, 6, 81, 93.
Weed, 20, 6, 33, 40, 5,
58; 113, 6, 29—31, 36
—8, 45, 50, 3, 66, 7,
73—6, 83, 4, 8, 90, 3,
8; 200, 1, 5,18,22—4,
6, 8, 9, 46, 8, 56, 67.
8, 89, 90, 2, 5, 6, 9;
300, 10, 12, 16, 22, 9,
31, 7, 46, 7, 54—6;
408, 23, 5—31, 5, 46,
62, 4-73, 7, 8.
Weekes, 17, 18, 19, 26,

492

INDEX.

22, 6; 477, 8.
Whitfield, 384.
Whitmore, 18—20, 5, 32,
46, 68; 108—10, 463,
70.
Whiting, 150, 89, 95;
223, 28, 9, 48, 89, 96;
323, 405, 78.
Whitehead, 328.
Whistler, 399.
Wicks, 477.
Wilkes, 95.
Wildman, 378, 69.
Wix, 214.
Willard, 312.
'Wilkinson, 43.
Williams, 270, 292, 322,
351, 95; 412, 15, 46,
8, 62, 77.
'Willet, 50, 269.
Willcox, 351.
Williamson, 195.
Wmtbro)), 55, 91, 448.
IWilcox, 478, 82.
Wetmore, 315, 16, 22; Windle, 376
434. Winchel, 324, 325.
Whituev, 194, 251, 68;, Wilson, 195, 206; 314,
311, 45.3, 69, 77. 24, 63—5.
White, 145, 94, 5 ; 200, Winters. 472.
•5. 48. 90. 48, 90; 312, Wilmot, 195, 472,

45, 46, 52; 248, 310,
330, 354, 355, 431, 52.
Washington, 227, 34. 5,
9, 61 ; 382; 420, 4.
Welch, 394, 462.
Welles, 12, 125, 40, 1;
203, 27, 94, 7, 8; 301,
12, 24—6, 9, 76; 433,
4.
Welpley, 333.
Whelpley, 325, 387, 462.
Wescot 34, 40, 5; 113,
45, 74, 84, 94; 464,
70.
Wbeelright284.Wescu.ssue, 1, 94. 8; 102.
Wheelock. 270, 462.
Wesley, 331.
Weston, 478.
Wheaton, 186, 95
48; 322, 452.
Wequacumak, 99,
Wheeler. 194, 347, 477,
H.

223,

Wilmoth 354.
Wood, 17-9, 24—6, 47,
9, 73; 162, 76; 200, 81;
354, 71—73, 98 ;462,
9, 77
Woodbui-v, 462.
Wolfe, 198.
Woods. 412.
Wolcott 312, 440.
Woodbridge, 421 .
Woolsey, 169, 248, 331,
434, 40.
Woodman, 477.
Wooster. 196, 200. 23,
5, 45, 57.
Worden, 315. 31.
Wright 45. 125, 38-40,
8, 51, 3. 94; 296; 310,
31, 363; 478.
Woeltge, 477.
Wyatt, 167. 95.
Wyllis, 91.
Yates, 47, 73.
Yannayo. 145.
Young, 222. 3, 6, 48, 56;
314. 34; 467, 7H,
Yonncs. 167; 76, 222;
.318, 24; 426.

YALE UNIVERSITY

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