A Catalogue of the Names of the First Puritan Settlers of the Colony of Connecticut

Strong, Rev, Nathan. His father early moved from Windsor to Woodbury, where the Rev. Nathan was born in 1710. He first learned the trade of a house joiner, but afterwards graduated at Yale College in 1742, immediately after he studied theology with the Rev. Mr. Graham, of Southbury, who preached his ordination sermon. He was ordained in Coventry in 1745, immediately after the church was formed there. He died in 1795, in the 51st year of his ministry. He married the daughter of the Rev. Mr. Meacham, and a grand daughter of the Rev. John Williams, of Deerfield, who was taken captive by the Indians. Some of the first settlers of Coventry under Mr. Strong," were, Nathaniel Kingsbury, John Fowler, Noah and Benjamin Car- penter, Joseph Long, Amos Richardson, Aaron Strong, Ebenezer Brown, John Hackings, John Craw or Crow, Timothy Ladd, Jona- than Shepard, Elijah Hammond, James Hotchkins, and others. The father of Rev. Nathan who moved to Woodbury, was the 14th child in his father's family. Rev. Nathan, of Coventry, was the father of Rev. Drs. Nathan, of Hartford, and Joseph, of Norwich. There are yet at Woodbury several families by the name of Strong, all descend, ants of John, of Windsor. After 1717, Eleazer and Supply Strong moved from Windsor to Litchfield. Rev. Nathan was a liueal descend, ant of John, of VVindsor, who moved to Northampton. A Catalogue of the Families who emigrated to Massachusetts, in 1659, f7'om Connecticut, "At a meeting at Goodman Ward's house in Hartford, April 18, 1659, the company there met, engaged themselves, under their own hands, or by their deputies, whom they had chosen, to remove them- selves and their families out of the jurisdiction of Connecticut, into the jurisdiction of Massachusetts, as may appear in a paper dated the day and year abovesaid. The names of the engagers are these : John Webster, William Goodwin, John Crow, Nathaniel Ward, John White, John Barnard, Andrew Bacon, William Lewis, Wilham Westwood, Richard Goodman, John Arnold, William Patrigg, Greg- 159 ory Wilterton, Thomas Standley, Samuel Porter, Richard Church, Ozias Goodwin, Francis Barnard, James Ensign, George Steele, John Marsh, Robert Webster, William Lewis, jr., Nathaniel Standley, Sam- uel Church, William Markum, Samuel Moody, Zechariah Field, Wid. Westly, Wid. Watson, Andrew Warner, Mr. John Russell, jr., Na- thaniel Dickinson, Samuel Smith, Thomas Coleman, Mr. John Russel, sen'r., John Dickinson, Philip Smith, John Coleman, Thomas Wells, James Northam, Samuel Gardner, Thomas Edwards, John Hubbard, Thomas Dickinson, Robert Boltwood, Samuel Smith, jr., William Gull, Luke Hitchcock, Richard Montague, John Latimer, Peter TU- ton, John Watson, Richard Billing, Benjamin Harbert, Edward Ben- ton, John Catling, Mr. [Samuel] Hooker, Capt. Cullick, not fully en- gaged, Daniel Warner." Of the 60 names on ihe foregoing list, about one-fourth part never removed to Hadley, and several that did remove returned to Connect, icut again some years after. The names of a number that did remove are not on this list. ADVERTISEMENT. The three Numbers, of which this is the last, is designed to give the information to those who possess any curiosity to learn the first of the name who came into the Colony of Connecticut. When it is known who the first progenitor was, there is little difficulty in tracing their ancestry. With most men there exists an anxiety to learn some- thing of those of the same blood who had preceded them, and had aided in building up, and were the pioneers of this great and mighty republic, which has now become one of the three most powerful gov- ernments of the world. There will be a satisfaction in recognizing our first ancestor — in learning from whence he came — where he was first located, and his condition and character in life, in this country. If he was poor and homely, so much the more are you indebted to him, for abandoning, the land of his nativity, his friends, and all that he held dear, (except his religion) to come to this gloomy wilderness, inhabited only by wild beasts and savage men, where for many years their lives were never safe even with their arms in their hands, and the sweet sleep they had enjoyed in childhood had become a stranger to their eyelids. It will not be forgotten that all these dangers were suffered for you. Since my attention has been particularly called to this subject, I have often been astonished to find so many of the intel- Hgent inhabitants of the State so perfectly destitute of information of their genealogy ; indeed, I conversed with one gentleman, of whom I enquired the name of his great grand father and where he resided— he looked at me with a sort of surprise, and remarked, " Really, Sir, I never thought I had any ancestor previous to my grand father," and was unable to even give the name or place of residence of his grand father. Thought I, a poor reward this for the hardships of his ances- tor — and my informant was a gentleman of $80,000. Nothing is required to find much of every man's ancestry, but patience, persever- 160 ance and industry in collecting them from the early records and papers %vhich have been preserved for 200 years. My object at first Avas to publish only a list of the names of the Puritans who came to Connecticut during the first 30 years, from 1635 to IGOo, while Connecticut stood alone, before the Union of the New Haven Colony with Connecticut ; but believing it would be more in- teresting by adding little historical scraps to names, and giving short biographical sketches of persons, I have done so with as much accu- racy as possible. To those who are familiar with the labor of such a work, I need not say, that much time has been bestowed upon these three small pamphlets, as well as considerable money advanced in so imperfectly giving it to the public. Errors there will be, but when it is considered that the numerous facts here collected are drawn from the half obliterated records, imperfectly kept 200 years since, depend- ing mostly upon the colony record, I trust that such errors will be ex. cused until those who find them shall attempt to better the work by their own personal exertions. No towns are included in this compi- lation, but such as were at some time before 1665 within the jurisdic- tion of Connecticut. There probably at no period of time was ever as many respectable and educated men emigrated from any country, as from England, to Virginia, Massachusetts and Connecticut from 1635 to 1665 — men who were neither inferior to their successors in fervent piety, patriotism, learning, or in sterling integrity. There were, it is true, many needy and avaricious adventurers who quit their coun- try, hoping to better their condition in life ; and the fate of time and accident, by the equal laws of our country, has placed the successors of some of the most wealthy of the original pioneers, in humble pov- erty, while the successors of the most humble emigrants are now found surrounded with every comfort and in the highest walks of life. This is the fate of idleness on the one hand, and persevering industry on the other, in most cases. Where the names of families are mentioned, they may perhaps differ from some aftcient family records, as some of them are taken from town books, while others are taken from the records of Probate — the former contains all the births, while the Pro- bate record mentions only such as were living at the decease and dis- tribution of the estate of the head of the family. Dates in the ancient records of the colony are difficult to procure with accuracy, as wills often are without date, as are inventories of estates. Not only so, some may be misled in supposing dates incorrect, from the fact, that the first settlers commenced the year on the 25th day of March, in- stead of the first day of January, and the records for many years are so dated, and time thus divided. Only 500 copies have been printed in this edition. The language used in describing the facts attached to names, is usually the language, if not the words of the record. HB !• ^ ^*, ERRATA. W " For " Hon. Henrv For " Hon. Henrj Wolcott, the first of Windsor," on page 108, 12th line irora bottom, read. Gov'rs. Winthrop, Welles and Webster. On page 94, the 5ih line from bottom, read Doct. Charles P., instead oi" ^. Welles. The Errata for the Three Numbers will be published in the next Number. ^^ . .0^ . 0' .V O * •V.V ^ • %.^" • 'b V^ ■a,* ««■ ^^ ^^ - A 0' ,G^ O 'o . » - A, ^^ - « * o, •^^ ^\ ''tt. A^ ♦V ^^ o « 0 , o ^ lAY 72 ^.•;^,'\, .-^^ .'J^*^^^ ,o^.---'- ^o_ «^~ST. AUGUSTINE ' ^'^'^^ * ^>* ^-^ oV'^Wl'- "^ « I, FLA. ' 7-f^^: OV .''^^K.. -^O' ..Si^gm.-/'' -c mi..^. w,^^; ^-; 4 o^ '^, LIBRARY OF CONGRESS f ;;!■?- 0 014 075 746 9 *» *» " ^ ^??^lJil